A Beginning...
So, you’re in the mood for a tale, are you? Well, I’ve got just the one. It’s a saga of unlikely heroes, their deeds as grand as they are numerous, their impact immeasurable. I won’t give too much away, but let’s just say it’s rather epic. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You see, these so-called heroes didn’t start out as such. Some were on a path shrouded in darkness, oblivious to the fact that their seemingly insignificant choices were leading them towards a grim fate. This, however, is a tale of redemption, of heroes conquering their inner demons and the literal demons of the world. (Hmm, perhaps that’s a tad too much foreshadowing?)
Our story begins on the deck of the “Wet Welch,” a merchant ship plying its trade in Jeklea Bay, nestled within the Azure Sea. Our group of would-be heroes is enjoying a pleasant afternoon sail, one of the few good days of that voyage. They were a motley bunch, having been thrown together by happenstance. Eolas of St. Cuthbert is on his way to Cauldron, having heard that the area was rich in lost knowledge. This bookworm was tasked by his order to go to the area to conduct research and find what he could (part of this was because he would never shut up about it, so sending him away would give them some peace). Not wanting to toss him out in the wild, Lars Dino was hired by the church to ensure Eolas’s safety on the trip. The Church will pay handsomely, as long as Eolas returns alive. Lysikor, Ragnarock, and Skullgrin, having run into Eolas and Lars on the road, decided that there was money in this adventure, and joined in. Certainly, the church would pay for some extra protection for this bookworm. Naldon the wizard, whom they met while on the “Wet Welch”, decided after a few dinner conversations that seeking knowledge would be safer with others and agreed to meet up with them in Cauldron after he was done with his business in Sasserine."
Sasserine
Sailing through the twin rocks, the “Wet Welch” made its grand entrance into Sasserine, navigating along the main channel until it reached its usual docking spot. Once docked, the crew, along with a handful of passengers, disembarked, while the ship’s captain, in her typical no-nonsense manner, started barking orders for the crew to unload the cargo. She was adamant about having the ship unloaded tonight, ready to be loaded up with new goods for the journey back north.
Sasserine, a coastal city nestled against the Amedio Jungle, is a stone’s throw away from the Hellfurnaces mountain range and about 20 miles north of Cauldron, to which it is connected via the Amedio Highway. Its nearest neighbor across Jeklea Bay is the Hold of the Sea Princes. Built on a series of islands, Sasserine relies heavily on water travel for intra-city trade, with much of the city covered in canals. These canals are filled with barges and other small vessels using these canals as other cities would use roads. Most of the vessels are powered by people using long poles to push the boats through the canals, although some seem to be moving on their own accord. The climate is generally tropical, with temperatures high enough to make you sweat but not pass out. The motley crew, unaccustomed to such heat, quickly realized that their journey to Cauldron was going to be a sticky affair.
Fuck, where did this heat come from? Is this really where we had to go?— Skullgrin
Naldon, having business in Sasserine, bid the group goodbye, but said he would meet up with them a couple of days after they got to Cauldron. He then bowed and took his leave. Eolas, with the rest of the group in tow, gathered their things and started toward their destination.
Road to Cauldron is not a Laughing Matter
The road to Cauldron was uneventful…unless you count the fact that our group almost met their maker halfway into their journey. One night, our illustrious crew was lounging around their campfire, having found a campsite that seemed to be a popular stop on this road. This night, it was deserted, and they had the area to themselves, until a pack of gnolls and hyenas decided to crash the party. Having made camp for the night, the group was sitting around the campfire, unwinding and enjoying the warmth before they retired for the night. Then, filtering out of the darkness, came the distinct, distorted laughing sound of baying and yipping hyenas.
Springing to arms, Eolas charged into the darkness to meet the foes while the rest of the group sprang into action. This bold move by Eolas allowed the others to bring themselves to bear, though at great cost to himself, with the gnolls and hyenas inflicting many wounds. Eolas, starting to weaken from blood loss, was saved by Ragnarock, who joined the fray moments later, allowing Eolas to retreat to a more defensive position.
Skullgrin, who had been dozing around the campfire, couldn’t seem to clear his head. While he presented a great target to help keep a group of gnolls at bay, his wild swings just couldn’t connect, no matter how hard he tried. It was the arrows from Lysikor’s bow, fired from the rear, that started to turn the tide.
I thought you were here to protect me Skullgrin?— Lysikor
The group was striving to push the enemies back when more adversaries surged from the darkness. With spells running low and most of the group severely injured, the situation was starting to look dire.
Sensing that the end might be near, Ragnarock, in a fit of rage, began wading into the enemy without any regard for his safety. That’s when, out of the darkness, more arrows began to fly, this time from behind the gnolls! From the darkness, magic illuminated the night, and there, behind the gnolls, stood Naldon, flinging magical energy at the gnolls, with a bow at his side. By this time, Skullgrin had shaken off his drowsiness and was starting to get his groove back. With a clear head, he was able to dodge the incoming attacks and managed to impale his axe into the nearby gnolls. The tide of battle had now turned.
Without going into all the details of what happened next, the remaining gnolls attempted to retreat, but it was too late. All the enemies were dispatched. Naldon, having set out a day earlier than expected, was greeted with smiles and cheers for his timely arrival. The group then dragged the corpses away from their fire and into the trees, and then settled down to tend to their wounds for the night.
Pissing around at the Lucky Monkey
Ah, even as an all-seeing, all-knowing raconteur, this twist caught me off guard. A smidge of backstory is in order. The Lucky Monkey, the solitary roadhouse between Sasserine and Cauldron, is a week's journey from Sasserine (100 miles) and about a day’s trot from Cauldron (24 miles or so). It's the go-to pit stop for any soul journeying between these two cities. On this fateful night, two caravans had made their halt there. The place was teeming. Each caravan boasted about six guards and a captain, plus a merchant and all his lackeys. Quite the bustling tableau.
Enter the kleptomaniac, or as I prefer, the misguided youth, who decided he needed to pilfer one of the merchant’s purses. Why? Well, damn if I know; all these mortals have free will, ask him. It WILL land him (and probably any companions he has at the time) in a world of hurt one day. But that wasn’t on his agenda tonight, or generally any other night. Lysikor dreams of being the infamous thief “Lysikor Stickyfingers,” renowned across the globe. He chose to kickstart that legend in the heart of a jungle roadhouse, surrounded by about 40 people who would be none too pleased if they spotted him.
And this is where the Cleric steps in. The voice of reason, a cleric of St. Cuthbert, rises to defuse the situation. Saint Cuthbert, a staunch opponent of evil, a zealous and driven deity who values discipline, honesty, zeal, and pragmatism, all tempered by common sense. So, I exhaled a sigh of relief when he stood up, sauntered over to the guards’ table for the caravan that the would-be infamous thief was eyeing, approached the captain, and…
cast the “command” spell at the captain and said, “panic.” Now, isn’t that a plot twist for the ages?
What in the F##$? Well, all hell breaks loose. Is that how you humans say it?
The captain screams and crawls under his table, his guards stand up, pulling swords half way from scabbards, looking around the room and at their captain in confusion cowering under the table. Ragnarock decided he better go and backup the cleric, and Skullgrin after a minute, deciding it might get dicey, also heads over to the table to join him.
Eolas, not done causing chaos, points to the front door, yells out and then charges out the door. Three guards from the other caravan who are on the other side of the room, race out the door, weapons drawn after Eolas following his lead. The rest of the guards are also on their feet looking around.
Don't just stand there, go get them! They are getting away!— Eolas
Skullgrin seeing that the original guards are looking at Ragnarock (as well as the captain coming out from under the table) as the closest target to take their rage out on, decided that it's best to try and calm everybody down...by pushing the barbarian into the guards and the table! Yep. That's right, pushed the barbarian into the guards.
Oh, did I mention that is when Lysikor
still tried to steal the purse of the merchant! I can't make this up. For some reason I can't fathom, he is able to slip the merchants purse from his coat and slip away.
Back to the barbarian with a face full of potato (as he ended face first into a plate of food). Skullgrin then insults the barbarian and pushes him again into the table. He get Ragnarock to turn around and gives him a coy smile, (a hey I did this to get us out this mess smile). Ragnarock understands and pushes him back talking about taking him on. They both then laugh and walk back to their table like it was some rivally between them. The guards look to their captain who shakes his head, then turn and right their chairs and call for more plates of food.
The potatos are good here. — Ragnarock
Outside meanwhile, the three guards that ran out after Eolas, check on their caravan then do search around the place looking for trouble. Finding nothing, they start to head back to the pub when they spot Eolas. The walk over and ask what the hell is going on?
Hey boys, Just taking a piss.— Eolas
Eolas, then does a quick shake, closes his drawers and walks away.
The Gates of Cauldron
I'm going to ignore the rest of the night and the rest of the trip for that matter. At the end of the next day, towards the evening, the group comes to the gates of Cauldron. And this is where we will leave our story for now...
