Of Dragons and Dwarves and Destruction: Chapter 6 in the continuing True and Accurate Tales of the Band of Adventurers

Well, the rumors are true. Though we apparently missed it by a day, the fabled White Dragon finally made its appearance, tilting at windmills, but to devastating effect. Through a combination of great good fortune and good luck, Attabrah survived the attack, though just barely. I have grown very fond of her, and have found in her a kindred spirit with whom I very much enjoy her company, her cooking, and her curiosity of all things natural.
 
She was, fortunately, in a solid(ish) structure when it attacked, and while she didn't bear the brunt of the assault, the crumbling ruins of the third floor of her windmill found thier way downstairs and crushed her. (I don't know what it is about windmills that attracts monsters, but it makes me nervous for her safety.)
 
We returned to find her in rough but stable condition at the local inn, and our Cleric of the Blinding Light did his magic on her and -- much to her surprise -- healed her wounds and broken bones. She would call it miraculous, though I have increasingly come to expect such miracles from Baric.
 
She accompanied us back to her place, where we assessed the damage, and our wonder-twin dwarves not only were able to assess the damage and make the needed repairs to shore up the structure, they also worked tirelessly to build her an escape tunnel in case there came a return of the monsters. Baric did a nice job of soliciting some town help, and I did my best to be as helpful as possible, though stonework is out of my kin.
 
I would say I couldn't say enough nice things about the dwarves at this point of the tale, but as you will soon see, there was reason to celebrate them not just for their construction, but for their destruction as well.
 
Almost immediately after getting the tunnel and escape hatch finished, a rider came rushing up to us to tell us of an orc attack at Butterscotch Ranch, begging for help -- and with a promise of a sort of inverse dead-or-alive reward for the rescue of the owner (a former Sherriff named Fonzie Calzone.) I don't have the best history with human law, and I confess a little secretly that I would have been just fine with the "we did everything we could but he died" part of the reward.
 
Nevertheless, we left in great haste to the ranch, all of us hungry in our own way to rain death and destruction on the invading orcs. Oh, and also I guess to rescue another shithead noble. I won't go into details, but I rode a horsey on the way there and I want to do it more. (Also, Ozzie had a surprisingly good way with animals and it made me see him in a light I hadn't considered before.)
 
Upon our arrival, we found the grounds to be a recent battlefield, with both humans and orcs laying about in their very best death poses. Also, a barn and smithy were charred and crumbled in, though the farm house itself seemed intact.
 
Baric proposed a direct immediate assault, and while that's not really my style, I genuinely couldn't think of a better plan. And, as it turns out, running in with a couple of absolutely deadly dwarves in front of you was pretty goddamn effective. I was barely able to get an arrow off before each dwarf took down an orc, and the storming of the house pretty much followed that initial assualt.
 
I was able to find a corner from which to shoot, Baric did his best to balance damage and healing... and the dwarves took down the orcs with a passion and hatred that I share for orcs. At one point, a larger orc came running out with a goddamned halbard, with which he skewered Dash, surely critically, and I worried greatly not just for his survival but for the survival of the party. He staggered around with this giant polearm still stuck in him and, much to my surprise not only stayed alive, but promptly chopped down the nearest orc. I believe that orc was surprised as I was.
 
Ozzie, meanwhile, ran upstairs in his rage and started letting blood on the second floor, with Dash close behind. Baric and I came up after, and in the close quarters of the hallway, I dropped my bow in favor of the rapier, with which I was actually more effective today than with the bow. I mean, I did fine, you know? But compared to the dwarves? Sheesh. They are deadly little fuckers.
 
One of the last few orcs managed to grapple Ozzie and in the act, the two of them went tumbling down another set of stairs. Baric and I stayed in our fight upstairs, and managed to stay alive long enough for Dash to come back and help finish the last one. And perhaps just in time -- Baric was looking pretty shaky.
 
As it turned out, that was the last of them, and after clearing the house, we found Fonzie Calzone tied up in the basement. Untying him seemed the decent thing to do, and as he recovers his wits, I would like to get more details about the attack. And maybe I can talk one of his ranch hands (if any still exist) into some horse lessons.
 
For the moment, there are bodies to be buried and I will help out with the humans. I wonder if Baric would object to burning the orcs before burying, lest they rot and fester the ground around them.
 
I look forward to our return to town and I want to talk more with Attabrah about the various monster bits and start making plans to create some armor out of them. I know the dwarves think it's weird, but if we can find a blacksmith who will do the work, I suspect they would both look pretty badass behind an Ankheg shield.