Open In Over His Head

[Cascade]

The Otani gasped at the brash actions of the two men. She had not expected them to charge forward as they did, especially not when the hostage was being held between them and their opponent. “No!” the Otani had shrieked, her worried voice echoing through the cabin. There was fear in the hostage’s eyes as the struggle happened. Her captor was intoxicated, frightened, and dumbfounded—and that had given the two Svefra men a great advantage. Amidst the struggle, the captor somehow ended with a blade to his throat, and the Charoda woman was on the ground, grasping for her breath. “Please, please, s-spare me!” the fake pirate sputtered, his eyes desperate. His was visibly trembling and he clasped his hands together, begging for his life. Mark’s words had left him in desperation, and he fully knew that this could very well be the last seconds of his life. “I-it was not me! I did not want to do this! Please, spare me!” “Kill him!” yelled the Otani, furious. “You have him. End his life!” The Charoda finally found her voice. In-between gasps, she said, “No, he can do nothing else. Let…” she gave a strangled, pained wheeze. “Let him live.” “Are you a fool?” the Otani hissed at her. Her voice was laced with unbridled anger. “He is Laviku’s enemy, and he must be ended.” The decision came down to Kirvan and Mark.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

Relieved that his reckless plan had worked, Kirvan took a deep breath to steady himself. He'd been ready to take a knife to the gut, but thankfully his new comrade had saved him a few stabs and ended the conflict really quickly. He'd been prepared to have the hostage die and suffer the consequences, be they hell or high water, but by stroke of luck or divine intervention - the line dividing them was hazy at best - he had managed to shove off the fake scum before the vagik stuck his knife in the poor woman's throat. What started as a one-man suicide mission turned into a huge success against all odds. Today was truly a day to thank Laviku. The woman was doing alright, a bit shaken and gasping on the floor, but nothing pressing as far as he could tell. The poacher on the other hand was in a sorry state. A cutlass against his throat, the pathetic mewling vagik was on his last legs, begging for his life, pleading for forgiveness for his sacrilege. Cutlass still in hand, Kirvan turned to face the impudent whelp. "I'll get this," Kirvan said to his comrade, walking forward with an unsettling sense of calm and serenity. The otani's fury and the, well, woman's tenderness registered, but he paid no heed to their requests. This was what he was raised to do, this was what he lived to do. Still, he was an impressionable young man being open to other's interpretations, so he did give their requests some thought. He grabbed the fake pirate's shoulder. "You did not want to do it?" Kirvan growled. "Funny, then why aren't you the one in chains?" His grip was strong and steady, his fingers digging into the man's bones slightly. Looking into the man's eyes, Kirvan could see nothing but fear and desparity. He truly was shaken to the core, afraid for his very self. "Whether you wanted to does not matter, only the consequence for doing so." Then, before his comrade or the prisoner or the otani could do anything, he ran the disgusting vagik through, his cutlass making a loud squelching noise in the quiet of the cabin. The man's eyes widened, his mouth opened. He gasped. He tried to say something, mouth moving like a dying fish. Instead of listening, Kirvan twisted the blade, creating another nerve-wracking sound as it tore through flesh. Never did his gaze leave the vagik's, watching as they died slowly, the light disappearing. It was a familiar sight, harking back to years before, years of hunting and raiding and killing. A wild grin spread across Kirvan's face. Wordlessly, he pulled his sword from the corpse, using its shirt to clean the accumulated blood of his blade. This was business, and now for the task of scavenging what was useful from the cabin.

[Belik Blackfin]

The seas were a bit calmer than usual as the small casinor trekked through. the open sea. Its black sail and dark hull made it look as if it, spawned by some black pool. In fact, it could have resembled a small ship used by pirates to board larger ships. However, its owner was not the sort to make an uncertain gamble. The Mako was not the finest casinor built but, it was a good swift ship. Two weeks had passed since it left the Blackfin pod, and trudged through the great sea. Its captain was no more than, young Svefra seeking to weave his own great tale to be told and handed to younger generations. This was if, Laviku granted him long life and protected him through, many dangers of the sea.

Belik Blackfin, stood near his helm looking out, into the vast sea. He has just finished feasting on a small sea bass he had caught. Hardly worth the meal but, Laviku had been providing with sustenance since he left his pod. He picked at his teeth, disposing of the leftover of his meal. Looking over the rail of his ship a something swift shot through the water. Belik smiled "Found something off in the distance, have you". "The Drifter" was hardly one of the friendliest creatures in the ocean but, for a 7 foot Mako shark, he was definetly the fiercest. Long had he swam near the Mako, following the scent and promise of leftover fish Belik had thrown him. The two had developed a bond, of mutal benefit. The shark would lead him to perhaps, larger beast he could hunt and its territorial instincts kept some, larger foes at bay. In return, he would share his plunder with shark.

The Drifter circled the ship once and then twice, and shot off Northeast of his direction. Belik brushed his black hair back, and walked over to his helm. The shark had sensed something off in the distance. Perhaps, lost casinor or a small school of tuna. The casinor thought, would have been best. He had encountered a couple on his journey. The sea was sometimes unforgiving and Svefra without, a pod had almost little to no chance of surviving. He could plunder any items the sea had not claimed. He was no pirate in truth but, opportunity had kept him alive so far without, his pod. Whatever, the Drifter was heading towards, he could afford to investigate. He was not afraid of danger, if, it had been a pirate ship he was confident he could escape if he kept his distance.

Belik spun his helm in the Drifter's direction and brought his sails to be complimented by a small gust of wind. "Let us see, what Laviku has in store for me." he said with bold confidence.

[Mark Darkwater]

Mark watched as kirvan quickly finishes off the fake pirate with out to much thought. In a way it made sense that the man should die special after the way he had treated the girl. It just seemed odd that his hostage wanted to give him a chance, but in the end Mark sided with his sea brother on the mater and gave a nod of approval to him as he looked around at the treasures that lay around them.

Feeling a little bit out of place Mark looked over to the other man and said "Mark Darkwater at your service" he said with a small bow. If you are going to make yourself known to others might as well do it as best you can, and what better way then with a bow of respect. The whole event seemed a bit odd, and he really didn't know what was next so he would stick to his tactics for now.

[Cascade]

As soon as Kirvan finished the man off, the Charoda wailed in terror and fell to her knees. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed, her shoulders shaking. There was a look of disgust on the Otani’s face as she did so, one which she chose to hide quickly. The Otani approached the Charoda and knelt down beside her, putting her hands around the woman’s shoulders. She left Kirvan and Mark to speak amongst themselves. There was a flurry of objects in the ship’s cabin. She was sure they would want to inspect and grab some items to themselves. As she pat the Charoda in an attempt to comfort her, she looked up at the two Svefra and said, “Hurry and take what you must. This ship will be burned.” The Otani stood up and led the Charoda by the hand. Once Kirvan and Mark were done taking their spoils, they would find that the Charoda was no longer around. The Otani, however, was standing by the door of the cabin, waiting for them. If asked, the Otani would say that she was deep in the water. “Thank you, Deepseeker, Darkwater,” the Otani said. She placed her hand on their shoulders and was visibly grateful. She smiled and there was no longer a hint of strain on her. Her eyes were gentle and so was her expression and the two would realize that she had gradually changed her face to a younger woman’s. “Laviku is happy.” Belik BlackfinI’m sorry you didn’t have much to do, as you were only able to join when we were about to finish. I wish you luck with future threads though, and as a suggestion, you could approach any of these two men (Kirvan or Mark) about what you may have possibly witnessed. Kirvan and MarkTime for last posts. I’ll let you choose your spoils. For Kirvan, you can grab item(s) worth 30gm. For Mark, 20gm. You can take its worth in gold coins if you want. Kirvan gets more since he was able to post from the start of the thread. Check the price list or PM me for any questions about how an item would be worth. Also please include your XP requests.

[Kirvan Deepseeker]

The prisoner's fearful wail grabbed Kirvan's attention, the young svefra looking over to the greenish-blue woman. He could not blame her for being afraid, after all she'd probably gone through a lot at the hands of these pirates, and now she had to witness an execution. Fortunately, the otani knelt down to comfort her, telling the two svefra to pick their spoils quickly before leading the freed prisoner out. "Kirvan of the Deepseekers," he replied to Mark's introduction. "Thank you for the help brother, I doubt I would have been able to manage this on my own." Walking around the cabin, Kirvan began sifting through the junk, opening chests and rummaging thrombin their contents. Most of it seemed to be simple raw materials, things like bare metals and skins and hides, most of which was useless except for monetary value. It would make a good offering to Laviku. "Have you found anything useful?" he asked Mark, moving over towards one of the desks with various garments splayed across it. The first thing that caught his eye was a set of deep blue silk robes, soft to the touch and still in pretty good condition. Kirvan doubted he would use it much, but he could always sell it in Syliras and it was easier to carry than the metals. After a bit more searching, he found something that could come in mighty handy: a suit of studded leather armor, complete with breastplate and bracers and leggings. It seemed about Kirvan's size, and as he held it up he saw the little knobs of metal, probably steel, protruding from the hardened leather. "Alright, I'm prepared," he announced, shoving the armor and robes into his backpack. He'd sort those out later. "Are you ready to go?" Upon leaving the cabin, Kirvan saw the otani standing there alone, waiting for them. The prisoner was nowhere to be seen, which surprised him because there were no other ships to sail away on. How had she left? She couldn't just swim to shore, or could she? "Where's the woman we freed?" he asked the otani, to which she would only answer the deep water. How she could be down there baffled Kirvan, but he dropped the subject. "Whatever pleases the Sea Father," Kirvan replied. "This ship will make a great sacrifice to his glory. Should I gather my flint?"

[Cascade]

“That would be a good idea,” replied the Otani. They all watched as the ship was set to fire. They started in a small corner, stacking up dry boxes and spread the flames there at first. The fire started gradually, but when the flames were strong, the sea wind itself seemed to carry it across the deck and to the sails, to the wooden floors, and everywhere else. The men had already returned to their ships and sailed a good distance before the ship was dangerously aflame. At a distance, they watched the burning ship. Its flames licked the water and the wood crumbled under its touch, disintegrating. Crimson shimmered across the waters as the offering to Laviku was made. The Otani stayed in the water. She wore a satisfied smile. As the ship burned in the background, she turned to the Svefra men. “My name’s Liara. Sail in Laviku’s name!” Those were the last things that she said before she submerged herself into the water. The last that they saw of her were a pair of fins which had replaced the legs she had been using previously. Adventurer's Loot Kirvan's Loot : Skill XP Reward Sailing +1 Weapon: Heavy Harpoon +2 Observation +1 Weapon: Cutlass +3 Intimidation +1 Lore: Liara: The Otani Ster’s Worry The Captive Charoda A Comrade in Mark Darkwater The Burning Sacrifice to Laviku Items or Consequences: 2x Silk Robes 1x Studded Leather Armor Mark's Loot : Skill XP Reward Sailing +1 Weapon: Cutlass +1 Observation +1 Lore: Liara: The Otani The Captive Charoda A Comrade in Kirvan Deepseeker The Burning Sacrifice to Laviku Items or Consequences: +20 gm Thank you for the thread, it was quite fun. Both PCs now have a connection with a certain otani! If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to PM me!