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| The Slave Trade | |
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| Topic Started: Aug 23 2011, 08:54 PM (2,449 Views) | |
| Gordreg | Jun 15 2012, 09:39 AM Post #61 |
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Administrator
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“I… don’t really.” Jel gave a disgusted expression, and wrinkled her nose as the food appeared. Glaring suspiciously at the buckets, she wondered what the greyish mush slopping about within would actually taste like upon the tongue - but if it were truly that horrible, perhaps she might be glad it wouldn’t come that often. Either she’d have escaped this place by the next feeding time, or else she’d be hungry enough not to care. The clatter of jewellery hooked Jel’s attention away from the folk in the other cage, and as Kokyrie robbed the guard through the bars of their cell, Jel found she could only cover her mouth and try not to laugh as the cell swung slowly open. It mattered not one jot how horrible the food was if she would never even had to try it, and Kokyrie had won back their freedom even faster then they had lost it. As they filed out of the rusty door, she stepped around the outsides to get a better look at the other cage. And at that, her heart sank again. True, the prisoners within were all rising to their feet, but many of them seemed far too thin. As they surged out to congratulate their rescuer, Jel noticed that many bore other signs of their incarceration. Many had sores or ugly welts, and some were in even worse shape then that. One of the more elderly men had a horrible bronchial cough as he stepped from the bars, and another had lost an arm, with a ragged and blood - stained strip of gristle being all that swung from his right shoulder. And there were so many wounds and lacerations throughout their ranks that she doubted there was treatment for them all aboard the Mononoke, let alone hanging in the pouches from her belt. She paused as she noticed the man staring at her. He was tall, and once he might have been powerful; but captivity had stripped him of musculature as it had stripped him of weight. His hair was a peppered chestnut, and those staring eyes Hazel. Jel found herself taking a backward step, her mouth falling open. She had not seen that face for well over two years, and he looked thinner and more aged then he had before, though still… But when she looked toward him again, he had turned away, to talk to another man beside him, and give a sad shake of his head as he held his hand above his brow. Had he even truly recognised her, Jel’din wondered? The last time she had seen her father she had been much younger then she was now. She wore different clothes, her hair was longer and in a differing style. And though she had not grown that much in height, she had grown in many other ways since they had last set eyes on one another. She listened as the men gathered at the back of the tent, even heard another call him Hu'kora. Yet still she stood, paralysed with her uncertainties, not knowing best how to approach a man she had only ever known as ‘Daddy’. |
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| Jet Blackbeard | Jun 18 2012, 08:29 PM Post #62 |
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aka Bear
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"Sounds like a plan to me." Kokyrie winked at Soto. She helped to usher the rest of the captives out of their cages until they'd all gathered at the back of the tent. Motioning for everyone to give her their attention Kokyrie elaborated on what she had in mind. "Okay everyone, listen carefully. When I give the word we're going to make a break for it. I know there are many among you who probably aren't in any shape for this so help each other out. Move as quickly and as quietly as you can towards the treeline. Once you've reached the forest just keep going for as far as you can. The pirates are soon going to have their hands full so they won't be able to give chase. But try to put as much distance between yourselves and this camp as you can so you don't get caught up in the crossfire." Kokyrie waited for a moment to make certain everyone understood what to do. By the time her instructions had reached the captives farthest from her they been boiled down to a simple "keep running and don't look back" that pretty much summed up her brilliant tactics. Now that the slaves were prepared Kokyrie had to make ready herself. Off to the side of the tent there was a stack of crates that contained a malodorous assortment of soiled blankets, torn clothing and shattered crockery. No doubt these boxes were what passed as refuse bins that contained the slaves' castoff belongings. Although their vile contents were of no interest to Kokyrie what had been laid atop them most certainly was. When the pirates had confiscated her group's weapons they'd left simply tossed them in with the rest of garbage. Kokyrie gathered all of the weapons into her arms and carried them back to the others. She handed Jel'din her quiver of arrows, removing one of them, and then thrust her spear into the young healer's hands. "I need to borrow this too." She explained. Spotting Xera still loitering around the cell Kokyrie approached her to return her weapon as well. She thrust the painted wooden club out for Xera to take but the other woman refused, unable to meet Kokyrie's gaze. "You're saying you can trust me with a weapon?" She asked in a voice that was half growl and half sigh. "I need all the help I can get right now." Kokyrie returned evenly. Xera turned to glare intently into her eyes for a few heated seconds. Then her hand moved to snatch the club out of her grasp. But Kokyrie held onto it firmly and did not release it. "Now is not the time for mistrust and division." She added sagely. Xera stood firm for a moment and then relented. She nodded silently and accepted her weapon. Casting about for a moment Kokyrie returned to the boxes and tore a strip of cloth from one of the articles within. She wrapped it tightly around the tip of the arrow she'd taken from Jel'din and tied it snugly. Finally she stepped over to one of the torches that illuminated the room and set it ablaze. "Alright you lot. Move out!" Kokyrie hissed loudly to the slaves. There was a bit of uneasy shuffling but then someone amid the front ranks took the initiative and lifted the edges of the tent, motioning for the others through. Perhaps it was the scent of fresh air that wafted beneath the opening or perhaps it was the sight of the forest dimly lit by the moonlight that spurred them on. But once the door to freedom had been opened before them the slaves began moving as one out of the tent. "Keep an eye out for any guards who are still hanging around." Kokyrie told her group. "Like I said, I can use all the help I can get. Want to give us a hand?" She directed the question towards Soto. For some reason she got the sense that he would prove to be a valuable ally during the long night ahead. ~ Stepping out of the tent Kokyrie raised Jel'din's bow and nocked the flaming arrow upon its string. She loosed it skyward, sending the signal to the Ixa'takan warriors to attack and probably drawing the unwanted attention of every nearby guard to their location. "Alright, eyes open girls." Kokyrie growled, handing Jel'din her bow and accepting her spear back. The slaves were moving slowly but steadily into the forest but it would take several minutes before they were safely out of sight. If they were spotted now Kokyrie and her small band would have to buy them the time they needed to make their escape. ~ "There's the signal! Begin the attack!" Shandala cried as the burning brand sprouted from the darkness above the slaver's camp. Behind her the quiet camp rustled to life in frantic motion fueled by many hours of pent-up energy. The Ixa'takans had been held in check for long enough. Now they were eager to taste the blood of their long-hated enemies and, once loosed, they would not be stopped. Shadala felt the bloodlust building within her as well. Raising her spear towards the night sky she voiced a loud war-cry that was echoed from the throats of her loyal Amazons. Not to be outdone by their female counterparts the King's soldiers added their voices to the din. Soon the two factions were sounding off as if in competition. The Ixa'ness high-pitched screams sounded one moment and in the next the soldiers answered with their deeper, more resonant cries. The rivalry between the sexes ended with both factions being stirred into a frenzy. And then, as one, they boiled out of the forest, charging headlong towards the town. Spears bristled amongst their ranks and arrows whizzed over their heads; an opening volley against the pirates. "Yes! This is it! This is the feeling that I've longed for!" Shandala cried exultantly as she watched the warriors go. "This is what I live for!" She added before dashing after them. ~ "Sir! It's the savages! They're..." A nervous foreman began as he barged through the door into Darius' cabin. The heated look and angry tone in the Valuan pirate's voice cut him off. "Attacking, I know! I can hear the ruckus all the way back here." Darius growled. He had just finished dressing himself and was now in the process of buckling his sword belt around his waist. With a scowl he addressed the room's other occupant. "Damn monkeys! So they decided to strike first? No matter..." Kaia was seated upon the bed, lacing up her boots. "This is not what I was told. Their plan was to attack only after the captives were freed." She muttered, obviously trying to shift the blame for this unexpected development away from herself. "Then someone better go and check to make sure they're still locked up!" Darius yelled back at her. Yet his eyes turned upon the pirate who was still standing dumbfounded in their presence. "Er, yes sir!" The pirate saluted nervously and then quickly retreated from the room. Darius shook his head in irritation as he glared after the pirate. Then Kaia's hands encircled his waist. "Does this affect us at all?" She asked, nuzzling her cheek against his back. "No, not really. We may take a few more losses during the first wave but our ships are ready to launch." Darius answered. Ever a soldier he could predict the ebb and flow of the battle even after his initial predictions had been overturned. "Once they're airborne the tide will turn back in our favor." "Shall we go then?" Kaia asked with an alluring smile. Darius arched an eyebrow at her. "You don't want to settle up with your sister first?" "No. She is already dead to me." Kaia answered coldly. ~ Kokyrie loped along behind the slaves with her spear at the ready. Her eyes roved back and forth for any sign of pursuit. Behind her she detected the faint glow of torchlight burning on the far side of the town and her ears rang with the distant sounds of violence. The attack had begun. Hopefully it would draw the pirates' attention away from their clandestine actions here for a while. From somewhere close by a gunshot rang out, followed a second later by a cry of pain. "Damn it! I knew my luck wasn't that good." Kokyrie cursed. To her right a trio of guards emerged from the darkness. And just ahead one of the slaves toppled over, clutching his leg and moaning in pain. "Jel! Tend to him!" Kokyrie shouted, motioning towards the wounded slave. Once again she dropped her spear and readied the healer's bow and arrow. "Tsuki! Take the one on the right!" She ordered as she nocked an arrow and took aim at the pirate on the left. Another shot was fired and Kokyrie felt a flash of pain course across her midsection. But she didn't have time to be injured right now. She took a deep breath, held it and sighted down the arrow's shaft. It had been years since she'd wielded a bow. But Jel'din's weapon felt natural in her hands as she took careful aim and loosed the arrow. A grunt of pain indicated that her aim had been true. Although cloaked in darkness Kokyrie was certain she'd dealt the pirate a killing blow. With that thought in mind she recalled the words she'd spoken to Jel'din and Tsukiko earlier. "I told her not to get mixed up in this business." Kokyrie thought glumly as she spared a quick glance over at the Yafutoman priestess. "And yet here I am, ordering her to do just that. I'm such a hypocrite." The pain from earlier once again made itself known, causing Kokyrie to wince. She lowered her hand to her side and felt the warm stickiness of blood beneath the torn fabric of her shirt. An exploratory press revealed that it was just a flesh wound opened with the bullet grazed her side. It wasn't a life-threatening injury by far but it might serve to hamper her movements a bit. It was also distracting her and that could very well cost her her life. The third pirate was charging straight towards her now. He wielded a cutlass in one hand and a dagger in the other. He was too close now for the bow to be effective. So instead Kokyrie waited patiently, drawing him in closer. Just as the pirate reached her she stepped to one side, calling to mind one of the movements she'd learned from her old lover Shingen so many years ago. As the pirate's sword swept downward she brought her arm up beneath his, arresting his swing while driving the tip of Jel'din's arrow up into the flesh of his lower neck. With a gasp the pirate stumbled backwards, dropping his sword to claw at the wound. His jaw worked up and down but only a quiet wheezing escaped his mouth. After a few agonizing seconds the pirate wretched blood and collapsed. Kokyrie glanced over to see how Tsuki had fared. "That was just the appetizer. The main course is about to be served." She smirked. In the distance she could hear the approach of the men Darius had dispatched. |
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| Daiohma | Jun 20 2012, 12:42 PM Post #63 |
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The Ice Fang
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Tsukiko stood around at the front of the group of people. Looking around she watched as the others let the rest of them out from their cells. She wanted to help but had no idea how to open cells as it was her first time seeing or even being in one. While looking around she also noticed that she was the only one it would of seemed from Yafutoma. She really did feel like a fish out of water and kept wondering just how she managed to get herself into such a situation to being with. What started out as a simple journey to Ixa'taka with Midori to learn new healing methods ended up with her taking part in witnessing a pirate war. For a moment she did think to herself that for once she would be the one back home telling a story about pirates to her sisters. The pleasant thought did not last long as she then remembered that she was in the middle of that war. The young maiden looked about for Kokyrie, spotting her just as she started to talk to the people. "Okay everyone, listen carefully. When I give the word we're going to make a break for it.'' Kokyrie explained her plan to the large group. They where to run as fast as they could towards the trees, not looking back and helping the ones who could not move as fast. A few people around Tsukiko turned to tell the people behind the plan. She quickly joined in turning to the people standing behind her. ''Please run to trees very fast and not looking back..'' Before she could finish the people had already turned to pass the message on. By the time Tsukiko turned back to face the front she saw that Kokyrie had gathered some weapons and was passing Jel'din some arrows. A weapon she was used to seeing as they where used back in Yafutoma, yet the same they looked so very different in design. As the others sorted out their weapons the Shrine Maiden looked down at her necklace as she placed her hand around it. The roll of the Tsuki Shrine Maidens was to assist others in battles, something this generation of Tsuki Shrine Maidens thought would never happen for Tsukiko. ''I'll do it.'' Tsukiko told herself. Kokyrie and her crew took care of her, and even if they where pirates they had helped her escape and so she would try and do what she could. She also knew the sooner they where out of trouble the sooner she could meet up with her sisters again. "Alright you lot. Move out!" Kokyrie's voice caused Tsukiko to look up from her necklace, was it time already she thought to herself. A group of people lifted the side of the tent making a passage for the others. Tsukiko, at the front of the group, was one of the first out. She did not start to run right away but stood there helping the people up and pointing them towards the trees, ''Please run.'' She told them as they made a dash for freedom. Just then something caught Tsukiko's attention as a light flashed in the sky above. She turned to see Kokyrie and Jel'din who had sent what she guessed was a signal to the others. They all started to make they dash to the trees with the others, Tsukiko removed her traditional shoes, knowing they would only slow her down as she tied them to her waist. She was not as fast as the others but managed to keep up just behind Jel'din and Kokyrie. Just then she was almost completely stopped in her tracks as a sound rang out, a sound she feared. It was that of a gunshot followed by a cry of pain as she watched one of the slaves fall down ahead of them all. Like always in such a situation Tsukiko found herself scared as she stood there, yet the fact that the guard shot someone for wanting to be free angered her inside. "Jel! Tend to him!" Kokyrie called out as Jel'din attended to the man. Kokyrie took up the bow again and aimed it at the guard on the left. "Tsuki! Take the one on the right!" Tsukiko could hear Kokyrie's voice yet she was too shocked to move her body. She could only turn her head to face the guard he was starting to position his gun in her direction. With her eyes wide open she found her hand grasped around her necklace as a faint glow appeared. All of a sudden the sound of another gunshot rang out, but not from the guard in front of her, it came from Kokyrie's direction. Tsukiko turned her head just in time to see that Kokyrie seemed ok and that the guard had been hit by her arrow. ''Eterni'' The words muttered from Tsukiko's mouth without her even realizing it. There was a flash of pure silver light around Tsukiko but it was all over before she could turn back to look at the guard in front of her. He was laying face down on the ground as she looked at him. She knew what she had done and thought back to what her sisters would say. Out of all her sisters it was Shimo who came to mind, she was the most mature of them all and she had once told them all what is expected of them in order to protected the innocent. Her words in her mind made her feel a little better but what made her feel that she did right was when she turned to see Kokyrie. She had helped out and in her eyes did good for the pirate who had looked after her for this time. Just then Kokyrie was attacked by the third pirate who came at her with a sword. Tsukiko was about to run over as she took a hold of her necklace again but before she could move Kokyrie had taken care of the attacker. The pirate then glanced over at Tsukiko to returned her a smile. |
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| Navarro | Jul 8 2012, 08:26 PM Post #64 |
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What is this, a title for ants?
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A wink. Soto grinned, a mixture of sheepish gratitude and animal arousal playing across his muck-streaked face. He'd always had a thing for strong women. She'd been there mere minutes, and had already accomplished more for their escape than Soto had in his weeks of trying. As Kokyrie announced the plan, Soto's suggestive eyes fell to Ruchi, and softened. She couldn't run. She probably couldn't hide, not without hurting herself. The glassy look in her eyes made it seem like she could hardly tell what was going on at all. The newly freed slave turned away from the crowd and approached the old lady, taking her frail, veiny hand in his with gentility. "I'm going to get you out of here, vieja," he promised. She rasped through her throat, and failing to produce any words, she nodded. Her ancient body filled with nervous hesitation. Joining the crowd, Soto moved out at Kokyrie's order. He wished, briefly, that Jagger were there to help. Chancing one last look at his cell, he caught a flicker in the lightbulb. He was on his way. As the two followed the procession from the pens, Soto was stopped by his rescuer. "Want to give us a hand?" "I need to get her to safety," Soto explained, "But if you can hold on until then, you can count on me," He held the heavy tarp over his head and allowed Ruchi to duck out under it before disappearing himself, with a salute to Kokyrie. ~ Seeing the arrow fly up into the air set all of the other slavers on high alert. Jagger had only just returned from his secret dock to find the camp in a state of utter disarray, and he had a pit in his stomach as he jogged back to the Big Pen, knowing full well what had probably happened. He threw aside the cloth doorway and found the whole pen empty. Expecting Soto's lock to be busted, he was stunned to find that all of the cells were properly unfastened. Someone had let the prisoners go. An out-of-breath pirate appeared in the doorway, and shared in Jagger's shock. "Oh, balls!" the pirate screeched, "We're too late!" "You knew this was going to happen?" Jagger asked incredulously, looking around for clues. A couple of unconscious bodies lay around the room. Guards, he noticed, not slaves. "They can't have gone far," the pirate reasoned, drawing his pistol. "I'm going after them." He turned away and promptly found his face exploding forth onto the tarp door. His corpse dropped as Jagger blew the smoke from his own pistol's barrel and left the tent. A bright burst of silver in the fields separating the camp from the jungle caught Jagger's eye, and he broke into a run in pursuit. Soto, he thought, you dumb sonovabitch... |
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| Gordreg | Jul 19 2012, 04:32 PM Post #65 |
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Administrator
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Jel turned her head as Kokyrie began to speak, unable to sum up the courage to walk those few paces over and introduce herself, uncertain of just how to begin such a thing. And so she stayed still, listening to Kokyrie’s plan and nodding along as it was explained. The jist of the plan seemed basically to run as far away as could be done, though even that seemed like it would come with a whole raft of complications. Already she’d counted a number of foot-wounds or leg injuries amongst the captives, and that wasn’t even counting any wasting or muscle fatigue that might have set in from a long imprisonment. As the speech drew to a close Kokyrie wandered away to one of the side rooms, and Jel felt compelled to make a start. A particularly raw-looking wound on an otherwise healthy-looking man’s leg was given first priority, and she drew a foul-smelling poultice out of one of her drawstring bags, smearing it quite liberally across the bloody injury, getting a pair of the other prisoners to hold the man down when he began to feel the stinging and kick out as a result. With the man held down by his fellows, however, Jel found it far easier then the norm to wrap the wound in a strip of rough cloth, tying the ends together then tucking them away to keep the wrap in place. And then, finished, she looked up. “Ah, Captain!” Jel exclaimed with a smile as she saw Kokyrie approach, glad to see her bow had been found, and was in the Captain’s hand. But her pleasure turned to bemusement when Kokyrie only returned the quiver, giving Jel the captain’s own spear to hold in place. “Um... of course…” Jel nodded, not quite sure why Kokyrie needed her bow; but trusting that the captain had reason of her own. And that reason became clear quite quickly, as Jel applied a little ointment to the wounded hand of another former slave she could see Kokyrie working by the boxes, wrapping the taken arrow in a fabric strip and setting it alight. And suddenly, everything became that little bit clearer. As they filed out of the tent, Jel gave a nod of her head to Kokyrie as the Ixa’ness chieftain notched her arrow to her bow. The burning arrow shot skyward, surprisingly bright amidst the darkened sky, and Jel crossed her fingers, hoping that the group would react to it before the slavers could… “Right…” she nodded her head as she took back her bow, handing Kokyrie her own spear back as a return. She swallowed, and began looking around… The slaves were not the quietest of groups as much as they were trying to be, but the roar of a weapon shattered even that slight quiet, sounds of panic and anger and woe filling the night as some of them began to panic. “On it!” she shouted out, scampering over to the fallen slave, who was rolling on the dirt and clutching hard at his leg with both hands. The metal had bitten deep into the flesh of the man before punching right out the other side, narrowly missing the bone, but the wound looked a clean one, so Jel reached for the glow-rock in her pouch quickly before he could bleed too much away. “Moons…” she intoned softly, hands clasped against the stone firmly in concentration. “…Quet’ya… give him strength…” The flashing glow of light as the glow-rock discharged was uncomfortably bright in the dim nigth conditions, and Jel clenched her teeth, hoping that the shooter didn’t have a partner to see by the brightness of the stone’s energy. But after a moment the glow faded again, and Jel looked down with relief to see the man’s flesh knitting slowly back together, the hole in his leg closing slowly up as the energies of the Sacri set to work. “Good.” She nodded enthusiastically; bending down to take hold of his hand with both of hers, and started pulling the man back up. “It’ll, um, hurt loads… but it should cause few problems later.” She told him as she ducked beneath his shoulder, supporting a part of his weight with her own strength as he started hobbling on the move again. “Come… the sooner we get into the woods, the better for all of us…” And with the formerly-wounded man slowly recovering even as he limped toward the wood, Jel’din beneath his arm like a crutch as she ushured him onward, the freed slaves streamed toward the forests and the prospect of saftey offered by them… |
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| Jet Blackbeard | Jul 24 2012, 12:58 AM Post #66 |
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aka Bear
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(OOC - Sorry about the lack of material for your characters to respond to. There's a lot going on in this thread right now but I reached a good point to end this post and cut it a little shorter than I'd planned. There should be more action from here out though.) "This isn't going to end pretty." Kokyrie growled. The odds arrayed against them continued to increase along with the number of pirates who were arriving in pursuit of the escaping slaves. "Just a little longer..." She muttered to herself. Kokyrie knew they had to hold out until all of the slaves had reached the relative safety of the forest. Kokyrie sent another of Jel'din's arrows arching into the chest of one of the oncoming pirates, felling him. His cohorts answered in kind with a volley of gunfire that zinged around Kokyrie's head like wasps. She lowered her body into a crouch to avoid another injury but realized that she wouldn't be able to dodge them all. She risked a glance over her shoulder and was heartened to see the last of the slaves disappearing into the darkness beyond the treeline. "Tsuki! Let's go!" Kokyrie gestured for the priestess to follow after them. She covered her by loosing another arrow, this one lodging itself in the knee of one of the pirates. He howled in pain and fell to the ground, causing two of the men following behind him to stumble over him. "That'll have to do." Kokyrie grimaced as she sprinted after the slaves. ~ The pirates followed after Kokyrie, albeit at a slower pace. They eyed the treeline nervously, unable to see through the thick shadows beyond. A couple of them fired their weapons into the darkness but they were firing blind now. Luck, rather than accuracy, would determine whether or not they hit anything. One of the men paused to reload his weapon. He ejected a spent cartridge and was in the process of loading a fresh one when an arrow suddenly blossomed from his chest. He looked down at it through rapidly dimming eyes in utter shock. "Fall back!" Came the voice of one of the others. It was the last thing the pirate heard in this world. The others retreated back the way they had come, leaving their fallen comrades body lying in the dirt, until they were out of Kokyrie's range. Unlike the rest of them she could see them well enough in the pale moonlight to pick them off from the darkness. For a few moments the pirates huddled together between the town and forest. "Should we rush 'em?" One of the men asked. "Yeah, you go first." Another snorted. "It's just one woman with a bow!" The first argued. "She can't take us all!" "Then lead the way!" The second retorted. "I'll be right behind you!" The first man turned to glare at the second. "You want me to be a human shield? Better job for you I think. It'd be the first useful thing you ever...." "Will you both shut the hell up!" A third man demanded. He was the one who had ordered the retreat and seemed to be their ringleader. "I'm can't hear myself think with all that caterwaulin'' goin' on!" "So what do we do then?" The second man relented, turning his head away from the first in disgust. "I just said I was thinkin' didn't I?" The leader answered hotly. "Maybe we should....we could try to...." Before he could finish his thought he was interrupted by the clanging of a bell somewhere in the town. "That's the alarm signal!" The leader gasped in a mixture of surprise and relief. "We're under attack! Everyone back to town!" ~ Shandala stood behind the battle lines, arms crossed over her chest as she surveyed the progress of the Ixa'takan army. A scowl marred her face as a result of what she was seeing. Their initial charge had carried the King's warriors as well as her own Ixa'ness into the town and many of the hated slavers had fallen before their onslaught. But soon after their sortie into the nest of the enemy had slowed to a crawl. The pirates had rallied a little more quickly than expected and were now holding their own. From her limited experiences with the Valuan invaders Shandala understood that even though the pirates were badly outnumbered the superiority of their weapons helped to even the odds. Plus they had the home field advantage in this fight. "But you only delay your inevitable slaughter." Shandala hissed through clenched teeth. "This tide of blood can be held at bay for only so long." Proof of her words came only seconds after she'd spoken them. Shandala bore her teeth in a feral grin as a group of shacks built on the outer edges of the town erupted in flame. In the distance a cheer went up from the Ixa'takan horde. The pirate's line of defense dissolved as the survivors of the latest skirmish were forced into retreat once again. In their wake the Ixa'takan's advanced, claiming yet more of the field. Little did any of them realize that the pirate's true strength had yet to be revealed. It wouldn't be long before long before its presence was felt on the battlefield though. Down on the town's docks the crews of a half-dozen ships were preparing to launch. Anchors were being weighed and cannons were being loaded. The tide of battle was about to shift. ~ Kokyrie felt relief wash over her body as the pirates began to pull back towards the town. For the time being the slaves were no longer their top priority. "They've got bigger sky fish to fry right now." She muttered to herself. The darkness beyond the pirate's encampment was even thicker than it had been when they'd first entered but Kokyrie was able to pick her way through the forest and catch up to the slaves. Locating Jel'din among them she returned the healer's bow and an empty quiver. "Sorry Jel. I used up all of your arrows back there." She admitted sheepishly. "Guess I owe you a brace or two later." Accepting her spear back Kokyrie addressed the party of slaves. "Okay, listen up! The battle has just begun so until it's over the pirates shouldn't come after you again. I aim to win it and make sure that no one else will suffer at their hands!" A few cheers greeted her vow but most of the slaves were too weak to do more than nod their heads silently. "Right now I need all of you to move further away from the town so you don't get caught up in the violence." Kokyrie continued, taking charge of the situation. "Find your way to the coast and wait for us there. Our ships will come to fetch you once it's safe." Issuing commands was coming easier to Kokyrie now. Perhaps Ma'un had been right about her being a leader. Or perhaps not. She still found herself doubting the wisdom of her plan. What would happen of her army was routed? What fate would befall the slaves then? Kokyrie shook her head, as if to dispel the doubt. The odds had been stacked against her many times before and she'd always managed to pull through in the end. The only difference now was the number of lives that were hanging in the balance. Kokyrie had no qualms with putting her own on the line but being responsible for so many others was really nerve-wracking. But there was no use worrying over that now. Kokyrie had no time for regrets while the battle still raged. She could count her regrets when it was all over. Now was the time to fight, and in doing so, keep those regrets to a minimum. "Jel'din! Tsukiko! Xera! And....you, guy. Whatever your name is!" Kokyrie rounded up her entourage and Soto, whose name she had yet to learn. "We've done all we can here so let's head back and join the fray!" Now that the slaves were as close to being rescued as she could manage right now Kokyrie was anxious to get back to her army. "I sure hope Shandala is behaving herself." She muttered, imagining all of the havoc the former War Chieftain could wreak with so many troops under her command. ~ At the sound of her name being called Xera slunk forward to stand sullenly behind the rest of their group. Since the departure of her sister she had been in a black mood. Her shame had been made known and her position within the tribe would be in jeopardy because of that. Kaia's betrayal had been painful, yes. But how would she survive if her actions led to her excommunication from the Ixa'ness? "I would lose everything." Xera realized. "I would be alone." As Kokyrie rounded up their group Xera was reminded once again that none of these people were from Ixa'ness. Of their tribe only she and Kokyrie knew about her shameful exploits. As far as the rest of the tribe was concerned Kaia had been lost to the Valuans ages ago. No one need know of the deal she had made with Darius and his slavers. Unless Kokyrie told them. At that moment Xera vow to make certain that that never happened. If Shandala wasn't up to the task of ending Kokyrie's life then she most certainly was. She just had to bide her time and wait for the most opportune moment to strike. "Right behind you." Xera responded in a cold voice as she fell in behind Kokyrie and the others. Edited by Jet Blackbeard, Aug 28 2012, 05:37 PM.
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| Daiohma | Jul 24 2012, 09:03 PM Post #67 |
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The Ice Fang
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Tsukiko was pleased to see that her friends where doing fine against the pirates and that the other people had almost completely escaped. The concept of a slave was still something the young girl still did not grasp well. She took another look at the pirate that she had used her Silver Magic on, a feeling came over her but it was a feeling she could not understand. she had harmed another person but it was to save her friends and help the other. Did she do wrong or did she do right was all she could think about. "Tsuki! Let's go!" Kokyrie's voice came at her as the woman ran by, gesturing for the Maiden to follow her. Letting out one more arrow that hit it's target, Tsukiko was surprised at just how well Kokyrie could use the weapon, not have ever used one herself. Tsukiko, With her shoes in hand followed and made it to the trees, the only place that seemed somewhat safe. The pirates stopped their approach and started to huddle together. Tsukiko was not sure what was going to happen next, she just wanted it to all end. She still had a hard time believing she was in such a place to start with. It wasn't as if Midori knew that she was leaving her youngest sister with a bunch of Pirates, even Tsukiko did not learn that they where pirates until she was on their ship. Not only that but now she was in the middle of what to her was an all out war. It was all a little too much to take in, being a member of the Ishikawa family she knew of the history of her ancestors helping out on the battle fields, generation after generation. But just having a great event like the Crystal War Tsukiko never imagined that she too would end up assisting in battle. In fact probably none of her sisters really thought that they would ever end up like their ancestors. ''If Takibi was here...'' Tsukiko mumbled to herself. ''Takibi!'' Tsukiko thought for a moment, Takibi would of been right at home in this situation. After all she spent almost every day training with the Yafutoma guards, pushing them to do better and practicing her magic on them for fun. ''Right!'' Tsukiko told herself. She knew that if Takibi was here then she would be doing her best to help out, and so that was what she was going to do. Just then a bell started to ring out. At first she could not point out where it was coming from but the moment the pirates ran back to the town it was clear that was where the sound had come from. As the pirates pulled back Kokyrie addressed the group. A few of the slaves cheered as she explained her plan and that she intended to win the fight. She told them to head for the coast where her ships would pick them up. "Jel'din! Tsukiko! Xera! And....you, guy. Whatever your name is!" Tsukiko almost did not hear Kokyrie as she was watching the slaves make their escape. The young maiden moved into the group, standing next to Jel'din as she was the only one she could trust in her mind along with Kokyrie. Xera seemed to have a darker history and even if Tsukiko wanted to try and help she got the feeling that Xera was not the type to accept or even want it. As for the stranger she had no idea who he was. She did not have anything against him and would normally introduce herself but under the circumstances there was no time so such pleasantry. Edited by Daiohma, Aug 31 2012, 12:22 PM.
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| Gordreg | Aug 28 2012, 10:48 AM Post #68 |
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Administrator
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The man was quite heavy; Jel decided as the pair of them lumbered along into the forest, and had he been in a fit state to walk by himself Jel would have already freed herself by ducking further and scamperng away. Fortunately, the further into the woods they got, the urgency of moving quickly decreased as they could all hear the sounds of the Ixa’takan army launching their attack. The fluted warbles of pan-pipes and quena flittered across the night as the different squadrons advanced and gave signal; the rythmic beating a pair of drums signalling the intent to advance, but all sounds were starting to fade as they moved further into the forest, further away from retribution. Deciding the inconveniance now outweighed the benefit to her patient, Jel set the man down against the gnarled taproots of a hardwood tree, and began tending to the wounds of the injured once more. She wiped clean a nasty-looking cut and gave instructions to the man to hold his wound tight, placing a small wooden log between his teeth then instructing him to bite down. He bit lightly, but when Jel jabbed the Thorkryn quill in through his flesh to pin it back together he gave a muffled scream, and was still whimpering after Jel had finished binding the injury and removed the wooden length, noticing as she did so the set of tooth-marks the man had left, before chucking the branch away into the undertgrowth. As she turned back, Jel felt her spirits lift to see Kokyrie walking over, and gave a quiet laugh. “If they needed to be used, better that you used them then I, um, had to patch you up later…”Jel flashed a nervous grin, accepting her bow and the empty quiver back, and returning Kokyrie’s own weapon to the captain. Tucking her emptied weapon out of way, Jel stood aside to give the rest of the group a better view as they listened to Kokyrie’s speech, and cheered wholeheartedly as the Captain made her vow; the cheers fading quickly with a blush of embaressment as she realised few others were joining in. As the Captain gave her orders, Jel cast another look into the mass of the slaves, and again toward the one particular elder man who stood amongst them. Later She vowed to herself, later. Once the battle done she would be free to face a father’s praise or scorn or whatever he deemed to give his daughter, but until then she was still a part of Kokyrie’s crew, and her captain had need of her. Making her way to Kokyrie as she called her group together, Jel gave the captain a slight nod, and reached into her pouch; the glow-rock clutched tightly between her fingers giving a luminescent pulse of Viridian as they advanced back toward the battle. Edited by Gordreg, Aug 28 2012, 10:48 AM.
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| Jet Blackbeard | Aug 29 2012, 11:01 PM Post #69 |
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aka Bear
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(OOC - I didn't realize until I started this post but I left some junk material at the end of my last post. I deleted it but not before Daioh had responded to it. Sorry about that.) Once again Kokyrie led her group through the night-darkened forest. It was a little easier to navigate this time since they'd passed this way earlier. Still, the darkness made it difficult for her to walk without snagging her foot on every exposed root and stone that littered their path. But after a short distance the path became brighter. Kokyrie could see the lurid glow of firelight burning on the edge of the town and quickened her pace. "Something's wrong." She muttered to herself, straining her ears to listen to the distant sounds of battle. The war cries they'd all heard earlier and the beating of the war drums had suddenly gone quiet. In their stead came the periodic bursts of cannon fire punctuated with screams of terror and pain. Having spent so much time aboard a pirate ship Kokyrie knew well what those sounds meant; the slavers had launched their ships. Her suspicions were confirmed a short while later when the glittering of the stars above were blotted out by the dim outline of an air ship's underbelly. It was briefly illuminated when the cannons that lined its decks were fired off in unison. In response a wall of flames erupted near the treeline, sending up a chorus of fearful cries from those seeking shelter beyond. "We have to hurry!" Kokyrie called back to the other girls. Leaving them to catch up to her she sprinted into the darkness in search of Shandala. ~ Shandala stood beneath the imagined safety of the forest's canopy, glaring fiercely up at pirate ships that had arrived a short while ago. In a matter of mere moments they had routed her perfectly staged raid, turning a sure victory into an utter failure. "Damn them!" She swore loudly, venting her impotent rage upon the sight of her unassailable enemy. Above her the ships floated, raining death down upon the Ixa'takan army. And yet their arrows could scarcely reach the ships, much less penetrate their hulls. All around her the king's warriors huddled together with the Amazons from Ixa'ness, many of them clearly reliving the horrors of the Valuan's invasion. Now, just as it had been then, they stood helpless as mighty warships belched flame and thunder into the skies while crushing everything beneath. ~ "Well, it's not quite as dramatic as I'd hoped but I can't complain." Darius sneered down at the retreating Ixa'takan forces from the deck of his ship, the Purgatory. "Still, the cost of restoring the town is going to cut into our profits." Kaia joined him at the railing and placed an arm around his waist. "But we can make up for it with this whole new crop of slaves that have been dropped into our laps." She countered. "Indeed! And I think it's only fitting that they be the ones to rebuild all that we've lost to this little rebellion of theirs." Darius laughed. "We'll be needing to expand the slave pens after this so perhaps we were due for a remodel anyway." "Assuming you leave any survivors." Kaia giggled, nuzzling into Darius' chest. Darius leaned down to plant a kiss on her neck. "If not then we shall acquire more. There are always more." ~ "Shandala!" Kokyrie shouted as she approached the beleaguered former chieftain. "What's the situation here?" She asked frantically, observing the confusion and turmoil that had taken root amongst the ranks of her army. "You're looking at it!" Shandala retorted with a mixture of anger and shame. "We failed! It was a total route." "I gathered as much. It seems the slavers brought their ships into play sooner than I'd anticipated." Kokyrie returned evenly. "Sooner than you...." Shandala huffed. "Our attack nearly carried through to the ends of this moons-forsaken island until those things showed up! After they appeared there was nothing I could do but sound the retreat! If I had known it would turn out like this I might have..." Here she paused in her rant when she realized she didn't know what should would have done. The she continued; "But you...you 'anticipated' this? And you couldn't be bothered to tell me?" "Oh cram a cork in it Shan!" Kokyrie returned hotly. "I thought you of all people would have been able to hold down the fort until I returned." The look on Shandala's face indicated that her words had cut to the bone, injuring her pride in the process. "And I did tell someone about all of this. It's just taking longer for her to respond." Shandala threw her hands up in surrender. "Great, so what do we do now? Just sit here in the dark, twiddling our thumbs until the slave-drivers burn the forest down around our ears?" "No, but you were right to sound the retreat when you did. You saved a lot of lives with that call." Kokyrie answered, padding her rival's wounded spirit a bit. "For now we have to keep our heads down and bide our time until our reinforcements arrive." ~ Not far away, just down the coast of the pirates' town, sailed a trio of ships. Two were clearly Nasrean in design, albeit it painted with the heraldry of the Ixa'takan king. But the third was far more primitive, resembling nothing so much as a flying log. The three sailed in a triad formation with the tree-like ship in the lead. Standing on the deck of the ship was a slender young woman dressed in the garb of a pirate yet clearly of Ixa'takan origin. Her sharp eyes peered far into the night, as if to penetrate the gloom and reveal what was occurring in the distance. And yet all that she could make out with the distant glow of firelight. "Can't this twig move any faster?" Nixie fumed to the Mononoke's helmswoman. "I ran my ass off to fetch you guys! Now get this thing in gear and move it!" "Why didn't you run your ass all the way back then?" The helmswoman snorted. "Seeing as how we're moving so slowly and all." "Probably would have been faster." Nixie muttered. Leaving the helmswoman to her job she returned her eyes to the lurid orange glow in the distance. "Hang in there Kyrie. We'll be there soon." |
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| Daiohma | Aug 31 2012, 12:34 PM Post #70 |
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The Ice Fang
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Tsukiko followed the group as Kokyrie led them through the dark forest. It seemed easy for them all yet it was still new to the young shrine maiden as she was still getting used to see so many tall trees all together in one place. She kept her wooden shoes by her side as stepped around the muddy ground, using the odd rock to try and keep her feet clean. Looking down to make sure she did not step in anything too dirty she was probably the last to notice the bright light coming from the distance. It was the sound of cannon fire that caused her to look up. The sound of drums and people shouting could be heard from the direction of the light and as they moved closer Tsukiko could make out that it was the town that was burning. Just then the night sky became even darker as a large ship sailed over head. "We have to hurry!" Kokyrie called out as she made a dash into the darkness of the forest. Tsukiko did not need to be told twice as this was more danger than she could of ever imagine. She quickly followed behind wishing that at any moment one of her sisters would turn up and take her home. |
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8:55 AM Jul 11