"With that big of boat, won't feel like being off land maybe?" Talon asks with a hint of nervousness. "Dayna not feel good about going over so much water." the shifter whispers to Jin. Meanwhile, Dayna leaps atop a crate just as it is being hoisted up by the crane. The she-wolf rides the box all the way upward, before leaping down to the deck with the grace and power only a wild animal can display. She shows no signs of being uncomfortable or nervous. Unlike Talon himself.
The deck-hands and midshipmen approach Dayna cautiously. When she fails to exhibit an aggressive nature, they coax her over to the rail-gate where she meets the others as they finish climbing the net.
On the observation deck is a spread of normal sized chairs facing out into the harbor that is being just barely illuminated from behind by the glow, fortelling the sunrise. Fargo beckons you to sit down, produces a pipe, produces weed, lights, and takes a deep drag. He blows a smoke ring out into the dark west, which dances over the harbor waters and their reflections of the early morning shimmer.
"Your boat is awe inspiring, Fargo," Jin commented. "Does it employ magic, or is this all dwarven craftsmanship?"
"Alas, she's no'a magicle ship, bu' aye though' ye migh' reckognize 'ar. She's a Jade ship. Aver far hundard years ald she be. The Jade Kindam 'ad fleets'ev'em in thas days. Ole Arkus c'nvinced Hruthak ta buy up six o'their gals ta learn ta' sail. None'o'us knew how. Arkus stoodied th'art an' se' off far far th' east where 'e fand Rioc Parvel two hundard an' eety six years 'go. Kep' far far 'imself, an lef' two o'th'athers ta Hruthak. Twenty years o' trade an' poof," Fargo snaps his fingrs and blows a cloud of smoke from the side of his mouth without removing the pipe from between his clenched teeth through which he's been talking all this time,
"Gan far ayver. No trace, no ward, an' no maps, 'till na'." Fargo takes a seat in his own, dwarf-sized chair and props his feet up on the rail of the observation deck,
"Hruthak sen' an'o'em afar ole Arkus, bu' i' nevar came back," he puts his hands behind his head and rocks back on the reat two legs of his chair, musing,
"Crazy 'ow ole Bardir kep' quiet all these years. Seems cawrdly ta lay low like 'e did," Another smokering emenates from Fargos lips, and he continues,
"Na' Aye 'eared manya tall tale 'bou' ole Arkus an' Rioc Parvel. Mos'o'em aye says, 'en aye'as jus' a wee lad, are all bilge 'ater. Then aye got me sea-legs on life," Fargo gets up and produces a dagger from his belt,
"'En aye'as jus' a young man, me fathar tells me this 'ere stary 'bout ole Arkus, an aye says, 'Pa! Ye're jus' spinnin a yarn!'" Fargo lifts the dagger and screws an eye at each of the trio,
"Tha's 'en 'e shows me this." Fargo turns the dagger so that the pommel is facing outward. Inscribed on the pommel is the same inscription as that on Talon's spear,
"Thogh' i'as th'only an aye did, till aye saw yers," Fargo produces a smallstone from an end table next to his chair. Holding the stone in his hand, drags the dagger across a protruding corner of the stone which slices away as easily as a raw potato under the pressure of of a chef's blade. The dwarf's eye's wander from one guest to the other,
"Ain' tha' a trick? Aye nayvar duted a ward maye fathar sayed from there oot."
Talon
notices that the smokeless candles look alot like the ones in the basement they wound up in before.
"These lights are same as in basement we went through in far away place. No smoke, and glass is almost same."
Fargo's eyes shoot up
"Na tha' c'n anlee mean an thin'. Them thar glasses'ar fand in anlee an part in all the warld: Rioc Alair, and th'anlee inn tha sparts these wares be th' Crystal Moog, an' a bute'ev'an inn she be. Aye s'pose we mayed a good guess as'ta ahr farst stoop, aye?"
[sblock=Translation]
"With that big of boat, won't feel like being off land maybe?" Talon asks with a hint of nervousness. "Dayna not feel good about going over so much water." the shifter whispers to Jin. Meanwhile, Dayna leaps atop a crate just as it is being hoisted up by the crane. The she-wolf rides the box all the way upward, before leaping down to the deck with the grace and power only a wild animal can display. She shows no signs of being uncomfortable or nervous. Unlike Talon himself.
The deck-hands and midshipmen approach Dayna cautiously. When she fails to exhibit an aggressive nature, they coax her over to the rail-gate where she meets the others as they finish climbing the net.
On the observation deck is a spread of normal sized chairs facing out into the harbor that is being just barely illuminated from behind by the glow, fortelling the sunrise. Fargo beckons you to sit down, produces a pipe, produces weed, lights, and takes a deep drag. He blows a smoke ring out into the dark west, which dances over the harbor waters and their reflections of the early morning shimmer.
"Your boat is awe inspiring, Fargo," Jin commented. "Does it employ magic, or is this all dwarven craftsmanship?"
"Alas, she's not a magical ship, but I thought you might recognize her. She's a Jade ship. She's over four hundred years old. The Jade Kingdom had fleets of them in tose days. Old Arkus convinced Hruthak to buy up six of them (he calls them their 'girls') to learn to sail. None of us knew how. Arkus studied the art and set off for the east where he found Rioc Parvel two hundred and eighty-six years ago. Kept four for himself and left the two others to Hruthak. Twenty years of trade and poof," Fargo snaps his fingrs and blows a cloud of smoke from the side of his mouth without removing the pipe from between his clenched teeth through which he's been talking all this time,
"Gone for ever. No trace, no word, and no maps, until now'." Fargo takes a seat in his own, dwarf-sized chair and props his feet up on the rail of the observation deck,
"Hruthak sent one of them after old Arkus, but it never came back." he puts his hands behind his head and rocks back on the reat two legs of his chair, musing,
"Crazy how old Bardir kept quiet all these years. Seems cowardly to lay low like he did," Another smokering emenates from Fargos lips, and he continues,
"Now I heared many a tall tale about old Arkus and Rioc Parvel. Most of them I said, when I was just a wee lad, are all bilge water. Then I got my sea-legs on life," Fargo gets up and produces a dagger from his belt,
"When I was just a young man, my father tells me this here story about old Arkus, and I said, 'Pa! You're just spinning a yarn!'" Fargo lifts the dagger and screws an eye at each of the trio,
"That's when he shows me this." Fargo turns the dagger so that the pommel is facing outward. Inscribed on the pommel is the same inscription as that on Talon's spear,
"Thoght it was the only one I did, till I saw yours," Fargo produces a smallstone from an end table next to his chair. Holding the stone in his hand, drags the dagger across a protruding corner of the stone which slices away as easily as a raw potato under the pressure of of a chef's blade. The dwarf's eye's wander from one guest to the other,
"Ain't that a trick? I never doubted a word my father said from there out."
Talon
notices that the smokeless candles look alot like the ones in the basement they wound up in before.
"These lights are same as in basement we went through in far away place. No smoke, and glass is almost same."
Fargo's eyes shoot up
"Now that can only mean one thing. Them there glasses are found in only one part in all the world: Rioc Alair, and the only inn that sports these wares is the Crystal Mug, and a beauty of an inn she is. I suppose we made a good guess as to our first stop, eh?"[/sblock]
, I show preference to P8 in that his effort and initiative lent significant material to the plot of the adventure. By comparison, the way the Hanged Man thread played out makes my original notes for this exchange look pitiful.
