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Post by Julius Softpaw on Feb 3, 2014 18:53:42 GMT -5
Julius simply nods after hearing Shoal's offer and heads down to find his bunk. When he enters the room, he heads straight to the farthest back bunk, turning his head to regard the Pegasus named Lucky who had addressed him. "My story?" He chuckles in his quiet, rasping voice. "I'm a mercenary. We don't get 'stories'."
He bows toward the assembled creatures, twirling his quarterstaff behind him. "As for my name, I am Julius Softpaw. It is a pleasure to meet you."
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Dusk Wing
Disciple Pony
You can always trust me to be untrustworthy.
Posts: 64
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Post by Dusk Wing on Feb 4, 2014 12:34:50 GMT -5
Dusk rolled his eyes at Kelp Cutter's introduction. He found the Kelpie's ego to be rather irritating, but figured he could use it to his advantage should he need to. And Lucky's expression told Dusk what he though of Kelp.
Then Shoal and the other griffon came down. Dusk listened to the exchange between his employer and his new companions. He found Julius Softpaw's response to Lucky's question to be lacking. Curious, he became determined to get a straight answer.
"Oh come now Softpaw. If we're going to be exploring the temple, we're going to need to trust each other. Possibly even with our lives. Surly you could at least give us a little more information about yourself than that." He said as he started to circle around the griffon. "Even if you don't want to tell us about your past, there are other things. Like what skills you possess. Certainly you can at least manage that."
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Kelp Cutter
Kelpie
New Kelpie
"No time for idlin'. Adventure awaits!"
Posts: 35
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Post by Kelp Cutter on Feb 4, 2014 17:22:34 GMT -5
"Now that's th' sort of attitude I can get behind," Kelp said to Lucky, having not caught the expression he had made to Dusk. The kelpie skirted up next to the green pegasus, wrapping a foreleg around his shoulder. "Always glad to see individuals interested in learnin' and spreadin' heroic sagas. Need more guys like you, outside-a th' ones playin' music in taverns."
The hippocampus turned his attention to Shoal and the griffon he was bringing with him, who had just arrived below deck. More important, though, was the sound of sea shanties above them. Excellent! Nothing like the sound of a good shanty to kick off a voyage.
An unimpressed Kelp blinked after the griffon had explained who he was. Mercenaries tended to be boring. They didn't care about socializing, they didn't care about the lust of adventure; all that ever really mattered to them was money. From first impressions, this one didn't seem too different. "Eh, let 'em be dark and mysterious if he wants to," he said to Dusk. "Not like I trust you to begin with."
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Post by Stygg Whitefeather on Feb 5, 2014 21:38:54 GMT -5
Shoal nodded in agreement with what Lucky was saying, he certainly had seen his fair share of oddities traveling around the Kingdom and the Kelpie communities. “Right you are, Lucky Charm. That reminds me about the time I saw a regular dog with only two back legs who learned to walked upright, just like Diamond Dog – or maybe it was just a really small Diamond Dog with no arms... Memory is a bit fuzzy on the details.” He awkwardly cleared his throat. “I'll let you all finish with pleasantries. And please, do try and get along. The better this whole thing goes the more bits there will be for all of us.” He reminded the group as he turned to leave, “Oh and think of the poor frightened Hippocampi! Except you Kelp Cutter, not referring to you. Uh, see you on deck.” Shoal departed above quickly after his awkward exchange.
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Post by Lucky Charm on Feb 6, 2014 3:14:31 GMT -5
"Wow, really feelin' the love in the room," Lucky remarked in an uncharacteristic moment of sarcasm. It was good-natured sarcasm, though. "Dusk's right, we need some basic trust if we're gonna get through this. If I'm right about what we're heading into, our lives might depend on it. The ancient Equitarians aren't known for leaving their mysterious, vanishing buildings unguarded."
He set down his saddlebags by the nearest bunk, effectively claiming it. He'd unpack his winter clothes later. "It won't hurt any of us to open up. If any of you have any questions about me, I'm an open book. And Julius," he added, looking at the Griffon in the room, "everyone has a story. You might not think it's very special or interesting, but it's yours. Treasure it." He said this last part with a tone of quiet confidence; the voice of a pony who knew exactly what he was talking about from long experience. The look on his face was at once pleasant and very serious.
And then the moment passed and Lucky was just a smiling Pegasus again. He hopped up onto his bunk, enjoying the gentle rocking of the ship under him. He always liked sailing. It wasn't as exhilirating as flying, but it had a calmer kind of excitement, and he never got tired of watching the sea. Helping the crew was good for building up some muscles, too. He looked up at the others expectantly, figuring someone would have something to say now.
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Post by Julius Softpaw on Feb 6, 2014 10:06:04 GMT -5
After hearing what Dusk said about skills, Julius decided to show them. He grabbed three of the knives from his harness and threw two of them in quick succession at the far wall. Spinning on his heels, he then threw the third one at a nearby barrel.
"I grew up in the Hollow an orphan." He said while walking over to retrieve the knives he threw. "Life was hard, it was either fight for everything you needed, or die. I learned few other skills in my childhood so, once I grew up, I put them to use. I've been a bounty hunter and mercenary ever since. Whosoever holds my contract, holds my utmost loyalty, and right now that is Mr. Whitecap. And, since he hired you lot, I must do what I can in order to keep you alive. That is my 'story'." Once he retrieved all three of his knives he walked back to his bunk and sat down, sighing lightly.
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Dusk Wing
Disciple Pony
You can always trust me to be untrustworthy.
Posts: 64
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Post by Dusk Wing on Feb 7, 2014 14:57:13 GMT -5
Dusk Wing stared at the knife stuck in the barrel. "A bit excessive don't you think?" He asked, shifting his gaze to the griffon. Watching as he retrieved his knives. "Though, you do seem to have a respectable amount of skill."
He then turns to Kelp Cutter. "I can't help but notice, that you haven't told us what your skills are. With a life like yours, I'm certain it will be a decent sized list." He said as he laid down on the bed he claimed as his own. "But probably not too big to fit inside that head of yours."
Dusk then removes his fedora, reaches inside, and pulls out a small pouch containing his lock picks. He then starts to examine the picks to make sure they're in good condition. "I mean, one would expect a kelpie to be like a fish out of water at first. But I can't see why anypony wouldn't want to be friends with you. They probably would have taught you a few useful skills, no?"
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Kelp Cutter
Kelpie
New Kelpie
"No time for idlin'. Adventure awaits!"
Posts: 35
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Post by Kelp Cutter on Feb 7, 2014 17:45:02 GMT -5
Kelp raised an eyebrow as Shoal made his awkward exit, not knowing what the griffon meant by 'frightened hippocampi'. Or at least hoping he didn't. "Told you that guy was creepy."
Not long after Lucky finished speaking, Kelp was caught surprised by Julius suddenly throwing two knives into a nearby wall. The kelpie stared silently at them until Julius had walked over and retrieved. "Hey, warn us next time you're gonna do that. Gonna hurt someone if you're not careful."
Kelp turned to Dusk when the purple pegasus began speaking to him. "Skills? Yeah, I guess I've got skills. Fightin' monsters, explorin' th' unknown, blazin' trails. Those count as skills, right? Look, I know th' whole 'special talent' works differently for ponies; you let it define who you are and how you're gonna live your lives. But I ain't one to be cookie-cutter'd like that. When they're readin' about me in th' history books, they're not gonna say, 'Gee, that Kelp Cutter sure was good as sculptin'.' No, that's not how you get to be a legend. In th' end it's what you do that matters, not that you're-a born prodigy at somethin' or other."
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Post by Stygg Whitefeather on Feb 13, 2014 21:10:30 GMT -5
Above deck, the ship's crew were hard at work high up in the rigging, keeping the ship sailing smoothly across the now open ocean while the winds were favorable and the air crisp. Trottingham was now just a blurry line on the horizon behind the The Golden Ursa and soon the misty, snow capped mountains tops of the Northern Territories would appear a long ways off from the bow, piercing towards the sky.
“Where t'at pegasus!? Water Spout!? Anypony seen Water Spout?” Crusty shouted, looking around deck. A crew-member chimed in that pegasus was out for a wing injury. “B'ah! Swabbie!? Where t'at colt go?”
“Here, Boatswain!” Said an eager young earth-colt, barely older than a foal, as he rushed to Crusty's attention.
“Water Spout is out, you're going up the rigging. Get Mizzen Mast to secure your a chair.” “Aye-aye, Boatswain!” The young colt trotted off.
Within minutes, Mizzen Mast and Swabbie were beside the main-mast, setting up a boatswain chair. The rope and knot swing looked precarious and dangerous. A simple misstep or faulty knot and the entire thing could unravel, giving the poor soul strapped to it a one way ticket to the deck. Routinely, any pegasus crew would operate the highest rigging, sails, and lines but when one was unavailable, the only option was the flimsy rope chair.
“Check the lines!” Crusty called.
“Rigging checked, Boatswain. Tight and sturdy.” Called back Mizzen Mast as Swabbie strapped himself into the chair, pulling on knots and lines to check for faults.
“Secur-” Crusty was abruptly cut-off as the pursuer, a speckled unicorn with a stack of bits and small pursue for a cutie-mark. “Crusty, excuse the interruption, but can you go over the manifest for-” “Not now, don'ta see Crusty working here.” “Aye, but-” “No buts, check it yourself. I'm busy.”
Ignoring the pursuer, “Secure the knots!” Crusty said, just as he spotted Swabbie already being pulled up the mast. “Mizzen, did ya secure the knots!?”
Mizzen appeared sheepish, unsure, and clearly anxious – had he secured the knots? Did he go over them again, he certainly checked the rigging and line to make sure it was strong, but had he gone over the knots? He couldn't recall. “Uh, think so, Boatswain...”
And just as Mizzen and Crustly glanced up to the poor colt high in the rigging, the bowline knot slipped and the boatswans chair gave way along with the pony.
((Admin: One shot event. Only one character can attempt the save, if you think you can perform it, post as only the first will be accepted. Numerous variables based on the efforts by the attempting character will contribute to a success or not.))
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Post by Lucky Charm on Feb 13, 2014 21:56:47 GMT -5
Lucky stared at the Griffon. Those knives had passed so close he could feel the wind on his coat - if his ear hadn't already been missing a chunk, it would be now. He looked back dumbly at the blades embedded in the wall behind him. They were sharp, he could see that immediately, and drove in a good two inches, meaning they were tossed with very impressive force. If Julius' aim had been even a few degrees off he'd be bleeding out if he lived at all. In the face of this reckless use of lethal weapons, Lucky had only one thing to say:
"That. Was. Awesome!" He hopped down to the floor and stamped his forehooves vigorously, grinning a broad, manic grin. "I swear I felt them whoosh by my head! You are amazing at this. You gotta teach me to throw knives like that!" He paused, glancing first at Julius' talons, then at his hoof, then at the knives, then back at Julius. "Or, y'know... as much as... nevermind." He seemed nonplussed for a few moments, then brightened up. "Still awesome, though!"
Lucky looked over at Kelp Cutter as the kelpie finished his diatribe. "I dunno," he began, "there've been some pretty good sculptors whose names are still-" A commotion outside interrupted him. Somepony - Crusty, he thought - was shouting. While that was hardly uncommon on sea voyages, where orders were frequently shouted out, this seemed a particularly irate shout. That usually meant something needed doing and wasn't being done, which Lucky saw as an opportunity. He hadn't had much chance to learn the boatspony's trade the last time he was on a ship. Now he could make up for lost time. "I'm gonna see what that's about," he said, trotting out the door.
Less than a minute later, he was standing up by the helm, looking around for Crusty. He shouldn't be a hard pony to spot, but there was a lot of activity on deck. Plus, somepony was being lifted up on what looked like a chair tied to a bunch of ropes. That struck Lucky as odd. Why go to all that trouble to lift a colt when he had seen Pegasi on deck? At least one Pegasus. And then there were him and Dusk Wing just belowdecks, they would've helped out. He would've, certainly. Lucky stood with his forehooves on the rail, watching nervously. Something seemed off about that-
He heard the cry almost before he saw the chair drop. A knot had come undone and the colt was falling. He was an Earth Pony, and a small one at that - he couldn't survive that drop! There was no time to think. Almost before he realized what he was doing, Lucky's hooves moved, pushing him first up onto the rail, then forward in a leap toward the mast, wings snapping wide even as he jumped.
The traveller's side stung at the still-mending stab wounds, protesting the sudden movement, but the surge of adrenaline drowned out the pain entirely; he barely felt a thing. Muscles honed by frequent run-ins with - and runnings away from - danger of all sorts sprang into action. His forelegs stretched out in front of him as he desperately dove to intercept the falling colt...
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Post by Julius Softpaw on Feb 16, 2014 1:09:49 GMT -5
Julius chuckled and nodded toward Lucky. "I like you. If we have time, perhaps I might." He then turned toward Kelp, his smile gone. "Is the enemy going to warn you of where he will strike?" With that said, Julius turned once again to Lucky, following him up to the deck. "I'll come with you. I need to stretch my wings anyways."
Julius emerged from below just in time to see Lucky launching himself to save a falling colt. Without even thinking, he raced to the railing, muscles tense, prepared to launch himself toward the colt, should Lucky not catch him in time.
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Post by Stygg Whitefeather on Feb 16, 2014 2:22:51 GMT -5
Lucky Charm, despite the surge of adrenaline drowning out the pain, his body failed him in the end and he suddenly seized up in his dive for the falling colt and stopped just short of the pony's tragic trajectory down to the deck. The young colt hit first, his body making a terrible thump and crunching snap. Lucky landed beside him, winded and in pain from his old wounds but no worse for ware. The crew rushed to their aid, Crusty immediately coming to the aid of his shipmate - Shoal was beside Lucky, frantically asking if he was alright, could he move, and if he can stand.
"He's dead." Crusty grumbled, standing back up on his hooves. A sudden somberness overtook the crew gathered around as they removing their hats and bowed their heads. Mizzen appeared nervous, standing aloof as he tried to mumble out words and excuses, but as the stoic gaze of his captain fell upon him, he quickly seized up.
"Bring the body below." The Captain commanded, "And Boatswain, deal with Mizzen." The captain turned away and returned to the wheel.
"Alright, you heard the captain. Clean this deck up - and Mizzen, you're helping me with deal with the Swabs body then I'm going deal with you. Everypony, move your backsides!" Crusty called and soon the deck had returned to some semblance of normality.
"It was a valiant effort, Lucky Charm." Shoal said, watching as Mizzen and Crusty dragged the body below. "Pity the poor colt didn't carry your namesake. Least, you're ok, right? Nothing broken? You'll be fine for the trek, yes?" He looked over the pony, though his concern may be more for the sake of the endeavor than out of genuine concern.
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Post by Lucky Charm on Feb 16, 2014 7:29:19 GMT -5
Lucky barely heard Shoal's attempts at consolation. He watched as the swabbie was carried belowdecks, ears drooping and eyes downcast. Several moments after the body was gone, he looked up at Shoal. "Yeah," he said weakly, "think so." It occurred to him to actually check his side, but despite the trouble the stitches seemed to have held. There was no blood, at least. "I... I think I'd like to have something to do. Around the ship. Take my mind off... things."
Luck, he knew, had nothing to do with what had just happened. His wing had spasmed at the wrong moment because of the injury in his side, and he was injured because of his own stupidity back in Royal Rocks. He could smile and soldier on just fine when he was the only one hurt by his mistakes, but now a colt was dead because he had been an idiot. It wasn't the first time he'd seen death, but it was the first time he felt the guilt on his own shoulders.
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Post by Julius Softpaw on Feb 16, 2014 14:55:00 GMT -5
Julius, already in the air, landed softly next to Lucky. After muttering a small prayer for the dead colt, he placed a comforting claw on Lucky's shoulders. "There was nothing we could have done, my friend. This was not your fault." He then turned to look at Shoal, his trademark smirk gone. "If you don't mind, sir, I would like the same."
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Dusk Wing
Disciple Pony
You can always trust me to be untrustworthy.
Posts: 64
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Post by Dusk Wing on Feb 17, 2014 21:24:38 GMT -5
Dusk listened to Kelp Cutter's boasting as he continued to examine his lock picks. He smirked with the knowledge that his subtle quips went right over the Kelpie's head. His smirk became a grin when he felt satisfied that the picks were fine. So he closed the pouch, placed it back in his hat, and put the hat back on his head.
He heard the shouting coming from above deck. Out of idle curiosity he followed Softpaw and Lucky outside. His eyes widened in shock at the sight of the falling colt. He just stood by and watched as Lucky launched himself at the kid, only to take a nose dive on the deck. The crunch sound made when the colt hit the deck caused Dusk to wince.
Upon hearing the declaration that the colt was dead, Dusk removed his fedora and bowed his head in respect. Once he had it back on his head again Dusk walked over to where Shoal, Lucky, and Softpaw were conversing. As he approached he managed to catch a bit of their conversation.
"We could all use something to do." Dusk stated with a concerned glance at the downtrodden Lucky. "Something to distract us from this tragedy."
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