[The adventurers Griffolk Ethyn the Dragon-Shaman, Corhim Sparkledingle the Gnome Wizard and Fangorino the Barbarian are on a mission to follow Baroness Partick and have been onboard the galleon known as the Dementor for several weeks now. Recently they decided to slay all the Baroness's servants who had been crewing the ship.]
DAY 38 (day 27 of the voyage) cont ...
The deed done, Griff and Fangorino threw the five remaining bodies over the side of the ship. Then as the corpses floated off on in their wake, they washed the blood off the deck with some buckets of sea water.
After this, Griff realised that no one was sailing the ship! There was a light wind only, so they were not in immediate danger of floundering. He went to the captain's cabin, but the stout halfling was getting roaring drunk with two of the marines.
Fangorino decided to join them.
Griff and Corhim returned to the main deck where they were met by Midshipman Alise.
'What happened?' he asked. 'We heard sounds of fighting.'
They denied that anything at all happened, but they were not believed.
The only thing that could be done was to rouse up as much of a crew as the could.
They had little enough though, just the Bosun, the two midshipmen and the inexpert help of Fang and Griff. Sparkledingle tried to help, but was too small to be of much use.
There was a favourable wind though so the ship was easy to sail. Corhim consulted the charts and had the Bosun set a course south east by east, aiming for Yacg'harr Island as best he could.
After he had done that, Corhim returned to the Captain and in the name of science
gave him a potion labelled '14. Maybe Whisky'.
The captain began to levitate. Laughing he passed it to the marines who then also took a swig each and started bobbing around the cabin.
Corhim then took a pen and re-labelled '13. Do not not drink'. Finally he searched the cabin for maps, but could find none with Yacg'harr Island on it.
Having done all that he cared to do he returned to Bosun Redthorn.
Redthorn said; 'I've people waiting in Calimport. They can deal with the vampires and it's only 3 days away. We don't even know where your island is and its at least six days away.'
'But, what about Cavu's plan?' asked Corhim.
'Why don't you ask him?' said Redthorn sourly. 'He's nothing to do with me.'
The skeleton crew worked the ship until evening-time when Redthorn told them to weigh anchor so they could get some rest.
By the time of the evening meal Fangorino had sobered up and was able to listen in while the remaining survivors of the Demontor formulated a plan to try and live beyond the night.
Corhim happily set about going from room to room of those that had already died or gone missing, looking for anything useful (or so he said, although it sounds more like he was simply robbing
them!).
The room of Mr and Mrs Baleworth was locked and some bleak comedy ensued when the servants on the other side would not open up.
'Hello,' yelled Griff. 'Open up, it's important!'
Fang stepped up and buried his axe in the door. There was a loud scream from inside.
'Erm,' went on Griff, trying to get Fang out of the way. 'Please open the door, we mean you no harm.'
'Open up little piggies!' roared Fang as he barged passed and whacked his axe into the door again. From inside there was the sounds of a struggle and a woman screaming.
'No Vincent! Don't do it!'
They burst open the door and saw a man trying to get out of the port hole while a woman tried to haul him back in by the legs. Griff went and helped and eventually they managed to get him back into the room, and after much confusion they managed to calm the situation down and move the two servants to the dining room with everyone else.
The Baleworth's servants had been hiding in the cabin for days, without any food and little to drink, hoping that no one would notice them.
And so, everyone else that was on the side of the living was removed to the dining room for the night. The captain and the marines were dragged downstairs by the ankles, now dead drunk.
Even Mullmaster was unchained and brought in.
The doors were nailed shut, garlic and mirrors were put everywhere. A watch was set and they settled in for an anxious night.
DAY 39 (day 28 of the voyage)
At one in the morning Fang, who was on watch, heard the sound of nails coming out of the woodwork somewhere below. Just after that, mist began to creep in under the door, but it was repelled by the garlic which had been placed all around it.
Fang grabbed yet more garlic and started rubbing it on everything, including himself.
Meanwhile, Griffolk was having a dream, a vision really or a revelation, where the God Heronius came to him. He was woken from this dream by a big bang on the western door. As everyone was roused, he was the first to notice a vampiric mist forming under the table. It was creeping around a small crack in the floorboards.
Corhim awoke with a start and to his horror discovered there was something spiky in his bedroll. He leapt out as quickly as he could, not waiting to discover what it could be.
Griffolk found that he was now blessed in some way by Heronius with divine power and managed to cast Protection from Evil on himself and just in the nick of time too, as the mist had now formed into an elderly male vampire in full plate armour who tried to mesmerise him.
More mists were forming, the room was in a panic. Fangorino flew into a barbarian rage. Mr Nice came bursting through the western door, but Corhim reacted fast and cast a Ray of Clumsiness on him, slowing him down considerably.
With the door open and threatened by a massive golem and the vampires coming up from below, the heroes were in for the fight of their lives.
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