"Gelik, if we don't survive this place, I don't know that your money will do any of us any good." Nimar says as diplomatically and logically as possible, while at the same time throwing Nymra a look and hoping she'll pick up on playing, 'good watchman, bad watchman,' She can be a bit thick, but she's also the scariest thing in this camp and I don't think that I'm going to reach him with being nice.
"Oh you are probably right. I probably should take a watch. Maybe I should take your watch so I can make sure my possessions remain in my possession."
"Gelik, if we don't survive this place, I don't know that your money will do any of us any good." Nimar says as diplomatically and logically as possible, while at the same time throwing Nymra a look and hoping she'll pick up on playing, 'good watchman, bad watchman,' She can be a bit thick, but she's also the scariest thing in this camp and I don't think that I'm going to reach him with being nice.
DC 10 is fine.
What? Do I look like some kind of thief? Well, I do have these tools, but, come on! Nimar thinks to himself while trying to keep his feeling offended to himself.
"Gelik, if we don't survive this place, I don't know that your money will do any of us any good." Nimar says as diplomatically and logically as possible, while at the same time throwing Nymra a look and hoping she'll pick up on playing, 'good watchman, bad watchman,' She can be a bit thick, but she's also the scariest thing in this camp and I don't think that I'm going to reach him with being nice.[dice=Sense Motive to pick up on that look, figure DC 10]1d20 + 1
”Aye, everyone's got a role to play, don't play it and ye best go off on yer own.” she says calmly as she taps her keg. She fills her waterskin with her mead, sits down next to Aerys, and passes her the bottle of Brandy. Normally happy to share, she keeps her skin and keg to herself, and won't share until she is sure that her mead hasn't been tainted, or until she passes out from poisoning. She eyes the resident Red Mantis, wondering if she did it, why would she, and why would she save the rest of us?
"Ah, a godsend you are" Aerys says as she takes the bottle of brandy and takes a few swigs.
Gelik responds "Oh very well. I shall partake in a watch and make sure we are all kept safe and sound while the rest of you are fast asleep. I'm sure all of my years of rich pampering and performing on stage in front of some of the most notable people of Magnimar will translate well into keeping my well trained eyes keenly peeled in the darkness for all manner of beast and villainy that predicate during the deepest, darkest nights."
Call it a DC 15 Intelligence check to remember if Sasha was awake when you woke up.
[dice=Memory check]1d20 + 1
Nymra quietly continues drinking from her skin, eyeing Sasha occasionally. An idea strikes her. She sits next to Sasha and thrusts her skin towards her. ”Drink up lass.”
Sasha doesn't hesitate to drink. "Thanks friend. Is it the tattoo that bothers you? Couldn't be helped, wasn't my call you see."
Neil walks over to the girls, and holds his hand out in request for the skin. Wasn't your call? What do you mean? Neil asks, then takes a swig for himself.
To Gelik, he says, Yeah; I hear ya. Used to bother me, too. But you get used to it eventually. And unless we're at a new moon or have a lot of cloud cover, it won't be as dark as you think. Especially with the fire going.
To the rest of the group, he says, Thats another thing. Unless we have something specific to worry about, we really should keep the fire going through the night. I'll make sure we have enough wood.
Nimar tries not to look too interested at the information Sasha is volunteering.
"The name's Sasha...Sasha Nevah. Mom's an assassin, and trained me to be one. Thing is, I really just don't like being told what to do, and guilds, especially assassin's guilds, all they wanna do is tell you what to do; who to kill, how to do it, who to frame, blah, blah, blah. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind the violence, or the killing, but if I'm going to be killing someone, it's going to be my choice you see. Well, before I could really make that clear to mom, they started my induction ceremony and branded me. I tried a job or two, but man, they can be soooo bossy. So I told mom I was quitting, she cut off my finger and "banished" me to Sargava threatening to finish the job if I returned to Ilizmagorti. I'm supposed to be looking into some business or whatever they have over there, but I'm like, who cares, I'm free now."
Nymra points out the wood she collected, ”We ought have plenty 'o wood for the night.” Responding to Sasha,” I'll be frank with you, knowin' a crewman died from multiple possible rapier wounds, and having a Red Mantis, who happens to have rapiers, among the few that somehow survived, seems a might bit coincidental. What say you?”
"Wasn't me. Maybe he did it" she says as she points at Nimar.
"Wasn't me. Maybe he did it" she says as she points at Nimar.
It's really hard to believe anything that comes out of her mouth and that's more from the crazy side, but you don't feel as if she's trying to deceive you.
"Wasn't me. Maybe he did it" she says as she points at Nimar.[dice=sense motive]1d20 + 1
”Mayhaps, just voicin' my mind is all. I don't know quite what to make of you or anyone else here for that matter. What's important is that we've survived our first day, only with trust will we persevere. So I thank you for sharing yer story.”
Yes ma'am; a good unit won't function without trust.
"Sasha, relax. She was just being honest with you. For the record," Nimar looks at the assembled survivors and lowers his voice, "If it were me, I would be long gone by now and there would have been only one stab wound apiece." He follows that up with a hearty laugh. "No, really, I don't see the point, I think for now we should assume that this 'Leana' is our culprit."
"Sasha, relax. She was just being honest with you. For the record," Nimar looks at the assembled survivors and lowers his voice, "If it were me, I would be long gone by now and there would have been only one stab wound apiece." He follows that up with a hearty laugh. "No, really, I don't see the point, I think for now we should assume that this 'Leana' is our culprit."
"Aye, fair point, must be one helluva woman to make the cap'n obsessed like that." she says with a chuckle. She takes the skin and refills it. Less 'n half full, best ration the rest. she thinks with a frown. She takes a swig and passes the skin.
"We'll get nowhere pointing fingers. If the killer wanted us dead, we'd be dead. We have more to worry about now. Stranded in the Mwangi Expanse is a death sentence on its own. We'll all need to work together."
Lesedi walks up to Neil and addresses him directly in a hushed tone. "May I 'ave a word with you in private?"
'Atta boy, you poor memory addled man, Nimar thinks as he watches what he assumes to be a private liaison between Lesedi and Neil. Of course, it ain't no business of mine, long as they're back before dark. Didn't see it, don't want to! With a grin, Nimar tosses some more wood on the fire and runs Sasha's story through his head again.
Lesedi walks up to Neil and addresses him directly in a hushed tone. "May I 'ave a word with you in private?"
Of course. Lead the way.
You're back aboard the Jenivere, bent over the railing being seasick. After your latest bout of retching, you slump back and see the rest o fthe passengers and crew are on deck as well, all of them sick save for the captain and the quiet Varisian scholar, this...Leana. She whispers in the captain's ear, then gives him a kiss on the cheek. At that point the captain holds up a wooden soup spoon, and you realize that you're holding one as well. Everyone has a spoon. The ship is sinking, and the only way to stop it is to bail out the hold with your spoon! You work feverishly, but the waters keep rushing in. Just before you wake, you can see monstrous things with pincers in the water trying to claw their way into the ship... and then your nightmare is over.
The night passes mostly without incident. A few of the survivors seem to have bad dreams, but nothing attacks you during the night. It's already hot by the time the sun begins to rise and even Gelik manages to man his watch, although he goes on and on about it all morning long, about just how exciting this whole staying up late in the middle of the night with nothing to drink and as he utters under his breath...no decent companions to accompany him.
Nimar takes a moment to thank Gelik for his diligence. "I know it isn't what you're used to, Gelik, but we all need to work together right now. I'm sure Desna will reward you in the future for ensuring your fellow travelers are safe. Thank you. So...I had a bizarre nightmare. I almost think my mind was trying to make sense of what happened." He yawns loudly. "I think I'm going to need a solid midday nap!"
The next morning... Neil pulls out an odd looking iron pot with a handle and spout. He fills it up with water and pours in a thick gritty powder, and then places the whole thing into the fire. He lets it come to a boil and then removed it from the fire and let's it sit for a few minutes. Then he pours some into a mug.
Taking a sip, he gives a sigh of contentment. Ahhh... I tell you, a little coffee can make a bad field exercise worth it. Anyone else want some?
"Ah, a local delicacy where you come from? It smells rich. It's hard for me to pass up new food or drink, I would love to try some, thank you." Nimar smiles.
Immediately after taking a sip, he nods and says, "A touch bitter for my taste. It almost reminds me of a tea the Sargavan sometimes brew. They would often add coconut milk and stir it with sugar cane." He continues to sip the drink, savoring the new experience.
It'll also help with that midday nap requirement, Neil says with a half smile.
So what exactly is the plan for the day? Catch some rays? Maybe go swimming with the dolphins? A nature hike? Wait to be rescued? Send up signal flares?
Nymra practically falls out of her hanging tent as she gets up to face the day. She washes her face in the sea then approaches those who are awake.
”Mornin' lads 'n lasses!” she grabs a log and sits on it, ”So what's the plan eh?”
Between sips of coffee and a big yawn, Nimar answers Nymra, "Morning Nym. Sleep alright, any weird dreams? I was thinking we needed a good view of where we are and what we're up against. You should try this. I don't know where we can find some when Neil's out, but the more I drink, the more I like it. Although, I'm betting you might want to add a splash of your brandy to it."
The beach you are on is about the closest to the wreck, at least free of the jungle tree line.
Unless you choose to remain on the beach and take options to help be rescued, you're going to have to adventure into the jungle, either East, West, or South. Gelik, of course, is going to propose building big signal fires to be noticed until they're rescued. Aerys is a pirate and would prefer to do whatever she can to help get off of the island. Ishirou wants to return to Sargava so he is up for finding a way off of the island. While Jask doesn't want to return to Sargava, he doesn't want to die on this island either. Sashi actually is starting to like the island life; no one telling her what to do, no rules, pretty landscape and there is something serene to it.
A high point would be climbing a tree, which isn't going to get you any vision enhancement. To get to a higher point of view would take a lot of work and wouldn't yield much results due to the heavy foliage The island is shaped like a reversed "C" and you are currently about at the 1-2 o'clock position. Heading west would be your shortest venture while heading south and east would be extremely long and treacherous.
Nymra stretches and yawns. ”Slept quite well, thank you. No weird dreams, whydya ask?” She tries a sip of an offered cup, makes a face, then calls out ”Oi, any of that brandy left Aerys?” Addressing, Nimar again, she says, ”I like that idea, aside from the map, we don't really know what were workin' with 'ere, I also wanna check the beach by the wreck, maybe find some clues. Depending on what you see up top, we should probably head inland, we're too exposed out on this beach.”
I think we're already on the closest beach. And it looks like the highest point on this island is going to be difficult to get to. Maybe we take it easy for a bit and go the easy route?
I kind of like Gelik's idea of building a bIg bonfire. Give us the chance of getting rescued. Gelik? Think you can stay here and manage a bonfire while some of us head west to explore the island? Whoever else wants to stay can as well. We should be doing short expositions and make this camp our base of operations until we find a better location.
"Oh, I had quite the nightmare, and I kind of get the feeling some other folks did too. It was...specific. I've dealt with strange magic before," Nimar shrugs, "But it may have just been my mind trying to make sense of the wreck. It sounds like we've got a fairly good idea here."
He leans in close to whisper to Neil and Nymra. "The only fear I have about a signal fire is that if this island isn't deserted, the residents will see it long before any passing ship."
"Does anyone know how often ships come by this island? More importantly, does anyone know about the slaver an' pirate traffic out here? We may find ourselves signalin' for our own deaths or bondage."
Nymra frowns and shakes her head. "No, I think we'd best get ourselves off this island, it will be a while before others even know we've wrecked, so help could be a long time comin'. Best to help ourselves."
Just the thought of the possiblity of being enslaved puts Nymra on edge.
"Either way, signal or not, I think our first priority should be findin' a better place to make camp."
Slavers, huh? I haven't heard of slavers existing in a long time. Where I'm from, Slavery has been entirely wiped from a majority of the countries of the world, and barely visible in a few of the more backwards countries.
However, to your point of locals finding us, that can be a good thing just as much as a bad thing. Since we know only rumors about any potential local, we really have no idea if it will be true. So lighting a fire may be worth the risk.
Either way, I don't care. I'll let you all decide. I'd like to explore westward. Who wants to come with me?