Shipwrecked in Saltmarsh

Mafera slumps a little, and sighs. "It's a long story. We're awfully busy right now. Come tonight. I have work for you, and I'll tell you the whole thing."

She shoes you back out into the street. The tolline guy moves along. The plant across the street remains quiet on the street side. Fianna watches everything warily.

Unless you have further business, you will head across the bridge and to Aubreck's house.

Dain is a little perturbed at being shooed out of the forge and hopes none of the others noticed.  "Lunch then, me thinks?" he says to the others, heading off towards the Aubreck mansion.

     “Lunch sounds good...” Fianna says.  “What’s the purpose of this lunch?  Besides food?”

"I dunnae really know," Dain admits.  "Some half-orc fella approached me and asked me to round you all up and go for lunch.   This Aubreck fella is a merchant of some repute be all I am knowing.  Apparently, he might have some work fer us.  Seems we be getting a bit of a reputation."

Kelnan starts to reach for his purse, but remembers lunch is coming. No need to spoil it with questionable fruit.

It's almost noon, and dark and overcast and damp. A cold wind cuts through you.

The party continues over the bridge, past the barracks and jail (2), past Dain's old office (5), and past a strange, three-story wooden tower(6). You finally arrive at the end of the lane, atop steep cliffs overlooking the bay, upon the highest ground on this side of town, at a sprawling old mansion which has seen better days. Vertheg, the butler, lets you in. An older man appears in the hallway. "Yes, yes! Good, good! Hello and welcome, my friends. My name is Aubreck. Thank you so much for coming!"

Aubreck is an older human man, pushing 70. His clothes are fancy and expensive, but old and worn and old-fashioned. He keeps his iron-gray hair pulled back in a short ponytail, and his mustache is neatly tended.

He leads you into a formal sitting parlour. It smells musty.

"I've heard some impressive things about you fellows. I have a proposition for you. ...Candy?"  He pulls out a tray of dusty mints and offers you one.

     "Thanks, but I'll pass...  Mom always said no desert before the meal," Fianna says with a smile.  "I'm sure you've heard some less than impressive things as well, if you've been listening...  Anyway, what is the proposition?  We have a little on our plate already but we're always open to new opportunities."

Aubreck sits, and offers you seats in his parlor.

"Vertheg will have lunch prepared shortly in the dining room. But I'm not one for small talk. Let me jump to my pitch."

"I'm a merchant. I buy and sell. I make a living. I was once very successful."

"But I made a mistake many years ago. My contacts in the southern jungles reported that I could monopolize trade in rare spices and herbs by making heavy investments in the area. In my foolishness, I took the opportunity as a sure thing. I sold off many of my assets and converted the proceeds to property deeds and promissory notes, then secured that portable wealth aboard Emperor of the Waves, the foremost ship in my fleet."

"My plan was to convert these notes back into cash when the ship reached its destination in the south, but fate introduced a cruel twist, and Emperor of the Waves disappeared. A storm separated the ship from its escort, and it was never heard from again. It was a devastating financial loss."

"Fifteen days ago, I received word that Emperor of the Waves had been spotted adrift in the southern sea, apparently a ghost ship. I promptly hired a ship and crew to sail to the derelict. I need to recover the deeds and documents that sailed with the ship. But first what I need are a few brave souls able to deal with whatever threats might present themselves aboard the Emperor and bring back my box. The five of you have gained a... reputation here, among certain circles. I suspect you may have the sort of talents I am looking for."

"The ship holds a magic box containing promissory notes and property deeds worth a total of 100,000 gold. I will offer you a fee of 10 percent – 10,000 gold – to recover it. As a gesture of good faith, I can offer you an advance payment of 200 gold. The ship was recently spotted adrift, approximately five days out from land."

"I worry that someone else might claim the ship’s goods as salvage if we don’t act quickly. I have already hired a ship, Soul of Winter, and a crew to mount a mission to the derelict. Now I need some adventurous folks like yourselves to go along and board the Emperor once you reach it, then find the box and bring it back."

"That's it. That's my pitch. Ask me questions while we wait for lunch." 

He clasps his hands in his lap.

Molo digs into the candy with both hands, and puts a couple pieces in his pockets all while he thinks no one is watching, assuming a lazy, disinterested look whenever he thinks someone is looking.

”Adrift... you are concerned it may be haunted? What else was on the ship?”

2,000 gold each?   That could be enough to buy the Anvil.  Dain tries hard to keep his face impassive, but it's clear he's very, very keen.  For now he sits and watches everyone else and looks for their reactions.

     “When would the ship be setting sail?” Fianna asks. “We’re already committed to a task that would help our friend Molo here regain some mobility.  While the offer of gold is tempting, taking care of our own must take precedence...”

     Fianna takes a moment at this point to check in with OctoFin and see if they’ve had any developments near the wreck, or at least seen Oceanus.

     “I’m hoping that can be settled quickly but how quickly is anyone’s guess,” Fianna continues.  “I understand that time is pressing for you, so how quickly will your ship be readied?”

Kelnan

Partaking in a few dusty mints, Kelnan ponders the future. This whole trip was intended as field research, but this could be the start of the wealth needed to leave academia altogether, open a proper private practice...

"To clarify, the fee is for the box and its paper contents, correct? Does the ship itself still hold value to you? It may or may not be recoverable of course."

"Haunted," says Aubreck, thoughtfully, while Molo tries to take more candy, which is well-cemented to the plate. (With a little work with his sharp fingernails, he frees a couple more. They're quite tasty.) "Well, I don't know if calling it a 'ghost ship' is literally true. It could be. My eye-witness, whom I trust, tells me the ship is a shattered wreck. Heavily damaged. Shorn of sails. One storm and its likely to go down for good. Why it's afloat in the first place is a mystery. It could well be ghosts, I suppose."

Turning to Fianna, he responds. "I need to set sail within 48 hours. I fear that others may find the vessel if we don't make haste. On the other hand, I could have the vessel ready to pick you up with, say, two hours notice."

To Kelnan, he adds, "I have no expectations to recover the ship. I'll throw in salvage rights to the vessel if that would make you happy. Perhaps you could do me the favor of finding the captain's log, or learning what happened to it, to satisfy my own burning curiosity." 

You hear Vertheg swear angrily in Orc in the other room as he drops something he's cooking. 

"More questions?"

– – – 

Meanwhile, Fianna tunes in to OctoFin to find a ferocious underwater battle ensuing.
 
The massive boulder with a hole under it turns out to be the back of a huge, ugly crab. Oceanus has a spear he's acquired somewhere, and it's clear he was already engaged with this massive creature before you tuned in.

The crab comes after Oceanus with two crusty, gargantuan claws:
Claw attack #1:  19 d10 + 4) Bludgeoning damage: 21
Claw attack #2:  24 d10 + 4) Bludgeoning damage: 20

It's over as fast as it began. Oceanus is limp, probably dead, crushed in a giant claw.

     “Two hours should work for us just fine,” Gianna says to Aubruck.  She then turns to Molo and says “I’m afraid your prosthetic is going to have to wait...  our aquatic friend is no longer and there’s impediments to retrieving what we need that we’re not yet equipped to tackle.”

     Fianna will fully explain to them all once they depart, but is hesitant to talk freely in front of their new employer.

Molo looks downfallen. “Oh that’s a shame, I liked the weird sea elf... tsk tsk. Well, let’s go get Mr Arbuk his ship then.”

"Excellent! Let's draw up a contract."  He fishes around in a drawer for pen, ink, and parchment, and begins to draw up a document.

"I've hired a ship, Soul of Winter. The captain is Wolgar Windrune, impressive Dwarven fighter. Crew of thirty dwarves. Of course, they won't be boarding, unless you can invest a little money in their combat pay. I'm a bit light at the moment. Also supplies stocked if you need them: studded leather armor, crossbows, healers' kits, some other equipment."

He pushes the paper and pen toward you to sign, and raises his eyebrows hopefully. The paperwork is a simple contract: if you return his box intact and to his approval, he will grant you 10,000 gold and full salvage rights to the ship.

Vertheg leans into the room and silently nods.

"Lunchtime!" exclaims Aubreck, standing. 

"...what do you mean he's 'no longer'?" Katernin asks, already distressed. "What did you do?"

Dain appears very sad at the news of Oceanus' demise.  It's a strange reaction for a dwarf perhaps, but then again this dwarf doesn't appear to hold with the same sensibilities as his kin and cousins.

He looks over the contract, pondering.  Wolgar Windrune?   The Soul of Winter?  Hmmm.

These are not names that Dain is familiar with. He has heard stories of dwarven clans who are sea-based merchants and traders – unusual for a people better associated with mountains and mines. Perhaps these are from one of those clans.

Standing, Aubreck pushes the paper and pen toward you. "Sign first, lunch second!"

Molo eats a piece of candy, and signs. It’s not terribly legible, but it’s his mark.