Round Three
Blue Pirate stabs the dagger into Alain's chest for the third time and laughs. "It's over, you useless lubber. Time to die."
Then Tao arrives. Diving down the ladder, he delivers a powerful blow that staggers Blue Pirate. They both turn in surprise.
Seeing Tao's timely arrival, Alain will roll his eyes back in his head and fall to the ground faking death.
You... You killed him...
In a fit of blind rage, Tao turns his blade to the other and takes a heavy swing at the pirate.
The Pirates - although both very injured - seem revitalized as Alain falls. The slash at you in unison, and score solid hits .
Your turns
Tao continues his unrelenting attack ignoring his painful wounds as he swings at the opponents. Determined to take them down quickly so he can get to Alain in hopes that he is still grasping to life.
If you were trying for nonlethal damage, you screwed up - badly. Slippery Syl's head flies off and lands next to Alain.
Aldous groans when he sees how drunk his 'boss' is. "I guess this work is all on me again today. Oh well."
Grabbing the fishing supplies, he heads back up on deck and gets to fishing, hopefully his luck will hold out as he fishes, he thinks to his goddess.
Collecting his catch, he carries it down to the galley and begins to cook.
- Round 2 (Rage 1/6): 16 Nonlethal (+5 nonlethal from Alain's Spell like ability) on Blue totaling 11 nonlethal and 10 lethal damage (1/11 hp with 11 nonlethal). Blue Passes Out.
- Round 3 (Rage 2/6): 21 Nonlethal on Red totaling 11 nonlethal and 10 lethal damage (1/11 hp with 11 nonlethal). Red Passes Out.
- Round 4: Round 4 would have never happened because they should both have been out.
Breakdown A (Entering at the end of Round 2):
- Since my round 2 action is negated, I would have started round 3 with using rage instead of round 2 and used less rages.
- Round 3 (Rage 1/6): 21 Nonlethal on Red totaling 11 nonlethal and 10 lethal damage (1/11 hp with 11 nonlethal). Red Passes Out.
- Round 4 (Rage 2/6): 14 Lethal on Blue (-3/11 hp with 5 nonlethal). Blue is unconscious and bleeding.
Breakdown B (Entering at Round 3 with no attack in Round 2):
Kroop gives you a cheeky smile and winks as he tosses you the galley key. "Here ya go, lad! Make sure to clean up after yourselves when ya finish. Cross-contamination and all that... I'll make sure you're left alone - but ya better fill me in tomorrow!"
As the last man drops, blood gushing from the open slash in his chest, Tao makes it a point to flip the two attackers onto their backs so they do not drown in their unconscious state. He then wades through the muck to Alain where he attempts to check if he is still breathing. (I would use a heal check but I am assuming that as soon as I grab him to check, he jus opens his eyes and such.)
"Groan."
Alain will painfully sit up with Tao's help, "Thanks man. I was going to die down here." He'll stand up, wincing in pain, "You've got to get out of here. If they catch you away from your post, let alone defending me, they'll flay you. I'll make up some story but it'll be easier if I don't have to explain you being here."
Alain will cast prestidigitation on Tao to clean him up, "See if you can get someone to heal you. These two will rat you out but if there's no evidence... I owe you big time, I don't want to see you in trouble."
Aldous finally reaches the galley, only to find Enya awaiting him there. With a broad smile, he holds up the key. "I believe we are alone for the evening...and we have someone running interference..." He glances around the galley at the various animals and kitchen implements. "Not the most...romantic place, however," he says with a furrowed brow.
As Alain speaks to him, Tao proceeds to try to stem the flow of blood from the unfortunate pirate. Tao tries to justify his actions against the man, but can't bring himself to let him bleed out without trying SOMETHING.
Tao's shoulders sagging, he lets out a sigh of fatigue as the redness in his face fades slowly back to normal. Tao nods his agreement to Alain's assessment of the situation. He then looks down to the two men with an expression of sadness, pity, and disgust. With one more look over to Alain, a stern expression crossed his face as he grasps the bleeding man and pulls him up to the steps, laying him just at the base of the door.
We need to get dis one some help. As much as he dizuvs it, I do not wish him to die. I will get Sandara and Aldous to try to help. I am... I am sowee I did not awive soonuh. He takes a deep breath and straitens up. Watch them. I will be back.
Tao opens his mouth once more as if wanting to say more, but he simply closes his mouth once more peering at Alain for a second longer before turning and leaving the bilge.
Tao returns up to the deck making a brief stop in the Galley where Aldous is cooking and informs him that his skills are gravely needed in the bilges. Luckily, the shift of Tao's armor and Alain's magic hid the grave wounds in his side and belly. Tao grabbed some spare fabric from the sleeping area and stuffed it underneath his armor to stifle the flow of blood and hide any further staining on his equipment. Once above deck, he repeats his message of help to Sandara before sneaking back to the rigging and continuing his work (all be it at a slightly slower pace).
A few times during the rigorous work, the wounds would split and begin flowing again, but Tao would just grit his teeth, shift the swatches and continue working.
"I'm not going to let them die Tao. I'll give you a 10 min head start then raise holy hell. I'll tell whoever asks that they went mad and attacked me then after I was unconscious they must have turned on each other. Believe me, the last thing I want is to be put in a position where I can be accused of murder. Not on this ship. Please, just get yourself fixed up so when they claim you attacked them there will be no evidence of it. And be somewhere else when I stagger up on deck."
Alain will wait ten minutes then make sure both pirates are still breathing and that their heads are out of the water. He'll slowly and painfully make his way topside then collapse dramatically on deck as soon as someone sees him.
"Help... please help. She went crazy and tried to kill us." He'll pause for effect and to catch his breath (it doesn't take much acting to appear half dead since he actually is half dead), "Slippery Syl... she tried to murder us both. Tam fought her off but she almost killed him too. Please save him... he's down in the bilges... I think he's bleeding to death. Be careful of Syl... it was like she was possessed by something evil."
WHAT! SYL ATTACK SKINNY ALAIN! Cuddles stomps off down to the Bilges to retrieve the parties in question, one in each hand, probably.
Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately?) for Tao, no one notices his injuries. Alain's drama causes a massive commotion. Syl and Tam's unconscious bodies are rushed to Sandara (along with Alain), she heals them, and then the three of them are questioned individually by Captain Harrigan and the other officers. Alain's story elicits confused looks from Scourge/Plugg, but nothing is said - for now... The rest of the day goes by uneventfully.
Bloody Hour comes, but the mood is different - similar to the first day of your voyage. The entire crew is gathered together, and Plugg intones somberly, "A cardinal rule has been violated. One of our own has been found guilty of attempted murder. If not for another's brave actions, people would have died." As he speaks, Slippery Syl Lonegan is brought up from belowdecks in chains. Plugg continues, "For this heinous crime, you are sentenced to keelhauling. May Besmara have mercy on your soul."
As with Jakes Magpie, the ropes are thrown overboard, Syl follows, and the ropes are dragged back and forth for what seems to be an eternity. When the ropes are finally pulled back, only a bit of blood remains. The sharks must have been hungry.
With this somber business concluded, you move on to the Rum Ration and the regular nighttime activities.
Shaking his head at the events, he wished there was something he could do, but he looks at the rum and then looks at the blood that was once Syl, then runs to the edge of the ship and empties his "lunch" into the waters below. In truth, he uses create water to make it look as much as it can like he is loosing his lunch, while also pouring out the rum.
Alain will give Tam his rum thanking him effusively for saving his life. He'll wait until their out of earshot before saying, "I know you must have spent a lot of time gaining Scourge's trust and I'm guessing your not best buddies anymore. Sorry to blow that for you. I know you didn't really save my ass but you kept your mouth shut so I feel like I owe you."
@Alain: Tam takes your rum and walks away silently. He makes a point to avoid you for the rest of the night.
Enya watches the spectacle taking place, shaking her head.
Alain will make sure the inner circle of friends knows what actually happened and that Tao was the one who saved me.
He moves to sit beside her. "My goddess has her tenet of lust...My people have their renown about passion...and I...I am completely at a loss when I am around you. I can only say this...I promise you that romantic evening one day."
With his words, he reaches over and grips her hand gently.
He nods as he listens to Alain. "Probably the smartest thing you could have done." Without a word, he channels energy to ensure the pair are fully healed.
Cuddles again spends his evening down below decks with Owlbear. Someone died today. The second person in as many weeks. What was he getting into? Suddenly, he is quite homesick for Port Peril and his job loading fat-bellied cargo ships.
Tao swirls his drink around watching the dark drink mirror his dark thoughts as the image of Sly taking "the walk". He couldn't help but feel guilty at his part in the matter.
With a deep sigh, the Tien man moves away to the sleeping area trying not to be seen. He did not want anyone to know of his wounds, but they needed to be cleaned and dressed. The days work had reopened the wounds multiple times and the sting from the sweat and saltwater was beginning to get to him. When he thought he was alone, he pulled out the bloody rags and wrapped them as well as possible within themselves to keep the blood from smearing on anything else. He grabbed some other rags and doused them in the rum in an effort to disinfect the wounds and try to clean them out before folding the same rags into patches and reapplying them to the wounds. His knowledge of first aid was limited to the little tips and tricks he had learned those many, many years ago with his last crew. Those memories were hazy and hard to grasp but he did what he could. The pain was almost unbearable. Who would have ever though a stomach wound could hurt so much.
After the sad bandage job, Tao readjusts his clothing and tries to hide the wounds and "bandages" as much as possible. He hopes that the night will also help obscure sight his injuries. After a few deep breaths, he makes his way back up, tankard in hand (now half empty due to the "first aid" he applied to himself) and heads out to find Aldous.
Upon reaching Aldous, Tao notices he is surrounded by Alain and the others. His footsteps slow a bit as he is hesitant to approach. He did not particularly want to recall the days events. Another of the crew was dead, though he was happy it was not Alain. Tao quickly shakes off the thoughts though and speeds back up as Alain begins to tell the others what happened. Tao stays silent and subdued during the explanation though his head drops a little when Sly is mentioned.
The healing Aldous supplies is a welcome reprieve from the stinging, burning pain in his belly and side. Tao thanks Aldous with a simple halfhearted smile and nod of appreciation, followed by a hand on his shoulder and a whispered request. Knowing Aldous has probably the best relationship with Grok, Tao asks if he could get his hands on some Engineering tools.
I watch the whole keelhauling, although this time I look a little more disturbed by it, this time I know it is not just a dip in the water but rather a painful way to shed the skin of the victim. After the event I do as per usual, I find someone who has finished their drink and pour my drink into theirs before heading straight to bed. While in my hammock I hear someone come in and manage to catch a glimpse of Tao, he begins to fidget with his clothing and starts to breath heavily. As I go to speak to him he must have heard me move because it turns around quickly and heads back onto the main deck. Arirai is purring away quietly, sleeping on my chest so I can't get up to see what was wrong with him.
"I'll have to ask him tomorrow, if he'll tell me I might be able to help." With that I stroke Arirai on the head and then fall into a deep yet quiet sleep, as per usual.
Tao will spend the rest of the night tinkering with his tankard below deck before turning in.
Although everyone else seems upset at the keelhauling of Slippery Syl the insane murderess, Alain is quietly pleased with himself. He'll sleep peacefully tonight.
Enya grits her teeth at the sight of the keelhauling, not wanting much else to do with that night she turns in.
Alain: Man the Bilges
Aldous: Fishing (Kroop is sober)
Cuddles: Runner
Enya: Hauling Rope/Knot Work
River: Swab the Decks
Tao: Mainsail Duties
Around midafternoon, the lookout spots a sail on the horizon....
Another day, another broken tankard. Tao goes above deck to get his days assignment. Mainsail again. Well, it beats the bilges. Tao decides to go ahead and make his way to the quartermaster's to see if he can barter his skills in engineering for some tools that work rather than a boot and his greatsword.
Alain will cast message (duration 20 min) on Tao and Aldous before descending tentatively into the bilges.
Cuddles does a pretty good job of not bowling people over as he runs today which, concidering his size, is quite the feat.
I work for the day hard, but my mind is on what Tao was doing last night and I find myself glancing up at him often. I get the job done, but due to my troubled mind I find that I am worn out and out of breath at the end of the day.