[IC] Elder Scrolls: Terror of the Padomaic

[Lucius Cypher]

"Of course Sharee. The Boom Stick is more of a personal project, but hopefully once I figure out how it works, I'll be able to share it with you and the rest of the crew. With any luck, I could replace the ballistas with even bigger Boom Sticks." Taking his journal back Malakaus was just going to sit and wait again when Sharee mentioned his Typhoon Warriors. He wondered how they were taking care of the ship now. While it would be an amusing sight to see the place in utter chaos, it also would realistically not be good for him or the other officers. Still, he trusted that they were taking care of the ship. It broguht a smile to his face as he told Sharee more about them. "Ah yes, my Typhoon Warriors. I'd admit, I didn't really have much hope for them at first. The Orcs, Harasha And Sheol, both lovers and rather reclusive. You never see one without the other too far. Harasha is a better fighter out of the two, but Sheol is a decent Conjuror herself. She's the one who I rely on to get my Fire Salts. I don't know how she does it, but she came make those things linger in our world long enough to get what we want from them, and than poof! Off to Oblivion with them. Makes cleaning up easy. The Argonians are useless in a fight, but they're the ones who helped me figure out the blasting formula, and if they're not doing that they're handling enchanting. They're Three-Horns and Day Ray. I think it was Dar Ray who showed me the formula, I can never tell those two apart sometimes. They bicker a lot though, so maybe having them work separately would be better. And..." Malakaus sighed when he got to Fletcher. "Than there's the Bosmer. Fletcher. Lying little bastard. I don't know how he managed to make it this far without a dagger in his guts. Fancies himself a dashing swordsman, but he's just a ponce. At least I can make him put his mouth to use, he's been able to get me good deals on soul gems as well as gathering information since we've arrived. And as his name suggest, he can make arrows pretty well too. It's just about the only thing I respect about him."

Malakaus leaned back and thought about his team composition. While he isn't too worried about the two orc women, but the other three would benefit from his Boom Sticks the most. He wasn't sure if he could trust Fletcher with one, but given that Malakaus hasn't killed him yet, he suppose that the bosmer has earned his chance. If nothing else, Malakaus can use him to test out the Boom Sticks first. "Despite their quirks, I think I whipped them into some order of shape. I leave it to Harasha to bark my orders out if I can't do it myself, and Sheol is no push over despite being a mage. I leave it to them to keep the crew in shape, training and what not. Three-Horns is probably the best enchanter next to me and Dar Ray is good with money. He's got a plan for me depending on where our next ports going to be. Says that if he can figure out where we're heading, he can tell me what sort of things I ought to make to trade. An economists, that one. Even Fletcher has a sort of underdog determination that makes me refrain from throwing him overboard. I've beaten him down at least three times since I've met him, but he keeps crawling back to me. I don't know if he plans to stab me in the back when I get to complacent or if he's just that wimpy, but either way I plan to make him work one way or another." There was a certain amount of pride in his voice. Malakaus himself didn't think much of it, he's made crews out of worse, but considering that he only had them for a week he thought that what he did do with them so far was quite an accomplishment. While he hasn't really commanded their respect, at least they listen to his orders.

"Any reason you need them? I planned to put them strait to work once we get back. I want to get my hands on that malachite and moonstone. I'm thinking of making a full set of glass armor, and using the rest of the material to make weapons. Might send Fletcher back to the city to see if he can find someone selling Quick Silver so I have something to do with the excess Moonstone. Of course, that's after we divide our share of the collected loot."

[The New Yorker]

Sarel nodded at Malakaus, glared at the chest as he left. It was, indeed, bound to be heavy, that was fairly obvious, but it needed to be taken; it’d be wasted if left here. Sarel leaned cooly against the cavernous wall, adjusting his swords and armor to be more comfortable. Sarel dipped into his rucksack and retrieved one of his magic potions. He downed it and the bottle disappeared; sent to the inventory void, to be used again later. It tasted a little like blueberry, a recipe of Beilin himself. The man was so practical, so rational, yet he held such a high esteem for aesthetics. He taught Sarel of the beauty and elegance of the red sash. It was both inspiring to allies, and demeaning to enemies. It flowed about his form as easily as his sword, and that was the point, to draw the comparison clearly, and eloquently.

Sarel felt a pang of nostalgia as he waited for his magicka reserves to be filled once again. He missed his master so much, and there was nothing he could do about it. Sarel almost felt that he could weep right there, if he wanted to. Fortunately he had other things to do.

Serge passed him by carrying an armband crossbow. He plucked at it’s bows and smiled as he began fitting it on himself. “I’m going to like being a pirate, Sarel. How about you?” He called behind him as he continued on.

“I’m not quite sure,” The Dunmer said to himself more than to his friend.

With confidence Sarel rose from the wall, lifted his hands slightly above his waist and closed his eyes. His hands glowed a bright yellow and twinkling powder fizzed from somewhere on his skin. It fell to the floor and disappeared, it was physical magicka. The top to the chest slammed shut, locked itself. Sarel breathed deeply, his tattoo seemed to drip from his skin and into his eyes; he opened them, now an inky black. “By your grace, Boeth.” Sarel whispered to himself. A yellow outline appeared around the chest and it was lifted slightly, fell back down. Sarel lifted his hands forcefully and the case levitated to chest height immediately. Sarel moved it forward, walking behind it at a brisk pace. Once out of the cave Sarel stood still, moved the chest gently over the boat, and then slowly into it. The boat dipped a little further into the water and Sarel leaned in exhaustion against the outside wall, falling onto a nearby chair. Serge jogged up to his friend and tapped his shoulder.

“Are you alright, Brother?” Serge asked, worry lingering on his words.

“Yes, I think I will be.” Sarel said as he lifted his head. His eyes were still black, he blinked at the darkness receded back to his skin.

“Would you like a stammy?” Serge asked, referencing his Armyman origins.

“No, I’m alright.”

Sarel sat there for a little while as Serge went to the boat to speak with Sharee.

“Sarel is tired right now. He should rest a while, but he’ll be fit in no time. So, since we can’t all be in the boat, I might as well stay with him while you all head back. We can take care of ourselves, as long as we’re together anyway.”

As Sharee answered Noelle appeared from the cave, followed by her companion. She asked about the garden. Sarel put on a little smile, remembering his intent.

“Ah, yes. It’s not that I know something you don’t, but rather, I can do things you cant.” Sarel began. “I can find the space for it somewhere on the ship, I assure you. I oversee all maintenance and construction on the ship. I can give it a push, you see. All I ask, my dear, are two small plots for myself. Nothing more, nothing less. I’ve realized I need to grow my own herba. That’s assuming you are the one maintaining it.”

[EliteCommander]

Sharee shrugged her shoulders. "Alright, beats swimming back, I guess. I'll be sending some crew members back here to collect the rest of these supplies. You can boss them around once they get here."

Letting Malakaus take the oars, he and Sharee headed along the coast up to the north side of the island, towards Mistral's docks. Sharee had assigned the lookouts to watch for them, so they eventually did spot them alongside the ship. From there, the crew threw down some ropes and helped haul up their rather heavy cargo, then they climbed up themselves.

Sharee was done with the heavy lifting for the night, but she did have a few last orders for Malakaus. "Alright, take those ingots wherever you wanted them, then send up your men to meet me in my cabin. From there, I want you to take some of these men back to the cove to pick up the rest of the supplies. You can stay and help, or come back here as soon as you show them where it is; I don't care, as long as we get those supplies onboard by dawn."

[Lucius Cypher]

"Aye aye, captain."

After Sarel dropped off the chest, Malakaus and Sharee took the boat back to their ship. Malakaus had a bit of trouble handling both oars as he had a tendency to favor his right arm over his left, causing a bit of an uneven stroke, but they managed to arrive with no major issue. Malakaus ordered some of the men to keep the chest near by since he wanted to get to work on them as quickly as possible. Unfortunately he couldn't do that right now since Sharee wanted him to take some of the men back to the cove to move the loot, and he couldn't just delegate that task to his Typhoon Warriors since Sharee wanted to see them. She never did answer his question why she wanted to see them, but he could imagine why: She didn't want them to be on the same standing as the other officers. Malakaus can't say for certain how the others treat their underlings, but Malakaus makes sure to put them to work, and if they do good work, he trusted them for more difficult tasks and the authority that comes with it. Authority that may, at some point, undermine the others. Not that Malakaus planned to mutiny or anything, but the way he sees it, if he was going to have to handle everything, he wants to make sure that he can rely on people who help him with everything. But the captain was the captain, and he was just one of Sharee's officers.

Finding Harasha and Sheo was easy enough as they were surveying the deck. "Sharee wants to see the two of you, and the rest of the Typhoon Warriors. Where are the others at anyways?" Sheo said that Three-Horns took his harpoon and went fishing in the sea while Dar Ray went to go sell some things. Fletcher was last seen making more bolts. Figuring that Fletcher would be the easiest to find Malakaus looked for him, and sure enough the bosmer was sitting on a stool making arrows and crossbow bolts. He looked up with surprise to see Malakaus. "The captain wants to see you Fletcher. Don't make a fool out of yourself, and more importantly, me." Fletcher put away his equipment and went to leave before Malakaus grabbed his shoulder. "Also... That key you found, it was useful. You're doing a good job Fletcher. Now if we're honest with each other from now on, we won't have any problems, savvy? You might not have any use in a fight, but I'll figure out some way to make a place for you on the crew. Just don't lie to me and tell me that you did something you didn't, and you'll find a home here." Malakaus let the bosmer go before he went to go find the argonians.

Malakaus thought finding Three-Horns was going to be the harder of the two, but it just so happened that as Malakaus was heading off the boat Three-Horns arrived. He held his harpoon in one hand and a net full of various fish in the other. "Looks like a good haul. Sharee wants to see you Three-Horns. Drop that fish off by the kitchen and see to her immediately. You wouldn't happen to know where Dar Ray went by any chance?" Three-Horns mentioned that Dar Ray was carrying a basket of potions he brewed up, so Malakaus figured that Dar Ray went to some alchemy shops to sell them. It took some time but finding an Argonian in the town proved easy enough. Dar Ray had finished bargaining with a street merchant when Malakaus appeared in front of him. This caught Dar Ray off guard and he raised his claws, but this only made Malakaus smirk. "Expecting trouble, Dar Ray? I hope you didn't plan to use the ship's resources and keep all the profit to yourself." Dar Ray meekly admitted that he was trying to get them some more money with potions he brewed up. He managed to make a bit of coin and brought supplies, which he gave to Malakaus: Three vials of Hist Sap. This surprised Malakaus. "Where'd you get this? Nevermind, just go back to the ship. Sharee wants to talk to you."

Eventually the Typhoon Warriors stood outside the Captain's cabin, however no one dared entered. They all assumed that Malakaus was going to let them in, and when he passed by he wondered what they were all standing around for. "Look, the captain gave her order, and I answer to the captain. And you all answer to me. So just do what she says and don't make a fool of yourself. I have to head back to the cove to led the other men to looting the hideout. When I come back, I'll give you your share for keeping this place ship-shape. So don't cause any grief for me or the captain, eh?" Malakaus gave other words of encouragement before gathering some of the other crew members, getting some more small boats into the water, and leading them all back to the cove. He also attempted to teach them rowing techniques, though when another crew member mentioned his skill with rowing boats Malakaus ordered him to teach everyone proper rowing techniques.

[Ryonara]

Noelle had to consider Sarel's offer carefully. He was the next best bet to get her garden plot idea going, but he wanted two plots. Depenidng on how much space he can actually get for her, two plots might be too much. And she wasn't exactly excited to hear that he wanted to use his plot to create Herba, which she imagined is a recreational drug. She could, perhaps, figure out some way to make the Herba useful for her Alchemy, but she also figured that Sarel wasn't keen on sharing his Herba. "We already have enough skooma-addled fools trying to get their fix, I don't want to have to deal with treating more drug-induced poisons." Noelle sighed and relented however. "I'll have to see how much space you can make available first. I have very specific things I wish to grow, which require specific conditions. I don't know anything about this herba, like the conditions it needs to grow or how it may affect the other plants. Even if they grow separately from the others I can't promise you two plots if I don't know how much room I'll have for one plot."

Noelle looked away and remembered the lashing she took yesterday. Her body shivered as she turned away from Sarel. "And Sharee had made it abundantly clear to me that she'll have the final say in these matters. It's her ship, and I'm sure she won't appricate you and I working on it behind her back. If you can convince her to make space on the ship for the garden, than we can talk about what I'll need for the garden and where you can grow your herba. Until than, my only concern is getting the skooma onto the ship and finding the supplies I need for the Infirmary." Noelle walked away and took a seat at one of the tables looking out of the cove.

[EliteCommander]

Sharee was seated at the table in her quarters when Malakaus' men finally entered. Most of them seemed to have an air of nervousness about them, which did make sense, considering their captain called them to meet with her for no obvious reason. There wasn't enough chairs at her table for them all to have a seat, so she did not bother offering.

"Ah, there you all are. Come in, and close the door behind you." She said, giving them a few moments to get settled before continuing. "So, Malakaus has been telling me about you; his "Typhoon Warriors," as he calls you. He said he put you in charge while we were gone, and since the ship is still in one piece and not on fire or something, I'm going to assume you succeeded. Malakaus has told me you do good work, but he has also told me all about your flaws. I want you each to tell me, what are you good at, and what are you not good at. And please...be honest." Sharee requested in a tone that made a polite question seem minorly threatening. So far, she hadn't praised nor berated, so what she was going for in this meeting would not yet be obvious.

[The New Yorker]

Noelle, as she spoke, appeared as some sort of aedra as she spoke; an effect Sarel was sure had something to do with his exhaustion since his vision had become so pallid and sensitive to light. She seemed so beautiful and gentile, in fact, that Sarel almost had no time to be offended, but that came in time.

She was worried about the amount of space Sarel would be able to devise under the stressing conditions. And it was simple really, a great deal actually: 2 dozen or so. That was assuming Sharee allowed it, but Sarel figured that if she did, which was likely, she would have to do it to such a degree that it was almost overwhelmingly worth it. And Sarel could provide that. He’d done the same thing during his journey to Akaviir. The only difference was that he had far less access to materials and seeds. It would be easy business to create a step ladder sort of platform, decending as it went, most certainly somewhere at the aft. The design could be improved by magically infused clear glass pots in order to double the space available. The mages on the ship could come together to form a semi-permanent barrier for protection against rough winds, and ballista bolts— and especially against fireballs.

But the girl wouldn’t hear this. And she wouldn’t hear about the obvious medicinal, alchemical, and transcendental properties of herba either. She dismissed Sarel and left. Sarel searched his mind for a shred of a memory that he’d done something bad to her. Perhaps is criticism during the meetings with the captain. He was a little trenchant, but this is how Dunmers are, she must know that.
Serge came back as Sharee and Malakaus rowed off from the tiny bay. Sarel felt a pang of paranoia as he thought about them leaving us at the mercy of jungle cats, more bandits, or a devious plot of their own making. They could very well be going back to the boat in order to leave the team behind, more loot for them.

Serge had successfully attached the crossbow to his wrist, he stared at it’s machinery as he leaned against the wall near his Dunmer pal.

“Imagine if they didn’t come back.” Sarel said as a half joke.

“That would be something, wouldn’t it?” Serge asked as if not paying attention.

“It would.”

“Would you kill them?” Serge asked with a new interest.

“I don’t know. Probably not. I don’t think there’s a time in my life I ever would have either. Would you?” Sarel asked back.

“Maybe. A lot of my stuff is on that boat. I’ve sunk a good bit of time into this. It might be worth my satisfaction to hunt them down if they betrayed me.”

“Do you think you could kill Sharee?” Sarel asked, aware of how absurd the question was, and not ignoring Noelle’s presence.

“Maybe. If I fought as dirty as she would, maybe. The trouble is, I don’t know if I’m clever enough.”

“You’re plenty clever,” Sarel responded without thinking. It was true either way.

“Thank you, but not that clever. You could.”

“If I wanted to, sure. Anything’s possible. She could just as easily kill me.”

“True, and then there’s Malakaus to contend with.”

“Assuming he’d stay loyal. We did make a pact, didn’t we. Gods what was that?” Sarel questioned with a chuckle.

“Not quite sure, spur of the moment fraternidad?” Serge responded with a boyish tone. The duo laughed a little.

“I’m feeling better already.” Sarel said with a humor as he sat up. It was true, at least for him. His magicka reserves were kind enough to fill themselves, not all people had that privilege. He could feel his strength returning.

“Laughter is the best medicine.” Serge opined.

“Ha, tell that to a healer of Mara, or Kynerith. They would say alchemy is the medicine of the future.” Sarel said with a confident worldiness.

“Alchemy is an antiquated school of medicine Sarel, for the Atmorian hunter gatherer. We’re gentlemen of the Fourth Era, magick is our muse of medicine now.” Serge insisted with a scholarly intonation. For all the jokes and stupidity, these were not stupid men.

“Not ordinary alchemy, that’s the beauty of it. It’s very tiny, very small. There are people who say diseases are not magickal, but of physical origin, just too small for ordinary eyesight. Sometimes, I think I can see these tiny bugs.”

“That sounds absolutely mental, Sarel. Nothing like that exists in any sort of journal.” Serge said easily, dismissively.

“Just because we haven’t studied it yet does not mean it does not exist. We’d need a sort of internal telescope. Rather than looking at the stars, looking closely at our own world.”

Serge stared at his friend a while, looked at the dark horizon. “Are you sure you haven’t had any Moon Sugar lately?”

“Bah,” Sarel exclaimed, pushing Serge off the wall, “Damn you.”

Serge lost a little bit of balance but regained it further on. He looked around after laughing a little, saw Noelle on a bit of a mission. “Hey, gir… Noelle! Sharee is sending men to help us move all these things, no need to worry just yet, they won’t be here for another hour or so. Have a seat!”

[Lucius Cypher]

"Follow his lead boys, listen to him!"

In the distance Malakaus and the other crew members were rowing to the cove. Leading them wasn't Malakaus himself but a different crewmember, a red guard, who was a much more experienced oars man and quickly showed them all the basics to proper rowing techniques and patterns. The redguard himself was a burly but soft-spoken man, and likely wouldn't have been able to get any of the crew's attention had Malakaus not made them do so. it paid off however, as they managed to arrive to the cove faster than when Malakaus had left, and in a much more orderly fashion as well. He arrived with 14 crewmen, most of them strong and muscular to handle heavy lifting. Notably however, Malakaus didn't call upon any of the crewmembers who supposedly worked under the other officers. He figured that since he wasn't their boss, he shouldn't be ordering them around. The rest of the men however, he had no problems giving them their orders. "Necessities first! Take any supplies such as food or medicine first. Once we cleared this cove out of those than we get the loot. You'll all get your share soon enough, so if I find out that you've been having sticky fingers, I'll have your hands. No one touches the skooma! If I find out that one of you so much has licked a drop of that skooma before it gets back to the ship, I'll have your heads! There should be a barrel of weapons in there, and that's mines. I'll be melting that down for better stuff or just into ingots for later. Come see me if you want to get something better than whatever pig-sticker you have right now."

Malakaus and the crew filed out of the boats after securing them to the moor. It was mostly the crew themselves that did the work while Malakaus went to the other captains. "Nothing exciting happened while I was gone, I hope?"

---

Meanwhile back on the ship, just about everyone was unnerved in being in the presence of the captain. Even Harasha, the strongest of them, was tense. The only one who seemed remotely cool headed was Dar Ray, and even he had a healthy amount of caution given their sudden summoning to the captain's quarters. Eventually they entered, Sheol first, all of them filing into Sharee's room. It wasn't entirely cramp per say, but the only people who could take a seat was Three-Horns, who sat on the floor, and Sheol, who was offered a seat by Fletcher. Dar Ray was the last to enter so he closed the door behind them.

Share spoke to them about how Malakaus commented abilities and their limits. None of them seemed particularly bothered that he had been talking about them, he was their officer after all. It did make some concerned about why Sharee wanted to hear their skill sets again however, and Fletcher was especially nervous since he initially lied about what he was capable of doing.

The first to speak was Sheol. "I'm a conjurer. I know of some other spells, but I specialize in Conjuration. I have learn a bit of a trick that allows me to make the daedra and creatures I summon linger on our world a bit longer than usual. This has allowed me to harvest components and belongings from the daedra I summon, which has been put to use here on the ship. I'm also rather capable with an axe, which I summon with my magic."

Clearing his throat Three-Horns spoke up. "I'm an alchemist from Black Marsh. I used to run a little shop there before I traveled to Cyrodil, where I managed to get a bit of a writing books. Of course, I can do far more than just that. I myself can handle a harpoon to spear fish and people all the same. Sometimes I would coat my weapon with poison, but I'd prefer to use my potions to strength me if I'm expecting trouble." Three-Horns was aware of Sharee's alchemy ability and hoped that maybe if he tried to create a similarity between them, he won't be in trouble for whatever reason they were here.

Fletcher went next, surprisingly. He didn't really start as fluidly as the other two and basically just shouted the moment Three-Horns was finished. "I'm a fletcher! I mean that's... That's really the only thing I learned to do. My father was a fletcher and I just sort of took up his skills growing up. I joined because I wanted to be an adventurer. I took a few lessons with a sword and some spells. I'd like to think that I'm pretty good at talking to people too. And... Um..." Fletcher quickly lost steam. He didn't want to admit that all he was good for was making arrows, something that Malakaus was far better than him at doing anyways. Unlike the others however, Fletcher was the first to start talking about what he wasn't good with. "Malakaus says I'm not good in a fight, and I think he's right. I mean, I've taken lessons sure, but our attack on the ship was the first real fight I've gotten into and... Well... I mostly just hanged around in the back, made sure some of the sailors were dead after the others did most of the work. And I never even used a bow before. Even while I was working with my father, he was the one who tested the arrows I made. Most of the spells I learned I got from a few dusty tomes my mother brought for me, but even than they're showy spells. A bit of a flare here, some magical healing there. I'm not really good with them either since I can't seem to use them more than maybe two or three times."

As Fletcher eventually shut his mouth Dar Ray spoke up. "I'll also admit that I haven't exactly dedicated my life to combat either. I'm certainly a capable pugilist, but I made my claim with Alchemy, a bit of magic on the side, and knowing how to deal with money. I used to work for the East Empire Company, but after they unjustly fired me I wanted to get back at them. I can promise you Sharee, while I can't fight by your side, I know all the in and outs of the East Empire Company. I can figure out their trade routes and their secrets. They'll rue the day they decided to cut off Dar Ray."

And lastly there was Harasha. She stood with her arms crossed this entire time just looking at Sharee. She stood close to Sheol, as though she was more concerned about what Sharee was going to do to them rather than actually speaking. When it came to her turn she spoke softly. "I'm just a warrior. I hit things with my warhammer and kill them before they kill me. I'm a hunter as well, and with the right tools I can skin and carve a full grow bear in under a minute. I might know a thing or two about how to survive when you're in the middle of nowhere, but I'm far from educated. I don't know how to read or write and I can't and won't try to lie to save my life. I never led others before and I don't know why Malakaus thinks I can. All I can say for certain is that I don't tolerate foolishness, so when someone steps out of line I simply hit or yell at them until they get back in line. I know that's no proper way to lead, but that's all I know what to do."

[EliteCommander]

Sharee did not look upset. In fact, she was quite pleased with their responses. They were what she expected based on Malakaus' descriptions, which meant they were being honest. She wasn't going to start singling their praises or anything, but she could articulate that she was satisfied with their progress. Additionally, she needed to reinforce the idea that she was their superior from by giving them direct orders from time to time, else they start forming more loyalty towards Malakaus than herself. She didn't have any specific orders for them at the moment, but there was one thing she was curious about that she wouldn't mind figuring out.

"Good, that's about what Malakaus described. I needed to know that you are up front about your limitations .I don't care if you can't fight; we can teach you that. I care that you don't exaggerate your skills to me. Boast all you want in the tavern, but I need to know what you can and can't do. Everyone on this ship, whether I actually send you out to fight or not, are going to be trained to do it. Got to be able to defend yourself against boarders, after all. But since you're starting to make a name for yourselves, literally, then I want to see exactly where you're at. To that end, I want to spar with each of you, to see for myself exactly where you are. I'll make my judgements on things not related to fighting later. This early on, I need to know how you stand on the basics." Sharee explained. Indeed, she would be able to get a sense of their abilities by sparring with them, but more than that, it could serve as a form of intimidation by demonstrating her own fighting skill, in case they ever had thoughts of betrayal.

[Ryonara]

Noelle sat and waited for the help to arrive. Corrira had been very quiet this entire time, so Noelle spoke to him. "Teach me your destruction magic Corrira." The altmer looked at Noelle questioningly, but than simply agreed to do so. They'll begin once they return to the ship and after their work is done. He wanted to know what Noelle wanted to learn. "Ice based destruction magic. It'll be useful, and I'll need to knowledge if I'm to care for the garden." Corrira leaned closer and asked Noelle what exactly she planned on doing about the garden. Noelle shrugged her shoulders and just kept looking at the coast. "Like I said, that's not my concern right now. Even if we managed to somehow amass the money to buy the supplies we'd need to maintain the garden, it'll take months, years maybe, before any of the plants become bountiful. I can use some magic to accelerate the growth, but that would require specialized materials that I doubt we can obtain here. It's certainly a good long-term investment, but in the short term it's a money sink that could be better spent on actually resupplying the infirmary with medicine and equipment. The only reason I actually want the garden is so I can have a steady supply for my special poison, but the conditions for it are very specific. Until the time is right there's simply nothing I can do about it now but wait until the opportunity arises."

Noelle heard Serge call her over to sit with them. Letting out a light sign she decided to go sit near, but she didn't speak to them. Eventually Malakaus and the others arrived. "Get the skooma Corrira. I want to get out of here as soon as possible." Noelle stood by watching the others get to work and waiting for a boat to be ready to head back to shore.

[Lucius Cypher]

The Typhoon Warriors looked at each other with a mixture of confusion and contemplation. Harasha and Sheol seemed to have no qualms about sparring Sharee, while Three-Horns and Dar Ray was nervous. Fletcher was visibly shaking. It was bad enough for him to get beaten around by Malakaus, but now the captain was going to give him a thrashing as well? Even if she was just going to spar him, he knew that he didn't stand a chance against the captain, and wondered just how badly he screwed up to have this sort of punishment. "Y-y-y-you mean right now?! Or... Later? Outside?" Fletcher's fear was apparently obvious, and no one else spoke as they themselves had a hint of fear as well. They had no idea what brought on Sharee's sudden interest in them, though each of them suddenly felt a bit more resentful against Malakaus. As far as they know, he must have told the captain something that made her question their ability on the ship, something bad enough that she had to take care of it herself. Granted, this was just speculation on their part, but Sharee wasn't exactly giving them a clear message. Sheol had some choice words to give to Malakaus the next time she saw him, and Dar Ray was thinking of ways to get his own pay back against him. Three-Horns didn't really have much motivation to go against Malakaus, but he was thinking that he ought to step up his game and try to see if he can work with another officer, one who won't get him into so much trouble. Fletcher of course was starting to lose hope in this whole "pirate" deal and was raking his mind about how he was suppose to get out of here before he gets killed, or worse.

However while the other fours were devising ways to get their revenge or escape some sort of punishment, Harasha was sensing another motive behind Sharee's actions. This was more than just a test of their ability, but a test of their loyalty. So far Harasha believed that they have showed their loyalty but Sharee aims to test it, but the way she's going about it would, at best, make the Typhoon Warriors wary of Sharee while spiteful of Malakaus. Harasha didn't trust her officer any more than Sharee did, but for the sake of the Typhoon Warriors and more importantly, herself and Sheol, Harasha spoke honestly and bluntly. "You don't want to spar us to test our abilities. You want to test our loyalty to you."

The others looked at Harasha, this time with much more fear and tension. Even Sheol urged her to be silent, but it was too late. Harasha has spoken. While it made sense, it put them all on edge. Now most of them thought that Sharee planned to do to them what she did to Noelle. Except this time it wasn't a public lashing, but possibly an execution. Harasha simply kept a hard glare on Sharee. Than Harasha spoke again. "It matters little to me. If we are to spar, I shall volunteer to go first whenever you are ready. We'll let our actions speak our intentions."

[EliteCommander]

Sharee gave a chuckle and stood up. "An astute one, aren't you?" She commented as she began to pace around the group. "You know, you really can't blame anyone but yourselves. You're the ones who started showing yourselves capable in...various respects." Most of the group, especially Fletcher, showed fear and apprehension, which meant they still had a lot of work to do. "You seem to want to become more important on this ship, which means you'll have it a lot harder.The lowly grunts, they can afford a few mistakes, since I don't expect much from them, but you want to be anything more than that, then I'm going to go hard on you, the other officers are going to go hard on you. We'll beat you down, literally and figuratively, so when you pick yourself up out of the dirt to lick your wounds, you'll come back a bit stronger, then we'll do it all over again. You want to rise above the commoners? Then you're going to be stronger."

Sharee looked over specifically to the Orcs. "And not just in fighting."

[Lucius Cypher]

The Typhoon Warriors certainly had mixed feelings. The idea of increased authority, with the necessary responsibility, was both appealing and frightening. The Argonians were delighted; Three-Horns felt that he could do much more work if he could lead his own group and Dar Ray liked the idea of gaining the power he once had back with the East Empire Company. Sheol and Fletcher weren't so enthusiastic. Sheol was trying to actually not to draw too much attention to herself, and Fletcher simply had no idea what he'd do if he was expected to rise above the others. He hardly knew what to do with himself, let alone what he should do if he became something more than an officer. He just wanted to go out on adventures. Harasha remained apathetic to the entire ordeal.

Appropriately Dar Ray spoke first. "Challenge accepted. But if you are willing to answer, captain, what would you do with us when we become stronger? Would we still have to work under Malakaus, or will we become officers ourselves?" If this was indeed a test of loyalty, surely Sharee would feel threaten if others began to rise in power over her. Dar Ray had a scheme in mind which involved getting into Sharee's better graces. If he remembered correctly, aside from her officers Sharee had no personal underlings. Dar Ray thought that he could prove his worth to Sharee and work for her instead of Malakaus, who only see's Dar Ray as mere enchanter.

"Are we to spar you today, or will that happen later? It wouldn't be right to go against you if we aren't at our strongest, so I wonder if I could postpone my bout with you until say... After we defeat the Miriam?" Three-Horn asked. He didn't really have any intentions of earning more authority, but he certainly had ideas he wanted to test out. He rather liked working with Malakaus as he was willing to assist Three-Horns on his creative ideas, but hoped that if he did rise in the ranks of the ship Three-Horns wouldn't just be limited to working on whatever project Malakaus has him doing. Enchanting caught his interest the most, but like Malakaus Three-Horns was concerned about keeping the ship ready for battle and had one idea that might work. Once Malakaus came back, Three-Horns was thinking of talking to him about this idea.

Fletcher also wanted to go talk to Malakaus, or really anyone as soon as possible. While still very fearful for his life, he at least knew that running away was out of the question. He wanted someone to train him, though he'd rather not have to deal with his own boss. He knew that Sarel was one of the other officers and was teaching some of the other crewmen swordsmanship. Fletcher made a mental note to see him for training.

Sheol was most apprehensive to the idea of actually promoting herself. She was just following orders, and now it seems to simply be getting her into more trouble than it's worth. However Sheol wasn't going to try to deny the captain's request to spar her, as it would look more suspicious if Sheol tried to weasel out of it. With any luck, the other members of the Typhoon Warriors would take most of the attention off of her. She looked at Harasha with a bit of scorn as her friend seemed to be drawing attention to them with her words. Harasha just kept looking at Sharee. "If that's all, can we get back to work?" Harasha said gruffly.

[EliteCommander]

Sharee crossed her arms and gave a mild glare to Three-Horn. "We'll spar when I say we're sparring...but yes, we have more important things to do at the moment, and I don't want to end up injuring any of you before the attack. Oh, and it's not the Miriam we are hitting yet, it's a different ship. The harder target can come later, once this crew proves itself, and once we get a few upgrades for the ship. You all can get back to work. Remember, you have my interest, not my favor. Don't start thinking you're something special, not until you can back that up. Now get out of here."

After shepherding Malakaus' men out of her cabin, Sharee laid herself down on her bed and let out a yawn. She of course had no real plans of promoting the "Typhoon Warriors" at this point, but it was good to give them something to work for. At present, none of them were really cut out for anything more than following orders. If they managed to become more skilled, then she could give them more responsibilities. Not to mention if any of her officers ended up dying, then they might eventually become decent replacements.

It was hard to say how many more days it would be before their target left port, but after today, they would be pretty much ready. Sharee planned to send the Khajiit former slave back to his master the next morning with a warming gift in the form of a crate of skooma. If they were lucky, it would be enough to put the Khajiit back into his good graces, allowing him to poison their food once out at sea. Otherwise, they would just kill the boy and they would end up having to take the ship the normal way. In any case, there wasn't anything left to do for the night, so she dropped her potion bag on her table, undressed and packed away her weapons and other equipment, then laid down under the warm fur blanket on her bed.

[Lucius Cypher]

The Typhoon Warriors filed out of the captain's cabin, each of them heading in different directions for different reasons. Dar Ray still had business to finish, Three Horns had some ideas he wanted drafted out, Fletcher was going to start gathering his things, Sheol needed to go study some spells, and Harasha still had to oversee the ship until the officers came back. By the time night fell, Malakaus and the other officers returned to the ship after multiple trips to the cove. Malakaus had his hands full trying to do something with all the materials he got his hands on, as Three Horns was quick to start talking to him about another function for that blasting formula, one that differed from his Boom Sticks. It was almost as interesting of an idea, and something else that Malakaus would have to ask Sharee to help him work with. Aside from that however, he did also have a lengthy debriefing about what Sharee asked them. Malakaus had mixed feelings, just like them. A bit of pride for getting his group distinguished. A bit of envy, thinking that it was thanks to his efforts that they even got Sharee's attention. And a bit of worry, since he wasn't sure if Sharee was actually pleased with his Typhoon Warriors success. But he wasn't going to hold back. He didn't want to admit it, but they weren't the best fighting force. Heck his strongest warrior likely doesn't even like him. But he'll be damned if he can't make it work.

Malakaus spent the night on land, using the forge he rented out. He made some quick money selling the loot he claimed and decided to hold off using the ingots until he could get a concrete plan for them. He thought about perhaps making armor, but the ship lacks the facilities for him to work on something so difficult over time, and he wasn't quite certain if he wanted to create weapons for the crew just yet. He had plenty of ideas with the ingots, but he would have to wait until they actually prove to be worthwhile. Otherwise, he used his funds to purchase more materials for enchanting, but also for his shield. On it's own it's a spiked wooden shield edged with ebony, but he knew there could be more. First of all, he needed to treat the wood. It was made from oak, but as today's battle showed, wooden shields would only go so far. Additionally, he felt that his magical defense was lacking, more so since it seemed that Noelle, their officer spell caster, had no hesitation using her spells on her own allies. While he had something in mind to get pay back against her, it did remind him that should he face a spell caster, all he had going for him was the hopes that he could kill them first before they land the first spell. And not one to accept weakness, he was going to do something about this.

[EliteCommander]

After a night's rest, Sharee went to work on the penultimate step in her plan. She purchased a few missing ingredients in town, then got to work on brewing the poison Kahl would use on the food in his master's ship. A concentrated dose of the brew she concocted would not take long to kill, but unfortunately, mixing it into the food or drink for an entire ship would dilute it to the point that it would not longer be lethal. It would, however, make anyone who consumed it weak and sickly for the better part of a day. Once it was finished, she gave the poison to Kahl, taught him how to conceal it, then sent him off with a bribe to his master in the form of a crate of skooma with instructions to poison their food the morning of their departure. There were, of course, plenty of places where the plan might fail, but it wasn't absolutely necessary for Kahl to succeed in order for their attack overall to be a success. It would just serve to make their job easier.

Two days after sending Kahl back to his master, one of the lookouts noted some activity on the top deck of their target ship. Sharee gave it a look herself, confirming that they seemed to be readying their ship to set sail. Immediately, she gathered up a group of the sailors around her to serve as messengers to the rest of the crew. "Alright, it's time. Send the word around that I want everyone to their stations, but not too quickly. We don't want to clue in our target to the fact that we're following them in case they're watching us as well. Regardless, if anyone is ashore, I want them on the ship within the hour. If they're not onboard when it comes time to leave, then they're getting left behind. Also, make sure to get the navigator and have him keep an eye on our mark. When they set sail, I want him to tell me where they're going. Now, get a move on." She ordered.

As the ship sprang to life around her, with her sailors scrambling to get to their stations, Sharee stood on the bow, looking out over the sea...which a special focus on their target. If Kahl succeeded, then their raid would be quick and painless. If not, then it would take longer and be much more painful, but she was reasonably confident that it would be her and her crew dealing said pain.

[The New Yorker]

Sarel allowed himself to continue resting when they returned back to the ship as well. He entered into a deep meditation allowed primarily by the incantations brought on by the enunciations of certain prayers. Most of the practice was contained in the tomes and scrolls, but Sarel had studied them so much that he hardly had to look at them anymore. Of course, if his training could have continued he would have had to learn all sorts of new incantations and prayers so his overall knowledge would be slightly less vast. But, as Beilin continuously quoted: “The value of intelligence is in understanding, and compensating for, how little one will ever truly know.” The meditations helped ease his mind, calm his scorned soul among the turbulent darkness of his thoughts.

The next morning Sarel sent his Khajiit group member Jharo to look for the Port Authority they’d met when the ship first arrived. He had some questions to ask and wanted to know when the best time to meet him would be. Sarel worked on tying any loose ends in terms of the ships repairs. Sure, his work would never all be done, but he’d done enough now that all that would be needed in the near future would be minor maintenance. After that he trained the members in his group about combat awareness and general rules for perceptive fighting, along with relatively simple combat maneuvers. The next day was about supplies as Sarel began to notice what Sharee did as well, their target was getting ready to move. She’d already set her plan in motion so the only thing left for them to do was wait. He picked up some things for maintaining his weapons and armor, as well as a surplus of some simple luxuries he enjoyed from the island, like the cranberry flowers and coco pecans (each with its own unutterable name). He also made sure to meet with the authority in a bar. He disclosed the location of a head-shop keeper in town who could supply him with a fair supply of verde. Indeed, Sarel was able to meet with the elderly Khajiit inside his two story home, and eventually came to an agreement of 400 gold for roughly five pounds. It was a decent deal and Sarel saw no issue with it himself. He got back to the ship around nightfall, only having time to play a game of dice with Serge before going to sleep. The next morning Sarel was on deck as the sun rolled itself onto the firmament. He was busy on an extra grinding wheel he’d found below deck and brought to be used above. His Katana sparked a little here and there as he moved the dark metal along the stone. This was the first time in a long time that he’d sharpened the steel, but he thought it was the perfect time since he’d found this extra piece of equipment, it was serendipitous. He wore his leather breaches with a towel around his midsection to mop up the sweat from his bare back as the sun began to beat down on him. The early morning turned to mid-day as Sarel tuned his swords and watched the activity on the target ship increase. Sharee received all the information she needed when she called everyone to the ship. Sarel went to work on the wakizashi as people began readying the ship. Serge sauntered over wearing nothing but black cloth pants and a white blouse, since the days had been getting hotter, and watched as the Dunmer sharpened his sword.

“Are you expecting a fight soon?” Serge asked, a little like a child.

“I’m always expecting a fight.” Sarel admitted as he ran the edge of the short sword along the stone, sweat falling from his pale blue skin.

“Wolves lick their chops, men sharpen their swords: These are natural indicators.” Serge said confidently.

“That would suggest that I consider my sword to be analogous to a wolves teeth, I don’t. There’s another element of me which serves that purpose.” Sarel said with a cool mysteriousness.

“How are you feeling?” Serge asked, a little worry showing in his voice.

“Trapped,” Sarel began, “incomplete,” he continued, “hopeful” he concluded. “How about you?” He asked.

“Alright, I don’t know how long I can keep doing this though. I was thinking of setting a milestone for myself. Like, if we ever reach High Rock, let’s say.”

“What then?” Sarel asked, taking a break from the sword.

“Maybe I’ll leave, maybe I won’t.” Serge remarked.

“You don’t like the responsibilities Sharee has bestowed upon you?”

“I feel more like an ornament. I don’t know if I actually have a job here at all.”

“It’s an easy job. The officers as a whole are intimidating enough, add in lashings for minor infractions and a slightly sociopathic assassin as a captain, and you’ve got yourself a frightened crew. Luckily they feel comfortable enough to stay. An easy job is nothing to walk away from.” Sarel opined, trying to mostly convince himself.

“Why not?” Serge asked with a shrug, “I’ve done it before.”

Sarel went back to sharpening after a moment of consideration, finding he had nothing to say, and Serge went off to look at a card game which had just started. Sarel couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret, and he wondered if perhaps Serge wasn’t right after all.

[EliteCommander]

It was a few hours before their target was ready to set sail, and Sharee had a close eye on them the entire time. Her navigator, the big pink-scaled Argonian was on deck waiting to observe their bearing once they left. Despite his cowardly personality, Sharee found that he actually knew what he was doing when it came to his job, so they would be able to follow along their target's course exactly.

Eventually their target finished its preparations and set out to sea, but for as long as it was in Mistral's harbor, Sharee kept her own ship in dock. She could not afford to let them know they were being followed, else they would just turn back around and use the Thalmor naval vessels to protect them. Instead, they would need to wait until they were out of sight, then use every ounce of speed they could squeeze out of their ship to catch up. Once the ship was near to being out of visual range, Sharee marched over to the navigator with a demanding expression. "You know where they are going?"

"Oh, um, yes. I know their heading, but...we should head ten degrees north of it." He recommended with a nervous gulp.

"And why might that be?" Sharee questioned accusingly.

"B-because I think they are trying to throw off anyone wanting to follow. They current heading goes nowhere interesting, but...ten degrees north of it goes straight to Senchal. It...might even help us catch up quicker." He explained in his usual nervous tone.

Sharee gave him a nod and a pat on the shoulder. "Good job." She commented, taking a few steps to walk past him before grabbing him by his collar and pulling him closer. "As long as you are right, that is." She threatened. "Now, go give the bearing to the helmsman."

Once the navigator set out on his task, Sharee walked across the center of the deck shouting the order the crew had been waiting for. "Alright, it's time to get moving. We need to be out of this harbor five minutes ago!"

Since they had been preparing all morning, it did not take long at all to set out on a heading towards Senchal. They were heading at full sail with the best speed they could get out of the current weather, but even so, it took a while to catch up to their target. However, it didn't take as long as it could have, as the navigator had been correct. Their target's path had been an indirect one.

The lookout shouted out from the crow's nest as soon as she spotted their prey. "Captain, ship on the horizon, starboard side!"

"There she is." Sharee said with a smirk from her place on the bow. She turned around and walked towards the stern, shouting to the crew as she walked. "It's time to earn your fortunes. Get these ballistas armed, and your bows and spells at the ready. We'll give them a barrage or two at a distance, then board on my command." She ordered. She stopped next to the helmsman and spoke to him more specifically. "See if you can line us up behind them, in the blind spot of their own ballistas."

[Ryonara]

After returning to the ship, Noelle and Corrira quickly started their training. Corrira was a decent trainer and Noelle was a very good student, and within the two days she learned a small handful of spells. A Lightning Bolt spell, instant hitting and good for taking out mages and warriors alike, a Frost Bite spell for utility and in case she get's too close to someone with a sword, a Weakness to Poison spell that would work well with her poisons, and a conjuration spell. Noelle was surprised that Corrira would teach her such a spell, but apparently it was suppose to be a sort of "Ace in the hole" when his destruction magic doesn't work out. Noelle tested out these spells on her own time when she wasn't out in the city buying supplies. She made a good little profit from their raid on the bandit cove, enough to comfortably resupply the infirmary. So long as no one comes down with some obscure disease or poison, Noelle had the peace of mind that she can deal with any injury that comes aboard the ship.

Than the day came. The slave ship that Sharee had her eyes on had finally set sail. Once it was well out of protection of Mistral's harbor the whole crew were stirred up to get moving. Noelle even pitched in casting the sails and making sure that no one stressed themselves out physically; she needed to make sure everyone was healthy for what was about to happen. Soon the lookout saw the slave ship and Sharee told everyone to ready themselves. "Men, to me!" Noelle called out to her lackies. I took a little while, but soon Gaius, Corrira, Naaji, and Omdran stood in front of her. "Alright boys, here's what we're doing. Gaius you shall followed the fighters onto the ship, but not before I give you some magic strengthening. Corrira stay close to me and blast anything that you see that wants to kill us. Naaji and Omdran, I want you at least ten feet behind Gaius and take out any archers or mages that he can't get to. And don't expect me to be there to heal your every nick and cut; I may be the healer on this ship but I can't be everywhere. If you're too wounded to fight than don't fight and get out. Here are some tonics I brewed up for today. Use them only when necessary." Noelle gave each of her lackeys a potion. "Those are Draughts of Escape. They would heal some of your wounds and turn you invisible, perfect in a pinch. Once we clear the deck regroup with me and I'll give you new orders. Now get to positions!"