Smoke from the lantern drifted out as the sun reappeared over the horizon. Alexandria didn't sleep much since due to a vulture on her shoulder and not being able to contain her excitement. She could see everything on the island now since it was just off the starboard side of the ship. Sitting up because of the excitement stirred the vulture. It shrieked making Lyric jump and fall out of her chair again. This time she didn't hurt herself jumping to her feet as the vulture flew up to the crows nest.

Lyric looked around seeing the island looking around for a good spot to weigh anchor. Jumping up on the railing of the ship looking out over the island using one of the mast lines to keep her balance. "We need to move quickly so that we don't get too far past the island. I need you to secure the sails and once we get to a good spot we can weigh anchor. I hope you're ready for your first docking. This is going to go fast."

Alexandria jumped up with excitement beaming from her face. Lyric ran back to the rudder in order to get them in position. "So when I tell you to start taking down the sails. The lines on the mast will allow you to do that. If you paid attention yesterday just do what I did only in reverse." She cracked her neck looking up the mast finding the lines that needed to be secured waiting for the word.

She felt the ship move a bit, being pointed towards the island. They moved forward at a calm pace, the ship rocking up and down a bit more due to the waves so close to the island. A few minutes pass with just the waves butting against the ship being the only sound. Lyric moved the rudder just a bit letting out a giggle. "Alright Alexandria, secure the sails now!"

Clicking her tongue she scaled the mast taking the lines that she needed moving up pulling the sails as she went. Her memory was really working for her at the moment. Being able to do things after only seeing it once was most likely a product of her shifting. Crawling upside down across the cross poll tying off the sail as she went. It was only a few minutes before she was hanging from the cross bar. Lyric looked up to see her securing the rudder jumping down and tossing the anchor over the side.

Alexandria heard the splash flipping down from the cross bar landing on her feet. Leaning over the side of the boat staring down at the clear water. There were all sorts of creatures underneath. She could also see the bottom which had even more creatures sucrring around the ocean floor. Finding something to shift into would be pretty easy here. They also had the chance to explore the island which reminded her to check the map in the cabin.

The ship jerked just a bit before coming to a stop. Sadly there was no place to moor the ship since the island edges were all beach. Alexandria made her way into the cabin looking over the map. Of course she wasn't entirely sure where they were. Thankfully Lyric skipped in right at that moment.

"That was an awesome job with the sail and mast. You only saw me do that once and you did it better than me." Lyric could see she was trying to figure out the map. Walking over pulling a round object from her coat pocket placing it on the table. The needle spun around a few times before finally coming to a stop. "It would seem we are somewhere around this area." She circled it with her finger. There were some islands there and the area for naming them was blank.

Alexandria clapped her hands rapidly jumping up and down a bit. "That means since we are the first ones here we get to name it." Lyric was floored by the reaction. She didn't think Alexandria could act like that. Of course once she realized what she had done her nose wrinkled. "You never saw that and we will never speak of it again."

Lyric nodded a soft giggle escaping her lips. She covered her mouth quickly but noticed Alexandria wasn't even paying attention. Pulling what looked like a hand made pen. Sticking out her tongue a bit she marked the island with a V for the moment. She took the pen, putting it back in a tube, closing it and putting it in her jacket pocket.

"What is that pen you had there? It didn't look like anything I have ever seen before."

Alexandria smiled, patting the pocket softly. "That is my quill pen. It was made from the animal I shifted to get away from the facility. I only use it for important things."

That was an interesting bit of information since Lyric had never seen something made from a shifted animal. "That would mean you pulled that off your body after you escaped? That is pretty impressive. So now is the part we are going to have to jump in the shallow water to get to the island. I hope you're ready for that."

"Well I have to learn sometime. I am sure the water won't go above my head. Plus being able to see the bottom is very helpful." Alexandria moved towards the door, not going to ask any other questions. The next thing that needed to happen was finding that animal to shift into since her chest was starting to vibrate a bit. That wasn't a good sign at all.

Lyric picked up her compass following Alexandria out the door. She had a serious look on her face which was a bit weird when Alexandria turned to face her. "Is there something wrong or are you still annoyed by the way I acted?" Lyric asked, tilting her head to the side.

Alexandria wasn't sure if now was the best time to bring up a defect in her abilities. Keeping her emotions in check was important. The fact she almost shifted last night from something so small meant it could happen at any moment. Letting out an exasperated sigh she decided maybe just a little explanation would be helpful. The rest could come out at a later time.

"I have to shift soon or it will happen without me having control. That is why I didn't notice the feathers last night until you pointed them out. I can feel something in my chest like knots. That was how it felt the last time an accident happened." Clapping her hands over her mouth standing there with a look of shock on her face. That was way too much and she almost went into an explanation about what happened. Not saying another word she jumped off the side of the ship.

Lyric's mouth dropped open as she ran to the edge of the ship looking down to see what happened. Alexandria was standing in the water just breathing in and out. A smirk crossed Lyric's face since she didn't want to giggle and ruin the moment.

Her hands danced across the surface of the water looking around her to see if there was anything that caught her eye. There were a few creatures swimming around here. Lyric couldn't believe how none of them were bothering her even after she jumped into their area. The connection she seemed to have was like nothing Lyric had witnessed before.

Each time something passed by her one of her fingers tapped the surface of the water. She was counting them to know how many were around her. While all the creatures around her felt worthy of becoming a part of her shifting library. She was still unable to pinpoint that one which would give her that bit of calm. There were a few creatures a bit further out past the wave line of the island. A few fish jumped into the air splashing down into the water.

A choice needed to be made soon since she could feel the tension building inside her. Something bigger hovered near her which was different from all the rest. Tapping a finger down onto the surface of the water her eyes shot open looking around for the creature. It looked like a shadow gliding over the ground underneath the water. Alexandria could feel the calm that accompanied the creature so now it was time to turn her focus in on it.

Taking in a deep breath she started to follow the creatures movements since she needed to get a good read. However the creature wasn't staying still long enough for her to focus. Another creature jumped into the air which caught her attention. It was slick and had a fin on its back. Diving into the water with a nose that looked like a spear. A few thoughts came floating into her mind and the fact the splash wasn't that large really impressed her.

She fixed her eyes in that direction walking out until the water came up to her waist. Wanting to make sure that when she shifted there was enough water for her to move around in. The other creature she had been tracking was still close but it wasn't going to be still long enough. Feeling the movement of the water, Alexandria waited.

The fish jumped out of the water again in a graceful move. She locked eyes with the creature focusing everything she had on it. Letting out a scream her body started to contort and bend. Lyric watched from the ship in amazement since this was the first time she saw an ability like this one.

Alexandria leaned forward jumping into the air and shifting fully into the fish. She angled her nose down splashing into the water. The sensation this time was completely different from flying with the vulture. The feel of the water was completely different now then when she was a human. Water rushed around her as she weaved through the water. All the creatures around her cleared a path as she pointed her nose up trying to mimic the jump she first saw. Jumping into the air curling her body like a wave crashing back down into the water. She wasn't as graceful but the feeling was amazing.

She was going to try it one more time going back a bit further to pick up more speed. Breaking through the water looking towards the ship. Lyric was there waving to her. There was something else on the beach. Splashing down into the water much more gracefully this time she moved towards the ship. There should be enough room so she could get closer to see what was on the shore. The other creature she almost shifted into joined her on the right hand side. Alexandria was happy to see the creature there but there were more important things to deal with.

Moving right by the ship she jumped into the air looking out over the deck. Standing out on the deck was the figure of a person holding something in their hands. Splashing back into the water she started to get a bit nervous. Lyric giggled at the splash but found it weird she could come so close to the ship. Turning around she saw the figure on the beach. Pulling her cutlass flicking her wrist disappearing from the view of the person.

The person on the shore grunted running forward into the shallow water with a short bow in their hands. Lyric moved over to the cabin leaving the door open waiting for the person to board the ship. Alexandria swam back a bit to get the speed she needed. She was going to try jumping over the ship and taking out the person on the shore.

Darting forward as fast as she could until that other creature crossed into her path. She put the brakes on by jumping into the air. While in the air she spotted the figure about to board the ship. Splashing back down she swam in circles for a moment. Now it was doable to take the person out without having to almost kill herself. The creature moved out of her way but kept close to her. Alexandria wiggled her body a bit gaining some speed making her way to the ship.

Lyric heard the person jumping onto the deck. She needed to do something since from what she saw it wasn't anyone they could befriend since that weapon was aimed right at her.

She peered out the cabin door seeing an average sized female who looked like they had not eaten in a while. The knife hanging from her belt along with the bow made her out to be some kind of hunter. Maybe this island wasn't uncharted or it could be someone that shipwrecked here. Her clothes were worn but the weapons looked new. Lyric was about to make her move when a sound drew her attention.

Alexandria came shooting from the water catching the woman off guard. She freaked out trying to get a shot off with her bow. The spear nose of the fish plunged into her chest and knocked her backwards and off the ship. Blood spewed from her mouth as they landed in the shallow water on the other side of the ship with a loud splash. The once clear blue water started to run red with the hunters blood.

Lyric knew right away that she needed to make sure to help once they landed. She most likely couldn't survive in that form for long outside of the deeper water. She moved from the cabin making herself visible again jumping down into the water. Looking around for a moment following the blood water until she found the dead body. There was a decent size hole in her chest and the only life that remained were the nerves twitching throughout the body before it went still.

Lyric went searching around for Alexandria hoping that she didn't just kill herself protecting their ship along with her life.