Classic-Castle Roleplay: November 2005

[Lord_Of_The_LEGO]

Alice began to sing.

“Think of me,
Think of me fondly,
When we’ve said goodbye.
Remember me once in a while
Please promise me you'll try.

When you find that, once again,
You long to take your heart
Back and be free -
If you ever find a moment,
Spare a thought for me...

We never said our love was evergreen,
Or as unchanging as the sea
But if you can still remember,
Stop and think of me...

Think of all the things
We’ve shared and seen -
Don't think about the things
Which might have been...

Think of me,
Think of me waking, silent and resigned.
Imagine me, trying too hard
To put you from my mind.

Recall those days,
Look back on all those times,
Think of the things we’ll never do -
There will never be a day,
When I won’t think of you…”

The song ended. There was second of silent. Then the crowd burst into cheers and clapping. But Alice was only looking at one person. Dale. And he was looking back, smiling softly.

Grid: P-10
Location: Hemmerington

Oktoberfest was over. It had been for four days. The Jack-O-Lanterns, now beginning to rot, were discarded. Jack Craft, after a grand farewell, departed. Beer, candy, roast, it was all packed away. The puppet theatre was disassembled and stored. And the colorful flags were rolled up and boxed. Oktoberfest was over, and so was Fall. Trees were now naked and gray, or covered in needles sagging with frost. And just as the season had changed, so had the mood of Hemmerington. It was quieter, more subdued. Not sad, just contemplative. Another thing had changed with the passing of Oktoberfest: the way Hemmeringtons regarded and referred to Dale, and indeed Alice. It was subtle, but it was there. They were not Dale and Alice: they were Dale and Alice. In the collective mind of Hemmerington, they were now a couple, whether the two of them consciously thought it or not. Before “Think Of Me”, old Gherry saw it: now everyone did.

Dale, for his part, didn’t really notice the difference at first, except that the three Korvalt boys were more hostile to him, especially Erik. There was also the occasional clucking “Aww…” coming from an old housewife or maid or widower when he and Alice walked together on the street. But Dale didn’t mind. He was happy. Alice was happy. That was what mattered.

[Formendacil]

Grid: O-6
Location: Fell Sea

Cate shrieked, Adrian yelled and Hans swore -- and all grabbed the rope. And as a tangled mass they swung out over the water, screaming. The tumbled onto the deck of the ship, at were at once surrounded by stern-looking Crusaders. Hans, his spectacles crooked, looked at them and groaned.

“To paraphrase a cliché -- Out of the fire and into the frying pan. Methinks this is your cue, Adrian…”

"Right..." said Adrian darkly, still assigning all the blame to Cate and Hans.

"Thank goodness you arrived," he told the Crusaders in a louder voice. "Broadside had us kidnapped, and if you hadn't happened along, we'd have been taken for ransom. Well, the Lady Cate here would have been, anyway. She's a Classic noblewoman, distantly related to the Emperor-"

"Really, really distantly," Cate said in an undertone to Hans.

"-and would have commanded a high figure. Broadside would have been just as willing to kill off Hans and I if she hadn't bribed him off."

"And what precisely is a Classic noblewoman and two rather young - male - retainers doing in this part of Dametreos?" asked one of the Crusaders, an officer from the look of his uniform.

"Researching Ca- uh, that is the Lady Cate's family history," said Hans. "She's got relatives in the Dark Forest, and we were up here visiting them. We were just on our way back south when Broadside nabbed us."

The conversation was temporarily halted as the Crusader vessel shook and the main mast toppled over, nearly crushing them.

They looked up, and saw that Broadside's men had driven the Crusaders off the Bombardier, which had then fired its ballista into the Crusaders' mainmast, to slow down the pursuit. Already, they were vanishing away.

"I don't know that I believe your story," said the Crusader officer after a disgusted look in the direction of the vanishing Bombardier, "but I have no means of checking it out."

"It's perfectly true!" said Cate in the most haughty noblewoman voice she could do, "how dare you impugn my family's honour!"

"Be that as it may," said the officer, nonplussed, "I'm not convinced. But I'll let you off with a warning at our next stop- which will be soon, since we're going to need some major repairs."

"Where will the next stop be?" asked Hans.

"Somewhere in the Forestman portion of the Fell Isle," said the officer. "So good luck finding your way back to civilisation from those empty lands."

After the officer had moved away, Hans and Adrian spoke at the same time to Cate in a whisper.

"This is perfect!"

[TheOrk]

L-12 Castle Dracul Area

Valric made his way up the the hills leading to Castle Dracul. The dark jagged spire was perched precariously on a cliff edge jutting out of the eastern coast of Dametreos. The waves crashing bellow it were particularly violent today, dark storm clouds slowly swept in, with a hint of thunder in the air. The lone knight soon stood before the tall forbidding gates of the castle.
It seemed the castle walls were alive with liquid fire. Valric saw this anomaly from down the hill and just thought it was a trick of the light. As he stepped towards the substance, he noticed that it got considerably hotter with every step. He mopped sweat of is brow and looked for a way to get around it. It seemed the castle itself was unaffected by it. But it did seem to be partially collapsing in on itself.
Valric kicked a stone flying, in frustration. How was he going to get through this? Suddenly an idea popped in his head. The fiery water must have been magic, there was no other explanation. His sword had an immunity to magic. Drawing it, he advanced cautiously. Not to his amazement, the lava parted as his sword blade drew near.

Valric turned to see Theodore slowly making his way up the hillside down below him. Valric couldn’t ask him, but he was hoping he would turn back. Without a magical sword like his, the knight general didn’t have a good chance of surving the rest of the day in the castle.

As Valric stepped closer, he immediately got the impression that someone was watching him. He couldn’t see anybody on the battlements, he could see no faces in any of the windows this far down. There might not even be anybody looking at him from the higher towers. He could feel eyes staring at him from every nook and cranny of the place, even the woods as well.

Most of the traces of the previous battle had vanished. The rubble still remained, some of the blood stains still remained, some of the small discarded pieces of equipment lay scattered about. But all the bodies and still serviceable weapons had vanished.

For the hundredth time, Valric wished he had an army of Cavaliers at his back. He had more then earned that right as of now. It seemed like an eternity ago, when he was a simple squire, back in the Golden City Orion.

The sun stood high in the sky that fine day. A younger, less experienced Valric stood with five other squires. The six of them hailed from all the different provinces of the mainland Empire. Each wore the respective faction emblem of their province. One squire’s uniform bore the insignia of Chevraport, two wore tridentine colours, the other two, the colours of the Crimson Knights. Valric bore the lionhearts of Orion.

In those days before the good Emperor found a masamusune lodged in his chest and the their were no troubles about rebuilding a shattered Empire, all the old squires who would become imperial cadets would be knighted in Orion. A few hundred people had shown up to see the new cavaliers to be. Back in the day with no upheavals, the legolanders jumped at every opportunity to have a celebration.

Five of them not six would go off to be cadets. Valric had received word that his parents had been killed by monsters while visiting an old friend in the northern region. He had gone to the burial a week ago.

A knight walked up beside him “Are you sure you want to go through with this?” ask Sir Rillian.

The young Valric nodded “Yes. The monsters that killed them are still loose, someone has to destroy them before they can harm anymore innocents.”

Rillian nodded, looking out at the proud pennants of the Empire fluttering in the breeze. “A knight doesn’t live for revenge Valric.”

“Who says that I am?” Muttered Valric “I’ve always wanted to see the outside world, I can’t wait to become a cavalier to do it. That squad of Red Cross Knights never did find the beasts that killed them.”

Rillian sighed “And you think you can? Do what you want, even if you aren’t a cavalier, you’ll still make a fine knight...”

Valric had been the title of a lionheart knight the next day in a separate ceremony. A day later, he set out to explore the world. He had wandered to the four corners of Dametreos with a band of Western Knight’s Kingdom mercenaries. He taken part in all the petty squabbles of the different factions, he had slain a dragon, wrestled a giant spider in the batlands, forced to walk home half naked through a blizzard.

That had taken him and the rest of his group towards Count Heindric’s fortress, Castle Dracul. Apparently the count was planning on opening up a portal bellow the castle, he had a very powerful magic sword in hand to make sure all went according to plan. Valric’s group had payed well to stop the mad count’s plans. As the battle came to an end, all of his year long companions were dead and he was wrestling the battered count. Before he killed him and took his sword, the portal opened partially, sucking him in. Luckily for him, he did not end up in the land of megablox, but some other tyco hole that the Lone Falcon was said to wander.

And now he found himself entering the foul castle for a third time. This time, he would be sure to burn it when he was done. As if one cue, the great oak doors creaked open…

[Lord_Of_The_LEGO]

After the officer had moved away, Hans and Adrian spoke at the same time to Cate in a whisper.

"This is perfect!"

Grid: P-4
Location: Parcours

And so, in a state of less-than-seaworthy condition, the Crusader ship limped into the Forestman port city of Parcours. The ship’s admiral, Horatio Johnson, saw the trio off with nothing more than a haughty stare and a crisp “Farewell.”

“Grumpy bloke…” muttered Hans darkly as they retreated deeper into Parcours and away from the docks.

“His ship is damaged and he lost his prey.” said Adrian reasonably, “And he got three useless teenagers in return.”

“Hmm…”

The conversation trailed off.

“So, where now?” said Cate after a moment.

Hans studied a map tacked upon a signboard.

“Wonderful.” he said sarcastically, “We’ve got half of Fell Isle to cross.”

Adrian squinted at the map.

“It shouldn’t be that hard. Look, there’s a lane that runs all the way from Parcours to the Three Lands Crossroads. From there we just have to take Dagger Highway to the spire.”

“I suppose…” said Hans reluctantly, “That’s still a long way to walk.”

“Nonsense!” said Cate briskly, “Come along.”

Cate darted away, not down the lane Adrian indicated, but back into Parcours.

“Uh…” said Hans, “Why are we heading toward those stables?”

Hans looked at Adrian. Adrian looked at Hans.

“Oh no.” they said together. They unconsciously rubbed their behinds.

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-3
Location: Mt. Greybeard

"Another thing," said William, after a while. "We're going to want to go in when the dragon's asleep, if possible. I'm hoping that the sounds of sleeping will reverberate up the cave walls..."

"And if he's not asleep?" asked Sir Yves.

"Then we wait until he is."

They reached Mt. Greybeard, and had ascended it halfway by evening. Then they decided to halt until morning.

The following morning, they all climbed up above the treeline, where the entrance to the dragon's cave lay.

"Good luck," said Sir Dractor. "We'll be waiting out here. After you've nicked something from the dragon's collection, hightail it back to here. If you see a different cave, or somewhere to hide, one of you go there and wait for the dragon to pass, and then go free Estella. The other is to keep on until the surface, with whatever you've stolen."

William and Thomas nodded, and steeling themselves, headed underground. The cave entrance was tall and wide, as needed by a dragon of such great size. Even so, Thomas reckoned that the dragon would be able to do little other than move forwards or backwards in the tunnel that sloped down into the mountain.

Gradually, the tunnel widened, so that they were not so much going down a tunnel as through a vast hall, like a cathedral, save far, far longer.

Behind them, the light of the tunnel's entrance had disappeared with the slope, but there was a faint glow before them, coming from deep inside the mountain.

The dragon was sleeping, it seemed, for the light was pulsating in slow, rhythmic movements, joined, as they heard the closer they came, by matching huffs that seemed to be snores.

Even so, Thomas and William proceeded with utmost caution, wary of the dragon's legendary senses.

Soon the tunnel opened up sharply before them, and they were in an enormous cavern, rising up stories above them, to meet in an enormous natural dome. The cavern stretched out before them, easily five times the dragon's enormous length. It was roughly round, and in the dim red light of the dragon glittered with gold, silver, and jewels.

For a moment, the two of them were stunned by the sight before them. Then their brains began to analyze what their eyes were seeing.

The dragon slept, eyes open but glazed, in the middle of the cavern, a great pile of treasure between him and the door. Estella, since they couldn't see her, was presumed to be on the far side of the dragon.

"You know," said Thomas. "That's huge pile of treasure and all, but somehow I was expecting it to fill the entire cave.

"This isn't a rich land, lad," said William, in the lowest of whispers. "I be surprised that the dragon even has that much. He didn't take it all in the past few months. Either this dragon has roamed the lands before, or else he's taken over some other dragon's cave."

"What should we take?" asked Thomas.

"Anything easy to carry and obviously valuable," said William. "You stay here, and I'll slip down there and grab something."

As silent as was humanly possible, William Jorgenson slipped across the floor of the cavern, and grabbed something very carefully from the mound of treasure. Then he snuck back to Thomas.

"Here," he said, showing Thomas a fine golden cup, with indescribeably ornate silver inlay, and a ring of massive diamonds around the base.

"This should get his attention," said William. "It's the finest thing I saw on the outside of the pile. Most of it was just coinage."

"Let's go," said Thomas. They turned around, and started back up the tunnel. Only then did they realise where Estella had been- right beside the entrance to tunnel, out of their view.

"Aren't you going to save me!" she shrieked in a loud voice.

[TheOrk]

E-10 The Royal Knight Coast

The Royal Knights were about to be pillaged.

The Royal Knights had no idea what they were in for. Sure they had had problems with Dragon Masters, Pirates and occasionally orcs, but never the vikings. The five ships soon came in site of land. It was relatively green, it was the fall afterall and the Royal Knight land here was close to rocky Dragonar.

Norbrik paced across the deck of his ship impatiently. He gave his sword Wyrmmaim a practice swing. It would be good to be back in a battle. The five longships sailed side by side, the coastline drawing nearer and nearer. Norbrik’s ship of the Wyrm Slaers Clan was the sourthen most ship, Thedrikforge’s ship, the Midgard of the Bjeor Clan was next in line. Time seemed to slow down to a crawl for the impatient vikings. A small village could be seen, coming into view. It wasn’t much, but it would suit their needs good enough.

Norbrik began to wonder if the skraelings had seen them. Surely at least on of them had seen the five long ships on the horizon. Maybe it was because they had become to lazy, before hand, it probley wasn’t common for a horde of northen barbarians to attack them. Only once it became too late for all of the villagers to escape did they realise their peril. It seemed they had a degree of common sense, instead of hanging around to see if the vikings were friendly, they dropped everything and began to panic.

The five longships touched down on the rocky beach in unision. Immideatly, dozens of fur clad bearded warriors leaped down, eager for the kill. Norbrik was the first to step foot on Dametreosian soil. A quick glance around told him none of the other jarl figures were with him yet. Then coming out of nowhere was Thedrikforge. Even with all those heavy weapons and armour, he had outpaced everybody else.

Laughing all the way, the two vikings lead the charge against the chaotic village. Norbrik didn’t see any of the vikings from the other three ships up close, but they were there. Behind Norbrik came the vikings equiped with bullet helmets and oval shields; the Wyrm Slaers. Behind came the vikings equiped with horned helmets and circular shields; the Bjeors.

The pillage had begun.

[Lord_Of_The_LEGO]

And so, protected in the atmosphere of deceit, this rat-like-man scrabbled through the streets. But he was not in luck (which he never was). It began to smear rain.

“Bugging tyco buggers!” muttered the man, who only went my the name Goff.

He quickened his pace. He needed to reach the Baron. He had urgent news.

Grid: E-7
Location: Iadoraz Freeport

The street Goff was scuttling along was deceptively well-to-do looking. It was nothing of the sort. Dorandiaz Boulevard was the spine of the aristocrat ward of Iadoraz, and the center of the “higher class” form of corruption. The richest criminals lived here, in tidy manors with white picket fences and facades of innocence. As the rain dampened these facades, Goff made a sharp turn and slipped down a tight alleyway. He arrived at the scullery door of Marandek Manor, of 666 Dorandiaz Boulevard. Two maids were sharing a pipe in the alley; one was fat with a pinched face, the other was thin and gray-skinned.

“Whaddayawant?” demanded the fat one, squinting at Goff.

“’M to see the Baron.” said Goff, “I got news.”

The maids let him in with no protest. They knew Goff and his relations with the Baron, though they didn’t know what Goff did. Goff dripped rainwater onto the flagstone floor of the kitchen as he entered.

“Where’s the Baron?” he asked of the cook.

“Study.” was the snapped reply. The cook didn’t even look at Goff.

Goff made his way out of the servants section of the manor, crossed the hall and ascended a wide, curing staircase. The Baron’s study was the fifth door to the right; Goff knocked tentatively.

“Who disturbs me?”

“Goff, sir…I’ve got --”

“Enter.”

Goff entered. The Baron’s back was to him. He could see the back of the Baron’s green doublet. The Baron shifted, put aside his quill, and quite deliberately placed the parchment he had been writing on in a safe by his desk. He locked it with finality, returned the key to his pocket, then turned to Goff.

“Yes?”

“I done what you did, sir,” said Goff immediately, “I goed and followed your slicer, sir.”

“Slicer” was criminal slang for an assassin who employed swords and knifes and other sharp implements to do away with their victims. “Spicers”, on the other hand, killed by poison.

“He doned his job good sir. Killed the steak nice and clean-like.”

A “steak” was a victim.

“Sliced him goodly, then disposed of the steak the way you wanted. And I got this off the steak when your slicer left.”

Goff took out a ring and placed it on a small table. It was the Baron’s policy to never come into direct physical contact with his “employees.” The Baron took the ring and examined it.

“This is the ring of Robert Ringwald.” pronounced the Baron, “Good. Then he is at last dead.”

The Baron placed a coin upon the table. Goff eagerly snatched it up.

“I will summon you when I have further instructions.” said the Baron, turning his back on Goff. The ratty man left.

What the Baron had done was not uncommon in the elite criminal world. When one hired an assassin, one also usually hired a “sneaker,” or watchman, to keep an eye on the assassin to make sure he did his job. Assassins were notorious for backing down on the job at the last minute, or even accepting bribes from those they were suppose to kill. While assassins were usually trained warriors gone bad, watchmen almost always were homeless street thugs eager for extra cash. Interestingly enough, these thugs were often more trustworthy to stick to their job than the assassins.

The Baron allowed himself a chuckle. His unnaturally pale skin went taunt.

“Farewell, my competitor, my rival. There can only be one elite criminal in this city of sins. Now my plan can progress.”

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-8
Location: At sea

Thorgeir Hakónsson looked out from the forecastle of his ship, staring at the empty grey waters before him. His face was hard.

Several months before, he had left his homeland as a part of a great flotilla of Vikings, armed to the teeth and ready to pillage. Then a natural disaster had struck, and the fleet was broken apart, and driven east, beyond barriers that the Vikings could never re-cross, and far beyond where any had gone before.

Only three ships had turned up, including his own, on the lonely seas when the storm had passed. None of the ships was fit for sailing, all were slowly sinking, and more than half the crew that should have manned them was missing.

Thorgeir had not been willing to admit defeat. Marshalling the shattered Vikings, he drove them to cannibalise two of the vessels to repair the last. He had all stores of food and drink moved over to his ship, and he aggressively took command of them all, after forcibly ejecting the captain of another ship from his post. He had then appointed himself Jarl, and declared them to be a new clan, for they could never return home.

With discipline restored, he had his men row eastward, for they could not return home and could only hope that they would find lands to the east.

Now, as he stood in the prow, he looked out and saw, after many long days of loneliness, another ship in the distance. It was somewhat odd in nature, he thought, being wider and heavier than his longship, and seemed to be missing oars of any sort, while having an unnaturally large number of sails.

Thorgeir set his jaw and narrowed his eyes. He was ready for the kill. His men were starving and lost.

"Prepare for a boarding!" he declared to his men. "The fates have shone on us! Let us show these skraelings the bravery of the Clan Briksnarri!"

In their eagerness to pillage and eat, none of the Vikings noticed another ship coming up from the south, a trireme bearing the bat on silver.

[Sir Kohran]

But I am getting distracted..."

Grid: K-10
Location: The Dancing Tom Cat Inn
Date: August 19, 2005

"...and there is still much to tell you all, and I don't wish to loose my chain of thought."

A respectul silence filled the room. Solesstorn spoke again.

“Lord Inion corrupted many in Dametreos, just like the Dragon Masters. One such person was a powerful sorcerer, like Inion in some ways, like me in others. His name was Vermicus, and he guarded a place called Ankoria, a green land dotted with palaces and towers."

Storm spoke suddenly, unable to contain her thought. "Ankoria used to belong to the Western Knights' Kingdom!"

Viktor looked up, his eyes thin. "Ankoria only ever belonged to the Easterners..."

Storm frowned. The red-haired girl was about to say something sharp in return, when Solesstorn raised his hand-the undead one concealed by his glove for silence.

"Quiet, the two of you. Keep your petty east and west squabbles to yourselves. Ankoria, as I said was guarded by Vermicus. It was inhabitated by the ancestors of both Leo and Mathias, and they were a whole faction at that time, known simply as the Knights' Kingdom.

"However, Vermicus betrayed his land and people, turning to the darker side of his magic, and formed an alliance with Lord Inion and his clan. Vermicus formed an army of Scorpion Knights and Orcs, with which to rule Ankoria and all of Dametreos by force.

“Lord Inion and Vermicus were driven back by one man, though: King Calrias, also known as King Kris. He was a strong ruler with a large and powerful clan behind him. He crushed both Inion and Vermicus’s clans, because he didn't keep his magic to himself, but taught to others in his clan, allowing .

“But it was not to be. Inion and Vermicus had the aid of the Vlad-Mask, a strange helmet that returned mana to the two evil sorcerers at an alarming rate. Within days, Calrias and the Kris clan were attacked again, by the recuperated Vermicus and Inion. To make things worse, most of Calrias’s power had been used up forging the Twin Pendants. He didn’t stand a chance. Calrias was killed on the spot by Inion, and the temple was destroyed. Inion hid the remains under a dense forest that became known as the Neverwood.

“With Calrias dead, and his followers in hiding, there was little to stop the combined army of Inion’s Dragon Masters and Vermicus’s Shadow Knights from ruling all of Dametreos. The inhabitants of Dametreos, scattered and surprised, could not resist the invaders, so they fled to the outside islands, whilst Inion and Vermicus consolidated their hold on the mainland, killing everyone they could not enslave.

“Daner Pluto told us all of this. Then he swore us to secrecy, and told us of his plan, a plan that would change the whole world forever."

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-3
Location: Inside Mt. Greybeard

"Let's go," said Thomas. They turned around, and started back up the tunnel. Only then did they realise where Estella had been- right beside the entrance to tunnel, out of their view.

"Aren't you going to save me!" she shrieked in a loud voice.

There was a loud snort-like sound. William and Thomas froze in horror for a second as the dragon started to wake. Then they took off down the tunnel as if all the megablocks in tyco were after them.

Estella was shrieking at the top of her lungs, but they had no time to pay her heed. The dragon wasn't going to kill her, anyway. Meanwhile, he was definitely bent on killing them. Having fully shaken off sleep, and having realized, after a moment what had happened (dragons knowing their hoards down to the last trig), he had begun to lumber after the two escaping men.

Thomas and William were running full tilt, but it was only their headstart that was going to save them. The dragon, immensely larger and faster was already gaining on them.

Seizing the first possible chance for cover, Thomas ducked into a very narrow crack in the side of the tunnel, leaving William to run on alone with the goblet.

The dragon, determined to recover his treasure, brushed right past Thomas, his wings brushing the cave wall, and coming inches from brushing against Thomas as well.

After a the dragon had passed, Thomas waited a moment to be sure that he was definitely gone, and then headed back down the tunnel, to rescue Estella.

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-8
Location: At sea

"Prepare for a boarding!" he declared to his men. "The fates have shone on us! Let us show these skraelings the bravery of the Clan Briksnarri!"

In their eagerness to pillage and eat, none of the Vikings noticed another ship coming up from the south, a trireme bearing the bat on silver.

The battle, if it may be called that, was soon over. The Clan Briksnarri, starving and full of pent-up stress, slaughtered the unsuspecting merchants and sailors who tried to resist, and soon cowed the majority who did not. Thorgeir looked over his prize with pleasure. The merchant vessel was loaded with foodstuffs from Lion Island, intended for resale in Port Jozef. There was salted pork, dried fish, and casks of ale.

But even as the spoils were being taken over to the Briksnorri longship, and even as Thorgeir was raising his axe to open the first for a celebration, one of the Vikings caught sight of the Fright Knight trireme, and shouted down to Thorgeir about it.

Thorgeir immediately looked over at the strange vessel. It was clearly a wealthier vessel than the one he had just taken, flying fine banners, and having greater decoration to its sails and sides. Thorgeir could not see it from where he was, nor could he have read it anyway, but the ship was emblazoned with the name of the Ragnoir, and it was set on a course directly towards the longship.

"Men!" cried Thorgeir. "Another foolish vessel approaches! Prepare to board it!"

~~~~~~~~~

On board the Ragnoir, Vækadær was standing with Captain Vronair, the ship's captain, looking out at the pillaged merchant vessel and the strange ship that carried it's pillagers.

"It was a most impressive battle," said Captain Vronair. "The strangers had them cornered in seconds. A pity we couldn't see it more closely."

Vækadær had ordered the Ragnoir to make for the two ships as soon as he had seen the Vikings board the merchants vessel. Who were these new strangers, he wondered?

As they drew towards the longship, he realized that the Vikings were ready to board him as well.

"Captain Vronair!" he called. "Order up the soldiers! Prepare for a pre-emptive strike onto the strangers' vessel!"

And so, even as the two ships drew alongside, and the Vikings prepared to launch themselves onto the trireme to attack, the Fright Knight soldiers were flinging themselves over to the longship, weapons at ready, Vækadær himself leading the attack.

[Formendacil]

Grid: P-4
Location: Parcours

“Uh…” said Hans, “Why are we heading toward those stables?”

Hans looked at Adrian. Adrian looked at Hans.

“Oh no.” they said together. They unconsciously rubbed their behinds.

"Cate," said Adrian as they reached the stables, he and Hans having paused just long enough that they had to run to keep up, "couldn't we get a carriage or something?"

"Do either of you know how to drive one?" asked Cate.

"Umm... no," said Hans.

"That would be 'no' here as well," said Adrian.

"But you can." pointed out Hans, "Your grandpa taught you..."

"Have either of you looked at the roads on this island- or back on the mainland part of the Forestdweller realms?" asked Cate.

"Erm, we walked all over them," said Hans. "Why?"

"Because you should have noticed that they are NOT made for carriages," said Cate. "Even heavy-duty farmer's carts aren't really good on them.

"Finally," Cate concluded, "a carriage would cost WAY too much. We'll be able to resell the horses in Daggerfall, no problem there, but we'd have a really hard time trying to sell a carriage."

"I've thought of another point," said Adrian in defeat, "I don't think we could find a carriage in Parcours anyway."

Cate smiled smugly.

She wasn't smiling so smugly half an hour later, after having purchased three horses from an oily-looking horse trader named Honyst Edd.

"Here's a couple of fine beauties you've bought," he told her, as he handed over a couple of tame geldings for Hans and Adrian to use. "Very fine. Bought them off an old noblewoman's estate! Only ever ridden to town! Practically newborns!" Adrian and Hans looked at each other skeptically. Their horses looked to be on the older side, and somewhat worn from a hard life.

"And this fine lady," said Honyst Edd, leading out a spirited mare for Cate's use, "obeys orders like a dream. Takes well to direction, while still giving you all the energy of a spirited horse. Practically reads your mind."

Cate was looking skeptical as well. The mare didn't seem particularly disposed to do ANYTHING that she told it too, and there were scars from a riding crop or something from where previous owners had had to whip it into submission. However, Honyst Edd's Horses was the only place in Parcours that was selling horses within a nearly affordable range, so she was forced to shell out the 200 gold pieces that Honyst Edd wanted for the three of them, or else walk to Daggerfall, and so lose face majorly with Hans and Adrian.

Even so, it was a very much inflated price, and Cate grumbled about it as they left.

"We could have just walked," said Hans, rubbing it in.

"Well, you'll recoup a bit of it," said Adrian, trying to cheer her up.

"Yeah right," said Cate. "The Wolfpack territory is less forested and they have more horses. I won't fetch a third of the price I paid- not for these nags and this rebellious-"

Precisely what Cate was about to call her steed, Adrian and Hans did not find out, for at that moment it chose to leap into a gallop, tearing down the road, Cate hanging on for dear life.

Doing their best to force their old horses into a similar pace, Adrian and Hans plodded after her.

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-8
Location: At sea

"Men!" cried Thorgeir. "Another foolish vessel approaches! Prepare to board it!"

~~~~~~~~~

And so, even as the two ships drew alongside, and the Vikings prepared to launch themselves onto the trireme to attack, the Fright Knight soldiers were flinging themselves over to the longship, weapons at ready, Vækadær himself leading the attack.

Thorgeir was impressed with the men on the strange vessel. These men were not cowards as the last had been, but clearly men accustomed to war. They were well-armed, and did not hesitate to counterattack, leaping onto the longship.

The leader of the strangers was especially impressive. Unarmoured, he nonetheless led the attack onto the longship. Here, Thorgeir saw, was clearly a warrior. His men were soldiers, but he was a warrior. He moved with fluid grace, fast and strong. Although not heavily built, one could see from his strokes and his movements that he was a powerful man.

Indeed, he was cutting through the Vikings easily. Where the rest of the strangers were struggling to match the furious Viking warriors, the stranger was deftly and brutally cutting his way through them, fighting as if in a dance.

Thorgeir himself threw on his helm, and swung his axe, attacking the strangers. Blood was spilled, and they were falling before him-

When suddenly he felt the cold, hard prick of a blade at his neck.

"I suggest you drop your weapons, or I'll be forced to run you through," said a low, cold voice.

"A warrior never surrenders!" said Thorgeir, who was nonetheless standing quite still. "His honour will not allow it."

"Does his honour want him gutted from behind, unable to see his attacker?" asked the stranger, sharply.

"Very well," growled Thorgeir, dropping his axe to the deck. "What do you wish."

"Call off your men," said the voice. "I wish to make an agreement with you."

As the stranger lowered his sword, Thorgeir shouted orders to cease fighting. The strangers wanted to talk business. Then he turned around to face his assailant. It was the unarmoured leader of the strangers.

"I am curious," he said, "who are you people? And from whence have you come?"

"We are Vikings of the Clan Briksnarri!" said Thorgeir proudly. "Natives of Norseland! We were driven east in a mighty storm, and lost at sea for months. I am the jarl, Thorgeir Hakónsson. Who are you, and where are you from?"

"We are from the continent of Dametreos," said the stranger, "specifically from the realm of the Fright Knights. I am Lord Vækadær."

[Sir Kohran]

“Daner Pluto told us all of this. Then he swore us to secrecy, and told us of his plan, a plan that would change the whole world forever."

Grid: K-10
Location: The Dancing Tom Cat Inn
Date: August 19, 2005

“He said that he served a mighty Wizard named Verlin the Great, who was determined to defeat Inion. Apparently, Verlin was part of an organization called the Council, whom were dedicated to fighting the forces of evil wherever they found them, in an endless campaign spanning worlds. The Council was split into different parts for different lands. The Ikros group, for instance, was installed to destroy or at least keep asleep the black dragon, Tel'Karak Zrahl, and save the world from her wrath. As it happened, Daner and Verlin formed the Dametreosian segment of the Council, and they were outraged by Inion's takeover of the land.

"So, they were building a great army with which to defeat Inion and Vermicus, and free Dametreos of their iron grip.

“He told us that they needed all the help they could get, as Inion and Vermicus had both grown very strong. Eager to serve a new purpose, Orlan volunteered for the both of us. Soon, we travelled to Ikros, where we met up with Verlin himself."

Solesstorn smiled slightly. “He was a very mighty man, a magnificent leader and Wizard, of the sort that the world needs right now.

“For the next few years, we travelled across different lands, gathering support for our cause. Eventually, we had built up a great army of allies, all of whom were prepared to give their lives for the freedom of Dametreos. They were gathered from across several lands; rebels from Dametreos, mercenaries from Andastravia, freedom fighters from Dametreos, Elves from Heinolltor, and knights from Ikros. It was a glorious sight.

“So we finally set sail in a fleet of five hundred ships, taking soldiers, weapons and steeds with us. We landed upon the northern part of Dametreos, the only area that was not completely under Lord Inion’s control, thanks to a group of brave warriors who lived in the forests there, harassing Inion and Vermicus’s forces. They would later be known as the Forestmen.

“Once we had landed our fleet, and destroyed the forces guarding the shoreline, we immediately split apart into several different forces, each to attack the different portions of Inion’s army. My brother Orlan, and myself, led a strike force to take out Vermicus at the Dark Fortress, in Ankoria. It was our choice to attack him that changed everything...forever."

[Formendacil]

Grid: C-3
Location: Inside Mt. Greybeard

The dragon, determined to recover his treasure, brushed right past Thomas, his wings brushing the cave wall, and coming inches from brushing against Thomas as well.

After a the dragon had passed, Thomas waited a moment to be sure that he was definitely gone, and then headed back down the tunnel, to rescue Estella.

"You were going to abandon me!" sobbed Estella, as Thomas returned.

"Oh, be quiet!" said Thomas. "We were going to come back for you. If you hadn't woken him up, we wouldn't have had to rush so bad. Now let me figure out what to do..."

Estella was chained to the wall of the cave, a massive steel rivet holding one end of the chain firmly to the cave wall, the other end of the chain ending a manacle around her right wrist.

"How did the dragon get this on you?" he asked.

"I put them on myself," said Estella, starting to calm down slightly. "It seemed the only thing to do. I never expected a rescue after Sir Dractor died."

"He didn't die," growled Thomas. "Now stand as far away from the wall as you can. I'm going to try and break one of the links."

Estella shrank away from the wall, as far as the chain would allow, while Thomas picked up a heavy battle-axe, gilten with silver.

"Don't want to nick my sword," he said, and then lifted the axe for a mighty swing. It swung down hard on the taut chain.

"OW!" Estella cried, as her arm and body were dragged backwards. Thomas suppressed his own cry of pain, as his shoulder recoiled from the blow. However, he had sliced through one of the links. Now he took the axe to the cut, prying the link open, to slip off Estella's end of the chain.

It took him longer than he would have liked, and when he was done his arms were aching with the effort, and his ears with Estella's nonstop nervous chatter.

"All right," he said, the task done. "Let's get out of here!"