Nighttime Action: Sleep
As soon as she's gotten some gruel in her face, and as soon as it's allowed, Harmony heads to the bunks to crash and sleep hard. Despite her infuriation at Plugg's lashings, she's too tired to protest in any way, she just goes and passes out -- face down -- in her hammock and is in la-la dreamland. In this position she doesn't snore.
Esmarelda sat up, startled by Plugg's whip. As Plugg spoke the look on Esmarelda's face turned into an expression of terror, and as he laughed she gathered her bucket and holystone. She stood and hurried away from the man. Something about him put a knot in her stomach.
That night Esmarelda took her lashings, ate the gruel, and said nothing. She just went down to her hammock and did her best to fall asleep.
The next day after the storm was a sleepy blur, one which was capped off by a thoroughly unpleasant whipping. I could only recall vague details of the end of the storm and my inability to finish my shift. Although we had managed to rescue a crewmate from certain death in the midst of the storm, that act of gallantry was completely lost on our foul masters and only our purely unintentional dereliction of duty went noticed.
As much as I was tempted to mull over the wrongs that I and my mates have suffered, I was plainly too tired. I finished my tasks in the rigging despite my bleary state, and retired for the evening after a brief meal.
The half-giant barely remembers the rest of his day, all of it just a haze of sleep deprivation and idle worry in the back of his mind. He knows there is something he should be concerned about, but until the Bloody Hour actually rolls around, it slips his mind. Though, it is rather tough to forget about a whipping when one is enduring it.
His jaws clench in time with each crack of the whip and he starts to see the black begin to creep in around the edges of his vision, but holds on. Just for now. After all, the moment he is let down from the mast and drops his shirt back over his torso, he heads straight to his bunk. "Someb'dy feed th' rat," he mutters and slurs on his way past his friends. He simply has nothing left in him, for the moment.
While Harmony may not snore, Gall most certainly does. Like a professional team of loggers.
The morning seems almost friendly when you all awake. Perhaps it was because you haven't really slept in a few days and you all passed out dead the moment you got to your bunks. Nothing like being reminded of what it feels like to be rested again.
Routine picks back up on the ship and it should be clear skies for the next few days. All in all, things are going pretty okay. You know, except the bitter-as-vinegar treatment you receive from Scourge, or the sharp glares from Plugg. And there's always a few crew members who you think probably wish you would just drop dead... But you can't win it all.
low = inebriated, high = sober
low = inebriated, high = sober
That evening in her sleep, the whispers come, invading her dreams, making clear what Besmara wants from Cueta, in the near term at least. The deckhand wakes early, in a good mood. Despite the fact that she's got to swab the decks, she's happy to be out in the sunshine, on calm seas. Slipping away from her duties at midday, Cueta makes her way to the quartermaster, and plunks down four silver sails at Grok's counter. "A jug of Grog, Grok. Your best of the worst, chinney?"
Back on the deck, Cueta spends the rest of the day in the sun, scrubbing. She barely realizes it, but when the bloody hour comes, the Mwangi is actually quite tired - little water and much exertion seems to have taken its toll.
Despite her fatigue, Cueta settles in for mealtime with her companions. After everyone is finished, with a little flourish, Cueta pulls her jug of grog from under her stool, and sets it in front of everyone. "Besmara whispered in my brain last night, told me to buy everyone drinks. So, fill up. You don't want to disappoint the goddess of pirates and monsters!"
As she tips back shots, Cueta goes around the circle, flinging questions at her friends.
"Artevious, are you going to write books? You've got quite the way with words."
"Esmarelda, once you get your freedom, do you plan on returning home?"
"Gall, why'd you let up on Owlbear? I would've sent him into a deep slumber"
"Harmony, what's your favorite place in Port Peril?"
As the shots flow, Cueta's questions grow less on-point.
"Art - if I may - if you could accomplish one thing that your father didn't, what would it be?"
"Esmarelda, do your people like, never become adults if they don't get a kapa... kapa... special scarf?"
"Gall, what would you cook if you had the ingredients, of anything in the world?"
"Harmony, if you could buy your mom one thing, anything in the world, what would it be?"
Until they're pretty much nonsense...
"Arty, would ya' or wouldn't ya - Queen Abby of House Thrune?"
"Es, if you could be one creature for a day, what would it be?"
"Big G, if you were king of the world, would you make it law that all new doorways, ceilings and chairs would be built to fit your size?"
"Harm, if you could throw a rotten turnip at one person, place or thing in the world, what?"
Quite tired and quiter drunkerer, Cueta sleeps sound and deep.
Next Day
The next day is easy enough, despite her hangover. Splicing rope and patching the deck - Cueta can do this all day with her eyes closed. Which, given the hangover, she practically does.
That night, she grabs the remnants of her bottle of Grog, and throws a couple gold on a nearby table. "You lousy sons of b#!&@es, listen up! Two gold to anyone that can drink me under the table!"
I awoke to a day that promised no lashing winds and driving rain, so I set about my tasks that day to avoid a lashing of a different kind. Esmarelda and I were tasked with the line work -- the two days of stormy weather had left the ship's ropes in an awful disarray. Unfortunately, the division of duties had me securing and coiling them while the crack of Scourge's whips had the lady hauling them too and fro. It was rough labor but our foul taskmaster would not allow me to shoulder a bit of that task for her.
During the day, I also chatted a bit more with Badger Medlar, hoping that she would eventually open up.
That evening, Cueta invited us all for a round of drinking and sharing stories. "Ah! Rum! The pirate's drink!" I grinned as she passed the cups around. I lifted mine up in toast. "Here's to the Wormwood, and the waves on which she sails! Here's to her crew, and their great deeds told in tales!"
"Artevious, are you going to write books? You've got quite the way with words."
I pondered that. No doubt my own deeds would need to be chronicled at some point. I hadn't quite thought of who would be writing my adventures. "Hmm. Thank you for the compliment, but I am unsure if I should pen my own books, or if I should find someone who will write them all down for me. I believe that will be a decision for a later day."
"Art - if I may - if you could accomplish one thing that your father didn't, what would it be?"
Another excellent question! And a challenging one at that! After a moment of thinking, I smiled. "He never sailed clean through the Eye of Abendego. What a tale that would be!"
"Arty, would ya' or wouldn't ya - Queen Abby of House Thrune?"
The cup had been passed around several times, and the grog was working its way into our heads, I could tell. "Absolutely! The chance to sweep a queen off her feet should never be passed up!" I shouted amongst the cheers and encouragements.
The next day, I was given the bloody mainsail duties again. Much harder work, I set about it with my usual dedicated efforts.
I lifted mine up in toast. "Here's to the Wormwood, and the waves on which she sails! Here's to her crew, and their great deeds told in tales!"
Cueta raises her shot glass. "To kicking ass and taking ships. And then kicking ass and taking
Tipping the glass back, she grimaces as the grog makes its way into her belly. Cueta was never very good at toasts.
"He never sailed clean through the Eye of Abendego. What a tale that would be!"
Whistling, long and low, Cueta slaps Artevious on the back. "Wooooooaaaaaaaaa. That would be something. Count me in!"
Tipping her chair back, Cueta smiles, a far-off look coming on. "Me, I'm going to kill that gods-damned kraken that sunk the Pegasus. And I'm going to do it in style, so Besmara can't be too pissed, hah!"
Day 1:
Day 2:
Harmony does decently at ratcatching duty on the first day, and very well at the repairworks on the second day following the storm, thus hopefully evading any lashings, for poor worksmanship at least, although it's always possible her loose lips might earn some lashings for something else down the line.
As the time and drinks flow, Harmony answers Cueta's questions with the following.
"My favorite place in Port Peril? Now bear in mind, I've been gone nearly a decade, and only just returned. But back when I was growing up, I enjoyed no place more than this establishment called the Red Tiger. Lovely interior decoration, a lively ambience and very nice staff that always remembered you. Maybe I'll take you there sometime", she says, tipping a glass briefly in Cueta's direction before drinking.
"Buy my mother anything? My freedom", is the quick answer that comes without even needing to think twice. "For all I know, for the past week or two she's been worrying herself to death that I'm lying face down in some ditch somewhere. Nothing I want more right now than to be free and to go tell her I'm all right." She sips her drink. "But assuming that's not in the cards...I'd buy her freedom -- enough money that she wouldn't have to work. For a day, a week, a month, a year, the rest of her life -- however much money I had to use for it, depending." Another sip of her drink. "For a more mundane answer, like you were maybe hoping, a dress. A nice ankle length red silk dress with gold embroidery of a dragon." Yes, she has a very clear mental image. Maybe it's something she had been window shopping before she got kidnapped.
"I'm gonna say, if I had to throw a rotten turnip at someone, I say Esmarelda." She gives the Varisian girl a shrug and a grin. "I figure she's the only one on board that I could take in a fight." She attempts to say it in a good natured manner, but it may still be impossible to avoid hurting Esmarelda's feelings with that joke.
When she got her task, she gathered the ropes that needed to be knotted and went to work. Once those where done she went about making sure each of them were placed where needed.
That night she joined her friends as they drank.
Esmarelda gave Artevious a smirk as she told him. "I'll pen your books for you." Then she looked to Cueta as she asked Esmarelda a question.
"Esmarelda, once you get your freedom, do you plan on returning home?"
Esmarelda gave a small shrug as she answered "Maybe if I know my mother won't kill me if I do."
She looked Harmony's way when she answered Cueta's question. "Hey I know that pla-... Oooh never mind...." Esmarelda said as she quickly shut her mouth.
"Esmarelda, do your people like, never become adults if they don't get a kapa... kapa... special scarf?"
"Kapenia. Oh you know what? Just call it a scarf..." She sighed. "It's a symbol of our adulthood, the more important part is that it doubles as a record of our family tree." She informed her. "And they only wouldn't be seen as adults to other Varisians."
When Harmony answered her second question Esmarelda got a sad look on her face. She knew what the Red Tiger was, and also knew slavery was openly accepted in the Shackles. She bit her lip before digging into her small coin purse as she gently took Harmony's hand. "I really hope you get to do that one day... and if you'll let me, I'd like to help you get there." Esmarelda said as she gently places a platinum piece in Harmony's hand with a soft smile.
"Es, if you could be one creature for a day, what would it be?"
Esmarelda thought for a few minutes before nodding. "I'd be a fox if we are talking normal animals." She answered.
Esmarelda quickly jumped up from her spot and pointed at Harmony, a confident smirk on her lips. "Oh you believe so Miss Harmony? Then you should be warned: I have been in fencing classes since I was fifteen!" She boasted, her smirk turning into a playful smile.
When the next morning came Esmarelda set right to work.
She ran and moved through the ship with grace, this time much faster then she had before. Oddly enough, running around seemed to energize the Varisian. An expression of joy played upon her face for the whole day.
"Oh you believe so Miss Harmony? Then you should be warned: I have been in fencing classes since I was fifteen!"
"So...two weeks?" Harmony wisecracks.
Special Occasion: Captain Harrigan is celebrating something today, and wants one of the ship’s pigs butchered and cooked for dinner. DC10 Profession(cook) or Survival check
Fishing: Catching tonight’s supper using the ship’s nets. DC10 Profession (fisherman) or Survival check
On the morning of the day after the longest day of all time, Gall awakes groggy and wishing for far more sleep, but rested. He stretches and twists to work out all the kinks before moving off to get his daily activities taken care of. Fortunately, they are mindlessly easy to do and he finds plenty of time to poke around the galley or chat with other crew members. During a bit of his off-time between portions of butchering the pig, he spots Harmony rat catching in the middle deck and decides to take a break.
"Oi, lass. Ain't ye caught near to every single rat in here by now? Seems like they got ye at this every other day," he jokes as he moves to try to help her with one or two, getting them cornered while they chat. "Ye consider bringin' 'em down to our wee friend so he can get a proper meal other than garbage?"
Later in the evening, he stops Mila on her way to whatever table she normally sits at and makes a quiet request of her. "Beggin' yer pardon, lass, but ye mind takin' a peek at a wee friend'a mine? He ain't been lookin' so good, but I'm not mighty keen on having the Stitchman take a peek. Rather keep it on the quieter end of things, ye hear?" And if she is willing to take him up on the request, he will lead her down into the bilges to show her the tumor ridden dire rat they have been keeping.
As for the drinking festivities, Gall is absolutely thrilled! He loves drinking, especially when doing it with good friends, but it quickly becomes apparent that his accent disappears when drunk. Or at least, it turns into something far more prim and proper than one would expect of the man. "Well, it just ain't seem right to be hurtin' on a simple lad who don't wanna fight no more. He's not the one what's done this to us; hell, he's likely in worse a situation than we is. Oh, speakin' of, Arty. Owlbear's the one what's got your book. The lad wanted to learn to read, so he bought it from Grok."
Harmony's claim of being able to beat Esmarelda in a fight quickly contested, Gall finds himself chuckling along and shaking his head. "Careful, lass," he cautions the younger woman, "she might be challenging you to a mud-wrestling sort of fight. That's a horse of another color, don't you know."
"If I could make any dish in all the world... I think I'd make me a bloody sandwich, lass. I'd kill for a good beef melt with all manner of onion and cheese and tomato on there right about now." True to his words, his stomach gives a hearty grumble right away that he promptly tries to silence with more grog. "In any case, my dear, I would most certainly refit each and every portal to be appropriate for those of my altitude! It is truly a travesty that the elevation inclined are not catered to more in today's society."
The next evening, he seems perfectly content to try his hand at showing Cueta how the intricacies of Hog Lob works. "So, lass, ye take this here 'hog' and palm it good. Don't want it slippin' around none in yer palm, so don't use no wrist there. Just give her a heave straight out, from both bicep and shoulder, aye?" He has her give a few experimental tosses before he goes to show her how it is done in a real gamble. On himself, of course.
Harmony
Cueta smiles, pleased at the idea of being taken to the Red Tiger, a guest of the best storyteller probably in Port Peril. "Sweet! Sounds fancy! I'll just follow what you do so I don't look too out of place!"
When Harmony mentions freedom, Cueta turns serious. "Nah, freedom is the right answer. Much better than a dress. We'll get you there, and then your mother too. Might follow your lead and do the same for mine."
Esmarelda
Cueta laughs at the idea of Esmarelda the fox. "A fox? I've never seen one. It's like a dog did it with a otter, right?" Why would you want to be one of those?"
Gall
Raising an eyebrow when Gall's accent slips, Cueta decides to not to bring it up. Regardless of his background, the man could throw a punch and work a kitchen, and that was all that mattered on the Wormwood. Cueta couldn't help but press on about Owlbear, however.
"But he wouldn't of let up on you. Ain't his fault, sure, but he's the message you send to those whose fault it is. He's how they know to leave you alone. They don't know mercy or care to learn it. But they understand violence."
----------
Cueta takes the hog, hefting it, surprised at its weight. Taking the hog and doing as Gall instructs, the deckhand heaves it, using her whole arm and shoulder to lift the pig-covered iron into the air. Its a simple game, but Cueta would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it. Drinking, fighting, lobbing pig-wrapped ingots - even life aboard the Wormwood could allow for life's little pleasures.
When Gall steps up and flubs his throw, Cueta quickly slaps down 5 gold on the table. "Day comes when a student's got to beat her teacher!"
Taking the hog, Cueta enters her stance and lobs the ingot into the air... only to have it land a foot or so short of Gall's toss. Sighing, she grabs her gold and forces it into Gall's hand, clapping him on the shoulder. "But today's not that day, mate!"
Turning to the spectators, Cueta raises Gall's throwing arm and yells, "This one's still undefeated! No one here can beat him either, I bet. No one's even got the guts to try it, I'm sure!" Taking the remaining gold from her belt pouch, the deckhand slams it onto the nearest table, putting her money on Gall (if someone else steps up to lob).
"But he wouldn't of let up on you. Ain't his fault, sure, but he's the message you send to those whose fault it is. He's how they know to leave you alone. They don't know mercy or care to learn it. But they understand violence."
"Aye, ye may be right at that, lass," Gall replies as he takes a slug of his ale, swilling the liquid around within his flagon. "But consider ye this. Them lads were lookin' for a fight and nothing less. They wanted them some bloodsport, but we didn't give 'em none. We openly defied the gents what're in control by not givin' 'em what they wanted, ye ken? Didn't need to turn some poor sod's face to mush to do it, neither.
"I'm as spoilin' for a fight as much as the next lad, but we did all'a that, made some coin, and made us a friend inna process, didn't we? I'd say we made out like bandits." With that, he gives an idle shrug and leans back in his stool to rest his back against the bulkhead, having said his piece. He may not be the smartest man on this side of the Eye, but he does have his moments of wisdom. At least, in his own mind if no one else's.
------------------------------------
At first, the half-giant lifts his brows in surprise when the Mwangi woman somehow manages to fail even worse than he did. He had even put too much wrist into his throw, just as he told her not to! But it quickly becomes apparently when she shoves the gold in his hand and shouts for someone else to take on the champ. Patting her on the back with one large hand, he shakes his head and does his best to play along.
"Ye ain't the first to try yer hand and fall short, and ye won't be the last. It were a good try, lass. Maybe next time. Now, who's next?!" He ends with a shout, turning to spread his arms wide and set Cueta's five gold alongside his own for a total of ten gold on himself. The pot seems to be growing and he makes a mental note to thank her later as he steps back up to the hog.
When Esmarelda presses the platinum piece into Harmony's hand, the older (by what, two, three years?) girl gives the Varisian a smile, holding her hand warmly for a few moments before letting go. "I appreciate that", she says quietly.
As the time passes, and Gall and Cueta seem to really be getting into the gambling and all, Harmony starts to be concerned a little bit. Fitting in a little too well in this pirate's life, maybe. I'm sure I can count on them when the time comes, but I refuse to enjoy myself while I'm a damn slave, she thinks to herself. She's on fun strike! Instead, her driving focus for these days, as the ones before the storm, is to get ever closer to the crew, and try to get more of them to see her in a good light.
Daytime Action 1: Influence Owlbear
Nighttime Action 1: Influence Ratline Rattsberg
Daytime Action 2: Influence Aretta Bansion
Nighttime Action 2: Influence Riaris Krine
On the first day, Harmony keeps teaching Owlbear to read and approaches one of the crew members she hasn't had any interactions with yet -- the halfling with missing fingers, Ratline Rattsberg.
"And this shape here, it's called a 'tee'...it's sort of like a tree, see, with a trunk and then branches spreading out at the top. The tree is a tee. T. T. The 't' sound. When you see the tree, it's called a tee, and it sounds like...t. T. T. T, like the t in tree. And like the t in tee."
"So, there has to be a story behind those missing fingers. Did they all go in the same incident, or was it more a one at a time kind of thing? I know that there's some gangs, particularly in the Tien quarters of Avistan, that exact that sort of price when you don't complete a mission. But then", she gives a conspiratorial smile, "you know, those woodchippers are b----es too." Trying to give the impression that she has no problem with him wanting to keep his secrets, or if he does choose to share with her, she can also keep them to herself.
On the second day, Harmony goes a little more daring. She makes some overtures towards one of the more seemingly ill-tempered crew members, the big-eared harlot Aretta Bansion. And when the second day starts to draw to a close, she tries to get in the good graces of one of the officers, the master gunner Riaris Krine.
"So I heard you have a history, Aretta. Do you still practice or is that a gone life? Because I've got some coin if you're interested." If Aretta is amenable, Harmony will pay for an half hour of her time, but instead of some dirty sordid pirate sex, she'll just spend her paid time talking to the girl. "Known a fair lot of working girls in my time, most of 'em's got at least one story about a guy who just wanted to talk to someone. Figure there are worse things to pay a girl for." It's not like shrink is a big profession on Golarion.
"No big secret I ain't a big fan of the way were recruited, Ma'am Krine, sir, I won't deny that. But long as I'm here, I don't exactly want to get keelhauled or whatever, you know? So you can expect me to do my best. Whatever you want, I'm there for you. I figure it's the best way to stay alive, eh? And I've got a pretty damn vested interest in staying alive. Whatever job you want done, you can count on me giving my absolute damndest to get it done."
During these two days, Harmony will, like Cueta, also strike up some conversations with her fellow abductees.
"Gall, how did you get to be that big anyway? Were your parents like that? And you know, don't take this for an expression of interest or anything, but a girl's gotta be curious -- does the carpet match the drapes, if you know what I mean?"
"Cueta, babe, I know a bit o' poly', but I'm not sure if your name means anything? Like 'Rose' means, you know, a rose, and stuff. Does 'cueta' mean something?"
"Esmarelda, you got any boy waiting for you back at home? Or girl, I don't judge. Or did you have one of those families where you were stored in an attic waiting for an arranged marriage?"
"Artevious, what's the most impressive sight you've ever seen? And I don't mean boobies, I mean like cities or waterfalls or sh-- like that."
I could barely restrain my elation upon learning that my book was found, but I was also concerned with it's condition after several days being in the care of the Owlbear. I doubt he had as much respect for its pages as I.
It was all I could do to refrain from rushing off to see if I could reacquire my book, but I delayed to continue our conversation.
When Esmarelda offered to write my own stories, I offered her a broad smile. "Careful what you offer, my dear. It would involve you getting very close to the subject matter."
Harmony Leading's question sent me back to my halcyon days of my youth. After a moment's reverie, I looked straight into her eyes, refusing to be baited. "True, the bosom of a comely lass may be one of the greatest sights a man can enjoy, but for me? My fondest memory is of the docks of Kintargo in the morning. My mother brought me there once when I was a lad, since I'd never seen a ship before. I can recall every sensation: the ships moored there on the waterfront, the hazy mist of the morning like something out of a dream. The cry of the gulls and the lazy slap of the water against the piers. The sun was high in the sky before my mother could pull me away."
I snapped out of my memory and returned to the present. Looking at my comrades, confederates, and colleagues, I threw out a question to them. "If --when-- we throw off this yoke of servitude and are able to chart out own course, will any of you wish to stay on the high seas?"
Gall
Cueta shrugged. "Kind of like the tales I hear of Mwangi slaves refusing to work Saargavaan plantations? Its a dangerous line to walk. I like it!"
---------------
Harmony
Looking out past the horizon, there's still no ships to be seen, just waves, ripple after ripple, stretching out into the distance. Cueta's eyes are unfocused, as if she's not seeing them, but rather another place and time.
"My mother's mother name was Cueta. It is a city - or was a city - at the height of the Shory empire, rumored to be near where Bloodcove is today. It was a fine place, according to the stories - independant and peaceful, its sunwashed streets of white plaster full of laughter."
Cueta smiles and looks to Harmony, her eyes focused on the present again. "That's me, peaceful, white and full of laughter, ha!"
--------------
Artevious
Cueta answers without missing a beat, or even really a thought. "Figure I don't have much of a choice, really. I'm built for this life, and conscripted by Besmara herself to boot. A slave even when we throw off Harrigan's yoke. At least until I complete whatever task the Pirate Queen's got in store for me."
"Gall, how did you get to be that big anyway? Were your parents like that? And you know, don't take this for an expression of interest or anything, but a girl's gotta be curious -- does the carpet match the drapes, if you know what I mean?"
"Hah! Oh, aye, me hair's all natural. Head to toe, black as they come," Gall shoots back with a bemused smirk before he shakes his head and actually answers the question. "Me mother were a normal lass like yourself, but she got herself kidnapped by giants, ye see. That went roundabout how ye would expect and she managed to escape a few months later. She scurried her arse off to the Shackles, found a nice fisherman, and settled down, never lookin' back."
He grows quiet for a moment, a genuinely fond smile crossing his features as his gaze grows distant. "Never knew my blood father, the sod, but that didn't matter none. He weren't no father to me and I grew up taken care of well by parents what were real enough for any lad. Never did have a fondness for captivity like we find ourselves in how, though, on account of the tales my mum used to tell."
"As for the carpet and the drapes," he continues with a gentle shake of his head to clear it of such daydreams, that grin crossing his features again. "Aye, I'm big all over. From me toes to me nose, as they say. Got a little giant in me, after all. I'd ask if ye want some of the same, but it seems ye already made up yer mind on the topic!" With that, he bursts into laughter at his own joke, clearly having told it many a time before.
----------------------
"If --when-- we throw off this yoke of servitude and are able to chart out own course, will any of you wish to stay on the high seas?"
"Sea's been my home for as long as I can remember. This'll be my first time as a pirate, a'course, but it's all I know. Whether I stick to this life or not's another tale entirely, but I ain't goin' nowhere if it's not with a deck beneath me and sails overhead." He gives a sage nod, clearly having given this a great deal of thought at one point or another in his life. "If yer keen on seein' that ye live up to yer father's legacy, lad, I wouldn't mind bein' there to lend a hand. Can't very well captain a ship all by yer lonesome, after all, now can ye?"
Harmony
Esmarelda faked a sad defeated look. "You wound me! Why Harmony, why?" She playfully asked as she laid her hands over her heart.
Second question
"Some one back home? Nope." She answered. "I was always good at the romancing side but most sailors aren't really looking for a relationship." She said with a sigh and a shrug. "Though also to be fair I wasn't looking for one... Though maybe if I had been I wouldn't be in this situation no? What about your Harmoney?" She asked with a smirk.
Gall
Esmarelda paused and looked at Gall, "Can we even get mud on a ship..? She asked as she raised and eyebrow.
Cueta
"Otter, dog? What? No! They are small, dog like, normally with reddish orange fur." Esmarelda said. "They are known for their cunning, swiftness, and charm." She answered while she crossed her arms and smirked at Cueta.
Artevious
"I'm not seeing a problem with that." Esmarelda gave him a playful wink and smile.
Second Question
Esmarelda gave a happy nod. "I think I just might. I've always wanted to be on the high seas, now I have friends to do it with." She commented. "Not to mentioned Artevious isn't the only one wanting to make their name known." She pointed out.
Rosie, the boisterous tough girl she is, takes Cueta up on the game of heave.
Unfortunately for Cueta, she was far less able to hold her liquor than she thought and it wasn't long before she was drunk under the table by Rosie. Of course, Rosie had to take a victory drink and quickly found herself on the floor with Cueta.
"F*#%in' winnaaarrrrrrrgh. Git it, you losaaaarrrrgh? 'Cause imma pirate yaaaargh..."
Rosie takes Cueta's two gold from the table before passing out.
However, Cueta wins with her bet on Gall, getting her own 6gp 8sp back, plus an additional 4gp.
Badger Medlar was more than happy to chat it up with Artevious, finding him quite an amicable fellow. Not to mention she loved his stories.
Always the silver and honey tongued, Harmony has no issue conversing with her chosen targets over the two days. Owlbear eagerly showed Harmony his book, which was a volume of Artevious' mother's works. Although Riaris Krine was more than happy to speak with Harmony, her demeanor didn't seem to change towards her.
Conchobhar dips down into a low bow, sweeping his hat off his head, decalring that he shall challenge the mighty giant to the hog lob. "To impress Rosie," he says to Gall quietly with a wink.
Of course, his attempt falls short, much like himself. Gall wins an extra 4gp.
Esmarelda
"Cunning, swift and charming? Sounds like a dog-otter to me!"
Heave
Cueta slips and ends up on her rear under a table, laughing as Rosie finishes her third shot. "Take my money, Rosie! You're a fookin' pirate allright, ha!"
Holding her coin out, the Mwangi smiles as the curses rain down from her foul-mouthed friend. Laying backwards, Cueta decides she'll just spend the night right here, under the table...
You all awake the next morning. The ship has recovered well from the throes of the storm; sails are patched, bilges are pumped, decks are swabbed, and a few broken railings have been replaced. With the sun already warming the air and the sky clear from even a whisp of cloud, it promises to be another gorgeous day on the seas.
Depending on your perceptions, it may even turn out to be a better day than expected! Plugg calls you all together, and rather than giving you the usual tasks, he says you'll all be heading off ship for the day.
"The Cap'n be wantin' some fresh crab fer supper tonight, and ye'll be goin' off ta catch him some," he says, kicking a few crab pots at his feet. "We be navigatin' over some shallows, and ye'll be swimmin' out inta the waters ta be gettin' them."
Looking out over the water, you can see that the water is relatively still, though undercurrents are always a threat, even in shallower waters. It shouldn't be too hard of a swim, even for an only mediocre swimmer. The coral reef is about 200ft north of the ship's current location.
"Off ye go then. Hope ye be good swimmers."
It seems the life raft is unavailable to you for today.
"Okay, so this is the part where we're fed to the sharks with some thinly veiled excuse?"
Harmony doesn't plan to be the first in the water but not the last one either -- it's always the straggler that gets nabbed by the shark suddenly jumping out of the water right when everyone thinks they're safe. She'll aim to be somewhere in the middle of the pack when they go out for the swim. She'll Take 10 to make the swim unless something unforeseen occurs.
Gall gives a bemused snort and he shakes his head as he makes for the lower deck of the ship, in search of his chain shirt. "Doubt it. Seems like a right funny excuse for doin' that. If he wanted to be rid of us, I reckon he'd just have the rest of the lads shove us over. Especially seein' as we were just in a great bloody storm."
He returns moments later, garbed in the chain mail and his downright enormous sword at his back. With that, he takes a hold of one of the ropes and works his way down the side into the water below. For the moment, he is perfectly content to be the first one off to the shoals in question.
The next morning was clear and bright, and we were given a new task to break up the usual monotony of rigging and swabbing. This time, it was to be catching -- crabs to be precise. The sea was calm and clear, so I fearlessly dove into the water and joined Gall, Harmony and the others as they started heading to the reef where our bounty lay.
Too bad it was Plugg giving the orders. It was the only way to dampen what Cueta otherwise loved doing - fishing and swimming.
And even though they're not provided a raft, and even though Plugg is obviously trying to bait them, Cueta still can't help but smile as she goes below decks to get her pike. Then, back into the sunshine, its a quick jump into the water and she's on her way. Turning onto her back, the deckhand looks to her companions, thrilled to see that they all seem to be capable swimmers.
"Finally off that fookin' boat! Enjoy this time, mates! Like a bunch of dolphins, we are!"
Once at the reef, Cueta does her rolling logs stroke, legs kicking in circles, one up and one down, while her arms fan out in front of her. Even with the pike, its easy enough to comfortably survey her surroundings.
Esmarelda smiled at her friends. "Gall has a point. But this gives us a chance to get off this gods forsaken boat. So, like Cueta, I'm going to enjoy the time we get." She said before she jumped off into the water after her comrades.
She broke the line of the water, gasping for air before giving a smile. "You just have to love the ocean." She said before she followed after the group to the reef.Once there she sunk into the waters and began to scan for crabs.
You get to the reef without incident other than a that long bit of sea weed tickled Artevious' leg. The reef itself is littered with every variety of flora and fauna from fish to anemones. A few sandbars pop out of the bright blue waters. As you approach the shallows, Cueta and Gall quickly pinpoint a few likely spots to lurk with crab pots at the ready. It'll take about three crabs to fill each of the five crab pots, for a needed total of fifteen crabs to satisfy the ship's needs.
"Oi, lads. Ye see that great batch of coral there? The one what-- No, on my left, lass, not yours. Aye, that's the one. See if ye can't spook some crabs outta there. There ought to be a fair few lurkin' in there," Gall suggests as he makes it to the reef, keen eyes already searching the area. Better to help his friends who might not be so practiced in catching their dinner than let them flounder while he excels.
With that taken care of, he hefts his crab pot to get a better grip before diving down to spot a few of his own. The crabs are wily critters, but Gall is used to their movements and has no trouble snatching up a pair. They land harmlessly in the crab pot for now, where they can live until it is time to get cooked later. All the while, he is careful to keep his eyes peeled for any threats, just in case sharks do find themselves getting curious.
I splashed about as Gall kept pointing out various rocks that may or may not have been the quarry we sought. I peered through the crystal waters, but the crabs managed to confound me.
"I daresay," I began after spitting out a bit of the briny water, "are you quite sure that there are any crabs in these waters at all?"
Cueta peered into the water, all business. "Aye, there's crabs about. You take your blade, and move it slowly over the fissures. They'll move if you get too close, scurry for cover."
With a quick request to Besmara, Cueta lights up the end of her pike, and moves it slowly over a coral reef. "Sometimes, they're not easy to see, what with all the brilliant colors around them."
With a quick thrust, Cueta lifts her pike from the water, bringing with it a fat red crab, still wriggling in its death throws. Raising the pike above her head, Cueta grins.
"That's why you look for the movement."
"And watch your step, Arty. That coral you're standing by, it'll shred your pants and leave you bloody, if you brush against it."
Tossing the crab in a sack, Cueta goes back to hunting, and in a few moments has pulled another crab from the coral reef.
"Ha! Like stabbing, er, crabs... in a barrel!"
Simile was never Cueta's strong suit.
Harmony ends up being a decent crab spotter, but only catches one of the two she spots. The second one, though, was so close -- so close, so very close. "Damn! Just missed it!" she curses upon the second crab eluding her. "I must say, seafood is not a favorite, which is perhaps a little weird for someone grown up in the Shackles. Land animals and fruit is much more my thing. And booze I guess." Not that she's done any particularly heavy drinking while on board, but maybe that's just because she's so angry at the situation.
Upon the comments about corals, Harmony asks, "Are there corals where each of you guys comes from? I've heard they don't have them all over the world."
Cueta shrugs. "Don't know much about the world, to be honest. There was a reef nearby Bloodcove, somedays we'd take our canoe out to. But most of the area around my home is mangrove. You can catch a lot of food in mangroves too."
The group does okay at their task, managing to catch a total of four crabs without some sort of disaster befalling them. But it would seem they aren't the only hunters in the water and it's not long before some of the larger creatures decide to try to put a stop to your dinner plans.
Artevious, Cueta, Gall, and Harmony are able to spot an overgrown crustacean in the water, swimming towards Cueta, gnashing it's claws violently at her. Only Esmarelda doesn't see the creature.
Cueta realizes a little too late that a large hungry crab is coming right at her! In a panic, she flounders her way to the nearest sand bar and turning around, swings at the crab with her pike. Sadly, the sand shifts under her feet and Cueta's swing goes wide and high.
-------------------------
Cueta realizes a little too late that a large hungry crab is coming right at her! In a panic, she drops her pike and tries to wrestle the crab into submission, but the crab easily dodges out of the way of the floundering deckhand.
Crab-catching was not one of my strengths, sadly, but through the efforts of my worthy friends, we were making headway toward filling the buckets with the bounty of the sea.
My difficulties aside, it was turning out to be a lovely day and a welcome departure from our usual shipboard tasks. I was just about to comment on that observation to Esmarelda, when I saw a lurking presence go after Cueta.
"Look out!" I shouted in her direction, but sadly I was too far away to intercept the beast before it closed with her. I drew my cutlass and waded part of the way there.
Harmony looks up when Artevious calls out the warning, and notices the shape approaching Cueta. "What is it? Is it a shark?" she calls out, moving along the sandbar to stand beside Cueta, and readying her spear to strike if the thing approaches.
Move action to move east-northeast, then ready action to strike upon approach.
As Artevious moves away, another of the creatures swims out from its hiding spot within the reefs, snapping at Esmarelda!
Esmarelda takes both claws to either side, avoiding being clutched by one, only to get grabbed and held by the other.
Not wanting to remain in the clutches of the beast, Esmarelda quickly tries to escape, twisting about to break free at the weak point where the claws come together.
Her quick escape attempts free her, and she five foot steps away to give her some space between her and the creature before drawing her rapier.
~ ~ ~
RC-R(ed) snaps his claws at Cueta before she has a chance to react with one claw going high while the other aims low.
Cueta is hit squarely by both claws and locked into a grapple with the creature.
Gall snaps his head around at the shouts of sharks and other things approaching. He does his best to get over to Cueta posthaste, but there is a fair bit of space to cover. On the way, he unslings his massive sword from his back and hefts it in one hand when he splashes back into the sea beside Cueta.
Cueta turns to answer Harmony when she's drug under the water. Panicking, she tries to turn the tide on the crab, by squeezing the creature with all her might. No luck though, as the creature squirms its way out of Cueta's grasp, all the while digging its pinchers into Cueta's flesh, drawing blood.