As the group swims to aid Maera, her spell goes off and two of the reefclaws immediately slump, the third bares down on her.
Aramias continues swimming, cursing the seconds that seem to drag by. Least some a' us take ta water like a fish, she thinks, straining against her protesting muscles. Gods, it's been too long since I was swimmin' like this.
Doc continues closing in from beneath, hoping to catch the remaining monster off-guard. As he swims, he reaches down to his belt, grabs hold of his dagger and unsheathes it.
With her success at eliminating two out of the three threats, Maera decides not to overly press her luck, and begins to swim out of the reach of the last one, making a tactical retreat towards her allies. "C'mon, you great ugly beastie. Not used to food that swims as good as you, eh?" she taunts, not concerned at all about the pinch she took from the other reefclaw. Already as she swims back towards the others her skin is beginning to repair itself.
With a gurgling snarl, the creature turns to see the Undine now beyond others and takes the chance to charge the biggest target it happens to spot.
Driving himself into Malak, the creature swings on of it's large claws at the half-orc, trying to grip and rend as it does.
The creature tears into Malak's flesh, spilling a flood of blood into the water, but fails to maintain it's hold. Malak can feel the blood burn at the wound, but he easily shakes it off.
Then, once the creature has attacked, Malak strikes true with his dagger, tearing into the creature viciously, nearly cleaving one of it's arms off.
Diabolito roars out, streaking through the water after the creature. He orients himself, turning it into a bloody game of "creature in the middle."
"Nah, ya overgrown lobster. That's not how ya draw blood. HERE'S how ya do it!"
He seems to be experiencing his own sort of frenzy, a freedom in the water, as he swings his heavy battle axe down upon the beastie.
Doc watches as the beast charges Malak and cuts into him. As Malak fights the hideous shellfish, Doc continues swimming up until he's beneath them. As Diabolito moves to engage, Doc takes advantage of the distraction, swimming up and stabbing at the thing's underside with his dagger.
Lets see how you like a bit of dagger 'tween your plates!
As the axe bites into the shell of the creature, not dealing quite as much damage as Diabolito felt like it should, Doc seems to swim out of nowhere and finish off the creature.
Not wasting any time, Doc leaves the two sleeping monsters to the others and heads back down to the sea floor where he'd abandoned his pot.
Malak will have those two down in two shakes of a lamb's tail, and certainly won't need my help to do it. On the other hand, I need to move quick if I want to have any hope of filling this bucket 'fore the others!
After a few moments of getting his bearings, he resumes heading towards the reef as quickly as he can.
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Malak swims over to the other two sleeping reefclaws and plunges his dagger deep into them. After he is sure they are dead he grabs his pot again. He starts tearing off pieces of the three dead monsters and putting them into his pot. "Ha! Forget the crabs! Ye all can swim down there for that. I got me sum better meat here! 'N a lot more of it too!" The sea reaver seems to be an animal as he rips the reefclaws apart with his dagger and bare hands. If'n I get lucky the cap'n won't like reefclaws. Then I get a nice meal all for myself! I would kill for some good chow.
With a disbelieving shake of her head, Maera quickly swims to intervene Malak before he can do too much damage to the reefclaws. "Nonono - Going at it like that, you're as like to not have any meat at all, butcherin' it as you are - Gods, just - " she clucks her tongue, hoping to get the bull-headed man to see some sense and stop for a moment. "Your eyes be right. These things, mostly the claw meat, do make fine eatin', finer than these small crabs for sure," she divulges what she knows to her allies, once they're all gathered together, appealing to them her thoughts since they're out of range of the eyes and ears of the Captain, Scourge and Plugg. "And if we harvest them right, they should fill out most of our pots. But maybe we can use this to feed the officers somethin' else, eh, if they're so keen to be eatin' something different than us poor swabs? Something that ain't as like to agree with them?"
Diabolito looks at all the goings on and quickly heads towards the surface to Maera and Malak, laughing heartily. His hands grasp at the axe haft. "Gods...I could fight another twenty of these shelled bastards! Exhilarating stuff, lads and lasses! If that's all they can think to throw at us...well, life has just gotten better."
With some work, Doc manages to catch a bucket full of crabs while he is below the water. Malak (and company) fills up the other buckets with reefclaw bits, which does look a great deal like lobster meat to any eyes that have seen such before.
At this point, if and when Doc surfaces, the group will have four full buckets of meat/crabs.
After finishing filling up his bucket, he heads back to the rest of the group. As he surfaces he inhales deeply before lifting his bucket half out of the water. "All full and ready to go!"
Looking at the other buckets full of meat, he looks at the rest of the group incredulously. "Those things are really edible?"
The dwarf just grins. "You'd be surprised what you can make taste good. These over sized lobsters are not too tough to cook.
Aramis seems out of breath and rather put out when she finally catches up to the melee, just as it ends. She dutifully helps dismember the reefclaws, filling the pots and listening to Maera. When the woman finishes speaking, Aramis grins wickedly. "So, is this gonna disagree with 'em on its own, or do we need ta add somethin' else? Can't say I've ever eaten somethin' like this before."
Quiet will the others plotted, Nissa finally speaks up. "I do not think we should poison the officers unless we plan to kill them all this evening. They must be destroyed, but we should do it in one stroke instead of picking at them and revealing our hand too soon."
"Agreed. A shark gets the net if it doesn't kill all of its prey. I would say that we wait it out, until the best time comes. Or else we'll get the box, the keelhauling, or the cat, and I'd prefer to not tempt the odds for the cat or the box."
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"I agree with the fine lass. If'n we be trying to kill them it needs to be without contest. Or with more on our side than some bad eats. If I had my blade back I would easily carve some of 'em up for chum for our matey here." Malak says nodding to the dwarf. "Best we be getting back soon, can't be havin' 'em leave thinkin' we drowned."
Aramis furrows her brow in disappointment, but doesn't object. "Aye, there's truth in yer words. But o's ta say we can't give 'em hell wit'out killin' 'em, eh? There's more'n one way fer somethin' ta disagree wit' 'em, after all." She grins at Doc. "'Ow about some o' that stuff ye gave Owlbear? Tha' sure did a number on tha poor bastard."
"I'm not sure if they'd fall for that one again, and the stuff won't have quite the same effect if it's mixed with something." Doc thinks for a moment. "If these things have poison glands though we could try to set some aside for future use. Might come in handy."
"Honestly, though, I think Zak had the right of it with her little stunt the other day. We need to set them against each other. Especially the few riggers and swabs who still support the officers. If they don't trust each other, they'll hesitate when the time comes."
"The poison produced in the claw sacs sap at a person's strength. Obviously it's more potent the less attentive Kroop would be to cooking them, and with the right amount of... liquid incentive, he would be very inattentive, if he hasn't been hitin' the sauce today as it is. Failing that, there's plenty of bright and deadly creatures out among the reef - urchins, anemones, jellyfish..." she adds, with a vicious little smirk. "Shouldn't take me long to find somethin' that would give them a unpleasant night."
After the group weighs the decision carefully she quietly hides her disappointment, acquiescing to the will of the whole, but it's clear she feels like this might have been their chance to strike at the Captain, personally. "Very well... and yes, Doc, these sacs aren't too difficult to remove."
"I'm not sure if they'd fall for that one again, and the stuff won't have quite the same effect if it's mixed with something." Doc thinks for a moment. "If these things have poison glands though we could try to set some aside for future use. Might come in handy."
"Honestly, though, I think Zak had the right of it with her little stunt the other day. We need to set them against each other. Especially the few riggers and swabs who still support the officers. If they don't trust each other, they'll hesitate when the time comes."
Zaketta nodded vigorously at all of the talk of mutiny, letting the others have their say before she outlined her plan, and taking Doc's reference as her cue:
"Aye, Doc - the way I see it, the more division we can sow amongst them, the better. Mutiny's a scary thing, and if we can have them at each other's throats before they strike - or even better, if we can have them suspecting each other of trying to stir up a a revolt - then they'll have a hard time beating us off.
"They've all got their petty jealousies and prejudices, I'll bet. If the Captain were to think that, say, Scourge was making eyes at his girl, I'm sure that would make more than a little trouble between them, and if Plugg thought the Captain meant to replace him with someone else, he'd get a fair bit touchy.
"But nothing ensures a mutiny than a weak captain. If we can make Harrigan look wishy-washy (or even better: incompetent), then the crew should take up the idea all on their own. So I'm thinking we set it up so that "Harrigan" gives some nonsensical orders, contradicts himself, punishes swabs for no reason (and always those that are unfriendly to us, of course). After a week or two of that kind of behavior, the crew will rise up not just out of hatred, but out of sheer survival - you can't let a fool captain your ship, or you'll end up at the end of the briny deep, one way or another."
The group is able to finish filling their buckets, three of which are able to be filled with reefclaw meat, while the fourth has the crabs that Doc acquired.
As the group returns the ship, the Captain stands on deck, waiting. It looks as if he might have been pacing, and Kroop sits, waiting, as well.
"Looks like you blokes managed to get me my meal. Great. Head down to Cutthroat when you get dried off and she will give ye your reward. Kroop...make my dinner."
The captain then turns and walks towards his cabin, stopping to speak one last thing, "You lot have the rest of the day off. Don't get in ta trouble."
Two ship actions for one and all!
Discord and division is all well and good, but trying to impersonate Harrigan seems like an entirely different kettle of poisonous shellfish. Thus far, the Captain has been a remote, ruthless figure, but no less effective, and worse - he's surrounded himself by ruthless and effective officers. Who knows how long they've been together, and how well they know each other, and Maera says as much. "For something like that to even hope of working, we'd need to know them better than they know themselves. The best lies grow off a seed of truth, after all."
When the group is forced to return to the ship, Maera smiles winsomely at the Captain, handing her pot over to Kroop. It never hurt to feign kindness to your enemies as it might confuse them, and she can't resist imparting some wonderful trivia about their catch of the day that might spoil his appetite some. "Guess we lucked out with this harem of reefclaws, eh, Captain? Otherwise, who knows what poor male they might have devoured..." she adds, heading off to find Grok.
That evening Maera will do her best to chat up her various friendships, whilst providing free alcohol, and see what is known about Harrigan, and Peppery - their history, their talents, the schedules they keep... any information is better than no information, if this group is to try and drive a wedge between them.
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Malak hoists himself up onto the deck, dripping in water the half-orc's muscles glean from the wetness and glean of the sunlight. Upon the congratulatory words of the Captain, Malak grumbles under his breath in dissatisfaction. How long am I gonna haveta deal wit' these worthless sods as officers. 'Tis no wonder ta crew is 'lready in me mates pockets. When the time comes, ain't none of 'em that'll survive my fury. The barbarian wanders below the decks to find Cutthroat for his reward. Seemingly avoiding any social interaction with other crewmates.
Doc listens to Zak and Maera and interjects, "I agree, the more information we gain about the officers and captain, the more likely our ruse will be to succeed. Conversely, without adequate info, our plans may backfire. It's one thing to impersonate a swab to cause trouble, it's another thing entirely to fool the officers into believing the captain has lost it."
Before heading back Doc will quickly attempt to remove the glands and hide them on himself.
When he gets back on board, he gathers his things from Jack, thanks him, and heads off quickly to find Grok, thinking about what to do next.
Like Maera, Nissa will be talking to her various friends, though not to pump them for information; but, rather, to more firmly cement them in our orbit. Nissa wants the locus of social power among all non-officers on the boat to shift entirely to revolve around her and Maera. (Basically, she is holding court. ;-)) This should further isolate and demoralize the few remaining Scourge followers.
Aramis pulls off her wet boots before heading off to find Grok, unable to help grinning at the officers. That evening, she attempts to aid Nissa in her efforts, butting in with crude jokes and friendly ribbing where appropriate.
As Malak finds Cut-Throat to be alone in her 'shop' the half-orc woman gives him a harsh sort of a smile. "Seems that the ol' captain was pleased with sumthun ya done..." she says as she slides him a flask. "Some sorta healin' fer ya." Aramis gets to the door just as the last sentence is spoken.
As the afternoon and night roll on, Nissa and Aramis work in tandem, talking to crew members, helping with work during the day, and eventually lifting almost everyone's spirit. Everyone except Scourge, Plugg, and their few remaining cronies. Things were merely acceptable when Nissa spoke up, at first, but Aramis's jokes combined with a few helping hands from the friendliest of crew members quickly changed all the negative around.
That night, the group of crabbers is allowed to take their rum rations as they see fit. Captains orders. No lashes are given, as everyone's jobs were done and everyone of the 'problem' cases were under the captains protection...this one day at least.
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Malak gives a smirk to the other half-orc and picks up the flask as it slides to him. "Aye, should help in ta near future. I be reckonin' the cap'n is. Thank ya, Grok. We gotta stick togetha', ammiright?" The big half-orc turns to walk out with a wink to Grok and Aramis. He walks to the groups' chest and stows the flask in there for future needs and checks that nothing has been removed without their knowing. Then he pulls out his whetstone and makes his way to a common area. He plops down in the chair and slides his dagger out from under his bandanna and starts to sharpen it with the whetstone. Looking around making eye contact with his friends and allies and giving them a reassuring nod. When those against his group look at him he just grins a cold eerie smile and watches them walk by.
Grok gives Malak a smile and a shake as she nods to Aramis.
Maera manages to get a nice conversation going with Syl about the captain and his mage. Peppery has been with Harrigan for as long as anyone else on the ship, which means more than three years, and Syl has seen the fiery haired woman lob fireballs in the past, in addition to helping with the wind in the sails and creating fog clouds around ships. Kroop implies that Caulky hates Peppery because she feels threatened by her, but he knows the Captain sees the mage as family...not a tool or a bedmate. He also talks about some of the feats the captain has pulled off in combat while boarding ships, such as leaping over larger gaps than any crewmember and his ability to tear apart enemies whom he catches unaware. The man seems to be a devil with a blade and death to those who oppose him. He doesn't forgive and forget, he guts his opposition instead. With all the implications made, it seems very much like the captain would be an impossible challenge for the group at this point, even Peppery alone would be an extremely daunting challenge that the group would need to get a major jump on or feel the heat of her flames.
A few more days pass without much to be concerned with, other than Maera informing the group of what she learned from her talks with the crew.
The drone of hard labor, foul looks, and occasional nonsensical lashing to many crewmembers (thanks to Zak) continues until the group is pulled together for a training exercise by a person they had not been formally introduced to.
A wiry slip of a woman who yells rather than speaks, Riaris Krine is the foul-mouthed Master Gunner of the ship and she has rarely been seen out of the crows nest or in the belly of the boat working on the weaponry. "Ye bloody bastards ain't got enough salt in yer belly to 'andle what we be needin', but yer 'ere and it'll 'ave ta do. The cap'n wants me to whip ye inta shape, but I be thinkin there ain't much 'ope of that in one day. Bloody lucky for ye, Ah don 'old much weight in 'ope, only in action. Now get yer arses ready to attempt ta board a ship."
Diabolito keeps his head down and his "nose clean" so to speak, trying to kick the curse of the demon rum.
After meeting Riaris, though, he little devil of a dwarf grins and chuckles. "Well, lass, we'll see what happens. The sea favors the bold, and ain't much bolder than a dwarf in deep water."
His fingers move of their own volition, stretching, popping, and cracking in preparation.
Riaris waves the group over to one of the jolly boats, a thunk being heard each time she steps, at which point all eyes are drawn to her peg leg.
"Eyes up, ye bastards, we got work ta do if'n Ahm ta ever 'ave you landlubbers able ta board a ship."
Diabolito
Aramis
Nissa
Maera
Malak
Doc
Zak
Pointing to the dwarf and Aramis, Riaris climbs into the boat and points to the seats behind her.
"Git in tha damn boat, ye bastards, we 'ave to see what ye got."
Looking at Nissa, Malak, Doc, and Zak, "Ye four will find piles o trash by the rail. When these two start their bloody climb, ye will start throwin' that trash at them. Try and hit them or lashes. We need ta know they can do it and if ye f&#* it up, then Ahll make sure ye get tha cat!"
She then looks over to Maera, "Ah seen what ye did durin the storm. A bloody mermaid on board...Ah want to see if ye can sneak onto the ship. Get in the boat and when they start trying to board, ye goin fer a swim. If ye can beat them on the boat there will be a reward. If ye can't find a bloody way onto the boat before the last pair returns, well...ye might not want like the reward," the foul mouthed woman says with a grin, her crooked smile is made more crooked looking by her oft-broken nose.
The jolly boat is set down in the water, and then rowed out 40 feet from the ship.
The dwarf grins, cracking his knuckles and hurling the grappling hook the best his tired arms can manage. The tool hooks deep into the wood, his eyes sparkling slightly in triumph. "Gozreh don't fail me now!"
And with that, he begins the practiced motion of climbing up the rope to the boat.
Doc sighs in relief that he's not going to be climbing the side of the boat. Moving over to the railing, he grabs some piece of trash from the adjacent pile and waits as the group gets in the boat and moves out.
When they begin to close and Diabolito takes the lead, Doc decides to see if he can't give him a bit of trouble on the way up.
"My apologies Diabolito, I hope you won't take this personally!" he bellows at the dwarf, half chuckling. Lining up the shot, he tosses the flotsam down at him.
Diabolito grimaces at the piece that hits him, trying to hang on to the rope.
And, without a doubt, the sea is with him. He growls low and laughs. "None taken, but I'm still getting up this damn rope!"
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Malak laughs at the idea of training turning into resembling a game. He moves to the rail as the dwarf is climbing and sees Doc make a hit. The dwarf moves unimpeded. "Ha, try this you bloody little sucker!" Malak picks up a piece of trash and throws it hard.
Instead of connecting Malak throws his piece of trash way past the dwarf and out into the sea. "Bah! Don't know me own strength is all!"
Nissa stoops and selects the most aerodynamic piece of trash. With a practiced eye she whips it at the dwarf's head.
"Race ye ta tha top, dwarf!" Aramis laughs, swinging her grappling hook through the air before flinging it up high.
The hook sinks easily into the wood of the ship. Bracing herself, Aramis begins climbing, one hand over the other, gripping the rope tightly.
Pulling herself up swiftly, she laughs as various pieces of trash sail past the dwarf. "Come on, ye scurvy dogs! Why's 'e gettin' all tha fun?" she crows to her shipmates in surprisingly good cheer.
Maera is quick to relay the information that she has gathered concerning the Captain, and the sailing master to her allies on this ship when she first gets the chance, and self-preservation colors her frank retelling. Peppery and Harrigan know each other too well to be played off each other, and either of them is likely a great challenge for them to overcome. "I don't think they be folks to tangle with right now. Perhaps if one or both of them were to go ashore, huntin' to press-gang other unfortunates, we could probably overpower the likes of Scourge and Plugg. But the mage and the marauder together? I don't think it wise... Best we keep our heads down, and our mouths shut. Play the parts they want, let 'em think we be good lil' swabs, and wait for a better chance to strike when they ain't so guarded against us."
Up until this point the bard has managed to take her own advice, keep quiet and keep her head down, so when Riaris addresses her personally she gives a small wince, wondering about which of her tricks she'll be forced to part with this time. Well, at least it's not climbin', she thinks with chagrin. Still, she's managed to avoid lashes so far, and doesn't particularly wish to start now. And while the idea of raiding and boarding innocent ships isn't a pleasant one, she resigns herself to the reality that she won't be in a position for moral scruples. It'll be them or her, knowing Harrigan, and if she wants to see him drown one day, she'd best use all her charm and talents to make him think she ain't a threat to him, or at least, an asset worth keeping around.
Joining the others in the boat, as grappling hooks go out she is quick to enter the water, swimming off towards the hull of the ship far faster than she imagines her fellows could begin to grapple the ship. But with the rail nearly 30ft above her, and no friendly faces to bewitch into throwing down a rope to climb up, she would look to be out of luck... until she starts singing. "...What do we do with a bloody mermaid, early in the mornin'? Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, Way hay and up she rises... early in the mornin'." As she sings, the water beneath her coalesces to form a solid block of ice, supporting her weight to cradle her form like a comfortable, if a bit chilly, chair, and as it begins to rise out of the water, it lifts her up with it.