Post
by Shokunin » Tue May 26, 2020 4:47 am
From a loosely tied stack of papers titled 'Vlolkir'
I have come back from the mountains with the other, back from the mountains and the T'Skrang place. We come bringing eggs and there is much talk in Throal of the eggs and of the T'Skrang. There is much talk of trade but I have little interest in this. I go to discuss the horrors on the mountain with my fellows on the path.
As the news is shared, I go to the taverns and find friend Karl. Karl says he will go to a place where he can learn from other humans to do a thing that they may do. It is strange and I do not trust it. But he says he must have others as his road is dangerous. I say I will go as he is not tainted at least and it would be a loss for him to be disemboweled. Dubhan the great and learned, and Zil come with us. We meet the human who will teach Karl, who is also speaking with William Carver as we reach the gates of throal. William Carver will come with us too.
Our journey out is slow and uneventful. The hurlg is gone and I have had no time to buy more. Although the endless heaving back of hurlg will not be missed this time as there is no cliffside to send it over. I borrow brandy from a fellow of the path and leave with the others. Our road is clear and our sleep is good, until we see black smoke on the horizon. We go quickly with powerful and amazing magic worked by Dubhan. We see many carts and many slain, like last time on the hill. There is a broken bridge, and there are large tracks like of an enormous animal, but they are jot of an animal, they are the tracks of a horror. This I know from the wisdom of the path, and William Carver confirms. As we search the dead for the living or undead to slay we are set on by terrible apes. We are cut off by the river, Karl and William Carver on the far side. Karl runs far, and his arrows reach far. William Carver crosses the river the way I showed and I am proud. The apes are strong, and their bites are dangerous. We are worn down by tearing fangs and great horned fists. Eventually William Carver is felled, and our magicians are beset. I go to help, and my steel continues to gorge on ape-flesh, but I am felled too. With my back on a wagon I am laid into by many apes. As I find my feet again, great spells slay apes and the apes spirit to fight. They run and we continue on to follow Karl and William Carver's guide in Human arts.
After our rest, there is a long day of travel towards a great water the human calls 'lake ban'. As darkness comes we approach a rise and the sky is light. I fear the worst. We see a field of fires and a great rocky hill surrounded by swamp. As we come close, we see it is not a hill, it is a globberog, one like I have seen before, but far larger. The size of a great inn. It is attended by creatures of filth like I have seen before, but clearer. Spells and arrows are loosed as the thing slides to us. The bog-gobs leapt from the swamp, attack, and retreat to hound and harry us. Two great swamp ogres come from one swamp, and set upon Zil. I slay one, and then slay the other. This is good as the bog-gobs will not stand still, and not even Floranuus fire will convince me to come to grips with the globberog. As the others fall back, the bog-gobs come for me, and a great crashing and rolling of thunder fills the vale from my Plate as I avoid their sinister assault. Challenging the walking filth to come for me, the others are free to fight and the globberog is slain. The filth runs.
We are greeted by groups of humans who agree to teach our humans and us. They offer us their skills and disciplines and are cheerful. I suppose they are not too be questioned too closely. My strides in strength upon my path and my discipline allow me to train with one there who is a raider, and to assist fellows in following the tracks of the horror which we had spotted before. There is much work for me to do and I am pleased.