Taiga hasn't yet found her sea legs and shows signs of unease on board the ship. She hasn't travelled much in her life and this is the first time on water. Being constantly rocked around and running into one another due to the unexpected movements and narrow passages appears to be draining her. 

For dinner she doesn't feel much of an appetite and prefers to keep a light stomach, just in case. Yet she joins on the upper deck for the company. "Urgon was an old friend of mine and to be honest, I didn't plan any of this," she motions widely around in way of emphasising being on a boat sailing into the night towards the dangers of an icy wasteland. "I just went to Urgon's funeral because I really felt I owe him but then I learned what happened to him and Elro asked if I could help to investigate. From there we went leg deep into this and, well, here we are." She stops to think a moment and then asks, "But what do you mean with completing what he started? What did he start? What did he want to complete? Do you know something about what he was doing? Because, I'm going in blind and have no idea. If you know something, please share it, I beg you."

The crew members aboard the ship listen carefully to Ragnus and Taiga's answers, nodding solemnly as your characters explain the gravity of the situation. Bosun's gaze is wide with regret, and the grizzled Dwarf's tough exterior seems to have completely crumbled in the wake of his question. By the time Taiga has finished speaking, he looks ready to cry. For a moment, the only sound is the crackling of the small flames within the ship's lanterns, and the steady rock of the waves below. "I'm sorry for your loss. I wish you the best of luck in putting an end to the disease," Bosun responds softly. He'd known a mysterious disease had claimed the life of Ragnus's uncle, but the Grassblade hadn't yet learned that the adventurers were still trying to seek out its cure. "If you need our help, you let us know, alright?"

The ship's captain turns to Taiga next, dipping his head solemnly at the distressed girl's questions, understanding her confusion and her pain. Olaf, the chef, places a reassuring hand on the Earth Genasi's shoulder while Captain Aldric begins to speak. "Urgon Wenth was known to be very determined in searching the ruins of Eiselcross for its mysteries and treasures. It's the home of an ancient magical civilization, and it seemed as though he wished to discover what it held before all of the other expeditions did. What lies there, we don't know. But I do hope your late friend found what he was searching for, before he passed. If he didn't, it might still be there."

Carina knows when to shut her mouth and listen, which she does as Reliq and Taiga speak of their relationships with Urgon Wenth.

She switches to a simple folk tune on her harmonica, sweet but melancholy.

Running his hands over his face. "Aye that's much appreciated, we'll be sure ta let ya know."

„I rather not dig too deep in these ruins. Best we look for the cure and get out. Who knows what other evils wait to be discovered there.“

The previous warmth of the atmosphere fades away as the evening grows on, the solemn conversation about Urgon Wenth's death hanging heavy in the chilly air. Eventually, the dinner is finished, and your characters are guided to their quarters to fall asleep — rocked by the gentle waves carrying the ship closer to Eiselcross. The following sunrise, it's warm below deck where Olaf prepares breakfast over the crackling stove, but freezing cold when you step out into the frigid morning on the upper deck. The bone-chilling wind seems to bite even through your layers of furs and clothing, perhaps because the sky overhead is filling with dark clouds that hide the rising sun and make your surroundings of endless icy, desolate sea look like a wash of never-ending gray.

A sense of unease settles in the atmosphere, Captain Aldric's mouth a tight line as he steers the ship through the glass-like waters. He says nothing, and neither does the silent Elven Grassblade, who heads up onto the upper deck and scans the empty landscape with a spyglass. The sight of flickering lights on the horizon cause him to lower the device, watching the line between sea and sky with a furrowed brow. If your characters look out that way, they spot another ship in the distance — one that appears one moment, and disappears the next, seemingly flickering in and out of existence. How will the adventurers react?

Spotting the mysterious ship, he'll turn to the silent Grassblade and the Captain. "I've not sailed often, but that ship disappearing doesn't seem normal... is it normal?"

Carina plays a quiet, but lively tune on her dark harmonica in an attempt to lift spirits around the ship.

She looks down at the instrument, feeling how the strength of her connection to... Her... has grown, then back up at Captain Aldric.

"You have three passengers aboard who can fight if needed, with weapons or magic.  I believe I have the power to push creatures off the deck or crow's nest at a distance of 40 yards.  I do not know what that ship or those flashes of light are, but do not hesitate to use us, Captain Aldric."

She stares out at the ship, attempting to discern as much about it as she can during the moments that it appears.

Carina Perception:  19

Taiga moved to the deck with everyone else scanning the horizon for land, or more likely ice. Would she even be able to spot it? Anyway, better to be in fresh air than inside these wet, smelly, perpetually rocking corridors inside the ship’s belly.

The sighting of an approaching ship does not bode well in her estimation and she chimes in, “I have limited control over the elements and if they have some fire on board, I might be able to spread it out and cause some chaos, should they prove hostile.”

Captain Aldric shakes his head towards Ragnus, his somber gaze fixed on the horizon where the mysterious ship has appeared. "No, it isn't." He looks thoughtfully at Carina as the Warlock begins to play her harmonica, the quiet tune cutting through the silent, chilling morning air. "I should hope it doesn't come to that — but thank you both," the Grassblade Captain says in response to Taiga and her. While the Warlock stares out at the ship, she can make out the details of the mysterious vessel when it appears. It has tattered and torn sails that seem to be long-destroyed, and an otherworldly glow emanates from the ship's windows. The ship appears lifeless and uncannily still, and Carina spots no passengers steering the vessel upon the waves. The only sign of the ship not being completely abandoned is its strange, flickering light.

The silent Elven navigator frowns and gives a gesture the adventurers don't recognize to Captain Aldric before returning to his station below deck. The Captain keeps his gloved hands upon the wheel of the ship, finally tearing his gaze away from the apparition of the vessel in the distance. "Well, if we're lucky, we won't cross paths with it on our way to Eiselcross," he announces — not sounding entirely convinced that is possible.

(sorry for the wait, everybody!)

"Ghost ship," Carina murmurs, softly enough so it is audible only to Captain Aldric, as well as to Reliq and Taiga.

"Sails ragged.  Unnaturally still.  Not a soul visible aboard.  Just the wavering lights and glow from the windows."

She continues playing her dark harmonica in a soft but lively tune to keep spirits up.

"But what's wrong with that ship? If we don't want to cross paths, could we not just hold out and stop until it has passed?" wonders Taiga in response to the Captain's words.

Captain Aldric's jaw sets when he clenches his teeth at Carina's soft words. "A ghost ship may not pass at all," the Grassblade says in response to Taiga, frowning as he keeps his gaze on the cold sea ahead. "It might approach us no matter which direction we sail. We have, after all, what the fallen passengers desire most, if they're there." He turns the wheel beneath his hands, guiding the ship through the smooth, freezing waters. "However, I have travelled across these seas many times, and have never encountered a ghost ship myself. I've only read of them in legends. I wonder why now, of all times..." Aldric explains, his voice trailing off as his question hangs in the chilly air. "Pirates, I've dealt with plenty. But have you come across the undead before?"

"What do we have that they want?" asks Taiga stupefied. "You think undead sail that ship and they might attack us? But doesn't something usually control undead? Or do they have their own will? And anyway, what is it that they want?" asks Taiga with a worried look on her face. "Could we not just give it to them?" She keeps her gaze on the ship and tries to determine if it is getting any closer to them.

"What we have that they may want is... ourselves.  Our lives.  The undead gravitate towards the living, whether through blind instinct or malevolent will."

Carina's voice is quiet.  Pensive.  "Though in truth, I have only encountered undead once, and it was not I who destroyed them then.  Nor do I know with any certainty that there are undead on that vessel.  I spoke of a 'ghost ship' only as an evocative description.  And yet those lights..."

She resumes playing her dark harmonica, pale green eyes still fixed on the flickering ship.