Cycle 1062 (Autumn), Day 36: 'Regal Star'

[atpollard]

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 36: Shift 3: Hour 4:00 [Sidewheeler 'Regal Star']

JACQUES & REMY
Several days have passed and you have gotten more of a feel for how things work among the 'Brotherhood'. Alliances are quickly formed for the duration of an operation, then the spoils are divided and all members go their separate ways to form a new alliance. Some individuals like to work with people they are familiar with. Others follow whoever seems to be on a hot streak. Still others are recruited for specific jobs because they possess specific skills. The bond of the Brotherhood and the knowledge of what would happen to a traitor to the Brotherhood ensures a measure of trust among people who might otherwise be strangers.

While Nicolas appears content to just bide his time and spend his wealth, Jacques becomes acquainted with the captain of a small fast ship that engages mostly in smuggling. He knows of a once in a lifetime job that YOU would be a perfect addition to the team on. The "Star Lines" operates a fleet of high speed passenger ships that all have 'Star' in their name ... 'Ocean Star', 'Morning Star', 'Princess Star' and the 'Regal Star'. The Regal Star will be passing through this area in the near future.

" It is too fast of a ship for anyone to have a real chance of catching it except the Royal Navy. Unless a passenger or crewman were to sabotage the ship while it was at sea. Just enough to slow it down. Damage one of the boilers or the helm, for example." the man smiled. "I could never pass for a swell, but someone like you could. And Torquil would pay both of us handsomely."

******

Thus it came to pass that a long, slender boat made a fast trip in total darkness to the City of Westfalen to deliver a 'Gentleman' to the docks with his expertly forged papers to take his place aboard the soon to depart 'Regal Star'. The task is simple, you sail for 8 hours and arrive at Hessen, where you do not debark. Then 6 hours after the ship departs from Hessen on a long leg across open water, you are to sabotage the ship to prevent it from making top speed and escaping the fleet preparing to intercept it. You may remain anonymous and simply collect your share of the spoils aboard such an elite ship.

[Would Jacques prefer to travel as a First Class Passenger, or as the 'Pilot' or 'Navigator'?]

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques would prefer to travel as a First Class passenger. More deniability that way. Would Remy travel with him?

Jacques strolls causally along the docks, cane in hand, heading towards the Regal Star. He chats up anyone nearby, acquainting himself with the dock workers and crew. "Ah. The Regal Star. I haven't had the pleasure of this particular vessel if you know what I mean. Any oddities or quirks you've heard about?"

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 36: Shift 3: Hour 4:10 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

Jacques strolls causally along the docks, cane in hand, heading towards the Regal Star. He chats up anyone nearby, acquainting himself with the dock workers and crew.

[Roll 10: Outstanding success]

Jaques makes the acquaintance of Chief Engineer Jasper Stephens, a plump friendly man with a braided beard that enjoys welcoming Passengers aboard.

"Ah. The Regal Star. I haven't had the pleasure of this particular vessel if you know what I mean. Any oddities or quirks you've heard about?" said Jacques.

Stevens face lit up as Jacques opened the door to his favorite topic. There was little that Stevens enjoyed talking about more than "HIS ship". "The Regal, she's no freight scow with blunt lines. No sir, she's a Lady with real fine lines. Notice how long and slender she is, that makes her fast for her displacement. Only 20 foot of breath at the waterline and flaring out to twice that above the water, and 100 feet long at the water line. Notice the clipper bow and how it curves in before flaring out so she can slice through the water like a knife. This beauty will make better than 13 knots Top Speed on any heading. The number of ships faster than the Regal can be counted on one hand." he boasted, glowing with pride.

With a minimum of coaxing, Jacques soon found himself the guest of honor on a personal tour of the ship led by the Chief Engineer himself. "Regulations require only three watertight bulkheads below the main deck, so that one compartment can be flooded but the remaining two will keep the ship afloat. The Regal has five transverse bulkheads and a longitudinal bulkhead that runs the length of the ship from the Number 1 to the Number 5 bulkheads. That gives us ten watertight compartments and any three or four could be flooded and she would still stay afloat." Stevens grinned "Not that even one flooded compartment is ever likely given her double hull design."

The Boilers and engines occupied the four central compartments and were divided between the Port and Starboard Boiler Rooms, each containing four large boilers that fed a single steam pipe running aft, and the Port and Starboard Engine Rooms, each containing an enormous three cylinder compound steam engine. The Port boilers and engine drove a large port-side paddlewheel and the Starboard side was a mirror of the port. The smoke from the boilers fed into a single central stack that appeared to have metal ladders and stairs along the outside that ran straight up through the ship. You saw the engine controls where temperatures and pressures were monitored. You followed the Chief through a maze of simple corridors and ship's ladders (stairs) that seemed to run the spine of the ship. You briefly toured the Kitchen and met Amaury Courvoisier, the Head Chef, who was initially cross with the Engineer to tramping through his kitchen, but calmed considerably when Stewart claimed to be bragging to a guest about "Murry's" pastries. It seems that few of the Britannia crew could properly pronounce the French Chef's name. When Amaury heard your accent (and you WERE able to pronounce his name perfectly) he became delighted and immediately began chatting in French, just to hear his native language again. You left the kitchen with a plate of amazing puff pastries.

Stephens led you past the entrance to the Bridge, but apologized that it was off limits to passengers. You finally emerged through a door on the uppermost passenger deck marked "Gentlemen's Parlor". Only the bridge and 'Sports Deck' was higher than this. Standing in the richly paneled room with large overstuffed chairs and a lingering scent of pipe smoke, you observed the door was paneled over and unlabeled from the 'Passenger' side. Anyone walking past would not have given it a second glance. Knowing what to look for, you began to spot many other similarly nondescript doors through which Stewards both emerged and disappeared.

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques sits in a wonderfully comfortable chair and ponders his task. He makes a mental map of the path he took, trying to recall where things are. Calling to a steward for a drink, he asks: "This ship is wonderful. And such a spacious parlour. How many passengers will be with us on the voyage? I'd dare say I quite like it sparsely populated up here."

Jacques sits back and enjoys his pastries and champagne. (Hopefully.)

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 36: Shift 3: Hour 5:30 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

"This ship is wonderful. And such a spacious parlour. How many passengers will be with us on the voyage? I'd dare say I quite like it sparsely populated up here."

"The ship can accommodate twelve guests." the Steward replied as he presented a list of several fine wines, a Champaign and a brandy to choose from. "However at the present there are only eight guests aboard. Sis gentlemen, including yourself and your companion, and two ladies. The Ladies are, of course, in the ladies drawing room located aft." He provided your drink in a tall crystal glass and swiftly disappeared, leaving you to your semi privacy.

There were two other gentlemen in the parlor with you. One in his late twenties reading a newspaper and a another in his early forties smoking a pipe and staring at the small ornate fireplace. Neither seemed to be paying any attention to you. From the tour of the ship, you knew that the Steward must have described only the First Class accommodations and passengers. You had seen 15 staterooms on the Second Class deck and suspected that the layout was probably mirrored to provide another 15 rooms on the other side. That suggested anywhere from 30 to 60 Middle Class passengers maximum, but it was impossible to guess how many rooms might be empty, full or double capacity

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

After spending some time aboard the ship while it was docked at Hessen, you briefly met the now eleven First Class guests (5 men, 4 women, Jacques and Remy) that traveled aboard the Regal Star. You also discovered that the ship was the transport of choice for the wealthy and social elite. The jewelry on display at dinner hinted at the treasures available in the ship's safe and the reason the Brotherhood wanted to capture what this ship was carrying. You also learned that the ship had small cargo holds full of high value, high priority cargos that were willing to pay more for a fast passage to the East.

The Social Elite seemed to delight in flaunting the 'shifts' that normal people followed. The entire First Class section operated to accommodate their rigid, eccentric schedule. You all rose late during First shift ... anywhere from Shift 1: Hour 4 to Shift 1: Hour 7 ... and enjoyed a quiet, leisurely light breakfast. All of Shift 2 was spent in a series of almost non-stop social events. Music recitals, High Tea, Lunch Parties, Gentlemen shooting skeet from the deck. Then at the start of Shift 3, everyone disappeared to their cabins to prepare for dinner. A very formal dinner was served at precisely Shift 3: Hour 2. As the bell chimed, the food was arriving at the tables. The dinner could last from an hour to several hours, with the actual meal followed by the Gentlemen withdrawing to the smoking room and the Ladies withdrawing to some secret place of their own. By mid Shift 3, most were heading off to bed to repeat the schedule the next day.


Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 38: Shift 1: Hour 6:00 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

Jacques woke to the whistle of the ship as it began to steam off from Hessen. A glance at the clock told Jacques that it was two hours until the first of the Shift 2 events started ... and six hours until he had to sabotage the ship to prevent it from outrunning the intercepting ships.

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques begins his day with a quick wash and grooming. Deciding on a course of action, he makes his way to a nearby steward's door and carefully enters without being seen. He plans on finding the path to the kitchen and to the boiler room from there.

If he is able to make it to the kitchen and find the Head Chef: "Ah. Amaury! How good to see you again." Greeting the Head Chef in French, he then lowers his voice in a conspiratorial whisper. "Tell me, do you have any more of the pastries? Fresh, of course. They are just divine when still warm from the oven."

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 38: Shift 1: Hour 7:00 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

You pass only two hurrying stewards on the way to the kitchen, but other than a nod and "G'day" they seem too busy with their tasks to pay you much attention. The kitchen, is another matter. You arrive to shouts and frantic activity as cooks hurry to prepare food, chefs inspect it with an eagle eye, and only after passing their inspection do anxious stewards rush it off to wherever it is going.

Amaury lights up as you enter and greets you warmly. At first you are concerned that he might be too busy, but Amaury soon makes it clear that as far as he is concerned, even the Captain himself would have to wait for two Frenchmen sharing a drink and a conversation. He is thrilled to hear that you have come for more pastries and interrupts your conversation only briefly to shout at several individuals ... an action that precipitates a flurry of activity from one particular corner of the kitchen near the ovens. After a short visit, one of the other Chefs personally delivers a basket of fresh pastries, still steaming, to Amaury for his personal approval before being presented to you. Reluctantly, Amaury must end the visit to deal with an excited Head Steward over some matter. He bids you "adieu" and Jacques slips off unnoticed among the chaos.

You had expected the trip to the Boiler Room to be more challenging that it turned out to be. The lower deck was mostly empty and the one crewman you had to work to avoid was singing loud bawdy songs off key that made tracking his movements easy and hiding the sound of your movements unnecessary. Just a short delay while he inspected the gauges on the pumps that fed the liquid fuel to the burners on the boilers. Then he left the Starboard Boiler Room, you entered the empty boiler room, and the door closed. Your ears were grateful. At least the noisy burners and pumps were not off-key.

Each of the Boilers sported a brass plate identifying it as 'STARBOARD BOILER 1' through 'STARBOARD BOILER 4' and each boiler contained a metal shell around masses of pipes and dozens of gauges. High Pressure Water Tube Boilers, like these, were very efficient and very powerful for their size. However, a steamboat Pilot with even a little familiarity with engineering knew that they were also delicate beasts that could explode if not treated with respect. Simple sturdy pumps driven from small taps to the main steam line drew the fuel that fed the boilers. Two pumps per boiler, eight pumps total in the room. The return steam was captured in a condenser to conserve both water and heat, then fed back into the boiler at only a little below the boiling point temperature. A super heater for the steam leaving the boiler raised both the pressure and temperature to the extreme levels that provided the thermal efficiency for the Triple Expansion engines in the next room. The Pumps were the easiest to break and the easiest to fix. The Super heaters were the easiest to rig for a catastrophic failure that would render the boiler room inoperable without a shipyard.

A ladder up through the hollow space surrounding the stack offered a second means of escape from the Boiler Room.

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 38: Shift 1: Hour 7:45 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

The first attempt to sabotage a boiler did not go as well as planned. Remy located a fire axe hanging on the wall and attempted hurling it at Boiler No. 4, only to yield a loud clang as the axe ricocheted off the heavy steel tubes. Jacques and Remy hid as the singing engineer returned to investigate the noise, recheck all the gauges and serenade you off key before deciding that all systems were fine and leaving again.

While hiding in a closet, Remy discovered several large wrenches about half the height of a man. Remy quickly identified hundreds of bolted flanges that connect pipes to bends whose giant nuts and bolts would match the special wrench. Jacques selected the connection most likely to serve your purposes. One by one you removed nuts from one side of a single flange at a sharp bend until the faintest intermittent hiss started. Then the saboteurs started to exit the way they came.

Several crewman walking down the corridor in a group nearly saw you, forcing Jacques and Remy back into the Starboard Boiler Room. Jacques began to lead you up through the ladder near the stack searching for another way out. As an impulse, Remy grabbed the wrench to both wield as a weapon, if needed, and to delay any repairs until the steam pressure had time to work. A landing on the ladder exited to an unoccupied deck. Remy dropped the wrench over the side with a small smile. Time to find a comfortable place to wait and see.

****

Shift 2: Hour 1:15 [Gentlemen's Parlor]

Jaques and Remy enjoyed the quiet of the parlor as they waited. Various social events had begun, but neither was particularly interested in a poetry recital at the moment. Around the first bell of Second Shift (Shift 2, Hour 1:00) several crew announcements over the speakers were followed by a flurry of activity as crewmen seemed to hurry below decks. After a few minutes, a loud explosion echoed from the stacks followed by a cloud of steam from the smokestacks that drizzled down on the deck. The Starboard Wheel abruptly slowed to a stop and the ship began to sail in a circle before the other wheel also slowed to a stop.

The steward announced that a small problem with one of the boilers required the ship to briefly halt for repairs, but they expected to be underway again within the hour.

[Three hours until attack.]

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques stops the nearest steward and asks him: "What's the problem? Was that an explosion? How is the hull?" Jacques moves to get a drink and theorize about the problem with other guests.

[AsenRG]

"We just might be late", is all that Remy plans to say. The rest of the time, he plans to listen...
And if anyone really insists on knowing his opinion, he'd bet on the ship having crashed into Kraken. It's a legend of the hunters.
Let's see what anyone else would make of this.
Causing panic and hindering the rescue efforts? Remy? You should be mad to think of such a thing! He said a Kraken can be killed!

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 38: Shift 2: Hour 4:30 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

The Steward assured you that the ship had two hulls, an inner hull and an outer hull, so the hull was completely safe. He was unsure exactly what the nature of the mechanical problem was, but the Captain would likely make an announcement when there was something to report. The passengers tended to speculate that a boiler had exploded. "Blasted things are always failing." one man announced with an air of authority to the nods of other guests. "That's why they always have multiple boilers. So the failure of one does not stop the others from working. Likely just a mess to clean up and we'll be underway again."

From a secluded hide with a vantage point to track his prey ... I mean Remy waits in a secluded corner with a clear sight and sound lines to the guests, when he happens to overhear a snippet of a distant conversation among the crew as a door briefly opens and closes to allow a steward to pass. "... repair the pipe ... stench of burnt meat ... aye, six men ..."

Shortly before three bells (shift 2, hour 3), the Captain announced that a steam pipe had burst, was being repaired, and the ship would be getting underway shortly. By three bells, the wheels were turning and the ship was moving ... but not quite as fast as before.

By 3:30, Jacques and Remy could see the first glimpse of an approaching ship under full sail, on a fast tack and an intercept course. Within ten minutes, the wheels had sped up as the ship increased from Cruising to Full Power to attempt to outrun their pursuit. While the ship was now traveling faster than its original cruising speed, it was not much faster. As the Captain did what Jacques would have done and changed course to rob the pursuer of his advantage from the wind, the Regal Star sailed straight into a dozen waiting ships all converging on its position.

By 4 bells, the first shots were exchanged and the Deck Gun and paddle wheels quickly damaged. The captain surrendered to avoid unnecessary bloodshed among the passengers and crew.

Armed seamen swarmed from the boats and quickly herded all of the passengers and crew, including Jacques and Remy, into the central Dining room. Through the windows, you could see cargo being off loaded onto the boats.

[pause to allow players a chance to remain hidden among passengers or expose their involvement]

[AsenRG]

"Ah well. One has to accept the inevitable", Remy says nonchalantly.
"Besides, even I couldn't kill more than half of the attackers...there would be no point!"
He looks at Jacques, however. The nobleman still has Remy's sword, until he indicates not needing it. Consequently, it's his decision whether to keep playing the victim, or to show their true colors!

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

"Blasted pirates!" Jacques paces around the room assessing the situation. He finds a steward to complain to in front of some of the first-class passengers. "And what of the safe? Surely these...lowlifes...won't be able to access that? I think I speak for all of us when I say I have some things I rather not lose possession of." He nods to the others.

"I knew something was wrong. My knee was acting up. It always gives me trouble when trouble is near." He lowers his voice and addresses the closest first-class member. "Luckily, I've kept some of my most precious things on me. Never can be too safe, you know." He pats his chest and winks.

Jacques looks around for Amaury and if he sees him: "Amaury! Tell me these hooligans haven't taken your recipes! Gold and jewels are replaceable, acceptable pastries are not."

He finally finishes his survey and meets up with Remy. "No, no. While I have complete faith in your ability to repel these rapscallions, some fool may be inspired by your actions and get himself injured. No. Better to appear beaten. For now."

[atpollard]

JACQUES & REMY

Cycle 1062 (Autumn): Day 38: Shift 2: Hour 5:00 [Side-wheeler 'Regal Star']

The ship's automated clock struck 5 bells and most of the cargo had been offloaded. The handful of fast ships that had originally intercepted the Regal Star had been joined by a larger fleet of ships with the black Vinland hulls of MacCrain's fleet. The newcomers ordered the men to one room and the women to another where they would each surrender their personal valuables.

"I must protest this treatment, sir." exclaimed the Captain "We surrendered the cargo, but the passengers and crew shall not be treated ..."

... The bullet that caused the back of his head to explode against the wall interrupted the Captain's speech.

"Gentlemen forward to the smoking parlor and Ladies aft to the Salon. Anyone attempting to hide their valuables will join the Captain." stated the Pirate with a tone of indifference.

As Jacques and Remy were heading forward, a pirate from the fast boats nodded at you and one of the other Pirates pulled the two of you out of line. "Job well done."

With that Jacques and Remy found themselves on the deck that surrounded the rooms where the passengers and crew were being searched. Glancing down at the fleet, you could see crewmen from the Regal Star being led aboard the black-hulled craft with sacks over their heads and their hands bound together. The faint clank of chains could be heard coming from the cargo hold of the Black ship. Two pirates walked past ...

"Fine ship. Seems a waste to burn her."

"More of a pity for someone to find her and stretch my neck."

****

As Jacques and Remy circled the ship on the narrow deck, you discovered that the Captain had a private Launch, a sailing and rowing boat of extremely fine lines that he used for transport ashore when docking the Ship was impractical. Unlike the larger lifeboats, the launch could be sailed by only two men and carried a lot of canvass for its size.

You eventually located Torquil MacCrain, who you discovered was leading this operation, overseeing the searching of the women. While you had feared debauchery, what you found was cold hard heartless professionalism. Torquil was there to prevent sticky fingered employees from keeping any jewelry and to prevent any unnecessary damage to his "merchandise". As the women were disrobed to their undergarments and searched, a careful log was kept of who they were and their background. Then they were led bagged and bound as you had seen the crewmen to one of several waiting ships.

Concern that your Piracy had turned into the Slave Trade visible on your face, Torquil waved you both over. "See it's yer first time, ain't it." he smiled "Perhaps your conscience is bothering you a little. No worry. Tisn't the life for everyone." He placed his arms around both of you and led you forward "Still, you did a good job and earned a fair share when we return to the Brotherhood to divide the profits. Because I value men that do a good job ..." Torquil snatches an emerald necklace off the throat of a very well dressed woman and hands it to Jacques "... here is a little gift. A bonus." He smiled "A bandage for your conscience. Just something for you and your friend to enjoy until you can hold your share of the profit in your hands."

Torquil returned his attention to protecting his cargo, and Jacques and Remy wandered off. Looking at the necklace, both Jacques and Remy knew that it was worth over Cr 200,000 if the stones were real. Remy examined it and could not speak for the purity of the gold setting, he just could not tell by looking, but he was certain that the emeralds were real. The clasp was broken from when it was torn from her neck, but any competent jeweler could fix a broken clasp.

Standing on the aft deck, watching terrified passengers being placed aboard ships like cargo, you overhear an officer giving instructions to deliver the "special prisoners" to specific coordinates ... 46.10N,26.68W.

****

Jacques and Remy now have four choices ...

1. Climb aboard one of the black Slaver ships and become villains.
2. Climb aboard one of the Fast Ships, return to the Brotherhood and retire wealthy men.
3. Escape in the Captain's Launch and flee to Gwenydd (uniting all of the characters in one location).
4. Immediately attack 100 Pirate Slavers and die a glorious, but tragic, death.

I was planning on #3, but I like people to have choices.

[AsenRG]

Remy waves Jacques aside.
"Let's go where nobody can hear us, monsieur Jacques", he says. "The side where the wind blows is usually not heavily manned..."
Once they've gone there, he checks again whether anyone can hear them before asking.
"Does it bother you that we helped slave traders, monsieur Jacques?"

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques is still taking the turn of events in. He follows Remy in a bit of a stupor, finally regaining his senses. "The nerve! Did you see them, paraded along like some sort of common cattle? These are important people, you know. Is it possible that they will be ransomed? Yes. That makes more sense." He stops and addresses Remy. "To be truthful, Remy, I had no idea they were slavers. I'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from morality lessons, si'l vous plait. And burning the ship is the ultimate insult."

Jacques looks around and spots the captain's launch nearby. "What say you? We could try and bargain for the ship and, say, the chef. Although, I don't think we could pilot it by ourselves. We could go along to get along, being rich(er) men when we get back to the flotilla. Personally, I'd not like to either join the slavers or pick this fight to die upon." He nods at the launch. "Or we could simply float away, free to find our own path once more."

He ponders for a moment. "Hmm. Actually, there may be another option. Perhaps we could convince them to leave the ship unburned, just drifting. A fine ship like this would be worth quite a bit at salvage."

[AsenRG]

"They were important people, monsieur Jacques. These pirates would have to be idiots to release important people after treating them like this...it would get the fleet after them. And they're burning 'Regal Star' to prevent that, so they're not morons. Greedy and prone to breaking their word, yes, but not stupid", Remy corrects him.
"I'm for leaving. No morality lessons, but I've never liked slavers myself, so don't plan on becoming one... But we can offer the pirate captain something better. We make away with their boat, go to Gwynedd, hire a ship, then accidentally find Regal Star. We ransom her for salvage, and share the profit with the rest of the pirates."
He spat overboard, but reconsidered the idea. The wind was against it.
"However, if he doesn't accept? We'd have a much harder time making off with the launch".

[Monsieur Rose]

Jacques

Jacques nods as Remy presents his view. "Good, then. I propose a slight variation, but overall the gist is the same. And true, there is a risk. But the potential reward makes it interesting. Come. Let's go find the captain. We've got a proposition for him."

I'm suggesting we make the ship appear like it's been abandoned. Possibly due to illness or something. Deploy all lifeboats, alter something in the captain's log, that kind of thing. We leave it floating, hopefully, to come back to later to salvage or claim. My guess is that the owners of the ship would make much less of a fuss if they could get their expensive ship back.

Jacques makes his way back to Torquil.

I'll add this now if there are no objections:
"Captain? A word? I hear the plan is to torch the ship. May I ask why, to what purpose?" He continues "If it is to just cover tracks, might I suggest another option? Deploy all lifeboats and make a few entries in the logbook. Make it appear as if everyone abandoned ship. When the Regal Star is found drifting, hopefully by my associates, the authorities will spend a lot of time trying to locate the survivors. Time you could use. As a bonus, it's been my experience that wealthy ship owners may care more about retrieving their ship than the fate of the crew."

[AsenRG]

"And of course, if we find it, the prize would get split", Remy muses.