The warm, and slightly humid, night air ferociously tore through him. But nothing could break the toothy grin the blonde had plastered on his sharp, tanned face. His blue eye shined with a mixture of delight and mischief at the sight of the zeppelin-like airship off in the distance. "There she is," he mused quietly, almost not hearing himself speak over the rushing wind, "right on schedule…"
Looking back over his shoulder, several others stood against the knocking wind, all with matching smirks and shining wicked smiles on their shadowed faces as they, too, stared on at the traveling airship below, like predators stalking their prey. He couldn't say he wasn't proud. "All right gang," the one- eyed blonde boomed over the wind, his grin growing more ferocious, "let's get that crystal!" They all cheered and whooped in reply, beginning their jobs as quickly as he had lectured.
Black boots clicked soundly, twisting and turning down memorized metal walkways. A gloved hand slammed the old metal door open, making it creak loudly, but still, barely audible as the pirate waltzed into the crowded room, a look of determination masking on his features. Four old flapter machines pressed together, lined behind one another in the middle of the noisy room, each with at least one of his selected crew members busy buckling, cranking, preparing themselves and their flapters for the flight.
He noticed his first mate waiting patiently for her flying partner in the second flapter. Of course she was already prepared and ready, she wasn't his first mate for nothing. Her long red hair, usually free and down around her waist, was presumably braided and tucked away under the rubber hood of her uniform, making her seem a lot like a young man... Not that he'd ever say that to her face lest he has a death wish. Goggles already placed over her eyes and air mask over her freckled face. She busied herself, removing a gas-round from the pouch on her brown leather belt and cocking the launcher, loading the hand canon as she impatiently waited.
'For someone who loves to shirk away from chores whenever she possibly could,' Bill mused to himself, 'she sure wasn't one to waste anytime when it came to some action.'
The captain maneuvered himself between his bustling crew towards the flapter closest to the hatch where one of his newest members waited. A petite asian woman with short black hair and an accent so thick. She might've been a bit… quirky… what with her weird obsession with some of his male crew (maybe even he himself, he feared) and the things he sometimes overheard her talking about, with her new friend Grenda (who they picked up some time ago) that made even him stop in his tracks and shudder. But she was smart and knew her stuff when it came to odd gadgets and trinkets, so proved useful to the crew, the only reason he kept the girl around, honestly.
Her gloved hands busied pressing numerous buttons on the flapter, double checking everything, making sure the flapter wouldn't suddenly drop from the sky with them on it (which had only happened once, hence her addition.) He climbed onto the flapter, positioning himself behind her and pulling his own goggles over eye-patch and eye. He unstrapped his single-barrel break-open grenade launcher readying it for the raid. With one hand gripping the launcher and the other around his strange crew mates waist, (which, to this, she giggled and mumbled "Ooh captain" with a wink over her shoulder and to which he chose to blatantly ignore,) taking a secure hold of a rail on the flapter, the young captain waited impatiently for the rest of his crew to finish scrambling onto their own machines.
Within minutes, the eight pirates waited eagerly for their crew member to open the hatch and send them off, ready to take what wasn't theirs.
Mabel gently rested her slightly aching head against the cool glass window, sighing through her nose as the cold eased the irritation of the oncoming head ache. Bored and craving anything to distract her from her own thoughts, she watched the fluffed clouds as they slowly drifted by in the late night sky. The sound of metal scraping against glass flatware and muttered conversations coming from the four men behind her were not making the growing pain any better. Her brooding and distant thoughts were interrupted when a pristine plate, buried under an abundant amount of fresh bread and ripe fruits, was all but thrusted under her nose.
The girl glanced irritably at the grey- suited agent responsible for the act as he stared just as strongly back. She turned her head sharply to stare, coldly, back out the window, pressing her body closer against the wall of her prison and just a mere inch farther from her kidnappers. The agent stubbornly moved the plate closer to her face before Gideon, a short and rather stout man, spoke. Though she heard his voice, his words went completely ignored. The agent holding the food, she noticed in the reflection of the window, simply nodded and after one final glare, turned away from mabel. He rejoined the other three at the table decorating the middle of the dull room before all began stuffing their faces with the rich food.
Mabel sighed quietly, again, through her nose, willing the tension from her shoulders. The clouds slowly part, exposing the stars to her oak colored eyes. She silently named off the constellations that she could see, reciting their stories and meanings in her mind to distract herself. The Ursa Major stood out against the ebony night, her favorite asterism. She didn't quite know why, but something about it just seemed so… familiar. Images danced in her mind of a young browned hair boy, his face fuzzy, voice a distant whisper, and name lost to the far corners of her memories, but still brought a small tug to her lips. She enjoyed old memories of her past. She may barley remember the boy, but she knew in her heart they were family and that's all that mattered to her. Family. Just the thought of the word brought a small smile to her young face.
Suddenly, mabel snapped out of her teasing thoughts and star gazing as four shadowed figures burst from the cover of the clouds. She sensed the danger, stiffing with panic, memories of pirates and their stealth way of travel drowned out the dancing young in her mind. Mabel gasped aloud and shot from the wooden chair she had been occupying for a little more than an hour as the moonlight uncovered the four hidden ships and their pilots. A certain blonde stood out in the small group, bared teeth gleaming in the moonlight as they advanced.
Bill Cipher.
Bills grip tightened on the rail of the flapter as Candy steered the flying hunk of metal up beside the airship containing the crystal amulet, that would lead to his riches, and his arch enemy, Gideon. The pirate grinned wickedly as they eased the flaptor beside the window where a girl he recognized as little miss Mabel stood gaping at them. Upon further inspection, a red faced Gideon and his idiot goons stood right behind her. Bill was expecting daggers to suddenly rain upon him based on the hell-of-a-glare his rival was aiming at him. That only made the ruthless captain cackle with a disgusted sneer.
Bill moved his attention back to the young girl, leaning his weight closer to the window and tilting the flying machine ever so slightly, he mouthed an 'Evenin!' as she took a step away. He cackled again as he jerked back when Candy suddenly sped the flatter forward along the airships side. They glided upwards, speeding past lighted windows, coming before one of the blimps giant propellers, they slowed, letting the wind gently push them back.
Bill waited as Candy started to push the flapter forward again, matching the speed of the traveling airship. They aligned with a window filled with two faces he noticed as a Captain and some sailor. Bill shot them a sickly grin first, then a gas round. The captain and sailor gaped, then panicked as they jumped back and away from the window before it all but shattered. Yellow smoke filled the room, a bit of it rushing back out through the broken glass.
Candy flew them upwards, over the top of the large, rigid airship, where Bill released his tight hold on the flapter and landed not-so-gracefully on the roof. Three of his other crew mates landed around him, the eldest Corduroys. Manly Dan wasted no time as he sped forward with a war cry as two sailors appeared through a small hatch on the roof, between them raised a Gatling gun. How fun. Wendy and her brother rushed forward after their father, followed by Bill, who was pulling his gas mask from around his neck over his ever smiling mouth. The damn sailors didn't even get a shot before the huge pirate was, literally, on them and the three fell through the hatch into the ship.
Wendy jumped through the hatch, a muffled "Way to go dad!" as she landed heavily on her fathers back. A pained groan was his reply. "Now get up, we got a treasure to snatch!" she called as she rushed forward past dodging sailors. Bill and the second eldest Corduroy kid jumped through at the same time, both landing on poor ol' Dan as he was just getting up. He slammed down on the crushed sailors, again, the two groaning out, Dan merely grunting. Bill gave a muffled chortled before rushing after the two kids.
The girl sprinted towards two sailors, one big and greatly muscled and the other half his partners size, both armed with rifles. "Pirates!" The muscled one called out the obvious in a gruff voice, both of them lifted their rifles back and jabbed them towards the oncoming pirate. Wendy lifted one leg before firmly stomping it back down as she neared the brave two, she swung the rest of her half twisted body forward and with great force slammed her launcher into both of them.
Both sailors jolted backwards by the amazing force the small pirate had, then a loud 'boom' and their lungs filled with a chocking green gas. Wendy noticed her brother and captain, and following a few seconds later; her father, rushing past her and down a set of metal stairs. She stepped back as the green gas swallowed the room, gags and choked coughs followed shortly after. She turned and ran down the stairs, taking two at a time after the boys, leading into a big, circular room, window walls and crowded with richly dressed men and women.
She stopped a few steps before she reached the polished wood floor. The richly dressed guests silenced their mingling and replaced it with surprised gasps and terrified shouts. Some yelped as Bill shot through them with the words, "Outta the damn way, you fat meat sacks," as he actually shoved a few of the 'fat meat sacks' harshly to the floor. She will never understand that mans choice of vocabulary.
As both her brother and father ran after their leader through the now split crowd, Wendy cocked her launcher, grabbing the attention of the guests nearest to her. She tilted her head as she loaded the launcher with another gas-round and spoke, "Ladies and gentlemen, please, don't move." Although a pirate, hurting civilians was not on the to-do list at the moment and she really didn't want to bite off more than she could chew by herself.
Bill rushed through the crowd, shouting obscenities to the snobby looking guests, his eye locked on the door decorated with large potted plants on either side, located at the opposite end of the richly decorated room. He practically knocked the door off it's hinges as he bolted through, turning sharply down a hall way with Wendy's brother right on his heels. He reached the end of the hall and began to turn to bolt through the one connected hall he believed that lead right to the room his waiting-to-be-taken-treasure was before he paused. Before him, in the middle of the metal hall, was a small barricade of flipped tables guarding three shaded men crouched behind it, all with presumably loaded pistols in there gloved hands.
The door behind them opened and Gideon appeared, another black pistol in hand. He held a nasty glare before swiftly raising and aiming the little thing right at Bill. It happened so quickly. Said pirate was yanked back with great force, a surprised choke escaping his throat, right as the deafening sound of gunshots filled the hall. He fell onto his back with an awful thud, air forcefully rushing from his lungs. Beside him laid his savior, who he really had to learn the name of…
Mabel practically jumped out of her skin as all agents suddenly leaped into action and all but throwing the table they were eating off of minutes before out the door. They collected any other piece of furniture they could, tossing those out into the narrow hallway after the table. She stood trembling, not knowing what to do. Muffled gunshots and shouts from traveling guests as the pirates quickly wasted no time rushing through the ship reached her ears. Within minutes she could hear rushed footfalls from the hallways.
She stifled a yelp, goosebumps forming along her trembling body as a loud click interrupted the silence in the room from Gideon as he loaded his pistol. When he heard the running footfalls he cursed and briskly walked to door, swinging it open. The girl watched his face morph into a nasty glare as he lifted the little black pistol, hands flying to her ears as he took one shot down the hallway. He ducked back inside, gently closing and locking the wooden door after shouting an order "don't let them through" to his companions, muffling the rapid gunshots firing in the hall outside.
He didn't even glance at the terrified girl as he rushed, "stay out of the way and you won't get hurt." The colonel strode past her to the back wall and opened the brown cased radio. He pulled the antenna out and picked up the set of headphones. Holding the headphones in one hand against his ear, he tapped, rapidly, a distress signal with the other. Mabel snapped out of her terrified trance and shakily glanced around the room. She heard shouting beyond the walls as she bent to pick up an abandoned glass bottle, once used to contain probably some form of alcohol the men had previously been enjoying.
She wrapped her trembling fingers around the neck of the bottle and breathed in deep to calm herself as she quietly shifted behind Gideon. The ruckus outside went silent as she lifted her arms high above her head, eyes squeezed shut, she brought the glass container down hard upon her kidnappers head. Glass rained over Gideon before he fell limply to his side. She scrambled over his unconscious form, pushing his shoulder so he laid on his back. As she frantically rustled through his baby blue coat to find the one trinket she owned to remind her of a nearly forgotten home, voices boomed outside the door, one she recognized as Bills.
When she finally felt the warmed stone in his inner jacket pocket, she yanked it out before wrapping it around her neck and, luckily, clasping the necklace first try. She flew to the window, slamming it open before scrambling out. Gripping the edge in a terrified grip, Mabel slowly dragged herself against the airships outer wall, willing herself not to look down at the drop below.
A few arms-lengths out and she heard the door, basically, explode. She paused between the opened window and the next, her fingers had become slicked with anxious sweat. Upon hearing captain Ciphers voice, she knew the pirates had entered the room. She squinted one eye open against the harsh wind and looked back towards the window just as a bulky young man peered out.
He seemed surprised at first, with the small jerk he gave upon turning his eyes on the girl clinging the outside wall of the airship. He removed his goggles, pushing them up atop his head, taking a bit of the orange hood he wore back a bit, long red bangs falling around his eyes. He squinted, blinked, then eyes blown wide as he realized what he was seeing. A hand gripped the air mask that covered the other half of his face, yanking it down around his neck he called over his shoulder. "Hey, I found her, she's hiding out here!"
By the third word Bill appeared, practically slammed himself against the remaining room by the window, blonde hair flying wildly around his face, leaning his entire upper-half out to look around the young man. Eyes locking on the small stone around her neck he removed a hand from the ledge of the window and slammed it down over his crew mates head, "Idiot grab her, she has the crystal!"
"Leave me alone you- Ah!" Mabel panicked, foot slipping momentarily, but she recovered as quickly as it happened and glared the captain down before shuffling against the wall again, inching her way towards the other window. She ignored whatever the pirate said, focusing on her task. She had only gotten a few inches closer before she felt finger tips brush lightly against her side. She screamed and launched herself the rest of the short distance to the other window, clawing at it, struggling to keep her grip, arms burning with holding her weight, and footing. Through her lashes she noticed an older couple trembling in the corner staring wide eyed at the insane girl outside their window.
She flinched when the door burst open with such force that it bounced off the wall and tried to slam back shut. A grizzly-of-a-man charged through, eyes locking on her. Trapped, Mabel tensed not knowing what to do she leaned back reflectively to get away. Breath caught, pleas trapped in her throat and ripped back as she gulped in a large amount of air, which then released in a piercing shriek as panic over took her senses.
Bill shot up, dragging Dans son up with him by the collar. A loud bang made his ears ring a little followed by a ghostly hissing. He stumbled a bit before zooming around the now quiet and blue fogged hall way before the men had time to recover from the choking gas. He stumbled over the barricade, landing heavily on one of the coughing agents. Both men scrambled, kicking and clawing, trying to pin the other. But Bill had the advantage, still gripping his hand canon, he raised it as high as he could in his position before slamming the butt of it down with all his strength on the agents head.
The body below him fell limp with the impact. He turned just as the other beside him, who was clutching a white handkerchief to his nose, eyes squinted, practically closed, pointed his pistol shakily at Bills form. Bill slammed himself against the unconscious body below him as the gunshot rang loudly in the quiet. Tucking his knees to his chest, Bill released his hold on the grenade launcher, placing both gloved hands firmly against the floor before launching his lower half back at his shooter, both boot cladded feet connecting with the others face with a sickening crack.
The man hit the wall harshly behind him before hunching uncomfortably, out cold, blood gushing from his presumably broken nose, soaking his crisp suit. Cipher heard a sickening gurgle behind him where the third agent was crouched against the opposite wall. Pistol falling from his trembling hands while eyes lulled back into his skull as he fell sideways to the floor, blood gushing from his throat like a broken fountain. The captain rolled back on his heels with a satisfied hum before standing up just as Dan and his son scrambled over the makeshift barricade.
The boy looked to the door before reaching out and turning the knob, to no luck. Bill shoved the boy over, raising his clad fist and bringing it back to pound harshly against the wood. "Gideon! You fat traitorous pig, open this door!" When he received no answer, Bill turned furiously to Manly Dan and pointed over his shoulder back to the door. "Take it down," he demanded, stepping back to give the big man room. Dan nodded, tilting his head till his neck gave a sounding crack, he rolled his shoulders and bent his knees ever so slightly before ramming foward and through the door, reducing it to simple splinters as he tumbled into the seemingly empty room.
Bill blinked at the state of the undecorated room. He ran in and glanced furiously before his sight landed on the limp body by the back wall. "Who's this?" He asked, gleeful voice muffled, to no one in particular, stepping forward and removing his goggles and mask in one swift move to his neck. "Gideon?" He exclaimed with a laugh at the sight of his enemies unconscious state, glass littered around his form- he could take a guess about Mabel's little stunt. He glanced around the room, "Now wheres our little princess?" he hummed to himself.
"Hey! I found her, she's hiding out here!"
Bill rushed to the window where the Corduroy boy informed from, practically throwing himself out to look around the young mans head where Mabel clutched desperately to the airships side against the rushing winds. "Mabel!" He called. She glared at them, "Leave me alone, you- Ah!" she exclaimed, foot losing its hold for a mere second. A small object bounced from her neck. Bill looked wildly at the boy beside him before throwing his fist at the back of the boys head. "Idiot, grab her, she has the crystal!" he ordered before basically shoving his crew mate out the rest of the window. "Woah, boss don'tletmego!" Bill almost did let go, though, as he watched Mabel leap the rest of the distance to the other window. "Quite your whining you big baby, I got ya." Bill scolded. He looked back towards Dan, "don't just stand there you idiot, go get her!"
The burly man stumbled slightly at the sudden order, scrambling out the hall again. Bill started to pull his young crew mate back into the room when a piercing shriek reached his ears. He watched Mabel, slipping from the window and plummeting towards the shadowed earth below. He tensed watching her form melt into the night. Throwing himself over the edge, he cried desperately after her, "NO, there goes my crysta-ahnoo!" The ginger haired teen scrambled, gripping his captains sides as the psychotic man all but threw himself out the window.
They stood their in silence for a few minutes staring into the darkness. Then Bill saw it. He knows he did. Something…a small flicker, a small light off in the distance after the girl. The crystal…it must've done something, something to save its owner. No way could she just…die. She was too important! Her destiny too great!
"What are you doing?!" Wendy exclaimed, breathlessly, suddenly appearing in the empty, broken doorway. "We've gotta get outta here, I'm out of smoke grenades I can't keep these sailors back much longer." She huffed, glancing around the trashed room, not even second glancing at the broken tables and unconscious probably dead men behind her, before shaking her head and glancing back up at her brother and captain. Bill turned slowly to look back at his first mate, a wicked grin plastered across his face with the new turn of events, finally realizing how much more interesting things were turning out to be.