Three Strangers Rock the Boat
By Kiyo-Anon
Plop plop plop. A moldy mop swabs the salt-stained planks of The Harpoon’s gun deck. The sea water it's saturated with hardly does the wood any favors, but it's easier on the nose than spilled grog, so thinks the maiden currently cleaning.
I hate mopping, Cassie thinks to herself. And sweeping. I hate cleaning.
It'll be a wonder once the job is done. No more stupid scary ocean. No more relentless cleaning. No more taking shit from sloppy, violent drunks. If there are fates worse than death, "bottom rung on a pirate crew" is one of them.
A beer glass careens through the air and shatters upon impact with Cassie's scalp. She recoils, and fumes, "Hey!!!"
"Oopsie daisy!" A Toxicroak surrounded with giggling, wobbly men says, "Sorry lass! I dropped me mug!"
The pirates guffaw and dance their merry asses back upstairs. Cassie wipes broken glass from the back of her head with a contained expression, and shuts the door to the gun deck, locking it closed with a nearby rod. Timing here is very important, and it’s a bit early to be doing this, she thinks, but better too early than too late.
It's a good thing this is her last night; One more with these salty assholes would end her.
Away from the prying eyes of the partygoers upstairs, Cassie peeks out a window and dumps the sullied mop water from her bucket into the open ocean. She drops it underneath the rum keg and thinks to herself, just how much violence is she willing to partake in?
It's a question all three of them have been asking since they started this "job". A month or so riding alongside the most vile, sure-sighted pirates on the seven seas is sure to do that.
Cassie herself is neutral when it comes to violence. Why? Well, it's simple. Violence is funny. Seeing a kid get beaned by a kickball and go flying backwards is funny. A well timed explosion around a vulnerable building is funny. A highly-planned stealth mission going awry at the last moment is funny, and if it doesn't go awry, it's plain fun.
The violence she's partaken in to keep up her pirate disguise is not funny. Not even to Kiyo, Cassie thinks.
It's scary, being around folk so bad they make you question your morals. Not once before has Cassie worried about if the means will justify the ends. Now, she does.
Still, it's not like they can speak up. The pirates outnumber them twenty-to-one, and the captain alone is probably strong enough to rend them limb from limb.
Unless, of course, we rig the game, she thinks, closing the rum tap and kicking the bucket to the middle of the room. She brandishes her mop, dips it in the liquid, and swabs it around the deck. The acrid smell of pure alcohol strikes her like a punch, and yet, it’s nicer than the usual moldy smell down below deck. Once the bucket is empty and the floor is slick, she lifts an entire barrel of gunpowder- ground carefully from blast seeds on land by an alchemist- and places it in the center of the room. Then, she does the same with every other barrel of gunpowder, until they’re arranged like a honeycomb by the ship’s central mast.
Cassie slices a few of the barrels open, allowing the volatile powder to spill out. It won't ignite, she’s certain, although if it did, she’d be turned to mist instantly. She’s used to working around hazards, so it’s of little concern.
Lastly, Cassie finds the second cannon on the left side of the ship and, with a small heave, flips it upside down on its hinge. Then, she presses it against the wall, allowing the wick to stick out the porthole towards the sea, and the cannon itself to face straight towards the center mast. She stuffs a dozen handfuls of gunpowder, a few dry rags, and some other miscellaneous shrapnel inside the cannon. It’s loaded, and ready to fire.
She smiles. It's not quite justice. It's an exit strategy. Nothing more, nothing less.
Meanwhile, atop the ship’s crow’s nest, Bean gazes out to the night sky, wistfully. It’s his assigned job to watch for danger on the open seas, but to him, the stars are much more intriguing. Every night they change position, just slightly. He’s familiar with astronomy, having read plenty of books on the matter, but there’s still so much mystery, and the beauty and clearness of tonight’s sky is a delight which eases his tumultuous nerves.
The view of the ocean is also a delight. The moon is nearly full, and the sky is mostly empty. The moon beams so brightly, the waves themselves are visible, each crest shining like silver. The seas surrounding The Harpoon are vast and entirely empty. As far as the eye can see, there’s not a spot of land. As horrid as these pirates are, Bean thinks, he is fond of their boat. The vast openness on all sides is freeing compared to tight, compact dungeons, forests, and caves. It’s like a breath of fresh air, and all the while, the vessel moves from one location to another with great speed. The sense of adventure and exploration is addicting.
Part of him wants to suggest the three purchase their own boat, but that idea will never stick. Cassie hates all large bodies of water, because she can’t swim, and she’s horribly dense. She sinks like a rock. Kiyo doesn’t mind the ocean, but he does hate rivers, for some reason. Between the two of them, there’s little chance they’ll sail the seas again once this job’s complete, at least for some time.
A particularly hearty round of cheering wakes Bean from his reflection. He perches on the side of the wooden bucket that serves as The Harpoon’s watch tower, and peers down to the deck of the ship.
The entire deck is well lit by torches and lanterns everywhere. Every single member of the unsavory crew is awake and lively, dancing stupid jigs and drinking frothy cider instead of rum, as celebration. A few drunken pokemon spar by the side of the ship, their blades clattering against each other, with spectators watching the dance of steel. Others sit along the rail of the ship, drinking silently, looking out to the ocean. However, most of the pirates are near the center, dancing and singing along with the music.
The dreadful captain himself, Captain Ironjaw, is seated on a wooden throne just below the ship’s wheel deck, facing the performer. The huge, imposing Feraligatr is flanked by his two first mates, who chatter absentmindedly. Ignoring them completely, the captain remains silent, watching the festivities with a smugly satisfied grin, claws running across the treasure map he’d finally obtained earlier in the day.
Bean knows the map he holds is fake, forged by him and swapped by Cassie, who’d been responsible for digging up the corpse grasping the map in the first place. The genuine article is still in her possession, and as soon as Fatty arrives, the three of them will be ditching the pirates to pursue the treasure for themselves, and hopefully, leaving naught but rubble in their wake. That’s just an aside, however.
At the center of the ship, beside the very mast Bean’s station is attached to, a makeshift bar is set up, with two empty kegs and two full, manned by a Victreebel, who expertly steals away empty mugs from the crowd and has them refilled with his wiry vines.
Beside him, balancing atop the bar, is Kiyo, standing upright and dancing with a false smirk on his face and a scrappy accordion in his paws. The music he plays is a melodic seadog classic, one Bean’s heard many times during this voyage. The pirates who retain any cognitive function sing along in perfectly terrible chants, waving side to side, sometimes arm in arm.
Bean watches a pirate present Kiyo with a fresh glass of cider. The fox blows a gentle breath upon it, frosting the glass and cooling the drink instantly, all without interrupting the music. The pirate gives Kiyo a toothy grin and nod, then hops back onto all fours with the mug in his maw and wobbles away.
This is the job Kiyo is here to perform. By day, he acts as a proper cutthroat marauder, same as anyone else, but by night, he dances for the pirates, plays them their jaunty tunes, and cools their drinks. He planned on playing the harmonica, his most practiced instrument, but the ship’s last musician had left behind a perfectly functional accordion, and the captain simply preferred that sound. It was a relief, to Bean and Cassie, that Kiyo was able to play the accordion just as well, it seemed.
Of all the three, the captain seemed most interested in Kiyo’s inclusion. Perhaps he simply appreciates music. Perhaps it's something else. Bean doesn’t want to think too hard on that.
Bean’s job was to be barrelman, and Cassie’s was to be the ship’s digger, in addition to the standard set of piracy and pillaging required by all crewmates. These spots had opened up on the ship, as the previous digger and barrelman both failed to return to The Harpoon after it was restocked at Port Flagstone. Unbeknownst to the captain, they’d been kidnapped and hog-tied, possibly knocked out in the basement of a nearby tavern by a shrew, a fox, and a bird. Still, in bargaining, the captain demanded Cassie perform janitorial duties too, as had the previous digger, to which she begrudgingly agreed. In a sense, that compromise would bring his doom, Bean predicts. After all, it's allowed Cassie to turn the vessel into a floating bomb. Still, she lamented her janitorial duties non-stop throughout the voyage.
Bean notices a hatch on the ship’s deck pop open near the bow, and out crawls Cassie. She looks disgruntled, so Bean decides to fly down and check on her.
Cassie closes the hatch and brushes herself off. Bean lands on her shoulder, and whispers a greeting into her ear. She perks up and smiles, not wanting to impart her annoyance to Bean. Little does she know, that’s what he’s there for.
“Hi Bean. Enjoying the stars?”
He nods, and asks her if the gun deck is clean.
“Yup. Scrubbed it clean and organized it as planned. The wick’s out the middle, portside. You’ll see it once it’s time for the party to die down.”
And the time is coming, Bean thinks to himself. Tonight's operation is the culmination of an entire month’s work and planning beyond that. Everything hinges on prompt timing, and so far, with the ship rigged to explode, there’s nothing to be done except wait for Fatty. She should arrive within fifteen minutes, by Bean’s estimation.
Cassie, with Bean onboard, walks towards the crowd, a wise attempt to blend in. Or, perhaps, Bean supposes, she just wants to watch Kiyo’s silly jig one last time. He’s still going at it, playing to the crowd like a regular bard. When his legs get tired from balancing on one leg, he simply stands and waves his tails in time with the music, like an aura of melody behind him.
Bean wonders, does he actually enjoy playing music for a crowd? To an outside onlooker, he’d appear to be relishing the attention greatly, and that’s certainly what the pirates believe, but at the end of the day, it’s just an act, right? The bird isn’t sure. Cassie might have a better read on him, but Bean doesn’t want to interrupt her clapping and swaying along with the music, so he mulls over it silently.
Kiyo finishes his song, and the crowd of drunken, singing sailors bursts into a fit of laughing, choking, puking, and cheering. The fox bows politely. It looks, to Bean, like he’s about to take a break, but the captain stands, and bellows a command.
“Carouser!”
Kiyo perks up, “Aye?”
Ironjaw grins, jagged teeth poking out from his cracked lips, “Play me a song, Last Dance Atop Still Waters.”
What a weird name for a song, Cassie thinks to herself. So dramatic!
Bean, none the wiser to Cassie’s internal monologue, thinks the opposite.
Kiyo dutifully nods. “Aye aye, captain.”
This is the captain’s favorite song.
Kiyo takes a few breaths, allowing the jovial atmosphere of his last set dissipate from the air. The pirates around the bar disperse, dumb grins slowly fading from their faces, as they find proper spots to brood. The few sparring pokemon turn and stop, unwilling to make a racket during the captain’s song.
Kiyo starts. The song is slow and haunting, fitting perfectly alongside the sound of waves crashing against the ship. The music overwhelmingly commands the feelings of those listening- Sailors who’d been chugging and laughing just moments prior find themselves sipping, and reminiscing. It’s the kind of melancholy melody that forces reconciliation with the past, Bean thinks.
All the pirates hate it. All, except Captain Ironjaw, who absorbs it like a sponge, a sad smile on his battle-scarred face, and Bean, who can’t help but be enamored by the bizarre ability of music to share wordless memories.
Kiyo’s song has a feeling of finality to it, to Bean. He’s been known to read into things beyond their intention, sometimes, and yet, of this he is certain. The song is a story about lost lovers- a last goodbye, or perhaps, a last chance to say goodbye, missed. Promises of eternal love and unrelenting happiness, all passionate, hopeful lies, of course. The lovers both know them to be lies, yet pray to live the lie nonetheless.
This song sounds like melancholy acceptance of the lies we all live, Bean decides. That, and everything else.
In a timely fashion, the song comes to an end. Kiyo ends on a properly sad note and allows it to fade into silence. None of the crew make a sound, sullen expressions about them. Kiyo himself lowers his borrowed instrument, and waits to hear the Captain’s response.
Ironjaw stands from his seat and claps thrice, a single salty tear rolling down his cheek. “A moving performance, Carouser. A moving performance indeed…”
He takes a breath, and scans the ship's deck. The entire crew is looking his way, waiting for permission to return to festivities. Normally, he would oblige them, but the map in his coat-pocket brings his heart out.
“That was the song of me lass. Woe, they say, is all that awaits the married seadog…”
The captain wipes his cheek.
“I thought I could share two loves; one for her, and one for the sea. What a fool I’d been. A tour on the open ocean, I convinced her, could secure us the funds to start a family. I promised it would be so. Instead, I return to an empty home and withered flowers, on a grave dug by her friends, under the tree we’d planted. How-”
His voice cracks. He grunts, and composes himself.
“How stupid I was, to let go the time we had. If only I knew then what I do now… Well, my dear,” He pulls, from his tattered coat pocket, the rolled-up decoy map. Holding it forward like a talisman, his voice booms, “With this, and the treasure that lies therein, you shall return! And by your side, my love, the dreams and riches to sate my entire crew!”
Everyone cheers, the three imposters included. The captain falls back into his seat, and unfurls the map with a warm smile. His first mate, a gallade, pats the side of his throne.
“Bloody inspiring, that was. It'll all be worth it soon, aye?”
“Aye…”
The captain sits, with a thump, and unfurls the map. He dismissively waves a hand to his crew, silent permission to resume festivities.
Kiyo takes a breath, and sets down the ship’s accordion. Noticing Cassie and Bean standing off to the side, he turns to the Victreebel and says, “Need a break after that. Anything left for me?”
The plant whips up a frothy mug of cider, and grunts, “Not a long break. Less music means less singing, less singing means more drinking. More drinking means more fighting.”
Kiyo takes a sip, and sighs, masking the anxiety in his voice completely. “Yeah, yeah.”
Kiyo takes a slow drink and slips away from the crowd to meet his real crew.
Cassie smiles, foot tapping as he approaches, “Didja have to make that last song so sad? I feel like I'm at a funeral.”
As they speak, the three discreetly move towards the upper deck, where the steering wheel is planted, to get a better view of the ocean and to move away from the masses. Kiyo shrugs. “Sorry. Captain's orders. Is, uh… is everything ‘clean’ downstairs?”
“Yeah. Scrubbed it real, real good. Fatty should be here in, what, four minutes? Five?”
Bean leans down and corrects her. His ability to keep track of him is unparalleled, so she doesn't question him.
“Ah. Ten minutes. Then, we're…” She glances around, “Outta here for good. Thank everything for that.”
Kiyo nods. “Yeah. Can't come soon enough.”
He flicks an ear out to the sea. It’s not too dark, but still, Fatty’s the kind to be heard before she’s seen. Every second is another chance for someone to find the volatile state of the gun deck, and aboard a ship teeming with vicious pirates, the stakes couldn’t be higher. As such, time passes painfully slow.
Down on the throne, the captain reads notes, clues, and directions on his treasured treasure map. The starting point is Serene Village, no doubt, and a set of included riddles are designed to guide the seeker through the nearby woods and towards the treasure stash. What lies in the stash is a mystery. According to dozens of pirates, treasure hunters, and tradesmen from every side of the globe, it is a treasure beyond imagination, untold power, the means to grant an infinite number of wishes. All vague promises, but surely they can’t all be fibbing.
It’s the ultimate prize. In his heart, Ironjaw knows his love will return if he can only get his claws on it. The thought alone brings a second teardrop from his eye. He allows it to fall upon the map.
Time slows as the teardrop falls upon the ink, and the ink runs down with it.
The captain blinks. He licks his scaly hand and rubs the corner of the map. More ink fades away.
His stomach sinks.
A map taken from a dead man’s boney hand, buried for a hundred years or more, is not so fragile it could lose its ink with mere moisture. No.
Ironjaw crumples the map, and shoots to his feet with such power the nearby crew startle from drunkenness. There is only one person who held the invaluable map before it was safely in the captain’s possession.
“SCALLYWAG SHREW!” he growls, scanning the deck furiously.
Every living creature aboard the ship freezes. The three strangers stiffen, shrinking down. It is for nothing, however, as a few more-attentive pirates point towards their location. They’re alone by the wheel deck, with the other pirates downstairs, but somehow the captain’s lower position doesn’t reduce his intimidating aura.
“The map you handed me. T’was a dud, aye?! I should skin you where you stand for LYING to your CAPTAIN!”
Called out, Cassie stutters, “W-what do you mean? I gave you exactly what-”
“Shut your trap!!” He snarls, “Fork over the real map, you no-good bilge-eater, and I’ll consider lettin’ you walk the plank with one leg instead’a none!”
Cassie gulps, and the captain begins to step up the stairs. Kiyo glances to the ocean beside him, and sees no sign of Fatty. Bean whispers a quick idea into his ear, and before he can question if it’s smart or not, he follows the improvised plan.
“Of course we took the map!” Kiyo shouts, jumping atop the rails, standing tall upon two legs, “You weren’t planning on sharing the measly treasure anyways!”
The captain stops dead in his tracks, tilting his head.
“We?”
Pained, he darts his vision between the shrew and the fox, and then the bird as well. These three boarded together. They’re thieves, he realizes, and he’s the mark.
He spits on the deck, “You’re all bloody traitors! Look alive, lads, we’ve got three deadweights to make chum of!”
He waits, expecting the usual chorus of enthusiastically violent shouts which follows. Instead, he hears nothing but whispers. The captain turns and finds his crew to be murmuring amongst themselves.
“...Measly? The treasure is ‘measly’?”
“There’s not enough treasure for us all?”
“But I needed my wish too!”
“He’s not using his wish for us. He’s using it for himself!”
“Aren’t there many wishes?”
“It's not wishes, you dumb fuck! It's a sword!”
“It’s not a sword, brainless! It’s a ribbon!”
“The captain said our wishes would come true. He wouldn't lie to us!”
“No, you dunce. The captain’s leading us along like buffoons!”
“You moron! They’re lying!”
“Nay, the captain is lying! I knew it sounded too good to be true!”
“You’re all fools! The treasure is infinite!”
“How would you know? They’re the ones with the map!”
Aggravated beyond belief, the captain turns away from the three thieves, “SILENCE! WHO DARES DOUBT ME?!”
Cassie taps Kiyo on the back. Bean stands on her shoulder, watching her flank.
“Hey, gang,” she whispers, “If it gets bad, and I have a feeling it will, we need to stand at the back of the ship.” She points to The Harpoon’s stern. “We’ll dodge the blast, I believe.”
“A MUTINY?! THE NERVE!” The captain shouts from below.
“Are you certain?” Kiyo asks Cassie. Bean looks to her quizzically, also seeking reassurance.
“Mmm… Yes. I’m always certain. Always!”
Bean and Kiyo lock eyes. That is far from reassuring.
Another shout from Ironjaw pierces above the angered shouts of the mutinous crew.
“YOU’RE SLIME! ALL OF YOU! SO BE IT.”
It is followed by the wretched sound of a blade being drawn.
Nonetheless, Kiyo nods. “Fine. As much as I’d love to blow those assholes sky-high, we’d better wait until Fatty’s near.”
Their position, alone by the ship’s wheel, is remarkably advantageous. There’s only two thin staircases connecting them to the main deck, which holds everyone else. Better yet, the three strangers have the high ground. The pirate captain and his crew will have to fight an uphill battle, besides those capable of flight or incredible jumping.
War cries ring through the thick tension, and attacks begin to clash. With the incoming footsteps, the three understand their time to plan is up.
Cassie grins, grabs an empty barrel, and takes point by the right staircase.
“Showtime!” She says, setting the barrel to her side and extending her metal claws.
Kiyo quickly assumes a defensive stance atop the other staircase, with Bean taking flight above both.
“Showtime.” He mutters, grim with determination.
From here, Cassie can see the main deck alive with activity. The Captain’s trusted mates watch his sides, creating a perimeter. A slim majority of the crew seems to have taken his side. Everyone else is shuffling and watching their backs, while forming a crowd opposite the captain.
“Traitors like you should be buried ‘neath sand, to grow barnacles!” The captain’s Gallade mate exclaims.
“Loyal like a dog, dies like a dog!” An imposing magmortar spits, to the cheers of his fellow turncoats.
Good thing they’re idiots… Cassie thinks to herself, and extremely drunk.
“MEN! Bury your steel in these cowardly scumsuckers,” Ironjaw turns, quickly finding Cassie overlooking the deck, “and bring me THAT MAP!!!”
Shouts of terror and anger come from every side of the conflict. Immediately, the night is illuminated by a massive plume of fiery breath. Which pirate it came from is hard to discern. From above, the conflict is a sea of Pokemon clashing with every sort of weapon, move, beam, bite, slash, and grab. It’s far sloppier than it ought to be, given the grave circumstances, but pirates with access to an effectively unlimited tap tend to turn themselves sloppy.
From Kiyo’s side of the stairs, Cassie hears a taunting voice.
“Alright, friend, let’s play nice- AUUGH!”
Then, there’s the unmistakable sound of Kiyo’s ice-beam, a screech, a thump like a skull on wood, and a groan. That’s good. In the meantime, a crowd of sullen pirates begin to climb the stairs she’s atop. They take each step cautiously, and Cassie can’t tell if it’s because they’re silly-drunk and trying to keep from slipping, or if they’re actually intimidated by her. They should be!
A scyther lumbers towards Cassie, with a sinister grin. “I know you aren’t much of a fighter, lass. Just give up the map, and I’ll let ye walk away.”
He takes a heavy swing with his bladed arm, putting his entire weight into it, but Cassie easily evades to the right, and retaliates with a critical slash into his shoulder. He cries out and flinches back, but before he can do anything else, he’s kicked in the stomach, falling down the stairs, and taking an unsuspecting Liepard with him.
Cassie spits, “That was an act, dummy!”
The Liepard thrashes the scyther off herself and trounces up the stairs quickly, stopping just outside the range of Cassie’s claws. She snarls, waiting for Cassie to make a move.
At first, she waits patiently, primed to react to the liepard. Why risk an attack when she’s already got the high ground? Two staraptors quickly ruin that plan, as they land on the upper deck behind her with sinister glares. Bean shoots himself at the two, who unfurl their wings and attempt to dodge. The smaller bird is much faster, however, and impossible to track after however many glasses of rum. The staraptors curse and flinch at each repeated peck and bite, always turning too slow to catch their attack.
It gives Cassie time to lift the empty barrel she’d prepared and chuck it down the stairs. The liepard, rather than test her face against the solid wood, jumps backwards. Behind her, an unaware Monferno shrieks, and catches the heavy projectile to his chest. He falls, clearing the stairs once again and leaving the aggressors in a groaning heap.
Cassie turns and charges towards the birds, who are dancing around each other, completely oblivious. The nearest one turns a moment too late and gets three deep cuts in its back. The second recognizes the danger and attempts to fly off, but Bean divebombs the coward where his wing meets his body, and he crumples. Before he can even land, Cassie trucks forward and kicks, sending the shrieking bird back to the lower deck in a satisfying arc.
Kiyo watches the attacker’s trajectory, slightly dumbfounded. Cassie waves at him with a smile, and picks up the other staraptor, currently fainted, and dumps him off the steering deck, headed back towards the staircase. He rolls his eyes, and swivels his body to kick a frozen-stiff clefairy with his hindlegs. She falls over, and slides down the stairs.
From behind that pirate, another thrusts forward with a rusted metal rapier, forcing Kiyo to hop away in surprise. He lands on his paws and assumes a fighting stance, hackles raised and tails flared.
His combatant, an older Watchog with filthy gray fur, hurries up the stairs and points his blade towards the fox. Kiyo growls and shoots an ice shard, but the old man, even inebriated, is a master of the art, and he flicks the projectile away with a perfectly timed swipe and a step closer.
Kiyo wants to bite this old bastard very, very badly, but he's not stupid enough to sprint in and get impaled. He’s about to consider an aurora beam instead, but he notices Bean positioned just behind his target.
The Watchog shrieks, and his back is illuminated. Taken entirely by surprise, he grasps his back and wipes down sharp, burning embers, jerked backwards in an attempt to identify his assailant. By the time he looks back to Kiyo, there's an ice shard headed straight for his head. The shot lands true, lodging itself just above his right eye. He reaches for it instantly, sword dropped and forgotten, yanking and shouting and pulling in vain attempts to remove the icicle splitting his head.
Kiyo takes advantage of the distraction, and charges forward. He shoulder-tackles the Watchog with enough force to send the frantic, panicked man down the very steps Ironjaw is stomping up.
The Captain, careful not to step on his crewmate, grabs the Watchog by the wrist and hurls him over the ship’s railing. His face, twisted in anger and determination, doesn't shift at all.
“You! Surrender, fox, and be of use!”
The Feraligatr points his sword at Kiyo. Even a few steps lower, and halfway across the deck, the captain’s blade is dangerously close to Kiyo. His typical attacks won’t cut it.
Kiyo scrambles onto two paws and reaches for the rusty, secondhand blade dropped by his previous foe. He slashes the air, swiping Captain Ironjaw’s sword away
“No,” He says, plainly.
The captain leans back, and laughs at the tiny fox, lowering his sword.
“Ha! Blunt as always, are we? No desire to wax poetic for your final words?”
Kiyo lunges forward, stabbing at Ironjaw’s stomach, but with lightning fast reflexes, the captain parries the blow and thrusts forward, forcing Kiyo himself to hop backwards in retreat, barely avoiding impalement himself.
“Nope,” Kiyo growls, glancing at Cassie and Bean, fighting off their own sea’s worth of pirates on the other staircase.
“Fine,” the captain says, grinning like a demon, “Let’s get on with your execution, then.”
The captain leaps upwards, and slams down onto the deck. He flourishes his silver rapier, gleaming in the moonlight, dancing around with his prized weapon.
Kiyo strictly holds his defensive pose, and hopes his borrowed sword will survive.
The first to strike is the captain’s. He simply slashes downwards, risking Kiyo an overhead guillotine. The fox blocks it, holding his sword above. With a snarl, the Captain adds force, and immediately Kiyo is forced to slip underneath and away. The force is redirected, and his sword clanks atop the ship’s deck. Kiyo attempts to push the advantage, slicing at Ironjaw’s side, but he’s not close enough, and before he can get further, the captain recovers from his miss and goes for another slash. Kiyo ducks under, and cuts for the stomach. Ironjaw jumps backwards, back onto the stairs.
The captain snarls, and taunts Kiyo.
“You’ll never hit me, pipsqueak. Even if ye do, your sword’s scrap! You’re only delaying the inevitable.”
“Got it,” He replies dismissively.
Kiyo swings, and is deflected, which leaves him vulnerable. The captain attempts to reposition his blade into the fox, but he is deflected himself, and suddenly jabbed at. His arm would have been pierced, but Kiyo’s sword is rusty, and the captain swipes it away with a carefully maneuvered claw, leaving both combatants unharmed.
The captain becomes aggressive, and abandons his caution. His sword twirls through the air, poking at Kiyo from each side in quick succession. Kiyo sweats ice, barely deflecting each or evading each hit. The captain doesn’t let up, with blows too quick for Kiyo to find time to counterattack, and each move is matched with a slow, deliberate, safe shuffle forward. Kiyo himself realizes he’s losing ground, but he can’t allow Ironjaw to get any closer to Cassie and Bean, who are easy targets with how many simple drunken pirates they’re repelling.
He’s desperate for an edge. Still maintaining his sword fighting poise, Kiyo’s tails raise like magic, and he spits a missile of an ice shard towards Ironjaw. It lands squarely on his chest, but only garners a chuckle from the massive gator.
The captain swings again, and as Kiyo slams the sword away, he’s suddenly blasted with a painful, stinging torrent of water. His back slams against the ship’s rails, and once the water recedes, he gasps and scrambles to his feet again, just in time to feel cold steel cut a slice into his stomach.
Kiyo sputters, falling back against the railing. He grabs his bleeding wound with his left paw, still holding his sword up with his right, panting.
Captain Ironjaw lowers his sword, his shadow casting over the fox. He grins smugly.
“You learned the blade quickly, little fox, but you never stood a sporting chance against me. Now, last chance to surrender.”
Kiyo catches his breath, glaring up at Ironjaw.
“...Oww. No.”
He can’t really think to say anything else, hobbling into a proper stance once more.
“For shame,” the captain mutters, with what might be a genuine sliver of remorse.
Ironjaw slashes downwards, and Kiyo meekly dodges, wincing from the dash. Then, he thrusts forward, and the Captain turns to the side. Another attack from the captain, this time deflected by a sloppy, but forceful downwards slice. It leaves Kiyo less than enough time to recover his sword’s position, so he jumps up and onto the railing to survive.
It’s hard to balance, made worse by the throbbing pain in his gut and a worrying lightheadedness. Kiyo knows this fight isn’t in his favor. All he can hope is to keep the others safe for as long as possible, yet underneath his beating heart, he can’t hear them fighting. He turns, worried they might have fallen.
He doesn’t see Cassie when he turns; instead, he hears her yelling, as she careens into the ship’s rails, bounces off, and collides with the shocked Captain’s stomach like a cannonball.
Cassie unfurls herself, kicking the Captain’s gut to launch herself out and into a readied stance. Ironjaw growls, and aims his sword to decapitate, but she slashes his sword away with her right claw, slashes his stomach with her left, and tackles him when he’s staggered.
He goes flying back, tumbling down the stairs. The other staircase, however, is guarded by Bean, who shoots light embers as best he can to dissuade the flooding pirates. It’s not nearly enough- a tank of a quagsire, covered in scars and tattoos, pushes past and charges towards Kiyo, who steels himself with a growl and jumps towards the pokemon, slashing away. Without pause, the Victreebel bartender climbs up, soon to be followed by a Floatzel. They’re being utterly swarmed.
“Bean!!!” She shouts, “Blow it!”
There is no time to doubt her. Bean swerves in the air, deftly through the Victreebel’s cage of vines attempting to grab him. He plummets down to the side of the ship, where it is far quieter. There is a symphony of war above him- five or six dozen scallywag seadogs turned against each other. It is chilling to imagine how quiet it soon may become.
Bean finds the cannon. Its rear is sticking out from the ship’s hull awkwardly, just as planned.
Who's going to hell for this, Bean wonders. After all, he's the one lighting the fuse, but it was Cassie who set it up, and it was Kiyo's idea in the first place. Are the sins of teammates divided among them? Or counted fully thricefold?
Bean spits a flame at the wick. Who's to really say?
The cannon hisses, and just as Bean escapes the fatal radius, it blasts flaming shrapnel across the downstairs gun deck. Pools of whiskey catch fire, trailing towards barrels upon barrels of high explosives. Once one's gone off, they all go off.
The partygoers pause their clashing as the cannon first explodes. A breath later the sea shines like the sun. A massive plume of flames erupts from within the center of the boat. Scattered planks launch into the distance, and the hull is split in two. The mast itself ejects straight upwards.
The pirates directly near the center, the vast majority, have been vaporized or flung yards in multiple directions. Those on the front half are thrown off the ship, and scatter to claim their own hunk of driftwood.
Cassie watches everyone on the wheel deck stagger with the blast- they’re thrown to the floor, grasping for an anchor. The Victreebel wrapped four or five vines in different directions, locking around circular railings. Cassie digs her claws into the floor, and locks eyes with Kiyo, who sprawls out on the floor, his own claws failing to pierce the wood. The quagsire simply falls.
Cassie looks over at the mast, flying midair, like an airborne monument in slow motion. It slowly reaches the peak of its launch, then tilts downwards and falls on the front of the ship, crushing what little of the vessel remains and flinging the supports forward. The entire wheel deck lurches.
Like a catapult, Kiyo and the quagsire are launched into the blazing, sunken remains of the main deck.
“KIYO!!”
As the submerged mast sinks deeper and slips past the ship, the wheel deck levels itself and begins to sink, slowly.
“Fucking traitor,” the Victreebel groans, finding his balance, “This was your plan, wasn’t it? Group everyone up and kill them quick. You are honorless.”
“HONOR?!?!” Cassie shouts, “You’re bringing up HONOR?! NOW?!?!”
She stands up and brushes herself off, claws out again. The plant fixes itself, and retracts its vines, weaponizing them quickly. “Do you have any idea how many people you’ve killed?!”
“It doesn’t matter! Get outta my way, Kiyo’s in trouble!”
“Sorry. That map is mine, shrew.”
“Fuck you!”
Cassie swipes at the Victreebel, furiously. The Victreebel slings its vines at Cassie, who braces herself, but knows she needs to do more than tank the hits. The first vine gets chopped off by a swipe of Cassie's claw, disgusting sap leaking out. The plant creature recoils back, screeching, and enters a frenzy, swiping everywhere with its tentacle-like vines. Claws extended, the sandshrew backs up slowly, spacing herself expertly to cut down the vines one by one.
A stray vine slaps Cassie across the cheek, and she flinches, but holds firm. A Floatzel appears, apparently having survived the blast, and charges forward from behind the Victreebel. He screams, rushing forwards with water surrounding his body. Cassie dodges him to the left, and delivers a powerful punch to his gut, though he tries to jump back. The combined force sends him flying overboard, but the distraction has left Cassie vulnerable. The Victreebel wraps two vines around her middle, and lifts her.
Cassie curls down and cuts at the vines, with some success, but before she can free herself, the plant spits a cloud of yellow spores into her face. Cassie breathes just a bit in, and chokes- She coughs and sputters. Then, Victreebel shrieks out, as a flaming ember imbeds itself in its back. Bean appears, kiting around the plant, and launches volley after volley of flame. The Victribell throws Cassie backwards, towards the sinking stairs, where she crumples, oddly, and attempts to cut Bean down.
Bean easily dodges, the air being his medium, and before long, the vicious grass type faints, its burning body slipping downwards, bumping a rail by the steering wheel, and falling off and into the ocean, where it floats.
Bean rushes to Cassie, who's attempting to stand. She isn't hurt, but she cries out as her leg spasms, and even the hand she's holding against the stairs railing jerks against her will. "I... I can't move!”
Their island of flotsam, the back of the ship, is sinking, and the water is rising.
“Oh no... Oh no, no, no..."
She struggles with all her might, pushing herself up the stairs and away from the ocean. Bean frantically attempts to push her upwards, risking his life by simply being underneath her. With their combined efforts, she drags herself to the back of the boat, the highest point available.
“B-Bean! Go find Kiyo!”
Kiyo emerges from the inky black ocean, and frantically scans his surroundings. He’s surrounded by floating bits of debris, most of which is lit ablaze. Bits of the ship, partially floating, stick out from the water like spears. Shadowy silhouettes of who-knows-who float away from the center, slowly. In the distance, there are muffled shouts, but it feels like silence compared to the prior mayhem.
Suddenly, he feels a depression in the water beneath him. He quickly swims away, yet not fast enough, as the quagsire erupts like a torpedo from the sea. Kiyo is thrown back and finds himself back in the disturbingly quiet underwater, bubbles rising to the fiery surface above.
He paddles up to the surface and scrambles onto a shredded wooden pillar, the remains of the ship's mast. The quagsire slowly steps towards him with a murderous gaze, but it's too tired to dodge. Kiyo opens his mouth, tails fanning out, and lets loose a barrage of ice beams. Each one strikes the quagsire, who marches forward, either certain of his bulk to protect him, or too tired to think straight.
Suddenly Bean arrives, and is witness to the odd scene. Unsure how to contribute, he flies behind Kiyo and waits, ready to charge if Kiyo’s beam falters. Instead, the pirate reaches a hand up towards Kiyo, and goes stiff. Frozen stiff, to be exact. Kiyo takes a breath.
“Bean? All good?”
Bean shakes his head, and flies back towards Cassie.
“Shit!”
Jumping off the mast, he swims to the sinking stairs, and scurries up the rest of the way.
"Cassie! You okay?"
Bean looks back, shivering. Cassie has one arm planted firmly into the floor, and another clutching the railing. "Kiyo, I'm... Something happened. I can't..."
Cassie's leg spasms, and she winces in pain. Kiyo's stomach drops, and the cries and shouts of distant pirates seem to fade into the background. Even without words, between her desperate pose, panicked expression, and the smell of spore coming off, he understands the situation.
Cassie reaches into her bag and pulls out their tattered paper map, presenting it to Kiyo. Her arm flinches, just from this.
"Here."
Kiyo and Bean, both in disbelief, look Cassie in the eyes. Tears are forming at the edges.
She opens her mouth to say something, but just swallows instead.
Kiyo takes the map, rolls it up thin and tight, and turns to Bean.
"Bean, take this and find Fatty. She's coming from the East, right?"
Bean is shocked. He opens his mouth to speak, but is interrupted by Kiyo, "She's going to be here any minute, you have to bring her to us. You're the only one that can do this." He pushes the map right into Bean's claws.
Bean's not sure. He looks between the two, but Kiyo is unshaking. “Bean. This… This is our best bet. I swear.”
It’s the truth. Bean feels like a deserter, leaving them both, but realistically speaking he knows he’s not going to be very helpful to either of them if he sticks around. He nods, both to Kiyo and Cassie, as though to say, hang in there, and takes off into the night sky.
A moment of silence passes between the two. The night sky is black and starry, but the flames of floating ship parts and the few stars peeking through clouds of smoke illuminate their surroundings. That, combined with the groaning of stretched, sinking wood, the crashing waves, and the cries and shouts of survivors, give the two castaways not really much to say anyways.
"Kiyo," Cassie starts, breath wobbly, "You can't-"
"I think I can." He interrupts her, sounding less certain than he'd hoped. He sits back beside Cassie and catches his breath, covering his open wound.
"You're going to drown," she says, tears running down her cheek, "I'm... I'm like a rock Kiyo. A boulder." What goes unsaid, is that she's at least three-times his weight, and extremely dense. Even disregarding her paralysis, she can't swim. She can only sink.
"That's okay," He lies to them both, "Don't worry."
In reality, there is little hope. Kiyo understands this. They're probably both going to drown. If Fatty isn’t already here, she’s probably dead or captured.
In a way, what he's doing is selfish. It's probably most efficient for Bean to seek out Fatty anyways, but more than that, he's saving himself.
At this point, Kiyo isn't afraid of death, but he isn’t willing to be alone.
The wheel deck they're resting on sinks ever deeper. Kiyo scans the sea for some sort of salvation, but there is nothing. No planks large enough to support even just his weight, except those too far to reach and already claimed by hostile pirates. Cassie's trying to pry some wood off the desk and make a raft, it seems, but her arms aren't obeying her, and she can't exactly move either.
The stairs are completely gone now, disappeared into the inky black sea. Time is running out.
Cassie whimpers, looking up into the sky. Kiyo nuzzles himself into her side, an awkward excuse for a hug in their position.
"Fatty is going to be here any second. Even faster with Bean guiding her. We only... We only need to hold out for a small time."
He sighs. It feels very natural to lie, even to himself.
In spite of her disobeying body, Cassie leans her head towards Kiyo.
“It’s… Wow, this job sucked,” she says.
Kiyo laughs.
“Yeah.”
“Hey Kiyo… What do you think the treasure is?”
“To be honest, I have no idea. I’m kinda hoping Bean knows.”
“Bean?”
“Yeah. He’s good about that. You know, keeping rumors and stuff in his head.”
“Heh. Yeah.”
They sink a bit deeper. It’s very quiet now. Kiyo, even with his massive ears, can’t hear Bean’s flapping. Just crackling flames, gentle waves, and a few surviving pirates far away, on flotsam.
“You know, we were never going to leave you,” Kiyo says.
“It’s a bad idea to stay. It’s my fault, anyways… I should be able to swim.”
“Cassie, you’re paralyzed.”
“Is that what this is?” She looks down upon her body, and laughs sadly, “Hah. Never had this happen to me before.”
Kiyo feels one of his tail-tips get wet. They've got less than a minute, by his estimate. He takes a deep breath, and props himself up on two feet, clutching his side. He winces, and holds back a yelp of pain. It’s healed a bit, but it’s still cauterizing.
"Alright. Let's do it."
Kiyo bends down, and grabs Cassie's jittery arm. He heaves, but at first, nothing moves an inch, even though Cassie attempts to push herself up. She's just too heavy.
"Kiyo..." Cassie whimpers.
"No, no. I'm okay."
He takes another breath, summons whatever droplets of energy exist at the bottom of his tank, and hoists Cassie up and onto his back, with her claw pulled over his shoulder. His stance widens as he nearly slips. In order to balance, he's bent over, keeping her propped above him, and hopefully, able to breathe. He grunts, "Alright."
He remains standing as the water envelops his hindpaws. With his free arm, he grasps the pole at the back end of the vessel, for balance.
Cassie sniffles, "I don't want-"
"No matter what," He declares, water lapping at his thigh, "I'm not letting go."
Cassie's heart sinks.
As the water rises, Kiyo shuffles against the flagpole. When his chest goes under, he steps up onto the railing, and hangs against the pole, barely keeping Cassie balanced above him.
He takes a deep breath just before the water covers his mouth. The ground beneath his paws is gone, so he starts kicking. More than that, he starts sinking.
With nothing to stand on, suddenly his task feels impossible. He kicks up frantically, as though jumping over and over again, but the water just shifts aside, and he sinks. His tails, now totally submerged, flap as much as they can, to little effect, and his hearing gets fuzzy as his head goes under.
He’s about to panic, but holding Cassie above the water is non-negotiable.
He grips Cassie's claw with one paw and releases the other to paddle as well. He wisens up, and instead of kicking downwards, paddles his hindpaws back and forth. His muzzle reaches above the water, just barely, and he regains his breath. Then the waves come and he’s back underwater, but it’s just barely enough to tread. He continues, himself bobbing under, then every once and a while, he gets a split-second to gasp in some air. It’s working, and Cassie is safe, but it's also an absurd amount of strain. His legs, already worn thin from battle, cry out for rest.
He treads, but what feels like an hour is just a few seconds, and Bean is still nowhere to be found. Cassie wants to help Kiyo float, but her legs simply don't respond, and even if they did, there's hardly anything they could do. All she can do is shout.
She feels pathetic, watching Kiyo’s head sink beneath the waves again. She bends her neck, as far away from Kiyo’s sensitive ears as she can, and shouts with desperation in her voice.
"BEAN!!! FATTY!!!"
Her voice disappears into the night, and there is no answer. She looks back down, and watches Kiyo desperately breathe, eyes closed, moments before the wave topples over him again, and splashes Cassie in the face. It’s completely unsustainable.
Cassie is about to give up hope, when she spots a hint of something aquatic swimming underneath Kiyo. She gasps, a glimmer of hope.
The dark creature gets larger and larger. Kiyo feels a current underneath him, and suddenly, he's standing on something. It feels as though the weight of the world is lifted off, and finally he can rest. His legs go limp, instantly, and he breathes in.
Then, there's a giant claw clutching his waist, and his breath is sucked out again.
Ironjaw surges out from the water, crushing Kiyo's ribs in his grip. He screams out in agony, his fresh wound tearing further as a claw rends his flesh. His body goes limp, for just a moment, and the Feraligatr swings him around like a rag doll.
His grip is lost. All he can hear, above the waves and fire, is Cassie's scream, and then, a loud plunk!
"NO!" He screams, wriggling as best he can to escape the pirate's grip, but it is nothing. Unable to squirm free, he bites down on Ironjaw's arm and pumps all the pent-up ice type energy he has into sheer coldness, frantically.
"MY SHIP!" The captain lets out a bloodcurdling scream, "MY CREW! MY EVERYTHING!!!"
Kiyo doesn't respond. His mouth remains firmly planted in the pirate's arm. The captain tears off Kiyo’s scarf and his band, desperately searching for the true map. He finds nothing, and his agonizing shout deafens Kiyo.
"YOU! RUINED! EVERYTHING!" The pirate exclaims, slamming Kiyo into the water over and over again. Each dunk pushes the steely claw further into his wound. "I should have never let you on my ship, you tiny little DEMON!"
The ocean stings his face and clogs his nostrils, but he doesn't let go. Ironjaw's claw digs deeper and deeper into Kiyo’s stomach, until it stops, and chills. "I AM GOING TO CHAIN YOU TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, IN SEVEN DIFFERENT PARTS, YOU-"
The pirate captain pauses, finally noticing the unrelenting coolness moving upwards from his arm. From the point where Kiyo's teeth pierce into his flesh, his scales slowly turn to ice. Like a disease coursing through his body, his right arm becomes frozen solid, and then his chest begins to freeze.
"NO! YOU-" He moves his other arm, planning to cut through the fox's head like a plow through wet soil, but it does not go, getting stuck halfway. Only his forearm, and then his hand can move, until those too are ice.
The feared pirate captain lets out a shockingly terrified cry, turning his head upwards as the frost moves up his neck. He hyperventilates, feeling each breath strain more and more. Soon, not even the lungs in his chest can flex, and his face is captured in a moment of utter terror. His entire body goes completely still, frosted over like an ice statue.
Kiyo releases his fangs and thrashes himself about, shattering the pirate captain's frostbitten hand into a dozen tiny, floating bits.
Now free, and overdosing on adrenaline, Kiyo dashes towards where he prays Cassie is, utterly panicked. He can feel bubbles rising from underneath the waves, so he dives down, pushing himself deeper and further down as fast as he can.
The flames above light the ocean somewhat, but it goes down forever. He's only hoping he can swim faster than Cassie sinks, and after that...
Ten excruciating seconds deep, Kiyo can see, faintly, the outline of Cassie, climbing up the side of the still-sinking ship. She’s tearing into the wooden hull whenever her paralyzed limbs manage to obey.
Her eyes pop open at the sight of Kiyo swimming to her, and moreso, the cloud of blood following behind him. He wraps his paws around one of hers and lifts, dragging her upwards. Although her feet are still unresponsive, she pushes up with her free claw, lack of air straining her lungs. The light beams down from above, and they get closer and closer, until they break through.
Kiyo pops out of the water and hoists Cassie up and above him again so they both can breathe. They both heave, barely held above the waves by combined efforts. Kiyo shifts, so he's hugging Cassie with two paws and pushing up with his feet. He can get in just a single breath of air before submerged again, fighting against gravity with all his might just to peek his snout above the water.
"Kiyo-" Cassie gasps, when he manages to bring them both up again, "Your blood!"
He looks down, and the water is cloudy and stained. His vision blurs, and wobbles, but he ignores it, pushing up with his feet as much as he can.
The sounds around him are next to fade away. He's been relying on adrenaline, but there's only so much of that to go around. He notices his mouth go underwater, so he stops breathing, kicks becoming weaker and weaker.
He steels himself to hold on, but he can't. His legs give up.
Just as he's about to sink, he feels talons grip the hair on his head, and wind pushing down on him from above. He peeks an eye up, and through his smudged vision, he can resolutely spot Bean frantically pulling him upwards, with the map in his beak. It's not much, just barely enough to keep his head above the water, but with Cassie in his grip, it's futile.
Then, music fills his ears. A moving, vibrato voice.
"I will win! I will win! Oh, sun, life, and eternity!~"
And next, a splash.
His hind paws, barely kicking, feel a slick surface underneath. It rises, allowing him to stand, and his bottom half immediately goes limp, though his paws still wrap around Cassie incessantly.
Fatty rises up from the water, her mouth free again, and she sings loud, "Laugh and sing in the sun! Oh, our infinite happiness!~"
Bean can see several of the floating pirates turn in shock at Fatty's voice. He slaps her with a wing.
Cassie coughs up water, grasping Kiyo, who's suddenly closed his eyes. The two of them locked together keep both firmly onboard, against Fatty's fin. She stutters, "F-Fatty, we need medical attention! We've got to go, now!!"
The sharpedo turns her gaze and winces at the trickling blood on her port side. "Ach! Yes, of course. Hold on, if you can, my dears~"
Bean lands on Kiyo, pecking him awake. He groans, but manages to keep his eyes half open.
Fatty dashes off away from the pirates at incredible speeds, her wake pushing the frozen, floating Captain Ironjaw upside-down. Quickly, the lit remains of the Harpoon fade into the distance.
“Kiyo! L-listen to me! You have to stay awake!”
Kiyo blinks, and nods, eyes lidding. The water rushing past, and the shouts of Bean and Cassie both, fade into muffled afterthoughts. It's so nice to just hang limp off the shark. To be weightless. To be completely unburdened..
Kiyo’s world fades to black.
When Kiyo returns to consciousness, his body isn’t shifting or swaying- it’s stable. For the first time in a long time, he wakes up on land.
His vision slowly returns, and the first thing he sees is all he wanted- Cassie and Bean are both staring right into his blinking eyes, with studious expressions, and then, relief.
“Kiyo!” Cassie says, instantly wrapping her arms around his chest. “You scared us… We gave you the reviver seed almost an hour ago.”
“Ow,” He says, hugging her back with one paw and wrapping Bean into the embrace with his other, “An hour?”
“You lost a frankly unreal amount of blood, dear,” sings Fatty, from the nearby shore, “I would know. It smelled delicious!”
Cassie looks back, scornfully, “Fatty! Really?”
She hocks out a haughty laugh and swims off to do who-knows-what, granting the three privacy for the time being.
Cassie releases Kiyo and steps back, though the fox keeps Bean tucked into his chest, looking away with a guilty expression.
“I’m sorry, Cassie.”
She stifens. “Huh? Why?”
He sighs, and mutters as though each word is painful to speak, “I promised I wouldn’t let go. But I did. I’m sorry.”
Cassie stands there, stunned for a few seconds, before fuming.
“Kiyo! You idiot! You saved my life! You almost died yourself doing it! You don’t have to be sorry!”
He groans, and puts a paw over his eyes. Bean looks between him and Cassie.
“Yeah, but you save my life, what, a hundred times each month?”
She rolls her eyes. “Okay… We have to work on your self-preservation skills, Kiyo.”
“It’s not that. It’s just… What’s the point of me being alive if you two aren’t? That’d be stupid.”
It takes a few beats for the severity of his sentence to sink in. Kiyo himself realizes just how blunt he’s been after a bit, and blushes. Cassie wraps him into another hug which he’s powerless to reject. To her credit, she shows impressive restraint, and refrains from tearing the blue-stained bandages around Kiyo’s torso.
“Aww… I love you too!!!”
He sputters, “I’m being serious!”
Bean tells Kiyo the feeling is mutual, but he’d make a terrible martyr. Kiyo pouts.
“Yeah, yeah…”
They sit in companionable silence for a bit, with Cassie fussing over Kiyo’s bandages, Kiyo content to lie down and hold Bean, and Bean staring out into the ocean wistfully. They’ve got a prime location, in their tiny base of operations, hidden a few paces from Port Purity. Originally it was meant to be an hidden, inconspicuous shelter, but as Cassie often does, she went overboard with the construction, resulting in a wicker gazebo overlooking the sea, and a large wooden cot covered in blankets, which all three rest upon.
“Say, Bean,” Kiyo starts, with the bird swiveling his head to attention instantly, “Do you have any idea what the treasure is? We nearly died, I think, just to get the map. It’s gonna be worth it, right?”
Bean wriggles out from Kiyo’s grasp and hops closer to the fox’s ear. He relays everything he knows; The map itself doesn’t reveal anything about the item. Everything that’s known comes from the various seafaring types, who all seem to have different views of it. Some say it’s a mirror that grants wishes. Others say it’s a scarf that allows the wearer to travel through time. Some claim it’s simply a king’s throne, forged in gold and gemstones. Regardless of what it is, exactly, due to its legendary status it’d be foolish to trust any hearsay on the item.
That being said, whatever it is, Bean has a feeling it’s worth more than any sum of money. That’s just his gut reaction, though. For all they know, it could be a mundane wooden doll.
Kiyo lies his head back, and looks to the roof.
“Great,” he sighs.
“Don’t think about it like that,” Cassie says, laying down beside Kiyo, flat on her belly, “We didn’t know what the treasure would be when we got ourselves into this whole mess. In fact, I remember exactly what we said when we decided to go through with it.”
“And what was that?”
“Something along the lines of… What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Hah. Funny…” Kiyo yawns. His body yearns to curl up, but any movement of his torso results in a spike of pain. Bean makes a timely return and sits himself down atop Kiyo’s chest, thereby forcefully preventing him from flipping over and re-opening his wounds.
Cassie mulls to herself, by his side. A life of crime is what’s allowed the three to explore the world with the utmost freedom, but tonight, that was nearly lost in the worst way possible. Did they simply overstep their bounds? Or is such a risky occupation just a ticking time bomb?
“Kiyo,” she asks, tiredly, “Do you think… Do you think we should…”
She turns, and finds his eyes to be closed, his chest slowly rising and falling with gentle breaths. Bean looks at her with curiosity.
Cassie smiles. “Ah… Nevermind.”
She turns back, wiggling into a comfortable position, and closes her eyes. “Goodnight Bean. Goodnight Kiyo. …Thanks… For not letting go.”
No one responds. The three simply drift off into peaceful sleep.
Safe, at long last, and together, to the end.