Event: Dran's Latest Gambit II

Date	Title	People	Location
May 20, 2015	Event: Dran's Latest Gambit II	Kyson, Leilani, Coldran, Aevarr, Katyana, Tim and Korra

When last we left our heroes, the Dran war-galley had swept into the cove, heavy oars moving rythmically as its sails add to its momentum.

You can see a great many armed Dran preparing themselves aboard to storm your encampment, no doubt.

Several of those present are looking pretty peeved to have their work interrupted.

"Welp," says one of the scholars, "I suppose this was going to happen sooner or later. Is everything ready?"

"Ready enough," replies another. Weapons are being grabbed by many of the hired hands.

Tim picks up a bit of food on a nearby plate, with him, he is always nearby food if he can. He starts munching on it for a moment, looking out at the warship. After he swallows he shakes his head, "I'm not sure I can help much against something like that."

"Well, that's unpleasant." Coldan takes a step back, khazad or no, at the sight of the great war-galley. Dran? Known for its warriors? Naaaaah. He has his stick in hand, just a stick, and he presses it from one palm into the other. "Oh, yeah..." to Tim.

Aevarr is still waiting for his boots to dry, and furth wet his pallete with something a touch more refined than grog. Yes, alas, there now seem to be others intent on disrupting the casual three hour cruise. "Mayhaps they will pay no mind to a simple transport vessel?" Could they be so lucky? It would be nice, though he doesn't hold his breath.

The Wizardling, Kyson, takes a few steps away from folks so that what he's about to do doesn't affect anyone else. With a breath of magic and a simple cantrip, he drys himself off and creates a small cloud of steamy vapor as the water soaked clothes release their moisture. "There, better..." he comments and then looks to the war galley. "Any idea what we're going to do about...that?"

"'All war is deception,'" Korra murmurs, eyes narrowing as she takes in the galley's entry into the coveway. "We should use magic, to create a screen of fog or smoke. We have no grassland to burn here on the water, but spellweaving may serve just as well. I think."

Leilani readies her buckler and draws her cutlass, giving it a few stylish swings through the air. "I suppose it was too much to ask that they'd let us be," she mutters. "Well, I guess you'll get to sling fire after all," she comments to Katyana.

Aevarr closes his flask, tucks it into a pocket, and begins to don his sodden boots. "Has the other ship signaled? Perhaps they just want to parlay, or join our crews in some friendly maritime competition?"

"I like your humor," the khazad replies. Coldan taps the decking with his stick, and then squints upwards towards the masts, and back to the war ship. "...I like how simple life is, too. This is what we were hired for: be the target, take out the enemy. The whole thing makes me wonder at the whole Dran/Rune relationship, though."

Tim grunts, "Well, since they expect mages, perhaps we should give them mages. I could try to create some kind of illusion, maybe a group of water elementals heading thier direction. Use it mainly to distract them or force them to move how we want them to." He looks around to the others, "Sound resonable? Or anyone got any other things they want me to pretend to make?"

"A war galley?" Katyana murmurs, reaching into a stack of ropes and drawing out a black one -- which turns out to be her viper, stowed when they went underwater. Then, she begins trying to wring seawater out of her pants. "Well isn't that just fantastic. They'll probably want all that stuff down beneath us."

She smiles, fangily, peeling her goggles a little to let in some air. "Or they want us dead. Or both!"

Coldan grins at Tim through his beard. "I like that." He works on staying steady on the deck, the khazad does. Broad of foot and limb, because khazad are always squat and stumpy things. "Especially since this whole thing is like the schoolyard all over again, isn't it? The geeky scholar versus the kickball star. Dran is trying to shove Rune into the lockers, and take his lunch. Sending an elemental after them is...it's sort of like the scholar flexing his own fist. I like it."

Kyson just glances to Coldan curiously and then back out to the Galley in the distance.

Leilani glances between the spellslingers as they discuss options. She shrugs, still holding her cutlass, "Sounds like a wonderful plan. I'll just be over here since I'm not of much use unless they actually board us. Unless they just plan to sink us outright."

The lines of oars keep moving in a steady, controlled way and the echoes of beating drums can be heard from within to help keep the time now that it's getting closer.

It would appear that the wizards, too, are of a similar mind. A thick mist begins to rise back in the camp, obscuring it from any shipboard weapons that the galley might've had. Obscuring the camp first isn't a bad move, and it seems likely that they have more planned.

"Be wary of the winds," Avearr calls out after getting his boots back on. "It looks that the Dranei have more than just oars at their command."

Tim takes another bite of whatever food is within reach of his hands, chewing a bit as he looks out at the warship. "Ok, well, I've got an illusion and I've got a close up spell for knocking folks out, but thats it pretty much."

In the meantime, the ship's crew and it's captain are bursting into action, arming themselves.

"A bloody war galley. I haven't seen one of those since... well.. since the last time I was on Dran's coast. I was hoping it wouldn't come to this."

For it's part, the ship appears to be ignoring you.

"SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY AND YOU WILL NOT BE HARMED," comes a voice, booming entirely too loudly from the Dran ship. No doubt magic is being used to enhance it. Obviously.

"Some luck, and hard work. ..." Coldan breaks off, and, "Guess not. ...hey," he says to one of their hosts. "What was the plan to be if this happened?" He says, and gestures towards the other boat.

The 'offer' by the Dran War Galley is met by little more than a scoff that escaped Kyson's lips. "Dran aren't known for their civil treatment of prisoners. If we approach they'll capture us, torture us for sport and kill us - that's assuming that they don't decide to turn our final moments into some barbaric game for their amusement." The venom drips thick like honey from the apprentice's words as though he has reason -not- to trust the word of the Warlords. "If we attack, they will turn on us..." he adds, "For now, they probably don't consider us to be the greatest of threats."

Tim shakes his head, "Alright, so what? Run away? Let them board us and fight? Anyone have any ideas?"

"Well, I for one don't intend to become a prisoner," Leilani states with resolve, "I'll fight to the last." She looks at the others, "Though, if needing to do that could be avoided, I'd be more than happy." She looks back out towards the galley, "They're faster and more maneuverable than we are. They'll come in to ram us, then once they've done that, they'll board us. They're fighting crew outnumbers this one. Our best bet is to not get rammed, so we need to slow them down somehow. If we could get a fire started on their deck, that would occupy the crew as they try to put it out. Even the illusion of a fire might buy some time."

"It would. ...movement, we're a little bound to our captain, unfortunately. I just hope they'll sink the ship soon. Unless we can make the offer to go underneath it," Coldan says. He studies the Dranei ship. It's easy to study. It's terrifying. You can't look away from it. "Well, that answers my previous question..." Aevarr comments after the booming voice. "Though I don't believe him... I cast my vote on the option that avoids drowning, torture, dismemberment, or enslavement." Aevarr nods to Leilani. "If we can't cause true harm, the appearance of harm could be just as effective. The truth is whatever they think it is, no?"

Tim shakes his head, "We run for it, try to get near our base camp or other ships. Also, if that boat sits deeper in the water, we may be able to get closer to shore than them or something like that. Maybe I can make an illusion that hides a reef? Make it look like just regular sand or something underwater?"

It would appear that the wizards /did/ have a plan, though.

From the fog bank, twin, very large shapes emerge, racing towards the galley.

Very large. Leaving great wakes behind them, they head straight towards the galley.

Leilani blinks at the twin wakes heading for the war galley, "Whales?" She looks towards the foggy shore, then back to the whales, "Question is: Did they summon them up or are they illusions? Guess it's all the same in the minds of the Dran, though."

"I have an answer, my dear," Aevarr chuckles. "So long as they hinder the Dranei, the answer doesn't matter."

Well, given the way water is going everywhere in their wake, they seem real enough. At least very convincing illusions. The dran are noticing them too, turning in their direction to try to presewnt a narrower front othe creatures and to try to ram them. It's a slow process, though.

In the meantime, echoing voices come from the Dran ship and a pair of creatures, made of water itself, leap from the coean. They definitely have a caster themselves, summoning water elementals of some kind! 

The captain turns towards you, then says, "I'm... getting orders from the bosses," he tells you. "They want us to get closer. They have a plan."

As first Leilani, then Aevarr speak up, Coldan nods, though he's somewhat distracted by the second set of elementals racing their way. Just what did they get int...?

They're then interrupted by the ship's captain--but it's good news. Right? "Closer?" he says, and then bounces on the balls of his feet. He can handle that. "Did they say anything else?" Anything to move. And, you know, not think about what wizards have placed beneath the waves.

Tim was about to summon some illusionary whales to support the others, but then when the captain says they are going closer....he pauses. "Ahh, well, um....I'm sure they know what they are doing." He pulls out a wineskin and takes a long drink to fortify his nerves.

"Excellent!" Aevarr calls out with a laugh. "First we conceal ourselves, and now we creep forward. How could we possibly ignore an opportunity to gain a more thorough inspection of Dran weaponry and warriors? Ah, yes... We could have boarded the next ship down."

Leilani salutes the ship's captain with her cutlass, "A plan! Wonderful!" She lowers her sword before asking, "Do we have some part in this plan other than moving closer? I do hope 'move closer' isn't the entire plan."

Coldan looks wistfully towards the wineskin, then clears his throat, and looks back towards the oncoming ship.

Indeed. It would appear the other ships have received similar messages. With the backing of the wizards, it's hard to imagine that they're completely against turning and closing in on the large ship, trying to surround it while it's being hemmed in by very, very large whales, all black and silver in color. They're eating javelin and arrow shots, but the ballista aboard the galley are being trained on the approaching ships.

"Close in! Close in!" The captain yells, loudly, "RAM THEM."

Indeed, it would appear that the reverse is going to be the plan.

The water elemental are now entangled with the whales, and it would appear that this has been to buy time. Seems you're intended to board and attack the Dran, while they definitely look ready for it. The ballista fire, but with many targets to chose from, you're not one of the 'lucky' ones.

Coldan turns the staff against one palm, then the other. He watches the Dranei carefully, counting, counting...and looking for his opening for when they DO board. ...

Tim looks around, then finds a few barrels, or something to crouch behind as ballista get fired. "Alright, well...I'm ready I suppose!" He peeks over the barrel, though its kinda hard for the fat elf to not make a tempting target.

Ram them... Aevarr sighs. "Well, perhaps today is a good day to die..." He looks about to his compatriots solemnly... though it's brief. He then breaks into a grin. "For them, of course."

Coldan returns said grin uneasily. He's new to this, and would, all told, rather be hiding behind the barrels, himself.

Kyson seems grimly silent now, waiting for the moment when the two ships are close enough that they can scramble across from the riggings.

Leilani nods a little at the captain's order to his crew as if she had been expecting it. "You might want to brace yourselves for the ramming. Wouldn't do to get yourselves thrown overboard when we hit." She does just that, crouching and clinging to a mast.

How fast can a khazad crouch? Well, they're already close to the ground!

His attention distracted by the two wizards above, the Dranei shaman emerges from below the decks onto the galley's top and begins to chant. He seems quite eager to call upon... /something/.

Aevarr is bowled over, more literally than he'd care for, by the impact of ships and one rolling Tim. He hops to his feet and offers up a quickly muttered request. Just before he vanishes from sight.