Flight of Fancy: IC (Mature) {Currently Closed}

[Angel]

With a situation so strange, Kenyan normally would have panicked a lot more than just growling loudly. A creature encased in metal, something he associated with danger, being injured and fragile and scared; the power and welcome kindness of Shax and Jakob, who he had only just now noticed had wings coming out of their heads as well as their backs (what could cause such a thing, he wondered); the panicking police officer, more concerned for his well-being than anyone had been for days; and the quite-clearly poisonous but frightened frog. But his recently-released anger and impatience were overriding any fear he could have felt. He needed something halfway to normal, something to calm him down and ground him, and the familiar feeling of a rat crawling on his shoulders wasn't doing enough. So he chose instead to speak with the only other confused and currently-useless pack member. He slowly approached the frog.

"Do you know any more of what is going on?" he asked wearily. "They tried to tell me, but it is very... ugh, tst-skeek, what is it...confusing. Yes." Remembering the right words was getting harder the more drained he felt.

[Yugo]

Kaela's jovial smile faded, and her ears peeled back to her head. The awful sounds and yells that reached her hearing gave her pause. She twirled her knife idly in her hand as she cocked her head, trying to appraise the situation ahead. It wasn't quite a pitched field battle, but it was certainly loud and noisy. The tigress flexed her fingers, wishing for a recurve bow to appear in her hands. Her emerald eyes drifted towards Aisha and she gave the panthress a slight dip of her nose before hugging the wall. Kaela padded quietly on the metal floor, moving with the grace and agility of an experienced hunter. It was unlikely that there was a real fight between the police and the ship's guards this far down on the ship's decks yet. But if there really was a slave ring operating down here...Concern lent the tigress speed as she loped along the edge of the hall with huge, quiet strides.

---------

Milla's headwings drooped slightly as she was bumped and jostled by the frantic, panicked aides who seemed to be milling about in a parody of business. Folding her arms under her breasts, the succubus took a few clicking steps backwards to support the wall. This was no place for a musician.

[Boog]

The Cockpit

Milla felt another fraction of her magic return. She was probably at about 70% magic now, and her psychic awareness was starting to come trickling back. The roar of the thoughts echoing the room was like the crash of the ocean waves, but at the edge she could hear one particular set, like the voice of a middle aged woman...
Ugh, ten more minutes. Come on, cousin dear, kick up the engines so I can end this.

The Kitchens

Jeremiah took a diplomatic step back, and spent much of the rest of the ensuing babble sidling over to the nearest people not involved in it; Kenyan and the policewoman. He neatly held out a hand to Kenyan as Jakob was wrapping up his rant; roaring aside, the boy seemed to have a good head on his mangey shoulders.
"Jeremiah Ac'Gregor, casino dealer and waitstaff." He gave the boy's clothes a quick once over and hissed through his teeth once, "Oh you're... Damn, I'd really hoped that was a rumor. Every job I take, swear t'gods." He fumbled in the pockets of his livery and offered the young lion a piece of gum. "Uh, sorry. About. Um, everything. Wouldn'ta worked for em if I knew."
"I was just coming back from seeing a regal type around town, fetching bags and such, when some demonic mover-and-shaker decided I was her valet. Probably wanted an easy hostage. As she's coming in one of yours," he nods to the iguana, "steams up with the little clicky fella," he listened to the conversation and corrected himself, "The mythos, they come up with a ships guard in cuffs right as the demoness sneaks me past the cops. Then there was a lot of shooting and..." He held his arms out, as if to encompass the scene before them, "tah-dah."

Shax felt further magic flow back to him; the field was powering down slowly, he may at least be able to get himself moving. As if to drive the point home the iguana added, "Nobody's leaving anyone anywhere, I'm not leaving this injured boy a room away from a firefight. The one that all my nearby backup is presently involved with. YOU," at this she grabbed the back of Jeremiah's collar, producing a nervous, chirping croak, "Are staying with me; this might be our only chance to get a live member of the staff to question. I'll carry Shax here if I have to, but we all have to get moving now if you want that diplomatic bag. As for.... You," She settled on lamely, pointing at Xeph, "There's more safety in numbers, after we get his bag I can walk all of you right through the parts of the ship the police have taken and into the safety of police custody. That means healers, repairs, all that. I'd avoid the rants about the end of Quaggath around the commander," she added as an afterthought to Jakob. "No offense. Just be aware."
"Any questions?"

The depths of the ship

The slaves in the hold were slowly driving the demons further and further back; the element of surprise had whittled their numbers significantly and, for all the power that had returned to them, none of them could multitask well enough to deal with the fractious and frantic mob. As they gained ground, however, the crowd began to become less unified of purpose. Some slaves were taking the opportunity to make a break for it back the way Aisha and Kaela had come from, while others were scattering for the upper decks. Without some sort of leadership, the group may not make it very far. But if one stayed as the mob was losing members, their winning streak may not last...
Xyrtia's claws found purchase in the Jailor's fat, snarling face, clawing away at his cheeks. The man howling and scrabbling to guard his eyes was just the opening Wallard needed; in the flailing mess of bird, gryphon and wolf the slave FORMER slave, now and forever and never again, managed to grab the jailer's collar and bring his claws DOWN.
In the mass of fighting all around them this place grew slightly, momentarily stiller.

Ephy's Room

No good; Ephy was right in the thick of the police occupied area of the ship. The hallways were out.
However, there was a large vent in the in-suite "kitchen..."

The Halls of the Flame of Freedom

"Sir we'll need to ask you-mother of god." There is, unfortunately, no way of subtly holstering a 2 handed battleaxe/warhammer. The man looked like something that norse mythology drew in the sketchbook it didn't show its family. The cops looked at each other, then back at the newcomer.
"The ship is, uh, in the process of being impounded, oh jeez..."
"MINOR debacle!" The kangaroo elbowed his partner aside with a nervous grin, "We're just asking all passengers to come with us and answer a few questions."

Quaggath central police station

Mel had been filling out forms for half an hour.
This wasn't so bad in and of itself; she could have sworn she heard an explosion from the direction of the docks just a little while ago, and they were providing her with tea and an appropriate number of free muffins for a guest or interviewee. There had been some rather vicious debate over the "mothers date of birth" section of the forms, but the "so you're being held for sedition the will of the empress tax evasion crimes against the state ransom" information packet had been surprisingly considerate. She was just leafing through it when the rhino she'd seen doing quite a bit of shouting earlier came in, looking exhausted. He settled in the seat opposite her with an audible creak and folded his hands on the table.
"So. Miss Icewing."
The rhino removed his hat and massaged his brow. "Please state again your business aboard the Flame of Freedom."

[Tapewolf]

"None taken," Jakob said stiffly.  "But understand your masters are playing a very dangerous game here.
"Regardless.  I am stronger than I look, so if you need help carrying Shax, I should be able to do that now my powers are returning.  In any case, yes - we should get out of here."

[Shax]

With a sigh at the officer's words, he shook his head. "Carry me? I'm fine. I'm not a child..." Well, maybe to Jakob or the Mythos he was... He wasn't sure, but that small frail body made him certainly look rather young. Speaking of the armored creature, he turned to look at it. "Well it looks like we cannot take off your armor... I have no other choice." His hands glowed bright, very bright. "I'm going to attempt to heal you through your armor, it's going to take more energy though." He placed his hands upon the metal armor, attempting to heal the mythos. The Cubi could feel his energy draining quickly, putting a strain on his body. After about a minute, he pulled himself away from the mythos. "How does that feel?" He asked the armored creature, the glow in his hands fading away. He turned to walk away from the table, staggering a bit. He had really used up a lot of any energy and magic he had, making him feel dizzy.

(Have I ever mentioned I HATE posting from an iPhone?)

[Tapewolf]

"Well," Jakob said, watching the cabbit stagger slightly, "I'm worried you're tryiing to play the hero, which is stupid.  Be that as it may, if anyone here does need to be carried, I can do that."

[Angel]

Kenyan was a little confused by the frog's mannerisms and fast speech; he understood a bit of what was said, but it took time to process most of it. When the frog – Jeremiah, he'd said was his name – held out his hand, the lion leaned down and sniffed it curiously, making sure to remember his new ally's scent if any trouble happened. Then, when the odd shiny rectangle was offered, Kenyan reluctantly took it, sniffing that as well. It smelled sharp, but also sweet. He licked it, finding the outside to be tasteless, and then nibbled it. The shiny part was quite unnecessary and stuck to his tongue, but the inside was a little overwhelming and stung his nose a bit. It was sweet, but nothing like fruit; it was more like the leaves he ate when he was sick, but more heavily concentrated. He scratched at the shiny part, finding it came off easily, and offered some of the rectangle to Tsi'kin, but the little rat sneezed just from smelling it.

"...Kenyan... Kenyan Phantasmin," he said to the frog, remembering to use his pride name as well this time. "That is my name. I was with the others below, but some of us got out." He neglected to mention the Grin woman for now; her plan seemed far less urgent now. Especially when the iguana woman pointed out their need to move now. He pocketed the shiny thing and looked over at her.

"Will the ... police ... let me go home? And the others? What if the crew sees me first?" He gestured to the cast-iron collar on his neck, itching at it again. He wasn't quite sure how to remove the thing, and it marked him too easily. But she was right that this place may not stay safe for long, and with an injured pack member, safety was the primary concern now.

[Paladin Sheppard]

"A Minor Debacle ye say?" Paladin said in a slightly mocking tone then opened his hands to signal he was no threat to them.  "Sorry boys I'll have to deny ye request, if this is a slaver's ship I aim to deny them anyone they have taken. If ye wish ye can accompany me but do not attempt to stop me." 

The Wolf turned and headed back to the Staff Only door he'd checked earlier and drew his axe again. Taking a few steps back he set him self and then rushed the door one of his heavy boots aimed squarely at the locking mechanism.



****************

The Devil smiled to herself "Can't go through them, can't go 'round em, so I'll go over!" Jumping up onto the kitchenette's counter she quickly undid the vent's screws and disappeared inside...

[Kafzeil]

The Jokers and the Thief

Eden sighed deeply. "Okay fine. Get us to a safe location. He tries something" she motioned to the incubus. "Either you kill him or I will."

Kafzeil nodded, grabbing Eden's lockbox, his hammer and slinging quick change of clothes over his shoulders. "Alright. Let's go."

As they headsed out Eden began to sign a song to herself.

"There must be some way out of here," said the joker to the thief
"There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth"

[Inumo]

The bluejay was on her feet just in time to see the final blow on the jailor. The guards paused as they saw their boss defeated. The prisoners paused as they saw their shackles broken. Xyrtia saw an opportunity for surprise; with a quiet leap, she drop-kicked a guard in the back, barely managing to land on her feet in spite of her missing lift. With the thud of the next guard's body on the ground, the fighting immediately picked back up and the little bird resumed brawling; she wasn't leaving unless she saw the junior gryphon leaving too.

[Tapewolf]

Jakob glanced at Kenyan, noticing how the other was picking at his collar.
"Do you want me to cut that off for you?" he asked.

[techmaster-glitch]

The Kitchens

Xephelon listened to the authoritative iguana's words. He didn't really have any way to 'nod', but one of his three light-eyes blinked. "That does sound like an excellent idea, thank you for the offer of shelter from the events going on." The exoshell then shifted slightly as Shax suddenly approached. Xephelon was slightly shocked by the immediate offer for healing, and hesitated before raising a hand to try and wave Shax off. "I--er--no, my exoshell does come--" He tried to stammer out, but Shax had already rested a hand on the cool glossy-black metal surface. Very strange feelings began spreading through Xphelon's real body, hidden behind the enchanted metal, as Xephelon quickly and clumsily tried to shift the wards on the metal around for Shax's magic to pass through. The poor cubi seemed to be exerting himself quite a bit, though Xephelon felt blessed relief from the aches and stings he was feeling, pressed up against the interior cavity of his exoshell as he was.

When Shax finally pulled back, swaying dizzily, Xephelon was quickly concerned. "While appreciated, that was...not entirely necessary, are you alright? You are still badly injured yourself, you should have tried to heal yourself first..." Xephelon nervously looked around again, feeling slightly useless and hoping that a situation might come up soon where he could give back assistance to everyone else with his own skills and abilities.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Mel folded her hands on the table and gave the rhino her most neutral expression. It wasn't like this was her first kidnapping. With several important clans you weren't considered a major trading partner until they cared enough to kidnap someone as part of the negotiations. And in some of the less habitable yet more creative areas on the globe the abduction and ransom of tourists was a legitimate part of the gross national product. If this was an ordinary business kidnapping the smartest plan was to be calm and businesslike. The transaction would be quick and professional. On the other hand, if they were zealots things would get messy quickly. Zealots always insisted on doing ridiculous things like cutting off the end of your tail to include with the ransom note. Like that did anything but piss everyone off. In her snow leopard form Mel's tail was particularly long and luxurious and growing it back would make her very unhappy.

"Officer, I am an expert charm-maker. I was on the Flame of Freedom to inspect the gambling equipment. The board of directors of the parent corporation noticed that the casino on this one ship is not making the profit that her sister ships are. The board wanted an outside expert's report on the possibility of tampering and, if tampering was found, could it be an inside job. Believe me, crawling under 150 un-vacuumed tables is not a vacation."

Just the memory of all that dust gave Mel a dry throat and she looked meaningfully at the teapot, hoping for a refill. It could give her a clue as to what sort of a kidnapping this was.

[Shax]

As Shax regained his composure for a moment, he gave a glare toward Jakob. "Stupid? Playing hero? If hes in pain and can't move without pain that would only slow him down. He would have wound up being slightly left behind. We need him up to speed. So yes, I may have pushed myself a bit, but we need him to be able to move quickly. I'll be fine though, I'll get more and more of my energy back overtime as the magic barrier weakens. As for now, he should go..." He smiled toward the mythos, giving a reassuring look.

[Yugo]

In her rush into the ensuing melee, Kaela almost ran chest-first into one of the guards. The swirling melee around her cast a cloud of dust that made it difficult to see. The clanking of metal-on-metal was accompanied by roars of righteous and indignation and grunts of raw pain. She took the situation in at a glance. There was no mistaking the haggard look and manacled wrists some of the people here had. She had seen it many times; Once in the southern slave markets, and a few horrifying instances during her time as a professional soldier. The tigress narrowed her eyes, the emeralds darting to lock onto the man's face like a laser-targeter. A moment of fear washed over his face as she reached out to grab his left wrist, pulling her right hand up for a vicious back-handed slash.

[Aisha deCabre]

The fighting outside the doors of the slave hold seemed to be going on forever.  It wasn't even a very organized mess, if a mess could be organized, now.  Some of the guards were naught but bodies on the ground.  Most had given into the sensible choice (instead of the Demon's instinct that told them to keep fighting) and retreated back upward to find the Captain and regroup.  The airship was still thrumming against their ringing ears, the pulse of the engines roaring ever more to life.  Soon there wouldn't be much to stop the Flame of Freedom from ascending into the clouds once again, though doing so would take a good chunk of the fight with it.

Once Wallard had downed the lead guard, his eyes wild and talons bloody and thick upon the sliced throat of the Demon, things were slowing.  Xyrtia's guards were either weakened or had enough of fighting, for they retreated with the sensible few.  Kaela's guards might as well have forfeited their lives the instant they even took their jobs, for none of the ones that got in her way survived.

Jake had done enough fighting a while ago.  He had gone out into the storage areas to find where they had stashed any of the prisoners' belongings (if they hadn't thrown them all away first).  To his great relief, he found not only his trusted halberd in a crate--a little dusty and scratched with the wear of travel, but nonetheless whole--but also his tunic, white with blue trim and emblazoned with the Healer's Tear on the front: insignia of the Monastery of Healing.  He wrapped the cloth about the stave and returned to the room, his nostrils wrinkling against the smell of blood.

He beheld the inevitable aftermath of battle and sighed, lowering his head in a brief prayer of forgiveness and rest for the dead before stepping across the cold metal threshold.  "Is everyone alright?"

Aisha was catching her breath and flexing her claws, awash in the sweet afterward of a fight, the adrenaline ebbing.  She felt her scratches and her bruises, but at long last the glow on her tail ring had ebbed to a dim light; wherever there were Demons now, they were away from here, and so were the slaves--free once again.  She replaced the boomerang in her belt and reached for her cloak, again black as her shadow.  "Good here."

"And here," Wallard confirmed, rolling his shoulders and giving the others gathered a triumphant grin.  His hardened face didn't look like anything more than a scowl belonged there, but for the first time that Jake and anyone knew him, the light was back in his eyes.  "And damn, was it ever good."  He turned his head to Xyrtia.  "Kid, thanks fer that help back there.  Didn't know ya had that much bite in ya."  He turned to the warriors from the outside.  "Much obliged, all of ya."

"All that aside," Jake interrupted, "We all should probably be getting somewhere safe, too."

"Oh, right," Aisha said, looking around at the gathered slaves, anyone wearing the dirty threadbare clothes and shackles.  "The way is still clear, everyone!  Get out, now!"

"That means you, old man," the Knight added with a grin to the other Gryphon.  "Get the others out of here.  Xyrtia, you should go with him."

"Oh, y'know it, kid," he gruffed and came up to him, laying a heavy claw on his shoulder.  "Hey, if'n we don't see ya on th' other side...I owe ya, kid.  Somethin' hefty, I owe ya."

Jake winked.  "I'm a guardsman, sir.  This kind of thing is my job."  He clapped him in return on his back.  "And I'm happy to help a brother.  Now, you should go."

Then, he turned back to Aisha and the tigress she brought with her, a bright and friendly smile lighting up his face and banishing any trace of business left.  "That goes for you, too, Isha."

Aisha snorted.  "Not a chance, amigo.  I was here in the first place looking for you and looking to stop this mess.  I'm staying.  I've got one more Demon to take care of.  You're the one who should go."

"What, and leave you fighting a Demon alone?"

"I'm not a child, Jake.  Get out."

"I'm telling you, I'm staying."

"Brat."

"Stubborn."

She threw up her hands in exasperation, though to the amusement of the onlookers, her eyes were fond.  "Why'd I come looking for you again?"

"Oh, you care, I know you do."  Ignoring her scowl, the Gryphon turned to Xyrtia.  "Are you going to leave?  You're free."

[Boog]

Quaggath Police Precinct
The rhino noticed Mel's glance at the teapot and gestured halfheartedly at a nearby wall. Some sort of viewing enchantment was plainly in effect because an aide soon arrived with another pot of something pleasantly herbal smelling, with a slight hint of elderflower, and another cup. The rhino took the pot himself, in his exhaustion almost forgetting to politely offering to pour Mel a refill, before filling the second cup for himself; a cracked and oft-repaired beige mug that said "World's best boss!" in offensively cheerful script on the side. He took a sip and sighed.
"We'll need the name of the parent corporation so we can ask them for documentation of your employment with them to verify your story, should only take a few months." He droned. The day had obviously taken something very important out of him and he slurped his tea again with a closed-eyed focus that said volumes; he expected this to be the quietest thing to happen to him all day, and he was savoring it. He'd probably give his right arm for someone to tell him he could just lean back in his chair and nap through the rest of the meeting.

The Kitchens
"It's settled then, lets move." The iguana nodded, "Call me Officer Carmichael, which way was it to your suite?"
She set off with at a pretty brisk pace with Jakob next to her, Jeremiah dragged along with a yelp and a pointed order not to leave her sight. The frog nervously nodded assent, but tried his best to fall into step with Xephelon and Kenyan. All these important folks made him nervous, but cowards... Well, he knew his own.

[Tapewolf]

"Thank you, Officer," Jakob said, and gave her the room number and rough directions to get there.  "If you want the collar removed, I guess I'll have to do it later," he told Kenyan with a shrug.

As they set off, Jakob shifted his wings into something a bit more defensive.

[Inumo]

The old Gryphon said something to her; it sounded like a compliment, so the bluejay nodded. The young Gryphon bantered with the boomerang lady, then also turned to Xyrtia, a question in his eyes. "À̕̕r̡͞e̛͘͝҉ ̴͏͠ý̧͜ó̸u͟͜͢ ̀͜͝g̸̶o̷̵̷̶̶i̸͡ń̶̴̶g̴̡̀ ̸̶̴t̢ơ̵͘͠ leave? Ý̢̛̕͘ờ̷͞u҉͟'͘͞r̨e̸̵̸͠͞ free." ((Yes, I did just use Zalgo to mimic translation barriers.)) She looked at her wings, looked at the corridor walls - no, through the walls, out to the sky and land beyond - and felt at the collar around her neck.

"Chk tierr phweet," she whistled, with barely the breath to give the fact voice: I'm not free. Facing Jake more fully, she nodded and followed after Wallard for the outside world, and perhaps actual freedom, some day. She was, after all, a long way from home.

[Yugo]

With a roar of righteous fury, Kaela leapt feet first into the fray, something fragile snapping under her heel as she landed a vicious kick on one of her foes. Landing with a grace that belied her well-muscled bulk, she quickly spun and opened a pair of throats with her short-bladed knife. A long and keen rapier fell from the nerveless fingers of a nearby guard as a slave returned  months' worth of captivity and beatings in kind. The tigress scooped it out of the air as a slash of pain burst along the small of her back.  The sword darted like a stinging silver insect as she wheeled about and killed her assailant for his temerity. Seperated from Aisha and trapped between guards, Kaela fought like a devil. She was always in motion; she twisted, hopped, and dodged each blow that came her way. Return strokes and lucky hits grazed her arms, and a keening set of claws opened a triplet of bloody furrows along her face. After ten bloody, wordless minutes, it was over.

Kaela was sucking in air like a bellows as the pitifully few survivors retreated to the upper decks. The floor was slick with steaming gore and viscera. As her viridian eyes scanned the room, she grimaced. Some of the guards who had found themselves on the receiving end of the slaves' rage were barely recognizable. She touched her face with a pair of fingers and a flare of brief pain shot up along her muzzle. Her claws came away sticky with drying blood. The tigress found a scabbard to match her stolen weapon and looped it around her belt. Wiping blood away from the blade in the crook of her arm, she sheathed it. Casting her gaze about, she found Aisha, and strolled over. A gryphon had her attention and she gave him a friendly nod and a weak smile.

"Well that was a hell of a scrap and no mistake," she growled, rolling out her neck. Jake was insistent on Aisha departing. Kaela just shook her head. Her lips curled up into a wry grin and her eyes twinkled. "No way you're getting her to leave after that little barney, love. And I'm staying too." The tigress glanced to the teardrop proudly emblazoned on the gryphon's tabard. "I don't suppose either of you could do something about my face?"

[Angel]

Kenyan boggled at Jakob. "You can cut this off?" he marveled, gesturing at the cast-iron collar. He had had no idea metal could be cut at all. Kray-Zee could bend it sometimes, when he fought intruders in the forest, but only by using all his strength. That he had the option to remove the collar at all was staggering.

But before he could get an answer, the group set off. Matching his pace to Jeremiah, Kenyan hunched his shoulders a bit as they moved, and squeaked more warnings to Tsi'kin. <Stay hidden. We're going to go somewhere safe, but there'll be more big creatures around, and we can't trust all of them. Keep your nose down.>

[Tapewolf]

"When we get a chance, I'll look at it," Jakob promised.  "I've done it before.  My kind can sharpen our wings to a cutting edge, so assuming it's not enchanted or booby-trapped, I should be able to loop a tentacle around it and slice clean through."

[techmaster-glitch]

On the way out of the kitchens

As all the others started pulling themselves together, Xephelon silently got in line of the impromptu convoy, trying to be unobtrusive as he could despite his unusual attention-grabbing form. He listened to one of the other Beings, a lion, ask the cubi Jakob about the collar he was wearing. When Jakob mentioned the possibility of an enchantment or booby-trap, the Mythos mentally perked up. That was something he could help with!

"Excuse me..." Xephelon said to Jakob and Kenyan quietly. "I can determine if that collar has an enchantment on it, and if it does, I can do something about it. Enchantments, especially relatively simple ones, are child's play for me to bypass. In fact, it might even be possible that if it has a permanent enchantment on it, I can alter it and use the base magic structure to produce a beneficial effect, much faster than if I were to enchant something personally from scratch...one moment." Xephelon then focused the vision of his exoshell on Kenyan, and focused on the collar with the exoshell's arcane-sight enchantment, looking for visual representations of magical auras that would tell him if the collar had one--and if so, what kind of magic it was.

[Angel]

Kenyan watched the incubus and Mythos uncomfortably as he became the object of scrutiny. He had understood Jakob well enough, though he still had more questions. But he had understood only half of what the metal-creature had said, and the lion still wasn't entirely sure of what the creature was. His fur bristled and he laid his ears back as Xephelon examined the collar.

"You can help? What are you doing? Will it hurt?" Kenyan observed the ball-like Mythos warily, and scratched at his neck again. The eyes focused on his collar somehow made it seem heavier.

[Mel Dragonkitty]

Lower Passenger Hallway:
As the wolf moved to kick down a door the kangaroo chided, "If you want to be helpful getting the passengers off before they become prisoners of the crew is more important than hypothetical slaves." The ship shook, as if to punctuate the police officer's words. "The crew is trying to lift off and who knows what will happen then?" The ship shivered again as the kangaroo gestured to his brother officer and the fennec fox to head down the hallway towards the stairwell, knocking on doors on the way past.

Upper Passenger Hallway:
The shaking of the ship seemed to finally give the guards a sense of urgency. One took Kirren by the arm and began a quick jog up the hallway as the second gestured Kaf and Eden ahead of him.

[Aisha deCabre]

With one last farewell nod to the warriors, Wallard made a mad dash for the exit.  He could still hear the fading, retreating footsteps of the brave souls who'd taken the chance at a retreat for the sunlight.  Breath in his throat, the scent of blood still in his nostrils, he nearly made it to the sight of the light before he heard one last pair of feet behind him.  He stopped briefly to let Xyrtia catch up to him, and he remembered that there were still plenty of young ones that hadn't expected to be captured for war; so many still that were far away from what they knew.  He didn't know much about this young one, other than the fact that she was from a different land and language altogether.  But she'd seemed at least learned enough to understand the gravity of the situation.  They were free; but he was still obligated to take everyone under his metaphorical wings, and he wasn't going to go back on it.

"C'mon, and stay with me, a'right?" he offered the young bluejay a smile.  "Lot of us don't know where to go next, so as many of us as possible oughta stick together.  Just stay with me."

Once she caught up, they ran across through the small docking room and into the open side door.  Light--glorious light--shone on their faces as they rushed up to the docks and surveyed the situation.

Things still seemed pretty hectic outside.  Cops were everywhere, with eyes on every part of the Flame of Freedom.  Just ahead, he could recognize many of the other slaves huddled together, answering questions asked of them all.  Some overly-eager ones were being kept there with a bit of shoving, however.  Wallard's eyes narrowed.  Freedom had its price, and he guessed that it would involve lots of talking now.

"Keep close," he warned Xyrtia before stepping up to the crowd.  When he spoke, his gruff voice still seemed to have the ability to gather attention from everywhere at once; the countenance of a leader wasn't to be mistaken.  A good amount of the ex-slaves had relieved looks on their faces.

"Pardon, gentlemen," Wallard addressed.  "You the ones that came ta help us?  If ya need ta know everythin', I can do some talkin' fer everyone."

*     *     *

Back in the slave hold, after a moment of banter, Aisha had noticed Kaela's state and winced a little at the beating she'd gotten; though the beating that she'd given had been slightly more impressive.

Aisha sighed and shook her head.  "'Fraid I left some of my medical supplies in my room, chica.  Should probably stop there at some point.  But my friend does know some healing magic.  By the way, Kaela, meet Sir Jakoba Talothir, Knight-Captain of the Monastery guard..."

"...Just call me Jake, please, milady," he said with a short bow.

Aisha smirked and continued.  "He's the reason I'm here in the first place.  Guess he was captured with the rest of those.  Jake, this is Kaela, a fellow adventurer and fairly good acquaintance."

"I can tell you the whole story later," the Gryphon chuckled.  "And it's a pleasure to meet another of Aisha's friends, even the hack-and-slash types.  Oh, yeah, and I can help with that.  Thank Gods that the magic's back on."  He set his halberd briefly to the side and raised his talons, eyes flashing a soothing, healing gold.

While he took his magic to Kaela, Aisha looked around the chamber, now more or less akin to a slaughterhouse.  There were a few exits out of the hold, but she was looking for the one through which the guards came through, ahead and slightly up.  Once battle was out of her mind, it rushed to the next possible tasks: make it to the cockpit.  Fight there if possible.  Keep the place grounded, and take out the demon Captain.  Along the way, find any others.  She was already thinking of those she'd met.  James, Kafzeil, Jakob...had they made it out, or been arrested?

"Alright," she said, once everyone was done resting (and Jake had at the very least alleviated pain in Kaela's nose), "I'm headed up.  We oughta find our way to the cockpit.  Oughta stop by the passenger bunks for things we need, but quickly."

"There time for a shower and a change?" Jake dryly asked with a sigh and turned back to the tigress, the magic dissipating off of the tips of his claws.  "That oughta do it.  Any better?"

[Boog]

(OOC: *cracks knuckles* Alright, lets stop fussing around)

Jacob's Quarters, or, the Diplomatic Representatives of Oh God No Why

Acquiring Jacob's diplomatic materials went without incident; the halls were largely clear at this point, with most of the passengers either safely extracted or sequestered away into the fortified engines and control centers of the ship. It was as they were leaving his suite that matters became.... Urgent.
A rumble echoed through the walls of the ship, and their escorting officer flinched.
"Annnnd that's the landing tethers disengaging." She turned to the rest of the group with a worried grin, "So we should move-ghk!" The words were barely out of her mouth before Jeremiah was legging it ahead, still cuffed to her wrist as the officer scrambled to keep up.
"EXIT'S THIS WAY FOLKS, hup two! Remember the survivalists motto, Run and Live!"

Outside the Flame of Freedom

Wallard's commanding presence was immediately noticed, and his group was soon sequestered away from the surrounding babble. An officer, an abnormally skinny buffalo, herded him and his aside.
"Thank god you folks got out! First thing's first, anyone here need medical attention?" The man was professional and to the point, leading all of them to the ambulences where the (now former) slaves in more dire condition were being loaded aboard or given blankets and healing-mage attention. Wallard was peppered with questions as the rest of the group was ushered over, within earshot of Xyrtia.
"You must be this Wallard they keep mentioning, good work keeping folks level-headed in there. There will be more questions when we get you back to where you'll be staying but in the meantime, I gotta ask, you think you could testify against your captors in court? And know who else here could give a coherent statement of the same? We wanna get these sons of bitches."
The glint in the officer's eye was deeply encouraging; finally, they were around people who saw this was wrong and wanted to right it, they had allies, help had arrived.
They were free.

Lower Passenger Hallway

"Mother of god!" Pal and Hobbies saw the kangaroo officer and his partner sprint down the hall back the way they'd came as a rumble came up through the ship. The door Pal was about to kick down slammed open as well as a member of the ship's serving staff panicked his way out, dithering.
"Oh hell that's takeoff, I have to get back to-" He looked up at the massive Incubus standing in front of the door. "... Oh."

The cockpit

The frantic bustle of activity had coalesced before Milla's eyes into something much more intimidating as passengers had been rounded up and crew organized; the captain was seated in the center of the room now, screens and readouts arrayed before him and above him, but the frantic mess of the crew had largely dispersed. Cubi crew members sent their tentacles skittering across complicated banks and arrays of controls, replenishing themselves off the waves of anxiety and purpose in the room as fast as they exhausted themselves at their tasks; their sheer manual dexterity and lack of a need for sleep could very well keep them at their posts for the entire trip. The orders in the room had lost their barked urgency and had slowly given away to more purposeful, structured routines.

The guards finished ushering Kafziel and Eden into the command center, Kirrin being taken away and sequestered elsewhere. The newcomers were immediately deposited on the couches at the back near Milla, in a slew of murmored, worn-out appologies on behalf of the Flame of Freedom, their holding companies, etc for any inconvenience.
"We hope you and the people you represent will continue to-" The ship rocked once, there was a muttering in the background about landing tethers disengaging, and the wolf guard faltered, "CONtinue to be patrons of our services in the future, and again, we are SO sorry-"

The slavehold

The ship rocked once, pitching Aisha and company hither and yon, but the ship stayed upright. There was a loud repeated banging and clanking from outside, down the hall they'd snuck in by, but no further signs of distress within the ship. The way above was open, and adventure beckoned...

Boarding ramp of the Flame of Freedom

The mighty airship had finished untethering all its ropes, automatic locks holding it in the airdock disengaged or actively blown away, large scale countermeasures for keeping it bound to the earth not having arrived in time. It began its ponderous, ominous lurch into the air to a chorus of shouting and furious, futile magefire.
Thus left Xephelon, Jeremiah, Kenyan, Jacob, Shax and their police escort from the airship. Not a dignified march into the arms of allies, not escorted by the policewoman waving them out, but in a screaming jumbled sprint over the lip of the ramp, already a foot from the ground.

[Tapewolf]

Dusting himself off, Jakob stared forlornly at the airship as it took off.  Doubts seized him yet again, as to whether he'd have been better off aboard, even among criminals.  Landing on the mainland would still be preferable to being stuck on an island in the middle of nowhere.

Shaking his head sadly, he turned his attention back to the others.  "Is everyone alright?" he asked.  Mostly he was concerned for Shax as the most seriously injured of the group.

[Shax]

Shax had struggled to keep up for the most part, but he still managed to stick with the group. The young Cubi seemed to be doing slightly better though. As he continued to regain more of his magic, he sent bits of healing enevery to his injury over time. Just in small amounts though, he didn't want to over exert himself and be useless to the others, or unable to keep up at all. He took a small breather as they arrived in the room. He was glad Jakob got his documents. But it wasn't long before they were on the move again.

They neared the exit of the ship and made their way out, but Shax lost his footing as the ship lurched, causing him to tumble out in not the most graceful way. With a groan and a wince, he gripped his shoulder. "Besides the injury re-opening slightly,  I'm fine, nothing broken..."

[Yugo]

Kaela was unpleasantly aware of her own racing heartbeat as it pounded erratically at her ribcage. She took a few fumbling steps backwards and found a seat, hand pressed against her chest. Her pulse roared in her ears like the crashing of foamy waves and the metallic scent of blood wrapped the room like a blanket. The tigress briefly acknowledged the cuts and bruises across her body and sighed.

"I'm gettin' too old for this shit," she growled, touching her nose and flinching. Her fingerips came away red with blood. The tigress gave Jakoba a friendly wave and a reassuring grin. "Welcome to the party, Jake." She gave the gryphon a once over and glanced at Aisha. "He's cute."

Kaela leaned back on her hands and let the templar do his work. Her brow twitched as his talons danced over her face and found the fracture in her nose. The skin on her face itched like a bastard as Jake sealed up several minor abrasions and lacerations before moving to her arms and hands.  Still, it felt somewhat soothing, and the gryphon had a knack for magical pain relief. The tigress tested her nose with a tentative claw and sniffed. "Pfah. I can breathe again." She patted Jake on the hip and stood to her feet.

The ship pitched wildly out of balance and sent Kaela right back on her backside and skittering into the wall. Her head hit a steel stanchion with an unhealthy sounding 'thunk'. Tears sprang to her eyes as she clutched at her temples.

"Owwww, damn! Did we just take off?"