《A Pirate's Life, The Virus, and A New World》Chapter 11 Friend or Foe? Longshot Island
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Alexandria bolted up the mast climbing quickly to make sure Lyric was alright. She tumbled over into the crows nest keeping her head down. The spyglass Lyric had used was all over the floor. Caring more about checking on Lyric she got a shard of glass embedded into her hand. "Ouch fuck that hurt!" Shaking her hand a bit as she crawled over to Lyric.
She was laying with one hand over her face. Surprisingly Alexandria heard her giggling from under the hand. "Hey are you alright? What the hell did you see?" Lyric didn't speak for a moment as she sat up both of them making sure they didn't stand up so they didn't get shot. A few pieces of her dark black hair were missing and after moving her hand from her face Alexandria saw the wound the passing bullet created. Thankfully it didn't rip into her face muscle tissue. However it did look like someone burned her face with a piece of metal.
Lyric winced a bit still keeping that smile on her face. "I saw a sparkle of light from the top of the mountain. If that was a person using a rifle their aim is almost flawless. Of course if it was perfect I would be dead." V had flown into the crows nest with them being quiet and looked somewhat shaken from the events.
"You need to take this even a little bit seriously. That scream and then silence made me think you were dead. I even got a glass shard for my fucking trouble." Alexandria sounded a bit annoyed which was understandable to a point. Of course her pain was nothing compared to the wound on Lyric's face.
"We should get down and get to the cabin before they take another shot. I would rather be safe than sorry." Lyric said as she climbed quickly down the mast. Alexandria didn't say anything else and followed her down. V decided to curl up and sleep in the crows nest rather than try to fly down to the cabin. The last thing Alexandria wanted was to watch V get shot out of the sky.
They both moved quickly shutting the door. Lyric went to the tub sitting on the stool in front of it peering into the mirror.
"When we get to that island I am going to give whoever did this a scar to match." Lyric wasn't giggling anymore and it was a bit weird not to see the smile on her face. Lyric looked at the mirror closely, seeing the angry look on her face. She could see Alexandria in the background just looking at her.
"Well it would seem there is something that can knock the smile off your face and the giggle from your mouth. We need to get to the island first before anything. Is this one marked on the map?" Alexandria moved to the table moving her finger across the map. She found the island they were just on tracing along until she found another island. There was a name written over it.
Alexandria rolled her eyes. "Longshot Island huh. That name is way too on the nose. There doesn't seem to be any other information about it." She looked to Lyric who had joined her at the table.
"I have never been there before and you're right that name is way too on the nose. I think it would be best if I went on the island first. I can go invisible. Are you good remaining behind on the ship?" Lyric asked shooting Alexandria a soft smile. Of course that might be a little much to ask after she was just shot at.
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"I have no issue with remaining on the ship at least until you figure out more about the shooter. Of course once that is done I will be going on that island. Even though it is already charted, I want to see for myself." Lyric let out a soft giggle as she went back to the mirror. Taking a cloth soaking it in water for a bit then dabbing it on her wound. She winced a bit from the touch of the cloth but the pain had lessened now that some time had passed.
Lyric walked out of the cabin looking around it towards the island. It was getting closer much more quickly. She was ready to find out who gave her this wound. Of course that might lead to a fight. Alexandria so far was having all the fun. It was about time Lyric joined in a bit.
"How long until we disembark? I am ready to get some more exploring done already. Also no killing the shooter until we learn more about them. They might prove useful unless it is just a piece of old tech that is still operational." Of course Alexandria was completely sure she believed that. It was also said all that old tech had been taken to the walled cities for their own use.
"I have no intention of killing them. That wouldn't be any fun." Lyric pulled her cutlass from it's sheath. "I have a score to settle lets see if we can get a bit more wind out of these sails."
Alexandria rolled her eyes. "I know that isn't an order to me since I am the captain after all. However I do agree we need some more speed. Is there a way we can do that without getting shot?"
She looked around for a moment. There wasn't much to the ship and adding anything right now wouldn't help. Of course she could go to the rudder and angle them into the stronger winds. "I will go to the rudder to see if we can catch a stronger wind. No need to worry since I can go invisible to get there. They won't be able to see me once I am back behind the deck again. We really need to look into improvements to the ship." Before Alexandria could answer, Lyric was gone.
Letting out an exasperated sigh she leaned against the mast looking up at the crows nest. Maybe she could shift into the sailfish again and help pull the ship forward. Her nose wrinkled at the thought of being a beast of burden as she heard some of the attendants say before. The ship moved a bit, picking up speed. Alexandria watched the sails expand, capturing the swift winds propelling them forward. She smiled, peaking around the mast watching the island come closer to them.
Now that they had a stronger wind they were able to make much better pace and time. Nearing the clearer water Lyric called out from the rudder. "We need to moor the ship since there is no shoreline. Find us a suitable place with some cover." Alexandria looked around to see if there was anything close that could shield them for a bit.
They didn't want to have to go too far around the island. That shooter could be anywhere. Scanning the rocks closely and slowly until she found a nice spot off the starboard side of the ship. "I can see a place where we can moor the ship too. If you come to the right there is a small cove that is well hidden." Alexandria did her best to be as quiet as possible. There was no telling if the shooter could hear them or not. Lyric didn't respond but the movement of the boat showed her instructions were heard loud and clear.
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The ship moved into the cove which was surrounded on all sides by cliff walls. It didn't seem like a sniper could use them effectively so that was a positive. Lyric adjusted the rudder as Alexandria went to get the anchor ready to drop. V shrieked in the crows nest not as loud as usual but enough to remind them she was there. Lyric did her best to maneuver the ship into position as Alexandria dropped the anchor into the water. Lyric came around grabbing the moor line and throwing it around a nearby jagged rock. They both worked together to pull the ship closer and Lyric tied off the line.
Alexandria moved to the center of the deck near the edge, extending the ramp that came down with a thud on the smooth rock surface on the other side.
Lyric went back to the cabin grabbing the pistol from its chest, securing it in her belt. Drawing her cutlass she was about to leave the ship. "When I find whatever or whoever shot at us. I fill fire off a single shot. That will be your signal to come find me." She flicked her wrist disappearing and making her way onto the island.
Alexandria looked up at the sky wondering if it would be helpful to shift. Of course that would just make her a target and there wasn't a real reason to do so. Well if Lyric was able to find the shooter she would fly to them which would be helpful to see how long she could keep the shift up. Usually she could stay in a shifted form for a long period of time. The last three times she has shifted after the danger was over she reverted back to her human form.
Pulling out her journal she decided to read until the single was given. This way she could also make ready to shift since flying to Lyric was much easier than walking. Flipping through the pages turning her mind towards shifting and V. That seemed to be the best way of doing it without having to stare at the bird. That way she could make it to where a shift could be performed just by thinking of the animal.
Lyric moved through the island making sure to be very careful not to make much noise. She didn't want the shooter to know she was coming. Of course they had no way of knowing how many people were on the island and where they called home. The first step was to make it to the large mountain the shot came from and work from there. Lyric was able to make it to the mountain fairly quickly. It seemed to be the main landmark on the island. There wasn't much of anything else.
The base of the mountain was littered with all sorts of things. There were weapons, bones, crates, and some treasures that Lyric was tempted to take for herself. The only issue was that she couldn't turn those things invisible. Picking something up would give away her position. She moved slowly up the mountain doing her best to avoid everything in her path. Making it to the top there were even more things scattered about. However it looked more like a room than just a random assortment of things.
"It isn't nice to just come into someone's personal space like that. I am not sure where you are but I know you're there." Lyric almost said something cupping her hands over her mouth looking around trying to find out who said that. She froze in place just in case they could hear her footsteps. "I could always start shooting around, maybe we could have some fun to see if I can actually hit you."
Lyric turned her head in the direction of the voice focusing in on what looked like a crate. It was then that she saw the muzzle of a rifle sticking out. She needed to be very careful what happened next. There was no way she could get the upper hand on something that could sense her presence like that. "If you show yourself with your hands up we can talk for a bit. However if you come out with weapons you will join the bones littered around my mountain."
Letting out an annoyed sighed Lyric sheathed her cutlass putting her hands up revealing herself to the person. "Well you already made a first impression with me. So I am not going to test your aim further." She gestured to her cheek keeping her hands in the air. The rifle moved from the slit and a grunting noise was heard. A woman emerged from the crate with the rifle out at the ready position. The woman was a bit older judging by her gray hair. However it was still long and looked very healthy considering the place she called home.
"So you did take a hit from my rifle. I thought only the spyglass was destroyed. The wound gives you character, be grateful I didn't pop your head like a balloon. What are you doing here?" The woman grunted again shifting her stance with her finger dancing on the trigger of the rifle.
Lyric was surprised to see someone her age out here alone. The fact she was able to see the spyglass destroyed from that distance was amazing especially since the scope of her rifle wasn't that good from what she could tell. "I am here with my captain. We came from the nearby island. We were just exploring and didn't mean any harm to you. That is until you shot at us." The woman raised the rifle a bit which caused Lyric to take a step back keeping her hands up.
"You have a lot of nerve saying that when you come onto my island invisible and sneaking around." She glanced down at her belt putting her rifle at the pistol. "What do you plan to do with that little pea shooter?"
She remembered the pistol was sitting in her belt. Maybe there could be a way to change this in their favor. If the woman really wanted her dead she could have taken her out the moment she revealed herself. Perhaps there was a way to settle this by bringing the captain here. "If you would allow me to fire off a shot into the air my captain will come here to meet us."
The woman burst into laughter that ended with a small coughing fit. "Do you really think I would allow you to call anyone much less draw a weapon to use against me?" She had a point however there was always another way to solve this.
"Alright find that was dumb. How about you fire it off in the air? That way all the control is in your corner." Lyric hoped that would be enough to change the tide of this standoff.
The woman nodded slowly moving forward. "No funny business or this time I will blow your damn head clean off." Lyric nodded allowing the woman to take the pistol from her belt. Keeping her rifle trained on Lyric the woman fired the pistol into the air.
The sound reverberated and echoed down the mountain cutting into the cove causing V to shriek in annoyance. Alexandria glanced up at the sky and a smile crept across her face. She stood up, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. "It is time to go. Watch the ship V."
Exhaling her breath she shifted into a vulture quite easily this time taking to the sky. V let out a shriek that followed her as she soared towards the mountain. Her feathers were a much darker red compared to V's as she flapped them once scanning the area around the mountain. Locating the two figures below she dived towards them. Pulling up a few feet from the ground flapping her wings to stabilize herself.
The old woman tilted her head to the side looking at Lyric then the vulture before she spoke, "What the hell? Are you trying to tell me this bird is your captain." Alexandria shifted back to her human form right after the woman finished her sentence.
She almost dropped the pistol as Alexandria smirked. "I am guessing you're the bitch that shot at us. I have to admit I wasn't expecting someone as old as you out here alone. I am Alexandria and this is Lyric. Who are you?"
The woman closed her eyes letting out an exasperated sigh. "My name is Tyra and you could say I am the first generation of what you both seem to be. Humans being altered by the killer virus." Tyra lowered her weapon, giving Lyric back the pistol. "It would seem the three of us have much to talk about."
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