Epic Highs... But Mostly Lows

April 20th
 
After recovering from my injury, I headed out to explore the North West of this new land. Theadora joined me, along with some new companions. Captain Yearn Gracer, a suspiciously pleasant Paladin, Stefn Powerlimb who was a barbarian with a love of dinosaurs and Cob, a gnome rouge who yearned for caves. We walked through grasslands until we came upon a herd of Aurochs. All was peaceful until we heard Wilson cry out "I have an awfully bad feeling about this place!". Before we could react, three raptors burst out of nowhere and took down one of the poor beasts. They turned their beady little eyes on us and looked ready to pounce. I quickly ran forward, yelled as loudly as I could and released Thunderwave. The sound scared away the leader of the group and the other two quickly scurried after. Since we did not want the Auroch to go to waste we spent an hour dissecting it for rations. I also took a few pounds of wool in case I am in need of a coat. It does smell absolutely putrid though...
 
April 21st
 
We carried on, racing to get to the next area before midnight. Suddenly, I heard a scream and the sound of crumbling earth behind me. I whipped around, and saw the Captain holding Cob's ankles, who was desperately clutching Theadora who was wailing at the top of her lungs. He gave a quick yank and the two flew out of the hole. After a few minutes Theadora stopped screaming and we all examined the hole. It appeared to lead into a cave system head North and South. Eager to explore, we tied a rope at the mouth and climbed into the cavern. We decided to head North and ended up in a chamber with thick, stagnant water pooled in the center. We also saw the skeleton of a fallen warrior. The Captain and Powerlimb took its bag while I examined its helm. It appeared to be magical, but I was unable to decipher the ruins. Suddenly, an eery screeching noise erupted from the pool and it exploded upwards into a mass of horrifying wormlike creatures. Their dark, slimey bodies convulsed towards us in a swarm. None of our physical attacks seemed to do much damage to the creature. Only the psychic pain I inflicted on them seemed to work. In the blink of an eye they swarmed over Theadora, breaking through her skin in pin pricks and erupting out the other side of her body in large chunks. Cob scooped her up and carried her to the entrance of the cave. I managed to distract the swarm while my companions escaped but not before receiving a few blows of my own. I can't forget the feeling of those disgusting beings burrowing through my skin. As I dashed out of the cave, the creatures rose up like a wave and crashed through the tunnel after me. I yelled to my party to hurry up and Cob skillfully scaled the way up to assist us. We barely made it out before the monster caught up. Luckily, I still had the helmet, which turned out to grant me some extra awareness of my surroundings...wish I'd had that sooner. The Captain had secured the bag and we split the coins and spell scrolls between us. We were utterly exhausted and collapsed there for the night.
 
April 22nd
 
The next day we set off again and noticed more shrubbery in the terrain. We all felt a deep chill run through us when we came across the carcass of an Auroch. This poor beast had been stripped to the very bone, even its marrow was scooped out, making it barely recognisable. With the help of my new helm, we recognised this was the work of a pack of Gnolls, and the bloodthirsty band of hyena hybrids were still prowling around the area. Since we knew the way to a Gnolls heart (or at least their mercy) is food, we decided to cook them an Auroch steak. Unfortunately, I am no chef and ended up burning the lump of grizzly meat. We did plate it up nicely which made it look far more appealing. We bravely (or stupidly) walked straight towards the pack of Gnolls. The largest in the group approached us, licking its blood stain maw. I claimed we were sent by their god, Yeenoghu, to offer this meal to the strongest Gnoll. Unfortunately, this was not enough to satisfy the leader's hunger and he turned his greedy little eyes onto us. As the pack surrounded us, we quickly exclaimed only the strongest would be worthy. Luckily, a slightly rabid Gnoll took the bait and rushed to attack his leader. The monsterous 7 foot tall Gnoll easily crushed the skull of his disobedient subordinate and threw his corpse on the fire to cook. Luckily, he did not seem as interested in eating us and invited us to sit by the fire. He ripped a chunk of half cooked hide off the beast and tossed it at our feet, telling us to eat. The Captain, Powerlimb and I managed to choke down the foul meat, but Theadora and Cob gagged and spat there's out. With a growl, the leader chased them away and they hid in the bushes, watching the exchange from afar. The leader suddenly held his blade to my throat, asking what I was looking for in exchange for our flattery. Knowing how egotistical Gnolls are, I praised his beastliness and asked for whatever the great leader wished to give us to remember him by. Unfortunately... I think I flattered him a bit too much...
"Got your eye on me, do you?" he growled out, his hot and foul breath hitting my face. I tried not to gag as he leaned closer.
"I'll give you something to remember me by" he chuckled licking his lips and leaned closer. I squeezed my eyes shut, expecting the worst.... Then the Gnoll ran his blade down my left cheek, which would leave a jagged scar. As he pulled away all I could think was "THANK THE GODS THAT DID NOT GO THE WAY I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING HALLELUJAH I'LL TAKE A SCAR ANYDAY".
The Gnoll lazily pointed to a heap of objects strewn in the corner of his camp, saying it was from a crazy wizard and they didn't need them. He said we could take our pick. I have a strong suspicion they belong to Hom Tanks, but I wasn't going to chance my luck by asking the Gnolls about him. We grabbed what we could and skiddadled. We all took our pick of the treasure. My choice was a small grey bag filled with powder. Against my better judgement, I dipped my pinky finger in the dust and the most delectable, moreish, scrumptious flavour hit my tongue. I don't remember much after that.... Theadora informed me I was having a lovely conversation with a daisy for an hour, begged everyone to let me munch on their rations, told everyone I was "5'10" when they asked how high I was and then proceeded to lay face down on the ground like a plank of wood for the rest of the night. At least it took my mind off the strange and horrifying encounters of this journey.