Midsummer has come and gone and with it, more tragedy. The three winners of the midsummer festival contests have been slain and their prize money stolen. Dorga is blamed by the populace but truthfully, no one saw the crimes being committed.
Milliven Fastous, an acomplished swordsman, was discovered dead in his room at the Rose and Hammer. He had been enganged in a night of carousing before he retired to his room. Friends of the young man are stunned and mortified about his death. They are convinced that cowardly meathods were used to slay their friend because surely, no one could best him in swordplay.
Lillianna Cotore was found slain in an alleyway near the temple of Lathander. Her body had been uncerimoniously dumped into a sewer drain. Passersby discovered her body hung up on some debris in the drains depths, almost completely out of view. If not for the angle of the sun at that particular moment, the woman's body might not have been discovered. Lillianna was a skilled wizard that was merely passing through the region and had decided to particpate in the festival's activities.
Salas Baldabar, winner of the archery contest, was found slain amidst the tents of the makeshift homes surrounding Deadsnows. No one has been able to report any information pertaining to Salas' activities after the festival or prior to his death.
In addition to these contest winners, ten people won claim permits in a raffle. The papers documenting the names of these winners have dissappeared, much to the anger of the local authorities. It is unknown if these people are alive or dead. The town council has ordered these raffle winners to step forward for documentation and protection but no one has answered the council's call.....
Monday, June 8, 2009
Streetwise: Marvus Osten
Marvus Osten represents the Rourke merchant family. He was sent to Deadsnows to scout out any prospective business opportunities that may have developed due to the gold rush. Word from Marvus has been past due for quite some time. Because of this, Kiara has been sent to Deadsnows to get an update on his activities.
After being accosted by powerful orc warriors, and meeting some new allies along the way, Kiara was able to meet and speak with Lady Icespear. The Lady of Deadsnows had not met with Marvus. She hadn't even heard of the man before. This was a peculiar developement, as proper protocole demanded that Marvus meet with Lady Icespear before conducting any buisness.
Kiara traveled to the hall of records and discovered that Marvus had applied for and received a permit which allowed him to stake a claim. More strange behaviour, as this was not what he was sent to do. Marvus was apparently acting of his own accord and breaching protocole in the process. Further investigation revealed that Marvus had sold the rights to the claim to Maestrus Tabeon, apparent leader of The Free Minds Guild.
Kiara led the group to the free minds guild, looking to get to the bottom of this mystery. Their efforts were met only with frustration as Maestrus was apparenlty not in and the first availble appointment to see him was in three tendays. They used trickery to try and create an opportuntity to investigate further but the clerk was on to their tricksy hobbit ways.
Before the party had much time to consider any further aspects of the mystery, Lady Icespear recruited them to investigate an incident involving a large swarm of spiders that had begun attacking citizens. The party rushed to the scene to find the city guards and the priests of Lathander tending to injuired citizens. Our heroes venturned into the damp, slimy, darkness of the sewers, rooting out and destroying the arachnoid threat. They investigated further and soon discovered the body of the man at the center of their most recent mystery, apparently murdered, as indicated by the stab wounds on his body.
What had Marvus gotten himself into? Was he using the Rourke name to line his own pockets? Did he cross someone he shouldn't have with shady business dealings? Or was he just the latest victim of Dorga The Wraith? These questions are at the forefront of our heroes minds as they delve deeper into the sewers beneath Deadsnows and root out it's denizens.
The Tribulation of Deadsnows: Recap of the last few sessions.
We had a long break from the game and many things have happened both before and after the break. Here is a run down of what has happened since the Session 11 post:
- We converted the game from 3.5E to 4E.
- The pathway to the apparent kobold stronghold was discovered.
- The party was summoned back to Misty Ridge to escort the diplomat, Bizzlebin Migglax, to Deadsnows.
- Buddrick left the party to return to the Abbey.
- The dwarven cleric, Balgrim, joined the party.
- Fenia was slain by a troupe of vampires during the return to Deadsnows. Fenia's spirit rejected an immediate resurrection so she could complete an important mission for Master Herald while she was on the Fuge Plane.
- Aine's sister was discovered hiding in the cart during the vampire encounter. They took her back to Misty Ridge.
- The party encountered a woman being accosted by a powerful band of orcs. An epic battle ensued and the party emerged victorious. Kiara joined the party. She is from a merchant family from the Moonshae Isles and was on her way to Deadsnows to track down a missing representitive of her family, Marvus Osten.
- During the battle with the orcs, a Dragonborn Paladin, Donnar, arrived on the scene and rushed to the aid of the party. He has heard of the kobold activity in the area and where there are kobolds, there are usually dragons. Donnar wants to put an end to any draconic tyranny and has agreed to work with the Misty Ridge representitives.
- A note was found on the orcs. Apparently they were ordered to kill Kiara. A new mystery emerges.
- Fenia rejoins the party when they stop at the Hospice, her speical mission completed.
- The party arrives at Deadsnows and meets with Lady Icespear. Bizzlebin begins delegations.
- Kiara leads the group to the hall of records in an attempt to track down the missing representitive of her family. There is record of the purchase of a claim permit and a subsequent transaction which turns the claim over to Mastrus Tabeon, apparent leader of The Free Minds Guild.
- While meeting with Bizzlebin, Lady Icespear rushes in and petitions the party for help with a problem in town. A swarm of strange spiders was assaulting citizens.
- The party decended into the sewers and battled spider swarms and monstrous spiders, much, much larger than themselves. These monstrous spiders had blade like tips on the ends of their leggs.
Friday, February 1, 2008
The Tribulation of Deadsnows: Session 11
Characters: Gibbie, Aine, Fenia, Melvin, and Buddrick-Day 29 Continued-
After the challenging encounter with the ogres and kobolds, the party decided to investigate what the strange partnership of large and small had been up to. They discovered that posts were being driven into the ground. Very large wooden mallets were laying on the ground next to a pile of lumber.
They also discovered a strange chest of some sort. Leafy shapes were carved into the box along with a strange, fiendish looking face. There was no lock, and the chest seemingly could not be opened. Gibbie identified the material it was made out of as darkwood.
Fenia coaxed Buddrick into trying to break the chest open with his mace. Grumbling to himself, wondering how it always fell to him to risk the unknown, he reluctantly tried to crush the strange box. It proved to be very well made (and enchanted, according to a detect magic spell). Her mischievous side taking over, Fenia cast an illusion spell on the chest that caused tentacles to grow out of the box and reach for Buddrick. Not recognizing the illusion for what it was, he fought back the writhing appendages with zeal. Small mouths appeared at the ends and snapped at the dwarf. Gibbie ran forward and sliced one of the tentacles in half, realizing it was an illusion after striking it. He informed the still swinging dwarf, who was pounding his mace into and above the box. Buddrick stepped back and stared at the flailing mouths. They sure seemed real to him.
A few paces away, Fenia snickered. She changed the illusion to make it look like a powerful demon. Buddrick began fighting it again in earnest, much to Fenia's delight.
Before long, everyone except Aine could hear a commotion in the woods. Looking toward the south, they could see a horde of kobolds scrambling through the trees and closing on them fast! The kobold that had escaped the previous battle must have found reinforcements! The demon illusion turned tail and ran at Fenia's command and winked out of existence before getting far. Fenia then summoned a wall of gloom between the kobolds and her allies. Everyone fell back to the cart, except Buddrick, who prepared to drag the chest at Fenia's beckoning. Kobolds surged forward and a hail of arrows damage those near the cart and killed the magically summoned donkey.
The horde was upon them and they couldn't run. Buddrick abandoned the chest as kobolds poured around the end of the dark wall. He charged to meet them head on, plugging the gap between the wall of gloom to his left and the wall of wood to his right. The group battling Buddrick split in half and the new, smaller force circled around the wooden wall. Gibbie changed into a bear and ran foward with his wolf to hold this group at bay. Her spells largely exhausted, Fenia took up a crossbow she had acquired from the last battle and began shooting at her enemies. Melvin took up his bow beside her.
Aine moved away from the cart and cast a magic missile spell. It split into three missiles and each took out a kobold. Next to Buddrick, the strange box suddenly began to shake and hop on the ground. The dwarf glanced at it but was too tied up with kobolds to do anything about it. Before long, the box shattered, splinters flying in all directions. A tome soared through the air toward Aine. When it reached her it hovered next to her. Aine could feel a compelling force beckoning her to take it. The conflict around her seemed to melt away and the book was the only thing that existed.
She reached out and touched it, taking it up in her hands. Invisible power pulsed out from her, making friend and foe alike flinch under its weight. She began to sink lower into the earth as a crater began to form beneath her. In a dramatic display of eldritch power, the book transformed Aine into something else.
Aine rose into the air and energy wafted off of her like smoke. A jagged ray of purple magic shot from her hands, tearing through earth and kobold alike. Aine's companions could only look on in bewilderment and concern between attacks made and attacks dodged. Dark secrets were being whispered into her ear along with instructions on how to use them.
As quickly as it had begun, the display stopped. Aine was fully aware that the power she once possessed was gone, and this new power had taken its place. She wielded it as if she had been all of her life. The fight raged on and the party emerged victorious. Aine's allies questioned her with suspicion but decided that she was still the same person.
At that point a debate was waged where the party discussed their best course of action. Proceed down a woodland trail in pursuit of kobolds or continue on to Sundabar. Fenia expressed her need to reach Sundabar so she could scribe spells into her spellbook. Gibbie and Aine wanted to pursue the kobolds. Melvin didn't have an opinion and Buddrick saw the benefit of each course of action and thus didn't care which way they went. Fenia was out voted. They found an out of the way place to set up camp for the night.
The next day when they returned to the spot of the battle, all of the kobold bodies were gone. They didn't give it too much though and proceeded down the woodland trail. After a few miles they encountered a large mass of vegetation blocking the trail.
The mass turned out to be a Tendriculous, a monstrous plant creature. It was a long battle but the party prevailed. Gibbie and Buddrick were swallowed during the encounter but managed to escape from the hideous plant.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Confessions of a Part-time Fop, Part 1
"Somethings afoot, Busk," Sosso said to his faithful brixashulty, who calmly munched on some hay as he was being brushed by the halfling. "These ogres bear the same mark. That curled up green dragon. Obviously they are part of a clan, but I've never seen this mark before. Not before today."
If Busk cared at all he certainly didn't show. He continued to eat his hay. "Indeed, not before these ogres and that eccentric gnome, Buzzle. I wonder how he came into possession of the mark. He certainly collects many oddities. It's not unfathomable that he just defeated some ogres that bore the mark. But, with his obvious obsession with collecting things that "aren't boring", it bears consideration that he got it from someone. Of course, he probably bought it off someone who was familiar with the gnome's taste for the odd."
"I couldn't get into the drawer where he kept it, no doubt magic involved. That ones a wizard of some sort. That would make investigating his tent much more difficult. It's probably best to leave that one alone. That leaves the ogres themselves. If they are organized that means they should have a stronghold nearby somewhere. But where?"
Sosso's envisioned the region in his mind. There were many places to hide. The Toadsquats and the Luirwood alone covered the vast majority of the region. The only sure way to find their lair would be to follow or track them there. Sosso stopped brushing and looked up from his work.
"A green dragon. Their leader, or their symbol? Maybe both." Dragons weren't unheard of in Luiren. Buzzle rambled on about some dragons earlier. "Greens favor the forest I hear. There's certainly many places for one to live around here." Busk looked back and snorted. Sosso shook himself out of his thoughts and began running the brush through the brixashulty's long fur again.
Sosso's eyes flashed. "Dragons are said to posses great riches, Busk. What a sight that would be. A pile of gold taller than the both of us!" Sosso leaned to the side to look Busk, who had gone back to eatting his hay, in the eye. "Think of all the treats that would buy!" Busk snorted again.
Sosoo frowned at that. "You're right. It would be difficult. Dragons are not ones to be trifled with. Yet..." Sosso looked out the door of the stable, as if he were looking to consider something or someone. "I bet we could win. We are not to be trifled with either," he said with a smile.
"And now the issue of Caborn Underleaf. He didn't show. The barkeep said that it was strange that he hadn't shown up yet. I'd wager he's a capable fellow with capable friends. But all the same, maybe we should set out to find him tomorrow. I have a feeling something is brewing and that we are going to be in the center of it soon."
Sosso finished brushing Busk and took a step back to admire his handy work. "There you are Busk! Set for the night. Don't get into any trouble out here. You made a bad impression earlier barging into the tavern like that." Busk's ear twitched. He didn't seem to appreciate the humor.
"Hmph!" With that, Sosso turned and left the stable.
If Busk cared at all he certainly didn't show. He continued to eat his hay. "Indeed, not before these ogres and that eccentric gnome, Buzzle. I wonder how he came into possession of the mark. He certainly collects many oddities. It's not unfathomable that he just defeated some ogres that bore the mark. But, with his obvious obsession with collecting things that "aren't boring", it bears consideration that he got it from someone. Of course, he probably bought it off someone who was familiar with the gnome's taste for the odd."
"I couldn't get into the drawer where he kept it, no doubt magic involved. That ones a wizard of some sort. That would make investigating his tent much more difficult. It's probably best to leave that one alone. That leaves the ogres themselves. If they are organized that means they should have a stronghold nearby somewhere. But where?"
Sosso's envisioned the region in his mind. There were many places to hide. The Toadsquats and the Luirwood alone covered the vast majority of the region. The only sure way to find their lair would be to follow or track them there. Sosso stopped brushing and looked up from his work.
"A green dragon. Their leader, or their symbol? Maybe both." Dragons weren't unheard of in Luiren. Buzzle rambled on about some dragons earlier. "Greens favor the forest I hear. There's certainly many places for one to live around here." Busk looked back and snorted. Sosso shook himself out of his thoughts and began running the brush through the brixashulty's long fur again.
Sosso's eyes flashed. "Dragons are said to posses great riches, Busk. What a sight that would be. A pile of gold taller than the both of us!" Sosso leaned to the side to look Busk, who had gone back to eatting his hay, in the eye. "Think of all the treats that would buy!" Busk snorted again.
Sosoo frowned at that. "You're right. It would be difficult. Dragons are not ones to be trifled with. Yet..." Sosso looked out the door of the stable, as if he were looking to consider something or someone. "I bet we could win. We are not to be trifled with either," he said with a smile.
"And now the issue of Caborn Underleaf. He didn't show. The barkeep said that it was strange that he hadn't shown up yet. I'd wager he's a capable fellow with capable friends. But all the same, maybe we should set out to find him tomorrow. I have a feeling something is brewing and that we are going to be in the center of it soon."
Sosso finished brushing Busk and took a step back to admire his handy work. "There you are Busk! Set for the night. Don't get into any trouble out here. You made a bad impression earlier barging into the tavern like that." Busk's ear twitched. He didn't seem to appreciate the humor.
"Hmph!" With that, Sosso turned and left the stable.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Doug's Game: Session 1
The party of four was on the road to Shoril. Faedre Danaalii, a human woman with strange arcane powers. Daldin Stonebiter, dwarven priest of Clangaddin. Wildfang Stonebiter, a dwarven frenzy warrior and brother of Daldin. Sosso Blackleaf, a halfling woodsman.
Many ogres have fallen to this band of adventurers. More would fall in the hours to come...
A slight breeze blew across the plains. Sosso looked up into the sky at the fluffy clouds drifting by lazily. His position was rear guard. He enjoyed being able to see all of his allies before him, and more importantly, have them between him and trouble should it arise. That is, if it didn't come from behind.
Trouble came from behind. He turned in his saddle at the sounds of yelling. Several halflings were running through the thick undergrowth of the orange orchard to their left. For a moment he was impressed with their speed despite the terrain but quickly disengaged his mind from that thought as their pursuers came into view. Ogres. Three of them. They clumsily stomped through the brush, moving much slower than the halflings they were chasing and apparently oblivious to those on the road.
"Ogres to the left!" Sosso exclaimed to his allies. Without hesitation he dismounted and dove into the orchard behind the ogres, drawing his longbow in the process. Busk the brixashulty watched his master disappear into the brush, seemingly unphased by the commotion. The rest of the group turned in reaction to the yelling halflings.
Wildfang hefted his greataxe, put his head down, and busted into the brush, advancing on the nearest ogre. Daldin followed his brother into battle but Faedre only took a couple of steps off the road. She pointed her finger at the nearest ogre and left fly with a bolt of magical purple energy that zig-zagged through the air before finding its mark. Inside the dense undergrowth, Sosso retreated a few steps from the ogres who had turned to regard his comrades. He let fly with an arrow that embedded itself between two of the ogre's ribs (the ogre that Faedre had damaged with her magic).
Two of the ogres moved toward the road to meet the dwarves while the third split off in pursuit of Sosso. The small halfling was able to stay ahead of the chasing foe while at the same time putting arrows into the two that were engaged with his allies. Wildfang made short work of the two giants that were near to him, felling them like great trees. The third giant, having seen his allies fall quickly, turned tail and ran. The brute couldn't manage a very fast flight and Sosso turned the tables on it by becoming the chaser. A chaser with arrows. Wildfang trudged through the brush like a mad boar but his target was downed by arrows before he caught up. With a huff, he looked back to Sosso who approached the ogre and, after checking to see if it was still alive (confident to do so with his vicious ally close by), began to search it.
No valuables were found on any of the giants but Sosso and Faedre discovered a well hidden symbol on all three. A curled up green dragon.
The group decided to track the ogres back the way they had come. They discovered that the ones they had defeated were part of a larger group. There were six of them and they split off into two groups of three. With Sosso leading the way, they followed the tracks of the second group of ogres. Before long they came upon the corpses of the three ogres they were pursuing. Sosso inspected the fallen giants and discovered wounds that were probably caused by arrows. Arrows that were probably laced with ice magic of some kind. He inspected the ground closely, looking for tracks that might identify the giant slayers. He concluded that whoever it was, they were atop riding dogs. Halflings commonly used dogs as mounts.
The party backtracked to the point where the two groups had split. They followed the merged trails further across the plains and eventually, Sosso was able to make out many more ogre tracks. He could make out upwards of twenty seperate sets of tracks. Scratching his chin, Sosso stood and looked up at the sky, subtracting six ogres from the count. They then began discussing their best course of action while Sosso stood on Busk's back and scanned the horizon with his sharp eyes. After a moment, he could make out two figures moving in the distance.
The halfling proposed that he hurry on ahead of the group to get an eye on the two figures. Without delay, he spurred Busk on and was able to close the distance enough to identify the two figures by the time he had to let his mount rest. It appeared to be two halflings atop dogs. Sosso nodded to himself, fairly confident that they were the ones who had slew the other three ogres. After a few minutes rest, he prodded Busk back toward their allies. Sosoo recounted what he had seen and once again the party began to discuss their next course of action. The halfling stood atop Busk's back and scanned the horizon again. This time he spotted a large figure slip into another orchard. He didn't see it long enough to get a positive ID, but he assumed it was an ogre.
He informed the party and they set off to where Sosso had spotted the figure. Everyone could see a large trail parting the brush between the trees. Sosso ran ahead to assess the situation (after removing the riding gear from Busk and letting him fend for himself outside the orchard), his allies moving slowly many feet behind. He came to a hill and he could hear deep voices talking in a language he didn't understand. Poking his head over the top of the hill, he spotted three ogres who were apparently arguing about something. Sosso ducked back down and turned to signal his allies to stop. He watched the giants for a few moments to get a better idea of their strength. There didn't appear to be any more in the area so Sosso decided to launch an ambush.
He ducked back down and with a vigorous wave of his hand, he signaled his allies to come forward. After that, he left the trail the ogres had made and waded into the brush. He knocked an arrow and waited for the moment to strike. Daldin's armor clanked loudly in the thick brush and Sosso prepared himself. The ogres began to look about as if they had heard something and that was Sosso's cue. He hid himself in the undergrowth and took two steps away from his allies before shooting the ogre on the right (hoping the brush was thick enough to conceal him). The ogres jumped up from their sitting positions, yelled, and caught sight of Faedre and the Stonebiter brothers. They lumbered forward through the difficult terrain. Wildfang tightened his grip on his ax and waited for the brutes to near. Daldin readied a healing spell. Faedra shot the lead ogre with her magic.
Three more ogres appeared from behind the lead three. Sosso gritted his teeth upon seeing three more of the giants. He hadn't spotted them and thought that this would be an easy fight. Now, it was going to be a fight for their lives. The woodsman moved again, hoping he would remain hidden from the beasts, and let fly with another arrow. The ogre he was focusing on fell, and its ally, one with a very large ax, caught sight of Sosso and moved to intercept him.
That must be the leader, Sosso thought to himself. It alone wielded an ax. The others had great clubs that could be considered trees. The halfling looked back to his allies. Wildfang was going toe to toe with two ogres. Daldin had apparently cast an enlarging spell on his brother because he was just as tall as the ogres. Currently, Daldin was pouring healing spells into Wildfang and Faedre was facing off against an ogre by herself.
Their defensive line had broken. Sosso had hoped his allies could fight safely in the trail with the brush shielding them on their flanks but one ogre had circumvent the poor walls. He looked back to the advancing leader and resigned himself to letting Faedre fend for herself. If he rejoined his allies, they would be flanked on all sides. Hopefully he could keep ahead of this ogre and kill it by himself before Faedre fell. He retreated and shot the ogre leader.
Daldin glanced back at Faedre and realized she was in danger. She had been hit and quite hard by the looks of her. He moved up to her and began casting a healing spell, taking extra care not to get swatted by the ogre threatening Faedre. Unfortunately he was not able to maintain his focus and lost the spell. Wildfang roared and hacked away at his two ogres wildly.
Sosso was able to stay ahead of the ogre leader as he had planned and peppered it with arrows. This ogre had to be the leader, for he displayed above average intelligence and realized that he couldn't catch Sosso. He gave up and closed in on Wildfang.
Ha, you lose, Sosso said in his mind. He moved back toward his allies and shifted his focus to the ogre Wildfang was fighting. It looked like it was on its last leg and so Sosso took aim and fired. He missed. Sosso frowned. That didn't happen very often.
Daldin decided that it was more prudent to activate his magical healing belt to heal Faedre. He poured all of its magic into the woman, expending its energy for the day. Faedre concentrated and gathered her energy. She expelled her inner power with a roar and it blasted a hole right through the monster before her. Wildfang finally toppled one of the foes before him as well. The momentum of the battle had just swung drastically in the favor of the party.
It was now three on three and it didn't take long for the party to emerge victorious. Tactical movement had stopped on both sides (aside from Sosso circling behind the ogre leader) and they just traded blows.
When the fight was over, they stopped and took stock of each other. Everyone appeared to be well, thanks to Daldin's healing. After a few moments to catch their breath, they searched the ogres and discovered the same mark that the others possessed. They also examined the large ax. Faedre claimed that it wasn't magical. Wildfang picked it and decided that he couldn't wield the monstrous weapon effectively. He figured he would try and sell it. Sosso snooped around and deduced they had been setting up a camp here. Saplings were snapped in half all around this area. They decided that this would make a good place for a camp and Sosso set up the tent after recovering Busk.
No one's nightly watch was eventful. Except for Sosso's. He employed his grappling hook to climb a nearby tree when he failed to climb without it. He found a nice perch and coiled the rope next to him so he could kick it down should he need to act quickly. He peered out from his hiding spot and for a while nothing happened. But suddenly, there was another halfling in the tree with him!
Sosso, blinked in surprise. He greeted the newcomer and asked him who he was. He introduced himself as Caborn Underleaf. The two had a discussion about the ogres in the area and Caborn confirmed Sasso's suspicion that he was one of the two halflings he had seen earlier and that they were the ones who killed the other ogres. They had a nice chat and Caborn told Sosso that he should swing by "The Bones" sometime so they could talk more. Sosso didn't know what or where "The Bones" was, but he didn't let on to that fact and agreed to meet Caborn there soon.
Sosso kicked the rope down and climbed to the ground. Caborn jumped out of the tree but landed harder than he had expected. Sosso asked him if he was alright and activated his healing belt and used its magic to heal any damage Caborn had taken.
Caborn departed and Sosso began gathering oranges for everyone to eat, giving some to Busk as well. He woke Daldin and then cut an orange in half. He threw one half into Busk's pile and carved out the center of the other half with his dagger. Then he crept into the tent and set the orange on Faedre's nose. His deed accomplished, Sosso climbed back into the tree and pulled the rope up.
Faedre awoke soon after and discovered an orange on her face. Baffled, she departed the tent, eating the orange. Faedre called out to Sosso proclaiming that she knew it was him and of course he denied it. The halfling dislodged his grappling hook from the tree and dropped it to the ground. Nimbly, he did a back flip out of the tree and landed hard. His legs were bent, and a grimace was on his face. Comically, he kept his legs bent and hobbled over to the tent. Faedre couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
Soon, the party was packed up and back on the road, bound for Shoril once more. Time passed and the party arrived at Shoril. It was a trade town with tent pavilions everywhere. They surrounded a more permanent stone structure.
Sosso stood on Busk's back and balanced himself perfectly. Busk plodded along and Sosso reversed his cloak with a flourish, exposing its bright red interior, now exterior. He also donned his blue sash and green bandanna. A couple of onlookers giggled at the grandiose display. Sosso put one hand on his hip and the other hand wielded the special riding crop he used to help him direct Busk. It was long and flexible. A tassel of leather strips adorned the end of the tool. He tapped the crop on Busk's backside and onward Busk carried the no-longer-short halfing into town.
The Stonebiters and Faedre wandered off, different pavilions catching their eyes. Sosso guided Busk through the crowd, keeping his eyes peeled for "The Bones". Many people looked at the balancing halfling with curiosity. Sosso made his way to a large stone structure in the center of town and discovered a sign that identified it as The Dragon's Boneyard.
"This must be The Bones," Sosso told Busk. With a tap of the crop, Sosso prodded Busk up the stairs. A large metal door stood in his way. With hands on hips he studied the door. Adamantine by the looks of it. Sosso glanced about and spotted a dwarf comming his way.
"Excuse me, Good Sir," he proclaimed, the dwarf looking at him with a crooked eyebrow. "Could you open this door for me please?"
"Sure..." the dwarf replied. With a grin he walked up and opened the door. "What do ye plan on doing?"
"I'm going in of course!" Sosso proclaimed.
"Yeah, good luck with that."
Sosso prodded Busk again and the brixashulty walked into the tavern. He placed his hand on his brow, blocking the bright light that didn't exsist, and scanned the room for Caborn.
"Is Caborn Underleaf here?" the halfling called out to the room.
"What do you think ye're doing there!" Someone bellowed.
Sosso looked over to the bar and there was a grizzled dwarf staring him down. Well, everyone was staring him down really.
"Why, I'm looking for Caborn Underleaf of course!"
"He ain't here. Now get that goat out of here!" the same dwarf ordered.
"Goat? This is a brixashulty! And a fine one I might add!"
"What ever it is, get it out of here."
"What do you sell here?" Sosso inquired, apparently ignoring the order.
"What do ya think? Ale."
"Is it good?"
"Of course it is! Get that thing out of here!"
"I'll take one ale please!"
With that, the dwarf reached down and filled a mug with ale. He cocked his arm back and flug it at Sosso bellowing, "Here!"
The mug hit Sosso in the chest and ale flew every where. He wiped his face and licked his fingers. "This is good ale!"
"GET OUT!"
Sosso directed Busk to turn around and exit the tavern. Once outside, he tied Busk to the rail and went back inside. He strode in confidently, much shorter this time. The place was a masterpiece of arcitecture. Different metals and woods adorned the furniture and walls. The furniture consisted of pieces that were sized for halflings, humans, and dwarves alike. Sosso bypassed the stools sized for a halfling then climbed and stood atop a stool more fit for a human.
"One ale please!"
The same dwarf filled another mug and slid it down the bar. Sosso caught it nimbly, looking so much like a human child reaching down with both small hands and hoisting the large pint up to his mouth, gulping is contents. At that moment, the Stonebiter brothers entered the bar and seeing their companion, strode up to next to him.
Daldin and the barkeep warmed up to each other quickly, discussing various topics of importance to dwarves. Daldin ordered an ale for himself and his brother. The barkeep served them up and said the first one was free for dwarves.
"What about my free ale?" Sosso asked.
"Yer not a dwarf."
"That's not fair!"
"Besides, ya got one already."
"You spilled it!"
"That was your free one."
"Hmph!" Sosso exclaimed. He climbed down from his stool and went outside. He cut some fur from the shaggy Busk and placed it on his top lip, holding it in place by curling his lip. He marched back into the bar and climbed the stool again, standing atop it proudly.
"One free ale please!"
The dwarf starred daggers at him. Behind Sosso, a table of halflings broke out laughing.
"Yer not a dwarf! Yer the same durned guy!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, sir. I'm a dwarf, see?"
"If yer a dwarf, where's yer beard?"
"An ogre pulled it off. It was horrible. Its never grown back since. I've grown my mustache extra long to compensate, as you can see," the halfling proclaimed, stroking the fake mustache for emphasis.
"Yer compensating fer something alright."
Sosso "harumphed", which caused his fake mustache to fall off. He reached down and placed it back on its perch as if nothing had happened. "One free ale please!"
"Oy," the dwarf declared, turning back to Daldin. They went on to discuss more things dwarven. Sosso ordered a bowl of mushroom soup to go with his not free ale. He finally sat down.
Daldin got them all a room for the night and went up to bed. Wildfang stayed at the bar and stared into his empty mug. He was flat broke and his brother had gone to bed. Sosso noticed two elves enter the tavern. It was rare to see elves at all in these parts, but if you were going to see them, it would be in Shoril. He hopped down and took his bowl of soup over to a table near the elves and eavesdropped on their conversation. They were speaking in a language that he couldn't understand.
Sosso hopped down from his chair, bowl of soup in hand, and approached the elves' booth. He greeted them with a hearty hello and asked if he could join them. They weren't really sure what to make of him but they let him sit with them. They continued their conversation, this time in common. They were talking about different methods of crafting bows. Sosso inquired if they owned a shop in town and discovered that they in fact did. He set up a meeting the next day to inspect their wares. He also asked them if they wanted to buy the ax they had looted from the ogres. He quickly ran upstairs, shed his armor and gear, and hefted the massive ax. The little halfling could barely carry it. When he got to the stair case he dropped it onto the floor and grabbed it by the handle. He took one step at a time and proceeded to drag the ax down the stairs.
Tap, tap, clang. Tap, tap, clang. Everyone was again looking at the halfling and wondering what the heck he was up to this time. Wildfang saw Sosso dragging the massive ax and intercepted the halfing and offered to carry it for him. Sosso directed Wildfang to the elves and they examined the ax. They inquired about the asking price. Sosso and Wildfang collaborated and determined it was worth 280 gold coins. The elves made an offer of 140, which didn't please Sosso. He informed the elves that he would discuss it with his comrades and would inform them of their decision when they met tomorrow. They agreed.
With that, Sosso bid the elves a good night and went up to bed, leaving the ax in the care of Wildfang.
Many ogres have fallen to this band of adventurers. More would fall in the hours to come...
A slight breeze blew across the plains. Sosso looked up into the sky at the fluffy clouds drifting by lazily. His position was rear guard. He enjoyed being able to see all of his allies before him, and more importantly, have them between him and trouble should it arise. That is, if it didn't come from behind.
Trouble came from behind. He turned in his saddle at the sounds of yelling. Several halflings were running through the thick undergrowth of the orange orchard to their left. For a moment he was impressed with their speed despite the terrain but quickly disengaged his mind from that thought as their pursuers came into view. Ogres. Three of them. They clumsily stomped through the brush, moving much slower than the halflings they were chasing and apparently oblivious to those on the road.
"Ogres to the left!" Sosso exclaimed to his allies. Without hesitation he dismounted and dove into the orchard behind the ogres, drawing his longbow in the process. Busk the brixashulty watched his master disappear into the brush, seemingly unphased by the commotion. The rest of the group turned in reaction to the yelling halflings.
Wildfang hefted his greataxe, put his head down, and busted into the brush, advancing on the nearest ogre. Daldin followed his brother into battle but Faedre only took a couple of steps off the road. She pointed her finger at the nearest ogre and left fly with a bolt of magical purple energy that zig-zagged through the air before finding its mark. Inside the dense undergrowth, Sosso retreated a few steps from the ogres who had turned to regard his comrades. He let fly with an arrow that embedded itself between two of the ogre's ribs (the ogre that Faedre had damaged with her magic).
Two of the ogres moved toward the road to meet the dwarves while the third split off in pursuit of Sosso. The small halfling was able to stay ahead of the chasing foe while at the same time putting arrows into the two that were engaged with his allies. Wildfang made short work of the two giants that were near to him, felling them like great trees. The third giant, having seen his allies fall quickly, turned tail and ran. The brute couldn't manage a very fast flight and Sosso turned the tables on it by becoming the chaser. A chaser with arrows. Wildfang trudged through the brush like a mad boar but his target was downed by arrows before he caught up. With a huff, he looked back to Sosso who approached the ogre and, after checking to see if it was still alive (confident to do so with his vicious ally close by), began to search it.
No valuables were found on any of the giants but Sosso and Faedre discovered a well hidden symbol on all three. A curled up green dragon.
The group decided to track the ogres back the way they had come. They discovered that the ones they had defeated were part of a larger group. There were six of them and they split off into two groups of three. With Sosso leading the way, they followed the tracks of the second group of ogres. Before long they came upon the corpses of the three ogres they were pursuing. Sosso inspected the fallen giants and discovered wounds that were probably caused by arrows. Arrows that were probably laced with ice magic of some kind. He inspected the ground closely, looking for tracks that might identify the giant slayers. He concluded that whoever it was, they were atop riding dogs. Halflings commonly used dogs as mounts.
The party backtracked to the point where the two groups had split. They followed the merged trails further across the plains and eventually, Sosso was able to make out many more ogre tracks. He could make out upwards of twenty seperate sets of tracks. Scratching his chin, Sosso stood and looked up at the sky, subtracting six ogres from the count. They then began discussing their best course of action while Sosso stood on Busk's back and scanned the horizon with his sharp eyes. After a moment, he could make out two figures moving in the distance.
The halfling proposed that he hurry on ahead of the group to get an eye on the two figures. Without delay, he spurred Busk on and was able to close the distance enough to identify the two figures by the time he had to let his mount rest. It appeared to be two halflings atop dogs. Sosso nodded to himself, fairly confident that they were the ones who had slew the other three ogres. After a few minutes rest, he prodded Busk back toward their allies. Sosoo recounted what he had seen and once again the party began to discuss their next course of action. The halfling stood atop Busk's back and scanned the horizon again. This time he spotted a large figure slip into another orchard. He didn't see it long enough to get a positive ID, but he assumed it was an ogre.
He informed the party and they set off to where Sosso had spotted the figure. Everyone could see a large trail parting the brush between the trees. Sosso ran ahead to assess the situation (after removing the riding gear from Busk and letting him fend for himself outside the orchard), his allies moving slowly many feet behind. He came to a hill and he could hear deep voices talking in a language he didn't understand. Poking his head over the top of the hill, he spotted three ogres who were apparently arguing about something. Sosso ducked back down and turned to signal his allies to stop. He watched the giants for a few moments to get a better idea of their strength. There didn't appear to be any more in the area so Sosso decided to launch an ambush.
He ducked back down and with a vigorous wave of his hand, he signaled his allies to come forward. After that, he left the trail the ogres had made and waded into the brush. He knocked an arrow and waited for the moment to strike. Daldin's armor clanked loudly in the thick brush and Sosso prepared himself. The ogres began to look about as if they had heard something and that was Sosso's cue. He hid himself in the undergrowth and took two steps away from his allies before shooting the ogre on the right (hoping the brush was thick enough to conceal him). The ogres jumped up from their sitting positions, yelled, and caught sight of Faedre and the Stonebiter brothers. They lumbered forward through the difficult terrain. Wildfang tightened his grip on his ax and waited for the brutes to near. Daldin readied a healing spell. Faedra shot the lead ogre with her magic.
Three more ogres appeared from behind the lead three. Sosso gritted his teeth upon seeing three more of the giants. He hadn't spotted them and thought that this would be an easy fight. Now, it was going to be a fight for their lives. The woodsman moved again, hoping he would remain hidden from the beasts, and let fly with another arrow. The ogre he was focusing on fell, and its ally, one with a very large ax, caught sight of Sosso and moved to intercept him.
That must be the leader, Sosso thought to himself. It alone wielded an ax. The others had great clubs that could be considered trees. The halfling looked back to his allies. Wildfang was going toe to toe with two ogres. Daldin had apparently cast an enlarging spell on his brother because he was just as tall as the ogres. Currently, Daldin was pouring healing spells into Wildfang and Faedre was facing off against an ogre by herself.
Their defensive line had broken. Sosso had hoped his allies could fight safely in the trail with the brush shielding them on their flanks but one ogre had circumvent the poor walls. He looked back to the advancing leader and resigned himself to letting Faedre fend for herself. If he rejoined his allies, they would be flanked on all sides. Hopefully he could keep ahead of this ogre and kill it by himself before Faedre fell. He retreated and shot the ogre leader.
Daldin glanced back at Faedre and realized she was in danger. She had been hit and quite hard by the looks of her. He moved up to her and began casting a healing spell, taking extra care not to get swatted by the ogre threatening Faedre. Unfortunately he was not able to maintain his focus and lost the spell. Wildfang roared and hacked away at his two ogres wildly.
Sosso was able to stay ahead of the ogre leader as he had planned and peppered it with arrows. This ogre had to be the leader, for he displayed above average intelligence and realized that he couldn't catch Sosso. He gave up and closed in on Wildfang.
Ha, you lose, Sosso said in his mind. He moved back toward his allies and shifted his focus to the ogre Wildfang was fighting. It looked like it was on its last leg and so Sosso took aim and fired. He missed. Sosso frowned. That didn't happen very often.
Daldin decided that it was more prudent to activate his magical healing belt to heal Faedre. He poured all of its magic into the woman, expending its energy for the day. Faedre concentrated and gathered her energy. She expelled her inner power with a roar and it blasted a hole right through the monster before her. Wildfang finally toppled one of the foes before him as well. The momentum of the battle had just swung drastically in the favor of the party.
It was now three on three and it didn't take long for the party to emerge victorious. Tactical movement had stopped on both sides (aside from Sosso circling behind the ogre leader) and they just traded blows.
When the fight was over, they stopped and took stock of each other. Everyone appeared to be well, thanks to Daldin's healing. After a few moments to catch their breath, they searched the ogres and discovered the same mark that the others possessed. They also examined the large ax. Faedre claimed that it wasn't magical. Wildfang picked it and decided that he couldn't wield the monstrous weapon effectively. He figured he would try and sell it. Sosso snooped around and deduced they had been setting up a camp here. Saplings were snapped in half all around this area. They decided that this would make a good place for a camp and Sosso set up the tent after recovering Busk.
No one's nightly watch was eventful. Except for Sosso's. He employed his grappling hook to climb a nearby tree when he failed to climb without it. He found a nice perch and coiled the rope next to him so he could kick it down should he need to act quickly. He peered out from his hiding spot and for a while nothing happened. But suddenly, there was another halfling in the tree with him!
Sosso, blinked in surprise. He greeted the newcomer and asked him who he was. He introduced himself as Caborn Underleaf. The two had a discussion about the ogres in the area and Caborn confirmed Sasso's suspicion that he was one of the two halflings he had seen earlier and that they were the ones who killed the other ogres. They had a nice chat and Caborn told Sosso that he should swing by "The Bones" sometime so they could talk more. Sosso didn't know what or where "The Bones" was, but he didn't let on to that fact and agreed to meet Caborn there soon.
Sosso kicked the rope down and climbed to the ground. Caborn jumped out of the tree but landed harder than he had expected. Sosso asked him if he was alright and activated his healing belt and used its magic to heal any damage Caborn had taken.
Caborn departed and Sosso began gathering oranges for everyone to eat, giving some to Busk as well. He woke Daldin and then cut an orange in half. He threw one half into Busk's pile and carved out the center of the other half with his dagger. Then he crept into the tent and set the orange on Faedre's nose. His deed accomplished, Sosso climbed back into the tree and pulled the rope up.
Faedre awoke soon after and discovered an orange on her face. Baffled, she departed the tent, eating the orange. Faedre called out to Sosso proclaiming that she knew it was him and of course he denied it. The halfling dislodged his grappling hook from the tree and dropped it to the ground. Nimbly, he did a back flip out of the tree and landed hard. His legs were bent, and a grimace was on his face. Comically, he kept his legs bent and hobbled over to the tent. Faedre couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
Soon, the party was packed up and back on the road, bound for Shoril once more. Time passed and the party arrived at Shoril. It was a trade town with tent pavilions everywhere. They surrounded a more permanent stone structure.
Sosso stood on Busk's back and balanced himself perfectly. Busk plodded along and Sosso reversed his cloak with a flourish, exposing its bright red interior, now exterior. He also donned his blue sash and green bandanna. A couple of onlookers giggled at the grandiose display. Sosso put one hand on his hip and the other hand wielded the special riding crop he used to help him direct Busk. It was long and flexible. A tassel of leather strips adorned the end of the tool. He tapped the crop on Busk's backside and onward Busk carried the no-longer-short halfing into town.
The Stonebiters and Faedre wandered off, different pavilions catching their eyes. Sosso guided Busk through the crowd, keeping his eyes peeled for "The Bones". Many people looked at the balancing halfling with curiosity. Sosso made his way to a large stone structure in the center of town and discovered a sign that identified it as The Dragon's Boneyard.
"This must be The Bones," Sosso told Busk. With a tap of the crop, Sosso prodded Busk up the stairs. A large metal door stood in his way. With hands on hips he studied the door. Adamantine by the looks of it. Sosso glanced about and spotted a dwarf comming his way.
"Excuse me, Good Sir," he proclaimed, the dwarf looking at him with a crooked eyebrow. "Could you open this door for me please?"
"Sure..." the dwarf replied. With a grin he walked up and opened the door. "What do ye plan on doing?"
"I'm going in of course!" Sosso proclaimed.
"Yeah, good luck with that."
Sosso prodded Busk again and the brixashulty walked into the tavern. He placed his hand on his brow, blocking the bright light that didn't exsist, and scanned the room for Caborn.
"Is Caborn Underleaf here?" the halfling called out to the room.
"What do you think ye're doing there!" Someone bellowed.
Sosso looked over to the bar and there was a grizzled dwarf staring him down. Well, everyone was staring him down really.
"Why, I'm looking for Caborn Underleaf of course!"
"He ain't here. Now get that goat out of here!" the same dwarf ordered.
"Goat? This is a brixashulty! And a fine one I might add!"
"What ever it is, get it out of here."
"What do you sell here?" Sosso inquired, apparently ignoring the order.
"What do ya think? Ale."
"Is it good?"
"Of course it is! Get that thing out of here!"
"I'll take one ale please!"
With that, the dwarf reached down and filled a mug with ale. He cocked his arm back and flug it at Sosso bellowing, "Here!"
The mug hit Sosso in the chest and ale flew every where. He wiped his face and licked his fingers. "This is good ale!"
"GET OUT!"
Sosso directed Busk to turn around and exit the tavern. Once outside, he tied Busk to the rail and went back inside. He strode in confidently, much shorter this time. The place was a masterpiece of arcitecture. Different metals and woods adorned the furniture and walls. The furniture consisted of pieces that were sized for halflings, humans, and dwarves alike. Sosso bypassed the stools sized for a halfling then climbed and stood atop a stool more fit for a human.
"One ale please!"
The same dwarf filled another mug and slid it down the bar. Sosso caught it nimbly, looking so much like a human child reaching down with both small hands and hoisting the large pint up to his mouth, gulping is contents. At that moment, the Stonebiter brothers entered the bar and seeing their companion, strode up to next to him.
Daldin and the barkeep warmed up to each other quickly, discussing various topics of importance to dwarves. Daldin ordered an ale for himself and his brother. The barkeep served them up and said the first one was free for dwarves.
"What about my free ale?" Sosso asked.
"Yer not a dwarf."
"That's not fair!"
"Besides, ya got one already."
"You spilled it!"
"That was your free one."
"Hmph!" Sosso exclaimed. He climbed down from his stool and went outside. He cut some fur from the shaggy Busk and placed it on his top lip, holding it in place by curling his lip. He marched back into the bar and climbed the stool again, standing atop it proudly.
"One free ale please!"
The dwarf starred daggers at him. Behind Sosso, a table of halflings broke out laughing.
"Yer not a dwarf! Yer the same durned guy!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, sir. I'm a dwarf, see?"
"If yer a dwarf, where's yer beard?"
"An ogre pulled it off. It was horrible. Its never grown back since. I've grown my mustache extra long to compensate, as you can see," the halfling proclaimed, stroking the fake mustache for emphasis.
"Yer compensating fer something alright."
Sosso "harumphed", which caused his fake mustache to fall off. He reached down and placed it back on its perch as if nothing had happened. "One free ale please!"
"Oy," the dwarf declared, turning back to Daldin. They went on to discuss more things dwarven. Sosso ordered a bowl of mushroom soup to go with his not free ale. He finally sat down.
Daldin got them all a room for the night and went up to bed. Wildfang stayed at the bar and stared into his empty mug. He was flat broke and his brother had gone to bed. Sosso noticed two elves enter the tavern. It was rare to see elves at all in these parts, but if you were going to see them, it would be in Shoril. He hopped down and took his bowl of soup over to a table near the elves and eavesdropped on their conversation. They were speaking in a language that he couldn't understand.
Sosso hopped down from his chair, bowl of soup in hand, and approached the elves' booth. He greeted them with a hearty hello and asked if he could join them. They weren't really sure what to make of him but they let him sit with them. They continued their conversation, this time in common. They were talking about different methods of crafting bows. Sosso inquired if they owned a shop in town and discovered that they in fact did. He set up a meeting the next day to inspect their wares. He also asked them if they wanted to buy the ax they had looted from the ogres. He quickly ran upstairs, shed his armor and gear, and hefted the massive ax. The little halfling could barely carry it. When he got to the stair case he dropped it onto the floor and grabbed it by the handle. He took one step at a time and proceeded to drag the ax down the stairs.
Tap, tap, clang. Tap, tap, clang. Everyone was again looking at the halfling and wondering what the heck he was up to this time. Wildfang saw Sosso dragging the massive ax and intercepted the halfing and offered to carry it for him. Sosso directed Wildfang to the elves and they examined the ax. They inquired about the asking price. Sosso and Wildfang collaborated and determined it was worth 280 gold coins. The elves made an offer of 140, which didn't please Sosso. He informed the elves that he would discuss it with his comrades and would inform them of their decision when they met tomorrow. They agreed.
With that, Sosso bid the elves a good night and went up to bed, leaving the ax in the care of Wildfang.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Faedre Danaalii's Story
Well, that is another problem solved. That was: How am I supposed to carry all of the stuff that I need? I am not very strong, and I have a lot of supplies. I “found” a nice black leather back pack that fits SO much stuff in it. That Crinti had TWO of them, so I decided to help her out and take one off her hands. Heh, Heh, score for the underdog!
Am I worried that she will find me? Nope! And here’s the reason why. I have this nifty silver hair comb. It allows me to change my appearance so that I can look like a completely different person!
ME? I’m 5’7, 120 lbs(that’s my story and I am sticking to it), dark brown hair, lightly tanned skin, blue-green eyes. The girl that stole her backpack was 5’5, had short blond hair, pale skin, brown eyes and a completely different outfit than what I was wearing when I left the house looking like myself. You may be wondering how I managed to change my outfit while I was out and about the town? Easy! I was able to acquire a wonderful set of clothes that are called shift weave. It is 5 outfits in one! Combined with my comb of disguise, people are not able to recognize me. So very handy, when I am trying to stay out of the Crintis’ way.
I was able to acquire some armor in a much more normal way. (Not to mention more legal …) There is an older woman who lives a few blocks from me. She is a wonderful woman named Sarantha. Back in her younger years she was a magnificent fighter. She has this blackened Mithril chain shirt that she gave to me as well as a blackened Mithril buckler. I could not take these for free however, so I have been slipping gold into her purse every time I come over. If she knows that I have been doing this, she remains silent on the matter.
I told her of my wish to get out of this region and away from the animosity and hostility that oozes out of this place. Us humans mostly stick together, gods know we don’t have a friend in those damn crinti bastards… Except for me. Humans hate me too. They call me a freak and give me a wide berth. Why, you ask?
Well, I am a warlock. And warlocks get their power from making a pact with a demon or fae creature. So naturally everyone thinks that I am some evil bitch who is going to kill them in their sleep and eat their babies…… Whatever… *rolls eyes*….. What most people fail to remember about warlocks is that you can also be a warlock from an ancestor who makes a pact with a fae or demon. Yeah! THANKS ANCESTOR! Promise one of your grandchildren as well as yourself while you are at it! Jackass……..
Don’t get my wrong, I have grown used to my abilities and I even have begun to like them, I shoot purple energy beams from my hands and have an essence that allows me to be able to see in complete darkness (that has come in handy MANY a time, but we won’t get into that) Warlocks are not always evil and I’m living proof of that.
Why did I say ancestor instead of naming the relative who cursed me? Because I have no idea who they are. I never knew my blood parents. The people who took me in said they found me on the street wandering around alone at 3 years old. THOSE people are my parents. Iain and Marianne Danaalii. Kind wonderful people who loved me and supported me even after they found out that I was a Warlock. They died when I was 17 during a “search“ of peoples homes for a supposed criminal. I was not at home that night. I have been on my own ever since. Getting work where I can, and saving up every copper piece I could in order to SOMEDAY get out of Dambrath.
Several Months Later:
HA! Ha ha ha ha! What a difference a few months make! I got the hell out of Dambreth. I did so by changing my appearance and clothing often and kept a low profile. I had to decide whether I was going to go into the Shar region or into Luiren. I decided to go into Luiren. (how did I decide, you are wondering? I flipped a coin, of course! Duh… ) So I headed north and east until I got into Luiren. Of course, I didn’t know my way around, so I started out heading north again once I hit Luiren. When I was nearing what people were calling the “Great Rift”, I heard a large battle going on in the distance. Wary of what was going on, I disguised myself, and tried to get a better vantage point of what was going on. I cast my spiderwalk ability and climbed a rock structure to get a better view of what was going on. What was happening was a battle. Ogres… HUGE ass ogres fighting a team of what looked like 2 dwarves and a Halfling. The two dwarves clearly had experience working as a team. The one dwarf looked like a madman, wading into that group of ogres. Hacking and slashing away at them with an abandon that was a sight to behold. His Partner in crime as I now call them was whacking away at the ogres too, but he would stop and heal both himself and his wild dwarf friend when they started to look roughed up. The Halfling, (I later learned that they hate being called that , they prefer Hin) was standing back hitting the ogres with arrows. I noticed he was wearing a pair of goggles that looked awfully familiar to my spectacles that were currently in my pocket. The lenses were constantly shifting colors between white and black. It looked like the group was becoming overwhelmed by those massive, nasty smelling ogres (yes, I COULD smell them from where I was , its that bad.)
So what did I do? At the time I thought I was committing suicide. I pulled my spectacles out of my pocket, slipped them on, pulled my bucker out of my bag, slipped it on my right arm and stepped out into the open. My spectacles allow me to see the enemy better, so that I can aim into a fight going on with my allies. So I was able to blast the ogre that was currently beating on wild man right in the face. (take that, smelly bastard!) When the Ogre was distracted from my shot, the other quickly took him down. That’s when I ran in closer to the fight and help them take out the others. We all got a little beat up from it, but no one was seriously injured.
I could tell that they were grateful for the help but still did not trust me. I am used to that, so it did not surprise me all that much. I let down my disguise and introduced myself.
I found that the Halfling’s, I mean Hin’s name was Sosso. He is a ranger with some rogue skills mixed in. Nice, funny guy with a ram mount named Busk. Sosso told me it wasn’t a ram, but I honestly can’t pronounce what it is so I won’t even try. The barbarian’s name is Wildfang and the other dwarf is a cleric named Daldin. They are a little rough around the edges, but I like them. I am hoping that I found some friends in this group. We will see how it works out.
Am I worried that she will find me? Nope! And here’s the reason why. I have this nifty silver hair comb. It allows me to change my appearance so that I can look like a completely different person!
ME? I’m 5’7, 120 lbs(that’s my story and I am sticking to it), dark brown hair, lightly tanned skin, blue-green eyes. The girl that stole her backpack was 5’5, had short blond hair, pale skin, brown eyes and a completely different outfit than what I was wearing when I left the house looking like myself. You may be wondering how I managed to change my outfit while I was out and about the town? Easy! I was able to acquire a wonderful set of clothes that are called shift weave. It is 5 outfits in one! Combined with my comb of disguise, people are not able to recognize me. So very handy, when I am trying to stay out of the Crintis’ way.
I was able to acquire some armor in a much more normal way. (Not to mention more legal …) There is an older woman who lives a few blocks from me. She is a wonderful woman named Sarantha. Back in her younger years she was a magnificent fighter. She has this blackened Mithril chain shirt that she gave to me as well as a blackened Mithril buckler. I could not take these for free however, so I have been slipping gold into her purse every time I come over. If she knows that I have been doing this, she remains silent on the matter.
I told her of my wish to get out of this region and away from the animosity and hostility that oozes out of this place. Us humans mostly stick together, gods know we don’t have a friend in those damn crinti bastards… Except for me. Humans hate me too. They call me a freak and give me a wide berth. Why, you ask?
Well, I am a warlock. And warlocks get their power from making a pact with a demon or fae creature. So naturally everyone thinks that I am some evil bitch who is going to kill them in their sleep and eat their babies…… Whatever… *rolls eyes*….. What most people fail to remember about warlocks is that you can also be a warlock from an ancestor who makes a pact with a fae or demon. Yeah! THANKS ANCESTOR! Promise one of your grandchildren as well as yourself while you are at it! Jackass……..
Don’t get my wrong, I have grown used to my abilities and I even have begun to like them, I shoot purple energy beams from my hands and have an essence that allows me to be able to see in complete darkness (that has come in handy MANY a time, but we won’t get into that) Warlocks are not always evil and I’m living proof of that.
Why did I say ancestor instead of naming the relative who cursed me? Because I have no idea who they are. I never knew my blood parents. The people who took me in said they found me on the street wandering around alone at 3 years old. THOSE people are my parents. Iain and Marianne Danaalii. Kind wonderful people who loved me and supported me even after they found out that I was a Warlock. They died when I was 17 during a “search“ of peoples homes for a supposed criminal. I was not at home that night. I have been on my own ever since. Getting work where I can, and saving up every copper piece I could in order to SOMEDAY get out of Dambrath.
Several Months Later:
HA! Ha ha ha ha! What a difference a few months make! I got the hell out of Dambreth. I did so by changing my appearance and clothing often and kept a low profile. I had to decide whether I was going to go into the Shar region or into Luiren. I decided to go into Luiren. (how did I decide, you are wondering? I flipped a coin, of course! Duh… ) So I headed north and east until I got into Luiren. Of course, I didn’t know my way around, so I started out heading north again once I hit Luiren. When I was nearing what people were calling the “Great Rift”, I heard a large battle going on in the distance. Wary of what was going on, I disguised myself, and tried to get a better vantage point of what was going on. I cast my spiderwalk ability and climbed a rock structure to get a better view of what was going on. What was happening was a battle. Ogres… HUGE ass ogres fighting a team of what looked like 2 dwarves and a Halfling. The two dwarves clearly had experience working as a team. The one dwarf looked like a madman, wading into that group of ogres. Hacking and slashing away at them with an abandon that was a sight to behold. His Partner in crime as I now call them was whacking away at the ogres too, but he would stop and heal both himself and his wild dwarf friend when they started to look roughed up. The Halfling, (I later learned that they hate being called that , they prefer Hin) was standing back hitting the ogres with arrows. I noticed he was wearing a pair of goggles that looked awfully familiar to my spectacles that were currently in my pocket. The lenses were constantly shifting colors between white and black. It looked like the group was becoming overwhelmed by those massive, nasty smelling ogres (yes, I COULD smell them from where I was , its that bad.)
So what did I do? At the time I thought I was committing suicide. I pulled my spectacles out of my pocket, slipped them on, pulled my bucker out of my bag, slipped it on my right arm and stepped out into the open. My spectacles allow me to see the enemy better, so that I can aim into a fight going on with my allies. So I was able to blast the ogre that was currently beating on wild man right in the face. (take that, smelly bastard!) When the Ogre was distracted from my shot, the other quickly took him down. That’s when I ran in closer to the fight and help them take out the others. We all got a little beat up from it, but no one was seriously injured.
I could tell that they were grateful for the help but still did not trust me. I am used to that, so it did not surprise me all that much. I let down my disguise and introduced myself.
I found that the Halfling’s, I mean Hin’s name was Sosso. He is a ranger with some rogue skills mixed in. Nice, funny guy with a ram mount named Busk. Sosso told me it wasn’t a ram, but I honestly can’t pronounce what it is so I won’t even try. The barbarian’s name is Wildfang and the other dwarf is a cleric named Daldin. They are a little rough around the edges, but I like them. I am hoping that I found some friends in this group. We will see how it works out.
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