Navigators of the Mist - Pledge

A small shape raced wildly through the heavily-trafficked docks of Port Belmona, twisting between and around dozens of pairs of legs, nearly tripping half those it dashed past. In its wake, the small canid-like shape left a winding trail of bright red blood on the ground, skirts and legs of passers-by. At one point, it tried to dart beneath a fish stall along the dock, surprising and knocking over the fisherman selling his catch. The man fell into his table, knocking the baskets of fish to the ground. There was an uproar of laughter from onlookers, cursing from the fisherman, and panicked bark from the animal. There was chaos as the table collapsed, landing atop the animal.
Terrified, the animal takes off like a bullet, no longer moving to avoid people but barreling down the center of the street, eyes wide and gait wild. Someone seemed to step out, arms up and mouth open in a shout, as if trying to stop the animal. In return, the beast darts to the side, darting up a ramp and onto a ship. The ship was nearly empty and, in the dark, the humans from the dock couldn’t follow, allowing the canid to sneak below deck, into one of the lowest store rooms. It found the darkest corner and nestled down into it, physically shaking, its eyes darting all around.
Minutes passed before a figure appeared in the doorway of the hold, stepping forward before turning and hurrying back up the stairway. A few more minutes went by and another shape appeared, this time coming forward slowly before sitting down, keeping her eyes down at the floor beneath where the now small-looking animal crouched.
A long silence passed before the animal stopped shaking and grew exhausted. And then, without warning, its body began to shimmer. Without giving off any light, the animal’s form seemed to melt down, its fur slinking back into more human-like skin. Its body elongated, the waist widening and shifting lower while the legs straightened and grew longer. The ears on its head slipped down its skull, growing smaller and the shape changing. And then, all at once, it seemed, the animal snapped to life and the woman saw that the animal was gone, replaced by a young woman only slightly younger than herself, naked and trembling, her eyes glowing amber-gold in the darkness of the shadows.
Finally, the woman looked the girl in the eyes. She was terribly small, dark hair tumbling down her shoulders and back in a tangled, wavy mess, framing her pale and bloodied face. Blood was spattered down her arms, chest and legs, with deep cuts up to her knees and elbows but, as the other woman watched as those wounds slowly stitched back together, the skin seemingly stitching itself back until all that was left was blood atop healthy skin.
“I’m Maggie Riddle. Is there something I can call you?” The woman asked, glancing around hoping to find a blanket or coat for the dark-haired girl. Her question was met by silence.
The girl watched as Maggie pushed up and looked around, finally letting out a small noise of victory when she found a blanket. Approaching slowly, Maggie held the blanket out, careful not to move too quickly. After a few tense moments, where the girl kept her eyes locked with Maggie, she reached out and took the blanket. As she wrapped the fabric around her bare shoulders and Maggie returned to where she'd been sitting, she made a small noise. When Maggie asked if she’d said anything, the girl looked up. “My name is Kasatka.” Her voice surprised Maggie. The shape-shifter’s voice was very soft, very quiet, with just the faintest rolling rasp.
“You’re not hurt, are you?” She was answered by a silent shake of her head. “Is there anybody I can take you to?”
There was a long period of silence where the girl, Kasatka, didn’t move, hardly breathed. Finally, she shook her head and croaked out a single sentence, three chilling words. “They’re all dead.”
Maggie sat silently for some time before offering a smile Kasatka didn’t see. “If you would like, I’m building a crew. If you don’t have anybody else, it would be a safe place for you, for as long as you would like.”
Kasatka turned her face up and looked at Maggie. The look in her eyes, now slowly darkening and no longer glowing, was somehow more intense than before and seemed as if the girl was studying the young captain, taking in every single thing about her, settling finally on her grey eyes and staring for several long heartbeats before she nodded. “In return, I will follow you. I can be a scout, move silently and fight. I offer that to you, for offering a place aboard your ship.”
Maggie gave a toothy smile. “I think we can make this work.”