The new recruits wake up on the hard wooden floor of a ships cargo hold, memories of the prior evening implausibly difficult to summon.
A dark skinned man with a crimson bandana comes down and threatens the nine people coming to consciousness in the hold — time to get on deck. When there’s some delay as characters try to discern what’s gone on the man whips Ole’ Yardley and any further ruminations are saved for later.
On deck the crew meet Barnabas Harrigan, Captain of the Wormwood, their new home. Mr Plugg, the first mate, is tasked with making pirates of them and introduces his disciplinarian Master Scourge — the crimson bandana man.
Immediately the new crew are challenged to race up to the crow’s nest to determine who’d make the best rigger. Hector declines the challenge, having skills better suited to other roles, but Scourge’s whip convinces him to partake in the race. Corwin makes a fine feign of partaking but had no interest in winning and Yardley seems far to enthusiastic and uncoordinated to even get on to the rigging before the race is surely done and Montague has won by a significant enough lead to engage in a swashbucklers flourish.
Back on deck Plugg wants to know if any of the new recruits can cook. Only Hector volunteers and he’s pronounced cook’s mate and sent to the galley where he meets Ambrose “Fishguts” Kroop, an amiable drunkard who happily takes Hector under his wing. The relative pleasantness of Hector’s assignment is only slightly marred by Kroop’s remark that the Wormwood, it’s captain and it’s crew are poison.
In the bilges Ole’ Yardley meets an imprisoned crew member, Jakes Magpie, who pleas for freedom. Yardley is unmoved and taunts the poor fellow before getting back to his duties.
At bloody hour Jakes Magpie is brought up on deck and keelhauled for the crime of thieving from the crew. Corwin observes that Mr Plugg is savouring taking his time at pulling the rope and by the time the bloody ruin of Jakes Magpie is brought back on deck he’s dead from drowning and serious amounts of injury.
Having been given their tar like rum ration the new recruits are left to their own means until dawn bell. Samsara Quinn, an attractive young red headed woman who was impressed onto the crew alongside the party, introduces herself and shares a couple of items she was able to convince the quartermaster to relinquish — Montague’s cutlass and Hector’s spell component pouch.
With an ally found amongst their new crew the party finish their first day as pirates aboard the Wormwood.