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Knigets

The Uprising.

Party does not find Veiled on ship despite best attempts. Veiled did not make it on ship due to security.

The Vaka reaches Drakeni swamp isle 3 days out from P'Coh. It is a low lying landmass mostly just below the surface of the ocean, like Louisiana swamp. Umplby will report he has been here once before as an acolyte, isle is mostly composed of single giant tree and root system, like cypress. Locals are Drakeni, bipedal offshoots of the great Drakens. Isle was mass of overhanging tree branches, always dark especially humid. Lots of bugs. Trees, which were all part of one giant tree, stretched for dozens of miles, priests had to enter in small boats and took a day to find the Drakeni. Senior acolyte spent time tormenting Umplby with threats of trading him to the Drakeni for sacrifice. (Tormentor died two years later rushing into a burning bar to save patrons when roof collapsed. No survivors.)

Swamp Isle is now mess of broken tree trunks, scoured by tidal wave from P'Coh quake. No signs of life, even the bugs are gone. Give party moment to contemplate distruction, then deck watch reports creature swimming from wreckage. Alligator shaped head pops up, claims salvage rights to Vaka. Holds for a moment, then breaks into a big laugh. Welcomes Vaka to "De grand desola-shee-on, eh? W'at youz'en be wonnen dawn here, eh?" No food is available for trade, but the Drakeni introduces himeself as EverRude and offers to sign on as the ships cook for passage away from Swamp Isle. "De eggs be dead, Mon Ami, swept 'way wid tee Mudder tree." Can use magic to heal, make food, tell the future, assist others. If refused, says he'll just follow along until they get hungry enough to say yes.

Three days after leaveing Swamp Isle Umplby and Klagas ask Eliza to marry them in her position of ship captain. Klagas asks Poe to be the Sword of Honor (kills groom if he stands her up at the altar), Umplby asks Skyler to be Sacrifice of Grace (Defends the groom if he gets cold feet, possibly by marrying the bride himself). Rest of party is asked to stand as witnesses to the ceremony (or duel). Couple adopt P'Coh as new surname.

Morning of return to Freeport Shareesh's ship flies overhead. Anyone flying up with the Apa Charm hits a wall of Dispel Magic and falls into the sea.

Upon arrival at Freeport Isle Party sees the NE side of the island is washed clean of vegetation, scraped to bare rock. The custom cutter Bob comes out, heavily armed, and escorted by a second ship which moves to flank the Vaka. BB is carried aboard escorted by a strong armed contingent. She greets the party, congratulates Eliza on her captainship, then demands the Vaka's papers and scrutinizes them thoroughly. During all this the flanking ship maintains a war footing with archers and a small bow mounted catapult.

Bob finally accepts the Vaka is allowed entrance. She lists off new rules currently being enforced:

- Be prepared for secondary inspection at docks.
- All new visitors will be magically interrogated.
- A dusk curfew has been established, violations are punishable by imprisonment, resistance is met by lethal force.

At dock party sees a larger ship at anchor by the ampetheater with people in chains under armed guard. Arhem says it must be a captured slaver ship and the crew is being held till the next auction. Vaka is met by another strong armed force. The party and crew are required to disembarck, the crew is checked against the ship manifest, Umplby, Klagas, and EverRude are questioned by Roz Bumblibuck while he has an active Detect Truth spell. Roz checks their name, why they are entering Freeport, if they are associated with the Reaver, and their intentions while in Freeport. All pass, and Roz gives them "pass-ports" allowing them entry. Roz then informs the party they are required to report to the Council of Commodores to make their report. Looking over the results of the ship inspection he congratulates the Party on the rich haul from The Quick, and tells them he will let them know ths custom tax owed. Umplby steps up, puts on his official face, and offers to "discuss" the issue with Bumblibuck. Klagas stays and starts peppering Klagas with questions to interfere with his negotiations with Umplby, and EverRude demands Arham take him into town "to where dey make smoot skin food, cheri."

Traveling to the council the party sees signs of unrest:

- Several burned buildings, including the Clenched Fist.
- Other buildings have illusiory torches hanging in front of their door.
- The Weary Traveler's Rest has scorchmarks on the walls and guards outside. Shareesh's ship floats overhead, armed crew at the rails.
- Citizens move in groups, armed and with suspicious eyes.

In the Council pandemonium breaks out at the number of potential Created at large. Recriminations break out about the sporadic and uncoordinated searches which have occurred, with the admirals all blaming their opponents for the issues. This transitions to arguements of the Party killed the only Created to survive the "birth" (Where did the tracks come from then?) vs. "Where are they then?" to calls to dredge the harbor to commendeering Shareesh's ship for an aerial search.

Grandmama proposes a permanent organized 'Watch' as part of the Customs Service. Other admirals shout it down, but there are many fewer voices raised in opposition and most of the commodores remain silent. The loudest opposing voice is Adm. Liaf Cissor, owner of The Weary Traveler's Rest. The Commodore of the Council asks the Party for their suggestions, defers further discussion to a committee.

Adm. Holloway puts a motion to the Council to hold a slave auction the following day, and it is passed on a voice vote. Grandmama says Holloway's sons were part of the group arrested for attacking the Party, and that group will be among the lots available at the sale, and the party will be well off after their families buy them back, and that the Party, as the aggrevied party, is required to attend to collect any earnings. If the Party suggests buying the scions for barganing power, Grandmama says "That would violate the Code, just like if they'd held the auction while you were at sea." She then orders the Party to see their ship is secured and to meet her at The Weary Traveler's Rest for a celebratory dinner. She extends the invitation to Arham, Umplby and Klagas as well, but, after discussion, not EverRude.

At dinner Grandmama

- Praises Eliza's performance, officially promotes her to Commodore
- Grudgingly acknowledges other's existance,
- Gifts Eliza a moderate lease on on a small mid-level mansion,
- Mentions Eliza needs to buy a ship
- - Suggests either the Vaka or the captured slaver (Although it's a bit of a tub.
- Tells Eliza to hire a steward to run her day-to-day affairs, mentions rent is due in a few days.
- Offers Arham promotion to Captain under Commodore Eliza. He looks at Poe and accepts.

Manquoba enters, wounded and bloody (although most of the blood doesn't appear to be his). Calls Grandmama Tremaine, says the slaves have escaped the Ampetheatre and are rampaging through town, trying to escape. All crews are being called to arms. He is carrying a bottle and a small giftwrapped box.

Grandmama tells Party to gear up and fetch crew. Once prepped they are to find a fight and head towards it. Try not to kill too many fellow Freeporters, and be careful because incidents like this have a high rate of 'accidents' for House scions. Final reminder: "Don't kill anyone making you money tomorrow!"

The Party makes their way through town to the Vaka. Has to deal with fleeing townspeople and the occasional slaver pack. When they get to the Vaka's dock they see Klagas and EverRude leading the crew in holding off a pack of slavers with Umplby in support. Trapped between Party and crew, slavers are quickly killed or captured.

Once the Vaka is secured one of the crew points to the slavers' ship (Slave 1) which is making a break for the gate. If the Party chooses to go after Slave 1 improvise ship-to-ship combat. If they lose or choose to focus on fighting in town the Comet flys overhead and drops flaming barrels of oil, burning the ship to the waterline. If the party decides to fight in town they are found by the waitress from The Weary Traveler's Rest, who tells them a band of slavers has broken into the inn and is attempting to hijack the Comet. With that they could firebomb the town. The party enters The Traveler and finds Adm. Holloway dead in his nightgown, and Shareesh's bodyguards on the verge of defeat. Either way slavers are eventually defeated.

Aftermath of the battle:

Party is invited to Council of Commodore meeting where Admirals discuss what happened, how, and what comes next.

Grandmama, for some reason, is smoking a cigar. Manquoba is also there. Both are splattered with blood and standing close to each other. Tremaine tells Eliza and the party to listen, learn, and follow their self-interest.

Commander Bumblibuck reports:

- The slavers confessed to bribing the officer commanding their guards, a captain in Adm. Patarsan's faction. The traitor's body was found in the street, dead from sword cuts. No idea who killed him.

- Physical damage is light, casualities moderate. Most slavers were focused on escaping.

Slavers generally broke into two bands:

- - Band 1 gained entry to The Weary Traveler's Rest, attempting to hijack the Comet. Adm. Liaf Cissor is found dead in his bathrobe, evidently killed while defending his inn. The rest of the slavers were killed by Shareesh's bodyguards.

- - Band 2 made for the Slave 1, with results determined above.

Grandmama announces she is going to buy as many lots of slavers as possible and line the road to the slave camps with their crucified bodies. Adm. Arneson questions if it is appropriate to still hold the auction. Cdre. Jacson challenges Arneson of being soft on crime. Adm. Liaf Cissor's wife and co-owner of The Weary Traveler's RestAdm. Srif Cissor, calls Arneson a coward and accuses him of disrespecting her husband. Insults fly and physical blows are exchanged between the Adm.'s followers before the Commodore of the Council can regain order. Both Adm.s Cissor and Arneson pledge to crucify the most slavers, which leads to the other admirals to boast they will outdo the others. Cdre. Jacson asks the Party, as the "aggrieved persons" and heroes of the night what they would like to do. Regardless of their advice, Council votes to proceed with the auction.

The auction starts at 4 Bells on the Dawn watch with the funeral of Adm. Cissor. Adm. Tremaine, again accompanied by Manquoba, is wearing all black including a face covering veil. Cissor's funeral pyre is also being used to burn the remaining slaver officers alive. They are buried neck deep in the firewood.

Mrs. Bramblibuck performs the service, recounting Adm. Cissor's role in establishing Freeport and his role in transforming it to the town of laws and traditions we know today. She has the audience stand, and leads them in the traditional benediction: "Your Watch Is Ended." When the rest of the audience sits Manquoba remains standing. Playing the foriegner card he apologizes for breaking custom, but praises Adm. Cissor for assisting a poor immigrant and pledges 500 guilder toward a bell and tower so Adm. Cissor's memory will "reverberate for the rest of time, and call Freeprot to arms in its time of need." Grandmama slowly stands, and through her veil, pledges an additional 1000 guilder, pledges to match the 500 guilder. The other admiralty families reluctantly do the same.

After the pyre is lit, and punctuated by the screams of the officers, the Commodore of the Council auctions off the slavers in lots of 10. The first couple of lots go for a couple hundred guilder apiece, but as the supply dwindles the prices reach into the hundreds and then trend over a thousand. The last lot goes to Adm. Arneson for over 2000 guilder.

After the enslaved slavers are led away to their crucifixion, the nobles to be auctioned are brought out. They are wearing their finest frippery and obviously treat this as a lark. They are offered either as a lot or apiece, and and their families begin individual bids, occasionaly bidding up another family's child to artificially inflate the price. The nobles on the block smirk at the low bidders and high-five when a new high bid is offered. After the bidding starts to slow at about 1000 guilder apiece Grandmama stands and removes her veil, reveiling a face 30 years younger and in a strong voice announces "House Moon will purchase the lot for 25,000 guilder." The crowd falls silent and the nobles on the block turn white. "Apiece," Grandmama finishes.

Some of the admirals faint. Several of the youth vomit. One of them, slow to catch on, holds up his hand for a high-five no one returns. Stunned, Commodore of the Council asks for countering bids. All he receives is scattered weeping from several of the nobles' family members in the crowd. Grandmama takes Monquoba's arm and leads the party out of the family box and says she will meet the party at their new home.

The party arrives at their new domicile to find Butler and Umplby have aired out the lower level and laid out a light lunch. Gradmama and Monquoba arrive almost an hour later, flushed and happy, escorted by a strong crew of armed guards. Grandmama compliments Butler on the spread, and he mentions Umplby did most of the organizing.

Grandmama raises her glass in a toast: To what is best in life - crushing your opponents, driving them before you, hearing the lamentations of their enslaved children. She shoots the wine back, then raises her eybrows in surprise, asking where the party got it. Umplby gestures to the sea encrusted bottle on the table, saying it was "spoils from the sea."

Grandmama throws the floor open for questions, casually drops in she and Manquoba are going to marry. Umplby looks speculative at this. (PCs roll Spot check to notice.)

Idea came from Manquoba, money was borrowed from Torchies. Repayment will be endorsement of their ideas in Council and laws restricting magic use. Part of the moeny is to transition the Moon family from being only pirates to being a mercantile force. This will involve establishing offices offices in may different lands, establishing communication between them, and exchanging intelligence.

Enslaved children will be sent to camps to 'service' other slaves. Families which back Grandmama in Council will find their scions receive duties more suitable for their station.

Goal is to be crowned Queen and pass that title to her heir.

Adm. Arneson appears, is allowed entry alone and unarmed. Tries to bluster, is deflated by Grandmama and becomes broken old man. Pledges support for Moon family, is told his granddaughter, and the other scions, has been transported off island 'for safekeeping.'

Scions are actually in Torchies' headquarters, in Unwoven room.