Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ruined" data-source="post: 1229961" data-attributes="member: 113">8th of Chardot, yr. 150 A.V., continued Gerad heard Tréan’s scream, and saw that she had disappeared from the port railing. He had just looked at her moments before. Without hesitation, he ran to the other side. There was no sign of Tréan, but there was a mass of water and spume not far from the ship. “Overboard!” he cried out, and dove into the water. Surielle turned and watched Gerad leap from the boat. Her jaw dropped, trying to quickly assess what had happened. She looked back to Volanduros, who was also staring towards the front of the ship. In the torch gleam, she saw another figure: scaly and serpentine. It rose from the side of the ship, impossibly tall, with a length of spear in its grasp. “Volanduros. Look out!” From her warning, the elf narrowly dodged as the creature lunged at him with its spear. He looked at his enemy with disgust and then leapt from the wheel down to the main deck, leaving Surielle standing there. As he went, he called out to Mikkal: “Pisceans!” Tréan, always the practical one, knew she was lost. She had not worn all of her armor, as she was on a ship, but she wore enough to slow down any attempts to swim. She could make it under normal circumstances, but her leg was pierced clean through, and still she was being dragged down. She looked down the length of chain and gasped out a bubble of air at the piscean before her. It was reeling in the chain, and she swore she could see its teeth revealed in a wicked smile. Suddenly the water exploded beside her, and Gerad was there. He looked at the enemy below, then turned back to the harpoon and fountain of blood. He gripped one end of it and looked at Tréan. She nodded and grasped the other end. Together they snapped the shaft of the harpoon and pulled it free from her leg. Tréan thought she could almost hear the roar from the piscean below. Back aboard the Whispering Dragon, Surielle followed her instincts and went against every warning uttered by sailors. She said a devotion to Denev and caused her flame scythe to appear in her hands. She could see the piscean before her, its mottled black scales reflected in the firelight. The captain could run, but she and Snowmelt would not falter so easily. The piscean lashed out with its spear in a wide arc, ripping her forearm. Surielle could feel a sting there, much like saltwater on a cut. She dearly hoped it was not poisoned, for the sake of her companions. She stepped forward, close to the edge where the piscean waited, and slashed the scythe through the creature. The flames sizzled across its body, causing steam to rise from its cracking scales. The beast roared out in agony and drew back from her. Snowmelt moved up beside Surielle, growling in anticipation of the piscean’s return. Tréan and Gerad surfaced, immediately turning to look at the ship. Gerad saw two pisceans extending from the water upon long, serpentine tails, and some hint of flames on the deck. “We can’t out-swim this one,” he said as he spat water from his mouth. Tréan knew he meant to swim back down and fight the piscean alone. She placed a hand on his shoulder, cautioning him to wait for a moment. “May you fight with the strength of Her sun.” A fiery radiance briefly played over his form, and then dissipated as the bull’s strength took effect. Gerad drew his sword from his belt, took a deep breath, and dove back under. “You will not fight it alone, Gerad,” Tréan said, and began moving her hands in a different pattern. Wounded and fighting to stay afloat, Trean persevered and reached for the glorious touch of her deity. The tide had turned for Surielle and Snowmelt as the piscean landed punishing blows with its huge spear. She cursed the narrow design of the ship, which gave her precious little room to maneuver. The piscean coiled forward, still extending its torso above the Whispering Dragon. As it neared for another assault, Volanduros appeared from nowhere, hacking into its side with a sword of his own. “I could use some help!” “So can Mikkal! He fights one alone!” Surielle looked beyond Valanduros to see Mikkal, who was using the web-like rigging to avoid the strikes of yet another piscean. And Gerad and Tréan were nowhere to be seen. Gerad chided himself as he swam forward with sword in hand. These creatures were deadly and far more adept at underwater combat than a simple infantry soldier. All he hoped for was to buy Tréan some time to return to the ship and then he could worry about himself. He spotted the piscean advancing quickly from deep below. He dove down to meet it, feeling ill-prepared to fight in this environment. They traded blows, each scoring a wound that trailed dark blood in the murky waters. The creature was cunning, as it tried to wrap its coils around Gerad to drown him. He kicked away with his newfound strength, and landed another blow with his sword. Gerad’s lungs were starting to burn as he fought. Both Gerad and the piscean were surprised to see a glowing spear manifest in the waters with them. He knew this was Tréan’s working. The foolish woman had not left the combat when she could. The piscean struck him twice more, but Gerad knew that he now held the advantage. He pressed, digging in deep with the sword and scoring it across the pisceans torso. It shuddered and then pushed away, hurtling deep into the dark waters below, trailing a cloud of ichor. Surielle, Snowmelt, and Valanduros proved too much for the advancing piscean. When it moved aggressively towards one, the remaining two would close in and strike true. Valanduros took the final blow, burying his sword deep into the creature’s neck. Surielle wasted no time when she saw its death and moved to assist Mikkal. She feared she was too late as he dropped from the rigging, but Mikkal landed upon his feet. His breaches were slick with blood, but still he fought on against the marauding piscean. As it moved with intent toward him, Surielle dove forward, scarring the flames of her scythe across its face. The piscean roared at the druid and gouged her firmly with the spear. Surielle’s head swam, and beyond the immediate conflict, she could hear Valanduros yelling to drop anchor. Who was he yelling at? She and Mikkal were busy, and everyone else was gone. The piscean reached forward, grasping her by her neck with a clammy hand. All of a sudden, Surielle’s senses returned to her, and she plunged the flaming scythe directly into its chest. Its body sizzled and jerked, but she would not let go with the weapon. Finally, the piscean released its grip from her and slid quietly back into the river waters. “What of my friends?” she asked as Valanduros moved up beside her. “I’m sorry. They went overboard in the fray.” She nodded, tears forming in her eyes. She stepped over to the railing, searching for something to say to her friends, when she noticed movement in the waters below. “They’re close by! They’re in the water, and they’re alive!” She also noticed a few sinister forms behind the Whispering Dragon a ways off. More pisceans, no doubt. In quick order, Mikkal helped to pull Tréan and Gerad from the Broadreach while Valanduros unfurled the sails. As soon as they were aboard, the anchor was pulled and the ship began sailing north yet again. The pisceans were left behind, and the party sailed ahead in quiet horror.</blockquote>

Verification