Session 104

General Summary

Editor's note: as with the previous session, the summary is going to avoid the actual details of the investigation, since that lets me leave out anything that happens to be unimportant without giving away which things are important. If you need to fill a gap in your own notes, here's a link to the start of the murder mystery, and you can just scroll down on this page to see the full recap as always.

• The party regrouped in the quarterdeck to discuss what they found so far after splitting up to investigate.
• Lance made sure to remind everybody that the murderer will have motive, means, and opportunity.
• At the request of the captain, the party freed Grimes, allowing him to start participating in the investigation.
• They decided to split up and each go to different areas to try to remember more of what had happened.
• Barry is distraught: he seems to remember that someone he loves has been kidnapped for ransom, and he's worried that she's probably dead by now. He doesn't actually remember who it was, which makes it even worse.
• Grogery and Kesmet discovered that Grimes was a werewolf, trying to get in with The Hounds Guild to learn how to control it. He'll be able to lead the party to his contacts, but only if he's able to finish doing the rest of his crimes.
• Dazki was worried about Kiirni being left alone with Lance for too long, so Marvin split off to keep an eye on them. Lance ran off again, leaving Marvin alone with her. They talked, and Kiirni convinced him to release her shackles. Once her hands were free, she immediately polymorphed him into the form of the dog that had gone missing, before he even had the chance to free her from her ball and chain.
• While Marvin was off keeping an eye on Kiirni, Dwardazik got suspicious of a door leading off to the side of the bunk room, and it was even more suspicious when he discovered that it was locked. He gave it a punch, and then before he could attack it properly, Dazki attacked him from behind with his dagger.

Full Recap

The ghost of Victor Thomson himself opened with a summary of the previous session:

Someone has made a grave mistake on this ship. With my secrets kept by a shattering Fervor pot and a drug-fueled night of mysterious emotion, the only hope of subduing the 'security risk' now that I am slain rests in the very shoulders of the people who have awoken, confused, on the deck of the ship. Quick to work through their emotional daze, they got to work piecing together the events that led to this most unfortunate of events.   Neither the ship nor their personal effects are as they remember. As they subdue the most suspicious member of the crew, they split up to take stock and search for clues.   Grogery and Kesmet head below deck. Passing a mess of ale and food jogs the little goblin's memory of the evening past: wallowing sorrowful with Barry and Lance. Examining the scene reveals a busted pot of mushrooms, a bloody dagger under the bed, and loads of confused, bloody footprints, all but one set leaving while the blood was still wet.   Dwardazik, Dazki, and Lance head to the cargo hold, discovering the door to the engine room busted down and a damaged engine leaking steam. A sack of silver coins richer — and a sad attempt by Lance to hide illicit drugs in a crate later — they agree that there is much discussion to be had.   Marvin, Barry, and the captain head to the quarterdeck, which has been decorated for a romantic rendezvous, complete with a makeshift table and two chairs. While the scene is intriguing — complete with a trapped place setting — it only adds questions, instead of resolving them.   Now, with our amateur investigators reconvening on the deck of the ship to share what they've discovered, important questions still loom. Which of them is worthy of an inquisitor's ire? Who will be joining me with my secrets in the pits of hell? Find my silencer, travelers, or be certain that my comrades will — the long way.

---

Kesmet: Hey, who's watching what's-her-face?   Dazki: Good point. You know what, I'm gonna go check on her.   Grogery: I have a spell that might be able to help.   Dwardazik: Dazki, I need to make sure that you're all right, and that no one tries to harm you, all right? I'll go with ya.   Dazki: I'll be fine. You can stay here and discuss what we found in the cargo hold.   Dwardazik: Is that what you want me to do?   Lance: It is my responsibility to watch over that convict. Perhaps I should go with you.   Dazki: Sure.   Dwardazik: Is that what you want me to do, Dazki?   Dazki: Whatever you want, Dwardazik. I think if me and Lance are gonna go down to the lower deck, you should tell them what we found in the cargo hold.   Lance: But I definitely think we need to have a discussion — all of us.   Dazki: OK.   Lance: This is an investigation. Somebody here has motive, means, and opportunity.   Dwardazik: Well, when we split up, we all found some things. Maybe we should come together and explain what we found. You know, The Dazki Way™: do things logically. You know, all that elf stuff: you think critically about things, and you piece together who the actual murderer is. (He jabs Captain Orcanus with his elbow, in jest.) Wonder who it is, eh?   Dazki: All right. Well — (He pulls out the satchel of silver coins) — does anyone recognize the stamps on these coins?

He looks at them himself, and (Investigation 24) sees them as just everyday ordinary silver coins. All silver, all coins, all standard.

Dwardazik: Well, there's more to it that we found, right? I mean, it was in a leather coin purse. Who owns that? My first guess would be the engineer, 'cause we found it down there. I wonder if it's Grimes? (He yells out to Grimes) Hey, Grimes! Do you have a leather coin purse?   Grimes: Who's askin'?   Dwardazik: The captain is.   Grimes: I'd love to tell ya, but I'm, you know, so far away. Stuck up here.   Marvin: Where ya should be!   Dwardazik: I mean, if it's no one's coin purse with this 38 silver, we'll just have to distribute them. If it has no owner.   Orcanus: I don't understand why he has to be all tied up, here?   Dazki: I don't quite get that either...   Marvin: Do you guys not remember him straight-up attacking me? He's a loose cannon!   Dwardazik: Yeah.   Orcanus: He admitted to smuggling, but what's he gonna smuggle? He's already on the boat!   Grogery: He was also being really, really dodgy when we were asking him "did you murder Vic"...   Dwardazik: Look, I don't know if you guys forgot what just happened, but he, like, really tried to hurt people. And he's obviously suspect number one! Dazki, you were literally interrogating him if he was the assassin and everything!   Dazki: Yes. I was. I was asking the questions. But we've been asking everybody questions. He did claim that he didn't do it, right?   Dwardazik, whispering and getting closer to Dazki: Dazki, Dazki, Dazki. Look, don't second-guess yourself! I know you got this! You said whoever has the main deck, keep an eye on him. We're makin' sure he has water, everything like you said. We're keepin' an eye on him, you don't need to second-guess. In this case, just say it: either "he needs to be let go", or "he doesn't need to be let go"! I know you got this!   Orcanus: Well, I'm gonna let him go. You don't have any authority over this.   Dwardazik: Now, hold on just a moment —   Dazki: Sure thing, captain!   Dwardazik: — ...I'll help you let him go.

Orcanus reaches over to pull him up by the rope that's tying him to the railing, and Dwardazik releases the manacles.

Marvin: Let it be known that if this guy tries any shit again, he's goin' overboard!   Dwardazik: ...wouldn't that just be aiding in his escape?   Kesmet: Yeah. We're on a river. Really close to shore. That dog was swimming in it earlier.   Marvin: Shit. That sounded way more intimidating in my head.   Dwardazik: ...about that dog...   Grogery: Yeah, does anyone know where that dog went?   Dazki: No.   Marvin: You think the dog did it?!   Dwardazik: Have you ever seen a dog kill a person like that? That looks like a knife wound, come on.   Marvin: I've seen a dog hold a knife in its mouth before. Didn't do much with it, but I've seen it!   Dwardazik: What?! Where?   Dazki: ...I've also seen druids that can change into animals.   Dwardazik: Yeah, it could've been a druid! Yeah!   Lance: We've checked the whole ship, there's no stowaways! It's one of us!   Grogery: While Kesmet and I were down on the lower deck, I came across the area where I apparently spent most of my time during all of this, and I was able to remember some stuff. Maybe if we try to go to places where we were, then maybe it'll help drive more memories?   Dwardazik: What about the evidence that we have first? Let's keep going.   Grogery: We found the murder weapon.   Dwardazik: Hold up, let's just complete one section at a time. Dazki brilliantly found this leather coin purse with 38 silver in it.   Dazki: Well, that doesn't really necessarily mean anything...   Dwardazik: No, but what we did find was that the cargo hold door was broken down, and that the boiler was damaged. There were drugs we found that matched these kinds of things that we think may have happened up here. We don't know how they got onboard, though.   Grogery: Grimes admitted to drug running.   Dwardazik: I'm just sayin' we found some. That may be the kind of thing we all suffered from, that kind of drug. So maybe if we know what kind of drug that is, we might be able to tell what kind of effects it has?   Grogery: We're not talking about the Fervor, are we?   Dazki: It was Fervor. Grimes already kinda told us.   Dwardazik: Yeah, of course he told us, I just meant that we found it, and maybe it was a special batch or something! I'm not stupid, just covering all my bases like Dazki would.   Kesmet: I don't know if this is important or not, but maybe Grogery and I found the murder weapon?   Grogery: It probably was the murder weapon. It was a dagger, and a bladed weapon would have been big enough to do it. And it was completely covered in blood.   Kesmet: It was gross.   Dazki: What was the weapon? Do you have it on you still?   Kesmet: Nah, we left it there. It was gross.   Grogery: Also, didn't want to disturb the scene too much in case we found more evidence.   Kesmet: Oh, oh yeah. Yeah, that... that too.   Grogery: It was one of Kesmet's daggers, but Kesmet was missing a lot of daggers. I think Dwardazik had most of them.   Kesmet: They're all accounted for. I did toss one to the dog that was up here, playing fetch with it, and —   Dwardazik: Wait. I'm having a Dazki moment, which means I'm having a moment of brilliance. Can we check that dagger's hilt for dog bites???   Kesmet shrugs.   Dazki: Yeah, that's actually a fairly decent — uh, that's an idea, but here's the thing: even if that's true, we need to find the dog, then. And we've scoured the ship and can't find it.   Kesmet: Maybe it's invisible.   Grogery: We have someone here who probably has experience in tracking animals.   Dazki: That's true. Barry.   Grogery: And he had a long conversation with the dog and probably understands its thought process more than ours.   Dazki: You're a good tracker.   Kesmet: I'm gonna go get the dagger, if that's OK with everyone.   Dwardazik: Whoa-whoa-whoa, before we go out and do that, let's just make sure we cover all the bases. So we talked about the cargo hold, you guys talked about the lower deck with that weapon, and you kinda mentioned your memories. Did you find anything else on the lower deck?   Grogery: We looked in the kitchen. Apparently, I spent my entire time trying to drink and eat the pain away, and someone recommended that "hey, beer is good for hair growing", so apparently I dumped an entire keg on myself, and that's why I'm soaked and sticky. But Lance was down there too at the time. He was also feeling bad. And Barry also came in after a bit and was also feeling bad. We all just kinda ate.   Dwardazik: Are you talking about when we were suffering the effects of Fervor?   Grogery: Mm-hmm.   Dwardazik: Interesting...   Marvin: Yes. Beer... growing hair... definitely the wise words of an old, old man who's lost his hair and won't stop drinking beer. Yep. Absolutely.   Dwardazik: Are you tryin' to start somethin'?!   Marvin: Dwardazik. You clearly have plenty of hair.   Dwardazik: Nah, I don't care about the hair or the person. Are you tryin' to discount the effects of ale?!   Lance: None of this is important!!! What is important is that we figure out this whole situation before we all get locked up in the system!   Dwardazik: OK.   Grogery: What did we find on the upper and quarterdeck?   Dwardazik: Yeah. The main deck and quarterdeck. Anything?   Dazki: That was Marvin and Barry.   Marvin: And Orcanus was there, but he was busy steering the ship.   Dwardazik: So, you found this table here — which, might I add, looks pretty weird?   Marvin: Yeah, it appears to be a fancy dinner set for two. Romantic lighting and floral petals scattered everywhere. Also, someone threw a tarp over the catapult for... reasons, I guess.   Orcanus: Well, because catapults don't really read "romance". Obviously.   Dazki: I suppose that is fair...   Grogery: Were you involved with this romantic scene up here?   Marvin: Apparently, I set a mousetrap inside of it. I seem to recall something about trying to pull a prank, but...   Orcanus: I'm not sure, but it's absolutely adorable. I absolutely love it.   Dwardazik: OK, OK. Listen here, Orcanus. You said this was romantic, but we haven't figured out what you were doing, what Grimes was doing, or what Lance was doing.   Grogery: I know what Lance was doing. He was eating the pain away with me.   Dwardazik: OK, OK. What do you think you were doing?   Orcanus: ...I dunno?   Dwardazik: You don't know. Nothing jogs your memory? None of this? The fact that you think that this is "romantic", and that it looks "romantic" — (not that it's romantic at all, there's not enough hair and ale and meat pies) —   Orcanus: You take that back! This is the cutest goddamn quarterdeck anybody has ever seen!   Marvin: ...hair?!   Dwardazik: Do you see a meat pie?! Do you see boisterous laughter?! Do you see really tall ale?! Mugs and kegs filled with thunderbrew and — this ain't romantic.   Orcanus: Whoever set this up is a goddamn artist, and I'm about to turn you into a meat pie!   Dwardazik: You wish you could! I'd be the best damn meat pie that ever existed!   Grogery: Guyyyyyys, please don't fight...   Dazki: Yeah, I don't think this is particularly constructive conversation.   Dwardazik: Hmm, actually, flowers are pretty romantic, isn't that right, Dazki?   Dazki: If it will get us back to constructive conversation, then sure.   Orcanus: Now, what do you mean you three were "sad"? Is it 'cause you murdered? Feeling bad over ending the life of a terrible man?   Grogery: No, I've just been having a lot of stuff going on and, like, I dunno...   Dwardazik: Don't you accuse my friend like that!   (Sneak 5) Kesmet bumbles around trying to slip away.   Kesmet: Hey, I'm gonna just go grab the dagger.   Grogery: Kesmet, before you leave... you're dressed really nice. Were you invited to a nice dinner, maybe? Does this place jog any memories for you?   Kesmet pauses to try to remember. He tries to keep his composure, but (Deception 9) his face grows ever more horrified.   Kesmet: Nope, not a thing. He somersaults over Grogery and leaves hastily to retrieve the murder weapon.   Dwardazik: Well, it's romantic to someone, I suppose. I could see how, maybe, it could be interesting and stuff. Whatever it is, whoever is up here wasn't down there. Someone must've been there, right?   Grogery: I have another thing that we found. When we were looking at the area with the dagger, I was looking at the blood — and it was gross, and it made me feel bad inside, but — basically, someone stayed behind after the wound was made and they just generally stayed around there until the blood was dried, and then they left.   Marvin: Is that the only explanation for not leaving any footprints?   Grogery: There were more sets of footprints in there originally than the sets of footprints that left. I couldn't figure out who it was, but it looked like somebody sat around and waited for somebody else to leave and for the blood to dry, and then they left.   Dazki: Could they not have just walked around the blood and the body?   Grogery: There is a LOT of blood in there.   Dwardazik: Everyone was in there!   Grogery: I guess... we have someone doing an odd behavior. They were sitting there — calmly, maybe, I don't know — and then they later got up and left after they wouldn't leave a giant trail behind them of what happened. So if people have something that they immediately went and did, then they're not the person who stayed behind. I feel like that's an important lead.   Dwardazik: Yeah, I get that. But listen, this whole "Fervor" stuff... it's a drug that no normal person would be using, especially in our party. It's gonna make them act irrationally. You can't judge what people were doing by rational standards. We don't know who could have done it.   Lance: With all due respect, it doesn't... lie. It only enhances an emotion that somebody's already feeling. So to call it completely random chaotic nonsense... it's just not, OK?   Kesmet returns with the dagger, using Mage Hand to carry it without touching it.   Grogery: So if somebody killed Vic under the effects of Fervor, it was something they were already considering doing anyway, it's just that the Fervor emboldened them to do it?   Dwardazik: Look, I know for a fact that none of my party would be willing to do something so stupid as to endanger our mission or endanger our safety.   Kesmet coughs.   Lance: Are you kidding me?!   Dwardazik: I am not kidding you.   Lance: You lot have got a bit of a reputation amongst the guards, OK? I know for a fact that you would endanger pretty much anybody.   Dwardazik: Everyone who has tried to attack us has brought it upon themselves. And, might I say, attack us. We don't go out of our way to cause problems. Problems come to us.   Lance: No. NO. You seek out other people's problems. You seek out other people's problems, and Vic was someone else's problem.   Dwardazik: Nuh-uh, that is not what we do! I don't know who you're listening to, but that is not what we do!   Lance: Oh, it's not? It's not what you do?   Dwardazik: No, it's not. And whoever you're listening to sounds awfully suspicious. Like someone who would create problems.   Marvin: This is not productive. At all. We're bickering at each other.   Kesmet: So here's the dagger. Who wants to examine it for dog bites or whatever?   Dwardazik: Let's show Dazki, he's got those elven eyes!   Dazki: Yeah, sure. (Investigation 23) This is the dagger that the dog had earlier, and it's definitely capable of being the murder weapon.   Lance: Well, we have "means" down.   Grogery: For "motive", I mean, Vic's not a great person...   Kesmet: Why would a dog want to kill him, though?   Grogery: Could be a druid. Maybe the dog just dropped the dagger somewhere, and some opportunistic person picked it up.   Kesmet: Maybe.   Grogery: I don't feel like Barry or I had real reason to try to do this.   Lance: Why is that, though? Why?   Kesmet: We didn't even know about you guys being on this boat until we got on here. We've got our own nonsense that we're trying to deal with.   Dwardazik: Does anybody have a truth spell or something like that? Do we even have the ability to do that?   Grogery: I didn't prepare it. I don't typically think that we're going to, uh...   Dazki: ...have to have a murder investigation.   Grogery: Yeah.   Dwardazik: I understand that, but I'm just sayin'... look, Vic kinda unnerved me a little bit, but I didn't wanna kill the guy! I don't understand why anyone would want to kill him! He was a bit of an asshole, but he didn't seem like a bad guy.   Kesmet: If ever I was sure that any random group of people we ran across didn't have anything to do with Dennis, this would be the weird random group. I didn't give a damn about any of you at the start.   Dwardazik: What about you, Grogery? What are your thoughts about Vic?   Grogery: I wasn't sure if he was a good person or not. I don't want anybody to leave right now, even if they're a bad person. I don't think I would do that.   Dwardazik: I can vouch for Grogery. He always seems to want to resurrect people who are no good... ugh. Dazki, what about you?   Dazki: He was a piece of shit of a person. I'm gonna say that right now. But I certainly wouldn't've, you know, slit his throat like that.   Dwardazik: What about you, Lance? I know you didn't like him. Or at least, that what you gave off.   Lance: What are you insinuating?!   Dwardazik: What'd you feel about him, huh? We just said what we feel about Vic. What did you feel?   Lance: He's cruel and unprofessional. I don't understand why he needed to be on this ship in the first place.   Kesmet: ...and then he wasn't.   Dwardazik: Kesmet... ... ... all right, Lance. Is that all you have to say?   Grogery: Another thing to consider: Vic was saying something about someone here hiding something important, and "I know how to make them talk", and he was gonna go torture Kiirni. That's when all of this happened. So if someone was desperate to keep their secret under wraps, then they might have done this.   Dwardazik: OK. That's a good point. Lance, do you have anything else to add?   Lance: Listen. He's manipulative. And not just to the prisoners, but to other people too. I don't know if he can even tell the difference, OK?   Dwardazik: OK, I believe you. Grimes (ugh) what was your relation to Vic? What did you think of him?   Grimes: I... the same thing that everyone else is saying, I guess.   Dwardazik: Great. OK. Good. We can skip you. Orcanus, what do you think?   Orcanus: I've warned that man a few times to keep his cruelty to himself. But that doesn't mean I murdered the man. If I was gonna kill you, I'd make sure you knew about it.   Kesmet: But couldn't it have been your feeling of resentment toward him, amplified by this drug?   Dwardazik: Kesmet, Kesmet, we're just asking questions!   Kesmet: I'm making insinuations. (Haven't you met me?! My whole business is vengeance against at least one person, maybe two now)   Dazki: OK, well, I think Grogery had a good idea, and —   Dwardazik: What about Barry?   Barry: Wha- what about Barry?   Dwardazik: How did you feel about Vic? And Dazki, not to cut you off, I just think you'd be appalled if we left out any information!   Barry: Uhhhhh... which one was Vic?   Dwardazik: The lad who's dead.   Marvin: Yeah. The dead one.   Dwardazik: He was the one who was sleeping with Lance down in the lower deck. The human, with the glasses. Kinda looked a bit suspicious. How did you feel about him? Did you even interact with him at all?   Barry: I don't think you should be mean to ladies.   Dazki: That's a fair point. You shouldn't be mean to anyone, but yes, he was a very cruel person.   Barry: And... he said he could find out stuff about people, so... I kinda just left him alone.   Dazki: Probably a smart move.   Dwardazik: All right! Now, Dazki, what were you saying? It sounded like you had a great idea you were about to tell everyone!   Dazki: Grogery had a great idea. Of people searching around, trying to remember things. See if they could find something that could jog their memories.   Dwardazik: Great idea, Dazki! We should go ahead and split up —   Dazki: I was thinking we should start looking around in areas that we personally have not examined yet. So, I was thinking, as far as splitting people up, we could have:

• You (Dwardazik), Barry, and Lance look around the lower deck,
• Grogery, Kesmet, and Grimes could look around the cargo hold, and
• We still need Orcanus manning the helm, so I would look up here, and that would leave Marvin.

Dazki: Does that sound like a good idea to everyone?   Grogery: If we were going to go check on Kiirni, I have a spell that might help her.   Dazki: OK, yeah, that's a good idea... what's the spell?   Grogery: Calm emotions.   Dazki: OK.   Grogery: I'm not sure how it would interact with all of this — it's usually meant to counteract magical effects and keep people from being hostile — but, you know, sometimes we try things and they work.   Dazki: Yeah, that sounds like an idea. I suppose, if you wanted, you could do that on your way to the cargo hold. Does that sound reasonable?   Grogery: Yeah.   Dwardazik: Of course it sounds reasonable! Good plan!   Dazki: Any thoughts or objections or anything?   Marvin: Sounds fine.   Dwardazik: To the lower deck it is.

Kesmet hands Dazki the bloody dagger, and they split up.

Lower Deck: Dwardazik, Barry, and Lance

Plus Grogery and Kesmet, on their way down. Plus Marvin, who had immediately forgotten which area he was assigned to.   Dwardazik stops in front of a suspicious door right next to the staircase.

Dwardazik, calling up the stairs: Kesmet, what do you know about this room right here? What is this room, anyway?

Before Kesmet could answer, Dwardazik goes to open the door. It seems to be stuck on something, but he's able to force it open. It's trapped: a dummy painted like a spooky ghoul springs out of the door, (Dexterity Save 10) knocking him down into a bunch of caltrops that had also spilled out, scattering across the floor. Kesmet sees this when coming down the stairs.

Kesmet: Dwardazik. This is no time to be sleeping on the job. He helps Dwardazik up.   Dwardazik: Damnit!   Marvin: What's goin' on, over here?   Kesmet: Dwardazik's taking a nap. On a very uncomfortable bed, I might add.   Dwardazik: Don't you make fun of me! There's this damn spring-loaded thing, and it caught me off guard, and there's these frickin'... pieces of metal, and...   Marvin: Spring-loaded?

Dwardazik kicks the thing back in the room and marches in to investigate, because "no one traps an empty room". He finds (Investigation 3) nothing; apparently, people do just trap empty rooms. It's a good thing he had the strength to open the door, in any event.

Dwardazik: Damnit! There's nothin' here! Ugh. So stupid! I thought there'd be somethin' in there.   (Wisdom 9) Dwardazik remembers cleaning up a bunch of traps, but nothing else SPRINGS to mind about this one.   Dwardazik: What about you, Kesmet? And you, Marvin? Grogery? Anything?   Marvin: Well, when we all came to, I did have a bunch of caltrops in my pocket.   Dwardazik: Damnit, Marvin, did you lay these caltrops?   Marvin: I can neither confirm nor deny.   Dwardazik picks up two of them and throws them at him, but Marvin dodges.   Dwardazik: Marvin, look, you've already done enough down here. Get back up on the top deck!   Marvin, grumbling as he leaves: Sounds like you deserved to trip on those caltrops...

Quarterdeck: Orcanus, Dazki, and Marvin (for real this time)

Dazki pulls Marvin aside.

Dazki: Hey, Marvin?   Marvin: Yes?   Dazki: I need you to play along with something I'm planning, and I could also use some... bardic help, maybe on a scale of 1 to 10?   Marvin, casting Bardic Inspiration: OK, now, listen here, Dazki. When the FUCK have you ever needed help?! As long as I've known you, you've been a go-getter, and you don't need SHIT from anyone else! You are the most confident, capable, manly man that I have ever known, and you don't need no bard to help with that!   Dazki: Thanks. And OK, just... play along. I'm gonna ask Orcanus about some stuff, all right?   Marvin: OK.

They approach Orcanus to have a conversation with him.

Dazki: All right, Orcanus. Now, I know that you didn't kill Vic, and I know you want to help us figure out who did.   Orcanus: Damn straight I didn't kill Vic!   Dazki: He was kind of... revealing secrets, right?   Orcanus: Yeah, and I ain't got no secrets, so...   Dazki: Now, I'm sure that's not true! I found some evidence that might suggest some things otherwise. I have reason to believe that someone on this ship wasn't supposed to make it to port.   Orcanus: Was it Vic? Because I don't think he's gonna make it.   Dazki: No, I don't think it was Vic. So, I tell you what —   Orcanus: The dog? Was it the dog? Because he's also not here.   Dazki: You tell me who wasn't supposed to make it to port, and we can work things out so that everything will be all right. You know what I mean? So why don't you let me know who it is and work with me, and Marvin and myself can massage things to make it right. (Deception 24)   Marvin, giving him advantage: Yeah, Orcanus. We know how to make things "go away".   Orcanus, looking at them suspiciously (with a hint of confusion): ...what are you gettin' at? You know somethin' I don't know?   Dazki: I have suspicions, and like I said, I have reason to believe that someone wasn't supposed to make it to shore. I figure, with you being the captain, you would be the one most knowledgeable of all the goings-on about the ship?   Orcanus: Why are you speaking in circles? Say it straight, man, say it straight.   Dazki: All right — who were you supposed to kill?   Orcanus: Who am I supposed to kill?!   Dazki: You asked me to say it straight, so yeah. Who are you supposed to kill? Who's supposed to die before they make it to shore, or to wherever they were going?   Orcanus: Shit, man, my job is to make sure all you losers make it to shore! This is a favor pulled from high up in the government! You think I'm just gonna, like, renege on the very people that can shut me down?!   Dazki: Not one of us, but I would assume it would have been either Vic, Kiirni, or Lance?   Orcanus: They're a favor too! That's two favors!   Dazki: Really? Who are they a favor for?   Orcanus: Some high-up government official somewhere. The lady kinda let me borrow the ship, and... I can't stay in port, I just can't.   Dazki: Why not?   Orcanus: I get antsy, bein' locked on land. Quite frankly, I wish I was the only person driving this boat.   Dazki: What do you mean, you wish you were the only person driving it?   Orcanus: My crew are meant to be taking a break. This is a small enough vessel where any old engineer would do. But...   Dazki: But Grimes insisted on being here, eh?   Orcanus: He's been stressed out recently, and I really wish he would take a break with the others, but he insisted on helping me.   Dazki: And he's been doing a lot of — "additional" trading, we'll say — lately?   Orcanus: He's always done that. We stay out of each other's business.   Dazki: Do you know where the stuff he's getting comes from?   Orcanus: I stay out of it. Non-judgemental. If it doesn't affect me or my crew, then I'm not gonna be goin' to the hangman's noose over his problems. He'd do the same for me.   Dazki: I get it.   Orcanus: But you think he was smuggling the pot of that stuff?   Dazki: I don't know where it comes from, but I do know that the prisoner onboard has been accused of smuggling things from beyond the Invictus Una.   Orcanus: Yeah, that's what they were saying. I don't know much about this drug. I've caught him with other drugs, but not this one.   Marvin: What kind of other drugs?   Orcanus: You know, the classics.   Dazki: Sharp sugar and stuff like that.   Orcanus: Whenever I find it, I shut it down, but I don't really look that hard.   Marvin: But you said you stay out of his business?   Orcanus: Yeah, I don't go LOOKING for it, but if it's gonna impact my livelihood or the safety of my crew...   Dazki: And he insisted on being on this trip, huh?   Orcanus: He insisted. I really, really wish he would've stayed back. He's been so wrathful recently. He's really going through something. But, it's a halfling. Halflings are gonna wander.   Dazki: So, between the three of us, do you think he was the one who was supposed to remove someone from the boat?   Orcanus: I don't think he's ever — what, like, an assassin?   Dazki: Yeah.   Orcanus: I don't think that's really in his moveset. I've certainly never caught him assassinating.   Dazki: But if Kiirni was smuggling things from beyond the Invictus Una, and that was one of his smuggling routes, and it was gonna be collapsed, he'd have motive to keep her quiet, since I do believe that there was meant to be another death on the boat. That might be what Victor had found out.   Orcanus: Where are you getting this information? Why do you think there was supposed to be a murder on the boat? It's really suspicious. I mean, some of the other people think you're pretty clever, but I'm not really seein' it.   Dazki: I'm just tryin' to figure out what someone would've killed Victor over.   Orcanus: It sounded like Victor had things on everybody.   Dazki: Yeah, he was an asshole, but it would've had to have been something really serious if someone were to off him.   Marvin: Yeah, like shutting down their business.   Dazki: Exactly.   Marvin: If you had to guess, how much do you think Grimes makes from his side hustle?   Orcanus: I don't know, he usually doesn't accept coin.   Marvin: Really? Now that's interesting.   Dazki: I think we have even more on our prime suspect, then. Well, Orcanus, I apologize for the implication onto you. Clearly, I was incorrect, but I do thank you for helping us figure out what we're looking for —   Orcanus: No, no, you're not walkin' away just yet. Why do you think somebody's going to murder on my boat?!   Dazki: I think that's the most likely motive for someone murdering Vic. I think hiding something like that is the most likely scenario. I think somebody was going to murder on your boat, and the victim was not going to be Vic.   Orcanus: I don't know, man. If I had to guess somebody would be a murderer, I would definitely pick that officer.   Dazki: You think so?   Orcanus: You all said he was feelin' sorry for himself. And I know he's gotta do something to control that eye of his.   Dazki: Yeah.   Orcanus: And those two would fight all the time. I'm certain one was blackmailing the other. Like he said: means, motive, and opportunity.   Dazki: So you think him trying to force the investigation forward is a way to get us to stop looking at him?   Orcanus: That's what I would do, if I were a sneaky assassin.   Marvin: Or that could be what you're doing right now!   Dazki: Thank you.

Dazki tries to remember anything that might have happened up in the quarterdeck last night, and (Wisdom 14) none of it looks the least bit familiar.

Cargo Hold: Grogery, Kesmet, and Grimes

With special appearances from the people on the Lower Deck, on their way down.   Grogery approaches Kiirni. (Insight 25) Kiirni was not expecting visitors. She's playing the victim, but she is not scared. She acts meek, feeble, catatonic — but this is a much tougher woman than what she's showing outwardly. The eyes don't lie, even if the body does. She is toying.

Grogery: Hey, Kiirni. I noticed you're on your own for a bit, and we didn't exactly leave you in the best of circumstances. Just checking to make sure that you're doing OK?   Kiirni doesn't respond, rather vacantly staring off to the side.   Grogery: If Vic was the reason you couldn't talk, something going on with him — he's gone, so...   Still no response from Kiirni. She has her little blanket, and she's just sitting there, avoiding eye contact.

Grogery decides that this room hurts too much to be in, so he leaves. On his way down, he passes by Lance, who has decided to go to keep an eye on Kiirni. Seeing him enter, Dwardazik has a thought.

Dwardazik: Hey, Barry. Be very quiet, I'm going to be listening in on that room. Go explore around, see if you see anything, but don't go into that room, and don't make a noise.

Dwardazik approaches the room with Lance and Kiirni in it, and he listens in through the wall.

---

Grogery and Kesmet move into the cargo hold, agreeing that Kesmet should probably look into the furnace room since he can endure heat better. As they round a corner, Grimes instinctively backs away, almost snarling like a cornered rat. Kesmet opens the door to the furnace room.   The elemental doesn't leap out at you. It's weird — it's just, like, living fire, for the most part. There's no body or anything, but it still roughly keeps a shape. It glows a darkish-red right now, a cooler fire (comparatively). As you come in, the elemental takes the shape of a giant lion mouth, screaming and hissing at Kesmet, but it does not attack.

Kesmet: Hey. How ya doin'? (Charisma 14)   The elemental is not compliant in his conversation at this time.   Kesmet: Oh, shit, I said that in Common. I'll try again in Primordial: He repeats what he said, in Primordial. It is assumed that he will continue speaking to the elemental in Primordial.

It's weird: fire doesn't "watch", but you feel as if the fire is watching you. And it's not as hot in here as everybody's making it out to seem. Kesmet looks around the room. (Investigation 15) there are ashes from something, but whatever it was is no longer readable in any way.

Kesmet: Hey, what's going on with these ashes?   Elemental: I don't know. What is up with the ashes? It waits expectantly.   Kesmet ignores it, pulling out an empty vial to collect the ashes.   Elemental: I don't get the punchline to this joke.   Kesmet: It wasn't a joke. I just wanted to find out what these ashes are from. Do you just produce ashes if you burn wood? Or, like, what do you do?   Elemental: Is... it a riddle? I'm not the biggest fan of riddles.   Kesmet: No. It's not a riddle. I don't like 'em either. Was anyone in this room before me? Like, recently, within the last day?   Elemental: I don't know! Was anyone in the room? Pause for a beat. ...this isn't a joke either, is it...   Kesmet: No. No. There's some goings-on on the ship, and we're trying to figure out some stuff.   Elemental: I feel like it's... been a while since anyone has been here to entertain me.   Kesmet: Was there someone here that wasn't entertaining you? For some other reason?   Elemental: I don't pay attention to those who are uninteresting. I think I will forget you too.

(Kesmet 100) Kesmet calls out to Grogery, saying to go on without him, and then begins telling the elemental the same tale of their adventures that he told to Morn'Tharur. (Performance 16) it's OK — it's not always easy to pick out the right words to use, but he's able to keep the elemental entertained.   Grogery pokes around the cargo hold looking around and keeping an eye on Grimes. Grimes is still watching, like a cornered rat.

Grogery: Hey, hey. Calm down. Not here to take — like, what even is all this down here? Maybe you can help me better look through stuff.   Grimes: Why am I gonna help you rifle through my stuff?! People have already touched everything!   Grogery: We're just looking to see. Maybe there's a stowaway, maybe the dog is down here.   Grimes: There's no stowaway! There's no dog! Everybody has touched every single thing!   Grogery: Maybe I can help you put it back where it belongs?   Grimes: ...that's still touching. That's still touching the stuff.   Grogery: Do you take particular issue with people touching your stuff?   Grimes: They took my stuff!   Grogery: What did they take?   Grimes: They were lording over it like a trophy.   Grogery: Who did? Are you remembering something?   Grimes: My coins. My silver coins.   Grogery: OK.   Grimes: 38 silver coins.   Grogery: 38 silver coins. What was the importance of the 38 silver coins?   Grimes: Well, they're my coins!   Grogery: They're your money?   Grimes: No, they're not my money, but they're my coins!   Grogery: Uh... were these coins not... money?   Grimes: Well... well, yes, coins have monetary value. But you don't take people's stuff!   Grogery: We're kind-of looking around, looking for evidence, it might have been weird.   Grimes: What's weird about it?! They're totally normal coins that I, a totally normal person, would have!   Grogery: I mean, we can pay you back?   Grimes: OK? OK? Yeah, give me back my money! Give me money!   Grogery takes out 4 gold coins and begins handing it towards him, but he backs away.   Grimes: No-no-no! On the barrel, over there.   Grogery: This barrel, over here?   Grimes: Just... just put 'em down, and walk away.   Grogery: OK... are you feeling OK?   Grimes: Put 'em down and walk away!

Grogery puts the coins on top of the barrel and takes a cautious step back. He then goes towards Kesmet and tries to get his attention, though he has a hard time since Kesmet is engrossed in his tale.

Lower Deck: Dwardazik, Barry, and Lance

As Dwardazik listens in, (Perception 20) Lance is in fact speaking to the convict. Lance is not known for being friendly, per se; rather, kind and professional. Here, however, he is talking in hushed, hurried tones. She doesn't speak up, but she is probably nodding / shaking her head in response to what he's saying. It sounds like Lance (who is known to be feeling Guilt) doesn't know if he killed Vic or not. He doesn't know, because the secret that he is keeping is a security risk to the boat. Exactly the kind of thing that Vic was trying to ferret out. So, Lance wants Kiirni to say one way or the other — she was right there, so she would know if he killed Vic to protect their secret.   Dwardazik goes into the kitchen to investigate further, while still listening in. (Wisdom 20) he remembers something... Yes, it would have been a lot easier to cook that romantic meal if we were allowed cutting implements on the ship, but we can't trust them with cutting implements anymore! Not since somebody was slashed up! So, if they want to make their fancy meal, they're gonna have to do it without knives, brother!   Barry has just sorta given up, sitting down on the floor.

Dwardazik: Look, Barry, what do you feel happened last night, when this all went down? Where were you at?   Barry: Well, I still feel terribly sad and ill. I've definitely eaten something that hasn't agreed with me.   Dwardazik, thinking to himself: So, you probably went directly to the kitchen...   Dwardazik: Do you remember anything at all relating to what happened in that room?   Barry: In the room?   Dwardazik: Yeah.   Barry: Well, there was the bright flashing light, the gurgling teapot, and then the splash of rotten flower petals in the wind. That's it. I assume that's all just drug stuff. And then I was sick on top of the boat. Although, I'm pretty sure I was really sad, and... listen, how long do you think somebody would keep somebody else captive before they're like, "I don't want the ransom anymore"?   Dwardazik: Well, that's a weird question, but let's think about this. As a businessman, if you were gonna keep an asset for a certain amount of time, you have to consider how long it takes to secure that asset, and the point in time when it loses value to you. So, if you have a captive, and you're gonna hold onto it for, let's say, ten years, and you're not makin' any money, then you're dealing with keeping that person alive, keeping 'em in good condition, dealing with sending messages back and forth —   Barry just starts weeping.   Dwardazik: — and negotiating, and all that kind of stuff, and so it's really not effective at all to do something for such a long term like that. That's why ransoms are really — oh, Barry, are you all right? (He gets closer.) What's goin' on?   Barry, bawling: It's... definitely, everybody I know and love is dead!   Dwardazik: Oh, come on, lad. Look. I know shit's weird right now. And I don't know exactly what's goin' on, entirely. But I trust my friends here, and dammit that includes you too! We've all made mistakes, but I know we didn't make this one. I'm lookin' out for ya! As long as you can trust in me, and I can trust in you, right?   Barry: It's dead! Everything we love is dead! All 'cause stupid... Turmoil.   Dwardazik: Look —   Barry: It's all bullshit!   Dwardazik: Turmoil's doin' a lot of bad stuff. It's causing a lot of problems. All the problems we've experienced. But I'm not so sure it's necessarily Turmoil itself. I think it's bad people as well. Bad people, using (and abusing) Turmoil. And I think things are happening for a reason. And right now, I'm not so sure we can see what's really going on. I think we're in the middle of the darkest section of the cave, and no darkvision's gonna show us the exit. I'm tellin' you, we just gotta keep goin'. One step in front of the other. And as long as we stick together, and we don't split up, we can make it through this. But I need you to be on my side, all right?   Barry is inconsolable. Dwardazik swings him around to have him sit on a crate.   Dwardazik: Listen, Barry. You just sit here for a little bit. I'm gonna go investigate this room.

Dwardazik heads into the bunk room. Elsewhere, Dazki and Marvin decide to go down to the lower deck and assist Dwardazik and Barry (and Lance) with their side of the investigation. They come down the stairs, seeing Barry sitting on a crate just weeping.

Marvin: Barry? Did someone — what happened?   Barry: She's probably dead!!!   Marvin: Who?!   Dazki: Wait, wait, who's probably dead? And where's Dwardazik?   Barry: I don't know!!! But she's probably dead!!!   Dazki: Where's Dwardazik?

Barry points at the door to the bunk room, and Dazki heads in, seeing Dwardazik looking under the beds.

Dazki: Hey, wasn't Lance with you?   Dwardazik: Lance is... uh, actually, speaking about Lance... Lance went to go talk to Kiirni, right? And I had some suspicions about what you said, that someone might have a motive. So I decided to listen in, on what Lance and Kiirni were gonna talk about, and it looks like Lance over here has some kind of arrangement with Kiirni to be doin' something. Some kind of an agreement. But Lance doesn't know if he killed Vic, and he was askin' Kiirni for confirmation. Kiirni ain't speakin'. I dunno, I'm just sayin', I think Lance might've done it, but I think Lance definitely might be usin' Kiirni for some kind of thing.   Dazki, outraged: And so you left them alone?!?!   Dwardazik: I don't think they're gonna do anything. Besides, if I stepped in there, they'd know I said something, and the jig would be up.   Dazki, still completely outraged: Uh, no, no, if you showed up in there, you'd say "hey, Lance, we're supposed to be investigating, what the hell are you doing?!"   Dwardazik: Look. I'm doing my investigation. If you want to show up there, why don't you do it? I already gave you the inside information. Enough time has passed. It won't be suspicious. Now let me keep doing my job and investigate this murder scene!   Dazki, with a sigh: All right, fine. I'll help you out around here. And then we'll go check on them, immediately afterwards, OK?   Dwardazik: Jeez! I mean, look, if Kiirni shows up dead, then we straight-up know that Lance is the murderer, and we just throw him in the slammer!   Dazki: Well, no, because then another person would have died!   Dwardazik: What else could I do?! I can't be everywhere!   Dazki: All right. All right. We'll look around here, and go talk to them right away afterwards. OK?   Dwardazik: It's all right. You can send Marvin in here if you need.   Marvin, who's been eavesdropping: I could go in there? I was kind of thinking about checking in on Kiirni anyway, just to make sure everything's all right.   Dazki: Yeah, sure.   Marvin leaves to check up on Kiirni and Lance.   Dwardazik: I just don't really understand. I know Kiirni has information and stuff, but like... she's just a drow prisoner.

Dwardazik investigates around the room, looking for any evidence of the dog being in the bunk room, especially under the beds. (Investigation 15) the dog has been in this room before, but examining the footprints in the room (especially through the blood), he doesn't see any tracks from a dog. There are lots of tracks from people. No dog. The blood had sprayed across a wide angle, mostly centered around where Grogery had been standing. No outlines where the people were standing before — that's been smeared away in the confusion.

Dwardazik: Look, the dog was in here at some point, Dazki. But I'm just not seeing anything! Why was this dagger back here?   Dazki: Maybe whoever did the deed dropped it, or threw it away hoping to get rid of it or something?   Dwardazik: But... OK. I didn't want anyone to have a weapon. Kinda obvious, judging by the fact that I have everyone's bladed weapons.   Dazki: Yeah.   Dwardazik: I was right here! How did I miss that?   Dazki: The drug! None of us saw what happened. It messed with our senses. It might be that it was just thrown somewhere that you didn't see?   Dwardazik: Hmm... all right, Dazki. I think it's time for us to do the dirty deed. Let's carefully look at this corpse.   Dazki: All right. I'm not a medical man, so don't expect too much.   Dwardazik: Not what I'm lookin' for. I think we can determine how he was killed. This is what I need you to do, I think. You're very particular about the details. What can you see about the disturbance? A mark, a finger, a clutch. Anything possible.   Dazki: All right, I'll give it a shot.

(Investigation 27) We still definitely don't know who killed him, and he died almost instantly. He doesn't have too many suspicious marks, out-of-place hair, or anything like that. The angle at which the blood sprayed is somewhat interesting: while it does focus a lot of its spray towards a few individuals, there's a few drops of blood everywhere. Vic is wearing exactly what he was wearing when he called everybody in here; the body is even standing in the exact location where he was, meaning he did not move before he died.

Dazki: So it looks like somebody took advantage of the moment that we can't remember. Someone was able to resist whatever happened a little bit. That gurgling teapot and rotting flowers blowing in the wind, that's probably what we remember as the murder. We just all saw it in "hallucinatory drug trip" manner. He didn't die during the Fervor trip — he died during the explosion.   Dwardazik: If that's true, then doesn't that narrow down our suspects to just who was closest to him?   Dazki: It's a fairly small room. It still could have been anybody. Grogery said he was completely covered in blood, so I don't think it was him. I've got this bloody handkerchief I used to clean myself off.   Dwardazik: Or it could have been used to clean a weapon, and then it was placed on you?   Dazki, pulling out the dagger that Kesmet had handed him: It's completely covered in blood, and according to Kesmet, it was like that when he found it.   Dwardazik: Ugh. Dazki, you're a good person. Why are you so concerned about Kiirni?   Dazki: She's a person who was being tortured.   Dwardazik: OK. So if she's being tortured, I get that. I'm not the biggest fan of torture myself. But she's a prisoner! I don't like Vic, he really creeped me out and everything. Honestly, I wouldn't mind punching him in the face, because I don't like people who creep me out. But you seem a little extreme with Kiirni's condition and everything else... she's not one of us! I don't want to, like, see her get tortured (as much as she probably is guilty of a lot of things, 'cause she's a drow!) but, look, I just wanna understand what's goin' on. Do you have, like, a history with drow or somethin'?   Dazki: No, she reminds me of someone who was — and still is — important to me.   Dwardazik: I'm just askin' you, as a friend, to take everything objectively, OK? If you want me to try and see past her being a drow — which, might I add, I don't have good relations with — then I've got to ask you to accept that maybe she doesn't have good intentions. That doesn't mean she needs to be tortured! But that she was one of the people close enough to him. I don't know how she could have possibly gotten out of those shackles or whatever she was tied up with, but we can't discount everyone. Or anyone. If I do that, can you do that?   Dazki: I mean, I think she is an extremely unlikely candidate for this.   Dwardazik, with a sigh: I don't see how she could have gotten out and, like, re-tied herself, OK? I agree with that. But from what I heard, if Lance has some kind of agreement with Kiirni — remember the stuff we found downstairs in the cargo hold with the drugs — what if they both had kind of a motive to off this guy?   Dazki: Here's my thought. If someone was able to react when this drug went off, it would be the user who's built up a tolerance.   Dwardazik: That's a good point. I think that's a really good point. But I also know that — ... ... — we just don't have any information from Kiirni, that's all I'm sayin'. I don't know if she could've done it, I don't know her motive (well, he was torturing her, so...) — I'm just saying, it's something we can't discount! Something bugs me about her... and also, where the fuck is this dog?!   Dazki: I don't know.   Dwardazik: And what is this door up here?! (He points to the door leading to the fore of the room)   Dazki: I haven't been in there, I'm not sure.   Dwardazik: Worth a shot, I guess?   Dazki tries to open the door. It's locked.   Dwardazik: Locked, eh? What do you think's back there?   Dazki: I dunno, probably just a storage room or something?   Dwardazik: I'm just sayin', I checked every single room — and one of 'em was trapped, by Marvin I suspect — but we still don't know where the dog is, I'm concerned, and any place on this ship could have something suspicious. And right now, there's a room that we can't enter. Don't you think that's suspicious?   Dazki: I mean, yes. Did we check the aft room of the cargo hold too? I think we only checked the fore and the engine room.   Dwardazik: Hmm, I thought we did, but I guess not.

Cargo Hold: Grogery, Kesmet, and Grimes

Grogery, knocking more intensely: Kesmet! I think I need your particular expertise.   Kesmet, to the elemental: ...and that's the entire story that I used to torture entertain Baxton!

(Performance 23) The fire elemental loves this. You can practically hear the crackling flames applauding you, as its dark red flame turns to orange, to yellow, to blue. (Dexterity Save 2) As the boilers and the engines heat up, so too does the steam leaking from the open wound on the defective boiler... right onto Grogery, dealing significant damage and blinding him.

Grogery: OW, OW, not that expertise! OW!   Kesmet, to the elemental again: OK, hold on, I'll be back to tell you about Overlook. I just gotta go check out there... I think we were in the middle of something? Somebody died, y'know. I haven't gotten to that part of the story yet, but, y'know, that's the now. That's the right now. I'll be back! Don't go anywhere.   Elemental:

  Grogery, to himself as he casts Lesser Restoration on himself to remove the blindness: ...ow... now I hurt on the inside and the outside...   Grogery: OK. OK. OK. Hey, Grimes.   Grimes, sharply: Why are you still here?!   Grogery: ...OK... Kesmet...?   Grimes: What did he do?!   Grogery: I think he talked the fire elemental into —   Grimes, with a facepalm: ...goddamnit.   Grogery: He entertained the fire elemental!   Grimes: Why couldn't he do that before?! Why does he gotta do that now, when it's REALLY inopportune?!   Grogery: Listen. Kesmet is a very capricious soul. It's almost like he leaves his decisions up to the whims of chance.   Kesmet: You know, I do change my mood and mind very quickly, and it just struck my fancy. He said something that I couldn't let go.   Grimes: Well, we've gotta repair this engine now. We've got to.   Kesmet: All right! Who's got Mending?   Grogery: ...hey, Kesmet... —   Grimes: You've got Mending?!   Grogery: ...I've got Mending.   Grimes: You're holdin' out on us?!   Grogery, stammering: I just... you... I... busy trying to find a murderer!!!   Grimes: What is your angle?!   Grogery: I... just... Kesmet, I need —   Grimes: You want us all to burn, don't you?!   Grogery, clearly insinuating something: Kesmet, I need you to talk to Grimes for a while, while I fix this boiler. (He winks overtly at Kesmet.) Let me know if you "talk about anything interesting", OK?   Kesmet, completely missing it: I have a feeling Grimes won't be as interesting as the elemental.   Grogery, laying it on thicker: No, he's a very interesting fellow, as I've been discovering out here. I have put some gold coins on this barrel for him. Make sure that he sees them, because we have taken his purse of 38 silver coins. 38 """silver""" coins, as collateral.   Grimes: Which you still haven't given back, by the way!   Grogery: I know, but here's collateral to make sure we do give it back! It's the equivalent of 40 silver coins.   Kesmet: Yeah. That's, like, two extra silver.   Grogery: But yes, Kesmet, talk with this very interesting fellow, please!   Kesmet: Uhhhhhhh... ...OK? ...Hey, Grimes... uh, ...nice weather we're having!   Grimes: It's fuckin' hot!   Grogery: Oh, uh, Kesmet, by the way, I'm pretty sure, he will appreciate these four gold pieces, more than those thirty-eight silver coins!   Kesmet: I mean, yeah, it's like, two extra silver. So, they're for him? Does he want them? What's goin' on?   Grimes: Are you gonna fix the engine or what?   Grogery: Yeah, I'm working on it! I'm working on it! Just talk to Kesmet!   Kesmet: OK, look. I didn't quite get to finish my story. So I need to tell you a story within a story. It all started on a clear summer day, where our main hero enters a town expecting to see a church burning later in the afternoon, because he had misread a flyer...   Grogery: Man, I sure hope he enjoys not having those silver coins, and having those gold ones instead!!!! Silver is a very interesting material!!!!!   Kesmet: ...yeah. So, anyway, it turns out it wasn't a church burning: they were rebuilding a church that had burned down, but the flyer was written very poorly! And...

As Kesmet continues with his story, Grogery, all out of ideas for how to make it any clearer for Kesmet, just goes to work on the boiler. It's not fundamentally broken, but there are a few claw-like holes, like something had punctured into it. Very easily repaired with Mending.

Lower Deck Offshoot: Marvin

Marvin walks into the room to check up on Lance and Kiirni. Lance suddenly spins around to look at him.

Marvin: Oh! Hey, Lance. How's Kiirni?   Lance: She seems to be holding in there so far. How goes the investigation? Remember: means, motive, and opportunity.   Marvin: Yeah, of course! Everyone else is on that. But I just wanted to make sure our passenger was all right.   Lance: ...yes.   Marvin: Is something going on?   Lance: What are you insinuating?   Marvin: You seem nervous.   Lance: Of course I'm nervous! Somebody murdered my fellow officer!   Marvin: Well, yeah, but —   Lance: And I'm in here with, like, the exact group of people that I did not want to find on this boat!   Marvin: Who did you want to find yourself with on this boat?   Lance: Nobody. But all these extra favors, and now we've got your crew on the boat, and whenever your crew shows up, things go wrong, and things have gone wrong, and... and...   Marvin: Seems you have your mind already made up, on our group here.   Lance: I'm' just saying, no guards have ever been like, "hey, let those guys handle the situation". It's never happened! What they do say is, "hey, if those guys are into shit, turn around and walk away, because you're going to die, or get reprimanded, or lose your job position, or get locked up in jail, or have to endure fuckin' brain damage"!   Marvin: Who have you heard this from?!   Lance: You guys think folks don't talk? You think people don't know who you are?!   Marvin: I'm very well aware that people talk. I would just like to know how misinformed you are.   Lance: I'm not misinformed.   Marvin, with a cackle: Ahh, that's the best joke I've heard all day.   Lance: Maybe you're misinformed, O man of tales.   Marvin, dripping with sarcasm: Oh really, oh, OK, so firsthand accounts and traveling with these folks, oh I'm misinformed, I don't know anything about —   Lance: These people broke into a government office and proceeded to attack guards. Just attack 'em!   Marvin: Oh yeah? Why'd they do that?   Lance: 'Cause they got caught bein' where they weren't supposed to be, I guess.   Marvin: Huh. (Deception 20) I had no idea!   Lance, starting to get worked up again: Like, I might be crap at doing my job, but that doesn't mean other people are, OK?   Marvin: Listen, Lance, if there's any angle I can try to work with the crew, here, to get them off your back? I mean, that's pretty serious, if they went around killing guards. I only joined up with them a couple of months ago, and I'd heard that they had been pardoned by the Firelord — for what, exactly, I was not aware, but — listen, if you're in some deep shit, I can try to help you out of this, but you gotta tell me!   Lance: All right, well, I can't leave the convict unattended. I can't! It's my duty to watch this!   Marvin: Oh, you need to go take care of business again? Need some... time to yourself? Hey, I understand. I've been there. Tell you what, I can watch Kiirni for a little bit.   Lance: Or we could leave her here by herself, briefly.   Marvin: If you're cool with that, sure.   Lance: OK, but I'm coming right back.   Marvin: Yeah!   Lance: ...RIGHT BACK! And you're gonna stand right outside this door, making sure nobody comes in. ...or out!   Marvin: Yeah! Yeah, of course.   Lance: ...OK.   They leave the room. Lance goes down to the cargo hold. Marvin turns around and goes right back in.   Marvin: OK. He didn't let you talk at all. Are you actually OK?   Kiirni: Why do you even care?   Marvin: Why do people always assume that I have some ulterior motive?! Oh my gosh, you're a living person who was being tortured. Ultimately, you might be able to help with something that we're interested in, but hey, maybe we can help you!   Kiirni: I've heard these deals before. I'm done with them.   Marvin: Surely, you would like something? I never expect someone to give something, or do something, without receiving something in return.   Kiirni: You have not intrigued me yet with what you offer.   Marvin: I don't know what you desire. Freedom? A new start? Coin?   Marvin: Probably not coin, I would imagine...   Marvin: A new identity? A house? I don't know! Any of those things? Shelter! Food! Water! Out from the clutches of Lance! Do you want to go to the place with Lance? I don't know what you want!   Kiirni silently motions to the bindings around her wrist.   Marvin: So we know that you're being taken towards the border to seal up the underground tunnel that you've been using for smuggling. Afterwards, what's going to happen to you? What's your plan?   Kiirni: I have no plan. I travel to my death.   Marvin: Well, that's shit! Let's work a new one, where you don't have to seal this tunnel! You can show us where it is, and then we can go destroy the things that we need to destroy.   Kiirni: I can tell you whatever it is you want to hear, but I won't tell you if I lie or not.   Marvin: Well, that's always an option. But here's the thing: this would make it so you don't die. Regardless of whatever it is you think you may have done, or what you deserve, in your past, there's an opportunity! Do you not believe in second chances?   Kiirni: The world has already had its second chance.   Marvin, mockingly: Oh, this crap? Oh this whole, "boo hoo! the world did me wrong"? The world's done us all wrong! Look where we are right now! Everyone! I mean, I may not be in shackles right now, but goddamn, the world's given everyone on this boat a bad hand, and we're trying to make the best of it! I'm trying to reach out to you, because I think we might be able to help each other. But no, you're sitting here like "boo hoo, I'm walking to my death, and I'm not gonna do anything about it, I'm just gonna sit here and let it happen, boo hoo"! Really? All right. Whatever. I'm gonna go stand outside the door before he gets back.   Kiirni: Put your motions where your mouth is.   Marvin casts Bigby's Hand.   Marvin: Put your hands out.

Kiirni does, and he uses the hand to crush her shackles, taking care not to harm her while doing so. (Arcana 21) He's successful, and the shackles are broken. Before he can command the hand to move onto the ball and chain, Kiirni (Wisdom Save 12) polymorphs him into the shape of a very familiar dog.

Cargo Hold: Grogery, Kesmet, and Grimes

Lance hurries down the stairs into the foremost room of the cargo hold.   Grimes seems to react a bit funny to part of Kesmet's story, so Kesmet looks into him a bit more closely to see what his deal is. (Insight 16) He seems to pick up on something that Grimes is putting out there. He subtly takes out a silvered dagger and gesticulates with it during part of the story.

Kesmet: ...and then, I was going to cut off his foot and replace it with a wooden one!   Grimes flinches and panics.   Kesmet: Relax! It's just a prop for the story. (Deception 19) It helps sell the emotion.   Grimes still looks incredibly uncomfortable.   Kesmet, calling out: Hey, Grogery, are you done fixing the boilers yet?   Grogery: Yeah, I thought I heard someone come down. Did you, uh, "talk" with Grimes and learn some interesting things?   Kesmet: Oh yeah, I wasn't very far into the story, it was the part about the wooden foot. And... yeah.   Grogery: So here's an interesting thing, though. Your daggers are all basically stored around each other, right?   Kesmet: More-or-less.   Grogery: So this is a very, very nice example of a silver dagger, right?   Kesmet: Yep. I keep this one and the other one on my belt loop.   Grogery: Do you think Grimes would have risked trying to take a dagger of yours to use for something?   Kesmet: Uh... no?   Grogery: Admittedly, this is a bit of a hunch, but I don't think Grimes is the murderer.   Grimes: Don't — nobody has to kill me! I'l give you anything! Don't let him stab me!   Grogery: Listen, listen, listen! OK? Nobody has to stab anybody!   Grimes: Look, no-no-no-no-no, look, look! (He reaches into his pocket and pulls out 1/4 kilo of sharp sugar and carefully puts it on the ground.) See? See? You can have it! Nobody needs to stab anybody for drugs!   Grogery: Listen, we're not here to stab you for drugs!   Grimes: What are you gonna stab me for, then?! Don't stab me!   Grogery: We're not gonna stab you!   Grimes: I knew one of you was the murderer! I knew it!   Grogery: No! OK, just listen. We found one of Kesmet's daggers was the murder weapon, but it wasn't on him at the time.   Grimes: Guys, we can talk this through. I didn't kill Vic. I do have a lot of drugs. I can just give you this, and then we can forget this whole incident ever happened, and we all just put our weapons away —   Grogery: I think you don't realize this opportunity. We're not interested in drugs.   Kesmet: We're certainly not...   Grogery: We're interested in information about The Hounds Guild.   Kesmet: Yeah, I don't care about Vic. What do you know about Dennis?   Grimes, looking nervous: Uhh... ... ...   Kesmet draws a second silver dagger.   Grimes: Uh, uh... he leads a bunch of other werewolves! Right, but I'm not with him, yet!   Kesmet: ..."yet"?   Grimes: He promised — well, not him directly — I was promised a way to control it!   Kesmet: Control what?   Grogery: ...the curse...   Grimes: Yeah, man, the curse. Keep up.   Kesmet levels one of the daggers at Grimes, who flinches and squeals.   Grimes, stammering: The werewolf thing, all right?! You figured it out!   Kesmet: I'm keepin' up just fine.   Grimes: And- and- and they think it's a gift, but- but it's not a gift! It's really bad, OK?   Grogery: Hey! Listen! I'm a cleric, if you want to get rid of it, I can remove this curse!   Grimes: It won't work. It doesn't work!   Grogery: I removed it from Kesmet.   Grimes: I've had it too long!   Grogery: ...there's a time limit?   Grimes: There's a time limit! I've been at sea, there's no clerics at sea!   Grogery: Oh.

(Religion 22) The whole "time limit" thing tracks. It would be really easy if every werewolf could be cured by just a simple Remove Curse spell. The whole Hounds Guild would have been uprooted if it were possible to just de-curse any werewolf. So something like a "time limit" thing could make sense: as they try to either resist or accept it, it could either gain or lose its power over the person.

Grogery: Well, this is a very sad situation.   Grimes: Yeah! And if you stress me out any more, I swear to god I'm gonna wolf out, and I'm gonna kill all of you!   Grogery: Doesn't it only happen during a full moon? It's... daytime.   Grimes, more disappointed than anything now: Where are you even getting werewolf knowledge from?!   Grogery: I don't know! I'm not the werewolf expert! That's why I got Kesmet to look you over!   Grimes: I mean, you've seen the Hounds Guild people! They just kinda take drugs and then immediately wolf out, right? It's got triggers! And so there are triggers, and then yeah, the moon's a trigger, but I don't know what's gonna trigger me, and apparently some drugs can? 'cause I don't think anybody else coulda poked holes like that, right? But I didn't kill Vic!   Grogery: Yeah, this definitely checks out. If the drug triggered you to "wolf out", then you wouldn't have had time to hide the dagger. So you're definitely clean. Well... in a sense.   Kesmet: Hang on. You said that you're not with Dennis. But that you were somehow promised a way to control it? Who did you meet with? What did you do?   Grimes: Just some wolfy guys, I don't know? That's why I'm goin' back up to the swamp, 'cause I've been in the boat, and if I'm... then we can go all the way up, and then... 'cause that's where they are...   Grogery: So, what you're saying is you can take us to them?   Grimes winces.   Grogery: Listen, if they know of ways to manage lycanthropy, then that's valuable knowledge! People who ended up with the curse and weren't able to get to it in time would have ways of controlling it instead of being subservient to people like Dennis. So we have a good reason to go learn this information if you stick with us and help us find these people.   Grimes winces some more.   Grogery: And if you need more pressing reason to, then... the Hounds Guild kinda killed Kesmet's entire family, and he's out for blood.   Kesmet, putting away both of his daggers and addressing Grimes directly: I would strongly suggest not affiliating yourself with them. It could be very hazardous to your health. In one way or another. (Persuasion 27)   Grimes: I mean, deals have already been struck, my man. But — BUT! — (heh) we all know I'm not exactly the most trustworthy of sorts, so... a deal! A bargain. We just go along with the plan for now.   Kesmet: Which is?   Grimes: Which is the plan.   Grogery: I'm pretty sure his plan is that he was going to meet up with Dennis with whatever drugs he was running on this trip, and in that process we're just gonna, you know, like, follow him.   Grimes: Commit a few crimes, but we go along with it, right? Right to him! Right? They gotta meet up with me again. So you just let me do my job on this boat, whatever that job may be, and I'll lead ya straight to 'im! No money changes hands, no contracts signed, it stays in this room.   Grogery: Well, no, we're gonna let the rest of our group know "hey this is what the plan is", so that they don't do anything stupid. But, you know.   Grimes: I definitely don't think we should do that.   (Insight 3) Everything that this guy has EVER SAID has sounded just like this. You try to ask him what he wants to eat for breakfast in the morning, and it's JUST AS SHADY as the shit that he's saying right now.   Grimes: It's a delicate situation, man! If other people find out, then I could... I'm a security risk!   Kesmet: Fine! Fine. This stays between the three of us. (Deception 28)   Grimes: I could've been the risk Vic was talking about! 'cause... I think officer Vic was onto my secret too. But I didn't kill 'im! It would be stupid to kill an officer! That's just askin' for trouble.   Grogery: Plus, as we've shown, you didn't have the opportunity to hide the weapon. It had to be a bladed thing, and it was hidden under the bed afterwards. You wouldn't have had time to do it.   Grimes: Listen, even if something has touched silver, I still get hives. I can't...   Grogery: I'll wash these gold pieces before giving them to you, then. Was there a reason why you had the silver in the first place?   Grimes: I still get paid for things. I have to accept it, it's weird not to.   Grogery: OK, and it sounded like there might be some missing from it, so we can help you find it.   Grimes: It's not necessarily missing.   Grogery: What do you mean?   Grimes: One of my pastimes. I'm a nibber. Gold coins, they don't gotta be perfectly round. You take little chunks outta 'em, people don't notice.   Grogery: ...OK. That's not legal either.   Grimes: Well, I used to, but... now I accept the coins, I can't really deal with 'em anymore. I need to get this wolf thing dealt with. I will do anything to get this wolf thing dealt with.   Grogery: Well, luckily, all our interests align, so we'll all be able to work together and solve this and not die miserable gnarly deaths!   Grimes: OK! So, I'll just continue my crimes on the ship, —   Grogery: Again, don't go overboard... we're trying to not get picked up by the fuzz before —   Grimes: If I don't hold up my end of the bargain, we're not gonna be able to meet with 'em, all right?   Grogery: I'm just saying, we don't want to get interrupted on the way there. We don't want to attract too much attention.   Kesmet: What is your bargain? Should we be worried about anything?   Grimes: Wh- ... why would you be worried? Now you're worrying me!   Kesmet: No, 'cause you keep on saying you just gotta do your thing. What "thing" do you have to do? What crimes do you still have to commit? I swear to god, if it's stealing something from us, I'm not gonna be happy about it either...   Grimes, earnestly: Oh, no, no, no! No, no, it's not stealing. I've already admitted to all the crimes I'm gonna commit this trip.   Kesmet: What, smuggling?   Grimes:

  Kesmet: ...right.

Lower Deck: Dwardazik, and Dazki

Dwardazik: I wanna know what's in that door! That could literally be where the dog is!   Dazki, getting flustered and talking fast: Well, but, listen. We should go check on Kiirni first, and then check the door! 'cause you said you don't trust her, right?   Dwardazik: Uh, yes, I don't trust her, but —   Dazki: So why don't we go look in on her and then you can check the door?   Dwardazik: But Marvin's dealing with it! Marvin just went to go take care of it! Barry's out there too! What about this door?   Dazki: Do you really trust Lance and Barry to take care of these things?   Dwardazik: Look. OK. I'm going to go check this door. I'm breaking this door down if I have to.   Dazki: F-

Dwardazik punches the door, to no avail. As he prepares to make a proper attack against the door, Dazki makes a sigh of resignation...   ...   ...   ...and then stabs Dwardazik in the back with his dagger.