Fantasy The Atlantic's Jaw

[Juli Zakstyre]

"Captain!" Anna shooed the seagull onto the edge of the boat. "Captain, will i be joining the raiding party?" Because it would have been her first raid. She wasn't too bad with a cutlas and a pistol, and she was good with fistfighting, surprisingly good, considering that she was a "mild mannered" schoolgirl. Not entirely a good girl., but not a bad one either.

 

[CharmingCthulhu]

Nick turns back to the 2 that were asking him questions. Still slightly gripping the wheel he says, "I can't afford to loose a Sea Artist. I could tell you somewhat cared for that young lass, but if you were to die whilst you were on the ship, we might all get lost at sea and eventually die. So I have to say no to your request." He then faces the graduate, "You wish to join the raiding party?" He asks somewhat amused, "I'd ask that you'd say on the ship, but if you truly wish. Yes, you can try your life on the raiding party."

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

He grimly nodded. He knew that he needs to stay, a ship without a Sea Artist could very well be heading straight to Davy Jone's Locker. "As you wish, captain." He went over to Anna, whom he knew would be allowed to join the raiding party. "Hey Anna, can you watch over the two Powder Monkeys while fighting?" He asked Anna in a polite and gentle tone.

 

[tinymush]

Hana had stiffened when the captain put his hand on her shoulder, but the contact was gone quickly, and the confirmation of her role in the raid gave her enough of a distraction. She gulped and glanced at Raxton, murmuring a quick "Well, that's that...", before glancing up at the captain's summons.


She'd been in her fair share of raids, and she'd obviously survived all of them, but that didn't inspire much confidence. Her last crew had been so much more cutthroat than this one seemed to be, and there had usually been at least three or four other powder monkeys to share the burden.


"We should get our orders," she said, taking a breath and puffing her cheeks, before releasing it in a whoosh. Hoping Raxton would follow her, she walked towards the quarter deck.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Positions? Don't really have one, but I will help free the sails. Assuming that that's what the captain wanted done, along with the anchor being raised, Devil's Grin took hold of the sails and untied them, ducking when they came billowing out. My enthusiasm is gonna kill me one day. I hope someone's steering. She couldn't help but notice the stares that she was getting from 'proper' ladies about her age as they saw her doing 'man's work'. Mae blushed darkly, but let the sails go and then tied them up. "We're ready to set sail!" She couldn't help but give a theatrical bow toward the people ashore as she joined the others.

 

[CharmingCthulhu]

With a great thrust of wind the large ship lurched forward sending many un-expecting crew members off balance. There were a few claps and whistles from the gathered crowd but not much. Nick begins steering the wheel in the correct manner. Great winds have picked up and the ship was steadily going forward into the deep blue.


Nick yells to the Sea Artist over the noise of seagulls departing from the masts, "What direction we be heading?!"

 

[Brax]

"Aye." Of course, Beezy spoke to all those who had gathered around to hear what he had to say. "The captain be sayin' that he would like us to overtake the precious cargo aboard a ship named 'The Cursed Manta of the East'. The captain is one a man named Mister Bonnet, one whom happens to withhold valuable riches somewhere upon his ship. Now, as much as we would like to believe it is possible, there is not a foreseeable way that our conquest will end without any casualties. That being said, be sure to watch each other. We are brothers, and we fight as a unit. No man left behind. If it means killing to save your life, then you kill."


While he took a deep drag off of the cigar between his lips, the illuminated cherry at the end continued burning the leaf wrapped around the tobacco. "I will let you know when it is time to ready yourselves for combat. Until that time comes, we need to track down the ship and do our best at our appropriate jobs on board the vessel. If one link in the chain is broken, the entire chain is broken." With a nod, Brent removed the cigar from his mouth and waved his hand along as to dismiss the crew before him. If they actually decide to listen to what he had to say, chances were the most of the group would end up making it out alive - if not all. "Off with ye, to your posts."

 

[tinymush]

Hana listened attentively to the quartermaster's briefing, hands clasped behind her back. That he valued teamwork was extremely comforting to hear, and she was glad to have permission to kill. It wasn't something she wanted to do, and she'd avoid it if possible, but it still might be the difference between whether she survived this raid or not.


As they were dismissed, she realized she didn't know where any of the gunners were. She couldn't find the lady gunner from earlier, and she hadn't recognized any others. Hana bit her lip and walked off in a random direction to avoid looking out of place. The cannons were as good a place as any to check, and they would probably need to be cleaned, anyway, so she decided to go below deck in search of a bucket and rags.

 

[Imrealk]

Raxton nodded at the man, noting what he said about Hana. Following her to the quartermaster who seemed to be giving out orders, he sighed, nerves getting the better of him. What if he screws up? What if he let's the whole crew down? The thought made Raxton recoil, but he quickly snapped out of his daze when the quartermaster finished briefing. Following Hana below deck, Raxton still felt nerves, but wanted to take his mind off things.

"So, Miss Dulluhan, what exactly are we doing down here?" Raxton asked while watching Hana walk in front of him. The lower deck was pretty dark, so he stayed close behind her, looking in between shadows and staying alert. "Bloody hell, I can't see anything down here," Raxton said, grabbing Hana's hand.

"Do you mind? It's silly, but I've never been a fan of the dark...plus I don't want to lose you."

Raxton said nonchalantly, but with a slight blush. Sure, it was embarrassing to say you didn't like the dark in front of someone, but even more embarrassing to say something that sounded completely mushy and romantic. Not that he minded though, and secretly he hoped she didn't mind either.​

 

[tinymush]

"Buckets and rags," Hana replied nonchalantly as she squinted into the inky darkness. I should've brought a torch or an oil lamp, she scolded herself.


"Neither can I-" she stopped short as Raxton held her hand, body tensing in surprise. She'd never held hands with someone she wasn't related to before. It made her feel jumpy and tense and floaty and altogether odd, but she didn't dislike it, per se. And besides, he was just looking out for her. This was normal stuff, really.


"No, no I uh- I don't mind," she stammered, embarrassed and a little excited at the same time. The feeling of Raxton's hand in hers made looking difficult, especially when her field of vision was already obscured, but she eventually found a pair of buckets and a couple of tattered rags, holding them up in the air triumphantly.


Hana squeezed the boy's hand as she let her other arm drop to her side. "Let's go clean the cannons," she said, "and maybe the gunners will find us and give us different orders while we're there."

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

"We are heading north of east captain." He said, consulting his map. "If we manage to keep our speed, we shall reach the ship in an hour." He said, rolling up the map. He wondered what spoils they are after. He cannot say what the captain wants, since this is the first time he's sailing under him. It's probably just gold and loot, he thought. "Captain, why attack The Cursed Manta of the East?" He ask, mostly out of curiosity.

 

[Juli Zakstyre]

"Ooh, Sebastian, i know this. Partially for the treasure, and" Anna paused dramatically, "for revenge." She grinned. "Being a scholar has its benefits, i read all up on the Cursed Manta Of the East." She grinned again, a hint of mischeif and glee in her eyes. "This ship is a merchant and slave trading ship." She lowered her voiceso no one but the captain and the sea artist could hear. "Rumor has it that the owner of the ship once had captain nick as a slave, before he was a captain." She spoke normally again."there will be slaves on the ship, and the captain says he doesn't want to shed innocent blood."

 

[Imrealk]

Raxton squeezed Hana's hand in return and smiled to himself, happy that she didn't mind holding his hand. Raxton gazed at her hand in his, and even though they were the same age, his was surprisingly a lot bigger than hers. Hana's hands were small and soft, and his big and rough. "I wonder how she managed to keep them in such nice condition," He though to himself, laughing afterwards.

"Good! That'll give us something to do for the meantime. Plus I still need to learn how all of this works, so good practice then, hm?" Raxton said, leading the two up to the main deck.

(Sorry that my replies are pretty slow and short, I'm just busy today and will be taking care of my replies on mobile. Sorry!)​

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Taking a cloth from her pocket, and then her knife from her boot, Mae got to work on cleaning the now dried blood from her favored blade, thinking about how she got from the dark room at the brothel, to cabin girl, working under one of her customers at the time. He had visited her the day after she became Devil's Grin, and she had gotten rid of the body before he ever came in. When she was done with him, she assumed that she would never see Captain Nick again, but, he had come back the next day, recruiting his crew. Mae tried to ignore him, but the captain wouldn't give up and the rest just flowed from there. "Hopefully, I'll be going with the others to attack." She whispered, watching the others interact and blushing as she watched Sebastian. Quickly, she shook her head and ignored him as she wiped the blade clean.

 

[tinymush]

Hana nodded in reply, and as they emerged into the light of day once more, she took a moment to savor the cool, salty breeze against her skin. Though it was darker below deck, it wasn't any cooler – in fact, it felt even hotter, stiflingly so, without any moving air.


The cannons were mounted on the main deck, and Hana spotted them soon enough. She pointed them out to her fellow powder monkey before striding towards them. There were four here, and they were large and impressive; certainly larger than the ones on her old ship, at least.


She realized suddenly that it wasn't dark out here, and there was no chance of losing sight of each other, so they probably didn't need to hold hands. Timidly, she loosened her grip and watched for Raxton's reaction.


"We need to, um, fill the buckets and clean out any gunk or residue on the inside..."

 

[CharmingCthulhu]

"Aye, Anna's correct about all of that." Nick says grimly. He turns the wheel slightly as to not hit a small fisherman's ship. "Hey, how about we sing a shanty I heard a while back!" He says somewhat enthusiastic. "I thought I head the old man say, Leave her johnny leave her. Tomorrow ye' will get your pay, and It's time for us to leave her! Leave her johnny...." Nick continues singing the olde' shanty hoping for the others to join along.


The ship slightly rocks but stays in a straight line, heading for the treasure smoothly.


(All the shanties can be found here [media]



[/media], or on spotify at https://play.spotify.com/album/2lMgz2BBwwzkc9ZfNB9zYi That way we can sing along! )

 

[Juli Zakstyre]

Anna, who had never been much of a singer, just smiled and closed her eyes, as she listened to the sea shanty. It reminded her of her brother, before the incident, when they played "Scourge of the seas." He was always the bad guy, which should have been a forewarning for her. She didn't think anything of it until the day after the hanging. Her eyes watered, but she held back the tears, passing it off by not letting her smile waver. It was good to hear another voice singing after so long.

 

[Imrealk]

"Oh, okay," Raxton said with a nod, his hand balling in to a fist with the loss of warmth. He furrowed his brow, but took a bucket and a rag from Hana anyways.

"Well, we should fill these up then," Raxton said with a half smile and a glassy look in his eye. He wasn't quite upset that Hana let go of his hand, but wasn't exactly happy about it either. It stung his pride a bit, but hey, what're you gonna do?

(Sorry again you guys I went to a friends graduation party so everything's gonna be short and sweet until tomorrow ;-; I just need my laptop back (-｡- ​

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

He smiled, hearing them sing shanties. This is also another thing he liked about being a pirate. Nothing beats a good old shanty. He has a pretty good voice, able to reach deep and high notes. He started to sing "Randy Dandy-O", his most favorite shanty. Then, he saw Anna, her eyes watery. "Are you alright?" He asks.

 

[tinymush]

Hana tied some rope to the handle of her bucket, checking and rechecking the knot carefully, before tossing it over the side and watching to make sure it had been submerged. Getting water this way wasn't particularly graceful, but they couldn't waste fresh water on cleaning, and getting it this way saved her another trip to the lower decks.


Not that she wouldn't enjoy spending more time with Raxton, but it would be embarrassing to admit she hadn't had the foresight to get the water while they were down there.


"We got water this way on my old crew, sometimes," she murmured with a sheepish grin as she hauled the full bucket up. When the captain began his shanty, she hummed along. This was a favorite of hers.

 

[Juli Zakstyre]

"Hm?" Anna opened her eyes and blushed. "Yes... im alright... Memories, thats all." She smiled in a laid back way. "Its just my past. Im fine." ? She did her best to hide her feelings with tough guys. She knows that people will never take her seriously if shelet her feelings through. "Im fine. Really." Yeah, she was sure he bought that.

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

He nods his head, even though he knows that that is not all. "Okay, I'm sure you're fine." He said, putting a hand on her shoulders. "Hey, just remember, if you have any problems, be it personal or others, you can talk to me about it. No one else will know." He said with a reassuring smile. "Just promise me that you'll look after the powder monkeys during the raid, alright?" He said.

 

[Juli Zakstyre]

"I promise, sebastian. I will look after them and guard them with my life." She smiledand said i am so greateful for your support.." "if i am supposed to be protecting the powder monkeys, i should probably get to know them, huh?" She walked down to where the powder monkeys were working. "Here, it would get cleaner if you scrubbed WITH the grain of the wood." she knelt and began scrubbing with them, smiling at the two. "i'm Anna."" she winked at raxton, as if she knew about his feels. 
(Sorry my typing is messy. Im on a nook)

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

He smiled at Anna. knowing she will keep her word. He stared into the horizon, trying to read the weather. The sky was clear, not a cloud in the sun, but that is not always the case. When you're in the ocean, the weather is not always in your favor. It maybe sunny and clear now, but it can turn into a malevolent storm in just seconds. "Captain, who else will be on the raiding team?" He ask, curious about it.

 

[Imrealk]

"Sure, it makes sense." Raxton said nodding as Hana pulled up the bucket. "Let me," he said as the bucket got to the edge railing, Raxton pulling it over the wooden ledge. Untying the rope, he put the full bucket on the ground and tied the end to his empty bucket, taking the rope from Hana's hands.

"My turn," The boy said with a grin, and flung the bucket over the side of the boat. He was confident his cow hitch knot would hold after all the time he had been practicing with the boys that time ago. Pulling up his bucket once it was filled with salty water, he untied his knot and coiled the rope up, placing it on the ground. He let the rag go in to his bucket, and unbuttoned his shirt. "I hope she understands this is my only shirt. I can't get it wet and damaged this close in," he thought to himself as he tossed aside his shirt and wrung out his rag and began wiping down the canon, his back to Hana.

His eyes darted up to a woman who began helping the two with cleaning. "Uh, thank you Miss Anna. I appreciate your help," He said in response to her wink, and her helping the two scrub.​