Slaver Island

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In the river estuary, there is an island one half mile in length and a quarter of a mile across. Swept away by the current of the outgoing river, it has a long tapered edge, and a rocky outcrop on one side. The wider edge rises sharply up into the air, whereas the narrower edge rises slowly from the sea. The rocky cliffs jut twenty or thirty feet into the air. The low, floodplain of the island is entirely covered in water at times in the rainier seasons.

Built on this island is a fort of ill repute. At the top of the cliff, a palisade blocks off would-be brigands from entering. Sharp stakes stick out from this wall, and five watch towers are equally spaced across its quarter mile span. Lantern light burns in these towers at all hours of the day, giving the impression of twenty foot tall wooden teeth jutting out of the rocky jaw of the island. These walls surround a fortress which is composed of four stone buildings. One of these buildings, standing in the center, is the Sea King's headquarters. The other three are combination barracks and slave quarters, used by the smugglers to keep their captive populations under check during their short time on the smuggler's island.

Arranged in a square, the headquarters is farthest back, away from the low-lying part of the island. The palisade wraps around, about halfway down the rocky hill, and cuts off the fortified from the largely open part of the island. These two halves are separated by a robust, metal gate. Down on the slope, there are a variety of fields and docks, used for loading and unloading goods, and for putting the slaves who stay on the island to work. The fields are not particularly big, and would not sustain the population of slaves for very long, but would certainly keep a handful of brigands eating well long into any sort of aquatic siege. The docks themselves are simple wooden structures, build by slaves not long ago.

These fields also serve as the ostensible purpose of the island. The brigands will come out to work the fields if they fear investigation, claiming they are simple laborers under the Sea King's hire. In this way, they minimize the visibility of potential human trafficking.

The Sea King is an oddity. Particularly hairy and crook-nosed, his reputation is a two fold. First, he is an infamously meticulous bookkeeper. Nothing passes his eyes. It is this highly intelligent attitude which has brought him to such great success. He follows a strict, daily routine, investigates carefully any unforeseen events, and is wary of even his most trusted lieutenants. He wears a stolen military uniform from Marineford, which he took off an officer he killed in personal combat. This leads into the second half of his reputation. He is a highly feared marksman, perhaps one of the best. He carries a pistol crossbow on his hip, always loaded, always ready for combat. He is particularly fond of explosive and poisoned ammo. It is his custom to import to the island a great variety of these things, so it is impossible for even his suppliers to predict what ammunition he will be using.

The Sea King was not overly thrifty in his acquisition of guards. Well he has a great number of traditional pirates, skilled only mildly in bodily arts and navigation, he also has a variety of specialists and missing ninja. On the island at any given time he keeps no fewer than three of each of the following specialities: Illusionists, elemental casters, hand-to-hand fighters, swordsmen, and alchemists. In this way, he can be prepared for a variety of threats. He is particularly fond of leveraging his illusionists against each other and the rest of his staff. Three psychic readings, given from separate places, is a great motivation for honesty.

The slaves live in squalor in the basement floor of the three buildings, accessible only by secret doors.They are packed tight, and thrown only the basic necessities. The belief is that the harm they will suffer here will be minimal, and that resources are better served in shipping them out as soon as possible. The Sea King is loathe to maintain a stock of slaves without a shipment for more than ten days. The simple brigands, mixed in with some of the specialists, live in the floors above in essential barracks, with mess halls, approximately a month of rations, and the basic supplies one might expect in such an amenity.

A singular, mid-sized ship is usually docked at the island. This is a getaway vessel more than anything. It hardly has the cargo hold to move large quantities of men, but it is stocked at all times for a thirty day journey, in case the men need to escape to some foreign land to avoid the incoming action of the police, ninja, or whoever has deemed it necessary to interfere in their business.

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OOC: This much information is public knowledge. It has been leaked in a rough description from a runaway slave, as is the location of the island. The island, however, is inaccessible by foot, being about a mile from the nearest piece of dry land. A ship, or some other way to traverse the ocean would be necessary.