Jaelynn, not in her uniform, but rather in a grey jumpsuit that ended mid-thigh, high black suede boots that came just an inch or two above her knees, a leather harness across her chest, and backpack slung over one shoulder, gave the Captain a nod that was probably about the right depth for a minor noble (and government officer) boarding a navy ship. She'd even remembered to take off her grey bowler hat as they came aboard, and held it in her left hand.
"Thank you, Captain. It is always nice to be appreciated. We will be happy to join you for dinner, once we have stowed our things, and been briefed in by the other team."
"Thank you," Shane said to Captain Smith as the team boarded and started to follow Lt. Marten. Before leaving the Captain behind, Shane asked him,"How long a journey are we expecting?"
He followed up by asking, "What kind of weather are we in for?"
He had other questions and comments he wanted to make, based on his observations of the captain's conversations at the party, but this did not seem the time or place. Once the group reached their quarters, he told the others, "I listened to the captain having a discussion with a dwarf at the party regarding philosophy of war and diplomacy. I think Captain Smith is very level-headed and unlikely to do anything rash."
Not being the sociable sort -- or particularly diplomatic -- Ralf stayed quietly in the back of the group, trying to remain inconspicuous.
Well, as "inconspicuous" as one can in technicolor silk robes...
-Posted with Wayfinder
Jaelynn, not in her uniform, but rather in a grey jumpsuit that ended mid-thigh, high black suede boots that came just an inch or two above her knees, a leather harness across her chest, and backpack slung over one shoulder, gave the Captain a nod that was probably about the right depth for a minor noble (and government officer) boarding a navy ship. She'd even remembered to take off her grey bowler hat as they came aboard, and held it in her left hand."Thank you, Captain. It is always nice to be appreciated. We will be happy to join you for dinner, once we have stowed our things, and been briefed in by the other team."
Jaelynn had heard of the notorious Captain Smith. He was a bit of a joke among the naval officer corps, despite the fact that he'd obtained his first capital ship command at the age of 32. The man hewed to the teachings of a long dead and much derided philosopher named William Miller. While philosophy in general was in vogue with the upper classes, William Miller was a pacifist who was branded a heretic and burned alive by the Clergy, and his surviving works on politics and hypocrisy championed by Docker firebrands. Really, it was no wonder Miller was unpopular with military officers, and for one of their own to frequently quote the man and bring up his philosophy in meetings? It was a surprise he'd gotten a command at all.
For all that, though, the look he gave Jaelynn was no different than she'd gotten a hundred times since leaving her flat earlier. And he was single, as far as she'd heard, so while it was cheeky, it wasn't scandalous that the Captain was looking her over. Captain Smith smiled and nodded back at her. "After the work your team did on the Coaltongue, I can't help but appreciate."
"Thank you," Shane said to Captain Smith as the team boarded and started to follow Lt. Marten. Before leaving the Captain behind, Shane asked him,"How long a journey are we expecting?"
The captain shrugged nonchalantly. "Five hundred miles, give or take? Should be there the day after tomorrow." To someone in the know, that was quite fast for a sailing ship.
He followed up by asking, "What kind of weather are we in for?"
"We don't expect any storms to hit on our way there. I can't promise you sunbathing weather, but it'll be smooth sailing."
Shane thanked the Captain for answering his questions and then shouldered his pack with his personal items and caught up with the rest of the group heading for their quarters. His mood was surprisingly upbeat, given the dramatic events which were no doubt in store for them. Still, he was looking forward to fresh air and life uncomplicated by thousands of other people struggling to come to grips with life in an industrial city.
Shane reflected on what he had learned about Captain Smith's reputation and wondered if this mission was more dangerous than it seemed. Perhaps it was just a non-prestigious role of support that had earned him the task of escorting the RHC teams to Axis Island. Shane had read Miller's pacifist philosophy while acting as a docker during his under-cover assignment. He did not think Miller's pacifism was valid when dealing with terrorists who sometimes were willing to die in the effort to inflict harm on the enemy, but a part of him found the emphasis on forgiveness somehow calming. He held such a strong desire for revenge for those who killed his parents, that he sometimes wished he could leave the burden of hate behind.
Anthony was happy to let the others do the talking. He was a decent had when it came to those of rank in their nations class system but the military was a bit different. He had little experience dealing with them and even less talking to them directly. Usually it was him being shuffled off. He winced a little, however, when mention was made of how far they were going. It was the furthest he had ever been from the city and while he was eager to do good work and curious about the ship they'd be on, Anthony was a city boy at heart.
He sighed and followed the others, hefting his and the rest of the groups sacks. Even with his armor on he was by far the most capable of carrying heavy stuff. They'd have to carry it on the mission but for now he was happy to do it for them. Shane, he knew, was pretty strong as well. He was actually a bit curious to speak to the man as well. The way he moved intrigued Anthony and the larger engineer was wondering if he himself might be able to learn something from it. Already he had ideas but he would need more then that to get anything solid.
The lieutenant escorted the constables to the nearest hatch and down to their temporary quarters. It looked like a small dining room, though a rather nice one complete with a small bar. Folding cots were stacked up against one wall- and it was going to take some minor miracle of geometry to get them all folded out to allow 10 people to sleep at the same time- while four people consulted maps on one of the tables.
All four- and a huge, shaggy grey dog- looked up as Unit 11 entered. Unlike the Flint constables' mismatched outfits, all 4 members of Unit 6 wore uniform black, pocketed coveralls. The only woman in the group stepped forward and nodded at Lt. Marten.
"Thank you, lieutenant. We'll take it from here."
The young officer snapped off a quick salute and turned to leave Flint Unit 11 alone with Slate Unit 6. The woman smiled as he closed the hatch and nodded at the newcomers. "Constables. I'm Everett." On closer inspection, the woman's ears had small but definite points. Her features weren't fine enough for her to be a full elf, though. Half-elven, then. She nodded at the big dog. "That's Rori." The dog gave a small, quiet bark at its name before putting its head back down on its paws.
"Big Dan." She hardly had to specify who she was talking about, since Big Dan was nearly 7 feet tall and looked like he could eat a sheep for breakfast, a sheep for lunch, and a cow for dinner. His coveralls probably had to be handmade by a team of halflings over the course of a week. He nodded at the Flinters, looking curiously at Tarvak and Aziel.
"Letmas." The only one seated, Letmas looked like either a young nobleman or a rich merchant's son, with well maintained hair and precisely waxed moustaches. The spell component pouch hanging from his belt said he was also a spellcaster of some sort. He grinned at Unit 11, giving Shane a long, appreciative look. "Hello, beautiful. I clearly work in the wrong city."
Everett rolled her eyes and gestured at the fourth member of their team, a goblin. Unlike herself and Big Dan, the goblin was strapped with weapons, his leather belt and harness carrying a small arsenal of light, bladed weapons. "And that's Burton." The goblin also grinned at the Flint constables, though with its pointy teeth it was much less pleasant than Letmas's smile.
The woman went on. "I'm the lead on this. You listen to me, do what I say, and we'll probably all get out of this alive. Have any of you ever done an infiltration like this before?"
Ralf's hackles rose a bit at Everett's "listen to me, do what I say" pronouncement. His reaction was tempered somewhat by her delivery, which seemed more "down to business" than "ego-driven authority." Even so, he gave the group as a whole a single curt nod of recognition and summarily dismissed them from his attention.
Moving over to the dog, he squatted before it and gently offered the back of his fist for sniffing. "Hello, Rori. Is being okay to skritch behind ears?"
Meanwhile, despite the feigned disinterest, Ralf's ears stayed tuned to the discussion behind him.
Anthony watched Ralf, resisting the urge to pull the man back up. It was hard to tell if Ralf was actually being rude or if he genuinely had that little interest in the lead of the mission. Either way it was a problem in an organization like this, but of the group Ralf had a particularly unique set of skills. Tony hoped that wouldn't go to the mans head... or hadn't already.
Rather then wait and let the others speak, Anthony took the chance to step forward this time, while also setting down some bags. "Anthony Zeitlin. I've done a few simpler infiltration missions with Constable Grey and her team when I was a consultant but nothing quite like this."
Anthony gave Ralf a look the man wouldn't see while he was straining to listen and continued. "That one is Ralf. The ladies behind me are Jaelynn and Aziel. Then there's Shane. And finally Tarvak, our newest."
Anthony spent a moment nodding to each in the order he had introduced him. The other team probably knew their names, being in charge of this mission, but it was still polite to introduce yourself. Especially to peers and one in particular who would be leading this mission. Tony turned to look back at Everett. He wasn't quite as tall or wide as Big Dan but he still ended up looking down at most people. "Most of my experiences are gang hideouts. The only infiltration I've done was to get hostages out and that's not a common tactic... Not to mention I always played the distraction for some reason."
Shane nodded at the other team members as they were introduced and again as he was introduced to them by Anthony. When Letmas made his flirtatious remark, Shane smiled politely at the compliment but did not otherwise react. He'd dealt with this sort of thing during his undercover years and had figured out that such remarks usually were more of a signal than a meaningful statement requiring reply.
He did not mind Everett's authoritative tone as much as Ralf appeared to. He knew the military necessity for chain of command in tactical situations and hoped everyone on the team would cooperate. He wondered how Tarvek would handle it, so recently living an unregimented life.
When Everett asked about previous experience with infiltration missions, Shane said, "I've worked under cover, but no tactical missions like this. Hand-to-hand combat is my specialty, for what it's worth."
Having absolutely NO idea what to do, Tarvak saluted to Everett as he'd seen the lieutenant do and said "Tarvak, ma'am" and included the other newcomers with a glance all around and a single nod. "Um, I've never done anything like this before, but I am good at, well, uh, not being seen. Oh, and I'm pretty good with a bow" he added as an afterthought, pointing with his thumb to the said item strung across his back. "Or, at least, Old Stone - er, that is, my combat instructor - says I'm getting better..."
Privately he tried to figure out why one guy would call another guy beautiful. Or perhaps he misunderstood, maybe Letmas was really looking past Shane at Jaelynn?
Moving over to the dog, he squatted before it and gently offered the back of his fist for sniffing. "Hello, Rori. Is being okay to skritch behind ears?"
The big dog sniffed Ralf's hand and glanced in Rori's direction briefly before nudging the psychic's hand with his snout, apparently indicating he was willing to allow Ralf to pet him.
Everett nodded at everyone's responses. "Well, we're taking point on this so you should all be fine. Come over to the map and I'll sketch out the plan." The table the map was on easily accomodated 4 people, even when one of them was Big Dan, but there was no way 10 would be able to see.
Letmas apparently saw this and snorted. "Allow me, chief." He murmured a few words, tossed a bit of fluff into the air, and larger version of the map on the table appeared in midair. When Everett resumed speaking, a golden arrow appeared on the map to highlight the location she was talking about.
"Source indicate a sea cave with a submerged tunnel leading into the bottom of one of the mines." Letmas's golden arrow points to a dark spot on the map and traces a faint, glowing golden line to a spot in the middle of the northern ridge.
"The Impossible will sail us in at low tide two nights from tonight. Using a water breathing spell, Unit 6 will proceed through the cave and submerged tunnel into the mine. The tunnel is approximately 200 feet long; we will take 500 feet of guide rope with us to lead you through. Once the location is secure we will signal you, back on the ship, to follow. Using the guide rope, Unit 11 will enter the mine."
"Both teams will proceed up through the mine. Once out of the mine, we will traverse the north shore of the island and come at the fortress from the rear." The golden arrow traces along the northern shore line from the mine to the fort.
"Using Passwall spells, we will enter the fort. Unit 6 will seize the seagate machinery to allow the military to land inside the fort. Once we have the seagate open, we signal the fleet with a pyrotechnics display. Prior to our signaling the fleet, Unit 11 will secure the area around the seagate machinery and prepare to repel attackers. The fleet will be waiting for our signal but we anticipate a minimum of ten minutes before the marines can arrive."
"This is the best map we have of the island. We do not have a map of the fort, the mine, or the jungle itself. The assembled fleet marines outnumber the military's best estimate of the duchess's forces by a solid 5 to 1 margin; once the gates are open it's just a matter of them mopping up." Everett looked at each member of Unit 11. "Needless to say," and yet she said it anyway, "if Unit 6 cannot fulfill the mission, it will be up to your team to get those gates open."
"Questions?"
The big dog sniffed Ralf's hand and glanced in Rori's direction briefly...
At the "muzzle nuzzle," a smile crawled across Ralf's face -- a rare sight indeed. He slowly moved his hand under the dog's chin and began rubbing gently, working his way around to the head and the ears, then increasing the intensity based on the canine's reaction.
Despite his delight in watching Rory's eyes drift closed in contentment, Ralf stayed focused on what was being said behind him. When a map was mentioned, he pivoted around and looked over his shoulder at the projection floating in the air, studying it and following the plan briefing.
When Everett asked for questions, Ralf piped up. "This 'repelling'... there are limits on how we are doing this?"
When Everett asked for questions, Ralf piped up. "This 'repelling'... there are limits on how we are doing this?"
Everett shook her head. "Any means necessary, short of anything that would keep the Navy from landing their marines. I'm sure our Danoran friends would prefer that we keep the property damage to a minimum, but no one's said anything to me about that, so go crazy. Anything you can do to keep a crossbow bolt out of my back will be appreciated."
Shane had no questions about the plan logistics, which seemed straightforward. When it came to the business of securing the gate mechanisms and Delft's assignment of bringing the Duchess home alive, he wondered about the opposition. "What do we know about the current occupants of the fortress?"
At the mention of no restrictions and Danoran property damage, Ralf nodded. "Kushti," he said in a satisfied tone, then listened to other questions and responses while continuing to lavish attention on Rori.
Jaelynn had no questions. At least, none yet. She was too busy examining the map and listening (partially) to the plan, as well as the answers to the others' questions. Her eyes flicked from one area of the map to another, her mind storing data, comparing what she saw to what she already knew, and planting important facts in their appropriate places in the palace of her memory.
Anthony studied the map intently. Judging by what she was saying this was going to be a long mission. "I'm less worried about the occupants of the fort then I am of the journey there. People aren't exactly simple, but your plan has us traveling underwater, underground, through what looks like mountainous terrain, and then through a little jungle. The advantage of coming at the fort from behind that gives us is decent, but it's not without risk before first contact with the enemy."
The large man seemed to think it over, scratching his scars lightly, and then he touched his finger down to the sea cave. "You mentioned a source. Is it reliable? Any chance that part of the mine might have been cut off by cave in since the source was there? And how likely is it the islands issues with magic will affect the potions will be imbibing?"
Listening intently, Tarvak just absorbed everything everyone was asking, in order to learn what questions to ask in the future as well as how to survive this mission. Everything was making sense until..."What do you mean, 'the island's issues with magic'?"
"What do we know about the current occupants of the fortress?"
Everett pursed her lips and shook her head. "We have estimates based on the number of ships the King's spies counted leaving Shale. They could be off by a factor of five in either direction. Could be anywhere between a few dozen and a few hundred soldiers in there. The Navy scrambled enough marines to overwhelm even the largest number of enemies possible, but the estimates we have are useless for our planning purposes."
"The only things in our favor are stealth, surprise, and the fact that they can't possibly all come at us at once as soon as we get up on the seawall. The machinery to open the gates is in a tower on the seawall. It gives us a natural chokepoint to limit the number of soldiers who can come at us."
"Our best bet is to get in quietly, open the sea gate before anybody knows we're there, and have the marines landing before anybody figures out what's going on. If we rouse the garrison it will be..." Everett shook her head again. "It will be tough either way. If the garrison figures out we're there it will be tougher."
The large man seemed to think it over, scratching his scars lightly, and then he touched his finger down to the sea cave. "You mentioned a source. Is it reliable? Any chance that part of the mine might have been cut off by cave in since the source was there? And how likely is it the islands issues with magic will affect the potions will be imbibing?"
Everett nods. "The source hasn't been on the island in years. The mine might have been cut off since they were last there. But this is the best plan we've got, with the shortest overland distance to travel. If it turns out the tunnel or the mine has collapsed we'll have to backtrack and go around the shoreline."
"I've read reports about the island screwing up cast magic, but nothing about altering potion effects. They should be fine." She eyed Tarvak. "The island sometimes warps magical effects. I'd been told you'd been briefed on that." Everett shook her head. "It seems to be random and it's nothing we can plan for, so we just have to deal with it if it comes up."
The next day and a half passed quickly. The constables were given the run of the ship, but it was still a working warship and most of the crew that wasn't working was sleeping or eating and getting ready to sleep or ready to work.
Everett spent most of the first night going over the map and discussing contingencies with her team. From the way they responded- relaxed and not particularly concerned or focused on the planning- that was just Everett's way of working out her nerves before the mission. The next day she spent out on deck, under the sun, seeming much more relaxed and confident. The big shaggy grey dog followed her like her shadow, never more than a few feet away from the half-elven constable.
Letmas and Big Dan played cards while their boss planned and drank a remarkable amount of the ship's grog the first night. It was a friendly, if long running, game- they played for markers, not for money, and Dan didn't seem to care in the least that Letmas cheated outrageously and without shame. There was lots of laughing and story telling; the two men were obviously good friends. And they were friendly and welcoming to anyone who wanted to join in. There was much less laughing the next morning, though, when both men looked like death from having imbibed too much of the unfamiliar liquor. They spent much of the next day recovering from their antics.
Burton kept to himself, far more focused on Everett's planning session than his two teammates. He obsessively honed his blades and checked and re-checked his pockets, pouches, sheathes, and scabbards. The toothy little constable had an unsettling number of hidden blades scattered about his clothes. He spent most of the next day unpacking and repacking Unit 6's packs, going through the whole set several times until he was absolutely convinced everything was in the most efficient place possible.
As he had indicated when they boarded, Unit 11 was invited to the captain's table for dinner both nights. Everett and her people demurred, leaving the captain's hospitality to the Flinters. Captain Smith displayed a surprisingly philosophical bent and engaged in a far ranging, free wheeling discussion with whoever cared to talk. He was remarkably open minded, but he was clearly and unabashedly a follower of the discredited William Miller.
It was during the second night's dinner that the ship's white sails were switched for black, and at the end of the meal Captain Smith stood and wished Unit 11 luck. When they got back to their makeshift cabin, Unit 6 was getting their gear on, buckling swordbelts, spell pouches, and backpacks over their black coveralls.
Letmas smirked at the Flinters. "We were worried we'd have to go without you." Everett shook her head. "We've still got time to kill. Gear up and we'll meet you at the starboard railing."
Aziel had relented in her conviction that she must keep her head down, at least enough to join Letmas and Big Dan in playing cards. She was back to her usual style by dinner, having not partaken of enough drink to regret it, but enough to loosen her tongue. While she knew little of Miller, and preferred not to share her many anecdotes of life in the Danoran military with a member of the Risuran fleet, she had opinions on most things and wasn't afraid to share them.
***
Checking her gear (much less obsessively than Burton had), Aziel was soon suited up and ready on the starboard railing with Everett. "I do hope that the Countess is not in contact with whatever sea life there is around the island. I would hate to lose the element of surprise," she murmurred, wishing she could light a cigarette, but not wanting to risk the tiny flame.
She peered into the darkness, trying to make out Axis Island.
Tarvak got dressed in his leathers quickly, loaded and stashed the rest of his equipment on his person, got up on deck and spent the rest of the time pulling arrows from his quiver and knocking them, checking that he had pulled the kind of arrow he intended.
Shane listened attentively as Everett talked strategy with her team, studying the map and getting as familiar with both the plan and Unit 6 as he could. He did not say much but thought about how Unit 11 might handle similar challenges. Aziel would be the best to do that, while Jae would probably know how to detect the use of such and such magical effect. He did not let himself get drawn into the drinking and card playing, but he was amused at the antics of the unit 6 members.
The next day, Shane did his usual workout/meditation/kata routines, jogging around the deck. After lunch, he practiced climbing the rigging with all his gear on, then tumbled about the deck, drawing his weapons, throwing shuriken at masts and so on. If anyone wanted to spar, he was happy to practice attack and defense.
At supper, he engaged the captain as much as he could, trying to determine, as diplomatically as possible, what the practical consequences of his philosophic leanings would be. Would it change how he handled dealing with pirates, for example, or if a ship had been disabled, what would be the next step? Shane was not familiar with military tactics, but he was curious to learn how the captain viewed the upcoming mission.
Shane was already in his mission jumpsuit at supper, so it took him all of a minute to have all his gear in hand and ready for the start of the mission. He applied some lampblack to his face to better blend in with the dark surroundings and double checked the condition of all his gear, more to reassure the others than himself, as he had carefully checked it all more than once already.
He tried to keep an eye on Tarvak, to see if he seemed nervous. If so, he tried to keep him loose with light banter and questions about his experiences or his abilities, making sure he know what the young oracle/archer could contribute operationally. He did the same with the other members of the team, gauging how each responded to pressure, being available for questions and open to discuss strategy and tactics if anyone cared to.
Shane wasn't able to translate his style of putting people at ease while navigating the strange waters of military strategy and political philosophy, but at least he didn't embarrass himself with any rank faux pas.
Jaelynn had worn a lovely dress (if somewhat lower-cut than was strictly in fashion) to dinner, and, while she certainly hadn't been drawn fully into the conversation, was at least polite.
When it was time to go, Jae smiled, tapped one wrist, and turned her dress back into her grey-and-brown "adventuring outfit." After another moment's thought, she tapped the other wrist, and the outfit became a mottled grey and black - even better for hiding than an all-black outfit would have been. Then she tucked her hair (black today, as it had been for the entire trip) under a stocking cap.
Then she strapped on her gear, and headed to the rail.
Feeling somewhat out of place, Ralf mostly kept to himself during the voyage. He did take the opportunity to quietly listen in on Everett's briefing. And he kept an eye on Burton. Not because of mistrust, but because he was noting a remarkable, almost obsessive-compulsive attention to detail and preparedness.
Too, he was impressed by the sheer quantity of slashy-stabby the little goblin managed to hide on himself. Ralf's appreciation wasn't surprising, given his first-hand knowledge of how useful an unanticipated blade could be. Not to mention that his own outfit had all manner of hidden pockets. Nor that he himself carried a fair number of daggers, though nothing like Burton's collection.
At one point the goblin looked up from his preparations, and Ralf gave him a small nod of approval. Burton's flat, wide head split into a grin that likely would've unnerved most, but in some odd way Ralf saw a kindred spirit.
In the morning, wandering around in search of an open space large enough to work his katas, he came across Shane running through his own. The vitalist watched for a time, studying the man's technique which was quite unlike Ralf's. Then, preferring to dance his katas alone -- at least until he was more skilled -- he quietly slipped away to find a different spot to practice and meditate.
And today, his meditation included a rhythmic honing of all his blades with a well-worn whetstone.
As departure time neared, he returned to the team's quarters and shucked his colorful gilded outer robes and sashes, stuffing them into a waterproof bag and leaving him clothed in loose-fitting dark blue silks. Shouldering his pack, he headed for the deck to join the others.
The Impossible sailed into the mouth of the cover under black sails, the sailors going about their tasks as quietly as possible. Only the creak of the rigging and the occasional mutter of a quietly passed order or quickly stifled cough came from the crew.
Soon, the ship maneuvered slowly to face back out to sea and Everett gestured Unit 11 to come in close for a huddled conversation. "We'll run the guide-line and give it a tug when we're out of the water. You come in then." She nodded at Letmas, who pulled out a scroll. "Everybody touch me." Once everyone had a hand or figure on him, he quickly read off the spell, the words dissolving off the parchment like ink run under water. He nodded, though nothing else seemed to have happened. "Water breathing's done. One last thing."
He took out another scroll and went over to look down at the dark ocean water over the side. This spell was strangely quiet, and in a moment the sound of water lapping at the hull from that spot was eerily gone. Letmas nodded at Everett. "We're good, chief."
Everett nodded at Unit 6. "Two tugs means we're ready for you. It should take us 5 minutes. See you in a few." Rori was first into the water, the big dog splashing in without a sound. Everett followed, with Big Dan next. Letmas came fourth, and Burton last, the long rope coiled around his body from shoulder to hip. Under the cover of Letmas's silence spell, each one dropped into the water and disappear in complete silence.
After a couple of minutes, a strange vibration rippled the surface of the dark water. The rope went suddenly taught and then a few seconds later, went slack.
In a terrified whisper, Tarvak said (I'm adding spaces for easy reading - run it all together in your head non-stop as you read it) "What does that mean? That's not good, is it? Should we do something now? Should we wait a few more minutes? How about tugging on the rope to see if they tug back? Does it mean they've been attacked? Are they all dead? What does it mean???"
Ralf grunted in surprise. "Am thinking is meaning trouble. "
-Posted with Wayfinder
"It will do no harm for us to go in a little early, and if there is trouble for Unit 6, it may help a great deal," Aziel said. "Tarvak, you and I will see better down there. Let's go in."
Jaelynn nodded, her eyes tracing the length of rope, and counting seconds in her head.
The elf frowned, shaking her head. "There are too many variables. Without going to look, there is no way to know how far they got, or what happened. If they were caught and attacked, the longer we wait, the more time their attackers will have to prepare for us. We should go."
To Aziel's suggestion, Shane says, "Good idea. How long do you want us to wait before we follow-up? If you can draw the rope taut, we can follow without lighting the sunrods until we need them." He pulls out a small vial and holds it ready to drink.
Aziel threw back the liquid in the vial she had been given, then grabbed hold of the rope and began to climb down. "Give us about a count of sixty or so - that will hopefully be long enough, and not too long. One tug if there is trouble, or we can resurface here again if there is none, oui? If I tug, I will then hold the rope tight underwater for as long as possible, or until you all arrive."
She slipped into the water, her powder horn the last thing to be pulled under by her weight. Once beneath the waves, she had to force herself to let seawater into her lungs - it took several moments of panic before she grew accustomed enough that she could breathe normally. It is good that I did not sign up to be a marine, she thought wryly.
Waiting for Tarvak, she peered in the direction the rope led, trying to see if anything was amiss from beside the ship.
Thinking that following the first group towards whatever killed them is very foolish, Tarvak debated whether or not to say anything. It might be perceived as cowardice, but all his years of experience surviving on the streets was screaming this was a bad plan. And when a plan is bad, you find a *different* one. Well, even if he *was* the new guy, and all of these people might be more experienced than him, it couldn't hurt to try...
"It would take us a couple of minutes to get to them, which means if they're fighting something, it'll all be over by the time we can get there. If they are all dead, following them will do no good, and we'll be heading right into whatever attacked *them*. You guys who studied the map - is there ANY other way to get to where we need to be? If so, we should try that since we *know* the original plan hasn't worked."
"If not, I'd say it'd be better for all of us to go together - it makes no sense to split up our fighting power, especially since my arrows are basically useless underwater . And if just Aziel and I go, and get into trouble, it would take a couple of minutes for you to get to us to help us. We really should all go."
Visibly deflating a little bit as if he'd exhaled from a deep breath, he added "That's just my two coppers, anyway..."
Aziel's uncanny vision pierced the black water with ease, though she could only see about 60 feet. She saw nothing alarming- the ship's hull and empty water- save for the rope floating slack in the direction of the sea cave and mine.
Aziel paused on the edge of the railing. "We can see in the dark - that means we might see whatever caused the problem without it seeing us. If we go with light for all, we lose that advantage. But alors, if we are all to go, let us all go now, then!"
Pulling up some chutzpah from some depths he didn't know he had, Tarvak actually talked back to Aziel : "And what about the disadvantage of our friends being a *couple of minutes* behind us if we should get into trouble?"
Then he turned to look at everyone else : "But I still say going underwater is the worst option - we already *know* it has failed. I've learned the hard way that doing the same thing and expecting a different result is..." (trying not to insult anyone, epecially Aziel) "...not a good idea. I could create darkness around a rowboat, making it harder to see - could someone cast a silence spell on it, so we can row to shore? Any other ideas?"
"So, as the newest member of the team, you're suggesting that we leave Team 6 to die?" Jaelynn's tone was neutral.
"And while you're worried about how far behind you the rest of this team will be, your argument is increasing the length of time it will take us to get to Team 6. Needlessly, by the way. Because if you had been listening to your senior team members, you would have heard Aziel say 'Give us a count of sixty.'"
Jaelynn said nothing for a moment. Then, very quietly, with no particular emphasis, she said, "Get in the water, constable."
"The only thing we know is that the rope went slack. Something might have cut it." As he said this, he uncoiled rope from where it was fastened to the outside of his small pack. "Attach yourselves to this and we all go under, letting Aziel and Tarvek lead us. If we must get to shore, swimming underwater is as good a way as any, and we can all stick together, whatever we encounter. We'll save the light sticks for situations where the rest of us need the light."
Shane threaded the rope through a belt loop on his suit and handed the ends of the rope to whomever stood near him. He drank a small vial, his Elixir of Swimming. He then positioned himself, ready to jump over. Shane didn't like to be bossy, but the situation needed a decision and he hoped he had proposed the right one. There wasn't time for debate, especially with Aziel already in the water.
Muttering under his breath, "one minute instead of two, in any fight that's just as bad..."
Shane tapped Tarvek on the shoulder and said, "Go with the flow. The team won't trust you if you won't trust the team. We'll be behind you."
Shane then encouraged the rest of the team waiting for the advance team to link up to the rope, so they would be able to stick together in the water once they went in. He recommended each thread the rope through a belt loop or carbiner on his or her gear belt, so each could get loose of the rope if need be and no one would be pulled forward or back by the movement of others connected to the rope.
Ralf had a definite opinion about what was going on, and he almost spoke up. But his RHC training was starting to take hold. That, and he could hear Kostya's voice in his head, dressing him down for sticking his nose where it didn't need to be. So, he bit his tongue and stared out over the water as he waited for the situation to resolve itself.
Aziel and Tarvak followed the rope through the dark water. Whatever had happened it hadn't been cut, since it wasn't floating free. A minute or so later, just as soon as the rest of Unit 11 jumped in the water, the rope suddenly went taut again, then slack, taut and relaxed. Someone or something was frantically tugging on the rope, over and over.
Which was almost lucky, since Ralf seemed at home in the water as a kitten that had been tossed in a washtub.
Aziel didn't hesitate to forge forward, though she did make some effort to hide herself along the seaweed of the bottom. Following the rope, she peered through the water, hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever trouble there might be before it saw her.
This is assuming that she can actually use her background down here; otherwise subtract 4.
Ditto for her background here.
Shane felt the various changes in the rope tension with growing alarm. Once the tugging turned repetitive and seemingly frantic, he looked to see if the rest of the group was ready to go. He made a pantomime motion to suggest it was time swim, took a deep breath (needlessly, he immediately realized) and started swimming in the direction of the rope.
The combination of being able to breath underwater, the total darkness, combined with his magical ability to swim better than he ever imagined he could proved strangely intoxicating. He had to pace himself to avoid leaving the rest too far back. He quieted his mind to better be able to sense trouble and respond. Then it was just the cold black water wrapped around him like a mummy's shroud.
Heart pounding, Ralf began to move out, thankful for the rope-and-carabiner arrangement. It allowed him to essentially pull himself along the rope rather than trying to swim... which he was sure would've left him flailing about on the bottom in short order.
He managed to suppress a snort at that thought. Water breathing and no buoyancy... perhaps simply walking to the cave would've made the most sense for him.
Though the sea floor a dozen or more fathoms below, there were some long fronds of seaweed swaying in the weak current. It didn't provide much cover, but Aziel did what she could to keep herself concealed. The rope- still being frantically tugged by whoever or whatever was doing it- led into a sea cave that led to a completely submerged tunnel at the back.
The tieflings were a hundred feet or so into the tunnel when they spotted what had happened. Part of the tunnel roof had collapsed, and while it didn't block the tunnel completely, Burton was pinned to the floor. His left leg was underneath what looked like a ton of stone and he was pulling frantically on the rope.
The rest of Unit 6 was nowhere to be seen.
Tarvak went to Burton to see if Burton had any orders for him and/or if he could help Burton, all the while looking around to see if there were any gaps in the rubble big enough to continue thru.
Aziel took a good look around for any enemies, then swam forward. "Was it a trap?" she asked, settling on the bottom and trying to get a grip on the nearest stone to lift off his leg.
"More help is on the way," she added, nodding towards the rope he had been jerking. "The rest of your unit?"