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Alea Iacta Story Hour: A Mythic Rome Campaign (Baby Announcement: 8/17)
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<blockquote data-quote="Orichalcum" data-source="post: 1084489" data-attributes="member: 3722"><p><strong>Fourth Session: Legacies and Freedom Fifth Post: Running Away, and Bloody Rabbits</strong></p><p></p><p>Walking onwards, somewhat worse for wear, but having made a nice brief meal out of venison and roasted bison, we keep our eyes out for the next Druidic barrier. Luckily, it’s not hard to spot. A huge brick wall, Celtic runes impressed on each brick, stretches up into the sky. It is covered with mud and daub, rendering it fairly slick and without easy handholds.</p><p></p><p>Llyr’s attempts to throw a grappling hook over the top repeatedly fail, and while Marcus, Metellus, and Llyr think they might be able to climb it, it’s clear that neither Cornelia nor Wena stand a chance. </p><p></p><p> “Let’s approach this logically,” Cornelia notes. “This is clearly the Wall of Earth. So far, we’ve had Fire, Trees, Water, and Animals. We got rid of Fire by putting water on it, and of water by using earthy-planty things on it.”</p><p></p><p> “I wanted to divert the water into an aqueduct, or at least dam it.” Llyr complains.</p><p></p><p> “It was already damned, Llyr,” Heilyn retorts. “But Cornelia’s got a point. By that line of reasoning, we ought to be able to deal with this wall by using Air.”</p><p></p><p> “How does that help?” Meloch, increasingly unhappy with our curse, screeches. “We can’t huff and puff and blow this wall down.”</p><p></p><p> “Actually, I can.” Heilyn answers smugly.</p><p></p><p> The party emits a collective “Huh.”</p><p></p><p> “The staff – Aeduana’s staff – that I’m carrying – well, I’ve sort of made friends with it.” Heilyn begins.</p><p></p><p> “We’ve noticed,” Cornelia answers dryly, remembering the green tendrils that keep trying to insinuate themselves into Heilyn’s arm.</p><p></p><p> “At any rate, it’s a Staff of Wind and Stone, and I think, if I ask it nicely, that it will blow the wall down for us.” Heilyn continues, a little cross that his great achievement isn’t being recognized by the other members of the group.</p><p></p><p> “Druidic magic! Ha! There must be some other way. Llyr, knock the wall down, you’re an engineer,” says Marcus.</p><p></p><p> “I could do it in about three weeks with some good siege engines,” Llyr ponders.</p><p></p><p> “We don’t have time for Llyr to knock it down! Heilyn, use the staff!” Wena, also deeply unhappy about the curse, retorts.</p><p></p><p> The Romans look to Metellus for direction, but after momentary indecision he nods to Heilyn.</p><p></p><p> “You might want to all stand back...” Heilyn says, a little nervously. He raises the staff, pointing it at the wall, and speaks to it in a language none of the others understand. Wind begins spiraling out of the raised tip of the staff, forming a whirlwind which grows larger and larger, knocking all of us to the ground. Finally, Heilyn stops chanting, and the whirlwind slams into and through the wall, creating a three-foot wide hole, about six feet off the ground, before whirling back towards us, throwing mud on us, and shooting up through the trees, scattering leaves in its wake.</p><p></p><p></p><p> “That’s your...friend?” Meloch asks skeptically.</p><p> “Look, there’s a hole in the wall, what more do you want?” Heilyn snaps.</p><p></p><p>The hole in the Wall of Earth is only large enough to fit one person through at a time, as they are lifted up by the others. While Marcus initially volunteers to go first, he is clearly the best person to push others up, and so is kept till last. Llyr is boosted up and rolls neatly down on the other side, announcing that the path is all clear, except for some tasty looking rabbits. Heilyn follows, but as Heilyn pushes his chest through the hole, a wave of dizziness washes over him. The Romans are pursuing him. He has to get to the sacred grove. It’s the only way he’ll be safe. Nothing must be allowed to stop him. He shoves through the hole and begins running forward, as Llyr calls out in dismay. </p><p></p><p>Wena, next through the hole, similarly experiences the supernatural terror, and begins darting forwards, although she quickly snaps herself out of it. Llyr manages to snag Wena with his bola and pin her to the ground, but only mildly delays Heilyn. Heilyn, meanwhile, seeing an unknown threat in his path, draws the Staff of Earth and Stone, but luckily uses it only as a quarterstaff to attack Llyr and Wena. Combat ensues, Llyr’s attempts to subdue frustrated by Heilyn’s finely crafted armor, while Wena yells at Heilyn, trying to remind him who he is. Meanwhile the staff, excited by all the commotion, begins sending green tendrils into Heilyn's skin, apparently healing him from Llyr's blows.</p><p></p><p> Meanwhile, we Romans on the other side are increasingly disturbed by the sounds of combat and screams of terror on the other side, and no one is telling us what is going on. Meloch decides to investigate, despite the fact that everyone thinks this is a bad idea. He clambers through, and disappears, running off into the woods, with me, in a spurt of sheer panic. </p><p></p><p>The rest of the group decides that safety lies in numbers and manages to scramble through together, where they assist in restoring Wena to her senses. Wena, finally, manages to snap Heilyn out of his terrified state, since she can empathize with what he was feeling, although she’s somewhat irritated about the several staff blows he’s hit her with by this point. </p><p></p><p></p><p>Meloch and I have hidden at the top of a tree, hoping that the Romans won’t find us, too scared by the dark, keening mist ahead to go any further. Eventually, Llyr tracks us down, and after much negotiation, and some stone-throwing, talks Meloch out of it. I’m still paranoid, however, and burrow even further into the pack. Llyr, in an attempt to lighten the mood, explains that the previous barrier’s message was obviously “Druids have shoddy construction techniques. I would never build a wall that could be knocked down by a little wind.”</p><p></p><p></p><p> Joining hands in an attempt to prevent further flights of panic, we march forward, prepared to face the sixth barrier. All too soon, we hear the eerie screams and cries of pain that scared Meloch and me. The fog is rolling in again, and before us the shadows rise. Quite literally – before us is a group of nearly transparent, staring Celtic ghosts, arms linked, stretching outwards in either direction as far as our eyes can see. They glare accusingly at us, blood still dripping from their ghostly wounds. Many are children, or elderly men and women.</p><p></p><p></p><p> “Nobody touch that wall!” Metellus commands, apparently oblivious to the fact that none of us had any plans to go near it.</p><p></p><p> “Wall of...Ghosts?” Cornelia muses.</p><p></p><p> “No, it’s the Wall of Humans.” Meloch explains. “First we had Trees, which wanted our blood. Then we had Animals, which wanted...plant food. And now we have Ghostly Humans, who want...”</p><p></p><p> “Of course!” Marcus announces. “It’s just like in the Odyssey, when Odysseus has to dig a trench and fill it with animal sacrifices to appease the spirits of the dead in Hades. And Heilyn, you said we were very close to Hades here.”</p><p></p><p> “Ah, yes...” Heilyn answers. “Not that I know what the Odyssey is, or want to get any closer to Hell.”</p><p></p><p></p><p> At this point, I, Shast, begin to get very nervous at the talk of animal sacrifices being needed, particularly since we left Caspar the Goat back on the mainland, along with Heilyn’s stupid dogs. No animal sacrifice here, thank you very much, let’s just hope that everyone forgets about me. </p><p></p><p></p><p>I do catch Heilyn looking thoughtfully at my hiding place, but luckily Llyr spots a rabbit at that moment and nails it with his bola. He and Marcus deftly skin the rabbit and drip its blood into a small trench directly before the angry ghosts. They swarm around it, drinking the blood greedily, much to Cornelia’s horror and the sickness of Metellus’s stomach. However, in doing so they do leave a path open through into the dark fog beyond. Summoning all our courage, we step through, to face the last barrier. As we do, Llyr, a little taken aback, but determined to continue in his critique of the Druidic trials, murmurs, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Orichalcum, post: 1084489, member: 3722"] [b]Fourth Session: Legacies and Freedom Fifth Post: Running Away, and Bloody Rabbits[/b] Walking onwards, somewhat worse for wear, but having made a nice brief meal out of venison and roasted bison, we keep our eyes out for the next Druidic barrier. Luckily, it’s not hard to spot. A huge brick wall, Celtic runes impressed on each brick, stretches up into the sky. It is covered with mud and daub, rendering it fairly slick and without easy handholds. Llyr’s attempts to throw a grappling hook over the top repeatedly fail, and while Marcus, Metellus, and Llyr think they might be able to climb it, it’s clear that neither Cornelia nor Wena stand a chance. “Let’s approach this logically,” Cornelia notes. “This is clearly the Wall of Earth. So far, we’ve had Fire, Trees, Water, and Animals. We got rid of Fire by putting water on it, and of water by using earthy-planty things on it.” “I wanted to divert the water into an aqueduct, or at least dam it.” Llyr complains. “It was already damned, Llyr,” Heilyn retorts. “But Cornelia’s got a point. By that line of reasoning, we ought to be able to deal with this wall by using Air.” “How does that help?” Meloch, increasingly unhappy with our curse, screeches. “We can’t huff and puff and blow this wall down.” “Actually, I can.” Heilyn answers smugly. The party emits a collective “Huh.” “The staff – Aeduana’s staff – that I’m carrying – well, I’ve sort of made friends with it.” Heilyn begins. “We’ve noticed,” Cornelia answers dryly, remembering the green tendrils that keep trying to insinuate themselves into Heilyn’s arm. “At any rate, it’s a Staff of Wind and Stone, and I think, if I ask it nicely, that it will blow the wall down for us.” Heilyn continues, a little cross that his great achievement isn’t being recognized by the other members of the group. “Druidic magic! Ha! There must be some other way. Llyr, knock the wall down, you’re an engineer,” says Marcus. “I could do it in about three weeks with some good siege engines,” Llyr ponders. “We don’t have time for Llyr to knock it down! Heilyn, use the staff!” Wena, also deeply unhappy about the curse, retorts. The Romans look to Metellus for direction, but after momentary indecision he nods to Heilyn. “You might want to all stand back...” Heilyn says, a little nervously. He raises the staff, pointing it at the wall, and speaks to it in a language none of the others understand. Wind begins spiraling out of the raised tip of the staff, forming a whirlwind which grows larger and larger, knocking all of us to the ground. Finally, Heilyn stops chanting, and the whirlwind slams into and through the wall, creating a three-foot wide hole, about six feet off the ground, before whirling back towards us, throwing mud on us, and shooting up through the trees, scattering leaves in its wake. “That’s your...friend?” Meloch asks skeptically. “Look, there’s a hole in the wall, what more do you want?” Heilyn snaps. The hole in the Wall of Earth is only large enough to fit one person through at a time, as they are lifted up by the others. While Marcus initially volunteers to go first, he is clearly the best person to push others up, and so is kept till last. Llyr is boosted up and rolls neatly down on the other side, announcing that the path is all clear, except for some tasty looking rabbits. Heilyn follows, but as Heilyn pushes his chest through the hole, a wave of dizziness washes over him. The Romans are pursuing him. He has to get to the sacred grove. It’s the only way he’ll be safe. Nothing must be allowed to stop him. He shoves through the hole and begins running forward, as Llyr calls out in dismay. Wena, next through the hole, similarly experiences the supernatural terror, and begins darting forwards, although she quickly snaps herself out of it. Llyr manages to snag Wena with his bola and pin her to the ground, but only mildly delays Heilyn. Heilyn, meanwhile, seeing an unknown threat in his path, draws the Staff of Earth and Stone, but luckily uses it only as a quarterstaff to attack Llyr and Wena. Combat ensues, Llyr’s attempts to subdue frustrated by Heilyn’s finely crafted armor, while Wena yells at Heilyn, trying to remind him who he is. Meanwhile the staff, excited by all the commotion, begins sending green tendrils into Heilyn's skin, apparently healing him from Llyr's blows. Meanwhile, we Romans on the other side are increasingly disturbed by the sounds of combat and screams of terror on the other side, and no one is telling us what is going on. Meloch decides to investigate, despite the fact that everyone thinks this is a bad idea. He clambers through, and disappears, running off into the woods, with me, in a spurt of sheer panic. The rest of the group decides that safety lies in numbers and manages to scramble through together, where they assist in restoring Wena to her senses. Wena, finally, manages to snap Heilyn out of his terrified state, since she can empathize with what he was feeling, although she’s somewhat irritated about the several staff blows he’s hit her with by this point. Meloch and I have hidden at the top of a tree, hoping that the Romans won’t find us, too scared by the dark, keening mist ahead to go any further. Eventually, Llyr tracks us down, and after much negotiation, and some stone-throwing, talks Meloch out of it. I’m still paranoid, however, and burrow even further into the pack. Llyr, in an attempt to lighten the mood, explains that the previous barrier’s message was obviously “Druids have shoddy construction techniques. I would never build a wall that could be knocked down by a little wind.” Joining hands in an attempt to prevent further flights of panic, we march forward, prepared to face the sixth barrier. All too soon, we hear the eerie screams and cries of pain that scared Meloch and me. The fog is rolling in again, and before us the shadows rise. Quite literally – before us is a group of nearly transparent, staring Celtic ghosts, arms linked, stretching outwards in either direction as far as our eyes can see. They glare accusingly at us, blood still dripping from their ghostly wounds. Many are children, or elderly men and women. “Nobody touch that wall!” Metellus commands, apparently oblivious to the fact that none of us had any plans to go near it. “Wall of...Ghosts?” Cornelia muses. “No, it’s the Wall of Humans.” Meloch explains. “First we had Trees, which wanted our blood. Then we had Animals, which wanted...plant food. And now we have Ghostly Humans, who want...” “Of course!” Marcus announces. “It’s just like in the Odyssey, when Odysseus has to dig a trench and fill it with animal sacrifices to appease the spirits of the dead in Hades. And Heilyn, you said we were very close to Hades here.” “Ah, yes...” Heilyn answers. “Not that I know what the Odyssey is, or want to get any closer to Hell.” At this point, I, Shast, begin to get very nervous at the talk of animal sacrifices being needed, particularly since we left Caspar the Goat back on the mainland, along with Heilyn’s stupid dogs. No animal sacrifice here, thank you very much, let’s just hope that everyone forgets about me. I do catch Heilyn looking thoughtfully at my hiding place, but luckily Llyr spots a rabbit at that moment and nails it with his bola. He and Marcus deftly skin the rabbit and drip its blood into a small trench directly before the angry ghosts. They swarm around it, drinking the blood greedily, much to Cornelia’s horror and the sickness of Metellus’s stomach. However, in doing so they do leave a path open through into the dark fog beyond. Summoning all our courage, we step through, to face the last barrier. As we do, Llyr, a little taken aback, but determined to continue in his critique of the Druidic trials, murmurs, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." [/QUOTE]
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