Where it all began..., ...to fall a part.

[-Raven]

It had all happened way too quickly.

Anameane held strong to her bow, but in an instant the man before her had become encased in ice. She barely had the chance to notice Alexander asking her to stand down. Once the block of ice encased the man before her, Anameane let out a small yelp as she jumped back. Then, from behind, another yell came as well as a burst of energy. She spun around, her eyes searching for Rowan somewhere within the madness.

“Rowan!” she cried, her voice cracking as she did so. There he was, inches from the edge of the dock with a man flying into the water behind him. Without hesitation she sprinted down the dock, Aegis still tightly in hand. She thought about reaching for another arrow and sinking it into the man’s head who had fallen into the water, but for the sake of Rowan and his fragile state, she thought better. Instead, she came to a quick halt beside her brother, looking down into the water with widened eyes. She then slowly looked down at the boy.

“Rowan,” she said softly. She knew that Rowan had a set of abilities that sat deep within him, but she never knew his true potential. He had a lot of energy, this making it clearly evident, and that scared her somewhat.

“Are you all right?” She asked.

Just then, Alexander joined them at the end of the dock. He looked out to the man in the water and calmly said, “"Evening gentlemen I am sorry for the little mishap; the boy does not know his own strength it would seem. To make up for the dip in the cold waters I buy you two a nice drink?"

Anameane was uncertain of this move. Her hand sat ready to pull out another arrow…

[-Lucian]

The tears would not stop rolling down his face. The boy's head felt light and yet it there was a pounding pain. He could hardly stand and all of his senses were dulled. He could only barely make out the shadowy figure of Anameane through watery eyes and failing vision. The images in his head made too much noise for him to recognize anything said. Images of death and fire and evil people hurting everyone he cared about. Those were the last images in his head before he fell asleep. Not the happy thoughts of sleeping in a nice warm bed with Anameane close by to keep him safe.

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Lucian gladly accepted the rope, you know, rather than having to swim another minute with the dark scary things before reaching the ladder. He grabbed that rope and was rolling onto the docks in only a few seconds. The whole truth be told... He hated being wet. He almost always got wet one way or another and it was normally when he ended up in the big blue.

The young captain shook his head, letting the dripping water fly over the dock, as he stood up. As Lucian stood there in all of his wet glory he looked at what had happened. The boy. He saw that the kid that almost fell off the dock was unconscious. He didn't really look to see what happened to the instigator of this mess, but all seemed to well. Enough. He did miss the offer for a drink, but he went over to the trio anyway. "Hey, the name's Lucian. Is everyone alright?"

[-Aniki]

The man walked up to the little boy and ruffled his hair. He spoke to the boy in a quiet voice. Then he faced Lucky Jack and Captain Lucian, who was still climbing up the to the dock.

"Evening gentlemen I am sorry for the little mishap the boy does not know his own strength it would seem. To make up for the dip in the cold waters I buy you two a nice drink?"

Just then, Lucian had reached the edge of the dock and began to stand back up. On his feet again, the Captain walked to the three strangers.

"Hey, the name's Lucian. Is everyone alright?" Said Lucian Opereski Obark.

As Jack was walking towards the group, he reassessed the situation, now that he was finally close enough to see their appearances.

The cloaked man was taller up close then he appeared from affar, standing a good 4" taller than Lucky Jack. His piercing gaze was that of a blue not unlike the ocean that Lucian had just fell into. The hand that was on the boy was covered in a black leather that had gunmetal plating worked into it. Other than that, there was nothing else to be seen of the strange figure.

The boy, who was more than 2' shorter than the Boarding Seargent, had blondish brown hair barely cut to his eyebrows. He was very skinny and frail, almost as if he was not properly nurished while growing up. As for his clothing, it was very tattered and worn out. Upon close inspection, Jack could see differing shades of blue among the boy's outfit.

The young lady had the sun-kissed skin of the similarity of an attractive people who lived within a high heat environment. Other than her dark skin, the next most noticeable feature about her was her long black hair that was braided multiple times. Within her hair, there were feathers interwoven with thick thread and diamond shaped metal pieces on the end of each braid. Then there were her eyes! A deep, dark red, as if they were pools of fresh blood just recently spilt. Inside of these pools were unusually large pupils as if they were dialated continuously. Just being a little shorter than Jack himself, the young lady had an overall thin build, with developed muscle. The outfit she wore was that of thick leather, a bustier over her midsection, a belt that holds her skirt, plated boots, and fingerless leather gloves.

Seeing all of this, Jack immediatly grinned. He knew then, as long as he stuck with these people, that something interesting was going to happen. Lucky Jack likes interesting. He gets bored to easily, and Jack doesn't like being bored.

"Hi all~ Muh names Jack. You can call me Lucky Jack."

[-Alucard]

Alexander began to listen to what was being said when something else caught his attention entirely. He could feel something was off in the air then felt the ground shake and heard the rumble of battle. It looked like the war had finally caught up to Ascantha and he happened to still be in the city when all hell broke loose. The rumble came next and the docks shook with the very earth.

Alexander turned to the sky and saw several figures moving about in the distant sky. He then turned around to those gathered. "We leave here now! It is no longer safe and nor will it be anywhere near by. So I suggest that we find the fastest means of leaving and take it." With that he focused on the younger of the two men the one dripping wet that had introduced him self as Lucian.

"You wouldn't happen to know away we can escape seeing as you have the looks of a... seafarer about you would you Mister Lucian? If you happen to know of a ship we could seek passage on then I beg you to direct us to the Captain." With that he turned back to the boy whose shoulder his hand rested on. "It is gonna be alright Rowan and it looks like I will have to owe you that nice stay and a meal." He tried to keep his tone light and edge a bit of humor into it but it was hard. To help he raised his other hand and pulled the cowl of his cloak back to reveal his face and hair.

[-Raven]

((Sorry for the late response, everyone. I’ve been pretty hectic IRL. And Lucian, I put Rowan on Anameane’s back for a piggy-back ride since he was basically asleep. If you want him positioned differently, or walking on his own, just let me know.))

What was she feeling now? Anger? Frustration? A combination of both? She would say it was option C. Here she had gone with Alexander with the promise is warmth and safety for Rowan, but now they were needing to make a quick evacuation? Bullshit! Her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched shut tightly. This night was not going as planned.

She looked down to Rowan – he was weak from his burst of energy just moments ago. He was barely awake. She bent down, letting him lean against her back. She grabbed his arms and pulled them over her shoulders. She held him piggy-back now, his small frame no trouble to carry. For a moment, while stewing in her anger, Anameane considered turning and leaving this group. She and Rowan did not need anyone’s help, they certainly didn’t need to be involved in any shit that was going down on Redemption. However, she considered that staying with the group could be safer than leaving on her own. She felt the rumbles of the docks, and the last thing she needed was to run into the very fight that had found its way to Ascantha.

"You wouldn't happen to know away we can escape seeing as you have the looks of a... seafarer about you would you Mister Lucian? If you happen to know of a ship we could seek passage on then I beg you to direct us to the Captain," Alexander said to the young man who was thrown into the water. Alexander then turned his attention to Rowan.

"It is gonna be alright Rowan, and it looks like I will have to owe you that nice stay and a meal."

Anameane’s anger began to boil once more. She wanted to tell him to back off and leave Rowan alone. Being involved with Alexander had caused more trouble than good. She bit down on her lip hard, a pulsing pain beginning to develop.

[-Lucian]

((OOC: No, that's fine, Raven, Rowan's out for now. *nod*))

Lucian scratched his head. He didn't want to be here any more anyway. Especially not in the middle of a war but... Caspian. The first mate was missing though. His crew needed him. These people needed him. Some of the inhabitants of the city were beginning to show up, fleeing the fighting.

"Alright, come on. We'll take my ship." He pointed down the dock to the magnificent ship owned and crewed by the Golden Sash. "Lead them there, Jack."

The captain nodded to the man and woman before running a ways away. "Everyone! I have a ship that can accomodate many of you! If you seek safety, come with us!" He pointed to his ship again and some of the people around, roughly twenty from Lucian's quick count, changed their course and went towards the ship.

He regretted that this was all he could do but... his ship and crew needed it's captain.

[-Aniki]

The ground was shaking wildly now and the populas on shore was going crazy.

Now this is what I'm talking about! Things are getting interesting~ Jack thought to himself. He began to giggle quietly.

"Alright, come on. We'll take my ship." Captain Lucian pointed down the dock to the ship owned and crewed by the Golden Sash. "Lead them there, Jack."

Jack looked back at the man and the young lady. The man now had his face visible. He had platinum silver hair that was cut short and skin that was very light, like a man that did not spend any time whatsoever in the daylight. The lady, however, looked about ready to explode, even with the boy riding piggy-back, unconscious on her back. Her fiery eyes were glaring maliciously toward the cloaked man.

I really shouldn't mess with that gal. She looked like she wanted to rip someone's head off.

"Alrighty all yuh. Come on up. Come on up. There's nuff room on this ship fer a small army." Jack said to the group heading aboard. "Don't yuh worry about bout your room and board. Yuh won't find a more comfortable stay in all the city~" He started to laugh loudly at his poorly made joke.

BOOM! CRASH! RUMBLE!

Several more waves of force blew through the city, sending shallow ripples to form on the surface of the ocean.

"Looks like we better get outta here quick, before things get too outta hand." Lucky Jack pressured the group. "I don't believe we caught any of your guy's names, now that I think about it."

[-Alucard]

Alexander could tell this girl was angry with him and she had a right to be. He had promised them something and in that matter of moments things had gone from peaceful to out of control full blown war. In the end though he had a felling she would thank him. "Thank you very much Captain let me assist you while your friend guides the people to you ship." With that he turned towards where the captain had run and looked in the distance he couldn't see much with the buildings in the way and needed to fix that.

So he pushed his whole body up into the air unfurling his white feathered wings pushing himself higher in the sky. In the distance he could see more shapes moving and destruction back towards where he had met the children. If the girl could see she would undoubtedly thank him indeed. Instead she could not though he could see many people running and screaming and dying in many directions.

The war it seemed was coming to an end, and he wondered on what side she fell. Had she joined up with the other Aesir... or did she side with those fighting them. HE knew she wouldn't just sit back and watch that was to unlike her. Plus he could feel her presence in the city even if not the exact location. His attention was brought back to reality as the docks near by began to creak and the sound of snapping could be heard. Next a whole section gave way and a nearby building tumbled into the waters.

Alexander's eyes flashed silver in the night sky and several walls of force came jutting out of the ocean holding up the docks. He was watching to make sure he could support it long enough for the other's to escape or board ships. "I suggest everyone find a ship near by and flee into the harbor till things settle down. Captain I suggest you make it to your ship as well i will direct the people there that I can and keep us safe as long as you think it is safe to stay docked. Don't worry about myself I can see the ship everyone is headed to from here and will come once the last person is safe."

With that his eyes never stopped glowing as he had to make more and more walls of force. Some supporting the docks and others making makeshift bridges for people to cross. He almost glowed like a beacon of life directing people to safety on the water.

[-Raven]

"Alrighty all yuh. Come on up. Come on up. There's nuff room on this ship fer a small army." Jack said to the group heading aboard. "Don't yuh worry about bout your room and board. Yuh won't find a more comfortable stay in all the city~"

Anameane quickly followed with Rowan on her back. A cascade of people was heading in the direction of the docks, and it appeared that the man named Lucian was corralling those inwards. She had lost track of Alexander in the madness, but she was sure he would be fine and manage on his own. She quickly crossed the docks and boarded quickly.

The waves of the ocean, as well as the pulses from within the city began to worsen. The boat was rocky, but Anameane kept her balance. Travelling from tree top to tree top made all of the difference with one’s footing.

"Looks like we better get outta here quick, before things get too outta hand." Lucky Jack pressured the group. "I don't believe we caught any of your guy's names, now that I think about it."

Anameane looked to him then and stared for a moment as his request for her name registered in her mind.

“…Anameane.” She said flatly, and she then went deeper onto the ship. She needed to find a place for Rowan to rest.

I'm so sorry, Rowan...

[-Lucian]

Lucian, not taking much time to register that the robed guy was flying, shouted up to him his understanding and thanks for the help. "We'll take care of the people down here, just keep all the baddies away from us until we can leave port, then."

His heart hurt. The innocents in the city. The battle against the Aesir had finally begun... again. Hopefully this time he'll stay dead. The thought was a bitter one. He had only heard about the death of his friend Fortinbrass but he didn't doubt the evils of the Aesir to seek revenge on the one who killed him.

The captain shook the thoughts from his mind and jogged down the dock, leading the way for the slowly growing group of fleeing civilians. He wasn't worried about room on the ship. They had enough beds for over fifty not counting the crew. Sure, it would be a little crowded on deck and below, but if it was comfort or saving lives, there wasn't much of a choice.

Once he got onto his mighty ship he began shouting orders for the crew to set sail. They needed to go so he set him mind on the task. No use risking his life in a battle he could do nothing to help. Few people knew this, but Lucian did know his limits and, unlike Taishar or Fortinbrass, Val or even that guy on the docks, he could do nothing against the Aesir. He was just a kid captain, doing what he could to make other people's lives easier.

Standing at the helm of the ship Lucian bellowed above the noise and commotion of everyone boarding or already on board. "Below deck there are plenty of rooms and bed. Find one that suits you and relax. My crew and I will protect you all with our lives!"
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It was just as hectic below deck as it was on top. The crew ran around, emptying rooms that were being used for storage and other were beginning to prepare food while still others were helping the little girl operate the cannons. Just in case. Lucia was tasked with supervising it all.

the extra rooms were going to be needed, she could see, as people began to pour down from the deck. The one in the lead, though, had a small boy on her back. She didn't look too old herself. "Excuse me, is he hurt? Come with me and I'll take you to a private room so you two can get some rest."

She led the pair down the hallway a bit and opened one of the last rooms. The door opened into a decent sized room, certainly bigger than most of the others, that had two beds, one set on each side of the room. There was even a small desk between the beds.

After showing her to the room Lucia excused herself. "I have much to see to. I hope he'll be alright. I'll send some food in when I can." With that she hurried off pointing to this room and that room when confronted by one crew member or another carrying a barrel or armful of random trinkets.

[-Aniki]

Jack watched in awe as the cloaked man flew in the sky with now visible white feathered wings. As the man was floating in the sky, he produced a great comforting glow of protection from his body, the strongest of the light coming from his eyes that lead like a lighthouse for all to see.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people were running in all directions, trying to escape the same fate that the city was currently facing. Crowds began to form on and around the dock, quickly trying to find a vessel, any ship or boat or barge to board in order to run away from the chaos of war.

Seeing all of this as well, Jack knew right away that the Crew on the ship would need any and all help available in order to ready for the incoming hordes of humans trying to get on board.

As soon as he stepped foot on the ship, he went into a frenzy, doing anything he could to assist his crewmembers and the newcomers.

Jack lost track of time. Before he knew it, the boat was already leagues away from the city and he could barely hear the battle going on ashore. After seeing to it that everything was taken care of and finding no place that was in need of help any longer, Jack decided to head back to his quarters. He needed some rest after all of the excitement that went on within the city and within the ship.

Thinking to himself, Jack smiled. I knew something interesting was gonna happen today, but I never thought it was gonna be like that. I wonder what is gonna happen next? Since now, one of the grandest cities on this part of the world has gone to ruin. Something big is gonna happen, and I wish I could be there to see it. Oh well, I guess taking all these poor city folk somewhere safe is more important than seeing history in the making.

Just then, Jack dozed off for a period of time.

Within his slumber, there was a sound. It was water. Water dripping as if from a faucet that was not completely closed to be more precise. Then there were flashes of light. A deep green light, that seemed to be filtered through a wavy surface. Then there was the sound of bubbles being formed in water. It was a very strange dream that did not make very much sense whatsoever.

When he came into conciousness once more, he instantly became uneasy.

It was too quiet on the ship. After all that had happened, there should be more noise on board especially since there were way more people on the ship than there were normally.

Out of curiousity, Jack got up out of his bed and started walking out of his quarters. Before he even took one step outside of the room, a sinking feeling began to form within the pit of his stomach. Something was going to happen, and it was going to be bad. Very very bad.

[-Alucard]

After a few moments Alexander saw the last of the civilians make it onto the various boats headed out to sea. He could also feel Caspian's signature grow stronger and closer along with a red glowing light. This light stretched pretty far over the whole of the city. The supports and make shift bridges no longer needed he dismissed them.

He then hovered there for a few more moments while he watched the ships floating out to sea getting farther from the city and the light. The fleet of vessels was going to need someplace to dock and for a time being might even need a guardian angel. If it was not for protecting all those lives he would have charged off into the city.

Which would have been a bad idea because he would instantly become a target. His former self hadn't exactly ended on good terms with any of those fighting in the city. Even if is intent was making sure Caspian was dead once and for all it would most likely cost him his own life or worse. It was bad enough he was going to have to go near Ultimatum as it stood. He had no need nor desire to face off against her she had made her choice and it did not include his former self.

Alexander then turned back to the ships and slowly flew out to land upon the packed deck of Lucian's ship. Folding his wings up under his cloak he walked through the crowd of grateful people to find Lucian. "You did a noble thing saving all these people. Do you have a plan on where to take them or any idea what is to come next? For I fear that this city will be nothing but rubble soon. Also Allow me to properly introduce myself I am Alexander Shadowsun a visitor from a distant land."

[-Raven]

Anameane sat silently against the wall of the cabin, her eyes closed as she relaxed with the rocking of the boat. She would occasionally open her eyes to check on Rowan. It would appear that he was still sleeping soundly in the bed she sat him in. She, herself was tired, but Anameane couldn’t let herself. Not yet at least. While her anger from earlier had subsided shortly after meeting the small girl who led her to this room, she still couldn’t shake a small portion of her frustration. Where were they going now? Who were these people that she had placed her trust in?

If anything, she was angry with herself more than anyone else.

She had thought about leaving the room to investigate her current situation, but that would risk throwing Rowan into a panic. If he were to wake up without her there, who knows how he would react. He never did do very well with strangers…

Her stomach growled. They would need to eat soon. Usually she would have made sure the two of them had food at this point, but since she had been detoured from her original plan of cutting through Ascantha on the outskirts, she didn’t have a chance to scavenge anything.

“I’m sorry, Rowan,” she said softly as she stood. She felt bad for this whole situation. She would make it up to him once they were off this ship and on their own again. Until then, though, she needed to take care of the two of them.

He should be all right if I step out for a second, right? She wondered. She looked for something to write on and with, but there was nothing around for her use. She kicked in frustration.

In an act of desperation, Anameane took her bow and quiver of arrows and sat them beside Rowan’s bed. Hopefully this would give some comfort, and let him know that she was still around. She kept her knife on her and left the room. Walking through the ship, she made her way to the deck.

[-Lucian]

((OOC: Well. I'm going to go ahead and wrap things up in the topic and move on to the next location. That being Tristan. If anyone wants to continue with this topic specifically, go ahead and shoot me a pm and I can make some changes.))

The ship, powered by the minor wind and water alchemist duo of the crew and the hard work of the rest of the people running about, was soon moving and on its way out to sea. Lucian watched as most of the people headed below decks and things began to settle down. Some, at least. Others had surrounded him, expressing their gratitude. He never really was comfortable with that. The whole... being thanked thing. Sure, he liked to be admired, but this kind of thing... No thanks. He nodded and smiled and politely tried to make his way through the crowd.

"Excuse me, pardon me. Not a problem, ma'am. Happy to help. Excuse me." The captain slowly made his way through while people touched him and smiled and thanked him. He really didn't do a whole lot. He was there and he was the captain of a ship. Too bad Val wasn't here... Lucian could blame them being saved on the first mate. "It was his idea, he deserves the thanks." Is what he would say. The thought made Lucian smile. Man he missed that guy.

About then guy from the docks swopped down onto the deck and spoke to the young captain. His reaction was more of what Lucian liked.

"Well, it's kinda what we do. Just sail around helping those in need. This time we just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And, hey! All it took for us to meet was some thug causing trouble and me getting blown into the water. A good trade, I'd say." Lucian smirked and grabbed Alex's hand.

"Nice to meetcha. The name's Lucian. As for the plans..." He shrugged before continuing, "We'll find a place for these people. Some place that's not here. Don't worry about that."
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Lucia was running around all over the place, making sure people had everything they needed. She had taken over looking after everything since Val had left and frankly, it was exhausting. She wasn't sure how the man did it all with what seemed like minimal effort. He needed to just come back and take his job back.

At the moment she was on deck seeing to the crew and remaining people there when she saw the young lady from before. The one with the boy. She then remembered that she had forgotten to have food sent to them. Or anyone. She said a silent curse and walked over.

"Hi there. Sorry about the wait on the food. I trust everything is well? I'll go down to the kitchens right away and have some of the crew send meals to all the rooms. Excuse me." With that she rushed off to do just that. All the way she was muttering about Lucian causing her trouble. She knew, though, that it was only the captain's kind heart at work.
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Rowan slept. Though not well. His unconscious mind was filled with terrible images and nightmares of the attack on his home. His parents. Nightmares of things happening to Anameane. Bad things coming after him. Though his mind raced his body lie still. It was exhausted from the energy he used.

((OOC: Again, moving on to Tristan, unless anyone has objections.))