Sounsyy reached up and knocked his hand away with her left while her right held the rifle to her side. She gave him another vexed look and her injured hand reached out to his chest and pushed him back some with her four fingers.
"Don't get cozy," she said referring to his hand, "I got yer back, but yeh snap down there or that artifact takes hold of yer mind like Sixteen says, I'm leavin' yer arse wit' the fishbacks. I've outlived a helluva lot of suicide missions where I believed in what I were doin', so I ain't keen to die on one I don't."
Sounsyy took her eyes off of Ryanti for the first time since she turned to face him. She looked down the deck of her ship. Marjanie's lithe figure was leaning against the helm, her forearms between the spokes. She looked tired, but Sounsyy was glad to see her. She wondered if the Elezen had been silently judging her marksmanship the entire time. The rest of the deck seemed quiet, almost ghostly. A thin fog was just starting to roll in with the cool air of early morning.
She brought her attention back to the rifle at her side and hefted it one last time. She turned away from Ryanti and aimed out over the gunwale, bringing the rifle butt against her shoulder and cocking her head to eyeball down the long barrel out over the Indigo Deep. She checked her positioning quickly, and satisfied, lowered the rifle without firing. She nodded a bit to herself before propping the rifle against the gunwale and turning back to face Ryanti. Her arms folded across her chest in an almost motherly sort of way.
"Yeh should put up and get sleep. We'll be diving in a few hours. When first light comes be out on deck. Marjanie will brief us as we suit up. Then we'll dive. After that, we're in Llymlaen's hands."
She handed the rifle back to Ryanti and helped him pack up the gear he had pulled out for practice. It only took a few minutes to successfully pack everything away and after one last brief exchange she sent the boy below. She sighed as she came back out onto deck, just her and dark sky above. She craned her neck and stared straight upwards into the night sky, stars beginning to disappear behind low fog. She thought of that blackness that she would soon be descending into. Darker, darker, and deeper away until nothing. She felt a little dizzy and could feel Marjanie's anxious gaze on the back of her neck.
She blew out Ryanti's lantern and the ship fell into darkness. Her bootsteps were the only sounds that rose above the gentle lapping of the waves against the ship's hull as the Captain carefully made her way back across the deck to where Marjanie awaited her at the helm. The Elezen woman said nothing as Sounsyy crested the top step. The two stood together for a time, the Captain's eyes slowly adjusting to the dark.
"So yeh got a good look at the suits," Sounsyy asked, seemingly to the abyss. The Elezen's voice soothed back to her, "I did. Ironworks. So she finally got them to work..."
Sounsyy said nothing for several minutes, staring out at the subtle movement of the waves glistening in the moonlight. She had nodded, but realized Marjanie could probably not see her reaction, or was simply too preoccupied to take notice. "For my sake, I hope so," Sounsyy finally said flatly.
"The dive will still be dangerous."
"I'm agonizingly aware."
"So you trust him?"
"No."
...I trust you.
When Sounsyy finally made her way to her cabin, it was early in the morning. Still hours before dawn's light, but not many. The Captain slumped back against her cabin door to close it, the heavy latch falling into place with a soft clack. Her foot came forward and did not land upon crunched glass. She knelt down to feel the floor, but found it cleaned. The planks where the wine had had a chance to soak into still bore a distinctly darker shade, but were otherwise clean. She wondered if P'welro had done this.
Her chair called softly to her, singing its siren's song. Only, Sounsyy's ears did pick up a faint call. The image of the ancient sea serpent with the woman's torso swam across her vision in the darkness. She had to steady herself, her hand reaching out and touching the wooden walls to remind herself she was still in her cabin. She was awake.
Her breaths came quickly, but she did not hear the call again. There was only her pounding heart, beating in time with the pulsating Allagan relic hidden in the bowels of the ship, though she did not know this. She sank into her armchair with a groan and held her arms tightly against her body while the night slowly gave way to morning.
"Don't get cozy," she said referring to his hand, "I got yer back, but yeh snap down there or that artifact takes hold of yer mind like Sixteen says, I'm leavin' yer arse wit' the fishbacks. I've outlived a helluva lot of suicide missions where I believed in what I were doin', so I ain't keen to die on one I don't."
Sounsyy took her eyes off of Ryanti for the first time since she turned to face him. She looked down the deck of her ship. Marjanie's lithe figure was leaning against the helm, her forearms between the spokes. She looked tired, but Sounsyy was glad to see her. She wondered if the Elezen had been silently judging her marksmanship the entire time. The rest of the deck seemed quiet, almost ghostly. A thin fog was just starting to roll in with the cool air of early morning.
She brought her attention back to the rifle at her side and hefted it one last time. She turned away from Ryanti and aimed out over the gunwale, bringing the rifle butt against her shoulder and cocking her head to eyeball down the long barrel out over the Indigo Deep. She checked her positioning quickly, and satisfied, lowered the rifle without firing. She nodded a bit to herself before propping the rifle against the gunwale and turning back to face Ryanti. Her arms folded across her chest in an almost motherly sort of way.
"Yeh should put up and get sleep. We'll be diving in a few hours. When first light comes be out on deck. Marjanie will brief us as we suit up. Then we'll dive. After that, we're in Llymlaen's hands."
She handed the rifle back to Ryanti and helped him pack up the gear he had pulled out for practice. It only took a few minutes to successfully pack everything away and after one last brief exchange she sent the boy below. She sighed as she came back out onto deck, just her and dark sky above. She craned her neck and stared straight upwards into the night sky, stars beginning to disappear behind low fog. She thought of that blackness that she would soon be descending into. Darker, darker, and deeper away until nothing. She felt a little dizzy and could feel Marjanie's anxious gaze on the back of her neck.
She blew out Ryanti's lantern and the ship fell into darkness. Her bootsteps were the only sounds that rose above the gentle lapping of the waves against the ship's hull as the Captain carefully made her way back across the deck to where Marjanie awaited her at the helm. The Elezen woman said nothing as Sounsyy crested the top step. The two stood together for a time, the Captain's eyes slowly adjusting to the dark.
"So yeh got a good look at the suits," Sounsyy asked, seemingly to the abyss. The Elezen's voice soothed back to her, "I did. Ironworks. So she finally got them to work..."
Sounsyy said nothing for several minutes, staring out at the subtle movement of the waves glistening in the moonlight. She had nodded, but realized Marjanie could probably not see her reaction, or was simply too preoccupied to take notice. "For my sake, I hope so," Sounsyy finally said flatly.
"The dive will still be dangerous."
"I'm agonizingly aware."
"So you trust him?"
"No."
...I trust you.
~Day #9~
When Sounsyy finally made her way to her cabin, it was early in the morning. Still hours before dawn's light, but not many. The Captain slumped back against her cabin door to close it, the heavy latch falling into place with a soft clack. Her foot came forward and did not land upon crunched glass. She knelt down to feel the floor, but found it cleaned. The planks where the wine had had a chance to soak into still bore a distinctly darker shade, but were otherwise clean. She wondered if P'welro had done this.
Her chair called softly to her, singing its siren's song. Only, Sounsyy's ears did pick up a faint call. The image of the ancient sea serpent with the woman's torso swam across her vision in the darkness. She had to steady herself, her hand reaching out and touching the wooden walls to remind herself she was still in her cabin. She was awake.
Her breaths came quickly, but she did not hear the call again. There was only her pounding heart, beating in time with the pulsating Allagan relic hidden in the bowels of the ship, though she did not know this. She sank into her armchair with a groan and held her arms tightly against her body while the night slowly gave way to morning.