#3: The Pirate Life Ain't That Bad!!

"So, you have no ulterior motives, right?"

"None at all!"

Haekos was being flooded with questions... And she was taking it like a champ. The young White Mane with the turquoise pelt then tapped Haekos on the shoulder. She turned, and faced the Aetyr behind her. "Oh, heya! You're...?" Haekos asked, tilting her head. The turquoise Aetyr bowed. He looked a bit nervous. "Hello. Hi. I'm Khrys Gaztern. I'm the son of the captain. It's. VERY nice to meet you. Heh." He seemed unusually awkward. Haekos couldn't help but smile. "Nice to meet you, Son-Of-The-Captain! Or Khrys. I like that name!" she beamed.

Khrys's tail wagged. "Really? Thank you! H-Haekos is a nice name too!" He seemed to be quite the excitable kind. Haekos's tail also wagged. They were both happy. They seemed to become friends quite quickly. They ran off together to talk some more.

"So... What was it like? Being a noble and stuff?" Khrys inquired. Haekos groaned a bit. "It was lame. Just a bunch of math and politics and lectures. So many lectures. You can't go out like, ever, and all the other noble kids are just complete buzzkills. They have no idea how to have fun..." she grumbled. Khrys looked off into the sea. "Well... You're a noble, and you're not a buzzkill to me." said Khrys. Haekos smiled. "Daww. You're pretty cool yourself."

The ship was very active, dying to know of the Black Mane who had become a new member,. There were many people stopping their cleaning to ask about why she joined, but now that she was talking with a new friend, they start going for the White Mane who had accompanied her.

Palinorus was standing around, eating an apple he had found among a bunch. The electric White Mane from before approached him, with a smirk. "How's my Tornado, hmmm?" The White Mane leaned on the railing next to him, and Palinorus frowned. "I'm not yours. What do you want." He snapped. The electric White Mane grinned, revealing his unusually shark-like teeth. 

"I just wanna get to know ya... I gotta learn more 'bout a new crewmate..." he purred, leaning in the direction of the other.. Palinorus straightened his posture, taking another bite out of the apple. "I'm Palinorus Anaan, I'm 19, and I'm Haekos's caretaker," he said, with no joy. The White Mane smiled smugly. "You kinda look like a player. You have the face of one, I thought you'd be more confident." he chirped, teasingly. Palinorus cringed, and blew wind in his face with his hand.

The White Mane chucked, and shook his head, putting his mane back in the spiked style it was before. "Aight, aight, now I'll introduce myself. I'm Saal Kyvari. And I'm the lightning before the thunder." He made some electricity spark out of his hand. The other didn't seem very impressed. The two kept on talking, and eventually Palinorus started to enjoy himself a bit.

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Navereign laid in his bed, every inch of his body burning in agony. It was late, yet he couldn't sleep. He was too tired to walk, yet too wakeful to sleep. It wasn't out of the ordinary for this to happen. He'll just ask for some soup with some medicine, he thought. Suddenly, he felt a gust of wind. He jolted and sat up a bit. He looked around and saw that the window was open. "W-who's there! I command you to show yourself at once...!

Suddenly, Navereign heard a voice come out from the darkness.

"As you wish."

In a burst of light, a youthful looking Black Maned Aetyr appeared. Her mane was styled in an angular bob, her pelt was a pale violet color, akin to the color of peonies, and her eyes were a warm, vibrant amber— yet her eyes were anything but warm. They appeared almost doll-like... as if they were made to look like they have life, but something isn't right. At least she wasn't smiling. The eyes matched her emotionless expression. She wore a dark robe that covered her whole body... The color was unintelligible.

Navereign felt his body relax, and a wave of relief washes over him... It was almost surreal, how euphoric his body felt.

Another Aetyr appears, and stands next to the younger Black Mane. They had bandages on every part of their body, except for their eyes, ears, and tail, and they wore the same robe the young Black Mane was wearing, only modified to be shorter. They had a mane longer than any Aetryim he had seen before, and it was mostly black, until it faded to white at the roots and the tips. The Aetyr had their paws out towards Navereign, surrounding him in an almost aurora-like glow. Navereign straightened his posture, and looked to the two Aetryim.

"Who are you two? What do you want from me? What are you two doing here?" he asked, slightly afraid. The young Black Mane approached the bed. "I'm Clementia, and I'm here.. for you." She said, hovering her head over Navereign's. He fell back. "How would you like to stop feeling this pain? To leave this bed, and have the freedom to do what you want?" she gently spoke, with a tone of persuasion. Navereign perked up. "You can get me out of here?" He whispered with curiosity. The young black mane nodded. "Yes. But in exchange, join me and my clan." She walked back next to the bandaged Aetryim, and puts a hand on their shoulder. "Anais here was like you, forever trapped in their body, feeling pain they never wanted to feel.. But now, they're here, helping me out." The Black Mane turned back to Navereign, tilting her head. "The choice is yours, of course. You don't have to leave-"

"I'll do it."

Navereign looked directly at young Black Mane. She looked a bit shocked at how quickly he was to agree, but she regained her composure. "Very well, then." She walked back to the side of the bed, and placed a paw on Navereign's head. He fell asleep instantly.

"Rest well. There's nothing else you can do now, anyway.."