the spirit of a heroic villain

8/13/2019 The Spirit of a Heroic Villain

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The Spirit of a Heroic Villain

In a snooty gated community in the United States, A 16 year old teen rises from his worn out

bed, and yawns as the sun beams down through the window. His mother calling him, he rinses his face

in the sink, and goes through his morning routine. Little did he know, that today would be the day that

would change his life.

Frack, why does are my blinds even open says our teenaged protagonist, as he walks down the

stairs. He puts on some clothes, grabs some breakfast and leaves gets into his dads car as they drive

away. After about a half-hour he arrives at his pretentious overpriced private school and walks through

the front door. Managing to arrive 20 minutes early, as usual for him, he plops himself down in the

library, content to amuse himself with phone apps and watching the students around him gossip about

the latest couple or whatever they went on and on about. After an incredibly boring and tedious day of

classes, he comes upon a free period.

Why do I have to go through this tedious cycle of going to school, coming home, doing some

boring homework assignment, and then repeating it over and over again? I just want these days of

schooling to end. Its the same thing over and over again, and it isnt going to get any better after I go to

college either. The protagonist thinks to himself. He logs himself into a computer and passes the

remaining time reading threads on a D&D forum.

Wouldnt it be nice to be one of the characters I play? To go on quests, slay monsters and save

the princess It would sure beat the daily toil that I go through in this place. Spells and magic swords,

fighting the Evil Lich to secure the sacred artifacts. Just one day, one day as an adventurer and I would

never go back. The protagonist thinks again to himself. As soon as he leaves the door he finds himself

disgruntled to find that instead of walking out into the familiar entrance to his school, he finds himself in

what appeared to be a small medieval village surrounded by thick woods, and overlooked by a menacingstone castle. Confused, he stumbles around trying to figure what was going on, and eventually decides

to walk into what he thought was a Restaurant.

Inside he found more than he found that he had entered into a tavern. Men were arm-wrestling

on tables, drinking large mugs of ale, strangers lurked mysteriously in the corners just out of sight. He

eventually after a good five minutes of plain staring, walks up to the tavern and asks the barkeep;

Where am I? What is this place?

The Barkeep laughs for a good minute and then a dawn of apprehension came upon his face.

Youre serious arentyou; you really dont know where you are? Why, you are in Pelors Beard the

finest tavern in all the lands, where veteran adventurers come to take a breather and those wishing to

pursue that path will find get their start. Now if you will. Tell me. What is your class?

Class, you are kidding me right? I just got out of school! I dont have a class right now. Says our

protagonist confused and enraged.


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No class? Why you must really be a newbie, here take this The barkeep hands our protagonist

what appears to be a sheet of paper Fill this out, choose your class, and show it to me when you are

done.

Our protagonist looks at the sheet. He sees that its what appears to be a simple D&D character

sheet. Oh I get it, this is some elaborate LARP isnt it? And it just happens to be right outside of myschool.

What is this LARP of which you speak?Utters the confused barkeep

Wow you really are staying in character. Says our protagonist very amused

In character? Was I out of it before?

Nope, you havent broken character since weve gotten here

WellI would hope I havent broken it since I dont know of which character you speak

Dude, seriously, stop role-playing for a second, man. You are taking it way too seriously.

But Im not role-playing; Im serving the customers of my fine tavern good sir.

Dude, I get your commitment to staying in character but could you break it just for a second to

give me directions?

Directions? Just fill out your character sheet first then Ill explain what to do

Im not joining your stupid LARP, just tell me the directions out of this stupid park, and we can

go about our day in peace.

Again, what is this LARP that you speak of?

You know, Live-Action Role-playing

But Im not role-playing; Im just a bartender in my tavern trying to help my patrons. Now if you

dont mind me I have other customers to take care of.

The barkeep walks away, and addresses a short guy with a long beard wearing chainmail. Our

protagonist decides to head into the common room and sees men playing pool, waitresses ferrying trays

filled with large tankards of ale and flirting with some of the men who were winning. He hears a

multitude of cheers after someone manages to sink the 8-ball into a hole. He eventually decides to walk

away, and wanders out of the tavern for a bit. He eventually wanders into the thick forest and after

walking for several hours, gives up and lies down for a bit.

Ugh my legs, how long is it till I end up near a road or something. I mean seriously? Its

probably been miles and I havent seen a single road and mycell phone isnt getting any signal. I guess it


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isnt of any use to keep looking. Might as well wait until someone come finds me. Our protagonist

thinks to himself

Hours pass, and our protagonist gets incredibly bored. He already did all the homework he could

take, his cell phone died, and he already made over 100 cootie catchers out of loose leaf paper.

I guess it couldnt hurt to fill out the sheet, I think I remember most of the rules in my head.

Our protagonist thinks to himself as he reaches into his backpack and pulls out the sheet that the

bartender gave him.

Suddenly, his hand started racing down the paper, filling in sections before he could even think.

Every personal detail, every talent, every aspect of his being went down onto paper before the blink of

an eye. Name? Colin Age? 16 Height? 510, Weight: 160, Size: Medium Race? Human

Strength? 10 Dexterity? 12 Constitution? 14 Intelligence? 16Wisdom? 8 Charisma? 10

Class? Wizard Level 1, Alignment? True Neutral. Skills? Concentration 4, Knowledge (Earth History 4),

Spellcraft 4, Perform (Stringed Instruments) 4, Perform (Sing 4), Knowledge (The Game) 4

Feats? Spell focus(Necromancy), Toughness

No Spells Known

Hit Points? 6

SERIOUSLY? I DO NOT HAVE A WISDOM PENALTY, THIS STUPID SHEET LIES! shouts Colin, our

protagonist as he attempts to rip up the sheet. To his surprise the sheet did not bend nor tare, despite

our protagonists best efforts, the sheet just would not be destroyed. Furiousand irate, our protagonist

walks back to the tavern and confronts the barkeep

What is with this stupid piece of paper that you gave me, I did not mean to fill it out all the way, and my

hand just kind of took control of me. What is this stupid thing says Colin

So I see that you finally decided to fill out the sheet. Hmmm a wizard huh, I wouldnt have suspected it

if it considering your actions yesterday. Albeit the wisdom penalty was expected, I did not expect it to be

so small. Says the barkeep.

Wait are you being serious, I thought you were just pretending about this, I thought you were

just role-playing says Colin amazed and confused.

You really arent from this world are you? Well as a greeting to an accidental planar traveler I

guess I should introduce you to the world. Welcome to the Kingdom of Altaria, the land of the greatest

adventurers, for the best and the worst. Meet me after the Tavern closes, Ill get you up to speed on the

plan to get you home says the barkeep in a hushed voice.

After hours, the barkeep lets Colin in through the back door and leads him up to a private room

closing the door.


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Ok so since you are from another world, I guess the one big question I have to ask first is: What

do you already know about our world? says the barkeep in a hushed tone

So I know we are supposedly in the Kingdom of Altaria, which seems to follow the rules of a

game I play back on my world known as Dungeons and Dragons. It appears that adventuring is actually a

major part of the world itself rather than done by a select few. Says Colin

Ok, so you seem to understand the basics of our world. I guess you also understand the best

way to get you back home is to either convince a higher-level wizard to transport you back or for you to

level up yourself to a much higher level. Considering the fact that most wizards who are high enough

level wouldnt make the detour around to just drop you off back home, your best option seems to be to

become an adventurer and gain enough power. Says Barkeep

Isntthat dangerous? says Colin

Yes it is, and it is uncertain whether or not you would even go to the afterlife here, as your soul

doesnt even belong here in the first place. You have to be careful. Says the Barkeep. Tomorrowmorning, Ill take you shopping for your basic adventuring gear, and hopefully well find you a quest by

then.

A quest, dont I already have one? says Colin curiously I mean going back home seems hard

enough

Surely, you mustnt be serious. You need additional quests to find encounter to defeat. You

cant get stronger simply by sitting around you know. Now get some rest in this room and prepare for

tomorrow says the barkeep leaving the room

The next morning, the Barkeep gave him 1000 gold coins and told Colin to go shopping forwhatever supplies he thought he might need. Colin wandered the marketplace taking in the exotic

scents, and examining the shiny blades of various types. He wanders into a scroll shop perusing the

spells at his leisure. Eventually he decides on Ray of enfeeblement and Chill touch spending 50 gold, in

addition he buys the spells presdigitation, know direction, daze, and flare. In addition, Colin decides to

buy a Hand of the Mage because he thought it looked cool. As soon as he left the magic shop he

bumped into a very large man with tusks protruding from his mouth. The mans hair was charcoal black,

and he was carrying a large greataxe, whose blade was much bigger than Colins head. He was dressed

in a large breastplate, apparently made of a bluish-green metal.

Sorry there good sir, I appear not to have realized you were there. Humble apologies says theman

Astonished Colin obviously confused by the half-orcs polite response replies Its fine, really its

fine.


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The half-orc sighs I guess you assume that because of my race I have to go act like some hulking

brute huh? Well Ill have you know that ImHortus, a master of the arts of weaponized magic, and one

of the seekers of arcane lore.

Colin laughs at the half-orcs remark Oh so you are a duskblade huh?

Hortus responds stunned by Colins brevity Why yes, to put it in short I guess

Colin replies Well Hortus, would you mind telling me if you are planning on going on any

quests?

Hortus replies Well of course, Im currently hunting for the lost tomes of Azarael which contain

basic scrolls for tea-making and drinking

Colin says Well thats boring, why on earth would you be trying to find that

To which Hortus replies Well obviously because Im level 1, its better than slaying some giant

rats in someones cellar, and I mean tea is great why not?

Colin replies Fair enough I guess, do you mind if I join you after I finish shopping for some gear?

Hortus says Hold on let me check your sheet first, Id rather know your stats before I decide

Only if you let me see yours says Colin already holding out his character sheet

Fair Enough says Hortus as he passes Colin his character Sheet

On Hortus Character Sheet Colin sees: Race: Half-Orc, Alignment: Lawful Neutral Size: Medium

Age: 21 Class: Duskblade 1, Str:16 Dex 12 Con 14 Int 14 Wis 12 Cha 10 Feats: Monkey Grip Skills: Ride 4,,

Knowledge (Arcana) 4, Knowledge( History) 4, Intimidate 4

Hmm interesting, you seem to have two skills Ive never encountered before. SaysHortus, stroking his

chin. In all of my studies Ive never heard of Knowledge (The Game) and Knowledge(Earth History).

Well despite your mediocre stats, your knowledge may come in handy for this quest; yeah you can come

with me

Yay, I guess, even though I dont like the comment about my stats being mediocre replies

Colin.

So Colin looked around the bazaar some more, then realized he completely ran out of money so

the adventurous duo set off from town into the wilderness in search of the lost scrolls of Azarael. The

barkeep and Colin shared a goodbye hug, as our protagonists (you thought that phrase was going to go

away didnt you) set out at the break of dawn.

Night soon falls upon our adventurous duo, and they set up camp.

Im hungry! shouts Colin as his stomach grumbles


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Then eat some of the trail rations you bought said Hortus, obviously annoyed.

But I didnt buy any! says Colin stomach still grumbling

What!? You didnt buy any rations what so ever? What did you spend your money on? shouts

Hortus as he becomes incredibly irritated.

IDK, whenever I played D&D, I never had to keep track of it. Said Colin

Whats D&D? says Hortus

Ohhh uhmm, Ok, I guess as a party member I should tell you, Im not exactly from this world,

Im from a completely different one and the rules of this one is a game inside of mine called Dungeons

and Dragons. My goal here is to try and return back to my home world, hopefully by leveling up enough

to travel back using magic. So in the mean time Im going to try and take quests in order to gain the

experience points necessary to get the spells I need to get myself back home. Im not sure much about

the local history, but I do understand some of the rules, and such. I hope that you will still agree to

adventure with me?

Dumbfounded, Hortus replies hesitantly Why no problem at all, as long as you arent planning

to betray me, Ive no problem with your past. In fact your skill set may come quite in handy in the times

to come. I wouldnt worry yourself too much. For now I guess I shall loan you some of my rations good

sir as Id rather not let my comrade starve. He tosses Colin some bread and continues to eat his in now

awkward silence.

The next day, they traveled along the road in relative peace. Both of them wanted to get on with

the quest to recover the Ancient Tea Scrolls of Azarael. Along the way they are stopped by two men,

both dressed in light leather armor, and carrying what appeared to be two long swords.

Your money or your lives! shout the two men as they draw their blades.

Hortus draws his greataxe and replies calmly Now you two good sirs, I would suggest that you

reconsider this path of action. As you see my weapon is much much bigger than yours and my

companion and I are both very well versed in the Arcane Arts. In fact, threatening us would on average

shorten your lifespan. May I suggest that you find another course of action rather than highway thievery;

may I suggest farming, or even working as an apprentice to one of the craftsmen? Both are much safer,

and in the end much more rewarding than attempting to rob people in the middle of the road. While

you may stumble upon some big haul of sorts once a year, youll have to make that last for a while, and

avoid any sort of law enforcement. Now if I may, me and my companion would like to continue on our

journey in peace.

One of the Highwaymen looks at the other worried for a minute. He then shrugs it off shouts

We are the great Braxton Brothers; we arent afraid of your fancy magic, give us your money or your

lives!


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Hortus responds still calm as ever Are you sure that is the wisest course of action? You see we

are on a very important task right now and would use force if necessary to continue on. We are much

stronger than you in strength of arms, and this axe could probably take both of your heads clean off. I

would suggest that you back away and leave.

The smaller of the two Braxton Brothers charges Hortus with his sword, very insulted. Hortusparries the blade with his axe and responds with a wild swing. The axe is blocked with the blade, but the

man holding it is pushed back staggered from the force of the blow, obviously suffering some damage.

Colin in attempt to aid Hortus casts daze on the other highwayman but the target resists it. The older of

the two attempts to charge Colin with a wild overhead swing. While Colin does make an attempt to

dodge, the blade does make contact, but not enough to be a lethal blow.

Colin could feel a sudden drop in his head of his vitality. Shit, I only have 2 hp left, I have to

figure out something he thinks to himself. Taking a 5 foot step back, Colin uses another spell slot in

order to attempt to cast daze again. This time the highwayman fails his save and is rendered confused

for precious moments. The other one attempts thrust his blade into Hortus, but Hortusarmor blocks

the blow. Hortus takes another wild overhead swing, this time making contact with the flesh, causing

the highwayman to fall over bleeding. Colin now moves away from the highway man and finds a rock to

use with a slingshot he had in his backpack. Hortus moves closer to the highwayman but not soon

enough for the highwayman to charge at Colin. Colin, prepared for such action, fires a sling bullet at the

highwayman stopping him for a brief moment just 5 feet from killing him, giving him ample opportunity

to run away some more. Hortus charges at the highwayman, and delivers a killing sideways swing,

cleaving straight through his body.

After ensuring that there was no one lying in ambush, our protagonists search the bodies of the

Braxton Boys for any valuable items that might be useful in their quest. Colin decides that he needs a

weapon of some sort and grabs the older highwaymans sword. The sword is engraved multiple times in

what appeared to Colin to be arcane runes. It appeared to be well-crafted and polished as if the

highwayman felt that the blade was somehow rare. At the hilt of the blade, there was a single piece of

quartz bejeweled within it. Hortus opted not to take anything from the dead bodies. After giving the

bodies a burial. Our protagonists continue upon their quest to find the scrolls. After a good many days of

travel, they come upon the wreckage of what appeared to be a trade caravan. Multiple bodies seemed

strewn about in an odd fashion.

In an obvious look of terror, Colin asks Hortus Should we go help them? We have to look for

survivors however after looking up at Hortus he finds that Hortus has already begun the search.

After many hours of searching, they eventually find a small Elven girl who was still breathing.

After giving the girl medical treatment, they camp for days waiting for the girl to wake up. Eventually

after two days, the girl wakes up and is confused to where she is.

Excuse me mister? Im lost, can you help me find my parents? says the Elven girl

Our protagonists remain speechless for a good minute, before Hortus speaks up My dear, Im

so sorry. But I believe your parents to have gone to a better place now.


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A better place? Like the happy sunshine farm that Pappy, our family dog, went to? responds

the Elven girl.

Uhmmm, yes my dear. They went to visit Pappy at the happy sunshine farm. We were told by

your parents to escort you to the City of Lightflower for someone to look after you for a while so that

they can visit Pappy

As such our group made a detour into the city of Lightflower. Once they reached the city

outskirts they say large castle walls covered in gold. Two guards stood guard at the guardhouse to guard

the gate good. Our protagonists approach the gate and are stopped by the guards.

Names and intent please. Orders one of the guards

In addition please leave all weapons outside with us. We promise as guards not to steal them.

It is against the laws of the city to carry weapons inside of the walls of our fine City. Our city council

would prefer for violence to be kept non lethal at the very least. Says the other

Our protagonists surrender their axe and sword and head into the city. Inside they find a

crowded bazaar filled with goods of all kinds. Demons were selling blades, and genies were buying

spices up from the human markets. Angelic beings are seen bargaining with Demons over the price of

some street food. As our protagonists wander further in they find an orphanage. They knock on the door

and are greeted by an elderly woman carrying a baby in one hand, and have a small child tugging at her

skirt. There they drop off the young child. On their way out, they stop at a bar to see if there were any

rumors of the tea scrolls and its location. They hear of a small secluded set of ruins that is guarded by a

large tribe of goblins. Inside is the first of the scrolls. However to get through it they have to break

through a blockade of soldiers who are busy fighting the dragon of Avalon, an ancient realm that the

dragon was born in. In addition, crime was at an all time high, with the roads flooded with highwaymenand bandits. After leaving the tavern they made their way out of Lightflower, but were stopped by three

young guardsmen.

I think we have a lawbreaker on our hands here. Says one of the guards to the others

Yeah they havent payed their guard tax yet. Says one of the other guards

Well thats not good, they should pay it right now say the other

Well thats not fair! We arent from this city, and I can tell you right now that you arent going

to threaten us into giving you gold, you corrupt guardsmen shouts Colin obviously upset.

Well then I guess we just have to throw you into jail then. Says the first guardsmen.

Now now, lets not get hasty now says Colin trying to backtrack his way out of jail time.

Thats a good boy; now cough up 100 gold pieces for the tax. Says the second guardsman.

Uhmm I dont have 100 gold pieces. Says Colin worried


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Well then hell have to be taught a lesson wont he says the first guardsmen as the three

simultaneously approach our protagonists.

After a brief scuffle and exchange of fists, our beaten protagonists are carried off and thrown

into a Jail Cell.

Well that could have gone better says Hortus

You said it man replies Colin.

After hours of waiting, our protagonists decide to break out of jail. Fortunately enough none of

the guardsmen were smart enough to strip them of their magic items, so while the jail guard was

sleeping, Colin used his Hand of the Mage to steal the keys. Using them they escape their cells. Once

outside of their cells, they attempted to sneak down multiple corridors. Once outside of the building

with their armor, they simply walked out the front gate claimed their weapons and ran as far as they

could. Eventually, once they were far into the forest they stopped. However, when they stopped, they

heard soft growling coming from all around them. Suddenly a wolf jumped out at Hortus. Hortusmanaged to kill it in one shot with his axe in reaction the lunge, but 5 wolves ended up pouring out of

the woods. Surrounded, Hortus gave one mighty cleave and knocked three in one mighty blow. Colin

casts daze on one and snipes the other one with a sling bullet twice. While the next wolf is charging at

him, he casts ray of enfeeblement, weakening the wolf, causing the bite to hurt a lot less. Next he casts

it again paralyzing the wolf. Then Colin slowly walks up to the wolf, and snaps its neck putting the wolf

out of its misery. After the brief skirmish with death, the party dined on wolf jerky and rested in the

woods before attempting to continue on with their journey.

Over the next few days, very few eventful things happen. Eventually they meet a trader on the

road begging them for help.

Help me please! Some bandits have taken my children, please please help me! shouts the

trader.

Well be glad to help you get your children back says Colin

Frustrated, Hortus pulls Colin aside and says As much as I like helping with these kinds of stuff,

we dont have time for this. We have to get a move on and find the Scrolls of Azarael so that I can return

to my study.

Colin repliesWell think about it this way, the more side quests we do before we get to the ruins

the more experience we get. As we get stronger the better prepared we are to tackle the challenges the

ruins may give us. We dont want to be marching off to our dooms. Hey maybe if we complete this task

well even level up thistime. Come on think about it. Think about all those juicy skill points and hit

points. It would be perfectly worth the detour man. Besides we are only finding the scroll for all the

experience points anyways.


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Reluctantly, Hortus responds I guess you are right sir. If we are to be able to level up before we

get to the ruins, we may be able to navigate the treacherous traps better. I have no clue as to what to

expect. In fact it may well be too hard for us to handle as of right now.

So our two protagonists set off in search of the unknown bandits. After many days of searching,

they find a set of tracks marking that 4 armed men passed through. Slowly following the trail, Hortustook the lead, while Colin watched the rear. One night as they were following the men, they decided to

camp out in a small cave just outside of the woods. While setting up the fire, Hortus decides to ask Colin

As I know, most wizards carry around a piece of their soul known as their familiar, is there any reason

why you dont have one? It would be useful to have around.

Colin replies Oh, I dont really know. I mean in my world magic is a fictional construct, rather

than reality. I mean Ivealways wanted to adopt a pet. But I mean, isnt it risky, I would have to risk

experience points, and put a part of my very soul into a small fragile vessel.

Hortus thinking carefully Well think about it, a familiar would be very useful to the adventure,

and could keep you company on the quest.

So our protagonists went to sleep and overnight a small kitten crawled into Colins sleeping bag.

The next morning Colin discovered the kitten, and overtaken with its super adorable nature, he decides

to adopt the kitten and names it Jerome. Colin and the rest of our protagonists after many days catch up

with the bandits.

It sure was good luck that those happened to be the bandits huh? Colin whispers to Hortus

Yeah I guess, I mean we are adventurers stuff happens conveniently for us all the time. Like

how the guards just happened to try and threaten us and throw us in jail for not giving a bribe. replies

Hortus

MEEEEOOOOOWWWWW screeches Jerome as it accidently bites its own tail

See? says Hortus as the bandits head out to investigate the sound.

Our protagonists hid in the trees and as soon as one of the bandits walked under the tree, Colin

casted daze and stunned him. The Hortus drops down and silently snaps the bandits neck. The other

three bandits continued to search the vicinity. Colin casts ray of enfeeblement on another one, all three

discover his location. However, as they approach him, taking sling fire, Hortus flanks one of them and

kills him in one stroke. Then Colin casts ray of enfeeblement again on the already weakened bandit

paralyzing him. The two bandits attempt to strike Hortus down, but Hortus blocks the blows. Colin kills

one with a well placed stone to the head, and Hortus strikes down the other with a series of well placed

swings. After having defeated the bandits, Colin felt an incredible rush of power; his very spine was

tingling in newfound might. Feeling some ideas coming on, Colin rushes to his notebook and writes

down the formulas for two more spells, Cause Fear, and Color Spray. In doing so, he without knowing it

also reached in and grabbed his character sheet automatically updating it.


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When he looked up, Colin noticed Hortus doing the same thing. Colin now incredibly curious

decides to take a peek at Hortus spell list. Inside he finds that Hortus knows Blade of Blood,True Strike,

and was scribing Kelgores Fire Bolt. So the newly level 2 party finds that the girl was not with the

bandits. However after some searching, they find a journal that writes of a larger group of bandits that

the bandits that they just slain gave the girl to. Their headquarters were located a good two days

journey westward, they were also aiming to find the Scroll of Azarael.

See? I told you taking this side quest was a good idea says Colin

Fine, I admit that you did have a lucky moment of insight replies Hortus in a resigned tone.

So the two started journeying westward, fighting the occasional ambush. On the second day

they run into an abandoned keep once occupied by the forces of Lightflower. Manned on the walls were

a bunch of bandits armed with longbows and leather armor. The keep was surrounded by a large moat

and drawbridge. The walls were made of incredibly smooth stone that would make it nearly impossible

for anyone to climb up without some mechanical aid. Rather than risk their lives assaulting the well-

fortified keep, our protagonists camp for the night away from the keep. After a couple of days of waiting,

a wagon driven by a farmer carrying a bunch of supplies for the keep was seen heading towards the

keep. Our protagonists hop on and hide underneath all the produce when the farmer was distracted.

After a very light check, the wagon was let into the keep. As soon as no one was looking, the

protagonists hopped off the wagon behind the kitchen. Hortus snuck then snuck behind two bandit

guards and subdued them. Locking them inside a kitchen closet they then made their way further into

the keep. Finally they found the location where the traders children were being kept. However in front

of the cell was a hungry bear. Rather than risk the bear mauling the children, Hortus decided to sneak up

on it and cleave its head off with his axe. However rather than a full blow, it only made a sizable cut.

Colin immediately followed with a color spray blinding and stunning it. Hortus then followed up with a

series of axe blows which felled the mighty bear. However this notified the guards that something was

going on. So three bandit guards filled into the room and attempted to subdue them. However Colin

followed up with another color spray and the party fled the room. Taking heavy arrow fire, Colin was hit

twice and Hortus was just plain covered with arrows. However eventually they ran far enough that the

bandits gave up on pursuing them. Having freed the traders children, the party returned to the trader,

taking a relatively brisk pace, and received a bunch of high level scrolls as a reward. The scrolls

contained a variety of summoning spells however they couldnt use them as they were meant for druids.

After staying the night at the Traders Place, our protagonists traveled onward towards their

destination. One day along the road they came upon what Colin recognized to be a wrecked car.

Wait; there are cars in this world? We could have Driven Here!? exclaims Colin

So you know of this contraption? replies Hortus confused, as he examines the car.

Its a car! You know a machine designed for the transportation of people across large

distances rather fast? replies Colin


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Well it doesnt look like its going anywhere real soon points outHortus.

Yeah, but if a car is here then that implies that there may be a car somewhere else. says Colin

Our protagonists decide to ignore it and continue on their journey. While the next few days

were uneventful, they eventually run out of food. So they stopped alongside at the nearest town and

asked around for some sort of job. An elderly woman approaches them in a tavern and says Ill pay you

2000 gold and pay for lodging and food over the course of the journey, if you escort me to the city of

Silverfronds. The name is Beth by the way.

Hold on let me discuss this with my business associate. replies Hortus

Our protagonists scrunch up together and start discussing. I believe this will be our best paying

job offer, even though it is a substantial detour from our plans, it pays well, and can give us a lot ofxp

says Hortus

Agreed says Colin after hearing his stomach grumble really really loudly.

So after agreeing to Beths contract, our party starts heading off in the direction of Silverfronds.

After two days of travel, three highwaymen walk up to the party and threaten their lives. Quickly Hortus

leaps into action, with three wild swings took down all the highwaymen. On one of their persons was a

letter informing them that they would be paid handsomely for the assassination of the person known as

Beth.

This is above what you are paying us, do you have something to say? SaysColin showing Beth

the letter.

Youve got me; Im a diplomat traveling to the city of Silverfronds to negotiate a trade contract

between the City of Alvesville and Silverfronds. There are lets just say certain parties that are against an

economic deal like this. Particularly the fact that they would lose some of their business from the deal

that we are making. replies Beth

What is this deal? asks Hortus

Its a deal that Alvesville will provide a certain amount of weapons in exchange for food and

supplies replies Beth

What does Silverfronds need with weapons? asks Colin

No-one knows, but Alvesville is willing to supply that demand in exchange for food and supplies

for our people. says Beth

So you are just willing to supply those weapons, no questions asked? responds Hortus

Would you rather let the people in my city starve? Beth shoots back.

Would you rather have innocent blood on your hands replies Colin.


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Id rather let my people live, and let them have their defense, than to be questioned by you

two replies Beth.

So they journeyed onward in awkward silence, for several days. Unbearably long awkward

silence. Along the way they encounter a working car with keys.

YES! Finally a Car! says Colin as he looks around to see if the owner is around.

Im guessing you want to ride it? says Hortus suddenly cracking up at the innuendo he just

accidently made.

YES! Hop in! says Colin as he jumps into the drivers seat.

The other two hesitantly hop into the other seats, as Colin speeds off in the car.

After a joyride of over 1 hundred miles, the car runs out of gas.

Never let me do that again saysHortus,

Same here chimes in Beth;

The three of them started walking towards Silverfronds which was still very far off. Over the

next couple of days they ended up walking alongside the road, seeing no sight of civilization. Slowly but

steadily they attempted to make progress but on the third day they collapse of exhaustion.

Ugh, where am I? inquires Colin as he wakes up rubbing his forehead. He finds himself in a

locked bedroom, sunshine pours down through the window revealing a pretty view of the forest. Beside

him he sees his two travel companions as well as Jerome resting at the foot of his bed. Quickly he checks

himself for his belongings and finds everything was still there.

Slowly, his two comrades also woke up and experienced the same sense of confusion. Quickly

they searched the room for any way out. Before funnily enough, an Elven maiden opens the door

carrying three hot bowls of oatmeal. Rather than try and fight, they enjoy the oatmeal, and rest easy for

a little bit, knowing that if their captors were hostile they probably wouldnt have given them hearty

oatmeal. After lounging around for what seemed like hours, the Elven maiden walked back in and said

Greetings travelers, I am Lessien Awamane. Welcome to my lovely inn. she says in a rather high

pitched voice.

Beth replies Thank you for rescuing us and treating us with such hospitality.

Lessien replies slowly Thanks for your politeness, but I didnt save you out of sheer kindness.

You three look like you are able bodied adventurers. I need your help to scare off some giants.

Giants! Are you sure we are up to the task replies Colin nervously


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If you arent well then, you are going to need to pay for the inn costs, your food, medical bills,

the cost of labor for moving you, the cost of breakfast in bed. That comes up to about 10,000 gold. says

Lessien without missing a beat.

Thats extortion! shouts Beth in a very angry tone.

Well then should I ring you up, or are you going to clear out those giants I was talking to you

about replies Lessien

Do we have a choice, we dont have enough gold to pay for it, I guess we have to go and fight

those giants. says Hortus

And before you get any clever ideas, Ive placed Marks of Justice on all three of you. If you

dont go out and get the giants to go away theyll activate, making your lives very miserable. So dont

even think of cheating me, and if you come back successful I have additional rewards for you. she

replies.

Dejectedly, our protagonists venture out to try and challenge the giants that were terrorizing

the area. After a couple hours of running they discover the giants walking around and playing an

incredibly complex form of chess. When one of the giants finally notices our protagonists watching them,

he bends down onto one knee and says in an incredibly slow voice Hello there little fellas, what brings

you to our fields?

Uhmm, hi, we were sent by this elf girl named Lessien to ask you to leave these fields. says

Colin nervously

Well thats not very nice. says the other giant in a slightly higher pitched voice Weve lived

here all of our lives, to ask us to leave is very rude.

Well, we dont have much of a choice, when she captured us, she placed these marks of justice

that says if we dont manage to move you off these fields then theyll activate and apparently bestow a

powerful curse on us. replies Hortus

I guess this lady named Lessien needs to be taught a lesson replies the Giant who gets up and

grabs a giant club.

Following our protagonists, the Giant makes his way to Lessiens house. Lessien steps outside

with a longsword and says What is this asshole Giant doing on my lawn?

The giant responds Young lady, Ive been hearing that youve been trying to get people to

remove my family from their ancestral homes? May I ask that you not do so, as weve been living there

since forever, and would rather not relocate all of a sudden due to the complaints of a single neighbor

who weve done nothing but be polite and courteous to. In fact, if you hate us, your only neighbors, so

much why dont you just move somewhere else.


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Im not frickin moving because of some dumb giants. You dimwits should move somewhere

else, dont you realize you are pulling property values down you morons? No one wants you around

here. In fact all giants should just die, in fact why dont I bring down the population a little bit says

Lessien as she starts generating lightning from the tips of her fingers. After a couple of seconds of

chanting she casts chain lightning, sparks fly from her finger striking the giant straight on the heart. The

giant tumbles back for a little bit before swinging his club at Lessien. She dodges but is hurt by the

shockwave that is released from the mighty blow. Lessien then casts disintegrate, a small green ray

shooting out of her fingertip. The ray misses by a hairs breadth, and the Giant takes a sideways swing of

the club. Lessien rushes forward and casts another disintegrate, it hits the giant straight on, however the

giant still stands tall. The giant finally manages to land a good solid blow on Lessien. Lessien is knocked

through her house, causing it to fall down on her. The rubble laid on the grown haphazardly, her body

certainly underneath a ton of it. Exhausted, the giant collapsed and started taking very shallow breaths.

Slowly the marks of justice disappeared from our protagonists head and they set out upon their journey

anew. After a few days of traveling, a storm starts brewing, rain poured down hard upon their heads.

Quickly, our heroes started to search for shelter. After many hours of searching, our protagonists come

upon an abandoned nobles estate. The gate was locked, but Hortus in desperation smashes the lock

with his axe. They enter the abandoned manor, and start looking for sources of warmth. They light a fire

using some firewood that was left behind. Warming their hands around the fire they start hearing some

moaning sounds coming from outside. Looking out the window, Colin sees a bunch of corpses shambling

towards the manor.

Zombies! he shouts as he rushes to grab his longsword (I bet most readers forgot he had that)

and starts moving furniture to block the door. Hortus upon hearing this draws his greataxe; Beth on the

other hand takes Jerome hides upstairs with a club in hand. The zombies start pounding on the door

loudly, the moans become louder and louder. Colin readies an action to cast color spray as soon as the

barricade fails, as does Hortus. When the door finally collapses the simultaneous color sprays stunned

the zombies, Colin takes pot shots with his slingshot taking down a couple of the zombies, Hortus brings

down the stunned one with his axe. After the first wave was finished, they barricade the hole as best

they can and set a trap of oil and a match for the first zombie to enter and retreat up the stairs pouring

oil as they climb. The first zombie caught on fire as it stepped in the oil trap and set several other ones

on fire, as more unscathed zombies started walking up the stairs; Colin drops a lit match on it setting the

entire stairs on fire. Killing the remaining Zombies of that wave, they wait to see if the coast was clear.

Then they barricade the hole and sleep taking turns every 2 hours or so to see if the zombies returned.

They didnt so all of them drift off into the deep abyss of sleep. In the morning they wake up and find

the manor around them to have disappeared mysteriously. However rather than look around for any

reason why it disappeared, they decided to ignore it and continue on their journey. Over the next couple

of days they journeyed quietly avoiding the main road, one night they hear some footsteps over freshly

fallen leaves. Preparing themselves for trouble, our protagonists draw their weapons. Slowly a group of

wolves surround our party, with a man dressed in green robes appears out of nowhere.

Who dares trespass in the ancient forest of Antiqua says the man in green in a deep gravel-like

voice. Those who trespass must be executed.


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We are sorry good man of nature, we did not intend to trespass, we were but passing through.

If you give us time well swiftly depart from your forest and we may avoid any bloodshed.

No intruders, no exceptions. shouts the man in green. Attack my hounds of war, destroy the

interlopers.

The wolves surround Beth and attempt to attack her, but Colin intercedes with a well placed color spray

rendering them blind and stunned. However the man in green managed to guide them back to him with

the sound of his voice. He then casts entangle, tree roots popping up and ensnaring Hortus, rendering

him unable to move. Next Beth uses her club to strike at one of the wolves. The wolf turns around and

bites her lightly. At the sight of her own blood Beth faints. Colin swings his sword at the nearest wolf

fending it off to grab onto Beth. Hortus swings at the roots entangling him and manages to get free just

soon enough to dodge the blow of a nearby wolf. Colin lets loose another color spray and coup-de-grace

the two wolves that he hits. The man in green lets loose a roar of anger, and casts Produce flame,

engulfing his hands in flame and the paws of the wolf in flame. They both charge Hortus and deal an

extraordinary amount of damage. Eventually Hortus takes enough damage to fall unconscious. Colin

retaliates with another color spray, hitting both of them, and ends up coup-de-gracing both of them.

Afterwards, he tries to heal Hortus, and eventually manages to bind his wounds. He waits for 4 days

until Hortus wakes up from his deep slumber. They eventually continue upon their journey still many

days out from finishing their quest. On their way there they stumble upon a large boulder blocking the

road. On top of the boulder sits a young child carrying a large wooden staff.

Stop this is the territory of me, Artinius the Bandit King! shouts the young child.

Our protagonists laugh for a bit, until a bunch of much bulkier men comes out of the forests. Bow down

before our martial might shouts the child

Our protagonists surrender without a fight recognizing that they are heavily outnumbered. They are

escorted to another castle filled with bandits; many of them have infamous reputations on their own,

such as Crazy-eyed Sam, Hawkeyed Harold, Insane Ingrid, Mad Moody, Amazing Amy and Revolting Rory,

Demon Donna, Mean Martha, Osiris Oswin, and Blood-Red Rose. Once there, they are tied up and left

inside of a tent. The bandits made jeering noises at them as they walked by the tent. The bandit king

walks into the tent and says So you may be asking why I captured you three, you see Im looking for

some lieutenants. You three looked promising. Im here to make you a deal that you cannot refuse. Join

me and you live, refuse and you die. Now tell me, what is your choice? Death in despair, or Riches in

Life?

All three of them agreed to join the bandits. After three days of pillaging the nearby countryside Colin

notices a chance for escape. He nudges Hortus who sees the path as well, and Hortus nudges Beth and

points out the escape route. Colin suddenly casts Color spray on the bandits around them and runs off

with the other two. As the bandits gave chase, Colin weaved in and out of the trees casting Cause Fear

on the bandits scaring them away. After that he cast know direction in order to find the direction to the

city again. They walk under the cover of night to avoid the detection of the Bandit King and slept during

the day hidden within the woods. Eventually after three days of travel in this fashion they decided that


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they had gained enough distance already and resumed their normal travel pattern. They continued

journeying for many days, but eventually they needed to stop in the small village known as

Bluewhich. In Bluewhich they restocked on various supplies and found out about a great treasure

buried by the Dread Pirate Bobby who robbed tons of ships and buried his gold near the ruined temple

which contained the lost Scroll of Azarael. Hundreds of treasure hunters set out looking for the treasure.

So with this information having been received they set out on their journey again and continued on their

way to Silverfronds. So they continued traveling picking up the pace so as to finish their side quest faster.

After a day or two, they came upon a series of slain trade caravans to the city of Silverfronds.

Investigating them, our protagonists discover various burn marks and a single card, The Ace of Hearts,

remained at each of the scenes. Rather than investigating they continued on their journey. Another day

later they come upon a trading post manned by dwarfs buying selling weapons, Colin finally sells the

longsword he got from the Braxton Brothers for a very very pretty sum of 500 gold. Hortus then uses

that money combined with some of the stuff from before to buy the first magic weapon for the party, a

+1 Greataxe. The hilt of the axe was bejeweled with glass rubies, and the blade was made from fine

dwarven steel forged from the heat of lava.

Our protagonists journey across the fields of Azaran as they enter the final leg of their journey.

However they come across a huge standoff between what appeared to be a huge horde of orcs and an

army of human militia men armed with basic spears and leather armor. The armies charged at each

other, both sides letting out blood curdling screams. As the orc and human armies collide, multiple

screams of agony were let out as limbs and blade collided. The battlefield was in complete chaos; our

protagonists could not even bear to watch. The bloody battle began with bloody barbaric brawling of

blades. Suddenly, a human cavalry charge plowed through the orc infantry, causing a great deal of

casualties. Arrows were flying through the air, finding their targets in both Human and Orc flesh. Goblins

on worgs slammed into the human infantry moments later. No path could be seen between the two

battling armies. The bloody battle seemed to go on for ages. Neither side could seem to get an

advantage for long. When one army seemed to be winning, some heroic rally or charge would turn the

tides. Bloody parts flew everywhere, the field was filled with corpses, some barely alive, others dead as

a doorknob. Slowly our protagonists were dragged into battle, having to cut off parts from Orc and

Human alike trying to stay alive. Slowly but surely, our protagonists made their way through the battle

alive, however, both commanders took note of them and continued their battle. As they continued their

journey they ran into another adventuring party of 4 members. One an Elven bard with a lute strapped

to his backpack and carrying an ornate rapier. Another was an Orcish Barbarian, covered in pelts, and

carrying the heads of various humanoids. The third was a Dwarven Cleric of Pelor carrying a bronze

shield with a lions head emblazoned on it and a mace covered in holy runes. The 4th appeared to be

just a common man, with a slim build. Immediately the opposing adventuring party drew their weapons

shouting gibberish about how Colin and Hortus were going to steal their treasure. Colin and Hortus were

forced to respond in turn. After a brief clash of blades and spells, both sides found themselves to be

evenly matched. Suddenly Colin lets loose a color spray on the opposing party and knocks out the cleric

with a couple of solid blows to the head. The Bard starts playing the lute to try and rally his comrades,

while the Orcish Barbarian and Hortus exchange axe blows. The normal man suddenly manifested claws

on his fingers and attempted to claw at Beth, Beth managed to dodge, and Colin hit the man with two


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rays of enfeeblement severely weakening the man. Hortus finally manages to land several blows on the

barbarian knocking the barbarian out. The bard quickly surrendered afterwards. After a long

conversation, the opposing adventuring party eventually realizes that Colin and Hortus were not after

their treasure. They introduced themselves. The bards name was Jolanne, the barbarians was Urghsack,

the clerics name was Reginald, and the regular man, who turned out to be some sort of soul warrior

called a Totemist, was named Arthurn. The parties departed on good terms and our protagonists

journeyed onwards the Silverfronds. The party eventually reached the City gates of Silverfronds, but the

guards wouldnt let them through due to a plague going on. The guards however told them that if they

could acquire proof of clean health they would be allowed in. So they set course for a nearby village,

there they found out that the doctor had gone to another village close by to try and treat the plague. So

they went to the next village where they found out that the doctor had died to the plague. So they

searched for a cleric or an adept, having to head towards a nearby hamlet. There a local adept was

available but did not have the necessary spells prepared. So they had to stay in the hamlet overnight. So

they searched for an inn, however most inns were filled with people running to avoid the plague. So

they ended up having to camp the night. So they started a fire, and cooked some local game. Eventually

they drifted off to sleep. Overnight, a thief came and stole some of their stuff, including Hortus axe, and

Colins spellbook. When they woke up, they discovered their stuff missing, but a trail of footsteps lead

from their camp elsewhere. They followed these footsteps to discover some bandits guarding a chest,

which probably included their stuff. Colin shot his slingshot at one of the bandits guarding the chest

alerting them to his presence. He ran off providing a distraction for Hortus and Beth to sneak up to the

chest and retrieve their swag. Retrieving all of the gear, they chase after the bandits pursuing Colin.

Eventually they catch up just as Colin is faced with a cliff. Hortus quickly brings down two of the bandits

with his axe, and Colin snipes a third with his slingshot. The remaining two bandits attempt to attack

Hortus, but Hortus blocks most of the blows. Colin snipes another one, while Hortus brings down the

last one with is axe. Having retrieved their stuff, the party returns to the hamlet, where the adept has

the spells ready and waiting for them. After acquiring a clean bill of health, they make the long journey

back to the city, where the guards reluctantly let them in. Inside the city, they find multiple large

skyscrapers towering over the populace and other buildings. Each of them manned with thousands of

workers working on something or other. Beth quickly departs from the rest of the party after having

given them the ascribed payment. Hortus and Colin quickly go shopping, buying up tons of food and

buying a magic sling for Colin and some discount magic armor for Hortus. After buying this, they decide

to use some of their remaining cash to see a performance of Romerus and Juelita: A Lamentable Tragedy.

As soon as they take their seats, the play begins with the servants of the two rival houses getting into

fights. During the pivotal balcony scene, a crystal star starts lowering down upon the audience. Suddenly,

the audience starts throwing money onstage; the only ones who werent were Colin and Hortus.

Realizing something was wrong, they figured that the star must be the cause and walked on stage, and

destroyed the star with an axe blow. The audiences, broken out of the illusion, enter into a raving riot

out of anger and confusion. Many people were trampled in said riot. Seeking escape, Colin climbs onto

Hortus back and Hortus attempts to wade through the crowd. Failing, they are pushed back into the

center. Attempt after attempt ended in failure. After hours of rioting, the actors had already escaped

through secret exits unknown to our protagonists. The city guardsmen arrive to subdue the riot. While

the guards were subduing the riots, they also took the time to arrest both Colin and Hortus under


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suspicion of causing a riot. After being processed and temporarily thrown in jail, they were quickly

introduced to the prisoners. The Bandit King was captured, as was Amazing Amy and Revolting Rory who

were captured along with the Bandit King. In addition, various tax evaders, murderers, rapists, and other

serious criminals were locked into the cells. Eventually they were brought before the court. After hours

of proceedings that will not be covered by this story they are determined to be innocent. They were

then released with their possessions back into the city. However no Inn would let them stay because of

the arrest. So they kept on walking though out the city. They passed skyscrapers with all the lights out

because all the workers had returned home. They passed houses, with families settling in for a nice

dinner. They passed hostels and inns that would refuse them due to the recent news. They could enter

not one of those buildings. Eventually they knocked on the door to a small manor. A young man with a

firm athletic build and dark brown hair answered the door saying How may I help you

We are but weary travelers, not one inn would let us spend the night, could you provide us

with a bed for the night? says Hortus

Sure, our house is open to those in need at all times, call me Sir Kent by the way responds the

man

Thank you so much replies Colin in an enthusiastic but tired voice.

Really, I must introduce you two to my beautiful wife Lady Olivia. She is the fairest maiden in all

the lands. The one who makes the stars jealous with envy at how bright she shines. She who makes the

gods wish that they were mortal just to get glances upon her fair face. She makes the brightest of days

look like night when she is not around. She makes can make an elephant soar through the sky with sheer

joy. My lady is so beautiful so fair that the sun and moon jostle just to see who can see her radiant face.

SaysSir Kent in a happy tone

Sir Kent escorts the two to the dinner table. Sitting at the seat reserved for the lady is a lovely

young woman with blonde hair and blue eyes. She is skinny and curvy at places. However she was by no

means as lovely as Sir Kent described.

Oh my love, fair Sir Kent, why were you gone so long? Every moment without you is a tiresome

burden that feels like centuries. Without your courageous self, I would not know myself. Without your

beauty the world would turn towards eternal darkness. Every moment without you is worse than a

seagulls gullet. Your smile is richer than a Dragons hoard. I cannot live without you, for without your

beauty I would be lost. Without your courageous self, my own heart would be full of fear. Without your

gentle soul, mine own would be forever rough. Without your virtuous mind, mine would be filled with

sin. You complete my soul with your own perfection. Without you, Im nothing, with or without me, you

are everything. My love for you knows no bounds, no limitations, and no restrictions. My spirit resides

with you, my body belongs to you, and my soul is within yours. says Lady Olivia

Oh my fair love, my radiant Lady Olivia, you are utter perfection in and of yourself. I am nothing

before your perfection. Your radiant blue eyes could drown the sea. Your beautiful golden locks could

outshine the sun. Your pure white skin is more pure than freshly fallen snow of winter. Your beauty is


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unrivaled. Your virtue unmatched, your spirit untamed, and your love priceless. I am honored to be in

your presence alone, for I am your lowly servant in this mortal plane. Yet the gods envy me for I am able

to lay my gaze upon thee every day. Without you I am lost. Without you I am nothing. Without you, I

cannot go on. A day without you is darker the darkest of nights. My very soul, essence and body are your

playthings, to do with as you desire. To live with you is heaven on earth itself. To be without you is

worse than the lowest layer of the abyss. I cannot live without you, you complete me. Yet you need no

other part for you are perfection incarnate. The goddesses envy your beauty, while the gods lust after it.

Yet you are an innocent soul more innocent than a budding flower. Sir Kent replies in an incredibly

lovely dovey voice.

The dinner went on, with multiple courses of fine dining, including roasted pheasant, boiled

boar, grilled gullet of Dragon, fried fish, fine gold leaf lettuce, savory salted sardines, stuffed clams,

breaded beef, and chocolate carrots imported from the Cardinian Plains. Guests trickled in from the

richest parts of the city, the greatest merchants, passing nobleman, big-shot actors, famous war heroes,

awe-inspiring musicians, and adventurers of all sorts. The party grew to tremendous proportions, Lady

Olivia and Sir Kent seemed unphased by this party, and sat in the corner feeding each other food, andcontinuing to exchange sweet nothings into each others ears. Guests gorged themselves on the

expensive food and tried to make connections with each other. Politicians sucked up to the nobleman,

actors tried to make friends with directors, searching for the next big hit. Drunken people hit on the

sober, sober people took advantage of the drunk. The party seemed to last forever, Colin and Hortus

couldnt walk straight having consumed too much alcohol. They talked forever to the biggest names in

the city, rubbing elbows with the merchants, complimenting the actors on their skills, listening to the

performances of the best musicians. They seemed to thrive upon Sir Kents and Lady Olivias Trimalchio-

like nature. Orchestras played rapid jaunty tunes, while gymnasts leapt into the air. Actors gave

segments of their best scenes, while merchants displayed their exotic wares. Elven maidens flirted with

gnomish warriors; Halflings drank dwarfs under the table. The world seemed topsy-turvy. Eventually

Colin and Hortus fainted, and Sir Kent and Lady Olivia dismissed the guests and went to bed themselves.

Colin and Hortus wake to high-pitched muffle screams. They rush in weapons drawn to discover three

masked men carrying a tied up Lady Olivia. Sir Kent rushes in at the same time with a short sword drawn.

The men manage to escape with the use of a teleport scroll. A note was left behind that read.

If you wish to see your wife again, bring 500,000 gold pieces to the cross-kept towers once

used by Lord Marin in 9 days. If not, you will never see her again. Come alone or she dies.

My gods, what am I to do? Without my fair Lady Olivia, I am nothing. I have not the gold to pay

this ill-omened ransom, nor the assets to do so. Without her, my days are darker than the blackness of

death. Without her, my soul has fallen from out of heaven into the deepest darkest demonic layer of the

abyss. The angels that once filled my heart with joy are now demons filling it with despair. Oh wretched

ill-tempered bandits of ill repute, why have you kidnapped my one true love, my muse, my darling, my

beloved. If I had the gold to give, I would give it in an instant. If I could give my soul in exchange for her

freedom, I would. My life without her is meaningless. My soul is forfeit to the darkest of demons. I

cannot do anything without her. She is my muse! My love eternal! If my blade could free her alone, I

would do so in a heartbeat. But now I march to my death in the small hope that it will be enough to free


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her. For I would do anything for my love. My love knows no bounds, but my body has its limits. I will die,

but tell my love that I will love her eternally from beyond the grave. laments poor Sir Kent

Why do you not have enough gold, for surely your friends could spare or loan the gold

necessary to free her. says Colin trying to comfort Sir Kent

What friends? They are but leeches, always taking never giving. My estate is far gone, but let

not my Lady know, for I am deeply in debt. Ive been borrowing gold from multiple old friends and

merchants that would give it. This manor and everything else can no longer be called mine, for my debt

is too much that even if I were to sell all of my possessions I would still owe more than enough. It was all

so that my Lady could live in the comfort that she always knew. I could not bear to ask her to part with

any luxury she once had. It was worth it till now, now that I cannot afford to save my love with anything

but my life. My so called friends wont help for they see no gain in it. My fair Olivia waits for me locked

in a tower. I must depart to attempt to save her, or at least die trying. I was prepared for this since the

day that I asked her to run away with me. Away from her engagement to the Baron, away from her

fathers keep, away from the riches and comforts that I could not afford for her. My innocent Olivia, how

must she wonder at her poor lover. She must pity me so much if she has been willing to stay with me so

long. Sir Kent replies in a solemn tearful tone

Let us accompany you, our arms may prove to save both your Lady and your life. Good sir,

youve saved our life by allowing us to stay here, let us repay the favor volunteers Hortus

Oh thank the gods! I now have allies in my quest. May your aid prove fruitful and productive

towards your cause? Your aid will repay my favor many times over. For how fortuitous it is for Fortune

to provide me with two allies upon this time of need. Thank the gods, for they have provided a glimmer

of hope during these troubling times. Praise the stars for shining brightly tonight in the otherwise dark

despair that is night. Praise the sun for lighting a bright light upon the day for which we may toil to ourgoal. My Lady might be saved yet. My Radiant Flower! Wait for me yet! shouts Sir Kent gleefully

So our adventurous party sets out blades and armor already to combat the perilous foes that

will await them at the tower. Five bandits formerly under the Bandit King attack them along the way. Sir

Kent was sleeping at the time, so Hortus and Colin fight back. Hortus parries multiple blows from the

bandits, as Colin fires rays of enfeeblement at two of them. Hortus manages to strike one down, but not

before two of them got blunt jabs at Hortus ribcage. Hortus starts parrying blows again, as Colin throws

Jerome at one of them. Distracted by the cat clawing at his face, the bandit screams and backs off a bit,

allowing Hortus to bring down another bandit. The bandits decide to go after Colin instead. Fearing for

his life Colin takes a 5 foot step back and throws a color spray at them. Weapons clattered to the groundas the bandits were stunned and blinded. Hortus then sneaks up behind them and takes them down

with two solid axe blows. The last one finally gets the cat off his face and comes back to face the two

adventurers. Casting mirror image, the bandit appeared to be at multiple places at once. Hortus takes a

swing at one image of the bandit, but misses completely. Colin takes a sling shot at one and it goes

through one of the copies of the bandit. The bandit then casts web trapping Hortus in one stop as

Hortus struggles to free himself from the sticky webs released by the spell. Colin casts ray of


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enfeeblement at the bandit, but the bandit seems unphased by the spell. The bandit takes a swing at

Colin, grazing skin but not getting a clear stroke. Hortus finally frees himself from the net but is too far to

intervene. Colin readies an action for the bandits next move. The bandit attempts to cast a spell, but

Colin suddenly releases arcane energy wasting both of their spells. Hortus finally charges the bandit and

lands a grazing blow. The bandit then casts Hideous laughter on Hortus; Hortus breaks down into a fit of

giggles. Colin face palms then casts Color spray on the bandit again, rays of light coming out of his

fingertips. The bandit surprisingly jumps out of the way in time. The bandit then attempts to coup de

grace Hortus, but Hortus conveniently rolls away in time. Colin feebly attempts to bull rush the bandit

but the bandit stands his ground. Hortus finally regains his composure and takes another swing, but the

bandit yet again dodges. The bandit then manages to land a grazing blow on Hortus, swinging through

the armor like nothing. Hortus and Colin both bulrush the bandit against the tree. And Hortus lands a

series of axe blows against the Bandits armor. The Bandit still stands andattacks Hortus and lands one

final blow before falling unconscious. Hortus collapses as well from the weight of the blow. Colin makes

sure that he is still alive, and then rushes to his character sheet. The challenging nature of the encounter

plus the previous battles, allowed both of them to level up twice. Colin chooses to take the feat combat

casting, and improves his intelligence by 1 point. He then rushes again to unpack his notebook to scribe

down additional formulas for spells. He chooses to scribe the formulas for Gust of Wind, Blur, Ghoul

Touch, and False life. He continued to max out his skills as well. Eventually Hortus wakes up and levels

himself up, choosing to take burning hands and obscuring mist. He also takes the feat Power attack and

ups his strength by 1 point. Another day passes along the road, yet again they are accosted by bandits,

and yet again they triumph over them in a long arduous battle while Sir Kent rests. They level up once

more and Colin chooses Vampiric touch and ray of exhaustion and takes quicken spell as his bonus feat.

Hortus chooses to learn Dimension Hop as his first second level spell. The third and fourth days were

relatively quiet. On the 5th day, our protagonists discover that the tower was heavily fortified with

ballistae and that they were going to need a plan. So as they journeyed over the last 4 days, they came

up with a clever plan. As they came upon the tower they discovered it heavily fortified. As the bandits

open the gate when Sir Kent approaches, Colin and Hortus sneak in through the back door. Suddenly,

unexpectedly by both parties, Sir Kent starts to change shape. His human limbs began to be covered in

fur, his muscles grow by a large amount, and the bandits look on in shock, as Sir Kent smashes the

bandits, seemingly unphased by any amounts of sword or arrow blows. The bandits attempt to swarm

Sir Kent, but he is unphased by it and charges through them clawing through their bodies like a hot knife

through butter. Bandit after bandit fell to the hulking mass of flesh that was Sir Kent. A mountain of

corpses was building as Sir Kent continued on his rampage. Blood pooled around the monstrous knights

feet and soon many bandits came with silver tipped spears and started stabbing Sir Kent. It was

incredibly effective till Hortus and Colin ambush the spear wielders from behind stopping their relentless

assault. Blood pooled with blood as the slaughter continued. The monstrous hulk of muscle rampaged

up the tower throwing bandits all over the place. Colin and Hortus cover his rear cutting down anyone

with spears with spell and axe. Two floors below the prison cells, Sir Kent collapses and shifts back into

his human form naked. The two trek on carrying Sir Kent on their backs as they climb the stairs hacking

limb and slinging deadly spells at the bandits. Eventually they reach the prisoners cells where they come

upon multiple prisoners being held prisoner in the prison cells. Many were covered with grotesque scars

showing much physical abuse. Most were young women in their twenties. Most were shackled to the


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ground with a lead ball and chain. The few males were covered in much more scars, blood pooling at

their feet. Lady Olivia was found sitting among a group of children that were captured as well. She was

teaching them how to play basic children games like tag and eye spy. Hortus and Colin search for the

keys to no avail. Eventually, they find the keys to the cells and open each and every one of them. Those

who were unchained rushed out of the cells door almost knocking Hortus and Colin over. Those who

were still chained slowly pulled their chain along to try and reach the door. Hortus used his axe to cut

through the chains, but there were so many prisoners that Hortus did not seem to make a dent into the

number of people freed. Lady Olivia just sat there idling her time watching the unconscious Sir Kent with

a very worried look.

Oh my dearests love how pitiful you look in your unconscious form. Yet, I love thee so, for I

know that youve risked life and limb to come to my rescue. Oh how brave a man you are, too brave for

me. Your valor knows no bounds nor does your love. Oh my love, my brave knight, my ever stalwart

hero, how much you mean to me. To think of the odds you must have faced, the villains you must have

fought. Thou are my savior, my lord, my hero. I am forever bound to your eternal bravery. Why it must

be fate that I met a true knight in shining, a hero that goes beyond the call, a paladin of true nobility.How Ive missed thee locked up in a tiny cell. Even in this crowd, I feel alone when you are not awake.

My world, my soul, my very self is all but a portion of you. My heart pounds faster at the very thought of

you. My brave soul, my ever wandering warrior, my stalwart defender, my bold knight, my champion,

you are the greatest soul that has ever lived. Oh woe is me to put you through such misery. The only

pain in this cell worth mentioning is the pain in my heart to be apart from you. No suffering, no

punishment, no malicious intent could be worse than the pain I felt without you by my side. My love, my

love for you knows no bounds, and this great act of valor only magnifies it. It is forever my honor to be

your wife, and it is the greatest blessing that the stars have bestowed on me to even be in your presence.

You are my champion, my hero; my debt to you can never be repaid. SaysLady Olivia stroking the fallen

Sir Kents hair.

After said speech, Sir Kent slowly opens his eyes, staring straight into Lady Olivias. He leaps up

and embraces her. Oh my dearests love how I have missed thee. The hours weve spent apart felt like

daggers at my very heart. I am glad to see you alive and well. Oh how Ive missed thee. No challenge, no

obstacle would be too mighty that I would not attempt it to rescue you. The depths of hell would not

stop me. I would defy the very heavens just to be with you again. It is my foolishness that got you into

this mess and I would do anything to bring you back. For without you, my life would be worse than the

greatest depths of hell. Without you, my soul is incomplete, my hear t shattered, my life no longer worth

living. Without you, the angels would forever lament, the gods would weep eternally, the skies would

darken, and the flowers would wither. To think, that if I were moments too late, I might never have seenyou again. Death would have been a more desirable outcome than a life without you. You are

perfection incarnate, if I let you go, shadows would haunt me forever, my soul would be torn asunder,

my life forfeit to the gods. A life without you would be a blasphemy in and of itself. For you, my lovely

bride, are the only thing in my life worthwhile. I would have given my soul, my very essence to just be in

your presence. But you have blessed me with your hand in marriage. Even if your father came at me

with his armies, or the baron with his, I would stand against them to just be with you. My life is yours to


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command, my soul is but your plaything. I am not your champion but your blade. I would do anything

youd tell me. I am your ever loyal pet, your pet pup in your care. In my eyes, you are a goddess and I

your humble worshipper. For even the gods, if they laid eyes on you would swear eternal loyalty. With

but a glance upon your beauty and generals would surrender their armies for another glance. Your soul

is so pure that freshly fallen snow looks blacker than ash. Your eyes are so blue, that the sky and ocean

seem almost colorless. Your hair so golden, that the sun pales in comparison. You are beauty eternal.

You are a god amongst gods. You are the best thing in the universe, the multiverse, in all that has, is and

will be. You are perfection incarnate. You are greater than anything else. You are unrivaled. You are the

best thing that has happened to me. You are my innocent flower, and I but your humble pet. I would

give anything to continue being with you, and I would die if you gave the order. You are perfect in any

way, and I am sorry for failing as your husband.

Oh my dearest champion, you had no failing as my husband. In fact you are greater than my

husband. You are my champion, my knight, my stalwart defender. Youve rescued me from great despair.

You complete my soul, you are my other half. You are my knight in shining, my noble paladin, and my

greatest champion. You are not my pet, but I am your faithful servant. Do not humble yourself so. Yousaved me against impossible odds. You faced certain death to rescue me, and you succeeded. You are

greater than the gods; you are mightier than the titans. You are the best there can be. You are my

champion, my savior, my hero. It is my honor to be your wife. For I would not have it any other way. The

only pain I suffered in this cell was the pain in my heart to be apart from you. I may have lost my official

noble title and much power by running away with you, but I would do it all again. For you are my

everything. You are my love. You are perfection. I am very flawed as a person. I am not as pretty as you

say nor an innocent. But you, you are handsomer than the gods. You are stronger than the titans. You

are braver than any hero of myth. You are heavens greatest gift upon this world. I am but your humble

servant, your wife by fortunes gift. You are my lord, my champion, my master. It is my honor to be your

wife, for I am blessed by the gods to have you as my husband. I worried not for my life in my cell, but

how long I may be apart from you in the mean time. Replies Lady Olivia returning Sir Kents tight

embrace and giving him a soft kiss.

So I guess well be going to continue our quest then? says Colin slowly backing away with

Hortus.

So you are on a quest? Let us join you. We owe to you a great favor for your aid in reuniting us.

We would be of great aid to your quest. As you know, within me resides a powerful beast spirit which I

may call upon in times of great need. Its martial strength is great, but in order to use it I must let it take

control of my mind briefly. However, I do retain a tiny bit of control, enough to differentiate between

friend and foe. This strength may be useful in future battles to come. These claws are powerful enough

to rend men in two. My hide is near invulnerable, all but silver are blocked by it. Silver, however, is a

great poison to my kind, for it causes great burns and pains to our spirit. Silver is unnatural, it does not

occur readily to our bodies. While strength of arms may not always be the best solution, to have it open

to you is a great boon. Says Sir Kent


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And I know some things about what goes bump in the dark. I know a smattering of everything.

Find yourself in a royal court? I can help you identify the royals, or plead with the king. See an unknown

creature? I might know what it is. My training as a lady in my household included a smattering of spells

both of arcane and divine nature, as well as an in depth study of the world around us including local

noblemen, monsters that may encroach on our lands, and the history of the nations. My knowledge may

be of great use to you. I am also apparently very good at sneaking around. I remember when I was

younger I would sneak past my bodyguards into the kitchen to steal some pastries to eat. I was never

caught. I continued doing so, and would occasionally sneak around town to spy on minstrels and such

and hear them play. Says Lady Olivia

After a reluctant discussion between Colin and Hortus they agree to let the two super cheesy

lovers come along with them on their quest to find the Scroll of Azarael. Secretly Sir Kent calls them

away to another room.

Yeah, could you please not tell my love that I am in debt? I am afraid that she would leave me

once she finds out for she is used to fine luxuries that I cannot afford. To be honest, part of the reason

why I wanted to come on your quest is to collect enough treasure to pay back my debt and give Olivia

the life that she deserves. I hope that you understand my selfish desire, and are willing to go along with

this scheme. Says Sir Kent in a rather desperate tone.

While we cant approve of dishonesty, we understand why you are doing this. I guess we can

keep it a secret as long as she doesnt ask. However you will need to pull your own weight, and not slack

off. If you hold us back, we will tell Olivia about your lies. Deceit is not healthy in a relationship; we are

only going to be willing to put up with it for so long good sir. It would be wise to tell her at your earliest

convenience. A relationship built on lies is not a relationship at all. If she truly loves you shed

understand and stay with you anyways. If she is only in it for your wealth, then she shouldnt be worth

your time in the first place. You call her your goddess, but if you truly loved her, you would tell her the

absolute truth and not pretend to be something you arent. Love is not love when it is hidden behind

deceit, or lies or trickery. To think that you believe that you can get away with all these lies and call her

your one true love. I think that if you do truly love her, we wouldnt need to keep these secrets.

Responds Hortus

So sadly agreeing to those turns, Sir Kent departs with our protagonists to the ruins. At the

entrance of the ruin were hundreds of adventuring groups waiting to enter the ruins. Outside was a sign

in booth surprisingly. Adventurers of all races and classes gathered into various groups. Merchants set

up stalls carrying common adventuring gear, magic weapons, potions, food, and various other things

that an adventurer might need before the trip. People were selling souvenir shirts, mugs, pants, even

snow globes. Bards were playing adventurous tunes on various instruments, including an electrified

guitar. Poets were negotiating with particularly famous adventurers to the rights to their next epic. Gold

changed hands at a rapid rate. Wizards traded scrolls and spells looking to get a last minute edge

against their opponents.


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The ruins themselves were a spectacular sight. It was a gigantic pyramid much larger than any

building or structure that Colin has ever seen. There were hundreds of entrances. Arcane runes covered

the walls all the way down obviously proving that the ruins contained many powerful creatures. The tip

of the pyramid seemed to shine as bright as a star, as the sunlight reflected off the golden tip. Our

protagonists register as a team, and scope out the competition. Many of the other adventurers seemed

to be very confident, and exuded a gigantic magic aura. Some were seen playing with illusions, while

others were sparring with their blades covered in magic runes and expensive gemstones. Bards played

beautiful melodies that some could only dream of. Eventually a short man wearing an expensive suit

walked confidently onto the stage and shouted Good evening Brave Champions! Welcome to the

official Dungeon Trek into the ancient ruins of Altaroun. It is said that many kings left their fortunes

among the ruins as they were buried. But beware; the ruins were not left unprotected. The finest mages

and warriors at the time captured and created monsters from the far reaches of the world. Traps that

could defeat the best of rogues lie in wait behind every corridor. But those who reach the treasure room

within will leave richer than the finest of kings. In addition, the first party to make it to the treasure

room and back will earn the right to enter the Hall of Heroes and be forever memorialized as champions.

So good luck noble heroes, and may the triumphant return Champions!

The various entrances to the pyramid suddenly slide open, as a surge of adventurers charge

through them. Our protagonists all rush into one of them, and immediately fall down a pitfall slide into

another room. The room was dimly lit with torches, and the walls were covered in ancient runes. There

seemed to be no immediate exit to the room, and the hole they slid through was shut.

What now? says Colin worried that they had lost before they had even begun.

I dont know, but whatever you do dont panic. I doubt the creators put in a dead end right at

the beginning replies Hortus

My lovely maiden,would you please do the honor of deciphering the runes on the wall as we

search for a way out? says Sir Kent in a really polite tone.

Lady Olivia examines the runes and recognizes them to be ancient Saltarian script.

When fire and water meet, steam arises

And when ste

the spirit of a heroic villain

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