"Thanks to Bupkis, just a scratch. I'm alright Daseem."
To Bupkis, Menrozzar says, "She stowed away aboard Captain Raag's ship, probably sabotaged the railing, and most likely released the beast to attack us, costing Captain Raag some of his profit for the journey. I think we should let him decide." Turning to face the Captain, Menrozzar said, "Well, Captain? If you want her questioned, we could heal her enough she wakes up and can talk. The choice is yours."
"I fer sure want to know what she wanted on my boat. But make sure she doesn't try anything funny when you wake her." Raag replies. "Put her in the cage!"
Bupkis says, "Hold in case she fights." Then he uses his powers to heal the saboteur.
Melina indeed puts up a fight as she wakes again.
"Wait!" Menrozzar says, too late as Bupkis begins to heal her. Menrozzar runs forward and grabs her, trying to restrain her.
Menrozzar heroically throws himself on the waking woman, pinning her down.
Daseem stared at her impassively and wondered if she was a good dancer. More than likely they'd know soon once she was hoisted on the yardarm. He glanced at the captain, surely there's no way he was going to let her live?
Raag insist to move her to the cage. And make sure she has no key on her. Halrex comes to aid with that. She is even more pissed than the captain about this stowaway. She rips everything but the undergarment from Melira, before she is thrown in the cage.
Then Raag properly locks the cage. "Maybe I sell her to Urgir’s gladiatorial arena."
"What do you want on my ship!" he insists to know.
Melira stares daggers at all around. "You brought that onto yourself as you took those murders on your boat." she answers.
Bupkis explains to Raag, "Boyfriend Skreed behind attack on Trunau. We capture Skreed and hand over to Council of Defenders."
now listen here ye harlot, just cuz ye taste in partners be crazy as ye are don't give ye the right ta' slander us. I wager ye got less decency in ye than anyone 'ere has in their bloody pinky finger. ye loved a murdering peice of shite that nearly killed an entire village, an we let that village mete out its justice. I don't care enough about that murdering ugly bastard ta even remember his name. ta me he was just another brute of an orc shat on the town of trunau that killed rodrick in cold blood and got what he deserved. Now ye followin' in his footsteps right quickly ifn' that was ye plan. Ye boyfriend took a man what was engaged from his lover, left her mourning worse than ye. Ye gonna ignore that bit too? Are ye ready ta be a murder yeself? Ye lost ye lover and ye think ye know loss? Ye don't know a cursded stone about it! All ye are is a child throwing a tantrum, for an orc that wasn't worth the dirt he spawned from. Now I suggest ye sit down, shut up unless asked a question, an think about ye life choices that led ye here an if ye think skreed deserved death for killing that man, if he don't, then why do we? If he did, then what are ye bloody chasing us for?
Ivan is shaking his finger fiercly by the end of his tirade, boggled at how someone would actually fall in love with filth like skreed. He turns to look behind him then back to the girl before throwing his hands up and walking outside the door. He needed a bit of air. Bah! Do what ye want with her
"Skreed also murdered one of our patrol captains who was investigating his preparations for the attack. Drugged him, then snuck into his room and killed him to make it look like a suicide," Menrozzar further explained to Captain Raag. "We captured him alive, and turned him over to the legal authorities to face trial and justice. That she blames us for killing him shows she's clearly not in her right mind - grief has overwhelmed her."
Melira doesn't give a shit about Ivan's logic. She spits at Ivan as he is done with his speech.
"I agree with you. She spills only hate and makes no sense." Raag replies to Menrozzar. "If killing you was her sole reason to come aboard, then keeping her in that cage will do for me, but if you have other plans, you're free to do whatever you want."
'A Cage...' Daseem was surprised, he'd been expecting Raag to hoist her on yardarm and watch her dance. He wasn't entirely sure he cared, but then a thought occurred to him, 'How did she let the ape out in the first place, did she have a key or did she pick it?' This was worrying, she might escape only to slit their throats while they slept and that was no way for a warrior to die! Of course explaining that concern was going to be challenging!
Glancing at the others he muttered, "H-how'd she let the a-ape out?" Daseem asked.
Reminded about the ape, Bupkis asks, "Why we not hear ape before? Only in room next door."
"The 'ape' was fed daily with tranquilizer." Raag explains.
"Who gives tranquil-eyes-er?", Bupkis asks.
"Gashnakh does." Raag tells. "You already told, he was lying about feeding the ape."
Daseem frowned, he hadn't made himself noticed. Lightly slapping the captive with the flat of his blade to get her attention, he half growled, "How. D-did ye. Let. The ape out?"
Bupkis replies, "Ah, so tranquil-eyes-er in food. Bupkis wonders if Gashnakh knows Melira hiding on boat!"
He seeks out Gashnakh and asks him, "Gashnakh knows Melira? Hmm?"
"Me... u-u-unlock... cage." Melira makes fun of Daseem.
Gasknakh tries to evade Bupkis' question and Bupkis, by moving into the galley and closing the door.
”She had these lockpicks, Daseem. She likely used these to let the ape out.” Menrozzar turns to Raag and says, ”The cage is fine with me. She caused the trouble on your ship - if you find the punishment acceptable, I do as well.”
Ivan notices bupkis and his endeavors and saunters over rapping on the door.
Ahem, I believe the little 'un 'ere wanted to ask ye somethin'.
Ivan gives a wink at bupkis.
"Stop rattling at the door. If you ruin it, you'll answer to Raag." Gashnakh calls from within. But as the dwarf doesn't give in, he finally opens. "What is it?" he asks playing annoyed.
Bupkis think the cook's behavior is highly suspicious. He perseveres with his question, "We find stowaway on bottom deck — human called Melira; Gashnakh knows her?"
"Yes." he sighs, as denying won't work for long anyway. "Found her there before the trip started when it was my turn to operate the pump."
Bupkis continues his line of questioning, "And Gashnakh doesn't tell Ragg. Melira asks to not feed ape?"
Scrabbler's eyes narrowed as the bad lady mocked Bupkis. He drew his knife again, and had an internal debate about where to stab her first.
Ivan rubs his chin. Now.. can ye tell us real careful like exactly how your meetin' with her went? Anything strange about what ye remember? Or were ye just stricken with the ailment O' thinkin' with yer wrong organ?
He doesn't have any hostility in his voice yet, but as always it is thick, heavy and rough.
"I thought it was a good idea at the time. In hindsight I can't tell how I got that impression." Gashnakh answers Bupkis.
"I found her, after I stepped into some of those traps and she was really nice and told me it needs to be a secret between her and me and..." Gashnak looks confused. It doesn't make sense to him too, now that he speaks it aloud.
Bupkis goes to tell Raag (and the rest of the party) what he has learned. He offers his opinion, "Bupkis thinks maybe Melira influences Gashnakh with magic!"
Daseem's eyebrows raise, "C-can-nae have that. What's ta stop her from h-hexing us?"
Bupkis isn't sure how magic works. "Stay away from cage," he suggests.
"What? She made Gashnakh do this?" Raag fumes. He grabs a boat hook, walks back into the armory, and stabs melira to death. Then he drags her upstairs and throws her into the water for the crocodiles to feed on.
"Now everyone back to work. We have a destination to reach. There is a new job available. Who doesn't want to row can fix the wall. And that dead ape needs to be gutted. Are some of you able to properly skin that beat? Maybe I can get at least some money for the fur."
Bupkis is taken aback by the perfunctory way that Raag disposes of Melira. He could see that she was driven by hatred, and that it might not be safe to let her go, but he feels bad to see her fed to the crocodiles like that. What if Bupkis wrong, and Melira doesn't use magic on Gashnakh?
"I fix wall," the little goblin volunteers. Carpentry is much preferable to rowing.
Ivan merely nods, his stony expression barely displaying any inner thoughts.
The woman was crazy, rude, and a would be murderer, also apparently a deceiving snake and enchantress. It was the safest course. Brutal still.
Ivan thinks a moment about skinning the ape before shrugging. Might be able ta', ne'er done it 'afore though. Then again, shouldn't be much different from other large animals right?
The Captain’s rage and actions were somewhat disturbing, but it was his boat and his crew who were in danger, so Menrozzar fekt ir wasn’t his place to comment.
”I’ve skinned other animals before. I’ll see if I can skin this one, as well.”
Daseem blinked, initial taken aback by Raag's actions. But then he thought about it and decided Melira had it coming, end of story. While the others where fixing things Daseem was going to put his back into the oars. First however first he'd help Menrozzar with a bit of skinning.
That done he sat down on the rowing bench and after a few minutes he settled into a good rhythm of pulling and breathing which gave him a strange kind of euphoria. Hours later after a swift meal he'd plunge into an exhausted and dreamless sleep. Perfect. He didn't want to have to think about what he'd left behind.
Daseem and Menrozzar make a nice throwing rug out of the girallion, that might compensate the captain at least for some of the loss he has with the apes death.
With Melira disposed and the wall of the armory fixed, everything returns to its normal daily routine. Eating, rowing, eating, rowing, eating, sleeping, and repeat.
It's a nice change to not be assaulted for two days in a row, but before it becomes a lucky series there is the third day.
Some creature, far too large to be a bird of any kind, approaches the boat, hiding in the sun behind it.
Bupkis stands on the forecastle, scanning the water ahead for submerged hazards. He glances up and notices something approaching; "Something big flies this way, coming out of the sun!", he cries in alarm.
"Oh, no! Not again those..." Raag sighs.
Bupkis asks, "What are they?" He gets the impression Raag knows them pretty well.
Raag, that ballistae jus' fer show, or can it be operated? What can we except from them things if they comin' ta' us?
Menrozzar comes out from the rowing deck and looks up, squinting into the sun to see what approaches.
As Bupkis points them out, he grunts and says, "River Drakes. They spit acid that entangles their targets. They are also usually somewhat cowardly. If we hit it hard enough with a ranged volley of attacks, we might convince it that we aren't worth the trouble and force it off. Captain, have you encountered them before? How has your crew dealt with them?"
"We try not to stand in the open and protect the horses." Raag replies. "The ballista works fine. If you're good enough at it to shoot at moving targets. We use that only against ships."
Daseem eyed the crossbow he'd found back when the town had been attacked. It sounded such a piddly weapon to use versus a drake. The wight of his greatsword was comforting in his hand and he was sure it would cut deeply if needed. Only one problem, he couldn't fly. Reluctantly he sheaved his weapon and loaded the crossbow.
Ivan grumbles.
Scrabbler's eyes went wide at the top of the mast as he spied the incoming predators. He yelled and pointed and patted himself down for a weapon to use against the beasts. All he had were bombs and tanglebags. Then he got a wonderful, terrible impulse...
"All crew, get ready! We got river drakes again!" Raag shouts. Under deck the ores are drawn in and a commotion starts.
As the prdators come closer it becomes clear that it's three river drakes, one of them especially large.
The largest drake goes for Scrabbler in the crow's nest. While passing it bites at the goblin and threatens to drag him along.
The others go for Daseem
and Bupkis