SHIP'S LOG:

The Nimble Shroud

Lt. Denkt 5/17/2026 10:47pm

BEEEEELCH

We were bleched out of the gaping maw of the giant witch balloon.

"Owwww my hair!" cried Khlebnikov.

All of us had some bits ripped off in our expulsion from the odiferous beast we'd been sucked into.

"But OWWW! It was my hair! I've got a bald spot now!" cried Khlebnikov.

"Oh I'll bet that does hurt," said Dranitsyn.

All of us, including a bleating Captain @katelynn, no doubt suffering a number of bald spots on her goat hide and whimpering slightly, found ourselves on a stone platform, surrounded by palm trees in the ghostly night.

"Baaaaa! Baaaaa!" we heard in the distance.

"It's the goat farm all right," said Dranitsyn.

I guess it was time to meet the witches.

Lt. Denkt 1/14/2026 11:43pm

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

"Can't reach her mouth now," said Dranitsyn.

We were adhered to the inner wall of the gas balloon of the blimp-witch. Sticky, smelly, and horrible, like a fly strip. And just as strong.

"My hair is completely stuck," said Khlebnikov.

"You're going to have to cut it off," said Dranitsyn.

A pulsing globe at the bottom of the balloon cast an eerie amber glow.

"I guess we're headed for the goat farm now," said Dranitsyn.

"You and what army?" asked Khlebnikov.

I hoped the rest of the crew were still safe. And that they'd find their way off this god forsaken island.

Lt. Denkt 9/17/2025 10:56pm

The giant, bloated witch-blimp bobbed in the night air over the beach, then slowly turned our way.

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

Its long hooked nose cast a shadow in the moonlight. Coming closer.

"Well put your hand over her mouth!" I whispered.

"I think she'd bite," said Dranitsyn.

"She doesn't like to be touched," said Khlebnikov

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

And with a terrifying swiftness, the blimp-witch pounced on us. Like an octopus.

Lt. Denkt 5/26/2025 10:26pm

We sped from the beach and into the jungle. Mercifully, Captain @katelynn gamboled along.

"That's an odd blimp," said Khlebnikov.

"It's an old crusty weather balloon," said Dranitsyn.

The sky was dark but the white sand of the beach caught enough of the starlight to light it up.

It was horrific. Bloated like a balloon, yes. But fleshy, stretched and obese. Dressed in rags, ready to burst, with a wretched pointy nose and gnarled yellow teeth bared in a rictus grin.

It was an immense, ponderously floating witch, bobbing up along the coastline.

"Baaaaaaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

Lt. Denkt 2/1/2025 11:54pm

It didn't make sense to try and bring the goats along. While they had been fellow airshipmen, their caprine tendencies had made them unpredictable.

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

"What is she doing here?" I asked.

"Mighty unpredictable," said Khlebnikov.

"Hard to control," said Dranitsyn.

We were working our way down the beach, back towards the port. Far easier than the untrackable jungle, but it did leave us somewhat exposed.

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

"Can't one of you keep her quiet?" I asked.

"They're mighty hard to control," said Dranitsyn.

"Wait! There's something coming!" said Khlebnikov.

In the darkness above the waves, something was stirring. Heading right up the beach.

"Into the jungle!" I whispered.

Lt. Denkt 10/5/2024 11:59pm

We tried leaving Tingalayo eleven more times. No matter which direction we set off in, The Nimble Shroud was buffeted back by gale force winds. And the biting cold within the cabin seemed to only grow worse.

"On the bright side," said Khlebnikov, "we haven't been turned into goats yet."

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

"Yeah, why is that?" Dranitsyn said.

I stirred the logs in the campfire.

"Because we've kept our distance," I said. "We've stayed away from port, which is where we found the Captain and her crew."

"Baaaaaaaa," the other goats chimed in.

"We can stay here at camp, fish and pick bananas--"

"I like fish," said Khlebnikov.

"and live out our days," I said. "Maybe another ship arrives and they'll be as stuck as we are."

"There's coconuts too," Dranitsyn said.

"Or we can go back to port, and start asking questions."

Khlebnikov, Dranitsyn, and the goats were all silent. I stirred the logs in the campfire.

Lt. Denkt 6/14/2024 10:24pm

We put down on the other side of Tingalayo, as far from the port as possible.

"The weather's not so bad on the ground," said Khlebnikov.

"Downright still," said Dranitsyn.

"Baaaaaaaa," said Captain @katelynn.

"Round the goats into a pen or something," I said. "It's too cold in the ship to keep them in there."

"Plus they'd start chewing on everything," said Khlebnikov.

"And poop," said Dranitsyn.

"I'll be in my tent," I said.

Lt. Denkt 2/23/2024 11:58pm

"The wind is too strong, captain!"

"Why is it still so goddamn cold in here?" I asked.

"Doors and windows open didn't do a thing," Dranitsyn said.

"Captain, it's turning us back. There's no way we're making it through the front in one piece."

Our escape from Tingalayo had been thwarted by a weather event.

"Find a safe space to bring us down, ensign. We'll need to wait it out."

Lt. Denkt 10/26/2023 11:10pm

“Well, we can’t eat ‘em,” said Khlebnikov.

Dranitsyn looked at Khlebnikov, horrified.

“We most certainly can not,” I said.

What infernal powers were awake on this island? What could have transformed the crew of The Nimble Shroud into a herd of goats? And was likely the source of the permanent ghostlike chill on the ship itself.

And what defense could we have against it?

“Pack up your things,” I said. We’re heading back to the ship.”

Lt. Denkt 7/22/2023 8:48pm

It was most definitely a clue.

"It's a uniform from The Nimble Shroud," said Khlebnikov.

"With their captain's name on it," said Dranitsyn.

"Someone has dressed these goats in the uniforms of The Nimble Shroud?" I said. Looking over the flock of goats, a number of them were kitted out in the drab olive green of merchant airshipfolk.

"But it don't fit so well," said Khlebnikov.

"Actually it fits too well," said Dranitsyn.

Dranitsyn was right. A uniform jacket would fit slack on most any goat, but these were shrunken, and fit well. As if they were made for goats, or for dolls...

"These ARE the crew of The Nimble Shroud," I said.

The goats milled around in the light of the campfire.