Island of the Sirens, The Pentallion: D&D 3.5 IC

[Hattish Thing]

The Island of the Sirens

The ship had been a passenger vessel, taking scores of men and women eager to leave the war-ravaged land of United Lereftain, the largest continent in Medean, for the great unknown that was the land across the Great Gorge sea. However, these fated passengers had been plagued with bad luck. Along the way, several members of the crew had become sick with a strange tropical virus, that had left many deckhands bedridden. Then, on the thirtieth day of the voyage, great stormcloudes appeared on the horizon, menacing the stubborn captain and promising destruction and doom. It hit within twenty-four hours. The storm was strong, the seas churning and raging as if the briny water was boiled from beneath, on the whim of some mad ocean god. Stormclouds covered the horizon, as far as the eye could see. Lightning rocketed down to earth in the distance, and thunder rolled and rocked, blasting the skies with it's terrifying cacophony. The wind blew fiercely, some crewmembers already long lost to the hurricane level onslaught of cold air. Rain buffets the side of the proud vessel, and deckhands scramble about, desperately trying to repair and sail the ship to safety all at once. Captain Lenora Lang struggles with the steering mechanism, giving the rudder all she's got as she valiantly yells curses towards the heavens. A small strip of land looms in the horizon, a rocky shore jutting out of the water as the already damaged ship is pushed dangerously close by the unyielding hurricane wind. As the mighty storm rages on, who knows what's in store for it's unwary passengers....

((Alright! So, everyone write up what your character is doing during the terrible storm.))

[dextercorvia]

Weldan clung to the rail, losing his stomach again. The third time in the last quarter hour. The deck tossed and rolled beneath him, and spray from the winds and waves washed what he hoped to be the last of his luncheon away. The first day aboard Weldan had been queasy, but it passed, and he had taken pride that he almost had the sea legs of one of the crew. That was before the storm hit. He was weak, disoriented, and the waves sent him lurching from crate to keel and back again.

Everyone else was too busy to notice, or at least comment. The boat heaved again, and a line came loose. He grabbed for it, still holding fast to the rail. He was quick enough to catch the end, but the wind was pulling on the spar on the other end of the rope, and he wasn't strong enough to reel it back and tie it off. Grumpy was there though, and snagged the rope with the back of his jaw. Together they pulled, and then Grumpy held it, while Weldan tied.

The smith reached down and patted his dog. For all his flaws, Grumpy was always there in a pinch. Ow! Speaking of pinch, Scarlet's beak was clutching his earlobe, and her claws were tight on his shoulder. Leave off, you silly bird! If you can't sit still, I'm gonna end up baking you into a pie!

Scarlet squawked. Qwitcher Bellyachin' Why had he ever taught that phrase to the bird? It was doubly appropriate now, as Weldan realized that his stomach was still evicting its most recent tenants.

[ImperatorV]

Irrais had a formula for storms. Every thirty minutes, he would walk above decks, check the ships heading and speed, and then go back to his cramped and by now very damp cabin to consult his charts and almanacs. This way he could get a fairly accurate idea of how far off course they were without risking much damage to the important and difficult to replace papers.

Storms also gave him time to think. The crew was too busy to bother him, the passengers were mainly concerned with their ailing stomachs and not being washed over the side, and he had done the calculations enough that they were trivial. He found himself wondering if the storm was a continuation of the earlier omen of the strange disease. He knew it was a omen; an unknown sickness striking his ship right before his investment? It could be nothing else. But what did it mean? He wasn't trained to interpret these things, not yet. He had been unaffected by the illness though, surely that was a good sign.

The sighting of land caused Irrias to break his routine as he weaved his way up to the bow to examine it. Uncharted islands were not rare, but the coastline didn't match the beaches of typical islands in the region. Either this island was unusual, or they were farther off course than he had anticipated.

[whoiam]

Auðr was at something of a loose end in the storm. The galley fires had long since been doused (too much of a risk in such heavy weather), and cooking for the other passengers was really the only task she'd been any good at during the voyage so far.

Still, it was just a storm. She wasn't going to be afraid of the wind, now, was she? She'd wanted to see the world, she couldn't just run away the first time she really encountered it... Glancing around from her position on deck, she felt envious of the sailors. They knew what they were doing (she hoped). And they all had work to do - and plenty of it, by the looks of things. Whereas right now Auðr was essentially ballast...

Still, she saw someone else on deck who she knew wasn't one of the crew. She hadn't really spoken to him about anything non-food-related so far, but still... any stranger was better than feeling useless in the face of the storm. Unsteadily, she made her way across deck to reach the rail near Weldan. Sadly, a little too late to hear him mention cooking.

"Hello there, .... Weldan, wasn't it? You seem to be enjoying the weather about as much as I am..."

[dextercorvia]

"Yes, Miss Auðr. I'm sorry to so dishonor your cooking. This is my first ever voyage. Quite frankly, if we make it through this, I'm hoping it will be my last." Just then, he hears the cry of "Land ho". The smith looks, but cannot see it himself. "Normally that would be a heartening sound, but a sailor yesterday told me of ships getting dashed to bits in the shallows, just spans from safety. I brought the barrel of my belongings up on deck earlier. I was going to lash me and my dog to the handles, so we have something handy that floats." Weldan holds up one end of a piece of rope. "I reckon if me and Grumpy tied off to this handle, you could tie off to that one. Grumpy is a fair swimmer, so even if we get knocked out, I bet he could make shore towing us."

The crafstman tied a loop around Grumpy's collar first, and fixed the other end of a short span to the handle, then he did the same around his waist. He tickled Scarlet affectionately under her beak, "You'll have to fly on your own, Miss Scarlet. Try not to get too wet, you get insufferable when your feathers are wet."

The bird responed, "Shut yeryap, talk tomuch!"

"That's odd, I didn't teach him that one," Weldan said, as he once again offered the rope to Miss Auðr.

[whoiam]

"Sailors say it all the time, " was Auðr's explanation for how the bird might have picked up a phrase without Weldan's help. She glossed over the food - arguments about cooking honor aside, if she thought too much about food right now she'd be losing hers as well. "It's a generous offer, but I shall have to pass. If we're not wrecked, tying myself to the barrel will make me less useful if the sailors need me. And if we are to lose the ship, I should really get my own belongings while I still can. Speaking of which..." Auðr casts a worried glance towards the ever-less-distant rocks. "...if I want to rescue my own things, I had better hurry. You'll excuse me?"

Auðr didn't wait for a reply before bolting for the lower decks. Clothing, tools and food would all be at a premium if the ship *was* lost, and while she couldn't get to her spear in a hurry (the sailors hadn't let her remain armed during the voyage), spare clothes and cooking utensils could still be rescued.

[Arutha]

Dren was in his cabin, bundling his gear. Given the severity of the storm, it was entirely possible that the ship could sink, and given that possibility, Dren knew that his tools would be most useful. And given that he had crafted them out of wood, some of. Them might even float, although it was much more likely that they would simply impede his ability to swim less than if normal. He was used to this as being a hireling for group after group of adventurers attested . Cooking, torch bearing, repairs, first aid, any role that adventurers needed filled, Dren could provide, as long as it didn't mean that he might get eaten. He had seen too many close friends get killed, or "red shirted" as one group had called it. Dren found calling Andy's death something disrespectful and even cruel, but the guild had unfortunately picked up the term for it common vernacular.
But such thoughts were only in Drens mind for a flash shorter than the lightning that boomed outside. Now that his gear was stowed on his person, he began to head up to the deck. Perhaps the other passengers were up there, and even if they were not, Dren loved the scent of rain.

[Dragonslayer495]

Magic Miles was sitting below deck, practicing his magic tricks and taking money from anyone who would pay him for a performance. His snake was slithering beside him disappearing and then reappearing in his hat at command. He didn't really care about the storm outside, it would probably pass. "I bloody hate storms." he muttered to himself as the boat lurched again.

[dextercorvia]

Weldan bid goodbye and good luck to Miss Auðr. He finished tying everything off, and moved to the port side of the ship, where he could now see land approaching. The ship was broadside to the land, and appeared to be driven towards it by the waves. The smith wondered if he dropped into the water if the tide would carry him into shore, but feared being crushed between the ship, and whatever rocks they were likely approaching. So, he crouched by the rail with his dog, and his bird, watching and waiting. None of the sailors had jumped yet, so Weldan thought it was probably still too far to swim.

[whoiam]

Auðr couldn't help but smile a little as she passed Dren on the way below decks. She knew exactly why he had his things with him... after all, she was risking the trip back below for exactly the same reason!

Luckily, she didn't have much to pack below-decks, just a couple of changes of clothing. She only took a few of the cooking things - the galley ones belonged to the ship, not to her, and while she'd happily grab them after the shipwreck if she could, grabbing them now would get her in trouble if the sailors managed to save the ship. Even the ones she'd grabbed already she'd need to sneak back into the Galley if they all survived. Sometimes the difference between dinner and hunger was a willingness to take risks...

Still, she had everything she could easily reach now, so she headed back up to the deck. She could see Dren and Weldan up there, and while she didn't have any real preference for either as company... well, she liked animals. So she went back to where Weldan's dog was at the port rail. That Weldan was also there was more or less incidental to the decision.

[dextercorvia]

Grumpy knew a good thing when he saw it. The dog stood next to Auðr, and leaned on her hip waiting for her to pet him.

Weldon nodded his head at the woman, but was preoccupied. He had a small stick in his hand, held up to the base of his eye. Occasionally he would move it from vertical to horizontal or back. They were still too far from the land to make swimming safe, but continued to calculate the distance based on reference points like the mast.

[Hattish Thing]

The storm continues to rage down upon the battered ship, the rugged and beautiful Captain struggling, trying her hardest to avoid panicking as the wind blows the vessel severely off course. Some material from the deck flies straight past Weldan's head, most likely scaring the young man and his dogs. It's clear that the upper deck is not the safest place to be right now. Several crew members are struggling with a rope by the starboard side, attempting to hold the damned thing together. On the other side of the vessel, right by Audr, the ropes tied to the railing begin to snap, tearing off whole section of the railing as the hurricane wind ravages the deck. Rain falls like small pellets against the unprotected skin of the sailors, stinging like hail. Wooden shrapnel bits now fly through the air, as more pieces of the deck are brutally withered away. Unfortunately, that's not even the really frightening part. The individuals on deck will be able to turn around and witness what looks to be an absolutely massive wave, rolling the direction of the ship. A wave that large... It could completely capsize the ship! A guard screams and points, and several rush below deck as their captain ceases her struggling, gazing awe-struck at the terrible behemoth before her. She gasps silently, and quickly orders her men to run and hide below deck. She would stay atop, to desperately attempt a safe landing of the vessel. Freezing rain mixes with the tears of crew members, their hope gone with whatever chance they had of reaching port.

Like a bone being chewed, the ship was gripped by fate in the form of the terrible storm, suggesting that perhaps some horrible god had willed the destruction of the vessel, or maybe that the ship was even cursed! Not pleasant thoughts, either way. And as the hurricane west wind raged wildly, a voice can be heard on deck. "Everyone, hide! There's a wave! Quick, someone close the hatch before we all drown! COME ON!" A few members of the crew rush towards the hatch to get below deck, and to hide. Audr and the others on the upper deck will need to get down here before the hatches are closed, or try their chances with the massive wave. There's a huge crash as the men continue their task of rushing below, absolutely rocking the entire vessel. Everyone below deck needs to make a balance check to avoid getting hit with something as the ship rolls about, like a toy boat in the massive and hateful ocean void... Below, the passengers close by will hear the hatch open, and watch the soaked and frightened sailors pile in.

[ImperatorV]

When the wave appears, Irrais pauses for a moment to ponder if this is the fulfillment of the omens he has been contemplating. This moment costs him, and suddenly the hatch is closing. He makes a run for the stern, yelling to Lenora.

Turn into the wave! If the ship capsizes we're both dead!

Profession(navigator) to guide Lenora through the wave with minimal impact: [roll0]

Balance to not be swept off [roll1]

[dextercorvia]

Weldan had no idea whether it was the smart choice or not, but he sent Scarlet on ahead. The next thing was the hardest thing he had ever done, but somewhere, from down deep in his belly, Weldan found strength. If he jumped over the side, the ship would roll over the top of him. He had to make it to the stern. It wasn't far, but in this storm getting anywhere was difficult. At the stern, he summoned all of his strength and then some more besides. Nodding to Grumpy, he hefted the barrel up to the rail, then the two of them jumped in unison.

Balance [roll0] to make it to the rear of the ship.
Swim check [roll1]
Swim check for Grumpy [roll2]

Hopefully the wave drags the barrel into shore towing the rest of us along.

[Arutha]

Dren felt the ship shake under the wave, and could barely balance himself nearly tumble the the deck.

[roll0]
using an insperation point

He then moved to brace himself on the wall of the ship, and hoped that no more huge waves would buffet the ship.

[whoiam]

Audr *knew* what she was doing here was a stupid idea, but something deep within her was refusing to let her run away. She had the horrible suspicion it might have been her conscience... So, what she did instead, is run to where the Captain is. She had no idea what the best approach to riding out a storm in a sailing ship was, but right now she had to trust that the Captain did. Which is why she was attempting to help the Captain steer. (As in, helping to move the wheel. Back in the days before power steering, it's quite a difficult task in bad weather...)

[roll0]