Lee takes a moment to assess the battlefield and sees that Thren and Rosie are grappled. Figuring that Rosie can hold her own for a round or two, he decides to get Thren freed up first (and if Rosie needs aid he's just a 5' step away).
Egads.
"I came here to catch food, not be food!" Despite having been ensnared, the bard attempts to cast a spell to make her escape more easily, grease.
Just as Thren attempts to pronounce the last arcane syllable, the reefclaw yanks on her tail with its own, transforming the last word into "MeeoouCH!" As that's not what the incantation requires, the magic fails to manifest.
"Stupid creature, I didn't pull your tail, so get off of mine!"
Lark is tempted to go for the flat-footed creature, but the chance to team up with Rosie in shallow water is a stronger lure. Lark swims to Rosie’s side and prepares to bash her attacker with his belaying pin.
Reefclaw 1 attempts to maintain the grapple on Threnody.
Then snaps at her with a claw.
But harmlessly snips off some of her hair.
Unfortunately, its tail still squeezes her tight, beginning to choke the life out of her.
Reefclaw 2 similarly attempts to maintain the grapple on Rosie.
And likewise clamps down on one of her limbs with its claws.
Which it does so efficiently.
Also while trying to crush her with its tail.
Venom injected from the barbs on the reefclaw's claws do
The third reefclaw sees a tasty morsel dive past him and decides to follow the movement, easily maneuvering with its expert fish-like swimming to emerge right behind Lark and attack .
An errant current misdirects the reefclaw's aim, and Lark remains unmolested.
Struggling in the water, and unsure she can manage to wriggle out of the reefclaw's grip, Rosie swings her hand axe at it.
And just manages to wedge it between chinks in its carapace.
While the water blunts the force of her axe, she still deals at least some respectable damage .
Lee aids Thren with a bit of arcane might.
He casts Magic Missile at Reefclaw #1...
...doing sure but slightly-below-average damage.
Lee also 5' steps W, removing him from 5'-step-range to aid Rosie but bringing him into 5'-step-range to aid Threnody.
Still annoyed, the tiefling bard tries to cast the same spell again (grease).
The air is squeezed out of her in mid-incantation, making the words fade into a gasp.
Lark takes a swing at the reefclaw that is holding Rosie underwater.
He is unable to connect through the water and settles for repositioning himself slightly.
While feeling the pain from the magical attack, Reefclaw 1 continues its attempts to turn Threnody into its next meal.
However, perhaps Threnody simply thought hard enough about being slippery, that it loses its equilibrium and is forced to release her in order to maintain its position. It remains adjacent to her in hopes of getting another chance to attack.
As the poison from a prior attack continues to weaken Rosie ( ), the second reefclaw also works to keep its hold onto Rosie.
And successfully does so, so it continues to try to rend her with one of its claws.
And finally it constricts her.
Seeing that the second reefclaw is probably going to get a chance to gnaw on Rosie before it gets to join in, the last reefclaw swings both claws at Lark.
But the rogue manages to continue to evade his friends' fate.
=====
Rosie, panicking as the venom from the reefclaw's claws surges through her veins, swings wildly, trying to hurt the creature before it kills her.
Unfortunately, in her panic, her efforts are ineffective.
Lee fires off the 2nd of his daily 5 1st level spells at Reefclaw #1.
Thren can finally breathe without having her chest constricted by her smaller assailant, so she begins to sing a song of battle.
Standard action: Inspire courage (audible component)
As she does so, she yanks up the crab pot and prepares to use it to catch crustaceans the old-fashioned way: by smashing the pesky creatures.
Move action: pull up crab-pot.
Inspire courage: +1 morale bonus vs. fear and charm effects, +1 competence bonus on attack and weapon damage rolls. Affects all allies including herself.
Lark takes a swing at the reefclaw that is holding Rosie underwater.
Lark finds Threnody's song very inspirational.
Reefclaw 2 continues steadfastly aiming toward making Rosie its next meal.
However, while it maintains its death-like grip on Rosie, in a misguided attempt to wrench off her arm, it tries to dig into her leather epaulet to little effect.
It still squeezes her with its tail.
Not a fan at all of rousing sea chanties, Reefclaw 1 attacks Threnody, both claws flying toward the tiefling.
But it is distracted by the swinging cage that Thren has just yanked out of the water. One claw strikes the edge of the cage and bounces off, and the other just flails uselessly.
Reefclaw 3 continues to try to attack Lark, convinced he must be delicious if he moves so quickly.
This time the reefclaw figures out how to adjust for Lark's maneuvers, grabbing both of his arms and crunching down on them hard.
And with such purchase gained, the reefclaw attempts to pull him into a grapple.
And manages to do so.
HOWEVER....
Just as all hope seems lost, two bright, burning red lines appear in mid-air from about 40-50 feet away. These rays of fire strike the reefclaw that just attacked Lark. The fire sears through the creature, and its carapace turns a bright red as it flops into the water.
The bad news is, the creature's nervous system forces the reefclaw to first go rigid, and then convulse into a series of spasms that cause its claws to fly violently about. Still half-entangled in the creature's appendages, Lark is in danger of being struck by the spiny claws.
It manages to strike him once, one last time its nasty spines striking him with now hot venom.
But once that horrific ordeal is done, the thing really is clearly and most sincerely dead. And, for that matter, smells mouth-wateringly delicious.
When you look toward where the rays of fire came from, you see nothing but the Wormwood in the distance, still about a hundred feet away. There is no signal or indication if any further assistance--if you can call it that--will be coming, and assuming it is might be dangerous.
=====
Now completely panicking, even though she is much weaker than she was, Rosie just tries to break free of the reefclaw.
And through sheer grit and determination, perhaps with the assistance of Thren's rousing song rippling through the water, she does so! She surfaces, gasping for air.
She then reaches into a pouch with her free hand, pulling out a vial.
The day started so beautifully. Great weather, a nice swim...now Thren's tail has been yanked on repeatedly and her chest aches. All because of some creature that should be used for soup stock, that really belongs in the pot she's holding. Now she's peeved.
The bobber looks weighty enough to serve her needs, so the bard hums a note and the entire crab pot glows electric blue as she feeds arcane energy into it.
She slams the crab pot into the reefclaw attacking her (reefclaw 1), knocking it back a step.
Weakened though he is Lark manages to strike the reefclaw.
Lee decides that finishing a reefclaw is an admirable goal. As such, he releases a bit more arcane might in the form of a Magic Missile directed at Reefclaw #1
Lark, though weakening, tries to focus his attacks on reefclaw 2, before it tries to wrestle Rosie again.
Threnody knocks Reefclaw 1 on its noggin and then Lee zaps it with a magic missile. It appears to flop in the water, sickly ichor spreading through the water. Then, out of sheer grit and stubbornness, it still weakly clings to the surface and swings a single claw at Threnody's ankle.
It gets a firm grip on her ankle and wraps itself around her again, apparently intent on taking it with her to its death.
Reefclaw 2 looks between Rosie and Lark and decides to go after the larger morsel, deciding he would make a more satisfying meal.
Mis-judging its attacks now that it aims for a larger creature, it still only misses Lark just barely.
Rosie tries to maneuver away to get into a more defensive position and drinks her potion.
She calls out to the others, her voice shaky and weak. "We gotta get Thren away from the other one before it goes into its death frenzy!"
It would seem that Thren is rather resistant to crustacean poisoning. Still, she's getting more peeved with her should-be lunch at every moment and doesn't realize it's already dying, seeing as how it's trying to squeeze her ankle.
Feeling the venom draining all his strength Lark moves to escape the reefclaw.
Lee is not well equipped to pull Threnody away from the oozing-ichor reefclaw, so he points at the other reefclaw hoping to get it before it can harm Rosie or Lark again, noting them both look a bit weak and shaky.
It only sears the creature minimally, unfortunately.
Reefclaw 1 bleeds out, goes rigid, and its nervous system releases into a final frenzy. While it lets go of Threnody, both claws spasm and flail, risking slashing her with the sharp spines.
Its blind frenzy misses Threnody once, but then its second claw stabs her nastily.
It then collapses into the water and floats on the surface, obviously dead.
The final reefclaw seems undeterred by the loss of his two companions and swims off the reef and lunges at the tasty-looking morsel that is Lark.
It grabs Lark's arm and crunches down with its nasty venomous spines.
It also wraps its tail around Lark and Lark is wrestled once again. Because he is in a less shallow square, he needs to hold his breath to survive.
As the venom finishes coursing through Rosie's veins, she sighs and swims to engage the second and still living reefclaw.
And she tries to attack it with her handaxe.
And somehow manages to hit, even as the axe wavers in her hand...
And only hits for minimal impact.
Lark thrashes in the reefclaw’s grip. He manages to keep hold of his belaying pin and connects with a flailing blow.
"If I find out this is some pirate's joke when we're done, I'm going to stuff the claws of these things where the sun doesn't shine!" Now that her overly-amorous vicious pet hermit crab has died, Thren starts dragging herself over to where Lark is having problems. As she goes, she murmurs the incantation she's tried twice already.
Move action: Head toward Lark
Standard action: Cast grease on Lark
Maintain Inspire Courage
Lee has had enough 'reefclaw' for the day.
As such he uncorks a Magic Missile on the offensive crustacean (reefclaw #2)...
...and enjoys the benefits of a sure thing.
Lee gets out a flaskful of healing potion and gets ready to pour it into anyone who is looking terminal.
Reefclaw 2 tenaciously hangs on to life and Lark, but with a final force blast from Lee's fingertips, it shudders and begins to leak its life fluid.
It hasn't noticed it is dying yet, however, and weakly still tries to squeeze the life out of Lark.
However as Lark is both wriggly as before and now slippery to boot, it slides off of Lark and burbles in confusion.
Cognizant that the reefclaw is likely about to start seizuring violently like the other two, Rosie grabs Lark's slippery hand and tries to help him move away.
"Back, back!" She shouts, but she herself, weakened by the poison in her system, more drifts in the water.
... toward the reefclaw.
The reefclaw's last conscious dying act is to swipe at Rosie as she drifts toward it, but only harmlessly snips off a small chunk of her hair.
Lark grabs Rosie and pulls her away, and all move well away as the reefclaw goes into its dying spasms.
Rosie pulls herself onto the reef next to Lee and says. "Was I hallucinatin' under the water or did you shoot an icicle before you started zappin' glowy balls instead? Because first, that's really neat! And second, if you can ice down the dead reefclaws, it'll keep'em fresh."
She looks at the party and grins, perhaps deflecting from the fact she is shivering and spasming still from the reefclaw's poison. "Best meal I f!*~ing well ever had was reefclaw stew--got it before we sailed out of Absalom years ago. Damn, I haven't eaten that good since. May as well take these back along with the crabs. I have a feeling the reefclaw stew from these will taste even better." She glares balefully at the forms floating in the water. Spying the one that is already effectively cooked. "What happened there, anyways? Anybody see that?"
While contemplating any response to Rosie, you check each other over for wounds, and pull up your crab pots. Thren's does not have any crabs in it--it didn't even when she'd pulled it up to use it as a weapon, but everyone else's are full. Of edible seafoods you have, you have about twelve crabs and the three reefclaws.
The crabs are still alive in the pots (as they should be); Rosie suggests using the rope from Thren's pot to tie up the reefclaws, and using Lee's ray of frost spell to keep them cold and fresh.
Rosie and Lark are both weak from poison. The poison has run its course in Rosie but Lark still shudders for nearly a minute more.
Once you finish here, you can very slowly make your way back to the ship, linking arms with your weakened crewmates to help them get back.
Lee gives it some thought...
...and just maybe he retained something from the classroom environment his family provided.
Lee chills the seafood with judicious applications of his arcane might.
"So, this is going to kind of let the cat entirely and completely out of the bag. Me and the magic thing, anyway..."
Then, specifically to Rosie, Lee continues, "See, I didn't fill out any paperwork when I joined the crew. No interview. Nothing. So I've been keeping the whole 'magic doing' thing under wraps. No sense showing all the cards at once. A few people on the ship have it figured out, I think, but I had hoped that I could keep this from becoming common knowledge for as long as possible."
Lee sighs.
"But it is neat. I should look on the bright side and be glad that I don't have to hide every little thing I do..."
Lee smiles at Rosie.
Rosie smiles at Lee. "For the most part, I wouldn't worry about it -- though we can brush off the frost before anyone has any questions. If you used magic so powerfully, that someone might be threatened you'd climb officer ranks... like, I've heard people who'd make a better first mate than Plugg tend to mysteriously get washed overboard... that might make you a target, but just knowing spells won't hurt you. Conchobar casts spells... though I've only seen him use them to keep that stupid outfit of his clean."
"Besides, I'd bet Harrigan didn't ask because he already knows. Harrigan tends to know stuff like that, somehow. And if you didn't use whatever skills you had to help us fight another ship or something when it could help us win... that would get you in trouble."
"We're in trouble all the time anyway, Rosie. I figure sooner or later, Plugg will make up some excuse to get us keel-hauled for an hour or so each and call it Besmara's will when we drown. Not like our ship is the best for working as a team, forging ties between sailors, and all that." Thren winces, her battered ribs not happy about being used to entertain a freakish lobster earlier. "Case in point: we'll still probably get punished because we're not bringing back the crabs they all wanted, even though we've got something better."
Lark manages to remain conscious, but he's barely coherent and needs a great deal of help getting back to the ship.
Heading to the reef had taken you a matter of minutes. Heading back seems to take eons, and you’re almost worried the ship will pass you by -- which might be a bad thought save you’ve nowhere to go but back to the reef where probably more reefclaws dwell.
Still, Lee and Threnody do their best to help Rosie and Lark, with Rosie insisting half the time she doesn’t need help before her arm spasms and she nearly sinks, followed by her thanking you sheepishly.
You signal the ship, and Barefoot Tamms pulls you up -- and whistles, instantly impressed at seeing what you have hauled back up.
”Now that’s what I call a REAL fishing job! But hells, you look the worse for the wear don’t you? I’ll go get Quarne.” As the woman runs off for the Stitchman, Plugg saunters over. He eyes you angrily. ”One of you’s barely conscious for what, a bunch of oversized lobsters? I said to get crabs.”
He is about to snarl, no doubt to yell at you as Threnody predicted, when Captain Harrigan himself calls out from the poop deck. ”By my eyes, are those reefclaws? Well what are you waiting for you scuvy swabs, get those to Fishguts post-haste!”
Plugg just grits his teeth at that and hisses, ”You heard that, knaves. Go!”
You deliver the reefclaws to Fishguts along with the crabs, and being of sound mind and body, Lee is instantly put to work in preparing them. Kroop looks almost excited and nearly sober at the sight of the creatures. ”Pike me, I haven’t gotten ta prepare reefclaw in years. Still fresh too.”
Rosie whispers to Lee, ”Spare me a bite of reefclaw, eh? After all we’ve been through…”
The Stitchman’s voice interrupts any further conversation, and with a tsk-ing sound, ushers Lark and Rosie down to the fore portion of the lower deck to treat them--and Threnody as well, for the many slashes on her body from the reefclaws’ sharp spines.
He is glad to see the poison has run its course in both Rosie and Lark, but says largely what will help them now is rest, which he says they should do from now on--and preferably through the next day as well, though he worries quietly that Plugg won’t allow it. He gives them both a foul-tasting but warming concoction to help them feel a bit better, but says the full effects won’t kick in until they get some sleep.
Sandara Quinn pokes her head in, a worried frown clear on the weathered pirate’s face. ”Damn! Reefclaws, huh? Besmarans take it as a blessing when we see reefclaws come to the surface to feed--and it’s quite a feat that you defeated them! I’m sure you don’t feel blessed but maybe this will help.” Seeing Lark is the worst of the pair, she lays her hands on Lark and invokes a brief prayer.
She also heals Lark, Threnody, and Lee with her magic:
The Stitchman tisks at Quinn. ”Well, I suppose if you want to take the easy way out…”
She chuckles.
He adds, ”But you are all to rest thoroughly after dinner. Gods know what else lies on the reefs that we may all have to fight tomorrow, and we need everyone ship-shape.” Quinn quietly promises to prepare more prayers to help further speed the healing process, before more loudly agreeing with Quarne that they should probably take it easy this evening.
No one else is asked to report for duty save Lee, who gets a lesson in how to remove a poison gland from a reefclaw before preparing it for stew.
The two non-scorched reefclaws get prepared in a rich sauce, their meat surrounded by little crabcakes from the crabs. Kroop keeps the third, pre-cooked reefclaw to use for prepping rich stock, as he feels whatever burned it made its meat too tough. He does set the claw meat aside for Lee to eat or share with his friends as they like. If Lee tastes it, he finds it is in fact astonishingly delicious.
With plenty of reefclaw to feed the officers, the crew also get some crab in their stew, which is also seasoned with some jarred, preserved tomatoes and some extra spices. The special treat raises morale that evening notably.
As you begin to settle in after dinner, you hear Scourge’s familiar shuffle and, perhaps, you brace yourselves a bit as he approaches you, signaling Quarne to release some of you from his ministrations. He bears a terrible scowl, and he spits out the following with the deepest of distaste: ”The cap’n wishes to speak to you a moment. Come with me now.”
Quinn reminds you as you pass by her, ”Remember, don’t speak to the cap’n directly, or he’ll put you in the sweatbox.”
Following Scourge up to the deck, you see the captain waiting outside the door to his quarters, with Plugg standing next to him straining not to show a displeased a scowl as Scourge is bearing. Caulky, Peppery, and Krine are present as well, probably having been dining with the captain at his table not long ago. Their expressions are neutral, if not pleased, and Peppery is still chewing on a piece of reefclaw meat.
The Captain claps his hands together once loudly as Scourge ushers you forward, and suddenly he bursts into a grin. ”I asked for crab, you bring me reefclaw--the finest seafood one can eat! Most swabs would have fled even leaving the crab pots behind, but you stood your ground and took a lot of risk to bring back quite a prize. This is what I like to see in my crew: those who prove their value not in talk, but in work above and beyond the call. All those who stand here with me,” he waves around to the other officers, ”Have earned their place with consistent performance--and,” he adds a little more darkly, ”outlasting the others who might compete with them.” Plugg grits his teeth.
Harrigan addresses Rosie first. ”Cusswell, you knocked out three of our men before you were taken aboard this ship--and I’ve heard about your facing down Owlbear. Much as I would prefer to preserve our fighting spirit for the crews we capture…” he casts a brief glare at Plugg, and Plugg grits his teeth into an obeisant smile, ”You clearly have the kind of fighting spirit we need aboard this ship. You’ve got a good kit already, as I understand, but we’ll add to it some javelins that might be better suited toward fishing than your axe.” Riaris Krine hands Rosie a well made quiver of halfling-sized javelins. She accepts it, trying to keep a neutral expression.
”As for you,” he addresses Lark, Lee, and Threnody, ”Believe it or not, I saw you escape the Aurora’s Kiss. You had a will to survive your fellow crew did not display, then and now. All the better that you serve me!” He grins again, with a chilling undertone to the pleasure he expresses. ”And you’ve survived more than a week--a hard week, especially with the storm--with a solid work record so far. I think Plugg is doing a good job making you the pirates I need.” Plugg’s forced smile briefly turns genuine.
Harrigan then nods over to Krine. ”Once your wounds are healed and we sail into more open waters, Krine will indeed be reviewing some of your skills to be sure you can serve us fully.” Krine nods and smiles, sizing you up as you stand there.
Harrigan continues, ”But now… you’re a bit of a ragged lot, aren’t you? Especially after getting torn up by those reefclaw spines. You were without any duffle when we ‘hired’ you--you had nothing even to earn back. Minor magic can mend, but it’s still good to have proper gear. So as you’ve shown you are more than able crew, it’s time we ensure you have the kit to suit your status--and keep yourselves cleaned up. Grok, if you please.” He waves, and you realize Grok has come up from the middle deck behind you, and carries three duffle bags, one rather smaller than the other. ”I’ve authorized Grok to assemble something for you, as a small token of my thanks. We’ll be ready soon to--heh--recruit’ some additional crew. Keep working hard, and you will continue to be rewarded to match your performance.”
Each time Harrigan says something even vaguely complimentary toward you, Plugg winces as if he has been slapped. He only smiles once--when Harrigan mentions his doing a good job--and otherwise by the end of Harrigan’s speech, Plugg glares at the three of you with unveiled, total contempt.
Harrigan ends his speech with a ”Dismissed,” and returns to his cabin. Peppery follows after him, while Krine waves to Plugg to follow her into the officer’s quarters.
Scourge spits, ”Okay, party’s over, back to the berths with the other lowlifes!”
Grok more encouragingly nods, silently agreeing it would be a good idea for you to go back below decks. Rosie smiles congratulatorily toward you and heads back down, shouldering her new case of javelins.
The bags you have received are made of water resistant canvas and sailcloth (), and are heavy with gear sized appropriately for each of you. When you explore the contents, you find the following:
A waxed sailor’s coat that has deep pockets and is reinforced in key areas around the shoulders and torso. It weighs 5 lbs (1.25 for Lee) and is otherwise statistically serves as padded armor. You may wear the coat over other armor but of course it loses its own value as armor (but will still help keep you dry and hold stuff in its pockets, etc.)
A change of clothing (a “Pirate’s Outfit” - 2 lb for Medium, 0.5 for Lee - note the weight only counts if you’re not wearing it); Grok has done her best to find items that suit your builds and even your taste from what she might be able to glean from your current outfits. This is “sailor-suitable” stuff, lightweight and dries easily.
A dagger with sheath (1 lb Medium/0.5 lb Small)
A brass knife with sheath (0.5 lb Medium/0.25 lb Small) - same stats as a dagger but with the “fragile” feature; these are commonly carried by seamen because they don’t rust.
Air bladder (0.5 lbs)
Belt Pouch (0.5 lbs Medium/0.125 lbs Small)
Blanket (3 lbs Medium/0.75 lbs Small)
Gear Maintenance Kit (2 lbs) - Everything you need to keep the rest of the contents of the kit in tip-top shape, e.g., sewing kit, wax, whetstone, etc.
Grooming Kit (2 lbs Medium/0.5 lbs Small) - individualized for your personal hygiene needs.
Hip flask (0.5 lbs Medium, 0.125 lbs Small); unfortunately this is filled with Shackles rum
Journal, plus ink and inkpen (and blotter, etc.) in a small case (1 lb for all)
Compass (0.5 lb)
Mess kit (1 lb)
Twine (50 ft.) (-)
Waterskin (when full, 4 lbs Medium, 1 lb Small)
2 candlerods (1 lb each)
5 gp, much of it in silver (which is commonly what pirates gamble with)
Total weight (bag included): @ 28 for Thren and Lark, 12.5 for Lee
Yes, it would be tacky to try to sell this back for something else, but of course you are not required to carry what you don’t want and can leave the rest in your locker or perhaps barter with other crew for other things.
Thren will take her new gear and stow it away properly, making sure it's kept neatly stored. If it's not too odd, the dagger will be staying with her however, same with the brass knife. For work, and because she doesn't trust certain other sailors. That, and she's learned her lesson about keeping a weapon handy. But after having a reefclaw try to snap her ribs repeatedly, she's in no mood to entertain tonight.
Night action: Rest fully
If Threnody still has hit point damage after Quinn's healing, since she has agreed to rest, () Quarne makes sure her remaining wounds are bandaged and puts compresses on her bruised ribs. He looks mildly consternated at how to bandage a tail, something he's never really done before, but tries to press forward with his usual perfunctory manner.
When Thren wakes up in the morning, she is much better.
As night comes on, even though Lee is not wounded, he starts to feel shaky. Maybe it was the pressure of the day, maybe it was the use of so much magic after abstaining from using it for awhile... maybe something else. But surely, a little rum would help calm his nerves....
Night Action = Influence Grok
Lee is going to try to kick his habit. He's seen Lark have issues with the Shackle's rum and wants to nip this in the bud.
Rather than have rum, he'll show up from the kitchen with a tankard of brandy and down it fast.
Lee will hang out with Grok. Not interested in mingling. The convo will be about his magic-y nature and how (if) it's possible to downplay it on the ship. Also, the "Peppery" issue and his reluctance to be involved in her experiments. Also, Pancakes and the fact he's my familiar. How will be best to introduce that concept.
Regarding the Reefclaw flesh that Kroop gave to Lee. Lee will divide it into 4 parts and give one share to each of the hunters before they all toddle off to bed. Everyone gets a taste.