Warnings: Parental death, disease/plague, Riots Themes: Law breaking, adventure, loss
Memory One
You stand alone, in the center of a great crowd. Surrounded on all sides by people, but still alone.
Everything is wrong.
Men and women in armor, royal guards, stand around you, keeping you safe. Keeping the people from you. Why would they be needed?
It itches.
The fancy clothes you wear aren’t yours. A dress- It covers so much, you can feel it, touching all over, you want to tear it off, your skin crawls from how much it touches. Around your body, a cloak, made of dragon feathers, with the royal crest of Draco, the symbol of its guardian, on the back. Soft, downy, and- Itches. It doesn’t touch your skin directly, but it itches. The circlet on your head- Itches. It’s treasure. It’s shiny. It should be something you love.
But it itches.
It doesn’t itch in your skin, but in your heart. It’s all a lie. It itches in your soul, how all falsehoods do. You hate it.
You feel the tug in your mind, in your feet. Always, always tugging you. More treasure. This time, it’s tugging you to the temple behind you, where the Priestess awaits. You need to go there.
But it itches.
You take a deep breath. You lift your hand, and take the circlet from your head, looking at it. It’s gold, inlaid with great gems- It normally soothes you to see that. Normally, that shininess is enough to soothe you, to quiet the pull that tugs you towards new treasure. The light, the smoothness, it makes you calm. But not this time.
It itches.
The circlet feels like ash tastes. You hate it.
“Caw.”
A murmur ripples through the crowd. Did the lost princess, returned after eighteen years, just… caw?
Your mind goes blank.
But your mouth opens, anyway.
“The King and Queen… want me to tell you that my name is Adib Draconis. But it’s not.” Another murmur, this time louder, as the guards look at each other in confusion.
“I’m Enna, captain of the Argo Minor.” Another murmur, as people realize the significance of that name. “The King and Queen think I’m their daughter. Maybe they did give birth to me, but that’s not what makes them family. They’re cruel. They want me to pretend to be their princess so they can hold their power.”
The guards are suddenly turning around, staring at you.
And suddenly, in the crowd, you see familiar faces. Xenia, Odette, your crew. Scattered, but they see you. And you make eye contact with each of them in turn.
The guards approach you.
“The King and Queen told me I had to listen to them, or else they’d sink my ship with my crew on it!” You announce to the crowd. “But I don’t wanna! I’m Enna, and I’m gonna save the world!” You make eye contact with Xenia, and she nods.
You hurl the circlet into the crowd, and chaos breaks loose. At the same time, another circlet is thrown your way, which you catch- The Corona Australis. And as you place it on your head, you feel the power of Heracles surge through you.
The guards converge, seeking to hurt you- You just push, with the force of the hero who once held up the sky, and the guards go flying. Out of the corner of your eye, you see your crew moving. Xenia, who threw you the crown, is pointing some people in shabby clothes and dull swords. Odette has already become a giant swan monster. Aderyn has held out her hands, and those around her suddenly found themselves unable to fight.
Good.
You tear the dress around your legs, throwing the fabrics away, and sprint, deep into the temple behind- now in front of you. The insides of the temple are a maze, but it doesn’t matter- You feel the call of treasure, and you know that’s where to go. You follow your sense, and soon, you find a woman encased in crystal and chains, bearing a white gem- The Star.
Perseus’ power surges through you next, and you punch the crystal, shattering it. The Priestess opens her eyes, and-
You throw her over your shoulder, swiping the Star and placing it inside yourself, and resume running the way you came.
“What is going on?!” The Priestess shouts in alarm.
“Explain later, run now!” You reply, sprinting out through further passages.
The passages up are no good. You see guards chasing you. But you continue running, letting your senses guide your feet. Aboveground is no good, but these passages… The mazes of the temple of Draco might turn out to be her salvation. Pyxis’ power points the way, and you keep running.
You emerge from a forgotten tunnel near the docks. Somewhere, along the way, you picked up a wooden chest without realizing it. Weird. Wooden chest under one arm, and Priestess under the other, you keep running.
“This is highly unusua-” The Priestess manages to get out before you have to jump, knocking the wind out of her. You feel bad for her, but you don’t have much choice- You can see fires starting deeper in, near the temple.
As you head towards your ship, you find a barricade in the streets, and a crowd of commoners with pitchforks, lumber axes, and cooking knives. The leader of them looks at you and double-takes.
“Blow me over, it’s the crow princess!” He exclaims. You don’t understand what ‘blow me over’ means, but you’ve come to understand that it’s something surprising.
“Hi.” You try to wave, and the poor priestess protests loudly as you shake her. “Oops.”
“By the ocean’s tits.” He stares at you, dumbfounded. Whatever he was expecting, it wasn’t for you to be here. “Was everything you said back there true?”
“Yep!” You affirm, nodding. “I don’t lie, ever. Lies itch.”
The man stares, trying to process what he’s hearing. And then… He calls behind him. “Open the barricade, let the girl through!”
“Are you serious? She’s the Princess, isn’t she?!” One of the others protests, angrily. “We should use her as a hostage-”
“You daft rat, what use as a hostage do you think she has after earlier?!” He punches the other across the face. “I reckon the King wants her dead more than anything else! Gettin’ this kid off the island is the best way to spit in their eye!”
“Wait wait waitwaitwait!” You protest now. “You’re fighting because I started this, right? I should help!”
The man looks back at you, an angry look in his eyes. “Ha. You want to help? Lead us, will you? Out with the old royals, in with the new? No, thank you, I’d rather not-”
“I’m not like them!” You protest again, angrily. “I’m not royal! I’m just Enna!”
He snorts. “Well, that’s not what anyone else is goin’ ta think. This is Draco business, girl. Draco has to solve Draco’s business… And you’re a crow.”
There’s something else in his words. Not just anger, but… Understanding. You’re not Draco. This isn’t your mess to clean up.
“Now get to your ship and get ready to weigh anchor before the royals get to you, else they’ll deep six you before you can blink!” He barks. Boxes shift, and you start running once more.
But as you leave, you hear his voice behind you once more.
“... An’ if you really are theirs, then I’m glad to hear that even those old shit-bitin’ coin-lickers could bring something good into the world before they bit it.”
You run, and run, and run, until you make it onto your ship.
Memory Two
You stare up at the large ship before you- A caravel, and a well-crafted one at that. A gift from Cygnus for your journey. You’re asked to name it, and immediately, one name comes to mind:
“The Argo Minor!”
It’s in poor taste, you know- Naming a ship after spirits, like that? But it’s also the ship that will resurrect the Argo, so you feel it’s fitting.
You board the ship, and loose the mooring ropes. With Odette and Xenia on your ship, you set out for your next destination, wherever that may be. You feel a tug across the ocean, your sense for treasure pulling you to head somewhere out there.
The salt and the breeze in the air are invigorating, and the waves sparkle as you set sail on your new adventure.
Gienah "Enna" Alchiba | Hannah
Themes: Law breaking, adventure, loss
Memory One
You stand alone, in the center of a great crowd. Surrounded on all sides by people, but still alone.
Everything is wrong.
Men and women in armor, royal guards, stand around you, keeping you safe. Keeping the people from you. Why would they be needed?
It itches.
The fancy clothes you wear aren’t yours. A dress- It covers so much, you can feel it, touching all over, you want to tear it off, your skin crawls from how much it touches. Around your body, a cloak, made of dragon feathers, with the royal crest of Draco, the symbol of its guardian, on the back. Soft, downy, and- Itches. It doesn’t touch your skin directly, but it itches. The circlet on your head- Itches. It’s treasure. It’s shiny. It should be something you love.
But it itches.
It doesn’t itch in your skin, but in your heart. It’s all a lie. It itches in your soul, how all falsehoods do. You hate it.
You feel the tug in your mind, in your feet. Always, always tugging you. More treasure. This time, it’s tugging you to the temple behind you, where the Priestess awaits. You need to go there.
But it itches.
You take a deep breath. You lift your hand, and take the circlet from your head, looking at it. It’s gold, inlaid with great gems- It normally soothes you to see that. Normally, that shininess is enough to soothe you, to quiet the pull that tugs you towards new treasure. The light, the smoothness, it makes you calm. But not this time.
It itches.
The circlet feels like ash tastes. You hate it.
“Caw.”
A murmur ripples through the crowd. Did the lost princess, returned after eighteen years, just… caw?
Your mind goes blank.
But your mouth opens, anyway.
“The King and Queen… want me to tell you that my name is Adib Draconis. But it’s not.” Another murmur, this time louder, as the guards look at each other in confusion.
“I’m Enna, captain of the Argo Minor.” Another murmur, as people realize the significance of that name. “The King and Queen think I’m their daughter. Maybe they did give birth to me, but that’s not what makes them family. They’re cruel. They want me to pretend to be their princess so they can hold their power.”
The guards are suddenly turning around, staring at you.
And suddenly, in the crowd, you see familiar faces. Xenia, Odette, your crew. Scattered, but they see you. And you make eye contact with each of them in turn.
The guards approach you.
“The King and Queen told me I had to listen to them, or else they’d sink my ship with my crew on it!” You announce to the crowd. “But I don’t wanna! I’m Enna, and I’m gonna save the world!” You make eye contact with Xenia, and she nods.
You hurl the circlet into the crowd, and chaos breaks loose. At the same time, another circlet is thrown your way, which you catch- The Corona Australis. And as you place it on your head, you feel the power of Heracles surge through you.
The guards converge, seeking to hurt you- You just push, with the force of the hero who once held up the sky, and the guards go flying. Out of the corner of your eye, you see your crew moving. Xenia, who threw you the crown, is pointing some people in shabby clothes and dull swords. Odette has already become a giant swan monster. Aderyn has held out her hands, and those around her suddenly found themselves unable to fight.
Good.
You tear the dress around your legs, throwing the fabrics away, and sprint, deep into the temple behind- now in front of you. The insides of the temple are a maze, but it doesn’t matter- You feel the call of treasure, and you know that’s where to go. You follow your sense, and soon, you find a woman encased in crystal and chains, bearing a white gem- The Star.
Perseus’ power surges through you next, and you punch the crystal, shattering it. The Priestess opens her eyes, and-
You throw her over your shoulder, swiping the Star and placing it inside yourself, and resume running the way you came.
“What is going on?!” The Priestess shouts in alarm.
“Explain later, run now!” You reply, sprinting out through further passages.
The passages up are no good. You see guards chasing you. But you continue running, letting your senses guide your feet. Aboveground is no good, but these passages… The mazes of the temple of Draco might turn out to be her salvation. Pyxis’ power points the way, and you keep running.
You emerge from a forgotten tunnel near the docks. Somewhere, along the way, you picked up a wooden chest without realizing it. Weird. Wooden chest under one arm, and Priestess under the other, you keep running.
“This is highly unusua-” The Priestess manages to get out before you have to jump, knocking the wind out of her. You feel bad for her, but you don’t have much choice- You can see fires starting deeper in, near the temple.
As you head towards your ship, you find a barricade in the streets, and a crowd of commoners with pitchforks, lumber axes, and cooking knives. The leader of them looks at you and double-takes.
“Blow me over, it’s the crow princess!” He exclaims. You don’t understand what ‘blow me over’ means, but you’ve come to understand that it’s something surprising.
“Hi.” You try to wave, and the poor priestess protests loudly as you shake her. “Oops.”
“By the ocean’s tits.” He stares at you, dumbfounded. Whatever he was expecting, it wasn’t for you to be here. “Was everything you said back there true?”
“Yep!” You affirm, nodding. “I don’t lie, ever. Lies itch.”
The man stares, trying to process what he’s hearing. And then… He calls behind him. “Open the barricade, let the girl through!”
“Are you serious? She’s the Princess, isn’t she?!” One of the others protests, angrily. “We should use her as a hostage-”
“You daft rat, what use as a hostage do you think she has after earlier?!” He punches the other across the face. “I reckon the King wants her dead more than anything else! Gettin’ this kid off the island is the best way to spit in their eye!”
“Wait wait waitwaitwait!” You protest now. “You’re fighting because I started this, right? I should help!”
The man looks back at you, an angry look in his eyes. “Ha. You want to help? Lead us, will you? Out with the old royals, in with the new? No, thank you, I’d rather not-”
“I’m not like them!” You protest again, angrily. “I’m not royal! I’m just Enna!”
He snorts. “Well, that’s not what anyone else is goin’ ta think. This is Draco business, girl. Draco has to solve Draco’s business… And you’re a crow.”
There’s something else in his words. Not just anger, but… Understanding. You’re not Draco. This isn’t your mess to clean up.
“Now get to your ship and get ready to weigh anchor before the royals get to you, else they’ll deep six you before you can blink!” He barks. Boxes shift, and you start running once more.
But as you leave, you hear his voice behind you once more.
“... An’ if you really are theirs, then I’m glad to hear that even those old shit-bitin’ coin-lickers could bring something good into the world before they bit it.”
You run, and run, and run, until you make it onto your ship.
Memory Two
You stare up at the large ship before you- A caravel, and a well-crafted one at that. A gift from Cygnus for your journey. You’re asked to name it, and immediately, one name comes to mind:
“The Argo Minor!”
It’s in poor taste, you know- Naming a ship after spirits, like that? But it’s also the ship that will resurrect the Argo, so you feel it’s fitting.
You board the ship, and loose the mooring ropes. With Odette and Xenia on your ship, you set out for your next destination, wherever that may be. You feel a tug across the ocean, your sense for treasure pulling you to head somewhere out there.
The salt and the breeze in the air are invigorating, and the waves sparkle as you set sail on your new adventure.