Gilded History (Nu, Quinn) (Double XP)

Quinn somehow managed to sit on the bubble and stay there as Nu moved around, being dragged right along with her, not caring in the least. Nobody was exactly sure how she managed to do this, since she should have slipped off at the first movement, but there she was, treating the bubble like it was a car or something. It wasn't long until Dorian joined them, swimming above them to get a better view as they continued to search for the wreckage.

It was in pretty good shape for how long under water it was, though it also looked like using a little too much force would rip it apart like it was made of paper mache. Quinn, of course, did exactly what she was told to do and instantly pulled out her yellow balloon thingie and set it off, watching it rapidly float towards the surface. She clearly didn't care at all that they were all already here. Quinn follows the balloon as it rapidly makes it way out of view before nodding to herself and looking back at the ship, just in time to catch movement going on inside. Getting all excited again, she swims around, getting out of view before rapidly closing in on the boat, hoping that there was another shark inside that she can pet.

Quinn had finally managed to get the hang of swimming under water, so she was far quicker than one would expect, allowing her to get to the ship without spooking the creature inside. Slipping through a small crack in the side, she sneaks through the ship slowly, seeing a dark shape watching the other two. She manages to get around behind and above the creature before rushing forward, tackling it into a hug as it reacts badly to the tiny girl suddenly grabbing it. Unlike last time, where the shark managed to get away, Quinn was far more prepared this time and managed to keep hold of the rather human sharped fishie.

Quinn pauses for a second, something not clicking but she wasn't exactly sure what, then it dons on her. The shark that she thought she was hugging seemed like it was another diver, which got Quinn even more excited. Two new friends in a single day? Quinn pulls apart slightly to check out the other diver only to rapidly notice that it was, in fact, a fishie, just like she thought it was. Well, more like a half fishie, seeing as how only it's lower half was fish-like. The girl was still trying to get away, so Quinn pats her on the head a few times, trying to calm her new friend down without letting go, not actually hurting the poor girl, but still hugging her.

The being that Quinn had glomped had the basic blended shape of a woman mixed with a fish; specifically, she looked to be a 17-year-old girl, rather attractive while still blending aspects of a fish.  While her hair was long, it looked a bit like long strands of green algae, and while she bore curves that many surfacers would find desirable, she lacked features that would earn her placement as a mammal.  Insead, pail skin gave way to luminous fish scales in the pattern of a bustier.  Below that was pale skin, lacking a belly button and this gave way to a skirt of fluttering fins.  Emerging from this skirt was not a pair of lags but a long fish tail.  However, unlike most fictions about her kind, her tail fin was instead verticle; she lacked the feminine hip/thigh structure that many expected of a mermaid...

The poor girl struggled, trying to wriggle away in a desperate panic.  Long, slender fingers bearing venomous barbs clawed at the synthetic girl, hoping the neuro-toxin would slow the pink haired demon.

Nearby, the observer who had stalked the trio since they came down decided the surfacers were a threat.  She would have to be quick, finishing the two nearer to her before killing the pink haired one.  Surging forward with a bone knife in hand, she aimed for Jardin; men were generally warriors in werefolk culture.

There were two reasons the plan did not work.  One; of the three and especially compared to Nu, Jardin was the least dangerous of the group.  Two; in spite of her attempted speed and cunning, Jardin sensed her coming.  The thief twised aside as she surged at him and when he turned on her, her appearance gave him pause..

Much like Quinn's new plaything, this being was an amalgam of human and fish, though her scales were a patern of red and blue stipes arranged like a "V-neck" dress.  Flaps on her neck flexed as she breathed via her gills ready to charge once more.

Well, this got weird. Jardin thought this as he drew his own knife, ready to square off against the newcomer.

With the pink haired girl darting off in the direction of the sunken ship and Jardin behind her, Nu became completely oblivious to the confrontations that her compatriots had just engaged in. The mute sat in her pink bubble like some sort of stoic statue as she contemplated her earlier ponderings. She scratched her head and stroked her chin several times in deep thought as she attempted to come up any sort of solution to her current problem.

Nu finally decided that she wasn’t going to get anything done just sitting around and thinking about it. Though she had doubted her own impressive power, she had been training a lot lately and she definitely felt stronger. With that Nu would give their initial plan a try and she would attempt to lift the large ship from its watery grave. The young psion lifted her hand towards the ship and began to focus deeply. She blocked out everything around her and embraced the darkness of the ocean’s abyss, only focusing on her target.

The decaying ship would take on a light pink aura as Nu’s telekinetic abilities began to influence it. There was a low rumbling noise as the ship’s wooden planks rumbled from the force being exerted on them. The more and more Nu focused on the ship and freeing it from the seas clutches, the less she concentrated on the formation of her barrier.

With little to no warning the barrier burst and left Nu exposed. Keeping her eyes shut she shifted her focus away from the ship and reformed the barrier around her, forcing all the water in her immediate vicinity away from her and forming once again a perfect pocket of air for her to beath while in the safe confines of her bright pink bubble.

With all that transpired in just a few minutes, Nu turned to see if she could find Jardin so that she explains to him that her plan wasn’t exactly going to work out. When she spun around she was greeted by a rather perplexing site. Jardin had been having a standoff with a strange creature, which upon further inspection by the mute turned out to be a real life mermaid. Eyeing the dagger in the mermaid’s hand gave Nu the sense that Jardin might be in danger and with a strong kick off the sea floor she floated up to her friend’s side, ready to intervene if the sea dweller attempted anything fishy.

During all the craziness that was going on with the other mermaid that was trying to take out Dorian and Nu, Quinn was still petting the poor, scared mermaid that had no idea what was going on. Any damage that she tried to inflict upon Quinn was just ignored, seeing as how it required a lot more strength than she had to even get through Quinn's skin. Suddenly the ship started to rock and move, Nu having decided that it was time for her to lift it out of the water.

The shifting didn't last very long, stopping almost as quickly as it started, but it was enough to send the fish girl into a new wave of panic, which Quinn managed to settle by pushing her up against part of the still intact ship. The mermaid stopped fighting, having figured out that she wasn't going to get away. Quinn stares at her for a second before giving the girl a smile, or at least as much of one that she could give through her re-breather.

A moment later she was hugging the girl again, petting her head slowly. Giving the girl a minute to calm down, Quinn releases the hug, though keeps a firm grip on the mermaid's hand as she pulls her out of the wreckage and towards the other two members, only to find out that they were facing off against another mermaid, this one armed with a knife. She glances over at the one is she holding and tilts her head, confusion clear on her face, but makes no move to do anything to help either side of the conflict, instead making sure that her new friend doesn't rush in and get herself hurt.

Jardin felt as Nu came closer. That was about when the mermaid lunged, slashing at Jardin. Had he expected things to turn into a fight, he would have probably brought bi-fins. As it were, kicking away was difficult as he gracelessly dodged the swipe. Then came the claw that scored the swimmer's side and injected enough neuro-toxin into him to leave him paralyzed for a month.

As Jardin slowed, the 'maid turned on the Psion. She did not expect the male to move at all, let alone move with blinding speed. The thief snagged the knife hand and twisted the blade loose with one free hand and manouvered into an armlock. He touched the dull side of his knife to her neck, letting her know he was ready to kill her should something happen. The wound on his side nitted silently, though what blood had spilled remained, though it desolved into the water around.

Glancing passed the mermaid's shoulder and spotted Quinn coming close with another of the aquatic ladies, this one younger than the one he held. Maybe they were friend's, that might be why he felt his opponent tense just now...

No, the younger 'maid saw somehing in the elder's eyes and turned as well. Jardin followed their gaze. A round a have dozen creatures came at the five. They looked a bit like the mermaids but these ones were almost twice as large and clad in coral? No, the 'coral' grew out of their bodies like a grotesque natural armor. Less radiant in their scales and rather hideous over all, they looked brutish, weilding large spears resembling the knife the girl had used.

Well, this was new. Jardin drew his steel blade back, bracing for anything.

Nu looked on at the whole ordeal unable to react as fast as the two combatants while in her bubble. She reached out to Jardin as he was slashed across the side, but he darted after the would be assailant with incredible speed.  Within a matter of seconds, he had turned to tables on the ocean dweller and had her secured in his grip. As he rustled with the mermaid the pink haired girl that had been accompanying them, approached with another one of these mermaids, at her side. The young mute began to think about just who the real seafaring people were seeing as how easily the two mermaids had been caught.

The two merfolk seemed to share an awkward exchange with one another that caught Nu’s attention. It was one of worry but also embarrassment. The naïve mute tilted her head to the side trying to decipher their cryptic gazes. Things only continued to escalate as a hoard of more fish people seemed to swim ominously towards them. Judging by their brutish outward appearance these ones were not here to parlay with the trio or their captives.

Sensing that the group might be in danger, Nu clenched her eyes shut and her barrier disappeared before an even larger barrier took its place and enveloped the small group in an attempt to separate themselves from the advancing hoard of warrior-like merfolk.

Nu turned to face Jardin and Quinn before pointing at both of the mermaids with each of her index fingers before placing them together, signifying that she believed the two were “together”. She immediately followed up with a silent gasp as she began to wonder if they could breathe normal air like humans could, and began to bow apologetically to everyone.

Dorian didn't have much trouble subduing the second mermaid, though he did get cut once, so minus points for that. After the little fight was finally over, everyone noticed another group of mermaids, or well, merpeople, heading straight for them. Instead of the beautiful looks that the first two have, these ones seemed more like evil creatures that dragged people to their deaths.

Quinn felt the merperson she was holding start to shake in fear at the sight of the new group, causing Quinn and pull her back into another hug and glare angrily at the rapidly approaching group. Quinn doesn't like people who scares her friends. That was when Nu did something and made a super large barrier that trapped them all inside of it, making sure that the new group wasn't able to harm them. Pulling her re-breather out, she takes a breath, noticing that the air seems a little thing. Quickly creating an air tank, she opens it up so that the air starts to fill up the bubble, making it much easier to breath. "That is better."

Taking another breath, this one a little easier, she turns to her new mer friend. "Hello, I am Quinn, what is your name? Can we be friends? How is living under the ocean? Does it get cold down here? I like you, do you want to live with me?" Quinn barrages the mer with half a dozen questions, rapid firing without giving her a chance to respond at all.

The coral covered warriors began swimming in a wide circle around the party, studying the outsiders and their quarry. One of them swam close to the orb and placed his own wicked fingertips against it. He seemed to snarl, though his hatred seemed to be directed towards the mermaids.

Inside, the two had huddled together. Their exposure to air had caused their scales to shimmer and their tail molded into a pair of very human legs. Their gills flattened as they grew inactive. It seemed the water sprites could survive on land if they had to. They likely did not understand any terrestrial language.

Jardin had more issues though. Again, he regretted his monofin as he fell to his knees. Realizing his tank would just get in the way, the thief undid it. If it came to a fight, manouvering would be easier without the weight. Still, that meant a fight on only one breath.

Suddenly, all the mermen surged in, attacking the barrier. Predictably, their speartips glanced off and Jardin smiled. Turning to Nu, he said, "Seems these guys don't like to talk. We'll either have to fight them or run," he indicated up with his thumb, pointing toward the boat that had moved into possition. "It's your call, Nu, but if we fight, I'd suggest giving me a thumb up if you can take them out from in here. That way, Quinn and I know when to be ready..."

The psionic mute let out a silent giggle as the visibly angry merfolk snarled and leered at the two mermaids. Her giggle turned into all out laughter as the brutish fish people tried to attack her bubble with their spears. Apparently they had never encountered anything like Nu, and to the young mute she found in entertaining. Jardin began to formulate a plan for their encounter with the merfolk and left the final decision up to Nu on whether they fled of fought. The proposition of testing her might against a creature she didn’t think existed proved to be rather intriguing to the young woman.

She nodded her head with excitement and then pointed to both Quinn and Grey and then back to their amphibious captives. Nu then pointed up several times, as she tried to signal for the four of them to make a break for the boat while she distracted the mermen. She knew they’d most likely protest that it was a bad idea. But they always had the option of coming back down and aiding her. Besides, Nu wasn’t about to just abandon such an amazing find, she wanted that ship and its precious cargo and would do what she could to ensure this venture turned out successful.

With her message done, she gave Jardin the thumbs up he requested as warning. She took a deep breath of the air inside her barrier and with a mighty push, Nu forced the barrier outwards knocking the aquatic warriors back several yards with excessive force. Nu didn’t bother to wait and see if her partners listened to her or not. She turned away from them and assumed the best underwater fighting stance that she could. Almost immediately one of the merfolk tried to rush the group of four and was met by Nu’s unrestrained and outright frightening might as she reached up and grabbed ahold of his spear and with a forceful yank of her hand, dragged the creature down into the sea floor.

Quinn got to watch the merpeople beat on Nu's bubble while it did nothing, and even joined the mute in laughter, although hers wasn't nearly so silent. She was still paying attention though, and shoved her re-breather back into her mouth as Nu gave Dorian the signal, telling them that she was going to drop the bubble and fight back. Normally, Quinn would have been all for the fight, I mean, who can claim they rode a merperson around like a horse? However, seeing as how she has two rather squishy and easily spooked girls with her, both of which have not sat still long enough for Quinn to be satisfied with petting them, she had better plans, mainly dragging them onto the boat.

The two girls were more than happy to move away from the group of merpeople that was trying to kill them all, and as such, it was much easier for Quinn to get them to the boat before they realized exactly what she had planned. By then it was far too late for them to get away, seeing as how Quinn managed to get them onto her element, roping them in and pulling them onto the boat, much to the confusion of the captain. She ignores him completely as she pulls her two new friends down below deck, out of sight. Having them sit down, she creates some food right, offering it to the two girls before giving them a clear stay put motion before heading back up. She gives the captain a giant smile. "Hello, I just want to say that you should leave my two friends alone. They are very scared and I would like it if you did not scare them more. If you do, I am sure that..." A giggle interrupts her, though seeming far more creepy than it should. "...that I can find a fun game to play with you. Do not worry, you will not die... maybe."

With that, she turns back towards the water, wondering if she should go help Nu or if it would ruin the other girl's fun.

As the mermaid's ascend, hey briefly morph back their tails. At Quinn and Jardin's urging, the timid girls go toward the boat, their only haven for the time being. They lose their tails again as they climb aboard. Francisco is left dumb, unsure how to react.

Jardin elects not to board. Hanging of the side he looks to the captain, saying, "Best do as the lady says." Turning to Quinn, he adds, "Look after those two; try and keep them calm. They need a friend at the moment." With no more to say, he plunged back down to see if Nu needed help...

Below, Jardin spotted the fight: Nu held her own quite well. In fact, one of the Mermen was already bleeding from his broken nose... Already, the warriors were nervous but at first, Jardin did not understand the shift, in spite of Nu's power. Then he remembered; sharks had lived in this area could smell blood. And with Nu as the least injured party with a pack of sharks already coming into view, well, that could prove interesting...

Instead of inserting himself into the mess below, Jardin let his thief persona run wild. Sheathing his knife, he took off toward the ship once more. Thinking that the male could prove worthy of death, one of the mermen broke from his unit and charged after. There would be no ambush as throughout the chase, Jardin sensed his pursuer...

Nu cringed at the carnage she had inflicted as the merman’s face collided with the hard coral beneath them. As an ink-like blood leaked from his fractured nose the surrounding warriors took on a look of slight panic. It seemed to stem from something they feared more than the unknown combatant they squared off against. The slight hesitation from the mermen allowed Nu to take note of Jardin’s decent and his overall plan to use the battle to his advantage.

They wouldn’t leave here empty handed today. But as Nu watched on, one of the mermen took the opportunity to slip past her in pursuit of her friend. The warriors seemed to be a bit more coordinated than the naïve Nu gave them credit for. As she turned to try and halt the aquatic creature’s advance, a spear was thrown in her direction, just grazing the top of the mute’s outstretched bicep. The initial cut hurt the young woman, but the resulting sting of saltwater hitting the wound made her wince and clutch her arm tightly.

She turned back to the direction the spear had come from, with anger in her eyes, completely uncharacteristic of the usually timid and carefree girl. Regardless of Nu’s expression the Merfolk persisted in their attempts to remove the woman from their path so they could reach the boat and retrieve their prize. Nu’s wound recovered just in the nick of time as another of the brutish creatures took it upon themselves to bull rush the girl, spear outstretched.

Nu’s quick reaction speed was much faster than the warrior hand anticipated and a look of pure terror took to his face as the dark skinned monster took a hold of his spear mid dash. With the spear secured in her grasp, Nu pulled the ocean dweller closer to her, before delivering a decisive knee strike to the creature’s stomach. The force of the impact let out a tiny underwater shockwave as the warrior relinquished is staff to the girl and slowly sank toward the seabed below.

Quinn didn't have a problem at all with staying and being the two mermaid's friend, and as such, she gives Dorian a quick wave. "Okay!" Her excitement at staying on the boat to look after the two mers that she collected was clear, and Quinn basically skipped her way back below deck, humming a happy tune as she heads over to where the two girls were sitting. They had decided that the food they were given was safe by now, and it was already gone, so Quinn just plops down beside the younger one and pulls her over, giving her a lap pillow as she gently pets her, acting for all the world like a loving mother.

Of course, while this was going on above water, another one of the fish people that Nu was fighting breaks off from combat, instead swimming up to where the boat is. It easily surfaces and lands on the boat, ignoring the captain that was pissing his pants right about now and instead entering the boat, seeing the three girls all by themselves. A nasty smirk crosses his face, clearly showing that he thinks he can easily handle them. Quinn stops petting and looks up to glare at the fish man, annoyed that he was scaring her two friends. "Go away, I am busy right now and I cannot play with you." She gives him a single warning, though even if he could understand her, the fish man was far too dumb to understand what Quinn meant by play.

Predictably, the surfaced warrior advanced, discarding is spear in favor of a stone dagger at close range.  Instead of rushing the girls, he stides, still sneering as he lifts his knife.  He had no idea how deep he was in...

Meanwhile, Jardin continued his gold rush, Merman warrior in pursuit. The merman was of course faster and could easily catch the human. But while the merman had strength, Jardin was still nimble, with a near preternatural sense of danger.

As the spearman lunged over that last meter of distance, Jardin pivotted and bent in half, pushing himself out of the way. As the shocked warrior streaked passed, he opportunistic thief took his chance to slash open the larger being's tailfin. The thing was stunned by the sharp pain as Jardin speed away.

A brief survey of the ships deck led Jardin to go for the rusted laticed hatch of the cargo hold. He reached to take hold after sheathing his knife again. The jagged edges cut his palms but he ignored the pain. The charging merman was coming again, slowed by the wound in his tail. Still, the thief lifted the hatch. Struggling, he heaved up like a jack, old metal feeling lighter under water.

Finally, the hatch flipped free and Jardin pushed forward, swimming passed the hold as the merman's spear slashed open he thief's thigh. Before the coup de grace could come, something within decided that these pesky beings were done. So, the merman found itself clutched in the powerful jaws of a great white shark. Jardin saluted the beast for its aid and quickly went to check on the gold...hopefully it was still there.

Despite the horror that was before them, the mermen were not deterred from their task. They instead resorted to actually forming a strategy rather than just rushing in one by one and falling victim to the small woman’s freakish powers. It was during this time they realized something about their impressive foe. Despite her great power, she was out of her element and easily distracted by the goings on around her. The warriors took note of this and devised that if they were to bring down their enemy they would have to all rush her at once.

The plan seemed solid at first, but with the group moving in perfect sync Nu was able to figure out what they were planning even with her extremely limited battle experience. As they drew closer Nu unleased a forceful shockwave out in all directions. The resulting pulse was enough to rumble the surrounding area and repelling the mermen. Nu took advantage of their disorientation and used the opportunity to incapacitate two of the warriors. Looking in the direction of the two warriors, a thin pink beam extended from Nu’s forehead to a spot in between them. A series of concussive explosions erupted along the beam before the last one went off between her two targets. The blast ended up launching one of the mermen out to sea and the other into the side of the sunken ship’s hull.

Fear and desperation filled the warriors as Nu was still merely holding back and hadn’t begun to flex the full might of her power. Looking to the remaining warriors, Nu would take notice of their grips tightening around the shafts of their spears. The little psion lifted her hand in a clenched fist towards them. A spark of psionic energy would ark off her knuckles before producing a four-inch spade shaped blade. It was an open invitation for them to try their hands at bringing her down as she welcomed their challenge.

Quinn tilts her head to one side as the fish man doesn't leave. "Okay, but I will have to make it quick." She lifts the girl's head so she can slide out from under it, putting it back slowly before turning to face the fish man, who had gotten close enough to swing it's blade down at her. Nobody could track her movement, one second she was just watching the blade get closer to her, the next it was in her hand, the fish man now swinging nothing. His eyes bug out, confused at what happened as Quinn looks over his blade before looking back up at him, deciding that it was completely useless.

"So, shall we play?" Quinn giggles again, before making another motion and shoving the stolen blade into the fish man's leg. Two more knifes, made out of steel, appear in her hands, her smile never going away. "I wonder how many..." Quinn pauses and looks back at the two girls, actually thinking of someone else for once and sighs, then drops her knives, going back to where she was sitting before and once again giving the poor girl a lap pillow. It was only after she settled back into her spot that the fish man drops, having been killed the moment she turned away from him.

"It will be okay, I will not let anyone hurt you." Quinn continues to pet her mermaids with a smile on her face, not even worried about the dead body not even ten feet from them.