Storm front [closed/social]

Orion had just finished one of his fishing trips, just him, by himself, alone, not with anybody. He sighed, "Stupid guildmates. Don't they know how fun fishing can be." Usually, he was accompanied by the brother of the guild master, a cat, who loves fish too much. Having company was never bad, in fact, Orion always welcomed the company. But the mages seemed more preoccupied with running missions as of late.

That reminded him, he needed to get started with missions as well. The sand caressing his feet said otherwise, however. No matter what anyone says, the beach was truly a sight to behold. Once a bustling port town, this place had all disintegrated into chaos. But he wasn't worried, his stature scared most of the petty thieves.

The crashing of the waves made him turn his head. The sky was blue, and the sun reflected fiercely on the blue sea. It was a perfect day. One he had enjoyed with a fishing rod in hand, and a can of beer in another. Orion thought better to smoke while fishing. It was the only activity he would not smoke while doing, since the last time he did, he had accidentally set fire to the small boat he had rented. Nope, definitely no more smoking after that.

Chuckling, he was about to turn towards the port town, before spotting something on the horizon. It looked like a fish for a second...a huge fish. It was headed towards the part of the shore where jagged rocks were protruding quite haphazardly. Orion watched for a moment as the mermaid seemed to be in a rush, as though being chased by something. There, behind her, a dragon-like figure.

Mermaid. Dragon.

Orion abandoned his plans and quickly ran towards the girl. He wasted no time, and his fast pace almost made him trip- but he caught himself before continuing his run. Wading through the cold water, he felt his movement slow down, the waves pushing him back towards the shore. He fought it hard, teeth gritted as he stretched out his arms. Almost there!

"Grab on!" Orion shouted at the mermaid, his free hand outstretched, watching the serpent-like creature nearing its intended target. The Lightning God Slayer was afraid of using his magic, especially since it had a high chance of hurting the girl as well, so he made do with throwing the bucket of fish he was still holding at it, "Get a load of this, you sea snake!" He didn't have time to see if his bucket of fish had hit the creature, focusing instead on helping the mermaid to safety.

Arthur

Orion did not need to think twice as the mermaid seemed to have clung onto him. The dragon, or serpent, or whatever the creature was seemed too relentless in its pursuit. Orion's bucket would've provided a distraction, but only just. He hadn't caught much fish at all this time around, and the little he had hopefully was enough. With his luck, it probably wasn't. However, he didn't have time to dilly-dally.

"Hold on!" Orion roared, as he grabbed onto the mermaid's tail, securing her on his back, before making his way towards the shore. She was light, and not hard to transport at all. Her tail were not legs, which made things just a bit more awkward, but Orion did his best. He wasn't sure if holding her tail was a breach of etiquette or whatever customs mermish people had, but he had no time to stop and ask. 

The sea serpent snarled. Orion felt the air stir, as though something catastrophic was about to occur. Warning bells rang in the back of his head. Without turning, the lightning god slayer knew that the sea serpent was once again on their heels, like a rabid dog chasing a piece of meat. 

"Forgive me, miss," Orion said out loud, not turning his head for fear of seeing something that just might make him freeze. He had never seen, nor faced a dragon before, and he was not going to start today. The shore was close, and he was betting that the dragon of the sea would not be able to chase them on land. Betting was the key word.

With a heave, Orion used all of his training to become a mage into action. His body was not built the way it was without reason, after all. The last few meters of sea flew below the two. Orion used the momentum of the jump to turn himself in midair, hoping to land on his back. The mermaid was quickly shifted, and Orion hugged her close to his chest, hoping that the gravity of the situation would outweigh his unceremonious action. 

Orion felt the sand hit him in the back, the combined weight of the both of them making the landing a bit more painful. He winced, but shook it off, hoping that his prediction was correct, and the dragon won't be able to chase them on land. 

Orion did not expect his day to progress into this. He wanted to spend the day just fishing, taking a break from his work as a mage of Cait Shelter. It was supposed to be an escape, especially after the last mission where he had been in one of the coldest regions of Alakitasia. The sun was a blessing, and Orion intended to bathe in its glory after suffering through an endless snowstorm.

Now he was lying on the sand, back hurting, and holding onto a mermaid. A mermaid of all things. Orion had to chuckle at the situation, before asking, "Are you alright, lady?" He was fine, himself, his back most likely just needed a quick rinse of salt water. The mermaid, however, had just been chased by a dragon. Yeah, she might need some help for sure.

His hand never moved from her, and he could feel every twitch that she made. It was a nice feeling, holding someone close. And she was very easy on the eyes as well. Fuck! Orion thought, as a blush suddenly crept up his cheeks. Their close proximity, her beautiful visage, and his stupid hormones. Those three were definitely a bad combination.

"Uhm...ah..." Orion felt a bit stupid, opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water, "Well, you see, do you...uhm...I mean can you...ah I mean are you able to be on land?" He managed to blurt out. He wasn't sure how mermaids worked, but she seemed to be part fish, so being on land might not be the best idea.

Orion watched the mermaid, his face still red from her being on top of him. Close proximity. Skin-on-skin contact. Normally, it wouldn't have fazed the lightning god slayer. Normally, the woman also was not a mermaid. And normally, she wouldn't be this beautiful. But then, where would Orion's life be if it were normal.

But then, as he asked her about her fin-situation, something happened. her tail was drying up. Her scales were disappearing. Legs were born out of her once-flippers. And Orion almost fainted. He felt light-headed, as he watched the now stark naked woman explore her new appendage. She seemed curious at first, less freaked-out than Orion would have expected of a mermaid losing her tail.

But then she fainted.

Orion was lost for words. Now, he not only had a mermaid on top of him, but he had a naked mermaid-turned-woman on top of him. "Only me," Orion cursed, unsure of what to do. Naked. In the open beach. He needed to do something fast before a random stranger came upon them; the thought of a random guy seeing her naked made Orion a bit jealous. Wait, when did the random person become a guy? And jealousy? Orion shook his head of the crazy thought.

Slowly, as not to wake the mermaid up, he slid her from his chest to the sandy beach beside him. Next, he took off the black banner-like shoulder cloth he had, and placed it on top of her chest, albeit hesitantly, trying his best not to stare. Realizing another problem, he quickly took off his own shirt, and laid it neatly to cover her lower body.

"There, all better," Orion smiled to himself, looking around quickly for some dried wood. After scrounging up a few tinder, mostly pieces of plank from wrecked boats. He made a small tripod and lit it up with a spark from his lightning magic, creating a small campfire very close to the mermaid. "There, this should keep you warm until you wake up," He nodded to himself, before sitting down beside her, keeping a vigilant eye as he waited for the young woman to come to.

Arthur

Orion was jolted awake by a sound, and then his hands flew on instinct, grabbing the outstretched arm that was about to stroke the small campfire he had made. Heart beating fast, he let out a huge breath, "That," he pointed at the campfire, "is fire. You'll burn if you touch that." Wait, how can someone-"You don't know what a fire is- oh, yes, underwater, got it. Water douses fire, so you probably have never seen one underwater." He nodded to himself, hopefully explaining it well enough.

The problem was, Orion was still groggy, and the mermaid-now-human was still naked. "Uhm...you know....I think I'll need to get you some clothes before we can...ah..." He scratched his cheek, unsure of how to approach the situation. Not like he has not seen a naked woman before, but this certainly in within the category of 'unknown' to him.

Waves crashed against each other, creating a very peaceful atmosphere that Orion had never though he needed. The life of a wizard was a blood-rushing one, and down-times like these were few and far between. "It's peaceful now, hey?" he blurted out, staring out into the ocean.

Arthur

The question brought Orion out of his reverie. He wasn't sure whether to laugh, or to blush-embarrassed by her inquiry. The female body was not something alien to him, and usually, he'd just at the opportunity. However, there was something about the mermaid-turned-human that made him pause at his lecherous thoughts.

"Ah...no, on the contrary," Orion stammered, "It's just that public nudity is not something that's...hm..." The man was confused. Was it normal for mermish-people to be in the nude? "I'm not sure how it goes underwater, but usually we stay clothed in public here on land."

He was not sure if he'd given a good explanation. In fact, he was sure he had given a bad one. He was not, after, the most articulate man in existence. He turned back towards the water, however, "And the water is calm now, nothing to be afraid of. Don't think the monster is anywhere nearby." If it was, then they surely would have seen or heard it.

Arthur

The mermaid-turned-human, in her still partial nude form, leaned herself on Orion. There was a point in time during this that Orion was unsure whether to savour the moment of leap away. Thoughts, both suggestive and very inappropriate, sprung into mind and he had to shake it away. He had to be a gentleman; she was, after all, a person in need, not some dalliance waiting to happen.

"Uh yeah, nice to meet you, Mynte," Orion, slowly but surely, brought his arms over the girl's shoulder. The closeness must be for warmth. Yes, it had to be for warmth. "I'm Orion. Orion Prima."

He paused, curiosity getting the better of him, "So, any particular reason as to why that monster was coming after you?" Creatures usually hunted prey, but that one, a dragon-like one, did not seem to particularly want the mermaid as food. It was angry, driven by rage instead of its natural instinct to hunt. Orion saw it clearly in its eyes, something he had learned while fighting the Dire Wolf of Gabbro City.

Arthur