023 - Session Recap

-From the Champions log of Cassius

General Summary

The last few days... were rough. The morning we awoke to depart from Areti - City of Virtue and make our way up past the Tower of Solace through to Eras, Bastion of Order and finally making it to Oathstone I feel like we had to remind every member of the party of it multiple times. Strange how- Nevermind that. I already dread interacting with these Dwarves. The booze, the sweat, heat, oh and the soot just coats the armor. The last time a Dwarf touched me... god, my fingers went bloody trying to get that stain out. That, and the fact that they don’t wash themselves, I mean... Oof~ how could you even LIVE like that? I mean... I guess I am traveling with a prime example of how to do that, in Bruun.
Dwarves and smelly Bruun aside, as we gathered in the cart, I went to fetch Garlic only to find... he... had made his own journey. He would no longer be traveling with us. This saddens me, greatly. I gave him my old training blunted tournament Rapier as remembrance. Hopefully he knows to stick ‘em with the pointy end... which it doesn’t have. With this most unfortunate news befalling us, we decided to give Brunn the reins, since he did “pretty well” with that Dwarven lass the other day. It was less that we trusted him, and more that he kinda just... climbed up and sat down. I mean, there is no one that’ll be able to tell that “man” no. Just his gaze alone could kill a man, so... I sent Tocu to go and maybe coax some sense in Brune.
We made off for the day, made some pretty good progress, and caught some nice views. The sun was starting to get low in the sky, and a wooden carriage for that long of time rivals that of saddle sores, so I called for them to halt, and made my way over to a nice little clearing to look for a camp-sight. There was a nice serene lake, some trees for cover, a few rocks that looked nestle-up-able. So I went and relayed that information to the party. We hitched the Rhinorse and set up camp for what seemed to be a pretty sweet and serene little night. The sun had set, and we all made our ways into our tents, and took turns taking watch.
I don’t remember much of mine, for I was half asleep, but I awoke to the sounds of a scuffle. Tocu and Indiana engaged with a target just moments away from me! They must have saved me, for I had my tent collapsed over-top of me. I stood to my feet, and struggled to remove the tent from me, and it was revealed that we were fighting... lizard people? Scaled ones? Strange, they were. Though... really good shots, I must say, as I am sitting here licking the three arrow wounds in my body.
I’ve read many a-great Red Raven books with creatures like these in them, and seeing as everyone who was more... handy of our adventuring company had seized the initiative of combat, and were locked in arms with them, I moved to aid Wilby and give him succor. As I arrived at the tent, I didn’t see a thing, until I heard something fly whizzing through the air, and then I looked down, to have an arrow in my shoulder. It had struck just between the two pieces of armor, and boy did that one sting. Then, I heard this great gurgling bellow come from the pond. And it was there, that I saw all of the mud start to pool in the middle of the water, rising into the great and towering mud beast! A Mudwretchian!!! It bellowed, then lashed out and grabbed Tocu. So I rushed over, and pulled him from the slimy grasp. We were surrounded. On all sides of us, and not even the water was safe. We fought with teeth and grit through this fantastical battle, Bruuné and Indiana were cracking Lizard heads together, while Tocu, and I fought this beast, and Wilby... suffered their way over.
Though this all sounds grand, and fantastical, it was all too real. We all came to the brink of death. Some of us even multiple times. I was fallen by the creature, poor Wilby could not catch a break, and even Tocu wasn’t slippery enough to get away from this one. Once stabilized, after the first time I was downed, we finally beat it back into the water with Brunné’s aid. We thought it was over. Wilby went to reposition and to aid Tocu as he was downed. Though, apparently the beast had simply just... disbursed back into the water. As he strode swiftly across the muddied grass, the beast reamurged, and had taken Wilby into its tight grasp, squeezing the starlight out of him, which is a feat given what I’ve seen.
I watched on from the floor, and knew I had to do something. I stood to my feet, and rushed over to free Wilby. I was successful in that... but as I pulled him out, he was limp. Although it was frightening, I set Wilby down, and rushed forwards and leaped towards the beast, aiming to push it back into the water, and give it some distance between it and Wilby. I was unsuccessful, and struck out of the air, landing in the water. As my vision began to tunnel, I saw a great orange light being waved around, almost as if someone grabbed a flaming log from the fire, and was beating the beast back into the water with it. Then everything went black...
The next thing I remember was awakening on the shore-line, next to everybody... and we all were alive... just barely, but alive.

Report Date

12 Sep 2024