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The
LoL brigade makes friends and influences people...
Hawkmoon - 18 Nov 2006
After a week of intense training in a secondary
profession, the LoL brigade was ready for a change of pace. Heads aching from
long hours spent screwing up their concentration learning new spells and chants,
they leapt at the chance to get outside again when First Spear Dehvad told them
to “get their sorry butts over to Champion’s Dawn, pronto!” Champion’s
Dawn was a rather grandiose name for a flyspeck outpost, but at least it did offer
nice views of the coastal hills. Unfortunately, the lovely landscape was far from
peaceful, Quarrymaster Bohanna informed them. “Our quarry is being overrun
by skree harpies! We can’t do any mining, which cripples our trading! We
need Sunspears to drive off the skree! Go meet the monk Dunkoro and fix our problem!”
He made impatient shooing motions at the three LoL Sunspears. “Whatever,”
Agnamar grumbled as the three hefted their weapons and headed for the archway
out of the outpost. “At least it beats slaving away by lamplight.” “Ahhhhhhhhhhh,
fresh air at last!” Wirr breathed deeply with the settlement behind them.
He sniffed, wrinkling his nose at the aroma rising from his armpit. “Hmmm,
maybe too fresh…I think I may need to find a nice river…or lake…or
hot spring…” They
rendezvoused with Dunkoro almost immediately. The monk burst out of a thicket
with such suddenness that they all wondered whether he had been spying for their
arrival. “Hello! Hello! I’m Dunkoro, guide to young impressionable Sunspears!
Just follow me, we’ll have you on your adventure in a jiffy! Yep, that’s
it, step right this way, hurry hurry hurry! Can’t keep those skree waiting!
Quarry’s right…um…this way! Yeah, that’s it, it’s this
way!” He bustled down one of the forest paths, still chattering away. Mea
raised one eyebrow in question. The others shrugged. “Whatever,” Agnamar
said for the second time that morning. They followed the monk. Dunkoro
took them by the scenic route. He introduced them to Istani citizens they met
on their way, including a rather eccentric young woman who proclaimed that she
was an “artistic craftsperson,” trading her creations for copper shillings
gotten from corsair corpses. Dunkoro steadfastly refused to guide them further
until they had each traded the woman the required shillings for new raiment –
which didn’t really match what they were wearing. “But at least it isn’t
ready to walk away on it’s own,” Mea observed sardonically, glancing
at Wirr’s robes and raising a suggestive eyebrow. Agnamar
sighed and changed into the new torso garb. “Whatever.” *********** The
skree didn’t stand a chance. Dunkoro kept them refreshed with healing spells
while Mea cast glamours on the harpies, afflicting them with hallucinations that
had them clawing the air in terror. Wirr mowed through them, scythe flashing.
Agnamar’s spear wrought fearful slaughter as his powerful voice rose in a
hymn to the Five Gods. Soon, corpses, and pieces of corpses, were all that were
left of the skree attempt to take over the quarry. “Next
stop, Jokanur Diggings!” Dunkoro practically danced down the path. *********** The
LoL brigade reaffirmed the old adage, “No good deed goes unpunished.”
No sooner had they reported their success to the Elders in Jokanur settlement
than they were given a new task. “Meet
General Morgahn and show him what the Istani Sunpears are made of, eh?” Mea
was suspicious. “Just why do we need to impress the Kournan? Is there some
political move going on that we’re getting caught up in?” “Whatever.”
Agnamar shrugged. “Let’s just get it over with.” ************ Unfortunately,
“getting it over with” took a bit longer than was comfortable for any
of them. All, even the voluble Dunkoro, took a few dirt naps before finally vanquishing
the Kournan troops they were supposed to “impress.” “Ugh.
We’ll be lucky if we don’t get banished to the Outer Atolls for Seagull
Nest Patrol duty after that pathetic showing!” Mea made a face, then used
her spells to make it seem as though a demon were leering from her countenance,
eliciting a double-take from her companions. It
did appear as though the “mostly, not completely hopeless” squad were
being given tasks to get them out of the way: “Go find Melonni in the swamp…yeah,
that’s it!!!” the Emissary told them. It seemed they weren’t the
only ones the Sunspear higher-ups were eager to see the backs of. “And take
Koss with you!!!” Was it only Wirr’s imagination that a round of applause
followed their exit from the settlement? *********** Melonni
was evidently another Sunspear with Authority Issues. Once they had found her,
she proceeded to harangue the lot of them about her suspicions of all of the Elonian
leaders. Wildlife fled their approach as they made their slow way back to the
Jokanur Diggings. Koss resorted to stuffing his ears with shredded leaves to deaden
the constant shrill drone. Agnamar took to “practicing his battle chants,”
leading them from fifty yards ahead “so I won’t disturb your conversation,”
he managed to say with a straight face. As
the walls of the Jokanur outpost finally rose ahead of them, Wirr was overjoyed
to see Spearmarshal Kormir waiting for them. It gave him an excuse to sprint out
of range of Melonni’s monologue of paranoia. But as he neared Kormir, a strange
purple light caught the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he saw that carvings
on an ancient-looking wall were glowing with an unholy radiance. All of their
party had seen it now. The color was actually making him queasy. And his stomach
did further somersaults when Kormir announced that they were expected to go into
the ruins and destroy the source of the Unholiness. But
at least that could wait until they had recovered from their recent trials. --
to be continued --
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