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 Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 11:24 am
Mistress Ching rarely left her territory these days. Things weren't like they had been in the old days, in the old territory. She had a fearless holt of scoundrels and thieves under her command, ruthless and yet willing to follow the chain of command. There had been a collection of females with the role of keeping the males happy, in any way they had wished, the dens were always full of supplies and precious treasures.
But here...
The otters here weren't thieves, and those that were certainly weren't ruthless. They were more like Captain Sparrow or Swann. They had their moments, but in the end they were still much more innocent than she had been before being brought to these lands.
Not to mention the lack of fish hatcheries and pearl farms in the area. Most of the otters were family folk, so there was no need to steal treasures when those around you didn't really want them in the first place.
The only thing she needed to worry about was keeping her territory safe from the otters that she referred to as mentally unstable. And coming from the elder queen who rubbed elbows with Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa, that was saying a lot.
She padded slowly beside a small stream, an offshoot from the main river, Hsu walking silently by her side. In truth, the slowly growing quietness of her life, coupled with the families within her new holt, was somewhat making her want to settle back down herself. Her first attempt at having a family had failed, but one never knew what will happen a second time.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 1:49 pm
 Over a year since he had been scooped out of his native waters, Sri Sumbhajee found himself once more exploring the Oasis, though this morning he found himself in a peculiar mood. Miles upon thousands of miles from his home, he could find no one he once knew, no one like him. Sweet and innocent otters who knew only this life, content on their reserve, peaceful and happy to have a home.
It was an unnatural concept to a freedom-loving individual such as Sri. How could they be happy here without the roar of the ocean, the thrill of a new horizon? Sure, some otters preferred to stay in one place all their life, guard their territory--but this place was just too much. It would not be be so bad if I knew someone...if there was someone I knew who could make this place seem less...surreal. He glanced at the small, spotted otter who trotted at his side. Another example of the otters around here. Happy-go-lucky, without a devious thought in his head. I'm getting bored, too...
A sudden scent caught his nose and he paused, looking around. He knew that smell...that peculiar perfume...but from where...?
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 2:05 pm
"Barbossa, he was a good pirate, for an English," Shih muttered to Hsu in a voice heavily accented as they walked. But even Barbossa had changed, in some parts. From what she heard from his children, he was still the proud, arrogant, cunning b*****d, but without the ruthlessness and thievery. Mating to Captain Swann must have had something to do with that, beside the setting of this place itself.
So wrapped up she was in her thoughts, Shih didn't pay the scents on the air any heed. Her squirrel companion simply nodded to her remarks as he walked, keeping an ear trained to the world around them, ever protective of his mistress.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 2:56 pm
 "What's wrong, sir?" Hepet asked. Something about the way that Sri was walking did not bode well, and in the past year, the mini had learned to gauge his master's emotions with a great deal of accuracy. The way he went from quiet and brooding to intent and curious set his servant to interest. "What's the matter?"Sri glanced at Hepet, an idea forming. The scent was familiar, but who was it up ahead? It could be someone dangerous...an old enemy, perhaps. Far safer to send his servant ahead, thus belaying suspicion. Softly, he whispered in his high-pitched voice, "Do you smell that scent? Go ahead and find out who it is. Stay out of sight and report back to me."Ah. One of those things. Hepet shivered and nodded. "Yessir, you can count on me!" With that, he went off as silently as he could, lifting his head to follow the aerial trail to its source up a small sidestream. At the sound of a female voice, he hid in the reeds and grasses lining the creek, peering out at the otter he had been tracking. Beautiful, dignified, clad in fine silks with jade jewelry...did she know his master? Was she friendly? Was the squirrel her servant? I'll find out when I report back, he decided. As he turned around, though, one rock clacked against another, and in the relative quiet, it sounded loud and clear. Hepet froze, eyes wide with anxiety.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 4:08 pm
Shih looked up with narrowed eyes, in part from warning at whomever made that sound, but also due to her increasingly dodgy vision. Hsu bared his teeth and his tail fluffed up in warning.
"Show yourself, or face the wrath of Mistress Ching," she growled, catching a small glimpse of white fur among the reeds. She finally took not of the scents around her, catching one unfamiliar and one... Her memory must be failing her as well as her eyes. It would be some stroke of luck indeed for there to be yet another of the pirate lords in the Oasis.
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 4:03 pm
If Hepet had spent any time with any pirate other than his master, he might have known some bad words to say at that moment. He turned around slowly to look at the female otter, shivering a little in foreboding. Just because she's demonic doesn't mean she's all that bad... he assured himself. Slowly, he slid down the bank and walked up to her as cautiously as he could. With a swift glance at the squirrel, he sat down and bowed his head respectfully.
In as innocent a voice as he could conjure up, he murmured, "Yes, ma'am? I hope I have not offended you?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 7:08 pm
Shih was taken aback a bit, though she showed none of it other than a very small tilt of her head to one side. She hadn't expected an otter this small to be the thing that she had heard. She'd seen them before, but the ones she had encountered were skittish and certainly not well-mannered. Unlike this one.
She could hear Hsu making low sounds of displeasure at her side, but only set a paw down firmly next to her aid. If she had looked away from the little otter, she would have seen him clap his mouth shut and stand straight and still, at attention to her commands.
"No, but I do not appreciate being spied upon, little otter," she replied back, keeping her words slow. Not insinuating he was stupid or anything, merely because in her experience, her accent often caused problems among outsiders. She had learned to talk slower so that her words didn't blend together so much.
"I am Mistress Ching, Pirate Lord of the Pacific Territory. Who are you?"
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:08 pm
"Pirate Lord"? That's what Sri is! Is she an ally or an enemy? Hepet tried to remember if he'd ever heard about his master's enemies. All he could remember is that he did have enemies. "Oh, I'm pleased to meet you!" he said quickly, smiling as if he didn't know about pirates. "My name's Hepet, mil--uh, milady. I didn't mean to startle you, or spy on you." Okay, that's a lie, but if it doesn't hurt any of us, what harm could it do?
Sri tried to be patient as he waited for Hepet to come back. But he was beginning to get the sinking feeling that the familiar scent could only belong to another pirate, and without his old holt of cohorts, he was feeling strangely protective of Hepet. Maybe I ought to go over, see if he's alright. He silently moved forward, hoping he would not be overheard.
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:26 pm
"Hepet... Well, you know in the future not to do so. Other otters are not as benevolent as I sometimes am," Shih replied, raising her head a bit proudly. In the old days, she probably would have maimed, if not killed the smaller otter for daring to spy on her. But those were the old days and she wasn't with her holt anymore. Things were different here. If you dealt out punishment too readily, there were more against than for you in the end. Her thoughts ran to a halt when Hsu suddenly tensed again and let out a low hiss, his tail fluffing up. There was that second scent again, causing her eyes to narrow on the small otter before her.
"I get the feeling you neglected to mention you were not unaccompanied," she all but growled, quite put out that she should allow herself to be snuck up on twice in as many minutes.
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:42 pm
He nodded furiously. No two otters were alike, and there were bound to be other otters who would have attacked him for less. Good thing she didn't attack me...might mess up her nice clothes, though, if she attacked me. Hepet watched her, analyzing her as much as possible, taking in her pale face and the jade jewelry in case he would need to describe it again later.
His heart sank in fear when she sensed Sri approaching. "Me?" he said innocently. "Wh-who would want to accompany me?" Slowly he began to back away in case she got aggressive.
When Sri saw who it was he'd been tracking, he relaxed slightly--only for his body to tense up again, mind racing to remember his last encounter with the Pirate Lord of the Pacific. When was it? Were we fighting? Negotiating? Was it a battle, or some sort of meeting? Were we allies or enemies? Too many questions, and the long journey to whatever place this was had long wiped it from his memory. Their meetings were jumbled like pebbles on a stormy coastline.
I don't remember too many battles with her, and anyways, she's a familiar face. He shrugged and, throwing caution to the wind, walked nonchalantly towards Mistress Ching.
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:57 pm
Shih growled and took a step towards Hepet before stopping when she saw Sri Sumbhajee walk forward. Hsu immediately quieted and Shih's expression to to mild interest.
"Sri Sumbhajee. I hadn't been expecting to find you in this place." The oriental otter queen sat back down then, looking calm and relaxed. She, too, was having trouble recalling the terms of their last encounter. In truth, it had been so long ago she didn't care. It amused her at how the years had gotten to them. Of the pirate lords, she and Sri had been the elders. She felt that made them more knowledged than the younger lords. Then again, it probably also meant she was more set in her ways than the others... Eh.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 10:52 pm
Sri smiled beneath his beard. She is not attacking me--our last encounter must have been on friendly terms. He stepped forward, careful now not to let his coat snag on branches as he sat down in front of his old ally. With a nod to her and to Hsu, he glanced at Hepet, then put his tail against Hepet's mouth. It had been too long since he'd last seen another pirate that he didn't want to waste the moment speaking through an interpreter. We've talked before. We can talk again.
"It is a pleasure to see another familiar face," he squeaked. "Especially one so beautiful as yours." Whenever he saw her, he immediately thought of her younger self--and his own as well. That way, she never seemed to age, only to mature. They were the mature ones. The Frenchman and the Spaniard would bicker like children, as would Hector and Jack if they were given half a chance. So childish. So immature. He and Shih had kept at least some semblance of reserve in the meetings.
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Posted: Sat Sep 26, 2009 8:21 pm
Shih smiled then.
"Oh, you flatter Mistress Ching," she replied, stroking a paw over her whiskers. She settled a bit more, relaxed and calm. She folded her paws regally in front of her and tilted her head ever so slightly.
"I am wondering as to what brings you as well to this land? Hard times in your old territory?" Shih's voice was rather nonchalant as she questioned the other pirate lord. She was still a little curious about where he had picked up the new interpreter. The tiny otter didn't seem like too much of a pirate to her. But, then again, neither did many of the inhabitants of this land.
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 10:30 am
He tried to repress a sigh and curled his tail around himself. "It was not my choice in any way," he murmured. "I was raiding the holt of a young upstart who was trying to take over my territory. He had found a trap and had been guarding it. I decided to investigate it, and...Here I am." It didn't matter how he tried to put it; it had been a stupid, rash thing to do and Sri still felt like a fool whenever he said it.
"Some...humans found me and took me here. None of my followers were caught," he added resentfully. "I found this little one following me and I made him my interpreter. How did you get here?" he asked. "I might have imagined meeting Sparrow in such a place, but never you, Mistress Ching."
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Posted: Sun Sep 27, 2009 12:12 pm
Shih looked a little unhappy over that, but shrugged lady-like.
"Yi was killed by a wolf and when I led an attack against it, I was injured and taken somewhere by humans who had found me. After a while, they left me here," she explained, trying to sound nonchalant and practical as she told her fellow lord what had happened. Ching Yi had been her mate and love for years, since she had ran away from her birth-holt to be with him rather than the older male she had been arranged to upon her birth.
Yi had been a good male, as far as pirates went, and trusted his mate's intelligence. It was why she had been the lead in most of the decisions made. Losing him had left her feeling angry and bitter. And then losing their son when she was taken by humans... Hsu was the only creature left around her that she cared about anymore. Despite her sometimes rough treatment of the squirrel, they both knew she cared more about him than anyone else in this land, that he was the only creature she considered a trusted friend. True, she had allies in the Barbossa-Swanns, occasionally in Jack and now in Sumbhajee, but she wouldn't trust them with her back on her best day.
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