The strong, harsh winds blew through the docks as the beautiful descending sun from the horizon was about to fade into darkness, providing the skies and clouds with brilliant shades of pink and yellow. The first signs of stars were also appearing in the vast sky itself.
Hundreds of crew members scattered around the wooden platforms close to the very top of the tower, loading goods and supplies for their voyage in preparation for their next departures, while many wealthy folks and politicians took the opportunity to engage in conversations or gossip.
Despite the peaceful atmosphere, there were human foreign guards stationed everywhere, keeping an eye out for troublemakers. Based on their appearance, these individuals were simply temporarily hired as thugs by the government themselves to deal with possible thieves or other troublemakers.
However, what sets them all aside is the enormous flying aircraft just parked in front of the largest platform, with a makeshift wooden bridge placed down at the edge to make a path directly to the main deck. Despite its size, the ship itself was truly an impressive sight to behold for the magnificent feat of engineering that looked like it had come from the future.
Although Schrodinger, Saomi, and the Captain himself stood together in a circle among the busy crowd, discussing remotely important events, "So you're telling me," The cat muttered quietly, "Your so-called loyal 'friend' is harmless after everything you told us earlier? Are you sure that the information is correct?"
"How many times do I have to tell you?" He sighed painfully at this, unable to grasp why neither of them can trust a simple explanation alone: "He won't harm anyone as long as no one antagonizes him too much." Trying to reason with them proved to be much more difficult than he had imagined, but he expected such a response from his longtime acquaintance.
Saomi merely crossed her arms, remaining skeptical and unimpressed. "But murder is wrong, no matter how you put it," she said, not believing what she was hearing at all. "He has no right to kill people who have done nothing but make him upset! And even if they did do that to him, shouldn't it be up to him to leave the area without starting a massacre on that man?!"
She did have good intentions but lacked experience, Henry believed. "Sweetie," he chuckled softly, "the world isn't all sunshine and rainbows like your people make it out to be. What exactly do you want him to do?" The captain reasoned calmly, "Let people insult him all they want, even if what they say is nothing but false claims or lies in order to hurt his feelings?"
The cat listened intently while remaining silent throughout their conversation: "Its not about him being a murderer," stating his facts about this; "what I'm more concerned about is his questionable restraint from lashing out too much without thinking twice about his actions." Having witnessed others from this multiple times before, he understands where they are coming from.
Pinching the middle of his nose, the captain nodded his head, sympathizing with where this conversation is headed. "Look, I'll make sure to watch him if he does anything rash," he responded firmly, "try to understand that he has his own reason for doing the things that he does, especially if we consider that he was forced to become one due to outside influence," pointing out how society nowadays treats him.
In a way, he himself felt somewhat responsible for not being a friend. Having left his best buddy to rot in jail, he relied on others to do the favor for him. What's more, he wasn't man enough to confront the council by even speaking about Bull's unfair arrest.
What kind of friend is he if he is incapable of freeing someone who has been loyal to him day and night? Especially with so many crew members working with him and looking up at the captain as a brother or father figure to them.
Sadness struck his heart upon realizing this: "He's still my friend, you know?" He softly muttered under his breath, gazing at the floor while contemplating whether or not they should've left him in there. "No matter what you two say, he and I have fought thin and thick against numerous enemies together like brothers in arms. There's no way in hell am I abandoning someone so important to me."
Silence filled the atmosphere following the captain's confession. As the two didn't know how to respond to that, Saomi's eyes caught something else after glancing over the man's shoulder: Janus was being occupied by a tall, monstrous Minotaur creature as the duo approached them from a distance.
Every step the beast took slightly shook the entire ground if he had the strength to break down buildings with his bare hands. Standing at an imposing eleven feet, shirtless, and built like a professional weightlifter, it's a sight to behold to see something so large.
Immediately feeling the low vibration that reverberated beneath his hooves, the bull let out a deep, frustrated grunt from having to look at the people around him, staring at Bull as if he were some kind of freak, monster, or freak, much to his disappointment.
Many faces were filled with different emotions, showing how completely varied their opinions and reactions were upon seeing the minotaur. Some had a mix of both curiosity and fear, wondering what they should do or say next, while others were thrilled to see him again free.
But none were brave enough to come close and meet him face-to-face because of his hulking, intimidating presence. Although he already expected a reaction from this whenever he takes a stroll in a busy place, it still doesn't feel right to be judged like this.
"Fucking humans and their constant stares," angrily scoffing under his breath, the bull was so pissed that he couldn't even stand in one place without constantly being viewed by onlookers, "how many times do I have to be some spectacle for people to stare at?"
Janus eyes showed a glimmer of pity from hearing such words, for he too had dealt with this similar treatment before in the past. "Do not fret too much; humans are simply curious by nature of seeing a fellow colleague as yourself, especially a Minotaur as unique as you," said the god of time.
In response, Bull could only shake his head and grumble. How come humans would gawk at him yet wouldn't bother doing the same for someone like Janus? he thought. "I still hate it whenever they stare at me," he responded coldly while rubbing the side of his arm.
"Sense of insecurity, I see," Janus nodded from this understanding, knowing fully well that it is true, for he too shares that feeling, "speaking of which," mentally smiling when they stopped in front of their companions, "I think your friend would like to speak with you."
Henry and Bull stood ahead of each other, the tension palpable in the air between them. With how much they haven't seen in one another for the longest time, both weren't sure of what to say or even do until Saomi coughed to gain their attention.
"You guys can start apologizing to one another," suggesting the two of them while easing the silent atmosphere by letting these men settle their dispute, "that is the first step to forgive and forget, as some would put it," smiling awkwardly at everyone.
Although she knew little of the details of this strange situation, it's obvious that whatever the cause, these men had issues to resolve with one another. Which was why Henry finally had the balls to speak up first: "Hey Bull, long time no seek, eh?" The captain said with a forced smile, "It's been a while since we last saw each other, buddy boy."
Narrowing his eyes, Bull folded his arms together with an unamused expression. "Really? That's all you have to say to me? 'long time, no see'?" He answered with a cold glare, "After rotting for an entire month in that shitty cell, what makes you think that I'm happy to see your face?" Another moment of silence passed between them.
"Why are you here? What do you want?" Bull asked him with a stern gaze before softening up a bit, "Don't get me wrong, caps. I appreciate what you did today and the things before, but why in my ancestor's balls didn't you do anything when I was locked up? Have you forgotten about me the moment I was sent to prison, or is there something else you're not telling me?" Patience is already beginning to thin on him now.
Forcing himself to stand his ground and explain everything, Henry held a regretful look before moving his own head away. "I was afraid," was his honest and sincere answer as he continued without hesitation. "Afraid of confronting those rich bastards from mentioning you, afraid of losing my job at the thought of rescuing an inmate because of his act in murdering a noble," the captain clenched his right fist from frustration.
"Christ, I know that doesn't sound like a good excuse, but honestly, that was the reason why I did nothing to aid you and why I kept you inside that place." Turning to his best friend, "The rotten family of that fat man you killed would do anything to strip me away from my role as captain from the moment they heard word of me even assisting in rescuing you for reasons such as this. And if not, then they would just demand from me another request that would surely bankrupt me and the rest of our crew!"
Henry turned to face him, raising his eyes to match his. "I am really sorry, buddy, but I can't risk myself or any of us getting hurt or worse over this," the man admitted to his friend as he then gripped onto his own guilty face, "and I understand why you won't forgive me for this; hell, I deserve it for not being a real man to even stand up for you or what's right."
Sudden laughter erupted from the Minotaur: "Oh! Oh!" Tears welled from the corner of his eyes, and his laughter grew louder, causing everyone, including Henry, to watch witness him in bewilderment before he finally settling down with a couple of snickers.
"Great to hear it!" Putting his giant hand on the captain's shoulder, unexpectedly, "I've got to admit, that's not what I was expecting to hear from you, but hey, at least it's honest." Bull smiled sincerely as he removed his hand from him. "That's all I need to hear, and by that, I can tell you that I forgive you," surprising the poor captain.
"H-how... why?" Stuttering like an idiot, "You're just forgiving me over something that's terrible?!" He demanded of him, not understanding what made this beast so simple-minded to brush off this subject, or maybe he wasn't listening.
"That's easy," he responded as though the question was not. "In any circumstances, I would still punch your ugly face." This caused Henry to gulp in horror. "But you are like a brother to me, caps.That was one thing his friend had not expected to"hear. "Even when things went rough for the both of us, no matter the pain, misery, and suffering that is beyond our control, I believe we got each other's backs, and you rescuing me from prison is proof that we can get through this, no matter what happens in between."
Manly tears shed from the corner of the captain's eyes, but he quickly wiped them away, and the moment passed; the moment was gone. "You are a real freak of nature," chuckling in between a sniffle, he then muttered. "I'll have a beer ready for you to make up for lost time," he offered, which the bull hummed in approval.
"Just like old time, caps."
As the two best friends walked away towards the boarded airship, leaving the three of them alone, Schrodinger turned to Janus and asked, "How did the prison break go?" The curious cat wondered, "are they all still alive and kicking?"
"Schrodinger!" Saomi didn't like the sound of that. "That's incredibly disturbing the way you put it," she exclaimed to the feline, who rolled his eyes in response to hearing the likes of her, much to the young woman's annoyance.
Janus then answered their impending question: "No one died," he briefly added, "no one even noticed what was happening except some scrawny prison guard who, unfortunately enough, got himself pissed on the floor before being sent to the infirmary."
Saomi smiled in relief, but Schrodinger, on the other hand, couldn't help but laugh at the answer given: "Well, that's a shame; now you wouldn't have anything to do with it, did you?" The white cat mused at him after calming down.
Shrugging his shoulders, "Not really; all I did was break Bull out of jail." Not seeing any purpose in continuing this conversation, he turned his head to her and asked, "Want to get on the ship? It seems like we are ready to leave." Glancing over his shoulders, he notices how many people there are who have climbed aboard.
With a smile, she said, "okay dookie!"
