Tyra had been working all day making the base of the tower and shaping it up to the height she wanted it to be. A few of the dock workers walked by offering to help her out. She declined since this was going to be her home. The basic setup of the structure was complete, and she had managed to get the top of the tower finished as well. The only part that was missing at the moment was the roof. Of course, that would have to be put on in stages.
Now that the sun was starting to go down completing the roof would either have to be sped up or she would have to save it for tomorrow. There was no point in working in the dark unless there was a cloudless full mood which was highly unlikely given the time of year. It was a good thing she had so much experience with building things so quickly from her time alone on the island. Of course, this tower was much better than anything she had built there.
Tyra had brought up all the materials needed to finish the roof and placed them along the floor. She was thinking of sleeping up in the tower for the night just to get used to it. There wasn't any furniture or anything however it still felt more like home than anything else on the island so far. That was one of the main reasons she always slept in the crow's nest of the ship. It was the best place to her and allowed the sounds around to be less intense in her ears.
She leaned back against the wall taking a break trying to make a final decision on what to do. The wind blew through the openings in the ceiling as her ears perked up. Tyra jumped up looking over the side of the wall using some of the material for the roof to stand on. She saw the ship off on the distance noticing the flag of the Redeye pirates. It was only a single ship but there was no doubt in Tyra's mind that Fina was on it heading this way.
That was all the motivation Tyra needed to get the roof finished. She was dead tired however if Fina was on the way here there was no way in hell Tyra was going to allow Alexandria to face that crazy woman alone. Of course, after it was all said and done Tyra wanted to sleep in her tower and the only way to do that was to finish the roof. She jumped down and got to work putting the materials together and getting them up into place. It was going to be cutting it close but if she worked fast enough the roof could be up by the time Fina docked at the harbor.
Thankfully the design for the tower was fairly simple and all the parts were made to fit together without having to use any type of nails. It was something Tyra learned to do back in the old world. There was also a shortage of metal nails, so most structures were held together with pegs made of wood most of the time. Tyra was pretty sure that Fina's ship would take at least an hour or so before I was able to even make it into the harbor. They also had to clear the checkpoints through the defenses and finally make it to the dock. If Alexandria already knew they were here she would be making ready for their arrival. That meant Tyra had about forty-five minutes to set the roof in place. After all the craziness was over, she could come back and make sure everything was set. She wanted to at least have the pieces up since the work after that could be done ever if she was half asleep.
Amina quickly made her way through the area following the swords of training that drifted on the wind. It wasn't hard to hear it no matter where you were especially close to the center of the island. She needed to find Lyric quickly so that preparations could be set into motion. There was also the fact that Amina wanted to know who the hell Fina was and why Alexandria was being so serious about the whole situation. Amina was about to get a bit frustration when she finally heard Lyric's voice close by.
"No, no, no! Damnit step with your dominant foot first if you don't even a child could parry your strike!" They had been training for almost ten hours straight and still half of them had no idea what the hell they were doing. Lyric was starting to get a bit unhinged to the point she was going to start striking people with the business end of her cutlass.
Amina moved quickly not caring much about the situation at hand making a bee line straight for Lyric. "Hey, Lyric, you are needed by the captain this instant. There is someone by the name of Fina on her way to the island as we speak." She stopped short of a few feet of Lyric waiting for everyone to stop what they were doing and pay attention to her.
"What the hell did you just say?!?!" Lyric moved right into Amina's personal space her cutlass at the ready. Her eyes were a bit wild with rage however there was a hint of focus in them as if she had been ready for this moment for a while.
"A ship was spotted on the horizen making its way to the island. Apparently it is flying the flag of the Red eye pirates. Alexandria said the name Fina and then asked me to come find you right away." Amina took a step back wrinkling her nose a bit as she added, "There is a thing called personal space so back off and lets make our way back to the captain."
She turned and started walking back the way she had came. Amina wasn't about to getting into an argument with Lyric. Everyone knew Lyric was the first crew member to join Crimson Judgement even before the name was created. At times she could be a bit overbearing when it came to certain things. Either everyone needed to learn to deal with it or Lyric needed to cool off with the craziness.
Lyric followed close behind sheathing her cutlass trying to catch up. "Look I wasn't trying to bother you. I only wanted to know what you said. Of course, you have no idea who Fina is so it might be a bit offputting to see Alexandria act the way she must've acted when the ship was spotted." She paused taking in a deep breath attempting to calm her nerves. There was way too much going on between training, building ships, gathering information, and everything else in between.
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"Fina is one of the reasons why Alexandria has so much territory even though we're still a relatively small crew. However we had to fight to gain that territory and that left an impression on Alexandria. I wouldn't say we're friends with Fina, but I wouldn't call her any enemy either. It is hard to put into word exactly what the relationship is at the moment." They had walked for quite a bit while Lyric exampled a few things. Of course, there was plenty more to add however there wasn't enough time at the moment.
Amina realized now exactly why Alexandria had shifted gears from the happy go lucky captain to the serious warrior. Fina being here could mean a thousand different things at once which meant Alexandria needed to put on her best exterior to prepare for whichever reason Fina was coming to visit. Of course, that meant everyone could be at risk of fighting if the reason was hostile. "Do you think Fina is here to fight?" She asked the question so quickly but wasn't sure why it felt so wrong. There was only one ship how in the world could Fina possibly come here to fight with a single ship?
Her hand went for the handle of her sword as if answering the question without saying a word. Lyric shook her head relaxing her arms letting them swing at her side as they continued to walk. "I'm not quite sure how to answer that. Fina has a crazy ability that makes her a one-woman wreaking crew. Her and Alexandria are similar in that respect. There is no way to know what Fina is doing here until we actually talk to her. So, for right now just keep your mind focused on the task at hand. We need to get to Alexandria and prepare for Fina's arrival."
She nodded in agreement as the two of them made their way to the harbor. They wanted to find out just where Fina's ship would be able to dock after that both of them would be going to the main hall to help Alexandria.
Alexandria made it to the main hall rather quickly from the vault area. She needed to find Lorelei to see if there was a chance she had dealt with Fina in the past. Of course, there was no way of knowing if her mother would be of any help. She had been a shifted animal ever since her escape and the chances she knew Fina before all that were low. Alexandria let out an exasperated sigh trying to keep her composure. She closed her eyes steading her breathing since reactions like this could cause an involuntary shift which would be the last thing any of them needed right now.
Thankfully it only took a few minutes for her to regain control. There wasn't any more time to waste on worrying about what might happen. The only thing to do was get the main hall ready and keep certain people away while Fina was here. Alexandria was hoping that Fina was here to discuss an alliance since there was no way in hell, she hadn't heard of the walled cities fall. That would be a huge win as long as Fina didn't ask for something outrageous in return for helping out. She shook her head deciding not to think about anymore possible situations. It was time to set out a spread and welcome Fina in style.
Tyra finished the roof much quicker than she had thought. She made a bee line for the main hall making a point to find Alexandria as quickly as possible. Even though she was pretty tired Tyra stormed into the main hall to find Alexandria there rushing around tidying things up. There was a table in the certain with all sorts of food and drink. A few bags were on the table as well most likely filled with a bit of treasure just in case Fina was looking for some type of payment. They did enter into a deal of sorts and even though Alexandira had already paid Fina half of everything taken when Crimson Judgement took the territory, they now own there was no telling what Fina would want now.
Alexandria stopped for a moment noticing Tyra had just come into the hall. She was overjoyed to see Tyra standing there. "I'm so glad to see you. You must be here because of Fina's ship approaching am I right?" Alexandria moved closer to Tyra looking a little worse for wear.
"How about you sit down for a moment. I know there is a lot going through your mind at the moment however you need to bring that fire back you had when we first met Fina. You talked about being friends or possibly killing her if she got in our way. With all due respect right now, you look like a scared child whose parents are about to come home, and you haven't finished your chores." Tyra was always going to tell Alexandria exactly like it was no matter if she liked it or not. It might've been a bit much, but she needed to snap out of it.
A giggle became to escape Alexandria's lips as she threw her head back. That giggle turned into devious laughter. It went on for a few minutes until finally Alexandria was just standing there breathing heavy with her eyes closed. "Thank you for telling me like it is Tyra. I'm glad no one else had to see me like that." She moved over to the nearest window looking out at the harbor. Fina's ship was closing in which meant it was only a matter of time before she would be heading this way.
"No problem. Who is going to escort Fina here if you and I are here?" Tyra didn't see anyone else around. There were only a few people that could take on that responsibility one of them wasn't even on the island. The only other person would be Lyric. "Is Lyric waiting for Fina at the dock?"
Alexandria nodded in response as the door opened and Amina walked inside. "Lyric decided to wait at the dock to escort Fina here. I have chosen to stay here since I believe my song could help keep the situation pleasant at least for a time." She was impressed with the setup and glad to see Tyra was in the main hall as well.
It didn't seem like any time had passed since Amina had walked in however the bell at the dock began to echo through the air. That bell only went off when someone very important had docked at the harbor. Amina, Alexandria, and Tyra all looked at each other for a moment. There was no time left to prepare. The walk from the dock to the main hall was maybe about seven minutes. Amina decided to leave the doors open as the three of them lined up in front of the table waiting for Lyric and Fina to make their way to the main hall.