CMP

"Hah! No. Illdria says no killing heroes. So no mace. Sad. But...bashing head into railing not killing, I don't think." She eyes the railing of the ship as to measure its potential lethality briefly before turning back to Benji. "Been crew for eight months, maybe. Not been to Baltarok. It true orcs fight much? Would like to fight orcs. That one looks like challenge. Many orcs great challenge then, yes?"

The orange woman watched Benji's approach and nodded when he spoke. "Don't surprise me. Few Selkreeth around. I'm Zasies." Zasies lifted an enormous, lethal-looking mace onto her shoulder with a proud grin. "Muscle for crew."

Illdria drew her eyes away from from Olmstyr and Gocklo. "Now. Right this way." The captain led both parties up the gangplank and onto the ship alongside the crew that was already loitering about. "It'll be a bit of a squeeze, but do try not to kill eachother while you're aboard? I believe we've got everyone now - time to cast off." Within a matter of minutes, the Magpie was out of the bay. Eubric was behind them; what very well might be war awaited them. "It'll be some time before we reach the northern High Kingdoms and Baltarok. A week or so, I'd guess. So long as you don't distract them, feel free to chat with me, my crew, eachother, those two...whatever."

Perhaps, but I thought he would've mentioned Tumi in this post if he seriously suspected him.

It looks to me like Petr was a vengeful spirit. I'm hoping that's the case, since it would make no sense at all for him to kill Tumi if he was town.

How long is it gonna be before our NPCs are stabbing our own parties in the back for being conflicted about going on the Quests we designed against the other heroes??

"Of course. A sellsword. A mercenary. This little sarsuuln evidently serves the Kingdoms. Here to buffer the fat nobles from the dirt and grime of day-to-day life. Listen here. I have no quarrel with you or your party. But if you stab us in the back, I swear you'll come to regret it. Orcs have little patience for traitors or silver-tongued vermin such as yourself." Olmstyr flexes his fingers, as if to wrap them around the hilt of his sword. But he seemed to resist the urge. Illdria scratched her head. "Let's all take a moment to calm down here, huh? I'm only getting paid to take you all north, not mediate whatever the hell kind of crap you have brewing between you, but I'll toss you headfirst into the Helvetian if you end up disrupting my crew, ship, or Mercutio forbid, me. Got it?" The captain's eyes slid icily between the orc and the heroes surrounding him, and those of the kobold. The former relaxed. Marginally.

"We'll see, little sarsuuln," remarked Olmstyr critically.

You post in Quest 89 until we say otherwise, yes.

"Funny thing, spoke to a man also claiming to be shipping heroes just before my Bonaparte friend there interrupted...but the Magpie ain't a frigate. When we sail, we sail with speed. I don't take more than a dozen or so passengers at a time - especially not including yetis the size of ten men. They won't be coming." Illdria rubbed her chin. "Seventeen heroes, huh? You're an awful motley bunch, and armed to the teeth. If I didn't know any better I'd think this a scam. Luckily I've had experience with Heroicans. You all look like that," chuckled the captain.

"Seems so!" The kobold led the party a short way down the docks...

"It's a big thing. I'm afraid of what it means for Baltarok. If it spurs the clan into fracturing, that's bad. If it inspires a war between them and the Kingdoms? That's worse." "I can give you the rundown on the clans once we get on the ship. Far as their leaders and their motivations...that's why we're off to the Clanmeet." Olmstyr nods to Alexis. "Aye. It's the same in Baltarok. The clans don't always see eye-to-eye, but they've never once drawn a blade against eachother. Hopefully that won't change." He looks up the sun, and tightens his bandolier. "Time to go. This way, please." The orc led the way out of the alley and out onto the docks. It's already alight with activity. Sailors move cargo around or stumble drunkenly about. They can see many ships tied to the piers, but the one Olmstyr leads them is a startling white; and there seems be a standoff of some kind going on in front of the gangplank. A rigid man flanked by a pair of guards is speaking in a surprisingly reserved voice to an irritated-looking woman. "Oh, jeez..." "...thus the additional docking fee." "Thus my refusal of your additional docking fee." "Captain, we all have a responsibility to the safety of Eubric. Doubtless you've used it to hide from authority in other ports around Olegaia." "Maybe if I saw any indication of what you call 'safety' being anything other than 'bureaucratic megalomania', I'd be more inclined to pay. Granted it wouldn't be anywhere near enough to actually get me to pay it, but it might help." "Believe me Captain, if you knew the threats we were keeping at bay-" "-I'd likely laugh in your face. Half your fleet's up north screwing around with vikings nowhere near Eubric." "Who's to say they wouldn't attack at a moment's notice?" "Common sense. They're scattered raiders, not an army." "Our intelligence suggest otherwise." "My intelligence suggests your intelligence isn't worth the megablocks you pulled it out of. Do you mind unsuccessfully fining somebody else, Melville.? I've got business to conduct." "I'm afraid I can't leave until you pay the required the fee." "Prepare to wait, then. Your so-called Honor Guards? Ask them what happened the last time they tried to set foot on my ship. Then ask me how fast she can get up to. Then figure out the average speed of the nearest pursuit ship and the wasted morons you have sailing it. I'll be halfway to Baltarok by the time you're done." The captain crossed her arms. Melville stared for a moment, in thought, and waved to his guards, who lowered their weapons. He nodded to the party as the trio of Bonapartes passed them. "Best of luck on your venture, citizens." "...Wait. I remember that ship! Remember, Morg?" "Yes, Henry...I remember." They vanish into the crowd fairly quickly. The captain shakes her head. "Sorry about that. Damn Bonies won't let us go five minutes without trying to pull some bull on us, but 'Commodore' Melvile's the worse. I'm Captain Illdria of the Magpie. I suppose you're some of the heroes I'm to be shipping off to Baltarok..." As if on the queue, the heroes of Quest 88 arrived. "....while these must be the other ones." Olmstyr blinked twice, and shifted, frowning at Illdria. "'Other ones'? You neglected to inform me of this." "You neglected to ask."

Atramor pinned one of the scorpions to the ground with his staff briefly, stomping on it in vengeance before swinging the vermin into the air just in time for it to be frozen and shattered by Nyx in a split second. He smirked as the battle began to turn, bashing Crimson Scorpion E into the sand from the front row.

Kobolds are from Dungeons and Dragons, who I think got it from some mythology. Like most fantasy races.

Then...why's the majority voting for you?

Your own suspicions, primarily. If you're town, we take a close look at them and go over them. If you're scum....we take an even closer look. Also, voting patterns. They're much more evident now that we're focusing on two targets.

Wedge, you sell weapons automatically at Anwyl's for gold equal to WP x 5.

I believe lynching is the most telling way to get any answers on Day One, and you're both one my top three suspects and one of the people with the most votes right now. So I think you're a prime target for lynching. Sigrid gives me more the impression of an ungodly lazy townie than anything; my vote for her was an attempt to get her to speak up. Sorry I check things regularly and don't let accusations against me linger unanswered. But thank you for drawing up your conclusions.

Conclusions are what you. derive from those observations

"Indeed...though I'd like to get the clans on our side before we try and work out a resolution. Won't do us much good otherwise." "So I've heard...understandable. No doubt it's a time of strife for both sides. Best we can hope for is that they don't get in the way. But we'll be operating on opposite sides of the bridge. I doubt we'll be running into them."

I can vouch for Chloddy here, I did see. Some sort of black magic. Or something.

You worded it was though you were voting for her because it looked like she under heavy suspicion at the time and was already getting votes. An early bandwagon for you to jump on. It sounded very passive. 'I suspect so-and-so because....' gives a much different image than 'It looks like so-and-so is a good suspect.'

Reminds me of the time me and Sorag Smoke-Face went to go slay the mighty Colorblind Cow of Constantinople. To this day I can't eat steak without a ringing moo in my ears and the stench of smoked weed caught in my nose.

I'm willing to vote for him. At the end of the day, lynches generally always get us some answers. Petr's excuse is a pretty poor one. Unvote: Sigrid (Sisco) and Vote: Petr Half-Troll (PirateDave).

The day's been open for 58 hours, and the only reason you've spoken up a second time is because I called you out on it. But I'm interested to see who you'll end up voting for in any case.