when we last saw our intrepid heroes, they had returned to the Material Plane and were en route to Ritaegno with a load of loot. It is now one month's sailing time later, and the ships (Horizon and Rajni Natesa) are docked in Caer Ritaegno itself. To expedite things, I will say that you have already liquidated your loot and bought the Horizon outright from Cap'n Davies, leaving you with 100,000 gold in the ship's treasury. everyone ready? Music cued, character sheet on screen, snacks on the desk. Let's rock "gold in the ship's tr" treasury. I guess I'm ready. Are we at that point of restocking, crewing, looking for jobs? Is the ship registered with the legit maritime registry? (basically, 400 5-lb bars of gold) yes to the first, not yet to the secong. * Bourne nods. ((Whoo, a ton of gold!)) Which belongs to, who, the ship as a corporation in which the officers and crew have shares? ((So wait, we're in port then, concievably?)) up to you to decide, Captain. ;) (( What which belongs to who where now when? @_@ )) Legis: yes Josh: Just trying to decide who that gold belongs to. Short answer, it belongs to the ship. It's used to resupply and such. Hopefully it grows during a trip; people own shares of profit and loss after their regular seaman's wages. (( Ah. Theoretically, as captain, it's yours, because the ship is yours. )) * Legis probably goes prospecting in town for notable wine vintages with whatever people decided her take of the hard cash was if any. ;) * Bourne packs his haversack with some details, takes up his staff, leaves Ari in charge for the moment, and takes a deep breath as he prepares to step off the ship. : . o O (Gah. All those *people.* ) * Josh walks up to Bourne as he's preparing to disembark. "Permission to go ashore, captain?" He seems excited. : . o O (Calm down. Just go about your business. We need to register the ship, get retrofitted and fully manned, and *find a job*. ) * Bourne startles and glances over at Josh. "Eh? Oh. Yes. Everyone has short leave except a rotating watch. We'll be refitting and crewing up for a while." * Bourne gathers his courage and steps off into the teeming streets toward the local Seafarer's Guild (or Merchants' Guild? whoever registers ships for the merchant marine). Merchant Marine Guild * Josh salutes, then dashes off the ship and into the city with a "Yahoo!" * Curuar gets his boots on and grabs a few things. For once, he's not on watch in harbor * Curuar looks for Josh, Arianna, Legis, and/or Che to see if they've got any plans There, then. * Josh is already on the docks, and running off into the city proper. For what purpose is probably known only to the boy. * Legis is... well... plans? ((I mean, plans goes against the will of Eris and shite...)) ((Josh has plans! He's going exploring! New city whee!)) * Bourne , a few flashy cinematic cuts later, is patting a shiny new ship's registration parchment and sighing at the dent that resupply and refitting have made in the ship's treasury. "Well, how about going into town and seeing if we can find anything interesting to look at?" * Bourne thinks. Where *do* you look for skilled seamen? And, for that matter, jobs for a ship. (TAVERN!) * Legis hrms thoughtfully at Curuar. "That sounds sensible. Oh, and wine!" (actually, more like seedy docks-district bars) "Sure. I guess we can do that, too." "Not that the odds of finding any especially notable vintages are very high," she rambles like a snooty wine snob and not like her normal ditzy self. "But then again, pink elephants may have secreted a few bottles here and there," she finishes in a tone more in character. * Curuar has his Cloak of Elvenkind, Amulet of Nat Armor +2, Bag of Tricks, and a shortsword with him. "Whenever you're ready, then." * Legis pulls Charles the pet rock out of her bag and sets him to orbiting her. "Yup, ready... onwards!" * Bourne wanders back toward the docks area, hoping something will come to him. May run across some of his crew, too. * Curuar heads down the gangplank and on into town. "We might keep an eye out for Josh. Last I saw of him, he was running down a street with face yelling 'MUG ME!'." * Demota is now known as Arianna ( You guys could have /msged me, you know Hey Ari. I'm off in town running errands, Neil is on shore leave, and you're in charge of the ship. Dudes are showing up with cannon and saying they were paid to install these. :^) * Legis follows Curuar, peering at things as she goes. "Mug me? Aren't mugs for beer?" "Not the kind that steals you purse." +re -+re +r "A beer glass stealing my purse?!" she exclaims, astonished. "Wow..." "Yes. I think they're a smaller breed of mimic." *grin* Ah, many a man has had his purse stolen by a beer glass, albeit usually the mugs come in large numbers. :) * Bourne . o O (I could try a tavern. I guess sailors hang out there. But would they be a good quality of sailor?) * Curuar heads for a decent tavern he's visited before on stop overs on Ritaegno. -on +at * Legis follows, probably wearing something of the same wide-eyed innocent 'mug me' expression Curuar was talking about in reference to Josh... * Curuar finds us a table when we get to the tavern, if one's available, and orders a round of ale * Legis raises an eyebrow at the ale, sniffs it suspiciously, takes a quaff. * Curuar drinks his and looks around the tavern for any familiar faces from other ships. * Legis winces slightly. "Old socks, tastes like... not that socks I have, but..." * Josh is wandering around in the streets, his money hidden about his mostly ragged shirt and trousers in small portions and his sword and long-knife at his hip, looking at vendors' stalls curiously, listening to the babble of the street, and occasionally pausing shyly outside a tavern before chickening out and continuing on. "It's not so bad after a few." "Hrm. But why not start out with something that isn't bad?" "Because it... y'know. That's a good question." * Legis takes another quaff of it anyway because, hey, 'twould be rude not to. * Bourne comes across Josh in the street. "Ho, there, lad," he says with palpable relief. "Seeing the sights?" "Alright, next drink, you pick the beverage." * Josh jumps, startled. "Oh! Captain! Yeah, pretty much. I've never been to Caer Ritagno before." He grins ear-to-ear. "Yeah, me either. Well, a few days before I got hired onto the _Natesa_." "Dunno if they have a decent wine list..." "'tis rude to bring your own, no?" "Yes, it would be rude. But I think the alesman may have something good. We can ask." * Legis nods thoughtfully and considers the mug. "At least this one isn't made of leather. Leather's a weird thing to make mugs out of." "Was the _Natesa_ your first berth, Sir?" "Did this leather mug have a long part at the bottom that jutted out a bit?" "One I'm thinking of was mug shaped, and sealed with freakin' tar. I mean, if it wasn't the only place around there to get a drink..." "Oh." "Yep. I grew up on a farm. Learned a bit of weathe- *cough* Anyway, I saw maybe 50 people day in, day out for the whole time I was growing up. Read one too many books, though, and thought I had bigger plans. So it was off the farm to the big city for me." * Josh laughs. "That's kinda like what I did." He throws his arms wide, as if embracing the city and everything. "It's all so exciting; I'm glad I get to see it." "Boy, was that a mistake. All those people. Big smart wizard, learned man back home. Nothing special here. And so many strangers everywhere. Getting mugged my second night was all I could stand. Was stubborn enough that I refused to go back home, though. So I went down to the docks, and it turned out I could be useful to ships. Got myself a posting and never looked back." "If you don't mind me asking, just where are you from?" "Most recently, a little boat... then a different boat, then a bunch of other places. Originally, I dunno... second after that was a monastery." "Oof. That does sound rough. My condolences, Captain. But now you've got your own ship, so it all worked out, right?" ^_^ "Ah. Mysel, I'm from Caere Zitheral. Spent my entire life on ships or at one port or another." +f "I'll say. I'm grateful to many and indebted to none; that's healthy for a man's spirit." * Legis nods. "Not meaning to be obscure or anything actually, just that I started wandering back before I knew how to tell directions." * Bourne looks thoughtful. "...yeah. Why answer to an employer?" "Money, usually. But it's so boring." * Bourne sets off more purposefully, back toward the ship. "Josh, can you do that thing Ari does?" "I've heard a lot of tales like that. I guess its not so rare a thing that so many wanders don't know where they're from. At least you've found a good place to settle for a while among our crew." "With the, mind-reading or what not. Telling the state of a man's ethics." * Legis chuckles. "Sorta... it's a ship, so it's settled but it's wandering." * Josh looks back towards the city once, then jogs after Bourne. "...sometimes? If God wishes..." * Curuar thinks about that. "That is funny. Never thought about that way before." "I imagine she must do the same?" "Why?" "I'm sorta on a quest to find something. 'course, I don't know what or why, so it complicates things a smidge." "Hiring. What if we took on our own job and looked for the fortune of the seas ourself? What if..." he looks around and lowers his voice... "what if we set off to explore that new continent? It's a long passage, but if we're the first to find somethign and stake a claim, we could be more than rich. We could be famous. We could write our names in the history books." "I think I'd work on the what before the why. Knowing the what sometimes tells you the why. Heh. Get this. We're being all introspective an we haven't even sotten through the first drink." :) "But we can't do it if we're in a race with a hundred others. We need men who can keep their mouths shut until we set off." "And who can last through a long passage at sea without going stir-crazy." * Arianna is waiting there on the ship, just helping keep things in order when/if they arrive. "Bah! 'tis just why I am where I am. Or why I'm not somewhere else..." She giggles slightly, drains her mug of ale and saunters over towards the bar to find out if there's something more palatable. * Curuar drains his own mug, waits to see what Legis can find from the tapman "I don't know that I can tell all of that... But, God willing, He will tell me if any are untrustworthy, or have darkness in their hearts. I will pray upon it tonight, Sir." "All I can ask of you." * Bourne hops on board. "Arianna, where are you?" * Arianna responds. "Right over here." * Arianna waves briefly.l * Josh follows, still glancing a bit regretfully back at the city. Josh: I'm not keeping you if you still want to explore. * Bourne takes Ari aside, explains the same idea and asks for her participation. ((He's going to ask for permission to go out again in a moment. He isn't sure you don't need him immediately.)) Josh: you notice what appears to be a younger nobleman (judging by his garb) approaching the docks, scanning the ships curiously. * Legis hrms. Frowns slightly and shrugs, ordering a different type of beer when it's made apparent that this isn't the sort of place that has any wines fit to drink. "...sir? Do you need me just now, or can I...-- er? Hm." He walks over to the rail, looking the guy over a bit and seeing if he can figure out what the guy's looking for. Not everyday you see nobles wandering around the docks without an escort of guards and/or their own crew. * Curuar waits for Legis to get back to the table. "Found anything you like?" Josh: the guy seems to be looking over the ships intently, but isn't approaching any yet. "Time'll tell... or there's always holding out to see how it is after a few." what he's looking for, you can't tell "We don't have to do all our drinking here. When you're done with that, maybe we can go find a place better suited to your taste?" "I dunno," She peers around the crowded seaport tavern. "I kinda like the ambiance?" *shrug* "If you like." *waves down a barmaid for another ale* * Josh eyes Bourne, then the guy on the docks, then Bourne again, noting he's preoccupied, and decides that the guy on the docks might be more interesting. Pulling a strand of hair in front of his face, as if checking to make sure it's not -too- dirty, he nods then heads down the ramp for the nobleguy. the nobleman is now looking at the ship next to yours, and he seems not inclined to walk up their ramp. * Legis hrms considers the stout. "Hrm... woolen old socks. But not bad, really." "You should taste some of the fish oil they serve farther south." * Josh waves at him, smiling cheerfully. "Hi. You looking for someone, or something?" "Fish oil, straight? Hrm..." * Curuar just grins and drinks his ale "... wait a sec... hah hah, very finny." She takes a swig of her own. "Yeah. That one really gills me." "I'd almost think you did that on porpoise." "No, really. It was a fluke." "That's a whale of a story." "Better than floundering about." * Bourne vibrates to a new universal frequency, becoming an NPC... "I would be fine with that. I can't stand the idea of having some evil berk running around the ship." * Bourne is now known as HighSeasGM "Granted, I don't like the idea of them being right there in front of me either, but correcting them'll have to wait..." (( Hey, I just found this guy named Segev who's willing to come along... *goes into evil-detecting shock* )) Good to hear. I'll be sending criers around the dock areas today and tomorrow to have sailors meet us at the Merchant Marine Guild -- who's Josh talking to?" ( "Cleanse. Purge. KILL." Josh: the noble turns around. "Eh? Oh. Something, I suppose. Associated to a lot of someones." * Legis takes a pull from the funny sock brew (as she calls it) and giggles. "Hrm, you're falling behind," she comments, eyeing Curuar's mug. "You'd best get kraken." "Oh? What? Can I help?" "Strictly speaking, a set of someones with a selection of quality somethings supporting them, I suppose. I guess it depends on whether you honestly consider man to be the ne plus ultra of the universal plan of creation... it's a very philosophical question, really..." he seems a bit lost in thought. The nobleman looks up at Josh. "I'm sorry, what was I saying?" "I...see. You were saying something about the place man has in Creation. Are you a philosopher, or a priest?" He seems genuinesly curious. "I was? How odd. I came down here to hire a ship. I wonder how I got into a discussion of philosphy." * Arianna stands by, listening. "Oh... no, I'm not a priest. A philospher, umm, maybe. I'm a historian." * Curuar finishes his drink. "Shall we see what the market have to offer? I've been around Ritaegno before, and sometimes there's an interesting bit tucked away to be found." * Legis nods vigorously. "I'm all about interesting..." "Oh! History is fascinating. What do you need a ship for?" "Ah. Yes. I'm fairly sure my researches have turned up an important historical location. It would be imprudent to give voice to mere academic suspicions yet, of course, but I need a ship to get there. And, umm, several good men, I'm not at all certain it will be unpopulated. Or, err, friendly. Although fairly safe. I'm fairly sure. Yes." * Curuar heads out into the street and heads toward the market quarter "Really? Where?" * Legis follows, though slightly less steadily than she did before. "New Hope. Well, close by." "I heard from a gentleman who spent some time there that there were some most intriguing ruins nearby." Cur, Legis: three questions: how obviously well-armed are you, how drunk do you look, and how much finery are you flashing? "Oh." He thinks a moment. "Well, I can't promise anything, 'cause I'm just a cabin-boy, but you could ask my captain... we're kinda looking for adventure and profit. Wanna meet him?" "Yes, that would seem appropriate." Unless a Cloak of Elvenkind stands out as fancy, he's wearing everyday wear. He's obviously armed, as he's not really trying to hide the shortsword at his hip And I'm not even buzzed yet. Only had 2 drinks (Completely unarmed, slightly tipsy, silken cloak with a spiderweb pattern on it but otherwise pretty plain clothes... oh and a rock orbiting) "Okay. This way, on the _Horizon_." He smiles, turns, and gestures for the noble to follow him. "Oh, I'm Josh. What's your name?" "Baronet Aethelred de Gracy, of the Glaston de Gracys. Although Glaston doesn't actually exist anymore. Very tragic. The family's status took a significant blow." Aethelred follows Josh. "Oh. I'm sorry. This way - mind your step at the top, here, it's slippery with sea- spray." He leads Aethelred onto the ship, and over to Bourne. "Captain?" Bourne has been watching the conversation from over with Ari. "Welcome aboard, sir...?" Bourne looks questioningly at Josh. Cur, Legis: a few shabbily-dressed members of the crowd veer toward your fine cloaks, catch sight of Curuar's blade, and subtly veer away again... you'd almost never notice... * Curuar looks at their retreating backs, sees if he can get a more detailed look * Legis appears totally oblivious. Isn't, but... Cur:spot check. "Baronet Aethelred de Gracy, Captain Bourne of _Horizon_. Captain, Baronet Aethelred de Gracy." He introduces the two men with a small bow, capturing the pronunciation of the Baronet's title with practiced proficeincy. 1d20+2 * Prozac throws the bones for Curuar (1d20+2) and gets 9. Cur: you *might* have caught a glance of a tattoo for one of hte local "protection families" on one of the guy's arms, but you're not sure. And he is, after all, moving away. * Curuar decides not to persue, but keeps an eye open for any more cutpurses or footpads Bourne greets the Baronet and exchanges pleasantries until they get on to the subject of why Aethelred is actually there, which piques his interest. They retire into the captain's cabin to discuss levels of manpower, hiring price, and terms of employment. * Legis whistles innocently, and fairly musicially for that matter. Bourne turns to you two. "I think I'll have criers running the town asking for men to come to the _Horizon_ to be interviewed for positions. Ari, Josh, could you see to the arrangements? You'll be off shift and free for shore leave then." * Arianna nods. * Curuar steers us towrd a food vendor's. After those ales, a bit of something solid would be welcomed in his belly * Josh salutes. "Yessir!" * Josh turns to Arianna. "Orders, ma'am?" * Arianna thinks... A hand flashes out of the crowd attempting to grab Legis' orbiting pet rock. Suddenly, a high-pitched voice is crying out at length. Bob is still orbiting Legis, but hanging on to Bob for dear life and orbiting at somewhat more dangerous radius for bystanders is ... apparently, a midget. A fairly dirty one, in grubby clothes. ((Charles, actually)) -Bob +Charles "Let's look for a place where we can hire 'em!" * Curuar stands back and looks at the funny little man going for a ride." -" * Legis blinks. "Hey... hey! Bad Charles! Put him down now!" "Yes, ma'am. Should we hold the hiring intervues here on the ship, or arrange for a room at a tavern in which to conduct them?" "Here on the ship. Helps to lend us a bit more of an air of... I dunno. Business." Charles halts in midair, and the short person stops with it, still holding on and now several inches off of the ground with waving legs. The would-be thief is more clearly revealed now as a very young child, at least insofar as you can make out under the dirt on the face. * Curuar keeps an eye out for the little guy's partner. "Now whay would be after grabbing a float stone, youngster?" -y +t "I said put him down! Or..." she walks over to look at the flailing child. Charles decreases altitude slightly, and the child's feet touch ground, but the hands still hang on. A thought occurs to Legis. "Hey, are you hanging onto Charles?" "I think he may be. He must really like your rock." The child looks up at you. Can't be more than six -- and now that you take a closer look, a girl. Obviously scared, she manages to nod once. "Okay. I should probably set up a cabin for it. Or the hold? Someplace with chairs for the Captain and the applicant. And we need to put word out. Criers, like the Captain suggested...if we can afford them." * Curuar doesn't let the fact that she's a girl throw him. Her partner's in this crowd somewhere "Ah, okay then..." she says casually, leaning over. "Well, you should grab strangers... that's Charles, but I don't think he nor I know who you are..." Er, shouldn't Was about to say... ((Eheh... yeah, that's a bad moral to take away from this whole venture. ^_^;)) "Hmm... let's try the Cabin." "Yes. You're lucky Charles only gave you a ride." Legis: she looks up at you, and whispers, "...Ginny..." "Yes, ma'am. You want me to do that, first, or go looking for criers?" "Well, I don't think he bites..." she comments to Curuar. She turns back to Ginny. "Well, now that we've been introduced it's okay... though I don't think I've seen anyone take to Charles like that before." "Take care of the criers, I'll get to work on setting up a proper atmosphere. Besides, it'd do ye some good to maybe find other people your own age to talk to." "...his name is Charles?" Somewhat surprised, she lets Charles go. Naturally, it starts orbiting again. * Josh tilts his head, blinking at that last bit, then smiles and nods. This is an opportunity to get off the ship again! "Yes, ma'am! I'll take 50 gold from the hold, if I may, to pay them." * Arianna nods, and places her hand on JOsh's shoulder. "That'll be fine." "Yup! Kind of the strong, silent type though..." * Curuar let's Legis handle this, keeps his eyes on the crowd "Kin I borrow him? *Please*?" "Borrow? I dunno... I was going to ask if you wanted to meet his brother Fred..." "Okay. See ya, ma'am." He companionably pats the arm that's attached to the hand on his shoulder, then ducks out from under it and dashes for the hold. A minute later, he dashes back out and across the deck to the plank heading down to the docks. "Fred?" She looks around for another ioun stone. * Legis nods and does a sleight of hand trick and produces a second from the haversack hidden under her cloak. "Not quite twins, but the same craggy complexion..." Ginny reaches out to take it. * Legis lets her, smiling in her usual cheerful manner. "Fred?" She shakes it a bit and looks up. "The floaty stones help keep you safe, right?" * Legis sighs. "Not really, I'm afraid. They make neat pets, and sometimes are nice to talk to, but..." Josh: the docks are full of life in its various incarnations. There are sober sailors, drunk sailors, a man selling something doughy fried in oil, a man who apparently is eager for passersby to meet his female companion who appears to be in need of half an outfit, a Gehong monk with a bowl containing a few coins out sitting in the lotus position and meditating, a man carving runes in scrimshaw and selling them as luck charms for silv Ginny looks very disappointed. "Oh." She frowns, and hands Fred back. "I'm sorry I tried to take your rock. Please don't tell anybody." ((a man carving runes in scrimshaw and selling them as luck charms for silv)) silver * Legis smiles slightly. "It's okay... you can keep Fred if you want. Or we can go get something to eat, since Curuar and I were going to anyway. Or both, if'n you want..." * Josh blushes when he notices the scantilly-clad woman, and hastens past. He also avoids the drunks; they seem to make him a bit nervous. He does pause to pick up one of those rune-carved-scrimshaw luck charms, and ask the man if he knows where he could find criers for hire. Ginny looks up brightly, pauses and puts on a serious face and straight back and half-shakes her head no, then appears to think better of it. She pauses and nods. The guy hands you a bit of carving for your coinage and suggests the orphanage. "Lads there are always up for a spot of work, and the superintendents are happy to seem them doing honest labor." The scrimshaw carver gives you directions to a place a couple of blocks away, attached to a small temple of Fehrest. "All righty... to food!" she says rather overdramaticialy, then glances around quizzicially. Turns to see if Curuar has any input on where to eat. "There's a pretty good place a couple streets down. Are you sure this is a good idea, though?" "Thanks, mister." He puts the rune under his shirt somewhere, and moves the little pouch that had the silver in it to another location - it still has 8 pieces in there, after all - as he runs off to the location indicated. Ginny grabs Curuar by the hand and pulls him into the bazaar, holding on to Fred with the other hand. "Of course not!" she replies cheerfully before heading towards the direction they're going. "But if I thought about stuff to be sure, life would be boring." * Curuar lets himself be led by the child, but doesn't drop his guard "WHere are your parents, Ginny?" Josh: you enter a noticeably poor section of town. The smell of discarded fish parts and rendering tar mixes with fireplace smoke. At the place where you are directed, the "temple" described consists of a single nook with an altar under an awning, with a small cloth on it that sits ready to receive offerings. On one side of the nook is a painting of a cheerful woman with a rolling pin; the smell of baking bread wafts out of the building to which it is attached. On the other side is a painting of the same woman surrounded by children; this building is a larger one with several narrow windows on an upper floor. "Over there!" She points with the hand holding Fred, which drops him (he starts orbiting). She barely notices, as she comes up on the bazaar stall to which she was pointing. * Curuar thinks he's about to get hustled into buying something * Josh 's stomach rumbles a bit at the smell of bread. His face looks a bit saddened for a moment at the destitution of this area, but is quickly overwhelmed by a warm smile at seeing the painting of the woman with the kids. He adjusts his belt - that and the weapons it holds the only things that really seem more valuable than what anyone native to this part of town might wear - and heads into the building on bare feet, grinning h "grinning h" ( feet, grinning h ) ((feet, grinning happilly.)) Session Time: Sat Oct 29 00:00:00 2005 * Curuar heads to the stall, makes sure Legis is still with him Cur, Legis: There is a woman cutting up vegetables behind a counter, with several pots bubbling. A sign announces in words and pictures that bowls of soup are available for copper. The woman turns at the sound of Ginny's voice. "Ginny!" she cries. "Where have you been all day! Your father has been out looking for you, we've been worried--" she just now catches sight of Curuar and Legis. "Oh... hello." "Good morrow. We were recommended this place by a... reliable connesuier." *gives Ginny a quick grin* Josh: a couple of teenage girls in patched but tidy dresses look up from swabbing the floor and curtsy. "Welcome to the Constant Mother's Sanctuary for Children," says the older. "How can we help you?" * Legis has kept up, smiles brightly at the woman. "Hello," she replies and sniffs the air. . o O (Not the place i had in mind, but smells pretty good.) Legis: soup smellss okay. Your choices are apparently onion and pepper, and fish and pepper. * Curuar gives the stall a quick once over to see if they have any bread for the soup "I'm Legis, and that smells pretty good..." Curuar: no, but the next stall over is selling bread. * Josh waves to them. "I'm looking for criers, fair maidens. I was told this is a good place to find hard-working and reliable young men and women." His face is utterly failing to stay straight - apparently he realizes how over-stuffed he sounds. "Curuar. And my friend's right. That does smell good." "Sorry, sorry. I'm a cabin boy on the _Horizon_, and my Captain has a message he wants spread around. Could you please introduce me to the people here?" "Come back here, Ginny," says the woman. "Oh, goodness, look at your face. What *have* you been doing?" She futilely tries to get some of the muck off as Ginny tries to explain about trying to find something for Gerald. * Curuar waits for Ginny's mother to finish with her Cur, Legis: The woman looks up at you, distracted. "Oh... yes. Thank you for bringing Ginny back here. Please, let me provide some dinner. We don't have much, but we can feed you for your troubles..." she begins pouring a couple bowls of the fish soup. "Nonsense. We wouldn't have found this establishment if the child had brought us here. Consider us customers." Josh: "Ah, criers," says the older girl. "Betsy, go fetch..." She looks back at you. "How many would you be needing, Master Sailor?" * Curuar sets three coppers on the bench * Legis nods in agreement. "Though Charles isn't hungry, I don't think..." * Josh blushes a bit. "I'm no master, miss. I'm really rather new at this. But, um... how many can you get?" Josh: "Well, they'll let boys 10 and up work, and, um, we have fifteen I think. The rate is pretty standard." "Oh, I'm Josh, by the way. Sorry, I forgot my manners. I can hire all 15, definitely. How many kids do you have, in all, living here?" Curuar, Legis: She pauses. "...well, if you like." She finishes pouring the soup, and passes it to you. "I can't thank you enough, really." Ari: guys show up on the port with cannon and carpentry tools. "Hello the _Horizon_!" "No trouble at all." *takes a taste of the soup* * Arianna nods. "Welcome." Cur: pretty spicy, which considering the fish this stand looks like it can afford is all the better. Tastes okay. Clears your sinuses. :^) * Legis picks up a spoonlike object, pauses a moment in silent contemplation, then digs in. "Not bad." *goes the next stall over and buys some bread for himself and Legis* Ari: "We're here to refit you folks with cannon. Job order was right," he says, eyeing the pristine hull. "Looks like you need some cannon ports hewn. How'd you ever find a ship with ballistae on it these days, anyway?" ( poke ) Ping? ( I asked you a question in the OOC channel. ) * Curuar pays for the bread, hands Legis hers, and continues his meal. * Legis tears off a chunk of bread, works on the soup with gusto "The equipment was claimed in a scuffle with Redwater. Ari: "Aaah. Bully for you folks, then." He waves his men on board. "So, we can get started poking holes in yer hull?" He displays a Shipwrights' Guild badge. Josh: "Let's see... well, there's the 15 senior boys, about 20 of the younger lads, um, 10 senior girls, and 12 juniors." * Curuar will have to speak to Bourne and find out if the ship needs a new cook. Soup like this would be welcome after a stormy day in thr rigging. "Feel free. I'm just going to be working on making one of the rooms presentable in the meantime." "Sure thing. Lemme know if we can help... with... ... that..." the carpenter turns slowly, watching a stone woman walk by following a guy whose hair waves like seaweed in the air. * Josh blinks, mutters those numbers in his head, then mouthes the word 'seventy-two', and nods. "Okay. I'd like to hire all 15 senior boys, then. And, um, what's your name? If they can start immediately, it'd be appreciated. How's payment usually work? Before, or after?" ( I'm not certain Nova would appreciate you taking command of his character like that if he's going to do anything other than walk by. c.c ) * Legis snickers slightly at a thought. "Never seem to get tired of fishes... think I might've been a cat in a prior life. Or this one." Nah, right now he's just color. :^) * Curuar finishes his meal and sets the bowlk back on the bench. "Is this where you always set up?" ... I gotta know. Seventy-two what? There are 57 kids. ((Josh is going to be charitable, and pay the older ones. So the one's he's paying for work count twice.)) Cur: Ginny says, "We've been here forever!" Ginny's mom smiles at her and says, "Since before Ginny was born, certainly. We're very lucky to have held on to a bazaar spot this long. Grace of the gods, we always seem to make rent somehow." "Then I hope to see you here again next time we're in port. A good day to you." Josh: The older girl turns to the younger girl and says, "Right then, Betsy, go fetch Master David and tell him someone's here willing to hire the entire senior class for the boys as criers." * Josh rubs the back of his neck self-consciously. "Thanks." Curuar: "Good day, sir. Again, thank you ever so much." Ari: "...what *was* that?" "Friends of ours. I don't believe they've ever told me their full backstory." * Curuar starts back towards the ship. Once we're out of earshot of the soup stall, he'll ask Legis* "What do you think? Talk to MAster Bourne about hiring a new cook?" * Legis nods, and sneaks a gold piece under the empty bowl before standing. "Take good care of Fred," she says to Ginny with a grin as she walks off into the crowd with Curuar. Josh: the younger girl runs off upstairs, leaving you alone with the older girl. She stands there quietly, fidgeting a little. After a moment, you realize that she is shyly smiling at you, and blushing a little. Ari: "She's... made out of stone..." "Weeeell... back before, it might've been not much of a kindness, given our line of work. Even now, some don't take to wanderin' and all..." She shrugs eloquently. "I think she's an elementa." * Josh fidgets a bit, too. "So, um... what's it like, living in Caer Ritagno? It's my first time here, so..." "Aaaaah. Fancy that." He scratches his head with the claw end of the hammer he's holding. "Meet all kinds on the sea lanes, I suppose. Crossroads of the world and all that." The sounds of woodwork emanate from below, and he remembers his job. "Well, I'd best supervise my crew. If you'll excuse me, ma'am." "True. But there are those who would like very much to change their fortunes. And I think even a single voyage might improve the lots of some significantly." Josh: "It's... allright. I hear it doesn't smell so bad so often out in the country, some of the other girls talk about moving out there. They say there are lots of trees and such. But I don't know, I've never lived anywhere else." She pauses, then says, "You must see a lot of places, sailing." "P'raps." She thinks. "Which ones are the coppers again? I left a coin of some sort..." "The reddish metal ones. The yellow ones are gold." "Yeah! There was this really wierd island with all these giant animals and plants, and...well, I'm kind of new at this; but that's why I'm sailing - to see the world and stuff. I want to see more of the city, since this is the first real foreign city I've been to, and was wondering if you could..." he trails off, blushing a bit as he gets carried away. Josh: she brightens. "Sure! I can show you City Hall and, um, some other places. I can get a curfew pass, no problem..." she breaks off and curtsies as a slightly-elderly man in an antiquated coat-and-vest ensemble walks down the stairs. He peers at you. "Oh, whoops. I might've not left enough then... or wait, was it gold that's worth more or the other way?" She says this without any hint that she's joking. * Curuar doesn't comment. He looks around for Bourne when we get back to the ship. "Would you be the one doing the hiring? What's the job that needs 15 criers?" Cur, Legis: trip back to the ship happens without incident. "Arianna! Is Master Bourne busy?" * Josh straightens, putting on a (rather effective, considering his rather, um, ragged state) proffessional aire, and bows slightly. "Sir. I'm Josh, of the _Horizon_. My Captain wishes to conduct hiring intervues of prospective sailors. To ensure a sufficeint pool of applicants, I am to hire criers to spread word of the intervue's time and location. " "Crewing a ship, eh? Well, allright. It's honest work. Actually, eh, we've got a couple lads that are near enough to the end of their education that it's about time they looked at a trade, if you've got the berths for them..." Bourne takes this moment to emerge from the captain's cabin with Aethelred, shaking hands on a deal. Aethelred exits the ship into the city, looking satisfied. Bourne comes over to the gangplank. "They are free to come and apply for the positions, sir. The Captain is a good man." "Master Bourne, were we going to need a new ship's cook, given the shake up of the crew?" "Excellent, excellent. That will leave 13 criers, certainly quite enough to thoroughly blanket a large area of the town. The going rate is 6 coppers per diem, for a total of 98 for the group, say an even 1 gold per day for the group... duration of the employment?" "Cook's assistant, yes. Once we're up to full crew cook will need an extra pair of hands to keep up." "Good enough, I suppose. I think I've found a likely candidate, if they're ammenable to a voyage." "Have them report for evaluation, same as the rest." "That I will, sir." * Josh blinks, surprised. "Today and tomorrow - intervues start tomorrow and go until we have a full crew. Um... if I can meet the boys, I can pay them now, and give them the details. If they can get started immediately..." * Curuar spends the rest of the day just wandering around town until nightfall. "Certainly." He raises his voice. "Lads! Fall in downstairs, there's a job!" * Legis finds a cozy place to sit on the side of the mast and works on the technical difficulties of drinking wine while sideways. * Josh fumbles under his shirt for a bit, pulling out a pair of pouches to have them ready while he waits for the 'lads' to 'fall in'. Fifteen lads tumble downstairs in a flurry of gangly teenage legs to stand before you in rough order of age. A couple of younger ones come down as well, not in line but watching the mildly interesting spectacle. * Josh looks them over and then looks to the elderly man for permission to speak to them. Especially since a fair number are probably at least his age, so he's hardly the adult here. He nods. "Good day. I'm Josh, the cabin boy aboard the _Horizon_, a ship that pulled into port today. We're currently well under-crewed, so my Captain is intervueing potential crewman tomorrow, and continuing until we have a full crew. Master David said that some of you might want to apply - if you're interested, I'm sure Captain Bourne would be glad to meet with you. However, that's not why I'm here. "To get word out amongst potential sailors, I'm to hire criers. They need to go around the city, spreading word of the hiring. It's to start at an hour before noon tomorrow, on the ship itself. We're in [names the dock number]. Any questions?" There are none. The elderly man, Master David, selects out the two oldest lads and presents them to you. They are amenable to the idea of going off to sea, an idea to which some of the younger lads respond appreciatively. Master David requests the fee in advance. *to the two potential sailors* "Okay. You know where to go tomorrow." *smiles and nods amenably to Master David's request, and starts at one end of the line, pressing a single coin in each boy's hands, and closing their fingers over them as he does so* "As for the rest of you, if you could get started immediately, I'd appreciate it." ^_^ Josh: you gave 'em each gold, didn't you? * When the boys look at their coins, they'll find that each has a single gold piece. "Gold!" says the first boy in surprise. He is holding his palm open. The other boys murmur. Master David sighs, but lets you continue. He shoos the 13 on their way when you're done. * Josh blushes, but pretends he's not doing anything unusual. He doesn't quite meet anyone's eyes, though. "I hear sailors after a good voyage can be generous, master, but we *do* try to teach our boys to work for a living. It's very tempting in this part of town to look for easy money." The girl you asked out earlier, however, seems quite impressed, and is openly smiling at you now, eyes bright. She indicates Master David with a tilt of her head, still looking at you. "I'm...sorry, sir." *swallows, but takes heart (even as he turns a bit more red) at the girl's reaction* "I, um, have shore leave now that I've hired the criers, and have a desire to see the city. May I borrow this young lady as my guide?" David looks around the foyer. "Well, it seems that Sarah has done her chores. Curfew is sunset--" "Curfew pass, Master David?" she asks. "--two hours past, then." She bobs a curtsey saying "Thank you, Master David," and turn to Josh. "I'll be just a few minutes upstairs, if you don't mind..." * Josh bows graciously. "Not at all, miss." She heads upstairs, as do the two boys, talking about packing and saying farewells and going to sea. In a few minutes, Sarah comes back down cleaner socks, a ribbon in her hair and twinkle in her eye. I'm not actually sure what the landmarks around Caer Ritaegno look like, so if this is to be RP'ed we'd probably best leave it for Ars. ((Nah, it's fine to background it. If Ars wants to mini it later, I wouldn't be adverse, but I don't have a burning desire to do so.)) 'k Curuar, do I interpret correctly that 'round sunset you head back to Ginny's family's soup stall? ((However, he will show her the ship, and there's one thing he's going to do that can either be explained OOC or handled IC, whichever you prefer. Here's where the '72' came in, though the number has changed, now.)) Josh: mm? ((Ah, let's just IC it, if you don't mind. If you wouldn't mind letting them board the ship?)) Sure. Yes Curuar: The woman is serving a customer a bowl, and looks up at you. "Oh, hello again." * Curuar gets another bowl of soup and waits for the other customer to finish and go She serves you, and there is a brief silence after the other customer leaves. "Is there... something else you were thinking about, sir?" she ventures. * Josh , after exploring the city a bit, leads Sara to the _Horizon_, mostly to show her where he lives. And the hold, including his little area. He looks a bit nervous, but pulls out a small chest anyway. "I wanted to do this when I first heard I couldn't hire everyone, 'cause some are too young, but I know what Master David said about hard work, so..." "There is. The ship I sail with, the _Horizon_, is currently looking to take on crew. With the number we're looking for, we could use a cook's assistant.Do you think Ginny would enjoy a sea cruise?" * Josh opens the chest, and pulls out six pouches that look like the ones he pulled out in the orphanage/school. "I, um, will leave it up to your judgement, Sara. There should be enough here for one for each of the kids, if I added correctly. Would you mind either distributing them, or, if you think it's wiser, giving one for each kid to Master David or whoever's in charge of money at your home?" "Keep whatever's left for yourself - you can use it when you're ready to strike out on your own, help you get started." *blushes furiously, but pretends he's not* Curuar: she looks at you openmouthed for a moment, stunned, and then gathers her wits and laughs. "Bless your heart, sir, it's a nice thought but I couldn't possibly. Ginny isn't even my youngest, and I have thr- two older." Josh: Sara takes one of the pouches and gingerly opens it up to look inside. * There's 10 gp in each pouch. Sara gasps. "I... I couldn't..." * Curuar nodds. "Well, we sail inside the week. If you change your mind, the captain's taking intervues tomorrow at noon." *finishes his soup, pays the tab* "Please? It's... well, it'll help everyone, either give them each a starting point, or...well, help build up your school so it can do even more." * RustAngel has joined #highseas Sara gives it back to you. "You can't possibly be able to give this much away. Not even the richest sailors leave this much on the altar." She looks down. "I mean, the other girls would just die if I don't take it, but..." Sara thinks. "I don't need it; I'm just a cabin boy. It's...left over from something else. I have more, too, and I don't...I can't think of anything that would make me happier to do with it. Please?" *smiles nervously, hopefully* * Curuar leaves Ginny's mom to think the offer over and heads back to the ship * The chest, which is still open, is quite full of bags, truth be told. Though most probably don't contain gold pieces. Sara is obviously trying to think of something to say, but that's a lot of gold and she comes from a place where you don't turn something like that down. "Well... allright. It's... very sweet of you." * Josh would blush more, were it possible, but settles for continuing to do so. "Thank you, Sara. Come on; I'll escort you home - the sun set an hour ago, and I don't want to get you in trouble. Let's hide these so we don't get accosted, shall we?" He proceeds to demonstrate great skill at hiding small pouches about himself, unobtrusively, though he can only manage six of them. Sara heads home with you. The trip through the bad part of town is short enough that the two of you aren't noted by any thieves who seem to think you're worth the trouble. ((Especially since Josh is rather blatantly armed, AND looks poor otherwise.)) * Legis has probably, by this point, finished a bottle of wine and is standing upside-down on one of the cross bars on the mainmast with her flute. In the foyer of the orphanage, before any money changes hands, there is an inexperienced but enthusiastic kiss that is broken up by the giggling of some youngsters behind an archway up too late. Aaaaand let's call it a night as Josh heads back to the ship, shall we? * Josh is surprised, but returns it with equal inexperiance, until the giggling makes him blush. ((Sure!)) * Josh is now known as Seg * HighSeasGM is now known as Bourne * Seg is now known as NotSeg * Legis drunkenly belts out weird flute melodies. * Bourne shakes his head, looks around, and for several reasons feels like it's been a good day. * Bourne is now known as William