Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

The innkeeper shrugged. "It's all just rumors. And strangers who vanished. Or maybe just never came." He frowned thoughtfully. "Or it was until last night. Those two men would know the truth, I suppose."

The man would briefly explain that the town's 'jail' was in the back of the sheriff's residence, if Amber inquired, but then set down her coins and hurried towards the kitchen, where someone had started shouting.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

With that, Amber finished her food, took her money, and left. Her first stop was the bar to see if the sailor from the night before was there. If he was, she would see about getting him to plot the location of the island on her map. Otherwise, she would head to what passed for the jail and request to see the men who had attempted to kidnap her the night before.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

The bar was, unfortunately, not open at this hour of the morning, so Amber made her way to the town's makeshift jail.

Its nature was clear on inspection, a moderate addition on the back of one of the larger private residences in the town, with a sturdy door to the outside, and bars in the windows, but still at heart basically a house. Inside it was divided into several smaller rooms, one of which held the two would-be slavers, visible through a small grate set in the door. The other three were all empty.

A man sat at a small, cramped desk outside the cells. He looked up when Amber entered. "May I help you, Miss?"

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber found her way to the house that doubled as the town jail. When she entered, she nodded at the man at the desk. "Yes, I'd like to speak to the two men back there. I am the one they attempted to kidnap last night."

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"Are you?" He peered at her. "Huh. Well, I suppose it couldn't hurt. Through the door, though. And you'll have to be out by noon."

Amber couldn't see very well through the bars. There seemed to be two beds, and a man lying on each, with very little room to spare. They looked like they might have been the same men, but it was difficult to be really certain.

Meanwhile, the man at the desk went back to his paperwork.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber nodded in the affirmative to the sheriff and moved to converse with the slavers. She approached the door and asked, "Why did you do it? And where were you trying to take me?" She spoke evenly, not letting anger or any other emotion creep into her voice.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"Ugh..." there was a groan from inside the cell, followed by a brief whispered exchange. "We were just trying to make a little coin. Nothing wrong with that."

There was another whispered exchange. "Well, I suppose some people might disagree. Anyway, why should we tell you?"

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"A fair question." Amber hadn't expected the men to be cooperative, she knew she would have to find a way to convince them to talk. She knew the Badarians regarded the use of spiritual powers as a crime, it spoke to a superstitious view of things beyond the readily observable physical world. This was likely due to the perverse machinations of the Lich King, even the Merfolk were familiar with his misdeeds. Despite the despicable acts he committed and the backwards nature of Badarian society in matters of the arcane and spiritual, it occurred to her that she could perhaps use this to her advantage. Fear could be a powerful motivator.

"What I did to you in the inn wasn't personal. I was just defending myself, and you were just trying to make some money. Of course if you don't answer my questions in a satisfactory manner and tell me where you were planning on taking me...I can't guarantee I won't start taking things personally...and I can't guarantee your safety."

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Spoiler

Hrm. I guess DarkOrange and Bold SandyBrown are kinda close. Opps. >.>

"You can't... what! You hear that, 'sheriff'? She's threatening us! You can't do that!"

"Did she? I think she has a right to take being kidnapped personally, and it's certainly true that she can't guarantee your safety. I'll protect you while you're in my custody, but you'll be out of here sooner or later, and on your own."

The two prisoners retreated to the back of their cell, and there was another whispered discussion, this one longer and more heated than before. Finally, one cautiously approached the door again, and addressed Amber. "Well... I suppose it's not really a secret anymore... Would have brought you to the slave market on Little Abaco." The man referred to one of a pair of islands off the coast near the border of Badaria and the desert. It was, the last Amber had heard, uninhabited.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber couldn't help a smirk at the sheriff's response to the slavers' complaints. Of course, the news that there may be a slaver market on what was thought to be an uninhabited island was unsettling, but not altogether unsurprising. A slave market was certainly something that would need to be established in an out of the way location. That it lay in the direction of Anudor was rather convenient, she could take care of business there before heading on to investigate the island of treasure and monsters if she so desired. Still, she figured she should find out as much as she could before she just decided to attempt to do anything about it.

"That's a good start, it already feels a little safer in here. Now, there have been a number of disappearances in this area, are you two the ones responsible, or are there more of you kind around here? Also, tell me about this slave market. How big is it? How many guards? How can I gain access to it?"

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Spoiler

Just a brief reminder: slavery is legal in the vast majority of the DG world. Kidnapping people out of inns is out of line, but owning, buying, and selling slaves is perfectly fine in Badaria. If you want to campaign to end slavery, you've got a long way to go.

The next question didn't require any discussion. "Don't know anything about anyone else. Could be others had the same idea, I suppose."

The rest did take at least a little thought. "Um... don't really know. Wasn't very big when we left, but it was growing. Should be open to the public now. Well. I'm sure they'd let you in." While Amber couldn't actually see the man's face, the tone of his voice certainly suggested a leer.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

It seemed to Amber that she really wasn't going to get much out of the slavers. They clearly hadn't known what she was when they attempted to abduct her, they had mistaken her for an easy target and suffered the consequences. What's more, a city-sized slave market seemed like a dangerous proposition and likely a waste of her time, especially when she had more definitive leads as to the location of two of the sorcerers, or at least their lairs.

She decided it was time to terminate this line of questioning and part company with the slavers. "Thank you, gentlemen, for your cooperation. I look forward to our next meeting." While she did not explicitly threaten them, it was obvious what she intended to do to the slavers should she see them again.

There was still the matter of Numer Crusa to deal with as well. If all else failed she could begin a trek north towards the The Academy to find leads on the mage. Of course, since Hayte allegedly spent a lot of time with Abes Abel, she would naturally prefer to pursue leads along that track as there was greater potential for finding leads to further sorcerers. Of course, as long as she was following the trail laid out by Dr. Saben, she would be unlikely to get ahead of him and would find it most difficult to get his gemstone key. Terribly tricky business.

Amber left the jail without another word and proceeded to the bar in an attempt to find the sailor who said he could roughly identify the island of Illys Hayte on a map. Failing that, she would see what she could turn up about the final ship in the harbor, the other one at dock for repairs and the only one that she had not yet inspected.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"Yeah, well. Maybe next time you'll be the one in the cage." The man sounded suddenly dispirited, his heart not entirely behind the spirit of the threat.

The sheriff glared into the cell, then led Amber out of the building, wishing her good luck and safe travels.

The search for the sailor telling tails of a gold-covered island sent her straight back to the bar where they'd had their first encounter. Where she found the middle-aged sailor from her two previous visits as the only patron, nursing a hangover. And a beer. He didn't notice as Amber entered the bar, his attention being mostly consumed with holding his head and moaning about how he'd never drink again, between sips of beer.

But on the bright side, the unrolled scroll that he kept setting his mug down on turned out, as the mermaid approached - to be a map.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber strode into the bar. Fortunately, her luck held and she found the sailor as the only one in the bar. Seeing his hungover state, she decided to only buy a single beer this morning. Best not to overwhelm the man. She placed a single denarii for the beer on the counter and took the mug over to the table and sat down without asking.

"So about the map. I've brought one and I see you've found one as well." She looked over the map he had, seeing how it compared to the one she had found aboard the shipwreck. She held back from offering the beer right away, letting the man nurse them at his own speed.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber got her beer with a grunt of acknowledgement from the bartender, and not even that from the sailor. He seemed not to have noticed her, even once she sat down, and while he obviously heard the mermaid's speech - he groaned and covered her head with his hands - he didn't otherwise respond.

On the other hand, he didn't object to her looking at his map. Both his and her own were ocean maps, sketching in the coast from Crolia to the far Amazon, but nothing more than a mile or so from the sea. Both indicated islands... though not exactly the same ones. Some seemed to be missing - or extra - on both maps. The sailor's map looked perhaps less well made - lower quality parchment, and the ink was running where he'd set his beer on it.

Eventually, the man moved his arms to take another sip of his beer. This also forced him to look up slightly, and he could hardly miss the young woman sitting opposite him. He scowled. "'s you again. What'd you want."

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"Hey there," Amber kept her voice low to avoid aggravating his apparently severe hangover. "I came by to see if you could show me where you thought that island you mentioned last night might be."

She did her best to appear unassuming and not bother the sailor, though she kept her beer off to the side to indicate she wasn't going to drink it. It would serve as a reward to offer than man for a small drawing on a map.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

The man took another sip of his beer, tipping it all the way back to get the last drop out. He glared into the empty mug as he responded. "Can't a man even suffer through a hangover without someone trying to..."

He had glanced up, and noticed the full mug. "I suppose I could forgive you..." When the mermaid didn't immediately give him the beer, he scowled again. "Island? What... oh, right, the island what is cursed. Or something, I dunno."

He shifted his scowl from the mermaid to the his own map. After a while, he muttered through his teeth. "This is a terrible map." He gestured at a spot off the coast, at what was marked as a stone reef, making a rough circle dozens of miles across. "Somewhere in here." He looked up, smiling at the beer.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

"I am of course sorry to disturb you, I hope this drink will ease the pain." Affirming what he said with her eyes, the map was indeed of poor quality.

When the man circled the reef Amber frowned. "That reef looks treacherous. Perhaps this map will allow for a more defined area..."

Amber pulled out the map she had recovered from the boat and spread it before the sailor to see if he could find the spot on it. While he was plotting the point, the mermaid looked over the map to gauge the difficulty of navigating there on her own. If she wouldn't be able to make it, she might have to enlist the aid of the seaman, if he could even be trusted.

 

[thetwo]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

The sailor scowled, and stared down at the new map for a long moment. While he did, Amber looked over the first map. The area the man had indicated was well out of the way of normal shipping lanes, but there were no major hazards, aside from the reef. There was even deep current that would get her close, useless to sailors but well known to the peoples of the deep ocean. It would mean a little risk, and no chance at all that she could bring the sailor along, but it would be twice as fast as any ship she'd ever seen.

After a while, the man stabbed a finger down. "I's there."He was pointing to the northernmost of a small cluster of islands, shaped like a rounded square.

He grunted. "But it's missing the reef... dangerous, that. Anything deeper 'n a rowboat'd lose its bottom, crossing. Even then, gotta go at high tide." He turned back to the beer, and after a moment's contemplation reached out for it.

 

[sturm]

Re: Trouble in the Deep (sturm) GMed by thetwo

Amber passed the man the beer as he reached for it while she contemplated the two maps. First she tried to gauge how long it would take to swim the journey. While swimming the entire way appealed to her, doing so alone did not. Given the numerous dangers that could befall her, she would have to consider the risk to reward ratio of getting there faster versus the possibility of not getting there at all. That also left her to weigh the risks of traveling with a boat full of people she did not know or trust. Still, she decided it probably wouldn't hurt to ask the sailor about any potential boats headed that way.

"Thank you very much for your assistance, you have been most helpful. I just have two easy questions for you. Do you know of any ships that could take me on as a passenger heading in that direction, and do you know of any ports that are relatively close to the island?" She might be able to find help at a city closer there so she wouldn't have to journey to the island alone. That of course risked the foolish greed of some shore-bound dooming her and anyone with her. She clearly had a lot to think about on the way to the island, however she ended up making the journey.