"So, shall we stay for the night or press on?"
"Nappy."
Jayse mouths the word nappy with a shrug to the gnome, "I guess that means we're stopping for the night."
Ushari smiles, "That is a good plan." She pauses and then a silly grin appears, "I think Fin would make a great politician, wouldn't you say?" She giggles, "She is sooo verbose!"
"Nappy."
Jayse mouths the word nappy with a shrug to the gnome, "I guess that means we're stopping for the night."
The gnome raises an amused eyebrow. "Either that or Fin wants a diaper for some inexplicable reason."
Concealment?
Scanning the coastline in the dwindling light reveals no safe place to land the Mako. The coast is unremittingly rocky and jagged, with steep tree-lined slopes along narrow inlets of tumbled stone and eroding hillsides. Fin deftly pilots the craft in and out of several of these inlets. Eventually, she finds what she's looking for: a sheltered cove surrounded by rock and trees, hiding your craft from all view save along the coastline or someone entering the cove just as you did.
You drop anchor just inside the cove and allow the current to carry you closer to shore, tightening the anchor rope before dropping the second anchor to moor the Mako safely in place so she moves very little despite the action of the tide.
Trying to make yourself as comfortable as possible, you take stock of your provisions, pulling the contents from the fore and aft storage spaces. The sea-going folk of Forestal have provided well for you. You pull out food, two barrels of water, a tripod mounted brazier and firewood, as well as a series of hammocks, pins, guy-lines, and a large stiff waxed canvas tarpaulin. Viewing it all and paying closer attention to some of divot-points built into the Mako, you realise that the hammocks can be stretched across the boat between any number of attachment points, to make for comfortable sleeping spots fore and aft. Tying the guy-line between the mast and a hook on the tiller, then throwing the waxed tarp over the line and attaching it along the hull - creates a large, impromptu, water-repelling tent over the stern of the boat. The Mako was clearly designed and kitted out for possible long open-water journeys.
Finally, Jayse pulls out a large pack with a note attached. He reads it with a smile and smells the paper. It carries a hint of perfume mixed with the light inhuman musk of a woman he knows intimately. Opening the pack reveals a set of four forest camouflaged pup-tents, bedrolls, and heavy blankets.
With the weather being nearly cloudless, there is no need to string up the tent. You hook up the hammocks and top them with blankets before settling down to a cold feast under the light of a thousand stars.
After her watch time has come to a close, Ushari settles in her hammock for some much needed rest. Yet sleep is a long time in coming. Hetmon Thrane's message echoes in her mind. She is not sure what to make of it, and its portent. Should she be excited? Worried? Concerned? Flattered? All of the above? After tossing in her hammock restlessly for a while, she can only conclude all of the above was indeed the correct answer.
I...I don't know...what am I supposed to do now?
With that last thought in her mind, she drops off into a restless slumber.
The final wistful note drifts out over the moonlit water as Jayse lowers the reed pipe from his lips. While his body was certainly tired enough from the day of learning what to touch and what to leave alone, he couldn't keep his mind from racing. And for the hundredth time he taps the paper between two fingers. He catches Straehan's eyes in the moonlight and can't resist this quiet opportunity to air his concerns.
His voice is pitched just loud enough to carry to the gnome, not wanting to wake the sleeping women. "Strae, did Milaflora send a note along to you?"
Straehan's curiosity is piqued. "No... she didn't. I really wasn't expecting her to."
Tired from their long day of travel and taking the lion's share of the responsibility for guiding their small craft, Fin and Ushari sleep deeply missing the conversation between the two men. Only Ushari stirs briefly, but the hushed tones of Jayse and Straehan never fully wake her.
Jayse pockets the note once again, moving to his hammock to crash for the night. "Neither was I," he mutters.
Maybe I'm reading too much into this... things just need to stay simple.
Hearing Jayse's disturbed muttering, Straehan turns to regard the monk. "Alright. Spill it. What's eating you?"
"It's probably nothing. The gift of the shoes. The note to me. The special packing of gear. I don't know. I just hope she doesn't have the wrong idea. I mean, she's an amazing woman, and I had fun with her." Jayse's eyes connect with the gnome's through the darkness, "I'm just… young. I hope she doesn't think there's more here than there is. That's all."
Jayse picks up the flash of the gnome's teeth in the darkness, grinning broadly, "Jayse, I believe you are over-thinking this whole matter. I got boots from Thrane; I'm pretty sure he isn't in love with me. Don't get me wrong - he OUGHT to be - I'm charming as hell." He chuckles.
"If Mila had packed stuff just for you - I could see you having some concerns. But that pack had tents and blankets for all of us. So unless she is planning on a five-way..." He seems to give the matter serious thought for a brief moment, "... I think you have little cause to worry."
"Moreover, she's a skilled player in the 'oldest profession'. You get pretty jaded about ideas like 'love', 'commitment', and 'til death do us part' in this business. I'd be absolutely floored if she was in love with you... not that you aren't a fine fellow. If anything, I'd think she's trying to leave you with a sweet memory so that you come back for a return engagement some time. You aren't her typical Forestal patron and variety is the spice of life. She provides the town with a valuable service... but it has got to be somewhat dull. I don't envy her the responsibility she took on."
Jayse ponders Straehan's words as he drifts off, feeling better about the letter but wondering what service is she providing the town?
The next day, you are rocked awake by the waves and the muted crashes of the breakers. Aboard the Mako, Ushari and Straehan prepare a spartan breakfast while Fin and Jayse store the hammocks and gear, making ready to sail. After the light fare, Fin expertly pilots you out of the little cove. It is another beautiful, clear, and gusty day off the coast of Amador.
Unfortunately, Ushari stumbles over a loose line as the sail catches the wind. The heavy cloth snaps full knocking Ushari over the side of the boat backwards, head-first. The water beckons to her... but a miraculous grab allows her to catch onto a bit of sail, keeping all but her head from a thorough dowsing. Greatly awakened by the cold water, Ushari deftly pulls herself upright, spitting water.
With the wind still at your back, you fly north watching the coastline slip by at a good clip. The day proceeds uneventfully with no sight of ships (piratical or otherwise). But the time does not go dully by, Fin and Ushari begin teaching the boys the basics of sailing. Ushari emphasizes, in particular, how best to store rope so others don't trip over it.
U's Sailor:
U's Reflex:
Hand of Fate:
Danger Level:
You sail on until evening approaches. As the sun fades you see in the distance ahead of you the darker shades of the island jutting westward out into the ocean. Checking your maps, you see that nestled in the 'corner' of the promontory and the coastline you are following is the first encampment you wish to visit. Judging the distances, you think that you will arrive around mid-morning the next day.
With a certain level of anticipation about what tomorrow may bring, you seek out a place to land the Mako or otherwise conceal it. You find a fine small stretch of beach surrounded by rocky promontories and some trees and immediately guide the Mako towards it. She slides up the strand with all the grace of an orca taking a seal.
You deftly hop onto the shore and pull the boat a bit further out of the water. Once the boat is secure, Jayse begins unloading your tents and 'shore items', tossing them onto the beach.
Concealment:
Danger Level:
Ushari sets out looking for some leaves and branches from the nearby trees, looking to construct a camouflage cover for the tarpaulin provided for the Mako. She will then attach the leaves and branches to it to obscure it from view, at least from the sea.
Ushari gets a bright idea. She quickly pulls the tarp over the rear of the ship to break up it's distinctive outline from the sea. She puts sand and a few rocks gathered from either end of the beach on the tarp to create a little more window dressing around it, along with a few plants and driftwood. It is hard to tell how successful her attempts were since you can't actually view it from the sea without swimming out a good distance, but it looks pretty good.
While she is doing that Jayse and Strae set up the campsite in a tight little circle near the bow of the Mako, shielded by the boat and Ushari's screen. As the light fails you risk a small cookfire and have some fresh fish that Fin hunts up while the camp is prepared. It is a cheery dinner and a pleasant fire on this smooth bit of uninhabited beach.
Regrettably, as the last of the light vanishes from the sky, you douse the fire with sand for safety. Jayse plays his flute for a while. Lots are drawn for who is going to be on guard duty first (Jayse or Straehan), and the ladies settle into their tents to catch some sleep on the unmoving shoreline.
On Duty:
1 Jayse but S is awake
2-5 Jayse
6 Straehan but J is awake
7-12 Straehan
Jayse and Straehan share the darkness for awhile, enjoying the evening in silence. After a time, Straehan heads into his tent to get some sleep, waving goodnight. Jayse sits alone with his thoughts, meditates, and then wanders the beach admiring the pristine sand. He wonders briefly why this beach is uninhabited. Maybe the resources are poor or the terrain too inhospitable.
Standing a bit away from the foursome of tents, the restless monk starts digging his feet into the fine, compact sand. As his feet burrow down, perhaps 6 inches, Jayse feels a pinch on his foot. He jumps clear and reaches into the collapsing hole. He pulls out the culprit - a long, sharp, knobby stick... But wait, it isn't a stick, it's a broken bone. A human bone.
Fascinated, Jayse digs down further. Only a few additional inches and he finds more bones - arm bones, a jaw, scapula, a skull. He pulls the skull out and blows the sand off it; it is undamaged. He glances down and sees yet more bones and more skulls in the hole. It looks as if the beach is built on a shelf of humanoid bones. Every instinct in Jayse's body tells him this was the wrong beach on which to camp. He whips around to alert his friends... but it is far too late.
Lit by moonlight, an apparition flies down the hillside at a speed that Jayse can't believe - easily twice as fast as a man. It is a pale, lightly glowing, phantasmal woman. Her nightdress swirl around her in a wind he can't feel. She lands silently in front of him - beautiful, graceful, and deadly. She reaches out and touches him with a delicate hand.
In that moment, she goes from an ephemeral beauty to a nightmare as her touch literally sucks the life from him and seems to freeze the marrow in his bones. Jayse lets out a startled involuntary gasp as he recoils from her inhuman, soulless touch. It isn't much more than a whisper but it draws Straehan's attention...
36|
16|
22|
11|
24|
13|
28|
14|
ORDER:
Map: Beach of Bones
Negative Energy
CON Drain
Jayse twists and turns to avoid the harrowing touch of the ghostly woman, but her fingers manage to graze his cheek. His face feels as if it has been hit by ice.
The blow itself is painful but Jayse manages to steel his soul for the blow and resists the soul-sucking effect he felt before.
ORDER:
36|
16|
9|
11|
24|
13|
28|
14|
Negative Energy
CON Drain
AS JAYSE
Jayse rebalances his ki instantly, shielding himself from the much of the evil spirit's life-stealing touch. Her icy eyes narrow and she hisses in anger at his presumption.
Her irritation grows as Jayse drops to one knee, a glowing blade suddenly forming in the hand behind his back. He leaps up, swiping the blade deeply across her throat and moving out of range with a deft leap.
Her smug grin is replaced by mounting anger, as she sees the protoplasmic ichor that is her body drip from his blade. For a very long time she has mocked the poor mortals whose common weapons were no threat to her.
Predator eyes meet predator eyes as Jayse calls out, "Get UP! I'm fighting a ghost. Help would be nice."
21|
11|
ORDER:
Move Action -
Standard Action -
HIT: DAM:
Ushari wakes to the sound....no the feel of wrongness and EVIL in the area. She struggles out of her tent, and immediately notices the evil spirit. She searches her memory of such creatures, and realizes it is incorporeal. She quickly utters a divine prayer and a glowing rapier appears, illuminating the beach with a glowing light, and flies directly towards the spirit, striking it a solid blow!
She calls out to the others,"This is a spirit creature, called a Keening Spirit! Physical weapons are useless against her!"
Ushari sees the creature and breathes a minor sigh of relief because it ISN'T a Banshee. If it were, we'd all be dead. It is, however, a dangerous cousin of the Banshee - a Keening Spirit.
Straehan struggles from his tent and watches the whirling battle across the sand, trying to determine the nature of the creature and the best way to strike at it. It's ghostly so our ghost-touched weapons are obvious, but what about magic? Or something else?
Straehan's knowledge of this particular creature is scant. But his knowledge of incorporeal creatures in general suggests a course of action. He calls out to Fin as she rolls from her tent. "Fin! Force spells or your sword should be most effective against it." He doesn't wait to see if she heard him. He sprints towards the creature hoping to divide its attention. Stopping short, he sends two bolts of energy streaking infallibly towards the creature.
Both Ushari's and Strae's attacks hit. Small wisps of protoplasm float free of her body and dissipate... but mostly the blows serve to enrage the creature.
ORDER:
RANGE: 100' +10'/lv
EFFECT:
Missile #1 DAM:
Missile #2 DAM:
Pissed-off because she had a dream about a misbehaving database, Fin leaps out of her tent, Whoosh in hand, and seeks to smite the UTF8 ghost back to binary...
The pretty face of the phantasmal creature takes on a more feral appearance as she sees her prey mounting their defenses. Her mouth gapes opens, improbably wide, and she emits an ear-blasting, soul-rending screech. You're surprised the Mako isn't reduced to splinters - so ferocious is the assaulting gale of her scream.
Jayse, Ushari, and Straehan feel the flesh come off their bones from her eldritch cry. They double-over from the overwhelming pain. Only Fin manages to weather it well... and she is sickened by the experience.
The Spirit's inhuman eyes survey the field, satisfied at the three foes nearly brought to their knees. With a cool smile, she sweeps leisurely towards the gasping gnome...
36|
16|
1|
11|
4|
13|
8|
14|
ORDER:
Map: Beach of Bones
Upon hearing Straehan's words, Fin calls upon the spirits of the air to protect her from this spirit of the grave.
The Calm strains under the pressure of the constant assault, and though his body shakes and tries to fall, his training keeps Jayse on his feet.
I won't last much longer if I can't get some help, he thinks as he pivots on his front foot, hurling his brilliant blue blade at the ghostly woman...
… the strain on his body making the throw fly wide. Then without taking his eyes from the creature he circles the fight , grouping up with the women as he gasps out, his lips a pale white, "Ushari, you gotta keep me in this fight!"
Ushari staggers from the assault. She feels that familiar sense of hopelessness whenever she contemplates failure, but she resists the temptation, somehow. Seeing Jayse almost felled by the creature's wail, she thinks, You and me both!
She holds out her hand and her birthmark glows with a brilliant white light, and she yells, "Begone, you foul B****!. The energy radiates out, healing her friends and also damaging the Spirit, somewhat. Once the light has died, she reaches into her pouch, and throws down her Music Box, which chatters to life!
Ushari's wave of positive energy provides a much needed boost to her allies but does little against the foul Spirit... It does however draw her ire and attention. The Spirit's eyes regard the cleric with malice and shift between the upstart cleric and the gnome so close at hand, while she deftly dodging the blows from Jayse's throw and Ushari's enchanted blade.
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16|
9|
11|
12|
13|
16|
14|
Ushari tosses the tiny spider-like box down on the remains of the fire, saying "Get that b!tch."
The little creature salutes her smartly with its front claw then wheels around and scuttles rapidly, churning up sand, straight towards the Spirit. It passes between Jayse's legs and lunges at the Spirit, slashing with its claws. The Spirit looks as surprised as the rest of you when the small spider leaps onto her ethereal leg and pierces her thigh with a bladed claw!
DAM
Straehan debates his 'charge in' plan in light of the Spirit's last devastating attack. I must be an idiot to come after this wench. Better to draw her in.
He falls back, casts a spell, and touches Jayse.
ORDER:
Map: Beach of Bones
Cast
DURATION: 1 Hour/Level
EFFECT: +4 Armor Bonus
With the spirits of the wind girding her quintessence, Fin approaches and brings Whoosh to bear on the baleful spirit.
May as well go ahead and use the rolls from earlier:
Whoosh 1d20 + 8 => (14) + 8 = 22
dmg 1d10 + 4 => (9) + 4 = 13
Borne up by the wings of GM-fiat, Fin charges the keening spirit! :D
Whoosh 1d20 + 8 => (14) + 8 + 2 = 24
dmg 1d10 + 4 => (9) + 4 = 13