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Post by Miska on Apr 5, 2016 3:22:05 GMT
‘Bouyancy system…Anti-radar…Through precise geometric shapes it bounces the sound waves off…’Miska tried her hardest not to throw up by concentrating hard on the fascinating submarine ‘system’. She had experienced ships and their dizzying movement before, and back in that tropical island where she grew up her family regularly took liners to other islands. Some of those islands do not have airport yet. But being in a submarine on its way to the surface was way too extreme. Chaldea never ceased to amaze Miska. How on earth could they get their hands on a stealth submarine flying Cuban flag? The moment Miska stepped foot at Jose Marti International airport he was not really sure of what to do. But before he even finished bringing his luggage an agent had already approached him. A black car came with the agent’s call, and several days later Miska somehow found himself in a submarine stalking the Caribbean Seas in an undoubtedly illegal act. MS Birka Paradise. 1.800 passengers on board. Tonight was especially stormy in the seas off the coast of Lesser Antilles. And Amidst the darkness of the night and the deafening sound of the rain, Miska would infiltrate the ship. Miska forced her mouth to close as another deep water turbulence hit the submarine side, making her back slammed against the iron wall. She and her partner Servant were cramped in the little room just below the upper hatch. The moment the crew signaled it was okay, the upper hatch would be opened, and the Servant was allowed only seconds to carry Miska up to the cruiser’s top with a daredevil jump before the hatch was closed to prevent incoming water from sinking the submarine. Miska had seen what a Servant was able to do in the form of Genghis. But still she could not help but have some worry about the plan. What if the Servant was not strong enough to jump that high? Secretly, Miska was glad that he was a good swimmer. The red lights around the room flashed and Miska knew the time had come. But, wait, he forgot to tell the Servant something! It had to be now, lest they immediately met someone aboard the ship! Amidst the deafening roar of the engine and the alarm blaring, Miska moved her head closer to the Servant and screamed at her ears. She could barely hear her own sound, and she was sure Servants were not immune to noise too. “LISTEN! I-I KNOW YOU ARE OF ASSASSIN CLASS. BUT PLEASE REFRAIN FROM KILLING ANY PEOPLE, OKAY?” She paused, as another wave slammed her away, “THERE ARE MANY INNOCENT PEOPLE ON BOARD!!”“HATCH OPEN! GOOD LUCK YOU TWO!”And even before the captain’s voice faded, the upper hatch opened. Torrential downpour immediately drenched the two. Seas raging all around them, and a thunder flashed above. In front of them was the black silhouette of the cruise, with its windows a tiny light, like a serene mountain holding its own against the waves. And from down below, it really seemed as tall as a mountain. Miska gulped. Sea water had already invaded his lips. It tasted salty.
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Post by Naayééʼ Neizghání on Apr 5, 2016 4:33:06 GMT
Damned mechanical contraptions.
Naayééʼ Neizghání detested modern vehicles. Civilization she actually didn't mind terribly much, but all these mechanical beasts, hulking monstrosities of iron with no life or soul about them, made her stomach turn. It had only been under extreme protest that they'd managed to convince her to ride in the damn thing, and she had only assented for the master's convenience. She'd have preferred to just swim the whole damn way herself, it's not as if she wasn't up to the challenge. But carrying somebody on her back the entire way would have been inconvenient, and they likely would have succumbed to hypothermia.
So here they were. Miserable.
A wave rocked the submarine and slammed her tiny master against the wall. She put a single arm on his shoulder, instinctively clutching the tiny master's form against her to steady the smaller human. It was an instinctual reaction to those smaller than her, honed from years of spending time with her little brother. Dimly, she heard her master say something to her over the blaring sirens and harsh noises of the churning ship. Something about not killing anyone? Well, obviously. Every life was precious, and nothing in the mission suggested killing anybody. Did she think just because she was an Assassin she planned on slaughtering her way through the ship? It was almost insulting.
Before she had a chance to respond to the accusation, they were drenched, as the hatch above them opened and the mission began.
The Native American Servant grabbed her master, glaring at the distance between them and the ship. A fair distance away, made no more promising by the harsh conditions of the storm around them. Naayééʼ Neizghání glared up at the dark clouds, almost considering asking the storm to go away. But she knew better, it would just move somewhere more likely to disturb the natural flow of things, if it decided to move at all. Besides, it was good cover for their mission, and it'd be strikingly obvious if the storm just left.
But passage over shouldn't be too much, no?
Naayééʼ Neizghání gaze a wide grin to her master, smiling like a ray of sunshine amidst a storm, happy as could be in the downpour of water.
"Ready, Master?"
She didn't give him a chance to respond. Hoisting the poor sap off their feet, Naayééʼ Neizghání carried them much like a husband would their bride on a wedding day. And without so much as a moment to adjust, she bounced off the submarine, sailing into the air towards the ship. Miska might notice two things rather quickly; One, for such a jump there was alarmingly little wind. Next to none, in fact, as the harsh winds of the storm slowed to a halt in a tiny area around them, responding to the Assassin's unspoken request in the language only things without speech could understand to grant them safe passage, a calm eye in the storm.
And two, they were coming up far, far too short for the jump they were attempting.
In fact, they'd only make it about half way before one of the assassin's feet hit the water, a soft splashing noise accompanying it, lost in the roar of wind and rain around them.
And then, they bounded back up, sailing back into the air as the water pushed up against her rather than accept her into it's watery confines, against responding to her words without language. Half a moment later and they'd be at the ship, half way up the hull and clutching to one of the many ropes and devices hanging about the hull of the ship. Not much leverage, but enough for her to hold onto with one hand and her feet, using the other arm to retain a cradling grasp on her master between the ship and herself so that Miska might not fall into the tumultuous waves beneath them. She was fairly confident that nobody had seen their crossing, with the storm about them and due to the height of the ship, but she didn't want to risk landing on a deck quite yet. Better to get in a window to some isolated room, too many vantage points she couldn't account for on the deck.
Still grinning, she looked back at her master, giving him a moment to adjust. Should they choose to, they could probably break free of her grasp and latch onto a close hanging lifesaver, danging next to the net and ropes the Assassin currently used as her own footing to keep steady on the side of the hull. Though where they'd plan to go from there, Naayééʼ Neizghání had no idea.
"Having fun yet?"
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Post by Miska on Apr 5, 2016 5:34:23 GMT
"Ready, Master?"“Grggffhgglh!”Rain water filled Miska’s mouth as he tried to speak. He had wanted to say something before the start. Something heartening and proper like a Lord should. But it seemed that he still had a long way towards the charismatic person like his father. He could not even stand straight! And with a jump, the journey began. It was a long way to the looming ship, she knew. But she had at least prepared herself that this Assassin Servant with her right now was at least as skilled in jumping as that Mongol Rider. That was why when the jump seemed to lose momentum and started to fall towards the churning ocean, that was when Miska thought that maybe her faith was groundless. Soundlessly, Miska’s lips started to pray. “Lord Jesus Christ…save us in this peril…” It seemed so puny in the face of such a terrible storm… But her prayers were answered! The next instant they somehow regained momentum and leapt towards the hull, hanging on for dear life. And Miska felt her soul flew away in an empty bliss. Death was so close. Death was so near. But she was saved once again. The first thin Miska did once they were stable was to make the sign of a cross. "Having fun yet?" The Servant asked. And while normally Miska would be angered at such insensitive remarks, now he felt like laughing. Such things became humorous after such dire circumstances when he almost lost his life. “Not yet!” he answered, unwittingly having a smile, “Assassin, see that Life Boats on row up there? Can you throw me there? I can –help- you up once I am up. “-Or better yet- carry us both there now.”They were directly below the Quarter-Deck, with the propellers roaring below them. Above them were glints of the red Life Boats swaying in the storm. Perhaps if they could hide behind one they could sneak into the cabins. And then where to? She had no idea. Her family did not pamper her enough to bring her on a luxury cruise.
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Post by Naayééʼ Neizghání on Apr 6, 2016 23:04:21 GMT
“Assassin, see that Life Boats on row up there? Can you throw me there? I can –help- you up once I am up. "
Assassin glanced up, ascertaining the location her master spoke of. Easy enough to reach, and hidden enough that she could deposit her master there and then make her way up herself. She braced herself, getting ready to toss her master toward the inflatable raft before Miska continued.
“-Or better yet- carry us both there now.”
...Nah.
"Don't scream."
Naayééʼ Neizghání gave her master a sly grin before she leaned away from the boat, causing them both to begin to teeter away from the fragile balance her feet had established for them. Just as it seemed they would topple away from the boat and into the watery depths beneath them, Assassin gripped her master with both arms and threw Miska to their desired location. Unlike with her own stunts, she had no wish to undershoot her Master's arc for adrenaline's sake, so he would find himself landing quite snugly in the center of the raft, although she might still be a bit shocked by the manner in which Assassin choose to toss her. Ah well.
So proud of her little stunt, Assassin almost forgot she was about to fall off as well. She let herself topple backwards, doing a back flip and grabbing the same net she had used for footing with her hands just as she began to drop, yanking herself upward with both arms and kicking upward off the side of the boat in one swift motion. Half a second later, Miska would find Assassin plopping herself down in the boat beside her master, keeping herself low so as to avoid anyone spying them. Would it have been easier, and probably more subtle to just carry Miska up and climb in? Probably. But also much less fun.
"So, what now, Master?"
Assassin didn't particularly see anyone on deck, but they had to be careful how they approached it. The rain covered the noise of her acrobatic feats and their ascent, but it wouldn't do much about feet on the deck if someone was specifically looking for them. Assassin could keep herself concealed, but she had to make sure her master was not detected either; A much more difficult feat without just carrying him the whole way.
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Post by Miska on Apr 7, 2016 2:19:10 GMT
Miska did not like the sly grin. Not a little bit. “Hope you don’t –AAA-mmmfffff!!!!”Poor Miska had so much self-consternation he actually put his hand over his mouth to prevent himself from shrieking. It was funny to see, but also somewhat disheartening. What might it have taken- and what might have he forced to take- to enable such act? Miska landed with a grunt at the life boat, but immediately ducked for cover. Such harsh treatment made her whole body ache. Entirely different from Genghis back then. Sure, she had her fair share of harsh training as a little Lord, but at least her father remembered that she was still a- That moment, Assassin landed near him and asked him the question he was loathe to answer. "So, what now, Master?"He would like to say ‘I don’t know’. But a respectable Lord can never say that in front of his followers, right? No. He had to come out with a plan. She leaned closer to Assassin and hushed. “We were not given -any- helpful device, so the best we can do is find von Mietz’s room and search there.” Even before she finished she realized that Chaldea was crazy to send them searching a whole cruise ship without any hints. “Assassin, you can search better than me. You can turn into that –what they call- intangible Spirit-thing, right? You search for the room, I hide here –It’s much less risky. I’ll come with you once you find a safe path.”
The Master was the sort to order someone around rather than politely ask them. But there was no doubt that he had clear mind and sound plans. If the mummy is not in his room… They would have to look at luggage storage and maybe –maybe- kidnap the Magus himself and search his pocket. Another note from Chaldea was that Servants were absolutely forbidden to touch the mummified armadillo. Something about empty souls and being trapped in the next world or something awaited them. That was why there had to be a Master on board.
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Post by Naayééʼ Neizghání on Apr 9, 2016 20:38:10 GMT
No idea where they were going to look huh? She supposed that made sense. After all, it's not like they had much in the way of ability to know where he would be at a particularly point in time or where he'd store the item in question. A bit of a bother, but one they could work around. Assassin stood as her master spoke to her, stretching her arms briefly. Nonchalant, as if not even considering the possibility that someone might see her, she stood and stretched momentarily before looking down at her crouching master for a brief moment.
"Well, I'll be off then. Contact me through your Command Seal, should you need me before I return."
As far as Assassin was aware, her Master should be able to speak to her through the bond of their command seal even without using one. So if she were discovered, Assassin could come rescue him, although that would probably jeopardize the whole "keep your Servant hidden" thing. Still, that was a problem for Miska to concern herself with, Naayééʼ Neizghání already had her orders. Vanishing in a cloud of shining particles, the Assassin entered spirit form and quickly began making her way over the deck. She crossed the relatively unoccupied surface, filled with only one or two guests quickly trying to hurry their way across it in the pouring rain, making her way to a stair well that seemed to lead down into the bowels of the ship.
If I were a Magus with a priceless Armadillo artifact, where would I be...?
Luckily for Assassin, the Cruise Ship had a map on basically every floor, for the idiotic tourists onboard who would never know how to get around without it. Which just left the distinction of where she wanted to go. She debated the Cargo Hold, but her master had mentioned finding his room first would probably be ideal. After all, it was unlikely he'd leave something so valuable out in storage with all the other mundane Cargo. Even if it was not in his room, there might be some clue as to where it was hidden.
Nodding her head, she began making her way to what seemed like the living quarters with the largest and most luxurious rooms. After all, such a... what was the word, illustrious? Magi probably liked to travel in style... right?
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Post by Miska on Apr 12, 2016 16:06:51 GMT
“Assassin bend down!!” Miska hissed sharply as the Assassin stood and stretched herself, nonchalant of the possibility of someone seeing her. He could see her clearly, so that means other could too, right? What if someone looked down towards the life boats and noticed someone standing in the rain there?
‘From this distance and in this darkness, they would simply think her as another eccentric fellow tourist,' Miska’s thought, the ever-snarky one, commented in her head. Miska stopped.
She felt glad that Assassin followed her orders without too much question. Miska still held to her belief that Masters are of an elevated rank compared to the familiars called Servants. She knew and respected them as humanity’s best, although she had grown accustomed of them lately. Some she still held utmost respect. But after seeing that much of them were rather noisy, insensitive individuals who enjoyed nothing more than comparing those puny letters beside their Skills, she had lost much of her initial respect.
Of course, his dream of meeting King Arthur in person still glow brightly.
The moment Assassin left, he lowered her head and hid even further down the Life Boat’s covering. There was no use for him to go out now. He could not hide like Assassin could, and he would be far easier to spot wandering around. It would be best to stay hiding until Assassin told him where exactly to-
‘..?’
Her hands touched something hard near her knees as she moved a little. In the near-total darkness, and with the thick covering of the lifeboat above her pounded incessantly by the rain it was hard to see what that was. Reaching down, Miska felt something long and hard, with a smooth surface and shaped like a…
…bone?
In panic Miska picked the thing and extended his hand –just a little- out of the boat’s covering. There was no mistaking it. The dim lightning from the ship’s windows clearly delineated the shape of a human thigh bone in Miska’s hand.
“What could this-?“
More palpation near her position revealed more bones. In fact, Miska had been kneeling just near a human skeleton just now. More bones in orderly manner were found all around her.
Under this lifeboat, covered by the thick cover, someone had hidden not one but two full body of human bones.
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Post by Naayééʼ Neizghání on Apr 13, 2016 3:02:19 GMT
Finding the room turned out somewhat easier than Assassin had expected. Upon entering the area with the largest number of extravagant rooms, she simply asked the wind what room seemed the most secluded and occultist of the lot of them. It was fairly simple to detect the basic magical markings a magus' enchantments would leave on the surrounding world, especially to the world itself, so it wasn't overly difficult to find somewhere that the wind felt was "off" from all the other rooms. The downside however, was that the room was currently occupied, by several people no less.
Assassin made motion to simply phase through the wall in her astral form, but drew back as she felt some minor resistance. A bounded field. Not strong enough to keep her out, but enough to let the Magus know she entered, and that was still far too much information. An invisible scowl danced across her face as she debated her options. She could turn back and go get Misha, or attempt to handle it herself.
Naturally, she chose the latter.
Looking around, the hallway was thankfully unoccupied for now. Most of the guests were busy in their own rooms, or walking about in one of the ballrooms or other attractions of the ship. And so, Assassin materialized in the midst of the hallway, Presence Concealment draping over her as she pressed an ear against the wall and listened. The voices were difficult to make out, but they were definitely talking. Unfortunately, air was hard pressed to understand the concept of "words", so she couldn't just spy on them using her natural talents. She would just have to make do with what we heard.
"lovely... crowded and belig... --rgo hold of thi-... --or nothing mutt... --ice is incalculabl--.. --odies won't be--... --o much effo--..."
Danger.
The wind whispered in her ear. Assassin threw off her physical form and switched back to the ethereal just as a drunken couple turned the corner of the hallway, laughing and being far too handsy with one another for public decency. It was only scant words she made out from , but they painted a decent enough picture to get them started. Hurrying away, Assassin quickly made her way back to her master-- Ten minutes in a straight movement, but it would probably take longer getting back just due to the subtlety that would be required.
Returning to the lifeboat, Assassin returned only to find Miska standing in a... pile of bones. How had Assassin missed that previous? Had they only just recently appeared? No, that would be next to impossible with Miska still in the raft. She cursed her own thoughtlessness at not checking the life boat more thoroughly.
"...So, what'd I miss?"
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Post by Miska on Apr 14, 2016 1:25:28 GMT
A sudden voice startled Miska. He turned around, ready to present her alibi. Or if they looked threatening, ready to subdue them in any way he could. But instead her gaze met Assassin. She visibly relaxed, but still a bit high-strung of having crouched on the pile of bones. “Bones, Assassin! Bones!” he said, for a while forgetting to lower his voice. But the heavy rain pouring on them should conceal most of their movements. “There are bones- human bones- hidden under the lifeboat cover!”She scrambled out of the boat, now completely forgetting she was on deck. With a single move she uncovered the lifeboat cover. “Look!”Sure enough, there were two complete set of human skeletons lying in there, clean and bare like marble. If they were a copy, they were really good copies since their texture had that rugged feeling absent from most plaster. It was hard to really see their color in this darkness, but an overview look suggested they were colored exactly like bones. A thunder flashed above and for a while, the deck was alight. They could clearly see the two sets human skeletons lying side by side. Rain had started to fill the uncovered lifeboat, drenching the human remains inside. “I don’t –remember- luxury cruise hiding skeletons in their lifeboat…” Miska slowly said. Already, his Sorcery Trait kicked in. One could almost see his thoughts rapidly processing and linking the information inside his head. “Not that I have been to one before… -but it is unnatural, isn’t it?”Something popped inside Miska’s head. She remembered when Chaldea gave her the mission details, she asked in the hurried briefing that the ship was scheduled to return to port two weeks ago. “Why is it still in the sea? Is there some damage?” she had asked the staff on their way to the airport. But she never got a satisfactory response. And while in Cuba, an encrypted e-mail from Chaldea had different details about the ship. It was now right on schedule. Naturally, Miska surmised that the earlier print was a mistake. But then there were two skeletons inside a lifeboat… Shaking his head to dispel the thoughts, he turned towards Assassin. He was about to ask something, but then remembered that they were standing on deck. Quickly he crouched near the lifeboat, allowing its shadow to hide them. “You found his room, Assassin?” She whispered. She could not help but inject a tone of disbelief for the Servant to be able to locate a room in this 1.800 passenger so quickly. She had expected at least an hour of search. “Where is it? Is our mission target there?”No matter what, they only needed to snatch that armadillo mummy and run away.
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Post by Naayééʼ Neizghání on Apr 15, 2016 2:42:31 GMT
"I noticed."
Assassin was dreadfully serious for the first time that mission. She knelt among the bones, running her fingers along the length of the bleached bones and examining them in detail. There wasn't much to deduce from them-- They seemed like real bones. Two people's corpses lay before her. But she couldn't tell much from them about how they died, or how they got there. It was a mystery Assassin couldn't solve then and there, so it would have to be shelved for the sake of the mission. She only regretted that her master had been exposed to them like this; They were still quite young, after all. Too young to be a Master and be exposed to the ugly side of the world like this.
At their inquiry, she turned her attention back to them.
"I believe so. I cannot be certain, as the room is enchanted to keep away spirits of all sorts. Entering would have risked detection."
She paused, contemplating what she heard before continuing.
"However, there were several people within the room. I could not quite discern what the spoke of. The object may be within the Cargo Hold given what they were saying, but the room was heavily enchanted, so it makes sense it may be there as well."
It would be troublesome to check both places-- The Cargo Hold was in the complete other direction, if the map she'd seen had been correct. It would extend their trip by quite a while to swing by both. Assassin was leaning in the direction of the Cargo Hold, as it would be safer, easier to avoid detection, and it would avoid risking conflicting with those whom she had heard within the room. However, that was entirely her sentimental side taking over, wishing to shepherd the young master away from harm, and keep them on the least dangerous route possible. Logically, the magus' room made more sense, as their only clue toward the Cargo Hold was garbled speak she'd barely been able to make out.
However, it was ultimately Miska's decision, and she would respect it either way.
"So which would you like to visit-- The Cargo Hold, or the target's room?"
Whichever they choose, Assassin would quickly shift into spirit form and begin leading the way toward them. Hopefully, they wouldn't encounter too many passengers en route...
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