Session Twentytwo 25th - 27th Nolus 720

Where we follow the vicissitudes of a separate viking pHarn Down Under ...

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Session Twentytwo 25th - 27th Nolus 720

Postby Neil » Sun Sep 16, 2007 7:37 pm

25th Nolus 720

As the rain continues to fall, Raan and Kalyn huddle under sodden cloaks watching the cave entrance.

Through the darkness of the night Kalyn catches a glimpse of movement near the cave’s entrance.

No detail can be seen but the creature is not very tall, it moves maybe 10’ outside the cave entrance.

It stops checks and then quickly moves back inside the entrance and out of sight.

Soon Raan and Kalyn have awoken Ashain and Mablem for their turn on watch. Little happens during their watch except the rain continues to fall.

With food running out, Mablem decides that it might be prudent to gather some forage from the nearby woods. Spending the better part of the morning away he returns with enough food for 3 mandays. The weather has done little to improve since last night with only brief periods without rain.
Once Mablem has returned and sorted the forage, Tryne fancies his hand at gathering some forage as well. He too returns with enough forage for 2 mandays.

The warband are on edge fearing a sally from the cave and remain vigiliant throughout the morning. Scraps of food are given to the 2 prisoners who appear to have recovered over night from their wounds.

The warband await the return of Loraan with the torches.

By midafternoon Loraan has returned and from his pack removes 2 lanterns and several pints of oil and some further rations consisting of some more oatcakes, cheese and dried salted fish.

With the equipment distributed and packed away the warband make ready to enter the cavern.

The warband use the guy ropes from the tent to tie the hands of the prisoners and then secures a rope around each of their necks while holding the free end in his hand.

The warband enter the cave once again and with better light they make quicker progress through the dark tunnel. They soon emerge into a cavern the light dimly reflects off the walls the cut stone wall around 20’ either side. Making this hall some 50’ wide, the warband continues to advance about another 100’ when they encounter another entrance this one some 30’ wide. The rusted remains of an iron door, hinges and operating mechanism can be found littered around this entrance.

Forming a shieldwall the waband enter through the giant doorway. No sooner have they entered then a 3 spears emerge from the darkness 2 miss wildly but the 3rd strikes Raan in the stomach. The warband pause and consider their options, while waiting another 3 spears emerge from the darkness and like the previous volley 2 sail harmlessly by while the 3rd bites into Raan’s right thigh. Raan grits his teeth to the pain and with the spear hanging from his leg he stumbles to the ground.

As he regains his feet another volley of spears appear this time they all fly harmlessly by. The warband decide that it is time to retreat and come up with another plan. Leaving Mablem with a lantern the remainder retire from the doorway and back towards the main entrance.

As the warband retire vioces cry out in despair. “Don’t leave us, Help, come back” the language they yell is Harnic and there is more than one voice crying out. The warband yell back “How many of the creatures are there?” and an answer comes back “Not more than 10” with that the warband retire from their pleading voices.

Mablem holds a position just to the right side of the doorway to cover his companions retreat. The lantern sitting on the ground near the door.

The warband light the second lantern before retiring back to the other entrance where they stand and hold.

As the warband are retiring, Mablem can see in the light of the lantern a head and shoulder appear from around the corner they definately belong to one of these small creatures before he can react it disappears back around the corner.

Just as the warband signal for Mablem to rejoin the group 3 creatures appear from around the corner and attack. Mablem manages to hold his own against them for nearly 1/2 a minute. After 1 of their number has fallen to the ground after being wounded they are joined by another 3. Now Mablem faces off against 5 of these creatures each brandishes a crude weapon, a metal blade crafted to a piece of wood.

Tryne attempts to fire off a rock from his staff sling but the end cracks against the nearby rock wall. The timber is heard to crack from the blow.

Tryne attempts to use arcane methods to help heal Raan’s wounds. His attempts succeed and the wound to Raan’s stomach improves immediately, Raan feels the wound go very cold and looks on astonished as the wound looks to heal quicker than normal. Meanwhile the 2 prisoners have moved back towards the cave entrance they are halted by Tryne.

The warband seeing thier companion Mablem now facing off against 5 opponents spring into action, Kalyn races across the dimly lit hall to aid her friend. Tyrne readies his staff sling while Raan and Loraan ready their bows. Ashain begins to pray to his god for aid.

Raan and Loraan both begin to send vollies of arrows towards Mablem’s opponents. Raan’s first arrow sails throught the darkness to strike one of the creatures in the shoulder, the arrows bites deeply and the arrow penetrates through the shoulder, the creature screams in pain. Loraan hits the same creature in the skull and the creature falls to the ground.

With their attention diverted the warband catch a fleeting glance as the 2 prisoners now disappear from the lantern light as they make their escape.

When Kalyn finally reaches Mablem his shield has been reduced to firewood and his sword has taken much punishment. With his pray complete Ashain soon follows off after Kalyn.

With Kalyn now there to support Mablem the creatures appear to falter before exiting the hall and coming into view are 2 more of these smaller creatures and between them a monsterous 9’ beast with 2 heads in one hand it bears a huge club and in the other it carries what could only be considered a boulder by normal standards.

The warband let out a gasp of amazement at this site. This huge beast moves towards Kalyn but is intercepted by Ashain. Mablem is now doing battle with a single creature he has suffered only minor wounds to his right shoulder and right upper arm but more telling is a more serious wound to his neck.

Kalyn is doing battle with 2 of these creatures and before finally finishing them off she to has suffered a nasty wound to her neck.

Ashain has been doing battle with these monster and has deftly avoided being hit. However, this monster has been launching boulders at Tryne, Raan and Loraan at the halls entrance while swinging it’s huge club at Ashain. The first boulder strikes Loraan in the chest, Tryne and Raan hear the cracking of bone as the rock strikes and sails by. Loraan falls to the ground lifeless.

The monsters seconc boulder is avoided by Tryne but the 3rd catches him squarely on the left forearm. He grimaces in pain from the strike.

The monster has taken several serious wounds with several arrows peircing it’s flesh. It however manages to land a blow upon Ashains skull with it’s huge club. Luckily the helmet he wears absorbs most of the blow but he still feels it’s effects as his knees wobble but do not give out.

Finally an arrow strikes the creatures left thigh and it falls to the ground, in retribution Ashain plants his axe in the monsters chest, the blade bites deeply and blood flows quickly from the wound.

Kalyn and Mablem soon dispatch the last of the smaller creatures by removing their heads they then regroup with the rest of the warband. There is some discussion among the warband on whether or not they should take the heads back as trophies. Realising that the largest creatures heads weigh around 60lbs each and the smaller creatures weighing some 7lbs each or so they quickly decide to only take back 2 of the smaller creatures heads.

Tryne and Raan make their way to the cave entrance to retrieve their prisoners and all they find are the guy ropes from the tent on the ground. The equipment looted from the other bodies earlier in the day is also gone. With a shrug Tryne and Raan return to the rest of the warband and tell them the prisoners escaped.

Tryne and Raan then decide to search the remainder of this underground complex,they discover a hall perhaps 100’x100’ with rubbled walls. 3 other exits all come off this larger hall but all have collapsed some 30’ or so from the hall.

As they make their way around this large hall, they discover the eaten remains of at least 5 other humans they also find attempting to make their own escape 3 men. Blinded by the light from the lantern these 3 men claim to be sailors from a shipwreck.

They are lead back to the rest of the warband outside the cave entrance. Showers have continued to fall while the warband have been underground. The tent has been erected into a makeshift shelter in the lee of some rocks and a fire has been started and with the remaining daylight Kalyn has treated several of the wounded. Mablem has turned his hand at healer and treats the wound suffered by Kalyn.

Soon all the wounds are treated and the remainder of the rations are split to feed everyone.

The sailors introduce themselves as Poneraen of Trenwar, Jelfin of Chetha and Hargin of Pytilon. The 3 men appear extremely grateful for their rescue and they tell the warband that they were part of the 14 man crew of the ‘Tradewind Glory’ which ran aground during a storm. 8 men managed to survive the shipwreck but so too did their cargo and they were quickly overwhelmed and taken prisoner. The 8 captives were marched for no more than half a day from the ship when they came upon this cave an were lead inside and man by man they were taken and eaten by the smaller creatures.

Spending the night near the cave nothing of notice happens. The rain continues to fall throughout the night.

26th Nolus 720

With the rain still falling Kalyn and Hargin wake the other members of the warband from their slumber.

With nought for their bellies the warband gather together to bury Loraan. Tryne taking this opportunity goes off in search of forage. He returns empty handed. Raan has spent the morning hours crafting a litter for Mablem who is to weak to walk after his battle underground.

With the remainder of the lantern oil used to start Loraan’s funeraly pyre the passage of the souls is given by Ashain. With little wind the smoke rises up to Talagaard taking Loraan with it.

By now the warband are getting hungry and it is mid afternoon when they finally set off for home. Each member of the warband taking his turn to carry the litter while Kalyn leads them back to the village.

Rain continues to fall throughout the day. The clouds hang low in the sky making navigation difficult.

The going is slow due to the weather and the fact that they are weighted down with the stretcher. They soon halt for the night and with no fire they set their watch

The group set up a small camp using the tent as a makeshift shelter again. The warband all attempt to crawl underneath it for shelter from the inclimate weather.

Tryne suggests that he could perhaps help Raan with that stomach wound. He again attempts to use arcane methods to heal his friends wound. But instead of the soothing cold, Raan feels only heat come from Tryne’s ministrations and when he is done Raan looks down at a now red and obviously infected wound.

Kalyn searches her healing kit for anything that might yet help fight the infection to discover that the herbs she has only aid in preventing the infection in the first instance. She informs Raan that there is nothing can be done but try to keep it clean and covered until they arrive back at the village.

The night passes without event.

27th Nolus 720

Again the rain has fallen all night and Kalyn and Hargin awake the warband from their slumber.

With hunger gnawing at their bellies the warband quickly break camp and head off for home.

The weather and their cargo again makes the going slow.

They spend the day moving through the wooded hillsides.

With about an hour of daylight left they stumble out of the trees and find the coastline. In front of them is a bay spanning to their left and right. To their right on the other side of the bay whisps of smoke can be seen rising from numerous cooking fires coming from a small village, to their left they can see a vessel disappearing from view on the horizon.

The warband stop and wave and hail the vessel but it appears their attempts have failed as soon the vessel disppears from sight.

The warband again make camp for the night.

Except for the incessant rain nothing occurs during the night.
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Neil
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Location: Sydney, Australia

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