In the streets of Shriekpot...
Niklas knows or at least suspects he cannot run or facehug adequately at the moment, so he tries another option - flight! Magical flight! He leaps upward, trying to magically levitate away from the area!
It is when he lands right afterwards that he disappointedly has to conclude that it didn't seem to work. Maybe he should have stuck to the facehugging idea. It is, after all, a tried-and-true Northlander tactic, unlike the rather unpredictable and frequently horrible alternatives magic never ceases to provide.
[Grab: Terry vs. Niklas: 5 vs. 4]
[Grab: Ziggy vs. Niklas: 3 vs. 4]
[Grab: Shamus vs. Niklas: 2 vs. 4]
However, before he can consider such a maneuver, the three fellows leap at him, two of which he avoids handily while the last - the older guy - grabs him by one leg.
"Got him! Help me here, guys!"
In the halls of the Second Shank...
Sigmund looks at his arm. It is a rather nice arm, even if it does clash a bit with the rest of his body.
"Thanks, Mark has done a pretty good job this time," he says, looking at the tattoo on it that he hadn't seen until now. It appears to depict a somewhat obese, underdressed woman with a large, frothing mug of ale in her hand, pointing outward and winking. Right next to the image is a single word: "Thirsty?" It's a rather silly-looking and suggestive thing, Sigmund thinks.
"I came here to ask you something. Which kind of monsters inhabit the Sea of Death?"
"DOLPHINS, for one! They're VERY NASTY, I've heard. DEFINITELY not in your BEST INTEREST to go OVERBOARD! I've also heard the SHRIMP can be downright DEADLY! Haven't BEEN there MYSELF, but you hear HORROR STORIES, YOU KNOW! I've heard the SKY ITSELF CAN CLAIM YOU there!"
"Doesn't sound good."
"Oh, IT ISN'T!"
How very helpful.
On the deck of the Second Shank...
Kevin is disturbed by the way Niklas seems to find himself in rather awful escapades time and again.
"Where'd you say Niklas was again, Justine?" he asks after Sigmund proves entirely unhelpful.
"East. Two and a half kilometers," she says. "That-a-way," she then points toward a particular street that leads further inside the town. Kevin shrugs and begins the chair retrieval quest that is sure to take no time at all. Seeing the fellow leave, both Morton and Mark join as well, with Mark setting aside his fishing line and brandishing his halberd. Looks like the next body harvest is due soon.
"Good jester Kevin, please don't go alone, I'll accompany you. I'm not sure what help I can perhaps render, but it will be there," Morton tells the ex-jester, putting away the mop, pot and bucket in the name of group cohesiveness. He looks over at Mark, who looks equally enthusiastic.
"Ah, surgeon Mark, you're to be joining us? I for one welcome your company and thank you, hopefully those rapscallions won't cause undue harm to chef Niklas and can be persuaded to leave it be."
Yes. Of course.
"Alrighto, let's go!"
The three fellows head off the ship and in the direction Justine indicated - it doesn't take long before they reach an interesting scene - three fellows awkwardly trying to manhandle an unusually mobile chair - Niklas, obviously. Now, how best to deal with such a situation?
Meanwhile, Scott, not one for such camaraderie as has been displayed by the atypically unified march of disparate personalities toward the accomplishment of an entirely reasonable objective, goes up to Erin and asks her a good question.
"Say, do you know why the Artiste sleeps so much?"
"I dunno. To pass the time? I think I've heard him say he loves to sleep," Erin answers, sipping her tea. "Can't say I blame him."
At that exact moment, the Artiste steps out on the deck, looking quite fresh indeed.
"Good evening, everybody! How's business? Are we finally ready to set off or has everyone gone off to maim themselves again?" he asks cheerily, Erin giving him a polite nod while continuing to sip.
In the engineers' quarter of the City of the Dead...
Darren, mostly accustomed to the strangeness of the city's inhabitants, questions the lady.
"Oh! Hello-hello to you as well. You live down here, correct? I'm rather lost right now, and perhaps you could help me find my way?"
The lady nods enthusiastically, blinking randomly with all her eyes.
"Uh-huh! Yes-yes! Go that way!" she explains, pointing toward a large cylindrical building nearby with a large pentagon sculpted into its surface. "Lots of treasure and wonderful things there! I can show you the way."
The woman then begins to beckon Darren to follow her.