Your adventure begins in Ravounel’s capital city of Kintargo as you cross Bleakbridge, the bridge that connects the northern and southern halves of the city and also serves as a thriving hub of commerce. The marketplace’s slender, wooden storefronts dissipate into tents and pop-up vendors. As you pass a lively tavern called Clenchjaw’s, you spot a sandwich board sign with the silhouette of a swashbuckling figure with silver ravens flying behind them.
"Fortune and glory await daring adventurers. Ask Laela Vost about exciting opportunities. Experience on boats and at sea is a bonus!"
Inside the lively tavern, you have no trouble finding people who can point you to Laela Vost, a bronze-skinned Taldan woman in fine embroidered clothes, sitting at a table within view of the band playing on stage. Laela begins by offering you some mint tea and butter mints, as well as a seat at her table.
"Have a seat. Mint tea? Butter mints? So, you wanna go on an adventure, eh? What have you done so far? How long have y'all been working together?" she asks with a normally loud voice.
|
A gruff looking gnoll sits down, not removing the covering over his mouth an nose. The visible portions of his face and ears bear scars. A long blade is sheathed across his back and a club is at one side. Several odd looking blades cross his chest. He speaks in a bit of a gravelly voice, partially muted by the cloth.
"Nah, I prefer to earn my keep. That's why I came to see you, not sip tea. I learned I'm not much of an art critic, but I did rustle up some dinosaurs once."
|
Tempest, a bald male humanoid, dressed in sharkskin leathers and carrying a trident, studies the notice.
Hm he says to himself. Experience on boats and at sea huh? Wonder if undersea counts?
He goes over to find out
Mint tea will do thanks he says in a gruff voice. And no ... never met this person before. Not a sahuagan though so should be okay
|
|
Pushing through the packed tavern is a dark haired half-ling with a sun loved face, who most likely only just met his 18th year. He approaches with three things: a smile on his face, a wooden amulet to Gozreh on his neck, and a small silver back gorrilla holding his hand. The affectionate looking ape has an ascot tied around his neck which has the word "POLO" clearly labeled on it.
Hello, Laela right? I'm Hamilton and this is Polo. I'd love some tea, and seeing as this is my first mission, I'd also like to get my feet wet. Which seems like it won't be a problem on this one! I begin to take some mints off the table and share with Polo as I nod my head to the others at the table. I don't know most of you... my eyes hovering in curiosty at tempest and grace for just a moment. But I do recognize you. Gympie right? I heard about you from others in the wheel, how did you end up in Kintargo?
|
|
A young man dressed in simple garb joins the group of Pathfinders at the table.
"I saw the sign () outside. I want in, though I haven't really done much. I hope you'll take me as one of the team." He doesn't have much of anything, except a pistol and a sword at his hip. "Mako Mafee is the name. I hope you'll take me. I really need the money."
|
Are you waterproof? Tempest asks Grace.
The android looks at her hand again as if considering the question for the first time, "I think so. My outer layer does not appear to be permeable." She shrugs.
Grace-13 turns to observe the halfling and his gorilla companion. "Greetings, Hamilton. I like your friend. My name is Grace-13." She glances at Gymple, "I keep on the move, as well."
|
|
Lots of people are revolting from chelish rule. I don't blame them either. But a Pathfinders life is never sedentary! Polo here was apart of a circus from cheliax, and if you know how they treat people you can imagine what they do to animals...
I pet the top of Polo's head who is happily munching on mints.
Nice to meet you Grace-13, would you like to hold Polo's hand? He's quite gentle.
Laela looks at the covered face of Gympie with a serious facade, then bursts into happiness with “HA! I like that, straight to the business,” in which she gets back one of the filled teacups onto her tray since Gympie would not want one and it would be wasted if nobody drinks it and gets cold. “Dinosaurs? I would love to see dinosaurs, but not now. Haha!” she adds.
She then turns toward Tempest, ”Well, if you have experience under the sea, then it would be no problem for you to deal on its surface.” *winks* Laela then moves toward Grace-13, looking at her body that seems different to humans but not. ”You will do well, I think," she comments.
She then looks at Hamilton and his cute little but adorable ape. ”Such a cutie,” she says and pats the ape on the head. Mako, on the other hand, joins them. She assures him that they will perform as a team and will work everyone out. ”Don’t worry, the place you are going into is not that perilous as I see it. You’ll do well just like Grace-13, I think.”
The group continues to chit-chat about exile, enemies, abuse and what-not, while Laela pretends to listen, when Tempest introduces his name this time, and asks Laela about the mission to cut things short.
”Yes, yes,” she abrupts their conversation, “thanks, Tempest, I’m glad you now asked. By the way, I am Laela Vost, I am an entrepreneur and I have a wonderful opportunity…" she pauses, looks around the tavern and signals everyone to get closer to her and huddle. She continues speaking but this time she is whispering loud enough for you to hear her but not the others, “to salvage some treasures from a wrecked Chelaxian ship called Infidius, just off the coast. I served there as part of its crew of that ship when she ran aground. Anything you will find there would be my severance pay, and that will help me start my own business. Whatever you salvage from there, we’ll share it equally.”
“So, what do you think?” she asks, now in her normal speaking voice, with her one hand on her hip.
|
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Well ... that's right kindly of you ma'am Tempest replies I'll do my very best to make that so
So ... you're one of those ... erm ... newfangled android machine creatures I've been hearing about? he asked, looking her up and down. Since you said awakened ... erm .... um ... silly question .... do androids need to breathe ... and is it true they dream of electric sheep?
|
|
Sitting alone at Clenchjaw’s Tavern was a fair-skinned elf with an evergreen hair. Being next to their table, she couldn’t help but eavesdrop about Laela Vost’s treasure expedition and it definitely caught her attention.
I can use whatever I earn from this mission to finally be with my family.
Her eyes teared up a bit as her fist slammed into the table, getting the attention of the nearby tavern customers. She can use the her share to help her mother and little sister, who were held captive by goblins in exchange of gold. She slowly approached the group.
Hey. I couldn’t help but overhear your conversations. Do you mind if a woodland elf joins your team? I am trained in both close and ranged combat. My companion Kupa, a young wolf, might also come in handy.
By the way, the name’s Katniss Everdream. I came from the forest woods not far south from hear.
|
|
So ... you're one of those ... erm ... newfangled android machine creatures I've been hearing about? he asked, looking her up and down. Since you said awakened ... erm .... um ... silly question .... do androids need to breathe ... and is it true they dream of electric sheep?
"Yes, I am an android." her circuitry glows into a blush, "I breathe and I sleep, but I do not know of any electric sheep. Are... Are you friends with any fish?"
|
|
Sure ... nothing special about it though ... yet He holds out his trident for Katniss to examine.
At Grace's question, he sighs. Yeah ... I got a few that hang around my place .I feed them, they swim around but do their own thing mostly ... sort of like ... erm .... cats really. But yeah ... they're still a bit of company. But it would be nice to have some ... um ...sentient visitors I can discuss things with. So ... since you say you breathe ... I guess that means you too have to hold your breath in water like other air breathers ... erm .... apologies, don't mean that in a derogatory fashion ma'am
“As I said, we’ll share whatever you salvage from that wreck. As for what you can find there, you see, the ship belonged to the Delronge family, wealthy merchants who are loyal to Cheliax’s ruling house of Thrune. That Infidius had hauled Chelaxian goods out of the city as part of the sudden exodus during Kintargo’s secession from the diabolic nation of Cheliax. The captain of the Infidius ran his ship aground during the escape from Kintargo, and he and his crew quickly evacuated onto another escaping vessel, which left the Infidius in a precarious section of rock, just a short travel from the docks of Kintargo. I don’t know what all they were trying to haul out of the city, but I can guarantee it’s their best stocks. I’m sure the nobility will overpay even more than they already were for whatever we find.” Laela explains in which a female elf comes late and introduces herself as Katniss Everdream.
”You wanna join? You’re not that late because we’re still here, but I won’t explain everything for you again. Or if you already overheard the whole thing, that’s good, else, anybody in this party except me can do it for you,” she tells Katniss with a smirk.
So, do you have more questions, or are we going now? Because I am excited, you see? she giddily asks everyone.
Expecting nobody will ask more questions, she is about to lead them the way to outside when Gympie asks a question.
”Hmmm… So far, no one has ventured yet to the wreck, and Kintargo's government has more matters at hand after the secession of Ravounel from Cheliax, letting the Infidius remain in its current location. To be honest, the Infidius is actually in a hazardous stretch of terrain,” she admits and scratches her head, ”and that's maybe no other vessels have dared the attempt to salvage the vessel for whatever treasure remains onboard. However, once the current political climate subsides, it’ll be every person for themselves in a mad dash to reclaim lost Chelaxian plunder,” she adds.
Seeing Mako and Tempest are ahead of her halfway to the exit of the tavern, she asks again those who have not responded to the deal, ”Would there be more questions? Well, I have no more information to tell regarding the matter so we can go now. The waters are choppy and treacherous, yet I will bring you there with my skiff, I insist, and you have no choice. Haha! Don't you all worry, you have Tempest to save you from drowning. Haha!”
”See these two, more excited than me!” she tells the others about Mako and Tempest. ”So, we go now?” she asks Katniss and Gympie.
”Nice, nice!” Laela happily says as Katniss concludes that all of them agree for the mission at hand. ”Let's go outside and follow me.” she instructs them and leads them to her skiff.
Upon reaching the skiff, Laela goes aboard it, grabs one of the paddles, and positions himself at the front.
”Chop, chop! You go aboard here and choose wherever you want to sit. Yes, I know it is small but this is all I've got for now. Come, we don't have enough time.” she tells them.
"Sweet of you, Tempest. Good thing I need a hand rowing you all to the wreckage," Laela says to Tempest with a wink. "Come on now, don't be shy. Come aboard here," she tells the others that seem to hesitate to squeeze themselves into the skiff.
|
|
Here allow me! Hopping in the skiff with Polo. As he makes his way to the front of the skiff Hamilton leans over the edge and touches the water while holding whispering to himself.
Nice to say a prayer to the Wind and the Waves before we embark. And with that the more we balance the boat like they said, and keep our nose at any waves to flow with the water, the more dry we'll be!
He turns back with a proud smile, before looking at the other paddles. Oh but uhhh... I'm not so great with um those. Small arms y'see? Heh heh... To which he then hands a paddle to Polo. Who begins slowly twirling it.
Now that everyone has positioned themselves somewhat evenly in the skiff, Laela can now start to row with the help of Tempest and Hamilton's ape, Polo.
"Time to row!" Laela says happily. She then maneuvers her small crowded skiff toward the wreckage. As they get nearer, the party gets a better view of Infidius. What’s left of Infidius lies broken upon a rocky outcropping jutting from the harbor a short distance away. Laela continues to maneuver her small skiff toward the wreckage. The further out from the docks that the party travels, the rougher the waves become. One particularly large wave rocks the boat hard enough.