It was no shock to Calhoun Ryder that the first place he found acceptable after leaving the portal was what lay before home. A smirk tugged at his lips as he stood tall above the cliffs, watching the water just beneath the sharp drop off. Crystalline blue crashed against the cliffs where it met the rockface that sharply clawed towards a sky of pale azure. It was not Nassau. That much was clear. It was not his home. But it would do. It could someplace he and Arronax could put down roots for the time being.
Slowly he pushed a calm breath from his lungs as he let himself follow it by drawing in the scents on the humid, thick air. Salt and brine was heavy amid the scents of sand and foliage. Sweet in his nostrils as he let the warm winds rake long, invisible fingers through the dark locks that hung on either side of his neck. They found their way through the heavy, beachy waves and tugged at them as the Captain took in what lay ahead of him. Open ocean that expanded as far as the eye could see. Whatever this place was.
Wherever they were it didn’t matter. What did was he had found a place untouched by the magic here. And while he himself was not it was something he could protect. Something he could offer as home to not only himself but the stallion he loved. Though admittedly it was strange to accept what they bother were now. Knowing Arronax he was likely trying to see to building them some sort of shelter. He truly never laid off the work but Ryder knew better than to interfere with him when he was locked on a task as such. But for the moment Ryder had his mind on one thing.
Slowly he made a sharp turn to port, coming about an entire 180 degrees before taking quite a few long, lengthy strides to the end of the cliff. Taking a slow breath he focused his attention on exactly what he had planned. Pushing out that breath as he closed the fierce, gale filled blue pool he suddenly snapped them open and swung on his haunches.
His weight was thrown backward and he lunged forward. A massive stride followed by another. Hooves slamming to the stoney surface bellow, offering thunder in his wake as he shot for the edge of the cliff. There was a determination in his gaze. No fear shown as he charged onward. Muscles coiled and released with every movement, shifting in time with his gait. The last possible second he collected his weight and pushed off.
Airborne.
A leap outward away from the cliff before tucking the powerful limbs a smirk dancing across his features as he knew from what lay before him he’d cleared the danger of the rocks. And just like that the ocean rushed to meet the Captain. The long drop being met by the splash of his body meeting the denser liquid. Ryder gave it no mind, drawing a breath just before the contact and quickly shifting into a dive the second his body was submerged.
There was something oddly peaceful about the sea surrounding you. Pulling you down as it wrapped her fingers around out. It was something of soothing sensation. Your body became slow and you had to rely on your strength to make everything work. Power and how long you could hold your breath became the only things that matters. Two simple things. Everything else melted away and you allowed yourself to forget every thought outside of the underwater world around you.
It was something Ryder lived for. Something he enjoyed just as much as violence, as battles at sea and nearly as the man he loved without question. His soul found peace here. And it was nice to see that that had not changed. He still belonged here. It still welcomed him like it always had. At the very least he had Arronax and his freedom. He could not ask for more than that.
How long he dove for or to what distance he’d gone did not matter. Not until his lungs desperately begged for him to surface and when he did he found himself taking in a deep, heavy inhale of the salt ladened humid air as he treaded water. When he could handle another dive he took the chance. This time purposefully pushing himself deeper than before.
Further.
And perhaps this process went on for hours before Ryder only knew he needed to swim back before he exhausted himself entirely. It did not take long to find shore. But he very quickly accessed he’d gotten much farther away from where he had taken his first dive from than intended.
But that quickly became of no concern.
Not with what he set his gaze on.
For there on the beach, the red flag still raised was a sight he could not begin to fathom would bring so much relief as it did now.
The Ranger.
She was clearly damaged. Battered and slightly waterlogged. But she was in tact. Ryder made no attempts to hold back, pushing himself far more quickly to shore and quickly charging across the open sand to the wrecked behemoth with a clear look of excitement on his features, undertones of releif dancing there as well. As he neared the massive ship his gaze scanned over her with a slow sigh. A smirk danced for a moment and slowly followed into a chorus of relieved and rather pleased laughter, deep and echoing as he stared up at the rather massive piece of the life he once had.
“Perhaps this is not goin’ to be so fuckin’ bad after all…”
He smirked. Ryder knew he should go see Arronax and tell him the news but one thought crossed his mind first.
“...Let’s see how bad those Navy bastards damage yeh, first, huh?”
1000 WORDS - @Rift Presence / Anyone else who wants to join in Ryder’s Quest to get the Ranger back - Ryder is now a very happy pirate. His baby his damaged but she is here. She shall be fixed. No other option.
05-04-2018, 08:53 AM (This post was last modified: 05-04-2018, 08:55 AM by Rift Presence.)
A dark wind blows over you laughing and tugging at your mane. 'What a beautiful ship you once had.' It croons mockingly in your head. Horses were such foolish creatures. The wind left the blue hued man to inspect his shattered boat. It giggled with wicked glee as it inspected the wreckage. It wove around splintered boards and ripped masts. Beautiful work the sea had done to the once proud vessel. Still giggling madly the wind went back to the stallion. It pulled at his braids and lashed at his sides before vanishing as if nothing had happened.
Calhoun Ryder In order to fix your ship you must trial to fix the following items;
1: The Main, and Gaff Sails
2: A large hole in the Bow
3: Shattered and missing boards on the Quarter(main) deck
4: A gaping hole in the starboard side
5: Replace the Main and Fore Masts
05-05-2018, 04:21 AM (This post was last modified: 05-05-2018, 04:26 AM by K'yarie.)
K'yarie
She emerged from the darkness. A creature blacker than a moonless night. Yet if one were to look closer, they would see ghostly memories of galaxy and cosmos dancing within the inky pools of her flesh. The darkness seemed to draw towards her, the shadows danced at her feet. Only her white mask stood out against the eternal blackness, framing violet eyes. A beaded net of silver and purple purls adorned her head and mane like a delicate crown. She was a creature of pure power and perfection.
She exuded a mysterious, forbidden allure. A tantalizing prize that no man could obtain. She was a goddess, an enteral being of shadow and stars. Like a jungle cat, she was the epitome of elegance and danger. If the air that hung around her like a thick aura did not speak of this, the gold and bronze armor lining her spine spoke of a maiden built for battle and ballrooms alike. She seemed to glide across the ground as she appeared from the depths of the ship.. Her form framed by the gapping hole in its wooden flesh. Ryder had not been the only one to find the ship today.
Six orbs of light lazily drifted out of her fur, as if leaving a stream of stars drifting across her pelt, to float about her. They whispered words of an ancient tongue from beyond the grave. A ship, pulled from another world. One whispered. Marred and beaten she should have sunk with the ships her crew has claimed. Another hissed. Blood! Blood and death. Fear and anger. A demon lived here.
A demon. A demon. A demon. They all sang as the form of Ryder strode into view. They continued to dance and sing in a voice only K'yarie and those connected to spirits could understand. Though the woman had yet to meet another who understood her ghostly companions. Only hearing the ancient, mysterious speech that seemed to drift from their burning forms. Adding to the enigma that was the star-kissed maiden.
talk talk talk talk
Fear not this Night. You will not go Astray Though shadows fall, still the Stars find their way
The air felt heavy
Dark.
Foreboding.
Something laughed in his ears. Haunting tunes to crooned something others might not heart. But it was not the mocking of the wind that brought the sense of dread into his bones. It was what he saw. His head seared once more. Pain shooting across his skull and causing a bright white flash that nearly brought him to his knees. If not for his stubborn will he would have buckled under it. Instead he leaned into the agony and braced himself on all fours.
Like daggers piercing his flesh his head screeched and howled. Roaring and growling in its fervorous ire. It would be a long few seconds that felt more like eternity before the brunt of the pain receded and Ryder was able to see again. Slowly he pushed a breath from his lungs, letting the dull throbbing exist as his mind dwelled on the mad, raucous laughter as the fingers of this seemingly sentient breeze tugged at the thick braids and threw itself against his sides. And then it was gone.
This summoned an aggravated snarl from the pirate as he attempted to focus his attention upward. Slowly his gaze swept the full first. Two yawning holes struck him first. One on the starboard side and the other near the bow, just beneath the bowsprit. A scan upward from the bow itself allowed Ryder’s attention to settle on the gaff sails. Torn and tattered. Much like the main sails on all three masts. The hung like sheets over the yard arms and danced on the hot, muggy breeze.
Ryder sighed slowly.
The main and fore masts were in desperate need of replacement and even from where he stood he could see the damage in the boards of the Quarter deck. He knew exactly what this damage resembled. How many times he’d ordered the same done to other ships. But he remembered none of this. It was a vacant hole in his memory that was not only inconvenient but it caused an sickly feeling of fury. He questioned himself as to how he could allow this to happen. What had taken place. What had become of his crew. Why in the fuck they were not here but Arronax was. Not that he was not more than thankful now the man made it out alive. If something had happened to Arronax… Ryder didn’t dare think so such a thought. However he didn’t have to for long.
Something else was here.
Something Ryder did not care to deal with at the moment.
A sharp swing of his head caught sight of a mare. A mare who had been IN HIS SHIP! Ryder released an ungodly roar of fury. Rage pouring from his chest as he lurched a few long stepts forward to eat up the ground between himself and the mare. Towering over her as his gaze narrowed. His mood entirely shifted after taking in the damage and realizing there was such a big hole missing in his memory. Quite possibly one that told of what had befallen his crew and his ship. His ears laced to his skull and he raised a lip to show sharp, carnivorous teeth as a single hoof cut a long scar in the pallid sands beneath him. His gaze cut through the mare, dwelling on the whispers of the vaporous clouds that danced around her skull. Speaking things they knew not of. “And what would a gaseous ball of spirit know of the truth? If yeh weren’t already dead I’d kill all six of yeh where yeh stand.” He snarled the words however the rolled off his tongue in language the mare likely would no know. The tongue of The Devil and the Infernal. A language known only to demons. He snapped his gaze back to the mare, once more letting words leave his lips in a rasp that was thickly accented with two native accents. The undertones spoke of his life in the Caribbean, Faint but they existed. The one that stood out, though still a bit more faint than most accents, was that of a native of England. All of it was a deep, gravelly tone that was thick with a rough rasp. “And yeh, how about yeh tell yerh fuckin’ friends to shut their mouths. AND STAY OFF MY FUCKIN’ SHIP! I GOT WORK TO DO...”
He snarled. He wanted to kill her. Kill her just because he was furious but he managed to check his anger for the moment. “... Not like it is goin’ to fuckin’ get done anyway… no fuckin thumbs. Hell no fuckin’ hands period...”
An annoyed howl of rage ripped his chest and he snapped his gaze back to the ship, sighing as he looked her over. “All the fuckin’ work to capture her and this is what I fuckin’ get. I’ll fuckin’ rip the throats out of every neck of the men who did this to my ship when I return and then… then I mutilate their bodies and hang them from The Ranger’s yardarm if I even think for a second they harmed my crew…” The words were not directed at the mare but perhaps more the ship as he drank in the damage with a sick feeling of loathing rolling off him in heavy clouds of furious rage.
Sighing he glared at what lay before him. His beloved Ranger in shambles. Shaking his head he was about to snap around when another scent entered his nose. Something he was secretly thankful for as he rounded on himself to set his gaze on the sandy colored male who was making his way down the beach. He sighed and let his gaze turn back to the beast of a ship. “She’s pretty badly damaged… not sure just where to fuckin’ start…” He growled in annoyance. The question that was thrown his direction however. “Yeh mean the crazy bitch who was on my fuckin’ ship?” He snarled. His muscles pulled tight across his body in remembrance of such a thing however he had little time to dwell as he heard his first name growled. Ryder swung his attention to the male once more and sighed.
Frustration danced in his eyes but he didn’t fight when the older male brushed his muzzle along his left shoulder, the soft lips contacting the brand on his shoulder. The teal hued titan had to fight the want to give a low groan of enjoyment at the pleasure that spread across his body, arching up along his spine and implanting a firm reminder of his own enjoyment for the contact and his own emotions for the stallion now beside him. Sighing he turned his head for a moment towards the older male. “I’m not apologizin’...” He grumbled. It gained him a playful nip and slow laugh before he turned his attention to the mare. “Yeh ever come across my ship again do not fuckin’ go into it. It belongs to me.” Another nip and warning before he sighed. “Fine…” He lifted his attention away from Arronax to gaze at the mare. “Calhoun Ryder of the Ranger. And I would… appreciate it… if yeh would not fuck with my ship. I’ve got a lot of fuckin’ work to do with her and I have no fuckin’ idea how me or Arronax are goin’ to fuckin’ do it…”
1230 WORDS - @K’yarie - Ryder is an angry pirate. I am sorry. He will try to behave now...
Most days he wouldn’t worry.
But at current today was not most days.
To be exact it would be some time before anything seemed normal again. Far too long they had both spent in bodies that were vastly different from the ones the found themselves in now. These days they found themselves at odds with their new forms. Trying to adjust to a life that was new to them but clearly familiar to everyone else around them. Calhoun Ryder was known for his ability to adapt and overcome. But that did not help Arronax concern any. He was also reckless. Especially when he was in unfamiliar territory. And right now this was very unfamiliar. So when Ryder hadn’t come back after some hours Arronax’s mind began to turn to worry and concern. In time he made his choice to seek the Captain out. It wasn’t hard to follow his trail.
He never cared much for stealth and strategy unless on open ocean.
Sure enough he’d managed to track the stallion right up to the edge of a cliff. And by his tacks he would venture to say the stallion to a long flying leap off the edge. There had been a sudden feeling of dread. The waters below churned and the rocks seemed rather jagged and aggressive in nature. It existed only for a few brief seconds as the brass eyes searched the waters only to feel a wave of relief escape his chest as his eyes caught sight of a form in the distance.
Green and vibrant against the teal waters. He seemed to be enjoying himself. Diving again.
“Well at least some things never change.”
The words had been spoken with a hint of amusement in his voice and mirth in his eyes as he slowly rounded on himself and started back down the cliff. For a time he merely waited at the base until the telltale scent of rum, gunpowder and brine told him the Captain had decided to star coming to shore.
And with that in mind he had followed.
With how far the pirate had gotten Arronax was not nearly surprised it took him himself some time to reach him. Trees and foliage and boulders would offer a blockade from sight of the large stallion for some time. Time that would soon end as he set eyes on the Captain and heard the ungodly screams of rage. The blacksmith gave a low sigh and pushed himself into a long lope, tucking his winds hard against his broad sides as the powerful limbs ate up ground quickly.
Of course, the first sight of the stallion was somewhat of a shock.
He stood before the hulk of what was once The Ranger. The red still snapping in the breeze, though tattered. Her hull was a shattered mess and her sails held over her like the shroud over a corpse. A skeleton of what once was. Her wooden flesh littered with yawning holes and her masts cracked and broken. He understood the rage a bit better now. But what truly concerned him was what he had screamed in his ire.
He quickly caught sight of what had caused the bellow.
Shaking his head he kept up the pace. At least until he met eyes with the pirate. His gaze hard. A wordless warning as he drew closer. It was enough to make him turn his attention to the ship. Arronax nodded slowly as he drew alongside the stallion. “And the mare?” His voice a deep, smooth rumble, elegant and calm. Stalwart, like his stance and soul. The words he got back caused a frown to tug his lips down as he regarded the man.
“Calhoun…”
This time the warning was quite verbal. The tradesman all too clearly saw the frustration in his lovers eyes and he stepped a bit closer, dropping his head enough to brush his muzzle slowly along the large brand that was burned into his shoulder. How odd it seemed they both bore the scars and brand they were given in another time and place in bodies that were new rather than familiar.
He felt a flicker of muscle before the slow relaxation followed and he smiled slightly. It was a patient, gentle smile. The words that fled the pirate however gained him a playful nip. He cared not for what the mare might think of their relationship and instead let the Captain speak. However his words got a more sharp nip, meant a warning before words fled his throat.
“Calhoun, play nice or so fuckin’ help me I will make yeh sleep in the forest tonight instead of on the bloody beach…”
He let Ryder attempt to try a more polite approach. Well, at least, for him. Sighing he leaned against the taller stallion, lifting his head to press his muzzle to the man’s neck before turning his attention to the mare.
“Yeh will have to forgive the Captain, he’s a bit possessive of The Ranger. And to be exact, me as well, that said we had thought we had lost her and I can’t say I blame him for his anger if you knew the truth of it. The name’s Arronax, as Ryder said.”
He paused and let his attention turn towards the ship, shaking his head.
“I don’t need to tell yeh what this damage bloody looks like, do I, love?”
It was rhetorical. He sighed and regarded the beast.
“How the bloody Hell we are goin’ to fix her is beyond me but… since when as that ever stopped us?”
Slowly he turned his brass hued gaze back to the mare.
“If I could ask, what is yerh name? I would truly hate to insult yeh further by callin’ yeh somethin’ other than what yeh wish to be called.”
Arronax offered an almost warm smile, one that was patient and understanding. Something that showed a far different nature that that of the man he stood beside. He did not enjoy letting others see the darker side of his nature. And truly it was far easier to let Ryder handle the violence and Arronax deal with tending to injuries and taking care of the work. They were of different minds but truly were souls made to stand with each other and never be far apart.
“Yerh friends, they are… spirits I take it? I am sure the Captain had some choice words for them. I hope they can accept an apology from me on his behalf. Though I would truly rather not explain why his temper is as it is. That is not my story to tell. Only to know and help him cope with.”
1113 Words || @K’yarie || And some Arro to fix the issue at hand…
05-06-2018, 02:22 AM (This post was last modified: 05-06-2018, 02:27 AM by K'yarie.)
K'yarie
Boy this man was the tail end of a Equus africanus asinus! She did not back up when he came charging towards her. She stood tall and still, her chin lifted. She stared him down, the orbs dancing around her as they giggled. "Do you think to tell the tides to shift, or a mountain to move?" She began, her silken voice filling the air. Though it was sultry and beautiful, there was a deadliness to it. Like a subtle poison. "No? Then do not think that you can tell the spirits or I what to do. You have a lot to learn of my world. Be wary, or it will be more than your ship that suffers for your anger."
"You bellow and shriek like a simpleminded sea lion." She moved forward, her steps slow and purposeful. "The ship was abandoned and damaged, her captain certainly was not anywhere in sight. I assumed they had drowned." She looked him up and down, an air of disappointment surrounding her. What a shame he didn't drown. "I boarded, seeking any injured or dead to tend to. It did not seem like anyone else would. Her captain seems more concerned with yelling at a concerned passer by, than seeing to his crew." Her gaze swept passed Ryder to regard the other man. Her eyes turned back to the blue boy as she continued towards him. The moment she came nose to nose with the man. She vanished. Darkness enveloped her as she sunk into his shadow.
Within a heartbeat she was behind Arro, gliding across the sand like a shadow herself. She found it funny how the other had to declare that Ryder was possessive of him and the ship. Did he think she would try to flirt with either of them? She had no reason to know that they cared for each other. She had no reason to care about them at all. "Well, it seems one of you possesses manners and civility." She purred, no longer regarding Ryder as she sought to deal directly with Arro. She gave a small nod of her head. "Your captain had me wondering if the sailors of your world were all giant asinine brutes. Though he must posses some redeeming quality I care little to see, to hold your heart."
At the question of her name she bowed her head. "K'yarie." She purred once more. Then her voice grew low, as if she were sharing a secret between her and Arro. "Your, Captain aside. I may know how might fix your ship. Though your captain has done little to gain my good graces. I may be willing to impart the knowledge to you." She watched the other expectantly. Paying her glowing orbs no mind as they continued to dance around Ryder. Teasing him as they flew in his face.
"Silly demon, silly demon." They laughed and chittered. "You speak to us of not knowing anything, yet you cannot remember your own past." The continued to laugh, dance and sing. Their colors changing and pulsating in soft pastel hues of green, blue, yellow, pink and purple.
"You speak of truth, yet you only remember the red flag. And nothing more." One said as it hovered before his nose.
"But we know. It is us who should be chastising you. Fore it is you who lacks truth. Oh foolish boy, you should have turned back." Another chided.
"The angry demon, so proud, so arrogant in his powers takes on a ship born of the Navy." A third chirped.
"The vicious wolf sought to kill the lion. Driven on storm and rage. But little wolf forgot, lions live within a pride." While a forth sang in a haunting tone.
"Fight and struggle all you will, little wolf. But the lion seeks thy treasure. It holds it and will not release it until blood flows." The fifth whispered into his ear before vanishing.
"How easily the wolf forgets." The sixth hummed. "Even the devil can be tricked." All of them spoke the last line in a voice that knew far more than it was revealing.
They continued to laugh and taunt Ryder with riddles and words. Hinting to a knowledge of what the man had forgotten. But no matter what he would try or say, they would not reveal the truth to the man.
talk talk talk talk
Fear not this Night. You will not go Astray Though shadows fall, still the Stars find their way
Floating Key
