CHAPTER 3: CREWS AND NETS
"...Clem? oy, skinny, come on already!"
The voice, though barley audible and blunted by Clementine's half-conscious state, was familiar. A voice that was, for once, not snide of sarcastic.
It occurred to her then her paws were bound to her sides and she was in a sitting position, with her very sore head bent. Then, he realised what had happened- they'd been captured by a bunch of insane pirates with an insane bunny.
Clementine kept her eyes shut but still surveyed her surroundings- who knows, maybe should could pick something up while they should she was out.
She could hear what sounded like music; the pulling of strings, the tapping of feet. There was laughter coating this cheery yet almost mocking music.
"Ha!Who's laughing now, armadillo?" There was the unmistakable slicing sound of something sharp through wood. For a second Clementine's heart almost stopped, but she began breathing again when she heard Argreth retort.
"No me. That wasn't even funny. That was just sad."
"Oh ha ha, Man, I forgot how to laugh." She recognised that voice as the aforementioned crazy rabbit. Swell...
Clementine decided it was time to leave her sarcastic train of thought and return back to the land of the concious- properly.
She opened her eyes, recoiling a little when the bright sun shone right into them. Using a long ear to block out the incessant shine she glanced about.
She- or rather, they were bound to the mast of the pirate ship they'd been fighting earlier. Kureus was still out old, bound in a sitting position like her against the mast. Looking over at another tree trunk embedded in the ice was a very un-amused armadillo who the demented rabbit buck was currently throwing daggers at (thankfully just by his face) trying to get a reaction out of him.
The ship itself was filled with supplies, more than she'd seen in a while. There was a sudden stab of hunger pain in her stomach, but she did her to ignore it. Now wasn't the time.
"Hey, pal." Clementine glanced up and spotted Glett and Maut, bound in a net and hanging down from a thick branch fixed to the mast. "Took you long enough!"
Glett made no comment, but grunted in a greeting manner. Clementine, still slightly dazed, lowered her head with a wide eyed-look.
As she did, a certain hyperactive individual noticed her awakening. Squint grinned and whipped over almost as fast as the daggers he'd been throwing.
Sneaking up beside her, he flung a scruffy arm around her shoulder and yelled:
"Boo!"
The other rabbit almost jumped clean out of her skin again. "Would you quit that already!?" She asked in a voice that was somewhere between a squeak and a shout. He just laughed rather madly, evoking an uncomfortable look from the doe.
"Aheh, yeah that's funny, now please go away..." He glared at her sourly, looking beyond insulted.
"You tellin' me to beat it?"
"Well if you want to be technical..." The doe rose a brow and looked upwards as if thinking. "Yes." She ended this statement by shaking his arm off. He scowled at her.
The other crew members, especially Gupta and Raz, began cackling meanly.
"Dude, you really don't know how to talk to girls!" the badger laughed loudly, clutching his stomach.
"Hey, shut your mouth, ya flag!" The buck threatened, brandishing his dagger towards said flag-flyer "Or I'll rip ya to shreds!"
"Dude, calm down it was a joke."
Clementine noticed an accent she wasn't familiar with on the badger. The buck turned back to her, flipped out three more daggers with a grin and threw them straight at her.
"Whoa- alright if you don't cut that out I'll-"
"You'll what?" the other rabbit asked, squint eye squinting even more questioningly "Your stuck to a log!"
"You have the brains of a log!" A certain armadillo called. Clementine didn't expect Argeth to stand up for her, but in this situation she was more than please.
The rabbit scowled at him warningly and stormed off. "Ah, I'm bored now. I'm gunna do something fun."
Clementine breathed out a sigh of relief at seeing him go, watching as he stole some fruit from the chubby seal from before. She almost felt sorry for him when he began flopping around looking for them.
High above, Captain Gutt waited impatiently for the so-called 'other Captain' to awake so the fun could begin. After surveying the characters down below, he'd decided the crew would use the armadillo, that rabbit with the herbs and the elk himself. Sharp horns were useful after all...and for the others.
He grinned. He guessed the grew could use a little entertainment. They hadn't made any unfortunate souls walk the plank in a while.
As he thought this he saw the armadillo arguing sarcastically with Silass, on what subject he couldn't care less.
Gutt was about to turn away when he noticed something.
That armadillo looked kind of familiar. Too familiar. Gutt scowled, all humor of his earlier thoughts gone. He didn't like familiar. Maybe keeping him around wasn't a good idea at all. Walking the plank, however was beginning to take the cake.
And the last thing he needed was some wise-guy back-talking him all the time...
Clementine watched with impatient relief as Kurues finaly came to, shaking his long head from side to side dizzily.
"Ow...what hit me?" He asked dizzily. Clementine frowned, raising both a brow and ear. Wait for it...
"A club, dimwit."
And there came Argeth's insult. Good to know some people where at ease enough to carry on as normal.
"I don' wanna bother you bantering dummies, but this is gettin' real uncomfortable!" Mauta called from above, her statement followed by Glett's agreeing grunt.
The elk sussed out what had happened immediately. "Oh, great..."
"What now, Captian?" Clementine asked in a hushed whisper. The Elk thought hard.
"Hang on. Maybe we can trick our way out..." A light seemed to come on behidn his eyes.
"What to do you mean?" Clementine asked, bewildered.
"I've got a plan- just play along, okay? we'll tell the others when we have the chance."
"Right."
Suddenly the Ape from before landed just before them, grinning with a hint of triumph.
"And he sleeping beauties are awake. How are you this fine morning?" He asked with a trace of sarcasm in his voice.
"Quit the pleasantries. What do you want?" The ape shrugged, smiling turning into a smirk.
"Sharp business guy, huh? alright, I'll cut to the chase. You see..."
The ape threw a long arm out, gesturing to both his crew at the wide sea "To survive out here you need the best sorta weapons, crew and ship you can find."
He climbed up onto a tree branch, lounging lazily.
"You can join our crew- a one-in-a-lifetime offer, right boys?"
"AARR!"
Clementine resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the crew replied with the same shout.
"The ones who are useful get to stay." Gutt explained as if he were adding two and two together "The ones who don't walk the plank. Understandable enough for you?"
"Incredibly." Argeth retorted from the side under his breath. Luckily he wasn't heard.
"You earn your keep, you stay alive. If you don't..." Gutt jumped down from the tree and in front of Kureus in a flash, claws inches away from his eyes.
"Then you die. Got it?" The ape asked threateningly. Clementine could see Kurues was doing his best not to show fear, but it leaked through in his wide eyes.
Despite this he answered, though what he said made all of them surprised.
"Fine. We'll join your crew..." He trailed off as Gutt raised a brow, lowering his claws looking yet again unimpressed. "IF you let all of us stay on the ship."
There was a pause. Then, Gutt burst out laughing again.
"That's funny. You're a funny guy." The humour vanished from his grin and he glared at him dangerously. "But I'm the captain around- here and what I say goes."
He jumped up and swung onto a branch, barking "Shira!"
"Aye, Captain?" The saber tooth asked as she stepped into view, the scratch that Clementine inflicted on her cheek still red and noticeable.
"Have the prisoners thrown into the net with the others." He flicked a hand in indifference, once again lounging on the tree branch as he addressed the prisoners in question.
"You can figure out who to toss off. Two of you go, the rest of you stay. Let's see if that gets through your leader's pin head."
The crew laughed gruffly once he'd finished his sentence and began throwing each prisoner into the net.
Squint whipped over and in one swift movement cut Clementine from the mast. She attempted to dart around him, but he pulled her by the arm over to the net.
"Get off!" She commanded, slapping him hard across the face. He reeled back, clutching his cheek as Gupta heaved with laughter.
"Ouch- you- I'll-" Shira shoved him out-of-the-way in annoyance, something Clementine was very thankful for.
You know, just a second before she was lifted up by the ears and thrown into the net by the kangaroo.
They were strung up high in the net, squashed together at the end of the ship, partially hanging over the side.
As pirates began to clear off to leave them there, Squint zipped over and looked up a Clementine. She almost groaned in response.
"I bet your thinkin' you won that time when you girl-slapped me!" he said with a lopsided scowl. Clementine had to be truthful.
"Actually I was thinking that being tin this net was going to be really uncomfortable..."
And she was right.
"Squint! leave the prisoners to their thoughts." Shira called over. The buck rolled his eyes and turned around in to comply.
"See ya toots." he said as he left.
They were trapped, suspended, left with the decision of who would go and who would stay.
In other words, they were in a very tight spot.
I'm so tired.
Here's the next chapter