Changelings Part II: A Holiday In The Sun

[BigBadQDaddy]

Helfried purchases a potion while out with Saradon. He makes sure his opinion regarding magic is heard over his hypocrisy.
Once at the docks he meets up with the others. For the most part Helfried stays out of the way of the loading while maintaining an obvious presence while watching the workers for anything suspicious .

[kintire]

Rupert appears a little surprised that Catherine is actually coming along, but shrugs.

Seradon discovers that the actual professor is ensconced in one of the upper cabins. The others are occupied by the captain and Rupert. The party has cabins on the deck below, although again no provision seems to have been made for Catherine.

As the group settles in, Seradon falls into conversation with Professor Carlton Farquhar, the expedition leader. He seems a little aloof at first, but on discovering that Seradon is a wizard he becomes more enthusiastic.

"Excellent, excellent! Your divinations will come in most useful. Many of the artifacts we expect to find will be magical, if only under preservation spells. Indeed, I fear that those not under such spells will have passed away long since!"

[alhoon]

"Magic items? Professor, I have to warn you that magic items are usually guarded by magical traps. And as magic items don't fade with time, nor does the magic of the traps. Personally, I'm capable of creating a ward that would make a door, window or trapdoor nearly impossible to unlock and more resilient to simply psysical breaking & entering. And that ward remains forever. I expect the same from the magic in the place we're going to professor."

With this warning, Seradon changed the subject to more academic ones about architecture, mundane means of protection like walls and fortifications various cultures used, and how cannons seem to be able to bypass such protections but thankfully, the horrors of the night seem to not possess as sophisticated means.

Later on, he would catch up with the rest of the party and warn them; There are magic items where the group is headed and where magic items are, so are magic traps. And the expedition seems ill prepared to deal with magic traps. He asks them to be quiet about all this of course to the other members of the expedition.

[VAN]

When Catherine finds out that she actually has no cabin goes to Rupert and says:

"Hello Rupert, do you think you can arrange a cabin and maybe get some extra water and food for me?"

[kintire]

Rupert looks a little amused.

"coming along for the ride are you? I'm surprised you're having trouble finding a cabin! hah, but seriously, I'll see what i can do."

[VAN]

Catherine looks at Rupert ready to reply but changes her mind and just says:

"Thank you Rupert. By the way out of curiocity do you know how many days we will travel?"

[steveflam]

Gorn walks up to Rupert. "HOw come she aint got no room? I did tell yer she were comin, so I is a bit confused bout it is all."

[kintire]

"It didn't sink in you were bringing the... young lady on a trip like this! Don't worry, its a big ship, there's plenty of room. We'll be travelling about twenty days. Five or six by sea, and then across the desert."

Catherine is provided a cabin on the deck below the others. It seems identical to theirs. The ship's guide is just next door, who seems to be a soberly dressed man, not like any Vistani. He remains below decks as the ship pushes off, and in fact does not emerge until she has cleared the harbour, as if there is something embarrassing about his presence. As the mist begins to rise from the rolling sea, however, he emerges and stands quietly between the captain and the helmsman.

[BigBadQDaddy]

Upon seeing the helmsman, Helfried immediately turns and says to Saradon, "These men put a vistani in charge of maneuvering this ship? Madmen all! Mark my words this voyage is cursed."

[alhoon]

Seradon looks confused at the Falkovnian and opts to speak his languages hoping the guide and the others won't understand.
F: "Helfried, there's no better guide when you travel the mists than the vistani. Practically nobody else can do it. There are a few anchorites that claim they can navigate the mists and all, but even they don't claim to be as good as the vistani.
The big problem with the Vistani is that they serve themselves most of all. This vistani will probably get us when he wants to get us. Whether that's the same place we payed him to take us to, is a different question. I have done passing business with the Vistani in the past, while I didn't have to ... travel the mists, and they were cordial fellows. Yeah, they tried to sell me trinkets of no value and I had to keep a hand on my purse. But more or less, I've found them as trustworthy as any other kind of human. Unfortunatelly, that doesn't say much since it's not that we're kind to each other.
But humanity's woes aside, the vistani can get us when we need to go while nobody else can. While not safe, and you're right that we should keep our eyes open, a vistani guide is the safest we can get.
Now, I believe we should keep our eyes on the vistani in case he tries to steal our potions and our ears on the mists. I've heard stories about monsters coming out of the mists and all. Since we can't see, we better strain to listen."

[steveflam]

Gorn seems confused. "Um. What was yer first impression of me before I even said anything or did nothing? Prolly tha same as yer thinkin of that man over there yer talkin about. I ain't so bad an I bet he ain't either if you get ter know him." He shrugs and walks away. lighting up a cigar. Not one for manners, he will walk over to where the Vistani is between the two men. "How yer doin, fellas? Thanks fer tha use of yer vessel, much appreciated. I wanted ter ask, what does each of you do here on the deck?"

[VAN]

Catherine has heard that the Vistani can find their way through the mists but ahs never met one, so she goes with Gorn and says:

"Hello, indeed thank you for taking us to the ship. It's the first time I get to such a ship. So if I may ask how do you orient through the mists?"

[kintire]

The figure turns slowly and gazes rather vacantly at Catherine. Thought seems to move slowly through the mind of the man as if unaccustomed to such activity, and his lips move for a moment as if silently composing his reply. Then the eyes focus on her and he says

"Carefully".

His intellectual tour-de-force concluded, he seems to sink into lethargy again, as the mists swirl around the ship until even the water through which it ploughs is hard to make out from the rail

[VAN]

Catherine is expected to have some small talk with the Vistani but is clear that he isn't up for it. so she sits back and listens at Gorn's conversation. Afterall knowing more about the others at the ship might be useful.

[kintire]

The journey is not entirely comfortable. The mists swirl around the ship, and Catherine is not the only one to discover that their guide seems bare capable of coherent thought. The Captain assures you that he is an "idiot-savant", but Rupert especially is extremely unimpressed.

Neverthelss, he does seem to guide you well, and Rupert is mollified as the mists clear, and you see ahead of you rolling sand covered hills with a streak of green running down through them to the sea. This seems to be what he was expecting to see, and soon the ship is unloading in the clear blue waters of a wide bay. Another ship is already here and herd of camels are being assembled on shore. Soon the passengers are being unloaded onto the brown stone docks.

The heat is intense, but not as debilitating as you had feared. The air is very dry.

The village itself is a poor one, a stark contrast to mighty Paridon, and the inhabitants seem to avoid you. There is a single inn, but no one else in the group seems to be visiting.