With the pirate taken out in the unlikely matter, Marcus stepped away from the fires and took a moment. One that in retrospect he didn't have. Ilura transformed and the acid started raining on the ship and the late pirate. The paladin regrouped with Eryn and shared his thoughts. "Despite the current peril, couldn't Ilura turn into a whale and pull the ship? Rather than doing anything with the giants."

15:10, Today: Marcus rolled 6 using 2d6+2.  Help Eryn.
Well, almost...

As Ilura flew away and her cloud followed, it became clear that Eryn's assessment was correct. The main mast would not be able to remain erect much longer without endangering the entire ship. Its base was corroded by the acid cloud, and the fire above was quickly burning away its support ropes. When Eryn said she wanted to cut the mast down, Gravelborough and Brigg both reluctantly agreed. "Aye, it is about time to write off this ship as a failed investment," the old dwarf admitted.

Then, when Eryn asked about the jotun, he added, "I think they can swim, but we will need to unchain them and wake them up first. Not sure how ornery they'll be. Perhaps your ice-armed friend's whale idea is the better-"

Gravelborough's words were cut short when a loud crack split the air. Splinters of wood flew out from the base of the main mast as it twisted in place. It leaned to one side as charred ropes snapped up above. For the second time, the adventurer's were witnessing this ship's mast break and fall. But unlike last time, it was not falling straight to one side. Enough ropes were holding tight that as it fell sideways, it swung toward the front of the ship and slammed into the deck. The back of the ship lurched upward, launching two sailors and Captain Frost's body into the air. At the same time the prow of the ship dipped toward the water.

Screams from the front of the ship could be heard coming from the unlucky few unable to avoid the mast as it crashed down. And even more could be heard from those under the half-burned mast. One of the pirate-mage even tried blasting it with lightning, but that only seemed to make things worse.

Silas Massasauga, the hireling looked to be pinned under the mast. It was a portion not yet aflame, but the fire was certainly growing close to him. Westley was not pinned, but was trapped on the other side of the impact next to Mouse, and looked quite frazzled by his current predicament. Opal the tiny gargoyle flew between the plumes of smoke, trying to find a way to be useful. Lady Mirrorsheen was currently out of view, and Sybilla had apparently decided it was in her best interests to abandon ship again. The triton dove overboard and was quickly out of sight.

What do you do?

---

The mast came crashing down on the front of the ship, causing all kinds of wreckage and spreading fire all over. There are several sailors and hirelings amidst the peril. On the plus side, much of the fire is more accessible now! Also note, a lot of the top deck around the main mast has been weakened by acid. Tread at your own risk.

Marcus and Eryn, don't forget to add your +1 XP!

Ilura dipped down to grab seawater in her enormous beak.  She glanced back as she heard the crash.  That wasn't good...

The only positive thing was that the cloud was slowly following her - at a speed that would hopefully allow her to outrun it.  Her large wings beat powerfully as she lifted herself up out of the ocean, neck muscles straining under the weight of her mouthful of water.  She made a beeline for the ship trying to arrive to dump her load on the worst of the flames and remove herself from the deck before her "acid cloud" caught up.

quote:

12:34, Today: Ilura rolled 7 using 2d6+2.  Defy danger (dex?) - dump water, not acid.

I've rolled dex on the premise that what matters is my ability to get on and off the deck quickly.  However, strength to carry the water could also be justifiable - in which case that roll's a solid fail...

"Hell," exclaimed the warrior when saw their dwindling crew hit by the mast. When she noticed Silas pinned beneath the fallen mast, there was no trace of hesitation in her actions anymore.

"Opal, help me over here!" Eryn shouted, and grabbed the section of the wood closest to Silas with both arms. Her well-trained muscles held it in an iron grip and lifted the heavy debris away from the man, though she knew he may be too injured to crawl away on his own. The burning center portion of the fallen mast splintered some more under its own weight, and broke in half. The resulting log came free from the fire, allowing Eryn - with Opal's help - to roll it far enough that it wouldn't start burning as well.

---

20:43, Today: Eryn rolled 7 using 2d6+2.  Bend Bars, Lift Gates. Clear the mast away.
* It doesn’t take a very long time.
* Nothing of value is damaged.

Marcus caught sight of the black bodybag falling into the sea and he sought out Sybila, planning to demand her to retrieve it. But she was already jumping ship and Marcus prayed it was for a noble cause, although deep down he knew it wasn't. As much as he felt an obligation to save Frost, there were others in greater need.

"Organize a chain and bring water!" he yelled to the first group of sailors he passed on his way to the fallen mast. The next he called to his side "Water should come soon, help those trapped that are closest to the flames until then!" The paladin stopped at the edge of the acid riddled area and tried to direct further efforts around the worst parts. Although it was hard to tell with all the smoke and blood.

11:30, Today: Marcus rolled 9 using 2d6. Organize the crew. (Cha?).
Not sure if it's parley, Defy danger, or something else, but let's give it a try
(+2 if Cha, -1 if Int for quick thinking)

Eryn and Opal quickly made their way to Silas's side. He was struggling to push against the mast, and his serpentine companions slithered nearby in distress. The snakes hissed menacingly at Eryn when she stood nearby, but did not strike. With the help of the tiny gargoyle, Eryn managed to free Silas without any pieces of the mast falling in the wrong spots. "Thanks," Silas managed to mutter between labored breaths. When the snake charmer crawled free, two more sailors crawled out behind him from under the mast, eager to escape the spreading flames.

Flames that were quickly extinguished! Marcus's bucket brigade was organized in mere moments, thanks to the paladin's swift crew coordination. It also helped that they no longer needed to worry about a giant sea slug snapping at them every time they grabbed water.

What's more, Ilura's massive form managed to drop water atop the fire without leading her cloud over the ship. She would agilely veer away when she opened her beak, letting momentum carry the water the last few feet toward the ship. The ensuing drenching did wonders for extinguishing the flames. Unfortunately the only place she could safely perform such a maneuver was at a spot where she had to fly through the thickest part of the ship's smoke cloud. The ranger was momentarily blinded after delivering her payload, and smoke filled her lungs. But at least her acid cloud stayed away from the ship.

What do you do?

---

I wasn't originally planning for Frost to actually fall overboard, but I'll go with that. It makes the stakes even higher.

The fire is no longer much of a threat to the ship.

Eryn
You manage to free Silas and his snakes, along with a couple other sailors beneath the mast. They are all battered and bruised, but alive.

Marcus
The bucket line is successful and the fires on the lower part of the ship are quickly contained. (With Ilura's help, of course.) There are still a few more flames up above, but nothing really worth worrying too much about.

Ilura
Your water contributes greatly to the extinguishing of the fire, but you are momentarily flying blind from the smoke in your eyes.

Ilura swung away from the choking smoke.  [Lead me away from the ship]  She listened intently, both for Thomas's cries as well as the cries of the wounded sailors.  She didn't know exactly where she was going, but "away from the ship with her friends" seemed the best bet when she was being followed by an acidic rain-cloud.  Once far enough away, she tried to settle down into the ocean to allow the salt-spray to help clear her eyes.

quote:

11:22, Today: Ilura rolled 12 using 2d6+5.  Discern realities w/ Thomas.

What is about to happen?
What should I be on the lookout for?
What here is useful or valuable to me?

Specifically - trying to avoid the ship and land safely in the water.  If I can find something appropriate to "swallow whole", that'd be good too..

Marcus watched the successful firefighting with a trace of satisfaction. Something was going well. "Excellent work." he praised the crew "Keep at it." The immediate danger dealt with, he strode to the railing. Looking over he looked for the black form of the bag Frost was in, hoping it would float and not let in any water. But he had no idea how what its magic could do. Glancing back to where Eryn was helping he shared his plan through the bond she formed I'll get the Frost back, will you deal with the rest of damage?

14:38, Today: Marcus rolled 4 using 2d6+1.  Discern realities - Frost.
Yay for XP? If asking - What should I be on a lookout for?

[Over this way,] Thomas said to Ilura, doing his best to guide her. [Dip a little to the left. Your other left. Pull up a bit. Spread your tail. Fan your wings now. Fan. Fan!] Ilura crashed into a wave with a graceless splash and tumbled a bit in the water. It did what she needed though, and she could start to see once again.

And one of the first things she noticed was the myriad of wreckage strewn about the sea. Planks, charred canvas, the fallen, loose cargo, and pieces of rope. Basically the only places not covered in debris are the areas where her acid cloud had dissolved it away. Even now her cloud of acid rain was changing the color of the sea beneath it as the magical precipitation mixed with the ocean water. It was slowly spreading her way.

What's more, the ranger caught sight of the sharks from earlier. They looked curious about the new wreck now that the slug was gone. And some of their other buddies were surely nearby too.

Up on the decks of the Lessthansix, Marcus was able to quickly spot where Frost's stasis bag was floating among the debris. It hadn't gotten all that far from the ship yet since the ship wasn't moving much, but it would still take a short swim to reach it. Or a ride in a lifeboat, but judging by how quickly bubbles were escaping it, the remaining air inside would not keep it buoyant much longer. Marcus had maybe 20 seconds before Frost began to sink to the depths.

What do you do?

---

Ilura
What is about to happen?
The acid rain's acid will soon spread across the water to Ilura if she sits still too long. And she isn't immune to it either.

What should I be on the lookout for?
Those sharks from earlier are drawing curiously closer to the new wreckage.

What here is useful or valuable to me?
There is still plenty of stuff floating around from the original sunken ship, the nearly sunken pirate ship, and the heavily damaged Lessthansix. Some of it potentially swallowable. Let me know what you find!

Marcus
What should I be on a lookout for?
You should be on the lookout for a way to hurry and grab Frost from the sea within 20 seconds. Or on the lookout for a way to retrieve her after she sinks to deep water...

Her eyes clear, Ilura struggled to figure out what to do.  Her insides were warring with her.  Part of her wanted to gulp things down, another part of her wanted to belch up acid.  And the normal reflex that would have just let her return to her own form strongly suggested that doing that just now would be ill-advised.  None of the floating debris looked terribly appetizing.  The dead bodies would have been a dinner made in heaven for a typical queen sea-buzzard, but Ilura couldn't bring herself to stomach the idea.  In fact, the very notion of it made her struggle for a moment to keep herself from belching forth the contents of her belly.

Deciding that warding off the sharks would be a good idea, she flew towards them, then belched a huge quantity of acid onto the water above/in front of them.  It probably wouldn't do them damage directly, but they'd sense it and hopefully realize this wasn't a great place to hang out.  Plus the cloud would soon follow her, reinforcing the threat.

Her belly now empty, it pronounced it's displeasure at its emptiness.  The ranger scanned the water for something to eat.  Most of the local fish had disappeared - the sharks and sea-monster had convinced them that this was not the idea location to hang out.  So that left the debris.  Finally she spotted something that might work.  A broken crate of hard-tack was floating on the surface.  Doubtless now soggy with salt-water, but more appetizing than the alternatives still floating.  She flew over and scooped it up with her beak, tossing down her gullet.

I will, Eryn replied to Marcus.

She was grateful for Ilura and the others' effort to douse the flames. Despite the setbacks they had suffered, the ship would at least stay afloat for a little longer, and hopefully carry them safely to shore. With sharks in the water, it would be critical to avoid having to do repairs below the waterline too.

The warrior looked with concern at her transformed ally, who was busy throwing up corrosive liquid. I'm not sure if Ilura has proper control over the acid, she communicated to Marcus, without looking at paladin. Having cleared away the last of the debris from the trapped sailors, Eryn had already let go of the broken mast and moved to help toss smoldering pieces overboard. Get out of the water as soon as you can, she continued. I'll help you as best I can.

---

I'll standby for a little bit and help Marcus. Are there are any undamaged rope coils around? If the sharks aren't scared away by the acid I think I'll focus on them.

I might need some help with that. Marcus replied to Eryn as he dropped his shield, backpack, and the borrowed sword to the deck. He grabbed an end of a coil of rope without checking what it was attached to and jumped into the water, swimming towards Frost.

I'm guessing some sort of Defy danger? Str to swim in armor? Or Dex to get there fast enough? I probably don't have +1 as I failed Discern roll, so I can't get to 10+
07:45, Today: Marcus rolled 7 using 2d6.  Defy danger - get to Frost.

I'll keep you secured, Eryn communicated, and grabbed the other end of the rope Marcus had taken with him. She considered simply giving the paladin as much slack as possible, but decided that it would be best to keep her hands close to the current length in case Marcus or the body started sinking. That way she could haul them in with fewer pulls.

As the rope slid out meter by meter past her gloved fingers, Eryn wondered if it was really worth trying to save someone who was already dead, in the middle of such a catastrophe, but then again the captain had sold her soul... Wicked as that was, it wouldn't do to abandon a lost soul that still showed a chance of redemption, even if it was a fate they had brought upon themselves.

Can we even save Frost at this point? she found herself asking, even if she already anticipated Marcus' reply. If she is dead, and she never fulfilled the contract... Were you in time to bag her body, Marcus?

---

21:23, Today: Eryn rolled 9 using 2d6+1.  Aid Marcus with the rope. +1 from bond.

Ilura's acid belch seemed to have the desired effect on the two sharks she targeted. They had decided they might have better luck elsewhere. Perhaps other sharks would show up later, or perhaps not. But those two, at least, would not be returning any time soon.

When Ilura found the hard-tack to gulp down, the agitated sea-buzzard within finally seemed to calm itself and Ilura could feel her natural form taking over once again. She managed to land back on the ship with relative grace even as she resumed her human form. [Much better than your last landing] Thomas commented. The cloud still followed near her, but it had lost is sickly acidic quality and was back to being a harmless white poofy fluff.

The ranger found herself standing next to Eryn as the powerful warrior worked to Hoist Marcus and Frost back up onto the deck. The paladin had taken a quick dip into the sea to retrieve the captain's body, powering himself through the waves even while wearing armor. And with Eryn's help to reel them in, he made it back before his muscles decided to give out.

As Eryn helped hoist the bag over the rail, some of the seawater within spilled onto her. Which would not have been a problem, except it seemed it was infused with Frost's icy essence. The extreme cold prickled at the fighter's skin, hurting her slightly, but was hardly worth noting.

The trio of adventurers finally found themselves standing together once more, overlooking the utterly disastrous results of the last hour. No immediate dangers were presenting themselves and the three adventurers finally had a moment to breathe. Now they only had one question left to answer. What would they do?

---

Ilura
You are back in your human form with the other two at the rear of the ship. Your cloud is no longer producing acid rain.

Eryn
The "danger, retribution, or cost" from Aiding Marcus was that a bit of extremely frigid water got splashed on you. Like, liquid nitrogen cold. Take 1d4 damage. Armor counts. You are currently standing with the other two at the rear of the ship.

Marcus
I went with strength for your roll, which gave you a 10 with Eryn's Aid. You have successfully retrieved Frost and are standing with the other two at the rear of the ship.

Ilura helped the others clean up debris and assist the wounded, keeping an eye out to see how the crews were handling the new state of affairs.  She personally saw to tending to the halfling she had shot earlier.  Once he was healthy enough to answer questions, she asked a question that had been on her mind for a bit.

"Did the triton who brought you to attack us work for you?"

Focused on catching his breath, Marcus clasped Eryn's hand in thanks and nodded to Ilura glad to see her in control of her form and new magic. Then he sat down leaning on the railing to give his body a moment to rest. He watched Ilura walk over to the pirates and he glanced at Eryn Should we worry?. The spell she wove between them was proving quite useful.

It took a while, but the severely injured Cecil Stowaway, first mate of the pirate ship, finally came to. As his eyes fluttered open and he realized what had happened, his first words were, "The Cork. Is screwed..." He then went into a coughing fit before he was able to elaborate further.

With heavy breathing, he continued, "The fish-girl, Sybilla, did work on The Cork, long ago, yes. Back when she was just a guppy of a woman. But I was still surprised to see her today. Still *cough* I didn't expect her to *cough, cough* betray us the way she did. 'Cause of her, The Cork bobs no more." The old halfling man went into another coughing fit, pounding his peg leg against the deck where he sat. He had a hard time talking, but the frown resting between his muttonchops indicated he was truly disappointed that his ship was gone now, due to Sybilla.

"It seems that betrayal is her thing.  I wanted to appologize for shooting you during the fight.  It was somewhat unsporting, but it seemed the best way to get your men to lay down arms and cross peacefully.  In the end, it saved lives."

"We could lock you up and turn you over to the authorities when we get to port.  Or you could help us get to port sooner and get this ship back into sailing shape again and leave with your men and a chance to start a different life."

She reached out to her goddess, hoping that the mother would be more true than the magic items she'd struggled with of late.  Mother, let me know the heart of this man, so that I can see whether I might trust him.

quote:

20:10, Today: Ilura rolled 8 using 2d6+3.  Cast Detect Alignment.

I'll forget the spell

"You're the one who did this to me?!" There was a flash of anger in Cecil's eye, but it passed the moment he moved and pain resonated through his body. He took a couple of deep breaths before continuing, much more calmly this time.

"Well, if yer looking for forgiveness, ye ain't gettin it from Cecil Stowaway," he said, referring to himself. "That bein' said, I ain't gonna send a swarm of assassins after ya either. I'll do what I can to help get back to port. By the looks of things, unless you have a trick up your sleeve, we'll have to use the anchor to pull us back into port..." It did not look like Cecil relished the thought. His eyes subconsciously glanced down at the magic boots Ilura was wearing. "You, ah, didn't happen to grab anything else off Captain Rutherford after you skewered him, did ya?"

When Ilura prayed to her goddess and looked at Cecil, she could see an aura surrounding him. It was a grey aura, with a tinge of black here and there. Which was actually much lighter than several of the other nearby pirates who had much darker auras. The ranger got the impression that Cecil was not particularly evil, but certainly not good either.

What do you do?

---

Ilura
I wasn't sure if you wanted to detect whether he was good, or whether he was evil. I went with evil. He isn't a great guy, but he's not particularly evil.

"Use the anchor?  I'm not sure I understand...

As for forgiveness, no.  Nor am I offering any for what you and your crew did to the previous ship.  More a question of amnesty for those who help us get back to port.  If there are any you think are more likely to slice throats than assist, we can keep them well-fed in the brig until we make port - you can decide.  But we'll hold you personally responsible for the actions of your men...

In terms of other stuff, he had a few things on him, but the boots were most important.  There were sharks in the water and it was rather important that I get out.  Did he have something that would have gotten us back to port sooner?"

Yes, that's what I was going for.

Cecil seemed to be content with the rough truce that had formed. He replied, "Rutherford always claimed he had an ace up his sleeve. A bauble that he said represented a "favor the sea-maidens owed him." Said he could smash it open and collect what was due." Cecil shrugged. "Probably just hogwash, I guess. The anchor it is then, I suppose. Ya gotta have a couple people put the anchor in a rowboat, row it as far toward shore as you can go, then drop it into the sea. As you reel the anchor back in, it pulls the ship toward the point where it sunk. Slow going, but its how you can move a big ship like this without wind. Or in our case, without a sail."

"Probably be wise not to send my guys out to do that though. Not by themselves. The greedy barnacle-lovers would probably just drop the anchor and row the rest of the way to shore, leaving us stranded. Don't try ta cage them either though. Less you want a face full of lightning. Tread firmly but carefully, and get a bit lucky, and I'm sure you can lead everyone back ta shore without making any more heads roll."
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:18, Mon 22 July 2019.

"I don't think we need to worry about ourselves for the time being," Eryn said. "Both the ship and the crew are pretty beat up, but I'm told we're not too far from shore and we seem to have the situation under control."

She looked at the body bag lying next to Marcus and rubbed her temple in frustration. "I don't know what to say about Frost, however. Sybilla stabbed her before I knew what was happening. I hear rumors that the pirates arrived because she asked them to attack as well. She was part of their old crew. I knew we had a mutiny in the works, but I was hoping to corner Frost in the captain's cabin and press the issue of the devil's bargain, not go straight to killing her."

The warrior leaned on the edge of the ship and gazed outwards across the waves. There was still a lot of blood and debris in the water, though they had drifted some distance from where the two ships first clashed. "What do you think we should do once we get back to shore?" she asked the paladin.

---

15:36, Today: Eryn rolled 1 using 1d4.  Damage from ice water.
Minus armor that's no effect. Good!

"We can open the bag and I can heal her, but her wounds might be beyond my abilities." Marcus followed Eryn's glance, unease forcing him to look away shortly after "And there is still the matter of breaking the contract. If we have nothing else to go with, we can try to revive her and explain the situation. She might have contacts in the port." his pursed lips betrayed he wasn't thrilled with facing the captain after everything that happened to her and the ship.

The other question was as problematic and the paladin gazed across the water to unseen land. He probably wasn't looking in the right direction either. "Get our bearings. See if there are any news about the activities in the jungle. Find some allies." All were easy to list, but might be difficult to achieve. "With all the mishaps, I don't like to ask this, but is there a way for you and the pirate mages to move the ship?"

Eryn grimaced. "I don't think we should bet our survival on my magical abilities." The warrior still felt the sting of failure after causing the fire earlier, and despite the redeeming factor of her trying her best to save everyone Eryn couldn't help but linger on the thought that some of their own lost sailors may have fallen only because they fell victim to the flames. She thought of how to convey this concern to the others, but decided it was best not to linger on the issue. "I don't have any spells that can move the ship. If no better solution presents itself I was thinking of having Ilura turn into a bird or fish again, in an effort to fly and fetch someone from land who can rescue us. Maybe someone who knew Frost, as you suggest, Marcus."

Eryn looked back over her shoulder at the bag containing the captain's body. "Terrible mess she got herself into, this. Terrible decision to accept a devil's bargain, at least, but I recon she had no choice if the overlord's followers demanded it..." Her thoughts drifted off for a moment, before she recalled another detail. "You told me she helped you earlier," she said, nodding towards Marcus' arm, "how's your condition? No odd side-effects manifesting, I hope?"

I guess I don't really have much to add at this point. Carry on.

Marcus, how is your arm? Have you experienced any side effects from the fire, Frost's death, or other factors? As for healing Frost, a simple cure spell or Lay on Hands won't do it. She is definitely dead. You could certainly try a level 3 Resurrection spell though, If you prepare it.