“Mmmhhmmm. Mmmhmmm. Mmmhhmmm! HOW MANY… er, excuse me but I repeat, how many in your party,” the man cuts in, though Snow can see his magnetic personality is having the usual effect, and the man pulls back from his usual bald rudeness, though not yet having answered any of Snow’s informational questions. 

He turns to the others as well. “Names?,” he asks, in Jenghen.

"Varielky, from north Indallia. The rest is as the captain explained." Varielky answes. Then, she waits to see if anything happens.

Trying to follow Snow's cue and smiling, "Your vale is beautiful. I'm Auger." 

"My apologies sir, I didn't make it clear, it is just the three of us", Snow says. "Now about this mast?", he adds, reminding the man about his question.

“Snow Das, Varielky Indallian,” yes… says the woman, scribbling in the ledger. 

After hearing all three answers, the armored man continues. “Party of three, mmmhhhmmm. The bridges are tall enough for your mast until you’ve passed El Harrouch castle. I shall look for announcements of upcoming cultural performances, Captain Das. Now, we are going to search your vessel. Please debark. It will not take long.”

At this moment, there is a commotion as a pair of chimps in dunn-colored Tahesian togas and black and gray headscarves is pulled from the shore onto the barge. 

“Found these two trying to skirt our position. They ran, we pursued,” says one of the imperials. 

“No doubt working for the Amazighs,” says another.

“No!,” answers one of the small furry persons. The other growls, “We just can’t pay your shake-down phony-flockin’ fines agin!,” his eyes everywhere. 

“Search them,” orders the armored man calmly, and the two are pulled aside and forcefully searched. One of the imperials possesses a small wand which she moves closely around the chimps. 

“Captain,” announce the searchers a few moments later. “No magic detected. But…just as you said.” A small wrapper of folded leaves is produced.  

“Mmmmhhhmmm…,” says the armored man, taking and opening the leaves. “I wonder what we have here.”

The chimp’s face is red, enraged. “Tha’s not mine!!,” he shouts. “Ye planted it on me! He did!,” pointing to the imperial who searched him. 

The armored man peeks into the little bundle, sniffs it. 

“Take them across,” he says, flatly, and the chimps are loaded harshly into a dugout, tied behind a second dugout.

Snow steps onto the barge. “If I may approach, Captain?’”, he says slowly approaching before the captain has chance to reply.

He leans in and, voice low, he speaks so only the Captain can hear. “Captain to captain, I would hate to have my boat boarded and rummaged through so indelicately”, he motions to what is happening with the chimps. “And you seem quite busy with these frightful Amazighs. Such distasteful folk, thinking they run everything, and can make a fool of an upstanding officer such as yourself. It is they who are fools, sir”, he continues, shaking his head.

“Is there any way we can sort this out between us gentlemen, so we may be on our way and leave you to focus on the riff raff?”, he says respectfully, throwing a glance the way the chimps went.

 Persuasion: 26 (Rolled in campaign))

Das is speaking the armored man’s language. He -- a tall Jenghen — turns sunken eyes to face Snow, his high forehead and long, aquiline nose nearly touching the bard’s face as a corner of his mouth turns upwards and he whispers, “How tedious, indeed, Captain Das. If only the empire in all its grandness would pay its loyal servants in a manner fitting their service, especially when dangers are faced in the line of duty. Why it’s been 100 days of golden sunlight here in the shadow of Thacia castle. 100 golden opportunities for glory on the front lost. 100 golden parties on the lawns of friends missed and never to be celebrated again…

“Of course,” he continues, whispering seductively, “it’s just what they do, my men, searching, finding, finding, searching. It costs them nothing. They rather enjoy it I’d say.” He turns to look deeply into Snow’s eyes again, awaiting his response with a satisfied smirk. 

Snow smiles at the captain. “Indulge me a few moments”, he says and backs away onto the Animu Boringo.

He heads over to Varielky and Auger, and whispers, “Well the captain is as corrupt as they come. If we want to avoid the search it will be 100 gold. Sounds steep to me but I can try and haggle him down if we want to go that route. What do you both think? They seem to have items that can detect magic, which could cause problems”.

"Let's pay through this time and then discuss how to handle..." Auger pauses to think through how many towns and bridges there were on the route. "How to handle all the rest that will follow on later." 

Auger keeps a smile on his face while talking but inside he is upset at the scene with the chimps, believing them completely, but not willing to risk any safety to step in. If Snow needs some extra gold to complete the transaction, Auger will pass some over.

Snow subtly takes the coins he needs from Auger and makes sure he has 100 gold coins in his pouch.

Turning back to the captain he wanders back over, still smiling genially. He once again lowers his voice as he speaks to the captain.

“It seems we understand each other perfectly. And seeing as we have reached an accord, I would hate to mar this feeling with thoughts of what might befall the riff raff. In truth they are beneath you sir, and will gain you only time wasted. It is not worth it surely. How about we all go about our business now and enjoy 100 golden breaths of fresh, free air?”.

He extends his hand for the captain to shake, and within it he holds the pouch as discreetly as possible.

Persuasion: 26 (In campaign)

The Jenghen Captain discreetly takes the pouch with a practiced hand, and is just about to reply, his pupils huge and welcoming, persuaded, almost enamored with Snow’s suggestion — Snow feels sure he’ll say yes — when suddenly the large trout you’d seen before leaps out of the water beside Snow, whose voice falters as a result, at the very end of his statement. The fish lands on the barge, flopping about, its mouth opening and closing. The Captain sighs, bends to lift it up by the gills and drops it back into the river. Eyes batting just a bit, he tells Snow over his shoulder, “Be careful in the Vale, and remember, the Empire’s hand is mighty.” 

He turns briefly, smiles curtly, and then steps away, and with a flick of his hand his fighters, too, step away from the Animu Borongo to continue chatting with one another.

The chimps regard you, and their captors, frowning jealously from their seats in the dugout as another barge carrying cages of chickens bumps up behind you, and the Captain moves toward it, unfurling his scroll once again. 

Snow quickly walks to the pile, unties the morning line and turns back to the Animu Borongo. His smile immediately disappears and is replaced by a frown as his back turns from the soldiers. He throws the mooring line onto the deck and quickly follows, making his way to the tiller.

”Let’s move”, he says loudly, before lowering his voice so only Auger and Varielky can hear and adding, “The stench here is unbearable”.

As he casts his gust charm into the cantrip battery and the Animu Borongo’s sail fills and it pulls away, he takes a quick look back at the barge and the Chimps and shakes his head. He reaches behind him and once more plucks a string on the violin, points towards one of the Chimps and whispers, “I am sorry, I did my best to help”, and the Message is sent.

Once up the river and safely past the checkpoint, Auger states, reflectively, "Varielky, remind me to never challenge Snow here in matters of persuasion." Auger smiles at Snow, though with his money pouch significantly lighter, he is not entirely pleased. "The behavior of that trout was strange. I wonder if it is trained or a magical connection. The guard there clearly was channeling some magic to make his voice carry." Auger idly looks at the water, trying to see any trout that might be following them. 

[Auger rolls {d20+zero} a 17 in a Perception for trout checking. If he does detect something then all of the following is skipped in favor of additional trout-watching.]

"Well, exorbitant costs aside, how shall we approach the next of these checkpoints? I would prefer not to end up like the Chimps back there. In fact if it is in our power I would love to keep such things from happening to anyone.

"I still think upriver we should keep as low a profile as possible, but if they are trying to detect magic gear, perhaps confiscating it, then I am not sure what the proper step should be. I wonder if we dock the boat, and walked from here, if we could manage our way better. We can hide Granophyre on the boat of course, but we are all exposed to whatever is around the next bend without a doubt. On the road we can scout ahead and maybe deal with whatever comes more directly, and the boat can be reserved as a fallback." Auger stops talking, clearly not entirely pleased with his idea and then pauses to think for a few minutes.

"I wonder what it would take to make the Animu Borongo appear to be a Jenghen vessel. It cannot be as simple as flying the correct flag? And then we would need to overcome a guard or two and take their outfits. I would not mind if it was the guards back there. Take their clothes. Free the chimps and any other unfortunates, which could also work as a distraction." Auger pauses yet again, reflectively and then a little wistfully, "...get our money back."

I guess I do care about the money a little, especially if it goes so quickly.

Out loud, Auger adds "No matter what, Py, I think I am going to start asking you to zoom ahead a mile or so and then come back to describe what is coming. We can start doing this every so often, no matter what the plan ends up being."

"Challenge them for a duel. If I win, we move on with no further trouble. If they win, ah... something?" While Varielky sees this as the perfect solution, she knows from past experiences that most people aren't willing to fight a honourous duel at her whim, so it will most likely become an all-out brawl. "Alternatively, we can work on a non-magical hideout. More likely to be detected, but not by magic detectors, if they do have them."

Snow gives Auger a cheeky smile in response to the compliment, it seemingly cheering him slightly. “Yes the trout did behave oddly. In truth I had more means at my disposal but I was just cautious about using magic on the captain, they seemed geared up to counter magic”, he says frowning again unsure.

“I think scouting ahead, on road or river, would be helpful. I also think your idea Varielky, of a hiding place, akin to what I imagine smugglers use under the deck, is brilliant. And with a carpenter on board, eminently possible?”, he says impressed.

“Not so sure about the single combat option, and as for appearing to be Jenghen, maybe we can take a look at some of their boats when we are next passing a dock. I don’t know how to disguise the Animu Borongo, and am not sure if I can act the part believably without speaking the language either, but if one of you can?”.

“Oh, and what about sending your friend to keep an eye on that captain?”, he says holding out a finger and thumb a couple of inches apart to indicate something small. “If we want to double back later it would be helpful”.

Re: Auger rolls {d20+zero} a 17 in a Perception for trout checking.

The river is teeming with life — sturgeon, pipefish, carp, tilapia, cichlids and catfish, turtles, frogs, snakes, dragonflies, and trout. Trying to find this particular fish, with the late morning sun glaring off of the lapping waters like snapping fireworks is akin to finding a particular splinter on a woodcutter’s floor. {I.e., not detected}

Chapter 4: Nagas and Asni Village

Your sail fills with magical wind and the Animu Borongo is northward-bound again. As you pull away from Thacia, the mountains open away to either side, and you feel, mile by mile, the thumb of the empire becoming more ethereal, less ominous, fading. 

The land is populous, a village every mile along the river on either side, with many homesteads and hamlets in between, like a great long city built along the flowing thoroughfare, stretched out along a narrow strip no more than two miles wide. In these flatlands, elephants, hippopotamuses and other large beasts bathe in the reedy shallows along the banks of the Sebu, then as the land slopes up into foothills, grazing pastures punctuate a jigsaw puzzle of interlocking farmlands and quiet dales. 

Beyond, monkey-filled forests tilt sweepingly up the Bantu slopes to the treeline, while snow caps droop low and heavy over the peaks, as if an artist, unsatisfied with her work, had whitewashed the greater part of the mountains she’d painted to begin anew. The temperature is noticeably cooler here than in Kalahata, the air moister, the sky clear and azure. The horizon is jagged peaks, near or far, all around. 

You make good time the rest of the day and should be able to make it to Asni Village by nightfall if you wish. Supposing you set the village as a goal, how do you spend the afternoon?

Prior to moving far up the river

Auger nods at Snow's suggestion and sends Py back to invisibly watch the behavior of the Imperials with the next boats at the checkpoint and to count the number of guards, should it be important later. He also asks Py to check out the road near there to see how the Imperials monitor that route.

While Py searches, Auger reflects on the possibility of building a hiding spot for a person or a hidden hold for magical equipment. "Perhaps in your existing hold it could be possible to block off an area and create a secret door. Its tricky though, to be done well, such work should happen at the time the ship is made, otherwise a careful searcher will realize there is a place they cannot access. We would have to repurpose some existing material from elsewhere on the boat because anything new we find will simply not be the right wood, and will stick out. And it would take some time to set and complete the work properly. With the proper materials, a careful survey of the interior of the boat, so I do not compromise the deck or cabin, this could be done I'm sure. It is hard to estimate the time it would take. Certainly a few hours to get things right. Much more, if we have to struggle with materials a great deal." Auger pauses, again reflecting on the task. Then more tentatively, Auger adds "I , I --- I know of no particular enchantments that would stop a -- a magical search. All the effort. It might come to nothing if they can wave a wand and know where to look." Auger shrugs. Then, more confidently, "Still a hold to keep a few things from easy view or access is not such an uncommon thing on a boat. A captain will leave his ship from time to time after all, if only to grab an ale. A safe spot is something any boat might have to leave some things behind. I think we should do this work and then examine it to see if we think it fits the purpose or not. If it is not precisely as secret as we would like, such a thing could still be useful."

"Its your boat Snow, what do you think?"

(Prior to moving up river)

Snow listens to Auger as he details what might be possible. “I would be loathe to carve her up in truth, especially as it might not work”, he says mulling it over. “But somewhere to store our more valuable items would be very useful, and if we could make it so that it only secures on the inside, with no discernible mechanism from outside even better. Especially for those of us who can manipulate such things without touching them”, he adds taking a step away from the tiller and steering the boat with his mind (Mage Hand with added Telekinesis).

(Afternoon)

Snow starts to relax as the miles accrue between themselves and Thacia, and it becomes clearer that the Empire presence was not as they had feared.

He spends most of his time diligently manning the tiller, and staring in wonder at the animals that inhabit the area. The further they get today the happier he is.

When he gets a break, either because one of the others is happy to man the tiller or they stop, he practices on his violin.

“It seems our worries about further checkpoints were unfounded”, he says idly after a couple of hours of constant vigilance and waiting for reports back from Py (assuming he scouts ahead).

“Are we planning on staying at the village up ahead? I would be on board for a decent meal and maybe a bit of musical entertainment”, he says wincing slightly at his own terrible pun.

Prior to moving up the River

Auger examines the tiller moving on its own for a moment before he realizes what is going on. "Ah. Yes, I have a similar ability, though not quite so hidden." Another dragonfly appears in front of Auger, this one is translucent and clearly does not live, like Py. "Alright, I'll have a look around and see if I can find a reasonable place to build something out. Then we can talk about whether or not new materials are needed or if perhaps a coat of paint might provide sufficient cover." Auger feels immensely pleased at the possibility of actually designing and building something. But if work is to be done it is to be done properly and so Auger carefully examine points on the boat, mostly inside the cabin and the hold to try to figure out where an optimal spot might be that would deceive any possible searchers.

Afternoon

After reporting on what he can about the Imperials, Py is sent forward and then back to report on what is coming in the miles ahead. This process repeats every so often.

Auger's careful search and design ideation process takes him well into the afternoon. He is observed to be leaning out of the boat and looking over the side and then coming back to look at the same spot on the boat from the inner point of view in multiple spots. At times he leaves his translucent dragonfly in contact with one part of the boat, while he attempts to determine if the gap between it and his own hand touching an inner surface is close or not. Each of the others are asked to temporarily move while Auger examines the spot they just vacated for some reason. Everyone observes Auger to be as happy as they have seen him on this trip. It may even be infectious. At one point Auger excitedly freezes some river water against the side of the Animu Borongo and then touches a part of the inner hull, apparently to see if the feeling of cold passes through or not. He does not let the ice stay long and takes a moment to fix any minor scarring that occurs from the process. 

(OOC: This examination is where Auger might find any existing, but unknown, secret compartments. Given that we are operating in Auger's zone of trade (Carpentry) and that he is taking his time I am going to roll an Investigation with proficiency and also add a second die should DM rule advantage applies. [Roll 1: 15 +4 for 19. Roll 2: 3 +4 for 7].)

Auger absent-mindedly nods at the possibility of a stop and a meal, still very much caught up in returning to a manner of work he thought he had left behind forever.