[Hourglass of Zihaja D&D 4e] Heroes on a Sea of Swords IC

[Shadow_Elf]

Captain al-Farid
The half-marid shakes her head. "If I can help it? I don't want to see him again unless it's on the end of my blade. So I doubt it. As for infiltrating his room, he has an entourage. I'm sure someone is watching it; unless you've learned an invisibility spell in the month you were away, I don't think it'll work."

[Dacia Brabant]

Medinah

"The end of a blade was what I'd had in mind, yes, but I suppose this isn't the place for that sort of thing," the warforged replied, attempting to mimic a sigh to...mixed effect.

Medinah restored her disguise to the same one she'd had on when they arrived and followed the captain out.

[Shadow_Elf]

Captain Shaur al-Farid
The captain smiles. "I suppose I will have to get used to having a sassier bodyguard, won't I?"

- - - - - - - - - -

Later That Day - Evening in the Map Room
Shaur has met briefly with the sultan to announce the return of her Hunters, and thus her return to her ship, and has promised to meet him tomorrow to give him an update about the mission and to pick up any more military contracts he might have for them.

The pirate-hunting elite of the Midnight Mirage, their officers and their now-invalid alchemist meet in the map room to discuss events.

"Alright, who wants to start?"

[Chambers]

Jalil

"Our current options and liabilities seem like a fine place." She says to the Captain. "I've learned - as I'm sure you all have as well - that the political situation in New Admaja is something that is out of our hands at the moment. While the Sultan in his wisdom..." She says with a tone that leaves little doubt about what she thinks of his wisdom "...plays parlor games with their envoy what does the Midnight Mirages charter leave us room to pursue?"

[Dacia Brabant]

Medinah

Medinah could only shake her head in frustration at the very idea of piracy being a "political situation." Still, even she had to admit the timing of the Corsairs' conquest of Luardo in the midst of a Zhong invasion was impeccably bad.

"I wonder if that wasn't their idea all along, to coordinate their strike at a moment when we wouldn't be able to retaliate... but pardon me, I'm still not yet accustomed to having my mind wander freely.

"Now that I've said that, though, I must ask; is that the reason for the sultan's inaction--because the Zhong invasion is more pressing? That would make sense, I may even agree with it, except it all seems too well-timed to be a coincidence. Again, recall our first contract since this all started was an ambush Vertasi specifically set for us, and it was Zhong pirates who made that feint attack on the ghost ship that led us into it. That alone doesn't prove anything, but I strongly suspect they're colluding at least on some level. Captain, if we were to find proof of that in our fights sure to come with the snakes, would that be enough to reinstate our contracts on the Corsairs?"

[Shadow_Elf]

Captain Shaur al-Farid
"The Sultan assures me that he entertains the presence of this Lord Coyne only because he can't afford to deal with a unified Corsair fleet at the same time as as the unified 'Zhong fleet," responds the Captain to Jalil's "compliments" on the sultan's judgment.

Kalam Delat
Kalam interjects when Medinah suggests collusion between the pirates and snakemen. "The same had occurred to me. Sent out feelers, see if true. Possible; Pirate lords careful with their tracks, not sure. My thinking is different - pirates take advantage of invasion, perhaps even attack she-da-zhong water sources, spur invasion, but no contract agreement," he explains in his broken, accented common. "More concerned with Lord of War able to track you so far. Do we have a leak?"

[Grey_Wolf_c]

"More concerned with Lord of War able to track you so far. Do we have a leak?"[/COLOR]

Amirah, Living Swarm

Amirah shrugs, then projects to the room at large, "We have known for some time that our Creator can track Us on land - he was quick to find Us when We risked being on land for more than a few hours. He would have known Our ports, though, even if he couldn't reach Us in time, he could have sold the information to the Pirate!Wasps. With the right network, the Pirates could predict our movements. Or it might have been something the Pirate!Queen left in the ship when she took it over."

[Dacia Brabant]

Medinah

Medinah considered both Kalam's and Amirah's words before replying.

"If that's true, if they engineered this conflict to use it as cover for their rise to power... that is a terrible thought indeed.

"Worse, though, is being spied upon. It could be your maker, Amirah, but considering he can't track you at sea he'd have to act incredibly fast to get his intelligence on us to the pirates. Besides, recall what Lord War said about how it tracked us; its sources that said we're trying to decode Admajai ritual magic, and it used its memory of that era to guess at where we were headed. Who else would've known about that?"

[Shadow_Elf]

Kalam Delat
The sleek-furred gnoll ponders Medinah's question for a moment. "Hunters. Officers. Sultan, some of his staff. Perhaps one of my sources, or someone Master Shamis encountered at the library might have inferred our goal? Unsure. Must investigate." He turns to the Captain. "Nothing further to report, my Captain. I attempt to plug leak now." With that, the gnoll bows and departs.

Captain Shaur al-Farid
The Captain just sighs at the formalities and turns her attention back to her Hunters. "So, we're going after some she-da-zhong targets, but there's other privateers on the water who've got a head start on us. Wake Whisper and The Gift of the Matriarch are already sailing for the front. If we leave at dawn, with a wind spell we might be able to catch up and coordinate our attack with them."

[Grey_Wolf_c]

"If we leave at dawn, with a wind spell we might be able to catch up and coordinate our attack with them."

Amirah, Living Swarm

"We!Swarm will be happy to perform the ritual in the morning. Shall We also prepare to strengthen the Mirage? The enemy!lizard ships will be more interested in sinking ships than pirates, who want plunder"

[Chambers]

Jalil

A spy? Jalil listens to the gnoll and nods when he leaves. "Sounds as if we hunt she-da-zhong then. I'm ready to set sail when you are Captain." She says and glances briefly towards Amirah. If he can track her...who's to say that he can't read her thoughts as well? She may be an unwitting informant.

[Shadow_Elf]

Captain Shaur al-Farid
"We leave at first light. I do think we should reinforce the ship, but we're not going to in combat for a few days yet. Save the resources," she returns to Amirah. "If you have any pressing business, speak now. Otherwise..."

The Captain is interrupted when Alvah quietly clears his voice. "Sorry to interrupt Captain, but I think I would be of more use helping Kalam find the leak than I would be at sea. I know these fighters are very capable, and I have a lot of sources in the city Kalam might not have to help us in the search."

Captain al-Farid has a sad look in her eyes for a moment, and it seems some unseen signal passes between the two marids for a moment. "I understand, Alvah. Godspeed, we will see you upon our return," she replies, and the bard bows and takes his leave of the party.

"Anyone else with urgent last-minute announcements or information to contribute, or shall we call it a night and reconvene in the afternoon when the ship is moving apace?"

[Shadow_Elf]

The City of God, Utared the 2nd of Atumeq, AF360
The morning light and the call to the sails wakes the Hunters at daybreak. The crew is already hard at work getting the ship ready to move with the morning tide. Amirah and Jalil get up into the rigging to assist the crew, while Kihtsah takes over Kalam's duties ordering the crews beneath the deck. The Captain commands the main deck, with Medinah and Kaal at her shoulders, barking orders. Soon, the tide starts going out with the ship in tow and wind in the sails, and the vessel is moving at a good clip. Jalil and Rahman assist Amirah with a wind-summoning ritual, and they take off rapidly.

Jual Jahazi, Qius Sea, Utared the 9th of Atumeq, AF360
After a week of hard sailing and wind manipulation, the Midnight Mirage finally pulls into the bay on the northwest side of Jual Jahazi where the other pirate-hunting vessels have weighed anchor. The bay is likely to be the site of the conflict between the fleets, when at last the she-da-zhong decide to make their move on Muarzibet, as the island blocks off the bay makes the access to the Hasini delta very narrow. The captain orders the sails drawn and the anchor laid out as the ship coasts in to rest near the other two vessels.

The Hunters and their captain get on board a pair of rowboats while Kaal holds the Midnight Mirage. They make their way over to the Gift of the Matriarch, the largest of the three vessels, after their Captain Prince Hak Alaqila has had his psion send her a telepathic message not unlike those employed by Amirah. They board the vessel and enter the Prince's cabin... which proves to be larger on the inside than it appears, being as large as a one would expect the private offices of a merchant prince to be on land. Already, the hunters of the other two ships have made themselves comfortable awaiting the Midnight Mirage.

Prince Alaqila, his first mate and his set of five Hunters stand or sit near the head of the room. A gigantic aazlai, one of the lion men of the eastern savannah, stands at a commanding seven feet of height, big even for his brutish kind, in full plate mail. He bears a holy symbol that none of the Hunters recognize. Sitting on the aazlai's shoulder like a parrot, a dimunite kobold, mostly unarmoured and without weaponry, sits with a cheshire grin on her reptilian snout, a small onyx orb orbiting her head in lazy circles. Two lizardfolk males, who look to be identical (though that may simply be the Hunters' cultural insensitivity speaking) sit side-by-each by their Captain, one of whom bears a spear at his back and several hatchets at his belt, while the other has a battle axe at his back as well as a quiver of javelins. The last is a half-djinn man, his skin wan and his demeanor airy. He is practically coated in knives, with the short bladed weapons sticking out of his bandolier, his belt, his boots, the back of his leather jerkin and no doubt concealed in any number of other places on his person.

The first mate seems merely a shadow at first, and the Hunters and their Captain initially overlook and dismiss his presence. Humanoid, too tall for a kobold and too short for a gnoll, the figure seems wreathe in shadows and dressed entirely in black.

As for the crew of the Wake Whisper, they seem to follow a more cohesive theme. Looking not entirely unlike pirates themselves, for the most part, the captain and his complement of men are all bearded and rugged, save one. The singularly clean shaven man among the crew has a mystical air about him and milky white eyes with stark, black pupils. He stands stoically while the others among his crew sit, drink wine, and fraternize.

Prince Alaqila stands and smiles. For his part, the merchant prince seems entirely unprepared for combat; he wears stylish but un-utilitarian garments not particularly fit for sea travel. Unlike your own Captain or that of the Wake Whisper, this does not seem to be a Captain who favours leading his crew into battle personally.

"Welcome, honoured guests, to my parlour. If you will excuse us, my person and those of your esteemed captains al-Farid and bin-Hussari shall retreat to my private quarters to discuss our plan of attack. Please, feel free to eat, drink, fraternize. We will be back with you shortly."

The three captains leave through a door that there ought not to be room left for at the back of the vessel, no doubt another symptom of the space-stretching nature of the magic cast on this room.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

the crew of the Wake Whisper, they seem to follow a more cohesive theme. Looking not entirely unlike pirates themselves, for the most part, the captain and his complement of men are all bearded and rugged, save one. The singularly clean shaven man among the crew has a mystical air about him and milky white eyes with stark, black pupils. He stands stoically while the others among his crew sit, drink wine, and fraternize.

Amirah, Living Swarm

Amirah bows sinuously to a ginger hunter from the Wake Whisper, and a quick thought is sent "Well met again, Haggar!Red-Beard. It has been many moons". Then, after a slight hesitation, she briefly nods at another of the hunters, but quickly turns away, not expecting a response. She glides over to the mess table, and, locating some sugar treats, grabs a few and slips them under her veil.

[Shadow_Elf]

Haggar Gadarsson
The red-bearded man laughs and stands, moving over to join Amirah at the sweets table. "Har! Many moons indeed! Har! If it ain't Creepy-Crawley, still sailin' the blue an' puttin' thieves in their place. I hadn't heard you'd joined up with Fangs and her posse, though I suppose you fit right in, eh?" He amicably pats her on the "back" with some force, clearly forgetting that there's nothing substantial under the clothing and the shoulder momentarily collapses under the blow before the dazed insects and push it back out again.

Mohar ibn-Salah
The dour-looking fellow with the black beard that Amirah inclined her head to spits on the carpeted floor as his crew mate goes to speak with Amirah. "Cursed creatures in a cursed room. The sooner we are rid of this place, the better," he says with some disgust in his tone.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

The red-bearded man laughs and stands, moving over to join Amirah at the sweets table. "Har! Many moons indeed! Har! If it ain't Creepy-Crawley, still sailin' the blue an' puttin' thieves in their place. I hadn't heard you'd joined up with Fangs and her posse, though I suppose you fit right in, eh?" He amicably pats her on the "back" with some force, clearly forgetting that there's nothing substantial under the clothing and the shoulder momentarily collapses under the blow before the dazed insects and push it back out again.

Amirah, Living Swarm

Amirah sends a thought of pure happiness, and hugs the large man. When she pulls back, a number of lice and fleas leave Haagar and jump under Amirah's robes. "Yes, We!swarm served with Jehan!Captain and when We left, she was nice enough to recommend Us to Shaur al-Farid!Queen. What about you!RedHair? How did you join the Wake Whisper!ship?"

[Chambers]

Jalil

Jalil genuflects to the Prince when she enters the room and waits to speak until he's recognized them. She nods to him and glances at the other crews once the Captains have left, sparing little attention for the rough bearded men of the Wake Whisper. She walks over to the half-djinn and bows her head slightly. "Well met cousin. I am Lady Jalil Farun. How does this day find you?" She asks and then tsks at the bearded man's rude comment.

Jalil pours herself an apertif and considers it briefly before taking a sip. "A question for you, cousin. You carry so many fine knives; perhaps you have one that is particularly useful at shaving beards? Black beards, to be precise. I also carry a blade..." She says and gently pulls out her forked dagger and arcs of static electricity spark between the forks. "But as you see it is poor for shaving. It is quite useful for other things however, such as reminding careless men of their manners. In fact it does that quite well." She says to the half-djinn while staring at the black bearded man the whole time, her eyes flashing. "If you would like a demonstration I believe that this gentleman here has offered to be a volunteer...that is, unless he remembers that he is in the presence of ladies and promptly apologizes for his disgusting behavior."

Spoiler

Show

Intimidate on Mohar ibn-Salah to put him in his place.
(1d20+19)[39]

[Shadow_Elf]

Haggar Gadarsson
The red-bearded man is clearly amused by the hug, and does not seem to notice his clothing and beard were housing some unwelcome guests which have made their exit. His demeanor sobers up a little when Amirah asks him how he ended up aboard the Wake Whisper. "It's sad news that," he replies, the dvernin accent he puts on for show somewhat muted. "A year or so after you sailed off with Jehan an' her Ardent Maid, we bit off more'n we could chew takin' on one of the High Captains a' the Corsairs - the ones what call 'emselves Pirate Lords now. All the Hunters bit it, 'cept me an' Hard-Ass," he says in a whisper, gesturing to ibn-Salah. "Pirate used some kind a spook to make ol' Lefty kill the Captain, an' things went downhill from there. Made Hard-Ass hate magic more'n he already did. Copper was left sinkin' an' we was left fer dead. Wake Whisper found us, thanks to Milk-Eyes, an' we fit in well enough. Been with em' ever since." Given all the nicknames he uses, his description is hard to follow, but given Amirah's own experience with using multiple names for things, she manages to follow along pretty well. "Just between you and me, poppet, Hard-Ass thinks you're cursed, an that you bein' on the ship is what doomed the Captain. I'd avoid him 'till this op is over, if I was you."

Knives
The half-djinn grunts in the affirmative when Jalil introduces herself, clearly not much one for words. When she draws his attention to Mohar, though, with her special brand of implied threatening, he peers a little closer and his keen eyes spot the spit mark on the rug. This causes him to then look up at the kobold perched on the aazlai's shoulder behind him, and after a moment she looks over at Mohar.

Mohar ibn-Salah
The superstitious pirate-hunter pales as Jalil begins threatening magical violence. He comes to his feet and begins backing towards the door. "Stay away from me, witch!" he shouts as he passes his crew, and he runs out the door onto the deck beyond.

This causes some among his crew to chuckle, and from his position over by Amirah, Haggar guffaws. The knife-coated half-djinn grins broadly, and the kobold up above lets out a devious giggle; the aazlai and the two lizardmen don't seem too impressed or amused, however.

Knives
The half-djinn looks back to Jalil. "Thanks for the hand, coz. The guy should be thanking you; if he hadn't run out and made an ass of himself like that, Matti was going to do some seriously mean **** to his brain," he says jovially, cursing without a second thought; clearly, not all of djinn blood are as well-educated as Jalil. He stashes the knife he was idly playing with and extends his right hand. "Name's Knives. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Lady Jalil."

[Grey_Wolf_c]

"A year or so after you sailed off with Jehan an' her Ardent Maid, we bit off more'n we could chew takin' on one of the High Captains a' the Corsairs - the ones what call 'emselves Pirate Lords now. All the Hunters bit it, 'cept me an' Hard-Ass," he says in a whisper, gesturing to ibn-Salah.[/COLOR]

Amirah, Living Swarm

Amirah's thoughts are far more muted, as she recalls her first Pirate Hunter captain. "We!swarm are saddened that he!captain has died. Not many would trust Qalil!fencer when he recommended Us to change from pirate!wasp to hunter!killer bee." Reaching across the table, she grabs a mug of beer and raising it she projects "To Hizu ibn Nadim!First Captain. May his long sleep be full of battles and excitement" before placing it under the veil and knocking it back. A few second later, the mug is returned empty. The liquid is not to her taste, but she knows well what the captain would have wanted, and beer always featured prominently.

[Dacia Brabant]

Medinah

Back in her blue-haired guise, Medinah smiled broadly throughout Amirah's exchange with the red-bearded hunter, a mixture of amusement and curiosity at her friend's reunion with an old comrade. She made a mental note to ask her about it later.

Only two things broke her quite mirth: the black-bearded fool who insulted at least half the room (she made another note to watch this "Hard-Ass" like a hawk from here on out), and red-beard's off-hand remark about the Pirate Lord who slew his crew.

Breaking her usual silence in these situations--if they're all going into battle together they'd learn what she is soon enough anyway--Medinah stepped forward from her guard post at the inner chamber door and caught Haggar's attention.

"If 'Hard-Ass' has any sense of self-preservation left, I should think it best if he was the one to avoid us. But enough of him, I'm curious--well I'm very curious about how you and Amirah met, I've not seen her this friendly toward a man before--but I also wonder at your encounter with the so-called Pirate Lord. Who was it that you fought?"

[Shadow_Elf]

Haggar Gadarsson
"Aye! A fine captain if there e'er was one!" he agrees, quaffing a tankard of beer himself. When Medinah approaches, he grins. "An' I thought I got weird looks fer havin' red hair! Har! You must turn a lot of heads with that blue mop a yers, lass," he says by way of greeting.

"Creepy-Crawly's like a little sister who also happens t'be real good at killin' blokes what want you dead. Makes her easy t'like, even if she is a pile a bugs," he explains with a cheeky smile as he refills his drained tankard. "As fer the pirate what killed Captain ibn-Nadim... Ahmed al-Faruq. I won't be forgettin' it any time soon, either. He made our greenest Hunter stab the Captain before the ships e'en locked fer boardin'. The hit to morale ended the fight 'fore it began, and he left the Copper t'sink t'the bottom a the seas. If the Wake Whisper ever crosses the Vengeance, I'll be sure t'stick my sword in that man somewhere unpleasant," he says with no small amount of disgust in his tone. He shakes his head. "But it ain't Corsairs we're huntin' this week, it's the 'zhong. Y'all ever met the snakemen on the high seas afore?"

[Chambers]

Jalil

Jalil lets the half-djinn take her hand - briefly - and smiles as Mohar flees. Weak minded fool. "Likewise, Knives, though it's not me he should fear. Spitting in a Princes chamber..." She says and shakes her head. "Some people can't even be taught proper manners."

"I have not had the dubious pleasure of meeting them myself but I've heard reports from our families Captains about their nature and proclivities. I presume that some among us gathered now have fought them before." She says to the group at large. "In your experience, what were the best strategies and tactics to employ against them?"

Spoiler

Show

Shadow Elf

What's the general rundown on the zhong that Jalil would know? Ship types, crew complements, unique weapons or tactics, etc.

[Shadow_Elf]

Mattijra Mindbender
The diminutive kobolish woman with the onyx orbiting her head speaks up, though it is immediately apparent that her snout is not moving as the words enter the minds of those gathered and are processed as sounds.

"She-da-zhong have slippery minds. They're hard to control or manipulate, so I typically just splat their brains across the deck. The noise it makes is rather satisfying. They like to fight with bows, darts and poisons, and they keep all sorts of venomous pets. The real worries are the priests, though; I don't know much about their god, but he must be one scary son of a bitch. The strong ones among those priests can pull off some seriously freaky dweomers."

Knives
The half-djinn chuckles. "Little bit too analytical for my tastes, Matti. My philosophy is, stick enough metal in something that's breathing, and it eventually stops breathing. It's worked for everything so far."

One the more heavily armoured among the Wake Whisper's crew speaks up as well.

"Armour is the key, or being quick on your feet. Even a little scratch can have a great deal of deadly poison coursing through your blood in moments."

[Daravon_35]

The tall, broad shouldered man with eyes of white, garbed in white bisht (cloak) and dishdasha (robe), finally blinks as he seems to come out of a trance. Glancing around the room, he smiles as he sees more people inhabit it then previously. "Ah, ah.. the others have arrived and sooner then we thought." He mumbles to himself, before crossing over to take a seat at the mess table.

"The real trick is having a healer who can neutralize the poison quickly enough before it incapacitates you. If you can avoid ever getting scratched in a battle, then you don't need advice, you've already won." He says in response to the armored mans' comment.

Grabbing a piece of fruit and taking a bite, he continues, "A fool only plans for victory and doesn't know what to do when he then faces defeat. A clever man plans for defeat, so when it comes, he is ready."

[Chambers]

Jalil

"And while the foolish man and the clever man trade strategies the wise woman smiles because they are part of her plan." Jalil says with a sly grin. "The zhong ships, what wards do their priests place upon them? Do they ward themselves before battle against any particular energies?"

[Daravon_35]

Jalil

"And while the foolish man and the clever man trade strategies the wise woman smiles because they are part of her plan." Jalil says with a sly grin. "The zhong ships, what wards do their priests place upon them? Do they ward themselves before battle against any particular energies?"

The desert man bursts out laughing, "Well said and more often than not true. My name's Korack." He says, introducing himself, with a slight nod of his head.

[Shadow_Elf]

Mattijra Mindbender
More psychic communication comes across from the kobold psion.

"I'd expect standard naval combat reinforcement for ships that have spellcasters among the crew. I don't think I have to read the Captains' minds to figure that sinking them is not plan A at this juncture."

Mafas, Hand of Johoum
The great, hulking Lion-Man finally speaks, his voice a booming bass. "The snake-men are cowards and law-breakers. The sun's judgment will be their end. There is no need to know their weakness, for they are weak."

[Grey_Wolf_c]

The desert man bursts out laughing, "Well said and more often than not true. My name's Korack." He says, introducing himself, with a slight nod of his head.

Amirah, Living Swarm

"Well met, Korack. We!swarm are known as Amirah," says Amirah, with a sinuous bow, her thoughts creating images of swarms in Korack's mind. Then, in a private thought for Korack alone, she adds, "We are pleased to meet another that contains plural thoughts. May We ask the name of the shaggy bear? Or do you, like Us, share the name?"

[Dacia Brabant]

Medinah

Medinah smirked in amusement at red-beard's comment, thinking what a surprise he's in for if he thinks her hair color is unique. She nodded along with most of the others regarding the 'zhong as much of it comported with her experiences, but rolled her eyes at the lion-man's obtuseness.

"Is it a skill common to mortals of every species to never need to set aside their own biases?" she muttered. "Good observation though regarding their priests; we faced one of them fairly recently and while I still melted its brain it was not a pleasant acquaintance, particularly with their venom flowing. Without a healer our crew may have to rely too much on alchemy," she concluded pensively.

[Shadow_Elf]

Mattijra Mindbender
The kobold on the aazlai's shoulder giggles psychically to those in the room. "Another Hunter who is fond of brain melting!" she transmits gleefully. The the lizardmen twins roll their eyes at the kobold's exuberance, but the lion-man continues to show no reaction.