Trial by Fire

[The Captain]

Laughter and smoke filled the underbelly of the ship as the crew dinned. The Captain sat at the head of the table, Malachite sitting next to him on a small eloquent table adorned with a thick, dark purple silk cushion. The Captain had had a huge platter of all salted pork, pan fried beef, roasted chicken and fish prepared for the Fae cat, and enjoyed much of the same meat the cat did on his own platter.

“Eat hearty lads. Some of us might not come back.”

More laughter erupted at the notion, the few crew aboard the Willow that would be accompanying the Captain and the Fae cat remaining sober. But they all took the Captains advice, demolishing the massive feast the ship’s cook had prepared within an hour’s time.

“Shall we, Mal?”

The Captain stood and left the table, walking to the opposite end of the ship to go back to the main deck. As he was walking up the stairs he stopped and turned around for a moment.

“Brace yourselves.”

Quickly, the Captain darted back upward, Malachite following with the fluid motion only a feline could display. The Captain moved quickly up to the helm and gripped the large, smooth wheel with his left hand, holding the Arc of Water in his right. Nodding to the Fae cat, the Captain closed his eyes and his body went tense, bracing for whatever was about to happen.

It was only a second, but it seemed like it had been seven eternities as The Weeping Willow suddenly blinked into its dock at the pirate stronghold. Sounds of vomiting echoed from below the decks and the Captain winced, struggling to hold his own food down. His legs were wobbly and he was seeing triple. Groaning, he closed his eyes and shook his head, stumbling slightly.

“That was… different.”

His eyes flashed open again and he glanced at the Fae cat, stumbling almost drunkenly down from the helm towards the creature. The Captain still gripped the Arc of Water tightly in his right hand, shaking his head once more, shooting a quick glare at the cat before moving towards the entrance to the lower deck.

“Those that’re coming with me, on deck! Everyone else I want this ship spotless and broken down when I return!”

The Captain remembered well the sizzling waters that surrounded Tre Betal, the acidity at an almost lethal level from the constant volcanic eruptions. With time not being a factor, or as big of one, he could take his man of war, one of the strongest and most durable vessels to sail the vast seas. The wood was thick oak, treated and coated with tars and coverings to further strengthen the tough substance. Thick plates cover the whole of the ship, heavy armor made of layers of steel. The ship was slow, but it could take a beating.

“I want the Crucifier emptied and fortified, prepared for a skeleton crew and ready to shove off within two hours! COMMANDERS! We have Council!”

The Captain bellowed his commands as he made his way off the ship to the pirates that had assembled at the port, astounded at the sudden appearance of The Weeping Willow. They stood frozen for a second, as if unable to believe what just happened before they where shaken by another bellow from the Captain. Malachite walked at the Captains side as he moved up the beach.

Stopping, the Captain grabbed his exquisite rapier with his free hand, pulling it from the scabbard and thrusting it into the sand before him as Malachite sat on his haunches next to him. Within moments, twenty others had come and likewise thrust strange and exotic swords into the sand, all looking intently at the Captain.

“This, is Malachite. He is going to be taking us to Tre Betal. Again. We’re in the stew this time mates, and its gettin’ good and hot. And if we don’t find what we’re lookin’ for, it won’t much matter what it tastes like ‘cause we’re all be dead. Now, we’re taking the Crucifier and our feline friend here is going to take us to Tre Betal. It’s a real treat. I’m hoping to the Abyss we arrive outside of the port’s waters, but if not then I’ll deal with that. After that, well… I haven’t quite thought that far yet, but I need to get to the volcano and see if our little trinket is somewhere in that jitatin thing.”

The Captain paused for a moment, brow furrowing once more. His tone lost all friendly tones and seemed to cut the very air they breathed as he spoke.

“No one is to leave the ship. Keep to the code. Malachite will return you here if that happens, and well, good luck to the lot of ye then. If all goes well, and I can still breathe, Malachite will drop us in the great lake that rests just south of Sethia. We’ll report to Lasius and the Lord General and go from there. Understood? Also, outside of us, I want a small contingent of Life Sedi, Earth Sedi and Lightning Sedi. We need to be ready for anything.”

Without question, the commanders of the Captain’s other ships nodded and moved, joining the others that were loading the Crucifier. He watched as contingents of the Sedi the Captain had requested gathered there things and boarded the heavy man of war. And just like they were ordered, the Captain’s ship was prepared with the crew boarded and ready within an hour and a half.

It made the Captain smile as he stood at the helm of the Crucifier, gripping the Arc of Water still in his right hand, the spike laden wheel of the ship in his left. Nodding once more, the Captain shouted to his men to brace themselves as the ship blinked out of existence from the port at the pirate’s stronghold.

[The Captain]

The whole of the crew seemed to groan in unison as the shipped suddenly blinked into view, the massive black volcano seemingly glaring down at them. The Captain swayed as he clutched the wheel of the Crucifier, shaking his head as his vision blurred. The rest of the crew reacted the same, a few vomiting overboard from the feeling of blinking from one part of the world to another in a moment.

Steadying himself, the Captain shook his head, squinting at the volcano, his nostrils flaring. His eyebrow shot into the air as he sniffed the air a few times, making sure the ship was safely outside the treacherous port waters.

“Malachite, if this is all there is to be told, then it’s been a pleasure. Make sure they get back safely and best of luck to ye. Here goes nothing!”

The Captain glanced down at his crew, who all saluted him in unison before the pirate nodded and swung the Arc of Water around, grabbing it with his left hand as he dove over the railings of the Crucifer, holding the Arc in his outstretched arms.

There was no splash as the Captain’s body seemed to vanish into the waters, Arc and all. A strange silence filled the air as tiny air bubbles began to bubble towards the surface. With growing numbers and size, the bubbles continued to rise to the surface and suddenly a massive plume of water exploded upwards. It shot upwards into the thick black clouds that covered the skies, punching through like a fist through a paper bag.

Water continued to spew upwards in the jet stream of water, and the fiery lands of the volcano seemed to get hazy. The Lightning Sedi moved forward slightly, a sly smile coming to the face of a few as they looked onward from the ship. Torrential rains pounded the blasted landscape of the volcano as the plume of water suddenly ceased erupting.

The water sizzled as it struck the superheated jagged rocks of Tre Betal, making the open pools and rivers of lava steam and smoke. The huge rain storm covered the whole of the volcano, stretching outwards to cover the ports waters and soon the rain was all that could be seen from the vantage point of the ship – open sea or a monsoon.

[Raeghan]

Her eyes flashed open deep inside the massive volcano of Tre Betal, the liquid magma rushing over her form like a warm bath. The Arc of Earth was held loosely in her right hand, the Arc of Fire in the left. She could feel something in her lands. Someone dared disturb her slumber.

Seconds later, a lava form of her flowed upwards from an exposed pool that overlooked the coastal waters of the former port city. She watched the ship as it sat just on the fringe of the port’s territory. Of her territory. Liquid fire boiled in her heart as rage swept through her veins. Intruders would be dealt with severally.

Then a scream of furry ripped from her throat and her lava form splashed back into the molten pool as the scream echoed throughout the blasted landscape. Several drops of the Water Sedi’s rainstorm struck her flesh as she watched the ship and she recoiled in a frenzy, melting back into the heart of the volcano.

Her rage manifested physically as the whole of Tre Betal began to quiver. It was slight at first, only a few volcanic pebbles vibrating gently, but soon the entire mountain trembled violently. The open pools of magma and rivers of lava spewed forth the scalding molten substance as the earth shook, a deep rumbling sound coming from the heart of the volcano. The rumbling quickly became louder and louder, foreshadowing the massive explosion of liquid earth that burst suddenly into the sky.

Gigantic boulders of the molten rock fell from the epicenter of the eruption like raindrops, smashing and shattering into the blasted landscape into white hot rivulets of lava, traveling slowly across the black earth. The acid waters lapped at the hull of the ship as the boulders smashed into the water, the waves rising.

White hot magma seethed down the mouth of the volcano, oozing down the sides of the huge volcano. The eruption was over, but the devastation was evident. The temperature of the former port city’s territory was magnified intensely, unbearable even to an experienced Fire Sedi. The very air seemed to quiver as the heat trailed upwards to the thick black volcanic clouds.

The ground trembled once more as the small pieces of molten earth fell from the skies, a last testament to her rage. The penalty for invading her kingdom. She lay still within the heart of the volcano once more, a sly smile across her face as she slept, still holding the Arcs of Fire and Earth in there respective hands.

[The Captain]

The acidic waves continued to lap at the ship’s haul with almost unnatural ferocity as the current carried the Crucifier away from the erupting volcano. The size and ferocity of the waves continued to magnify as the eruption settled and halted completely, tiny splashes of the volcanic water splashing onto the deck. Steadily, the splashes became bigger and more frequent and then, as if being thrown onto the deck by a bucket of water the Captain’s form splashed into focus, the large puddles of water that were there moments before pooling beneath his body.

His flesh was a brilliant shade of red, his hair singed and burnt. His eyes were a ghastly red, completely bloodshot from the heat. He coughed as water spilled from his sizzling skin, parts of the burnt flesh splitting in open in random spots across his body. He chuckled slightly, causing more of his flesh to crack and open, blood dripping from the wounds, mixing with the volcanic water.

“Send in the lightest one to get sunburned… kreld-eaters…”

The Arc of Water clamored to the deck as the Captain released his grip on it, the pain overtaking him as he sunk into unconsciousness. Malachite seemed to roar as he leapt with feline grace in one quick motion from his place at the helm, landing a few feet from the Captain and skidding the rest of the distance to stand at the Captain’s right side, near the Arc of Water.

A viscous growl ripped from the Fae cat’s throat, making the wood planks around him shudder. It was a warning, and a wake up call, as the entire crew was staring slack jawed at the unconscious smirking and well done pirate that had just splashed on deck.

Struck by the roar from the cat, the crew snapped into line, and within seconds Life Sedi stood at the other side of the Captain, as well as one at his head and one at his feet. Malachite refused to move, standing in a ferocious looking stance, guarding the Arc of Water and the Captain.

They worked quickly, a faint white light slowly appearing around the Captain as the Life Sedi chanted in unison. The aura grew brighter and brighter and slowly the cracked flesh began to knit itself back together, the blood stopping. The flesh was still unbearably hot, and a Fire Sedi was sent for. Soon there after, the Fire Sedi took the place of the Life Sedi at the Captain’s head, the Fire Sedi placing his hand on the Captain’s forehead. Like sucking poison from a wound, the Fire Sedi acted as a cipher, sucking the massive amount of heat from the Captain’s cooked body.

Seconds after the white light faded from around the Captain, the Life Sedi having finished the preliminary healing, they all quivered and lost footing as the ship blinked out of existence from the acidic waters of Tre Betal.

(Continued in Sethia)[/b]