Clever Man...

--- The war is just a part time job, you see. You're talking to a real-life wizard hunter. --- affiliated with CORSAIR QUEST

[etherealpruna-blog]

“The Vagabonds are DEFINITELY more of a hassle to deal with than the pirates. Why is that? What did I do to deserve this.”

[coimay-blog]

“Ohhh. So it was you. Gosh, you sounded like a monster when you screamed, I was terrified out of my mind for a second, you know! But besides that, rock or not, no normal person would react politely to a gun being pointed at them!” At this point it was just a back and forth between them, though.

Must be a sailor, huh? But don’t all kinds of people go to all kinds of places? Like adventurers and storytellers… alicorns and witches! Right? “Wouldn’t that mean you’re a sailor too? Poor logic. You strike me more as a weird inventor sort of type.”

He waves his hand dismissively at Zhayne’s complaints. Insolence? Nah… Curiosity! It was good-natured curiosity! Who cares about knowing each other or not? Aren’t people supposed to be kind to one and other all the time? Man, being a pirate was teaching him his caretaker from the orphanage was just a real and true dream killer.

However, Yokuto brightens up at the agreement that wizards were to be hated. Clapping his hands with delight, he nods enthusiastically. “Wizards are the worst! Such tricky bastards.” The Brine Enclave? Crescent Sanctuary? Yokuto preferred to stay in town, on the ship or beach, or follow Aeon around like a lost chick. So…

“Burials?” For… sirens? And other sea creatures? Singing… He’d definitely be able to tell if he went personally whether it was a lie or not… but he didn’t know where to go. He was… well, a regular fish out of water on land unless he was flirting. “… Heyyy, mountain man, can you take me to that place? With the sirens? My name’s Yokuto, I’m a siren, and I really need to get there.”

That sounded like he was determined to die. Unintentional, of course.

[etherealpruna-blog]

     He didn't sound like a monster! He sounded like a normal person! Right? Zhayne was ticked off, but the guy had a point. "Yeah, okay, sorry. People get really paranoid when they spend too much time alone up here-- I'm no exception." He scratched his head, unsure of how much he should be revealing about himself. "I'm really not a sailor, no. But I do invent things. I don't really try to hide that..." The fact that he was a science geek, that was. His whole appearance screamed "I'd rather build things with scrap metal than buy new gear!"

    Zhayne shook his head. "Wizards are the scum of the earth and have no sense of dignity. Feel free to kill any real wizards you see up here, new guy." If they were really there.

    "I'm not about to be your tour guide, so if you want to go then you can--" He didn't finish his sentence fast enough before the second favor was already in the air. He closed his eyes, obviously displeased by the idea of walking all the way there with a sailor of all people. He really had no interest in the weird tourist attractions that the townspeople made up. "Ugh..."

    The soldier approached the other, analyzing him like an unidentifiable zoo creature. It didn't make much sense. The man looked as human as can be... though, he had never met a siren before, so there was no way for him to confirm. "Can sirens just... be on land? Isn't this the worst place you could have wandered off to? It's terribly dry." Well, nevermind that. "I'm Zhayne Collier. Just Zhayne is fine. Do you normally just go up to strangers and ask them to escort you places? You’re not such spoiled rich kid, are you? Because I’m a busy man."

[coimay-blog]

That shriek sent shivers down Yokuto’s spine. Was he walking around near some spirit dwelling? Was some cannibal monster about to jump out and end his life here and now? Damn… Aeon is going to be pissed if she finds my body dead on a mountain.

Thank god it soon revealed itself to be another person. Still dangerous, but not as bad as a cannibal demon thing. “Me…? Why should I tell you who I am? This isn’t private property, it’s a fucking mountain.” This guy didn’t even look rich enough to own this mountain if it were possible. He looked more like the weird dad from Beauty and the Beast no one liked.

He points a finger at the other and huffs, annoyed by how confrontational he was. He’d just ignore how that rock he threw probably hit this guy. “Put that thing down, I’m not interested in you enough to even think about swinging these finely manicured hands at you. I just came here since I was bored and didn’t want to go home yet.”

And then his hands find his way to his hips, lips pursing in a pout. “Actually, I take that back. Aren’t super smart wizards supposed to live in mountains and other weird places? Great. I hate wizards. But if you’re smart, you could do me a favour. You know anything about sirens?”

[etherealpruna-blog]

    "You hit me with a rock! Don't you think I'd want to know who you were?" Zhayne scoffed at the stranger, but refused to allow himself to get too worked up in case steam started literally blowing out of his ears. This man looked suspicious. Too suspicious. Weird people have been dropping by the mountain range lately, and this one seemed way out of his element.

    "Finely manicured. Sure." The soldier held up one gloved hand, wiggling his fingers around. "Me too." Still, it would be ideal to avoid a fight here if he could. The gun lowered itself back to his side and he sighed.

    "So bored that you came to the dangerous death mountains, huh? You must be a sailor. No locals ever come here." Zhayne narrowed his eyes at the other, frowning himself. "You can't just ask me for favors, I don't even know you! What insolence..." He must be a pirate, the man thought, but if the guy didn't want to fight then Zhayne wouldn't give him a reason to.

     Although. The rumor about the wise old people living in the mountains must have gotten through to the public if someone like this knew about it. Interesting. He propped up one leg on a large rock and adjusted his glasses. "I hate wizards, too. I don't know too much about sirens, but I do know that they're around the Brine Enclave. Everywhere, in fact. Ever been to the Crescent Sanctuary? There’s um, special siren and or other sea-people burials there, apparently. Could just be a lie to attract tourists, but I heard you can actually hear singing at certain times of the day."

[kindkatze-blog]

     Now, as difficult as the vagabond figured back and forth banter would be with his new ‘friend’, it was easy to get a response out of him. Isaiah appreciated that, supposing if he really wanted to then this soldier boy could send him off or get up and leave him. Whether he felt the need to be polite or found it to be too much of a hassle to do otherwise was of no concern. As long as he was here, Isaiah could figure he wanted to be here. “Oh no honey there’s so much you can get out of a few drunk sailors. Trust me.”

     Easing into a comfortable sitting position for Isaiah meant bringing his knees up to his chest, one arm wrapped around them, keeping his left hand free and attached to the refined surface of his finely polished cup. Ice cubes melting, having a sudden need to chew on them. Not in front of someone like this though, he doubted he’d be fond of that particular habit.

     "I do work here! Was that easy to tell?“ Including the way he dressed, the way he talked, the way he acted with patrons of the establisment when he was drunk… it was all a bit on the nose. What he did exactly was the real mystery to be guessed, couldn’t blame anyone for assuming what he did at face value. "I’ve worked here for most of my life actually, from when I was little. Isn’t that something.”

     "It’s a pleasure to meet you, Zhayne.“ He chuckled, cooing over his name, "Hmm, Zhayne. How lovely!” Glad he now had something to call his conversation partner besides silly pet names. “Isaiah is what you can call me, just Isaiah.”

[etherealpruna-blog]

     It was obvious, but he wasn't sure he wanted to be that blunt. "A little. I mean, a pirate wouldn't come up to me acting so friendly, so I just assumed." Zhayne sighed, taking a long sip of water that he almost spat out at the other's next words. "From when you were little?! Isn't that kind of-- huh, nevermind..." Inappropriate was what he wanted to say, but it was none of his business, he guessed.

    "Well, hi, Isaiah. Nice to meet you,too." He realized he didn't actually know what else to talk about in this situation, and the silence could be growing longer by the second. As a soldier that doubles as a mountain-man, what could he possibly bring up as a conversation starter... What did the average person want to talk about here... How long have you been here? No, no, he knew exactly how long because the sailors made a huge scene when they first docked here. Zhayne guessed he had to get more personal than that in order to be interesting. "Uh, do-- do you like it here so far? Besides the whole... pirate war thing. The Brine Enclave isn't that bad a stop, I guess... Probably not what you were expecting, though." 

    His eyes shifted around the room of The Jade Palace, a bit uneasy. “You’ve all made quite the impression back at the mansion, that’s for sure.” 

[coimay-blog]

@etherealpruna

The mountains were definitely not his thing. There was barely any water in sight and, being half siren, that really managed to frustrate Yokuto, but he was the one who decided to come here out of curiosity. He had time to kill after visiting Violetton, so he might as well explore this place as much as he could – the pirates he was with weren’t leaving this damn land anytime soon (and what a pain he found that to be, who cares about so mystic all obeying magic?). Though he’d never complain to Aeon’s face about it.

“I don’t know why this place even exists… What’s the point if you’re not close to the ocean… Well, I guess air and earth sprites would love it here.” Yet despite all his complaining, he pressed on, though he grew increasingly annoyed with how difficult it was to walk – and he wasn’t the best at walking either!

Huffing, Yokuto blows at his bangs. “I don’t get why anyone would care about this stupid place either… Especially these damn mountains. If you ask me,” He placed a hand to his heart, mock-speaking to someone else. “this place is a godless, cursed land and we should leave already. Bet the damn nobles would love that.”

He snatches up a rock from the ground, sparing only a second to think about how weirdly perfect it was, before throwing it ahead, waiting to hear it fall. Would be more enjoyable if there was, you know, water to skip these rocks on. Maybe he’d take some back, they looked perfect for it. “Dammit, mom! What if this place is just really good at ruling and we’re wasting our time here?!”

Still waiting for that rock to fall. “… Did it catch on something? Is there actually… life? Here?”

[etherealpruna-blog]

   Zhayne had thought he heard mumbling in the distance but had immediately written it off as like, freaky mountain whispers, or something. It happened often up there. You spend too much time alone in Devilditch and suddenly the screeches of the wind sound like a person. Real scary.

  The man rummaged through his sack of rocks for no reason, desperately trying to find something to do to occupy himself so he could ignore whatever witchcraft was going on around him. Oh god, he thought in a panic, the wind was cursing its mother now. He really needed to go back to the mansion and talk to a real-life person. Even Zhayne knew his limits when it came to living alone for too long. He had to go back right now, finish tinkering with his weapons, and then actually go attend a training session for once in his life--

  "Ow!"

  His surprised shriek echoed in the vast, empty area, and he sat there for a moment in shock. It wasn't the first time he had gotten hit in the head by a pebble, sure, but that one had seriously been thrown at him. His heart skipped a beat at the notion of having to interact with a person here, but he had to... defend his territory, or whatever! It would be a nuisance if people found his little makeshift home nearby!

  The soldier turned in the direction the rock came from and peeked over the top of a dirt mound, aiming his Hestia at the stranger. "You...! Who are you? What are you doing here? Stop throwing things!"

[kindkatze-blog]

“I may be a bit of a fairy but I don’t grant wishes dear.” Even if this man wasn’t looking for any kind of entertainment or present company, this was an opportunity Isaiah just could not overlook. A chance to entertain himself, he’d found his own bit of excitement for the night. He smiled as he let a waitress refill his drink whole-heartedly.

“And, I don’t wanna leave you alone, I do wanna know why you’d let yourself get thrown into somethin’ you don’t even enjoy. I mean you seem like you’d handle yourself well. Probably say No to a lot of stuff like this huh.” As he spoke he kept staring the soldier up and down, mumbling unheard and undecipherable compliments for his physique under his breath. Isaiah took another sip from his drink, peachy and sweet. He needed it.

“Also I see why people were so interested in you, you’re kinda handsome for a sourpuss. Got a weird charm to you, I like it.”

[etherealpruna-blog]

     It seemed like the stranger wasn’t going to leave him alone after all. Zhayne kept his eyes away from the other for a while, grumbling something about not being as “tough” as he looked. It was true, after all. He may be able to fight as a soldier now, but it didn’t make him any less of a coward deep down. Not unless he was in an especially serious situation, and gods knew nothing like that had happened since the sailors first dropped into the ports. Right now everything was calmer. Tense, but less dangerous. He huffed, “Yes, I say ‘no’ to doing things like this very often. There’s nothing I can get out of being here with a bunch of intoxicated sailors.”

    “Sourpuss...?” This man was leaving him speechless. Zhayne wasn’t sure if he wanted him to go away or just be quiet; it wasn’t really all that bad to look at him, he just said such embarrassing things. Then it struck him-- what this guy probably did as a job on this ship. Yeah, he had the looks. It made sense if he was a part of the dirty deeds that happened around here. The soldier felt faint. What a twist of fate this was, to be stuck with someone so sinful... 

    But that was just how things were, and he should probably accept it if he wanted to survive the night with any ounce of dignity. He narrowed his eyes at the other, though his body language was now more relaxed than it was. He’d give the little Vagabond that much. It would feel rather awkward if they continued their conversation with Zhayne curled up against the wall like a child having a tantrum, too. Resting his elbows on the tables surface, he beckoned one of the waitresses with one hand and got himself a glass of water. That’s right, not even a soda. He had an excuse for being so bland-- water was just better for the heat building up inside his body, and if he got any more flustered, it would begin to get a little too hot in here. 

    “You work here, right?” His tone was more concerned and obviously out-of-his-element than he would have liked. “I’m Zhayne. Zhayne Collier. A, uh, noble, as you probably already guessed.” 

[krvlju-deactivated20160827]

⚓-; The Devilditch mountains… such an enigma they were. Arlyn wasn’t interested in the precious gems and jewels they were rumored to hide though (despite wanting to be a pirate), but moreso the stillness that resided in the hostile territory. It was rather out of place for such an infamous area, wouldn’t you say?

⚓-; That, and while the Vagabonds had docked at the Crescent Sanctuary, Arlyn was forced to go alone into Violetton, and he had made the mistake of letting the word ‘pirate’ leave his lips, making the nobles think he was aligned with them. At heart, he was, however he would have more than enjoyed denying such a thing as they shoved their swords and guns into his face, but instead, they deemed him worthy of a more lonesome peril, and so they gave him this question; the mountains, or death?

⚓-; To some, the mountains were death, and they certainly should have been for the navigator came falling from the sky, having tripped over some rocks. Though he bled, it wasn’t anything he was unused to, odd as that may have sounded, and so he merely gave the stranger a thumbs up. “No need to worry mister sir man… My parents never gave me any such warnings, and I’ve been temporarily kicked out of my home…”

[etherealpruna-blog]

    Upon closer inspection of the stranger, it didn’t seem like he had wandered into the mountains on purpose. Zhayne hesitated-- he always cursed himself for being weak-minded in front of the injured, but it genuinely seemed like this guy was harmless for now. Even if he did want to hurt him, it wasn’t like the clever soldier had no backup escape plans. He knew these mountains better than anyone, so it was no effort at all to lose someone. 

     “Did you seriously just.. drop in here? Who did that to you?” Zhayne narrowed his eyes at the other, lightly gripping Hestia with one hand just in case. “You can’t be a noble... So, are you a port boy or a sailor?" And did he just say ‘mister sir man?’ 

    He relaxed his hold on the weapon with a sigh. “It doesn’t matter to me if you’re a pirate or not, but you should really go back to whatever home you have and get yourself fixed up. The mountains are too dangerous.” And he just wanted to be alone... that too.

[kindkatze-blog]

All walks of life took part in the festivities of the Jade Palace. It was the place to be if you were looking to waste a couple of hours and end up forgetting the events that took place to begin with. Most came in with  their wallets stuffed to the brim and left with nothing but dust and a few crumbs to part with. That’s just how it was on board, fast paced and laced with excitement. Xiuying encouraged a good time and that’s exactly what you’d be having. For the most part.

Isaiah tolerated many familiar faces deep within the ship’s walls. Pushing past the hustle and bustle of pirates and vagabonds alike celebrating god knows what, anything worth making a fuss about. Celebrating calm waters that day or a good haul that benifited everyone. All he wanted was to get a drink and sit down, really. Finding tables crowded and others beckoning him for, well, a good time. He laughed, being very used to this charade.

He’d been watching the odd looking noble for quite some time though, deciding to go and make conversation since the man was in the most ideal position. In the corner. All by himself. Brushing off the immediate ’ that seat is taken ’ in favor of taking the seat across from him anyways. Setting his half empty glass down with a delicate hand.

“Oh please, you’re not holding this table for anyone! You’ve turned down everyone that’s come over here. Why so uptight hm? Need someone to entertain you?”

[etherealpruna-blog]

     “Uptight?! Look, I was just dragged here against my will, this definitely isn’t my kind of crowd. I mean, look at me.” He let out a sarcastic, empty laugh, glancing up at the other man only to retreat his gaze back to the table immediately. Urgh, a mistake. The stranger must have been as drunk as the rest of them, but he still had charm and Zhayne was not good with these types of people. He could feel himself being stared at all of a sudden and his face flushed-- a cloud of steam escaped in his breath and he covered his mouth to hide it, almost choking. “I mean-- don’t look at me.” How embarrassing. 

    “I don’t need any kind of entertainment, you can just... let me sit here and suffer for a few more hours so I can go. It’s really, super exciting to me when I’m ignored. That is my wish, as your guest on the ship. Alright?” 

[etherealpruna-blog]

@kindkatze

    It was always demanded by the Vagabond’s leader that no fighting between pirates and nobles would happen aboard her ship, not when they still remain neutral in the war. That’s what made him so uncomfortable to be there that night. How someone had managed to drag him to the shadiest part of the interior of the ship, he’d rather not remember. It involved a lot of half-assed convincing followed by the others giving up and just dragging his body straight to the Vagabonds for them to toy with. Though the area was on neither side, there were of course, a staggering disproportionate number of pirates on the ship versus noble soldiers. Most nobles didn’t want to be seen anywhere near a sailor, after all. That made it all the more dangerous for him to be here when he was practically alone. 

    Zhayne sat at a corner table with his arms crossed defensively across his chest. He would wait until the acquaintances who brought him onto the ship to get too drunk and pass out before he’d make his escape. He had no business being there, after all. It was practically a brothel inside! 

     The soldier avoided the gaze of everyone who approached him, giving them any excuse to get away from him. “I don’t want anything. Don’t touch me. Leave me alone. I’m waiting for someone. Goodbye.” 

[etherealpruna-blog]

like for a starter with the-- eh, um, this. this awkward kid. 

[etherealpruna-blog]

     Zhayne inspected the colorful rocks he had harvested that day in his gloved palms, turning them around this way and that. They were perfect, as always. Some of the rocks found in in the mountains were always in spotless condition-- soft, smooth, and beautifully colored. It was one of the many mysteries of the Brine Enclave that he sought to uncover. He gently piled them up in a pouch and attached it to his belt so he could continue his search. 

    Rock collections aside, this land was basically his second home. Evermore mansion had a room for him, just like any other noble soldier, but it felt ridiculous to live there. Even his fellow nobles found him a bit too eccentric to want to interact with outside of work, so he escaped to the wilderness when he had free time. It was peaceful here, if not extremely cold and a bit eerie. It was completely empty, devoid of life that could possibly bother or even kill him. Or so he thought. 

    A crackle in the distance caught his attention, and he immediately went on the defense in front of the intruder, no matter how scared he was to see someone he didn’t recognize here. 

    “Y-You!! Didn’t your parents tell you to keep out of Devilditch mountains? Go home before you get killed, idiot!” 

[animeostandgifs]

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