Crash Landing of HMS Chlytia Chan Cacha (Drac/Rhi/Tal)

[Anonymous]

A gentleman was never lost. And Lord Coventry Wolverhampton III was very much a gentleman. So therefore, Lord Coventry Wolverhampton III could not be lost. And Lord Coventry Wolverhampton III was a master of logic and was never wrong. So they weren't lost.

"We aren't lost." Coventry made sure to reassure his cabin boy and anyone else in hearing distance. Normally his navigator was very good at his job, but some rather unseasonal winds had come out of nowhere and blown the ship very, very off course and into uncharted sky. The ship had been rather battered as well and Coventry would have taken her down to take stock of the damage if it weren't for one small problem.

They were out over the ocean and had been so for a few days now. No one knew where home was and miles of endless sea stretched out in front of them. Until a few hours ago, there had been no land in sight. Then the look out had caught sight of land.

Which oddly enough was not the great and powerful island of Yn Wledig. It was some.....foreign landmass. Which was rather exciting. Land to claim for Her Majesty Queen Tulip. The lionoid preened slightly at the idea, his chest puffing lightly as he imagined the glory he would get back home.

"See. We aren't lost Devon." The Captain waved his hand vaguely at the direction of the huge class window that covered the front of the cockpit, "We are above...this....forest place." Smiling brightly to himself for having solved that crisis, Coventry turned to Carlisle, "Have you figured out where we ended up ye-"

A sudden high pitched cry that was suddenly cut off interrupted the Captain's question and as Coventry opened his mouth to question what that had been, the already damaged ship gave a lurch, accompanied by a loud banging sound. Dark smoke billowed out of one of the previously working propellers, flames licking along the metal and wood.

The ship gave another massive shudder, no longer able to keep in the air as another propeller blew, unable to handle the added stress. Coventry snarled in frustration, barking orders at the crew for an emergency landing. This was not going to be a pretty one at all.

[Rhindeer]

"Of course we're not lost, Captain," Devon answered wearily for what was not the first, and probably would not be the last, time that day. Below them stretched a thick expanse of forest--unfamiliar, uncharted, wild forest, and Devon shuddered to think of what must lurk within it. He crossed his arms over his chest and flashed Coventry a fake smile, side-stepping a little closer to the man. Then because crossed arms looked defensive and insecure he uncrossed them, straightened out his collar in a show of calm dignity instead, just to give his hands something to do (though it was only making him look fidgety instead), and blew some hair out of his pale yellow-green eyes. A snow-leopard Milyn, his chin-length hair was silvery white with black rosette patterns marking it.

He cleared his throat and flicked his tail. "I never for one moment thought that we were lost."

We are so lost.

On the bright side, they'd found land, which meant they wouldn't starve to death or run out of water floating aimlessly over the ocean, gradually running low on rations until their ship gave out and they crashed into the ocean to be consumed by sharks. That didn't stop Devon from eying the new place warily, a little excited because if this was indeed a new area then they would no doubt be richly rewarded by Her Majesty, but nervous because...what of the natives? If there were natives. Who knew what they looked like, or acted like? Heads where their bellies should be, eyes where their ears should be...cannibals...he'd heard all sorts of tales about that.

Swishing his long, thick-furred tail tail anxiously, he glanced up at Coventry and raised his eyebrows silently. Not lost, just above this forest place. No, really. I couldn't tell just from--

That was when the ship shuddered and gave a sudden lurch, and Devon yelped in surprise as he lost his footing and was pitched forward. He flailed, tail lashing wildly for balance, and grabbed onto Coventry's arm to keep from falling, claws extending reflexively and digging into the man's sleeve. "Ah! Sorry, sir!" he said, realizing he was probably tearing the fabric and simultaneously realizing that was probably a stupid thing to worry about at the moment, but before he could let go the ship shuddered again and something popped and exploded.

He smelled fire, heard it crackling, saw the black smoke billowing up.

"...Oh my god."

He wasn't so keen on letting go of Coventry anymore. In fact, he dug his claws in more, silver, black-spotted tail fluffing up and ears pinning back in fear. The ship was on fire. THE SHIP WAS ON FIRE!

"The ship's on fire!" he hissed, heart leaping into his throat in panic. Worse, the propellers were out, which meant the ship was going to crash, but at that moment the fire was the only thing his mind could focus on.

They were on fire. They were going to crash.

We're so gonna die.

[Anonymous]

Swishing his tail, Carlisle glared down at the map. The ocean was much bigger than they'd first assumed, what should have taken only a day was taking several and he knew that if they had to resort to eating the fat ones Carlisle would be to blame because he was the navigator and he should know where everything is! He swallowed and looked up through the door, the voice of the captain and the cabin boy drifting through it, though too muddled from the sounds of the working ship for him to hear anything other than murmurs.

Wearing his stylish had with the pretty feather made it hard for him to hear, it forced his large ears down and muffled everything. Pursing his lips he flipped through a few more maps, getting ink and pen ready to scribble the slowly forming forest. It wasn't their home. It was some place new. That meant he got to document it, that wold make him famous!

Carlisle did a quick thrust in the air with his first and quickly brought it back down, smacking his elbow on the table and whimpered as the captain asked him if they had figuered out where they were. Carlisle's eyes difted into the oh-so-often look of " You're stupid.", which was a bored look on Carlisles face with thin lips.

The 'You're stupid' look drifted into a 'holyshitwe'regoingtodie' which consisted of large eyes and him scrambling to grab and save his maps from the evil ink, fire and crash. Carlisle had curled himself up into a ball, clutching to a post, hat and papers in a death grip against his chest while the other arm and both legs were wrapped around the post. "I don't want to die!! I'm too young and talented to die! CAPTAIN, YOU FAILURE, SAVE US." Carlisles voice managed to bark over the noise of breaking ship.

He just didn't know if the captain was listening. Some part of his mind hoped that Captain Coventry hadn't heard him, because he'd get a lecture later about how great and infallible he was.

As long as Carlisles hat and maps were safe, he could survive. Well, as long as Carlisle didn't die and his hat and maps were safe, then he could actually survive.

[Tally]

Ocean.

Ocean, ocean, ocean.

Brighton was sick of looking at it.  They might as well not even have bothered with a navigator for the lot of good Carlisle was.  Did the definition of navigator include "some clueless bloke who gets ships lost in mile upon identical mile of water"?  Looked that way.  He should make a point of telling Carlisle that later.  Just in case he wasn't aware this was all his fault.

When he got sick of staring at the sea and had tired of counting how many times the captain would proclaim, with astonishing conviction, how not lost they were, he retired to his cabin and just slept.  Fell back onto his bunk, let his tail hang over the side, and napped.  Weren't much else to do, eh?  And boy could he nap.  He was a cat, a cougar Milyn,  and at this time of day the sun shone through his little round window at just the right angle to lay a stripe of sunny heat right across his belly.  Mmm, it felt good.  He stretched his arms and legs out, arching his back, and the action hitched his shirt up so the sunbeam could hit his bare skin.  Ahh...
 
The next instant he found himself on the floor and for a few disoriented moments he thought he'd fallen off.  But no the ship had moved!  Lurched!  And was making noises that sent his tail into agitated lashing and had his ears flattened back against his head. What in the name of the Queen was going on out there?

Springing to his feet, he ran out of his cabin and up the stairs, taking them three at a time.  He stopped in the doorway to goggle.  Land!  Yn Wledig?  No, it couldn't be.  Didn't look anything like it.  But land!  Wait...when had they encountered this place?  And no one had bothered to wake him up?  Lousy cretins.

The tossing of the ship threw him from side to side as he made his way up to the cockpit, slamming him first into the railing and then against the wall.  "Brace!" he shouted at the crew.  What cruel luck it would be to find land only to lose half the crew because they couldn't keep their heads in a crisis.  "All hands brace!"

The cockpit looked like it had been turned upside down and righted again.  Carlisle, Devon and the captain had managed not to get knocked out or skewered on something though.  "Captain!  Any chance of her staying in the air?"

[Anonymous]

Devon clinging to him threw the Captain off balance enough that he slammed his hip into one of the hand rails that went around the bridge. The lion Milyn gave a short snarl, clutching the boy tighter to him. He winced when he felt the claws break his skin, "Devon! That is expensive! Really. A time of crises is no place to lose ones head."

Still holding the boy, Coventry pinned his ears back, trying to figure out what to do. The ship was going down fast. Being a lion Milyn had some advantages. Like a loud voice when he needed it, "Carlisle! Shut up right now! Brighton! See to the fire! Get that put out! Ditch the damned propellers if you must!" He would rather lose those then the whole damn ship.

He didn't have time to make sure Brighton would take care of that. He just had to trust that he would. Prying Devon free of his chest, Coventry set the frightened boy aside, going over the the helm, "Move." For all that he strutted around and was generally unhelpful, Coventry was the Captain and he would save his crew. And hopefully the ship.

There wasn't a handy clearing to gently drop the ship onto. On the plus side, it was a flying ship made of steel and wood. It was going to make it's own clearing. He turned and grabbed the speaker, announcing to the ship, "Crew. This is your Captain speaking. We shall be experiencing some rough sailing for a moment. Please hold tight, try and put out the fire and any prayers of not dying will be greatly appreciated."

To go along with his amazing and inspiring speech, the ship went low enough to hit the tree line, jarring as it slammed into the massive trees, shattering them with it's raw mass. Swearing, Coventry struggled to pull up, trying to slow their speed before they hit the ground. Which, despite the damage being done to the hull, the trees were helping with, "Now now Devon. Don't worry. We aren't in any danger. I'm a gentleman. Gentleman are never in danger."

[Rhindeer]

"Don't insult the captain!" Devon yelled at Carlisle over the chaos, then clung tighter to Coventry when Brighton warned them all to brace. Sure he'd heard Coventry's admonishment, but he couldn't help it. It was hard to think about a coat's worth when you were about to die. "S-sorry about your coat! I'll fix it! Later!"

He would have loved to know how both he and Coventry were managing to stay so calm right now--because he would have loved to have a slice of whatever it was that let Coventry worry about mundane details in the face of disaster.

Just had to stay calm. Right...

Then Coventry set him aside and the ship lurched again, and Devon forgot all about bravery. It pitched him against a wall with a thus and then down to the floor--where he stayed. He dug his claws into the wood for leverage and held on, his ears pinned back, the fur bristling up and down his tail, and his shoulder throbbing where he'd hit the wall. Oh God, oh God, this wasn't what he signed up for! He was the cabin boy! He ran errands! He made Coventry's tea! He didn't sign up to get lost and crash and die!

The hull smashed into the treeline and sent a shock clear through his body, rattling his teeth in his head, and Devon yelped and flattened himself to the floor, claws scoring tracks in the wood as he scrabbled for a hold. They weren't going to make it. The ship was going to smash apart, and they with it. Because there was nothing else he could do--he was not standing, he was afraid that if he did he'd be tossed over the side--he squeezed his eyes shut and took the last line of Coventry's advice to heart: he started to pray.

His prayers were interrupted only by Coventry, and he looked hopefully up at the other milyn.

So confident. So brave.

So certain they weren't lost when they very clearly were lost.

So sure that they weren't in any danger when they were on fire and crashing into trees and about to collide with solid earth and die!

At least he wasn't screaming his head off like a certain someone else was. He was too scared to raise a fuss. Instead he barked a nervous laugh and showed sharp teeth in what might have been a grin if it wasn't so strained. "Y-yes captain. Of course. Gentleman. I'm not worried! We're all gentlemen here!" The ship jarred again and Devon shuddered. "...R-right?"

It was far more pleasant to believe him.

[Anonymous]

Carlisle had his tail curled around his waist and up between him and whatever it was he was clinging too. He knew it wasn't moving very far and that was what was important. Of course he then heard the Captains voice and both of his eyes opened to glare leveling at the other Milyn. Hmph. Tell him to shut up. Tell him to...

Carlisle clung tighter and ducked his head, turning it to the side. This was all Conventry's fault, him and his stupid.. Nothing bad can happen to gentlemen thing. Stupid.. He closed his eyes tightly and clung to the side tighter. He wasn't made for this! He wasn't a cat! He didn't land on his feet! "Make me!" His voice yelled to Devon and the Captain, this wasn't his fault!! If the captain could steer his damn ship in the direction Carlisle had been giving him instead of wherever they would be back home.

It dawned on Carlisle after a moment that if they crashed and survived this, they would be stranded. Even though his world ( or rather, the ship he'd spent the past while in ) was crashing down around him, the thought of crashing and surviving in this strange place seemed worse than death, so Carlisle tucked his head farther down between his arms and prayed that he'd get flung out onto a tree or something. " I don't want to be stranded forever!"

( |: Faaaaaaaaaaaail post is fail. )

[Tally]

Another impact threw Bright to the side and flat into one of the walls of the cockpit, but over the sound of his own body impacting on wood he did manage to catch the tail end of the Captain's declaration.

"Hey!"  The ship kept pitching about in sudden, jerking motions, and he braced one hand against the same wall he'd just peeled himself off of.  "What about me?  I'm no gentleman! Gah!"  Another jolt near threw him off his feet.

"So don't say things like that!  Your ridiculous proclamations have a way of coming true!"

With the Captain at the helm, Bright took off to see to the fire.  He went for the window instead of the door, hopping out and pulling himself up and crossing back to the stern by leaping over railings and jumping from deck to deck, momentum creating balance and making it easier to keep his feet with the tossing of the ship beneath him.

Great billowing clouds of smoke belched up from one of the propellers, leaving a dark sky trail in their wake.  The noise of it all was like to deafen him.  It sounded like the whole ship were ripping apart!  They were well over land now, clear of the ocean and falling into a sea of trees instead.  How many impacts before the hull gave way and those branches and trunks started stabbing through to the interior of the ship?

But that was the Captain's worry right now.  Bright had a fire in front of him, and a propeller in danger of catching the whole ship ablaze.

"You there!  Get those lines cut!  One of you find a pry bar and get that propeller off our stern!"

A few of the crew not given in to panic were rushing water to the deck from below and attempting to control the spread of the flames.  Bright threw his lot in with them and helped a group grab a tarp to smother wandering licks of fire.  Sparks flew everywhere and lighted on dry wood and they scrambled to keep the rest of the ship from catching as it sank into the trees, the deck shaking beneath them like the ground during an earthquake.

[Anonymous]

Things were bad. Which was quite amazing. Things should have been god-awful-horrible-beyond-all-belief, but were only bad. The fire was still going, but the water crews were keeping it from spreading too far. And despite crashing through the trees at a very high speed, the ship was holding together rather well.

Coventry gripped the helm tighter, teeth clenched as he struggled to keep the ship on some sort of path. It wasn't easy, but Coventry looked like he was enjoying himself. A wide smile split his face, almost feral looking, the animal inside him peeking out in the heat of the moment. His tail lashed behind him, golden eyes locked on the window as he guided the ship.

"Don't worry Bright. You are....an honorary gentleman! So you have no need to worry." And Coventry had complete faith in his first mate, "Now Devon, Carlisle, do calm down. There is no need for such dramatics. Have a little faith."

It was at that moment the ship slammed into the ground, jarring the entire ship. Coventry gripped the wheel tighter, struggling to keep the ship in some kind of control, muscles straining.

The massive airship tore along the ground, wood and metal screaming in protest, trees snapping and shredding in its path. Dirt flew up and around it, exploding around the ship. Another huge jolt ran through the ship and Coventry snarled loudly, struggling to stay upright, controlling the ship was a lost cause.

Bouncing a few more times, the ship eventually slid to a halt, dropping into a stop with a loud bang. The impact threw Coventry and his head cracked against the steering wheel, leaving a bleeding, rapidly swelling lump.

Quickly shaking his head to clear it, the Captain scanned the room, "Is everyone alright? Injuries? Status report! You!" Coventry pointed at one of the crewmen who didn't appear to have suffered more then light shock from having been tossed around, "Find Brighton! Now!"

His gold eyes swept the room again, looking for a spot of white, "Devon. Really. Do get your claws out of my floor. That is not cheap." He stood up, wiping the blood off his face, smearing it through his golden hair. Everything was mess, "Anyone not injured, help the others off the ship. Let's get clear of her until we know the fires are out."

[Rhindeer]

We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die...

That was all Devon could think. Well, that and that Coventry and Brighton were bloody well insane. That wasn't anything new, but still--how could they banter like that when they were lost out in the middle of nowhere and about to get smashed to splinters? If Devon weren't so keen on dying with a little dignity he would have probably been screaming his head off right about now, but instead he kept down and held on tight as the ship pitched and bucked and shuddered, and he tried to channel some of his fear into annoyance. He wasn't the only one terrified out of his mind here and that made him feel a little better.

"If we survive this, I will!" he yelled at Carlisle over the roar of the ship, but it was an empty threat he didn't ever plan on carrying out.

Then the ship struck land.

The shock of the impact shook him clear down to his bones and knocked the wind from his lungs, and it must have also jolted him loose because soon everything was a confusing blur of deafening noise and nauseating motion as the ship tossed him. All he could do was curl up as best as he could, clench his eyes shut, and wait for it to be over.

It felt like it would never end.

Even after everything went still and quiet, Devon didn't move for a long time. Not until he heard Coventry's voice did he crack his eyes open and uncurl his arms from around his head. Somehow he'd wound up on the other side of the room with his back to a wall, but considering the circumstances he felt...relatively okay. Alive and breathing. No excruciating pain, just some general soreness from some shallow scrapes and bruises--which would come with getting thrown around. Slowly, shakily, he pushed himself up into a sitting position and leaned back on his hands, taking deep breaths and curling his claws into the wood. It still felt like they were moving.

He was alive. And all his limbs were where they were supposed to be, too.

Coventry's voice made him jump and look over at him, and before he could really register any horror at seeing blood smeared all over the man's head, he was laying into him...

About the floor.

The bloody FLOOR.

Devon's mouth dropped open and he just stared at the man. Even after all those years traveling with him, he never ceased to surprise, amaze, and horrify him all at once.

It was a few seconds before he found his voice. "The ship...just crashed into the ground, sir. In flames. And you...are worried about the floor?!" He sounded near hysterics. "It's destroyed! There is hardly a floor to worry about! We almost died!"

Still he pushed himself to his feet, knees shaking, and heaved a deep breath. Regardless of what he thought, crazy or no crazy, he would stay to assist Coventry.

[Anonymous]

If there was ever a time to wonder about being a ragdoll, this was probably the best time to test it out.  Carlisle kept his ears flat against his head and had since pulled off his hat and shoved it down his coat to keep it safe, the feather poked out and tickled his chin but that was the least of his worries right now. Most annoying to his face, but the least worrisome. Carlisle wasn't too banged up, shocked, shaking, he'd smooshed his hat.

Carlisle stood up and looked around, pushing his grayish hair off his face and pulling his hat up out of his shirt. "Bright? Didn't he go up there? Probably in a tree. And I'm fine, thanks for askin' cap'n." A scoff he wandered over towards a crewmate, cradling his arm and bleeding from a cut on his head. "C'mon, fresh air is good. Fire air isn't. Hup ho!" Carlisle said the last two words when he'd managed to hoist the person up, limping as he was.

It took some navigating to get out without jumping, careful movements and careful pulling and pushing of select things so the rest of the ship didn't crash down on them.

One look outside made him gasp and he gently placed the wounded man on his bottom to lay in the grass a ways away from the ship. "Wow." It was... big... and forest-ie. Carlisle looked around and stood up, adjusting his hair and flicking the feather before he cupped his hands around his mouth in an attempt to amplify his voice. "Brighton!" He stood up and wandered towards the forest, still yelling for his ship mate.

Well. This was bad.

He'd smack anyone who blamed this on him.

[Tally]

The ship had finally crashed, grinded, and thundered its way to a halt, but Brighton wasn't going anywhere.  Perhaps ever again.

He pushed against the floor with his hands, but with his body wracked with pain he couldn't raise himself up enough to get free. In the tumbling chaos of the descent, with smoke choking him and tree trunks punching through the stern, he'd fallen onto a piece of jagged, broken floorboard.  Clear through the side of his torso it was, and too lodged at the other end for him to break it free.  It had him pinned, with a hungry fire devouring the hull not ten feet from his face.  He was sweating from the heat of it.

The stern was a mess, the floor no longer flat but broken into peaks and valleys of splintered wooden boards. Somewhere among the debris and smoke, crewmen scrambled and shouted, out of Bright's sight and he out of theirs.

Over the din came the sound of his name. Gasping, he worked up enough breath to answer.  "C...Carlisle you twit!! Get over here!!"

If he didn't live through this he hoped he got to see Coventry one last time, so he could show him what a bloody fat lot of good being an honorary gentleman had done him!

[Anonymous]

"Do relax Devon. And we did not almost die, I was in complete control the entire time." Coventry made a waving motion with his hand, dismissing Devon's obviously unfounded hysterics, "With that kind of attitude, you aren't going to get anywhere in life."

Reaching into his pocket, Coventry pulled out a clean white handkerchief, pressing it to the bleeding wound on his head. What was taking Bright so long? Instinct told Coventry something was wrong, some light tickling at the back of his mind. Flicking his ear, Coventry's started striding in the direction his First Mate had gone, long legs eating up the distance, "Devon, get everyone off this ship. If they are not cleared in 2 minutes, I shall make you wear the dress."

He always listened to his gut and right now his gut was leading him deeper into the ship. The fire was eating at the wooden parts of his beautiful ship. He would just have to take care of that. There was no way he was losing his beloved ship. But right now, Bright was more important. Something was wrong.

Then he found his friend. With a large chunk of wood push clean through him. Coventry paused, hands on his hips, tisking, "Really Brighton. I ask you to do one simple task and you do this? You would be lost without me."

Despite the severity of the injury, Coventry didn't seem all that bothered by it. He couldn't fathom his life without Brighton in it, so Brighton wouldn't die. For the Captain, it was just that simple.

Smiling, Coventry moved closer, "Now, let's get you up before you catch yourself on fire. This will hurt, so I suggest you cling tightly to me. I wont hold it against you should you hide your face in my neck and gush how wonderful and dashing I am for rescuing you."

Crouching next to his friend, Coventry looked the floorboard over. There was no way he could snap that off, so he was just going to have to life Brighton off. There was a risk of bleeding too much, but the doctor would be able to fix that. Coventry was sure of it. Slipping his arms around Bright, cradling him close, the fire burning around them didn't leave him much time.

With as smooth a motion as he was able to make it, Coventry lifted Bright off the jagged board, "Apply pressure to it. The doctor will have you fixed in no time at all!"

[Rhindeer]

"WHAT? Two minutes, sir?" Devon gasped, claws digging deeper into the wood floor. Was he crazy? Well, right, this was Coventry so that made answering that a little complicated, but really? It didn't matter, though. It was either that or wear the dress so Devon would make damned well certain that everyone was off that bloody ship in less than two minutes just top be safe!

"You have got to be kidding me," he snarled under his breath before he shoved himself to his feet, legs wobbly, and took off through the ship at a run, hopping over and dodging nimbly around fallen debris. Save for a few bumps and bruises and a shaken nerve, he was fine, so it was easy to maneuver about--somewhat. As he went deeper into the ship, the smoke started pouring out and stinging his eyes and lungs and he dared not go any further.

"Everyone off! Everyone off the ship now before the ship burns you or so help me I'll burn you myself!" he shouted at the top of his lungs as he went, voice growing a little hoarse and shrill under the strain. "I am not wearing the dress!"

If that wouldn't do it, he didn't know what would. Most of the men on this ship could empathize.

Miraculously, fewer people were injured than Devon expected. A crash of this magnitude should have produced casualties--God, but by rights none of them should be alive right now! He had to help a few people off the ship, but most were able to get themselves off, and before too long (Devon wasn't sure how many minutes had passed, but he didn't think he had ever moved faster, and not just because he didn't want to wear the dress) he had the crew grouped together a safe distance from the ship and was taking a head count.

Three short.

Coventry, Brighton, and Carlisle.

He caught sight of Carlisle near the forest and jogged over to meet him, panting. "Carlisle! Where's Coventry and Bright?"

[Anonymous]

His tail flicked back and forth anxiously, gloved hands clenched into fists and Carlisle took his hat back out of his coat and flicked at the feather. He heard Brighton, but it was from inside. Carlisle was outside. Helplessly he stared at the burning ship and he felt his ears were flat against his head and his eyebrows were drawn together. "Brighton!" He called again.

Useless.

"Devon?" His ears went up and he stared for a moment. "Brighton is still inside! I just heard him." His finger moved and he pointed towards the ship. Carlisle noticed the crew in the distance and he put a hand on Devon's shoulder. "Good, you got the crew. Is that everyone but Bright and The Captain?" Carlisle moved and gently bit his lip before moving closer.  "Braver than I am." His tail curled slightly and he ducked his head down before looking back at the ship. "I hope they're okay. Someone should get medics ready," Carlisle looked pointedly at Devon after he said that.

[Tally]

Bright had never been so happy to see Coventry in his life, not even that time Coventry had broken him out of jail.

"Coventry! You air-headed, gutter-loving swine! Look at this! First you get us lost then you get us crashed and on fire! If I live through this I am gone! Out of here!"

Punctual rescue aside, he was also raving mad about having been run through with a plank of wood and nearly burned alive.  The burning may still come about if Coventry didn't hurry his arse up.

Bright did cling to Coventry as the captain grabbed onto him and he did press his face into Coventry's neck and let loose with a flood of words, but they were mostly curses and comparisons between Coventry and various disgusting animals.  All that ended when the captain lifted him off of the splintered wood.  He screamed openly, so long and so loud it left him dizzy and breathless afterward.

Somehow Bright got his feet under him, but Coventry was the only thing keeping him upright.  The fire was awfully close, near enough for the heat to be painful on his skin.

[Anonymous]

"Tut tut tut." Coventry waved a hand, not really listening to what Bright was saying. It was just all the relief at seeing Coventry arrive. That was all. No one actually would leave. Ridiculous!

The air was starting to fill with smoke and it made Coventry's nose wrinkle with distaste, "You know Bright. I really wish you had gotten that fire put out instead of flinging yourself about." He then blinked rapidly as he started to listen to some of what Bright was saying and his ears flicked in agitation, "I say Brighton! Where did you learn to speak like that?"

Reaching down, Coventry lifted Brighton into his arms, princess carrying the bleeding man, "You are an honorary gentleman and that language is not suitable! What if there were ladies present?" It was a bit of a strain to hold a man of Bright's size like that, but Coventry refused to do it with anything less then full panache.

Keeping a firm grip on Brighton, Coventry made his way out of the burning ship. Luckily for him, there didn't seem to be anything blocking his exit and he soon made it out of the burning ship. Glancing around, he spotted Carlisle and Devon.

Filling his lungs, Coventry bellowed across the new 'clearing', his long legs striding over the ground, "Devon! Find the medic! Immediately! Brighton needs to be looked at! Carlisle, stop standing about! Get everyone together and lets see if we can't find some shelter!" He wasn't really all that worried about Bright. He would be fine, Coventry was sure of it. But he wanted him out of pain as soon as possible.

The lion just reached the cover of the trees when the sky began to darken as heavy rain clouds began to form, "Oh!" Coventry gave a bright smile, carefully setting Brighton down, "What luck! It looks like rain!"

[Rhindeer]

Devon shot Carlisle a panicked look, shoulders tense under his crew mate's hand. "They're still in there?" he asked, then bit his lip and fidgeted miserably, eyes on the burning ship. It didn't feel right. Brighton should have already been out here, and what was Coventry doing? The ship was burning and they were taking far too long. Something wasn't right...

"Brave or stupid," he muttered under his breath, then looked back over when Carlisle mentioned medics. Someone. Meaningful looks. Yeah, Devon knew who that someone was, all right, but he wouldn't complain--that would give him something to do, keep him occupied instead of just standing around feeling useless and wanting to climb the walls.

Nodding at Carlisle, he was just about ready to start hollering for the medics when Coventry appeared across the way, Bright cradled in his arms.

For a second Devon stared in wide-eyed horror, wondering if Bright was dead. They were still too far away for him to tell if he was moving or not, but he was obviously badly hurt if Coventry had to carry him, and as they drew closer he thought he could make out blood. His insides clenched. Oh God...

OH RIGHT, MEDICS!

With a jolt, he took off running toward the gathered crew and prayed the medic wasn't among the injured, because that would really put a damper on things. Miraculously, he wasn't even scratched; Devon found him wrapping another crew member's arm. Snagging the medic by the sleeve, Devon tugged him along, much to the other guy's protests, and the medic's. "The first mate's hurt! You can wait!" Devon barked back at him, then looked to the doctor. "He can wait."

They were still making their way over to Coventry, Bright, and Carlisle when the sky went dark, and Devon's ears went flat. He looked up and saw the rain clouds rolling in, and quickened his pace, heart thumping. That...that wasn't natural. What kind of heathen land had they ended up in?! They had almost reached the group when thunder cracked and split the sky open--and down came the rain.

By the time Devon got under the trees, he was drenched, fluffy tail pathetically deflated and ears dripping.

He hated this place already.

[Tally]

There were a lot more words Bright could have said as Coventry hauled him out of the wreckage of the ship, but even the wrenching motion of Coventry's stride stole the breath right out of him.  Every move, every step, made him feel like he was dying.  Maybe he was.  It would serve him right for coming along on this forsaken trip.

Bright grunted as Coventry laid him down.  "As soon as I can walk, I'm out of here," he said through clenched teeth.  "You hear me?  This ain't worth it."

A splash of cold hit his face and he cut short what he was about to say.  A gathering of rainclouds had formed above, where mere minutes ago had been blue sky.  The ship looked disastrous, and had obliterated the land upon which it had crashed.  Thank the great God they had not landed on a city or village.  The fire yet burned, but even as Bright cringed at the thought of outrunning a forest fire, the downpour began.  Blessedly, he was at least partially shielded from it by the trees above.

Somehow, the medic had not only survived the crash, but seemed unscathed as he made his way toward them with Devon.  "Hurry the hell up!"

[Anonymous]

All of Bright's threats and grumbles didn't seem to register to Coventry. He heard only what he wanted too and honestly, who would actually want to leave. Pish! It was just the blood loss talking.

With the medic taking care of his friend, Coventry turned his attention to more important matters. Such as the state of his vest, "Devon! Where are yo-oh. Dear. You seem a little frazzled Devon. Is something the matter?"

Even as he spoke, the wreckage of the ship creaked, the rain beating out flames. Really. Everyone was acting like they had been in some dangerous situation. He had it perfectly under control the entire time.

"Anyway, Devon. I have blood all over my vest. Do you think we can keep it from staining?"