Dain heads back up. Didn't find anything, she might have it on her person. Dains earches the woman's possesions for clues.[/b]
Yorikata enjoys some peaceful alone time with Lanneth in the stables.
Lanneth stays with her companion.
Some things are more important then others....
The bond carries the feeling of concern that is slowly going away as she pets her companion.
Yorikata turns into human form again, without changing position.
"It's no fun to almost get killed." she tells in a tone that sounds a only little sad.
Lanneth wraps her arms around Yorikata and hugs her.
No, it isn't.
I have to warn you, because of our bond, me dying will be even more painful to you. I've been on the receiving side of that a few times.
She pauses for a bit
But I am going to do everything I can to avoid either one of us dying.... I don't want to lose you... You are the best companion I've ever had.
Then she stops and just holds her for a bit.
Ragg tightens the ropes on the woman, Taug is posted by her for the remainder of the day. The woman does not wake till closer to evening.
"nhh.. oww. Where is that big stone looking thing. I have an arrow to put between his eyes." The woman says loudly on the deck of the ship
"How many familiars have you had already?" Yorikata asks as her curiosity is piqued. "You are my first... what's it called?"
Ragg directs his crew to back to work, Taug stays on the woman waiting for your group to come back to deal with her.
I've lost two companions over the years. One died of old age, and my second sacrificed himself so I could escape right before I met you...
As she talks the bond carries an intense feeling of sadness and longing for a long minute before she manages to get her emotions back under control.
As for what our relationship is called, I'd like to think of us as companions or friends. Some Witches think they are the masters of their familiars, much like dwarves believe they are masters of stone. But any elf knows that is nonsense. What can a dwarf do if the mountain decides to shake? Nothing. But the mountain must provide the stone and the dwarves work it.
Indeed: Mother Moon teaches that two partners can do far more then a slave can alone.
So it should be with a witch and her companion, we each take the lead when appropriate, and support when the other is leading.
So how will we be dealing with this one>? She said something about killing 'him' or 'her'. So let us find out.
Yorikata frowns a bit at the mentioning of partners. "I appreciate that you don't see us as master and slave. But there has to be a middle ground between that and equal partners, where you are still responsible if things go pear shaped."
"You are the SENIOR partner in this relationship after all." she adds as her sassy side comes back.
Yes, Child I suppose I am old to you... It's strange to think of myself that way. I'm not that old for my people. It's you lot that is young... She trails off for a moment in thought. It would be... it would be nice if prophecy still worked. When I was young, I could have known what was coming for us, we just had to read the stars and listen to the last Priests of the Living God... But now....
She shakes her head and her tone turns teasing.
Well no matter, I suppose given you are all children, I do have to bear some of the responsibility for what happens. After all you all are just a few days away from not being able to feed and dress yourselves.
With Dain standing by for a while, the woman eventually regains consciousness. It takes a few moments for the woman to realize where she is.
"Why didn't you just kill me? Let me drown?" The woman looks up through her matted hair, eyes wildly looking around
"And stupid me gave up being fed again by revealing my human form to you." Yorikata mocks herself. The outcome of that conversation is much to her liking.
After a short silence she asks "Shall we go and check on the others? You deemed it important to speak to that person. I guess I kept you away from that long enough."
Well...I guess that might be up to the captain. Where is our witch? Perhaps she can help with this one.
The woman stares venom at everyone.
Lanneth heads out...In time to hear the last question.
We didn't kill you child because unlike you we don't kill unless we have to.
That said, why have you tried to destroy this good Orc's ship and poison his crew?
As she gets close she looks to see if the woman has an amulet around her neck. Like the magic amulet we took off the orc we captured.
Lanneth finds an amulet, as she leans in though the woman tries to bite her hand.
"It was all done to take you out, not the crew." The woman hisses
Yorikata comes along to see what she could learn from her senior partner, when it comes to interrogations. What a tremendous memory she has. I've totally forgotten about that medaillion
But her admiring look at Lanneth vanishes and goes dark as the woman bites at Lanneth. Yorakata kicks the stowaway into the stab wound she dealt her earlier. "Don't you dare."
The woman grunts at the kick, whirling her greasy hair towards Yorikata. "protecting your master girl?" The woman smiles fiercely
So why the bloodthirst against us?
Let me guess. Your True love Locket is telling you nothing, so you think that orc Alchemist boy is dead. Well silly girl he isn’t. He was knocked out and I healed him. But when he was put on trial for his crimes the locket was confiscated from him.
You fool your misplaced anger harmed all these crewmen for no reason.
She shakes her head sadly.
Now girl, I suggest you start talking before the captain decides to hold you responsible for wearing his ship, losing his valuable cargo and poisoning all the crew for no reason.
Your current course is going to eliminate any chance of seeing that boy again.
The woman's face betrays only ever so slightly that she is shocked that Skreed is still alive
"I came here to avenge Skreed, I thought him dead when I couldn't feel him through the locket, when I couldn't draw on our connection. I knew you were coming here and I set about to finish the job from you meddling in Trunau." The woman sneers
Meddling at Trunau? Given we didn't kill Skreed, What exactly do you think we did there that makes us worth your time?
"You prevented Skreed from getting what he was after there."
Well I reckon he was part of the invading force since he was with all of the other giants and orcs so of course we would stop him
"That's what you get when you fall for the bad guy." Yorikata teases the woman.
And what exactly did that boy tell you he was trying to do there? Because it seemed to us he was doing unspeakable things with a dead giant when we captured him.
"He never told me what he was doing there, I just know that you stopped him. There was nothing I could do to help, I arrived to late."
Oh, what could you possibly be doing that keep you away from him? It looked like the entire clan was there to support him. Wouldn't he have wanted to have his love there with him in his moment of triumph?
"I arrived to late as I said, nor did I know what was happeneing." She repiles
"That is interesting. You have no clue what your man did, or what we did. You came too late for everything, but when your magic connection to your lover was cut off and you found out, we are the towns heroes, you decided that this is enough reason to kill us." Yorikata summarizes what is known so far.
"Doesn't make sense in my mind."
"I konw that you stopped him and that you are the Heroes of Trunau. I watched as you exited that Long house, heard you were coming to this boat." She says venom in her voice "It got worse when I couldn't feel Skreed anymore"
The Boat gets underway back up the river
So if you were coming after us, why release the beast or poision the food?
"TO weaken you, make you turn against the crew? if you were all asleep I could slit your throats or push you into the water and watch you drown." Looking at the Sun you figure it is about 0900, Ragg approaches you. "We have a delivery ta make today, then onto Ghost light Marsh
"I leave it to the wise of old age to decide what to do with this monster. I can't listen to her anymore. You'll find me in the galley." Yorikata tells and then leaves.
Turning to Ragg Lanneth says:
Well captain, she just admitted to poisoning the crew, releasing the beast and trying to kill people on your ship based on random assumptions. As Captain on the ship, what do you want done with this one?
She turns back to the woman.
Unless you want to say something more in your defense?
"I didn't poison anyone, nor did I let that great beast out. Yer crew did all that, they thought it was a good idea." A wicked grin comes to her face.
Ragg humfs at that, "She can stay there, once we reach the outpost at Last Wall we can dump her off with them." Ragg says from the Wheel.
Dain shrugs
As you wish captain.
Lanneth walks away and sits down across the deck, keeping an eye on the prisoner to see if anyone tries to help her or pass messages to her.
The ship makes it's way further up the river, eventually coming a way station along the river. A broken pier rises from the gently flowing waters of the river, its pilings blackened by fire and splintered by axe. Only a few waterlogged planks remain, hanging drunkenly from twisted nails.
A path leads up from the dock toward a small stone building atop a low hill nearby.
"I was here not 15 days ago, can you take the Jolly boat a shore and see what is happening in there? We trade with the Knights of Last Wall all the time, I would hate to lose a trading partner." Ragg says a bit worried.
There is a bloated Orc corpse in the water
This place might have been attacked by orcs.
Yorikata sticks her head out of the galley.
"Looks like more orcs. At least the one in the water over there got the right condition already." she points out to the others.
She waits until someone who knows their job has prepared the jolly boat. Then she gets in to be brought ashore.
Balder preps the boat and hops in, "Who's comin, dying to get some solid land under mah feet, if even for a moment."
Careful, the clan who did this may be still around.