Corsairs

[Ridai]

Another evening, the sun flaming red and reflecting on Bordansa Bay. Another evening on land, confined to the prison without bars that is called the city of Bordansa. Tiana's gaze drifts to the boats of the fishermen, all too familiar, as well as the more majestic ships of all kinds of sizes further down the bay where the royal navy had their local headquarters and also ran the prison. Things are winding down for the day, the last ships coming in with the evening tide, the many men of the crews looking forward to coming ashore and heading home or into the nearest tavern. Once again, Tiana is reminded that in the kingdom of Tallos, ruled by the young king Vardran XIII, encompassing the known world, no woman will ever be part of a ship's crew, join the military or have a say in politics. Admiral Breighton, a living legend that was equally feared by some, ensures that the age-old decrees are upheld.

The wind sweeps through Tiana's hair, like strands of flame drifting on the breeze, the sea whispering in her ear, calling for her, like it does every day. But every day, she is denied the means to answer the call.

Turning away, the streets of Bordansa greet fair Tiana instead, much too familiar at this point, confining almost. It is a lively port, one of the most important ones of the kingdom and gateway to the wild seas, harboring lands to be discovered and taken. It is a fair city, for the most part, but the vision of one who would rather visit it after a long time at sea rather than living in it does tend to differ from that of others. People are finishing their business throughout the streets, many walking home or seeking some entertainment. It does not take long to leave Fisherman's Haven, the district she grew up in, adjacent to the Alleyheart (as it is commonly referred to), the core of the city filled with winding streets and countless little paths between them like a big, confusing maze. Many sights are to be seen and found here, both for the casual observer, but more so for the open-eyed explorer. But those drifting from the main paths at times also learn that there is no shortage of people willing to take what they want and in turn provide the Alleyheart with blood on the stone walls of its veins.

Drifting through the streets with sure steps, a particular establishment draws near. Lights shine through the windows and the opening and closing door of the Wishing Star, the tavern bustling with life without being overly full, the sounds of a good evening to be had, of chatter and laughter and gambling, of music and song reaching Tiana's ears as the shadows grow longer, the scent of beer and rum, of fresh bread and sizzling pork sneaking their way into her nostrils.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana pushes open the door to the Wishing Star, smiling a greeting to old Rad, the innkeeper. She finds an unoccupied table, her gaze taking in all the patrons in a cursory fashion; although any that present a potential threat are noted. She orders a rum to start, and her normal helping of bread and pork from the waitress, and then watches the activity; gambling or song hold a bit of interest to her, but nowhere near enough to fill the void that exists within her.

[Ridai]

Old Rad nods back and soon after laughs his rumbling laugh as if it has been rolling around in his wide girth before erupting through the rows of teeth missing a few of their little ones. He isn't exactly a lovely sight, but he has a way of making people feel welcome and his habit of laughing the loudest about almost any joke under the sun is just one of those idiosyncracies that make him who he is. "Hey Lucky" Lilly, the young waitress, greets Tiana with a recognizing smile and soon brings her order. Tiana can smell that telltale little detail she only found here so far and Lilly confirms it. "A little extra on the house," the lovely lass adds with a smile and a wink. A little pot of herb butter rests on her tablet, both for the bread and the pork. She isn't sure what they add to it to make it taste and smell so good, but it hardly matters. This stuff isn't even on the menu, only given to friends of the house.

As she eats and drinks, she finds the usual crowd of regulars and complete strangers. Her gaze drifts across the familiar gamblers at their usual table together with a few trying their luck at "liar's dice", an older man at the bar with a steaming tea cup in front of him of all things, next to him a younger man Tiana can't really see much off, though she does see a distinctive light scarf. Both clearly aren't from Bordansa or anywhere nearby. The older man says something and Old Rad gives a particularly loud belly laugh. Her gaze continues, seeing Lilly gracefully balance her tablet as she maneuvers between the guests and tables, a quick answer always on her lips. Three rough-hewn fellows at a distant table register as your average cutthroats, trouble always to be had, but they don't seem to do much more than glower at nothing in particular, so it seems they'll behave in here. The band is playing their wide range of songs, and this one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC1umOD9tWw) in particular makes several people join in at the short chorus. But it also only makes her even more aware of what she is being denied.

There is a combination of dismayed outcries and joyous cheers and one not-quite-sober sailor gets up from the gamblers' table, snake-lining his way to the exit, grumbling and burping all the way. Tiana becomes aware of someone attracting her attention. Trusty Gallan is waving to her, the aging man that is at at the Wishing Star almost every night, gambling away, breaking even most nights, sometimes losing a bit more, sometimes winning a bit more. All in all, it is remarkable that he has been able to continue for this long and have a good time doing it all the while. "Come on over, Tiana, the dice are calling your name," he says, gesturing to the emptied seat, in a good mood as always. One of the regulars "ooh!", looking forward to this as playing Tiana is always fun, one of those at the table is becoming a little shifty-eyed, one laughing nervously and probably considering to stop, but his growing pile of coins keeps him at the table.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana isnt called Lucky for nothing, there arent too many people that can beat her at gambling, the dice just seem to love her. She doesnt get too many chances to play, most people in Bordansa (or at least in the areas she frequents) know all about her luck and usually find somwhere else to be when she sits in. That, and not wanting to lose a ton of money when she is between assignments (as she is now) tend to limit her number of games. But the player with the large pile of coins doesnt seem to know her, and lightening the load on his side of the table only seems fair to her. While a smile, Tiana brings what is left of her meal and sits in the open spot, calling for another rum as she gets ready to join in.

[Ridai]

Tiana settles in, Lilly bringing her rum and declaring "Two drakes on Lucky", a few people taking her up on her bet. The buy-in is one gold drake (the gold drake being the equivalent of 1 gp and the kingdom's highest currency), which is still a lot of money for most people. Trusty Gallan pushes a cup towards Tiana to roll and cover her dice. "Be so kind and kick this one off for us, me lass," he adds with his familiar smile. Whether he wins or loses, it does not matter much to him, he loves the game and the act of playing. Looking around the table, there are three more players beside herself and Gallan. One seems competitive, eager to make his comeback this evening. One seems on his guard, trying to determine what his chances are with Lucky now involved, definitely more careful. The last one is a stranger, having won a few times, who seems to be made a bit nervous by the prospect of an apparently famous player joining the game (and this player being a gorgeous redhead to boot), but his pile of coin fills him with perhaps misplaced confidence.

Now then, it is time to roll the dice.

So this is how this will be done. Playing the game (see the rules in the OOC) of course would be much too time-consuming, so we are going to handle this as a single roll per session. Given that Tiana's best applicable skill modifier is Bluff (the other being Sense Motive to get a bead on bluffs and what dice the others could have), make a Bluff check and add your maximum number of luck rerolls per day (in this case, 6) as a bonus to your check. Given that this is inherently partly luck-based, you can reroll this check with any of your luck rerolls as per your Lucky class ability from Daring Outlaw.

The odds are heavily in her favor, but it isn't an absolute auto-win. But she does have an edge, even against skilled players. In this case, though, there isn't any serious competition.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana flashes her winning smile at Gallan, spinning his and her cups at the same time and slamming them with authority on to the table. Given that luck is usually with her, she starts with aggressive bids, seeking to knock a few players out early.

[Ridai]

"That's what I like to see!" Gallan calls out as Tiana rolls both his and her dice, the others following suit. Gambling against Tiana is playing with fire and in this round, her competitors get to feel it. Her bids are aggressive, quickly leading to people entangling themselves in ludicrous bids or calling valid bids, and she manages to nail two spot-ons when it is her turn once more, making the competitive one at one time state that is is like Jupiter is whispering into her one ear as Venus is kissing her other cheek. A game of liar's dice goes by quickly with experienced players, but this one feels like it is over before it started, Tiana the definitive winner, with all five dice still in her possession and four drakes the richer. Lilly watched and cheered as she passed and when Tiana delivers the final blow, she cries out delightedly and hugs her from behind, collecting her spoils from the bet as Gallan laughs happily despite losing, the losers of the bet grumbling and the cautious player getting up from the table with the few coins he has left ("I ain't betting 'gainst luck"). The stranger with the now less big pile still feels this can only be a minor setback, right? He does have difficulties taking his eyes off of Tiana, frequently distracted (once even calling a bid that wasn't possible due to too few dice left on the table).

"Good evening, lady and gentlemen. Mind if I join in?" A calm, soothing voice asks, belonging to the younger stranger that sat at the bar, wearing the scarf. Tiana sees that he is a handsome young man, looking a little tired, but having warm amber eyes, a rather handsome face, short dark-brown hair and a wiry but appreciable shape, dressed like a traveller at home on the sea, his arms beneath his rugged jacket wrapped in various bands, his boots looking well-worn. He looks to the table with a genuine likeable smile, looking forward to a fun round or two.

Trusty Gallan looks up to him and gestures to the free seat with his usual smile. "Not at all, lad, sit right down. Buy-in's a drake. Or do you want to up the ante? I'm feeling fair Tiana's luck rubbing off on me."
Sitting down and grabbing the free cup, the young man smiles in return, reaching into his pocket. "Sure, why not?" With a swift motion, he slams down three drakes, followed by the cup, having an air of sureness to him, the serenity of someone not too concerned about his chances, the others following suit. Casually peeking below his cup, he announces the round's first bid without delay. "Seven fives." Trusty Gallan raises his eyebrows in wonder at the opening bid as most others look a bit taken aback. Lilly still bets three drakes on Tiana.

Mister Big Pile gives a slightly nervous laugh. "That be a shaky bluff if I've ever seen one, my friend."
The young man just smiles in return, the joy of playing visible despite his apparent tiredness. "Let us see, then." He raises his cup, revealing only two fives. Mister Big Pile feels confident, soon after lifting his cup as the others including Tiana follow suit, but the confidence does evaporate soon after as there are a total of 8 fives on the table, leaving Mister Big Pile one die closer becoming Mister Smaller Pile.
"Your bid, please, sir," the young man overplays the slight embarassment he sees on the face of the loser, creating a more comfortable atmosphere and making the game continue without a hitch, Gallan already rubbing his hands and laughing at how the round started.

This could get interesting.

(Another dice check, please.)

[MikelaC1]

Since she is playing with house other peoples money, Tiana has no problem in going on. In contrast to her early rolls of authority, she now rolls daintily. Her bets are still aggressive, without even looking at what her cup has hidden, she announces her first one 8 sixes

[Ridai]

And the round begins. Five players are in the game, but it quickly becomes apparent that this is a game between Tiana and the young stranger, the others long eliminated when they are actually starting to lose dice. He is genuinely hard to read in terms of his dice, but he looks like even with the stiff competition and him losing dice, he can take his mind off of things with the game, perhaps supported by that faint tiredness. He is good at this, recognizing subtle plays few would catch and complimenting on them with the appreciation of someone who knows his stuff, reacting to losing dice with enthusiasm to win back some ground and enjoying the successes he earns. Tiana manages to win the round, but remarkably, she only barely manages to do so by calling his bid spot-on (and even by her standards, that could have gone very wrong very easily). "Almost. Ah well, good game."

Bolstered by the won money, Lilly once again raking in the money as well (though more have been betting on Tiana this time), going for another round isn't too much of a wager. This one goes much like the last one, Tiana and the young man being the ones left, her opponent having a die less than her. But suddenly things change and just as Tiana barely won the second round, the young man takes the third for himself, in itself a remarkable feat. Lilly is stunned, not even registering the three drakes she lost. "Phew, talk about luck. Good game, ma'am." he says.

By now, their fellow victims players leave the game, Trusty Gallan knowing when to pack up, but visibly entertained by the display, the competitive player stomping off and Mister No Pile dazed and confused, leaving slowly. The young man thanks them for the games and looks over to Tiana. "Haven't had this much fun with dice in a good while. How about a tie breaker, individual hand, since it's just the two of us now?" He reaches down, pulling up a slender, slightly curved sheathed blade and placing it on the table. It is hard to judge at a glance, but it definitely seems to be a quite fine blade, even at casual examination. "Wagering this against your pile." It sounds almost absurd and he clearly is not a foolish man, but he seems quite alright with the most likely large difference in value. He sits opposite to her, still quite at peace, awaiting her response. Unusual, that one. Tiana has the feeling that his senses are sharp, observant, his mind not lacking either. But perhaps more remarkably, he treats Tiana as an equal, right from the beginning, not even showing signs of feigning anything. Unusual for the seafaring kind.

[MikelaC1]

Why not? Its not like I have to be anywhere, tonight or tomorrow. Lets do this

Someone who knows Tiana really well might hear the slight regret in her voice, about not having any responsibilities.

[Ridai]

He looks her in the eye for a moment, perhaps seeing more than others, perhaps not, but he soon shows his warm smile again. He takes his dice, shakes them in the cup and slams it onto the table, more with swiftness than with force. "Alright, then let's start this off with a pair of threes."

This round of individual hand liar's dice is remarkably long for such a quick game. The bids steadily climb, Tiana at times feeling there might be a bluff, but her intuition still goes for a higher bid, trusting in her luck. She has four sixes and a five, an absolutely marvelous hand, but her opponent is formidable, especially so in this variant. Never has she had to bring this much skill to the table and trust in her luck so much, at times feeling she only barely was able to convince him she wasn't bluffing. Lilly (having bet 5 drakes on Lucky) and several others are watching with baited breath, even the band is mostly playing tense, quiet music as they themselves watch the display, each turn raising the tension. It might be frustrating to some, but this round, more than anything else, is just a lot of fun. Gambling has been without much in the way of a challenge in the past, which is nice to line her pockets, but isn't all that fulfilling while doing it. Nothing really wagered, nothing really earned, no real risk taken. With this one, things are different. She has come so close to losing big time in this round, each turn a small victory earned with cunning, effort and fortune.

"Five sixes," he announces, taking people aback. The best hand in the game. It can only be a bluff, right? The odds of getting that are so low. But his confidence is apparent, almost terrifyingly so. Lilly looks wide-eyed, her body so tense as she has been semi-embracing Tiana for almost half the game, rubbing her shoulders as encouragement. Tiana has no difficulties seeing that the girl loves to see her win (and not because of the money she wins by betting on her, that's just extra), she looks up to Lucky (or Lady Luck, as she sometimes calls her) in many ways. She doesn't want Tiana to lose, not even caring about the drakes she would lose if she did.

It has never come to this. If Tiana doesn't call the bluff, she will have to go with his bid and then there is no way to be safe anymore. He would call her bluff and she'd lose the round she has fought so hard for. But what if he really has five sixes?

This is it. If he has five sixes, the game is already over. All that is left is to trust in her own luck. Go big or go home, the victor takes the spoils. Nothing wagered, nothing gained, as is the way of the sea, as is the way of a pirate.

[MikelaC1]

Question. Are we going one against one, or are we going on the combo game form? And is this on the hand where Tiana is already having the 4 sixes? Making him only need one more in his call?

[Ridai]

First off, this question belongs in the OOC thread, not the IC thread. Posting here as editing my last OOC post could get missed.

Second, he did say individual hand rules, as in the one-on-one variant. I'm assuming you mean the common hand variant by "combo game form", usually played in groups, and you can't bid pairs or other hands in that variant. Saying "five-of-a-kind with sixes" sounded way too awkward and I don't know how such a hand is "properly" announced in actual poker or liar's dice. But he bid the highest possible hand. Tiana's only possible moves are calling the bluff or also bidding "five-of-a-kind with sixes" for her own hand, as she can't go any higher.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana has no choice. She cant over bid him, as she doesnt have 5 6s herself. Besides, would the dice gods give both her and him a total of 9 6s. He has to be bluffing.

Im going to call that bluff

[Ridai]

A sly smile spreads across his face, Lilly noticably on edge, interpreting this as a bad sign. "That's too bad, ma'am." He lifts one edge of the cup just enough to reveal his dice one by one.

Six.

Six.

Six.

Six.

He pushes the edge of the cup between the four revealed dice and the last remaining one, concealing it. His confidence and sly smile are unbroken. "Care to up the stakes a bit more? I'll add my 15 drakes I have on the table to this fine edge, if you can match them, with coin or otherwise." One hand is firmly placed on the cup, the other under his chin, his face incredibly hard to read while looking into her eyes.

[MikelaC1]

It will have to be otherwise, I dont have that kind of coin. But I'll put it down, you dont have the last one

[Ridai]

Another pause. Then he starts laughing cheerfully, lifting the cup, revealing a five. He puts the cup aside, clapping as he laughs. People are going loud around them as bet results are given and taken alogn with lots of chatter, Lilly crying out and kissing Tiana on the cheek before going beet-red, quickly handling collecting her spoils.

"Good show, good game. You've got a lot of moxxy, ma'am, and I hope you'll never lose it. Well then, let's make this official." He gets up, taking the sword, pushing his pile of gold towards Tiana. Then he walks to her and, with an elegant flourish, offers her the slender sword with the grip pointed to her. "A risk-taker's sword for a fearless lady." It is a truly elegant weapon, balanced impeccably, with golden patterns adding to the impression of both usability and style. Even in defeat, he does not seem at all bothered by losing the gold he won last round as well as the sword.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana picks up the sword, barely looking at the coin left on the table. She tests its balance and feel, finding out just how well it reacts in her hand.

This looks like a weapon that has seen plenty of battles in its day. Fighting off pirates and sea monsters?

[Ridai]

"Countless adventures, each as different as its owners, though it never stayed with one for long, few having the qualities it looks for. Fortuna favors the lucky and bold and I have been looking for where it belongs for a while now. Perhaps it has found its home in you, ma'am. The more you prove yourself to it, the more it will aid you and be a trusty companion at your side, come hell and high water." The blade feels like a natural extension of her arm as Tiana grasps it, moving with swiftness and precision, the blade softly singing as it cuts through the air. The is a sense of daring to it, very much in tune with her own nature. It is a blade made for adventure, perhaps only intensifying her longing for the sea. Can she prove herself to the blade, bound to land as she is?

[MikelaC1]

Fortuna? Ive heard tales of swords that feel they have a name. Well then, Fortuna it is...hopefully I can prove my worth to it, and it to me. Not that it will be doing any sea battles for a while

Tiana only takes about half of the coin piled on the table, leaving the rest as a tip for Lilly and Rad.

[Ridai]

Tiana is now 16 drakes richer. Lilly's and Old Rad's eyes go wide as they see the generous tip, smiling and nodding to her. The young man inclines his head as he looks at Tiana, curious. "Yet you look every bit like a woman made to sail the seas." He offers a firm handshake. "My name is Remenos, or Rem as most people call me, for admittedly good reason. I cannot help but wonder what would keep someone like you confined to land."

[MikelaC1]

You can thank Admiral Breighton for that, and the traditions of Bordansa. Bordansa sailors and fishermen believe that a woman aboard a ship is bad luck, especially one that draws all the good luck to herself. And Admiral Breighton is nothing but set in his ways. The tradition is now the rule, and any captain that dares to break it would find himself court-martialed if he was in the navy or ostracized if he was a fisherman

[Ridai]

"Oh the sad state of the kingdom." Rem answers with a sigh, gesturing to Tiana to follow him to a more quiet table where they can talk. "That does leave rather few options society deems respectable. Though I must say I find it hard to see you catching fish for a living, day in, day out. Or slaving away in the military. I believe there is too much fire in you for those kind of things, that rare deep shade of red of your hair only underlining this. Very few women can claim to have it and each one has it for a reason. I say good riddance, nothing truly lost. It does make me curious how you seek to solve this impasse of yours, though."

[MikelaC1]

Thats the part I havent worked out yet. Its not that I wanted to fish for a living mind you, but it would have been out on the sea. Sadly, even that is closed to me. I had hoped that a time in the navy, I could have proved myself and quickly advanced beyond ordinary seaman. When they wont even let you on board however, its hard to prove yourself

[Ridai]

"I see the signs of existing experience. Given that the laws and customs of your homeland do not allow you to do what you want, you could set out to change them. Even with the restrictions on the rights of women, a lovely and cunning lady like yourself could achieve a lot. Or" Rem starts, entwining his fingers in front of his chin. "you cast off what restricts you and join those who think like you."

[MikelaC1]

I wasn't aware that there were any that think like me.

[Ridai]

"There are those who do not live by the kingdom's rules, for one reason or another. Some are scum, some have fled, some simply do not care, some want to bring change, some just want freedom. You aren't the only woman who wants to sail the seas. Several have taken matters into their own hands and started doing just that. If a man told them they should not be on a ship, some of them would laugh in his face, some would not even hear his words, and some would gut him where he stands. A few of them command their own ship, answering to no one."

[MikelaC1]

So where can I find these trail-blazing women? And what sort of tests does one have to pass to be allowed to join them?

[Ridai]

"Not in the bosom of the kingdom, that's for sure, and even when they are here, they would not reveal themselves. They are out there, on the seas and in the parts of the kingdom that worship coin more than the king. But they are not all the same. Who you want to find depends on what you are looking for in your endeavors. There are plenty of outlaws, but also many different kinds of them. Look over there." Rem says, subtly gesturing to the three rough-hewn men cursing into their liquor, grumbling about lost money. "The common thugs that make up a lot of those preying on those in the harbors and those venturing across the seas. Is that what you are looking for?"

[MikelaC1]

I want the taste of adventure, the taste of salt on my lips, and the wind in my hair. I want to leave a mark in a positive way, to be an example for others and to prove that a woman can do all that a man can do. Im not a common thug, grubbing for every last copper he can get.

[Ridai]

Tiana can see Rem evaluating her words and her conviction, and eventually, he smiles warmly, leaning in. "Have you heard of the Scarlet Corsair?"

[MikelaC1]

That sounds positively piratical. The regular sailors, they dont trust me much so I dont get to pick up on gossip or tales of the sea. So the name is unfamiliar to me. Would she be interested in signing up someone who knows every shipboard detail and can navigate by the stars even on a cloudy night?

[Ridai]

"Perhaps you have heard of a fire-haired she-devil, her wicked sword burning with hellfire, her devil eye flaying a man's soul with a single look and her sword arm felling a dozen men where they stand in mere heartbeats. Her ship, the Crimson Tide, is said to have been given its color by her with the blood of a thousand, the ship cutting through the waters like a knife, carried on the back of the souls of the dead. At least that is what people whisper, while the administration declared her a heretic, mass-murdering criminal violating the laws and customs of the kingdom. And then there are those who speak of a proud lady forging her own path, slaying only the wicked and those who cross her and her crew. What is true, what is fiction? Does she look for more souls to join her crew and if she does, who is she looking for? Only the Scarlet Corsair knows. And there is only one way to find out." Rem once again examines Tiana's features.

"Tonight, past midnight, some of her crew will be going home, but not with empty hands. There is a small ship in the harbor of the navy, right next to the prison, there to deliver a number of goods to a nearby port, to supply the navy there. As you might know, security has been tightened up in terms of outgoing ships, the navy trying to crack down on smuggling. But a ship of the navy, no need to check there. The ship is called the Azure Arrow. If you want to join the Scarlet Corsair's crew, go there, help them, show them what you are made of and what you can bring to the table. Of course, getting into the navy part of town isn't as easy as just walking in, they won't want to see civilians there, especially not after nightfall. This might be the only chance you will get in a long while. There's no guarantee they'll accept you, no free ticket to be found here. But I imagine you aren't looking for something easy. Well then, why not try your luck?"

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes one final look at the man...I thank you for your help, Rem

She waits just long enough to see if he responds and then heads out. Seeing as she entered the bar around suppertime, she does have a bit of time to kill, so she finds some way to hide her features, covering with some camouflage, a bit of soot and grime to cover her face and dark clothing. Shortly before midnight she heads into the naval section of the town, keeping to the dark shadows and moving as silently as a ghost.

[roll0] hide
[roll1] hide
[roll2] move silently
[roll3] move silently

[MikelaC1]

(Expending two uses of luck, one on the first hide, and the second move silently)

[roll0] hide
[roll1] hide

[Ridai]

Rem gestures her goodbye. "It's been a pleasure to meet you, Tiana."

As Tiana is walking through the Alleyheart, thinking about her preparations for the night, she senses she is being followed. Standing behind her in the alley are two of the scum she had seen in the Wishing Star.
"Lost a lotta coin 'cause of you, lady."
"Yeah, just hand it over and we'll be real nice to ya."

The third of them appears to the other side of Tiana. "And some extra for the trouble you caused us." His filthy grin and low stares make it painfully obvious what that extra is supposed to be. The first two are carrying machetes, the third wielding a knife. The Wishing Star and situations like these, two sides of the coin that is the Alleyheart.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana produces her rapier almost out of nowhere and holds in front of her, it is clear from her stance that she knows what she is doing with it.

[roll0] initiative

[MikelaC1]

Third use of luck

[roll0]

[Ridai]

"Pfft, look at this dumb broad."
"Yeah, put that thing away before ya hurt yaself with it."
"Wouldn't wanna look at a messed up face when you pay us."

It is clear that they don't take Tiana seriously, closing in. Armed women are rare in Bordansa and to them, the only dangerous ones the few desperate, dirty ones that try to get by in the Alleyheart until a man shows them their place. She is deemed too pretty and thus only good for the kitchen and the bedroom. Initiative is firmly on Tiana's side, their guard down.

(Tiana treats all enemies as flat-footed for her first round.)

[MikelaC1]

With her enemy already flat footed, Tiana doesnt use her feint ability, choosing to keep that little trick under wraps for the moment. She goes for a quick stab at the one flanking her, hoping that a quick show of force will make them back off.

[Ridai]

Turning to the lone thug, Fortuna cuts through the air, guided by Tiana's hand. The thug seeks to hop back and it looks like Tiana is going to miss, the sneering grin on his face only adding insult to injury. But his foot catches on the uneven stones of the floor, making him stumble instead, Tiana's newly won weapon finding purchase and cutting surprisingly deep, even with Tiana's skillful swordplay that knows how to exploit openings and hit the weak spots. The thug is dead before he hits the floor, feeding blood to the Alleyheart.

The other two are much more serious now. "Get the bitch!"
They both rush her in blind anger, one going in for a wild swing, the other for a stab. Pathetically, the wild swinger rams his machete into a wooden beam, completely having forgotten how narrow the alley is, followed by a dumbfounded stare and him yanking on his blade to get it free again, even putting his foot against the beam for more leverage.

The other is surprisingly quick. Time seems to slow down for a moment. The machete's blade is already very close, her sword moving to intercept, but prevent a cut looks more and more unlikely. However, the way his blade hits her own, he suddenly is thrown off balance, stumbling to the side against the wall, leaving Tiana in top condition, Fortuna's grip firmly in her hand, an encouraging feeling emanating from it.

Tiana's turn.

That was actually your third reroll, not your fourth. You also forgot your sneak attack dice. I rolled them and they resulted in a 10.

Also, do make note of what I wrote in the OOC (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=17541872&postcount=24) regarding how damage and healing are being handled.

The remaining two thugs attack Tiana.
Thug 1 rolls 6, misses.
Thug 2 rolls 18, but curiously misses as well.

Fortuna is revealed to be a +2 rapier that increases Tiana's Lucky ability. Her luck bonus to AC while wielding Fortuna is increased by 1 and she gains an additional reroll.

[MikelaC1]

The thug that just struck at Tiana could have sworn she was cutting to her left, that was the exact same move she used on her first attacker and then when she is suddenly on his other side, he cant defend himself. Her rapier rams into his side, seeking to end a second opponent and hopefully the fight

[Ridai]

The thug shouts out in pain and soon falls silent, slumping against the wall and sliding to the floor. More blood for the Alleyheart. The remaining thug still pulls on his stuck machete before he sees that his buddy is dead as well and the woman is still standing without a scratch on her. Any courage is completely gone now, just leaving his weapon where it is, running away in panic.

No blood sticks to Fortuna, remaining perfectly clean. For the moment, there is an eery quietness in the dark alley, until a light shines to her from where the two thugs had come. "Halt! Drop your weapon and put your hands where I can see them!" City guard, basically extended military and navy. The man has his spear in hand. They are never patrolling alone, so more will be here soon, backup not too hard to call for either.

The thug rolls a pathetic 4 on the Sense Motive check and is subsequently skewered.

[MikelaC1]

A woman killing, even in self defense, is not going to fly in Bordansa. Even if it did, the delay in sorting things out would cost Tiana any chance to make that ship...and she is making that ship if she has elude every city guard and naval watchman in the city. She attempts to hide in the shadows and make her way silently in the other direction.

[roll0] hide
[roll1] move silently

[Ridai]

Tiana is standing in the light of the guard's lantern.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana curses inwardly, but lowers her weapon

I was assualted by these three thugs, who lost money gambling against me at The Wishing Star

Her weapon is now pointed to the ground, but she does not let go of it.

[Ridai]

"We'll find out whether that's true or not. You're coming with me, lady. Drop your weapons." The guard draws closer, sword in hand. The way behind her is still open.

[MikelaC1]

Ive seen more than enough of what passes for justice from Vardran. I'll take my chances on my own

Tiana turns and flees the other way down the passage. As soon as she gets a chance to go a different way she takes it, and starts to hide and move away as fast as possible.

[roll0] hide

[Ridai]

"Stay here! In the name of the law!" Tiana gets a headstart, the guard quickly giving chase, the light of the lantern bouncing wildly. The redhead darts down the alleyway, past the corpses, the guard slipping just a little on one pool of blood. In the distance, she can hear backup closing in, but they aren't a concern in this moment. She cuts the nearest corner tightly, making a sharp left and quickly reaching a crossing leading to other alleys. Knocking over a stack of boxes on a right corner, she quickly dashes into the opposite direction, hiding behind a few rotting crates to the left. The guard reaches the crossing, the lantern's light dangerously close. Tiana can see him looking around for a sign of her, pressed for time in terms of picking a path. He spots the knocked over boxes and decides to make a right. He is shouting out that a criminal is on the run, also adding the crossing where he last saw her and a rough description, before heading the way he picked.

Tiana managed to create some breathing room for her, but this is not over yet, hearing responses in the distance. The guards are searching for her and she has a boat to catch. Noises echo slightly along the tightly packed walls made of houses, the other sides of the houses leading to different alleys. She can see the stack of crates she hides behind reaching moderately high up, leaving not much distance that would have to be climbed to reach the slanted roofs. Of course, she has a decent hiding spot with the crates. She could try to move and evade the guards by sound, or go all-out-aggressive, tricking guards with feints to get past them. Or she could fight her way out. Whatever it is she wants to do, she should do it quickly, the clock is ticking.
Guard rolled a 19 on Spot. Luck is definitely on Tiana's side right now.

You have several courses of action right now, but you can only make one per "turn". There is no "right" way here, each action is done against a DC or a check by the guards. Succeed often enough/come up with good ideas and Tiana gets away, fail often enough and she gets caught or has to fight her way out. Generally, the faster Tiana moves towards her goal, the more risky/difficult things are going to be, but if she makes it, she can get away quicker and save time. Staying put and hiding is easier, but wastes more time. Perception checks can be made the action for this turn, if justified well.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana thinks quickly. The guards would have a much harder time to see her if she took to the roofs, as well, she could more easily monitor their positions by seeing their lights from up top, and use that intel to make her way towards the boat, while slipping through their net. She decides to climb up, and make her way by rooftop

[roll0] climb
[roll1] balance
[roll2] hide
[roll3] move silently

[MikelaC1]

(spending luck reroll on climb)

[roll0] climb

[Ridai]

3 / 7 rerolls

Tiana scales the boxes and the rough wall up to the roof. Her hand slips once, but luckily, she finds another stone jutting out of the wall to catch herself, quickly getting up onto the roof. Another guard soon comes jogging down the alley she has been in. From up there, she gains some advantage in terms of reconaissance, but the winding alleys and streets, together with the high, steeply sloped roofs don't give her more insight than the street she is currently next to and perhaps a few crossings ahead or behind her. She would need to be up on the middle of a roof to see the other side and gain more insight, but the tiles in this part of town are not to be trusted, dirt and the offal of seagulls rendering them slippery as well.

The row of houses she is on continues on for some time, leading towards the bay, neither really bringing her closer to the navy headquarters nor further away from it. There are other rows of houses that wind towards the navy headquarters, but one would need to cross the gap that is the alley dividing them, be it via jump or crossing some of the beams and planks between the rows, seemingly either there to support the slanted houses against each other or to let people pass between the houses without having to get down to the floor. However, both are thin and dirty and creaky, requiring sure steps to cross and some talent to remain undetected.

Move Silently for moving along the roofs.
Move Silently and Balance for crossing beams.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana adjusts her path to head towards the docks and her intended boat target. Moving silently has always been a talent of hers, and what little time she has managed to spend on a ship helps her sense of balance

[roll0] move silently
[roll1] balance
[roll2] move silently

[MikelaC1]

(spending luck reroll on balance check, appearantly the rolling deck of a ship or being up in the lines isnt the same)

[roll0]

[Ridai]

2 / 7 rerolls

Tiana almost glides along the roofs, silent and graceful as a cat, her feet silently stepping onto the tiles and avoiding the looser ones. She can hear the guards' voices echo in the alleys, sounding more and more discouraged, increasingly thinking they have lost her. Spotting the beam that will get her onto the winding roofs leading straight to the navy's harbor, she begins the perilous crossing. The beam is narrow, the edges rounded and slippery from use and from all the dirt and whatnot that has gathered on it, leaving little room to maneuver. She tests the wood and is able to distribute her weight evenly, avoiding any creaking. She takes a few steps, but the ground is extremely treacherous. On her last step, she almost falls, but manages to catch herself, leaving her in the middle of the beam, right above the alley, the wood emitting only the faintest creaks. Regaining her footing and balance takes a moment or two.

A guard comes around the corner, holding his lantern high as he looks into nooks and crannies on the ground level. The night is overcast, Tiana's form drawing not much of a shadow that would give her away, but the guard is right below her, the light creeping up the walls looking quite hostile now, Tiana suddenly very aware of the bit of wind blowing through the Alleyheart and the dirt that could drop from the beam. "Can't find anyone," he calls out, waiting for answer, but still looking.

Balance check and Move Silently check.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana is almost holding her breath as the guard hovers underneath her, this is almost as exciting as she imagines the actual sea voyage will be. Trying to keep her balance and move forward, she concentrates on both silence and balance

[roll0] balance
[roll1] move silently

[Ridai]

Only a few more feet. Each step comes with agonizing tension. A little creak, some dirt falling off, even her falling, all of this could screw her up and make that one chance she has disappear forever. One step, then another, and another. The wind threatens her to lose her balance once more, the way the beam is attached to the building suddenly looking not very trustworthy. On the very last step, Tiana feels some of the dirt come loose and with the same motion, she hauls herself onto the roof, pressing herself flat against the slanted structure. Tiana can see a crow land on the beam, the light from below being directed a bit more upwards. The crow caws to what lies below. Faint brushing sounds can be heard from below, tense seconds passing, Tiana unsure if her angle is enough to hide her. "I hate this place," a voice below grumbles, footsteps leaving, as does the light. The crow picks at the beam, hops onto the roof, picks at the tiles and once at some little bit on Tiana's boot. It looks up to her, inclines its head, cawing at her before it takes flight. And taking flight is what Tiana does as well, in her own way.

The roofs become flatter, allowing Tiana to run more easily when she hears the voices giving up the search. She didn't feel it, but she was holding her breath back there, against the roof. Now the nightwind feels so good on her face, in her hair, as she runs towards her goal, well before midnight. She feels her heart beating fast, feeling so alive, there, far above the ground, free like a bird, unchained by the miserable society lurking below.

Finally, she stands at the edge of the last roof, overlooking the gate to the navy harbor. Given that it is midnight and nothing special is going on, there is a guard in the little booth by the gate, a lantern shedding some light, a few guards wandering the prison and headquarter buildings, the harbor itself enclosed, a far gate needing to be opened to enter and leave it by ship. To the left of the gate are the walls of the complex, difficult to scale without equipment, but not impossible for Tiana. To the right of the gate, the wall ends as it reaches the bay, the rough and slick harbor wall below it as well as the wooden structure built in a line through the water to divide the bay. Getting into the harbor is the main difficulty, after that, finding the Azure Arrow shouldn't be that much of a problem.

And the guard rolled a 16 on his Listen check. Due to fantastic rolls and a helping of luck, Tiana got away.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana tosses a few crumbs to the crow, silently thanking him for his aid.

Once at the harbour navy gate, she slithers down to the ground, and creeps to the walls of the complex. She moves as quietly as possible, using the shadows for cover, and finds the most secluded spot to scale the walls and slip inside

[roll0] move silently
[roll1] hide
[roll2] climb

[MikelaC1]

(not going to blow it at the last moment, I will use a re-roll on that hide)

[roll0] hide

[Ridai]

1 / 7 rerolls

Tiana is a moving with speed and grace. The short bit to cross the street is scary in a way, completely out in the open for a moment. Pressing against the wall, a few tense seconds go by. It sounds like the guard thought he heard something, perhaps even craning his neck a bit to see out the gate, but most likely passes it off as his tired imagination. The wall is relatively smooth, but Tiana scales it swiftly, despite how difficult such a thing is even for her. Staying low as she reaches the top, she drops onto the other side. No guards out and about, really. Just the one by the gate that is easily enough circumvented, the rest preferring to stay inside. Although, she does spot one in a tower. But that one is clearly taking a nap. So much for navy security.

The pier is easily reached, a bit lower than the rest, providing her cover from anyone who might look out of a window or go for an unexpected stroll. Many ships are in the harbor, big ones, small ones, slow warships, fast couriers. The Azure Arrow is one of the latter, towards the back of the pier. A nice little ship, that one. Doesn't have much space for freight or crew compared to the bigger ones around, but that hardly matters for its purpose of swift deliveries. Tiana sees that the gangplank is down. Now where are the-

A hand covers Tiana's mouth and drags her into the shade before the Azure Arrow's bow, out of sight. She is almost lying on the floor, barely having been able to perceive the motion, feeling like she is falling, but is safely caught. "No guards, lass. Relax, then I'll let go, alright?" The quiet voice sounds like that of an aging man, a certain comforting depth and rasp to it, sounding calm, even friendly. His grip also isn't tight or restrictive. He watches for a nod, then lets Tiana go. As she turns around, she said aging man squatting in the shadow of the bow, a staff on the ground and leaning against his shoulder. He is simply dressed, a common white hempen shirt and simple brown pants over a lean body, worn boots on his feet. A ring hangs from a thin chain around his neck, there is an unruly shock of grey hair on his head and what looks like an eternal stubble on his face. There are many small wrinkles on his face, especially around his eyes and mouth and forehead, but he wears a friendly, relaxed expression, not at all alarmed by her sudden appearance or where they are right now. He looks like a kindly man, easygoing, one who smiles a lot. "How can I help you, miss?" he asks. An odd question, especially here, to a complete stranger. But it looks like nothing could disturb his serenity.

I am assuming you were rerolling that Move Silently, not Hide.

Lo and behold, that reroll saved you.

The guard rolled a 19 on Listen. I'm not even kidding.

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] sense motive

Tiana is a bit wary around the old man. I was told that I might find people who think the way I think around here. People who do not hold someone's gender against them when it comes to things they want to do, goals they want to pursue

[Ridai]

The old man gestures to her to quiet down, but his mood doesn't shift. "Aye, you found them, I'd like to think. We're on our way out and back to the Crimson Tide, we'll just need to escort a few gentlemen off this here ship. Marina's working on the gate," He gestures lightly to the wall in the water enclosing the navy's harbor, where Tiana can just barely make out a shape... lightfootedly walking and hopping along the wooden structure towards the gate, normally reached via the stone wall that ends in the gate tower. Honestly, if the old man hadn't pointed her out, it is doubtful Tiana would have noticed. "Derrick'll be here soon. Ah, there he is." Looking to the side of the ship opposite the gangplank, Tiana sees a figure silently emerge from the water, beginning to climb the hull. "People call me Good Ol' Harman, pleased to meet you. Would you be so kind and follow me on deck?" He smiles and gets up, sauntering towards the gangplank with his staff in hand, leaning against his shoulder, even quietly humming. He walks up the gangplank and on deck, he greets the guard that had just been dozing off. "Good evening, sir."

The guard is confused and alarmed, but before he can say anything, he is knocked unconscious from behind by the dripping figure that just climbed over the railing. The muscular young man shoves strands of wet black hair out of his face, wearing a vest, wide pants that end somewhere below the knee and not much else. Grey eyes look to Harman, then Tiana, then Harman, then Tiana, then back to Harman. "Who's this?" Judging by his voice, he isn't concerned with a woman being onboard, instead just surprised to see an unfamiliar face beside a man he seems to know.
"A nice young lady who has been looking for us, apparently." Harman answers with his usual calmness.
"Huh. Neat. Name's Derrick." The young man says, wiping his hand a bit on the sleeve of the unconscious man before stepping over him to offer a nonchalant handshake.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana tries to see if there is something on Derrick's hand before she shakes it
[roll0] spot
and if she sees nothing, she will shake it.

A man named Rem saw me at The Wishing Star. He told me the story of a woman sea captain, who goes by the name of the Scarlet Corsair. Some call her a pirate, others a free spirit. The sea is denied to me by Admiral Breighton, and I don't accept that.

[Ridai]

Other than salt water, there is only a regular hand. "Yup, that's the captain, alright, miss... uh..." Derrick starts, not having heard his opposite's name yet.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana as she shakes his hand so whats the first course of business?

[Ridai]

"Right."
"Like I said, escort the gentlemen left on this ship off this ship." Good Ol' Harman repeats, ever smiling.
"Most of 'em are out on the town, so yeah. Knock 'em out, put 'em on the pier, off we go back home."
"I'll stay on deck. The night breeze is quite lovely." Harman sits down on the barrel the guard had been sitting on, sighing a little bit in relief.
"Right." Derrick throws Tiana a sap before heading to the door leading into the ship.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana catches the sap and heads through the door with Derrick. She's glad that the "pirates" are willing to just knock out their targets instead of just killing them outright. Tiana is not squeamish about killing when needed, but if knocking someone out will allow her to accomplish her goals, that's preferable.

[Ridai]

Both enter the dark interior, scarcely anyone to be seen. Soon, they reach bunk beds, the two men sleeping there quickly knocked into a deeper sleep. Moving quietly through the ship, Tiana is the first to notice mumbling in the distance, like a quiet conversation over a game, a light source somewhere further into the ship. Two men perhaps. But closer, she can hear some rummaging around in the galley, the door slightly ajar, the light of a candle burning inside. Both infiltrators are standing at the end of the rows of bunk beds, Derrick slightly behind due to dealing with the second sleeping man.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana figures that the man rummaging in the kitchen would have his back turned to door, looking in the fridge, and so she thinks she should be able to sneak up on him. Silently she motions Derrick to go forward and be ready to take care of the other two should she fail, and then she moves in, quietly. She creeps up on him, and quickly dispatches him with her sap.

[roll0] move silently
[roll1] attack (I know there is a penalty doing non-lethal with a lethal weapon, but I don't think it applies to a sap, since it is inherently non-lethal)
[roll2]damage & [roll3]sneak

[Ridai]

Tiana creeps into the room. It looks like the man is gathering a small midnight snack from what is in the galley, holding a tray, a candle on the counter nearby. A swift strike and he slumps somewhat noisily over the counter, the tray clattering to the ground. There is a tense silence, some words exchanged in the distance after a moment. If Tiana creeps towards the door again, she can hear steps coming closer to her. Out of the shadow, Derrick's hand darts forward, covering the man's mouth before there is a quiet impact and the man slumps, caught by Derrick and quickly carried to the side, stuffed under a bunk bed. Derrick goes back to his position against the corner leading to the hallway to where the man came from.

"Guys?" Someone whispers, trying to keep quiet. "Guys? What's going on?"

Rolls successful, the guard having rolled a 19 on Listen. But just knocking him out where he stands was, well, suboptimal.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana quickly moves into position on the other side of the hallway, waiting surprise him if he doesn't spot her...and if he spots her, Derrick should be able to get the sneak attack in.

[roll0] hide

[Ridai]

The man slowly, cautiously approaching. They can hear a sword being unsheathed and the light source coming closer. Tiana has a good hiding spot, but Derrick is much more exposed where he is right now. He realizes this, too, quickly making his way over to the bunk beds, as quietly as possible, and hiding under one of them. The guard is close to the galley door, where he stops. "Hello?" he asks, away from the galley. For a moment, it seems like he might open the galley door, but instead he heads closer to the bunk beds, closing in on Derrick's vicinity. Even if Derrick is a good fighter, perhaps even managing to catch the man off-guard, he'd be at a big disadvantage stuck under a bed. It would be difficult to say how such an encounter would end, if Derrick would be found. Whether that could happen is unclear at this point, so far the guard apparently has found neither Derrick nor his colleague, also stuffed under a bunk.

The guard rolled a 27 on Spot, too little to spot Tiana, but enough to notice something amiss in the general room.

edit: I also wrote back to Debbie about the Shiver & Shake game.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana steps out the minute the man moves past him and closer to Derrick, and attacks him with her sap.

[roll0] attack
[roll1] damage
[roll2] sneak

[Ridai]

The man begins to fall, with Derrick sliding out from under the bed with remarkable speed, barely catching the lantern before it can break on the ground and set it on fire. The guard falls on top of him, the sword sticking in the wood dangerously close to Derrick's leg. He sets the lantern onto the ground and pushes the unconscious man off of him. Looking at the scene and taking a peek into the galley, Derrick shrugs, given that no one seems to have been alerted. "Hm, I'll take it."

A quick sweep of the rest of the interior reveals that all crew members have been taken care of, followed by Derrick beginning to take the crew members out onto the pier. Outside, Harman sees that they are finishing up inside as they emerge with an unconscious guard each. When Tiana has put the one she carried onto the pier, the old man waves her to him. "Well done. Do you know how to ready a ship and get her out of the harbor?" he asks, standing up. Tiana can see that preparations to leave have already been started.

[MikelaC1]

This is the moment Tiana has waited her whole life for, trained her whole life for. Even the few times she sailed with her father, she was never in charge of the vessel. Even though she knew every procedure, every thing to check and verify. She goes around the ship, making sure everything is as it should be and giving the orders to ready the ship. Once she is fully satisfied, she gives the order to cast off.

[roll0] profession: sailor

[MikelaC1]

(gotta re-roll that one, not going to start sailing career sucking)

[roll0] profession: sailor

[Ridai]

0 / 7 rerolls

Tiana feels a bit jittery at first from all the anticipation, but soon settles down, the excitement guiding every motion. The pirates don't just whisk her away to some better place, they let her, in a way, liberate herself with every little step taken. Derrick places the last of the unconscious men on the pier, careful not to put them too close to the water, and brings in the ropes. The sails soon pick up wind.

"Splendid work, lass, splendid work." Harman says, nodding approvingly, no stranger to a well managed shipride. "Straight to the gate, if you'd be so kind." Derrick, meanwhile, takes care of whatever needs to be taken care of around the ship, evidently an experienced sailor as well. When they are a bit into the bay, closing in on the gate, Derrick says "'bout time they notice."

And not long after, Tiana can hear shouts from the shore, eventually followed by a bell and more voices. The gate is still closed. "Don't worry, lass. Just keep her nice and steady towards the gate, that's all that matters." Good Ol' Harman doesn't sound or look bothered at all, his calm infectuous as his voice puts aside what worries might emerge, given the situation. No doubt they are trying to get to the ships and the gate by now.

[MikelaC1]

Having seen a member of the crew earlier on the gate operation, Tiana has no problem holding the ship steady towards the gate. She expects that she will see it begin to rise shortly, no doubt followed by a dark ghost shape leaping onto the ship.

[Ridai]

Things start to get heated, a few ships beginning to give chase, a few arrows beginning to rain down, but most landing in the water. One or two stick on deck, in particular one barely misses Harman just as he bends down to scratch his ankle. Slowly, the gate before them begins to open, giving an opening just wide enough to get the Azure Arrow through. Tiana can see several guards running on the wall to the gate tower. The ships behind them are closing in as well. When the ship is almost past the gate itself, it begins to close again. Up above, a soldier stands on the edge of the tower, shouting something and aiming an arrow straight at Tiana.

"'scuse me, coming through," a female voice, definitely not lacking determination, says, its owner delivering a boot to the rear of the archer, who shouts some more, on the way down into the water in the bay. Swinging on a rope, the slender figure sets one foot onto the railing where Tiana is, her other foot drawing nearly a full circle in the air as she fluidly flips forward, landing on deck with barely a sound and no shortage of grace.
"My, aren't you a cutie?" she comments approvingly and suddenly she is beside Tiana... and steals a quick kiss from her, already out of reach of a quick slap the next moment. She is holding a piece of machinerie in her hand. "Ah, they won't miss this," Marina says, throwing it overboard, into the water. She is dressed in a top and pants giving her freedom of movement while accentuating her slender curves and looking stylish at the same time. Her skin is tanned, her long hair bound in a ponytail, with the occasional strand of hair escaping it to look a bit more rogueish.
"Yo." Derrick greets her as he heads towards the backside of the ship.
"Seriously, half the time I see you, you look like a wet, shaggy dog," she teases.
"Nice to see you as well," Derrick sighs back, grabbing a guard that is swinging towards the ship nonchalantly out of the air and throwing him into the water. Another manages to land on the railing, though precariously. Harman needs to only lightly tap him in the chest with his staff and he goes swimming as well. Just behind them, the gate shuts, the following ships trying desperately to stop, as do the guards rushing to the top of the tower, pushing the one most in front off the tower and into the sea as well. People shout that someone should get the gate open a small fire burning in the tower as well.

Smooth sailing from here.

Something thumps against the side of the ship as they get away from the harbor. Harman looks over the railing, reaching across it with his staff, down to the little boat. Soon, Rem emerges from beneath, smiling to the crew. He looks at the boat, everyone present and at the chaos they are beginning to leave behind.
"Evening. Looks like a job well done to me." He looks to Tiana. "Glad you could make it. Please set course towards the southwest, I'll get us going a bit faster. Hold on tight to the wheel." Rem turns to the sails and with a swift motion of his arms, a favorable wind towards their desired direction intensifies, letting them pick up a lot of speed.

Free. Tiana is free. She is on the sea, sailing a ship, no one bothered by her being a woman, no one there to stop her.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana enjoys the freedom of taking the wheel under a full head of wind. What few times her father let her take the wheel (and those were very few and far between) it was always under calm conditions where the ship had little speed. The spell that Rem has cast makes the ship move with a speed that she finds exhilarating, and navigating by the stars is something she is well used to.

[Ridai]

Marina is visibly and audibly enjoying herself, the ship at times almost feeling like it skips across the water. Derrick is up in the rigging, while Good Ol' Harman manages to compensate for the ship's motions with ease, enjoying the breeze. Bordansa is rapidly becoming smaller and smaller behind them, the open sea stretching seemingly infinitely to all sides, the moon and stars having begun to shine. Rem is speaking with Harman for a bit, both nodding at times, exchanging a few conversational gestures while they are at it and a few laughs. When they slow down a bit, long out of sight of the navy and the shore, Rem leans against the railing of the upper deck, his scarf fluttering lightly in the wind.

"How are you liking your first taste?"

[MikelaC1]

Tiana turns to him, he can see that her eyes are shining, and her posture is much better than it was at the Inn. In fact, everything about her seems much brighter, even her hair, if that makes any sense.

Its all that I imagined, and more. Finally free of Bordansa, and finally out where I belong. Just give me a heading and a full belly to those sails and we'll be there in no time

The change in her demeanour is remarkable, while she was lucky at the dice game, she wasnt full of life like she is now.

[Ridai]

Tiana knows that Rem sees all these things, as does everyone else, but Rem especially. The young man smiles warmly. It is as if this is part of what he lives for, to see souls like Tiana find their calling and coming into full bloom. He nods, letting Tiana know that he believes in her skill and that he trusts her. As the ship rushes forward, it is as if she can her the song of the wind and waves, ever so faintly. The ship beneath her feet, the wheel in her hands. And the knowledge that Fortuna is always by her side, the presence warm and comforting.

"Take us home, Tiana." Simple words, but meaning so much.

They sail the whole night, never slowing down. Rem gives Tiana a course, teaching her the beginnings of the many, many subtleties of the sea, feeling it and recognizing its flows. It is nothing to be afraid of, but one should always respect it. Rem's sheer knowledge is stunning, but he doesn't lecture Tiana. As they talk, Tiana just seems to reach new insights on her own, Rem just needing to give the slightest hint to set off the chain of associations, Tiana reaching her own answers. Derrick, Marina and Harman assist Tiana in operating the ship, having no issue with her being the captain of the Azure Arrow for now, seeing how much good it does her. Derrick and Marina are frequently taking jabs at each other, but Tiana can feel that they are in jest. Harman shows a surprising vocal range, humming and singing sailor and pirate songs from time to time. Given the distance Rem gave, at first Tiana is unsure whether it can be reached by the morning, but using the streams in the sea, it is looking good. "Smooth sailing, beautiful." Marina comments once as she sits on the railing closeby, winking to Tiana and smiling mischievously.

The night becomes darker, only to slowly give way to the morning sun. Tiana has never seen such a beautiful sight, feeling the warmth fill her body as the sun colors the sea in reddish hues.

"There she is." Rem says, pointing. "The Crimson Tide."

Before them is the legendary ship, its hull the color of dark blood, as are the sails. Sailing the Azure Arrow was a pure joy, but Tiana can only imagine the exalted feeling of steering this majestic ship. It exudes strength, speed and unstoppableness, as if it could race the wind itself. It is not a gigantic ship, housing 30 men, tops, likely a bit less. But it hardly matters. Tiana has never seen a finer ship, the sight taking her breath away. She can see the crew stand on deck, each so different from the next, of both genders and of many different lands of birth. But above all, even from this distance, she sees one particular figure, one foot on the railing, watching them. Her long deep-red hair flows in the wind like liquid fire, her body athletic, tall and feminine, a striking sight in so many ways, one of a kind just like her ship. Tiana can feel the gaze of her red eye clearly, reaching right into her soul, filling her with awe and respect. A black eyepatch covers her left eye, a true pirate captain's tricorne on her head, her body wreathed in rugged, but stylish clothing accentuating both her strength and her beauty, effortlessly combining both, a very distinct blade hanging from her hip, one with history, meant for only one true wielder.

Even without introduction, Tiana knows. This is the Scarlet Corsair herself.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana is in awe of the ship and the Corsair, but she quickly recovers herself, it wouldn't do to introduce herself by screwing up right in front of her. She orders the sails brought down and slows the ship to an approach speed. Taking an angled path, she slowly brings the Arrow towards the side of the Crimson Tide, pivoting more and more until the ship gently settles right along side of the much larger ship. Ropes are thrown up, to bind the ship beside her.

[Ridai]

Rem, Good Ol' Harman, Derrick, Marina and finally Tiana get aboard the Crimson Tide. The Azure Arrow felt good, small but swift, but it is also clearly a navy ship. Overly orderly, almost sterile, kind of lifeless. Of course, things can be changed, but as they are right now, the little ship cannot hold a candle to the Crimson Tide. This is how a ship should be like. The Scarlet Corsair and a few others help them aboard. As Tiana watches the Corsair grab Rem's hand, she gets the feeling that his weight barely registers to her. The fire-haired woman stands a few inches taller than Tiana, her presence once again a much different beast up close than from afar. Her red eye examines Tiana, who feels once more as if the captain can see straight into her soul. And it feels almost like something behind her eyepatch is watching her as well, though some part of her does not want to find out if that is true.

"I see Fortuna has chosen a new wielder. What have you brought us, Rem?" She asks the young man, her voice strong, but also pleasant.
"This is Tiana, captain. As befits Fortuna's new owner, we found her by chance, the same way Fortuna was won. Sharp mind, reflexes and tongue, quite capable with swords and ships alike, able to go loud as she is to keep things subtle," Rem answers, the rest of those that were with him nodding, evidently having reported what they have witnessed of Tiana to him. "Things went quite smoothly, extraordinarily so at times. I believe Marina called her Lady Luck at one point and I tend to agree." Marina glances towards Tiana for a quick moment, winking.

"Is that so?" The Scarlet Corsair inclines her head before walking to Tiana, looking her straight in the eye. Not as a challenge, but to determine her worth. "You have left quite the impression on my first mate and knowing him, such a thing happens only when he sees genuine potential. Still, I do not make everyone who comes paddling to my ship part of my crew. Everyone you see here belongs here and pulls their weight, above and beyond the common mooks of the navy. So tell me, why do you feel you belong here? And be honest about it. I will know if you aren't." Tiana feels the Scarlet Corsair's stare even more than before, feeling almost naked before her, the pirate captain meaning every word she said. This is one who will take no crap from a stranger, especially not if they want to become part of her crew.

[MikelaC1]

My father was a fisherman, but not a common one, he owned his own ship. He installed in me a love of the sea. But even the most independent man cannot make a living if none will buy his catch and all say his entire ship is cursed. Cursed by the presence of a woman. Though I love the sea, Admiral Breighton and the rest of the Bordansa culture say a woman is not fit for the sea or the navy. I can pilot a ship as well as any man, I know every command and can navigate by the stars better than I can in city streets. But a woman on a ship is supposedly bad luck, and its made worse by how internally lucky I am. They say I have drawn all the luck to myself. I know I can be as good a sailor as any man, but Bordansa and Breighton will not give me the chance

[Ridai]

The Scarlet Corsair calmly examines every word as some of the crew very much can identify with Tiana's story. "I see," she says in thought, not letting her know yet what the verdict is. "Rem's words hold true, from what I have seen. Luck must be with you as well, if Fortuna has chosen you so resoundingly. But there is one thing left for me. Few are chosen by a blade with a name of its own. Several have been given the chance to wield Fortuna, but many have also died thinking that luck alone could sustain them." The Scarlet Corsair steps away, the crew clearing a circle, in which only she and Tiana now stand. She unsheathes her sword, a weapon of deadly elegance, with a reddish sheen. Tiana at times thinks she can see movement in the crimson hues, like blood rushing through veins or lava streaming through metal. The blade sings uniquely as it is drawn, Tiana immediately having to remember how Fortuna sounded when she first drew it from its sheath. But even with the fearsome qualities of it, there is a beauty to it that cannot be denied.

"This is Scourge. Its flames are only for true enemies, but its blade bites deeply no matter what. Weapons like ours reflect their owners and are only as strong as them. In the end, our skill is what matters. So show me what you've got and don't hold back." Her stance is determined, strong yet agile, the blade pointing forward and downwards. This time, it is a challenge, but not a mocking one, Tiana feeling that she is taken seriously and given the chance to prove herself. Though she only gets this one chance.

[MikelaC1]

(and without a re-roll to back me up)

Tiana draws Fortuna slowly, gauging the Scarlet Corsair carefully. Her first two moves aren't even an attempt to catch her off guard, almost as if she were loosening her muscles. Then, she suddenly looks like she is making a major move to the right, almost looks like she is thinking about then reversing to the left, but continues through to the right.

[roll0] Bluff: Feint

Her blade slices at the pirate queen as she passes by, and then settles back into guard position

[roll1] attack (not bothering with a damage roll)

[Ridai]

The Scarlet Corsair does not move all throughout Tiana's maneuver, only to catch her blade with her own, turning it abruptly in a way that throws Tiana off-balance. But the follow-up does not come. Instead, she is calmly waiting for Tiana's next assault. "A nice start. But I think you can do better." Tiana notices, among all these people watching, a girl, perhaps 10 or 11 or so, watching every move intently.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana spins through being thrown off balance and sets herself. Once again, she makes the two non-committal moves and then the sharp move to the right. She tries to double cross the Corsair, she might expect Tiana to follow through on the left feint, but once again she goes right with another sweeping pass

[roll0] Bluff: Feint
[roll1] attack

[Ridai]

This time, the Scarlet Corsair does move. Suddenly, she steps back, dodging Tiana's strike with her agile motions, starting to apply pressure for the first time herself. Fortuna and Scourge clash several times, the fighting becoming a lot faster, forcing Tiana to use what footwork, trickery and finesse she can bring to bear, the Scarlet Corsair herself matching it, showing the signs of an exceptional warrior. Tiana sees an opening, using it immediately, almost seeming like she is about to hit, but once more Scourge catches her blade, driving Fortuna around and battering it to the side. Losing her balance as the Corsair ups the pressure, Tiana is pushed to the ground by a quick shove and the next thing she notices is Scourge dangerously close to her neck. The fight is over. It wasn't a real fight, otherwise she would be dead. But it wasn't a mockery either. "Much better. A good catch, our Lady Luck, wouldn't you agree?" The crew answers enthusiastically, the girl Tiana seeming to weigh a few thoughts, but nodding soon after.

"I believe no further questions are needed." It is the first time Tiana sees the Corsair smile. It is fierce, brave, charming at the same time. She sheathes Scourge and offers a hand to Tiana to help her up. "I am Jayna Kerrigan, captain of the Crimson Tide. Welcome to the crew." When Tiana is standing, Jayna still holding her forearm, she adds "Welcome home." Around them, Tiana's now fellow pirates cheer loudly, some applauding. A new soul has found her way to them. Marina rushes over and hugs her, kissing her on the cheek, fired up by the celebration just like when they were escaping the navy. Rem nods and smiles to her more from a distance as he stands with his captain as well as Harman and a golden-haired woman unknown to her, while Derrick and several others are crowding Tiana to welcome her.

Yesterday evening, Tiana's dream seemed so far away. Now she on the Crimson Tide as the morning sun rises. Even to those blessed with luck, moments like these never cease to feel like wonders.

On an unrelated note, I also added the "official" version of Nico's backstory to his sheet. I added a few details, especially his former owner, who was a sorceress very much adept at twisting someone's mind.

[MikelaC1]

Finally welcomed, finally home. I cant believe it. Tiana is ready to find her spot to bunk in, but first I believe we have some stock to unload?

[Ridai]

"We do indeed," Jayna confirms, sending Tiana and several others to get the goods. There isn't too much, most of what the Azure Arrow carried being the usual rations and other basic necessities for sea travel, but there also are a cache of decent weapons as well as rum, wine and several choice pieces of food. The captain's cabin does reveal a few finds, though. There is a small chest with neatly piled drakes in it, apparently a sort of budget for some initiative or another. Harman finds a box with exotic tea leaves in it, which sees to put him into quite a good mood, mentioning that he will share try them with "Steiner". There are a few bottles of well-aged whiskey and other spirits. Tiana and Marina also find a small box with a beautiful golden necklace with a few rubies inlaid, a silver sapphire ring as well as an exotic looking armlet crafted out of jade. Marina does claim the armlet for herself, letting Tiana have the necklace.

"Aria isn't big on jewelry, but the ring would look so good on her, really matches her eyes." Marina explains that Aria is the beautiful golden-haired woman Tiana saw with the captain, Harman and Rem. She is the ship's healer as well as one of the most trusted friends of the captain.

As the ship is searched, a few more doodads are found, but overall, there is not too much loot to be found other than the above, as was expected. Rem does not take any valuables, looking through the papers and documents in the captain's cabin, collecting them and taking them back to the Crimson Tide. "We'll get the Azure Arrow to one of our hideouts nearby. You'll never know when a navy courier ship will come in handy. Go get some rest, you earned it. Captain wants you to go see Aria when you wake up. She has her sick bay and room below deck, towards the stern," he tells Tiana, patting her on the shoulder twice as he goes.

Tiana finds her way to the bunks, Marina coming in soon after her, holding a plate with food and a mug on it, also wearing her jade armlet. "Hey, Lucky," she greets her, grinning. "Our cook Steiner asked me to bring you this." The plate has some of the things taken from the Azure Arrow on it. There is fresh bread, sausage, herb butter (some of it actually spread out on the top slice of bread, saying "Welcome"), cheese, a fresh apple and some jerky. The mug is filled with wine and tasting it, it is actually a pretty good one. "The bunk below mine is free, if you want it." Marina's "bunk" is actually a hammock that is pretty high up, part of it bound to the highest part of the pillar at the foot of Tiana's potential bunk, with a shelf equally high next to it. There is enough vertical space not to make the one below constantly watch their head while sitting up. It also poses the question how Marina gets onto the hammock.

Once she has given Tiana the plate, Marina, uncharacteristically, fidgets with her hands for a bit. "Hey, um, about before. You know, I get fired up about stuff, kicking the navy in the shins, action, escapes, having a new gal on the ship, and I just kinda do stuff without thinking. Doesn't help that you're drop-dead gorgeous." Marina realizes what she just said, cursing under her breath. "The thing is, I like women, if you know what I mean. Didn't wanna make you uncomfortable or anything if you don't, or in general. Just glad to have you aboard." The acrobatic young woman plays with her armlet somewhat uncomfortably herself.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana accepts the necklace when offered, and helps with the rest of the offload.

Later, when speaking with Marina, Tiana considers what she just said. In her desire to get onboard a ship, relationships were one of the things she had never considered. Tiana wasnt a virgin, nor was she unfamiliar with women (having had one pleasant and one not so pleasant experience) and so Marina's offer wasnt out of the question for her.
I wouldnt say Im the most experienced you could meet, but Im not a virgin...or averse to women either. And I do like your high spirits. Lets see how it goes
Tiana does have one other question. Whats that meeting with Aria going to be about? Thing is, Ive never seen a doctor, or even a healer...never even one of those divine finger wagglers

[Ridai]

Marina breathes a big, relieved sigh, so very glad that the awkwardness is over. "Thank goodness. Kind of thought you weren't, but, you know, Golden Rule. I like to keep things nice and uncomplicated, but I don't wanna be an ass to the shy or private ones... or make people try to hang me again for the way I swing." Marina cringes as if she is remembering instances of both... then cringes even harder for a different reason. "Ugh, that was an awful pun, that one was not intended." Precisely that one, the young man sticking her tongue out as if she has a horrible taste in her mouth.

Marina flops down onto the bunk, settling in for a little chat. She does chuckle at what Tiana says. "You must be healthy as a horse! Waves know you have the stamina of one, that's for sure." Marina does give a small yawn, but she still has plenty energy left. She has been up for a long time as well, but she looks like the kind that has adrenaline to spare. "It's just a checkup. Captain wants her crew to be healthy, so Aria is going to examine you from head to toe. Aria isn't really anything you mentioned. She might seem... private or icy at first, but she's totally okay, real great to have her around. And I'm not just saying that because she's a Siren," she adds. Tiana has heard the story of Sirens. In Bordansa, they are known as wicked, bloodthirsty women born from a poisoned sea, their voice and seductive bodies twisting the minds of good men and making them steer their ships into reefs and drown themselves in the waves to get to the Siren. They fornicate with some of their surviving victims to produce more foul offspring, then devour the survivors. They know when women are onboard of a ship, even if a hundred miles away, dooming the rest of the crew and twisting the woman into one of their own. That is what Bordansan folklore says, at least. Tiana has heard that the navy has considered hunting them down.

[MikelaC1]

I told the truth out there to the captain, you know that obviously, or I wouldnt be standing here. But whats your story? Why did you become a pirate?

[Ridai]

Marina leans back, her hands placed on the bunk as she inclines her head. "It sort of just happened. I was part of a bunch of travelling folks. Which translates to criminal scum to those fine, law-abiding folks. We put up our tents and the civilized folks came and emptied their purses in exchange for entertainment of various kinds. I was a performer, doing dances, acrobatics, gymnastics, contorsions." Marina places her feet onto the edge of the bunk and bends backwards, further and further until her head rest between her feet, chin propped up on her hands as she smiles at Tiana. After smoothly reassuming her original position, she continues.

"So my folks didn't really care about my preferences. Those fine folks sure did, though. The daughter of one of them was chatting with me, real nice and beautiful thing. I just gave her a little kiss when she had to go, she didn't mind, either. Cue a lynch mob wanting to burn the deviant. I swear, in that region, I should have robbed the father and mother while I was at it, 'cause that wouldn't even have made it worse. So I ran, my folks distracting the mob. I wandered, making a living as a thief and burglar for a while. Always targetted those fat cats with too much money and the commanders of the guard, army or navy. Little payback each time. The gangs in the cities and by the roads weren't my style, they just preyed on the small folks. So that left the sea. Port Tillo always claimed to be part of the kingdom, but all they care about is money. Doesn't matter whose. Now, me and my folks can tell the type of people others are. You need to. And the pirates I saw there were scum. One of them, some captain of some crappy piece of driftwood he called pirate ship, boasted he pretty much kidnapped someone's fiancee. So I broke into one of the local moneylender's estates, stole some gems, planted them on the pirate ship and stole the fiancee while I was there, sending her home. The next morning, the pirates got stomped into the ground by the city's authorities after the moneylender received an anonymous message and when I went to the tavern, Good Ol' Harman came to me. We chatted about this and that, could tell he was a fine enough fellow, hard to find in a place like Port Tillo. Voiced some of my frustrations and wants - the rum definitely helped with that - and next thing I knew was standing in front of the Scarlet Corsair. Felt like she stared right into my soul. Whatever she saw must have been what she was looking for, because when I left Port Tillo, it was on the Crimson Tide. Best thing that happened to me thus far, easily." Marina glances at Tiana. "And getting better."

[MikelaC1]

That part about staring right into your soul, I felt that too. It might get a little unsettling at times. I never thought I would be a pirate either, but here I am. Ive heard all the stories about her, mind you, growing up in seafaring community...but given the lies they tell about everything and given their attitude to women on a ship in any instance, and I discredit the vast majority of them. She could have gutted me in that fight, and she didn't.

[Ridai]

"Captain can be scary when she wants to, yeah, but it's not like that everytime she looks at you. She doesn't trust blindly, but if you've proven yourself, she doesn't let you down. She expects you to pull your weight and show initiative, but Captain also makes sure we're in good shape, not just meaning our bodies. She's not distant to us, either, though I still prefer to only bring up stuff straight to her when I feel it's really important. Usually I go to Rem if something's on my mind that concerns the crew and such. Whoever tries to harm the Crimson Tide and its crew will get to know how scary the Captain can be, though. I've only been on this ship for a few months or so yet, but sometimes I feel that eyepatch doesn't just cover some empty hole, as ridiculous as that might sound. No one talks about it, though. Only heard Captain has ways to break someone's mind wide open when they really deserve it, make a hardened man curl up and cry in a minute. Don't think I ever wanna find out. And neither do her enemies, if they aren't complete fools. Captain's gotta do what she's gotta do. Tough as hell and twice as fierce, but she's a good one." Marina pauses. "The ship also isn't carried by a thousand souls. Still, the looks on the faces of people we come across when they see the ship are priceless." She grins and stretches.

"Hey, do you want a massage?" she suddenly asks. "I'm no Aria or Luca, but I think I got a pretty good handle on it. Helps me unwind as well. We've got a few places where folks can go if they need some quiet."

[MikelaC1]

That sounds like a good idea, lead the way

[Ridai]

Marina takes Tiana to a seperate room, helping her relax, letting her realize just how tired and spent she feels, but makes it all better. When Marina is done, actually turning out to be skilled enough to provide a lovely experience, both women drift asleep, glad to finally get some sleep.

Marina awakens together with Tiana, greeting her with a kiss and a reminder about Aria before leaving.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana dresses quickly and heads off to find Aria, asking for directions along the way. She arrives, not quite sure what to make of the situation, she has never been to a doctor, or healer, before, not even priestly curing.

[Ridai]

Tiana is directed towards the stern of the ship below deck. When she enters the room, she sees a big table and bed at one side of it, and on the other are various pots with herbs and plants in them, along with shelves of various tools and vials and flasks and whatnot, some of it looking like an alchemist's equipment. There is also another door leading into a backroom. The golden-haired woman Tiana saw yesterday (or rather, this morning) is tending to the plants along with a girl of nigh-androgynous shape who can't be more than sixteen years old, at the most. The golden-haired woman, Aria, turns towards Tiana as she arrives.

"Ah, there you are. Have a seat." She gestures towards the slightly padded table. "Luca, please make the salve once you are done," Aria asks the girl, who answers quietly, her voice faint but... cute. Aria steps over to Tiana, moving a curtain so someone who comes in doesn't see Tiana. "This is just a general checkup. Captain Kerrigan wants her crew to be healthy, so every new arrival is examined." She is nonchalant about the whole thing, her voice even, but somehow, it has a wonderful sound to it, going right to the parts of her brain that govern relaxation and other favorable sensations. It even sounds strangely familiar. "Have you been to a physician or a healer before?"

[MikelaC1]

Never. Ive been lucky, never been sick a day in my life. Been in a few scrapes too, but never hurt bad enough to need any sort of repairs, mundane or magical. Just more of my luck, I guess.

[Ridai]

"Then I hope your luck stays that way. As opposed to most healers, I do like healthy patients," Aria says, with the hint of a smile at hearing about Tiana's condition. "Don't worry, this won't take too long. I will check your body's condition, for signs of any lingering issues, test your reflexes and ask a couple of questions, then you should be good to go. What you tell me stays between us, unless it is vital to know for the captain or the crew. That is limited to contagious diseases for the most part, so you have little to worry about." Aria is speaking quite matter-of-factly, but her voice still has its effect on Tiana. It just puts her at ease, making it effortless to give herself into the healer's capable hands. The healer is wearing robes that reveal little of the body below past the most general outlines, and it looks on purpose, but even with her hair bound back and having a neutral expression, looking at Aria's face reveals her nigh-otherworldly beauty, having a noticable effect on Tiana even with how much Aria has subdued her looks. Some might mistake her looks and behavior as reserved and icy, but the thought doesn't cross her mind. The newly-accepted pirate has seen women of lesser appearance and presence twist rich merchants and nobles around their little fingers. Aria could be living in luxury, perhaps even exert political power through her suitors. Instead, she is on the Crimson Tide as the ship's healer.

Aria begins with a few vision tests and some to test her reflexes and reactions, also gently examining Tiana's face and neck with a practiced, gentle touch. Having no frame of reference, there is little telling if this is just how she does things or if this is standard. She moves behind Tiana and begins to check her scalp, the motions relaxing in a way, a mere side effect, though not an unwelcome one. "How do you feel? Any sleep issues, dizzyness or soreness? Rem told me you steered the ship all through the night without rest." Once more, her voice does a lot to put Tiana at ease, that sense of familiarity still weak, but lingering. There is no doubt that Aria isn't looking for weakness, but rather to help maintain Tiana's health and wellbeing. Lucky can faintly smell the herbs Luca is starting to grind with mortar and pestle, the girl concentrated as she works. She is wearing a simple shirt, pants and shoes, with something that is half-apron, half-skirt from her waist, reaching halfway down her thighs, many pockets sewn into the garment. Her hair is short and of a dirty blond color. She holds herself with a certain shyness, but Tiana does get the impression of a sweet girl. Which also brings up questions about what she is doing on a pirate ship.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana notices, among all these people watching, a girl, perhaps 10 or 11 or so, watching every move intently.

Is this girl and Luca one and the same?


. Rem nods and smiles to her more from a distance as he stands with his captain as well as Harman and a golden-haired woman unknown to her.

Same question with this woman and Aria?

I was probably going on adrenaline last night. Ive wanted to be a part of a ship's crew for all of my life, and its been denied to me for the last 10 years. (Bordansa not much caring if a girl child was on board a ship, the prohibition was on working as crew) When I finally got the chance, I wasn't going to screw it up by showing myself not to be worthy. But I managed to get in some rest.

[Ridai]

(Luca is not the small girl Tiana has seen when she was evaluated. The smaller girl also had a much... stranger air to her, creepy even. But the golden-haired woman is Aria.)

"Seems like Marina has taken quite a shine to you. Since she joined, I've rarely seen her this intrigued. Her impulsiveness and amorousness have gotten her in trouble as often as she turned things around or brightened someone's life, so you can expect a good deal of excitement in your future." (Make a Spot check)
Tiana's scalp tingles deliciously from the touches and Aria's voice as the healer continues her examination, moving on to check Tiana's range of motion and musculature.

[MikelaC1]

You have many young children on board this vessel, Luca here and there was another young girl watching my test against the captain. Are they children of people on board, or orphans that you picked up along the way?

[Ridai]

"Luca is fifteen, but I feel calling her a child does her a disservice, especially with that bright mind of hers and the powers she commands." Tiana can see that Luca's cheek assumes a rosy color, the twitch of her lips looking like she is both embarassed and happy about the compliment. "The little girl you saw is Dyna. I could tell you about her, but in her case, I think it is better to see for yourself. She is an orphan, but Luca isn't, though her parents aren't part of the crew either. Everyone else on this ship is an adult, with you, Marina, Derrick and Remenos being the younger ones." Aria takes a step back.

"There we go. Perfect health, very well developed and in prime condition. You are taking good care of yourself. See to it that it stays that way and you will have a long life ahead of you. Still, don't hesitate to come to Luca or me if you are unwell or are uncertain about your condition, you owe it to yourself, the crew and Captain Kerrigan. Any questions before I let you go?"

[MikelaC1]

I cant think of anything. If I'm in good health, lets see if I can keep it that way.

Tiana heads back to the main area of the ship, eager to be assigned some sort of duties.

[Ridai]

"I hope so."
As Tiana leaves, she hears "Have a nice day." from behind her. Looking over her shoulder, Luca has turned towards her giving a shy wave and smile. Her voice fits her demeanor, careful, but with a lovely tone to it.

Stepping outside and looking towards the sun, Tiana determines that they are currently in the afternoon hours. She is greeted by the wind, so refreshing and free, the ship beneath her feet sailing remarkably smoothly and quickly, the feeling better than that of any other ship. They aren't going at full speed so the Azure Arrow can keep up, steered by three members of the crew. Several crew members are on deck, one or two up in the crow's nest or the rigging, with the Scarlet Corsair at the helm, occasionally giving commands or exchanging words with those passing by or her officers, most often Rem. She can see the captain give a smile or quick laugh at times, though never losing her presence. As she arrives on deck, Tiana feels her captain look to her. It is not the piercing stare she experienced when Jayna examined her, but the look of seeing a crew member ready to pitch in. "Tiana, go and see if you can help Steiner," she calls over to her to get her started, a motion of her head towards the starboard side of the bow. The crew she passes greets her, a few of them welcoming her to the crew if they weren't able to do so yesterday. From somewhere, she can hear thunderous laughter, a stocky, musclebound woman with a lot of earrings and a mohawk of all things slapping Derrick and another crew member on the back, lifting a barrel onto her shoulder right after as if it were made of feathers.

When Tiana arrives at her destination, she sees a very tall, very muscular man towering before her, examining the ropes leading up to the masts. He turns to Tiana and she can see his gaze from beneath his prominent brow, having a clean-shaven head and face, except for a finely cared for blond moustache, his features as rock-like as the rest of his body. Though the moustache is an odd addition, the rest of the man who is most likely Steiner looks like he belongs in a gladiatorial arena, his hands easily twice the size of her own, if not a bit more. "Good afternoon," he rumbles as if his voice came from the depths of a mountain. "I am checking the ropes and rigging. Please climb up and see if the you can find any wear and tear." Tiana spends a good two hours up high above the deck, checking and tugging and calling down to Steiner. Incidentally, she is getting to know the masts and rigging, learning where everything is, which is most likely not a coincidence. Once done and having gotten a good workout, Steiner calls her down, nodding to her for the good work, then looks at her more inquisitively. "You haven't eaten yet," he suddenly says. Soon after, Tiana finds herself in the galley, getting some fruit and helping prepare a meal for the crew.

The afternoon and evening continue in similar fashion, Tiana's work differing from hour to hour, always concerning a different part of the ship and getting to know the crew (Steiner turning out to be the more silent type and with a surprising amount of dexterity that does not quite want to mesh with the first impression she got of him), various people telling her what needs doing, but letting her tackle the tasks her own way. From time to time, Tiana sees the little girl, Dyna, sometimes looking at her, sometimes just tending to her own devices.

By the time Tiana is done, the hour is approaching midnight. She is sitting above one of the sails with Marina, soon joined by Derrick, a bottle in hand. "Found it." Sniffing at the contents, the rum is easily discerned. Far below them, the moonlight glitters on the waves and ripples, the wind pleasantly cool and lightly playing with their hair. "So how did you like your first day?" Marina asks, taking a swig and passing the bottle to Tiana.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes a healthy swig from the bottle and passes it on. She examines some of the blisters on her hands, and stretches out the kinks from muscles not used as much recently.

It was great. I had a certain idea of what to expect but a few things surprised me. Its good to get to know a lot of things that I only had a superficial understanding of.

[Ridai]

Derrick also takes a swig, then lobs the bottle back to Marina without really looking, the acrobat catching it effortlessly. "Gotta hit the ground running on here, you'd be surprised how much there is to do. There's no such thing as a boring day on the Crimson Tide. Beats pearl diving and fishing day in, day out, only to just scrape by."

"You can pick up a lot from the people here in almost every area. Of course, some stuff, you don't learn, you just do. You haven't seen nothing yet," Marina says with a grin after another swig, leaving the last one for Tiana. "Things'll only get more exciting from here on out."

End of Episode 1

[MikelaC1]

Appreciating the last swig being left for her, Tiana takes it down with gusto.

Looking forward to it...

[Ridai]

The next few days all have one thing in common. Each time Tiana gets to her bed, she does so with sore muscles, but it is the good burn of muscles that are growing stronger, adapting to what is required of them. The start of the day can be rough, but each day, the varied tasks heaped upon Tiana become a little easier to accomplish. Derrick and Marina do end up working with her from time to time, sharing a similar status as those who have joined the crew relatively recently, though that doesn't make them into people below the other crew members. The work is demanding, but there is fun to be had, soon chatting with the others naturally, hearing stories, jokes and shanties.

The Crimson Tide comes to an island with incredibly treacherous reefs surrounding it. Tiana very briefly glimpses a map of the reefs once and what she saw was positively unsettling, a navigator's and captain's nightmare, only increased by the winds and the flows in the sea. However, the Scarlet Corsair and Rem (who also serves as navigator) guide the Azure Arrow through the whole thing with ease and speed. It is one of those things that do not look spectacular to a spectator. But for those in the know, a situation like this was a real nail-biter. They steer through the reefs, eventually coming to a cave that is hard to see from most angles. A pier has been constructed in there, not a very large one, but it works. The Azure Arrow is left there, in the care of the people who live on what they call Crag Island, their homes out of sight and built against and into the ring of rocky hills and small mountains that make up the island. Not much time is spent there, but Tiana does get a glimpse of the fairly vertical settlements, the hearty people and their warm welcome towards the Scarlet Corsair and her crew.

Time flies out on the sea, but not too much has gone by since leaving Crag Island, the sun already having disappeared behing the horizon, when Aria arrives on deck, exchanging a few words with Rem, Luca following closely. Rem grabs a rope and lowers himself down to the surface of the water, touching it with his hand. Tiana has seen him do this once or twice since she came aboard. When he is back on deck, Jayna calls him over. They talk briefly, precisely, then the Scarlet Corsair speaks up. "Crew, listen up! We've got word of a pirate ship nearby following a civilian vessel. Get ready, we're going hunting." A resounding "Aye aye" answers the declaration of their captain, everyone at full attention, busy with the ship and preparing for boarding as the Scarlet Corsair brings the ship around hard. Rem summons strong winds, aided by Luca, that carry them across the waves at high speeds, Tiana feeling the strong up and down motions as the Crimson Tide races towards its goal. Marina seems to be excited and anxious, Derrick more collected. Good Ol' Harman, perhaps curiously the ship's second mate, walks over to Tiana. "Hey Lucky. Since this'll be your first time, I'll give you the quick rundown. Basically, leave civilians alone unless they're hostile. Take only what they have in excess, no stealing necessary provisions or a widow's wedding ring. Scum and navy, however, are fair game. They want us to die, so you can't afford to hold back. Keep a cool head and whether you do something daring or stupid, be sure you can back it up, as our Captain likes to say. You'll get the hang of it quickly, I am sure." He pats her on the shoulder with an encouraging smile, then leaves her be.

In the distance, when the blanket of clouds occasionally breaks up, she can start to see the outline of two ships, quickly coming closer. This will be it, the first real action, her first real chance to show what she is made of.

[MikelaC1]

Before he leaves, Tiana has questions.
So when we attack the pirate ship, we take everything and kill them but we are going to take from the civilians as well....if they fight, we fight back but we only take excess from them, like a fat merchant with chests of gold?

[Ridai]

"Right. If we get attacked, we fight back, though there will be attempts to clear things up if there's a misunderstanding. When in doubt, captain says what goes, she has a good handle on how people really are like and what they can do without, if anything. When they're good folks, we take little to nothing. Often, we leave a bit of an impression on those people. For example, one ship of travellers we saved had a lot of fruit aboard, so they gave us two barrels of the best they had as thanks. Other times, we got a chest of gold or whole crates of rum. If they are corrupt merchants, we leave them with enough to get back home, as well as empty pockets otherwise. And I think you can imagine what we do with slavers and scum like that. Again, when in doubt, listen to the captain." Harman's demeanor pretty much radiates "You'll get the hang of it".

As the ships draw closer, the wind blowing in the crew's faces, Tiana can begin to see activity on the decks, signs of struggle. Most of the crew is on deck. She can see the stocky woman with the mohawk (called Otra), two heavy maces at her sides, standing next to Steiner who has a short war hammer with him. The crew sometimes call their weaponry tenderizers. Up until now, it was just a reference to cookery, given one of Steiner's roles on the ship and Otra having a fondness for steak. Now, though, there is more to the name than just that. Marina and Derrick are close to Tiana. She can also see Harman being his usual self, his staff always at hand, as well as little Dyna, standing close to the side of the ship and looking intently at the pirate ship in the distance. The catapult on deck is not being loaded. Apparently, it is not deemed necessary. Closer and closer they come, Tiana thinks she can faintly hear calls from the ships, just having spotted the Crimson Tide that has been rushing towards them, moving to come up beside it.

"I smell blood," Dyna suddenly says, her tone of unsettling certainty, looking to the Scarlet Corsair. Try as she might, Tiana cannot smell anything different. Captain Kerrigan seems to understand the strange girl.

"Derrick, Marina, Tiana, you will board as part of the first wave. Pirates targetting civilians are your priority. Harman, Steiner, Otra, Dyna, clear a path for them and be ready to cover Aria if she is needed. The rest of you know what to do. We've got a bunch of murderers ahead of us. See to it only their blood is in the water by the end of the day. Knock out anyone of them who surrenders or can't fight anymore but isn't pretty much dead." Another resounding "Aye aye". Harman, Steiner, Otra and Dyna are at the side of the ship, ready to board, waiting for the Crimson Tide to get close enough, Rem and Luca (the latter seeming nervous) guiding the winds, the Scarlet Corsair commandeering and steering fearlessly.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana readies Fortuna to attack, and gets ready to call on her supply of luck to guide her in battle. She grabs hold of one of the Crimson Tide's rope, ready to use it to swing onto the enemy ship.

And to save time
[roll0] initiative

[Ridai]

10 / 11 rerolls

The Crimson Tide pulls beside the pirate ship, Tiana can hear the flurry of frightened voices from the civilian ship and the angry ones from the pirates, the latter shouting to them, a few rushing back onto their ship. "Get these fools!" "Yeah, kill 'em!" "Oh gods, it's the she-devi-"

The sound of a very unique sword being drawn brings the whole action to a halt for just a moment, Scourge firmly in the Scarlet Corsair's hand, her red eye fixed on the enemy pirates. "Burn them scum!" she shouts terrifyingly as her sword ignites with hellish fire, taking the scum aback and boosting her own crew's morale. Before the scum knows what is happening, Otra and Steiner are already soaring through the air despite their weighty physiques. They do not need ropes, their legs just let them clear the gap by themselves. The wild woman rushes in like a berserker, combined with a fitting shout that reverberates in one's very bones, outright tackling two men overboard, sending them crashing against the civilian ship hull before they take a salty bath. Steiner is slower on foot, but when he swings his war hammer, he slams one unlucky bloke right down onto the planks, the impact making Tiana wince just a little, the word tenderizer once again popping into her head with a sickening connotation. The meat he prepared the other day definitely was treated more nicely. Harman comes swinging in almost lazily, even know he seems to be in good spirits, landing lightly. "Evening, gentlemen," he greets the pirates, who look dumbstruck just before they come to their senses and assault him. Tiana cannot even quite see the staff move, but she is aware that it is suddenly in Harman's right hand, with one pirate rolling on the floor, another holding his jaw and another scrambling for his weapon that seems to have decided to take flight courses.

Tiana can see the narrow gap forming, the passageway to the civilians, but one pirate is on the gangplank to the ship. Or rather, won't be there for long. He has the unlucky fate of being Dyna's target. The little girl, unarmed, is suddenly just on deck, her stare directed at him, piercing his soul. The pirate sneers at the sight, moving to attack. But Dyna is much faster, suddenly on him, one foot on his shoulder, one hand grabbing at his hair, her other holding a black blade Tiana has never seen on her before. His screams quickly turn into gurgling as she stabs him viciously with incredibly swiftness, gouging out his eyes, slashing his throat and piercing the skull. Soon after, she is back on deck and speeding off into the fray, leaving the twitching body on the gangplank, the mess she made of his face bleeding profusely (Tiana having the misfortune of getting a glimpse at it), before he slides into the water.

Marina, Derrick and Tiana cross the pirate ship and get a view of the civilian deck. They see a big, burly pirate with a huge axe standing over a young man backed against the railing, unarmed and looking for a way to escape from his position. An eye-patched fellow is threatening an elderly man, closing in. Two guards are on the floor, bleeding, as three dumb-looking stooges are kicking them. Finally, a lanky man has backed a plump woman in her 40s and a waifish young lady into a corner.

Initiative order (those on the civilian ship)
Tiana 23
Marina 20
Derrick 19
Pirate (burly) 17
Pirate (eye-patched) 16
Pirate (stooge #1) 4
Pirate (stooge #2) 4
Pirate (stooge #3) 4
Pirate (lanky) 3

Tiana, Marina and Derrick are standing on the edge of the pirate ship. They can cross over to the civilian ship via the gangplank, rope swing or jump, the civilian ship a little lower than the pirate one.

You can also add maneuvers to your actions. Basically, if you want to take a risk to get an advantage (and show off while doing it), you can describe what you are attempting to achieve (knock someone down after rope swing, tangle someone's legs with a rope or a kicked stool, goad someone into focussing on you etc.), you can make a suitable check and add that to your move or standard action. If you succeed, good things happen. If you fail, nothing or something bad happens, depending on how hard you failed and how risky your maneuver was. This is to enable all the swashbucklery things you read in stories or see in movies without eating up your actions you need for the really important stuff.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes an extra kick as she swings on the rope onto the civilian ship with extra speed, hitting the burly pirate and the eye-patch pirate in the back as she passes by them, knocking them off balance before she lands in front of the lanky man.

Hey loser, why don't you try taking on someone who might be a challenge for you?

[roll0] Acrobatics: Swing
[roll1] Bluff: goading pirate

[Ridai]

The eye-patched pirate stumbles, falling on his face, whereas the burly man remains standing, turning towards Tiana. The lanky fellow grins in a dirty way at Tiana, his teeth half-rotten, most likely busier imagining what her head would look like on a pillow than imagining her as a threat. Clearly, he did not witness what Otra and Dyna did, too busy closing in on females. And clearly, the pirates did not expect a real fight.

The burly man does not see Marina coming, still distracted by Tiana's assault, and the acrobat exploits this lapse hard. Suddenly, the big pirate has cuts to the back of his leg and his side, hamstringing him, angrily turning to see who did this and finding the agile Marina, taunting him with a playful smile as she reverses her grip on her daggers with a little flourish. Marina isn't someone who stands and brawls things out, Tiana can clearly see from her footwork. She is preying on weaknesses and is apt at finding (and creating) them, her mobility well-known to Tiana.

Derrick takes a more direct approach, using the opportunity to rush in and bowl the three stooges over with a swift shoulder check, their balance compromised by them kicking the downed guards, making them fall like dominos. In the chaotic tangle, Derrick grips his machete with both hands and brings it down hard onto the pile of pirates, battering the axe of the top fellow against his body and cutting deep into his chest right below the neck.

Eye-Patch gets back up from his faceplant and seeing Marina being the closest, he rushes towards her, flanking her with the burly man, whose face is filled with anger and pain, raising his axe for a huge overhead strike that is sure to cleave a man apart. But Marina just grins and just before the axe reaches her head, she steps out of the way and kicks him in the ass, his strike instead hitting his fellow pirate, grievously cutting him, but he remains standing, leaving both dumbfounded.

The stooges get back up, one of them bleeding a lot, and they assault Derrick furiously, but the idiots that they are, they stumble over each other in a most pathetic fashion, Derrick having little difficulty evading their attacks.

Meanwhile, Lanky continues to grin, undressing her with his eyes. "Drop the sword, pretty bird, I'll give ya something better to play with when we're done," he slurs, swinging his blade like a bat at Fortuna, clearly lacking the finesse for a proper disarming maneuver, leaving him and his prejudices wide open for a counterattack.

Success on the acrobatics check and the bluff check. You rendered the burly man flatfooted and knocked Eye-Patch prone, allowing Marina to get in a quick dual sneak attack for a total of 34 damage. Also, since these are mooks, they get messed up as their health gets lower, as opposed to characters like Tiana, Marina and Derrick who only get really injured when they get to 0.

Derrick manages to succeed on a bull rush aided by the Shock Trooper feat, knocking the three guys down, managing to add a power attack fueled bonus attack from the trip, dealing 22 damage.

Burly dude misses Marina due to him being her designated Dodge target and her having Elusive Target, instead dealing 26 damage to his flanking partner, leaving both of them messed up.

The stooges attack Derrick, but they all don't roll higher than a natural 10, barely missing him, even with his AC penalty from his charge.

The lanky man does not take Lucky seriously and tries to disarm her, provoking an attack of opportunity and rolling a 19 on his disarm check (make an opposed attack roll).

Summary:
Tiana, Marina and Derrick are A-OK
Burly man lost 34HP, still standing, but Marina really did a number on him
Eye-Patch lost 26 HP, barely standing
Stooge 1 lost 22 HP, also barely standing
Stooge 2 & 3 as well as the lanky man are still unwounded (though the latter probably not for long)

Positions:
Marina flanked by Burly and Eye-Patch
The young man has gotten up behind Burly
Derrick standing in front of the three stooges
Two guards lying on the floor, wounded but (still) alive
The elderly man is standing alone at the bow
Lanky is standing in front of Tiana
The two women cower behind Tiana


Overall, good assist, good job finding the semi-hidden opening (Lanky having a one-track mind) and Tiana's luck seriously rubbed off on Marina and Derrick. Like, really really.

Tiana's turn

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] opposed on disarm

Striking at Lucky is like trying to strike and catch the wind, she dances like a leaf around the lanky man, he thinks he sees her coming from the right, but its only her typical feint, really coming in from the left
[roll1] bluff

Opps, shes not there, shes here

[roll2] attack & [roll3] damage
[roll4] attack & [roll5] damage

You really should consider a career change, youre not very good at this

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] AoO & [roll1] damage
sneak attack (not sure if all 3 count, so I will just roll for all to cover
[roll2]
[roll3]
[roll4]

[MikelaC1]

and a confirm, he is so dead
[roll0] & [roll1]

[Ridai]

Many things happen quickly now. There is a burst of flame sweeping across the pirate deck, screaming and burning men being consumed at an unreal pace as they stumble and fall into the waters and never reappear. The Scarlet Corsair has entered the fray, her enemies' morale plummeting just as her own crew fights even harder. However, one thing in particular stands out, the one moment that will be remembered most from this battle. Fortuna flashes in the burst of flame, Scourge's red flames reflecting on the golden blade as it batters the lanky pirate's machete out of his own hand, sending it flying through the air. Using the opening, the next cuts take off the sword arm and slash deep into his bowels as Tiana steps to his side. And finally, with one immaculate cut, she takes his head clean off with such force that it is catapulted into the air as well, illuminated by the hellfire burning the scum, drawing the eyes of many for a few heartbeats. The flying blade lodges itself into the good eye of the eye-patched pirate as he stands gawking, but in an event that is even more unlikely, the flying head lands on the sword's handle, pierced upon it like upon a pike.

Many pirates are superstitious and this chain of events and shows of strength and force do not register as a lucky accident (for Tiana and the crew). It is a straight up omen, the supernatural at work in the eyes of the pirates, only bolstered by the hellish flames burning their comrades. Meanwhile, no blood sticks to Fortuna or Tiana and all blood that was spilled only touched the scum who attacked the civilians. Tiana catches a glimpse of Dyna looking at her, smiling, her face splashed with blood from her victims, soon disappearing back into the carnage.

"Another she-devil! They're gonna drag us all to hell!" someone screams. Derrick snaps out of his daze first, realizing he has been standing there for a few seconds, hastily hacking at the wounded stooge in front of him, finishing him without much grace, just brutal need for him to die before he can retaliate. Marina still seems to process what just happened, only coming back to reality when she hears sudden shouting behind her. Hastily, she tries to get her defense back up, realizing how wide open she left herself to the monstrous strikes of that huge axe. However, she sees the young man who had been cornered by the pirate having jumped onto his back, trying to choke him, claw at his eyes, just generally distract the pirate. Acting on pure instinct, she stabs the pirate again and again, falling to the side with a resounding *thud*. "Oh, that was way too close..." she mutters between heavy breaths.

The remaining stooges assault Derrick in their panic to get away from Tiana, forcing the young man back a bit as he barely manages to defend himself against the frantic assault.

So Tiana accidentally finished off a pirate and broke the enemies' morale. The display also spurred the young man into action, giving Marina the opportunity to sneak attack and she just barely manages to finish him off. Derrick manages to kill the wounded stooge, but takes 13 HP damage in return.

The two surviving stooges are the only enemies remaining on the civilian vessel, both unharmed and next to Derrick.

Tiana's turn.

[MikelaC1]

With the pirate's morale already breaking apart, Tiana decides to have a little fun with them. She screws up her face into the most hideous mask she can make, screaming like a banshee as she charges at the two remaining ones, her rapier weaving like a snake...

RRRRRaaaarggh!!!!!

[roll0] Bluff

[roll]1d20+13[roll] attack & [roll1] damage
[roll]1d20+8[roll] attack & [roll2] damage

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] attack
[roll1] attack

[MikelaC1]

yet another critical
[roll0] & [roll1] damage

[MikelaC1]

and YET ANOTHER threat on confirm
[roll0]

[Ridai]

"AAAAAAAAAAH!"
"AAAAAAAAAAH!"

Storming at them like a beautiful manifestation of their nightmares, Tiana rips into one of them, then suddenly having gone past him, again no blood visible on the blade. Or the body for that matter. The pirate still screams and staggers for a step or so, his colleague looking to him, only to slowly watch the head seperate from the rest of the body and the scream falling silent, blood spraying onto him as the body slumps onto the knees, then keels over. The remaining survivor is just mentally gone and soon ended by Marina and Derrick. The civilians are saved and in awe of everything they have seen. The Scarlet Corsair and the rest of her crew seem to have swept across the pirate ship like a typhoon, the battle already winding down. The scum didn't stand a chance. Triumphant shouts already start to rise as Aria makes her way across to the civilian ship, tending to the downed guards. "They'll live," she says, beginning to hum, the soft sound clearly reaching Tiana's ears even despite the battle noise. It is a wonderful sound, feeling that gentle power in it that is directed at the guards' wounds. The healer looks to the other civilians, then to Marina, Derrick and finally Tiana, seeing that they are unharmed. Rarely has Tiana seen such a gorgeous smile, feeling her own face warm just a little (whereas Marina's does a lot, coupled with the adrenaline going strong through her veins), needing no words to remark upon Tiana's continued luck what a relief it is.

(The battle is pretty much over from a combat encounter point of view, so no more combat time.)

[MikelaC1]

Tiana comes down from her high as well, no need to terrify the civilians any more than what they just saw, shes left an impression, she is sure of that and now being back to "normal" (as normal as a woman pirate can be) will just make sure the civilians don't know what to make of her. Its never too early to start building a rep. She does feel the pull of Aria's song, she knows the stories of what sirens are supposed to be able to do, and it seems like they might be right.

She waits for orders on what is to be done with the civilian ship, this is the part she needs the most guidance with.

[Ridai]

Tiana, Marina and Derrick guard the civilian ship so no pirates can escape onto it. Soon, the battle is over and the crew of the Crimson Tide cheers to their victory. Jayna crosses over to the civilian ship, her presence commanding everyone's attention. She looks to Aria, who nods in return, the guards starting to recover. Then, she examines everyone on deck, as well as the corpses of the pirates. It is impossible to determine what she thinks right now.

"Where is the captain of this ship?" she asks with her strong voice.
"He is below deck, ma'am," the young man answers respectfully. He still looks a bit shaken up from all the sudden chaos and the aftereffects of having been threatened with death, but he does a good job keeping calm, all things considered. He seems to lack the disdain of female sailors and pirates.
"Your name?"
"Jonathan, ma'am."
"Tiana, Marina, Derrick, Jonathan, with me," the Captain commands, heading straight to the door leading below deck with them. When the door at first does not budge, she just gives it a swift kick, sending what is behind the door clattering down the stairs. The ship interior is a simple affair, a few more people huddling downstairs, afraid of the pirate threat. They eye them nervously as they pass by, even with Jonathan in tow. These are regular people, not especially rich or poor. A passenger ship. And it looks like the crew fled inside and barricaded the door when the pirates came, leaving the civilians on deck to their fates. Whatever hiding in a place with nowhere to go would do, but that is the wisdom of the craven.

Finally, they find the captain, pathetically hiding in the closet in his room.
"Get this filth out of there," she says to Derrick, who promptly rips open the door and throws the cowering man to the floor. Suddenly surrounded by pirates, he is quivering and begging. Tiana can see and smell that he wet his pants.
"Quiet." The Scarlet Corsair punches the man in the face, the attack actually making Tiana wince a little. Seeing the captain's strength in person does not exactly inspire indifference. The coward goes quiet and instead quivers at double speed. Captain Kerrigan grabs him by his throat, staring into his watering eyes. Her already serious expression darkens, takes off his hat and throws him back onto the ground. When he looks back up, the Scarlet Corsair pushes the flat of Scourge's blade against his cheek, followed by a sizzling sound and a scream of pain.
"Death would be too merciful for a pathetic craven like you. You will bear your shame for all your life and die a coward's thousand deaths until your heart finally stops. And if you ever commandeer a ship again, I will know. And you will wish the scum that attacked the people you were responsible for would have gutted you." The coward's face is branded with a burn mark that will never fully heal, his entire being deathly afraid as he curls up on the floor, wetting his pants again. The disgust in the Scarlet Corsair's voice is readily apparent, making those present glad they are not on the receiving end. Marina and Derrick look upon the sad excuse for a captain on the floor with open disdain.

"Jonathan, why is this ship so far out here?"
"The captain said he wanted to evade a storm, ma'am. I argued with him that we should stay on course, as we would get too far into unsafe territory otherwise."
The Scarlet Corsair fixes her gaze upon him. "Are you part of the crew?"
"No, ma'am."
"Do you know how to navigate and sail a ship?"
"Yes, yes I do, ma'am."
Nonchalantly, Jayna pushes the captain's hat into his arms. "You will bring this ship to its destination, then. Do right by these people and let this sniveling filth be a lesson on what a captain is not to be." The Captain knows that her voice can be heard throughout the ship. No one will dare to defy her.
Jonathan looks stunned, holding the hat. "I... I will, ma'am." And to Tiana (and from what she can tell, to Marina and Derrick), he seems honest and earnest about this task, it is just a lot to take in at once.
"Good." Jayna turns to her crew. "Bring the filth's belongings to the Crimson Tide, but leave maps, documents and the like behind. Of what you find, you can keep what you want, the rest goes to the ship." Tiana can guess why: so they can find their way and provide identification to the authorities when they arrive at their destination.
"Otherwise, we are done here, these people already suffered enough with such a 'leader' in command." With that, the Captain leaves the civilian ship. Apart from their given task, Tiana, Marina and Derrick are free to do what they want until the Crimson Tide sails again.

The three find a chest of gold, several fine spirits, a small pack of cigars, a pocketwatch (Derrick would like to have that one), a few bottled ships (of the navy variety only) and small figurines very well crafted from polished white stone. Marina does not feel interested by much of it, though she does snag a bottle of wine, the figurine of an otter and a few coins for herself. After Tiana has picked what she wants, Derrick wraps the more fragile things in cloth and puts them in the chest, picking the whole thing up. "I'll bring those over," he says, also slapping Jonathan on the back to wish him good luck. The sniveling "captain" has long been thrown into the cargo area.
"Congratulations," Marina quips, kissing Jonathan on the cheek. His face does take on a deeper shade, but he smiles in return.
"Thank you." He looks to the pirates before him. He appreciates them a lot and clearly is still amazed by the skills and courage they've shown. And their beauty does not escape him either, but he isn't a pig about it like most seem to be. He has his heart in the right place, it would seem. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't arrived when you did. We all owe you our lives. I hope I can repay you some day."

Marina smiles in return, then seems to get an idea. She turns Tiana around, whispering to her so Jonathan can't hear. "You know, we've got time, we've got a room and a big bed here and he is rather handsome..." Marina's amorous side is mostly reserved for women, but she isn't opposed to the occasional man either. Just Marina being Marina, pumped full with adrenaline and the victory-induced euphoria, even when she doesn't mean it, she likes to joke about it, very much aware of herself and not finding it a problem.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes as many coins as Marina does but passes on a figurine, she grew up in a home without knick-knacks and never really saw the value in them. Now if only the captain had some jewelry...

She acknowledges Marina with a bit of a wink, and turns to the maps and charts, spreading them out on the table.
These are my specialty, even though Ive never been on a ship, Ive studied them all. Jonathan, I think I can give you some pointers...and Marina, you've been such a help to me with learning the ropes, why don't you stick around and let me return the favour.

As Jonathan and Marina approach the table, Tiana turns back to get some more of them and when she comes back to the table, she makes sure that Jonathan is positioned between the two of them, and as she shows him and Marina currents and potential shoals, she moves to rub her thigh against his, and with Marina to the other side of him, theres no where for him to go.

[Ridai]

Once they are done, Marina and Tiana head back to the ship. The civilians thank the Scarlet Corsair and their crew, those who were on deck especially thank Tiana, Marina and Derrick. Jonathan takes the helm and with one last look and nodded thanks, he steers the ship away, towards their destination. The pirate ship is in a sorry state, a ship that has suffered from an uncaring crew. The deck is now splattered with blood and viscera, the pirates slaughtered save for the captain and the first mate, who are kneeling on deck, bloodied and beaten. Jayna is standing before them, looking at parchments.

"So far from your usual haunts, carrying an old map and navy missives. Speak. Now." She is staring down on both men, her gaze withering.
The pirate captain spits in front of the Corsair's feet. "I don't take orders from some whore fancying herself captain. Bend over 'n' I'll show you what you really sou-"
"We stole 'em from a drunken navy man. Figured there must be treasure there, so we tried to get there first," the first mate quickly shouts in panic, feeling the angry stares of the Crimson Tide's crew after the insult to their captain and that of the female members especially. So far, the Scarlet Corsair has ignored what the captain said, focussing on the first mate almost bursting into fire beneath her searing gaze.

"How long ago did you steal these." It is technically a question, but it is a clear command as well.
"Oh, is the little 'captain' afraid the big scary navy men will show up and show her her pla-"
"Ten days ago! We immediately escaped Port Selby before they would notice the theft and to get a headstart!" Once again the first mate quakes in fear and shouts over the captain, who in turn glowers at his first mate. Once again, the Corsair is ignoring the captain, though the crew is becoming louder, Marina especially, always open about her feelings.

"Why did you attack the civilian ship." It is an odd question, one that seems self-evident. The pirate captain laughs loudly.
"What a dumb bitch! Cattle like the wenches on that boa-"
This time, the first mate does not interrupt him. Tiana hardly saw the strikes, but she does see the wave of flame violently rushing along the arc of the Scarlet Corsair's sword arm, instantly burning the foulmouthed captain to ashes with the drowning bits of a scream of pain, the pulverized rest of him being carried off by the winds, the burst of flame eerily illuminating the run down ship. In the flash, Tiana can see little Dyna, smiling once again. The crew cheers at his demise, the first mate crying in fear.
"Our supplies were rotting, we wouldn't make it. And the men wanted... wanted the..." He presses through with his cracking voice, but the Corsair hushes him. He quietly sobs that he is sorry over and over as the Corsair walks behind him.
"Think of your home," she says and soon after, in what feels like a fraction of a second, her hands grasp his head and twist it, breaking his neck very audibly, ending his life quickly and painlessly.

"Get back on the ship, we are setting a new course. The navy seeks to line their pockets and build their power. But we'll make sure they will only find dust and a message." The crew responds with an enthusiastic "aye aye", returning to the Crimson Tide, Jayna being the last to leave. Scourge ignites in her hand, the flames never harming her and actually looking different, warmer somehow. Around her, the beaten up ship catches fire like cinder, as if it welcomes this fate with open arms. The whole deck is on fire already, with the Scarlet Corsair standing in the middle. Tiana can see her mouth moving, saying words that do not reach her ears, drowned out by the roaring flames and right after, she leaps back onto the Crimson Tide, setting off immediately. The crew watches the pirate ship burn from afar, the atmosphere calm, thoughtful, as if attending a service. Tiana senses her captain standing beside her.

"It used to be a good ship. Pelican was its name. Years ago, its original captain gambled it away, with only ale doing his thinking. Instead of hunting pirates, it became the instrument of countless atrocities, the screams of the souls that found their end on its deck and at the hands of its foul crew echoing through every part of it, the spilled innocent blood and the unending misery rotting it from inside out until it became the shell of its former self you saw," she tells her in a quiet, even voice, never looking away from the flames.

[MikelaC1]

So we intend to get to the treasure first, as they sought to. And send a real message to the navy. But they foolishly went after another prize as well, and the time it cost them ended up costing them their lives.

[Ridai]

Jayna nods. "Greed, amorality and stupidity make for a deadly mixture. Even if they had proper provisions, their nature would have let them make the same mistake at the same time with a different excuse. They are a threat to everyone, even themselves, so they needed to be stopped. The sniveling fool who steered the civilian ship is much the same, but he was just that, a fool. In need of a wake-up call and a lesson. The shame he now bears will either end him or he will find a better path. It is up to him." Her voice is calm, controlled, quiet. Even on deck as they are, there is a sense of privacy to their conversation. Now, she looks at Tiana, not with that piercing gaze of when she examined her or with that of a captain commanding her crew. "You have done well today, Tiana, both during and after the battle. You have made a difference for the better for Jonathan, Marina and Derrick, even for Dyna, and such things are worth more than all the treasure in the world." The Scarlet Corsair softly squeezes her shoulder before she leaves, leaving behind a sense of pride within her newest recruit.

Once the crew has finished their service to the burning ship, a more lively mood returns to the ship. Marina is busy retelling the action on the civilian ship, with Derrick correcting things here or there or helping her get back on track. "...standing there like a total badass and- Hey, there's our Lady Luck!" Marina waves Tiana over to her. "Just told them how we kicked those pirates' asses and looked great while doing it." Marina is grinning widely.
"Mostly Tiana, though, to be fair," Derrick throws in dryly, cackling at the "Hey!" that promptly echoes back.
"Got a lotta fight in you, Lucky. Let's drink to our girl's first real brawl!" Otra calls out, the short woman's muscular arm putting Tiana in a nearly crushing hug as she shoves a bottle of whisky into her hands, the others soon joining in. There won't be any bingeing going on, but the crew is in high spirits from the victory and the anticipation for snatching treasure away from the navy. Once again, Tiana sees Dyna a bit away, watching her like she often does.

[MikelaC1]

The praise from the Corsair is music to Tiana's ears, a captain complimenting her actions, something she has always wanted to hear. It reinforces her knowledge that she made the right choice to join up with her team.
Heading over to her crewmates, Tiana accepts the praise, truth be told she had no idea that what she tried would work, but then she was always that way. She takes a swig of the rum before passing it along.

[Ridai]

Stories of the fight are exchanged in a most lively fashion, a bit of shadow fighting going on to illustrate the stories. Eventually, a warning is called over by Rem. "Steady!" And soon after, the wind picks up a lot, the sudden increase in speed making everyone standing freely reel for a moment, sending a wave of laughs through the crew. Truly, the Crimson Tide glides through the water like a knife, hardly slowed down by the waves that lend a slight rocking motion to the ship. They are heading into the northwest. Tiana knows there is an archipelago there, barely explored, as well as tales of mighty rock formations and even mountains reaching towards the sky straight from the sea.

Adrenaline is slowly leaving Tiana and while the Crimson Tide is fast, it will still take some time to reach their destination. Lucky has been up for most of the day and with all the activity today, she has more than earned her rest. Marina is yawning and stretching tired muscles. She sees the Scarlet Corsair at the helm, steering her ship as if it was an extension of her body and will, her long fire-red hair moving in the wind. Rem maintains the winds alongside his many other duties. Both of them seem to sleep very little, although Rem often has this latent tiredness to him, even though it does not seem to affect his mood. He talks to Luca, who had been helping with controlling the winds during the attack. She looks so frail standing beside the likes of Jayna or Tiana (or, to take it to the extreme, Otra and Steiner) and she is not very strong, but Marina swears she has an unreal amount of stamina and the patience of a saint (also adding that, no, she didn't find out the first thing the way Tiana thinks she did). Rem praises her for her efforts and tells her to get some well-deserved rest, with Aria confirming with a nod and an enchanting smile. The young apprentice walks to the stairs down into the ship along with Tiana and Marina. There is a tiny shadow at the farthest point of the bow, Dyna staring into the night, inscrutable as ever.

Downstairs, Good Ol' Harman is sleeping in his bunk, his staff attached to the side of the frame, his hands folded over his chest. Few people manage to look this peaceful when asleep. Luca turns to Marina and Tiana for a brief moment, standing a bit shorter than Marina. "Sleep well," she quietly wishes both of them with a little bow, Marina melting just a bit from that little smile of hers. "Good night, Luca," she responds, unable to keep herself from smiling.

When Tiana is finally lying in her bunk, it feels as if she has fallen into a heavenly soft cloud, rocking softly back and forth, Marina's hammock swaying back and forth ever so slightly above her. "Hey, Tiana. What do you think what kind of treasure will we find?" the voice from above asks, letting an arm dangle down over the edge of the hammock.

[MikelaC1]

Jewelry Tiana promptly replies. Lots of jewelry, necklaces, rings, brooches, whatever. When I first moved out of the fishermen portion of Bordansa and into the upper class sections, that's the thing that most struck me about the fancy noble ladies. Their jewels. That's what I want, a collection I can be proud of.

[Ridai]

Marina chuckles quietly. "That sounds nice. I'm sure we'll find something that looks good on you..." she responds, her voice telling Tiana that she is drifting asleep, perhaps dreaming about her redhead friend adorned with all kinds of stunning jewelry (and most likely little else). As Tiana slowly falls into blissful sleep, she thinks she can hear Aria singing softly and beautifully, a most welcome lullaby that puts her mind at ease with strangely familiar comfort.

Tiana awakes to the noon's sun seeping into the room from up the staircase, feeling the comfortable breeze. Someone left the door open. Heading onto the deck, Tiana has to shield her eyes from the blinding sun for a moment. When she can see clearly, she spots towering natural walls of stone jutting out of the water, putting those at Crag Island to shame. Several of the crew gaze up and from side to side in astounded awe. The gap in between the two sea mountains they are in front of looks as if it had a hair's width compared to the rock surrounding it, very hard to see if one is not looking for it. Or doesn't know that it is there. The Captain steers the Crimson Tide towards the gap with a steady hand, the mountains seemingly rising higher and higher around them until the sunlight becomes a line stretching out behind and above them. Such a narrow passage is treacherous and there is a sense of anticipation, everyone silently following the Scarlet Corsair's orders as she safely navigates the ship through the passage. Finally, they round a corner and then they see their goal. In front of them, a huge cavern opens up as if part of the mountain was hollowed out, the wind blowing through the cavern and sunlight falling through holes in the ceiling far above in singular shafts, the azure water glittering because of it. At the far side, a huge building has been built into the rock (or perhaps even carved from the rock), the structure looking ancient and foreign, but as if built for the ages, its walls and pillars covered with impressive patterns and symbols, with a large staircase leading up to the entrance. Many are speechless, yet also filled with anticipation.

As the Crimson Tide gets closer, the Corsair directs her crew, telling them their task in this. Several crew members are to stay on the ship to have it ready for departure at a moment's notice. Others, including Harman, Aria, Dyna, Otra, Steiner and Rem, are to head into the building alongside the Corsair. "Luca, you stay on the ship and watch the waters. Send the wind to us if you sense something wrong." The girl would have wanted to see what the building looks like on the inside, but she nods and responds with the customary "aye aye, Captain". "Tiana. You, Marina and Derrick come with us as well," she orders, the acrobat and the diver giving their affirmation (and exchanging a semi-hidden high five).

[MikelaC1]

Tiana runs her finger along the edge of Fortuna, silently testing its edge, even though nothing has happened that would have dulled it anyway. She nods in acceptance of the captain's orders, and takes her spot in the group procession, sword out.

[Ridai]

Led by the Scarlet Corsair, Tiana and the rest of the group ascend the long staircase once they arrive on the rocky shore. They find no gate to keep them out, the opening into the building far bigger now that they stand in front of it. Fearlessly, the Captain steps inside, the others soon following. They are standing in a hall with a high, vaulted ceiling, light illuminating the surroundings from holes in the ceiling as well as from blue crystals that look like they have grown along the walls like ivy. The intricacy of the decorations, pictures and signs visible on the stones and crystalline surfaces is impressive, looking at a piece of history long forgotten. A few paths lead to the sides, usually next to much larger gates, with some pathways leading along the walls high up. But the thing that immediately is noticable is the gate right in front of them, looking like it grew naturally and perfectly from the blue crystal, wind and wave patterns adorning it, making Tiana think of a huge gemstone cut with imaculate craftmanship. Everything seems to guide the eye towards it.

"This place feels... familiar. I remember songs mentioning places like these, precious hearts of wind and water resting at the center of them, both elements flowing through such places like blood through our veins. I can feel it," Aria says, her golden hair swaying gently in the light breeze. Rem seems to listen for something, also placing a hand on the floor. "I can feel it, too." Jayna looks at them for a moment, then heads to the crystal door. Examining it for a moment, she pushes it, but it does not budge. She slides a finger down the middle where the two halves meet, then steps away again. The hall is declared the starting point of their search for a way inside. Aria and Rem are ordered to examine the crystal door and see if they can manipulate it somehow, while the rest is split up to explore the rest of the building. "You three take the last door. I expect you to exercise caution, as this is ancient and unknown. In case of serious danger, return here immediately. Understood?" she says to Tiana, Marina and Derrick, who were appointed the pathway to the right.

The path they walk is illuminated mostly by the blue crystals on the walls and ceilings, long and winding, but even with how ancient this structure is and with time having taken its toll, it is a sight to behold. Eventually, they reach a very vertical hall. A bridge leads through the middle to the other side. One staircase winds down into evershifting water, its sound mixing the the wind rushing through the stone above. A staircase once led up alongside pillars and other architectural additions, but it is damaged and partially broken, the walls also bearing uneven marks. At the end of the bridge is a door, locked tightly. A bar with a wind pattern and another with a water pattern keep it shut and there is a keyhole in the middle. A mural showing a key and three songstresses surrounded by both elements is seen above the door and when they look further up, they see what looks like a small balcony to which the stairs still somewhat lead to.

[MikelaC1]

Taking charge, Tiana points to the stairs down...You take those Derrick see what you can find. She points to the semi-stairs up You have the acrobatic skills, Marina, you see if you can make your way to the balcony

For herself, Tiana takes the bridge, making sure to check every so often to see if the bridge is rigged to collapse, or just falls through age and neglect

[roll0] Search
[roll1] Search
[roll2] Search

[Ridai]

"Aye aye, miss commander ma'am," Marina teases, complete with a salute. Derrick peers down over the edge.
"Stairs lead right into the water, but it's pretty clear. We're looking for a switch or something?"
"I mean, I guess? The stairs gotta be there for some reason."
Derrick begins to descend, Marina heads up and hops over gaps with sure steps and Tiana examines the bridge. Her sharp eye reveals no traps, but she does see some damages in addition to the wear and tear inflicted by the combination of wind and water in this hall.

"Watch out, girls, floor's pretty slippery," Derrick warns from below, his voice echoing a little.
"And rickety, too, at least up here. Keep an eye up," Marina echoes back, making the first treacherous jump, bits of stone crumbling away and quietly hitting the water.
Both certainly apply to the bridge. She spots parts smoothened by time and elements, some having a slight sheen to them, others looking structurally weakened. Looking at the structures beneath the bridge by going down a few steps, Tiana is able to draw a twisting line across the bridge that should be mostly safe, if she watches her step.

Search checks successful. Just as a heads up, you don't need to make search checks for every inch, not going to screw you over because you didn't make a Search check for that bit of floor. Just make them where you think they might be needed (like the bridge, i.e. things that stand out), a single one is enough. Just something to streamline exploration.

[MikelaC1]

Thought I would toss in a few, since its a long bridge[/color]

We're looking for anything that isnt a part of the steps

Tiana gets the path clear in her mind, and then sets out, following course she plotted.

[spoiler][roll0] Balance...just in case its needed

Once she arrives, she takes a look at the lock, before even starting to touch or search

[Ridai]

Tiana makes her way across the bridge. Even with the generous size of the bridge, the actual safe footing is much less. Tiana sees little pieces get loose, as well a splash from beneath, Derrick having jumped into the water. A look up reveals Marina being almost above Tiana, having to divert from the stairs and onto a piece that fell to the side and has been wedged between a pillar and what is left of the stairs. Halfway across the bridge, Tiana hears rock grinding on rock, as well as a "Watch out!"

The unsteady platform Marina had to divert to is not actually a single piece, more parts becoming lose and falling down towards the bridge. And towards Tiana.


Reflex save, please.

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] REF save

HEY Tiana shouts as she dodges out of the way of the falling rock.

[Ridai]

Tiana manages to get out of the way easily, staying on the safe parts of the bridge. The rocks slam into the bridge, the weaker parts coming loose as well, breaking out of the bridge and splashing into the water. Looking upwards, Marina is hanging off the edge of the higher part of the stairs, barely having managed to get off the unstable part. Dragging herself up, she squats on the edge, looking down. "You okay down there? Sorry, but things are really rickety up here. The wind's pretty strong, too."

Tiana is able to get to the door. She sees the two bars, but also a strange looking keyhole in the middle. Around it are two rings, seemingly attached to the keyhole's lock mechanism and that can be turned, one of them light blue, another of a yellow color.

[MikelaC1]

Have either of you found anything? Tiana calls out to her partners before turning her attention back to the lock. Without actually trying to pick it for now, she examines it as closely as possible, to see if there is some indication of what does what.

[roll0] nonpicking pick

[MikelaC1]

1/11 rerolls
[roll0]

[Ridai]

Tiana analyzes the contraption and finds it to be partially magical in addition to the mechanical lock, a rare thing indeed. Magic is not exactly common in the kingdom, the minor items Tiana has still counting as lucky finds. The light blue ring feels cool and slightly wet, despite no fluid sticking to it, the yellow one lets air play around Tiana's fingers, but also pushes them back slightly. Tiana gets a vague bad feeling about the rings. The crystal doors looked immaculate, but the rings seem off, perhaps not being in the best shape anymore, whatever energy being part of them leaking out to some extend. Very slightly manipulating the rings, Tiana can tell that they affect the complex locking mechanism on the inside. To unlock the door, one will affect the rings, but someone with a delicate touch can affect how much the rings will turn and in what way. However, turning the rings into the right position will probably make unlocking the door much easier. Suddenly, the bar marked with wind patterns moves a little, sliding to the side, the yellow ring beginning to turn clockwise as well, a mark on it pointing to the 5 o'clock position. Tiana feels as if her hand is slapped lightly. As quickly as it happened, the bar moves back into its old position, the ring only somewhat reseting, moving unevenly, underlining the impression that something is not quite working right.

"There's some kind of switch here. Kinda hard to push. Wind's really strong up here," Marina shouts downwards, having to overpower the volume of the breeze up there. Tiana can see her hair being blown into one direction or another. She is pretty far up and the balcony looks pretty small. Tiana sees some movement in the water bar, the blue ring moving slightly counter-clockwise, acompanied by a slightly cold rush. The ring points to the 9 o'clock position. The objects, too, reset soon, the ring overcompensating as it tries to return to its position.

A splash is heard from further down. "I found some heavy pressure plate. I think it's attached to some sluices. Strong current and pressure down there. Anything up there?"

(Make a Listen check as well)

[MikelaC1]

Pending results of listen check

Try pushing both of them at once. On my count of 3...1, 2, 3

As they push, she watches what happens to the dials.

[Ridai]

When Tiana is fiddlign with the dials, she can very, very subtly hear the wind above and the rushing of the water below change. She also picks up on a slight hum leading up and down the wall there door and the switches are placed in as the switches are pressed.

"Tiana, I can't hear you underwater. It's hard enough to do so above the surface," Derrick calls out before he goes diving again. The pushing isn't synced, but both bars begin to move slowly, the dials rotating as before. Tiana suddenly feels battering winds whip against her, coming from the door, while the rush of cold is barely more than a breeze this time. As the dials move the wind is becoming less severe, but the cold is more and more approaching a severe blizzard. The winds above begin to pick up, Tiana able to hear fragments of Marina's voice, but the howling gales swallow most of it as they begin to make it more and more difficult for the lightweight acrobat to remain on the balcony, battering the acrobat as the water below grows quiet. Both bars click into place, in the open position, and the dials stop rotating, the door emitting only a bit of air, but also deathly cold. The lock remains, however. Then, the winds above normalize quickly and the waters below begin to rush as normal again, both bars sliding back into place, the dials returning to near their starting positions. Neither wind nor cold emit from the door now. Marina and Derrick stopped pushing the switches.

"Did it work? The current stopped for a moment." Derrick asks as he is back over the surface.
Marina is clutching the switch above. "I almost went swimming. What the hell is with these winds?" she shouts down.

(Reflex save against the battering winds from the start)

[Ridai]

49 / 66 HP (66 / 66 reserve)
9 / 11 rerolls

The sudden blast of air catches Tiana off-guard, battering her back, but Tiana barely evades more serious consequences (Tiana loses 17 HP). The distance this puts between Tiana and the door makes the coldness a non-issue.

[MikelaC1]

When you worked the switch and the plate, the bars on the door opened but the lock remained and the winds and water became dangerous and almost knocked us off. I would like to try and pick the lock, and once its open, then try those switches again

Tiana takes out her tools and tries to spring the lock. If she succeeds, she will back 20 ft from the door and call to her companions to do their thing again.

[roll0]

[Ridai]

Tiana sets to work on the lock. She finds that the mechanism is unlike anything she has worked on before, but she rises to the challenge. Working on it, she once more sees that the dials are tied to the lock itself, small manipulations of the bolts also turning the dials and she can sense small fluctuations in terms of air flow and temperature as the dials turn, but right now, there is no hum in the walls leading up and down. It seems the switches provide elemental power to the dials and thus the lock. However, even if Tiana sets the lock into the right position, the dials turning from the activation of the switches (making a half-rotation from start to finish, before imperfectly resetting themselves when the switches are released) would undo her work, requiring live manipulation of the lock to actually get it to open.

Or it would, if Tiana had not figured out a trick to the mechanism, allowing her to lock the dials into the position she desires, preventing them from undoing her work. The question is, what direction should the marks of the dials point into?

Due to Tiana's result of 30 on the check, she exceeded the DC of the damaged lock enough to not having to manipulate the dials while Marina and Derrick are pushing the switches. Do note that the direction the marks face into is significant.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana decides to try to set the rings to the positions that they went to when she first fiddled with it, that being the yellow ring pointing at 5 o'clock and the blue ring pointing to 9 o'clock. If the door opens, even a little bit, she will try to open it further and wedge it if possible.

[Ridai]

Marina and Derrick get back to pushing the switches. Stuck as the dials are, wind blasts from the yellow one furiously, but Tiana is out of reach. The wind above seems to quiet down to a nice breeze. Tiana can feel coldness emit from the door, the water below rushing at normal speed. The bars slide to the side slowly and the moment they click into resting positions, the door just slams open from all the wind, the malfunctioning elemental power lanes finishing it off by ripping it from its hinges, with Tiana just managing to sidestep it. The stone door crashes onto the bridge, half sliding, half tumbling onwards with an echoing cacophony until it slams into the far wall, coming to rest. Both the wind and the rushing water stopped.

"Maidens! Are you alright down there?!" Marina calls down, Derrick meanwhile coming back to the surface. "Tell me that did it."

[MikelaC1]

That did it, the door is open. The adventuring part of me says go on in, the newly recruited sailor says go back and tell the captain. You both know her better than me.

[Ridai]

Marina still seems a bit jittery from the harrowing storm she endured, with Derrick all soggy, caughing up some water.
"Well, that was a bit scary, but I don't think that counted as serious danger."
"Basically, if we have the choice between going back and being crippled or killed, we should do the former."

[MikelaC1]

With just the faintest trace of being disappointed, Tiana turns and retraces the path she used to get to door in the first place.
[roll0] balance

[Ridai]

"Tiana, we're not seeing any serious threat, you know..." Marina says, made unsure by Tiana's actions.

[MikelaC1]

Im not seeing a threat, but then again, Derrick seems unsure. I would love to go, ready for more Derrick?

Tiana is always ready for more action, ready to prove herself and if her partners are all in, so is she.

[Ridai]

66 / 66 HP (49 / 66 reserve)
9 / 11 rerolls

"Yup. I'm seeing an open doorway, not a horde of demons," Derrick answers with a shrug. "If we can handle it, no point in turning around." Both Marina and her friend are similarly eager to go on.

Stepping through the door, they see that there is a long hall behind it. Looking up, the door is actually part of another gate. Once more, crystals illuminate the way until they reach a large rounded space. The vaulted ceiling is decorated with a picture of the sea and the sky, with two women in the center, one dressed in billowing yellow robes, the other in flowing light blue robes. Water is flowing down the walls into a pool surrounding the middle part, a round big platform with especially big blue crystals floating above it, about two feet off the ground. There is a periodic glow to them as well as a soft resonant sound, combining into a continuous quiet melody.

"Wow..." Marina utters, taking everything in. The closest blue crystal shows a very faint wave of light rippling across it, as if reacting to the sound of her voice, adding notes to the melody that don't quite fit. As they cross the platform, their steps very lightly influence the crystals, barely noticably. Tiana is the first to spot something being amiss. There is another gate with a smaller door at the far side. Before it are two large figures, staring at the door, looking as if made of a mixture of stone and ice. They haven't reacted to any of the sounds the group made, but their bodies twitch, erratic glows appearing and dissipating across their bodies. Looking closely, the crystals also show similar signs. With their heads twitching, one of them spots the group, both turning around, showing that their sense of vision is still intact. Jagged ice blades are frozen to their arms, their motions awkward and malfunctioning. As one of them hits the crystal closest to them with its shoulder, the crystal begins vibrating and glowing more strongly, its sounds becoming louder. Slowly, they begin to close in.

(Initiative, please.)

[Ridai]

The first of the guardians, its ice blade frozen to its left arm, lumbers closer, crossing a third of the platform, but is still barely out of reach of the group. Marina and Derrick exchange a look with each other and move in, flanking the being. Derrick is first to attack, double-handing his machete and getting a solid hit in. Tiana knows the amount of strength he has and the blow is sure to hurt. But somehow, it just leaves a small crack in the creature, to everyone's surprise. Marina follows up, managing to find a gap in its structure and hitting it hard with her dagger... but also does not deal too much damage, the glow again appearing. Her second dagger misses its target, slipping on the icy surface. The sound of the clashes of metal on stone and ice sends ripples across the nearest crystal.

"What is this?!" Marina looks confused at what is going on, same as Derrick. The guardian, while having some cracks, still looks like it can take a lot more punishment.

Derrick dealt 7 damage to the left-handed guardian, Marina dealt 9 damage and missed once. The guardians apparently have magical damage resistance.

Tiana's turn. The left-handed guardian is open for a sneak attack.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana knows that her usual feinting attack method is not needed here, Marina and Derrick giving her a chance to flank the being and allowing her to strike with (hopefully) devastating effect with her rapier. Her needle like blade flashes twice, seeking gaps in the beasts icy armour

[roll0] attack & [roll1] damage & [roll2] sneak attack
[roll3] attack & [roll4] damage & [roll5] sneak attack

[Ridai]

47 / 66 HP (49 / 66 reserve)
7 / 11 rerolls

Fortuna cuts straight through the glow that had hindered Marina and Derrick, creating widespread cracks in the magical body of the left-handed guardian.

The right-handed guardian lumbers clumsily towards the fray, its arm hitting a crystal as it passes by, causing it to resonate strongly and glow like the one the first guardian hit. Suddenly, there is an almost blinding discharge of blue energy between the crystals, catching the right-handed guardian within, shattering some of the stone and ice it is created of. Nonetheless, it continues until it stands beside the other guardian, swinging at Derrick, who very narrowly manages to escape the ice blade, but can still very much feel the numbing cold. The other guardian awkwardly slams its blade down onto where Tiana stands. The first attack is laughable, Tiana very easily sidestepping it. But the upswing afterwards happens so erratically and fast that the blade only misses Tiana by a hair's width because Fortuna happens to be in just the right position. Tiana can see two red hairs sail through the air, frozen before they hit the ground.

Marina and Derrick, seeing what happened with the crystals and that Tiana does much more damage than they do, simultaneously get an idea for how they can actually do something. They both roll away into opposite directions, too fast for the guardians, and they both slam the flat of their blades against a crystal. Once again, the crystals glow and there is a discharge of energy, akin to electricity, drawn to the blades of the guardians who stand in the line between the crystals. As their arms are attached to their blades, the icy weapons and appendages begin to vibrate and shake wildly, likely ruining whatever coordination they had with them, at least for a short time.

The left-handed guardian seems to still focus on Tiana, but the right-handed seems to turn its head towards Marina. Both Marina and Derrick look to Tiana for guidance, as they have a more difficult time dodging and attacking the guardians than the redhead.

Tiana hits both times.

The right-handed guardian takes 26 HP worth of damage from the energy discharge released between the crystals. It attacks Derrick and hits for 18 cold damage.

The left-handed guardian attacks Tiana and attacks her two times (revealing that the guardians can only full attack when standing still, coordination being too difficult for them to move and fully attack at the same time).
First attack misses with a 13. Second attack is a natural 20 that does not confirm with another 13, dealing 19 cold damage.

Derrick tumbles away and hits a crystal.

Marina tumbles away and hits a crystal. The discharge affects both guardians, inflicting a -4 attack penalty on them for 1 round.

Summary:
Left-handed guardian lost 64 HP and is moderately to heavily damaged, stands adjacent to Tiana and the other guardian. -4 to attack for 1 round
Right-handed guardian lost 26 HP and is lightly damaged, 10 feet away from Tiana, but in attack reach. -4 to attack for 1 round
Marina is at full health and 20 feet away from the closest guardian
Derrick lost 18 HP and is at roughly 3/4 HP, stands 15 feet away from the closest guardian

Tiana's turn. She can attempt to draw the attention of both guardians as part of a normal bluff, if she wishes to. Otherwise, the right-handed guardian will go after Marina.

[MikelaC1]

Hey icecubes, try cooling down this firebrand

Tiana taunts the guardians, trying to keep their attention on her, allowing Marina and Derrick to do their thing with the crystals.
[roll0] Bluff: keep guardians attention

To punctuate just how dangerous she is, Tiana makes a move towards the right hand guardian, but its just another one of her feints, as she suddenly pivots on the ball of her foot and rams her rapier twice into the left guardian, hoping to finish it off and give them only one enemy to deal with.

[roll1] Improved feint
[roll2] attack & [roll3] damage + [roll4] sneak
[roll5] attack & [roll6] damage + [roll7] sneak

[MikelaC1]

and a confirming check

[roll0] attack & [roll1] damage

[Ridai]

25 / 66 HP (49 / 66 reserve)
6 / 11 rerolls

Both guardians turn towards Tiana, but their awkward senses and motions aren't enough to keep up with her. In an impressive show of skill and precision, Tiana creates a large crack in the left-handed guardian and her keen eye sees the most vulnerable weakness, the final strike making the guardian burst apart in a shower of stone and ice shards like a supernatural overly ripe melon. The other guardian misses in all the motion and chaos, not even close, but then swipes wildly to the side. Tiana has to roll out of the way, evading shards and blade. Marina and Derrick cover Tiana with another discharge of crystals, battering the guardian to the side. It attempts to turn away from Tiana, towards Marina, who, looking at Tiana, begins to shout "Yeah, come and get me, numbskull, I'm right here!" while standing behind the crystal.

Tiana manages to keep the guardian's attention, as it rolled a 14. Also, even with the -4 penalty for feinting a nonhumanoid target, the left-handed guardian's Sense Motive result of 20 is not enough to see through Tiana's trickery.

Tiana hits twice and confirms her first critical, killing her target quite dead.

The right-handed guardian attacks with its -4 penalty. First attack is a natural 1, the second a natural 20 (I am not making this up), but is unable to confirm the critical due to the penalty with a result of 15. Tiana takes 22 cold damage.

Tiana and Derrick cause another resonance discharge, dealing 19 damage.

Summary:
Left-handed guardian dead.
Right-handed guardian lost 45 HP and moderately damaged, is trying to focus on Marina.

Tiana's turn.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana has the upper hand now with the guardian but she needs to keeps its attention on her, but not so much that it can protect itself against attacks.
No, big boy, stay with me, shes too scrawny for you
With its attention drawn back to her, she moves left, pivots right, and then does a 180 back to the left hand, ramming her rapier in twice for good measure.

[roll0] attack & [roll1] damage & [roll2] sneak
[roll3] attack & [roll4] damage & [roll5] sneak

[MikelaC1]

double confirm chances

[roll0] attack & [roll1] damage
[roll2] attack & [roll3] damage

[Ridai]

25 / 66 HP (49 / 66 reserve)
6 / 11 rerolls

Tiana fails to keep the guardian's attention, but even as it starts to move towards Marina, Tiana is already on it, striking with elegant deadliness. Marina only sees Fortuna emerge from the thin torso of the guardian, followed by cracks appearing from the wound and finally it explodes in a shower of stone and ice. No threat remains.

"Scary powerful." Derrick says, moving over to Tiana and nudging what is left of one of the stone heads with his boot.
"Yeah, no kidding, you and Fortuna did a real number on them. Glad we're on the same side."

The guardian manages a natural 20 on his first Sense Motive check and matches Tiana's check exactly. He fails his check against her feint with a 9, though. He is subsequently killed quite dead, even though the second critical does not confirm.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana shrugs.
Thats why they call me lucky. You two found a way to harm them without risking your skin. Lets go see what our reward is

Tiana heads to the far door, making sure to search it before doing anything rash or foolish

[roll0] Search (Traps)

[Ridai]

66 / 66 HP (8 / 66 reserve)
6 / 11 rerolls

Tiana manages to unlock the door and discover a nasty jagged ice edge that is difficult to see where one needs to push to open the door. Stepping through, they are standing at the beginning of a short corridor, as wide and tall as the ones they have been in before. However, only two lines of crystals are seen here. Most of the light comes from idyllic shafts of light falling from the ceiling, giving this place the feel of a sanctum. Many very large pillars are in this room, with a huge growth of crystals at the end, making it look like the crystals started to grow from there. Floating peacefully are several gems at the foot of the crystal mass. Eight pure azure gems the size of a child's fist float in a slow orbit around a single immaculate one the size of a heart. It even softly pulses with light, the light similar to that they saw from the crystals, but it looks like it can't reach all the way to the entry hall with the same intensity.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana enters the room slowly, looking all around to see what she can see, and try to note if there are any traps present. She stays away from the gems for now, the lure of how much they must be worth is hard to resist, but shes not touching them, not until someone more versed in the arcane can verify them as safe.


[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[Ridai]

Tiana finds no traps. Derrick seems to notice something, but doesn't seem alert. "You hear that?" Listening closer, Marina and Tiana notice a faint sound in the comfortable undercurrent of this room, oddly soothing. "It sounds like a... whale."
Marina looks intrigued. "This is what a whale sounds like? I've never seen a live one."
"Saw some a couple of times, but it is easier to hear them underwater, where they kind of sound like this."
Marina just stands there in wonder, taking in the sound with a growing grin.

"What about the gems?" Derrick asks Tiana, having kept his distance from them because Tiana did. Marina, brought back to reality, does eye them with a sparkle in her eyes.

[MikelaC1]

Im sure there will be a share for everyone, but dont mess with them now. Gems dont hang in the air or make sounds, we need to have the finger wigglers take a look at them

Tiana continues to look for anything else of note in the room, including more doors. If they have indeed reached the end of this part of the complex, its time to alert the captain

[Ridai]

As Tiana speaks, the crystals seem to hum harmoniously, the whale sound audible again. "Another big fan of your voice, Lucky," Marina chuckles. There are no other exits, this is indeed a dead-end.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana is no great singer, but she sings a bit to see what the reaction of the crystals will be. After she is done, she turns to Marina and Derrick.
I think we are done here. Its probably a good idea to get the captain

Of course, if the crystals react in some amazing way, she wont say that

[Ridai]

The orbit of the gems shifts in tune to Tiana's voice, glowing warmly. But otherwise, not much else seems to happen. When they head back to the entrance hall, some of the teams have also already returned. Jayna glances at the three as they arrive, awaiting their report.

[MikelaC1]

Our trail lead us to a bridge over a huge cavern. When we crossed the bridge, we found a door that required some manipulation to open. The door lead to a huge hall with two ice guardians that we destroyed. This hall was connected to another room. In all of these rooms, we have found a large quantity of gems that have some very unusual properties, they float on their own, they glow with a light of their own, and they seem to respond to the sound of human voices. Because of this, we choose not to touch them, they must be magical in some way.

[Ridai]

"Well, they respond to Tiana, anyway," Marina adds.

Jayna turns to Rem and Aria. "Go with them and see if we can get this door open with those gems," she commands, both responding affirmatively. As all five walk back to the chamber at the end of the path, Aria does take note of the floating crystals on the way, making them react via the sound of her voice. When they reach the huge mass of crystals with the floating gems in front of it, it does not take Rem and Aria long to examine them, Aria also singing for a short moment, the gems reacting strongly to her.
"You three did well in not touching them, at least without rhyme or reason," Rem says. "In a way, these crystals are carriers. They transmit sounds, voices, perhaps even more. They aren't a threat in itself, though."
"The crystals allow us to speak to the guardian of this place, which you see before you," Aria explains, motioning to the amalgation of crystals. "It is an inherently peaceful being, unless anyone wants to rob or destroy this place." The gems respond with another soft whale sound. It is unclear whether they react to what has been said by Aria or just the sound of her voice.

The healer turns to Lucky. "Tiana, do you like to sing?"

[MikelaC1]

Sometimes I hum when I'm working and sometimes when Im alone I have sung. But Im not really that good at it. Maybe if I worked at it I could get better, but its not something I ever trained for

She sings a short little piece, one of the currently more popular songs in Bordansa

[roll0] perform

[Ridai]

Once more, the gems react as Tiana begins to sing. She feels all attention on her, but Aria's most of all. It is easy to feel doubts about one's own flaws when put on the spot, but the golden-haired healer smiles beautifully as she listens, giving Tiana a welcome surge of confidence and relaxation. Seamlessly, Aria begins to join in, supporting Tiana at first, then without a noticable shift guiding her, singing together. It takes no effort for Tiana, whatever Aria is doing is making it very easy for the redhead to just stop thinking and go with the flow. In the streets, opera houses and concert halls of Bordansa, on the decks of the ships she has been on, Tiana has never heard a voice like Aria's, making her think of those moments when no wistful longings or sorrows weighted her down, whether she dreamed of sailing on the sea as she looked at it... or when she was truly braving the waters on the Crimson Tide. In a way, Aria's singing is like a soundtrack to her happiest memories. Tiana does not need to know the words and melodies, she can feel them deep within.

Tiana realizes her surroundings once more when the song is over. Tiana sees the beautiful smile of Aria (once again managing to make the room feel a little warmer), amazement on Marina's and Derrick's faces, and a favorable smile and slow applause from Rem. The crystals all glow with the gems' light now and the gems themselves float over to the duo, the large one to Aria, the small ones to Tiana. The healer gently takes the gem into her hands and the smaller ones all neatly set down onto Tiana's palms when she holds them up. "With your help, I told the guardian that we are here to take away what lies within these walls so that the ruthless men of the navy cannot misuse them. He wants us to take the gems with us, so that he can remain close to what he has been protecting and so that our voices are carried to one another through the smaller gems."

[MikelaC1]

It would be an honour to become co-guardians of these gems

Gently Tiana begins to collect up the gems, with the others help...if possible, keeping the gems mostly in the same order or touching next to ones they were originally touching. Once they are all collected, she turns to the others, ready to leave.

[Ridai]

Aria chuckles. "These gems are the guardian, though most of all this big one. But we will soon see what he is guarding." The smaller gems have already placed themselves in Tiana's hands, though one floats up for a moment, nestling itself against Tiana's outfit just below her shoulder blade, a soft glow emitting from it. It stays there akin to a brooch. The rest go into a pouch for the time being.

When they are back in the entrance hall, the rest of the exploration groups are back. The Scarlet Corsair looks to them with the same look of expectation as before. Aria walks over to the crystalline door, humming a few notes. The large gem in her hands reacts and slowly, ponderously, the doors glide open, revealing a long staircase upwards, water flowing down both sides of the steps and disappearing into unseen depths at the bottom. Jayna nods approvingly. "Good job," she acknowledges Tiana's, Marina's and Derrick's work.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana is eager to take the point on the exploration of this staircase, but of course she waits for Jayna's orders before doing so.

[Ridai]

It is a long walk up the stairs and there is one last double door at the top of it. Tiana, on the way there, actually sees that Marina broke off a chunk of the ice guardians' blades, stowing it in a cloth wrap. Jayna pushes the doors open and before them lies another thing a freshly-made pirate dreams of. "Ladies, gentlemen, we found what we came for."

A lavish treasure room, sunlight falling from above letting all the gold, silver and gemstones sparkle. Chests filled with gold, plates and decanters made of gold and silver, necklaces, rings, brooches, armlets and tiaras with marvelous gemstones and fitting craftsmanship, a collection of clothing and weaponry that has endured the ages without noticable wear. At the far end are marble statues showing two unbelievably beautiful women, evidently lovers, surrounded by wind and water. Before the statues is pedestial with a single perfect gem of the purest azure, as if the world's seas served as its material.

"Take in the sights, but pack everything up, we're on a schedule. You can take your pick on the Crimson Tide when we are sailing again."
Tiana can hear Marina repeat "By the maidens, by the maidens, by the maidens" to herself in excitement, the rest of the normal crew present similarly stoked, with the higher-ups being more experienced with such a thing. But even they can appreciate the riches and sights before them.

[MikelaC1]

As Tiana takes part in the packing, she cant help but attempt to commune with the brooch that attached itself to her, or with one of the other gems that gave their approval, trying to make sure that making this haul is something they approve of. Its a sight she has never seen before, and thought she might never see...although all the seafaring tales she knows had a horde like this in them. She cant believe she is actually seeing such a thing, let alone getting a share of it.

What I wouldnt give to see the looks on the navy men faces when they get here and the whole place is cleaned out

[Ridai]

Rem catches Tiana's comment, grinning in response. "Oh, definitely. But I guess we'll have to make do with the warm, fuzzy feeling from imagining their impotent rage instead." The guardian, "communicating" from its gem through the brooch, does not seem to mind from what little Tiana can tell. It is like all this lavish, unbelievable treasure is of little consequence to it. Rather, it cares about the perfect azure gem, wanting it safely taken from this place instead of falling into the wrong hands.

The crew is very quick about packing up, everyone highly motivated by such a find, only made sweeter by snatching all of it away from the greedy navy. Glancing back, Tiana catches Rem noticing something, then talking to the Scarlet Corsair.

"Double time it, we need to get going, the kingdom's little doggies are coming to play." The last bits of treasure are packed and start to get hauled away. "Tiana, get the gem," Jayna orders, pointing to the azure gem before the statues.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana rushes to the gem, but takes her care with it, not wanting to damage it by accident. She places it into an empty sack, to make sure it doesn't get scratched in transit.

[Ridai]

There is a special feeling Tiana can't quite place when she takes the gem. This isn't just some pretty stone, so much is certain. Then, muffled impacts can be heared somewhere distant, outside. The sky has darkened for some time now. A rumble sometimes manages to pass through the complex. Looking up, Tiana and Jayna can see a red glow race across the sky above.

"Move it, people!" The Scarlet Corsair shouts as the last few people begin to leave the treasure room. Suddenly, everything explodes into light and deafening sound, Tiana being thrown off her feet. She vaguely sees a flaming sphere crush the wall and part of the ceiling before slamming a hole into the floor. Fire seems everywhere, Tiana's vision blurry, her head dizzy, her hearing muffled. She feels herself slide, downwards. A shadow leaps through the flames towards her, Lucky can see the shimmer of red hair. She can feel fingers brush hers, but then Tiana is already sliding downwards into the darkness, wind howling in her ears and making it difficult to keep ones eyes open, feeling uneven ground and hitting some stones. Suddenly, there is the sensation of falling (flying?), seeing the shapes of ships on the sea and flaming lines being painted through the air by them. She sees the weak sunlight through the thick layer of clouds and a reflection ever in motion and a rocky wall with pieces falling off of it. A hard impact. Darkness.

Tiana feels herself float, numb. Everything is silent. She hears a voice, telling her to just let go, comforting and welcoming, that it is alright. It would be so easy to just let go and be at peace.
But there is another as well, cutting through the dark. "Tiana."

The darkness gives way. Water around her. "Follow my voice. Listen only to my voice. Follow my voice."

Hasty motions let Tiana break the surface, caugh up water. Everything hurts badly. A storm has enveloped the scenery. Tiana can see fire. A ship is burning. Men of the same uniform fighting. The sea is an evershifting mass of black and red. Tiana's body feels heavy and sore. The rocky wall is to her right, the gap somewhere in front of her. "Follow my voice. Listen only to my voice." In the back of her head, Tiana can still hear the whisper encouraging her to just let go, promising pleasure and peace and comfort. It is hard to ignore, even with how quiet it is, the sounds of fighting, screams, fire, breaking wood, howling wind and crashing waves filling the air. But the louder, familiar voice calls her, somewhere from in front of her.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana doesnt even bother with the mental effort needed to tell the other voice to be silent, she simply sets out to swim in the direction of the other voice that she can hear for real

[roll0] Swim

[Ridai]

Conjuring all the strength she can, Tiana forces herself onwards through the waves, chaos increasing on the waters. She can't see the Crimson Tide anywhere, just navy ships. There are so many voices surrounding her, cries of death and pain and anger and fear. Tiana feels another between them, sinister and full of hatred, yet beautiful and haunting, its hands laying themselves around Tiana's heart gently as if to quiet it.

A roar rips through the air, sending ripples across the water. What looks like a titan made of glowing blue crystals emerges from the gap, racing towards the ships. Flaming projectiles (physical? Magical?) streak towards it, slamming into it, ripping crystals out of it, but not stopping it. It slams right through the fleet's first ship, sending people and debris flying. The familiar voice calls Tiana ever forward, even as Tiana thinks she can spot a shade flowing between the ships, the hue of blood visible in its hair and eyes.

It is hard to go on, but Tiana does, despite the storm and chaos around her. It is hard to see where she is going, if her strength will be enough. Then she feels an arm around her, strong, hoisting her head above the surface. Blurrily, Tiana sees Jayna next to her, dragging Tiana through the waters with indomitable determination and strength. "Hold on, Tiana." Tiana's gaze catches sight of a burning ship hurtling towards them, the men atop clawing at each other madly or in self-defense, the ship out of control. Jayna makes Tiana take a deep breath, then dives down with her, just below the ship as it sails past and smashes against the cliffs. As Jayna swims onwards, Tiana sees men falling into the dark, murky waters around them, some struggling to get topside again, some just with an empty look on their face and a hollow smile as they just willingly let the air escape their lungs, Tiana knowing what whispers into their ears. Underwater, she can hear it much louder, much harder not to love.

On the surface again. Lucky's eyes are directed forward, spotting the familiar crimson shade. She is pulled out of the water, her arms around Jayna's shoulders who climbs up the rigging. "You're back home, girl. Don't you dare fall asleep now." Soon, Tiana feels the solid, wet deck below her. And she knows both the brooch and the azure gem are still with her. "Aria!" Jayna shouts through the storm, the healer hurrying to them, examining Tiana. "You made it," she tells Tiana. Never has the healer's presence been more comfortable than in this moment, even with her examining her. The same could be said of the Scarlet Corsair. Or all of the crew. "No serious wounds!" Aria lets her captain know. Jayna reaches down to Tiana's shoulder, squeezing it softly, Lucky seeing a rare smile on her lips. Marina and Derrick are already there, asking how Tiana feels.

"Rem, Luca: winds!" the Corsair orders, hurrying to the helm. Tiana feels the winds on her face, breath life into her along with Aria's voice and soft songs, adrenaline surging. The Crimson Tide is moving into the chaos, the most direct path to safety, the Scarlet Corsair sailing aggressively. "Can you stand?" No one would fault her for saying no.

[MikelaC1]

[roll0] CON check

Tiana stands up.
I wouldnt miss this for the world. And Im sure I wouldnt like to meet whats waiting for me in my sleep, Ive already had a little brush with her. Shes not nice
She looks around at the chaos on the seas, and then pats at the special gem and her brooch
Did anyone else see what I saw? A titan made of blue crystal attacking the ships, and a shade made of blood

[MikelaC1]

spending a re-roll
[roll0]

[MikelaC1]

damnit, spending a re-roll with Third Times the Charm feat
[roll0]

[Ridai]

Adrenaline / 66 HP
4 / 11 rerolls

Tiana's first question answers itself, seeing the giant within the fleet, looking terribly damaged. There is a monstrous version of the whale noise, but also a rumble is starting to send ripples everywhere. There is no real time to talk in this storm and on the run. Rem and Luca are working hard to direct the winds as the Crimson Tide needs them while having to counteract the storm while everyone else is hard at work following the Corsair's orders. Aria is standing in the middle of the ship, singing, her voice cutting through the storm, almost as if Tiana could feel it inside her heart. She is not sure what is going on, but there is no time to ponder. People are needed both on deck and high above, Derrick and Otra pulling ropes hard while Marina is high up on the middle mast to fix something, but looking as if she is having difficulties.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana is up the mast in double time, helping Marina to fix whatever she went up there to deal with.

[roll0] climb
[roll1] sailor

[Ridai]

The winds are powerful up above. Rain, winds, poor illumination and long shadows cast because of the flames below work together to make fastening the ropes difficult and treacherous. Both women practically have to scream in each other's ears to communicate verbally and thus need to stick to gestures and looks. From above, the sea looks as if on fire. Most of the fleet has been devastated by the guardian and the maddening voice, but the huge crystalline creature has taken heavy damage from the barrages of catapult, ballista and magical fire, the fleet evidently having mages aboard. There is one particularly vicious piece of artillery on the flagship which is starting to retreat, practically abandoning the rest of the fleet, and its last shot tears a large hole into the guardian, giving Tiana flashbacks to what happened at the top of the ancient temple. With a long roar, it begins to fall, but throws several crystals at the flagship's weaponry, perhaps damaging it, it is hard to tell. Seeing the guardian fall and the sound that it makes is a sad sight, slowly collapsing into the sea and burrying a ship beneath it. The rumble from before intensifies and now Tiana can see what causes it. The very mountain the old structure was in starts to sink, creating a maelstrom.

Somewhere below, Tiana can very clearly see the shade she saw before. The image of this woman, standing on what is left of a burning ship, surrounded by corpses she never needed to lay a hand upon, is burned into her mind, her unnatural hair color of dark blood glistening in the flickering light. She is looking at the Crimson Tide, perhaps even at Tiana and Marina, it is difficult to say. But there is little doubt that Lucky has witnessed one of the horrors sailors and pirates whisper of. Her song will stay with her for a while. Perhaps even in her dreams. Marina is shaking, looking dazed. There are calls from below to prepare for ramming and Tiana has barely enough time to steady herself (and Marina) before the Crimson Tide batters right through a heavily damaged burning ship, the last barrier between them and potential safety. Behind them, the mountain sinks, the wreckage and the few survivors being pulled into the maelstrom. The shade is gone, the flagship fleeing into an altogether different direction, unwilling to fight or follow, the Crimson Tide too fast to be followed anyway.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana sticks with her tasks, doing her part to make sure the Crimson Tide makes its escape from the carnage.
[roll0]
Only once the ship is sailing under its own power, free of all troubles, does she take the time to remove the big gem from her pack, checking it for damage before handing it over to Jayna.

[MikelaC1]

spending a re-roll, so that she doesnt make a fool of herself
[roll0]

[Ridai]

Even when they are out of immediate danger, the situation they just escaped from hangs over the crew for a while. Aria continues to sing until they cannot see the wreckage anymore, some sitting nearby and just listening, including Marina. Tiana can still feel the remembered echo of the sinister voice, even if it didn't have the effect on her it had on others (like Marina). Things could have gone very differently, for her and for them.

Examining the azure gem, Tiana finds it in perfect condition (just like her brooch). Gazing into the pure blue, the gem simply makes Tiana smile, warming her drenched body. It fits into the palm of her hand, but she is sure that size matters little in terms of the worth this piece, the azure hues shifting like gentle waves. One could look at it forever and not get tired of it. Jayna is still at the helm, wearing her tricorne again. When Tiana comes to her, the Corsair takes the gem and holds it against the light. "The fire blast did not hit the pedestial back there and I don't think it was a coincidence. They brought spellweavers and they wanted this gem badly. All the better that we now have it." She gives the azure piece to Rem, who brings it to Jayna's quarters. Then, the Captain turns back to Tiana. She looks her in the eye for a moment, then says "Get your wounds treated, then get some rest. You've done enough for today." The Corsair motions to Luca, the girl heading over to them.

[MikelaC1]

Getting her wounds treated by Aria sounds like a good idea to Tiana, her songs are far more comforting (and since she is on her side, far less dangerous) than those of the sinister voice. And perhaps hearing her at close range can wipe away those memories.

A few minor cuts and bruises, but the captain thinks I should make sure Im at tip top shape

[Ridai]

Luca smiles to Lucky, taking her hand and leading her to Aria's little domain, with the healer arriving soon. They help Tiana out of her clothes, as it is surprisingly difficult as the rush begins to wear off. "I'll have these mended by the time you'll wake up," Luca tells the redhead, stacking the wet clothes neatly. Tiana now gets a look at the state of her body, seeing a lot of bruises that begin to hurt quite a lot. Some swellings have started to form as well and energy starts to leave her, Aria holding her and guiding her to one of the beds. Both the healer and her apprentice girl examine her from top to bottom, lightly engaging Tiana in conversation, also asking her about how she feels. Luca treats the cuts with a herb salve that soothes her pain almost immediately.

"With what you have been through and still able to stand, you truly deserve the title Lady Luck. Now just relax and let us do the rest." Tiana is guided onto her front, soon feeling two sets of hands softly beginning to massage aching muscles, spreading a soothing oil across her skin. The smell of it helps her relax further and combined with Aria's soft singing, she can almost watch her bruises heal. Aria's and Luca's hands make her float in sleepy bliss as they massage her scalp and back and arms, Aria's voice reaching into the depths of her soul and filling her with wonderful warmth. She cannot quite tell what it is, but whatever Luca is doing, it feels like her touches are reaching beneath Tiana's skin without causing discomfort, rather relaxing her body on a deep level, doing away even with hard to reach knots of stress. Tiana barely notices being turned around, now leaning against Aria as Luca works Lucky's legs, turning muscles to warm goo. Aria massages her shoulders, face, ears and scalp, softly singing and whispering in her ear. "You have a wonderful voice. Let it blossom and you'll be surprised what you will accomplish." Aria's voice sends waves of gentle pleasure through her body, intensified when Luca reaches her feet, truly beginning to work her magic. The girl is occasionally smiling to her, the expression one of the sweetest she has seen in her life. "Any wishes, Tiana? You did amazing today, no need to be shy."

[MikelaC1]

Tiana feels like putty in the two women's hands, not only totally relaxed but also increasingly aroused. In the back of her mind, she notes Aria's advice to let her voice blossom, something she should work on the future (OOC: Devote skill points to perform) but right now, her mind is really considering a lot of other things....

[Ridai]

Shyly, Luca excuses herself, a tired Marina being called to them so that they may continue, both Tiana and Marina soon drifting into blissful sleep.

When Tiana awakes, she finds that Luca was true to her word, finding her clothes neatly stacked on a table near the bed, looking completely fixed, perhaps even better than ever. She can hear the girl working quietly beyond the curtain, handling mortar and pestle, Tiana sensing the nice smell of the herbs. Marina is still asleep and no one seems to disturb them this morning. Checking her own body, Aria and Luca did marvelous work, the cuts and bruises only faintly visible on some parts of her body, as good as healed, no aches troubling her for the most part. She is feeling fantastic, especially thinking back to the state she was in just hours ago.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana honours Luca's shyness, she dresses herself before she comes out from behind the curtain. If the brooch that seems to have 'chosen' her is still around, she will fasten it in the appropriate place.

You did wonderful work with these, I think they are better than ever. Thank you.
I was wondering, I don't know if you are party to the division of spoils on the ship. How does it work, exactly? Or if you don't know, perhaps Aria does? Im sure Marina does, but I don't want to disturb her sleep

[Ridai]

The gem is still where it belongs. As Tiana emerges, Luca turns to her and greets her warmly. The girl seems fit as always, Tiana never having seen her tired. A familiar red hue returns to her face, if only lightly, as she hears the compliment, smiling sheepishly. "Oh, it was nothing... I'm the ship's seamstress. Steiner taught me."

Luca settles down a bit. "I have no hand in dividing treasure. I receive a share, sometimes I can ask for specific things if the treasure isn't just general valuables, but I don't really want much. Usually, the captain or one of the more high-ranking crewmembers, usually Harman, appraises the treasure, or oversees the appraisal if it is particularly big, and divides things like gold, silver, gems and such fairly. More unusual or exceptional pieces get special consideration. Sometimes they are given to specific members of the crew because they can make the best use of them or are reserved for general use, in the interest of making us stronger, other times Captain lets people take picks or divide a few items among themselves. There isn't a strict process, but it is kept fair and what the Captain says, goes."

"Um, I got breakfast for you and Marina." The girl gestures to a nearby table with two plates, each sporting a hearty meal and drink. "I mean, if you want..."

[MikelaC1]

You are too good to me, you know that? Tiana combines a bit of teasing to see the red in Luca's face, along with expressing her appreciation. She then seats herself at the table, and sets into the breakfast provided.
Have we had any more resistance from the Bordansa navy, or did they all run home to lick their wounds/

[Ridai]

And Tiana is quite successful, Luca turning bright red again, showing all the telltale signs of someone who has never gotten used to praise, but appreciates it.

"I don't know if they were from Bordansa, but we didn't have any run-ins with them. Aria said we weren't followed and that the... the only navy ship that made it out is headed back to its homeport, far away."

[MikelaC1]

Once Tiana finishes her breakfast, she will rouse Marina...
Come on you lazy old sack of bones, times a wastin'
And then head up on deck to see what the new morning brings.

[Ridai]

"Ah, wha-" Marina starts upwards, shaking her head, ripped out of a particularly nice dream. The acrobat gets out of bed and practically dresses on the way out with remarkable speed, also grabbing the breakfast Luca motions to (giving her a thankful gesture as she passes). On deck, everyone is gathered, the Corsair in plain sight, as is the whole bunch of treasure.

"Yesterday, the little that was left of the navy forces was sent limping home, with us taking away from them what they came for, the guardian of the temple approving of us and coming with us. But it was not without danger, each of you saw and felt it. But we persevered instead of faltering before the challenge. We will find out why the navy wanted the gem at the heart of the temple so badly. And mark my words, this won't be the only time we will ruin the navy's day until they realize that they do not own the seas!" The crew shouts in agreement, many raising fists. "But now, it is time for you to reap the spoils you earned."

There is a lot of precious metal to be distributed, along with smaller gems and jewelry. It seems like a chaotic process at first, but there just is a certain group vibe to it. There is some bartering going on among the crew, some immediately starting to dice about some of their shares, but there is little in terms of true greed. Most fellows aboard won't mind some extra (or robbing their fellow crewmates semi-blind via liar's dice), but it is not worth fighting or backstabbing over, as no one is shortchanged. Tiana also receives a good amount of gold, enough to mark her as a high-roller of sorts in a casino or a expensive city inn, along with 4 lovely pieces of jewelry. In the flurry of excitement and showing each other what they got and all that (Marina evidently having a strong liking for various metal bands like armlets, anklets etc and hairpins), Tiana also receives several welcoming gestures, many of the crew glad she wasn't lost to them in the chaos yesterday.

Rem also approaches her. "Glad you made it back. Your reputation once again holds true, though I believe tenacity also played a role in it. When you're done her, Captain wants you to come to her quarters."

(You can describe the jewelry however you like. They are of a fine quality, noticably above most jewelry and fit for a noble lady, but still a long shot from the really, really valuable pieces.)

[MikelaC1]

Tiana dons her necklace, two rings and a jewelled belt, its a nice start and certainly nicer than anything she could ever hope to have as seamstress to some fisherman. Bagging up her gold, she heads to the captains quarters, wondering what the pirate queen wants with the most junior member of her crew.

[Ridai]

Tiana isn't quite sure what to expect when stepping into the Captain's quarters, never having been there. What she finds is a tastefully furnished, no-nonsense room, its functionality clear, without sacrificing subtle charms and comfort. There is a dining table with fitting chairs, though it likely is also used for many other things beside that. There are a lot of maps on the walls and tables, of land, sea and stars. There are a few armchairs near a big shelf filled with books that actually look like they have been read, some extensively, instead of just being for show. Perhaps Tiana expected a desk of sorts, but there is just another big table for maps or meetings or anything else needing a lot of seats or space. An area towards the back is sectioned off with a folding screen, likely home to the more private parts of the room. Tiana spots several chests, drawers and such, as well as a number of tools for navigation, writing, drawing and close examination. The back wall holds several windows, letting light fall into the room, though there are a few lanterns in the room as well, when needed.

Currently, both Jayna and Rem are present, standing opposite to each other, leaning on the big table and looking over maps and notes. Their faces show concentration and evaluating several different things. The great familiarity between them is evident even as they simply work. "At ease, Tiana," Jayna says without looking up at first, removing some uncertainty and letting the newest member of the crew appreciate the comfort of the room more. "Rem," she says, the navigator nodding and heading over to a chest as the Captain stands upright, waving Tiana closer. Rem returns with a couple of objects, setting them down onto the table before Tiana.

The first item is a pair of boots, practical, comfortable, yet of appealing design, befitting a woman both active and charming. Just looking at them makes Tiana imagine how wonderful walking in them, even all day long, must feel. "We identified them as Windrunner Boots, though the name often ascribed to them is slightly deceptive. With them, you will find that you will move more quickly, have little trouble with long marches and that few things things will slow you down. There might be a certain learning curve to fully use them or a way to enhance them, but we will see."

The next item are a pair of gorgeous ruby earrings, immediately drawing the eye. They aren't the almost garish, huge things Tiana has sometimes seen among noblewomen. No, these were made by someone with much better sense of style, not getting in the way, but still clearly adding to the appearance of their wearer. "I believe this is something that will suit you just fine. Gemsoul Earrings, or how I like to call them, the High-Rollers. There is an ancient belief that ascribes personality to gems and that the more pure and masterfully worked and adorned, the stronger its personality is. These earrings are said to harmonize these personalities and harness their souls - hence the name - to unlock a woman's true charms. They provide a small benefit by themselves, but other gems on the person of the wearer make them stronger, depending on their purity and craftsmanship, within limits. In other words, the more the jewelry you wear is actually worth, without going overboard with twenty rings or something like that, the easier it will become to influence others. They don't require piercing, they can just be attached and no one will be able to tell the difference, both in looks or how well they stay in place."

The last item is a small golden gem, it seems. Tiana can feel a certain resonance from Fortuna and it does not seem to escape Jayna or Rem. "This one is a lucky charm of sorts, both magical and known to Aria, who identified it for us through songs her people share. The color also was a dead giveaway, as you might imagine, highly unusual, but familiar. Quite the coincidence to run into something like this shortly after finding a worthy wielder for Fortuna, but coincidences never seem far from wherever you go."

"These now belong to you, as the second half of your share," Jayna says, leaning against the table and looking at Tiana with her red eye. "Do you know why?"

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes a breath, considering why the captain and first mate would give such gifts to her, given how rare things like this are.

The golden gem attuned to Fortuna is somewhat obvious, if someone has one they should probably have the other as they work in concert. Good enough on their own, but better in a pair.
As for the earrings, perhaps because of the way this gem and she touches the blue brooch has already chosen me?
The boots, I have no idea

[Ridai]

"The first is true and there is some truth to the second. However, more importantly, it is because you have talent as well as skills and drive to back that up, not to mention that, by most standards, you should be dead thrice over right now, either by fireball, siren or drowning," Jayna says straight to Tiana's face, rather frankly. "You are a smart woman, so I won't mince words. The navy seriously is after something and they are doing their damndest to get it, otherwise they wouldn't have sent a fleet. They know something and I intend to find out what it is. I have a very capable crew, but I always need people who really get things done, as things will get rougher from here on out, I imagine. Rem swears by your competence, as do several others. I've heard of your ambitions and I see the fire in you. However, you've still got a lot of untapped talent. And I intend to shape that into actual ability over the next months. This won't be a cakewalk, by any means. And I mean it. So, are you happy where you are right now or are you ready for something more?"

[MikelaC1]

Both. I am happy where I am, and am ready for more. And Im ready to be trained. I don't mind telling you, I intend to captain a ship one day. And taking something from the navy, who kept me shorebound for 20 years, that's just icing on the cake.

[Ridai]

The Scarlet Corsair nods knowingly. "I thought as much. Perhaps the seas will at some point get to know the ship of the pirate queen called Lady Luck. Perhaps you will be forgotten like most are. It's up to you. I hope you enjoyed your leisure days, as for the next few months, they are over. My Raiders and confidants will put you through your paces and test you, as will I. Fail, and your chance to become one of my Raiders won't return any time soon. Unlike how things are in the navy, you aren't given a position. Earn your place. That would be all," she dismisses Tiana.

The Windrunner Boots give +10ft bonus to base speed and reduce the penalty for speeding up any movement that requires a skill check by 5. Examples of this are balancing, climbing, swimming etc., each more quickly than normally assumed.

The Gemsoul Earrings (aka High-Rollers) act as a Circlet of Persuasion with its bonus depending on the jewelry on Tiana's person. Right now, it is at +3 (+1 from itself, +1 from the brooch, +1 from all the other jewelry combined). Increasing the bonus is not linear. To get from +3 to +4 you will need to increase the value of your jewelry much more than from +2 to +3, for example.

The lucky charm fuses itself permanently to Fortuna, allowing it to "super-critical". If Tiana threatens a critical on a critical confirmation check, she can make another confirmation check. If the check succeeds, the critical modifier of Fortuna is increased by 1 for that attack. This process of critical threats on confirmation rolls repeats until the maximum critical modifier is reached, which is equal to Tiana's Lucky class ability +1 (so currently x3).

Tiana has also learned that Fortuna can critical anything, as was evident by the constructs in the temple that suffered this fate.

The Guardian Brooch allows communication with other crystals at times (though the process is still being worked out) and grants a +2 resistance bonus to Tiana's saves.

[MikelaC1]

If Tiana has seen any sort of salute be given on the ship, she gives it now. Otherwise, she puts on her new items and heads out to find Marina.

The captain has given me the opportunity to prove myself as one of her Raiders. Its a great opportunity. Is there some sort of uniform or symbol that they all wear?

[Ridai]

Marina's eyes go wide as Tiana tells her the news. "Wow. Captain must recognize talent when she sees it. I guess that is why she asked me and Derrick about what happened in the temple and how you fared since you joined. You ain't a Raider yet, but wow, congratulations!" She seems psyched and amazed about learning this, hugging Tiana. Other crewmates also take note, looking surprised.

When Tiana asks about uniforms and such, she pffts. "Nah, we aren't big on such things. We know who the Raiders are and they have no need to identify themselves as such. I mean, it would only make it easier for fakes to appear and to figure out who is potentially more dangerous. It adds a certain element of surprise as well in some cases. No one would look at Good Ol' Harman or Dyna and go 'That's one of the Scarlet Corsair's Raiders!'. I don't think you took Rem to be one as well when you met him."

[MikelaC1]

Well, nothing much else to do...at least until a Raider introduces themselves and starts the tests. What are you working on now?

Even though the Corsair has told her she intends to see if she is Raider material or not, shes not going to shirk shipboard duties, at least not until she is told to.

[roll0]

[Ridai]

The next weeks make Tiana very vividly remember how she felt after her first real day on the Crimson Tide. She had just started to get used to the work and workload aboard the pirate ship, but now, she has to accomplish much more. The Raiders work her hard, as per the Corsair's orders. But their means vary from person to person, sometimes wildly.

Half of what Rem demands of Tiana's time is spent going over matters of navigation, plotting a course, planning and organisation in addition to ship-based tactics and maneuvers, with some asides in diplomacy and general conduct. Tiana knows her stuff, but Rem is going in-depth and the amount of information his mind seems to harbor seems staggering. Tiana has absorb a lot of knowledge and at the end of such sessions her head feels a little dizzy, Rem also challenging her with questions as well as describing scenarios and asking how she would approach and solve these with the given ressources and circumstances. At the end of every session, Tiana is given a few things to think over or a particularly difficult problem to solve. Rem emphasizes that there will be a lot of situations where there is no clear-cut right answer and she will have to depend on her intuition, remaining true to herself and her crew as well as weigh the pros and cons of each angle. The rest of the time is spent putting Tiana in charge of a few tasks which often involve organisation and coordination to see how good she is at multitasking and taking charge. It helps that Rem is a good teacher, keeping dry sections to a minimum and often designing his part of her training as a conversation and encouraging Tiana to come up with her own solutions as well as think on her feet.

Good Ol' Harman's instruction is unorthodox, to say the least. Tiana spends a lot of time carrying a cup of hot tea across the ship. She always has to get it from Steiner's galley and she has to get it to Harman before it gets cold, meaning she has to do it fast. Tiana becomes very aware of her own sense of equilibrium, the ship's motions and suddenly everything feels cramped and cluttered and slippery and whatnot. Sometimes she also needs to find Harman, as he has a habit of wandering off. Sometimes he is where he was before, on deck or below deck, sometimes he was sitting near the helm but has since moved into the cargo hold, sometimes he is even suddenly up in the rigging. The number of frustrating spills, either by her own fault or some random event, is rather high in the beginning, the searches for Harman (how can this old man be so damn elusive and why can't he just sit still and wait for his damn tea?!) only aggravating her further. Her hands and forearms and sometimes other body parts regularly get doused with tea (hot and cold), though her luck does help Tiana avoid a lot more incidents of that kind.
Other times, Harman takes Tiana to a room and draws a circle on the floor, standing in the middle of it. Then he simply tells Tiana to get into the circle without being hit by his staff or falling over, with or without help from Fortuna. Sometimes, there are other stipulations, for example having to move constantly, only walk sideways like a crab, having to keep her hands behind her back etc. Even though there is a good bit of space around Harman, the task is hard. Seemingly everywhere Tiana goes, Harman's staff seems to intercept her or threatens to do so (he actually hits her very little and only lightly when he does), suddenly cutting off a path, suddenly being between her feet and making her having to duck or hop or roll away. Harman seems to have infinite patience in everything and deceptively sharp senses, the lessons usually end when Tiana simply runs out of breath from all the moving about.

Otra's training is very straightforward. However, it is also the most physically demanding. Otra is aware that everyone has their own fighting style, so she doesn't force her own onto Tiana (saying that doing so would be just stupid and actually make Tiana a worse warrior). Tiana has come to know Otra as a loud, open woman of action (some might call her an uncouth brute, though that does not carry enough truth to really be correct) and thus most of their training are bouts of combat training or straight up making Tiana work out, goading Lucky into giving it another try when she starts to show fatigue. Some might think that Otra would be easy to trick or outmaneuver, but such thoughts are that of fools. Otra doesn't fight in a fancy way, rather being brutally effective and at times hard to predict. She doesn't leave Tiana much breathing room, chasing her around the room and pretty much dictating the flow of the combat without enforcing any kind of rules. This is easily the most aggressive enemy Tiana has ever had so far and it actually makes her dread further bouts at times.

Steiner shows Tiana the true ins and outs of maintaining a ship and getting to know its "personality" of sorts, as each ship is different. Other times, Tiana, for some reason, is tasked with helping to prepare, make and decorate fancy meals, with Steiner having a lot of expertise and dexterity and finesse for this. These days are long and often require a lot of patience, over a long period of time, requiring a surprising amount of delicate motions at times. She has to be "on" most of the time, slacking isn't really an option, even when she has to repeat some things over and over. Steiner has a sharp eye and points out mistakes where he sees them, but doesn't talk very much otherwise, his opinion about the results of her work usually expressed with a slight motion of his head or shift in expression (his moustache moving is usually the clearest sign). It doesn't take long until Tiana can see the results of her work herself, suddenly seeing all those flaws that should have been noticed while she was at it.

Little Dyna usually chases Tiana around the ship or makes her chase Dyna around the ship, like a simple game of tag that can get surprisingly (and often worryingly) vertical. Even the surrounding sea isn't left out. And Dyna, despite being a lot smaller than Tiana, is fast and slippery, even with Tiana's new boots. Other times, she tells Tiana to try and sneak up on and catch something or someone, often herself, sometimes a gull, sometimes another crewmember. Sometimes Dyna makes Tiana get (or steal) something without being noticed, only to make her return it (without being noticed, preferably without anyone noticing the object was missing in the first place). Dyna's assignments usually are the most risky, at times requiring some harrowing amounts of courage and acrobatics.

Tiana sees a lot more of Aria's and Luca's workplace than she might have expected. A part of this is because Aria starts to help Tiana develop her voice (she does not just teach, as music has to come from the heart, not some instructor), playfully mentoring her. She also tests her mental fortitude and finesse in many ways, Tiana having to resist the effects of a Siren's voice (with her learning that, in a way, Sirens have literally two voices: the one audible to the ear and the one speaking to hearts and minds, which can be extremely subtle or insidious) and also training Tiana's ability at convincing or tricking others, with a bit of seduction also added in. Sometimes she tells Tiana to try and convince someone to do something for her or spread some little rumor and make it sound believable to the crew.
The other reason is that Tiana needs her bruises and exhaustion treated. Aria is not always there, but Luca is, always ready to help Tiana, once or twice even getting out of bed to do so, saying she doesn't mind. Marina also helps Tiana unwind after a hard day (of which there are plenty).

Thus, Tiana finds herself sitting on that bed again, Luca examining a fresh bruise on Tiana's arm, carefully cooling it with some water she can actually control as if it was alive (which, Tiana learned, is also sort of how she enhances her massages) before she continues her treatment. "You have been here so often. I wish they weren't so hard on you," Luca says, seeming troubled by Tiana's state after she is done with her training and tasks. She knows it is important for Tiana, but still...

[MikelaC1]

They have to be hard on me, they have to make me the best I can be. And thats the way I want it. The Bordansa navy would love to catch all of us, and you dont want to see what they would do to you. At any time, the entire fate of the crew could hang on the actions of one person, and they have to be at their best. There arent any second chances for most, and even if you are as lucky as I am, that luck will run out sooner or later. Some people say its better to be good than lucky, I say the better you are, the less you have to rely on luck and then the luck brings you even bigger rewards.
Its not all that bad either, some of the stuff is almost a game. Like my games of tag with Dyna, or binging Harmon his damn tea. And when something goes wrong, well, then I get to spend time with you and Aria

[Ridai]

Luca does not talk back, just listening to what Tiana says. The girl knows it is for the best, but she cannot switch off her thoughts, either. However, she does smile sweetly at the last remark. She moves around Tiana and presses her thumbs against the back of her neck, searching. Then, she gently takes Tiana's head in her hands, telling Lucky to loosen her muscles. Rotating Tiana's head left and right, the redhead hears and feels two satisfying cracks (that would be terrifying under any other circumstance), instant relief washing over her, extended by a massage of her face, neck, shoulders and scalp by Luca.

"Dyna does not play most of the time, though she likes to do so with you and me. Otherwise, it sometimes feels like she only is happy when she... well..." Tiana remembers Dyna eviscerating that unlucky pirate's head weeks ago when they saved the civilians. As well as the happy smile on the girl's bloodsoaked face when she watched Tiana kill the pirates and decapitate the one threatening the women. A twisted little girl, one wonders what must happen to a child to turn out this way. On the Crimson Tide, she has been watching Tiana and seems close to Luca, sometimes sleeping in the same bed as her. The few times she actually seems like a child. "She says you smell nice. That the smell of death doesn't stick to you." That is another of her peculiarities, Dyna's sense of smell and her allegedly being able to smell death, as well as blood on someone's hands. Perhaps Dyna's opinion towards Tiana is just her twisted way of expressing that she likes Tiana?

"Um, so..." Luca awkwardly begins due to what she just said, her wonderful massage helping the matter, though. "Are you hurting anywhere? I am done with my other tasks for the evening, so..." She can spend more time on Tiana is what she is trying to say.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana actually likes her workouts and tests, but then again, free time is preciously hard to come by and since she has a valid reason (injury) to be here, she cant help but decide to take a bit of extra time, just for her.

I could really use a full massage, theres nothing specifically wrong, but putting all the muscles back into perfect shape would be a boon for me...if you have the time

[MikelaC1]

That feels absolutely wonderful. And I think you've done as much for me as any one of those workouts, you've given my muscles a chance to relax, to grow and now the next workouts will build even more. I should do this more often. Thank you.

With the massage done, Tiana heads back out, and her first thought is to get Harmon his tea. She doesn't even know where he is, but shes determined to bring it to him hot and unspilled, even though the target is hidden.

[roll0] Balance
[roll1] Search

[Ridai]

Tiana once again sees the rosy tint on Luca's face as she smiles gorgeously, such a compliment meaning a lot to her. "Come by any time when you feel like it." Having spent so much time with Tiana in the month or so since she has come aboard, Luca dares to kiss her on the cheek, just a friendly little peck, only turning redder afterwards. It is amusing to think that this is such a big deal for Luca given her having no issues with being a masseuse, a full body massage counting simply as work or a friendly gesture.

Even despite the late hour and the long day, Tiana feels great, fetching a late cup of tea from Steiner (and also quickly being able to guess what will be served tomorrow). She navigates the ship swiftly, finding the signs of Harman's passage. When she reaches Harman, he is about to turn in for the night. His eyebrows rise a bit as he notices Tiana approach, but he rubs his hands in anticipation for a nice cup before bed. "Too kind, dear, too kind." He has to slurp it to cool the tea as he drinks it, as it is still steaming, not a drop spilt. "Mmh, very nice. Don't bother with bringing it back down, I'll do that in the morning. Thanks and good night, Lucky."

The weeks go on, also attacking a few smaller pirate ships, providing not that much challenge to Tiana. The workout is still intense, but with Luca, Aria and Marina taking care of her when she is off-work, she couldn't be better equipped to rise to the challenge. Bringing tea to Harman is getting done more and more smoothly and when the "circle training" begins, Tiana is making progress as well. One moment she is especially proud of when she manages to spot an opening in the defense that seemed so inpenetrable weeks ago and weaves into it. She is abruptly brought to a halt when the end of Harman's staff appears in front of her face. But there is a tap from below and when he checks, he sees that it comes from Tiana's boot, firmly within the circle, even if she had to stretch to reach the place. Good Ol' Harman seems happy to see this development, showing his kindly smile and his many laugh lines, asking Tiana if she wants another go to perhaps manage to get both feet into the circle.

Rem's training is becoming more managable as well. Tiana is becoming better at juggling several tasks and working together with others as well as coordinating and commanding them, her crewmates more accepting of her leadership as well by now. The schedule is still tight, but issues crop up only rarely. The conversations with Rem are now much more a dialogue than before and livelier as well with the increased understanding, actually becoming quite fun and surprising Rem at times with creative solutions or new thoughts on previously brought up scenarios and questions.

Chasing Dyna is slowly becoming a closer game. Tiana knows Dyna is not treating this as serious time, but she doesn't hand Tiana anything either. Tiana legitimately manages to catch Dyna right as they are emerging from the water, the girl having jumped into the sea and swam along the underside of the Crimson Tide. With a bit of trickery (and luck), Tiana even manages to catch Dyna unaware, wrapping her arms around the girl and lifting her into the air where she is flailing with arms and legs, first surprised, then laughing.

Otra's part of the training is still exhausting, but something has started to click, making Tiana realize that she simply let Otra dictate how things went without really looking for ways to turn things around. Otra is fearsome in battle regardless, but now it is much more common to have a back and forth instead of being chased around the room. The actual workout Otra submits Tiana to are still top-notch, aiming not to maximize muscle mass or definition or other vanity things, but instead to produce more usable strength and endurance. Sometimes, when Tiana begins to feel tired, she imagines the Corsair's or Otra's voice shouting at her to keep moving... and it works. Derrick seems to have been roped into being Otra's protegé and general helper ever since they fled the temple, though he does not mind (and if the occasional vigorous banging noises from some of the more private rooms at times are any indication, he is getting a workout as well from the wild woman).

The development of Tiana's voice is coming along swimmingly, much easier than she might have anticipated, surprised by her own progress. Tiana has learned a whole array of songs by now, some of which she begins or joins in with as part of her work, often being one of the leading voices. However Aria managed to do this, but singing has become a real joy, words not having to be drawn from the mind, but instead simply flowing off the tongue, discovering new nuances to play with each day. Once she even sings Dyna to sleep (and not because of the girl being bored). The Siren's second voice is also becoming more familiar. Resisting it is a tall order as she discovers, the voice of a Siren being something truly powerful, but her mind is not as heavily and immediately overwhelmed by Aria as before, actually making the healer's voice even more comfortable and beautiful to listen to, especially with the increasing appreciation for a beautiful voice and technique. Every crewmember has a certain uniqueness in his or her voice. Marina's energy, Derrick's dryness, Otra's rough wildness, Harman's calmness, Rem's precise and soothing manner of speaking, Dyna's haunting quality to her voice, Luca's shy but sweet warmth and the Corsair's sheer will, strength and authority that fills every syllable. Rumors of the sighting of some strange sea creature in a lake somewhere are beginning to make the rounds as well, Marina even discussing it with Tiana and speculating wildly, oblivious to the source of the rumor.

Every week or so, Jayna calls upon Tiana for a short swordfight. Each time, it feels like to Tiana as if it ends like the very first one with the Corsair, with Tiana's rear on the deck. But each time, Tiana knows what she did wrong, what she needs to improve, motivating her to do better next time and workout even harder. Jayna never says a word of mentoring and Lucky knows she doesn't need to, her lessions being entirely taught through intuition and action, the pirate queen's sharp eye missing not a single detail.

Once again, Tiana finds herself in Luca's care, but not because of sheer injury and exhaustion (though those aren't entirely gone, at least not until Luca is done). The massages are a perfect way to help her training and it is not too hard to find moments when Luca is not pre-occupied with something else so she is able to tend to Lucky. "Your back muscles feel really nice," Luca says admiringly as she works. The girl has taught Lucky a few things about anatomy and how important the muscles in the area of the stomach and lower back are for the entire body, which led to an incredible adjustment in her workout regiment done by Otra (and Otra's own).

[MikelaC1]

Otra works me hard, but Im learning how to use my quickness to at least partially offset her strength. My muscles are being built towards that aim, I'll never have forearms like tree trunks, nor would I want to...but the back muscles get used to twist out of the way.

[Ridai]

Tiana can feel Luca smile. "I think Otra is a lot smarter than people usually give her credit for. She can size you up in many ways at a glance. I think she once identified and took out an assassin in the space of a few seconds since first seeing him, because she could tell that they way he walked, he was hiding a knife on his person. She also seems to have a better grasp on what one's body is like and what is good for them than many doctors."

Once again, Tiana feels the effects of the wonders Luca makes happen. When the treatment is done and Tiana begins to leave, she finds Rem sitting at a table in the room. "Don't worry, I'm not here to continue your training," he says, raising a hand appeasingly. It is a gesture both to Tiana and to Luca, the girl not liking it when someone is dragged right out of sick bay to be put to work. And in turn, people don't like upsetting sweet Luca. "Captain wants to see you."

[MikelaC1]

Ready to take on the world after one of Luca's massages, Tiana belts on her clothes and equipment.
Lets go

[Ridai]

Rem takes Tiana straight to the Captain's quarters. When she enters, the pirate queen turns to them, standing beside the large table that has a medium-sized map spread across it. "Evening, Tiana. It is time to put what you have learned to the test. Come here." The Corsair motions her towards the table. The map shows a particular island, not too far from where they are right now. "This is the base of the Grey Skulls, a bunch of thuggish pirates who claim these waters as their haunt. When we stopped in port recently, we managed to learn that a few weeks ago, a small navy ship was boarded by the Grey Skulls. There was a survivor who said that there was a paladin of the Five Maidens on the navy ship who was captured and taken away, with the rest of the crew killed. So far, there has not been an attempt to rescue the paladin. The reason most likely being that this is the only female paladin of the church and the navy wanted to get rid of her."

"The survivor cursed her presence profusely. Catherine, known as the Daughter of the Five by the people who look up to her and cursed as the Witch of Antaluvia in whispered conversations of her detractors, is a folk heroine said to be truly divinely inspired and also wielding otherworldly powers and favor, whereas most paladins are glorified knights. You might have heard of her." Tiana indeed has heard of her. About her own age, Catherine hails from the village of Antaluvia, near Bordansa and is said to have defended her hometown against a band of marauders despite never having wielded a sword, uniting the people behind her and her blade guided by the Five Maidens. She has been involved in many remarkable acts benefitting the people and they love her for it. So great have her reputation and true faith become that she was named paladin, as she wants to defend the people with her own hands, thus making her the one weapon-bearing woman in high station, to the dismay of several people. Tiana has seen her once, a strikingly beautiful woman wearing knightly armor, yet eschewing pompous ornaments and such that serve only to tell others in what a prestigious station she is.

"It is said that she went to the king and requested to be made part of the operations planned by the navy in order to represent the people and further their interests. Surprisingly, it is the only known instance where the puppet called king actually spoke for himself, allowing it. Thus, she must have learned a lot about what the navy is planning. And it is pretty clear that the higher-ups of the navy most likely didn't look too kindly upon this, especially the admiral. Cue a convenient pirate raid and mostly incompetent crewmembers only there to be slaughtered. Perhaps they will make her a martyr for one of their causes."

"This is where you come in. I know you want to prove yourself, here is your chance. The Grey Skulls number around 50 and likely also have a bunch of lackeys in their base serving them. They just recruit thugs en masse, don't expect to find many talented individuals compared to our crew, though the higher-ups might qualify as a threat. In short, they are lowly scum. However, they can still overwhelm you with numbers and you are moving on their home turf, so this is hardly a non-threat. Greed and lust for violence is as far as their loyalty goes to the captain and each other. They have a few female members, but don't expect anything better from them either. You aren't well-known on the seas yet, so you might be able to pass yourself off as one of them, their numbers ensuring they probably don't really know everyone, though once again, this is not a guarantee. I want you to infiltrate the base of the Grey Skulls, rescue Catherine if she is still alive and bring her to the Crimson Tide, whether she wants or not. Cause as much damage to the Grey Skulls in one way or another as you go, but Catherine is your main goal. Any questions?"

[MikelaC1]

Tiana looks over the map, checking the location of the island and the course she will likely take to get back to the ship.
I think I have the basic idea. How close will you be able to get me to the island and how close will you be able to remain? Will I take a rowboat to the island, and if so is there a best place to land and hide the boat for my return?

[Ridai]

Jayna taps a rock formation close to the island upon the base was built. "We will sail here by night, out of sight of anyone keeping an eye out. From there, you can row to the base. From what I was able to see when I was there, there are several outcroppings and small caverns at roughly sea level, some near the larger one containing the harbor. This is an old fortress that has been home to various pirates ever since the original owners were murdered, the Grey Skulls being the most recent one since they killed the pirates that were there before."

"When you are on your way back out, hold your brooch into the water and say that you are returning. We will know and come your way if it is urgent. The Grey Skull leadership gave themselves nicknames and only want to be adressed with them, the leader calling himself Lord Skull and his officers having been dubbed Headhunter and Butcher. No, I didn't make those up."

[MikelaC1]

Tiana continues to study the map, judging the distance between the outcropping and the shoreline that she will be rowing to.
Not too far, so I shouldn't run afoul of that sea monster that's been spotted.
[roll0]
Said in a musing, speculative tone, almost as if she were talking to herself.

[Ridai]

There isn't a shoreline, just the large rocks jutting out of the sea where the Crimson Tide will hide and wait. If she rows fast, it looks like a five to ten minute trip, though Rem might be of some assistance, given his mastery of the elements. That same handsome young man smiles at her comment. "You always had a knack for these things, but you might want to save the stories for the Grey Skulls. They are probably more receptive to them, when used right." Tiana can tell that his looking through her story wasn't even close, but at the same time he appreciates her skill and how far she has come, very much aware of who spread the rumors in the past weeks.

"It seems there are no further questions. Ready yourself, we will arrive tonight," the Corsair concludes the briefing.


The Crimson Tide silently glides through the dark waters, concealed by the thick blanket of clouds shutting out the moonlight. Luck is once again with Tiana, given these favorable circumstances. The crew knows what is going on as they pull up beside the huge rock formation. Tiana's friends wish her good luck (well, additional good luck) before she climbs down into the slender row boat. She finds the water to be streaming into the direction she is going, keeping trip in the realm of five minutes. Looking up, Tiana sees the fortress that has been built into a huge rock similar to the one the Crimson Tide waits behind. The fortress looks damaged and run-down, any former glory stripped away by the years and changing pirate occupants. She sees light pour out from a few windows higher up. If she'd had to guess, Tiana estimates a very tall first floor due to the dock and about five to six storeys above it upon the wide rock foundation.

She arrives in a small alcove, nicely hidden, with a narrow patch of rocks leading to the entrance of the docks. The docks are a simple affair. She can see their ship, a pretty large one, needed to carry the numerous crew members. No one seems to stand watch on it. There are two small boats there as well, though they look like they are seldomly used. Crates in various states of decay and disrepair clutter the environment along with empty bottles and garbage. Towards the back, near the stairs up and what looks like an archaic platform to transport up goods (that looks positively jury-rigged by now), there is a table with three men and one woman, dressed in the usual clothes of pirate thugs, dicing and drinking. This is most likely what qualifies as the watch.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana pulls her ship into the alcove and secures it there. She roughs up her hair and clothes, even her appearance just a bit, more in line with what a rough hewn pirate would look like. If she needs to bluff her way through, shes going to have to look the part. She momentarily considers lighting the big ship on fire, to create a diversion, but discards it because she doesn't have fire starting tools.
At first, shes hoping to just sneak her way past the "guards" and so she tries to move silently and stay hidden in the mass of boxes, garbage and shadows
[roll0] hide
[roll1] move silently
Once she gets into position as close as she can, she assesses whether or not there is enough room to slip by the "guards" and get to the steps without being seen, and whether or not the steps can even be ascended without making tell tale squeaks.
[roll2]

[MikelaC1]

three rerolls right off the bat
[roll0] hide
[roll1] move silently
[roll2] spot

[Ridai]

9 / 11 rerolls (no check for evaluating the stairs, they are made of stone. You also forgot to add your Charisma modifier to the rerolls)

Tiana manages to stay out of sight, approaching the table with the four thugs. Tiana can also see doors and gates to storages along the way, perhaps providing other ways of ingress if she can get them open. It is possible to slip by the thugs, providing the most direct way up, but she will need a distraction of sorts. Tiana can hear the thugs talking as she comes closer.

"Damn Jacky's prob'ly up there bendin' over for Headhunter 'gain while we're down here watch'n' **** all," the female pirate grumbles.
"You jealous or somethin'?" One of the males answers as they slam their cups onto the table.
"I'd want a nice damn bed, wine, jew'lry 'n' loads o' cash too if I just need ta screw the first mate when he feels like it, 'stead of freez'n' my ass off down 'ere," she angrily hisses back.
A dirty laugh is shared by the men. "Oh, we can warm you up, alright," one of the says.
"Ask 'gain when you're act'ly winn'n' an' I'm hammered. Ain't crap happ'nin' down here." Frustrated, the female pirate takes a big swig from the rum bottle.
"Maybe I should pay that 'holy' blonde a visit 'n' help her worship Venus. Ain't like she'll be worth less afterwards."
"Like hell you would, she'd kill you before you'd get your pants off. 'Sides, she ain't in the prison, the witch's somewhere up with the big wigs. They should hurry the **** up 'n' sell her already."
"What, you scared of a girl?"
"The chick's bad news. 'n' she killed Harry 'n' five others before we captured her, damn it!"

One of the pirates seems to perk up a bit as Tiana's foot accidentally hits a bottle, the sound of it clanging into another noticed by him. "Damn rats again." "Ain't my turn. Checked the storage already." "Long as they're out here, I don't give a damn."

[MikelaC1]

Tiana bypasses the gates, fearing that they would squeak horribly if she tried to move one of them but checks one or two of the doors, first seeing if they are trapped and then if they are locked.
[roll0]
[roll1]
assuming don't need to roll to see if they are locked
If she finds one both trapped and locked, she chooses that one, and attempts to pick the lock
[roll2]
If not, she just chooses one at random.
Either way, she tries to ease the door open as slowly as possible, if necessary, trying to time the movement with the slap of the waves at the dock to hide the sound.
[roll3]

[MikelaC1]

oh, and disable the trap if there is one
[roll0]

[Ridai]

Tiana detects no traps. She begins to pick one of the doors to the storage, but does not quite manage to get it to open yet. The thugs' game continues, downing a lot of rum, but they don't seem to detect Tiana.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana sharpens her pick, gives the lock a closer look and goes back to work on it, mentally reminding herself that she needs one of those masterwork sets the next time she has the available cash

[roll0]

[Ridai]

Tiana manages to open the lock and door silently. The storage lies before her, but it is dark, save for the light that shines into it from the torches the thugs have set up, they themselves on the way of becoming inebriated.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana squeezes into the storage room and does a search around for anything of note.
[roll0]
The thought occurs to her that even if she doesn't find a way up through the storage rooms, that the pirates will drink themselves to insensibility soon enough and she will be able to just walk past them...maybe having to deal with the last one to lose consciousness.

[Ridai]

The room is entirely dark, as in pitch black. How does Tiana go about examining her surroundings or searching for an exit?

[MikelaC1]

Im assuming that magic weapons shed no light in your game.

She will find the wall right as she enters and then move around the room by feel and hope to find a door in that manner. She wont spend much time in that room, and will check back to see if the pirates are boozing themselves into a stupor.

[Ridai]

Tiana feels around the dark, recognizing crates and shelves. She feels a little like when she was delivering tea, her feet doing as much of the navigation around various obstacles as her eyes and ears did. Suddenly, as luck would have it, Tiana feels something that could potentially be quite convenient to have. Her astute fingers continue their examination of the box-shaped object, managing to open it, recognizing the contents. A quick swipe later, the storage is illuminated with help from the tinderbox Tiana found. She sees several crates, most likely provisions and goods of some sort, gathered from many different ships most likely. She also finds several flasks of flammable oil nearby. At the far end of the room she sees a door, most likely leading to the stairs, with a path leading behind several boxes. Somewhere in the center there seems to be stained bedroll and a small table, with some parchment and some empty bottles nearby, most likely for whoever is stuck with taking inventory of the stolen goods or guards being lazy.

Tiana has a minute or two to look around until she hears the voices from outside come closer, sounding thoroughly drunk, but in a good mood, seemingly poised to enter the storage.

Made a luck roll of sorts modified by the search check and Tiana is indeed as lucky as always, stumbling upon both oil and a tinderbox.

If Tiana more or less immediately wants to leave through the far door, she can do so without much trouble, having plenty of time to pick the lock. If she decides to attempt to circumvent the thugs that are soon entering the storage so she can get back into the docks and do whatever she wants there (take the stairs there or whatever else), there are plenty of hiding spots in the chaotic storage.

[MikelaC1]

Tiana takes several flasks of oil with her, along with the tinderbox, both could prove useful in creating diversions in the future. She quickly picks the lock and heads through the door, pulling it shut behind her. If there are stairs, she takes them, heading up, and if they dont lead anywhere, she can always come back, the thugs will likely be completely out of it by the time she returns.