exsiliumlogs | [closed]

[ Smells like the ocean. Catsovi immediately wrinkles his nose, and plants his feet apart, which prepares him against the sudden crash of waves that sends the ship rocking. The winds are strong, Cat's hair is already damp from the spray, and he can hear the deck creaking... this is not going to be a pleasant fight. Not for anyone.

No one's taken notice of Catsovi and Syllona's sudden appearance yet. They've got the Initiative's cloaking devices to thank for that.

Not that Cat thinks disguises are going to be necessary, here.

He crouches down, which helps stabilize him against the swaying of the ship, and beckons for Syllona to come close so he can whisper to her. ]

Look around. Think about your surroundings while you can.

We'll kill the majority of them now, before the crash. Clear out this deck first. There'll be more taking cover under. [ Cat smiles thinly. ] We can lure out those below, but we'll still have to descend to ensure that it's emptied out.

Yes, girl?

[ Her mind is still reeling with the task before them. Syllona had listened carefully, memorized every detail about exactly what needed to be done. But no matter how she turns the thought over she knows very well what they're here for is wrong. Cruel beyond words.

Yet here they are, and no going back now. It's a pressing situation at hand so she yanks her attention back to the present, to Cat and this new scene around them.

There's the massive sails bracing against the wind and the many, many children rushing to and fro. Some helping haul supplies, a few younger ones playing and giggling just nearby...

She grimaces, following his example to hold balance against another wave.]

Yes. But- But Catsovi how are we going to do this? We're way out-numbered, they'll swarm us for sure.

[ Catsovi considers the vast array of children carefully, and considers the crew even more carefully. He rubs his jaw. He looks upwards; there's someone in the crow's nest.

Might as well take care of that first.

He rolls a shoulder. High above, the man in the crow's nest suddenly drops. If anyone went up to look now, they'd find a surprisingly mangled body -- torso torn, ribs protruding.

As if nothing had happened, Catsovi answers. ]

Take out the crew first. Leave the captain. The children won't be a problem -- I'll be able to handle most of them.

[ Cat gets to his feet, and holds out his hand to Syllona, smiling. ]

But you'll have to make the first kill. Where is the nearest crew member?

[ Her eyes widen, flicking once from his hand to his face. For a moment she almost refuses, but this was what she asked for. What kind of coward would she be to back down now?

Syllona swallows, searching briefly-- there. There's a man carrying a barrel, back turned. She takes Cat's hand, reaching her other hand to pull her dagger out. ]

H-him. To the left. [ She speaks under her breath, just as the man passes them by. ] Where should I aim?

Edited ( ...........i didn't forget he was fake blind leave me alone) 2013-09-03 23:30 (UTC)

[ Cat sees him. Sees him just fine. HE IS FAKE BLIND B')

Yes, that looks like a good target for a first kill; he's isolated, he's not watchful. Casually, acting exactly like they belong, Cat grips Syllona's hand and starts to stride towards the man.

He answers her in a whisper. ]

The throat, if you can reach that high. Otherwise the stomach. That might bring him down enough for you to get at the throat.

[ Behind them, quietly, several children have already started dying, necks and spines snapping, clean, instant deaths -- or at least paralytic ones. He's targeting those who are out of sight of their peers, those whose bodies will fall behind cargo, hidden, out of sight and out of mind. Cat's keeping panic to an absolute minimum right now. ]

[ SUCH A GOOD ACTOR, THAT GUY

Syllona follows his lead easily, keeping her breathing steady and her eyes on the man's back. She has more questions, a lot more, like just what has Catsovi so impossibly confident this move won't be their last. But..

He talks and moves like he knows how to kill. That's something she's willing to trust. ]

Got it.

[ As they reach the man, he sets his load down, occupied now with opening it up. The coast looks clear for just that moment and he's even bent to her level-- his neck is in view. Her hand tightens on both Cat and her weapon but Syllona doesn't act right away, still nervous.
It takes the victim in question to pause in his work and finally take notice of them, face rising with alarm when the glint of the dagger draws his attention. It sparks adrenaline like the flick of a lighter, bringing the blade fast under his chin.

It's a stab, not a slice, though effective enough. There's weak pawing at her wrist and hot blood on her fingers, she let's out a sharp breath, flinching. ]

[ Quick as lightning, Cat grabs the dying man, spins, and heaves his body at the trio of children behind them who'd witnessed the whole thing. One boy, two girls, all of them knocked down. The boy is the smallest. Cat advances on them with steps perhaps too sure for someone who's supposedly blind.

There's screaming, now. Oh well.

One of the girls manages to get out from under the body and pulls the boy free with her. He makes a run for it. Good. If Cat couldn't see him, he could certainly hear those pounding footsteps. ]

Get the boy!

[ He snaps his order at Syllona quickly, not letting her any pause to process the situation, to think, to freeze up, and as he shouts he draws his own sword. ]

[ There's something odd in what's just happened, that much registers; but acting, moving, is more important.

The boy goes down roughly with a tackle, shrieking for help as Syllona goes again for the throat-- but she meets his wide, frightened eyes. She can't... quite bring the dagger down, but he's still screaming, and that's dangerous.

So instead, she grips his throat down in her free hand, adding in the other when he struggles. There are more voices now, a few older children come to investigate, but they don't dare too close once the scene is in view.

She looks up, heart pounding in her ears, and calls out quickly. ]

Five more!

[ Cat sees Syllona hesitate and not use the dagger and he groans, inwardly, irritated. He strides forward. Over the dead body. Pausing only to kill the third girl, still trapped underneath the crewman's corpse -- Cat dispatches of her with a quick downwards stab of his sword, the action casual, almost an afterthought. ]

Then go get them, girl!

[ Cat's leisurely pace suddenly breaks, and he leaps at the tallest of the children. His movements are lightning; the boy's dead before he can even complete his step back. Blood sprays. Screaming intensifies. Catsovi listens to Syllona, waiting -- waiting for her to kill the boy he'd sent her after. ]

[ Cat's attack on the taller child has the others in full panic, even Syllona turns to blink as the body drops. The shock ends for one boy and he lunges for her, fist aimed at her head. Her reaction to this is immediate. She reels out of his range, dagger curled again in her hand. He loses balance with the swing and she's fast with a rough slash to his throat -- and a second. There's anger behind it.

But just as quickly as it happens, Syllona stumbles back, tense and quick to right herself against the rock of the ship. The smaller child still lies at her feet, sputtering coughs and sobbing, but Syllona doesn't look.

The others flee, screaming. It's not hard to guess they'll have worse company soon. ]

[ Catsovi, his back still turned to Syllona, smiles just slightly. Good. She's getting the hang of it.

With a quick flick of the wrist, he snaps the crying boy's neck before Syllona's attention can return to him.

And that done, he looks ahead. ]

Sounds like the crew's noticed. Is that correct? [ Cat gestures forwards, towards the wheel. Armed crewmen are coming down towards them now, quickly. Their steps are sure and certain against the rocking of the ship.

He shifts his grip on his sword and strides forwards, moving quickly. He too appears unbothered by the swaying of the deck. He raises both hands -- four, five fleeing children drop dead all around them, screams cut off by suddenly severed necks or spines. ]

Let's go meet them.

Ah- [ Her response dies in her throat after Cat's little display. She throws a shocked look his way, trying for the life of her to summon a little-- what? Horror at the gore? Outrage that he didn't tell her? There's too much happening at once to decide which, but she's leaning towards the latter.

Syllona moves to follow, much less sure of her own steps. She gives her head a shake, to clear it, and switches the dagger to her left hand to take out a stick of chalk. ]

I don't-- don't think I'll be much use like this. [ The entrance to the lower half of the ship isn't far off, children wasting no time to hurry down. An idea strikes. She holds her breath, eying the crewmen fast approaching. ]

I can make this easier, if I get a minute. Can you take them?

[ Now it just smells like blood, and Cat's tired. He wants a bath. He also wants a change of clothes. But they're still stuck out here, for the rest of the day, watching the bad weather build and listening to the shrieking wind in their ears. The rocking of the ship is far worse now than when they'd first arrived and it's starting to get to Catsovi and he wishes they could just cut this captain's head off now, but no, they've got to do it properly, they've got to get to this damn island first....

Cat's sword is drawn but it's not pointed at the captain. There's no need. He doesn't need a blade to force the man to stay at the wheel.

Catsovi heaves a sigh, and flicks a wet lock of hair back behind his ear. ]

Syllona? Still awake?

[ 'Awake' isn't quite the word for it. Aware is much more accurate, it's hard to be anything else.

The gale is worse, she thinks, than the back and forth of the ship. Good thing she'd decided against bringing her veil along for this... trip. A veil was a sacred thing, it most certainly didn't belong here. The winds would have snatched it up long ago.

Syllona sits with her back pressed to a corner, lifts her head when he speaks, wipes the sweat from under her bangs. ]

I hate the ocean.

[ Not a complaint, there's no tone behind it for that. Just a mumbled fact. ]

[ Catsovi shrugs. ]

It's not the most pleasant place.

Have you never been on a ship before?

[ Cat has no trouble making small talk now, now that the work is done. Casual, little questions and remarks, completely at odds with what they've done here. The presence of the captain, the man's fear and horror -- hell, Syllona herself -- none of it means nothing to him. He had a job to do and he's done it and now all he has to do is kill time until the next problem crops up.

Cat's grown quite good at killing time. ]

No.

[ She keeps her attention on Cat and off of the captain, hours ago it was uneasy talking in front of their hostage but that's since dulled. Talking is a small comfort anyway, a decent anchor to hold onto. There's no reason to pass it up.

It's not like there's anything else to do, Catsovi is all she's got. ]

Before the island... I only knew a desert.

What about you..? You never said where you were from.

It wouldn't mean anything to you, or to anyone. [ He pauses. ] A little place called Enoc. High up in the mountains. Only a few days' travel to the coast. But it's been a long time since I've been back.

[ He smiles, seemingly at the captain. ]

I spent quite a while in a desert, though.

Mountains. Was it...cold? [ She rubs an eye, head tilted just a notch, watching him. ]

I can't imagine it. It was probably nicer than sand and rocks, I bet. Even the temples were scorching on bad days.

Relatively. In some parts. Not where I lived.

[ To be honest, Cat doesn't remember much about his homeland. It was so very long ago, and he hadn't been attached to the place, as Cat wasn't one to get attached to any place. Or anything, or anyone. Pride aside.

He reaches up, flicks some damp hair out of his eyes. Ugh. ]

And you like that better than this?

[ She thinks that one over. Right now, it's not really weather that comes to mind so much as... a different bloodbath entirely. And with that are the differences between then and now, namely her participation in this.

Thankfully, blessedly, she just doesn't have the energy to entertain the thought for long.

Her brows furrow, and she mutters, numbly.]

I don't know. I guess it doesn't really matter.

No. [ Cat says this affably, without hesitation. ] It doesn't. Your world is very far away from here.

[ Then he brightens up again as he turns towards the captain. ]

But all worlds will meet in death, I suppose!

That's really morbid.[ Her attention flicks once between Cat and the captain. ]

...Are we close?

[ Cat just throws his head back and laughs. Morbid. Right.

But he cuts himself off at the last question and straightens up to look into the distance, raising a hand as if to shield his blind eyes from the sunless sky. His expression is dead serious for a moment -- before he smiles again. ]

I don't know. You tell us, captain.

[ The captain mumbles something, sullen and defeated. Catsovi slowly turns his empty gaze on the man, his expression unchanged.

The captain repeats his answer, louder, clearer. 'Yes.' Cat gives a small shrug. ]

And there you have it. Which means... ah... I assume the Initiative will be pulling is back before we go down with the ship.

[ She squints at him, at his laughter and that sighted gesture, Syllona doesn't comment on it though.

Like before, she avoids looking at the captain, finding a particular knot in the plank floor to stare at. Glare at. ]

They had better. I mean... you don't think they'd betray us, right?

[closed]

arrival

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

crash

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject