RangerWickett
Legend
An Introduction to the World of High Fantasy
I played in the Savannah Knights campaign in the summer of 2000, using rules gleaned from Eric's news and rumors site before 3e had even come out. The setting for the game was certainly unusual--imagine modern day Savannah, Georgia, mixed with the Faerie Realm a la Mists of Avalon, and add a healthy helping of Men in Black. I posted this series originally back in the fall of 2000, but to commemmorate the birth of the new boards, I will be reposting one chapter each night, for seventeen nights.
I play Jenny Windgrave in Savannah Knights, a Native American Christian Paladin who is bonded to the ghost of her ancestor Pataman, a shaman from the Powhatan tribe. Oh, and by the way, if you like this story, you might also want to check out Tides of Homeland as well.
And now I present to you the first chapter of High Fantasy: Savannah Knights.
See the High Fantasy website for more information.
Prologue
"This is the world you know. You are born. You learn at school. You get a job, breed, and die. At times you may wonder about some of the more bizarre happenings in the world; you might be religious, or superstitious, but you know what the real world is.
"This is the world that really exists. Races and beings far older than humankind submit to the necessity of hiding their true nature, living obscure and concealed lives amid the throngs of ever-more-powerful humanity. The magi, creatures of magic and superstition, live beside you, perhaps fearful of discovery. What you saw today is only a taste of the unlimited power of the magi.
"I am among the magic races. I am an Illithid, a telepath. Other magi include the Elves, the faeries, the Dragons.
"You can perform magic now as well. When a human dies, they do not always 'cross-over' to whatever afterlife you believe in. Some stay behind, lost souls left to wander the Earth. They search for meaning, for vengeance, for a cause perhaps only they can understand, and they look to the living to find it. They bond with a human, granting them the power humans can only find in the spirit world. Magic. Those of you now bonded with the dead can perform magic. The spirits have their own motives, their own needs, and they intend you to help them satisfy them.
"We in this organization try to perpetuate that myth that seeing is believing. Most magi prefer to live out their lives without threat, and most humans prefer to live out their own without incident. The Bureau is here to make sure it remains that way. The way you knew the world before you stepped in this room is gone for you, but it is the way a vast majority of humanity would prefer to keep it.
"Now you will help keep it so."
--J'Qwuan, Head Telepath, Bureau for the Management of Magi
Chapter One: Introduction
Savannah, a city of great history, peculiarity, and mystery. Half the dorms of SCAD are haunted, if you believe the myths, and there always seems to be something unnatural going on among the elite of Savannah’s society.
The night of May 26th, 2000 SCAD put on a small concert as the final event before the summer break. A rare event to bring together students of dozens of artistic disciplines--photography, acting, computer design, comic books, and more traditional forms.
At the fringe of the concert crowd, a young man walks un-noticed between his classmates. They ignore the average-build, modest-faced, drably-dressed man, paying no attention to this self-made chameleon. He’s never had an interest in art, and the computer files of SCAD list him only as a modest-grade, full-scholarshipped computer graphicist named “Chuck Tagin-eve.”
A camera flashes as Madeline West, slender photo-journalist student, finishes her roll of film on the concert. She starts to settle down to enjoy the concert, but then something tickles her ear, reminding her she needs to get another roll of film for her camera.
Near the stage, something cuts through the noise of the music—a voice only one woman hears. Jenny Windgrave looks up at the sound of her name, a clear voice in the crowd. She doesn’t see the man who had called her, but her eyes level on a scene a the edge of the crowd.
Tagin-Eve looks up as a woman stops next to him. A Goth chick, complete with torn fishnet stockings, an inverted crucifix around her neck, black hair, and sunken, stoned eyes.
“Hey. . . ,” she strays off for a moment, and Tagin begins to breathe through his mouth to avoid the smell of the weed she’s been smoking. “You’re Chuck, right? You wanna come see somethin’?”
Tagin’s more frustrated than interested, but despite himself he follows her to the doorway of the nearest dorm, Oglethorp house. Behind him, Madeline is on her way to get more film, and Jenny is calmly pushing her way through the crowd. Something about the woman makes her uneasy.
Tagin and the Goth stop next to the steps of O-house, and the woman lays an arm on Tagin’s shoulder. “I forgot how stoned I could get . . . heh. You remember me, right?”
Tagin nods, nervous. He’s too far from the crowd, out in the open. “Yeah. Chastity, from art history.”
Chastity smiles, revealing those ivory vampire teeth only the most over-the-top Goths purchase. “You’re good. . . . . . . . and cute. Too cute to let it all go to waste, right? All flesh just rots away, y’know?”
Two joggers are running on the street nearby. One slows, the hairs on the back of his neck rising. The larger of the two looks at him in frustration, then follows his albino brother’s gaze to the steps of the nearby building.
Chastity puts her other arm on Tagin’s other shoulder, and then grins, her eyes slits that begin to seep red light. “Man . . . I always get so hungry when I’m high. I just want a little drink.”
She bares her teeth again, and Tagin tries to pull away, but Chastity holds him strongly as she bends her head to line up her fangs with his neck. “You’re cute. . . . I want you to stay that way forever.”
From a few dozen feet away, Jenny shouts, “Stop!” Chastity and Tagin both look to see the Native American woman standing unarmed, but resolute, staring wrathfully at the vampire. A few feet away from the steps, Madeline finally looks up at the shout and sees the pale, glowing-eyed vampiress holding a freshman in a death’s embrace.
Chastity sighs. “Aw damn, girl. I just want a bite to eat.”
Madeline backs away while Jenny advances.
Chastity shrugs, “But I’m not picky,” and then shoves Tagin ten feet into Madeline, knocking her down. As Madeline tries to get to her feet, Chastity leaps through the air toward Jenny.
Jenny scambles back, but the vampiress grabs her by her hair and shirt and pulls her forward, staring her in the eyes intently. Jenny begins to feel sickly, but she grimaces and shoves at her attacker, driving her back. Sneering, Chastity punches Jenny in the face and drops her to the ground.
The vampiress turns as Madeline runs up and swings her camera by its strap, barely hitting Chastity on the arm. The vampiress grabs Madeline and flings her to the ground atop Jenny, sneering.
Then from the shadows nearby comes a shout. “Vile child of Satan! Your bloodlust ends tonight.”
Out from the edge of the building steps a tall man in a trenchcoat, white light flooding from the wall of the building. The wind blows his trenchcoat open, revealing a crucifix around his neck. As he stares down Chastity, he draws a wooden stake.
Chastity stares at him blankly. “You’re ****tin’ me right? You think you’re some kinda effin’ Van Helsing? Gah.”
The vampire hunter smiles knowingly, then hurls the stake twenty feet toward the Goth chick. Chastity is shocked, but dodges the stake, then leaps at her opponent.
By the time everyone gets to their feet, the vampire hunter hangs limply in Chastity’s arms as she suckles at his throat.
Jenny looks to Madeline, then sprints toward the vampire. Madeline hears a voice whispering in her ear, and a chill runs through her as she repeats the droning words. Chastity stops sucking the blood from the vampire hunter for a moment to look at Madeline, and then her eyes widen as a bolt of energy strikes her in the chest.
Tagin and Jenny look at Madeline warily, but she’s as confused as they are. Chastity sneers, then grabs her prey and levitates slowly upward. As she moves out of range, Tagin leaps up and slashes at her with a butterfly knife.
Jenny grabs and hurls a small potted plant at the vampire, to no effect.
As the pot crashes against the ground, a deep shout comes from nearby: “What in the seven ****s of hell?”
And then a sharper voice: “That levitating Goth chick is giving the FBI guy a hickey!”
Jenny looks over to see a pair of men in jogging outfits—looking related except that one’s an albino—jogging up to the scene. She points to Chastity and shouts, “She’s a vampire! She’s killing him!”
Without missing a step in his jogging, the larger of the brothers breaks into a sprint, pulling a sword out of his jogging bag. Judging the woman too high to jump at, he leaps up at the wall of O-house, then springs diagonally off it higher into the air, slashing across the woman’s legs. With his spare hand, he grabs onto her foot.
With a jerk and shout from Chastity, the three fall to the ground.
“Cai, get outta the way,” shouts the albino to his brother, and as soon as Cai jumps away, the ground shudders and vines spring forth, entwining Chastity, the vampire hunter, and Jenny. Tagin leaps clear and jumps over Chastity to land beside the vampire hunter.
Another bolt flashes out of Madeline’s hands, striking Chastity in the back of the head. The vampiress swears indignantly, then begins to tear at the vines entangling her.
At the edge of the circle of vines, Cai stands calmly and looks at his younger brother. “Iscalio, what the hell did you just do?”
The albino Iscalio shrugs, then turns to watch the battle.
Madeline runs to help Jenny free her legs from the vines while Tagin rips open the vampire hunter’s trenchcoat and pulls out two stakes. Jenny, finally free, kneels beside the wounded man and puts a hand to his throat to check for a pulse. She feels dizzy suddenly as her hand tingles, and the man beneath her starts to stir.
“Hey, look out!” shouts Iscalio, pointing at Chastity. “She’s moving again.”
As Chastity begins to finally stand, a ghostly fox appears beside her and leaps at her chest, biting at her. Meanwhile Tagin and Jenny help the vampire hunter to his feet, and he staggers a bit before leaping at the child of Satan, Tagin and Jenny following, just wanting to stop the woman.
Chastity knocks the ghostly fox away (it vanishes), then looks up in time to be tackled. As the three attackers land on her, Chastity rolls back and flings Jenny off, then punches Tagin back. She struggles with the vampire hunter, eventually grabbing one of the stakes inside his coat and smashing him across the face with it. She mutters a curse, then stands to look for her next opponent.
As she stands, she turns and steps directly into Tagin’s stake. The wood pierces her chest, and she sags, falling into Tagin’s arms.
Tagin sinks to the ground with Chastity as the red seeps out of her eyes, and color briefly returns to her strangely calm face. She looks at him gently and whispers with a smile, “Thank you.”
Tagin looks down at Chastity, shocked. Then a shadow falls over him as the vampire hunter steps up beside him. Tagin steps away, and the man efficiently, without pleasure, draws the hilt of a sword from his coat. A glowing blade of white energy springs out from the hilt, then coalesces into a solid metal blade. Closing his eyes and touching his cross, he prepares himself, then grimly beheads the vampire, putting her to rest. Her mortal remains settle to dust and scatter in the summer wind.
In the distance, the concert proceeds as normal, heedless. The vampire hunter sighs sadly, then looks around the group. “It’s not safe here. Come with me if you want to live.”
Tagin, Madeline, Jenny, Cai, and Iscalio slowly walk forward as the tall man’s sword blade turns into light again, then vanishes, leaving only the hilt. The vampire hunter places the hilt in his caot and draws something else in its place. He holds it forward, and a square section of the side of Oglethorpe House glows with white light.
“Through the doorway. C’mon now. I don’t have endless patience.”
Cai fingers his katana as he walks toward the wall. He looks at the man before walking through the wall. “You’d better not be ****in’ with us. C’mon Iscalio.”
One by one the group enters, Tagin last, so inconspicuous that the vampire hunter almost leaves him. As they all step through the white doorway, emerging in the clean hallways of some unknown building, Jenny looks at their rescuer for an explanation.
“Where are we? I mean, I can guess what just happened, even though it’s supposed to be impossible, but where are we now?”
Iscalio chimes in: “And who are you?”
“I’m Balthazar Mordred,” he says calmly, starting down the hallway as he tucks what appears to be a key back into his coat. “And you’re in the Faerie World. You’re gonna have some decisions coming up, and let me tell you, there is some wild stuff up ahead.”
I played in the Savannah Knights campaign in the summer of 2000, using rules gleaned from Eric's news and rumors site before 3e had even come out. The setting for the game was certainly unusual--imagine modern day Savannah, Georgia, mixed with the Faerie Realm a la Mists of Avalon, and add a healthy helping of Men in Black. I posted this series originally back in the fall of 2000, but to commemmorate the birth of the new boards, I will be reposting one chapter each night, for seventeen nights.
I play Jenny Windgrave in Savannah Knights, a Native American Christian Paladin who is bonded to the ghost of her ancestor Pataman, a shaman from the Powhatan tribe. Oh, and by the way, if you like this story, you might also want to check out Tides of Homeland as well.
And now I present to you the first chapter of High Fantasy: Savannah Knights.
See the High Fantasy website for more information.
Prologue
"This is the world you know. You are born. You learn at school. You get a job, breed, and die. At times you may wonder about some of the more bizarre happenings in the world; you might be religious, or superstitious, but you know what the real world is.
"This is the world that really exists. Races and beings far older than humankind submit to the necessity of hiding their true nature, living obscure and concealed lives amid the throngs of ever-more-powerful humanity. The magi, creatures of magic and superstition, live beside you, perhaps fearful of discovery. What you saw today is only a taste of the unlimited power of the magi.
"I am among the magic races. I am an Illithid, a telepath. Other magi include the Elves, the faeries, the Dragons.
"You can perform magic now as well. When a human dies, they do not always 'cross-over' to whatever afterlife you believe in. Some stay behind, lost souls left to wander the Earth. They search for meaning, for vengeance, for a cause perhaps only they can understand, and they look to the living to find it. They bond with a human, granting them the power humans can only find in the spirit world. Magic. Those of you now bonded with the dead can perform magic. The spirits have their own motives, their own needs, and they intend you to help them satisfy them.
"We in this organization try to perpetuate that myth that seeing is believing. Most magi prefer to live out their lives without threat, and most humans prefer to live out their own without incident. The Bureau is here to make sure it remains that way. The way you knew the world before you stepped in this room is gone for you, but it is the way a vast majority of humanity would prefer to keep it.
"Now you will help keep it so."
--J'Qwuan, Head Telepath, Bureau for the Management of Magi
Chapter One: Introduction
Savannah, a city of great history, peculiarity, and mystery. Half the dorms of SCAD are haunted, if you believe the myths, and there always seems to be something unnatural going on among the elite of Savannah’s society.
The night of May 26th, 2000 SCAD put on a small concert as the final event before the summer break. A rare event to bring together students of dozens of artistic disciplines--photography, acting, computer design, comic books, and more traditional forms.
At the fringe of the concert crowd, a young man walks un-noticed between his classmates. They ignore the average-build, modest-faced, drably-dressed man, paying no attention to this self-made chameleon. He’s never had an interest in art, and the computer files of SCAD list him only as a modest-grade, full-scholarshipped computer graphicist named “Chuck Tagin-eve.”
A camera flashes as Madeline West, slender photo-journalist student, finishes her roll of film on the concert. She starts to settle down to enjoy the concert, but then something tickles her ear, reminding her she needs to get another roll of film for her camera.
Near the stage, something cuts through the noise of the music—a voice only one woman hears. Jenny Windgrave looks up at the sound of her name, a clear voice in the crowd. She doesn’t see the man who had called her, but her eyes level on a scene a the edge of the crowd.
Tagin-Eve looks up as a woman stops next to him. A Goth chick, complete with torn fishnet stockings, an inverted crucifix around her neck, black hair, and sunken, stoned eyes.
“Hey. . . ,” she strays off for a moment, and Tagin begins to breathe through his mouth to avoid the smell of the weed she’s been smoking. “You’re Chuck, right? You wanna come see somethin’?”
Tagin’s more frustrated than interested, but despite himself he follows her to the doorway of the nearest dorm, Oglethorp house. Behind him, Madeline is on her way to get more film, and Jenny is calmly pushing her way through the crowd. Something about the woman makes her uneasy.
Tagin and the Goth stop next to the steps of O-house, and the woman lays an arm on Tagin’s shoulder. “I forgot how stoned I could get . . . heh. You remember me, right?”
Tagin nods, nervous. He’s too far from the crowd, out in the open. “Yeah. Chastity, from art history.”
Chastity smiles, revealing those ivory vampire teeth only the most over-the-top Goths purchase. “You’re good. . . . . . . . and cute. Too cute to let it all go to waste, right? All flesh just rots away, y’know?”
Two joggers are running on the street nearby. One slows, the hairs on the back of his neck rising. The larger of the two looks at him in frustration, then follows his albino brother’s gaze to the steps of the nearby building.
Chastity puts her other arm on Tagin’s other shoulder, and then grins, her eyes slits that begin to seep red light. “Man . . . I always get so hungry when I’m high. I just want a little drink.”
She bares her teeth again, and Tagin tries to pull away, but Chastity holds him strongly as she bends her head to line up her fangs with his neck. “You’re cute. . . . I want you to stay that way forever.”
From a few dozen feet away, Jenny shouts, “Stop!” Chastity and Tagin both look to see the Native American woman standing unarmed, but resolute, staring wrathfully at the vampire. A few feet away from the steps, Madeline finally looks up at the shout and sees the pale, glowing-eyed vampiress holding a freshman in a death’s embrace.
Chastity sighs. “Aw damn, girl. I just want a bite to eat.”
Madeline backs away while Jenny advances.
Chastity shrugs, “But I’m not picky,” and then shoves Tagin ten feet into Madeline, knocking her down. As Madeline tries to get to her feet, Chastity leaps through the air toward Jenny.
Jenny scambles back, but the vampiress grabs her by her hair and shirt and pulls her forward, staring her in the eyes intently. Jenny begins to feel sickly, but she grimaces and shoves at her attacker, driving her back. Sneering, Chastity punches Jenny in the face and drops her to the ground.
The vampiress turns as Madeline runs up and swings her camera by its strap, barely hitting Chastity on the arm. The vampiress grabs Madeline and flings her to the ground atop Jenny, sneering.
Then from the shadows nearby comes a shout. “Vile child of Satan! Your bloodlust ends tonight.”
Out from the edge of the building steps a tall man in a trenchcoat, white light flooding from the wall of the building. The wind blows his trenchcoat open, revealing a crucifix around his neck. As he stares down Chastity, he draws a wooden stake.
Chastity stares at him blankly. “You’re ****tin’ me right? You think you’re some kinda effin’ Van Helsing? Gah.”
The vampire hunter smiles knowingly, then hurls the stake twenty feet toward the Goth chick. Chastity is shocked, but dodges the stake, then leaps at her opponent.
By the time everyone gets to their feet, the vampire hunter hangs limply in Chastity’s arms as she suckles at his throat.
Jenny looks to Madeline, then sprints toward the vampire. Madeline hears a voice whispering in her ear, and a chill runs through her as she repeats the droning words. Chastity stops sucking the blood from the vampire hunter for a moment to look at Madeline, and then her eyes widen as a bolt of energy strikes her in the chest.
Tagin and Jenny look at Madeline warily, but she’s as confused as they are. Chastity sneers, then grabs her prey and levitates slowly upward. As she moves out of range, Tagin leaps up and slashes at her with a butterfly knife.
Jenny grabs and hurls a small potted plant at the vampire, to no effect.
As the pot crashes against the ground, a deep shout comes from nearby: “What in the seven ****s of hell?”
And then a sharper voice: “That levitating Goth chick is giving the FBI guy a hickey!”
Jenny looks over to see a pair of men in jogging outfits—looking related except that one’s an albino—jogging up to the scene. She points to Chastity and shouts, “She’s a vampire! She’s killing him!”
Without missing a step in his jogging, the larger of the brothers breaks into a sprint, pulling a sword out of his jogging bag. Judging the woman too high to jump at, he leaps up at the wall of O-house, then springs diagonally off it higher into the air, slashing across the woman’s legs. With his spare hand, he grabs onto her foot.
With a jerk and shout from Chastity, the three fall to the ground.
“Cai, get outta the way,” shouts the albino to his brother, and as soon as Cai jumps away, the ground shudders and vines spring forth, entwining Chastity, the vampire hunter, and Jenny. Tagin leaps clear and jumps over Chastity to land beside the vampire hunter.
Another bolt flashes out of Madeline’s hands, striking Chastity in the back of the head. The vampiress swears indignantly, then begins to tear at the vines entangling her.
At the edge of the circle of vines, Cai stands calmly and looks at his younger brother. “Iscalio, what the hell did you just do?”
The albino Iscalio shrugs, then turns to watch the battle.
Madeline runs to help Jenny free her legs from the vines while Tagin rips open the vampire hunter’s trenchcoat and pulls out two stakes. Jenny, finally free, kneels beside the wounded man and puts a hand to his throat to check for a pulse. She feels dizzy suddenly as her hand tingles, and the man beneath her starts to stir.
“Hey, look out!” shouts Iscalio, pointing at Chastity. “She’s moving again.”
As Chastity begins to finally stand, a ghostly fox appears beside her and leaps at her chest, biting at her. Meanwhile Tagin and Jenny help the vampire hunter to his feet, and he staggers a bit before leaping at the child of Satan, Tagin and Jenny following, just wanting to stop the woman.
Chastity knocks the ghostly fox away (it vanishes), then looks up in time to be tackled. As the three attackers land on her, Chastity rolls back and flings Jenny off, then punches Tagin back. She struggles with the vampire hunter, eventually grabbing one of the stakes inside his coat and smashing him across the face with it. She mutters a curse, then stands to look for her next opponent.
As she stands, she turns and steps directly into Tagin’s stake. The wood pierces her chest, and she sags, falling into Tagin’s arms.
Tagin sinks to the ground with Chastity as the red seeps out of her eyes, and color briefly returns to her strangely calm face. She looks at him gently and whispers with a smile, “Thank you.”
Tagin looks down at Chastity, shocked. Then a shadow falls over him as the vampire hunter steps up beside him. Tagin steps away, and the man efficiently, without pleasure, draws the hilt of a sword from his coat. A glowing blade of white energy springs out from the hilt, then coalesces into a solid metal blade. Closing his eyes and touching his cross, he prepares himself, then grimly beheads the vampire, putting her to rest. Her mortal remains settle to dust and scatter in the summer wind.
In the distance, the concert proceeds as normal, heedless. The vampire hunter sighs sadly, then looks around the group. “It’s not safe here. Come with me if you want to live.”
Tagin, Madeline, Jenny, Cai, and Iscalio slowly walk forward as the tall man’s sword blade turns into light again, then vanishes, leaving only the hilt. The vampire hunter places the hilt in his caot and draws something else in its place. He holds it forward, and a square section of the side of Oglethorpe House glows with white light.
“Through the doorway. C’mon now. I don’t have endless patience.”
Cai fingers his katana as he walks toward the wall. He looks at the man before walking through the wall. “You’d better not be ****in’ with us. C’mon Iscalio.”
One by one the group enters, Tagin last, so inconspicuous that the vampire hunter almost leaves him. As they all step through the white doorway, emerging in the clean hallways of some unknown building, Jenny looks at their rescuer for an explanation.
“Where are we? I mean, I can guess what just happened, even though it’s supposed to be impossible, but where are we now?”
Iscalio chimes in: “And who are you?”
“I’m Balthazar Mordred,” he says calmly, starting down the hallway as he tucks what appears to be a key back into his coat. “And you’re in the Faerie World. You’re gonna have some decisions coming up, and let me tell you, there is some wild stuff up ahead.”
Last edited: