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Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cerulean_Wings" data-source="post: 4016173" data-attributes="member: 55060">Hoo-hah! Another update, as promised <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />From my assessment of the view count, I'd say there's an average of 30 people or so reading every chapter I dish out. Wouldn't it be nice if those 30 people came out and said hello? (hint hint, yes, I'm looking at you)In any case, I should be able to write up the next update tomorrow, so this chapter's end will be a short cliffhanger  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" /> Chapter 16Stone crusherIt took practically a week for them to reach the Gray Spears. Traveling to the Rainbow River, with its unique fish that shone multicolored light when the sun was upon them, had taken half that time, and crossing it had been a simple matter, for Kahleen knew of the exact location of a bridge. The shaman was a great asset for the journey, since they were effectively making the return trip to her tribe in the Frostfell Mountains. Kahleen estimated it would take close to a month to reach the frozen lands to the north from where they were. Not surprisingly, the map they had was in accord with this and any other assessments she had made. While Gilliam admitted that he had once made a journey across the Gray Spears himself, he claimed to have little memory of the trip, and thus his knowledge was limited.The weather in the Spears was less warm than the hills and grassland they had been through, but at the same time there was less wind, with the tall peaks guarding them from gale gusts. The initial ascent to the mountains had been treacherous, since they didn't have specialized equipment for the climb. Gilliam and Darius were expert climbers, and so they went up each ledge first, securing a rope at the top and helping the other three get up. Vincent had never received such training from House Kashtar, and his heavy armor made things even trickier for him, but he managed to climb time and again, through sheer force of will, slipping more than once, and falling flat on his back.On the other hand, Kahleen had no such troubles, for the wizened shaman understood the land better, and her knowledge of nature made up for her lack of climbing talents. She also facilitated Vincent's climb with a shamanic spell she used every now and then, allowing the burdened elf to go up the walls like a spider. Gon had a moderately difficult time, and while his expertise didn't lay in traversing mountains, his agility complimented his efforts, and it was rare to see him slip off a mountain wall. They were forced to take frequent breaks in order to regain their breath and assess what the best route would be to go on. At first, the four men saw this part of the trek like a daunting and epic area to overcome, but their anxiety was dissipated once Kahleen explained that they wouldn't have to climb constantly in order to reach the other side of the Gray Spears.“There's a natural canyon that runs east, and we should be able to reach it in a day. Once we make it there, we won't have to climb anymore, and the town of Wellspring will be found in the middle of it, where we can restore our supplies” she explained to the others while they rested within a small indentation against the mountain wall. Wherever one looked from that vantage point, there were only tall peaks surrounding the place, and it was hard to believe that a canyon was actually somewhere ahead.Vincent seemed relieved by this, for his full plate was wearing him down, slowly but surely. The squire spent most of the time drenched in sweat, even though it wasn't very hot, for all the effort he was putting into climbing. “That's good to hear, Kahleen” he said. “Aah, Wellspring, quite the place!” Gon commented. “I've been there a couple of times” he said, and in response Gilliam's inquisitive stare, added “Before joining the Honor Guard, that is”.The mercenary still had a look of suspicion, but didn't press the matter. “Unless we encounter any wild beasts on the way, we should be fine. Our worst enemy, aside from monsters and animals, is the land itself” he told the others, looking over to the edge afterwards. “Falling down would mean death, or with some luck, crippling your body in a painful way”.“It'd be a shame if such an accident happened”.Everyone turned to face the red-headed man after he said those words. He smiled and shrugged, disarming the tension. “I'm just saying! It would be a shame to lose any of us to the Gray Spears, yes?”.Darius muttered something along the lines of “Not if it's you”, but Gon didn't seem to hear it. Shaking his head, Gilliam stood and took a closer look to the path that they were to take after the rest. It was a curved slope, which was hugging the mountain wall as it went up and to the right. It allowed for one person to go at a time, but even one climber would have to press himself hard against the wall in order to avoid falling back.“I'm ready, we can continue” Vincent said, slowly getting up from his seat on the ground, dusting off his plate as he did. The action was unnecessary, for it would get dirty in a matter of seconds after resuming the ascent. The rest imitated him, and resumed the marching order they had decided, with Gilliam taking point, followed by Vincent, then Gon, Kahleen, and finally Darius. The best climbers were on each end of the line, so that they could assist a falling ally, if it came to that.With their provisions withering slowly as the journey started, it became easier for the group to move through the mountain pass, but at the same time they knew that hunting for food in such a place would  prove very difficult. And if they didn't make it to Wellspring before they ran out of provisions, it would have to come to that.They traveled for the rest of the day, practically non-stop, putting an effort into making it to the canyon, so that they would rest once they got to the less treacherous part of the Spears. Only at night did the group decide to halt their journey, for it was deadly to move through the darkness. Luck was with them, for once, and they reached the top of the canyon by the morning of the next day, without encountering any hostile beings on their way.Vincent was crouching by the edge, gazing at the valley in-between the canyon walls. There wasn't any water to be seen, and the ground appeared to be barren and deserted. In his eyes, there wasn't any path that lead to the valley floor that didn't involve crushing his bones in the process, but he had faith in Gilliam and Darius, as the two men worked together to find hand holds for the group to use. They had spent at least five minutes in the task, and it took another five before a suitable route was found.“Are you sure this is safe?” Gon kept asking both soldier and mercenary, drawing scowls from them. The man tested the ropes he had tied around his waist, and while they did hold tight, this didn't seem to reassure him in the least. Or maybe he wanted to annoy them, for the fun of it, but with Gon no one ever knew what his intentions were.“Yes, it is, Gon” Gilliam replied dryly, helping Vincent attach several ropes to his bulky shape, since they came to the conclusion that taking off the armor and carrying it on his back would prove harder than wearing it while climbing down.Once they were all safely tied together with the long rope, the five began to descend by the canyon's wall, one step at a time. Vincent went last, for if he fell, the squire would drag everyone down in a heap. Gilliam, being the lightest of the two good climbers, went first, showing Gon were the hand holds and foot holds were, and the soldier remained quiet for once, using all his concentration in the task at hand. Kahleen imitated Gon the best she could, and Darius showed Vincent the way down just like Gilliam had done with Gon.No one fell, thankfully, and in fifteen minutes they had traveled all the way down to the valley at the bottom. Two seconds after everyone had untied their ropes a slight tremor started, and everyone bent low to preserve their balance. It wasn't too powerful, making the loose rocks on the ground shake, and it ended sooner than everyone expected.“Imagine if that happened back when we were going down the wall” Gon pointed out, sounding relieved. The others seemed to share his feelings, and each took a breath to relax their bodies.“At least the worst part is over with” Gilliam noted, hands on his hips, looking at the rest. The tremor returned, just then, and suddenly intensified, threatening the five to bring them to the ground with the seismic movement.“Why did you have to say that?!” Gon shouted, struggling to keep his feet on the shaking ground. Darius had managed to remain standing, Kahleen was pressed hard against the canyon's wall, but Vincent fell backwards and remained on the ground, like a turtle flipped upside-down. The tremor increased its potency for an instant, just as a massive chunk of rocks exploded from the ground ahead of them, shooting rubble, dust, and small stones in every way. The seismic movement stopped just then, and when the dust cleared, there was a massive beast standing on top of the hole it had created. It was a quadruped, with a big sharp claw at the end of each leg. Its body was covered by a hardened and incredibly durable hide that resembled solid rock, and it had a mouth that was bigger in proportion to the ten foot long body. At the time, the beast was busy chewing down the rocks it had eaten to make his way to the surface.“A land shark?” Darius asked no one in particular, staring at the monster with fear. He didn't know it, but the thing was actually referred as that by scholars. Vincent was slowly getting up from the ground, and had only now seen what lay in front of them. From the ground, the bulette looked like it was even more imposing than it was, towering Vincent by ten feet. His eyes wide, Vincent reconsidered standing up, as he didn't want to make any sudden movements. “It's hurt” Kahleen said, pointing towards a big section of the shark's hide that was cracked open, showing its sandy skin below covered in blood. “We should avoid it, and it will do the same”. Gilliam heard her quite well, but he kept his hands on both sword hilts nonetheless.Behind him, Darius was trying to shake off his fear of the mighty bulette, but remained unmoving for the time being. Gon had a hand on his longsword by his hip, next to him, and the soldier looked dead serious as he observed the land shark's movements.Hurt as it was, the bulette let out a high-pitched savage scream, and performed a leap, getting quite high in the air with very little of a running start. “Vincent!” Darius yelled out, seeing the beast's target even before it landed on the squire, who was still kneeling on the ground. With a massive thump, the monster fell upon Vincent, shaking the nearby ground, piercing him with its four claws simultaneously. No one understood why initially, but both squire and bulette screamed in agony at the same time.     “He got his spear in time” Kahleen realized, seeing that the weapon's shaft was sticking out from beneath the huge hulk of the beast. The shaman unslung her bow and commanded its magic to come forth, drawing an arrow and letting go. The missile might as well had been aimed for a wall of solid stone, for it bounced off harmlessly of its hide.Darius and Gilliam charged, their weapons ready in their hands, intent on rescuing the trapped squire. Gilliam moved faster, thanks to his chain shirt, but ten feet before he reached it, the bulette whirled around, remaining on top of Vincent's body, and opened its enormous maw, chomping down  on Gilliam as he run towards it. The mercenary hadn't underestimated the thing's reach, dodging the attack by falling into a roll, going under its head. When he came up, Gilliam thrust his sword into the beast's hide, piercing it deeply with his adamantine blade. Roaring in pain, the bulette reared its big head back to begin a full assault on Gilliam. This time, he couldn't avoid the thing's bite, and the pair of mandibles closed on his right arm, crunching with impossible strength, digging through skin, muscle and bone, effectively breaking the latter. Held as he was by the bulette's bite, Gilliam angled his body to avoid a slashing claw, and was forced to parry the second one with his only available blade.Darius got there a second later, and as the monster was busy eating his ally, he was able to reach it without problems. The soldier grasped his sword with both hands, placing all his strength into the slashing uppercut he performed upon reaching the bulette. Brute force didn't seem to work, for the beast's tough hide had few weak spots, and the fine sword bounced back, nearly making Darius fall.“Get Vincent, I'll distract it!” Gilliam shouted through gritted teeth, still feeling his destroyed right arm quite well, somehow keeping a grip on the sword it held. Through his daze, he heard a voice say “I'll stab him where it hurts, boss!”, and it had to be no other than Gon.The wily man had kept away from the beast since the beginning, realizing that he stood no chance in a face-to-face confrontation. Only then, with the bulette distracted by Gilliam and Darius, did he dash forward, unsheathing his longsword on the way. He could've struck the land shark when he was right behind it, but the sneaky soldier had something else in mind. Gon jumped upon the bulette's back, somehow managing to keep standing on top while the beast moved, and raised his longsword high in the air, before bringing it down it right where the hide was cracked and weakened. With several inches of steel driving through its back, the bulette screamed in pain, letting go of Gilliam's arm in the process. It started to move backwards , and Darius took the chance to strike again, this time skewing pure power and aiming with care. The blow connected solidly, taking a chunk of the bulette's hide off, and Darius truly felt strengthened by his magical belt then. Hurt, the bulette changed tactics and jumped backwards several feet. Gon couldn't simply keep holding on to its back on the landing. The man rolled off its back, and fell merely ten feet away from the bulette, well within its reach. Gon yelped upon lifting his head from the ground, seeing the titanic monster opening its massive maw, readying for an attack.“Vince, are you alright?” Gilliam asked the squire, now that the bulette's bulk had lifted from him. His plate armor had holes in four different areas, but the wounds from each weren't very grave. Darius gave Vincent a hand to get up quickly, and the squire took it with a grunt, hoisting himself upwards. "I'm fine" he said. "My ring protected me from its claws".Just then, Kahleen had reached the three, chanting a spell, summoning an amber glow that she passed onto Vincent, at Gilliam's request. Most of his wounds closed in the blink of an eye, leaving only small scars and spots of blood.“Thank you, Kahleen” Vincent said, getting himself ready to continue the fight. Gilliam tried to make it look like he was fine, but the shaman glanced his way. “I'll have to fix that arm when we rest, Gilliam”.“I'm fine, we should worry about-” he began to say and stopped, realizing they had wasted precious seconds while Gon was left at the bulette's mercy. Gilliam turned to look in the bulette's direction, and saw it about to clamp its mandibles on Gon's head. “Damn it!” he swore, running at full speed after the prone soldier, broken arm or not.  But in the back of his mind, he knew he wouldn't make it, and at the same time wondered why Kahleen hadn't done anything yet with her magic or her bow.The mercenary stopped in mid-charge upon hearing two savage growls coming from the side. From nowhere, two wild wolverines had appeared, and the pair was charging at the bulette with abandon, their muscles bulging due to the berserk state they were in. They pounced upon the land shark in unison, tearing and biting like there was no tomorrow. Their combined attacks distracted the monster, more than anything, since not only were they three times smaller, but their claws and fangs weren't sufficient to pierce through its hide most of the time.Gon breathed in absolute relief, beginning to crawl away, too shaken to consider standing up and running, while the pair of wolverines ravaged the bulette, clinging onto its head, making the massive beast shake around wildly in an effort to dislodge them.“That's your doing, I take it” Darius said to Kahleen as he took out his short spear and aimed carefully. He didn't want to hurt the pair of wild animals with his throw.The shaman responded with a nod. “Indeed. I used my spiritual magic to summon them in our moment of need”. She almost made it sound simple, but to the unexperienced soldier this matter was far away from his comprehension. Next to Darius, Vincent was taking aim with his spear as well. Gilliam stood there, breathing heavily, wincing in pain every now and then, guarding the rest in case the beast charged them.By then, the two wolverines had scratched and bitten the very wounded bulette several times, but it dislodged them from its body, proceeding to chomp down on one, then the other. With one massive crunch, each wolverine went limp, and dissolved into a greenish energy in death. Confused by this, the beast turned its attention back to its enemies. The red-haired human was nowhere to be seen, regrettably, and so it had to face the other four, beginning a mad charge in the span of a second.Gilliam, barely twenty feet away from it, braced himself for the incoming onslaught, assuming a defensive stance with his one working arm. He felt something zoom quickly past his right ear, and then realized it had been Darius' spear, which struck true and got stuck on the bulette's hide. But the thing kept coming, new injury and all, and so Darius took a stand next to Gilliam, his sword poised to strike it when it arrived. It was ten feet away, flattening the earth wherever it pressed its huge claws, making the ground tremble ominously, like an incoming storm. Then there was a shout behind the soldier and mercenary, indicating to “Duck!”, which both men followed without hesitating. A split second later, another missile crossed the air above them, and flew towards the charging bulette. Vincent's adamantine spear got it right in the eye, and the beast missed a step, crashing down to the ground, its momentum forcing it to slide forwards towards the duo.It got to Darius' feet and stopped, unmoving. Vincent took a step forward and grasped his spear's shaft firmly, plucking it out with a sickening sound. “That's what you get in return for attacking us” the squire said to the bulette's corpse.Both Darius and Gilliam exhaled a breath they had been holding since the bulette had begun its final charge. Kahleen approached Gilliam and healed some of his wounds with a less effective curative magic. His arm was still broken, but the skin had been mended, at least. “Thank you” he said in return, not willing to test his arm's strength for the time being.Darius retrieved his short spear as well, and looked around after he got it back. “Where the Hells is he?” he asked, referring to the red-haired soldier. His question got answered by Gon tapping him on the  shoulder, making him jump and yelp.“Damn you!” he shouted infuriated to the man, who was now bending over his stomach, laughing hard, his face as red as his hair. “You should have seen your face! Oh, my dear Broken blade, you're so easy to spook” he was saying in between spasms of laughter. For the rest, it was hard to believe Gon was back to playing pranks so short after the battle had ended. Then again, the soldier didn't have any injuries from the bulette's assault.Gilliam didn't have a look that indicated any positive feelings towards Gon's humor. “This isn't time for jokes and laughs, soldier” he warned him with a scowl. “There could be other such beasts in the vicinity”.This seemed to tame Gon a bit, and the soldier settled down. “Alright, point taken, boss, no more jokes for the time being...” he said, yielding to Gilliam's request, for once. Gon then proceeded to face one direction of the valley, the one leading to Wellspring, and begun to walk.The rest didn't have anything else to do, and wearily begun to follow Gon. BoomNot a split second after they had started walking, a rock the size of a pony crashed and exploded right in front of Gon, who was ahead of the rest by ten feet. The soldier seemed unharmed, but clearly shaken by the sudden explosion of stones in front of him.“Over there!” Darius shouted, signaling towards one of the canyon's walls, where a large humanoid was emerging from a tunnel they hadn't seen before. This being, who initially looked like a very tall and muscular human, turned out to be something more, as it emerged fully from the dark cave and came into sight. It had a massive war axe, the head placed comfortably on his shoulder as he grabbed the handle with one hand. Hides of all sorts of animals, brown and gray, covered its tough body, and its skin shone  brown under the sun. He was more than sixty feet away from them, ahead and to the left of their position, but it was fairly certain that the being was close to twelve feet tall.“Giant” Gilliam said in a voice that only the others would hear. No one moved, seeing that the crater the rock left was quite deep, and the rock had been thrown from quite a distance, a good indication of the giant's might. “We don't want to anger him” Kahleen added in a quiet tone.The giant took a couple long strides towards them, and they could've sworn they heard a fierce growl from behind, within the cave. “Stone crusher” it said, its voice booming and powerful, echoing through the valley. Vincent dared to take a step forward and talk. He had no weapons in his hands, which he showed to the giant. “Are you Stone crusher?” he shouted, his voice seeming pitiful compared to the giant's. The large humanoid shook his head and pointed. No one had to turn in order to see where he was aiming: it was the bulette's corpse.“My pet” the giant explained, his voice filled with contempt and anger, his visage now that of an angry scowl directed at the group. Vincent didn't back down, however. “It attacked us, we had no choice”.But the giant shook his head and picked up a large rock with his free hand.“No choice” he said flatly. With a sudden jerk of his arm, the rock he had held flew towards the five, almost hitting Vincent fully on the chest, had the squire not seen it coming and sidestepped in time. The missile passed past them and exploded behind, leaving another deep crater.“No choice... but to die” the giant finished, growling out a command in his own tongue. It was responded by a terrifying growl that came from the cave, and its origin happened to be a bear two times larger than the usual specimen.“Damnation” Gilliam cursed. The bulette had weakened them considerably, and it had been but a pet to this giant. “No choice... but to fight!” he corrected, looking at his companions for reassurance. Everyone nodded back, bracing their respective weapons and readying for the fight.“I'm with you, Gilliam” Darius responded.“I won't allow any of you to perish” Kahleen reassured them.“We can't fail House Kashtar, not now” Vincent said with determination.“I say we end this little game of ours, once and for all!” Gon finished with glee.Both giant and bear started to move forwards, their ire equal, their means of destruction different, but their goal was the same: five weakened travelers. The ground trembled violently as both hulking monsters advanced, and it was soon to be coated in red with the blood of those standing upon it.</blockquote>

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