Deus Ex Machina

Aramil-Eric

Clarity-Mija

Hesperose- Scott

Kita-Shawn (not present)

Shiffit-clint

Zyva-Ron

   -- Clint currently running the game, and trying to get the party members to think out side of the box about what options lay open to their characters.

The party started the day out wisely, with a good hearty breakfast. They then put there plan to experiment with the spears in to action. Unfortunately Zyva and Aramil chose to try to lower the launch with 4 spears in it to the sea. In the finest D&D tradition, they fumbled. 3 of the cursed spears fell into the sea, and 1 stuck in the launch. When the 3 spears hit the water, a mighty geyser shot fourth, blasting Aramil, Zyva and the launch into the air. Zyva caught flight at the apex of her trajectory. Aramil, lacking wings, made a poor landing in the water and took a fair bit a damage. The launch landed on the Celeste's cabin's roof, and the entire aft section was staved in. Worse than losing the launch a great many spirits were released and started screaming of their; loss, pain, frustration, agony, and indignation. The spirits went streaming through the rigging and creating much havoc on the ship. Whenever a spirit passed though a person, they would have the breath frozen out of them and they would fall down stunned. The party tried to communicate with the spirits, and found that all semblance of intellect had long since left the spirits, leaving only emotion. Much blame was passed back and fourth between Clarity and Yaher. With a little help from Zyva Aramil gets back a board the ship, which is starting to take damage from the Ghosts. The Party appears to be at a loss as to what to do about the spirits. They decide to search the rest of the crates and see if any more cursed spears can be found. They find 6 master work spears that match the 4 they assume (correctly) are cursed. Kita examines the elven markings on the spears and with a healthy Bardic knowledge check learns their history.

Several centuries ago an elven tribe turned against their kin, in an attempt to rule over them. The tribe that tried to subject their kin was known as the Drow tribe. At the start of this war a neighboring elven tribe had its army destroyed. With the civilians unprotected, the Drow marched on the village and at spear point drove the inhabitants over the sea wall to the waves below, and to their DOOM!!! The Drow were eventually defeated, and driven below ground, but the spirits of the murdered elves bound themselves to the devices that drove them to their DOOM!!! And the party discovered that Yaher bought some of these cursed spears, and brought them aboard. When the spears were plunged into the sea, the spirits took unkindly to this repeat of their ill fortune, and are taking vent of their feelings on the only things around, the Celeste and its unsuspecting crew.

With more of the spears found, Hesperose, who people are now calling Captain, uses one of the four ballistas to launch the spear into the ocean. Another geyser springs fourth and more spirits join the chorus of screaming souls around the vessel. The party continues to try to problem solve with the ship slowly starting to come apart around them. Hesperose, in frustration, starts to cock a ballista to chuck another spear into the sea, and Zyva suggests that will only make matters worse.

About 30 black flying shapes are then spotted flying toward the ship, and some of the crew prepares for action. When they get closer Yaher tells the party that they are harbingers, and are not to be trusted. Zyva fires a warning arrow through a wing of one of the harbingers, who turn out to have the body of large vultures and humanoid heads. The harbingers proceed to taut and jeer the crew of the Celeste, which is a unpleasant melody to the screams of the tormented souls. The harbingers then ask that the party give the cursed spears to them. The crew then does a quick, 'you give them the spears, No you you do it, I don't want to you do it, Oh no you had the spears last you do it...' The party, en masse, (correctly) assumes that the harbingers are up to no good and that they should not give them the spears, but give them one anyway. (which deeply puzzles the DM). One of the harbingers then takes the spear and quickly flies away. The murder of harbingers continues to badger the party for the rest of the spears. The newly dubbed Captain, Hesperose, then takes the rest of the spears and dumps them overboard. Another geyser bursts fourth, the number of spirits tearing through the ship increase, and the harbingers take wing laughing hysterically, knowing that the crew of the Celeste is now deeply screwed, having lost the focal point/ foci, for dealing with the spirits.

The Celeste, a coastal sea vessel with no business out in these waters, starts to list and buck. With her ships timbers groaning, Clarity calls out to one of the goddesses of the sea. Clarity, curiously calls out to Umberly, who is NOT, really NOT known for mercy; more known for vengeance. Strangely though the ship starts to calm. Seeing their first positive response to their actions since breakfast, Aramil and Clarity call out to Corleone Lothlorien, the god of the elves[Family takes care of Family] for mercy. An Avatar of Corleone Lothlorien descends on the ship, calming the spirits. The Avatar more fully explains the situation they are in, stating that the spirits must be calmed, and balance restored. They party then agrees to pledge to help right the wrong that these spirits have suffered. The Avatar snaps its fingers and a very disgruntled creature appears. Half quatzequatel and half elven, and all sorts of pissed off. He gives vent to his anger about not being at the beck and call of the Avatar, which he clearly is. The half quatzequatel and half elven creature hears the pledge of the party and says, “it will be good to hold you souls by this string”, and -bamph- disappears. The Avatar warns the party to not break a pledge give in front of 'The Verdant One' and fades away. The party members, and Yaher notice that they have green check marks on their cheeks. The party laments their “lamest gang sign ever”, and Yaher yells at the now departed Avatar, that he is not with this these other idiots.

                --The Pledge--

“We pledge to protect those who are good, and who can not protect themselves from harm until we have saved from harm as many as there are spirits haunting this boat.”

sit right back and you will hear a tail

Aramil- Eric(not present so Aramil spent a lot of time in his bunk...strange for an elf)

Clarity-Mija

Hesperose- Scott

Kita-Shawn

Shiffit-clint

Zyva-Ron

   -- Clint currently running the game.  –

The games started out with a dramatic reading of the blog, to refresh memories as to what happened 2 weeks ago. When Scott gets to the part about 'the tid bit not get passed along', Mija looks up and says, 'wait, what did I miss'.

With Hesperose at the wheel the sailing was going smoothly. Yaher was beside Hesperose, pointing the way to their port of call. With lots of idle time, Hesperose attempted to pump Yaher for information about' what was in the hold, where exactly were they going, what kind of island were they going to, what were the dangers in these waters, what happened to his last ship, what other ports were around, what happened to his past ship and crew.... Yaher appears fourth coming about most items except is steadfastly obtuse about locations. Zyva casts detect thoughts, and Clarity senses motive. Zyva gets that Yaher misses his ship (lost at sea) and is feeling loss at his crew being left behind (some left on the island, where others were bobbing along not so nicely on the sea). Clarity is unable to get any real sense of what this little man is all about, not being able to get past his smiling cheeriness.

Hesperose decides that he wants to look in the crates, he ties off the wheel and Hesperose, Zyva, Clarity, and Yaher head down to the hold. Apparently the fates are involved, as the crate they choose to open is the one that Clarity is hearing the muffled screaming of children from. With the lid off, the screams are no longer muffled. Clarity has been hiding in the back, shying away from the presumed horror. With the lid off and Hesperose and Yaher examining the long spear, handing them back and fourth; Clarity's curiosity over comes her fear and she reaches for the spear. Upon touching it, she is thrown backwards, landing on her backside stunned. Zyva and Hesperose are quite alarmed, Yaher looks at Clarity in puzzlement. Zyva casts detect evil, and sees a miasma of evil hanging in the room. She quickly helps Clarity up and they head above deck. Hesperose demands an explanation of what just happened of Yaher. Yaher fobs it off on the dramatics of flim-flam artists like oracles and palm-readers. Hesperose throughly examines the spears and finds out, yep they're spears.

Up on deck Zyva and Clarity confab with Kita and a plan is hatched. When Hesperose and Yaher come up from the hold Zyva easily distracts Yaher, and Kita and Clarity go below to examine the goods with their owner not around. When back on deck Hesperose notices that the winds effecting the ship seem to be slightly less powerful than their surroundings (a really good roll). After distracting Yaher, Zyva is flying about the ship, looking for anything out of place. She also notices that the winds about the ship lessen about 50-80' out (another really good roll). Zyva then turns inviable and flies below decks to see what Kita and Clarity are up to. She sees Kita handling the spears, but when Clarity handles a spear she is blown on to her six. Clarity asks Kita to remind her not to do that again, and promptly handles another spear, this time with no apparent effect. But the third spear she touches, sends her tukus over tea kettle. Kita notices that the two spears that effected Clarity are both master work quality, and pulls out a dagger to scratch the butts of the spears, to mark them for future reference. With the first scratch Clarity goes down, like a marionette with the strings cut. Zyva undetected by the others (still inviable and moving silently), states that something really needs to be done about this.

Further secret confabbing goes on and new schemes are thought up. With the sun going down the winds die away completely. After a big supper Zyva lures Yaher into the launch. Once a bit away from the ship, Yaher asks Zyva if she is going to, fish or keep cutting bait. Zyva laughs a flies back to the boat. Yaher laughs back at Zyva and starts to make his way back to the ship. With Yaher in a disadvantaged position, Hesperose demands information about the spears and what does he know about this curse that is slowing their progress. Yaher continues to maintain that everything his is doing is above board and that any so called curse is just the non-sense of the fortune telling flim-flam artist. But he does agree to let the party do some simple tests, like put the 'so called' cursed spears in the launch away from the ship to see if that changes the wind. He also staunchly defends his rights to his cargo, and suggests that Hesperose's reputation is at stake in these dealings. Zyva flying inviable behind Yaher, not so subtly suggests that Yaher also disclose the information about locations; their destination and other ports about. Yaher spits back that he knows that with out him guiding the ship, the crew of the Celeste would be in dire straights, and that he knows it is very much in his best interest to keep it that way; as a unscrupulous crew might decide to steal his cargo, his jewels and send him to sleep with the fishes. Hesperose makes sure that Yaher is agreeable to the experiments on his cargo and lets him back on board.

Yaher pretends to not notice the veiled threats and turns in for the night, as does most of the crew. During the third watch, everyone is awaken by a jolting of the ship. Everyone scampers topside, and are unable to find any apparent cause. Clarity express that they must lift the curse that now resides on the Celeste, Yaher suggests, with a yawn, that there is a whale with a new lump on his head.