Chapter 7

The Maztican Pearl was an Amnian Caravel, hounded by the Sahuagin that called this area home and wrecked upon the rocks. The only hint of the crew that had once sailed this formerly proud sailing ship were the weathered, sun-bleached, skeletons that lay scattered around, bones marked with toothmarks from the gnawing of the Shark Men, a hint of the fate that awaited any who resisted the current masters of the depths in this area. Mind you, those who surrendered likely didn't fare much better, taken as slaves to keep whatever passed for the economy of the Sahuagin going while their Masters devoted their time to raids and squabbling with other Baronies.

The Captain of the Maztican Pearl had, apparently, done everything he could to safeguard the logbook, which his skeleton clutched in its bony arms. Unfortunately, it seemed the Sahuagin didn't care for records, only meat, along with whatever loot they could seize from the hold. They had stripped the former trade caravel clean of everything of worth and any potable food and drink. At least, almost everything. It was actually because of the Sahuagin's oversight that Janessa and I found something for our troubles.

Reading the logbook, penned by a Captain Ramon Salazar of Athkatla, directed Janessa and I to a small stash concealed beneath a squeaky floorboard in the otherwise completely stripped Captain's Quarters. Inside which, we found a few scrolls, a few potions, a single wand, and a shadowy hand crossbow. Likely, these were a few choice bits that Captain Salazar of the Maztican Pearl had squirreled away before the final death of his crew and ship. Concentrating on spellcraft, I began identifying the various items.

The potions and scrolls were the easiest. A pair of Potions of Invisibility, two Potions of Heroism, and two Potions of Cure Moderate Wounds sat next to Four Scrolls of Touch of Gracelessness, Touch of Blindness, Summon Monster II, and Daze Monster. The Wand, as it turned out, was a wand of Bull's Strength with fifty charges and only marginally more difficult to identify. It was the Hand Crossbow that gave me difficulty, right up until it didn't. Five minutes into figuring out what everything was, it finally clicked for me. This was a Secret Crossbow, it was a Plus One Hand Crossbow that could use magic to hide itself, giving a mystical boost to attempts to conceal it with Sleight of Hand, nor did it take long to draw.

"I think we should divide the potions in half, I'll take the scroll of Summon Monster II and the Scroll of Daze Monster, as those are both spells of the Second Circle for me." Offered Janessa.

"Sounds good." I agreed.

"I assume you want the crossbow?" Questioned Janessa.

"Can you even use it?" I queried.

"I can't." Confirmed Janessa.

"I can, so I'll take it. Do you want the Wand?" I asked.

"I should probably take that. It will be easier to use from the rear than have to fight out front and use it." Nodded Janessa.

We divvied up the loot and kept moving, though I also took the logbook just in case there was a reward for the information. Apparently, the Maztican Pearl had been part of a wider fleet belonging to the Ophal Family, one of the three Grand Families of Amn. Even if I knew nothing about Amnian Nobility, Ophal had to be a noble name, since the Nobility of Amn often kept the Old Style Jhaamdathan Language for their names and patents of nobility, similar to how Nobles on Earth used to use Latin. Regardless, I would hopefully be able to get a reward for closure. . .maybe.

As Janessa and I stepped out of the wreck of the Maztican Pearl, I kept my eyes and ears open for any hint of ambush. There was nothing, though, just the rocks, the sea, Some Swamp Moss, and a few Flowering Hyssop Shrubs. The Moss and Shrubs were swiftly gathered by Janessa for use in potion-making later and before we knew it we were descending down into the bowels of the earth via the chasm in the small hill.

Down here, we found ourselves in a series of tunnels descending down below the surface of the ocean. The tunnels had air, which made me think that we would come out in an underwater cavern that contained some sort of air pocket. Regardless, I kept my eyes open for traps and was rewarded for my efforts by spotting a pair of traps. The first contained a tripwire connected to a wand of Web, which would slow any potential intruders and set them up for the next trap, a pressure plate that sent a number of darts poisoned with Numbfish Jelly Venom at the intruders. I managed to disarm both, thankfully, and even managed to retrieve the Wand of Web and one of the vials of Numbfish Jelly Poison before moving on.

As the tunnels began to open up, however, we noticed a group of four Sahuagin keeping watch on the tunnels. Apparently, this was the group meant to finish off anyone that had made it through the earlier traps. All four of them were clad in Sharkskin Leather Armor with Tridents. None looked particularly above average for a Sahuagin Warrior. In fact, they looked a lot like some of the warriors that had attacked the Speedy Drake and made off with our First Mate, Orla. I knew that Janessa and I could take them handily, probably before they could even raise the alarm. They certainly didn't seem to notice us from where we were crouched down behind a pile of rocks.

It was here that I took my new Secret Crossbow for a test drive, sighting down on a Sahuagin Warrior and taking a deep breath before pulling the trigger and letting fly with a bolt from surprise that took one of the Sahuagin through the neck, killing it. Janessa let fly with a slingstone that also struck true, raining one of the guards in a flash of white light and causing it to crumple to the ground. The remaining two were startled out of their complacent postures and began looking around for their assailants. It was too late, however, as Janessa let fly with another slingstone, even as I charged with my Longsword, cutting the last pair down with a burst of white light and a slash of my sword.

Unfortunately, those four weren't the only attackers we were facing. I had neglected to look up toward the side of the tunnels and paid for it now as a leaping Sahuagin in better equipment slammed into me from above, drawing blood as its Masterwork Trident managed to punch into my thigh during its leaping stab. I was forced to literally choke back a cry of pain to avoid giving away our presence, something I only just managed thanks to my familiarity with concentrating on spellcasting in combat helping me out.

The Sahuagin ripped its trident out of my thigh and raised it high, grinning with a mouthful of shark-like teeth as it prepared to stab me again. Fortunately, Janessa was there with a slingstone, knocking the Sahuagin off me in a burst of white light and allowing me to collect my longsword from where it was lying down next to me. The Sahuagin stabbed for me again, but this time I parried with my Buckler, riposting with the thrust to the face that punched into its mouth and out of the back of its gullet. It choked on my blade for a brief moment, before I wrenched my longsword to the side, cutting out of its neck and killing it.

As I did so, I winced at the deep puncture wound in my thigh oozing blood. The last Sahuagin had gotten me beneath the tasset, largely because my inattention to my surroundings had allowed it all the time in the world to line up its strike. Looking down at the thing now, it seemed to be equipped with a sort of Coral-Studded Sharkskin that appeared to be master-crafted. The same could be said for its Trident, which was likewise Masterwork.

Looking down at my thigh, I began rummaging around among the corpses for anything that might heal my wound and came up with two Potions of Cure Light Wounds and a Potion of Cure Moderate Wounds. I was forced to down all of them to heal the damage to my leg. Enough of the muscle had been punctured to force me to walk with a limp without it all. I also came up with a flawless square-cut chrysoprase gem and a perfectly cut spindle carnelian gem. Together both added up to around a hundred-sixty Amnian Danter in Value. With the value of the weapons and armor on top? That was around one-thousand-one-hundred-sixty Amnian Danter in value already, just from this skirmish.

I stripped the bodies and dragged them out of sight, piling their equipment up behind some rocks for later. No sense leaving them here to be looted by any patrols that might come this way. Fortunately, it seemed these guys weren't expecting to be relieved any time soon, because we didn't come across any patrols as Janessa and I worked. Instead, we were free to loot and clear the battlefield to our heart's content before moving on.

It appeared that the tunnels opened up more past the site of our last skirmish. Indeed, that was exactly what happened. The tunnels leading downward into the undersea area opened up into a large ocean cavern. A number of mosses, lichens, and mushrooms grew along the slick paths that wound along the sides of the caverns around where the ocean water made a giant pool in the center of the cavern. The whole thing was lit from above with a sparkling crystal formation of prismatic quartz that caught sunlight reflected from high above shining down through a crack in the ceiling. If I mapped the cavern position to my mental map of the area around the Jaws of Sekolah, that crack led up to a sea stack not too far from the islet we'd landed on. Certainly, the stack was within rowboat distance.

"Here, give me a moment to collect some of these mosses and fungi." Spoke up Janessa.

"What? Why? We could run into a patrol at any time now!" I hissed.

"I can get a few potions out of them. Dreamhappy, Deepfire Liniment, Smelling Salts, Merenthe, and Clearthroat Syrup." Answered Janessa.

"Janessa, we're not looking to open an apothecary shop." I pointed out.

"If you'll let me gather a few pounds of this stuff, I can make enough of it all to sell for a pretty good profit. I assume you still like Danter, yes?" Smirked Janessa.

"Fine. Be quick about it, though. We have no idea how many Sahuagin are still here or when the next patrol comes through." I warned.

"Just keep watch. I'll be done before you know it." Insisted Janessa.

Ten agonizingly slow minutes ticked by as Janessa harvested her potion ingredients. I kept watch on the path ahead, my gaze occasionally flicking over to the Water that formed the largest part of the cavern's 'floor'. No Sahuagin materialized in that time, thankfully, though I did see the telltale shapes moving under the water that hinted that the large sharks the Sahuagin used as mounts were prowling about the pool. So long as we didn't fall in the water, though, we shouldn't have to worry about all that. It was still something to keep an eye on, though.

By the time Janessa was finished gathering potion ingredients and stuffing them in her pack, I was practically pacing my nerves were being frayed by the waiting so much. When she nodded at me and said she was finished, I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. We pressed on, rounding a corner to find that the Caverns were far from empty, though this clearly wasn't a city like I thought. It instead was a Sahuagin Castle or fortress with a small, attached, town of stone buildings that were dug into the sides of the cavern. A group of eleven more Sahuagin Warriors was milling about near what looked to be some sort of tavern dug into the side of the tavern, while four others stood perusing what looked to be some form of butcher shop that had various bits of unidentifiable meat on display.

We only caught an initial glimpse before ducking back around the corner, trying to avoid being seen by any of the milling Sahuagin Warriors. Peeking around the corner for a better look, I realized that the Warriors were not the only ones around. There also seemed to be a number of Sahuagin Youths that seemed to be in training, judging by the lack of good armor besides some tortoise-shell light shields and the obligatory tridents. The Youths were tending to a corraled group of sharks, tossing unidentified bits of meat and offal into the pens to feed the sharks, occasionally threatening to toss a nearby Human Teenager with a metal slave collar attached around his neck into the corral for sport. The Human Teenager looked resigned to his fate, and judging by the nasty bruise swelling his right eye shut, had recently been the victim of a beating. Nor was he the only slave visible right now.

Both establishments, the Tavern, and the Butcher Shop, appeared to be worked by slaves under the watchful eyes of the Warriors. One of which appeared to be a beaten down Human Woman with graying hair and sunken eyes that was working the Butcher Shop. She'd clearly had the fight beaten out of her long ago and simply did what she'd been told. However, I could see hints of her origins in the way that she whispered prayers to Deneir to show her a secret way out of this mess, to which one of the Sahuagin just laughed in her face and pointed to what looked to be the leg of a Koalinth hanging from one of the hooks on display. The Deneirrath Woman simply shuddered and did as she was bid.

The other visible slave was at the tavern. A Green-skinned Elven Woman with a look of barely beaten-down anger behind her gaze. A word was supplied thanks to my various knowledges, Alu'Tel'Quessir, or Sea-Elf. They were a seldom-seen Elven Subrace who tended to stick to the oceans rather than come up onto land, though it had been known to happen from time to time. Usually, however, they had to submerge themselves after a few hours to avoid suffocation. The Sea-Elf looked to be built wiry and sinuous, like a dancer or a fighter who favored dexterity and speed over strength and durability. She had, unfortunately, been clapped in a slave collar and given the sort of vestments that a tavern slave meant to entertain the masses with her body might be given. The Sahuagin Warriors hooting and hollering, jeering at her and demanding more fermented fish guts or whatever it was they drank.

Beyond this tableau of cruelty and debauchery lay a fortress carved out of the very rock, high up on the side of the cavern where it could gaze down at the village of cyclopean stone and carved rock for any hint of treachery. Interestingly, the symbols on the banners hung up around the fortress did not match the ones that were painted on some of the armor of the Sahuagin. The Castle had a pattern that was spiky like shark's teeth, with black and teal as the colors. Meanwhile, the other Sahuagin had a wave pattern that was ocean blue and blood red. Could there be two separate Barons trying to negotiate an alliance here today? If so, that would be bad news for everyone in the Jannath's Tears Archipelago.

Ducking back behind the corner of the tunnel, I frowned, turning to Janessa. "I count fifteen Warriors, another twenty youths, and six of those sharks. Plus, there's bound to be others in the fortress." I whispered.

"Long odds to be sure, but did you see the Sea-Elf? She's a fighter and she seems to just be dying for revenge. If we can free her, we might be able to grow our group some." Hedged Janessa, quietly.

"That's a big if. We'll probably have to use whatever we can to win this. I hope you weren't planning on conserving your spells?" I questioned.

"I'll need to save some for the fortress, but I think the fight should be doable. If we can find whatever slave pens there are and free the slaves, that would go a long way towards winning this." Mused Janessa.

"We have those potions of Heroism, that's a start. Plus, I still have the vial of poison from the dart trap I can use to help. Plus, I'm pretty sure if we kill a bunch of them, the Youths will run." I offered.

"All right, we'll rush the Tavern first, free the Sea Elf, and try to get her ready to fight. Then we push the rest of the Sahuagin in the area out and try to find the Slave Pens." Nodded Janessa.

"Slave uprising to distract the rest of the Sahuagin in the town, then we head into the fortress and kill any Shark Man there, find Orla, and get everyone we can topside. If my suspicions are correct, we should be able to tear the hearts out of two of the Petty Sahuagin Baronies in the area and substantially weaken the threat from the local Shark Men." I intoned.

And with that, our plan was set. I began to carefully poison my longsword and remaining bolts with the vial of Numbfish Jelly Poison. There were enough doses in there for that, but only just. After all, two of these vials had been used to feed into a poison dart mechanism that would've shot four dozen darts at a time. Unfortunately, it used up all of the vial, which was three hundred Danter worth of loot down the drain. It was worth it though, since if our plan worked, we'd be getting more than enough loot from the Petty Barony here to make up for the loss, plus we'd free a bunch of slaves in the process.

Now all that remained was to put our plan into action. . .

XXXX

Shavariel, Daughter of Maurohir, Lord of the Alu'Tel'Quessir City of Nelquazzar on the outskirts of the great Kingdom of Nindrol, off the coast of the Island that the Landwalkers called Toadridge-at-the-Suns-Setting had once been a warrior of her people, a Lady leading patrols of her father's Guard to beat back the Shark Men and worse that haunted the depths outside of Nindol's Borders. She had achieved some small measure of acclaim in doing so, even amongst the Landwalkers, where she had aided a Landwalker Wizard traveling from Candlekeep to the Moonshaes after his ship had capsized. In return, he had given her a ring that would allow her to no longer require food, sleep, or even breath, allowing her to patrol wherever and whenever she wished.

Unfortunately, her adventurous spirit had gotten the better of her, and she had let her successes blind her to the dangers of her ever-wider-ranging patrol routes. She had eventually led her patrol into an ambush by Shark Men and been taken captive. They had stolen her ring, and taken her as a slave. A humiliation heaped upon her and her father. Furthermore, she suddenly found herself less used to the fatigue that accompanied hard work. The Ring had made her soft and the Shark Men had used that fact mercilessly. They had sought to break her using it and beatings, but Shavariel was used to games of cloak and dagger, growing up in the nobility as she had. She feigned obeisance and waited for her moment to enact revenge.

As she was forced to serve the disgusting concoctions that the Shark Men Drank, a mix of fermented fish guts and blood, Shavariel found her chance to strike coming faster than she had dared to dream. She had just poured another serving of the vile concoction for one of the Baron's Bodyguards, a four-armed Mutant in mystical studded leather armor when a crossbow bolt found itself embedded suddenly in the Mutant's Armpit as it raised its tankard, a burnished copper mug with malachite and lapis lazuli inlay to its mouth. The Mug Fell from its grasp as it stood, or tried to at least, but a sudden lack of grace came over it that was completely unlike this particular bodyguard.

As it flopped around, ironically like a fish on land, Shavariel struck, taking the flint knife the Bodyguard had been using to slice chunks of blubber off its feast of seal meat to pop into its fanged maw and stabbing down with all her might into its eye socket. The flimsy piece of flint snapped off at the hilt, as the Shark Men didn't trust their slaves to lay out cutlery of proper steel for this exact reason, but she managed to put out one of its eyes, even if it wasn't dead. Suddenly a slingstone struck the skull of the Bodyguard as it tried to push itself up to strike at Shavariel for her perceived betrayal, smashing home with a burst of white light. Shavariel quickly snatched another flint knife off the table and slit the Bodyguard's throat, killing it finally.

More slingstones and crossbow bolts flew out of the shadows, killing two other Shark Men before Shavariel's would-be saviors revealed themselves. A Halfling Woman and a Human Man, an unlikely pairing, but then most of the Landwalkers she'd met prior to her overconfidence getting the better of her had seemed odd in some way to Shavariel. Perhaps it was simply that the normal ones did not leave their homes often enough to come into contact with her. Thoughts for later. For the moment, Shavariel was busily sneaking over to one of the fallen Shark Men while her saviors drew their attention. She snatched up the fallen Warrior's Tortoise-shell Shield and Trident and immediately took stock of her situation.

Shavariel could rush the charging group of Shark Men that were about to meet her would-be saviors in battle, or she could try to free Selima, the Slave that worked the Butcher's Shop. Selima had once been a priestess of Deneir, the Scribe of Oghma, and a God of Knowledge. While that likely meant that she would be more useful as support, all Priests knew how to heal, which was something that would desperately be needed before the day was out. That in and of itself cinched her decision.

Rushing over to the Butcher's Shop, Shavariel, grabbed the stone cleaver off the counter and vaulted over the display, careful not to touch the more grisly meats on display. Selima had been hunkering down behind the counter, likely waiting for their Would-be Saviors to be run down and the Shark Men to return for business as usual. Shavariel could never see herself giving into such despair, but then, Selima had been here for a long time, several months compared to the few weeks that Shavariel had been around.

"We need to help them. You were a Priestess, you can offer healing." Explained Shavariel to Selima.

"I haven't heard Deneir's instructions since the collar was put on me. I can do nothing, please just leave." Hissed Selima.

Frowning, Shavariel looked at the Collar, noticing it for the first time. When she did, she found that Sekolah's Symbol, the white shark, had been inscribed on the collar in a strangely glowing glyph. Shavariel was willing to be the collar was the reason that Selima was not able to hear her God. Time to do something about that.

"Hold still." Commanded Shavariel, raising her purloined flint cleaver high.

"Wait! Don't!" Pleaded Selima.

Then Shavarial struck, breaking the cleaver but damaging the latch of Selima's slave collar enough that she could pry it off with her hands. Once the collar was off Selima, the woman blinked twice and shook her head, as if clearing sleep. Her expression practically changed entirely from one of terror and resigned servitude, to wonder and then fury.

"I can hear his instructions again!" Hissed Selima.

"And what does the Scribe of Oghma say?" Queried Shavariel.

"He says the Sahuagin's story ends today!" Growled Selima.

And with that, they had another fighter. Shavariel motioned for Selima to stay behind her, the Cleric agreeing easily, as she had no weapon to fight with and had to rely on spells. Not that she could scavenge a trident, either, as, if Shavariel understood the strictures of Deneir correctly, her God forbade her from using any weapon that was not a blunt weapon. That did beg the question of what Selima had on her when she had been captured, though.

"What weapon did you have when you were captured?" Asked Shavariel.

"My Library Stamp. It was what I used to call my Hammer. The Sahuagin took it from me, along with my armor, when they captured me whilst I was taking a ship to Candlekeep from the Moonshaes. I would bet that it's up in the fortress." Answered Selima.

"So is my ring. What's say we help out our mysterious benefactors and then reclaim them?" Prompted Shavariel.

"Sounds good to me." Agreed Selima.

And with that, the pair charged the rear of the Shark Men mobbing their two Saviors, hoping to be able to aid them as they had been aided. . .

XXXX

I snarled as I lashed out with my blade, carving the head from a red and blue-daubed Sahuagin even as Janessa struck out with her sling, smashing the skull of an over-eager Sahuagin Youth that had been trying to flank me. I was covered in glancing wounds from the vicious fighting, but thankfully, none were critical. They added up over time, however, and Janessa had taken a pair of wounds herself.

In return, we'd reaped a bloody toll with blade, slingstone, and spell, putting down fifteen of the forty-odd Sahuagin that had been ready to fight in the town square. It wouldn't be enough by a long shot. Janessa and I were worth any dozen of these standard Sahuaguin and more of the half-trained youths, but there had been over three dozen of these bastards to start with. They were grinding us down slowly, but surely. Something had to give.

That something surprisingly, turned out to be two of the slaves. The Sea Elf and the Butcher Woman had barreled into the rear of the Sahuagin, the Sea Elf lashing out with a purloined trident while the Butcher Woman, surprisingly, began incanting prayers to Deneir and manifested a Spectral Warhammer that smashed into the back of one of the Sahuagin and broke its spine from the force.

One of the Sahuagin, wearing armor that was clearly magical, tried to bark out orders in its odd, fishy, language, but I wasn't able to understand what it was saying. The context, however, was clear, it was trying to steady the morale of its forces after having been suddenly assailed from behind. It was starting to work too, as two other Sahuagin in similarly magical gear began to take up the rallying cry. We couldn't have that, now could we? Immediately, I let out an Ear-Piercing Scream at the initial Sahuagin that smashed into it like a physical blow, the sonic attack rattling its bones and shaking something loose in its brain, dazing it and allowing me to follow up with my blade. I slashed out with my Longsword while it was dazed, the vertical slash cleaving its head in twain.

Nearby, Janessa struck one of the other Officer Sahuagin with an Acid Arrow, sizzling into its groin under the sharkskin and coral fauld. Then in came the Spectral Warhammer of the Butcher Woman, knocking it to the floor of the cavern where the Sea Elf launched herself atop it in a springboard assault, stabbing down through its face with her purloined trident, killing it. The Third Officer barked something in its Odd Language and a trio of what had to be NCO Sahuagin in Masterwork Equipment joined it in its charge against the Sea Elf.

With a snarl, I lashed out with my blade, taking the legs out from one of the NCO Sahuagin as it passed by me in an opportune attack. Janessa killed it with a follow-on shot from her Sling even as the Spectral Warhammer smashed one of the other NCO Sahuagin to the cavern floor. The Officer Sahuagin thrust out with its Trident, forcing the Sea Elf back into the tines of the last NCO Sahuagin, its Masterwork Trident punching into the meat of her calf from behind. The Sea Elf let out a barrage of insults in Elven and struck back with her Purloined Trident, but the Officer Sahuagin leaned away from the strike, dodging by inches with a toothy sneer.

I moved to try and flank, only to be met by another pair of regular Sahuagin Warriors backed by a pair of Sahuagin Youths. My cut cleaved a Sahuagin Youth's head from its shoulders only for me to take a glancing strike from one of the Warrior's Tridents to the Bicep, adding another slight wound to the pile. The other Warrior tried to capitalize, but I dodged the thrust at my face, ducking beneath the spearing tines of its trident even as I was forced to parry the incoming Youth's Trident with my buckler. I would hold, but the fact remains that I was unable to aid the Sea Elf. The Butcher Woman struck out one more time with her Spectral Warhammer and smashed the skull of the prone Sahuagin NCO which had just clambered to its feet.

That left Janessa to aid the Sea Elf. She did so, slinging a stone that smashed into the last Sahuagin NCO with a burst of white light and a resounding crack. It didn't put the Bastard down, but it did force it to abandon its attack from the rear on the Sea Elf, which allowed the Sea Elf to dodge the incoming swipe of the Officer Sahuagin's Trident without being hit from behind. The Sea Elf's Riposte, however, was deflected by the Officer Sahuagin's Mystic Tortoiseshell Shield. Of course, then it was struck from one side by a Spectral Hammer while a Slingstone hit it from the other. The Sea Elf ducked its sloppy thrust, staggered as it was by the sudden assault, and came up with her purloined trident, sinking the tines into the Sahuaguin Officer's brain from below even as I cleaved in half one of the other normal Sahuaguin Warriors. The Spectral Hammer Finished off the Last Sahuagin NCO and a slingstone broke the skull of the other Normal Sahuaguin Warrior near me.

Now, there were only Six Normal Sahuagin Warriors and Thirteen Sahuagin Youths left against four pissed-off adventurers. For a few moments, it seemed like a stalemate would ensue as we stared down the remaining enemy forces, just daring them to make a move. Then someone I'd forgotten about showed up. The Human Teen with the Swollen Eye. While we'd been fighting, he'd slunk off to round up other Slaves, now he'd returned at the head of a small army of battered, but eager-for-vengeance, Slaves. Seeing that broke the youths while I charged the normal Sahuagin Warriors, Janessa, the Sea Elf, and the Butcher Woman at my side. The youths, panicking, tried to dive into the water to escape, only to forget the penned-up shark mounts. A vicious melee ensued under the surface of the water as Sahuaguin Youths and Shark Mounts slaughtered each other to the last, neither side being able to flee in the end. Meanwhile, the remaining Sahuagin Warriors were easily butchered.

It had been a difficult fight, and if I had to judge, I likely could have taken two, maybe three more of the glancing blows from the enemy before succumbing to a death of a thousand cuts, but it had been worth it. Scavenging around the battlefield netted us a whole mess of equipment, too. Three sets of Coral-Studded Sharkskin Armor Plus One, Three Tridents Plus One, Three Tortoiseshell Light Shields Plus One, Three Sets of Masterwork Coral-Studded Sharkskin Armor, Three Masterwork Tortoiseshell Light Shields, Three Masterwork Tridents, Twenty Sets of Sharkskin Armor, Twenty-Seven Tridents, and Twenty-Seven Tortoiseshell Light Shields. There were also three Potions of Cure Light Wounds and Two Potions of Cure Moderate Wounds, and that was just on the Warriors, Youths, NCOs, and Officers.

It was on the Sahuagin we'd struck as a priority that we found the best stuff on so far. My Spellcraft knowledge worked overtime to identify it all, and at one point, I was forced to cast an Identify Spell, but I was eventually able to divine the absolutely massive amount of gear he had on him. First of all, this was a Scaled Horror, one of two that were traditionally the Bodyguards of the various local Petty Barons of the Jaws of Sekolah Area. It showed in its equipment. Two pairs of counterstrike bracers, an Amulet of Mighty Fists Plus Two, and the reason I'd had to use my Identify Spell, the Studded Jack of the Electric Eel.

That last one was a suit of Eelhide and Bronze Studded Leather that not only carried a Plus Two Enchantment but also had the slick and buoyant armor qualities and could create a sort of static shield or burst that would force enemies that sought to attack you in melee or with their claws, fangs, or fists, to take damage from the shield. That shield got more deadly underwater, but could also be channeled to enhance an attack. Unfortunately, the shield could only be used three times a day before the armor had to recharge that property, but it was still damn good armor.

I immediately began to strip the Scaled Horror of its gear, throwing on the Studded Jack and a pair of Counterstrike Bracers myself. My Mithral Breastplate and the other pair of Bracers, I figured I'd offer to the Sea Elf, provided she was staying with us. Speaking of which, she approached me, alongside the Butcher Woman, while Janessa was scavenging the nearby buildings for anything of use.

"Thank you, Landwalker. You have helped free us and may yet help us further." Began the Sea Elf.

"You're welcome, but I was just doing what anyone would." I brushed off.

"Perhaps, Perhaps not. I am Shavariel, Daughter of Lord Maurohir, Lord of the City of Nelquazzar on the outskirts of the great Kingdom of Nindrol. It is a City of my people on the sea floor near the Island you Landwalkers call Toadridge." Bowed the Sea Elf, Shavariel.

"Robar the Red, Adventurer. My Companion's name is Janessa, also an Adventurer." I responded, bowing back.

"And I am Selima, Glyphscribe of Deneir." Nodded the Butcher Woman, Selima, with a bow.

"So, how did a Lady of the Alu'Tel'Quessir and a Glyphscribe of Deneir wind up being captured and enslaved by the Sahuaguin?" I questioned.

"Overconfidence on my part had me lead my patrol on a far-ranging trip right into an ambush." Admitted Shavariel.

"As for myself, it was simple bad fortune. I had taken a ship from Candlekeep for the port of Caer Callidyrr in the Moonshae Isles when my ship was caught in a storm and blown off-course. We wrecked nearby and were captured by the Sahuagin who took us back to these caverns to serve as slaves. The Captain and remaining crew of the ship were sold off to a visiting Group of Demon Rays who were seeking slaves for manual labor, but I wasn't sold. I was instead made to work here for the Baron as a way to prove the superiority of Sekolah over Deneir or some other such nonsense." Scowled Selima.

"I see. Our own ship was attacked by the Sahuagin and we fought them off, though not before they were able to capture our First Mate. You might have seen her, red hair, Ffolk Woman, Goes by Orla?" I queried.

"New slaves are always brought before the Baron for inspection before being put to work. When did this happen?" Asked Shavariel.

"Not a day ago." I answered.

"Then she will still be in the fortress. This is not good. Baron Keloss has been entertaining the Chieftain of one of the Nomadic Bands of Sahuagin in an attempt to gain more manpower for his push to unify the local baronies. It will be more than just the Baron and Priestess Kaia up there, Chieftain Ahohak will be there as well, along with more Officers, Sergeants, Sub-Priestesses, and at least one more of the Scaled Horrors that the local Petty Barons hire as bodyguards." Frowned Selima.

"However, this also is an opportunity to strike a decisive blow. Besides, your Hammer and my Ring are likely still up there." Insisted Shavariel.

Just then, Janessa returned with an armful of scrolls. She'd apparently found a small library with a stash of scrolls that had been looted by the Sahuagin. There was a Scroll each of Burning Hands, Floating Disk, Enlarge Person, Ray of Enfeeblement, Identify, Spider Climb, See Invisibility, Knock, Animal Messenger, Mirror Image, and Water Breathing. A damn good haul, if I said so myself, though I'd likely not get much out of most of those. Bards hard our own spell list, after all, at least with the rules I was working off of compared to everyone else.

Janessa also returned with a number of odd bundles of stone and shell strung together with knots of sinew. I immediately recognized those as Sahuagugin Singing Bundles, the Sahuagin Version of books, since most Sahuagin couldn't read. They were meant to be shaken and listened to, but only if you knew the Sahuagin Language. I mentioned that to the group, which got me an odd look from Selima. Not bad, just odd, like she hadn't been expecting that from me.

"Something on my face?" I questioned.

"How do you know about Sahuagin Singing Bundles?" She queried.

"I've been around a time or two." I shrugged.

"Apparently." Intoned Selima.

And with that, we focused on scavenging what we could and healing up for the assault on the fortress now that we'd taken the town. The Human Teenager, a nineteen-year-old named Chadwick from a village on the coast South of Daggerford somewhere between the Lizard Marsh and the Trollbark Forest, got the former slaves organized. Apparently, Chadwick's father was the Captain of the Village Militia and he'd been apprenticing to take over someday when he'd been caught out during a fishing trip along the coast and captured by a group of Koalinth who'd then traded him to the Sahuagin. He ensured the Ex-Slaves were equipped with shields, tridents, and sharkskin leathers. Of the forty or so slaves, around a quarter had some familiarity with spears and shields and could handle the light armor. They would fortify some of the sturdier-looking buildings and keep the non-combatants safe under Chadwick's Guidance while Janessa, Shavariel, Selima, and I headed inside the fort to finish this.

Speaking of which, Shavariel took my Mithril Breastplate along with one of the Officer Sahuagin's Plus One Tridents and Plus One Tortoiseshell Shields. Meanwhile, Selima took a Plus One Shield but no trident. She also took one of the Plus One Suits of Coral-Studded Sharkskin Leathers, along with the other set of Counterstrike Bracers. Instead, she traded one of the Plus One Tridents to a Burly, Scarred, Bald Ex-Slave who had been forced to work the Sahuagin's Smithy making tridents out of iron, bronze, copper, and any material the Sahuagin could dig up or scavenge. She instead hefted the man's blacksmith hammer as a weapon. The scrolls, of course, all went to Janessa.

Once we were all healed and equipped, we headed up the stairs toward the fortress on the wall above, hoping to finish this. . .

XXXX

AN: All right, so here we have the next chapter. A lot of dungeon-crawling stuff in this chapter, but we also get to see a bit about how the underwater situation in the Sea of Swords. In short, it's not great, and the Aquatic Races that run off slavery and evil outnumber the good guys even before you add in crazy shit like Krakens, Aquatic Dragons, and Dragon Turtles. Thankfully, it seems like freeing the slaves has given Robar and Janessa two temporary party members, though whether they'll stick with them or not remains to be seen.

At any rate, the next chapter will be the assault on the Fortress and the fights with all the named NPCs and enemies I've created for this adventure. I'll also be updating character sheets and adding new images for Shavariel, Selima, the Caverns, and so on before that point as well. Taking on this many Sahuagin got everyone the level up to level six.

Stay tuned. . .