[Yomegami]

Seclaw/ Ghost/ Umbress

Unnghh...

Sitting side-by-side on the docks of Jawan were a pair of Icthysaurs-a Cursed and a Hollow.

The Hollow, who went by the name of Ghost, was staring into the waters below the dock with a worried look on his face. The Cursed, Umbress, stared out to sea.

"Are we waiting for a ship to arrive, so we can go to Lambastia from here?" Ghost asked.

"Of course not! Seclaw says we're going down there," answered Umbress, pointing at the water, "to look for a-creature, of some sorts."

Ghost shuddered. "Okay, I knew that, I just wanted to make sure..." he said.

"Ghost, you're such a scaredy cat!" Umbress laughed.

Before Ghost could respond, Seclaw, the Cobalt Serraptor, walked from the street onto the dock.

"Come on, you two. We still need to prepare for the dive before we can get rolling." He said.

With that, the trio walked off. Ghost let a sigh of relief as he walked away from the ocean that seemed, oddly enough, to frighten him considerably.

[Yomegami]

It wasn't along until Seclaw found what he was looking for-a food store.

"Why do we need to go in here?" asked Ghost.

"Bait." was all Seclaw said, and he went inside.

Umbress sat down and hummed. Ghost looked shiftily back from Seclaw to Umbress, and eventually followed his fellow Icthysaur's example. Lying down, he closed his eyes and imagined they were doing something else other than...this.

[Yomegami]

After about 15 minutes, Seclaw emerged from the shop, carrying a bag of something.

Umbress looked up.

"What's in the bag?" she asked.

"Fish. And some shrimp. I figured we'd need some food so that we have an easier time convincing wild creatures we're not enemies." responded Seclaw.

Ghost cringed at the words "wild creature." He wanted nothing to do with such creatures, especially if they were vicious, and now they were actually hunting them down?

"Why do we want to do this again?" he asked.

"Because we feel like it!" answered Seclaw.

"Either way, I think we're ready to go. Let us begin our search!" he added, walking back towards the dock.

Umbress got up and followed, eager to begin, while Ghost cowered, and walked as if being pulled by something stronger than his will.

[Yomegami]

They reached the dock in due time. Ghost looked up at Seclaw.

"What's the plan? Do we get a boat and conduct our search from there?" he asked.

"Boat? Who needs one? We're diving straight in," answered Seclaw. His answer nearly made the poor Hollow Icthysaur faint.

Umbress nodded, turned towards the sea, and lept into the water. Moving her body in the typical s-shape of an icthy, she practiced swimming fast, lest they need to flee for any reason.

Ghost looked down, shaking. He tried to leap several times, but something kept his feet firmly anchored to the dock.

Seclaw rolled his eyes, then he kicked Ghost off the dock. The latter just about screamed as he fell and landed with a splash. Once in the water, however, he calmed down, and thought: This isn't too bad.

Another splash scared him, but this was only Seclaw. He swam back up, and the two icthysaurs followed him.

Once their heads broke the surface, Seclaw said "If there's one thing to be said right now, it's that it's best to stick together. Safety in numbers."

Ghost and Umbress nodded, and, submerging again, the trio swam along the coastline, having decided to check the shallows first.

[Yomegami]

A few hours later, the three creature's search had yielded nothing other than plain fish. To Seclaw, this was disappointing. Ghost, on the other hand, wondered why they didn't just snare one of the fishes and call their search successful.

A question came to the Hollow Icthysaur's mind, but he wasn't able to ask it in an understandable manner, since they were underwater. He tried to indicate that he wanted to go up to the surface so he could, by looking up and moving his head up and down towards the surface.

Seclaw noticed his companion's behavior, but misinterpreted it, taking it as a sign that Ghost needed air. He responded with a look saying "If you need air, there's no need to indicate it."

Ghost, knowing that Seclaw didn't get his meaning, narrowed his eyes and started waving his limbs wildly, pointing at the surface.

Seclaw looked up, thinking that there was a true wild creature above them, but saw nothing but the surface waves from below.

Irritated, he gave Ghost a dirty look.

Annoyed himself, Ghost finally got his meaning across by giving a thumbs up, with his "thumb" pointing towards the surface. This time, Seclaw nodded.

Umbress had been watching all of this with mild amusement, and although she wasn't involved, she too followed Seclaw and Ghost to the surface.

"What is it, Ghost?" Seclaw asked.

"It just came to me a couple minutes ago-why would a wild creature be near the coastline? It's too busy and frantic, especially around the city." answered Ghost, "It would make more sense that they would be out in the open ocean?"

"He has a point," agreed Umbress.

Seclaw gazed away from the shore, at the seemingly endless expanse of water before him and his friends. Slowly, he nodded.

"You're right. It's about time we get moving!" he said, and all three submerged, and paddled out to sea.

[Yomegami]

Today, it seemed, was not a day to look for life on the open sea, for it was surprisingly barren.

Only the occasional boat added a change of scenery.

Smart, Ghost. Really smart. "There'll be more creatures out on the open ocean", I said! Ghost thought.

He looked down, and very nearly freaked out. There were myraid dark shapes moving about in the water beneath them!

Seclaw and Umbress followed his gaze down to the shapes, but neither of them did so much as widen their eyes.

At this point, the Cobalt Serraptor went up and motioned the two Ichtysaurs to follow him.

"I swear! There's a bunch of beasts right below us!!" Ghost yelled once his head was above water.

"Those aren't beasts! Those-or rather, that-is the area where light begins to stop penetrating the water. The motion of the water is making the area move as well, giving the appearance of living creatures." answered Seclaw with a lengthy description.

After a deep breath, they sank beneath again and the hunt continued.

Umbress looked down at the shapes.

Hmm...

She swam downwards, towards the shapes.

Why am I getting the feeling that this is the place where a wild creature would most likely be found?

[Yomegami]

Ghost, who at this time was staring out into the water, failed to notice Umbress's descent into the twilight below. Seclaw, on the other hand, did.

"UMBRESS, YOU IDIOT!! WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?!" He yelled after her, but his words sounded like gibberish and bubbles of precious air escaped.

Ghost heard the frantic bellow, and he snapped back to attention to see his fellow Icthysaur disappear right below the moving dark shapes. He too nearly screamed, but had enough sense not too.

Seclaw, having lost most of his breath screaming, surfaced. Ghost quickly followed suit.

"We gotta go after her! Take a deep breath, and hope to heck we find her before something else does!" Seclaw promptly told Ghost, the latter responding with a nod.

They sank beneath, and darted quickly downwards towards the spot where Umbress had made her disappearance.

[Yomegami]

After about 12 minutes, Umbress was now about 10 feet below the light areas of the ocean. It was only now she realized that she'd lost Seclaw and Ghost. She looked around, blinked, tried to locate her wayward companions. But they were nowhere to be seen.

The cursed icthysaur had done it-she'd gotten herself lost.
============

Seclaw and Ghost were also underneath the light, but in a different area then Umbress. Seclaw lowered his head sadly.

Ghost noticed his expression, and knew that they weren't going to find Umbress anytime soon.

Seclaw swam upwards to get another breath-being a serraptor, and therefore not naturally being adapted to an underwater life, he needed to take breaths more frequently than his icthysaur companion.

Ghost accompanied him, although he was still fine on the air intake.

"We've lost her." said Seclaw once his head was above water.

"We might as well keep trying." responded Ghost.

[Yomegami]

Umbress kept looking about frantically. Still no sign of Seclaw or Ghost.

Maybe they're at the surface?

She went up, poked her head up above the waves, and scanned the surrounding waters. Still no signs.

She really was lost now. And she had no knowledge of the direction of the shore.

On the other hand, perhaps it'd be easier to search for a wild creature alone, rather than with the group?

Still, she was very worried about the location of the other two.
================

Seclaw and Ghost had submerged again, and they were now floating above the darker areas.

There was no possible way that Umbress could leave any sign of her passing. She was a dark Icthysaur, however, so perhaps she could easily blend in with the boundries between the light-filled surface waters and the dark, lower levels.

Ghost paddled ahead of his companion, knowing the appearance of icthysaurs better than Seclaw. Seclaw, meanwhile, swam just enough to keep pace with Ghost, letting the Hollow Icthysaur do most of the work.

Suddenly, Ghost froze. He had spotted a dark shape that was definately not a trick of light.

At first, he thought it was Umbress. But then, as the shape moved some more, he could see it was no icthysaur.

His eyes widened. He wanted to say to the Serraptor behind him "Come Quick!" Turned out, there was no need to.

Seclaw came up quickly next to Ghost, and followed his gaze.

By that time, however, the shape was gone.

[Yomegami]

Seclaw, upon seeing nothing, gave Ghost a dirty look.

I could've sworn I saw something... Ghost thought.

At this time, Seclaw swam upwards to breach the surface once more. Ghost followed his comrade in repeating an action done too many times before.

After several gasps, Seclaw hissed "Why get my attention if there is nothing to see?"

"I saw something! I know I did! I wouldn't have done anything if I didn't!" responded Ghost.

"Whatever. Keep in mind that we have to keep searching for Umbress as well." Seclaw told the Hollow Icthysaur, and with that they sank below to continue the hunt.

And the shape had reappeared. This time, Seclaw got a good look at it before it swiftly vanished.

The Cobalt Serraptor shot a look of apology at Ghost, and then the two swam off in the direction they saw the shape head.
=================

Umbress lay like a log at the surface, her nostrils above the water.

She had decided to look for Seclaw and Ghost before she began searching for a wild creature, and her search had come to nothing.

But doing nothing wasn't going to help either. She had to continue, no matter what.

She submerged, and looked around, perhaps hoping for a sign of her companions nearby.

What she saw instead was a dark shape, much more active than the shapes of the tricks of light, swimming right towards her.

Could it be...?

Pushing against the water with all four limbs, she darted towards the shape. However, the shape apparently spotted her and veered off in a different direction.

Shaking her head in frustation, she swam off after the shape, hoping to at least see what it was.

[Yomegami]

Pursuit of the dark shape, however, brought the trio back together again.

Seclaw and Ghost, on their chase, saw it veer off in another direction. Shortly after that, they saw another shape that they definately recognized.

"Umbress!" cried Ghost, his words coming out as blurbs.

Umbress looked up, surprised to see her friends. Then after getting over that, she swam up to join them.

Seclaw motioned for everyone to surface.

"Umbress! Next time, think before going off on your own! You had us worried!" he hissed.

"Sorry," was all Umbress said.

"Of more importance," began Ghost, "is the fact that we may possibly have a wild creature found."

"You're right." responded Seclaw, "but-how do we get near to it?"

"Hey Seclaw, didn't you buy some bait back in Jawan?" asked Umbress.

A grin flashed across the Serraptor's face.

"That might work," he said, then all three sank once more.

Once underwater, Seclaw opened his bag and took out one fish. This he gripped with one hand while he closed the bag with the other.

Then he swam off in the same direction the shape went, followed by the Icthysaurs.

[Yomegami]

A few minutes later, they were met with no luck.

Ghost surfaced, his face bearing a tired expression. He was soon followed by Umbress and Seclaw.

"I can't take this any more!" Ghost gasped.

"But-" began Seclaw.

"Ghost has a point. We haven't found anything of note, and we can go for only so much longer before our limbs give out and we drown. I say its time we head back for shore." Umbress said.

Seclaw looked down as he realized the truth.

"Alright," he said, and the group began the trek back to shore, ready to relax and head for home.

((RP is now finished.))