Victor presses himself down against the bottom of the lifeboat, bracing for impact
While the Tengu fill one of the ship's two longboats to the brim carrying whatever they can, the rest of them hold fast to the ship as it races toward the reef. The Wyer'enshaad crashes, with an ear-splitting crack the keel of the vessel snaps. Water pours into the lower decks of the ship and the bow dips low, sinking in earnest!
As soon as the ship hits, both Rosalyn and Pyre leap from their perches, stern and bow and dive towards the water. The momentum easily carries Pyre out over the crest of the reef and into deeper waters. With a few swift kicks the dragon-kin is able to get himself out of imediate danger of being crushed or flayed on the jagged rocks, but now must contend with a new foe as he is pulled under and must fight to the surface for air.
Rosalyn dives forward and spreads her wings just as she is about to hit the deck of the ship. The gale whips her along, pulling her along. The few seconds of controlled glide that she can manage gets her over the prow of the ship and to a save distance from the reef, but this is no gentle breeze. The Aasimar is checked and blown around, barely able to pull her wings back in as she hits water. She keeps them tight to her form to avoid their acting as dead-weight in the soaking water, but the seas are still severe as she tries to swim.
With careful timing the rafts are cut loose and manage to land in the water as opposed to breaking on the reef as well. Oars doing nothing against the swell, the longboat with the Tengu is carried off at the whim of the sea. The other is surprisingly sparsely populated. Tamerand and several of the humans are on board with the lion's share of the supplies, as well as Akryat, a few of his crew. Fare well my friends! and good luck to you all the human shouts as he cuts the boat loose, leaving several pirates and crewmen stranded on the ship.
A woman screams as she falls overboard in splashes into the water, but the wail of terror is drowned out by the churning seas and howling winds. The rats struggle to cut loose from their lines to avoid being pulled under when the ship goes down. The livestock below bellow in panic as the lower decks are quickly flooded, a few animals making up to the deck and stampeding around.
The lifeboats cast loose, and the ship breaking apart beneath them, it's a free-for-all. another wave comes crashing down on the deck washing off sailors, a few still tied down or clinging to the deck manage to stay aboard but the next swell pulls more sailors off into the waves. As the swells crash down onto the decks the reef cuts deeper into the ship, shearing the hull and cracking timbers.
Desula is pulled down into the dark waters, and catches hold of a timber floating up. He's pulled along and battered against the jagged edges garb and armor torn as he is raked along. Currents drag the drow under and shake him. Thoyoitu catches one of the tengu struggling to keep on board and pulls his follower over as another wave crashes onto the deck. Victor tries to keep afloat struggling while Hezala keeps hold of him and a timber as they are dragged along.
For what seems like hours the party is tossed around, dragged under over an over, barely kicking to the surface. The darkness beckons drawing the struggling sailors down. Pyre keeps himself afloat well enough but seeing a drowning crewman, the warrior takes hold of the thrasher. He has to cut his breastplate loose to keep the freedom of motion and manage to keep he and his ward afloat. Even so water and darkness, thrashing seas and howling winds is too much. All are overcome, sinking down slaves to the current. Only a brief glimmer of light, and spike of grey peaks out over the swells before consciousness fades.
There is a sound of birds screeching overhead as the sun beats down on you. Opening your eyes, you can see others starting to awaken. A few bodies lie on the shore along with what looks to be remnants of the ship.
If this was going to work, Rosalyn had to remove the dead weight. She strip off very thing but her Silkweave Sling Belt and its Small whater tight pouches with her note books and spell components in. She slug Her amour, back pack, sack, flying harness and weapons down into the life boat with Tengu in it, calling down to him.
"LOOK AFTER MY THINGS TENGU AND GOOD LUCK! SEE YOU ON THE OTHER SIDE!"
Now near nude she claimed and readied for her jump.
Then they hit, she falls waiting then at the last moment opening her wings. She is lifted up but then the full force of the wind hits her. Trying her best she pulls her wings in and then slams into the hard water. She had done it, missed the rocks, no all she needed to do was live, with wet wings that would be hard even with out her Armour and weapons she just could not keep above the water. Her halo winked on in the dark water and all close can see it seek down into the waters.
Water deep and cold, fear, regret, realization as the water filled her lungs
"This is the moment of my death."
Then the voice, again at the point of her dead, calling her, commanding her. Deep in the waters a halo blazed. I feeling of destiny was born. I knowledge that she must be more and a fierce will to live.
"NO! I AM NO SALVE and I will not Die, I will prevail, I will ascend."
from the deep waters the light rose higher and higher.
"By will alone, I will ascend!"
Rosalyn is laying face down in the serf, choking an water she spits it out, taking deep breaths of air. Thin into the sand she says,
"By will alone, I will ascend"
her Halo blazed.
Wet wings make it very hard to roll over so she presses her hands down and pushes he self onto her Knees. Spluttering out the water in her chest. Once she had most of it out she shakily gets to her feet. She trys to flex her wet fathered wings. But they need to try and be cleaned of the salt encrusting them. She ran her hand them getting as much of the salt and sand off as she could. She checks her note books are still on her belt, water tight patches had a use. But she had no weapons or Armour. Looking around she can see the ship rack and a few others.
"AHOOOY, WHO STILL LIVES"
Victor recovers quickly, shaking the saltwater from his fur. He scans his landing zone and tries to account for all members of crew. Or at least what's left it.
"oh dear. My potions and my brew."
He pats himself
"MY CROSSBOW? AND WHAT OF MY DEAR PRECIOUS BOW?"
Rosalyn spots Victor and makes her way over to him. She has on only her undergarments and a belt.
"good to see you serviuved Victor, have you seen any of the others."
Rosalyn is very flat chested she almost male looking in her form. But for the long red hair and female features. She pulls out a small brush from one of her belt poutchs and starts to brush out the salt from her wings.
Victor's tail twitches in surprise.
"GAH!"
He turns away in embarrassment
"g-g-good to see you survived the storm.i haven't seen anyone?"He pauses to look around.
Victor pats himself down through his wet coat
"oh dear. No armor either."
He takes off his soaked jacket.
"ummmm it's not very big but...."
Victor does the best he can to squeeze out the water of his jacket before he hands to rosalyn.The trenchcoat that would Shroud victor comfortably can barely cover anything on rosalyn.
"Thank you Vitor but it will not fit over my back, one of the problems of having wings. Do not worry I am not ashamed of my form, or suffer bashfulness."
She looks around for some lighter clothing, finding some sail, she cuts it with her pen knife, to make a short skirt rap, and chest rap.
"there that will do for the moment, until I can find the life boat with my things in, let's go look at the body's. See who still has life."
Pyre sits straight up after his eyes snap open. He looks around the beach seeing only his charge with him. He checks on the sleeping crewman seeing that he still breaths takes his breastplate and begins to tinker with the cut strap so that he may wear it.
This is not how i wanted my journey to go. I hate the sea. But the gods did sing! He thinks to himself.
Victor takes his coat back.
"well hezala is around."
Victor pauses.
"HEZALA!"
he scampers back to find her.
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Des awakens face first near the tree line, he is groggy at first. But with the taste of sand, he goes wide eye and scrambles to his feet. He looks about his surroundings to just take it all in. The shattered hull pieces about the shore, and the bodies laid about the sand.
Des unconsciously cast prestidigitation to clean himself, realizing what he just did, he checks the small of his back for his book. He relaxes knowing its still their. He pulls it out and prestidigitate it clean as well. He takes stock of himself and goes about down the shore looking for the others, checking the bodies for life along the way.
Rosalyn smiles as the wolf come into sight, happy that Hezala was safe.
Then seeing Desula come down from the tree line, waves Desula over.
"YOU LIVE THEN DESULA"
Thoyoitu wakes up screaming, then pushes off some planks that fell on him. Frantically, he searches for the pilot.
Rising, you are all able to take stock of your surroundings. The beach you are on seems to curve around in a wide crescent. Jungle and thick vegetation rises up into the sky to one side of you, blocking your view, and to the other side the sand stretches forming what may be a wide and shallow bay.
Victor
As you scamper around, you cannot find hint or hair your crossbow or your priestess friend. You vaguely recall her trying to hold you up, but you lost track of her shortly before blacking out.
Rosalyn
After garbing yourself mpre properly and see your companions you calm down enough to note an unexpected weight at your side. Water drips heavily from your "watertight" pouches. In a moment of panic, you rip open the bag, sea-water spilling out, your precious journal soaked through.
Yet opening the book, the content is in pristine condition, every line and mark un-sullied by the water, perfectly preserved against all reason. Desula's spellbook too, is in a similar state. Every arcane notation clear even as the books themselves show clear signs of having been dredged through the sea.
Desula
The maps do not yield much information at this point, but the detailed star-charts should allow you to determine your general position if the day remains clear.
You are all in a bad way, lacking supplies, the vast majority of your gear either irreparably damaged or lost at sea. Thoyoitu and his Tengu are nowhere to be seen, and the Dragonkin and Hobgoblin are missing as well.
The Dragonkin rises and looks around, and finds his sleeping ward and is none other than the Bosun of the Wyern'shaad, "Slaver" Kumunde. His breathing is stable and he stirs slightly in at the cool mist carried on the ocean breeze. Around you quiet jungle rises up, coastline scything off one way away from the wood, detritus and debris littering the sand.
Your peaceful revere is interrupted by a familiar croaking scream just down the way. Cresting a large chunk of shattered hull, you see your acquaintance, the Tenguin digging frantically.
Thoyoitu
You tear into a pile of wood and draw back as you see a shattered timber protruding from the side of your pilot. Blood leaks out of the wound slowly, barely driven by her faint pulse. Even unconscious, she clutches the ship's wheel, which appears to have both carried her here, and blocked the timber from doing further damage.
Thoyoitu holds the pilot in his arms and shouts, "HELP! Is anyone out here? Please, come help!"
"well" victor begins
"they must be trying to find us too right? So we should listen in for any noise or signs that they might be looking for us!" he reasons
victor takes in all the noise, trying to filter the unnatural sounds of voices from the sounds of nature.
Rosalyn looking over the sailors finds none alive, Then under some timbers she spots a long shaft of wood about the length of q-staff, Then back tracks and pulls out the other half, she casts mending and make then whole once more. Another lump of would, used in the turning of the rope wheel. A bit long but it would do. Then out of the sand she pulls a broken metal bracket it has been sheared to a crude point. It would do for now, later it could be work she should craft it dagger. slips it in her pouch. Then going back over to the other two she hands the Q-Staff to Desula and the club like lump of wood to Victor.
"There is sail cloth and rope. You can make slings with it."
She takes out her small pen knife and hands it to Victor.
"You can cut up strips with this."
She then stands and starts casting create water over her wings, washing the salt out and preening them, until She is happy.
"Desula would you mind casting Prestidigitation on me, I need to get my wings working if we are to find the others."
"Well lets have a look around and see what we have here."
She leaps into the air her wings beating hard, sand blows up.
She is slow but starts flying over the wreck site to she just what there is to see.
Victor does not hear anything too out of the ordinary in the immediate vicinity.
Rosalyn takes her time making preparations and then takes wing. She is able to spiral out from their landing point and sees a particularly large pile of wreckage that merits investigation. Gliding lower, he sees figures moving among the debris and as she gets close she hears...
Thoyoitu holds the pilot in his arms and shouts, "HELP! Is anyone out here? Please, come help!"
and can make out Pyre and the Tengu down below.
It will take Rosalyn a few minutes to fly back to the others, or she can have a look now, as Desula and VIctor know the direction that she went in last.
she will fly down to them, so they know others are alive.
Anding she says
"Good to see you made it, Victor and Desula are that way close to some other wreckage. There are a lot of body's and a few crew men. So are you hurt in any way?"
Thoyoitu shouts at Rosalyn upon hearing her voice, "Rosalyn? Rosalyn, I'm in the wreckage with the pilot. She's badly injured. Please, you have to help her!" He is still clinging tightly to her near-dead body.
Rosalyn runs over to the pilot looking her over, pulling out any thing that's giving her going DMG but DOS NOT KILL HER GM!!.
then if there is still life
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Des snaps his fingers, and a wave of water tears itself off his two companions. He feels Ros take off as he goes about the wreckage, looking for material to fill his empty spell-pouch. Especially on the look out for bits of leather and something he could dye some sand with.
"Victor, we should gather what is still viable from the wreckage. Once, we get Ros and hopefully a few more survivors we should make for a camp. Something off the beach, that we can defend."
Bessie's breathing seems to steady as the grievous closes. WHile she can be moved it will be a while before she is healed, even with channeling.
You are able to gather some basic supplies but the sun is hot and weather may turn. You currently lack shelter and food.
Victor splutters as the water washes over him, but it is otherwise rather grateful. He scurries over to join thoyoitu and rosalyn, just in time to see the healing light wash over the helpless pilot. He joins desula in the small search of the area, but pauses when he realises there's a lack of food and shelter.
"bah we have no basic supplies. Anyone know how to fish? Or hunt? And does anyone know how to build a shelter we can use for the night?"
Rosalyn collects up some rope and canvas.
Right now we can stay on the beach,
"we have wood and can make a shelter. Food wise we are in the inside of a riaf. Fish galore with some netting. If not shell fish. Water I can make so we will not die of thust. But we need something to put it in. So look for a container."
She starts placing wood from the ship out to dry in the hot sun.
"Thank you, Rosalyn. Is everyone here, then? We might be able to salvage some wood from the shipwreck. All I have on me are the leftover tatters of my clothing. Have...have you seen my friends, though? Perhaps the life-raft they took has some supplies on it, too." Thoyoitu scurries off the ship and searches the long of the beach for his friends.
"Thoyoitu, Ill see of I can spot anything from above, but I did not see much last time, if they did not make it past the reef they will be miles out at sea now, Fly I can but far with out some means to knowing where I am, no. Open see is death with out a navigation point."
She takes to the air and moves up and down the beach, Her flying speed is slow, so she dos not go to far.
With Bessie stable, Rosalyn flies out along the island and searches for signs of where others may have landed. She sees no signs of the boat, nor the Tengu passengers.
Thoyoitu makes a search on land, checking in the Treeline as his people would surely take shelter as soon as possible
Pyre, Desula and Victor are at the wreckage with the unconcious Bessie and Kumunde.
Desula and Victor
you can spend the day to set up some kind of camp, or when you get back together, you can explore before nightfall. Based on the motion of the sun, and that is is slowly sinking as it flies across the sky, it may may be mid afternoon.
Victor taps the wood planks.
"dry enough i suppose"
he takes a look at the pile of wood on the ground and starts to pile them up
"I guess this is the best i can do..."
he turns to Desula
"you want to go look for spell components?"
VIctor is able to construct an adequate shelter out using the wreckage as a foundation and main wall, building around the unconscious pilot. His nimble hands fashion a roof out of drift and saplings in the tree line. It should protect agains some poor weather, but the structure is by no means sturdy. Desula does not hinder the production too much.
The two are able to forage for components in the forest, Desula gathering bright flowers to die sand for his illusions. Victor is able to collect some fungi and plants that he can use to prepare his day's worth of alchemical extracts and a colony of curious beetles armed with an explosive projectile in their butts supply an adequate catalyst for his bombs.
The others return from their nearby scouting trip confident that there are no immediate threats, but it would take further venturing into the jungles to gather more than a day's worth of supplies. Although the party is set for the day if they spend the rest of their time fishing and can take more time to fortify their shelter.
Victor claps his hands gleefully at his finds. Then realises he has no real container for his new extracts.He smushes the fungi and plants into a paste and wraps them in a leaf, saving the other plants for later as he makes note of his extracts. He fashions a similar cage of leaves of his new bombs and sets them aside for later use
Victor decides against fortifying his filmsy structure and instead starts a fire, chucking in a few mushrooms that generate smoke.he pauses to admire his work before he explains his intentions
"well, we'll be here for a while, so a signal fire might help the others better find us"
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Coming back with a pack full of flowers, Desula goes about pounding them in to a paste to mix with some dry sand. He drops in the sand into his spell pouch. Though the springs on his sheath are smashed, he clears the broken metal to use the straps for mage armor.
He then sits on a log going over the map they pulled from the ship, and cross references it with what he knows of from local gossip he got from the previous ports. "Does anyone remember any local lore about islands on the sea lane we were on?"
Roz comeback and tells the others, nothing to be seen. Then gos and gets her pen knife back. Once she has it she gets as much sail fabric as she can and cuts out a bed roll, and straps. Then she has a look any metal from which to make a blade. Then as much rope as she can find, A hole ships worth or stuff is hitting the beach, not just wood, canvas and rope. So she go's and picks up, any plates, crew clothing, ships tools, Arrows, pots pans, boxs, crates. Most of all ships nails, always useful.
"Pick up all you can, most of all rope and Canvas, Rope can make string, canvas makes bags. Then any metals at all, Ships Nails are very good. The bigs ones can be used to make spears, the small needles. Cold dos not bother me but you will need bed rolls to keep warm at night, along with a fire. I can make light. Food wise water is not a problem but something to eat we will have to find. Tomorrow I will scout inland a way, find a clearing of cave, then we need to move everything we can to there and fortify it."
Pyre looks through the wreakage for anything useful. And will start making a shelter with those on his beach.
Thoyoitu
As the Tengu walks along the beach, looking for survivers, his avian instincts kick into overdrive. What starts as a slightly unsettled sensation gradually grows into a sense of visceral panic. The thief looks around and sees an outline in the woods, moving slowly, tracking him. As soon as Thoyoitu pauses and looks the form freezes in the shadows of the trees. People talk about housecats leaving headless little birds as presents on their doorsteps like it's cute. The tengu sees the same eyes that the little birds must. The eyes of a vicious killer, the natural predator to his kind. An enormous feline, bigger than a man stares at Thoyoitu.
It purrs.
Thoyoitu can back away slowly, and only the eyes follow. Without making any sudden movements or loud noises, he is able to return to the others. The cat seems reluctant to leave the jungle and give up it's hiding place until it disappears entirely. The group is building a structure when the others arrive and are working some improvements.
Beach-Party
in the rec kids there is a significant amount of usable timber, mostly smaller pieces, but serviceable for building. Most of the rope is either ruined shredded into small pieces or weakend due to the strains during the crash, athough there is one coil of nearly 100 feet of hemp rope that appears to be in good condition. The shredded and small ropes could potentially be used to craft crude nets as well as straps for bags or armors.
On the edge of the beach there are some south plains that can easily be cut and would make decent spears or javalins if the ends are carved to a point, or a stone, shell, or nail is lashed to it. The nails could make decent punch-daggers, but it would be a challenge to try to put an edge to it, but shells or stone for daggers could be found. With more forraging, you could catch bird feathers or find plants to make fletching for darts arrows or bolts. There is some glass that can be used for edged weapons but it is Fragile, and you could improvise Wooden armor with some work.
Thoyoitu returns to the others, "Yeah maybe we should all stick together here for tonight, work on building a camp. I saw a giant cat or something back there." But then his face turns sad upon realization of what he didn't find, "But, um, I didn't find my people. Guess I'll search more tomorrow." Then to distract him from the loss, he works on expanding the shelter to fit more people.
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"Its a jungle out there. Let's prep some spears, and fish for our dinner. Save the shredded rope, I'll mend it in the morning and do something with it".
Desula grabs one of the javelin link plants, straps a nail to it and wades into the water looking for fish.
"Did anyone find water for us? Or does anyone have a spell for that?"
Victor fans the fire, letting the smoke build up and drift towards the sky.
"there there thoyoitu. Maybe they'll see our smoke signal and come here. You should probably get some rest. It's been a long and stressful day. I'll turn in later, not too good about large cats."
Victor throws more twigs into the fire and moves to lay leaves under the roof of the shelter.
"best not to sleep on the sand"
"Thanks, Victor. But I think I'll sit with Bessie for awhile. She's nearly dead because of me. If I'd just told her to abandon ship...and if I'd went with my people too... I'll keep everyone updated on Bessie's condition." Thoyoitu passes Desula, "Good idea, Des. Rosalyn said she had a spell for water. So we should be find on that front." then sits with Bessie, tending to her wounds and such.
The party is able to craft themselves an array of primitive weapons and gathers a decent supply of food while they work on improving their shelter. Pyre finds a school of fish eating nearby and is able to get some lines/netting and start hauling in an impressive catch, keeping the school in a frenzy by chumming the water with the tiny fish that are too small to eat. Desula takes the fish and stacks them on some rocks and starts preparing them so they can preserve whatever they don't eat today via smoking and salt-curing. Thoyoitu sticks with the unconscious Bessie and Kumunde assisting Victor in improving the structure. Rosalyn continues to forage the wreckage to gather materials for further crafting and for Victor to use.
As everyone works, with no signs of your feline friend, everything seems to be going well. THen from the light surf emerge several forms. . . GIant crabs, the size of Victor rise up out of the water at the shoreline. then Pyre looks up and sees a much bigger crab, the size of a man swimming just out in the water not 20 feet away!
Crab 1
Victor, Desula
GIant Crab, Crab 2
Pyre
Crab 3, Crab 4
Where on the map is the fire that Victor made?
Using mend Rosalyn has made a crude long spear from a once broken shaft of wood from the ship, she gets it ready to fend off the crab so it can't close on her. 10' Reach GM