Faseniko + Willefethen

[Macamazey]

Will chewed the inside of his mouth, but took the washrag, wet it, and began to scrub anyway. After an hour of scrubbing the deck with the Lupe standing ominously over him, he was informed that he could have a break. He lay on the ground, exhausted, looking at blistered hands.

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

After telling the Aisha he could take a break, Niko walked over to the port edge of the ship. He leaned on it, looking out at the foggy sea.

[Macamazey]

This was the perfect time, Will realized. He stood, readying himself to walk over there and tell the captain off. But as he did so, he slipped on the wet deck. The boat rocked one way, then the other, and then back to the left. Will slid left, toward the pirate captain, and accidentally pushed against him a bit too hard.

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

Captain Niko was so stunned when he fell off the ship that he didn't even yell out. When he hit the icy waters, realization swept over him along with the next wave. He swam toward the boat, looking for the rope that... didn't hang over the edge... at night. He yelled out in fury.

[Macamazey]

Will couldn't believe it. He watched the captain fall off the boat and into the water. When he pirate surfaced and began to roar in rage, Will let out a sharp breath that he didn't realize he was holding. He knew the rest of the ship no doubt was awake by now. Thinking fast was one of his strengths. He rushed to the bow of the boat and looked for a flapboard in the ground. He found one and pulled it open. The escape dingy was in there. Luckily it was filled with air. Will pulled it out and threw it off the side of the ship. He looked back. Pirates were clamboring out of the cabin. This time he didn't think; he seized the oars that came with the dingy and ran to the very edge of the ship and jumped off, through the fog and into the icy waters.

He was thankful the escape boat didn't fall too far from him. He kicked his way to it, and climbed inside. He rowed the boat towards the fallen captain, who yelled at him in fury. He looked up. Fog covered the view of the ship above. He picked up an oar once close enough and held it out to the captain. When it wasn't taken, he sighed and slammed the oar down on his head.

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

The oar came down hard on Niko's head. He was pushed under the water, and his eyes closed.

[Macamazey]

Will winced, but he knew it had to be done. He grabbed the pirate's shirt and pulled him onto the boat. He turned to row back to the ship to return the captain and try to escape, but there was no ship. All he saw was fog. So he chose a direction and rowed that way, trying not to panic.

After rowing for several hours, Will's arms got tired. He pulled the oars into the boat, curled up as far as he could from the still knocked out pirate captain, and searched through the emergency supplies that came in a pocket on the dingy. He pulled out two large down blankets. He put one around the pirate and one around himself.

It occured to him that he had no idea what the captain's name was, nor did he have any idea why he didn't just flee and leave the captain there in the waters. He realized that once he woke up, he would kill him, and that would be his own mistake. I really should just push him off now, he thought. Save myself. That would be the smart thing to do. He sighed. ...but it wouldn't be the right thing to do. He quickly drifted off to sleep, and the boat drifted down south on its own little path.

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

Niko shivered all throughout the time he slept, but it receded a bit when a warm down blanket was placed upon him. His fur and clothes were soaked through.

[Macamazey]

The Aisha slept a shaky, uncomfortable sleep. He woke several times in the night, and the second time, he found a dry shirt and pants in the emergency pocket, quickly shedding his wet clothes and donning these. He immediately felt more comfortable and wrapped up tighter in his blanket. He knew that the pirate that slept on the other side of the good-sized emergency boat should change into dry clothes too, but he had fur. Will didn't. And besides, he wasn't about to do anything about it. That was a little too touchy for someone he hated.

When he woke up the third time, it was morning. Salt stuck to his lips and his hair clung to his face. He looked over. The pirate was still asleep. The fog had receded to a significant extent, but it was still pretty bad. He searched the supplies and found some food and water. He took a swig of a water bottle and downed two apples. He restrained himself from eating or drinking any more and began to row again to what he hoped was civilization, but was actually much farther from what he was aiming for.

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

The pirate Lupe began to stir. His eyes were still closed, and even in his trance of half-sleep, he could tell that something was very, very wrong. He was freezing, and he could hear the soft repetitive sound of something entering water and coming out. His eyes opened. He was not staring at a wooden wall, as he usually did. Instead, his gaze met a layer of fog. His head ached terribly, and he was shivering despite the blanket that was wrapped around him.

"Where... am I?" Niko wondered aloud. He sat up and looked around. He appeared to be in some sort of little boat, but whoever else was in it with him was blocked by all the fog.

[Macamazey]

Will tried not to panic. He calmed himself and spoke clearly. "I don't know," he told the Lupe. "Somewhere out in the Neopian Sea, I'd assume."

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

"And, pray tell," Niko growled, "why am I out here?"

[Macamazey]

He gulped. "You fell off your ship," he said carefully, "and I would've been murdered if I hadn't escaped. So I took the escape boat and jumped. I couldn't just leave you there to freeze to death or drown, but you wouldn't grab the oar to come in, so I hit you with it and knocked you out. Honest, I tried to get back to the ship, but the fog was so bad, I couldn't see it. So we ended up here."

[B@bÿ gR¡ƒƒ¡n w¡ñg§]

Niko paused. "And who," he asked slowly, "might you be?"

[Macamazey]

At first, Will said nothing. The silence was becoming unbearable. Finally, he answered quietly, "Will."