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Message: <blockquote data-quote="rootbeergnome" data-source="post: 1163657" data-attributes="member: 3462">Marquette Manaburn has summoned his six journeyman students to the biology laboratory for a meeting.    Marquette is in the lab looking at strange creatures in large jars when the group arrives, he seems rather impatient, but very excited.  The room is full of strange beakers and jars full of strange dead animals and parts of other creatures floating in various liquids.  There are several tables and stools in this long room, but the laboratory is empty, save for Marquette when the group arrives.“Ah!  My prize pupils! Come in, come in!”  Marquette is old and wiry, with small silver rimmed glasses balanced on the end of his pointy nose.  He seems extremely energetic, especially for someone his age.After everyone settles into a stool Marquette begins “So, I’m sure you have all been rather bored as of late.  You have received your journeyman diplomas and still have not been anywhere but the school.  Well, I have good news, I have your first real assignment for you today!” “So the adventuring agent you hired has found us jobs worthy of our expertise?”  Korigahn says with a smirk that shows off his canine teeth.“Um, no I’m afraid the agent still has not contacted me about the jobs for adventurers.  Perhaps he could only find mercenary work, and as you know I am trying to find goodwill missions that will help better the world, not just some hired killing.  Actually your first assignment is something I would like for you to do for me personally.  A friend of mine named ‘Barom the Disenchanted’ lives not far from here in the swamp just south of town.  He is keeping an item of great importance for me, and I am supposed to pick it up this week.  I was wondering if my prize pupils would be so kind as to go and pick it up for me?”The whole group looks somewhat disappointed as they realize this is a simple package delivery job, and not the glorious days of adventuring they have long dreamed of.  Dajsan looks thoughtful “So how do we get there and precisely by what means shall we travel?”  The verrik is always trying to carefully plan things while the rest of the group attempts to charge right into the fray.“Well, I’ll write you a note of permission to the stable boy, who will loan you some horses and you will be on your way.  The item I am supposed to pick up is locked inside of a magically warded chest.  PLEASE, do NOT attempt to open the chest!  What is contained inside is very dangerous.”“What is it? Asks Nerius curiously“I cannot tell you, it is better that you do not know what is contained therein.  Barom lives inside of a giant tree in the swamp here.” He points to the map.  “Here is a small map and the note for the stable boy, you had best be leaving soon if you are to get there by tomorrow.”The group files out of the lab, now somewhat intrigued by their most recent assignment.  They gather things from their rooms, it takes Korigahn a particularly long time to decide if he wants to wear the red tabard or the green tabard as he insists on looking his best out on the town.  They arrive at the stables and are nearly knocked down as the stable boy comes out of the stable leading with his shovel full of horse dung “Pardon me! Coming through!  This smells and it’s heavy!  Out of the way please!”  After the boy deposits a shovel-full of dung onto a small two-wheeled cart, he turns and greets the party “Name’s Jerim, I take care of headmaster’s horses, pleased to meet you!” he extends a filthy dung covered hand, which none of the party seems especially eager to shake.  “oh, right” he looks at his grime covered hand, smiles and leans on the shovel “So you guys have graduated to journeymen huh?  That must be great, you get to go see the world now, and do all kinds of fun things that adventurers get to do, like save damsels and slay monsters, and get rich from treasure!” He seems very excited and awed by the party.  “Well, it’s not exactly all that glorious yet, we just now received our first assignment, so no treasure and fame yet, but we are going to need some horses to get us there.” Nerius hands the stable boy the note from Marquette. “Right.  Let’s go get you some horses.” He leads the party into the stable where they saddle the horses and prepare them for riding, all the while Jerim never stops asking the “adventurers” questions.  Soon they are ready to depart and the stable boy waves goodbye as they ride out of the walled compound where the college is located and into the city of RiverBend.  After a short stopover at a local dried goods store, they make their way to the city gates and out onto the road leading up the coast.  The ride is uneventful, filled with stories from Nerius about all the places he has been and stories from Korigahn about all the battles he has won.Close to dusk the party comes into a low forest of coastal shrubs and short tangled trees.  Just as night is approaching they round a bend and come face to face with what appears to be a hijacking.  About forty feet away there are several men, obviously bandits, unloading a wagon’s contents, while two merchants are standing against the side of the wagon with arms raised.  As the party comes to a halt, the bandits turn and look at them with greedy eyes, eyeing the party’s weapons and money pouches thinking to turn more profit from this encounter.  “Out of here with ya! This don’t concern you, and if ya leaves us some money we’ll spare your lives!”  A large bald man, with one eye and crooked teeth steps forward, appearing to be the leader. “No one messes with Bruiser’s gang, understood?  Now pay up and we won’t have to fill you full of arrows!” The bandits with bows draw their bowstrings and take aim at the party.  “Insolent cur!  Throw down your weapons and come peacefully or we will have to join battle, and personally, I prefer battle.” Korigahn shouts as he draws his athame, a Sibeccai Khopesh.“Ya talk a lot of trash to Bruiser’s boys, and ya can’t count, from where I’m standing, you look to be outnumbered, so just give us yer gold and leave before you get yourselves hurt” Bruiser says with a laugh, as the other bandits join in with chuckles and mean looks.“Maybe we should negotiate with them.” Offers Dajsan, ever the thoughtful and cautious one. “There are many of them, I count at least ten of them” Adds Cualth, the diminutive Faen looking a bit worried.“That just makes it more fun for us.” Nerius smirks and draws his rapier, smiling at Korigahn “Shall I show you how it’s done then?”“Pah!  I shall have this battle over with ere you wet your blade Danesong!” Korigahn charges into one of the bandits near the rear of the wagon, his khopesh humming as it slams into the foe’s body, knocking the man down.Nerius charges as well, and with a deft blow, slides his rapier nimbly past the bandit’s defenses and pierces the man through, taking him out of the battle.  Dajsan drops from his horse, and calling upon his inner power, cold blue flame begins to surround him.  With a cry the witch points both arms at the one-eyed bandit leader and releases a torrent of numbing cold blue flame that arcs through the air and washes over the man.  He cries out in pain as the numbing cold blasts him, and when the flames die down, he is horribly wounded, his flesh black with frostbite.Arrows deflect off of an invisible force around Sesseress as his rune of armor glows on his chest.  He launches a spear into one of the bandit archers and cripples him.A bandit attacks Sadune with his short sword, thinking this unarmed man to be an easy target, but the blow is caught in Sadune’s hands with two flat palms clapped tightly together, and Sadune brings a powerful kick up and into the bandits face, knocking him out cold.The party makes short work of the bandits, and Cualth heals the party’s wounds.  They help the merchants tie up the rest of the bandits, including their blackened leader, and help them load their wares back on the wagon.  They search the bandits for hidden weapons, finding daggers in boots and other nasty things.  The two merchants agree to take the bandits to the authorities, and thank the party heartily.  The bandit leader yells to the party as they ride off “This is not the last you have seen of Bruiser Holloway!  I swear it!!”</blockquote>

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