PM to join Big Fish In a Big Pond

[Casimir]

oocFeel free to join!

42nd

Something large moved under Casimir. The shape was irregular, moving quickly and soon disappeared behind a gathering of rocks. The Charoda stopped mid-stroke, turning his head to try catch another glimpse of the mighty creature. There was a trail of sand at the sea bed, sand disturbed by the movement of a large creature. Casimir sunk to the bottom, letting the light of Syna change from flecks cast through the water into barely nothing. The goddess hid behind the rock structure, just like the creature.

Casimir grabbed a handful of sand, throwing it to make a cloud of dust that drifted everywhere. A current moved it away from him, trails of sand floating in the peaceful sea. Then he started moving, swimming with chest against the sand. It picked up, scattering in the water as he brushed past. Webbed hands reached out, pulling himself around the rocks. The dark shape moved, heading back towards the coast line.

The man turned, moving swiftly through the water. This chase was so unlike him. First, he knew nothing of tracking. Apart from the trail of sand the fish picked up and the actual sighting he saw, he would struggle to follow anything. Second, he left the living to their business, especially in these depths. Third, if this was anything dangerous, he was screwed.

But despite all that, he did anyway, tailing the creature with deliberate swimming. Creature this big near the coast? He had never seen such a thing, not yet. A small part of him hoped it would be another Charoda. That, of course, was impossible. None would bother coming to a place they couldn't survive.

As he drew closer to the creature, he took note of the colouring of its scales and the shape of its tail. As far as he knew with his tiny little world, the fish was strange in these waters. Unknown. Alien. They were close to the port now. Casimir took a longing look at the fish, the shimmering scales, then looking up, shooting towards the surface.

His head burst out, eyes wincing with the flash of bright light. Ships moved around him, but none noticed the man as he looked around him, curious to see if the fish had peaked anyone else's interest. Surely a fish that size would bring crowds flocking to the port. It shifted beneath him again, making a quick flitting journey under the ships and away.

Casimir could hear the excited voices of the fishermen on board, the pointed finger at the monster that had passed. Nets were gathered, sails were changed, and the ship started in pursuit.

The Charoda vigilante shadowed them, realising their intent. A creature that mighty deserved to live, not be served as dinner for a fat fool. Darting under the ship, he didn't realise that now the fishermen believed their to be two large fish for catching. Casimir chased the large fish, eager to keep it away from all the hungry humans. His eyes glowed bright as he watched it move, mimicking its movements. A webbed hand reached out and touched the great creature, until it darted to the side, into shadows.

He followed closely behind.

[Boo Beckett]

Old Man Jeb, his tattered and worn cap seemingly balanced on his head at a preposterous angle, was first to claim a sighting of the apparent behemoth beneath them. At least, it had become a behemoth by the time the rumor trickled back to the dry docks at the base of the Lhavitian peaks. Jeb, known among friends for being a quiet man, had started waving his arms and yelling in a manner most unfitting for one of his age.

Before long Jackson Jones in the next boat waggled a pointed finger accusingly as the water's surface shimmied and bubbled, a dark shadow drifting past and underneath their fishing canoes. Boo meanwhile remained completely oblivious to the new event unfolding around him. His attention was firmly on trying to unravel the wire of his fishing rod, that had inexplicably become tangled in and around itself a multitude of times. "Stupid thing", he muttered, while trying to ignore the fact that his usual optimism had apparently thrown itself over the side.

Suddenly there was a yell from behind him that brought his attention around, casting a glance just in time to see a fisherman take a dive into the sea. However, it had apparently been an involuntary entrance into the cold, wet abyss, judging from how the man had fought vigorously to maintain his balance before going in. His boat was now rocking to and throw, and it took a few moments before the capsized man was able to calm his watery steed and pull himself back up.

"What's all that about eh?" he asked Jackson Jones who was yelling at someone else, who in turn was shouting something Boo could not quite make out. It took a few moments, observing those around him and trying to pick clues from the carcasses of their discarded yells. But soon enough he had pieced together the truth of it. A creature so large and deadly that it would give children nightmares and keep the local bards singing for days to come. Oh, and it would likely feed at least a hundred people at the celebratory party that would undoubtedly occur once the aquatic titan was captured.

Boo followed the eye line of those around him, triangulating their gazes in order to locate the last known position of the creature himself. All the while he questioned the logic of being out here in a dinky old canoe if the monster was as big as everyone was claiming it to be. He instantly regretted trying to learn to fish, deciding in that moment that he could safely discard such a venture in the future, without a morsel of regret. His attention was then drawn back to the yelling, realizing that someone had announced a second creature.

Now he really missed the safe and comforting feel of dry land underfoot.

[Casimir]

The monster of a fish darted away from him, avoiding the swimmer who it thought to be hunting it. Better the only hunter be him than the multitude of fishing boats that bobbed up and down with the waves. Foolishly, the fish turned around, heading back towards the bellies of the boats, rising up slowly.

Casimir found himself chasing behind it, forcing it to speed up. The fish rose to the surface, dorsal fin scraping the air above, then it sunk to the floor again. Hearing the excited shouts of the fishermen, Casimir rose as well, but hidden under the boat. Just as the man on board moved for a net or rod, the Ethaefal swam up hard, smashing against the wood with his shoulder. It hurt, but it had been directed well. The boat wobbled, tipping to one side and throwing the man out.

The fisherman spluttered and threw himself around, in the same position his colleague had been in moments before. But this man didn't have the skill with swimming, and his thrashing was wild and uncontrolled. He sunk beneath the waves, kicking out wildly, and Casimir had to help him. The fish-man swam under the capsized boat, hidden by it, and pushed it over to the drowning man. Then he swam underneath him, pushing him up to grasp hold of the boat.

With that, the Ethaefal-Charoda darted away, eyes searching the ocean for the large fish. It turned out he didn't have to look. Another boat was sailing towards the mighty creature and all he had to do was follow. Quickly overtaking it, Casimir reached out towards the fish, watching it escape from his grasp. Good. It had to swim: fast, far and away.

There were voices, coming from above the water. Casimir had to make sure this fish swam away, but it kept returning, tempting fate with its size. If he couldn't get it away, he would have to get the fishermen away.

Turning back towards the boats, he spotted a small canoe: small, so unsteady. Zooming through the water, he let it help him up. His arms outstretched, he slammed against it, capsizing it and knocking whoever was inside out. The Ethaefal was already swimming away, however, hiding near the ocean floor. Cyan eyes watched the body of the man, not wanting to hurt, just to scare. Just to scare.

oocThat's you!

[Boo Beckett]

The shouting continued, somewhere between excitement and fear, or maybe just both jostling with each other, but in the process resulting in a cacophony of chaos. It was hard to make out anyone's words now, as they each competed to be loudest and most assertive. Boo had only his own eyes to trust, trying to seek where the mighty beast had got to. Some feat indeed, considering it had a blanket of murky water to conceal itself. So far the only indication of its presence had been either the bubbling and foam that resulted from it breaking the surface, or the bone chilling sound of a man splashing into the sea. It was bone chilling thanks to the less than friendly temperature this far out from mainland, but also in the risk that came from sharing the aquatic domain with what, up until now, had been described and advertised by the array of fisherman as a very large menace indeed.

So then, it was with frightful shock and horror that Boo found himself lurching towards a water bound demise, his less than worthy canoe taking a hit from underneath, the whole thing arching over without much in the way of resistance. He would later curse Jackson Jones, the fisherman who had agreed to accompany him out here for the purpose of learning that wretched man's craft. Catch your own bloody fish, Boo would also add.

For now his attentions were grasped firmly by the near icy cold water, slithering up Boo's arms and legs and wrapping itself around his torso like a collective of eels. In truth the water was perhaps not as cold as he first thought, but shock had a way of amplifying horrors that were in the process of being unleashed. His head went under as momentum carried him in, Boo taking an involuntary mouthful of salty water before remembering that humans did not breath underwater. His limbs thrashed and danced, as though there might have been some solid salvation to grab onto, like a helpful hand of a nearby fisherman or perhaps even dry land itself. That last notion was nonsense of course. From here it was a good several minutes before the boats and canoes could make it back to shore.

The murk of the water had left little use for his vision, what he could see mysterious and suggestive, but never anything more than that. There were shapes and outlines, but it did not help that his flailing around muddied the image yet further. It had seemed like a lifetime since he had gone in, though in reality it was a minute or so, stretched and exaggerated by his panicking mind. Luckily he had only been dressed in his shirt and pants, while the boots he favored were far from cumbersome or weighty. Trying to evict fear from his mind, the initial shock of events was beginning to give way to a more sensible approach to things. He was still far from content to be in this situation, but at least his wits seemed to have returned.

Start kicking you fool, he commanded of himself. While no athlete swimmer, he had at least understood the concept of swimming. Kick your legs and you go up. At least that was the theory of it. It was a theory that in practice was working remarkably well. Boo began to lift up, sliding closer to his escape where the prize was free and glorious air. But there was a problem. Somehow he had managed to gain a little speed during his ascent. So, when it came to that moment when head met underside of canoe, there was a moment in Boo's mind when he believed he had become fish food. Having not laid eyes on the creature, he could only in that split second conjure some foul and hideous version of his own. But it was a fleeting moment, before his flailing subsided, his efforts wavered, and slowly he began to descend again.

Only this time he did so unawares, the darkness in his mind wrapping itself around him, blanking out the world, the water, and the cold. He himself had become a shape; an apparent lifeless form that hovered without purpose.

And to think, it had not even been the giant fish that had done this.

[Casimir]

He moved wildly, Casimir having to duck out of the way as the body flailed and kicked. His brow furrowed a little with realisation as to what he had done. Drowned someone. He couldn't have really. The man swam up bu smashed against a canoe, a little like Casimir had, except with unintentional force, with misdirection and without realising it. His body hung lifeless and limp as he swirled in the murky water, great fish rising up near him to inspect the thing littering his home.

Casimir followed it, moving through the water like lives depended on it. They did, too. Both the fish and the man were in danger, Casimir needing to help both before he got out of the way and left the collection of hunters and hunted. Which one was he? Being part of a vicious food chain like this confused him. He ate only vegetables, the things that grew from the ground. They too lived, but their life force was much weaker than the fish in the sea and the animals on the ground. Why humans had to have meat to eat rather than what he survived on confused him.

But this was no time to consider why humans ate meat. This was a time to save one human and one fish. Wrapping his arms around the man's chest, he heaved him across his back. Once there, Casimir wasted no time, swimming as close as he could to the capsized canoe. He no longer cared about being seen and recognised - what he wanted was for the man to be safe. Bursting out of the water, Casimir slung the limp body over the canoe, careful not to push it down so it filled with water. No, that wouldn't do. His head now hung in the water, not letting the man breath. Wrestling with the body, he managed to heave him off and flip the canoe back round. There was water at the bottom, but not too much and this time, Casimir had to push the man over the side.

Kicking hard, he managed to lift the body up so his upper body flopped into the canoe. Grabbing his legs, the Ethaefal managed to repeat it, rolling the man over and onto his back. He could do no more. Diving back down into the water, he searched the dark depths. A sliver of silver moved past and Casimir moved closer, shouting, yelling, trying to scare the fish off. It seemed to work, the large beast moving away and into the darkness. It wouldn't last long, but it would do for now.

Returning to the surface, Casimir felt Syna's light brush past him as he approached the canoe with the man he had almost drowned. He peered over, hands tightly wrapped around the side of the canoe. His eyes flickered over, taking a good look at the man he might have killed. Was this was a dying man looked like? Casimir hoped not, but he didn't know what else to do. If the man didn't show any sign of recovering, and if no one else approached, then he would simply have to watch.

[Boo Beckett]

Boo's first thought when he came to was that it must have been some night, judging by the hangover that had engulfed his head. Opening his eyes was a mission, the light of day stinging and cruel as it pierced his mind with rays of pain. Then came the throbbing, as though his heart had somehow relocated into his skull, where it now thudded against the sides like an angry drummer.

At first there was a feeling of panic, as he tested his limbs and tried to move. He found that his attempts were impeded by the fact that he was laying in something with slanted sides. Gradually his thoughts improved, reminding himself that he was in a canoe. One hand grabbed the side, which he used to pull himself up into a sitting position. The other he used to shield his eyes from the sun, which to him was still startling. Then he wondered why he was soaked through, his pants and shirt stuck to him while there was that uncomfortable squishy feeling in his boots that felt unnatural and wrong.

As his vision began to reinstate itself as useful, he noted a few other boats to his right with their various inhabitants still pointing and shouting at different spots here and there in the water. His view settled on Jackson Jones, who was frantically waving a hand and pointing with the other. Boo realized that the man was in fact pointing straight at him, while yelling something he could not quite make out. He did seem rather animated though, which paid rise to a little concern in Boo's mind. He could not be certain, but he felt as though the pointed finger was not directly at him, but perhaps a few degrees behind him. Maybe it was his imagination. How could he even tell from here?

But his hunch had the better of him, causing Boo to turn back to his left, where he saw a pair of hands clinging onto the side of the canoe from the outside. The hands were a rubbery texture of some kind, which in Boo's current state were simply to be regarded as belonging to someone else. Since he had embarked on the canoe solo, that meant only one thing. He was under attack!

Forcing his aching body to his knees so that he faced the hands, much to the chagrin of his head that throbbed and pulsed in complaint, he now saw the arms they were attached to, silky smooth looking and sinister too. There was a head, busy looking behind and apparently unaware of Boo's recent revival. Just then, as if having read the man's mind, the half submerged figure began to turn its head back. Boo did not hesitate, leaning over the side while still on his knees, grabbing an arm in each of his hands, then pulled whatever it was with all his might, so that the assailant was vaulted over the side into the canoe, causing Boo to fall onto his back, with Casimir on top.

"Ayyyeeeee, I got you now you fiend, eh!" Though his claims were without substance. His hands grabbed and searched, but he realized that he no longer had hold of those slippery arms. Instead he lay on his back, having somehow engineered himself into a most unfortunate position, where the odds were very much not in his favor. Still waving his arms around in search of ascendancy, he looked up at the figure upon him, their eyes meeting for the first time. It was only then that Boo finally regarded Casimir for what he was, though had never seen a creature of its like.

"What the.....?"

[Casimir]

He seemed to regain consciousness, stirring from the sunken slumber he had fallen into. His eyes moved to the jumping fishermen pointing towards Casimir and he turned, spotting the Ethaefal-Charoda. Casimir turned his head, finding two hands clamped around his hands. He was dragged out of the water, gasping for breath as he was vaulted on top of the man he had almost drowned.

The man screamed something, but Casimir was too shocked to have noticed, taking deep breaths as he felt the cold air around him. This skin wasn't used to it - it was shocking and strange. He squirmed, feeling the hands loose their grip and free him. Casimir lay there distressed for a few moments, before looking down and meeting the man's eyes. Words escaped his mouth and the noise brought Casimir to reality, real reality and he jumped back, stumbling as the canoe toppled. He wasn't used to sitting on the water like this. Casimir was made to be in it.

"You have to tell them to leave the fish alone," Casimir blurted out, toppling back into a seated position, "Please, just tell them."

His voice seemed more strained above water. So desperate, as if his life depended on the fish's. It didn't, but at the same time, he felt like it did. At that moment in time, everything was focused on keeping the fish safe. Hopefully this man would listen.

Although the chances were slim, considering he had first tried to drown him then the man had dragged him aboard the canoe. He was a strange creature that the man might have never seen, a creature that was rubbery and cyan with no pupils and rows of useless sharp teeth. He tried to get up again but the canoe was rocking too much, disorientating the Ethaefal. He flailed, arms out to the side, before toppling into the water.

Submerged back in his element, he felt suddenly more comfortable and let him sink into the depths for a moment, enjoying the feel of cold water against his skin. When he had decided that it was about time to reach the surface, he pushed himself up, bursting out of the waves head first. Once again taking a moment to adjust to everything, Casimir looked back at the face, hands wrapped around the side of the canoe again. He wasn't one to learn from his mistakes.

"Please, tell them to leave the fish alone." His eyes were pleading, large and innocent. His words were earnest but this man had no reason to listen to him.

[Boo Beckett]

What a strange state of affairs. Boo had only ventured out on the borrowed, ramshackle canoe to learn the age old past time of fishing. It was simply part of his intrinsic plan to experience new things and open up new opportunities. He had never banked on ending up in the frigid, gloomy water himself, let alone having unwillingly tried to move the canoe with his head. Lastly, in a cruel twist to the tale, Boo could argue he caught a fish after all, having yanked Casimir into the boat with him. Though that capture had proved short lived, the rubbery cyan charoda having made good his escape.

Boo was sitting up now, a hand planted firmly on either edge of the canoe in an attempt to steady it, after Casimir had pitched over the side. Certain that the vessel was tamed, his head darted from one side to the other, scanning the water's surface in search of a secondary attack. He had managed to ensnare the fiend once, but it had been slippery and moist, leading to his grip faltering. Clearly whatever it was preferred the advantage of its own territory, such was its eagerness to return to the sea. But Boo was alert all the same, deciding that now was not a good time to let his guard down.

But he almost jumped in surprise as Casimir's head popped up from the water's surface. Those chilling full, round eyes regarded him in what, to Boo at least, was an emotionless expression. Yet the foreign look managed to create a sense of dread, fueled primarily by the fear of the unknown; not to mention he was already unsettled by the situation that had unfolded. But rather than yell unsavory curses or do anything else that might conspire to tip the canoe once more, Boo decided to scurry back like a crab until he was at the foot of the boat. This allowed the charoda to grip the side unchallenged, while maintaining a safe distance between the two of them.

It was only then that Boo recalled what had happened. The creature had been saying something to him, right around when the two were wrestling in the boat. He could not remember what words were bestowed upon him, though certainly he had been left with the impression that Casimir had been quite adamant about something. Yes, that was it. He had been asking something important. Pleading maybe.

It was hard to arrive at that conclusion, given Boo's apparent prejudices. But then he wondered, how was it he had come to find himself back in the safety of the boat? Maybe...? Surely not, Boo thought, trying to appease the paranoia in his mind. But it did make sense. Perhaps Casimir had been his savior. None of the other fishermen were close enough to have rescued him. He thought even harder, realizing in fact that it was he who had been the aggressor. Great. Just great. So I'm the shykehead in all of this, he shamefully accepted.

"Please, tell them to leave the fish alone," Casimir pleaded. Boo held the charoda's gaze, or at least held the gaze of those dark orbs where pupils should have been. What it was asking was by no means unreasonable, even if it did not make any sense. Boo assumed it was referring to the bigger fish that the men had been excitedly yelling about. But why did Casimir want it saved? What was his stake in all of this?

"Listen, whatever...I mean, whoever you are. I don't think I can talk these guys down. What would I even say to them eh? In any case, what is this all about? Are you...well, are you it's friend or something? Can't you just, you know, tell it to swim away?" Boo frowned at that, realizing he was guilty of making assumptions. Sure, he had never met a charoda before. And to look at the fellow, his webbed hands that creepily clutched the side of the canoe, the shapely fin that adorned its head like an accessory; well, it was easy to fill in the gaps and assume it lived at the bottom of the ocean, where it talked to all the denizens of the sea, and kidnapped young children who waded in from the beach too far, under the watchful gaze of the pale moonlight.

Yes, Boo was guilty of being very narrow minded, but at least he had consciously made himself aware of it. There was perhaps some redemption to be rescued from that. Shaking his head, as though to break free of the clutches of those assumptions, instead he fixed his gaze back at Casimir, his eyes speaking a truth that echoed in his words. "Tell me how I can help you...friend, and together we'll see it done." As Casimir had previously observed, there was no godly reason for Boo to help. As for the human, his motivation was simple. That natural impulse to help was gearing up. That he had allowed himself to judge Casimir only fueled his need to rectify the situation.

[Casimir]

The man scuttle back, a crab moving to the other side as Casimir gripped the opposite. Did he really fear him? Casimir knew that he had no reason to - the Ethaefal would never hurt anyone. Yet at the same time, he realised that it was his fault - he had capsized his canoe. Casimir didn't know what had come over him. The action was so violent and someone had almost died. Shaking his head, he looked back at the man, waiting for him to respond.

They met each other's gaze, watching and waiting. He seemed to think about it a little, then spoke. He called him a whatever, Casimir frowning a little with dissent at that. He had fallen from the sky, from where the gods were. Surely he was worthy of a whoever? The man quickly changed it, followed by a string of questions. Friends with the fish? Tell him to swim away? Casimir almost chuckled at the thought.

It was clear the man had never met a Charoda before, which was reasonable. They didn't swim in these waters and it wouldn't be odd for the man to have lived there his whole life. Even if he hadn't, Charoda had to be few, right? To be honest, Casimir wasn't sure. However, he did know he couldn't speak to fish.

Casimir opened his mouth to speak, then noticed that Boo was shaking his head, turning back to Casimir. His eyes spoke of truth and Casimir nodded. "I cannot speak to him. I can't warn him - I tried to scare him away but he is too large, too proud." He shook his head, realising what he was saying. "Just tell the others it's too dangerous, that it isn't worth it."

Casimir let go of the boat for a second, submerging himself in the water. He burst back out suddenly, refreshed again, "Can't you do that? Please, please tell them. You need to tell them!"

[Boo Beckett]

Tell them what, he wondered. Sure, he wanted to help the charoda, even if it was partly down to the guilt of having treated the fellow so poorly. But how was he to persuade a group of fishermen to cease the very activity that they had come out here to do in the first place? Further more, was he to explain the truth, that some sea creature had emerged from under the canoe and was looking out for its friend? They would have laughed at him, thinking the knock on his head had robbed him of his wits.

No, this was going to take a different approach. A very different approach.

Frowning at Casimir, for Boo was not at all confident that he could pull off the preposterous plan he had conjured, he nodded to the fish before settling back into a seated position, taking up the single oar in his hands. "Alright. I'll see what I can do," he said. The plan was a fool's errand, likely to land him in even deeper water than his canoe bobbed up and down on now. But he knew he had to try. "Best you stay back for now." Boo regarded the charoda, the look on his face as if having suddenly remembered the answer to some age old question. "I've never met your kind before. Sorry if I was, well, you know. Anyway, where I'm from, a trade of names is always a good place to start. Mine is Boo."

Boo waited for Casimir to reply, before giving a final nod and putting oar to water. Turning the canoe around, he began heading for the cluster of men who were still yelling and jostling for position, the larger fish having apparently not heeded any warnings of its impending fate. He counted them, just to be sure, eight men in all. Six of them were in canoes similar to Boo's, long and narrow, with space front and back for the day's catch, yet little either side. Only two of the men were in anything different, shorter and wider boats that had three planks across for sitting, while in between were crates and supplies. Presumably bait, tackle and the like, with perhaps some lunches packed for when a lull in the session descended upon the men.

Ignoring the two wider boats, Boo's attentions were fixed firmly on the first canoe that happened to be on his current course. It was mere coincidence that the inhabitant should be Jackson Jones, the very person who had agreed to bring him out in the first place. Boo had taken quite a disliking to the man, partly because the fellow had mocked and laughed at him every mistake he made, but mostly because the fisherman was just one of those people who, well, were not very likeable. Indeed, Boo was quite adamant that Jackson Jones could shove his canoe, his rod, and all the fish right up his...

"Careful there lad," came the first shout, as one of the men noted with concern that Boo was heading in fast. The spiritist had managed to build up a good pace, switching the oar from side to side as he built the momentum. His arms were already starting to burn from the effort, but he did not allow himself to falter, pushing onward with solid intent. Jackson Jones had found himself sideways on, the man turning his head to the side and seeing the darting canoe heading straight at him. There was a flurry of activity as he grasped for his own oar, frantically stabbing at the water in an attempt to avoid the incoming missile.

"RAMMING SPEED," Boo commanded to himself, pushing the oar with all his might. There was a scream from somewhere, followed by a loud series of cracks, another shout,then a splash. The other fishermen had stopped looking for the fish, their attentions instead drawn to the impact of the two canoes. Rather, Boo had impaled the other with such force that it had literally ripped in two. Jackson had taken a plunge, one of the two wider boats moving in to retrieve the soaked and now angry man.

"You reckless fool! What have you done?" Jackson waved a fist, staring at Boo with rage in his eyes. His canoe was a wreck, though luckily for him the other fishermen had managed to grab the rod before it sunk into the deep. Boo brought his canoe alongside the boat, wearing his best innocent look. Amazingly, but for a few splinters and scratches, his canoe had only superficial damage. Clearly the man who designed such vessels had planned for such situations as these. Unless being rammed in the side of course.

"My apologies Mr. Jones. Sincerely. I wasn't lying when I said I was new to all this."