(I wonder if anyone is going to splurge for the spell casting option? Like what kind of spells does one gets with that? Fire perhaps?)

"This mission scary. How can we bonk what cannot be bonked?"

Durik grabbed:
- x1 Holy Water
- x1 Heal Wounds bandage
- x1 Lemon Ginger tea (that he drank before the mission's start)
- heart-shaped music box (weird for an orc, but useful)

He also ordered:
- x1 Potion of Necrotic Resistance (-3s)

He then:
- applied the Fire Oil to his cudgel (if it didn't ruin the leather)
- applied the Fateweave Wrap +1 Luck to his cudgel
- wore his Dark blue Leather-Spidersilk Jacket and the gloves (of course)
- if there was an empty (enough) sack on the ship, he took it. It would have been useful for carrying loot.

If there was time, he also repeated his routine of training+book+mug.

"Capn', don't ye remember how u died at all? It would help to locate yer body.
Were you wounded while fighting on de deck? Or maybe the cold found ye at night in the sleeping quarters?
Any info would help."

"Also, how can we approach the ship unseen? Me don't want absolutely to go at night, but also don't want ghost army to fly at us from everywhere."

Correct, it will be right on dark of the moon at Captain Baldbeard's ghost ship. You and BenKii have the chessboard.

Ye smart and sneaky Rogue! I see what ye be trying ... and ye do have a chance of it working. Interesting alternative possibility, let's see what happens.

You may choose 1 more item. One holy water per Crew is a free choice donated by Aeshma.

The Cat o' Nine Tails volunteered, so that is a freebie by it. The Book of Dancing has already be chosen, please choose another. The key stays until it unlocks something, then it vanishes. 30% chance on any lock each time until used.

It depends on what you would ask and what Aeshma can do. Breaking a curse directly off of you instead of a weapon, turning you into a frog prince for a day, creating a spell scroll so you can fly, throw your voice, charm someone .... Aeshma doesn't do fire, she is air attuned (half Aasimar/'angel'), Clíodhna is the starfire.

"Ye have an enchanted weapon, Durik. The Fate wrapping and the Knock-back both mean yer cudgel be enchanted. Ye can choose one more item as 1 holy water is a free choice for all Crew."

Clíodhna shakes her head and smiles. "Not a ghost, Captain BenKii. A ghost be truly dead and just not yet moved on. Ye be a disembodied living spirit, yer soul separated unjustly from yer body before yer time and thus ye can yet be restored once I am restored to my own body and phoenix form. Ye are just as real as the rest of us, and ye can die in this form just as the rest of us so no wild testing of yer spirit status please. We'd prefer to return ye to yer ship still alive physically, not as a true ghost." She winks. "As for where yer body be, we'll no doubt find a clue once we are at the Lighthouse and can free it from a Curse. Very soon, Captain BenKii, we be havin' more answers."

"Most of the phantom crew are tied to staying close to the Ship," Clíodhna tells Durik. "But both Cap'n Rummyfangs and Sensei are now strong enough to venture away from it for a short time and Sensei has rather ... special skills for sneaking into and out of places," she says.

Sensei, bares his fangs in a grin and subtly adjusts the baldric holding his tachi and kodachi.

"Me just had an idea. We have ghosts on our ship too! But friends. Culd we send them as scouts?
Also, they be able to touch stuff, so maybe dey can open the way or even drag corpse?"

"Capn', don't ye remember how u died at all? It would help to locate yer body. Were you wounded while fighting on de deck? Or maybe the cold found ye at night in the sleeping quarters? Any info would help." Durik asks Captain Baldbeard.

As Captain Baldbeard tries to recall, he remembers seeing certain things in the Fate's scrying bowl ... following his nose tracking an enemy ship, but that ship was actually part of the aboleth's DRM fleet leading him into a trap to seize his treasures for its own ... his ship run into an ice field, which slowly grows over many days, until the ship is completely locked tight ... his freezing body illuminated on occasion by a lighthouse they could never reach.

Refyx is delighted when Captain Baldbeard shows him the gnomish lamp. "It's a firestarter lamp," he tells the dwarf. "See here? You pet or flick this mechanical feather switch on the canary's head and the beak opens to reveal a sparker and wick. No oil needed either, it's an always burning wick. To put it out you just pet the switch again and the beak closes." Refyx grins at Captain Baldbeard, (GM: In other words, it's both a small lamp and a lighter.)

It'll be then Book of Plots, Intrigue and Politics (loan) and potion of necrotic resistance (buy).

"Illuminated by a lighthouse? Then body be probably on the upper decks. Unless moved"

Gilius will sit himself comfortably while he has a British Breakfast for tea, while reading The Mighty Monkeys™ Cricket Manual reminding fondly of Mighty, and he will also take a Fire Weapon Oil and a Holy Water.

He will also order another Fire Weapon Oil to Refyx, and a Resist Cold Potion to Aeshma.

Worrying about the lack of healing capability in the party on this mission, Captain Baldbeard requests a Heal Potion from Aeshma, and hopes he won't regret not getting a potion of Cold Resistance. He marvels at the lamp he had had in his possession, and wonders how he would've used it if he had understood it earlier, and how he will use it on this mission.

He is somewhat troubled by Durik's question, and the feelings it brought up within him regarding his responsibilities as a Captain. The old captain may have smiled at the idea of being immortalised as a frozen figure in some heroic pose, but all he can think of is the crew that he failed. He tinkles his little bell to try and quell the cold shiver he feels despite all his warm clothes, and starts singing to himself.

Bones in the Ocean
...
Now that I'm staring down at the darkest abyss
I'm not sure what I want, but I don't think it's this
As my comrades call to stand fast and forge on
I make sail for the dawn 'til the darkness has gone
As the souls of the dead live for'er in my mind
As I live all the years that they left me behind
I'll stay on the shore but still gaze at the sea
I remember the fallen and they think of me
For our souls in the ocean together will be...

As he finishes the final verse, he's resolved: even if he cannot save himself, the few crew that loyally stuck by him and his ship, who he failed, he will bring to peace in whatever way is possible.

Aylar will pick up the free Holy Water on offer, take Fire Oil from loot (at the moment post lists as one still available, but if that changed and I've missed it, then he'll have to get one from Refyx), and drop by Aeshma's to order a Cold Resist potion. He will also leave a small collection of bound pages on her deck with a written note to read them when she happens to find the time.

The Ship left the hidden grotto and turned NNE. As they sailed the weather began to turn. It not only grew cooler, but there were storms on the horizon, almost as if circling the Ship. By midday on the second day of sailing, halfway to their destination, the wind had begun to howl and the waves became increasingly wild and storm tossed. Captain Aylar was forced to take the helm several times and Cap'n Rummyfangs prepared for a rough night when it be his turn and Captain Aylar was once again going over the charts seized by Captain Baldbeard as well as the papers from the Council ship with the admiral in her cabin.

Four more completed armors were delivered to the Crew. Bellandra now sported a new forest green upper jacket that melded into a deep sea blue at the bottom with carved wooden buttons and woodtone gloves. Captain Baldbeard wore a deep jewel-tone garnet with brushed silver buttons to match his ring, accents of dark charcoal and matching dark charcoal gloves. Captain BenKii found a dark navy blue long coat with accents of red on the shoulders, lapel and cuffs, with brushed brass buttons (to not reflect too badly) and his gloves were now a matching navy. Count Karnstein was delivered a deep emerald green waistcoat with oxidized silver buttons and a dark charcoal cashmere cloak with silken shoulder cape and oxidized silver clasps. Argy's buttons were made from decorative silverware handles, Kyp's buttons were carved from abalone shells, Durik's were hardened leather tooled to look like tiny Dakkas.

Clíodhna sighed and flexed her fingers. The two left to do was Devin's and Captain Aylar's. Her eyes went to the building storm off the bow horizon. It looked to be a rough night ahead indeed.

[The Ship leaves the grotto and faces storms ahead and around them. More Crew armors are delivered.]

"Man... why do we be having to be going north? I be hating the cold...

Why couldn't the body be somewhere in the tropics, where we could like restore a coral reef while fighting off infected Merfolk or something..."

Kyp looks at the briefing table and takes the following supplies:

2 holy water, 1 trident, and the cracked magical handmirror

"These should help against the ghosts I think, I dislike having to kill the dead just like... stay dead instead of causing me problems"
After hearing this tune Kyp writes it down and puts it to his own somber tune for playing with his instrument in the future.

"He WHAT?!" Aeshma drops the pages of the report back onto her shop desk. Before she had only been paying attention to the rescued prisoners and checking for possible cursed item aftereffects. Now, after reading through how the prisoners were found she had come to the part of the fighting, looking for any other possible problems she as a healer might have to know or address. Staring at her was a big one. Oh, she would be addressing it alright, but not as a healer! Air swirls, ruffling her hair. Outside the wind begins to pick up. A storm is on the horizon, but as far as Aeshma's concerned it's already here. She has to get out of her shop - now if she doesn't want all the potion orders shattered.

Aeshma is perhaps the only Aasimar ever named for a demon, the demon of wrath. It isn't her true name, of course, but when her parents had been murdered by creatures of darkness in the night, she became an angry pre-teen. Her aunt and uncle who hadn't wanted to take her in threw up their hands, took one look at her red hair and temper and renamed her. They had thought it would shame and tame her. They were wrong.

She walks out into the increasing wind, closes and locks her shop door, then turns and raises her arms to embrace the coming storm. She is the tempest that she is truly named for and the Lady of Winds knows it's time to let a certain captain know it too.

Turning, Aeshma goes and knocks on Count's cabin door. When he opens it she asks simply, "Hiding? From me, or from HER?" She looks him up and down. "Did you really pledge yourself to a vampiress? You really volunteered to serve her for eternity at her side? WHAT were you thinking? Were you even THINKING?" She throws up her hands again as the wind begins to swirl around her, buffeting Count. "Of course not. You're male, why would you think first, My Prince? I cannot BELIEVE you swore to serve her as your MISTRESS! Me, I'm good for serving coffee evidently, but HER, you'll lick her boots for eternity? That's it! I'm done! You were making your way FREE of it, you idiot! I thought that's what you wanted. I thought you knew it. The Ship and Clíodhna were letting you choose to walk the day and be free ... but, NOooo! You wanted to choose to be some female nightsucker's enthralled and whipping boy ... sweet NICHOLAS. Well, she can have you. Although not on this Ship. There are Wards now for that, in case you haven't been paying attention. I hope you know what you're doing, because that one escaped. That means she can come back for you, Nicholas. It's not enough we have Beckett, the Council, a Sea Hag and an Aboleth all after us. Now you have to invite a vampiress to join in for a stupid moment of ... what? Nostalgia? Fantasy? Folly? You know what, I don't want to know. Have a good night, Nick. At least you knew enough not to pick up any of their items." Aeshma pauses in her tirade and gives Count an even more intense look, narrowing her eyes. "You DIDN'T pick anything up, right?" She draws a sign and mumbles a word, running a quick check. Satisfied she nods curtly and turns to go find Argy. She has a potion to deliver to Argy, and a desperate need to get roaring drunk.

"I'll take the strongest grog you have," Aeshma tells Argy once she finds her. Once Argy hands her a tankard, she downs the drink in a few gulps and asks for another, with a rum chaser. At least she made enough stomach calmer in anticipation of the storm. She should have turned him into a frog. Why didn't she think of that sooner? He could have enjoyed the ribbeting storm.

"Males, am I right? And captains are the worst. They're all crazy." Well, maybe not Captain Baldbeard, she thinks, but who knows? Maybe he's just not showing it yet. "I'ma swearing ... offa captains," she tells Argy, downing her rum and tankard and motioning for a refill. "I shud tell Clod-na, Clean-nah, oh winds ... Clío! Buh she ... she's in wit' one of 'er own. We sh-sh-shud warn 'er. Righ' af'er you ... yo give me another and I'm bree ...beezin' d'unk enuff ... ta not care any ... anymor," Aeshma says, just before she passes out.

In Clíodhna's cabin, Captain Aylar is looking over the charts Captain Baldbeard had seized. Clíodhna watches him a moment before returning to work on his long coat. Aylar rolls up and puts aside several charts that are already known to him, and concentrates on the ones that are not, spreading them out on the admiral's desk as he shuffles through them. Among the interesting ones is a deep bay running into cleft marked only with a black ship, and another with a triangle and vague references to an underground sea cavern. The current chart of interest, however, is a map of another sea cave, and markings and coordinates that put it very close to where they are currently headed, close to Captain Baldbeard's ship.

[Aeshma reads the after report of the previous mission and finds a problem. She confronts Count then finds Argy to get roaring drunk, swearing off captains. Aylar looks over the charts and finds some of interest.]

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OOC: Well, Count, you wanted to know where the vixen went. She's back and she found you. :P
(Guys, one really might suggest females, especially feisty ones, don't want to hear about your undying fantasies with another. Just saying.) :P