~Remember I don't own Escaflowne or its characters!~
~I'm sorry about these updates taking so long, but even with no school I'm incredible busy!~
The Fate of Two Worlds: The Sequel
By Angel_Wings
Chapter 22 ~ The Tide of the Past Rises Again
~~~ Tsuno ~~~
My story is different from my comrades. They fought for justice and honor while my path was different. To begin the tale of my life I begin during a very important pinnacle of my youth…
I was about ten when it happened. I was the son of a fisherman and housewife. Many of times that my dad left our home on the beach to fish I went along. One day I didn't go and I waited by the boulders along the shore for him to return. My mother was out hanging clothes to dry when I noticed my father's boat on the horizon. I hopped onto the boulder that was closest to the sea and cried, "Mother! Mother, he's coming!"
My mother smiled and only replied, "Ski, he's still many miles away. It will still be awhile before he arrives."
Slowly I sat down back on the rock knowing she was right, but I could barely hold my excitement in. My eyes stared at the white dot growing on the horizon. The wind played against me, whispering in my ear taunts about how I had to wait. Angrily I leapt from my sitting position and strode to the edge of the boulder with an impatient scowl. Suddenly I lost my footing and I tipped to the side. Unstable as I was and so close to the edge it was only a matter of seconds before I hit the water.
Within seconds of my contact with the cold sea I panicked. I was a child of ten after all. When the incident occurred I screamed for my mother, but my mouth quickly filled with water and I closed it on reflex. My limbs sluggishly waved back and forth too unorganized to help me to the surface. Sadly I only sunk faster. Though the boulders I stood on had been near the shore they had gone a good fifty yards from the edge of the beach where the bottom had dipped downward. As the depths of the sea grew dark and the water colder I felt my energy becoming very small. My tiny hand reached out to the glimmering sun behind the surface of the water.
Suddenly a cerulean glow formed around me. I felt a soft warmth take hold and bubbles swirled about me. The currents of the sea abruptly shifted and swirled beneath my limp form. I then remembered something my father told me on one of our outings…
~~~ Flashback ~~~
My father's voice softly spoke in my mind, "The sea is a powerful place. Water can suffocate you without even trying and appear just about anywhere. Waves can grow monstrous in seconds and rain can make a happy place into a dismal one. Be wary of the water, Ski… For within the swirls of its beauty lie danger and death, but most important power…"
~~~ End of Flashback ~~~
My eyes glowed brightly and feeling the power in my blood swirl I unexpectedly thrust through the layers of liquid keeping me from the surface. I felt the water pound beneath my body and fling me through the final step of my freedom. I splashed through the glitter roof of the water world coming to hang in the open air. My wings sprouted open on reflex and I glided to the boulders I had recently fallen from.
Wet bangs clung to my brow as I looked down at the swirling water. Slowly the water became like it always was. The sudden shift in currents were suddenly forgotten as the sea returned to its normal flow…
The next part of my life that I shall speak about begins in my near twenties when I had become a runaway. Like some teenagers of my years I became rebellious and sought freedom in my own independence by one day leaving home without a word. I quickly took work on a ship and was employed as one of the crewmen. Being around boats all my life quickly help me gain favoritism amongst my higher commanders and before long I was the first mate of one of the vessels I worked on.
Things progressed overtime that the vessel I help command on became a pirate ship. Though we did not wear flashy clothing we did wear an assortment of uniforms that were very dark making us appear like demons. We were very effective on the harbors by smuggling goods and threatening small water vessels. More often we preferred to capture nobles and ransom them off to their countries… Many tried to catch us… High bounties were set on our vessel and especially on me and the commander's heads. We became renegades,… bounty hunters,… wanders,… but in all truth we were pirates… and no one was able to catch us… or stop us…
Of course, our ships' crews weren't made up of just Draconians. No, there were far more species on here then you'd think. From elves to hobbits and geckos to cat folk occupied the employment of pirating. I even once knew of a doppleganger who had resided with my ship's crew. We were different beings coming together by greed and loneliness. Anger and rage bound us in our status, but it was the lust of blood and greed of profit that drew us on.
By the time the persecution had started, I had finally been given my own ship to run. Our pirate crew had grown over the years and now my leader commanded several large vessels with me as one of the captains of those boats. Our ships had scattered during the beginning of the war, but we always remained in contact with carriers and leaving coded messages with our loyalties.
One stormy day my crew and I had just gotten out of a harbor going to check the waters for stray vessels. During weather like this ships were often unprepared for attacks from beings like us. The water was my living area and I could easily tell when a storm was too much for us to handle. The weather that day was nothing compared to others I had lived through. I stood next to the wheel with my best helmsman. When it came to stormy weather I never took chances. A storm could grow worse in seconds and if it did I would need my best man at the wheel.
I eyed the crew carefully watching for stragglers. I kept certain individuals below in case we took on too much water. They would be needed to pump out the access liquid so we wouldn't sink or flip. I snorted as the water sprayed me. I often enjoyed the ride of a storm especially one like this; where its was heart pounding, but not death frightening. Today, however, I felt no joy while riding the monster waves.
Over the years I had become a fighter, mostly because being a pirate wasn't easy unless you could fight. I had become very good with a staff, but really I preferred some forms of lances. I often kept my staff strapped to my back, even when I was on deck. Through my experiences of fighting I became bless with the sense of warriors… the sense that always whispers to your body a warning when something was going to happen…
I tensely studied the waves of my sea with my blue eyes narrowing on the dark blue blur I noticed out between them. I shrugged off the dread in my heart and snorted turning back to the deck making sure my men were keeping eye on the sails and all. Though sails often were disadvantages in the storm because of the ferocious winds the pale material were our angels sending us in all directions looking for stray vessels to raid. My man beside me asked gruffly, "What's wrong, Captain?"
I said nothing as I scanned the waters again. The dark blur flashed before me again before the waves towered blocking the view of it.
Swiftly I shouted over the roar of the storm, "Hard to port."
As my helmsman's hand quickly turned the wooden wheel he grunted, "A ship?"
I gave a sharp nod as I kept my eyes on where the ship last was. If I lost sight of it for too long I could easily loose it in this weather. As we reached the peak of a wave I caught view of the dark form and quickly ordered the crew to fix their course. As the distance between the two of us grew smaller I became assured that the blur was a vessel,… but what kind of vessel?…
I growled out of frustration when I noticed no markings on the ship's bow… not even a name… only a symbol I had never seen before on the sea… I grunted as I sized up our next target. It was particular large making me slightly worried about the risk involved. A big ship meant a lot of people on board making it difficult for my crew. Though skilled my crew was being outnumbered only meant fatal consequences. I had only a few incidents where some of my men were killed, but they had been minuscule.
I tightened my bandana a second before checking my staff to make sure it was good and tight. Carefully I shouted out orders for boarding the strange vessel, as we grew nearer. I was sure the other ship had already surmised we were pirates or at least raiders. Only raiders or guys like us would be out in a storm like this coming close to another ship like we were. Getting close to ships in a storm was never wise because vessels could easily collide together if not careful.
My eyes scanned the area and calculated the procedures needed to complete our task properly. Cautiously I scanned the deck of our target and noticed a crowd forming on the deck. I frowned feeling the dread rise in my stomach. Something just wasn't right…
Most vessels would place their crew below in the bellows of the ship with only the necessary assistants to help on deck. However it seemed this vessel had all its crew on top. The number on deck alone matched my crew making me more nervous about raiding their ship. If they had more men down below it could cause serious problems,… but of course the greed of a pirate is strong…
Before long we had shot lines onto their deck locking our ships next to each other. My men quickly swarmed their deck, but our opponents were ready for us. I was one of the first to arrive on the other vessel and with my signal the battle began. Automatically I noticed the skill of our enemies. They fought brutally and in formation… sort of like… like… military!
My eyes grew wide as I noticed through the wind and rain the symbols on their outfits. Their symbols were identical to the one on the bow of their ship.
I cursed beneath my breath as I slay one of their men. Military ships were never good to run across. The crew was too well trained to fight and often was great in number. Secondly, little profit came from taking their ship. Yes, weapons were good and all, but selling military weapons on the black-market was never easy or profitable. Most didn't like having the weapons because the items were marked with certain symbols of countries and militaries. Holding one of them while running into another branch of military it belong to never settled good. It was like signal to all the military that you had killed one of their men and taken his/her weapon. In short military vessels weren't good to board at all…
As three of the men rushed me I leapt into the air and released my wings. Whenever I did this it was a signal to my men to retreat. Automatically my crew turned tail and raced back to our ship ready to release our ropes. The stormy wind angrily roared and pounded against me, but I was use to it and barely fidgeted from my spot in the sky. I smirked as I saw the shock on the military men's faces. They gaped at my wings in shock and I gave them a hearty laugh. I graceful swooped down to my ship's railing and stood proudly on it. As the lines were being cut I shouted, "Farewell, military. Be lucky we decided you were too much trouble to plunder and not very profitable--"
Someone suddenly lunged at me and I quickly brought my staff to deflect his sword. I truly wasn't surprised at the attack seeing I got that often, but I was surprised to see a sudden hate in all of the official men's eyes. The thing that really made me shudder was that the emotion was directed at me…
I felt a sudden need to get away, but even as I got ready to leap off the rail and onto my ship's deck twenty men attacked me. Shouts came from my men and suddenly the battle I had tried to retreat from slammed down on us. I struck my hard staff against one of my attackers throwing him into three other men. With a twirl of my wrist one end of my weapon came into another attacker's firm chest. Still I was outnumbered so I took to the air hoping to evade them…
Unfortunately they appeared to be prepared for such… Using some odd weapons they shot nets at me. The heavy ropes of the nets weighed down my wings and I soon slammed onto their deck, losing my staff… Like a wild dog I fought with my confinement as they closed in around me with their weapons. I snarled at them and they marched over to me their blades sparkling with cold raindrops.
My men roar behind me at my capture. Though we are men with hate in our hearts we have grown to be close friends to each other being that we are pirates for similar reasons. I smirked as I saw them wash over the railing onto my opponents' boat in a rage. My eyes glared at my attackers and I stood high on my feet trying to stretch my wings outwards with the heavy net cast over them so I might scare my attackers with my size. The ropes yearned under the stretch and I roared animalistic while my muscles strained. Threads pop and suddenly holes form in the net. I growl as my right arm thrust out through the holes I made. My free arm yanked a sword from one of the army men. Quickly I ripped the rest of the net off with the blade and faced my enemies.
They tackled me…
I fell, but quickly rose to throw them all off my back. Roaring with fury I slashed at one of them with my new weapon. Sadly, I'm no good with a sword and I missed horribly. I saw their smirks and knowing grins realizing they understood my handicap with a sword. Angrily I tossed it at one of them as a distraction and tried to shoot off into the air,… but they grabbed my ankles and bring me back down…
Growling I decided to just fight on the ground… My fist connected with a chin and my heel with a chest. I leapt and dodged with grace unlike most pirates. Why?… Why am I different?…
Because I was taught by a master of fighting… My commander had been my teacher… Under his guidance I had been taught ways of battle… and slowly I progressed to a level of skill that many do not reach. That level is only reach through years of practice and determination. I was one of those men who crawled to that plateau and relished in the glory…
My movements must have caught the eye of the military commander for he plowed through the battle and charged me. I caught sight of him only seconds before he swung his sword at me. Frantically I stepped out of rang, but not before letting my jacket of black leather taste the blade. I glared at my right sleeve angrily noticing the scar of the attack. There was now a large five-inch gap in my jacket. I growled at the captain who stood thirty feet away with his sword ready. Though the jacket had been expensive I was not angry because of the silver spent on it. No, it was the personal attachment that sent me over the edge. The jacket had been from my family before I had left them… It was my last connection to the world I had chose to leave behind…
"Come on!" I shouted out of fury, "I'll show you how to truly fight!"
He was unimpressed it seemed by his blank expression. That only infuriated me more. Rage blinded my logic and I grabbed one of the officers nearby. Taking away his lance I struck him hard in the neck. Hitting a pressure point caused me to knock the guy unconscious, but I ignored this as I twirled the weapon in my hand. I tested its weight and durability quickly as my eyes burned on my opponent. For that moment that we stared at each other all notice of the battle around us was forgotten…
Then we both charged each other. The blades of our two weapons were thrust forward clinking together when they hit. I was quick to bring my blade up and strike back down on his sword, but he swiveled from the blow and leapt high into the air. I was surprised at the height he gained, but did not let it slow me down. Letting my wings sweep through the howling wind I met him in the sky.
We fell together, but some how, even though I had the wings to help me with the fall, he landed on his feet perfectly. Pushing himself off the deck he launched at me again. The wind abruptly grew stronger and caught the cup of my wings making my stance unstable. I quickly caught myself before I fell, but those few seconds that were used for it allowed my opponent an open shot. I turned in time to see the sleek blade of my adversary coming for my face. I flung myself back, but too late…
I crashed onto my back and clutched my left eye. Blood seeped through my fingers and cried out at the fire in my wounded eye. My other good eye closed shut in pain making me unable to see the knee that connected with my chest. I flew backwards and awkwardly gained my footing before I hit the deck. Opening an angry blue optical I snarled at my attacker who smirked.
Gently my hand left my eye showing off the horrible scar that stretched down from the left side of my forehead to the cheekbone of my face. My eye felt like it was dead with only a few nerves pounding with anguish. For that moment I ignored the bleeding of my horrendous wound and stepped into a fighting stance.
"This time when I swing" I growled lowly, "I'll make sure to severe your head."
My enemy just smirked before lunging at me again. My blade swiftly met his and then gold sparks flew. I shouted as I shoved him aside my anger overruling my judgment. A dance of swords took place before my eyes as we fought. My rage clouded my mind and before long I was on my back with my sword gone. He stood over me with his weapon nipping at me. The point rested on my Adam's Apple as he gave me his toothy grin. I barely moved feeling the weight of his blade on my neck.
Carefully I cleared my mind letting the rage in me settle a bit. It was necessary to use my trump card now. I was forced to… Slowly my senses reached for the gift handed down to me by Joutei… Then my powers raged!
Suddenly the floorboards beneath me quaked and screamed. As sprays of water flew through the cracks of the wood the crowd of warriors halted their fighting and the sword on my neck backed off. Though my life was no longer in jeopardy my fury would not let me stop now. The water shooting from under the floorboards reached for the sky, as the continuous screeching of the wood grew louder. The deck of the ship bulged at the force of the pounding and with sudden cries of thunder the water blast through different parts of the wood. The pillars of swirling liquid were like dangerous fountains plowing through the vessel's walls.
Next came chaos…
No one understood what was happening except for myself. Screams of horror fell on deaf ears as both crews raced for a haven,… but sadly… because of my fury… I caused both vessels to be in jeopardy…
I opened my eyes as I heard my second commander scream. Looking to my ship I saw in shock that my anger had gotten the best of me. My powers of controlling water were very powerful and because my rage had blinding me for more than half a second it was destroying my own ship. I let my powers die down then so we could heal our broken vessel, but too late… The damage was done… and both ships were already sinking… We might have been able to patch up our ship, but because we were in the middle of a storm it was impossible. By now the ship had already gotten twenty feet lower in the water.
"Abandon ship!" I cried frantically while regaining my feet. The dangerous fountains were now gone and many of my crew were trying to understand what had just happen by standing around. While they stood gaping at the destruction we were losing time. The water was swallowing us up!
I cried out…
I shouted…
But my voice was lost in the storm and roar of the breaking vessels…
Waves were thrown against our backs and the ships were ripped apart…
All I remember of those last moments were the screams of pain and suffering…
What I remember next was when I awoke on the shore of an empty coastline… I sputtered awake and crawled blindly to the higher point of the sand trying to escape the tide… Collapsing on the rise I opened my one good eye to the world… The sun was high in the sky and the vastness was a peaceful blue… How long had I been out?… I don't know… Long enough for the storm to blow over… I don't understand how I became the lone survivor of such a terrible incident. I should have died along with the rest of them,… but there I laid… maybe half drown, but quite alive…
Slowly I raised my head and looked into the water that swirled at my feet. I was a mess. My clothes were nearly gone, torn to shreds, while my wounded eye was plastered with dirty blood. Tenderly I ripped what was left of my shirt and tied it over my bad eye so it would act as a bandage and shield it from other's view. No one needed to see such a gruesome scar.
I felt so alone in that moment. My friends and comrades had died because of my foolishness. My stupid behavior was unnecessary and because of it they paid the price. My fault… All my fault…
Just as my fingers finished the knot for the bandage a bit of wave released a glorious spray of droplets. My good eye widened as the crystals flew through the air with grace and beauty swirling about. Slowly to my awe the droplets became a figure… a water angel…
Her wings of crystal blue spanned out and her hair glistened with life. With a smile she spoke, "Hello, Sir Ski."
"Who are you?" I automatically gasped unable to take my eye off her, "What do you want?"
Her eyes became sad as she explained what she explained to both Zaado and Nazomi. As before she offered life and renewal to a warrior. But would this warrior accept it like the others before him?…
I stared at her with a tear gleaming in my eye as I roughly said, "You would ask a murderer to take such a honor?…"
She stared back at me with no expression except for the sadness in her eyes.
I stood up sharply and with an angry voice I shouted with the fury of my pain, "That's what your asking right?! You're asking me! The man who was the cause of his friends' deaths to become a royal guardian!"
No answer came for me, but in truth I wasn't looking for one. I crumbled back to my knees whimpering, "Why should I be given such a wonderful offer when I should be the last chosen for such…"
My eye closed as my tears streamed down. There was tear for each of my lost comrades…
I felt her hand lie on my shoulder and I opened my teary eye to her. She stared back at me with a deep sorrow reflecting in her ebony pupils… Quietly she whispered, "I know your pain, Ski…
"There is a world of suffering all around us that none can avoid… Sooner or later we crash down into its void either to be swallowed up or to crawl out of its suffocating death… Being the queen of an entire race is extremely difficult to bear on any shoulder. Often when I see the one of the people I protect die in a situation I feel very guilty. I am their leader sworn to always guard and guide them… I understand now that one day everyone must die though their deaths are always painful I will not let myself go down into the dumps of depression. I must continue to be the guardian of an entire species.
"Remember their deaths was a pure accident and though you think otherwise you must understand that even if you had done it intentionally Joutei would still forgive you…
"Please… accept what I hold out to you, Ski… Joutei wishing for your aide…"
That day I became a being known as the royal bodyguard and began my trek to the kingdom of my people. On the way I constructed a new staff with two daggers strapped onto one end. Later on my crude weapon became the enchanted trident I forever hold… After our deaths I took my group to the sea to relive the days of my dark travels, however, my group never became pirates. We became cargo ships that sailed from port to port under the disguise of humans. As we flew over the waves of the sea my heart remained hard towards humans for they were part of the death of my friends…
~So, Tsuno has always felt guilty for his friends' deaths and has placed some of the blame on the human race. Hm, things are beginning to add up, but yet still so much is left to be explained. Next chapter will involve both Sian and Nembus. They share how they became friends and why Queen Iris took them into the Ring of Guardians. Get ready for the last of the explanations to be revealed and the story to suddenly fly into the climax. For as the last of the guardians pour out their hearts and the shadow of Dornkirk's powers grows closer. The battle between the Angel of Gaea and the Fallen Emperor of Zaibach is about to start…~
~Next up chapter 23: Intertwined Paths (Coming Soon Early July)~
~I'm sorry about these updates taking so long, but even with no school I'm incredible busy!~
The Fate of Two Worlds: The Sequel
By Angel_Wings
Chapter 22 ~ The Tide of the Past Rises Again
~~~ Tsuno ~~~
My story is different from my comrades. They fought for justice and honor while my path was different. To begin the tale of my life I begin during a very important pinnacle of my youth…
I was about ten when it happened. I was the son of a fisherman and housewife. Many of times that my dad left our home on the beach to fish I went along. One day I didn't go and I waited by the boulders along the shore for him to return. My mother was out hanging clothes to dry when I noticed my father's boat on the horizon. I hopped onto the boulder that was closest to the sea and cried, "Mother! Mother, he's coming!"
My mother smiled and only replied, "Ski, he's still many miles away. It will still be awhile before he arrives."
Slowly I sat down back on the rock knowing she was right, but I could barely hold my excitement in. My eyes stared at the white dot growing on the horizon. The wind played against me, whispering in my ear taunts about how I had to wait. Angrily I leapt from my sitting position and strode to the edge of the boulder with an impatient scowl. Suddenly I lost my footing and I tipped to the side. Unstable as I was and so close to the edge it was only a matter of seconds before I hit the water.
Within seconds of my contact with the cold sea I panicked. I was a child of ten after all. When the incident occurred I screamed for my mother, but my mouth quickly filled with water and I closed it on reflex. My limbs sluggishly waved back and forth too unorganized to help me to the surface. Sadly I only sunk faster. Though the boulders I stood on had been near the shore they had gone a good fifty yards from the edge of the beach where the bottom had dipped downward. As the depths of the sea grew dark and the water colder I felt my energy becoming very small. My tiny hand reached out to the glimmering sun behind the surface of the water.
Suddenly a cerulean glow formed around me. I felt a soft warmth take hold and bubbles swirled about me. The currents of the sea abruptly shifted and swirled beneath my limp form. I then remembered something my father told me on one of our outings…
~~~ Flashback ~~~
My father's voice softly spoke in my mind, "The sea is a powerful place. Water can suffocate you without even trying and appear just about anywhere. Waves can grow monstrous in seconds and rain can make a happy place into a dismal one. Be wary of the water, Ski… For within the swirls of its beauty lie danger and death, but most important power…"
~~~ End of Flashback ~~~
My eyes glowed brightly and feeling the power in my blood swirl I unexpectedly thrust through the layers of liquid keeping me from the surface. I felt the water pound beneath my body and fling me through the final step of my freedom. I splashed through the glitter roof of the water world coming to hang in the open air. My wings sprouted open on reflex and I glided to the boulders I had recently fallen from.
Wet bangs clung to my brow as I looked down at the swirling water. Slowly the water became like it always was. The sudden shift in currents were suddenly forgotten as the sea returned to its normal flow…
The next part of my life that I shall speak about begins in my near twenties when I had become a runaway. Like some teenagers of my years I became rebellious and sought freedom in my own independence by one day leaving home without a word. I quickly took work on a ship and was employed as one of the crewmen. Being around boats all my life quickly help me gain favoritism amongst my higher commanders and before long I was the first mate of one of the vessels I worked on.
Things progressed overtime that the vessel I help command on became a pirate ship. Though we did not wear flashy clothing we did wear an assortment of uniforms that were very dark making us appear like demons. We were very effective on the harbors by smuggling goods and threatening small water vessels. More often we preferred to capture nobles and ransom them off to their countries… Many tried to catch us… High bounties were set on our vessel and especially on me and the commander's heads. We became renegades,… bounty hunters,… wanders,… but in all truth we were pirates… and no one was able to catch us… or stop us…
Of course, our ships' crews weren't made up of just Draconians. No, there were far more species on here then you'd think. From elves to hobbits and geckos to cat folk occupied the employment of pirating. I even once knew of a doppleganger who had resided with my ship's crew. We were different beings coming together by greed and loneliness. Anger and rage bound us in our status, but it was the lust of blood and greed of profit that drew us on.
By the time the persecution had started, I had finally been given my own ship to run. Our pirate crew had grown over the years and now my leader commanded several large vessels with me as one of the captains of those boats. Our ships had scattered during the beginning of the war, but we always remained in contact with carriers and leaving coded messages with our loyalties.
One stormy day my crew and I had just gotten out of a harbor going to check the waters for stray vessels. During weather like this ships were often unprepared for attacks from beings like us. The water was my living area and I could easily tell when a storm was too much for us to handle. The weather that day was nothing compared to others I had lived through. I stood next to the wheel with my best helmsman. When it came to stormy weather I never took chances. A storm could grow worse in seconds and if it did I would need my best man at the wheel.
I eyed the crew carefully watching for stragglers. I kept certain individuals below in case we took on too much water. They would be needed to pump out the access liquid so we wouldn't sink or flip. I snorted as the water sprayed me. I often enjoyed the ride of a storm especially one like this; where its was heart pounding, but not death frightening. Today, however, I felt no joy while riding the monster waves.
Over the years I had become a fighter, mostly because being a pirate wasn't easy unless you could fight. I had become very good with a staff, but really I preferred some forms of lances. I often kept my staff strapped to my back, even when I was on deck. Through my experiences of fighting I became bless with the sense of warriors… the sense that always whispers to your body a warning when something was going to happen…
I tensely studied the waves of my sea with my blue eyes narrowing on the dark blue blur I noticed out between them. I shrugged off the dread in my heart and snorted turning back to the deck making sure my men were keeping eye on the sails and all. Though sails often were disadvantages in the storm because of the ferocious winds the pale material were our angels sending us in all directions looking for stray vessels to raid. My man beside me asked gruffly, "What's wrong, Captain?"
I said nothing as I scanned the waters again. The dark blur flashed before me again before the waves towered blocking the view of it.
Swiftly I shouted over the roar of the storm, "Hard to port."
As my helmsman's hand quickly turned the wooden wheel he grunted, "A ship?"
I gave a sharp nod as I kept my eyes on where the ship last was. If I lost sight of it for too long I could easily loose it in this weather. As we reached the peak of a wave I caught view of the dark form and quickly ordered the crew to fix their course. As the distance between the two of us grew smaller I became assured that the blur was a vessel,… but what kind of vessel?…
I growled out of frustration when I noticed no markings on the ship's bow… not even a name… only a symbol I had never seen before on the sea… I grunted as I sized up our next target. It was particular large making me slightly worried about the risk involved. A big ship meant a lot of people on board making it difficult for my crew. Though skilled my crew was being outnumbered only meant fatal consequences. I had only a few incidents where some of my men were killed, but they had been minuscule.
I tightened my bandana a second before checking my staff to make sure it was good and tight. Carefully I shouted out orders for boarding the strange vessel, as we grew nearer. I was sure the other ship had already surmised we were pirates or at least raiders. Only raiders or guys like us would be out in a storm like this coming close to another ship like we were. Getting close to ships in a storm was never wise because vessels could easily collide together if not careful.
My eyes scanned the area and calculated the procedures needed to complete our task properly. Cautiously I scanned the deck of our target and noticed a crowd forming on the deck. I frowned feeling the dread rise in my stomach. Something just wasn't right…
Most vessels would place their crew below in the bellows of the ship with only the necessary assistants to help on deck. However it seemed this vessel had all its crew on top. The number on deck alone matched my crew making me more nervous about raiding their ship. If they had more men down below it could cause serious problems,… but of course the greed of a pirate is strong…
Before long we had shot lines onto their deck locking our ships next to each other. My men quickly swarmed their deck, but our opponents were ready for us. I was one of the first to arrive on the other vessel and with my signal the battle began. Automatically I noticed the skill of our enemies. They fought brutally and in formation… sort of like… like… military!
My eyes grew wide as I noticed through the wind and rain the symbols on their outfits. Their symbols were identical to the one on the bow of their ship.
I cursed beneath my breath as I slay one of their men. Military ships were never good to run across. The crew was too well trained to fight and often was great in number. Secondly, little profit came from taking their ship. Yes, weapons were good and all, but selling military weapons on the black-market was never easy or profitable. Most didn't like having the weapons because the items were marked with certain symbols of countries and militaries. Holding one of them while running into another branch of military it belong to never settled good. It was like signal to all the military that you had killed one of their men and taken his/her weapon. In short military vessels weren't good to board at all…
As three of the men rushed me I leapt into the air and released my wings. Whenever I did this it was a signal to my men to retreat. Automatically my crew turned tail and raced back to our ship ready to release our ropes. The stormy wind angrily roared and pounded against me, but I was use to it and barely fidgeted from my spot in the sky. I smirked as I saw the shock on the military men's faces. They gaped at my wings in shock and I gave them a hearty laugh. I graceful swooped down to my ship's railing and stood proudly on it. As the lines were being cut I shouted, "Farewell, military. Be lucky we decided you were too much trouble to plunder and not very profitable--"
Someone suddenly lunged at me and I quickly brought my staff to deflect his sword. I truly wasn't surprised at the attack seeing I got that often, but I was surprised to see a sudden hate in all of the official men's eyes. The thing that really made me shudder was that the emotion was directed at me…
I felt a sudden need to get away, but even as I got ready to leap off the rail and onto my ship's deck twenty men attacked me. Shouts came from my men and suddenly the battle I had tried to retreat from slammed down on us. I struck my hard staff against one of my attackers throwing him into three other men. With a twirl of my wrist one end of my weapon came into another attacker's firm chest. Still I was outnumbered so I took to the air hoping to evade them…
Unfortunately they appeared to be prepared for such… Using some odd weapons they shot nets at me. The heavy ropes of the nets weighed down my wings and I soon slammed onto their deck, losing my staff… Like a wild dog I fought with my confinement as they closed in around me with their weapons. I snarled at them and they marched over to me their blades sparkling with cold raindrops.
My men roar behind me at my capture. Though we are men with hate in our hearts we have grown to be close friends to each other being that we are pirates for similar reasons. I smirked as I saw them wash over the railing onto my opponents' boat in a rage. My eyes glared at my attackers and I stood high on my feet trying to stretch my wings outwards with the heavy net cast over them so I might scare my attackers with my size. The ropes yearned under the stretch and I roared animalistic while my muscles strained. Threads pop and suddenly holes form in the net. I growl as my right arm thrust out through the holes I made. My free arm yanked a sword from one of the army men. Quickly I ripped the rest of the net off with the blade and faced my enemies.
They tackled me…
I fell, but quickly rose to throw them all off my back. Roaring with fury I slashed at one of them with my new weapon. Sadly, I'm no good with a sword and I missed horribly. I saw their smirks and knowing grins realizing they understood my handicap with a sword. Angrily I tossed it at one of them as a distraction and tried to shoot off into the air,… but they grabbed my ankles and bring me back down…
Growling I decided to just fight on the ground… My fist connected with a chin and my heel with a chest. I leapt and dodged with grace unlike most pirates. Why?… Why am I different?…
Because I was taught by a master of fighting… My commander had been my teacher… Under his guidance I had been taught ways of battle… and slowly I progressed to a level of skill that many do not reach. That level is only reach through years of practice and determination. I was one of those men who crawled to that plateau and relished in the glory…
My movements must have caught the eye of the military commander for he plowed through the battle and charged me. I caught sight of him only seconds before he swung his sword at me. Frantically I stepped out of rang, but not before letting my jacket of black leather taste the blade. I glared at my right sleeve angrily noticing the scar of the attack. There was now a large five-inch gap in my jacket. I growled at the captain who stood thirty feet away with his sword ready. Though the jacket had been expensive I was not angry because of the silver spent on it. No, it was the personal attachment that sent me over the edge. The jacket had been from my family before I had left them… It was my last connection to the world I had chose to leave behind…
"Come on!" I shouted out of fury, "I'll show you how to truly fight!"
He was unimpressed it seemed by his blank expression. That only infuriated me more. Rage blinded my logic and I grabbed one of the officers nearby. Taking away his lance I struck him hard in the neck. Hitting a pressure point caused me to knock the guy unconscious, but I ignored this as I twirled the weapon in my hand. I tested its weight and durability quickly as my eyes burned on my opponent. For that moment that we stared at each other all notice of the battle around us was forgotten…
Then we both charged each other. The blades of our two weapons were thrust forward clinking together when they hit. I was quick to bring my blade up and strike back down on his sword, but he swiveled from the blow and leapt high into the air. I was surprised at the height he gained, but did not let it slow me down. Letting my wings sweep through the howling wind I met him in the sky.
We fell together, but some how, even though I had the wings to help me with the fall, he landed on his feet perfectly. Pushing himself off the deck he launched at me again. The wind abruptly grew stronger and caught the cup of my wings making my stance unstable. I quickly caught myself before I fell, but those few seconds that were used for it allowed my opponent an open shot. I turned in time to see the sleek blade of my adversary coming for my face. I flung myself back, but too late…
I crashed onto my back and clutched my left eye. Blood seeped through my fingers and cried out at the fire in my wounded eye. My other good eye closed shut in pain making me unable to see the knee that connected with my chest. I flew backwards and awkwardly gained my footing before I hit the deck. Opening an angry blue optical I snarled at my attacker who smirked.
Gently my hand left my eye showing off the horrible scar that stretched down from the left side of my forehead to the cheekbone of my face. My eye felt like it was dead with only a few nerves pounding with anguish. For that moment I ignored the bleeding of my horrendous wound and stepped into a fighting stance.
"This time when I swing" I growled lowly, "I'll make sure to severe your head."
My enemy just smirked before lunging at me again. My blade swiftly met his and then gold sparks flew. I shouted as I shoved him aside my anger overruling my judgment. A dance of swords took place before my eyes as we fought. My rage clouded my mind and before long I was on my back with my sword gone. He stood over me with his weapon nipping at me. The point rested on my Adam's Apple as he gave me his toothy grin. I barely moved feeling the weight of his blade on my neck.
Carefully I cleared my mind letting the rage in me settle a bit. It was necessary to use my trump card now. I was forced to… Slowly my senses reached for the gift handed down to me by Joutei… Then my powers raged!
Suddenly the floorboards beneath me quaked and screamed. As sprays of water flew through the cracks of the wood the crowd of warriors halted their fighting and the sword on my neck backed off. Though my life was no longer in jeopardy my fury would not let me stop now. The water shooting from under the floorboards reached for the sky, as the continuous screeching of the wood grew louder. The deck of the ship bulged at the force of the pounding and with sudden cries of thunder the water blast through different parts of the wood. The pillars of swirling liquid were like dangerous fountains plowing through the vessel's walls.
Next came chaos…
No one understood what was happening except for myself. Screams of horror fell on deaf ears as both crews raced for a haven,… but sadly… because of my fury… I caused both vessels to be in jeopardy…
I opened my eyes as I heard my second commander scream. Looking to my ship I saw in shock that my anger had gotten the best of me. My powers of controlling water were very powerful and because my rage had blinding me for more than half a second it was destroying my own ship. I let my powers die down then so we could heal our broken vessel, but too late… The damage was done… and both ships were already sinking… We might have been able to patch up our ship, but because we were in the middle of a storm it was impossible. By now the ship had already gotten twenty feet lower in the water.
"Abandon ship!" I cried frantically while regaining my feet. The dangerous fountains were now gone and many of my crew were trying to understand what had just happen by standing around. While they stood gaping at the destruction we were losing time. The water was swallowing us up!
I cried out…
I shouted…
But my voice was lost in the storm and roar of the breaking vessels…
Waves were thrown against our backs and the ships were ripped apart…
All I remember of those last moments were the screams of pain and suffering…
What I remember next was when I awoke on the shore of an empty coastline… I sputtered awake and crawled blindly to the higher point of the sand trying to escape the tide… Collapsing on the rise I opened my one good eye to the world… The sun was high in the sky and the vastness was a peaceful blue… How long had I been out?… I don't know… Long enough for the storm to blow over… I don't understand how I became the lone survivor of such a terrible incident. I should have died along with the rest of them,… but there I laid… maybe half drown, but quite alive…
Slowly I raised my head and looked into the water that swirled at my feet. I was a mess. My clothes were nearly gone, torn to shreds, while my wounded eye was plastered with dirty blood. Tenderly I ripped what was left of my shirt and tied it over my bad eye so it would act as a bandage and shield it from other's view. No one needed to see such a gruesome scar.
I felt so alone in that moment. My friends and comrades had died because of my foolishness. My stupid behavior was unnecessary and because of it they paid the price. My fault… All my fault…
Just as my fingers finished the knot for the bandage a bit of wave released a glorious spray of droplets. My good eye widened as the crystals flew through the air with grace and beauty swirling about. Slowly to my awe the droplets became a figure… a water angel…
Her wings of crystal blue spanned out and her hair glistened with life. With a smile she spoke, "Hello, Sir Ski."
"Who are you?" I automatically gasped unable to take my eye off her, "What do you want?"
Her eyes became sad as she explained what she explained to both Zaado and Nazomi. As before she offered life and renewal to a warrior. But would this warrior accept it like the others before him?…
I stared at her with a tear gleaming in my eye as I roughly said, "You would ask a murderer to take such a honor?…"
She stared back at me with no expression except for the sadness in her eyes.
I stood up sharply and with an angry voice I shouted with the fury of my pain, "That's what your asking right?! You're asking me! The man who was the cause of his friends' deaths to become a royal guardian!"
No answer came for me, but in truth I wasn't looking for one. I crumbled back to my knees whimpering, "Why should I be given such a wonderful offer when I should be the last chosen for such…"
My eye closed as my tears streamed down. There was tear for each of my lost comrades…
I felt her hand lie on my shoulder and I opened my teary eye to her. She stared back at me with a deep sorrow reflecting in her ebony pupils… Quietly she whispered, "I know your pain, Ski…
"There is a world of suffering all around us that none can avoid… Sooner or later we crash down into its void either to be swallowed up or to crawl out of its suffocating death… Being the queen of an entire race is extremely difficult to bear on any shoulder. Often when I see the one of the people I protect die in a situation I feel very guilty. I am their leader sworn to always guard and guide them… I understand now that one day everyone must die though their deaths are always painful I will not let myself go down into the dumps of depression. I must continue to be the guardian of an entire species.
"Remember their deaths was a pure accident and though you think otherwise you must understand that even if you had done it intentionally Joutei would still forgive you…
"Please… accept what I hold out to you, Ski… Joutei wishing for your aide…"
That day I became a being known as the royal bodyguard and began my trek to the kingdom of my people. On the way I constructed a new staff with two daggers strapped onto one end. Later on my crude weapon became the enchanted trident I forever hold… After our deaths I took my group to the sea to relive the days of my dark travels, however, my group never became pirates. We became cargo ships that sailed from port to port under the disguise of humans. As we flew over the waves of the sea my heart remained hard towards humans for they were part of the death of my friends…
~So, Tsuno has always felt guilty for his friends' deaths and has placed some of the blame on the human race. Hm, things are beginning to add up, but yet still so much is left to be explained. Next chapter will involve both Sian and Nembus. They share how they became friends and why Queen Iris took them into the Ring of Guardians. Get ready for the last of the explanations to be revealed and the story to suddenly fly into the climax. For as the last of the guardians pour out their hearts and the shadow of Dornkirk's powers grows closer. The battle between the Angel of Gaea and the Fallen Emperor of Zaibach is about to start…~
~Next up chapter 23: Intertwined Paths (Coming Soon Early July)~