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[Phoenix]

Leverager Deck

"Return? He's in the cabin, probably still plotting our route so we can give those rebel bastards the slip if they come down this way." the crewman replied to Gar.

Gundeck

"And do ya know why reload time is critical? I'll tell ya why! Because whoever gets off the most shots WINS, dammit!" the cannoneer explained.

"Well there's also accuracy, but that's the gunner's job. If your reload time is garbage, then the value of accuracy goes up quite a bit ... and even so, it won't make a big difference in the end if the enemy ship is laying down more fire and wrecking us. We actually have more guns in place and ready for use than your average galleon. We need to be able to overpower other ships singlehandedly because we never have backup coming. The Leverager's an independent vessel and needs to be armed as such."

"That does have some benefits. The Dark Utka would have lost in an artillery duel against us. Anything less than an Imperial mainstay doesn't stand a chance."

Return Trip

And with the shopping complete, they made their way back toward the ship. It wasn't a very long trip, but Raquel found herself with plenty of time to envision how boring the trip back to Ursium would be at this rate. She considered distracting herself with work of some kind, like adjusting and personalizing her new clothes, seeing if she could sell anything to the Leverager crew, and so on, but it still only accounted for several hours out of the whole day. Reading old books was always an option, but something she tried to avoid when possible. And just like that, she decided that she needed a new hobby if she was going to endure this trip with any sort of grace.

Outer Sanctum

Within a few minutes, the covers on the large carrier's main deck were opened and an orange scaled dragon wearing a large harness and bridle appeared and looked over the edge of the main deck down at the water. Another dragon with the same sort of gear on, extremely pale blue scales and a tanned underside appeared and peered over the other side of the deck. Next, the wind began to pick up mightily. Fox approached the two which quickly got their attention. They both looked to him curiously. He pointed up toward the sky with a single finger and said "Go exercise." in a distinct tone.

The two dragons hauled themselves up fully onto the deck and then both spread their wings as they leaped from the ship. The sheer force of both dragons leaping away at once pushed the Outer Sanctum down twenty feet deeper into the water. The whole ship was shaken, but Fox and virtually everyone else kept their footing against the daily occurrence. Now there was just awaiting the arrival of the captains ....

Edited by Phoenix, 10 August 2012 - 11:53 AM.

[-Cynthia-]

"What if there's more than one ship? Shouldn't we attempt to sail away rather than be significantly outnumbered? I assume the side with the larger numbers tends to win even in naval engagements," Veronika pointed out.

[Acacia Sgt]

Gil grunted. Why did they had to go through land to get back? Well, he at least got to fly the way in, but still. Probably John was just in no hurry or something, he himself wasn't of course, but you'd think in that case they'd just leisurely fly back.

The shopping was done, though Sophia hadn't forgotten the clothes she was wearing now were still in need of mending. Well, once they were back she could always retell Raquel if she had forgotten, which was unlikely, considering Raquel also had her own clothes to mend after all.

Didn't looked like they ran out of time. Things would've complicated a little if they hadn't. After all John knew it was one thing ferrying people, but another would've been trying to get Riley across. Perhaps being carried by all four claws of either wyvern.... well, there was no need to test that out right now anyway.

[Phoenix]

Main Deck

Once they reached the docks, the Leverager was in clear view, and Raquel smiled. There were more sailors about, and it seemed like they were getting ready for the voyage to Yoshimo island. Despite dreading the boredom she had coming her way, she couldn't help but notice how large the Leverager was compared to some of the other vessels nearby that they might have had to get passage on if they had left. There was only one other galleon at the docks, the Dark Utka, and its repairs looked finished. Raquel carefully lead Riley up the loading ramp and over to the Dauntless while Gabbie led Ringo over to the opposite side and put away the blue dress with her other things.

While Raquel began going through her purchases, Gabbie headed into the Dauntless. "Connor, I'm home." she said in a joking voice. Raquel heard it from outside and chuckled. May have been a joke to Gabbie, but the Dauntless actually was like a new home for her.

Gun Deck

"If it's just a couple of frigates, we'll take our chances. Odds are one sinks before we take too much damage, and then the other one is on its own against a well armed galleon. Not much chance of losing to a smaller ship."

The other cannoneer didn't hear the other side of that explanation that he was expecting and so touched on it himself. "Of course, if there's two galleons we run the hell away."

"Hey, not always. Sometimes galleons are under-gunned. That's when you can take'em, easy. Besides, the Leverager's too large to escape certain combat situations. Retreating is for sloops." the man defended. "The only time we should be avoiding another ship is if they have way more guns than us, have enough armor to shrug off attacks, or they're tryin' to friggin' ram us ..."

[Acacia Sgt]

And so they were back at the ship. Once they were next to the ship Gil decided to not bother and just flew over instead of using the ramp. Well, didn't mattered much, John caught up to him shortly after. <Well, now we wait for departure I guess,> he thought.

------

Sophia for her part followed Raquel so she could see to her own purchases. She knew most likely they were going to be stored in the Dauntless since, well, where else could they be placed? But either way that wasn't the pressing issue.

''So, Raquel, are you going to be mending the clothes now or...?'' She asked. Considering they might be getting into trouble not that soon after departure... but better to be sure now.

Edited by Acacia Sgt, 10 August 2012 - 01:12 PM.

[Phoenix]

Main Deck

"I didn't have anything else planned for the day, so I might ... right after breakfast." Raquel replied.

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"Mmm, right, cabin, got it, thanks," Gar sort of absently replied. Any speculation on what these rebels were could wait until he actually talked with the captain. So Gar went over to the cabin and knocked on the door. "Oi, Captain Bogdan, I'm here to return your spyglass."

[Acacia Sgt]

Raquel's comment about breakfast reminded Sophia she hadn't had it yet either. ''Breakfast... it isn't a bad idea,'' she said. Well, she could join her when she goes to the dinning hall, no need to worry then.

-----

Now the duo were back to the usual position of one lying down napping and the other leaning against the side of the first routine of usual. John was just gazing around as usual.

<Hm, isn't that Mandy?> He thought, since indeed it was. <I wonder if it's just her or Tali is here too.> Well, there was a way to find out...

[-Cynthia-]

Connor

"Oh, how was your trip?" he asked Gabbie, seeing her put away the blue dress. "I don't think I've ever seen you wear a dress before," he said, cocking his head.

Veronika

"What if our ship does get rammed?" she asked out of concern. "If it breaches the outside should we...grab planks of wood or something to fill the hole?" I'll be glad when we're back on land- you don't have to worry about the earth sinking most of the time

[Phoenix]

Main Deck

"Well, I'm going right now, so ... want to go together?" Raquel asked. She wasn't used to 'hanging out' with her companions, but it seemed like the natural thing to do, so ...

Dauntless

"I don't loike wearing dresses loike these, but they're useful. Especially if I have to mix in with a certain crowd or get mistaken for a noncombatant~" Then she stopped to think about the dress after she had put it away. "Now I just need to decoide where I'll hoide a shiv and I'll be all set~"

Gun Deck

"If we get rammed? Standard procedure is to contain the damage, get some guys on the water pumps and try to cover up the breach ..." he answered blankly.

"But more often than not, the idiots just run around in a panic. You wouldn't believe what the fear of drownin'll do to the chain of command ...." the other cannoneer added. "Getting rammed doesn't always cause a flood, but if they've got a naval ram, the damage is usually catastrophic and it's really hard to recover from that. We find a ship with a ramming head, it's top priority. A lone ship like the Leverager can't afford to get hit like that, but luckily, smaller ships pack less of a punch and larger ships are easier to avoid. Even if we do get hit, we do have a decent team of engineers that don't freak out and run away when the ship takes a lot of damage. They could keep us afloat, no problem."

"Actually, the Captain sent all of our good engineers over to the Dark Utka to speed up their repairs ..."

"... what ...?"

Cabin

Captain Bogdan answered the door in person for the second time ... wow, just wow. "Ah, it's you. Thank you for returning this, but I have a question. How many of Raquel's people are still in town? We're leaving at noon and the Utka is already preparing to set out."

[Acacia Sgt]

... which was, of course, walking over to speak with Mandy. What, you thought it was searching the whole ship for Tali? Don't be ridiculous.

''Hi there,'' John said. ''What brings you here today?''

-----

''Of course,'' Sophia said. ''I haven't eaten yet either, so better to take care of that now too.''

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"The others? Well I dunno, I sort of buggered off on my own for security reasons," Gar shrugged. "Haven't seen hide nor tail of anyone since the last time I was on deck."

[Snowy_One]

"Excuse me sire, but it strikes me as odd that you suggest broad-side firing constantly. You are an independent vessel after all, but a LARGE vessel. Ammo, gunpowder, and extra cannon is expensive, heavy, and runs the risk of being struck and exploding. But you can easily afford extra hands for ship-to-ship boarding. Plus you gain the options to loot and have a lower need for accuracy, so do we ever board enemy ships? What do we, as cannoneers, do when we do get boarded? Just keep firing?"

[roymbrog]

Synthia led all three horses down into the hold and tied them up, the gelding next to the grey mare next to Phyllis. She had managed to remove Phyll's tack despite harassment from the mare next to her (she was trying to get the apples, silly horse). Phyllis wasn't very pleased. Those were her apples. Synthia ended up taking the whole sack with her to get the two to behave, and was just leaving when Gytha returned.

Why were they meeting Nanahm at sick bay? Well, apparently she'd find out soon. “Alright, I just need to go put my things in the cabin and I'll meet you there.” And that's just what she did.

-----

“Hmm...” Torin imitated Blakes second stance, trying to commit the move to memory. He was a little sad when the swordsman said he had to leave, he kind of liked the guy. Whatever feelings of melancholy he had vanished immediately, however, when Blake handed him the book. “Can I.. Can I really have this? You're sure?” Not waiting for an answer, he wrapped himself around the guy's middle. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou!”

OoC: If the ship leaves before I post again, assume Torin left already

-----

After the others had left, Valter had leaned back in his cot for some much needed rest. At some point he woke up, startled by a loud thump somewhere in the room. Huh. Bert was awake. That was good.

The doctor answered Bert's immediate questions, and someone brought in food. For the doctor. Hey, what about the sick people?

Anyway, Bert eventually realized Valter was there and managed to turn himself over. The horseman waved. “I said I wasn't going to keel over and die. I haven't managed the second part yet,” he responded. The guy looked dizzy again, probably from the yelling. “Hey, calm down before you pass out.”

Edited by roymbrog, 10 August 2012 - 06:20 PM.

[Phoenix]

Main Deck

"Oh hello~" Mandy greeted as she turned to face John. "Well Tali's checking up on her new friend, and I was here to see if you guys wanted to finish up your testing before heading out, but it looks like you'll be leaving any minute now." she explained with a sad smile.

Not far away, the quarter master had emerged. The sailors seemed as though they had gone ahead and started readying the ship without him, and he seemed to have mixed feelings about that.

Gun Deck

"This isn't leisurely fighting where we can just throw our weight around. The rebels are onto us; I hope you know who they are .... Extra men won't mean squat against them. We can't risk trying to board a rebel ship under any of the normal circumstances. You people shoot, and you keep on shooting until your team gunner tells you to stop." the man replied.

The other continued by adding "The only way to survive against the rebels is to keep to a fair distance, shoot constantly, don't get surrounded, and pray they don't have any dragons with them. Expensive ammunition doesn't mean a whole lot when losing the battle means mockery, torture, more mockery, and death ... in that order."

Galley

It was a short trip to the galley and plenty of people were there. Breakfast seemed almost over, but the cooks had put out enough for everyone. There was still some left for Raquel, Sophia, and whoever else might have shown up within the next few minutes. Beyond that, it was uncertain. Raquel went over to grab a plate and then took an empty seat before getting some of the bacon. "There sure is a lot here ..." she noted.

Cabin

"It may be time to get a headcount and then send someone to gather up the rest. Is that wyvern rider in your group around? He might be best for the second job." Bogdan asked.

[Acacia Sgt]

''Sounds like despite last night's attacks, it overall did good for Tali huh,'' John noted. ''She certainly needed to experience less unpleasant circumstances. Hmm, testing... to be honest, it has never interested me, and now during these times even less so than ever. And yeah, we're kinda of in a hurry to leave port.''

-----

Sophia followed Raquel into the dinning hall, also getting an empty plate and sat next to Raquel.

''Well, unlike yesterday, they must've taken us into account too,'' she guessed. Indeed, last time Robin had volunteered in advance. But that had been just once, and as mentioned before, during yesterday.

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"Just got back myself, so I don't know if armor-guy's out and about," Gar shrugged. He was kinda just assuming that armor-guy the first was a wyvern rider at this point. "Guess I'll take on the first job though. Nothing better to do until we set out."

[Phoenix]

Main Deck

"Yeah, I'm happy there are more people out there who don't mind her tail." Mandy replied with a smile. "I guess if you guys are leaving soon, I should go get Tali. She could just fly back if your ship isn't too far from port, but that's a little reckless. It's a shame you guys are leaving so soon, though. A day later and Tali and I might have tried buying a ride on this same ship. She looks pirate proof~"

Galley

They had been considered, but it also seemed like the cooks picked the quickest thing they could cook and then made as much as they could to save time and effort. "I'm not sure if a breakfast consisting entirely of bacon is very healthy, but if it's just this once ..." Raquel commented. Well, at least it's delicious.

Cabin

"Alright. If I'm not here whenever you get back, speak to the quartermaster. We can spare a half hour if necessary, but I need to go and let Filat know that we'll be delayed or they'll leave without us." Bogdan explained. He then stepped out of his cabin and closed the door behind him, apparently ready to leave the ship himself.

Outer Sanctum

Once the captains had arrived, Fox met them in his ship's war room and laid out his plan. Most of the captains were on board with the plan, several were hesitant, and two were opposed. "What are we going to do if the patrol fleet decides to take us on in force? We'll be throwing several ships away for a handful of dragons-" "Nine ... nine dragons, captain. And don't forget Cornelius' final report. One of them is a shadow dragon. Candidly, the lot of them are far more valuable than this entire fleet." Fox interrupted with a more in depth explanation.

"Now I see ... now I see why you're willing to go so far to secure them. Nine more dragons in the empire's arsenal would be painful in a decade or so, but nine more in our arsenal would be ..."

"You can't even imagine it, can you?" Fox asked. "I know some of you have doubts about this, and to be honest, so do I. I don't like coming so far out into the frontier with our backs to the war zone, but if we stand by and do nothing, the empire wins yet again."

"And what if they escape? What then?!"

Fox raised an eyebrow. "... define 'escape'."

"What if they get out of the blockade and make it out to sea? You can't just send interceptors after them. They'll be destroyed."

"Heh," Fox shook his head. "If that happens I'll be more than happy to show you how an interceptor is properly used. Well then, I've heard your most valid concerns, so enough of this. Hearing feedback is a courtesy, nothing more, now return to your ships and ready your men. Do your jobs well, and most of you will return home alive. That is all."

Fox soon returned to the deck and spotted his two dragons flying around the fleet almost skirting the waves while making all new ones during their flybys. We don't usually receive a challenge from anyone but the empire ... so why is my heart pounding ...? "Grabacr! Ofnir!"

The two dragons began to slow down and approached the carrier. Once they were close, they began beating down their wings as hard as they could to stay just in front of Fox who was standing near the edge of the nose of the carrier. Fox pointed his finger toward the island ahead of them. "... disarm it." he instructed. The phrase told them everything they needed to know, and the wind dragon Ofnir used his wind magic to propel both dragons up high above the fleet. They disappeared into the clouds and began their approach to Tremere port from the clouds.

Prelude to Disaster

Volya and Claudia were still flying high above the port city and despite Volya's fatigue, they were still going. Volya's occasional complaints didn't seem to sway Claudia much, and they eventually stopped, altogether. Volya was just enduring it, now, aiming to fly around for as long as he could, and that had her feeling incredibly guilty. "Volya ...?"

"What is it?"

"I'm sorry ..."

"I already told you that you don't have to apologize for that." he replied sharply.

"No, it's not that. I just ... I just didn't know it would turn out like this ..." She loosened her grip around his neck slightly and rested her head against his. "It's almost as if ... it's almost as if your wings have become my wings. That's what it feels like ... me using you like this, I mean."

"I said I'd do it ..."

"And I thank you for that, but I still must apologize. I didn't realize just what kind of little monster I was being until just a moment ago." she explained with a bittersweet smile. Volya was genuinely surprised. "Thank you for lending me your wings, Volya. Thank you so much." She could barely manage that much more without choking up.

"... it wasn't so bad. You could be a little less pushy, but I ... guess it was worth it in the end. You got to fly around, and I got some exercise I probably wouldn't be getting otherwise. We both win." he replied in an unusually soft tone.

"Mhm."

"Wait ..." Volya flinched. "Claudia do you feel that?"

"I-I-I think it's above us!" Claudia quickly realized. Volya did a timely barrel roll while Claudia clung tightly to him, and they both narrowly avoided being clawed out of the sky by Ofnir as he dove past them. There was a lot of turbulence in his wake that Volya was almost unable to recover from. At first it looked like the wind dragon was going to fly down to the city, but it instead turned around to make another pass at them. "V-Volyaaaa ..."

"Don't worry, Claudia, you'll be alright ..." Volya assured her.

Meanwhile the alarms at the docks went off. There weren't any pirates to deal with, however. Instead they were being attacked by a fire dragon. In its very first pass it set almost every ballista ablaze. The soldiers resorted to grabbing firearms and tried to shoot it out of the air, but they didn't have enough time; the dragon would wipe out the defenses in one pass, and then move on to the next area avoiding the now prepared gunmen entirely. Some of them chased after it on foot, but the only potent weapons left after a couple of minutes were the cannons of the guard towers and the ships themselves, and none of them had the accuracy to bring the dragon down.

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"I'll be sure to do that," Gar replied to Bogdan's orders. Of course because nothing could be easy, the glorious sound of alarm bells began echoing across the area. "Though something tells me that's now the most pressing business," Gar sighed as he spoke to himself Those bells were probably gonna drag everyone out to the deck anyway, so Gar just walked over near the loading ramp and looked out into the smoking sky. "Well, hope whatever got burned down wasn't where any others were at."

[Acacia Sgt]

''Well, hopefully they're more varied in the next days,'' Sophia said. Truthfully she wasn't keen on just eating bacon for breakfast, but it seems that was the only thing they'd have. Well, better than eating nothing, but still...

And not did soon enough did that sound began.

''Huh, what's that?'' She spoke out loud. Did something had happened?

-----

''Well, it's not like we had to leave on this ship,'' John said. ''But Raquel decided to stay with them and...''

...then all hell broke loose.

<Looks like they're here already...> John thought the moment he saw the fire dragon going at it at the docks. All the noise woke Gil up and quickly stood up, not without a grunt but at that moment he too was looking at the dragon.

''Quick, we must tell the others.'' Not that soon did he said that he was already running for it to the inside.

Well, first priority was to find Raquel. Considering she went straight from the infirmary to the deck and then the time it took to meet them on the meat market meant she had skipped breakfast by accompanied Sophia, then the most logical conclusion was that she was now taking breakfast. Well too bad, since it would have to come to an unexpected halt.

So he headed there and kicked the door open and entered, and without wasting much...

''They're here, the port is under attack!''

And it was done.

Edited by Acacia Sgt, 11 August 2012 - 12:12 AM.