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<blockquote data-quote="arwink" data-source="post: 477926" data-attributes="member: 2292">Tuesday, August 15th, 518 AF, Continued Yip holds his paws in the air as he approaches the panicking figure, trying hard to look unthreatening.&quot;Yip not hurt,&quot; the kobold says forcefully.&nbsp; &quot;Brother Yip work for the Church.&quot;Before he gets further into his placating speach, a pair of dwarves come barreling out of the darkness and put themselves between the screaming human and the kobold.&quot;Shut up,&quot; Durhon screams, his face twisting into a snarl.&nbsp; &quot;Every blasted critter in a twelve mile radius heard you screaming, and a wild kobold ain't goin to scare 'em off.&quot;The angry dwarf's grim visage and odour do little to calm the man down.&nbsp; Taranos sends his companions back to the fire and tries to calm the stranger down on his own.&nbsp; Although short, he does bear the holy symbol of Heironous and has bathed at least once in recent memory, so he does a lot better.&nbsp; He convinces the stranger to stop screaming, explains that Yip is tame and a servant of St Cuthbert's church, and eventually convinces the man to join them by the fire.The human Taranos leads into the fire is ragged, his clothing patchedworked with cured pelts from a dozen animals.&nbsp; There are small twigs twinned into his matted hair, and the half-crazed grin he offers the vetrans is missing several teeth.&quot;This is Del,&quot; Taranos says.&nbsp; &quot;Someone give him some food.&quot;Warwind is the only person carrying spare rations, and there is a great deal of grumbling from the elf as he hands over a few strips of dried meat and a bread loaf.&nbsp; After weeks of watching Durhon eating, none of them react to the undisguised gusto that Del uses to attack his food, gobbets of spit and half-chewed food dropping out of his mouth.&nbsp; The wild-eyed man grins happily as he talks around his meal.&quot;Many thanks,&quot; he says.&nbsp; &quot;Ain't had a meal like that in a while.&nbsp; Gets' sparse, out here.&nbsp; Not much call for bakers to travel this far out, ye know?&nbsp; And I'm not much of a cook myself.&quot;There is a quick round of questions, and the vetrans discover that Del is a hermit who lives in the hills.&nbsp; He hides out in a few scattered caves, although he won't give them any idea of where they are, and he makes a meager living trapped and skinning creatures for an elven merchant who makes a pilgrimage to the hills once every three months or so.&nbsp; Eventually, Yip asks about strangers wandering the hills.&quot;Sure,&quot; Del says.&nbsp; &quot;But they aren't real friendly folk.&nbsp; Brown robed, a lot of them.&nbsp; Priestlike.&nbsp; They wander back and forth between the town and the old gatehouse.&nbsp; Sometimes they even bring wagons.&nbsp; They gots beastmen with 'em, big buggers with axes and fur.&nbsp; They act all secret-like, but old Del see's em.&nbsp; They're in my hills, so I know they're here.&quot;&quot;The gatehouse?&quot; Taranos says.&nbsp; &quot;They're actually poking around in the ruins?&quot;Del nods.&nbsp; Durhon is grins to himself at the news.&quot;Looks like I'll gets to kill something soon after all.&quot;Del immediately widens his eyes, panic writ on his features.&quot;No,&quot; he screams.&nbsp; &quot;Don't go to the gatehouse.&nbsp; It's dangerous.&nbsp; Frightening.&nbsp; Not safe to go there, even before.&nbsp; People don't stay dead, not even the brown-robes.&nbsp; Dangers.&nbsp; Many dangers.&quot;Everyone shrugs.&nbsp; They were expecting as much anyway.&nbsp; Ruined strongholds of evil gods have a natural attraction for the undead.&nbsp; Then Warwind runs through Del's statement in his head, and runs across a frightening thought.&quot;Even before?&quot; he asks.&nbsp; &quot;You mean its worse since the clerics and beastmen came?&quot;&quot;No,&quot; Del replies.&nbsp; &quot;They were just poking around.&nbsp; Worse since the dragon came.&nbsp; Big bugger, just landed in the ruins and crawled inside.&nbsp; I been hearing screams from inside for days.&nbsp; Don't wanna be goin near a dragon.&nbsp; It ain't healthy.&quot;No-one has anything to say to tha, but there's a sudden clench of fear and doubt in every gut.&nbsp; They were asked to track down stray priests, not slay a dragon.&nbsp; Even after the horrors of the Trollmists, it's not a prospect they look forward too.&nbsp; They set watch, and everyone tries to sleep while Warwind takes first shift.&nbsp; Del curles up by their fire, drifting off into sleep in a matter of seconds.&nbsp; The Vetrans, trying to remember as much dragon lore as they can, take a lot longer to drift off.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="arwink, post: 477926, member: 2292"] [I]Tuesday, August 15th, 518 AF, Continued[/I] Yip holds his paws in the air as he approaches the panicking figure, trying hard to look unthreatening. "Yip not hurt," the kobold says forcefully. "Brother Yip work for the Church." Before he gets further into his placating speach, a pair of dwarves come barreling out of the darkness and put themselves between the screaming human and the kobold. "Shut up," Durhon screams, his face twisting into a snarl. "Every blasted critter in a twelve mile radius heard you screaming, and a wild kobold ain't goin to scare 'em off." The angry dwarf's grim visage and odour do little to calm the man down. Taranos sends his companions back to the fire and tries to calm the stranger down on his own. Although short, he does bear the holy symbol of Heironous and has bathed at least once in recent memory, so he does a lot better. He convinces the stranger to stop screaming, explains that Yip is tame and a servant of St Cuthbert's church, and eventually convinces the man to join them by the fire. The human Taranos leads into the fire is ragged, his clothing patchedworked with cured pelts from a dozen animals. There are small twigs twinned into his matted hair, and the half-crazed grin he offers the vetrans is missing several teeth. "This is Del," Taranos says. "Someone give him some food." Warwind is the only person carrying spare rations, and there is a great deal of grumbling from the elf as he hands over a few strips of dried meat and a bread loaf. After weeks of watching Durhon eating, none of them react to the undisguised gusto that Del uses to attack his food, gobbets of spit and half-chewed food dropping out of his mouth. The wild-eyed man grins happily as he talks around his meal. "Many thanks," he says. "Ain't had a meal like that in a while. Gets' sparse, out here. Not much call for bakers to travel this far out, ye know? And I'm not much of a cook myself." There is a quick round of questions, and the vetrans discover that Del is a hermit who lives in the hills. He hides out in a few scattered caves, although he won't give them any idea of where they are, and he makes a meager living trapped and skinning creatures for an elven merchant who makes a pilgrimage to the hills once every three months or so. Eventually, Yip asks about strangers wandering the hills. "Sure," Del says. "But they aren't real friendly folk. Brown robed, a lot of them. Priestlike. They wander back and forth between the town and the old gatehouse. Sometimes they even bring wagons. They gots beastmen with 'em, big buggers with axes and fur. They act all secret-like, but old Del see's em. They're in my hills, so I know they're here." "The gatehouse?" Taranos says. "They're actually poking around in the ruins?" Del nods. Durhon is grins to himself at the news. "Looks like I'll gets to kill something soon after all." Del immediately widens his eyes, panic writ on his features. "No," he screams. "Don't go to the gatehouse. It's dangerous. Frightening. Not safe to go there, even before. People don't stay dead, not even the brown-robes. Dangers. Many dangers." Everyone shrugs. They were expecting as much anyway. Ruined strongholds of evil gods have a natural attraction for the undead. Then Warwind runs through Del's statement in his head, and runs across a frightening thought. "Even before?" he asks. "You mean its worse since the clerics and beastmen came?" "No," Del replies. "They were just poking around. Worse since the dragon came. Big bugger, just landed in the ruins and crawled inside. I been hearing screams from inside for days. Don't wanna be goin near a dragon. It ain't healthy." No-one has anything to say to tha, but there's a sudden clench of fear and doubt in every gut. They were asked to track down stray priests, not slay a dragon. Even after the horrors of the Trollmists, it's not a prospect they look forward too. They set watch, and everyone tries to sleep while Warwind takes first shift. Del curles up by their fire, drifting off into sleep in a matter of seconds. The Vetrans, trying to remember as much dragon lore as they can, take a lot longer to drift off. [/QUOTE]

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