We See You

The Silver Circus Arc - Part Three

"Woah... Ussu really likes your boat!" Ussu squealed, the reflection of stars twinkling in her eyes as they widened at the sight of The Crystal Tide before them. Tyler crossed his arms and puffed out his chest proudly.

"Yeah, she's awesome," He agreed, grinning and stepping aboard the boat, "You wanna come on?" Ussu nodded quickly, climbing onto the boat and running around like an excited child at a theme park. Alex was next to step onto the deck, leaning his back against the railing and watching the half-dragon explore.

"I think we need to discuss our plan, Captain. Or, more accurately, think of a plan to begin with." Mari said, standing next to him and looking down. She was right, the group had not sat down to discuss their next move, instead Ussu had dragged them back to their boat after begging to take a look.

The girl ran over, bouncing up and down on the spot. "Plan! Yes! Uhm... maybe wait until Garrot and Damion leave... although they don't leave...?" She tapped her chin, rambling on, "Or... fight them! You guys are pirates!" Kira appeared in the air next to Ussu's head, frowning.

"I don't wanna fight, mew... we're all still recovering from our last battle." She huffed, glancing down at Alex and Tyler's still bandaged bodies. Mari nodded in agreement, resting the side of her head against her staff.

"I am in agreement with Kira, although we may have no choice." she spoke, "We are kidnapping a dragon, from what could be a dangerous enemy after all."

"That isn't your only problem," A velvety voice spoke from across the other side of the ship, "Libby is chained up, which means you'll have to get the keys first. Those are kept in the twin's home." The group turned to see Envy sitting on the railing, her legs crossed as she looked at them all with a thoughtful expression.

Tyler raised his eyebrows and took a large step forward, "You're the creep that told me I was gonna have a bad future. Sorry lady, we don't want you here." Envy exhaled sharply, jumped off the beam and walked over to Tyler whilst narrowing her eyes, her piercing gaze causing him to shrink back slightly.

"You will not be able to leave this place with Libby unnoticed, so unless you would like your future to be even worse, you will need our help." Envy stated.

"Our?" Ussu's eyes widened, "Are Athros and Jade coming too?" Envy nodded, turning around and pacing back and forth across the ship.

"Libby needs to go somewhere... peaceful. She is old... too old to work here any longer." Envy said, her gaze turning to the ground. "We all agreed, somewhere nice... calm..."

Alex cleared his throat, standing up fully and cracking his knuckles. "Alright. Plan time." He smiled at Envy, nodding his head.

Over the next few hours, as the sun began to rise over The Silver Circus, the group huddled around the kitchen table aboard The Crystal Tide, conducting a plan to rescue the dragon from down below.

"So, you're forced to work here? Isn't that, y'know, slavery?" Alex had said to Envy, as the two busied themselves preparing drinks for the rest of the crew. Envy shrugged, cradling her mug in her hands as she flicked a loose strand of silver hair out from her eyes.

"Yes, pretty much. None of us have anywhere else to go anyway. As long as we train hard and perform well, punishments are a minimum. Although, for the younger folks, they're not exactly rare. Ussu and Athros have been taking a hefty beating recently." Envy explained, settling herself on the counter and swinging her legs. Alex looked down into his own mug, frowning. That must have been what he had heard yesterday. His grip tightened around the pot as Envy rested her hand on top of his. "Listen, Alex, we're all okay here. We've all spent the majority of our lives in this situation, and we know how to deal with it. There is no need to get angry." She said, her tone softening.