[IC] Sir Shane's Story (Legend in the Mist)

[third eye]

"I'm gonna pack here, to get ready for the walk. Damn crows getting very cheeky lately." and he left with a cartwheel of hay and some tools, heading home. "When I'm back, you're going home, Willow!" he shouted at her daughter when he started. The girl didn't seem to notice at first, but a moment later grimaced in the direction of his departing father.

"Children..." Kyle remarked with a smile. "Anyway, we'll need ..." and he started listing ingredients for the cleansing ritual. He didn't get past his fifth sentence, when "eeeeeEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeee", which, at first, sounded like a never-oiled sword's edge screeching on metal, but it was instead a blood-curling scream coming from Willow. She was staring towards west, seemingly frozen in mid-jump. Her hands started shaking first, then her arms, until her whole body was shivering with terror.

To the west, something was obviously moving slowly closer to her in the barley field.

[rush99999]

Sir Shane listened intently as Kyle listed off the ingredients. There had been a time before, when he was still a squire, that the cleansing rites needed to be performed. However, the acolyte tasked with readying the needed materials for the ritual had made the smallest of errors that wrought the direst of consequences when the cleansing was enacted. Had it not been for the quick thinking of his master, everyone prese-

Sir Shane was moving before he even consciously recognized what he was hearing as a scream of terror. He dropped into a crouch and laid Malcolm's shrouded corpse on the ground as respectfully as he could in his haste. The knight swiftly crossed himself and gave the Red Marshal one final nod, before launching himself off in the direction of the girl with all the speed he could muster.

"FLUTTER!" Sir Shane called out as he ran.

A neigh from somewhere behind him let the knight know his mount was on the way. Moments passed at what seemed to Sir Shane like eternities as he watched whatever was in the barley make its way closer and closer to Willow, then the sound of thundering hooves coming up behind him let the knight know that he was not alone. Sir Shane leapt to the side as Flutter drew level with him, slipping his sabaton into the foot loop as he climbed up onto the horse and into the saddle. "YAH!" Sir Shane cried with a flick of the reins, bringing Flutter to top speed as they raced towards their charge.

OOC

Roll: 9

-2: Away

+1: Knight of Stormhelm

+1: Loyal Horse

+1: Horsemanship

+1: Charge

Total: 11

[third eye]

When the knight thundered past Willow, who was still frozen with fear, he could see what terrified her so much. It was a soldier, or it had been once a soldier. Now, it was a corpse in armor, wielding a spear. Nauseating black viscous goo was seeping from its many openings, as it was lurching towards the girl. Thankfully, though, Willow was now safe behind Sir Shane.

OOC

This is now a different challenge. It is a combat scene, the knight vs. the putrid corpse. No extra complications, since you rolled a success. Once again, you'll need a roll, and add your power tags. This time, a successful attack action (on page 7) means you give your foe a harmful status.

The number of valid power tags is now extra important: if you roll a success, you can spend your power on effects. Imposing a status on someone/something costs 1 power per tier. So, if you have 3 power, you can attach wounded-3 to your target with an attack, for example.

Every challenge has limits, and you can overcome the challenge by imposing a matching status equal or higher than any one of its limits.

[rush99999]

Sir Shane heaved a sigh of relief as he rode past Willow before any harm could come to her. Only to gasp the sigh back in as he saw what it was that had frightened her so. "What in the sight of The One's third eye?" Sir Shane breathed in shock as he reigned Flutter to a halt. As the undead corpse shambled forwards, Sir Shane dismounted and turned to Flutter. "The girl needn't see what comes next." The knight told his horse. Flutter whinnied in agreement before moving to stand in front of Willow at such an angle that she wouldn't be able to see Sir Shane or his opponent.

With that done, the knight approached the putrid corpse and spoke. "If any vestige of the man you once were remains, lay down your weapon." Sir Shane implored the dead man, his knightly code of chivalry compelling him to seek a peaceful resolution before resorting to violence. "I give you my word we will lay you to rest with all the rites you were denied on your first death and more."

The corpse's simple reply was to grip its spear and thrust forward.

Sir Shane, honorable though he was, was by no means a fool. He was already fairly certain the undead creature before him was too far gone to be reasoned with, and so the knight had anticipated the attack. Redirecting the path of the thrust with a gauntleted fist, Sir Shane grunted as the spear tip bounced harmlessly off of his pauldron. "So be it." Sir Shane said, before drawing his sword and aiming a severing strike at his adversary's neck with one swift motion.

OOC

Roll: 5

-1: Impractically Honorable

+1: Knight of Stormhelm

+1: Full Plate Armor

+1: Knightly Training

+1: Swordsmanship

+1: Brave

+1: Hold The Line

Total: 10

Sir Shane inflicts beheaded-5 on the putrid corpse.

[third eye]

Apparently, those endless hours of practice in the barracks weren't lost on the young knight, and with his precise strike he cleanly removed the head of the lurching horror. However, it somehow gathered enough memories of its own training while alive, and viciously swung his spear at Sir Shane the last moment of its unlife.

OOC

Mitigating an attack is a separate action, so I'll rule out Armor and Hold the Line, but that's still Beheaded-3. The roll's result becomes an 8, which is success with consequences: it attacks back just before dropping dead finally.

Only players roll in this system, so you can roll to mitigate the dead man's spear attack, slashed-2. Now you can use armor and hold the line. If you succeed, those two tags are enough to fully block the attack.

[rush99999]

Sir Shane made no effort to deflect or avoid the coming blow. The knight simply stood there, completely unmoving, and observed the putrid corpse's final attack arc through the air. Were his master here, Sir Shane knew the older knight would chastise him for making such a foolhardy decision. Chastisement of overly reckless behaviour had been a common complaint from his master during Sir Shane's time as the man's squire. But Sir Shane foresaw no trouble coming of this particular instance. After all, even if he weren't wearing full plate armor, the dead man's newfound lack of a head and the eyes it came with reminded Sir Shane of a saying popular among the sneakier sort of fighting men: 'You can't hit what you can't see.'

OOC

Roll: 5

-1: Reckless

+1: Full Plate Armor

+1: Brave

+1: Hold The Line

+3: Beheaded

Total: 10

Sir Shane mitigates slashed-2.

[third eye]

In front of the knight, the moving dead soldier collapsed into a heap of rotten flesh, and within seconds it was reduced into the black goo that was seeping from him. The only solid things that remained were its armor and spear. And now that it wasn't moving, its armor seemed more than just some common soldier would be wearing. Once it had been very good quality, and Sir Shane could see the remains of fine decorations on it. This man must have been an officer when it was alive, but it had been a long, long time before.

[rush99999]

"God rest your soul." Sir Shane intoned over the dead officer's now thoroughly dead body before crossing himself and bowing his head. "I will see to it that your body receives th... Good God." Sir Shane looked on in shock as the corpse dissolved into a horrid black goo. "A putrid black mud-like substance..." The knight said to himself. "Could it be?" Making a note in his mind to see if Patrick recognized the goo when he returned, Sir Shane sheathed his sword, turned away, and turned his attention to more pressing matters. "Willow? It's alright. You are safe now. The danger is gone." Sir Shane called out as he approached, ensuring that the girl knew he was the one approaching rather than the undead monster that had frightened her so as he walked around Flutter and came into view.

[third eye]

Willow was a dozen yards back, getting up from the spot where she practically crawled. She still had lingering fear in her eyes, but was relatively calm. "Th ... thank you, si ... sir knight." she stuttered, as her father, Patrick ran frantically to comfort her.

Kyle's face was chalk-white, then he took a very deep breath and the normal color gradually returned. "You are a true knight, Sir Shane, and you have nothing to be shy about." He nodded several times respectfully, and started back to the church, in preparation of the cleansing ritual.

[rush99999]

Sir Shane looked off to the side and rubbed the back of his helmet as he was praised for his efforts. "I uh... Thank you. Both of you... Y-You... You really are too kind." Sir Shane said in humble reply, thankful for the helmet that now hid his beet red face. Once Kyle had departed, Sir Shane waited until Willow's father had arrived and waited for a time after to let the man comfort his child. Once it looked like they were on the tail end of things, Sir Shane spoke up again. "Patrick, could I borrow you a moment, please?" Sir Shane requested. If his request was accepted, Sir Shane would lead Patrick to where the knight felled the putrid corpse and show the black goo the body had dissolved into to the farmer. "Is this substance the same as what you discovered before?"

[third eye]

Patrick embraced Willow once more, and then nodded to the knight. "Sure. What can I do for you?"

"Is this substance the same as what you discovered before?"

After just taking a whiff and glancing at the material, the farmer scoffed and immediately responded. "Yeah, yeah. This is the same. If I knew where it came from, I'd ... I don't know, what I would have done, really. Maybe keep the girl in the house? What are we going to do now?"

[rush99999]

"First, you make sure Willow gets home safe." Sir Shane said. "Once you have done that, come find me and Minister Kyle at the church. From there, we'll cleanse what remains of the creature. Then we'll follow you to where you made your discovery and cleanse that place as well. After that, the minister and I will follow the creature's trail back to wherever it came from and see if there is anything to be cleansed there as well."

[third eye]

In about an hour, both the farmer and the priest were in the church, ready to go. Kyle had a large pack, which he swung over his shoulder, while Patrick only had a spade, obviously carried as a weapon. He didn't seem very practiced with it in a fight.

The trek to the spot where Patrick first discovered the dark slush was about half an hour from the village, across a few fields and a brook. After a little orienting himself, he found the bushes he remembered. And, true enough, near those bushes in a small crevice in the rock, there was the stinky black material. The farmer didn't even say anything, just pointed at it.

Using the tools he brought, and with the help of the other two, the cleansing ritual went without any problems. The dark goo cleared into water and slowly seeped down, leaving only the memory of it.

The priest then pointed in the direction they came from, drew an imaginary line, and then pointed in its direction if it continued: west.

"I would guess the source of this is further west from here. However, we are not warriors, so we won't continue from here. If you want to discover more, you'll need to get closer to the Crags, and you'll need either an army or a good tracker to stay alive there. Let's return home now, and have a full dinner. An empty stomach is a bad councelor, as the saying goes."

[rush99999]

Sir Shane turned his gaze westward as he took in the words of the priest. As much as he wished to continue on and see to this trouble once and for all, he knew that would be unwise. The closer one got to the Craggen Highlands, the more likely it was that danger would be encountered. Anything from the inanimate hazards of the wild to the more violent beasts that dwelt there. Not to mention the highlanders who made their home in that untamed wilderness held a particular and violent distaste for outsiders. Add onto that this new threat of undead on the prowl, and Sir Shane knew full well - knight or otherwise - a man from the city such as himself would not survive long without assistance. Especially now that the night and all it additional dangers was only a few short hours away.

"Indeed." Sir Shane said in reply to Kyle's saying, keenly feeling the hunger within him making itself known after all that had happened since last he ate. "It has been a long, eventful day. And I could certainly use a meal after all of that... Come. We can plot our next move once our hunger is sated." Even though he said this, Sir Shane's mind could do nothing but ponder what would come next as the group made their way back to the hamlet. Kyle had said that either an army or a good tracker would be needed to survive a journey any further west than they had already come. Sir Shane knew of no armies in the Dales, but he knew of a tracker. Elaine, the huntress he'd crossed paths with in Barleytown. She likely possessed the abilities necessary to aid him. But would he be able to convince her to help him? Would he even have time to ride back and enlist her aid before the next set of dangers arrived at the hamlet?

For the time being, all Sir Shane could do was hope that a good meal would bring him the answers.

[third eye]

When the trio arrived back at the church, the priest invited the other two in, and offered a seat at the table. He produced dried fruits, different cheeses, and smoked meat, accompanied by crystal clear water and the famous beer of the region.

The two locals said a quick prayer to the One, and started with the dining.

It was Kyle to speak first. "What brought you our way, Sir Shane?"

[rush99999]

Sir Shane happily accepted the invitation to join Kyle at his dinner table. The knight joined the locals in their prayer, then reached for his visor to open it just enough to reveal his mouth. However, his hand paused halfway there. After a moment, both of the knight's hands moved to grip the helmet and remove it fully from his head. Once he had placed the helmet down by his feet, Sir Shane commenced his own dining.

"What brought you our way, Sir Shane?"

The question startled Sir Shane slightly. But other than that, he kept his response fairly even. "I... was pointed this way by a huntress of Barleytown when I told her about my quest." Sir Shane answered. "Her name was Elaine."

[third eye]

"Hm. I remember her, she sometimes stops by when she heads out hunting. She's a friendly one, as outlanders go. Not as welcoming as farmers, of course, but still." the priest reflected on the new information.

"Yeah, and brings some hares or a deer for us, now and then." Patrick added. "Shame she's always wandering about, a shapely lass for a farmer's house. Don't know if she can cook, though."

[rush99999]

"She's an outlander?" Sir Shane said curiously. It certainly explained the odd makeup she wore around her eyes. Though she couldn't have been that far from home. Other than that, there wasn't anything about Elaine that suggested she was a foreigner. "Did she ever mention where she's from?"

[third eye]

The priest looked at the farmer. "I never really had a chat with her, just a few practical sentences, greetings, and such. I think her parents were outsiders in Stormhelm, from the sea." Patrick just shrugged and continued eating.

"There were some others on the ship they arrived with. If my memory serves well, that ship barely survived a terrible calamity."

[rush99999]

"I see." Sir Shane said as he this new information. After that, the knight lapsed into silence for a time as he enjoyed some more of the meal. "Since an army is likely out of the question, I suppose I'll be needing a tracker willing to guide me further westward." Sir Shane eventually spoke up again. "Does anyone of that profession make their home in this hamlet?"