Sailors on the Starless Sea

[doghead]

Siva and Narančasta

Homar looks pale, and fear in his eyes. He just need the right reason to bolt. The pain of his missing fingers are not helping any at all.

Siva pushes her torch into Homar's hand.

"Take this and stay close to me."

She takes her bow and strings it before nocking an arrow.

"Now what?" she says to Narančasta.

Narančasta squints at the vessel some 50 feet out to ... well, 50 feet off the shore. He shrugs.

"Well, its not completely unexpected," he adds, nodding in the direction of the way that they just came.

"Can you see anyone oneboard?"

 

[Scott DeWar]

Homer takes the torch in his good hand, instinctively guarding his injured one.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

Tender stops the progression and whispers, "We might want to douse those torches now. If anyone is in that boat, they'll realize we make a great, bright target from out of the darkness."

"Yes, I have a feeling we won't find any friends down here," Kurl replies.

Boral whispers in wonder, "Is this place man-made? It seems almost natural. I bet those poor bastards who built the fort above us had no idea what dwelt below them."

 

[doghead]

Siva and Narančasta

Tender stops the progression and whispers, "We might want to douse those torches now. If anyone is in that boat, they'll realize we make a great, bright target from out of the darkness."

"Yes, I have a feeling we won't find any friends down here," Kurl replies.

Boral whispers in wonder, "Is this place man-made? It seems almost natural. I bet those poor bastards who built the fort above us had no idea what dwelt below them."

Narančasta glances over at Kurl. He still is not sure what to make of the young man.

"The ones who built it maybe," he says in to Boral. "The ones who lived there until recently, I suspect did."

OOC: Is there enough light down here to see without torches?

 

[GlassEye]

The darkness is grey rather than the black of a totally subterranean cavern so light comes from somewhere. It is difficult to tell from where it comes but it is possible that the sinkhole in the courtyard above breaks through here. The strange swirling fog that masked the depth of that hole would diffuse any light from the surface.

The one light that is clearly visible is the flickering light far across the water. Tender is right that your torches probably make you just as visible. Since you can see the boat stopped in the water 50 feet or so offshore from where you stand you are fairly confident that you should be able to see, at least a little, without the torches.

You see no movement within the boat.

 

[Scott DeWar]

Homer snuffs out the light in the sand.

 

[doghead]

Narančasta and Siva

Narančasta looks up and down the shore.

"Well, unless someone wants to swim out to the boat, I suggest we explore the shore." Picking a direction (whichever seems to hold the most promise) he sets off.

"Come one. And keep your eyes open."

Siva shrugs and follows. She doesn't have a better idea.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

Tender agrees with Narancasta. "It's probably a good idea for us to look around first. If we can't manage to find a way across, we can then tackle the issue of the boat." He lends his own eyes for looking along the shore, as does Kurl and Boral.

 

[Scott DeWar]

Hank:" hH. Right then . . . . . uh, ok." He is obviously nervous.

Homer: Looks at his injured hand and grimaces, but says nothing. He looks like is trying to tough it out.

Frank: "Ummmmm." he looks at the boat and water for several seconds, then, "Sure! The Shore it is!"

 

[GlassEye]

When Homer snuffs his light out in the sand he sees numerous tracks of bestial feet, talons, hooves. There are hundreds of these bestial tracks covering the sands but a single trail of human footprints, as if a line of people marched along single-file. The glint of light in the sand also reveals five silver pieces scattered about.

Walking along the narrow shoreline (it is only 60 feet wide at a rough estimate) quickly reveals the only two features of note. The first, and most obvious, is the menhir that stands at the edge of the shore. The menhir is carved with intricate spirals that draw in the eye. Additionally, a narrow set of steps wind up the surface of the menhir.

The second noticeable feature is a narrow trickle of slimy water. Following it to the source, the group finds it winds across the beach but trickles down a pile of rubble from a narrow crack in the wall.