“Mail delivery!” A voice called down from the base of the lighthouse.

The sole occupant slithered out of bed, barely awake. He was in no rush- the mail wasn’t going anywhere.

This man was, first and foremost, not human in the slightest. In fact, he wasn’t even warm-blooded. He was covered in scales, possessed gills on the sides of his head and webbing between his fingers. His teeth were small and sharp, and his black eyes bulged out of his head slightly. In spite of all that, he was still humanoid in shape- he had two arms, two legs, and a regular head atop his regular body. He was of average height and slim build. He had no hair on his head, or anywhere else for that matter. His complexion was paler than looked healthy, betraying his older age. Despite that, he did his best to move with all the health and energy he could.

This man’s name was Lawrence, Lawrence Steel. A Morro- a fish person- who had spent his life on the sea, as all Morro do. He had at different times sailed with both the Navy and pirates, and was now living out his retirement as a lighthouse keeper. He wore the loose-fitting and somewhat sweaty clothes of a sailor.

Lawrence is a level 1 Tidechaser. The Tidechaser class allows him to control the water to some degree, but more importantly to be able to summon monstrous marine life to his side to aid him in battle, or for anything else he might need. Lawrence has the Tidewalker Talent, which allows him to walk on water as if it were solid. His stats are:

STR

2

DEX

16

VIT

16

INT

12

WIT

12

PER

10

CHA

20

LCK

12

Slowly, but surely, with all the grace of a newborn deer, Lawrence hobbled his way down the stairs of the lighthouse and out his door to his mailbox.

What surprised Lawrence was that someone else was at his mailbox as well- a young child, who looked to be no older than thirteen human years and seemed to be of Yanu descent, was rummaging through his mailbox. Well, more like had rummaged through his mailbox- the lad had in his hands a letter that appeared to be of extreme import, written upon gaudy and gilded stationery and sealed with a wax seal that Lawrence could not recognize from this distance.

“What the hell- who do you think you are?!” Lawrence shouted as he broke into a run, barreling towards the lad. In response, the lad turned tail and sprinted in the opposite direction. It should come as no surprise, that the boy quickly outran the old man. Within seconds, the gap between the two of them had doubled, and would only be getting wider.

“Get your ass back here boy!” Lawrence shouted.

Lawrence casts Baleen Bruiser

A Tidechaser spell that summons a hulking humanoid whale.

With a downpour of water directly ahead of the escaping child, a massive humanoid whale appeared. The whale looked to be a baleen- hence the name- but had replaced its front fins with muscular arms, and a pair of muscular legs hand replaced its hind fins. The bruiser threw a punch, but with shocking agility the boy ducked below it and dashed further down the hill upon which the lighthouse rested, and it was not long before he disappeared into the city below.

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With an irate grunt, Lawrence waved his hand, and the Baleen Bruiser disappeared into a puddle of water.

“When I get my hands on that boy…” Lawrence whisper-shouted as he began to make his way down the hill after the child.

It was a pleasant day in the city. Trade was busy this time of year, and so the commons not far from the docks was bustling with a bazaar of traders from all nations, hoping to trade for something they could not find at home. Lawrence silently passed among the crowd- what he was looking for could not be found here.

Rounding the corners, skulking through alleyways, and slipping through paths unknown, Lawrence at last arrived at the doors of a place he’d rather have never seen again. The Black Spot: a bar run by pirates, for pirates- a den of thieves and lowlifes that Lawrence once counted himself among the ranks of. Lawrence passed easily past the bouncer, flashing him the tattoo of the Grave Gifts, his old pirate crew, to gain entry. The bouncer raised an eyebrow at Lawrence’s old age, but once a pirate, always a pirate, or something like that.

The interior of The Black Spot was just as Lawrence remembered: dirty, loud, and reeking of booze, vomit and blood. Twenty years ago, this place smelled like home. Now, Lawrence was eager to be out of here. He raced past the day-drinking pirates and straight to the bartender: a tall and lanky man, pale blue as all elves are, who wore an eyepatch over his left eye.

“I’m looking for something,” Lawrence began. “Something stolen.”

The bartender flipped up his eyepatch, revealing a perfectly intact eye beneath. “And?” he asked. “Yer a pirate, aren’t ye? Steal it back.”

“Would if I could, mate.” Lawrence cringed as he felt his old pirate dialect slipping back in. “It was stolen from me home, by a little rapscallion. Figured it must’ve found its way here, one way or another.”

“And? What’s this item yer lookin’ fer?”

“A letter. Real fancy-like. I mean gold paper, wax seal, everything.”

“And what’s a pirate like yew doing getting mail like that?”

“Who knows? Maybe I stole the heart of a lass and she struck it rich, never forgot about me?”

The two laughed.

“I do have what yer lookin for, mate,” the barkeeper replied, reaching down to grab it from behind the counter. “Show me what it’s worth to ya.”

Lawrence sighed, and pulled out his coin purse.

Lawrence exited The Black Spot, and breathed a sigh of relief as the tension left his body. A pirate he might have been, but he was also a former member of the Navy. If he was recognized- things could’ve gone badly. He held the letter in his hands. It was in fact addressed to him- something that surprised him, even after all this effort he’d put in to finding it. He checked the back side for the wax seal, but despite his time among the wealthy of Eldenvale he did not recognize the seal in the slightest.

He broke open the seal, and opened the envelope- only to find nothing inside! Now Lawrence understood why he didn’t recognize the seal- it was a dummy seal applied by whoever had stolen it from him.

“Looking for this?” a voice echoed from down the alleyway. The Yanu boy entered into the light, holding a crumpled wad of paper in his hand, holding it out for Lawrence to see.

“You must be wondering why I’ve done this. Well, you see-”

Lawrence casts Sailfish Slicer

A combination attack and summon that launches a sailfish forward as it is summoned, using its sharp protrusion to impale a target directly ahead. The initial attack has armor piercing, ignoring enemy defense.

The sailfish sliced through the air with a piercing whistle, as it flew at the Yanu. He dove to the side, barely avoiding the attack in the narrow alleyway.

“What the- well now I’m not telling you!” The Yanu said as he sprinted down the alleyway away from Lawrence.

Once again the old man’s speed was far eclipsed by the young lad. Fortunately, this time Lawrence had a summon on his side. The sailfish flew through the air as if it were swimming, gaining rapidly on the boy.

The boy ducked into another nearby alley, but Lawrence watched him duck in and sent the sailfish after him. The sailfish collided with something solid, but because Lawrence could not see through the fish’s eyes he did not know what. Lawrence rounded the corner, and found a dead end and the sailfish with its nose buried in the wall. The boy was nowhere to be found.

Perception check: 10

Lawrence passes.

Lawrence scanned the dead end, checking the left, the right, and finally… up. He saw the boy looking down on him with a mocking smile.

“What the hell is your problem?” Lawrence shouted up at the boy.

“This is obviously a quest!” The boy shouted back. “You’re the guy everyone at school talks about- the ex-pirate that haunts the lighthouse! This letter is a quest!”

“What’s your damn point?”

“Take me!”

“No!”

“Take me, please! I don’t wanna live in this shitty town anymore!”

Lawrence paused for a moment.

“...Fine.”

“Really?!”

Lawrence casts Baleen Bruiser

The man-whale appeared with arms outstretched in a downpour of water right behind the boy, and quickly grabbed him in a bear hug.

“Not!” Lawrence shouted, and did a little jig as he laughed at the boy.

The bruiser jumped down from the rooftops with the boy, and walked over to Lawrence as the boy struggled in its arms. Lawrence grabbed the paper out of the boy’s hand, uncrumpled it, and pulled out his reading glasses.

“Now then you little twerp, let’s take a look at this quest… oh… oh my…”