Last chapter today, promise, as I'm tired now XD A shorter one, too.
Going Under: Chapter 10
Trouble Comes in Pink and Black
Night had fallen over the ocean, and darkness along with it. Clementine had resisted the urge to attempt to build a fire; Kurues had even reasoned they could suspend it in the air somehow so it wouldn't melt the ice, or be put out by its dampness, but Argeth had halted the discussion with a blunt 'no'. The fire, admittedly, would be like a beacon in the darkness. The pirates could be on them, he said.
Clementine tried not to argue, and found she no longer had the strength. She sat down, gripping her thin elbows tight. Even if the pirates could see them they couldn't catch up on the current, could they? But then again, they could shoot...and that gull could get too close. She sighed, and turned her head.
Huddled by Kurues, beside the tree in the centre of the ship, the two newest members of their misfit crew where curled up close together; small toughs of soft fur. They used Kurues as a pillow of sorts, finding both warmth and comfort from curling at his side. He himself was asleep, having exhausted himself. His leg had yet to heal completely; Clementine insisted he let it do so.
So far, the ape boy had been the only one of them to utter a word, and it hadn't been much. They'd given the two some food and they ate wordlessly, before huddling like they did now.
The boy, whose name she had yet to discover, seemed at ease now, surprisingly. He was flexing his dexterous toes- or fingers- on each foot, looking thoughtful. The kangaroo joey, however, was quivering, peering around the unfamiliar ship timidly. She supposed it must look bazaar to her.
Clementine approached them quietly. "...Hey, you two."
The ape boy looked up and flashed that cocky grin of his, however more tiredly. "Hey, Bunny Lady. Sup?"
"You seem actually at ease." Clementine remarked with a twinge of her own grin, her tone a mix of admiration and disbelief. The ape shrugged, looking away and running one of his long hands through his messy head-hair.
"Well...ya know...still alive."
Clementine nodded, though wondered if he'd...seen the bodies littering the ocean. Luckily it was dark now, and the sight had long since passed. It stuck to her memory like tree sap, however, and she knew it was there to stay.
She turned her attention to the pink-red joey. She sat down beside her, slowly, and the girl watched her apprehensively. She fiddled with her paws, and glanced away.
"Hello..." Clementine said softly, offering a very small smile. Kurues snoozed on, undisturbed. The girl sniffed, picking at her nails.
"...H-hi..." She finally murmured back, not looking up. Clementine tilted her head,
"...It's awful, isn't it...?" She said slowly, shaking her head. "...When I was tossed out to sea...I really thought that was it for me...but it wasn't."
The girl looked at her, pale blue eyes watery and wide. "...How come ya g-got outa the water...?"
"Kurues helped me...he's a very brave elk." Clementine said, beaming a little. The girl, and the ape boy, who had been busy playing with a small stick during their talk, looked at the sleeping elk in question. The girl regarded his broken antler with a shiver.
"Did-ee get hurt...falling in...?" She whimpered, curling into herself a bit. Clementine placed a paw on her shoulder, to comfort her.
"...Yes...but he saved the rest of us. He found this ship we're on..." The ape boy's eyebrows raised high, and he seemed impressed. He looked away upon seeing Clementine was looking at him however.
"Great, another Clementine..." The doe scowled as Agreth waltzed by, carving a piece of the log the two youngsters had brought in with them. The ape boy's nose wrinkled and he waggled his tongue after him. Maut, hanging from the branches above, whooped quietly with laughter.
"So...what're your names?"
The ape child looked away once more. Clementine felt al little perplexed until Argeth spoke up again.
"Whatever past you have, you can pretty much forget it now. Word's kinda sinking in case you haven't noticed."
"...Argeth...not helping." Clementine said slowly, eyeing him over her shoulder. The armadillo scoffed, turning away once more- much to Clementine's relief.
"Says the dude with a past filled with-" Clementine stuffed a berry into Maut's mouth, as she had climbed down from the tree to sit with them. The joey was already afraid of her own shadow, last thing they needed was to mention the pirates.
"My name's Clementine." She said, smiling a bit. The ape boy giggled at seeing Maut's cheeks mimicking that of a chipmunks.
Cocoum's smile faded a tint, and he gave a small but nonchalant shrug. "Name's Cocoum."
The kangeroo child fiddled with her hands again, head bent. "M..m'name's Kai..."
"That's a pretty name." Clementine smiled at her encouragingly. Maut nodded, swallowing her cheerful of berry. Cocoum reached over to some apples, probably planning on stuffing his cheeks to copy her, but Argeth stepped in front of his way.
"We need to keep an eye on our stock." He said plainly as he bestowed upon the young ape a look of near authority, eyes looking down his nose at him. Cocoum's nose wrinkled in annoyance.
"Oh."
"Uh-huh." Argeth replied, dragging the net of food away from the little ape. He huffed, lying against Kurues's sleeping form.
Above, a pair of narrowed eyes watched them with detained malice. Silas had taken his time getting here; he found their little ship wasn't as far away from their own as they'd previously thought. And, he saw upon closer observation...their catch had expanded. A conniving grin slid onto his beak, and he hummed smoothly to himself; thoughtful. From here, he could see a small ape by the looks of him, the same as his very own Captain...only much smaller, and much, much less vicious. He chuckled. He wouldn't last long.
The other was also a youngling, a little kangaroo. He was not reminded of a certain Rasmussen, however, like the little ape reminded him of Gutt. What he saw was the equivalent of a shivering ball of red-pink fur. She wouldn't survive long.
They had never come across children on a bounty before; most children caught in the land breaking died quickly, and did not survive. He wondered if these foolish mammals understood that they had added two dead-weights to their already weak little crew. A hindrance.
Silas swooped backwards, and set course back to the pirate ship to deliver his information.
...
It was nearer morning than night when Silas returned; the sun had turned from black to a very deep shade of grey; and the mist was thinner than it was the day before. Raz opened an eye upon hearing the familiar fluttering of wings, and raised her head from where she'd lain to sleep for the night. Gutt knuckle-walked to Silas, his look still locked in a frown, but masked with expectancy.
Silas looked very, very pleased of himself, a pompous grin adorning his crooked beak, "The escapees have acquired more numbers. More mouths to feed their small supply to, Mon Cap-i-tan..."
Gutt didn't look as thrill with the news as Silas, dark eyes boring into the gull, "Forgive me, Mister Silas, If I don't see the profit in that..."
"Two children, Mon Capi-tan." Silas said, still smiling, but his eyes a little wary, knowing he better get to the point, "Too weak to aid in a fight. A little kangaroo, and a little ape..."
The Captain had gone silence, his face set in a deep thoughtful poise. He moved his jaw absently, "Hmm..." Raz knew what he probably thought. Youngsters where too weak to fight, yes, but against those soft-hearted blighters, if one of them was threatened, what would they do?
Her long ear twitched a bit. Another kangaroo. Raz sniffed, laying down to rest again. She had to admit, she hadn't seen another of her kind for a lifetime, and even longer since she'd seen a joey. But it didn't mean she felt any companionship. This was sea-life. Kids didn't make it.
She felt no sympathy.
She fell asleep, letting Gutt work out a particularly nasty scheme. The ape had returned to the branches above, leaning his broad back against the springy wood of the higher trunk. He flicked his nails, examine each one with careful precision. He'd made sure to sharpen them for the occasion. Then, alone in the night, he chuckle quietly.
He knew just how to play with this situation; he read all of that bunch quite easily. Most of them would stop dead if they thought one of their new members was being threatened. Over-noble, like the elk, their heads locked in a mindset that was outdated. This was the world now. The strongest survive. There was no time for nurturing.
However...the armadillo probably knew what he'd do. He'd be ready for it, he grudgingly admitted. If he'd allowed two little tykes onto his meagre little ship, he probably would be working out some kind of plan to make sure they didn't hinder him.
I know ya, Argeth...you act like the strong, stubborn hero, but I know ou're really out to save your own skin, and you're using them to do it...clever...that is, if it was going to work.
He knew exactly how to take him down a few pegs. He wouldn't kill him, he was certain, not yet. The armadillo was trying to build some ground, some form of security and some kind of plan...but it would be all for nothing. He'd make sure of it.
His gave a broad grin at the thought.
...
Argeth continued carving.
The others had all fallen into deep, dreamless sleeps, curled at the base of the fruit tree. Kurues had made himself into a living pillow; Maut curled on his forehead, snoozing, Glett at his side, the two younglings on his other, and Clementine beside them. He, however, remained aloof, perched up on a slab of ice and cutting at the wood he'd hacked off the new log.
The two newcomers where a problem. He knew better than to voice that fact, the rest of the gang would verbal assault him with how shameful he would sound. But, it was the truth.
He eyed them. They knew their names, sure, but not where they came from, or how a kangaroo joey got all the way out here. And he'd had enough of apes for a lifetime.
He'd seen how the ape boy in question had been able to drag them, and the large log, to the ship. He was strong, but Gutt could flatten him with his palm. The joey was worse than Clementine; at least she could heal. Rotten as he sounded in his mind, they weren't going to make the situation easier. Gutt would catch up, he was sure of it...and it wouldn't end well for them.
Especially if the ape brat waggled his tongue at him.
"Sup."
Oh Good Lord.
The child had appeared in his midst, sitting expectantly beside him. Argeth continued carving, not looking up. "It's late. You should sleep."
"How come you're...away from the others?" Cocoum asked plainly, fiddling with his feet. Argeth didn't hide his irked expression.
"I prefer my own company, especially when sleeping."
"Huh...fair enough."
A pause. Argeth didn't need a year to figure out the clear possibility that this child was going to be very, very annoying.
"...You know, I was lookin' around earlier...ya think we're near land?"
"Can't be. Not anymore anyway.." Argeth said plainly, cutting out a stubborn speck of wood from the carving in his hand. The ape shrugged,
"Huh...'cause I thought when gulls are about, there's usually land..."
Agreth's knife halted, and he went very, very still.
"Gull...?" His voice was flat. The ape child nodded vigorously, oblivious.
"...Aaaw crud..."