Pirate Age: The Golden Era

[Mizos]

Also Patch Yay...​

Luro raised a hand to the Captain at her orders and immediately made his way to the side of the ship, taking the rifle off his back he looked ahead at the distance ship. With a grin he clicked the switch on his rifle, his eyes moved to the person at the helm as one of the bullets fell into the chamber. He could see the people on the ship grabbing rifles and preparing to shoot at their ship, though a majority were waiting until they got a bit closer before firing, each Renegade preparing their guns.
"Hmmm, just shoot the person at the helm," Luro said raising his rifle.
His eyes lowered slightly and he felt the tenseness in his body fad as everything slowly slipped away, soon only the sound of the waves touching the ship and the man at the wheel filled his senses. With a grin Luro opened his eyes fully his finger resting on the trigger of his rifle.
Pulling the trigger he watched as the person at the wheel fell to the ground, he chuckled a bit seeing one of the Renegades immediately run to the wheel as the wheel started to drift a bit.
"Two."
Another pull of the trigger and the second person fell, he caught them mid grab causing them to spin the wheel on their fall. Luro grinned and readied another shot his eyes remaining fixed on the helm.
The third person who managed to steady the ship once more fell the moment it was straight.
Seeing someone hesitate to approach the wheel he lowered his rifle and started reloading, he'd keep it up as long as someone ran towards the wheel, and it was slowing them down if only a little.


"Do not compare my Messengers to those traitors," Nikos said to Runali as he looked ahead at the group. "Filthy Renegades ignoring the code to fight like cowards. Messengers count Lev's orders as mine for this problem. Help with defenses and firing the cannons as well."
Tari's eyes twitched at the idea of working with Alicia but it seemed she didn't have the option to complain at the moment; Nikos saw her displeasure and just motioned to the Renegades to indicate what was on the line.
"F-F-fine…t-t-the s-s-s-sooner t-t."
"The sooner this is over the sooner we can kill them," Kaim said holding the rifle. "We get it Tari, just go help."
Tari glared at Kaim but drawing her blade made her way to the side of the ship, she mentally reminded herself this was necessary, just maintain a couple person distance from Alicia so she didn't try to stab her and get this matter finished and over with as soon as possible.

"Ria how do you use one of these things?" Kaim asked.
Ria who had retrieved her sickles looked over at Jack who was pointing the butt of the rifle at the ship the barrel against his shoulder, his finger resting on the trigger he looked over at this comrade. Ria gave him a small thumbs up to indicate it was fine.
"This is not the time for jokes," Nikos said snatching the rifle from him. "Almost shot yourself. Hold it like this."
Nikos showed Kaim how to hold the rifle and he stared at it before tossing it to Nikos.
"Bah I don't like using that stuff, when they get close enough just throw me over there. If it's not up close and personal I just can't feel it."
"This isn't a matter of feeling it," Nikos said tossing the rifle back to Kaim. "Shoot properly, Ria show him how to shoot it, he's a fast learner anyway."

Nikos continued to guide the Messengers making sure they worked properly with Stardusk to help fend off the ship, any that weren't help up top helped down below. Zilia worked with Kara at the cannons helping Sara, Zilia helped load while Kaim fired surprisingly well at the approaching ship, though from the bored expression on his face it was clear he wanted them to get closer. He still made sure to hit them though this desire surfaced every time he fired.
Kara helped fire the cannons but after a moment the two switched role since Zilia was taking a bit too long to help load, Kara sped up the process considerably which while handy in this situation, made Zilia even more uncomfortable at their future engagement.

Patch meanwhile watched the ship as it steadily got closer, watching as it turned preparing to fire their cannons. She walked to the edge of the ship bringing a hand to her chin observing as the Renegades loaded the ship, her eye glanced over at those on Lady offering defense. Stepping onto the railing of the ship she waited until the opposing ship fired its first barrage, the moment it did Patch's body vanished from view and she appeared on the opposing ship.
"Let's see…" Patch said drawing her weapons ignoring the expression of the Renegades. "This should be enough…"
Patch leapt off the side of the ship her body vanishing again before traces of silver filled the area in front of the ship, she reappeared on the side of the ship her weapon stabbed into the side. Half of the lower cannons on the ship fell apart Patch looking over to make sure they couldn't fire before giving a small nod. She looked back at Lady Luck and when Stardusk fired her body vanished once more before she landed back onto the ship putting her weapons away.
"There you go. I took care of half the cannons, that should make it easier," Patch said sitting down on a nearby barrel. "If you need anything else just let me know Captain Lev."

 

[Arcadius]

"And here I was, afraid you'll never ask, capn'! I'll keep here close just enough so we can give them a proper rake, from head to heel!" the Navigator responded to Runali, flashong a confident grin to Nina, who was sitting behind him on the poop deck.

The helm turned into a blur as he started to spin the wheel. The Renegade ship was better armoured and bigger, aye, but this was paid back by being heavier and more cumbersome, and also sitting low from the stockpiled explosives and caustic gas barrels. Lady Luck danced between broadsides, mortar and carronade fire, a deadly fast polka where each beat both participants tries to kill each other.

 

[Mizos]

Yeah Patch is here too....​

Luro grinned as he stared at the wreckage ahead of them, the ship was little more than chunks at this point, a purple fog surrounding the ship causing the crew to claw at their skins, the others leaping into the water as what survivors remained were destroyed by their own weapon. Luro laughed pointing at the slowly dying Renegades looking back at his friends as he pumped his fist into the air.
"We did it! That was great! No one's beatin' our Lady. Hehe best ship on the seas!"
The Messengers relaxed for a bit but they tensed back up as the Man O War came to a stop next to Lady. A dark figure looked down at those on the Lady's deck removing the hat off their head. Luro looked back noticing the wreckage of a few ships, seeing the purple fog it was clear they were Renegades, it appeared their 'ally' had taken care of what reinforcements had come.
"Ah Captain's coming," Patch said looking up.


There was a lot of hell raised per Runali's request- and even more when Patch decided to help. She didn't know whether to thank the woman or be even more skeptical, so she settled with a simple nod before returning to her post. Only until she was sure of the Renegades defeat did she turn back to her crew. "Nice work guys- and birds." Well, it would have been rude not to thank them for assisting. She did have some manners after all. Though, the niceties were short lived when the Man O War drifted next to them and Patch spoke up. "Right…"

Luro raised his gaze only to see a pair of boots falling towards him, he quickly leapt back as the Captain landed on the Lady Luck where Luro had been standing. The Captain who appeared to be a woman straightened her body, her gaze falling immediately onto Luro. The woman seemed young, garbed in a red dress with a small slit in the side on the skirt, revealing the dark red pants she wore underneath them. Luro stared at the crimson clad woman, his eyes moving down as she brushed herself off causing her skirt to open slightly revealing rows of pistols lining the inside, accompanying the two across her chest and on her waist. She adjusted the black gloves on her hands with a small sigh before reaching for one of her pistols.

"No interrupting guys," Luro said holding his hand out towards everyone. "This one belongs to me."
Luro clicked his rifle a bullet falling into the chamber as the woman readied her gun a small smile finding its way onto her expression. There was no trace of kindness in her smile though, there was nothing but malice in the look she gave Luro, and he returned it with one of his own grins.
"Lina...it's been too long," Luro said holding his arms out. "I went and thought you died somewhere. That grave I took a piss on wasn't yours?"
The woman who was apparently named Lina offered a small shrug.
"Not long enough sadly, your wit is dry as usual. I see you still can't hold your own. Saving you is starting to get a little old honestly. You should thank me properly, kneel down and lick my boots like a proper little mutt boy."
"Haha you're so funny Lina, isn't that your fiance's job? I mean until that accident anyway. He's still alive right? I'll have to aim for the head next time silly me."

The two pointed their guns at each other Zilia's eyes twitching at the crazed expressions adorning both their faces, Luro said not to interrupt but this was getting ugly quick. She started to step forward only to pause when Luro glanced in her direction.
"Don't interrupt!" Luro exclaimed. "This bitch is mine."
"Those are some interesting choice of last words boy."

The two sprinted at each other Luro bringing his rifle back as Lina raised her gun, the moment the two neared each other, Luro's rifle went flying towards Jack and Patch caught Lina's gun. In the next moment Luro was holding Lina in his arms the two spinning and laughing as Luro twirled the woman around the animosity between the two vanishing as quickly as it came.
"I missed you so much Lina!"
"I missed you too Brother!"
Luro set Lina down before patting the young lady on her shoulder.
"Guys this is my sister Lina!"
"It's nice to meet you all, my name is Lina Makachi Captain of the Lupis Noctis" Lina said offering a small bow to Stardusk. "I've heard a lot about you. Congratulations on all your success!"
The woman before seemed all but an illusion as the young Captain offered a bright smile to match her brother's to Stardusk.

The moment the woman stepped on to Runali's ship, she was on guard. Luro's declaration of 'handling it himself' didn't help either. However looking between the exchanged glances between the two, Runali held her hand up signalling for her crew to stand down. Her eyes roamed over the pistols she had revealed before they disappeared under her skirt again. Despite it, she stayed silent and watched the scene in front of her. The standoff itself was tense, but something was off. Sure the captain and Luro were standing off but Patch didn't seem phased by it. Runali figured being on a ship surrounded by a potential enemy would make anyone at least a little defensive, right?
Then again, maybe she was just overthinking it. Or even underestimating the two in front of her. Whatever it was, Runali was readily alert when they ran at each other- starting to take a step forward herself… until she realized both of their weapons were tossed aside.
Runali halted and surveyed the scene again, now seeing the two suddenly… the exact opposite of whatever they were before.
Alright, now Runali was confused.

Her one eye narrowed at the red adorned captain despite being given the bright smile. And then suspicion immediately turned to wide eyed surprise. "I'm sorry what??" Before either of them could repeat what she had just heard, Runali shook her head and stepped forward, now eyeing the woman as if examining her. "Sister?? Luro's never mentioned a sister- let alone having a parents...or any type of history for that matter." She stood straight, flashing a glance at Luro. "S'pose he couldn't have just 'existed' though… Dangit there goes one of my theories…" She took another glance at Lina, before looking at Luro. "Hm… Not tall either…" Her and Jack had an ongoing 'giant' theory about Luro and learning that he had other family members may have put a damper in some of their 'proof'.

Before she could get carried away, Runali took a step back. Then she took two more steps back and closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Jeez. Wait, wait wait wait." Without opening her eyes, she gestured over to Nikos. "First the birds and their nonsense. Then a ship battle with people Nikos doesn't want to be associated with. And now," Runali's hands pressed together and her eye opened to look at Lina before she pointed at her. "You. Not to be rude since we just met and all- I'm the captain by the way- But where'd you even come from and why?" Before Lina could answer she held up a finger before pointing to Patch. "And also what is your name?"


While listening to Runali Lina looked over at Luro who was tugging on her skirt, checking out her hidden guns, she smacked his hand away before motioning to Stardusk.
"Brother did you forget to reveal important information again?" Lina questioned narrowing her eyes at him.
"I told them I had a sister," Luro responded. "Back when we met Satia I…oh no I just commented on her underwear nevermind."
"I…feel like we need to have a discussion about that later."
With a small sigh she turned back to Stardusk and gave a small bow once more.
"I'm sure my brother has caused you trouble thank you for putting up with him," Lina said.
Nikos and Zilia were paying little attention to the scene in front of them, both of them on their knees, Zilia resting her hands on the deck while Nikos gripped his skull.
"There's more of him…"
For once Messenger and Stardusk were completely on the same page, and filled with the same despair.

Lina looked over at Runali who appeared to be the Captain of the crew, though she had seen Stardusk wanted posters so she had a general idea of who everyone was. It was one of the reasons she wanted to properly introduce herself as she already knew who they were. She couldn't blame Runali as it seemed there was a large amount of things going on. She held a hand up to indicate it was fine before her brow arched as Runali pointed at Patch asking her name.
Patch at this point had somewhat slipped away from the group, though Lina's hand caught her before she could properly run, Patch slowly turned to her Captain who kept an iron grip on her.
"Mia…why don't they know your name?" Lina asked pulling her back a bit. "…I'm pretty sure I told you to introduce yourself and tell Stardusk that we were allies coming to help them…so why are they calling you Patch…explain."

Patch or rather Mia cleared her throat and offering a small innocent smile to Lina explained what she had told Stardusk. Luro was pretty sure he heard bone snapping for a moment as Mia's body flinched slightly.
"O-ow C-Captain that hurts, you're squeezing a bit too hard."
"Why did you say all of that?!" Lina exclaimed turning Mia to face her. "You knew how I was going to act with Brother! It's surprising they didn't try to gut me! Why?!"
"I wanted to see their faces…and it was worth it."
Lina stared at her First Mate and stepping next to her she forced her to face Stardusk before pushing her forward.
"Introduce yourself properly…like I told you too," Lina said sighing.
"Hello I'm Mia, I'm sure my Captain has caused you trouble thank you for putting up with her."
A small click followed and Lina shoved a pistol into Mia's side.
"My name is Mia I'm the First Mate of the Lupus Noctis. I handle Navigation, Cooking, Medical, Carpentry, Music, Hunting…well I have a lot of jobs so First Mate is just the easiest title for me."
"There's nothing else to call her," Lina said sighing as she put her gun away. "She is a good person though underneath all of…this. Sorry for the misunderstanding."
"Not that we need titles cause we're pirates."
"That's the one thing we agree on."
"Then just say I'm the Mia of the ship."
"I'm not making your name a role and that's to a degree a title."
"Anyway nice to meet you all," Mia said. "I'm going to deal with your red friends excuse me."
Mia walked over to the Messengers making a motion with her hand as she called them over, they hesitantly complied seeing as they were surrounded on all sides at the moment.

With a small sigh Lina put her gun away before looking back at Runali, she still had to answer her other question, one that was a bit of a tale.
"That's…a bit of a story," Lina said holding a letter out to the Captain. "I actually wanted to ask if I could stay on your ship for a bit. There's a lot I found out recently myself…and I think it'd be good for you all to know. Especially seeing as you're dealing with the Ravens yourself now."
Lina pointed to the letter in Runali's hand.
"Nura sent me a letter telling me where to find you….which is weird since she's trying to kill me. I'm not sure if this is a trap or not, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to find Brother."
"Walking into danger for me…Lina you're such a good person. If we weren't family-"
"Brother kindly shut your mouth and retain some sense of morality or I might have to shoot you," Lina said glancing at him. "I'm in a conversation currently."
"Kay!" Luro said patting his chest. "I'll wait till you're done."
Lina nodded before looking back at Runali.
"Do you mind if we chat? I'm fine relinquishing my weapons as well. I've had to deal with the Ravens for the last few years and I am by all means a stranger, a bit of distrust is natural."
"I trust you Lina," Luro said grinning.
"Brother you're my sibling I should hope you'd trust me."
"Of course Jack."
"My name is Lina Brother."
"Yeah that person Lina Brother."
Lina turned back to Runali leaving the matter alone, accustomed to this manner of behavior.
"I also haven't seen my family in years…understandably I'd rather not separate from him so soon."


Runali watched the seen with arms crossed and a questionably blank stare. Though it didn't look like much, the gears in her head were turning as she began to process everything that was going on- not just as a captain protecting her crew, but as a person who was… genuinely confused. She felt like she was given too many things to carry, but couldn't risk dropping any of them. Slowly though, Runali's expression relaxed as the pieces of the puzzle she couldn't see were falling into place- more or less. And by falling into place, she meant more of- making more sense when she looked at them.
Lina spoke directly to her, but Runali's gaze had fell on her crew. She couldn't blame Zilia- and even Nikos- for their reactions. Luro was a lot, but having two of them seemed like it would be… a handful- especially with the idea of both being on the ship together.

Looking away, she was going to answer Lina's first question in regards of her staying on board, but she was met with a letter instead. Her one eye rested on Lina when Nura's name was mentioned and just for a brief moment Runali's gaze seemed to darken. It was short lived though, and she was now looking at a letter. Without glancing up, her fingers fumbled over the edges of the letter. "Was trying to kill you." Her voice was soft, and Lina probably was the only one that could hear her so she spoke up.
"From our recent escapades- that's the impression. Your brother-" That was still a bit odd to say in context of Luro. "killed her. Unless she escaped. I'm not too sure. He… passed out before he could relay the details of it." Runali had never directly asked. She was unsure if she wanted to even know. She thought about what Lina said, now more curious about when the letter was sent. 'Maybe she's not dead after all… A shame really.'

The mention of a chat made Runali raise her brow. "With the crew? Or with me?" If anything, Lina was right. Sibling or not, the Stardusk captain wasn't in a position to openly trust everyone currently. Maybe if she had been around a few weeks earlier- or quite literally any time before now…
"If it's with the crew, feel free to keep them on your person. If it's with me, then I'd appreciate the… civility of leaving your weapons." At this point, Runali was sitting on a barrel. "As for your request," She looked at the Ravens, at her crew, and then at Lina. "Our cook only accommodates for our crew, and currently even they are taking up a… significant amount of space." With a heavy sigh, Runali added. "Exactly how long did you plan on… visiting?" It was followed by a point at the ship behind her. "And why not stay there?"

Zilia was pulled back to the conversation when the Captain spoke of Nura's demise or supposed one surprised the Captain was bringing that up all of sudden. She was pretty sure Lina knew the woman after all. She looked over at Lina her eyes wide at the information, the Captain's hand moving to her mouth for a moment. Though the shock faded slowly replaced with apprehension. She brought a hand to her chin looking over at Luro who was staring at the letter.
"Did you kill Nura Brother?"
"Yeah I killed her," Luro said. "I shot her multiple times and buried her, she's dead."
"That makes sense," Lina said. "You did promise one of you would die to the other…if you're still here then…it makes sense Nura is dead."
Lina remained silent seeming to take a moment to process this new information, she closed her eyes before crossing her arms under her chest.
"…I'm glad you're still here Brother, but I can't deny I won't miss her. She was family to us if only for a bit."
"Well yeah that's why it was so much fun killing her," Luro said with a small nod. "It really hurt ya know."
Lina chose not to respond to Luro's comment merely turning her gaze back to Stardusk, she knew that conversation was going in a dangerous direction, she didn't want details of what was done, she still needed a moment just to accept the woman was gone.
"Let's not speak ill of her. She did protect me while you were gone for a bit as you requested. There was some good in her, even if ill was how she left this world."

Luro stared at his sister for a moment and seemed to leave the matter alone there, especially since it seemed Runali had posed a question to Lina. The younger Makachi glanced back at her ship for a moment before giving a small shake of her head and pointing at Luro.
"He's not on that ship," Lina said simply. "I want to be where he is, he's here so I want to be here."
The answer was simple as was the other one posed on her.
"I would like to speak with all of you. Every one of you has been affected by this, so you have every right to hear what's intruded on your lives. Still as a sign of good faith I'll give up my weapons."
Lina said this patting her skirt to indicate the hidden guns on her person, she motioned to the Ravens who all but Nikos were heading towards the Man O War irritated expressions on their faces, save Nina who was poking Kaim.
"My First Mate was a former Raven so she knows a lot of their secrets. For example I know a very specific code that forces Rank Three Ravens to behave themselves."
Mia pushed Nikos over to Lina, the man glaring at the pirate Captain then at Mia.
"Filthy Renegade," he muttered. "I'll make sure you suffer for forcing me into this."
"Now now behave yourself Nikos, or else I'll tell Captain Lev how to put a leash on you," Mia said smiling at him. "You know the rules, behave and answer the Captain's questions."
Nikos clenched his fists to a point his nails were drawing blood, but whatever he wanted to say he kept to himself biting his lip as he glared at the smirking Mia.

"I would like to stay on your ship for at least a few days, two or three at the most. With him as well to confirm my suspicions."
Lina pat Nikos at this causing him to take a step away from her, she looked over at him watching as he brushed off his shoulder where she had touched. Shaking her head she motioned towards her ship.
"If supplies are a problem you're free to take from my ship. I am imposing on you so it's only fair I give something in exchange."
Lina sat down on the edge of Lady and folding her hands in her lap, stared at Runali with a determined gaze, her eyes lowering slightly.
"I have spent a long time trying to find my brother…I am wholly willing to negotiate and compromise here….finding him is one of the reasons I became a pirate. Once we separate I'm sure I'll lose him again as that's how he is…so I want to take advantage of this situation while it's here."
Luro looked over at Lina scratching the side of his head, he wasn't really following the conversation all that much but it seemed Lina wanted to stay on the ship. He didn't really get what the big deal was with her staying.
"…Um…I don't really get what's so complicated about this…why can't Lina stay Captain? It's not her name is it? I thought it was a good name."
"Brother my name is awful, I was five when I thought of it."
"Well yeah but you were cute…wait were you five?"
"…That's what you told me and don't call me cute, it's a little disturbing."
"I don't know what that words means but you are cute, I just wanna pinch your cheeks."
"Brother please treat me like an adult or at the very least on equal footing."
"Never."
Lina's eyes twitched as the surprisingly serious expression on Luro's face, Zilia couldn't deny that was the first time she had actually seen him look that determined about something. Though the look faded as quick as it came, replaced with his normal smile.
"You…answered that a bit too quickly."
"Old fashioned Makachi Affection isn't allowed with any member of Stardusk, that's the rule. You're not a Stardusk."
"I've never been happier to be a Stardusk," Zilia thought staring at the annoyed expression on Lina's face.

Lina's answer was a fair one. She wanted to be near Luro. Runali had known Luro for awhile, and despite not having siblings of her own she could at least imagine how much Lina missed him. Runali hummed in thought, pusing to watch the Ravens leave her ship. It looked as if she was about to question it, until the realization that she didn't really care that they were getting kicked off settled in. So her attention turned to Mia and Nikos. Towards the news, Runali couldn't help but snort. The man's ever 'calm' expression was traded with pure frustration and it was fantastic. "Man, shoulda gotten around here sooner. A leash woulda saved us all some time."

The captain ignored Luro, opting to sit cross legged on the barrel. Runali sighed again, resting her head in one hand and looking across at Lina. "Man… this is a lot, you know?" She gave a lazy smile and closed her eyes. "Alright Lina. Jack gets to restock on what he needs. And by the looks of it… you're taking Raven babysitting duties? Because if so, then that'd be great. Saves us the trouble." Her fingers steepled and she looked over at her crew. "Guess we're making space for 'lady Makachi'. Which, is better than the band of birds."
"One other thing though," Runali straightened up. "Before you go on to explain whatever it is… I'm going to need a drink. Several actually."

Lina remained silent watching Runali, she realized that she might have been a bit pushy but she really didn't want to lose this opportunity. At the end of the everything she would respect the Captain decision as it was her ship, and as a Captain herself she would respect her choice. Hearing Runali's terms and agreement all the tension left Lina her shoulder lowering and a relieved sigh escaping from her. Luro grinned at his Captains words and shook Lina slightly motioning to the crew.
"Welcome aboard Lina!" Luro exclaimed.
"Indeed, thank you for having me Stardusk," Lina said with a nod. "Mia will keep an eye on the Ravens, they aren't the first prisoners of their kind we've had on the ship. Do you happen to have a communicator? I think we have a spare one if you don't. If possible I'd like to get updates as quick as possible from Mia. She'll be dealing with the Ravens in my absence."
"Lina's staying on the ship! Yay!" Luro exclaimed grabbing one of his drinks. "Let's celebrate!"
"Um…while this is partially pleasure we should deal with business first. There is a lot to inform you of and Brother…if what I know is correct. I think you'll owe your friends quite the apology."
"Hm I apologized to Kadi yesterday for breaking his thing…oh wait no I didn't. Kadi I'm sorry for breaking your thing. There you go Lina I apologized."
"Brother…that's not…I'll explain later. Thanks for having me on board."

 

[Eastwood]

By the time Sara finished loading all the cannons, the fight was already over. She looked at the new red headed captain and the amount of firepower she was packing and then to Luro and then back to her. Almost immediately, she buried her face in the palm of her hands and groaned. Of course there was another Luro, of course he would have a sibling. She scooched over to make room for the 'lady' Makachi and then followed her captain. "Yeah, I'm going to need a few drinks too." She mumbled.

 

[Arcadius]

"Look on the brighter side, Sara! She can't be too bad, she also thinks that if you dig, and grind, and cut, you'll find a decent human being inside anyone! Sure did find some decency in the reanimated cadavers of first mate and Captain Hemsworth, back on Karalean," he whispered to the woman. "And she did not called you Fluffykind Bun-Bun Bottoms the first thing she met you, too!" he continued his reassurance.

He spun around and faced Nina. "By the way, old sport, which Raven Rank are you? Just so I know what to pry and bribe out of Lina?"

 

[Mizos]

Lina took a few moments to go over everything she was going to speak about with everyone, she ended up asking around to figure out what everyone already knew and their experiences with the Ravens. After doing so she ended up filling in a few blanks on her sides of things, and now she wasn't sure where to even start the conversation. Thankfully she had a few minutes as Jack was off getting supplies and they were going to discuss it during dinner. By that point she had collected her thoughts and knew where to begin. Until that time she spent time with Luro the two casually speaking about their adventures and all the trouble they got into, as always her brother had a penchant for trouble, though she felt bad Stardusk had ended up pulled into it.
Aside from that she merely watched everyone maintaining a casual distance as she patiently waited to explain everything, she was so curious about everyone, but felt running up and asking questions would be a rude, so she mostly engaged in light conversations with those who didn't mind. Finally the time to eat rolled around and Lina spoke up once the meal was concluded.
"With everyone gathered…I would like to share what I've found out," Lina said standing up from her seat next to Luro. "Firstly though…I'm sure my Brother…imagination has left more question than answers about a lot of things. If for whatever reason you need to know something don't hesitate to ask me. I can probably fill in any blanks."
"His favorite fish."
"Catfish," Lina responded which Zilia quickly wrote down.
"Hahaha…they have whiskers," Luro said grinning.
"Anyway Captain Lev, you guys met the Ravens at Cerula right? Well Renegades from what Nikos tells me but Raven's nonetheless."
"Do not compare us to that filth," Nikos said glancing over at Lina. "They are no longer Ravens."
Since they needed answers that neither had Nikos was forced to sit in on the meeting as well, though he was clearly not pleased to be at the table of the enemy, and made an effort to sit at the edge of the table, refusing to sit across from Luro.

The Stardusk captain was true to her word, getting up to find a few hidden compartments where Luro stashed drinks. They became less of hidden compartments and more of conveniences as time went by. For most of the time, she spoke to her crew. With everything going on, their course- if they even had one at this point- was thrown off immensely. And even if they had nowhere in mind to go, the crew still needed to get out of enemy territory. They didn't need to wait until any more Renegades showed up. For the time being, until they could get visitor matters cleared, Lady Luck was at a standstill- or more specifically a very slow drift away from the island they had headed to. She even took a moment with Alicia, the calmest and, well, most advised of the crew to discuss everything that happened. There was no planning, no 'need for advice', just a captain reiterating a few day's worth of information just to make sure it was all true despite how wild it sounded.
At some point, just before dinner rolled around, Runali was sitting with Jack while he cooked. There wasn't much shared, the captain fine with it remaining quiet save for Jack's cooking. However, just before the rest of the crew and guests filed in the captain couldn't help but chuckle. "An easy gamble. Zilia's gonna lose her mind at least… twice during this talk. And maybe Alicia'll swat Luro at some point." There wasn't time to debate it, because as everyone came down Runali was taking up a seat with the others. Dinner came and went and soon enough, just as expected, Lina took 'center stage' to speak.
Her brow raised at Zilia's random question, but she figured it was better to ask as many as possible now rather than later.
When Lina directed a question to her, Runali hummed in thought. "Cerula...Cerula…" Runali mentally went over the important landmarks in her head before she snapped her fingers. "Ah, right yeah." Her eye went from Lina to Nikos, and then back to Lina again. "That's where we first met Nina. She had a kid but not really? We got attacked. Destroyed a house… Somethings or the other… Yeah those guys. Ravens, Renegades, whatever you wanna call them."

Nikos snapped one of his utensils as Runali lumped the Raven's into the same boat as the Renegades but glancing at Lina he was well aware his position wasn't a dominant one, so whatever threatened to come out was pushed back in. It had been a long time since he had wanted to kill someone this badly. Perhaps sensing the animosity growing in the Raven Lina decided to just continue.
"Nina?" Lina said. "Oh she must be a Raven you met there."
"Nina is one of my Messengers," Nikos said crossing his arms over his chest.
"Stardusk met Nura in Cerula...for the love of…should I tell the story? Surprised she can remember her own name at this point…"
"Nikos…your people are still my prisoners…watch yourself," Lina said glancing at the man.
"Tch."

With that information Lina gave a small nod, she had a feeling that was the case but she wanted to make absolutely sure she had everything together. Leaning forward she placed her hands on the table not sure how exactly to reveal this information, as she was pretty sure it wasn't going to make sense. However it was a fact and needed to be put out there.
"Okay…well thanks to everyone telling me about their experiences and comparing information…I've come to a conclusion. The Red Raven's are not your enemy, nor are they mine," Lina said.
Lina went silent after this and as expected at least two people stared at her in disbelief, Zilia and Nikos.
"…you do understand we tried to hurt you right?" Nikos said.
Zilia pointed at Nikos at this to emphasis how wrong her conclusion sounded.
"I know how this sounds but I need you to understand that. The Red Raven's are not trying to kill you. The Ravens don't want to hurt you, I know how weird it sounds but I need you to follow me on that as it'll help things make sense. The fact the Ravens have orders not to engage Luro plays a large part in this."

The correction made Runali snap her fingers, as if agreeing. Though Nikos' comment made her roll her one eye. "You try keeping up with dying and not dying…" She mumbled under her breath before reaching over and removing the extra utensils near him. "We need these ya know." Her attention turned back to Lina, giving a quiet nod to her thanks. She figured everyone's piece of the puzzle would make this even less confusing. That and of course with how prolonged this 'talk' became, she only got more curious.
Curiosity quickly turned into confusion, and confusion turned into laughter. Like Zilia and Nikos, Runali found that difficult to believe. "Ya missed a whole back and forth some days ago. There were a lot of threats. Specifically ones to kill." Her thumb jutted over at Nikos. "Any time he's near Luro you can practically feel the need to kill on him. He's not very subtle about it." When Lina continued, the Stardusk captain crossed her arms and got more comfortable. "From what I've been learning, Luro's been the reason the Ravens want to hurt us. But," With an unconvinced look, Runali gestured her on. "You've had my interest. You've got my attention. Enlighten me. Or rather, convince Nikos that he's not planning on killing me because that'd be great."

Luro seemed pretty confused himself mainly over the idea that Nikos didn't want to kill him over the Raven comment. He started to ask Nikos if he really actually liked him, but the glare from the man when their eyes met said all he needed to know. Lina meanwhile rubbed the back of her neck figuring that was a natural response; she couldn't believe it either, especially since they had tried to kill her as well.
"There's some understandable confusion. I was shocked myself but it is true. More specifically the Renegades are the ones trying to kill you."
At this Nikos stood up slamming his hands on the table and glaring at Lina.
"How many times are you going to insult-"
"Nikos," Lina said cutting him off. "I'm not saying you or your people are Renegades. I know who the Renegade is. Nura was a Renegade."
Nikos eyes widened at the woman's words and he stared at Lina who kept her focused gaze on him, after a moment he sat back down in his seat, folding his hands together his eyes moved to the table. His mouth twisted as the information played back in his head.
"More precisely she was a False Leader. High ranking Renegades in the organization keeping their intentions hidden as they try to tear apart its structure."
"…A False Leader," Nikos mumbled. "….it makes sense…I hate admitting it but you might be right. She's always had her own way of doing things…but she was loyal…"
"Nura gave you the Stardusk bounties right?" Lina questioned.
"…yeah," Nikos said. "She made sure I received Luro's first too…damn it."

Nikos grit his teeth, that woman had tricked them. Now that he thought about it the rest of the bounties weren't any real big names, she more than likely gave them a bad batch mixing Stardusk in with it.
"Back in Cerula you also fought Renegades, not Ravens," Lina added. "That's what I wanted to confirm, who you really fought. Going off how the Renegades act, not challenging you, attacking you out of the blue…they weren't Ravens."
Lina let this information set in for a moment before she continued leaving Nikos to sit and ponder what he had just learned, and trying to ignore the fact Luro was digging around for a bottle of rum instead of paying attention.
"Over two years ago the Renegades and Ravens got into some conflict, an internal power struggle. The Ravens won and spread their influence…now there isn't a place they don't have a foot in or soldiers near…but the Renegades didn't fade, in fact they bided their time and got stronger bit by bit. While the Ravens were dealing with the growing power of the Navy and readjusting the Renegades made movements of their own. Eventually the False Leaders made a move and that's where we're at now. I guess to summarize, no Red Raven has attacked you without influence from a Renegade…and that includes the Messengers. Mia told me about the Renegades movements and their plans, but you guys only got to see it from one side mainly the Ravens. When you told me what they were doing it all made sense. Are you following Captain Lev? Everyone?"
Zilia was sitting in her chair rubbing her temples with her eyes shut, this was a bit much to take in.
"What are we talking about?" Luro said sitting back down.
"…okay does everyone except my brother understand?"

Being polite, Runali didn't interrupt Lina, no matter how many snide comments she wanted to add into the mix. It was Renegades this and Ravens that. Then, there was another group of people, False Leaders- that of course also fell under the Renegade name. She was keeping up, surprisingly. But she wasn't all that convinced. Even Nikos' rage turned into realization didn't do much convincing. "Hm…" Runali leaned forward with elbows on the table before resting her head in her hands.
"Hm…" She repeated. "So, bad communication skills and somehow we're targets of someone's anger." It was an overly simple analysis of the situation, but it more or less summed up what was happening. "I mean, anyone that's gonna willingly put a weapon to me is more than likely an enemy of mine." She paused and pointed over at Luro. "'Cept him. He's an exception." Shifting her head into one hand, it tilted, letting her hair fall from over her eyepatch. She picked up a fork near her and twirled it a bit.
"Needless to say, I follow. But what I don't follow," The fork stopped twirling and pointed at Lina. "Is how you know. I mean, I s'pose your first mate had all that info, yeah? But by the way Nikos made it sound, Ravens are- or were a pretty secure… close knit?... Quiet group I guess? I wouldn't think they'd just go sharing stuff with "ex birds"." Runali twirled the utensil again and hummed. "Then again, they can't keep these Renegaders out of their pockets I guess anyone can get info if they tried hard enough." The fork stopped again with a new inquiry. "Still doesn't explain why we're involved. Why Luro's gotten himself in trouble. I'd say 'why we should care', but our lives being threatened is a little more than enough." Once again, the fork twirled in between her fingers and her eye fell back on Lina. Despite her casual- and somewhat lazy posture, her gaze was attentive and searching even, as if anything Lina did would give away something she wasn't saying.

Lina smiled at the Captain's comment, it was simple but she actually liked that about it, and they were actually on the same page.
"I agree with you there, I don't consider the Raven's allies, they have killed some of my men too," Lina said. "Wait Brother you pointed your gun at Captain Lev?"
"Yep tried to kill her some time ago," Luro responded grabbing another bottle.
"Brother you…hah…I can't even say anything. Mia tried to kill me first too now she's my First Mate."
"See trying to kill each other makes you best buds," Luro said. "See how close Alicia and Masu are? It's cause they tried to beat each other up! Even if you're opposites it counts. I mean look at them, look at the manliness coming off Alicia and the amount of lady that Masu is, violence is the best way to make friends!"
"Brother…we need to talk about a lot later but right now let's focus on the matter at hand."
Lina offered a sympathetic look to Alicia before returning to the topic.
"The main issue is that the Raven's are trying to protect us, not kill us….which is strange in itself."
Lina said this with a sigh and crossed her arms, at the Captain's comment on her information Lina gave a small nod and digging into her pocket slid two letters over to Runali.
"Nura took care of me when I was a child after my Brother left. After I acquired an education and found my own pace she vanished but we exchanged letters. One day when I told her I was becoming a pirate she informed me she was a Raven and if we met she'd kill me. I'm guessing at this point she used her connections to make sure we'd never meet…but a little bit ago I got a sudden letter from her out of the blue…telling me all manners of things. I confirmed what I learned with Mia and what you've told me….the fact she wrote to me was already strange…hearing she died it was probably to protect me from the Renegades…as the Ravens had an eye on me too."
Lina paused at this point and brought a hand to her face, seeming to take a moment to quell whatever emotions were trying to surface.
"…she's my enemy I acknowledged that and was ready to kill her…so it's a little irritating to see her care in the end…when we could have just fixed things before it got to this point. Anyway those two letters are from Nura, the threat to my life and bits of what I've told you."
The letters were from Nura and Luro confirmed it was her handwriting at Zilia's request as she read along with the Captain. One was warning from the woman that if she and Lina met she'd kill her and this was the last letter she would send, the second one was a letter detailing the False Leaders, the Renegades, Crimson Corax and mainly what Lina had just discussed, minus what she had figured out on her own thanks to Stardusk. There was also an apology at the end from Nura and one final line that Luro knows who leads the Red Ravens, thus it'd be a good idea to find him.
Nikos at this point was actually cracking the wood of the table with how hard he was gripping it, insulting the Ravens to his face, learning how they got all this info, the man was being pushed behind his own boundaries and it showed, but by some miracle he managed to control himself.
"Well the reason why you're involved…is why I had to explain all of this, but you saw the last line in that letter right Captain Lev. Everything will make sense if you ask Luro that question…because I have a feeling what the answer is…but I figure you should be the one to ask…because I really want Nura to be lying."

"These childhood timelines don't make sense…" Runali commented, more to herself than to Lina. She could have sworn Nura was only in her twenties- but maybe she was older- or maybe they lived a harsher life where child had to protect child. It was a harsher reality to deal with, but a reality nonetheless. The letters made Runali sit up straight and she read through it- aloud so everyone could hear. "Guess it checks out?" She muttered, glancing over at Zilia who was reading with her. Hearing the splintering wood, Runali squinted at Nikos but only huffed and turned back to the letters as Lina continued. "Lady Makachi, I highly doubt anything will make more sense should I ask Luro anything- no offense." With a sigh, Runali ran fingers through her hair, pushing all of it out of her face, only for it to fall back once more. "But I'll humor you." She reached over, tapping the bottle Luro was drinking from, with the fork in her hand. "Oi, Luro. Question- that's not about Lady or rum for that matter- but," Runali gestured to Nikos' without looking at him. "Who's the leader of the Ravens? Ya know, the birds that have been declaring death on us and stuff? There's somethin' you know that you forgot to tell us again?"

"P-please call me Lina. Formal titles make me uncomfortable," Lina said with a small sigh.
Zilia meanwhile was staring at Luro who was staring at his Captain arching a brow at her, he looked over at Nikos whose gaze had moved to him. His eyes narrowed slightly not sure what Lina was getting at, Luro barely remembered his name, this idiot knew who their leader was, something even he didn't know.
"How would I know who the leader is? I just know there was info at that place about him," Luro said.
"Brother…are you sure you don't know anything about them?"
"Pretty sure," Luro said digging into his sleeve. "If it's not in my notebook it be in my box."
Luro sat the black box on the table and Lina's eyebrows arched a bit seeing it, Luro opened it and messed with the contents inside.
"I look in it every day so there's no way I'd- Oh there's another compartment."
Luro lifted up the bottom inside the box only for there to be a second compartment.
"Oh I forgot about this, there's my spare bullets! I knew I had some. Oh what's this?"
Luro took something out of the box before putting the lid back on, he stared at the piece of paper, it seemed to be a Wanted Poster, an older one clearly as it had seen better days, a majority of the edges torn.
"Something here about the Crimson Corax."
"The wha-" Nikos said standing up.
Realizing he had spoken up he grit his teeth and sat back down, though Lina looked over at him.
"No finish that thought Nikos," Lina said. "Please."
Nikos glared at Lina but looking over at Luro who had set the poster on the table he looked over at it.
"Crimson Corax was the old name of the Ravens…years ago," Nikos said. "It changed some time ago but that was our original name. Back when we worked with the Navy to catch pirates, before the falling out that was our name."
Lina sighed as she stared at the poster seeing four faces on the poster.
"Nura told me there were four founders of the Ravens, which makes sense given its size…and the False Leaders had been searching for any evidence on them. Kill the Founders, put their own people in the empty seats of power and change everything. The reason the Renegades want Luro is he knows who the they are…the Leaders…or should I say Leader of the Red Ravens is on that Poster."
Four names were written on the Poster each with pictures, when Zilia looked at it she felt her heart sink, she recognized the names. Three of which were on the graves at Iurin the last one…being Luro Makachi.
"Now Brother…as I said before…I think you owe everyone here and apology."

Runali didn't seem to acknowledge Lina's request, more focused on what Luro had to say- or didn't have to say rather. He rummaged through his things- the box only being familiar in passing to Runali. She had seen it a few times before, but didn't press when it came to her crews' personal belongings.
"Hm… Glad it changed. That name's awful." Runali got comfortable again with her head in her hands. Her one eye looked between Nikos, Lina, and Luro, her brow raised in curiosity. As she predicted, asking him anything only made more questions, but she waited. She waited until the wanted poster was flat on the table for all of them to see. She had to lean forward to see clearly, not wanting to take it from everyone else's view. But she stared at it with a critical eye, looking at each name and face as if decoding a hidden message. Her eye landed on Luro's name and then his picture, and she remained silent for awhile, her expression unreadable.
When she finally sat back down next to Zilia, she leaned back in her chair and let out a soft chuckle. "I'd say I don't believe it but I guess the proof's there." She pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a deep sigh. "So let me get this clear," Her palms pressed together and her eyes were closed. "Renegade wants to kill off the Raven leaders for power. They've killed three of them so far, along with dumbing down the 'actual' Ravens and making them chase us for one reason or the other. And the fourth Raven leader- of the group that just so happened to be trying to kill us earlier, happens to be a man that is more rum than human- if he's human- that has memory issues." It wasn't an actual question. In fact, it was just her stating everything in an order that made sense to her.
Finally, when her eye did open, she looked over at Luro with a deadpan stare. "Makachi if I didn't like you so much I'd stab you."
She heaved another sigh and slowly a cheshire grin formed on her face when she looked at Nikos. To ease her own mind, of course she'd mess with the one heated already. "But I suppose having 'spare pawns' does sound...amusing at the least." She looked at the others with a shrug. "Or I should say, at the least, one reason not to be threatened."

"Pretty much Captain Lev. Now we're all on the same page," Lina said putting her head in her hands. "Brother…why?"
Luro didn't have much time to contemplate as Zilia had grabbed the man by his shirt and if not for the two's difference in stature Luro would more than likely be on the floor, instead he merely leaned back in his chair, having put his hand down to keep from falling as Zilia did everything in her power not to grab the knife that sat tantalizingly close.
"Everything! Everything we've been through! Being stalked! Being followed! Being watched! Almost being killed could have been prevented by you! Was caused by you! Why Luro?!"
Zilia shoved the note in Luro's face and with a small tilt of his head he shrugged his shoulders.
"Cause I forgot?"
Lina ended up grabbing Zilia who was now swinging at knife at Luro pulling her back and trying to get her to calm down.

Nikos meanwhile was leaning over bucket losing the dinner he had just ate, groans escaped from the man as he slowly raised his head, breathing heavily as his gaze slowly moved back over to Luro. The man smiled at him causing Nikos to turn back around returning to the bucket, Lina flinched a bit at the noise until finally Nikos staggeringly climbed back to his feet.
"T-that idiot…that buffon…i-is the leader of the Ravens…u-ugh…is this why they went Renegade…it all makes sense."
"Hehe guess I'm your boss huh Nikos," Luro said grinning. "Now you have to be my buddy."
Nikos body twitched and he ran back over to the bucket, Lina picked up the poster and sighed a bit as she stared at it.
"…Nura came after Luro to kill him. The true leader," Lina said sighing. "…there's a bunch of stuff I still don't understand but hopefully this answers your questions as to why you've been pulled into this. Luro gave the order for the Ravens not to hurt you…because obviously you dying is bad for him. That's my guess."
"Hmmm well if everyone died that would kind of be bad," Luro said bringing a hand to his chin. "None of Jack's cooking, no Z to talk too, no more watching Alicia and Masu do stuff, no Kadi so I don't get lost and no Captain to do Captain stuff…hmmm."
"…I really hope that's not the only reason he doesn't give the Kill Order for us," Zilia thought squeezing the bridge of her nose.
"I think with this information…and if Luro can remember how…getting the bounties removed shouldn't be that hard," Lina said. "…which would be nice because I'd like the one off my head as well."
Nikos returned to the table taking the wanted poster form Lina.
"…ugh…I heard rumors the Leader of the Ravens had taken a Wanted Poster of us…a reminder to get revenge for the Navy's betrayal…I always thought it was a wonderful story…now it's just painful."
"Nikos! We're Raven Buddies!"
"This is a nightmare. This is all of my nightmares put into one moment."

While Lina grabbed Zilia, she took the note she gave Luro to read it to the crew- to clarify why she was in fact brandishing the knife, only to chuckle. "Let her go Lina. She can fix up the damage she caused. She's the doctor, it's fine." Runali was one part curious to see if the small woman would make knife contact, and another part wrinkling her nose at the sounds of Nikos' puking. "Ugh, gross. It's gross when Sara does it- we don't need another!" Hearing Luro say 'guess I'm your boss' sent a rather sympathetic chill down her spine.
...Nikos may have had a reason to be upset…
And then hearing Luro's reasons for not having the crew killed brought Runali back to the reality of the situation and once more she was slumped back on her hands. "Hmm… yeah that one. That one's pretty believable." There was a different tone in her voice that was harder to read, but it was pushed aside as she put a hand on Zilia's arm to get her to calm down for a second.
Her finger wagged at Luro, but she was looking at Lina. "You're not quite getting the 'he could forget his own name if he tried' thing huh? But," Now she was looking at Luro. "You've caused a helluva lot of trouble for us Luro. More so than usual. You don't get paid in rum to throw us in danger, you get paid to help us get out- and also of course fix Lady but details aside! Raven, Stardusk, whatever you wanna call yourself right now Luro, you're fixing this." She stood up leaning with her hands on the table, looking at her crew. "He's fixing this or get ready to tear down a whole army of Renegades." She looked between each of her crew, addressing their 'emotional state' on the matter with nods of sympathy. "Actually… just be prepared for both. "


-Elsewhere

"Captain."
The sailor gave a small chest salute to the man sitting a few feet in front of him, the man's eyes were resting on a map, a cup of wine in his other hand which he would sip on in long intervals. A cane rested against the chair that he had moved to the helm, though his First Mate steered the ship. Moving a strand of his long hair behind his ear the man's violet gaze rose to meet the man's.
The Sailor remained still until their eyes met before he ended up digging into his pocket remembering why he was here, the Captain was a bit of an eccentric, dressed in regal clothing given their profession, yet no matter how many times he saw this man kill...there was never a splot of red on his white outfit.
A small smile came onto the Captains face as he was handed a note, setting the map down but not his precious drink he read through the letter giving a small nod before dismissing the messenger.
Standing from his seat he made his way to the banister and whistled drawing the crew's attention below.
"Gentleman and ladies...we've located Stardusk!"
The crew below raised their fist and roared with excitement until the Captain raised his hand quieting them.
"Our brother's have fallen, our sister Nura has been slain and their killers wander freely not understanding the weight of their actions and the consequences that will follow for their transgressions! We will not stop until they are buried under our heel, we will give our lives to ensure those responsible don't see tomorrow!"

Cheers came from the people below and the Captain gave a nod before turning and walking to the edge of the ship, the people below broke into their work with even more fervor as the Captain looked at the vast ocean behind him. The man raised his arms spreading them wide as a small smirk formed on his lips.
"At the end of it all this is a war of Attrition...and you've already lost."
Ship after ship followed their vessel, an armada of his own all bearing the Flag of the Renegades, he had called for his fleet as well so more would come, soldier after soldier for their cause all prepared for pay the ultimate price to bring this charade to an end. He would sacrifice hundreds of his ships, thousands of lives for revenge. He would kill every single one of them with everything he had, and he would let nothing stop him.

Captain ?

 

[SilentxChaos]

Jack didn't look away until he witnessed the last renegade perish to their own gas, his mouth set in a grim line as he watched them die, one by one. When it was over, he lowered the spyglass and breathed a sigh. Guess I didn't need this after all, he thought, picking up the rifle. He returned the spyglass to its chest before swinging back over the crow's nest. His role had been next to useless in this fight; Kadi, true to his talent, needed no direction from Jack at his higher vantage point, and Luro and the rest of Stardusk had covered the barrage. Descending, Jack frowned as he replayed Patch's helpful addition, cataloging it for later in case she turned out to be an enemy.

Halfway down, he caught sight of a fast-falling individual heading straight for Luro. Without thinking Jack hooked his feet and unslung the rifle from his shoulder, taking aim at this new individual. His finger brushed the trigger. He hesitated at Luro's call to stand down. Despite the giant's determination, Jack kept his rifle trained on the newcomer, expecting the worse, this was Luro after all--

Two guns went flying. Jack leaned away from the netting to catch Luro's L.A.S.S. as it sailed near him, not wanting it to fall into the ocean. The cook wobbled precariously as he fought to keep balance, both hands occupied with the long guns. A comical moment occurred as he pinwheeled his arms to keep himself from falling, before catching the net. Jack released a huff and shrugged his rifle onto his back. He blinked several times at the scene happening below. The wind carried pieces of conversation, and Jack quickly scampered back to the deck so he wouldn't miss the rest. He came to stand near Runali as the newcomer introduced himself.

Jack's mouth dropped slightly. He glanced at Runali, then Zilia and Nikos. Oh god, there's two of them.

He closed his mouth and listened intently to the exchange. He grimaced at taking another newcomer onboard, but considering she was Luro's sister, Jack was far more content with this decision than serving the Ravens. The fact it would be just her- and she offered him to restock Lady Luck- Jack felt he could grow to like Lina Makachi. His eyes slid back to Luro. First Nura...now Lina.... Closing his eyes, Jack breathed in deeply, and let out a long sigh. The irony of this situation was hitting too close to home.

Giving himself a mental shake, Jack stepped forward when Lina and the captain finished speaking. "This sounds like it'll be a long conversation. Not surprising," Jack frowned at Luro. The week spent with the Ravens had been...most enlightening, and it reinforced suspicions Jack had regarding Luro's total involvement. If his sister could shed truth on the whole circumstance, Jack would put zero fuss in having to serve yet another stranger. The only thing he disliked, oddly enough, was the Ravens departing to her ship. He'd feel more at ease if he could maintain a watchful eye on them, but with the captain agreeing to this shift, the cook had no say.

He cleared his throat, realizing he had dipped into a long pause. "If you don't mind, Captain...Makachi..." his lips twisted faintly around those words, disliking the image of Luro, not his sister, wearing the captain's hat, "I would like to restock now so we may eat as you tell us what you know. It'd go a long way to easing everyone's nerves."

As Jack spoke, he walked over to Luro and held out the L.A.S.S. to him.

"Please call me Lina," Lina said as Luro took his rifle back, giving it a once over. "Please take what'd you like, just let Mia know so she can write it down...and avoid extended conversations with her if possible. You're...Jack Kunal correct? The Tenebrous Bodhisattva. Nice to meet you."
Lina gave a small nod to Jack before squeezing the bridge thinking about the damage her First Mate could cause, but decided not to get into that, she was pretty sure if she thought about her too much she might show up.
"I want everyone to hear so I'm happy to wait, I'll just spend time with Brother while you're gone," Lina said lowering her hand.
"Lina let me show you my room!" Luro exclaimed.
"Is it an actual room…"
"Let me show you the Rum Room."
"That sounds about right."
The two siblings walked off as Luro started recounting all of Stardusk adventures.

"Likewise," Jack made a quick bow at her greeting. His head tilted faintly as he watched the two walk off. His eyes closed faintly, a carefully blank look coloring them. Then he turned on his heel and headed for the Lupis Noctis. "I'll try to be quick, Captain," he called to Runali over his shoulder.

Once on Lina's ship, he paused to look around. I should probably make a list as I go...that'll be easier, but I'll need pen and paper, Jack thought as he looked around. His eyes flicked to every member of the crew that passed by, committing their face to memory. He then spotted Patc-- Mia, he supposed it was. A faint frown spread across his features as he remembered Lina's advise to avoid extended conversations with her. I'm sure I can find something on my own. Shrugging to himself, Jack headed below deck.

The ship itself was quite the marvel, it was clear the person who made it put plenty of love into the ship and it appeared Mia made sure to do her job as Carpenter. There was a mix of personal flair on the ship, with designs carved into the wood, generally spirals or a pack of wolves here and there. Red ribbons ran long some of the ship and other such knicknacks were spread around giving the ship a bit of 'character' of it's own. The wood was almost akin to marble from a basic look, polished to a frightening shine.
The larger part was the organization of the ship, it was easy to locate most thing with the signs plasted throughout the ship, dictating where one needed to go. The lower decks seemed more like the inside of a house than a ship, furniture placed here and there, the walls of the ship cut off until one reached the 'rooms' of the ship. Only returning at the far end of the large hall that led to the lower part of the ship.
"You seem a tad lost."
Mia's voice filled the area, it wasn't too hard to locate her as she sat directly in Jack's path, backwards in her chair, resting her arms on the top with a blank expression.
"The signs will lead you to the wrong location if you read them. Some genius prankster made them that way," Mia said with a small nod. "Just do the opposite of what the sign says and you'll make it where you need to be. Say my name three times if you need me, oh Mia not Patch. Someone else will show up if you speak that name."
Her peace said Mia stood up and kicking the chair back to the location turned and walked behind a nearby wall, her presence fading as quick as it came.
The sign that led to where Jack needed to go said to go up twice, make a right then go down once before making a left.

Jack admired the craftsmanship and decorations as he wandered, never seeing a ship with such individual character before. More than once he went down below deck only resurface moments later, often at the same spot, though not through the same route. Jack maintained a casual grin whenever he passed the crew, but his irritation began mounting after the fourth turn around. Sighing in annoyance, he turned on his heel to head back down, and was surprised to find Mia waiting for him. His eyebrows raised as he looked left and right, wondering where she'd come from, since he'd only been in this area moments ago. His head cocked to the left as she explained the signs getting messed around. He nodded in understanding. "Thank you," he said as she started leaving. He took a couple steps after her, turning along the wall, and stopped when she was nowhere to be seen. It was a dead end; an awkward storage space for crates. Jack poked around a couple before stepping back.

"So. It's that kind of ship, huh?" Jack scratched his head, then shook it. He doubled back to look at the sign. Well, following these signs haven't helped so far….

He decided to try out her advice. Heading down to the lower deck, he made a left, remembering to make an up and then a right. As he went, he poked his head in a room here and there, seeing what was about.

The signs seemed to be leading Jack in the right direction as the route he was taken was weaving through parts of the ship and soon the ship's kitchen stock came into sight, the large sign next to it making it apparent more than the shelves of items inside the room. Strange enough Mia always seemed not to far away no matter how far Jack went, at one point she was conversing with those on the ship, pointing out things and giving orders. She would walk away but a moment later she was hammering something into the wood, and in the other she was sitting in a chair reading her book, she paid no mind to Jack as she did this though each floor or turn she was there doing some job or another, the people on the ship didn't seem to pay it any mind either.

The ship had many rooms to them and some stood out a little bit more than others, in one room there were a mess of notes scattered everywhere. In another there were Wanted Posters plastered everywhere, and that included Stardusks, strangely enough a few of the faces were crossed out but it was hard to tell from a distance. One room in particular had a rather lifeless person inside nailed to the wall of the room, from first glance it seemed like a black haired male, though the door seemed to close on its own rather quickly concealing the contents inside.

Jack slowed when he witnessed the wanted posters, his mouth setting in a thin line. He couldn't be surprised they were there but the crossed out marks didn't spell ease for him. He went along without stopping, sensing Mia somewhere nearby. What did stop him was the body. He nearly missed it. The cook ambled by before halting mid-step, his foot raised in midair for a solid three seconds before he did a double take. Jack's mouth hung open, an eyebrow twitching, as he witnessed the body hanging on the ship's wall, right before the door closed in his face… seemingly of its record. Moving on from what he saw took longer than he anticipated, his face a noticeable shade paler.

What the hell kind of ship is this? he thought.

Reluctantly, the cook continued until he finally came to the kitchen stock. He breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally," he muttered. He walked in and quickly assessed their stores. He decided earlier only to take the necessities; flour, seeds, potatoes, meat and the like, and from that, the minimum needed to get his crew through the next three weeks. Maybe a little extra, if more guests were to stay aboard.

Jack shifted crates and bags for ten minutes, neatly arranging whatever he disrupted. Silence lingered until he sighed. "You know," he said without turning around, "If you're going to follow me you could at least be courteous enough to start a conversation."

Mia was carrying a crate when Jack called out to her, she blinked a few times and taking a small step back set the crate down wiping some seat from her forehead. She stared a Jack with an arched brow before placing a hand on her hip.
"Follow you? I don't get what you mean," Mia said before glancing to her right. "Hold on."
Mia vanished from sight for a moment leaving little behind but a bit of thrown up dust that signified something was in there and in the next moment she was back holding a bag of flour.

Dropping the flour into the crate she picked it back up with a small 'hup' and broke into a slight jog setting the crate down somewhere out of sight before returning to Jack.
"Why did you think I was following you?" Mia said. "You've got a nice face and all but my one true love is the Captain Mr. Kunal."
At this Mia sighed and rested a hand on her cheek staring at the wood next to the door.
…a few days without the Captain…I'm not going to survive…if I can't see her angry expression…or her bashful side…ugh…"

Jack snorted in disbelief. "You've been nearby at every turn…" his voice trailed off as he looked up, seeing nothing but a poof of dust. He blinked several times until she re-appeared from the room he hadn't seen her go into. His head cocked slightly as he watched her moving the bag of flour around. A frown creased his brow when she spoke up about her love for her Captain, not entirely expecting it, until he realized what she was getting at.

He laughed softly. "Please. Just Jack will do." Taking a sack of grain, he hefted it to his pile. He stepped back and clapped his hands to dispel dust, giving his accumulation of goods a quick re-evaluation before nodding affirmatively. "This should be enough. And, I imagine my captain wouldn't mind your visiting, if you felt so inclined. You'll have to clear with her of course but it stands better than having six enemies onboard--"

He stopped. Jack stood up straight and looked at her, crossing his arms. "Speaking of, what did you do with the Ravens? I haven't seen them."

Mia arched a brow at Jack at his question and held up a piece of paper before her eyes trailed around the room, checking for missing spots. After a moment she wrote something down with a small nod.
"I'm pretty sure the Captain told you my jobs right? I generally have to be in multiple places at one time," Mia said putting the paper away. "It's rude to make assumptions of woman Jack, you should be more gentlemanly."

She turned vanishing once more before reappearing with an apple, she tossed on to Jack before pointing at it to indicate he could have it. She leaned against the doorframe taking a bit of her apple when he crossed his arms at her. A small smile found its way onto her features and her eyes lowered slightly, though whatever the look was for she closed her eyes and stepped outside the room.
"They're in the Brig on the lowest deck of the ship…I mean this is just advice, but it seems letting people who swing at a sword at your neck around to walk freely is a bad idea."
Mia said smiling.
"I'd love to visit…but with the Captain gone it's my job to deal with the Ravens. I personally know how tenacious they can be. Poison and explosives is with them holding back. Try having them fall from the sky strapped with explosives, Code Mongoose…thankfully you haven't had to deal with that yet. I dealt with that yesterday. Oh or one of them dressed up as an old woman asking for your help carrying things, then they shake your hand and blow themselves up, Code Trout, they almost got the Captain with that one."

Jack made a bow, though a small, sly smirk crossed his features. "You are right, Mia, it's rude to make assumptions. You have my sincerest apologies."

Standing straight, Jack snatched the apple sailing at him, raising an eyebrow and giving a nod of thanks when she indicated it was his to have. He rubbed it with his sleeve then bit into it as she went into detail about the Ravens. He had to stop a frown from hinting on his lips. For some reason, the idea of them in a brig unsettled him. His foot tapped then he shook his head, ridding the thoughts. Better there than roaming free on my ship, he tried to convince himself

"They are...more suicidal than I was led to believe," Jack confessed when she paused. To him, the Renegades appeared more willing to sacrifice themselves than the Messengers...or, at least, Nikos and his group. Then again, Jack wouldn't put it past them either. Each chose Stardusk for a specific reason; it stood to reason they would take every measure to complete their mission, even if it meant sacrificing their own life to take down Stardusk.

Jack patiently finished his fruit, taking the time to sort out the surfacing questions in his mind. He remembered Mia was once a Red Raven as well. Her captain appeared to have answers of how Luro, and Stardusk by proxy, became the source of Red Raven attention so Jack decided to shelve such pertaining questions for later. In the meantime, an ex-Raven stood before him. He wanted to take every advantage of that. Swallowing the last of the apple, Jack inquired where to dispose of the core.

"So, how long were you a Raven, exactly?" Jack continued as he walked per her instructions. Once he threw it away, he turned to look at her, crossing his arms. "Your captain said you used to be one, yes? How did you become involved with that organization?"

Mia would vanish and reappear in small intervals as Jack ate his apple, she seemed occupied by multiple matters reappearing generally holding one thing or another to check on Jack only to vanish again. She did this a few times, carrying a body at one point before she appeared a few feet away from Jack brushing off her hands. With a small sigh she stood in front of him again arching a brow at his comment of the Ravens.
"I don't know what led you to that conclusion," Mia said. "Ravens are taught to respect life, it's why they look their opponents in the eyes when they kill them. Suicide is a last resort for them, Renegades don't care about that. To them it's easy to kill your opponent if you put yourself in harm's way."

Mia opened her notebook flipping through a few pages and writing something down, she raised her head for a moment counting silently before putting the notebook away.
"That should keep things in order for a bit," Mia said. "I have a feeling you're going to ask questions…"
Mia motioned to a nearby crate for the finished apple only to smile a little when he asked her a question. Reaching up she fiddled with her eye patch and shifted to her other foot with a small sigh.
"Goodness Jack what a personal question…you don't even know my last name. Not that I mind boldness…"
Mia rested a hand on her cheek a red tint flowing into her face.
"I'm kidding of course," she said before crossing her arms. "I was a Raven for too long...that's my answer that one."
Mia rubbed the side of her head; she wasn't pleased about her time there.
"Hmm you tell me how you became a Stardusk and I'll tell you how I got into the Ravens, agreed good it's a deal," Mia said continuing without pause. "For how I got involved…I was in the Navy at one point. Some time ago the Navy and Ravens worked together to hunt Pirates. I may have been a bit too…vocal with my Commanding officer and got kicked out. I had met the Ravens and ended up joining them, their rules were a bit more lax than the Navy, I got a ship and a crew too so I had little complaints at the little rules they had."

He leaned against a stack of crates, the casual smile broadening as he watched her face redden and she crossed her arms. Jack nodded at her "deal", though she left him without say, and reached for a cigarillo as she explained her past connection. "Do you mind?" he asked, indicating to his smoke.

"It makes sense the Ravens and Navy would want to pair up. Not that that's a comfortable notion," Jack sighed, and rubbed his chin. "Alright you answered my inquiries. As for how I joined Stardusk, it's quite straight forward. We met on Harbor Island in Tilea. I needed a crew, and they were in...a not so good place at the time. I helped them get out and became their cook." He made a one-shoulder shrug and smiled at the memory.

Glancing out a porthole, he frowned. It's later than I thought. I should head back soon… Jack tilted his head then turned back to Mia. "What made you leave the Ravens then? How did you come to be a part of this crew?"

Mia waved her hand as an indication it was fine at Jack's question, most of the crew smoked in one place or another, so long as it wasn't near the Captain's room or near the armory again most didn't care. She closed her eyes offering a small nod in agreement at the two sides coming together, the two were fierce when they weren't fighting one another, the seas were pretty rough back then.
"Both considered it a necessary evil at the time," Mia said. "Then the Ravens became the evil, simple."

She opened her eyes when Jack explained how he met the crew, her eye lowered slightly hearing the story wasn't romantic, there wasn't even someone getting shot in the story, she sighed a little bit but gave a nod since he had at least shared it with her. She expected another question about the Ravens but when it was directed at her, she lowered her head slightly her fingers tracing over her eyepatch for a moment.
"Hmmm...well the Captain does want trust between us so I suppose I can answer that," Mia said sighing. "Lina's the reason I left."
Mia moved her hands behind her head with a sigh.
"I joined the Navy and ran into Lina, being a pirate, we of course butted heads, I've forgotten how many times I've tried to kill her. When I became a Raven, I saw Lina as a bounty and immediately took it...I got greedy though. I wanted to be the one to finish her but I kept failing. Normally at that point another Hunter comes and does the job but I was relentless, I screwed up the other Hunters chasing after her, they told me to stop but I didn't. I wanted to kill her, I had fought her for so long, I wasn't going to let anyone else have her….then I started to question where those feelings were coming from...why was I so adamant at killing her? Why did I need to be the one to do it? Well eventually I broke too many rules, was labeled a Renegade and they sent someone after me."
Mia stopped and held a finger up to Jack.
"I'm sure the Messengers introduced themselves with titles right? Every Raven especially Hunters are given titles, so if-"

Mia cut herself off as a part of the ship opened up above them and a body fell to ground in front of them, blood splattering on the woman's face and staining the floor. Mia stared down at then up at Jack before reaching down and pulling the now deceased person into the nearby darkness. Grabbing a nearby mop she held a finger up to Jack to stop him before promptly mopping up the mess, once finished she put the mop away and returned to her spot, wiping the blood off on her sleeve.
"They become Renegades they fall into Raven jurisdiction. It's a constant reminder not to cross that line or be hunted by your own."
Mia smiled and rubbed the back of her head.
"I kind of forgot that, so needless to say I was in a bad place. Knowing I would go after Lina they set up an ambush and Lina seeing I was attacked saved me. Then she extended a hand to me, and asked me if I'd like to join her...so I stabbed her in the side with a knife and shook her hand. Been with her ever since. I was surprised to hear she was Luro's sister though, he and the Messengers have quite the reputation among the Ravens."
Mia wiped her hands off after the explanation, apparently having moved on from the interruption though she made sure not to stand where the body had fallen.

Jack relaxed somewhat as Mia told her story, the tobacco and his focus on the information lulling him into content concentration. A smirk spread behind the cigarillo when she mentioned a desire to kill her captain the first time they met. Captains, it seemed, had a penchant for attracting loyal crew members who want to kill them, a complete paradox in itself. Lina Makachi also seemed to attract semi-homicidal people in her life. Then again, I suppose Runali does as well.

He shifted his feet, looking down to tap a bit of ash off his boot, when suddenly the ceiling opened and dropped a body. Jack reeled, flashing a knife from his sleeve to his hand so fast it looked like it appeared from thin air. The cigarillo dropped to the floor as he raised it to attack the intruder… just to freeze when Mia held up a finger. He blinked and sniffed, a putrid odor wafting beneath his nostrils. His nose wrinkled as he looked down and realized the body was, in fact, very dead.

"By god, you've got to be kidding me," Jack grumbled as Mia vanished for a mop. In the brief moment she was gone, Jack allowed himself a moment to slouch and rub his face, the startling fear and dreadful wariness passing his face with a long-suffering groan. "Why are there dead bodies in the woodwork?" he asked to no one, looking up at the ceiling and inspecting the hole the body came from. Shaking his head, he recomposed himself when Mia returned. He was following her nonchalant example; she seemed nonplussed, perhaps even a little annoyed, at the abrupt interruption but not surprised. For all Jack knew, she was the cause of the dead people on this ship. If she wasn't concerned, he wouldn't be either.

It was harder to focus on the rest of her story. His eyes kept drifting back to the body now and again. A grimace came when he saw blood splatters on his waistcoat and sleeves, more on Mia's face.

When she was done, Jack skirted around the body to his stack of loaned supplies. He checked to ensure blood hadn't contaminated.

"Well, your tale certainly supersedes mine in entertainment," he said, straightening up to look at her. "You have a little something…" Jack started, gesturing to her face where blood had marked it. He left the sentence unfinished. Instead, he took a moment to process what to do. He had more questions, but Jack knew he was keeping Lina and his crew, and he doubted Mia would offer the truly valuable information Lina promised to deliver after dinner. Sighing, Jack bent down and hefted two large bags on his shoulders.

"I should head back. Do you have time to help me with this? If not, I understand, and would like to inquire a final thing of you."

He waited for her answer and gave a nod. He paused, thinking carefully. Up until now, the cook provided limited comments on what she told him, his thoughts and emotions kept hidden, though his intent listening showed his deep interest in all she said. "My crew and I are in a precarious situation. I find your story fascinating," he grinned at her, evidence of the truth behind his words, "even if I can't trust you quite yet. Perhaps if there's time, I'd love to hear your take on the… Makachi siblings.

"However, I find myself in the need to know something else for the time being. Tell me all you can of the Messengers. Please," he added, inclining his head slightly, in an act of politeness, his eyes widening with earnest desire.

Mia calmly wiped the blood off her face and walking over took one of the bags from Jack placing it on her shoulder with a small nod. The ship could function on its own for a moment, and it seemed she casually ignored his comment of bodies from the woodwork, seeming content with the fact that he wasn't going to bring it up. She walked with Jack back to the ship remaining quiet through the walk, she would glance over at the people on the ship to ensure everything was running smoothly, offering nods here and there as she was greeted.
Some people seeing she was carrying items refrained from approaching just holding up papers which Mia would respond to with a nod, a silent confirmation that she would stop by later.
At Jack's comment Mia offered a small smile.
"Well we're in the same boat I suppose, the Captain trusts you but I have to do my job as well," Mia said with a small nod.

At the mention of the siblings Lina focused her attention forward with a small sigh, she didn't mind answering that question but…there was a clear bit of hesitation from her about the subject. When he brought up the Messengers she turned her attention back to him. Jack seemed earnestly interested in learning about the group, and there was little reason not to tell them about a mutual enemy, but her interest was piqued when he seemed more interested in the Messengers themselves than the Ravens.
"…I won't ask why them but sure I'll tell you what I know," Mia said. "The Messengers…aren't like the rest of the Ravens."
Mia let out a small sigh as she spoke about this.
"The Messenger are the…rejects of the Ravens if that makes sense. When I was with them most people spoke ill of them, they're loyal of course but no one thinks highly of them. There are numerous organizations within the Ravens, groups of Hunters, teams and all that. Even within the organization there's hierarchy so obviously some people stand above others, but it's your merit that really earns you respect not titles some people forgot that. Nikos was apparently a very promising Raven, having an army of his own, fleets at his disposal he probably would have ended up a First Tier with enough time. Something happened however and he lost it all, given the name the Fallen Phoenix as an insult. No matter how many times he rose from the ashes he'd just fall back down again."
Mia went silent after this for a moment before a small chuckle came from her.
"The people were happy to talk bad about him, how this 'hero' had fallen from grace. They moved Nikos to a new place; put him in this old decrepit base saying it was his new 'assignment' as they smirked at him. It was a downgrade, a big one…but funny enough he just cleaned the place up and worked even harder. Soon after he started collecting members, these people became the Red Messengers, people with no real place in the organization. I don't know them intimately or how they ended up there but from what I've heard they're the rejects of society, one's even an ex-pirate so she got plenty of hate."
Mia paused again and looked over at Jack smiling a bit.
"What's hilarious is…they started doing work…and they did it well. The rejects were doing better work than the second tiers, bringing in all manners of targets, accomplishing mission after mission. All I heard was how annoying the Messengers were, how they're the worst kind of people but they did their job ignoring the sneers. If they hadn't been hated so much they'd probably be second Tier hunters…maybe even first. Each one of them had to work harder to earn what they had, I had to deal with one them on a mission and they worked harder than any other Raven in my group. They had to earn their place, make sure people didn't call it a 'fluke' or 'luck'. We had the target in less than a day, over a mission that was supposed to take a week."
Mia turned her attention forward again with a small sigh.
"Anyway that's what I heard about them…I'm not sure how much of it is true as the people who told me this did spit when they said their names but I can tell you they're hated in the organization, but they stay anyway…to me they were the most loyal Ravens. Not once did I hear one complain when someone talked down to them or insulted them, I almost asked to join them myself when I was with them, they're very close knit, don't care about politics or anything of that matter they just want to do their jobs. In a way I respect them, but at the end of the day they're my enemies and I know they'd kill me just as fast I kill them because of who they are, because of what they have to lose."

"What do they have to lose?" Jack asked softly, placing down the last of the supplies in Lady Luck's cargo hold. He said not a word throughout Mia's story. It caught him off-guard, briefly, to hear the Messengers as outcast simply by the way they conducted themselves with Stardusk during this passed week but the more Mia explained, the more it made sense. He review each Messenger in turn; their quirks, their abilities, their personalities. Not a one fit into the common social norms of today, something Jack could empathize on both sides, given his birth, and the fact he was one of their missions.

As he turned to face Mia, waiting for her answer, he caught sight Nikos on the far side of the crew's quarters. Runali or Lina must be hovering nearby, but for the moment it was only the Fallen Phoenix himself. Jack observed him then looked at Mia.

"That's a good question," Mia said setting the supplies down. "Afraid I'm not a Messenger so I don't know…but they're fighting awfully hard for people who don't have anything to lose…don't you think?"
Mia offered a small smile to Jack before patting him on the back and turning away to him.
"Nice talk, be safe out there."
With that Mia vanished returning to her ship, the moment she was gone however Lina immediately walked up to Jack and put her hands on his shoulders. She had come out of nowhere almost as if she could sense the future misfortune of her victims.
"Mia was here! She didn't try to hurt your anything right? Didn't try to trick you? She didn't make some off comment about bears and wagons did she?! Nikos! Did Mia do anything to you."
Nikos gave a small shake of his head but kept his attention focused elsewhere clearly not trying to go anywhere near the two.
Lina stared at Jack with wide eyes, her last question almost seemed desperate but she stared at Jack genuinely concerned about his well being at the hands of her First Mate.

She's right. But are they fighting for something? Or fighting to hold on to all they have left? Jack thought, watching her disappear.

He staggered when Lina clapped his shoulders, turning towards her with an arched eyebrow. "What? No, nothing of the sort. She was very hospitable," the cook answered her earnestly. His face glowered as he added, "Though you may want to speak to her about the bodies. Rotting corpses are bad for a ship's health you know? I'm sure your brother would agree."

Something close between haunted and withering look crossed his face, before he quickly shrugged it off. "Why? Is she normally...that threatening, with guests?"

Lina removed her hands hearing that Mia had behaved herself, though from her narrowed expression there was a bit of doubt that the woman hadn't done any wrong. She started to speak but when he brought up dead bodies Lina reached up and squeezed the bridge of her nose, she let out a breath through gritted teeth and offered a small nod before looking back at Jack.
"She likes playing tricks," Lina said. "Especially to those that don't know them. I imagine she did the crossed out wanted posters one…is that blood from the bodies on your coat…go ahead and taste it…just trust me on it."

Both eyebrows rose as Jack glanced from her to his shirt. Warily, he reached down and dabbed at the blood. He gave a tentative lick. Spicy...tomato? His face went into a complete blank stare before a sudden, depressing dark look made it crumble and he hung his head.

I'm a failure as a cook.

"Tricks huh?" Chuckling, Jack raised his head again with a lopsided grin, rubbing his hand over his dreadlocks. "I won't lie she's pretty good. And yeah, the wanted posters were...hinted." I was played and I deserved it.

"I knew it," Lina said hanging her head. "Thanks for not being offended. You'd be surprised how many guests come to hate us because of her tricks."
With a small sigh Lina gave a small nod to Jack before walking away from him, if he wasn't upset than there was little need to delve further into it. She would have long talk about the fake dead body bit with her later. Just as she was leaving though she heard a loud click and turned to see Luro had his rifle pointed at Jack.
"Wha- Brother no!"
Lina quickly ran back to Jack and reaching on his back quickly pulled off a small note.
The removal of the note caused Luro to lower his gun arching a brow at his sister before she held it out for both to see, the note said.
"Please shoot me, signed Jack, P.S. this is not a trick.
"Hah…she probably did this one because she knew I was nearby," Lina said ripping up the note. "It's not real Brother don't shoot Jack."
"It was signed by him though," Luro said. "Jack are you sure you don't want me to shoot you?"
"Brother it was Mia being Mia. I swear she's going to make every other pirate our enemy one day."
Luro gave a small shrug and moving the gun to his back waved to the two before walking away.
"I…think you're safe…but check your body later. Take care Jack."
Jack lifted a hand, even though he'd see them again within the next half hour. The cook hadn't so much as twitched when he heard the click of Luro's weapon. All that time spent, hearing him walk the ship at night, watching him after his attack on Zilia, contemplating his role in this Raven mess. Luro Makachi was one person Jack had a constant idea of when he was nearby, though in this case he guessed Luro wasn't even trying to hide. Jack rubbed his shoulder and cracked his neck, as if to work out the haki that'd blossomed in response to his crewmate. He glanced down at the ripped up notes and made a sigh. He glanced back at Nikos.

"Would you believe me if I told you I almost prefer your company over hers?" he asked the Raven.

Nikos gaze moved over to Jack, watching the man for a moment mainly because he wasn't sure if that had been addressed to him, but when it was apparent he was speaking with him he focused his attention forward again.
"I would if not for the almost," Nikos said simply.

 

[Mizos]

​

Lina sat in the small dingy, leaning a bit as the waves gently rocked the boat. The vessel slowly inching further and further away from Lady Luck the bright moon above being the second witness to the Captain's adventure; one she hadn't decided on alone. The woman sitting a few inches away from her was the one that had requested her company. Zilia rowed the boat, clearly having a bit of trouble as she rowed them to a nearby Haven that had been abandoned for some time. Zilia had approached Lina in the night and requested some alone time with her, though Lina agreed she didn't expect them to leave the ship.
"Um…so what did you need to talk with me about?"
Zilia looked up at her before looking down at her hands holding the oars.
"W-why don't I row? So we can talk on the way there," Lina offered.
When Zilia held the oars towards Lina she let out a small relieved sigh, it was actually a little hard watching her try so hard right now.

When the two reached the old Haven, they made their way further inwards; Zilia had apparently wanted to walk with her about their past, her and Luro's. Since she believed it was a sensitive subject she had led them out to this secluded area. Lina appreciated her consideration but she couldn't help feeling a little guilty seeing her go to such lengths just for her. After a bit of walking the two stopped next to a small hut, Zilia taking a seat on a nearby rock motioning for Lina to do the same on a stack of old crates. Apparently for her Chronicle she wanted to understand everyone more, perhaps make notes on certain actions or fill in what blanks she had. Luro was one of the people with many blanks in her book, and it seemed she didn't intend on missing an opportunity to fill a few of them.
"You wanted to make sure we have privacy due to what you're asking correct?" Lina asked.
Zilia gave a small nod and Lina closed her eyes, she took a few steady breaths staying that way for a minute until eventually opening her eyes and offering a smile.
"It's safe," Lina said. "Okay I suppose I'll start near the beginning then."

Zilia's quill stopped moving on her page, something wet landing on the page after hand stopped moving. She felt something flow down her cheeks and when she raised her head she noticed Lina holding a handkerchief out to her. With a nod she took it bringing it to her eyes as Lina offered a small smile to her, watching as Zilia closed her book waiting patiently for her to get herself together once more.
"Thank you Lina…I appreciate you taking the time and I'm sorry for prying into something that personal...I didn't realize…"
"It's quite all right," Lina said taking the handkerchief back. "I should thank you. Knowing there's people out there trying to understand my brother makes me feel a bit more at ease."
Zilia gave a small nod and stood up patting her pocket, though she looked down at her body patting herself all over before bringing a hand to her head.
"I left the Chronicle on the boat. I was too focused on my questions…would you mind writing an entry in it? Maybe giving me a bit of insight on some parts?"
"I'd be delighted, I'll just wait here," Lina responded.
She watched Zilia head back towards the boat, a little more pep in her step as the woman vanished into the distance. With a small smile she folded her hands behind her back before speaking.
"You can come out now."

The door to the broken hut opened and Luro stepped out ducking under the doorway before stepping into the open. He stretched his arms above his head and stood next to Lina looking in the direction Zilia had gone.
"…you could have told her I was nearby ya know," Luro said.
"Hmm you already know the subject matter…even if you don't remember most of it."
"I guess that's true, I really can't recall a lot of it. Though I'm not surprised you do."
It almost went without saying Lina remembered everything from back then, the scene replayed in her head more than she wanted to admit, but that was fine as she didn't want to forget. Standing near Luro only reminder her all over again what transpired, and she looked back without hesitation each time, she needed to remember that day, as long as she drew breath she owed it to Luro to never forget that scene.
"Nura get Lina out of here."
"Luro?"
"Lina be a good girl and go with Nura, behave yourself okay and listen to what she says."
"Brother no! This isn't your-"
"Nura promise me you'll take care of her."
"Luro I don't think-"
"Promise me! I need you to say it…please…"
"…okay…I promise I'll take care of her but I'm not doing it forever. So make sure you come back!"
"Thank you. Lina I'll see you as soon as I can okay! Keep doing your best."
"Brother!"

"Oi Lina."
Lina was pulled from her own thoughts seeing Luro was standing in front of her, leaning down with a finger against her forehead. Reaching up she touched her cheeks pulling it away rubbing the wetness on her fingers, she opened her mouth to say something only to close it when Luro started wiping her face off with a cloth.
"Brother stop…I'm not a-"
"Not a child I know," Luro said interrupting her. "You're still my sister, let me dote on you a little, goodness know when I'll be able to again."
Lina froze up slightly at the look on Luro's face, at the gentleness in his voice. For a moment, one that was far too brief she saw the face of Luro before he was Luro, heard the voice of the one who had helped shaped the person she was today…and she knew she wasn't winning against that person.
"You also don't get to act all adult, you still call me Brother," Luro said with a grin.
"Because you told me too," Lina grumbled glaring at him.
"You were a kid and couldn't say Luro."
"If I just called you your name now you'd get all upset anyway."
"Of course I would, I like it when you call me Brother, brings back memories. Be weird if you called me by name all of a sudden, I'd think something was wrong."
"Then don't bring it up."
"Right right."

Luro backed away with a grin watching as Lina sniffed seeming to hold back whatever harsh comment was about to come out. No matter how many times he looked at her he couldn't help but see the sniffling face of the little girl from back then. He laughed a little as he shoved the cloth back into his pocket, she had grown so much but some things just didn't change. She always tried to be strong when she was around others, but she always let her guard down when it was just the two of them, he'd be lying if he said it didn't make him happy.
"Brother…do you mind if I'm a little selfish?"
Luro looked back at Lina as her eyes moved to the ground; scratching the side of his head he gave a small shrug.
"I don't see why not, you've been pretty good anyw-"
Luro stopped talking as he felt something press against him, he looked down at Lina as she walked into him, hiding her face as she wrapped her arms around him. He froze at the sudden embrace, his body tensing up at the sudden act. It took a minute for him to realize what she actually wanted causing him to lower his arms. His shirt was also wet so he could guess why she wasn't looking at him.
"Really? Is all you do cry?" Luro said putting his hand on Lina's head.
"Shut up. I don't want too."
He had to hold in a bit of his laughter hearing her voice break a little, she'd gotten a little better at acting tough at the very least.
"How much did you drink?" Luro asked arching a brow at her.
"…a little."
"That's too much," Luro said grinning. "You got my love of drink but half my tolerance. You gotta learn ta-"
"I missed you."
The smile faded from Luro's face as Lina spoke, almost in a whisper. He stared down at her as she went silent, neither making any effort to move away from the other much less speak. With a chuckle Luro pat her head.
"I missed you too."

It was hard to act normal around Lina, Luro realized that the longer he stayed near her. He couldn't be himself around her, he worried every little action would hurt her or make her worry. It was strange and most of all it hurt, being this close, being this open, it really hurt. His head hurt, his chest hurt, everything hurt, like he was being pricked all over his body, he couldn't ignore the pain as it only worsened the closer she was.
"I'm sorry Brother…I don't like that all I can do is apologize…I hate it but…but I need to say it. You gave up so much because I was stupid...because I made one mistake."
"Oi, Luro said moving Lina away. "No talking like that."
Luro flicked Lina in the skull causing her to rub the spot as he offered a smile to her.
"I promised to look out for you, and you look out for me too right? That's what family does. I just got a head start on you is all, being the older sibling."
"Ah…yeah I guess so," Lina said offering a smile to Luro in return. "Though you kind of stopped doing your job halfway through. Nura kind of watched over me after you up and vanished."
Luro averted his gaze from Lina and scratched his cheek, a sheepish grin forming on his face.
"Well I mean, I asked her to look after you so…I still did something ya know."
A small laugh escaped from Luro and eventually Lina couldn't help but join him. The two laughed together neither sure at what but clearly something both of them couldn't help but feel a bit silly about. Their laughter died down as Lina looked past Luro.
"Ah Zilia will be back soon," Lina said.
"Oh I should go then, I'll see you guy back at the ship," Luro said walking away.
"Sure…oh and Brother," Lina said causing Luro to glance back at her. "May I ask one last thing?"
"Sure."
"Would you like to join my crew?"

 

[Mizos]

...probably.​

Luro stood on the edge of the ship tapping his rifle against his shoulder as he stared out at the sea; he had asked the Captain if he could take night watch. He couldn't sleep anyway and figured the night air might help clear his head. He was happy to have Lina on board, catching up on what they had been up too, but he couldn't get her question out of his head. Joining the Lupus Noctis and sailing the seas together, it sounded wonderful and he couldn't deny being happy at the offer...but something was bugging him. Tracing his fingers over the Stardusk symbol over his chest he wondered why he couldn't stop thinking about it, he liked it here he was pretty sure of that so why was Lina's offer so tempting.
The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. The more he thought back to that moment the more everything hurt, he shook his head knowing he wasn't going to get any real sleep tonight.
A bit of fog had rolled in during their voyage obscuring the generally comforting view of the ocean, taking a seat on the edge he decided to finish off the barrel of rum nearby. Just as he was about to open the bottle however, his eyes caught sight of something in the distance, blinking a few times his brows arched as he caught the faint flicker of flames past the white mist. The fire eventually faded leaving only the darkness but that small moment was enough to bring a smile to Luro's face.
A hand came to rest on his shoulder as Cloaky gave him a small pat, smiling next to him as he raised a finger and pointed at the darkness ahead.
"Yeah…a little bit is okay."

"Is that them?"
A young man asked pointed at the Lady Luck in the distance; looking over at his Captain who lowered his spyglass he noticed the small nod from him. There was a ship in front of them that were a little closer to Lady Luck, bearing the symbol of the Renegades same as them.
"Should we continue Full Sail Captain?" the young man asked.
"No…we should fall back slightly. Inform the men Vince."
With a small nod Vince turned and made a motion with his hand, the crew nodded and messing with the sails slowly started to fall behind the other ship. Their job was only reinforcements, the other ship only had to get close enough for the explosives to go off, they were just in charge of mopping up, and at this pace it wouldn't be too long before the ship was close enough.
Vince grinned his hand resting on the pistol on his waist, he wanted to storm the ship and kill that pirate scum himself but the Captain's orders were absolute, though he couldn't help hoping for at least one survivor.
"Hm?"
Vince looked over at the Captain as he raised the glass again.
"Is something wrong Captain."
"Yeah…I see a boat…with a Lantern on the front of it."
"…huh?"
"Yeah…I can't see the person but their heading towards the main ship; oh it must be one of our scouts."
The Captain lowered his spyglass when the boat put its light out, the Captain crossed his arms over his chest wondering if they were going to receive any good news. He knew Fais would want information as soon as possible; they wanted to add Stardusk death to their report however thus why they were here.
"Hm the ship stopped," Vince said pointing ahead.
"It must be important than. Vince you go on board and get the news."
"Understood."
Vince borrowing one of the dinghies made his way to their sister ship since they didn't want to draw too much attention to themselves. The Captain was keeping Lady Luck in his sights so they didn't lose it but it still took a few minutes to reach the ship, and the longer he took the further away Stardusk would get.

Vince climbed onto the ship with a small grunt before brushing off his clothes.
"Oi guys what did you-"
Vince cut himself off as he felt something wet crunch under his boot, he looked down before a nauseating scent hit his nose, he staggered backwards tripping over something as he stared at the severed arm with his boot imprinted on it.
"Wha-"
He looked down at his legs trying to see what he tripped over, his gaze meeting the shocked frozen expression of a sailor. Vince quickly climbed to his feet feeling something catch in his throat as he placed his hand on the mast, his eyes staring down at the man's motionless form.
That was a dead body, there two dead bodies. Why were there dead bodies on the ship? He recognized these two as well, they had reported to him before they set sail, he needed to find the Captain. He needed to locate and inform him of this, there was more than likely an intruder on board.
Something wet fell onto Vince's arm causing him to look over at it, a red droplet fell onto his arm and he raised his head to the source. His stomach churned as his eyes fell on a middle aged man impaled onto the mast with his own Cutlass, bits of pink chunks stuck to the sword, blood pouring out of his eye sockets, more than likely from the removal of what once lied within them. That man was the Captain, Vince took a small step back and took a few deep breaths, he could hear his heartbeat, his palms were doused with sweat as he tried to walk with punching his legs to stop the trembling. It was getting hard to breath, the putrid scent wafting through the air wasn't helping, decayed flesh mixed with Jones knows what but he could feel it tugging at his very being. His eyes moved around the deck, now that he looked he could see bodies strewn about, there was nothing left on the flesh but it didn't take much for him to realize it was the crew.
"Someone used the poison on most of them," Vince said. "…the Captain!"
Vince turned and leapt over the side of the boat, he had to return to the Captain, someone was attacking their ships. He considered himself lucky; if he had been a minute sooner he probably would have joined them.

Vince returned to his ship and tried to scream for the Captain, cutlass in hand but seeing the splattered red covering the ship, he realized he was too late. His sword fell from his weak grip into a puddle near his feet as he stared at the corpses littering the deck. He had sailed with these people for years…yet he couldn't recognize one of their faces now. Contorted, ripped apart, burned to the bone these men were basically strangers now, no trace of their former selves remaining. He tried not to look too much, a few had their stomachs ripped open for some reason or another, and he was doing his best not to lose it already.
"…there's marks over most of their bodies…like an animal got on board," Vince mumbled as he walked past the ripped up chunks.
The air was cold, he was surprised it could be this chilly on the ship when it was warm out. He was aware it was cold…so why did he feel something hot on the back of his neck. He froze in place at the sudden warmth, if he listened he could hear breathing, and each time the disembodied person exhaled he could feel it on his nape. Vince glanced to his side his eyes widening as a pair of hands appeared, slowly closing around his skull.
He quickly spun around hand on his pistol, his eyes catching a faint blue mist behind him, but little else than the ship and the distant darkness.
"…focus Vince…"
Vince took the gun off his waist and readied it, he started pacing the deck his eyes moving to the crow's nest before he eventually made his way to the helm. Though he came to regret the action when his eyes moved to the wheel, the severed heads of his crewmates attached to the wheel…the Captain's at the top.
"Guys…" Vince mumbled. "…damn it."
"Beautiful isn't it?"
Vince spun around as a voice spoke to him, his eyes met another's before the man gripped his skull, his eyes peering into his own, their faces inches from another. Vince felt his body lock up as he stared into the man's almost black pupils. A grin adorned the stranger's face as his blood soaked digits gripped him.
"Name's Luro…it's nice to meet you."
"Luro,"
Vince's eyes twitched as he stared into the eyes of the man named Luro, he knew who this man was. He was the one the Renegades wanted dead. No one really spoke of him, except for a redheaded swordsman garbed in white. The eyes of a dead man, crimsons locks and the grin of the devil himself, the man warned him never to cross paths with this man. Especially if he's smiling.
"Well?"
"W-what?"
"Are you going to kill me?"
"Huh?"
Vince watched as Luro shifted slightly his thumbs moving over his eyes, he flinched remembering this man was his enemy, he raised his pistol and shoved it against Luro's chin glaring at him, though Luro made no attempt to move away.
"Do it. Pull the Trigger. Kill me."
"You sick freak! You did this didn't you?!"
"Yep! I killed all your friends! Don't you want revenge?! Aren't you angry?! Shoot me!"
Vince hand rested on the trigger Luro's grin widening as he stared into the fearful gaze of his would be killer. Vince hand trembled but he pulled the trigger of the gun, he wasn't letting fear stop him from doing his job.
At least that's what he thought but the only thing that followed was an audible click
"What?"
Vince stared at his gun and tried to fire again, and again, and again, but only the same sound came no matter how many times he pulled the trigger.
"Hahahahahahahahahahahaha! That's the best! The look on your face! Gahahahahaha that's so good! I love that!"
Vince shivered at the man's laugher, it echoed into his being, taunting him as one of Luro's hand released him as he held up a pistol.
"I took your gun earlier silly. You're a terrible pirate ya know."
Vince's eyes moved over to the gun as Luro waved it a few feet away, he handed the gun back to him.
"Here try again! Go on do it."
Vince didn't hesitate pulling the trigger again, his eyes full of hatred for this man.
Click
"Hahahahaahahah! So good! That look was the best!"

Vince felt all the energy leave his body, the empty pistol falling from his hand and clattering onto the deck below. Luro watched as the young man went limp in his grip and released him, watching him as he fell to the floor. He stared down at the man, watching the tears fall down the young man's face as he laid on the bloody deck, mouth agape, staring at his Captain.
"…I'm sorry…Captain."
"Ah you gave up," Luro said sighing. "That's boring."
Luro grabbed the young man by his skull and dragged him off the helm, Vince put up little resistance as he was dragged below deck, past the numerous other victims of this man.
"If you don't put up a fight than what's the point. I thought you'd at least be fun but you broke so easily."
Luro stopped near a few barrels and with a small sigh he tossed Vince into one of them, grabbing his rifle he raised it and fired at Vince. Though he hit the spot next to him, leaving a small hole in the barrel. Vince looked back noticing purple mist pour out of it, before his pistol was tossed into his lap.
"You can have that back, there was another ship coming right? Imma go have more fun."
"…how?"
Luro stopped as Vince spoke, the poison was already eating away at him but it seemed he didn't care at this point. He knew these were his last moments, and with what little strength he had he at least wanted answers.
"How do you know that?"
Luro arched a brow at him and gave the young man a small smile.
"Oh right right, uh thanks for your report. It's appreciated," Luro said before waving and closing the door. "I'll take it from here."


Lina stood on the deck of the Lady Luck, her head focused on a small book in her hands, information she had gathered about the Red Ravens and Renegades. There were many False Leaders among the Renegades, each one different than the last. The Leader of the Renegades however was still lost knowledge. Even though Mia had become one even she couldn't tell her who the leader was, they kept their identity secret. The biggest concern was if they knew about Luro, and that bothered her more than anything else.
She had woken up a little earlier, mainly out of habit as she tended to walk the ship to clear her thoughts, but not wanting to wake anyone up she had opted to just stay on the main deck. Now she was pacing trying to get her thoughts situated.

The Stardusk captain rose with the morning despite how long it took her to fall asleep. With everything going on, her brain was going a mile a minute, going over information, people, news, times and dates. And the moment she woke up she seemed to pick up where she left off in thought. However, now she had a moment's peace in her room so early in the morning. And by a moment's peace, it meant more of a moment's quiet to rub her temples and sigh. Being a captain for the Stardusk was normally easier than this- despite all the trouble they had gotten into. But she had to remind herself that things weren't always easy and things would never be easy now that they had Worst Gen behind their titles. She took another deep breath, preparing for the day ahead. "So long as you stay calm, you can keep the ship calm…" Runali muttered and walked to her door- only to step on a paper on the floor.

"Hm…" Everything in her room was organized and put in place- mainly because she rarely used the room. So the random sheet of paper to be on the floor only peaked her curiosity- at least enough not to kick it to the side. She scanned over it once and raised a brow. She read over it a second time and her eye narrowed. Almost in an attempt for it to be a joke- or for the words to suddenly change, Runali read it a third time

"Dear Captain, The Raven's are doing stuff right? Imma go take care of stuff then.

Luro."


This time her fist clenched and then her palm went to her head. "Not by yourself Makachi, you absolute- Ugh!" Runali rubbed her temples and stuffed the note in her pocket before leaving her room. Just to be sure, she swung open the door to the rum room, and sure enough he wasn't there. "This can't be good…." She had to stay calm though- as tough as Luro was making it. As she headed to the main deck, she opened everyone's doors. She didn't say anything, but for her to be in such a hurry for them to get up there was an obvious urgency.

The moment the sea air hit her face, she whistled to CP, calling her down from the crow's nest. Her back was to Lina while CP perched on her shoulder and she mumbled to the bird. "I hope you've been keeping watch…" Turning on her heel, Runali faced Lina with palms together and an expression that mimicked a calm before the storm. "Luro's gone."

Lina was pulled from her thoughts as she noticed Runali come up top, she started to raise her hand in greeting but she lowered it seeing Runali was in quite a rush so early in the day. She closed her book noticing a few crew members come onto the ship, some in a bit more of a hurry than others, Zilia seemed wholly awake book open confused what exactly was going on and even Nikos had joined them.
Lina wanted to ask what was going on but a sinking feeling hit her when she didn't see Luro join the colorful cast, her gaze moved to Runali and her expression told her before her words did.
Hearing them didn't make the truth any easier to hear though.

Lina mentally lied to herself after Runali spoke, she figured Luro was sleeping one off in the rum room as always and she'd go check and he'd be lying there pants half down with a smile on his face. The moment she was handed the note it became harder to lie to herself. She read over the words in silence, a calm expression adorning her features as she read the lines again, then one more time for good measure just to make sure she wasn't mistaken.
Lina's fist slammed into one of the cannons sending it sliding a few feet away, a fist shaped indent in the side of it as she crumpled the note in her hand. Blood ran down her chin as she bit hard into her lip, her hand shaking as she continued to stare at the note.
"That…damn…stupid…" Lina couldn't find the words to describe anything right now jumping between random descriptions that with no clear subject.
She trembled her hands shaking and it took a moment for her to fully calm down her gaze moving back to the Captain.
"…I'm sorry Captain Lev…this is my fault," Lina said. "Brother has always tried to protect me, generally by running headfirst without thinking. I should have known he'd go play 'hero' again. I should have been paying more attention…but I hoped he wouldn't do that now that he was a Stardusk."
Lina brought a hand to her mouth staring at the note, irritated how he wrote it so casually like he was going for a walk or something.
"I should have been watching him. I'm sorry Captain."

Runali watched Lina's brief fit with her arms crossed, which ruled out she had no idea he left either. That didn't ease her mind, but she did relax just a little more. It could have been because her crew had shown up or maybe it was because Lina managed to convey the captain's own emotions in one punch. Runali let out a softer sigh and tapped CP. "Take to the skies. Keep an eye out for Luro." She dipped her head as a sort of nod and flew off. Runali's arms were still crossed and she paused to give the crew a moment to wake up and gather their thoughts.

"Luro's gone." She repeated, flatly. Clearing her throat, she added, "He left a note saying he'd take care of the Ravens. More specifically, he's gonna 'go take care of stuff'. Which, leaves a lot to the imagination here, yes." Her brow raised over at Lina while she apologized. For a moment, she only stared at the woman Luro called a sister. And then she took a step forward, leaning ever so slightly- despite them being near the same height. "Your brother may be a fool, but he's no child. You were asleep like the rest of us. Luro does what he wants on his own accord, he would have more than likely done the same thing if we were awake." Her head tilted slightly. "I'm sure the only reason he waited was because he knew I'd say no. That or to be a lot sneakier. Who knows." Runali shrugged and straightened up. "The man's a wild card. Your apologies do nothing for me or Luro." Her eye closed for a moment and when it opened she gave a small, reassuring smile. "Instead of apologizing, help us find him. Punch him for scaring you. All's well, that ends well. That's how it works."

Zilia closed her eyes as the Captain explained the situation, she wanted to be upset in fact she was upset but at the same time she could see where his mind was going, for once actually. He was the leader of the Ravens, he decided to go fix stuff as the leader, Luro logic at its finest. He probably didn't even take into consideration they'd just stab him at the end of it. She couldn't hide the worry on her expression however, she fiddled with one of her bangs as she replayed the Captain's words in her head, trying to figure out what she could do to help. Nothing came to mind except asking around, maybe checking nearby havens or towns. That seemed the easiest option for them; maybe someone caught sight of him.
Nikos on the other hand didn't seem to bothered only looking at the note that Luro had left.

Lina fiddled with a piece of her hair staring at the deck as she tried to think. Her gaze raised to the Captain when she approached, her brows arching slightly as she spoke to her. She wasn't sure if she was just trying to make her feel better or stating facts but unfortunately she did have a point. Luro normally did what he wanted when he wanted without thinking too much about what came afterward. That was just how her brother was; it was one of his best and worst qualities.
With a small smile Lina slammed her fist into her palm and gave a small nod.
"You're right Captain Lev. Moping isn't going to solve anything. Brother only understands completely necessary violence. So a good punch should get the point across."
Lina seemed to return to her normal self moving her hands to her hips as her eyes narrowed.
"I can contact Mia and see if she's seen anything. She is watching the Ravens so maybe she noticed something," Lina said. "May I use your communicator?"
"If he's been captured by the Renegades there will be little point in asking further questions."
Lina raised her head as Nikos entered the conversation handing the note to Zilia.
"Let me use your communicator as well, I can ask some of my men if they've seen him. If he left last night he probably hasn't gotten far."

Seeing Lina gather her bearings made Runali give a content nod. Couldn't have her going into some catatonic state of sadness after all. The moment she had an idea, Runali was ready to go. "Aye." She started walking back to her room, only to pause when Nikos spoke up as well. She looked over her shoulder. It looked as though she was going to say something, but instead, she disappeared to her room.

The communicator she had- something like a transmitter as it was explained to her, if she remembered correctly- was dusty and rather old. The Stardusk never needed to get in contact with in range ships so it was never put in use. If anything, the only time nearby ships were ever near, they were enemy ships. And she didn't even know how far ranged it could go. For a brief moment she wondered if a few of those ships they sailed past ever tried to communicate but never could.
She thought about turning it on and leaving it somewhere for them all to hear. Maybe the kitchen.
"Here ya go." Runali had dusted and turned on the contraption on the walk back to the main deck. "Here's to hopin' Mia's got something." She looked up into the sky, not seeing CP around, only to turn her attention to Nikos.
"You. I don't trust you, you know that. So what's this new change of heart? Don't tell me you're suddenly loyal to the giant now that you know he's your boss?"

Lina wasted little time messing with the object the moment it was handed to her, it didn't take long before the communicator showed signs of life, Lina started messing with the inputs trying to get in contact with her ship. She was pretty sure Mia was still in range, she was checking out the immediate area before expanding outwards, and she knew she'd stay in range until she finished getting information from the Messengers, and she knew she waiting for any information Nikos provided.


Speaking of Nikos the man himself glanced over at Runali, his eyes narrowing at her when she brought up Luro as his boss. He gave a small shake of his head taking little time to even humor her comment.
"I refuse to acknowledge that abomination as my boss," Nikos said. "There's no change of heart either, I sincerely hope he's dead. I can't stand the fact we breathe the same air."
Nikos waved his hand at this before crossing his arms over his chest.
"However allowing my personal feelings to interfere with my orders is insulting as a Raven. Much as I want that man dead, I have orders to ensure his safety, at least until you all are taken care of," Nikos said motioning to the rest of Stardusk with his head. "If he dies while I was nearby it'll look bad on me too, all blame will shift to me and my crew for not doing our 'jobs' especially if Renegades kill him."
Nikos looked over at Lina as she managed to get through.
"You can always say no Lev. It's your ship and I'm bound by my code to behave. I'm just offering in case he does turn up dead, so accept my assistance or decline I'm just covering my own tracks at this point."

"Mia...Mia it's me! Listen something-"
There was an audible click and Mia stared at the communicator tapping it, her eye twitched and she messed with the inputs again.
"Mia's fruit delivery service, we sell banners with nanners, Mia speaking."
"Be serious for two damn minutes! Brother is missing we think he went after the Ravens."
"Which Brother?"
"Mia!"
"Imma need a name here."
"Luro Mia! My brother who is probably being tortured right now!"
"Yeah that's you Captain just had to make sure. Ravens like using that trick but I'd know that hysteric anger anywhere. What do you need?"
"Give me an update on any Raven activity from last night."
"Kay give me a sec...oh and Captain remain calm. It's your turn to help him so don't screw it up."
Mia brought a hand to her head a sigh escaping from her.
"....funny enough I feel better after that," Lina said handing the communicator to the Captain.

Hearing Nikos' response made her smile a little. He was the one constant that wouldn't change on her. It was like an anchor to the reality of the situation. Things may have gotten hectic but Nikos was still true to his Raven way. "Hmm." Was her only response to his comments. It was obvious she was satisfied with the answer, but she opted to listen to Mia on the other end of the line. "How about that, it does work. Great." She then raised a brow towards the conversation. "Hm… Odd first mate. Thankfully mine is sane." She mumbled more to herself, but still loud enough to be heard.

"So we have CP in the air, Mia looking into things and," Runali handed the communicator to Nikos, rolling her eyes. "And Nikos.. With a job to do." She ran fingers through her hair and looked at her own crew. "Looks like we're stuck playing the waiting game until we get an idea of which way to head." She walked over to lean against the ledge of the ship and look out into the ocean. "But, like Nikos said, he couldn't have gotten too far. And it's not like it's hard to spot a seven foot, red head from a distance."

Zilia was genuinely curious what the Captain meant by first mate but there was little time to contemplate that as Mia's voice returned, Lina moving over to Nikos who leaned away from her slightly as the report came through.
"We got Ravens and Renegades in the area Captain," Mia said. "They're more involved with each other than us right now…but…there were navy ships in the area that suddenly vanished. That's all I got for you right now, I'll report back if I find anything. So far there's been little change in things."
"Thanks Mia," Lina said.
Nikos took the communicator back and turning his back to the others messed with it before a voice came through.
"Run the path friend."
"I choose to walk thank you."
"Who is speaking?"
"Nikos of the Red Messengers."
"….damn it I get you of all people. What do you want boy?"
"I need reports of ships in the area Blue Fish."
"What can't figure it out on your own? You need some help doing 'your' job oh mighty-"
"Can we save the mine is bigger contest for later, I have work to do."
The man on the other line made little effort to hide his disdain for the calm retaliation from the clearly disliked Nikos but gave him a report of the ships in the area. With a small nod Nikos ended the communication tossing it back to Runali.

"You said some navy ships vanished right?" Nikos said looking at Lina.
"Yeah."
"Those were Renegades pretending to be the Navy, more than likely they disguised themselves that way to slip past the Ravens, since we're not trying to start fights with them right now. The report said there were two Renegades ships found floating with all the passengers killed and mutilated in various ways and positions. More than likely Luro's handiwork, so the good news is he's probably not dead, the bad news is he's fighting Renegades who don't want to capture him, so finding him fast is a good idea."
Lina looked over at Runali at this before Nikos continued.
"Waiting for information is the best idea…but people could check out the nearby islands if they wish. No promise they'll find anything as it's mostly abandoned Havens and empty land but it's an option.

Runali turned to catch the communicator, leaning her back against the ledge. "Oh great, he's alive and well." She adjusted her eyepatch. "And on a murder spree to get rid of enemies." Straightening up, she looked over at Nikos. "I imagine Luro wouldn't wait around with the dead when there's so many others he could kill." Her voice was calm and matter of fact, but her gaze went out to the sea. "We could follow the trail of bodies or find out where'd he go next to catch up. If there's one Renegade ship somewhere, I'm sure there's bound to be more, right?" The gears were turning in her head. This was technically what they wanted- to get rid of the people trying to kill them, but for a few reasons, Luro commandeering that seemed like the wrong way to do it. Maybe it was just her paranoia. It was for sure worry that he'd get out numbered and killed. "I'll be glad when we can be rid of all of them. Hmm, you're right about me being right Nikos. However, since we have to play the waiting game we might as well set our sights on either the ship he's already been to or whatever island's close by. If we stay at a standstill he'll just get harder to find."

 

[SilentxChaos]

Once the group was finished with the communicators, a knock sounded on the captain's door. Jack entered. He made a bow to them, a half-smoked cigarillo curling from the corner of his mouth. "Forgive me, captain, but may I have a word?"

Jack paused, then turned back to Nikos, interrupting his own entrance as the Messenger walked by. "I'm glad to see you sticking to your code, but a word of caution. All this talk of Renegades and Ravens, False Leaders and true ones like Luro, I think it's obvious your organization is in disarray. Can you even confirm those you answer to, those you speak to on a regular basis, are true Ravens or Renegades in disguise?" Jack removed his smoke to tap loose ash off. His fingers twisted it between loose lips as he continued. "Renegades are the very reason why you're here, after all. What happens if they call upon you for the sake of the Ravens, your Messengers, however you want to twist it? The way I see it, you're surrounded by enemies on all sides. It must be a common feeling...but it's not the same, is it, when it's coming from your own people? I want to ask you something, and I expect an answer later: if it comes between you choosing to side with the Renegades, or with us, which will it be?"

Cool, calculating gold eyes rose to meet Nikos'. Jack's face was closed and unreadable, completely devoid of emotion. He blew a puff of smoke and it curled around his face. When it cleared, the easy smile was back and his eyes closed as he smiled at Nikos. "I'll hear your reply when we reach the ship- or island, whichever comes first- and please Nikos. No tricks. No lies."

When everyone left except Jack and the captain, he sighed and stubbed the cigarillo on the heel of his boot. Then he reached out with an empty hand. "Alright cough it up. Zilia lost her mind only once during that meeting," he broke into a wide, impish smirk, "You gambled it'd be at least twice."

When things seemed to settle into a concise plan, Runali gave an affirmative nod before heading to take the communicator back to her room. Well, she planned to until Jack stopped her. For a moment, she seemed to tense. There was enough going on as it was and for Jack to 'need a word', it meant either now Jack had some pressing news to add or he had more suspicions. The man was already suspicious of everything as it was, so him vocalizing it would mean it was more serious than Runali may have wanted. "Yeah, of course." She nodded and headed towards her room, expecting him to follow. When she heard his voice again, she looked over her shoulder.

The exchange between Jack and Nikos wasn't too surprising but it still held her interest long enough for her to stay and listen. She couldn't help but crack a small smile at the exchange, admiring the intimidation tactics and overall protectiveness from her cook. He was truly a Stardusk- not that she needed to be convinced. Towards Jack's last part at Nikos, she chuckled and turned away, heading back to do what she planned. It wasn't too long before she heard the footsteps of Jack behind her.

"So what did you need, Chef?" Runali was about to set the communicator back in her desk drawer before realizing that would be dumb should Mia try to contact them. She was going to have to find a place for it. She gestured for Jack to follow her out, not discussing her musings, only to pause at the door. "Wait, what?!" Her expression went from surprise to an almost childish pout. "No way! Zilia tried to stab Luro, that's gotta count for way more than two!" Her hand left the door handle to point at Jack. "If anything I'll only give you half. Since Alicia didn't whack him. But she's one random stranger's threat away from it, I can tell."

Jack chuckled. "Fine, I'll settle for half then."

Reaching over her head, he pushed the door closed. "Actually, captain...I'd like to speak privately. I...I have to ask you something."

The mention of the gamble was a stalling tactic. His carefree air drained into a worried look and he retreated back into the captain's cabin, folding his arms. He made a single lap around her desk before resting against it, his foot beginning to tap rapidly. Eyes not meeting her, Jack spoke hesitantly. "Captain Lev, I… need to know something- no, understand something- regarding Luro. The truth of him as a Red Raven leader has been eating at me. I can't help but feel we're spiraling into a dark web of that man's own making, all of us completely in the dark and at his mercy."

Sighing, he finally met her eyes. "Captain, I need to understand the promise Luro made to you all those years ago. As a Chef- as a member of Stardusk and...friend, I hope- I want to fight for him. I want to keep my crew safe. But, captain…" he released a frustrated huff. "How many times are you going to let him endanger us? He's in the center of this all; he hurt Zilia. You heard the number of ships the Ravens have; how many of those are Renegades that are coming to slaughter us all? What other secrets does he have? Which one will end with someone dead?"

The heel of his palm slammed the desktop. He looked down, raising his hand and seeing splinters separate from the wood. The angry look that passed his face crossed into shame. "I...I'm sorry. Captain, I...I know Luro is part of this crew, as I am, and I will follow your orders gladly. You have to understand that. But I'm beginning to feel I fight for a man I do not know. I'll sacrifice my life for him, yes. But of the entire crew's?" he shook his head, sending dreadlocks dancing. "What is it that you see in him that I don't?"

Runali had met Jack's smirk with a playful eyeroll. "Yeah, yeah you'll get your half. But la-..ter?" As she started to open the door, she looked up at Jack's hand closing it. The sudden worry in his voice sent a cold chill down her spine, but her expression remained relaxed when she turned away from the door to look at him. "Problem?" The moment she asked, she could already hear the many problems that he and everyone else may have had. She could already list out so, so many problems that seemed never ending the more they followed after Luro. But, Runali held her gaze and watched Jack until he finally stopped pacing. When their eyes met, Runali felt… guilty. Not because she was hiding anything, but because she knew how far down the rabbit hole she was dragging her crew. And she knew how far they were willing to go just because she said so. But she didn't say a word. Not at that moment at least.

Runali let Jack vent out his frustration and anger and confusion to his heart's content. At this rate, it was more than deserved. And well, if she wasn't going to, someone would have to… Her fists clenched when he looked at her with that angry gaze, moreso to steel herself into answering his questions. His apology was met with a nod, but she remained silent as she slowly walked over to sit on her hammock. She motioned Jack to sit on the desk across from her, only to look down at the floor. It was obvious she was trying to find the right words to say, trying to find some solace in the spiral that the crew- that Jack was falling into. But no matter how much she thought about what to say, she knew words wouldn't be enough.

But it was all they had at the moment.

"When…" Runali started, but bit her lip, starting over. "Luro is intent on killing me- trying to at least." She stated as a matter of fact. It was a well known thing that Runali had joked about or shrugged off all the time as if it was no big deal. But in the back of her mind, she had always had the thought of when that would be… and more importantly why. "He said when we first met, he tried to kill me but he couldn't. I don't know why. I've never known why." Her hands tightened around the edge of her hammock, but she sighed and kept her voice from wavering. "Luro's thrill of a challenge keeps him… at bay. He sees… some potential in me and wants to wait. Chooses to. We made a deal of sorts that he couldn't try to kill me until after I became the Pirate Lord. Until after the whole crew rose to the top of the rank. It's when we'll be the… I suppose hardest to kill. It makes it more interesting that way." Her eye hadn't met Jack's while she talked but when she finally did look up, she gave a softer smile. It wasn't calm or relaxed as her usual ones would have been. There was a sadness in her one eye that could be seen this time. "Luro's… need to fight- to kill me just… has come with a cost I didn't quite realize until it was too late." She gestured towards him with her hand. "You guys." Runali's hand went back to the hammock. "He knows that should I fall, the rest of the Stardusk will fight. It's another challenge. Another game."

The picture she was painting wasn't a pleasant one, but it was a cold hard truth she couldn't avoid forever. And with everything happening all at once, she wasn't sure she had all that much time to left in order to face it. "But Luro's lost." Her brow furrowed and she looked a little more serious. "He's lost… behind a sea of broken memories and bad stories and I imagine he drinks to forget them- to distance himself from what he once was- or what he is I should say… Every time I end up digging into his past, something changes about him. As much as he's talked about hurting anyone- There's something there he's trying to hold back." Runali's face fell into contemplation. "He's no enemy. Maybe he once was and is trying to repress that time, but there's good in him. I know there is."

Her hands steepled together and she looked at Jack again. "Back in... Waterdeep I believe, I told the crew, 'We're pirates not murderers. Don't kill them unless necessary.'" She gave a small laugh at the memory. "In my defense I was young. Pirating was all about the adventure- and still is to me. To me, pirate and murderer aren't synonymous. I wasn't going to have my crew be like… every other crew there was. Besides, if we kill everyone who would live to tell our tales, you know?" Realizing she had gotten off on a bit of a tangent, she gave a lighter smile- something closer to a smile she normally gave. "And despite it all, he's been faithful to that rule. He's only killed to protect the crew. He's a man of his own free will but he chooses to follow that one rule. I've never had to remind him about it… Or be wary that he'd level off a city for no reason. He just… enjoys the adventure." Runali rubbed her cheek and took another deep sigh. "I see someone who wants help- who's in desperate need of help but can't quite figure out how to ask. I see a friend who's done so much to protect me and this crew, and now he's trying to do the same thing again on a bigger scale. Luro hasn't tamed all his demons yet but… he's either going to run away from them or he's going to face them so they aren't a problem anymore."

Runali's hands fell in her lap and she looked out the small port window. "...And it looks like he's deciding to face them head on." Her voice trailed off for a moment before she spoke again. "I'm not asking you to, nor do I want you to die for the sake of Luro's trouble. I'm asking you to trust me. At least long enough until I can put sense into that thick skull of his or-" She cut the sentence short, not wanting to think of the other possible outcomes that could happen. Instead she straightened up. "I know it's tough and I'm ready to punch Luro as much as the next but… just wait a little longer. Please."

Jack listened to the entirety of Runali's explanation with an emotionless face. He genuinely cared about Stardusk, Luro included, but there was a piece buried deep that saw the solution to their troubles-- most of them, at least. Jack saw it the moment Zilia made to stab Luro. Her actions weren't meant to be life-threatening...but it made Jake wonder that what if. Would the Renegades stop their pursuit? Would the Ravens? If they used Luro as bait instead, could they gain the upper hand? The cook immediately quelled such thoughts but they stirred and whispered nonetheless. It's what she would've done. The hard thing, to save everyone else. It's where his morality clashed with pragmatism. It's why he came to Runali. He needed a reason to stop the thoughts from circling, and feel in his heart that protecting his crewmate was the right thing, despite all the trouble he'd rained on their heads.

His eyes closed as Runali spoke. For a moment, he caught himself trying to find the lie. What was she twisting to gain his calm? But he opened his eyes to watch her and realize there was nothing but her truth. How she regarded Luro and all he did for Stardusk. All at once, the shame came flooding back. His face burning, though from Runali's perspective the only change was a faint flinch, Jack recalled his own night spent with Luro right after Iurin. Luro was a man Jack consistently remained wary of, but at the same time, he was oddly endearing. The jokes, the forgetfulness, and his odd protectiveness that Jack himself hadn't seen much truth to, but other accounts attested to it. And, of course, the present. Luro facing the Renegades himself. Jack simultaneously cursed him and applauded him. It's what he would've done if the situations were reversed.

Looking up, hearing Runali finish, Jack met her eyes. For the first time, he witnessed her without the calm and relaxed filters she defaulted to when with the crew. Or at least, another self she rarely portrayed. His eyes slowly adjusted to the sea out beyond, taking several moments to think everything over again, deciding his words with care.

"Luro told me once it'd be silly to face the Ravens alone. If I hate him for anything, it's for going back on his own advice," a coughed chuckle escaped him, and a ghost of a smirk. "You're right. He is a man in pain and darkness who may need help. However, Runali, I hope you realize something. The crew's behind you in complete loyalty, for all that you do. That includes the day you wish to confront Luro and his inner demons. You do realize, that's not your burden alone either?"

Jack met her eye with his own. "My questions come from a need of solace for the battle ahead. If I went in fighting, and wondering, I'd ultimately make a mistake that could get someone killed. Quite frankly, I'm done watching people die because of my mistakes." his fists clenched, and Jack released a long unsteady sigh, forcing out whatever pained emotions took hold in the brief seconds. He met her gaze with a softer smile, identical to the one she wore earlier, except an iron decision rested behind them. "The day you plan to face Luro without the intention of a full out bloodshed, I'll be there too. We aren't just fighting because you ask; Luro is a friend no matter the reservations. Hearing you speak now, this is the right decision and I… trust you. I do. It's just... trust takes many forms."

The captain remained silent for a moment, letting what he had to say sink in for a few moments. Moments that felt like ages to her. That's not your burden alone' echoed in her mind even after he continued and even after he finished. She subconsciously knew it, but now she was realizing how many of the scenarios she had placed herself and Luro in that didn't have the crew involved. It was what she thought was the best. She could see Alicia's emotions getting the best of her or Jack and Zilia's confliction. They were… They would be distractions. She didn't want them to be involved and despite knowing how loyal they were and how strong they were, she was going to make sure of it. Maybe Jack could sense it with how she looked back out at the port window. Maybe they all knew that whenever that time did come, despite it all, she wouldn't kill Luro even if she had to, even if it was her last resort. Her job was to protect the crew that pledged their loyalty to her, not kill them. She couldn't- no she wouldn't live with that.

Runali didn't answer or acknowledge the first part, too afraid of her words or her expressions betraying what she wanted to say. Instead, she slowly stood to her feet and held her hand out to shake his. "Good. Your trust is all I need." She let out a light laugh. "Don't worry. We're Stardusk remember? We get into all kinds of trouble and bounce back."

Turning to her door, she waved the communicator in hand. "I'm gonna put this in the kitchen for now. If it stays in here, no one's gonna hear if someone calls. And," She looked over her shoulder with a playfully hurt expression. "Can't believe you scratched up my desk. Sheesh. Guess you owe me and maybe you won't get that half of the deal." She said the last part rather quickly, laughing as she headed out the door.

Jack glanced back at the desk and rubbed his head in embarrassment. "That sounds reasonable enough," he confessed with a nervous cough. He mentally tacked repairing her desk to a list of things-to-do, shelving it for after this current crisis ended. The cook nodded as Runali headed for the door, following her, part of his piece done. He hadn't wanted the crew to see his lack of resolve.

"Captain...there is one other thing," Jack said as they left, falling a step behind her. He felt nervous about this next part, more because he was unsure how she'd take it.

"Going back to trust. Not saying we should, trust them, but," releasing a sigh, Jack forced the point out, "I think we should let the Ravens go. If anyone is most equipped to find Luro, it's them."

Runali's stepped faltered slightly just so Jack could fall in step next to her- on her right side so she could see him. She began to fiddle with the communicator in hand, humming in response when he spoke, signalling him to continue. The comment made her raise a brow, but instead of being suspicious, she couldn't help but laugh. "Ah, yeah. I thought about it. They're not much of a threat, anymore. And there's bigger problems at hand. Forcing them to help under whatever code their under makes things… A little more controlled though. For right now. Plus, seeing Nikos so frustrated is still funny." She laughed again. "So what's with the change of heart? Suddenly feelin' pity for the wicked?"

He scoffed lightly. "Are we sure they're the wicked ones?" Waving a dismissive hand, Jack reached up and absently twirled a thick, frizzed dreadlock as he surveyed the deck's activity. His eyes strayed to Nikos.

"They're predictable," he said at last, "I trust them to act in character and stay in character. For a group that heavily relies on the tactics of spies, they're surprisingly honest with their enemies." Walking to the helm, Jack peered over the starboard side and behind them, in the general direction he knew Lupis Noctis to be, though it wasn't in sight at the moment. "I won't lie to you, Captain, there are times I don't trust Luro Makachi because- as you said- he's a wild card. His actions contradict and it makes hard to understand what he'll do. Even if you know he's protecting the crew, there can be thirty different ways he goes about that. People aren't always true to their merit; my trust stems on whether or not I know they'll stab me in the back, and when." The wind began picking up. Jack raised his voice to be heard, holding back his hair with one hand and looking back at Runali.

The crook of a sharp smile hinted the side of his face. It could barely be called a smile; more a ghost of one, with lips barely turned up, and the resting of his features suggested serious contemplation. In contrast, narrowed eyes glinted mischievously under the sun, like a jackal catching the sniff of prey down wind.

"Five days with the Ravens, and one talk with Mia, and I think I finally understand them. At least, enough to suspect a betrayal from them, if it comes to that. There's always room for error, of course, but...they've never lied to our faces yet, have they?"

Runali offered a nod here and there as Jack spoke. The talk of 'trust' came up again and her brow raised. When the wind picked up, she made attempts to smooth her hair down so it wouldn't wildly fly about. Every time it did, she'd remind herself that she needed a haircut. She didn't understand how Sara and Alicia could deal with such long hair constantly.

"Trust is," Runali's hand flitted back and forth in search for words. "It's a hard thing to come across. Honest trust at least." Once again, she smoothed out her hair. "The birds may be trustworthy in what they say, but that doesn't mean they're going to have a sudden change of heart. Not lying is one thing, sure. But I can say I'm going to steal from you and that would still warrant distrust, yeah?" She shrugged her shoulders, seeming more indifferent towards them than anything. "They're in a leadership struggle at the moment. Their lives are just as confusing as ours from what we've seen. So, sure they're trustworthy now- and I commend Nikos's help, not that I'd tell him that to his face- but a week and one talk doesn't suddenly change the hearts of people on a mission." There was a brief pause and then she shrugged, smiling. "Or, maybe it does. I wouldn't know, would I?" Her hand waved dismissively and she chuckled. "Don't worry Jackie, we'll give them their chance. Whether or not they take it is up to them."

"I know, Captain, I'm not expecting niceties," Jack answered. "And you should know by now that I always worry. I'll keep my eyes peeled, for the moment their betrayal happens. In the meantime," he shrugged, leaning against the banister, turning back to the sea. "Let's hope people can change. For all our sake."

 

[Mizos]

​

Lina stood in the rum room tracing her fingers over the throne in room as she walked through her brother's domain, trying not to trip over the various bottles strewn about on the floor. She had been receiving reports from Mia and Nikos shared what he could obtain and bit by bit things were falling into place. There was no real change to the situation however, she had a plethora of puzzle pieces but no hint on how to put them together. Mia's recent report had brought troubling news, something even Mia herself seemed bothered about. One of her friends had communicated with them about something pressing and she felt a need to inform the Captain of this matter. She originally was going to meet her in her room but she had called her to the rum room, hoping to find something here to help figure out anything with the information she had, Luro at some point had to have left something behind. She turned over a bottle of rum in her hands glancing around at the full shelves.
"It's astonishing how organized Brother can be when it comes to drink," Lina said.

CP had returned awhile later and Runali had been examining the bird and seeing if she had an idea where to look. But there was neither injury or hints of finding their redheaded shipwright. Runali could only quietly pat CP's head in thanks and send her off to Jack so she could get treats.
Had it not been for Lina's 'summons' the captain would have been pacing back and forth. There was nothing tangible she could do and waiting had become a nightmare of a time. So, instead of pacing in worry and in frustration and in whatever other emotion Runali had kept quelled inside, she walked to the rum room- Luro's room. She'd been in the room time and time again, but seeing it… empty made it a little odd. Almost as if she was invading Luro's private space- which, to be fair, he did make it his own.

For a moment, Runali stood at the door, watching Lina circle the room up until she spoke. When the silence was finally broken, Runali stepped inside, quietly closing the door behind her. "He's organized when it comes to a lot of things." She gave a small shrug. "Just, in his own way I guess." The captain's arms were crossed and at this point, she was leaning against the door still looking over at Lina. Instead of asking out loud, the captain gave an expectant look as if waiting for Lina to discuss whatever she needed to. Discussing Luro's organization skills didn't seem to warrant a 'private conversation' after all.

Lina noticed the Captain nearby but didn't raise her eyes from the bottle even as she spoke to her, instead a small smile found its way onto her face before she placed the bottle back on the shelf.
"You're right…he always made sure everyone had fair shares of food too…even if it meant he didn't eat himself."
Lina stared at the wall of drink placing her hand on it as she tried to find the right words. The door was closed behind them something Lina appreciated from the Captain, and she knew Luro saw something in this woman, something that pulled at him. Stardusk affected her brother in a way she never could, in a way she was almost jealous but it made her happy. It was because she could see that difference there was a bit of hope in her.
"I remember the day my Brother changed. It was the first and last time I ever saw him cry. He always tried to act tough in front of me so I can't forget it. I cried often so he made sure not to cry, to 'lead by example' and all that. He'd stub his toe and the tears would well up but he'd just raise a fist in the air and try to will it away."
Lina smiled a bit at the memory grabbing another bottle off the shelf.

"That day… his fists were bleeding from punching the street repeatedly and he cried out…screamed at the top of his lungs. I hear that scream in my dreams sometimes. I was crying too so you could imagine my shock looking over at my Brother who never cried and seeing him in the same state. He swore to me that day, he'd smile. No matter how sad he was, no matter how much it hurt, no matter what was in front of him he wanted to smile…smile as bright as she did. Even in his last moments he would die with the brightest grin on his face and he smiled at me when he did so…but it was crooked…that day he became Luro, throwing aside the person he was and I became Lina throwing away who I was."

Lina gripped the bottle in her hands small cracks forming in it as she almost lost her composure, though realizing what she was doing she took a breath and calmed down.
"Somewhere along the way that promise got twisted," Lina said putting the bottle away. "That's how I know he hasn't really forgotten. That smile plastered across his face means he remembers full well. So the fact he's staring at me with a fake smile honestly irks me…as if I don't remember."
Lina turned to Runali and though she was upset she did offer a small smile to the Captain leaning against the wall as she crossed her arms.
"I'm telling you this because of your name," she said pointing at her. "The Melancholy Queen was my Brothers favorite story from the old country. He really respects you…the crew's other names are also from the old stories…he really cares about you all those stories are precious to both of us…I'm not sure where Fluffykins came from but I'm sure the care is still there."

Realizing she was getting a bit off track Lina cleared her throat and with a small cough moved away from the wall making her way over to Runali. Digging into her pocket she handed her a map, on the map was a marking of their current location, along with a mess of arrows coming at them from all directions. She felt there wasn't a need to indicate what that exactly meant but the problem came with the additional news so she'd have to mention the obvious with the additional bad news.

"There are a mess of ships heading in our direction; they seem to be closing in from all angles. The ones from the South will reach us first. Nikos was the one that confirmed it, saying that there were Ravens approaching from the South and East, but the ones from the North are Renegades Mia confirmed that herself, the West…I'm not sure it could be the navy or some form of Ravens but Nikos confirmed there are ships coming, he'll inform us when he figures out what they are. Mia confirmed four ships North, and three are coming from the South, Nikos doesn't know how many are coming East and there's little information West but it's assumed at least two are coming. Captain Lev…I dislike saying this but once those ships reach us all out war is going to begin. We have a very small window to find Brother and get away from here before they reach us. It's an estimate but I'd say by evening the South ships will reach us. They used this tactic against me once before…I lost a ship escaping from them. I've asked Mia to send a ship back this way to try and assist. I'm not sure when they'll make it…I'm hoping before the South ships reaches us. Once my ship arrives I'll man him and help give you guys an opening to break through."

Lina said this taking the map away clearly not bringing up what that would exactly mean, but they were low on time and the timing of these events were too precise. Luro goes missing than a mess of ships make their way towards Stardusk shortly afterwards.

"I doubt this is coincidence. We got attacked just when Brother is 'out of danger' by his enemies…I don't like this Captain Lev. This is too well orchestrated…even the appearance of the ships. We need to find Brother…quickly."
As Lina began her story, Runali nodded. It was a simple gesture of thanks for 'getting to the point'- not that they could be in any real rush when they were stuck stranded without a path.
"Hm..." Was all the one eyed pirate captain offered when Lina spoke of Luro's past. Her gaze had fallen to the floor and there was a calm, contemplative look on her face. To hear that Luro's constant happy smile was with a not so happy purpose made her… a little sad. It didn't show on her face, but it did show in how her shoulders slumped slightly. Knowing that he didn't allow himself to feel, no matter the situation and no matter the pain was one part sad and another part unsettling. Then again, maybe he did, but he didn't show it to the crew...

Runali could remember the rare and few times that smile seemed to hide some other emotion, but it was always so quick and so well hidden that she never could really pester him about it. She knew so many bits and pieces of his life but he was always a private person and all of this could confirm why.
Runali could admit that her sympathy for Luro had always been there, but she could never quite figure out why. She had always thought there was no need to be sad for a man that was as happy as he was, and yet every now and then when it was late and Runali was left to reflect on her crew, that sympathy was there whether she wanted it to be or not.
"I suppose it's an honor to be named after a someone from his favorite story. He seems to be a fan of those… Maybe he'll tell us about them sometime." It was all Runali offered, keeping her own thoughts and musings to herself. It was easy to do considering Lina changed the subject.
Upon receiving the map, Runali could already tell there was something unpleasant about to be said and unfortunately, she was right. In fact, she was a little more than right and that's what made it bad news. Runali didn't express her distress though, nor did she look up at Lina while she explained the situation. Instead, she studied the map. She followed every arrow and looked at every possible direction that there was to offer. Her fingers trailed across certain paths and made invisible marks on others. For awhile, she didn't respond to Lina.

"This is…" Her finger tapped in one spot of the map as she broke the silence. "Good. This is good." Runali's face scrunched up in contemplation, going back to the map. "We know they're surrounding us and that's what matters right now. We have that advantage. And we know who's going to come first." Her finger traced a few lines that pointed towards where she imagined Lady Luck had been. "And we've got Lady. Luro's tinkered with the ship enough for it to take a beating. We can test how much now I suppose. We've also got your ship." At this point, Runali was on her feet when the map was taken from her. "Your ship's large so I imagine it's got some fire power." She was still talking aloud, planning bits and pieces of what was to come in her head. As she did, she began to move some of the rum bottles to the empty bottom rows. Ship fights meant things broke so she figured it was best to save as much of the rum as she could, not trusting if they were completely secure where they were.

The moment Runali stopped moving, she spun on her heel to face Lina. "I need those Ravens back on my ship." Realizing the oddity of how it may have sounded, she quickly clarified. "We're going to need all hands on deck. Nikos works better with his crew so I'm giving him his crew." She looked back at the map, seeming still unsure of something.
"West is too risky… We have the advantage of knowing numbers with the North and South…" She mumbled to herself, walking towards the door. "East… But we're all in agreement that no one likes the Renegades… Four ships could be risky but there's a chance… We can't go back the way we came either…" Runali had stopped in front of the door, only to turn and look at Lina, giving her an almost confused gaze. "Of course we need to find Luro quickly. In or out of danger, as my crew member and friend, Luro's a first priority. But he can't be a first priority if we're all dead. In fact, that'll only add more problems to the list we seem to keep adding to." She mumbled something about 'not seeing Jones again', but before it could be dwelled on, she was already back on subject. "We have no idea where Luro went and I can only imagine we go where the danger is because where there's danger, there's Luro. We could head North… and then turn towards the East to try and miss them both. We can try and cut through. That way, Ravens don't catch us from behind in less hours than I have time to handle." Realizing she was talking a mile a minute and mostly to herself, Runali rubbed her eyes and took a breath to let her thoughts slow down. "Eugh, ship battles are like my… fourth least favorite thing… wait a minute." She scratched her cheek in thought. "Hm… maybe a war's just what we need… It's the perfect distraction… No one likes the Renegades. The Renegades want to kill us. I'm sure Nikos wouldn't mind cleaning out a good majority of 'em… Kadi's good at what he does. We'd only need a good defense and a brief opening so he could sail through… It could work."

Lina leaned against the wall watching as the Captain looked over the map. She only smiled to herself at the thought of Luro telling those stories, she didn't see that happening anytime soon especially with the way he was. Though hearing Runali speak about the present situation she chuckled a bit, she always enjoyed watching a Captain be a Captain. It was easy to succumb to despair in these situations and not see the opportunities that could be found in moments like this. It was a lesson she had learned the hard way, she was staring to see what Luro saw in her, just a little bit.
"My thoughts exactly," Lina said nodding as Runali came to a conclusion. "If you break through it won't take much to get past them. Pulled into a conflict it'll be hard for them to turn their back on the others."
"It's a risky gamble."
Another voice entered the two's conversation and Nikos entered the rum room, its unsure when he appeared but he closed the door behind him before his gaze wandered around the room. He seemed to take a moment looking at Luro's domain before his eyes rested on the throne. His eyes twitched at and he almost wanted to kick it over.
"…so he sat upon a throne of corpses…" Nikos mumbled.
With a sigh he shook his head and looked back at the two women.
"Raven's don't send out all their ships in the first cycle. That's just foolishness. The ships approaching are distractions; the real force is behind them waiting to hit you when you break through. We take such tactics into consideration; they're the 'cleanup' crew in case you survive the first onslaught."
Nikos rubbed the back of his head at this before making a motion with his head West.
"By the way Eight Renegades ships are approaching from the West, apparently they had some trail behind them and they lined up in unison once they were fully in sight…which means they know we're watching and purposefully had some stay behind. Three Man o wars are accompanying them…and goodness knows what else."
"Delightful," Lina said sighing. "That'll just make it harder to find Brother. I'm sure we can still-"
"A Renegade is also on the ship waiting to speak with you. He says they have Luro and he wants to talk."
Lina turned towards Nikos who said this grabbing one of the bottles himself, turning it over to check its make.
"So yeah…you should probably go talk to him. The fact they haven't killed him means he wants to negotiate. Oh and Lina your ship will be here soon with my people, since Lev made the request I'll take my crew back once they're here."
Lina looked over at Runali as Nikos turned and made his way to the deck after putting the bottle back, Lina making her way there as well.
On the deck was a man in a red cloak casually sitting on the edge of the ship with a bottle of rum in his hand, the only thing showing being a small smirk in the darkness of the hood. He paid little mind to the people on deck even a concerned Zilia who stood holding an empty rum bottle in her hand. The man quickly finished off the bottle with a content sigh and tossed it to Zilia.
"This stuff is good! There are benefits to being a messenger sometimes. Could you bring me another while I'm waiting?"
Zilia stared at the man with a narrowed gaze and he gave a small shrug.
"Oh man I'm forgetting my mission. If I don't hear anything back I guess Luro dies. Oh nooo."
Zilia grit her teeth and turning started digging in the barrels for another bottle.

"Pirates, Lina. Risk is normal. If we don't take it there's-" A cold chill went down her spine when she heard Nikos and she fought the need to frown at him. "Try knocking next time." She huffed and leaned against the wall, watching Nikos move around the room. Hearing the problems of her current plan made her blow hair out of her face and cross her arms. She still thought the idea could work. They just had to make it northeast. If they were fast enough they could avoid most of the ships. If they weren't, then ships would collide and they'd use the war as a distraction. It could of worked…

Runali was pulled from her musings when Nikos interrupted, mentioning that there was a Renegade on her ship. "And who let them-" For a brief moment, there was a flash of anger that passed through her one eyed gaze. Runali unclenched her fists and pinched the bridge of her nose as they walked out. They knew where Luro was and they knew he was alive. It was a bad start, but it was a start. She was going to figure this out one way or another…

Her fingers touched the edge of the two circular blades strapped to her side, but she moved them, opting to rest a hand on Zilia's shoulder as if telling her to stop. "That's actually enough drinking for you. Wouldn't want you not at your best, yeah?" Runali moved past her crew and stood in front of the Renegade, close enough for either of them to be in striking distance. The cold gaze she had was replaced with a more annoyed expression. "Keep your boss happy and start negotiating. What do you want, when do you want it, why do you want it. You know, all that stuff." Before he could speak, she raised a hand up. "Also, to just cut even more to the chase, you wanna do this 'negotiating' thing I need proof that Luro's in fact with you and alive." She crossed her arms and nodded towards him. "Alright, have at it. Start talking."

Zilia seemed more than content to stop being courteous to their 'guest' ignoring his slumped shoulders afterwards. The Renegade clapped his hands and moved between the faces on the deck, a small smile resting on his face as he took in everyone, though his mouth immediately formed into a frown the moment he rested on Nikos. The man carried a similar expression, if not for the fact his weapons weren't on his person he probably would have attacked the man the moment he showed his face.
"So this is Stardusk huh…you guys are impressive up close," the Renegade said with a grin.
His head moved in Runali's direction when she spoke, though his face was hidden it was clear he was paying full attention to her, though after she spoke the first thing that escaped from him was a chuckle.
"Right to business. Boss said you were an interesting one. Hold on one sec," The Renegade said.
Raising his arm he made a circular motion with it, shortly afterwards voices came through the communicator on the ship.
"Talk,"
"Huh? Talk to who?"
Luro's voice came through the communicator clearly causing the Renegade to raise his hand and make the same circle.
"Brother!"
"Huh Lina? Oh hey how is everyone?"
"Are you okay?!"
"Yeah I'm fine, these ropes are kind of tight though. What are you guys up t-"
The communication cut off causing the Renegade to shrug his shoulders, smirking a bit before standing up from his spot holding his arms out.
"See he's alive! We're nice people. We didn't just kill him on sight. I mean we were gonna but the boss told us not too. Said we should negotiate now that we're on even footing ya know."
"The hell are you on about Renegade?" Nikos said taking a step towards the man.
"I wasn't talking to you Clipped," The Renegade said looking over at Nikos. "We didn't have anything to...keep you from attacking us I suppose. I mean we wanted to talk this whole time, but stuff came up, but now we're not attacking each other, we found common ground."
"Holding my brother hostage is common ground," Lina said tapping her pistol.
"Don't see nothing wrong with having an edge. I mean if you shoot the messenger now we kill your friend so you know it's kinda nice. One attack on my beautiful face and we kill him...that seems completely fair to me don't you think?"
"Answer Captain Lev's questions," Lina said removing her hand from her gun.

The Renegade nodded and turning folded his hands behind his back before he started pacing around the ship, tracing his fingers along the mast as he past it walking around Stardusk with the same smile on his face. Judging by his hand movements Renegades were clearly watching the ship looking for any excuse to cause problems.
"Okay I'll get right to it," The Renegade said giving Jack a firm pat on the shoulder. "Ooh you got strong shoulders I like that."
"Renegade!"
"Right right," the man said holding his hands up. "I'll answer in order, we want to talk, we want to talk now and we've always wanted to talk."
The Renegade said this putting his arm around Kadi poking the man in the side.
"I mean we love you guys, you're so much fun. I mean look at his guy's face. You got two eyepatch people. That's so nice."
Removing his arm from him he continued to pace around the deck doing a little spin before pointing southwards.
"My Boss is that way on a nearby island waiting for you. You see we were just going to kill the guy, but my boss told me that was a waste. We finally had a way to talk with you guys on equal footing you know. I mean yeah we can just send ship after ship after you, waste hundreds of our men in trying to kill you and just repeat this process until you eventually die but…that's boring right. You're strong, we could work together and destroy the Ravens! You hate them too and we hate them, why not work together? If you did that we'd no longer be enemies, no more attacking you and we deal with the Ravens too which means no more bounty on your heads."

Nikos grit his teeth as the Renegade put his arms around Alicia and Sara's shoulders offering a bright grin as he pulled the two close.
"We could be one big happy family! There'd be no more need for war or fighting…well minus killing those Clipped…but you were gonna do that anyway. You two lasses want that right, I know they've been so mean to you right? Aren't they just the worst, those Clipped threatening your lives, your family, your friends without even trying to talk things through? They're so evil,"
The Renegade backed away from the two women and placed a hand on Zilia's head bringing a hand to his chest offering small a bow.
"My boss merely wishes to speak with you. To make a deal. If you accept we kill those filthy Clipped together. If you decline…well you're free to leave with Luro but we'll just keep attacking you and that's boring right. Oh don't worry we'll give you a headstart. Won't just attack you when you leave the island."

Nikos narrowed his eyes at the Renegade as he moved away form Zilia who was now brushing invisible germs off her head as he made his way over to Nikos, shoving his hands in his pocket he neared the man's face the two Ravens sizing the other up. The maliciousness between the two was almost visible and even with his face hidden it was clear to see he was glaring right back at Nikos.
"I mean you could just not come and we'll kill your friend. Don't matter none to me honestly. I'm just following orders, his life is just a means to an end...no need to lie about it. You wanna throw your lot in with the losers of this war that's on you."
Nikos made a fist but his eyes glanced towards the horizon, if he struck this man Luro would be killed and as pleasant of an idea as that was he couldn't let that man die by the hands of Renegades, and he had his honor, if he fought back he'd break his code and be no better than the filth in front of him.
Just as he was about to back away the Renegade slammed his fist into Nikos stomach, the man's body lurched forward and he managed to say on his feet but his legs trembled as the Renegade pulled his black arm back letting the Haki fade from it.
"Oh my hand slipped so sorry about that Nikos," the Renegade said.
"We all make mistakes," Nikos said straightening his body. "Most of you Renegades for example."
After another punch in the stomach the Renegade walked away from Nikos who gripped the wall gritting his teeth and straightening his body again.
"I'm not allowed to attack Stardusk but I can hit you all I want scum," The Renegade said before looking back at Runali. "So allow me to tell you where he is, oh but there's a catch before you set foot on the island."
He offered a smile to the group folding his hands behind his back.
"Unless you don't want to talk, then we don't need him. You can just put a bullet through here and move on, they'll get the message."
The Renegade leaned forward placing a finger on the side of his head with a smile.

Hearing Luro's voice didn't put any real ease to her mind, and her eye closed when both Nikos and Lina spoke. She bit her tongue, refraining from silencing them both. But her gaze did grow colder as the Renegade started to circle her ship and bother her crew. Lina and Nikos had reason to speak out, sure, but their 'misbehavior' still would have caused them all trouble. Luro's life was being bargained and she didn't need either of them- or her crew saying or doing anything that would get them all killed.

Again, she bit her tongue, allowing this mysterious man to draw the conversation out longer than she wanted it to. However the moment Nikos was hit, Runali straightened up on instinct. It wasn't to protect Nikos, so she would claim, but it was to stop the crew should they react in kind. The last thing they needed was a fight.
"That's enough." There was a hidden venom to her voice as she circled around the intruder to be face to face with him. She stood in front of Nikos, taking another step forward towards the Renegade. Whether he stayed in place or stepped back, she didn't care. Her eye never left his shadowy face. "I'd appreciate you not getting blood on my ship seein' as we'd have to clean it up. I don't think you're courteous enough to clean up your own messes after all." Runali would have to convince herself later that she wasn't trying to protect Nikos of all people.

She had pulled a knife from her boot when she walked over, now twirling it between her fingers. "Your boss wants us to talk about joining forces and killing the Ravens. That or this cat and mouse doesn't end." The answer was obvious, of course they'd end up going to where this 'boss' wanted them to go. Of course they were going to go to the heart of the beast and of course Runali was thinking of every way to raise hell, but that didn't stop her from putting the knife to his throat the moment he leaned forward. It was tempting. She was fast enough to do kill him, she knew it. But weighing her options, she figured bloodshed would have to wait just a little longer. And yet she still pressed the knife a little closer to him. "Hmm…" Runali pulled the knife away with a quick twirl between her fingers, silently hoping that the blade would at least knick him. Either way, she straightened up and gestured towards him. "Be a good little pawn and do what you've been told to do. Tell me where your boss. You're wasting my time."

The Renegade held his hands up when Runali approached, a grin on his face as he tried to put on his most innocent face, at least what could be considered with most of it not showing. He didn't back away in fact he seemed to lean into the knife while it was there causing a bit of red to trickle down the blade, a broken laugh escaped from him as he twiddled his fingers. Ultimately he ended up getting blood on the deck even if it was his own.
"Ah scary scary, the boss will like you," the Renegade said. "May I see a map?"
Zilia brought the man a map and he took it ignoring the red falling onto it before he pointed to a nearby island, it wasn't too far from their current location. If they turned fully around they could make it there a little bit before the ships arrived. The Renegade explained it was one of their places, an old haven of theirs, there wasn't much there but the Boss had chosen it since it was close.
"Oh you're not allowed to bring weapons though," the Renegade said after handing the map back. "If you bring weapons we'll kill him the moment you set foot on the island."
Raising his hand he pointed at the gathered Stardusk.
"That includes hidden weapons too. Jack don't be a rude guest and bring those knives of yours, and Zilia you leave that thing at home. Bad Zilia."
The Renegade grinned and pounded his fist into his chest with a hearty laugh.
"We'll know too, we always know," he said before returning to his normal expression. "I'm just informing. Don't worry if you don't start anything we won't start anything. No point trying to be friends if we attack you right? I know it's hard to trust us giving the circumstances but…well you don't really have much of a choice. Just remember my warning, cause if we see you with one and your foot touches the sand..."
The Renegade put a makeshift gun to his head before pulling the trigger and falling dramatically on the deck, he laid there for a second before standing back up brushing himself off.
"You got that Captain Lev? Anyone that can't follow that rule probably shouldn't come cause we can't budge on that. Oh but we'll have weapons though so don't worry about our safety."
"Good to know…" Zilia thought glaring at the man.
"Oh and the island is littered with explosives and poison too so you're basically walking into a trap that can go off at anytime," the Renegade added. "My boss told me to tell you everything upfront. So you know…we can all die together if you want to start somethin' we're okay with that."
"…I'm going to hit Luro extra hard for this later."
The Renegade held his hand out towards the Captain.
"Still even we have some honor," The Renegade said. "If you agree we'll behave."
It was clear Nikos was holding his tongue at the particular comment.
"Do we have a deal. I'll come with you, once we're there you can kill me without worry of your friend's harm. Nikos isn't allowed though, getting killed by him would be boring."

Runali's response to the Renegade happily calling her 'scary' was a polite smile. She wiped the blood off the knife as he explained where to go, then signalled Kadi to pay more attention than she was. Just as she was about to slip the knife back into her boot, until the rule was placed about having no weapons on the island. Despite him explaining that they'd be walking right into a trap without weapons, Runali seemed to hum in response. Then, she gave the Renegade a simple nod. "Ah, of course. That's how deals work after all." The cheery nature in her voice was exposed by the sarcasm that laced it. "It's only fair to be scared of us." She looked down at his hand and couldn't help snorting. "I'll talk to your boss face to face about deals" She started to turn away, only to raise a brow at the idea of killing him. That devious, cheshire smile grew on her features before she gave a simple shrug. "Oh how cute, you think I'd give you that satisfaction when I could just let Nikos do it." She laughed lightly. "We'll play nice and go without weapons. Those that don't want to, will stay on the ship. Any other deals, as I said, will be made with your boss."

And with that, there was an agreement. Runali was well aware of how much of a bad idea it was and didn't bother to argue with her crew. Instead, she would nod in agreement and tell them, "Then stay on the ship and be ready to raise hell should I need it."
The moment the island began to approach, Runali took her blades off her hip, along with a few other blades hidden on her person, and tucked them away to keep them safe. "No weapons, no fuss." She reminded her crew before nudging the Renegade off her ship with her foot. "Feel free to stay behind Nikos. And y'know, not get killed the moment you get down there. Or, do what you want. Not like it would do anything special."

"Hahah yeah we're really really scared. You guys are terrifying ya know. Why we gotta do all this."
The Renegade laughed at this though there no trace of sarcasm or jovialness in his tone; he seemed for the most part serious. Zilia noticed the dark smile on the man's face after he said those words, she watched him turn back to face the ocean complaining about the fact that Nikos got to kill him. These people tended to speak in weird riddles at the worst time and he seemed more than okay to let his boss do the rest of the talking.
Her gaze moved over to Lina watching as the woman started removing the pistols off her body, she had a feeling she would be going too. She ended up watching Lina remove a multitude of pistols off her, by time she was finished there was a pile of guns in front of her, she had pulled them from all manners of places, turning around on occasion away from the men to grab a few before patting her body to make sure she didn't have any more.
"…she's a walking armory."
Zilia turned her head when Lina arched a brow at her, putting the thought aside and walking away from everyone. Rolling up her sleeves she started to remove the few she kept on her person for safe keeping.

When they made it to the island Nikos took a few steps forward taking a good look at it. The place really was an old one. Whoever had been here before had set up the place, random huts rested along the beach with assortments of tables and chairs which of course Renegades sat at, drinking and being generally merry. Though the moment they saw the ship they shook their heads with smiles, put their drinks down and picked up the rifles they had set on the table.
The forest that rested in the center of the island had been split in half in one area, with the beach leading down a straight path until it vanished into the distant tree line. From their position they could see bits of roof and walkways in the distant forest. Judging by the moving figures in the distance Renegades were also waiting ahead some stopping at their arrival and leaping down into the green below. Though the place had been abandoned it was clear the Renegades had made adjustments to it to suit their needs.
"Just follow that straight path there," The Renegade said pointing ahead. "Boss is waiting in a small clearing past it. He might be using the bathroom but your friend is there. So long as you follow the rules he'll be handed back to you."
Nikos pat his body one more time ensuring he didn't have any weapons before stepping up to Renegade.
"I'll be going too…I like the idea of being able to walk past your friends while they hold back," Nikos said. "Right after I finish killing you."
"It is a shame we're not allowed to attack any of our guest with provocation…but I'd rather die to a rabid chipmunk than the Clipped," the Renegade said turning and waving to one of his men.
"Kay message delivered sorry for the mess Captain Lev."
Nikos started to question the man when the Renegade put a pistol to the side of his own head and pulled the trigger, Zilia's eyes twitched as the Renegade's body fell onto the deck, a grin plastered on his face as he broke his promise to Runali about not getting it dirty.
Nikos sighed and wiped remnants of the man off his face before stepping over his body and leaping over the side of the ship.
"Seems those left behind have something to do," Nikos said as he looked back up at the ship. "I need to meet this man too. Knowing one of the False Leaders is good info so obviously I'm coming."
Zilia looked over at the body before taking out her notebook, she scribbled something down with a blank expression before handing it to the Captain and going to jump off the ship.
"…I believe Luro said back in Undersea everyone gets free shots if the Captain is upset. Captain…could you pretend to be very upset so I can beat the living daylights out of that man."

"It's like walking into a bug infested…" She frowned a little and looked over at Kadi. "What's usually bug infested? Fill in the metaphor here." As they approached, she was sitting on the edge of the ship with her feet dangling off the side. "Meh, sounds easy enough. Given the circumstances at least." She only offered Nikos a shrug, standing to her feet as they docked. "Suit yourself-" Her words were cut short when she heard the Renegade. It wasn't hard to guess what he planned on doing but Runali turned her head anyway. The sound of the gunshot made her close her eyes for a brief second and then she sighed. "Toss him off the ship. Whoever's staying put can clean up. If you're all going then, it's a chore for later. Hm?" She took the note, from Zilia and quickly read it before following after her off the ship. "Oh there's no need to worry about that doctor." Runali's fist clenched and she eyed the Renegades around them. "I'm not pretending."

Just as they were told, Runali took the lead and followed the path to the clearing as instructed. "Hmm, don't get too trigger happy." She spoke to no one in particular but it was obviously directed at the Renegades that they had passed by. "This is either going to go really well or real awful." Runali pushed her hair behind her ears and tightened her eye patch. "Let's find out which it is."

"Probably awful given your record," Nikos added with a glance.
The clearing they entered was a simple one with little to it, they were surrounded on all sides save behind them by forests, with random paths leading into the trees, more than likely towards other clearings or the walkways shown earlier. Only three things really stood out in the clearing, save the countless Renegades waiting in the tree lines, patting their rifles and swords as they patiently waited. The first was a single hut in the center of everything, only darkness showed inside the hut but there was a decent chance the leader was inside. The second was a single chair resting in front of the hut, a small table next to it with fresh steamy bread resting on a plate. The third was a tied up giant red head in front of the table chewing on a piece of steamy bread paying little mind to the new visitors.
"Brother!" Lina exclaimed starting to move towards him.
She stopped however seeing the grins on the Renegades faces, she took a step back realizing approaching apparently wasn't a good idea, these people wanted a reason to shoot them.
"Hfm? Off H'is guyfs."
Luro looked at the others his eyes closing more than likely smiling at them before he went back to eating the bread. He seemed happy trying to eat the bread the bread with no hands since part of his torso was wrapped in rope, more than likely because he escaped when they just tied his wrist. His rifles rested on the ground next to him, more than likely to keep him from misbehaving.
"Do you...take anything seriously?"
Luro looked up at Zilia's note but just lowered his attention back to the bread causing the Doctor to crush it in her hands.
"Ahm..Nom…ahm."
"I'm slowly starting to forget why I came here."
"Captain Lev may approach and untie him," one of the Renegades said. "The Boss wants to talk mainly to her anyway."

"Aye Nikos, remember you're the one standing with us." She reminded him as they carried on. Luro was hard to miss when they approached the hut. It was harder to miss him trying to eat while tied up. Despite all of the 'proof' given that he was okay, this did ease her mind a little. "Zil, you're going to waste paper on that man and you know it." She patted her shoulder in sympathy though her eyes were on the Renegades. "Just wait till we get to the ship to show… how much you missed him." Her brow raised when she was given 'permission' to grab Luro, but she didn't say a word to them. Instead, she offered a nod to Lina before fetching her brother.

"Can't say I'm not at least a little impressed Luro." Runali walked forward with her hands behind her back. She started to say something else, but rolled her one eye at his bread antics and untied him. "Next time, if you're gonna run off, try not getting captured." She jutted her thumb behind her signalling for him to take his bread and head towards the crew. Her hand rested on the empty seat next to the table and she looked into the darkness of the hut, waiting for someone to come out. "I s'pose this is where I'm supposed to thank you for keeping my shipwright decently fed and in one spot?"

Luro only looked up from his bread when he was freed, he blinked a few times moving his hands in front of him and flexed his hands. Climbing to his feet he continued to chew on his bread until he remembered he was free and took it out of his mouth.
"Hehehe I knew you guys would rescue me. I'm not the brightest but I'm smart enough to know you guys know I'm terrible at planning stuff," Luro said with a grin.
Luro shoved the bread into his sleeve and picked up his rifle as his Captain spoke into the darkness, a moment later a hand wrapped around Runali's throat before the barrel of a gun pressed against her forehead.
"No thanks necessary."
The owner of the voice offered a small smile to Runali, and Lina's body froze as she stared at the 'Leader' who was staring at back at her.
"It was my pleasure," Luro said tightening his grip around Runali's neck.

Luro's eyelids lowered slightly and a sigh escaped from him as he stared at his Captain, his thumb clicked a switch loading a bullet into one of the chambers of his gun.
"It's really hard you know Captain…I still can't find an answer…why I couldn't kill you back then. I thought if I waited, watched you, observed how you got stronger I'd figure it out…but I've learned nothing…and it's…it's really hard Captain. I want to kill you. I need to kill you. It's killing me inside you know."
Luro's eyes glanced over at his crewmates his finger moving to the trigger of the rifle.
"These guys started treating me nice after they figured out I was the leader…now they're listening to whatever I say…and I told them I wanna talk to Captain…so they brought her here…"
There was no light in the man's eyes as he stared at his crewmates, the same smile was on his face, the same grin but the empty look he gave them as he did so made Zilia flinch slightly. Those were the same eyes that had strangled her on the beach; she almost died to that same empty joyful expression.
"Hey guys…help me out here…I can't make excuses anymore…why can't I kill her? Friendship…loyalty…all those words feel so empty now. Hey…give me a reason guys. Please. Tell me why I can't kill her…tell me why I can't end our fun. Tell me…why I can't bring an end to Stardusk right now?"
There was an almost pleading look from him, his finger resting on the trigger slowly pulling it. It was pretty plain to see, it was minor but it was hesitation. Luro didn't have answers anymore, whatever he was clinging to was the only thing that kept him from shooting Runali and he was slowly losing that fight.

She didn't have time to express actual surprise when she felt a hand suddenly choking her and the barrel of a gun pressed to her head. She lifted herself on her toes to lighten the strain, but that only worked for a few moments. Even though her hands clutched around Luro's to break free, she kept a steady expression trying not to gasp out and lose more air than she had. The idea would have been a lot more effective had she decided not to talk.

"R-Really? This is low. E-Even for you Luro. Hah," She struggled again, figuring out how to easily escape without the issue of getting shot at by one of the Renegades. Judging by it, the slightest misstep might have made them shoot, either at her or her crew. She paused and her nails started to dig into Luro's wrist. She listened to him practically plea towards the ones he called friends. "S'because you're a fool, Luro. Y-You don't know how to handle your past or your feelings... so you… lash out like a... child. Tch, albeit a dangerous one." Despite her struggle, she cracked a small smirk. "C-Can't believe you'd lose yourself s-so much that you wouldn't even give m-me a proper fight. Sneak attacks?" Runali let out a gasping laugh. "You can't e-even kill me now. A-At least give me a proper fight. Y'know without all the… pawns playing."

 

[Eastwood]

Sara brushed off the renegade's arm around her shoulder but otherwise continued to listen passively. With everything that had been going on, Sara had been keeping a close eye on anything and everything suspicious and otherwise weird. Luro had been acting weirder and that was a fact that made her very deeply uncomfortable. Given his multiple attempts at fratricide, anyone could be his next target. Although, news of his capture was always good, even if it was under shady circumstances, if it meant that the crew could calm him down and bring him back into the fold.

Alas, that was not meant to be.

Sara stared, open-eyed in shock, at Luro holding her captain by the neck and with a pistol against her head. What was worse was that Runali was nervous. She was never nervous. If she was nervous then they were in very deep trouble. Sara had no weapons, not even a toothpick, and therefore no physical way of stopping Luro.

So she put her hands, indicating her disarmed status, and took one step closer to Luro. "Come on Luro." Her tone sounded calm, sure, and slow, the exact same tone that one might adopt when talking to a very large time-bomb. "Is this really how you want to end things? By shooting one of the strongest people you know, unarmed with a pistol, on some forsaken beach on some deserted island in the middle of nowhere? Where's the atmosphere, where is the drama? You've known the captain and Stardusk for what, four years? Five? Surely such an epic adventure deserves an epic ending."

All the while, she slowly walked towards Luro, arms still up in the air until she was right by his side. Slowly, gently, she placed a hand on each of his arms, not trying to force her captain down but to remind Luro that she was still there. "Come on Luro." She repeated softly. "I know you are better than this."

 

[Arcadius]

"Dogs, Captain. Cats as well, by fleas and intestinal parasites. Comes from being carnivores. On the other hand, cows are carriers of tapeworm eggs, and you can also have other things infested with bugs. Islands, literally, as we, well, can see around us." He was nervous and pumped up, all of his senses questing the vegetation around them, trying to see the bright flickers of human brains where thoughts raced, warping and wrapping the universe around themselves. And there was lots of them. It was obvious they were walking into a trap, but good lords was it weird being so perfectly aware of the fact.

Not that it meant a damn. They willingly walked in here unarmed, though that meant little given how much damage they could do even without swords and firearms. The Renegades knew this too, must have if they did their intel homework. So what was the catch? Alicia by herself could probably turn the island into a glass plane with a stick. There was no such thing as disarmed with Stardusk, not anymore. There was something in the puzzle they were missing, some horrible trap, ready to spring and grab them from an angle they were unable to perceive or predict, some knife hiding in the

Luro was the leader of the Renegades.

And he was holding boss in an embrace that was the wrong kind of loving.

And she was most certainly not in control of the situation.

Well, fuck. Now what then? Weapon? Plenty around, but none in hand's reach. Besides, we need less gun right now, so that... aaah, but yeees. Yesss. You flash git, you had to pick something from Brass Cape, eh? None of those big springs and heavy serpents from mundane muskets, no, all fine, small bits and pieces. It would be shame if someone explained to the firing pin that up is front, and left is right, eh?

There you are, little thing. Now then, we'll see how Brass Cape engineering holds against small timespace continnum metric meddling...

Impossibly far yet so close, inside Luro's rifle, next to the chambered round inside the reciever, the firing pin made the quietest of noises as it clicked jammed against the bolt. If only Kadi could at least say something without breaking the stupor of his concentration, or at least stare less like a total idiot on Luro, but the Navigator was afraid that the slightest distraction or divergence could break his hold over the gun's component. If nothing else, Luro wasn't shooting Runali in the next ten seconds. Hopefully.

 

[Winter]

She wasn't thrilled about having to leave her sword behind but she sure as hell wasn't about to let the crew walk into this trap without her close by. Alicia had wrapped Shusui in a Feian cloth before placing it somewhere safe for her return and couldn't help but feel all kinds of wrong without it by her side as she stepped onto the island with the others. She's always had her sword for as long as she could remember save for the few times in battle when someone had managed to separate her from it briefly. Not having it with her wasn't a good feeling and it only heightened her caution as they approached the clearing, where they soon found their favourite idiot tied up eating a slice of bread.

'Ughh' she made the sound as she pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head slightly, wondering why she expected anything differently when it came down to Luro. Still though it was good to see him alive and well and from the looks of it they hadn't endeavoured to beat him a little which was rather strange, but then she didn't really know how they worked or to what extent they retained honour. Things seemed to be going well and when they let Luro go and Runali took her seat she was preparing herself to give Luro a whack around the head before he turned and pressed a gun to the side of Runali's head, gripping her throat which made Alicia's blood run cold.

Her eyes widened and her throat dried a little, her body caught between instinct to act and her minds reminder that she lacked her weapon, not to mention she couldn't see a way to close the gap without putting so much at risk. For the first time in a long time Alicia didn't know what to do and could only watch as her mind fought to find a resolution to the situation even as Sara approached Luro which only heightened her anxiety about the situation. Alicia exhaled a breath as the moment of shock slowly passed, her brow furrowing a little as he spoke before he finished and she looked down to the ground as if searching her memory for something. Her frown faded as she recalled something from a long time ago.

"If you had one shot, if you had to pull the trigger once wouldn't you want to hit what you aimed at?"

Alicia repeated something Luro told her a long time ago back when they shared a conversation days after her fight against Sara. Alicia looked towards Luro, meeting his gaze as she continued. "What happened to you Luro. You told me you would be my rival, that you would become stronger to match me, that you would die a Stardusk" Alicia furrowed her brow once again, "Was it a lie... or is this an omission that you just aren't up to the challenge anymore" Alicia took a step forwards, not taking her eyes away from Luro. "You once told me you would commit genocide of an entire people if it meant our safety, you also told me that if I needed your gun to just say the word".

Alicia held out her hand towards Luro, "I need your gun Luro, now more than ever".

 

[SilentxChaos]

The shovel embedded into the sand, and Jack took a step back while wiping his brow. He looked upon the the padded mound then out at the beach. Crystalline waves lapped the shore in bubbling humor, mocking everyone foolish enough to step on land and leave its safe waters. His mouth hardened into a thin line. "It's a better view than you deserve," he addressed the grave. Looking down at it, he pondered if the the Renegade messenger would even care. A snort emanated Jack's thoughts.

"Better than what Nura got," his head tilted. "Then again, perhaps she would've liked the solitude. I didn't get to know her all that well."

Sighing, Jack reluctantly let go of the shovel and turned towards the forest. He promised Runali he'd be right behind them. But he couldn't abide a sun-dried, rotting, bloated corpse cooking on their deck while they extracted Luro from whatever hole he dug himself. And not putting a body to rest was a bad omen.

His steps hesitated on the fringe of the darkened path. The Renegades were nearby; he could feel them like an invading presence praying on the native fauna. No weapons. What a joke of a trap. Still, a part of him considered staying back, just in case. Maybe they'd need backup when escaping? He shook his head. Don't. You promised the captain remember? Taking a breath, Jack plunged in.

"You can't e-even kill me now. A-At least give me a proper fight. Y'know without all the… pawns playing."​

Jack crouched low. It was futile but it was instinct. Horror gripped his throat as he witnessed Luro strangle the captain. What do I do? His fists curled up until the nails bit hard into his palm, and he shook. What do I do? His crewmates were beginning to move, trying to talk Luro down. He should move too, but to what? No immediate action led to both Runali and Luro surviving. He couldn't attack Luro from behind; the Renegades were everywhere. He watched with mounting fear as Sara approached the giant showing open hands. Think damnit! He punched the ground.

Death caws at the Raven's chime, and you will wake in the final grave….

Was this how it was all supposed to end? His eyes went from Luro, the crewmate he promised to protect, to set aside doubt and trust in the captain--

His gaze drifted back to her. Their conversation returned, unbidden, along with pieces of many others. Him and Luro under the moon, the revelation of Luro's leadership, Lina's involvement. Fingers slowly unfolding, they brushed against a splinter of a branch. Runali...Luro...I hope my faith is right in you. Standing up, he approached the clearing. He reached the edge mere heartbeats after Alicia stopped speaking.

"The corpses keep piling, don't they?" Jack approached slowly, front and center of Luro's attention. His hands turned empty to the giant, mimicking Sara's approach. "Corpses of the past...they're annoying right? They never really go away no matter how much you run." He licked his lips. As he approached closer, he brushed past Zilia and stepped slightly in front of her. Another futile, instinctual habit, but he didn't completely cover her, merely hiding her left side. "But you told me once that we're Stardusk, and as Stardusk we never face anything alone. You don't have to face them alone… or run, either."

Did Luro know what was up his sleeve? He could. With Stardusk's wildcard, anything was possible. Sighing, Jack placed his hands down, eyes flicking back to Runali. Hurry up, she's dying.

"As Stardusk you also made a promise. Don't you remember? The Makachi Promise. You said you'd fix this.

"As Stardusk, you promised the captain to wait on fighting her until we became Lords of the Sea.

"And, maybe you weren't Stardusk then, but you promised your sister that you'd smile again. That fake one doesn't count, you know. The fake ones never do. Yet I'd like to think the Luro that made that promise...would have fit quite nicely in this crew.

"You've done a good job keeping those promises so far...are you really ready to destroy them, with a pull of that trigger?"

He waited a beat-- was the captain turning purple?-- then made an extra leap of faith. "You want to know why you couldn't pull the trigger? Maybe together, as Stardusk, we can figure it out. Give Alicia the gun and I promise- a Kunal promise to Makachi- I'll help you. Whadda say?"

Jack stayed put where he was. He didn't dare crowd the man anymore between Alicia and Sara. But from where he stood, he stared into Luro's eyes with an equally pleading gaze.

Please, for the love of god, don't make me kill you.

 

[Mizos]

Luro remained still as his crewmates spoke to him, his eyes slowly widening as he watched Sara get closer his eyes moving to each person as they spoke, the only real indication he was paying attention. His eyes moved to Zilia as she held up a note, which he acknowledged with a single glance before his eyes rested on Jack. Inhale….exhale and the world faded as it always did. The Renegades with their guns raised around them, those hidden nearby, the song of birds nearby all that faded as it always did, only the people in front of him and the voice screaming in his head to pull the trigger remained.
"…don't lie to me."
Luro muttered the words as something flew past his body, the trees bended as an invisible forced slammed into Sara and Alicia the two closest to Luro, forcing distance from the man as he narrowed his eyes at the ones he called friends. Wood cracked and the trees were pulled up from the land as the force continued to push against Stardusk as if the island itself was trying to remove them. Nikos put his hand back catching Zilia who hadn't braced for the impact, Lina doing the same for Kadi seeing he was surprisingly stiff for some reason. The gust continued for a moment slowly pushing back the witnesses along the path save Luro and Runali which the wind purposeful avoided, creating a small pocket for the two of them.
"That's enough."
At Luro's words the wind suddenly ceased and Luro clicked a switched on his gun causing the L.A.S.S. to hum to life, for some strange reason his gun had jammed…so it was better safe than sorry while he dealt with that.

"Now…now it's okay…really!" Luro exclaimed toward the others. "Now it's okay to consider myself your rival! You think I don't hear half the conversations you have with Masu! You don't care about that! Don't lie to my face! All of you! All of you are liars! The hell do you know Masu! I'm not better than this! I don't give a damn how this ends! I was going to kill her anyway! I'm tired of waiting! I'm tired of watching her laugh with so much damn energy! You Jack! You're the worst bringing up that weak bastard! I hate hearing his name and I don't care about anybody I've killed! I like telling their families I killed them. I've already planned how I'm going to tell Daya, but you…you just had to mention him and this is real smile Jack! Look at it!"
Luro put on a grin which caused Lina to physically flinch, though the smile didn't last long as his eyes moved over to the Captain.
"I made a promise…long before I made any to any of you…but I bet you didn't know that…why would you? What would be the point in knowing? Why bother? There's nothing here, no friendship, no trust, what's the point in understanding why the nightmares don't go away…why it hurts every time I laugh with you. I want to end it…because honestly…this happiness hurts."
Bang
"No!"
Luro grinned as he watched the Captain fall from his grip, smoke coming from the tip of his gun.

"I have to keep my promise…so why the hell can't I?!"
A large chunk of tree was missing from the spot behind Runali, Luro's gun mere inches off center from the woman's skull who he had pulled out of the way at the last moment and released.
He stared at the hole meant for Runali his eyes moving to his Captain before he fell to his knees and threw his rifle to Alicia's feet.
Raising his fist he punched at the sand, again and again and again.
"I hate it….I hate all of you. You were going to kill me. You were ready to kill me! Why did you come without weapons! I know if there was no risk this could have ended differently! Damn it! Why did you talk to me!"
Luro looked at the others throwing sand in their direction, a broken smile on his face as he tried to contain everything that was forcing itself out.
"I can recognize the pain…but when you act like this is it just hurts! You don't know a damn thing about me! I should able to kill you. I need too, it's the only way to make her happy. If I can't be…if I can't be who I am…than everything falls apart. Everything I've done…I can't stop, I can't hesitate. I can't not be me…what the hell is this? Why are you all like this?!"
Lina eyes rested on her brother than at the rest of Stardusk, she watched as Zilia quickly made her way over to the Captain and took a few steps forward herself until she was in front of Luro, kneeling down in front of him.
"The Raven Leader...told me that if I killed Lina...that is if I was the one that killed her...the bounty would be removed," Luro said looking at Lina. "That's all it would take...and this ends...but I wanted you all here. It was perfect. The Captain in my hands, an island ready to detonate at a moments notice ready to kill everyone on it...it was everything I needed...and I still couldn't do it!"

Runali heard the pleas of her crew, but she couldn't turn her head to see. The realization that she couldn't hold her breath forever was setting in quick so she fell silent, struggling to keep calm. Earlier, she could have easily escaped from his grip, but now she was losing too much air to try and fight back. As much as she wanted to yell for them to stay back, she couldn't. Grant it, their approach was better than nothing at all. And it was definitely better than a potential fight that could have started.
The sudden gust of wind made her eye shut only for it to open in surprise when Luro began to yell. She couldn't say anything. Even if she could, she wasn't sure what to say. Instead of words, the look in her eye softened in a way that could only be sympathetic. There was a desire to help, a need to even. And when he looked at her and she saw the gun move, against her better instinct she loosened her grip on his hand.

And suddenly, she was on the ground and her ears were ringing. Her body crumbled to the ground and for a moment, she was left gasping for air until she could breathe normally again. For a moment, she couldn't hear anything except a loud ring. It was only until he exclaimed about how it hurt did she manage to slowly struggle to push herself off the ground into a sitting position and look over at Luro. Runali rubbed her neck as if trying to find her voice but almost seemed afraid to speak. The state Luro was in was dangerous and unpredictable. She had to be careful about what she said.

Seeing Zilia rush over, she slowly put her hand up as if signalling that she was okay. It may not have been the entire truth, and it was obvious she was a little shaken up, but Runali didn't see that as important at the moment. Luro was having a breakdown right in front of her and she needed to do something about it. Runali wasn't too far away from him, so she slowly pushed herself off the ground, this time to a stand, and sat next to him with her back to the crew.
It was silent still and Runali looked up at the sky as if searching for CP. She wasn't up there though so she looked out at the trees in front of her. She sat there, with her blind side closest to him, letting out a heavy sigh. The sound itself was an affirmation that she was still breathing and that she's was okay- or at least would.

"All the faith I put in you could have-... should have gotten me killed." She couldn't see him, so she looked down at the grass. "You call the crew liars, but you're the biggest liar here." Her hands were shaking gently, so she shoved them in her lap. "We don't know a damn thing about you." Runali had a mocking tone before she scoffed, although with the pain of before it hurt a little to do that. "And who's fault is that Makachi… You've had us on a wild hunt for you when you could have just told us… We could have helped you." She fell silent again, her head turning towards Lina even though she couldn't see the Makachi sibling. "Happiness doesn't hurt Luro. Running from it… Avoiding it- Creating some skewed lifestyle where you fake a smile and pretend that everything is okay or where you drink to forget- that's where the pain comes from."

Lina glanced over at Runali as she spoke to her brother, her gaze falling back on the others as a small smile found its way onto her face. Her brother was lucky to have people like this, and for once she was happy someone was being tough on him, saying the words he needed to hear. Luro remained silent staring at his hands, as he slowly calmed down. Though he closed them as the Captain spoke his eyes narrowing.

"…I haven't lied," Luro mumbled.
Lina sighed a little and looked over at Runali offering a small smile.
"That's…really close Captain Lev but not quite right," Lina said standing up. "I was hoping Brother would do it himself…but I guess I have to."
Lina stood up and stretching her arms above her head turned to the rest of Stardusk.
"Everything you see here is real to my Brother. The smile on his face is genuine, and he doesn't pretend everything's okay…he knows it's not. He is fully aware of what's going on."
Lina looked back at him.
"Unfortunately he's not normal so he doesn't drink to forget either…that would be better. He drinks to remember…which is funny because all he wants to do is forget. That is the person my Brother is…but even if I say this he'll deny it…because that's in his nature. Because to protect everything he cherishes he has to be this person. That's how it's always been…that's who he became."
A single gunshot ran out and Luro's eyes widened, he looked down as red spread through his shirt, Lina pointing a smoking pistol at him, a narrowed glare on her expression.
"That's what exactly makes you scum Luro."

Lina stepped past the two and put the pistol away snapping her fingers, bright lights appeared in the sky above them before slamming into the island causing the ground to shake. The light formed into a row of glowing pillars behind Lina that stretched far into the forest. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she turned to fully face Stardusk multiple lines forming between the pillars creating a giant caged wall between herself and the pirates on the other side. She peered through the 'bars' at them moving her hands to her hips.
"You can stop pretending."
Nikos appeared next to her as the rest of the Messengers walked out, Tari throwing Nikos his swords as he put them back on his waist.
"I tried," Lina said sighing. "Tried to end this peacefully Luro. Kill the Raven Leader. I told you I was the leader, put a bullet through my skull and end it. Save your friends…but you don't. Captain Lev was right…you should have just asked for help."
Luro grit his teeth and raised a pistol hidden in his sleeve to Lina, she arched a brow at him as he grit his teeth, his hands shaking as he leveled the gun at his sister, she made no attempt to move…but ultimately he just lowered his arm. With a sigh Lina made a motion with her hand causing one of the Renegades on the other side to shoot Luro again, causing the man to hold his shoulder as he fell to the ground.

"I apologize for not being upfront with you Stardusk. This matter was supposed to resolve peacefully…but unfortunately that's no longer an option. I refuse to remove the bounties off your heads without 'that' killing me and bringing an end to this whole thing," Lina said pointing at Luro. "It started with us and it ends with us. I anticipated this and left some coordinates in your cabin Captain Lev, follow them to the town south of here and we'll bring an end to this matter. Until then I can't call off my forces…but I will ensure you have safe passage in that direction."
Lina looked over at Runali, she gave a small bow to the Captain and to Stardusk.
"…I didn't want this ending but people don't change that easily…so unfortunately this ends with my death at the hands of Luro. Tell him to man up on your way there. Zilia I made sure when I shot him to do as little damage as possible…but I did still shoot him so…quickly treating him on the ship is a good idea."
With that Lina turned and walked away with the rest of the Messengers.

"We'll be waiting."

"I dunno. Lying and not telling the whole truth kinda goes hand in-" Runali was mid shrug when Lina spoke. Something about how she spoke made Runali turn completely so she could see clearly. And the more she spoke, she could feel her body grow colder. She started to stand, absentmindedly using Luro as a crutch only to stagger when she heard the gunshot. She checked herself, realizing she was unharmed, only to look down and see Luro bleeding. Lina never stopped talking, but Runali hadn't stopped staring at Luro in wide eyed disbelief. The second shot was what snapped her out of her trance. Her hands clenched into fists and she was visibly shaking. Her head was lowered as she turned to face Lina and the rest of the Messengers.

"Y'know Luro… I think you've got Raymond beat with awful family ties." When she looked at Lina there was a new, deadly anger in her eyes. She had been played for far too long and she was at her limit. "But I see you learned from him about trying to do things on your own." The armament trailed up her right arm, stopping at her elbow. "Your mistake was getting us involved. And you?" Her already deadly glare narrowed at Lina. She knew that Lina planned to 'only' fight her brother. She knew they would go through the annoyance of having to fight them separately. They had every step planned out just for this moment, so her next words were to Nikos even though her eyes never left Lina. "You better pray you kill me in one strike or you better start making peace with your gods now." There was something different, like the air around her shifted, but it was almost too faint to notice.

She watched them walk away, slowly unclenching her fists. "Hurry and get him back to the ship." Runali waited a moment, looking out where the Ravens had disappeared too attempting to quell the anger building inside her. It was a futile effort however and she turned following her crew back to the ship. The Renegades that were still hovering around them made no effort to attack, but the captain glared at them nonetheless. Ultimately, they were just flies on a wall so she paid them no real attention, however she did miss the faintest moments of hesitation after she glared them away.

"Luro I personally should-" She inhaled and sighed the threat away. "We're going to that island and we're ending this now." Runali spoke with a stern authority to her crew as they headed to the ship. "Man up…" Runali scoffed to herself. "Peaceful… I can't believe I let them get this far. I should have seen this coming. So many different signs. But no-" She was mumbling to herself in exasperation, pointing out different moments they could have easily solved the problem they were in. The armament reappeared on her arm and she was ready to hit something, but she hesitated and frowned at Luro. "Listen, till this very moment, lies or not. Hate us or not. I don't care. Wanna know why? Through all of that you have yet to abandon your title as the Stardusk carpenter. So obviously, either you're lying to yourself or you're just buying your time. Your actions speak much louder than you ever could. So-" Runali paused and looked away from them. She didn't want to say it, but at this point, what choice did she have?
Even though her voice softened it still held that authority as the captain. "If you don't kill Lina, I will."

The messengers including Nikos only offered parting glances to Stardusk, save Kaim who happily waved to Sara before they turned and followed after Lina. When Runali spoke however Nikos came to a stop keeping his back to Stardusk, resting his hand on his sheath.
"Do your best."
That was the extent of the man's response as he caught up with his comrades, the group vanishing into the distance long before the glowing gate eventually faded away.
Zilia requested a bit of assistance in getting Luro back since he was clearly having a bit of trouble moving on his own. Her head hurt…too much had happened and stressful was putting the last few minutes lightly. Putting all that aside however her attention was focused more on the Captain and Luro, she had never seen the Captain like this. She didn't know what to say so she just remained quiet, she hated it but she understood what Luro was doing. Lina's words hit hard, it was clear what was implied…what she wanted…but would saying something help? She was their enemy now…that was the end of it.

Her biggest concern was Luro, besides the blood staining most of his outfit, his face was…tense. No smile, no sorrow just…empty. His brows were furrowed slightly as he stared at the ground but that was the extent of any emotion, she wasn't sure what exactly he was fighting with but she was pretty sure he wasn't winning.
She had never seen Luro without a smile or confusion across his features, so staring at this expression…it was like looking at the face of a stranger. He didn't look like…Luro.
"It won't end…if you kill her."
Luro only spoke at the Captain's last words.
His voice was weak, it almost seemed a strain just to form words.
"…they won't stop…they never stop. She knows that…she knows I….she knows I don't want that…so I…I have to kill her…or eventually…she'll kill everyone."

Luro gently pulled himself free of whoever was helping him finding a bit of strength to walk on his own, he took his rifle back from Alicia his eyes moving to the strap Daya had given him. He moved the rifle to his back his eyes twitching as he moved his shoulder.
"My actions were a lie too. It's just easier to trick people that way, lie with your mouth…honest with your actions. They always pay attention to the latter."
Luro said this and walked ahead of everyone adjusting the rifle on his shoulder, Zilia stared at the man his head lowered gripping his bleeding shoulder, it had been a long time since she had seen someone look that fragile. Luro was inches away from being broken, a part of him probably understood that and decided to walk on his own, he was barely holding it together. She wasn't sure if it was his weird desire to kill all of them, or if he just didn't want to feel their warmth right now.
"...sorry that was...that was childish...all of this was…just...please don't touch me right now. Let's just get on the ship...I just want this to end."

 

[SilentxChaos]

Jack sat on the deck of Lady Luck next to a dirty bucket of soapy water, a filthy blood-drenched rag, and a pile of cigarillo ash. The smoke itself hung tilted between half parted lips, ready to fall, the ash unattended fell and singed his pants then trickled to the deck.

He'd been sitting there for quite some time. When they made it back to the ship, Jack disappeared below deck and didn't reappear for a hour. His resurfacing brought food, unsurprising from the cook, but it was little more than bread, stale jerky and water. He gave it to every member; told them better to eat now than feel weak for the upcoming events, with a soft voice and look that knew. Knew what they thought, knew how they felt. He knew this seemed the absolute worst moment, but he left it next to them anyways.

Afterwards, he visited Luro's armory, and the storage hole.

He came back with soapy water and a cigarillo burning hard in his mouth and he set to work on the bloody stain steaming the deck from where the Renegade shot himself. He attacked it, scrubbing furiously on hands and knees, until long the wood's grain shined. Jack didn't speak for the rest of the time, retreating in himself.

You're the worst.

Leaning down, Jack placed his face in his hands, fingers curling into his hair. He stayed like that until they reached their final destination.

 

[Mizos]

Kara took a stroll through the ship her eyes moving to the numerous people running around on the deck, with Lina back things were fully back to normal. The Captain herself was in her cabin looking over something or another leaving everyone to their own devices. Kara walked the deck her eyes moving to Mia who was getting some practice in. The woman would raise a pistol and fire it straight ahead; in the next moment she would appear on the other side and cut the bullet in half with her wheels. She slowly raised her body and mentally marked how soon the bullet reached her before restarting the process. It was a common practice she did as a warm up to her usual activities.

Lina's ship was essentially a mobile fortress for them, a home away from home. Mia said Jack snooped a little bit but since he didn't go below deck he didn't see anything necessarily troublesome. The ship was confusing to navigate though, getting below deck took an immense amount of effort, even for those who knew how. Eventually Kara made her way downstairs stopping as she passed an open door. She peeked inside to see Nikos sitting on his knees in a room full of candles, surrounding him on all sides. She blinked and the candles in the room were no longer lit, faint tufts of smoke coming off the now extinguished flames. Her eyes moved to Nikos his hand resting on the hilt of his sword before a small sigh escaped from him.
"…not good enough."
Standing up he started to light them once more and Kara left deciding not to get in his way.

She continued through the ship her eyes moving to Kaim, he was doing a handstand in the middle of ship, occasionally he lowered his body only to bring it back up.
"198…199…200."
Kaim would grin before bringing one hand behind his back and restarting the process, Kara's gaze went to the crate resting on the top of his feet as he continued doing his warm ups.
"1…2…3…"
Kara decided to move on not wanting to question what was inside it, and figured he didn't want to be disturbed right now anyway.

Continuing down the hallway she came to pause hearing fighting, she followed the sound of clashing metal stopping a fair distance away as Tari and Nina sparred with one another. Kara leaned against the wall watching the two women fight each other, their blades colliding with the other creating an almost melodic sound as they kept moving in tune with the other, almost as if they were dancing. Her eyes moved to their own only to see the two of them had their eyes shut, judging the distance of the others attacks by a hair. Tari swung her sword in an arc Nina barely dodging it, when the wood behind her splinted the two opened their eyes.
"…y-you o-okay?" Tari questioned.
Nina gave a small nod and the two shut their eyes and continue, Kara left deciding not to interfere

She expected Ria to be napping somewhere as she always did but was surprised to see she was spinning her sickles a little bit away standing on one leg, she would continuously rotate them around her body with her eyes cut, pieces of fruit rested on her random parts of her body as well. After a few seconds past the orange on her shoulder would fall to the ground in two pieces, the pear on her knee was next, than the apple on her head. Though the fruit were cut cleanly she reached her hands out and quickly caught the sickles glancing over at her shoulder, seeing the smallest tear in it.
"…focus."
She muttered the words to herself and went to grab more pieces of fruit.

Everyone was doing what they normally did before a fight, the same old practices, warm ups. It seemed normal from a first glance but Kara could tell everyone was in their own way bothered. With all this business being thrown around and the Renegades breathing down their necks they were in a bad place, even if they survived this fight the next one could easily be their end. There was nothing in their future but more fighting and more betrayal. They kept themselves distracted with the usual, doing what they always did to keep from losing to their own feelings, their own dark thoughts.

Seeing this she recalled a conversation she had a little bit ago.

​

Before all of this

It seemed Stardusk had patterns just like they did.
That was the general thought of Kara as he watched Stardusk, that was to be expected on a ship after all. She would sometime sit and watch Sara train, on other occasions she'd watch Luro sit and take apart guns only to put it back together, shoot it and repeat the process. Zilia was either read or writing something at all times of the day. Each person did something to pass the time, even their own patterns hadn't shifted too much though they did everything below deck to stay out of Stardusk ways.
With that being said staring at Alicia seemed to make the place almost feel like home, the two were different in many ways, but Nikos would always meditate by himself and he took care of his swords with the same fervor, seeing Alicia do the same thing sometimes made her giggle. She'd always watch Nikos when he did so and seeing it brought back memories.

It was almost sad that they were all enemies, she was sure they could find some things to speak about at the very least. With that being said she didn't think expect their relationship was going to change but a conversation wasn't a bad thing.
That being said she wasn't going to interrupt her meditation so she decided to wait until she was finished to actually approach.
"Miss Tashigi," Kara said walking closer to Alicia. "May we speak for a moment."
She kept a couple person distance from the woman, not out of caution but she was aware some Stardusk prefered space, she found Zilia disliked when she was a two person distance from her, so she gave Alicia three.

Alicia's eyes slowly opened as her mind returned to her corporeal mortal coil, sat cross legged on her blanket, greeted by the sounds of the waves stroking against the hull of the ship and a girl standing before her asking if she could speak with her. Curiosity didn't always get the better of Alicia, but the girl at least approached politely and though she had no intentions of speaking with the Ravens she supposed there was no real harm in some company.

The swordswoman motioned with her hand for Kara to join her, the blanket was rather large with plenty of space for more than just herself. "We may, please have a seat" she said softly, placing Shusui on the blanket beside her before laying a silk cloth over it as a show of good faith that she'd no intentions of harming her. Of course Runali was quite clear they were not to fight on the ship and honestly Alicia wasn't the kind to attack an unsuspecting opponent.

With a small nod and a smile Kara took a seat next to Alicia, she was happy Alicia was easy to approach for such things. Tari had handled all the research on her, so she only knew what she had openly shared, thinking on it Tari had warned her to never approach Alicia. She was positive there was some reason but all she could remember was counting the amount of expletives that were in the explanation...she couldn't count all of them even with all the Messengers hands, including Emil and Aira.

Putting that aside she couldn't pass up the opportunity, enemy or not now was the perfect time to sit down and have a proper discussion. It would be nice to talk with another lady for once, Tari hated long conversations and Zilia always looked so nervous when they conversed...and all she did was ask questions. She wanted to speak with Runali too but Nikos forbid it saying they'd get along too well and Kaim said no one could talk to Sara without paying him first, which she did, but he said she was busy...actually thinking about it she couldn't talk to anyone on the ship except Luro and Jack, but Ria always stared so intently whenever she tried to approach. She always felt death whenever she so much as glanced at Kadi so she wasn't going to humor that possibility.
Passing up this chance wasn't allowed, she had to make sure this conversation went on as long as possible especially since Tari didn't really forbid it.
"I love your country!" Kara exclaimed leaning towards Alicia with a bright grin.
After a moment she realized she had scooted closer and slid back to her normal spot.
"Ah right distance sorry. Emil told me people from Yula Fei don't like extreme closeness. I apologize invading your personal space."
Kara gave a small nod at this before clearing her throat.
"P-perhaps I should try that again. I enjoy Yula Fei. Whenever we have free time I normally go either with Emil or Nikos. It's so peaceful, with the borders open I was considering getting a place there...specifically next to a particular place that sells clothes but it didn't go as planned. That's to be expected of course as many have lived there for generations but there's no point not trying something just because there's an impossibility. Also it was near the tree with the pretty blossoms and-"
Kara suddenly stopped talking realizing she wasn't really leaving a lot of breathing room in their conversation...if it could even be called that right now.
"A-ah sorry. I got a little excited...um...how is your day going?"
It was a sad attempt but she realized she had bothered to do that simple thing at the beginning.

Alicia was a little overwhelmed at first by the eagerness of Kara, her brows raised as she tried to follow the conversation before she settled into a small smile when the girl eventually apologised before asking her about her day. "No need to apologise, I'm glad you appreciate my home… it's certainly fought hard for itself over the years" she replied initially, "As for how my day is going, I suppose quite well. It's been an interesting time with you and your friends on board, if not somewhat tense but that's to be expected, how're you coping with our situation?" she asked curiously, intrigued for a number of reasons about why this particular Raven was interested in a conversation. If it were as simple as boredom she wouldn't be all that surprised, there was very little to do with everyone so close to one another and most of them would probably have a hard time settling with the others around.

Kara wasn't sure how to take the interesting Alicia brought up, but she doubted there was some hidden meaning there. She gave a small nod at the notion of it being somewhat tense, even if they exhibited niceties to one another at the end of the day, fighting each other in the future seemed pretty much inevitable. At the end of the day however that still didn't mean they couldn't have some civil conversations with one another, they weren't animals after all. With that in mind she tilted her head slightly at her question offering a small smile.
"Hmm we adjust as best we can," Kara said. "There was some initial worry...well except for Kaim who considers it time off but once Nikos informed us we should just treat it as field work we pretty much settled in."
Kara scratched the side of her cheek at this a small chuckle coming from her.

"Still I should be asking you that, this is Stardusk domain after all. Granted it has been nice to talk with the others, you guys are quite close, Luro and I speak to each other often. He told me something about 'needing a lass to listen to his troubles' so I volunteered...but then he told me the Captain would get mad so we should just talk instead."
Kara brought a hand to her chin clearly perplexed since that's what he had asked for in the first place.
"I've heard all manners of fun stories, and you guys are so open about your personal space. I trust the Messengers but having someone go in my room for 'that' would embarrass me...but he told me friends don't care about that stuff."
Kara smiled a little at his before continuing.
"I spoke with Zilia but...she seemed a bit on edge...which makes sense but it was a nice conversation. Regretfully I can't speak with anyone else but Tari won't stop me from talking with you, just warns...I'm not sure why this is delightful. Do you do stuff like this everyday?"

The Feian swordwoman blinked as she listened to Kara explain her interaction with Luro, having a feeling she might be able to guess what he might have meant but choosing to keep the information to herself for the sake of decorum. She gave a simple nod when Kara mentioned they were adjusting, though she tilted her head slightly at the mention of Tari having warned her about engaging in conversation with her. "Sometimes, with a crew like ours sometimes I don't always have the time to spend alone, though I find the time here and there" she replied with a small smile, looking from Kara down the end of the ship to see if she could pick out the other Stardusk. "You mentioned before that Tari gave you warning about me, does she believe I'd hurt you?" she asked curiously with a small frown, "Because I have no intentions of going against the orders of my captain" she added with a genuine tone.

Kara gave a small nod of understanding at Alicia's comment of alone time, she knew all too well how hard it was to get it sometimes. The other Messengers were respectful but sometimes their timing was so impeccable she almost wondered if it was purposeful, but that was a thought for another time. Instead she merely gave a small nod to Alicia before speaking once more.
"Well I apologize for taking a little bit of your alone time," Kara said before focusing her attention forward. "Thank you for speaking with me."
At the comment of Tari Kara brought a hand to her cheek a small sigh escaping from her, she may have spoken a bit too much about that, but Nikos did say they were required to share things, it made her lower her guard able to have a proper conversation as well. She looked over at Alicia and gave a small shake of her head.
"No it's nothing like that, I wouldn't have come over if I expected that response from you," Kara said. "Tari…Tari hates you Miss Tashigi."

Kara lowered her hand from her cheek, it was a strange fact but it wasn't exactly hidden.
"You're the living embodiment of everything she can't stand…as if someone had taken everything that irks her and made it into a person. Which of course isn't fair, as you're clearly a decent person…but that's just how she feels towards you. The more she watched the more hate accumulated…she's always so collected when it comes to targets but you Miss Tashigi…she can't control herself. Even Nikos had to tell her to calm down and not let her emotions blind her."
Kara blinked before quickly raising her hands.
"Ah it's not because you're Feian or anything. She doesn't dislike Yula Fei or its people. She's not that kind of person!"
Kara realized she had said that a bit too loudly and clearing her throat regained her composure.
"It's just those feelings she has towards you that made her say that. That's why I knew it was fine to talk to you, you haven't shown any signs of cruelty towards us only space."
Kara let out a small sigh bringing a hand to her chest.
"I may have gotten a little over excited there my apologies, I didn't want to offend or anything. So no I don't think you'd hurt me or go against your Captain's orders, just as I don't wish harm upon you or to go against Nikos' orders."


Alicia smiled and shook her head a little, "No need to apologise, if I didn't want your company I wouldn't have asked you to sit with me" she replied truthfully. Admittedly it was somewhat of a custom to afford politeness to others when approached, especially with something like simple conversation and company so it was unlikely Alicia would have turned Kara away.
Listening as the girl continued to explain about Tari's hatred of her she couldn't help but find her curiosity and interest peak further, a small frown spreading across her features as she looked to be in thought about the reasons behind her hate and what it could be about her personality that could provoke such an emotion. For a moment she thought back to the Feian captain she'd fought against in the Undersea's dream world, a victim in a battle she'd asked for to save the crew. Was it such actions that drove Tari's hatred, or was it something else. Alicia simply sighed, "Well, Tari is her own woman so she is free to think of me how she pleases. Although I can't say I'm not curious to what it is about me that provokes that reaction from her, I do try not to offend people where possible" she replied with a small smile containing a modicum of amusement.

Her amusement at her own demeanor in response to others faded when she picked up on Kara's change of pace, letting forth sighs which expressed that perhaps there was something on her mind. "You seem troubled Kara, if there's something you'd like to get off your chest I'll gladly listen" she offered.

Kara couldn't say she knew absolutely where Tari's hatred came from, but knowing a bit of the woman's history she could only take guesses. She wasn't sure if that information would really provide any answer to her question however, and she wasn't sure if it was a question or inquiry. It seemed like a question and she was required to answers those, and Alicia had made it clear she didn't mind their conversation so there was no reason to decline. After a brief moment Kara gave a small nod deciding to say something, but she was stopped by Alicia's sudden politeness.
"Oh no it's nothing like that," Kara said shaking her head. "I'm okay well to an extent. I'm the newest Messenger so I always worry I'll mess up well I do mess up but everyone's always supportive. Even when I was late introducing myself no one got mad or yelled at me. Nikos and the others told me it's okay but…I still want to do my best for them, but I'm bad at controlling my emotions sometimes so I worry I'll cause trouble for them…that's all."

Kara raised a hand at this as that was the biggest thing that weighed on her mind.
"For why she hates you…it's because you're you Alicia Tashigi," Kara said. "That's my guess. Tari grew up around dishonest people, seeing someone like you…probably makes her uncomfortable. You also do a lot of good for people, and you're considerate too, engaging a future enemy in polite conversation…yeah thinking about it, it's because you're you."
Kara smiled a bit.
"Haha now that I think about it. That means Tari must really pay attention you, I mean the more things you hate about someone the more you have to look for right?"
Kara laughed a little at this before realizing she was talking about her again.
"Ah I'm sorry, I keep bringing up Tari. Um…we can talk about someone else. Emil's a sweetheart, I mean he's not here but he's still a Raven uh…Zilia's nice…oh wait but I have to fight her…um…w-why don't you pick someone?"

Alicia gave a small understanding nod as Kara voiced her concerns about being the newest member of the messengers. It made her wonder how such a polite girl had come to join such an organisation in the first place but she decided to withhold that question for the moment as she considered her words before responding. "You remind me a little of my younger sister, she too held anxiety about failing to reach her potential… so I'll share with you a little of what I told her back when we were many years younger" Alicia adjusted herself a little as she thought back to all those years ago. "Mistakes allow us to grow, to become the people we were meant to be. If everyone was perfect we wouldn't need each other" she said with a small smile. "Your friends are supportive because they are eager to see the woman you will become and they wish to walk that journey with you. Don't be afraid of it, embrace your mistakes as opportunities and in time you will see that it was all worth while in the end".

It'd be up to Kara whether or not she could take anything from that, but Alicia hoped it'd help at least a little. "As for Tari, that is unfortunate. Perhaps I might be able to avoid killing her… although that decision is more hers than mine" she exhaled before nodding at Kara's suggestion. "Well, you know quite a bit about me. So let's start with you, where do you come from Kara, and why is it you decided to join the Ravens?" she asked.

Kara remained silent as she listened to Alicia, she smiled a little at the comparison her gaze moving to the deck as she offered her a bit of advice. Though she didn't look at her, it was clear she was listening to her words intently; she folded her hands together and offered a small nod here and there before ultimately closing her eyes.
"…you remind me of Nikos. He always know just what to say too," Kara said looking at her. "Ah but I respect Nikos a lot I don't mean to be rude in comparison."
Kara raised her hand at this giving a small nod to Alicia.
"I appreciate the advice…really. I think it's all in my head, your advice only seems to cement that point too…I'll put some more thought into it…no…I'll put more action into it."
Kara gave a firm nod at this her gaze moving back to Alicia as he brought up Tari. Her eyebrows lowered slightly and she turned her attention back to sea suddenly finding it hard to look at the woman. She knew Tari would fight to her dying breath…and that reminder worried her more than anything else. She knew at the end of it all, one of them had to be left standing, that was part of their job…but it didn't make it any less painful to think about it.
"I suppose so," Kara said leaving the matter at that.

When she was brought up Kara quickly shook her head raising both her hands up at the very idea that Alicia wanted to learn more about her. She was the last Messenger anyone needed to hear about, compared to the others she was boring…but she had asked and answering it was a bit of a requirement.
"Well I'm not that interesting…but if you want to know," Kara said folding her hands onto her lap. "I come from a small island, the kind you won't find on a map since no one really pays any attention to it. I ran a farm with my parents, I intended on taking over once they got older, maybe marrying and settling down but ultimately that didn't happen."
A small wistful smile found its way onto her features at the memory, there were so many fond moments from her home, she had to return there sometime.
"Why I joined…I disliked what was in front of me," Kara said. "I saw an endless winding road after I left home, and I wondered what lied at the end of it. Most of the time it was bodies, lives I haven't saved, lives that were saved. It was during that time I met Nikos, 'there's more to the world then what you can see, let me show you another side, you can decide what to do from there' is what he told me. I felt…whole I guess. Like a place for me to be, my worries, my fears all seemed so tiny when I took a step back and really looked. I wasn't forced to make any decision, I just had to listen to myself…and I liked it here so I stayed."

She was glad that her advice had landed with the girl and was hopeful that in time she would come to realise the meaning in it. Being compared to Nikos was unexpected though she hadn't really had a conversation with the man enough to know what he was like, though she half expected they would struggle in each others company… or at least there would be plenty of uncomfortable silence. Either way she took no offence to it and simply moved on, giving a small nod in response to her reaction to Tari, which she couldn't blame her for. Whether they liked it or not they were going to fight and someone would have to die, perhaps it was Alicia's wishful thinking in imagining there was another outcome or option available that didn't involve her having to take a life.

Alicia decided to leave that thought alone for now as she listened to Kara's explanation on how she came to be a Raven, finding herself having a somewhat similar experience in how she came to join the Stardusk. "That's a nice story" Alicia replied, "It's not too different from how I joined with the Stardusk but I imagine you already know about that" she said with a small amount of amusement. "It is funny how life works sometimes. I was only meant to travel with them till we reached the next island… then in the blink of an eye I have a very peculiar family and it's years later" she chuckled softly.

Kara gave a very small shake of her head, not towards Alicia's comment on her past, as she appreciated that but more on her knowledge of the woman herself. Alicia was Tari's target, all that information ultimately went to her. At Alicia's comment of family Kara looked over at her, watching the woman's expression for a moment. Her hands gripped her clothes as she watched her, there was plenty to say, a hundred things that came to mind but ultimately she smiled and gave a small nod.
"It is funny isn't it," Kara said. "Almost astonishing how things can turn out."
She turned and looked down at her hands for a moment, recalling the faces of her comrades, their smiles but she shut her eyes pushing the thoughts that threatened to surface aside.
"I'm afraid I don't know how you met them…well not through Tari. Luro was the one that told me. Tari didn't share it with me; felt it wasn't necessary though she gave me your info if I wanted to check myself. I just chose not to. When it comes to my target I'll do my job to the fullest but looking at someone's secrets, background and history who isn't my bounty seems…invasive."
Kara brought a hand to her cheek considering what she did know about Alicia, her first introduction to Stardusk wasn't what she looked into that much she knew.
"Emil knows though, originally he wanted your bounty but Tari stopped him. He was so mad, his angry face is adorable…"
Kara trailed off for a moment a small sigh escaping from her as she lowered her hand.
"It's hard to see my life without them now…Miss Tashigi…no matter how this ends…I won't hold anything against you. I have to protect those I care about…and I think you feel the same. I can't speak for the others but…I understand what you're protecting…just a little."

Alicia was actually surprised to learn that not all of them had collectively explored each of their information, though she supposed she'd assumed on how they'd work so she really shouldn't be too surprised. "I see" she replied before considering Kara's position a little more indepthly, understanding the other side of the fence just a little bit more. "Regretfully, I don't think I can say the same. I can't say I won't hold it against you simply because none of us wanted this fight, if we had things our way we'd see you to the nearest ship or island and part ways with a friendly hand wave" Alicia replied, looking out towards the ocean as she spoke, her tone conveying her regret of the situation. "But we both know that isn't on the cards and so both sides must ultimately do what the situation asks of them" Alicia sighed, "So much of my life has been spent fighting, perhaps their will come a time were a resolution can be found without having to draw blood". She paused and let her mind wonder to her future confrontation with Tari, fantasising and outcome where both could simply walk away. "That being said, should you have survivors I won't pursue them. On the island I allowed my fear for Hanako's safety provoke my temper which is not a feeling I'm familiar with".

Kara offered a smile at Alicia's words, she was a nice person, plenty of Stardusk were nice people. Nikos had told them Stardusk pirates were different when they took them as bounty, she wondered why the others had agreed so wholeheartedly with him but sitting with them now, speaking with them she understood all too well. It was really hard to see the Stardusk as typical pirates; I think that was why most of the Messengers took them. It was more than a challenge, they saw something else in these people, something they couldn't see in the typical pirates.
Carabis was a bigger bounty than Runali, but Nikos had told her once that the bounty of the subject isn't as important as the change can come from their absence. To meet Stardusk, stare them in the eye and see the people they are up close and personal, through fists, sweat and blood.
"…I don't think that's possible in this world," Kara said raising her view to the sky. "So long as one person has a piece of land, and another person has another piece of land, eventually they'll end up fighting each other. It's just in our nature to have conflict."
A small smile found its way on Kara's face and she closed her eyes.
"…yet small moments like this. Enemies standing with each other, talking, accepting. You see this and wonder…why are we trying to kill each other? Are my ideals so important I need to force another to believe them, is my anger so great I have to bring harm to another. Is it stubbornness…foolishness or just habit…"
Kara sighed and lowered her head.
"Each of us are here for a reason, neither side will back down so we've come to this. In a different world…in different circumstances we probably could have been friends."

Kara brought her hand to her cheek offering a small smile
"Oh did I just say something fancy? I'm acting like a proper big sister, Emil will be so happy. Maybe he'll let me pinch his cheeks."
Kara lowered her hand looking over at Alicia remembering what she had told her.
"If you have survivors I can't promise the same…I'm sorry. I'd like too but…my job."
Kara scratched her cheek a bit actually feeling a little bad but she didn't want to lie either.
"For your temper that's why Tari did it," Kara said. "She knows you're not familiar with it, she knows you're not good at confronting it that's why she pulled at it. That's our job to pull at the bits of you that even you don't know about, the parts that can be exploited….but what bothers me is why she did it. I mean Emil stands no chance against Hanako, Tari told me that herself. She sent him in knowing that, in fact the report says they were eating together last I remember. Nikos…was not happy to hear about that…but he did tell him we're in a ceasefire so how can he be so upset at Emil."
Kara puffed her cheeks a bit this crossing her arms over her chest.
"…I don't get what's going through her head this time, she's never acted like this. It's like she's…looking for something from you. Like she needs to confirm something. Nikos and Aira understand what she's doing but neither of them wanna talk about it. They just say it's a 'Tari' thing telling me they'll tell me if we survive."

Alicia was expecting that kind of reply, she'd learned enough about these people to know that even if they survived their duels they would be pursued regardless, but then the Ravens likely weren't the only ones in the world looking to challenge them to a fight, of that much she was sure. "I taught Hanako to the best of my ability, not just in how to wield her sword but also in the virtues and morals of our people and my family. I would expect her to have opted for a peaceful resolution until she was left without a choice, so it doesn't surprise me to hear they're eating together" Alicia replied with a small smile. The swordswoman had trained many students in the past alongside Satia and her father, but Hanako had exceptional talent and appeared to be a fast learner which hastened her climb in skill and ability.

Both of the Tashigi sisters had come to adopt Hanako into their family which is part of why Alicia's temper had been provoked when her safety had come into question. She didn't fear for Satia, partly because Satia wasn't a pirate so she doubted the Ravens would pursue her but also because Satia was also an incredibly strong swordswoman whom had also improved and learned a lot over the previous years. Unlike Alicia however Satia had a fiery temper which she often pushed forwards as a strength rather than a weakness, although the younger Tashigi had grown wiser and calmer with age. "Perhaps Tari expects to find evil within me. If she's grown up in an environment such as the one you explained, and detests me for my… how you say, qualities. Perhaps she hopes to find something in my that justifies my execution, of course this is just a guess".

"Whatever her reasons, your reasons as a whole. It does feel me with a degree of disappointment" Alicia tilted her head slightly, "You're all friends and correct me if I'm mistaken but you all seem to care for each other. You all have talents, strengths and of course weaknesses which are your own… but you would risk it all, for as you say, ideology" Alicia shook her head a little, closing her eyes before looking back to Kara. "It seems like such a waste of life and potential, you could all be so much more than this, make the world better if you willed it so. But then again, I am sitting in a very different position to you and carry with it a different perspective. To you and your friends, this is worth the risk" Alicia lightly shrugged, "I personally do not think so though".

When Alicia offered her guess Kara gave a small nod having come to the same conclusion herself. It made sense if one thought about it, but Tari wouldn't do this much just out of hatred over her person. There were plenty of people that had the qualities she hated, but she didn't point a weapon at them. She wanted to know what about Alicia bothered her; it went beyond who she was but that reason was only known to Tari. She eventually put the thought aside knowing she wasn't going to find a real answer in her own musings, she did chuckle at the idea of Emil sitting with his target and eating. He was probably making an irritated face as he ate from his bowl, glancing over at her every now and then while trying to put off 'evil' vibes to try and scare her away, and she had a feeling that Hanako wasn't reading it.

The very idea of it caused a small giggle to escape from Kara, he was being adorable out of sight and it bothered her that she couldn't see it.
Kara tilted her head at Alicia when she brought them back up, a small smile finding its way onto her face as she mentioned their ideologies and their 'potential'.
"I'm disappointed too you know," Kara said puffing her cheeks a bit. "You guys are so nice, you're good at all kinds of stuff and clearly watch out for each other. Goodness I'd buy a restaurant for Jack tomorrow if he'd retire from Piracy I love his cooking. Yula Fei loves you as well, I doubt you'd have much trouble getting steady work, you even have a school and Zilia's a really good doctor…really good! Everyone here has so much potential and yet you're pirates, I just don't get it…but then again I am in a different position. Maybe it's just worth the risk. I don't think so though."
Kara looked over at Alicia pretending to be mad but eventually she smiled at her stretching her arms above her head.
"Ideologies brought us together…but that's what makes us stay. It's the same for you guys right? Piracy ultimately brought you together…but you guys are pretty bad pirates. You just help people all the time, I mean when's the last time you stole from a ship? I think the last pirate thing you guys did was Kane'arteum. I'm sure you could pick a different line of work and do the same thing."
Kara lowered her arms holding them out in front of her keeping her attention forward.
"We're all different people…each one of us fighting either for the person next to us, or something we gained with those around us," Kara said looking back over at Alicia.
Kara offered a small smile to the woman and lowered her arms resting them in her lap.
"The tiniest difference in our ideals…and we're enemies. Yet we're both too stubborn or proud to change. I find it a waste myself…but neither of us will change. You won't put your weapon aside and I'm no different."
A small laughed escaped from Kara and her gaze lowered to her hands.
"The funniest thing…is this all occurred because of the actions of one person years ago. Because two people met who probably never should have," Kara said closing her eyes. "A silent war waged for years reignited by goodness knows what…"

Kara opened her eyes though she kept her gaze low, she gripped her clothes tightly at the very prospect, she like a few of the others had only waited a few months, but the others had waited years for this moment. Patiently watching, biding their times with hands gripping their weapons, there was no way they'd back down after all that…she felt the same.
"In the end both sides have just been pulled into an old conflict that never resolved. Loyalty keeps some around, revenge for others, but ultimately this war started without us but it can't end without us."
Kara closed her eyes before quickly opening them and placing a hand on her cheek looked back over at Alicia.
"Oh did I just say something nice there? Ohhh where's Emil when I'm like this! He'd always glare and go 'That wasn't nice' but I could always tell he'd be lying. I wish I was in Miss Hanako's place now. I want to eat with Emil…."

Alicia gave a small amused smile at Kara's response. "Actually I don't consider myself to be a pirate, although you're quite right we aren't very good at it" she replied as her smile grew a little at the thought of it. "Runali and the others stepped in to help me save my home from a warlord threatening to destroy Yula Fei, it is a kindness I can not repay in a single lifetime… although it's true my loyalty was earned before that due to the actions and kindness conveyed through their actions which I'd witnessed leading up to that event" she replied. "I'm not here to be a pirate, I have no interest in being a pirate. But they're my friends and I'll support their ambitions for as long as they'll let me". It'd been some time since she'd thought back to that event, the day that ended with the death of her father. The thought caused her smile to fade a little before she decided not to dwell on it any longer.

"If Runali woke tomorrow and ordered us to kill and steal from the undeserving, I'd probably part ways with them. But I have only seen good things come of this crew and it's my privilege to be apart of it" she exhaled a long breath. "I suppose the attack on Kane'Artem wasn't something that could be perceived as good, but you must understand they are a big part of the reason why I still have a home, while there's still a school for my students. I'm sure you would feel similarly in my position". She smiled a little again when Kara commented about saying something nice, giving a single nod of her head, she would have wished her well to see her brother again but to do so would mean Zilia's death which wasn't a thought Alicia could entertain. "Hopefully Hanako is keeping herself out of trouble, while she is an excellent student she does have the habit of rushing into things at times, in no small part due to her age I should think".

Kara gave a small shake of her head at the idea of understanding; she gave a small wave of her hand trying to indicate it was fine.
"I don't judge you for that Miss Tashigi. You're not wrong either I would have probably done the same though I know I'd get chewed out for it. We know what Stardusk have done for you; it's understandable you want to stand by their side."
Kara waved both her hands at this; there was no judgment from the woman herself. Most of the Ravens had few issues with Stardusk that weren't their charges. Nikos felt no ill will towards anyone but Runali and Luro, and the others were the same, Nina, Ria, Kaim, Tari they held little hatred towards the remaining Stardusk.
"We only have problems with our charges. That's the end of it. Personal feelings shouldn't get involved in our line of work so disliking all of you would break that rule. Ria and Nina read with Zilia...I can't join though Ria said no Kara's allowed in their book party…guess it's cause Zilia can't concentrate when I'm nearby."

Kara had noticed the small change in her smile but decided not to press her on the matter, she didn't dig too deeply into Alicia's history but it was probably something sensitive. When she spoke of what would make her leave Stardusk Kara looked over at her arm, towards the tattoo on her wrist. She'd follow Nikos to hell and back but there were lines even she wouldn't cross, thankfully he wasn't that kind of person and she was sure Runali was the same. Alicia was a very strange pirate but she supposed it took all kinds, pirates who didn't want to be pirates existed, Zilia was like that too.
When she brought up Hanako a small chuckle escaped from her, though hearing her mention reckless she sighed and lowered her head.
"Emil is the same way…he's a talented fighter but he always acts without thinking just jumping into everything figuring it'll all work out somehow…it's worrying to those who care about him you know."
Kara pumped her arms raising her head before punching the space in front of her repeatedly.
"Grrr it makes me so mad. I worry all the time but he just does it again and again. I know I gotta be patient since he's younger but hmmmmmmm."
Kara cut herself off lowering her arms, she couldn't stay mad at him for too long and she knew it, not with that adorable face.
"Ah we've been talking for a bit now haven't we? I'm sorry I didn't mean to take up so much of your time. I should return to the others, I'm sure Ria's napping in Zilia's books again. If I don't grab her she'll be impossible to find till morning."
Kara stood up and brushed off her dress offering a smile to Alicia.
"Thank you for the conversation Miss Tashigi."

"Think nothing of it, I rather enjoyed your company" Alicia replied with a small smile, inclining her head forwards respectfully with a single small nod. Once Kara had taken her leave Alicia softly exhaled, closing her eyes before looking out towards the horizon for a moment, contemplating on the conversation a little. Eventually she would close her eyes once more and return to meditating, deciding to let the information sit for a while. Much had been brought to light with how the Ravens worked and the intent behind why they'd chosen to engage them, it was… an interesting if not unfortunate discovery but nonetheless a situation they would all be forced to deal with. Still though, the swordswoman could only wonder who would be left standing at the close of the curtain and what would happen with the result. Only by defeating Tari would she have her answer to that question.


Present

Kara stood in front of Lina's cabin, her hand raised slightly toward the shut door. She moved her hand forward to knock only to pull it back. With a sigh she started to walk away when the door to the room opened, Lina arching her brow at her before making a motion to come inside. Kara responded with nod and closed the door once she entered.
"…it's weird to just stand outside my door without knocking," Lina said returning to her desk.
The Cabin itself was a simple one, maps lined the walls along with an array of compasses and knickknacks Lina had collected on her travels. A small chair rested in the room that Lina would sometimes sleep in if she was working late, though her actual room was somewhere else.
There was a single desk in the center of the room, a large one with a map of the sea on it, Lina leaned over the map lifting up nearby papers and moving small figures around. Kara knew Lina was keeping a tab on all the ships at her disposal moving and adjusting them as need be. There was even one for Lady Luck, which she grabbed and moved after picking up another piece of paper.
"What do you need Kara?" Lina asked her eyes remaining on the paper in her hand.
"…why are you doing this?"
Lina lowered her paper at Kara's question, the Captain giving the woman her full attention at this point as Kara folded her hands together in front of her. The two met eyes Kara doing her best not to break away from the cold woman's gaze.
"Why do you want to know?" Lina questioned.
"…because I don't know. I know why every one of the Messengers fight…but you and Mia…we don't know why you fight."
"Do you need to know my reasons to put your life on the line at my orders," Lina said moving a hand to her hip.
"No Ma'am," Kara said with a small shake of her head. "I just want to know."
Lina remained silent her eyes moving to the map, resting on the figure of Lady Luck. Her question wasn't an unreasonable one, and she couldn't blame Kara for asking it. She was sure the other Messengers had the same question especially after all they went through because of her own judgment.
"Survive."
"Huh?" Kara questioned.
"Survive your fight…and I'll tell you," Lina said.
"…we're fighting to kill Ma'am. That means coming back is...probably not going to happen."
"I know…if you manage to kill Stardusk…and come back alive. I'll tell you everything, at that point they'll be no point in staying quiet about it anymore anyway. I'm afraid I can't answer your question right now though. I want you guys focused on your fight without additional distractions…understand?"
"Of course Ma'am," Kara said bowing slightly. "I'll take my leave."
Kara turned and walked out of the room, she opened the door and started to leave.
"Kara," Lina said.
Kara turned fully to face Lina who walked up to her, reaching her hand towards her she placed a hand on the woman's head ruffling her hair a bit.
"It's okay to have doubts," she said smiling at her. "I trust you guys to do your jobs and come back alive. I'm sorry to keep secrets from you…know that that I don't do it because I want to. You guys aren't just the 'first' hunters to me. Each one of you are your own people, research or not I like my people coming back alive."
Kara stared at Lina and with a smile brought a hand to her stomach and bowed again.
"Of course Leader. I understand completely," Kara said.
"Good," Lina said turning away from her. "I have to go back into Boss mode with my scary face so get going okay."
Lina grinned at Kara before returning to her map and looking back over her reports. Kara gave a small nod and closed the door before making her way back to Tari and Nina.
"Lina's protecting what she has…I have to do better. Everyone's working hard I can't fall behind."

 

[Capt. Blu]

Zilia paced her room or as much as she could given the array of books everywhere, she had been writing down ideas only to scrap and throw them aside. The further she looked for answers the more questions just seemed to rise up. She disliked being in this position, not knowing the answer wasn't a problem, lack of knowledge was understandable and could be resolved with a bit of effort and patience. This was different though, there were pieces and answers everywhere and no matter where she stuck them nothing made any real sense. Setting her book down she decided to go talk to the Captain, thinking about this on her own wasn't do her any good anyway.

"Captain...could we talk? I need your advice with something...it's...kind of private but I have a feeling you'll understand."

Zilia handed the note to Runali before quickly scribbling another and holding it towards her.

"It shouldn't take long."

She stared at Runali holding the second note towards her, clearly doing her utmost not to look desperate...and failing at it.

After everything that happened, Runali was standing by the edge of the ship. She had been absentmindedly rubbing her neck and staring out into the ocean. She was trying to keep her cool but after her outburst, it was difficult. And now that they had to patiently wait to once again meet their attackers, it became even more difficult. Fortunately, or unfortunately, she was more annoyed that she had to wait yet again. There had been way too many close fights for them not to have ended it already. Over and over she went through every detail, connecting pieces that she missed and pieces that she had and should or shouldn't have trusted.

And she would have done that the whole way to their next stop had Zilia not interrupted her thoughts. Runali couldn't help the small jump when she was jolted out of her spiraling thoughts, and she quickly moved her hands to the ship. "Hm." Was the only response the captain gave, followed by a quiet nod. She hooked her fingers together, behind her back and used her head to gesture towards her room- the most private place on the ship.

When the door closed behind her, she started to say 'What's wrong?' but felt that was in bad taste, so she sat down on her desk, away from the splintered pieces Jack damaged and looked at Zilia patiently.

Zilia ended up jumping a bit at the Captain's surprise, she stared at her only offering a nod when she motioned towards her room. Runali also seemed to be lost in thought, she felt a little bit better seeing things were on her mind as well. They were on their way to fight the Messengers, and Luro hadn't left the rum room since they returned, more than likely thinking about what was ahead as well. She didn't have the composure to just accept what was straight ahead without worry, Alicia would more than likely meditate, Sara would work out as she normally did, Kadi would be…well Kadi she couldn't read him for anything and Jack would put on the same smile he always did. She couldn't do that though, she didn't have the stomach to just go about things as usual, not after all of that.

Once they were in the room Zilia took out her notebook and began writing, she had considered the words in her head while in her room but she still felt a bit of hesitation actually putting the words to paper. She forced her hand to keep moving however until she handed the paper to the Captain.
"Sorry to pull you aside Captain. Especially with all that's happened…but everything feels…messed up. I don't expect to make sense of anything in my head, but I still try and the more I do the more fragmented everything seems. Certain things don't make sense, what makes sense has no reason behind it which raises the question if it's even true….and I can't help thinking about it."
Zilia pulled out another page and handed it to Runali.
"That's only part of why I'm here though. I'm wanted to ask you…how do you get past it? Luro's been trying to kill your for…years I think. Yet you guys are still so close, he tried it once with me and I can't help but avoid him. I'm not mad…understanding the madness made it hard to stay mad…but now when I look at his face all I see is…whatever that was on the beach. I figured you could help me sort through this…obviously with everything going on I didn't want to bring this up around the others. I don't know Luro that well but even I can tell something's off so I don't want to push it."

Runali didn't react to the first note, feeling that things being 'messed up' was a bit of an understatement. But she kept that to herself. The second note, however, did make her straighten up a little. It was obvious she was staring at it much longer than it took to read it but it was still quiet. Runali held a contemplative gaze while she looked at the note, only to hand both of them back to Zilia. She let out a deep sigh and looked out the port window. "I've been nothing but honest with you all, and I don't plan on changing that any time soon." It was an odd way to start, but she continued. "I've never gotten past it." The statement was put simply, as if the weight of her words had little meaning. Her expression was calm and focused, but still facing the window. "He hasn't been trying to kill me for years though. He's only said that he wanted to. Only words, never actions. And yet," Runali looked over at Zilia finally. "It's not something I can get past. Nor… do I plan to." Her words hung in the air for a minute before she explained herself.

"Knowing someone has full intent on killing you someday is… unnerving. Knowing that same person is willing to fight for you too? It's confusing, but in a way, oddly motivating. It may not be every hour of everyday, but there have been plenty of times that I thought about that… declaration he made to me. That he planned on killing me one day. And at first I saw it as some sort of sick joke- until I got to get to know him. Then I took it as a… challenge. If I-... Once I make it to that Pirate Lord status, that's when we'd fight. I always- and I still think that maybe at some point, he'd change his mind or I'd change his mind." She paused, remembering the details of when Zilia was the one in Luro's death grip. She remembered her own mix of emotions when it happened and Luro collapsing into the dirt. All of the warnings they had gotten from enemies, she ignored them, wanting to prove them wrong. But the thought of endangering her own crew and having them in unease was a high cost- and she was paying for it. "I don't… have answers you want. I can't tell you that things will be okay later because-" She looked a tad upset for a moment before she continued. "I don't know what will happen later. And I'm not going to tell you to ignore it like it never happened. Luro and I are," Close didn't feel like the right word. After these past few days Runali felt like she didn't know the man at all. "We're friends. Despite all the hell he's raised, he's done a lot of good too. I've been with him long enough to be able to trust that he wouldn't... let just anyone try to kill me." She let out a light and hollow laugh. "I'm not sure doc. Maybe it's just time… and patience. My mentor told me that time heals all wounds... or something like that. But, I never really agreed. It's more like, time keeps you sane and makes it hurt less. So. That day," She referred to when Zilia was attacked. "That day is something you're never going to forget. And it's gonna bother you for awhile. It's instinct. You're protecting yourself and I get it. But my dad says that if I'm gonna sail with strangers I have to be able to trust them with my life and, well," Runali shrugged. "There's a reason I have you guys around."

Zilia leaned against the nearby wall crossing her arms under her chest as the Captain answered, her brows furrowing a bit at the response. She shut her eyes as the Captain's response made perfect sense. Runali wasn't made of stone after all; she couldn't help but respect her a bit for always being 'Captain' when it was needed. She supposed it was a bit hopeful to expect a convenient answer to this problem, a part of her understood that but she hated going in circles so she clung to whatever she could. Runali was right however, this wasn't something so easily put aside, the small flinch that came from bringing up the beach was only a reminder to herself. Even if it was instinct she hated that it was against a friend. Alicia almost killed Sara but the two managed to talk it out and were now closer than ever…but that circumstance was different than this one. Luro came at her with an intent to kill, that was the long and short of it.

"Thank for answering honestly Captain...and thank you for trusting us with your life,"
Zilia handed her the note before fiddling with her bang, she really hoped time would be enough to make it hurt less.
"If I'm being honest myself…I hate this. I hate looking at my friend and basically seeing a stranger. It's painful. I expect some walls to be up it'd be weird if we shared every little thing, when I spoke with Jack I could feel a wall sometimes, I know I've created one with Sara and Alicia. I barely understand Kadi too and sometimes I feel a bit distance from him. I trust each of them but I know we're separate people at the end of it…but with Luro…it wasn't like that. He was so open, I felt little to no distance, metaphorically and sometimes physically unfortunately. It was clear he wasn't telling the whole truth but it never….felt like he was trying to hide anything…and now….now I walk into the same room and it feels like he's standing on a whole other ship. We're miles away from one another…it made me wonder. Is this how it's always been and I just didn't notice? Is that how it is with everyone? Is it just myself, Jack and Sara? It's so painfully clear how far away he is now. Is this the distance he forced…and if it is why? To make it easier to kill us later? To keep us from realizing who he is?"

Zilia reached up and squeezed the bridge of her nose, it ate at her and she disliked looking into his eyes too, it genuinely felt like a whole other person was staring back at her. The way he looked too…almost as if he didn't recognize her.
"I heard rumors that where were multiple Luro's, a Luro of the North, a Luro of the East, A Luro of the West, and Luro of the South. They randomly trade places with one another, pretending to be the other…they play at having bad memory so it's not weird if they don't remember what another Luro does. I doubt there's any reality to it…but the fact I can't say that with utmost confidence bothers me…we don't even know his title. I know next to nothing of the Red Pirates and barely anything of Nova's but I at the very least know their monikers. It's…it's really annoying Captain. I reach for something, anything that I can use to connect…but I just come back empty."

Reading the notes, one by one, Runali slowly ended up putting her head in her hands. She groaned quietly before running her fingers through her hair. It was the most expressive thing she had done since they began talking. "You hate it, how do you think I feel?" Her voice was quiet. What she said wasn't accusatory, but… tired. Her shoulders slumped a little when she leaned on her knees. "I have to make sure bad things like this don't happen. I should've saw all of this coming, but I always put my own actions first. We could have been out of here, ways away by now, but I had to keep digging." The captain at some point had moreso been talking to herself more than she was talking to Zilia. But since she was well aware the doctor was still in her presence, she reeled her own thoughts in and rubbed the back of her neck. "Listen Zilia," Runali kept her voice low and steady. "Everyone has their own… inner demons and skeletons in their closets. What you felt? I can't honestly tell you if it was genuine or not… and I hate not being able to give you a straight answer. I want to give you a straight answer." She stopped talking when her voice sounded strained towards the end, only to breathe. "It's hard to say. I want Luro to explain himself. I can't force him to. I want Jack to stop being so paranoid about things, but I can't force him to do that either. Hell, I want Sara to stop trying to fight Alicia every chance she gets but that's not happening any time soon either. This crew? There's plenty of secrets. Plenty of distance. But at the end of the day, we come together under the one flag.

"I want to tell you that everything is okay. I want to say that you can walk right up to Luro and he'll start rambling about whatever he's building today or you can go on deck and find Jack not having a mental breakdown because he doesn't know who to trust. There's so many things I want-" Her voice cracked and she frowned at the floor. "Nothing's okay right now Zilia. And unfortunately, this is something we'll have to deal with. But sometimes… even when things aren't okay now… they'll be okay later. And that's what gives me hope, you know? At the end of the day, we know that in order to end this we have to kill them. Not the most ideal option, but it's an option… Our backs aren't against the wall just yet. Because if they were… we'd be dead by now. And I'll be damned if I go out by any of those birds." That anger started to build again, but she clenched her fists as if that would stop it.

It changed into something harder to read, but Runali did raise a brow. "...Careful with rumors Zil. They'll only make your head hurt more than it does now. Titles are a fleeting thing. You know the name he goes by and right now? That's enough. Especially considering all of our titles were made by Luro spreading rumors anyway."

Zilia fiddled with her hair, tapping her foot and gripping her sleeves feeling dark emotions start to swirl inside her again, familiar feelings that caused her stomach to church and made her skin crawl. Watching the Captain however pulled her from herself, she slowly relaxed lowering her arms to her sides, her eyes focused on the woman in front of her. She reached a hand out towards her but ended up pulling it back when she was addressed. She felt selfish; Runali was clearly not okay, Captain or not forcing all her worries on her like this wasn't right. She felt a tad disgusted with herself, she couldn't confront this weakness on her own so she attached herself to someone else hoping they could help make sense of it, when it was clearly something she needed to deal with.

The Captain was right though, there was distance…this was the first time she had thought about it as such length, the first time she had truly doubted the actions of another on the crew. Even if she didn't approve of everything they did, she still had faith in them, enough to step in and help at the very least…but now…now felt different.

'…His name is a lie too…but I don't feel like I should say that right now. I get what the Captain means. There's nothing we can do right now…I have to snap out of this. I wanted to change things…but I have no power in this situation. We're forced into a place where we have to act according to whims of another, even if our actions are our own…it's still what's expected of us, what they want from us…but I keep thinking it's not that simple. I feel there's something else, I talked to Lina…I looked her in the eyes when she told me how she became who she is today…I sensed…something in that look…and it wasn't anger or hatred…I've seen enough of that for a lifetime…I thought it was sadness at first but…now I'm not sure...but she could have been lying to me too. I can't exactly ask Luro.'

Zilia pulled out her notebook and turned to a page, she stared at the page her eyes moving up to the Captain for a moment. The familiar bright red mark that rested in her notebook along with a small note at the bottom, an old reminder at first but now it just irritated her to look at it. She turned the page before she began to write again. Kara's words replayed in her head but she pushed them down. Zilia wasn't sure if that's how Runali chose to confront this matter, she wasn't even sure if it was right…but they certainly couldn't depend on the present right now nor the past so she had no argument there.

"You're right Captain…let's just do what we can now. We'll deal with the rest later…we'll bring an end to this…just like we do everything else and keep going. Then give Luro a good punch later for making us worry like this."

Zilia stared at the Captain for a moment after reading the note, she took in a deep breath and stepping forward gave Runali a very brief hug. She took a visibly large step away afterwards and clapped her hands together before turning and making her way out of the cabin, raising a hand to her as thanks again before opening the door.

There were a lot of things she expected from the doctor, however a hug was not one of them. Her and Alicia weren't the 'hugging' type, so when Runali saw her move closer, she couldn't help but stiffen up. Her eye followed Zil as she walked to the door, deciding to stay in her place for the time being. "Yeah…" She started, when Zilia opened the door. "That's the plan." Runali nodded her own quiet thanks before standing to head to the door. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't stay in holed up in her cabin.

 

[Arcadius]

The Sun was just above the evening's horizon, the solar circle seemingly touching the line of the sea in almost perfect geometric fashion. The Navigator was leaning over the helm, the Handbrake, once more, doing most of his work for him. He was preoccupied trying to connect the dots on today's events, and to his surprise, he was failing at that.

Luro got shot. That made sense, at least. Normal.
Captain did not got shot. Also fine, as far as normal days went.
Luro's sister could call in pillars of light from the sky. Not as normal, starting with objective proof that Luro was actually human by proving that he had some kind of family, and ending with the magic. Still, normal in its level of unusual-ness.
Then... the double murder suicide pact, or whatever was between the siblings. This was new. And confusing.

So... mystery! Murder! Confusing family ties and drama! Constant travelling between various islands!

"Best vacation ever," Pathfinder muttered under his breath and grinned. If only Nina was here and he could annoy her by showing her emotions, but life was still great.