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The Elementalist (Lady Nefrodiel)

Rudolph Quin

Rudolph Quin

Mistaken for some sort of scoundrel
Withdrawn
Joined
Aug 2, 2009
Location
here
Captain Jaichim Chuliandred stood on the deck of his ship, The Atropos, his feet spread evenly apart and planted firmly despite the swell of the waves. His eyes never left the other ship ahead of them, merely a few leagues away now and they were quickly catching up. The decks of the massive galleon swarmed with men, all bustling about with activity, pulling ropes, and securing lines, or getting ready below deck for what was going to come next. Greed lighted Jaichim's eyes as he watched the ship ahead of them futiley trying to outrun them, and more specifically the colors flapping in the wind on their highest mast. He recognized the design as owned by one of the wealthier magic-user families. Not only was there bound to be wealth upon the ship, but also magical items.

Captain Chuliandred was a collector of such items and had studied for years the heirlooms the families passed down their generations amongst eachother. There was power in them and although a lot of the things he'd stolen were no use without the person it belonged to, they still fetched a high price for the family desperate to get them back. Others that he found he could use were minor in the abilities they enabled and not really worth anything other than to sit in his chest in his chambers. He'd done lots of research on the magical abilities and treasures of the magic user families and he knew there were more powerful things out there. He just hadn't found them yet, but when he did, he'd never let them out of his grasp.

The Atropos sped forward, her bow slicing through the water quickly, a carved maiden holding aloft scissors in her hand on the face of the ship. Three masts stood on deck, with large cloud-like sails capturing the wind and the wood of the railings and sides of it carved intricately with swirling designs, like the ship itself was a part of the waves.

Jaichim smirked to himself as The Atropos came abreast of the other ship and his men started to board it with their grappling hooks, and swinging onto it from lines overhead, all screaming battle cries and brandishing weapons ferociously. He let the men fight for the decks over there, striding calmly down the steps onto the quarterdeck of his own ship, then used one of the loosely swinging lines to propel himself over into the midst of the chaos.
 
When the Boswell family had opted to go on a vacation to a beautiful, peaceful island for some quality bonding time, they had not expected to be ambushed by pirates. In fact, they were not amused at all that the return voyage to their home estate had been ruined by the filthy sea dogs. Of course the captain of the ship had done his best to avoid the other, but the fact of the matter was that their own weather mages were nothing compared to the pirates. Lord Elliot Boswell, current head of the prestigious family, was not amused with this fact. He was a man who believed that he deserved nothing but the best and to think that lowly commoners would dare board his ship without his permission irked him to no end. Unfortunately the man was not going to get his way as the pirate ship approach their side and the men began boarding. Immediately the situation had turned into a battlefield with Lord Elliot entering into the fray himself. Magical vines had appeared out of no where as he began to defend his posessions and family honor. Like hell would he be raided by pirates!

Meanwhile, below the deck were two girls hidden with their servants. Neither of them were amused they had been banished into hiding the moment the pirates had been sighted. But there was a good reason why they had been hidden away, while their brother was up on deck with their father, ready to do battle with pirates if it came down to that. The older girl, a beautiful golden-red head was the heir to the family name... and the most talented heir the Boswells had seen in generations. Elliot did not doubt that his heir was more than capable of handling herself, but he would not dare risk anything happeng to his precious Victoria. Yes, she was Victoria Amelia Boswell and her family had given her the nickname of the elementalist. Because that's what she was. She was the rare Boswell heir who had shown an aptitude for all four of the elements- earth, fire, water, and wind. And unbeknownst to the captain of the pirate ship, she alone posessed what he had been looking for.

The other girl was younger than Victoria by a couple of years. Whereas as her sister posessed light golden red hair, she herself posessed dark brunette hair. Elliot's reason for hiding away Alena- his youngest child- was because she was the spitting image of her deceased mother. As proud as the lord was, Irene's death had affected him greatly and he couldn't bear losing her a second time- even if Alena did despise her father.

Victoria understood why their father had hidden them away just in case of attack. She understood, but she didn't like it one bit. It wasn't fair that her father and her younger brother were risking their lives to protect them when she capable of helping. She was the oldest. It was her job to protect her younger siblings from harm and having Jonathan risk his life instead of hers... didn't bode well with her at all. But she understood why her father wasn't flaunting her to the enemy. She was powerful, but she hadn't come into her own full potential just yet. If her father was killed, she would need to take over the family. She would sit here and wait until everything fine. That was the smart thing to do, despite her very desire to go up there and aid.

On the otherhand, Alena did not understand. She did not understand why her sister would be resigned to sitting aside and doing nothing... it was one reason why she disliked her so much. Everybody thought she was perfect... perfect at being the tool their family wanted her to be! Upon hearing the beginnings of a batle, Alena itched to do something. The young Alena pretended to go along with her sister's rule for now and when it was least expected she muttered a short paralysis spell and ran off to join the fray. As a noble, it was her job to protect her people and there was nothing anybody could do about it! And gode her sister into acting outside her perfect rules... for once, which was why she had casted a paralysis spell of short duration.

After Alena's unexpected spell had worn off, Victoria silently cursed her ineptitude at protecting her baby sister's action. She should have known Alena would try something reckless! The servants looked frightened, so she reassured them quickly before she ran after her idiotic sister (whom she still loved very much) to go save her from some trouble. And that was how the tall golden red head had entered the battle, aiming balls of fire at pirates and swiftly dodging blows. It was in one of these quick movements that the necklace the Boswell heir always wore had come flying out of her dress, letting anyone see the secret power she always hid on her persona...
 
With sword in hand, Jaichim sliced through throats and stomachs and stabbed the helpless people he faced on the ship. Well, almost helpless. He smiled in glee at the vines that sprang to being, the smell of magic hanging thick in the air and the crackling of uttered spells tingling across his skin and making the hair on his body stand on end. It was delightful being this close to such power, a rush of adrenaline pumping through him as he continued to slaughter those he came upon with savage bloodlust.

Captain Chuliandred saw who appeared to be the leader on this ship assuming he was the one in charge because of the way he was dressed and he was the one doing most of the magic. It occurred to him to wonder if he stood out as the leader of this ragtag army of thieves. Standing at 6' 1" he wasn't a too imposing man, but his broad shoulders and dark eyes helped add to his intimidation factor and the way he was dressed, and his posture surely helped add to his aura of command. An expensive dark blue waistcoat with golden buttons and the hem embroidered with golden trim was left unbuttoned to show his white shirt underneath, and the red sash around his waist. Black breeches tucked into calf-high boots and the large hat on his head completed the picture. Everything he wore wasn't new and was worn and somewhat dirtied by many months at sea without someone to do his laundry. But the clothes themselves were of a fine cut and fabric; there was no way anyone would mistaken him for one of the crew.

Even though he'd spotted the leader of this vessel, there was too much distance between them and too many people still fighting to confront the man just yet. His men were doing well against the magic-users and only a few of the screams of death came from familiar tongues and throats. He was near the door that led belowdeck, cutting a path through flesh of those who got in his way and he saw a girl much too clean and pretty to be a servant come running from the doorway. Smiling to himself and pulling his flintlock from his belt, he followed behind her and caught her unawares, backhanding her harshly when she turned around to see him. Then he quickly stood over the dark haired girl, picking her up briskly and holding her against him, pointing the gun to her head. Now, he was ready to meet the man in charge.
 
Why yes, Lord Elliot Boswell indeed had marked out the captain of the ragband theives. He was much more richly dressed than the others, although his clothing was dirted by months of sea. Elliot himself wouldn't be caught dead in public with such worn out clothes, but he was a man obsessed with wealth and appearing that way. He took his eyes off the pirate captain, concentrating on eliminating his enemies. However, he was in for a nasty surprise when he next checked on the captain.

Alena had been expecting many things, but being noticed and marked by the pirate captain of the ship was not one of them. About to mutter a rather nasty spell of affliction, she felt someone behind her and immediately turned around to unleash her wrath upon her enemy. But before she could complete the spell, he had backhanded her which had wrecked her concentration. Not to mention her petite body had failed her and was dragging her towards the ground. Unfortunately he picked her up and felt metal pressed against her head. She knew he was somebody important; the quality of his clothes compared to the others was a dead give away. He was most likely the captain. And if he had a brain, he probably knew she was not an ordinary girl. Shit. Like hell was she going to be held hostage. And like hell she was going to be some damned damsel in distress.

To say that that Alena was furious was an understatement. She was livid. Most people would have felt fear and not tried anything at all. However, Alena wasn't most people. Her temper was short and once she fell into that mode she tended to do whatever the hell she like. So, she bit him. Hard. If she died for fighting for her freedom.. at least she lived according to her own principals.

Meanwhile, Victoria was using her magic liberally to fight off the invaders as well as engaging in a rather intense swordfight. Yes, she had been taught how to fight. It was expected of an heir to a great family. She had just finished the unlucky man off when she finally found Alena... and her worst fears confirmed. She was being held hostage with a gun pointed to her head. Of course, leave it to Alena to actually fight her captor right then and there. Still, the golden red head woman felt a cold fury rise throughout her being. Like her sister, she had a temper but it was slower to rise. Drawing upon her wind powers, she summoned a blast of wind to blow everyone (including members of her own side) who was in her way between her and the man holding her sister hostage. Green eyes normally warm and gentle were cold as ice as she made her way over to the man stupid enough to hold her baby sister captive in her presence. "Let. Her. Go," she puncuated coldly, her hair starting to come undone from its twist due to the force of the wind she had summoned around her. "You harm her in any way, and I promise to make your death a slow and painful one," she promised icily, the complete opposite of the gentle and "sweet" girl she portrayed herself to be. Because in actuality, to be the heir of an ambitious noble family one had to get their hands dirty. She didn't particularly enjoy it, but she would do anything to protect any members of her family specifically her.
 
Jaichim grimaced and let out a small hiss when the girl in his arms bit him, but he didn't let go and even tightened his hold, practically crushing her body against his own. Keeping an eye on his surroundings but looking down at her, he pressed the pistol into her more harshly and cocked it, his finger hovering over the trigger. "I understand you're unhappy," he whispered into her ear, his deep, gravelly voice sounding almost mockingly pleasant. "But I've captured you, fair and square. It would not do to have my new found leverage get a hole blasted through her pretty little skull before she's outlived her usefulness, aye? Besides, putting up a righteous fight can only go on for so long before it becomes just plain stupid." He kept his good humor as he looked away from her, trying to find the man from before. When his eyes latched onto the expensively attired gentleman, he smiled at him and nodded his head in acknowledgment from across the distance that separated them. Now maybe they could all settle down and negotiations could be made. Let the robbing begin! he thought to himself pleasantly, wondering what possible treasures this vessel held.

But then Captain Chuliandred's attention was drawn away from the man in charge to a woman striding towards him. The familiar crackle in the air and goosebumps covering his flesh let him know a spell had been cast by her, even as he saw the people in between them fly back from her path as if a harsh wind had blown them all out of the way. He smiled widely, showing a mouthful of teeth and his eyes took on a daring cast as he listened to what she said as she neared him. Bring it on, witch! he thought to himself. Even as he noted her as a powerful foe, he did take a few moments to admire her beauty, his eyes traveling up and down her form with a lewd look.

"My, my, my," he said congenially, his face looking amused at the situation and haughtily confident. "Aren't you just a little firecracker? Coming in and making demands." The way he said it, he was obviously making fun of her, his smile full of laughter and his eyes lighted with greed. "Don't worry, I won't hurt your little friend here, just so long as she agrees to be good and everybody listens to my demands. But failing those requirements, then yes, I will most definitely kill her." His tone was ironic and dry and he chuckled aloud at his own sadistic humor. "Now, if I could please speak to the man in charge, my men and I will take what we came for and leave you all in peace." Jaichim said the words loudly and clearly, for anyone nearby to hear, but his eyes never left the red haired woman in front of him.
 
'Wonderful,' thought the Lord Elliot to himself upon seeing his youngest daughter not only out and about but actually in the hands of the enemy. Of course Alena had to disobey him on this matter. But it still didn't ache the pain in his heart. It was as if he held a younger version of his dead wife in that man's arms. Although Alena's temperment was quite the opposite of the more gentle Irene. Green eyes- the same shade as both of his daughters- widened in surprise as he saw his precious Victoria out on the deck too. Of course, he couldn't be too surprised. If Alena was in serious danger, Victoria tended to fetch her out of trouble... she had deemed herself a motherly figure to her two siblings since their mother's death.

The youngest Boswell was quite satisfied at the small hiss she recieved from the man. Served the bastard right for thinking she was an easy catch! Although she was quite disappointed that he didn't let go of her. Having him writhing in pain would be the perfect punishment in her mind. No, in fact it had quite the opposite effect- he had tightened his grip on her. It appeared that she was balancing on a tight rope between life and death. And yet, her prideful gaze was still there as Alena rolled her eyes at his "pleasant words." A deep frown etched her features, "Of course I'm unhappy. And there's nothing 'fair and square' about capturing someone. And like hell I'm going to serve as leverage for your theivery. In this particular case it's like having someone punished for something they didn't even do. I don't want to be indebted to my family for saving my life. I would probably approve of your theivery except I haven't heard of one pirate who uses their stolen goods for good. " Her tone was absolutely caustic. What she really wanted to say was to do themselves both a favor and just shoot her, but basic self preservation kicked in.

As for Victoria herself, she was quite an intimidating sight to behold. And she did notice the lewd look he threw at her. The woman haughtily returned the stare, every inch the noblewoman who meant business. Although in the back of her mind, she couldn't help but roll her eyes in disgust. 'Some people certainly have no sense when to note these things at the appropiate time. In the middle of battle standing face to face as conflicting forces is not one of them,' she mused privately. Of course she knew other people like that. Her Cousin Felicity would certainly have found it arousing. But nobody really understood how Fee's mind worked on these sorts of things at all.

Still, she didn't let the fact that he was mocking her bring her down. Instead, she answered with an icily sweet smile, "Well, you know Master Pirate. I was only cutting to the chase. After all, it was quite obvious you're not above strolling in on someone's voyage and making demands of them. Perhaps by your own defintion, you, yourself, are what you accuse of me." Upon hearing that no harm would fall upon Alena if she promised to behave, Victoria wanted to break out into hysterical laughter. Why did he think she was so worried? Of course Alena wouldn't behave. She never behaved. If she knew anything about her baby sister she would probably be thinking of some devious spell to throw at the pirate captain and it would most likely fail. Then she would die way before her time (just like their mother) and then as family honor dictated she would have to kill the man brutally and painfully.

Just as Victoria was about to comment on that statement, Lord Elliot Boswell revealed himself to the group, slowly walking to join side by side of his daughter. "I am the man in charge, what would you like commoner scum?" inquired the blonde man haughtily.
 
Hearing the words from the sassy tart in his arms, Captain Chuliandred chuckled and spoke into her ear again. "It IS fair if you were slow and weak enough to get caught in the first place, which you were," he smiled widely, before continuing. "And what's a 'good cause' ever done for me anyways? A pirate has to make his way in the world just like anybody else. Don't look down on me because I'm not afraid to be selfish."

As the proud young red-head in front of him spoke, Jaichim kept his smile and even thought of a few responses to what she said. But then his eyes latched onto the jewelry hanging around her neck and his gaze became intense. In his mind, his memory flew, back in a large city library where he'd been hiding out for a while, he'd done research on the magic-users families and the prized magical artifacts they held. Several had caught his attention but one in particular he'd memorized everything he'd found about it: The Inzilom Medallion. A powerful necklace owned by the Boswell family, none of the sources he'd investigated could agree on what abilities it possessed. Some said it could turn things to stone, while other books said it held the souls of those who had worn it from each generation, imbuing it with the powers they'd held while alive, all combined into one trinket. What all the sources could agree on was that it held a great strength and capabilities which were mired in mystery, the true nature of it kept secret by the Boswell family.

Jaichim's mouth watered briefly at the thought of getting his hands on it. Although it had been on the top of his list of the things he sought, he'd given up hope of ever finding it and now, it was within his sights, he would not let it go without a fight. He blinked his eyes as he realized the man from before had approached and was standing before him speaking to him. The Captain's good natured smile was officially gone, his expression taking on a more serious cast but his voice still held some of his humor.

"YOU'RE the man in charge?" he said like he couldn't believe it. "Well, I suppose you'll do as good as any other prissy, high-maintence nobleman with a stove-pipe shoved up his bunghole." Still his affect was one of being mockingly disappointed. The man wanted to act like he was better than Jaichim just because of his fancy clothes and wealth? Well, alright then, Captain Chuliandred would give it to him. Just minus the respect he so blatantly thought he deserved. "You're Lord Boswell, I presume?" He asked nodding at the man and looking around the ship. "Magic users. I come for the usual items of wealth. All the money, gold, silver items, I want them. All jewelry, gems and precious stones, rings, necklaces," he briefly glanced at the Inzilom Medallion and licked his lips. "I want all of it brought forth, as well as any magic items you have aboard this vessel. NOW. Or I will blow this snotty little brat's head off and my men and I will kill everyone and everything on the ship and take what we want anyway."

He leaned his face close to the girl in his arms and licked her cheek, his eyes never leaving Lord Boswell's gaze. "If you do as I say, I'll let her go and my men and I will leave post haste. Understand?" He stood there holding onto the girl tightly, gun jabbing into her neck right under her chin, his stance and demeanor cool and confident. Occasionally, he looked at the medallion, an avaricious light shining in his eyes. No longer did he have eyes for the beautiful woman wearing it but focused intently on the power the jewelry would bring him.
 
The battle had been temporarily halted as all eyes were now on the pirate captain and the captive Alena. The young girl's unhappiness at the situation had only increased as she heard Victoria's words and then her father's. This was just great. Well, she wasn't completely helpless. She had the will to complete a spell mentally. But what spell could she use? After all, she was the only thing keeping Victoria from blasting the man to pieces. She supposed if she pretended to comply with his words and distract him by getting into a philosphical debate that would be good enough. It would give Tori, stupid Jonathan, and her father some time to think of a way to eliminate the dratted pirates. "And there's nothing that says you have to be a pirate... you're a pirate by choice. Surely there are other professions out there for you to productively contribute to the world," pointed Alena out, trying to be as calm as she possibly could. The expressive green orbs rolled themselves again as she continued, "But then again, I don't see why I'm even bothering to bring this up. You're probably no better than him." If she could have, she would have gestured to Lord Boswell himself.

Although the Boswells were a powerful, magical noble family, they were not the avatars of goodness they had once been, long ago. Like the saying went, "Great power corrupts" and well, the family was quite corrupt. Of course, they weren't necessarily evil, but they could be quite selfish about their desires and wants. Alena was not like that at all and in her youthful passion, despised all members of her family because of what they had become.

Victoria noted when his eyes became intense and saw that he was mostly concentrating on... at this point she looked down at her own chest and saw that Inzilom Medallion had come up from its hiding place and was now out for all to see. That alone was something to disturb her. But the fact that he was eyeing it so greedily... lead her to expect that he knew it wasn't just some pretty meaningless trinket. And that scared her to no ends. If he had any idea what it was... then Alena's hostage-taking took on a whole other meaning. In fact, her suspicions had deepened when he specifically emphasized the word "necklaces." Oh, he knew it was something special alright. But the fact that he had stated the usual, meant there was a good chance he didn't know the Inzilom was useless without one of Boswell blood.

As for Lord Elliot, he chose not to reply to the pirate captain's obvious insult to himself. There was business to be done here- even if it was with a man as filthy as this theiving, nonmagical pirate. "And in return for our cooperation with your request of the items you want, you'll return my daughter to me unharmed and you'll be on your merry way? On your own ship and leaving our own ship the way it was before, of course. If that is our agreement, I understand completely," replied the head of the Boswell clan. He made sure to cover all his bases- he was a politician. If he wasn't specific, then the pirate would probably take advantage of some sort of loop hole. This situation was sticky. Like hell he was going to let that man have the Inzilom Medallion! Even if it was useless in the pirates's hand. It would be not sullied by one of impure blood! "You may every item on this ship, including all magical items and necklaces, except-" but was cut off by the clear confident voice of his oldest daughter.

It was at this point that Victoria had stepped up, dramatically unclasping the necklace as her clear voice rang throughout the silent ship, "There will be no exceptions. It's quite clear he wants this most of all." That was the decision Victoria had come to. If it was anyone else she would have coldly sacrificed them for the better good. But it was Alena. When their mother had died giving birth to the girl, she had sworn to protect her. That was her duty; that was what her mother would have wanted. The pride of the Boswell family wasn't worth risking Alena's life. Besides, they would find it again. The medallion called out to her- it's rightful owner. Walking up to him with the necklace dangling in her pale hands, she coldly addressed him, "It's yours, in return for my sister's life. May Inzilom himself be merciful when dealing with you" She appeared defeated, but that was only part of the plan. Let him think he had won temporarily. He wasn't the first to try and separate the Boswell's from their greatest treasure.
 
After seeing the necklace, everything changed in Jaichim's mind, even his patience and playful attitude towards his captive. When she answered him by yammering on about ideologies, he glared at her in annoyance. Did she not realize she was captive? If he didn't know any better, he'd say he smelled a distraction. Most likely, since the other two seemed so protective of her, she was of the family blood and a magic user to boot. Captain Chuliandred knew from the start he should have been wary but now he was even more. Getting close to her again, he whispered harshly for her ears alone. "Sounds like somebody wants to be shot! I would be quiet and still now if I were you. I may not be completely focused on you but my finger is wedged pretty close to this trigger and this gun is awfully close to your face. One false move, even if I were to fall backward, and you'll be left with picking your brains up off of the deck!" With that, he stood up straight and returned his attention to the more important people in front of him.

He listened to Lord Boswell's snooty spiel, and frowned when it appeared the man was going to withhold something from him, possibly the medallion. But then all attention was given to the red-head who stepped forward boldly, taking off the necklace and holding it out to him. His eyes widened and he was about to start smiling but then he stopped, looking at the woman closely. There was something about this that didn't add up. Lord Boswell had been about to deny him the thing, he was sure of it, and now the girl who possessed it was willingly giving it to him? Was the girl in his arms really worth that much? Something wasn't right here. He looked around the ship quickly, his eyes scanning those standing around watching. How quickly could he get back to the ship and away from here? He had to plan fast.

He wasn't going to leave without the medallion, but the way the woman was acting with it, he knew there was some sort of catch. Maybe it was hard to use for someone who didn't know how? The books he'd read hadn't said anything about that, but they hadn't been necessarily bursting with information about the trinket either. Maybe it cast a curse on those not of the blood? It seemed like a reasonable plan to throw the thing at him and have a curse land upon him because of it. They would all have a laugh at his expense and retrieve it eventually when whatever fate that befell him fully incapacitated him. Then a light clicked on in his mind and he smiled knowingly.

"That's very noble of you," he said in artificially sympathetic tones. "Stepping forward and being so cooperative. It's definitely heartwarming to see you care for this girl's safety so much as to give up such power voluntarily. But alas, it's not to be." He made a minuscule gesture and the pirate crew started to move back towards the ship, holding up their weapons as if to ward off those who would stop them. Jaichim himself started to inch backward towards The Atropos, still holding the girl tightly, barely letting her feet touch the ground. "Sorry, a change of plans," he said to Lord Boswell before turning back to the girl. "You're right, I do want it, but not without you, the owner. I'm no fool and I've been stealing from magic users for a long time. If you want the girl back, you and you alone, with the medallion in hand will follow and come for her. I will then trade her for you and set her free."

As he ended, he'd reached the railing of the ship and abruptly swung his arm and punched the captive girl upside the head, hard enough to knock her out. As she collapsed in his arms he handed her off to a waiting crew member who promptly swung over to the other ship. As soon as he'd hit the girl, he pointed the gun at Lord Boswell himself and fired, smiling as he did so. Then he was swinging over onto The Atropos himself and casting off, the cannons in the side of his ship shooting at the Boswell's craft as they made their getaway.
 
The younger girl couldn't help but sneer at this threat. If he shot her, they would avenge her. It wouldn't be smart of him strategically if he killed off the bait, now would it? The only reason the fighting had temporarily stopped because all members on their side were concerned for her safety. Her family may have been corrupt, but she did not doubt their power nor Tori's promise of painful death to the pirate captain. She'd still be dead though. Only the most powerful of healers could cure a gunshot to the head and of course none of them were on this ship, right here at this moment. If he was going to kill her though, she'd rather go out with a bang. What the hell was her problem? How could she coldly think about her own death? Especially when dying young had nothing to do with any of her plans. Hell, dying as leverage for her family didn't sit well with her at all. However, Alena wasn't able to reply... or scheme to herself when an unexpected hard punch made contact with her head. The girl was out like a light and was soon passed onto another crew member.

Elliot did not approve at all of Victoria's decision, but he could see the merit in it. A silly thing like pride wasn't worth risking Alena's life. They would easily fetch the necklace after Victoria gave it to the imputent man. But his green eyes widened in horror as the good for nothing leech realized the flaw in his plan and changed his mind. Good for nothing bastard! Apparently he had a decent head on his shoulders... and had a reputation from leeching off of other magic users! But as soon as the man had knocked out his youngest daughter, a bullet came racing towards him and making contact in a non fatal spot. It still hurt like hell as he sunk onto the deck of the ship into a world of pain. Using the last of his strength he formed a barrier as strong as diamonds as his vision began to darken. The last thing he saw was his worst fear- his heir and most talented Boswell walking away in pursuit of the pirates. He then fell into unconciousness.

It was horrifying watching Victoria's plan come to pieces before her very eyes. Her father shot, Alena taken away, the ship bombarded... their situation had gotten from bad to worse fast. And the only way to stop it was if she gave herself up- along with the Inzilom- to the pirates. The decision was obvious though; she had no other choice but comply to their demands. So, she began following the pirates to complete their rather unfair deal.

In horror, her brother called out to his sister, "You would give everything for her... that disgrace of a Boswell, Victoria!?"

The golden red-head smiled sadly at her brother, "Of course, Jonathan. It's what mother would have wanted. Tell father I'm sorry... and have him healed as soon as possible." And with that, she jumped on the grapple hook and swung over to the enemy's side.

Victoria was a vision of green and gold as she elegantly jumped ships like if she had been doing this all her life. Plopping on her two feet on the otherside, she glanced around her surroundings as if she owned the place. In reality, she was terrified. The cold analytical part, the politician in her, told her she had made the wrong decision- the stupid decision. But it would do no good to give into her fear. "I'm here as requested," she announced loudly to the band of pirates, "Now let her go and leave my ship alone and I won't cause anymore trouble." Nonetheless she was on her guard with the minions- there was no telling what they would do to her.
 
On The Atropos, men were busy going to and fro, getting the ship away from the other vessel...on Captain's orders. The truth was, he was a greedy man and he was bit sore that he had to leave before getting any of the riches the Boswell's possessed. But he did come away with something valuable: the girl. And he intended on making full use of her, as a bargaining chip for ransom. So, he'd lied of course about letting her go free if the other woman came with the medallion. But he saw no reason to keep his word if no oath was sworn. His honor was still intact with this new plan of action, and the ship sped through the water, the cannons booming as they pummeled the other vessel to stave off pursuit.

As soon as he'd set foot on his ship, Captain Chuliandred had ordered the man who now held the girl to bind her with rope and lock her in the brig. He wasn't sure what she was capable of, but he didn't want to take any chances if she woke up soon. As the gap between the ships started to broaden, the activity on deck lessened and a few of the men stood around watching the new arrival. Most of the men were barefooted and bare chested, tattoos littering arms and torsos, piercings in ears and layers of sweat and grime covering skin and clothes from a lack of hygiene maintenance. Those who watched the woman on deck, kept a bit of distance, holding up weapons as if to use them quickly. They did not know the extent of the woman's station or her abilities, but they assumed she was a magic-user and looked at her like snarling wolves, ready to attack at the slightest provocation.

Jaichim waited until the ships had gotten far enough apart that there was no way she'd be able to return without help from him--baring the fact that she might know how to fly, but it was a risk he was willing to take. By now, the cannons had stopped firing as it appeared the ship behind wasn't making a move to follow and the air was silent except for the sound of the creaking ship and the waves against the hull. He sauntered into the circle of men with a haughty smile as he faced the red-head, her hair shining in the sun with a golden tint.

"Welcome to The Atropos," he said in a congenial tone, spreading his arms wide and indicating his ship proudly. "So glad you could join us. I would like to apologize, but while I was abducting the girl, I had another change of plans and have decided to keep her now too. How much wealth does your family possess? I'm sure they'd be pretty eager to get the girl back, aye?" He rubbed his hands together casually as he looked at her without fear. "You'd have to have caused trouble in the first place, for you to threaten to cause 'more'. So far, you've made things rather easy." A few of the men chuckled at his cunning and having lured her onto the ship so effortlessly.
 
She was alone. Alone except for Alena who she couldn't spot anywhere. And her own ship was out of sight. No, she couldn't fly. She hadn't mastered that aspect of her wind abilities yet. She could perhaps manipulate the water and arrange for her and Alena to "skid" all the way back to their ship. But that was rather risky. Considering the fact they were moving farther and farther from the ship and she only had a general idea of where it was. She needed a plan where they didn't die either by pirates or drowning. After all, her power could only last so long. So, for the moment she was stuck. Because right now they were completly isolated in the middle of the sea. They would escape somehow. Their chances would be better by land. Perhaps a communication spell to inform her allies of where she was when they did escape. Or perhaps good old fashioned charm could aid her? Were there any weaknesses in that captain's crew... surely there was someone who was ambitious and wanted to overthrow the captain. Just the tiniest bit of doubt would do. There always was one in the group. And when she found him, he would make sure to think that she was on his side. After all, she alone had the power to give them anything they wanted.

Her green eyes glanced around the ship curiously. This would be her new surroundings and the sooner she learned it, the less she would be a disadvantage. Turning her attention to the man who was the cause for all this trouble, Victoria smiled as if she had not a care in the world. "Yes, I do see that the Atropos is a lovely ship," she thoughtfully scanned the area some more before continuing, "I do wish the circumstances could be better... but I suppose that goes without being said." The noblewoman pursed her lips a bit upon the news that the plan had changed once again. In fact, Victoria knew it was quite a risk to come here on her own... there no gaurentee that he would keep to his word. "I see," she replied, "What an indecisive captain you are to be constantly changing your mind like that. I feel sorry for your men." Sympathetically she looked at the grimy, disgusting-looking men with the greatest look of kindness molded on her face. She meant no harm, not at this moment. The angry, slighted older sister and daughter was gone at the moment. All that had been tucked away so she could channel it more usefully. Once again, she turned her gaze back to the captain's as she chuckled at her own expense. Let the men know she did not think she was some lofty goddess who thought she was the best. A leader needed to be approachable, someone who could relate to their followers yet appear as a bastion of strength. It was rather a tricky line to walk. "Yes, I suppose you are right... I have rather made this easy. And I'm in no position to be saying anything like that at all. After all, I'm a rather simple girl... whose bark is definitely worse than her bite, probably due to a lifetime of praise. But alas, we are all victims of our upbringing... no matter how much we try to escape it, " she answered lazily. Some of it was true, some of it lies. She was a simple girl.

Her eyes widened in confusion, "How much wealth does my family have? Why, even I don't know." A ladylike shrug could be seen although Victoria didn't enlighten them that she wouldn't count on getting a lot of money off of Alena as a hostage. The only Boswell they would be interested in having returned would be her... her father and herself were really the only fans of Alena. Of course, her two cousins were rather attached to her but they would not win against the might of her brother, uncle, and aunts.
 
Hyam was the sailor instructed to take the captive girl below, and he did so, promptly, with her unconscious form draped over one shoulder. He wasn't one of the strongest of the pirate crew, being short and skinny, but he was quick and fancied himself one of the smarter men. As he carried the girl below deck, he couldn't help but think about her in sexual ways. It had been a long time since he'd been with a woman, the last time they'd been to shore being 2 months ago. Hyam was tired of using his own hand to satisfy his urges and generally tired about a lot the things that had gone on under Captain Chuliandred's charge. He was sick of taking orders from that pompous scallywag who was really no better than any of them except that he owned the ship. But, even so, Hyam was weak willed and didn't have much of a back bone. So, no matter how much it ground his nerves, he complied with orders and did what the Captain said, following along in resigned tolerance.

He couldn't really stop himself from wondering if Captain Chuliandred would allow the men a chance to rape her--wondering if he, himself, would be allowed to, specifically--but he doubted it. That was a privilege the Captain usually reserved for himself, the greedy bastard, and Hyam sneered derisively at the thought. When he got to the brig, another pirate was already there, an even lower man on the food chain than himself, Mutch. With all of the men on board and Mutch's common physical appearance, he wasn't really missed during battles or the general workings of operating the vessel. The Captain probably didn't even know he existed. Hyam gave the skinny man a glare, thinking to himself how pathetic he was riding everyone else's coattails while he hid below deck and never contributed anything to being part of the crew. But, really, Mutch considered them to be friends, being too stupid to understand when he was being taken advantage of and even more weak willed than Hyam was. The only reason Hyam kept Mutch around was because it gave him someone to boss around.

As he walked among the iron grid cells, holding the girl, Mutch stood from where he'd been sitting leaned against a beam, tucking the small bottle of rum away in a pocket conspicuously. "Alright!" he said enthusiastically as Hyam neared him. "Prisoners! Was it a big haul?" He was always concerned about the treasure they got from raiding other ships, because he rarely got a big cut of the spoils for obvious reasons.

"You would know if you'd been there," Hyam said smartly, with a sardonic smile. He chose out a cell for the girl and plopped her body onto the ground inside the cage. "Get me some rope."

"Oh, yeah, sorry," Mutch said lamely as he jumped to follow the other man's orders. "I...had a headache from bashing my head on the bunk above me when I woke up." He brought over a long bunch of rope that had been hanging on a nail in a beam. "I figgered I'd be more of a detriment to the effort than any real help." He laughed a little, not like he thought what he'd said was funny, but in a way that suggested he hoped Hyam would be amused. Sadly, he was not.

Hyam jerked the rope from the other man's hands and briskly began to tie her arms behind her back in an aggravated manner while the other man just stood by and watched. Scratching the back of his head at the other man's silence, Mutch decided to change topics. "Hey, she's pretty nice looking," he said with a suggestive smile--as suggestive as Mutch could get with those dull, bovine-like eyes. "Do you think Chuliandred will let us have her?"

As he pulled the binds tight on the girl's wrists, Hyam stopped momentarily to answer the man in a dry tone. "I think Jaichim will keep the little witch all to himself, just like he normally does, leaving the rest of us to suffer," he used the Captain's first name when he could get away with it, just as an added show of disrespect for the man.

"Oh, yeah," Mutch said as if that hadn't occurred to him until just that moment. "You're probably right." He seemed disheartened by that, but not much. The man was too dimwitted to get upset about anything it seemed.

Finishing up the knot, Hyam talked angrily while not looking at the other man. "Every time we get captives, it's always the same. He orders the crew not to touch her and then takes her alone to his chambers. I'm sick of it! One of these days..." And he stood up frustratedly, knowing that his threat was hollow even as he said it and hating himself for being such a push-over. But Mutch didn't understand Hyam's weaknesses; to him they might as well not even exist. He thought the man was serious when he ranted about overthrowing the Captain some day and in his small little mind, Hyam could very well do it.

"Yeah," he said nodding enthusiastically, following Hyam out of the cell and talking to him excitedly as he locked the door. "It's unfair how he treats us. We should stand up to him! Mutiny, aye? I'll follow you whatever you do." He was serious, but in reality when it came down to it, if Hyam stood pointing his gun at the Captain, confronting him, Mutch would probably be down here drinking rum.

Hearing the man agree with him as if he were making plans to actually do it, made Hyam feel even more pathetic and worthless. "Shut up, Mutch," he said irritatedly as he stalked from the room, the plain featured man following close behind with a confused look on his face.

-----------------------------------------------

As the woman talked, Captain Chuliandred stood confidently, his body swaying easily with the tipping and slanting of the ship but frowned when mentioned his change of decisions. "Don't feel sorry for them," he said glaring at her slightly. "My decisions always benefit them and they're thankful that I take advantageous opportunities." He looked around the ship briefly, making sure there was not argument in any of his men's faces. He did make good choices for them all, and they knew it. He listened to the rest of her talk with a reserved patience. Why did noble-people always feel the need to blather on? And it made him feel insecure thinking that. If that was the way they talked to each other and were talking to him like that and he wished they'd just shut up--it was like he was rejecting their attempts at intelligent conversation. His internal annoyance at their flowery speech probably proved them right when they thought they were better than him. And the way that twisted irked him considerably.

When she was done talking, he ignored what she'd said, forfeiting any attempts to sift through to find the important points to respond to. Instead, he changed topic. "You brought the medallion, aye? Come with me." He motioned for her to follow him as he led the way to his chambers below the quarterdeck. The men standing around silently cleared a path for the two as they made their way towards the gilded double doors on deck. He opened the door for her and waited for her to enter, then uttered curt orders to his first-mate before following her into the room and closing the doors behind him. The room was richly furnished with a large desk against the far wall, a polished wood table in the middle of the room, with two chairs positioned by it and a four-post bed with lush sheets upon it, and a good sized wooden chest at the foot of it. Everything in the room was nailed down, of course and there was a fancy carpet on the floor and a few pictures on the walls.

When he entered the room after her, he glided past her and took a seat at the table, apparently relaxed. He held his hands before him the fingertips touching, making a small bridge together. "So, tell me about it," he said interestedly. "It is the Inzolim Medallion, is it not? What does it do and how does it work?" He looked at her as if he expected answers and would not tolerate any attempts to lie or change the conversation with her well-bred words. He would give her the chance to answer him of her own free will first, but if she proved difficult, he had plans to make her more complacent.
 
Lazily but with an eye of expertise, Victoria studied any of the men for any obvious visible signs of weakness. It was a no go. Of course, things like this took time. She had to plant the seeds of doubt and then reap it in a favor that was beneficial towards her. But until then, she would play her role as best as she could. The red-head was quite satisfied at slightly ruffling him. She was irritated though that he ignored her attempts to make conversation with him, and had said nothing. Did he think something was amiss? Perhaps he was a man of business alone.

Obediently Victoria followed him behind to his personal chambers with apprehension floating in her stomach. She knew she was a beautiful woman, her unusual shade of red hair helped contribute to that as well as the natural elegance a noble must learn to be successful. And she had seen nothing but men. How long had they not known a woman? She feared for herself, but she feared more for Alena. When she saw the captain utter something to another man- most likely his first mate- Victoria would had paid a lot of gold to know what he said. He was most likely planning something dastardly- nothing so far about his actions indicated that he was up to any good. Although now that they were alone... she could turn the power of isolation against the pirates. After all, what would they be without their leader? And she was not helpless. No one was holding a gun up against Alena's head now. But then again, she had no idea what was happening to her sister now. So many uknowns!

The Inzilom Medallion was back on her neck, right where it belonged. She had not risked swinging over to this ship with the necklace in her hand. "You are correct in your assumption," she replied, nodding her head. He wanted answers and from his body language he wanted no bs. Well, he wasn't the only who wanted answers, now was he? So, she blinked in surprise. "I'm not of age to know how it works," the noblewoman answered. After all, he knew nothing of their culture... their traditions. The Boswells were known for their rigorous ways and following traditions. Yes, Inzilom had been leaked out into the public... and of course its existence, but the full extent of Boswell tradition stayed strictly amongst the Boswells.
 
The first mate, Saml, left promptly to obey his captain's orders, walking across the deck to the door that led below deck. Just as he neared it, Hyam and Mutch were coming up from below. "The captive is secure, aye?" he asked Hyam, not paying any attention to the other man.

Hyam smiled insincerely but answered in deferential tones. "Yes, tied and locked up she is."

"Good," Saml said, smiling condescendingly. "You two get first duty guarding her." And he patted Hyam on the arm before walking away, not allowing for arguments or debate. But more like he didn't expect any from the two underling pirates. Mutch smiled at the opportunity to go back below deck and basically return to doing nothing, but Hyam glared at the back of the retreating first mate and ground his teeth.

In his chambers with the red-headed woman, Captain Chuliandred smiled at her and what she'd said, regaining most of his good humor. "Have you ever lain with a man, Miss Boswell?" he asked, giving her a suggestive look. "Do you know how long it has been since my men have laid eyes on a woman before today? 2 months." He got up from his chair and walked at a liesurely pace towards her as he spoke in considering tones. "Now, I don't normally allow privelege to captives by my men on my ship, but if you need persuasion, then this is it: You will tell me EVERYTHING you know about the Inzilom Medallion, or I will give you to my men as their new plaything. Before that battle upon your ship, there were a little over a hundred men on this vessel. Now there is little less than 80. As much as I'm sure a sexually curious young woman such as yourself would like to experience that many lovers, I doubt there would be much left of you by the time we reach land again." While speaking he'd gotten rather close, hovering over her, his breath warming her and his gravelly voice low and seductive.

His eyes wandered over her body and face before he spoke again. "Now I'll ask you again, once more: What does it do and how does it work?"
 
'Here it comes,' thought Victoria to herself as the Captain mentioned something about her virginity, 'And as expected. It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together... ship full of men + no woman = sexually depraved men who'll jump at any chance to have a woman.' She wanted to point out that problem could easily be solved by allowing women in the crew, but Victoria was quite sure that was not what he wanted to hear. Alena would have said it; she had more control over her tongue than her sister. After all, that would have probably bought her one ticket of being raped by eighty men until they reached land again. No, that wouldn't be fun at all.

Of course, if his men hadn't seen a woman for two months that implied he hadn't seen any either. Wonderful. Well, better her than Alena. Oh god... what would they do to Alena? As expected of someone who knew how to get what they wanted, he approached her as if she was his prey. He was only a couple of inches taller than her; she herself was tall for a woman at five foot ten. She and her sister were truly opposites in appearance. So, it was quite easy for her green eyes to fearlessly meet his.

"Despite not having come to age of its fully glory," she started off, keeping herself consistent from everything she's said before, "I have done some research on the Inzilom Medallion." Victoria paused, gathering her thoughts on the matter. It was obvious she would have to tell him something about it if she was to save her from the fate he implied. "As you know, it's an item of great magical power- one of the most powerful items of its kind. Its power knows no bound. It blesses those who posess it with luck and wealth and all you can imagine. It enhances the user's natural magical gifts by one hundred times. With the right person, one can become a king... or even a god with it. However, with such great power there is a catch. First, only those of the Boswell bloodline may wield its power. Anybody else who tries faces a rather painful death," at this part she glanced at the captain meaningfully. "In theory, any Boswell may tap into its power... but only the first child of the first child of the first child may unleash its full potential. And even then there is no gaurentee that the first child can release all of its power. The other catch is that it takes great will power to attempt to channel its power. The harder the request, the more it takes out of the user. Ask too much... and Inzilom unleashes his wrath on the asker and it rebounds on them."

Her eyes never left his as her voice came out harsh, yet lyrical as if she were a storyteller repeating some great legend. Tilting her head, "Is that enough information for you... Captain?" arching an elegant eyebrow. The title echoed his good humorous tone. He was much too close for her liking, but she refused to back up.

Meanwhile, below in the brig emerald eyes opened themselves with a loud groan. "Fucking bastard," muttered a pissed off Alena rather unladylike. That was when she realized she was tied up in probably one of the most ugly rooms she had ever been. But then again, she was locked up. Like some wild animal. The very least she could do was untie herself. Surely there was some sort of spell she could use to release herself? Now what was it again? And how the hell did she get out of here!? A frustrated sigh was released from Alena.
 
Jaichim totally didn't buy her story about "research" which was why he pressed her for the information in the first place. But it was just as good as if she'd admitted to knowing about the thing straight out. And he was glad his threat had worked; all pirates were greedy, but pirate captains were renowned for the depth of their avarice. Captain Chuliandred did NOT like to share and would have been sore if he'd had to make good on his threat and would have probably taken it out on her. Letting his men partake in what he desired was like letting someone chew every bite of a wonderful bountiful feast and having to eat from their mouth. It was disgusting and ignominious to lay with a woman after his men had and it filled his mouth with a bad taste to think of letting them have her after he was done. He wasn't a man of too many high-standards but that was just one of them.

As he listened to her speak, his eyes got that intense look they'd gotten when he'd first spied the necklace on the other boat. A mixture of rapacity and a hunger for power, tinged with a bit of caution, especially when she went into the "problems" of using the medallion. He pursed his lips in thought for a moment after she was done then smiled widely. "Yes, thank you, my dear," he said in amiable tones. "See? That wasn't so hard, was it?" And he stepped away from her, his motion as he crossed the room fluid yet with a hint of danger in his step. He walked over to the desk on the far side of the room where some bottles of liquor and wine stood in a small tray with rails on it. Normally, he drank straight from the bottles so the glass he picked out for her was clean. "What is your name?" he asked, glancing at her as he poured some red wine into the glass. "I know you are the Boswell heir, but forgive me, I've not studied the family as much as I have the Inzilom Medallion." As he turned to put the bottle away in the little tray, obscuring the glass from view with his body, he quickly opened the ring on his left index finger and dumped the contents into the red liquid, where the powder dissolved with a small hiss. Just a little "something" to make her more complacent and malleable for what he planned next.

Captain Chuliandred smiled as he turned around with the glass in hand and walked back towards her, an aura of menace and the potential for violence surrounding him, like a wolf in fine cut clothing. "I've stolen these wines from one of the other magic user families and it's extremely expensive and well made," he said as he neared her. "You would honor me if you'd enjoy some of it." And he held out the glass to her watching her with hungry eyes.

---------------------------

"If I'm not suppose to have sex with my cousin, then why did the Gods make her so attractive?" Mutch said as he and Hyam walked into the brig. Hyam rolled his eyes derisively and let out a harsh sigh. As much as having Mutch around was a boost to his own ego, he hated listening to the man talk.

"That's just it," he said in impatient tones, not looking back at the other man as he led the way into the room. "She's NOT attractive. You must be blind or have a fetish for monkeys that have bred with cows if you find your cousin Dela attractive--" He cut off as he came abreast of the cell the girl was in and saw that she'd opened her eyes. He looked at her with an air of caution. Despite not liking being sent down here to babysit, he wasn't going to let himself be caught off guard or tricked by a young woman. Mutch on the other hand...

"Heeey," he said as he walked past Hyam and peered into the cell at her. "She's awake!" He smiled at the other man as if he'd identified something Hyam couldn't already see for himself. "You're a cutie. What's your name?"

"Shut up Mutch!" Hyam said angrily while glaring at the girl. Even as the other man obeyed and backed away from the cell despondently, Hyam never took his eyes off of her, like he expected her to do something any second.
 
And had given him too much information at that too. Of course, she had failed to mention that he couldn't really make her use the power against her will. And to unleash its full potential, such as the good fortune... well she'd have to give him her full blessing first. Which was not going to happen anytime soon. Still, there was plenty of damage he could do even without its full potential. He was also convinced that he was still going to trade off Alena. Which was fine with her. After Alena's safety was assured, she'd unleash the power herself and kill him and take over his crew if need be. Hopefully he wouldn't "change his mind" again because things were going to go downhill quick if he realized Alena was the only reason why she was still here.

Victoria noted the look in his eye, that look of greed for the great power of her family's medallion. A disturbed shudder ran through her body. Although she wasn't sure why it affected her so. It wasn't an unfamiliar sight. Her father had that look. Jonathan got that look. Even Alena got that look although she was convinced her way was the "right" way. She herself probably got that look as well. No, the reason why it disturbed her so was the thought of the Inzilom in anyone's hands but her family's hands. She'd rather let Felicity control its power wholly than let an outsider have any say in it. Thankfully, he backed off letting her have her own space. To his comment, all she had to say to that was a disgusted "hmph."

Suspiciously she watched his actions from afar, not trusting him one bit. Victoria couldn't help but be a bit surprised that he hadn't studied the family as much as the Inzilom Medallion. To her, the two went hand in hand. One couldn't have the Inzilom Medallion without the Boswell family and the Boswell family wouldn't be the Boswells without the Inzilom Medallion. Of course, he probably knew she was the heir because in the information that had been released publically about the Inzilom it was the current heir who always bore the medallion. "I am Lady Victoria Amelia Boswell," she answered, not confirming aloud that she was indeed the heir to the family.

Fine wine stolen from magic user families? Like she was going to drink anything he offered her. Just because he couldn't kill her outright, didn't mean there were other types of poisons. However, his aura was menancing... almost violent. The perfect sort of aura for a dangerous captain of a pirate ship. She had better accept it... but he was looking at her way too suspiciously. "I appreciate your hospitality, but I'm not thirsty right now," she declined politely, shaking her head.


---

Well, shit. Apparently she had taken too long in thinking of a spell because she heard voices. And from what it sounded like, it was a conversation her cousins would have certainly enjoyed. That is, until she got a better look of them. One of them was absolutely disgusting looking. He would have probably been close to the top of the list on Felicity's project of "eradicate ugly creatures" that she was obsessed with. Still, she couldn't help but irritably perk up, "What the hell is wrong with people these days? Hooking up with your cousin is absolutely disturbing. My cousin is obsessed with hooking up her brother with my brother and it's just downright disgusting." Although Alena had to admit... Felicity only did that to get a reaction from Jonathan- who was quite the homophobe. Anything that made Jonathan squirm was fine with her, but still the fact that Felicity would even think of such a thing... was an atestment to her dirty mind.

Testily she glared at the creature that would have offended Fee so. "And you're ugly," she snapped, in no mood to dealing with idiots. She was not a cutie dammit. Like hell was she going to give them her name... although if she didn't that only left room open for other insulting names. "However, to spare myself from any other absolutely endearing pet names such as 'cutie,' I will do both of ourselves a favor and tell you my name is Alena," she added, making it quite sure to sound like the other man had nothing to do in making her give up her name.

She gave her eyes a break from the ugliness and moved onto the other man- much easier on the eyes was he. And apparently smarter than the other one. "And aren't you the cautious one," she sneered, "Well, at least you have more manners than your little friend here." God she was going to blast them both!
 
Mutch was happy to ignore her comment about him being ugly now that he'd gotten her to respond to him at all. "Alena," he said nodding his head, his eyes glittering with a lewd light as he licked his lips. "Very pretty name..."

"Mutch!" Hyam said abruptly, looking at the man like he was about to smack him upside the head. "Shut. Up." When he turned to the girl again he sneered back at her. "Witch," he spat the word like an insult. He was going to try his best not to engage her in conversation, lest it give her the opportunity to try and escape.

For once, Mutch was smart enough to understand what Hyam meant by calling her that. "Witch???" he asked, looking from the girl to Hyam and back again. "She's a magic-user?" The lewd look was gone from his eyes which were now filled with a wary surprise as he stared at the girl in the cell.

Hyam smacked him in the back of the head and pointed towards a stool by the doorway they'd just come through. "Go sit over there and be quiet," his tone was harsh as he commanded the other man. He'd about lost his patience with the moron. If he couldn't keep his mouth shut, he'd keep distracting Hyam and possibly risk the girl getting out and escaping. There wasn't anything up on deck for her except sex-starved men and her ship was long gone, but the point was that she'd be getting free on his watch and he'd hear it from Saml or even the Captain for not keeping a good eye on her.

Rubbing the back of his head with a pout, Mutch walked over to the stool and sat down. When Hyam stopped looking at him, he took the bottle of rum from his pocket and proceeded to sip from it. Then Hyam crossed his arms and leaned against a nearby beam and set himself to watching the girl, his face a stony mask. Try anything, he thought to himself as he stared at her.

--------------------------

The name didn't ring any bells for him specifically, but Jaichim was sure he'd heard it before. And he hadn't meant that he didn't know anything about the Boswell family; he'd encountered quite a lot of history about them in his research. He just meant he didn't know about the current family members in power. The Inzilom Medallion was not something people talked about in rumor often and he'd been hesitant to ask around about it at different ports. With greed often came paranoia--with the desire for power and wealth you had to watch out for those who'd want to take what you had, but especially for those who'd want to beat you to the treasure. Expressing curiosity in something people thought was just rumor could peak interest that had not been there before you'd asked about it. In all the people he'd talked to about the thing to find more information on it, he'd guarded his tongue as if he already possessed the trinket.

He was disappointed when she refused the drink, but kept it from showing on his face. She would get hungry and thirsty eventually and he would take every opportunity to make sure anything put in her mouth was drugged. Captain Chuliandred had also not been around women for a long time and he was dead set on getting her into his bed. With a nod of his head, he set the glass on the table and indicated one of the chairs implying she should sit. "And, what is the girl's name? The one I captured," he asked as he took a seat himself, lounging in the chair like a relaxed tiger. "Will your family pay to get her back?" He watched her intently, his eyes fixated on her reactions and even the most minuscule expression changes.
 
The fiesty, irritated petite girl glared at the man who dared to think he was even in the same league as her. Although to be fair to him, Alena didn't really think anybody as the same league as her. It was a complicated relationship of well, high standards and well... fear of anything to do with that. After all, falling in "love" with the wrong person had screwed her mother over. It was much safer to bury herself in her ideals and tasks, than to let that sort of passion take over.

"Very good," she said acidly, addressing the non-stupid man (anybody who had the nerve to eye her with such intent was stupid in Alena's book). A fake smile appeared on her lips as if she were a teacher addressing a not very bright student. "That I am. There's no insult in being what I am if there's no harm for anyone. Your kind, on the other hand, are nothing but leeches. Leeches of society, contributing nothing to the world!" answered the girl quite proudly. Better to talk than wallow in silence. If she couldn't blast them at the moment, then she'd make use of her sharp tongue.

Wait a minute? How did she know they were nothing but leeches? What if they were just merely ignorant? Not all people were bad, some just deserved a chance. She had just been angry. No, she's still angry at being caged like some dangerous animal. The fact that she was being held against her will; she was very much a creature of freedom. Anything that threatened that angered Alena greatly. She'd much rather things were peaceful- a peaceful, more gentle world where bad things didn't happen. Idealistic and naive? Alena didn't give a damn. That's what she wanted. Her face softened, the gentlest it had been yet. "But it doesn't have to be that way, you know," she offered to the other two. And in that moment, she had transformed from pissed off witch to a much kinder person, someone who wanted to believe the best in everyone. This was the Alena that Victoria treasured so much and when she got like that, the two were almost twins in their desires... despite the major differences between them.

---

Relief fell over Victoria at the fact he hadn't forced her to take the wine. She didn't trust it at all, although he revealed nothing on his features that would give him away. But she didn't have to see that to be suspicious. Victoria had been burned way too many times by the man in the last couple of hours to trust anything from him. Unfortunately she could only put off eating and drinking for so long. Like most people, she didn't want to die.

Eyeing the chair, she elegantly strolled over to the chair the dark green skirts of her richly made dress following her. She lowered herself in the chair, in truth quite tired from everything that had just occured. It was funny how life could change in an instant. Just a couple of hours earlier, she had been returning home from a lovely island vacation. Her future had been relatively planned out. Now, she was a captive to pirates and the captain knew the secrets of the Inzilom. "The girl is Lady Alena Meredith Boswell, the youngest in the current generation of Boswells," the exhausted noblewoman replied. Ah, the moment of truth. She would tell him some of the truth, but not all. "To be honest, some of them will be happy to hear that she's been captured by pirates. They'll think it's good riddance. Alena is a rather unpredictable force... What matters, is the one who has the most say will want her back- she's always had a special place in his heart, despite their rocky relationship," she continued on. Victoria made no mention that requests would probably mention her first. When it came down to it, the Boswells would want her more than Alena. Although they would not like the fact that an outsider had dared threatened one of their own- no matter how troublesome she was. Their first and most important goal would be to acquire the heir.

Victoria knew she was more important than Alena- she had been told multiple times in her childhood that she was the "hope of the family." But just because it would be the smartest thing to save her own hide and get out of here, her heart wouldn't let her. Victoria's own goal was to make sure Alena was safe first. Whether she was returned to the Boswells or if she finally made good on her promise and disown her family, anything was safer than being held hostage amongst pirates.

"And your name?" inquired Victoria, decided it would probably be best if they all knew each other by name.
 
All of a sudden, Hyam was finding it hard to keep his resolve. She was just so provoking! He wasn't a man to ignore ideological debate when it came up, being one of the few members of the crew who knew how to read and actually had an informed opinion about things. He might not have the grand education of a noble, but he considered himself far higher in intelligence than all the men on the ship combined. Including the Captain.

"'No harm to anyone'?" he asked incredulously, gearing himself up for a rant. "Um, excuse me, but I beg to differ on that point! You're a magic-user, with powers above those of normal people. You could probably cast a spell right now that would cause me and Mutch a lot of harm--and you're probably even thinking about doing so too. With the power to do whatever you wanted: throw people around like dolls without touching them, create fires out of thin air or-or call storms out of a blue sky, you want me to believe that your kind hasn't been seduced into hurting people when they felt like it or it benefited them?"

He looked at her pointedly, taking a break from his quick speech, his tone agravated and his tongue running a mile a minute, to shake his head at her before continuing on. "Bullshit. And as far as leeches goes--leeches?" he laughed sardonically at the term and like he couldn't believe the irony in her using it to refer to him and his fellows. "You might want to take a look in the mirror, doll-face. You magic users are the worst when it comes to throwing your weight around and getting what you want through intimidation. I don't know what family you're from, but they're all corrupt. Every last one of them. Pirates may be no better, but at least we don't pollute ourselves with the taint of magic. Which really, when you compare us to normal folk, it's like we're cats and they're mice. When you compare you and yours to normal people, it's like mice and tigers."

Hyam flashed his eyes at her haughtily as if to say 'Take THAT!' and said in somewhat calmer tones but no less self-important than before. "Things are exactly the way they have to be. There will always be those in the world who seek to take advantage of others without doing any work of their own." And he shrugged at her and smiled proudly, confident that he'd won the argument--so confident in fact, in his mind, there hadn't even been an argument and there was nothing she could say, after all the points he made, to refute or deny.

It was then that he'd realized what he'd done and he glanced at Mutch who was sitting with his mouth hanging open staring at him, the bottle of liquor halfway to his lips still. "Hyam...wow..." he muttered when he'd found his voice.

"Mutch, what the fuck did I say?" Hyam said angrily at the other man. "Shut up! You're going to distract me! And then when she gets free, I'm going to pin the whole thing on you!" Then he turned away from him, folding his arms and shaking his head irritadedly. Really, he was just trying to cover his own blunder. He was definitely not going to be lured into talking with her again! Or at least he'd try not to be...

-------------

Jaichim frowned at what she said about the other girl and started contemplating NEW new plans for her. Maybe a ransom wasn't such a good idea afterall, if she wasn't wanted. Blast! Why'd he have to capture someone who was practically useless? He could only assume by what she said, that the 'one who has the most say' was the head of the family, and that DID make her valuable. But he had a feeling that the way things were was a little screwy: no doubt they'd want the heir of the family back most but she was the one he wanted to keep and the other one he intended to sell back to them for a high sum was someone nobody even liked.

Fuck! His frown deepened as he thought these things over, rubbing his stubbled chin with his hand. He could go for the risk and ask for the amount he'd planned before and possibly they wouldn't pay it--especially if he showed no intention of returning the other woman and the medallion. Or he could ask for a smaller amount and hope they'd just take the one girl and be happy with it. But that really burned him. He'd taken the girl as a consolation prize for not having gotten any loot from their attack today and she wasn't going to rake in as much as he wanted. He'd lost about 30 men today and all for a half-assed ransom attempt and a piece of jewelry that was ruled over by a testy God and owned and operated by an inexperienced magic-user. Fuck!Fuck!FUCK!

It might just be easier to make her walk the plank and be done with her. But it also would make the men happier if he actually broke his "No sex with captives" rule and gave her to them to use as they wanted. Yes, that was the new plan. No messy trouble with risky money ventures and the crew would still feel rewarded. He'd have to do better on the next ship they attacked to make it up to them....

Having settled that, his face cleared and he looked over at the woman again. "I am Captain Jaichim Chuliandred. Perhaps you've heard of me?" He looked at her arrogantly, confident that she'd heard of his name before. He was pretty renowned for attacking magic-user ships and being ruthless when it came to battles. They said that The Atropos sent fear into men's hearts when they saw it and when she bared down on a vessel, she cut the threads of life with her abhorred shears. It was poetic in a way and something he himself started, but people had picked it up willingly enough.
 
Alena's respect for the man had shot up by a lot, since he actually bothered to retort back. Really, this was much better than seething in this freakn cell planning to blow up the ship to pieces. Not that she had the power to do that. Didn't mean she didn't think about it. Didn't mean she was pissed off at the very nerve of him for critisizing something she had been born to use. "Oh geez, I wonder why the hell would I want to harm a bunch of men who are not only keeping me captive, but are ready to take advantage of me at any moment!?" she retorted sarcastically, "Idiot. It's self defense. I feel threatened. If you were captured by the navy or a rival pirate ship or whatever, wouldn't you feel pissed and want to use every weapon you could to get out . It's just common sense. It is is completely natural to want to hurt something that has ill intents towards you in the first place." The noblewoman paused as if reflecting over what she just said, "But just because it's natural to want to hurt someone when you know they are going to hurt you, doesn't make it right."

Green eyes glared at him some more, "What? Are you going to dock me for being a magic-user? It's not my fault I was born this way... just like that guy over there was born ugly. If I don't learn how to manifest it or control it, then really, really bad shit happens. Nobody wants to be around an untrained magic-user... it's like associating with a ticking bomb! So yeah, I'm actually doing the world a favor by learning how to use magic. To deny magic to my kind... it's like denying air. Yeah sure, I won't lie and say that there aren't some of us out there who think humans are nothing more than their little playthings to manipulate. Hell, you just messed with a family full of them." Alena paused for a bit, catching her breath before continuing on, "But that doesn't mean we're all like that. I'm not like that. My mother wasn't like that. In fact, there's a whole faction of us that isn't like that... so careful of absolute statements like that because it might just back to you."

Sighing a loud, "I take back the leech comment. Perhaps you don't even want to be that way. If that's true then well... that makes sense. If it isn't, then you're no better than the family you've taken me away from." The last part was said rather frostily.

---

Noticing the frown, the golden red head couldn't help but frown in return. Just what was he up to now? Was it something about her precious Alena? He better return her to their family or... or... Victoria tired to think of something plausible. What could she do that would get his attention? Drop the Inzilom in the ocean? Yes, she would be rid of it. The only reason he was interested in her was because of the medallion. Without it, she was useless to him except as a bargaining chip to her family. Of course, the Medallion would be lost in the ocean and they would have to go find it. But better than it lost for the time being, than risking Alena. What kind of older sister would she be if she didn't try protecting her?

Victoria's eyes widened when the man revealed his name. It was him. The worst of the pirates. Well, according to their kind. Those mortals who dared preyed upon magic-users were the lowest of the low. "Ah, yes, the Magic User Hunter. Why yes, indeed I have heard of you Captain Chuliandred," she replied, her eyes twinkling with humor, "If it were possible... I'd say I dislike you even more. As you probably know, my kind aren't particularly a very big fan of you and your crew, I must say. We're as greedy as pirates about our own treasures. Of course, they were ours in the first place." What had they gotten themselves into this time? A tired sigh could be heard a loud. Oh Alena... why ever did she have to be so stubborn in the first place?
 
Hyam shook his head, not looking at her as she started speaking. No, no, no! He wasn't going to fall for that again. But then he just couldn't keep his mouth shut. "Alright, forgive me," he said sarcastically. "If you want to get technical, then yes, self-defense is perfectly fine. And how the hell was I suppose to know you're not part of that group of manipulative, power hungry sorcerers? You were all proud and shit a moment ago, and that tells me for you it's not just about self-preservation or learning control. You may hide now when the argument gets rough, but you are a part of the magic-user family, are you not? If you're going to weigh me down with responsibility for my group--although I do accept it and have done my share of bad deeds--be prepared to do the same for yourself." He shook his head and let out a disgusted breath.

"You know, I don't even really care that you insulted me and my fellows," he said smiling without humor. "I don't care about your apology and there's nothing you can say or do that'll convince me you're a 'good little witch'. You do what they can, you're a part of them and have to accept their crimes as your own. What you do is evil. I have seen people who lived in towns and cities ruled over by magic-user families. People who have not done anything wrong in their whole fucking lives and were tortured by magic. For no reason, except like you said, to use them as playthings for the sorcerers' sadistic pleasure. I'm sure you're familiar with what a magical burn is like. Or a curse. Nobody deserves that done to them especially not innocent people. You are sick!" Hyam paused after he'd yelled at her and stopped, his mouth hanging open a bit. He hadn't meant for the argument to go this direction but had let himself be moved by emotion. He closed his mouth and looked off into space for a moment, remembering sad things, before he shook it off and looked at the girl again. His fire was gone and he wasn't going to fight with her anymore. He wasn't going to punish her for that...

"Just forget it," he said looking down at the ground in resignation. "No more talking or I'll come in there and put a gag on you." Mutch just sat by the door quietly sipping from his rum bottle, looking back and forth between the two of them like he was watching an intense wrestling match.

------------------

Captain Chuliandred laughed heartily at the woman's response. He knew she had to have heard of him and he was very pleased to hear that the magic-user families considered him threatening enough to give him a name. "Yes, well," he started, smiling jovially at her. "I'm of the opinion that it's unfair for you sorcerers to have such an advantage over normal people. You can use magic AND you have artifacts that have powers as well. I think we should even the odds and you all should share the wealth."

He held his chin with his fingers, his elbow resting on the table as he gave her a charming smile. "Tell me your opinion on the current state of the magic-user families. How do you feel things are being run--fairly, or is there an imbalance in power and how it's being used?" Jaichim watched her as he fished for information. If the medallion was to be used right, he had to find out how to best manipulate her into unleashing it's power for him. He had plans for what he wanted to do with it, but first he had to see how easily it would be to convince her onto his side.
 
Alena stared at him in shock. Really? He expected her to be quiet after what he just said to her? This was everything she was striving to achieve... to atone for the sins her people had done. It wouldn't be enough. It would never be enough, but the point was that she tried. Tried to be a decent person with the gifts she had been given. "Yes, I do take responsbility for the actions my people has done- people I'm related to by blood nonetheless. But I myself has never partaken in any of their traditions that I feel are 'wrong.' And I never will," she stated. A humorless chuckle could be heard from the petite woman, "That's me, the unorthodox Boswell. For all our family unity... I am alone, but I disowned them first." At that point her tone took on a rather dark tone. Glancing at him dangerously, "I'll be quiet now, don't try to gag me or I won't be held responsible for what happens next, filthy human." But despite the dark tone, the insult was said rather sarcastically if she were making fun of her own self.

With that, Alena settled into silence as she leaned her head back lazily. Where was that goody two shoes older sister of hers? Alena knew she was here. Victoria, for all her faults, somehow loved her. She wasn't exactly sure why her older sister loved her so much... Alena did everthing she could to push her away, yet somehow Victoria never gave up on her. Although if Victoria truly loved her, then why wouldn't she see the madness of their ways? Anyways , Victoria would be fine... fine as she could. Obviously she wasn't being held imprisoned like she was. But then again, perfect little Tori had always been the more important one.

---
Her face was alit with mischief upon hearing his answer to what she said. "Oh really, Captain Chuliandred?" inquired Victoria playfully, "Do you really see yourself as the common man hero? Saving the poor, ungifted humans from the big bad magic users out to enslave the rest of humanity? Evening the odds?" She leaned in over the table, invading his personal bubble as only those who know how to get people ot do their bidding can, as if going in for the kill, "You don't fool me for one minute. I see the way you look at the Inzilom... it's a look I know rather well. If things are going to go to hell with it, then better be my family in charge of it, than you." Moving back to her original position she coldly continued on, "All you need to know about how I feel things are ran, is that my loyalty is to my family and my family alone." In truth, it was a compromise of the answer she should have given. The correct answer would have been, "Things are ran perfectly as they should be, filthy non gifted." But that's not exactly how Victoria felt about the situation. But she was the heir, she couldn't betray her family... betray generations upon generations of doing things this way. But he didn't need to know that. She would be the cold, ruthless person she had been taught to be.
 
Oh, yes, of course, she was doing a fine job convincing him she wasn't like other magic-users. Yes, sir! Threatening him sure made him feel more sympathetic towards her--NOT! Hyam just ground his teeth, tight-lipped while she talked--after he'd explicitly told her NOT to--and seethed inside at her words. But now he was no longer willing to engage her in discussion anymore. Partly because he felt the point was moot and she was just contradicting herself now--in his reasoning, anyway--but also because he felt tempted to blame her for everything magic-users had done to humans and him personally. It was foolish to take his anger for what had happened to him out on her especially when it would do no good except piss him off even more since she wasn't the one responsible.

So, when she was done, he shook his head in denial and let out a disgruntled breath before walking away. "Forget it," he said to Mutch as he neared the doorway. "I don't care if Saml skins me alive, I'm not staying down here. YOU watch over her." And with that, he walked out of the room, leaving Mutch alone with the girl.

For the longest time, Mutch looked from the doorway to the girl, back and forth slowly, as if he expected her to say something or for Hyam to come back. When it was obvious in his little mind, that the other man had left and wasn't coming back, he jumped up from his stool and ran over to the cell the girl was in. He looked at her avidly, hanging onto the bars and up close, apparently having forgotten she was a magic-user and thus his need to be wary.

"Hey, cutie," he said panting with liquor tainted breath, apparently having forgotten her name as well. "So...tell me about this cousin of yours..." Of course. That was the only part of the whole conversation he'd had with her that he remembered. To him, discussion of sexy cousins was all that mattered besides treasure.

-------------

Quirking an eyebrow at the red-head and squinting in disbelief Jaichim frowned a little bit in consternation. There was a 'look'? What look? He didn't get a look when he gazed at the Inzilom Medallion. Hmph! he thought as he shook his head briefly, in denial. "Of course I'm evening the odds," he said, his expression smoothing out and his tone affecting an honorable seriousness. "Just by the magic being in a human's hands I'm doing so. And like the Inzilom, not all of the things can be used outside the families, so what does it matter if I have them or not? It keeps them from being used, period. Thus, the magic-users lose some of their edge when they try to dominate people." He sniffed and rubbed his nails on his jacket in a laid-back manner. "By lessening their power, I'm giving regular people at least more of a chance than they would have, had the magic-users kept their treasures."

"And if I get any 'look' when I see the Medallion," he said rolling his eyes, not even really admitting there was a look. "Then it's only an extreme desire to help people."

When she talked about her family, Captain Chuliandred sensed she was keeping something back. She hadn't said directly whether she agreed with them or not. From what he knew of other magic-user families, they were pretty corrupt and power hungry. If she was one of them and supported them then why didn't she just say so? Wouldn't she be more proud? The way she held back information implied she was ashamed and that was good enough for Jaichim and his plans.

"Well, I'm sure you know about how other magic-user families run things, aye?" he said, leaning on the table a bit. "Ruthless and power-hungry, treating normal people like dirt and taking lives when it benefits them. And I'm sure, you know about the trouble with other pirates in these waters, attacking innocent people's ships and leaving nothing but burned hulls and skeletons behind, while taking captives into permanent slavery." He paused briefly, letting tht sink in and then launched his major point. "How would you like to help me? We'll clean up the seas, together, of both the corrupt magic-users who would use their power to destroy lives and of other pirate bands who do nothing but the same." He watched her intently, nothing of his true intentions showing in body or expression.
 
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