Game Date: 12-13 Browning, 994 KC; Play Date: 6/16/2001
11 Browning: Ruqayyah asked Afla to tell Laylah and the others about her plan to travel with Star and Sarah, so that she would not delay their departure the next day.
12 Browning (New Moon): Sarah, Star and Ruqayyah departed, sailing through the west edge of the Yangar River delta. The resumed language lessons along the way (Ruqayyah learning Merfolk, Star Krithian). Once to the sea, they sailed north towards Cauldron Isle. They soon reached water deeper than any Ruqayyah had seen before. Near dusk, they set a sea anchor, and Sarah fished for their dinner. Ruqayyah attempted to learn this skill, while Star swam. Ruqayyah did not notice how long Star had been underwater until she returned to the boat, quite tired but happy. Sarah explained that she must have been breathing water; Sarah herself could do this (being half merfolk), as could other sidhe and half-sidhe. (Star had not realized she was doing so, but upon reflection, recalled that everyone back home did.)
13 Browning: Star asked to be taught how to handle the boat; Sarah agreed to let her watch, but refused to let her steer. Ruqayyah wondered aloud about flying boats.
In the early afternoon, they saw Cauldron Isle to the north. As they came closer, they could see mountains in the interior, flat land near the coast, and the sails of ships offshore. Sarah explained that the Cauldron (which they could not see) often emits smoke, but she did not know whether it ever erupted. Their destination of Carnvrin was on the island of Ligabeth, which was covered with a haunted faerie forest; the mention of this wood intrigued her companions. (Star recalled a faerie forest near her [still unremembered] home. She had passed through it by river, and could not remember what lived there.)
About an hour after first sighting the island, they saw a ship ahead, near the line of their course. It was moving, and had its sails taken in. Coming closer, they could see that it was a small merchant ship. The people on deck did not move much until they saw Sarah's boat, then started waving and calling out. Sarah slowed and moved closer. The ship's captain, a stocky, graying, middle-aged man, hailed them in Krithian. He was in some trouble, and begged a favor. His boat had stopped suddenly, dead in the water. Some of his crew had tried to take a look, but couldn't swim deep enough to see all of the hull. Sarah told Star, who stripped to have a look. (This attracted many whistles from the merchant ship's crew.) She saw a small fish, only about a foot long, attached to the keel by a sucker, but nothing else unusual. She reported this to Sarah, who told the captain. He swore, then explained that it was a remora, which would require either a wizard to counter its magic, or someone able to kill it. He had no wizards among his crew, and did not know how hard remoras were to kill. Star took another look at the fish, which had very small teeth and barely moved when she poked at it.
Ruqayyah suggested that Detect Magic might be useful, but she was unsure if she would cast it underwater, even in water-shape. They decided to experiment. Star transformed her into water; her clothing changed, but her knife and powerstone fell to the deck. Ruqayyah entered the water, and found that she could easily keep up with Star. They went to look at the fish. Ruqayyah tried her spell, and learned that the entire hull had been enchanted, though only temporarily. She tried some spells (Itch and Simple Illusion) to persuade the fish to leave, with no success. They surfaced, Star cancelled the water spell, and they climbed aboard the stalled ship to report. The captain ordered a cloak brought for Star, who was still stark naked. When Star tried to move about the ship, the captain stopped her, explaining that his crew hadn't seen a woman in three weeks. This comment made Ruqayyah blush instantly, though Star required some translation.
While Star and Ruqayyah rested, Sarah (still on her boat) offered to go down and try to take a knife to the remora. Star offered to go with her, and the captain lent her his large knife. Sarah retrieved her own spear and knife, stripped, and entered the water. Star joined her, and asked for the spear, which she preferred. At first, they had trouble striking the fish, and Star's attempt to turn the fish into water failed. The spell exhausted Star, so Sarah continued to hack at the fish. Finally, she did enough damage to kill it, and scraped the sucker off of the ship.
Sarah towed Star back to her boat, and tethered her there to rest. Sarah then swam to the ship, reported the fish dead, and returned the captain's knife. Ruqayyah wished to try eating a piece, so Sarah fetched her one. It smelled like normal fish flesh, though a bit more pungent. They returned to Sarah's boat. The captain asked them to inform the harbormaster at Veluvar of his ship's plight, because he did not know how long it would take for the remora's spell to end. They traded names, and said farewell.
The women continued on. When Ruqayyah had rested enough, she shifted to cat form, and at the piece of remora raw. It tatsed strange, and her stomach twinged a couple times over the next few hours, but the discomfort passed in time. By the time they reached Veluvar, on Cauldron Isle, Ruqayyah was napping, so Star stayed to watch the boat--and the crowds on the docks. Sarah located the harbormaster to report the encounter with the remora; the officer was surprised by the news, but had heard of the beasts. He promised to send someone to check on the ship in the morning.
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This page last revised 10/15/2001. | Copyright 2001 Timothy E. Emrick. | time@sluggy.net