+Anima

[Midnightmoon]

Tateen dropped the subject on her parents. "Anima are caught and treated badly all the time. And from the smell of things over all this salt they aren't being treated at all kindly. But I'm stating now that I'm not killing anyone." She responded, dropping the rest of the way down to the deck, waiting for Hydrax to present the means to get on the boat.

[Nohiki]

"'Suppose we can just knock them out and leave them to wake up later. Or sell to slavery." she added with sarcasm. "Allright, now let's get going." she said and pulled her sword out. She put the tip on the deck and kneeled, her forehead touching the guard. The blade went blue and a big wave appeared on their six, giving them enough glide speed to cruise to the slave ship. She stuck the anchors on the higher side of their ship to keep them together. She looked at Falco and then up, signing for him to go up. Herself, she tossed a rope up and begun climbing. Up there, she used a small mirror to check the deck from behind few boxes. There was only a handful of guards. She checked the wind and then spilled something on the deck from a vial on her belt. In a minute, the guards were asleep. She waited another one for the stuff to evaporate and tied the guards up. Then she started opening the cages.

[Awesomoman]

Falco pulled his wings out and flew straight up on the deck and hid by some barrels, after that he waited for Hydrax to signal him or something. Instead he looked up to see all the guards asleep and being tied up. "Remind me again why you needed me up here?"

[Nohiki]

"You think this was everyone? We're only doing stealth as long as we can, once compromised, we'll have both of our hands full. Hopefully it won't come to that but better safe than sorry." she explained and talked to the slaves. "OK we take them to the armory and then they are going to take over the ship themselves. As we noticed before we can't take all of them. One is former captain from our country, he'll navigate back home. Got anything that can break a lock?" she said and prepared to siege the underdeck.

[Awesomoman]

Falco walked over to the lock and smashed it with the back of his rifle, the lock broke on impact. "There you go, anything else?"

[Nohiki]

"Stealth my ass." she said as she heard the loud clang. She prepared her sword and stepped aside as a dozen more guards just rushed out. The slaves were quick to respond but without arms they were pushed back quickly. Hydrax slipped in and started freeing everyone inside the ship, while those above were slaughtered - there was nothing she could do, not after her injury anyways. She found the armory, repeated Falco's trick and armed the other bunch of the slaves, letting them loose in the guard'S back.

OOC: FEEL THE WEIGHT OF YOUR ACTIONS

[Awesomoman]

OOC: Says you.

Falco made a quick switch from hi rifle to his good old bow. "HEY YA STUPID BLOKES GET BEHIND ME!" He released 3 arrows taking down the first guards out. The smart quickly got behind Falco, the angry ones kept fighting. Fourth guard took a swing with his sword, Falco used the trick he did on Martin stealing the guards sword and taking his head off. "I really don't know why the wolf has such a problem with this." He tossed the sword into another guards chest then kicked it in him farther and into another guard. "6 down. 6 more." He pulle the sword back out and moved back in front of the slaves. "No ones getting past-" He was interrupted by a bunch of clicks, all the guards had pistols loaded and aimed. "Right...forgot about those."

[Nohiki]

At that time, the stampede of the armed slaves hammered the guards to the floor. "I think she doesn't have a problem with them dying, i think she just doesn't like to do it herself, that's all." she said. "Well, our job is done, they'll sail home on their own, pack it up." she said and climbed down the rope.

OOC: Wait for kauria to see if it's Krath time?

[Kauria]

Krath pressed his fingers against the weathered wood of his quarter doors, taking in the sounds of fighting. Not in the immediate area as far as he could tell. Who would attack a slaver ship with the blessings of two kingdoms on its sails? Pirates, possibly, but there were soldiers on board.
He licked his lips and slowly pushed the door open. Before he could even take a gasp of salty air, a strong hand grabbed the neck of his shirt and forced him down behind a stack of crates.
Krath's arm flashed out reflexively, but he caught himself as he recognized the face of one of the soldiers. Behind him crouched a slaver and another soldier, both gripping pistols tightly.
"What's happening?" Krath asked, his voice an urgent whisper.
The first soldier responded. "Someone let the slaves out and they found weapons. We don't know who, since the guards that were on duty seem to have been drugged." He peered past the crate and withdrew quickly. "Trussed up like turkeys. And they're the lucky ones."
Krath swallowed. This didn't make any sense. Raiders wouldn't want to ruin the only cargo the ship had by releasing the slaves.
He glanced over at the soldier, who was fiddling with a broken board on the crate in front of him.
"Here, help me pry this open. I can't get my fingers into that gap." He moved aside, and Krath began to quietly work out the splintered section of wood.
"Where's the captain? Why haven't the +Anima come down here yet?"
"He's locked himself in his cabin, won't stop blubbering about how we 'damaged' one of the reserved slaves." The soldier clenched his teeth. "I think decapitated guards are a little more important than a freak with a limp."
Krath hesitated.
Freak.
They couldn't help it. He couldn't help it. Couldn't help surviving.
The soldier, thinking that he was waiting for the answer to his second question, continued, "They haven't come down here yet because they're regrouping. Lucky for us, they seem to be just as disoriented. But they know there are still guards down here."
Krath closed his eyes and drew in a slow breath. Better to be accepted by one side than neither. He curled his fingers around the board and shoved it down, opening a slat in a shower of sawdust.
"Perfect," whispered the soldier.
Krath reached in and pulled out one of the metallic shapes within, passing it to the man next to him.
"This is one of yours, isn't it?" he asked, examining the weapon.
He nodded. Close enough. "The king already paid for them," he offered, as if it made a difference. "I'm just here to show you how to use them. I guess now's as good a time as any." His fingers found the notches in the grip of the weapon, sliding into place by the trigger.
He spoke in a low, hurried voice. They didn't have much time.
"It can be used like a shortspear in a pinch, but these are mainly specialized to combat +Anima." He yanked the cord, and the pointed cage of metal at the shaft's tip clinked open into a six-fingered claw. "Up close, this is best for catching natural attacks. From a distance, though, you should use it like a speargun." The claw closed again. "Fire it like this. When it hits—" He swiped a tongue across his dry lips. "—pull the cord. The head will open and be almost impossible to remove without causing more damage. Aim for between the shoulders. Something about it disrupts their ability to transform easily or use any other abilities."
The slaver looked incredulous. "And this works? How?"
"I don't really know how. It could be something as simple as pain, but it works." Krath held back a wince at the memory of the ambassador repeatedly ordering his slaves to transform as the steel grasp was tested on every scarred inch of skin.
He blinked, and his eyes filled with a determined coldness. "We need to act before they're ready for us. I'll go gather everyone I can reach undetected. You're the fighters, you decide when we attack. Blessings of the gods go with you."
"Blessings."
This is either going to be far more easy or far more difficult than I expect, he thought as he darted to the first of the cabin doors, weapon in hand.

(OOC: Oh, it's Krath time. Just not in an over-the-top, flashy way. Krath don't do no flashy.)

[Nohiki]

Hydrax released the clamps. "Taken care of." she said to Tateen, "Rest is up to them. We've got goods to deliver." she said and turned the ship towards home.

[Midnightmoon]

"You know, I had a friend who didn't know how to swim if his life depended on it. And how many anima on that boat do you think know how to sail that thing?" Tateen asked at Hydrax's elbow.

[Nohiki]

"One is enough, he can boss the rest." shrugged Hydrax. "Don't worry they'll be fine, unless we missed a few guards. It's up to them now."

[Awesomoman]

Falco opened up a chest filled with arrows and restocked before going back. "Hope they're careful, those guards can try some tricky stuff."

[Kauria]

Several minutes later, a confused assortment of the remaining slavers and soldiers stood scattered behind whatever cover they could find. The first crate of weapons had run out quickly, and most had turned to whatever improvised tools they could find. They were almost out of time.
Krath wedged his back against the wooden wall, hazarding a glance across the water. The mysterious second ship was leaving, its crew apparently done with their task.
Whatever that was.
He wriggled tighter into his corner. The soldier next to him had a scimitar at the ready, and Krath wished he could trade weapons, but he was one of the few who knew how to use the new devices.
"Careful," the soldier whispered. "They have access to crossbows, swords, maybe even a few firearms off the guards." He tried to reassure the boy, "Experience and health taken into account, we have a fair chance in this fight."
Either he had forgotten the slaves' powers or he didn't want to consider them.
"Remember, our goal is to save as many of our own as we—" He silenced himself suddenly.
The muffled talking from the other end of the ship ceased. This was it.
The +Anima were coming to secure the rest of the vessel.
A flutter and the sudden musty smell of feathers made Krath look up. He dove out of the way, a dagger quivering in the deck's boards where he had sat.
A young man with the wings of a gull cursed and jumped down from his perch on the cabin.
The soldier between the barrels reared up, smashing his hilt into the back of the boy's skull. He shuddered and collapsed, out cold. Krath nodded his thanks, but his thoughts were elsewhere. Was the other ship far away enough to miss the sounds of battle, or would the slaves' mysterious allies return to aid them?

[Midnightmoon]

Tateen tried to shrug off her unease, they were anima after all, with special talents each. And yet a sound had started up on the wind. Tateen turned to look over her shoulder. "You sure they'll be fine? It doesn't sound like it..."