Monday, October 8, 2012

Hedge: It is time for Bacon



"Hey Bacon, you forgot to bring the eggs with you!" Qwyn is quite cross having to walk across the dungeon with his jewels exposed as he sketches a glowing rune in the air with his fingertip (28 to hit). Lines of eldritch power slashes across the Dire Boar, causing red lines (23 hit points damage). The Dire Boar lets out a primitive scream of pain.

Qwyn let out a primitive scream. Qwyn needed to control. Over the wind. Over the heat. Over the cold. He needed to control it. Months of research - the other students had believed his laughably primitive lie that he was researching herbal supplements for the mind - were at stake here. "Is it good Qwyn today? Or bad Qwyn today?" The dwarven fool Rahul had asked the question in a loud, good natured way that passed as Rahul's idea of humor. Rahul had asked too loud - Rahul always asked too loud thanks to a punctured eardrum that had never healed properly - and the dwarf also seemed to time his questions to maximize interruption. Once upon a time Qwyn had used humor to temper the dwarf's incessant chattering and questions; once upon a time Qwyn had used soft words; the only mood to get the desired result of quiet was simmering anger. Anger that Qwyn trapped millimeters beneath the surface of his skin. Good Qywn came out when he felt pangs of pity for the exile dwarf - the other 90 percent of the time though. Qwyn stared icicles at Rahul until the dwarf had packed up his scrolls, abandoning their shared domicile for a safer area. Control over the elements themselves. Literal control. Heat. Wind. Cold. Earth. To step between the planes themselves one needed to control the doorway. The academy was sorely lacking when it came to this particular information on this particular subject. Qwyn shut the book, stuffing it quickly into his bag. Studying no longer held his interest for tonight. A slow grin crept across his face. He would study tomorrow. Tonight was a night for adventure.

Voss’s mind was conflicted with the different possibilities. What had he done? What should he do next? Maybe it was the pain. Maybe it was a lack of focus. Voss finally engaged the boar in the best way possible, slamming his magical sword (29 to hit) through the Boar’s thick hide (18 hit point damage). Voss then slides away from the swine (E9.)

Hudson slid away from the swine. Or maybe the swine slid away from him. Both of them were tumbling out of control down a muddy slope, each turn caking more mud onto Hudson’s cloak. If his barracks mates – his former barracks mate – would have laughed uproariously. The renowned ranger Hudson, a man who had joined them years ago as Voss of the Hudson, was being outsmarted by a pig. Though some former farmers in the group claimed pigs were the smartest of all animals. Hudson (or was he Voss once again?) had tracked the small pig – most likely a 20 pounder – through the area. As a challenge he was only using a club. His reward had been a bank that was not nearly as solid as he would have liked. He landed flat on his back, the wind was driven from his body; as he gained his breath his wind was knocked from him a second time as the pig landed on his chest heavily. Voss instinctively grabbed the pig, squeezing his tightly as he lifted it high in the air. Voss. Yes, he was Voss again, laughed. It had been a long time since he laughed.

Alion called down divine radiance from his God to help smith his enemy. The light bounced harmlessly off (13 to hit) the Dire Boar’s thick coat. That is a damned large pig, he thought.

That is a damned large river. Alion couldn't suppress the grin as it crawled across his face. It had been so long since he allowed himself a smile, the easy upward twitching of his mouth somehow activated the muscles in his sore thighs as though his body was reminding him not to be too happy for too long. Fourteen days in the saddle gave new meaning to the term saddle sore. Fourteen days of chasing raiding elves Westward had left him scraped from the near skirmishes with thick dark bags under his eyes that resembled that saddle bags hanging from his horse. This view though. This is a damned large river. The Mississippi. He had heard about it from others in the rectory though only a few had brought word of his God this far. Not that he was a proselytizer. There were others who could speak the virtues of his god. His job was to protect the party members sent to bring the elves to justice.

“Got eyes on 'em”. Joshua spoke the words in the quiet voice of his. All the words of the tracking ranger were quiet, as though too loud a noise would scatter the hunted. Most men could not track elves. Most men were not Joshua. “We will circle around”, noted Abraham, get them on the move again. Where Alion's group planned to fjord the river was anyone's guess. They were in no hurry to catch the elves. After all the elves had no cleric to heal their wounded. The elves were already living off the land. The elves had injured slowing them down. The elves would be captured. Meanwhile Alion enjoyed the view. If there was not so much death involved then it most have been a perfect view. “I say we kill them all now,” Abraham. “They make it to fey land and they’re gone.” “What do you think?” Joshua asked Alion. “Let them go. Our work is done.” Alion watched the elves disappear. No need to kill them. No need at all.

Remmy brought his two-handed sword heavily down (28 to hit) on the Dire Boar’s thick skull. Blood and brain splatters (19 hit point damage.) In its death throes the Dire Boar lunges forward, sinking its tusks into Remmy (9 hit points damage.) The Dire Boar then fell to the ground, bleeding profusely from numerous wounds and cuts. Its life no more.

His life no more. Remmy watched the funeral procession for his Uncle. Seemingly every dwarf in the kingdom had come out to say goodbye. This is how you say goodbye to a hero. His Uncle was gone. His father gone. Rahul gone. Remmy reflexively put his hand to his neck, feeling the small scars that were a souvenir where the rope had been. He almost laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. Uncle would have hated this. He hated all pomp and circumstance. There was a debt to be paid though. A trip to his Uncle’s brother. His Father’s other brother. The brother that was never spoken of, other than drunken regrets and the morning after regrets. Remmy let out a large, loud laugh. It had been a while since he had laughed. Then Remmy let out the dwarven death wail. A primitive scream of pain.

DM Notes:
All of them are dead

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