"I believe there are some ladies who want to have a talk with you." Faengrim allows his sharky teeth to show. "They want to know about a certain Calistrian Relic that's gone missing."
Chumtooth places the shackles of compliance on the prisoners wrists. Once in place, he begins the interrogation.
"Did you attempt to sink our ship? Did you call on the magic used to attack us?"
"Unlock and open the chest," Chumtooth says to her. "Do not try to attack us or escape."
Faengrim goes to open the chest. He stops just short. "Is it trapped?"
|
The woman sighs heavily, defeated. "No, it isn't." Obeying Chumtooth's command, she opens the chest. Inside is a mix of coinage and a large tome. Also wrapped in oilcloth, you find a golden statue of a wasp. Digging through the coins also produces a dagger set with aquamarine gemstones and a folded read-and-black naval ensign that displays the skull and crossed manacles of the Shackles. It feels like silk but is tougher than the studiest sailcloth. The coinage amounts to 320 gp.
Dantes examines the dagger with a practiced eye. "By Gozreh's fury!" he exclaims. "This is mithral! I'd say its worth is about 900 gp!"
Chumtooth nods. ”Do any of these things hold magic?” Chumtooth asks Dantes.
|
|
The woman had on her person (just for complete transparency): a vial of liquid, four scrolls, a small stick about 1-1/2 feet in length, a falchion, a light crossbow with 10 bolts, a grey woolen cloak, a coil of silk rope, a bicorne hat, a periscope, a watertight engraved bronze scroll case, a pouch of what Dantes identifies as spell components, and a spyglass. I am assuming that he checks her goods for magic as well.
Dantes taps the ensign and says "This is magical. I can examine it further."
Dantes lets out a low whistle as he examines the woman's gear. "All of it bears some power to it."
"Good," Chumtooth says, nodding. "We will return the relic to its keepers, and bring this one to face them," he adds, nodding to the sorceress.
|
|
To make a long story short...
You return the relic to the folks at the House of Stolen Kisses. Dindreann is delighted and even more so that you have brought the captain of the Wreckers before her. She promises you that she will experience exquisite pain for her crime. Moreover, she lives up to her promise of information.
"One of our patrons, a half-elf scrimshander in Drenchport by the name of Jaymiss Keft claims to have knowledge of a spy working the Shackles. Seek him out to learn more about this. And as a thank you for your service, you might also seek in Ollo for Haneilius Fitch, a retired ship's doctor who claims to have a method of locating the Brine Banshee." She bids you good day and takes her leave.
The young shark-kin is disappointed in the reward. He had hoped for a more physical display of the the priestesses' gratitude.
"Come!" Chumtooth says, clapping his companions on the shoulder. "Let us quench our thirsts for drink and flesh before we set sail again!"
Chumtooth spends the evening drinking, carousing, and making sure everyone knows that he and his crew fought and captured the wrecker captain, and returned her with the missing relic to the temple.
Faengrim would not have said anything. He's too scared of the Calistrian priestesses. If offered, however, he will woot and pick one for fun.
While Faengrim is slaking his list, Chumtooth drinks in the tavern and boasts about his crew’s accomplishments.
”Dantes, which port is closer, Ollo or Drenchport?” Chumtooth asks.
Dantes smiles, and takes advantage of the captain's question to roll out their mystical charts. Even though he knows the answer, he still looks for anything like weather fronts that may make a significant difference in travel times.
"To Shark Island, then Drenchport," Chumtooth says. "Are there any objections?"
|
|
It takes four wet days to reach Ollo. The port is a foul and wretched place, and its miserable residents are sullenly close-mouthed. They’ve as much to fear from their bestial pirate lord Avimar Sorrinash as from sahuagin raids, and questions from outsiders are often met with anxious and suspicious silence. So it is with your crew. How do you wish to go about locating the good Mr. Fitch?
Chumtooth, not being known for subtlety, decides to take a direct approach. He heads for the nearest tavern, and heads to the bar. He orders a stiff drink.
When the barkeep brings it, Chumtooth slaps down his coin of the the bar, then looks the barkeep in the eye.
"I am Chumtooth, Captain of the Kiss of Vengeance, have you heard my name spoken in this place?"
Chumtooth steps back from the bar and places his hands on his belt of shrunken heads. "If you know of me, you know the names of those I have killed. You know that I have kept their heads as trophies here. Do you still doubt who I am? What other proof do you seek?" Chumtooth puts a certain edge on that last statement, making it clear that any further proof might entail violence associated with his name, such as tongues and fingers bitten off.
Dantes takes a step back from Chumtooth, as he makes his proclamation. His expression conveys to others that he has seen this path taken before, and it, and Dantes expects violence and gore if the doubters don't back down.
Aid another, Intimidate.
Faengrim stays in place, but takes on a more menacing stance and allows his large, sharp teeth to show.
Auto Aid to Intimidate
”I have business with the Doctor Fitch,” Chumtooth replies. ”Not the kind that would add his head to my belt, if you are concerned for his life.”
|
|
"I look to save no one's skin except my own," the bartender shrugs. "Right out the door, take the first left, third building on the left."
Following the directions brings you to a small shop that displays a nameplate: "H. Fitch, Surgeon". On entering, you find a gray-haired gentleman dressed in finery. He greets you with a raised eyebrow upon seeing the visage of Chumtooth. "Haneilius Fitch, retired ship's surgeon. How can I be of service?" His accent is unmistakably Taldan.
"Knowledge," Chumtooth says. "We have word from a priestess of the lust goddess that you know where lies the wreck of the Brine Banshee. Is this so?"
Chumtooth's expression turns into a scowl.
"Have you run afoul of the Calistrians? Sneak out without paying for a night with one of their whores? Why else would they give us your name, if you truly knew nothing about this? Have your heard my name? Do you know the reputation of my crew? We are not ones to be lied to."
Faengrim continues to back up his captain. "Can we just kill him now?"
Auto Aid to Intimidate.
|
|
The man sighs heavily. "Alright, yes. I know where the Brine Banshee may be found." He holds up a glass tube containing a human leg bone. “This tibia previously belonged to Vargus Brack, one of my old shipmates. Vargus was grateful to be rid of it—he’d have died of gangrene if I hadn’t amputated his leg. It’s a good thing I kept it as a specimen since he was an officer aboard the Brine Banshee when she last sailed. Vargus and I were good friends—he came to visit me the last time the Brine Banshee was in Ollo, as he always did when he was in port. He mentioned in passing the course the Brine Banshee would be taking and said he wouldn’t be back for some time. The Brine Banshee had an abundance of riches aboard her, and together I believe we can salvage them. Are you interested?”
"Did you say 'Together'? You want to come with us?"
”A partnership then,” Chumtooth replies. ”You lead us to the ship, and we provide the means of retrieving it and returning you home with a share of it. Are we agreed?”
|
|
"Yes, a partnership. You need my knowledge and I need your expertise. There is a means by which I can find exactly where the Banshee went down. There is a magical ring that can be used to find a corpse, the ring of the iron skull, provided the wearer
already has a piece of the body. I know of a pirate captain that wears such a ring. This is where you come in. You have a ship of your own and are strong enough to take the ring of the iron skull from its current owner. I have Vargus’s leg bone and I know the route the
Brine Banshee took. All I ask is an equal cut of the treasure. I have no interest in magical items, I just want enough money to live comfortably. Are we agreed?"
Chumtooth nods. "Agreed," he replies. "Gather your traveling things, and we will return to the Kiss of Vengeance."
|
|
The man nods his assent and adds, "I'll meet you at your vessel in one hour."
As good as his word, one hour later, he is coming aboard the Kiss of Vengenace. "The ring of the iron skull is in the possession of a pirate named “Milksop” Morton, who regularly sails his sloop Dryad’s Grave between the Smoker and Shark Island. Fortunately for us, the Dryad’s Grave is due in Ollo within the next week. If we can accost the ship before it makes port, we can acquire the ring of the iron skull and find the Brine Banshee."
Chumtooth nods, then asks Fitch, "What do you know of this Milksop? How does he approach his prey? What weapons does he use in battle?"
"Does he have crew? Fighters? Or does he control all of the ship with magic?" Chumtooth asks.
He turns to Dantes. "Do you have any magic that can stop magic?"
Faengrim pats his weapons. "Haven't found any magic yet that I can't stop."
"Perhaps. It depends on the truth behind these legends. If the weapons are mere spells available to mages and priests, then I may be able to help. If this is an artifact of old, they make be beyond my sway."
When Faengrim comments, Dantes adds "An almost sure way to resolve the problem. But be wary; even if he falls, the magic may linger past his demise."
”We will patrol the area near the bay, just out of sight of land,” Chumtooth says. ”We need to strike fast and hard. Give him no chance to run and hide.”
Chumtooth looks to Faengrim. "He should not have expected us. Go over the side before he is close enough to see. Board his ship from his opposite side to us. Stay hidden until he attempts to attack us. I will face him head on with the ship." He then turns to the wizard, "Dantes, you be prepared to strike his ship with magic. Anything that will make it hard for him to either attack or get away."
Faengrim goes to the opposite side from the Dryad's Grave and readies to drop into the water when the anchor drops.
When Faengrim gets ready to dive off, Dantes casts invisibility on him to make his infiltration a little easier. "Five or six minutes." he tells the shifter.
"Yes, captain." The dwarf ducks below the railing, concealing himself as the ships close together.