|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 9:18 pm
Night was the only time to do this, Wesley knew. Between the sheer heat of the sun during the day and dehydration, and add the metal rooves of the buildings, he would have been a roast eel if it wasn't by starlight. Slinking his way through the still warm sand, he flopped over the stairs and burst through of the doors.
Wesley, panting, coiled himself on the floor for a minute to recuperate. Land movement was so harsh, now. Getting himself bak up, he started looking over the objects in the room for possible use in the settlement. This building seemed to be one of the bunk houses, at any rate.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 9:58 pm
Aiden was up, much to his chagrin. He hadn't been sleeping very well the last week or so. His meetings with Michihi and his traumatizing of Shelly had caused enough sleep troubles. Back then, he'd tossed and turned and woke up from time to time. But at least then he'd been sleeping. After his meeting with Ian, after seeing the boy...it had been a heavy blow for many reasons. Aside from the obvious impact of seeing yet another friend changed, it brought him closer to the realization that...maybe becoming mer-like creatures wasn't a fluke meant for a few. Maybe it was what would happen to everyone...including himself. It scared him, though a part of his mind was still entrenched in denial, holding out a hope that since he was so abnormal, he'd miss that fate.
That meeting...it had shook him hard, harder than the ones before. It showed, too. Dark circles ringed his eyes and he looked so run ragged...it was like the first few months of being here all over again.
He had taken to walking at night when he couldn't sleep, when he got restless. Patrolling. He wasn't sure why he was patrolling the base, though. Like anyone would break in and steal things. Was there even anything to steal? Not really, except what beat-up mattresses and ratty blankets he hadn't pilfered for himself (which was still quite a few- he could only use so many himself). Anything of value he'd horded back in the Officer's bunkhouses- maps, papers, some old ammo from the storehouse...it wasn't even that valuable as it was. Still, it was HIS and made his room feel like it had more stuff to it.
But patrolling...it gave him something to do. And all the hobbling across the grounds tended to tired him out and give him a chance to clear his head before attempting sleep again.
He was heading out of one of the barracks when he heard something outside. Movement? He tensed up, tightening his grip on his staff as he advanced towards the noise. Perhaps it as his state of tension, but his mind passed over the possibilities of the sound being another islander taking up residence in the base or the possibility of another late-night walker. His mind seemed to skip towards a trespasser. A raider who wanted to take the stuff from HIS camp without HIS knowing. He felt an odd possessive feeling crop up and he hobbled faster.
Logic? Hah. Like that mattered to someone who was both depressed and running on only a few hours sleep.
He moved to the adjacent building the noise had come from, slipping in through the door. He took note of a coiled- and vaguely glowing- figure curled near the ground. Was it another spirit? He growled a bit- he hated island spirits, let alone ones that dare infringe on his sanctuary. Or was it simply another islander? Either way, what the hell were they doing here so late?
Get them...go see what the hell is up! Show them they can't just take the milk without paying for the whole cow! This stuff is for the people that stay here! his mind said, pushing him on.
"Oy, who's there? The hell are you doing here?" he boomed irritably, jabbing the coiled figure with his flipper-like foot, hanging onto his staff for balance. If it was an innocent islander...ah, he'd make up later. Right now, the urge to protect his turf seemed stronger than his normally good-natured reasoning...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 7:11 pm
Wesley couldn't help it. As he was jabbed, he raised his torso, neck and head and began the low, gutteral hiss of the eel. Twisting his neck in an impossible way to see behind him, he saw the silhouette of a clawed figure in the doorway. He showed some teeth for a moment at the figure, until he realized that the thing in the doorway was in the shape of a human - albiet withe a tail, and the snarl and hissing stopped at once. Pushing the glasses on his face closer to his eyes, he tried to squint. "I didn't think any islanders were here anymore." It was a simple fact, but obviously someone did.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 7:37 pm
As soon as the figure began to hiss, Aiden jumped back, stumbling. He caught himself on his staff, hop-skipping behind it and holding it out defensively. Was it a snake? God, if it was a snake, it was the biggest damn snake ever. As it reared up and twisted around, Aiden brandished his staff again. Oh no, this was no snake...though he had no clue what it was. A fensive warning growl escaped his throat as well- if he needed to duff someone with his staff, he SO would.
However, most of the tension seemed to dissolve when the figure spoke. Oh crap, it was another islander, wasn't it? That voice...it sounded familiar, though. He lowered his staff and leaned on it, though he still watched the figure warily.
"Yeah, they are. A few, anyways. More might be coming." he said plainly. "What business do you have here?" he reiterated, still trying to place the voice. Damn, he knew it was someone he'd met before...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 8:12 pm
"We're building a permanent settlement on the edge of the salt water lake in the middle of the island. It's coming along slowly. We needed supplies - bark and branches doesn't really cover it. I figured I'd scout to see what we could use." Wesley brought himself up to his full upright position - about four feet - before the silhouette. "To be fair, we could use people who can still still stand. Are you the only one here?" He tried to shimmy a little bit to the right to see if he could get a good side profile of the guy.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 8:53 pm
He growled, baring his teeth as the man spoke. Suddenly, the voice, the accent, the notion...it all made sense. He knew who this figure was. Wesley. That...Brit! He had changed again, but that was a minor footnote in Aiden's mind at the moment.
So he was doing it again, taking people from his camp. Stealing friends. Trying to steal supplies.
"Oh, really? So...so moving away from the base camp in the ******** jungle to a better place is only a good idea when you suggest it?" he snarled. "I finally start coaxing some people to sleep on actual beds in actual buildings instead of dirt and you come in to take it all away again? Oh yes, because everyone must follow captain Wesley. God forbid anyone pay attention to someone else. And when they do? BAM. You jump on it and take it away. WELL GUESS WHO STILL HAS THEIR LEGS!" he yelled.
He didn't hate Wesley, in all honesty. Most days, the thought of the man was a minor annoyance. But tonight...he was just so tired, so angry, so stressed! He was just...falling apart and Wesley happened to be the unlucky target.
Aiden huffed big breaths through his large nose. He wasn't going to lose his contact and friends again to this guy. Damned if he'd help at all. They wanted their own camp? Get their own damn stuff. He circled as he spoke, still glowering (though his hobbling limp probably lessened the effect the circling had).
"You want a camp? You want to make your own place? Fine. Fine. But you can do it yourselves. With your own stuff. This here? This belongs to me, to the people that live here." he said, banging his staff against the floor. "People...yeah, there are some people who stay here with me. There might be...hm, three or four more coming too."
If he doesn't ruin it for you, his mind hissed, egging him on.
"You want to build a camp? Build it yourself. Why should we help when we're happy here? We have solid, sturdy buildings. We have the ocean out front. We have the lagoon out back- which I assume is the saltwater lake you speak of. We have the stream nearby- we have all we need. Why waste time and energy on building some shoddy little camp when we have everything here?" he huffed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 10:34 pm
Aha... Wesley finally had someone yelling at him. Who thought he was right, that Wesley was wrong, that the people Wesley represented should just go off and mind their own business. For a minute, it was almost like he was home again. Putting a hand to a small ripped-raincoat satchel Wesley had made, Wesley unwrapped the rubbery yellow substance and found a bulb that had been mostly untouched by the watery trip. Wrapping the flesh between his finger around the metal base, he allowed a little trickle of electricity to flow through it; turning it into a small lantern. the sickly yellow light illuminated Wesley's green, slimy skin, especially along his extended jawline. He was also able to see who he was speaking to. And the strange changes for the boy. He was quite the opposite of everyone else, it seemed.
"Ah. Aiden was it? Done? Good." Wesley didn't want this to get into a shouting match, so he planned his words carefully. " First, the base camp was before everyone started mutating. It wasn't exactly part of my plans. Second, I didn't suggest moving away from the base camp. I simply did, because I had to be in the water. There are many of us, now, who can no longer live on land. There have been two occasions where I have almost died from dehydration. It wasn't a random chance I came by night.
I have no doubt the buildings are sturdy. Sixty odd years of standing have showed that. To myself and the others, though, it would be a frying pan. If it weren't for that, I might have considered moving here. The reason why we are building a permanent settlement in the lagoon is because it will, in part, be underwater. Much of the land-area will be shaded.
I'm also trying to get a head count for the island. In the past few months we've had a lot of new faces come in. How many, for certain, are staying here?" Wesley had a feeling it was a lot fewer than the younger man was making it out to be.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 7:40 pm
As the light came on, Aiden took a step back, still regarding the man cautiously. How...how did he do that, make the bulb light up like that? Did it have anything to do with the way he glowed? He looked Wesley up and down now that he could see him better- god, he was just like the others...like some twisted mermaid.
Aiden couldn't help quiver a little- not out of fear at the man, but out of fear at the changes. This couldn't be a fluke if so many were ending up like this... He shook his head. No. He...he wasn't like them. He wouldn't end up like that. God knows HOW he'd end up but...no. No. He was different. Better.
As the eerie shadows sprawled across the walls, his face, Wesley's face, Aiden kept his brows furrowed in irritation. He didn't like how the other man started off speaking so...so patronizingly. Like he was just some kid that had no justification to his tantrums (never mind that was basically how he was acting). His whiskers twitched in annoyance, ears pinned back like a distressed cat.
"Don't you talk to me like that, you...slimy snake." he grunted airily.
You tell him. Tell the intruder. You're better than him, not bound by the water like the others. Superior his mind hissed, his inner thoughts apparently more malicious in his jumbled state.
The other man did look serpentine with his long, slimy body, though. It hadn't been an arbitrary insult, but a half-observation as well. But the face...it wasn't right for a snake. He looked almost like...like an eel or something. Ew. Though...eels didn't glow, if he recalled his sea critters correctly. Nevertheless, he looked creepy lit up like that. So far, Hailey was the best- and really, the only good- looking fish-monster he'd seen thus far.
Aside from his initial comment at the start, he remained largely quiet as the man talked and explained, hobble-pacing back and forth, snorting and huffing irritably. He seemed to be coming down a bit, but he was still tense, still angry. Still wanged-out from no sleep and bad days.
"So then if this is all because some of you are fish-monsters, why don't you water-freaks go live in the lake? Like you need mattresses and s**t for THAT." he growled, banging his staff again. "And then all the land-people can come here and enjoy four walls and actual beds while they still can without being freaked out by the creatures from the Black Lagoon over there. Less energy wasted that way- and it's not like the lagoon or ocean is too far when- and if- they do change. In that event, we can just... roll them down the beach and set them free. I don't know." he said, voice getting a bit frantic and edgy. He still felt like the other man was drawing away potential company and friends, and he began to pace again.
"I stand by what I said, though. You want to make a camp somewhere else? That's your problem. You're on your own. I'll help and share with who comes here, but it ends there." he said stubbornly. "This stuff is for this camp."
He stopped pacing, leaning heavily on his staff. His feet ached like crazy- they always did when he was on them for any length of time (and he had been on them for awhile before this too- patrolling the base was no small jaunt).
"For certain? You mean...those that are intended to stay here if you don't steal them away?" He thought a moment.
Kara said she'd try and coax Kai and Jack over. Kai he wagered would follow easy enough since the only reason she'd been staying in the jungle was because of Kara... then Shelly agreed to check the place out (though...she had been a bit out of sorts- hopefully she remembered). That was four potential newcomers right there if all went well.
Alcine had come over awhile ago...and that was really the only people he knew of. Maybe it wasn't a huge amount, but it was a start! Maybe later, once Michihi figured things out he could be coaxed over as well. It was important the kid at least had a better place to stay- or that's how Aiden felt, anyhow.
So for certain? Only a few. Potentially? At least five including himself (possibly six if Michihi didn't end up hating him completely for his lies). But he didn't quite feel like telling Wesley who or exactly how many. Make it easier for him to round up and take his friends? Hah. Not likely.
"It's hard to say. I don't see people around all that much. We all sort of do our own things and we tend to be active different times of day." he started, keeping things vague. "Why should I tell you anyways? For a headcount? Who died and put you in charge of the census department?" he finished hostilely. He could be rather stubborn when he got angry.
He eyed the glowing bulb for a bit before he moved to ask, "How...do you make it do that? Was there voodoo magic or some s**t with the change?" He wasn't as hostile or demanding with this inquiry, but his voice was still rather sharp and irritable.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
