Story

This is a work in progress, likely to be changed, and verrrry looong! I'll put in a summary eventually, I just thought I better put something up :D

A young blue-grey lupe of about 14 trudged up a narrow path of a hill, a small, bulging sack slung over his back. On his left grew a tall thick forest and on his right the village lay below and the ocean sparkled in the morning light. The lupe paused to survey the view and breathed deeply, smelling the crisp scent of the pines mingling with the fresh salty air of the ocean. The village was a bustling seaside village nestled in a valley and stretched to the shore. The valley sides were heavily wooded and in the distance mountains stretched to touch the sky. The village was large enough to have a small port where ships travelling the ocean would come in for rest stops, repairs and to pick up supplies. One advantage of this was that there were always new faces and old seadogs who stayed at the local bar, telling wonderfully enticing tales of voyages to distant lands. And then there was the ocean, a sparkling aqua blue, so huge one could be swallowed up by it, a moody and merciless entity. But yet she called to him with her enchanting song, inviting him to leave the island, to explore the wide wonderous world. He sighed and continued up the path. His father was a wealthy merchant and wanted him to follow in the family business and the lupe did not....he wanted to be a sailor. He and his father had had many heated arguements over this topic, often ending when his mother intervened. The lupe rounded the corner and viewed his house. It was a luxurious two storey home, built out of timber years ago by his grandfather. It was certainly the most wealthy home in the village. The lupe entered the front door and sauntered into the kitchen. A gentle voice called from the living room "Ivan? Ivan is that you? Did you buy what I asked you to?" Ivanhoe plunked the sack on the table. "Yes mother, and I have some change for you too." He started taking out of the sack an assortment of fruit, vegetables, bread and meat. A pale blue lupess glided into the room. "Thankyou Ivan...since your father is away on business, it is good that you have taken up some responsibility. Ivan grinned "No problem, I'm glad to help you."

***

Ivan twisted in bed, his sheets suffocating him. A distant sound disturbed him and he sat up in bed, straining his ears to listen. There it was again. It sounded like...gunfire? Ivan jumped out of bed and ran to the front door. He flung it open and squinted at the village below. Flashes of light signified gunfire and voices could be heard shouting and screaming. Ivan went cold. What was going on in the village? It sounded like chaos was breaking loose. Suddenly his eye caught sight of a big black ship in the harbour. Ivan stared at the flag trying to make out the symbol when it fluttered it the breeze and caught some light, revealing a grinning skull and crossbones. Horrified, Ivan ran back into his house and ran from room to room, searching for a weapon...anything he could use in a fight. His mother walked down the stairs, bleary eyed. "Ivanhoe, what's going on? What are you looking for?" Ivan grimaced. "We're under attack by pirates. You must leave now! And I must go help the village!" He picked up his father's old sword from above the mantleplace. "This will do" He muttered. Malika gaped at him open mouthed. "You can't be serious." Ivan laughed. "Would I lie about something like this?". Malika stared at his determined face. "Ivan, you are too young to fight. I know you will be harmed and I couldn't bear to lose my eldest son." Ivan shook his head. "Just take my brother and the maid and go." Malika sighed, her shoulders slumped in defeat. She embraced Ivan strongly. "Keep safe." She turned and went back upstairs. Ivan stood before the front door, bracing himself to go outside when the door was flung open, knocking him sprawling onto the floor. Two hulking figure stood in the doorway. They stepped forward into the light revealing a brutish bori and a hunched over, lanky techo with a missing eye. "Well, well, well what a nice place we have. Very luxurious." The techo said, picking up a cup and examining it. The bori was the first to notice Ivan who still lay frozen on the floor. He gave the techo a nudge in the ribs "Hey lookie here- there's a little pup watchin' us." The techo put the cup down and examined Ivanhoe before grinning and revealing missing teeth. "Well we need a new cabin boy after our ol' one died from scurvy." Ivan stared at the two pirates aghast. A cabin boy? He wasn't going to be a pirate and he had to distract them to allow his mother and brother to escape. Finding some strength in his limbs, he lunged forward with the sword at the techo. The techo laughed and effortlessly deflected the blow. Ivan lunged again, throwing all his energy into the blow, but the techo dodged the blow and snickered. "The young pup 'as no idea how to fight, but he 'as spirit, I'll give 'im that." The bori laughed and replied "Just take 'im so we can loot the house." Ivan stared defiantley at the pirates "I'll never be a pirate! You can't make me!!" The techo grinned and soundlessly swung his sword, flatside at Ivan, who tried to dodge the blow but tripped, and the sword connected with his head, sending him spiraling into blackness.

***

Ivan woke up, groaning. His head throbbed and he felt nauseus. He was in a small dark room. Standing unsteadily he felt his way to the door. Feeling for the latch, he found it was unlocked. He pushed the door open and stepped out onto....floorboards? It was night outside still, and he began to run alongside the building when he collided with a low railing. Feeling confused he looked over and felt sick to the pit of his stomach. The ocean waves lapped far below at the side of the ship. He was on the pirate ship, heading off to who knew where. Suddenly he felt a heavy hand grasp his shoulder. He turned to see a large grizzly Krawk leering down at him. He had a large deep scar running down one eye and a hooked hand. His clothes however, were very fine covered by a long black trench coat embroidered with gold and a large captain's hat with a red plume sat at an angle on his head. "'Ello sonny. You be our new cabin boy aye? I'm Captain Falkner and his be the Blackwing" Ivan wrenched himself from the captains grip and shouted "I'm no ones cabin boy!! Let me go back home! I'm no use to you!!" Falkner sneered. "I don't think so sonney. He gestured in a circle "We're already an hour's voyage away from your home...besides, I wouldn't let you go anyway. My crew need someone to order around...make's 'em feel important." Ivan stared desperatley at the ocean, fighting to keep from crying. He finally turned to Falkner with a snarl and in desperation replied "Fine. I.....challenge you to a duel. If I win you let me go....if you win, I'll be your cabin boy" He spat. The Captain stared at him for a moment, seizing him up before letting out a hearty laugh "Ye honestly are serious? Ye've got spunk son, but I warn ye, I could slaughter ye if I wanted to." Drawing out two swords, he tossed one to Ivan, who grappled with it before fixing his grip. "Beware, I'm the finest swordsman in the southern ocean. Get ready to learn how to scrub the deck!" Falkner chuckled. By then, the ragged crew had gathered in a circle around Ivan and the Captain. They started jeering and taunting Ivan, who stood sweating in their midst. He watched Falkner, waiting for him to attack. The Captain grinned and lunged forward as fast as a snake. Ivan only barely managed to draw his sword up in defence and the strength of Falkner's blow was so strong that the wind was knocked out of him. Falkner drew back and Ivan lunged forward in a desperate attempt to land a blow on him. In one swift movement Falkner stepped to the side and flicked his sword up, disarming Ivan, tripping him and pointing his sword at Ivan's neck. "Told ya ye would lose boy. Ye have to show sum respect or next time I won't be so forgivin'" Falkner sneered. "Now off with ya to work ye scurves...all of ya!" The pirates roared with laughter and walked off to their various stations while Ivan still lay on the ground, his face burning with humiliation. A boot nudged him in the side. Looking up, Ivan saw a large gelert standing over him with a scowl plastered on his face. "Get up cabin boy. I have to assign ye tasks. Me name's Rasac, and I'm the ship's First Mate." Ivan got to his feet and scowled. Well, he'd always wanted to be a sailor, just not this kind of sailor. At least he would get to explore the world. "Wipe that scowl off yer face boy!" Ivan glared at Rasac "I've been kidnapped, do you really think I'm supposed to be happy?" Rasac gave a hearty laugh and thumped Ivan on the back. "Suppose not. Ye alright boy. Now that your a cabin boy, your duties are scrub the decks, help the chef, check that riggings tied to the deck are secure, and make sure the captain's quarters are kept spick 'n span. Speaking of which, yer gonna have to learn some different sailors knots, but for today, head off to bed. Your cabin is down that hatch and near the food cellar. Now off with ya!" He gave Ivan a push and grinned. Ivan just scowled and made his way down the narrow hatch. He found himself in a wide musty corridor lined with doors at irregular intervals. Ivan trotted down the dimly lit hall, looking through the glass portals to see what was in each room. Mostly he had glimpses of bunks and hamocks. One locked room held weapons, and another held kegs of wine. Finally he came to the food cellar, which had a door next to it. He cautiously opened the smaller door and found his room. It was small, but not too cramped. It had sparse furnishings consisting of a hammock slinged in the right hand corner, a night table with a candle, a chest of draws and a small chest. His inspection of the furniture revealed that they were of surprisingly good quality. The chest was empty, but it had a lock which he could use, but the drawers had three sets of neatly folded clothes. Yawning, Ivan decided to call it a night and settled in his hammock, falling almost instantly asleep.

***

It had been a week now, and Ivan was fast learning the ways of the Blackwing. Rasac had taken him under his wing and was teaching him various complicated sailor knots, how to clean weaponry so that it shined like the sun and who he should avoid and when. Ivan was fast growing accustomed to this way of life- the open seas and endless horizon gave him such a feeling of freedom and joy, and the crewmates were not too bad. Most of them were quite likeable and cheery scoundrels, but scoundrels nevertheless. He was fitting in well, making jokes and joining in some fun at night, however he point blank refused to talk like them. 'Uncivilised' was the term he used to describe them. Furthermore, there were two regrets that Ivan had- not seeing his family and the fact that he was by far the worst swordsman on the ship. Even blind Raqis could disarm him of his sword, as he had found out to his humiliation earlier that week. Both these problems were soon to resolve themselves in unexpected ways.

***

Rasac stood at the bow of the ship, staring into the distance, unmoving and unblinking. Ivan ventured next to him and stood silently, squinting into the distance. It was a fine day for sailing with calm waters, clear skies and a fine breeze gusting the Blackwing along, only her flag was a friendly one. After a few minutes of silence, he finally spotted something on the horizon and exclaimed with delight "Is that Mystery Island?! I've heard a lot about that place!" Rasac laughed and thumped a hand on Ivan's shoulder "Sure is. But we're not pullin' a a raid on this town cause its too big. That's why we're flyin' the happy flag. Just gonna buy sum supplies and enjoy ourselves at the local bars. Yer welcome to come along Ivan. We may raid a smaller town on the west coast later on." Ivan immediatley sobered up. He did not want to partake in any raids, no matter what the rewards. He did not want to ruin any lives or steal when he had no need. Rasac carefully watched his reactioon, seizing him up. "Arr, yer soft-hearted, I forgot sonney. Nevermind, yer don't have to come on the raids, I understand perfectly. But still yer better not show those kind of emotions to Falkner cause he'll call ya weak and throw ye overboard, so make sure yer keep that in mind." Ivan nodded silently and croaked "Thanks Ras" before making his way back to his cabin.

Sitting down on his hammock, he retrieved some pieces of parchment from his drawers and an ink quill. Pondering over what to write for a few moment, Ivan began to write a letter to his family, assuring them that he was alive and well, and learning a great deal of things despite the fact he was now in captivity to pirates. He also assured them not to worry and that he would see them again one day soon, as well as keep in touch as often as he could. Upon finishing the letter, he sealed it in an envelope and meticulously printed the address on the front. When finished, he leaned back and surveyed his handiwork, and a feeling of melancholy sadness washed over him. In truth he did not know if he would ever see his family again, especially his little brother, but he could hope. He placed the envelope gently in a drawer and left his cabin to go and help the chef prepare lunch.

***

It was later afternoon and the sun was almost set, the last of its rays painting the sky in brilliant colours of purple and gold, and everything else was awash in a warm yellow glow. The blackwing, currently disguised as the Alutica, crept into Mystery Island's main port which was still bustling with activity. Seamen of all shapes and sizes loaded and unloaded cargo from various ships, while others just stood around and talked or shouted orders. Ivan had never in his life seen such a huge port or so many neopians in one place. He stood at the bow, drinking the scene in. Rasac saw this and grinned "heh, this ain't so big. Ye should see the port at Neopia, and you haven't seen any markets till ye've seen the ones in the Lost Desert!" Ivan grinned back and threw a rope over the starboard to Sarit, an agile Eyrie who was already on the dock, waiting to tie the ship. As soon as the gang plank was readied, Captain Falkner appeared with impeccable timing and announced to his crew to do as they wished, and he handed out bags of coins to each pirate, even Ivan, except he recieved only one silver coin. The crewmates let out resounding cheers and whoops before rushing off the ship to get to the nearest tavern. Ivan however had other plans. He made his way to the centre of town, trying to find a postal shop of some variety. After asking several persons for directions he finally found himself in a small shop, highly decorated with various souvenirs of sorts such as sandals and palm fans lining the shop shelves. Approaching the counter hesitantly, Ivan laid the envelope containing the letter on the counter with a few neopoints and waited for someone to appear. A few moments later, a large man wearing a tiki mask emerged from a side door. The man didn't say anything, but simply nodded and took the money and letter. Ivan gave a small smile of thanks and left the store feeling slightly bewildered. He spent the next few hours just wandering the markets and taking in the marvels of the Island. Passing the local tavern on his way back to the ship, Ivan grinned as he heard raucous singing. Back on the ship, Ivan wandered the corriders of the Blackwing, feeling bored as he had nothing to do. He halted in front of a highly polished wooden door which had a Pawkeet skull fixed to it. Ivan stared at the skull, wondering if it was real. This must be the captain's quarters. Letting curiosity get the better of him, he pushed the door open and gave an appreciative gasp. Falkner's cabin was HUGE and insanely luxurious. The walls were lined with hundreds of books and in the center of the room was a highly polished mahogany desk that had a number of interesting trinkets and maps lying spread out on it. Near the shelves were a couple of crimson armchairs. There was also a partion in the corner, behind which was a grand four-poster bed. Ivan wandered past the shelves, examining the books, most of which covered navigation, but there were also some classic novels. Ivan had always loved to read back at home, expanding his knowledge. Climbing up the ladder that was on the side to inspect the books situated higher on the shelves, he suddenly noticed a large dusty book hidden on the very top of the shelves, shadowed by the lack of light. Reaching out to grab it, he found it was out of his reach. Stretching, his fingertips lightly brushed the edge of the book. Ivan gritted his teeth and stretched as far as his arm allowed. Suddenly he had the book in his grasp, but Ivan overbalanced and toppled off the ladder. Standing with a groan he rubbed his side. That had been painful and his foot ached too.

Ignoring the aches, Ivan examined the dusty volume. It had no title, but upon flicking through the pages, he found that it detailed various techniques for fighting, ranging from hand-to-hand to every type of weapon imaginable. Grinning, Ivan shut the book and stowed it away in a dark corner of a drawer and left his cabin. He crept along the dark corridor, silently making his way to the armoury and weapon storage room. Holding his breath, he twisted the knob and found it was....unlocked. Ivan couldn't believe his luck, it was usually locked, but perhaps Falkner had unlocked it to hand out weapons to the crew before they went onto the island. He stepped inside and quietly shut the door behind him. He lit a dim torch and rummaged through the caskets of weapons. Most were well cared for with sharp edges and would be missed if he took them. Finally, he found what he was looking for....a rusty old sword that no one would notice if it disappeared. Grinning, he pulled the sword out of the casket and staggered with its weight. It was incredibly heavy and would be difficult for him to wield. Gritting his teeth he swung the sword on his shoulder and stumbled back to his cabin. It would certainly be a challenge to use it to practise, but it would build up body strength. Ivan locked his door and pulled out the book and flipped through the fragile yellowed pages until he found a section on beginner sword fighting...

Name: Ivanhoe_23
Gender: Male
Parents: Malika and Rikan
Siblings: A younger brother, Yanik
Human: butterflyx21
Appearance:.......
Eyes: Deep green
Reference sheet: http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e61/Renataewa/ivanreference.jpg
(Use this if your doing an adoptable for me! Except that its slightly out of date- from back when Ivan was a crew mate. Now he's a captain ^_^ So this is only valid for his natural self. For anthro, use the blog :D)

Personality: Stubborn, cunning
Love: *Laughs out loud*
Pups Out of the question.

Age: 21 in human years
Level: 70
Strength: 61
Agility: 60
Defence: 62
HP: 65
Intelligence: 734
BattleDome Score: 23679

Family

Alatariel

Although she is not blood family, I treat her like my younger sister that I never had...with fins. She is one of the sweetest creatures you could ever meet with a michevious streak thanks to Kalzari. And I owe her big time when she healed some cursed wounds for me. -Ivan rolls up his pants to reveal three whitish stripes on his left leg- They would have cost me my life if not for her.

Toybox

Hey, little pirates!! *Prods them* Kinda creepy O_o

Trophies!

Yeah that's right, I have trophies! Why wouldn't I?

Art

*huggles orca1026* Squee! Doesn't Ivan look cute? Thanks so much!!

Woah! Don't I just look fabulous?! Thanks so much becentine!! *_*

NEW LUPE ADOPTIES!

You know the adoptable rules:

1) Do not use in the BC (It's against the BC rules to enter other people's art and it will most likely end up with you being frozen)
2) Do not claim them as your own or remove my name
3) Make sure they link back to this page
4) Do not alter them in any way

More colours coming soon... so check back soon.

CUSTOMS- TRADES only

MAKEABLES!

Just an extra note, try to avoid resizing them as being pixelated means they will warp if you resize...if you guys are interested, I could make normal lined ones....but these would only be good for those that have a program other than ms paint probably. If you want to see something like this, mail me!

Instructions for ms paint-

Save the makeable to your computer (Take the png formated one, cause the one with a clear background is useless unless you have a program like photoshop) and open it in Microsoft Paint. Colour it to suit you and taadaa!! Your own custom Lupe!! Save in jpg format otherwise the colours will warp, then you can upload to your own image host and put it on your site or whatever.

Instructions for Other Programs (or new versions of MS PAINT)-

Pretty much the same as above except you can deal with the gif and transparent backgrounds. When you open the makeable up though, you'll notice it will have a black background and you can't colour it...copy the whole picture, open a new document and paste. Close the old version and delete the black background in the new version and its ready for editing ^_^ When finished, if you have a newer version of photoshop, save as a compuserve gif to maintain the transparency. Photoshop 5 has the option to -export- as a gif89a which does the same thing.

Rules:

1) Please link back, it makes it easier for others to find them ^_^
2) Please do NOT use these in the BC (It's against the BC rules to enter other people's art and it will most likely end up with you being frozen)
3) Do not remove my name from the picture (feel free to move it around though!)
4) You can add other features to the picture besides colour to make it look like your own lupe eg. giving it dragon wings, jewelry, etc Also you can remove the line that divides the fur on the chest and back if your lupes don't have that...duh!
5)Please enjoy, or if you have a problem with them, please let me know =)

Temporarily gone until I draw new ones. The ugliness was burning my eyes X_X.

Any light grey lines you can remove or make black, they're optional and depend on your lupes design :)

Family and friend links!

Link Me!

<a href=http://www.neopets.com/~Ivanhoe_23><img src=http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e61/Renataewa/ivanbanner3.gif border=0></a>

<a href=http://www.neopets.com/~Ivanhoe_23><img src=http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e61/Renataewa/ivanbanner1.gif border=0></a>

<a href=http://www.neopets.com/~Ivanhoe_23><img src=http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e61/Renataewa/ivanbanner2.gif border=0></a>

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