Fan Fiction ❯ Second Advent of the Vow ❯ Sailing ( Chapter 8 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: regie27 
Sophitia sails towards her first objective, the Colloseum as she learns of yet more attacks of the Evil Sed around the world.
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 11.15.2003 | Updated On: 02.29.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 195 | Status: Completed
Sophitia sails towards her first objective, the Colloseum as she learns of yet more attacks of the Evil Sed around the world.
Anime/Manga: Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Romance | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 11.15.2003 | Updated On: 02.29.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 195 | Status: Completed
Disclaimer: Guess you already know I do not own any of the Soul Calibur characters, they are Namco’s.
Chapter II: Sailing
The salty air of the sea breeze tickled Sophitia's nose, as the bow of the vessel parted the sea, while the frothy white waves licked the old ship's wooden body. Her arms likened two columns as they supported her head that rested on her linked hands over a barrel that doubled at that instant as a makeshift table. She could hear the “Hermes” crew toil busily behind her. It had been a wonderful day for them, with the wind gushing steadfastly on their sails, keeping the vessel at its full speed. It seemed that Eolus, the mythical wind deity himself had graced them with a good blow of his powerful lungs. After months of cruise, everybody was eager to arrive to port, but none more than the golden haired maiden who kept her eyes fixed to the horizon, waiting to witness the first sighting of land. As a flock of seagulls flew noisily above her head, she recalled what the crew had told her: that a sighting of seagulls meant they were closer to reach their destiny. She wondered if they could just fathom how much their words rang true. Her destiny was about to be forged on those lands, but will it be of glory or doom?
The endless weeks of sea travel had served her to reaffirm a lesson she had learned the hard way on her previous travels; she was an exceptional fighter but she was not made for life on the sea. The first days of journey were a memory she wanted to banish to the most hidden spaces of her mind. She embarrassingly remembered how her pink cheeks had acquired a greenish tone when the ship entered the open sea; the almost vertical movements of the vessel brought back a very familiar and unpleasant sensation upon her. Queasiness preyed upon Sophitia as her stomach and heart choked her throat in unison with every upward motion, and every move down brought them rushing without warning back to their original place. Her dizzy stomach barely allowed her to eat and the little nourishment she had managed to consume had ended overboard to finally rest at the depths of Poseidon's realms.
Luckily for her pride, no one knew her true identity for she was traveling under the guise of Andrea's niece. Somehow, the image of Sophitia Alexandra, the famed warrior from Athens and the wobbly girl who spent her first week at the sea in a state of permanent nausea did not fit together. Fortunately, for her and for her mission, her strong body used to privation, exhaustion and abuse finally got used to the seesaw like movement. Before anybody had expected, she was actively cruising up and down the vessel in her customary good mood, listening eagerly to the crew's tales of adventure and peril on exotic destinations and faraway lands.
-" Guess adding Poseidon and the sea deities to my daily prayers did work with my little problem," Sophitia thought to herself with a small smile. As she brushed her hair from her face, she added with a smirk: "Along with the "tributes" I unwillingly gave to the sea!"
One tale that kept burning in her memory was narrated over dinner and cups of wine some nights ago. Andreas, Alexander and Sophitia had been enthralled while listening to one of the crew's senior member's stories. She could still hear his voice on her mind as he told his tale. They had gathered that evening to enjoy their meal and share tales of peril and adventure with crewmen who competed against each other to gain the attractive young woman’s attention. If only they knew her stories could easily overcome any of theirs! She forced herself to remain silent and repress the urging desire to let her own amazing tales amuse them and let a little vanity flow free, but due to her disguised identity, she contented in listening to everybody else’s. Her dear Rothion’s gift bracelet proved very helpful to calm her storytelling anxiety as she toyed with it under the table.
Alexander did enjoy the attention that was put upon him as he recounted their encounter with the raided town and the sighting of the lizardman.
-“…but finally this hideous beast was obliterated by Hephaestus’ own warrior, who happened to share our way..."
As Alexander talked, an old, rugged sailor who had been sitting down by himself in a far corner of the room stood up, his gaze falling strong over the youth. All sound left the room. His shipmates respectfully waited for him to continue. Sophitia had seen the man before but never had the chance to cross words with him, so she waited too with her curiosity piqued.
-“So my friend, you have confirmed with your own eyes the existence of these creatures,” the sailor said as he pulled a beaten up chair and brought it to their table. Andreas nodded at him and the seawolf sat down.
-“I reckon then that you will not only believe what I am about to tell you, but also understand the true scope of it’s horror.”
-“Please, honor us with your tale, my friend,” Andreas said as he greeted the sailor with a cup of wine.
-"This was told to me by a former shipmate, a true man of the sea. There was no port that he had not visited on the known world and he had gone through all kind of strange perils but this one had been the most amazing to him. A couple of years ago, he had got into trouble so he shipped with this young pirate as a way to escape his enemies, for his foes knew this young man very well. My friend's captain was a feared and respected man, an experienced sailor. His abilities with the nunchucks were only rivaled with his charming ways with the ladies."
The sailor sipped some wine, as his audience stood at the edge of their seats, eager to know more. "So this pirate, I believe his name was Maxi, arrived at this harbor in India. It seemed like another routine stop for them, except for the peculiar strangers he welcomed as passengers. A young man, almost a boy raised in the way of the eastern monks with a staff as his weapon and a young woman who was member of a Chinese Opera Troupe. The night the were readying to leave port, a horde of beasts never seen before, straight out from hell's entrails, lizards in human bodies and giants with Herculean strength attacked the harbor and laid waste to everything in sight. My friend's captain, his crew and his new passengers fought bravely and survived the onslaught but the captain's sworn brother died by the hands of the creatures' leader, known only as Astaroth.”
His brother's demise broke the captain's heart and he swore that no matter what, he would seek vengeance for his friend’s death. From that dreadful day on, that place is only known as the Harbor of Souls, in remembrance of those unfortunates whose lives were extinguished that day and still await for the avenging of their meaningless deaths."
After listening to the sad tale, Sophitia wondered if she would ever cross paths with the pirate captain and his friends. After all, they all shared the same enemies. Could he be one of the allies Athena had told her about? The rest of that night had been filled with more terrorizing stories of similar attacks in different parts of the world. It did not matter the place; sadly they all ended the same.
-"This all seems the work of that evil craft, Soul Edge," thought Sophie as the stories multiplied. That night's sleep intertwined with the memories of the stories she had once heard about Cervantes on her first journey, tales of death and destruction both on land and sea. It seemed every country of the known world had lost a ship to the maniacal wrath of the Spaniard Pirate. All that evil brought by one man! This time, she had to deal with the not only Azure Knight and Soul Edge, she also had the lizardmen and the race of giants lead by one of their brethren, the one named Astaroth. She had concluded that it was more than enough to make a baker's daughter turned warrior of the Gods busy.
However, she still had enough time ahead to worry about that. As drops of salty water sprinkled over her face, more pressing issues made themselves present: the Collosseum and the possibilities of prize money and allies for her journey. She understood very well that it was vital that she succeeded in her first major task. The luck of the rest of her mission rested now on her warrior abilities on the arena and on the blade of her sword. But unlike the rest of her competitors, it was not for fame, nor for glory or money. It was for the sake of countless souls yet to face their fate against Soul Edge.
-"By the Gods, I have to triumph!"
Chapter II: Sailing
The salty air of the sea breeze tickled Sophitia's nose, as the bow of the vessel parted the sea, while the frothy white waves licked the old ship's wooden body. Her arms likened two columns as they supported her head that rested on her linked hands over a barrel that doubled at that instant as a makeshift table. She could hear the “Hermes” crew toil busily behind her. It had been a wonderful day for them, with the wind gushing steadfastly on their sails, keeping the vessel at its full speed. It seemed that Eolus, the mythical wind deity himself had graced them with a good blow of his powerful lungs. After months of cruise, everybody was eager to arrive to port, but none more than the golden haired maiden who kept her eyes fixed to the horizon, waiting to witness the first sighting of land. As a flock of seagulls flew noisily above her head, she recalled what the crew had told her: that a sighting of seagulls meant they were closer to reach their destiny. She wondered if they could just fathom how much their words rang true. Her destiny was about to be forged on those lands, but will it be of glory or doom?
The endless weeks of sea travel had served her to reaffirm a lesson she had learned the hard way on her previous travels; she was an exceptional fighter but she was not made for life on the sea. The first days of journey were a memory she wanted to banish to the most hidden spaces of her mind. She embarrassingly remembered how her pink cheeks had acquired a greenish tone when the ship entered the open sea; the almost vertical movements of the vessel brought back a very familiar and unpleasant sensation upon her. Queasiness preyed upon Sophitia as her stomach and heart choked her throat in unison with every upward motion, and every move down brought them rushing without warning back to their original place. Her dizzy stomach barely allowed her to eat and the little nourishment she had managed to consume had ended overboard to finally rest at the depths of Poseidon's realms.
Luckily for her pride, no one knew her true identity for she was traveling under the guise of Andrea's niece. Somehow, the image of Sophitia Alexandra, the famed warrior from Athens and the wobbly girl who spent her first week at the sea in a state of permanent nausea did not fit together. Fortunately, for her and for her mission, her strong body used to privation, exhaustion and abuse finally got used to the seesaw like movement. Before anybody had expected, she was actively cruising up and down the vessel in her customary good mood, listening eagerly to the crew's tales of adventure and peril on exotic destinations and faraway lands.
-" Guess adding Poseidon and the sea deities to my daily prayers did work with my little problem," Sophitia thought to herself with a small smile. As she brushed her hair from her face, she added with a smirk: "Along with the "tributes" I unwillingly gave to the sea!"
One tale that kept burning in her memory was narrated over dinner and cups of wine some nights ago. Andreas, Alexander and Sophitia had been enthralled while listening to one of the crew's senior member's stories. She could still hear his voice on her mind as he told his tale. They had gathered that evening to enjoy their meal and share tales of peril and adventure with crewmen who competed against each other to gain the attractive young woman’s attention. If only they knew her stories could easily overcome any of theirs! She forced herself to remain silent and repress the urging desire to let her own amazing tales amuse them and let a little vanity flow free, but due to her disguised identity, she contented in listening to everybody else’s. Her dear Rothion’s gift bracelet proved very helpful to calm her storytelling anxiety as she toyed with it under the table.
Alexander did enjoy the attention that was put upon him as he recounted their encounter with the raided town and the sighting of the lizardman.
-“…but finally this hideous beast was obliterated by Hephaestus’ own warrior, who happened to share our way..."
As Alexander talked, an old, rugged sailor who had been sitting down by himself in a far corner of the room stood up, his gaze falling strong over the youth. All sound left the room. His shipmates respectfully waited for him to continue. Sophitia had seen the man before but never had the chance to cross words with him, so she waited too with her curiosity piqued.
-“So my friend, you have confirmed with your own eyes the existence of these creatures,” the sailor said as he pulled a beaten up chair and brought it to their table. Andreas nodded at him and the seawolf sat down.
-“I reckon then that you will not only believe what I am about to tell you, but also understand the true scope of it’s horror.”
-“Please, honor us with your tale, my friend,” Andreas said as he greeted the sailor with a cup of wine.
-"This was told to me by a former shipmate, a true man of the sea. There was no port that he had not visited on the known world and he had gone through all kind of strange perils but this one had been the most amazing to him. A couple of years ago, he had got into trouble so he shipped with this young pirate as a way to escape his enemies, for his foes knew this young man very well. My friend's captain was a feared and respected man, an experienced sailor. His abilities with the nunchucks were only rivaled with his charming ways with the ladies."
The sailor sipped some wine, as his audience stood at the edge of their seats, eager to know more. "So this pirate, I believe his name was Maxi, arrived at this harbor in India. It seemed like another routine stop for them, except for the peculiar strangers he welcomed as passengers. A young man, almost a boy raised in the way of the eastern monks with a staff as his weapon and a young woman who was member of a Chinese Opera Troupe. The night the were readying to leave port, a horde of beasts never seen before, straight out from hell's entrails, lizards in human bodies and giants with Herculean strength attacked the harbor and laid waste to everything in sight. My friend's captain, his crew and his new passengers fought bravely and survived the onslaught but the captain's sworn brother died by the hands of the creatures' leader, known only as Astaroth.”
His brother's demise broke the captain's heart and he swore that no matter what, he would seek vengeance for his friend’s death. From that dreadful day on, that place is only known as the Harbor of Souls, in remembrance of those unfortunates whose lives were extinguished that day and still await for the avenging of their meaningless deaths."
After listening to the sad tale, Sophitia wondered if she would ever cross paths with the pirate captain and his friends. After all, they all shared the same enemies. Could he be one of the allies Athena had told her about? The rest of that night had been filled with more terrorizing stories of similar attacks in different parts of the world. It did not matter the place; sadly they all ended the same.
-"This all seems the work of that evil craft, Soul Edge," thought Sophie as the stories multiplied. That night's sleep intertwined with the memories of the stories she had once heard about Cervantes on her first journey, tales of death and destruction both on land and sea. It seemed every country of the known world had lost a ship to the maniacal wrath of the Spaniard Pirate. All that evil brought by one man! This time, she had to deal with the not only Azure Knight and Soul Edge, she also had the lizardmen and the race of giants lead by one of their brethren, the one named Astaroth. She had concluded that it was more than enough to make a baker's daughter turned warrior of the Gods busy.
However, she still had enough time ahead to worry about that. As drops of salty water sprinkled over her face, more pressing issues made themselves present: the Collosseum and the possibilities of prize money and allies for her journey. She understood very well that it was vital that she succeeded in her first major task. The luck of the rest of her mission rested now on her warrior abilities on the arena and on the blade of her sword. But unlike the rest of her competitors, it was not for fame, nor for glory or money. It was for the sake of countless souls yet to face their fate against Soul Edge.
-"By the Gods, I have to triumph!"