The party finally makes it to Telflamm. This is the city on the coast of the Sea of Fallen Stars that they were headed for. From here, they plan to arrange for travel to Cimbar, on the southern coast.

So they go to a tavern. They love taverns. They can get information, a drink, and chat all in one nifty little area. They have an impromptu freestyle rapping session and get a couple of tips from other tavern dwellers, though they aren't well accepted by everyone.

Suddenly, a man they recognize as Selmer walks into the tavern with two lackeys. He approaches the bar and gets a drink. Cecil approaches him and strikes up conversation. Cecil says that they have seen him around and are interested in going to Cimbar to help out. Selmer is very pleased and offers transportation to Cimbar, apparently he is leaving in a few hours. He says that they must hurry. Cimbar is under seige by the Armies of Shadow. Selmer says that it does not look good. He believes the city will fall within the next few weeks unless he can get there to help.

Another set of travelers overhears this conversation. A man named Telvin is seated at a nearby tavern table with his companions Harkin, Huber and Jerick. They are a band of pirates who have happened to stop off in Telflamm for the time being. They have been patrolling the Sea of Fallen Stars for a year or so now trying to make a living. They seige ships and do pirate-y things. Telvin overhears Selmer and Cecil's conversation and converses with his companions.

The leader of this band, Harkin, decides that they would probably prosper from robbing this man named Selmer. He seems wealthy, he is wearing elaborate green armor and seems to be an important guy. Maybe they can even knock over these other guys that have happened to join up with Selmer. If they're clever enough, it shouldn't be all that difficult. So they plan to follow Selmer's ship and make their move out on the open seas.

The heroic party, now consisting of: Cecil, Rurick, Matthias, Aeron, Walsh and Wan head to the docks to board Selmer's vessel. On the way there, Walsh is stoped by a messenger. This messenger informs him of bad news. His home town is under seige. His family is in danger. His services are needed as soon as possible. Walsh says he must return to his hometown of College. He must defend his family. Matthias is also startled by this news. He realizes that his grandparents have retired in the city of College. He must, as well, go and attempt to save his relatives.

The rest of the party then gets to the docks. At the docks, they easily find Selmer who then leads them to his ship. It is a fairly large vessel. The party gets situated and the ship sets sail for Cimbar. But they are not alone.

Harkin and his band of pirates are hot on their trail. They travel by sea at a safe distance behind Selmer's ship. They decide to make their move as they ships pass through the shallow waters along the coast north of Cimbar. In their smaller, more agile ship and using their more extensive sailing experience, the pirates navigate their ship ahead of Selmer. In the middle of the night, they board the vessel. They elegantly take out the few guards that are up for night watch and attempt to lock the crew downstairs while decided their best course of action.

Harkin tells his men that they should not kill Selmer or his new companions. He has decided that it may be even more prosperous to take them as hostages and maybe ransom them off, especially Selmer.

Meanwhile, the party, asleep downstairs, is awakened by the ruckus on the deck above. They gather some belongings and go to check it out. They realize they are locked below deck. Cecil eventually breaks through the hatchway and a fight ensues.

The pirates battle the party and attempt to render them unconscious. After a well fought battle, the party is subdued. The pirates tie them up, ransack the ship taking all valuables, take the prisoners to their own vessel and flee.

The party awakes an hour or so later from their unconsciousness. The pirates begin to interrogate them in an effort to find exactly how valuable these prisoners are. Who do they work for? Who would be looking for them? How much can we get for these suckas?

Aeron pleads with the pirates. He says that he is of little to no value. He says that he just wants to go home. He even escapes his ropes, but then accidentally reveals that they are unfasted. The pirates quickly retie the binds, but they are then very wary of his actions.

The party pleads with the pirates. They tell the pirates of the unfolding conspiracy they have come across. They warn the pirates that if they cannot continue their journey to Cimbar, the world as they know it may end. The pirates aren't too keen on all of this ridiculousness, but they do take some merit in what is being said. They eventually decide that it would be in their best interest to travel to Airspur, a city directly west of Cimbar. They decide that they have to get to Cimbar to get any sort of ransom for Selmer and that is all they can go on. They'll just have to see what happens.