Turning Tides

[Keto]

February 28th, Year 1

---

“We are forced to live in silence, 

Eating dust and breathing violence, 

Keeping all the suffering within. 

Let me be the one to hold you. 

Trying hard, remaining hopeful, 

Making sure your heart is free of sin...” 

The voice that had recently torn through a violent storm now seems... soothing. Smooth tones ring through the seascape as the creature sings her siren-esque melody. She seems to be... busying herself with something, searching though her recent hunt. She seems especially interested in any boxes or barrels, collecting them into her hands like one would collect seashells. She doesn’t seem to be wandering far from one point, however, always returning to what seems to be... a ring of stones, anchoring a bubble to the seafloor. Each time she returns, she deposits the cargo, only to check on... something.

“Waiting to see your conviction. 

Swallowing proud premonitions, 

Clinging onto hope that slowly dies... 

Standing in the ruins of nature, 

Caused by forces born from danger, 

Cleaning hands where virtues live on ice!” 

Pleased with whatever it is, she pushes herself from the bubble and back into the sea, once again going for more cargo. Though, something seems to distract her. Massive coils roll as she carefully adjusts herself, looking over a particular wreckage. 

“In mother's scorn, 

Blood was born. 

Our nation's torn, 

Passage gone. 

A war unknown to us all...” 

After a moment, she turns back to her bubble, giving it the same scrutinizing look. Seemingly displeased, she turns back to the sea, gathering large stones and ringing them around the first, smaller loop. Once the ring is completed, she gently touches two of the larger stones, bracing gently. There’s a heavy thud that travels through the waves, and some heavy power begins to build.

“See the rays of light dance in hurricanes! 

The essence of our life, held within cruel chains! 

Come and see the day's unsolved history! 

The mirrors in the eyes are reflecting the fear. 

See the sands of time play with prophecies, 

We always end up losing to life's guarantee! 

Barren promises feed on your demise! 

The challenge to be free is a lost enterprise!” 

The bubble begins to quiver and shudder as she forces magic into the stones, until the whole thing expands to fit its new ring. With more room to store things and apparently pleased with her work, the leviathan turns back to her chosen wreckage, tail looping carefully around the ship. With gentle rolling, she coaxes the ship from its spot and free to move. Hands gingerly pull and tug the ship towards the bubble, taking care around a large hole on either side of the hull. 

“We can't hide cruel commands. 

We will see their last stand! 

From the heart where we belong, 

Yet we all know why the cruel commandments came along. 

Forever blind to the wasteland beyond!” 

With one smooth motion, the leviathan presses the ship into the bubble, letting it come to rest along the outer ring. She makes certain it isn’t bothering whatever’s got her concern, and once pleased, seems to finally settle. 

“Hm... there. Landwalker presents. You’re lucky, you know.” 

She seems to scold no one in particular. 

“I don’t usually do this.”

[Perthmail]

Crashing waves, pain, and fleeting consciousness were all that Captain could hold onto as he had been swallowed whole by maw and teeth. Plunged into a dark abyss he had not wished to meet again for as long as he lived his second life. The screams and echoes of his past haunted him like the tidal wave that had sloshed him under the surface.

They were violent with their intent to remind him of his beginnings, a slave boy on a ship in the Carribean forced to do whatever his Captain ordered without question or protest. Somethings were fine, but others he never wanted to be reminded of again, everything swam in his head until the moment he felt the crunch of teeth against his abdomen and it was like the sea had claimed him once and for all...

He was wrong though. By some slim chance, the sea had been merciful to the boy, it had given him a third chance but this time at the hands of something he did not anticipate. Her voice echoed through the waves and the bubble where he laid, uneven breaths starting to finally calm and become steady. Her song rousing him from his nightmare filled slumber and soon, icy blue hues opened. He was no longer in his demonic form.

Hands grasped at the wet sand below him as pain coursed through his sore body. His thought ticked away slowly into a low buzz of nothingness. He felt almost lost to where he was at but as thunder and lightning cracked far above the sea level the Pirate King could not help but look upward. Heavy breaths echoed out of him before he shook his head softly, a weak attempt to get his mind in order. His body moved to rest against the sand properly so he didn't struggle for his unrequired breath and just as quick as he moved his back made an audible 'thud' against the sand. Not a moment after he cast his exhausted gaze to his ship and then the sea beast.

His previous fear of such a mighty wonderous creature was gone, if she had wanted to continue her attempt to murder him she would have done so already. Not only that but he couldn't help but be curious of her, he had never met a colossal being such as her before and there were a thousand questions he could as her. That he could think of in that moment, but the only thing he could muster was simple and one maybe that sea beast would not expect. "...what is your name...?"

[Keto]

Perthmail’s voice catches the leviathan by surprise, and she tilts her head to her a better look at him.

“Ah, you’re actually awake this time, Landwalker. I was beginning to think I really had killed you.” 

Her tone is... surprisingly convivial, for someone who’d just attempted to swallow him whole, killed countless fellow soldiers, and sank at least two ships. Even the way she moves is much more relaxed, tendril 'hair' curling around her face as she leans in close to him. Massive, dark eyes search him curiously, as if looking for something important. When she seems pleased, whether she found it or not, she sits back, propping her chest off the sand with her elbows. Hands tuck idly under her chin, an soft, almost curious smile pulling across sharp teeth.

“Hm... My name is Keto. I protect these seas. What can I call the Landwalker that broke the leviathan’s tooth? I imagine your name isn’t actually ‘Captain Crunchy’.” 

At her words, she makes certain to give a wide, sharp grin. Sure enough, a single tooth, near where one's canines would be, is shattered about half way up. Goodness knows where the rest of it went...


A massive hand reaches toward the pile of cargo she’d collected, claws working against wood before the barrel pops open as if it were nothing but a small fruit or nut. One glance in, and she instead offers it towards him. It seems this one is filled with fresh fruit.

“Here. Want some? You should probably eat something.”

[Perthmail]

It seemed to take him ages to work himself up into a sitting position. His pain was evident with every little movement he did, the strain on his face clear that whatever was ailing him was great despite that fact there was hardly any visible bodily injuries. He knew such a thing would not last forever, just like the tide the pain would ebb away but it did not give him any present relief.

Once he got himself to properly sit up, he took his time to look 'Keto' over. She was massive, her sheer size positively clear now. She dwarved his ship, Lady Basilisk as though she were nothing. He couldn't help but wonder how such a being could be so big and actually exist, it made him ponder over his past experiences silently though he did not dwell long. The faintest sound of a scoff sounded from him before he hung his head. Unable to help wonder if Nasira had fallen victim to Keto as well, or had she escaped. If she had escaped, how was she fairing? Did she believe him dead? So many things to ponder...

"Hm... My name is Keto. I protect these seas. What can I call the Landwalker that broke the leviathan’s tooth? I imagine your name isn’t actually ‘Captain Crunchy’.”

"Perthmail... Perthmail Skoskar, Pirate King of the Earth and Sky..." The introduction was lackluster, but nowadays his name, his title felt meaningless. He was feared once, a long time ago people trembled at his name but so much time had past and now he was probably just a name in some lore book of old.

He brushed his palm free of the sand before the cracking of wood grasped his attention. As the barrel was cast down Perthmail stayed put. Though once offered he takes a fruit, glancing at it before he began to eat. Silence filling the space for a few passing moments. Defeat. It was a bittersweet feeling.

[Keto]

"Perthmail Skoskar, Pirate King of the Earth and Sky. Hm, that's a mouthful. Earth and Sky... but not the Sea? Not that anyone's truly king of the seas, but usually, you Landwalkers like to try." 

Once he takes the fruit, she gently sets the barrel next to him to pick up another. This one, after the same cracking treatment, is deemed much better. She tilts the crate back, dumping what seems to be dried meat into her mouth. As Perthmail is.. more than aware of by now, Keto doesn't seem to chew her food, preferring to swallow the contents in one go. Here, the leviathan seems to settle, laying flat on her chest to observe the Captain. Her gaze is relaxed, almost.. tired, really, as she observes his movements.

"... You know, you're handling this much better than I'd expected. When I found you in my gills, I figured you'd give me more reason to try and eat you again. There's significantly less screaming and flailing involved." 

Keto settles her head into folded arms, blinking slowly as her tongue presses against the shattered tooth in an attempt to push it off. It seems, through all that chaos and turmoil, she'd actually been injured, even if it was just a small thing.

[Perthmail]

Here, there's a soft scoff. A noise of near amusement, landdwellers were all the same at some point or another. Trying to claim the sea that was untamable as a demon's heart. It was funny almost, as if the sea could be tamed and claimed. She could not, she was violent and vicious, she consumed everything in her fits of anger. Yet she could be gentle and wonderous. Perthmail always loved the sea, and her unpredictable anger. He wanted to live and die by it, and he had once. He was just unsure if he was ready to die by it again. He shook his head, taking another bite of his food before his gaze shifted to watch as Keto dumped the dried meat into her mouth. She could have swallowed him whole but somehow he had gotten lodged in her gills. Probably because of his skin, he was in his demon form when...

He swallowed roughly, he would not lie if she were to ask did she frighten him. She did, she was large and powerful, she had torn a hole in the hull of his beautiful ship like she was nothing despite being one of the biggest ships on the battleground above.

He lifted his gaze more, peering up at the darkness of the sea, he could swear he felt his lungs fill with water again though they didn't actually do so. He felt queasy, with another rough swallow he breathed out sharply in an attempt to quell any creeping anxiety before finally and properly fixating his gaze on the sealady in front of him. She was frightening but she was also lovely in some way he couldn't explain. He silently noted the tooth but figured it best not to address it just yet. "I learned screaming and flailing didn't get you much but a hard fist to the face when I was young. Figured it wouldn't help here either." He tilted his head. "...why haven't you tried to eat me again?"

[Keto]

”What, do you want me to?”

The leviathan gives the pirate a look of mock enthusiasm, before giving a soft laugh and shifting slightly. Her laughter seems to ring like a bell, bouncing off the walls of the aquatic enclosure she’s encased him in.

”I suppose... it’s because you smell different. Mh, no. Smell isn’t the right word. Feel? I can sense something about you. You’re no ordinary Landwalker. You’re powerful, and the ocean... She loves you. Call it luck, call it fate, but you weren’t destined to die. Not here or now. She wants you to live.”

There’s a noise here, and Keto’s brows knit together. She gives a groan, and her body unfolds into a massive, prolonged stretch. It’s almost like watching a cat, really, as she curls around the bubble as she relaxes. Coils roll in the strange divots around the protective ring, and the dull glow from the massive runestones seems to catch something in the darkness. Small, round, and golden. Thousands upon thousands of them.

Like a dragon and it’s hoard, it seems Keto’s laying on an absolutely goldmine of lost treasure.

”That, and I’m a bit... tired. Between the runes, the storm, the lightning... It took a lot of energy to pull out all the bells and whistles for that storm AND make sure you had dry land to stand on. Not to mention relocating your boat.”

Tentacles curl slightly from around her face, pointing lazily in the direction of the ship she’d recovered. Sure enough, it’s the Lady Basalisk. Or, what’s left of it, really. The holes on either side will need an extreme amount of repair, but it’s better than starting from scratch...

[Perthmail]

The mock look that Keto had given was all he needed to settle any nervousness that might have appeared at the question. Those teeth of hers could crunch down on him now with not a single problem and he would be nothing but a bloody mess left behind in ribbons between her jaws. Sure, he would come back eventually but that could be months or years from now. He would have to readjust with the changes of the world and boy that just sounded like a hassle.

And as an archdemon, he was very lazy. Especially when it came to learning the most current news of the 'modern' world. Not that it would take him very long to learn those things, he just didn't give a flying damn about it he had been alive long enough to see the biggest 'ooo's and ahhs' of the universe here and beyond that he was pretty numb to it. Hell what made it worse was that human advancement seemed to take too damn long anyway!

He shook his head, such thoughts were bothersome anyway. He slicked his fingers back through his messy hair before grabbing a hold of the leather used to tie his hair back into a ponytail. With a quick jerk it came loose releasing his hair which came to rest over his shoulders and neck but parts of his hair remained upward as if defying gravity itself.

His mind had just began to wonder when Keto's mention of the sea loving him joulsted him harshly back to reality. His brows knitted together, ice color hues wide with both concern and genuine surprise. Sure in passing thoughts Perthmail had wondered why the sea had brought him back but some part of him knew, deep down inside but to have it spoken out loud was a silent shock to his system. "I-" His reply fell short, too many questions to ask that were in no point necessary. He fell silent, moving to rest his arms on his knees as his gaze shifted to look at the treasure trove that Keto had. She must have been collecting it for a while.

"Wait," He quickly turned his gaze to Lady Basalisk, his heart fluttered and then sunk. She was barely standing! He struggled to get up on his feet finding his weight a little unbearable before he made his way over to the ruins of his ship of over a hundred years. She would need some massive repairs. He sighed heavily, nearly pouting as a hand touched some of the damaged wood and metal. He supposed that was a problem for the 'tomorrow' him. "Well, thank you for not completely destroying her." He joked lightly before giving a heavy sigh and turned his gaze upward to Keto again. "I will admit you did have me shaking in my shoes with that show of yours. I haven't felt that type of power since the sea claimed me as hers, shook me down to my core if I'm honest." His fingers tapped lightly against the damaged hull.

"...I may say something stupid right now, but I am a bit glad you did what you did. I think I can finally feel myself coming back to 'normal', whatever that is. So, thank you Keto."