storm at sea | part ii

[groundrules]

Thar she blows — part II of the Storm at Sea travel arc, lasting until 5 August.

RELEASE THE KRAKEN

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SUMMARY: as allied pirate ships Pariah and Queen Zanyra sail onwards, mad captain Quicksilver Sam uses the artefact of the Dawn’s Reach Trade Company to call out to the notorious power of the haunted Crossing seas. He craves retribution from the crew of his former, drowned ship, the Storm at Sea — which rises up along other sunken vessels, all manned by undead sailors. With them is a vicious kraken. They attack, seeking Quicksilver Sam’s relic. So should you. Some characters dragged underwater reach a deserted dimension where time behaves aberrantly. To survive the two-three-day skirmish, keep your ship afloat and moving, hijack a few other vessels, fend off the undead and kraken, capture Quicksilver’s artefact — and breathe.


SAFE AT WA(TE)R | NAIL’EM TO THE MAST | STICKY FINGERS | THE STRANDING

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SAFE AT WA(TE)R

Quicksilver Sam’s Pariah continues into the black waters of the Crossing seas, escorted by ally Caladan Kreil’s Queen Zanyra and distantly pursued by Maximilian Hawk’s Concord of the Dawn’s Reach Trade Company. Characters can cross between the Queen Zanyra and Pariah by rowboat, until great storms darken the skies. Afterwards, reckless fools can risk their necks in the growling winds and drumming rains and traverse the rattling, thick chain that binds the two ships.

Quicksilver Sam joins the deck of the Pariah with a small box he opens to reveal a cut-out, impeccably preserved and warded human tongue. Once unwarded, the artefact seems to intensify the storms, while Quicksilver shouts out:

”Two years be, when the seas, them… they… broke’n’sundered and… was then. Then, when all of you! All of… all of you dead under the briny deep, you watched, and you plotted, and you… was then! We all broke bread under the black flag, and we were brothers… brothers of the Storm at Sea. Was enough coin in the coffer for everyone, but you, you had the greed in you, thicker than blood of our covenant, or water of any womb! You turned! You put me out to die, and now, look where you are? You lily-livered scurvies, you wake up now, look around you! You put me to sea? Left me to die? Samuel Vane, you thought me, I was for drowning? You look me in the eye, and you tell me so again, because I’m here for you! I’ll be ruin for you, Storm at Sea, I’ll cleave you!”

■ The tongue artefact summons up dozens of sunken ships from the Crossing, which take under an hour to fully emerge. They are manned by reanimated sailors — many whom you may have encountered as cored bodies underwater.


■ The Storm at Sea also rises, staffed by Quicksilver Sam’s now revenant crew. The vessel spearheads the undead offensive and approaches the Pariah — leaving her within reach for infiltration. Wei Wuxian will report back after engaging undead first mate Augustus Silvering.

■ The tongue relic also calls up an immense kraken, whose tentacles can be recognised as the ‘coral’ strings that had bound the sunken ships. The kraken is neither living nor dead and composed of the coagulated dark water that characters have previously encountered. Kraken meat is comestible but not seafood. It unexpectedly tastes of succulent white fish, best paired with a Sauvignon blanc and served generously with lemon, rosemary and dill. Do not overcook on the bonfire of your sinking ship.

■ You may end up locked inside cabins or brigs, whether ‘for your safety’ or at the first sign of insubordination against the on-edge captains.

■ You’re in danger as long as you remain within the Crossing seas. To steer the boats, take occasional shifts from exhausted pirates and learn to helm your vessel with navigational help from your companions.

■ (Wisps of) agitated spirits linger in the Crossing — some maliciously seek to push you overboard, while others protect you. Most are petrified. These remaining spirits are more akin to afterthoughts of emotion, which you can calm down, exorcise or ignore.

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NAIL’EM TO THE MAST

When you can’t beat’em, try again with a torch, a harpoon and a better attitude:

■ The kraken and undead violently attempt to reach the tongue artefact and sink the Pariah, Queen Zanyra and nearby Concord. Your enemies have hardened skins that require extra hacking, but regular weapons still work. Fire is especially efficient.

■ The kraken slams and sweeps its tentacles across the deck to drag ships underwater — do use cannons and primitive explosives.

■ The undead mount rowboats or swim to climb onboard. Fortunately, the storms impede your attackers, earning you respite between fresh assaults. Assume one-two hours' rest between attacks.

■ Extensively touching the living kraken tentacles slowly depletes your stamina and/or magical strength.

■ Consider taking Viktor’s steampunk boat and setting up primitive dynamite to sink these ships before their undead crew can reach you. Beware the storms.

■ You can infiltrate undead ships at any point, but can only commandeer one if you group up to man it.

■ Use diving suits that let you breathe four hours underwater and light up white for alert, red for danger, yellow for the urgent need to return on land and green-blue otherwise.

■ Bad news for the Pariah: on top of the undead, the kraken and the mad pirate, you are dealing with the incensed Hawk and Caladan Kreil, both whom send men to stop Quicksilver Sam’s summons at all costs.

■ Magical communicators are prone to glitches or disruptions amid poor weather conditions.

■ A school of mermaids is drawn to the kraken and the Pariah — warn them off with lights or lure them away with baits of food or blood. Speaking with them reveals they want Quicksilver’s artefact.

■ Those wishing to avoid violence can head to the more distant Concord by rowboat, under a white flag. Maximilian Hawk believes you are refugees aboard the Pariah and Queen Zanyra and will offer sanctuary. The sleek, highly disciplined and martial Concord faces significantly less attack, and you can spend a more peaceful time below deck. Alternatively, pair up to persuade the crew to give up chasing the Pariah, and convince Hawk and first mate Lattimore the ‘ancient power’ pursued by the Dawn’s Reach Trade Company should arguably never be found.

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STICKY FINGERS

Moments after his speech, a rattled Quicksilver Sam retreats with the tongue relic in his heavily guarded and magically warded cabin.

■ Group up to capture the tongue with minimal damage to ship and crew. Ideally, some characters can distract the guards or attempt to lure Quicksilver out.

■ Helpful tips: despite his questionable sanity, Quicksilver Sam has shown high regard for manners, women and his ship. The pirate guards are loyal, but skittish before the supernatural.

■ During the diversion, lift the wards or forcibly infiltrate the cabin by breaking the door in. Careful, as Quicksilver appears to have purchased a Taravast special — a small caged white owl, which paralyses in place those who meet her gaze. Someone should distract the bird or cover her cage to break her trance.

■ Everyone can hunt, but Five and Wrathion get final joint custody of the tongue. They have decided to ward and box it. This will see the kraken and sinking ships gradually lose power, then submerge within two days. The tongue stays with the duo. Given Kirk’s previous reveal, the group could choose to trade the tongue in with Maximilian Hawk and the Dawn’s Reach Trade Company.

■ If the tongue is ever brought near the heart possessed by Kaneki Ken, the two artefacts will briefly thrum in synchrony.

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THE STRANDING

Some characters captured by the kraken’s tentacles and pulled underwater lose consciousness, only to mentally wake up in the dimension of a perfectly silent, deserted and seemingly interminable beach island.

■ Characters experience time differently here, shifting between younger and older states every few hours. Up to you whether these changes are mental, physical or both, and whether your character is aware this isn’t their natural form.

■ Several mute, humanoid tar figures roam aimlessly. They largely ignore newcomers, but peacefully stop them from entering the dark sea waters.

■ The island sky is despairingly grey. There are no animals or plants.

■ Characters find they lose more of their memories, the longer they linger — particularly if they start to be politely but incessantly followed by tar figures, which gradually assume their form.

■ You can occasionally find human footsteps and writing in wet beach sand. The writing spells out children’s limericks.

■ Time passes differently on the island — dealer’s choice whether faster or slower than in the real world for your character.

■ Characters can wake up into the real world, if their bodies are rescued from where they’ve sunken underwater, remaining alive for up to two days in the vicinity of the kraken.

■ Characters may initially experience light amnesia and a sense of listlessness and estrangement from their bodies, once they have left the island dimension. This dissipates within a day’s time.

■ You can only reach the island once. Characters can be brought underwater by the kraken without entering the beach dimension.

QUESTIONS

NPC CONTACT

Comments

[biomed]

( Leonard kicks frantically at the tentacle around his leg. An old childhood memory surfaces as he's dragged further into the darkness: a family vacation, an icy pond he and his cousins ventured out on; the way it split without warning, dropping him into frigid waters under that shelf of ice.

He nearly drowned then, and feels it now as his lungs burn; he can't breathe, can't do anything but uselessly thrash against the inexorable pull. Bones thinks he sees a figure break the surface, a dive light and then—

Then... nothing. Eyes drifting closed, he slips off to that other place, wrapped in the kraken's grip and floating limply in the dark. )

[winscenario]

[ Bones may slip into a magical comatose state, but all the while Jim isn't at all aware of that. All he can think is that he's being dragged so deep, too deep, deeper than anyone could possibly survive— and yet he keeps swimming, using any and all strength he has to force himself to dive lower, into an increasing darkness, and into the terrifying sight of a beast more massive than any of the ships above.

Terror may nearly make him freeze, but it's not going to make him turn back. Even if Bones may be dead by now (he probably is, he definitely is, he must be), Jim's not going to let him stay down here, won't let his body rot away down deep, abandoned and forgotten.

At least it takes all his focus to keep swimming, to keep pushing against the pressure, so it doesn't leave any room for him to panic right now. He doesn't need to worry about breathing either, thankfully, though as he comes closer, he doesn't quite know how to face off against the kraken, its hold on Leonard's body evident. Things get a little more complicated when a couple of tentacles whip out towards him, trying to grab him and pull him down too, but he manages to somehow avoid them, though one of them just narrowly grabs him by the leg.

Instead, out of either frustration or simply playing with its food, it shoves at Jim's back, pushing him down lower. It just so happens that that's exactly what Jim needs, and he gets close enough to Bones to wrap an arm around his waist, unwilling to let go now no matter what happens.

Then he grabs his phaser, the only thing he can think of, and fires repeatedly at the kraken's tentacles, desperate to get them to let go of Bones. ]

[biomed]

( The enormous beast actually flinches under the phaser fire, a ripple in the water ahead of its scream— of rage, of pain, maybe even of fear. It redoubles its efforts, but the phaser slices through flesh with unerring precision.

Then those murky black tentacles loosen and retract, and the kraken wheels off in search of less-resistant prey, slipping soundlessly into the darkness.

Pale in the lights of Jim's suit, Leonard's head rolls back against the captain's shoulder. Impossibly, faintly, he's still warm even in the chill water, even in apparent death.

His stranded consciousness reels on that grey beach, and he doesn't know why he runs for the surf, only that he does, barreling through the beings trying to wear his face, and plunging into the sea.

Leonard's body twitches spasmodically in Jim's arms and goes limp once more. )

[winscenario]

[ In the heat of the moment, the beast below and the strong tides pushing and pulling, Jim thinks he may be imagining any sign of life, but he clings to that hope even if it seems impossible. It pushes him to swim faster, to struggle with all his might to get them both to the surface.

It's fine. I've got you. It's fine. Jim holds on as tight as he can manage with all the strength left in him, hauling them back towards the surface with his free hand around the rope when they're close to the raging waves, but the worst of it is climbing back up to the ship.

Luckily there are others on board, and both Spock and Number One had spotted him jumping overboard after Bones. Before long the rope is being pulled, and all Jim needs to do is wrap his arm tight around the rope as they're both brought back up onto the ship.

He doesn't let go of Bones until they're safely on deck, throwing the helmet of his suit away as he lays Bones down on the ground carefully. He tries to check for consciousness but it's pointless, then checks his breathing, his pulse. Panic settles like a knot in his throat, but he goes through the motions like he's used to doing it every day; tilting his head back, pinching his nose, two deep breaths from mouth to mouth. Then chest compressions, paced and hard, making him feel a little sore even before he's done with the first round. Then he repeats the process, as many times as it takes, ignoring the jostling and shaking of the ship, because Bones can't die, he can't die and he refuses to let him go. ]

[biomed]

( Waking comes sudden and hard, the near-violent pressure on his chest broken by a soft mouth on his, breathing life into him.

Leonard makes a pained gurgle all at once, stiffly rolls onto his side, and coughs up seawater until the bottom of his lungs ache– or is that his ribs? Everything hurts, he decides, too much to catalogue. Wheezing, he sags back to the deck, blinking away the water from his lashes as he lifts a confused gaze to the stranger who rescued him.

And then past him, to the mast rising high above them, the sails and scudding clouds, a jolt of confusion and cold fear coursing through him. )

Wh– What th' Hell?

[winscenario]

[ Jim can't even begin to describe the immense relief he feels when Bones comes to with a startling gasp, feeling as though he too is breathing again for the first time since he reached Bones down deep in the water.

He pulls away to give Bones the room he needs, helping him onto his side so he can cough out all the water, gently squeezing his arm to steady him. Thankfully, the kraken letting them be means their ship's been given a respite from the relentless attacks, and there's no dead sailors coming at them right now either, which makes the ship as peaceful as it's been since they commandeered it. ]

Jesus, Bones, [ He breathes out with a laugh, grin so wide and bright, sheer relief making him feel like he might just burst. He runs a hand through Bones's hair, cupping his jaw. ] You scared me for a moment there.

[biomed]

( His brows knit– 'Bones'? –as he listens, his eyes drawn back to the man and his overwhelming joy. The hand on his face is cool, calloused, but comforting nonetheless, anchoring him through the brief stab of unknowing fear. )

My own guardian angel, ( he surmises hoarsely, feeling dazed and stupid, struck by just how blue the man's eyes are. Leonard struggles to sit up, hissing a breath out against the flare of pain in his sternum, and sliding his other hand over his chest. )

What happened? Where's– where's Riverside?

[winscenario]

[ The remark registers more as a joke than anything, which is why Jim chuckles, relieved that Bones feels at least well enough to say something like that. He'd argue that Bones is his guardian angel more often than not, but that thought is set aside when Bones mentions, of all places— Riverside. ]

Riverside? Why'd you think of that place now?

[biomed]

( That this man's heard of some podunk shipyard in Iowa is only a little comforting, that maybe he'll know what's going on. It's a fervent hope, as he glances around them with undisguised alarm. )

I was-- ( a tight little groan, as he takes the man by his shoulder, meaning to stand, ) --s'posed to ship out tomorrow. Not literally, God-- what is this?

( Leonard sharply turns to face the stranger, close enough their noses nearly brush, panic in his wide hazel eyes. )

Where the Hell are we? Are we on a- a sailing ship?

[winscenario]

[ Jim feels his heart nearly sink to his feet with Bones's next words, any relief on his face fading along with his smile. His eyes still wide, his face feels cold all of a sudden, as he looks over Bones's face like he expects all this to be some sort of poorly timed joke. ]

Bones— [ He repeats the name again, but it feels stupid, he feels stupid for saying it. He doesn't even know why he's calling him Bones, does he? ]

Tell me you know who I am. Please— tell me you remember me.

[biomed]

What?

( Water drips from his messy fringe, salt on his lower lip he licks away nervously. Who's Bones? he thinks, obviously baffled and growing more anxious by the minute with this stranger's earnest exhortation. )

I- No. It's Leonard, ( he tells him, regret in the shake of his head. Was he at the bar last night? He wracks his brain, trying to come up with a name to go with blue eyes and dirty-blond hair, ) Not- I don't know, I'm sorry.

Are you with Starfleet? Please- ( Leonard takes him by the arms, forgetting that his chest feels like it's on fire, ) Do you know where we are?

[winscenario]

[ There's a moment when Jim freezes in his spot, processing all this information, giving himself the time not just to absorb it all, but to swallow down the panic and ache he feels in his chest, because him freaking out isn't going to help Bones. At all. ]

Leonard. Right, you're— I'm sorry.

[ He looks up, offers a faint smile, even that much making everything in him ache. ]

I'm Jim. And yes, I'm with Starfleet. We are... not on Earth. This is, ah... a long story. There was an accident and I think... your memory has been affected.

[ He wants to reach out and check for any injuries, but touching him that much just feels wrong, and it might not be entirely welcome. ] Do you think you're hurt anywhere? A concussion, maybe? Can I check?

[biomed]

( That's a whole Hell of a lot to deal with on his end, too, the shock of it rendering him silent. An accident? Your memory has been affected, what the Hell's that supposed to mean? He's supposed to know this perfect stranger?

This perfect stranger who saved your life, his inner voice helpfully reminds him, running up against the slow build of anxious paranoia. No one with shitty intentions just puts themselves in danger to rescue someone.

The adrenaline in his system is starting to drain away, he can certainly feel that, a shiver working through him. )

Jim.

( All right, and he swallows, his grip loosening on Jim's arms. )

All right.

[winscenario]

[ This isn't exactly an ideal situation, and Jim doesn't have the luxury of time to just sit and explain everything from start to finish. Right now, his main objective is to make sure Bones isn't seriously injured, and that he's not about to have a panic attack on him.

He breathes in relief at Bones's agreement to being checked over, smiling genuinely. He starts without another word, checking for anything that may be broken, examining Bones's head particularly, tugging at fabric here or there only to find some bruises on his shoulders and a welt at the back of his head. Not a concussion, thankfully, but no doubt Bones will feel some pain. If not now, then soon. ]

Okay, you have nothing serious that I can see. I don't have a tricorder on me right now, but you should be alright.

[ He sits back on his heels, a hand still lingering on Bones's arm. ]

Things have quieted down a little. How about we get you inside and I can try to make some sense of all this for you?

[biomed]

( Submitting to this cursory exam, checking himself over alongside Jim, he's quietly impressed with how thorough the other man is. It's comforting, adding to the thought that he's in the right hands.

Despite that, there's an odd sort of wrongness he can sense, but has no name for. Not dread, thankfully, he knows he'd be in a world of trouble there, but disconnection, like he's not all himself. Listless, and shivering, he nods, and he'll let Jim help him up. )

Yeah. We need to find dry clothes, before we both catch hypothermia.

[winscenario]

[ He's definitely learned from the best, and of course he is thorough, careful and attentive. He'll slow down or stop if he senses any discomfort, but overall he seems pleased to find Bones with no serious injuries. Well, aside from the sudden memory loss. ]

Not sure if we'll be able to find anything dry on this ship, [ he comments, remembering belatedly that Bones has no idea it was at the bottom of the ocean mere hours ago. ] But yeah, let's go look around.

[ Maybe there's some decently sealed chest somewhere with trousers and shirts, who knows. ]

[biomed]

( Jim gets a curious little glance for that remark, but Leonard simply follows him quietly, a hand tucked over his chest.

The next deck down is the small gun deck, which the sailors seem to have also used for their Mess– tables and benches between the dozen or so cannons –and their berths, hammocks rolled up and out of the way.

With the hatches closed against the weather, the place is dark, aside from the odd bit of lantern light penetrating the gloom. Mercifully, no dead come rushing out at them, and though the deck itself is still wet, few of anything else is– whatever magical preservation the kraken wielded in its grip was here, too.

Leonard pauses on the step above Jim's to let his eyes adjust, listening to the ship groan softly in the waves. )

Looks like a museum.

[winscenario]

[ Jim is honestly surprised to find the boat in the state it's in. Not just that it's not completely wrecked, but that all the things below deck seem to be in their right place, and unexpectedly dry as well. It gives him pause for just a few seconds, though, and then he's stepping lower on the stairs, walking around what looks like the crew's quarters in search of any dry clothes. ]

Wish I could tell you that's what it is, but no luck.

[ He finds some shirts and trousers, tattered but thick socks too, and he searches through a few sizes before finding that should more or less fit them. ]

Here. These should work.

whoops wrong account 83

[biomed]

( While Jim searches, Leonard follows closely behind with the attitude of an overly-cautious feline, holding his breath in the still air as he shivers. What accident could have caused this?

It's Jim who spurs him to movement again, the offer of dry clothes that makes him shuck off his heavy, waterlogged coat first, then his shirt, stiff and fumbling as he gets it over his head. Its replacement smells slightly musty, like laundry left to dry in the wash, but it is dry, and that's all he cares about at the moment, kicking off boots and trousers that are Fleet-regulation until he's down to his black undershorts. Also Fleet-regulation, he notes with some uneasy confusion as he dresses again, eyeing Jim briefly as he does the same. )

Uh, hey listen. Thanks, for all this.

[winscenario]

[ If nothing else, Bones's clothes should serve as proof that Jim was telling him the truth when he talked about lost memories. It's not a comfort, and he knows that. He's surprised that Bones is so calm about it, that he hasn't started panicking yet, as he was always thought the doctor was prone to do in his early days at the Academy.

But he's not complaining if it means they can actually talk quietly and reasonably about all this. It's fine, absolutely fine. Bones has to regain his memories eventually, right?

Jim smiles softly at Bones, trying and probably failing to at least somewhat contain it. ]

You're my best friend. I'd do anything for you.

[ So yeah, you know. Wrestling a giant sea monster? No big deal. ]

[biomed]

( He meets Jim's smile with knitted brows and a skeptical frown, sorry Jim. There's an anxiety in the other man that McCoy's vaguely aware of, and self consciously feels responsible for, not being the person Jim remembers.

Or he's just projecting his own anxiety, that's totally a possibility too. )

Really?

( That was really blunt, mildly disbelieving, and not because he sees anything lacking in Jim. Quite the opposite, in fact. Leonard stoops to pick up their wet, discarded garments, needing to do something other than talk now that they're out of danger of freezing to death. )

Don't exactly have many of those right now.

[winscenario]

[ It's not Bones's fault, really. If Jim feels bad about this whole situation, he can only begin to imagine the discomfort on his end, faced with a strange scenario, memories that he can't remember, some guy randomly latching onto him.

But that doesn't make Bones's look or tone hurt any less, his smile fading as he feels his heart shrink in his chest. He can't even distract himself with his wet clothes because Bones got those too, which is unfortunate because at least then he might not have opened his big mouth to add next. ]

You have me. You'll always have me.

[biomed]

( Jim's smile vanishes and that, honestly, is when Leonard first feels the familiar stab of panic. Like he shouldn't be without one; like the idea of disappointing someone else, after the string of failures he left behind in Atlanta– failed as a son, a husband, a father, a doctor –is suddenly unbearable. It sticks in his throat and squeezes his chest.

He offers Jim his wet shirt back, a conciliatory gesture, and breathes, trying to curb the sensation. )

...where do we meet? How?

[winscenario]

[ It's better than a rejection, better than Bones dismissing him or pushing him away, so he takes the shirt with a somewhat reticent glance at the doctor.

The question, however, draws a faint smile from him again. That's a memory he's more than happy to relive and recount, particularly when Bones is showing actual interest. ]

We meet on that shuttle you're about to take, actually. I kinda just... latched onto you from day one. [ His lips twitch at the corner in faint amusement. ] Sorry in advance.

[biomed]

( Their wet trousers go shucked over one of the rope lines holding up some absent sailor's hammock, haphazardly placed as he's more interested in listening to Jim. Watching him carefully, like he still isn't quite sure he's real, because Leonard only signed on to Starfleet because he had nothing left, and he hardly felt he deserved the friendship of anyone, much less someone who seems as good as Jim.

He smiles, a small, fragile thing struggling to be more. )

How about that, ( he murmurs, ) I must've made a good impression.

( Leonard hedges, then blurts out, )

How long have we known each other?