The wolf climbed over the chain and made it's way to the outside of the ship. It stopped and looked up at the sky. It was dark out, and the moon was high. Millions of stars could be seen and the slow slap of waves on the ship side was soothing.
Morrigan let out a sigh, her shoulders relaxing with the release of air, before she took in a deep breath. Fresh air. Ocean air, to be exact, either one a godsend. She made her way to the edge of the ship, leaning over to look down at the water, then up at the sky, a smile flickering into place.
The wolf was still looking at the sky for a moment before letting out a tiny whimper and continuing along the chain. It was making it's way down the chain, towards what looked like a ledge of some kind, inches from the water.
"Hey, where ya goin'? Stars, be careful." Morrigan shook her head, moving away from the edge of the ship to continue following the wolf. She couldn't help looking up at the stars every chance she got, the familiar sight of them making her feel just a tiny bit at home.
The wolf jumped onto the ledge and sat down. After a moment of just sitting it laid down with it's paws hanging over the edge. Barely brushing the water every time the ship bobbed in the water. It didn't seem like they were moving at all. They seemed to be completely stationary.
Once Morrigan reached the ledge, she looked around. Her face seemed more open than usual, a product of being tired and of finally getting to see open air, that left her unguarded and more relaxed. She sat down and shifted so that she was laying on her stomach, reaching down to brush her fingers along the water's surface. "It's so quiet."
The wolf rested it's head on it's paws and watched the water. A low rumble sounded from it's throat. Then it lifted it's head and let out a low howl. A sad and lonely howl that seemed to echo around the water, but was quiet as well. It howled for several seconds, before resting it's head on it's paws again.
Morrigan turned her head, resting it on her arm as she looked at the wolf, listening to it howl. Her eyes spoke loneliness too in response, and her voice carried an undertone of the same. "Lonely, huh? I get that. Little too much some days."
It flicked it's ears in response to her voice, to signify that it was still listening to her. Then the distinct sound of a gun being cocked sounded from above them. Both of the wolf's ears went back before it leaped to it's feet and spun around snarling.
"Ain't no rest for the wicked, not until they're dead." Morrigan muttered under her breath, almost sounding like she was singing. She sat up, but didn't turn around, just tilted her head back to look up at the source of the sound of the gun. "Can I help ya?"
"Hello again. How's the shoulder?" The familiar voice of the man who'd attacked them two nights before sounded above them. The wolf was snarling by this point, it's fur spiked out in every direction.
Morrigan looked off to the side, as though actually thinking about it. "Feels like I got shot." She decided, shrugging a shoulder. She unfolded her legs, standing and stretching her arms up as she shifted just a bit closer to the wolf, fully preparing herself to shield it. "Y'know, I think yer guy that was just here was on somethin'. Trippin', man, all jittery an' shit. Poppin' on the job ain't very professional."
"Ah speaking of him, where did he go? I haven't seen him since I sent him to get you," the man said keeping the gun trained on her. The wolf snarled at him, and took a step forward. "Also could ya keep Fiedo here on a leash I don't like the way he's looking at me."
“Dead, I’m guessin’.” Morrigan said casually, shrugging as though talking about a bad pass in a football game. “An’ I cant really control him. He ain’ my dog, so.”
"Well you better do something with em', otherwise I'm gonna shot it," the man threatened changing his aim to the wolf. It snarled at the man and took a small step back.
Morrigan stepped in front of the wolf, raising an eyebrow. "How am I s'posed t' tell somethin' what t' do when it ain't mine?" She asked, motioning anyway for the wolf to calm down.
The wolf's snarl lessened to a low growl and it took a few steps away. It looked up at the man once again, before darting away, and disappearing up the chain. The man watched it leave before turning his attention back to Morrigan. "Not very loyal, it just kind of left you here to fend for yourself, and I have the high ground."
"O' course he ain't loyal. He's not mine. Am I gonna have t' keep sayin' that over an' over?" Morrigan asked, rolling her eyes and placing a hand on her hip. While she was a bit more relaxed, now that she didn't have to worry about the wolf getting hurt, the uneasiness in her gut kicked up a notch. Nowhere was safe, she knew that, but having someone by her side was nice.
"If he ain't yours, than why on earth would he be protecting you?" The man let the gun drop a bit. He looked more like he just wanted to talk than do anything else really. "That's not natural for a big dog like that. Where'd it come from anyway? We're in the middle of the sea."
"Decided he liked me, I guess." Morrigan shrugged, looking for all the world like she didn't care that much. "I talked to 'im, so maybe dogs like tha'. As for where he came from, no clue. Stowed away on accident, maybe?"
"Sure, a timber wolf the size of a small black bear, just wandered through the city and stowed away on a ship run by police officers. Do you even realize how stupid that sounds?" The man crossed his arms on the railing, the gun still in his hand.
"I never said it didn't sound stupid. Jus' listed it as a possibility." She shrugged, tucking her arms into her pockets casually, keeping them there instead of pulling them out the way one would if they were trying to draw a weapon. "I don' know what the fuck a wolf would be doin' here. Jus' that it is here. He is really big though, ain' he? I'm wonderin' how he managed not t' be heard or seen."
"I'm wondering why it hasn't killed you yet. It does seem to like you, otherwise you probably would be dead. So, Red, what exactly are you doing out here anyways?" The man leaned against the railing, he didn't seem worried about anything. Either he wasn't in a hurry to do anything, or he was stalling.
"Honestly, I'm a bit surprised myself about that. Realistically, ya'd think he'd have offed me." She cocked a hip to get more comfortable, looking tired and weirdly relaxed as she stood there, chatting with a man who essentially held her life in his hands. "I don' know. They're movin' me somewhere, but y'know, I'm a criminal and all so I don't get to know things."
"Movin' ya huh? Then why are we at a complete stop? And why are there no guards on this ship? And why exactly are you the only prisoner being transported?" the man asked tipping his head slightly. "I mean I'm no expert but it kinda looks to me like you were sent out here to die by the hands of people playing the role of police."
"No guards? Ya tellin' me Ramirez works for ya too? Damn, now I know he ain't gonna pay me for that game he lost." Morrigan muttered, huffing. "Maybe I was. I thought I was bein' moved to die, sure, but maybe they jus' wanted me out here t' do it."
"You think I'm behind all this?" the man laughed. "Okay I may hate you and the other police, but I made my point where everyone could see it. I wouldn't do something like that way out here. And before you ask, I'm only on this water tank, because the docks are where we like to hang out. And I just happened to end up stuck on this ship as it began to leave."
"An' I'm jus' 'sposed t' believe that?" Morrigan snorted, as though that was an actually funny thing. "Ya shot me jus' a few days ago, tried t' kill an innocent-ish police officer, an' did all o' this in a public space were innocent people coulda gotten hurt. Nothin' would surprise me a' this point."
"Yeah, believe what you will," the man shrugged. "I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a glory hound, I would much prefer have an audience to watch something do. It's called making a name for yourself."
Something suddenly clicked behind the man's head. The distinct sound of a gun cocking. "Put the gun down," Keith's voice spoke behind the gun.
Morrigan's eyebrows flicked up in slight surprise as the gun clicked, her eyes flickering to Keith. "Well, if it isn't my knight in shining blue. Where'd you come from?" She raised an eyebrow, something flickering in her expression for just a moment that, if one was paying attention, belied her relief.