Lookout Tully Morgan
Tully Morgan / Chouko Sasaki
Lookout
Ninja
Carousin': 3
Plunderin': 3
Swashbucklin': 3
Wenchin': 3
Contents |
Background
Raise a glass, me jolly lads, to the greatest crew what sailed the Seven Seas! Led by Captain "Red" Ned Morris, th' rouges and scallywags manning the Jolly Rancher are the finest, the fiercest, and the most shipshape crew in all of creation. Yer exploits are known th' world over, bringing the crew fame an' enough gold to keep you well for a bunch of scurvy seahands. And now you're nearly at th' end of your quest for the Blood Jewel, ye can feel it! Worth thousands of dubloons, ye think it would keep the crew for at least ten years. In celebration of yer continued good fortune, Capt'n Morris has declared tonight a revel, an' while work t' find the Jewel is welcome, this is a night for rum and tobacco. The Capt'n has left the plannin' to his First Mate Nathaniel Teach for the night. So here's t' the Jolly Rancher and her crew; any landlubber or bilge rat what doesn't give you quarter will end up prayin' they be given th' chance t' walk the plank rather than cross ye!
. . . all right, that's enough. Whew! If you can keep that up, no one will be the wiser.
You are Chouko Sasaki, the last remaining member of the Crane Clan. Your clan is the philosophical clan, most known for its exceptional stealth, balance and beauty of movement. Sadly, the Cranes were wiped out a decade ago in the Clan Wars. There are rumors that your clan's destruction was due to the Fox Clan, but rumors are only that.
In fact, it is possible that you are the only ninja now left alive.
After the Clan Wars you decided to put your skills to other uses. Originally, you joined the crew of the Sky Devil under the proud leadership of Calico Anne Bowman, the fiercest pirate queen to sail the Seven Seas. The Jolly Rancher is more famous than the Sky Devil, true, in part because their crew is larger and they can pull off more elaborate plundering. And you weren't about to take them on in a fair ship-on-ship fight. Larger crews than yours would have thought better of that.
Even so, you had an unfortunate run-in with them. You were on the hunt for the King's Coffer, the single biggest chest of gold and gems in the East Caribbean, but it seems that the Jolly Rancher was interested as well. Once the Rancher noticed you ahead of them they gave chase. They made full sail and caught up to you, beginning parley with the slew of daring invective pirate negotiations are known for.
Just then, your ship rocked with a series of shots fired by a French naval vessel that had been hidden behind a nearby reef. The crew was caught off guard, though you might have done better had you not been distracted by the parley. The battle was long and fraught, ending with a powerful shot off the poop deck followed by one to the mizzen that knocked the Captain and most of the crew into the deep. You hit the ocean, struggling towards lifeboats and pieces of wreckage as the Jolly Rancher came around, offering quarter for you and the few remaining crew members who lived.
Calico Anne was the worst off, unconscious and lungs full of water by the time she was dragged on the ship. The crew circled around her, watching and waiting. Right around then you noticed Siofra, another crew member from the Sky Devil. At least someone made it out.
You were relieved to hear from the ship's surgeon that Calico would live. Just then, Captain Morris reached for her and she leapt to her feet, grabbing a sword from one of the crew and threatening him if he came near her or the amulet around her neck again. Before the crew could act Morris waved them off with an entertained smile, giving her a chance to feint and bolt into the ship.
Unsure what was exactly so important about this amulet but not one to like feeling cornered, you secretly rooted for her, even as Morris followed her into the ship. It didn't take him long to return, stating he had the matter under control. You had enough gumption to ask what had happened to her, but he didn't give you much details and you weren't in a position to argue.
A day or two later, you ran into Calico, the ship's cat. She was a little friendlier to you than the rest of the crew, and there was something about her that reminded you of your old cat on the Sky Devil. Eventually, Calico caught you alone and started to speak, explaining that she was your old captain and was stuck in this form because Captain Morris had taken her amulet by force. Blimey! It's not like he was taking the King's Coffer from you. That's her rightful property!
So you, Siofra and Calico concocted a plan. Siofra made an identical copy of the amulet and passed it to you. While the Captain was out you snuck into his quarters, broke into his personal chest and swapped the copy for the original. You gave the original back to Siofra as you'd been asked, completing your part of the plan.
Not all of your time on the Jolly Roger has been unpleasantry. Other than this amulet business you get on with the Captain well enough, and you like a number of the crew. In fact, you've gotten on particularly well with Flintlock Jack, the Master Gunner on the ship. He's been joining you on lookout occasionally when he didn't have other duties, lingering a little longer than you might expect from someone making idle chat. Perhaps this is a chance to talk to him more?
And then there's the matter of the Blood Jewel. Worth thousands of dubloons to the proper buyer, the gold it would garner could secure the crew's future for a decade or put you up for life. But that's not your reason for wanting it. Rumor has it that the Blood Jewel is no jewel at all, but a dragon's egg. If this were the case, and if it were fertilized, secreting it away and having it hatch might be your only chance to keep the ninja clans from dying out entirely. For a ninja clan to be successful it needs to have a powerful kami (or spirit) at the heart of its spiritual focus, and what would be more powerful than a dragon? It would mean creating an entirely new ninja clan from scratch, but there may be few enough ninjas that there would be no one to argue with you over it. The crew's navigations have led you here, to this cove. It may simply be a matter of searching. If it does turn out to be a dragon's egg, you hope to keep it for yourself. And if that means using your ninja skills, you'll do it, though doing so in public would make it obvious that you're a ninja and possibly draw the attention of others who know of your clans.
But tonight is a night of carousing, a hard-earned reward for your work. As is the Captain's right, he has chosen to spend the night enjoying himself rather than keeping the crew in order, handing over that task to his First Mate, Nathaniel Teach. This doesn't mean that he won't make the final decisions on any important matters, of course, especially about the Blood Jewel. For now, however, we eat, we drink and make merry! Three cheers for the Jolly Rancher and her crew!
Who You Know
- Sam Bellamy - Quiet and thoughtful.
- Edward Blackfellow, Second Mate - A man who's been a leader.
- Calico - The ship's cat. Also your previous captain on the Sky Devil, and your friend.
- Grace Duguay, Helmsman - Cheerful and friendly.
- Flintlock Jack, Master Gunner - An intense man who seems to care about honor. He si quite attractive to you.
- Pele Giggs, Boatswain - A little odd, but good at his job.
- Stede Hawthorne, Quartermaster - A steady, reliable sort.
- Kate Highwater, Sailing Master - Charming but hard to read.
- Thomas Kidd, Cook - A great cook, and a warm and chatty guy.
- Siofra O'Malley, Cooper - A freespirited, personable woman. Your best friend from your days on the Sky Devil.
- Lady Charlotte Marlow - A well-to-woman who's taken to piracy.
- "Red" Ned Morris, Captain - A charismatic, able captain. You want to know why he took Captain's necklace.
- Mary Rackham, Carpenter - A bit of an unknown.
- Bloody Christian Read, Surgeon - As good a doctor as a carouser.
- Nathaniel Teach, First Mate - A smart, learned man.
Abilities
- Door Opener - With privacy you can open most locked doors or chests. See a GM to use.
- Wind Runner - You can perform the aerial tricks ninjas are known for (and ninja movies love to film). With enough around you like masts, sails and rigging, you may bounce and twirl about them like a sakura petal, allowing you to ignore one successful throw of Rock Paper Scissors against you per turn if you are being attacked by more than one person. Outside of combat, you may become airborne for a short period of time with enough of a running leap. This power may be used in concert with others; feel free to ask the GM if it is an appropriate circumstance.