Aether Shanties RP (PM if interested/Started)

[Sehnsucht Engel]

"Boarding party's ready, Cap'n Beth. Morgan's waiting to lead them over, take it nice and neat. Ships as good as ours."

Beth chortled, and guided the mermaid closer to the skyfolk airship. She hadn't gotten a chance to partake in the last battle and now Sheska thought she'd let Morgan lead? When did he become an officer anyway? She must have missed that meeting. The ship's cook should make their food, not lead a boarding party. They had lost crew, but it wasn't quite that bad yet.

"Are you sure you're feeling alright, Sheska? The man is big, but we've got officers for a reason." She'd rather let Jason or Eddie lead the boarding party and they were skyfolk. Making skyfolk fight skyfolk felt like asking for a mutiny.

Please, board and kill your own people. I'd appreciate it if you don't have a change of heart and side with them against us too. Beth shook her head and held back the laughter. I will be leading the boarding party.

"Morgan! Could you take Sheska to the good doctor? I think the heat's starting to get to her." The large man seemed to ease up, now that he didn't have to lead an attack on skyfolk which would surely make him question his allegiances. He walked over to Sheska, and took a firm grip of her arm. Disobeying the captain was a bad idea, he knew that from seeing others do it, but he didn't want to anger Sheska either.

"Come on, Sheska, better get that wound looked at today too. I'll make you something nice to eat afterwards." He whispered the last sentence, since the crew would probably start laughing if they heard him talking to the first mate like she was a child. He didn't wait for her to come with him by herself, instead he began to drag her with him.

Beth grinned, and pulled up next to the skyfolk airship, then she reached for the intercom again.

"Eddie, fire the grappling hook and pull them in. Feel free to use the cannons as you see fit."

The skyfolk airship hadn't responded with their own cannons yet. Perhaps they'd rather wait and see, but that was seldomly a good plan.

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

Sheska's eyes narrowed as she heard the Captain chuckle, making her feel like Beth knew something crucial that she didn't. That was very likely, but the fact was it didn't help her rapidly deteriorating mood.

"Are you sure you're feeling alright, Sheska? The man is big, but we've got officers for a reason.".

"I'm feeling fine, Beth. Besides me, and yourself, who we shouldn't risk, Morgan is one of the best fighters on this boat. Not only that, but he can be scary if he needs to be. Might be able to avoid a fight altogether.", she explained with what she thought was remarkable patience.

But it was Beth's next reply that made her face twist into an expression of indignant shock.

"Morgan! Could you take Sheska to the good doctor? I think the heat's starting to get to her.".

She blinked and turned to the big Skyfolk man, and resentment burned in her belly as her eyes burned into his. But she complied. She needed to preserve what pride and dignity she had. However, the moment they were below, she managed to pull away from Morgans iron grip and kicked the nearest support with a boot-shod heel once, twice, then three times as she spoke.

"Damn this wound, damn the Captain, and damn you, Morgan! You know better than to speak to me like that. Let me ask you, aren't I First Mate still? Eh? Both you and her damn well know the heat hasn't gotten to me. I am fine.", she ground out, aiming a withering glare at him even as she jabbed a finger into his chest.

After a moment, she jerked a thumb in the general direction of the galley. "You get back to your part of the ship, Morgan. I can see Sam on my own, and right now you don't want to be around me.", she hissed, before striding in Sam's direction.

"I hate that Beth thinks I can't do my job. I resent her sending me off like an ill child. I really fucking resent her making Morgan drag me away. Hell, I despise the look she gave me this morning. Fuck it.", she murmured angrily under her breath, baring her teeth by the time she got to Sam.

"I need morphine. My wound is throbbing like a ***** in heat, and I've a headache coming on, so make it a lot.", she spat out.

 

[blaze96]

"Very well, let's go back to my area. About time I checked on how your arm was healing anyway." Samuel said as he lead the way back and had her sit down on one of the beds.

"Now that we have a bit more privacy, penny for you thoughts?" He said as he prepared the syringe with a larger dose than usual. He injected her near the stump so that he couldcheck on it as he worked.

"Haven't seen you this angry in a while, what's on your mind?"

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

"Very well, let's go back to my area. About time I checked on how your arm was healing anyway.".

She nodded curtly and followed, a scowl on her face the entire way. When she was led to a bed, she sat down and dug her fingers into the sheets. The more she thought about what was going on, the more infuriated she got, so when Sam asked what was going on, thought about grabbing something and throwing it at the wall, but she resisted.

"Its the fucking Captain. I lost my arm, but apparently she thinks I lost part of my brain and some of my spine as well! You know that she had Morgan drag me off, like a little girl who's whining of a little cut? I shouldn't stand for this kind of shit, not even from her. What's worse is that I should be heading that boarding party myself. Even with just one arm, I'm a better fighter than half the goddamn crew, that's not boast, that's a fucking fact. I deserve more respect than that, damnit.", she said, bile practically spewing out of her with every single word.

She kicked at the nearest vacant wall, and growled loudly. "Oh, Cap'n Beth and I are going to have a talk about this, in private. We will have it out then and there, once we've captured that ship.", she added in a dangerous mutter.

 

[blaze96]

Samuel checked over her arm and saw it was healing fine.

"Well medically your are doing just fine. If you happen to need an appraisal to back you up I would be perfectly willing to back you up. Though I would advise you take caution if you do board a ship." He said before taking out a ball and bouncing it toward her.

"I keep it for when things get rather slow and I've read all my books, also helps keep up the hand eye coordination, might help with a bit of stress. As for Beth, the way she is treating you now seems quite odd to me as well. In fact I've figured out that the two of you have some deeper relationship going, my lips are sealed by the way, and that the both of you have begun treating the other differently than before. Maybe the two of you need to remember that you are both perfectly capable of handling yourselves in a fight. I've seen the way you both have begun to dote on the other any time one of you gets hurt." Samuel took a drink before continuing.

"But if Beth has been acting as you say it seems like something that could very well use correction. Can't have either of you undermining each other in front of the crew, bad for the health of the ship at large. Just make sure you don't accidently say something you'll regret."

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

"Well medically your are doing just fine. If you happen to need an appraisal to back you up I would be perfectly willing to back you up. Though I would advise you take caution if you do board a ship.".

"Good to hear. Means I can beat some ass once I get out of here. See about getting on that boarding party and keeping Beth safe so I can 'talk' to her later.", she said, just before having a ball bounced to her.

She caught it handily, then looked over at him with confusion.

"I keep it for when things get rather slow and I've read all my books, also helps keep up the hand eye coordination, might help with a bit of stress. As for Beth, the way she is treating you now seems quite odd to me as well. In fact I've figured out that the two of you have some deeper relationship going, my lips are sealed by the way, and that the both of you have begun treating the other differently than before. Maybe the two of you need to remember that you are both perfectly capable of handling yourselves in a fight. I've seen the way you both have begun to dote on the other any time one of you gets hurt.".

"Well, thanks for keeping quiet about it. I suppose things may be easier if... Last night didn't happen.", she said, feeling a tug of regret for voicing that.

Last night was nice, and memorable. And really, she didn't think it was something to take back at all. But, who knows, maybe Beth felt that way. That thought made her anger flare up again.

"But if Beth has been acting as you say it seems like something that could very well use correction. Can't have either of you undermining each other in front of the crew, bad for the health of the ship at large. Just make sure you don't accidently say something you'll regret.".

"Oh, I won't. I'm just going to be perfectly clear on where I stand about this, and at the moment, I don't give a good goddamn about-", she growled, winging the ball as hard as she could at the wall in front of her.

And she was promptly interrupted when it bounced back with force and slammed into her face, right against her forehead. She let out a grunt, then fell back. Out cold.

 

[Arcanist]

"Attention crew, prepare to board and capture. Eddie ready the port side cannons, but don't go trigger happy... Kind of want the ship intact."

Jason let out a sigh as the intercom settled back down. "I suppose I'll be needed on deck. Fry, you're in charge. Don't blow anything up while I'm gone." With a half-hearted salute form his subordinates, he left for the deck. As he entered into the open air, he removed a spyglass from his satchel and took a closer look at their mark.

'Tigerfish class. Heavily customized, so it's probably run by Skyfolk. No visible cannons, though. They could be concealed, but that wouldn't be easy on a ship that small.' Looking to the side, he saw Beth rallying what appeared to be a boarding party. He couldn't help but smile at that. 'Looks like she's taking what I told her to heart. That's good - we're going to need that wisdom in the days to come. It's a good thing I brought my pistol...'

He walked up to her, readying his revolver with a click. "Good to see you're taking what I told you seriously."

 

[blaze96]

Samuel got out of the chair and picked Sheska up before putting her on a bed, he really couldn't contain a chuckle at what he just witnessed.

"I guess somebody need the hand eye coordination more than I do." He said to himself as he checked her over to make sure she was ok. Finding out she was fine he simply grabbed a small book and began to read.

"I'll make sure to have some alcohol ready for you when you wake up." With that said he turned the page and waited for any word from the captain or a sailor.

 

[Sehnsucht Engel]

"Good to see you're taking what I told you seriously." She turned around when she heard Jason's voice, with a grin on her face. Seeing Sheska getting dragged off had been fun, and the woman would just have run after Beth when she lead the boarding party. She didn't need to risk losing more limbs so soon.

The grappling hook was fired at the skyloft ship and began pulling them in. It was then that a few hatches on the side of the ship opened, to reveal several cannons. Neither of the two ships fired at each other, just yet, but she figured that they would soon enough.

"Aye, we'll sell that ship." She said, while looking at the other ship, to try and dodge in case they fired at them. She probably wouldn't be able to be that fast though. "When we get to Helium City. It will give us some more gold."

 

[hiei82]

"...Once she knew more, she was going to report to you in person, but seeing as though that you were not in a state to be seen to, I believe she has held off for a while." Garrett said as she changed. It was good to hear; she would have to check in on said Second-mate shortly, but that was no major problem; she was the Admiral and she could manage to find Annis injury regardless.

"I suppose I will need to find Ms. Baker-Cromwell then." she called out to Garrett as she began readjusting her newly acquired rib belt. It was hardly the first time she had taken such significant damage - she did after all have on arm for reasons other then birth-defect or preference. She was going to ask if Garrett knew where Annis could be found, when he spoke up again, stopping her in her tracks. "Not to intrude, but do you need a hand with anything in there? Promise I won't look anywhere indecent, unless of course you permit me to."

It was a loaded question if ever such a thing existed. On the one hand, even she had to admit between her damaged arm and her ribs, the uniform was proving difficult to put on, but on the other; she was changing on the other side of a divider for a reason. Yet, if their relationship continued as it had, it was only a matter of time before the issue became... difficult. Needing to make a decision quickly, she slipped on clothing to cover the most indecent of exposures, then called out to Garrett; only a small amount of hesitation in her voice "Th...that would be kind; thank you."

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"Th...that would be kind; thank you." Adrianna responded after some hesistation, obviously the question must of taken her back a bit, given the nature of their predicament. Giving her a few more moments to herself, Garrett stepped carefully to the other side of the divider, making sure he didn't catch a glimpse of anything sensitive yet. What he saw was reasonable, nothing too revealing nor was it overbearing. A smile crept onto his lips.

"You look, wonderful." Garrett said as he stepped closer towards his lover. He then picked up her greatcoat, and gently repositioned her arms so it would slide on easier. Whilst Garrett did up the buttons on the coat, he made conversation.

"Sorry for asking this of you... I just thought that given you might still be hurting from your injuries, you might of found getting yourself dressed to be a little difficult. I hope you understand." Garrett said, looking away from Adrianna, feeling a little ashamed for himself. After a short while, he stood back to inspect his handy work.

"There, you look like a respectable member of the Imperial Navy now." Garrett remarked, feeling a little happier now for a job well done. He noticed a couple of buttons on her trousers were out of line. So taking care not to look, he undid them then realligned them to the right holes. He rubbed the back of his neck, relieving some of the tension.

"Well, now you do. So, how is your arm holding up? Did you sleep alright?"

 

[Redryhno]

"Eddie ready the port side cannons, but don't go trigger happy... Kind of want the ship intact."

"Like I'd go trigger-happy on something that takes a minute to reload."

Eddie and the cannon crew readied the port side, and awaited the order. Then the other ship opened up on them, but didn't fire. A minute into the stand-off, Eddie started getting antsy and yelled up the stairs to the deck.

"Eh Cap'n, you wannit done yet or what?"

 

[hiei82]

"You look, wonderful." Garrett said, resulting in a light blush on the Rear-Admirals face; it was after all nice to hear compliments from those you love. Fortunately for her however, the blush was light enough to hopefully go unnoticed.

Garrett then proceeded to help her with the more difficult garments to position with one hand. This mostly consisted of her greatcoat; given the absurd amount of buttons Imperial greatcoats required. As Garrett did so, he began to apologize. Adrianna smiled, thinking "That's Garrett for you; apologizing for offering help.". Shaking her head slightly; she commented "Don't apologize; you've done nothing wrong. That was just my empire-induced paranoia rearing its ugly head." she said, stopping her head shaking. "Thank you for the help." she continued as he finished with the aid.

She consciously chose not to think about the trousers.

moving over to her desk, she began to grab the device Dr. Roque gave her the day before, intent on taking the first reading. "Well, now you do. So, how is your arm holding up? Did you sleep alright?" Garrett asked as she picked up the device. She was intensely happy her back was turned, for at the mention of "sleeping well", the rather embarrassing dream of the night prior returned to her mind. While pleasant; dreaming of a potential future together was hardly something she wanted to bring up. None-the-less, a smile escaped onto her face.

"I slept very well - far better then most nights" she said, remaining vague on the details as best she could. She continued to face the desk as she was about to use the medical tool, when she remembered the question had a second part; her arm. "and my arm is still a bit out of sorts; hopefully the new engineer will be able to fix it when we reach Helium." she said, then turned around, her face back to the stoic form she preferred it in.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Spoiler: OOC

I am temporarily taking control of Exeter until Tips returns from what I assume is Antarctica (mostly because I like penguins)

"Please come in." Dr. Roque said pleasantly enough; though the mask made him question the veritas of the pleasantry. None-the-less, he took the good doctor at his word and entered the room without much delay. "Thank you Dr. Roque." he said, returning the pleasantry with a large smile; not genuine in the slightest, but it was the thought that counted really.

Getting straight to business, Exeter began to explain his reasons for his visit. "Now that the more pressing matters of health have been dealt with; I would like you to check my wounds; just to ensure they do not become infected. I'm sure you understand. The ship cannot be down its Captain and First-mate at the same time; else Annis would need to take command. On a mission such as this, we need every officer acting at the best of their ability. he said, truthfully enough; gesturing to Annis as he mentioned her.

Noting a chair in the corner, he bowed his way out saying. "Though please; finish with Ms. Cromwell first. I'm sure her injuries are much worse then my own." he said, letting the subtle insult remain in a tone that suggested concern for the Second-mate. "Though; do tell me. How is Admiral Lanester? I do hope she will be quite alright." he asked as he took his seat in the 'waiting chair'

 

[Sehnsucht Engel]

"Eh Cap'n, you wannit done yet or what?" She heard Eddie shout from below deck. They hadn't been fired upon yet, but why should she wait for them to fire? Beth had to make the call and she would.

"Aye, fire!" She shouted down to him, and in the same moment the skyloft airship fired at them. The loud roar of cannons could be heard, and she threw herself on the deck. After a few seconds had passed and she was certain that she wasn't dead, she got back up on her feet and unfastened her weapon.

No one in the boarding party Sheska had collected before getting dragged off was missing, or in pieces.

"Prepare to board." Beth almost wanted to jump across and fly the distance between the ships, but then she would end up alone on the other ship.

 

[Texas Joker 52]

-Sheska-

Sheska was roused from her unconscious state by the roar of cannons and the shaking of the ship. Her head ached, specifically right between her eyes, where the ball Sam had handed her impacted earlier. Unfortunately, she woke up with a groan, and when she opened her eyes, she wasn't entirely sure where she was, or what it was that woke her up.

But after her initial disorientation passed, she realized what was going on: They were just about to capture a ship. And she was willing to bet every single gold coin she ever earned, and every one she was going to earn in her lifetime, that Beth was going to lead the charge. "Oh, that headstrong *****!", she said under her breath as she tried to force herself up.

The best she could manage was rolling awkwardly out of bed and falling on her face, which only compounded her headache.

With another groan, she pushed herself up and onto her feet, ignoring Sam as she pushed open the door to his cabin and staggered out. Her footing was unsure, and her head spun, but she forced herself to work her way to the top deck. When she got there, she had to grab onto one of the ships supports to keep from falling.

Glancing over, she saw the boarding party, and Beth, and after a moment of intense internal debate, she sighed heavily. "Captain! Capture us a ship. Don't get killed.", she called over, making sure she was heard over the din of ship combat.

While she was going to stay behind, she did step forward to keep a good eye on her dear Captain. If anyone so much as grazes her..., she thought, her hand letting go of the wooden beam to grab her cutlass' handle.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Adrianna's head shook slightly as she spoke. "Don't apologize; you've done nothing wrong. That was just my empire-induced paranoia rearing its ugly head." She then stopped. "Thank you for the help." Garrett smiled, feeling a lot more calmer about the situation now as he breathed out a sigh of relief. Adrianna then went over to grab the pulmometer that Vasco had left for her the previous evening.

"I slept very well - far better then most nights."

"Well, that is good to hear. Did you dream of anything special?" Garrett asked, slightly curious to learn more.

"and my arm is still a bit out of sorts; hopefully the new engineer will be able to fix it when we reach Helium." Adrianna remarked as she turned back to face Garrett, pulmometer in hand, looking as if she was ready to take a reading.

"Let's hope that this engineer has the skill which are required. I would offer to try and fix it for you, having a bit of mechanical knowledge being as though I'm a Skyfolk; but automata appendages aren't really my area of skill. That being said, I did make a fully working automata raven as a pet when I was younger. Oh, sorry, just going off on one of my little trips down memory lane, it's been a good few years since I've last set foot in Sentinel Bay; at least ten I think. Speaking of Helium City, would we by any chance have some time to do a little shopping as it were? It's just I need to pick up a couple of things is all."

 

[hiei82]

"Well, that is good to hear. Did you dream of anything special?" Garrett asked, slightly curious to learn more, as she blew into the pulmometer. The combination of unexpected question and the attempt to use the medical device resulted in a course cough; no doubt throwing off the readings. "Ah... well...er... It involved laying in a beautiful green field watching the sky; pleasantly warm wind as well. I don't know why I was there watching them; but it made perfect sense in the dream... something to do with looking for constellations I think... and uh... you were there. Also lots of flowers, and some clouds and-" she said, moving through the basics of the dream, the last section with swiftness in an attempt to avoid the embarrassment of the admission she had dreamed of him. Desperately trying to avoid the more... specific details, she quickly latched onto the lifeline of a topic that was Helium City.

"Yes; speaking of Helium indeed. Thank you for the offer, but I believe I can manage the arm until the city anyway. As for the shopping; I do believe we will need to delay our progress slightly to replace our fallen crew members and make required repairs. What more; we will need to resupply. If you have need of something; I can add it to my list of requisitions or assign you to the resupply team." she said, her voice still accelerated and higher pitched then normal do to her attempt to change the conversation.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

It looked as though Garrett had asked at the wrong time, as Adrianna was busy trying to get a measure on the pulmometer; and his question caused her to cough, probably throwing off the reading she would get.

"Ah... well...er... It involved laying in a beautiful green field watching the sky; pleasantly warm wind as well. I don't know why I was there watching them; but it made perfect sense in the dream... something to do with looking for constellations I think... and uh... you were there. Also lots of flowers, and some clouds and-" The description made Garrett feel a little more relaxed, as he cocked a smile at Adrianna.

"I see, that certainly sounds like it was a very nice dream; don't think I've ever appeared in someone else's dream before. In any case glad your rest was pleasant, though that probably had more to do with the morphine than the dream." Adrianna's voice suddenly went high pitched as the topic of conversation changed.

"Yes; speaking of Helium indeed. Thank you for the offer, but I believe I can manage the arm until the city anyway. As for the shopping; I do believe we will need to delay our progress slightly to replace our fallen crew members and make required repairs. What more; we will need to resupply. If you have need of something; I can add it to my list of requisitions or assign you to the resupply team."

"That might be a good idea adding me to the resupply team, granted most of the stuff I require is standard fare; however, there are one or two items I'll need to get personally, as they are somewhat private in nature. Might try and acquire a few things that may help us should we ever face the Mermaid again. I presume we'll need some gear for when we reach the more colder climates up north. Unless there is anything else you want me for, I shall, uh, leave you to get reading from that." Garrett said, gesturing towards the pulmometer.

 

[3quency]

"Though please; finish with Ms. Cromwell first. I'm sure her injuries are much worse than my own."

Annis frowned at Exeter.
"Just a routine adjustment, Mr. St. John. Some of us are capable of handling ourselves in a fight."
The snide reply was unnecessary, but the wire had been irritating Annis all morning and she was just about ready to snap at someone. It had come as a relief when Vasco finally did something to it and the itch eased.

She stood, readjusting her mask into a comfortable position as she did so. She always felt the need to alter it once Vasco was done. Yes, he was the doctor and the genius that built it, but it never quite felt right when he was finished. Perhaps it was because he didn't wear it himself, she wasn't sure.

She looked at Exeter coldly.

"I have errands to run. I shall leave you two alone. Dr. Roque, when you have a moment please see me in my quarters about your proposed replacement. Good day gentlemen."

She left the medbay, thoughts on her routine.
Oh, but she should probably go and speak with Lanester first. Surely she'd recovered from the morphine by now?
Well, only one way to find out. She walked through the ship and up towards the Admiral's cabin, rapping precisely on the door and waiting patiently outside.

 

[Arcanist]

Jason could feel instinct take over as he saw the ship swing open several compartments in its starboard hull, revealing an array of cannons. The cannons hadn't even brought themselves to bear before he reacted. "CANNONS! HIT THE DECK!" He ducked prone with the rest of the crew, hands over his head to shield himself from any shrapnel. Their cannons fired with a roar, and the Mermaid shuddered as she took a full broadside.

Shuffling back to his feet, he cast his vision around the ship's deck. 'No new holes, and we'd know if it hit anything important. That means...' he took a brief look over the ship's railing and grinned. Their smallbore cannons found their mark, alright - right alongside their armor. There where a few dents from where the shot had struck, but no significant damage had been done.

Jason looked to the side to see Beth and her boarding party realign themselves after the salvo. "Prepare to board."

"You heard the Captain, you louts! Get those grappling hooks ready. No explosives this time around, we want the ship in once piece! Guns and blades only!"