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http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=515252
The Flying Fish Tavern, a usually empty and dreary stop along the Hellmouth Gulf, is busier and livelier than the old couple who run the establishment can barely keep up with. Though the occupants are hard folks, a man on a makeshift stage consisting of a table pulled to a corner attempts to break the mood with laughter.
"Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says..."Does this taste funny to you?"
The silence is deafening for several moments before the entrance opens loudly as a heavily armored woman enters the tavern, bringing in a bit of rain and mud with her boots.
A distinctly Elven man lets out a small chuckle over his meal.
Molly finds herself swimming up along the coastline of the Hellmouth Gulf when she spies a small fire burning just far enough from the coastline to avoid being put out. Since her long journey began from her home she has felt an almost imperceptible droning that never goes away and lingers at the edges of her consciousness as she draws closer to Black Cove. Having not spotted any signs of life along the coast(aside from the occasional giant crab), the scaled humanoid crouched near the flames catches her interest.
Kasshyk prepares his dinner over a lightly burning flame. A connoisseur in his own way, he takes great care as he slowly cooks the bird to perfection. His mighty Great Axe lays by his side, fire dancing in it's reflection.
"So two Clerics walk into a tavern. One of 'em asks the other 'So what've you been up to?' and the other replies 'I've been training the future religious leaders of our faith! The first one asks 'So, how's that workin' out' and the second replies 'Eh, I'm makin' a Prophet.'" he summons a small snare drum and cymbals *BADUM TSHHH*
"Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week. Whether you want me to be or not! ZING!"
*Rolling eyes*
"You are no human sailor or fisherman... Or human anything, really..." says Molly in Draconic "What brings a lizardkin to this area? I haven't seen one of your kind in years..."
"I have traveled far, for new place. New life." "Sit. Dry. Warm thy flesh. Where you come from?"
Why is a seafolk warrior approaching my fire in the night? There surely must be a worthy tale behind this!
"Moisture is good for your skin... And scales..." says Molly, jokingly. "My name is Molly... I'm on my way to Black Cove village, have you per chance been there of met any of its inhabitants?"
Kasshyk shakes his reptilian head. "My name Kasshyk. I have not spoken to villagers. Arrived recently. Not see any travelers."
"That's unfortunate... Land-dwellers have never been this shy before. I hope they are okay..." says Molly somewhat disappointed, but she seems to cheer up almost immediately after saying those words. "Well... At least I have an excuse to travel for a little bit longer..."
"Yesss," Kasshyk says, his strange accent turning most words he speaks into a hiss. "We find out sssoon. Go in morning. We two not sso ssstrange if together...?" he continues, and raises a scaled ridge of an eyebrow at the question.
"Heh... My people aren't all that strange to drylanders around here. My clan actually trades with a few coastal villages... But sure, we can travel together. It's always fun to see the looks on land-dwellers faces when they see me moving on dry land. I'm sure it'll be even more entertaining when they see us together." says Molly with a childish smile on her face.
Kasshyk inclines his head deeply, and then gratefully says, "I thank you, Molly. Warmbloodses and their wayss not known to thisss one. All humanss I met not like you. They not...good. Attack Kasshyk. Make him work. Then Kasshyk essscape, free othersss." He looks to the fire, gazing into it's embers, the small bed of coals white-hot. After a moment, he continues. "But otherss not like Kasshyk too. Make Kasshyk leave. So Kasshyk make new home. I look for new home." Kasshyk thinks for a few seconds, then quickly says, "Kasshyk is I, yesss?"
"Yes, I believe you are." says Molly with a friendly tone. "Don't judge them too harshly, Kasshyk... Once they get past their initial mistrust, most 'warm-bloods' turn out to be decent people."
"Kasshyk hope so. He not want to fight all the time." The lizardman stands up and stretches, then pokes at his roasting bird with a charred bit of twig. He nods once, then looks to Molly. "Fighting good, make ssstrong, but fighting not every-ting. Fighting not life. Fighting part of life. Only part. You hungry?"
"Of course, thank you" Molly pulls a few fish from her backpack. "I have some fish I caught this morning. And some dry fruit and honey too, if you like it."
Kasshyk removes the large roasted bird gingerly from the fire, and as he slides it off the skewer, it releases a savory aroma into the air. "You are too kind. We have now a feast!" hes says happily, and gestures widely to their grand meal.
Dorian wracks his brain for another joke for his set.
And comes up with another in the vein of what he has been coming up with for the last half hour.
"Hey, this one's for all you fishermen out there!"
"What's the difference between a piano and a fish? Eh?" he waits expectantly for guesses. None come.
"Ah, too hard for you? Well it's simple really: You can tune a piano, but you can't tuna fish!"
Kasshyk, his stomach now filled with a motley assortment of wildlife, looks to his pack, and then to his dinner guest. "You have been to village much?" he says after a while, pointing to the few dim lights of homes just visible in the distance.
"Black Cove? No... I have never been there. When we trade with land-dwellers, we do it through their sailors and fishermen on the sea, about 500 from the coast. It's considered 'neutral territory'." explains Molly after she takes a bite from a crisped fish. "I've been to a other dryland villages a few times, though. It's always an interesting experience. I wish to see more of the continent someday"
"Ahhh, I sssee." Kasshyk nods and tries to find the words he seeks. "Kasshyk think he like the ssea. Never left marsshesss 'til now. Sssea...very big. Free. Kasshyk want to travel it. Maybe Kasshyk become sssailor too!" With this the lizardman breaks into a raspy chuckle, sounding somewhere between a hissing cackle and a moist wheeze.
"I have never seen a reptilian sailor... You could be the first!" says Molly "Wouldn't that put a funny look at the humans' faces?"
The mermaid laughs as she pictures the occasion in her mind.
"Yesss-ss-sss!" Kasshyk continues laughing quietly as he imagines himself aboard a ship alongside the rest of its crew. "Kasshyk will be ssailor, and ssshow them we not sso different." The lizardfolk comes to his feet and looks about him, peering into the darkness all around the makeshift camp of driftwood log benches.
Kasshyk sees nothing unusual in the night.
The old patron of the tavern approaches Kristeva and inquires of her kindly.
"Pardon me young miss, but I can't help but wonder what brings you out to our countryside?"
Dorian's joke earns him a few copper thrown begrudgingly.
Kasshyk eagerly awaits the morrow, hoping against hope to find some level of acceptance or civility from the village populace.
"So I'm having so much fun I could never stop!"
"Tell you what though, I have work to do. I will if someone tells me about Black Cove, I'm new around here."
Given their response to his jokes so far, the crowd should jump at this rare opportunity.
The patrons grow more broodingly quiet at the mention of Black Cove and many divert what attention they had been giving Dorian to their food and drink.
A grizzled man approaches Dorian and speaks in a hushed voice.
"Traveler, why in the Hells would ye be headin to Black Cove? The folk there ain't right I tell ya. The smart folk 'round here keep there distance, lest someone they know disappears. A cousin of mine married a feller from Black Cove and I haven't seen her since..." He runs his hand over his face exasperatingly.
"Yer not from around here so I'll warn ye once. Stay away from Black Cove if ya value yer life. Those folk, even before this last year, they were different from you and me...pale even though workin out in the sun like the rest of us. I always knew somethin was off but these times're provin it!" The man finishes his tirade and leaves rambling about the Black Cove folk.
"Well, that was ominous." Dorian settles on, seeing as how he can't ask follow-up questions of the guy.
Like, are you sure she didn't just leave and go off with her new husband somewhere?
In the morning, two patrons of The Flying Fish tavern find themselves on the same byroad to Black Cove. The scent of the sea hangs on the fresh dawn air as the travelers can expect to reach Black Cove within the day.
Molly and Kasshyk awaken and continue their trek along the coast to Black Cove.
Some time later as both parties grow almost close enough to meet...
A low fog hangs along the shore, refusing to release its grip in the pervasive gloom of an overcast morning. The surf crashes against nearby cliffs, and the cold wind carries a spray of fine mist. But then a cry of distress rings out over the briny current! Shouts of pain echo as a fisherman in an old rowboat wields a single broken oar against an enormous crab. The man struggles to reach the rocks and the safety of a small inlet nearby.
Molly
Kristeva
Dorian
Kasshyk
AND CRABS
"By the Waves! Those things aren't supposed to attack sailors!"
Molly's arrows find their mark in the Giant Crab battling the sailor and bring the briny creature to it's doom.
The sailor continues to fight the sea in bringing his boat to shore however.
"Someone help me rope my boat in before more of those things show up!" A man frantically calls out.
I delay.
Kasshyk spurs into action, running and leaping into the choppy waters and swimming towards the beleaguered fisherman.
"Hey, don't get crabby, we're coming!" Dorian yells. He moves toward the guy, though with no real plan of how to help him.
"Have you tried swimming?" he asks, helpfully.
Not one, not two, BUT THREE! Giant Crabs emerge from the depths to attack these interlopers! One of the crabs charges right out of the water at Molly. The other two strike out at Kasshyk from the depths.
Kasshyk makes great progress and moves straight up to the the swaying boat. Unfortunately the man in the boat panics when he spies the Lizardfolk move to aid him.
"Oh gods another creature from the deep! HELP SOMEONE HELP!" When he sees Dorian approach however he quickly throws a rope to him.
But the crabs are no match for these powerful adventurers.
If Kristeva can move and attack without entering too much in the water, then she moves two handing her longsword to defend the archer
Molly slithers a "step" back and fires her bow.
"Leave, crustacean errant!" says Molly in Aquan "This is not the place for you!"
Molly's arrows take down yet another crab.
"You were probably better off throwing it to anyone else!" Dorian yells, waving his rail-thin arms at the man.
Nevertheless, Dorian hauls as hard as he can, and the boat actually moves!
"Hey, buddy, this thing's heavy you know. i don't wanna start a row but uh, maybe YOU could?" Dorian says and gestures to the man's oar.