Xao leaves the others to speak while she keeps an eye on the hatches and thrusts her spear through a rotted deck board where she hears some scratching.

Zug Zug decided to outsmart the one ghoul trying to come up through a closed hatch by giving just enough room for it to pop the hatch up, but as soon as the fingertips came through, the heavyweight orc would stomp on the hatch again to slam it closed. Zug Zug did pick up an acual set of boots and put them on. He was 300 pounds. Hatches were metal. Metal smashed or severed fingers. Ghouls couldn't claw anything if they had no fingers to use as claws...

"Pearl is correct, we found a few things of value. As to the ghoul's, there appears to be a half dozen or so. Some went to the cabin, and another to the hatch there." She point's at the various locations they can be heard from.

Peppery nodded and prepared another fireball as Zug Zug did his best to crush any hands or faces that popped up out of the hatch.

"There is a long boat. Below me. Jump!"

Sure enough alongside the ship was a nearly empty longboat. What was odd is the ship didn't have longboats when they had left (they had gotten smashed during the storm) and the style on the boats didn't match anything they had seen before but the rowers were definitely part of the pirates so it must have been recovered from one of the ships.

<b>"Jump! Jump! The whole ship's about to go under..." came the cries from the boat. Between whatever those rumblings were and Peppery's fireballs it seemed like the integrity of this blasted ship had finally gone to zero. The deck was trembling and quaking beneath their feet, tiny spiders were swarming every which way to find stable land and through it all they could hear the scratchings of more ghouls clawing through webbings beneath the deck.

So as you make your escape the big questions is what do you present as loot you found and what do you keep secret for yourself? See OOC for more info

Rafe doesn't need any further urging as he takes a running leap, landing in the rocking longboat.



In case a roll is necessary:

10:28, Today: Rafe Rookward rolled 23 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 16.  Athletics check.

Zug Zug brought up the rear. He didn't care about the others in a way that meant he was sacrificing himself so they could get on first. No, no. That was stupid. This was a point of pride for the brutish, green, barbarian. Of course, doing anything for the sake of pride was even more stupid, but try explaining that to an orc and see what happens. Zug Zug was determined to score the last hit. He had to be the last one standing, the last one to leave the fight, and he needed to be seen doing it. After all, to the pirates, he was still just a big dumb orc that could barely speak. His duty was in the kitchen. Being underestimated was of course, the whole point. But if he could at least look like a bad ass at busting heads, he might get the chance to do this again...

Once everyone else he could see had taken off, Zug Zug came a lumbering and a hauling ass. He slung his greatclub and actually dove off the side towards to rescue ship. With a splash, or a thud, or something, he bounced and rolled or otherwise flopped. "Zug Zug no like stupid dead things. Go sleep now." He was tired.

Of course the loot was the first thing that had been loaded but once that was secure the crew helped the adventurers down one by one. Peppery floated down into an empty space and expertly braced herself. With a wave of her hand she let loose a gust of wind that pushed the boat quickly away from the sinking/burning/undead infested wreck that had once been a magnificent merchant vessel.

While sifting through the items in the crate, Xao notices something that is quite odd. While most of the crates are full of random trade goods: textiles and small pieces of arts & crafts, there is a simple glass bottle with what looks like a map shoved inside.

Technically it has no intrinsic value but if it lead to something wonderful...what was something to consider.

---

The boat ride back was anything but quiet...

Manning one of the oars was none other than Rosie Cusswell, the surprisingly strong halfling that had become friends with several during the course of their original journey.

"So...it looks like you had an interesting time."

She pauses in between her sentences in time with the rhythm of rowing back towards the Wormwood

"More so than us....we found an....empty ship. Three boats missing....must have fled...good haul. Now we have....a boat."

She might be short but she made it work to her advantage allowing her to wedge into a good position and throw her entire body behind the oar. She might be small but the muscles bulging on her arms were anything but.

"Very interesting indeed. I actually had to pull Drakar out of his slumber to help us out a couple times." She said back to Rosie as she leaned back and sighed. Drakar circling overhead.

Pearl was actually thankful they were on the small boat now.  She didn't want to deal with the undead ghouls or whatever else was on that ship as it sank to the ocean floor.

When Xao pulled out the bottle with what seemed to have a map inside, Pearl said "just break the darn thing.  We can toss the glass overboard.  If it is a treasure map that is good news.  If it is some love letter, then, well, we just hand it over.  All this other stuff we should just hand over.  It could be a show of good faith on our part."

Xao gives Pearl a bit of look that could be interpreted as anything from absent to wishing her a swift death. In a blink the look is gone and she smiles while popping the cork and dropping the the rolled parchment into her hand. "Well bless your heart." She says sweetly "I never would have considered those options." Without any more delay she unrolls the new acquisition and begins examining it.

Zug Zug barely sat up. He produced the spider and the Shaman's eyeless and tongueless head for Rosie and the wizard girl to see. "Stupid orc try an eat Zug Zug. Zug Zug no food. Stupid orc. Zug Zug no taste like chickens or fishes. Zug Zug smash stupid orc." He beamed with exaggerated pride. He pointed at Pearl and at Vander. "Zug Zug likes. Gooder Fighter. Always better fighter than puny elfs. Gooder healers than old shamans." He thumbed himself. "Goodest fighter. No get chomp from bugs. Smash stupid orc. Smash stupid dead things. Now stupid dead orc has no eyes no thing." Zug Zug wiggled his tongue and pointed at it when he said thing. "No stupid orc in hell an no see no talk. Just hear ancester ghosts make funnies at him."

Zug Zug the pulled put Fish, the squirming  box turtle with a literal #3 painted on it. "Fish makes good luckies!

Pearl's outburst makes the rowers pause but luckily the other rower was Sandara, another ally of the group. Peppery had taken flight again to give the sinking ship one last look over and seemed to be out of earshot giving the group time to quickly slip the map out of the bottle.

Quickly glancing at it they realized that it was a map to the infamous Redclaw's secret stash! One of many legendary pirates of old, Redclaw terrorized the seas decades ago. It was even rumored that she was on track to challenging the Hurricane King for control over the Free Captains but then she just disappeared. The popular theory was she had gotten so crazy that she had sailed into the Eye of Abendego to challenge the hurricane itself.

Regardless of what her eventual fate was, as is customary her secret base of operations was lost with her and her crew to be added up to the legendary stashes of many other ancient Free Captains lost at sea. There is no telling if the map is authentic or not, forgers sell authentic treasure maps to this secret stash or that but it does seem a reasonable location. About 200 miles northwest of Port Peril, one of a number of small islands in the archipelagos common in this region. Isolated enough to to provide safety and security while just a few days sail from several major ports including Port Peril. In addition the direction allowed it to easily mask where it was coming to or from because it could easily alter its course to just look like it was heading around the island chain.

If Redclaw was as much a terror as the stories said she was, it seemed a likely spot to take.

"Excuse me Zug?" She said flatly, causing Drakar to even fly down and hover near him. Huffing in his face in a bit of contempt. "I assume you mean elves other than me?" She continued flatly.

She then looked towards Pearl and Xao. "Well, what is it, map or note?"

Xao quickly shoves it inside her inner garment and puts the bottle back as a bit of junk treasure.
"We aren't going to speak of this when those who cannot be trusted are near. If this map is real it can make us all ridiculously rich. If it isn't, well, it will still be a grand adventure." She says in a hushed tone to not carry beyond the splashing oars. Looking at each of those in the boat to gauge their reactions she whispers again. "We're going to need a boat. We're our own crew now."

Zug Zug looked at Kalia kind of funny. "No excuse!" He touched her bicep. Then he flexed his 28" python. "Puny elfs. Elfs eat more food get buff like orcs." Zug Zug flexed again. He growled and looked mean. "War faces. Elfs make no war faces. Elfs make pretty faces. Zug Zug say... Kaylia is... is is not puny-ist elfs. Not so puny like stupid orc!" He beamed happily and held up the shaman's mangled head for Kalia. "Kaylia Elfs lives. Stupid orc not so much."

When it came to treasure and boats and maps, Zug Zug was largely indifferent. "No more dead things boat. Next some small fish boats. Have many boats."

In reply to Xao Fang (msg # 236):

Vander sat and listened, but nodded at Xao's words. The sooner they where away from the pirates, the better. Granted he would like to shoot a few arrows into the captain's back, and save the prisoners he held. That just did not seem possible for now...

As Xao pocketed the map, Pearl made sure to note where exactly just in case she needed to get it.

"So, no one else was able to recover anything from the other ships?  Must have been picked by others far before we came.  I know we don't know either of you, but where do your loyalties lie?"

Kalia laughed a bit at Zug when he spoke. "You are funny Zug, that is why I like you. And strong. That's why when I become one of the Free Captain's, you can definitely be one of my top dogs." She said with a small grin.

Then she looked to Pearl with a perked red brow. "Uh...that's Rosie and Sandara from the Wormwood...  From under our...original Captain. Before all this shit started. Rosie's with us, and I think we can trust Sandara. She just wants to keep her head down and keep as many people as she can breathing."

Pearl looked hard at Kalia, "As you have just said, the former Captain is dead, so where do their loyalties lie now?  Or more precisely, Who do they lie with?  Sorry if I wasn't clear enough the first time I asked."

Her eye's very nearly flashed with the cold burning stare of a dragon. "And I just answered you. Rosie is with us, and Sandara simply wants to keep her head down." Then she looked at the two. "Correct?"

When Pearl asks about the other ships Rosie gives a shrug as she rows.

"I don't know about the others but our ship didn't have much. Whoever abandoned ship took anything valuable with them. Lots of parts for repairs and general supplies though. We'll be eating well for the rest of the trip back. And hey, we got this boat out of it that we can use to save your butts. With the ship sinking like this Harrigan didn't want to bring the ship any closer."

When Kalia mentions Sandara the pirate lass frowns.

"It's not about keeping my head down, it's about what you want out of life. I want to be a pirate, to sail the sees free. If Harrigan can do that for me then I am willing to give him a chance. How it happened with Sorina...that was unpleasant but that is life on the seas. She could have surrendered and ended up putting us all in danger because of it. That is the risk you take, we all take. Besmara gives and she takes, just like the ocean itself."

Pearl noted each of their responses and even though it didnt answer her question she had gotten an idea.

"Your answers are good." She said with a thought. "I came here, exiled from Kyonin, because I was bound to Drakar from birth. My parents would not kill him, because doing so would kill me. So I left, came here, and never turned back. I want one thing, to be a Free Captain, and to carve my own path just like some of the legends!"

Then she looked to the others and grinned. "My name, Kalia means Dragon Mistress. The sea's and everyone on them will know me only by that, because of the fame we will have."