FC0 - CH 2: Night Stalker

[JadedDM]

Tavi isn't sure how long she was out, but she starts awake at the sound of a dry branch cracking. Opening her eyes, she finds herself staring directly into the yellow eyes of something about thirty feet away in the brush. Just then, a cloud moves away from the moon, revealing that the creature appears to be a wolf...but at least double the size of any wolf Tavi had ever seen before. The wolf stares at her, as if waiting for something.

[HorizonsDream]

Tavi stares back at the wolf for a few seconds before she finally adverts her gaze. "Nice wolf," she says as she slowly sits up. "Please don't eat me," she says as if the wolf could understand her in the first place. Curious as to why the wolf just does attack she slowly reaches out her hand as if would a stray dog to see if it takes a liking to her or not.

[JadedDM]

The massive wolf immediately raises its hackles, growling as she comes closer. It then licks its chops and seems to bend down a bit, as if about ready to pounce.

======================

Party's Initiative (1d10): 3
Enemy's Initiative (1d10): 8

(Party's turn!)

Round 1!

[HorizonsDream]

Tavi quickly stands up and draws her sword as soon as she sees that the wolf is about to attack. "Guess you were hungry," she says as she slashes at the creature. Her sword cuts into the wolf's fur, red blood pouring from the wound as she pulls her sword away.

Attack Roll (16, hit)
Damage Roll (4)

[JadedDM]

The creature whimpers slightly at the cut, but immediately counterattacks by leaping right at Tavi. She nimbly drops to the ground as the beast soars overhead, then stands back up when it lands. The creature turns to face her again, bearing its razor sharp teeth.

==========================

Tavi attacks the worg (16, hit) for 4 damage.
The worg attacks Tavi (1d20): 7, miss.

Party's Initiative (1d10): 1
Enemy's Initiative (1d10): 8

(Party wins!)

Round 2!

[HorizonsDream]

Tavi doesn't seem to be too daunted by the fact that this creature could tear her to shreds with just one bite. Right now, she's just looking to stay alive. She attacks again, sword slashing through the air as she brings it down upon the worg. Once again her aim is true as blood begins dripping from a new wound upon the worg's side. Without missing a step, Tavi takes another slash at the animal, bringing the sword down across its backside.

Attack Roll 14
Damage Roll 8
Attack Roll 19
Damage Roll 6

[JadedDM]

After those attacks, the worg is now bleeding badly from three wounds. It bends down, as if to pounce, but the blood loss proves to be too much for it. Instead, it collapses into a furry heap, its tongue lolling from its mouth.

Just as she's about to catch her breath, someone bursts from the shrub. The man is too tall to be a goblin, about six feet or so. He's wearing chain mail and a leather cap and wielding a long sword overhead. He comes charging in, screaming a battlecry--and then abruptly skids to a halt and lowers his blade. "Oh, it's dead," he says in disappointment.

==========================

Tavi attacks the worg with her long sword (14, hit) for 8 damage, then again (19, hit) for 6 damage. The worg dies.

Combat ends.

[HorizonsDream]

Tavi raises her sword and shield in defense at first as the guy just pops up out of nowhere, but upon seeing him lower his blade, Tavi does too with a sigh of relief. "Uh, yeah, I managed to take care of it," she says with a hint of surprise in her voice. "Um...who are you, and why are you roaming this forest in the middle of the night?" she asks.

[JadedDM]

"I'm, uh...hunting," the man says. "Hey, you got a light or something? I think I must have dropped my torch earlier." He fiddles around in his gear, as if searching for something. "I thought I had another one around here somewhere. Anyway, gotta watch out for those worgs. Smart. Well, not really smart. 'Bout as smart as goblins, which aren't too smart, I guess. But smarter than a normal wolf. You know?" he asks, kind of rambling.

[HorizonsDream]

"Uh, yeah," Tavi says as she picks up her lantern. "I was just kind let out here with just my weapons, armor, and a lantern with no way to light it," she explains with a sigh. "I figured I would try to get some kind of sleep so I could start my search during the day, but then that...worg thing jumped out of the bushes. The rest you can plainly see," she says, motioning to the dead worg. "You were hunting that thing? Why?"

[JadedDM]

"Here, let me see," he says, taking the lantern. He uses a bit of flint to get the light going, then hands it back to her. Now she can see him better.

The man in question doesn't look all that much older than herself. He's quite muscular with short hair the color of wheat and cornflower blue eyes. He has tanned skin, suggesting he spends a lot of time outdoors. The chain mail the man is wearing, now that Tavi gets a better look at it, is battered and rather rusty. He has a medium shield like her own, but whatever the emblem was on it has long since been scratched off. His leather cap looks a bit goofy, with long ear flaps that sway about when he moves. The long sword in his hand seems old and and chipped. There's a warhammer strapped to his back, as well.

He gives her a big, dopey grin and says, "Ut, it's what I do. I hunt gobbos. And stuff like that, too. Worgs often work with gobbos, you see. They like to ride them as mounts."

[HorizonsDream]

Tavi suppresses a light giggle as she looks over the man. Despite the fact that he was quite handsome, he also seems kind of goofy too her. Though, then again, this is the first man that she has actually ran into other than her father. "So..you hunt goblins," she says softly. "Oh! Oh, wait! You wouldn't be the Night Stalker would you?" she asks excitedly.

[JadedDM]

"Night Stalker?" the man asks. He rubs at his chin. "Hmm, I kind of like that. Strikes terror into my enemies' hearts, right?" He shrugs. "I don't know, I'm just a gobbo hunter. Name's Barlemus Wharfman," he adds, jerking a thumb toward himself.

"Hey, come to think of it, what are you doing out here all by yourself? Kind of dangerous to out camping. Or are you a gobbo hunter, too?" he asks.

[HorizonsDream]

"Well, goblins sure are scare of you," Tavi says with a nod. "So much in fact that I was able to convince them to let me go so I could track you down. I didn't think I would find you this fast, though" she admits. "Oh, um, I'm Octavia Kensington, or you can call me Tavi like everyone else does."

Realizing that she was probably going to confuse this poor guy as she was all ready getting ahead of herself, she decided to start from the beginning. "Right...why I'm out here. Well, my sisters and I were captured by a band of goblins. They raided our ranch in the middle of the night, and killed everyone but us," she explains sadly, looking down at her feet as she pushed at some dirt with her boot. "They wanted us for a sacrifice, but I wasn't going to let them take my sisters, so I offered up myself. When I was talking with one of them, who is some kind of shaman, he mentioned someone named the Night Stalker, so I used that to my advantage. I said I would track him down and bring him back to the goblin caves so that the goblins could bring justice down upon him. Anyway, my real intention is to get you to help me save my sisters, and get ride of this...Shadowbite Clan once and for all."

[JadedDM]

Barlemus blinks at her. Then he blinks again. Finally, he sits down on the ground and removes his hat. "Ut. I need a moment to figure this out."

After a few moments pause, he says, "Okay, so you and your sisters were taken from a ranch. I saw a ranch the other day, burned to the ground. Figured it was the work of gobbos, on account that I found some of their corpses around the place." He looks up at her. "You said the Shadowbite Clan? I've been tracking them for months. Supposedly the biggest clan in the area. Never could find their hideout, though."