The spider was vanquished, our wounds were healed and Loral was re-endowed with the powers bestowed upon her by Morriden. I was up and ready to present our trophy to the giant wolf and hoped that I could convince him to turn to the side of goodness. It was during our walk back to the wolf's den that Jäger remembered one last room that we had yet to explore. It was on our way and the rest of the group's spirits were in need of lifting. The atmosphere in the ruins was grim and foreboding, the group needed a distraction. Perhaps some trinkets or gems would be there, I have noticed Oakey's disposition towards accumulation and Jäger would visibly wince when I would suggest giving away any of the wealth we would accumulate. It would be a very healthy distraction if indeed we did happen across treasure. Fortunately we did not find much you would call treasure but something that would mean a lot more to a lot of people at Falcon's Hollow.
Much to the excitement of my friends it turned out that behind the last door that remained shut was the armoury but to the group's dismay the room had long been looted. Oakey would not give up though, his lust for treasure would not let him leave but instead he proved his worth again by discovering a secret door in the wall that looked as if the many looters had missed. With skilled hands he managed to open the door into what looked like a make shift cell room. Six rusty cells remained and in each cell was the remaining skeletons of the prisoners of the past but it was what was growing in the cells that indeed lift our spirits. Over the remains was growing a decent crop of Iron Bloom Mushroom. Sadly Oakey became a little over excited when he spotted an expensive looking ring on the bony finger of one of the skeletons and proceeded to let himself into the cell. To our surprise the skeleton moved. Moved and attacked. Luckily Oakey managed to avoid the attack and move out the way to give me enough room to manoeuvre myself between them. I held myself behind my shield to keep the affront of nature away. As I held the vile thing away more began to rise in their cells, that is until Loral stepped up. With a powerful display of faith she managed to not only turn the undead but destroy them. We watched as the skeletons crumbled into piles on the floor and a sense of divinity and calm could be sensed filling the room which washed away any doubts that we were on a righteous mission. I could not quite see through the disappointment on the faces of Jäger and Oakey but deep down I knew that they were feeling the same way as me. The mushrooms were the only treasure we needed.
I thanked Loral with a large hug and we set off again, spirits lifted, back to the wolf. It caught my attention that Loral had turned a little pinker in the cheeks than she normally would be and she had become quieter too. I found women tended to do this when I did things like hug them, some even when I entered the room but even now I can not work out why. It was not at that time but I once asked Oakey why women did this. He merely asked if I still honoured my vow of celibacy to which I confirmed that was still the way I lived. After I told him that he gave me a little grin and told me that I need not worry about it and to carry on doing exactly as I was. This only confused me more and never pressed on for a better answer from any one. I trusted Oakey and if he said not to worry about it, then I would not worry about it.
Jäger harvested as much of the mushroom as he could and we set off for the wolf again.
Saturday, 19 November 2016
Sunday, 13 November 2016
Fulfilling Our Part of the Deal
The deal was simple, kill the giant spider that resides in the tower of what remained of the crucible's outer defences. If were able to return with proof of the spider's demise then the Giant Wolf would take what remained of his pack and leave us and this place alone. It sounded too good to be true. Even though we had Jäger's and Oakey's fine bowmanship with Loral's stout arm beside me, I feared we may still not have had the ability to take this beast down. At least not with enough health left to finish finding some Iron Bloom Mushroom, the final ingredient needed to save the people of Falcon's Hollow. Killing the beast was also something that I felt we could avoid even though his evil aura could not be hidden from me and my blessing granted to me by Sir Ganther to detect evil. The wolf was obviously intelligent, more so than some men I have met in my short time, so there could be a chance that he could be turned to the ways of good. All it needed was a chance to redeem itself.
The rest of the party did not quite share my optimism but we went forth to complete our side of the deal none the less.
With a new sense of direction, we headed to the remaining tower of the complex where we knew the giant spider to be. Oakey came up with a good idea, rather than entering the tower at it's base he felt we would stand a better chance if he were to scale the side of the tower. If anything he could look into one of the window nearer the top in order to see if the spider was in fact still there. Watching Oakey climb up the side unaided was a marvel. Watching him climb the wall with such ease made him resemble the prey in which he stalking. I watched as he reached the window and carefully peer inside. He looked down and shook his head and began to climb what remained of the tower to reach it's peak. Oakey through down a rope that he had secured for Jäger to climb. Jäger took this as a sign that Oakey must have found a way inside and want help in dispatching our eight legged foe. It was agreed by all that it would be best if Loral and I should not attempt to climb but instead enter via the bottom in case the spider tried to flee. After all, we needed it dead and we needed the proof. The wolf may have been evil and capable of lying but I am not. we said we would rid this place of the wolf's arachnid enemy and by Sir Ganther's sword we would do just that.
Loral and I creep as quietly as we can into the base of the but I feared we could be heard, even possibly by our friends on the roof. We pressed onward in spite of our inability to hide our presence. The two of us precariously begin to climb the rickety wooden stairs leading to the hatch in the ceiling. We still had not heard anything from our scouts so we, as quietly as we could, approached the hatch and opened it a few inches. Hopefully enough for me to spot the spider but not enough for it to spot me. I scanned the upper room of the tower and all I could see was it's web stretched over the entire room so I opened the hatch fully safe in the knowledge that the spider had gone. As the hatch creaked open I managed to notice my two friends looking down at Loral and I from a trap door. Jäger was staring intently across the room after he spotted that I had seen him whereas Oakey had a look of mild panic in his eyes as he hectically pointed over to where Jäger was staring.
I was wrong, the spider was indeed still here and had begun to stalk silently towards Loral and I. I step up through the hatch and Loral joins me bravely by my side. If this creature was to attack us, I was going to make sure it was me and not my friends. Loral and I held our ground ready for it to attack and attack it did, just not how I expected. A disgusting spray of viscous webbing covered Loral and I rendering us unable to move faster than that of a snail. At that very moment arrows almost sprayed from the trap door above us, pinning the spider, dead, to the floor. Jäger deftly joins Loral and I and removes a leg from the creature to present it as proof that we had upheld our side of the bargain. Oakey, I assumed, had decided to climb down the outside wall to meet us outside the tower. As the three of us carefully and one at a time climbed down the wooden stairs when we heard desperate scrambles and a bone crushing thud just outside. We rushed outside to find Oakey unconscious on the ground with his ankle clearly broken. Thank Morriden and Loral's ability to channel his graces and of course her quick thinking and instinct to help for within a heart beat of finding our new friend in a heap on the floor, she was already using her divine skills to heal him and mend his shattered ankle.
This exhausted Loral of her daily spells so we took it as a strong hint from the gods to rest up to set off once again fresh in the morning.
The rest of the party did not quite share my optimism but we went forth to complete our side of the deal none the less.
With a new sense of direction, we headed to the remaining tower of the complex where we knew the giant spider to be. Oakey came up with a good idea, rather than entering the tower at it's base he felt we would stand a better chance if he were to scale the side of the tower. If anything he could look into one of the window nearer the top in order to see if the spider was in fact still there. Watching Oakey climb up the side unaided was a marvel. Watching him climb the wall with such ease made him resemble the prey in which he stalking. I watched as he reached the window and carefully peer inside. He looked down and shook his head and began to climb what remained of the tower to reach it's peak. Oakey through down a rope that he had secured for Jäger to climb. Jäger took this as a sign that Oakey must have found a way inside and want help in dispatching our eight legged foe. It was agreed by all that it would be best if Loral and I should not attempt to climb but instead enter via the bottom in case the spider tried to flee. After all, we needed it dead and we needed the proof. The wolf may have been evil and capable of lying but I am not. we said we would rid this place of the wolf's arachnid enemy and by Sir Ganther's sword we would do just that.
Loral and I creep as quietly as we can into the base of the but I feared we could be heard, even possibly by our friends on the roof. We pressed onward in spite of our inability to hide our presence. The two of us precariously begin to climb the rickety wooden stairs leading to the hatch in the ceiling. We still had not heard anything from our scouts so we, as quietly as we could, approached the hatch and opened it a few inches. Hopefully enough for me to spot the spider but not enough for it to spot me. I scanned the upper room of the tower and all I could see was it's web stretched over the entire room so I opened the hatch fully safe in the knowledge that the spider had gone. As the hatch creaked open I managed to notice my two friends looking down at Loral and I from a trap door. Jäger was staring intently across the room after he spotted that I had seen him whereas Oakey had a look of mild panic in his eyes as he hectically pointed over to where Jäger was staring.
I was wrong, the spider was indeed still here and had begun to stalk silently towards Loral and I. I step up through the hatch and Loral joins me bravely by my side. If this creature was to attack us, I was going to make sure it was me and not my friends. Loral and I held our ground ready for it to attack and attack it did, just not how I expected. A disgusting spray of viscous webbing covered Loral and I rendering us unable to move faster than that of a snail. At that very moment arrows almost sprayed from the trap door above us, pinning the spider, dead, to the floor. Jäger deftly joins Loral and I and removes a leg from the creature to present it as proof that we had upheld our side of the bargain. Oakey, I assumed, had decided to climb down the outside wall to meet us outside the tower. As the three of us carefully and one at a time climbed down the wooden stairs when we heard desperate scrambles and a bone crushing thud just outside. We rushed outside to find Oakey unconscious on the ground with his ankle clearly broken. Thank Morriden and Loral's ability to channel his graces and of course her quick thinking and instinct to help for within a heart beat of finding our new friend in a heap on the floor, she was already using her divine skills to heal him and mend his shattered ankle.
This exhausted Loral of her daily spells so we took it as a strong hint from the gods to rest up to set off once again fresh in the morning.
Saturday, 12 November 2016
A Panther Claw in a Wolf's Den
During one of the quieter moments as the four of us traversed through the forest, we came up with some tactical manoeuvres in preparation for situations where we have to act quickly. One of these manoeuvres was 'Panther Claw'. This particular manoeuvres was created to enter a room with extreme prejudice. Not only would it allow us to optimise our own safety as we entered a possible hostile environment but it also gave us the strongest chance of being able to recognise any threat and incapacitate any that we find inside.
Operation Panther Claw works as follows. Jäger and Oakey take position on either side of the door with their bows at the ready. When the signal is given one of them opens the door and both look into the room and takes a shot at anything that looks like it will try to harm us. They then pull back out of sight to allow my to run into the room with Loral close behind me. This causes me to take the brunt of any dangers that are in the room which with my armour and Loral's healing should easily keep in check. Oakey and Jäger then swoop in behind us taking a side each and shooting arrows at anything trying to flank Me and Loral.
Panther claw was pulled off perfectly but rather than being met by a pack of hungry, blood thirsty wolves we were instead taken off guard by only one wolf. Not the one we saw scarper into here bu instead by a wolf that stretched over ten feet long and as tall as a man if were to have been standing. His fur was as black as a moonless night's sky and his eyes were glowing a crimson red.
He looks at us with his unnatural and shudder inducing eyes and growls a single sentence that rumbled deep and menacingly.
"Who disturbs me?"
I kept my great sword raised and my courage was bolstered knowing I had two very capable archers either side of me. I told him who we were and that he was to leave. He confirmed that Oakey was indeed correct. He did recognise the wolf earlier and now this large and evil wolf had become all the more upset with us. Not only was one of us responsible for killing the majority of his pack but here we were telling him he had to leave his home. I could understand why he was upset but he had no right to taint this once holy of places even further with his evil presence. The large wolf surprised me twice that day. First, I was surprised to find a giant evil wolf that could talk but I was surprised again to discover it could be reasoned with. That was when we made a deal.
Operation Panther Claw works as follows. Jäger and Oakey take position on either side of the door with their bows at the ready. When the signal is given one of them opens the door and both look into the room and takes a shot at anything that looks like it will try to harm us. They then pull back out of sight to allow my to run into the room with Loral close behind me. This causes me to take the brunt of any dangers that are in the room which with my armour and Loral's healing should easily keep in check. Oakey and Jäger then swoop in behind us taking a side each and shooting arrows at anything trying to flank Me and Loral.
Panther claw was pulled off perfectly but rather than being met by a pack of hungry, blood thirsty wolves we were instead taken off guard by only one wolf. Not the one we saw scarper into here bu instead by a wolf that stretched over ten feet long and as tall as a man if were to have been standing. His fur was as black as a moonless night's sky and his eyes were glowing a crimson red.
He looks at us with his unnatural and shudder inducing eyes and growls a single sentence that rumbled deep and menacingly.
"Who disturbs me?"
I kept my great sword raised and my courage was bolstered knowing I had two very capable archers either side of me. I told him who we were and that he was to leave. He confirmed that Oakey was indeed correct. He did recognise the wolf earlier and now this large and evil wolf had become all the more upset with us. Not only was one of us responsible for killing the majority of his pack but here we were telling him he had to leave his home. I could understand why he was upset but he had no right to taint this once holy of places even further with his evil presence. The large wolf surprised me twice that day. First, I was surprised to find a giant evil wolf that could talk but I was surprised again to discover it could be reasoned with. That was when we made a deal.
The Shrine of Torag
It was Oakey who was the one who let Loral and I catch up with him. He told us in a foreboding tone of what Jäger discovered ahead. It looked as if it was once a shrine but no longer. The look of sadness on Loral's face was enough to make me prepare for the worst.
It is funny how life works out. Just a few moments ago Loral was telling me the story of Torag. Her spirits lifted, you could visibly see her stance relax and almost a skip in her step. She did not worship Torag herself but it was obvious she and her people respected Torag all the same so seeing the shrine as we found it was hard for me but more so for her. All four of us entered to find the shrine had been wrecked many years ago. It was desecrated when it it's prime and not after it was abandoned. This was an act of spite and hatred. Loral and I were too busy dealing with our grief to notice what my strong willed friend Jäger noticed. He stopped us before we entered to far and blundered into what would have been not only an embarrassing situation but possibly even fatal. With a single glance up into the rafters we were able to spot what had been hiding above us. It was organic and looked animalistic but held itself perfectly still as if it were ceiling furniture. It's shape resembled that of a stalactite, that was until Jäger took a shot. The arrow hit and the creature swooped down from the roof. It unfurled as it attacked to look like what I can only explain as a bat-squid. As ridiculous as the creature sounds, it proved a difficult beast to slay. With only slight wounds of our bodies (except for Oaky who unfortunately took the brunt from a vicious attack from a tentacle wing), the beast was no more. Fortunately, Loral was able to heal Oakey's wounds before we continued to search the room. Amongst the ruins I was able to discover an old book covered in Drawvern runes. Loral informed me as she flicked through the pages that it was an old hymn book full of hymns of Torag's exploits. I remember my next words very well.
"At least some good has come from this. Loral, please take this book as a gift from me to give to a good home. This way Torag's name will reach out ever further."
It looked as though Loral wanted to speak but she was rendered shy by my gift. I soft thank you followed by a warm smile was enough to strengthen my resolve to continue our quest and bring an end to the Black Scour.
Corridor after corridor, empty ruined room after empty ruined room left us unprepared for what we soon discovered. Oakey spots a familiar looking wolf at the bottom of a corridor. It darts into one of the room we had yet to explore.
"That wolf, I have seen it before. I was attacked by a pack not long before I found you three. I managed to kill most of them but that one fled. I did not pursue it as it ran but I am sure that's the very same wolf."
It seemed odd that the wolf had followed us here and also managed to get ahead of us so we all decided to follow where this wolf was trying to hide.
It is funny how life works out. Just a few moments ago Loral was telling me the story of Torag. Her spirits lifted, you could visibly see her stance relax and almost a skip in her step. She did not worship Torag herself but it was obvious she and her people respected Torag all the same so seeing the shrine as we found it was hard for me but more so for her. All four of us entered to find the shrine had been wrecked many years ago. It was desecrated when it it's prime and not after it was abandoned. This was an act of spite and hatred. Loral and I were too busy dealing with our grief to notice what my strong willed friend Jäger noticed. He stopped us before we entered to far and blundered into what would have been not only an embarrassing situation but possibly even fatal. With a single glance up into the rafters we were able to spot what had been hiding above us. It was organic and looked animalistic but held itself perfectly still as if it were ceiling furniture. It's shape resembled that of a stalactite, that was until Jäger took a shot. The arrow hit and the creature swooped down from the roof. It unfurled as it attacked to look like what I can only explain as a bat-squid. As ridiculous as the creature sounds, it proved a difficult beast to slay. With only slight wounds of our bodies (except for Oaky who unfortunately took the brunt from a vicious attack from a tentacle wing), the beast was no more. Fortunately, Loral was able to heal Oakey's wounds before we continued to search the room. Amongst the ruins I was able to discover an old book covered in Drawvern runes. Loral informed me as she flicked through the pages that it was an old hymn book full of hymns of Torag's exploits. I remember my next words very well.
"At least some good has come from this. Loral, please take this book as a gift from me to give to a good home. This way Torag's name will reach out ever further."
It looked as though Loral wanted to speak but she was rendered shy by my gift. I soft thank you followed by a warm smile was enough to strengthen my resolve to continue our quest and bring an end to the Black Scour.
Corridor after corridor, empty ruined room after empty ruined room left us unprepared for what we soon discovered. Oakey spots a familiar looking wolf at the bottom of a corridor. It darts into one of the room we had yet to explore.
"That wolf, I have seen it before. I was attacked by a pack not long before I found you three. I managed to kill most of them but that one fled. I did not pursue it as it ran but I am sure that's the very same wolf."
It seemed odd that the wolf had followed us here and also managed to get ahead of us so we all decided to follow where this wolf was trying to hide.
Inwards We Entered
Under Jäger's wise advise I chose to proceed with caution. Who could have possibly known what we may have had to deal with in this broken but once noble building. Shortly after some slow, but safe, progression we arrived at our first cause to continue to remain alert. With Jäger and Oakey working together, they managed to push open a once barricaded door into a small room. Most of the rooms we investigated were still structurally sound but almost entirely empty from looting or from the ravages of time. But not this room, oh no, this room held within a sorrowful story which has mostly been forgotten. Behind what was left of the door we found the remains of a mummified Dwarf. From the position of the corpse and the nature of how this door was sealed, we were able to deduce that he had barricaded himself to lock something out. Something he was so afraid of that he was willing to slowly die than face it.
Within the tight fist of the dead Dwarf a note was found. It was wrapped around a small silver hammer in his grip. Loral instantly recognised this as a symbol of Droskar. She translated his note for Jäger and myself.
Within the tight fist of the dead Dwarf a note was found. It was wrapped around a small silver hammer in his grip. Loral instantly recognised this as a symbol of Droskar. She translated his note for Jäger and myself.
"Forgive me dark father of the forge, My toils will never be enough."
My instincts was to leave this room and body remain as we found it and with haste. From how Loral followed close behind me I could tell I was not the only one who was made to feel uncomfortable within those walls. It did not take long before I was able to shake the affects of that make shift tomb as we continued our search of the crucible. Jäger took the lead followed close behind by our new friend Oakey. This gave me time to ask Loral about Torag. He is believed by the Dwarves to be the father of creation. With his mighty hammer he forged creation and the rock that tumbled mixed with the sparks from his hammer created life in the form of Dwarves and the fire that resides within them. From what I have seen so far from Loral, I was inclined to share the same belief. Hearing what Loral had to say about Torag and the passion in her voice as she spoke made what we found next all the more painful to behold.
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