A/N: Even the last chapter wasn't long enough for some people. I'll
lengthen them up a bit from now.
Chapter 3: The Battles
It had been three days since the leaving from the town of Lûduth, and the two had made good progress. They had made it to the Great Plains heading south and west into Elven territory. They had hoped to reach the forests and the Sylvan Elf town of Rondain. The sun was high in the sky, their morale was high, and their speed was good.
When the sun had started to set, Koren felt a certain evil lurking nearby. They set up camp near the road when they felt a rumbling from the ground. They stood up, uncertain what to do. Then they heard a faint hum. Phauran spat into the soil. "Blue dragon." He commented. "Watch out for sudden bursts." As if on cue, a large dragon came rumbling out of the sand. The draconic figure loomed over them, with the frilled ears accented against the twilight sky. The dragon gave a loud roar, scaring the nearby birds. Koren and Phauran spread out, and waited for the dragon to make its first move. The dragon smirked, and snapped at Phauran. The ranger dodged back, but the dragon's claws came next. The long, wicked claws scratched up Phauran, who winced in pain. The dragon then beat its wings at Koren. Koren managed to roll away from the wings. He also dodged the tail that came crashing down. Phauran saw the dragon turn its head and slashed at the exposed neck. Blood spurt from the spot, and the dragon roared loudly. Koren drew his own longsword and struck at the dragon's wing. The sword cut deep into the thick hide, snapping a few bones. The dragon reared back, releasing a line of blue lightning. The duo dodged most of the lethal breath weapon, and charged as one to drive their swords into the dragon. The blue dragon's eyes dimmed, but it fought with fury. Three minutes of this bloody battle passed before the dragon fell. The two friends rested for the remainder of the night.
The next morning, the two decided to search the burrow the dragon had come from. They dropped into the chasm, landing in the midst of a labyrinth of crystallized rock. Koren and Phauran bashed their way through the barrier. They did not realize that the noise they made drew the evil from beneath the earth. Suddenly, Koren's senses brought to his attention a Succubus advancing to their position. Koren felt rage against the chaos and evil that was approaching them, and tensed his muscles to smite holy power into the evil being. The Succubus showed itself, revealing its demonic self.
The six-foot tall figure had large bat wings, glowing eyes, and dark, red skin. Koren gave a shout of anger, and charged the demon. Koren felt the power of his deity course through him as he delivered a crushing blow to the Succubus. Phauran witnessed a blast of white light, and flinched at the pureness of it. Then he regained his senses enough to charge with his own sword drawn. The Succubus only had time enough to lash out once with its claws, and fell to the holy blade of the paladin and the enchanted sword of the ranger.
Koren felt sanity enter him again, and noticed the Succubus at his feet. He kicked it away and wiped the black, slightly corrosive blood from his sword. Phauran returned the twin blades to their sheaths, and turned from the gruesome sight of the slain Succubus. "I've never seen you so frenzied," Phauran commented, "you didn't seem to comprehend anything that was going on." "You've never seen me fight a demon." The two climbed back out, striking for the nearest town.
Two days passed since the struggle with the demon, and the two saw a small town on the horizon. With newfound strength, the two stepped on. Upon entering the town, they sought out the nearest temple to mend their wounds and give service to their deity. They knocked upon the golden gates, and saw that the temple was empty save for a lone monk sweeping the pews. "Excuse me, where is the head cleric?" "He has retired into his dorms, masters." "Then we will return on the morrow. Good day to you." "And to you, masters."
Phauran and Koren exited the baroque style temple and headed to the nearest inn and booked a room. They both retired to their rooms, and fell asleep immediately after taking their armor off. The next morning, they walked to the temple, where the same monk greeted them. "Our head-priest has awoken. He is waiting for you, so please enter." The two walked into the carpeted worship area of the temple, where the head-priest, which was a venerable human, was sitting in a chair. "Welcome. I have heard of your needs, and I will be more than glad to heal you both. I shall do this without fee. However, I need your help. There have been many raids on the western side of this town. The raiders seem to be a goblin tribe near the High Hill. I want you two to purge the evil." "We shall do as you wish, father."
The two received blessings and healing from the head priest, and set out to cleanse the evil of the goblin tribe. They decided the nighttime was a good time of the day to start. They decided they should attack the goblins like they attacked the orcs, and got a good look at the tribe setup before executing their plan.
It was the dead of night, and no sound was to be heard. The ranger drew his bow, sighted down the shaft, and pulled the bow as far back as it could go. Suddenly, Phauran noticed that arrow points were trained upon him. "Lower arrow." He heard in bad common. Phauran acted as though he was going to lower it, but spun around and released it point-blank into the face of a goblin. The arrow pierced through the goblin's head, burrowing into the chest of another. The confused goblins fired into mid-air as Phauran tumbled up and drew his twin swords. The ranger stabbed the stomach of the nearest goblin and severed another's head while the goblins drew their morningstars. Phauran jumped high as a goblin tripped and fell behind the elf. Phauran wheeled, slashing down at the prone goblin while stabbing backwards at another. Phauran quickly counted the numbers. "Thirty here and more coming." Phauran winced at the odds and leapt to the side as a morningstar crashed into the ground next to him. Phauran did not know if he was going to make it out alive, but he continued with grim determination.
Koren had been waiting for the arrow to fall when he heard a brawl where Phauran was. Worried for his elven friend, Koren rushed over to the hill. At the base of the hill, he saw many goblins attacking Phauran. Koren drew his longsword and charged into the massed goblins.
Phauran saw that his friend had begun the work on the other side of the riot. Phauran was beheading another goblin when a blunt object crushed into his stomach, causing the world to blur out. The ranger spun to slice open the attacker's chest. The elf's sharp eyes spotted many goblin archers aiming at him. Phauran ducked to avoid the arrows then slashed the ankles of the goblin in front of him. He came up with a cry, slashing up and right while stabbing to the left.
Koren saw over the small goblins the archers fire their second volley. He also saw with despair the arrows strike their intended target, with blood spurting from the elven ranger. Koren became frenetic, attacking all around him like an enraged dragon. The divine power of his deity coursed through him, allowing his attacks to cleave through multiple enemies. Goblin bodies flew about, and Koren further intensified his attacks to help his fallen comrade.
Phauran felt the pains enter his body. He swung madly with his one good arm, trying to clear enough space to rise from his prone position. He finally managed to kill enough goblins to scare some away, and rose. Gritting his teeth against the pain, Phauran pulled one arrow out, using it as a dagger to pierce a goblin in the cranium. He could not, however, block the relentless assault of the goblins. A morningstar bashed into his side, causing him to vomit blood. Phauran became vertiginous, and fell on his injured arm. Phauran rolled onto his good arm, but took a blow from a goblin while he moved. A rapid succession of attacks followed, and Phauran did his best to avoid any.
Koren saw his friend fall a second time. He bashed with his shield, making the target fly back a good twenty feet. He then slashed in frenzy, attempting to cut a path to the fallen elf. A morningstar found its way past Koren's guard, and rammed into the paladin's shoulder. The pain caused Koren to hang his shield arm limp. Many seconds that felt like eons passed, and Koren made it to his friend's side. Koren stood over the unconscious form, reaching down to close an open bruise. A stream of bright, golden light spout forth from Koren's fingertips, cascading over the elven ranger's wounds.
Phauran came to consciousness and scooted backwards to retrieve his swords. He stood up next to his rescuer, and slashed at any goblins that came close. The duo was truly a dire sight, and any remaining goblins dropped their equipment and ran. Goblins that were slain counted at least forty.
Koren supported his hurt friend back into town, where they limped to the temple. When they had reached the golden gates, the head priest was waiting for them. "You are very injured. I will heal you. After I have done so, you may tell me what has happened there, and the results of your combat."
The venerable cleric walked in front of them into the temple, where he bade them sit and wait. After about five minutes, the cleric returned with blessed water. This he washed the warriors' faces and hands with, and washed his own hands afterwards. He brought forth a scroll, from which he cast the divine spell that would cure them of physical pain. An aura of pure white surrounded the two, and they felt better as wounds closed and healed. After they had been healed, Koren relayed to the father what had happened, and how the goblins had run after the battle. The priest then thanked them and blessed them in his deity's name. He also gifted Koren with a magical breastplate and shield to replace his old, battered equipment and gave Phauran a powerful bow and enchanted gloves.
Koren and Phauran were walking to the inn when they saw a large caravan march through. After they had gotten to the inn, they inquired what the procession was about. The bartender merely pointed to a flier. The flier was made of parchment, and on it was a message written in many different languages: "All who call themselves knights answer this call of the Baron and enter the tournament. There will be a prize and much honor to be given to those who attend." Koren looked at the flier, and asked his friend about what he thought. Phauran said "I don't feel like going anywhere right now, but if you want to go, I'll go." "We'll wait until the next round, then sign up. Today's just probably refreshments, anyway." So the friends decided to enter the competition at a later date, and went up into their rooms.
~o~
Koren, male human Pal10: CR 10; Size M (6 ft., 3 in. tall); HD 9d10+18; Hp 73; Init +5 (+1 Dex, +4 Improved initiative); Spd 20 ft.; AC 20 (+1 Dex, +6 Breastplate, +3 Large Steel Shield); Attack +12/+7 longsword (melee), 1d8+2 or +10 shortbow (ranged, 60 ft.), 1d6; SV Fort +12 Ref +8 Will +9; AL LG; Str 14, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 18
Languages spoken: Common
Skills: Heal +15, Diplomacy +8, Handle Animal +7, Ride +7, Listen (cc) +6, Feats: Power attack, Cleave, Weapon focus (longsword), Improved Initiative, leadership.
Possessions: Masterwork longsword, shortbow, 20 arrows, +1 breastplate, +1 large steel shield, trail rations (5), 20 GP, 1 SP, and 8 CP.
~o~
Phauran, male elf (high) Rgr12: CR12; Size M (5 ft., 6 in. tall); HD 12d10; hp 76; Init + 6 (+6 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 18(+5 Dex, +3 studded leather); Attack +14/+9/+4 longsword, +13/+6/+1 shortsword (melee), (1d8+2) x3 + (1d6+1) x2 or +20 longbow (ranged, 100 ft.), 1d8+1 + 1d6 cold; SV Fort +8 Ref +10 Will +7; AL NG; Str 13, Dex 22, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 14
Languages spoken: Common, Elven
Skills: Wilderness lore +18, Handle Animal +11, Move Silently +11, Ride +11, Listen +10, Spot +10, Search +10 Feats: Weapon focus (longbow), Alertness, Dodge, Improved two-weapon fighting, skill focus (wilderness lore)
Possessions: +1 longsword, masterwork shortsword, +1 longbow of frost, masterwork studded-leather, gloves of dexterity +2, 40 arrows, trail rations (2), 56 GP, 13 SP, and 2 CP.
Chapter 3: The Battles
It had been three days since the leaving from the town of Lûduth, and the two had made good progress. They had made it to the Great Plains heading south and west into Elven territory. They had hoped to reach the forests and the Sylvan Elf town of Rondain. The sun was high in the sky, their morale was high, and their speed was good.
When the sun had started to set, Koren felt a certain evil lurking nearby. They set up camp near the road when they felt a rumbling from the ground. They stood up, uncertain what to do. Then they heard a faint hum. Phauran spat into the soil. "Blue dragon." He commented. "Watch out for sudden bursts." As if on cue, a large dragon came rumbling out of the sand. The draconic figure loomed over them, with the frilled ears accented against the twilight sky. The dragon gave a loud roar, scaring the nearby birds. Koren and Phauran spread out, and waited for the dragon to make its first move. The dragon smirked, and snapped at Phauran. The ranger dodged back, but the dragon's claws came next. The long, wicked claws scratched up Phauran, who winced in pain. The dragon then beat its wings at Koren. Koren managed to roll away from the wings. He also dodged the tail that came crashing down. Phauran saw the dragon turn its head and slashed at the exposed neck. Blood spurt from the spot, and the dragon roared loudly. Koren drew his own longsword and struck at the dragon's wing. The sword cut deep into the thick hide, snapping a few bones. The dragon reared back, releasing a line of blue lightning. The duo dodged most of the lethal breath weapon, and charged as one to drive their swords into the dragon. The blue dragon's eyes dimmed, but it fought with fury. Three minutes of this bloody battle passed before the dragon fell. The two friends rested for the remainder of the night.
The next morning, the two decided to search the burrow the dragon had come from. They dropped into the chasm, landing in the midst of a labyrinth of crystallized rock. Koren and Phauran bashed their way through the barrier. They did not realize that the noise they made drew the evil from beneath the earth. Suddenly, Koren's senses brought to his attention a Succubus advancing to their position. Koren felt rage against the chaos and evil that was approaching them, and tensed his muscles to smite holy power into the evil being. The Succubus showed itself, revealing its demonic self.
The six-foot tall figure had large bat wings, glowing eyes, and dark, red skin. Koren gave a shout of anger, and charged the demon. Koren felt the power of his deity course through him as he delivered a crushing blow to the Succubus. Phauran witnessed a blast of white light, and flinched at the pureness of it. Then he regained his senses enough to charge with his own sword drawn. The Succubus only had time enough to lash out once with its claws, and fell to the holy blade of the paladin and the enchanted sword of the ranger.
Koren felt sanity enter him again, and noticed the Succubus at his feet. He kicked it away and wiped the black, slightly corrosive blood from his sword. Phauran returned the twin blades to their sheaths, and turned from the gruesome sight of the slain Succubus. "I've never seen you so frenzied," Phauran commented, "you didn't seem to comprehend anything that was going on." "You've never seen me fight a demon." The two climbed back out, striking for the nearest town.
Two days passed since the struggle with the demon, and the two saw a small town on the horizon. With newfound strength, the two stepped on. Upon entering the town, they sought out the nearest temple to mend their wounds and give service to their deity. They knocked upon the golden gates, and saw that the temple was empty save for a lone monk sweeping the pews. "Excuse me, where is the head cleric?" "He has retired into his dorms, masters." "Then we will return on the morrow. Good day to you." "And to you, masters."
Phauran and Koren exited the baroque style temple and headed to the nearest inn and booked a room. They both retired to their rooms, and fell asleep immediately after taking their armor off. The next morning, they walked to the temple, where the same monk greeted them. "Our head-priest has awoken. He is waiting for you, so please enter." The two walked into the carpeted worship area of the temple, where the head-priest, which was a venerable human, was sitting in a chair. "Welcome. I have heard of your needs, and I will be more than glad to heal you both. I shall do this without fee. However, I need your help. There have been many raids on the western side of this town. The raiders seem to be a goblin tribe near the High Hill. I want you two to purge the evil." "We shall do as you wish, father."
The two received blessings and healing from the head priest, and set out to cleanse the evil of the goblin tribe. They decided the nighttime was a good time of the day to start. They decided they should attack the goblins like they attacked the orcs, and got a good look at the tribe setup before executing their plan.
It was the dead of night, and no sound was to be heard. The ranger drew his bow, sighted down the shaft, and pulled the bow as far back as it could go. Suddenly, Phauran noticed that arrow points were trained upon him. "Lower arrow." He heard in bad common. Phauran acted as though he was going to lower it, but spun around and released it point-blank into the face of a goblin. The arrow pierced through the goblin's head, burrowing into the chest of another. The confused goblins fired into mid-air as Phauran tumbled up and drew his twin swords. The ranger stabbed the stomach of the nearest goblin and severed another's head while the goblins drew their morningstars. Phauran jumped high as a goblin tripped and fell behind the elf. Phauran wheeled, slashing down at the prone goblin while stabbing backwards at another. Phauran quickly counted the numbers. "Thirty here and more coming." Phauran winced at the odds and leapt to the side as a morningstar crashed into the ground next to him. Phauran did not know if he was going to make it out alive, but he continued with grim determination.
Koren had been waiting for the arrow to fall when he heard a brawl where Phauran was. Worried for his elven friend, Koren rushed over to the hill. At the base of the hill, he saw many goblins attacking Phauran. Koren drew his longsword and charged into the massed goblins.
Phauran saw that his friend had begun the work on the other side of the riot. Phauran was beheading another goblin when a blunt object crushed into his stomach, causing the world to blur out. The ranger spun to slice open the attacker's chest. The elf's sharp eyes spotted many goblin archers aiming at him. Phauran ducked to avoid the arrows then slashed the ankles of the goblin in front of him. He came up with a cry, slashing up and right while stabbing to the left.
Koren saw over the small goblins the archers fire their second volley. He also saw with despair the arrows strike their intended target, with blood spurting from the elven ranger. Koren became frenetic, attacking all around him like an enraged dragon. The divine power of his deity coursed through him, allowing his attacks to cleave through multiple enemies. Goblin bodies flew about, and Koren further intensified his attacks to help his fallen comrade.
Phauran felt the pains enter his body. He swung madly with his one good arm, trying to clear enough space to rise from his prone position. He finally managed to kill enough goblins to scare some away, and rose. Gritting his teeth against the pain, Phauran pulled one arrow out, using it as a dagger to pierce a goblin in the cranium. He could not, however, block the relentless assault of the goblins. A morningstar bashed into his side, causing him to vomit blood. Phauran became vertiginous, and fell on his injured arm. Phauran rolled onto his good arm, but took a blow from a goblin while he moved. A rapid succession of attacks followed, and Phauran did his best to avoid any.
Koren saw his friend fall a second time. He bashed with his shield, making the target fly back a good twenty feet. He then slashed in frenzy, attempting to cut a path to the fallen elf. A morningstar found its way past Koren's guard, and rammed into the paladin's shoulder. The pain caused Koren to hang his shield arm limp. Many seconds that felt like eons passed, and Koren made it to his friend's side. Koren stood over the unconscious form, reaching down to close an open bruise. A stream of bright, golden light spout forth from Koren's fingertips, cascading over the elven ranger's wounds.
Phauran came to consciousness and scooted backwards to retrieve his swords. He stood up next to his rescuer, and slashed at any goblins that came close. The duo was truly a dire sight, and any remaining goblins dropped their equipment and ran. Goblins that were slain counted at least forty.
Koren supported his hurt friend back into town, where they limped to the temple. When they had reached the golden gates, the head priest was waiting for them. "You are very injured. I will heal you. After I have done so, you may tell me what has happened there, and the results of your combat."
The venerable cleric walked in front of them into the temple, where he bade them sit and wait. After about five minutes, the cleric returned with blessed water. This he washed the warriors' faces and hands with, and washed his own hands afterwards. He brought forth a scroll, from which he cast the divine spell that would cure them of physical pain. An aura of pure white surrounded the two, and they felt better as wounds closed and healed. After they had been healed, Koren relayed to the father what had happened, and how the goblins had run after the battle. The priest then thanked them and blessed them in his deity's name. He also gifted Koren with a magical breastplate and shield to replace his old, battered equipment and gave Phauran a powerful bow and enchanted gloves.
Koren and Phauran were walking to the inn when they saw a large caravan march through. After they had gotten to the inn, they inquired what the procession was about. The bartender merely pointed to a flier. The flier was made of parchment, and on it was a message written in many different languages: "All who call themselves knights answer this call of the Baron and enter the tournament. There will be a prize and much honor to be given to those who attend." Koren looked at the flier, and asked his friend about what he thought. Phauran said "I don't feel like going anywhere right now, but if you want to go, I'll go." "We'll wait until the next round, then sign up. Today's just probably refreshments, anyway." So the friends decided to enter the competition at a later date, and went up into their rooms.
~o~
Koren, male human Pal10: CR 10; Size M (6 ft., 3 in. tall); HD 9d10+18; Hp 73; Init +5 (+1 Dex, +4 Improved initiative); Spd 20 ft.; AC 20 (+1 Dex, +6 Breastplate, +3 Large Steel Shield); Attack +12/+7 longsword (melee), 1d8+2 or +10 shortbow (ranged, 60 ft.), 1d6; SV Fort +12 Ref +8 Will +9; AL LG; Str 14, Dex 13, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 18
Languages spoken: Common
Skills: Heal +15, Diplomacy +8, Handle Animal +7, Ride +7, Listen (cc) +6, Feats: Power attack, Cleave, Weapon focus (longsword), Improved Initiative, leadership.
Possessions: Masterwork longsword, shortbow, 20 arrows, +1 breastplate, +1 large steel shield, trail rations (5), 20 GP, 1 SP, and 8 CP.
~o~
Phauran, male elf (high) Rgr12: CR12; Size M (5 ft., 6 in. tall); HD 12d10; hp 76; Init + 6 (+6 Dex); Spd 30 ft.; AC 18(+5 Dex, +3 studded leather); Attack +14/+9/+4 longsword, +13/+6/+1 shortsword (melee), (1d8+2) x3 + (1d6+1) x2 or +20 longbow (ranged, 100 ft.), 1d8+1 + 1d6 cold; SV Fort +8 Ref +10 Will +7; AL NG; Str 13, Dex 22, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 14
Languages spoken: Common, Elven
Skills: Wilderness lore +18, Handle Animal +11, Move Silently +11, Ride +11, Listen +10, Spot +10, Search +10 Feats: Weapon focus (longbow), Alertness, Dodge, Improved two-weapon fighting, skill focus (wilderness lore)
Possessions: +1 longsword, masterwork shortsword, +1 longbow of frost, masterwork studded-leather, gloves of dexterity +2, 40 arrows, trail rations (2), 56 GP, 13 SP, and 2 CP.