→ [Fic] Black Ice 6.0
Black Ice
-6-
“Don’t you think she’s been acting strange?”
Jak looked over to Torn and rose an eyebrow, “Doesn’t she normally? Krimzon Guard and all.”
“That’s right!” Daxter piped up. “They’re all screwy in the head. At least she’s not like Erol.”
Jak shot him a look as Torn leaned in again, a sneer drawn across his face, “Didn’t I tell you to get out?”
“Hey, where Jak goes, I go. Not even the sewers are gonna part us.”
Right, because saying shit like that made him sound like a more respectable ottsel. Sure. Except not. It just sounded stupid. Torn and Jak exchanged glances, shrugged it off, and opted for the matter at hand.
“She’s typically gotta good head on her shoulders. She’s gone outta whack, though. `m thinkin’ it could get bad.”
Ashelin could become a liability. What then? Whatever was going on could cause them all to die. Torn almost felt guilty about it, but if it really got that bad, he’d have to tell her to step down, take a deep breath, something. Maybe it wouldn’t come to that.
“Come to think of it,” Jak began thoughtfully, “She has been saying things that don’t really sound like her. It could be worse, though. Like Daxter said.”
“It won’t become that. I won’t let it become that.”
How much did Torn really trust Jak? Sure, he was a member of the Underground, but that didn’t seem like a good enough reason to indulge information to him. Not just yet. Or was there? The Baron had his hands on that stone now, thanks to his efforts. All for Ashelin, really. She was panicked by it too, as panicked as Ashelin Praxis could be.
“She was askin’ us about pirates earlier, “Daxter mentioned as he scrambled from one shoulder and to the other. “We don’t even have pirates here.”
Jak nodded vaguely, “She asked me about broken something. Can’t remember what. Think she just asked me if I’d ever broken anything.”
Pirates, broken limbs, the Elly-whatever… Were they all connected? What in the fucking name of Mar was she talking about?! She was beginning to get so serious that it was disconcerting. It wasn’t like his Ashelin at all. Right. She was his. One day he’d really make her that. If he thought he had a chance. Somehow screwing around with the Baron’s daughter sounded like a good time. He could get along with that really well.
“You said she was talking weird stuff to you too, right?”
Torn looked Jak square in the eye, “Yeah, but I’m not about to discuss it with you. Do something about getting more leads on that stone and we’ll talk. The Shadow says it’s vital.”
“Why’re we the ones always doing the dirty work?” Daxter whined.
"We've been through this," Torn replied with a scowl. "Because I don't like you."
“Fair enough, I guess,” Jak muttered.
Except it wasn’t. It really wasn’t.
-☼-
There was one more person Ashelin had yet to see. The younger elf hadn’t been aboard the ship long at all, so Ashelin wasn’t expecting any good to come out of the attempt. Torn had faith in her though, which meant Ashelin was going to at least try.
Tess was working in the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon, she assumed. Probably still keeping an eye on Krew. Ashelin personally could barely stomach his presence. He was about as disgusting as every other Havenite, however, so she couldn’t despise him as much as she wanted to. It wouldn’t have been out of line for her to do such a thing anyway.
A careful stride was her entrance made. Tess looked busy, or as busy as a barmaid could look. She wiped down the counter before rearranging the bottles behind her. Ashelin took the moment to claim a stool at the bar.
“Didn’t hear you-Oh, Ashelin!”
That was the nice thing about Tess. No one ever sounded happier than her. It was easy to see how genuine it was too, which made it better in Ashelin’s opinion. She wasn’t against people being happy. That was just really hard to find in Haven, given their current standing and the atmosphere. Ashelin did her best to smile, though it didn’t come off the way she wanted it to.
“Tess, you doing good?”
“Yeah!” That same enthusiasm she always had, “Oh, yeah! You’re good, right? You look a little out of it. Have you been eating okay?”
Ashelin rewarded her with a small chuckle, “That’s not necessary. I’m not a member of the Underground. They need more help than I do. Really.”
Tess didn’t reply immediately. Then she gave a very sincere grin, “Yeah, I know. But it’s not like I don’t want to help you. Just like anyone else in it. We all just wanna help each other. Like we’re some big family!”
“You’re too much,” Ashelin almost snorted.
Right. She wasn’t here to shoot the shit.
“I wanted to ask you about something.” Without a go ahead, she proceeded, “Can you remember if you’ve traveled out of Haven? Specifically over the ocean.”
Fingers pressed to her chin, Tess looked considerably thoughtful. Then after pulling some juvenile face that Ashelin couldn’t wrap her mind around, the younger elf shook her head.
“Nope! Not that I can remember anyway.”
Yeah. Ashelin thought that would be the case. No big surprise there. She couldn’t say she wasn’t disappointed, though. Whatever. It just meant she had to find another lead. No gain, no loss, just sitting at square one, which was quickly becoming a comfy chair.
“Why?”
Had anyone else asked that? No. The others had been quicker to tease her or tell her why they thought she was nuts. The surprise remained on her face momentarily and then she forced it away.
“I was just thinking.”
Tess leaned against the counter and dropped her chin into the palm of her hand, “Thinking about going on a trip?”
“Something like that,” Ashelin nodded.
“Where would you go? Over the ocean? Does anyone know what’s past it?”
She had to think about that one. Obviously someone did. Otherwise it wouldn’t have been possible to make any sort of colony in such a short period of time. That man certainly wasn’t the only one of his kind, not with such a fancy title. He had his people, after all, and his father too.
“Someone does. I don’t know who in Haven, but someone does. I’ll find him-her-it.”
“What are you looking for?”
That required not a moment’s hesitance, “Answers. Answers to questions you can’t help with and neither can the Underground. I can’t just wait for them to come to me. If I want them, I’ll have to grab them myself, even if that means traveling out of Haven.”
Tess was quiet for a moment. After some silent admiration, her lips curled up into a smile. “If you feel that strongly about it, then yeah, you should go. You sound pretty serious.”
Ashelin nodded again, “No more than usual. If I wait for all of this-” she gestured with a hand, “-it might be too late.”
But the Underground…
Intuitive Tess was on it, “Don’t worry about us. Just go do what you need to do. We’ve been fighting the Baron for years. A week without you I think we can handle. You said it yourself. If you wait for everything to pass, you might lose your only opportunity.”
Point made and a very valid one. Ashelin glanced aside for a moment, putting the final pieces together. Yeah, the Underground could probably handle things in her absence. They’d probably resort to using Jak for information, but he likely wouldn’t mind. He was always looking for a reason to stir up trouble anyway. Being a spy would be perfect for him-if he could learn how to be quiet.
“For what it’s worth, I think you were going to do it anyway,” Tess giggled. “It makes me happy that you talked with me about it. Like we’re-”
“Don’t even start with that,” Ashelin resisted a groan.
People did not talk about sentimental things. Unless, of course, those people were Tess. Talking about feelings never did anyone any sort of good. It just emphasized what made a person weak. It was exactly why Ashelin never talked about her feelings.
Except that wasn’t true.
“It’s a lot easier just to say I don’t care about you, that you mean nothing to me.”
He’d looked surprised and she was humiliated. Feelings didn’t set people free. They restrained them. They bound them to whatever reputation they’d made for themselves over time. Ashelin was not excluded from that. She hadn’t even given Torn a hint of how she felt.
Was it easier because the other captain didn’t know of her reputation? She never fully understood why she said it. Maybe a part of her wanted him to know. Would he even remember though? She wanted to believe he would. It was primarily for a selfish reason, actually. She wanted to hear someone else say they knew what was going on, so she didn’t have to be alone.
“Ashelin?”
She sat up straight, having not realized just how hunched over she’d grown. It was around the same time that she found Tess’ nose just a few inches from hers. She blinked and then shook her head, “Hm? What is it?”
Tess tipped her head to the side and there was no mistaking that worry in the eyes of lighter blue, “You just looked very far away. I know you don’t really talk about what bothers you, but maybe you should. You might feel better.”
The captain of the Krimzon Guard scoffed, “That’ll be the day.” She pushed herself away from the counter and back onto her feet, “I will be keeping what you said in mind, though. About this whole getting the hell out of here thing.” There was a wave that wasn’t actually a wave at all, but more like some half-assed attempt.
At the door to the saloon, Ashelin paused and gave Tess a knowing look, “You’ll need to take good care of them while I’m gone.” Precursors knew Torn would get caught up in his work if someone didn’t force food down his throat. And as much as she wanted that position, she just wasn’t feeling it.
Maybe after everything was over. But knowing her luck, probably not.
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-6-
“Don’t you think she’s been acting strange?”
Jak looked over to Torn and rose an eyebrow, “Doesn’t she normally? Krimzon Guard and all.”
“That’s right!” Daxter piped up. “They’re all screwy in the head. At least she’s not like Erol.”
Jak shot him a look as Torn leaned in again, a sneer drawn across his face, “Didn’t I tell you to get out?”
“Hey, where Jak goes, I go. Not even the sewers are gonna part us.”
Right, because saying shit like that made him sound like a more respectable ottsel. Sure. Except not. It just sounded stupid. Torn and Jak exchanged glances, shrugged it off, and opted for the matter at hand.
“She’s typically gotta good head on her shoulders. She’s gone outta whack, though. `m thinkin’ it could get bad.”
Ashelin could become a liability. What then? Whatever was going on could cause them all to die. Torn almost felt guilty about it, but if it really got that bad, he’d have to tell her to step down, take a deep breath, something. Maybe it wouldn’t come to that.
“Come to think of it,” Jak began thoughtfully, “She has been saying things that don’t really sound like her. It could be worse, though. Like Daxter said.”
“It won’t become that. I won’t let it become that.”
How much did Torn really trust Jak? Sure, he was a member of the Underground, but that didn’t seem like a good enough reason to indulge information to him. Not just yet. Or was there? The Baron had his hands on that stone now, thanks to his efforts. All for Ashelin, really. She was panicked by it too, as panicked as Ashelin Praxis could be.
“She was askin’ us about pirates earlier, “Daxter mentioned as he scrambled from one shoulder and to the other. “We don’t even have pirates here.”
Jak nodded vaguely, “She asked me about broken something. Can’t remember what. Think she just asked me if I’d ever broken anything.”
Pirates, broken limbs, the Elly-whatever… Were they all connected? What in the fucking name of Mar was she talking about?! She was beginning to get so serious that it was disconcerting. It wasn’t like his Ashelin at all. Right. She was his. One day he’d really make her that. If he thought he had a chance. Somehow screwing around with the Baron’s daughter sounded like a good time. He could get along with that really well.
“You said she was talking weird stuff to you too, right?”
Torn looked Jak square in the eye, “Yeah, but I’m not about to discuss it with you. Do something about getting more leads on that stone and we’ll talk. The Shadow says it’s vital.”
“Why’re we the ones always doing the dirty work?” Daxter whined.
"We've been through this," Torn replied with a scowl. "Because I don't like you."
“Fair enough, I guess,” Jak muttered.
Except it wasn’t. It really wasn’t.
-☼-
There was one more person Ashelin had yet to see. The younger elf hadn’t been aboard the ship long at all, so Ashelin wasn’t expecting any good to come out of the attempt. Torn had faith in her though, which meant Ashelin was going to at least try.
Tess was working in the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon, she assumed. Probably still keeping an eye on Krew. Ashelin personally could barely stomach his presence. He was about as disgusting as every other Havenite, however, so she couldn’t despise him as much as she wanted to. It wouldn’t have been out of line for her to do such a thing anyway.
A careful stride was her entrance made. Tess looked busy, or as busy as a barmaid could look. She wiped down the counter before rearranging the bottles behind her. Ashelin took the moment to claim a stool at the bar.
“Didn’t hear you-Oh, Ashelin!”
That was the nice thing about Tess. No one ever sounded happier than her. It was easy to see how genuine it was too, which made it better in Ashelin’s opinion. She wasn’t against people being happy. That was just really hard to find in Haven, given their current standing and the atmosphere. Ashelin did her best to smile, though it didn’t come off the way she wanted it to.
“Tess, you doing good?”
“Yeah!” That same enthusiasm she always had, “Oh, yeah! You’re good, right? You look a little out of it. Have you been eating okay?”
Ashelin rewarded her with a small chuckle, “That’s not necessary. I’m not a member of the Underground. They need more help than I do. Really.”
Tess didn’t reply immediately. Then she gave a very sincere grin, “Yeah, I know. But it’s not like I don’t want to help you. Just like anyone else in it. We all just wanna help each other. Like we’re some big family!”
“You’re too much,” Ashelin almost snorted.
Right. She wasn’t here to shoot the shit.
“I wanted to ask you about something.” Without a go ahead, she proceeded, “Can you remember if you’ve traveled out of Haven? Specifically over the ocean.”
Fingers pressed to her chin, Tess looked considerably thoughtful. Then after pulling some juvenile face that Ashelin couldn’t wrap her mind around, the younger elf shook her head.
“Nope! Not that I can remember anyway.”
Yeah. Ashelin thought that would be the case. No big surprise there. She couldn’t say she wasn’t disappointed, though. Whatever. It just meant she had to find another lead. No gain, no loss, just sitting at square one, which was quickly becoming a comfy chair.
“Why?”
Had anyone else asked that? No. The others had been quicker to tease her or tell her why they thought she was nuts. The surprise remained on her face momentarily and then she forced it away.
“I was just thinking.”
Tess leaned against the counter and dropped her chin into the palm of her hand, “Thinking about going on a trip?”
“Something like that,” Ashelin nodded.
“Where would you go? Over the ocean? Does anyone know what’s past it?”
She had to think about that one. Obviously someone did. Otherwise it wouldn’t have been possible to make any sort of colony in such a short period of time. That man certainly wasn’t the only one of his kind, not with such a fancy title. He had his people, after all, and his father too.
“Someone does. I don’t know who in Haven, but someone does. I’ll find him-her-it.”
“What are you looking for?”
That required not a moment’s hesitance, “Answers. Answers to questions you can’t help with and neither can the Underground. I can’t just wait for them to come to me. If I want them, I’ll have to grab them myself, even if that means traveling out of Haven.”
Tess was quiet for a moment. After some silent admiration, her lips curled up into a smile. “If you feel that strongly about it, then yeah, you should go. You sound pretty serious.”
Ashelin nodded again, “No more than usual. If I wait for all of this-” she gestured with a hand, “-it might be too late.”
But the Underground…
Intuitive Tess was on it, “Don’t worry about us. Just go do what you need to do. We’ve been fighting the Baron for years. A week without you I think we can handle. You said it yourself. If you wait for everything to pass, you might lose your only opportunity.”
Point made and a very valid one. Ashelin glanced aside for a moment, putting the final pieces together. Yeah, the Underground could probably handle things in her absence. They’d probably resort to using Jak for information, but he likely wouldn’t mind. He was always looking for a reason to stir up trouble anyway. Being a spy would be perfect for him-if he could learn how to be quiet.
“For what it’s worth, I think you were going to do it anyway,” Tess giggled. “It makes me happy that you talked with me about it. Like we’re-”
“Don’t even start with that,” Ashelin resisted a groan.
People did not talk about sentimental things. Unless, of course, those people were Tess. Talking about feelings never did anyone any sort of good. It just emphasized what made a person weak. It was exactly why Ashelin never talked about her feelings.
Except that wasn’t true.
“It’s a lot easier just to say I don’t care about you, that you mean nothing to me.”
He’d looked surprised and she was humiliated. Feelings didn’t set people free. They restrained them. They bound them to whatever reputation they’d made for themselves over time. Ashelin was not excluded from that. She hadn’t even given Torn a hint of how she felt.
Was it easier because the other captain didn’t know of her reputation? She never fully understood why she said it. Maybe a part of her wanted him to know. Would he even remember though? She wanted to believe he would. It was primarily for a selfish reason, actually. She wanted to hear someone else say they knew what was going on, so she didn’t have to be alone.
“Ashelin?”
She sat up straight, having not realized just how hunched over she’d grown. It was around the same time that she found Tess’ nose just a few inches from hers. She blinked and then shook her head, “Hm? What is it?”
Tess tipped her head to the side and there was no mistaking that worry in the eyes of lighter blue, “You just looked very far away. I know you don’t really talk about what bothers you, but maybe you should. You might feel better.”
The captain of the Krimzon Guard scoffed, “That’ll be the day.” She pushed herself away from the counter and back onto her feet, “I will be keeping what you said in mind, though. About this whole getting the hell out of here thing.” There was a wave that wasn’t actually a wave at all, but more like some half-assed attempt.
At the door to the saloon, Ashelin paused and gave Tess a knowing look, “You’ll need to take good care of them while I’m gone.” Precursors knew Torn would get caught up in his work if someone didn’t force food down his throat. And as much as she wanted that position, she just wasn’t feeling it.
Maybe after everything was over. But knowing her luck, probably not.
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