𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙢𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩-𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙨 || ʲ. ʰᵒˡˡᵃⁿᵈ

_one_

          Y/N Cruickshank, personal sharpshooter of the Inevitable and slayer of beasts, the fabled hunter who stared death in the eye and shot at it,
         
          orphaned at the age of six.
         
          Yeahhh as all tales of how great heroes are made, all lives must start in tragedy. And of course it wasn't much different for you, abandoned to the streets as a wee babe when life proved too cruel for your struggling parents. At least, you assumed that it was. You wouldn't know, you never met them.
         
          Life at sea wasn't exactly what you had planned on having the day you were picked up by a stranger. The days were long, the nights were cold, the seasickness was a mess, and of course the water was unwelcoming with all its fantastical beasts that wanted nothing more than to chomp down the large piece of wood that you'd board and would call your home for what would be the rest of your sea-faring life.
         
          Honestly if you had a choice you probably would've been a baker.
         
          But alas, that kidnapping—as if being left on the streets was a better option—was almost two decades ago, and there was nothing you could do to turn back time now that you had cemented your legacy as a fantastically talented hunter. Hey, it wasn't all bad, you had made a name for yourself and had made a life, no matter how shitty it was that you constantly smelled like fish all the time.
         
          And this was currently the subject of discussion that Sarah Sharpe had brought up while she was scolding you.
         
          "Honestly Y/N, I would've thought that I'd taught you better by now!" You stood awkwardly fumbling with your bracelet as your adoptive guardian—she refused to be called a mother—angrily cleaned up your room, ranting as she aggressively plumps up a white pillow before tossing it to your less-than luxurious bed. "You're a woman with a name and are constantly carrying more weapons than this entire ship's crew combined, yet I find you passed out and crying drunk in yet another pub?!"
         
          You quietly smack your lips as you see her angrily tossing trash after trash out the small circular window, further polluting the sea in the hopes that natural climate change would help you get rid of the beasts faster. At one point, Sarah had picked up a lone sock and looked absolutely gobsmacked offended by it.
         
          "You don't even own this!"
         
          "You don't know that." You quietly, barely audibly mumble, the ship groaning as it swayed a little bit more to the left. Neither of you were phased, you've both had practically grown muscles on the soles of your feet mastering how to balance yourself through storms far worse than this one. Honestly, you're going to have to be, one man overboard is another beast's lunch.
         
          "And also— oh by the gods!" Her voice reached a shriek you didn't even think was possible for her, head whipping to glare at you further as one hand lifted what looked to be an empty bottle. You say 'looked to be' to be considerate, but seeing as you're the one who drank it it was in fact an empty bottle. "Another one?! Again?!"
         
          "Okay but to be fair, it's not as if it's worse than half the shit you drink." She laughs sarcastically at your little comment, tossing the bottle straight out the window and wincing when you hear shattering before it was soon swallowed by the crashing waves. "The shit, that I drink, doesn't at least poison me whenever I take even a gods-damned sip!"
         
          The ship rumbles again in protest as you awkwardly stayed quiet once more, one glance up seeing the hanging torch that you liked using on late dark nights swing hardly to the side with a clatter. The stomps on the deck above you were getting more and more unbearable.
         
          "Okay you're making all the good points, Sarah, but shouldn't we be having this conversation after we've dealt with the giant man-eating monster currently terrorizing—" You hear a scream, followed by a roar, as the Inevitable tilts to the side, boots still firmly planted to the ground as you slid slightly to the right and held onto a beam for support. "—the ship as we speak?"
         
          "Absolutely not!" The woman barely reacted when the ship tilts again and a small blade fell from the shelf that hung over her, reaching out a hand to catch it as her glare never left the bottom of your bed. She was absolutely determined to make sure she had cleaned this place spotless of any sort of junk from your weekly, drunkenly escapades. "You are not using this as an excuse to get me away from this room so you can better hide more of your. . .your. . .crimes!"
         
          "Okay mistake would be an exaggeration, crime is just reaching." There was a loud roar from right beside your window as the ship takes another hit, barks of orders outside being vaguely heard over the loud crashing and downright worrying amount of splashing that sounded like multiple cargo being dropped into sea. That or multiple humans. "Oh trust me girl, crime doesn't even begin to describe it."
         
          You open your mouth with another smart-ass retort before the room darkens as you see a large gold eye peering in through the small circular window, calling for your own to widen as a large tentacle-like claw slammed against the side of the ship and you're sent backwards into your door with a cry of surprise. This only makes Sarah click her tongue, with one swift move pulling out a gun and shooting outside the opened window without so much as a single glance. The creature wailed in pain as it moved away, as you struggled to get yourself upright next to the wildly-swinging door of your room.
         
          "Have none of you landed a single gods-damned hit? Are you hunters or children?!" Sarah had scolded loudly, and despite her love for the crew and her dedication to the lesson she was trying to teach you, it didn't take much for her to storm out of your room, planting yourself next to a wall in an attempt to avoid being seen. Out of sight, out of mind and all that jazz.
         
          "Give me that!" You watch when the door slams closed as she reaches the main deck of the ship and forcibly takes a gun from that short guy that you could only really describe as the intern, aiming upwards and shooting at a tentacle that had attempted to slam down on her. It retracted away in pain and roars once again.
         
          "Watch your step!" You're quick to slam yourself back against the wall as another woman runs past you, the tails of her headgear trailing behind her as she blindly carries a large open crate. You take out your own gun and shoot as another tentacle attempts to hit her, seeing that the end of it flickered blue for a moment before it's quick to retract it with a pained bellow. Your brows furrowed, but you're not given much time to think about it as you jump right into the middle of the action.
         
          "Heads up!"