The Grateful Dead

July 4th - 9th, Albanus 1

Before Clarissa Benoble's father, Count Coronatus, arrived, the band had a few private words with the lady, seeking to discover why she was so sure that her former husband, Magnus Tillaford, was a demon-worshipper.  Unfortunately, Clarissa's information wasn't as scandalous as they'd hoped.  She knew that her husband frequented Mystery Cults whose theology was shakey, and that there had been some hints of human sacrifice to sate Crescens.  Given her husband's cruelty and malice, the Surrexus' letter made perfect sense to her.  The main priestess of Crescens in Tillaford was corrupt, she said, and Magnus worked primarily with Sir Pelius and Surilla.  Though on a couple occasions, she'd also seen a strange knight with a hideously scarred face -- it looked as though someone had slashed him, a hundred times.  Clarissa had no idea who this man was.  He only visited at night and wore a helmet most of the time.  Surilla seemed to know him, however, because she kissed him most affectionately.

The discussions with the Count went fairly well.  Though he was clearly nervous, Coronatus Benobles was thoroughly hemmed in with evidence.  The paladins attested to the demonic cult at Altus Heights, and the band produced the little statue that suggested that Ferinus Molossus was murdered for discovering this temple.  Abbess Halaessa and his own county of Benobles were threatened in one of the letters from this site.  And his daughter swore that her ex-husband knew about Altus Heights and might well sacrifice their son to win a demon's favor.  Even Larentius added his bit, explaining how he'd been forced to lie about Count Arius and Countess Matina -- evidence that suggested King Albanus was complicit in the plot.  Reluctantly, Coronatus agreed to join an uprising, should it occur and not appear suicidal.  He said he'd begin raising troops and explore the possibility of hiring mercenaries from Vardane.

He also agreed to give the band a ship.  Count Benobles didn't want to use one of his own vessels, but he agreed to free a smuggler called Raff Skunk-Biter, the master of the Skipping Stone.  In exchange for his freedom, the smuggler would take them to Harrans and wherever else they needed to go.  With that, Clarissa thanked them once again for their help, and prepared to go with her father "someplace safe", where she could hide with her baby.

That afternoon the band rode north to the city of Benobles, where a grouchy knight released Capt. Raff to them.  The skipper appeared to have gotten his name from his prodigious bad breath.  He was sorely puzzled about his new freedom -- but didn't wish to question it.  As the band did a little shopping, he gathered his scattered crew and prepared to sail.  Gaius traded his chain shirt for Philipus' leather armor, a swap that left the former bandit puffed with pride.

The sailors who straggled on board were a scruffy lot of Altanians and Vardanians.  Most of them didn't speak much Rostillan.  There was one slight moment of tension during the boarding.  The cabin boy -- a curly-haired youngster wearing stained silks and a silver earring -- took umbrage at Marius (who was about a year older than him).  

        [ooc conversation:]

        [Jenny:  What's Marius' charisma?]

        [James:  I don't think I'm comfortable with that question in these circumstances...]

Severus, sensing an imminent cat-fight, told him that Marius was not a new cabin-boy, he was a guest.  Once this little detail was cleared up, things went swimmingly.  Marius was baffled by the exchange, but said nothing.

The trip to Harrans took five days and nights.  The first part of the voyage passed uneventfully, except for a brief visit from some mischievous air elementals.  Captain Raff burned some Sobellian incense for them until they left.  Marius was able to discover that the source of the captain's truly hideous halitosis was a large number of rotten teeth.  A cure disease from Lucellus and a healing spell from Corvina straightened him up, to the smuggler's great joy.  Meanwhile Regulus watched Lucellus closely, worried about his friend's quiet.  Normally Lucellus went berserk from boredom when he was on a ship;  now, he spent hours watching the waves quietly.  Repeated attempts to distract him and to teach him poker did little to pull him away from thoughts about Mores.

All was quiet and uneventful.  In fact, the most dangerous moments came during a conversation between Titus and a couple of the sailors.  The paladin was attempting to convince them to change their ways, when the puzzled Vardanians asked him where his squire was.  He didn't have one, Titus said -- would the man like to be his squire?  The looks of shock that filled the mariners' faces convinced Corvina that there was a slight translation error going on.  

He was too old, the man snapped.  Age was no concern, Titus assured him.  His friends laughed and said he was way too ugly to be a squire.  Squire don't have to be handsome, Titus said... beginning to be a bit puzzled himself.  What was important was that "the Gods spoke through them."  The baffled sailors couldn't make sense of that phrase, and decided it must mean something like "make noise".  Now, the Vardanians thought any man could be excused for looking at a pretty young boy.  But a man who didn't care what ugly old Fisk looked like, so long as he made noise...  That was a serious pervert.

When the confusion reached its peak, Corvina cleared up the translation error.  The sailors were tempted to share the joke with Titus... until Severus pointed out that his brother might have to kill them if he knew what they'd been suggesting!

On the night of the 9th, the Skipping Stone neared the cliffs of Harrans.  Shortly before midnight Gaius, who was on watch, heard a terrible shriek from the deck, and the sound of flapping wings.  Rushing up the stairs he spotted a juvenile red dragon making for the cliffs with a screaming sailor in its grasp.  Unfortunately (for it...) it wasn't quite strong enough to lift the man, and was slowly sinking towards the waves.  When Gaius sank an arrow into its haunch, it dropped the wounded man into the sea.

The rest of the band poured onto the deck, as the terrified sailors retreated below.  Sir Marcus and Philipus grabbed a rope and threw it to the man overboard.  Titus waved his sword at the creature and taunted it to come back.  Dragons have a keen eye for magic (particularly reds), and the thing's eyes lit up at the sight of the paladin's blade.  There was only one hitch:  people were tightly packed near the stairs below deck.  So rather than closing, the dragon flew down to the ship's railing and breathed, sending gouts of fire washing across a half dozen people.

Gaius, Leyna, and Titus were badly burned;  Lucellus and Regulus less so.  Philipus and Marcus caught the brunt of the flames, however, and Philipus dropped to the deck, screaming and charring.  Corvina, who had not made it onto the deck, sprinted out under the dragon's wings and cast a healing spell, preventing him from dying.  But the man-at-arms was clearly maimed;  Marcus managed to scoop him up and stagger below deck, badly injured himself.

Leyna, Severus, and Gaius continued to fire at the dragon but most of the arrows glanced off its scales.  The party spread out, but the creature appeared content to hover and catch its breath for another assault.  As it paused, Regulus fled across the deck, dropping his sword in the midst of the other warriors as he ran.  Overcome by a flash of greed, the dragon made its fatal mistake and swooped in to snatch the magical weapon.

As soon as it closed, the party threw everything they had at it.  Titus and Lucellus both smote the creature, doing great damage to it, and Corvina hit it with an ice spell that frosted its haunches nicely.  The badly injured dragon snapped up its prize... only to discover that Regulus' sword was a holy blade that burned in its clutch.  Screeching in rage the dragon dropped the sword and attempted to flee.  But it never made it.  The next flurry of blows brought it low, and Titus drove his sword through its chest.

Silence returned to the night, mingled with the scent of charred flesh and hair.  And the party turned to tended its wounded.