IceAndWave/ThreeConversationsAboardShip

Three Conversations Aboard Ship

In which memories are relived, fears are relieved, the journey continues...

The 15th Day of Resplendent Air, Realm Year 764

The beams of the ship creak and groan, unaccustomed to the strains of being pulled through high waves at the bow. Taut ropes sing every time sea-spray hits them, the great beast dragging the vessel through rather than over the waves. Sian is not sleeping, though this is now the norm rather than the exception, and so is spending his time up on deck monitoring the ship's progress and inhaling the night-time sea breeze.

The night is nearly silent, except for the occasional low boom as the bow slams into a particularly large wave, and moon & stars shine down unobstructed, lending a ghostly feel to everything. A hand touches Sian's shoulder lightly, a quiet voice says, "There you are..." It is Aia.

Sian looks back at her, brought out of his brooding by her touch. His voice is also quiet, not wanting to disrupt the calm atmosphere. "Yeah... did you need something?"

"You've just been so quiet," she stands behind him, her arms about his waist, "What are you thinking about?"

Sian places his hands atop her own, and returns to watching the sea. "Just... things. Nothing you need to worry about."

"If they worry you I want to know," she rests her head against his shoulder, "You've got so much on your mind right now."

"Sorry... just concerned for all these girls. Venia, Oriel. You too, sort of, but for different reasons."

"Why me?"

"'cause you have to sit and watch." He turns around carefully, sliding his arms around her. "And I can't really say anything to help."

She leans against Sian, "I could help you."

"Mmm... I'm not sure I want you reminded of what that was like." He squeezes her gently. "I remember how you were when I met you."

Aia shudders slightly, "I do, too." She looks up, "So I can talk to them, I know some of what they have been through."

Sian nods a little, brushing hair away from her face to allow a kiss on her forehead. "Will you be able to handle me with them, though? I know you're not the jealous type, but still..."

Aia smiles, "You'll be safe, I think. Most of them won't want anything to do with men for a while, I think." She kisses Sian's chin in return.

Sian offers a faint smile in return. "What did I do to deserve you, I wonder? Must have been something good in a past life."

"It's Venia I'm more worried about," Aia sighs.

"Mmm... she had it far worse, from what Cassia has told me."

She nods, "I just hope she doesn't do anything to herself."

"I'm not going to let her." He brushes hair back from her face again, and relates the details of his recent conversation with the Wood aspect.

Aia pales, "Is she serious?"

"She is. But Exalts can resist the addiction far more easily than mortals can, from what I know. I'm going to be the one looking after the dosages, in any case."

"Just be careful, Sian. I would hate for anything to happen."

"I will. She's a close friend, and I'm not going to let her get hurt." He holds her a little closer. "I know I asked you this once before, but things have changed somewhat. If she wants... more than just company, are you okay with that?"

Aia holds still for a moment, "I don't think she will, but..." she sighs, "If you have to. Just don't ask me to join in." Aia puts on a smile for the last remark.

"Heh. Thank you." He picks her up for a proper kiss. "I love you, Aia."

Aia kisses back, then shivers as a particularly large wave sprays her with cold water.

Sian is as unaffected by the cold water as ever, though he does looks sympathetic. "Better get you back inside. Too cold for catgirls."

Reluctantly disengaging Aia smiles, "Come back inside soon. I'm sure I'll be warmer." She heads back down into her cabin.

Sian only spends a little bit longer on deck, soon following her to the warmer cabin.

---

The boat rocks back and forth, creaking against the waves. Sian lies on the floor looking up at the ceiling, and the few stars visible through cracks in the boards, when a sudden muffled gasp issues from the bunk and someone sits up suddenly. He blinks a little, and turns to look, his night vision disrupted a little by his star-gazing. "Aia?"

"No," Oriel whispers back. She moves, and sits over the edge of the bunk, "I... I need some air," she whispers.

"Oh... Oriel. Sure. Here, come outside for a bit..." He sits up, and offers her his blanket.

Oriel nods and pulls the blanket around herself, covering herself and shivering before walking barefoot out the door.

Sian follows, after checking on Aia. The godblood appears to be sleeping soundly, although Oriel's departure has left her back exposed to the cool night air.

Sian covers her up appropriately before exiting.

Oriel stands in the shelter of the fo'c'sle, looking out over the port side of the ship and onto the Inland Sea.

He doesn't say anything as he approaches, just settling against the rail beside her silently.

Oriel doesn't turn, "Sorry for waking you."

"I don't sleep so much anymore... you didn't wake me."

"Oh..." Oriel sighs, "I had a dream, but... Korr didn't like it when we screamed at night. You learned to keep quiet." She shows Sian her hand, bitemarks still visible.

Sian offers a sympathetic wince, taking the hand in his own and rubbing gently with a thumb. "I'm sorry."

She turns, lines of tears visible from her eyes, "Why? You saved me, you saved all of us. And I... I..." she sobs, "I stopped believing in you." She collapses against Sian, crying.

Sian just holds her to him, unable to offer an adequate reply to this.

She cries hard, wrapping her arms around him and crying into his chest. "I'm sorry, Sian. I should have known better," she gasps out between sobs.

"No, you were right... I failed you. I should have been after you as soon as I found out what happened." He squeezes her softly, trying to get her to settle down.

Oriel calms eventually, wiping her eyes and picking the blanket back up. She sniffs hard, "We weren't allowed to cry much, either. Korr said that if people wanted to see his whores crying they'd make them cry."

Sian rubs the back of her head slowly. "You're not there now, and I'm not going to make you do anything."

"I know, I saw what you and Venia did to him..." she shudders at that mental image, "It just got to be a habit."

"Sorry about that too. Seeing me like I was probably didn't help much."

Oriel shudders again, "I didn't know you could do that... with the arms..." she looks to one side, over the sea.

"I am apparently a sorceror now. It has it's benefits." He touches her face gently. "What do you want to do when we arrive back on land?"

"I don't know..." she says softly, "I hadn't thought about it." She looks back up at Sian, "I stopped thinking about it when I found out I would most likely be dead in a year..."

"Would you like to work in an inn again?" He deliberately moves away from the more depressing topics.

"I... I don't know..." she smiles softly, "It's the one other thing I know how to do."

Sian just nods slightly. "My mother owns one, in Whitewall. She'll look after you, and it's not far from my place if you need me."

"I..." Oriel stops and starts again, "Thank you, Sian. I don't know if I will, but thank you."

"Just know that you have my support, whatever you'd like to do."

She smiles and then sleans against him, just looking out over the sea.

Sian is content to hold her for as long as needed, glad to see her smile again.

"They raped me, you know, the soldiers," she says suddenly, her tone flat, "For an hour or so, I think... that was after they killed my dad, and everyone I knew. There were only five of us left when they burned my home." She squeezes Sian hard, "Sky died that night, she choked on one of the soldiers."

Sian is silent, looking down at her with quietly horrified eyes.

"The General was furious about that, said the soldier had cost him a lot of money," Oriel continues, "The rest of us were left alone after that. When I got to the Realm they sold me to a slaver. That was the last time I saw any of the others. The slaver had me as soon as he got me back," she laughs softly, darkly, "He said you can't rape a slave, just damage them. He wasn't as bad as the soldiers, though."

Sian just holds her a little bit closer, letting her get all this out.

"A few days later I was bundled up with about twenty other girls. We were going to Cherak, he said. We were chained to poles in the hold," she looks up, "You can't get away like that, if a sailor wants you, and they all did. Every night for those six nights I prayed that they would pick another girl, that I would be spared." She chokes down a sob, "Am I a bad person for doing that? Wishing that some other girl would get raped instead of me?"

"No... not at all. Not wanting to be hurt like that... I don't blame you. No-one would."

"I wasn't sure..." she sniffs, resting her head against Sian's chest, "I like listening to your heart." She says before continuing in the same dead tone, "When we got to Cherak, well, you saw Korr and his place. I think half of the girls I got there with were dead when you rescued us. I don't know how I survived. We were payment too, you see?

"We made Korr money when people from the street had us, and we saved him money because he'd let a guard have one of us when they were done for the day. We were a renewable resource," she laughs bitterly.

Sian kisses the top of her head. "You won't ever get hurt like that again. Ever."

"I couldn't survive it, if I did. Venia kept me alive, in more ways than one." She shudders and then steps back to look directly into Sian's eyes, "I told you this because what they did to Venia was worse. It was so much worse. You need to know that."

"How much worse?" His tone is quiet, not sure he wants to hear this, but needing to.

"She's like you, one of the Chosen. They could do things to her that would kill me," she shudders, crying again - but not for herself, "She said that the sailors that took her to Cherak raped and beat her for most of the journey. She killed a... client by biting his throat out. The guards beat her with sticks after that, one of them used his... in her."

Sian tries not to wince, just nodding slightly. "I'm going to look after her, as much as I can. Anything she needs."

"She taunted Korr. Got him mad at her. She nearly escaped once, it took half of the guards to catch her again - that's when she got the rings..." she gestures towards her own breasts, "They did it with red-hot needles. Sian..." she looks up, "I think she went mad in there."

"I hope that is not the case. But if it is, then she will have the finest care."

"Please..." she hugs Sian tightly, "She needs more help than any of us, I think. She... she had a visit from someone in her family, I think."

"Her family? Who?"

"I don't know. An older woman, Exalted. She didn't stay with Venia for long, but... she said something about 'getting back at her sister', about the woman."

Sian tries to recall anyone like this, but comes up blank. "I'll have to ask her."

Oriel nods, "I hope you can help her. And I hope you kill the people who did this to her," she snarls suddenly.

"I plan to." He is somewhat surprised by this show of hate from her.

"Good," she leans against Sian, apparently talked out.

Sian holds her for a long while, until the sky is on the verge of brightening, and she is half-asleep. He tilts her head up for the softest kiss he can manage, waking her a little. "We'd better get you back to bed. We should arrive at Tideholme in a couple of days."

"Mmm..." she mumbles, leaning against Sian as he walks her back to her bunk.

Sian settles her in with the sleeping Aia, giving them each a kiss on the temple before heading back out on deck to watch the dawn.

---

Whalesong echoes quietly through the hull of the ship, the night sky overcast so thoroughly that only the faintest ghost of moonlight reaches through the clouds.

Below decks the rescued girls sleep fitfully, rows of hammocks hanging from cargo hooks and support beams, the girls dressed in simple, but rough, clothes. Some of them whimper as they sleep, bad dreams of their enslavement and abuse in Cherak.

Sian moves between the hammocks as quietly as he can, going between the girls to try and ease their sleep. He can't do much more than tuck them in or offer quiet reassurance, but he does what he can.

At the end of one round two of the girls, thin and somewhat frightened looking, wait for Sian. Neither really looks at him, their eyes wandering, while they wring their fingers nervously.

Sian slows as he approaches, worried by this behaviour.

"My Lord," one starts, still not looking at Sian, "We... Me and Ani and some of the girls, that is... we were wondering what... what you were going to do with us?"

"Do with you? Find you homes, if I am able."

"Homes, sir?" Ani looks up, her eyes pits of fear, "Mika, is he going to sell us?"

Sian shakes his head, and gestures them towards a hammock to sit, crouching before them to appear less intimidating. "No, not at all. Real homes. People to look after you."

Tears well up in her eyes, she whispers, "All of us?"

"All of you."

The girl leaps off the hammock and wraps her arms around Sian, crying into his shoulder. Her companion just looks at Sian, her eyes wide with wonder. "How? Where?" she breathes, "Who is going to want to look after former whores?"

Sian holds Ani carefully, replying to Mika. "I plan on taking you to Whitewall... that's where I'm from. Families there would be willing to take you, I suspect."

"Whitewall?" Ani suddenly stops hugging Sian, "I've heard that it's ruled by ice-monsters, and they freeze people and put them outside for the Fair Folk to eat them..." her eyes are wide.

"Somewhat exaggerated, those stories. The city is ruled by ice spirits, known as the Syndics; I work for them as an emissary. They are required to offer the Fae lives each year in exchange for continued peace, but we only offer criminals, outcasts, and the like. I'll make sure you're considered full citizens of the city, don't worry."

"How... how will we get there? Isn't it a long way away? I heard it was in the mountains."

"It is a long way, yes... we'll probably take a caravan, and it will likely take us a month or more. But I have other methods at my disposal, if we need them."

Ani climbs back into the hammock, "Why did you save us?"

"I was looking for a friend. And I found her, at the brothel. I couldn't just leave you all there."

"A friend?" Mika asks, "Ooooh... the Dynast."

"Venia. And Oriel, though I didn't know she was there until I looked for her."

She nods slowly in reply, "She is lucky to have a friend like you," she whispers, "No-one came looking for us."

"Don't think about that... it's in the past. You're safe now, and I'm going to make sure you stay that way."

"Thank you," she smiles for looks like the first time in months, "I... we all owe you so much."

Sian offers a faint smile in return. "Don't owe me anything. I wouldn't be me, if I left you there." He reaches up to brush a few strands of hair away from her face. "In future, if you want to ask me something, or if you need anything, then just come talk to me. No need to be nervous about it, okay?"

Mika nods, "I... some of the other girls were wondering what was going to happen." A slight grimace, "I got picked to ask you, we're... we're all a little scared of you, after..." she shudders, "... after what you did."

"Ah. With the...?" He gestures generally to his arms.

She nods rapidly.

"A trick I picked up recently... sorry if I frightened you. I got a little angry when I saw what had been happening."

"It's OK, just... some of us thought you might be a demon in disguise."

"A nice diguise," Ani pipes up, before blushing.

Sian manages a wider smile at that. "You two get some sleep. We'll be in Tideholme soon."

"Thank you," they both said, one curling up on her hammock while her companion slips into the blanket-bed below.

Sian gives them both a kiss on the temple, before resuming his walking.