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"The Princess concedes." Atticus stated as he followed closely behind her, "I'm heading down as well." he said.

Walking into the room as well, Atticus would look around for his bed. "Hm, not very spacious is it?" he asked as he chose a bed that was located a little away from everybody else. Laying down on the bed, Atticus stared up at the ceiling.

[[[going to class, be back in a few hours]]

"Right on cue." Atticus said as he heard the thunder and rain, "I do enjoy this type of whether, it soothes me." he muttered as he would then close his eyes, "Shira would you mind coming over here for a moment?" he asked.

As soon as Shira came to him, Atticus would reach up to her and pull her down onto his bed. "I would prefer it if you sleep here with me." he said as he did not want her to sleep on her own, especially with the rats around. "Is that all right, Princess?" he asked.

With Shira agreeing, Atticus would move over a bit and give Shira enough room to lay next to him, "Well, lets try and get some rest." he muttered.

Once Atticus and Shira fell asleep, they would suddenly feel themselves leaving their bodies. After several moments their vision would change; they were looking through the eyes of a rat that had somehow made it into their room without making a sound. The rat was watching Atticus and Shira sleep. It was armed but it didn't make any motion towards them, simply watching. As the dream continued their vision would change again. This time they were looking through the eyes of a rat in the Captain's quarters. It was standing in the room watching Cathy and Captain Rachel talk as it waited for orders. As Shira and Atticus watched they would see the two acting like...well...girls.







Cathy was sitting on the table swinging her legs in the air, looking at Captain Rachel. "And did you see that Atticus guy? He was soooo cute!" She said to Rachel. Rachel gave a coarse laugh. "If you want, I can throw the rest overboard and you can keep him as your personal servant," she teased. "Me-ow!" Cathy replied jokingly. She stopped swinging her legs and looked over at the Captain. "Can you believe it? After this mission Lord Death is willing to take our names off the Death List and give us a fresh start...." she said. Captain Rachel fell silent. "I didn't think we'd ever get the chance to start over," she whispered. Cathy smiled. "We'll be able to go wherever we want! We can start a real business! We can work at legitimate ports and make all kinds of money!" She was clearly excited by the prospect. "And-" Captain Rachel suddenly held up her hand for Cathy to be quiet and Cathy obliged.

"Do you hear that?" She asked. Cathy gave a confused look and shook her head. The Captain walked to the door and opened it, her heavy boots clonking across the deck. She walked outside and stood on the open deck, lighting lashing around her as the thunder roared. Cathy and the rat quickly followed her out, immediately drenched as they stepped into the rain. "Captain we shouldn't-" "Listen!" Cathy perked up her ears, listening hard over the thunder and rain. The dream Shira and Atticus were having dulled the noise of the rain and thunder so they could hear it too. It was a deep, ominous groaning sound seeming to come from all around them in the storm. Cathy clearly heard it too and stopped, the color draining from her face. "No way...that can't be...." She said, her voice barely audible over the storm. "There's no way we could attract something like that. We aren't a capital ship! It shouldn't even know we exist!" The Captain's frown deepened. "That's true. Unless..." She spun to face Cathy. "Check the cargo hold! Look for anything unusual! Go! Now!"

Cathy spun on her heel, practically sprinting towards the stairs that led to the cargo hold. The rat Shira and Atticus were looking through followed her. As they raced below-decks, Cathy reached the cargo hold door and kicked it open. She ran into the room and began tearing open boxes and chests. "Help me look!" She yelled to the rat as she searched. The rat immediately began tearing open cargo as well, digging through the contents before turning to the next one. The rat reached a new box and clawed it open. Inside was a red orb that pulsed with an ominous light, giving off a slight humming sound. The rat gave a squeak and Cathy ran over. There was a note attached to the orb:

As a thank you for transporting me, I leave you a present for free. It will bring about a friend that will quickly be your end. You are surely wondering why and so I shall answer your cry. Right now aboard your barge, you have a passenger in your charge. She must die in this operation and I appreciate your cooperation.

-Nique

Cathy grabbed her ears. "Nyaaa! Who the hell is Nique!?" She yelled. The clomping of heavy boots could be heard until the Captain stood on the stairs, looking down into the cargohold. She immediately realized what the orb was. "Oh no...." she said. Even the stalwart Captain Rachel seemed afraid. Cathy looked back at the Captain, her eyes wide. "Is this...bait?" She asked the Captain as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. "No. That's the lure. WE'RE the bait." Cathy stared at her, frightened. "But...why? We haven't transported anyone who wants us dead. We know who our enemies are. How could we let someone on our ship who wanted to kill us?" The Captain shook her head. "It's not us they want dead. It's that Shinigami girl."

Cathy slumped to her knees, holding herself tightly. "But how would they know? How would they know Lord Death would send her on this mission and it would be on our ship?" Captain Rachel thought for a moment. Her fists clenched as she realized something. "They didn't guess. This entire mission was a trap! Lord Death didn't post this mission. Someone else did. Probably "Nique"." Cathy looked over at the Captain. "But...how?" Captain Rachel turned back towards the exit. "They must have had access to wherever the missions are written at some point and wrote one themselves." Cathy looked away. "So our fresh start...." "Is as fake as our mission." "Then what do we do? We're gonna die here." "The hell we are! Cathy, destroy that orb then get above-deck!" Captain Rachel looked back at her. "Cat, Atticus has madness in him. When he comes on deck, you know what to do." Cathy stood up and looked back at the Captain. She nodded, a determined expression on her face.

The Captain ran back up on deck as Cathy drew her cutlass, slicing through the orb in one smooth motion. She turned to the rat that had been watching them. "Sound the general alert! I want cannons in the ports and ready to fire! Increase our speed to 90 percent and get all hands on deck! Go!" The rat and Cathy looked up slowly as another groan sounded outside, this time much closer. The rat gave a squeak and ran out of the room to carry out Cathy's orders. Cathy followed quickly, returning to the deck.

When Atticus and Shira awoke, the rat that had been watching them in their room would be gone.