Fantasy Are you tired of sipping Crab Coladas? (Pirate RP) (Always Open)

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Mess Hall​

"Ora, I need you to go over to Elaina."
Ora wasn't paying attention. She was focused on something intently, most likely deep in thought as she was still and looking down at the table she was sitting at. She perked up when she heard her name. "Go over to Elaina? Why?"
Sebas nodded. "As Ferg said, this can be dangerous."
"Forgive me, I wasn't listening." The deeply apologetic tone spoke of a high regard for manners and appearance of good personality within Pisceans. "I promise I wasn't ignoring you."
"Didn't miss much," Sebas said, brushing off the need for apology, "Ferg is about to tell me some information she determined you shouldn't hear. Either go over to Elaina or remove your Trace Relic."
"I'll be with Elaina." She said this without hesitation and got up pretty quickly

Ora stood up and walked across the Mess Hall and greeted Elaina and her group. Turning back to Ferg, Sebas shrugged. "While she's willing to remove it, she gets uncomfortable when everyone around her suddenly starts speaking scribbles. Relatable." Still, it served the same effect of keeping the words out of her mind. "Plus, regardless of if she understands what you say, unless you're about to say some words of power, her simply being around would put her in danger." Words of Power were basically words imbued with magic. Incantations, words to curse/bless, forced commands, magic hymns/songs, etc. If Ferg was about to tell him some dangerous information, Ora not understanding wouldn't save her if the one that could kill them saw her sitting there while it was said. If she was there while it was said, the logical assumption is that she listened and understood

"Anyways, what is this info?" he said, getting back on subject, leaning in and kind of lowering his voice. "If you fear someone overhearing, we can head to my room." Since Ferg hasn't earned her own room yet, that was about as private as this Mess Hall.
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Fergie watched Ora retreat to Elaina's table, then scanned the mess hall in its entirety, catching no flickering gazes or suspicious gestures. So far. "I'll keep it simple," she whispered, keeping her gaze on her almost emptied cup. The real danger was in the details; just knowing about fishy business wasn't enough to warrant a target on his back. Not the same as Fergie's. "Looks that way 'cause it is that way. When the Ballasts disbanded, half cut all ties and went their own ways. The other half? Got a whole network across the north. Further than that, now. Sailin' under many flags, working alone but loyal to one name." It could be assumed that their forces has spread to the far corners of the world, but Fergie wasn't about to divulge where or who. "Thought nosin' in would send me right to the Commodore's feet. Ended up on Dead Man's Isle instead." Her grip on her cup tightened, a deep scowl furrowing her brows. "Guess she'd rather keep her secret safe than settle our score."

It was a great insult, sending lackeys to do away with her instead of taking matters into her own hands. It wasn't cowardice, she knew the woman too well. No, it was something worse. Apathy. A complete lack of concern of those days past, a willingness to toss an old enemy aside rather than finish what was started. "Bitch thinks she can get rid of me that easy? Pah, she's got another thing comin'." She looked up at Sebas. "Why I gotta lay low. If she thinks I'm dead, the others 'll be lax. Got an even better chance of squeezin' info outta 'em. Find her meself, and take care of business."

The mess was given another look over, and she bristled, though at nothing in particular. "All I can say. Don't want ye gettin' wrangled into this mess."

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Mess Hall​

"Ppsshh," Sebas said, "The moment you're recognized under the Basenji flag is the moment this entire ship is wrangled into this mess. If it gets back to her, she may just be pining for a rematch." He finished it with a chuckle. Then he leaned forward with a sigh. "In all seriousness, I'm not gonna actively butt into your business, but if you're in imminent danger, it's my business whether or not you like it......ESPECIALLY while on the Canine." At that point, Ferg was his subordinate so her life ultimately reflected on him as a captain. "......and if I'm involved, Ora's not far behind."

------------------------------------------------

Land-spotting

"LAAAAAAND HOOOOOOH!"

The announcement projected throughout the entire ship, and the Mess Hall erupted in cheers. They were scheduled to dock at noon, but Adonis was WAY off so he probably did what he usually did after a projection and sped things along a bit using ship mages to push it faster through the waves, as if the time he was given to get to dock was a challenge to beat said time. "Guess we'll have to end it here," he said with a loud voice. They couldn't possibly carry on their conversation in the midst of all this monkey screeching.
A cat jumped on his shoulder.....well THE cat jumped on his shoulder. "Take me out of here, please," he whined in Sebas's ear
Ora was not far behind, the look on her face giving off the same sentiment. She was covering up her ears
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

"Shit..." Fergie felt herself turning pale. It hadn't occurred to her until Sebas brought it up. If the Ballasts had past grievances with the Basenjis, there was a decent chance the Commodore would take the opportunity to serve her revenge. In their heyday, the Ballasts could freely bully whoever they wanted so long as they were within range, an opportunity that they gleefully took when it suited them. Now, scattered about as they were, they hardly had the resources to waste on the friends of their enemies. Alone, that is. Coordinating would take time, but what would stop her from sending forces to hit someone she disdained enough? Fergie was just one person, easy to dispatch if caught off guard. The Commodore would need a fleet to challenge the Basenjis, but a fleet she could have. All it took was the incentive.

All it took was one witness.

Fergie jolted in her seat at the announcement and subsequent cheering, thoughts grounding to a halt. "Damn, already?" She downed the rest of her drink and slid a few coins on the table, then swung her legs from under to hop up from her chair. "Let's blow this joint, then." Nerves still crept into her voice, hard as she tried to keep it level, and she hoped the cacophony of the mess was enough to mask it. Land was approaching, and she wouldn't dare set foot on it until she got that favor settled. Knowing that the Ballasts and Basenjis had history made it all the more urgent.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Grunt Berth (Grunt Barracks)​

Fergie got her wish as Sebas didn't notice her wavering voice over the blaring joy of the crew. However, before the cheering began, Sebas DID notice the color drain from her face when he told her unfinished business could involve the Basenjis at large. He pushed it aside for now, but knew to remember it. Pushing through cheering pirates, Sebas clutched Cat-Avery in his arms and Ora's hand in his and they had to force their way out, presumably with Ferg walking their forged path behind them. Normally, Sebas would be celebrating with the crew, using the fact that they're docking as an excuse to get wasted over breakfast. However, with Ora's presence and Ferg's predicament, he stifled it.

Standing near the grunt barracks (or berth) were, the group stopped there. There was still cheering, but it wasn't deafening nor oxygen-draining. "We're approaching land. I guess I'll have to go speak to leadership in a bit." He looked to Ferg. He was about to speak, but Bogrum joined them. "Is this ship always this crazy when it comes to land?"
Sebas scoffed. "Look at this ship and how well-to-do it is. We sail for much longer than most other ships. Trust me, when we get to land, it's cause for celebration." The basenjis can sail for upwards of months. The longest they were out to sea was 6 months before docking again. They had the magic and riches necessary to keep sailing that long. Hell, Adonis COULD call an airship to come drop off some supplies to restock, but since they had survivors on board and they were about to take to the skies, docking was necessary. "Speaking of land, Bogrum have you decided to stay or are you parting ways when we dock?"
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Fergie did follow, but gave her own help in clearing a path by barking demands at shipmates who were too distracted to make way before Sebas had to push against them. Her urgency could have easily been written off as irritability or impatience, which she was well-known for already. Some weren't afraid to bite back with their own fusses as they plowed through. Silent compliance from the others communicated a degree of fear of her, at least in her mind. Folks tended to be even more wary when they saw the visage that came with the voice.

Most folks, anyway. "Ugh, gods..."
"Yep, it's me again."
After Sebas answered his initial inquiry, Fergie added, "Second time porting since I got here." Both times were to drop off survivors, so she was aware of the usual infrequency of meeting land, though her time on the ship hadn't been long.
When popped the question, Bogrum gave a hum of thought and glanced off, though Fergie figured it was a show and he already well knew what his plan was. "I believe I'll remain. Wouldn't want to make the captain scramble for a fill-in."
Fergie scoffed. "'No shortage of serfs'," she quoted.
He chuckled. "Fine, you got me. I'd miss you all too much."
She scoffed harder.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Grunt Berth​

"Can't be any of us you'd miss," he said. Sebas had spoken precious few words to Bogrum. He had spoken even presciouser few words to Bogrum when he wasn't around Fergie. He didn't say his thoughts, though he knew Fergie knew. "Still, saves me the trip back to the mess hall to appoint Goldi as Fergie's partner." Sebas decided to use "Fergie" when Bogrum was around, as it seemed she corrected him the harshest when he used the wrong one. A bit formal, but Bogrum didn't seem to understand that nicknames didn't necessarily apply to everyone. Maybe he felt some kind of way that Sebas being able to drop the ie wasn't extended towards him.........or maybe Sebas was overthinking it and Bogrum was gonna use it until she gave up protest. Such is the Scorchclaw way.

"But, Bogrum, you need to go see Adonis. He'll set you up with 2 favors for whatever you want within reason. If you use 1, you're bound as a Basenji for 3 missions. If you use both, at least 5. Think of them similarly to cursed demon favors." Sebas had rehearsed this due to how fast he rattled it off. "Magic, armor, weaponry, a ship for when you're no longer bound, one of his relics, whatever. Just go see him and tell him you'll join. Otherwise, he expects you to part." No ship wanted freeloaders. Freeloaders ended up on Dead Man's Isle. Anyways, Bogrum pretty much had nothing. The axe he was given for that merchant ship raid was borrowed. The axe he had now was taken off a pirate whose head he cleaved off. The armor he had on were scraps of leather taken from about 10 different armor sets that were too damaged to use again. His cut of gold from that merchant ship raid, which could net him either a good axe OR good armor, or paltry both (at least paltry compared to the pristine axe he borrowed for that raid. So an old stolen axe, scrap leather armor, and a bit of gold.

-------------------------------------------------

Avery jumped off Sebas's shoulder and turned back into humanoid form. "Hey Sebas, after you take care of captain stuff, care to place a wager at the firing range before we hit land?"
Sebas sighed. "We're too close to land for you to be dirtying up your rifle."
He shrugged. "I gotta get it upgraded on land. I'll pay them to clean it too."
Sebas scoffed. "What's this wager."
Avery smirked. "If I can shoot more targets than you in 2 minutes, you must let me sleep in your room while we're land-bound."
"And if I win?"
"I will do one thing for you......within my power of course."
"You're on......but we're doing 3 games. To prevent domination, loser chooses the next game."
No hesitation. "I accept your terms," Avery declared with a bit of a purr, "After I beat you 3 times, I'll be in your bed all night in human form."
"Yeah, and after I beat you 3 times, I'll be rocking an upgraded gun and enchanted sword." Sebas already knew Avery would win the first game. He was a good shot, but Avery was an absolute sniper. Keeping Avery out of his room wasn't the issue. Keeping him out of his bed (and especially as a humanoid) was the goal. Enchants and Upgrades weren't cheap, so the reward was worth the risk.

Sebas looked at the group. "Fergie......can you get Bogrum to Adonis? Also, when you're ready to call Baroness, can you grab me first? I have a tribute to make as well." Something about Ferg's reason for calling Baroness got him thinking. Not only did he want to be there to make his own request, but he wanted to keep Baroness from putting a catch on Ferg's request. "I want to get Bogrum set in the crew before I deal with logistics and since he's around you the most, leadership will be looking at YOU to vouch for him." One of the burdens saddled on Fergie from Bogrum's presence.

"Until then, I'll be at the firing range. Door to the left closest to the Sub Room."
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Borgum didn't confirm or confront Sebas's statement, but Fergie narrowed her gaze at him. The insistence that he was staying for anyone, let alone a handful of almost strangers, was easily a coverup for a deeper motive. Any number of things could be keeping Bogrum there, the pay, the prestige, and the like. Perhaps something even deeper that he didn't want to share, hence his harmless fib. Or maybe the fake affability was just to pester them, which he seemed keen on doing.

"I've heard a thing or two about these favors."
"Aye, 'cause ye wouldn't shut the fuck up about Dead Man's Isle." Once he caught ear of how she'd come to join the Basenjis, the questions never seemed to end. What was it like, how did she get her mana restored from its magic-sapping aura, were crabs and coconuts really the only source of food.
"I only asked three questions," he told her in a chiding tone that just made her scowl deepen. "It's good to know what to expect when preparing for the worst."

Sebas and Avery went at it again with their banter, and Bogrum looked ready to ask more questions. Sebas beat him to it and brought things back to business.
"'Ight." Wasting no time, Fergie waved Bogrum to follow as she spun on her heels and made way.
"Ah... I'll be seeing you three later, then." Some formalities before departing.


Fergie heard his heavy footsteps approach. "Won't take long. Just some due processes."
"Alright." When he caught up and walked beside her, he was making that face he usually made before saying something that annoyed her. "You'll put in a good word for me, won't you?"
"Tch. As if ye'll need it." To be chosen to lead raids over crewmates with more seniority was pretty telling of Bogrum's skills. She was certain Adonis would be happy to keep him.
"High praise from you."
"Ah, shut up."

When they stood by the doors to the captain's office, Fergie muttered, "Deja vu." Seconds passed between them where nothing happened, and she looked up at him. "Well?"
"Oh. I thought you were going to knock."
"Wh—" She shook her head and gestured at the door wildly. "I'm not yer fuckin' mum!"
Unfazed, he merely shrugged and gave the door a few raps. "Hello? Is the captain available?"

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Captain Adonis and Ship Leadership
Navigation Room​

"Enter!"

The duo entered, stood in front of the ship leadership and were promptly combed over visually by the angel Evangeline, the werewolf, the mocha-skinned psychic woman, and Captain Adonis himself. As with last time, there were 3 butts and 4 chairs, so they would be standing. Last time she was in here, it was with Chen, Elaera, and Galdurr. Who knows what even happened to them? "Fergie. Borgum. Welcome." Adonis said

"We assume you're here for Bogrum to join us. We know because he'd be preparing to part ways otherwise," the werewolf man said. "So......First I would say that you did quite well on the raid Bogrum. For a man armed with nothing but an axe, you showed resourcefulness in stealing one and stuff to makeshift your own armor."
"And you Fergie," the psychic said, "Managed to lead the raid group to victory without a hitch. No deaths on our part, looted everything we needed, no prisoners taken, ship not sunk." They essentially left the ship with very few people on it and no vital supplies.

"In that regard, you've shown yourself worthy, Bogrum," Evangeline said, arms crossed and looking down. She then looked at Fergie, but kept addressing Bogrum. "So..... Bogrum, you hang around Fergie quite a bit. What is your motive? And know.......I can tell a liar."
Before Bogrum could rattle off an answer, Adonis spoke up. "And Fergie, given what you and Bogrum have done since getting him on the ship, would you trust him enough to be your partner in raiding ships when we take to the skies?"

WayfaringWaaksian



Firing Range

Meanwhile, Sebas and Avery were firing. Sebas did well, but he just couldn't compete with Avery's insane accuracy and speed of shooting. He also compete with the gift he gave Avery years ago: The Flurry Ring. It allowed the user to do a reflex a massive amount of times within like 2 seconds. This could be anything from punches and kicks to slashes.......to pulling a trigger. Coupled with Avery's rifle that fires as fast as he could pull the trigger, every 30 seconds (the cooldown), he could empty the clip like a machine gun. Sebas 37 hits to Avery's 56.
"I win," Avery declared happily, a loud purr in his throat. "When you get the hotel, I'm sleeping in your bed in human form."
"Nope. Progression. You can sleep in my room in cat form. Win again? In my bed in cat form. Win the third? In my bed in human form." Sebas knew he would try to pile on all 3 at the same time, so he had to split it. Otherwise, he'd end up waking up next to a nude and sly Avery after a night he knew he'd have to drink to pre-emptively forget.
"MMMPH," Avery huffed. Hopes dashed, but not completely. "Guess I have to take it. Loser chooses next."
"Close range combat. Most targets in 2 minutes. To the sparring ground." Sebas said, drawing his blade.
"Oh god," Avery groaned. It was karma for Avery choosing his bread and butter. Of course Sebas would choose his bread and butter for the next game. He pulled out his 2 gun knives and followed.

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Bogrum nodded his thanks after the assessment, taking the compliment with grace. Fergie didn't know grace, but she tried. "Heh. Well." She shrugged and turned her head, hiding the side where a smirk wanted to creep up. "Got a job, might as well do it right." Started from the bottom, now she was already leading charges after just a month? She had to admit, the acknowledgement of her own skills felt good. Especially when it came from a skilled woman such as Fatimah. It had been Adonis's favor, but it had been the psychic's work that returned feeling to her lichen limb.
She supposed Evangeline had notable qualities, too, but those she attributed to her status as divinity. And the whole thing about inconveniencing those who spoke ill of her suggested a fragile ego, which was anything but attractive. The hairs on her neck bristled when the angel's inscrutable gaze lingered on her, and her hanging hand twitched over her belt.

When both were prompted with a question, Bogrum looked down at Fergie, opening his hand in invitation. Without much choice, she put her hands on her hips, answering simply and shortly, "Aye." He was a good fighter, and he didn't give her any trouble, aside from being slightly annoying off duty. She had no reason to not trust him.
"I think we make a great team."
"That why yer always tailin' me arse?" she chanced a guess.
"More to it than that," he began, looking up at the surrounding officers. "She saved our lives. The prison watch was ready to kill all of us in our cells due to the breach. If it hadn't been for her quick thinking, reinforcements could have only brought back bodies."
"Fuckin' hell." Fergie rose a palm to her forehead. "Better not be about to give your life back to me as payment, or some shit."
"A life of servitude isn't much of a life at all," he said with a shake of his head. "I doubt that's the sort of repayment you'd wish for."
"Hell no. An' I don't—"
"But your efforts were the only reason I'm standing here today. The very least I can do is be of assistance to you. So long as our paths intertwine that is."
"So... huh." Making a face, she folded her arms. "Layin' on the 'assistance' kinda thick, methinks."
He shrugged. "You could have shooed me off at any time."
And she had many a time. But that hadn't put a damper on his frequency. "So long 's ye don't tail me to the ends of the earth."
"I have my own matters to attend to, believe it or not."
She had yet to have a reason to, but she never butted into his business after he was done nosing into hers. What he did aside from pester her, she had little knowing of. Her attention had been mostly inward the past week.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Captain Adonis
Captain's Office​

"Allow us to introduce ourselves to the newcomer," Adonis said, "You already know me. Captain Asmund Adonis."
The Werewolf stood up. His grey and black fur betrayed age. Patches and scars where there should've been fur betrayed experience. The fact that he has never been seen in human form by either of them betrayed a strength to keep that form for long periods of time, unlike most werewolves that had a relatively short set time in beast form. "Bermon is my name. I am the combat leader. Everything concerning combat goes through me. Armor, weapons, ship munitions, raids, all me. I am the one who appointed Fergie to lead the merchant ship raid from the front." He sat. "I don't like weaklings, but I guess you've shown that that's not gonna be a problem." Bermon only spoke to the strong. To the weak, he wouldn't acknowledge unless they were seeking advice on becoming stronger or if it were related to ship munitions. Otherwise, the only reason the weak should speak to him is if they were seeking to train with him, which he would run them absolutely ragged.

Fatimah stood. "Fatimah. I'm the support and magic leader. Everything concerning magic and support stuff is my jurisdiction. Enchants, Magic academia, the Mess Hall, library, training field, medical stuff. All mine. If you ever want to talk magic, come see me." She gave a smile and magic swirled around her gently, her tattoos glowing, showing that they were magic-imbued. "If you want something enchanted, I'm more than willing should you provide ample compensation OR give me the material needed. I am the most available of the leaders and am glad to help in any way that I can. If you don't find me here, you can confidently find me either in my quarters or in the library, amongst my archive." With a bow, she sat. Fatimah was easily the most approachable of the leadership, seeming the most friendly. It wasn't uncommon to see her interacting with the crewmates of this ship fairly closely, though her personal life and which field she batted in were completely unknown.

The angel stood. "Evangeline. The advisor and enforcer." Her wings flared out, releasing glowing feathers. "I ensure the Captain doesn't send you in to certain death. I also ensure you end up on Dead Man's Isle should you try some funny business. I'm an enforcer on multiple levels. If you make a contract with a God, I am the angel who will enforce it on this ship, as I am the closest angel to you. I am not allowed to physically or magically meddle in mortal affairs unless you grind upon my provocation." She sighed, then when she looked at them with eyes showing a silent righteous fury within. "Should you break a rule that any of these other 3 set, I recommend the punishment. If given the OK, I regulate. There is more magic in one of my hands than most other people on this ship's entire bodies. If you try to fight it, I am allowed lethal force." If one could go to ANYONE but Evangeline, don't go to Evangeline. Not that she would show herself as unwilling to help or answer questions. It's that she will most likely look down on you for doing so, if not ignore you completely and act like she never heard you in the first place. If you used Dark Magic or were under any kind of unholy influence, don't approach Evangeline and don't speak to Evangeline unless she initiated the conversation. That included having on them a certain relic that summoned a certain curse demon.

"Now," Adonis said. "With all of us here and a newcomer, as a gesture of good will, I will allow you 2 favors of almost anything within either of our power. Be it information, armor, a new spell, weapons, anything with reason so long as you are the only party affected. We can't kill anyone or induce any magic effects on someone. We can't bestow divinity but Fatimah can alter your DNA. Turn you into a frog or something." The man shrugged with a bit of a chuckle at the daggers Fatimah shot at him. "We can't get you legendary-status items like Excalibur but we can give you a proportionately powered replica.........." He looked to Fergie with his usual cocky smirk, typical of a pirate captain, especially a rich one. "Fergie, if you want to be tasked with keeping your partner in check for the next 2 mission, I can bestow upon you another favor. With this, if Bogrum does something stupid, you get proportionate punishment since you vouch for him........but you get another favor in your pocket. If you're already partners and he's hanging around you, it's not like much will change, especially if you trust him." Fergie would essentially be saddled with the responsibility with 24/7 supervisor-ship.......or just trusting Bogrum to do the right thing until the end of the mission. Still, these favors didn't come often, nor would they come free after the gesture of good will, as Sebas said.

WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Fergie had shared few words with the three officers. The first time Bermon had ever spoken to her was to appoint her position in the raid, which hadn't been long ago. After getting her magic restored by Fatimah, there'd only been a handful of professional conversations between them, questions about the ship while she was still learning the ropes of the place. Evangeline... well, Fergie never spoke directly to her, and she didn't mind keeping it that way. She never needed much assistance from any of them, adjusting to the ship and learning its intricacies just as well on her own. It had been a short process for her; another ship, another crew. Aside from some of the more unique aspects of the Basenjis, there hadn't been much ground to cover.

Thinking about covering that ground yet again was a source of annoyance, and she immediately protested, "I ain't playin' babysitter for a grown-ass man! He's been on a ship before, he can handle it."
"This would be my second ship and crew, actually," Bogrum said. "I've been sailing with my old crew for quite a few years, though. Getting close to three before..." He gave a sad smile, abandoning that train of thought.
"Long enough. Yer leadin' raids with me. Obviously ye know what yer doin'."
"Well..." He paused, choosing his words carefully. Fergie had a habit of being very reactive, as demonstrated. "The captain seems to have reason to believe additional support is necessary. I trust his judgement."
Maybe they still weren't the best words, as now Fergie was put on the spot. Further disinterest in the deal would appear like she didn't trust him. Which... well, to be honest, she really didn't. Not because she thought he was incompetent (entirely), but his motives were unknown to her. Not that anyone below leadership knew, though that mattered little to her. Just the unknowns naturally made her wary. But that wasn't a good look on someone who was rising the ranks, thus receiving more direct influence and orders from the captain himself. If she didn't at least appear to trust him...
Hands fidgeted at her sides before tucking into her pockets. "Just confused, is all. He's competent. What be the concern?"

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Captain Adonis
Captain's Office​

"Have you ever been victim of a mutiny?" Adonis asked, "Have you ever been in the crossfire of a mutiny?" He began to pace, his arms behind his back. "No disrespect or accusations to Bogrum. Intentions unknown, not enough time to prove intentions being good."

"We know Bogrum can handle his own," Evangeline said, jumping in, "It's not a question of that. For YOU, Fergie, it's a question of putting your money where your mouth is. For Bogrum, it's a matter of intention." She let those words sink in. "See, if we bound you two together, it would test 2 in one. If you say you trust Bogrum, it would be easy to vouch for him under proportional punishment if he does something stupid. If Bogrum's intentions are pure, he wouldn't make your life living hell if given the choice." Her eyes narrowed in on Fergie. "Do you trust Bogrum as much as you say you do to us? If you don't take it, I'm inclined to believe you don't really trust him."


Confrontation

"Now, Evangeline. One can't assume Fergie gave us lip service," Fatimah said, coming to Fergie's defense. "I also find reluctance in binding myself to the mortal. Human nature is unpredictable and that's our double edged sword. The divine is subject to too many rules to act under ill-intent." Evangeline shot Fatimah daggers, but the softness of Fatimah's features and words didn't cover up the fact that she wouldn't back down for a second. "We asked her if she could trust Bogrum and she said yes."
Evangeline pressed on. "But humans lie. You just said mortals are unpredictable. She could be covering for ill intent."
Fatimah nodded slowly, choosing her words carefully. "Yes. We can lie and are unpredictable. We can also make decisions in the short term and change our minds in the presence of new information." She looked to her verbal opponent, "To you, dark magic and demons are an objective bad. For us, we can analyze, decide, and change our minds about whether to trust someone. A contract tells you who you can and can't trust. Us mortals have the luxury of free will. You don't."
Evangeline scoffed, surely offended. "I will not have my kind slandered, Fatimah," she growled.
"Nor will I have my crew slandered, Evangeline," Fatimah fired back just as fast. "Just because you no longer have a contract on the table doesn't mean Fergie is not to be believed. If you are still reluctant, I'm sure you have the magic within you to play Big Sister and surveil Bogrum yourself."
"You know I can't use my magic like that," Evangeline hissed.
"Exactly my point. You have no power here." Fatimah said bluntly. "Stop trying to impose. You are here to enforce." After a bit of silence, Evangeline spit and stood up and disappeared in a flash of light and an aura of disgust.

"Fatimah, you really shouldn't engage Evangeline like that." Adonis said, exasperated
"Why is she amongst the leadership, Asmund?" Fatimah asked, eyes narrowed, "She is an enforcer. Her job is to enforce OUR will, not impose her own. It is NOT her place to undermine my and Borman's decisions."
"She's an advisor-"
"She's YOUR advisor." Fatimah said, making her grievances known. Clearly, the problems with Evangeline weren't limited to the crewmates. "She looks down on mortals, so her word is venom. Being condescended to is acidic." She was visibly frustrated, which told of this not being a first time issue.

"Alright, alright," Adonis said, trying to diffuse the situation. "Bermon? Your thoughts?"
Bermon snorted. "Divinity Law and contracts tell her who to attack when and on what conditions. Breaking it can get her stripped of her wings......... where she will become mortal and without any of the power she was GRANTED." Bermon spat at the word, like it was bile on his tongue. He bared his teeth and his fur was bristling. "I firmly believe that if she is forced to use her own power, she wouldn't defeat me or anyone of worth to me..... Point is, to parade a moral high ground when you lack the free will to choose the low ground is a major sign of weakness. To parade strength you didn't earn is a major sign of weakness. You KNOW how I feel about weaklings."

"Geez, I kind of forgot about Fergie and Bogrum," Adonis said. They all seemed to. Bermon shrugged at the acknowledgement and Fatimah gave them a friendly smile. "Look, I was willing to grant you another favor should you have taken it on, but you're not interested. I will leave it at that." He seemed urgent to get them out of there, seemingly for obvious reasons. Fatimah opened up Pandora's box and Bermon was supporting her. There needed to be a leadership discussion.

"Bogrum. 2 favors. You don't have to use them immediately or at all. They're just a gesture of good will. To use them is to solidify your place on this crew for at least a few missions."

WayfaringWaaksian




Firing Range- Game 2

Meanwhile, game 2 went to Sebas. Fighting down conjured enemies on the sanctified training field, Sebas absolutely dominated. Avery was good and his flurry ring was vital, but once they started conjuring up armor, 1 bullet wasn't enough. Sebas was destroying from the front, not afraid to jump into the fray and take some slashes, his cutlass and his gun in complete sync. He also showed a mastery of the few magic spells he had that Avery could only envy. He was an absolute barbarian that reminded Avery of the day the two met. Sebas 67 to Avery 28. Avery wasn't made for assaults. Avery was made for single-targeting and support. That showed itself when Sebas jumped in to even defend Avery and keep the game from ending early.

The field healed their injuries and muscle fatigue, but the muscle soreness they'd feel later would still come in full force. Plus, their immediate fatigue and sweat was still there in full. "Game 2 is mine. Sword upgrade."
Avery's confidence was kind of bruised at being destroyed by more than twice his score. "I had no chance."
"You chose your good quality. I chose mine." Sebas said, jumping directly to the next phase. "What is round 3?"
Avery thought for a moment. "A 1v1." All he had to do was put a single bullet into Sebas's head and he won. On that sanctified training field, it used high-level Holy Magic to prevent anyone from dying while it was active. It allowed combatants to go all out and fight to kill.
"You think you can kill me in a fight?" Sebas was intrigued.
"You're a better fighter, but you're not faster than a bullet." Avery said.
"We'll put that to the test," he said, "Pop a stamina potion and let's set it up. Unlimited time. If time lapses, the one with the least severe injuries win."
Avery reloaded his rifle. Flipping his gun knives in the air and catching them, they were instantly reloaded. "Accepted."

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Mutiny? Well, that explained her confusion; Bogrum was the very last person she'd expect to be involved in a mutiny. She didn't think she'd ever met a candidate less appropriate for a mutiny, the way he tailed behind others like a loyal puppy. So naturally, the thought hadn't come to mind until Adonis made mention. If that was what the task amounted to, a show of trust, then that painted a different picture. She might have voiced this, had the shitstorm that followed not occur.

They both knew how to read a room. "Understood, Captain. Thank you." Bogrum bowed his head and ducked out. Fergie looked ready to say something as well, but shut her mouth and followed, fearing her words would spark yet another altercation. The doors shut behind them, and they walked a few paces down the hall, waiting until enough distance was between them.

Fergie's grievances came flooding out all at once. "The bloody hell was that?! I ask one damned question, an' I get called a liar?! What's that bitch's deal?!"
"Fergie." His tone was sterner than he intended, but he continued on, "We both know what can happen if you talk about her like that."
"Do I look like I give a rat's mangy ass?" She waved a hand. "Me luck's bad enough as it is, can't make it that much worse."
"You—" He sighed, letting it go.
"I told 'em I trusted ye. If she can tell lies, then ye'd think that'll settle that, aye?"
Thinking for a moment, he answered, "I believe the exact wording was if you trusted me to raid with you."
"Not as a crewmate as a whole," she gathered, hands retreating into her pockets. "Fuck me... if I could've gotten a word in edgewise, maybe—" she shook her head, ducking her face down. "Should've kept this big mouth shut."
"Hold on." Bogrum stopped, forcing the both of them to come to a halt. "None of this was your fault, Fergie. It was an innocent question. Evangeline insisted it wasn't innocent. What she thinks isn't dependent on you." He might have went on to describe the aura of disdain he felt around the angel any time they shared space, but thought better of it. "It's her job to ensure the crew's safety. Nothing to do with you."
"Doubt it." She rose her head just enough for the shadow from her hat to lift, and gestured at the visage underneath. "This ain't exactly a trustworthy look."
He frowned. "Divinity isn't shallow like that." Though in other ways, certainly, he couldn't help but think.
She shrugged, letting her face hide again. "Prolly just senses it in me, I guess."
"She shouldn't assume that."

A long silence drew out between them, marking hesitance on Fergie's part.
"... Unless she isn't? Assuming?"
She hissed and resumed walking, anger taking her faster down the corridor. "I just didn't wanna follow ye 'round every second of our lives, is all! That's what they made it sound like, so I wanted specifics! See where that got me."
Bogrum struggled to keep up, not because he couldn't match her speed but because he felt it much too fast for the hallways. "I'd think it's less 'following me around' and more 'taking responsibility for my screw-ups because you're vouching for me'."
His voice was getting fainter behind her, so she stopped with a loud sigh and turned around to face where he lagged behind. "Aye, I know that now! Bit late for that now, innit?"
"I think he was just trying to get us out of there. It's not too late to reconsider."
Fergie quieted, head hanging down again. Sensing her withdrawal, Bogrum stopped a few feet in front of her. "If you wanted to take it up, that is."
"... I can't." Bogrum didn't answer, and when she glanced up, she saw why. He gave her a nod. She sighed. "I can't say."
"You don't have to say anything. I understand. Do what you need to do." Fergie expected him to turn around and walk away, but still he stood there, watching over her with concern. "I won't fight you. But may I... suggest?"
She blinked. "Aye."
Nodding, he went on, "We do want you here, Fergie. You're valued." He let that sink in. "I'm sure they're willing to work anything out to keep you here." When she didn't respond, only standing as still as she was, he stepped closer so he could say in a lower voice, "Whatever it is you're dealing with, you know you don't have to go through it alone, right? Sebas wants to help. I'm here to help too, if you need it."
If only you knew, she couldn't say. "I know."
"Whatever you choose, I'll respect. But just know you have allies here."
For however long, she could only guess. "I know. Thanks."

Doubt clouded his face, but he wouldn't press any further. "Alright. I know you've still got something on your belt, so I'll leave you to it. You know where to find me."
She couldn't help but smirk. "More like you'll find me."
"True, that."
He was disappearing down the bend of the hallway, leaving Fergie to unpack everything that had sprung up from that Pandora's box. "Christ on a stick," she hissed, shaking her head and making way to the shooting range.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

A Warning Made Manifest

On the way to the shooting range, Fergie got hit with TERRIBLE luck. Getting smacked with a door, colliding with a drunk pirate around a corner, tripping and falling on slightly raised floor wood. Her hat was nailed to the wall by a stray flying blade, which took a bit of time to remove without ripping it from the blade. After another time tripping, her pouch of gold was scattered on the floor and this came alongside Fergie being descended on by the ship's gang of goblin thieves, and her own goblin blood didn't spare her. She wasn't physically harmed, but however much gold she was carrying, she lost 87% of it. If she wanted it back, she'd need to confront the leader of the thieves, a goblin named Kersact who was the ship's treasurer and hoard guardian. She'd seen Kersact every time she got a cut of the loot, as it was Kersact who gave each crewmate their cut. Kersact himself said he'd never steal from a Basenji nor keep stuff he's learned has been stolen from a Basenji, but could thieves be honest?

Anyways, if Fergie wanted that money back, the treasury was in this same hall. Otherwise, she could hear the clashing blades and gunshots from the training hall
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

"- Fuckin' talkin' 'bout me like I ain't there—" A force sent her staggering back, followed by a pain that felt like her face had been cracked open. By instinct, her hand shot up to her nose, feeling the damage. "... Goddammit!" Between the stars in her vision, she saw the perpetrator peering nervously around the door that had just assaulted her. Growling, she pushed the door with her shoulder as she walked past, hitting him back with it. "Watch where yer swingin' that thing, shit-for-brains!"
A piece of her lichen nose dangling from her face, she stomped down the corridor, unseeing in her daze and anger, so another collision was inevitable. She shoved the body away immediately upon catching whiff of booze and barf, patience burned to the bottom of the wick. "Keep that shit in the mess hall, ye damned drunk!"
He mumbled something incoherent that she didn't care to understand, so she pushed past him too, teeth gritting as rage filled her brain with static. "Dumbasses— ACK!" Her face planted against a hard surface again, this time snapping the rest of her nose off for sure. When she picked herself up, feeling her face confirmed it. "Oh, fuck me! Give me a break!" Getting no such thing, as soon as she rose to a stand her hat flew off her head. "Ah! Lucy!" She ran to its rescue, prying the blade out of the wall and flinging the offensive thing away. Grimacing at the stab mark, she cradled her hat to her chest, stroking a hand over it as if it were a dear pet in need of comfort. "Fuck, one thing after anoth-AAHHH!"
Her hat fell across the deck, as well as the contents of her coin purse. She didn't even have time to pick herself up again, as the glint of gold attracted a swarm of cackling goblins, who picked off the scattered coins like gulls around a gut pile. "Hey- HEY! FUCKERS!" She could've sworn one of the thieves held up a middle finger as they made off, bringing her to hiss in rage. "Little rats! I'll—" She snatched her hat and scooped up whatever remaining gold she cared to salvage, glancing between where they'd retreated and the training room. Judging by the sounds coming from it, Sebas and Avery were still going at it, so it took little persuasion to march her way to the treasury.

She swung the door open and barged in, but not without hitting her elbow hard against the door frame— yep, right there. "Fuck-FUCK! AGH!" Attempting to fling that horrible sensation out of her arm had little avail, so she was left to bear with it while she searched for her quarry, fire alight in her eyes. "Kersact!! Got a bone to pick with ye, come out!"

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Location: The Treasury (aka the Hoard Room)

Description: Where most of the valuable loot on the ship is held. Anything Captain Adonis owns that he can't fit in the office or his quarters come here. This entire room is accursed and is also a neutral zone. Anyone can enter and can touch anything resting on the floors as they please. However, should they damage anything or remove it without permission, they will be stricken with a powerful curse. So much as a smudge on a painting will induce the curse. Touch, admire, don't damage. This room is a gallery of the accomplishment of the Black Sea Basenjis

Kersact​

Spoiler: Kersact Description

Adonis's premier thief, leader of the ship's gang of thieves, and the guardian of Adonis's vast fortune, Kersact steals for a living. Fortunately for Basenji pirates, Kersact isn't allowed to steal from them, allow his thieves to steal from them, or receive stuff stolen from a Basenji................lest he drop dead from his curse. You think a thief would be honest by choice?

The treasury was a big room full of shiny stuff. By big, I mean massive. The room was enormous and filled with chests of all shapes and sizes. Shiny armor, valuable paintings posted on the walls Fergie could see the accursed chest that they hauled from the depths alongside Orabelle as well as the chest stolen from that merchant ship. Kersact was shining relics and didn't even acknowledge Fergie. "Better be a damn good reason yer bustin in here, Fergie," Kersact warned, "Tryna thief 'Donis is an exception I have to thief a Basenji." In a ship full of seeming baby faces, Kersact looked to be the most pirate pirate on the ship.

After finishing shining the relic, he looked at her. "From the meanness in that goblin mug o yers, you must think I thiefed ya.........well I din." he said, sounding like an old man. She heard he was a half-dwarf goblin. With dwarfs having a long lifespan, it would make sense that Kersact got some decades on him. "I don' thief Basenjis. Got a magic sense in me brain that tells me what I can and can't thief, and I can't thief ye." So Kersact got the tracker Fergie was going to ask Baroness for, only for a different purpose

He walked up to her. Since he was a half-dwarf goblin and Fergie was 6'3", she absolutely towered over him. However, Kersact was an absolute unit in terms of strength. The chest that took both Ferg and Sebas to carry, he carried on his own. Dwarven strength in a compact body with the speed and agility goblins were known for. "Believe me when I say I would love to thief ya fer everything, including the fake leg and 'ery shred of cloth on that lighthouse body of yers......but I can't. Litraly drop dead if I do. 'Donis Curse." He lifted his sleeve. On his upper arm was a fairly common curse mark, at least from the center it was noticeable. From there it got incredibly complex. When he touched it, it glowed a malevolent purple and Fergie could feel the dark magic. "Why else would a master thiefer be guardin 'is loot? Fate worsan the Isle."

He snorted. "Well? Watcha want? Thiefin in me blood, but thiefin you ain't worth dyin over. You attack me though, curse goes null and yer ass is open season........" Then he thought about it. This wasn't his first time being accused of thievery. "Get thiefed by me team?"
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

"Aye, it be yer team!" she spat, throwing her hands up in exasperation when he finally got to the point. "Already told me 'bout yer damn curse a thousand times o'er, fer fuck's sake!" One couldn't trust a self-admitted thief to not pick their pocket while not looking, so much assurance he had to give new crewmates that they wouldn't catch his hand slipping into their coin purse. "Was mindin' me own business, until—" A brief grimace betrayed hesitation. "Yer little lackeys snagged me bag an' almost cleaned me out," was her almost-truth, lifting up the almost-empty bag in question. Never mind that the lichen pieces dangling from her face pointed towards a previous affair with the deck.

"An' 'fore ye ask if I want compensation, no! Don't give a shit 'bout the gold!" She balled the bag up in her hands. "Ye want the rest?! Take it, ye cretin!" It was chucked hard towards a goblin she caught glimpsing at her from behind a chest. It missed completely, hitting the wall before falling into a lifeless lump. Relinquished gold was fair game, so it didn't stay on the floor for long. Once she was done sneering across the room, she returned her glare to the tiny treasurer by her feet. "I'm here to give ye a warnin', Kersact. Ye better keep an eye on yer boys, ye hear?"

She shook a fist in the air, directed towards any of his lackeys who were still lurking about. "I ain't fuckin' around! If any of ye's try to fuck with me again, yer gettin' crushed under me boot-!" Her boot stomped down in point, but instead of hitting wood, it slipped right into the opening a stray ornate vase. Panicked noises came out as she stumbled, fumbling to maintain her balance. "Nononono- AAGH!" Fate sent her collapsing into a nearby pile of loot, gold and jewels flying.

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Kersact
Treasury​

He laughed. "Ye know me curse, yet ye think me boys can do what I can't?" He laughed with a strong wheeze. "Me boys don thief Basenjis neither. Les they end up cursed like Ole Kersact...... If they thiefed ya, it's 'cause yer fair game." He narrowed his eyes. "Ye either ain't a Basenji or ye messed with something ye had no concern."

Rules of the Room, Broken

Spoiler: Thief's Lament

Thief's Lament​

Trigger: Damaging or stealing from the Treasury
"Rule #1: Don't get caught. Rule #2: Don't steal from someone who can curse you."

Description: The accursed will immediately surrender items they possess until the lost items equal 10x the value of the items stolen from the caster. The items to be lost begin from the most valuable to the least valuable, prioritized by items the accursed have on their person. The lost items will become possessions of the caster. In some cases, the accursed will have enough possessions to cover the price, in which case the curse is immediately alleviated after items are lost. If they don't, the curse lingers and activates on every item the accursed obtains until the cost is covered.

Until the curse is alleviated, if the accursed steals from anyone the caster is close to, the accursed will then surrender their life. Furthermore, besides currency, if the accursed steals the lost items from the caster, regardless of the amount of time passing or curse status, the accursed will then surrender their life. This effect is nullified if the caster relinquishes the lost items in any capacity

With Fergie's boot in the vase and her stomping, it damaged the vase heavily. She was immediately stripped almost bare. Stripped of her armor, boots, weaponry, and her Baronness Relic. She would need to use Sebas's now. She was left with her over clothes, though her underwear were now gone. The Baronness Relic was what kept her from being stripped completely bare and kept her from losing Craftsman's Boon.

Fergie's spectacle of damaging the vase with her boot, stumbling and falling like a klutz, caused Kersact to panic. His eyes were now alight with what could be described as a mad frenzy, his brown eyes starting to brighten into a gold. Fergie had seen this before. Literally before she came in to see Kersact, when she was descended on by the thieves. It was called Plunderlust. It was like bloodlust. Gold to these thieves were like blood to the viperfish. If they stole something or something was stolen from them, it could whip them into a frenzy, making them mad fast and mad strong.........and for Kersact who was already very strong, he got full blown idiot strength. By damaging that vase, she poked a lunatic bear. Kersact jumped at her, hissing with blade drawn. The goblin was intercepted by the hiding goblin, a quite beautiful goblin girl, who tackled him out of the air. "YE DRUNKEN IDJIT!!" Kersact screeched at Ferg damaging the vase with her foot. "YE tryna get killed!?" Kersact was absolutely rabid, a mad beast. With her armor and weaponry stripped from her, Kersact would make very short work of Fergie without this girl holding him back.

Kersact is half-mad, nigh paranoid about what he could and couldn't steal due to his curse. That alongside being in this vault of treasure he couldn't possess himself made him crazy.

"NO Kersact!" the goblin girl yelled, struggling to hold him back. The only reason she could was because her own Plunderlust was active, making her stronger. The difference was that she was far more reasonable. "Free game or not, you'll have to talk to the angel if you kill her! NO ANGEL!" Her words also sounded normal, sounded forged by books than forged by plunder. Kersact's words were forged by plunder and madness. "Make no enemies out of allies! MAKE NO ENEMIES OUT OF ALLIES!"

Kersact kept going. Even with Plunderlust and a magic spell increasing her strength, his strength was STILL outdoing hers and he clawed at trying to get to Fergie with the goblin girl trying to keep him back. This lasted until Kersact's eyes went from gold back to brown and his clawing grew weaker, down to Kersact stopping entirely and only then did the goblin girl release him to move over to Fergie. "Sorry about that," she said, sweaty and with laborious breathing. "We are connected to this hoard. Damaging or stealing stuff from this treasury activates our plunderlust even though it's not ours. Kersact is supposed to kill offenders, no questions asked." She was dead serious. "He is demented. Plunderlust consumes him. While Captain Adonis wants him to kill offenders on the spot, Fatimah secretly assigned me to keep him from doing that, while also being a guardian." Once again, Fatimah's good will has come to Fergie's defense. This time indirectly. Fatimah's influence was also apparent as, like most magic-heavy people, this goblin girl was flawless and beautiful, unlike the scarred and burned monster that Kersact looked like. "The longer he stays in here, the madder he gets. That's why I had to BEG Captain Adonis to let him be the raid thief aboard The Canine." That's right, this mad bastard and his thieves were about to be under Fergie's direction.



Death Averted

Kersact stood up now, his composure back in check. "Give er back er gold. Tell the crew to give er back the rest."
"Even after it was relinquished verbally?"
"Go."
The goblin girl left with the gold Fergie threw at her and Kersact was left with Ferg, in a slightly more sound mind than before. "We don thief Basenjis les they be free game," his eyes narrowed at Ferg, "Otherwise, me boys get cursed just like ole Kersact, curse ta work unner Donis 'gainst me will in this blasted accursed heaven." He sheathed his blade and crossed his arms. "What made ya free game? Ye mess with the angel? Ye mess with me boys? Ye cursed? Check yer body. Curses hafta be on the body." Much like Kersact's curse mark, there WILL be an indicator on the body of the accursed. Cursed items WILL have a curse mark on it

If Fergie looked, she would find on her ankle (her good foot) an almost unnoticeable glow. While the glow was almost unnoticeable in the light, the mark itself was noticeable. She wouldn't have noticed if she wasn't stripped of her boots, at least not until she removed her boots and socks. A mark, and a mark she didn't put there herself. It glowed a dim whitish blue. This was the holy version of a curse, an Ordination. While curse marks glowed a malevolent color, this one glowed a dim holy blue. Angels were pretentious and wanted to call a curse by a different name. Hence the name Ordination

An Ordination was placed by holy beings or holy magic users. Since the only holy people Fergie knew were Dr. Laylah, the ship's priest, the priest's assistant who ran the training ground Sebas was beating Avery up in, and Evangeline, she could make a perfect guess about where it came from.


(Curses and Ordinations to be added to the LORE pages soon enough. I'm not gonna bloat posts with explanations of broad concepts, though I will add spoiler sections of a specific curse if it applies, like in this post.)
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Nearly getting jumped and slit in the throat got her clambering out of that gold pile in a timely fashion, kicking the cracked vase off her foot and skittering out of the way of every piece of wealth as if the stuff would kill her on contact (in an indirect way, it almost had). "Jesus fuckin' Christ!" Out of nowhere, she'd been simultaneously almost killed and saved from being killed by a maniac over a tacky piece of pottery. "Why have a bloody curse in the first place, if he's gonna gut anyone who—"
Her hand immediately shot up to feel her hat. She sighed with relief. "Thank gods..." Proceeding to pat herself, she progressively felt less and less thankful. "Holy hell, how expensive was that stupid thing!" Her relic was gone, a priceless artifact that gave her access to pretty much whatever she wanted with enough coin, and somehow the treasury's curse deemed it necessary to take her boots too? Gods amidst, she was having the worst luck ever since that meeting.

She came to the same realization just as Kersact did. Both sleeves were pulled up, one by one, her wrists flipped over both sides. Next left her ankle, where she found it. It was a mark shining blue, but her vision was starting to go red. "That bi—" She slapped a hand over her mouth. Had that triggered all this? Simply insulting her? "That angel! She- she did this?! She fuckin' hates me! What did I—" She rose her hands in defense. "I didn't do nothin'! That bl— that—" Her hands fell down, squeezed into fists at her sides. "Fuck it, I don't gotta explain meself to ye's."

Huffing, she stormed off and headed towards the door. "That angel got grief with me, she'd better tell me that shit to me goddamned face- ACK FUCK, AGAIN?!" Trying to shake the tingling out of her arm a second time, she hissed through her teeth and marched down the hallway, confrontation on her mind. "Fuckin' put a curse on me! Make me get another fuckin' curse! I'll- AAHH!! Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Her now bare foot sinking into a nail had her picking it up on impulse, leaving her hopping on the other. Naturally, she lost her balance knocking into a barrel and collapsed into a heap on the floor, wind knocked out of her. "... On second thought," she coughed, "prolly just... lie 'ere. Fer a bit."

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Sebas's Room​

Fergie woke up in Sebas's room on his bed. Her foot was wrapped and no longer bleeding, though it was still incredibly painful. Sebas was standing there at his desk, eating some bread and drinking some water. "Oi," he said as she became completely coherent. "Kersact told me what happened. Said you must've pissed off Evangeline." he said, "We're docked." Upon checking her foot, Fergie found that both her curse was gone. She was still without her weaponry, armor, and boots though. The treasury curse didn't give that stuff back unless you make a direct replacement of the damaged/broken item

Orabelle was nowhere to be found, but the lack of concern would imply Sebas sent Ora elsewhere.

From the fact that they were docked, Fergie must've passed out after her second crash. Checking her head........yup, her head was wrapped as well, and the lingering daze meant that additional unluck caused her a head injury right after the nail and the barrel. Maybe she slammed her head on the wall or a pillar. Sebas didn't know. He just saw her head bleeding as he carried her to the Medical Bay

"We warned you to hold your tongue about Evangeline," Sebas scolded, "We all hate her but we can't insult her. The Ord of Misfortune is too potent." He passed her a Health Potion, but it wasn't one of those good ones you drink. It was one of those ones you inject that didn't come without additional pain, the same ones they used underwater. "Not gonna pile on reprimands, but you got too many problems to create more. Hold the tongue, Ferg." Sebas couldn't help but believe he was barking at a brick wall, but maybe all that crap would make her catch her tongue. "We all avoid Evangeline for a reason." The Ordination of Misfortune wasn't some small time rolls of snake-eyes more often. It was universe-altering, Final Destination levels of misfortune

The curse on her ankle was gone, which meant it was alleviated. However, her pouch of gold was there. "I had to pay out the ass to get Laylah to remove that curse. Keep the gold and buy new stuff. Also......." One more word of warning, but this one came with a smirk "Stay out of the treasury. Looking at stuff you don't own isn't worth the risk of losing your stuff." Fergie was lucky to not lose her gold. She relinquished it before she activated the curse, which is why her gold is there. Kersact delivered on giving it back.

Since he was the only one in the room with her, it meant he was there to get done the task of summoning Baroness to call in Ferg's favor. "When you're ready, we can summon Baroness. You may not get the opportunity when we get in the air."
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

Fergie didn't wake up in her quarters. Again.

A dull ache at the top of her head and the bottom of her foot, and thankfully none in between, greeted her as she came to. Without the weight of alcohol fogging her brain as prior, she was nearly instantly alert, jerking from her sleeping state to a rigid position where she laid. Alarmed, she realized she must have laid on the deck for more than a bit, if she blacked out like this. Though she didn't remember the floor being this soft...
Oh.
After her hands clamped onto bed sheets, her gaze flickered about, spotting Sebas.
Oh shit.
"Um..." was her eloquent response to his first words, still a little dazed to fully comprehend them, even though she'd woken so quickly. She was becoming faintly aware that her little "nap" had to have been induced by that hit on the head she sustained after her last tumble, but lifting her foot to inspect it took priority. It was bandaged, but more importantly, that awful blue mark was gone. The relief she felt was a suitable enough remedy for her pains.

It wasn't to last, when she finally realized. "Wait, docked? Shit." She'd lost all that time, for what? Because a petty little angel couldn't handle a few mean-spirited words? Some representation of holiness that bitch was, if her response towards criticism was to curse the offender. Her head was about to buzz with that hot rage again, especially when Sebas used that scolding tone with her. Against the protests of her head lump, she sprung into a seat, hands squeezing the sheets tighter. "But I just- she can't- all I said was—!"
Swallow it, Fergie.
Huffing that pent up anger out, she let her head hang down in defeat. "Aye. Ye's did." Granted, no one had told her exactly how bad of a reaction she could have expected from Evangeline, but the writing had been on the wall all along. Shipmates had their own growing lists of insults and jabs towards leadership that they would cycle through drinking nights, which not even Captain Ass was safe from. But not a word had been spoken against Evangeline, even when at their drunkest. That alone should have cued her in that the consequences would be dire, but she never took it seriously. It seemed like she never did, really; she had a long history of learning the hard way, and that showed no signs of changing.

Sighing again, she let herself fall back on the bed, sullenness her cold companion after her rage subsided. "Lesson learned. I'll hold me tongue." Pain winced on her face, but it wasn't from either her head or her foot, or the even the health pouch she jabbed into her shoulder. Sebas paid out of pocket for her again? For fuck's sake... "If ye catch me ass in that damn place again, put a curse on me that'll put me foot in me mouth." Not that she needed help with that.

Sebas wanted to get down to business with the Baroness, but first. "Seb, listen." Her coin purse was tossed onto his bedside table, the hand that threw it now settling over her forehead. "Ye gotta stop bailin' me out when I fuck up. Appreciated, but I..." She shook her head. "Can't keep savin' me from the consequences. I gotta own up to shit. Not fair for you to have to pay."

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Sebas's Room​

"A bailout? Let me explain something. Listen closely," Sebas said, he said with a little laughed that dripped sarcasm, "This wasn't a bailout. There's a REASON you couldn't afford it, Ferg." he said, speaking with emphasis to let it sink in. "Evangeline makes Laylah price it high. It gets priced even higher for someone under demonic influence (UDI) because it's not only more potent, but it's harder to remove." Evangeline effectively priced it out far out of Fergie's price range so she couldn't just go get it removed that easily. "There's a REASON why this didn't feel like normal misfortune. When you're a UDI, the Ord is more potent, turning general misfortune into a Universe bounty on your head." Evangeline's normal punishment spell was turned into an attempt at an indirect execution. "I checked your stuff. You have NOTHING besides Craftsman's Boon, that bag of gold, and the clothes you're wearing right now. There's a REASON for that. The Treasury's Curse is a demonic curse. These are stronger when you're Under Holy Influence."

He paused for a second and drank some water. Sebas did dabble in religion for a while and he was under influence of a god since he followed Mariana. Still, he wouldn't pretend to understand the intricacies of it. That was left to Elaina. "I'm not Elaina so I will stick to how it was explained to me. If you mess around with angels, demon stuff will kill you. If you mess around with demons, angel stuff will kill you..........in this case, YOU were under the influence of both." He pulled out his Baroness Relic and held it out. "The Baroness Relic is a demonic item you carry with you. JUST HAVING IT ON YOU makes you under demonic influence. It made the Ordination more potent. Since you have the Ord on, you are also under holy influence. When you damaged the vase, the Treasury Curse was made more potent since it's a demonic curse." Basically, Holy Magic and Dark Magic were super effective against each other. Sebas just doesn't play Pokemon so he can't explain it in those terms.

He sighed. "It sounds fucking crazy because it IS fucking crazy, but once you start messing with the divine, it gets crazy." Too many people messed around with the divine all willy-nilly and it never ended well. "I let you suffer the pain of your actions........" which was why she dealt with that deathly hangover sickness and why she was currently dealing that concussion and impaled foot in all its painful glory. It was also why Ferg was about to deal with another money shortage. ".........but death? I would rather you look in the mirror and see an embarrassment than for me to look at your dead body because you couldn't swallow your pride enough to ask for help." He passed Ferg the Baroness Relic. She was expected to summon Baroness. "If you look in the mirror and see an embarrassment, good. That's what you get for putting yourself in that position."

When Ferg was ready to summon Baroness, she had to recite the phrase, "Strip me bare, oh Baroness. I request your presence to make good on your honored word."
WayfaringWaaksian

 

[WayfaringWaaksian]

"Holy hell," she breathed, gawking at what she was hearing. "She tried to kill me." Over an insult? Maybe. But Fergie had a strong feeling that it went deeper than that, if that awry meeting in the captain's office was anything to go by. All Evangeline needed was the permission to act on her mistrust, and Fergie willingly left that door wide open. Letting out a long groan, she buried her face in her hands. "Fuck me..." Gods, she felt like such an idiot. Approaching forty, and she still couldn't see a trap when it was set before her? How did she even make it this long in this career?

Started from the bottom, now she was already back to her only possessions being the clothes on her back, and not much extra. Indignation was still held against Evangeline, but that paled in comparison to Fergie's own choices leading up to here. The angel was honestly terrible, and everyone knew that though they wouldn't dare say it, but Fergie could have been the better person and took it in stride. She could have taken the theft in stride as well, stayed calm enough to connect the dots and realize that everything had been going downhill ever since she uttered that fateful word. Remembering what she'd done instead, the spectacle she made out of herself in the treasury, made her skin crawl with embarrassment. Kersact and his thieves were about to be under her charge, and she was already making fantastic impressions.

What Sebas said was remarkably tame in comparison to the intense tongue lashings he'd given the sub pilot and Elaina, yet still his words cut deep. Fergie had been told much worse, called much worse, but by much worse people. Sebas, she respected. Sebas, she wanted to maintain his respect of her. But she felt it very likely that her display of foolishness had caused him to lose some of that respect. And that thought burned more than the puncture on her foot, the split on her head, the blush on her cheeks, the mist in her eyes. She wanted nothing more than to hide, but her hat was resting more than an arm's length away. If she sought it out now while fighting to swallow her feelings, the intention wouldn't go unnoticed by his sharp mind, and almost certainly would give the appearance of weakness on her part. She wouldn't be weak. She would handle Sebas seeing her in this state.

Swallowing the dryness out of her throat, she said hoarsely, "Heh. Believe me, I will." She'd see more than just an embarrassment in the mirror come night. A walking disaster, a joke of a pirate, a blot on the world to remind more fortunate souls that fate could always give a worse hand to play. Etc, etc, etc.
Fergie. Spiraling. Stop it.
Sebas didn't need a front row seat to her internal self-pity party. There was business to attend to. She looked down at the relic in her hands, feeling apprehension at the thought of its unholy essence making contact with her skin, especially after that lesson in dark and holy magics Sebas just gave her. Clearing her throat, she took a readying breath and recited the words. "Strip me bare, oh Baroness. I request your presence to make good on your honored word."

Kylesar1

 

[Kylesar1]

Sebas Deadeye
Sebas's Room​

The Baroness Relic glowed and floated to the center of the room. It began to spin and opened a black hole. From there, a hand came out, palms open, along with a shrill familiar voice. "STRIP THEM BAAAAARREEEEEEEEE!!" she screamed and then slammed her hand into a fist. In a flash of blinding light, both of them were stripped down to the buff, a familiar scenario for both of them. When the color returned to their vision, they were looking at the alluring Baroness resting, legs crossed, on the foot of the bed.

Sebas wrapped a towel around his waist and passed another to Fergie. Besides that towel, it was the only source of covering they had.

"Ohhh Sebas," she cooed with her haunting aria of a voice, "I must thank you for getting me more tributes. Since introducing me to members of your crew, business has been booming. My strength is returning." Sebas was definitely busy in the period where he was leaving Ferg to her own devices. "You're close to another favor......or did you want to call it in early?"
"Nah," Sebas responded, holding his hands up, "It's not worth the binding contract it would institute."
"Oh? Then why did you summon me? Here to request a tribute?"
"That........and Fergie."
"Huh?"

Baroness turned around and her demeanor changed. What was the usual hint of an attempt at seduction turned into a spitting spite. "Oh.......you," she said, dejected, "What do you want? Why didn't you use your own relic?" She sniffed, "By Belial, you reek of Holy Magic." She could smell the residue from the Ordination of Misfortune. Like werewolves and vampires, holy and unholy beings stank to the other.
WayfaringWaaksian