Leaving so Soon?

Lucius relaxed his stance, prompting Hana to do the same as he surveyed the new arrivals. If he had been asked to create the image of a sea captain in his head, then Astora would be the most stereotypical example he could’ve come up with. She perfectly fit the term to the letter, and seemed to be perfectly fine with that.

“Sounds like you were expecting us. Did someone tell you about us?” One of the sailors, or so Lucius assumed, shouted at him angrily,

“Oi! You address the Captain as ‘Captain’! Got that?” The man made to advance on him, But Astora shot him down with a glare before turning back to Lucius with a smile, “Oh pipe down, I ain’t captain of anything while on land, so give the lad a break. And I expect you lot to teach him right, understand?”

She was responded to by a chorus of, “Yes, ma’am!” from everyone, except as Lucius noted, the woman in black. Smiling at the obedience of her team, Astora turned her attention back on Lucius, “As for you, all I got told was that I had two passengers bein’ added to my manifest. Didn’t hear who or why, only that they were trustworthy and wouldn’t get in our way. I take it that’s you?”

“Yeah, that’s us. We’d like to leave sooner rather than later. We got in the way of someone high up, and they’re looking for us. We’d like to be long gone before they do.” Astora’s smile broadened, as if she approved of the motive, “Trouble with the law, eh? Well, I’m sure you’ll fit right in with us, lad.”

A hearty chuckle of approval came from the surrounding sailors, which got Lucius wondering about how legitimate this captain was. Hana stepped out from behind Lucius and huffed loudly, “Couldn’t you have done this a little more nicely? You scared us half to death just now!”

Astora blinked in surprise at the brazen interruption, her attention focusing in on Hana, who stood defiantly against the taller woman. For a second, he thought that the comment would earn her a reprimand, or at least some kind of dismissive comment. Instead, Astora’s features seemed to grow softer and more affable, her amber eyes glinting with a renewed sense of interest and passion. She stepped forward, brushing Lucius aside with her hips so she could stand directly in front of Hana. Now that they were closer, Lucius was in awe of the true scope of Captain Astora, and he began to understand why she could command so much respect with just her mere presence.

Compared to Hana, Astora was easily more than two heads taller and was far broader at the shoulders. Though weathered by the sun, her skin still radiated beauty and vigor, not that Lucius had any inkling as to how old she was. But by far the most impressive quality about Astora was the invisible aura of pure confidence that seemed to emanate from her every pore. Simply by being near her, Lucius could feel his every muscle being energized as his mind raced with newfound adrenaline. He had met these kinds of people a few times during his life, and his brother Julius was one of them. She belonged to a rare, exclusive club of individuals who were born to lead. They possessed an uninheritable and unteachable skill to command; not with words, but with sheer force of presence.

As impressive as she was, Hana appeared to be largely unfazed by her aura, matching her eye to eye despite having to crane her neck back to keep contact. Astora gazed down at her for some time, a strange sparkle shimmering within the depths of her eyes, until she murmured in hushed awe,

“You…are beautiful…”

“HUH!?”

It was impossible to tell between Lucius or Hana which was more surprised, though the rest of the sailors didn’t seem all too shocked. A few of them let out exaggerated sighs while one rolled her eyes and complained, “Ah great, Captain’s at it again.” Lucius might as well have been nailed to the floor, feeling as though he had gotten a haymaker from a giant. Hana seemed to be equally taken aback, so much so that her usual cutting with seemed to be failing as Astora pressed the attack.

“Such a beautiful maiden. Would you, by chance, be an emissary of the goddess Niphra? You know, the Lady of Ephemeral Beauty? She who crafts all that as lovely, exquisite and…erotic?” Lucius received another giant gut punch, “Did she need to put so much emphasis on that last word!!? What the hells is this?”

She reached out with her pointer finger and carefully, as though she were handling a priceless artifact, touched the underside of Hana’s chin. Lucius may have been able to forgive the impulse from Astora, as he had been starting to wonder about similar things as of recent, but by far the greatest blow to his mentality was the fact that Hana responded by tilting her head back, like an obedient pet.

“Oh yes, I can see it now,” Astora cooed, “Fair beauty, have you ever seen your reflection in a mirror? If so, I am sure those mirrors are weeping now, for they know that they shall never hold such an image again. And those eyes…I yearn to drown myself in them. Would you mind if I beheld them, just a little longer?”

“I…I…uh, well…ahh…ehehe….”

Hana stammered out nonsense, completely wrapped up in the captain’s whirlpool of charisma. Her breathing had noticeably increased in pace and her cheeks reddened with each passing second. Lucius hopefully was imagining it, but he thought for just a moment that he saw a faint bit of motion from where her tail was hidden beneath the cloak. A new feeling began to chew its way through his gut, one that left a horrid acrid feeling in his throat.

He was jealous. He wanted to put a stop to this immediately, force Astora to back the hells off and act more dignified. But as much as he wanted to do so, his body would simply not obey. The sheer force of presence coming off Astora was so strong that he could not summon up the courage to approach, and he could only watch in misery as Hana continued to be sucked in.

Something moved from the corner of his eyes, followed quickly by a cry of pain from Astora, who slumped to the ground in an undignified heap. Lucius blinked, the reverie gone as all returned to their senses. The woman in black stood over Astora’s unconscious body, her eyes smoldering with a dangerous and unknown emotion. Though she was far slimmer than Astora, she heaved the murmuring captain over her shoulder and began to drag her back down the length of the pier. A nearby sailor shrugged, a wide grin on his face,

“Alright you lot, show’s over! Get the last of yer gear and report to the ship in fifteen minutes!” The onlookers disbanded at once, dashing off into the crowds and out of sight. The large man with heavily scarred arms turned back to Lucius and Hana, who was still recovering from Astora’s advances,

“You two, grab yer jaws off the deck and follow me. I’ll take ya to the Wavecutter. Captain should be in her right mind by then!” Finally freed from the spell, Lucius awkwardly sidled up to Hana as she waved a hand in front of her face in a feeble attempt to cool down. The acrid taste still lingered in his chest, especially as he saw how brightly her eyes glowed as she watched the captain being dragged away.

“So…uh, you good?” Hana jumped slightly, seemingly unaware that he was nearby,

“What? Me? Oh, yes. I am just, perfectly, absolutely fine. So, walking, yes. Let us go.” She started after the sailor, leaving Lucius to catch up, still stinging from his failure to act. The pair followed their guide through the maze of action, walking along the harbor’s pathways towards its farthest end.

“Take a look, that’s our new home, the Wavecutter. Ain’t she a beauty?”

He pointed across to a ship moored at pier, prompting a simultaneous gasp of admiration from both Lucius and Hana. He estimated the Wavecutter to be around two hundred or so feet in length, though the width of the deck felt narrower than what he was expecting. Three large masts were placed at intervals along the ship’s length, the amount of rigging that spread between them gave the impression of a jungle put to sea. Heavy rolls of canvas were carefully ties to the tops of the masts, while a couple of humanoid shadows moved about the peaks of the trees with careful and practiced steps. A long, arm-like beam hung far out over the surface of the water, only a few feet from the lapping azure beneath. The hull was painted dark colors, with the occasional beam near to the surface of the deck painted a bright white. Though he was largely uneducated in naval craft, Lucius could see that the Wavecutter was a sleek ship, designed for speed and efficiency. It truly was a beautiful piece of engineering.

As they drew closer to the ship, Lucius spotted the woman in black hauling the captain aboard, dumping the brightly colored body towards the rear of the ship and then beginning to walk down its length. He followed her with his eyes, unable to tear himself away, but he could not understand why. There was simply something…fascinating about the small woman that he couldn’t figure out. But he did want to know more. A large hand clapped him on the shoulder and he looked up to the tall, scarred sailor, who seemed to know what he was up to,

“Ah, I see you found our resident mystery. Careful there lad, if she don’t like the way you’re lookin’ at her, she’ll take those eyes right from yer skull.”

Well now he really had to know who this person was, “Who is she? What does she do?” The older man gave a gap-toothed smile, “That there is the Wavecutter’s first mate, most folks who wanna stay alive call her Blacktern. Only the Captain knows her real name, if she’s even got one. They’re in with each other good, if ya catch my drift! Ha!”

He slapped Lucius on the back to emphasize his point, though Lucius didn’t really understand what he was getting at. Though he was sure that information he had just gotten was meant to intimidate him, it did the exact opposite. He very much wanted to meet this Blacktern and see what it was that held his attention so deeply. The sailor said they could board when they were ready, as final preparations for departure were underway. The pair hesitated in front of the gangplank, which was what the sailor had called the piece of wood connecting the ship to the dock, and contemplated what they were about to do,

“You sure you’re okay with this, Hana? We can find another way, if you want.” She shook her head with, as he saw it, a little too much excitement, “No, no, this is fine. It’s just, very impressive to see all this. I had no idea people were capable of such things. A home that floats on the water…what a wonderful idea! I think I am going to like these boats!”

“Well then, we should probably get going, there’s no telling how close Salerius’ cronies are. Sooner we get out of here, the better.”

They were barely halfway up the gangplank, taking their time as neither trusted it too much, when Lucius spotted a lot of movement coming from where they had just been. Pausing to get a better look, he spied a group of armored individuals forcing their way through the crowds, headed by an angry looking man with blonde hair. Lucius’ chest tightened as he recognized who was heading his way,

“Shit! Hana, we need to move, Salerius is right there!” Hana’s eyes went wide as she swiveled about, confirming what he saw. Grabbing her hand in his, he pulled her up the gangplank and jumped onto the deck. The sailors who were going about their duties noticed the odd behavior, and some paused trying to figure out what had caused it. A sharp, confident voice barked out from near the wheel,

“When did I say it was break time? Keep going you worthless lagabouts!” Captain Astora had apparently recovered and was surveying the deck and the surrounding area. She paused momentarily as she looked back towards the disturbance,

“Hey, you there. Guy with the pretty girl, that the one you’re runnin’ from?”

Lucius called back from where he was hiding behind a stack of rope, “The name’s Lucius, by the way. And yeah, that’s him!” A wide grin spread across her face, “Yeah, I can see why. I really hate his face. Don’t you worry, beautiful lady. He won’t be able to harm you anymore.”

Lucius was really starting to get annoyed with this captain’s mannerisms, and wondered if he could figure out a way to get a refund for all his efforts. Astora, either unaware of uncaring of Lucius’ frustrated glare, leaned out over the stern and shouted into the crowd,

“Oi! Sherar! That you I spy?”

A man with skin the color of ebony and dressed in official robes stopped in his tracks and called back in a warm baritone, “Aye, glad to see you, Astora! You pay your docking fare yet?” She laughed heartily, “Haha! What an excellent jokester you are, Sherar! See that group of rabble-rousers busting their way through everything? I need you to delay ‘em until our tow gets here! I can count on you, yeah?”

Sherar paused to consider, then sighed as his shoulders slumped in defeat, “Very well, I will think of something. But your next fee will be doubled to compensate!” Astora blew him a kiss and sauntered back onto the deck,

“Alright you lot! I want us seabound in three! Sherar is good, but he won’t hold ‘em forever! Get motivated, everyone! We’re shipping out!” The deck thrummed with a vigorous shout from all the present crew, who began to move with greater speed and purpose. Astora gestured to Lucius and Hana, “Up here, you two. You’ll get a better view up here, and you won’t get run over!” They took her up on the offer, though Lucius made sure to stand between Hana and the captain.

Within minutes, Lucius felt the boat lurch forward, its moorings cast off and the gangplank withdrawn back onto the deck. The Wavecutter slowly began to pull away from the dock, and not a moment too soon. Salerius and a squad of soldiers dashed to the end of the dock, but it was too late for them to do much of anything. Lucius stared back at the furious nobleman, who was far from the image of stately perfection that he had portrayed in the streets. Lucius smiled and gave a little wave, which had the desired effect of sending Salerius into an undignified rage. Then, he had an even better idea, and stuck up his middle finger at the frothing noble.

Hana tilted her head, “What does that gesture mean? I don’t think he likes it.” Lucius nodded in agreement, “Of course he doesn’t. It is a very rude way of saying that you really don’t like somebody, so don’t do this often.”

“Huh, very interesting. Can I join?”

“Absolutely!”

It was such a sweet sight for Lucius; as two middle fingers saluted the end for Salerius, who was in process of being approached by a large contingent of the city guard while the Wavecutter slowly slipped away from Atin.

They were free.