Pirates! IX [Quest: Atani]

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:28 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

Flakes of gunpowder blew off Atani's shoulder in the wind as she made her return from the previous job. It wasn't her intent for it to end in yet another explosive mess. The first several times she had done so, it was due to a lack of magic and weapons. She regretted it. It was far from an elegant solution, but it was the best thing she could come up with at the time. That, however, resulted in a ship burning at sea who never received help. She knew not of the crew's fate aboard the ship, as the wood elf was not in the loop with pirate affairs, but she feared the worst. Ever since that incident, she avoided those barrels of gunpowder at all cost so as not to trigger another explosion, but that plan quite literally blew up in her face.

The fire mages who she fought, they were just as careless as she was. She thought they should've been ones to know their flammable materials, but apparently not. Either they didn't know, or they didn't care. Whatever the case, it resulted in an explosion aboard their ship from barrels of gunpowder no less. They didn't deal as much damage as the ones she set off in previous missions. It damaged some of the wood, sure, but it was more of a shock to the other fire pirates than anything. The bulk of the damage came from their spells burning up the wooden ship's mast and sails, effectively grounding them (anchoring them?) in the waters where they thought they would be safe from mages, bounty hunters, law enforcement, or whoever else may be after their stolen goods. That damage, the kind that wasn't the gunpowder barrel explosion, the kind that was solely fire, Atani had intended for it to happen.

WC: 303/2000

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:29 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

That, she didn't feel guilty about. The fire mage pirates were fools to allow themselves to get so carried away. But the explosion? She was lucky that didn't get as out of hand as it could have been. That, of course, was in shared fault. The fire mage should have known better than to ignite flames near highly flammable and combustible objects, but as a light mage belonging to Blue Pegasus, it was her duty to be aware of all threats to an area and steer fighting away from hazards. That said, that moral rule was more flexible when it pertained to hostile situations like what was upon the ship, but nonetheless it was a good practice... Especially for someone like Atani who was still rather new to this sort of thing. Despite having some level of experience in her past, all that showed for it was her reflexes and abilities. Her reasoning and decision making had not transferred over as far as she knew. That was entirely on herself to develop through the experiences that she could remember and through the experiences she would continue to have.

If she sat down to think about her choices, there was no doubt in the wood elf's mind that she could come across the most reasonable solution that would accomplish her whilst resulting in the fewest casualties. It may not be the most efficient solution in time or resources, but it could work nonetheless. But sitting down and thinking? That was her problem. She was capable of it, sure, but when it came to things such as quests or battles? Well, she became rather impatient. There were no hostages on board that she needed to consider the safety of. She only needed to consider her own, which was where she became lax with planning.

WC: 303+302=605/2000

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:29 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

That was something she needed to change. But maybe... maybe she was looking at it all wrong. Maybe she didn't need to change in that moment. As opposed to fixing her bad habits, perhaps it was best if she just worked through them. With each mistake she made in her job, she learned from it. That was far more effective in preventing future mistakes as opposed to trying to prevent them from happening all together. For instance, when she heard Zimra's unusual chirping noises, she didn't assume something was the matter until it was too late. Now, she knew how to better pay attention to her companion's signals. By the logic she had tried to use earlier though, she should have tried to understand all of Zimra's behaviors before attempting to communicate with him in battle. Something like that just wasn't practical.

Now that she thought about it, all of this just boiled down to her style. She preferred to think on her feet. Trying to do otherwise would be defying how her brain was hardwired. She wasn't going to force herself to be someone who she wasn't, even on the smallest level. Not when she was still trying to figure out who she was to begin with.

Atani shook her head and scratched Zimra behind the ear. He didn't have a clue what was racing through her mind. All he knew was that going on pirate hunting trips with her meant getting his grabby hands on something shiny-- Zim liked shiny things. He liked the way the shiny objects' surfaces glinted in the sunlight, creating dots of light to chase or beams of light to shine across the walls. She also had a sneaking suspicion that he enjoyed to toy with the pirates. Pulling at their clothing and weapons.

WC: 605+300=905/2000

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

It was a dangerous game to play, but oddly enough, Zimra appeared that he knew what he was doing. It was as if he also had experience tumbling with pirates, experience that stretched beyond what Atani exposed him to. All things considered, it was very well within the realm of possibility. Atani did indeed find him in a sack aboard a pirate ship, though she assumed he was nothing but a stowaway. Granted, even if he was, that didn't mean he hadn't been on other sorts of ships before. These sea scoundrels, they traveled everywhere. Not just Hargeon. Not just Astera. Not just any other port town in Fiore. Not just the islands either. In fact, some probably weren't even limited to Fiore. Zimra could be all the way from a foreign country for all she knew. She had no knowledge on the habitat of flying lemurs, but she did know that ordinary lemurs were generally found in the wooded areas of islands. She had never been to such islands, so she could not vouch for their nativity to the country.

That was yet another reason as to why she had to do her research on Zimra's kind at some point. She kept putting that off... In favor of quests, of course. With all these pirates to deal with, she had very little time to do her own research. On top of that, there was just so much she needed to learn. The topics kept piling up. Winged lemurs, elven spirits, various magics, healing spells, old languages, secret codes, ancient runes... Sooner or later, another thing would be added to that list. There was no way for her to prioritize the items on it. She would just have to play it by ear. Whatever she felt like studying when she had the time, she would.

WC: 905+305=1210/2000

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

But of course, as always, studying would have to wait. Even today, though Atani had taken the time to deal with one unruly band of pirates, she still did not feel as if she was finished. Though she was successful as always, the mission ended on a more sour note. Atani would have hated to wrap up the day with that sort of result, only to spend the rest of her time on something else that didn't redeem her actions. Plus, she had an itch for more activity. And what better way to scratch it than by fighting some pirates? Making some extra money along the way couldn't hurt either. Zimra would also doubtlessly be entertained by the whole thing. It was a win-win scenario.

It was settled then. Atani still had the loot from her previous job, so all she had to do was drop that off to her client before going off in search of another group of pirates to take care of. As usual, that part went off without a hitch. No rogue pirate tried to steal back the bounty, and her client rewarded her accordingly. After that, Atani began to make her way back to the request board situated in her guild hall.

"Up for another one?" The wood elf asked her lemur. She stopped by a fruit stand and bought a couple figs for him to munch on for a small lunch. Had to keep the little guy's energy up if she was going to take another job. Atani bought an apple for herself and ate that while she drew closer to the guild hall. Before entering the building, she tossed the core into a public trash bin. Upon entering, she saw that the request board was still full of papers. Once again, there was one for pirates.

WC: 1210+303=1513/2000

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

Luckily, these pirates were not among the kind who used fire magic. If they did anyway, it wasn't listed on the quest. In fact, it didn't really list what these pirates were capable of, just where they were last spotted and whose ship they looted. Looking at the reward though, Atani guessed they weren't any more dangerous than those she had fought in times past. So, confident that she could do the job just fine, she tore the request off the board. However, she did figure she'd probably need her bow for this.

Atani made a quick pit stop by her home to pick up her Great Wood Elven Bow and then set back out to where the pirates were last seen. She found what looked like a good vantage point and crouched behind some jagged rocks so the pirates aboard the ship would not spot her. The elf squinted her eyes. She couldn't make out any details of the persons, what sort of weapons they carried other than what looked like something sheathed in their belt. There were five total on the deck from what she could see. That was good enough. She could handle that amount.

Atani crept from her hiding spot and slid into the water. Before doing so, she once again instructed Zimra to stay put. With the bow still on her back, she slid into the water. A bubble surrounded her head, enabling her to freely breathe beneath the waves. The girl swam to the boat. Avoiding being scratched by the barnacles on the wood, she pulled herself up into the lower chamber of the boat through a window that had been left conveniently open. There were no pirates beneath deck, so that confirmed there were only five pirates she had to take care of.

WC: 1513+300=1813/2000

Spell Cast:

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:31 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

Atani took a deep breath and held her two fingers against her bowstring. The light footed elf hadn't yet attracted the attention of the people above her, though that was soon to change. She ran up the stairs and aimed her bow at the pirates in front of her. All five were present. Good. That meant none were going to stab her in the back this time. She sent an arrow flying at the one who appeared to be the most dangerous.

The elemental arrow of nature pierced through the leg of one of the pirates. He crumbled to the ground in pain. The others drew their weapons. One who was previously unarmed reached for a gun that was resting on a crate. She hadn't seen that before. As she dodged the slash of a sword, the bullet flew. It too, hit the elf in the leg. The bullet was magical. It must have been a lacrima powered pistol. The good news was, that meant there was no bullet casing lodged in her flesh. The bad news was, that thing had as many shots as the pirate could supply with his mana. She had to think fast.

Releasing one hand from her bow, Atani thrust her hand into the sky. A healing rain shower came pouring down... Only, it did more than heal. Rather than helping the pirates, they seemed to be injured by the rain. Atani sharply inhaled as she saw some collapse to the ground. Not severely wounded, but definitely out of it. Suddenly, the elf felt very weak. She dropped to one knee to catch her breath. That spell took a lot more out of her than anticipated. She looked at the hand she used to cast the spell with. Her magic had never been capable of that before.

WC: 1813+302=2115/2000

Spells Cast:

**Atani** · Thu May 13, 2021 9:32 am

Epithet :

The Sylvan Fay

Guild :

Rune Knight

Jewels :

4,840,250

Rank :

B-Rank

Race :

Athlas Elf

Experience :

154,625

Reputation :

9,300

Class :

Paladin

Magic :

Yuan, the Goddess of the Mercy

Aura :

Empress

Strength :

1

Speed :

13

Constitution :

61

Endurance :

9

Intelligence :

211

Mana :

2,975

Body :

Fafnirskin

Cape :

Heart Cape (ↂ)

Ring :

Ring of Hrava

Modification :

Divinitas (Permanent)

Not only was she able to deal damage with a spell that was intended to heal, but it sapped significantly more energy than it did when she had initially learned the spell. Furthermore...

Atani looked at her leg. The wound inflicted by the magic bullet was healed. She had been on the positive receiving end of her spell, whereas the pirates were on the negative end. She was healed, but they were injured. That was very interesting. She learned a new thing about her magic that day.

Now that she had some time to catch her breath, Atani went into the cabin on the ship to retrieve the items that were stolen from her client. Though that spell had unexpectedly taken a lot from her, she was only so impacted by it because she wasn't prepared. There was still plenty of mana left for her to use. Definitely enough for her to make her escape on the surface of the water as she was so used to.

With the bounty in her arms, Atani leapt out of the boat. She activated the spell letting her walk across water and went back to the shore where Zimra was scuttling around, playing with a hermit crab.

"Come on Zim! Gotta go." Seeing his companion return, the winged lemur glided to Atani's shoulder and stayed put.She let Hargeon's law enforcement know about the incapacitated pirates aboard the ship and suggested they make the arrest quickly before they regained their strength. They wouldn't be robbing any more innocent ships for a long time. In the meantime, she had to return the stolen treasure to its rightful owner-- a trader if she was not mistaken, whose ship was attacked not too far off the coast of Hargeon. He would be happy to have his things returned.

WC: 2115+301=2416/2000

Spell Cast:

Pirates! IX [Quest: Atani]

Thu May 13, 2021 9:28 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:29 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:29 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:30 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:31 am

Thu May 13, 2021 9:32 am

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