(Not good enough on the Diplomacy role, but not a huge failure, either.)
Ishirou looks sideways as he sharpens his katana. "I am needed here more. The half-elf is still in need of a drink, and the archer can not hold off a horde by himself." The Tian held up his blade to check the edge. "But we have not died yet, which is something." he muttered, almost to himself. The man got up and moved towards the beach. "I will add checking for snakes to the watch. Your stories last night said there were snakes here." Ishirou finished.
The taciturn Tian looks back from his view of the beach, shaded by the jungle treeline where Ishirou was standing. In a gruff voice, he replied "It is unexpected here on the island, cleric. I am a mercenary, a sailor. We have been luckier than most, no? But I cannot shake this feeling of dread for us." The man sighed, crossing his arms. "We are all still alive. Maybe in the morning I will feel better."
(Your Diplomacy is not enough to change Ishirou, but at least you didn't roll a "1".)
(Good night. Here I was thinking proper 19th Century English at the very least. ;) )
The mercenary's eyes went flat. "You are babbling." he declared, standing up. "Talk to the cleric, if are not serious about our situation. We do not need boys pretending to be men."
Phillip found the Tian man easily after a few minutes. The mercenary was checking the string of a snare trap. Rather than a bell, the string had several sea shells strung along its' length, so that when the trap was sprung the shells would collapse along the string, making a recognizable sound.
"Yes?" Ishirou said gruffly, seeing Phillip. The man's hands brushed the leaves around the snare's string, burying the trap in the undergrowth again.
The mercenary dropped his cup and stood, his hand flashing to his katana, half-unsheathing the blade as he looked around at everyone. When stunned silence greeted him around the campfire, with everyone's eyes on him, the Tian man slammed his hilt back home, saying "I am sorry. I was thinking...of other things. I will go check the traps." Ishirou turned, carefully making his way out to the beach trail, then turning south.
Perception DC 15:
Ishirou's hands are shaking like a leaf, despite his gruff outer appearance.
Ishirou appears silently at the edge of the camp. "It is time to start the watches, Cleric Ferrio." he said succinctly. The older man appeared calmer than he was in the morning before.
"I will go back to watching the beach." Ishirou said gruffly to everyone.
Perception DC 15:
The Tian man doesn't appear to be as stoic as he first presented yesterday. In fact, you saw his hand shaking a bit before he gripped his sword hilt, almost for reassurance. As he turned away, his shoulders were stiff and tensed.
The stoic Tian man greeted you as you came upon the base camp. He motioned to Philip, and said in a low voice, "The half-elf is very bad off. She has been rummaging through everyone's supplies, looking for drink."
You don't see Aeyrs right off, she must be in her tent.
"No." Ishirou said from where he was keeping post, watching the trail back to the beach. "If there are shipwrecks, there might be others on the island. We should be cautious, but explore."
Ishirou throws up his hands in defeat. "Shipwreck instead of port, so cat instead of person! Too much for one day! Let me show you to the camp, so that we can at least stop the madness for today." He appears to recover enough to not be shocked anymore, at least.
With the drama completed, Sasha and Phillip are also done securing the boat on the beach. It's high enough so that the tide cannot claim it, with driftwood and rocks around it as well.
"Neko - cat!" the mercenary said, pointing at the ship's cat. "Big neko - cat-person!" Ishirou accused, pointing at Ashana. (His brain's about ready to pop, this is too much for him.)
"B-But, is neko!" Ishirou protested, slipping back into his native Tien in shock. Then he spotted the Jenivere ship's cat trotting up from behind the party. "And another neko! Too many! Where both come from?" the man sputtered. It's been a long day for the middle-aged mercenary.
(Edit: Using Japanese instead of Chinese. In Mandarin Chinese, it would be "māo" (rhymes with "cow") in a flat high tone.)
Ishirou caught first sight of the black-furred catperson. "What is THAT?" he bellowed, one hand going to his Tian-styled sword. He has had enough surprises for one day.
"We have made a camp." the stoic man stated to the others. "It is nearly a hundred feet under the trees. We needed this when it started raining. The gnome has started a fire and is making a nuisance of himself, trying to wake the woman and the girl up."
The Tian mercenary looked as if he was about to argue, then saw everyone's disapproval on their faces. He wordlessly went over to the larger human woman on the sand and was about to pick her up, only to have Phillip beat him to it. So he picked up the elf girl instead, carrying her (to C8 on the map.) The man went back and gathered the leftover gear and moved that to the tree line as well.
"They all say that." Ishirou said gruffly, making a move to stand next to Jask Derindi, one hand on his katana's hilt. "We would be safer if you remained as you are."
The point of almost three feet of steel came down squarely on the underside of the crustacean, sinking several inches into its' body. The sea scorpion gushed fluid over the blade and sand. (Coup de grace.)"-now dead." Ishirou said succinctly, and pulled his katana free, standing straight again.
The silent Tian warrior unsheathed his katana, quickly crossing over to where the dog-sized sea scorpion was inbetween the redhead and the human covered in glimmering substance. (Diagonal move to I10 and K11.)
Taking a leap at the end of his run, the mercenary drove his blade downwards, adding his weight in an unusual move. (SeaScorp4)
Katana attack: 1d20 + 5 + 2 - 2 ⇒ (9) + 5 + 2 - 2 = 14
Damage with sneak attack: 1d10 + 3 + 1 - 2 + 1d6 ⇒ (4) + 3 + 1 - 2 + (3) = 9
(SeaScorp4 is dead.)
(The immediate danger is past. You are out of melee now and can act normally.)
The Tian mercenary took a good look at the sea scorpions on the other side of the beach, and with a grunt, began searching through the pile of equipment next to Shevan. Ishirou needed his beloved katana.
The Tian man awoke silently and saw two of the sea scorpions uncomfortably near him. The man rose up and swung out of the way, (from K11 to M09), also withdrawing to the pile of equipment. (Acrobatics check: 1d20 + 5 - 2 ⇒ (10) + 5 - 2 = 13, which is higher than SeaScorp4's CMD but not SeaScorp6's CMD+2)
Sting attack: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (8) + 1 = 9
The stinger missed Ishirou, who without a word took in the situation around him on the sand.
"I do not know." Ishirou replied slowly. "This is a merchant ship, but we were not told what the cargo was." He shifted uncomfortably. "The Captain must have his reasons. He is allowing the crew to have a celebratory dinner, which is a change from his usual strictness." Ishirou concluded.
Ishirou, the stoic Tian with greying hair, glances over from where he was standing by himself. "Smuggler's Shiv is not on most maps and rarely spoken of. It looks like a shiv, with a curved blade, and wrecks most ships that try to land or get close. Only smugglers and pirates, escaping Sargava's navy, think of using the island. Rumors talk of failed attempts to set up a colony; all have ended among stories of cannibalism and ghosts." The weathered man finishes speaking and looks as if he has said all he knows.
