Zeru stoops for a moment, removing the kitten from his pocket. "Go ahead Coral, give Marlena a thorough checking and if nothing else keep an eye on the crew, you can report when I get back." Then he stands straight, albeit a leaning slightly backwards, and glides in his way over across the Dryad and then once more to the Sea's Bounty. "Good morning Miss Thornbloom, and you sirs" he says to Jadira and the Tya respectively, he called all the female officers sir on the Marianna's Ghost, but he felt uncomfortable calling them mister. He bows slightly. "I thought it best that I accompany you on this dive if you'd have me. I assure you that Tempest here works just as well underwater as she does on land." With this comment he fingers the chain, and the links seem to stop moving in response to his embrace.

He looks at Jadira. "If you don't mind you can move the implosion bow on the Marlena over to the Dryad. Marlena is a mite troubled over the artifacts the lieutenant had on board. She's also accepted me as captain, and offers her services to the Alliance provided all the orders go through me first." He leans in close to Jadira. "She doesn't seem to like other men much, or taking orders." His smile seems to cover half his face and he seems rather pleased by the circumstances. "She also said some rather unflattering things about the Hammerhead, you might want to keep an eye on that ship, it yearns for battle."
This message was last edited by the player at 08:51, Wed 19 Nov 2008.

On the Hammerhead:

The rest of Treon's morning is spent talking to his new crew, getting to know them. Other than Black Reed there is Sang, Hailstorm, Nine-Fingers, Balio, Ormi... hardened men, criminals or ex-convicts, men who escaped slavery or abusive families. Bloodeye culled them from the dregs of society, and gave them a banner to follow. When they speak of him, they say he was insane, but brilliant: a leader whose call they could not ignore. He made them feel nigh invincible. He made their anger at the terrible life they'd been stuck with feel righteous.

Most of them are not very inclined to be helpful toward others, having had no friendly handouts themselves. But, their desire for survival overwhelms their baser urges, at least, and they're all prepared to follow Treon's orders for the time being. Some, like Reed, Tonsar and Crowfoot, say they'd be happier with a less violent end. Another, Hobnail, talks extensively about the bloody nightmares he has... and claims he's not slept for years.

On the Sea's Bounty:

While Coral scampers off happily to hunt vermin on the Black Marlena, Zeru joins the others for the excavation. Niakuni nods in greeting to the Water Aspect and chuckles as he offers his aid for the dive. "Well, I certainly can't refuse your help, Zeru, I'm only here for support!" she points out -- also apparently remembering that Zeru didn't like going by titles.

"That said, though, are you two the only ones?" She nods her head toward Jadira, as well. "I figure that pretty winged lass isn't really built for a dive. Anyway, I think we'll do all right with a couple of you Dragon Chosen on our side. If you don't mind, I'll be coming along, as well as two of my best divers. This is Ciaran, and Astrid." Ciaran's hair is jet black, while Astrid is a taller sandy blonde. Both of course are also marked with the distinctive Tya whorl tattoos.

Niakuni withdraws the small soapstone box holding the maruera gum, starting to distribute it. According to her a portion the size of a marble should last 2-3 hours, toward the longer end for an Exalt.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:51, Fri 21 Nov 2008.

"I thank you for the offer but Da'naad has graced me with mobility underwater." Zeru says to Niakuni, "I trust in her implicitly."

"Good morning Zeru," Jadira says, now that she's straightened from her fiddling with the cannon. She slaps some hinged panel back into place, and lets it rest upright, leaning against her hip. "And congratulations! I'm sure you'll do just fine with the Marlena, though she sounds like a handful. You're one of the most attentive sailors I've ever met, when it comes to the vessel herself."

"I'll keep that in mind about the Hammerhead, probably better you relay that to Treon, though... Or I can. Either way." She smiles and shrugs, accepting one of the marbles of green-speckled gum. "So, I just chew this? And put on some flippers? Boy, I'm glad the Captain's not here to laugh at me for looking like a duck." A lopsided grin shows she's not really complaining, just making light of things. "At least they're made of wood."

"I'm ready when you are..." Zeru says choking back the desire to say ladies... "Do we have any idea what were looking for?"

Niakuni nods again to Zeru. "Excuse me for forgetting. It's truly an astounding power you have..." she says almost enviously.

"And yes, just chew it," she instructs Jadira, "though don't start to until you're already in the water, to maximize its use. The gum is made from the leaves of a tree that grows on a secret island the Tya know of. It actually produces air when chewed, so just keep chewing, and if you run out..." She hands Jadira a second 'dose' just in case. "Just pop in a fresh one. It's fine, they're waterproof."

She and Ciaran and Astrid start strapping their feet into their swimming gear. Like Jadira they wear close-fitting, water-proofed clothing, so as not to be hindered by it underwater.

---

OOC: I think I'll pause the actual excavation till tomorrow, see whether anyone (besides poor Lasuri :P) might change his mind about coming along. If not we'll go soon as I have some time to post tomorrow :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:02, Thu 20 Nov 2008.

"Well, I'm expecting it's an underwater manse. But... who knows, really? If it got those corsairs' attention, it could be more than that." Jadira shrugs. "I bet there'll at least be something guarding the way in though, but that's why I've got this." She pats her portable cannon proudly.

"Oh yeah, Zeru, where'd you put those explosives you said you found on the Marlena? Didn't you say we might be able to use 'em? Maybe we should take them along... carefully."

Zeru just smiles and watches the preparation. "I thank Dan'aad often for my gifts, but they often lead to problems as well. I'm sure you do just fine with your own gifts my friends." He stays in his coat and keeps the breastplate strapped to him. "If you all don't mind should we encounter something, I'd like to stay in it's face. I can wear my armor underwater, and I'd rather not see you get hurt, you all just fought a battle yesterday."

"You are right, and brave," Niakuni says in acknowledgment of Zeru's desire to take the lead in combat. "We're no fools. We will stay out of your way in combat, Dragons. However we'll lend our arms to help bring back whatever you find."

Answering Jadira's question Zeru looks at her. "I can fetch them if you'd like but I'd rather not have them around while we descend. There are plenty of things in the sea I'd rather not fight, underwater or even with the essence cannon on the Hammerhead, and I'd like to fight them less if I have to worry about blowing myself to the next life." He looks around at the distinct lack of people... "Are we the only two going down with our friends here?"

"Well, you do have a point." Jadira scratches her head sheepishly. "Are they really that unstable? I can take a look at one, just in case..."

"And it looks like it really is just us. We might as well just get on with it."

Zeru goes to fetch one... handling it very carefully

"Thank you," Jadira says to Zeru, smiling, and takes the device boldly. She does not have extensive experience with magitech, but she may be able to at least figure out how the device is activated -- and how to keep from activating it by accident.

Turning it over carefully in her hands, she runs her fingers over the surface, careful not to trigger any buttons or switches or other mechanisms she finds. Every artifact she has recovered from pre-Shogunate era usually had some basic similarities in design, and she draws from her memory of similar mechanisms she has operated or at least observed in the past.

[Private to GM: Jadira discovers that the bomb's trigger mechanism has been installed with a safety cap. She does see that enough force in the vicinity of that mechanism would definitely blow the thing up, though.]

Meanwhile, Niakuni, Ciaran and Astrid get to work with the large coils of rope that will serve as their "elevator".

The ropes are each wound onto a spool of polished wood and steel, bolted securely to the deck: three on starboard side, three on port. The loose ends of four ropes are wrapped securely around a large weight used to pull the diver down to the sea floor. Zeru, of course, would have no problem swimming the way down without the aid of such apparatus, but weighted rope is offered to Jadira once she has fastened her swim fins and appears ready to go.

Then Niakuni and her two assistants then take a brief moment to bow their heads in prayer. "High Prince of the Deep Trenches," she utters, invoking Zhuzhiao, "be merciful as we descend into your domain. We respect your dominion, and pledge to adhere to your customs, should you or your host appear."

Jadira looks up from her analysis, furrowing her eyebrows, and finally says... "All right. You're probably right, Zeru. Let's just leave it on the Dryad." After returning it to the deck of the warship, she returns, and accepts the rope offered. Quietly, so as not to interrupt the Tya's prayer, she adds, "We'll make sure the area is safe first, and if we need that kind of firepower, bring it after."

"Besides... my cannon might be enough force for whatever's in our way. I've seen this thing take on solid stone." Grinning fiercely, she falls silent until Niakuni and the others raise their heads. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Good here too..." Zeru says also grinning, he enjoyed mysteries, and swimming. This was right up his alley.

"Good." Niakuni's tone shifts seamlessly from reverent to businesslike, as she looks over the final preparations with a nod of satisfaction. "From now on, we communicate by sign. First, the gum..."

The Tya place the maruera gum balls in their mouths and start to chew. Then the green-haired officer picks up the weight fastened to her rope, steps up to the gangplank, and jumps feet down into the water.

Her assistants repeat the motions, and three spools of rope begin to unravel yard after yard at great speed, following them down.

"And down we go." Jadira pops the gum into her mouth, chewing it gingerly. She really didn't know what to expect, or how it would taste. Nodding confidently to Zeru, though, she leaps off the plank with her weight and rope, plunging into the sea.

I can't believe I'm doing something this crazy! I don't even know if this stuff works! If she could even make any sounds, she might have laughed at her impetuousness. But she decides to take the Tya's word for it, continuing to chew and try to relax her body as she descends down, and down, and down...

Zeru smiles at Jadira stepping up onto the side of the ship and steps off into the water.

Edit: NM I got it.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:58, Fri 21 Nov 2008.

The water is surprisingly temperate as Jadira and the Tya sink toward the ocean floor, with Zeru swimming unhindered among them. The maruera gum makes the entire dive feel as pleasant as taking a swim at the beach. So long as it is chewed, the nostrils, ear openings and mouth are kept warm and aerated, and the eyes adjust easily to the water contact. Of course, it may take some time for Jadira's mind to adjust to the idea that she can, in fact, survive underwater.

The Tya, it turns out, have brought an unusual but effective light source: a cylindrical glass and reinforced iron cage with a handle, containing a special strain of seaweed that sheds a luminous blue-green light in the deep water. Without superior artifacts or animas, the mortal divers have had to use whatever they can from nature to make up for it.

Seconds stretch into minutes as the hue of the water darkens from sun-struck aquamarine toward an inky cobalt. At first, curious schools of striped fish dart quicksilver-like around them, some delta-shaped, others long and slender. Deeper down, there are stranger things: manta rays floating gracefully by on winglike fins, anglerfish with their massive toothy mouths and fishing-lure protrusions, lanternfish with glowing phosphorescent knobs for eyes, iridescent, paper-thin jellyfish.

They are over 300 yards down when the group hanging on to the ropes touches bottom. Niakuni signals for the others to let the weights go, so the ropes stay in place. The sight awaiting them, at first glance, gruesome: the stark white remains of 46 dead corsairs and their captain lie strewn there with bits and scraps of their clothing -- the remnants of the feast by Siakal's dread sharks. Among the bones are sea sponges shaped like brachiated chimneys and urns, clinging to the rocky sea floor along with other flat-faced, slow-crawling bottom-feeders.

There are no sharks in the water now, though. At least not any that the Exalts can see. Even their animas cannot penetrate much further than a few yards around them in the gloom, leaving it to more refined senses to detect unusual denizens or structures beyond. [Private to Peleps Zeru: You can roll Perception+Awareness (or I'll roll it if you prefer)... You might also want to make use of the functions of that artifact Dove fixed for you.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:09, Fri 21 Nov 2008.

Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 5,3,10,8. Per + Awareness. Zeru's looking at the compass and using the elemental pole of earth and his memory of the map

23:56, Today: Peleps Zeru rolled 3 successes using 4d10 with the White Wolfto determine the location of the X...

Niakuni glances up at the shape of the Sea's Bounty far above them, using the ship's bottom as a relative compass to point out the direction she remembers the corsairs excavating from.

Zeru's senses, paired with the compass, more than confirms Niakuni's memory... he can actually see a vague outline of something large and ovoid in the water ahead. The compass indicates the direction is north-northwest, and both his eyes and his approximations tell him it's probably still a few hundred yards away.

Jadira unfortunately doesn't see much at all, and has to depend on the others to find the way.

Zeru grabs the attention of the group and points out the large object and begins and easy pace towards it. Wary of the creatures around them, not wanting to disturb any. Particularly the ugly looking anglers...

http://animals.nationalgeograp...imary/anglerfish.jpg

Jadira follows Zeru's lead, emanating an emerald aura to light her way. The swim fins are a little awkward to get used to, especially with the weight of her cannon, but she manages not to get left behind, at least.

It's creepy as all Malfeas down here, she thinks. Too dark... and all that water above us! Ugh, don't think about getting stuck down here... just keep chewing, and breathing...

The armswoman hopes none of those damned toothy fish were going to think her a tasty snack to bite on. She'd make it nasty for them, if they did (activating anima for poison touch.)

Zeru notices that Jadira is quite nervous. He grins at her and gives her a look that says... I'll get you back to the surface. then he continues his easy pace. Most of the time it doesn't even look like he's swimming, he's just a knife that flies through the water.