Captain David Shadowsail watched the battle unfold in front of him.
“Fire the mana bombs,” his first mate yells, followed by the rumbling of magic being discharge from the runic cannons aboard his ship.
But David heeds the battle no mind. His eyes are focused on his first mate, primarily what hangs beneath his chin.
A majestic mane of hair flows down his first mates face. It's bushy length laying a foot down in length, a teasing breeze swaying it ever so slightly.
Inadequacy strikes David's heart, as he feels his own beard. Barely a few inches in length, his beard is the laughing stock of all dwarfs. His dear mum would say,“it will get longer,” but it never came to pass. Over 50 years old, barely a third of his life, and a beard not even half a foot in length. A travesty is what it is.
“Captain, get your beard together and stop staring at Alfred, you fucking gay shit.”
David’s view changes to his quartermaster. Massive breasts greet his sight, as he stares at Jessica’s scowling face. A woman no dwarf could ever resist. Her massive backside, a distraction for many, while her muscular arms the only thing keeping the men at bay.
"At this rate Captain, my crotch will be spewing orc children before the fucking day is over," she yells, a scowl still plastered around her gorgeous lips.
Nodding slowly, the captain smiles at her language. Her cursing so well done that many a hardened sailor would blush through their beards.
Before the captain can answer, a large explosion slams the ship, his experience the only thing keeping him on his feet, dwarf Mana strengthening his skin and bones.
Looking up, David watches as one of his two masts starts to fall overboard---it's weight causing a crashing sound on the deck of his ship. Fear finally taking hold as he looks at the orc ship, a massive thing with plenty of paddles moving on both sides.
Understanding the dire situation, David runs to his first mate."Alfred," he yells,"Load the cannons, we're going to give that orc ship a double broadside." A smile forms on Alfred's lips," aye captain, I'll have the men be ready."
Watching his first mate run off to relay orders, David runs towards the wheel, ready to make a sharp turn when the cannons are armed.
David glances at the orc ship, now quickly gaining on his own, the oarsmen rowing voraciously in tandem, hoping to board before their strength is spent. An ugly thing that ship, overly large, barely maneuverable, with more masts than a ship has any right to carry.
Grunting with exertion, David turns the wheel, positioning his ship so that it's backside faces the orcs galley.
With a yell from Alfred, David understands that the gunners are ready, and the cannons are armed. Instead of turnings immediately, David waits, allowing the orc galley to come closer. At 200 meters, David makes a sharp turn right, the ship reacting immediately.
As the broadside positions towards the orc ship, Alfred gives the command. Dwarfs manning the cannons on top of the ship blast their Mana into the cannons, activating them. The influx of Mana starts a chain reaction, the runic lines stream through the metal, stripping the inner crystal of it's stored energy. As the Mana gets siphoned, a glob of fire forms within the cannons depths.
An ear-piercing explosion inside the cannon goes off, blasting a metal ball towards the frontal hull of the incoming orc galley, ripping wood to shreds. 4 of the 5 shots enter the galley, the fifth slams into the topsail, bringing it down.
With tensed muscles, the captain turns the ship left, wind blasts into his face, until the other side of the ship faces the orcs. With another resounding blast, the bottom of the orc galley explodes.
Water starts to quickly enter the massive hull from the front, it's weight ever so slightly tipping it forward.
David watches the enemy vessel slow down, the oarsmen forced to stop due to the water quickly entering their hold. Immediately cheering starts to be heard, his men finally noticing the crippled enemy vessel, slowly drifting farther and farther away.
Looking at his men, David watches as they cheer and hug, smiles laid across their faces…long beards…...flowing beautifully to the wind.
Before David could fall back into a depressive mood, Alfred's brother interrupts his musings.
“Captain, we have a mighty big fucking problem,” the ship carpenter says, a massive dirty beard covering his dirty clothing. “Captain, snap the fuck out, the ship is going to sink,” he yells, frustration evident in his voice.
The sailors stop their cheering immediately, noticing the dire conversation taking place. Like a mob, they move towards the captain, fear evident in their posture.
Slowly David nods, the idea that his ship, The Swiftbreeze, is sinking, grabs hold of his sanity once again, a recurring problem that it is.
“Report, what is the damage?” David asks, his mood soured by the damage they have sustained.
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“It’s bad, we have water entering the bottom hull, the same hull we have our supplies needed to fix the fucking hole. I have been able to slow it down, but we are going down immediately unless we find a goddamn port.” the carpenter answers, his eyes glazing into the captains, waiting for a decision.
Silence passes the sailors as the captain thinks, his large muscles, covered in sweat, glaze in the sunlight striking their heads. David clicks his tongue, annoyed that his ship, the one he finally paid off two years ago, is already going to drown.
“How long do we have before this ship sinks Jeeves?”
“We can sail for two days, maybe three if the weather permits.” the carpenter answers.
Nodding, David looks to the sky, clouds covering its length, no storm in sight, a slight wind blowing east.
"Alright mates, we're going to have to sail towards Zaracona."
Gasps come from all the sailors, their confusion evident in their tone.
“The wind blows east, and I can feel it in my beard….even if it is short…..that the wind will pick up in that direction. We are three days out, and I will make sure we hit port, or at the very least close enough to one we can take the dinghy there.”
A silence overtakes the sailors, the same ones who have followed David as he traveled the Nostris sea, its dangers, and wonder engraved in their dwarven beards. With a grunt, the sailors head back to their duties, a simple repetitive thing, allowing them to deal with the loss of their ship is there own ways.
"This is blimey fucking stupid," the quartermaster quips, her mood soured by the day."I bet that Orc ship wasn't even a pirate, probably some fucking captain saw an easy prize and thought of the coin he can make."
"This stupid war between the Radonian's and the Orc's is causing a fuck ton of problems," David nods in agreement to Jessica's assessment.
"But it's the fucking Dwarf council that sits back and does nothing. We should be joining the Radonian's in the fight against those damn Orcs." David adds, venom laced in his words.
“Never dat simple mate,” Alfred quips beside him. “Too much rare metals are sold to those fat cows at the stronghold,”
A silence passes between the dwarfs, their minds spent from the battle, exhaustion prevalent in their sweaty muscular forms.
"Well then, I am heading down to make sure we can stay afloat until port," Jeeves interrupts the silence, waving as he walks away, down to the ship's hold.
David looks to the west, his mind passing the islands and continent in between. The Dwarven volcanic stronghold rests to the west of Jerika, the same stronghold he grew up on. The same stronghold whose sights on rare metals is enough to give up their dwarven honor. A deep sadness takes hold of his heart.
"Dishonorable fucks still have a longer beard than me" David whispers, tears barely being held back.
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An old man stands upon a mountain, his skin wrinkly from his sheer age. Grunting slowly, his massive wings spread apart, hidden strength evident to hold their weight. The old man stares around, a circle of mountains cover the island, a Xerafin city stands within it.
Old eyes slowly start to glow, mana coursing through his body, entering his white feathery wings. Quickly Mana starts to leave from his wings, the sheer quantity suffocating the air. Directing with his mind, the Mana forms around him, its power completely at his mercy.
If Mana can be seen, then a symphony of complicated circles and strings would be noticed, hundreds flowing around the old man, spinning in tandem around his body. As the symphony of Mana starts to combine and coalesce, the air around the man begins to vibrate, sweat slowly pouring down his brow from the extreme exertion. Immediately, at the cusp of the crescendo, a shockwave spreads around him, blasting through the wind, engulfing the clouds and traveling onward.
The old man stands still......waiting for a signal......but nothing. He had felt a massive portal open four years ago, but to no avail can he find it. It will open briefly and be closed just as fast. Only it's streams of bent reality left in its wake. A reality that for all his studies, he cannot locate.
"I know you are out there," he yells at the wind, frustration, and anger evident in his tone" and I will find you."
With one last look towards the skies, the old man beats his wings. Jumping off the platform, he glides towards his city, deep exhaustion present on his old weathered face.
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A hummer drives through the desert, its small sandy hills not even slowing the monstrous gas-guzzling beast. It's formerly sleek paint peeling off from the continuous sandy terrain.
The desert is hot and massive, with only massive rocks can be seen from afar. Their size, a monument to the extreme condition that they must constantly weather, or turn to sand, as time will slowly dictate.
Valen drives towards a large rock, his hand loosely grasping on the wheel, his other holds a sandwich, crumbs falling on his pants. Taking a deep breath, Valen smiles at the hummers A/C, its existence making a horrible drive into a very comfortable one.
As he takes another bite of his sandwich, his head turns to Lin, her cute face staring intently forward. Her hands grasping a tablet, Kung Fu Panda 3 playing on the screen.
Smiling at her cute expression, Valen watches her tail, reacting to the scenes of the movie. It swishes, straightens, and folds, the little ribbon on the end reacting to the motions.
A content smile is present on Valens' face, only to be soured when he looks into the rearview mirror. A terrible army of massive sand worms chase the vehicle, their size as large as a train, but their speed merely caps at around 30. Normally a cruising speed of fifty would outrun them, but the desert is packed with these alpha predators, their ability to sense vibrations attract them to the motor of his vehicle.
It's not necessarily the worms that are causing Valens displeasure. It is merely the fact that he has been holding his pee in for several long arduous hours. Slowly, Valen presses harder on the gas pedal, hoping to get to the large rock, even if the car's vibration's wreaks havoc with his full bladder.
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A large Bearkin sits at a table, his concentration arduous as he slowly cleans his daughter's backside, her cute giggling smile and short waving brown tail making his heart soar with satisfaction. Ayana stares at her father, his hands as large as her whole body, but his fingers are ever so delicate. Many would find such a scene disturbing, especially when the massive man smiles, his razor sharp teeth ever present, only for an adorable giggle to be returned.
A loud slam is heard from the door, a vigorous jump is an answer from Garren, his heart starts to beat quickly, Ayana giggling at her father's fright. Turning towards the door, His son stands tall, a pleased smile present on his face.
"Goddammit Breon, you didn't need to slam the door, my heart can only take so much," Garren yells, a scowl on his face, as he picks up the poop covered cloth on the floor.
Laughing amicably, Breon walks towards his father, whose covering Ayana up." So, father, it seems your wives are having fun running the town, while you nurse the child. Must be nice having such a carefree life," Breon teases his father, Ayana just staring at the two, her long doe ears twitching with interest.
Sighing loudly, Garren looks to his son, a smaller version of him, without the massive muscles, but such things will come with time.”I can only guess that you have some good news.”
Nodding proudly, Breon takes out a fresh map, pointing to a mountainous clearing north of Brentanol, the town he is currently in."We found where those slaving orcs came from. There is an underground cavern in the mountain, and it is quite massive. I believe it extends to the sea up north, but we would need to find the correct passage, which will take time.
Grunting in agreement, Garrens eyes roam the map, the location is dangerously close to the Death Zone."I am guessing it took awhile to find it because of its proximity to the forsaken lands?" Garren asks, his son smiling amicably.
"Nope." He answers quickly, shaking his head,"The orc's covered the entrance up with large boulders. The only reason we found it was that we had a cat beast-kin who was nearby and smelled water."
"Good….good….we will send for more assistance from the other villages and towns, and then we will enter and find out exactly where these slavers truly came through."A vicious smile crosses Garren's face, a cute giggle from Ayana answers back, the smell of poop present once again in the air.