Pirate Captains do not fight fair

General Summary

We got about halfway down the path when we ran into the natives with about 12 kids. Their eyes widened as they saw my new tattoo and the markings on my friends. “Do you still intend to fight the leader?” the Jade Priestess asked as the jaguar soldiers stopped behind her. My eyes flicked up to her forehead and I saw the briefest hint of the same markings on her head as my friends and I bore. “I do,” I said. “I will finish the fight he started when he first came to this island. There will be no more children sacrificed here.” She nodded and led us all back down the hill. She said something in their language and two of the jaguar soldiers ran ahead to the village. As we walked into town, the path was lined with the slaves. “Addie,” Cap muttered under his breath to me, “I do be noticing there’s a distinct lack of tradesmen here. Where they be?” “Probably keeping their heads down,” I said. “It will do them no good to be caught in the middle, and if they can stay out, they will.” We marched through the town, and as we approached the crowd formed into different groups. We could see some members of the pirate crew with weapons, and their own soldiers, perhaps the captains of the other ships. The natives stood on the terraces of the ziggurat and watched. The slaves stood nervously lining the path, their eyes following us as we walked. Every now and then we spied a few of the tradesmen, but they were few and far between. “So, you survived?” sneered the pirate. “Seize them and throw them in the brig,” he gestured to the natives who all glanced to the Jade Priestess. “No!” her voice rang out. “They have invoked the trial, and you must answer it or lose your place.” “Very well,” and he stalked down the stairs, “Clear the landing. I want the whole town to see this upstart die.” “You broke your word,” I answered. “You send children to die. You will answer for what you’ve done.” I saw his eyes widen as he took in my new tattoo. “Yes, I met your old foe. You promised to return when you were, how did you put it? Better prepared. Today is the time to fulfill your word.” “Then let’s go,” he drew his sword and as it came out of the scabbard I could feel the evil emanating from the bone white blade. We traded blows our swords singing in the air. As his bone-white blade descended I would dance to the side, and he growled in frustration. I would strike back, and he would dance aside. “I too visited that accursed temple,” he smirked, and his blade flicked a hair faster than I expected slicing into my side. “It seems that even with all of his gifts you are still no match for me.” “What is taking you so long?” the voice complained in my head. “I wasn’t a swordsman originally,” I groused. “He’s had a bit more practice than me.” “Well, let’s do something about that,” and I feel a shift in my brain, and suddenly I can swing a hair faster getting in as many blows as the pirate does. The pirate’s eyes narrowed as my blows flew faster, and he started to bleed. “You’re taking it seriously now are you?” His sword flicked out and cut deeper in my side, it felt like more than just a cut, it felt like he took part of my soul. I winced and swung blindly back. He fell back with a new wound in his side. “Enough!” he roared stamping his foot and vanished. I gathered my thoughts and cast a quick healing spell, as I did I noticed a lack of my normal magical power. Was that what the shift in my mind was? As I fought better did I sacrifice the ability to cast magic for the day? “Cap! Milli!”I yelled searching the horizon and spying him further away, “There, he’s running away.” The slaves gathered around us sensed the shift in circumstances and turned to attack the gathered pirates still here. Fights broke out on all sides, as the pirates struck at the rebelling slaves slashing into them. “We have to get the pirate!” Cap roared over the crowd. “To the docks!” I disengaged from the fights around me, aiding the slaves as I ran after Captain and Milli. His ship was under sail as we scrambled to the docks. “That the Crystal!” Cap stumbled to a stop, “I have to get my ship back! We need your ship,” he thundered to the fisherman repairing nets next to us. The fisherman stumbled back as we tumbled into the boat and set off. “Just keep her straight, and I’ll get us there.” We followed the ship with Cap’n getting us ever closer until a water cyclone pops up in the ocean in front of us. “Um, Cap! What do we do with that?” “Can you control it and move it away from us Addie?” “Maybe?” I struggled to wrest control of the water cyclone from the weather witch on the other ship and barely succeeded in pushing it back towards the Crystal when the water in front of us was hit by fire. “Cap! The water is on fire!” Cap responded with words even I blushed to hear. Another boom, and fire landed on the other side of our ship. I pushed the water cyclone further away, and my head exploded in pain. I sat back up to see the water cyclone pushing back towards us. Then all sound was gone. I could see Cap yelling, and Milli pointing to the side, but nothing. I looked next to me and the boat was on fire. I yelled at Cap and Milli, and honestly, I don’t remember exactly how, but somehow we were on the Baron’s ship. The Crystal was long gone.

REPORTING TO THE BARON

I explained everything that happened to the Baron, and as he listened the soldiers scurried around us. We docked and his soldiers de-embarked. “You have three hours to find out where he has gone,” the Baron said. “I suggest you use them well.” I nodded and followed a squad of soldiers heading up to the fort.

SHOULD LOCKED DOORS STAY LOCKED?

“It’s barred,” the lieutenant said as we joined them. “I have something that may work,” and I pulled my hilt and slowly cut through the bar, and we kicked the doors open. “Which way should we go?” Lili asked as we surveyed the labyrinth of doors and stairs before us. “Up,” Cap said as I answered, “Down.” “Down,” I repeated. “Make sure there’s nothing going to come up behind us.” “Sounds good to me,” and we climbed down the stairs spreading out to examine the basement. Most of the rooms were boring and empty until we got to the final hallway. “I smell something,” Milli said. “It smells coppery.” I gulped thinking what might smell coppery, and we slowly entered the open door in the hallway. The stench of blood assaulted my senses, and the buzzing of flies over the bodies stacked in the room overwhelmed me. Lining the walls the bodies of the fortress servants were stacked three and four deep. We spread out examining the macabre sight, the cuts and broken bones attesting to torture before their throats were finally slit. “I found a chest,” Milli called. “There’s glass balls in here, but it looks like there’s several missing, maybe 30 or so.” “Lili,” Cap called, “Do you recognize this?” gesturing at a glowing circle on the ground inscribed with a primordial script. Lilie slowly walked around the circle, careful not to touch any of it, “It looks like my old master’s writing. It says something about binding, cleaving, putting two dissimilar things together.” I glanced over the bodies doing a quick count, “It looks like there are at least 30 bodies here. I’d guess something was done with them, maybe their souls were bound to the glass balls?” As I spoke the glowing script disappeared and all evidence of the circle was gone. I shuddered and glanced upstairs, “Shall we continue.” We finished sweeping the basement and met soldiers as we came up the stairs saying they’d search the first floor. We continued up the stairs and looked through the rooms until we came to a barred door. I drew my sword and slowly cut through the lock. In the room, a man dumped books and papers into a bonfire. Lili called out and thrust her arm towards the man, and he seemed to move faster. “Blast,” she muttered, “That was supposed to freeze him in place.” “I got this,” and sent forth a tidal wave extinguishing the fire and soaking the papers on the floor and bottom few shelves. The figure reached into a pouch at his belt and threw something on the ground and a bone gollum sprang up swinging at Lili and me. Cap strode into the middle of the room, and slammed his shield into the ground, “In the name of the Creator and all that is holy be gone from this room!” he roared and a warm glow blossomed out of his shield and the bone creature crumbled into dust and a shadowy form was left behind as the figure behind turned into a mummy. “When she calls me and I get my new mount I’m coming for you priest,” the shadow threatened in a grumble. Cap staggered back as an arrow hit his shoulder. I glanced up in time to see a figure disappear back into the shadows of the balcony above. “Archer in the balcony,” I yelled pointing above and starting to run towards the stairs. “Got it!” Milli sprinted towards the opposite stairs and raced up. I heard a series of thuds and a scream from above as I finished my sprint up my stairs to be hit by my own bone gollum. Its six arms swung on me and I thanked my new friend for his gifts as I dodged the first few hits and swung back at him trading blows as the shadowed assassin shot more arrows at me. As Cap runs up the stairs to me he again calls out to the Creator to banish the creatures and the bone gollum dissipates before me. I watch as the assassin throws a small doll down and another bone gollum rises up out of the shadows. I ducked under the swinging arms and smashed the clay doll and the gollum dissipated before me. While I was distracted an arrow flew in and I felt my muscles freeze up. I glance up to see the assassin emerge from the shadows. It was an old lady! She looked like one of the servants here and I notice a tattoo no the back of her neck. As I unfreeze out of the corner of my eye I see Cap running over to where Milli fell, and I swing on the assassin. Our commotion has finally brought the soldiers to us and between our group, we take down the old lady, she looks over at me and croaks, I’ll see you again sweetie, real soon,” and she collapses. I look on the back of her neck and the tattoo is gone. “How is Milli?” I ask as I catch my breath. “She’ll be okay in a few days,” Cap answered. “I got to her barely in time. What’s in the books they were burning?” We started to look them over and find information on the Catcheomani. I’d heard a bit about them, legend said they sailed West to find a new home. When they did they hid their ships made of crystal so no one could use them. “That sound like me Crystal,” Cap said in surprise. We kept looking around and found a complicated mechanical contraption with several balls on wires sticking out. “Cap, does this look familiar to you?” “It looks like some of me navigation tools,” he said. “This shows you the position of stars and the like.” “Right,” I pulled over a piece of paper and started drawing out the contraption. “Once I have the positions recorded let’s take it with us as well as all the books and papers we can carry.” “I do be seeing maps and notes on the Lemwich Isles,” Cap said pointing at a map half buried on the desk. “It be where pirates hang out. There’s a Madame Anris, I do be knowin’ her, but she’s a mite touchy after our last encounter. She could tell us all we need to know that’s goin’ on at the Port o’ Antwerp.” Cap glanced at the soldiers gathering up books, “Though a warship will cause a bit more trouble than I would. The pirates are not fans of them.” “I’ve got letters here to some captains,” Lili said holding up more papers, “Carsone, Thane Half Boon,” her voice trailed off for a moment, “it says to meet by the Fates at the Third Sister. He’s promising new ships if they bring men.” “The Five Sisters is where the Alorian navy is housed,” I volunteered as I looked over another page. “Is he planning some sort of foolhardy invasion?” “Carsone is a privateer with ships that’s part of the Salt Brotherhood,” Cap said taking apart the navigation contraption. “Thane Half Boon is one o’ the Seafolk, but he’s got a bloodthirsty reputation.” I guess we’re going to be looking for pirates. At this rate, we’re never going to get rid of the fairy circle.

Report Date

23 Dec 2021