The merchant ship creaks, its timber hull groaning under the rhythmic pulse of the astral river. Arion collapses onto a heap of shipping crates within the dark, cramped cargo hold, the unconscious swordsman tumbling limp beside him. A faint scent of ozone and rotting wood fills the air. A scavenger stands ten paces away, his rusted lantern casting long, jagged shadows against the swaying walls.
Scavenger
Who... who goes there? Stay back!
Arion Touvengard
The vessel is sturdy enough to hold me, yet this host is failing. I must stabilize his vitals before the light of the void consumes what remains of his spirit.
Arion Touvengard
Stand aside, scavenger. This vessel is commandeered by necessity. If you value your life, do not interfere with the restoration of my vessel.
Teal energy flickers along Arion's skin, illuminating the dark hold in a ghostly, pulsating rhythm. He keeps his gaze fixed on the intruder while his hand drifts toward the pommel of his ancient sword, his movements erratic and puppet-like.
+ Scene Quest Added
Stabilize the host's vitals
“Utilizing the materials at hand in the hull if the ship, Arion bandages the wounds inflicted on tbe host and attempts to ascertain if there are any more serious injuries inflicted. While doing that he addresses the sailor, "well, are you are you just going to watch?" The swordsmans body having slipped from Arion grip in the impacts drifts away into the astral river.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Health, rolled +0)
Arion rips a heavy canvas sailcloth from a nearby stack, his fingers moving with a jarring, staccato efficiency as he binds the host’s deep lacerations. The teal glow pulses rhythmically from his palms, searing the fabric into place.
Arion Touvengard
The physical frame is resilient, yet the internal hemorrhaging is severe. I cannot afford to lose another vessel to the currents of this wretched river.
Arion Touvengard
Well, are you just going to watch?
Scavenger
I... I don't know what you are! That boy was dying!
Arion’s head snaps toward the scavenger with an inhuman, predatory twitch. He ignores the panicked tremor in the man's voice, his attention shifting to the void outside the hull. The swordsman’s body has already slipped through a fissure in the timber, dissolving into the swirling, violet mists of the astral river. The loss is absolute. The ship lurches, throwing Arion against the crates as the Void-Stalker’s cyclopean eye slams against the hull from the outside, the wood beginning to splinter inward.
Arion Touvengard
If the hull breaches before the vessel is stable, this fragile shell will be torn asunder by the pressure. I must seal the breach or perish.
Quest Complete
Stabilize the host's vitals
+ Story Quest Added
Seal the hull breach