Private Tales Reckoning

[Mako]

Not quite like a compass. Mako explained with quick flicks of his fingers, making sure to keep an eye on everything around them. This place might not have been Cerak, but it was still a pirate town. All sorts of shenanigans could happen here.

As he watched near everything around them he tried to explain a bit more about the mark.

Think of it more as a guide. He continued. When we're on the right path, it will hurt less.

That was why over the last few weeks it had been nothing but a doll throb, and now it was trying to lead them down a more exacting path. The magic that had created the mark was old, very old, but it wasn't perfect. Not anywhere near.

A frown touched his face for a moment as he noticed a man glance at them, and then quickly turn away. Down there.

 

[Emilie]

She gave a huff and a nod at his explanation as she rolled her shoulder in discomfort. "Gods. I wish I'd seen the bastard's face. This would be so much easier." she grumbled.

Emilie paused as she too noticed someone look at them. Nobody else had really paid them any attention, and so the man instantly caught her eye and her attention. She glanced to Mako, reading his hands and wasting no time in pushing through a path of people to go after the man.

She tried her best to keep her sights set on him, though with another look the man disappeared down a set of rickety steps and into the depths of an old cargo ship.

 

[Mako]

Mako followed closely behind Emilie, his gaze flickering not just after the man but over the crowd around them.

In the back of his mind something screamed, alarm bells going off as they neared the rickety steps. Lips thinned for a brief moment and he glanced over to his companion. Something about all of this felt...off. The mark on his shoulder still burned, itched like mad, but...he couldn't quite place the feeling.

This isn't right. Mako said with a quick flicker of his fingers.

A hand came down, drawing the knife from the small of his back. Let me go first.

He mimicked with his fingers, stepping in front of Emilie as he began to move down the steps.

 

[Emilie]

Emilie paused as Mako told her something wasn't right and she frowned, looking around in confusion. "What?" she'd asked, but he was already insisting that he go first and drawing a blade. She hadn't noticed anything particularly strange, but her instincts weren't as finely tuned as his were. If there was going to be trouble, she'd rather avoid it than walking straight into it.

"Mako, let's just go back."

 

[Mako]

Edric stopped on the steps, a look of confusion flickering over his features. He glanced back towards Emilie, his fingers quickly flickering. But this is a lea-

His hands suddenly stopped moving as he found something gripping his leg.

With one quick wrench a hand grasped at him, and then pulled him down the stairs into the dark of whatever ship this had once been. A startled noise escaped his throat, though the sound was more strangled than any sort of cry.

His face bashed against the wooden steps, his body clattering down, a groan escaping as he tumbled onto the lower deck into the darkness.

Ow. He thought to himself, and then suddenly a fist punched into his face.

 

[Emilie]

"Mako!" she bleated in panic as he disappeared down the stairs, her dagger already in her hand as she rushed to the top of them and half stumbled down after him, stopping half way and ducking to see what the hell was going on.

She pointed her dagger at the one who towered over Mako, a brute of a man with one eye and just as many teeth. "Get away from him." she said quickly, though as her eyes adjusted she realised that there were another three or four who were now finding the situation quite amusing.

Before she could say much else, Emilie felt a boot against her back, sending her down the last few steps and sprawling next to Mako. The blade landed a foot away, though as her hand found it, another boot came down hard on it, pinning her hand and knife both to the floor. Emilie let out a sharp cry in pain, and she looked up to see the man they'd followed here grinning down at her as he crouched, still keeping pressure on her hand.

"What's a pretty thing like you followin' me around for?"

 

[Mako]

Mako's head swirled a bit as he lay on the ground. A punch to the face was never pleasant, and lately he felt like he was taking more beatings than he was handing out. Anger flickered through his chest, and then he heard Emilie fall besides him.

His head turned in a panic, and he saw the men crowding around the two of them.

Fingers tightened almost immediately, his heart beating faster and faster as adrenaline pumped through his veins. Lips thinned.

The man they had been following stepped closer towards Emilie, crouching down besides her. A wolfish grin crossed his lips, gaze flickering up and down her form. Mako stared at him, anger rising, and then his hand opened.

A spark of purple light erupted from his palm, racing over the wooden floor and up the wall. The sound of a metal creak echoed out, and then suddenly an unlit lantern came loose from it's fastening. It swung, striking the man in the face and sending him sprawling to the floor.

At the same time Mako kicked his leg out, dragging it in a half circle and tripping two of the men onto the floor. A knife flicked out from his sleeve, sinking into another man's throat as he darted forward and tackled the last of them to the ground. His forehead smashing into his nose as he forced him to ground.

 

[Emilie]

Em jolted at the sound, her eyes wide as she looked up in time for the lantern to smash into the man's face. The second her hand was free she pulled it against her chest and grabbed the blade with the other before scrambling back into a darkened corner.

One minute they were surrounded and the next, the men who'd done so were strewn around Mako's feet. Emilie winced as she watched, her heart rattling erratically in her chest. As the last man fell, Em's gaze lifted to Mako with incredulity. How in fuck had he managed to gain advantage over that?!

She'd been about to ask when one of the men he'd tripped was getting to his feet at Mako's back, a blade in hand ready to plunge into the mute.

"Mako, at your back!" she warned in a bark of panic.

 

[Mako]

As soon as Emilie spoke Mako suddenly twisted back, his leg raising in a kick that smashed his heel into the side of the mans head.

There was a loud crack, and then a thunk as the man toppled onto the floor.

His leg came down, chest rising and falling in steady heavy breaths. Groans filled the air as the men that he had thrown to the floor tried to collected themselves. Mako stepped over towards the one with the blade, his boot crunching over the man's palm as he reached down and snatched the knife.

Head slowly shook, and then he kicked the man in the head before turning away stepping over towards Emilie.

Are you okay? He asked with a flicker of his free hand.

Mako felt his head pounding as he reached out towards Emilie, his muscles aching. Lethargy clung to him, but he tried not to show it as he helped her up from the floor.

 

[Emilie]

Emilie help her injured hand against her chest as he helped her up. "I'm alright." she answered, her chest still shuddering with each breath. She looked over his face, her gaze snagging on the rising welt that was already bruising.

"You?" she frowned, dropping her gaze to check him for any other injuries. When she was sure he was okay she looked over the men he'd single-handedly beaten and she frowned in confusion as she remembered the lantern suddenly coming free.. He'd said he thought he'd had something to do with the sail falling that day.

"Thank you." she said quickly and swallowed. "You know any of them?"

 

[Mako]

His head slowly shook. None of the men looked familiar to him, save for the one that had held that odd pull. A frown touched his lips, and Mako glanced towards the unconscious man he'd struck in the face. He motioned towards him.

He's the one. He flickered his fingers. I think he'll know who we're looking for.

With a frown he lingered next to Emilie for a second, his concern more than clear.

Then he slowly stepped towards the stranger.

He reached down, grasping the man's collar and wrenching him up from the floor. A lulling gurgle escaped from the man's throat, his head lulling from side to side as he slowly regained consciousness. Mako issued a hard smack across his face.

His head turning towards Emilie so she could ask the questions.

 

[Emilie]

Emilie winced at the sound of Mako's hand colliding with the delirious man's face, but it had at least served to wake him up. She caught Mako's eye and nodded. Right, questions. How did you ask where someone was when you didn't know who you were looking for in the first place? She did feel the pull, but she was sure it wasn't him. Was this what Mako had felt when he'd found her? She wasn't the one who'd killed the reckoner, but she'd been protecting the one who had..

She frowned as she shoved the thoughts away and took a step toward the man and dropped to one knee to glower at him.

"Tell us what we want to know and you live to be a fat stinking lump for another day. Don't, and you end up like your friend there." she pointed to the one who lay with his throat open.

"You knew we were following you, so you know who we're looking for. Give us his name, and where we can find him."

 

[Mako]

The man seemed to freeze for a moment, glancing at Mako, then to Emilie. A frown pulled over his lips, his bloody mask of a face seeming to contort.

It was as though he were weighing his options. As though he wasn't quite sure if the two Reckoners were more dangerous, or the man whom he was protecting was. Mako could read the expression, he had seen it on a dozen men.

"I-I can't. She'll kill me."​

The man stammered out, his head shaking.

"You-you don't get it, she's dangerous. She'll kill both of yo-"​

Mako slammed his fist into the man's face once again, cutting off the excuses before he could offer any more. A low grunt escaped the Mute's throat, and he shook the Thug. He was tired of this. Tired of games. His expression was pure anger frustration.

"ALRIGHT ALRIGHT! Her name is Asha! Asha Celin! She's Capatin of the Bloody Smile!"​

 

[Emilie]

Emilie's head shook.

"Way I see it, if you don't tell us we'll kill you, if you do then at least you have some chance of getting out before she finds out." she reasoned, but Mako's reasoning tactics were a little more persuasive.

The man's answer caused Em a little more confusion and she blinked. A Captain? A Woman?

"You've been most helpful. If we see you again, you die." she promised and straightened, reaching to take Mako's arm and lead him back out before any more cronies showed up.

"You know the name?"

 

[Mako]

Mako frowned at the man as Emilie touched his arm, lips thinning for a brief moment.

He made as though he were about to punch the man again. He flinched, but before he could take any action the mute dropped him onto the floor with a heavy thud. His head shook as a whimper resounded, and slowly he allowed the redhead to lead him out of the bilge of the ship.

Heard it once. Mako said with a flicker of his fingers.

Captain. A piece of information they already had. Ruthless. Rumor says she kills more than she needs to.

Most pirates didn't tend to kill the crew when they took a ship, Asha was different. Even Radic didn't stoop that low, mostly because he understood the rules.

She's dangerous. He motioned with a frown.

 

[Emilie]

"Well, apparently she's out hunting reckoners.." she muttered with a wary glance around. "So either we kill her or she kills us." she shrugged.

"And I'm assuming she has more that those cronies out looking. We might need some help." For now they were lost in the crowds, Em's hand grasping tightly onto Mako's. She tugged him toward a large tavern, The Scarlet Serpent, and squeezed her way in, pulling him toward the only empty table in the corner.

"Two." she said to the woman carrying a tray of tankards she assumed to be ale, and she drank greedily before taking a breath.

"So.. You're a pirate. What's the plan?.."

 

[Mako]

Mako found himself shoved into the corner booth, glancing around like a man who had just been sentenced to death.

Teth was a dangerous place to be if you were looking to avoid pirates, a fact that he was more than well aware of. His gaze flickered through the crowd even as the tankards were thrown onto the table, Mako frowning slightly as he watched the crowd.

After a moment he slowly looked to Emilie. We could ask Amara.

Mako suggested.

I don't know Teth very well. His corner of the world lay in the southern oceans, and especially the Bayou. Out here was almost as lost as Emilie. She might be able to point the way to some...friends.

Which they would undoubtedly need.

 

[Emilie]

"Would you stop looking so worried." she frowned, leaning forward with a quick glance to make sure he hadn't gathered any attention.

She nodded at his suggestion, however. "I'm assuming the sort of friends that we'll find here are going to want something for their troubles, and I don't have much in the way of coin.." her lips pursed. "Suppose we could promise that when the task is complete they'll receive shares in whatever her ship and its contents are worth.. Do you know how big her crew is?"

 

[Mako]

There was the rub of it, and why Mako. looked so worried.

She doesn't just have a ship... His finger flickered in answer.

There were a few pirates. Those who had succeeded in their craft. Those who had grown their reputation and become something more than anyone had expected. Radic was one of them, though only in the southern seas. Asha was another.

Mako frowned. She has...a fleet.

His fingers tightened.

Thirteen ships at least. Mako signalled with a frown. Only Captain who stood up to her was some guy and his girl...Lukian and Paytern I think their names are.

Mako shook his head. Think we need to be careful about this.

Very careful.

 

[Emilie]

"A fleet?...Shit." Emilie's head fell into her hands with a huff. It was a suicide mission.

"I don't know how to do this stuff. My father was a fucking carpenter and I worked in taverns for shits sake.." she growled as she rubbed at her face and looked up at him with a shrug, her shoulder aching.

"What do you suggest? Our odds aren't looking too great, are they? I can't live with this fucking constant clawing." she gestured to her shoulder with a growl of frustration. "So either we do this or die trying - because if we can't do it then I'm done." she sat back with her arms folded.

This was no life.

 

[Mako]

Emilie wasn't wrong. This sort of thing wasn't something that you could live with.

The Reckoner's mark didn't ever get better. The feeling, whether pain or something else, would just get worse and worse. It pressed, pulled, and just bothered until finally it was fulfilled.

It was a small, almost insignificant, consolation that eventually more and more of them would show up here on Teth. Whether or not Emilie and he would survive until then though would be impossible to tell. They were driven, pulled to solve this situation far longer before then. I think.

Mako's fingers flickered for a moment, then paused.

A frown pulled over his lips.

I think we should join her crew. He told Emilie, his face entirely straight. Then when we see the chance...take her out.

Preferably with a knife across the throat.

 

[Emilie]

Em's head shook in confusion. "But, if she has men out hunting for reckoners, won't she know what we are?" she asked quietly.

"What if she already knows what we look like?"

 

[Mako]

It was a good point. A really good one, but they had a few things going for them.

Those men knew to look for someone searching. In a place like Teth, word got around quickly. They know Reckoners are coming, not which ones.

So we disguise ourselves and hide the mark. He said with a quick flicker of his fingers.

Mako had done it more than once, infiltrated a crew. It was one of the tactics that Radic liked to do, an easy way to take a ship was to have a man waiting on the inside. Underhanded, but they were pirates, and very good ones at that.

I don't know how else we can get close. Mako flickered. Other than wait for some of the others to show up.

Though that came with it's own problems.

 

[Emilie]

Emilie rubbed at her temples, feeling the dull ache build. This was a disaster. "Fuck it. Alright." she huffed and shook her head. "Not like I have anything to lose. Either we succeed or someone puts me out of my misery." she shrugged.

She took another long drink and set the empty tankard down. "Alright. We should speak to Amara then. And I'm going to need a better weapon than a dagger."

 

[Mako]

He nodded.

Amara would have most of what they needed to disguise themselves. The most important thing was going to be hiding the marks. A bit of makeup and some paint would do the trick, though only as long as no one took too close of a look.

Let's get back then. Mako said with a flicker of his fingers.

A part of him wasn't too eager for that. He was pretty sure that Amara would hit him over the back of the head for this idea. She wasn't a Reckoner though, she wouldn't understand.

They had to do this, there was no way around it. Maybe we get you a bow.

Mako suggested as he downed the last of his ale and threw a few coins onto the table.