Jammers Summary: Chapter 2, Turn 13

----------- = Meanwhile, elsewhere...
*********** = Later...

At the Silent Star: After a long while of reflection, Italapate takes a deep breath. Making a show of smoothing over the series of "I's" in the railings and smiling sheepishly at Nilaroo, Italapate holsters his hand-axe. "You know," he says, "I have a feeling the others probably need me... and I really have a feeling some of the constabulary around here needs to be fleeced."

Grigree and Nilaroo look up from their work, grunt, and return to examining the ship's lines.

He strides toward the gangplank of the 'boat', looking back as he does so. "Where did they say they were going? The 'Off-White Kitty?' Or some such. No, don't get up, I'll find my own way." Italapate strides into town, his familiar grin stretched once more across his face. Whistling a happy tune (and keeping an eye out for a certain guardsman), the Bralian Native sets off in search of a bar called the Grey Cat.

At the Grey Cat: Italapate easily located the Grey Cat and enters through the door. He catches the eye quickly of Talus, who had positioned himself to watch that portal. 'Pate moves smoothly to the table occupied by the Company and stands arms folded, eyeing Periander. His friendly smile reassures the nervous looking sailor of Italapate's non-threatening intent.

"Oh, hi Italapate," Kain grins. "Glad you could... ah... make it."

Kain waits until Periander finishes then asks, "Ah... Periander, should we agree to your terms, you will then show us how to find the pirates haven? And while we attempt to recover the Chalice, you will wait upon the Silent Star? Do I.. ah.. have that right?"

"Basically. I believe the Chalice is aboard the FLOW GHOST, I have a map to the pirate haven. We go there, some of us sneak in and board the FLOW GHOST, I can tell you about the crew and which cabin is the captain's. Get the Chalice, head back to Bral and part ways, after you've paid me." Periander concludes hopefully.

Leera glances at her companions before replying. "That seems acceptable." She smiles and opens her hands in an friendly manner. "But first, I think we should make sure that all is well understood. If after you describe the capabilities of the FLOW GHOST and her captain and crew we decide that we don't want the job, we part ways and the deal is off. Agreed?"

"That leaves me in a pretty poor situation, at that point you'll have all your information so why not just say you don't want the deal and then going ahead and doing the job once I'm gone?" Periander sighs, "I suppose I must trust you, so tell you what; I'll tell you everything except where the haven is and you don't get to see the map till we take off."

Leera nods. "That's what I meant. I don't want us to commit to fighting an enemy that has us far outclassed. Your suggestion will work out fine." She smiles reassuringly.

She pauses and then continues "I'd like to know a little more about your sources of information. For instance... this map. Where did you get it? I can't imagine that your captain allowed you to make it. Did you create it from memory after your escape? And did you ever see the Flow Ghost's charts? If not, how do you know the location at all?" Leera spreads her hands and tries not to look confrontational.

"I drew it on the sly during our trip, I started consider escape as soon as I found out the nature of the ship. I know the general direction from here we need to fly, and when we see the terrain matching my map we'll know we are there." Periander answers.

Leera glances at the others, pausing to give Raken a questioning look. "That explains that, then. I believe we might just have a deal. If the others don't object, I'd suggest you come by the ship this evening. You can fill in the rest of the details there and then and we can plan how best to deal with the pirates." Looking first at Periander and then at her comrades, Leera asks "Is that alright with everyone?"

Seguld ponders the situation as he stares intently at Periander, he rubs his chin a moment then he holds up his stubby right index finger as a smile spread across his face. "I'll tell you what I think we can do for you. You get the full 500 gold coins if we recover the chalice and the reward, but in return we strike a business deal. Now, what kind of business are you planning to open on Bral?"

Periander frowns, "No. I didn't come to bargain, I have no skill at it. I know what I need and what I have to offer. If you don't want it I'll just take this information to the Gallant company, they might be interested." A nervous expression crosses his face as he looks at Seguld, "I've seen your type talk folks out of their livelihood and I've no intention of loosing mine!"

"Well then, it appears the others are willing to pay your price without any add-ons, so as far as I see it, you got what you want. However, I would reconsider going into business for yourself on Bral. Bral has all sorts of people there, and most would rob you blind. Your 500 gold isn't going to last long at all and you are going to need friends who know business - just remember that I offered you a fair deal and was willing to help you out and you blew it." Seguld hops off the stool obviously annoyed. "You can bet that generalizations about a person's character based on their race are going to leave you lying in a puddle of your own blood someday." He grumbles loudly as he turns for the door ignoring the waitress as he storms out the door and returns to the ship.

While the others negotiate, Deigatt continues to watch the Grey Cat's patrons and staff diligently. One of the serving girls slowly approaches him and asks him if he'd like something to drink. He looks down at her, and shakes his head.

"Well," the girl says, feeling a little bolder, "you see over there?" She gestures quickly toward the bartender. "He don't take well to customers who don't buy nothing, so if I was you I'd order something." She smiles conspiratorially.

"Hif hit his required that I purchase a drink, then I will purchase a drink," the minotaur replies gruffly.

"Oh, don't be getting upset, dark one," the woman replies. "It's not as if it's gonna poison you, now, is it?"

"Ham I required halso to drink this drink?" Deigatt asks her.

"Well, you're not going to wear it, are you?" She laughs, then looks over to two men at a nearby table, saying to them, "The bull-man wants to wear his ale, can you imagine?"

A low rumble escapes Deigatt's throat, and he clenches his fist in anger. The two men, who have only been paying slight attention until now, give the minotaur their full consideration, lowering their hands to the hilts of their swords.

Seeing the men's actions, the serving girl turns back to Deigatt and then takes a step back when she sees that he's been angered. She starts to speak, but then thinks the better of it and instead heads into the kitchen.

The two men resume their conversation but keep an eye on Deigatt as they do. Deigatt himself resumes his post and tries to forget that human women even exist.

Back at the table, Periander frowns after the gnome leaves, "I just meant he's obviously a skilled merchant, I don't dislike gnomes." Periander looks at the others, "Is a merchant partnership a requirement for you to accept this deal? Did he speak for the rest of you?"

Leera answers. "No, any merchant agreement is strictly between you and Seguld." She pauses and then continues "I would suggest explaining this misunderstanding to him, though. It'll make everything much more pleasant for all concerned."

Italapate plops on the stool vacated by the gnomish merchant, then leans over toward Periander. "It might make things better, but, dude, you are seriously impaired. You don't deal, you don't play on Bral, got it? You have to deal with merchants sometime, especially if you plan on being one, and trust me, on Bral, no matter what it is you plan to do, if you plan on making money, you are going to be a merchant. Now, sounds to me, you're a dirt-kicker, so let me let you in on the dark out here. Merchants will rob you blind if you let em, that is not in doubt, but if you want someone you can trust, its mercs like us. See, we got our swords, and our fireballs, and if we want to rob you blind, it won't take much more than a blade in the back once you're on our ship. Honeyed words hold no weight with us. Don't use em, don't like em being used. We play it straight. You open a business on that hunk of granite in the middle of the void, you're going to need supplies. To get supplies you are going to forfeit everything you got including your left testicle until you make enough of a profit to eke out a scarce living. Now, unless you plan on double-crossing us for a larger sum (you aren't are you?) 500 gold will be barely be enough to get a room, let alone supplies, and if you don't have a supply deal, the Prince will be foreclosin' on you before you hang out your first "Open" tile. Family Business on Bral, dontcha know, so I know whereof I speak" Italapate leans back a little, his grin spreading wide across his face. "So, know you know a bit of what you'll face on Bral, let me lay our situation on the table. We can pound the humors out of these pirates, rescue the item in question and get a fat reward. But we are trying to establish a more stable means of income. We scratch your back, you scratch ours. We can offer you lower rates than your other potential suppliers, that's just good business. Doesn't matter, really, what business you want to open, you'll need stuff from off-Bral. In exchange for our lower rates and excellent service, you give us good word-of-mouth amongst your soon-to-be peers, we get more business. I also personally pledge to help you out as much as I can business wise, and offer you my protection from these ex-employers of yours whenever I am back home." Italapate spreads his hands. "There, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

Talus smothers a yawn at Seguld's and Italapate's interrogation of Periander's business sense.

The young sailor replies to Italapate, "Well, as I told your companions earlier, I was born and raised on Bral. I haven't decided on what sort of business I might open or even if I will open a business, maybe I'll just join the Shipwrights' Guild. I can't make any sort of deal like that with you and don't think such should be part of this anyway, even if I could." He shakes his head, "Do you want the deal?"

Raken sat back, watching Periander closely throughout the whole transaction. He studies the man intently, showing no outward emotion. "Let us talk it out first. We'll let you know by tonight. Will you be here so that we can tell you our decision?" Raken asks Periander as he leaves.

"Of course," Periander replies, "My room is upstairs and I'll be there all night. Just slip a copper to a barmaid and she'll let you know which one." He gets up, bows shyly, then leaves.

After he leaves, Raken turns to the rest of the group. "He seems an honest man," he begins in a low voice. "I would be a fool to trust him completely. However, he is our best chance at recovering the Chalice. If we turn down his offer, we might not get another. In any case, if he's luring us into a trap..." he taps his scabbard lightly, "he won't survive long enough to regret it. Your opinions?"

Billy winces at Raken's innuendo. "Aw, come on guys! Not everyone in the world is out to get us... Why don't we just trust him... If he is lying, we just keel-haul him or something... Like he said, we don't pay him anything until we get the Chalice. What do we got to lose? Time? A good fight?"

"Our lives?" Raken returns. "I've heard of many ships being lured into traps this way. However, he is probably our best lead to the Chalice. We either take him up on it, or we can just head back to Bral now. Searching for the Shipwrecker base on our own is, well, suicide. The winds on this planet are murder, and if we do find their base, we'll likely blunder right into their waiting arms. I believe the risk with his plan is far less than trying to find the base on our own. Even if it were a trap, we would have a much better chance fighting our way out on foot than in the Star. It would be easier to loose them in the forest than trying to evade a half dozen pirate ships on our tails." He reclines back in his seat. "However, if we do recover the Chalice and make it back to Bral, what he does with his money is his business. At most, I say we introduce him to Lady Moune. That should be the extent of our involvement with him. Later, if he wants to do business with us, fine. Otherwise, let's leave him be."

Talus shrugs, "I would say he is the best lead we have, unless we forget about the chalice. Periander doesn't get paid if we don't recover it so it seems like a safe bet. If he was a pirate trying to lead us into a trap he would surly try to wring some extra profit out of the deal. When he next comes aboard the ship we could have Holland read his mind to see if he tells the truth. I think we should do it."

"Why not," Kain shrugs. "I mean... as everybody's said, Periander is our best, and really only, lead so far. And if there's trouble, well, there's thirteen of us and one of him."

"Aywa. Let's do this." Jamila says. "Fate will be with those that try."

"Agreed." Raken says. "If there are no further complaints, I say we send word upstairs then wait at the Star for our new associate." He stands and prepares to leave the Grey Cat.

Leera says, "I'll pass on the message. She speaks briefly with the bartender then head upstairs. Periander answers the door at her knock.

Leera says. "We're in agreement. Stop by the Silent STAR tonight and we'll plan our attack."

Periander smiles, "Excellent! I'll be there just after dusk."

Leera returns to the bar then joins the others as the company returns to the Silent STAR.

Once everyone has returned to the Silent STAR the events at the Grey Cat are relayed to Nilaroo, Grigree, and Holland. Holland remains strangely quiet, he murmurs something roughly positive about accepting Periander's offer then walks up to the ballista mount where he sits staring into space.

Soon folks are busy about their everyday affairs on the ship, cleaning, washing sewing up holes in socks and so forth.

Seguld heads into town to check on the arrangements for the cargo to be delivered, hoping it can be moved up a day. he finds that it can't, the wood won't be ready till the morning but that it can be loaded by noon on the 2nd. He then returns to the ship and goes below after telling the others to expect the cargo tomorrow before noon.

An hour or so after the return from the Grey Cat the Bralian squidship returns. She lands gracefully then begins slowly coasts up to the naval dock. Soon after her lines are secured men begin coming abroad and carrying bodies off on long planks, perhaps 2 dozen before they finish. Each is loaded aboard a wagon, which sets off towards the temple of Ptah once all the bodies are loaded aboard.

Placed in a somber mood by the macabre spectacle some of the crew gather on the main deck and discuss plans for the assault on the pirate haven.

Leera says "I've thought about our chances, and have some suggestions. First, I suggest we attack the ship during the evening or at night. They'll have a harder time seeing us coming, we'll be more likely to take them by surprise, my illusions will be more effective, and we might have an easier time escaping afterward. If he can tell us approximately how long it will take to get to the harbor, we'll know when to leave. Second, I suggest that we attack in force. It'd be silly to throw away the lives of one or two of us on a sneak mission while the rest of us twiddle our thumbs. We get there, probably with Deigatt (or someone else who doesn't rely too much on their spell casting ability in combat) piloting. Holland, Talus, and I let loose with some spells, and then the rest of you board. Holland and I along with someone handy with both spell and sword (maybe Talus) guard the ship and help out from a range, while the rest of you slaughter the pirates. Then we find the Chalice. Third, once Periander identifies the enemy spell casters, Billy and Kain take them out fast, using their mind abilities if necessary. Holland and I will help if needed. Jamila, you're pretty good with those cutlasses. Why don't you and Nilaroo lead the charge at the captain. If you take him down, the rest of the crew might surrender." She pauses before asking "Are we set, then?"

Deigatt grunts his approval of the plan Leera has described.

"Well, ah," Kain begins, a sheepish look on his face, "I don't really have that.. ah.. same focus as Billy. I can bring about a number of changes to myself, but.. well.. can't affect another person directly. Ah, apart from my minor healing abilities, that is... and I don't think we'll be wanting to.. ah.. make the pirates feel hale and hearty." Kain smiles slightly as he finishes.

Raken listens carefully to Leera's plan. "Might work if we were dealing with but a single ship. However, we must not forget the other members of the Fellows. I do agree that we need to attack in force. Flying our ship into the harbor would not be wise, on the other hand. Maybe Periander knows of a nearby cove where we could hide the Star? It might be wiser to come in from land, hit them hard and fast. We grab the Chalice and whatever else we can carry off and race back to the Star. Two or three should remain behind as guards. Hopefully, we can hit them hard and fast enough that we'll be gone before the other pirate ships know what happened. Periander said he had a map, We should study it first before we make definite plans."

Leera listens thoughtfully before replying. "A good plan, Raken. I can see a couple of problems, however. It only works if we can find a cove very close to the harbor. Otherwise we'll have to run too far if things turn nasty. It also isolates the people left on the STAR. This could be really bad if another pirate ship stumbles upon them. It also reduces the firepower we have available to throw at the target ship." She pauses "I'm not convinced my plan isn't better, but I'm willing to go with your plan, I guess."

Grigree replies, "Maybe we attack from air. grrr, Kain and I jump down to pirate deck, clear room for rest of you with help from wizards. Our ship keep pirates from taking off while we look for Chalice." He pauses to see the others' reactions. "Then bring ship down, we get onboard and leave. Maybe wizards set pirate's sails on fire. Slow jetaten' pirates' chase."

"If we.. ah.. want to do this," Kain adds after a moment, "I could probably take a third person down with me, my hands'll be free... and we'll only be losing altitude, not trying to gain any."

As night falls another storm rolls in, very quickly and with a fury exceeding that of the night before. Nilaroo and Grigree take similar precautions, and the ship once again avoids taking any serious damage. Though the gale force winds whip and howl across the harbor, they don't last long and after only a half-hour or so the storms dies down and is replaced by steady drizzle and a dark, starless sky.

Just after the storm ends Periander shows up at the STAR, Leera and Italapate greet him. Leera smiles, "Welcome! We'll talk down in the helm."

Italapate smiles at Periander. "Time's a wastin'" he calls as leads him below to the helm room.

Seguld sitting in the corner simply nods without a word as Periander enters the room. His face is scrunched up in a look of disgust.

Leera asks "I know you don't want to show us the map till we're underway, but can you at least tell us whether the harbor is near a cove?"

"Yes, it is." Periander replies, "The haven is in fact a series of caves on an island just off the coast to the west of here. Inside the caves are basically a small village dedicated to providing services to the pirates. The leader of the village is an illusionist named Dred, the "Shipwrecker's Fellows" are just those pirates who've been granted permission to land at this village. Dred acts as their fence, buying the goods they've plundered. Then, he ships them to Bral or some other port for resale. The vessel I was on, the FLOW GHOST, was used for this sort of mission, in the time I was aboard we never made an actual pirate attack. That's why I think my old captain has the Chalice, he's not a known pirate and could easily have simply returned it and claimed the reward. But the ship was damaged in the storm, if she wasn't spaceworthy he wouldn't trust anyone else with the knowledge of the Chalice so he's sitting tight till the ship is repaired and ready for sea again." Periander pauses, "The harbor is actually a sea cave, it can hold maybe four vessels the size of your eelship here. That's one reason the pirates are still undiscovered. I don't know much else about it, as I was never allowed ashore there."

"I'm up for going in hard and fast, and don't bother leaving behind a watch for our ship, because there isn't any two or three of us that can stop an entire pirate crew, and if there were they would be best off taking on the pirates themselves." Seguld tosses his mace back and forth from hand to hand a few times, "Let's get to it!" he says as he smacks the mace down upon the floor, clearly easing up his swing as he reaches the floor to avoid causing damage.

"They might be able to outrun the pirates even if they can't outfight them," Holland answers, "we should leave a guard behind regardless."

Continuing, Periander turns to the subject of his old ship. "Captain Ocaba ran the ship, he was a skilled warrior, and most of the crew seemed pretty tough to me. There were about a dozen of them. Only one spell caster, a priest of some sort. The ship had two medium ballistae on the quarterdeck, one to port and one to starboard."

"*I chipango*," Grigree comments on the number of crew aboard the pirate ship. "Only, grr, dozen?" He makes a sound somewhere between a snort and a cough. "We get Chalice in no time from, hrr, pirate fools."

Talus rolls his eyes and comments, "Don't forget about the other three ships that may also be present, as well as all of the villagers. Our best bet would be to take the chalice by stealth. Why don't we leave the Star in a nearby cove and myself and a couple of others try and sneak in at take it. If that does not work we could just wait for the Flow Ghost to leave, and then attack and board her once off planet?"

"But, the way the harbor's concealed, I think we'd have to take the _Star_ in," Kain shrugs. "A cave for the harbor, facing out to sea perhaps, wouldn't allow for.. err.. easy accessibility to a small group of us. Otherwise, attacking the _Flow Ghost_ when they leave the planet sounds like a good idea, if we can either tail them without them finding out or try to find a general location to wait outside Shipwrecker's atmosphere."

Italapate sort of listens to the man's description of the ship and the area. He digs into his pouch for several items. When Periander seems to be finished, he shouts out, "How long 'til we get to the jetatin' cove, anyway?" He finally finds what he is looking for, and pulls a couple of tiny jars from his medicine bag.

Periander is startled by the shout, he jumps a good foot backwards, "Um... it's ten to thirty miles up the coast." he answers nervously.

Holland, who had been listening quietly from the corner, suddenly stands and advances on Periander, "Are you a Pirate Spy?"

"No!" Periander replies in a panicked voice.

Holland rockets back, "Is this a trap?"

"No, I swear!" Periander is obviously becoming very afraid.

Without pause Holland sends another question, "How did you come about this information?"

"I told you," Periander answers as he licks his lips nervously, "I was a sailor on the FLOW GHOST for several months, I fell overboard during the same storm the Chalice was lost in!"

Snarling Holland says, "Why did you come to us?"

Periander answers quickly, "You seemed the most trustworthy of the groups in town with a ship."

"Aw, Holland," Italapate says, "Leave the poor, jetatin' kid alone. We already gave him the tenth degree. He knows what's at stake if he misleads us."

Holland nods and smiles reassuringly at Periander, "Quite right. You must understand I just need to make sure you gave the same answers when pressed. We must be careful."

Periander just nods, and wipes the sweat from his brow.

Then the young priest turns and waves his hands over the jars in his hand. "Eupat a Neyoa t'yav a Eupat a Nayeoa eoa Yote." Finishing his chant, he dips his fingers into the jars, covering those fingers in paint. Black, blue and red. Picking up the chant again, he draws his fingers across his face making careful, distinct patterns. After a short while, he finishes both the paint and the chant.

"To identify myself more clearly in the chaos of battle to the spirits that will aid us," he explains. "Would anyone else care for some? Periander?" He grins wildly, looking savage through his war paint.

"Ummm... thank you but no." The obviously off center young sailor turns to Leera, "Do you have any other questions?" He pulls a small piece of wood from inside his shirt, "Here's the map, I think I might as well trust you at this point."

Date/time: 7:05 pm 1st day of the 5th Month, 5049 OC