Tides of Twilight - Chapter 17: Branching Out

And so, with the situation concerning Stiff and Okina, a new mission emerges... as well as a new enemy.

The airship you were riding on had gone into a brief getaway from the enemy's aircraft. Halfway into the chase, the enemy had suddenly stopped and turned around for unknown reasons. You now stand on-deck, scanning the sky from the railings with the others. 

Annie: Um, can somebody tell me what just happened? Those guys suddenly turned tail and flew away. 

Flint: Hm. Ya think they gave up? Sekai's thrusters and engines are top-dog, so maybe they figured they couldn't keep up with us, hehe! 

Taly: Perhaps. 

You: No idea... Hey, do you guys know where Stiff and Okina went? I didn't see them inside. And they're not out here, either. 

Annie: What??

Flint: No kidding!? You don't think they went on-board Exodus' airship, do you? 

Lion: It's possible. Stiff has developed a habit of jumping on top of flying things over the last three years.

You recall the scene of a previous dream in your head where you watched Stiff leap on-board the same airship that had just chased your team's vehicle. The one where dragons were fighting alongside him and Lion against what you now assume was Exodus. 

Annie: Fantastic. But why would he take Okina with him? I think that would have been too dangerous of a leap, even for her. You don't expect us to believe he carried her as he jumped ship? 

Lion: Which brings me to my next conclusion--

Neko suddenly interrupts, exclaiming with a loud "Nenko" while pointing a finger downwards, off the side of the airship. He claps his hands once in the same way that Okina had previously explained to him what would happen, were he to fall off. 

Neko: Nenko, Nenko, Nenko! 

You: Neko...? Wait, don't tell me--

Annie: Is he saying that he saw them fall down below and... splat?? 

Flint: No way! 

Lion: Yeah, was going to say that it was another possibility. I recall a time or two when Stiff was flung off an airship... 

Annie rushes to Neko and grabs at his shirt tightly, shaking the poor cat boy around. 

Annie: You better not be bluffing, Neko! You are SURE that those two went overboard!? 

Neko: NeEeEe~nKoOo! 

You: Oh, no... That's not good! 

Taly: Could it be that the enemy saw them fall and decided to retrieve their bodies? Stiff is a catalyst, so I'd imagine his body is valuable to them-- dead or alive. 

Flint: Don't say stuff like that, Taly!   Maybe they're still alive, you know!?

Taly: Er.   But at such an altitude... 

Flint: Don't... Just don't. 

You begin to worry, but as you look  over at Lion and see how calmly she appears to be looking over the railing, you become curious. 

You: You're not worried, Lion...?

Lion: Meh. I doubt that they're dead. Taly said it herself; Stiff is a catalyst. He would just barely survive a fall like that. And knowing him, he went out of his way to ensure Okina made it as well. Believe me, that guy has things under his sleeve you have yet to see. 

You: Really? 

Taly: This is true...

Annie: So they're not dead...? 

Flint: Haha! In your FACE Taly!  Try again with another one of yer negative sass, I dare ya!

Taly: ...Okay? That still means that Exodus could have gone back to look for them. I'd imagine a fall like that would be pretty bad. If they're hurt, the enemy will be a concern. 

Flint: Crap. 

Lion: Yep. So it looks like we've got a new branch to this mission. We need to keep a low profile and head back. After we get to the forest they landed in, we'll comm in to headquarters and have them bring us reinforcements. Who knows how long we'll be looking for em'. 

Annie: Pfft. Do we even need reinforcements? 

Lion: In the case that we face the enemy, we will. Exodus doesn't mess around. Those guys are the real deal. 

Vero walks up on deck and raises a brow at everyone. 

Vero: What the hell are you all doing up here? Break it up, gossip girls. 

Flint: Uh, some of us are, like, dudes? 

Vero: I don't see it. 

Flint:   Jerk. 

Annie: We're heading back, Vero. 

Vero: What the hell for? 

Annie: Stiff and Okina fell overboard during the attack. We're assuming they fell down to the forests near the edge of the continent. 

Vero: Seriously? Those clumsy idiots.

Flint: Vero, you inconsiderate s**t... Aren't you even at least a little worried about them?

Vero:  What did you call me...?

Flint: Eee!  Sorry! I was thinking it in my head and wasn't actually planning to say it... It just came out! 

Vero: Let your feeble mind slip one more time and you'll be the next one overboard. 

Flint: O-Okay! I'm gonna, uh, go tell the-- I'm gonna go tell the pilots to head back now. 

Vero: Yeah, you do that. 

Flint: I am! 

Flint hurries off into the cabin to update the pilots on the new side-mission. 

Vero: I knew this wouldn't go well with Stiff around again. That little b*****d always finds a way to ruin my missions record. 

Annie: Haven't you been complaining about how your missions were almost too quick and easy? Stop acting like you hate it. Honestly, you're like one of those closet homophobic gay guys when it comes to admitting things.

Vero: I'm not gay!

Taly: Um, she didn't say you were...

Vero: Yeah? Well, I've had just about-- just about enough of your sass, Taly! 

Taly: ...

You: That's the second time you've been called 'sassy' in the last ten minutes... 

Taly: I know... What the hell. 

You: Huh? Did you just curse? That's a first. 

Taly: Er, I didn't mean to. 

You: I think everyone's starting to rub off on you. 

Vero: What are you two mumbling about? Get down there and gear up. And Taly, we're still not done with the machinist's robot. I want to make sure the damn thing is inoperable before we go looking for dumb and dumber.

You: Oh, right. Coming. 

Taly: Understood. 

Meanwhile, Stiff awakens on a soft patch of grass in the clearing that he had carried Okina to, prior to falling asleep. He yawns and looks around, wondering just where she had gone off to. 

Stiff: Okina? Huh, where'd she go...? 

It doesn't take him long to follow her trail, however. He could make out some slightly matted grass leading straight across the clearing, and he caught the faint scent of her perfume every now and then. One thing he had trained diligently on during his stay at the dragon's Sky World, were his senses. 

After a few sets of trees, he finds Okina knee-deep near the edge of a river. She held her hands close to the surface and focused her eyes inside the running water, fully-intent on catching the fish swimming in it. Watching her for a minute, he couldn't help but chuckle to himself at her repeatedly failed attempts to catch one, whining after every miss. She was so cute. 

Stiff: Need some help? 

She jumps as she hears his voice and watches him make his way over in surprise. 

Okina: S-Stiffy! Awww, man... I was planning to catch some fish for us to eat before you woke up. Now it won't be a surprise anymore! 

Stiff: Really? You didn't have to do that, silly. 

Okina: I wanted to! But I can't catch them... they're way too fast and slippery. 

Stiff: Heh! Lemme show you a trick me and Lion learned at the Sky World. We'll be having a fish buffet in no time. 

Okina: Huh? A trick? 

She watched him as he walked over to the nearby plants and began to pick some large leaves. Very quickly and with ease, he began to "knit" the leaves together and fashion a wide sort of net out of them. 

Stiff: There we go! Now we have ourselves a sturdy fish-catching net! 

Okina: Ohhh! Now I see. They catch fish with nets like that in Makalin Village! Hehe. 

Stiff: Yeah? That's awesome. But let me show you a funner and more efficient alternative to catching fish. Here, take this. 

Stiff hands Okina the net and has her follow him into the water, going in waist-deep. 

Stiff: Alright, now I'm gonna have to have ya stand about twenty feet away from me in the water, okay? 

Okina: Okie! 

Stiff: When you do, prepare that net.

Okina: Gotcha.

She does so after getting into position, becoming anxious as to what he was planning. He unsheathes one of his swords and begins to course some energy through it just as he had done so while fighting with Draven. Although, he was using a significantly less amount of energy this time. With that, he steadies the sword and waits for the perfect moment... Bingo! He suddenly hurls his blade like a harpoon into the water. 

What happens next is a small scale underwater eruption that promptly causes an array of wriggling fish to shoot up into the air towards Okina. 

Stiff: Hooo! Struck a mother load! Start catching, netgirl.  

Okina: Wuah! There's so many! Okay, here we gooooo! 

Okina starts swinging the net around quickly, making a pretty decent catch. She couldn't help but giggle during the process. This is fun!

Stiff: Wow, you're pretty good! You caught way more than Lion ever did in one go. Something about the fish torpedoing towards her in midair with their "blub blub" faces scared the crap out of her.

Okina: Hee! Thanks. How could she be scared of something so yummy? 

Stiff: Beats me. What do you say we get a fire started so we can get these yummies cooking? 

Okina: Oh... A fire? Uh, um... Hnnnm... 

Stiff: What's up? 

Okina: I kind of... never learned how to properly start one with my bare hands. I use fire crystals, but I didn't bring any! 

Stiff: Well, don't worry about that, because I got us covered. 

Okina: Oh, do you have a fun way of starting fire, too?

She nudges him playfully and giggles.

Stiff: Well, maybe not fun... but definitely cool. Nothing special, just some more sword tricks. Come on. 

After gathering some dry wood for a campfire and setting it up to cook the fish (don't worry, they suffocated to death on air by now), the two sat down side-by-side to each other and spoke of interesting and/or funny events that transpired during their three years apart. 

Stiff: Wait, so how many times did that Nael guy ask you out? 

Okina: Um... about six times?  I don't know, I kind of forgot. 

Stiff: Six? Wow. Well you know, seventh time is the lucky charm. 

He grins jokingly at her. 

Okina: Yuh... You're not mad? 

Stiff: Well, I can't blame him! A little more persistent than the other guys, but you didn't say yes... Although, you know I wouldn't have blamed you either if you had. 

Okina: Really...? Why not? 

Stiff: Three years is a pretty long time. It was kind of unfair of me to leave you for so long and expect you to not like, have... like-- 

Okina: -Needs? 

Stiff: Er, well not "needs"-- more like-- actually, nevermind. Guh, what am I saying? 

Okina: Nuh, what did you mean...? Did you have needs in the Sky World? 

Stiff: No... No I didn't... Not me I didn't. 

Okina: Oh, okie... Did someone else have them? 

Stiff: Uh... 

Okina: Lion... 

Stiff: Hey, so listen, Lion's a great friend and all, and I'm sure you're not totally going to hate her guts for being persistent like Nael was with you--

Okina: How persistent was she, Stiff? 

Stiff: About... the same as Nael. Just a liiiittle bit more aggressive. I mean, you know how she is, right? She's a-- you know, she's a pretty straight-forward girl and all. OH, don't worry, it's not like anything happened. I didn't let anything happen, rather. 

Okina: But... you didn't specifically establish that you didn't want anything to happen between you and her? 

Stiff: I... Well, yeah-- not specifically, but I did avoid her. I didn't want things to get weird between us. She was my only human companion up there. You've met Shoryu, right? Dragons aren't the most sympathetic beings.

Okina: You avoided her for three whole years, Stiffy? Um, yikes. 

Stiff: It was more like a year and a half-- I mean, she didn't start... until about a year and a half in. 

Okina: Okay. 

Stiff: Yeeeah. Please don't be mad.That... did not go... as well as I thought it would! 

Okina: No, no... It's fine! I'm not mad. Did he think I had needs like Lion did...? Lion... Lion, Lion, Lion. Baaah. 

The two sit there for a few seconds in silence before Okina sits up and clears her throat. 

Okina: Hey, is this okay...? 

Stiff: Hm? What's up?

Okina: You know, camping out in some forest and eating fish after our team was attacked by Exodus? 

Stiff: Ah, well it kiiiinda can't be helped right now. We're pretty stranded out here, a few hours flight away from headquarters, actually. Besides, I'm sure everyone's fine. Sekai's birds are really fast. They'll come around looking for us and when they do, we'll figure out some sort of signal. Until then, I think it's a good idea to lay low. 

Okina: Okie. 

Stiff looks over at the nicely-cooked fish kabobbed over the cackling fire.

Stiff: Oh, food's ready. 

Okina: Oh! Good. 

Exodus lands their airship just outside the edge of the forest. The doors open and provide a ramp for many fully-suited men in grey and black tactical armor, wielding a wide arsenal of weaponry. Leading the decently sized unit is a tall man who appears to be well into his twenties, bearing lengthy and slicked back silver hair. He had three thick scars tearing across his whole face and a narrow set of dark, vicious eyes. On his broad build and under his long black and gray coat, he was equipped with armor similar to that of his men, though with less bulk. Contrast to his pale complexion, the flesh on his hands was dark gray in color. 

Exodus Sgt.: What are your orders, General Grau? 

General Grau smirks as he wriggles his fingers and crackles his joints rather loudly.

Grau: The dragon kid, Steffan. The little welp fell from its perch and has no wings to fly back home. Now, we're an ethical bunch, wouldn't you say Sergeant? 

Exodus Sgt.: General? 

Grau: Let's go tend to our little injured and abandoned friend. Capture it and bring it home. Do so with anyone else you may find as well, involved or not. 

Exodus Sgt.: At once, General Grau! You heard your orders, men. Fan out and locate the objective! 

Exodus Unit: Sir! 

Exodus is finally revealed! They now move in to collect Stiff and Okina. Will you and the others make it in time? 

To be continued...

Reviews

[Arimus]

Well, it was quite a surprise logging in this afternoon to see an update from you!

I had all but given up on my hopes that you would continue this story, as it was really one of the only ones on here that I checked on a daily basis.

Was gone for a good two months myself, so it's a good sight to come back to!

I hope all is well with you, obviously real life comes before anything.

Here's hoping we all see this story to the end this time :) I quite missed your interesting writing styles and characters.

This chapter was nice. I can see you've put a lot of emphasis on the humor this time around, and I didn't mind the combat narratives so much before but I can see why they would be odd to casual readers.

I'm anxiously waiting to see what kind of interaction you have in store for us, and what that pearl we had found in the last chapter was for!

[Jobyn]

Aw man, I'm so glad that you're still checking in on my story Arimus! Your reviews always helped me so much, and I'm always honored by how many details you pay attention to! I'd be truly grateful if you stood by it to the end :)

[Taly]

Woah, I wasn't expecting an update so fast considering the time before the last one.. XD
So Exodus is entering the scene. That means even more characters to joggle with for you! I have high hopes for them, after the treat you gave us with the Legion ones. I still hold a grudge for not knowing what I was voting for back then! XD (well OK not really)
Man, I'm so glad you're updating again! Can't wait to see what you have in store for us!

[Jobyn]

Aw Taly, I actually meant to release the next chapter two days ago, but I got caught up with something that I really needed to get done over the weekend. All better now though! Just released the next chapter, and I can't wait to see what you guys think of it :))

[okina]

woah for a moment i thought stiff and okina were gonna get into a heated love argument! I guess they're too shy still haha. They need to hurry up and get away before the Exodus shows up!

[Jobyn]

PSH! You would like that, huh c: so you could run off with Nael ya lil punk!