The attack on the inn
Posted: Sun Nov 23, 2003 6:05 pm
It was a lazy Sunday morning when the forest came alive. Most were still in bed getting much deserved sleep, dreaming perhaps of the previous evening, the journey, the battles, the correction of time. Some perhaps were dreaming instead of the Cult of Isle, trying to understand how they were killed. The thoughts of the previous night lingered in weary minds on the enemies still remaining. Who was associated with the disturbance of time and who was not? Florin? Some believed his resurrection was unrelated, others were not so sure. And what was this about an evil druid? Well, his existence was perhaps confirmed.
The tall elf and the crouching human were in the field outside the inn. One hushed the other, sure he had heard something. The noise grew louder and louder until out of the forest came some of the trees, walking on long wooden legs directly toward the inn. With arms of branches they reached for the door, opened it, and, somehow crouching down--they were not nearly as stiff as one might think--entered the inn. Some of the sleepers awoke immediately, others, too tired to worry, remained in their bunks and played dead. Powerful arms struck the adventurers as they did everything they could to fight off the attack. Swords, staffs, and bows proved to be a powerful defense and soon the trees lay motionless on the inn ground.
The adventurers barely had time to catch their breath. They felt a rumbling beneath their feet, and their hearts filled with dread. Out of the center of the building, vines and stalks burst through the ground, leaving a large hole in the inn's ground. Lashing out at everything in its wake, the vines attacked with a ferocity rarely seen from plants (though some may remember an especially bad crop of corn). People fell under the attack and still, at least one was determined to not be awoken. The vines rushed forward, wrapping itself around the constable, and dragged him into the hole from which they came. Down, down they fell into the darkness.
Most stood there, shocked by what happened, and there they stood when Ovak entered the inn, looked around, swore softly to himself, and said in a thunderous voice, "I quit!" He peered down into the hole, trying to see the extent of its depth. Unable to see the bottom, he lit a torch and before any objection he threw it down. The crater was basically round and the walls seemed intact throughout the torch's decent, which lasted nearly five seconds, at which point it hit the muddy bottom and snuffed out. Within that second of light, however, it was clear that both the plants and the constable were gone...
The tall elf and the crouching human were in the field outside the inn. One hushed the other, sure he had heard something. The noise grew louder and louder until out of the forest came some of the trees, walking on long wooden legs directly toward the inn. With arms of branches they reached for the door, opened it, and, somehow crouching down--they were not nearly as stiff as one might think--entered the inn. Some of the sleepers awoke immediately, others, too tired to worry, remained in their bunks and played dead. Powerful arms struck the adventurers as they did everything they could to fight off the attack. Swords, staffs, and bows proved to be a powerful defense and soon the trees lay motionless on the inn ground.
The adventurers barely had time to catch their breath. They felt a rumbling beneath their feet, and their hearts filled with dread. Out of the center of the building, vines and stalks burst through the ground, leaving a large hole in the inn's ground. Lashing out at everything in its wake, the vines attacked with a ferocity rarely seen from plants (though some may remember an especially bad crop of corn). People fell under the attack and still, at least one was determined to not be awoken. The vines rushed forward, wrapping itself around the constable, and dragged him into the hole from which they came. Down, down they fell into the darkness.
Most stood there, shocked by what happened, and there they stood when Ovak entered the inn, looked around, swore softly to himself, and said in a thunderous voice, "I quit!" He peered down into the hole, trying to see the extent of its depth. Unable to see the bottom, he lit a torch and before any objection he threw it down. The crater was basically round and the walls seemed intact throughout the torch's decent, which lasted nearly five seconds, at which point it hit the muddy bottom and snuffed out. Within that second of light, however, it was clear that both the plants and the constable were gone...