FISHING FOR FEATHERS

Job 6: Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Murray exits the safe-house into the night and makes his way up the hill, through the trees. He couldn't get past the fence earlier, but now, the spot where Bentley blew up has been 'repaired' with some branches. One good punch takes them out and clears the way.

With that done, Murray continues. He takes the same path to the beach Bentley used earlier, avoiding the still-sleepy guards: there's no point knocking them out when they're already nearly unconscious. Once at the dock, he's joined by Bentley for the start of the mission. Bentley's carrying a long, sturdy length of rope on the handles of his wheelchair; he reaches back to pat it, and check it's still there, before speaking.

"Okay Murray," says Bentley, adjusting his glasses. "The local guards General Tsao is using aren't bad people; they just need the pay. So I don't want to take them out, if we can help it."

"What do you want me to do?" asks Murray.

"I'll make my way onto the boats first and put the guards to sleep," says Bentley. "Once I've taken out each guard, you'll take them off the boat and leave them in that hut." Bentley nods to a shack at the end of the dock. "Once we're done, I'll lock them in. That should keep General Tsao from punishing them too harshly, and give them a good excuse if they need it."

"Okay," says Murray. "I'll wait for your signal."

When doing something like this, a million, billion things can go wrong. A guard can deviate from their patrol route. A restless friend may drop by for a chat. An alarm could be called for another reason, putting everyone on high alert. Even something as simple as a sneeze could jeopardize the entire operation.

So Bentley waits on the dock until the tickle's left his nose before he makes his way up the gangplank and onto the first ship. That guard is walking the deck in a slow circle, ignoring the bow and stern of the boat; it seems obvious that he'd be asleep already, if he weren't moving. Bentley brings out his binoc-u-com to aim and waits for just the right moment to shoot his sleep dart.

The guard's out like a light before he even hits the ground. "Murray, you're up," says Bentley.

Murray makes his way on board, stomps the boat beside the guard's head to launch him into Murray's arms, and carries the guard to the guard shack. There are a few beds in there, not enough, and Murray places the guard gently in one. "All clear," he says over the binoc-u-com.

The job is fiddly, requiring care on both of their parts. The more boats Bentley does, the more alert and random the guards move about on; sometimes he has to time his shot so they're not standing on trap doors where Murray can't stomp. Even when they're not on trap doors, Murray has to be careful when picking them up, as these ships have a surprising number of breakables about that'll cause a lot of noise—and bring other guards running—if he touches them. But it all goes smoothly enough in the end, and they block all the windows, and the door, of the little hut when they're finished.

With that done, the two of them climb onto one of the boats and lower a lifeboat. Murray jumps into the lifeboat and waves; Bentley throws down a length of rope. Murray ties one end to the back of the lifeboat while Bentley secures the other to the front of the boat itself.

With that done, Murray is all set to start rowing. And row he does. Floating seaweed can gum up the oars, but not mess up the bigger boat; the same principal applies to all of the obstacles he faces.

When he's far enough out to see, Henriette's crew picks him up. Then, using the knowledge of the currents Murray told them earlier, they drop him back off on shore.

Getting the rest of those boats out to sea takes most of the night, but The Murray doesn't mind. He enjoys rowing. And challenging as the dodging is, it's what he does best.

JOB COMPLETE

Murray does a victory pose with his oars as flabbergasted pirates look on.