04-16-2016, 12:02 AM
There was a lapping about his face. Simple, Rhythmic, it marked the meter of time, bringing peace and regularity to his heartbeat and breathing. Gradually his eyes fluttered open, staring up into a deep blue sky. The water washed past him, at equal intervals covering his ears and exposing them to the sound of the surf nearby. His body was drenched, Like the quintessential drowned rat... he thought as he worked himself up onto his elbows. What a strange phrase that is, can't rats swim well?
Glancing around he saw the battered carcasses of several ships. What is this place? He wondered, and attempted to work into a sitting position. The fatigue struck him suddenly, and he sank back into the sodden sand with a pained groan. There was nothing immediately threatening him right now, even his arm seemed painless enough. He was vaguely aware that this fact should concern him, but he was too fatigued for this idea to properly impact his mind. His consciousness lulled, and he passed once more into the darkness of unthought.
When he awoke he could not tell that time had passed. The sky above looked the same as ever, a deep and pure unbroken blue. He realized that he was no longer on the edge of the beach, and as his senses started to return he caught the sound and smell of a small campfire. Not the only one here then... Doing his best to remain still, lest he alert whomever had taken him here, he glanced around. He seemed to be inside the broken shell of an old sea vessel, the campfire's smoke dissipating through one of the larger missing chunks of boat. Judging from the state of the wood, this ship had ended up here a very long time ago. There didn't seem to be anyone else inside the boat, and the Sage experimented with sitting up. It took longer than he liked, but in a little while he had managed to work himself into a sitting position.
There was a pile of clothes and furs in one of the more sheltered corners, and some strange totems hung from the decrepit timbers supported by lengths of rope and tattered sail. Less than cheery... the Sage thought as he crawled closer to the fire. His clothing was stiff with salt, and torn in many places. He considered trying to create a new set, but couldn't muster the resolve to summon anything. It may be better to keep my nature quiet for now. Staggering to his feet, He moved towards the entrance of the broken ship, to get a better look at his location.
Boats, broken boats and sand were the only things in sight. A wasteland of shattered hopes and lives. Stumbling, he made his way from the campfire, not knowing his aim, but searching for something that could allow him escape. The campfire had belonged to a much more permanent resident than he had any intention of becoming. He began to search for as intact of a boat as he could find, hoping he could use Omnilium to make it sea-worthy again. The words of an old ballad came unbidden to his mind, and he began to whisper it under his breath:
Three princes of Norden went to the sea,
and they sang, and they danced, and they sauntered.
But only two princes came back from the sea,
for one of the princes wandered...
Shambling among the carcasses, he idly wondered if the ship he sank had ended up here with him. It seemed likely, but he supposed it would be indistinguishable from the rest of them. The bones always look the same in the end. On a whim, he made his way towards the shore once again, and choosing practically at random, up the shattered slope of a ship towards the cabin. He wasn't sure what he was hoping to find, this ship had been split clean in half and wasn't going to be sea-worthy anytime soon. Nevertheless, he planted his feet as best he could on the sand-pocked boards, and shifted open the door to the captain's quarters.
He wandered far over island and wave,
and the eyes of the deep were awakened,
and the deep dragged him down to a watery grave,
his ship on the shore lies forsaken.
He was pleasantly surprised to find the office almost entirely intact. Moving towards the desk, he found several papers spread out upon the desktop. His attention was drawn to a letter pinned to the desk by a rusted dirk. Its writing was smudged and stained with salt, though he felt like the handwriting contributed to the illegibility in equal portion to the environmental degradation of the document. He couldn't make out many details, but it seemed to be a report by a wizard. That much was evident from the condescension that its author could not keep entirely hidden, even from one of his superiors. It seemed to concern a strange artifact that was being tracked by the writer, who seemed convinced it was a key to some sort of power. Nothing too surprising there... he mused, scanning through the rest of the letter. The wizard seemed to be holed up in a place called Cinnibar island, and had sent for additional resources via this message. It seemed the message had not made it to its destination. Leaving him in desperate need of support... The sage took the note and folded it into a pocket. As he did so the journal he carried slipped out and slid across the sloped floor. The Sage dove after it, sliding out the door of the office and down the ship itself. He managed to snatch it in time to slide down into the brine himself, cradling the journal to protect it from the water.
As he landed with a slight splash the world grew darker around him. He looked to the sun, but it shown unimpeded, there was no cloud from which this darkness was to have come. A sense of foreboding stole over him, and he became aware of the many overhangs, and shadowed ruins nearby, from which any number of eyes would be watching. He was exposed.
Brushing the thought away with a shudder he turned back to his original objective with a renewed purpose. As he continued to wander among the sunken vessels, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed. At times he glanced behind him to catch a piece of wood falling from its mooring or a settling dune slide into place. He could feel his anxiety rising as he plowed on, he had always preferred solitude, the presences of his own thoughts without others to get in the way of their message. Now he grew concerned that he would remain here alone. With a sigh, he crested another of the small coastal dunes, noticing a ship that looked more or less intact. He began to shuffle down the slope, dislodging sand into a small cascade as he went. It was a simple fishing boat, much smaller than the galleons and trading vessels he had wandered amongst so far.
There was a crack, and the Sage whirled around as the banister of a nearby ship snapped clean and went tumbling to the sand. He tensed, eyes searching for movement, ready for an attack. His hand clenched, missing the cane he had not thought to summon. He would not make that mistake again, he vowed, assuming he outlived this one.
Nothing seemed to be moving, the rotted remains of the rail lay in the sand now, as naturally as if they had not just fallen. He was getting jumpy he decided, letting the stillness of the island unnerve him. Besides the owner of that strange shack, it looked likely there as no one else on the entire island. A solitude of thoughts and an escape from the world. but also from the good food... he thought, wishing not for the first time since his departure from Coasta Del Sol, that he had not relied on his Omnilium for sustenance. He turned back towards his goal and set foot on the deck of the fishing boat.
Immediately sound and sand exploded outwards from behind him as something large burst out of the beach not far inwards from the shore. The Sage leapt up onto the planks of the boat, Where one creature lurks beneath the sand, many others will also lie in wait. the cloud of sand settled, revealing a large chitinous creature serrated mandibles sampling the air with an eager purpose. The Sage remained silent, as he slowly edged away from the beast's sight. It seemed to be tracking by scent, and it let out a high-pitched clicking sound, as it began to skitter along the sand of spindled legs. The Sage could not help but notice the strength that was evident in something as simple as planting a foot. It bespoke a power even greater than could be expected from the horse-sized crustacean monstrosity.
The Sage continued to back away slowly, as the beast scanned the area. It seemed to have lost track of the initial target for which it had burst into the light, and its irritation was already becoming evident. The Sage inched along the far rail of the ship, the beast's forelegs punched straight through the deck as it clambered aboard the far side. The Sage stepped backward slowly, not wanting to let the beast get too close. Even as the floorboards splintered under his foot, the Sage knew that this fall would end up costing him dear. His leg broke through, and on a second's impulse he let his other leg slide out from under him. He watched the creature locate the sound and cross the distance in less than a second, felt the claws cleave through the air above him, crashing straight through wood where his head had just been without the slightest of hesitation. His leg was now definitely trapped by the broken planks, splintered wood rained down on him. He grabbed a plank as the beast reared up with a chittering screech, he would have to time this perfectly, or he would be quickly dispatched. As the scything spike came arcing down at him, he swept the plank into it, barely deflecting it into the floor besides him. Again the wood was splintered, and the Sage plunged into the galley of the boat. His ankle landed underneath him and he grunted in pain.
The monster gave a screech of vexation and began to tear madly at the hole, rapidly splintering the fragile wood. The Sage crawled to the far end of boat as the stabbing claws continued to tear their way through the weakened planks. He was low on options, he didn't have time to summon anything, and there was nothing here he could use to fight back. The speckled light of the hatch-cover shown down on him, feet away, but the decrepit ladder was in pieces at his feet. The hole of was almost big enough for the monster to get though, and the surroundings proved fruitless in his searching for a means of escape. The hole was definitely big enough for the creature to get through now, and the beast's delay was concerning. It had him cornered, why not pursue the kill?
He wondered what it would like to be eaten, it did not settle his thoughts.
The momentary silence was shattered when the Beast gave an ear-rending shriek, but rather than entering through the hole it had torn the ceiling above the ceiling above the Sage splintered as the full body of the monster crashed through, jagged timbers and armored carapaces tearing through the Sage's clothing and skin. The Beast was on its back, the sage pinned and bewildered underneath him. With an irritated chittering, the monstrosity rolled over and tore through the shattered remains of the floor with a ferocity and speed that put its earlier performances to shame. Through the haze of pain, the Sage was aware that the monster was retreating. Which means there's something worse out there.
It wouldn't help anything to stay inside. He struggled to his feet, wincing on his bad ankle, and looked for a way out. The holes from the monster’s attacks were there, mere feet above him. Minus the ankle it would be simple enough for him to clamber up, given his injury he did not feel capable of springing the required distance. Where finesse is not an option brute force will have to suffice. he thought, and made his way over to the wall of the boat. Here's hoping this is still above ground.
The Sage placed his hands against the wall of the boat, and began to extract a portion of the wall. He felt sick as the rotting timbers were absorbed, their broken bonds stale and riddled with decay. He watched, growing slightly concerned as sand began to pour in through the holes the extraction created. After about five minutes, he had created a sizable hole, through which the sand was spilling into the floor of the boat. Here goes nothing! he thought and threw his weight against the weakened section. There was a further snap, and the inflow of sand pushed the Sage backwards as it sloughed into the bottom of the boat. He was pleased to see that there was light visible over the top of the sand, and he crawled up through the shifting sand. It was not a simple process, but after a while he was able to squeeze his way out through the crack.
Well, it’s time to see what’s scarier than a giant death-lobster. he said, stepping up back onto the surface. The world seemed to be growing steadily darker, despite the perpetually cloudless sky. The Sage hunched his shoulders, whatever it was that had scared the monster couldn’t be far. He didn’t have any direction to aim for, but it would be better to keep moving. The Darkness seemed to be getting thicker, almost fog-like, and through it all the sun shone down from above, a light from above but pale, so far away and helpless.
Off to his left there was a flash of bright light, about half-a-league away. There was no way of knowing what it could be, but simply being something in this
silent stilling place was enough to send him towards it.
He had very few options.
Glancing around he saw the battered carcasses of several ships. What is this place? He wondered, and attempted to work into a sitting position. The fatigue struck him suddenly, and he sank back into the sodden sand with a pained groan. There was nothing immediately threatening him right now, even his arm seemed painless enough. He was vaguely aware that this fact should concern him, but he was too fatigued for this idea to properly impact his mind. His consciousness lulled, and he passed once more into the darkness of unthought.
When he awoke he could not tell that time had passed. The sky above looked the same as ever, a deep and pure unbroken blue. He realized that he was no longer on the edge of the beach, and as his senses started to return he caught the sound and smell of a small campfire. Not the only one here then... Doing his best to remain still, lest he alert whomever had taken him here, he glanced around. He seemed to be inside the broken shell of an old sea vessel, the campfire's smoke dissipating through one of the larger missing chunks of boat. Judging from the state of the wood, this ship had ended up here a very long time ago. There didn't seem to be anyone else inside the boat, and the Sage experimented with sitting up. It took longer than he liked, but in a little while he had managed to work himself into a sitting position.
There was a pile of clothes and furs in one of the more sheltered corners, and some strange totems hung from the decrepit timbers supported by lengths of rope and tattered sail. Less than cheery... the Sage thought as he crawled closer to the fire. His clothing was stiff with salt, and torn in many places. He considered trying to create a new set, but couldn't muster the resolve to summon anything. It may be better to keep my nature quiet for now. Staggering to his feet, He moved towards the entrance of the broken ship, to get a better look at his location.
Boats, broken boats and sand were the only things in sight. A wasteland of shattered hopes and lives. Stumbling, he made his way from the campfire, not knowing his aim, but searching for something that could allow him escape. The campfire had belonged to a much more permanent resident than he had any intention of becoming. He began to search for as intact of a boat as he could find, hoping he could use Omnilium to make it sea-worthy again. The words of an old ballad came unbidden to his mind, and he began to whisper it under his breath:
Three princes of Norden went to the sea,
and they sang, and they danced, and they sauntered.
But only two princes came back from the sea,
for one of the princes wandered...
Shambling among the carcasses, he idly wondered if the ship he sank had ended up here with him. It seemed likely, but he supposed it would be indistinguishable from the rest of them. The bones always look the same in the end. On a whim, he made his way towards the shore once again, and choosing practically at random, up the shattered slope of a ship towards the cabin. He wasn't sure what he was hoping to find, this ship had been split clean in half and wasn't going to be sea-worthy anytime soon. Nevertheless, he planted his feet as best he could on the sand-pocked boards, and shifted open the door to the captain's quarters.
He wandered far over island and wave,
and the eyes of the deep were awakened,
and the deep dragged him down to a watery grave,
his ship on the shore lies forsaken.
He was pleasantly surprised to find the office almost entirely intact. Moving towards the desk, he found several papers spread out upon the desktop. His attention was drawn to a letter pinned to the desk by a rusted dirk. Its writing was smudged and stained with salt, though he felt like the handwriting contributed to the illegibility in equal portion to the environmental degradation of the document. He couldn't make out many details, but it seemed to be a report by a wizard. That much was evident from the condescension that its author could not keep entirely hidden, even from one of his superiors. It seemed to concern a strange artifact that was being tracked by the writer, who seemed convinced it was a key to some sort of power. Nothing too surprising there... he mused, scanning through the rest of the letter. The wizard seemed to be holed up in a place called Cinnibar island, and had sent for additional resources via this message. It seemed the message had not made it to its destination. Leaving him in desperate need of support... The sage took the note and folded it into a pocket. As he did so the journal he carried slipped out and slid across the sloped floor. The Sage dove after it, sliding out the door of the office and down the ship itself. He managed to snatch it in time to slide down into the brine himself, cradling the journal to protect it from the water.
As he landed with a slight splash the world grew darker around him. He looked to the sun, but it shown unimpeded, there was no cloud from which this darkness was to have come. A sense of foreboding stole over him, and he became aware of the many overhangs, and shadowed ruins nearby, from which any number of eyes would be watching. He was exposed.
Brushing the thought away with a shudder he turned back to his original objective with a renewed purpose. As he continued to wander among the sunken vessels, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed. At times he glanced behind him to catch a piece of wood falling from its mooring or a settling dune slide into place. He could feel his anxiety rising as he plowed on, he had always preferred solitude, the presences of his own thoughts without others to get in the way of their message. Now he grew concerned that he would remain here alone. With a sigh, he crested another of the small coastal dunes, noticing a ship that looked more or less intact. He began to shuffle down the slope, dislodging sand into a small cascade as he went. It was a simple fishing boat, much smaller than the galleons and trading vessels he had wandered amongst so far.
There was a crack, and the Sage whirled around as the banister of a nearby ship snapped clean and went tumbling to the sand. He tensed, eyes searching for movement, ready for an attack. His hand clenched, missing the cane he had not thought to summon. He would not make that mistake again, he vowed, assuming he outlived this one.
Nothing seemed to be moving, the rotted remains of the rail lay in the sand now, as naturally as if they had not just fallen. He was getting jumpy he decided, letting the stillness of the island unnerve him. Besides the owner of that strange shack, it looked likely there as no one else on the entire island. A solitude of thoughts and an escape from the world. but also from the good food... he thought, wishing not for the first time since his departure from Coasta Del Sol, that he had not relied on his Omnilium for sustenance. He turned back towards his goal and set foot on the deck of the fishing boat.
Immediately sound and sand exploded outwards from behind him as something large burst out of the beach not far inwards from the shore. The Sage leapt up onto the planks of the boat, Where one creature lurks beneath the sand, many others will also lie in wait. the cloud of sand settled, revealing a large chitinous creature serrated mandibles sampling the air with an eager purpose. The Sage remained silent, as he slowly edged away from the beast's sight. It seemed to be tracking by scent, and it let out a high-pitched clicking sound, as it began to skitter along the sand of spindled legs. The Sage could not help but notice the strength that was evident in something as simple as planting a foot. It bespoke a power even greater than could be expected from the horse-sized crustacean monstrosity.
The Sage continued to back away slowly, as the beast scanned the area. It seemed to have lost track of the initial target for which it had burst into the light, and its irritation was already becoming evident. The Sage inched along the far rail of the ship, the beast's forelegs punched straight through the deck as it clambered aboard the far side. The Sage stepped backward slowly, not wanting to let the beast get too close. Even as the floorboards splintered under his foot, the Sage knew that this fall would end up costing him dear. His leg broke through, and on a second's impulse he let his other leg slide out from under him. He watched the creature locate the sound and cross the distance in less than a second, felt the claws cleave through the air above him, crashing straight through wood where his head had just been without the slightest of hesitation. His leg was now definitely trapped by the broken planks, splintered wood rained down on him. He grabbed a plank as the beast reared up with a chittering screech, he would have to time this perfectly, or he would be quickly dispatched. As the scything spike came arcing down at him, he swept the plank into it, barely deflecting it into the floor besides him. Again the wood was splintered, and the Sage plunged into the galley of the boat. His ankle landed underneath him and he grunted in pain.
The monster gave a screech of vexation and began to tear madly at the hole, rapidly splintering the fragile wood. The Sage crawled to the far end of boat as the stabbing claws continued to tear their way through the weakened planks. He was low on options, he didn't have time to summon anything, and there was nothing here he could use to fight back. The speckled light of the hatch-cover shown down on him, feet away, but the decrepit ladder was in pieces at his feet. The hole of was almost big enough for the monster to get though, and the surroundings proved fruitless in his searching for a means of escape. The hole was definitely big enough for the creature to get through now, and the beast's delay was concerning. It had him cornered, why not pursue the kill?
He wondered what it would like to be eaten, it did not settle his thoughts.
The momentary silence was shattered when the Beast gave an ear-rending shriek, but rather than entering through the hole it had torn the ceiling above the ceiling above the Sage splintered as the full body of the monster crashed through, jagged timbers and armored carapaces tearing through the Sage's clothing and skin. The Beast was on its back, the sage pinned and bewildered underneath him. With an irritated chittering, the monstrosity rolled over and tore through the shattered remains of the floor with a ferocity and speed that put its earlier performances to shame. Through the haze of pain, the Sage was aware that the monster was retreating. Which means there's something worse out there.
It wouldn't help anything to stay inside. He struggled to his feet, wincing on his bad ankle, and looked for a way out. The holes from the monster’s attacks were there, mere feet above him. Minus the ankle it would be simple enough for him to clamber up, given his injury he did not feel capable of springing the required distance. Where finesse is not an option brute force will have to suffice. he thought, and made his way over to the wall of the boat. Here's hoping this is still above ground.
The Sage placed his hands against the wall of the boat, and began to extract a portion of the wall. He felt sick as the rotting timbers were absorbed, their broken bonds stale and riddled with decay. He watched, growing slightly concerned as sand began to pour in through the holes the extraction created. After about five minutes, he had created a sizable hole, through which the sand was spilling into the floor of the boat. Here goes nothing! he thought and threw his weight against the weakened section. There was a further snap, and the inflow of sand pushed the Sage backwards as it sloughed into the bottom of the boat. He was pleased to see that there was light visible over the top of the sand, and he crawled up through the shifting sand. It was not a simple process, but after a while he was able to squeeze his way out through the crack.
Well, it’s time to see what’s scarier than a giant death-lobster. he said, stepping up back onto the surface. The world seemed to be growing steadily darker, despite the perpetually cloudless sky. The Sage hunched his shoulders, whatever it was that had scared the monster couldn’t be far. He didn’t have any direction to aim for, but it would be better to keep moving. The Darkness seemed to be getting thicker, almost fog-like, and through it all the sun shone down from above, a light from above but pale, so far away and helpless.
Off to his left there was a flash of bright light, about half-a-league away. There was no way of knowing what it could be, but simply being something in this
silent stilling place was enough to send him towards it.
He had very few options.
If history is to become legend, it first must be recorded.