{"sf1_id":1515680,"sf2_id":"znJv8BQn","title":"In The Mist Of The Erie Isles - Episode 12","author":"Mantrid_Brizon","words":2799,"posted_at":"2019-11-22T22:47:54.000Z","tags":["Adventure","Anthro","Bad Language","Cabbit","Cat","Character Development","Drama","Dream","Explicit","Fantasy","Fear","Feline","Female","Furry","Gun","Human","Hybrid","Love","Magic","Male","Mystery","Pain","Pistol","Romance","Sad","Sergal","Series","Ship","Steampunk","Story","Story Series","Undead","firearm","nightmare","thief"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1515680-in-the-mist-of-the-erie-isles-episode-12","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/znJv8BQn","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/4e/a4/4ea4c2b0-1bd7-428b-b96a-f38581fafe47","description":"Episode 12: Continuing where we'd left off, the crew realize that something's amiss...","content":"In The Mist Of The Erie Isles\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nBy Mantrid Brizon\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nEpisode Twelve: All In The Past, Pt. 2\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nStanding in the courtyard of the decrepit clan-house, a man's putrid remains stands before her, raised by the dark arts of Haze magic. Racing toward the foul creature, Kirsta falls down to her knees.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“No! Please, not again! Don't go!\" She cries out.\n\n“Kirsta... Help me!\" The ghoul speaks in a sepulchral voice.\n\n“Tell me what to do! Please!\"\n\n“Destroy me...\"\n\n“NO!!! I-I... I can't.\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nTears stream down her precious cheeks, the salty fluids dripping onto her leather armor. The pale, blonde haired and blue-eyed warrior stares in horror at the living corpse of her former lover. She wishes for comfort, even from the putrid thing before her. The fetid body, covered in chunks of rotting flesh, and with sections of skeleton exposed, hobbles backward, retreating into the shadows of abyss.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“NO!!! Don't go Luvel!\"\n\n“Must go... Must go back...\"\n\n“But I need you.\" She sobs.\n\n“Then join me, Kirsta... Join me...\" The ghoul speaks to her.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nReaching out a hand, it points with boney fingers, directing her attention to a dagger and a vial of poison. She crawls toward the artifacts, genuinely considering their use. She reaches out, only to fall over and into the dank dirt. Awakening from her slumber, her chest heaves as she stares with wide eyes at the ceiling. Why does she keep having these nightmares about her deceased lover? Are they meant to be signs? Sitting upright and running her fingers through her fair hair, she begins to cry. The pain is just too much. She wishes for an end. On impulse, her eyes turn towards her own sword.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nMaybe, that's her way out? If she were to quickly fall upon the blade... Shaking her head, she forces the awful thoughts from her mind. She made a promise to her dying elder. Matius would be furious with her in the afterlife, and Luvel, her lover, would be disappointed in her if she took the cowards way out. Still, she is alone. The ship sways hard in the water, and she remembers where she is. Kirsta weeps, tormented by the anguish of her loss and loneliness. Looking toward her clothes, Kirsta hopes for comfort. Climbing from her cot and racing toward her garments, she checks her pockets.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“What?! ... Where is it?!\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nThe nude woman falls onto her perfectly formed buttocks, sitting in horror as she stares at her clothes. Could she have misplaced it? Desperate for answers, she climbs to her feet and swiftly dresses in her only garments. With her elegant form once again shrouded in her turquoise clan uniform, she checks her pockets once more. Nothing. Where has it gone?! Kirsta begins to panic, fearing even more pain at the loss of the one item that has brought her comfort since she'd lost her home and love. Suddenly, a faint sound draws her attention.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Wh-who's there?!\" Irzain calls out.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nNo one answers him, but soft footfalls race away from his bedroom door. Rolling from atop his cot, his fall is made harder by the swaying of the ship, which seems to be moving through choppy waters. Scrambling to his feet, he can see a nightstand drawer that's partially opened. Grabbing hold of the nearest object, he grasps an empty, upended candlestick as a weapon. Walking toward the bedroom door, he peeks around the opening. He looks to the left and to the right. No one is there.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nThe hall glows with a soothing amber hue, the result of strange fixtures that gently oscillate with an unseen flame. Are they powered by Halcion magic? Somehow, it appears different; it's unlike the light Elder Matius created, being less organic in nature. Irzain walks barefoot through the hall, but doesn't see any trace of intruders.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“As if my life isn't hard enough! Where is it?!\" Kirsta suddenly growls.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nLooking around for a moment, Irzain finally glances back, realizing that she's addressing him. He peers over his shoulder at her.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Well?!\"\n\n“... I'm sorry?\"\n\n“Someone stole my lover's favorite comb. I'd had it in a pocket the night he died and now it's gone! You're the only one with a beard as full as his, and that's all he ever used it for!\"\n\n“Woah. Just calm down.\" He speaks softly.\n\n“Yeah, okay... Sorry... Can I have it back, please?\" She asks through clenched teeth.\n\n“Do I really look like a thief?\"\n\n“Are... Are you saying you didn't take it?\" She asks with a pitiful whimper.\n\n“That's what I'm saying.\"\n\n“Then who did?!\"\n\n“Likely whoever was in my room just a moment ago.\"\n\n“Hey, who ate the last piece of the swiss cheese?!\" Mairlynn asks, bounding out of the lounge.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nShe pauses at the sight of Irzain and Kirsta, who both appear disturbed.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“... What's going on?\"\n\n“You weren't in our rooms, where you?\" Irzain asks.\n\n“No.\" She laughs. “If I was in your room, you'd have known... And you'd have loved it.\" She winks.\n\n“By the Seraphs...\" Kirsta snarls.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nMarching angrily toward the nearest door, she balls a fist and begins pounding. Slamming her fist repeatedly against the door, it takes but a moment before shuffling feet are heard. Opening the door, a sleepy looking Jarae stands in only the sparsest of clothing. She rubs her shimmering, pink eyes, covered in just a partially buttoned blouse and undergarments.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“... Well? What's wrong?\"\n\n“Some of our things are missing...\" Kirsta growls.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nJarae's eyes grow wide. She steps back and turns toward her own clothes and nightstand. The Jaliscan checks her pockets as Kirsta glances back at Irzain and Mairlynn. Clearly, she was accusing Jarae of the thefts, yet in her naivete or drowsiness, Jarae simply didn't realize the subtext.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Oh, no... My pendant is gone!\"\n\n“Pendant?\" Mairlynn raises a brow.\n\n“I had an old pendant; it belonged to my mother. It wasn't worth much, and I never wore it because it's ugly, but I kept it in a pocket. It's missing.\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nA door opens and Valan steps out, bringing a hand to his mouth as he yawns. He looks over the group, visibly perplexed as they stare back at him.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Uh... What's going on?\"\n\n“Someone's been stealing our things.\" Jarae replies.\n\n“Do you have anything missing?\" Kirsta asks.\n\n“Why would I?\" He chuckles.\n\n“Because there's a thief among us?\" Irzain shrugs.\n\n“Well, they wouldn't get my things.\" Valan retorts.\n\n“And why is that?\" Kirsta scoffs.\n\n“He uh... He locks his door.\" Mairlynn murmurs, lowering her head rather shyly.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nValan's brow raises in surprise, while the others turn toward the child-like Falmun. Irzain, recalling her earlier statement, cannot help but softly chuckle. Suddenly, another door opens. Fully dressed and with an angry scowl, Steingar looks over the group.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Alright, someone's-\"\n\n“We know!\" Kirsta interrupts him.\n\n“There's a thief here, apparently.\" Valan adds.\n\n“Well?! Who is it?!\"\n\n“Whoever they are, they had blue eyes, that glowed in the darkness.\" Irzain replies.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nThe group glances at one another, realizing the terrible truth; there's someone else aboard the Arona-Dahl. Taking his pistols from his room, Valan races up to the main deck, checking on Trellan. Once the old Vizhek is roused from his slumber, he joins them in the hall.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Arona's not a very big ship.\" Trellan begins. “First, we'll check the cargo area and then all of our rooms, right now, together, just for safety's sake. After that, we'll lock them up tight and split into teams. I'll search my cabin and the upper deck with someone-\"\n\n“Me.\" Kirsta swiftly volunteers.\n\n“Alright. Two more should stay here and watch the staircase, and the rest can search below deck. I doubt whoever it is can take on three of you.\"\n\n“It should probably be us men.\" Steingar suggests.\n\n“No complaints here!\" Mairlynn exclaims, breathing a sigh of relief.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nThe teams are chosen then and there; the three men will search the bottom deck, Kirsta and Trellan the upper deck, and Mairlynn and Jarae, as the odd couple, will sit in the hall, near their quarters. As they'd planned, they search the cargo area and their rooms but find nothing. Trellan and Kirsta, armed with crossbow pistols, discover absolutely nothing on the main deck or in his cabin. They sit and wait near the staircase, preventing a potential stowaway from escaping into the ocean. Meanwhile, Irzain, Steingar and Valan make their way to the lowest deck, exploring the very bowels of the ship.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“You know, I've only been through here once.\" Steingar remarks.\n\n“Same.\" Irzain and Valan both say.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nAt the rear of the ship, beneath the lounge, is a large room. The only purpose for this room is to store the emergency boat. With mechanical arms, made of what appears to be brass, they hold special rings that are attached to either end of the craft. Pulled into the room, the boat is resting on its side and forms a watertight seal, the floor of the vessel forming the wall across from the watertight door. The single mast is removed, and sitting inside of the boat, hooked into the left wall. The oars and bundled sail sit nearby.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nLifting a panel in the floor, they look into the bilge, seeing only the shaft of the propeller that drives the Arona-Dahl, when her steam engines are being used. With nowhere else to hide, they close the door and keep an eye on that particular room. They proceed to check the next few rooms. Several serve as workshops, with all of the tools needed for both minor and major repairs to the ship and their equipment. A complete blacksmith's shop, albeit a very sparse one, is built into a room that also seems to be used as an apothecary's station. Another room has many tools, some handheld and some powered with strange gears, which are used for cutting and shaping wood.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nThey examine several other rooms that exist solely to hold the pitania infused coal, of which one is partially full; the remaining three coal storage rooms are empty. The engine control and boiler rooms are equally void of life. The men go so far as to peek into the cold furnace, seeing if anyone is hiding within. To their shock, there's no one aboard. Returning to the staircase, they look around the lower deck hallway.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Irzain...\"\n\n“Yes?\" He looks to Steingar.\n\n“What where you doing when you saw this person?\"\n\n“I was, uhm... Sleeping.\"\n\n“You saw them in your sleep?!\" Steingar snickers.\n\n“Well, no! I was waking up from a dream!\"\n\n“Sometimes the simplest explanation...\" Valan shrugs his shoulders.\n\n“You don't believe me?!\"\n\n“We're not saying that!\" Valan swiftly replies.\n\n“I am.\"\n\n“Okay...\" Valan glares at Steingar. “Then _I'm_ not saying that, but we checked the whole ship. I don't know how else to explain it. Maybe you all just misplaced your stuff, and this dream has us going on a wild goose chase?\"\n\n“I'm going to check again. Just to be sure.\" Irzain sighs.\n\n“I'll help you.\" Valan grins.\n\n“Thanks.\"\n\n“Feel free to waste your time twice. I'll wait here.\" Steingar sighs, sitting atop a step.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nWith Steingar watching the steps, Valan is Irzain's only help. As they wander through the belly of the ship for a second time, looking as carefully as they can, Mairlynn and Jarae sit in the hallway, near their own quarters but watching the staircase carefully. The Falmun woman cannot help but notice how Jarae's large ears shift as she listens intently. Her gaze is fixated upon the staircase.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“So... Why'd you throw away that flower?\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nJarae's head swiftly turns in the elf's direction. Her eyes are wide, and she appears almost frightened. She doesn't speak, however.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“You looked like you were happy to have it. I know I would've been.\" Mairlynn continues, playing with a fold in her shirt.\n\n“I didn't think I should be...\"\n\n“Happy to have a flower?!\" A perplexed Mairlynn raises an eyebrow.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nUnable to explain herself, the Jaliscan merely shrugs her shoulders, looking down at the floor. Her eyes clandestinely turn toward the staircase. This isn't lost on the dainty elf.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“I suppose it doesn't matter anyway, since you don't like him.\" Mairlynn keeps probing.\n\n“No. If I cared, I'd have asked how you knew he locks his door.\"\n\n“I knew because I tried it!\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nHer instantaneous and proud reply startles Jarae, who looks toward the Falmun woman. Mairlynn grins smugly, leaning back against the wall.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“It doesn't do me any good to lie; I was thinking about slipping in there and... Well...\"\n\n“While he was sleeping?!\" Jarae sounds appalled.\n\n“Hey, his door was locked! ... Besides, I like him.\"\n\n“You seem to like everyone with a penis.\" Jarae retorts.\n\n“Oh, and you don't?!\" Mairlynn snickers.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nJarae's expression changes, from one of surprise to that of considerable shame. Seeing the effect of her words, Mairlynn is quick to press on.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Yeah, I like men. I don't get them as often as I want; you and I both know how much fun they can be.\" She winks at Jarae. “I like all of our boys. Trellan only gets a pass because he's older... And I don't want to break him. Hehe!\"\n\n“Ugh...\"\n\n“But in all seriousness, Valan is really nice.\" The elf continues.\n\n“D-does that mean you desire him?\"\n\n“Well, yeah! I'd have sex with him at the drop of a hat, and I'd stay with him before he could pick it back up.\"\n\n“You mean, exclusively?!\" Jarae looks shocked.\n\n“Mhm! I test the waters with our boys, but I'm not a philanderer; if I had a single, decent man, I'd be happy. My eyes wouldn't wander... Much.\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nMairlynn watches with considerably amusement as Jarae appears to become nervous, and even scared. She looks with considerable worry toward the staircase.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Maybe I shouldn't have...\" Jarae murmurs.\n\n“Shouldn't have what? ... What happened when you two were on that island?\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nJarae shifts her eyes, glancing toward Mairlynn.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Valan's different now, and while I didn't know you before, I feel like this isn't the real you either.\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nStanding in the first coal room, their second, futile search now concluded, Valan pats Irzain's shoulder. He opens his mouth and takes a breath, but can't think of anything positive to say. Pulling his hand away, he heads for the door. Sighing in frustration, Irzain kicks at a few lone chunks of coal on the floor, vaulting them into the pile. Knocking away other pieces of coal, they begin to roll away from the stack. As he turns away, Irzain freezes in his tracks. His eyes grow wide as he stares in horror, his heart racing to catch up to his thoughts. A clawed finger, covered in dark colored fur pokes out from the pile of coal.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Vah... Val...\" Irzain chokes out.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nTurning back and looking at Irzain, they share a gaze. Seeing the look on the older man's face, Valan's confusion turns to horror, then determination.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Hey, Steingar!\"\n\n“Yeah?!\"\n\n“We're about done!\" Valan yells back, drawing a pistol.\n\n“Finally!\"\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nMotioning with his head, Valan sends Irzain out of the room. He rushes to collect Steingar, while Valan tiptoes closer to the coal pile. He takes aim, pulling back the hammer of his pistol to full-cock. It clicks loudly into place, causing the finger to slither deeper into the pile. Grabbing Steingar's arm, Irzain motions for him to follow.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“I can see you!\" Valan calls out from inside the room.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nHearing the coal chunks shifting, they fall to the floor and roll away with a loud rumbling, which reverberates throughout the bottom deck. Racing to his aid, Irzain and Steingar stop in their tracks at the sight. A cloaked figure, not unlike one Steingar had seen earlier, stands before Valan. With dainty hands outstretched, the hooded figure, covered in thick coal dust, surrenders. Reaching out with one hand, the other holding his pistol close to his chest, Valan pushes the hood back, revealing the stowaway's face.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“Well, well, well... I should've known, the race of thieves and whores that they are!\" Steingar snickers.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\nWalking up the steps, Jarae and Mairlynn leap to their feet. To their shock and horror, there was a stowaway aboard! The young and attractive Jaliscan woman, led by Valan, whose gun points at her back, makes her way toward the hallway. Turning her head toward Jarae, the women's eyes lock.\n\n\u0026nbsp;\n\n“I don't believe it...\" Jarae gasps.\n\n“Hello, Jarae.\" The stowaway speaks, waving only her fingertips.","series":{"name":"Series: In The Mist Of The Erie Isles","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1515446-in-the-mist-of-the-erie-isles-episode-11.json","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1516014-in-the-mist-of-the-erie-isles-episode-13.json"}}