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Just so long as you don't take my humor for granite we will be fine.
The DM is fine with you kidnapping Caulky although I remind you that you also wanted to talk to Tessa Fairwind so you'd have to improvise a brig or designate where in a hold you want to keep her.
She's definitely kicking up a storm on Nymph's shoulder but Nymph isn't the only sailor hauling off seemingly unwilling men and women to ships during the confusion.
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Captain Yuki is obviously distracted as she sets up Caulky's interrogation. So distracted in fact, that she doesn't seem to notice that Rocky can talk now.
Once things are set up, Yuki prepares herself with an Enhanced Diplomacy spell. Although she's quite sure the nice way won't work, Yuki nevertheless starts out that way to make her feel better about being mean later.
"So, Caulky, tell us what we want to know and we'll let you go free. We just want to talk, you know? So, what have you been doing since we've seen you last? Still working for Harrigan?"
Caulky sneers at you after you thump her in the hold.
Oh, some traitors like you want to talk? Let's see how talkative you are once the Hurricane King comes and gets you for burning down the docks.
The Hurricane King will not care that you burned down the docks as long as it doesn't torch his ship, which it won't. He also won't care if people get killed.
”If he didn’t want the docks torched he wouldn’t have risked sending us there in the first place.” Nymph says with a shrug.
Trevor smiles at his captain's smooth ways. However, he notices there's still some defiance in the girl. He stays behind her to hide his gestures, then add a word of power, concentrating on the girl to ease her mind: "It is good that you try to warn us, and we appreciate it. A good gesture will be rewarded in time. However, I'm sure we'll be fine, as long as the King's ship are free from harm. Say, we only need your help. Surely, you can see that we need to even things out with Harrigan. Make peace..."
Caulky screws up her face and glares at Trevor.
Magicker! How dare you try to cast a spell on me. She spits on the deck.
At least the b!$&@ can speak to face to face and not try to control my mind like a coward.
"Right. Well, she wasn't much help anyway..." says Trevor with a sheepish look at his Captain. He leaves the room, shoulders down, when Yuki and the others glare at him.
Galean shrugs as the mind-affecting spell fails. "Uh...", he ponders, before scratching his head. "We just want to know a few things, is all. Like where is Harrigan, and what are you doing here.", he looks at Caulky. "And we also would like not to be pressganged again, on the threat of a wolverine plague."
Yuki glares at Trevor when his spell fails, but says nothing to him at the moment. She instead smiles sheepishly to Caulky and says,
"Listen, like Galean says, we just want to know where Harrigan is and what he's doing. We're just trying to protect ourselves, you know? I'm sure you understand. We're even willing to let you go once we're sure we're safe."
Bahrin leans against the wall, arms still crossed, as the interrogation plays out.
Where do you think Harrigan is? Caulky's voice drips scorn at the question. He's in port! And if you think you can slink away after you start a damn riot on the docks you can think again.
"Well, we didn't start the fire." Yuki replies, pausing to stop herself from reciting some song that suddenly pops in her head, "Anyway, is Harrigan coming actively coming after us? Or is it more like, he'll get to it eventually?"
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Sure, right. The fire was always burning since the world's been turning.
She shakes her head at your question.
Harrigan's got bigger fish to fry that some mutineers. He's going to be one of the big Free Captains soon - the Regatta's coming up and when he wins he'll be on the Conclave.
Bahrin can't help but let out a laugh. He pushes himself off the wall. "Harrigan, win the Regatta? What, he's going to whip people hard enough to row their way around all the Isles? Caulky, I know you have some loyalty to your captain, but let's be honest. He's barely got a crew, and few of them share your loyalty." The sorcerer's eyes crinkle with humor. "He's not going to beat the Master of Gales, in any case. Even if the Master didn't race for some reason, Harrigan would have to outsail a half-dozen or more up-and-coming captains with better-trained crews and better-built ships."
Caulky sneers at Bahrin.
Shows what you know fancy-boy. The Master of Gales is master of the regatta this year - he's not racing which means the field is open. And Harrigan's crew is better than your gutter sweepings; only the strongest survive on the Wormwood.
”Or get dumped on a captured ship.”
"I don't know about that, though.", says Galean, before leaning on the wall. "None of your crew seemed able to do the things we can do when we were there. And the Calamitous Intent is a lot faster.", he grins, before throwing a look at Yuki. "Uh, Cap'n. We are going to the regatta, right?", he asks with hope in his eyes.
"Sounds good, Galean, but maybe we should make some ship improvements to make our ship faster." Yuki replies in an agreeable tone.
"So, Caulky, what were you doing in the bar when we found you? What is your business in the city?"
Trevor leans his back against the wall beside the closed door, listening to the conversation. As he learns that they will likely enter the Regatta, if only to piss off another captain, he smiles to himself and fetches a thin cigar from his pocket, lighting it with a sense of ceremony.
The captain's hard on the sweepings of the ports - he's always looking for new crew members to fill in the gaps of the weak; or the treasonous.
”Hey, we weren’t treasonous. Whatstheirfaces tried to kill us after they nearly got us shipwrecked.”
Galean raises his hand meekly. "Uh... I think I might've been a bit treasonous. Not too much, though.", he shares, before shrugging. "So, what do we do with Caulky?", he expectantly looks at the Captain. "Do you want to come with us? We are a bit nicer. But with a lot more flying sharks and dolphins.", he offers. "And lashings are on demand only."
Treason is just a word.
Caulky sneers at you.
You can turn your back on the captain but I won't - I know better than to cross him and besides, I get to do what I want. So what if I have to warm his hammock from time to time? I've lived with worse.
Nymph tilts her head slightly. "... so he's not any good?"
"I said I'd let you go, Caulky, and I'm a woman of my word. Buuuuut, it's too dangerous to let you go now and go squealing to Harrigan about us. So, you're going to be our guest for awhile at least until we sail to another port. Meanwhile, I'm going to have to be a bad hostess and knock you out while we take care of other business. We'll heal you up later, promise."
Nymph leans over to her captain to whisper "Have you ever knocked someone out before?"
"No, am I doing it wrong?"
Caulky screams as Yuki batters her into unconsciousness and leaves her bleeding on the deck. The crew, many of whom knew her and realize that she must have been the one who delivered them into the hands of Harrigan and Plugg by drugging their drinks at the docks they were shanghaied from, feel no pity for the slippery cabin girl.
Not too subtle, but effective...want to tie her up then I can patch her up?
"This place has a brig, no?" offers Trevor from where he stood listening, blushing as he realizes he should be the one to know the answer.
Nymph stares on as Yuki bludgeons the woman to near(?) death. ”... well that happened. You know she’s not gonna be happy if she wakes up?”
Bahrin shrugs. "Not as bad a beating as the ones that Harrigan gives her. Ugh. Regardless, she's loyal to him beyond reason. Having her hate us more won't change anything."
"Make sure she's tied up nice and tight and keep her in the bilge under armed guard. She shouldn't wake up until we get back. Oh, I think there's some magical shackles in my quarters, put those on her too." Yuki says to the nearby crew. "Ayre, we'll heal her up after we back from talking with Tess or whatever her name is."
"Hey, Trev? Could you get together with Galean about getting a brig set up on the ship? I mean, not immediately, but we should probably get one set up, don't you think?"
"Sorry Nymph, she was press-ganging people again, I don't think she really deserves a nicer way of being made docile. I don't care if she likes us anymore, she's a threat and lucky we aren't cold-blooded murderers."
"Give me a few minutes to change into clean clothes and we'll see what we can do about setting up this meeting."
”I know Cap’n, just stating the obvious as usual.”
"Aye Capt'n, a brig it will be. Galean and I are on it. Erm... What's my... Well, what's our budget? I mean, for the brig?"
"Well Trev, a big cage might be enough, you guys should talk it over and let me know our options."
Galean watches the pummeling for a moment, then shrugs. "Cap'n has a point. Pressganging isn't fun. I think in just about any port they'll hang her for that." Turning to Trevor, Galean starts speaking. "Well, there'll be hunters and stuff on the island. If we get two cages for bears, we'd be able to fit a whole command crew in there if need be.", he reasons. "And that's not going to be too expensive. If we tie those in the Secure Storage on the lower deck, we could use them to serve a dual purpose - if someone breaks into or our of one of them, they also have to break into the other. And it's not like we're using it for anything, right now."
"Yup, cages sound good to me. Let's pick some up after we talk to Tessa. Sound good?"
"Right Capt'n, we'll get the cages after the meeting. Should we just go now or wait for the fire to abate?"
Soinds like a plan to me! Who's Tess?
After a long night of fires, fights and fun on the part of pirates playing a home game for once.
The morning dawns over half-burnt docks, shops with smashed windows and not a few bodies piled throughout Port Peril. Groups of sailors are working shore patrol as you traipse through the streets.
Yuki, no slouch despite the chaos, thoughtfully gleaned the location of Tessa Fairwind's townhouse before Galean almost burned down the capital of the Shackles and branded you all Chelish agents.
She leads you through the streets to a courtyard high up on the hills surrounding the city with a commanding view of the bay. A large number of pirates lounge outside the tall, basalt building undoubtedly being safeguarded from the rioters. A barrel, probably of ale, with a dozen cups around them stands nearby and some of the pirates are hurling daggers at a target they've set up near the entrance.
Another pirate lounges near the entrance to the courtyard who's not a part of the group.
A dashing young man with a handsome, square-jawed face and finely muscled frame. He wears an unadorned black patch over his left eye and dresses in a loose, flowing shirt and high boots. His self-assured manner and easy smile radiate self-confidence. Pierce moves with an understated swagger that suggests he’s well accustomed to standing astride the swaying deck of a ship at sea.
He gives you an appraising look as you approach.
Ayre, you can tell that the man leaning against the wall has clothing too fine to be anything but a wealthy pirate - too wealthy to be crewing for someone else. He's probably waiting for Tessa to be available.