Citizen 395 Ogenus

Ogenus shrugged his shoulders, allowing the packs strapped to him to settle more comfortably. Thankfully having scales allowed for bags and smaller items to be secured fairly easily without much work. Looking over his shoulder, he double checked on his traveling companion. Jespism was also making sure she had everything, her heart racing as her mind kept returning to a single thought- they were about to leave the dome. She of course felt safe in Ogenus’s presence, but the thought was still so foreign to her, and it must have shown.

Ogenus let his paw land heavily on her shoulder, giving her a reassuring look. “Are you ready?” He asked, not vocally, but instead telepathically. Something they had been practicing on their deep dives, something that would be needed if venturing outside the dome.

She flashed a quick smile and a nod back to the large ocean colored Rexal, not wanting to waste any more time. She was the one that had asked him to come in the first place. A bodyguard to keep her safe on her travels to the Crimson Cove where she would be able to sell both her crafted and found trinkets and treasures.

Ogenus gave her shoulder one last reassuring pat, before his apertures began to glow with his magic. He was casting a breathing spell on himself to make sure he would be able to reach the surface comfortably, due to all of the extra weight he was carrying. He was sure it would exert him more than normal as well as creating extra drag, causing their travel to be a bit slower than it normally would. Once he saw Jespism do the same, the two cast off.

Outside the dome the water was much darker than he originally thought it would be. It was mid day, so the sun above should have been shining and at least been able to slightly illuminate the area, but instead he found himself looking at Jesp, barely able to see anything but her glowing blue apertures in the murk. “Up we go now, don’t dally.” He voiced into her mind, “There should be a ship above waiting for us.”

He and Jes pushed forwards, the occasional bubble escaping their mouths and racing upwards to the surface. Jesp had a slightly easier time than her companion who was weighed down with her wares, continually looking back to make sure that she didn’t get too far ahead of her guard. She was also confused, they had been swimming for quite a while. She could begin to feel the strain on her breather spell, yet the water remained dark and murky. It felt off, and didn’t seem like the stories others had shared of their time outside the dome. But the bubbles let her and Ogenus know that they were still headed in the right direction, so they pressed on.

It wasn’t long until Ogenus sensed something off, heard.. Something different. It was loud even under water. The sound of waves, but they must have been huge. The large Rexal started to get a bit worried but refused to show it, not wanting to spread that worry onto his companion. “Be careful, Jesp. I think there may be a large storm.” He nudged into her mind, wanting to give her a fair warning just in case she wasn’t aware.

Once they broke the surface, it was utter chaos. The sky was dark, rain pelted their faces and the waves crashed down on them heavily. “Don’t release your breathing spell yet, if you can help it!” He urged her, as he looked around desperately for the ship that should be in the area. But it was so dark, and it was hard to see anything with the seas being so rough. Lightening cracked once and he then saw a large, ominous outline of a large ship. “There!”

Jespism followed Ogen’s pointed finger; she had missed the sight of the ship but she put her trust in him. She waved one of her large arms above the waves, her apertures still overflowing with magic glow, in an attempt to flag the ship down before it was too late. But it seemed to have worked, on the next crash of lightning she saw the ship, and she saw someone throw a large ladder overboard for them to climb.

They both fought the waves just as hard as the ship, but they eventually reached the ladder. He motioned for her to go up first, wanting to ger her out of the treacherous waters. Once she started her climb, he followed right after her, the water running cleanly off his scaled body as well as the waterproof waxed bags that held her valuables. But something seemed wrong, no one was leaning over the rails to aid them, and once Jes got to the top she seemed to freeze, before crawling onto the deck slowly.

His heart raced as he climbed as fast as he could, not even looking at his surroundings as he bolted over the railing in an attempt to make sure if his companion was okay. She was backed to the railing just to the side of the ladder, giving him just enough room to get past. He immediately growled, air whistling through his bared teeth as he looked around wildly. Pirates. This wasn’t the ship they were meant to be on.

He took up a wide planted stance in front of Jesp to protect her and allow her to dive overboard if need be. The crew surrounded them, some on all fours, others standing upright with swords drawn and pointed at the blue Rexal’s threateningly. Just as Ogen was about to open his mouth to threaten them, a large ink colored rexal swayed towards them through the pelting of the rain. “Now.. now. What do we have here?” The large male Rexal’s voice was both smooth and raspy in the same note, “Is it your first time out?” He sneered, obviously having a bit of fun with them.

Jespism gulped, looking at Ogen. If he were to talk he may make things a bit worse, even though she knew he had her safety in mind. She stood up on her hind legs, placing her hands on Ogen’s back for balance in the storm. She wasn’t accustomed to being on a ship, let alone a ship dancing in a storm such as this. She figured it might be best to just.. Tell the truth. “Yes, we are journeying to the Crimson Cove, I’m.. a merchant” She said a bit reluctantly, but Ogen still carried all her wares safely for now.

The captain cocked a brow, a bit surprised. He expected them to be a bit more fearful. Instead Ogen refused to give up ground, and the female explained their journey. He revealed a large smile, showing his fearsome set of teeth, some of which were now replaced with golden implants. “And what, by chance, do ye sell?” He asked, his interest had been piqued. His eyes now set on Ogenus, who was obviously laden with most of the bags containing whatever it was the female meant to sell.

Her mind raced as she looked around nervously at the crew, she could tell they were all sea folk as they didn’t even need to hold onto anything for balance, even though most stood on their hind legs. “I’d be happy to show you,” Her voice was soft and low as she continued, “But I won’t tolerate my wares getting wet.” She gulped once more, hoping this ask wouldn’t anger the captain.

Instead he laughed, enjoying her bravery. “Stand down you lot, we’re going to have a bit of a chat.” He rasped. And at his command, the crew immediately disbanded back to their usual tasks, with only a few bruisers remaining. The captain then removed his tricorn hat, which was laden with rainwater, crossing it over his chest with a slap as he gave a small bow and extended his arm to the cabin behind him. “Please, step inside.” He chuckled, before retreating into the orange, lamp lit captains quarters.

Ogen looked at Jesp, as if to gauge her on what she wanted to do. He felt the weight of her stepping off his back, and stand beside him. She gave him a nervous smile before starting to follow after the large captain. He followed suit, quick to give a snort to any of the crew that wandered too close.Inside the captains quarters, the space was actually quite warm and roomy. Around the cabin were numerous maps nailed to the walls, some finished or in progress. In the rear center of the room was a large curved wooden desk similarly filled with an array of papers, ranging from maps to wanted posters and ship legers. Behind it sat the large inky captain, his fur dripping with water. He had numerous braids along his neck and shoulder, adorned with both beads and gold. His hat sat dripping on a rack behind him. “If’n ye don’t mind now, What is in the bags..” He asked again. His tone was cold but not hostile, more like it leaned on the side of boredom.

Ogen looked at Jesp before shrugging some of her bags off his back, some with help from her. He wasn’t quite sure what she may want to give up or not, or what may be more precious to her, but he did keep a few bags on him that he knew contained some very valuable things she had found deep in the trench on their explorations, unless she retrieved those herself he vowed to keep them safe.

“I collect odds, ends, maps.. Things I find in my dives and travels.” She explained, taking some time to lay a few things out carefully on his desk. They ranged from handmade jewelry to some intricate and delicate pottery. But she had seen his eyebrow raise at the mention of maps, and so she brandished what she had. Most were very well made copies that she had made from public resources from the city, tending to keep them on her “just in case” the need were to ever arise.

Ogenus watched the large Rexal wipe his wet paws on a rag before tossing it aside, skipping everything and opening the maps one by one. Looking around the room, he was sure that the captain probably had all the maps he would ever need, yet it still seemed to be his main interest. His eyes snapped back as he heard him give a gruff huff of approval.

The captain got to his feet and walked to the left of the cabin where he approached a wall nailed full of maps, some in better condition than others. He held the map he had in his hands up to one on his wall that was nearly in two pieces, which also seemed to be suffering some water damage. “Not bad, not bad..” He hummed in a low voice, talking to himself. He scratched his chin, turning back to look at the blue pair standing before his desk. “I’ve no need for pottery. But this..” He said, as he rolled the map back up carefully and placed it back on his desk. “Is somethin’ I could use. But it’s not enough.” He locked eyes with Jesp now, which caused Ogen to release a small growl that was building in his throat. “I need something more valuable, why should’t I just throw ye overboard back into the storm?”

Jesp’s hair prickled, the thought of getting tossed back into the sea, especially now that they were farther from the dome and the water being too dark to see, was not an option she was willing to take. She took one of the smaller satchels off of Ogen’s back now, opening it and partially dumping it onto the captains desk.

Ogen winced as he saw the valuables spill out. It was a mix of gold and gems, and some of the more intricate things Jesp had taken the time to make to sell. But he also saw the captains smile grow, she had pushed the  right buttons, it seemed. As the captain pawed through the valuables, taking his pick of what he wanted, Ogen looked back as Jesp with a pained look. He couldn’t help but feel like he failed her a bit. This was their first adventure outside the dome, and he was supposed to be her protector, yet here they were being robbed. He heaved a sigh but there was nothing that could be done, and he hoped that she would forgive him once they were to safety.

Once the captain had claimed what he wanted, he gave them a shoo’ing hand gesture as if to say he was finished. Jesp took no time in quickly gathering up her belongings before he were to possibly change his mind. Securing everything back onto Ogen’s back. Just as she was tightening the last strap, the captain cut through her concentration,

“Yer lucky. Crimson Cove?” He said, not even looking at the pair but instead inspecting a rough ruby he held between two of his claws. “We’re skirtin’ by, yer free to stay on the ship until then. Crew won’t ‘urtcha, ‘lest you do somethin’ foolish.” He eyed Ogen, directing that last bit to him.

The pair nodded, and inside Ogenus heaved a great sigh of relief. Jesp would still be able to sell most of her wares, and they were safe from the storm. This would definitely make for an exciting story once they got back to the dome.. For their first time leaving, this certainly fell into a worst case scenario. Still, it had it’s slight positives. He looked at Jesp before sending her one last thought, “I’m sorry..”