[Closed] A Night by the Seaside

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Early Summer, 512 AV Southeast Talderan Coast The sun was setting over the horizon as Syna retired for the day and made way for Leth's reign over the night. There was still plenty of light left though, more than enough to see the small encampment from a long distance offshore. A huge bonfire was being started, the pirates eager to celebrate their recent success. They'd just successfully plundered a ship of unsuspecting merchants, robbing them of everything on the ship. Turns out they were quite wealthy, with stacks of various goods all ready for market - whether in Syliras or a city farther south they cared not. After taking everything that wasn't part of the ship, they destroyed their sails and left the traders adrift on the Suvan leaving them to whatever fate the sea deemed fit for them. The raid had made them wealthy enough to last a long time even without another raid, and so of course their first priority was to find a nice spot on a beach somewhere and crack open the crates of alcohol. And that they did. Their two saiques sat anchored offshore, drifting gently up and down on the waves as Leth rose higher into the sky and the bonfire lit up the surrounding area for quite a distance. The pirates' celebration was loud and included much drinking, the captains of the two ships even going into a contest to see who could last longer. Even further offshore, hidden from sight by their very ships, a group of boats of various sizes were sailing north towards the coast, following the light of the bonfire. Most were casinors and palivars, but a few other ships like saiques and even a brigantine or two were scattered among them. The Svefra had come at the behest of an Otani, a servant of Laviku the Sea Father. Turns out that the wealthy ship that the pirates had plundered had made a sizable offering to Laviku, and the god sought to punish them for their offense. A different pod had already been sent to retrieve the surviving traders, but it was the honor of the Deepseeker pod to deal out justice to these miscreants. Their ships glided quietly along the water, what noises made covered by the crackling of the bonfire and the pirates' own shouting. Even at this distance, the Svefra knew what the bonfire meant - they'd done it many times themselves - and many wore twisted grins on their faces as they pictured the massacre ahead. This was not their first raid on a beached enemy, but this was the first time when the odds were stacked so highly in their favor. It was going to be a glorious battle, and these poaching piles of shyke wouldn't know what had hit them. The casinors sailed ahead, the skippers and their passengers fast approaching with one hand on their weapon, eyes glued to the ships and the glow of the bonfire just behind them. And as always, Kirvan was leading the charge.

[Xiani]

Xiani was now a female in her prime, body slender and regal with just the right curves to attract a male of her kind. Her wings were still intact, though she still had yet to grow into them - she now doubted it would ever come to pass. As usual, she kept her hair short except for the beaded strand, and her fur's shorter, summer coat enhanced the strong, limber lines of her aerial figure. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but this year, Xiani's elbows and knees appeared to be darker, less red, than the year before, a sure sign that she would earn a great place within the colony. Perhaps The Pilgrimage will consume a parent's frailty... or cause one to be consumed by it, she would often muse, imagining there was some great purpose keeping her from fulfilling the rite just yet.

Despite her travels, something continued to pull Xiani towards this inland lake... river? Something about it held mystery and unknown, tempting her with its sheer size. Many times she had attempted to work up the courage to cross it - is such a thing possible? - only to find some other oddity that needed investigation for the time being. This time, Xiani had bedded down far from the coast and its uncertainties, but the smell of fire and excited humans had drawn her in that night. She had watched from sunset when the pirates beached, bringing with them much alcohol and even more noise. It had irked her, and had there been fewer, she would have killed them and had a nice, silent meal. But no, as always these wave-striders had to drink that silly liquid and raise a ruckus when all sensible creatures were trying to hunt. Perhaps that is what put Xiani in a foul mood. As always, it seemed, she was hungry. And these ingrates were chasing away all the local food!

Growling and kneading the sand between her fingers, Xiani waited on the hillside for a drunkard, or a mindless duo - for it appeared as if Zith women were not the only ones who enjoyed the company of a male (or multiple males in the case of one of the women Xiani observed)- whose blood would be filled with the sweet taste of passion.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Wind filled the sails of the various ships, pushing them towards the unsuspecting pirates, the smaller casinors speeding ahead of the others. As always for the last few years, Kirvan's boat was leading them, though he had changed since he had first taken part in these attacks. His raiding buddies had also changed, as many of his initial passengers had grown older to the point where they had their own boats. Hamlac was still there though, his toothy grin and short brown hair the only harks back to a time long passed. "Remind me, why you aren't back with your palivar?" Kirvan asked the younger Svefra, one hand steady on the tiller and another holding firmly on the lines. "You ask me that every time it happens," Hamlac grinned back. "For old time's sake more than anything, though you do manage to get yourself into the action first, speeding towards the first sign of action. You better watch yourself though Kirvan, else you might end up in a fight you can't win." "Look who's telling who to watch themselves." They both laughed at that. Hamlac still carried on his tradition with getting in fistfights with many of his podmates, often while the other combatant was drunk, though as he grew up he started losing less and less, his strength now on par with many of his temporary adversaries. He did have a point though: Kirvan did rush in headfirst at the sign of anything interesting, whether it be action or intrigue or whatever, and was developing a bad habit of instinctive behaviour. Many times he was told look before you leap, but whenever something interesting is happening his brain just skips to the leap phase. The casinors were nearly upon the pirate saiques, what few sentries were left behind too tired and jealous of their companions on the shore to really pay attention to anything else. They really were quite bad pirates - an experienced group would at least post some vigilant sentries, or better yet find a cove to throw the party in instead. The plan was to use the ships as cover to get as close as possible, which they had done, while leaving the saiques to a couple palivars in the rear of the pod. They'd counted on these scumbags being absolute morons, guessing that most of the crew was on the beach getting drunk, which was certainly the case. As such, the concentration of Svefra should be there as well to wrap this up as quickly as possible. Everything was going well. "You ready to send them straight to Laviku?" Hamlac asked, hefting his battleaxe. "Indeed," Kirvan replied, a wild look in his eye. "Let's show these vagiks what it means to anger the Sea Father." With that, he pulled sharply on the tiller, sending them to the end of the nearest saique before pushing it out again and banking his casinor around the bigger ship, now headed straight for the shore. His pulse hammered in his veins, and he could see the same excitement in the other Svefra aboard. The raging bonfire sent flames high up into the night sky, licking the darkness before dissipating before Leth's glory. Drunken lyrics could be heard wafting from the sand, similar to the way the Svefra celebrated but without the jaunty music or the general life. It was mostly a bunch of filth wasting their supplies rather than any real celebration. Among the songs though there was a growing number of shouts as more and more people on the edges of the crowd saw the approaching casinors. The Svefra had split to either side of the anchored saiques, coming at the confused pirates from two different angles to further confuse them, a stream of boats. Concerned yells and general clamor soon replaced singing as the celebration turned into confusion and panic, the scumbags all dropping whatever they had at the time and scrambling to draw their weapons, not an easy task to do while drunk. "Take the tiller!" Kirvan told Hamlac as he raced forward across his boat, rounding his cabin and taking a position at the bow. Mounted there was a heavy harpoon, a launcher for the large spear-like darts tethered to the deck. Usually this was used for fishing, but during attacks like these Kirvan - as well as many others - liked to use them to damage or at least frighten enemies as they grew nearer. Loading a harpoon into the launcher, Kirvan looked ahead to the shore and aimed the weapon, the bonfire providing plenty of light to see by. Hamlac seemed to be doing his bit as the casinor maintained a steady course, gliding towards the beach of panicking pirates. With a mass that big, Kirvan didn't even need to worry about accuracy or precision. Firing into the crowd, he was picking up another harpoon before he even heard the scream of pain as the piece of metal ran through their shoulder. As Kirvan wasted precious seconds reloading the machine, he again felt the loss of his friend Durk, the giant burly medic who had gotten his own boat some time ago. They had a system of firing that worked, Kirvan shooting and Durk reloading, but that ended when Durk got a casinor of his own. Though he was happy for his friend, it was times like these that Kirvan wished he had someone else who was as calm as the big guy to help him out. A click alerted Kirvan that the harpoon was in place, and without missing a beat he fired into the throng of people again, watching as it pierced one woman's hamstring and sent her toppling to the ground, her weapon falling onto the sand beside her. That was all he had time for as the casinor's bottom grazed along the sand, stopping a few feet from the edge of the shore. At the sensation, all the other Svefra jumped out of the boat and splashed into the water, racing to shore and shouting their battle cries, mixing with even more roars as other casinors grounded close to shore as well and unloaded their crews, the Svefra swarm speeding to meet the paltry defense. Those pirates sober enough to be prepared made their own counter-charge, ready to meet the sea nomads. Kirvan splashed through the water and then ran onto the beach, his cutlass drawn and ready, a roar forced through his throat.

[Xiani]

Xiani had noticed the white-winged approach of great ships of varying sizes before the drunken sandrats. Her curiosity was quickly peaked and, smirking slightly, she immediately took to the trees, climbing upwards with wingbeats only the keenest ear could detect, finding a lovely brand to perch upon and gain a view. Somewhat lazily, she sits on the branch, wingtips crossed beneath her, mimicking her ankles and hands, instead of crouching, imagining that some great spectacle is sure to follow. Why would these ships sneak upon familiars if not for a fight?

She watches as the waterstriders slink ever closer to their prey, casting odd dancing shadows across the waves, creaking with their girth, yet unnoticed. Perhaps I could have just snatched one up and carried them off earlier... she muses with a smirk. Finally, a shout is raised and the familiar hiss of metal on leather or metal upon familiar is carried to her on the wind, as well as the sour smell of fear.

The ships break apart in a form that reminds her of wolves, coming at their prey from two angles to cause disorientation and confusion. The tactic seems to work as the crowd tumbles into itself, some having the presence of mind to dodge behind wooden boxes, while others rushed for shore-boats. A pair of rather scraggly men take off towards the woods right beneath Xiani, emmiting great fear-smell. Cowardice should not survive... she muses, dropping from one of the branches before the men. Both cry out, one going as far as to stumble backwards and, in his drunken stupidity, land sideways on a small dagger he had been carrying. Distracted by the spectacle almost to the point of mirth, the brawnier one turns to Xiani and, with a rough roar, swings wildly at her with a rusted blade. Once again annoyed with the show of stupidity, Xiani has to but leap into the air, disorienting the man further, and kick him with all of her might in the back. The impact does not kill him, her talons do shortly.

Having taken a chunk of shoulder flesh from the larger one, leaving his companion to finish drowning in his own life, Xiani returns to the trees, this time standing upon a branch and leaning against the girth, snack in hand. The show has continued without her vigilance. Spears have been thrown by the ships with great power, often missing but causing great damage whenever they reach a mark. At the forefront, Xiani notices a single ship heading the charge. At the mouth is a lighter haired male, seeming to revel in the violence and destruction of his fellows of the sea. They were idiotic and need to be removed from the breeding pool, Xiani decides after wondering why these group-traveling humans would attack another, in her eyes, it appears to her as if the fighting is unprovoked.

Her blood is roiling with the excitement of the hunt, the fight, the kill. After the flesh is consumed, despite the sour taste it left in her mouth, Xiani finds herself hungering for more than an easy kill. Her warrior blood sings for a real fight, her claws and tensing and untensing against the tree, leaving gouges that she only could imagine were digging into the soft, dying flesh of her prey. With a snort, she decides that it is time for black wing to join white and for these unworthy drunkards to meet their end.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

It was pathetically easy for Kirvan to duck the clumsy swing and hack off most of his enemy's leg, sending the poor sod screaming to the ground, clutching at the wound. The one right behind him wasn't any better, his twin daggers no use when he charged straight into Kirvan, who had a better weapon with a longer reach. Stupid vagik didn't even get to attack before he was breathing through a new hole in his neck. Immediately after he went down, another pirate staggered over, his massive waraxe raised high above his head and being brought down for a massive blow that would smash someone like Kirvan easily. Too slow. A simple sidestep and a wide slash through the abdomen sent another blood-curdling scream up into Leth's domain as the scumbag toppled over, the alcohol affecting his pain. That's how it was all across the beach. The two pronged attack probably wasn't even necessary. Clusters of inexperienced and ill-prepared pirates fell like wheat before the might Svefra scythe, cutting through them like so much grain. It was clear from the get-go that these foreign poachers were outclassed and outwitted by these lifelong raiders, even though their numbers were about equal to begin with. Screams of pain rocketed all the way up to Leth, all being released from non-Svefra throats as the half-drunken nimwits collapsed to the sand one after another. At least the captains had their acts together. Despite having just pulled out of a drinking contest with each other, they were soon directing their crew around the beach, hurling curses and insults and threats at those who hesitated. That didn't stop a couple men from breaking for the trees however, and Kirvan silently cursed. That would make it difficult to hunt them down later and exact Laviku's vengeance in full. A Vantha woman wielding a rusty iron broadsword attempted to hack at Kirvan from the side, her shorter weapon meaning she moved faster than either of the two-handed idiots before her. Unfortunately for her, she was fighting a veteran of many fights and raids, and it was of a simple matter for Kirvan to block the hack and deliver a mighty kick to her torso, sending her sprawling backwards into a crewmate. Slashing her across her wide open and vulnerable front, he then maneuvered himself around the side of the stunned person behind her and delivered a might cut to the back of his hamstrings, the man crumpling to the ground like a rag doll and howling like a petching wolf. Seeing that their crew was being hacked to pieces, the captains ordered a group of the strongest-looking and most sober individuals around them and then led that group as a sort of shock team in the direction of one of the streams of Svefra, and it just so happen to be heading in Kirvan's direction. They were all tall bulky figures wielding either one huge weapon or two smaller ones that would make excellent dual wielders. Altogether a very fearsome group, even to an experienced fighter. A mad grin twisted across his face. Finally, the fight was getting good. Selecting a Myrian that was headed right for him as his first target, he roared another battle cry and ran right for the taller man, a cutlass versus a pair of handaxes.

[Xiani]

Xiani had first been content with crushing any fool pathetic enough to attempt escape into the vegetation. Grinning, she would tackle and claw and lunge and bludgeon with her strong wings, making new mounds upon the sand. Already, her body was made slick by thick red blood, spattering her from head to toe in ways that would have been gruesome were her pelt paler. A particularly burly and almost sober sand-rat had given her a few moments of entertainment.

He had rushed at her from behind, wielding a club made from a box's splinter. Not only were his feet loud and ungainly, he let out a battle cry, as if such a display would cause her to shirk back into the darkness. Instead, it brought a more feral gleam into her eyes. Using the instability of the ground beneath them, she waited until he was almost upon her then flared her wings ever so slightly and rolled with his force, spinning about his body until she was behind him. Motions displaying her dancing tendencies, she used the last of the transferred momentum from the spin to crack open her wings and hit him from such an angle that he was knocked off balance, into the sand where his nose was greeted by a large stone.

Surprised, she turned to see the ship-master from earlier charging headlong towards a group of better equipped and sized men. Perhaps a bit of help would be appreciated... Running, she bounds towards the approaching parties, taking to the air at the apex of a hop and transferring the speed gained to gain more from each wingbeat. The speed from her flight buffets the groups as she rockets between them, using her wingtip to knock against the hands of a few of the ruffians, loosening their grip perhaps. Spiraling upwards, she shifts directions and, at the last moment, drives a heel into the head of the tallest man, stunning him to the point that he flails and injures two of his compatriots. Spinning once more, she lands just a few paces from the blond haired male, grinning fiercely.

All around, men have fallen or escaped into parts unknown. For the most part, it appears as if the only confrontation left is the one standing before her. And even that shall be over soon.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Just as the two opposing forces were about to clash, a dark figure bounded into the pirate shock team and bounced between them, a black streak causing utter confusion among the dirty scoundrels. What looked to be a human female covered in thin black fur - with wings! - was buffeting the enemy group, sending them into disarray as they split up and tried to attack the lithe fighter. Too late, they swung where she was a second ago while their target jumped up and kicked off the Myrian's face, sending him stumbling backwards and his axes embedding themselves in two of his companions' shoulders. With a graceful twirl, she landed right next to Kirvan, who had regarded the entire event with cold calculating interest, a result of his battle focus. He regarded the strange woman beside him, shoulder length orange hair tainted with red splats at the end, hinting that she had been fighting for a bit longer than they had seen. Her grin was almost as manic as his own, which alone gave him reason to like this stranger. Unfortunately, that was all he had time for right now. He would have made more observations later as the two captains, who were largely unaffected by this newcomer's stunning tactic, charged the Svefra in an attempt to rally their crew and refocus them on the threat. It worked to some degree, and the more coherent of their shock team followed them, a roar of their own meeting the Svefra as the two sides joined in battle. As it turned out, one of the captains was running straight for Kirvan, an almost insane look in his eyes. Now the Svefra was all for wild appearances, but something about this fellow seemed more depraved. Perhaps that was why he was charging forward without a weapon? Almost laughing at the stupidity, Kirvan was about to just hack him open when he saw the man's arm headed straight for his own abdomen. It wasn't the attack that had caught him off guard, it was the arm itself. Instead of a hand at the end, the arm continued on for another foot, rounding out into what looked like a giant bony rock closely resembling a fist. Barely sidestepping in time, Kirvan stared in horrific fascination at the deformity before noticing that the captain's other arm was likewise deformed and sailing right at him. Ducking the punch, Kirvan was surprised to find the other gross extension being swung at him like a club. Kirvan's duck meant that he was placing a lot of pressure on his knees and feet, not an easy position to dodge in, so he was forced forced to block the blow on the edge of his steel cutlass. The force nearly knocked the weapon out of Kirvan's hand. Fortunately, the captain staggered back a bit, looking at the blood seeping from the wound. These deformities were still flesh and bone? The thought disgusted Kirvan, but he had little time to dwell on it before being forced to hop to the side to avoid a downward swing by the captain's still healthy arm, this time getting his act together in time to swing his cutlass down on the still normal-looking part of the limb. Catching the pirate scumbag on his forearm, Kirvan felt the bones there crack and splinter as steel crashed into them, sending the captain howling and stumbling away, now with no good arms left to fight with. As the pirate captain backed up, Kirvan thought he had won the battle. Then, right before Kirvan's eyes, the captain's arms shifted into a much more normal shape, though the cuts on his hand and forearm remained. Before Kirvan could be drawn too much into this, he noticed that the elbow of the captain's uninjured arm was slowly extending, a bony protrusion jutting out from the joint. It looked revolting, but as Kirvan stepped forward to swing through the occupied pirate, his adversary just sidestepped and sent his new elbow weapon crashing into Kirvan's back. The Svefra yelped in pain and and stumbled to the side, but getting himself together in time to dodge the captain's followup attack. Backing away himself, Kirvan flexed his back a few times in an attempt to at least distract from the aching pain as he faced off against a new kind of enemy. Elsewhere, things were moving much faster than with the shock team. Most of the pirates had fallen to the Svefra weapons, and only a few dozen were still able to fight. Those that tried to run now did so only to be confronted with other sons and daughters of Laviku who had circled around their targets and cut off their escape, making sure that the Sea Father's vengeance was absolute. Meanwhile, the other pirate captain was heading straight for Xiani, having seen her stun his followers and recognized her for a Zith, making her a high priority target even amongst all the experienced sea nomads.

[Xiani]

Xiani grinned in gleeful insanity as the other chose her to battle. Judging from his run alone, she could tell he was sober and had honed his body as a weapon. A real fight, finally, she thinks sinking into a lower crouch, raising her wings slightly for an even steadier stance. He hefted an enormous battle axe above his head, adding an element Xiani had not expected. Obviously the tool was not his judging by the way he held it, and the ways his muscled seemed to flex in unexpected ways.

Reacting with the speed and grace only the most lithe Zith could manage, Xiani ducks under a swipe, as if the man expected to remove her head on the first move. Almost moved to mirth by the idiocy of the move, Xiani relies upon his over extended motion to send her smaller shoulder into his ribs, running into more hardness than expected and likely bruising it. But, it keeps her from tumbling forward into the sand with him, instead bouncing off and stumbling backwards a few paces. The man looks up at her, appearing to be stunned that such an instance had occurred. Unable to help herself, Xiani grins all the wider.

A shift runs over the captain as he lays the battle axe in the sand and pulls a medium length, straight dagger about as wide as a finger and slightly rounded along the spine from a leather pouch on his chest. His eyes become more focused, motions more natural as he rises to his feet, flipping the grip on his blade so that the blade faces forwards, then backwards, then repeats again. He rushes at her with surprising speed, keeping his elbow close to his body as he slashes at her chest. Using her wings, Xiani beats them in such a way that her upper body is drawn backwards rapidly, but underestimates her own power. Not only does she pull herself backwards, but the move causes her to fall on her back with a huff. The man sees his chance and lunges again, one hand aiming to grab her neck, other arm pulled back to sting. Using her wings as an advantage once again, she elevates her body to stab her feet into the chest of the attacker, talon-nails first. His breath rushes away from him, but he manages to slash her along the calf just as she is releasing the tension in her legs. Hissing in pain and annoyance, she kicks at him, driving an ankle into his jaw just before he rolled away, coughing.

Snarling, she leaps onto the man, straddling him in what some would see as an intimate position were she not pressing down upon his Adam's apple with her thumbs. The man thrashes wildly, causing Xiani to use her wings to create enough force to push him back down, and continue flapping as his struggles slowly grow weaker. In a last ditch effort, the dying captain recovers his blade where it had been lost in the sand and attempts to slash her across the gut. Lucky for her, he was holding the weapon so that the duller side hit her stomach with enough force to annoy her further. Flexing her wrists, she snaps the small bone in his neck, locking it into a closed position over his windpipe.

A moment later, his light is extinguished.

Breathing heavily, she rises to her feet, only to feel a sharp pain across her stomach, apparently the tip of the blade had still managed to cause damage through her furred skin. She growls at her own idiocy, laying an arm over the wound and applying pressure in order to stem the bleeding. Vision slightly blurred - what is happening? - she looks for the courageous captain she had been observing earlier, hoping that he had survived his own skirmish.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Tentatively inching forward, the captain Kirvan was facing off with kept his elbow extension in front of him, his body turned mostly to the side so that his weapon was always in the lead. Gently hopping from one foot to another, the captain advanced slowly on his opponent, Kirvan backing away at the same speed as the battle raged around them. The Myrian from before was facing off against a couple of Svefra who used their more versatile swords to feint and swipe at the giant man, somewhere off to the side a group of the ore capable pirates were doing a good job of holding off the Svefra horde, but they soon found themselves surrounded by the seafarers, caught in the center of a storm. Everywhere else the battle was more or less over, those children of Laviku who had stopped fighting were now searching through the bodies on the sand, dispatching whatever scumbags still drew breath. Out by the saiques, the rest of the Svefra fleet were busy checking the ships to see if any might be sleeping and if so sending them to their next life slightly more peacefully. Although most of the crew of the palivars and various other ships had come ashore in rowboats to join the fray, what little left there was. After this shock team had gone under, this skirmish would be more or less won. Charging forward, the captain aimed his bony extension at Kirvan's chest, roaring in a somewhat hilarious attempt to startle his adversary. Unfortunately for him, the weapon he was using was unwieldy and difficult to use in any measure of grace or speed. Easily stepping to the side and behind the thrusting captain, Kirvan brought his cutlass down and through the vagik's side, steel cutting through flesh with a gruesome squelch. However, Kirvan's attack had prompted the captain to swing himself around while growling in pain, his elbow weapon connecting square with Kirvan's head. The blow sent him staggering, and as he shook stars out of his eyes he barely had the presence of mind to duck a followup attack, too dazed to efficiently counter. Stepping back, now slightly more wary of the first experienced opponent he'd come across, he decided to wait and react to what his adversary did, hoping to find an opportunity to strike a fatal blow. The two repeated their dance, the captain slowly advancing and the Svefra slowly giving ground, though they both were a bit less energetic after their last grapple. However, while Kirvan still smarted heavily from the blows, the captain had actual flesh wounds that sapped more and more energy from him as it went untreated. Realizing this, the captain went on the hard offensive, looking to end this fight as quickly as he could. Shifting his elbow down to the side slightly, he suddenly stepped forward and brought the flesh weapon up and across, aiming for the underside of Kirvan's chin, hoping to break his neck or at least daze him. Kirvan ducked the blow easily in time, but he failed to notice that the pirate had planned ahead for this and the damned vagik had sent a kick that connected square with Kirvan's chest, sending him sprawling across the sand on his back. Adrenaline pumping, the Svefra rolled out of the way just in time to avoid a damaging strike from the captain's elbow weapon as it hammered into the beach. Getting back to his feet, Kirvan twirled around to face his enemy again, but the pirate was already following through with a claw that had seemingly not been there before. The captain had grown it while strategising, keeping it out of Krivan's sight to use it at a time like this to catch him off guard. The weird bone jutting out of his elbow made it hard to use, but the claw served its purpose as the long sharp points dragged across Kirvan's forearm, causing him to grunt in pain and step back again. Luckily, the wounds weren't on his sword arm, which meant Kirvan was still in the running. This was indeed a good fight, and an exciting one at that, but he began to grow tired of it. The blunt injuries were all well and good, but it was the scratches that pulled him into his focused vision that everything else became so much haze. The other captain went down, the rest of the shock team was being rounded up and systematically killed, but it barely registered. Quickly, Kirvan devised a plan of his own, and then carried it out with lethal effect. Lifting his cutlass forward to the side across his body, Kirvan created more potential energy that could be released in a powerful swing. He suddenly stepped forward and pushed the offensive, as if looking to initiate the next grapple. There wouldn't be another. The captain hadn't been expecting it, but reacted with good speed and in a powerful sideways swing with his elbow weapon. The attack was inevitable, it was the easiest and most effective reaction to an advance, which was what made it so utterly predictable. Ducking the foreseen swipe, Kirvan used all the energy in his twisted torso and arm to deliver a might slash to the pirate vagik's legs, cutting straight to his bone and probably fracturing that as well. With a great howl, the captain fell to the ground. As soon as he hit the sand, Kirvan was there as well, his cutlass being brought down on the vagik's neck, the hack nearly severing his head from the rest of his body. Bloody and tired, Kirvan looked around at the scene around him. By now, almost every pirate was dead or dying. Those that survived quickly surrendered, only to be killed anyway. Such was the way of the Svefra. No survivors among those who crossed the Sea Father. Everywhere the pod was cheering, a great massacre to Laviku's glory, throaty yells and shouts and roars of victory rung from the lungs of many, their weapons raised above their heads. Even from the palivars out on the water, voices could be heard shouting their victory. Those nearest Kirvan came closer, laughing and congratulating him, slamming his back and prompting him to roar with them, and soon his voice was ringing with the rest of them. Nearby, Hamlac looked over and met Kirvan's eyes. He grinned, just as wildly as before, his body covered in splats of blood as well as he stood over the giant Myrian. Finally, the pod calmed down enough to start talking to each other, congratulating their family on a good fight. It would likely go this way for another few minutes, people laughing and talking and boasting, and then they would all throw a celebration in honor of the victory - gods know they'd be celebrating if Syna rose the following morning, may as well make it mean something. It would no doubt then grow into a full festival to make use of the ample resources and get rid of some of the load. Before then though, Kirvan was hoping to meet this stranger, who, amidst all the commotion seemed to have been largely forgotten about by most of the Svefra. Not Kirvan though. He gravitated towards interesting things, and right now the most interesting thing on the entire beach was the black-furred woman. She stood there clutching her abdomen, most likely putting pressure on a wound, standing over the other pirate captain whose neck was now broken, his head limp on the beach. So, she could fight hand-to-hand, huh? Intrigued, Kirvan approached her, tearing the shirt off one of the downed pirate scumbags to help bandage the wound.

[Xiani]

The battle seems to be over, no enemies stand. Using her free hand, Xiani tiredly wipes the gritty sand from her eyes, groaning as the motion disturbs the bruised shoulder. As the adrenaline fades, she realizes that her abdominal wound is the least of her worries. Where the knife met her calf, skin now hangs loose and blood flows freely, muddying the sand. Blinking several times, she notices that the sea farers are gathering for a sort of celebration except for the odd, blond one.

She watched as this one broke away and began an approach, tearing the bloodied shirt off of a fallen man on his way. I hope he doesn't mean to assist me with... that, she thinks in disgust. Even younglings know how to properly dress a wound; usually with something boiled in water before hand to prevent sickness. But, despite that, she feels as if she can trust this human; he seems to wish to help her, and is as curious of her as she is of him.

Ever vigilant, her eyes scan about, taking in other scenes in order to distract herself from the almost searing pain as any shift drives granules into her wounds. Bodies are being tossed to sea if they are close enough, or piled into a great mound, surely to be burnt before setting out tomorrow morning; men are sitting on the remains of great crates, downing the last of the liquor as another group stands about the fire, guffaws often ringing out. Strangely, a pair of women, one carrying a child upon her hip - who brings a youngling into battle? - almost dance across the sand, as if its surface is natural to them, before coming to a stop at the pile of bodies. The woman releases the child and, together, the trio begins digging through the flesh landscape, searching for anything they may value, the little boy climbing all the way to the top as if such viscera does not bother him. She could really, perhaps, get along with such people.

Her attention returns to the fighter, wings automatically raising in a defensive posture, brought about by her weakened state. Despite her weakness in judging human expressions, this one seems to be curious, but excited, emitting no fear-smell, and about to speak.