Nayli can't believe her ears as the captain begins screaming about taking the ships north. Reefs? I don't know a lot about this, but reefs seem like bad news for sailing. She's in the process of rolling her eyes when the orders come down to make the ship ready for sailing. Hurrying to find something to do, she starts work, all the while plotting and scheming on how best to save her hide, as well as the ship, from the reefs.
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Mirandir and Nayli jump into action hauling ropes and raising the main sail, with assistance from Errol and another sailor the sheet is let out in good order. Seeing this Morvan lends a hand on the fore sail with a group of other sailors. With her sails now full the Lady Sue turns her back to the wind and is propelled almost immediately with a burst of speed.
“Excellent work ladies and gentlemen.” Captain Loophook says. ”Get some of the crew down for a couple of hours rotate them regularly. Ms Avalon the bridge is yours.” And with that she makes her way down the stairs and into her cabin. Just before she enters the room she calls out ”Miss Porter. Attend to me if you would be so kind.
Joan rushes to the captain’s aid glad at least to be out of the driving rain for now. ”Please hang up my coat and fetch my charts and navigation instruments from where you packed them away.”
Again Joan obliges without saying a word, while the half orc changes into a fresh set of clothes. Now Changes Captain Loophook moves over to the desk and looks at the course she had plotted. Joan instinctively moves away towards the pile of wet garments when the captain stops her. ”Joan. Well done with the rope. Quick thought turned to accurate deed and I truly appreciate that in my crew.” She sighs ”Know that I will take little pleasure in disciplining Mr Salt but it must be done, you understand of course.” She looks Joan deep in the eyes and the usual hardness is absent.
”One more thing do you know anything of charts? I could use a hand plotting our forward course.“
Brayan now recovered is truly grateful to all of you, but especially to Salty. ”You saved my life I will never forget this. Never.” when you suggest again that he should learn to swim he seems to agree but stipulates that he will learn when the sea is calm.
The ship drives hard through the heavy weather but the immediate danger is over it seems. The Storm continues for another 2 full days in this fashion. You and the rest of the crew are sent in groups of 4 to rest for 2 hours at a time. In this way you remain tired but functional. After spending a total of three and a half days in the storm with little to no sleep, the wind finally begins to die down by around 8 o’clock. The wind remains strong but the waves and rain have subsided. The crew are dismissed back to their watches.
Valaravans smiles at Brayan.
"Don't mention it! And if you go under, who will fix this old ship? We will surely go down soon after!"
He seems more filled with himself the next days, while doing his cooking duties.
But obviously his mind is somewhere else... Salt aplenty for everyone!
Elenia thinks of all the stories she has read regarding the Uncharted Isles. Could there be the Dark Isle built of volcanic ash and obsidia, resident to rare species of birds there? Or the Shark's Teeth Isle, home to different species of animals, including wild dogs and boar? she muses to herself.
Profession Clerk:
Elenia seems happy with continuing to compile the inventory of goods - nothing appears to have become dislodged during the storm.
She looks at Mr Stokes and says "I made the rope save Brayan and Salty. I'm glad my magic came in handy"
She goes on to ask whether she may come and see him to discuss magic after this shift.
Diplomacy
Despite his fatigue, Mirandir continues to perform his duties competently. Should the appropriate opportunity present itself (likely after the storm passes), Mirandir will approach Ms. Avalon to complement her on her skill and express a desire to learn from her. In this conversation, he'll, very tactfully, mention some of the gifts Gozreh has granted him, should another situation like the one that had occurred present itself.
When the Captain mentions disciplining Mr. Salt and looks deep into Joan's eyes, Joan wonders,
Is she testing me? Seeking advice from me? Looking for approval?
Joan nods at the Captain.
"Yes, m'am."
When the Captain mentions the charts and asks for assistance, Joan responds,
"I have some experience with charting a course, m'am. How may I help?"
Joan assists the Captain in plotting a course as best as she can. When she is done, she will continue with her other porter's duties, or whatever the Captain would find most helpful.
EDIT:
Nayli does what she's told, but not without a dirty look. It's obvious that, while she wasn't expecting a free trip, she was hoping to get more sleep than this...
Morven continued to work diligently, uneasy with the situation that had transpired. Able crewmen throwing themselves into the sea to rescue a foolish one didn't sit well with him. He quietly swore to himself he'd see Brayan learn to swim, or drown him personally...
You call upon all of your reserves of strength and willpower to make it though the next few hours even picking up the slack where other the other sailors falter. Whilst you are trimming a sail Errol approaches you and begins to help. [/b]”You don’t say much my friend, but there are few who work more diligently. A copper for your thoughts?”[/b]
Exhaustion weighs heavily upon your limbs and your movements become slower and more deliberate. Mr Gleambright taps you on the shoulder mid way through your shift and ushers you into the workshop. At first you are convinced he is going to pull you up for the pace of your work, but instead he points to a chair ”Sit down please. Every time I have seen you over the past 3 days you have been in the thick of the action. It is to be commended truly; I can only recommend you receive a pay bonus to the captain. If you keep up the good work I see no reason you won’t receive it also. I know that does little to relive the ache in your joints, so for the remainder of your shift I need you to Repair the damaged rope. It isn’t the most prestigious job but you do get to sit down whilst doing it. “
The already tired crew are extremely vocal about the quality of their meal. As more and more complaints are heard you cannot restrain your anger any further and hurl a ladle across the crew quarters towards a human who just insulted the meal you have just prepared. He stands and points at you “Oi Watch it you green skinned lunatic. It’s a good job you saved old Brayan otherwise I’d swing for you. ” he sits back down saying under his breath. ”Throws about as well as he cooks.”
Ms Avalon nods her head slightly in response to your compliments. “I’ve Lived 54 years under this sun, spent 50 of them on ships, 48 at sea and 47 and 6 months. Behind the wheel of ships. She laughs it is an odd sight. ”That probably sounds more impressive to someone who isn’t a pure blooded elf. Suffice to say I’ve had lots of practice and that’s the first bit of advice I can give you. The second is to know your ship seam to seam. Every one is different; this one for instance is classed as an Absalom Junk, I’ve sailed 3 in the same class and not one of them steered from the centre like this old lady does.” She looks down the length of the boat. ”An old captain of mine used to say if the ship builder had a bad breakfast it might ruin a boat. For if he’s hungry he sinks a run of nails too deep into the hull, that in turn makes her float an inch lower in the water, which makes her unresponsive, so much so as she lists too much in bad weather and takes 50 plus souls to the bottom of the sea.”The master of sail pauses for a long time before saying. ”It is your skill that overcomes a boat builders bad days. Finally know your crew, as a helmsman they are an extension of your will. I will let you into a secret. During a storm I don’t see people on deck; I see cogs in a machine, I see fractions and timescales. I watch the crew at work and I know how they react to the ship and vice a versa. Heed my advice or not. It works for me; it may not work for you. Now in the spirit of lesson one please take the helm and practice you steering.” she moves from the sailing deck back towards her cabin. Calling as she goes ”Mr Gleambright the ship is yours.”
You accost Mr Stokes in his office you try to sound sincere but just come across as blunt. Mr Stokes doesn’t look phased and puts down his pen and looks at you. ”Yes. I thought you might have. Good work by the way. I don’t like to see crew drown, especially when they can be easily saved. I fear your friend Mr Salt may receive a rather harsh lesson in humility soon though.” He takes his Spell book from the book shelf and asks ”What is it precisely that you want to learn about?” He holds a hand up to stop you before you can answer ”First. What School do you specialise in? I am a Transmuter but I cannot help you much with the Evocation School.”
The captain mainly uses you as a sounding board for her ideas. However you have the good sense to give honest opinions and even make a suggestion or two. After a time she asks you to get a bottle of Ice wine brandy from her cupboard and 2 glasses. She pours the brown liquid into both glasses and offers you one. ”Joan tell me about yourself. Have you any family? Where were you born? “
It is finally your chance to get some sleep you fall gratefully into your hammocks and go to sleep almost instantly.
Salty is angry and frustrated, and goes to sleep without talking to anyone.
@Elenia. You accost Mr Stokes in his office you try to sound sincere but just come across as blunt. Mr Stokes doesn’t look phased and puts down his pen and looks at you. ”Yes. I thought you might have. Good work by the way. I don’t like to see crew drown, especially when they can be easily saved. I fear your friend Mr Salt may receive a rather harsh lesson in humility soon though.” He takes his Spell book from the book shelf and asks ”What is it precisely that you want to learn about?” He holds a hand up to stop you before you can answer ”First. What School do you specialise in? I am a Transmuter but I cannot help you much with the Evocation School.”
Elenia looks at Mr Stokes - "I am an Elementalist, specialising in water. I would like to know how to cast Enlarge Person - it helped Salty save Brayan. My animate rope did some work, but I would like to be better prepared in the future. Other that, I would be happy as you have more experience if there is anything you think I should know. Would I be allowed to look at your Uncharted Isles books please?"
@Elenia. Depends what you are looking for if you want to find out about the Uncharted Isles then you know he has a book on it. For the rest of the shelf yes you may take 10.
Joan graciously accepts the drink from the Captain, but makes sure to only sip it slowly as they work together. When the Captain asks her about herself, she replies.
"Not too much to say, m'am. The sea's my life. My father was a ship's porter before me, and I tagged along on voyages with him since before I can remember. I've been on my own since I was fourteen, and I've taken good care of myself, and of quite a few different ships' officers, too, since then."
Joan sips her drink and looks at the Captain with curiosity.
"Do you have a story about yourself you'd like to share, m'am?"
Though she's drop-dead tired, Nayli scowls at the gnome. "I don't know what you want, giving me such special treatment, but I'd rather not find out." She suppresses a yawn. [b]"I'd rather work with the rest of them, unless you can prove you don't have some other reason for doing this."[/b'
Nodding to Ms Avalon as she heads below Mirandir replies, "Aye mam. Sound advice I'll keep in mind. And if there's a shipwright you'd like to register a complaint about, let me know and I'll pass it to my brothers."
Mirandir had heard many a tale of a ship builder's bad day from his elder brothers, both of which were highly placed in the Shipwright's guild. Despite being a half-breed, Ms. Avalon had begun to earn respect in the elf's eyes. She both had skill and recognized that he had some as well.
As he steered for the remainder of his watch, he couldn't help but give the gnomish bosun more than a couple awkward and perplexed glances. He couldn't help but wonder how one became an officer on a ship who's wheel he couldn't see over.
You call upon all of your reserves of strength and willpower to make it though the next few hours even picking up the slack where other the other sailors falter. Whilst you are trimming a sail Errol approaches you and begins to help. ”You don’t say much my friend, but there are few who work more diligently. A copper for your thoughts?”
Morven leant against one of the beams as he worked, fatigued from his efforts and welcoming the brief respite and the conversation.
"Quiet? You should hear me telling stories in the hold, heh. Its just been... something of an eventful voyage thus far. Lots to do, plenty to keep a professional sailor busy. I'm thinking... honestly, I've been in contempt for those foolhardy enough to risk their own valuable lives for one who sails without learning how to swim. The situation is untenable; Brayan will learn to swim or... I am sure there will be consequences."
Morven smirked and held out his hand.
"I'll take that copper now. It will sit nicely atop that pile of silver I won last night".
@Elenia
Mr Stokes looks at you and says ”A circumstantially useful spell, and if that’s all you need, it’s very easy for me to teach you Enlarge Person. However, I can think of 2 more useful spells for you. I only have time to teach you one at this time.” He points to 2 pages of his spell book. You can now clearly read what was previously illegible. One page says Jump and the other says Touch of the Sea. You choose one of the spells offered and Mr Stokes teaches you how to cast it, enabling you to write it into your spellbook. At your mention of the Uncharted Isles book, he takes it off the shelf, letting out a chuckle and saying ”Want to find out where we’re going eh? Well, by all means, you may borrow the book. However, honestly? It doesn’t tell you much and whilst we will skirt close by, we won’t be entering the Isles. I’ve seen you reading – is it a factual or fictional book? If its factual, may I borrow it in exchange. If it’s fictional, never mind.”
@Joan
Like you, the Captain drinks slowly. ” I’ll tell you a story. It was when I was a midshipman. We were in a ship, hauling timber on a coastal route, with not a hint of weather, but somehow we ran aground on an ocean bar. We tried everything for the rest of the day to shift her off, to no avail . We had almost given up hope, when towards us a small fishing boat appeared and sailed alongside. There was only one fisherman aboard. He asked us ”Do you need a tow? I laughed and said ”Why not old man. Do you want to borrow our oars or do you have your own?” What he did next, I will never forget to this day. He smiled, held up a hand and cast a fishing line out into the deep water, beyond the bar. We waited – it must have been 3 to 4 minutes before he knocked on the side of the boat and tied his rod to our tow line. It was then, with a tremendous jolt that the ship hauled off the bar and refloated into clear water. We looked in amazement to see a huge fish sleek with bony scales and a long set of toothy jaws snap the tow line and dive back into the depths. I called to the old man to ask what that was. He just laughed and gave a one word answer: Gar!” He continued to laugh and sailed back towards the coast. “
The Captain finishes her tale then informs you she can map the rest of the course herself. You then go, returning back to the cabin where you fall asleep almost instantly, due to exhaustion.
@Nayli
Mr Gleamright looks at you in a wounded manner. ”I didn’t mean anything by it. I just like to reward hard work with better task. However the rope still needs making, so you might as well stay in here. “ He leaves the boatshed and you don’t see him ‘til the end of your watch.
@Mirandir
As you are thinking about him, Mr Gleambright hurries from the boatshed, with his face flushed red. Evidently, he or Nayli had said something that caused him some embarrassment.
@Morvan
Errol tosses you a dull copper piece, saying You’d be surprised how many professional sailors don’t know how to swim. Brayan now, he doesn’t mind telling folks about it. I’m sure with all the offers of lessons, he will be paddling like a hippocampus in no time! Don’t be too hard on him
@Salty
At some point during the next day, Toby approaches you looking worried. He informs you that it his duty to tell you that you will receive your punishment at 6 o clock this evening. He then offers you his hand, saying "Brave thing you did, saying Brayan. Don't let it go any further but you don't deserve what you're going to get."
As it is wont to do on the open sea the wind subsides to a light breeze. The sails flicker and the heavy boat dawdles along it's course. The weather remains overcast, threatening rain.
Shortly after 6PM the Captain summons everyone to the deck.She speaks to the assembled crew in a loud but somber tone. "As you are aware a crew member fell overboard recently during the storm. Despite showing bravery and loyalty to a fellow shipmate, Mr Salt disobeyed a direct order given by myself. The ship's Charter is very clear on this and it is to my extreme displeasure that we assemble to meet out fair punishment this evening. Mr Stokes please: read the charges."
Mr Stokes clears his throat and reads from a large book. "1 count of disobedience contravening a direct order. 1 count insubordination. 1 count of being lax in undertaking of duties.” Mr Stokes finishes and the Captain begins to speak again, directly to Salty. ”I have taken into account your bravery and selflessness and so my judgement for the offences perpetrated is that you shall receive 7 lashes for insubordination. Furthermore, the person to dispense these shall be Mr Gold. If I see you holding back Mr Gold, there will be severe consequences. Mr Salt, if you would step forward please, and remove your shirt. “ Salty does this and wraps his arms and is shown by two crew members to a capstan at the bow of the ship. He is given a piece of rope to loop around the capstan. It is loosely tied around one of his wrists, with it held in his other hand, securing himself.
The Captain steps down from the top deck and she hands a short whip to Brayan. It consists of 9 knotted lengths of plaited yarn attached to a whip handle. Brayan somberly moves to stand next to Salty. He offers Salty a piece of wood for Salty to bite down on. Brayan goes on to say ”Salty – every fibre of my being is sorry for what I have to do. If I could take the lashings for you, I gladly would.”
The Captain says ”You many commence."
After the 4th lashing connects with Salty's back, he falls unconscious to the deck. The Captains holds her hand up, looking slightly sickened. She says "I think the lesson is well received. Please wake him up. Give him a dose of cure light wounds and 2 cups of rum; 1 for him to drink and 1 for his back!"
Mr Stokes moves forward and complies with the Captain's order. Salty wakes up, looking horrific. His back is now freshly scarred. With that, the Captain dismisses the crew back to their duties. Your watch returns to the crew quarters for your rest period. Errol is strangely quiet ans his usual grin is noticeably absent. Brayan looks as sick as a dog.
Upon returning to the hold, Joan, too, is quieter than usual.
At one point, however, she heads over to Salty to speak softly, trying to be helpful.
"Hey. If there's ever a next time, skip the part about the 'dumb orders.' Stick with the apology for not hearing the order. That way it's not really insubordination, and she can still save face without punishing you like that."
---
After the punishment...
Salty is being helped into the ship hold, new scars in his back on top of more old ones, as this is not the first time he has been punished.
With ragged breath says to Brayan, defiantly to the end, while making a gesture that could be interpreted as a smile attempt.
"That was nothing, you give slashes as you swim, old man. I even got sleep during the punishment."
---
On the hold...
Salty licks his tusks at Joan...
"Save face? What about saving lives! Next time I will do more than tell her my opinion about her orders... She needs a man to make her relax a little! But maybe what I need now is something to take my mind out of the pain..."
He winks at Joan.
Ugh. Some people never learn.
"Yep, you do! And that something would be sleep. G'night!"
Joan curls up in her own hammock.
Profession clerk .
Spending too much time dwelling on tales of the Uncharted Isles Elenia has been reading about, she fails to notice some new cargo that is yet to be inventoried.
You choose one of the spells offered and Mr Stokes teaches you how to cast it, enabling you to write it into your spellbook.
Elenia looks at the spells indicated by Mr Stokes and chooses Touch of the Sea to learn and dutifully copies it in her spell book. She thanks Mr Stokes for teaching her.
I’ve seen you reading – is it a factual or fictional book? If its factual, may I borrow it in exchange. If it’s fictional, never mind.
Elenia looks at Mr Stokes, smiles and says "The short stories in it are real enough in my imagination but I guess you would call it fiction. I do like to think that the island of wild dogs and boar exists somewhere out there though!
After a fairly poor attempt at logging the inventory, Elenia is glad to reach the end of her watch. Going to the crew sleeping quarters, Elenia carries her book on the Uncharted Isles and settles in her hammock, reading it. She remarks to Salty: A good rescue of the dwarf there my friend - saving crew is the correct thing to do! She then settles back, reading the book.
Salty smiles at Elenia... the effect is unsettling.
"Thanks! Want to sleep next to a hero?"
Elenia looks at Salty and says... I don't make a habit of sleeping next to something that smells like it's been dragged behind a ship. Oh, wait that DID just happen to you. Anyway, it takes more than one act to make you a hero. She goes back to reading her book.
to find out about the Uncharted Isles
Salty smiles while laying down slowly, grimacing.
"She likes me, that is for sure..."
Morven stared at the man for a moment, his tusks rising a little as his nostrils flared in irritation. He moved a little closer to Errol as he spoke, not quite being aggressive but making the air certainly feel a little tense.
"Hard on him? The sea is a fickle friend, Errol. Not everyone is as lucky as me. I do hope Brayan takes others up on these lessons. Maybe if we're lucky and it will inspire the others. If you really are comfortable with colleagues who are walking liabilities then, sadly, your gambling habit might not be your worst problem. There was a selection process to join this crew. I think perhaps ability to should have been on the list".
Rapidly becoming one of the most reliable sailors upon the deck, Morven did his duty with his usual competence, re-securing rope and rigging as he ran a proud, critical eye over the apparatus of the ship, looking for faults that might get someone killed in the next storm.
Morven watched the lashing with little emotion, but he did approve. Naturally, it was never pleasant to witness but there was little room for leeway and mercy upon most ships. The last thing the Captain could afford to do was lose face. Nevertheless... Salty was clearly a powerful ally for Morven to have; especially with his over-salted food apparently not the only "recipe" to his repertoire. A plan came to Morven's mind as he watched the badly wounded Half-Orc stagger away in agony.
That evening, Morven spent some time with the wounded chef. He sat beside his hammock and told the hulking alchemist a series of crude stories, attempting to relate to the older man by speaking about fabulous raids made by his tribe, in particular a successful looting of a fantastic, three storied tavern. Morven strained his limited knowledge of culinary ingredients as he described the exotic meats, fruits and spices his tribe had lived off for the next three weeks. Morven was a good storyteller and he hoped that his tales kept Salty in good spirits.
When the time came to eventually go to sleep, Morven lay quietly awake, biding his time and waiting until he was fairly sure that everyone was asleep. When he was...
Morven tiptoed as quietly as he could over to Salty's hammock and, as quietly as he could manage, cast Cure Light Wounds twice upon the wounded Half-Orc's form, many of the scars and cuts healing over entirely.
"Thanks brother, I owe you one."
Mirandir was a bit put off by the method of punishment that had been employed, but not enough to react. His people used different, but no less harsh methods but they were less...physical. In fact, given how it was playing out, by elven logic the whole even would have been considered less punishment for Mr. Salt and rather would be seen as punishment for the dwarf. It was easy to tell that he was mentally shook up by the whole episode. Regardless of the methodology though, they both deserved what they got, the cook's mate for disobeying an order and the dwarf for putting to sea without the ability to cope with it.
The elf could also quickly tell that many of the crew didn't agree with the punishment. Mirandir thought it wise then to keep his own opinions on the matter to himself. The last thing that was needed was additional tension right now. Problem was he couldn't help himself, despite his best efforts. Thus, as they were finally settling in their hammocks, the elf shot a look at Salty.
"I hope you learned your lesson about proper discipline on a ship. Captains give orders for a reason and you're being paid to follow them.The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one. Keep that in mind before you abandon your post and do something stupid again.
The the elf Salty licks his tusks...
"I learned my lesson, all right. Next time YOU need me to save you fancy a$$ I won't..."
Mirandir didn't dignify Salty's response with a reply and simply retired to his hammock, muttering his evening prayers to Gozreh as he did so.
@Elenia
In the cargo hold you spend most of your shift undoing the storm lashings on the cargo. However, you miss a large proportion of this and Mr Stokes has to pull you up and ask you to finish your work before you finish your shift. Due to this, you don’t get to chat with Mr Stokes about further training.
[spoiler =Elenia’s Uncharted Isles Knowledge] You read the Pathfinder Chronicle, absorbing as much of the information as you possibly can. The book was written by Tristan Verner. During his visit to the Uncharted Isles, Tristan describes in great detail the wild fauna and flora of the Isles. These include many species thought to have been wiped out by global catastrophes as well as other undiscovered species. He hypotheses that the Uncharted Isles form their own microcosm and events that have huge impacts elsewhere have some, little or no effect in the Isles, whereas some insignificant events elsewhere have altered the habitats within the Isles significantly. He also goes on to describe the strange geography there. The Isles are in the shape of a somewhat typical archipelago, interspersed by massive bodies of unfathomably deep water. He writes that the islands themselves appear to be reasonably flat, but have a varied and sometimes surprising topography, with microclimates forming sometimes snowy regions in close proximity to beaches. Finally, he seems perplexed by the lack of any settlements, primitive, tribal or otherwise. [/spoiler]
@Joan
Joan is greeted by a pile of charts and books upon entering the Captain’s cabin. Ms Avalon and Captain Loophook appear to be talking quietly. When you enter, they stop talking immediately. Ms Avalon throwas the Captain a sharp salute and rounding on her heel, curtly leaves the room. The Captain says ”Ah, Ms. Porter, as you can see, the Master of Sail and I were reviewing the best course ahead. Would you be so kind as to start by tidying up these papers for me, thank you.”
With that, the Captain excuses herself about 5 minutes later, making her way outside to the Bridge.
@Mirandir
Profession: Sailor – you take 10, gaining 16.
You steer the ship true once more. Ms Avalon is absent during your shift. However, Toby, the Halfling chef is in charge of the deck. He leaves you to your duties, confident in your abilities. After a time, you are surprised to see the Captain appear on deck. She tells you to carry on, and takes a place at the rail, staring at the horizon.
@Morven
Errol holds his hands up and says ”Still with a smile, one day when you’ve got your own ship, I’m sure that you can ask the question before you go to hire the crew.”With that, Errol returns to his duties. Once again, you demonstrate a superb quality of work, even replacing a slightly storm damaged, frayed rope without adversely affecting the steering capabilities of the ship. You hear a shot from the bridge: ”Superb work once more, Mr Greigor. Keep it up!2You turn to see the Captain has taken her place at the top rail and is intently studying the horizon.
@Nayli
Profession: ABS Take 10 = 15.
You feel reinvigorated after a good night’s rest, setting to work the following day. Mr Gleambright is not on watch but instead, Toby is on deck and tasks you with touching up some of the paint on the side of the ship. Alongside Brayan, you sit on top of a plank, which dangles down the side of the ship, with a rope attached at each end. The work isn’t particularly difficult and the salt spray kicked up by the breeze is a pleasant addition.
@Salty
Salty continues to earn his nickname and once again, he over seasons the evening meal. The crew grumble in acceptance but no one outwardly comments on the state of the food.
You wake up after a deep refreshing sleep to find that your back is almost completely healed. Putting it down to your stoic orcish heritage, you go back on watch the following day with a small skip in your step, and take a small degree of pleasure in over exaggerated stretches in front of the Captain, who stands on the Bridge.
@All
The day’s stretch into weeks and the watch pattern repeats. After 18 full days at sea, you are on watch when Morven spots something ahead of the ship in the water. He calls to the rest of the watch and as you get closer, It appears to be wreckage.
Ms Avalon summons your watch about mid afternoon to the deck along with a couple of other sailors, saying: ”Someone with sharp eyes, tell me what they think that is.”
EDIT:
Joan isn't quite sure which part of the wreckage Ms. Avalon is referring to, or what's so significant about it, so she keeps her mouth shut.
"Seems like an damaged lifeboat, turned over..."
Morven gave Salty a curious glance at breakfast the next morning, the hint of a smug smile upon his face.
"Hey Salty, looks like you healed well overnight eh..." the sailor said with a slightly exaggerated air of innocence.
Morven might have initially spotted the object, but squinting, he couldn't quite make it out himself.
"We Half Orcs are a sturdy folk, my friend."
When the Captain comes to the deck, there's a part of Mirandir that wanted to say something. After a moment though, he thinks better of it as she looked like a troubled woman. He tried to convey through his body language he was willing to listen if she had something to say but otherwise did his best to keep his eyes on his duties.
Squinting into the distance, Mirandir nods at Salty's comment.
"I concur mam, looks like it has quite a gash in her.
@salty:Theoretically yes but just take 10 dude! I will assume you pass. RP away.
Salty sees Elenia casting, and his eyes glow more than usual!
"I can use that! You have to let me learn that! I am sure I can use it to perfect my fish booth!"
Elenia looks at Salty and sighs. "And what is in it for me? I'm all for helping others perfect their knowledge of spells but I will have to translate it for you."
Perception:
Even with squinting, Elenia can't make out anything beyond a blur on the horizon.
Ms Avalon says "Get a line on it."
Using a combination of grapples and billhooks, you manage to drag the wreckage alongside the ship. As you roll the small craft over you are greeted with a horrifying sight: 6 very dead bodies, you presume to be the former occupants of the boat have been tied by their waists to the boat's seats. The corpses are bloated with sea water and have several small bites taken out of them.
Brayan pales at the sight of the bodies but looks at the hole on the boat. "Someone took an axe to that boat, but swung it badly at that - she would have taken a long while to capsize."
With Elenia:
"Translate? I don't need for you to translate! I am perfectly able to read it! And if you do this for me, I will owe you, big time. And I can make it worth your while!"
Mirandir says a prayer for the dead, asking that Gozreh guide their souls. Once he gets a good look at the bodies, Mirandir gets a pensive look on his face and turns to the Master of Sail.
They haven't been dead long, but there's something else. They had their fingers broken before they died. Given that and the way they're tied in this could be," Mirandir gulped at the thought of what he was about to suggest,"either the result of or the punishment for a mutiny or worse someone seizing a ship.'
Joan didn't notice the finger thing until Mirandir mentioned it, but now she scans the horizon for pirates or more wrecked lifeboats.
Nayli also doesn't notice until it's mentioned, but when she realizes it, she turns pale. "This goes far beyond vengeance, even for a mutiny. This looks to be a terrible way to die."
"Untie those poor souls. Mr Waverider Please would you give them some rites. Miss Caledor please fetch 6 spare Hammocks, a needle and some thread. Miss Porter please go and get the captain."Ms Avalon usual passive expression is now replaced by a worried look.
Joan scans the horizon and for the briefest second she spots sails in the far distance. Looking again however reveals nothing.
"Yes, m'am. I think I just saw a glimpse of sails in that direction, m'am, though I don't now. It may have been a ship sailing away in the distance."
Unless otherwise instructed by Ms. Avalon, Joan heads quickly to the Captain's quarters and knocks on the door. When the Captain answers, Joan informs her...
"M'am, Ms. Avalon sent me to bring you up on deck. We've discovered the wreckage of a lifeboat and six dead persons. It seems they had their fingers broken and were tied into the boat, and it seems the boat had a gash chopped into the side, and they were left to drown. I saw what I believe to be a glimpse of sails in the distance, but then they disappeared."
Salty looks briefly at the bodies, licking his tusks, and then resumes his work.
Mirandir gives Salty a look as he moves to help untie the people in the stricken craft. He recalls some basic rites, albeit elven ones, for the departed (which he'll do his best to translate into common for the crew). During the process, he gives the bodies a thorough look over for anything potentially identifying.