Tales around the Campfire

[Ferrix]

Slate grimaces, drawn and morbid, as Elial makes for the doorway. Raising a gloved hand to his mouth he is drawn for a moment into a small bout of coughs, those with keen enough eyes can make out the dark flecks of blood on the black leather, this coil of life drains me. Drawing himself up to his full dark height he'll walk towards the door, the hard crack of a leather heel driving itself into the floor with each step carries the inn keepers eyes sharply to Slate. Casting a graven look upon the man, he sighs and the chain draped over his shoulders echo in kind with a menacing rattle, and the innkeeper averts his eyes and mutters a prayer against evil spirits. Once more he resumes pace towards the doorway, *clack* *clack* *clack*.

will save 15

 

[Sparky]

Inside:

Dross' tail wags hesitantly and he whines, hackles still bristling down his back. The girl and the scholar hobble over to the angry villagers who flinch and scowl mightily, but otherwise submit themselves to the gir's examination. Sharra is shaken out of a moment's shuts her mouth with an audible snap before she bustles off to gather her knitting basket.

Mustafah:

Spoiler

Before the scholar sweeps his hand over the table - the table top appears to change. It is covered with carvings and images and runes and you can ... almost... make some sense of it. It makes your brain squirm to look at it. When the Scholar's hand passes over the table the carvings vanish.

Mustafah draws his slim blade with appropriate flourish and kicks at Stumbin. The armored young man starts and struggles to his feet, stepping on his robes and nearly falling again in the process. He glowers and grabs the scythe from the ground before looking up with no small amount of fear on his face.

Elial draws his axe and rushes out of the door. Kennet rushes to shut it and shrinks back from Slate as the menacing man approaches and silently exits the Inn's cozy interior.

Stumbin staggers, still not all together with it and brandishing his scythe not at all towards the door, valiantly cries, "Come with me!"

He allows himself to be pivoted gently in the correct direction by a patient Hella and, after a moment of confusion, makes for the door himself. Kennet ducks the man's swinging scythe blade and with a prayer - or was that a curse? - abandons the door to help his wife who has just bustled back into the common room with her basket in tow.

Outside:

A wave of sound crashes into you as hundreds upon thousands, no, tens of thousands, of birds fly tumbling past in a screeching horde. It is late, but this far north the western sky is dimly lit. Lit enough to make the dark, massive blot in the northern sky easily visible. A red glow radiates from behind the strangely moving shape outlining it and turning the northern sky to blood. Tall folks, like Slate, are forced to duck the lower swoops of panicked birds. You can see broken avian bodies piling up on the northern faces of the village buildings. The crazed birds seem to flee before the darkness. Or herald its coming...

OOC: Apologies for the delay.

 

[doghead]

Hella

Hella order Dross to heel. She settles the bundle more comfortably on her back, then hangs the greatsword over her shoulder by the strap. Cautiously she moves outside.

With the others in front of her, it takes a moment for her to realise what is going on. When she does, she mutters a curse, then a blessing, under her breath. And ducks back behind the shelter of the larger folk.

"Are we planning to fight that?"

As she asks, she reaches for the comforting feel of Dross. Giving him a pat, and then taking him by the collar, just in case. He's still young.

 

[DrZombie]

"Eeush... ebla... Whafu?" For the first time as far as anyone can remember, Mustafah hasn't got anything witty to say. He just stands there, slackjawed, staring at whatever it is that comes flying towards the village, his sabre trembing slightly. The words of Hella seem to shake him out of his stupor.

"Fight it? Yeah sure. You just charge it, I'll be right behind you." He says, looking at the mad little halfling. "Have you been eating those funny mushrooms again?".
"Offcourse, not that I'm afraid or anything. No , really. We eeeuhm, we eeeeuhm. Yes, we're sworn to protect the scholar and his babe. Did I say babe? His pupil I mean. That's it. Sworn to protect them. So eeeuhm we should, eeeuhm, retreat somewhere safe. Obviously. To protect them. From that thing there. Hmm. Yes. Tactically retreat out of the way of that big flying thing to protect our guests. Damn. We must retreat. Yes. Honor compells me to retreat and protect my guests. Too bad really. Yeah, we could have taken it on, easily. Kill it and go for its treasures. But alas, we must protect our guests. I want to fight it, but I can't. Damn that old man. He's cramping my style. Sorry for the villagers, but we must go. We'll save'em another time really. Maybe that cute blonde would wanna join us."
Safe in the knowledge that his reputation as fearsome warrior is safe, Mustafah shouts defiance at the oncoming what he believes to be a dragon, but not too loudly lest it should take notice of him. He then prepares to make a run for it.
"Ha, you'll escape us this time, monster, but next time only one of us will live. Honour commands me to leave, but we'll meet again."

To the rest :
"Whattaya waiting for, let's get the hell outta here."

 

[doghead]

Hella

Hella googles at Mustafah. ...?

"Whattaya waiting for, let's get the hell outta here."

"Hoy! Where do you suggest we go to?"

 

[DrZombie]

Bump

 

[Sparky]

OOC: Thanks for the bump.

The looming darkness moves closer, covering the distance at an unbelievable pace while not seeming to move at all. A sweeping ripple can be seen all along the edge of the mass, up and down, rather like a bird's wing, but much slower, more like great waves on the sea - for those of you who've seen the ocean.

All at once the crazed flock of birds thins and the sky above grows quiet. Feathers float and twist in the silence, drifting down to the ground. A few curtains are drawn back and just as swiftly shut as the homesteaders see the coming darkness.

There seems to be something flying along in the deeper shadows cast by the thing in the sky. And something on the ground as well. Stumbin's mouth gapes and he points, collapsing again, this time to his knees curling an arm reflexively around his face and head. He groans and struggles upright.

Spot and Listen checks, please.

 

[DrZombie]

Mustafah throws another long on the fire, sending up a great showering of sparks, startling the listeners, and , for a moment, breaks the spell of the story as a few laughs rise from the audience at the sight of old Harolf hastily brushing a glowing ember fom his now smoking majestic beard. While some use the occasion to get some more ale or answer natures call, Mustafah leans back against the wagon, almost absentmindedly putting an arm around Laea as she snuggles closer. Thoughtfully he lights his waterpipe and chuckles as Elial casually comes closer for a shared smoke, remembering the first time the Dwarh saw the hookah, and loudly proclaim that a dwarven pipe was good enough for him, that he didn't need a foreigners apparatus to ruin perfectly good pipeweed. We've all learned a lot since then. Realleah, I can't believe how young we were. It seems like ages ago, and at the same time as if it happened only yesterday. Once again he lets himself be taken away by the story, enjoying the warmth of the women next to him, the pipeweed playing over his tongue, and the good friend by his side. That was a very close call there, a different roll of the dice and we wouldn't be sitting here together, friend. We were young, foolish, and above all, very , very, lucky. Offcourse we thought it was skill, back then.

Spot 15, Listen 7

 

[doghead]

Hella, the short one.

Hella takes the break in the story as a opportunity to gaze up at the stars for a bit. Couldn't see them that night. she recalls suddenly.

ooc: Spot 6, Listen 17.

 

[DrZombie]

A gentle tap to his boot reminds mustafah that the pipe has gone out. He laughs at the, for the dwarf, subtle reminder, and lights it again, then passes it over to Elial again.

OOC : BUMP