Meeting Straylor at the docks...

[Dante Asunder]

4th brightening of the Fifth Cycle of Immanis. Winter, Era XV Post Fractum

Dante arrived at the docks about half a candlemark before sunup. He headed straight for the 'Hatorania' and awoke Old Beard. He had sent word to his men from the Leap of Faith after welcoming Straylor to the island. His lord wanted to go fishing and so fishing he shall go.

Old Beard splashed some sea water on his face and rub the sleep out of his eyes with a yawn. "Morning Cap'n."

"Serale Mister Old Beard. Are the preparations finished?" Dante greeted his friend warmly. Patting him sturdily on the shoulder.

"Aye Sir. We'll be ready to depart as soon as your guest and the rest of the men arrive." The dwarf took one last look around the 'Hatorania' as he waited for the rest of the crew to show up.

[Straylor Leonard]

Secrets : OOC: to the mod ~ I'll just throw this snippet in there as part of the thread so I don't make unnecessary threads in the city Lemme know if you want me to change / add anything!

Prior to his arrival, Straylor spent the darkening in his room at the Leap of Faith. There, he found the simple comforts of a inn suitable enough though it did not have the same bliss as his mansion in Trysvale. Regardless, after drawing some of his Vis and mixing it with Ara Straylor produced enough Mana to exchange for Essence which he used to replace the Summon Gryffin charge in his Black Sapphire necklace. The apprentice level spell was taxing, but not entirely so for the reserves of a Journeyman.

Next, Straylor turned his sights on his concealed knight daggers along his boots. One carried enough charges of Globe of Codfish for several hundred catches; at least, if his previous encounters held true. So, he assessed the second dagger which only had one more charge of a similar spell; this one he used in Iefferon to put together a great profit and a team of established fishermen. He would corner that market soon enough.

With his mind's hands, Straylor dispelled the remaining charge before slowly weaving the spell that they would need for crabbing. It was interesting how crabs and other shellfish communicated. The weave that attracted them was based on his magical observation of some shellfish in a fish market. If these worked, then there would be crabs to catch and not enough room to haul them in. He coined the spell Crab Capture, and the spell worked by using divined links that are designed to attract crabs and their cousins and abjuration to send these 'summons' at a greater distance and with greater 'signal strength'.

Each time Straylor abjured the charge into his dagger, inserting the apprentice-level spell into the familiar 'spots' which he has been using to store spell ever since he first used the dagger as an amulet. He repeated this process four more times, each time 'sealing' the spell with a thin layer of unshaped mana to keep it from activating prematurely.

If all things worked out, Straylor double checked his work before finally resting. He'd have a short rosyun to start him off the following brightening; and dressed in his hooked cloak, he proceeded toward the docks alone and ancticipated the figure of Dante and a few other men to be among those gathered there.

"Serale" he greeted the dracon with a thin smile. Straylor kept his weapons in tow just in case but otherwise needed nothing else but his Arcana that brightening. "A pleasure to meet you" he extended his hand to the other men there and introduced himself. "Call me Felix."

[Straylor Leonard]

Permission to peer moderate from GM Whisper! If you have any questions, please PM!

It was actually a dark brightening on their meeting date. Just beyond the swirling turf off the shores of Demios were black clouds, all of them brooding, none of the forgiving. The sailors didn't seem at all happy about the weather, though Stray was particularly interested in trying out yet another spell he invented some cycles ago in Trysvale. What better place to try it than during a storm he thought with a sort of bemused expression. "This must be your crew" he told Dante with a smile "good. Are there others?"

Within the next half candlemark, everyone else arrived to man the ships Dante manage to procure during his preliminary scouting mission on the island. Stray was rather impressed by the dracon's work ethic. He made a fine accomplice that Winter brightening in Trysvale. He nodded, presumably in satisfaction, when the crew loaded up what they needed and began to unhatch the ships from their anchored positions. Aboard the crabbing vessels, Stray noted that the waves were indeed getting more fiesty but dismissed the notion of drowning.

He would have been a half assed druid if he was not at least prepared for the worst.

Secrets : OOC: you control the crew, I'll moderate the rest

[Dante Asunder]

Dante didn't like the look of the weather. The weather in Demios could be devastating and unforgiving. He turned to Old Beard, "What's your assessment Mr. OldBeard?"

"I don't like it Captain. I'm thinking we should put the fishing trip on hold until this storm passes," Old Beard answered Dante.

Dante scratched his chin, the concern on his face mirroring that of Old Beard's. "Sir," Dante stated addressing 'Felix', "the weather looks dangerous. I can't vouch for your safety if the worst were to happen." Straylor was a grown man and could make the desicion for himself, but Dante secretly hoped that his faith in this man would be justified by Straylor not risking the lives of either Straylor himself or Dante and his men.

The other sailors showed up at that moment hauling the crab cages between them. Dante turned and gave them a smile. "Morning men. How are things? Let me introduce you to my good friend Felix."

Then turning to Felix, "Sir, may I present the best crab fishing crew on Telath. I present to you, my quarter master Charlie, Keran and Meran, my navigator Ollie, Deritz and Pip. Pip and Meran are the dock informants as well."

Charlie gave Straylor a big grin and offered his hand to shake. "Felix, any friend of the Captain is a friend of mine." As the rest of the men followed suit Charlie moved over to where Dante and OldBeard were speaking. "Are we really going out today Captain? The weather looks ominous."

"We were thinking the same thing Charlie," Old Beard answered. Old Beard, Dante and Charlie conversed for a few more moments.

At Straylor's question Dante turned back to him. Then in a quiet voice that only the two of them could hear, "I'm sorry sir, this is all I have been able to arrange thus far. If you would wish a fleet it will be done, but I do require time." Dante then gave Straylor a fang filled grin as he continued in whispered tones, "Fear not my lord you shall be master of all Demios fishing." Then in louder tones so that the whole crew could hear, "These here are the only men brave enough to do crab fishing off the coast of Demios!" He gave them a big grin. Most of the men smiled and patted each other on the back, except Charlie and Old Beard. They only grinned at the compliment. They understood where it may lead and were not happy about it.

He stepped back over to Felix, but waved off Charlie and Old Beard when they tried to approach. "My lord, the Hatorania is a good ship, but this storm may be more than she can handle. I wouldn't feel right, having to inform your lovely bride that I was responsible for the death of her husband because of my being foolhardy. We will go if you wish it, but I don't think it wise."

[Straylor Leonard]

The storm was indeed brewing, but Demios wouldn't have been legendary without its freak weather conditions. Along the docks, the men could see that the storm clouds were darkest near the fishing grounds -- and most of the ships were either returning to port or delaying their departures. This gave 'Felix' something to grin about. "Well, good fellows" he began in calm tones "While it may seem strange, I can actually vouch for all of your safety." His features showed some amusement for a second before he walked toward the vessel named Hatorania and motioned for the other men (and dracon) to follow him. "You have my word that this rain will not be the master of us this brightening."

Big words for such a seemingly small man. Stray stood no taller than the next average sized fellow, and other than his possibly expensive clothes and shiney boots, he looked nothing special. And whatever boost he gained from wearing two swords meant nothing if their ship turned into drift wood. So what then, would the young man be howling about? Moving toward the point of the ship, Straylor waited for the men to ready the vessel and steady her out towards open waters. He didn't want to ruin the surprise for Dante yet, so he remained quiet a while longer.

But once the winds began tearing at the sails and their faces, and the waves slowly churned and roughed against the ship, Straylor closed his eyes and allowed his mind to find its center. He saw her grasping toward him from eternity; he reached out, touching her fingers until they hung about each other's arms in boundless ecstasy. She was freedom, he was her vessel; they were a match made in Aethernia. Allowing Clara to overtake his senses, Straylor then focused on the spell he had in mind. It would be a variation of his weather altering spells -- but rather than encouraging rain, he extended his will outward via abjuration and alteration to break out the clouds above them. His knowledge of Waterbending also helped in the endeavor, helping him 'trace' the wings of the storm without needlessly tugging at the wrong ends that wouldn't budge, not even with his powers.

As Straylor released his spell, he was snapped out of Clara. All around him, the sailors were nervously clutching at the rails, others heeding the yelled commands of the quartermaster and the ship's captain. But Straylor kept his gaze upward, seemingly lost in the inevitable destruction of everyone on board the Hatorania. Suddenly, the winds around them subsided and the waves ceased to churn; looking outward, every man could still see that the storm was brewing ... but not at their present location. And overhead, where Straylor was gazing, was a bright hole where an eye was born ... he had pierced the storm clouds and brought calm instead.

"So tell me gentlemen" he said, turning toward Dante and his crew "would this spot do for our fishing grounds? Or shall we move elsewhere? Either way, I believe the rain will no longer be our problem."

[Dante Asunder]

At Straylor's request Dante encouraged the men onto the ship, "Don't worry lads, if it gets to bad we'll head back." Dante took a quick glance at Straylor. He trusted his lord implicitely, but the men didn't know Straylor anymore than Dante's friend. He patted Charlie and Old Beard on their backs. "It will be alright my friends, I promise." Dante tried to give them a warm smile, but he wasn't sure how convincing he was.

As they got ready to get underway Dante started calling out orders, "Mr. Ollie and Mr. Old Beard you two are on the helm, Mr. Keran, Mr. Meran and Mr. Pip, release the moor lines then go prep the cages. Mr. Deritz and Mr. Charlie raise the sail! Let's get this trip underway!"

The men went about their tasks like a well oiled machine. Dante walked the decks and checked the vessel to make sure that nothing seemed out of place, broken, or worn. He put two men on the tiller, due to the potential storm. Dante headed over to Straylor, "Well we are underway sir. I hope you know what you're doing." Dante gave him a squeeze of the shoulder and a smile.

As the winds picked up and the storm looked imminent Dante hollered, "All hands on deck! Everyone attach you life line!" Dante strode to the main mast and tied a loop using a bowline knot around his waste and then proceeded to tie one around Strayor's. Charlie and Deritz tied theirs then dragged lines to Ollie and Old Beard and fastened theirs for them while they tried to stay in control of the ship in the storm. The other end of the lines were tied to pegs inserted into the mast, since it was the section of the ship most likely to float if the ship were to sink.

"Captain, she can't take much more of this!" Mr. Old Beard warned with a holler.

Mr. Charlie came over to Dante and had to yell into his ear over the noise of the building storm, "Captain we need to turn back!"

Dante nodded and was about to tell Ollie and Old Beard to change course when he recognized Straylor entering clara. He wasn't aware of his lord's magic ability, but he recognized the motions when he saw them. Once his lord opened his eyes and looked upwards Dante followed suit. Old Beard and Ollie looked at each other and Ollie gave Old Beard a raised eyebrow. Deritz simply watched the pair for a moment while sucking on a long pipe, sending up little tufts of smoke as he tried to keep his pipe lit and giving the sky an occasional glance.

When the storm broke a large grin broke across the face of all the men present. They smiled at each other then looked back up for a moment, basking in the warm sun. Dante clapped Straylor on the shoulder. "Well done, my lord!" All the men cheered as Charlie led them in a cheer, "Hail Felix! Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray!" Old Beard just gave the captain a wink as if he and Dante had known all along what was going to happen.

[quote]"So tell me gentlemen would this spot do for our fishing grounds? Or shall we move elsewhere? Either way, I believe the rain will no longer be our problem." [/quote]

Dante smiled at the man. "Well my lord, or fishing grounds are a little farther on yet, but we will be there in about a candlemark."

When the ship neared its destination Dante informed Straylor, "Almost there sir. I'm going to tell the men to get ready to switch out the cages, unless you have an objection?" Dante gave Straylor a grin and waited a few moments for him to answer before he would yell, "Prepare to switch the cages! Lower sails!" Pip, Keran and Meran had been hauling the crabbing cages up onto deck and there were ten of them seperated into two piles of five, waiting to be tossed overboard. The men seperated into two teams of 3, with Deritz, Charlie, and Pip on one side and Meran, Keran and Old Beard on the other, with Ollie on the helm and Dante at the bow to tell the crew how close they were to the cages.

On Dante's signal the crew would start hauling up the old cages and drop the new ones.

[Straylor Leonard]

The power to pierce stormclouds was something of a magic trick worth keeping, Straylor decided when the crew fell in awe and accepted him as some kind of wizard. He wisened, however, that Dante was also putting on quite a show -- not just on his behalf, but also for his crew. The dracon had talent, much leadership, and greater potential. Once more Stray smiled in satisfaction. There was a harvest to be gathered here ... gold to be assumed. He simply nodded in resopnse to Dante and noted their direction as the vessel continued onward, past the relative santuary he provided, and into the storm again.

But this time, Straylor was ready.

Instead of piercing the weather like before, he decided on another strategy. It had been quite some time since he practiced some Elemental Druidism. So far from the Copse he could only hope that his mentors were not watching his display of augmented talent and skill. There was nothing short of power when it came down to it: Straylor was commanding Nature rather than taming it. Instead of calming the clouds and soothing the wrinkles on heaven's brow, Straylor used the principles of Waterbending and Airbending Straylor commanded the rain to move out of the way, while propelling the hazardous winds away from the sails that would otherwise hinder their advance.

He channeld the air and the water via abjuration and alteration, deflecting, reflecting, and redirecting the two primary sources of storm weather with a keen sense of control borne out of his practicing on his farmland. A smile formed on Straylor's countenance as they neared the location Dante spoke of. And with another cleansing breath, Straylor formed a roof-like barrier above and around the ship, causing the water and wind to cascade downward, away from the crew and the Hatorania altogether.

At Dante's command, the cages left at the bottom were snatched by massive hooks on pikes while massive, empty ones were tossed into the opposite deck. At once, Stray saw that the first cage was bursting with crabs -- dozens of them to be sure. The crew cheered. They plucked another and it, too, was filled with crabs. Fat females, muscular fleshy males of varying shades of brown and grayish green. It was a harvest one that Stray knew was just beginning.

"When you're done" Stray said "and all the cages have been replaced, let me know." He didn't elaborate and nodded, indicating to Dante that he was preparing yet another surprise. If there was a way to attract crabs to the cages, then Straylor certainly knew what it was -- and it was only one activation away.

[Dante Asunder]

Dante had great admiration for the man he had sworn his loyalty to. Time and again Straylor proved that he was worthy of Dante's trust. As the ship travelled Dante enjoyed the magical view that the weather dome Straylor had created made for the ship.

Once they were at the crabbing grounds and the marker barrels for the previously deposited cages were in sight Dante called out the men, "Get ready men we're almost there. Lower the sail! Get the hooks ready!" The sail was lowered and the empty cages were now out on the deck. The men were divided into the two teams ready to begin the transposing the old cages for the new.

"When you're done" Stray said "and all the cages have been replaced, let me know."

Dante's only reply could be this, "These men are the best sir. They will be done in a matter of minutes." Then turning to the men, "Now!"

Without Dante slowing them down the men flew through the cage transposing. One man on each team would hook the marker barrel as the other two hauled it up as fast as they could. With an extra man on each team it went evern faster than normal. Once the cage was on deck the next was deposited in it's place. In less than a quarter candlemark all the old cages were on deck filled with crabs and the new ones were replaced.

"A good day's haul sir. This is pretty much standard for this time of year from what I understand," Dante explained. He knew Straylor was up to something, so he simply waited patiently with a grin on his face for Straylor's next order.

[Straylor Leonard]

Straylor watched the men's back-breaking work. If this had been any other brightening, injury was almost guaranteed, not to mention the freak weather Demios provided on a random generator. Still Stray saw that there was much profit from the oceans ... if only there was some way to alter the tides on whim, to bring the profits to him rather than his competition. At Dante's command, the crew worked until their jobs were finished. "Good" Stray told the dracon when he noted that the catch was hefty and rather filling. "We're not done yet."

Walking over the to cages, Straylor counted them off and made a mental note to send Dante charges of the spells he would require to keep the fishing quite aimiable until the seasons shift. This would be quite a challenge. Either he provided them with weather altering spells or crab-catching ones. Could he provide both? That seemed like a lot of time and effort for a single crabbing ship ... perhaps when he ascends to Masterhood he would have the ability to create a perpetual crab-attraction zone of sorts. This would be rather interesting indeed.

"I see that you seed the water, place your trap-cages at random marks around the fishing grounds" Stray said suddenly "I can make things much simpler for you. Cast the cages in a circular pattern around us. Save one cage for me to 'bless'. That one will serve as the centerpiece for all the surrounding cages. It will be your lure."

When the men obeyed Dante's orders, Straylor turned his attention to the remaining cage and closed his eyes. He made plenty of charges of the Crab Attract spell. Good. From his first dagger, Straylor activated two -- more than enough to act as a beacon of sorts, drawing all sorts of crabs and lobsters toward the gathering of traps. Once they were there, Straylor imagined that they'd all wander toward the source of actual food that was promised via spellcraft.

"We return on the morrow I think" he told Dante when everything was in order "then we'll see how effect our methods are." He grinned then looked thoughtfully toward the waging storm, knowing full well that no wind or water could dampen their plans now.

[Dante Asunder]

"We're not done yet."

Dante nodded to Straylor with a grin.

"I see that you seed the water, place your trap-cages at random marks around the fishing grounds. I can make things much simpler for you. Cast the cages in a circular pattern around us. Save one cage for me to 'bless'. That one will serve as the centerpiece for all the surrounding cages. It will be your lure."

Dante double checked the cages, making sure that any that were in need of repair weren't included in the ring of cages they were throwing back into the water. They already had several scattered cages seeding the grounds, but if Straylor felt he could get them all filled up, well then Dante would give him his shot. One cage needed repairs from a fraying marker barrel line and another had a cracked board, but there were still eight that could be placed immediately back into the water. "Alright men, we're going to try something new today, courtesy of our good friend Felix. I want these cages," Dante indicated the ones still in good repair, "to be placed in a ring around the ship. Save one for Felix here to work his hocus pocus on, which will be placed in the center of the ring. Got that?"

The men were bright and heartily replied, "Aye Captain!" The deck buzzed with excitement as the men went about the task of positioning the remaining cages in a boat shaped ring on the ocean floor. They saved the eighth cage for Straylor and stood around anxiously to see what he would do with it. It was rather anti climatic as there was no show or immediate response just Straylor stating,

"We return on the morrow; I think then we'll see how effect our methods are."

"Raise the sail! Olie, I'll steer us back to port if you don't mind. I want the practice."

"Aye captain!" came the reply as the men went about their business and Dante took tiller.

"Meran, Keran throw the last cage in the center as we leave the ring," Dante ordered as the boat began to move again.

"Aye sir!" replied Meran and Keran as they followed their orders.

The ship set sail for Demios under the protective shell of Straylor's anti-weather dome of magic.