A clean profile
8 years ago
Just had a clean out of my profile as well as my Skype. Sorry for people on them, they were just getting cluttered and messy looking.
Plus some things have just changed too much with a few people, for the worse mostly :o
I hope to fill my profile again someday, but a bit more streamlined looking.
Tales of the Eternals chapter 22
A small villa lies nestled in a small ridge on a mountainside, surrounded by oak, poplar and olive trees. The warm air is rich in the scents of flowers and the faint tang of salty air from the sea, glittering on the horizon. In a walled garden Shern’aath is sitting on a wall drawing patterns and flowers onto a vase with a paintbrush. Asterion sits down next to him and Shern’aath shows him the stone he’s working on. Both are now dressed in fresh white tunics with green meandering patterns. On the villa’s sheltered porch, Kiya is dozing peacefully on a couch.
A winding path from the villa leads out to a cobblestone road. At the entrance to the villa’s path, an elegant statue of the goddess Rhea stands. She has wears a crown made of coral and sea shells atop her long hair and one of her hands rests on the head of a massive lion standing at her side. The peace of the afternoon is disturbed by a great rumbling and creaking. A heavily loaded wagon of rather crudely made statues wobbles along the road, pulled by two great oxen and driven by a skinny, weary looking pinkish grey gecko. He stifles a huge yawn and thinks longingly of a clean bed waiting for him at the end of the road when he spies the statue. His large eyes brighten with interest and he stops the cart. Quick as a flash, he starts crawling around and on the statue.
“Ooh, such craftsmanship!” He mumbles to himself in a nasally voice. “No flaws, perfect smooth finish and the detailing. Oh the detailing! It puts those from Anatolia to shame! This would fetch a pretty price in Cyprus or, dare I dream, the pharaoh’s court in Egypt! Yes yes! Well,” he takes a quick glance around, not noticing the villa hidden by the trees. “Whoever dumped this here, well its their loss!”
He starts pushing it towards the cart, puffing and wheezing. As he finally manages to push the statue into the cart, Altallo appears on the road carrying a vase full of olive oil. He has exchanged his poncho and headdress for a white tunic, a yellow cloak with blue patterns and a wide sun hat. He approaches the oxen and starts petting them.
“Good afternoon!” He says to the driver as one of the oxen licks his ears.
“Wha-oh hello.” the lizard pants, wiping his brow and sighing.
“Long journey?” Altallo inquires.
“Oh yes. I’ve been travelling all the way from Lindos. Still, at least Rhodes isn’t too far away now and then I can rest on my ship. I’d stay and chat, but I must get going.”
“Of course, please don’t let me detain you.” says Altallo smiling up at him. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye, I hope we see each other again.”
The lizard’s cart trundles off and Altallo makes his way down to the villa, but stops dead in his tracks. He notices a patch of earth where his ship had been. Frowning he looks up and down the road, spotting the cart as it disappears over the horizons. His face drains of all colour and his mouth drops open. He stutters and stammers, his brain grinding to a halt.
“Wait come back!” he yells before briefly lurching in the direction the cart was heading. He runs down towards the villa, where Shern’aath and Asterion were walking out of the walled garden.
“Alty what’s the-” Shern’aath begins.
“No time to explain, come on you two. Where’s Kiya?!”
Kiya jerks awake when Altallo pokes her head.
“Wassgoingon?” she mumbles groggily.
“The ship has been taken to Rhodes. If we hurry we can get there!”
“What?!” Shern’aath gasps. “Well come on then!”
“It never ends!” Kiya groans and slumps face-first into her pillow.
A few minutes later they are wading through the bustling streets of Rhodes towards the port, a wide open space nestled into a sheltered bay with a large and impressive central building acting as hotel and commercial hub. Sheltered cloisters act as makeshift stalls for freshly landed goods. Meanwhile rows of small cubicles stem from the building, with adverts for boats and crews and destinations, making look almost like an airport terminal. The nearest had a banner advertising voyages to Tauris.
“There he is!” Altallo calls to the others pointing to a bulky trading vessel unfurling his sails and picking up its gangplank. On one side of the ships’ bow the name ‘Selene’ is painted. Altallo runs towards the pier, knocking over produce from a nearby stall but oblivious to the shouts of the owner.
“Alty wait!” Shern’aath follows him, while Asterion and Kiya help pick up the owner repair the damage.
The lizard was lounging next to the guard rail of the ship, looking very pleased with himself. He spots Altallo running along the pier shouting and waving his arms.
“Ah hello my friend!” the lizard calls out, unable to hear Altallo over the pounding of the ship’s oars and the splash of the waves. “Yes I remember you! Come to see me off have you? How very kind. Well bye!”
And with that the ship sails off into the distance. Altallo sinks to his knees, watching the tiny dot on the horizon with an unreadable expression on his face. Shern’aath soon catches up to him, panting and huffing.
“Alty?” he asks, putting a hand on Altallo’s head.
“I can’t believe its gone. How could I have been so stupid?” Altallo says in a hollow voice.
“Don’t say that, we’ll get it back! Kiya and Asterion are trying to find answers back there.” Shern’aath helps Altallo up and guides him away. “Besides that guy didn’t look so big, I can beat him up if he doesn’t give us the ship back!”
Kiya was waiting impatiently for them back at the terminal.
“Here,” she grunts, jabbing a thumb to a poster showing trade routes on a map, before sulking to some nearby shade.
“There! The Selene’s route takes it from Rhodes to Illyria, with a number of stops.” Altallo says thoughtfully stroking his chin. “Well we won’t get there by foot, so we’ll have get a ship. Me and Shern’aath will look around the piers, Kiya you and Asterion check the sailing companies, see if there are any other ships there. And stop sighing!” he adds as Kiya sighs loudly.
“Sorry but we don’t have any voyages following that route.”
“That’s ok, thanks for your help.” Kiya replies sweetly with a smile. But when she and Asterion walk away from the booth, her smile slackens. “That was the fifth one we tried and we’re getting nowhere!”
Meanwhile Shern’aath is approaching a crisply painted and very clean ship.
“Excuse me could you-hey wait!” he cries as the ship starts sailing away with none of the well dressed crew or passengers even noticing him. “Ugh! Fine don’t listen to the crazy lizard man!”
He picks up a loose tile piece from the pier and throws at the boat but misses. The raptor falls to his knees and screams in rage.
“Well if you want a place on one of our ships, its fifty electrum coins a night and not a bunch of rocks.” says another cubicle owner, eyeing the gems Kiya and Asterion offer her with her nose wrinkled as if they smelled bad.
“But that’s too expensive! And this is an emergency!” Kiya retorts, poking the counter.
“Not my fault, we only accept the finest of customers. No peasants and their cows-”
Kiya had dragged Asterion away before she could continue. When they’re at a safe distance and out of sight, Kiya starts making rude gestures towards the cubicle.
“No.” says the captain of one ship bluntly.
“But you sail right next to Ilyria, surely it wouldn’t hurt just to drop us off there?” Altallo asks.
“Look little fella, its not my fault there are strict rules about where we have to go. Now if you want my advice, you should-”
“GET LOST!” yells another booth owner before slamming a wooden shutter into Kiya and Asterion’s face.
They regroup soon after on one of the piers. Shern’aath, Kiya and Asterion look dejected and tire, but Altallo seems to have been invigorated.
“Don’t look so glum!”
“But we’ve been to every stall and they’re all either fully booked or jerks!” Kiya sighs.
“Never mind, we have one more ship to check. There it is over there.”
“That one?” Shern’aath gulps. “I dunno Alty, it looks a bit...grim.”
“What? No, don’t be silly. Its got a, er, rustic charm. Yes that’s it. Its far more lovely up close, see?” Altallo replies, marching up confidently to a dilapidated looking ship with the others trailing behind.
The ship is rather short and sturdy with peeling paint, muck covering the deck and tattered sails. Sitting next to the gangplank is a muscular hammerhead shark man sitting on a stool and whittling away at a small wooden statue. He holds it up to one of his eyes to examine it closer, but stops when he sees Altallo approaching.
“Hello there,” Altallo says smiling happily. “My friends and I need a ship following the Selene’s trade route. Do you think you could help us?”
“Gotta speak with the captain first.” the hammerhead grunts.
“And he ain’t the sort who likes to be disturbed while resting.” says another shark, who slinks down from the sail rigging. Much smaller than the hammerhead, he has a slight, thin body and a higher pitched voice.. “And he don’t take kindly to folks poking their noses into our business.”
Shern’aath notices a few barrels and boxes behind the sharks. “And what sort of business is that?”
“Best you don’t ask about that if you want to keep all your fingers,” the blue shark says quickly, jumping down and grinning down at them. “Now why don’t we get acquainted with each other. Name’s Loukianos, at your service.”
He holds out a hand and Altallo shakes it. Kiya is a bit hesitant and Loukianos laughs.
“Don’t worry, I don’t bite! Oh and this handsome lug over here is Basilus.” he adds, leaning on the hammerhead’s shoulder. Basilus shoots him a look. “Don’t let his rough looks fool ya, he’s a really softy ain’t cha?”
“If you say so.” Basilus snorts.
“What about this captain then?” asks Kiya.
“Well lil’ lady, he’s named Solon and like his name, he really is a lump of iron. Best you don’t catch him on a bad day-”
The doors to the lower deck of the ship burst open and a massive muscular great white shark bursts out.
“What’s with all the noise out here, what are you knuckleheads doing? And who are you?!” he bellows at the gang, making them jump backwards.
“Er...hello. Erm my name is Altallo and these are my friends, Shern’aath, Kiya and Asterion. We’re wondering if we could possibly travel on your ship? We need to follow the Selene’s route.”
Solon stares at them for a solid minute and then tosses back his head and starts laughing.
“Ha! You must really be desperate to come begging us. Well come to think of it, you two look like you’d make fin sailors.” he says, clapping both Shern’aath and Asterion on the shoulder. “Mmm, yes I think you can come aboard.”
“Good!” Shern’aath says, while Asterion turns to Altallo and Kiya before clambering aboard. But when Kiya makes to follow, Solon holds up a hand and stops her.
“Now wait just a second. Did you hear me say YOU could come aboard?”
“But we’re all together,” Altallo says.
“We don’t take humans with us. They’re so soft and squishy and useless, especially when they go overboard.”
“Well of all the spiteful rotten things-” Kiya shouts but Altallo puts a hand on her shoulder.
“Oh we understand perfectly,” he says while winking at Kiya. She looks confused up at him but then smiles. “We humans bruise so easily and we wouldn’t want to burden you.”
“Ha thank you! Someone finally gets it.” Solon laughs and cross his arms.
“Although,” Altallo continues, turning away with Kiya, “We were going to pay you. Isn’t that right Kiya?”
“Yes we were!” Kiya says smiling sweetly at Solon.
“….Pardon?” Solon asks looking dumbfounded and the other sharks look up with interest as Altallo pulls out a bag and pours something into his hand. He holds up a small pile of colourful gemstones. Basilus and Loukianos’ eyes shine brightly and their mouths hang open at the sight of them. Loukianos reaches out a trembling hand to try and take them.
“But of course you’re not interested and I don’t blame you.” Altallo says solemnly, putting the gems back into the bag and turning away. All the sharks look devastated and Loukianos even whimpers a soft “No!” as the gems disappeared from sight.
“We’ll just have to find someone else willing to take us. Come on Kiya.”
“Bye, it was nice meeting you!” Kiya calls back, waving at the sharks.
She and Altallo smirk at each other and Altallo holds up three fingers.
“Three,” he whispers. “Two...”
“Alright alright!” Solon shrieks behind them and Altallo smiles triumphantly. They turn back and beam at him. “You can come aboard!”
“Fantastic!” Altallo says. “Right for payment. I’ll give you this and there will be more after we get back our property.”
“Got a vendetta eh? Well money is money and its no concern of mine whatever it is you want.” Solon replies, holding out his hand and Altallo shakes it. “Alright, you got yourself a deal. We leave in half an hour. Unfurl the sails and ready the oars!” he barks at the other sharks. Basilus packs away his wooden carving into a box and carries it and his stool into the ship, while Loukianos snakes up into the rigging.
Soon they are speeding their way out of the harbour, past an enormous shiny bronze statue of a handsome man wearing a crown and holding a torch aloft. Kiya leans against the side of the ship and smiles happily as the wind ripples through her hair.
“You know this might not be as bad as I first thought. Its no royal barge but this is nice. Plus I always wanted to see the Colossus of Rhodes!”
“Now don’t you get so comfy little miss,” Solon says. “This ain’t no pleasure cruise and you need to shift your weight too. Right first off, you big guy,” he points at Asterion. “Come with me. You can row the oars to help us go even faster.”
Asterion blinks in surprise and looks at Kiya sadly.
“Its ok,” she replies softly patting him on the arm. “We’ll see each other soon.”
Asterion smiles weakly before being led away to the deck below. Basilus ambles up and claps a hand on Altallo’s shoulder, nearly causing him to collapse.
“You can take kitchen duty.” the shark grunts.
“Me? But I’ve never cooked anything before-” Altallo retorts to deaf ears as the shark pushes him away.
“What about us?” Shern’aath asks out loud, before Loukianos leaps down in front of them.
“Oh I’m so glad you asked!” he says jovially smiling at their shocked faces. “You get the most important job. Now as you can imagine, with only three of us the ship gets a bit messy. Now you’re going to give the old girl some tender loving care.”
Later, Kiya is moodily washing the deck with a mop while Shern’aath wipes the railings with a sponge. Loukianos is lounging with his hands behind his head on a box.
“You could help us you know.” Kiya growls at him.
“What? And let you miss out on all the character building and the exercise of swabbing the deck? No thank you. Besides I have the important job of keeping a watch out for other ships and weather events.” He yawns loudly. “And I see its smooth sailing for today. So if you don’t mind I have earned a well deserved rest.”
Kiya grumbles loudly as she starts slapping the floor with her mop. Shern’aath turns to her.
“Look on the bright side” he says and points overboard where a pair of oars close to the back of the ship pound the water. “Seems like Asterion is doing well and hey,” he continues as acrid plumes of black smoke start ominously seeping through the cracks of the doorway below. “It could be worse.”
“Erm, Alty, what is this?” Shern’aath asks later when Altallo brings out plates full of charred black lumps covered in a thick foul smelling sauce.
“I think it was a fish. The stuff they had down there wasn’t exactly fresh,” Altallo replies, earning him a sour look from Solon who grumbles under his breath. “So I thought maybe this would help give out the flavour a bit.”
Shern’aath takes a bite and starts coughing. It was quite possibly the most disgusting thing the raptor had ever eaten.
“Its, ugh, its very rich.” the raptor splutters while his eyes water. “Not bad for a beginner.”
Altallo smiles hopefully but he soon looks ashamed by Kiya throwing her food into the sea without a backwards glance and the sharks abandoning their plates. Meanwhile Asterion had helped himself to a bale of hay.
“Well that was so awful, I think it even gave Set indigestion.” Kiya says glumly. She notices Shern’aath mouthing ‘stop talking’ and then notices Altallo looking utterly devastated. “Oh Alty, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to-”
“YOU THREE!” Solon barks at them and they all snap to attention. The massive shark paces in front of them.
“We’re barely a day out on this voyage and already you’re giving me a headache. Well except your friend Asterion over there who’s a first class rower. But the ship’s still a mess and this meal, well to be blunt was dreadful. Why didn’t you tell us you weren’t a cook?”
“You didn’t give me a chance!” Altallo protests and glares back fiercely at Solon, but the shark doesn’t look convinced.
“Fine.” he sighs. “I’ll reconsider your roles. For now you three are confined to your cabin. Asterion you’ve done a great job so you can rest with them.”
Glumly they file downstairs and to a small room at the back of the ship. Inside were two hammocks and two rough straw beds beneath them, a tiny table and four stools, but other than that it was bare. A small window with shutters offers the only source natural light.
“I guess you should take one of the beds,” Kiya says to Asterion, giving one of the beds an experimental thump with her fist. “They look more sturdy.”
Altallo sinks down in one of the stools.
“Sorry I landed you all in here.” he says thickly. “Its all my fault.”
“I should have said something,” Shern’aath says, patting Altallo on the arm. “But I bet what they had in that kitchen would have been horrible anyway.” he adds, sticking out his tongue.
“One thing’s for sure,” Kiya sighs looking out of the window at sunset streaked sky. “This is going to be one long voyage.”
Plus some things have just changed too much with a few people, for the worse mostly :o
I hope to fill my profile again someday, but a bit more streamlined looking.
Tales of the Eternals chapter 22
A small villa lies nestled in a small ridge on a mountainside, surrounded by oak, poplar and olive trees. The warm air is rich in the scents of flowers and the faint tang of salty air from the sea, glittering on the horizon. In a walled garden Shern’aath is sitting on a wall drawing patterns and flowers onto a vase with a paintbrush. Asterion sits down next to him and Shern’aath shows him the stone he’s working on. Both are now dressed in fresh white tunics with green meandering patterns. On the villa’s sheltered porch, Kiya is dozing peacefully on a couch.
A winding path from the villa leads out to a cobblestone road. At the entrance to the villa’s path, an elegant statue of the goddess Rhea stands. She has wears a crown made of coral and sea shells atop her long hair and one of her hands rests on the head of a massive lion standing at her side. The peace of the afternoon is disturbed by a great rumbling and creaking. A heavily loaded wagon of rather crudely made statues wobbles along the road, pulled by two great oxen and driven by a skinny, weary looking pinkish grey gecko. He stifles a huge yawn and thinks longingly of a clean bed waiting for him at the end of the road when he spies the statue. His large eyes brighten with interest and he stops the cart. Quick as a flash, he starts crawling around and on the statue.
“Ooh, such craftsmanship!” He mumbles to himself in a nasally voice. “No flaws, perfect smooth finish and the detailing. Oh the detailing! It puts those from Anatolia to shame! This would fetch a pretty price in Cyprus or, dare I dream, the pharaoh’s court in Egypt! Yes yes! Well,” he takes a quick glance around, not noticing the villa hidden by the trees. “Whoever dumped this here, well its their loss!”
He starts pushing it towards the cart, puffing and wheezing. As he finally manages to push the statue into the cart, Altallo appears on the road carrying a vase full of olive oil. He has exchanged his poncho and headdress for a white tunic, a yellow cloak with blue patterns and a wide sun hat. He approaches the oxen and starts petting them.
“Good afternoon!” He says to the driver as one of the oxen licks his ears.
“Wha-oh hello.” the lizard pants, wiping his brow and sighing.
“Long journey?” Altallo inquires.
“Oh yes. I’ve been travelling all the way from Lindos. Still, at least Rhodes isn’t too far away now and then I can rest on my ship. I’d stay and chat, but I must get going.”
“Of course, please don’t let me detain you.” says Altallo smiling up at him. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye, I hope we see each other again.”
The lizard’s cart trundles off and Altallo makes his way down to the villa, but stops dead in his tracks. He notices a patch of earth where his ship had been. Frowning he looks up and down the road, spotting the cart as it disappears over the horizons. His face drains of all colour and his mouth drops open. He stutters and stammers, his brain grinding to a halt.
“Wait come back!” he yells before briefly lurching in the direction the cart was heading. He runs down towards the villa, where Shern’aath and Asterion were walking out of the walled garden.
“Alty what’s the-” Shern’aath begins.
“No time to explain, come on you two. Where’s Kiya?!”
Kiya jerks awake when Altallo pokes her head.
“Wassgoingon?” she mumbles groggily.
“The ship has been taken to Rhodes. If we hurry we can get there!”
“What?!” Shern’aath gasps. “Well come on then!”
“It never ends!” Kiya groans and slumps face-first into her pillow.
A few minutes later they are wading through the bustling streets of Rhodes towards the port, a wide open space nestled into a sheltered bay with a large and impressive central building acting as hotel and commercial hub. Sheltered cloisters act as makeshift stalls for freshly landed goods. Meanwhile rows of small cubicles stem from the building, with adverts for boats and crews and destinations, making look almost like an airport terminal. The nearest had a banner advertising voyages to Tauris.
“There he is!” Altallo calls to the others pointing to a bulky trading vessel unfurling his sails and picking up its gangplank. On one side of the ships’ bow the name ‘Selene’ is painted. Altallo runs towards the pier, knocking over produce from a nearby stall but oblivious to the shouts of the owner.
“Alty wait!” Shern’aath follows him, while Asterion and Kiya help pick up the owner repair the damage.
The lizard was lounging next to the guard rail of the ship, looking very pleased with himself. He spots Altallo running along the pier shouting and waving his arms.
“Ah hello my friend!” the lizard calls out, unable to hear Altallo over the pounding of the ship’s oars and the splash of the waves. “Yes I remember you! Come to see me off have you? How very kind. Well bye!”
And with that the ship sails off into the distance. Altallo sinks to his knees, watching the tiny dot on the horizon with an unreadable expression on his face. Shern’aath soon catches up to him, panting and huffing.
“Alty?” he asks, putting a hand on Altallo’s head.
“I can’t believe its gone. How could I have been so stupid?” Altallo says in a hollow voice.
“Don’t say that, we’ll get it back! Kiya and Asterion are trying to find answers back there.” Shern’aath helps Altallo up and guides him away. “Besides that guy didn’t look so big, I can beat him up if he doesn’t give us the ship back!”
Kiya was waiting impatiently for them back at the terminal.
“Here,” she grunts, jabbing a thumb to a poster showing trade routes on a map, before sulking to some nearby shade.
“There! The Selene’s route takes it from Rhodes to Illyria, with a number of stops.” Altallo says thoughtfully stroking his chin. “Well we won’t get there by foot, so we’ll have get a ship. Me and Shern’aath will look around the piers, Kiya you and Asterion check the sailing companies, see if there are any other ships there. And stop sighing!” he adds as Kiya sighs loudly.
“Sorry but we don’t have any voyages following that route.”
“That’s ok, thanks for your help.” Kiya replies sweetly with a smile. But when she and Asterion walk away from the booth, her smile slackens. “That was the fifth one we tried and we’re getting nowhere!”
Meanwhile Shern’aath is approaching a crisply painted and very clean ship.
“Excuse me could you-hey wait!” he cries as the ship starts sailing away with none of the well dressed crew or passengers even noticing him. “Ugh! Fine don’t listen to the crazy lizard man!”
He picks up a loose tile piece from the pier and throws at the boat but misses. The raptor falls to his knees and screams in rage.
“Well if you want a place on one of our ships, its fifty electrum coins a night and not a bunch of rocks.” says another cubicle owner, eyeing the gems Kiya and Asterion offer her with her nose wrinkled as if they smelled bad.
“But that’s too expensive! And this is an emergency!” Kiya retorts, poking the counter.
“Not my fault, we only accept the finest of customers. No peasants and their cows-”
Kiya had dragged Asterion away before she could continue. When they’re at a safe distance and out of sight, Kiya starts making rude gestures towards the cubicle.
“No.” says the captain of one ship bluntly.
“But you sail right next to Ilyria, surely it wouldn’t hurt just to drop us off there?” Altallo asks.
“Look little fella, its not my fault there are strict rules about where we have to go. Now if you want my advice, you should-”
“GET LOST!” yells another booth owner before slamming a wooden shutter into Kiya and Asterion’s face.
They regroup soon after on one of the piers. Shern’aath, Kiya and Asterion look dejected and tire, but Altallo seems to have been invigorated.
“Don’t look so glum!”
“But we’ve been to every stall and they’re all either fully booked or jerks!” Kiya sighs.
“Never mind, we have one more ship to check. There it is over there.”
“That one?” Shern’aath gulps. “I dunno Alty, it looks a bit...grim.”
“What? No, don’t be silly. Its got a, er, rustic charm. Yes that’s it. Its far more lovely up close, see?” Altallo replies, marching up confidently to a dilapidated looking ship with the others trailing behind.
The ship is rather short and sturdy with peeling paint, muck covering the deck and tattered sails. Sitting next to the gangplank is a muscular hammerhead shark man sitting on a stool and whittling away at a small wooden statue. He holds it up to one of his eyes to examine it closer, but stops when he sees Altallo approaching.
“Hello there,” Altallo says smiling happily. “My friends and I need a ship following the Selene’s trade route. Do you think you could help us?”
“Gotta speak with the captain first.” the hammerhead grunts.
“And he ain’t the sort who likes to be disturbed while resting.” says another shark, who slinks down from the sail rigging. Much smaller than the hammerhead, he has a slight, thin body and a higher pitched voice.. “And he don’t take kindly to folks poking their noses into our business.”
Shern’aath notices a few barrels and boxes behind the sharks. “And what sort of business is that?”
“Best you don’t ask about that if you want to keep all your fingers,” the blue shark says quickly, jumping down and grinning down at them. “Now why don’t we get acquainted with each other. Name’s Loukianos, at your service.”
He holds out a hand and Altallo shakes it. Kiya is a bit hesitant and Loukianos laughs.
“Don’t worry, I don’t bite! Oh and this handsome lug over here is Basilus.” he adds, leaning on the hammerhead’s shoulder. Basilus shoots him a look. “Don’t let his rough looks fool ya, he’s a really softy ain’t cha?”
“If you say so.” Basilus snorts.
“What about this captain then?” asks Kiya.
“Well lil’ lady, he’s named Solon and like his name, he really is a lump of iron. Best you don’t catch him on a bad day-”
The doors to the lower deck of the ship burst open and a massive muscular great white shark bursts out.
“What’s with all the noise out here, what are you knuckleheads doing? And who are you?!” he bellows at the gang, making them jump backwards.
“Er...hello. Erm my name is Altallo and these are my friends, Shern’aath, Kiya and Asterion. We’re wondering if we could possibly travel on your ship? We need to follow the Selene’s route.”
Solon stares at them for a solid minute and then tosses back his head and starts laughing.
“Ha! You must really be desperate to come begging us. Well come to think of it, you two look like you’d make fin sailors.” he says, clapping both Shern’aath and Asterion on the shoulder. “Mmm, yes I think you can come aboard.”
“Good!” Shern’aath says, while Asterion turns to Altallo and Kiya before clambering aboard. But when Kiya makes to follow, Solon holds up a hand and stops her.
“Now wait just a second. Did you hear me say YOU could come aboard?”
“But we’re all together,” Altallo says.
“We don’t take humans with us. They’re so soft and squishy and useless, especially when they go overboard.”
“Well of all the spiteful rotten things-” Kiya shouts but Altallo puts a hand on her shoulder.
“Oh we understand perfectly,” he says while winking at Kiya. She looks confused up at him but then smiles. “We humans bruise so easily and we wouldn’t want to burden you.”
“Ha thank you! Someone finally gets it.” Solon laughs and cross his arms.
“Although,” Altallo continues, turning away with Kiya, “We were going to pay you. Isn’t that right Kiya?”
“Yes we were!” Kiya says smiling sweetly at Solon.
“….Pardon?” Solon asks looking dumbfounded and the other sharks look up with interest as Altallo pulls out a bag and pours something into his hand. He holds up a small pile of colourful gemstones. Basilus and Loukianos’ eyes shine brightly and their mouths hang open at the sight of them. Loukianos reaches out a trembling hand to try and take them.
“But of course you’re not interested and I don’t blame you.” Altallo says solemnly, putting the gems back into the bag and turning away. All the sharks look devastated and Loukianos even whimpers a soft “No!” as the gems disappeared from sight.
“We’ll just have to find someone else willing to take us. Come on Kiya.”
“Bye, it was nice meeting you!” Kiya calls back, waving at the sharks.
She and Altallo smirk at each other and Altallo holds up three fingers.
“Three,” he whispers. “Two...”
“Alright alright!” Solon shrieks behind them and Altallo smiles triumphantly. They turn back and beam at him. “You can come aboard!”
“Fantastic!” Altallo says. “Right for payment. I’ll give you this and there will be more after we get back our property.”
“Got a vendetta eh? Well money is money and its no concern of mine whatever it is you want.” Solon replies, holding out his hand and Altallo shakes it. “Alright, you got yourself a deal. We leave in half an hour. Unfurl the sails and ready the oars!” he barks at the other sharks. Basilus packs away his wooden carving into a box and carries it and his stool into the ship, while Loukianos snakes up into the rigging.
Soon they are speeding their way out of the harbour, past an enormous shiny bronze statue of a handsome man wearing a crown and holding a torch aloft. Kiya leans against the side of the ship and smiles happily as the wind ripples through her hair.
“You know this might not be as bad as I first thought. Its no royal barge but this is nice. Plus I always wanted to see the Colossus of Rhodes!”
“Now don’t you get so comfy little miss,” Solon says. “This ain’t no pleasure cruise and you need to shift your weight too. Right first off, you big guy,” he points at Asterion. “Come with me. You can row the oars to help us go even faster.”
Asterion blinks in surprise and looks at Kiya sadly.
“Its ok,” she replies softly patting him on the arm. “We’ll see each other soon.”
Asterion smiles weakly before being led away to the deck below. Basilus ambles up and claps a hand on Altallo’s shoulder, nearly causing him to collapse.
“You can take kitchen duty.” the shark grunts.
“Me? But I’ve never cooked anything before-” Altallo retorts to deaf ears as the shark pushes him away.
“What about us?” Shern’aath asks out loud, before Loukianos leaps down in front of them.
“Oh I’m so glad you asked!” he says jovially smiling at their shocked faces. “You get the most important job. Now as you can imagine, with only three of us the ship gets a bit messy. Now you’re going to give the old girl some tender loving care.”
Later, Kiya is moodily washing the deck with a mop while Shern’aath wipes the railings with a sponge. Loukianos is lounging with his hands behind his head on a box.
“You could help us you know.” Kiya growls at him.
“What? And let you miss out on all the character building and the exercise of swabbing the deck? No thank you. Besides I have the important job of keeping a watch out for other ships and weather events.” He yawns loudly. “And I see its smooth sailing for today. So if you don’t mind I have earned a well deserved rest.”
Kiya grumbles loudly as she starts slapping the floor with her mop. Shern’aath turns to her.
“Look on the bright side” he says and points overboard where a pair of oars close to the back of the ship pound the water. “Seems like Asterion is doing well and hey,” he continues as acrid plumes of black smoke start ominously seeping through the cracks of the doorway below. “It could be worse.”
“Erm, Alty, what is this?” Shern’aath asks later when Altallo brings out plates full of charred black lumps covered in a thick foul smelling sauce.
“I think it was a fish. The stuff they had down there wasn’t exactly fresh,” Altallo replies, earning him a sour look from Solon who grumbles under his breath. “So I thought maybe this would help give out the flavour a bit.”
Shern’aath takes a bite and starts coughing. It was quite possibly the most disgusting thing the raptor had ever eaten.
“Its, ugh, its very rich.” the raptor splutters while his eyes water. “Not bad for a beginner.”
Altallo smiles hopefully but he soon looks ashamed by Kiya throwing her food into the sea without a backwards glance and the sharks abandoning their plates. Meanwhile Asterion had helped himself to a bale of hay.
“Well that was so awful, I think it even gave Set indigestion.” Kiya says glumly. She notices Shern’aath mouthing ‘stop talking’ and then notices Altallo looking utterly devastated. “Oh Alty, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to-”
“YOU THREE!” Solon barks at them and they all snap to attention. The massive shark paces in front of them.
“We’re barely a day out on this voyage and already you’re giving me a headache. Well except your friend Asterion over there who’s a first class rower. But the ship’s still a mess and this meal, well to be blunt was dreadful. Why didn’t you tell us you weren’t a cook?”
“You didn’t give me a chance!” Altallo protests and glares back fiercely at Solon, but the shark doesn’t look convinced.
“Fine.” he sighs. “I’ll reconsider your roles. For now you three are confined to your cabin. Asterion you’ve done a great job so you can rest with them.”
Glumly they file downstairs and to a small room at the back of the ship. Inside were two hammocks and two rough straw beds beneath them, a tiny table and four stools, but other than that it was bare. A small window with shutters offers the only source natural light.
“I guess you should take one of the beds,” Kiya says to Asterion, giving one of the beds an experimental thump with her fist. “They look more sturdy.”
Altallo sinks down in one of the stools.
“Sorry I landed you all in here.” he says thickly. “Its all my fault.”
“I should have said something,” Shern’aath says, patting Altallo on the arm. “But I bet what they had in that kitchen would have been horrible anyway.” he adds, sticking out his tongue.
“One thing’s for sure,” Kiya sighs looking out of the window at sunset streaked sky. “This is going to be one long voyage.”
I dunno why Skype is so sturdy and strong with me :O