The Harvest Moon Consortium

[Winterhawk99]

"Lauriella! Lauriella! Whiskers be want'in ya on deck now!"
She comes out of her trance to find rough seas under her feet. She sets Ellisieff int o the crib, downs her heavy waterproof overcoat and makes to the deck. The Captain is at the wheel. She walks up to the navigators stand next to it, "Cap'in?"

"Umberlle's got her hair up! ye look to the clouds." She looks up and does a slow 360 turn, "I've never seen weather like this are the clouds spinning round us?"

"Aye, it be called Umberlle's Wrath, it be. All calm in the middle storm be swirling round. It just be form'in now. This be the worst of storms lass. I need ye by me side."

Sher rolls out charts, "What do we do?"

Try keeping to the middle till the storm be tir'in itself out. Looks like it be going east. You can keep track you can? We got near a dozen ship on the Darmara/Mulhorand run with us we do."

"long as I can proximate the sun captain, yes."

Wish I could be affording two pilots. One being more experience than ye but you'll have to be do'in. This Beauty. This be yer test. We the smallest but also the fastest. Think ye can be do'ing it."

Lauriella nods, "I'll get us safely. It's my daughters life too." She raises her sextet to make a declination and reads the compass placing a dot on the map. We're going due east. The wrong way?"

"We follow the storm hop'in it nae turn before runn'in itself out."

She nods making sure all the sails are trimmed and down in their secure places, "Lets try to ride this out then."

The captain and her work into the night before the storm starts to turn and it turns quickly, violently. It starts picking up warm water and spins faster. The captain looks at her, "We may not make it. I'll tell the men to man the Tender. Get them to the Queen Waterhaiven. She nods, "Ill stay here the pilot needs to be by their cap'in side."

"Whiskers looks at her. I know you be brave lass but ye got ye a daughter to be thinking bout. git yerself to the tender! That's an order!"

She looks around, "James Little Horn! Get Ellisieff! Put her on the tender with you and get the rest of the crew off the ship! I'm staying!"

The captain gets furious, "I will nae let a mother stay in this kinda storm Lauriella especially babe in arm! Get ye to the boat!"

"Have you forgotten what I do for a living Whiskers. I track down mad mages and lichs for a trade. No storm is going to stop us. And besides I'm Ar-Tel-Quessir!" Lauriella releases several spells of continual light upon the mast, bawl and Stern. She makes sure all the crew are on the lifeboat and screams out Ellisief!" One of the crew members holds up a bundle of folded cloth. She uses a spell of telekinesis to lower the tender down to the sea. When she sees them rowing to the Queen she turns to him.

"We're the fastest. I have to maintain these spells to light the way. I have no choice if we are to survive."

"The captain strokes his beard in anger but cannot fence through her logic, "Damn ye Lauriella! Put ye harness on and turn her too the winds!" She clips her sextet to a line from her belt letting it bounce against her hip and mans the wheel. The captain now pilots for he's been through these storms before. They lead the way.

The Slander leads the beleaguered ships into the storm. She rides into the waves like a stampeding bull. Lauriella looses the wheel several times sometimes falling on the slippery deck. Each time she stands back up and hugs the wheel tighter. The captain patiently gives orders. As they make for the rim of the storm a rouge wave comes upon them, Twice the height of the mast. As it crashes down upon them it throws Lauriella back so hard She lands head first into main mast crushing the side of her head. The Scandal bobs several times on her side as the waves wash over it and then she is gone.