Private - Aye for an Aye

AYE FOR AN AYE

Hidden: theme

​

It was only a few hours ago when Iván was comfortably warm, cozy even, back at his good old Curry House in Stokbon. People were laughing, celebrating in their merry corners, some were even singing, others dancing, while delicious bowls of curry, Stokbon's best, perhaps even the best in the entire world, found their way onto their tables and moments later into their bellies. It was just like any other day in Iván's life. It was routine, but he liked routine, especially when a few things, instances, made that routine interesting, worthwhile. The blonde served to be the day's most interesting aspect but not without some caveat.

Out here, out close to the sea, Iván was a little cold, completely annoyed at the fact that he had decided to go along with that blonde's plan, idea, plea for help, even though he was supposed to not care about things like this, people like her, even though he had an entire Curry House to take care of. I swear to the purple god, if I come home to ashes, I am going to start murdering NPCs.

Of course, Iván had a few people on the so-called payroll that could take care of the Curry House in his stead. That didn't mean he trusted them wholeheartedly. His crew, his staff, might have their moments, but they didn't really have any stake at the Curry House. For all he knew, they would run at the first sign of danger, which would be completely understandable if only Iván saw them as other people and not placeholders to keep his Curry House safe.

What was I even thinking? Coming out here, agreeing to those guys, that blonde... There were three of them, a table of adventurers the blonde had somehow drawn in, luring them into her story. She was a poor maid, she said. A victim of the most tragic of tragedies. Lost her parents at sea. Lost her entire family at sea. Iván was quick to realize she and her family were stupid enough to sail around Druuk Island, that uncivilized cesspool filled with all manners of ruffians and brigands, pirates especially. Whatever terrible fate this girl had encountered, it seemed only logical that it had come to pass.

To say Iván wasn't a fan of her story, was the least bit interested, was an understatement. That was, until she mentioned how she and her family were also stupid enough to lost all their treasure, all their gold, all their valuables, to a bunch of pirates flying under a familiar black sail. That was when Iván found himself lured as well.

Iván wasn't as greedy as most people, but he had bills to pay, ingredients to buy, people to look after. It was bad enough that this passion of his was basically an ouroboros, its income only enough to keep its expenses at bay, but this obviously bad investment pretty much never grew and he had doubts it would amount to anything, his initial savings to get the Curry House still far from getting back to his pockets. A treasure like the blonde described would be quite useful for him, for his staff, even after divided among their five.

Out of anything else to do but wait, Iván started singing to himself, "Yo, ho, yo, ho, a pirate's life for me..." It was an appropriate song, considering the circumstances. Before their party was made official, the blonde insisted that they meet elsewhere, outside of the Curry House, closer to where the pirates would be, just in case someone overheard them. Yo, ho, yo, ho, it's a pirate's life for me..."

For some reason, Iván thought that was a great idea. Maybe he forgot he had time magic. Maybe he forgot the rest of that party, save for the blonde, were formidable adventures. Maybe he just wanted the blonde to stop talking and start the darn quest. "...drink up me hearties, yo, ho..." Whatever it was, Iván was apparently the first to arrive at their agreed-upon meeting spot. The pirates and the treasure would be close by, but still far enough to keep them all safe. For the moment at least.

Decked in white, not wearing his mask, Iván looked like the perfect mark to rob. Maybe he had more faith in the blonde than he actually liked to admit.

@Libitina Cerin @Marcus Caine @Madison Freebird

 

Every muscle in Marcus's body was tense. Though he tried to keep it hidden the best he could, his breathing was become faster than normal. The tavern wasn't filled the brim with bodies but there where more people gathered here than Marcus cared for. Even though the situation played at his nerves, the Pyromancer did his absolute best to maintain his composure. Before he had even set foot in this dreadful place he had already scouted out every potential exit and had rehearsed each egress mentally. Marcus gripped his mug tightly as he took another hard swallow of whiskey, hoping the liquid fire might calm his tortuous mind.

He wanted nothing more than to get up and walk out, breath the fresh air of the wide open world rather than be crammed into such a tiny place (was it getting smaller in here?) with so many unknowns. Marcus would sooner stare down the worst horrors this world had to offer than be in this place. But there was the problem. If he wanted to make money, he had to find work. Which is precisely why he braved these very confines this night.

Sitting among the four players who had accepted a call for aid sat a smaller blonde haired woman. Marcus was sure she was an NPC, but it was still difficult for him to tell sometimes. The genuine distress, who ever had coded her (if she was part of the AI) had done a better job than Marcus cared to give them credit for. Her story was a sad one (pathetically so). Reavers had accosted her families precious heirlooms and treasure and was dropping no small sum to see it returned. The amount she had offered was what truly struck Marcus as odd. If they had had the sort of funds to pay the four adventurers at the table, why hadn't they just hired them sooner to run protection? Marcus sighed wearily as he took another long gulp of fire. The hindsight of most people truly baffled him.

Appalled. Yeah, that's a better word for it.

Marcus's eyes danced about the room quickly, every sudden movement catching his eye. Though he might have seemed distracted, Marcus had hung on to every word the girl had said, committing every little detail to memory. It was a safe bet that this wouldn't be one the easier jobs. And as one his compatriots took to mimicking old and cliched pirate lingo... Well... That just reinforced the notion unfortunately.

'Where were you attacked?' Marcus inquired of the blonde woman flatly. Pirates where no different from guerrillas. They hit weak targets of opportunity, took what they could and retreated back to some sort of safe haven. Those where usually out of the way, but not so much as that it cut them off from civilization completely. After all, what good was stealing treasure if you couldn't spend it? 'I need specifics, as detailed as you can be,' If Marcus could just get to the sight he might be able to track them. Assuming this hadn't happened days prior. If that was the case... Well, no one said this would be easy.

@Libitina Cerin @Madison Freebird @Iván Carl

 

"More importantly..."

The plagueslinger kicked her dirty boots off the ground and rested them on the table, one leg draped over the other as she leaned back in her chair.

"...When do we get to steal a ship to get there?"

Madison was no stranger to Druuk Island. A wretched hive of scum and villainy? Sign her the hell up! Every time she joined a new game, she always gravitated towards the more shady areas. Every genre has 'em. Bounty hunters and smugglers for sci-fi, corporations in cyberpunk, bandits and assassins in your various flavors of fantasy.

Besides, she always thought she looked good in a tricorn hat.

In fact, the woman was wearing a surprisingly well-fit ensemble she lifted off some punk who tried to stick a dagger in her kidney. Nice jacket, nice shirt, nice slacks; but no cutlass strapped to the belt. She could do without the weapon, honestly. A master of nature magic on a ship made of wood? She is the goddamn weapon.

Madison barely remembered how she got dragged into this little quest to begin with. It didn't really matter, either. Little girl making it to shore in Dunnstads. Overhearing the sob story while enjoying a pint in a tavern. Family treasure lost. Lost family treasure offered as reward. Killing pirates.

Was the reasoning necessary when actual adventure was within her grasp?

Nah.

Not at all.

Especially when it meant she got to do pirate shit. Being a druid is nice and all; but sometimes you just need a break from the treehugging. It does one good to occasionally crank up the Alestorm and make a couple scallywags walk the plank while sharks circle in the waters below.

 

Normal people who did not know how to swim would not go for a sea mission, especially if they nearly drowned once because of pirates. They would try to stay far away from water based battlefields. But even Libitina had to admit there, there is nothing better than seeing typical pirate stereotype getting beaten up to the pulp. Most of them would be all prideful and bratty, thinking they could win just because it was their territory. Those were the type Libitina enjoyed fighting against, even if it means leading herself to a great disadvantage. It was just a game though, right? It isn't like she would die in real life if she died during the fight. Besides, Maybe she could be lucky and do some fishing while on the quest. Fresh fish was always a delicious treat, especially now that she befriended a male who was excellent in cooking.

She watched as her teammates interacted with the blonde woman with the request. Her team members seemed capably enough to get information needed for their mission so she didn't want to get in between their inquires. Until @Madison Freebird caught her attention when she talked about stealing a ship. Were they really going to steal a ship to reach the pirates? The short girl felt that in the long run it would be a disadvantage to steal from innocent NPCs. She didn't want a bad reputation. Bad reputation=not many NPCs requesting your help=Not enough adventures to go on. That was something, the young girl would life to avoid.

She placed a hand on her hip and placed her weight on one leg "We need not steal a ship. Either our employer pays for renting the ship we will sail on or we use our money right now and later get compensated with our prize" She said before looking at the woman. "Besides, we will get the pirate ship in the end of the day. It makes no sense we steal someone's ship now and lower our reputation. If we take the pirate ship, no one can say anything since it is part of our reward"

@Iván Carl @Marcus Caine

 

“East of here,” the woman spoke plainly, eyes on @Marcus Caine. “Out in the open sea. We were sailing, my family and I, when a black sail caught up with us. I didn’t know who they were. All I know is, thanks to some loose-lipped drunkards, the crew has a haven of sorts, a base of operations, east of here.”

Iván was bored. He was also a little sleepy. The unmasked chronomancer came all the way out here…for more talking? It wasn’t his cup of tea, though to be fair, neither was a cup of tea. Discreetly taking out his bottle of ant juice, had a quick sip from it, unconcerned if anyone else could smell its horrible smell. It was tasty, to say the least, fruity and refreshing. It was a pretty good way to un-bore yourself.

“I’m cool with stealing a ship,” he raised that bottle towards @Madison Freebird, gesturing his agreement further. It has been a long time since they last saw each other, since he caught a whiff of her, but Iván knew that she had only gotten stronger since that day when they, along with that berserker girl, went on that quick quest, getting some things from a cursed village. Iván ended up taking home a cookbook or two from the crippled alchemist that hired the goth chick. Good times. “Let me at its helm. I can steer. Probably.”

Ignoring Madison and Iván, MadIván, the blonde balked at @Libitina Cerin’s assumptions, “PAY YOU?! I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING ON ME! THE PIRATES STOLE MY SHIT! WHERE AM I GOING TO GET MO---” Perhaps, if the blonde had listened to everything Libi had to say instead of reacting right away, like the privileged rich kid that she was, then she wouldn’t have had to yell and immediately get embarrassed for being outed as a dumb rich kid. Perhaps. “…oh. Yikes. I guess, you could, uhm, do that… Using your money to buy that ship you want and I can, uhh, pay you later as soon as we split the treasure up?”

Iván frowned, scowled even, turning to Madison, then to Marcus, and finally to Libi. Did they really trust this no-name NPC that much that they’d gamble their own money for her own sake? Even if the treasure would be enough, too much even, to compensate for such an investment, it was still a risk, a risk Iván wasn’t sure he’d be willing to take. He’d been betrayed during a mission, a quest, before, his first for the Aristocracy. What assurance did he have that these three, the blonde mostly, would not betray him?

“Part of our reward? How sure are we, that we can take a pirate ship, that there even is one? For all we know, this person’s just making stuff up. She could even be part of that crew, luring in adventurers with her tales of sadness and tragedy, only to capture them and steal all their stuff!”

The blonde stared daggers at Iván, not the least bit amused, “You don’t even have stuff, curry man.”

“I HAVE STUFF!” Iván pointed a finger at her in anger. “TONS OF STUFF! GOOD STUFF! …but they’re at home, far and safe from conniving femme fatales.”

In response, the blonde bit Iván’s finger nonchalantly. Try as he might, he couldn’t get her off of it. Thankfully, she didn’t seem to be out for blood, if only to teach the curry prince a lesson in respect. Or maybe she was just tired of him and his stink. Either way, Iván’s finger was in pain, he was in pain, and they were getting nowhere. Steal a ship? Or not? What should they really do? What can they do? Do be doo bi doo.

 

Marcus nodded, listening to the blonde through the chorus of arguments over what they would and wouldn't do. Rather than get tangled up with their moral dilemma on theft, he because searching for possible coves that these brigands might have been using. Just because they struck in the east didn't particularity mean that they where housing themselves there. It didn't take him very long to discover a plethora of hiding spots, to many to try to narrow down over a short period of time. But then again, planning was something he was particularly good at. 'I need the port you set sail out of, the exact dock,' Marcus said as he took another swig of whiskey. The liquor was at least was settling his nerves, thank Christ.

'And if you all would stop you bickering for one second, ' Marcus gave the group a venomous glare. He took one final swallow and placed the empty mug on the the wooden table with a thud before motioning to the bar keep for a refill. 'Who cares if she is luring us into a trap? If that's the case, they've done it before. Either way there will be gold and gear to split. Thanks doll,' Marcus quietly acknowledged the hostess who came to refilled his mug. He drank deeply, and exhaled sharply before continuing.

'What ever port Blondie here set out from is likely being watched by one of our marks. That or she had someone within her own house who ratted her out,' The latter was always a possibility. It wasn't an uncommon practice to gain employment somewhere and then rob them blind. 'We get some empty chests, claim that there's rune stones or whatever in em. Something of value. Make a big spectacle of it, big enough to where everyone in town knows about it.'

Marcus turned to red haired woman. 'I get it, you don't want to do anything unethical. But we either steal a ship or hire a charter,' Marcus stopped to let that sink in. 'Either someone loses a ship or we put others, potentially whole families at risk. I don't have the gold to hire a vessel, I don't know about any of you. It would be cheaper to just steal a ship in any case. I don't shell out cash for a job unless I'm being compensated up front. And shes broke it would seem,'

'Either way, we let them come to us. Once we have them, we save one or two over, put their feet to the fire. Squeeze em for the information,' Marcus took another long draw from his mug. 'And then we hit em where they live.' Of course, there was always the chance he was wrong about someone watching the ports. But out of all the other scenarios, this was the only one that made the most sense in his mind. Its what he would have done if he where in these pirates shoes. But at any rate they needed a place to start, so they may as well have started where this all went down.

@Iván Carl @Madison Freebird @Libitina Cerin

 

Madison blinked at @Libitina Cerin while the words dribbled out of her mouth.

Need not steal?! Rent a ship?!?! Pay for one out of own pockets?!?!?!

All of this was simply unacceptable.

The plagueslinger took a long pull from her frosty, frothy mug of ale and glared at the young woman. "Listen, bucko. Don't you worry your pretty little head about ruining your pReCiOuS rEpUtAtIoN 'round here. This is Druuk Island!"

Madison made a grand gesture around the tavern with her gloved hand. "Every single one of these bilge-sucking, hornswogglin' grog blossoms have stolen from or ran their cutlass across another person to take something they fancied. It's just part of the everyday economy here!"

She tapped her hat, jacket, and trousers in turn. "Captain Kaz O'Malley, One-Eyed Artemis, and Paxton 'Renegade' Sax. Those were the names written on the labels when I pulled them all off some rat named Walter 'Three-Teeth' Zayne." Madison rocked her right foot around on the table, drawing attention to the knife marks carved into the boot's heel that read M3TZ.

"Just think of this as a Vegas vacation. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right?"

The blond girl who dragged them all to the island glanced around. "What is a Vegas," she asked.

Madison cracked a smile. "Imagine a place far far away. A magical place where piracy is legal and people travel from all over to willingly be robbed."

Her face immediately soured. "Sounds absolutely wretched," she hissed.

"Your family would've lost a hell of a lot more than a fortune," Madison added over the rim of her glass.

The witch was incredibly glad that Ivan and Marcus were on her side, though. Whether or not Libi liked it, they were stealing a goddamn pirate ship. Plucking it right out of the harbor. Making the crew walk the plank while their captain watches, tied to the mast. The illusionist even volunteered to steer it--but the conviction in his voice that faltered somewhere around the "probably" was mildly concerning.

Either way, they were not paying for a charter ship out of pocket.

Madison nodded as Marcus cobbled together a plan. "I think you might be onto something there. Blondie shows us what port her fateful voyage sailed out of, we grab a ship from it, and load it up with precious cargo." She jabbed a thumb towards Libitina. "We can dress her up real nice too, like the princess that she is. Throw the two ladies onto the deck with the empty chests. Pirates know that not all treasure is silver and gold. We stand a better chance of finding our marks if Blondie looks like she has another rich relative traveling the seas with her."

The witch kicked her feet off the table and finished the rest of her beer before letting out a deep, hearty belch. Just to keep up appearances in the tavern, of course. At least that's what she told herself.

"Ivan and I can go scout the docks for a good vessel to hijack. He's got the illusion magic skills to trick the crew, and I'll just..." Maddy shook her head, trying to get rid of the sudden buzz that clouded her mind. "I'll just turn into a fuckin' parrot or something, land on the captain's shoulder and improv from there."

She looked around at the rest of the table. "Marcus can get Libi dressed up and find a couple empty chests, and then once we get everything set we'll push off. Savvy?"

 

The young girl ruffled her hair, Madivan's high pitch voice was irritating her. Who the hell did she think she was to raise her voice for no god damn reason?

"Do not raise your voice with me" She warned the blond with narrowed eyes. She was tempted to say more to that annoying female but decided against it since @Marcus Caine wanted to proceed with the mission. It was fine with her. The faster they started, the sooner they would finish the job and the quicker she would get away from their high pitched, stuck up employer.

She was going to tell @Iván Carl 's to relax; That they would just keep the girl as collateral and if they failed to get any benefits, they would just simply sell the girl's kidneys off. But seeing as everyone was on aboard with stealing a ship, she had no reason to bring it up.

Libitina wasn't much to enjoy alcohol. One or two as celebration was fine but they still had work ahead and the girl did not want to be tipsy while on their mission. So instead, she had ordered herself some charcoal chicken which was presented on skewers. The girl remained standing as she grabbed one of the skewers and munched on the meat while listening to @Madison Freebird . Libitina was still not quiet familiar with the world of Terrasphere and did not know that Druuk island was infamous for its living condition until Madison told her.

"I did not know that detail about this island. In the case, stealing a ship sounds rather reasonable"
'But I have no idea why you would go around stealing some used article of clothing. It is rather Unhygienic' she thought but did not say anything. What Madison did was her business. If she found pleasure stealing from rats, so be it.

As she chewed on her meal, she felt a pair of eyes on her. She looked at her side to see her white adorable seal pet, hovering next to her face, looking at her with a puppy dog face, as though it too wanted a piece of the chicken. Libitina removed a piece and placed it on the table, watching as her pet merrily ate the meal it was given, all the while listening to Madison's extended plan. She raised an eyebrow as the woman casually called her by a nickname. Back in the real world, having someone call her by her first name itself was a tedious task. Here however, everyone just called one another with familiarity. It wasn't that she disliked it though. On the contrary, the feeling was pleasent.

"First off all, do not call me a princess. I am not a goody two shoe like you think I am...and as much as I hate being related to that brat, I think that is a good idea" She agreed. Once again, the dumb blonde decided to raise her voice. "Excuse me! How dare you speak about me in such a manner. Do not forget, I am employing you to do this work"

The young girl ruffled her hair as Madivan's spoke. Let's see. She reacted without even listening her whole statement, literally bit Ivan's, hissed at Madison. "Your right. It was wrong of me to call you a brat...A dog would be much suited to describe you, minus the cuteness of course" She replied in a calm manner. "You are the fil-" Libitina did not even left her speak.

"How about I present the facts to you. You have no money, no status, no power. The only thing you have is your pompous attitude and your condescending comments. "Employing" is not the word you should be using. It is "requesting aid" at least try to get your english right" she took a last bite of her meal and set the empty skewers on the table.

"As for dressing up. I had purchased the black widow outfit not too while ago. I can just change into that. Otherwise we can go get some other dress, I do not mind" Even though her voice came out monotonous, her amethyst eyes were filled with a sort of excitement, as though she was eager to get into a cute dress.

 

"You would travel to a distant land to figure all that out?" the blonde was not amused. She was at the end of her patience at this point. She looked at all them, one by one, assessing whether they were really enough to pull this job off, if she was truly this desperate, "The job is simple: You get my family's treasure back from those pirates in the east, you get a cut of what you bring back. My family's problems are my own, thank you very much. All you need to know is where the pirates are holed up, and I just told you what you needed to know."

She grabbed @Marcus Caine 's mug and took a huge gulp from it, obviously not liking what she had put in her mouth afterwards. "So are you lot in? Or can you stop wasting my time so I can look for other, more suited adventurers?"

Iván narrowed his eyes at the blonde, contemplating everything he's learned from her and the others in silence. There was truth to some of what they'd said. It was a simple enough job, and a possibly rewarding one at that. Would he take that risk, fall into the blonde's trap? Could he afford to take that risk in the first place? "My name is Iván Carl," he introduced himself, again, from out of nowhere. I have died three, four, times, I can't even remember... So this fourth, fifth, death should be easy peasy. He looked at everyone else, one by one, and grinned, "You won't find a more suited adventurer for this job, flat one. I'm in."

"Fla... Flat one?"

"As for the ship and tricking pirates and all that," Iván ignored the devastated blonde orphan and started thinking in his seat. "I think there's a ship docked nearby, a merchant one, would that suffice?"

It wasn't an expensive-looking ship but it was obviously a merchant one. Druuk Island wasn't a great place to find yourself sailing into, but merchants gotta merchant, and they often loved to downplay their ship's appearance to hide the truth to their cargo. Pirates knew this, but most of them also knew that screwing over a merchant ship that came out there to trade wasn't ideal, especially if that ship had the support of both the Merchant Guild and the Aristocracy, but the rest of them didn't need to know that.

"Maddie and I can go ahead and borrow it, heh, and stuff." Rising from his seat, he narrowed his eyes at @Libitina Cerin, Flattie McFlatterson, and Marcus, "I guess the rest of you can fight over who wants to be the captain of S.S. Whatever then? Dibs on being the helmsman. I've been practicing, steering things, and I think it's safe to say, I'm deathly good at it."

He then extended a hand to @Madison Freebird with a wink and a smirk, "My lady? Shall we?"

The Aristocrats and the Merchants might get a little miffed at what they were about to do, but, hey, what's the worst they could do? Kill him? Ha! That'll be new. At the end of the day, all of those guys only really cared about profit. What's more profitable than getting some pirates' treasure, the blonde's family treasure plus whatever those pirates have kept holed up with them? Surely, they'd have more than the blonde's family treasure in their hideout, their base of operations. It wasn't like pirates had banks or something. Wait, did she tell them the pirate captain's name again? Or at least the name of their crew?

"Ah, by the way, you said something about a familiar black sail? What was on it, out of curiosity?" he flashed her a grin but didn't get one in turn, only a scowl that was born out of complete disdain.

The blonde looked away from Iván, crossing her arms, "It was some sort of sea snake wrapped around a cutlass."

As if on cue, the entire tavern grew quiet. Time stopped, figuratively, of course, and the air grew thick with fear and doubt and concern. From where he stood, Iván saw the tavern owner from behind the counter swallow air, staring at their table. It was an omen, a terrible one at that. Yet Iván knew little of the pirates of Druuk Island. Perhaps Madison Freebird knew more about that sail, that flag, and who bore it. From the looks of things, from the sound of things, rather the lack thereof, whoever sailed under that flag might be more trouble than their treasure was worth.

 

Marcus listened intently as the others continued the conversation. At least the bickering had come to a relative stop, and the younger girl had ceased to claim the moral high ground. There was nothing more irritating that naive thinking. At least these others seemed to be on board with the plan. His mind raced again, committing the woman's description of the groups colors to heart. He had never heard of this group personally. But then again, he didn't frequent this island. There where likely dozens of groups like this here on this island. Marcus was so lost in his own mind he didn't even notice the blonde take his mug from out of his hands. And then it hit him like a sack of bricks.

'Hold the fucking phone here,' Marcus protested as he grabbed his mug back from his blonde employer and quickly checked the contents. She had drained it dry. Bitch. Marcus disintegrated her with his eyes before chucking the mug across the room with a loud clatter. Irritated as all hell, he turned his attention back to @Madison Freebird . 'How the hell is it I get stuck having to play dress up with the only person with a moral compass at this table?' Granted she had recounted her stance on theft, but only because she was able to justify it as wronging someone who in turned wronged others. 'You go do it. I'm sure you both can pick out matching shoes,' Marcus folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in his chair. He hated babysitting with a passion. 'No. No no no no no no no no, net, nein, snow balls chance in hell of that happeneing.'

'I'm sure our employer here would be more than happy to loan something extravagant. Something frilly and girly that screams helpless damsel,' Marcus glowered at the woman who had stolen his whiskey. 'I'm a mercenary kids, not a goddamn fashion consultant.' With that he stood, his chair squealing loudly as he pushed back to stand. 'I'll see what I can do about those chests. How long will you all need to finish your part?' Marcus inquired at @Iván Carl and Madison.

 

Maddy jabbed her pointer finger at @Marcus Caine, a furious light igniting in her eyes. "Because you're the tallest and most threatening-looking on here, ya' nerd." Her finger drifted over to Iván. "This one looks like he's begging to get mugged in a dark alleyway and will only draw attention to the girls. And me? I'm stealing the ship."

Ultimately, she was just not a big fan of grunt work. She'd already gone through the trouble of stealing the pirate outfit; so at this point, nothing was going to stop her from living out this fantasy she didn't know she had until she signed up to be a part of the whole thing.

"Big tall bastard like you, and with your trademark mercenary's scowl--nobody will really think twice about messing with Libbie and--" The plagueslinger suddenly blanked on the blonde's name. She snapped her fingers a couple times, trying to jog her memory. It didn't work.

"My name is--" the woman began to huff.

"It doesn't matter what your name is," Madison interrupted. "Only thing that does is that your gold is good once we get it back."

With a devilish grin, she took Iván's hand and rose from her chair. That was when the curryboi asked about the flag that the pirates flew when they attacked blondie's family. As the tavern went silent around them, Maddy's smile only widened. She wasn't familiar enough with the various crews around Druuk Island for the serpent and sword to hold any significance with her; but given the silence of the tavern's other patrons, she wasn't sure she wanted to find out.

But if it meant more danger, Maddy was all for it.

Ooh, maybe one of them would have a flintlock pistol or a blunderbuss, and she'd get to fire it off. Tick another box off the pirate fantasy to-do list.

A cannon would suffice for this, as well.

Any kind of boom!, really.

Ignoring the murmuring whispers and stares of the patrons as they left the tavern, Madison and @Iván Carl found themselves on the muddy roads of Strerk Harbor. All around them, buccaneers and smugglers milled about, laughing and trading both stories and threats, cat-calling after whores in various states of undress and attractiveness. The place stank to high heaven, but Madison made sure to line her stolen clothes with the scents of various flowers to keep the rank odors that seemed to be ingrained into everything on Druuk Island at bay.

The chronomancer led her down closer to the piers where their ship was waiting to be hijacked. Thankfully, the walk was not a long one. The boat itself was a small merchant schooner, with a pair of masts holding the sails and about a dozen men scurrying about on the deck, loading and sorting merchandise.

"Perfect," Madison muttered as she continued to scan the length of the ship, the gears in her mind furiously grinding together to formulate the next step of their plan. "I'll go have words with the captain. You do your Illusion Magic stuff and make the crew as docile as possible without putting them in comas, okay?"

And without waiting for an answer, the druidess bolted away from the harbor in search of an unoccupied dark alleyway. Normally in a place like this, finding one would be a nightmare; but Madison lucked out and the third one she happened upon contained only the thick stench of offal and the scurrying of rats.

Closing her eyes and skipping the deep breath part altogether (for obvious reasons), she reached out and felt the spirit of a nearby bird. Grasping through the aether, she latched onto the bird's essence and pulled it into her. The sensation of her arms stretching and twisting was one she never liked; but it was necessary for the job.

(Actually, that's not entirely accurate. She could've easily boarded the merchant ship, plague'd everyone who got in her way, and assumed command of the vessel. But then she'd be left with no crew and a lot of awkward questions once whatever entities considered themselves the law arrived.)

Seconds after the black-haired woman stepped into the alley, a beautiful parrot tore through the sky, her brilliant red, green and blue plumage a stark contrast to the drab browns and blacks of the port town below.

Madison flapped around in the air for a couple minutes, finding her bearings and getting used to her new body. The druidess was so used to her raven form; trying to get accustomed to the intricacies of another bird was a hassle. But pirates don't have ravens perched on their shoulders, now do they? Thankfully she wouldn't need this body for long.

She flapped her way back across town, towards the pier where Iván was about to do his thing. Madison made her descent, flapping her wings to slow down as she flew around the back of the schooner where she would find the captain's quarters. The parrot drifted through an open window, finding herself in the spacious room. It had all the amenities one would expect in a home; a dresser and vanity set, a wide table littered with various maps and books, a plush full-size bed off in the corner, and other creature comforts the captain might have.

And in the middle of it the thin man sat, quill in hand and pressed to a stack of papers. His outfit was quite nice--a pristine black tricorn hat (sans floofy feather, to Maddy's disappointment), a nice blue coat with golden thread flourishes and silver buttons, and a pressed white frilly top. She had to wonder how much the ensemble was worth, and whether he left the cabin while in port out of fear that it'd get stolen mere seconds after setting foot on dry land.

The captain of the ship jumped out of his seat and let out a startled yelp as the macaw landed on his table. His hand was pressed against his chest for a moment while he regained his composure.

"My goodness, you scared the hell out of me," he laughed, the flash of fear in his heart escaping through a sigh.

Madison bawked a neutral response, her head cocked to the side as she stepped all over the captain's fine word.

"My my, aren't you a beautiful bird!" The well-dressed man, now at ease, moved over to a cupboard and produced a small packet from within. Reaching into the packet, he pulled out a pair of saltines. He waved them in front of Maddy's beak. "Would Polly want a cracker?"

And in a technicolor explosion of feathers, Madison was back in her human form--pirate outfit and all. Before he could scream, the druidess extended her arm. A tangle of thick vines grew from her sleeves--holy shit was the fact that pirates never washed their clothes and left them caked with dirt and mud never so useful before now--and wrapped themselves around the captain's mouth.

As he clawed at them, his muffled cries barely escaping the green that choked him, Maddy drew closer. "Actually, Polly wants your ship."

The woman gave his outfit another once-over, sizing him up for a brief moment. "And your outfit," she added. "This one's kinda rank."

 

Libitina snickered at the offended expression the girl had given when @Iván Carl called her flat chested . She herself wasn't well-endowed but that was how she wanted to look like. She had control over how she looked, unlike the annoying NPC.

She furrowed her eyebrow as Marcus called her a moral compass. Libitina never perceived herself as the emotional or morally right person. After all, a person of such descriptions tends to be the kind and forgiving type.But a kind person would not get annoyed when some innocent men screamed for help. A forgiving person would not mercilessly behead a bandit who was begging to live. Sure, she had some moral codes like not stealing or fighting fair and square (unless the other party decides to play unfair) , but everyone had them right? It didn't make her a "moral compass"...right?

She shook her head, as though shooting down the idea of being a nice person. "There is a difference between being a nice person and having a set of rules created for yourself. Just because I have a few that can be considered good, does not mean I am a nice person" Libitina really didn't want to be labelled as a goody two shoe. She felt that if she was, then people would assume she is weak and easy to manipulate.

She listened @Marcus Caine arguing with @Madison Freebird about taking libitina out for the shopping trip. She did intervene until Marcus said that he could go get empty chest while she spent time alone with the dumb blonde.

"I will just wear the outfit black widow dress. I would rather not spend time alone with her. Stupidity is contagious after all"
"Then I should be the one to stay away from you" The blonde replied.
"See what I mean? Her stupidity already is making her hallucinate" she shot back before turning to Marcus "Listen here. I might look like a kid but I am your teammate, not someone who you need to care and pamper. I'm going to arrange empty chests as well so do not even try and argue with me or tell me to stay behind" she declared as she walked towards the exit of the tavern, the pet seal following its master. She opened the door, glancing back at the table "Coming?" She raised an eyebrow at the grumpy male. "Wait. What about me?!" Madivan questioned, pointing at herself. "Stay out of my sight" she answered before leaving, regardless of whether the male was following her or not.

Libitina was the type who would always scanned her surroundings. When she was on her way to meet everyone in the tavern, she had noticed a few men who used chests like a chair to sit on. So now she was heading off to that direction to get those chests. She stopped when she reached her destination .

Like she had seen before, a few men were still there who were sitting on said chests. They all had glasses of beer in their hand and their face was completely flushed pink due to intoxication. She turned to see whether Marcus actually followed or decided to go a different direction.

 

Iván turned to @Marcus Caine when he said the bad word: F...one. Phones didn't exist in this world, which meant that the people here, basically NPCs, wouldn't know what it is and would, consequently, get confused. Thankfully, no one important really heard that word, just a bunch of pirates, brigands, thieves, criminals, the kind of people that didn't really give a damn to whatever everyone else says if it never profits them. From where they sat, the adventurers and the blonde didn't really look profitable. If anything, they all looked more trouble than they were worth. Iván simply shrugged at his question, eyed @Libitina Cerin, and turned to @Madison Freebird for the answer. He was a chronomancer now, which meant asking him time-related question may not be enlightening to non-chronomancers. Either that or he was too lazy to come up with an answer.

As Madison and Iván made their way through Strerk Harbor, which Iván mistakenly took to Shrek Harbor, whatever Shrek meant, he looked around them, making sure that nothing would come out of nowhere to kill either of them, him specifically. It wasn't that Iván pissed someone off to warrant an assassination, not that anyone would care enough to assassinate a supporting character, but for all his deaths, Iván was now wary of dying another time, especially without access to his UI and that Iedi girl telling him in his sleep to stay away from death. It wasn't even like Iván intentionally wanted to die all those times. For some reason, death just had it in for him. Or maybe he just had something else, in his possession or association, that made death want to kill him every chance it got. Whatever. Just gotta stay careful from now on.

Before Iván could tell Madison about the true nature of the ship, she was already out of his range. She was fast, he had to give her that. Iván was a little worried, concerned, that things might not go according to plan, but he remembered the first time they met, remembered that Madison Freebird, of all people, could take care of herself. What he didn't remember was how stinky she was. Even stinkier than him. I guess time really changes people...

As a chronomancer, he would know the truth of those words first-hand, deny them as other people might. It never really changes, the fact that over time, people will always change. For some, it was a terrible notion. Age, death, disease, departure... Certain things, tragic things, come with change, after all, with time. For others, they could see the beauty in evolution, in growth, in beginnings and even endings. Iván didn't care about any of that. He just wanted to be.

All right. It's my time to shine.

Iván made his way to the ship, taking out the bottles of Ant Juice and Western Sharp Gaze he had with him. As soon as one of the Phantasma's crew saw him, the chronomancer raised the bottles in the air, through his illusion magic appearing as bottles of rhum to the crew member, and flashed him a smile. Iván also made sure to make his clothes appear to that of a proper merchant crew member. He's never sailed with one before but he's met a lot of them in Stokbon, personally checking out ingredients shipped to the Curry House from faraway lands often.

"Oi! You guys from Stokbon, too? I was left here as an envoy for spinach trade. Don't get to see friends often. You lot want to drink?"

Technically, he wasn't lying. He did have a spinach trade, sometimes, and he rarely got to see friends often, because he doesn't have friends. He also wanted to drink, not rhum, but they didn't have to know that.

"Falderen? No, we're from Astorea. You really a merchant crew?" the crew member was suspicious, which was a good sign. As a merchant, at least, somewhat, Iván could appreciate a crew member that had eyes open for pirate-y shenanigans. They were in Druuk Island, after all, which meant that all sorts of terrible people could try all sorts of terrible things just to get their grimey hands on cargo that wasn't theirs to begin with.

"I am! I'm from Stokbon but I sail with the merchant crew of..." For a split-second, Iván considered what he was about to do. He was about to invoke a name of a merchant investor in Astorea. There were a lot of consequences to doing so, but then again, who were they going to believe, the merchant investor's favorite curry house owner who would keep his indiscretions a secret? Or some crew member that could be easily replaced? He wouldn't mind, not if Iván made sure to give him part of his cut. "...Alisander Felder."

The mere mention of the name surprised the crew member but that reaction was almost immediately replaced by a friendly grin, "Why didn't you say so? Come on up, friend!"

The crew member helped Iván get on the ship, from setting up the board, the ramp, on which he needed to walk, to climb, to get aboard the Phantasma, to offering him a helping hand to pull him on board, there was much illusory rhum to be had, as well as some illusory celebration that necessitated Iván to get every one, every crew member, on the same spot, close enough, for his illusory field to affect all of them.

As he chugged a bottle of rhum, actually Ant Juice, Iván hoped Madison wouldn't take too much time with the captain. Illusory fields needed a lot of energy expended and he didn't want to end up sleeping throughout the adventure. Or did he? Maybe it was for the best. Iván chugged the other bottle of rhum, actually Western Sharp Gaze, and heard the familiar kukuku that made him wince. Thankfully, none of the mesmerized crew members notice it, all loyal men but none that sharp.

 

'Yeah, we'll see wont we,' Marcus sighed wearily after @Libitina Cerin and he found himself standing alone with his employer. Jesus, what he wouldn't have given to be working with a proper group of villains. But that wasn't what life had in dealt him this time. Wild cards, the whole lot of them. Fine, if he had to be the only ace in play, then so be it. There had to be some way for this to work into his favor...

'Excuse me...?' Marcus's mind was running so rapidly he didn't even register the blonde haired woman almost pitiful inquiry. She shifted uncomfortably as Marcus bore holes through table with his brown eyes, rubbing at his chin slowly as another plan began to take root in his mind.

That's it.

'Hello?' She inquired again, this time catching his attention. His gaze met hers, her confusion clearly written across her face. 'What should I do?' He voice quivered slightly, but Marcus couldn't tell from what. Truth was, they didn't need her. This petite thing would likely do little more than slow them down once everything kicked off. Not to mention he hadn't exactly forgiven her for stealing what remained of his whiskey. The notion of setting her hair ablaze had crossed his mind... Her little highborn ass needed to be taught a lesson; never steal from strangers. Especially if that stranger was himself. Marcus snapped his fingers...

And gestured for the woman to stay seated with a single sharply down turned finger.

'Sit,' He commanded as if she was a dog. 'Stay,' And with that final bit he left her seated alone as he quickly retreated for the open street and left her intact. There was no sense in being malicious over a mug of whiskey. Not to mention, the attention it would needlessly dary to himself. After all, he could just take his tab out of her cut. Plus after this next little act he should be able to pad his pocket with a little extra gold.

It had taken him less time to find where they would likely need to go on his map than it did to find the small red haired warrior. Marcus silently observing her from the entrance of the tavern for a moment. Libitina stood there staring at four drunken men who had taken up residence on a particularity large chest. It was clear as day what she wanted from the men, but Marcus wasn't sure if she herself quiet knew how to go about getting it. She glanced back at his general direction, spotting him quickly enough. It wasn't like someone of his height was difficult to spot. Marcus slowly shook his head no, hoping she didn't do anything foolish. This plan required misdirection and a bit of acting, and she couldn't be seen playing any other role than that of a noble woman. Quickly he closed the distance between the two.

'Milady,' Marcus said pleasantly as he arrived at her side. 'You know these parts are not safe and your father would have my head if something where to happen to you whilst under my charge,' Marcus spoke loudly enough to where anyone close by might have heard it, but not so as to make a huge spectacle. 'Please do not leave my side again. It is my duty to see to your safety,' His complete one eighty degree turn in demeanor left her slack jawed for a brief moment. 'Now please, let us continue. Your mother has instructed you to pick out some formal wear for our departure. It would be unwise to upset her,' Marcus hoped to what ever god there was she was reading what he was putting down.
'Now please, follow me.'

Their destination wasn't to far away. Ivan's dreadful Curry House was relatively close to the market district. And soon enough, the two arrived at the spot Marcus had sought out. Two clothiers sat across the street from each other, rival businesses Marcus was willing to wager. "The Thimble and Thread" and "The House of Elegant Silk", the latter clearly being the dominant of the two. Marcus was willing to wager the smaller business would be willing to pay to see the other... cease all activities.

'Wait here,' Marcus said, dropping the polite and protective act. 'Give me five minutes,' And with that he left Labitina alone in the open street as he disappeared into "The Thimble and Thread". After several moments he reemerged and rejoined his "ward". 'This way milady, if you would please,' He ushered for her to enter the adjacent shop. 'Let us find you something to wear.'

Fucking kill me.

@Madison Freebird @Iván Carl

 

Hidden: The thread's actual theme song, thanks

​

The captain of the schooner continued to struggle against the vines wrapped around him. Honestly the sounds of his (rather nice) chair scraping against the floorboards was starting to get on Madison's nerves.

She turned away from the vanity for a second. "Do you mind," she hissed at him before returning to admire herself in the mirror. Clearly he didn't, since his attempts to free himself continued. Maddy would've thrown something at him, but she needed him in one piece for their little ruse to work. Kinda' hard not to raise suspicions if you're sporting a black eye.

Normally, the woman considered herself a 6/10. Maybe a 6.5/10 on a good day, when her hair was cooperating and the humidity wasn't destroying her foundation. But this incredibly fresh tricorn hat, pristine blue and gold-trimmed coat over a starched shirt, tan slacks with a perfect crease in the legs, and a pair of boots that looked like they were just purchased from Davy Jones' Footlocker?

Today? She was a solid 8. Minimum.

Madison inspected herself from every possible angle, making sure nothing was out of place. While the captain's ensemble looked pretty good, it was missing a little something. The druidess turned on her heels and slid over to the table, where she picked up the quill the man used to fill out paperwork and jammed the tip through one of the folds of her new cap.

"There we go," she said as she adjusted the feather to make it stick up at the optimal angle. Satisfied with how everything turned out, she strode across the cabin to where she tossed the rotten old pirate outfit she lifted off what's-his-nuts and scooped them off the floor. The stench immediately hit her nostrils. She wanted to throw up--not that it would've made things better. Would only add acrid to the list of adjectives used to describe the pile.

The woman quickly threw the clothes out of an open window and listened for the splash! that meant they were getting washed for the first time ever. Brushing the grunge of her old outfit off her new one with her hands, she could still catch a couple whiffs of the pungent potpourri.

Madison met the captain's eyes. "Got any perfume?"

The captain glared at her for a long, uncomfortable moment before nodding towards dresser under the mirror.

"'Preciate it," she said as she opened drawers until she found what she was looking for. A couple spritzes of the light blue liquid later, and she was starting to smell like flowers again. It was only masking the stink, of course--as soon as the job was done, Maddy was already earmarking half her cut for a spa day.

Tugging at her outfit to make sure everything was in place, Madison leaned against the table a couple feet away from the captain of the ship.

"I need you to understand something," she spoke, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not here to kill you. I'm not here to rob you. I don't know or care about what you have below deck. All I want is your ship, and your full cooperation. Savvy?"

The captain said nothing. He couldn't, really--mouthful of vines and all.

Madison took his lack of struggling against his binds as a sort of "I'm listening" and pressed on. "I'm under the employ of an incredibly rich heiress who was attacked at sea. Her ship was sunk, and everything valuable that was on board--of which I am told was an awful lot of stuff--was taken and stored away in some caves controlled by the pirates. We're trying to lure them out."

Ah--there it was. That dawning moment of comprehension. The man's eyes grew to the size of saucers as understanding struck him.

"They'll never get close enough to board," the druidess promised him with a malicious smile. "I know a thing or two about nature magic. Ships are made of wood. I'll let you imagine the rest. I've also got a crew waiting on the pier. A master illusionist and chronomancer, a mercenary, the heiress herself, and a lass that's far more fetching. We're using the two ladies and a couple empty chests as bait to lure these dogs out of hiding--surely, a few of their spies have seen the heiress back in town, and have reported to their captain. They're probably around the coast, lying in wait for us right now."

Small beads of sweat formed on the captain's forehead. Madison could practically smell the fear coming off him. She only rolled her eyes.

"Look, alright, we'll make it worth your while. After we regain the heiress's treasure, we'll give you half of her cut. That'd be about--" She paused for a beat, trying to remember the original terms of their contract. "Twenty-five percent."

The figure was probably way off, but she'd make sure to get the captain's compliance one way or another. Bribery was a good of a way as any, she figured. As much as Iván wanted to be the helmsman, they needed someone experienced at the wheel. That, and Madison needed the captain to do his job; she wasn't sure she could command twenty or so sailors without immediately resorting to beating the shit out of them.

That, and the whole I've never actually captained a boat in my life thing.

"Here's what's going to happen," she continued. "I'm going to untie you, and then turn back into a parrot. I'll perch on your shoulder the entire time to make sure you're not going to do anything stupid. From there on, it's business as usual until we get out to sea. Once we spot the pirates, my mates and I will sink 'em and take a couple prisoners. Then, we sail to their lair, grab the goods, and split."

With a wave of her hand, the vines wrapped around the captain's mouth and right hand shrunk away.

"Scream and I crack a few ribs," Madison warned.

The captain grimaced, working his sore jaw with his now free hand. The fires of anger in his eyes were tempered somewhat by the promise of spoils.

Madison extended her hand, her face remaining neutral. "Do we have an accord?"