Bloody Cute Molly Returns! Zombie Chaos! Begman Sailing! Feldanes and Rebmas Everywhere!

[bldy_cute_molly]

Molly sails her zomboat into Amber Harbor.
Full log below the cut. It gets long.



Amber City - The Docks

Izett paces impatiently, while waiting for her things to arrive. Green eyes catching the light seeming to glow as she watches closely at the approaching craft. She has had two of her guards break away from her starting to clear people away from the docks where the craft is approaching.

Dirk has someone of indeterminate gender and reputation with him and they are sharing a flask of rum between them. They stare at the new ship and stare at each other then the new ship.
As the craft approaches, it comes more fully into sight. It wavers, or more accurately, it writhes. A figure balances on the deck, whacking at something with a stick. There’s a frothing mass following the ship, with the occasional fin and tentacle appearing out of the waves.
Izett watches as the craft approaches, shaking her head slowly. She can hear the sounds of her hound howling in the distance hailing its approach, perhaps it has caught the scent of something on the wind. Izett seems to relax as she hears that sound, for while it sounds haunting, eerie, certainly not your normal hound howl it isn’t magical but is comforting to her.
Wormwood sits up at the howl, looking around confusedly. Since he’s up on a stack of crates, he doesn’t see much.
Getting closer now, a sound can be heard across the water, faintly, one can hear a low, gurgling moaning sound. The figure can now be made out to be a female. The stick is frantically being hacked around the craft, and it seems to be writing even more.

Wormwood sniffs the air.

Dirk stares and shakes his head. “Where’s a flotilla of Feldanes when you need them.”

Gino strolls down to the docks, just out for a quiet walk...yep...zombie ship, just Gino’s luck. He draws a long slow breath and just shakes his head “I’m moving...” he mutters as he makes his way down toward the ship.

The sound of the hound gets closer and soon is visible, shortly behind it is a rider on a horse riding as fast as the crowd will allow before giving up and dismounting to make the last distance to Izett. Within his hand is something that has an odd look of grey to it, though looks as much like rags as a cloak. Dirk’s question drawing her attention looking around seeing Wormwood she nods. Her gaze then travels back to the craft with Arawn taking up position beside her.

The raft jerks low into the the water, as a massive shark takes hold of one of the particularly writhing bits. The woman on the craft bashes the fish in the face repeatedly until the part breaks free and the shark disappears into the bloody waters again. You can now clearly hear the woman’s voice, hoarsely shouting, “Bloody stupid...Told you, Fred. Told you you’d lose somethin’ infn you didn’t move what’s left o’ yer arse.”

Wormwood looks over the edge of his crates, peering at the water. “Well, there’s something you don’t see every day.”

RPG: Molly declares that she owns this token:
Title:     the BBMS GOREY The Begman Bio-Mechanical Ship, Grouped-Organics Revenant Exploitation Yacht. This is, plainly speaking, a ship made of zombies. A small herd of zombies have been captured, restrained and bound into a melange of driftwood, hollow trees, vines, and any number of random jetsom and lashed-together objects to make a raft similar to a small catamaran. The creatures have been bound in such a manner that, with a turn of a lever or a stomp of a pedal, the ship can be, albeit slowly, guided along a desired path as the zombies are spurred, usually literally, into directed action. This ship is a thoroughly disgusting means of travel and has the problematic tendency to attract unwanted sea-life and also spreading a zombie panic  .
Gino lifts a brow then clears his throat, “Ahoy!” he calls to the raft. Just kinda watching the shark bashing “ummm...are you well?” he calls to Molly. It is then he sees Izett’s new pet and mutters “zombie raft. and giant dogs, I am moving...it’s settled.”

Dirk laughs “Gino where would you find zombie rafts, zombie Bleys’s and giant dogs all in one town?”

The stench arrives as a noisome emissary to the craft. It hits the docks like a putrescent tidal wave.

Izett stands there calmly still watching the raft approach. Her nose twitching from the horrid stench. Arawn growls softly keeping her position beside Izett. Frowning she studies the craft and then gazes toward the sailor.
As Gino hails the vessel she remains silent listening for now studying the vessel more closely.
Wormwood is on top of some crate, peering over the water at a zombie-pontoon craft.
Molly stops hitting things on the raft with her stick and peers out towards to people at the docks. She drops the stick, and her mouth falls open, as she stares stupidly landwards. After a moment, she manages a shaky “Ahoy hoy?” She then stomps on something and the craft “speeds” towards the dock at a wavering creep, rather than its previous slow meander.
Gino takes a deep breath “kinda reminds me of Kitezh now” he looks about “Bleys is a zombie to?” He calls again to the raft “Excuse me...your...vessel?” he looks around for confirmation that it is indeed what the raft is. “Where did you come by it?”
The churning wave of sharks also picks up speed, nipping off pieces of the raft at any opportunity.
Dirk says “Well I think it was a shadow of Bleys. He was wielding the sceptre of amber and It drove spikes through his hand to keep me from taking it so I cut off his arm. I am planning on giving it to Random, He fancies himself king, he can deal with hte zombie arm scepter.””
Izett watches the approach, her face still an unreadable expression as she studies the vessel and listen to Gino speak with the owner of the vessel. Watching the sharks after the vessel, and that which drives it studying the plants holding it together.
Molly spots Gino, peers at him a moment, looks down at her craft and hollers out in answer, “Bleedin’ well made it myself, didn’t I? Couldn’t find a stormin’ shipwright out there, that’s for certain.” She reaches out, still looking towards Gino and twists something. The ship rotates a bit in the water, making slightly better aim towards the dock.
Wormwood peers at the craft. “Ok, that’s just creepy. She’s not using magic, she’s using sailing mechanical whosiwhasit’s to steer that thing. She’s using flaining limbs to replace wind. The Admiral’s head would implode.”
There are other movements in the water, something else is rising from the depths. Dolphins? From Rebma by the looks of it and complete with a small gathering of armed and armored people. Aio keeps one hand on the fin of the beast she’s swimming with, the other holds a sword at the ready. The sharks appear to be in her line of sight just now. All the better to gut them with.
Dirk says “Well its time for sinking that ship can we burn it?”
Izett nods her head slowly, “M’lady, perhaps you would tell me where you got your...” she pauses to consider the polite term, “Propulsion from?” still watching the zombies, waiting for the vessel to touch dock before making any moves.
Gino frowns “Well...that might be just a bit of a problem, I don’t think, strictly speaking, that necromantic constructs of any kind are legal in Amber...well in most of the Golden Circle really” he folds his arms across his chest, glancing to Dirk “and a Rebman war band, maybe your right, this is the happening spot to be.”
Liya has also swum up with a dolphin, giving a smile and a swift, “Thank you.” She’s only got one blade drawn until they arrive, and then the other comes out. Cutter and Crusher, ready for action. Her gaze is also on the sharks, following Aio’s lead.
Kiernan is one of those on the dolphins. Unlike the others, he doesn’t appear to be armed or armored. None of his gear is suitable for underwaterness. He directs the dolphin who’s pulling him, holding to it with one hand, toward the docks. Politely, very politely. “Thank you,” he says to the creature and pulls himself up onto the dock. He finds a long piece of rounded wood, much like his normal long staff, and walks over to join the others, namely Dirk and Izett. “What’s the word?”
Molly looks down at her ship as another large piece, it looks like a torso, gets stolen away by a shark. The ship slips lower in the water. She glares at Dirk for a moment, then looks bleakly miserable. “But it’s...mine?” She answers to Izett. “I found em’. And they bloody well deserve what they’re getting.” Spotting the Rebmans, she cringes a bit with a worried, “eep!”
Dirk hugs Kiernan one sided. “Here have some rum. And the word is zombies.”
Izett nods her head slowly, “Okay I am going to go with, letting the sharks eat zombies is not good for them. Further I would like to know where you found them. Additionally I would disembark from your vessel as I fear I’m going to have to insist on eliminating the zombies, and as Lord Dirk mentioned, burning that..creation.”
Wormwood swings down off the crates and peers at the craft some more.
Molly is still having increasing trouble aiming her ship as pieces get stolen away. “Letting ain’t precisely the word I’d choose, milady. I think the choice belongs to the shark individual-like” She looks down at the raft again and shrugs as another shark tucks in. “Well, they got Fred an’ Missy. They were my favorites. Don’t much like the rest of em’ anyways.”
Gino squats down near the edge of the dock and takes up a coil of rope. He ties a bit of scrap wood around the bit, then tosses the rope to Molly “tie off, we’ll haul you in M’lady.”
Aio might not be killing  zombies because there are too many sharks in a way. This is clearly a problem she is aiming to fix in short order, because shark blood is being added to the water at a pace. Well, two paces. She has both glass sword and metal blade out to good effect. Unless you are a shark. Then it’s an exceptionally bad effect. Briefly.
Liya moves out to one side and starts in on the sharks. Her own glass shears, knives with a twist, perhaps, in use as she definitely bloods them. “Thanks Maggie and Mei,” she murmurs under her breath, not so fast as Aio, but definitely holding her own.
Wormwood cocks his head sideways, still peering at the craft. He seems to be looking at design, although mechanical or undead is hard to tell.
The one sided hug is returned, but Kiernan’s eyes remain on the raft coming in. “What /is/ that stuff?” he asks of Dirk, nose wrinkling from the scent. There are times when it’s not good to have a good sense of smell, this being one of those times. He accepts the offered rum and drinks some of it down before handing it back. He’s wet, and it’s cold out here, and he’s definitely not dressed for the weather, so the rum will help. At least he’s not shivering yet, though that will almost certainly start sooner rather than later. He settles one end of the improvised staff to the dock’s surface, and glances out at the water where Liyandra and Aio are at work.
Dirk says “Dead bodies animated to make the planks and shell of a ship and magic fu’d up with some Begman know how and ingenuity?”
Izett nods her head slowly slipping off her current cloak and offering it over toward Kiernan, “My lord, this will keep you warm” with that she slips on what looked like a grey mass of rags in her hand turns out to be a rather impressive looking cloak. “The Rebmans are taking care of the sharks, I wouldn’t trust them after eating zombies anyway. Wormwood, that leaves the zombies to us. Soon as she disembarks.” flipping up the hood.
Wormwood makes a little motion with one hand, looking at the craft but speaking to Dirk. “Other way around. They were animated before they became ship parts. See that right there? She captured them and lashed them together into this thing, she didn’t get to arrange them efficiently and then animate them.” Wormwood nods in Izett’s direction, distractedly.
Dirk says “I will take a Feldane’s word in all things zombitical of course. Because I have no desire to be evil and reanimate the dead. I just want to kill things and people sometimes But only sometimes mostly when I am in the mood to sing snappy jaunty tunes.” He nods to Wormwood.
Molly catches the offered rope and looks around to find something to tie it to, as the craft is slowly disintegrating around her. She reels it onto her arm to at least get herself pulled in. As she looks around, she notices the lessening amount of sharks. She shouts down to the shark-killers. “I say here, good work with the fins, miladies!”
Aio has no answer for Molly, due to being up to the ears, eyeballs and everything else in dismembered sharks. Or that’s what everyone probably hopes they are, her included. The dock is turning deeper red, the shark numbers are rapidly lessening.
Gino rises and hauls whats left of the raft, and Molly to a ladder near the dock “Up you go” he tells her, “step quickly your friends are hungry.
Merrisol is Dolphin-riding as well, but cruises the effective edge of the body-part-strewn area, and observing only, at present. He says a thing or two to nobody in particular, only a fluting voice answers him. Well golly, the dolphins can talk hereabouts, and apparently have filthy minds: “Heyyy that Aio sure fancies a good shark frenzy, right? She’d trade her lips to get to one. When I tell Alareon you-..” “ALL RIGHT, yes, fine, just take me to the Dancer,” Merri interrupts, shaking his head over the slaughter more than in exasperation over the chatter.
Kiernan blinks and looks over at Dirk. “Zombies, then?” He shudders and looks back to the scene upon the water. The offered cloak is accepted with a nod of thanks. “My thanks, m’Lady,” he says. Seems he remembers their conversation. He swings the cloak into place. It’ll help greatly. He glances to Dirk. “You got an extra sword I can borrow? I’m not sure this is going to work well against something that’s already dead.” He lifts the improvised staff when he says ‘this’. “And remind me later to secure weapons for use in the water.”
Liya is deeply concentrating, as it gets harder to see. She’s got an intent look on her face, as she uses the shears as knives, working to take care of the sharks. Poor sharks. Not their fault they’ve been taunted, teased, fed, and then slaughtered. But that doesn’t stop Liya from working efficiently, even if her expression is set.
Wormwood looks about, finds an unused plank and gets out a bag. “Where are these restless body parts from? What language do they know?”
Molly scrambles up the rope, only getting slightly dunked in red, gloppy seawater in the process, as her feet slide off the increasingly slippery raft. Coming up the ladder, she says, distractedly to Wormwood, “Hrm? Minos. Mainland. Right bastards they are.” She looks at her left hand in disgust as it wavers on a rung. She spares a moment for a glare. “Languages? Far as I know they only moan and...do that hissy bitey thing. Know that bitey thing right well, they do.”
Wormwood starts applying a gritting dark...well, paint isn’t think enough, but let’s go with that...on the board. It spells out “swim home!” But nothing else happens.
Izett looks toward the raft and then Wyrmwood, “Both for insurance. You got the slaughter, and I’ll get the door.” she suggests. Drawing in a slow breath. She reaches to her hip and pulls out a dagger, the dagger is a deadly eerie looking blade made of bone fit perfectly for her hand.
Dirk says “Okay don’t forget to get weapons for fighting in water. I gotta go give a zombie arm to the king. See ya,” He heads off back uptown.
Merrisol’s ride dunks them both, outrunning a thrashing grey shark, only to pop up farther down the line of piers, where a fine-looking two-mast brigantine sits in her berth. In a graceful leap out of the water, the cetacean twists and unexpectedly flips his passenger bodily over the rail of the Wave Dancer, then dives, cackling, below the surface again. Thwumpabump as Merri bowls across the deck. Frickin’ Dolphins..
Aio steers well clear of the boat, hunting down the sharks until the waters are a lot stiller than they once were. The zombies are left well alone as she finally swims for the docsk, sheathing her swords to make the climb up. Shiny armor. Dripping with blood. Somehow it suits her perfectly.
A soft chuckle comes from Kiernan at Dirk’s words. “I meant later,” he says wryly. The water in his hair has begun to freeze, now. Not that Kiernan seems to notice. He seems to be warm enough, but for the hair. He watches Dirk for a moment before his eyes shift over to Izett, and then to the terrible raft. His eyes alight on Merrisol’s Dolphin ride, and he chuckles as the man is bowled across the deck of that ship. There’s a reason he was polite to the Dolphin that had given him a ride.
Wormwood sets the plank aside, and mentions, “F*cksticks. I really need to get a fire god to teach me a few tricks.” He cups his hands to his mouth and yells at other ships. “Ahoy! I know you guys have equipment for putting OUT fires, ya got anything for starting them? Preferably sticky and prone to burning in water?”
Molly peers out at the water to check on the shark fight now that she’s safely out of it. She takes her nicked, blunted machete-like blade out of her belt and waves it around. “Anybody need a knife? Guess not.” She straightens and looks at Izett and her dagger, “Hrm...you look different...do...I need a knife? Aw, waves and storm...” she crouches and moves the knife in front of herself.
Liya isn’t wearing armor, at all, but she still has no fear of taking on the sharks. She just picks her targets a bit more carefully than Aio. As the waters still, she swims through the red gloopy mess to the docks, tucking her shears into her belt, rather than sheathing them, just to climb up. She’s covered in the slime that was the water, and now she is in fact starting to shiver.
Izett shakes her head slowly, “No. We simply need to put an end to their unnatural lives. From there I shall help them to cross over to the other side.” pulling out a few pouches she starts to chant, her voice singing lightly in the rhythm. Fog gathers around her, and Arawn stands guard.
Aio draws closer to the others, paying no heed to the reek of blood that comes off of her. “Good day, might I ask what is happening here?” Beyond the obvious, her dark eyes said. She has an accent that is tinged of old Thari, not the modern pronunciations.
Wormwood says, “Zombie pontoon boat. These things happen.”
Kiernan stays out of the way, for the moment, watching. He glances over to Aio. “Zombie raft,” he says, glancing to the thing that had drawn the sharks. “Something about Begma. And Izett is going to end the zombies’ lives.” Did that about sum it up? At least, that’s about what Kiernan got out of the whole thing.
Liya stays where she is, just watching now. She finds something to clean off her blades, as her teeth chatter.
Molly nods at Izett, still looking quite unsure. She tucks her knife slowly back into her belt, saying, “Just them. Of course. Right.” Her eyes shift slyly back and forth between Izett and Wormwood. “No need for me to worry. Nosiree.” she gives a light whistle and sidesteps away from them. She stops a second, mutters, “Nice doggy. Good doggie. Nothing to worry about here.”
Wormwood says, “AH.” We runs over to a loading crane and starts typing himself to a hook. “Somebody be a dear and lower me onto the craft, but keep enough tension to keep me above the water.”
As the sound of chattering teeth reaches his ears, Kiernan glances over to Liya. He tilts his head and raises part of the cloak Izett had given him in clear invitation to share the warmth.
Arawn, the size of an animal that would make some horses look like ponies sniffs at the air, guarding and watching over Izett as she starts to chant preparing for Wormwood to end the lives of the zombies. It is the dog that catches scent of something, odd, perhaps enough to raise her curiosity. That huge beast going over toward Molly, as if stalking the woman or the scent sniffing, drool starting to drip from its jowls.
Aio glances to Liya at the teeth chattering and gestures to her. “Go and get warm.” Not that she’s looking exactly unaffected, but still her priority is not herself. One eye is kept on the huge dog, the other is no doubt on the zombie vessel. There are still clear and present threats.
Molly gives her brightest smile, which at this point is more a cheery grimace, to the two underclad women. She says in a hopeful tone, “Sorry about the mess.” She notices Arawn’s attention and begins a slow sidle any any direction but Arawn’s.
Wormwood gets hoisted onto the central platform of the craft, producing two longknives during transit. He starts hacking at the creatures lashed together, with the goal of Ending Them. Also the goal of Do Not Become Shark Food.
Gino just kinda watches the action, no sense in getting his clothes bloody when others seem to have the matter well at hand. He makes his way to Molly, “So you made that...uummm craft then?” he asks “I don’t think I have ever seen it’s like before.”
Izett continues to chant, her knife cutting into the small pouch. A fine powdering substance starting to drift through the air toward the raft and the zombies contained within. Her voice continuing to chant and carry, the wind picking up  .
Arawn continues to stalk, moving closer, following Molly. The large beast doesn’t seem to have a means of manners, when Molly starts to try to slide away, Arawn follows sniffing, drooling, stalking and trying to usher and guide discreetly her prey into a corner so she can get a better sniff.
Kiernan sees the big.. dog... Blink. That’s a big dog. He looks between Arawn and Molly. He focuses on Arawn after a few breaths, just studying her curiously. A glance goes to Molly. “She probably won’t hurt you, if you don’t run or do something threatening,” he offers casually.
“Feldane?” Aio asks Liya of Izett, gesturing to her with a small nod. Apparently she’s had some experience of the House from the looks of things. She stays out of the womens’ way. Instead her gaze shifts to the rest of those on the dock and she advises Molly. “I’d avoid the Gulls and the port authority if I were you. I suspect the clean up bill will not be pleasant.” Was that a joke?
Wormwood keeps hacking and slicing from his wire, like a punk rock version of Peter Pan.
Molly gingerly moves to put Gino between herself and Arawn. She says, as if it answers everything, “Something I learned a long time ago is that when optimal materials are unavailable, you must make do with what’s near to hand.” She peeks around Gino at Arawn, just to keep tabs on her. She asks Kiernan, “Are you talking to me, or to the dog?” She nods enthusiastically to Aio, “I usually stay away from the Gulls as a matter of course. No problems there.”
Gino looks Arwan over “Nice dog Countessa, does she heel?”
Izett is focused, clearly working on a ritual as Wormwood finishes off the last of the zombies. The powder continuing to trickle out of the bag like sand through an hour glass. That white ash powder drifting along the wind toward the bodies.
Arawn tries to nose past Gino toward Molly, she’s pushy but not dangerous as yet. That huge nose nuzzling toward Molly, sniffing as if trying to figure out what something or someone is. The large animal uses her body trying to lean on Gino to move him out of the way to get a closer sniff of Molly.
Kiernan glances to Aio and nods. “Aye, Feldane.” He glances to Izett, watching what she’s doing with curious eyes, no longer really worried about Izett’s guardian. Kiernan looks to Molly. “You. She’s curious and unsure if you’re a threat or not. I don’t think she means you any harm at this time.”
Aio stays out of the way of dog and Feldanes, then finally looks down at herself with a frown. “Not dressed for Amber,” is all she surmises.
Saddly, Gino is not easily moved pushing back on the huge dog, “Well aren’t you a big girl...” he scritches the beast behind her ears “I sould introduce you to mom’s wolfhounds...you’d get along just fine.” he glances back to Molly, “So you needed a boat, had no boat stuff so thought...hey I will make it out of zombies?”
Molly gives Kiernan an inscrutable look, “Times can change right quick if’n you’re not careful.” But she relaxes a bit as she sees Gino distract Arawn. She says to Gino, “I was grounded in a bad spot, and the only readily available material out there was...these things. Besides, we...have a history, so I knew how to catch ‘em.”
Liya gives Aio a glance, and shakes her head negatively. The threat isn’t over yet - she’s not retreating yet either. C’mon, what would her Prince think of that? Ahem. In any event, she does however sidle over to Kiernan, accepting that offer of warmth, but she stops just short. “I’m all covered in disgusting goop.”
Izett shakes out the last of the powder as Wormwood finishes off the last of the zombies, “Thank you, Cousin..” reaching up she lowers the hood giving some life back to her visage tucking away the death tainted blade. Her gaze trailing over the landscape, green eyes glowing brightly while fog continues to roll out from her around her small figure. Spotting Arawn making new friends with Gino she shakes her head, “Well least I know I was safe. Now I know the answer to that question, yes, Lord Gino flirts with all the ladies. Including Arawn.”
Aio is not standing down either, but then the woman never looks as if she does. Perma-en-garde.
Wormwood whistles to be brought back after a shark tries to play pinata with him.
“Indeed.” Kiernan nods about times changing quickly. He glances over to Liyandra and lifts the cloak again. “It’ll wash off. Get under here before you turn into a popscicle.” His nose does wrinkle at the smell, but the arm holding the cloak out in offering doesn’t waiver. Still wet himself, she’s going to have to share or /he’ll/ be the one to freeze. He glances over at Izett as she speaks.
Merrisol trudges down the gangplank of the Waver Dancer, now in trousers, boots, shirt, and a good jacket against the chilled air. As he closes in with the group milling about by the raft macabre, it appears he has also brought an armory cutlass for Kiernan, as late as it might be now for any swashbucklery. As well, he is not above plunking his coat to the shoulders of anyone not currently cuddling with Kiernan under Izett’s cloak.
Liya makes a face, turning to check. Zombies - dealt with by Feldanes. Dog - Izett’s. Right then. She ducks under Kiernan’s cloak, leaving Merri’s jacket for Aio. “Definitely not dressed for Amber,” she agrees.
Arawn ruffles at the scritches, but she’s still insistent on getting a better whiff of Molly. Inching slowly closer, huge nose stretching out on long neck to sniff toward the woman. A long tongue licking at her jowls and the slobber dripping from them.
Molly , thinking Arawn to be distracted, sags down onto a crate, suddenly looking exhausted and out of her depth. She mutters to herself, “Waste of a damn good ship.” A bit startled by Arawn’s persistence, she can do nothing but stick her foot out to try to bar the animal from getting closer. Of course, this does put her foot right in Arawn’s face.
Wormwood gets his plank back, traces the words on there, and they seem to engrave themselves into the wood. There’s a little steam. He holds it towards the bay as an instruction for any zombies missed.
At least sharp pointy things haven’t been needed as of yet. Even so, Kiernan accepts the armory cutlass with a nod of thanks, and tosses the improvised staff off toward the crates where it won’t be underfoot. He shifts the cloak around Liya and draws it close around. He’s enough taller that this isn’t an issue at all. And the cloak is nice and warm, too, and feels to be a silk and wool blend.
Aio regards the people left on the docks, then dips into a brief Alhambran style bow before she takes a few steps backwards before she turns with military precision and walks off.
Aio has left.
Gino pushes against the huge dog “Easy girl, I know she smells like what I assume you eat...but she is not food.”
Izett looks toward Wormwood, “We need to set that afire. Burn all the remains, the raft, you have any firebloom?” she questions. Keeping her own cloak draped tightly about her she offers it to no one else, as it doesn’t look like it is made of normal material either.
Arrawn, covers that foot in slobber while sniffing at the foot and leg. The push against the dog, she is utterly oblivious to, leaning back into it as if it were still further scritches rather than an attempt to get her to move.
Wormwood says, “No. I need to figure out how the Karms do that candle trick with a flaming sword.”
Molly gives Izett a look and starts to ask, “How does one burn a sinking wre...eeep!” She tries to scoot away from Arawn, but, with a sigh, resigns herself to a good sniffing. “Was good while it lasted, she grumbles to herself.”
Kiernan dips his head to Aio as she bows. He watches as she walks off, then looks back to the others. Mostly, Arawn. He still watches. He seems relaxed enough. Must not be anything overly threatening, there. He slips the cutlass into the belt around his waist.
LIya nods to Kiernan, and then she calls out, “Countess Izett, do you need us to do anything other than stand guard, in case of unexpected danger?” Her chattering teeth slow, as she starts to warm up.
Merrisol may or may not have his own coat anymore, but let’s say not, and Aio may have decided to pass the bloody thing on to a hobo as she got away from the harbor front. “Here,” he now suggests, “take a few pier lanterns, set it adrift from the docks, and break the lamps once it’s farther out.”
Gino looks at his foot and leg, “drool...fine” he rumbles “this day does keep getting better.” he listens to the plan to burn the sinking raft “perhaps we can just leave the fish and crabs to finish what the sharks have started?”
Molly mumbles as she tries to get her foot away from the slathering, or at least drool-dripping, animal, “Need some tar and high-proof rum, that’s what we need. Oh, rum. Haven’t had a good rum in ages. Anyone have any rum?” She may be babbling close to hysterically, or she may just really, really like rum.
Wormwood says, “We could get cousin Emma to glare at it until it turns to ash.”
Liya listens to all this, and then she says, “Oh for a fire mage when we need one.” Alas, that she is not. She leans in closer to Kiernan instinctively, absorbing that body heat. Her knives were cleaned and sheathed, before coming over. Habit that.
“I had some rum,” comments Kiernan. “But it was Dirk’s, and he took it with him when he left.” Oh well. He glances around, eyes settling on Merrisol as he speaks about the pier lanterns. Then to Gino. “If it’s not good for the sharks to be eating zombies, then it’s probably not good for the fish and crabs, either.” Kiernan’s arm goes around Liyandra when she leans closer. Despite being wet still, he’s a veritable space heater.
Merrisol considers the logistics of the zomboat until he begins to note the number of times the strange woman mentions rum. “I’ll go fetch some, Miss,” he volunteers willingly, and turns to go over to one of the shacks set up along the boardwalk offering hot mugs of what might be rum, or at least rum-based.
Molly gives Kiernen a heart-breakingly hopeful look, but deflates when she finds that the rum has gone. Her eyes narrow and she growls, “Diiiiirk”, but cheer returns with Merrisol and his hot mugs of rummy joy. Molly perks up after a good guzzle of rum-based somethingness. “Right.” She pulls herself away from Arawn’s snuffling. “Got to be a barrel of pine-tar ‘rpund here somewhere. An’ if we rig up a Dispersal Unit with a pump, hose an’ a colander...but we need a lighting mechanism...bloody blazes, am I rusty at this.”
Kiernan watches Merrisol as he moves away, but his eyes go back to Molly. “Sorry,” he says, not having anything else to really offer. When Merrisol returns, Kiernan slips the cutlass from his belt again and offers it back, hilt first. “Thank you for letting me borrow that. I don’t think it’s needed anymore. I’m going to head back down to Rebma.” He glances over at Molly, but just looks pretty well confused by what she’d said.
Gino looks to the sinking raft “it won’t matter in a few more minutes” he says with a certainty of tone. “That raft is fish food.”
Liya nods at Kiernan’s comment. “Right,” she says. “If you’re going back down to Rebma, then I suppose I should come with you.” She pauses. “And we should go find the stairs.”
Molly rubs her hand through her hair, shakes herself together and looks down at the wreckage. “Farewell, my people. I was a bad, bad zombie queen.” she waves, clearly not feeling all that bad. She looks to Wormwood. “Can they send some Feldanes down later? Clean it up from below? Given a few days, my workshop and a good bath, I might be able to make a breathing apparatus?” She doesn’t sound too certain about that last.
Wormwood says, “No need to. It’s not like it’s contagious. Anything we missed is out to sea, trying to get home, and will be eaten.”
Molly asks Wormwood, “You don’t think there’ll be...hands crawling out of the sea, then? Did you do your...Feldane thing and stop alla that nonsense?”
Merrisol fumbles a bit passing out the grog, his algae-wrapped hands still sorting out their regrown nerve endings. He glances at the sword hilt, then back up as he takes it. “You’re going back into the water and you want to be caught without a weapon again? Not that this will do you much good anyway.” He nods towards Liyandra, however, since she’s armed with glass lobster claws. So much better! Molly’s ramblings haul his attention back to the creative wreck. “But the things that eat that stuff. Is it true they must be destroyed in turn?”
Wormwood says, “It’s not contagious. Might get indigestion from eating foreign food, but that’s about it.”
Kiernan glances at Liya and nods. Then he nods off in the direction the beach with the stairway is located at. “The stairs are that way.” He glances to Merrisol and nods. “Back into the water, aye. Via the stairs. We should be safe enough there, right?” He glances to Liyandra, the others, then back to Merrisol. “I’m going to have to find something that works in the water too, eventually.”
Gino hmmmsss “I rather like the idea of a pet zombie hand...”
Molly can’t help but glance down at her own hand. She then looks guiltily away, far out to see, or into her own head.
Merrisol nods reservedly to Wormwood’s assessment, frowning from the unnecessary bloodshed of an hour ago. He considers Kiernan’s and Liyandra’s plans. “Let me report to Martin.. I might be able to swing you another shortcut, via trump. Do you have skill with spear or trident, Kiernan?” he wonders while he fishes out his tin of cards.
Kiernan nods to Merrisol. “Hmm. I’ve never traveled via trump. And yes I do. I favor long staff, most of the time, but I’m versed with a spear. Never used a trident before.” Pause. “What’s a trident?” He’s got a /lot/ to learn about the sea. He considers Merrisol curiously with that question.
Molly gives a guilty glance to Merrisol and asks him, or maybe just anyone around “Can someone apologize to Rebma for me? Just don’t mention me by name.” and starts to wander off in a vague manner.
Gino again clears his throat “Where are you headed M’lady?” he asks of Molly. “Do you have money or a place to stay?”
Merrisol narrows his eyes a moment while he regards Kiernan. “It’s... like a spear, but with tentacles.” He raises a card but looks distractedly towards Molly. “Miss.. what is your name though, if you please? That was an impressive feat of engineering..”
Wormwood meanders up the docks towards Bloody INSERT POSSESSIVE PROPER NOUN HERE. “I need a drink.”
Molly looks at Gino, deeply and seriously. “I did three years ago. Hope things haven’t changed too much since I’ve been gone.” She answers Merrisol, with a vague, “I...don’t...know. For now just Molly will do.”
Again with the tentacles... Kiernan tilts his head thoughtfully. “Interesting.” He turns to look at Molly as she leaves. And then back to Merrisol. “Must be another amnesiac.” Or something else is ‘fishy’.