The Pirate's Life

Just as Nika thought, the redhead was good for nothing...except the engineering thing. Perhaps with some training under Swift, she could become a wonderful addition to the crew after all. Images of the young girl in the galley cooking up a wonderful meal just for Nika filled her mind, but she batted them away. Now was a horrible time to daydream. The girl was coming along, and that was that. She now found herself meeting Vulka's gaze, the woman expressing a wish to escape Estrella which satisfied her just fine. She was good with the sword and planned on following orders which was fantastic. Besides, something told her that Vulka wouldn't just walk out of here without Sam, for if turned away, Nika planned on letting the woman live, but Nika shrugged her shoulders, coming to a decision.

"No, no. I'll take your words at face value for now. If you can wield, then you're a help. I can take most things on myself," she stated simply, not in an arrogant tone, but as a matter of it being a solid fact. She waved a hand at both of them, though the younger seemed to be intrigued by the mute's abilities. Crossing her arms over her chest, Nika pondered, for she was equally intrigued. Sirius and I definitely underestimated by appearances. We can't lose our edge now, right? Hm hm hm... she thought with a quiet laugh, a smirk on her face as she sent a knowing gaze to Sirius who didn't respond which was to be expected. "Well moving on...hmmmm...." she thought aloud, gazing at the remaining applicants before her golden eyes rested on Raiden at long last. "All right, Eye Patch. How about you? What exactly are you capable of besides playing dress-up pirate, hm? You have the devotion and loyalty required to be a member of my brazen crew, ne? Let's hear it!" she exclaimed, tapping the flat of her blade against her leg once more as an indicator for him to start spilling it.

Raiden chuckled and lifted up his eyepatch, revealing the Ain symbol that manifested in his eye, as well as the bloody side of the patch. “I’m already a dead man thanks to bloody Aingott poisoning. At least, that’s what society says.” He frowned and covered up his eye again. “I’m pretty sure you know how it works. The closer to death that I get, the stronger I get. I’m not gonna let that go to waste. I’d be honored to serve on your crew, even if it’s just short term.” He smiled to himself, knowing that if Nika accepted him, he could live just a little bit longer. He was reaching a Dead End and this was his only escape.

“I’m also pretty good with machines, you see,” he continued, resting his hands behind his neck. “Family business and all that crap. Could help teach the little miss over there.” He briefly glanced over at Sam, before returning his eye to the captain.

Now the sinister smile formed on her face as Raiden gave his answer. He was dying. Odd that he so deigned to throw his life away like this, but perhaps just maybe he could escape his fate by joining her. She hated the idea of having to find a replacement should he keel over, but what the hell? "Interesting..." she murmured to herself still smiling while turning her blade as she pondered. "I've heard you out, and I guess that's that, ne? Tiiiiime to move on," she chimed before her gaze settled upon the young woman with the child. Nika pointed at them both, a quizzical gleam in her eyes. "Now here's someone we'll all want to hear from!" she crooned evilly. "Mommy dearest, why the hell would you even think about putting both you and the life of your child at risk, hm? What is it that you're running from? And even if I did find the compassion in this burnt out, corrupted heart of mine to let you aboard, what exactly is it that you could do for me?"

Nika's eyes stayed piercing and ferocious as they gazed right into Marie's. Sirius did eagerly keep his eyes on the newest target, not paying much mind to Raiden. The mother and child who landed themselves in such a dangerous situation--whatever was that woman thinking? Nika has them pegged, he thought flatly. They're trying to get away from something, and it isn't just a desire to escape Estrella or the laws of the ground. Intrigued, he remained standing where he was, his scope trained on Marie. Watching, and listening intently as well.

Marie looked Nika dead in the eyes. "My husband made some bad deals to try and make our lives better. They ended with his death. And now those people want us dead too. I can't run around Estrella anymore. We're running out of places to hide. I need to get out of here for him."

She glanced into the folds of her blanket sadly, gazing at her peaceful and sleeping son. "I imagine that being a sky pirate involves a lot of injuries, and since cleaning scrapes and bruises comes along with this little one, I'm pretty good at that. I'm a fighter, since I've been wielding this axe around for about a year now since I've been on the run, and I can do a little bit of cooking too. He'll stay out of the way, but he can boost morale. Children usually do that."

Thoughts of another one of the crew members, Bulwark, crossed Nika's mind as she heard out Marie's answer. She wasn't joking. Bulwark was a family man; he did everything in the name of his wife and children, convinced that one day he might be able to see them again. Mmm, it was probably torturous to come back to Estrella after having spirited him away, she mused in mock innocence in her mind. One of these days she'd have to let him go. She could trust him now, but with time, everything would become set in stone. Regardless, Nika wasn't too keen on having the little snot around, but maybe it would help liven things up a bit, not to mention it gave Nika collateral to use against Marie in the case that she didn't shape up, but she seemed compliant enough. Or at the very least, desperate enough. Nika took in a deep breath as if to smell said desperation, and she sighed in content for a reason unknown to the people around her.

"Well, that's certainly a bad life that husband of yours placed on you, but the Fates work in mysterious ways, ne?" Nika replied in a tone that was so falsely saccharine that it couldn't stop the venom from dripping all over it. Nika shook her head and just waved a hand dismissively at the woman in a way to say that she was done with her for now. Now came the final person: Djinn. The sky pirate captain gazed flatly at this man's muscled, scarred, and hairy chest. Without even having to hear him out, she knew he had to come along. He would be a valuable asset regardless, and that slightly disconcerted Nika. She liked to play with her applicants a bit, but she figured straightforward would be okay for this particular one.

"All right, tough guy," Nika now directed at Djinn, her gaze as flat as her feelings at the moment. "You definitely look the part of pirate, but why should I trust you to let you on board, eh? You definitely show promise, but why are you here? That's really all I need to know." Her voice grew more serious as she went along, and her eyes now bore right into Djinn's as if searching for something.

Djinn looked at the girl, and pulled off his leather gloves which went a good length over his forearm. Then he unbuttoned the vest, dropped the items to the floor. After stepping closer to the captain, it was clear why he had done this.

Scars decorated the veteran cutthroat. His torso, though as masculine and hair covered as it was, could not fend off the fat scar a good two thumbs width dragging from behind his left shoulder blade diagonally over to the right frontward side of his body, below the abdomen. His forearms were speckled with burn scars and signs of surgical repair. Surgery aboard any pirate ship meant one thing: no pain meds and nothing to knock you out. You’d only get booze or rubbing alcohol to sterilize if you’re lucky, if not a hot piece of metal, and something to bite on during the procedure so you wouldn’t chew off your own tongue. The man’s back had its own worrisome tales. Unlike the front of Djinn’s body, his back was not hairy. It was smooth and hairless, but bumpy from the many scars that decorated it. Guns, blades, flames, magic, canon fire; anything harmful in the hands of a pirate one can imagine was what Djinn had been either hit by or damaged by the debris of it all.

“I’ve been doing this long before the most of you had been guided out of your mothers’ womb. I began around your age and sailed the oceans taking on naval ships and jolly rogers. After I became bored of the seas I took to the skies. My last crew is dead. No, I be not the captain of them. He crashed near the settlement of Sten across the ocean in Nirshire with the lot of us. We had decided to not bother with taking from the military of Planaya and move to a more worthy target, which is when the General of Sten himself destroyed one of the engines with a throw of his hammer. Most of the crew abandoned ship before the crash, but I took refuge with the caster who had cast a defensive ward around the two of us. The captain refused to be protected for he had to be sure the ship wouldn’t hit the settlement before it was time for Sten’s ruler to hang from the noose.” Djinn directed to the largest scar, the diagonal one, “This is from the ward dispersing from the force of impact. The caster was killed when we crashed into the mountain. If he had not died, I would not have this which came from my own cutlass.”

Djinn began to pick up his clothing, and redressing himself. He had made his point. “You need me. That is why I am here. I gave you my yarn and put my experience, my worth, on the table. You’re not looking for a teenage, hormonal child with dream-like aspirations when you take to the skies. You do not want someone that wants to declare theirself Sky Pirate King or some horseshit such as that. I am simply here for you need someone who knows how to take the sword without failing to fire a lead ball into the temple of the bastard that managed to pierce their flesh.”

The man placed back on his hat, and pulled a crate up to sit while stroking his beard. There was nothing else to be said.

Sam continued to cling by Inkie's side. It was obvious that she already was becoming friends with him. She half-listened to everyone, but seemed to more interested in trying to make the mute boy make a noise by poking him repeatedly in the side.

Vulka listened to everyone, mentally making a list of those that she would be safe around, and those that were dangerous or would get somebody hurt. The mother, Marie, seemed like the person that would take care of herself, but the child would be a problem, most like. Then again, Vulka herself was scarce more that a child her first time on a ship, though that had been on the ocean, not the sky. She sighed.

When they finally came to the man known as Djinn, he disrobed partially. Vulka arched an eyebrow at him, but took in his body, hair, scars, and all. He was definitely a seasoned cutthroat. She wondered what his story was, beside that he was from Nirshire. Perhaps she would strike up a conversation with him later. Maybe ask him to spar. It'd been way too long since she'd had a chance to practice swordplay. Hopefully she wasn't too rusty...

She strode towards him, arms crossed. "You seem confident in your skill with that cutlass," she said. Her eyes traveled to meet his. "It has been so long since I have had a chance to draw my blade. Care for a round or two later on?" she asked. The prospect of fighting someone as skilled as she was, or used to be, excited her. "Lupa becomes restless in her cage."

Inkie absorbed everything his shipmates said like a sponge; and yes, that is what he considered everyone who had spoken so far. Shipmates. Despite the fact that they'd all only just met he felt a sort of connection to them all. His mind was naive; Inkie had a kind, caring heart. The possibility that they could be killed without even boarding the ship was dashed in turn as each person opened their mouth the speak.

The boy shuffled his feet, an obvious, passionate gleam in his bright blue eyes. Maybe he was getting ahead of himself. He shouldn't assume that Nika would want him...but if she diiid.
His attention was diverted as the really large fur-man began to speak. He looked like he'd been through a lot. The scars on his back and chests were...the boy had never seen a body so marked by trial. Just looking at the wounds made him want to go over and hug the man, though he got the feeling that he wouldn't appreciate it. At the same time Inkie suddenly felt conscious. A rose-pink blush skittered across his cheeks, lightly coloring his nose.
His skin was soft, smooth. The other man's bulkiness made him feel wary of his own lean frame and the defined curve of his hips, even if he was slightly muscled. The fairness of his skin was a stark contrast to Djinn's.
With another anxious foot shuffle and a scarf tug Inkie reached back into his bag, took out a black and blue Duffle Coat, and then quickly slipped it on.

Djinn was so much Arrrr that the boy felt like only an Eep in comparison. Maybe later he could ask him to...teach him, something. Something. Anything, really.

The boy hugged his coat against his chest. It wasn't buttoned up, but he was more or less snuggling it, and no skin was showing through. Duffy was so much love. Anything soft could calm his nerves, even if he was just fingering his own hair, and his coat was so...mmpphhh...
Perhaps forgetting that he was supposed to be being a nasty little fucker, Inkie closed his eyes briefly with happiness, nuzzled his cheek against the fur hood, and-
EEEEEPPP!!!!

A sudden jolt of shot up his side, making him squirm. Upon looking down he saw Sam, poking him in the side. Inkie flinched the next time her finger got near, face red.

This...this man. Nika could not tear her eyes away as he spoke of what he offered. That apparently was the experience that the others didn't have. They had never been pirates before. From what he described, he was probably the most valuable out of them all, and though it somewhat irritated Nika, she was forced to admit it, and possibly respect this man. She watched with an unreadable look as he clothed himself once more. The woman, Vulka, approached him, speaking of a possible spar in the future. This prospect definitely intrigued Nika; she would want to be there to see it, but she had decisions to make. "Woah, woah, all right. So you've all given me quite a bit to think about," she coughed into her hand at first before speaking loudly to them all. She turned her back abruptly to them all before skipping off in the direction of the airship. She stopped before getting too far away from them, but didn't turn around.

"I need to confer with some people," Nika called back to them nonchalantly, her tone almost as unreadable as her face had been upon listening to Djinn's answer. "In the meantime, mingle as you want, and if you have any questions, please ask my darling Sirius who is currently barring your only way out of here. Be right back!" she chimed mischievously as she made her way to the enormous airship to talk to Swift and Bulwark--two of her most trusted crew members.

Sirius didn't exactly care to have the spotlight thrown on him, but it came with the job, so he couldn't complain. Besides, he had a feeling Nika already knew who she was accepting. "Since I don't think I've properly introduced myself, I am Sirius," he said to the group, not budging from his spot, his voice monotonous as ever. "It seems Captain Heaven has decided not to test your abilities; you're lucky." Here, he paused for dramatic effect, though his expression was unreadable since his entire face was covered in cloth. "She can be a bit extreme at times. Like she said, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask." With that, he became silent, awaiting for Nika's return mainly.

“Well, then,” Raiden muttered to himself. “Guess I can finally take this goddamn thing off.” He pulled off his eyepatch and stuffed it in his pocket. It was nice to see out of both eyes, and since the nervousness and anxiety was gone now, it wasn’t bleeding anymore. The only problem was that he could see the expiration dates of everyone now, but that didn’t really bother him. Not like he’ll need to know that any time soon, since it appeared that everyone had plenty of time left.

He kept mostly to himself as his eyes travelled around the room, making some mental notes to himself. Djinn was like a season veteran; Raiden could learn a thing or two from him, but he kinda reminded him of those grandpas that take no shit from anyone. Had to be careful around him. Inkie and Sam were just silly little kids who just got into the wrong crowd. Even if they had abilities of their own, if they couldn’t fight for themselves…

He had Sam’s face burn into his mind. So much like Reyna’s… The pain in his eye came back again, but thankfully there was no blood this time.

Inkie rubbed his side through his coat, hoping to somehow massage out all the tingles shooting through his skin, and looked somewhat curiously at the man with the vague emotions as he spoke. Sirius? The name was fitting.
Part of the boy still wanted to show off his abilities for the captain; being around people like Raiden and Djinn and even Vulka made him feel sort of...puny? Maybe puny was too strong of a word, but he sure as hell didn't feel strong.
Fine, then.
He'd just have to prove himself two times over. He could do this. He had no problem with working harder.

The boy blinked, looking around. He might as well do something while they waited for Nika to come back. Perhap's he'd give out cookies. That way his bag would be lighter if he made it up into the air.

Inkie's freckled cheeks turned up above his scarf, as if he were showing some goofy smile underneath. He tapped Sam's head with his finger to get her attention and started towards Sirius, looking back at her occasionally to make sure she was coming, then reaching back into his bag and pulling out a couple of chocolate chip cookies. Honestly, now that he was here, he was sort of embarrassed that he'd baked food for everyone. But he couldn't eat them by himself, right? It'd be a shame to let them rot.

Cookie?

Inkie gestured towards Sirius with two in his hand, his head tilted inquisitively.

Nika had been as static as leftover, unseasoned chicken breast the entire time she watched Djinn. Why hide your emotion? Surely if one would want to get involved with a new crew you’d give a taste of your personality rather than withdraw yourself from the applicants. If Djinn made it, he’d not be more surprised than a rat caught in a trap if this captain was a ball of hyperactive energy quick to crack a joke. Frankly, he hoped for that. Someone here would have to be like him.

“You seem confident in your skill with that cutlass," this comment came unexpected. Djinn had expected that he had been finished socializing with anyone there after giving more information about himself than he should have. He looked up after noticing a pair of legs which hadn’t been that close to him earlier being adjacent to him a bit too close to his personal taste, meeting the young girl in her large grey orbs with his own wary, red. She spoke once more with a proposition, "It has been so long since I have had a chance to draw my blade. Care for a round or two later on? Lupa becomes restless in her cage.” Lupa. Must be the name of her blade, which Djinn then looked over at her waist to inspect what weapon breed had been her personal taste.

Nika ended up telling the group about them giving enough information and that she’d have to talk to others about who would make it. Then the man Sirius spoke, Djinn pay mind to him. Djinn was too busy focusing on the long-sword of that girl—Vulka? That was her name. He wasn’t sure.

An ornate long-sword, hung at her waist. Not common among criminals, this made the woman quite interesting. The scabbard was simple black leather with an expertly carved handle and a palm designed to be a wolf captured in a snarl. The beast’s eyes were sapphires that gave it a graceful touch. Djinn found this work of art very much to his liking. What was very much appealing to the veteran was the way the hilt curved. An advantage for a fight, but nonetheless the cutlass that Djinn had slung upon his waist would outmatch this long-sword. Even with no clue what the woman’s blade was in terms of metal, the fact it was a long-sword meant sloppy maneuvering. Even if mastered. That’s just how the blades work. Djinn’s cutlass was of average length with a blade that is weighted at the tip to promote limb removal and armor piercing capability, but also the blade was greatly supported to prevent shatter. When Djinn had sustained that wound from the airship crash, that bastard of a weapon cut not only through flesh but bone as well. His heart and lungs escaped damage narrowly only because of the weighted tip grazing his body. But if anything, this woman had no formal swordplay style. No military trained soldier would carry a long-sword without a short-sword. This woma—no this child has successfully caught the attention of Djinn by just her sheathed weapon; and truly she was intriguing.

“I may take you up on that offer, however knowing the faults and upbringings of many weapons comes with the job requirement of the positions we desire here: survival,” he gave a joking smirk, “All I’ll have to do is throw a stick and your sword will fall barking.”

When Djinn finished his comment, the other tall kid (Raiden) spoke something of personal relief and removed his eye-patch. If he could see out both eyes, why hide the other? Djinn knew of cutthroats that did such a thing for raids aboard other ships, so when they would go inside the enemy vessel they would simply remove the patch if it were dark for they would be able to see clearly within it with one eye adjusted, but in this situation an eye-patch was entirely unnecessary. Even both irises showed no difference. Both were the same green.

It was impossible to read Sirius's expression as he was offered the cookie. Did he raise an eyebrow? Was he amused? Was he smiling? Frowning? Smirking? Grimacing? Were his eyes alight with joy, or were they ablaze with anger? He made no immediate movements or gestures, but just continued to stand there for a few moments of awkwardness before finally reaching his hand out to take the cookie only to stop short as a thought occurred to him. "If this is a bribe, I'm afraid I cannot take it," he stated rather flatly. "I cannot let you out. The only way out of here is with seven daggers in your back." He gave the feminine boy a moment to take that in before taking the cookie and letting his arm drop to his side once more. "However, that does not seem to be the case." Again, the lack of expression had to be unnerving. "I will warn you though. Though it seems to be a kind gesture, you're almost a sky pirate--we don't do nice. Typically."

Sirius shrugged his shoulders which at least was something--some form of visible indication of what he might be feeling. He mulled over what he just said. Nika wouldn't be too keen to have this goody two shoes prancing about on her ship, but then again... "I suppose being good to your own kind is well enough. Please refrain from trying to feed the enemies." His voice remained monotone and unexpressive. He had also yet to actually eat the cookie. It stayed grasped by his hand which dangled simply by his side.

In the meantime, Nika had reached the various crew members that were cleaning the hull. Among them were the two she had to talk to. One was a tall, pale individual with wavy blond hair and green eyes that dazzled like emeralds despite his face being smudged with grime here and there. The other was an immensely bulky fellow with dark brown hair that was in a complete mess including his rather full beard which definitely needed to be tended to. He was wearing his grey pants and suspenders, and luckily, a shirt even though his massive pecs were visible because the top buttons were undone. Nika gave each a poke and they turned to face her.

"Swift, Bulwark. We actually got a slew of applicants tonight," Nika spoke to them in a sultry voice. "I'm actually planning on just letting them all aboard and taking off. Doesn't that sound appropriately risky, hmm?" she chimed, spinning about on a heel before coming to a stop and sheathing her blade such that she could put each of her hands on her hips. Each of the people had given quite good reasons to take them aboard, not to mention a few of them would make for good fun at night in her cabin. She didn't bother hiding the smirk that formed on her face; her companions would know what she was thinking by it. They were all too familiar with her mannerisms.

"Well, if that's what you think is best, Captain," Swift responded slyly, taking a white handkerchief to his face to clean up some of the grime while pushing his silver-framed spectacles up the bridge of his nose so they were a bit more comfortable. He took a peek at the motley crew that had assembled, his sharp eyes taking in each of their appearances. Swift's grin turned into a frown rather quickly. "Some of them seem fitting, but there appear to be others that I doubt."

"So quick ta judge, are we, Swift?" Bulwark bellowed. "Ya can't go judgin' a book by it's cover." He was in better shape than Swift in terms of being dirty, granted he was in charge of the hose, so he was actually kind of soaking wet. No one paid any mind.

"The smaller ones are taking on more passive roles, engineers and scouts and the such," Nika expressed happily as she laced her fingers together. "They are things we lack, ne? Can't ever get enough of them." She licked her lips, refraining from looking back in the distance to see how the group was doing.

Inkie blinked in subtle surprise at the Sirius’s reaction, trying his best not to look too shocked. The other’s reaction was intriguing. For Pete’s sake, he’d only wanted to give Sirius a cookie. Was he happy about it? Disappointed? His emotions weren’t fluctuating at all. Should Inkie not have known any better he’d think Sirius didn’t have any emotions, but that was impossible. There had to be passion somewhere down in those clothes, however small.

The boy offered an obscure smile, trying to assure the other that he had no ulterior motives. For a moment he considered taking his hand and pressing another cookie into it, but Sirius would undoubtedly overreact. As far as he knew. Maybe he should move on; he’d go back and talk to Sirius later, should he still be alive.
……
The thought made him shudder.

Sam~

Inkie thought more to himself than to anyone, tapping the shortie on the head again. She could come if she wanted to, but he wasn’t going to wait. Standing still after traveling for so long made him feel anxious. That and it gave him time to think. Should he think anymore about the issue at hand, he might just pass out.
The very wisp of such a thought made him shudder again, but anybody looking on would have thought that the teenager was simply cold. If those Azure eyes held a single hint of fear then it must’ve been buried amongst the plethora of other emotions contained within, tucked away in the swirling mass. Some people were emotionless…like Sirius, for example. Inkie was quite the opposite and always had been, but it made him no less murky.

Aforementioned gaze now swept the warehouse again, skittering over crates and cracks and people. Nika was still nowhere to be seen; she must still be consulting her crew members. For the most part people were just standing around. Vulka and Djinn were talking together, presumably about something weapons related. He’d heard a snippet of their conversation on his way to give a cookie to Sirius, but not much.
Inkie started towards them, his gait lithe despite the awkward height.

The redhead's eyes brightened when her new BFF offered up a cookie. She snatched it out of his hand with utmost dexterity and promptly shoved the whole thing in her mouth, dropping crumbs all over her face. "Thanks Inkie~" she said cheerfully, wrapping her arms around his torso and somewhat nuzzling his chest. "You're my new best friend now," she joked, looking up at him with sparkling green eyes. "What'cha think about that?"

She let go of him as he went to offer a cookie to Sirius. Her attention spanned elsewhere all over the room until Inkie came back, grasping the short redhead's attention again by tapping her on the head. She just looked at him with a stupidly large grin. "Where are we goin'?" she asked, grabbing his wrist and more or less holding his hand while they walked.

Vulka's lips twitched into a slight grin. Djinn really had no idea of Lupa's power. "You mistake Lupa for a common hound. The only thing she chases after is blood," she responded. "Regardless, I cannot wait. It has been a while since my last fight. I await our match eagerly," she added, turning around with a slight raise of her hand in a sort of half-wave. She stopped, noticing Sam and Inkie walking towards her. Sam was firmly grasping Inkie's wrist and swinging it as she walked. Vulka couldn't help but giggle slightly. The redhead was simply just too cute.

Marie rolled her eyes at the young captain's comment about Jacob. This impudent little girl knew nothing about her, or her husband, nor would she ever. She didn't want to talk about it. She kept praying to the gods that they wouldn't ask her about it, and if they did, she'd blow them off. Jacob meant well, he didn't anticipate this. He didn't deserve snide comments like that.

Gently and slowly, Marie lowered herself to sit on the ground and hold Max in her lap. Her arms needed a break. The axe in her hand was set at her side, and she positioned her son just so to where he was laying across from knee to knee. He was her world now, her precious little angel, and he looked the part even more while he was asleep like this. It shocked her that he hadn't woken up yet.

Despite loving to watch him sleep, she pulled her eyes away from Max and looked around at the others. The kid Sam didn't seem half bad. Neither did the impressive Inkie. Djinn she was wary of, and even Vulka to an extent. The one guy, Raiden, she had no idea what to think of him, and she knew to avoid Sirius simply because he may scare Max. So would Djinn. The Captain seemed like an evil little thing, and she seemed to have a bad childhood as well. Just like Marie, but Marie didn't take it out in the form of disgustingly sweet and diabolical little schemes. Even before she had officially met the kid she wanted to slap her. She needed a little discipline. But she couldn't afford to do it. Not with Max around.

The little boy shifted in her lap, and she took his pudgy little hand and squeezed it gently.

Though his expressions had been mostly hidden before, it was clear now that the Inkie was smiling. Hugely, even. One of the main things he'd been worried about as he began the long trek to the warehouse was the type of people he'd meet when he got there. Sky pirates? There certainly was a lot of lore about them...all he knew he'd read in books, cooped up in a study for years. Not once had the boy so much as seen an Airship in the sky. While the prospect of then boarding one sparked the utmost curiosity in his lil heart, he'd also been kind of nervous....you know...about chilling 24/7 with a bunch of hardened cutthroats.

Azure blue eyes fell upon Sam as the small girl held his wrist, warm and kind, as per usual. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. If Sam could be a Pirate...if he could be a Pirate...
Inkie wrapped his fingers around her little hand in a gesture of friendship and took the sack of cookies out of his bag with the other, perhaps holding it away from the girl in hopes that she didn't gobble them all up. Originally he'd planned to give at least two to how many people showed up, but upon getting here he'd changed his mind. They should be happy with just one, right? The rest would go to Max.
A small string was tugged in Inkie's heart by the whole situation, now that he knew what was going on. Did Max like cookies? Most kids did, right? Inkie blinked, imagining the little guy's face when he got half a bag full of cookies.
If his mom wasn't like, a health freak or anything , that is.

Vulka looked like she was about to wander off, so Inkie waved at her, maybe more with his elbow since Sam had kind of wristnapped him. The boy tilted his head at her and Djinn, offering the bag of cookies, though his eyes stayed glued to the ground. Djinn made him nervous....really nervous, actually, despite how he towered over the older man now that he was right next to him.

Swift adjusted his glasses once more before turning his back on his bulky friend and the young female sky pirate captain. There wasn't any point of further discussion; this he knew all too well. "If your mind is made up, Captain, then there isn't much we can say right?" Swift retorted lightly, his tone sarcastically sly. He knew Nika loved that tone of his, and so he wasted no time in returning to work. The applicants must have really made an impact on her somehow if she was that willing to take these sorts of chances. Before getting too far away, he stopped, however. "Risks. Pretty much just common things for sky pirates," he stated simply, a smile on his face as he proceeded walking back to the rest of the crew members to keep cleaning the ship, though the job was almost complete. The Dimension Gate would be ready for lift off soon, and most certainly also would Captain Heaven.

Bulwark laughed heartily which echoed off the steels walls of the building. "Argh, that Swift. He knows ya too well, Cap'n," the large man bellowed.

"It seems as though he does," Nika responded tersely in a cutesy tone, bringing her hand to her lips and smiling mischievously. She waved a hand in dismissal to Bulwark who just laughed some more and meandered off up the large steel ramp that extended from the deck of the massive airship. Turning sharply on her heel, she noticed something off about the applicants in the distance. A displeased look upon her face, she twirled about in a little dance before vanishing completely. Inkie and Djinn would be able to feel a slight breeze near them before Nika stood majestically in front of them. "What, may I ask, is going on here? Giving out cookies like this is some sort of preschool playtime?!" she tried to say in her typical sweetly innocent, yet venom-laced tone, but her words came out in a growl. "I suggest you tuck those away before they get crammed somewhere it might feel more good than you would think," she crooned, pointing at the bag of cookies before taking a glance at something nearby.

That something happened to be Sam....with cookie crumbs still resting around her mouth. Nika's eye twitched and she felt herself grinning, though this was no innocent grin. The sky pirate captain approached the girl and leaned in so nonchalantly, sticking her tongue out and pressing it lightly near the girl's young lips. Nika lapped at the girl's face once, her tongue catching a few of the crumbs which she didn't hesitate to swallow after she had stood back up nice and straight, taking a step back away from Sam. "Looks like someone is a messy eater," she stated loosely, before sending a wary gaze to Inkie, and then a neutral one to the rest of the applicants.

"Let me warn you all now, though I would hope you would already know," Nika said with a wink. "This isn't a game; it's a matter of life and death. Let's just not forget that, shall we?" She spoke of the matter so flippantly, almost as if such things held no bearing. "As such, I welcome you all aboard as the new additions to my crew! Congratulations!" she exclaimed to them all, giving them probably what was closest to her genuine smile that she had given them thus far. She only allowed them a brief moment to let their triumph sink in before she added a stipulation. "However, there is one last thing you must do for me that will seal your fate," she stated sinisterly, eying the crates all about the warehouse. "Each of you will be required to take a crate from this warehouse and carry it with you onto the airship."

Nika's eyes scanned the motley group like a hawk. Now, the final test. Who would be receptive to this task? "It is theft. I don't own any of these lovely crates," she chimed, and gave them all an endearing look. "But I'm counting on you guys to change that. These are tasks you'll have to get used to, so have at it, mmkay?" Nika held her ground to see who would take action...

...and who would falter.

Marie looked up from Max's sleeping figure when the Captain came back. She did something with the girl, Sam, and Marie seemed mildly disgusted. She just hoped that the Captain didn't try any of that with her or her son. She had no interest.

Her heart stopped for a minute when the girl said that they were all welcomed aboard.

But they had to steal a crate. So what? She'd killed. No big deal. Stealing was nothing. With a light shrug, she stood up with Max in her arms, and brought him on the airship first, picking a small bunk in the ship for him to sleep that was remotely private. The door was closed and locked, and she returned to retrieve the crate. It was brought aboard the airship, and just in case the Captain decided to be a little bitch, she grabbed a second one to bring on in Max's name. And that was it. She returned to her bunk where Max remained asleep, and laid herself down beside him just to snuggle him and keep him safe through the rest of the night unless something else were to arise.

Vulka's hand shot to her blade as Nika seemed to magically appear, though she refrained from drawing it. She slowly relaxed, though stood confused as the pink-haired captain leaned down in front of Sam...and kissed her? The grey-eyed youth stared confused at the two girls for a moment. She overheard something about a messy eater, which didn't bode well for cute little Sam. Vulka shrugged and did as she was told, picking up one of the crates and hoisting it up on her shoulder. They were very heavy, though she made no sign to any sort of strain on her body.

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Sam looked up at Inkie, giggling. "Aww, you're so sweet~" she teased him. As the cookies were offered to Max, Nika came out of nowhere, demanding that the cookies be put away before they were jammed somewhere. "Please don't be mad at him, Miss Nika-" Sam began, though she was interrupted by the captain's tongue coming out and licking the crumbs off her lips. Sam froze up, her face a brighter red than even her hair. She didn't move for what was almost a whole minute, and by that time, it seemed that everyone else had already taken a crate aboard. Except Inkie.

"L-l-let's get a crate," she stammered, mostly shouting. Her movements were jerkier, and it was very obvious that she was immensely flustered. She'd never seen girls act like that with other girls before, but the prospect of being so different was...exciting. Sam wasn't sure what to think entirely. Part of her enjoyed it, but part of her screamed at her to try and stay away from the captain as much as possible.

She grabbed a crate with both hands and lifted - then promptly falling over and scattering the parts everywhere. She immediately bolted upright, parts clutched in her arms. She hurriedly stuffed everything back in the crate and started to half-carry, half-drag the crate, until suddenly got easier. She looked up, seeing long legs that led to the face of Vulka. "Oh hey," she said, her voice still carrying a hint of embarrassment. The older girl just smiled softly and picked the crate up, carrying it on board as well.

"Go back to Inkie," Vulka said softly. "You two should stick together." And with a turn, and a flap of her black cloak, Vulka brought Sam's crate on board and disappeared below decks.

Sam trotted back up to Inkie, grabbing a hold of his coat and burying her face in his chest. "I feel so weird," she whispered. The redhead felt safer here, around Inkie. She'd like him from first sight, and the kindness he'd shown her just made her trust in him even more. This kindhearted boy couldn't hurt Sam, could he? Would he? Sam surely hoped not. He was such a nice kid...

Raiden didn’t even flinch or turn to look when the Captain appeared. He could see her lick the crumbs off of Sam’s face, and he felt a little warm watching it. Dats hot. He took a deep breath and chuckled before turning to the rest of the group. He felt kinda worried about Inkie; if he was really so childish and clueless, then the Captain’s gonna have a fun time manipulating him.

He grinned, hearing the news that they were all allowed on the ship. Dead End avoided. He spaced out for a couple of seconds, trying to see how long he had delayed his death. Pleased with the results, he obediently followed the Captain’s orders and grabbed a crate. He kept a watchful on the two scrawny kids, his big brother instinct kicking in. Sam was having a bit of trouble, but she’ll manage. Inkie, he wasn’t so sure yet.

Inkie jumped at the sudden appearance of Nika, his coat fluttering slightly with the movement. He could’ve sworn that she hadn’t been anywhere around before. He hadn’t picked up on her emotional signature, however erratic it was. Had he been much of a noise maker he probably would have squealed, but in the end he just stumbled backwards, trying not to topple over from his height. What?! Did she want a cookie that badly?! His blue eyes widened in shock. He was…jumpy, to say the least.


"What, may I ask, is going on here? Giving out cookies like this is some sort of preschool playtime?!"
Nika tried to speak in her typical sweetly innocent, yet venom-laced tone, but her words came out in a growl. "I suggest you tuck those away before they get crammed somewhere it might feel more good than you would think," she crooned, pointing at the bag of cookies before taking a glance at something nearby.

Inkie blushed a light pink, unable to block the image of Nika shoving a bag of cookies up his ass. The boy shuffled his feet, but it was more of such a huge squirm that it looked as if he'd run away. Actually, he kind of wanted to. His heart started pounding.
Embarrassed blue eyes skittered shyly over to Sam, either looking for comfort or mortified about being ratted out before they'd even boarded the ship. Probably both. What he saw didn't exactly help his condition.
Nika was leaned in, licking the crumbs off of Sam's face.

Inkie inhaled sharply, swallowing. G-...god......the hell?....
A tiny part of him felt oddly protective; he was slightly flustered with Nika for doing that to his innocent friend, especially without her knowing. However, the other part was a reaction more typical to his age and gender; something he couldn't help and seriously hoped didn't get too vivid in his mind. The slight pink already on his face turned a scarlet red, and suddenly he could hear the blood roaring in his head. After Nika left he was kind of like Sam, standing there and gawking.

I..the....they...Nika................

Inkie blushed harder and finally managed to twist away, glad that he had something else to do now, unable to get his thoughts together. Crates. Crates, crates. CRATES CRATES CRATES CRATES lesbian action CRATES....he should probably go over there and comfort Sam, but he wasn't sure he could do so without bursting.

At the same time he felt a tug on his coat, and when he looked down, Sam was there. Before he could do so much as pat her on the shoulder or something at a length, she'd surrounded him in a hug, her face buried into his chest. He tried to slow his breathing, but he couldn't, really. He felt bad for the girl. He wanted to help her. But....
Inkie did his best, rubbing her back in the lightest manner he could manage, squeezing her hand, and then twisting away before it all became too much.

Crates.

He'd get two crates, to make up for the mess up with the cookies, which he put into his bag for later or something.

Inkie strided over to the next shelf.
He scooted one to the edge. It wasn't too bad.
He scooted it off of the edge and into his arms.

GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!

Nearly on queue, a slightly smaller crate fell from above, landing on his with such a force that it pretty much brought him to the ground. Somehow though, the feminine guy managed to hold on. Somehow, he managed to begin shuffling towards the airship. Ah, the wonders of hormones and fight or flight adrenaline.

By the time he actually made it to the ship his arms were hurting like fuck, but he refused to set the crates down. If he did, he probably wouldn't be able to pick them back up.

Just pick up a few crates?

The task was a little insulting to Djinn, but whenever you kick up a new crew you are to expect meager tasks until you go up in the ranks. If there are any. The bearded brute looked around. Finding crates and looking inside of them for anything useful. What would be most useful? A few things came to mind: guns, ammuniti--wait not he can make that..coal, other crap that this girl would already know is on this bleedin' warehouse considering the meeting was here, and, she was demanding them to carry crates on board. Lazy child. Even when Djinn was second in command, hell, even when he was a captain he did meager tasks like this still. Everyone is to earn their fair share.

Children these days show no gratitude and expect things to land right into their smooth, non-work wary palms.

To the hell with it, Djinn stacked the first two crates he saw after thinking a bit about this and went on board. Easy as hell.

As the new-found crew started loading the crates onto the ships, some with difficulty and others with immense ease, Sirius meandered away from the doorway and approached the smirking sky pirate captain as she watched the others board the airship. "Looks like no one had any second thoughts," Sirius stated simply, taking one last glance back at the door. There was no one around; no one was going to try to escape. Everyone was satisfied with their fates, and that was probably for the best. Though Sirius possessed an immense capacity to kill, it's not like he always thirsted for spilled blood. "I hope you're happy with your new crew, Captain."

Nika didn't spare her closest ally a glance but instead kept her eyes focused at the people hard at work, stealing airship parts. The sight pleased her. Of course she had made the right decision. If she hadn't, there would be a pile of dead bodies by the door and they would have been gone by now. "Come now, Sirius," Nika crooned as she started taking a few steps forward. Her prior crew members that were cleaning the ship were now boarding it signaling that things were about to get underway. "I think we've landed a great catch tonight." Spinning on a heel and giving a sinister wink to Sirius, she marched forward with the fellow in tow.

Nika's heels clicked against the ramp, and when she and Sirius were safely on deck, someone gave the shout to retract it back into the airship. Wasting no time, the sky pirate captain marched across the polished, wooden deck with purpose until she came to the bow, close to where the main mast stood proudly erected holding a massive sail, the crow's nest, and a small propeller atop of it which seemed pointless as a mighty roar signified the airship coming to life, the engine starting and a hatch opening on the stern revealing a propellant tank that would be the main source of their propulsion through the air. Before the primary propellers could be unleashed from the side, they had to get out of this confined space. Nika took out her walkie talkie and set it to a different channel.

"Forget the dimension magic this time; I'm gonna make a mess," Nika spoke into it wickedly, hearing the grunt of approval that Bulwark gave, for it was he who was at the helm with Swift manning the controls. Tucking the device away, she gazed up at the ceiling of the warehouse and grinned maniacally, her eyes wide and pupils dilated. She raised a hand and focused. "Time to blow this fucking joint! Ahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!" she shouted and laughed as the air seemed to shimmer and distort. An immense ray of violet energy surged from her hand and tore through the air until it hit the ceiling with a violent explosion. Waving a hand through the air, an electrical force field surrounded the airship for a few seconds--long enough to ward off the debris that fell upon it. Chunks of destroyed steel were sent hurtling towards the walls, and the field degenerated. Sirens were blaring and red lights flashed about the place. The hole was large enough for the airship to safely maneuver through. The night sky shown above--all the stars and moon seeming so much closer since the city was already in the air.

Nika looked up at this sky, electricity sparking around her and gathering on her back at one point which immediately sprouted into a magnificent wing shaped like a butterfly's. Now, her smile was genuine as the airship managed to lift off the ground, the main propellers starting to slowly come out. Swift must have been enacting the dimension magic to hover high enough out of the warehouse so that the propellers could be released from their hatches. Crouching just a bit, Nika leaped into the air and actually flew up to the crow's nest, landing safely within. She gazed out over the city in glee. "Head west for now. I want to be long gone before anyone can react to this mess, ne?" she spoke into the device.

"Aye, Cap'n. Swift'll have us hidden in no time at all," Bulwark replied confidently, turning the capstan in order to head in the direction the captain had pointed out to him through the walkie talkie.

"Excellent. And so it begins~"

~ F i n ~