Post
by Xzandrate » Sun Aug 16, 2020 12:54 am
From the writings of Moe'uhane, T'skrang Illusionist, 7th Circle, Messenger Rank 6
The call of the river grows greater with each adventure. I have been on rafts, I've been in canoe's, I've been on boats, and even felt the roar of the fire-engined river boats beneath my feet. Shivoam flows through all things, I know this as an illusionist, but as a t'skrang my desire to flow with Shivoam is not sated.
I sought out the soul who I felt could best help me fill this need, Captain Wesithral Ayero V'strimon. As luck would have it, she would be travelling the Coil again soon, and welcomed me and whatever companions I wished to bring with me to come and join her crew once again. I reached out to a number of friends, some were not so eager to be on boats near water again, while others were busy in more commercial pursuits. Answering the call was Norg, Reyis, Jael, and Temur.
We met with Captain Wesithral and her much smaller crew, this time they were piloting a small exploratory vessel named Astendar's Dart. The plan was to join the crew for a number of weeks while they sought out adventure and trade, in the mean time I would begin my tutelage in the ways of the boat under Wesithral and her crew. We travelled for a number of days and then began exploring smaller tributaries, trying to find new settlements and trade routes. The crew worked tirelessly, ensuring the path ahead was clear of debris, and multiple t'skrang with weighted ropes calling out the depth of the river. The ship's elementalist used a fair amount of spirit manipulation to help form the landscape into a more hospitable environment for the ship to continue to push forward when needed. Pushing aside earth, dredging channels, and causing the water to raise or lower to allow our passage. As we came to a split in the river, the way forward was questionable, launches were sent down each branch to assess the viability of navigation. We remained on board to guard the ship. Shortly after the launch parties had left a few of us noticed movement within the waters. Large crabs began to climb the side of the boat and launch an assault.
The large claws of the beasts snapped out again and again. One clenched around Temur's leg like a vise, he could not escape. But he stayed calm, and Tulaany urged us to stick close to ward off their attacks. We grouped up and I duplicated everyone with Phantom Warriors to confuse the opponent. The were tough opponents and continually snapped and grabbed at us as we slowly whittled away their numbers. One finally managed to drag Temur off of Tulaany with him falling unconscious as his head slammed onto the deck of the ship. This distraction was enough to allow Jael to tear into it with a series of claws and save Temur from being dragged off for a potential lunch. We rested and recovered while we awaited the scouting parties. They returned and gave their reports, the waters were quite different down each, and we picked the best for the ship to push forward.
Finally we came to a noticeable embankment where it was decided some should disembark and explore where it lead to. The thinking was this was an obvious path to the river, so there was likely a settlement along this path. Our group was chosen, as we were mostly more adept on land than we were on the boat, especially in comparison to the rest of the crew. We began upon the path, coming across some strange flora and fauna. We were attacked by these strange iridescent lizards, they would swim up and attempt to swat us with their tails. One managed to sent Jael flying into the air, and another learned how immovable Norg was with a whip against his crystalline armour. They attempted to flank us from both sides, but we were in a nicely bottled up location, so it prevented them from moving into a position of advantage. We quickly dispatched them and continued along the route. Eventually we encountered some natives, and escorted them back to the ship to negotiate trade with Wesithral. I spent a number more weeks honing my boat skills and eventually accompanied my companions back to Throal in thanks.
