𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐒𝐞𝐚𝐬 𖥸 𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙩 𝘼𝙣𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙨

010. Ocean Melody

From the moment Ammiras stepped off of the ship and onto land, he could already see the chaos forming around the dock.

     Seatraders were out bargaining their products, large families tried to find their way out of the bustling crowd, and the scent of traveling goods along with the salty aroma of fish filled his nostrils. It was packed.

     Seagulls flew up ahead, circling with loud caws as they remained ever alert to steal a single scrap from one of the vending stalls. Their feathers littered the ground as one of the stall keepers shooed them away with a stick. Watching the birds retreat, He was once again reminded of Asherah, his Caped Gannet who was currently residing in passive state.

     She had come to him in the night, cawing and spiking her feathers up in distress which meant Jill was in trouble. They had to get the spare ship and move. There wasn't any more time to waste.

     Her tattooed form was the inked tribal tattoo of a seabird that was located on the back of his neck. She seemed to like that spot the best. Perhaps it was because she wouldn't get a view of his stupid face every second.

     With a bright flash of iridescent light, the Sea bird was released and soared high in the air with a caw. She circled around once, brilliant white wings outstretched as she took in the scenery before abruptly diving down to land upon her summoner's shoulder.

     Ammiras smiled slightly as he ran a finger down the smooth satin-like feathers. "We don't have much time left. Luckily, I know exactly where we left the spare ship. It isn't large - thank god - and hopefully it'll do the trick."

    She let out one of her loud, obnoxious screeches in reply and clicked her beak, tilting her head to the side before she began to preen her feathers.

     "Strange girl," Ammiras chuckled as he resumed stroking her wing before he started to walk. His gait was slow and casual, almost as if he were taking his sweet time. He wasn't however. He was trying to come up with a decent plan that wouldn't involve death. "What did you see out there?"

     The gannet didn't stop preening herself, although her strange pale eyes did hold a glint of amusement. Her feathers had smoothed out as well, a sign she was calmer now and not distressed like earlier.

     "Guess I'll find out for myself," Ammiras mused with a shrug of his shoulders. His pace quickened as he spotted his destination from afar. It was always a good thing Jillian kept the supplies they needed at a certain place that was close if they ever needed anything when they reached land.

     Asherah let out another caw, this one louder than the one before as she shuffled about on his shoulder. Her clumsy feet were holding her up just fine, but he had a feeling she might slip off any second.

     "Easy there," He soothed as he ran another finger across her feathers. He was always soft when it came to his spirit animal, despite the fact that sometimes they didn't get along.

     Asherah clicked her beak twice and craned her head to look ahead of them, letting out another caw. She seemed to be excited that they were finally going to get Jill to safety after waiting that long. He couldn't blame her. After all, Jill was a very likable person and Asherah grew attached to her quickly.

     She was a strange bird no doubt about it, but he was hers. And he'd cherish her until the end of time. To lose a spirit animal would be to lose a part of himself and he'd dread the day that will come when Asherah leaves him once in for all.

     Ammiras could faintly hear the chattering of travelers as he weaved through the crowd, smelling the salt on the air and the fresh products of produce from the marketplace. Today was unusually busy for some reason.

     When he found the ship, a smirk formed on his face. Excellent. Now he needed to add to his plan to get Wendy and Jill back. Everything else should come smoothly after that.

     But he was one man.

     He couldn't possibly take on an entire crew by himself unless he was looking for a death wish. Perhaps Ammiras could sacrifice his life to buy time for their escape. At least then they'd have time to get away. Whatever the price was, he'd take it. His family was all he had left and he certainly was not going to lose them. As Asherah took to the sky, his smirk only grew wider as he began to formulate his plans. This would never fail, he was certain of it.

     That foreign captain wouldn't know what was coming for him.