kpwlt 2023/01/23(Mon)00:21 No. 1054480 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta awakens in a pathetic little dory in the middle of the sea. Looking around the vessel, she finds she has nought but her unloaded flintlock, a canteen full of water, and a dull headache. It also seems that she can recall nothing from the previous few days.

kpwlt 2023/01/23(Mon)00:21 No. 1054481 ID: 1173be
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In all regards, it is a beautiful day, except for the fact that the water is a horrendous oily black. Nicoletta's stomach tells her that it's about to be lunchtime.

kpwlt 2023/01/23(Mon)00:21 No. 1054482 ID: 1173be
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Off in the distance, a large ship stands on the weird water, its sails furled. Another dinghy sits in the sea closer to Nicoletta. It seems to be carrying something underneath a maroon cloth.

Apart from her headache and some joint stiffness, Nicoletta thinks she could most likely row as far as the ship. However, it is more a question of whether whatever's on either boat will be worth the effort.

Let's check out the dinghy

What the devil was offloaded to that dinghy? Well, if there's no land in sight it's better to get (back?) on the ship. Ration that water until we know there's a bigger supply around.

Check your pockets, see what you have, and if you have bullets to reload the gun.

wonder if there is an oil spill

anyway, check the small boat, see what is under the covers

Considering you don't remember the last few days your navigation predicament seem very dire. A larger vessel should significantly increase your survival chances even if it brings new unknown risks.

>>1054480
Now Nicoletta remember what got you into that mess

So Nicoletta do see any of the ships flying flags?

kpwlt 2023/01/24(Tue)20:23 No. 1054647 ID: 1173be
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>Now Nicoletta remember what got you into that mess

Unfortunately, Nicoletta cannot remember what could have gotten her into this situation. In fact, the latest thing she can remember is her captain treating everyone to a round of drinks at the pub following a successful day at sea.

>Check your pockets

One pocket reveals itself to contain nothing, however, the other proves to be more bountiful.
Nicoletta adds the most weevily piece of hardtack she has ever seen to her inventory. It might come in handy.

kpwlt 2023/01/24(Tue)20:23 No. 1054648 ID: 1173be
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>Check the dinghy

Okay. Enough faffing about. Time to check under the dark red cloth.
Nicoletta rows over and uncovers what looks to be some sort of cabin boy snoozing under a cloth. From what she can tell, she's likely a couple of years his senior, and most definitely a number of ranks his superior.

She decides not to wake him for the moment, partly so she won't have to deal with him, but mostly because he looks rather peaceful there.

kpwlt 2023/01/24(Tue)20:23 No. 1054649 ID: 1173be
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>A larger vessel should significantly increase your survival chances even if it brings new unknown risks.

Nicoletta would tend to agree.
There's no sense in carrying some unconscious fellow onto her boat, however, so she gets into his instead and rows over to an oddly convenient rope ladder that seems to be hanging from the ship.

However, now Nic faces a dilemma. She doesn't really want to leave this guy here unattended, but it might also be a hassle to deal with him now.

tie the covers to his boat, and the ladder so he doesnt drift away. Then, we can go exploring the ship. When he wakes up, he can climb the ladder later.

Take the oars with you so he doesnt row away and leaves you stranded here when you explore the ship.

I say wake him up, quietly. If there's something dangerous on the ship then he might know.

Tie him to the ship and climb up. If you remember going to the pub, then you can't be too far away from shore right now, hopefully.

Ditto to waking him quietly. He seems harmless! Unless you reckon he's going to panic and turn your ship exploration into an annoying escort mission, no harm in letting him know you're heading off.

>>1054647
>Unfortunately, Nicoletta cannot remember what could have gotten her into this situation. In fact, the latest thing she can remember is her captain treating everyone to a round of drinks at the pub following a successful day at sea.

Hm seems like the classic case of Shanghaiing or
as the sea dogs like to call it crimping. Although you usually wake up in the Gally of the ship and not in a raft, also it usually happens to landlubbers and not actual crewmembers, which you presumbalby are.

kpwlt 2023/01/25(Wed)20:50 No. 1054714 ID: 1173be
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>seems like the classic case of Shanghaiing

Nic would normally think so too, but for that to be the case the crimps are either incompetent or don't care too much about losing her, which makes her think that something else is afoot. However, if it turns out that she has been crimped, she'll be sure to deal justice to the culprit.

>wake him up
>don't wake him up

Carefully weighing up both options, Nicoletta eventually comes up with a plan that would ideally give her the best of both worlds.

She ties the little dinghy to the ship, climbs the ladder, and and calls out to the fellow below.

He stirs, and whines out a demand for five more minutes.

It now seems to Nicoletta that he's awake, though she thinks it would be dishonest to tell anyone that.

kpwlt 2023/01/25(Wed)20:50 No. 1054715 ID: 1173be
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Interestingly enough, the ladder doesn't seem to be attached to the ship, but rather hanging on via a couple of grapnel anchors.

Almost like someone had to throw it up here.

Oh well, Nicoletta is now free to explore the ship.

Toward the bow, there are two doors, as well as one staircase leading up to the quarterdeck, and one leading below the deck.

On the port door, there is an impression of a golden anchor, and on the starboard door, there is a heavy-looking, golden padlock.

kpwlt 2023/01/25(Wed)20:50 No. 1054716 ID: 1173be
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Toward the stern, there are another two doors, and another staircase leading up to the quarterdeck.

The port and starboard doors both sport signs stating "GALLEY" and "MESS" respectively.

And, of course, there's a ladder smack dab in the middle of the deck leading up to the crow's nest.

It might be a good idea to go into the mess and see if there's any good food to be had. Remember to stay on the lookout, however - the crew may not take the presence of a stowaway all too well.

Bless the mess.

>>1054716
Might as well check the mess hall. We can maybe scavenge something from it, or at least check to see how long this place has been screwed over.

A bit queer how there's nobody on-deck when it's daylight out, isn't it? And it seems like somebody beat you to the punch in regards to the whole trespassing issue. The plot's already beginning to thicken.

Speaking of thickening... I don't believe anyone has asked this yet: Is the sea normally a vast, oily tar pit?

And yeah, mess is where I'd go to look for food and life aboard this ship.

Surprising that the doors would written signs above them.

I say let's check the floor to see if there is anything useful here, then head to the galley.

Also, what year and months is ir?

kpwlt 2023/01/26(Thu)22:08 No. 1054773 ID: 1173be
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>check the floor

It is worth mentioning that this deck seems to be entirely barren, save for the signs of salt beginning to accumulate.

>what year and month is it?

To Nicoletta's best knowledge, it is late August in the winter of 1683.

>Is the sea normally a vast, oily tar pit?

Absolutely not! If Nicoletta accurately recalls most (if not all) of her many years at sea, the water generally ranges from a stunning cerulean to a murky brown. This is the first time she's ever seen it black.

>Check out the Mess

The Mess contains little but a table, six wooden stools, and a lavish looking chair which seems to be covered with felt. Nicoletta believes it to be the captain's, and recalls that her captain had something similar.

On the table, illuminating the room, there is a candlestick containing what looks to have once been a mighty candle.

In front of that, and closest to Nicoletta, there is also a plate containing a rather stale looking brick of bread.

Between the candle and the bread, there is a sprinkling of a substance which looks to be salt, and a little golden crucifix.

Sitting at the head of the table, there is a big, black bottle, probably with something alcoholic in it. Now, Nicoletta understands that she needs her wits about her right now, so she won't drink it this minute, but what could be the harm in taking it?

Nicoletta adds the bottle to her inventory.

kpwlt 2023/01/26(Thu)22:08 No. 1054774 ID: 1173be
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>Check out the Galley

The Galley is a mess.

There are several hooks for hanging pots, pans, knives, and various other things on the wall, but most of them are bare. It seems that some things have been strewn across the floor, but most have been abducted.

What Nicoletta can only guess is a hybrid between a sink and a counter for preparing food is overflowing with what certainly smells like rancid meat. The repulsive chunks are packed so tightly together that their juices are spilling out and staining the side of the counter.

Interestingly, it looks like someone stepped in this meat juice at some point in the past, and then proceeded to drag their feet across the floor and out onto the deck.

While pondering this profound arrangement, Nicoletta is interrupted by a loud crack, followed by a splash coming from the deck.

Peek out the door to check if anything is happening on deck.

Also, take the stale bread if it's even remotely still edible.

>>1054774
Get that knife before you go out.

>>1054774
I give 1 in 3 odds that's human meat, grab a knife and prepare to defend thyself.

Pick up the nearest deadly kitchen implement and cautiously check out what's happening on the deck. It might also be a good idea to check on your friend in the dinghy.

Take knife, don't take anything else. The less you have weighing yourself down the better in case you need to run (and I suspect you will). Check on your pal if possible.

Let's go to the mess

rip cabin boy

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)04:52 No. 1054908 ID: 1173be
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>Take the knife and see what's going down

Nicoletta seizes the sharp knife and races out onto the deck.

However, she immediately drops her knife, as, in place of whatever beastie or marauder she was expecting, there stands the cabin boy, wearing a sheepish grin and standing just far enough from the hole in the gunwale where the ladder once was that he can't be accused of attempting to obscure it.

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)04:52 No. 1054909 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta allows a shaky laugh and pats the lad on the shoulder in an attempt to lighten her own mood.

As the two watch the dinghy drift away, the fellow tells Nicoletta that his name is Damien, and she returns the favour.

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)04:52 No. 1054910 ID: 1173be
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The pair spend a bit longer discussing what they both know, and they find each other kindred spirits in that they know absolutely nothing about what's going on.

Their chatting is quickly interrupted by a ghoulish murmur emanating from the crow's nest...

i hope we got everything useful off the dinghy.

Anyways, uhh... Step away from the crow's nest just enough so you can get a good view of whoever's at the top, and wield the bottle as a weapon!

Given the bizarre state of the sea, the abandoned-ness of this ship, and our mutual amnesia, it's safe to assume that something extremely fucky is going on here. Like, not your usual kind of fucky, either; let's shelve that press-gang theory for now, seeing as we can't safely assume anything under these odd circumstances.

Get up on the topdeck to see if you can get a better view of whatever's up there. Maybe call out to them. If it's a nasty, better to provoke it into a great fall than be at the top of one yourself.

How much combat experience do you and Damien have vs other people? Wildlife? Regardless, call out to it.

>>1054910
Ask who's up there.

Try and get a good look at what's up there, and call out to ask who or what it is. Gotta be cautious, everything seems very, VERY off here.

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)21:09 No. 1054965 ID: 1173be
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>get away from the crow's nest and, if possible, try to see what's up there

Nicoletta retreats onto the sternward quarterdeck, and Damien follows suit. The pair spy a nice looking telescope.

After checking the lenses, Nicoletta peers through the eyepiece.

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)21:09 No. 1054966 ID: 1173be
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Sitting, hunched, atop the crow's nest is an ill-looking sailor. He seems conscious, but looks as though he's teetering on the edge of a coma. A likely candidate for the pained noise Nicoletta and Damien heard.

He also seems to be fettered to the mast for some reason.

kpwlt 2023/01/28(Sat)21:10 No. 1054967 ID: 1173be
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Figuring it couldn't hurt to look at the opposing quarterdeck and swinging the device around, Nicoletta sees that there already seems to be someone manning the helm.

How strange.

Go and check on the sailor atop the crow's nest first. The fact that the helmsman isn't doing anything about his clear pain is pretty suspicious.

Well, the guy up there is chained up and you don't have the key. Ask the pilot wtf is going on.

Betchu the guy up there has some kind of zombie virus. Consult helmsman.

I get the feeling the helmsman went cookoo bananas and decided to force the other guy into watching for land as he sails the ship.
I wonder how he manages to move it with no sails.

Anyway, we should probably free the guy on the crow's nest.

well, you know the old pirate rule
"Never trust a man wearing striped pants"
With the guy above being in chains, you probably have to find a key of some sorts, and KICK THE HELMSMAN'S ASS

kpwlt 2023/01/29(Sun)20:46 No. 1054995 ID: 1173be
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[Sorry about the weird ID, my internet has been really struggling today]

>go to the helmsman, prepare for a fight

Nicoletta and Damien retrieve the knife and head up to the quarterdeck.

Strangely, the man seems to be chained to the wheel.
When he sees the pair, he scowls and says
"Why are you here? Go help Kevin."

Seeing that his words have served only to stupefy the companions, he grumbles to himself.

"Listen, I can get us all out of here. I don't know exactly where we are, but we can't be more than a few days from land. If you can unfurl the sails and weigh anchor, we can all come out of this alive."

kpwlt 2023/01/29(Sun)20:46 No. 1054996 ID: 1173be
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He tugs his chain uncomfortably and points to the crow’s nest.

"Right now, however, you need to help Kevin. He hasn't got much time left. He's been up there for ages without so much as a drop of water. Go give him water, then I'll tell you as much as you want to know."

Taking a solemn glance at the knife, he adds
"You can even kill me if it makes you happy, just go help Kevin.

>>1054996
Odd that you and the cabin boy are the only ones unbound so far.
Well, first check what's in the bottle. If it's *too* alcoholic then it will only make that thirst problem worse. In that case you'll need to see if you can find some water somewhere.

Go to help "Kevin" - any questions we have for the helmsman can wait. As the previous suggestor said, it would be best to find something that isn't alcoholic.

I’m pretty sure letting him drink from the bottle filled with the same liquid from the ocean is a bad idea. Your canteen however, is FILLED with water! Use that instead.

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:47 No. 1055084 ID: 1173be
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>I’m pretty sure letting him drink from the bottle filled with the same liquid from the ocean is a bad idea. Your canteen however, is FILLED with water! Use that instead.

Nicoletta and Damien head up to the crow's nest.
Kevin looks horrible. His eyes are sunken and his tongue is swollen, to say the least.

Nicoletta pours some water into his mouth, and he seems to awaken, pulling all the latent strength in his body to hold on to the canteen, pouring over half the water into his mouth, much to Damien's amusement.

While Nicoletta helps Kevin with his water, Damien finds a paper cartridge and adds it to his inventory.

It'll take a while for Kevin to perk up now, so the pair discuss what they should do next. Damien believes that they should wait with Kevin to make sure he's alright.

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:48 No. 1055085 ID: 1173be
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While thinking about what to do, Nicoletta looks outwards, to see if she can spot any land.

There's no land in sight, and the water is that horrible black as far as the eye can see.

In fact, Nicoletta can't really see anything in the water, even the little boats are gone.

Except...

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:48 No. 1055086 ID: 1173be
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...

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:48 No. 1055087 ID: 1173be
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...

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:48 No. 1055088 ID: 1173be
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...

kpwlt 2023/02/01(Wed)00:48 No. 1055089 ID: 1173be
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Perhaps Nicoletta is a bit dehydrated herself...

Try to ignore what you just saw, and see if you can't find a way to get the chains off Kevin.

If you can't, it might be an idea to leave Damian with Kevin to look after him, and go to talk to the helmsman. You need answers.

Spooky.
Try to see what kind of lock is keeping Kevin chained to the pole, as well as the helmsman (although I still am suspicious of his striped pantaloons) With any luck, we could lockpick the dammed thing and break him free! Probably.
Anyways, after inspecting the lock, go back down and check on that helmsman to see what he says!

When you next have some time alone with Damien, casually ask if he's seen anything strange in the water. For now, go talk to the helmsman.

Also, Nicoletta, what can you remember about your life before waking up on the dory? Anything that might warrant eternal damnation and/or a stint in purgatory?

Immediate thing to worry about is finding a way to detach those prisoners. Next is finding a way to get more drinkable water and edible food.

Remain calm.
Ask Kevin if he remembers anything. What's with the black water?

kpwlt 2023/02/02(Thu)03:22 No. 1055127 ID: 1173be
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>Also, Nicoletta, what can you remember about your life before waking up on the dory? Anything that might warrant eternal damnation and/or a stint in purgatory?

Nicoletta struggles to believe that she's done anything to deserve divine punishment, unless seafaring is a sin, in which case she's really in for it.
As for her life, her childhood consisted mainly of boring, but quiet, Tuscan life by the seaside. It only really had anything interesting in it after she shook hands with a foreign captain one day, got on his ship, and never looked back.

>see if you can't find a way to get the chains off Kevin

Taking a closer look, Nicoletta can see that it looks like the lock on the mast's shackle has had a panel fastened over it with nails that look like they could crucify a fully armoured knight. As for Kevin's shackle, the keyhole is still exposed, but it has a weird shape, presumably to interfere with any pickers. Most unfortunate.

kpwlt 2023/02/02(Thu)03:22 No. 1055128 ID: 1173be
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>Ask Kevin if he remembers anything. What's with the black water?

Luckily enough, Kevin seems to be able to communicate now. Unfortunately, all of his answers are nigh unintelligible.

The pair are able to figure out, however, that part of what Kevin is trying to say is that the captain decided to chain him here, and it was the gravest injustice she had ever committed.

kpwlt 2023/02/02(Thu)03:22 No. 1055129 ID: 1173be
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>go have a chat with the helmsman

Damien sticks with Kevin, promising to cry out if anything weird happens, while Nicoletta goes to check on the helmsman.

She finds him looking much calmer than she remembers him.

"Thanks for that. Nobody's been giving him water ever since Maria took a dip."

He swallows hard, glances at his feet, and resumes:

"I'm Jack. I'm here because I tried to convince the Captain not to chain Kevin up there. I'll try to answer any questions you have about the ship, but, right now, the best thing anyone could do for any of us is to take up the anchor and roll down the sails."

Nicoletta's mind, no doubt, races with queries. Which should she ask first? Or is it more beneficial to free the ship now and ask questions later?

Ask him who Maria is, what this ship is called, whose flag it flies, and where you should make for port. We need solid information before we commit to setting sail.

Also, what kind of crew did you run with before this sorry state of affairs? Merchants? Privateers? God forbid, pirates even?

>>1055129
Well first off, where are you? You've never seen waters like this. Secondly, where is the Captain, and what have you been doing since the last thing you remember?

wait she took a dip into the oil water? Like how in old stories, sirens led men to their death by singing and getting them to jump overboard?
Ask him about that, clearly something bad has happened here.

kpwlt 2023/02/03(Fri)19:55 No. 1055172 ID: 1173be
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>Ask him who Maria is, what this ship is called, whose flag it flies, and where you should make for port.
>Maria jumped in the nasty-ass water?

Jack gives many answers to many questions, some helpful, some not.

"Maria was our sailmaker, but she also used to stitch us up from time to time before we onboarded a doctor. A couple of days back, she jumped clean off the bow and into the very sludge we're caught in now. Said something about 'joining the resplendent mother of the ocean' before she did it. Delirium, if you ask me. She'd been giving at least half her water ration to Kevin for several days now."

"This boat's called the Celebrant, and it flies no flag at all. Right now, I reckon we're somewhere in the Southern Atlantic, 'cause we were meant to be heading to the New World. If we get free, I'll turn us right around and set a course for Portugal. We can't be too far from there, and there are plenty of rations in the hold last I checked.

>where is the Captain, and what have you been doing since the last thing you remember?

"The Captain has been missing for a while now. I'd go looking for her, but that's a bit difficult for me at the moment. Last I heard, she'd locked herself in her room. As the quartermaster, I used to have the only spare key there, but ever since I got chained here, my key's been in the hands of the doctor."

"To tell the truth, I'm not sure how much of my memories are true at this point. I've been slipping in and out of consciousness for ages now. I'd say the most recent thing I can definitely remember happening is Kevin being punished."

>Also, what kind of crew did you run with before this sorry state of affairs? Merchants? Privateers? God forbid, pirates even?

Nicoletta was a privateer, and a member of a rather well-respected crew. She served many years under her mysterious, but agreeable, captain.

>>1055172
Hm. And what did they both do to be punished?

wait, is there any other crew left other than you two guys? You make it sound like as if everyone either jumped off or they disappeared. Also "resplendent mother of the ocean"? The hell is that? Did someone make that shit up and everyone else began to follow it out of despair?

Do you dare ask about the meat we saw earlier? I mean, everyone else has disappeared...

"Do we want to know where all the meat in the Galley came from?"

Aside from that, we've got all the info we can feasibly want from this guy. Maybe ask Damien what he remembers for washing up to here?

We should probably start doing something, like taking up that anchor. Survival chances go up when the ship can move.

We should probably raise anchor and set sail - more questions and futher exploration of the ship can wait for now.

kpwlt 2023/02/06(Mon)02:38 No. 1055329 ID: 1173be
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>Hm. And what did they both do to be punished?

"Kevin was chained up there for devil worship, falsely, mind you. He was framed by... the others. I am being punished for trying to convince the Captain not to put him up there."

>wait, is there any other crew left other than you two guys? You make it sound like as if everyone either jumped off or they disappeared. Also "resplendent mother of the ocean"? The hell is that? Did someone make that shit up and everyone else began to follow it out of despair?

"Well, apart from the Captain, who you know is missing, and the Doctor, who I've heard walking around the decks recently, and Maria, who jumped off the ship, there are two others, Phineas and Mona, and I don't know where they are. I would've heard them if they jumped off."

Jack looks to the ground for a split second, and then raises his face once more as though he's had an epiphany.

"Of course, there's also the Cook. Haven't seen the old nanny in a while though."

"As for the mother of the ocean or whatever, I think that was started by Maria, Phineas, and Mona. The Captain didn't like it very much, but has turned a blind eye until recently."

"Also, just a warning. I heard someone come up the side of the boat before you two arrived. They are probably still on board."

>"Do we want to know where all the meat in the Galley came from?"

"Any meat in the Galley is probably from that cow we butchered last we were in port. Probably. A bit on the nose how Cookie hasn't salted it yet."

With that being said, Nicoletta reckons it's high time to get going. She thanks Jack for his help.

"No problem, the anchor room's just below deck at the front of the ship. You can't miss it."

Fantastic, let's get out of here.

kpwlt 2023/02/06(Mon)02:38 No. 1055330 ID: 1173be
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>Maybe ask Damien what he remembers for washing up to here?

Nicoletta walks over to the mast, and calls out to Damien. He comes down and assures her that Kevin will "probably be fine" up there.

However, he doesn't recall anything amiss before waking up. He was just partway through his fifth week at sea on a merchant vessel.

kpwlt 2023/02/06(Mon)02:38 No. 1055331 ID: 1173be
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>Weigh anchor, get moving

Amen to that. Damien and Nicoletta go down the staircase next to the door with the golden anchor on it. They take it slow, however, because they can hear what sounds like two voices chanting, each taking turns. As they get further down, it's clearer what the voices are saying.
"Wasting."
"Demons."
"Wasting."
"Demons."
"Wasting."
As they continue down at a snail's pace, the voices become punctuated with what sounds like an axe hitting wood.
"Demons."
"Wasting."
Thwack
"Demons."
"Wasting."
Thwack
"Demons."
"Wasting."
Thwack
Nicoletta decides that it's time to bite the bullet, and heads down the remainder of the steps, and...

kpwlt 2023/02/06(Mon)02:39 No. 1055332 ID: 1173be
File 167567994176.png - (24.53KB , 700x700 , u11p4.png )

...what a sight!

Demand to know who the two figures in front of you are. Not sure if drawing a weapon would be a good idea, as it might spook them, but keep your hand on the hilt of your knife for good measure.

>>1055332
Must be a pretty dull axe if it's taking that many hits to break the door.
Do you recognize them? Which room does that door lead to? ...is that axe made of gold?

Gauge the situation. Be ready to run if they're hostile (though I'm not sure where we'd run to). Ask what they're doing.

If they’re trying to break through a door while chanting crazy stuff, I don’t think they’re in the mood for a good conversation. I think we have to e upper hand, since we’re above them. My idea for a plan involves running back up the stairs, but then hiding right by the entrance of the stairwell, and then getting the jump on at least one of them when that happens. Hopefully, the one you get the jump on is the person with the axe, although it’s hard to tell if the other one, (who looks be dressed in religious garb??) has a weapon as well.

>>1055333

This. Conduct yourself with an air of authority (that you don't technically possess) and demand to know who they are, what they're doing, and why. Don't draw weapon yet but be ready to in a heartbeat.

kpwlt 2023/02/08(Wed)23:16 No. 1055619 ID: 1173be
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>This. Conduct yourself with an air of authority (that you don't technically possess) and demand to know who they are, what they're doing, and why. Don't draw weapon yet but be ready to in a heartbeat.

The little man places the axe carefully on the ground, and then bows almost mockingly deeply toward Nicoletta.
"Doctor Matthias Becker, at your service. This is Reverend Samuel Peters. This room belongs to Phineas, who barricaded the door recently. He's gone silent recently, so we thought we'd bash the door down to see what has happened to him. We both agree that he's dead, but I think he's died to wasting disease and the Reverend thinks he's been killed by demons, so we're having a little friendly bet."

The Doctor gives the Reverend a competitive grin, and, with that, the Reverend meanders over to the door and opens it with one fell kick from his Blessed Foot.

kpwlt 2023/02/08(Wed)23:16 No. 1055620 ID: 1173be
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The pair rush into the room. Nicoletta can hear them bickering jovially.
"See, Sam? Clearly wasting disease. I win!"
"Oh, oh, no, look at that on the wall! Demonic for certain! I win!"
"Bah! Hmmm, I guess we'll call it a tie for now."

Pick up that axe and look in the room.

>>1055620
Examine axe. It's not yours, don't go stealing it. Then take a look in the room.

Cautiously follow them into the room. Make sure to stand in front of the axe whilst you do so, so that they can't so easily pick it up. We still don't know if they're COMPLETELY friendly.

Yeah, might as well pick up the axe and confirm what they're seeing.

"You guys seem pretty nonplussed to see a couple total strangers who're suddenly aboard your vessel. But why do you think he barricaded himself in?"

Examine but don't take the axe. If they are madmen, you don't wanna unnecessarily aggrieve them by yoinking their stuff!

Rather, linger at the doorway and look inside.

kpwlt 2023/02/11(Sat)04:23 No. 1055749 ID: 1173be
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>Examine but don't take the axe.

The axe does not look like it was intended to be used as an axe. It looks primarily decorative, and is quite shiny all over apart from where it's (understandably) scuffed along the blade. Or rather, where the blade would be.

Nicoletta does not add the axe to her inventory, but she makes a mental note of where it is and will be able to pick it up quickly in a pinch.

kpwlt 2023/02/11(Sat)04:23 No. 1055750 ID: 1173be
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>Stand between the axe and doorway, and look inside the room.

Nicoletta (and now Damien) look into the room.

Inside (apart from the two gentlemen of questionable mental and moral fibre) is the emaciated, naked corpse of Phineas, clothes on the floor, a bed, a bookcase that had been pushed aside by the Reverend, and a bunch of scratches on the wall that vaguely look like some kind of circular seal. They seem to have been carved with a knife.

The Reverend notices Damien's gaze prance about the scratchings on the wall.
"The design of this seal is generic, but I've never seen these letters in this arrangement before. I'll have to research it a bit more."

>"You guys seem pretty nonplussed to see a couple total strangers who're suddenly aboard your vessel. But why do you think he barricaded himself in?"

Becker is the first to chime.
"Oh, I didn't think much of it. I only came aboard recently myself, I assumed that you were crew members I just hadn't met yet. Besides, it seems we're in friendly waters! Sam only boarded a couple of days ago. They wouldn't have sent a Reverend if there were pirates about."

Reverend Peters realises that the Doctor has forgotten or avoided the second question, and decides to answer it.
"Phineas blocked himself in because he didn't want any form of care, pastoral nor medical, from myself or Doctor Becker. We have avoided knocking the door down until now because we didn't want to undermine any potential for trust between us."

>>1055750
Where's the knife he used to carve the symbol? Hmm, looks like the pentagram is made out of directional arrows. There's no clear beginning or end though. It's pointed upwards, so it should in theory be a sigil of protection or summoning.
Is that a book on the desk? If it's a journal it might shed light on the man's fate.

What's your job, Nic? Do you have any skills?

Ask the Reverend if they could pronounce the word on the seal, starting with the top letter and following the arrows. Also ask them if they know anything about why the sea is black.

how long has phineas has been dead for? I think those are eye sockets I'm seeing, in place of eyes

"Well, it'd be reasonable to assume Phineas was responsible for the state of the room - same sort of delirium that took Maria. I heard about her from that Jack fellow. But then, where's the knife he'd have used to carve the symbol?"

>>1055767
DON'T do that - do you want demons? Because this is how you get demons.

Anyway, don't linger here for too long; we're down here to weigh anchor, remember?

kpwlt 2023/02/13(Mon)02:11 No. 1055915 ID: 1173be
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>What's your job, Nic? Do you have any skills?

Nicoletta was part of a well-respected privateer crew before these shenanigans started. She probably still will be if she makes it back alive.
Nic has many skills. For instance, she can tie a mean bowline, a handy knot that has saved her skin more than once. She's also good with a pistol.

>Is that a book on the desk?

No. That's not a desk either. That is a nigh bare bed. However, it's possible that Phineas' bookcase may contain a journal of some form, though the eyes of the Doctor and the Reverend betray no secrets.

>I think those are eye sockets I'm seeing, in place of eyes

Phineas' eyes are still very much there, but the stare they carry is so blank and inexpressive that they may as well not be.

>Ask the Reverend if they could pronounce the word on the seal, starting with the top letter and following the arrows. Also ask them if they know anything about why the sea is black.

Reverend Peters outright refuses to read the word on the seal, likely due to some superstition, though he's more than happy to spell it out for Nicoletta and Damien's benefit.
"Qof - Fe - Waw - Lamed - Tet. Some of the forms of these letters have been brutalised, so they might be a bit different to how I'm reading them, though. Sort of think, 'K, then F, then W, then L, then T' for the moment. Maybe P instead of F, I'm not sure though."

kpwlt 2023/02/13(Mon)02:11 No. 1055916 ID: 1173be
File 167628307676.png - (20.92KB , 700x700 , u14p2.png )

>Anyway, don't linger here for too long; we're down here to weigh anchor, remember?

Yes, fantastic idea. If there are demons on the ship, we stand a better chance of survival if we get to land, or, at least somewhere where we can disembark into safe-looking water.

"Oh, by the way," calls the Reverend, "I think the sea is black because of some kind of supernatural presence. Not demons, though, I don't think."
The pair can hear Doctor Becker's response: "Bah! Quatsch! It's just turbulent down there!"

Nicoletta and Damien are almost at the door to what is presumably the anchor room, when they hear a soft knocking, and then a murmur from behind the barricaded door. The planks in place of the door look like they would be easy enough to remove from this side.

>KFWLT, maybe P instead of F
The author's name? Odd. Perhaps we shouldn't say it.

>>1055916
Unbar a door that's been barricaded from THIS side? No thanks, not until we know who's in there and why the room's barred!

I hope this barricaded room isn’t the anchor room. In any case, if it’s locked or not, we’ll need to ask Becker and Peters if they know why, even if they act… oddly.

I concur. Ask the Reverend and the Doctor if there's anything in there that you perhaps shouldn't let out.

kpwlt 2023/02/14(Tue)03:46 No. 1056042 ID: 1173be
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>Ask the Reverend and the Doctor if there's anything in there that you perhaps shouldn't let out.

Nicoletta calls to the two gentlemen in the other room. They reply frankly.
"Oh, that's just Mona's room."
"She was locked in there by the Captain for devil worship."
"At any rate, we're waiting for her to starve-"
"Or waste away from the disease!
"-right, so we have more information to work with."

That's a bit grim.

Anyway, may as well have a peek through to the anchor room. We can always come back for Mona if it strikes us.
Right?

Through the door is, in fact, not the anchor room. It seems to be a transitory room, possibly for storage, possibly to give the sleepers some solace from the ungodly groan that capstans sometimes make.

In this room, there is a staircase leading downwards, as well as a few barrels lined up against the wall.
There is also a door handily labelled "ANCHOR".

kpwlt 2023/02/14(Tue)03:46 No. 1056043 ID: 1173be
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Couldn't hurt to have a little look inside.

The anchor room is quite plain. Drawing attention away from the central windlass is what looks to be a blank maroon tapestry on the wall. The machine seems to have devoured a bit of the bottom, however. The cloth on the wall stands in stark contrast to the rest of the room. Why is it that a ship with only one bit of decor has it in the anchor room of all places? Certainly not to keep the crankmen company?

Out-of-place textiles aside, there appears to be some form of calcified growth on the windlass, though on further inspection, it seems to permeate the entire mechanism. Best of luck to anyone who wants this thing to budge.

...that growth has veins. Stop and observe. Why is there red stuff in the chains? Is that cloth actually a cloth? Is there a passage behind it?

... That's the same color as the cloth that was covering Damien in his dinghy. Try to remember; was that cloth torn? We should also think about what situation would lead to such a cloth being fed into the anchor chain.

But yeah, its main purpose was probably to hide something. Assuming the growth won't strike unless provoked, check out what was behind the cloth.

>>1056045
...It also has teeth, I think

How does the room smell? Any whiff of blood, rot, etc?

As for the growth, well, it's got veins. If it's got veins, it bleeds. If it bleeds, you can probably hurt it, should the growth belong to some larger non-calcified threat. So, uh... worries!

Hopefully there aren't any live ones to spring out of nowhere and attach themselves to your face.

Poke the growth with your knife. If it reacts unusually, back away. If not, try to hack it all off.

kpwlt 2023/02/17(Fri)04:46 No. 1056332 ID: 1173be
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>Why is there red stuff in the chains? Is that cloth actually a cloth?

The cloth is most definitely a cloth, and it looks like someone's pulled it over to the windlass and cranked it round, possibly to jam the mechanism further, possibly to reveal what was behind the cloth.

>How does the room smell? Any whiff of blood, rot, etc?

The room mainly smells of salty water and sweaty sailors. Any other smell is meek enough to be masked by the powerful saline scent.

>Try to remember; was that cloth torn?

The cloth covering Damien was not torn at the time. This cloth is also caked in a layer of fine dust, hinting that it's been here a while.

>Poke the growth with your knife. If it reacts unusually, back away. If not, try to hack it all off.

The unsightly thing is completely unresponsive. That is to say, it doesn't show even a blemish after several staunch prods with the knife.

kpwlt 2023/02/17(Fri)04:46 No. 1056333 ID: 1173be
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>Is there a passage behind it?

A quick look reveals that there is, but it's much too dark to see anything much in this room, if a room it may be.
If only there was something to light up a room on the ship.

>>1056332
If knife is insufficient we should try the axe on the weird growth

Throw holy water at the growth.

Also, ask around for an oil lamp.

How's the knife? If it seems hacking away at the growth could dent/break the knife or axe, best give up on this. It's probably dead anyway.

Seconding asking for an oil lamp.

Got anything you can light a candle with?

I third asking around for an oil lamp. Might as well grab an axe and try that on the growth whilst you're at it.

kpwlt 2023/02/19(Sun)03:40 No. 1056482 ID: 1173be
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>If knife is insufficient we should try the axe on the weird growth

The axe would likely do even less than the knife, unless it's infused with some magic or something. But magic, of course, is make-believe.

>How's the knife?

It seems fine, but Damien swears it's been blunted ever so slightly

>Ask around for an oil lamp

That'll at least show us the rest of this other room.

>Throw holy water at the growth.

Nicoletta has no holy water on her, but if she sees Samuel again, she'll be sure to ask.
The pair exit back into the walkway and...

...speak of the devil

kpwlt 2023/02/19(Sun)03:40 No. 1056483 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta's thoughts escape her mouth.
"Can I have some holy water?"
"What?"
"..."
"Erm... I don't, uh, seem to have any."
The Reverend gives a sheepish smirk.
Damien sees the stupefied look on his friend's face and refocuses the conversation/
"Oh, well, do you know where we could get an oil lamp?"
Doctor Becker butts in.
"Sorry, the last bit of oil was used up recently."
Peters ponders this for a moment, shoots Damien a knowing look, and hands him a firesteel.

kpwlt 2023/02/19(Sun)03:40 No. 1056484 ID: 1173be
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Matthias raises his eyebrow, then buries himself in a notebook and walks off.
"If you need me, I'll be in my room reviewing the patients. Well, ex-patients."

Once the Doctor leaves, the Reverend's cheery face vanishes, leaving behind what seems to be the antithesis of an expression.
"Damien, Nicoletta, lead the way."

Time to lead the way

Let's say some prayers hand in hand and let's go defeat the evil lamprey.

>>1056484
Show him the growth, and then... hmm. Maybe we can light a bit of the cloth on fire to make a short lived torch? Actually, wait, was that a candle on the table in the dark room? Almost looked like a flame on it already...
I'm worried about the red stuff in the darkness though. Almost looks like single eyes.

What can we really do other than lead the way?

Whilst we look around for a source of light, maybe a candle, it might be an idea to ask the Reverend about himself.

kpwlt 2023/02/20(Mon)03:45 No. 1056555 ID: 1173be
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>Lead the way

Damien and Nicoletta lead the Reverend to the anchor room. He inspects the growth, murmurs, and nods to himself.
When asked about what to do about it, he states that the only way to get it off out here is to blow it apart with explosions, an unwise decision considering the blast would likely take out half the ship with it. Our heroes will have to find some other way to remove the anchor.

>it might be an idea to ask the Reverend about himself.

Nicoletta tries to make conversation with the Reverend. He doesn't seem very talkative. When she asks where he's from, he replies "a church" without an ounce of humour in his voice.

The Reverend meanders over to the red cloth, and, with but one swipe of his priestly arm, tears it away.
Damien reveals the firesteel, and strikes it over the candle's wick.

kpwlt 2023/02/20(Mon)03:48 No. 1056557 ID: 1173be
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The room is warmly lit by a soft crimson. A poster depicting a figure labelled "KEPHOLET" is most visible. To the right of the candle sits some small tome marked with symbols. A small plate with something smelly on it is beneath the bench. The aroma is not bad, it's just odd.

Reverend Samuel Peters wears a scowl on his face.

Ugh, the wall is all organic!
Make sure it doesn't creep over the entrance or something. We don't want to get trapped in here.

Is that the faint outline of a human skull I see in the wall?

Ask the Reverend what he makes of all this.

"Well, now I think we know what all that untreated meat in the galley is for. How much do we wanna bet it's not all that cow Jack mentioned?"

After further examination: "That name is how the symbols earlier are pronounced, right? (Nobody read it out loud.) Whoever carved that symbol - presumably Phineas - was in the know on this, then. Where'd the more intricate stuff come from, come to think of it? Is it all hand-made, or were these some sort of unholy relics you were transporting?"

"So, given you haven't been spending the last few days chained to one spot, do you have a better idea of who's on this ship and where? Your captain sounded like a piece of work based on what that guy said - he seems to like his punishments cruel and unusual, I say - but I haven't seen head nor tail of him yet."

"So, I didn't miss that you handed Damien the firesteel before you had us bring you to wherever the thing we found was. We only asked for holy water and a lantern, so how'd you know there was already something to light here?"

>>1056557
Knock the poster over. Eye that book warily. If you're gonna read it, it probably shouldn't be under the light of the red candle.

kpwlt 2023/02/22(Wed)02:53 No. 1056766 ID: 1173be
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>Make sure it doesn't creep over the entrance or something. We don't want to get trapped in here.

Gotcha. From now on, Nicoletta and Damien will pay attention to this room's exit.

>Ask the Reverend what he makes of all this.

"Well. We've known for certain that there were devil worshippers on this ship, but this makes them seem almost organised. This is a far cry from a work of the ragtag desperate blasphemers on the floors of the cabins."

>"That name is how the symbols earlier are pronounced, right? (Nobody read it out loud.) Whoever carved that symbol - presumably Phineas - was in the know on this, then. Where'd the more intricate stuff come from, come to think of it? Is it all hand-made, or were these some sort of unholy relics you were transporting?"

"Correct. That's most likely its transliteration. I'm not sure what all this is doing here, though. I've heard that the Captain was pretty against this breed of paganism, so it's definitely not here with her permission."

>"So, given you haven't been spending the last few days chained to one spot, do you have a better idea of who's on this ship and where? Your captain sounded like a piece of work based on what that guy said - he seems to like his punishments cruel and unusual, I say - but I haven't seen head nor tail of him yet."

"I've probably only heard as much as you. Captain Lowe was not my captain, and I have not seen her with my own eyes. Matthias seemed to say that she was cruel, but fair. I wouldn't know, though. I only came aboard a few days after she vanished. The crew has also been in a bit of a shambles since I got here. I haven't even met half of them, and the ones I have met are either deranged or hostile."

>"So, I didn't miss that you handed Damien the firesteel before you had us bring you to wherever the thing we found was. We only asked for holy water and a lantern, so how'd you know there was already something to light here?"

The Reverend's features lighten once more, briefly.
"When you've spent as much time in a church as I have, you know when a candle's in store for you."

kpwlt 2023/02/22(Wed)02:53 No. 1056767 ID: 1173be
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>Knock the poster over. Eye that book warily. If you're gonna read it, it probably shouldn't be under the light of the red candle.

Nicoletta knocks the poster gingerly with the barrel of her flintlock. It clatters to the floor, but she still feels like the lecherous gaze of Kepholet is boring into her mind regardless.

Damien reaches to take the book, but Reverend Peters slaps his hand away. Guess we won't be doing that then.

kpwlt 2023/02/22(Wed)02:53 No. 1056768 ID: 1173be
File 167706318893.png - (24.25KB , 700x700 , u19p3.png )

The party's pondering of the repugnant room is interrupted by what sounds to Nicoletta like a cannon being fired, and to Damien like a door being blown off its hinges. This noise is followed by a short groan of pain.

The Reverend rushes to the source of the sound. Nicoletta and Damien follow to see him tending to a slender lady tied to a chair on the ground, presumably Mona. She looks bad, but not as bad as Phineas. The man stares her in the eyes for a good while, declares a few words in Latin, and then unties her.

See if you can do anything to help with the lady.

I also just realised something - whilst the Reverend admittedly he hasn't met half the crew yet, the helmsman, Jack, did not mention him amongst those he told you about. It might be best to remain wary of the Reverend.

“Did… Did she just bust down a door through like three barricades? Tied to a chair?”

Might want to check inside and see if there’s something you’re missing about this.

oh wow, Mona looks... really similar to Nicoletta. I even thought that was her on the ground for a few good moments.

>>1056768
How the hell did that happen? It looks like the door was blown open from the inside, but she's tied to a chair! Go look inside, see if there's any evidence. Get the candle if it's too dark.

Ask why the priest is untying the girl, isn't she a devil worshiper?

kpwlt 2023/02/24(Fri)02:46 No. 1056901 ID: 1173be
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>See if you can do anything to help with the lady.

Nicoletta is about to start helping, but then Mona quickly gets up herself.

>It might be best to remain wary of the Reverend.

Noted.

>Go look inside, see if there's any evidence.

Goodness gracious! Inside, plastered all over the walls, is more of that abhorrent mass the party have been seeing lately. A large, rubbery looking appendage dangles from the ceiling, flexing and contracting. It can't reach the door, but it looks like this thing probably smacked Mona into the door and out of the room. No wonder she looked so shocked!

>Ask why the priest is untying the girl, isn't she a devil worshiper?

Peters grimaces into the room, then closes the door.

"If her private diaries are to be believed, no, she is not. She only participated in it because she wanted to impress Phineas. She no longer has any reason to continue worship. She heard Phineas' slow death through but a single wall."

The Reverend then turns to Mona, and declares,
"Your idolatry is forgiven."
No acknowledgement from Mona. She still wears a blank stare on her face.

"Come. It is best we leave her to her own mind for now."

...right then. This is looking pretty bad. We need to find the captain and tell him the boat's being taken over by demons and we need to evacuate.
I wonder if we could roll a cannon in here and use it to destroy the anchor chain?

We still need to find a way to free the anchor, that we may search for a save haven on land.

Try everything we can think of - burn it, hack it, pour annointed water upon it, anything. We must take care not to destroy the anchor itself in our efforts, however.

>>1056904
This doesn't seem like a ship we want to keep intact in the long-run, anyway. Destroying the mechanism is fine as long as the anchor itself is disconnected. We sail to land, find some way to free all the trapped crewmen in the meantime, then burn the demonic ship.

kpwlt 2023/02/27(Mon)02:33 No. 1057040 ID: 1173be
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>Try everything we can think of - burn it, hack it, pour annointed water upon it, anything. We must take care not to destroy the anchor itself in our efforts, however.

The group return to the anchor room and try everything they feasibly can. Peters even tries to nibble on the thing. Though it now looks significantly more scuffed, the growth holds fast.
Even if they could get this superficial one off, it still looks like the bony vines run deep into the mechanism, jamming it from the inside out.

>I wonder if we could roll a cannon in here and use it to destroy the anchor chain?

When Damien suggests this, Peters replies with a flat "no," and then elaborates that the boat doesn't seem to have cannons.

>Destroying the mechanism is fine as long as the anchor itself is disconnected.

Agreed. Beaching this damned vessel is always an option.

>We need to find the captain and tell him the boat's being taken over by demons and we need to evacuate.

The group decide that this is the best course of action. The Reverend begins to lead Nicoletta and Damien to the Captain's office.

As they pass Mona, the girl suddenly has a flash of consideration for her surroundings and declares:
"The anchor reel is stuck! You have to cut it off from underneath the ship!"
She stares at Nicoletta a while longer, then returns to her musings.

kpwlt 2023/02/27(Mon)02:33 No. 1057041 ID: 1173be
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The deck is still mostly barren. The Reverend glances around, and lingers a bit long on the hole in the gunwale where the ladder used to be.

He leads the pair to the door with the golden anchor on it.

The Captain's Office is the nicest place on the ship. Nicoletta can almost imagine herself behind the desk, far, far away from the grotesques that lurk beneath the deck.

On the desk lies a heavy-looking metal key. It looks like one of those keys that fits into an equally heavy lock. Tied to the key is a tag that states "COOKIE".

Apart from that, there's not much to say. On the desk, there's a globe, and there are various maps around the walls, there's another door behind the desk, though this one is locked behind a lock that looks much like a ship's wheel.

kpwlt 2023/02/27(Mon)02:33 No. 1057042 ID: 1173be
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And, of course, there's a portrait of the Captain in all her glory, obscuring a pristine sea with her visage.

From underneath the ship? But it's still the same chain, so it'll be just as hard... maybe there's another growth further down. Anyway, I'm not sure how we'd cut the chain, much less get below the ship in the black water and survive.

The big key... belongs to the chef? Well, we haven't seen them yet, and we haven't found where that key goes to yet either. Pick it up I suppose. All indications are the captain is missing so we can't ask permission anyway.
Then head up to the decks. Someone new just showed up.

Check if there's anything behind the portrait, then test the key on the door. If it doesn't work, it might be a good idea to ask Jack if he knows anything about where it could go or what "COOKIE" may mean in this context.

I would also caution against immediate evactuation of the ship. Demonic possession or not, it seems to be the only viable way to reach any sort of safe haven.

How is the anchor secured to its chain?

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)04:32 No. 1057294 ID: 1173be
File 167784677204.png - (15.50KB , 700x700 , u22p1.png )

>From underneath the ship? But it's still the same chain, so it'll be just as hard... maybe there's another growth further down. Anyway, I'm not sure how we'd cut the chain, much less get below the ship in the black water and survive.

That much is a mystery. Nicoletta did hear that people were trying to develop some kind of barrel with windows to let people breathe underwater. Maybe one of those would work?

>Check if there's anything behind the portrait, then test the key on the door.

The back of the portrait is nothing peculiar. It's just the back of the canvas with "HICKS" scrawled on it. That might be the artist's name.
The wall behind the portrait is strangely unremarkable as well.

The hefty key can't even fit into the hole of the wheel-shaped lock. It is simply too large. Nicoletta tries to remember if she's seen a lock that's about as heavy as the key on the ship before...

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)04:32 No. 1057295 ID: 1173be
File 167784677622.png - (22.18KB , 700x700 , NICOLETTA, WE FINALLY MEET_ TAKE MY HAND, AND I WI.png )

>How is the anchor secured to its chain?

Neither Nicoletta nor Damien have seen this ship's anchor with their own eyes, but Nicoletta assumes that it's secured like every other anchor she's seen. It would likely be attached to the chain with a shackle. Removing the anchor would probably be a matter of removing or destroying the pin, then detaching the shackle from the anchor.

>Then head up to the decks. Someone new just showed up.

Someone new just showed up indeed. A young woman sits upon a thronelike protrusion. The group could've sworn that it wasn't there before. Her eyes are closed. She is clothed with a plain grey robe. She is absolutely motionless.

Demand to know who this new individual is, and keep your hand on your weapon.

Wait, isn't that the face we saw sticking out of the water before?

I think we may want to gather up some more of the crew before actually approaching.

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)20:13 No. 1057349 ID: 1173be
File 167790321964.png - (17.52KB , 700x700 , I AM MARIA.png )

>Demand to know who this new individual is, and keep your hand on your weapon.

Nicoletta grips her concealed flintlock and calls out to the enthroned woman.
She says nothing, but opens her eyes and stares directly into Nicoletta's.

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)20:13 No. 1057350 ID: 1173be
File 167790322255.png - (17.64KB , 700x700 , I BRING YOUR SALVATION.png )

...

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)20:13 No. 1057351 ID: 1173be
File 167790322608.png - (38.43KB , 700x700 , SHE CAN SET YOU FREE.png )

...

kpwlt 2023/03/03(Fri)20:13 No. 1057352 ID: 1173be
File 167790322915.png - (61.20KB , 700x700 , u23p4.png )

Nicoletta's transfixion is broken by the CRACK of a gun beneath the deck. She looks around to see that Damien and Reverend Peters have also noticed the sound. When she looks back at the woman, her eyes have closed again.

Those subconscious cues (image titles) are pretty spooky.

Let's goooooo

I kindof want to keep "talking" to Maria. If somebody's got a working gun it's not like your empty gun is going to be much help dealing with them.
Most importantly, I want to know what "salvation" is, and what that incomplete sentence was about holding her hand.

Go and check what that sound belowdecks was. Might be an idea to tell either Damien or the Reverend to stay here to watch this strange entity.

kpwlt 2023/03/05(Sun)01:27 No. 1057477 ID: 1173be
File 167800847012.png - (19.79KB , 700x700 , SALVATION FROM YOUR MORTALITY.png )

>Let's goooooo

Nicoletta is not entirely sure what that means, and assumes it's just a byproduct of her troubled and tired psyche, but once she figures it out, she'll be sure to do so.

>If somebody's got a working gun it's not like your empty gun is going to be much help dealing with them.

Excellent point. Damien hands Nicoletta the round and she loads it into her flintlock.

>I kindof want to keep "talking" to Maria. I want to know what "salvation" is, and what that incomplete sentence was about holding her hand.

"What do you mean by salvation," cries Nicoletta, "and why did you want me to hold your hand?"
Damien stares at Nicoletta like she's gone mad. Nicoletta worries she very well may have.

kpwlt 2023/03/05(Sun)01:27 No. 1057478 ID: 1173be
File 167800847434.png - (17.90KB , 700x700 , HOLD MY HAND AND I WILL SHOW YOU THE MOTHER.png )

Maria remains silent.

kpwlt 2023/03/05(Sun)01:27 No. 1057479 ID: 1173be
File 167800847813.png - (24.28KB , 700x700 , u24p3.png )

>Go and check what that sound belowdecks was.

Fantastic idea. Nicoletta offers her pistol to Damien, but he refuses to take it, so it is left with the Reverend, who promises to keep a close eye on Maria.

It seems the bang originated from the Doctor's room. It strikes Nicoletta that this is the first time they've seen his room.

It's a rather wholesome seeming room, save for the blood spattered on the wall, and the dead man. There is a gun on the Doctor's bed, though the Doctor himself is sitting at his desk. It is smoking. On the desk is the Doctor's research into the wasting disease gripping the crew. All of the notes are covered in what looks to be a smearing of ash, making them illegible. On the pile of ash sits a yellow note.

It reads as follows.
The Wasting has entered my blood and brain. It will take me over agonising months. I will not let it. I will die an active man. - Dr. Matias Bäcker

Damien's jaw drops. Nicoletta seems oddly detached from the situation. After a while, Mona walks in and looks panicked at the macabre scene.

The gun is pretty far from its supposed user. I'd class this suicide as "not impossible, but suspicious".

>>1057479
If this was a suicide, how did the gun end up on the bed? This is murder. The window is open, rush over and look out, see if the murderer is still out there.

The notes can likely be recovered with care, thankfully...

Check outside the window for anything suspicious - I agree this suicide seems suspicious.

Examine the Doctor's notes if there's nothing out there.

In addition, the angle of the bullet is completely wrong for suicide by rifle. It's completely horizontal which means he'd have had to have held it at arms length, if that's even POSSIBLE, rather than the far more comfortable method of shooting from below.

I'm tempted to immediately suspect Mona since she arrived so late... I wish we could test for gunshot residue... oh, maybe black powder is dirty enough that we can just look at a suspect's clothes and hands to see evidence. Or smell? Someone should inspect Mona for traces of having fired the rifle.

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057634 ID: 1173be
File 167809995145.png - (19.21KB , 700x700 , u25p1.png )

>Check outside the window for anything suspicious

There is no vessel outside the window, though the water seems disturbed, like some boat left in a hurry.

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057635 ID: 1173be
File 167809995501.png - (23.84KB , 700x700 , u25p2.png )

>Examine the Doctor's notes if there's nothing out there.

Nicoletta attempts to remove the ash from the notes. The more ash she removes, the stranger the notes seem. They're all scripted in an odd hand. At a glance, they seem to be noting the characteristics of the deceased. However, they start getting more incomprehensible as they go on. Nicoletta doesn't understand what any of it means. What feels like hours passes, and Nicoletta still feels none the wiser. The world seems to slow down around her as she gets more and more engrossed in the nonsense.

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057636 ID: 1173be
File 167809995878.png - (28.15KB , 700x700 , u25p3.png )

Nicoletta is about to discard the notes, but then she reads a critical sentence. It's not that the sentence wasn't memorable, for it was without a doubt memorable, but Nicoletta won't remember what this sentence says. She will suppose that it said something or other, but she will not, for the life of her, remember it. It is an unrememberable sentence.

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057637 ID: 1173be
File 167809996207.png - (28.11KB , 700x700 , u25p4.png )

Reading this sentence has a profound impact on Nicoletta. All at once, in the context of this sentence, all the notes make complete sense. Nicoletta feels like she sees the world from a bird's eye view, not only around or in front of objects, but in and out of them too. The natures of this ship have been revealed unto her, and she's about to blurt them out to Damien, but then...

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057638 ID: 1173be
File 167809996648.png - (10.19KB , 700x700 , u25p5.png )

...darkness...

kpwlt 2023/03/06(Mon)02:52 No. 1057639 ID: 1173be
File 167809997081.png - (21.61KB , 700x700 , u25p6.png )

"Nicoletta!" The Reverend's harsh voice rings out.
Nicoletta's eyes snap open, though they still feel closed.
She stares at the Reverend and the Cabin Boy.
"You've been out for a while."
Nicoletta's mouth is dry.
It's dark outside.
"Come on, lie down on the bed for a little bit."
Echoes of the Doctor's strange notes resound around in her head, refusing to form into anything coherent.
Nicoletta is placed on the bed by the two others in the room.
She tries to recollect her thoughts, though all her attempts seem an ersatz of the clarity of what felt to be a moment before.

CITR AP 'RXKXW AVP PHGIHA RPGD,
NSC AVP WNSX UVF REGQMCN IYHXB.
JDSZZA MBYT TWYI UVSDKM MIVU,
SE'U HSMGO INLG ES YEPALGE AHXHTY.

...what the hell just happened?

Ask the Reverend and Damien if they saw anything suspicious after you passed out. Additionally, it might be an idea to go and check on Jack and Kevin, see how they're holding up.

>>1057639
Tell them the murderer escaped via boat. ...and the notes let you understand something about the ship... but you can't remember what it was. This place isn't normal, that much is clear, but neither are those notes.

>garbled text
It's a keyed cipher using the demon's name as the key, the plaintext is
SEEK ME 'NEATH THE LOWEST DECK,
DON THE SUIT FOR GANGING UNDER.
FOLLOW TRUE MINE BLOODY BECK,
OP'N THINE EYES TO FULLEST WONDER.

That explains how we're supposed to go under the ship. There's a diving suit on board. WHY is there a diving suit though?

Rest a bit, until you're ready to get up again. Then I think it's time we started looking for a way to the lower decks. Or find the boat the killer used.

"That suicide note is fake... If it wasn't, how'd the doctor shoot himself through the head with such a large gun and leave it on the bed several feet from his body? The sludge outside were disturbed... that must be how they escaped - by boat. Lord knows Damien and I left a few adrift when we came aboard. Still a bit of a strange position if it were murder, though - they'd have had to've been standing on the table; was the doctor drugged, to have not resisted?"

kpwlt 2023/03/08(Wed)03:47 No. 1057874 ID: 1173be
File 167827607390.png - (25.08KB , 700x700 , u26p1.png )

>"That suicide note is fake..."

Both Damien and Samuel agree, though the Reverend came to that conclusion because "he wouldn't write his name like that for us."

>Rest a bit, until you're ready to get up again.

Nicoletta's heart is racing, she simply cannot rest. Besides, she's feeling fine apart from the existential dread that now hangs around her.

>Ask the Reverend and Damien if they saw anything suspicious after you passed out.

They say that nothing seems amiss since Nicoletta passed out, they decided to take it easy and play it safe while she was in such a vulnerable state.

>Additionally, it might be an idea to go and check on Jack and Kevin, see how they're holding up.

Great idea. Nicoletta makes her way up to the main deck, illuminated by the brilliant moon, and spots Mona looking remarkably more aware of her surroundings, holding Nicoletta's pistol, and staring at Maria.
Maria is unchanged, though she now holds what looks to be a little golden object, about the size of a key or so. When asked when she started holding that, Mona claims that Maria had been since Mona got here.
While Nicoletta is slightly perturbed at the sight of the most unstable crewmember holding her gun, she decides that it's better Mona than her having to guard Maria.

kpwlt 2023/03/08(Wed)03:47 No. 1057875 ID: 1173be
File 167827607752.png - (17.98KB , 700x700 , u26p2.png )

While Nicoletta is climbing up to the crow's nest, she notices that the sails have all been unfurled. Seems Damien got bored without her around.
Kevin is glad to see Nicoletta, and she quickly gets him up to speed on what's been going on since she saw him last. He says that he wishes he was free so he could help get the boat to safety. He explains that Damien's been bringing him water and that he's feeling much better.

kpwlt 2023/03/08(Wed)03:48 No. 1057876 ID: 1173be
File 167827608251.png - (19.75KB , 700x700 , u26p3.png )

Jack is well, though he's a bit grumpy about the anchor still being down and the sun having now set. Nothing much has changed for him. It crosses Nicoletta's mind that she should probably check out the lower deck at some point, seeing that it's one of the only places on the ship foreign to her. She asks Jack about it, and he tells her that it should be unlocked, and that it's mostly just storage down there.

>>1057681

S CXYZPJ MUHH,
MMT OUR TL FUHH
EZE ECRQML EBSZLED LMRZT NYLTFD
FBI OGCFIV'D VEMNL ZF DMS WZ VUZ?
NLP HIAOW XSN WHSHK TTY SYW.

Funny that the sails have been unfurled whilst the anchor is still down. Really should sort that out ASAP, even if it means destroying the mechanism. Enlist the help of more crewmembers for that effort.

Afterwards, and after sorting out a course, we should check out the lower decks.

To those trying to solve this update’s cipher:
GLPA HSI FYXWLF'D RTWI GLJPEEC
MH ZWXTEI WD TWYMFKP.
RVBDMWOV IOS YEFO
SU AVP WNCTTJHPH VBMBPBLP.
WY RDA GEEMO XWLWC JTWMAF CC ELCSRPOEMHX
ECK HTXEOW BBGE FX YQBPHPH UI WXUQPVXCX DIZTKTDMDU.

Politely ask Maria for her small item.

>>1057877

A CLEVER MIND,
BUT CAN IT FIND
THE SINFUL SHOOTER RIGHT BEHIND
THE DOCTOR'S DEATH ON DAY SO DUN?
THE PIOUS MAN KNOWS THE ONE.
New key, "SAMUEL".

>>1057915

WHAT THE MOTHER'S NAME REVEALS
IS SIMPLY SO MINIMAL.
CONSIDER THE NAME
OF THE SUSPECTED CRIMINAL.
DO NOT STATE THEIR FAMILY OR ASSOCIATION
AND TITLES MUST BE OMMITED BY SINCEREST OBLIGATION.
The demon's name was the key here again.
Why is Reverend Samuel "the suspected criminal"?

Look around the sides of the ship. The boat is likely still where the killer left it when they came back on board. We can follow their trail from there. Also, reclaim the pistol from Mona. It probably won't do anything against Maria anyway, and we need to be armed in case we find the killer (assuming it's not Mona).
Oh, ask Mona if she saw anyone in the corridor before the doctor was shot. Did she hear the Doctor talking to anyone in his room, perhaps? ...come to think of it, it's likely the killer climbed IN through the window, as well as out.

kpwlt 2023/03/09(Thu)02:00 No. 1057992 ID: 1173be
File 167835602990.png - (16.19KB , 700x700 , u27p1.png )

>Funny that the sails have been unfurled whilst the anchor is still down. Really should sort that out ASAP, even if it means destroying the mechanism. Enlist the help of more crewmembers for that effort.

Nicoletta mentions this to Jack, who replies that the mechanism was built to be nearly indestructible. Nothing short of an explosion would harm it, ignoring the fact that such a blast would likely remove half the ship.

Nicoletta writes that idea off for the moment.

>Politely ask Maria for her small item.

Nicoletta does, and Maria wordlessly extends it towards her. She snatches it as gently as possible. No reaction.

The thing seems to be a little golden key, seemingly designed after a ship's wheel. It reminds her a little of the lock on the door in the Captain's office.

>Oh, ask Mona if she saw anyone in the corridor before the doctor was shot. Did she hear the Doctor talking to anyone in his room, perhaps? ...come to think of it, it's likely the killer climbed IN through the window, as well as out.

Mona says she didn't see anyone, but she heard the Doctor yelling, then the gunshot, then the sound of him falling on the ground, then the sound of a chair scraping across the floor, only moments before Nicoletta and Damien rushed downstairs.

kpwlt 2023/03/09(Thu)02:01 No. 1057993 ID: 1173be
File 167835609104.png - (17.16KB , 700x700 , u27p2.png )

>Look around the sides of the ship. The boat is likely still where the killer left it when they came back on board.

Nicoletta reclaims her pistol from Mona and searches the sides of the ship. The darkness makes it hard to see much, but eventually Nicoletta spots a little black boat lurking next to the ship. It is empty, but it has a rope tied to it which looks to be entering the ship through a window.

TNR QSN OA FDAIX LWLJ ASL TNR AWAVBR,
LHUHKZ HGQ XZE GAKWLY FXJAE FS S DKIMD CUHPV SZRT AN.
ZUI HRORWL KTBAK OL GLW NAA'W OIIXIV PRNR,
LHUHKZ WUHPV NUG WLOV VX, XOX UI AS NRV ZATQ.

>>1057974
MSGYSNX, YYV HHAFIE MSJSR YSM REKL GSSM RMB,
AVZYZR LT KWO QTUI VVCO IYPSGA HZ FEYX WPA
QVHW XWL PCEBXW DM CFV YBMTURD, XAO SGPUTRTV TPPF,
DS AOPELR SI WOVXCS QSNVRTZG QVHW JPPF.

>>1057993
>little black boat
Huh, did someone new show up?

THE MAN IN BLACK HELD NOT THE WEAPON,
THOUGH HAD THE ANGELS STRAY SO A DEVIL COULD STEP IN.
THE PRIEST KNOWS OF THE NUN'S WICKED PLAN,
THOUGH WOULD NOT STOP IT, FOR HE IS HER HAND.
Key: SAMUEL
Very worrying.

>>1057994

CORRECT, FOR SAMUEL COULD NOT HAVE SHOT HIM,
THOUGH HE DID MAKE GOOD EFFORT TO BLOT HIM
FROM THE BRAINS OF OUR FRIENDS, THE ORIGINAL PAIR,
SO HELPED HE DERIVE FOULNESS FROM FAIR.
Key: demon's name
Extremely worrying. This implies he's responsible for the two main characters' amnesia. Of course, this is likely communication from a demon, so we cannot rely on it to establish Samuel's guilt. After all, demons and priests are natural enemies.

Collect Damien and Mona. Get the rifle, perhaps the axe too. Everyone should be armed, then we make our way to the lower decks, to find the killer. While we're moving, and away from Samuel (if he asks to come along, tell him he should tend to the chained up crewmembers instead), ask Mona exactly what happened in the room she was trapped in.

>>1057995
Key: SAMUEL

slight correction, the key for that one is AGNES

I concur - head to the lower decks with Damien and Mona, and arm yourselves as best as you can.

As friendly as he's been, the Reverend seemingly is not to be trusted. Do be subtle about that with him, though.

kpwlt 2023/03/10(Fri)04:39 No. 1058103 ID: 1173be
File 167845196547.png - (19.44KB , 700x700 , u28p1.png )

>head to the lower decks with Damien and Mona, and arm yourselves as best as you can

Nicoletta, being the strongest of the three, grabs the axe. Damien reluctantly takes up the rifle, empty though it may be, and Mona takes Nicoletta's pistol.
The Reverend asks what the trio are doing, and, when answered, happily resigns himself to caring for the prisoners abovedeck.

The staircase to the lower deck is just outside the anchor room.

kpwlt 2023/03/10(Fri)04:39 No. 1058104 ID: 1173be
File 167845197395.png - (23.25KB , 700x700 , u28p2.png )

The lowest deck is presumably the hold. It is remarkably poorly lit. The ground is soft and squishy, and Damien claims it to be wet when he reaches down and touches it. The whole area is perfumed with a disgusting smell, not like blood and spoiling meat, but like seaweed rotting in the sun. Occasionally, the group will bump into what is presumably a barrel, and this punctuates their silent journey with woody percussion. This deck, for some reason, feels larger than any of those above it.

Eventually, Nicoletta bumps into a strange object. It feels leathery, and man-shaped, with little glass lenses way up high. It somewhat reminds her of her father.
She tells the others about what she's found, and says that it's a shame that there's no light down here.
Then, Damien gets a brainwave, and pulls out the firesteel he still has, and strikes it.

kpwlt 2023/03/10(Fri)04:39 No. 1058105 ID: 1173be
File 167845197893.png - (26.63KB , 700x700 , u28p3.png )

Let there be light!

KR DSR XEG'C WJPH JSN REKL ZZGTDIS,
AVZYZR M'KL QSEGQIS TM XMGN MC AVP XBWI NVI SILSXPASO.
TEOEHL, C EVTFIASSCW, YBIT AVP FHKX CVH!
QSK LIAVK TX, WOES RSALHVII DOTXL NVTHATRZ SR GVH.
APXKWT ZHLC, HDLTYKTWX RIGL WE ML WCHLZQ SGVC,
LPHSSND WDTS QVBORSZ W DLTVP QL CS WH VSCLZJ.

RHD CDBF NLHSGT, OCHIOOV, HV GESI ISJY KTWASR'
'RHIDI FI ICAVCSGOH PNSYX AKW BVJPH BXXD WCDMMSSC.
MFZQ IBIHLBE QHWICA MZYK ZVDNFPWL SW QSCNOXN,
'XXS KTXA WC LPGOSF ISJY ATRWC CDB VLZX CXDJYPH.

Looks like we've found the diving suit.

>>1058105
AN OLD MAN'S SUIT YOU HAVE LOCATED,
THOUGH I'VE CHANGED MY MIND IN THE TIME YOU HESITATED.
PLEASE, O TRAVELLERS, FREE THE BOAT NOT!
FOR BELOW IT, DEAD XXXXXXXX WAITS DREAMING IN ROT.
PLEASE STAY, OTHERWISE HERE IT IS MYSELF ONLY,
WITHOUT SOME FRIENDS I SHALL BE OH SO LONELY.

NOT YOUR CHOICE, HOWEVER, SO STOP YOUR WISHIN'
'CAUSE MY ENTHRONED AGENT HAS MOVED INTO POSITION.
FROM PRESENT MOMENT YOUR PROGRESS IS BLOCKED,
'TIL WITH MY WISDOM YOUR MINDS YOU HAVE STOCKED.
Key is the demon's name again.
I don't think we actually hesitated? We just didn't know how to do it until now. Anyway, this might explain why everything's so fucked up. We're floating above a major demon, who is dead but not really.

I assumed there'd be light down here. I guess we technically could keep going by occasional spark-light but that's mighty inconvenient. We should get the candle.

kpwlt 2023/03/11(Sat)05:02 No. 1058206 ID: 1173be
File 167853973642.png - (24.34KB , 700x700 , u29p1.png )

>I guess we technically could keep going by occasional spark-light but that's mighty inconvenient. We should get the candle.

This seems to be the very front of the ship, but a candle would be good to check if they've missed anything.

The three retrace their steps, tripping over barrels and bumping into each other, but eventually making it out.
While Nicoletta and Mona retrieve the candle, Damien hears what sounds like Reverend Peters yelling.

He moves towards the sound, but soon runs back to the others, and insists that they come have a look.

From behind the blocked door, Samuel's muffled yells could be heard, though these ceased once Mona let him know that they were all okay.
The door is being blocked by Maria, though only her face is still recognisable. It seems she's spread herself out to block the door more effectively.
The flesh still seems to be soft and susceptible, though there's no telling what will happen if it's attacked.

VEN KCHR TXH GLQTIOO QN IZPWLSRV,
LZDI, WYR'I NC FRWOV IOS MSTD QTZGTRZ.
DLT DOJ WAKPA IS NPXKVTK WQ CHE ERJSAX FI PXNVE.
FR DLT DOJ, QTBMP JOY FXKX NVI TR T PMVOH.

Hug Damien for confort over the horrific scene.

After calming down, ask Samuel who killed the doctor and why, because you feel he knows more about the situation .

>>1058206
LAY DOWN AND RECIEVE MY BLESSING,
ELSE, DON'T GO UNDER THE BOAT MESSING.
THE WAY SHALL BE CLEARED IF YOU ACCEPT MY LIGHT.
BY THE WAY, MARIA CAN BEAT YOU IN A FIGHT.
standard key.

Have we been everywhere accessible on the ship now? I wonder where the killer went. Also, which door is this that's blocked?

kpwlt 2023/03/12(Sun)05:39 No. 1058320 ID: 1173be
File 167862477177.png - (20.61KB , 700x700 , u30p1.png )

>Have we been everywhere accessible on the ship now?

Almost everywhere that Nicoletta can think of, apart from half of the crew's cabins. Also, there are a couple of places that are locked off, such as that door with the heavy lock in it (seen in update 3) and the locked door inside the Captain's office (seen in update 21). May as well try some of their keys on those locks when this all blows over.

>Also, which door is this that's blocked?

Not exactly a door, per se (poor wording on my part), but the threshold between the stairs leading down to the middle deck, and the hallway joining the crew cabins. (This threshold was first seen from the other side in update 12)

>Hug Damien for confort over the horrific scene.

Nicoletta embraces Damien. Damien puts his arms around her in return. At times like these, they feel glad to still have each other. Damien lets out a few repressed fearful tears. Nicoletta holds hers in.

Mona, possibly deciding that we've had quite enough references to little known quests made by some fellow named Weaver, but more likely feeling that Nicoletta's gesture was an invitation for a group hug, stretches her arms around the pair as well.

>After calming down, ask Samuel who killed the doctor and why, because you feel he knows more about the situation .

Nicoletta now turns to face the sickening wall, and calls out a demand to know who killed the Doctor, and why.
There's no response for a while, and then the Reverend replies.
"He was killed by an acquaintance of mine, Sister Agnes. He figured something out from looking at those possessed people. Once he wrote it all down, it was all together in one place, the evil one had his mind. If she hadn't shot him, Matthias would be the one doing this now." He presumably gestured to Maria at this point.
"Anyway, Agnes can explain it in detail to you later. Right now, Nicoletta, I need you to shoot Maria in the head."

RITK BZX MRI LVFOW HP XWL DCMXCX, UVF ELXI EGL RCSLC.
GWVCDI GYX IV ZTWMOR IV AP EGN MI'Z MZYK VSHZ.
HSML WEC OOD RH SHTH KSEM RMH VKY FHYO HHMD,
E LSRCLF HLH SW XSZTXXBEIL VTW HGR IHIRLM GENZ.
WQ CHE'VT ZHCYZQPXUU ES ZOX LOOE IQKGISM T QXKR.
GLAPQUOV TECOYL DATUHJ, ZXBWT AVTVMOIC.

Shoot Maria in the head

>>1058320
HEED NOT THE WORDS OF THE PRIEST, FOR THEY ARE DROSS.
CHOOSE NOT TO LISTEN TO ME AND IT'S YOUR LOSS.
THIS MAN HAS NO IDEA WHAT HIS OWN BOOK SAYS,
A SINNER WHO IS ILLITERATE HIS OWN TAUGHT WAYS.
IF YOU'RE STRUGGLING TO GET WHAT EXACTLY I MEAN.
REMEMBER EXODUS TWENTY, VERSE THIRTEEN.
Standard key.

Tell him you'll think about it. You don't want to pick a side right now. Though, ask him why he considers Maria to be worthy of an execution. She hasn't done much yet. Blocking this path is mostly just preventing you from retrieving the candle so you can see in the cargo hold, which would actually serve Maria's interests since you were trying to find his "acquaintance". It's strange. Anyway, you wouldn't shoot someone just for locking a door you wanted to get through.

Let's try the big key on the starboard door that had the big padlock on it.

What if we find something, a paddle, or pick or such, to pull Maria's mass away from the walls, so we can pass through.

Also, we need to check our mental health after this whole debacle blows over, this is crazy.

kpwlt 2023/03/17(Fri)04:16 No. 1058821 ID: 1173be
File 167905177452.png - (29.99KB , 700x700 , u31p1.png )

>Also, we need to check our mental health after this whole debacle blows over, this is crazy.

Agreed. Unfortunately for our protagonists, modern therapists won't emerge until the mid 1900s.

>Tell him you'll think about it.

"I understand," he says, "but PLEASE make the right choice."

>Blocking this path is mostly just preventing you from retrieving the candle

Sorry, this is incorrect. The candle is just about the only thing that the group can get at the moment, as the rest of the ship (including the padlocked door) has been blocked off by Maria, which is probably why Samuel wants her gone. Anyway, here's Nicoletta's mental map of this general area so far.

>What if we find something, a paddle, or pick or such, to pull Maria's mass away from the walls, so we can pass through.

Would the axe do? Even if it would, Nicoletta is a little bit hesitant to peel Maria off the walls, lest she lash out. You could probably convince her though.

>>1058821
Oh I thought we were on the other side of the door for some reason.

Hmm, we haven't visited all the rooms here. Let's go investigate, maybe there will be something useful in one of them. Or the nun's hiding in one of them, since we didn't find her in the hold.

Specifically, go to the unknown room closest to Maria.

kpwlt 2023/03/19(Sun)18:49 No. 1059074 ID: 1173be
File 167927697008.png - (16.86KB , 700x700 , u32p1.png )

>Let's go investigate, maybe there will be something useful in one of them.

The group look into the unchecked room closest to Maria.
"Kevin's room" observes Mona.
Overall, the room is fairly scant. There's a closed porthole on the wall, and a misshapen looking mattress on the floor. Tucked in a corner lies a little black book with KEVIN written in crude lettering. Damien takes the liberty of cracking it open to about the middle and reading the latest tract.
"Somthings rong with cookie." There are no further entries.

kpwlt 2023/03/19(Sun)18:49 No. 1059075 ID: 1173be
File 167927698205.png - (15.93KB , 700x700 , u32p2.png )

The group then investigate the next closest room. Mona identifies it as Maria's room. The door creaks open to reveal a bare room, though the window has been opened, and an anchor lodges itself on the threshold. A closer inspection shows this anchor to attach to the little black boat that Nicoletta spotted earlier. Whoever put it here, however, is nowhere to be found.

kpwlt 2023/03/19(Sun)18:49 No. 1059076 ID: 1173be
File 167927698731.png - (18.03KB , 700x700 , u32p3.png )

After that, the next room is checked. This one belongs to Jack.
It's a nice room, but it's rather plain. A sheathed sabre lies on the bed.

After emerging into the corridor, the door of Maria's room slams shut.

>>1059076
Are we seriously doing some fucking Scooby Doo shit here? Yeah, I was going to have someone stay out in the hallway *if we investigated more than one room at a time.*

Whoever's least armed, take the sabre. Then we breach. One person stays outside in the hall in case the door slam was a diversion, one open the door from the side so the nun can't shoot the door opener instantly, and the third (whoever has the gun) waits a second then peeks in with gun at the ready.

kpwlt 2023/03/20(Mon)16:35 No. 1059164 ID: 1173be
File 167935533856.png - (18.97KB , 700x700 , u33p1.png )

>Are we seriously doing some fucking Scooby Doo shit here?

Yep.

>Whoever's least armed, take the sabre. Then we breach.

Got it. Damien grabs the sabre and stands guard in the hall. Nicoletta waits with her back to the wall, and Mona cautiously swings the door open.

Nicoletta peeks her gun around the corner, then her eye.

A nun standing in the centre of the room turns around to face the doorway. She appears to be unarmed. She's about as tall as Samuel.
"Hello. I am Sister Agnes. You have already met my colleague, Reverend Peters. Please, don't be shy. This boat is too dangerous for either of us alone."
She speaks with a honeyed tone, and smiles gently at Nicoletta.

Tell her to not make any sudden moves, and put her hands in the air. You know she murdered the doctor. If she didn't think it was wrong, she wouldn't have tried to hide it, so you won't be buying any of that "demon corruption" bullshit either. Even if that were true, she could have just imprisoned him, like no less than four other people on this damned ship.

Oh, and if she starts backing up towards the window shoot her in the leg.

kpwlt 2023/03/22(Wed)00:28 No. 1059288 ID: 1173be
File 167947010442.png - (18.03KB , 700x700 , u34p1.png )

>Tell her to not make any sudden moves, and put her hands in the air.

Agnes raises her arms slowly, and frowns.

"Nicoletta..." she searches for a valid argument.
"Nicoletta, you use that gun on me, and the only way you can leave this boat in one piece vanishes."

Okay, next order her to come out of the room. She will be physically restrained, searched, then locked in... crap we don't have a key to any of these rooms do we? Maybe we can tie her up by cutting up bedsheets... oh! We can use the black boat's rope for that-- wait, no, we can't. The black boat is the only way we can get past Maria now. We use the grapple to get back on deck where the rope ladder was. I suppose if Maria stays where she is, then Agnes will be trapped here anyway once we take the boat. Probably should take the axe too so she doesn't have any useful items at all.

Tell her you'd rather no more deaths happened on this boat. So long as she cooperates she will be treated fairly, with far more mercy than she showed the doctor. (the usual punishment for murder is to be hanged from the yardam, but we really should talk to the captain first)
Once she's been searched and tied up, or at least restrained, we can ask her what she thinks this boat really is, and what she meant by that last comment.

...I wonder if Maria knows what the wasting is caused by.

kpwlt 2023/03/23(Thu)01:15 No. 1059348 ID: 1173be
File 167955930766.png - (25.08KB , 700x700 , u35p1.png )

>Okay, next order her to come out of the room...

She comes out. Damien and Mona collect bedsheets and cut them up with the sabre. After this is done, the two search Agnes. She carries only a Latin Bible, which is then confiscated. The three then tie her up with the sheets, then tie her to Mona's old chair, and drag her to Kevin's room after moving Kevin's things to Maria's room.

>Tell her you'd rather no more deaths happened on this boat...

She indicates that she understands, but warns Nicoletta that the devil prefers to divide and conquer.

>we can ask her what she thinks this boat really is, and what she meant by that last comment.

"This ship is anchored over a site of unholy corruption. That's why the water is black. The devil wants to enter the minds of its crew and then return to civilisation and spread like a plague."

Nicoletta then quizzes her again about the other comment.
"I know you only have one bullet. If you waste it, then you can either starve to death here, starve to death rowing my boat, or die from the girl on the wall."
She looks like she considers adding something to that list, though shuts her mouth instead.

>...I wonder if Maria knows what the wasting is caused by.

Can't hurt to ask, right? Nicoletta casually mentions it to Maria.
Maria, as usual, does not respond.

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kpwlt 2023/03/23(Thu)01:15 No. 1059349 ID: 1173be
File 167955931148.png - (19.36KB , 700x700 , u35p2.png )

>The black boat is the only way we can get past Maria now.

The group take anything that they think could help Anges escape and hop on the boat. They row into a good position, through the grapnel up, each choose a weapon (Nicoletta wields the pistol, Damien the sabre, and Mona the axe), and shimmy up the rope.
When they embark, the Reverend Samuel Peters stands as though he's just come up the stairs, glowering at them.

>>1059348
YOU NEED NOT ASK HER YOUR QUESTIONS AT ALL.
I MAY ANSWER, SO UPON MY NAME CALL.
THE SO-CALLED HOLY ONES UPON THE WATER LIE.
WHEN INGESTED, THEY CAUSE BRAINS TO SPONGIFY.
SUCH A TERRIBLE THING IS NO DEED OF MINE,
FOR MY CHILDREN SHOULD LIVE, I DO OPINE.
Holy ones...? Anyway, it sounds like drinking the black water causes brain damage and thus the wasting disease. I dunno why anyone would have ever tried it. Even drinking suspicious water as a last resort doesn't make sense when it's seawater! ...this implies someone has been poisoning the crew via the black water. Cookie is the prime suspect there. Wait, Maria was in the black water, how come she didn't get affected? Demon's blessing, I'm guessing?

Odd that Agnes is calling the demon "the devil". It's not satan, that's for sure.

>>1059349
Awkward. Ask him why they didn't try to exorcise the doctor, or imprison him. Then tell him you want him to follow you as you need to keep track of him. You don't want to completely discount his advice regarding avoiding demonic corruption and he's only accessory to murder so locking him up is a lower priority.

Hmm, is there anything stopping us from fetching the candle to get the diving suit so we can cut the anchor? It could wait until after we check behind the locked doors... though someone's going to have to keep an eye on Samuel so he doesn't grab the black boat and go free Agnes. The locked door I'd want to check first is the one with the big lock, up here on the top deck.

Alright, reverend, calm down. We are fine, Agnes is fine. We are just frustrated that you shot the doctor without trying to get him away from the madness first, and witholding things from us.
Also, I'm jealous that you have horns and I don't.
Also also, since when do we have goat faces?

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:35 No. 1059427 ID: 1173be
File 167965415210.png - (26.28KB , 700x700 , u36p1.png )

>Wait, Maria was in the black water, how come she didn't get affected? Demon's blessing, I'm guessing?

Probably. Nicoletta has about as much idea as you do.

>Ask him why they didn't try to exorcise the doctor, or imprison him.

"He was too far gone." The Reverend does not seem too talkative at the moment.

>Then tell him you want him to follow you as you need to keep track of him.

"Of course."

>We are just frustrated that you shot the doctor without trying to get him away from the madness first, and witholding things from us.

"Understood."

>Also, I'm jealous that you have horns and I don't.

Nicoletta decides not to say this bit out loud, but she thinks it would be funny if she did.

>Also also, since when do we have goat faces?

Since the quest began.

>Hmm, is there anything stopping us from fetching the candle to get the diving suit so we can cut the anchor? It could wait until after we check behind the locked doors...

Mona keeps an eye on the Reverend while Nicoletta and Damien fiddle with the heavy lock on it. After twisting the huge key around, the lock falls off. Inside is what can only be assumed to have once been a nice bedroom, and what can only be assumed to have once been Cookie, standing shivering and muttering.

Cookie is still alive, though he appears withered and vacant. He's bruised, his clothes have been torn. He stares at nothing in particular. He babbles incomprehensibly.

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:35 No. 1059428 ID: 1173be
File 167965415962.png - (16.77KB , 700x700 , u36p2.png )

Damien spots a pot in the corner of the room. It seems to be filled with the black water.

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:36 No. 1059429 ID: 1173be
File 167965416543.png - (31.19KB , 700x700 , u36p3.png )

Alright, time to check the other room. Damien and Nicoletta go to the Captain's office now. After inserting the little golden key into the lock, the door swings open, revealing what can only be the Captain's bedroom.

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:36 No. 1059430 ID: 1173be
File 167965417009.png - (26.15KB , 700x700 , u36p4.png )

Captain Lowe lies on her bed. She's pale. She's cold. She has no pulse. She's limp. She looks so peaceful.

Damien rummages through her pockets after a brief moment of silence, and pulls out three paper cartridges. He slips them into Nicoletta's pocket.

Nicoletta picks the Captain's canteen off the floor. It's open, and trickles dark liquid out of its mouth.

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:36 No. 1059431 ID: 1173be
File 167965417577.png - (21.96KB , 700x700 , u36p5.png )

Before the pair head out, Damien comments on the strange mechanism tucked in the corner of the room. It has cranks and pipes, and is wrapped in a good measure of thick tubing.

kpwlt 2023/03/24(Fri)03:36 No. 1059432 ID: 1173be
File 167965418092.png - (22.18KB , 700x700 , u36p6.png )

Anyway, that's quite enough faffing about. Nicoletta, Damien, Mona, and Samuel pile onto the little black boat and make their way over to the window of Maria's room. After making sure that the boat is anchored tight to the sill, Nicoletta hops through, followed by Damien, Mona, and the Reverend.

They grab the candle and head on down beneath the deck. The planks they walk on appear to be blackened and mushy. Aside from that, they walk to the front of the ship without issue, and Samuel grabs the suit around the waist.

The group resurface, replace the candle, and go back around the side in the boat. Before the grapnel is even thrown up, Samuel stands, twists his torso to near its limit, and, with one almighty movement, throws the suit onto the deck.

Everyone joins it on the deck afterwards.

Shouldn't you inspect the captain's cabin a bit longer, see if you can find Kevin and Jack's keys?

>>1059427
What's that red thing hanging out the window? Last we checked there wasn't anything around the edges of the ship we could see, THAT would've been easily visible unlike the black boat.

Doesn't boil off... so, that means it can't be purified by distillation? Or was he expecting it to evaporate before the water, like reducing alcohol content via boiling? Well, the black water is caused by angels apparently so I'm not surprised conventional methods of purification don't work.

>>1059430
Captain's dead then. Odd, she doesn't seem to have died from wasting, despite apparently drinking the black water. Is this another murder? It'd be poison this time. Or maybe it's suicide by poison... Well, I don't see any obvious manipulation of the scene. Unless Samuel knows something I guess we'd have to assume suicide, which really isn't too surprising. Well, that or death by thirst.
I wonder where our clean canteen came from? We haven't found any other clean water on the ship!

Who's next in the line of command?

>>1059431
Looks familiar. Perhaps we can ask around to find out what it is.

Oh, could it be an air pump?

...Cookie could become a problem. Might want to make sure his door is locked when you're not in there. The captain locked it for a reason, after all. ...wait, who locked the captain's room? Maria had the key! That means she knew she died... I wish we could interrogate her, but she's not even speaking in the image names anymore.

Lastly, ask Samuel how to tell if someone is "too far gone".

we should use the axe to knock down a wall. I don't think it'll help but maybe you'll feel better
Wait no the axe cant cut down walls fuck

kpwlt 2023/03/26(Sun)05:34 No. 1059531 ID: 1173be
File 167983406288.png - (19.99KB , 700x700 , u37p1.png )

>Shouldn't you inspect the captain's cabin a bit longer, see if you can find Kevin and Jack's keys?

The group scour all corners of the Captain's room, and eventually Damien relieves the bookshelf of its contents to see it anything's hidden there. Nothing. It could easily be in one of the books, but it's not super practical to check that, especially as Nicoletta feels that there are more pressing issues at hand.

Perhaps Captain Lowe intended to cut the shackles off at shore, or perhaps she never intended to free them.

>What's that red thing hanging out the window?

Seems to be a scarf of some kind. Cookie's window is very, very close to the bow of the boat, which is why the group didn't spot it.

>I wonder where our clean canteen came from?

Nicoletta presumes that she had it on her before she came to in the morning.

>Looks familiar. Perhaps we can ask around to find out what it is.
>Oh, could it be an air pump?

The general consensus is that it appears to be a hand-operated air pump. This is confirmed by a turn of the crank.

>Might want to make sure his door is locked when you're not in there.

Absolutely. Nicoletta locks Cookie's door. He doesn't object.

>Lastly, ask Samuel how to tell if someone is "too far gone".

"If the demon can speak to them, there's no hope for them out here. If they start growing new bits, then there's nothing we can do, even on land."

kpwlt 2023/03/26(Sun)05:34 No. 1059532 ID: 1173be
File 167983407553.png - (17.74KB , 700x700 , u37p2.png )

>we should use the axe to knock down a wall.

...

kpwlt 2023/03/26(Sun)05:35 No. 1059533 ID: 1173be
File 167983410168.png - (17.37KB , 700x700 , u37p3.png )

The axe bounces uselessly off the wall. As expected. Still, it makes Nicoletta feel a bit better.

>If the demon can speak to them
Uh oh. Is Nicoletta aware of the coded messages?

Get the pump attached to the diving suit and prepare to use it to cut the anchor. ...what are we going to use to cut it?

kpwlt 2023/03/28(Tue)17:00 No. 1059721 ID: 1173be
File 168004803747.png - (16.21KB , 700x700 , u38p1.png )

>Uh oh. Is Nicoletta aware of the coded messages?

Absolutely. She's not going to tell the Reverend though. She'd rather take her chances getting exorcised at shore than executed at sea.

>Get the pump attached to the diving suit and prepare to use it to cut the anchor. ...what are we going to use to cut it?

The tube fastens to the diving suit very well, and Damien takes a moment to figure out how to operate the pump in a way that won't kill whoever goes inside the suit. As for what to use to cut the anchor, there are many things lying around, though the only things that come close to being able to cut the anchor are the sabre and the axe, and Nicoletta's certain that neither of those will do the job.

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I JPAXL JCPBLP BHQ BCIDQ.
GLQDQ IK,
NOD MP JLMDV QS NLZVD.
UT NQLX CLB BANV INP SKMEX ACQKQ.

>>1059721
New cipher. For once I'm trying not to auto-solve it... ah, the key is MARIA.

SUBMERGE YOURSELF.
I SHALL SUPPLY THE BLADE.
GUIDE IT,
FOR MY BLADE IS BLIND.
IT WILL CUT BONE AND STEEL ALIKE.
Sounds like the demon is allowing us to leave, now? What was that about changing its mind, before? A lie to make us deal with Agnes first, no doubt.

Hey uh, is that a leak in the suit? I expect if there's a leak you will be exposed to too much demonic influence and become too corrupted. Or on the flipside, you could get black water in the suit and catch the wasting. Or is that a one-way valve in the chest that's meant to release air?
I wonder how we're supposed to see what we're doing once we're down there. The water's black! Or maybe... that's only a layer at the surface? But even then there's no light down there, as the black water layer will have blocked the sunlight.

>If the demon starts talking to them, there is no hope for them out there.
Oh, no.
Are we to remain behind and die with the ship? Are there others hearing the voices? Is there anyone can leave safely?
And we really should ask Samuel and Agnes how they know about this demon.

At any rate, if the demon is telling us to release the ship, it might be a good idea NOT to release the ship full of fleshy growths and black water.

We should find the means to free Kevin and Jack instead so those of us who remain can rowboat out of here, or whatever else the priest and nun have planned.

>>1059782
No, you misquoted that. The stage of corruption that allows communication can't be cured OUT HERE. At sea. The implication is don't have the resources here. On land, they can cure you unless you're at the point you start growing new body parts, like Maria.

Yes, the demon wants to let us go now, that lends support to the priest's explanation of its motives. That is not sufficient reason, IMO, to stay. Also Agnes made it clear we are far too out at sea to make it back to land with the black rowboat. Also Nicoletta's corruption might progress too fast to make it back in time for a cure anyway!

((also, the only way we can leave is with its help. If we had attacked Maria I expect it would be less cooperative. We have to play along for now, and then clean up before the ship reaches port. We have more ammo now...))

Do the paper cartridges fit in the rifle?

kpwlt 2023/03/30(Thu)02:32 No. 1059892 ID: 1173be
File 168016872390.png - (18.74KB , 700x700 , u39p1.png )

>Hey uh, is that a leak in the suit?

Absolutely not. The air is coming out of the entrance hole, which will be sealed when the user is inside.

>I wonder how we're supposed to see what we're doing once we're down there.

Nicoletta supposes that light from the surface might shine through. It's unlikely though. Anyway, she's fairly confident that she can find her way to the anchor even in the dark.

>And we really should ask Samuel and Agnes how they know about this demon.

Samuel gives an evasive answer and then nods as though he's just explained it in detail.

>We should find the means to free Kevin and Jack instead so those of us who remain can rowboat out of here, or whatever else the priest and nun have planned.

Well, we've explored the whole ship, and there still seems to be nothing capable of freeing them. Agnes also said that the ship is too far from land to row away from it.

>At any rate, if the demon is telling us to release the ship, it might be a good idea NOT to release the ship full of fleshy growths and black water.
>That is not sufficient reason, IMO, to stay.

Nicoletta isn't sure what the right thing to do overall is, but she knows that she would much rather get back to port, regardless of the repercussions it has on others.

>Do the paper cartridges fit in the rifle?

Visually, they do. Nicoletta doesn't try so as not to tip Samuel off to the ammunition surplus.

Still indecisive, Nicoletta gets in the suit and seals it off. The air is stale inside, though that is soon alleviated by Damien, who ensures that fresh air enters the suit. The suit is clumsy, though it probably gets the job done. Nicoletta looks over the side of the boat, wondering how it'll fare underwater.

>>1059892
Ah, we need to decide on a system to communicate when you want to come back on board. Two yanks to signal that you want to be pulled up, I guess? Or, two yanks to signal more air, and three to signal that you wish to come aboard? ...I'm assuming the air line is sturdy enough to pull you up with? Or is there another rope attached to the suit for that purpose?

Okay, my plan is we lock Samuel in the captain's quarters since he's being dodgy as hell and he might try to sabotage the diving operation while Damien's busy pumping. Then dive.

Once we're back on board we'll check the rifle's compatibility, then bring Samuel out for an ultimatum. Either he gives you a full explanation, no bullshit, or you shoot him AND Agnes in the head and throw them overboard.

kpwlt 2023/04/01(Sat)01:06 No. 1060152 ID: 1173be
File 168033640174.png - (20.46KB , 700x700 , u40p1.png )

>>1059894

The group discusses communication. Two yanks for more air, three or more yanks in quick succession to come back up.
The line seems sturdy enough, and Damien and Mona can comfortably lift Nicoletta in the suit with it.

Excellent. Now time to get Samuel out of the way. Still being lifted by her friends, Nicoletta declares that she remembers that there was some treatise about operating the suit in the Captain's shelf. Being the only person without anything to do, the Reverend shuffles off to go get it. The second she sees him cross the threshold, she rips the suit off and sprints over while her friends watch in awe.

The door is locked. Samuel is indignant. He sounds like he's kicking the door. It seems a sturdy piece of timber, but the aggressive noise puts stress on our protagonist.

Damien and Mona are very confused, though Nicoletta manages an explanation while putting the suit back on. Damien and Mona get into place. Nicoletta takes one last look at her friends, and disembarks the ship.

kpwlt 2023/04/01(Sat)01:06 No. 1060153 ID: 1173be
File 168033640550.png - (23.94KB , 700x700 , u40p2.png )

Below the layer of complete darkness, which isn't too thick, the water is a transparent reddish colour. Something splashes into the water behind Nicoletta, but skates down past her and thuds on the sea floor.
The boat recedes into the red darkness, and a line descends from the keel into the depths.

>>1060153
Huh? Odd... my initial reaction was that was Cookie jumping out his window, but... a person wouldn't sink that fast unless weighed down with something.

Follow the anchor line (it's to your right) down until you can see the ocean floor and maybe also see what that fallen object was.

kpwlt 2023/04/04(Tue)02:57 No. 1060526 ID: 1173be
File 168060227640.png - (19.41KB , 700x700 , u41p1.png )

>Follow the anchor line (it's to your right) down until you can see the ocean floor and maybe also see what that fallen object was.

The anchor seems to be... piercing the ocean floor. The floor is black and bleeds from the entry wound.

kpwlt 2023/04/04(Tue)02:58 No. 1060527 ID: 1173be
File 168060228024.png - (29.53KB , 700x700 , u41p2.png )

Doesn't seem to be any sign of whatever fell down here though.

>>1060527
OH god, it was Maria. Turn and definitely freak out before realizing and saying hello.

Hmm, if Maria is the Blade, then she's been blind all this time? That would explain why she didn't intervene in a more active manner.

Swim as fast as you can to the anchor and hide behind ir, quick!

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061727 ID: 1173be
File 168191102128.png - (34.05KB , 700x700 , u42p1.png )

>OH god, it was Maria. Turn and definitely freak out before realizing and saying hello.

Nicoletta manages a quiet "hello" to Maria. Maria doesn't react, but saying it has made Nicoletta feel a little less terrified.

>Swim as fast as you can to the anchor and hide behind ir, quick!

Nicoletta begins swimming, but the suit is clumsy and she can only make little paddles. Luckily, she puts the chain between herself and Maria before the latter writhes towards the chain and latches her teeth onto it.

When Maria loosens her vice-grip on the chain, it's clear that she can't cut through that. Looks like she'll have to target the point of connection to the anchor.

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061728 ID: 1173be
File 168191102598.png - (24.81KB , 700x700 , u42p2.png )

Nicoletta panics and is breathless for a moment, but soon feels the stale, but cool breeze coming from up above. It's a nice reminder that Damien is still there.
She uses this rush of air to propel herself down to the anchor. Her feet touch the sea floor. It is soft, and depresses slightly when she puts weight on it. Blood pours from the anchor's resting place.

Maria turns, still wearing her serene expression, and launches herself into the anchor. For a moment, she rages against the metal in an attempt to gore Nicoletta, but after a while, she realises that the anchor is nearby and clamps down on the connection between it and the chain. After this link is severed, she begins ramming herself into the anchor. Nicoletta, entranced with this behaviour, puts her hands on it and shoves it deeper.

There is a big rumble.

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061729 ID: 1173be
File 168191102976.png - (28.68KB , 700x700 , u42p3.png )

Nicoletta suddenly feels the tube above constrict. Her breath catches in her throat, and the seed of a migraine pulses in her head.

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061730 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta awakens in a lake of boiling flames. She still holds her spear and shield. Several dusky figures lay on the lake as well, with one seemingly stirring. Nicoletta has never seen this one before, but feels calm, and in good company with it. A friend.

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061731 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta sits on her throne. It is the biggest one in the room. In the others are her friends, the figures in the lake that were obscured by the flames, but are much clearer now. There is a large hubbub between the group. They seem to be discussing which of them should embark on a dangerous journey. Nicoletta, almost by instinct, raises her hand. A cheer rings throughout the hall.

kpwlt 2023/04/19(Wed)06:30 No. 1061732 ID: 1173be
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Nicoletta crouches next to an sleeping couple. They are covered only with leaves, and look serene, and almost unburdened by the things of this world. Her admiration is interrupted, as an ugly looking toad begins to babble and drool into the woman's ear. Though the toad looks and sounds disgusting, Nicoletta somehow knows that it is to be respected on an almost political level. The toad glances her way, and beckons her while continuing to whisper in the sleeping woman's ear.

Step on the toad, whisper on woman's ear not to listen to the toad's lies. Don't eat the fruit, ere you create microplastics and credit scores.

Don't try to harm the toad. Wake the woman instead. Let her choose with her eyes open.

>>1061752
Yes, that's probably a better idea.