Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Traycor" data-source="post: 3942485" data-attributes="member: 54613">Storm-Peace“Another hit like that will break yer damn fingers, elf,” said Thelkur. A cold wind was blowing in from the north, but he tried to ignore that far off danger and focus on the present.He swung his hammer hard into the skinny rapier of his opponent, nearly tearing it free. “Get back to yer damned trees!” Thelkur growled in frustration. He had been fighting the elusive creature for too long. If this elf continued to evade his attacks, it might get lucky and put that blade through Thelkur’s ribs.The elf did not reply, and Thelkur was starting to suspect that the elf had no choice in the matter. Squinting for a better view, Thelkur bashed away a rapier thrust with one of his bucklers as he eyed the dark cloth wrapped around the elf’s mouth and jaw.A black raven circled overhead, flapping frantically. “Child of Moradin, there is no need to fight,” said the Raven in a raspy voice. “Return home to your dwarven kin. A storm brews.”“Damn bird is giving me the willies,” said Thelkur. “Shut the blasted thing up!” The bird had been doing most of the talking since Thelkur had arrived, and talking beasts meant magic. As Thelkur glanced at the raven, he did take note of the darkening sky. If this fight did not end soon, they would all be dead.Thelkur swung wildly to back the elf away while he grabbed a second hammer from his belt. It was time to be done with this. He ran wide of his opponent and flung both his hammers.<img src="http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/Dulafen/Combat.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />Quick and agile, the elf seemed to float out of the way. Thelkur found the show of unnatural grace to be more than a bit creepy. He preferred enemies that stood still and took their licks. As Thelkur readied another hammer, he noticed too late a crackle of multicolored lights forming in the elf’s free hand.Rainbows of dazzling radiance exploded in Thelkur’s face, staggering him. Immediately the elf was on him, thrusting his rapier in quick jabbing motions and dancing circles as Thelkur struggled to remain facing his opponent.“Damn fool! My fat, bushy eyebrows blind me already.” Thelkur tried to sound confident, but his feeble old eyes were stinging sorely. He could barely see what was happening. The elf sensed his weakness and pressed the advantage furiously with alternating high and low strikes.“Yield,” cried the raven overhead. “My master, Galador will allow you to leave unharmed.”Roaring his outrage, Thelkur barreled forward. His helmet had a fat horn mounted on the front, carved from hard bone, and he intended to make use of it. The old dwarf covered his face with his bucklers and ignored the fire in his gut as Galador’s rapier slipped between the scales of his armor. When the horn caught Galador in the face, it deflected off harmlessly instead of disfiguring his angled features as it should.“Enough with the magic!” cried Thelkur. Even though the horn failed to gore Galador, it still snapped the elf’s head back and Thelkur never slowed down, slamming his hard body into his frail adversary.Galador went into a backwards roll and came lightly to his feet, but his rapier was still firmly planted in Thelkur’s gut. With a grunt, the surly dwarf pulled the sword loose. That sight distracted Galador enough for Thelkur to throw another hammer. With quickness that rivaled a cat, Galador split his legs and fell flat, allow the hammer to flip harmlessly overhead.Only then did Galador realize that he had not been the target. The talking raven was coming around behind Galador as it circled, and the hammer clipped the bird soundly. Galador dove for the falling bird, knowing that the dwarf would be close behind. He caught Ezra the raven and threw himself into a sidelong roll to get out of the dwarf’s way.Thelkur thundered past Galador, his horn lowered in a charge. “You’ve lost yer weapon and yer bird. Surrender already!”Ezra was alive in Galador’s hands, but in sorry shape. Thelkur noticed that the bird was moving its beak open and shut. Must be in a lot of pain, he thought. Then flecks of ice and snow formed in the palm of Galador’s hand amid a pale blue glow. Ezra shrieked and Galador thrust his hand at Thelkur, shooting forth a ray of freezing air and ice. It caught Thelkur on the arm, immediately numbing it and building a layer of frost on his exposed skin.Galador’s rapier fell from Thelkur’s numb fingers.<img src="http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/Dulafen/Thelkur02.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />“So that’s it then,” said Thelkur. He wanted no more of this fight. The wound to his belly was bleeding freely. If they kept fighting like this, it would be too late by the time Thelkur was able to treat the injury.The world went white as a bolt of lightning hit a tree only a few yards away. Thelkur and Galador both flew back from the force of the blast, sending them sprawling in the grass. Water hit Thelkur’s face, and by the time he looked up it was pouring rain. Flames engulfed the ruined tree and the patter of distant hail rippled over the hills.“Storm-peace?” asked Thelkur.“Storm-peace,” said Ezra weakly. All reasoning beings abided by the Storm-peace. The weather in those lands was violent in the extreme. Thelkur had often wondered if some ancient wizard had caused the problems with the devastating storms. Wizards like Galador. Whatever the cause, the storms were dangerous enough to call a universal end to all hostilities.Galador pointed to a tor rising up only a few hundred yards away. It was the reason they had both come, but now it might save their lives. At the peak of the stony tor, a crumbling tower rose high, its outline illuminated by a sudden flash of lightning.Thelkur nodded and quickly ran to retrieve his thrown hammers. Galador scooped up his rapier and sprinted for the tor. The nimble elf quickly outdistanced the dwarf, and Thelkur lost sight of Galador in the darkening gloom and swirl of rain. Booms of thunder sounded about Thelkur like the blows of some vengeful giant. He could actually feel the sound hitting him in the chest.A wave of dizziness dropped Thelkur to his knees. The blood loss was too much.“Moradin. I need your help.”Thelkur placed his hands over the gash and prayed. He felt the wound close over; it was far from healed, but at the least the bleeding had stopped. Thelkur kissed the anvil and hammer design on his buckler, the holy symbol of Moradin’s faithful.“My thanks, as always.”Ringing, like tiny hammers on Thelkur’s helmet, reminded him to keep moving. The hail was coming down hard. He hopped to his feet and dashed for the tor, its darkness looming up before him. It was too high to climb in the foul weather, but maybe he could find shelter somewhere around its base. A massive, arched entryway slowly emerged from the rain, set into the side of the hill. The hail intensified, stinging Thelkur’s skin until he was able to dash underneath the archway.“Howdy,” said Thelkur to Galador, who was crouching on the far side, closely inspecting Ezra.Galador looked up at Thelkur and scowled.<img src="http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w73/Dulafen/Galador.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" /></blockquote>

Verification