,
Reaching the ridge and looking north for the Sea Harem, Ghari exclaims, "Navigator's beard! The Sea Harem has set sail to put to sea. And there's an overloaded boat bearing for the beach. Can the sorceror have vanquished the witch so easily?"
Marwan squints into the glare of the water towards the distant ship
"I fear that Najm is going to test us this day. Do you think we should try to meet with the fleeing boat?"
"I fear that Najm is going to test us this day. Do you think we should try to meet with the fleeing boat?"
"It would be well if we could beat them to the beach , but I think that unlikely. If we bide our time here for a bell or two and mark where they land, we may come upon them in the dark. That may be our best chance to speak a friendly sentry, or steal Temusa away by midnight raid."
"Does anyone see da girl on da row-boat? Is she still on da ship?"
"Does anyone see da girl on da row-boat? Is she still on da ship?"
"I have not the eagles perception, I can't tell."
It would be well if we could beat them to the beach , but I think that unlikely. If we bide our time here for a bell or two and mark where they land, we may come upon them in the dark. That may be our best chance to speak a friendly sentry, or steal Temusa away by midnight raid."
Marwan nods as Ghari speaks
I agree with what you say, noble Ghari, but for one thing: I think we need to put some distance between us and that"
Marwan points to the pillar of smoke from Roman's unfortunate playing with torches experiment.
"Perhaps we can travel a bit away and keep them in sight as we go? Remember that we have others to worry about then just the sailors from the Sea Harem. We must be alert for those tentacled demon creatures. Everyone and everything on this island knows where we are right now."
Fazaam, having removed his sensitive ears from Hasan's hairy grasp, strokes his narrow chin as he contemplates the view before him, as well as his companion's words.
"Most honorable companions, even you Ghari," He adds with a wink at his friend. "I wonder if this not an opportunity in disguise. From what we have seen, and what Marwan saw on the beach, this tentacled sorcerer does not seem to be the type to take prisoners. OR to release them when he is done."
"For some reason Zerea has seen fit to order her crew to abandon ship. Though she still has the sails raised. Which means she is leaving. You don't actually NEED a large crew to sail a ship, you can do it with few as a half-dozen men. It is just much easier with a lot of extra hands to share the work. She has probably kept her loyal bully-boys with her, but why abandon the rest?"
He frown momentarily. "I don't suppose there is any way Najm could be so kind as to have allowed your sister to be on that boat."
"Come, I say we meet the boat. If not friends, they are far more likely to be allies than enemies. And if Zerea's bully boys are with the rest, I think we can handle them." He says sharing a knowing grin with Ghari and Marwan. "And even if they are so afraid of her that they will not join us in retaking the ship, I doubt they will try to stop us, knowing that we would be far more likely to give them a ride away from here than her faithful lieutenants would."
He look sat Marwan. "Our esteemed companion is correct. Right now everybody on this Island, including our tentacled visitor, knows where we are. The sooner we get away from HERE and find possible allies, the better."
Nodding to the others, "You may be right, but there is always something that can be done to help someone in distress. I pray that Hettama guides his soul so he may finally find peace." He turns to the sea and makes his holy sign to Hettama. As he finishes he notices something near the ship. "Do you see that out there?" As the others finish speaking, "Do you think they have been sent ashore to finish the rest of you off? After seeing that explosion she may have had the ship prepared to sail in case the volcano erupted further. Hot ash on a wooden ship do not mix. I would suggest some of us wait out of site and if they are here to finish us off we can surprise them."
Ghari shades his eyes and strains to make out more of the boat departing the Sea Harem.
"We really aught ta discuss dis more."
"We really aught ta discuss dis more."
"Friends, let us try to meet the boat at the beach. After all there is no guarantee that thay will come up here."
"Agreed Ghari," Fazaam says with a nod to his friend.
"I'm afraid I must respectfully disagree noble Shulim. But I believe that the time for discussion has passed. If I understood the honorable Marwan's description, his boat, if it remains, is on the same beach it looks like the others are heading towards. We should secure it before they arrive and claim it. Then I suggest that we wait for their arrival. We MUST know what is going on on the ship! We should at least try diplomacy first. If that fails, well,... there are always other options,..."
He turns to face the beach.
"Ghar, Yrar, if you'd like to lead, I'll be most honored to provide you with cover." He says, lifting his bow into position.
"Just a tought," Shulim says struggling to keep up with the others, "suppose dose ghouls found Marwan's boat? Suppose day already used it ta get ta da Sea Herem? What den? I mean we could be running after a boat dats no longer dar, heading fer a beach dat might be swarmin wit zombies or worse. We need ta have a back up plan! And we need ta know what ta do if we spies girl or witch."
Yrar and Ghari start to head down the volcano's slope off the trail and towards the jungle. The ground crumbles a little under the heavy footsteps of the half-orc.
After a few hundred yards, the grass and bushes gives way to the jungle. Ghari finds a small track used by wild animals. However it is only wide enough for one person at a time, tight and twisting thanks to the tangled trees. Ghari leads into the forest, closely followed by Yrar.
Ahead the dank jungle is shadowy with little sign of clearings and stands of tall grass. The insects and bird life are busy making noise, that seems to echo through the trees, bouncing off the canopy above towards the party.
No sounds of attacking zombies can be heard.
Fazaam closely follows Yrar, his bow at the ready, arcane formulas dancing in his head, and a monkey dancing on his shoulders![/ooc]
Ghari leads the way toward the beach, bow in hand, alert for danger.
Ghari leads off into the dank thick woods. Yrar and then Fazaam follow, with Fudrick then Shulim and Marwan guarding the rear. The bushes and branches seem to reach in at the humans and half-orc while the gnomes find the route less obstructed. The animal life is probably more of their size.
The ranger reaches several splits in the trail but he confidently chooses the left or right at each stop then carries on.
It must be about two hours later that one or two of the party hear voices up ahead.
"You should have talked to her! We didn't have to be here! In this god forsake- SLAP Owwh Owwh Owwh!"
"Stop whining, Nebucs! or I'll slit your throat."
"Ha Ha Ha, Jernash has your number, Nebucs." adds a loud voice.
From the air quality and gentle breezes it feels as if the line of adventurers are close to the edge of the jungle and the coast.
.
"You should have talked to her! We didn't have to be here! In this god forsake- SLAP Owwh Owwh Owwh!"
"Stop whining, Nebucs! or I'll slit your throat."
"Ha Ha Ha, Jernash has your number, Nebucs." adds a loud voice.
Fazaam puts out a hand and lightly touches Yrar, then Ghari, on the shoulders.
He sharp elvish ears pick out the conversation on the breeze.Fazaam whispers a few words into Hasan's ears. And Hasan promptly makes an unmistakable 'no way!' gesture. Fazaam thin eyebrows narrow into a scowl, and Hasan makes a placating 'OK, OK' gesture with his tiny hands. The monkey then leaps from Fazaam's shoulders and disappears into the treetops.
Hasan's HIDE, SILENT and SPOT rolls: (1d20+10=14, 1d20+3=19, 1d20+5=11)
Fudrick kneels down trying to make out the conversation.
He makes sure his new scimitar and buckler are ready to use.
The monkey disappears into the trees, heading towards the voices.
"who is day?" Shulim whispers, "friend er foe?"
"who is day?" Shulim whispers, "friend er foe?"
"Probably foe," whispers Ghari in reply. "Let's see what Hasan has to say." He squats on his heels to wait, drawing arrows one at a time from his quiver and sighting down their length before replacing them.
"Probably foe," whispers Ghari in reply. "Let's see what Hasan has to say." He squats on his heels to wait, drawing arrows one at a time from his quiver and sighting down their length before replacing them.
"Ain't day from your ship?" Shulim whispers, "I d'ought dat maybe you'd say bully boy or odher."
The voices are familiar to Ghari, Fazaam and Marwan.
Nebucs is a greasy little sneak of a halfling who seems to know far too much of what everyone is doing for his own good and often passes on tales to Zerea and her boys about the rest of the crew. He is universally disliked.
Jernash is a half-orc bully boy who serves Zerea.
The loud voice belongs to Ermosh, Zerea's chief lieutenant and a very dangerous man. He brags about his time in the arena and takes great pleasure in beating and whipping the crew at every opportunity. Whether he really fought in the arena, who knows, but the spiked chain he carries, adds weight to the argument.
---
After about five minutes of Hasan going, everyone can hear chattering in the trees up above and ahead.
The party are out of sight of the edge of the jungle and no one can see any pirates.
Marwan strains to hear the distant sounds
Listen and Spot:
listen 1d20=12, spot 1d20+2=15
Marwan whispers to his companions
These are not good men. I think they hear Hassan.
Whispering to the others Fudrick says, "They do not seem to be alarmed about anything on the ship. They may have been sent to check up on your progress." He pauses as they continue to talk. When they are done he continues, "I don't think they can see us just yet, but Hasin may have gotten into some danger from those undead monkeys we saw earlier."
Fudrick checks his surroundings for any signs of trouble
Fazaam Holds up a hand to indicate silence, and intently scans the treetops.
Fazaam's SPOT and LISTEN checks: (1d20 2=16, 1d20 2=15)
"Oh. He's in trouble alright." Fazaam whispers as he frowns at something he sees in the trees.
"When I get my hands on him, he's in BIG trouble!" He hisses. "The little $#!^ is monkeying around with a new girlfriend!"
He looks at the others, "I don't think they can see him, but it sounds like they heard him flirting. I need to distract them before they try to turn my handsome sidekick into a pincushion!"
"I don't think they can see him, but it sounds like they heard him flirting. I need to distract them before they try to turn my handsome sidekick into a pincushion!"
"Be at ease, Fazaam. A monkey in the treetops is an exceedingly difficult shot. If they shoot at him it will only be from spite." Ghari frowns. " Of which they have plenty."
"I will slither forward to observe them. Hold yourselves in readiness here."
Shulim takes a quick scan of his surroundings.
spots; listen (1d20=7, 1d20 6=9)
"Well what we gonna do?"
Ghari disappears from view ahead making little or no noise as far as the straining ears of the party can tell. Hasan has gone into the foliage above.
Ghari spoiler
There are six men lying on the beach in the distance. Some of them are bedraggled, with sand clinging to their clothes. They all look like members of the crew.
Beyond them is a lone boat, large enough for six at a squeeze. The lovely white sand stretches in both directions for over 100 feet before it ends on rocks.
In front of the crew is a clearing surrounded by several thin trees. In the clearing is Nebucs the halfling hiding against a pile of boxes. Also there is stood in the centre, Ermosh and Jernash talking quietly.
So quietly that you cannot make out what they say.
--
Fazaam
hide, move silently (1d20+3=21, 1d20+3=14)
Ghari shuffles stealthily away on hands and knees, careful to avoid downed sticks and snagging on foliage. He returns to the party and reports the scene in his spoiler.
Ghari says, "If we slay Ermosh and Jernash, the others may panic and flee or surrender, but I'm not sure, I couldn't see who it is. Nebuc is a coward. If we can isolate him, I'm sure he will surrender. Although we'll have to watch for a knife in the back. Only problem is the men on the beach may take the boat and fly to the Sea Harem. If Fazaam or I am so unfortunate as to be recognised and any word reaches the witch Temusa's life is not worth a fig."
Fazaam nods to Ghari, and watches him slip silently between the branches. Then turns his head back up to the trees in shock. "No. There's a time and a place for everything. Not now you little hairy little thief!" He mutters softly. You are not sure, but from the flush at the tips of his ears, you think he may be blushing.
Fazaam nods at Ghari's words, still glancing at the treetops.
"Zerea's 'trusted' thugs. She must be getting anxious to know what's happening. Anxious Enough that she's sending trusted men to a shore that so far no one has returned from."
"As we cannot allow one of them to leave to tip our hand, we must arrange to make sure none of them can beat us to the boat."
"I see two options. Ghari and Myself and Marwan run to the beach as if being pursued. (Or perhaps only Ghari and myself.) We gather their attention with slightly altered tales of what we have so far encountered. That should generate enough interest to bring the others in closer, away from the boat. At that point, the rest of you should charge in, supposedly after us. These thugs will be happy to start a fight, at which point we will be the viper in their midst when battle starts."
"Option two is the same as the first, except those of you unknown to the bully-boys should run as if being pursued," He looks at Yrar and grins. "If they see Yrar running from something, they'll assume it's dangerous. Then Ghari, Marwan and I can charge in after you."
"If I thought that we could drop these ignoble ones in a single shot, I would say we should take them from the trees. There is no honor to be gained by allowing ones such as those three a 'fair fight'." He adds, undisguised disgust coating his words like a venom.
Ghari says, "If we slay Ermosh and Jernash, the others may panic and flee or surrender, but I'm not sure, I couldn't see who it is. Nebuc is a coward. If we can isolate him, I'm sure he will surrender. Although we'll have to watch for a knife in the back. Only problem is the men on the beach may take the boat and fly to the Sea Harem. If Fazaam or I am so unfortunate as to be recognised and any word reaches the witch Temusa's life is not worth a fig."
Fazaam nods at Ghari's words, still glancing at the treetops.
"Zerea's 'trusted' thugs. She must be getting anxious to know what's happening. Anxious Enough that she's sending trusted men to a shore that so far no one has returned from."
"As we cannot allow one of them to leave to tip our hand, we must arrange to make sure none of them can beat us to the boat."
"I see two options. Ghari and Myself and Marwan run to the beach as if being pursued. (Or perhaps only Ghari and myself.) We gather their attention with slightly altered tales of what we have so far encountered. That should generate enough interest to bring the others in closer, away from the boat. At that point, the rest of you should charge in, supposedly after us. These thugs will be happy to start a fight, at which point we will be the viper in their midst when battle starts.""Option two is the same as the first, except those of you unknown to the bully-boys should run as if being pursued," He looks at Yrar and grins. "If they see Yrar running from something, they'll assume it's dangerous. Then Ghari, Marwan and I can charge in after you."
"If I thought that we could drop these ignoble ones in a single shot, I would say we should take them from the trees. There is no honor to be gained by allowing ones such as those three a 'fair fight'." He adds, undisguised disgust coating his words like a venom.
Marwan nods at the two.
"Noble Fazaam I think perhaps deception is a way to figure out what is going on. I wonder whether the three n'eer-do-wells are surprised by the six crewmen on the shore. I think that they can be tricked easily, especially if the sailors on the beach are fleeing the hellspawn that we suspect boarded the Sea Harem."
Marwan shudders
"I would counsel that we approach them, but not running, rather as members of the crew. The others can stay hidden and watch. we can interrogate them about what is going on, and if they begin to act hostile our new friends here will be the ace in the hole."
"Deez guys never saw Yrar, Fudrick, or O'Shulim before, I's tinking dat we could use that ta our advantage."
Marwan nods at the two.
"Noble Fazaam I think perhaps deception is a way to figure out what is going on. I wonder whether the three n'eer-do-wells are surprised by the six crewmen on the shore. I think that they can be tricked easily, especially if the sailors on the beach are fleeing the hellspawn that we suspect boarded the Sea Harem."
Marwan shudders
"I would counsel that we approach them, but not running, rather as members of the crew. The others can stay hidden and watch. we can interrogate them about what is going on, and if they begin to act hostile our new friends here will be the ace in the hole."
Ghari returns to the party with information on the placing of the pirates and boat. He can see the Sea Harem in the distance.
Whispering so only the others hear, "I think we should overwhelm the three you know. The crew members look as if they are running from something as you already noted. If we take these three out the others will be safe and we can parlay with them. They may remember one of you from the ship. Besides, if we can equipment them maybe they can help us take the ship back or help us sail it."
Yrar keeps close to Fudrick.
Yrar and Fudrick move off into the foliage.
'Perhaps dis time I can repay da favor,' Shulim thinks.
Whispering so only the others hear, "I think we should overwhelm the three you know. The crew members look as if they are running from something as you already noted."
Ghari hisses back, "I may have been wrong about that. It was just an impression."
If we take these three out the others will be safe and we can parlay with them. They may remember one of you from the ship. Besides, if we can equipment them maybe they can help us take the ship back or help us sail it."[/b]
Ghari hisses back, "Wise counsel, Fudrick. I agree we should take these three first. But what is the plan? Do we merely all rush them? Can you or Fazaam hinder them magically? I would like to position myself at the edge of the trees, near the beach to cut them off should they flee."
Fazaam looks at Marwan, glances at Ghari, then looks back to Marwan and nods.
"Honorable Marwan, I believe that you may speak wisest. My particular style is somewhat, unsuited for deception. I bow to your obvious experience. Let us try your suggestion. You, Ghari and I shall approach Zerea's thugs as crew members who have managed to survive. The best deceptions include a bit of truth. We shall try to subdue them by stealth, but if we must fight, then Yrar, Shulim and Fudrick can run to our aid. Probably still pretending to be after us. What do you all say?"
"I have no chants capable of binding or stunning them. Mostly my charms are for personal defense and blasting." He answers Ghari.
"I think at least one of us should go into the clearing and make sure they are seen. perhaps if I stumble up, then run away once they see me, they will pursue. That would draw them to us, which would be far easier. I will be the 'bait' if you wish."
"What ever we decide, we should hurry,..." Fazaam adds, with another, distinctly upset look toward the trees.
Marwan nods at Fazaam
"I believe that this is the best ploy my noble friends. If they are hostile, we can at least get closer to them. If they are fighting the hellspawn who have taken the Sea Harem, the Sea Gypsys have a wise saying, 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.' As for bait, your humble servant you see before you can run like a hind and talk the very birds out of the trees. Please allow me to make first contact with these scruffy sea lice."