The Brine Banshee's stern rests upright at the bottom of the rift, wedged against a shelf of dark rock. All of the corpses in the area are decayed and picked over by the local wildlife. The ship's helm still stands on the top deck, a moldering corpse lashed to the dashboard.
The seawater has ruined much of the corpses' gear but he still wears a ring of force shield on a bony finger and a platinum-plated compass (worth 250 gp). The most valuable treasure though, is the custom control panel in front of the corpse:
Aura moderate transmutation; CL 11th
Slot none; Price 7,500 gp; Weight 15 lbs.
Handles of polished bone and grim skulls decorate this ornate helm control. When grasped, the controls feel comfortably smooth. Those who stand watch at the helm claim to hear the whispered guidance of Captain Xiribal Jalhazar, and occasionally feel ghostly hands holding the ship’s course true. When fitted a ship, Jalhazar's helm grants a +5 competence bonus on sailing checks to turn the ship with the hard to port or hard to starboard actions. The wheel also halves the penalty on sailing checks made when turning the ship while traveling at three or more times the ship’s acceleration. In addition, the ship’s pilot can combine a hard to port or hard to starboard action with a full ahead or heave to action as a full-round action up to three times per day.
Francis commands the group to jump ship into the abyss after donning their rebreathers, choosing to shroud his own head in chaotic magicks that warp the very fabric of reality and create air in his lungs and protect him from implosion.
As they explore the space wreck, Francis signals with his fingers, choosing not to exhale his precious breath and die by trying to speak. He points to the skeletons in the direction indicated by the ring.
As he floats past the skeletons, he makes sure to point out the valuables to his fellow pirates before eying the beautiful helm. He grips it in his hands and decides that it must be installed on the Millenium Yak. He motions for the burlier members of his party to extricate the helm controls to be returned to the ship before looking for their intended target.
Once they get back on the Millenium Yack, Sh'yl plunged in the Force to find ways to breath underwater. With Francis help they are able to dive deeper to search thoroughly the Brine's Banshee
Sh'yl agrees with Francis to use the Jalhazar's Helm on the Millenium Yack
On the next level below this you find the captain's cabin. Double doors open into an opulently appointed master cabin. Three curtained windows at the stern hold shattered panes of glass. A large desk remains bolted to the f loor; the other expensive fittings have been thrown about. The captain’s charts and papers are illegible, despite being inside waterproofed pouches. In a side cupboard, crystal glassware and fine porcelain plates are completely smashed, but underneath rests a tray of Taldan silverware worth 450 gp as a set. Lying under the large bed is a teak wand of gust of wind with 6 charges left.
Below this is what remains of the main deck, the galley full of old food and garbage, and a few small crew quarters.
Swimming past all of this, you find the gun deck. Among the crew’s bones are their inedible possessions: jewelry, coins, and other belongings worth a total of 327 gp. There is a door leading to the armory which is locked but not beyond Xerxes' skills. Inside are stores of ammunition and weapons. Most of the weapons here are sodden and ruined by the water, and only six bolts are undamaged: these are +1 distance adamantine bolts.
Next to the armory is the officers' quarters. Sea chests and wooden furniture lie scattered about. The putrefying mortal remains of Vargus Brack (still recognizable due because of his peg leg) rest on the floor next to an unused hypospray of cure moderate wounds.
Xerxes frowns at the ring before grasping it from the dead body's bony finger. His willpower falters for a brief instant, but steels itself against the curse of the Brine Banshee.
Blasted ship... I can't wait for us to be back to the Millenium Yak and on our way. I'm tired of doing that lass's dirty work.
Upon his exploration of the officers' quarters, he takes great care to look for possible traps or ambushes around before taking an increased interest at Vargus Black's body.
Francis lets his men investigate the area before getting too close. "Do not become distracted. I'm sure he's some sea ghoul or some such atrocity." remarks the Captain, expecting a fight as this has been entirely too easy.
Xerxes notices nothing strange about the former Captain's body nor any traps or anything else of note, but he does find it strange when you swim below that the bottom level of the ship does not appear as deep as you would expect based on the levels above or the outside shape of the ship; the wall appears much sooner than you would have expected. Before you can puzzle out what this means, however, a creature of this deep alien world starts swimming out of the depths towards you....
Xerxes is the first to react, preferring to let the shark reach them. He studies the beast, ready to strike.
For Aiur! For the Millenium Yak! Let it come, friends.
Sh'yl call the force to help him in this fight.
Bloob, blob, bloob
Then like Xerxes he readies an attack when the creature will be next to him
Xerxes and Sh'yl ready to defend against the shark. As it moves in, both of them stick it with their blades and blood begins to fill the water! The shark hesitates in its surprise!
A deadly rain of psy-strikes is delivered upon the unfortunate shark!
Francis watches as Xerxes attacks the shark. Rolling his eyes, the Captain decides to let the Master at Arms handle such a feeble task. "Space sharks are beneath us, Xerxes. Handle it quickly." he mind-speaks to the protoss.
"This place is giving me karmic dysentery..." Karter says as he passes to the lower levels with his mates. Once he stores away the found rifle adapter , he readies himself with the Zul. "Big fork for big fish!"
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Karter readies his trident and lashes out when the shark gets too close. The water is quite red now!
Following Xerxes thirst for battle Sh'yl attacks the creature with all his might !
May the Force give me haste
"Bloody sharks. Perhaps we shall feast on its meat for dinner." Francis mind-speaks into the other's heads as they are clearly on auto-pilot and not quite paying attention to their surroundings.
The shark is looking quite bad now and begins a retreat as something much more intimidating moves behind you out of the wall that Xerxes thought was suspicious before: it is a tentacled alien with one large eye and a hardened helmet, presumably to help it breathe underwater! It tries to break into Xerxes' mind!
The Shark is an illusion !
Says Sh'yl when he sees his saber get through without harm !
"Does it matter now, Sh'yl?" Francis asks, confused as to why the kasatha is worried about the retreating shark illusion when another threat has appeared. "Kill the octopus creature!"
Smirking, his mind drifts to the time his soul was adrift in the outer realms. The burning of fire and acid as whole worlds were consumed by the Great Old Ones inspired his new "test" for enemies, but then he frowns as he realizes that the water would cleanse his spell before it has time to work.
Frustrated, he decides to invade the creature's mind.
Francis links his mind with the tentacled alien!
Xerxes halts his overzealous onslaught and remains still in the water, as if pondering the causality of the universe itself.
Was it 41? 42?
Sh'yl turns to the new creature, wondering if it's another illusion or something more real.
Bloob...orce...bloob...me
Despite his training, Sh'yl is unable to swim towards the creature.
Xerxes stops what he is doing as Sh'yl fumbles about in the water. The alien waves its tentacles about and tries to turn Francis' mind-link against him! Obey! Obey!
Francis seethes against this mental lock as his eyes glint cold in the water, but the glare is practically molten.
Sh'yl tries again to come close to the "thing".
This time, he comes closer and tries to hit the creature.
Francis starts to stare off into the water as Sh'yl closes in on the creature. Unfortunately the alien's defenses are quite formidable!
The alien lets out a delighted gargle as it tries its trick on Sh'yl as well.
Francis watches, unemotional on the surface, as the group fights this octopus-like creature.
Sh'yl also starts to float serenely, leaving only Karter in his right mind!
----
Karter, recognizing that he is the only one still acting in the fight, tries to stab at the alien but fails. The alien whips its tentacles at Karter.
Karter is repeatedly hit by the tentacles but he fights back! He digs Zul deep into the alien's soft skin, causing a dark black liquid spilling out into the water. This only angers the alien more and it lashes at Karter again, hitting hard with its tentacles.
Undeterred, Karter thrusts his trident one more time and leaves another gaping wound in the side of the tentacled alien. Reeling back in horror, this seems to be more than the alien bargained for and it values its life above whatever treasures it was guarding. With a whip of its tentacles, the alien surges away from the shipwreck and out into the sea, not looking back as it speeds away to recover from its severe wounds.
With the alien gone, Karter is eventually able to snap some sense back into the rest of the crew. It seems the alien had not found or recognized the most valuable part of the ship, the speedy console, but was instead protecting a collection of coins and credits totaling 3525 gp.
----
Back at Ollo, Haneilius Fitch is glad to hear that his plan worked and that you were able to locate the Brine Banshee and discover the secret to its enhanced speed and maneuverability. “Milksop” Morton is glad to have his ring back and glad to have done business with you.
Back at the Temple of the Hidden Name, Slip is pleased to hear the information you have gathered and agrees that it is sufficient to pay for the information you requested from him concerning spies and intrigue on behalf of the Empire in this sector. He informs you that he knows of a water naga named Sarlis who claims to know the location of a smuggler and spy for a foreign power. Sarlis resides in a shallow cove on the Slithering Coast at this time of year, the location of which Slip marks on your charts. He tells you to look for a hillock with a lone tree at the top on the western side of the river flowing into the cove. Nearby is a pool where you should wait for Sarlis, which could take several days. The nagas of the Slithering Coast are aggressive and territorial, but Sarlis is more “social” than most of her ilk. Still, you might have to wait several days for the naga to deign to meet with you.
"It appears that the apprentice cook is worth something after all." remarks Francis as he is broken from the alien's mental grasp.
---
Gathering up the riches, Francis is determined to see this through. He bellows to Maheem to make for the Slithering Coast. "And this time, let's not let some pathetic octopus nearly kill all of us." he remarks to his men as they are teleported down to the hillock.
Snapping out of the mind control, Xerxes shakes his head, shameful that he was so easily swayed. It is only days later, when the information about the water naga is learnt, that his telepathic voice echoes once again in the minds of his companions.
"This won't happen again, Captain. I will make up for it and prove I'm a worthy arms master on this ship. I won't let you down. Now let's seek that naga and treat with her."
Following Slip’s directions, you find your way to the shallow cove on the Slithering Coast where the water naga Sarlis resides. The lone tree atop the hillock is an old jukamis plant, its enormous leaves clearly visible from the shoreline. You must venture into the marshy jungle near the mouth of the stream that empties into the cove to find the meeting pool, a deep rocky basin reached by climbing up a series of muddy rises.
Sarlis (N female water naga) shows herself a short time after you reach the pool. She rises from the center of the pool, swaying vigorously and hissing. The naga is clearly very agitated.
Sh'yl was ashamed for having failed the captain during their fight in the water. He thanks Karter for saving their life and their honor.
I don't know what that creature is, but I'm happy it had not the spirit of a warrior. Your bravery and hardness save us all. I will repay my debt to you.
Sh'yl recognize that the creature was upset but not to them exactly . With kind words and diplomacy they will be able, he hopes, to convince her to not attack them.
He bows to her begin to talk with respect.
Greetings Sarlis. We are sorry to come unannounced but we are in need of your infinite wisdom. I'm am Sh'yl Lord of Tidewater Rock, servant of the Force, son of Sh'aar and Sh'uu M'sshakul, blood scourge of the Space, Captains of the Starship Blackheath and Free Captain under Sir Francis Ulhutch command.
We've heard that you know the location of a smuggler and spy for a foreign power and we hope that you will be able to provide us with this information.
If we can help you in any way in exchange of this, we will be happy to do it.
Francis watches, arms crossed in front of him, as Sh'yl takes the lead on the negotiations. After the last battle, his inner turmoil is seething and ready for a fight, but that is no reason to immolate an innocent naga for no reason.
At mention of a spy, Sarlis narrows her eyes and hisses. "If you are looking for spies, I think your intentions are quite clear and I will help you. But I can do better than just tell you. Come with me, I will show you what you want."
Sarlis then guides you through the muddy wilderness to a small clearing over a mile away. In the clearing is a corpse wearing the rusting remnants of a chain shirt and a backpack. “This one came to ask questions,” Sarlis says with a sneer, “unwise questions, which only ones like those you seek would ask, and which made plain the intentions of those who sent him. He also tried to barter for naga venom, but one of my neighbors gave him far more than he wanted. Do what you like with the body.”
Clearly the man has been dead over a year and little of his equipment has survived the humid jungle, other than 27 gp in a rotting pouch and 60 feet of moldy rope tied in an elaborate series of knots in his pack.
"And this time, let's not let some pathetic octopus nearly kill all of us."
"I'll take the blame and lashes Capt. That cephalopod had me tranced in a nightmare, visions of cookbooks on how to cook for forty humans. It won't happen again", Karter sobs a little.
"These knots here, tied through the rope is in the ratio as Empire code, but it's a bit amatuer, there's a message but I can't decipher."
"Interesting. Why is it that he was killed for trying to get venom, Sarlis?" Francis says to the naga as he looks over the knots, unimpressed and just as lost as Karter.
Interesting. Then we should find someone who could decipher it. I might know someone...
The protoss remains motionless for several minutes, before blinking.
Then again, not a name comes to mind. Maybe one of you does know someone? If not, Captain Fairwind might. suggests the protoss.
"Interesting. Why is it that he was killed for trying to get venom, Sarlis?" Francis says to the naga as he looks over the knots, unimpressed and just as lost as Karter.
Sarlis hisses, "Not only is it an offensive proposition, but we would never give such a valuable treat to a dirty Empire spy! He earned his fate."
"Maybe that talking paper lady? Right? Paper, words, language?", Karter ponders, "Or Arronax Endymion, lord of Hell Harbor and a former admiral in the Empire navy. Or maybe a simpler solution is to buy a cipher at the local S-Mart".
Sh'yl says I remember that the Diamond Star was captured by the Sontarons 6 months ago. Several months before that, however, the Diamond Star’s captain, Elliece Farhaven, retired—an unusual occurrence, considering her relatively young age.
May be we could try to find this Elliece ?
The code outlines orders: Go to nagas, collect poison and information. Deliver both to the captain of the Diamond Star. Luckily, Sh'yl already has some information about the captain and thinks that she could still be located, despite the Diamond Star itself being captured.
After a few quick inquiries, it seems you need to go back to Quent where Captain Farhaven still has a small ship she pilots herself. You can easily find Elliece’s small boat, an unnamed craft with a single tiny cabin. Inside lies the bludgeoned body of a tiny winged devil, well and truly beaten to death with the ichor-stained bar of iron lying nearby. No one seems to be home and the only other thing of interest that you find is a sealed glass bottle containing a rolled-up scrap of parchment thrown on the cabin’s single bunk. The page inside the bottle is blank and isn’t magical.
Curious, why would that parchment be blank? Maybe it has been erased magically? Still, the devil's body is enough to suggest Empire involvement in the matter. If we could track its murderer, however, we might learn much more...
Xerxes looks around for tracks.
"Could be mundane invisible ink, but I care little for the etchings of the dead." Francis remarks, "... unless those etching somehow give me power." he says with a smirk.
After beaming up to the Millenium Yak, Francis sets course for Quent. "Keep an eye out for the Diamond Star. We need to have words with the Captain."