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Message: <blockquote data-quote="el-remmen" data-source="post: 2810003" data-attributes="member: 11">Session #76 (part 1 of 2)“I am only half-orc!” Ratchis called to the tall ruddy-faced men, as he and the others slowed and took cover, knowing that they could not outrun them with the llama and Kazrack.“We’re tired of evil things messing up our forest, orc!” cried the man who had thrown the melon. There was something in both their voices that belied their height and broad shoulders, something that made them seem much younger than they might initially appear. (1)“Yeah! Go back to your evil elf lady!  We don’t want you around here!” the other added.Logan was crouched behind a tree and Roland took his lead.  Ratchis stopped and faced them from about sixty feet away.“Ratchis! What are you doing?” Roland asked.  Martin drew Fearless the llama deeper into the brush and away from the partial clearing where the confrontation was happening, as Kazrack moved behind a tree himself, his hands tight around the haft of his halberd.“Why don’t you come and fight like real men?  Pansy melon-throwers!” Gunthar jeered from his place beside Ratchis, both swords drawn.He was answered with a melon that smashed painfully against his chest and neck.Logan laughed.“I thought we were trying to avoid fighting…?” Dorn looked back and forth to each member of the party, and then began to load his crossbow. “We know nothing of evil ladies,” Logan called from behind a tree. “We are just trying to pass through this forest, you bloody fools!”“We do not want to fight,” Ratchis added. “We know nothing of this elf woman and we are not evil.  It is as my companion says, we are just passing through.”“Well, the pixies did mention an evil elf,” Kazrack called out, honest to the last.  “But let me ask you this: Are you giants?”“Yes!” cried the first giant youth.  “I am Smeaghele of the Fir Bolg Clan! And we are tired of outsiders coming into our lands and forcing us to move and trying to change our ways.”“We just want to get out of your forest.  We do not want to change your ways,” Martin piped up from in the brush.“I am called Deaghele, and you must come with us to face the judgment of our chieftain and father, Hognir.”“You’re not taking us anywhere,” Gunthar spat. “You wouldn’t be the first giants I cut down to size.  Come on, Kazrack.”  He took a step forward and readied himself to charge when the dwarf did so.“We want to be out of your forest as much as you want us gone,” Logan said. “The best thing you can do is show us the way out.”“Their father may show us the way out,” Ratchis suggested.“We are to trust giants?!” It was Kazrack’s turn to spit.“They are giants and I am an orc,” Ratchis turned to his dwarven companion. “Which of us do you want to attack first?”“Fine!” Kazrack snarled, and turned back to face the young giants.  “You are but children, be off with you before we spank your bottoms and make you run along.”“You must come before Chief Hognir,” Deaghele said. “Now put away your weapons and come along.”“Oh great queen Bast, though who art as nimble as though art powerful, allow me to see inside the hearts of these mortals so I may see their intentions towards us,” (2) Roland chanted softly, rubbing the golden cat’s eye engraved with an ankh around his neck.  “What direction is your tribe?” asked Ratchis.“Towards the old fort of your kin,” Deaghele replied.“I sense no evil in these young giants,” the Bastite called to his companions.  “But I’d still rather not see their father.  I have no desire to be surrounded by giants.”“I said, move along you giantish runts,” Kazrack barked. “I will stay my hand from caving in your skulls since you are not as disgustingly evil as most of your kin.”“Kazrack, they hold us no malice,” Martin said in soothing tones and coming out from the brush, but leaving the llama behind.  He turned to the giants. “But… no offense, we would rather go our own way.”“If you will not come then we must go and tell our kin,” said Smeaghele. “And you may not like it when our rangers find you.”“Go off to your evil dark elfin mistress,” Deaghele said, as they both turned to move off. “She will not save you.”  And with that they took off through the trees with a speed that the belied their size.“Yeah, get out of here!” Logan called after them. “Next time we might not be so nice.”“It boils my blood that giants would accuse me, a dwarf, of being in league with evil,” Kazrack said, combing his beard with his fingers.Ratchis nodded. “It seems no where am I safe from the prejudice of others.”“Gods preserve me!” Logan rolled his eyes.  “A hulking half-orc and a dwarven warrior with hurt feelings, now I have seen everything.”Ratchis snarled.  “Come on, let’s get out of here before they return with others.”---------------------------The Keepers of the Gate continued their eastward hustle.  The woods were not as thick here as they rounded the hill and then took off southward, following Ratchis’ lead.  Kazrack and Martin the Green began to fall behind, and though sure-footed, Fearless the Llama could not gain much speed either.  They had not gone more than another mile or so, and the day’s light was growing long, when they saw a great mound where no trees or plants grew surrounded by over a score of the gray trees they had seen before.  The party moved to circumvent the area, when shapes began to erupt from the earthen mound. The dirt-encrusted corpses of a score of black orcs with chitinous hides crawled out the ground, old spears and axes in hands.  They moved with great speed, hunched over and snorting.“Fresh flesh,” one of them hissed in the language of orcs.  He wore a rotting headdress of bones and feathers and stood nearly seven feet tall, wielding a rusted great sword in his hands, a large notch cut from it. Unlike the others, he was a high orc. (3)“Hurry past them! Double-time!” Ratchis cried to his companions still running, but soon he realized that the undead orcs would cut the line of adventurers in half and separate them into two groups, so he stopped and doubled back.“Come join us in the eternal war, brother!” cried the largest orc.“Destroy them!” cried a high-pitched mellifluous voice, as a slight figure came tumbling out of the brush from the south, long sword in hand.  She had very light brown willowy hair, almost the color of straw, pale skin, delicate features, with the slightest upturn of her tiny nose, and large sparking green eyes. Her ears looked even pointier than those of other elves the party had met, and her face was nearly expressionless, except for the slightest hint of a smirk.  She wore leather armor, and a bluish-purple cloak with red trim, torn in one place and travel-stained.  “Anarié!” cried Martin the Green.“She must be possessed by a witch!” Ratchis called to his friends, worried her command had been to the undead and not to her former companions.  “Don’t hurt her. Stay together! Destroy the undead!”The undead orcs came bursting through the trees as Dorn got down on his hands and knees and began to crawl towards one of the trees to fall asleep.  Logan fought off a wave of drowsiness and drew his long sword, moving to cut off the orcs’ approach to Martin.  The watch-mage led the frightened and spitting llama away from the attackers. “Rivkanal, fill me with your holy might and send these undead foes back to their graves so they may rot in their hells as they deserve,” Kazrack cried to his gods, grasping the pouch of runestones about his neck, but he could feel something about this unholy site resisted the power of his gods.“Bah! We’ll chop these things down in a second! Out of my way, Stumpy!” Gunthar flew into the melee, both blades whirling and humming as the hacked at the first undead orc he met.  In a moment, he was happily creeping towards the next one.“Death the world over! Death the world over!” several of the black orcs croaked in their language.The tallest orc came charging at Ratchis with its great sword over its head, but at the last moment it clawed at the half-orc with cold black talons. Ratchis felt a eerily familiar coldness wash over him, but he shook it off.“Beware, this is a wight!” Ratchis warned the others, swinging his own great sword to keep the creature at bay.  .Stepping back, Ratchis called to his goddess to increase his strength, and Kazrack followed suit.“Bah! You are still weak in Ashronk’s eye!” the wight said, swinging its sword downward.  Ratchis was barely able to parry the blow, and felt the shock run up his arm to his neck and shoulder with sharp needles of pain.“I shall cleave your head and dedicate it to Krauchaar!” Kazrack roared, taking the top of one’s skull right off, but it did not fall.“Lentus!” Martin chanted, but the spell had no effect.“Great Cat Queen!  These abominations show great strength, please help me to show them your own,” Roland cried, clasping a hand to his holy symbol, and a wave of holy energy burst out from a spot twenty feet ahead of him, smiting the orcish undead.  Several fell, their animated force snuffed out, but Logan cried out in pain as well, as he instinctively tried to roll away from the spell’s effect, but he could not evade it completely.“That hurt!” he complained, chopping open the chest of another orc, and then finishing it with another blow to the back of the head as it stumbled.Gunthar laughed at the Herman-Lander, as he cut down yet another undead orc, moving through them like a scythe through the wheat, if wheat erupted into black ichor when it was cut. Kazrack hurried over to aid Ratchis as soon as he cut down the ghoul before him.  The undead orc chieftain was distracted, and the half-orc was able to cut deep into its thigh causing its defense to drop.  Kazrack’s halberd blade slid into its lower back, and was jerked back out bringing a chunk of black and rotted kidney with it.“You will join our ancestors in hell!” Ratchis roared, and drove the point of his sword into the wight’s neck, twisting. The thing fell over, unmoving.Anarié tumbled around one of the undead orcs that finally made it to her, and cut its leg out from under it.Logan and Gunthar argued as they herded three of the ghouls between them, driving them back and forth with blows from their swords, and making their way towards each other with anger.  When the last orc fell, they stood facing each other and breathing hard, swords still raised as if ready to strike.“Fortune smiles upon us that you would come this way,” Anarié said to her former companions.  She sheathed her sword, and placed a hand on her hip, flashing one of her rare smiles.  “Perhaps you can accomplish what the giants were unwilling to do.”Martin walked over and stepped between Logan and Gunthar and the two warriors put their weapons away.“And what is that?” Ratchis asked Anarié. He did not put his sword away.“Cleanse this forest of the evil within it,” Anarié said. “The real evil, that is…” “And what are you doing here?” Kazrack said, taking a place beside Ratchis, and still clutching his weapon as well.Anarié’s face remained impassive, but her green eyes shone as they moved from one weapon and then the other.“Business,” she replied. “Things that elves need take care of. I originally came here seeking out Aríon, who came here seeking Tirhas.”“Nephthys! Please show me the intentions of our former companion so that we may choose freely with full knowledge of our circumstances,” Ratchis prayed openly to his goddess to detect evil.The corner of Anarié’s mouth twitched into a momentary smirk.“I am sorry, but many things have happened since you were gone and we cannot be too cautious,” the half-orc said in his rasping voice.Anarié nodded.  They now noticed she carried several wounds, so Ratchis healed her with his goddess’ power.“We return to Greenreed Valley to seek the entrance to Hurgun’s Maze,” Kazrack said.  “We do not have time to wander about this forest after the witch, but we still intend to help with that endeavor when times allows.”Anarié shook her head. “Best leave the witches to my kin who are best prepared to handle the situation.  Soon, we will be traveling into the Plutonic Realms to investigate the plans of our evil brethren.”“So, what is this real evil you spoke of?” the dwarf asked.“The undead spirits of orcs haunt portions of this forest from a war long ago during the Second Great Wandering of Elves,” Anarié explained. (4) “But they are ruled by the undead spirit of elf, she must be destroyed.”“So that is the evil elf lady the pixies mentioned?” Martin the Green asked walking over.  He and Logan had found a bag of old coins at the base of one of the trees when they pulled Dorn away from it, and he handed it to Ratchis.Anarié paused.  “Yes.”Martin’s brow furrowed.“And who is this?” Anarié asked, as Roland walked over, and Logan joined them as well.  Introductions were made, but Logan only grunted his hello, taking the bag back from Ratchis and up-ending it to count through what it had.  There were many old silver dwarven obleks and a few Tempestas silver-leaves. (5)As the money was divided, Anarié warned them of some of the features of the forest.“Avoid the swamp directly east of here,” she said. “The lights there draw mortals to their deaths.”“How shall we know when we approach this evil place?” Kazrack asked.“It will be swampy,” Anarié said, with no hint of humor.“How fares Aze Nuquerna?” asked Martin.“Last time I was there Ethiel and the others were much concern over the rate of growth of the area of steam in Greenreed Valley.  It had gotten so it could be seen for miles, reaching into the sky, and was widening on a daily basis,” she replied.“We’re not going there are we?” Logan asked.“Stupid!  Of course we’re going there,” Gunthar replied. “Unless you might wet yourself…”“We are sorry we cannot give you aid now, but you know how important it is that we reach the valley in time and deal with this threat,” Ratchis said to the elf.  “But perhaps we can escort your part of the way to where you need to go?”“You need not worry. We all have our roles to play,” Anarié said.  “And I must be off to see to my own, but as my people say, ‘A star shines brightly on the hour of our meeting’ I take it as a good sign of our successes to come.”“One last thing,” Martin asked. “Where is the Right Blade of Arofel?”  The mage had noticed the blade was not at her side. (6)“Oh! I returned it to Ethiel to be placed in the vaults of Aze Nuquerna until such time it might be granted as a gift again, or some heir of Arofel or Jeremy come to claim it.”Martin’s eyes narrowed. Something was not right about that answer.“That would be me!” Gunthar said.  “We have to go get it!”“After this is all done,” Ratchis said. “You can go wherever you want.”“I can go wherever I want now.”“Then go, who’s stopping you?” Logan snapped.“What? And miss Ratchis having to wipe your ass and powder your bottom when we come across something worth fighting and you soil yourself while hiding behind a tree?” Gunthar said.Logan’s hand went to the hilt of his sword.“Enough! Let’s go!” Ratchis said.They wished Anarié luck in her endeavors, and soon made their way through the forest again, turning north this time to avoid the swamp, and in a hope that the change in direction might throw off whatever giants might be tracking them.  Roland transformed back into panther form and took the rear of the line.Martin the Green left the care of the llama to Gunthar and walked to the front to talk with Ratchis.  Sweat poured off the half-orc’s ridged brow with each great step he took, his head constantly turning from side to side to pick out the best path and to stay alert for any approaching dangers.“Anarié was hiding something,” Martin said to his companion.Ratchis grunted.“Both when I asked her about the elf witch and about the Right the Blade of Arofel, she seemed to hesitate as if she were picking her words carefully,” the watch-mage added.“I detected no evil,” Ratchis replied.  “And she never was one to talk much…”“That might not mean anything,” Martin said.  “She might not have intended evil to us, but still be possessed by one of the drow witches.  Remember, Tirhas traveled with us while possessed and helped us quite a bit.” (7)“Perhaps I should have checked for charm,” Ratchis said.  “But even if she is possessed, we cannot afford to be pulled off track now.  Autumn approaches, and we must be on that ridge when it arrives.” (8)“We would abandon a friend to such a fate?” Martin asked in disbelief.Ratchis shrugged his shoulders and grunted once again.   Martin called back for Kazrack to join them, and the half-orc sighed and slowed his pace.They argued for a time, but in the end, Kazrack agreed with Ratchis, the Keepers of the Gate had to press on.  One day they would return to do their best to set to right all they had had to pass over.Martin noticed that Logan had been hanging back, but had been in earshot the whole time.Darkness crept over the forest from the east, and soon, Ratchis was looking for a good place to make camp, but before he could he was interrupted.Roland came running up in panther form, whining and growling and throwing his head back towards the rear of the line.  They could now all hear something large smashing through the undergrowth, and in the dying light there appeared a giant of a man.  He was just over ten feet tall and wore studded leather armor.  A huge bastard sword was strapped to his back, and a large javelin in his hand.  He had long red hair braided in one great knot running down his back, and well-kept beard.“Run!” cried Ratchis, turning to lead the way, but Kazrack turned around and brought his halberd before him, readying.“Form a line!” the dwarf cried to his companions.  “We cannot outrun this foe!”“Can we hide?” Logan asked.  Gunthar snickered, drawing his two swords and standing beside Kazrack.“It is too late, but find cover,” Kazrack replied.Ratchis growled and stopped, pulling his own sword reluctantly.“Kazrack is right!” Martin said, still moving to get behind Ratchis.  “Interlopers! Begone!” the giant boomed.  “You will not further desecrate this forest!”“If you want us gone why do you keep trying to keep us from leaving?” Logan yelled back. He noticed a second giant with a long bow further back, crouched beside an ash tree.“We only seek to leave this forest as quickly as we can!” Martin called to the giant.“Trust me, you foul creature!  At any other time I would like nothing better than to knock your kneecaps off, but for now we must leave,” Kazrack’s hatred and anger bubbled in the spit at the corners of his mouth.“We only want to go,” Ratchis re-iterated.“Heh! We know you were negotiating with the witch’s elfin minion!” the giant replied. ---------------------------------Notes:(1) DM’s Note: This adventure was adapted from “Things That Go Bump In The Night” by Rich Stump, from Dungeon magazine #38.(2)    DM’s Note: In Aquerra, the detect evil only detects evil intention, and those creatures who are inherently evil, such as fiends.(3)    High orcs and black orc never work together unless both are being led by some third greater power, such as in the times of the Humano-Orc Wars.(4)    The Second Great Wandering of Elves is said to have begun in the Year 286 of the Third Age, about 1700 years before present time.(5)    Tempestas’ money is created through a mysterious process where leaves are dipped in the molten metal, and as they disintegrate the metal takes the leaf’s shape.  The money is highly valuable in most places in central Aquerra.(6)    The Right Blade of Arofel was given as a gift from the elves of Aze Nuquerna to Jeremy Northrop, and upon his death it was given to Derek Jamison to hold.  Not long after young Derek was killed, the party gave the sword to Anarié.(7)    In the Honeycombe (see sessions #23 & 24)(8) The party learned this in the map room beneath the Pit of Bones (see Session #62)</blockquote>

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