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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 61731" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Horacio: good question! Goodness knows our heroes have made a lot of enemies in a very short time... but the fact that the word had gotten out so quickly about the demise of a very famous--and very wealthy--pirate lord probably drew the unwanted attention of the thieves of Velen. Of course, it's always possible that deeper forces might be working behind the scenes (as always!) <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite8" alt=":D" title="Big grin :D" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":D" /></p><p></p><p>Croaker: thanks, and welcome to the story! Your question is very timely, given the plot ideas I've sketched out for future installments (you'll see what I mean, shortly <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" />) </p><p></p><p></p><p>* * * * * </p><p></p><p>Book II, Part 13</p><p></p><p>Repaired and replenished, with a new crew and renewed sense of purpose, the <em>Raindancer</em> went swiftly on its way, eating up the miles as it sailed steadily southward. </p><p></p><p>The weather held, with several new storms blowing past, but remaining just to the north of them. With a steady following wind they quickly navigated Asavir’s Channel and turned east, following the southern coast of the Velen Peninsula along the route known to sailors as the Race. The name seemed to hold true as the winds followed them along this route, allowing them to keep to their swift pace. They passed several islands, some bare spots of rock, others miles-long clusters of hill and forest, but saw no other ships, or any living creatures save for the occasional curious dolphin. The companions went about their normal activities, engaging themselves in work, leisure, or study as they saw fit. </p><p></p><p>They’d cashed in their writ from Captain Horath before their departure, so the weight of several freshly minted gold trade bars snuggled comfortably in their bag of holding. Benzan now wore the amulet he’d taken from the leader of the thugs they’d defeated; experimentation had confirmed his initial suspicion that the device bore an enchantment that toughened the skin of the person wearing it. With that additional natural armor protecting him, he felt better prepared for the next challenge. </p><p></p><p>As the days passed quietly, however, they began to feel that perhaps they’d left the worst dangers of the journey behind them. On the afternoon of their sixth day out of Velen, however, the now-familiar cry of the watchman drew the companions again to the aft deck. Captain Horath’s spyglass was out again, trained this time on a cluster of distant specks that hovered out over the surface of yet another small island several miles distant to their port side and ahead. </p><p></p><p>“What is it, captain?” Cal asked.</p><p></p><p>“Birds, maybe…” the captain replied, uncertain. “Big ones, looks like… coming this way.”</p><p></p><p>“Fat lot of excitement for nothing, then?” Benzan said lightly, but the others were not so ready to let down their guard. The captain had proven his instinct for danger that threatened his vessel, so they went about their preparations and kept an eye on the distant birds. </p><p></p><p>They did not have long to wait for the captain’s suspicions to be confirmed. The specks drew steadily nearer, making an apparent beeline for their position as the ship drew closer to the island. The captain took frequent looks at them through his glass, and handed it briefly to Delem when the sorcerer requested a look. </p><p></p><p>Delem turned the glass only briefly upon the approaching flock, then directed the glass toward the island. </p><p></p><p>“What do you see?” Dana asked him.</p><p></p><p>“There’s a wrecked ship on a reef near the island,” he said. “And I think that there’s a tower on top of the island, along the ridgeline.” He handed the glass back to Horath, who looked at the points Delem indicated. </p><p></p><p>“I see the shipwreck, but I can’t make out a tower… wait… no, I don’t see it.”</p><p></p><p>“Still, not a good sign,” Cal said, as he loaded his crossbow and checked to make sure that his wands were within easy reach. </p><p></p><p>As they drew nearer the specks resolved into eight distinct creatures, flying in a close formation. They didn’t seem particularly large, even as they got closer, but there was something strange about them, an incongruity that they couldn’t quite place. </p><p></p><p>“Four wings…” Captain Horath said, as he looked again through the spyglass. “They’ve got four wings…”</p><p></p><p>The companions looked to Cal, but the gnome only shrugged. “Beats me,” he said. “But I’ve never heard of any Faerunian native like that…”</p><p></p><p>“Of course not,” Benzan quipped. “It’d be too easy, if we were attacked by something that we’ve actually <em>heard</em> of…”</p><p></p><p>The strange birds drew closer until they were almost above the <em>Raindancer,</em> although they were far too high for even Lok’s bow to reach them. For a moment it looked like they were merely curious, content to remain high above, but then the creatures let out a loud squawk that carried clearly down to them, and they dove. </p><p></p><p>The <em>Raindancer’s</em> ballista could not get enough angle to fire a shot at the diving creatures, so it was Benzan and Lok who fired first, the arrows from their mighty longbows darting straight up into the air at them. Both shots missed, cutting through the formation harmlessly into the open air beyond. </p><p></p><p>The birds converged on the vessel with incredible speed, and somehow all of the bolts and arrows that were launched at them managed to miss them. As they drew nearer it became clear that in addition to their unusual four wings, the creatures were thin and wiry, with large beaks and long, slender tails that lashed out behind them as they flew. As they neared the ship, they pulled smoothly out of their dive, flying in a roughly circular formation above their heads. </p><p></p><p>Benzan finally scored a hit with his third arrow, the missile jutting into one bird’s body just below a wing joint. The bird squawked loudly, but the hit did not seem to hinder it as it kept its formation with its brothers. </p><p></p><p>And then, as the rest of the crew on the ship continued their ineffectual barrage, the birds launched their own attack. </p><p></p><p>Two swooped out of formation and down toward the crow’s nest, where the watchman was trying to score a hit with his shortbow. He missed with his last shot, and then, as the rest of them watched in amazement from below, both birds darted past at twenty paces distant, their tales lashing out in the direction of the archer. A stream of blue energy arced from each bird, striking the man solidly in the chest. His scream was cut short as he was knocked back, and tumbled out of his perch to fall toward the deck thirty feet below. </p><p></p><p>Cal whispered a word of magic, and quickly summoned his power. The energy of his spell caught up the hapless crewman, and just ten feet before he would have impacted the deck, his fall slowed to a gentle decline. Even as he landed, Ruath hurried over to him, reading with a spell of healing. </p><p></p><p>It was of no use, as the man was already dead. </p><p></p><p>There was little respite for the rest of them, however, as the bird-creatures continued their attack. The others dropped lower as they continued to circle the ship, and several discharged additional strands of electrical energy that slammed into the rigging of the <em>Raindancer.</em> One crossbar gave way with a direct hit, dropping half of the mainsail down onto the deck below. </p><p></p><p>“Focus your fire on one of them!” Benzan cried, as he targeted the bird he had already wounded. He fired one of his corrosive arrows, and the missile struck the creature again in the torso, splashing it with acid. The arrow clearly had an impact, this time, but the smoking acid seemed to have no effect at all.</p><p></p><p>“What manner of things are these?” the tiefling asked no one in particular.</p><p></p><p>It was clear that the birds could be hurt, although their agility in the air made it very difficult to hit them. Lok fired an arrow into the one Benzan had hurt, and with three arrows in it, the bird finally fell and splashed into the sea just off the <em>Raindancer’s</em> hull. Delem immediately started in on the next one, hitting it with a pair of magic missiles. One of the crewmen scored a hit on another, but another dozen missiles either went wide or glanced off of the birds’ unnaturally tough hides. </p><p></p><p>“This isn’t going very well!” Dana cried out as she hurriedly loaded another bolt into her crossbow.</p><p></p><p>It suddenly got worse, as the birds turned their electrical attacks upon the crew of the <em>Raindancer</em>.</p><p></p><p>Streams of energy slammed down onto the decks of the merchantman. Captain Horeth was struck, and staggered, while the crewmember next to him was hit by another and collapsed, wisps of smoke rising from her savaged back. Benzan dove out of the way of another bolt, while Lok took one full on, the electrical energy savaging the tough genasi. Both of the crewmen manning the ballista were hit, and fell, while Dana barely managed to dodge out of the way of the last one as it split open a barrel of fresh water. </p><p></p><p>“Give ‘em everything you got!” Benzan cried, firing another arrow, and then another after that without pause. His target dodged the first, but the second pierced its breast and struck something vital, by the way that the thing stiffened suddenly and fell into the water. “Take that!” he yelled as his victim vanished under the waves. “Who’s next?” he shouted in challenge.</p><p></p><p>Encouraged by his example, the others continued their attacks even as allies fell around them. Dana finally hit one, her bolt followed rapidly by two more missiles from Delem. Lok targeted the same one but missed, but another crewmember scored a hit on it a moment later, dropping the creature. </p><p></p><p>Ruath tended to a fallen crewmember, while Captain Horath continued a string of missed shots, the ordinarily stoic elf letting slip a few frustrated curses. Finally, Cal cast another spell, summoning an illusion of a small dragon that he directed toward the remaining birds. Two of the creatures screeched a challenge at the figment and lashed out at it with their electrical attacks, which of course passed harmlessly through it. </p><p></p><p>As if in reply to Benzan’s challenge, two of the remaining creatures swept down toward him, their harsh screeches filling the air around him. He drew another arrow, but before he could fire, the two lanced their rays into him, bracketing him with blue energy. The tiefling stiffened and staggered backward, somehow managing to keep his feet as the creatures swept past. As they darted up to regain altitude, Delem launched an arcing strand of flames into the first. The flames roared over the creature’s body, but when it drew away, it appeared to be unharmed by the attack. </p><p></p><p>“Resistant to fire, too!” the sorcerer breathed. </p><p></p><p>They were not, however, immune to the continued hail of bolts and arrows, and more of the missiles were beginning to find their marks. Another staggered as it was hit by an arrow from Lok’s bow, and as it tried to wheel away, Captain Horeth finally scored his first hit, impaling the creature with a long arrow. The bird flapped awkwardly down toward the <em>Raindancer,</em> and landed hard on the main deck. It barely had a chance to flap its wings piteously before a cluster of crewmembers hacked the fallen creature to pieces. </p><p></p><p>Reduced to half their number, the remaining creatures apparently decided they’d had enough, for they turned and headed back toward the island, rapidly gaining altitude as they beat their powerful wings. Benzan hit one more with a parting arrow as they retreated, although the bird did not fall. Soon they were once more out of range, fading again as they reached the skies over the distant island. </p><p></p><p>“Is everyone all right?” Cal asked. A number of them had been seriously hurt, particularly Benzan and Captain Horeth, and several of the crew were down and unconscious. The clerics responded quickly, though, and only the crewman who’d been in the crow’s nest was beyond help. Given the ferocity of the aerial assault, they counted their blessings and continued warily past the island. </p><p></p><p>“I wonder who lives there,” Delem said quietly to himself. None of the others had seen the strange tower, and none felt any particular curiosity as the ship quickly left the accursed place well behind them. </p><p></p><p>They studied the hacked body of the creature that had fallen onto their deck, but they learned little from its mangled form. The mystery of what the bird-creatures were, and what they were doing on that island, would have to wait for another time. </p><p></p><p>Another day passed into night, as the <em>Raindancer</em> continued on its journey.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 61731, member: 143"] Horacio: good question! Goodness knows our heroes have made a lot of enemies in a very short time... but the fact that the word had gotten out so quickly about the demise of a very famous--and very wealthy--pirate lord probably drew the unwanted attention of the thieves of Velen. Of course, it's always possible that deeper forces might be working behind the scenes (as always!) :D Croaker: thanks, and welcome to the story! Your question is very timely, given the plot ideas I've sketched out for future installments (you'll see what I mean, shortly ;)) * * * * * Book II, Part 13 Repaired and replenished, with a new crew and renewed sense of purpose, the [I]Raindancer[/I] went swiftly on its way, eating up the miles as it sailed steadily southward. The weather held, with several new storms blowing past, but remaining just to the north of them. With a steady following wind they quickly navigated Asavir’s Channel and turned east, following the southern coast of the Velen Peninsula along the route known to sailors as the Race. The name seemed to hold true as the winds followed them along this route, allowing them to keep to their swift pace. They passed several islands, some bare spots of rock, others miles-long clusters of hill and forest, but saw no other ships, or any living creatures save for the occasional curious dolphin. The companions went about their normal activities, engaging themselves in work, leisure, or study as they saw fit. They’d cashed in their writ from Captain Horath before their departure, so the weight of several freshly minted gold trade bars snuggled comfortably in their bag of holding. Benzan now wore the amulet he’d taken from the leader of the thugs they’d defeated; experimentation had confirmed his initial suspicion that the device bore an enchantment that toughened the skin of the person wearing it. With that additional natural armor protecting him, he felt better prepared for the next challenge. As the days passed quietly, however, they began to feel that perhaps they’d left the worst dangers of the journey behind them. On the afternoon of their sixth day out of Velen, however, the now-familiar cry of the watchman drew the companions again to the aft deck. Captain Horath’s spyglass was out again, trained this time on a cluster of distant specks that hovered out over the surface of yet another small island several miles distant to their port side and ahead. “What is it, captain?” Cal asked. “Birds, maybe…” the captain replied, uncertain. “Big ones, looks like… coming this way.” “Fat lot of excitement for nothing, then?” Benzan said lightly, but the others were not so ready to let down their guard. The captain had proven his instinct for danger that threatened his vessel, so they went about their preparations and kept an eye on the distant birds. They did not have long to wait for the captain’s suspicions to be confirmed. The specks drew steadily nearer, making an apparent beeline for their position as the ship drew closer to the island. The captain took frequent looks at them through his glass, and handed it briefly to Delem when the sorcerer requested a look. Delem turned the glass only briefly upon the approaching flock, then directed the glass toward the island. “What do you see?” Dana asked him. “There’s a wrecked ship on a reef near the island,” he said. “And I think that there’s a tower on top of the island, along the ridgeline.” He handed the glass back to Horath, who looked at the points Delem indicated. “I see the shipwreck, but I can’t make out a tower… wait… no, I don’t see it.” “Still, not a good sign,” Cal said, as he loaded his crossbow and checked to make sure that his wands were within easy reach. As they drew nearer the specks resolved into eight distinct creatures, flying in a close formation. They didn’t seem particularly large, even as they got closer, but there was something strange about them, an incongruity that they couldn’t quite place. “Four wings…” Captain Horath said, as he looked again through the spyglass. “They’ve got four wings…” The companions looked to Cal, but the gnome only shrugged. “Beats me,” he said. “But I’ve never heard of any Faerunian native like that…” “Of course not,” Benzan quipped. “It’d be too easy, if we were attacked by something that we’ve actually [I]heard[/I] of…” The strange birds drew closer until they were almost above the [I]Raindancer,[/I] although they were far too high for even Lok’s bow to reach them. For a moment it looked like they were merely curious, content to remain high above, but then the creatures let out a loud squawk that carried clearly down to them, and they dove. The [I]Raindancer’s[/I] ballista could not get enough angle to fire a shot at the diving creatures, so it was Benzan and Lok who fired first, the arrows from their mighty longbows darting straight up into the air at them. Both shots missed, cutting through the formation harmlessly into the open air beyond. The birds converged on the vessel with incredible speed, and somehow all of the bolts and arrows that were launched at them managed to miss them. As they drew nearer it became clear that in addition to their unusual four wings, the creatures were thin and wiry, with large beaks and long, slender tails that lashed out behind them as they flew. As they neared the ship, they pulled smoothly out of their dive, flying in a roughly circular formation above their heads. Benzan finally scored a hit with his third arrow, the missile jutting into one bird’s body just below a wing joint. The bird squawked loudly, but the hit did not seem to hinder it as it kept its formation with its brothers. And then, as the rest of the crew on the ship continued their ineffectual barrage, the birds launched their own attack. Two swooped out of formation and down toward the crow’s nest, where the watchman was trying to score a hit with his shortbow. He missed with his last shot, and then, as the rest of them watched in amazement from below, both birds darted past at twenty paces distant, their tales lashing out in the direction of the archer. A stream of blue energy arced from each bird, striking the man solidly in the chest. His scream was cut short as he was knocked back, and tumbled out of his perch to fall toward the deck thirty feet below. Cal whispered a word of magic, and quickly summoned his power. The energy of his spell caught up the hapless crewman, and just ten feet before he would have impacted the deck, his fall slowed to a gentle decline. Even as he landed, Ruath hurried over to him, reading with a spell of healing. It was of no use, as the man was already dead. There was little respite for the rest of them, however, as the bird-creatures continued their attack. The others dropped lower as they continued to circle the ship, and several discharged additional strands of electrical energy that slammed into the rigging of the [I]Raindancer.[/I] One crossbar gave way with a direct hit, dropping half of the mainsail down onto the deck below. “Focus your fire on one of them!” Benzan cried, as he targeted the bird he had already wounded. He fired one of his corrosive arrows, and the missile struck the creature again in the torso, splashing it with acid. The arrow clearly had an impact, this time, but the smoking acid seemed to have no effect at all. “What manner of things are these?” the tiefling asked no one in particular. It was clear that the birds could be hurt, although their agility in the air made it very difficult to hit them. Lok fired an arrow into the one Benzan had hurt, and with three arrows in it, the bird finally fell and splashed into the sea just off the [I]Raindancer’s[/I] hull. Delem immediately started in on the next one, hitting it with a pair of magic missiles. One of the crewmen scored a hit on another, but another dozen missiles either went wide or glanced off of the birds’ unnaturally tough hides. “This isn’t going very well!” Dana cried out as she hurriedly loaded another bolt into her crossbow. It suddenly got worse, as the birds turned their electrical attacks upon the crew of the [I]Raindancer[/I]. Streams of energy slammed down onto the decks of the merchantman. Captain Horeth was struck, and staggered, while the crewmember next to him was hit by another and collapsed, wisps of smoke rising from her savaged back. Benzan dove out of the way of another bolt, while Lok took one full on, the electrical energy savaging the tough genasi. Both of the crewmen manning the ballista were hit, and fell, while Dana barely managed to dodge out of the way of the last one as it split open a barrel of fresh water. “Give ‘em everything you got!” Benzan cried, firing another arrow, and then another after that without pause. His target dodged the first, but the second pierced its breast and struck something vital, by the way that the thing stiffened suddenly and fell into the water. “Take that!” he yelled as his victim vanished under the waves. “Who’s next?” he shouted in challenge. Encouraged by his example, the others continued their attacks even as allies fell around them. Dana finally hit one, her bolt followed rapidly by two more missiles from Delem. Lok targeted the same one but missed, but another crewmember scored a hit on it a moment later, dropping the creature. Ruath tended to a fallen crewmember, while Captain Horath continued a string of missed shots, the ordinarily stoic elf letting slip a few frustrated curses. Finally, Cal cast another spell, summoning an illusion of a small dragon that he directed toward the remaining birds. Two of the creatures screeched a challenge at the figment and lashed out at it with their electrical attacks, which of course passed harmlessly through it. As if in reply to Benzan’s challenge, two of the remaining creatures swept down toward him, their harsh screeches filling the air around him. He drew another arrow, but before he could fire, the two lanced their rays into him, bracketing him with blue energy. The tiefling stiffened and staggered backward, somehow managing to keep his feet as the creatures swept past. As they darted up to regain altitude, Delem launched an arcing strand of flames into the first. The flames roared over the creature’s body, but when it drew away, it appeared to be unharmed by the attack. “Resistant to fire, too!” the sorcerer breathed. They were not, however, immune to the continued hail of bolts and arrows, and more of the missiles were beginning to find their marks. Another staggered as it was hit by an arrow from Lok’s bow, and as it tried to wheel away, Captain Horeth finally scored his first hit, impaling the creature with a long arrow. The bird flapped awkwardly down toward the [I]Raindancer,[/I] and landed hard on the main deck. It barely had a chance to flap its wings piteously before a cluster of crewmembers hacked the fallen creature to pieces. Reduced to half their number, the remaining creatures apparently decided they’d had enough, for they turned and headed back toward the island, rapidly gaining altitude as they beat their powerful wings. Benzan hit one more with a parting arrow as they retreated, although the bird did not fall. Soon they were once more out of range, fading again as they reached the skies over the distant island. “Is everyone all right?” Cal asked. A number of them had been seriously hurt, particularly Benzan and Captain Horeth, and several of the crew were down and unconscious. The clerics responded quickly, though, and only the crewman who’d been in the crow’s nest was beyond help. Given the ferocity of the aerial assault, they counted their blessings and continued warily past the island. “I wonder who lives there,” Delem said quietly to himself. None of the others had seen the strange tower, and none felt any particular curiosity as the ship quickly left the accursed place well behind them. They studied the hacked body of the creature that had fallen onto their deck, but they learned little from its mangled form. The mystery of what the bird-creatures were, and what they were doing on that island, would have to wait for another time. Another day passed into night, as the [I]Raindancer[/I] continued on its journey. [/QUOTE]
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