"I know you for a saltbeard, Fargrim, and I expect you are probably just as able a swimmer as I, if not more!" says Johara with a smile. "This is kahve -- I managed to smuggle a bit out with me from Qadira. This oilskin bag is good enough to keep out the water as long as I don't wind up under the ocean too long, so it has managed to keep some of my possessions protected from our sea travel." She wraps a cloth around her hand, takes the pot from the fire, and pours a second cup for Fargrim. "I'm afraid I only have the two cups with me, though, so people will have to share. It's bitter and strong and dark, well suited to the tenor of our group."
Fargrim winks at Johara as he takes the offered cup. He sniffs at it and takes a sampling drink. He furls his brow and swishes the bitter liquid about his mouth. He swallows with a grin. "Huh, interesting brew. I like it! Might make for a very interesting addition to a dark, dwarven stout... Thanks, lass." He takes another drink.
He then looks at Sandman directly with a serious expression. "Well that's an easy discussion. I'm your Captain." He narrows his eyes, giving Sandman that look that dares him to argue the point and places a hand upon his dorn-dergar... He holds Sandmans' gaze until the air feels thick with tension... Suddenly he roars with laughter and leans over to clap Sandman heartily upon the back. "You should have seen the look in your eyes! Have no fear, I don't yearn for the yoke of command. One of you can have that responsibility! I need to word to my Uncle that I'm alive. He's either concerned that I'm dead somewhere, or he's forgotten and moved on to the next bit of ruins. Daft old fool he is, but a clever one..."
Sandman chuckled and shrugged, passing his cup down the line.
"Nivain, Baltzar and I have discussed this in a small measure already, back when our fates were uncertain."
"I believe it is time for simple truth, to see if my suspicions are founded. Nivain, the curse we have seen you use. That is a power I have seen before. It is Witchcraft, correct?"
"And Baltzar, too. The claws, the cast of the eyes. The monkey. It is more subtle, but again, I believe, Witchcraft."
"I know, because I myself was hagborn. As far as I am aware, I am the only hagblooded male there is."
"As such, if I am correct, I suspect we have three witches. That could be quite fortuitous."
The pirates pack up and break camp quickly. They hustle down the path back the way they came and down to the beach. As the path ends and the sand begins, multiple sets of bare, humanoid footprints are found. They head north east towards the swamp. There is no one about at this time though, and there is practically no cover for miles.
In pursuit of their comrades, the pirates continue to head towards the cove. After about an hour or so of hustling, the beach ends and turns to rocky mountainside.
"These footprints...Fargrim, could they be from our people? They seem fresh, and those...Octoblins would leave tentacle-prints or something..."
Fargrim takes a few moments to examine any prints he finds and see if he can determine the creature type or even if they may have come from their crew...
Fargrim is able to confirm that there are three separate sets of tracks, all made about the same time. It is unlikely they were made by members of the crew considering they were most likely taken by the octo-goblins.
Roughly 50 feet out from shore is the rotting hulk of a shipwreck leaning in a bed of coral. The wreck lies some 20 feet beneath the surface and is clearly damaged. Its gargoyle figurehead still glowers from the seabed. A large, rusty cage can be seen from the surface, resting on the deck. The octo-goblins are not in sight.
The name plate reads the Infernus.
The ship is of Chelish make.
The tricorn hat floats in the waves above the shipwreck.
Johara squints and shields her eyes as she looks out over the waves and across the wreckage.
"Look!" she shouts suddenly, pointing. "The hat! It's over by the shipwreck! I bet those octo-goblin creatures live in that wreck."
Sandman's expression darkened. "That is a Chellish Galleon. A slave ship."
"That explains the Chelaxian clothing with the corpse up in the hut," says Johara, ruminating.
Fargrim grunted. "Likely the rum afoul those damned goblin-things. That corpse probably the last remaining crew and decided to just end it rather than face a life alone on this island..." He looks at Nivian. "You feel about to investigating that wreck rather quick and let us know what you see?"
"Aye, it was a Chellish ship. And that Tricorn, we'll take with us. May as well take a look at the ship while at it. I'll scout it, quickly, may be there's something of value still left in the wreck."
, Nivian says before speeding off towards the Infernus.
Nivian cautiously swims out to the sunken wreck as the others watch on with bated breath. As she gets closer, she senses the giant moray eel hiding in the barnacled, seaweed-infested hull of the ship. It does not appear to be aware of her. From here she can see that the rusted cage on the deck of the ship is closed, but the bars have been pried apart. She does not sense any magical auras emanating within range, but she does notice several dozen items and various debris laying on the ocean floor, scattered around the ship.
Nivian returns to the others: "Well, seems theres some giant eel took up residence in the hull. There's some stuff scattered on the floor...and whatever they held on a cage on the deck seemed to have gotten out of the cage. Possibly a reason why they ended up here, together with all the reefs. If we do want to take a closer look at what stuff is scattered near the wreck, or still in the wreck, I'd need your help getting rid of that eel. Those things are...difficult, to take on alone. Or, we could come back later...I doubt anybody else will plunder the ship, meanwhile, and the eel may have departed by then...I leave it up to you, but those things ARE dangerous-"
"Not sure we are up to fighting in water if we don't have to. You and I are in no danger of drowning, but everyone else?"
"It's not so much the drowning i'm worried about as the vicious bite of that thing...it it manages to grab a bite, you won't have time to drown...perhaps you are right. Lets come back later and I can see if it left it's lair, going out to hunt, and take a closer look at what I can find in the wreck, then."
Johara nods and says dubiously, "I can swim, but I think you may be right, I certainly can't outswim an eel or something and I sure can't breathe water."
Nivian swims a wide arc around the sunken ship until the hat floats between her and the rest of the crew. In a blur of action, she speeds through the water as if fired from an underwater crossbow. She nabs the hat in passing as the head of the eel pokes out from it's shipwrecked home, but a few seconds later it retreats into it's sanctum. Nivian rejoins the others wearing a rather wet tricorn hat.
Deciding that pirates live longer when not in the water, the crew heads for the cove. It is a long, slow swim for most as the tides roll out, occasionally pulling the swimmers back out and away from the cove. Within Nivian's help, everyone makes it safely into the cove. While bobbing in the water, the sounds of cawing birds can be heard overhead. Glancing up, four stirges are flying above. The pirates fill their lungs and dive under the water, swimming ahead.
Seeing the stirges above-water, and her companions holding their breath, Nivian decides to use her aquatic mobility to the groups advantage. Swimming straight away from the Stirges, then surfacing to draw them off once there's enough distance that she's confident to be able to get away in time.
Sandman looked up from under water. He held his breath as the wavering forms of the vicious birds circled overhead.
He caught Nivian's attention, pointed at her, and waggled his fingers toward the birds.
Fargrim follows along with his companions, a dagger clenched between his teeth and his dorn-dergar tucked away neatly. He waits for the casters to do whatever they plan to do... easily holding his breath.
Nivian, seeing Sandman gesture at her, then upward, pulls out her crossbow, takes aim, and shoots at one of the stirges, quickly reloading afterswards and giving Sandman an 'O.k.'-Sign.
Sandman's face was one of slightly strained patience, but he was silently laughing. He smiled and shrugged, attempting his hex on the same target Nivian had shot.
Nivian's bolt pierces the flesh of a stirge who turns around and flies back to the nest. The other stirges fly away a moment later, bored and frustrated. The group swims on through the narrow tunnels. It's not long before you are able to climb out of the water and onto solid rock. There are pockets of water of varying depths, but traversing the caverns is more careful walking than it is swimming. The water currently varies between about knee deep and waist deep. Proceeding farther in leads to a fork in the tunnel; one leading northeast and the other leading southeast. The sounds of chittering seem to be coming from both chambers.
"Swimming rats? Crabs? What do you think?" Johara whispers to the team.
"No idea what sounds those Octoblins make. Either way, if that's their place of residence, whatever makes those sounds won't be friendly, I reckon. So stay together and expect trouble...", Nivian whispers back.
Fargrim nods and takes a moment to get out his dergar and extend the chain for additional reach. He moves forward alongside his companions with a barely restrained grin on his face...
The northeast tunnel leads into a natural tidal cavern and is decorated with the jawbones of numerous frightful-looking fish, resembling the throat of some hideous aquatic creature.
The southeast cavern has been carved to resemble the interior of some giant sea creature, its ribs towering over and around the chamber.
"Let's go North. You never want to go South." she says, then frowns as the others probably either didn't get her joke or thought it was terribly lame.
Johara shivers and says, "North it is."
"Why would I not want to go south?" Nivian seems surprised, then shrugs:"One direction is as good as the other, though, so North we go."
Nivian falls in line directly behind Fargrim, hoping her water senses may give advance warning against an possible ambush.
This room is deeper than the tunnels thus far. Swimming around the edges of the room are eight of the octo-goblin creatures. While they were chattering incessantly, they quickly fall silent as the dwarf enters the room. There is a moment of confusion at time almost stands still. They look at each other, back at the dwarf, and then growl almost in unison. Some of the creatures are swimming and were most likely below the surface of the water, which means the water is at least four feet deep in the middle.
Fargrim immediately begins laughing like a mad-dwarf and, without a second of hesitation, switches into his bloodrage! He pulls his weapon in close and takes a step forward to engage the octogoblin to his right! He swings his dorn-dergar, but it misses and simply sends up a large splash!
Sandman waited until the creatures surged forward and attempted to put the rearmost one to sleep.
"Bad joke... Maybe it's only said in certain parts of Varisia, but things going south means things going bad." she explains as she adjusts her blouse to make sure her holy symbol tattoo is showing, casts Mage Armor, and readies her claws for more gilgoblins!
"Ah. I thought you meant something else," says Johara flatly as she goes for her weapon.
Her fingers hover for a moment over the kukri, then she reaches back to the scabbarded curved sword on her back - the one that, until now, has purely been ceremonial, for her dance practice.
Slogging through the water, she takes up a position behind Fargrim, whipping out the scimitar as she moves. Once near the corner of the small cave, she suddenly rises on one leg, whipping the sword upward. Water splashes up and then in contrapposto she twists and the scimitar comes whipping down at the octo-goblin to Fargrim's side.
Seeing no good position to catch their enemies in a color spray without being utterly exposed herselfself. Nivian decides to cast Mage Armor on herself and step away, in case someone was pushing towards the frontline/past her.
Fargrim's chain misses but Johara's scimitar spills blood into the water. Nivian and Baltzar summon their magical armors before te grindylows frenzy at the site of the blood in the water. One stabs Johara with it's spear while four stab and bite into Fargrim numerous times. Two of the grindylows retreat through the back of the chamber and reappear through another tunnel. In turn, Sandman puts one of the grindlows to sleep. The heroes battle against the odds but their familiarity with the grindylows results in none of them being tripped up by the writhing tentacles of the creatures.
Johara arches her back and water sprays outward as she nearly touches the ground behind her, then rotates her hips and turns into a spinning blur with her scimitar lashing out in a flat arc. Her long hair splays outward, as does the loose decorative cloth of her attire.