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[Tres]

 

“Let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure.” 

 

Many stories are of heroes or of great deeds because no one writes about the villains. They usually start with the birth or death of a prominent figure; you know, like Gold D. Roger or Edward Newgate. In this case, it was far less poetic, so don't get your hopes up. This is the tale of a crude, unorthodox and borderline dysfunctional band of merry misfits, scalawags and privateers. A story of highs and lows as the romance of their adventure through this grand world would leave wakes of change wherever they would journey to.

 

Our saga begins on the isle of Mammon, in the bustling city of Sadim. Aside from its thriving bazaars, black markets and underground fighting arenas, most knew Sadim for its occupants; majority of which were made up of pirates. On one hand, you have youthful and thrill-seeking rookies setting off for the Grand Line, still filled with their hopes and dreams aplenty. The second are the unfortunate ones; those that have been scuffed by the sea that most referred to as paradise. You might also see some criminals and outlaws, but as of now, they aren't that important.

 

Anyway, as with any city with an abundance of pirates, one would expect an abundance of taverns as well; even toddlers, who were considerably dumb, knew this fact. In one of the largest ones in Sadim, The Promiscious Wench, a strange individual sat at a long table by herself. She was a young girl looking to be only not a year over twenty. She had pale skin, fair mauve hair with dark purple highlights, and magenta-hued eyes.  She stood at an unimpressive height for a human girl - probably a few inches just above five feet - but definitely gave off a warm and inviting vibe. 

 

A piece of white cloth held by several mugs of rum was hanging over the front of the long table. Poorly written on it reads as follows:

"Pirate Crew Sign ups. Beware, adventure and danger aplenty. Faint of heart need not apply."

 

OOC: 

Spoiler

Everyone is free to do whatever they want. You can use whatever is mentioned in the introduction post or you can message me if there are others things you think that could be done on the island. I'm sure we can work something out.

[Johnny Paradise]

Naranbaatar and Sharakhyn

 

Naranbaatar's journey from Dol Ordon had led him to the island of Mammon, a strange place with strange people, a labyrinthine city with walls made of pirates. His native island was made up of nearly two hundred people; Sadim had two hundred people per two hundred feet of street. It was an eye-opening experience. With Sharakhyn circling him above, the two traversed the city, looking for passage on a ship that would travel the world. They were not met with much luck. For most people he met, he could scarcely ask if they had a ship, let alone if they would allow him on board, before they told him to fuck off. Two times, someone even tried to rob him! One such person was left in an alley with a gaping wound across his chest, and another found his face riddled with talon marks.

 

It wasn't long before Naranbaatar began to give up hope. Perhaps this island, too, lacked the means to get him sailing across the four Blues and the Grand Line. With a heavy heart, Naranbaatar and Sharakhyn upon his shoulder entered a tavern, a foul placed named The Promiscuous Wench, searching for food and the tender embrace of alcohol (though it lacked the depth of flavor of the shar airag he drank at Dol Ordon), wondering which island he might head to next to find passage to the Grand Line. It was here that he met her, a strange woman with violet hair that perhaps held the key to fulfilling his goals. She sat alone at a table, looking for members of a pirate crew.

 

The very idea of it left an awful taste in his mouth. Piracy? A man like Naranbaatar, reduced to a common criminal? The very thought of it was disgusting. Yet, he felt himself left with little option at this point. He certainly would never go along with a group of amoral criminals, but this girl seemed inoffensive at worst--the thought that she placed herself among the ranks of the scum of the earth and sea, the pirates? Naran would never have guessed that. Perhaps it would be reasonable to offer his services to her, so long as she served his own ends as well. And if not, he was sure of his skill with the sword, and would cut her down should she prove to be of the character Naran assumed of all other pirates. Sharakhyn on his shoulder, the two approached the girl.

 

"Hello," he said, "I go by Naranbaatar. This is Sharakhyn. Against my better judgement, I find myself interested in you. Tell me, are capable of helping me fulfill my purpose? I wish to travel the world--all of the world. I need a ship to take me there."

[Unbelievably Majestic]

Vaani

 

Mammon was one of Vaani's usual stops. It was about as far north as he'd ever been. This was where he would usually end a run on a ship, get payed, and board another ship headed back down south. He'd sailed with most of the merchants who frequented the area by now. It was about time he moved on to bigger plans. The Grand Line! One Piece! He would get there one day. For now he felt the little pouch of Beli he'd been payed and despaired. He needed a ship to go after One-Piece. A ship and a crew. All he had now was scant few Beli and a bag with his few possessions in it. And to call it a bag was to be quite optimistic about the grubby old burlap sack in which he threw his second set of clothes and utensils. At least it was tough. He could say that much about it. It had lasted a long time.
 
Vaani stepped off deck, shouted a few farewells to the crew, and headed off down the docks and into town. He had a few jobs to do while he was here. Very important jobs. For the first job he would have to go and see Stan. So he headed that way. Winding his way up into the city streets. Swerving through crowds. Hopping the odd fence. He knew this place well. He was here often enough to have learned short-cuts. He stepped over a drunken man, sleeping at the end of an alley, and out onto the street. Stan had better still be here. The crowd was thick and Stan's was easy to miss, he walked past it twice, but eventually Vaani found it. Stan's Spicy Soba Stall, just what he was after. He sat down and greeted Stan, all friendly-like. This was always his first stop when he arrived in Mammon. His first job upon landing was always to find Stan and eat some food.
 
But something had changed since Vaani was last here.
 
Something was new.
 
And Stan was about to find out what.
 
"Hold on." Vaani said, dipping his hands into his bag. "Put it in this." He produced his own bowl proudly and slid it over. He'd carved it himself out of a bit of drift wood. Some might consider that weird, Stan seemed to, but Vaani thought it was a particularly genius idea of his. He experimented with a plate, but things kept falling off. If you have your own bowl you can just ask chefs to put the food in that, then you can eat anything on the go. Instead of having to sit at the shop. You see, Vaani had learned through experience, and also just from generally being as wise as and old ass oak tree, that people don't like it when you walk off with their plates and bowls. But if you leave with your own bowl, they have an extra free seat for someone else. It works out perfectly. Win-win. Everyone comes around to the bowl idea. Vaani explained this to Stan as he watched him cook with awe. It was nothing special. Just a noodle dish. But the chopping of the vegetables, the heat, the smell, the flash of the blade. It was still amazing. He finished up in short order, Vaani payed the man, and then he was off with a fond farewell, bowl of noodles boiling away in his hands. Not a drop was spilled as he slipped through the crowd with the skill that could only come from, possibly too much, experience.
 
He had food now. The most important job was over. Now he needed a beer to go with it. Beer, food, music. So he went to the tavern. The nearest one he knew that was likely to have enough space for him to eat his noodles in peace was The Promiscuous Wench. So he headed there. It was a pretty nice establishment. Not too many blood-stains that had stubbornly remained after lots of cleaning. Most of the chairs weren't broken. Some of the tables even, get this, don't wobble. Now that's classy.
 
He took a seat by himself, grabbed a beer, and started to eat his hot noodles. The music was good. The atmosphere was generally pleasant and jovial. He guessed most people hadn't gotten really drunk yet. Places like this tended to get a volatile tint to the room when everyone was really drunk. He decided to do a bit of people watching. Check out the crowd. It'd be handy to know who was here and who he thought he could beat in a fight. That way if a fight broke out he could go straight to there and people would leave him alone while he fought off a weaker man and took the opportunity to unashamedly steal drinks and snacks from tables in the mayhem. It always worked out perfectly.
 
With a pleased smile upon his face he cast a glance around the place with casual interest. It was mostly people like him. Just come in from the docks and determined to drink their way through what money they had been payed. Then he saw something interesting. Someone was looking for a crew. A young woman, cute with violet eyes and light hair. She was probably around the same age as him, he guessed. Not that he really knew his exact age. He cast the thought aside. It was unimportant. What was important was the woman and her little sign. ''Pirate Crew Sign ups. Beware, adventure and danger aplenty. Faint of heart need not apply.'' It said. Fairly standard as far as they went. Trying to lure people in by challenging their bravery. Not directly, of course, but many a drunken sailor would see that and sign up to prove he was made of tougher stuff than those around him. Vaani had seen it many times. Heck, he'd been that guy a few times.

 

Not that he actually shipped off with them. A lot of those sorts of ventures simply never sailed. Not enough interest was usually the cause. Though once or twice he'd heard of some nasty, unfortunate crew managing to scramble ashore after a shipwreck then killing one of these poor recruiters and taking their empty ship. Those sort of people saw 'Looking For Crew' signs like they were 'I Have No Friends For Backup And An Unprotected Ship' signs. Vaani pushed his eyebrows together into a frown and looked around briefly for any opportunistic bastards that might be looking to take this young woman's ship from her. It was usual procedure when he spotted a recruiting sign. No sense going to a tavern at closing time as they say, a saying he enjoyed from down south.
 
As far as he could tell it was clear enough of any ship-thieves. For the moment at least. That meant he would go over and ask. Like he always asked in the past. And like he'd probably have to ask again in the future. Usually people just laughed. But it was worth asking. So he headed on over, beer in one hand and noodles in the other. One man beat him there. One man and one... Pigeon? Some sort of bird. Vaani didn't know birds. But it was cool looking. That was interesting. He sat down at the table and ate some noodles as the man introduced himself to the woman. He had a name. He definitely had a name. And so did the bird. But they had way more letters in them than Vaani could afford. He forgot the names instantly. Then Vaani tried to feed the bird a noodle.

 

"All of the world? Haha." He cut in with disbelief and a chuckle, as the man with the long name finished. "May as well put a bullet in your head." He laughed to himself a little before turning to the woman. "Vaani." He said with a gesture at himself. He took a swig of his beer. Time to ask. "If I join, can I be Captain?"

[Wandering Rogue]

Alex

 

 

Alex had arrived.  Where exactly she hadn't the faintest of ideas but she had certainly arrived there and nobody could take that from her.  The proper action upon finding an island after being adrift at sea would of been to get your bearings and learn just where in the wide blue world you'd washed up.  However, Alex had not once in the entirety of her life been known to act in a fashion that could be called proper.  She was where she needed to be of that she was reasonably sure and to be frank she had been walking around the island for too long as this point to stop and ask where she was at this point.  Seemed like a nice place at least.  Plenty of low lives wandering about with inflated egos just asking for Alex to hit them.  If they asked her nicely she might just oblige them.  Or maybe if they didn't ask so nicely.  Alex wasn't picky.

 

All this excitement was taking its toll on her though and she eventually felt the need for a drink.  Which is what brought her to the Promiscuous Wench.  Not that she had any money to buy anything.  The thought that she would need money to get something she wanted was so alien to Alex as to be laughable.  She would laugh when they asked and when they insisted she would hit them.  Not too hard though.  It wasn't their fault that they didn't know better.  Least not the first time.  Of course, she didn't get the chance to even order.  There was some kind of ruckus at a nearby table.   Seemed like some girl was forming a group and this monkey looking guy told a funny joke.  Alex found it so funny that she felt compelled to come over and slap him on the back while she was half bent over from rocking laughter.  

 

"That was good.  Got any more jokes like that?  Also what is this?"

 

[Jod]

Sol edged his way through the Sadim bazaar. Pushing his way through the currents of people would not have been such an ordeal. If only crowds did not terrify him as much as they did. They brought about bad memories. However he was forced to deal with his fear out of necessity. He was low in both cola and coin. The first was an immediate danger and a the latter a nagging worry.

 

Sol was headed for a local pub he knew, his usual cola spot. There was no other reason than habit  to prefer this pub over other places to get cola. If there was one thing Sol was creature of habit. As he finally reached the dingy door of the establishment, he wondered if it would have been better to make this trek during the night. It probably would have, but then he supposed he would look more suspicious than he looked now, draped in a tattered cloak. He had made sure to cover up as much possible, the less people knew of his nature the better.

 

It took some time but he was able to make his way to the ‘The Promiscuous Wench’ without much incident. Inside it was as boisterous and loud as usual, how could it be any other way with drunk sailors. Sol ambled over to the counter trying to be as conspicuous as possible. Then put down a few coins and pushed it forward to the barkeep. “Erm… Three… Three cola’s please” he said.The barkeep merely nodded with and passed him the cola.

 

As he was on his way out Sol noticed something on the corner of his vision. A woman sitting behind a kind of board. It appeared that she was on the lookout for a crew. Well Sol was not interested in piracy, it drew far too much attention, with that thought he continued out the door. However on the other hand, he was in desperate need of cash. Indeed, he was sure that pirates had a lot of cash, he had seen them spend it like crazy. He also liked the fact that they kept on moving on from place to place, that was good thing. He had learned that it was never a good thing to stay in the same place. Now it looked like it was not so bad a thing this piracy business. Now all he had to do was get his wits together and actually talk to the woman, which was hard enough as it is.

So Sol trudged over to the group of loud people now haranguing the woman. “Ah, I…. would like to become a pirate.. As… well”  he said, relatively quietly.

[KDPtheKing]

The day was bright and breezy. Cassie was sailing towards the next island to restock on supplies and get something to eat. She had not rated for the last 12 hours and being the only person on a Boat that big was a lot of work. Yet somehow, she managed to take care of herself. The East Blue Pride, as the boat was named, was in very good shape. Cassie maintained the boat constantly and that paid off as the East Blue Pride was always ready for any sort of situation....that she could think of anyway.

As she reached the dock, she dropped anchor and tied a few lines to keep the boat secure. "Hey, keep her fresh, don't let my baby get a single nik." She told the dock master as she left her boat in his hands. She wasn't worried about much with the boat. She didn't fear the marines because she didn't fly a Jolly Roger so her ship was safe from Marines. "Actually, Dock Master, you should make sure this ship is still here when I'm ready to go, or someone will have a bad day." She said, holding Jane to the man's face with a smile on her own. It was a slight threat but still one she meant. She wasn't violent but the hands which helped build that boat was special to her, so the boat was special in turn.

Another loud grumble from the tummy sent Cassie to the nearest food joint. "One burger please!!" And she munched away.

[Mors]

Ness

 

Ness clamored along the streets of Sadim. The feel of the stoney street beneath her webbed feet. The sounds of the marketplace. The smell...well it was more of a stench really, if she was being honest with herself, but it was wonderful all the same. This was the adventure she had always hoped for.

 

"Hey, watch where you're going girl!" 

 

"Sorry, sorry!" Ness cried out and pulled the hood of her cloak further over her face. There were too many people here. Her senses were overwhelmed, and she got careless. She wasn't here for adventure, after all. She was here for destiny. Trying to stay unnoticed as possible, she traveled for several minutes through several streets and alleyways. She traveled until...

 

"Here. This is where they are." Ness, fortunately, could not see the name of the building. Nor could she see the sign up sheet in front of the girl. But with her senses, she saw her face. It was the face of the girl who so often filled her visions. She rushed past the group that had gathered before the table, straight to the pale purple-haired girl. And then she put her hands on the girls face.

 

"You're the one I saw...the Pirate Queen."

 

 

[Johnny Paradise]

Naranbaatar and Sharakhyn

 

In a comically fast chain of events, Naranbaatar's attempts at conversation were thwarted by a veritable legion of rude and uncouth people. One even told him to shoot himself. At least, Naranbaatar thought he did--truth be told he didn't quite have a grasp on the vernacular of the common people. A girl punched the one that told Naran to kill himself, and he thought that a pretty good response to saying something like that; perhaps he should have reacted quicker and sliced across his chest or something (that seemed to be a fairly common thing here).

 

He did not, however, take out his scimitar and slice Vaani across the chest. Instead, he passed the man a stern gaze and said "I assure you, my goals will not be cut short by disbelieving riffraff."

 

Yet even more approached, including someone perhaps more out of place than Naran himself, and a freaky fish girl. This was becoming considerably more than he had anticipated from initiating this conversation.

 

"Ehm, excuse me, Miss uh... Pirate Queen?" he said to the violet-haired girl. "I believe there is an order to these things, yes? I believe I asked a question, and I would like to see it answered."

[Vafhudr]

Sedna Savarin

 

"Pull my finger."

 

"What."

 

"Pu-lll myyyyy finnnnggerrrrr." Sedna repeated again. 

 

Imagine the scene. Four men had cornered her protagonist, Sedna, at the back of the restaurant she worked at. She knew her employer dealt in shady stuff, but she wasn't expecting to find herself in the crossfire. Now four thugs, possibly belonging to one of the biggest crime rings in the city, were here to send a message. 

 

It just so happened that Sedna was a great communicator. 

 

"You scared?" she asked, a shit-eating grin plastered on her face.

 

"You littl--"

 

Thug numero uno didn't get to finish that sentence. Sedna promptly kicked him in the balls. The man squealed, falling to his knee. That was unfortunate for him, as he found himself just at the right height for Sedna to jab him in the eyes with her fingers. The eyes gelatinous constitution ruptured as her rigid bronze fingers slid through the orbs as they would butter. Blood promptly mixed itself to the goo. It was like a broken egg, but like gorier and rated R.

 

"You little bit-" Thugs numero dos, tres and quatro (thank you Pitbull), snapped out of it and thought it was cool to pull out guns - big massive, gaudy flintlocks - with cool repeating mechanisms to boot. Everything plated in faux-gold. Maybe some real gold, but mostly pyrite. Probably. 

 

Remember kids. Violence is a-ok when it's used against the scum of the earth. 

 

Sedna reached for the garbage bag she had come to throw out in the first place and launched it at her aggressors. It ripped (of course it ripped) and it's mixed content of refuses slathered the ruffians' faces. They flinched and staggered. One took a wild shot and only managed to nick the already riddled wall behind Sedna. She, on the other hand, reached for inside her jacket and pulled out quite a few knives. In one beat two movements she flicked the knives at her assailants: the guns fell down to the ground as the men groaned in pain. The knives had lodged themselves in their hands, legs, and perhaps a tad closer than comfortable to their crotch  

 

"Aha... haaa... you really did it now. Do you know who just messed with?" one of the roughed up ruffians asked rhetorically. 

 

"Hmmm... let me guess. Eastside mafia?" 

 

The asshole grinned before showing a tattoo on his chest. It was a pear of breast... tatooed on his... welll... breasts. Sedna bit her lower lip. Fuck. They were affiliated with ---

 

"That's right. We're with Mammon's Mamelons. You are never going to rest in peace now. We'll hunt you. We'll find you. And then we will hurt you. And I mean reall--AGGGHHAHHAHA!!!"

 

The man's screams drowned his cliche villain speech as Sedna pulled one of her knives from his leg and straight through his cheeks, sideways. 

 

"Keep talking like that and see where that gets you." She said, cold as dry ice. And dry ice is pretty fucking cold. 

 

But the guy had a point. Mammon's Mamelons were no joke. Her boss was in deep doo-doo if that's from who he was withholding money. She thinks it was about money. I mean, the man was perhaps one of the single worst payrolls she's had. 

 

"Guess this gig's over then." she said as she dropped her dumb little chef hat. It's one of those origami looking ones you see on cantine workers. 

 

And with that she ran. She ran like hell. Her bronze mechanical-feet pounding the unevenly cobbled streets. First stop - her apartment. So much for the security money. Better breaking bail and then being broken by the Mamelon's. In a whirlwind of actions she gathered the bare essentials: clothes, money, dry leftover and of course - her well kept collection of cooking knives, her pan and cooking pot. In fact, she shoved half of that in the cooking pot. She heard footsteps in the hallway - times up, she thought - and it didn't sound like her old, half-blind landlord. She would miss the old bat. She made some killer tea and cookies. Instead, she exited through the window. A quick escape, down into the busy streets of Sadim below. Her objective: the harbour. She had to get on a ship before sundown or she was toasted, roasted, cooked - or any other cooking metaphors for being royally boned. 

 

But who's going to take in a girl who is clearly running from something?No armateurs, however in need of a good cook, was dumb enough to take someone who would have a hit on her head in no time.

 

Paranoia was gaining on her as she walked the street.  Any of the pair of eyes could belong to an informant, a toad, a thug or an assassin. She quickened her step. She saw two dudes looking more shady than usual. She took a right, and into a pub. 

 

The Promiscuous Wench. Could you be any more tasteless? She didn't think so.

 

It was appropriately crowded and she considered making her way to the back and make a dash through the alley. Or at least, that was the original plan - until she saw, until a bright, shining spotlight illuminated in front of her the solution to her problems. It was in the form of a rather dubious looking girl slouching behind an ever more dubious looking sign. A small crowd had gathered around the table already, but she only had eyes for the shittily written words. 

 

"Pirate Crew Sign ups. Beware, adventure and danger aplenty. Faint of heart need not apply."

 

That was her ticket out. She made her way to the table, dropped her gear and slammed her hands on it's flat surface.

 

"Hi. My name is Sedna. Where do I sign?" 

Edited by Vafhudr, 03 June 2016 - 04:32 AM.

[Unbelievably Majestic]

Vaani

 

"I assure you, my goals will not be cut short by disbelieving riffraff." The fancy named man declared.

Vaani laughed. He could scarcely believe his ears. This fancy pants, long named, bird-man was clearly an idiot. Vaani knew he'd have to enlighten the poor man as to the folly of his ways. He took a swig of beer, let out a belch, champed his way through a few more noodles and began the lesson.

"Listen here buster." He said, pointing quite rudely in the man's face. "Riffraff I may be. And I certainly don't believe you can do it. But... Honestly. There's good reason. I mean, you want to see every pebble on every beach on every shore on every island? Every wave? Each and every tree. EVERYTHING?" Vaani chuckled again. "First up, you can't do it. Not Possible. The world is too big. You'll die before you see it all... Probably. And secondly, that's boring as hell. Even if you don't die of old age before you see it all, you'll want to. You'll waste your entire life visiting every little scratch on the goddamn map and counting the freaking trees or something? Just buy a map for all that crap. Then it's like, congratulations you don't need to bother. Most of the world sucks. You'll see. What you want is to go to the places nobody gets to visit. Don't go to every tiddly little village in the middle of nowhere, go to the Grand Line. Explore that. See all of that! Maybe even look for One Piece while you're at it. That's my plan." Vaani ate some more noodles with a contemplative look on his face. "Well, that and also to eat the best food. I need to find a chef friend to go with me..." He trailed off and started eating and drinking more, occasionally smiling to himself as he came up with food ideas that he'd ask his amazing, and currently non-existent, chef friend to make.

Edited by Unbelievably Majestic, 03 June 2016 - 12:39 PM.