• Graded • [Hopetoun] On A Scale From One To Tentative

[Darius Baer]

Arc 721, 4th of Cylus

The anchor crashed into the water, the heavy chain it was attached to rattling against the metal frame of the hawse hole, but it didn't take long for the chain to reach a standstill, indicating that they were in shallow waters. A collective cheer rose from the crew and refugees, though it was a weary one filled with trepidation, for even from the coast, it was clear that the challenge before them was immense.

Faldrass towered over them, but the island bore scars. Some would most likely take arcs to heal; some might not heal at all.

Darius could sense a collective apprehension run through the refugees. In the wake of the eruption, some had fled the island without once looking back. For some, this was their first glimpse of the 'new' Faldrass, and perhaps a reality check regarding just how difficult they could expect resettling the island to be.

The seafarer looked over his shoulder, and nearby his brig was also dropping anchor. The Libertalia had shadowed them for the entire journey, with Astra in command, and he could see her on the prow. The pair briefly shared a wave, before he saw the half-biqaj woman shouting instructions to his crew.

It was time for Darius to do the same.

"Sons and daughters of Faldrass!" he addressed the group, hoping to find some words to inspire.

He was a leader, but had never been much of a speaker. It was clearly something he would need to work on.

"The easiest task is behind us. We are here, now. You may not recognise it yet, but this is the home you have toiled over your entire lives. I truly believe that if we gift him our sweat and blood, he will reward us for our labour."

The refugees, he realised, wouldn't know that the 'he' being referred to was not simply the island, but a powerful spirit, but that did not matter. If they toiled hard enough, there would be rewards all the same. Of that, he was certain.

Satisfied with his oratory efforts - or, rather, recognising that they were what they were, and there was no point trying to be something he was not (yet) - Darius began to issue instructions. The rowboat was to be lowered and some of the refugees would start to make the journey to the island. The remaining Faldrass returnees, including the bearded blond himself, would ready the supplies to be ferried from the ship. Looking back to his own ship, the bearded blond could see that his personal rowboat, the Lady Jean, was already being rowed towards them, and so there would soon be two boats to ferry supplies and survivors to Faldrass.

Perhaps because he was better at leading with actions than words, or perhaps because they were simply eager to get started, the refugees began to carry out his instructions, and people and goods began to make their way across to the island.

The next step, Darius realised, would be to find a suitable location to set up camp.

[Darius Baer]

"Oi!"

Splash!

It was when they were about halfway through unloading the ship that someone fell into the water.

The first group of refugees were already on the shore, warming their feet in the heat of the orange sand, with a growing pile of supplies beside them when it happened. A middle-aged man named Kirt was in one of the rowboats and had inexplicably attempted to stand, only to lose his balance in the most flailing manner possible.

A roar of laughter erupted from those who saw him fall into the water, perhaps due in part to the fact that for almost the entire trip, Kirt had been grumbling about the "unsteady" nature of ships, as they rocked side to side with the waves.

"You ain't never gonna get seasick on a farm," the farmer had loudly lamented several times. "Gimme beans 'n' sprouts in a ploughed field any trial."

Kirt floundered wildly in the water, then surfaced, before standing up and revealing the depth to be only up to his waist, which sent the onlooker into further hysterics.

One refugee on the beach coined a term that would, ultimately, stick: "You'd better stick to dirt, Kirt!"

To Darius, who was still standing aboard the deck of the ship when the incident happened, it seemed that the unexpected moment of levity in the face of such a daunting future was a promising sign. If the refugees could find a reason to laugh in such trying circumstances - even at the good-humoured expense of another - then it was a sign of good morale.

He supposed, however, that reality would set in sooner or later.

Kirt, for all the ribbing he had received, did not appear to be perturbed by anything that had been said. Rather, he stood still and pointed down at the water.

"'ere, look at this!" he called out.

From their higher vantage point, Darius and the dozen or so refugees who had yet to leave the ship could see what the middle-aged man was pointing at. All around the farmer, a flurry of activity could be seen in the water. It looked as though the ocean floor itself was shifting about, but Kirt showed no fear.

"Fish!" he exclaimed. "They're fish! They seem 'armless. They ain't bitin' or nothin'!"

As if to emphasise his point, the man reached into the water and pulled out a fish. And, as if to emphasise that it was being picked up by a farmer and not a fisherman, the aquatic animal thrashed about in Kirt's grasp, eventually slipping free and escaping back into the water.

Above the surface, the fish had scales that were silver, for the most part, but once it returned to the Hollow Sea, it became indistinguishable from the orange sand that lined the Faldrass coastline.

For a trill, everyone paused, taking in what they'd seen. And then one of the refugees on the beach called out.

"Kirt," the woman yelled, "get out of the water before you freeze to death, you stupid fool!"

The farmer wasted little time in complying, wading out of the water. No longer had he reached the shore than he lay down on the orange sand and began to thaw himself out.

[Darius Baer]

Darius was the last of the group to set foot on Faldrass. He had stayed on the ship to organise the transfer of supplies, but he had also felt that as the sole mainlander in the expedition, it would be a display of respect to allow them to return home first.

As he hauled the last crate from the rowboat and set it down upon the sand, the refugees were still talking about the school of fish that Kirt had landed on top of.

"I've been fishing off Faldrass all my life," one man was saying, "and my father before me. And I've never seen anything like it."

Murmurs of agreement followed, and a few of the group turned to look at Darius, presumably to hear his take on the situation.

"It looks like we might have a source of food, here," Darius announced to the mingling refugees. "We should remember this place so that we can catch fish and feed ourselves, assuming they aren't poisonous to eat."

It was a possibility that needed to be considered. The mariner knew as well as anyone else that the ocean could offer bounty with one hand and snatch it away with the other.

But he also knew - as did each of the refugees - that a food source would be critical to the survival of Hopetoun. The supplies they had brought would only last so long, and although Scalvoris Town was only a trial away by ship, they could not rely on the generosity of the mainland forever.

Darius reached into his knapsack and pulled out a piece of parchment, which he unfolded. On it, he had drawn a very basic outline of the island, marking out the few locations they already knew about, including the Serenity Garden, the Sentry, and, of course, the Heart of Faldrass itself. From his coat, he retrieved a carpenter pencil - it was an invaluable tool and he always ensured he had one on hand - and scrawled a basic picture of a fish on the map to indicate the potential fishing spot.

With that done, he returned the parchment to his knapsack. He looked up to see that the refugees were looking at him, and he realised that they were waiting on his next instructions. He paused briefly, taking the opportunity to look over the group assembled before him. Men and women, ranging in age from teenagers to the middle-aged, had taken the brave step to re-establish their lives on Faldrass. All seemed ready and willing to get to work. Even Kirt, who was coated in orange sand to keep himself warm, and was pulling a blanket around his shoulders to shield him from the worst of the Cylus cold, held the captain with a determined gaze.

"We will need to find a suitable place for our new settlement," Darius spoke, "and then you will be able to begin rebuilding your lives."

Darius said nothing more. Instead, he reached for the nearest sack of goods and hauled it over his shoulders, and the Faldrass survivors began to follow his lead. There would be challenges, he knew, but they had taken the most important first step: they had arrived.

[Avalon]

Review Rewards

Name: Darius

Points awarded: 10

Knowledge:
Field Craft: Discovering a previously unknown type of fish.
Fishing: The perfect fishing spot should be a closely guarded secret.
Leadership: Show respect to those who follow you.
Logistics: Transporting a lot of goods by moving small amounts at a time.
Rhetoric: Find your voice.
Rhetoric: Appeal to your audience.

Non-Skill Knowledge:
Fauna: Veil fish (checked approval)

Renown: 5 - (For being a good leader and making a positive impression on your settlers)

Skill Review: All Skills used appropriate to level

Notes:
Land ho! I really enjoyed reading about Darius' settlers and his first adventure as their fearless leader! You have a beautiful writing style that I've always enjoyed. It's descriptive but not overly so - it flows really well. You wrote the npcs well and the entire piece was well done.

I was a bit concerned about the feasibility of someone picking a fish out of the water that easily but I looked it up and apparently if you are in a big school of fish, it's a thing! Thanks for teaching me something new! I also noted what was in the approved write up so all good there!

I look forward to reading more about Darius' settlement and see his progress as a leader.


If you have any questions, comments, or concerns regarding this review, feel free to PM. Enjoy your rewards!

Avalon