Knightfall
World of Kulan DM
The start of this story hour can be found here.
PROLOGUE: JOURNEY TO THE FALLENLANDS - PART II
The Ishtar limps along Harqual's coastline for several days. The damage done to the ship was extensive. Several times the ship comes dangerously close to sinking. Many of the dead are given a burial at sea, but Salisan insists on a proper grave for his first mate.
The reef giant captain believes they are somewhere south of the Jagged Peninsula, but he can not be sure. Then they finally find a safe anchoring point. The Ishtar comes in near the old quarries of Miners' Den. It's not ideal, but it is safe from the worst the sea has to throw at the ship and its crew.
Salisan orders for a marked grave for Calbrunnor. He will be just another one of the dead that were buried in this region in ages past. However, Salisan uses his great strength to lift and place a large rock to be his first mate's tombstone. Mesik does a fine job of carving the man's name on the stone and an honorific regarding his service on the Ishtar.
The heroes and crew stand around the grave for many moments of silence before Captain Marg barks out to the crew, “Now, let's get the Ishtar seaworthy again!”
The crew shouts a hurray and quickly gets to work making repairs.
From the Journal of Bactra Redwind, son of Minonus
“We've been anchored on the coast of Harqual in a region the crew calls the Miners' Den for over two weeks. Supposedly this region was where, in ages past, the kingdoms of the Eastern Shores came to quarry stone. The region is considered a no-man's-land, although it officially sits within the borders of the Kingdom of Stonn. The time spent here has been a blessing of the gods. Wounds, both physical and mental, have been given time to heal under Thessa's care. The men adore her like a matronly mother or a little sister. It's good that they are all human men, and that none of them consider her a romantic interest — Dvalin would likely go into a rage if that happened. He rarely leaves her side anymore.
Crystal has been both a boon and a bane. The men adore her too. But their interests are not pure. She's learned to wear less revealing outfits while on deck, although she flirts with a few of the more dashing sailors. One of them gave her a fancy sailor's hat to wear and I have to admit, my cousin is quite the beauty in it. Dabuk is less protective of her than he used to be. She stood spell to spell versus the Foulsoul and won. Impressive!
Spirits have been kept high by friend Jeddar's skill as a bard. I don't know what we would have done without him. My cousin, Dabuk has spent most of his time talking strategy tactics and survival skills with Salisan. Rikin has been acting as the ship's third-in-command behind Salisan's new first mate, Jansen. Jansen came aboard the Ishtar as the ship's cook. However, many experienced sailors died during the attack by the Black Death and Jansen became the best choice to replace Calbrunnor due to his years of experience. Mesik has been doing a fair job as the new cook, although the men are getting tired of root and rabbit stew. I think its delicious and a good change from nothing but fish and potatoes.
Hougwarth has been his usual self, much to the chagrin of everyone else. He tries. He really does, but he just can't seem to get over his clumsiness. Yes, his strength is useful, but we keep him away from the tools and the breakables. He spends most of his time trading jokes with Jeddar, which the crew seems to like. The men don't hate or fear Hugh; he's too funny, even if I isn't always intentional.
I spend most of my time reading, keeping an eye on Teal, or talking with Nanesa. The men have learned to stay away from my sister! I have made it very clear to them that she is off limits. Dabuk still dislikes having her on board and tried to convince me to force her to go home to the Knotwood. I wasn't about to send her by herself, and I didn't want to try to get her there myself without her running away. She spends most of her time on land, which means I spend most of my time shadowing her. Nanesa has been keeping me company, which has been a joy. Her first foray onto land was frightening for her. Tritons normally cannot survive on land, but her duel heritage gives her the ability to breath air and walk on land. Still, she gets tired easily. It's a good excuse to force my sister back onto the ship. She's fond of Nanesa too. The two of them spend a lot of time together alone in the wardroom.
It has been an interesting time here, and when we come back from the Fallenlands, I'm going to have to do more research about this region. The ship is nearly done. The men are getting everything in order for us to set sail. Spot and I have taken this time to visit the beach one more time. Spot is my opossum familiar. Teal is sitting a few feet away chatting with Nanesa. They have been talking, laughing and whispering to each other for the last hour.
It's good that my sister has a friend.”
PROLOGUE: JOURNEY TO THE FALLENLANDS - PART II
The Ishtar limps along Harqual's coastline for several days. The damage done to the ship was extensive. Several times the ship comes dangerously close to sinking. Many of the dead are given a burial at sea, but Salisan insists on a proper grave for his first mate.
The reef giant captain believes they are somewhere south of the Jagged Peninsula, but he can not be sure. Then they finally find a safe anchoring point. The Ishtar comes in near the old quarries of Miners' Den. It's not ideal, but it is safe from the worst the sea has to throw at the ship and its crew.
Salisan orders for a marked grave for Calbrunnor. He will be just another one of the dead that were buried in this region in ages past. However, Salisan uses his great strength to lift and place a large rock to be his first mate's tombstone. Mesik does a fine job of carving the man's name on the stone and an honorific regarding his service on the Ishtar.
The heroes and crew stand around the grave for many moments of silence before Captain Marg barks out to the crew, “Now, let's get the Ishtar seaworthy again!”
The crew shouts a hurray and quickly gets to work making repairs.
From the Journal of Bactra Redwind, son of Minonus
“We've been anchored on the coast of Harqual in a region the crew calls the Miners' Den for over two weeks. Supposedly this region was where, in ages past, the kingdoms of the Eastern Shores came to quarry stone. The region is considered a no-man's-land, although it officially sits within the borders of the Kingdom of Stonn. The time spent here has been a blessing of the gods. Wounds, both physical and mental, have been given time to heal under Thessa's care. The men adore her like a matronly mother or a little sister. It's good that they are all human men, and that none of them consider her a romantic interest — Dvalin would likely go into a rage if that happened. He rarely leaves her side anymore.
Crystal has been both a boon and a bane. The men adore her too. But their interests are not pure. She's learned to wear less revealing outfits while on deck, although she flirts with a few of the more dashing sailors. One of them gave her a fancy sailor's hat to wear and I have to admit, my cousin is quite the beauty in it. Dabuk is less protective of her than he used to be. She stood spell to spell versus the Foulsoul and won. Impressive!
Spirits have been kept high by friend Jeddar's skill as a bard. I don't know what we would have done without him. My cousin, Dabuk has spent most of his time talking strategy tactics and survival skills with Salisan. Rikin has been acting as the ship's third-in-command behind Salisan's new first mate, Jansen. Jansen came aboard the Ishtar as the ship's cook. However, many experienced sailors died during the attack by the Black Death and Jansen became the best choice to replace Calbrunnor due to his years of experience. Mesik has been doing a fair job as the new cook, although the men are getting tired of root and rabbit stew. I think its delicious and a good change from nothing but fish and potatoes.
Hougwarth has been his usual self, much to the chagrin of everyone else. He tries. He really does, but he just can't seem to get over his clumsiness. Yes, his strength is useful, but we keep him away from the tools and the breakables. He spends most of his time trading jokes with Jeddar, which the crew seems to like. The men don't hate or fear Hugh; he's too funny, even if I isn't always intentional.
I spend most of my time reading, keeping an eye on Teal, or talking with Nanesa. The men have learned to stay away from my sister! I have made it very clear to them that she is off limits. Dabuk still dislikes having her on board and tried to convince me to force her to go home to the Knotwood. I wasn't about to send her by herself, and I didn't want to try to get her there myself without her running away. She spends most of her time on land, which means I spend most of my time shadowing her. Nanesa has been keeping me company, which has been a joy. Her first foray onto land was frightening for her. Tritons normally cannot survive on land, but her duel heritage gives her the ability to breath air and walk on land. Still, she gets tired easily. It's a good excuse to force my sister back onto the ship. She's fond of Nanesa too. The two of them spend a lot of time together alone in the wardroom.
It has been an interesting time here, and when we come back from the Fallenlands, I'm going to have to do more research about this region. The ship is nearly done. The men are getting everything in order for us to set sail. Spot and I have taken this time to visit the beach one more time. Spot is my opossum familiar. Teal is sitting a few feet away chatting with Nanesa. They have been talking, laughing and whispering to each other for the last hour.
It's good that my sister has a friend.”
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