At the edge of the poop deck the brim of a black hat rises, revealing beneath it a goateed and mustached man wearing a grease stained white collared shirt. His eyes  dart quickly about the deck, taking in the scene, a smirk on his face.

“Oho, Orlov, you charming shamanist, there you are! I’ve been looking for you. I had a chance to catch up with our friend Gregory, said he had quite the…experience with you the other day. More shenanigans, that doesn’t surprise me, I says to him, but he tells me it’s not your usual pageantry and conjurer’s tricks—I kid, I kid!—but a genuine artifact, the real deal. And Gregory, he tells me, leave it alone, or talk to you. So here I am, talking to you. And while I’m talking let me just compliment you on that waltz you’re dancing, I learned it as a boy and you have quite the roguish take.”

At that he waltzes backwards a few paces, transformed for an instant into a young Sallician gentleman, before falling to the ground, pulling into a tumble, and leaping his whole body onto the edge of the poop deck roof with a laugh.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:00, Wed 12 June.

Orlov's bird manages to locate a particularly strong current of magic and pinpoints its location. You know that it has to be the place where the sanctum is located. His bird is simply leading the way in flight, so Orlov doesn't need to give it his full attention. He can engage in conversation with the others freely if he so wishes, while his familiar is leading the ship towards your destination.

While that is happening, you all think about what Tabitha told you about this particular sanctum. It's led by a witch of the Sisterhood known as Magistrix Yvonne Lebraux who is specializing in studying artifacts. The sanctum is located on the top of a hill on a small island, below it there's a small town where servants of Magistrix Lebraux and others from the Sanctum live. Visitors from the outside are mostly invited, those being merchants specifically contracted to supply the sanctum etc. Sometimes, complete strangers decide to visit the island and they are permitted to stay if they have peaceful intentions, but they are watched closely. So if you just dock there, you can be sure to be kept under a watchful eye, which will likely complicate your efforts to raid the sanctum. Tabitha also told you that Magistrix Lebraux is always looking for worthy apprentices, so that's a possible way to obtain access to the Sanctum proper, though only women are accepted by the Sisterhood.

Sean will go below and play cards with the men not on duty.

Downtime: vice to remove my stress.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:55, Thu 13 June.

Orlov regarded Carlo with a beady eye. "Thank you for not interrupting,  that shows you have at least some sense. Interrupting magic, or worse, a ritual, can be dangerous and cause it to fail, and cause shamans and witchdoctors to consoder eating your liver."

"Unless it's Wiremu of course, if he starts doing things with undead rats again, by all means throw him over the side. I'll summon the sharks."

"You are talking of the Pearl, were you? Gregor said to talk to me? Well, points for him. Aye, no shenanigans nor conjurers tricks there, that Pearl is a thing of power, it is the real deal. More, it seduces, it promises power and abilities beyond the scope of men, and more; and entraps and ensnares those who try to claim ots gifts. Many are trapped inside"

"The dance? You are good at dancing are you? I was never trained, I just listen and pick things up. But if you listen,there is a rhythm in things: in the beat of your heart, in the rise and fall of the sea, in the swirling gusts of the wind. Sometimes, often,the music and dance of Man echoes those natural rhythms."

"Show me you can feel those rhythms, and one day I will show you how to change them, and then maybe you will be ready to see the Pearl. Show me you can control yourself and we can see the Pearl together."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:48, Thu 13 June.

Carlo looks back at Orlov skeptically—Orlov was not nearly as forthcoming as he had hoped or, frankly, was used to. People like Carlo when they meet him, people tell Carlo secrets, people let Carlo take a little peek at hidden things. Clearly Orlov is not “people.” Mental note: figure out a way for Orlov to owe Carlo a favor. A pout starts to creep onto his mouth.

Carlo shrugs and nods. He forces a smile, which immediately grows into a genuine grin. “No one says you’re a fool, Orlov, no matter what else they may say. And I’m not saying anyone says anything! But I am saying you’re a bit of an oddball, maybe a bit unhinged, and clearly “—he gestures at the clear skies and calm waters—“onto something. Maybe on something. But you’re definitely genuine, if you catch my drift, and I know when to heed the advice of a wise man such as yourself. And especially a man with the Pearl. And make no mistake, Orlov, I want that Pearl.”

He turns and walks to the side of the poop deck, where he begins slowly stepping a waltz in sync with the rock of the ship. He stares into the horizon, stepping for hours, trying to feel the natural rhythms Orlov had spoken of, trying to hear his heartbeat, dreaming of a small shiny Pearl sitting in the palm of his hand, gleaming.

Downtime action: Train resolve

Later, after the sun has nearly set and the sky is a deep shade of purple, nearly dark—nautical twilight, is that it?—he stumbles belowdeck. “Surely Sean is up for a round of cards, and I wonder if he can tell me about that Pearl before I head to bed…”

Sean sat at a table with some sailors. To call it gambling was a bit generous since the average sailor had no chance against a seasoned cardsharp like Sean O'Rourke. See the wide brimmed hat of his countryman he cheerfully called out, "Carlo! Care to lose some money to me?" He grinned and pushed a chair out with his foot.

Carlo slides in next to the bald man sitting across from Sean. “Get lost, Gregory, I don’t want to see your face right now. Not that I don’t love your mug but your advice on that Pearl? Real garbage. Get lost before I gouge out your your other eye with my knife.” Carlo draws his stiletto from beneath his shirt, points it at Gregory, closes one eye, and stares down the blade with the other.

When Sean deals his cards he pulls them towards him with the tip of the knife. “It’s been a while since I let you beat me,” discretely looking at his cards. “Sure seem to play a lot of cards these days but hey, who’s to judge? What else is there to do, am I right?

“So what’s the news these days? I heard you and the witch doctor found some sort of magic jewelry. Sounds wild! What’s it like?”

Sean switched to Sallacian so that only he and Carlo understood, and responded to his "plays a lot of cards comment with "Practice makes perfect." Then he asked about news and Sean said, "No news is good news." Finally he came to the point. Sean stopped moving, stopped talking, stopped breathing. Of course Carlo wanted that pearl, the asshat was always trying to find something that would make things worse just because he was curious. After several long seconds he finally moved; his eyes narrowed, he shifted in his seat out of discomfort, and then finally he leaned in to emphasize what he was about to say, "Curiosity killed the damned cat."

He turned over his cards without looking at them, "Whatta ya know, I win. I could have milked that. I could have won that hat of yours. Take it as a win and listen to me. That thing is dangerous. It almost took Orlov's mind. Someone like either of us goes messing with it, they would not be as lucky. They could endanger the entire crew, and you know how I get when someone threatens my crew. I can't stop you from being curious, I can't stop you from trying to make a play for that thing, but I can warn you. Endanger my crew and I draw my sword. People die when that happens. You are no longer welcome at this table."

This is both in and out of character for him. He is always highly protective of the crew, but he never threatened other crewmen. For him to be this spooked says an awful lot without actually making a word. Mentioning his sword means he is absolutely serious and not just making idol chatter. Whatever he saw with that pearl scared him shitless and he is terrified someone will monkey with it and that will cost them all more than they are willing to pay.

When Sean finishes talking, Carlo carefully, slowly uses the stiletto to pick a piece of gristle out from between his teeth. He looks at it closely, then snaps his wrist and flings the morsel into the shadows. He stabs the stiletto through his cards and into the table and stands up.

Switching back from Sallician to Valdesian, he looks around at the few men nearby, then at Sean. “Don’t get all out of breath there, Seanie boy. I’ll take care of my business and you can take care of yours, and there won’t be any need for trouble. Trust me when I tell you, I bring a whole mess of trouble. And hey, next time? We play dice.” He pulls the knife out of the table and slinks away, shoulders slouched so he looks all cool like—or maybe a little chastened.

Out of earshot he mutters to himself. “Don’t listen to him, the witch doctor is the key, Sean’s scared out of his wits. That just confirms it, we’re dealing with a genuine artifact, let’s keep an eye out for this little Pearl.”

Downtime action: Train playbook
This message was last edited by the player at 12:48, Thu 13 June.

"So what's our plan for when we get to the island?" Orlov asked at dinner the night before. "I intend to stay aboard ship, at least initially, and either support from here or come ashore later."

"We need some people to go ashore and scout the area out. Sophia, do you want to look into joining up and becoming and acolyte? Carlo, are you going to just sneak around? Who's doing the talking? Sean, do you have something planned?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:24, Thu 13 June.

Sean just shook hus head, "My sword does my talking for me."

"So are you going ashore, or staying out of sight until there is need for a sword?"

Sean just nodded "The later."

“Oh I’ll do some talking, that’s for sure, people tend to take a shine to old Carlo—I’m charming and very persuasive, if I say so myself.

“An escort for Sophia seems like a plausible ruse to get one of us in the door with her. But I do think it may be profitable to treat ourselves as several groups that happen to each have a different reason to visit this sanctum, and each of whom have contracted the services of this ship. This gives us greater latitude to operate independently, and more of a chance to gain information. Then another of us might pretend to be a representative of another faith, or a dealer in genuine artifacts looking to talk shop with a fellow appreciator of the occult. Now that I say it, that has quite the nice ring to it, I think I rather like that disguise. I dare say I have the knowledge to play the part…

“That would get Sophia, Orlov, and myself into the sanctum. This first time in will have to be a recon mission. Sean, would you be willing to case the town, get to know the locals? It may pay for us to know an escape route through the village. Naturally, I understand your inclination towards cards and swashbuckling above all else…”
This message was last edited by the player at 23:41, Thu 13 June.

A very pretty girl at any time, Sophia still looked well-put together even after her time spent imprisoned and on the high seas; she had her secret ways. Sophia's colorful petticoats and the scandalously short cut of her dress would have advertised her as a working girl of the docks back in Greater Cuiverra, but she wore them with grace and even pride, and ate with refined manners any noblewoman might envy.
She smiled mischievously at Orlov when he asked her a question. "I'm pleased you think of me as so noble and magical, mister Orlov. But being serious, yes, I can pretend to be a prospective apprentice quite well, I think." Orlov was an odd one, and she couldn't figure him out. All the same, he'd saved her back at Puerto Serena, so even if he didn't exactly look like a swashbuckling rescuer of damsels-in-distress she valued him. "If mister O'Rourke will be waiting on the ship, perhaps we should arrange a sign for him to come in blasting and rush to the rescue if anything goes wrong? I already spent more than enough time in a cell back on Puerto Serena and I should prefer not to spend any more in such a place."

"Hmm, I'm not sure a trader in artifacts is wise, mister Valenti di Vespoli. I'm no expert in these matters but would that draw attention to the very thing we want them not to be watching?" she pointed out. "And on a side note, if you were looking to lose money, I can make it much more enjoyable than mister O'Rourke's card game can" she teased.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 16:55, Fri 14 June.

“Ah, but a dealer in rarities inspects, appraises, appreciates. Hefts in his hand, perhaps. Is shown to the room that holds all the treasures. A connoisseur like this Lebraux magicker will surely jump at the chance to put on display the breadth of her knowledge and the finery of her possessions. I know I would.

“And I dare say for your cover, why would you have traveled all this way to undertake an apprenticeship if not for the specialization of this particular Sanctum in antiquities? I fear we cannot avoid the topic of the antiquities.””

Carlo winks at Sophia. “You flatter me with your interest, my lady. I have no doubt my money would leave my pockets quicker, too. No, Mr O’Rourke has given me…clarity on whether it is advisable to risk my coin, and I think I’ll hold onto it dearly for now.”

"If we portray ourselves as serious collectors and traders, then we n<DarkBlue>eed to take the Pearl" Orlov said, "Which means we might lose it we might be forced to trade it, or they might try to take it. At the least, there will be a clear link from here to Puerto Serena for those trying to follow us. "

"If we don't take the Pearl, if we just rock up as connoisseur and traders without anything to trade, then we will be marked as likely theives."

"Alternatively, we could genuinely seek to trade the Pearl, and if security is lax we take all, if they are competent we just trade and leave."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:43, Fri 14 June.

Sean said, "Get rid of it. As long as it isn't gonna hurt any of our crew, I'm good with it."

"People do like to show off their finery" Sophia conceded to Carlo. "As for why I want to join, I was going to try to flatter her and say I came to learn from the Magistrix, but I suppose that does come back to artifacts, mister Valenti di Vespoli."

She smiled in response to Carlo's wink "For now."

"Well, money generally works for trade, I don't think we need necessarily offer an artifact" she replied out to Orlov. "But you're the magic expert" she added deferentially. "Do you think they'll want the pearl?

"Well, I could be wrong... but I thought these people wanted to collect artifacts in order to keep them out of the hands of Valicians, Sallicians and Revellans, to keep them wild and free or in the hands of Waturey witchdoctors. I'm sure I heard that somewhere, I'm just not sure if that's these people or not."

He shrugged. "We could try money."

GM, is Orlov on the money here or not?

"Money is only one side of the equation, if we offer coin we must be buying something. Buying artifacts..." His eyes gleam. His ears also pricked up at mention of the Pearl, but he says nothing and pretends he didn't hear.

"From Revellans? What's we do?" Sophia said, mock-wounded.
"In my opinion money is always worth a try" she said. "What do we know about this artifact? How determined are we to acquire it?"

"What do we want to know, and how are we going to find that out?" Orlov asks. "This apprenticeship, what does it entail? Are the acolytes locked up in a shed or do they have the run of the island - meaning, my dear, can you get messages to us? So we might spend a day or two in port thinking about that."

"What security is there, is there a fort full of soldiers? Or powerful occultists? What powers do they have? Do they have allies in the sea? You might ask about that Sophia, if you're concerned about your safety on the island."

"Where are the artifacts, are they securely locked up, are they guarded?"

"Let's spend half a day, then meet at an inn for dinner and we will talk about it. There should be at least a couple of inns, I'll book a table at the better one."

OOC: What time of day is it? If its morning, lets meet for lunch, if its midday now, lets meet for dinner.

"I'll see what I can find out. It's not normally hard to get sailors talking. And it's well worth it if I avoid being locked in a shed" Sophia responded. "I don't suppose magic can help with messages?"

Sophia stood and curtsied formally, as though to a noble. "Dinner, then. Sounds lovely"

"Talk to the booby" Orlov said. "He can't talk back, but you can talk to him. Maybe he can scratch in the sand or something."