Istrian, yes, absolutely:
Istrian: 'Istria', Scout
This leaves us with only ONE unclaimed dwarfette.
Onward:
Kalen ponders her newest recruits. She's sent out Skipper to gather information on them and he reports back continuously, but their temperaments are largely unknown.
Akroma has gotten situated quickly as he is sociable and relaxed. Kalen has an idea that in, perhaps a previous life, perhaps the current one, he was or is still a master thief. Her life sailing with scurvy salty dogs has given her a keen eye (She groans to herself, shaking her head) for the movements and ways of a thief. Far from being put off by this; She is glad. The older crewmates had given up their lust for loot long ago in favor of the cold and deadly wealth of battle. His eye for gems and metals will keep an anchor on the ship to guide them to plundering once again, something Kalen was nearly unwilling to bring up after her previous promises and oaths. Akroma has kindly opened the door for her, and she writes well of him in her log.
Hypa is ... well, Hypa is just that. Kalen can only assume her given dwarven name was Hyper, but she shortened it because she grew impatient. She is never more happy than when in the galley, sharing tales, rapid fire, with her crewmates. Imp personally recommended she join his forming squad of marksdwarves as she has the right stuff to rattle of bolts; providing he can find a way to tame her crazed enthusiasm.
Giken has cold and unforgiving eyes. Something haunts her past, another trait Kalen has come to recognize and rely on. She, like Hypa, will make a fine addition to the crows nest as her lack of pity will be very useful when dealing with the less obvious enemies, the humans and the elves.
Salty is much like Giken, sharing her inability to show pity and a remarkable love for all things crossbow related. Kalen notes her willingness, enthusiasm, and aptitude for the role of a marksdwarf and is certain Imp will find her acceptable. Her self-discipline, combined with Imp's steady tutelage, will see her as a deadly force on the rails.
Ruby is ... difficult. Imp insists that she be given a posting to his squad, though, Kalen cannot understand why. Frankly, Kalen cannot understand the girl at all. She's like a wall of granite; only way to go is around it. Unmoving and unconcerned, she may not even take the posting. 'Her stubbornness,' Kalen ponders, 'will be tested soon. Hopefully I shall not have to make an example of her, but, if she does well as a marksdwarf as Imp has predicted, I'm sure I can, like I have with the others, find a way to work with her ... on my OWN terms.'
Istria has volunteered to take a job hunting when we are at port; a fine thing to request, as, with Imp's duties keeping him confined to the training area's, none of the other dwarves seemed likely to offer to head ashore, save Fishgut, who would open the very pits himself if he thought there were fish on the other side. She's declined Imp's training in favor of learning the old fashioned way. On the hunt, in the wild, stalking her prey. Those skills, skills of ambush and disguise, will become equally handy in battle, Kalen notes, happily.
Nodding to herself, Kalen closes the book. Skipper has yet to report to her on the last remaining dwarf, whom Kalen has not had the time to meet with yet either. Should she not soon speak up, she may find herself nothing more than a bone hauler, perhaps an assistant to Malanga, or, better yet, Kalen could have Jaina craft a goblin mask and place it on her head to insight the mighty Sigurd to ignore his neck injuries and spar once more.
Only time, and the brutal fate of the sea, will tell.
Downing an entire mug of rum, Kalen grabs a letter on her desk. Popping off the wax seal, she see's that it is Duncanas calculations of their current wealth and supply levels. The new crew, 23, 'no, 22 and a half', Kalen corrects herself, smiling and thinking of Barnacle, will need plenty of food and booze on the dangerous mission ahead. Scanning it briefly, she is pleased, though she hopes to divert attention from their quest for revenge with a bit of old fashioned plundering soon. The new pirates will need to be welcomed to the lifestyle properly, she reasons.
Slipping the note into her locked desk, Kalen stands, heading to the map on the wall. Many 'X's are marked, some circled, some crossed off as their plotted journey zig-zags the unforgiving seas. She looks at a corner of the continent, no marks, no lines, no indication of her desire to head there. She will keep their next mission a secret even to Skipper. Her plans depend on the possibility of word of the King's request slipping into the open ears and loose lips of her crew, and should any of them turn out to be a spy, could spell disaster for her entire ship.
Pulling the King's letter from her blouse once more, she pulls out a flintlock and sparks the page, her eye intent upon the name he has scrawled in Elven on the crease of the page, a language he knows Kalen can secretly understand. Tentacles of fire leap up and claw at the name, the ink boiling under her gaze and the heat.
As the page dissolves to ash in her hands, the image of the name remains etched in her mind. Discarding the now minute strip of smoldering parchment to a stone bin nearby, Kalen adjusts her eyepatch and heads to the deck. She takes a moment to collect her thoughts and prepares story for what she would like them to think is their next target, but she cannot and will not forget the King's wishes.
Many will die in the quest for this. Kalen, a sturdy pirate, knows that the crew has little idea that they would be doing official bidding. She is content to let them see themselves as bandits, for, in many ways, they are. They gladly steal from fellow dwarves, but they do not know that the only reason they remain above reproach is because of promises Kalen had been forced to make at the hands of her King. 'My King,' she thinks, snorting, before shuddering a moment, remembering the sleep deprivation, starvation, dehydration and torture she'd met in captivity in the mountain homes. Worse yet, she remembers the oaths that her unwillingness to comply would leave her locked on land, no water in sight, for the rest of her days.
Clearing such thoughts from her mind, Kalen formulates a faux mission before heading to the deck. Never for a second, though, does she let that name, their real target, slip from her mind.
[ March 18, 2008: Message edited by: valcon ]
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Topic: Pirates of the Fondled Waters (Community Pirate Ship) (Read 72354 times)