Flashing Steel on the Island of Coatzacos

Scene V

On the Island of Coatzacos, due east of Neptune's Lair and Lion's Port there is a secret smuggler's cove wherein our adventuring band of cutthroats have hidden the Huntress.  Captain William Azure is securing wood and water in the hidden river cove.  Just at the entrance to the fresh water river is a stockade fortress of which no one has any information.  This island is a victualing point for many bands of buccaneers and an easy reach from most of the Caribbean.  It is said to be peopled with a headhunting tribe of idol worshipers - but that was a long time ago. 

Like any other clump of land in this blue bowl of water there are trees, palms, jungle flora and fauna and the oppressive heat that comes with this latitude.

The Gimlet is anchored in the roads to Coatzacos and has dropped an away boat.  Our band of adventuring brethren is coming ashore to do business at the Stingy Bastard Inn. A smaller trading vessel the Cyprinadae is anchored - nearly beached on the sands to leeward.

The port view of Coatzacos from the deck of the Gimlet, captain Dwailyn commanding.

Idol gossip can be heard on deck as the sailors discuss the notion of headhunters on this island - but that was a long time ago.

Dwailyn's away team would include: Gunther, Sven and Jim Nesbit.

The wary crew of the Cyprinadae seem to be readying their ship for departure and then perhaps they will wait and see what develops now that another larger ship has anchored off the coast of Coatzacos - an island that used to be inhabited by an idol worshiping tribe of headhunters with a stockade fort that no one has any information about....

All bow before the great blood ruby of _ _ZOD_ _ .

The away team is watched.

Part of our troupe is from the far far East.  Chun is the leader and his band of martial artists include, Ned, Yu Won To, and Pankin.

Dwailyn meets and talks with the Professor and Gylles.

The long sandy trek toward the Stingy Bastard Inn.  The stockade fort can be seen dead ahead.  Of which no one can say who goes in or out of that old stronghold....

Poor business is conducted with the proprietor of the Stingy Bastard.

Watering and wood aboard the Huntress...

_ _ZOD_ _

Death poors from the tomb of _ _ZOD_ _.

On the doorstep of the Stingy Bastard the pirates make a stand.

And now dear reader a guest author has sent in a view of the actual combat as seen from the point of view of Captain Dwailyn.  Please welcome Jon Haworth tableside:

Chaos was running rampant on board the Huntress.  All attempts to collect fresh water had ceased and they were frantically making preparations to sail back into the cove to get away from any perceived impending doom.  The crew was in an elevated state of panic after hearing countless unearthly screams from the island’s interior and witnessing the surreal battle Pankin Mi Munki had endured on the bank of the inlet.  It was somewhat disconcerting that after the fight, instead of returning to the ship like a normally sane person would do, Pankin did a back flip and ran headlong back into the jungle for more. 

Guinesss McGlavin had taken position in the crow’s nest on the main mast to survey the action.  He could see glimpses of gunfire and movement, but it was hard to tell who was who in the fray.  Suddenly out of the bog, he could see part of the landing party heading for the ship! Dwailyn was toting a strongbox full of treasure under each arm, followed by Gunter von Girdlefrazzen and “Little” Jim Nesbit.  The diminutive captain yells to the crew, “Hold boys! There be nothin’ of concern for ye.  We’ve got ‘em right where we want ‘em and there’s more of this to come!”  With that, he tosses the boxes on board and heads inland again.

Upon returning to the village, Dwailyn finds that Chun had almost single handedly resolved any “issues” they had with the locals.  Yu Won Tu and Ned, members of Chun’s crew, had been injured and were in need of medical attention onboard ship.  Half rotten corpses and skeletal remains of the creatures they had just dispatched were strewn all over the ground, ghastly to be sure.  As he takes a swig of ale from his finely Jamaican crafted, red striped flask, Dwailyn shares his observations, “Well lads, we’ve certainly seen things here that no man’s witnessed before!  Let us gather up what booty we can and make haste back to the Huntress.”

Chun replies, “There’s some maps and documents inside the tavern.  I’m getting them, they could be helpful in understanding what happened here.”

It is that part of the day when the morning sun blends with the remaining shades of night that make the surroundings feel almost heavenly – almost.  Cheers rang from the deck of the ship as the landing party returned.  The injured were hoisted onboard and taken to the infirmary.  The remaining booty was laid out and assessed.  Not a bad haul, $400 gold, munitions, cannons, miscellaneous trinkets and, of course, the maps. 

“The crew faced the minions of Hell full sail and triumphed very lucratively’, Dwailyn thought to himself, as he watched the sun glimmer across the gold inside the strongboxes, “I’ll transfer to the Gimlet when we meet up in the cove and…”  Then, like a cold shiver that starts at your toes and runs all the way to the back of your neck, he realized that something was not right.

“Where’s Sven?” he cried.

“We thought he was with you!” responded Chun.

“No!  I thought he was with you!”

A frantic search proved futile.  Sven was still out there!  “We’re gonna go back there and rip that place apart and burn it to the ground!”, Dwailyn screams.  “I’ll be damned if I’m gonna leave anyone behind!”

The rest of the story is for another day.