Marcus and James wondered down the dusty road to Ravens Bluff. The dense forest on both sides, and the long trail in front of them were the only things visible. The road was long and straight, with little meandering. They walked in silence, all conversation expended quickly within the first few hours of travel. James pulled his water bottle off of his belt strap and squirted a short stream into his mouth. He swilled it about and spat it out onto the roadside. The dust plumed upwards as heavy footfalls broke the relatively peaceful and quiet countryside.
The soft and mellow birdcalls greeted them on the roadside, and the rustling of leaves as they flitted in and out of the tree line was the only distractions on the road for the young men.
Marcus was remembering the lingering kiss as he departed Dania, how tightly he held her to him, how he almost wept seeing her smiling face look up at him. Even though they weren't that distant from each other, the length of time they had shared caused greater pain than normal. He rubbed his eyelids and sighed deeply.
His head snapped up when he heard raucous screaming from the roadside, screaming wildly, a trio of gibberlings raced down at them, twitching violently and salivating at the mouth. The shrill ring of steel on steel awakened him from the initial shock, and James had withdrawn his slender rapier and stood in a fighting position, preparing for the attack by widening his stance. Marcus swung his shield around from his back and pulled his longsword from his hip scabbard, and braced his shield forward on his left hand, the sturdy longsword prepared for an incoming foe.
One gibberling ran straight at James, with a flourish, he slashed the beast across the throat. Blood spurted from the savaged neck, and the animal gurgled wildly as it felt its life force spurt out. James pirouetted out of the way, spinning smoothly, unluckily, the gibberling managed to reach out and grip his boot, pulling him back with its dead weight. James was dumped rather unceremoniously and fell backwards, catching his head on the floor.
Meanwhile, Marcus was facing off against the other two. One ran straight at him, the other coming from his blade side. Rather than wait and allow them both to meet and challenge him, he advanced forwards, shield ready for the impact. He crashed it forward, smashing it in the face of the oncoming gibberling. The clash was titanic. Though small in weight, the gibberling had built momentum and the shock jarred Marcus, he froze for a second and then span to face the other gibberling.
Gibberlings are short, hairy little animals that are invariably covered in diseases and filth. This was no exception. It stopped and looked at Marcus warily, and then advanced, screeching a wild and unintelligible war cry. Marcus sidestepped to the right, and kicked his boot out, tripping it. With a savage thrust of his sword he skewered the gibberling in the back, severing its spinal cord. It screamed shrilly and then finally jerked in its death throes. Marcus moved on swiftly to the gibberling he had shield-bashed. Planting his boot firmly on its chest, he stabbed swiftly downwards, tearing its throat out. It coughed blood and twitched, and finally expired, its final breath of air fetid and disgusting. The warrior looked away in disgust.
"Ye Gods!" cried James, "What hit me?" He was rubbing the back of his head, his other hand trying to find his blade. Clutching it by the hilt, he staggered up and walked over to Marcus. He sniffed and nearly retched. "Not your cleanest work my friend…" He laughed and then grimaced in pain. Sheathing his rapier, he grabbed one of the bodies and dumped it by the roadside. Marcus helped him move the others.
With the three bodies cleared, they stood on the other side of the road, away from the decaying stench. "Do you think there's more of them nearby? Creature lore wasn't my best subject, but I'm sure the animals travel in packs."
Marcus looked thoughtful for a moment, and clucked his tongue. "Maybe. It would be unlikely for them to be too far from the pack either. It might be an idea for us to see if we can see any signs of the little buggers anywhere near. They might become a nuisance for the road here…"
James nodded his head in agreement, and took a swig from his water pouch. "Let us away then, and see if we can find any more of the vile little things." He grinned and jerked his head to the roadside. He grimaced again and Marcus laughed loudly.
The trees on the roadside made the forest appear dense, but there was little vegetation barring the paladin's way. They made quick progress through the sparse area. Marcus stopped when James dropped to his haunches. "There were definitely more than three of them. See this line here? It's a deeper cut than what three would make. The three must have travelled our way," he pointed in the direction they had come, "and the others must have split with them here." He pointed in the opposite direction. "So, we travel that way." James leant a hand on his rapier's hilt and whistled a short little tune under his breath. He lead the way up the trail the horde had passed and occasionally kicked at a stone.
They reached a clearing where carcasses of animals lay strewn about randomly. It lacked the construction of a human camp at any rate. The sound of running and random cursing drew the attention of the warriors, and they noticed how a woman came hurtling towards them, running very quickly, occasionally turning around. The reason for her flight was obvious as the howls and screeching of gibberlings became readily apparent. After the initial shock of seeing another person, James and Marcus went into action quickly. They both drew weapons and moved towards the woman.
She stopped in front of them and began panting. Long, golden brown hair cascaded down a tanned face. Wide brown eyes were the central feature to the face, and an upturned nose gave a hint of pride. Curving, generous lips were licked as her breath caught up with her.
"Thank Mystra you two are here, now we might have a chance…" She shook her hair and revealed ears that tapered to a point. ."Quickly now, we must take care of these beasts." She closed her eyes and turned to face the group of ten or so gibberlings and began to murmur an incantation. Her melodious voice changed as the incantation continued, becoming stronger, more powerful and commanding. Suddenly, she stopped and a ball of fire sprang from her outstretched palm, the scorching heat raced outwards and landed among the gibberlings to the right. It exploded and the flames fanned out, burning three to an outright crisp. Two others were inflicted with horrific burns, and their pitiful screeching and wails made the cacophony even worse. The unaffected animals continued onwards to the group of three. Marcus took a central position whilst James flanked him on the left, the mage on the right. The first gibberling to arrive was met by the crushing blow of the mages staff. Capped in iron on either end, it was a quick and efficient way of putting someone down. The gibberling crumpled as the blow landed.
James skipped lightly backwards and slashed out at the face of another, drawing a deep gash across its eyes. It howled in rage as the searing pain began to take hold. James ended its misery with a light thrust through the throat.
Marcus impaled one on the blade of his sword, running it through deeply, the weight of its charge forcing it down. He couldn't release his sword quickly enough to turn and face another, so he kicked out and caught it in the head. The crunching sound of bone greeted him, and the animals face was shrouded by red mist as blood exploded from its shattered nose. Its eyes crossed and it fell down, Marcus finished it with a knife cut across the throat, the coup de grace final and efficient.
Marcus finally released his blade from the escaping entrails and turned to face the final gibberling, glowing orbs that erupted from the magic users hand suitably ended it.
He wiped his blade on the grass and sheathed it, the steel ringing out loudly on the metallic edge of the scabbard. The magic user winced, but then straightened and tucked a strand of unruly hair behind her ear. She smiled sweetly and flashed a white-toothed grin that contrasted her swarthy complexion.
"My thanks to you two, though I have to wonder why two outsiders are walking in this area… unless… are you Marcus and James of Tantras?" She asked tentatively.
James grinned widely at her and flourished a deep bow, his hand raised to take off an imaginary hat. Marcus offered a stiffer bow and bent at his waist. "You have us at an advantage," began James, "you know our names, yet we know not yours. Please elaborate dearest beauty…"
She rolled her eyes and sighed. "You humans are all the same…" She laughed and grinned again. "My name is Erin, and I am the magi sent to help you on your patrol around the Ravens Bluff area." She began to walk away, back in the direction she was running from, and set a steady place, her staff making steady thumping noises as she walked. James and Marcus followed quickly, taking up positions either side of her.
"Though I'm not a native of the area, I have lived here for nigh on five years now. I'm beginning to recognise it as home from home, as it were." She walked softly; she had sturdy leather boots around smallish feet, a flowing green robe extended up her legs, slits on the side showing shapely calves. A loose leather belt rested on her hips, containing eclectic bits and pieces. Smooth golden arms extended out from the pulled up sleeves of the robe, one hand gripped the staff, and the other swung loosely as she walked.
"I've been a part of the guild ever since I arrived and quarter in lodgings there, housing prices aren't cheap, and given my trade, I can't afford to expend money on both housing and equipment…" She sighed and wiped her hand across her forehead, the light glistening in her amber eyes, her hair trailed a way down her back; the brown tresses had a windswept quality to them. "I take odd jobs to keep up with the payments, and this was one of them. Obviously, I didn't plan on being ambushed by a horde of gibberlings, but such is life…" She shrugged and laughed softly.
"Luckily we don't have to face any of those costs," said a sympathetic James, "the only thing we really need is armour costs and blade repair." He emphasised by laying a hand on the hilt of his rapier.
They began a trek up a rise in the trail they had been following, and were met with the sight of a huge and gothic city near the horizon. The high and curving architecture gave a slightly sinister edge, but the bright colours and distant noises belied the appearance.
"Gentlemen, I give you Ravens Bluff…"