ONE LAST HOPE (closed)

[chewbacca71]

Austin

Austin did two turns around the camp, carefully checking the snares and the large deadfall. Noticing that nothing had come close to the camp, Austin returned to the fireside. He realized that Amber had fallen asleep with her back towards the cliffface. Grabbing her blanket, he covered her up to keep his newest friend warm. He threw a few pieces of wood on the fire before going to wake up Devin.

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

His wizard eye on the outside wall of his balcony informed Jevram that the demons had completed their tasks. He could hear the sound of their wings as they landed heavily on the balcony. All four of his minions came into the room. Before they could say anything, Jevram spoke without turning towards them.

"I see Demons, that you are capable of following simple directions, much like the puppy I had as a child. Good, now I want you to go act like good gargoyles and stand sentry duty on the walls outside of this castle. It will give my troops some heartening to realized that their master is powerful enough to treat fiends like they were common animals. Now off with you. "

Jevram did not catch their expressions but he could feel the pure hate emanating from the two demons as they were forced by his will to follow his instructions. His mind echoed laughter back at the demons almost causing them to lose control and attack him. It was always prudent to remind these creatures who was in charge.

Jevram turned and looked at his orken and ogre commanders. He could smell the stale odor of their sweat as they struggled to keep their composure under his gaze. Jevram spoke to Cedon first because he had the easier of the two tasks to accomplish.
"Well Cedon, have you been able to carry out my instructions. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Cedon

Cedon nervously looked at his feet before answering his master. "Yes my lord, I have been able to bring that village under our control. I brought the strongest subjects to the priest that you had sent with us. It worked better than I could ever have imagined. They were turned into undead creatures with a taste for their former human friends. Some of them did not survive the transformation, but the priest was able to keep their souls in a powersink that he is planning on bringing to you. "

"The only difficulty that we had was in subduing the creatures when they were momentarily sated. Their bloodthirsty howls were appreciated by my men, but their ability to fight back caused the death of more than a few of my command. I was able to round most of them back up. The village is now under your command. As well as now having a army of creatures that will give most others pause. "

"The corpses of the humans that had been killed and partially eated by the zombies came back to life themselves two nights later. Where once you had an army of 35 zombies, you now have an army of 85 of them. Plus there were a few that did not take the change as well. You now also have some ghouls to add to the army. I hope you are pleased. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Jevram gave a small nod to the orc, watching as the tension left Cedon's body. "You have done well, my minion, I am well pleased with the news that you have brought me. As a special reward, I have a suit of armor that I have recently come into possession of. It will help keep the Undead away from your smelly carcass more than your sheer stench will. This armor is plate that was blessed by the High Cleric of Felstone. He willed it to me when he died. "

"Or it least I think he did. I could not tell what he was saying with all the screaming he was doing. Put this on so that it will make it easier for you to control those creatures. Also before you leave, take 1000 gold pieces out of the treasury. You will need that money to help outfit these new troops of ours. "

Jevram was well pleased with the orc, but was able to hide his approval well. He was suprised to learn that a few of the humans had become ghouls. That was an unexpected bonus. As of yet, Cedon was unaware of how important that powersink was, so Jevram did not mention it. He turned to his other minion.

"Well Skibep what do you have to report? I trust your news for me is just as good as what your smaller cousin has given me. The barbarian of Far Ice should have been ripe for your conquest. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Skibep

Skibep looked at his master with a pained look in his eyes. "It is with regrets that I have to tell you that our conquest has not gone as planned. The barbarians were more resourceful than we expected. We had early success against them, but we were not able to sneak into the village of Far Ice . The men were to vigilant and turned aside our initial foray.

We have been able to capture quite a few of the men and have turned them to zombies as you requested. But they do not inspire as much fear in the other living barbarians as we had hoped. The barbarians seemed to be immune to fear. I have had prisoners with a knife to their throat spitting in my face. At this point, we have the town encircled. Nothing can come in and nothing has been able to come out. It is only a matter of time before the town falls. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Jevram's gaze was full of fury as he stared at his minion. "The barbarians stopped you???? The barbarians were able to hold off the vast group of Ogres that you said were at your disposal. How could you have let them beat you??? I am not at all impressed with your lack of progress. "

The hair on the head of Skibep suddenly flared up as the temper of Jevram started to blaze. Noticing the pain that it was causing his minion , Jevram laughed evily. He put the flames out with a wave of his hand. Yes , Skibep had not been able to finish his mission but he was still in control of a large group of Ogres that he would need in his schemes.

He tapped his foot for a minute then spoke to both of his minions. "I will go to Far Ice with both of you and show you how its done. These barbarians will suffer my wrath for making a ripple in my path. I will make them wish they had never been born. " Sending out a mental summons to the two demons, he walked to the balcony. "Come watch your master at work. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Devin

Devin whistled a barroom tune as we walked around the perimeter of the camp. He noticed that one of the snared had been tripped, but there was no creature stuck in it. Wary for any sound, Devin crouched down to see if he could hear anything. He heard some faint whispering coming from the farside of the camp, closest to the trees.

He moved slowly through the underbrush as he came closer to the sound of the voices. He was able to get within sight of the source of the noise. There were six goblins that were digging through the refuse pile that Austin had buried earlier that night. Devin realized they must be very desperate to do that.

It was only a matter of time, Devin thought, before the Goblins decide to attack the camp. Devin was not a big fan of attacking before he is attacked, but for goblins he was always willing to make exceptions. He quietly slunk back to the camp and woke everyone up. He cautioned them to quiet as they gathered up their weapons.

 

[chewbacca71]

Kyle

Kyle grabbed Thrush and pulled him to his side for a moment. "I want you to set up a shield spell around Amber. I do not want her to get hurt. Have ready a spell for magic missile. It looks like there is only six of them, but counting has never been one of Devin's strongest suits. I want this to be as quick and painless as possible. "

After Thrush nodded, Kyle moved away at a rapid rate of speed. His ranger training served him in good stead as he was able to get behind the goblins without them noticing. He whistled like a nightjar, the signal for attack for the Clan of the Bear.

Devin was the first to break out of cover, swinging his large two handed sword at the goblin closest to him. The goblin was so suprised by the attack that it still had a look of shock on its face as its head hit the ground a half minute before the body followed.

Austin came out from behind a tree behind the last goblin in line. The small dagger in his hand was normally not a thing to inspire fear, but when it was moving at a fast speed to an unprotected back; it was devastating. His strike landed inbetween the backbones of the goblin. Austin jumped up and pulled down, racking the dagger through the goblins back rendering it immobile.

Bragin rushed into battle , a dwarven battle cry on his lips. A small tree root was his undoing as he tripped onto his horned helmet. Spitting dirt and leaves from his mouth, Bragin got to his feet. Two goblins were directly in front of Bragin when he regained his feet. The first was able to get in a hit, making a small but bloody cut on the dwarfs shoulder. The dwarf grunted off the hit as he unlumbered his axe.

The second goblin took a swing at the dwarf, but Bragin was able to duck under it. As Bragin circled back after ducking , he swipped out his axe, cutting the legs off the second goblin. Blood streaming freely from the stumps, the second goblin fell to the ground.

Seeing three of their companions go down in such a short period of time, the other three goblins showed their usual courage. They almost tripped over each other in their quest to get away from the battle. Before they were able to get too far, Kyle rose up with a notched arrow in his bow. He unleashed an arrow, making a furrow in the lead goblins cheek as it flew into its small eye. The goblin fell to the ground in a heap , tripping its two companions.

Desperation led speed to the goblins as they pulled themselves up off the ground. Noticing that Kyle had another arrow notched, the goblins turned tail and fled back the other way. Before they were able to make it to the safety of the treeline, Thrush levitated up out of the concealing brush. He stared at the two goblins, a brief spat of pity covering his face. Mumbling a short incantation, Thrush waved his hands at the goblins. Four magic missiles appeared out of nowhere, making the goblins the targets of the arc of their descent. Pierced by two arrows apiece, the two goblins slumped onto a final bed of leaves.

The last goblin was leary of the dwarf, having seen how well he could handle his axe. He turned to his left and noticed a human female that looked soft enough for him to overcome. The thought passed the goblin that if he could take this female for a hostage, he might be able to bluff his way out.

He took a step towards her, turning his sword to strike her with the flat. The sword rebounded a half a foot from her, not even getting to her. The goblin looked dumbly at his sword trying to figure out why it did not hit her, as her mace crunched in the goblins skull.

Kyle walked out into the center of the battle, surveying the scene. "Well there is at least six less goblins to harry innocent travelers. All of you did a good job taking care of the goblins, though I only have one word for you Thrush . "

Thrush looked at Kyle from the height of 9 feet in the air. "And what would that word be , young human?" Kyle smiled as he looked up at the elven mage. "That word would be showoff. Come on down so we can finish striking the camp properly. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Amber

Amber walked back to the camp and grabbed her pack. Taking out an old dirty shirt, she used it to clean the brains and goblin hair off the head of her mace. She strode up to where Kyle was rolling up his bedroll. She cleared her throat to get his attention.

"Kyle, what was the meaning of that shield that you put around me? I can more than hold my own in a battle. Do you understand me? No need for you to think you have to protect me. That quiant notion does not exist here, since I can probably outfight most of you here. The next one of you tries to "protect me" is going to get this mace up their ass. Am I clear? "

 

[chewbacca71]

Kyle

Aware that she had stepped behind him, Kyle politely waited for her to say something before turning around. He heard her clear her throat so he angled around to look at her. He notice the way her blue eyes had changed to a more clouded look. He realized that he might have some trouble brewing. He slealthily moved his right hand down towards his boot towards his hidden dagger. He did not think she would hurt anyone, but she looked as mad as he had ever made a woman.

Kyle listened to what she had to say. She did have a point, she had taken very care of herself. Devin had remarked to him when Amber was out of earshot, that it was a mighty powerful blow that she had delivered to the goblin. Kyle stood up, using his greater height to force her back a step.

" I understand what you are saying Amber. I apologize for the shield spell. But you must understand, you are paying our wages. I will not let you die , at least until we get paid. " Smiling at her to help her realize he was only kidding, Kyle turned back to putting his pack back together.

 

[chewbacca71]

Amber

Amber walked away from Kyle. He seemed to understand the way she felt which was good. She had seen what these men had done and realized her boast to beat them all was just hot air. She was good at what she did, but it seemed that there were levels beyond hers that she did not dream existed.

Anxious to find another way to prove her worth, Amber walked over to Bragin. The dwarf was sitting on a log, winding a bandage around his shoulder. Amber noticed that some blood was already staring to seep out of the bandage. She stood for a second before kneeling near the dwarf.

"Bragin, that looks like it hurts. I can not believe you shrugged off such a vicious hit like it was a bee sting. I marvel at your ability to withstand pain , I have never had that talent. Can I help you with that bandage? "

 

[chewbacca71]

Bragin

Bragin was busy putting a clean linen bandage on his shoulder. Ok, it was a semi clean linen bandage, dwarven packs are never as clean on the inside as they look on the outside. The dwarf was gritting his teeth as he wound the bandage on tighter. The pain was more than he expected, since it was barely a flesh wound. He had done worse before when his first wife had asked him to shave off his beard.

Now that was a wild women, the best one he had ever had. To convince a dwarf to cut off his beard took a lot of gumption. Of course, blind love and a fair smidgen of lust contributed to his decision to heed her wishes. He could still hear the laughter of the other dwarfs echoing in his head. When he left the mines to let his beard grow back was when he had meet Kyle.

The lad and he had been friends for a number of years now. They had been side by side in the thick of battle many times. They owed each other their lives over and over again. It was just an understood thing for all of them that they looked out for each other. That was the chief tenet of the Clan of the Bear. It had kept them together through some very hairy times.

The dwarf was so absorbed in his memories that he did not notice the human female till she was kneeling next to him. He stopped gritting his teeth, instead forcing a sullen smile her way. "No lass, this is none but a small scratch on my oft scarred hide. Have no worries on my account. I am more than capable.......dammit..........argh........Would you please pass me that end of the bandage? It keeps coming off the rest of the bandage...... Thank you. "

Bragin took the end from her. He felt her strong hand smooth the bandage down , making it easier to secure it onto his well muscled arm. He could feel a slight tingling on his arm where she had touched. He cocked his head towards her as he pulled the bandage off his arm. The skin on his shoulder was unbroken ,with only a small scar to show for the cut that had been there just a moment ago.

Bragin stared over at Amber. "Ah, You are a cleric of no small powers. I thank you for healing this small cut. But please do not tell the others. I have no need of their harassment that I needed to be healed. Thank you for your discretion and thoughtfullness. " Bragin gave her a true smile, something that was as rare on this world as a evil mage without a plan to take over the world.

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Jevram sent the mental thought to the demons to land near the Ogre's camp outside Far Ice. Quizalt placed the two statues of Cedon and Skibep on the ground. He motioned his razor clawed hand over their heads and muttered a few words. The two figures expanded and grew, some movement slowly becoming apparent as they had grown to full size.

Jevram turned to Skibep. "I trust you can at least get your fellow Ogres organized enough to get ready for a raid on the city. Good , I hope that your men are up to doing a better job now that I am here. I want them armed and dangerous in 1 hour for an assault on Far Ice. "

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Jevram gathered Skibep and his Ogre commanders around him. "Are you all clear as to what you are supposed to do? ......Good. Let us start this rout. " Jevram started the assault forward with a wave of his hand.

Jevram pulled aside his two demons. "Ok you two, I want you to fly over the town now and make sure they can see you. You are to land behind the city, near the dog gate. I do not want anyone to escape through that way, do you understand.....Very well. Fly now. "

Jevram watched as the two demons flapped their wings, alighting into the predawn sky. Jevram could hear the cries of horror as the few people that were awake in the town saw the demons flying over the city. Jevram had used his hour of waiting to perform a few spells, nasty suprises for the city before him.

Jevram strode up to the city gates, using a simple wind spell to amplify the sound of his voice. " People of Far Ice, I have come to ask for your surrender. I , Jevram of Grimwall, am here to conquer your people. If you surrender to me, some of you will surely live. But if you resist, then I can not speak for the cruelty of my minions. "

At the word minions, a large host of Ogres came out of the treeline, seeming to appear from nowhere. The ogres quickly spread out to encircle the cities walls. " You now have seen my powerful army and have heard my demands. What say you ?" Jevram watched as a tall human barbarian pushed his way to the front of the wall above the gate.

Flaming red hair was the first thing that Jevram noticed on the tall human. An overmuscled frame made it easy for Jevram to see that man even from the ground. The human's face was flush with anger as he looked down upon Jevram. He shook a large battle axe towards the mage as he yelled down to him.

"I have heard of you Jevram of Grimwall. I have heard that you are a charltan that has used parlor tricks to take over Grimwall. Well those will not work here. These great walls have stood up to many assaults by would be pissant conquerors. Now be off, before I come down there and decorate the pommel of my battle axe with your skull. "

Jevram shook his head sadly at this insane bravado embodied by this man. Jevram marked the barbarian with his wizard sight to take care of this man personally. Jevram gazed back up at the man. " No, I do not think I will go. Instead, I will come into town and warm up your wifes bed instead . "

Jevram took a step closer to the walls muttering an incantation. A shower of arrows unleashed from above drove down towards the evil cleric. An invisible shield of force deflected the arrows harmlessly to the ground. Jevram reached out and touched the gate, a smile of triumph playing on his face.

Suddenly an opening appeared in the door. Jevram had cast a phase door spell, creating a portal through the barred and reinforced door. With a blood curdling howl, the Ogres streamed by Jevram on their way into the city. The paniced townspeople retreated from the gate as a contingent of the cities soldiers rushed towards it to reinforce the soldiers already there.

A lound booming could be heard all around the town. Frightened townspeople screamed in fear as two earth elementals battered their way to the surface in the middle of town. The two immense creatures, after gaining the surface of the earth, moved in opposite directions towards the city walls. Using their magic-powered muscles, the elementals battered two large holes in the city walls to the sides of the gate.

The Ogres yelled a battle cry as they poured into the city through the two holes in the walls. The citizens , beseiged on three sides, tried to make it towards the doggate. Getting closer, they could see the head of the demons towering over the gate. Battered and beaten, the citizens fell onto the ground begging for mercy.

 

[chewbacca71]

Far Ice denizens

Halrim the Red was sure that Jevram would not try and attack the city. The ogres had already been pushed back, just like they had before . The city of Far Ice had never been taken by force before. He had reviewed his defenses after the first ogre attack and they were sound. Halrim smiled back at his men as he turned from the wall.

Noticing that the dark cleric had come closer to the walls, Halrim ordered a volley of arrows from his hidden archers. Firing from hidden murder holes , the well trained archers fired arrows towards Jevram. Halrim watched in disbelief as none of the arrows reached the cleric. Maybe he was not a charltan after all.

Halrim could see that the ogres took heart from their inability to harm the dark cleric. As Halrim was pondering what to do next he could hear a roar from the ogre host. The vast majority of the ogres made a sprint toward that gate. Halrim turned and started to run down the stairs when he saw the first ogre soldiers engaging the small force of men behind the gate.

Halrim had only had a diminutive group behind the gate, trusting to its solid construction and metal reinforcement to protect the city. But it seems that he had underestimated the power of Jevram. He grabbed his sword , waving it above his head. This signalled a larger force of men that he had held in reserve. They rushed to the front gate to augment the strength of the men that were trying to hold off the ogres.

Being well trained, the archers started to unload arrows down on the ogres milling behind the gate as they tried to get inside the city walls. Many ogres were hit, but the combination of their tough hide and some remnants of leather armor made for few deaths. It only seemed to enrage the giant creatures. Most of the swordsman on the wall, left their posts; using the ladders to join their comrades on the ground.

The men were using sheer mass of men to hold the ogres at the front gate. The small opening only allowed a few ogres to get through, making it difficult to press their suit. Halrim was heartened by this result when he heard a large booming echoing through the streets of the city. Climbing up to the highest vantage point of the city, Halrim was able to see that earth elementals as they made quick work of the earthrn and stone walls that surrounded the city. Halrim watched in horror as more ogres entered the city.

 

[chewbacca71]

Halrim

Halrim tried to rally his troops using his force of personality. He jumped down into the fray , landing on one of the ogres. His sheer weight bore the creature to the ground as he pushed a dagger into its spine. Leaving that creature for dead, he turned to face the coming onslaught of ogres.

He was heartened to see that his men were still holding their own with the ogre hoard. They had always been well trained men who received constant challenge from the wilderness around them. Halgrim was suprised by this well coordinated attack , but he attributed it to Jevram. One of the ogres made it through the barrier of men and was turning to attack one of the men from behind. Halgrim reached it in time, slicing off its sword arm with a swipe of his heavy broadsword.

The ogre turned towards Halrim with a snarl on its face as it tried to fight through the pain. Halrim gave it a soldiers salute with his sword before he ducked under a swipe from the ogres one remaining arm. He sliced back up with his sword, wedging its point in the ogres breast bone as he pushed up with all his strength. The orge overbalanced and fell over on its back. Halrim pulled its sword out of its body as he turned to face a new threat.

He could see the ogres that had poured into the city were starting to pillage and burn. Also some of them were coming towards the front gate to catch the men in a pinser maneuvor. He realized at that time that it was hopeless to try and stop them. His thought sped back to his family, his priorities changed from the city to more immediate things. Slinking around the edge of a nearby house, Halrim made his way to his small home.

Yelling into the window that it was him, his wife unbolted the door. Quickly moving into the home, Halrim bolted the door behind him. He surveyed his house, looking for a way to make it secure. But there was nothing to save his family, except maybe to hide them. Halrim looked over at his wife and 15 year old son, Relthane. He had planned to bring Relthane into the city guard himself in another year , though Halrim knew he was already as good with a sword as most of the other men. But his wife had made him swear to wait till their son was 16. Halrim realized that his son may never make it to that age now.

Looking at his wife, Halrim explained that defending the city was hopeless. As a counterpoint to this, Halrim could hear the screams of the cityfolk as the ogres pulled them from their houses. He could hear a banging on the door to their own home. He hoped that the door would hold at least for a little longer.

Sarah looked at her husband of 17 years. She could see the line of worry on his brow and realized there was nothing that could be done. She was determined to save the life of their son since 15 years was too short of a life for their only child. Sarah watched as her husband nodded his agreement. The two of them moved the stove away from the wall. There was a large cavity behind it where they normally kept some of the fuel they used for the stove. Luckily , there was little fuel left at this time due to a harse winter.

Halrim strode over to his only son. "Relthane, I charge you with a quest. I know you are not old enough yet to join me in the defending of this city, but I give you another charge. You need to live through this battle and survive to avenge this city. I give you my best sword and an early nameday present. This is armor that I had made for you for your 16th birthday. Take it in good faith, dwarven craftsmen made it for me specifically. Your mother will give you enough food to last for a few days. You will have to stay hidden for at least a few days. Give the ogres time to finish off the city, then a day for it to be quiet before leaving. I would suggest you go to your mothers home village of Briwelk. You will be safe there. I wish you well my son and long life. I will miss the sight of thee. "

Relthane tried to push his father away, but realized that in the end he would do as his father asked. He donned the armor and took the family heirloom, his fathers sword. He got as comfortable as he could in the hole in the wall , taking the food from his mother. With a last handclasp from his father and a kiss from his mother , Relthane settled in for a long wait. Using his bulging muscles, Halrim pushed the stove back into place.

Halrim gazed at the woman of his dreams, who had been his lifeline for so long. A tear escaped his eye as he realized that he would never hear her soft voice call his name again. Or scream it in passion in the night. He wiped away the tear as he pulled another sword from the wall. He heard his wife clear her throat behind him, as he pulled down a mace as well. He handed her the mace and pulled his sword out of the scabbard. Dropping the scabbard to the ground, Halrim said to his wife. "Are you ready? Let us die in glory. " Unbolting the door, Halrim roared out a large battlecry as he and his wife ran out to meet their destiny.

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Jevram smirked as he sauntered through the city gates. They had thought that they could hold against his might, but they were sadly mistaken. He noted the number of corpses that littered the blood stained ground, mostly of men of course. There were very few dead ogres. There would be a few more when Jevram got ahold of Skibep since he had told them that he wanted prisoners. It was easier to work with someone that was alive than to work with a cold corpse.

He saw a ring of Ogres surrounding a large group of citizens that had knelt on the ground . Groveling in the dirt, they were pleading for their lives. Grabbing one of the men by the hair, Jevram pulled its head to make the man look at him. "So you thought you could keep me out of here did you? I guess you were all wrong, and you will pay for it with your lives. " A large wailing and screaming ensued from the people . "Silence you curs, I did not say you would die now. I have need of slaves at Grimwall. "

Jevram turned away from the humans so they could not see the evil smile plying across his face. He did not think they were stupid enough to believe him, but it had quieted them down some. He was facing towards the middle of the city, when he saw the tall redhaired barbarian come running out of a house. His wizard sight flared when he came into view, verifing it was the man that tried to defy him at the gates.

Jevram stood and tapped his foot as he watched the man run towards him. He could see a woman was also following the tall man, waving a mace with malic in her eyes. Waving a hand at them nonchalantly, Jevram caused them to stop in place. He could see the strain in their eyes as they tried to move, but no matter how hard they tried; it did not matter.

Jevram strolled up to the man, taking a hank of his long red hair in his hands. He pulled harder until the man was forced to look up at him. " So where are your brave words now barbarian? Where are your threats? I can see how adept you were at saving your fair city. " He laughed as the man tried to move his mouth to form words. "Do not bother, I have little concern for what you have to say. "

He brought the two humans towards where the surviving humans had been gathered. Looking over them, he did a fast count of almost 200 people still alive. Good, this will give me a good start. He pulled Halrim forward with him as he presented their former Sargent -at - arms to his people.

 

[chewbacca71]

Jevram

Gloating at the helpless citizens of Far Ice, Jevram brandished their military leader before them. "This was the strongest member of your city. If you think that you have any hope left, forget about it. Remember this if you ever think to disobey me. "

Jevram grabbed a small dagger out of his robes. He thrust it over his head before drawing it across Halrim's throat. A thin red line appeared on his throat , then a slow trickle of blood escaped the cover of his skin. Halrim's eyes glazed as a dark corruption spread over his skin beginning at the bloody crease in his skin.

A putrid smell swept over the kneeling humans as black pustules broke out over the length of Halrims body. His spine stiffened in pain as the pus broke out all at once, a torrent of darkened blood following in short order. His lifeless body fell to the ground, his head resting in a large pool of blackened blood. Jevram reached down and wiped the edge of the blade on Halrim's surcoat.

The gathered humans broke out in wails as they realized that there life would not last too much longer. An evil look crossed Jevrams face as he thought up one last thing to cow these people. "I cannot feed such food to my ogres, as much as they love the taste of human flesh. There is hardly any blood left in this man to tenderize the meat. Instead, let them have his women, she looks nice and tender. Jevram turned towards Sarah, waving his hand at her.

A feeling of movement swept her body as she tried to bolt from this scene. She was able to take a step before she was grabbed by an ogre. The ogre pulled her up in the air , displaying the meal available for the rest of the ogres. Pulling off one of her arms, the ogre dropped the bleeding body on the ground, sitting against the wall to eat this tasty morsel.

 

[chewbacca71]

Kyle

Once everyone was ready and packed up, Kyle had them move out. He took the lead as always since his ranger training made it easier for him to move stealthily. He had avoided ambushed for the group this way before. Bragin, Thrush and Austin were in the middle about 50 feet behind Kyle. They had Amber with them to keep her in safety even though she may not have realized it. Devin as usual took the rear. Kyle always felt safer with that big moose guarding the rear.

Alighting in a tree to get a better look at the road ahead, Kyle motioned for the others to stop. He was able to see a small group of creatures coming up the trail. He concentrated as Bragin had taught him and was able to discern a little more about the creatures. They looked to be Kobolds. The small creatures were not normally about in the light of day, preferring dank caverns to live in.

All of the creatures looked to be not too much taller than Bragin. Normally Kobolds were around 5 feet tall, though Kyle had encountered one that was almost 6 feet tall. That was one of the times that he owed his life to Devin. The barbarian had waded into a virtual army of Kobolds to pull Kyles fat out of the fire. Who knew that there were Kobolds hiding in the shadows when Kyle found a room full of treasure. You live and you learn.

Kyle carefully climbed down the tree, trying not to move the branches. He pulled them all together and told them about the 20 Kobolds that were on the path. They opted to hid off on the sides and let them pass. There was no reason to engage these creatures if they did not have to. All the members of the clan were in the tree line when the Kobolds came into view.

 

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Bragin

Bragin was fingering his ax when he noticed that Austin was convulsing next to him. The dwarf grabbed the halfling by the shoulder turning him around. Bragin was relieved to see that Austin was not injured but was only laughing. Trying to quiet the halfling down, Bragin put his hand over his mouth. Austin moved the dwarfs hand off his mouth as he explained that he was laughing because one of the kobolds was so stupid it had put its helmet on backwards.

Bragin was not as amused when the noise caused by Austin caused the Kobolds to realize they had company. Pushing away the halflings hand, Bragin yelled out a dwarven battle cry and launched himself into battle.

 

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Kyle

Kyle blew out his held breath. The kobold's had somehow figured out that there were other creatures around them. Kyle would have given himself two guesses but he only needed one. Reminding himself to make sure to smack Austin later, Kyle ran out from the tree cover.

Loosening a string of arrows, Kyle created havoc at the back of the Kobold grouping. Two of the small humanoids fell to the ground with arrows protruding from the back of their skulls. Kyle put up his bow and charged into battle with his sword drawn.

 

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Thrush

Thrush crossed his arms across his chest. It figured that once again, Austin had gotten them in trouble. Thrush stayed in the trees, finding an open area in which to cast his spell. Taking a ball of wood ash from his pocket, Thrush cast a spell of fireball. The front five Kobolds were engulfed in a ball of purifying fire. Their charred remains landed on the forest floor in a heap. Thrush quickly cast a web spell in front of him to keep the Kobold's from rushing him as he readied another spell.

 

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Devin

Devin watched in amazement at the power of the mage. He was glad that Thrush was on his side. He shuddered to think of what that fireball could have done to his flesh. He would not have fared much better at all. Devin almost forgot to jump into the fight, then remembered it was his job to help protect Thrush.

He was impressed that the mage had the cool under fire to cast that web spell. Devin used that to his advantage by simply grabbing the two nearest Kobolds and hurling them into the web. He pulled his two handed sword from his back and slashed down at the nearest Kobold. The kobolds were not strong, but they were agile , so it avoided his swing.

A second kobold came in from Devin's side and swung its sword at the large human. His chain mail armor held as it deflected the swing. Devin turned his body and swung his right fist towards the kobold , stricking it in the face. The creature toppled to the ground, blood streaming from its nose.

 

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Amber

Amber was determined to get into this battle more. She knew that kobolds were not tough creatures one on one, but with twenty of them; it would be a good fight. Seeing that the battle was joined, Amber jumped into the fray. Swinging her mace with abandon, she smashed in the skull of the kobold closest to her. Her backswing hit the kobold that had been coming up behind her for a sneak attack. His forehead was shattered when the knobbed end of metal connected with his cranium.

Amber turned and noticed the kobold on the ground. She realized just how close of a call it had been. Holding her mace in front of her, Amber backtracked to where she saw that Kyle was in a fight with three kobolds. The creatures had their back to her, so she was able to hit one squarely in the back, making it fall to the ground.

 

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Austin

Austin followed Bragin out into the battle. He waited for Bragin to engage the two kobolds directly in front of them. He slunk around Bragin to the side and used his short sword to slice into the gut of the preoccupied Kobold. His sword cut through its chincy leather armor, cutting open its grayish brown skin. Slippery white intestines slide out of the body, making a stinking pile on the ground. The kobold fell to the ground, its carcass landing on its own intestines.

The second kobold turned to see what happened to its ally. Its attention momentarily distracted allowed Bragin to swing his axe towards its head. A loud thunk was heard as the axe clove the skull of the kobold into two. Putting his foot against the skull, Bragin pulled out his axe. The two teammates stepped over the dead bodies in front of them and went further into the battle.