[IC] Elder Scrolls: Terror of the Padomaic

[EliteCommander]

Sharee walked up to Noelle and motioned for her to raise her hands above her head. She complied, allowing Sharee to tie her wrists together with the rope hanging from the boom above. After making sure the rope was taut, she moved around behind and unfurled the whip. The reactions from the crowd around them were varied. Some seemed shocked that one of their officers was about to be flogged, some looked nervous themselves, while a few even seemed excited for it to get underway. A few, mostly male crew members were too fixated on her chest to actually pay attention to anything else. Regardless, Sharee intended for them all to be filled with a bit of fear once it was done. To that end, she would have to make sure the first few strikes were hard enough to really make her scream. The pain would fade quickly due to the potion, but all Sharee needed was a good show.

With nothing left to delay her, Sharee gave no warning before the first lash. Her technique with the whip was near flawless, as she had obviously done this before, so the whip hit particularly hard. It left a gash going from her right shoulder, all the way down to her waist, and sent out a loud crack that could be heard all the way down on the docks.

[Ryonara]

Noelle wish she could say that she was a strong woman, but after the third lash the tears started to flow. Sure, at first it didn't hurt as badly as Noelle thought. But she wasn't like some of the others who were built to take on punishment with their bodies. Soon she could feel the welts forming on her back and the best she could do was just bite down and try not to cry to loudly. Notably, the tenth lash went right down her spine, which caused Noelle to cry out and loosen her bowels. She thought Sharee has severed her spine. By the time Sharee was done and untied Noelle, she collapsed onto the ground. The pain was unbearable. Noelle wanted to do nothing more than to curl into a small ball and cry, but she tried to save face. She got onto all fours before her recruits walked up to her, hesitant to help Noelle after the captain just whipped her. "Go. Go! Just... Just get back to work!" She snarled at them as she struggled to her feet. Noelle cast a spell on her to numb the pain, though she'll need to head back to the infirmary to do a full recover. But Noelle didn't leave. She wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling very cold, before looking at the captain. She wanted to ask if it was over, but Noelle feared what would happen if Sharee told her there was more.

[EliteCommander]

Sharee wound the whip back up and looked out across the crowd as she walked alongside Noelle. "Alright, show's over. Get back to your duties unless you want to be the next one to volunteer to go under the whip." She announced to the crew, who were quick to disperse upon her order. Noelle didn't seem to have that high of a pain tolerance, so she certainly gave a show the rest of the crew would not be soon to forget.

Reaching down with her free hand, Sharee grabbed Noelle by the arm and pulled her to her feet. "Come with me, we need to speak." She ordered in a forceful tone. Keeping her grip on her arm, Sharee guided Noelle into her cabin, then closed and locked the door behind them. She finally let go of Noelle's arm, then walked almost casually over to her table and set down the bloody whip on top of it. "Don't let it be said that I have no mercy." Sharee commented, grabbing one of the other healing potions from her bag and almost forcing Noelle to take it. "Drink, you need to get healed up quickly, else those gashes on your back will scar. I know, I would have some pretty bad ones myself if I would have neglected visits to the healers during my training."

Sharee took a seat at her table and ran her claws across the bloodied whip. "I notice you don't seem to have that high of a pain tolerance. I probably wouldn't have hit you so hard at first had I known. It wasn't necessary to intimidate the others. I know what it is like to be whipped. I've had to undergo about triple that amount of lashes before, and that whip wasn't coated in any potion. Actually, I've been flogged, stabbed, beaten, abused in every form you can think of, and many you can't. I've had over a dozen hooks stabbed into body from all sides, in every part of my body, then pulled as tightly as they could without ripping them out. I've had almost every bone in my body broken to the point that it was nearly powder, then slowly healed back to its normal state, only to be broken again. I've had my flesh ignited in magical flames, I've had lightning from three different mages all pumped through my body at once, I've had my body impaled by a dozen spikes, my life only sustained by the mages healing me. I would share more of the tortures I've experienced, but some of the others are a bit disturbing. Suffice to say, all of those tortures came from the Shadowscales who raised me. They taught me how to feel pain, how to ignore it, and how to deal it. The flogging I gave you...not so bad, really. I coated my whip in a healing potion before I began. You might have noticed the pain fading rather quickly? That would be why. You can thank your cooperation for that. Overall, I should thank you. After that show, I don't expect any of the others to act up for quite a while. I made sure not to mention exactly how you manipulated me during my little speech. Your illusion magic should come in handy for keeping the crew in line, should we need it. Who knows, you might even earn some extra pay out of it."

[Ryonara]

Noelle was still in a bit of a shock as Sharee pulled her into her cabin. She showed no hesitation as Noelle drank the healing potion, quickly mending the scars on her back. But while the wounds were gone, the pain that was in Noelle's mind would need time to heal. Sharee mentioned something about mercy and a potion, but to Noelle it was all just pain. But if this was what Sharee considered merciful, Noelle would be much more careful if she thinks she might incite the captain's fury. As Noelle put her robes back on she listened to the captain talk a bit about her past as a Shadowscale. It certain sounded much rougher than Noelle's own past. Though Noelle wasn't very sure why the captain was telling her this. If she didn't know better, Noelle would have thought the captain was mocking her, telling Noelle in a roundabout way of how weak she is because of what sort of things Sharee went through. And than to top it off Sharee claims to have been going easy on her. Noelle wasn't sure if she should get angry or laugh, so she did neither. She just gave Sharee a disbelief silence. There was a moment of silence between Sharee and Noelle before the breton stood up and spoke. "Well... I'm glad you managed to get what you wanted out of it captain. If that is all, I will return to my duties."

[EliteCommander]

It was clear that Noelle had no interest in reminiscing in Sharee's rather sordid past, so she moved to wrap up the encounter, which was probably for the best. Sharee gave a nod, then leaned forward and clasped her hands together. "I need nothing more from you. Go rest up, heal up, and whatever else you need. I could try talking to you honor and loyalty and why you shouldn't be angry for me punishing you, but all that is nonsense. You are angry, I expect you to be angry, and honestly, I would be disappointed if you were not. So far, since you have been here, all I have done for you is flog you. But, the reason you are here, the reason any of us are here, is because you want coin. Stick with us and perform your duties and you'll get your coin. If I don't deliver on that, then you can organize a mutiny, or whatever. Until then, I'll let you be."

---

The next two days involved scouting into the island and its inhabitants. Those who were not occupied with ship repairs and outfitting were tasked with finding a source of skooma. The scouts they sent to the moon sugar fields determined that striking there was probably not the best idea. There was plenty of the sugar they could use to refine into skooma, but the local authorities were well aware of how tempting of a target they were. Since moon sugar was the main source of income for the entire island, there were Dominion troops guarding every single field. There were some, less protected fields that Sharee believed they could handle, but there was no way they would be able to get in and out without the local authorities knowing about it. That would mean they would have to get off the island as soon as they got back to the docks with the sugar, which wouldn't work in this case. Going after the Miriam's supplies also had its issues. Noelle and her team quickly discovered that the crew of the Miriam ran a really tight ship. They kept a close watch on any valuable incoming cargo, so while it wouldn't be impossible to get a crate of skooma, they would run into the same problem as they would going after the moon sugar. They would not be able to get a crate from them without alerting the local drug smuggling ring, which would be pretty much as bad as alerting the Dominion. Going after the Miriam would certainly be a project for later, but for now, their best option seemed to be the bandits. The crew members they sent out posing as bounty hunters uncovered a decent sized bandit gang hiding out in a cove on the east side of the island. Like any criminal on the island, they engaged in the skooma trade, and no one would really care if they went after them. As near as Sharee could tell, they weren't affiliated with the major smuggling rings in the area, and taking them out would actually be helpful to the Dominion in the area. It was the most dangerous option, but it seemed like the only one that would work.

It was late in the evening that Sharee ordered her officers to meet up in her cabin. For this mission, she couldn't afford to bring her entire crew, but she had to bring most of her best fighters. Unfortunately, that meant that pretty much all of her officers would be joining her for this attack. It was not ideal to have so much of the ship's leadership going into a fight like this, but that was what the situation called for. Sharee also ordered her officers to bring the members of their teams that they believed would be most helpful in a fight, or none at all, if they judged them to be too much of a liability. She was emphasizing quality over quantity in this attack, as having too many inexperienced fighters there would just end up getting crew members killed, and the ship was already understaffed as it was.

[Lucius Cypher]

After finally returning to the ship the day before, Malakaus and his Typhoon Warriors got back to working on the ship's weaponry. Specifically, after finally getting the materials he commissioned, he began to upgrade the ship's ballistas to be similar to his crossbow; box fed for more shots per minute. And seeing that Sarel had the actual repairs and construction of the ship under control, Malakaus took his share of the materials to also create more balista bolts, including harpoons and siege hooks. He contemplated creating oar ports as well; Wind and Sails might be good for taking the ship a long distance, but if Sharee wanted the ship to do any boarding action having oars would allow them to maneuver the ship faster over a shorter distance. However Malakaus didn't implement the idea simply because he wasn't sure if the crew had the experience of being oarsmen. A skilled oarsman could take care of a oar all on their own, so long as they're working in tangent with others. But Malakaus was hardly an oarsman himself, so it's not like he could train them. In the end, he decided to not use the idea and just continued to improve the ballista and it's load out.

Additionally, he started giving his Typhoon Warriors more definite jobs. Harasha And Sheol were pretty good task masters when Malakaus couldn't bark orders himself. Specifically, he had Harasha keep the crew fit for fighting and had her teach them how to fight in their armor. This was more important for the ones who used heavy armor, as they thought that their extra protection allowed them to slack in their defensive efforts. Harasha made sure to show them the error of their ways and made them more conditioned to move and fight in heavy armor, ensuring that they don't just stand there and take the hits when they can be moving and doing damage. As for Sheol, Malakaus put her conjuration skills to good use. To ensure that everyone had decent training with their new crossbows, he made Sheol a ring that would help her summon her creatures more easily. He also enchanted Harasha's warhammer with Fiery Soul trap. This way when the two weren't training the recruits with their heavy armor or target practice, they can summon creatures from oblivion and fill up whatever soul gems Malakaus gave them. Souls gems that went to either him or argonians.

The two argonians under Malakaus's command, Three-Horns and Dar Ray, were in charge of enchanting services or making scrolls. At least Three-Horns was, he seemed to pick up enchanting better than Dar Ray did. Dar Ray instead spent most of his time researching Alchemy or Enchanting for Malakaus. He already did him a service by introducing Malakaus to a black powder formula made from Fire Salt and Charcoal. Charcoal was easy enough to get, and Fire Salt could be harvested from Sheol's Fire Atronachs. He hasn't quite found a use for it yet, though he has experimented a few balista bolts with them. Three-Horns has done a good job himself and made for Malakaus a large stockpile of magical scrolls with all sorts of effects. Most of them were made with Petty Soul Gems that Malakaus got for wholesale, which he had Fletcher to thank.

Fletcher was still a sore spot for Malakaus, but he made himself useful. He came back yesterday more bruised than when Malakaus left him, bringing back good news about the bandit camp. He even managed to get a key, which he wasn't sure what it was for, but it came from one of the bandits who was shopping in the city. Fletcher claimed that he managed to steal it from the bandit, though Malakaus guessed that Fletcher tried, got his ass handed to him, and managed to swipe the key sometime during his beating. Still Fletcher got through his end of the bargain, which was good enough for the orc. Fletcher also seemed to be able to get pretty good deals from some of the shops despite his abysmal luck at impressing Malakaus. He managed to bring back twenty petty soul gems using the money he had gotten from selling the amulet Malakaus got him. Fletcher also took care of making ammunition for everyone and the ship, saving him from the much more laborious work of maintaining the vessel. He was still hopeless when it came to actual fighting, though Malakaus plans to find a way around that soon enough.

And finally, if there was anything that Malakaus made sure that his Typhoon Warriors were able to do, it was to take care of the ship and crew if he wasn't around to do it himself. They spoke with his authority, which was an extension of Sharee's. Good thing too, because later in the afternoon Sharee called all her officers for their mission: They would follow to to a bandit camp and take their skooma. However taking all the officers would leave the ship without it's leaders, so Malakaus opted to not bring any of his Typhoon Warriors. Without him or any of the other officers, he needed people he can trust to run a tight ship while they were gone. He had faith in his people to do the job, even Fletcher. Maybe not an important job with him, but his presence would help nonetheless. Malakaus arrived to Sharee's office in his full regalia, with Vorinclex strapped to his back, his crossbow above it, his wazatashi on his belt, and his shield strapped to his arm. In a bag on his waist was also a few spell scrolls he could use in a pinch, such as Scrolls of Paralysis, Conjure Daedroths, Baleful Suffering, just to name a few. Three-Horns was quite knowledgeable, which Malakaus was grateful for. He also took some potions that Dar Ray made for him, mostly just healing potions but also a few to cure poison and any disease he might pick up.

"Just me captain. My Typhoon Warriors will stay on the ship to keep order while we're gone. Three-Horns and Dar Ray also has some things useful for the mission if you want to pick something up. Can't promise it'll be cheap though, it was quite an investment on my part. Hopefully this job will compensate for the money spent." Though Malakaus didn't really care that much about the money. He only cared because if he didn't have the coin, it'll be much harder for him to do what he wants. He actually planned to use his share from the Skooma to buy more materials for him to improve the crew's equipment and make money on the side with his enchanting services, though right now getting customers was a bit tough. Once they had a good pay though, he could put more thoughts into his budding enterprise.

[The New Yorker]

Sarel watched the flogging with a manifold discord. The rending of flesh and spirit, along with the desperate cries and sputtering, made the Dunmer feel uncomfortable with the whole thing. This girl was not a sailor, she was not a pirate like the rest, so was this appropriate? Also, Sarel saw Sharee as a fair leader, despite her suicidal sense of leading. She would not have ordered this sort of punishment without a reasonable purpose.

Over the next few days Sarel was busy supervising repairs and upgrades to the ship. He reinforced the hull along with some of the beams which were slightly damaged. On the first night Sarel took it upon himself to train some of the men on the ship proper swordsmanship. Of course, without years of training and experience it was mostly superficial. Sarel hoped that those small tips might help them hurt their opponent more often than they hurt themselves, but he could only hope. His team-members also showed up, halfway through a particularly rowdy dice game, and handed him a journal of notes pertaining to every scoundrel and deviant they could find. That night, in bed, Sarel read through what they’d found. Serge’s bed was empty.

The Breton had taken his Khajiit team-member along with him to scout out the plantations. They returned the next morning with information of their own. The officers presented Sharee with the dossier as that day began, leaving them with the rest of the afternoon to train, rest, and plan. Sarel and Serge arrived in the captain’s quarters together. The Dunmer wore his classic, amber-colored, chitin armor along with all three ancient swords attached to the right side of his waist; his face was covered by his rarely worn chitin helmet. The Breton wore his full corundum clad armor. This longsword was at his waist as well. Neither of them brought assistance. They’d discussed it the night before and both had decided that their team-members were more liabilities than anything else in a raid situation. Sarel brought some health and magicka potions while Serge was stocked up with the stamina variety. Before anyone said anything Sarel tapped Noelle on the shoulder, hoping she’d healed.

“I’d like to speak with you about that garden you wanted. We can meet up after the mission.” The Dunmer said quietly. He left her with that on her mind and crossed the room with his friend.

Sarel and Serge took the corner with a table, the former sat in the sturdy wooden chair and the latter leaned against the wall. “Captain, where is this bandit lair? Are we going on foot, or have you arranged another transport?” Sarel asked.

[Ryonara]

Sure enough, Noelle was able to heal the lashes from yesterday's flogging. After her emotions settled down, she had some in the Infirmary assist her in applying healing salves, topping off with a touch of restoration magic to ensure that no scars remain. While some of the crew may hold onto their scars, Noelle found them to be unsightly. She decided to help maintain the ship since she had used practically all her time yesterday trying to get leads for Sharee, while her crew were often occupied spying on the Miriam. This did however, leave the ship's infirmary under supplied. Expectantly, after some of the crew came back from their shore leave they often returned with new scars and injuries that Noelle needed to patch up. And they did not make things easier for her between their own wounds and their gossip.

Though Sharee may have intended to withhold Noelle's illusions from the crew so that Noelle can still us it against them, it only served to be ripe materials for the crew to make up petty rumors to besmirch Noelle's name. Between her whipping and now, the name "Whore" and "Slattern" (For the more eloquent) somehow became synonymous to her. Noelle made no immediate efforts to counter the gossip, but she knew what power words had. If she let this continue, her authority would be undermined by the crew, regardless of her position as officer. To them, Noelle's punishment wasn't just a show of intimidation on Sharee's part, it was a chance to humiliate one of her officers. She'd have to find a way to redeem herself not just within the captain's eyes, but within the crew as well. Last thing she wanted was to be seen as a joke among the officers.

Between spying on the Mirian Noelle gathered local ingredients to create more potions, mainly to sell back to the populace for quick coin. She had much use from Naaji and Omdran, who stole small samples of moon sugar for her. While Sharee wanted to raid a bandit camp for a larger supply, Noelle helped herself to the small samples of Moon Sugar and refined them into skooma, adding cheap improvements to them so she could sell them back at Khenarthi's Roost. Using her magic, finding a buyer who would purchase her goods at well over it's regular cost was an easy task. She might as well have been taking the coins right out of their purses. Using the money she earned, she brought more regents for herself to use and occasionally some luxuries. Making use of Malakaus's enchanting services, she had her crossbow (Which she took from Gaius who kept to his longbow) enchanted. It took some time getting used to it, and even than she only brought it due to her own lack of range options. Noelle made a mental note to research a some elemental spells next time she finds a place that would sell her the magic texts.

Eventually Noelle arrived to Sharee's office. Despite what happened yesterday Noelle lost any feeling of contempt from Sharee, but also lost any feeling of familiarity either. Right now Sharee was merely Noelle's employer, with all that it implies. Noelle also decided to take Corrira with her for this mission. His expertise with Destruction and Conjuration magic would allow them to turn the tide of battle in a pitch, and should the battle be brought to them, he ensured her that he is quite capable of summoning creatures to protect them should none of their allies be near by. Not only that, but Noelle planned to use this outing to try to get to know Corrira better mainly so he could teach her destruction magic.

As Noelle waited she felt someone tap her shoulder. Turning to see who it was she saw Sarel, one of the officers, telling her about the garden she wanted on the ship. Noelle wondered when and who told Sarel about her request for it, though she imagined that Sharee told all her officers the truth behind yesterday's fiasco. She said nothing and simply waited in silence for the captain to address them.

[EliteCommander]

Sharee's officers were prompt in arriving at her cabin, a quality she was glad had developed among them. Almost everyone present, save one, was an officer, as it seemed like most of them had left their team members behind: a wise decision, likely. With the information they had collected over the past few days, they had developed a few plans for how to approach the situation. Given the numbers Sharee had at her disposal, she figured a stealthy approach would be best. Since an entire crate of skooma was not exactly a light object, they wouldn't be able to sneak out with it, but they could at least formulate a surprise attack.

Sharee, who was already armed and ready, stood up from her table once everyone had arrived. "Okay, that looks like everyone. Since only one of you has brought any of your teams here, I'm guessing you don't think the others are ready. That's probably accurate, and as long as we're coordinated, we won't need them. I've looked over everyone's reports, and unfortunately, it looks like we only have one real good option here. The Dominion is too smart to leave their moon sugar fields lightly defended, and the Miriam's crew are too smart to leave their skooma unattended, so that means we need to go after the one stupid group left on the island: the bandits. From your reports, they look like a small clan, less than two dozen in all, but that's still more than us. They operate out of a cove on the east side of the island. From the glimpse Malakaus' scout got of the place, they have a wooden dock set up inside the cove, with a door that looks like it heads into a cave in the back. Now, the fact that they seem to keep most of their supplies and loot out on the dock suggests that cave is small, maybe enough for a room or two, but you never know. From what I've been told, these bandits should have at least a crate of skooma, maybe more, hopefully not less. Now, thing is, I don't have any more information other than what I just told you. That means we're going to have to make up a plan once we're there and can survey the situation. One of the issues with this camp being in a cove is that it can be difficult to get a good look inside without being spotted, which is probably why they picked it. We might have to do some improvising, but that's why I selected you all as officers, you have judgement. I'm assuming you all armed yourselves already. If not, do that now. Also, to answer Sarel's question, we need to be quiet on the approach, so we will be walking. This island isn't that big, so it won't take long."

[Lucius Cypher]

"A stealth mission hmm? Alright... I have some preparation to do than captain. I"ll meet up with you shortly." Malakaus bowed himself out as he headed back to his bunk. For the most part the ship was still buzzing with activity, if it wasn't work than it was recreation. Some of the crew members horsing around with each other, getting into arguments, but nothing sever. Of his Typhoon Warriors, only Harasha And Sheol were around. Malakaus knew that he sent Fletcher out to sell some trinkets for gold, though Malakaus had no idea where the Argonians Three-Horns and Dar Ray went. The only thing he knew about their location was that Three-Horns had business in the city while Dar Ray wanted the day off. Fine with Malakaus however, as he didn't have anything for them to do anyways. Until Fletcher comes back with the coins, they were out of soul gems. At least, they were; Malakaus was always sure to keep some for himself, such as that Grand Soul Gem he took from the two argonians when he first met them. With a Daedra's soul bound within, Malakaus took off his boots to enchant them with "Muffle"; wearing them would render his armor quiet, ensuring that no one would hear him coming. He also had a few scrolls of invisibility as well, so he wouldn't have to worry about putting too much effort into sneaking. While he much preferred to just kill every bandit in and around the cove, being able to ambush them would make things more exciting, he would admit.

Enchanting his boots didn't take long, but as he was doing so his mind lingered to the black powder that Dar Ray made for him. Malakaus felt that he wasn't quite taking it as seriously as he should; that there was a potential for it that he wasn't recognizing. What it was, he wasn't certain. Thinking about it made him want skooma; his trips often would provide him insight into things that he would normally never have thought of, information to things he shouldn't know. This made him somewhat regretful for actually spending most of his gold on supplies and enchanting materials. He wanted to do something to reward himself, such as taking some skooma. But he controlled himself. "Get a hold of yourself man. Tonight's raid will make sure I get my hands on as much skooma as I'd like... I'm sure Sharee wouldn't mind me taking a few bottles for myself. For services rendered." He mumbled to himself.

Eventually, seeing that he had some time left, Malakaus went to retrieve his journal. While his penmanship left much to be desired, the purpose of his journal was to keep notes on things he might forget as well as to draft up new ideas he makes up on the spot. One such idea was trying to make a new weapon out of the black powder he received. He has heard of those who would fill the tips of crossbows with an explosive powder, but he wanted to do something different. Moving throughout the ship, Malakaus began to draft up many new and spontaneous ideas of how to weaponize the black powder. One idea that came to mind look to be some sort of club...

[EliteCommander]

It took about half an hour for everyone to gather what they needed for the attack, after which they met on the top deck, then headed out onto the docks. By this point, the sun had just set and most of Mistral's citizens had retired to their homes, but those that were outside still took notice of them. Mostly, it was the city guards that took interest in the armed and armored group of sailors walking through the town. Sharee did not like the extra attention, but there was no real way to get out of the city without walking through it, and trying to sneak through the town would just look more suspicious. Nevertheless, as long as they kept their weapons sheathed and just stuck to the road out of town, the guards did not bother them.

Once out of Mistral, the group stuck to the road heading to the east side of the island for most of the way. They passed by several moon sugar plantations as they walked, all of which had a night watch tracking their every move. A few of the plantations even had Senche serving as guards follow alongside them until they were out of sight of the property. Of all the forms of Khajiit, the Senche were perhaps one of the most intimidating. They were essentially large tigers built for speed and strength that could tear a person limb from limb if given the chance. They weren't so great for endurance running, using weapons or tools, speaking, or much else that a humanoid Khajiit was capable of, but they were deadly.

Sharee waited until they were getting someone close tot he bandits' cove to take the group off of the road. They took as much of a stealthy approach as possible, considering that most of the group wasn't especially adept at sneaking, at least not to the extent Sharee would have liked. Regardless, she knew where to guide them to keep them obscured by foliage, so as long as they did not make too much noise, they would be fine. Eventually, they made it to a rocky beach, though they stayed out of the open and instead stayed hidden in the foliage just beyond. The cove itself had a stone canopy, as well as walls of rock extending all the way out to the beach on either side, so there was no way to easily peer in from above, or the sides. In fact, the only way to actually get in was by the water, which would mean they would be left in the open if they were spotted while trying to sneak in.

"Alright, this is the part where we improvise. We don't know what's in that cove other than a makeshift dock and some bandits, and it's not going to be easy to get a look inside without being spotted. It might be possible to climb up on that stone ceiling, then hang down and look inside. I've done things like that before, but there is no guarantee that there will be enough places to grab hold to actually hang far enough down to get a good look. It's not like the rock was made for climbing, and we don't have any climbing gear. Another option is of course the water, but if you want to actually see anything, you have to surface, and invisibility won't stop your body from making disturbances in the water. Again, I'm well-trained in stealth and could probably do it, but even I have to admit there are no guarantees. Third option, we go in without scouting first. It's bold and very dangerous, but we could at least stick below the surface until its time to climb up on the dock." Sharee whispered.

[Ryonara]

Noelle didn't have much preparation. She took an ample supply of poisons, potions, elixirs, and other portable mixtures as well as her magic blade and the repeating crossbow. Corrira likewise didn't have any thing else he needed to do either. His only weapon appeared to be a magic staff though he can summon a powerful sword if need be. They left with Sharee as soon as they were ready to move out. The trip through the town was uneventful though it did give Noelle a chance to see more of the city. If she wasn't here for piracy Mistral would be a nice place for her to do some research into her Alchemy. She made a note that she should at least pick up a few books while she's here, to occupy her freetime.

Eventually the group reached the bandit's cove. It was positioned in such a way that there was only one way to get a good look inside, which also meant that anyone inside could see you. Sharee had some ideas of how they could try to scout ahead, including her climbing to the rocky ceiling, taking to the waters, or forgoing scouting all together and just attacking. Noelle turned to Corrira if he had any means to infiltrate but he admitted that his skills befitted a war mage, not an infiltrator. So Noelle spoke up. "I could put an invisibility spell on all of us that should last for a minute." What they do after that, however, Noelle admitted that she didn't know. Fairly pointless to scout ahead if they ran strait into the bulk of the bandits. If she was more skilled in her Alteration she could have also put Water Walking on everyone, but alas, she cannot. "Perhaps I could try to move in close to cause some mayhem among the bandits. I can use my magic to sent one or more into a rage and have them fight among each other. When they're sufficiently weaken we could come in and finish them off."

[The New Yorker]

Serge and Sarel were uncharacteristically quiet on their way to the plantation. They both understood the importance of quiet on missions such as these, trained soldiers and killers as they were. Once they reached the alcove, which they were able to sneak up to, apparently, successfully, Sarel began thinking of their options. The wall climbing was useful for scouting but not much else, and, as far as Sarel could tell, scouting was only useful for the beginning of a fight. Then there was the water, which Sarel was a little surprised by. If Sharee knew about this port, why not bring the boat? Sarel had seen plenty of successful port raids using ships in his time, and this was the perfect time for one. But that was not the case. He decided to speak his mind since no one else was talking; his accented, rusty voice crept quietly across the rocky cliff to Sharee.

“We might as well just attack,” Sarel started. “We can set up our people along the flanks, have them charge in after some pre-combat attacks. We could lower a few men with crossbows on ropes, soften their fall with a levitate spell, which I have journeyman level access to. Either way, I’d be better used as a distraction. I can jump from here, get their attention, get behind them and we can split their forces. Me holding them off inside, you coming from behind, we couldn’t have a better option. Invisibility potions could be used to hasten the approach.” Sarel brought himself nearer to the edge, looked over. He figured he could slow his fall to a point before hitting the docks that he’d land gracefully. He’d done some things like this before. Then the Dunmer looked back, his Crimson eyes glistening in the dark, sea air, “Besides, they’re just some bloody bandits.”

[EliteCommander]

Sharee considered the suggestions. Both had merit, though neither were perfect, though she doubted there was any "perfect" option here. She liked the invisibility suggestion from Noelle, especially if they could slip in under the surface of the water, and dividing their attention as Sarel said would be smart. The problem was, there was no way they could just get inside and get behind them. The bandits were essentially up against a wall, with stone on three sides and ocean on the fourth. There was no getting around the fact that they would have to swim in, and that would make them easy targets for archers. She would have brought rowboats, but that would just make it very obvious that they were approaching. Coming down from above was also an interesting idea, though they would be falling into water below.

"I like the idea of splitting their attention, but there's a problem. They don't have a real reason to leave their cove. If they try coming out in whatever boats they have, they would be at just as much of a disadvantage as we would be going in, so if they have any talent at all, they'll stay and fight defensively. Maybe take a bit of both for this one. We could split into two groups, then slip in under the water to opposite sides of the docks. We climb up as quickly as we can, then establish positions on both sides of them. We'll have them surrounded, so their numbers won't be as useful. Having some magic to help us would be helpful, but invisibility sounds like it would be taking to apply to all of us. Maybe the weaker variant? What is called, chameleon I think? Anyway, that would let us get in without having to swim under fire, and it would let us surround them." Sharee suggested. She of course had the final say, but she wasn't vain enough to think the others didn't have any good ideas.

[Lucius Cypher]

Malakaus kept his mouth shut as the group was sneaking towards the bandit cove. He didn't really have much to provide in terms of advice; sure he could just reveal himself and challenge the whole gang to fight him, but he doubt that the others would be so willing to support that idea. Malakaus simply kept his eyes open in case any of the bandits for some reason left the cove, but it seemed that the group was still debating how to approach. Malakaus remembered his time as a bandit himself, and figured that perhaps his insight could help the group come to a decision. "These brigands prey on the weak and weaken because they lack skill of arms. Even their strongest only has experience and his health on his side. Altogether their threat is that they outnumber us, but I doubt they're all gathered into one area. This cove is small, and if it isn't only storing stolen goods, it also must house the bandits who call it home. From the size I would guess there is about six or eight of them. They aren't expecting us so they are likely spread out going about their daily business. If they're competent there should be at least three guards, but given that they're skooma eating khajits, there is likely only one of them doing their job." Malakaus gave his insight and continued to keep watch. He had his crossbow out and loaded with lightning bolts. He also had his own scroll of invisibility ready to use to save Noelle the mana unless she was going to follow the captain's orders to use chameleon. Not as fool proof as invisibility, but anything was better than nothing he supposed.

[The New Yorker]

Sarel was visibly annoyed at Sharee’s trepidation, and over lowly scum no less. Wasn’t she a Shadowscale of legend? By Boeth, Sarel thought to himself, if she’s afraid of going up against a dozen bandits, how will she fare in a sea battle against a frigate? Or a village raid?

Sarel caught his anger, his sudden viciousness. Other people, mortals, might not have such foresight to allow them this level of consciousness, but Dunmers were different, and they always would be. He was agitated because he hadn’t had any herba, and certainly no Blue, for a few days. It was a frustration to say the least, and he wondered now what that meant for him personally. Did this mean that he was a better person while high? Or was it that the drug did not change him, but simply highlighted a different part of him, hidden somewhere within at all times. Sarel felt a little confused by this; if it were true, what did it mean for him? It was an opportunity for a decision, Sarel noticed, as life tends to present a person with so often. And as so many decisions, it was not something to be taken lightly, and not something to be spurred into without proper consideration. Sarel decided he’d wait till later.

But, his convictions stayed the same, nonetheless. Sharee was appearing weak, something dangerous. Sarel wondered if any of this would ever be seen by the sailors. If so, it could spell the end of Sharee; that is to say, if she does not escape beforehand, probably leaving a bomb in the boat, or something. That seemed her style. Malaukas was done speaking by the time Sarel was ready to speak, reawakened by the inanity of the caution taken here.

“We are not run-of-the-mill pirates, damnit.” Sarel had his hands on his hips, his helmet hung off of his belt. “We are soldiers, and assassins, and swordsmen, and berserkers, and sorcerers. We are killers, our skills and resilience tempered in the heat of blood and battle.” The Dunmer spoke in an almost mocking tone, though it was clear he was serious about the words he spoke. “And here we are, worrying about logistics against brigidens and fucking malcontents. I’ve slayed beasts and monsters with more power in their left bollock than the men and women who await us.” His voice was raised now, but only slightly, only enough to get his point across. “I will smoke them out. I will scorch them where they lay, and force them to come out. It’s the simplest trick in the book. What Malakaus says is clear, we all know it to be true. We will lead them to the slaughter just as easily as we did several dozen imperial sailors, and we’ll do it without losing anyone. That I can assure you, captain. So why are we wasting time? Let’s chameleon people to ease the approach and then launch the distraction. If they charge me, I fall back to the ambush. If they don’t, I go in there with a hand full of fire balls, and force them out.” Sarel finished, a little humor resurfacing at the end. Sarel hated indecision, this was instilled in him from his decades of training with Beilin. He had no choice in the matter, it was ingrained. But he would not even question it now, it’d served him well so far. So he voiced his predilections and laid them bare, for all to see. It may seem as disloyalty to Sharee, but Sarel viewed it as a warning, a show of his solidarity and a friendly reminder to remain strong and judicious. Besides, Sarel wasn’t a young Breton girl, he wasn’t one to take so harsh a punishment so easily.

[EliteCommander]

Sharee did not interrupt Sarel through his rant, but that did not mean she wasn't judging him. She saw him fight when they were taking the ship, and she knew he could do so intelligently, but he was really showing some signs of arrogance here, the dangerous kind too. Once he was done talking, she spoke up, still in a whisper, but with a firm enough tone that he and everyone else could easily tell she was serious.

"Oh, so I suppose your plan is to swim out there into the cove, sit in the water, and throw fireballs at them while they pelt you with arrows? Because if you haven't noticed, that's the only way you could get a decent angle on them. If you truly believe everything you just said, then you're a more arrogant fool than I thought. If you're fighting a strong, skilled opponent, then you give it everything you have. You think about every approach and outcome, then use every trick and piece of knowledge at your disposal to kill your enemy. If you're fighting an unskilled, "easy" opponent...then you give it everything you have. You think about every approach and outcome, then use every trick and piece of knowledge you have to grind them into dust. Unless you have a very specific reason not to. All it takes is one lucky shot from an unskilled archer to kill the most talented warrior. It only takes a single misstep to allow a novice opponent a killing blow. I don't care how good you are, no one can get it right every single time. It might not happen often, but if you charge headfirst into enough fights, you'll meet that lucky arrow eventually. I don't care if we're fighting mudcrabs, we'll be fighting them smart. We're going to get in there under the surface of the water, establish positions on opposite sides of the docks, then push them from both sides. If you're right and these bandits are pushovers, then we'll just kill them extra quickly." Sharee chided before shifting her attention to Noelle. "Now, if you would, go ahead and apply that chameleon."

[Ryonara]

Noelle rolled her eyes as Malakaus and Sarel dismissed the threat the bandits were. "Why is it always the men who think like this?" While she agreed to the general idea that the bandits they were facing wouldn't exactly be the most threatening foes they have ever encountered (She has fought and defeated bandits in the past), she agreed to Sharee's sediment that no enemy should be underestimated. Noelle relied on others to dismiss her combat ability to kill them, and who knows how these bandits would think. Because she didn't know, she didn't make any assumptions. Perhaps the others would think that Sharee was being overly cautious, but to Noelle it was better to be careful than to be reckless. Not that Noelle spoke out.

On Sharee's command Noelle applied Chameleon on everyone. Noelle didn't particularly like this spell due to how costly it was. She gave everyone 80% Chameleon, which should allow them to sneak by as long as they continued to be stealthy. It wasn't complete invisibility but at least now someone like say, Malakaus who was in full heavy armor, wouldn't be immediately spotted unless someone was looking. "We have to hurry, this spell will only last a minute." Noelle drank a magic potion to restore her spent energy; 80% Chameleon for six people took a lot of energy out of her.

[Lucius Cypher]

Malakaus was a bit surprised to hear Sarel speak out. He always thought the dunmer was a more taciturn fellow, but perhaps like the orc, the dunmer was hungering for battle or thirsting for skooma. He couldn't blame Sarel to be in such a rush with what they could gain, but Malakaus had to control himself. He wasn't about to let his desires overtake his sensibility. Sharee was right when she said that all it would take is on wayward stab or a lucky shot to end them, and there wasn't much they could do against chance. Even if Malakaus had the highest survivability thanks to his armor, he knew how he could be defeated, and all it would take is for one of those bandits to accidentally stumble upon a weakness or take advantage of an opening. He wanted to do battle, but he also wanted to survive it. Sharee at least was finally starting to dole out orders and had Noelle cloak everyone with some sort of invisibility spell. He could still see everyone faintly, but he was sure that the bandits won't notice them so long as they don't make their presence too obvious. And while Malakaus isn't normally the sneaking type, with the sound of his movements and armored Muffled and his physical profile rendered almost translucent, he was certain that he could sneak to the cove undetected.

Before going into the water Malakaus drank a potion of waterbreathing, which he still had since the first time he took the ship. After that he took out shield and strapped it onto his arm, to assist him in moving through the water as well as to protect him when they charge. He considered taking out his crossbow but he decided to keep a hand free in case he had to grab something. This also made him think that he should get around to figuring out how to redesign his crossbow so that he doesn't need both hands to operate it, but that wasn't something he needed to think about right now. Looking in cove Malakaus spoke quietly to the captain. "I am ready when you are captain. Just give the orders to move."

[EliteCommander]

"Come on, let's go quick before this wears off." Sharee ordered, quickly taking the lead as she moved out from the bushes onto the beach and toward the water. Since they were all next to one another, it was easy enough for them to see each other, but not from too far of a distance. As she reached the water, she turned and looked at the silhouetted shapes behind her. It was good that Malakaus had a waterbreathing potion for himself. She actually had one she brought she would have given him, as he was not going to be doing much of anything that resembled swimming in that armor. For the rest of them, the swim was short enough that they could just hold their breath.

They would need to split into two groups, so Sharee decided to give command of the second to Malakaus, mostly because his silhouette was large and easy to identify. That, and they needed at least one person on each team that could handle a frontline fight. "Serge, Sarel, follow me, we'll hit the right side of the dock. Everyone else, follow Malakaus to the left. Let's go."

Sharee slipped quietly into the water, then swam on the surface to the very edge of the rock wall that was breaking their line of sight to the inside. With every second that passed, the spell concealing them was fading, so she quickly dove under and swam into the cove as soon as everyone else had caught up. She swam as quickly under the surface as she could get away with while still allowing the others, especially Malakaus, to keep up. After a few seconds, they split off into their two groups and headed to opposite sides of the dock. Sharee could see just above the surface, but the lighting inside the cove was not exactly good, and she could not see the location of every bandit. Hopefully, most of them would be inside the cave, so they would be able to establish positions on either side of the door.

Slowly, Sharee crept up to the edge of the dock and grabbed on to one of the supports. From where she was, she could see that there was a bandit immediately above her. He was sitting on the dock facing off to the left fishing, and completely unaware of her presence. He would be an easy enough target, but as soon as he was dead, she would no doubt be spotted. She could feel the chameleon spell wearing off, so she could wait no longer. Grabbing one of her daggers from its sheath, she grabbed a hold of the edge of the dock and pulled herself up. The Khajiit heard some movement behind him and turned around, but he was unable to stop her blade from entering his throat. Unfortunately, with the chameleon effect completely gone, the other bandits on the dock immediately saw her. She moved the dagger to her left hand and drew her cutlass while the others climbed up on both sides of the dock. At a glance, Sharee could see five bandits, but there were no doubt more inside, and when one of them shouted out that they were under attack, there was also no doubt that they would be rushing outside very soon. The bandits did have to grab their weapons, which were scattered around them, but that would only serve as an equalizer to allow the rest of Sharee's officers to climb up and get ready to fight.