Shoe Thief

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Vineyard Couch House Action: Lots of Drinking Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Lizbeth seemed to get that Kathryn was in fact, not trying to imply anything between them. And seemed to understand Kathryn had a lapse of word choices. With a prompt "Ew" the worst of things had passed, and overall was patient with her while she got her words working right again. Kathryn needed to let out a very drunken giggle, soon erupting into laughter as Kathryn's brain caught up to her physical actions. "Ew indeed dude. You can do so much better." Kathryn spoke out when she finally got her giggling under control. She did however perk up an ear at the mention of Lizbeth's own crush! But it seemed Lizbeth had her own troubles in that regard. Much like her own. Which, brought on a world of pain Lizbeth wasn't ready to deal with just yet. Kathryn despite starting to feel buzzed, was determined to help the small child who was now supplying her with more confidence juice. So with another cork ripped off the bottle, Kathryn began downing the next one. This time only getting about a quarter of it before stopping. "Difficulties aside, tell us about this tinker boy huh?" The poor girl needed something positive to focus on, and Kathryn was determined to give her an out from her dark thoughts. "Is he cute? Kind? Come on, spill the beans dude!" Kathryn spoke up excitedly. Okay, so she wanted the gossip too. But if Kathryn was able to help Lizbeth and get to have these fun conversations? Win win!

Kathryn wasn't sure how to explain her situation better to Kosara. So drunk Kathryn took another sip from her bottle of wine, and set it down as she prepared the easiest explanation she could. "Well Kosara, a noble family name is a right of power and responsibility. How much varies so much its hard to quantify." she paused considering her words further, then taking another sip. Trying to not chug it as to enjoy the taste more. She may have to take V up on her offer of something for a proper drinking drink. "They essentially removed it's worth, and it's responsibility. As much as they could at least. There is only so much that can be done while I am still around ya know?" Kathryn chuckled, aware that as long as she was still alive she did technically have a claim to her old homeland, even if she lacked the means to back it up. But it meant it was something that would loom over those murderous dicks heads forever. "The drawback to it is I can't use my family name now." Kathryn said with an indifferent shrug, before taking yet another sip of wine. It was at that moment she realized she was getting tipsy for sure. Maaaaaybe she should slow down. Maybe. But also she was finally relaxing for the first time in gods knows how long! So! She was ready to drink away her fears!

Kathryn found herself trying to think of the best way to describe her marriage culture to Kosara. It was a hard one none the less, but it was sort of fun to talk about home. "Kind of. You're really close. For most households that would be the case, but being apart of nobility I have to make sure a proper bond was forged between families. Marriage, and a child between the couple. So for me to be in a relationship with another woman, my family would require that the first bond was more than secured. And on top of that, my husband would have to also approve of such relationship. And that other person would need to be open to also marrying my husband as well, and then all of our families would need to approve the marriage. It's a complicated process that gets more complicated the more people you add in. To add to the complication, many noble families didn't practice those sorts of relationships. Especially the higher echelons of nobility. So Trevor, the boy I was likely to marry, likely would not have been for such an arrangement." Kathryn took another sip of her wine, a smile on her lips as she did so. "Not that I would have minded, he was a sweet boy, and at the time I loved him. And if that isn't what he wanted, I wouldn't have pushed otherwise." Kathryn said almost dreamily. Before her expression returned to indifference, and she took a rather long sip this time, bringing the bottle down to it's last third, maybe less. "I don't think that marriage is valid anymore so I guess that means I am sort of free to do what I want then huh?" Kathryn spoke with a drunken smile across her face. "You're right Kosara! I am an adventurer now! I get to see the world! Slay evil beasts! Punch douches in the face!" Kathryn taking her arm that was holding the wine bottle, used it to hold the blanket closed on her still, and used her free hand to draw her family sword into the air, still in the sheath. "I'm me own woman! Restrained only by public decency and the laws of man!" She shouted holding her protected weapon in the air, poking the ceiling at an awkward angle before setting the small great sword down on the counter again. "I'm gonna open a bakery." She said giddy like a small child. "Not, right now obviously. But like, as soon as I can get meself sorted a bit more, maybe come the spring, I wanna make baked goods for people ya know?" She said to no one in particular, but was definitely looking around the bar for a reassurance from anyone else present that it was a good idea.

Kathryn found the conversation taking an assortment of weird yet interesting turns. In this case, the camel in the room. Kathryn in her case did know what a camel was, though she had never seen one. "Kosara may know better, most of what I know of them is from my uncle's tales of his time in the campaign. He said they were better suited to handle the sands then our beasts of burden back home. He also... said some rather less than nice things about camel riders from the lands he helped conquered. Some very, less than nice things." Kathryn said emphasizing the less than great for dinner topics. Kosara, had a much better explanation about the strange creatures. Even Kathryn who had heard of such beasts found herself surprised to hear about them. "They Eat Cacti?!" Kathryn exclaimed, not believing it much herself. Ser Lucas had mentioned how one man from his company had tried to do such a thing, only to have pins and pricks stuck in his mouth for the rest of the campaign until he could see a proper doctor to remove the last of them. "YOU'VE EATEN CACTI?!" Kathryn said even more surprised at hearing the notion! She had heard stories of men drinking cactus juice, and going totally mad. Losing their sense of sanity, and worsening paranoia as the cactus juice drove them mad. She then paused, looking at Kosara, and wondered if maybe it wasn't trauma, but in fact the regular doses of said juices that had driven her mad?! But then again, most of those men died, and slowly and painfully at that. Kosara was still here. Maybe tieflings were better suited to drink the stuff? Kathryn wasn't too sure what to expect from the woman at this point, but drinking poison juice wasn't amongst those things.

Then, it had arrived. One of Kathryn's beverages of choice. ALE! A rather hefty barrel of the stuff. The tall woman sat up, one arm holding her blanket to her person, the other holding the mostly empty bottle of wine. Though one of the laborers seemed rather apprehensive about the work, young Lizbeth took control of the situation, and kept things under control rather well. "Thank you lads very much! Your efforts are much appreciated!" There was also talk of their weapons, gear, supplies, bug bits, and other pieces and bobs set aside or put away. As a whole, they were here only one night so far and were already pretty settled in. God Kathryn wished she could live like this forever. Drinking, fighting, a seat of power! And overall just feeling comfortable with herself again! Hell! Maybe she'd even teach herself how to swim! Then she remembered, winter. Snow and ice don't mix too well with swimming. MAYBE! She could learn to bake! She could do a moderately okay camp bread, but that was about it. She could make cakes! Cookies! Pies! And other treats! She would make good sue of this winter. And if possible, she would work on getting stronger too. Sure, she was unlikely to face a foe stronger than herself, but she would rather keep if that way.

Finishing the bottle off, Kathryn walked out from behind the bar mug in hand. Leaving her family sword resting on the countertop not too far from the makeshift armory on the counter. It was only then did Kathryn notice the blade on Lizbeth's side. "Preparing yourself for a fight aye?" Kathryn asked as she poured herself a mug of ale. "If ya really wanna learn how to fight we should absolutely work on it then. There be lots of ways to fight, hand to hand, sword, hammer, daggers, defensively, offensively, we got all sorts of fun options!" Kathryn then lifted up her foot so a boot that wasn't there would be easier to reach. Then, it clicked she was infact not wearing a knife on her ankle. So setting her ale on the counter she then picked up one of the daggers and stepped back a pace or two. Doing a few fancy twirls and spins with it before tossing it up, catching it by the handle, and doing a rapid back and forth slash, slash, step twist all within a single motion. And all while holding the blanket close to her person. She then turned back to face Lizbeth and attempted to sheath said dagger, drunk Kathryn forgetting she was in fact not wearing a belt with her blanket, and fumbling for a bit before putting it back on the counter with the other weapons. "When I am a little more sober, let's get some training weapons sorted yeah? Either blunting the blades on a couple of these, or making something you can use to practice with from scratch. That way when we train we don't accidentally gut each other ya know?" Kathryn said jokingly. Though she did see that happen once some years ago. A pair of knights in a melee with a bunch of other men had began to duel each other, only for the bloke with the great sword to find a gap within the armor of the other knight and cleave half way through his person. The violent removal of said weapon had done it in for the victim. Not that Kathryn would ever get that careless with Lizbeth. Nor be that brutal with her. But training with weapons wasn't something she thought was good in unpracticed hands. She didn't want to actually hurt Lizbeth.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Vineyard Couch House Action: Drinking Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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So far Kathryn's time at the Couch House was everything she could dream of and more! Shy of some misgivings on her own part on not thinking before she spoke. Otherwise, this place was something special and AMAZING! Plenty to drink, plenty to do, and it felt so... homely. What else could a woman ask for? She was with people she respected, liked, and welcomed. People she was beginning to trust. For the winter at least, she felt at home. And considering Kathryn had no plan for winter a couple weeks ago other then drown her worries and sorrows in cheap tavern beer, she figured it was a pretty good start to her life on her own. Even if she drank some of the wine a little faster than she was supposed too. To help improve the evening, Kosara had even gotten her a gift! So she had received a gift from her friend, and they now had a set of matching friendship rings! Kathryn couldn't get much happier than she was right now.

Kathryn took her little hammer trinket in her free hand, while her other hand held closed the heavy bedding around herself. "Oh my gods Kosara! This is so thoughtful! Thank you so much!" Kathryn said excitedly before placing the necklace around her neck. Tucking it into the bedding she was wrapping up in so she wouldn't accidentally tug it off. Despite finally being comfortable enough to not wear her armor in a social environment, she still found herself wrapped up tightly with her sleeping bag turned makeshift robe. Not that it was a good robe, but it made her feel safer. "I love it so much Kosara! Thank you." Kathryn said with the warmest smile on her face.

With her hand free again, she turned it back to the bottle of wine. Which after another good few swigs found itself nearly empty. Something that V, did not seem to appreciate the taller woman doing. It almost through Kathryn off hearing herself being called Daughter of Arcanaple. It almost felt as if V was a lot more familiar with her past then she was letting on? Though, the bard did offer Kathryn some local Ale. "I may take you up on that V, but I am intrigued where you are going with this." Kathryn said leaning over her seat and watching Victoria closely. Kathryn listened closely as the bard listed off the extraordinary details of the wine. Details Kathryn herself never would have been able to guess, let alone discern from the taste alone. She was rather wide eyed in amazement listening to the smaller woman explain not only the likely ingredients, but the season it was made, even going to far as to determine what barrel it was aged in. "Wow. Uh... Wow." Kathryn said amazed listening to V talk. It sounded so familiar to her. She almost had to take a moment to decipher why. But a moment of thought, and it clicked. "Just then, right now, you sounded so much like my father. The way you were able to pull up those details and explain them? I swear if your voice was a few octaves deeper I would have mistaken you for him." Kathryn smiled thinking just how much more of a noble woman Victoria appeared to be than Kathryn herself was. "Are you sure you're not from nobility? You'd pass pretty well yeah?" She asked curiously.

Kathryn's face went red when Kosara started asking about the baker woman from her home she had a crush on. Even redder when Kosara began talking about how it related to her siblings, and details that led Kathryn to believe that Kosara's home had a little more going on than just a way point in the desert. Funny enough, had Ser Lucas decided to take a different way to flee Arcanaple, and took another one of his more extended stops, Kathryn wondered if she and Kosara would have met sooner than they did. As Kosara's home sounded very much like the sort of place that Ser Lucas would like to call home for a few jobs at a time. The awkward part, came when Kathryn was put on the spot by Kosara about the details of her crush on the baker woman, and the reasons it was forbade. She didn't want to outright refuse an answer, as Kosara had always been rather kind to her. But also she wasn't sure the best way to give the most appropriate answer with Lizbeth in the room, and with how Kosara seemed to be stuck in an even younger mindset, with Kosara in the room too. "Well uh... there were a lot of reasons." Kathryn eventually spoke up.

Looking at the remaining wine in the bottle, she gave V an apologetically look, before downing the rest. Needed the emotional strength to pick her next words carefully. "So yes, it was one of those... Kissing crushes. And being too young for those relationships was definitely one reason. Another reason being my parents were in charge of her. There's no way a relationship like that would be appropriate. But related to that, my family was a relatively young noble household. We could not afford to marry below our station, for fear of our noble name being lost to obscurity. And she was a common woman. On top of that, I was to be betrothed with someone I could one day produce an heir to. If not for my household, then for another that would form close ties to us. I was forbidden to even think of a relationship with another woman until that matter was settled. And she'd still have to be of equal or greater station than myself." Kathryn went to take another sip of the wine, realizing part of the motion in she had already finished the bottle. She would need more booze. Like now. "Not that it matters much now anyways huh? I went from heir to a frontier castle, with strong ties to the homeland, with the chance to have children with comparable ranks to Barons with the connections we made, to not having anything but the clothes on me back. In terms of home culture my homeland views me as less valuable than a sell sword knight." Kathryn chuckled, though there was a spiteful undertone to it. "On the plus side, means I can pretty much marry whoever I want now huh? Titles don't mean much when you don't have the funds or connections to back them up." Though Kathryn tensed for a moment, she quickly relaxed. Some of those emotions were more raw than she thought, likely having to face them for real since Ser Lucas passed. "Oh well, I get to travel the world and meet some of the coolest people yeah?!" Kathryn said excitedly as she looked upon her party and company.

She'd be lying if she said she didn't miss home. Which, made her want to drink more. Looking at the empty bottle she downed like a lite beer, she paused looking at the label. It was... vaguely familiar. She mumbled some elvish as she squinted looking at the label, even though it was printed in common. "I wonder..." Kathryn stood up in a hurry making her way around and behind the bar. "'Scuse me lizbeth. Gotta find something real fast." Kathryn began looking through some of the bottles of wine all about behind the bar. She paused when she pulled out a white wine from behind several other bottles. "No fucking way!" Kathryn exclaimed as she lifted the bottle. And again, she began speaking in elvish, despite the bottle being in common. Rather fluid elvish. "Traditional Mountain Elk Malvasia" Kathryn grinned like a child who had found their long lost toy. Quickly grabbing the bottle with the hand that was originally holding the blanket robe closed, and grabbing the sealed cork with her hand before ripping it off with her bare hand. She then took a few drinking glasses for herself, Victoria, and anyone else who wanted some, placing them in front of V. "I don't know if the label changes language in shipping or if it is originally printed in elvish, but by the time it makes it to Arcanaple, the print is in Elvish. Likely due to the number of high lords who are elvish. But my father would go out of his way to get a couple glasses of this whenever we visited a major city." She then began pouring the wine. Trying for the one third glass like V did, but getting closer to half.

"Father said he loved this wine, and he would sometimes let me have a sip. But that he could never justify the cost to have it shipped home. So we only had some when we visited port towns or major cities. And sometimes he would take some home with us when we were done with business." She didn't have a ton of great memories of her father. Much of her time with his was about the duty she had to fulfill as the eldest daughter. And much about being the tough parent to make sure she was ready to take on the world when her time came. She wished she listened more, and wished she had more time to learn. She wished she could remember more of the happier memories. "Come on, lets give it a try. The high ladies of the party." Kathryn said setting down the bottle and picking up her glass. She imagined she didn't look too classy dressed in a glorified blanket, a bit of helmet hair, and being so unnaturally tall that she always struggled with being lady like.

Kathryn then took a small sip, much like the one Victoria took moments ago, and repeated the intake of breath. She had to admit, it did taste far better like this. She guessed she could see why V was so disappointed in her for how she downed the last bottle. "Yeah it's definitely better like this." Kathryn smiled while sighing in defeat. She did take another sip in an attempt to try what V did, but the more she thought on it, the harder it became to describe. "I can tell you it's a white wine, and that it is mildly sweet. But not as much as other wines I have tasted." Kathryn said before shrugging her shoulders. "Otherwise, I got nothing." She chuckled, maybe beginning to feel tipsy. She'd have to find that beer though. Sometimes a large quantity of alcohol was what a girl needed to get comfortable.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Vineyard Couch House Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn listened as Blackberry talked on about the former town guard. And, he was right on his points. "I keep trying to go for a peaceful way out there, but I worry that not dealing with those goons then and there is going to bite us, or some other innocent in the ass. I hope they either disappear forever, or someone catches them sooner rather then later." But she couldn't dwell on this too much now. If they turned up, she or the new law in town would deal with them. If they never turned up again? Well, no loss really. Then she remembered, she had folded one of them into a barrel in town... and now wasn't too sure if she had brought it up to the Sheriff... Another mistake of hers really. More things to account for. Blackberry on the other hand, had tasks to attend to now that someone else had returned. SO! Kathryn took over watching the mule. "So, how's it going?" She turned and spoke to the creature. Getting little more than a stare back from them. "Cool... Cool cool cool..." She trailed off looking around for anything else to hold her attention.

Thankfully, the rest of the trip was rather nice and relaxing. Kathryn spent most of it in the party's wagon, taking in the sights and enjoying every moment of it. For a while she began to walk about again, making sure her legs got plenty of exercise. But again would ride once the sun began to set Not dark, but she'd feel like a fool if she twisted her ankle in the dark. Deciding that she had been pretty active today. Tomorrow she would get a proper work out of some kind. Move some stones, split some logs, lift the wagon again, something. She did find herself rather excited seeing the sign stating they were getting close. The lands of the vineyard were something that Kathryn couldn't comprehend at first. To Kathryn, they reminded her of the more wealthy nobles from back home. Hell, if you removed the castle walls, made the lands appear more prosperous, and replaces the keep with a manor, this could have been her own home! Well, her home had a lot more mud. And there wasn't much open space inside the walls. Everything was pretty on top of one another. Looking at the lands in front of her, this seemed like something from the heartland of Arconaple, not the frontiers and fringes like her own home. Something you would see in the country side of major cities and ultra wealthy lords. And it felt so... homely. It was beautiful in ways Kathryn couldn't bring to words. "wow..." Kathryn mumbled as she gazed on the vineyard in amazement. Still trying to process everything.

Even approaching the big house of the land things felt like the keeps of old. The mass of servants and workers coming to quickly unload the wagons, and attend to the family's every need. Even in her Father's keep Kathryn didn't get this sort of attention. At least not immediately. Generally the keeps Castellan would have to muster up enough staff from other jobs to assist while key things were taken care of by his assistant and squire. This however? Was probably what lords of higher keeps experienced. Barons or Dukes maybe? Either way, it was shocking, and kind of exciting to be experiencing this sort of thing yet again. It was like reliving apart of her life that was long gone.

Kathryn listened closely about the talk of the remaining harvests. But had trouble imagining such a thing. Ice Grapes?! That was a thing? Insane to think about. AND! Another festival?! Kathryn would either have to exercise a lot more or really watch what she treated herself too. Veggies, proteins, and beer would allow her to keep working on her strength. Cake? Pies? Wine? Less so. Buuuuut.... for her first few months on her own? She was doing pretty good. Sure, there was the less than pretty few weeks after Ser Lucas passed. Where she almost drank herself into a coma and would have likely been robbed if not for the fact the only pick pocket daring enough to try it took a trip through a wall with her when he tried. Kathryn almost seemed giddy, but tried her best to seem like a mature adult when responding to Lizbeth. Though she struggled. "Oh? is that so? I guess I will have to try for myself and see now won't I?" Kathryn said humoring the small child. Though, she did actually really want to try this legendary wine. Honigblume Icewine. That had a nice zing to it.

Kathryn didn't know a ton on agriculture. She knew bits as it was apart of her responsibility as a lady of her father's lands, and she needed to have a fair understanding of many areas. Not that she did that well in her few years of education. But she knew an insane number of a yield when she heard one. "Ninty Five Percent?!" Kathryn asked in surprise. Clearly shocked at such a revelation. Clearly an exaggeration, but it was clear that the L'Rose family was very well off. Maybe that successful yield rate had something to do with it? She didn't know for sure, but holy shite if it was true, the family lucked out on some of the best lands in the realms. She thought at least. She tried to remember what the statistics of her Father's lands were... but she couldn't recall that. She realized, she was forgetting more and more of her homeland every day. She wondered when the day would come when it would be little more than a distant memory, comparable to lucid dreams.

They were going to have their own inn. A full inn to themselves full stocked and prepped shy of in house staff for them. This was a life Kathryn never figured she would live. She wondered if there were any beds big enough for her?! Most beds were too short, but a double bed or anything bigger she could make due rather comfortably. A proper comfortable bed... without any strangers in the whole inn... Maybe she could relax for a night? Get comfortable? And just... stop worrying for a night... or a whole winter? No traders passing through, no mercenaries, no scummy opportunists. She wondered if the place was big enough for her own room? For a whole winter. Having her own safe space. "This is... So much. Thank you so much Cecily! I don't think words can describe how thankful we are for such accommodations. While we're here, please do let us know if we can assist with anything. It feels weird to not have work or plans for the winter." Not that the L'Rose family had much use for a hired sword in the winter. But she could handle smithing tools rather well, and if needed she was strong enough that there wasn't much in terms of manual labor she wasn't able to excel at. Sure being here was thanks for their help, but this was so much more then that. And... A Bath. A real and true proper bath. Kathryn wasn't sure when the last time she had a decent bath was. She got extraordinarily uneasy near strangers, had a lingering fear of being attacked when she relaxed, and was extremely self conscious about her self. Be it worrying about her own looks, or some pervert barging in while she cleaned up. She had to rely a lot on buckets being dumped over her, and isolated rivers. But a nice and true bath... in what was the equivalent to her own home? She had no idea how she would ever return to the road life after this winter. "I can't wait to see the rest of this place Cecily. It's just... Something special." Kathryn said giddy with excitement. And a good brunch with it?! It was the high life. If loyalty could be bribed with food, booze, and housing, Kathryn could now consider herself a corrupt noble woman.

Kathryn was able to take pretty much all her gear. She did not own much of her own things. But she did thank the laborers for their efforts as they passed by. It was jarring in a way to receive so much attention, but it was also rather exciting! "I think we can definitely accommodate young Lizbeth is she wants to spend some time with us. We still gotta figure out sleeping arrangements, but I'd be surprised if we couldn't figure something out." Kathryn said with a big smile on her face. Lizbeth was like a little sister that Kathryn didn't have. Well... not anymore at least. Apart of Kathryn found herself rather excited to have Lizbeth around. In a way, it would be like a sleep over! Well... as far as she knew. She didn't really get to do sleepovers while she grew up. Her father forbade it with commoner families, and her family didn't venture enough for Kathryn to get to know other girls her age. And when she did travel, she'd get her own room, and then be cleared out the next day.

Kathryn took her gear and bags and set them in the hall upstairs. She didn't want to claim a room until the party had a chance to talk it over. Though she did take a moment to explore some of the rooms. She guessed they would have to decide if the party would bunk up together, or each get their own rooms. And if they did, where would Lizbeth sleep? What caught Kathryn's attention, was the fact that two of the rooms had beds that had to be at least double sized. The bed in the master room being considerably bigger. That was the bed she wanted... the fire place too? God what else could a woman want! But... it felt selfish to just claim the biggest and the best room. Though she did take a moment to change into more comfortable clothes. She felt... almost weightless without wearing her armor. Almost like she would float off any moment now... Not that she wasn't used to not wearing armor. But she wasn't used to being still active in her day. It was rare her armor ever came off outside of bed rest, and when she cleaned up. But things were finally... okay. It felt so good to not worry for once. She was... safe.

Still being a little paranoid, and self conscious about her own person, she wrapped herself in her sleeping bag, completely opened up so it more resembled a blanket then a sleeping bag, and carried down the new gambeson material she wanted to attach to the bag, and the belt that contained her family sword. She never felt safe leaving her sword about. It was a family heirloom that frankly needed a lot of love. Plus, it was supposed to be more of a ceremonial piece than a weapon of war. Used for events, and if things got dire, a weapon to defend one's home. Small for a great sword, big for a long sword, perfect decorative piece. Kathryn arrived into the main tap room to find Lizbeth piecing together their meals for the night. Something, Kathryn would never turn down. "Oh look at you? Lady of the kitchen aye?" Kathryn amused as she made her way over towards the bar to sit. Setting her family sword down on the counter and grabbing a plate. "You know, my first crush was the baker in my parent's kitchen? I thought they were the coolest person ever. My parents forbade such a relationship, but I thought she was cool." Kathryn chuckled at the memory. Then stopped, cold faced. "Not that I am attracted to you. You're not my type. You're uh... young..." She paused again, worried her damage control may have made things worse in other ways. "Not that you aren't a pretty young lady, but like... uh... please forgive me. My main source of a social life was a 160 year old halfing man and the rather nice ladies he met up with from time to time." She paused again, unsure if she made things better or worse. "I'm sorry I'm sober. I'll shut up now." Kathryn spoke up embarrassed as she reached over the counter, grabbed the first bottle of wine she could reach, yanked off the cork with her bare hands, and began downing it as if it were a lite beer.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Southmoor Village Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kathryn returned to the wagons without much incident. A few children gave her looks of curiosity but that was something she was used too. She simply gave them a wave and a friendly smile as she walked her way back to the wagons. Children were rarely nefarious in that regard. Blunt, maybe. But almost never malicious. Kathryn was tall, powerfully built, and something that stuck out in many cultures, she was a woman in heavy armor. A noble woman at that. Though that last point wouldn't be obvious. And for those who did know, her legitimacy was very questionable at this time. But Kathryn had long ago accepted that she would never return to power, or to the life of nobility. Not for a lack of trying though.

At the age of nine, she had to plea her family's case amongst the noble courts. Though her uncle was present for a short bit there, he wasn't much help. No one in court liked him. He fought with the old clans, up jumped into nobility. He was crude and violent. And he scared those in the court to such a degree that whenever he spoke, guards would level their weapons. After seeing what had happened to young Arthur, how even though he had survived the fighting, his body so ruined that the claims of "Monster" traveled through the court with little resistance. That didn't even address the lineage problem. Her uncle was her mom's brother. Her mom came from a landless clan, that had been up jumped into landless knights of the realm. Attempting to squeeze their way as household knights for generations. And it wasn't until they joined into her Father's family that things began to look up for them. To add to it, he was a child born out of marriage. Making any legitimate claim to a family name, especially Kathryn's family name, that much harder to defend. So it had to be Kathryn, at the age of nine, defending her family name. For all the good it did.

During that period, several attempts on her life had been taken. Twice with an assassin, both of whom her uncle dealt with. Once with poison, also dealt with by her uncle. Though this time not through violence. Once she had almost been pushed out a window, saved by Ser Lucas in the process. And another time she had been challenged to a duel. To everyone's surprise, including her own, she had come out on top. By the end of it all, her family were still declared unnatural monsters, and were deemed guilty of all crimes. Her lands to be forfeited to the Codswealth family. The days after that declaration were a blur, but there was a lot of running. A lot of panicking. That was when open season was declared on herself and her uncle. Though she made it out, he was far from as lucky. The next few years were spent in hiding. Sometimes with other noble families, sometimes common inns. In some cases mercenaries and household guards would come after her and Ser Lucas. Other times they could go year without any sign of them. Now she wasn't even in the same continent anymore. And it had been years.

Apart of her wondered if she should change her name? Out this far few would know what Pyke meant. And chances are those who did, would want to know more on why she was using the name, or what family she was apart of. Surface level answers could buy time, but as a whole she would need to think of something long term. Maybe changing her name or adopting a new formal name would be best? All her legals papers had her old family name on there. So she would need new papers... But that would mean completely giving up her linage. Something she struggled with the idea of. Even accepting it was a life she would never get back, she couldn't help but still cling to it. She had no supporters back home, no family to go back too, and yet, she still clung to a life that did not want her. Plus, it wasn't like she had citizenship in another land. She'd hold a comparable status to a serf of a peasant. Not that is was a bad thing, but it was harder to go back from that then the life of an outcast noble. She decided that she would make a decision over the winter. She wasn't totally sure what her plan was, but she was going to be sheltered up all winter, and have time to think a lot of things over. Maybe someone could help her with that while they waited out the snow? That would be helpful for sure.

Kathryn took a seat in the wagon. Deciding that she should ride the rest of the way instead of walk. Should she come to regret this, she would likely never ride in a wagon again. But she was ready to slow down for a bit. Ready to stop worrying. Ready to not be a total panic and a wreck waiting to happen. She was ready to relax, and get comfortable. She did listen with intrigue as BB listed of his theories on what caused the abnormal activities of their new bug foes. "I have doubts on it being out ever so pleasant town guards. Though we should keep an eye and an ear out for them. Best guess, they got cast out and desperate. Maybe a new pack leader didn't like them, or their next got too cramped. Or, maybe a tiefling came into their nest shaking the earth telling them all in a booming voice that she was going to cook and eat them all?" Kathryn joked with a sweet grin on her face. But she could 100% see Kosara doing that now. Especially since she's already seen her doing it! "Oh most this stuff will keep just fine with a little bit of salt, maybe we could also smoke it or turn it into stew. We have plenty of preservation options when it comes to meat products. The shells should last far longer then that too. But maybe selling would be a good idea. I am not in a huge rush for coin myself, but it could be nice to have some extra cash on hand yeah?" Kathryn asked inquisitively.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: N/A Location: Southmoor Village Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Lizbeth handled the weapon like a complete amateur. But, she also handled it like someone who wanted to use it well, and who was ready to learn more. For someone who had never taken a weapon into combat? This was the best case scenario. This made kathryn giddy like she was an older sister learning of all the cute crushes her younger sister had. If crushes were in this case "Hey what's your favorite weapon of war!" Not that Kathryn would actually ask Lizbeth that. Yet. She needed to make sure the young child could practice with an assortment of things so she had an idea what she liked to fight with. What also helped was Blackberry's words of encouragement to the small warrior. She had a long way to go before she would be good. And even if she decided that fighting wasn't for her, Kathryn wanted her to have that option. Even if not to go into the practice, just so she could defend herself should that need ever arrive.

But the small child listened well, and followed Kathryn's steps to the best of her abilities. When Kathryn accepted the return of the weapon she smiled at the young woman with pride in her eyes. "You're doing wonderful. You're already handling it better than I handled my first weapon. Good job Lizbeth." Kathryn spoke in a reassuring gesture before calmly taking the hammer back. Amateur? Yes. But she had some potential if she wanted to put into it. Plus, she looked like she was having a grand ol' time. How could Kathryn take that away from her? The answer? Kathryn was going to get more weapons up to par for the small child to practice with. To say she was excited was an understatement. But she had to prepare herself for the fact that this may not be what Lizbeth wanted to do in life. Even as a side hobby or backup skill. But this little moment? Was something special to her. And that meant the world to Kathryn. The tall woman turned to Blackberry to reply to his comment towards Lizbeth. "She has a real natural knack for it. As long as she stays smart about it yeah?" Kathryn said giving Lizbeth a warm, but stern look. Attempting to give the message, of don't do anything too stupid. But, Kathryn also wanted to have fun.

Kathryn found it interesting learning about Family Kosara had other than her sisters, who seemed in many ways like coworkers more than sisters, and her Grandpa Horny. Granted, Kathryn had heard of brothers in arms and how close those people got. Maybe Kosara had a relationship like that with her sisters? She didn't understand it all too much. But was this like a grandpa grandpa? Like one related to her by blood? She wasn't sure she heard Kosara mention anything of that nature before... The tail on the other hand? Sounded about right for Kosara. She had a lot of skills, but the lack of a tail seemed to be her own mistakes trying something challenging without the prior know how. Thankfully she recovered. Just missing a single appendage.

On their way out, Kathryn made sure to wave at the Mosswater's and wish them well on their trip to town. She was sure things would be jarring for a while without the constable, and now with the Sheriff taking over his roll for the time being. But as far as she could tell, things were begining to improve for the small town despite the recent chaos. Not only from wererats, but now from giant bugs too? What a strange world indeed. Kathryn kept pace with the wagons with a brisk walk. Wanting to be prepared in case there was another ambush. But thankfully that seemed unlikely. Though the talks of soldiers and queens made Kathryn uneasy. There could easily be more, and these ones were being far more aggressive than expected of them. She wondered if they would see more before long. If they did, she hoped it was on favorable terms again. Open ground and the chance to unleash a hell of a punishment early into the fight.

Kathryn listened on as Cecily explained that they were approaching Southmoor, the last town before the vineyard. Sure, Kathryn had ton a fair bit of spending. But there were a few things she was on the fence about for the last few weeks that she had been holding out on. But with the assurance that things would be taken care of materially for the next few months, she figured that she could afford to chance a few on the fence items. Especially clothes. "Hey uh, I am gonna go see if I can find a couple things before we get going. I won't be too long. Just a couple clothing items mostly yeah?" She ran off soon afterwards. Dumping her pack and much of her gear into the wagon with the giant bug bits to free up her person a bit. She still kept much of her weapons on her belt, though she didn't expect to need them.

V definitely made a grand entrance herself. Summoning a rather grand magical... glass looking horse. It was a sight that Kathryn had not expected to see, but a sight that she found herself rather entrenched with. A beast that normally could be seen as a common every day endurance, now summoned and formed with magic well beyond Kathryn's own understanding and ability. Kathryn took note of the crowd gathering, and wondered if they would react in awe as much as she did. As a whole, they didn't seem particularly upset, so she assumed all was good. Kathryn would have to ask V how she did such a trick, and if it was possible for someone like Kathryn to learn such a trick. The tall woman knew a couple tricks and abilities, but as a whole her abilities were limited to physical might, and old runic magic. Once Kathryn mastered her own abilities, she wanted to go back and learn more arcane or... some other types of magic. "It sure is a sight yeah." Kathryn spoke up, replying to V, but staring at the horse for a moment. But she had tasks she wanted to get done today. And if there was to be another bug attack today, she wanted it to be while they still had daylight. So she would get moving for now, but soon, someday soon, Kathryn would ask her bardy friend how such magic is learned.

The first person to buy clothes from was pretty easy. She decided to buy some simple gambeson material to pad up her sleeping bag. She had been struggling with sleep a bit due to her own fears, and she was hoping armoring up her bag a bit would help with that. She wasn't totally sure it would, but worst case, it could also make the thing far more comfortable. Simple, spend money, get product, move on. The next vendor was a little trickier. This time Kathryn was going for more strait forward clothes, but found herself looking at a cute shirt she thought she would look nice in. Not really something Kathryn was always concerned with, but she found herself wanting from time to time to be a prettier version of herself. But she decided against it for now. She had a dress packed away into her kit. And assuming she still fit it she had no intentions of replacing it. Plus, there's no way this dress would fit. Kathryn then grabbed a set of traveler's clothes folded off to the side that surprisingly looked like they may fit her. She wondered if there was someone else in town who regularly bought clothes in her size, or she was just somehow barely in a one size fits most range. "What's a young lady like you need clothes like that for?" Kathryn brought the clothes to the elderly woman who likely made them, and then quickly grabbed a simple, yet more common and comfortable looking set of clothes also about her size. "Just want to be prepared for the coming winter yeah? Fire wood work and something comfortable to wear in the night." Kathryn said with a smile. The woman, didn't return it in kind. But easily enough took Kathryn's money, and let Kathryn leave without another word.

Kathryn found the whole shopping experience odd, but not hostile. Kathryn figured she probably confused the woman at some point and she was trying to keep a calm and controlled expression around her. Or, she was old, had seen it all, and wasn't phased by anything or anyone. Or maybe something else that Kathryn couldn't even begin to guess. The world may never know. Kathryn did however catch up to the wagons rather quickly, dropping off her new wares with her pack with her own giddy expression on her face. The vineyard was going to be the closest Kathryn has had to a vacation in her life. And shy of some easy guard work her and Ser Lucas picked up, her most relaxing time since she left home. She wanted nothing to go wrong with it.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: Location: Avonshire Grazing Field Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kosara was rather insistent that she was not infact the cause of the fear the beast had felt. She however didn't know what else it could be. Maybe Kosara scared it and she didn't realize it? Or maybe there was more going on then Kathryn knew for sure. Fog of war got strange like that. But she would keep her attention about her, making sure nothing would try to sneak up on them. She didn't feel like passing out, so she figured she had another good fight or two in her before she went down. But what in the nine hells would scare such a creature? Then she paused, realizing she probably did scare the living hells out of the beast she fought. But as far as she knew, she was the only person from Arconaple here. And if more people were here, the chances of someone who knew old runic magic being present were rather slim as they were uncommon abilities even from home. Though, she supposed people from outside of Arconaple could learn these abilities... The old clans traveled a lot. Well... raided a lot. And in Arconaple's prime, they'd send their legions off to war to far off lands. Some would settle, other would return home and open up trade routes. And then there were the goblins... The ones who had the books with the runes. Thankfully they either didn't know enough old tongue to learn it, or no one had taught them the basics and foundational work of old runic magic. The other bits were rather useless without it. If Kathryn hadn't learned most the basics before she fled home, the runes would likely be useless to her unless she found a way to teach herself the basics of runic magic and the old tongue needed to follow it.

Kathryn chuckled remembering how optimistic and excited she used to get when she wanted to learn something. Seeing Lizbeth light up despite her struggles the last week or so was amazing. "Well, the others are far better at arcane magic and most other types of magic. But I am sure we can find a teacher for you. If you ever have interest in runic magic, you'll never have to worry about reaching the top shelf ever again!" Kathryn said the last line with a jesting tone. Runic magic was hard to grasp its foundation, but once that was down the rest kind of set into place. But most people were far more interested in arcane magic. A type of magic Kathryn had no skill for. "But we got some smart people here who I am sure can absolutely spare you some time to teach you a few tricks." And who knew? Maybe Kathryn would pick up a trick or two? She had no knack for spell casting, but that was the appeal of runic magic. An alternate form of magic even those who aren't proficient with magic can learn over time. Though far more limited in use, and demanding far more physical effort then most forms of magic.

Meat harvesting went well as a whole. Kosara was getting help from Mr. Mosswater on how to handle the meat and bug bits far better then they were. Likely a more specialized knowledge. And from what he explained it seemed the locals were rather familiar with these beasts. But he seemed to concur, them being here was rather unusual. But they were a smaller kind. Youths maybe? A sub breed? Kathryn wasn't sure. Maybe just under developed from being cast away from ideal hunting grounds? She wasn't sure. She did however take notes from the halfing on how to dress the creature. "Well, do let us know how we can help. I don't know a ton on the topic of making sausage but I can make my way around a kitchen." Kathryn said with the confidence of someone who could handle a high class restaurant single handedly, while in reality she would probably need assistance in a simple household kitchen. But she was a great helper in a kitchen, even if her own skill wouldn't let her do a ton on her own. At least.. she thought so. Kathryn would try to help Barbal however she could, but much of it was probably being used as manual labor. Loading up bits of the bugs into the wagons for everyone and carrying it about as needed.

Now though, Kathryn's favorite part of most days, drinking time. As Kathryn got her bottle from Lizbeth she smiled warmly when she spoke. "Thanks a bunch. It should help a ton." Kathryn said thankful to have someone so ready to help about. Kathryn's smile brightened when Lizbeth asked to wield the hammer. Kathryn figured the height of her skill would be when someone reached out to her for lessons. To teach them in skills that she was an expert in. In this moment, Kathryn felt she was finally honing in on her own skills! "Absolutely Lizbeth. Just a second to clean up here yeah? Won't take but a bit." Kathryn popped open the bottle, downing nearly half of it before pouring some of it onto her tunic. Then taking a quick moment to dab and pat out some of the stains. She would have to clean it more thoroughly later, but this should make it far easier. Though, she may need to patch some of it as well. Once the cleaning was done, Kathryn took the remaining watered down wine and downed it as if it were just any other obstacle in her path that could be defeated just by forcing her way through it.

"Alright darling. Let's step off to the side here so we don't hit anyone in our excitement yeah?" Kathryn was struggling to hide how giddy she was. As a noble, having someone offering their child as a ward was a great sign of respect. As a knight someone who wanted to learn your skills meant they thought highly of your ability, and simply Kathryn being an older sibling to many others, the chance to help guide and nurture young Lizbeth was just something exciting to her. She wanted to help this small child be the best she could be! And if she didn't end up becoming a warrior like herself, Kathryn wanted to give her a fair chance to see if it was something she wanted to get into before deciding.

Kathryn walked Lizbeth south bound in the field trying to make sure if the little Lizbeth lost control she wouldn't hit anyone or anything of value. "Alrighty, I am going to give you a couple instructions that I need you to follow to the letter. Otherwise we won't be able to do this again yeah? This is a weapon after all. Very good at killing things. This one in particular. We don't want to mess up." Kathryn paused her serious tone for a moment and leaned in with a smile on her face. "That doesn't mean we can't have a bit of fun." Kathryn whispered like an excited teenager sneaking out of her parents place to go out and do something her parents would probably not approve of.

Kathryn stood up strait, and pulled the hammer off her belt, holding it in both hands with tight grips. "I want ya to use both hand. It'll be easier to control, and we can practice one handed if you get this down. I want the hand you are dominant with closer to the head. It'll make it easier to control. And your other hand will be used as a pivot so it'll be easier to build up momentum with it yeah?" Kathryn stepped back from Lizbeth and did a couple mock swings with a right handed dominant position, and showed off a left handed dominant position as well. "I'm ambidextrous so I can do both comfortable. But most people aren't. So if you need help figuring out which is better let me know. For some people some tasks are easier with one hand, but other tasks are harder with that hand." Kathryn said hefting the hammer. "I want you to practice the motions first before you put some strength into it. Otherwise you may send yourself into the dirt on your first swing." Kathryn showed a couple twist and swing motions Lizbeth could practice with to get familiar with how the hammer felt when moving. "After you get comfortable with how the hammer moves, we can move on to the more fun stuff." Kathryn said with a smile on her face.

Then as if she were a parade dancer, she twirled the hammer about until the head was pointed towards the crook of her elbow, and the shaft was pointed towards Lizbeth. Kathryn then out stretched her arm so the grip would be easy to reach. "Keep it simple. Get comfortable with the weight. And get the okay from me before we start wailing with it yeah? And keep some distance from everyone. At least ten feet yeah? Otherwise, have fun darling." Kathryn said warmly as she passed the weapon off to the small child. Though, Kathryn was maybe half her age when she first handled a weapon. A metal training sword that she found herself getting hit with more then hitting anything with. The hammer wasn't a training weapon, but Lizbeth had some years of life experience over a young Kathryn. And Kathryn had a trick or two up her sleep should Lizbeth slip up.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: Giant's Might, bug goop Location: Avonshire Grazing Field Action: Harvesting (Survival), Nature Check, Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Thankfully, things seemed to have calmed down. No more monsters, no more evil dirt creatures or rats of constables. Apart of Kathryn was glad it turned out to not be the former guard. But apart of her kind of hoped so she could tie up that loose end once and for all. But maybe the lost men were gone for good, fleeing to live lives away from this place. She hoped they would still pay for their crimes in some way, but she was unsure how that would happen now. Kathryn was ready to take this win though. As Barbal and Tarace cheered Kathryn hung her hammer from her belt, and the shield across her back, and gave a noble of a bow as she could. One leg ahead of the other, toes on both feet pointed forward, and a gentle lean forward with her head as her arms present openly outwards. "Glad you enjoyed today's festives." Kathryn spoke up in a gleeful yet proud tone. Once she stood up strait she realized how silly the jester must have looked while she was still in full armor head to toe doing a traditionally more feminine bow. But she just hoped that the locals either didn't know or didn't care on the matter. Kathryn's position in noble hierarchy is difficult at best, non existent at worst.

Kathryn smile and chuckled as Lizbeth seemed to have just had the time of her life in this potentially near death experience. Had the party not been here ready to deal with a problem, the whole situation could have gone so much worse... But this little one was about as happy as could be! Her aunt seemed to be catching up rather quickly to the notion as well. They were making the most of the situation for sure. "Can't say I can help ya much with the singing and monster ridin', but if ya ever wanna learn how to swing a weapon let me know yeah? I'm sure we can work something out in a way that wont be too upsetting to your aunt." Kathryn offered to little Lizbeth. Who likely do to current circumstances, seemed really, really small. Kathryn also wanted to leave enough room for an out from Cecily, or at least maybe just prop training with wooden weapons. It wasn't uncommon for the youth of Arconaple to learn to fight. Either because homes were the regular targets for raids, were common places to raise militias, or that particular family kept close ties to the local noble family as men at arms. It wasn't too uncommon for households to maintain a soldiering trade like how some households would maintain baking or blacksmithing trades. Kathryn due to her own circumstances, and the fact that if things had gone to plan she would likely live out on the frontiers, she was already pretty familiar with a weapon by the age of nine. Plus, with how much the L'Rose family has been through in recent weeks, it seemed the need to protect themselves was becoming ever more clear.

Then, it happened. AT first Kathryn felt dizzy, then nauseous as if suffering from debilitating food poisoning, then her world began to spin. As she fought for balance, she returned to normal height in a matter of maybe five to six seconds. For Kathryn, it felt like an agonizing several minutes. But soon, she was standing at her normal height of 6'10", and this time, did not puke and risk drowning herself in her helmet. "mm.... mm'kay..." She muttered as her vision focused, the feeling of almost puking faded, and up returned from its recently acquired sideways position. But she remained on her feet. She remained standing. She, had won and gained control over her new abilities. She knew she had a long way to go to master them. But she now had reliable control over the abilities of her bloodline! "WOO HOO!" She exclaimed fists in the air as she screamed. Quickly she undid the helm on her head attaching it to the other end of her belt. "Oh my gods did you all see that!? I didn't pass out or puke that time! Holy shit!" This was, about the best news she could possibly receive that day. Apart of her wondered if she could do it again?! And if she could figure out how to properly undo it?! OR! What if she could master other abilities?! No no... she couldn't get ahead of herself. She barely has a grasp on the abilities she was practicing now, and no tutor outside of the books V found to learn from. She couldn't risk getting ahead of herself.

Kosara brought up the idea of harvesting the Ankheg for food and other such things. But Kathryn wasn't sure of the best uses much either. If Kosara could make use of it, and V much the same, she figured she should probably do the same. Firstly being she was running low on her own rations... And didn't want to be some leech over the winter. Secondly, she wanted to help her fellow party members as best she could! Plus, she wasn't half bad at the deed. Taking the dagger hanging out on the side of her boot she stepped towards the beast who's chest cavity was rapidly turned into a tunnel and found a chink in the chitin plates she could begin from. Careful to remove the pieces of plate as best as she could to keep it in usable pieces. What the pieces would be used for she wasn't too sure, but they would have time over the winter to figure that out. The task took longer than she hoped. And was unfortunately messy. Thankfully, the air was calm and cool. She'd pack up her collections and pack them into the mule's wagon. From there! Things should be all set. "Kosara, the way you went after that thing I would be surprised if it wasn't you it was frightened of. I would be if you climbed up on me like that." Kathryn joked as the cleanup work was done. But she did have to admit, she did notice some odd behaviors. If Kosara didn't scare the living daylights out of the beast, then what did? Another thing... what were the bugs doing so far north? And so active at that. Things seemed way, way too cold to be comfortable for such beasts. She wondered if something drew them here, or something chased them off here. Maybe they were territorial with their own kind?

Kathryn about asked for the offer on healing, but decided to hold off on it for now. She took a beating but nothing severe. Her armor and tunic? They would need a cleaning, and maybe some patch work should time allow. It also seemed V was just as confused about the giant beast, seemingly jumping to the same conclusion that Kathryn did about their tiefling friend scaring the living color out of it. At least she wasn't alone in that conclusion. Though, V seemed to not have the luck she wanted in trying to get whatever she wanted from the carcass of the beast.

Blackberry didn't seem to be as into the idea of harvesting the bugs. Kathryn found that surprising, but suppose to everyone their own. The party had to eat, and even though they were paid well for the job, Kathryn had spent much of her earnings on things such as tools, parts, and the matching friendship rings for herself and Kosara. She still had some money left for sure, but she didn't want to spend it all on rations before she had the chance to make some decent money. "I think you're right. If there were they would have surely come out yeah?" Granted, one panicked and tried to run away. Another when it couldn't run away filled the battlefield with acid. So maybe if there was another one it had the sense to get the fuck out of Avonshire while its new foes were distracted killing its pack. Were the bugs that smart though? She could not be too sure. "Oh! I know this one. Kinda... Ankhegs!" Kathryn spoke up when Blackberry inquired about such monsters. "They're... not normally in areas like this when it gets cold. So its weird to see them here..." She trailed off. Turning to the two farmers she piped up. "Have you seen anything like this before? Maybe when they were smaller? Or maybe a neighboring town mentioning something?" She asked optimistically. "Also uh... with the loss of your sheep, do you want some of the Ankheg meat? Kosara seems to think its edible if it'll help with your loses?" Kathryn offered trying to help improve their situation as best as she could.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: Giant's Might Location: Avonshire Grazing Field K12 Action: Bug Murder Part II Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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Kosara was a rather vicious little gremlin on top of the bug, and Kathryn hoped that her friend would be able to calm herself down once the fighting was over. She did find it amusing watching Kosara climb up on the big. And she pitied the poor creature who was likely facing off against its last fleeting moments. On the other hand, Kathryn would play a big part in that. She got a brief glimpes at the creature the others were fighting, saw what was happening to it, and decided the creature who had it's chest inverted had it easy and likely had the best death of all three of the bugs at present. She had no idea what had happened to the creature for sure, but she figured it had to be Victoria or Blackberry. Knowing what she did on the duo she leaned towards Victoria. Unless Lizbeth or Cecily had some sort of magic that could cause... that.

The bug that She and Kosara were fighting looked to be suffering its own fate pretty poorly too. Kathryn had no idea what the little tiefling did to the creature, but it seemed to want nothing to do with her. Granted, in Kosara's current state if the small tiefling was trying to get her too Kathryn may also attempt to dig her way under ground to get away from the small little menace. Blackberry soon came in to assist Kosara and herself with defeating the last bug. Dishing out several lethal looking blow with his sword and person, Kathryn was glad to not be on the receiving end of that mess. To Kathryn's surprise, the beast was still willing to keep fighting, or at least refused to die as it tried to desperately crawl away. A quick thought as Kathryn braced her hammer to her shield like a spear Kathryn figured it was likely the latter.

Kathryn thrust forward with her hammer and body weight as sending the head of the hammer into the creature's shoulder, or equivalent of, and sent it awkwardly towards the ground. Careful to avoid Kosara in the potentially lethal blow. As the creature attempted to recover itself Kathryn brought the hammer low, under the bug's neck, and hooked it lifting it rapidly upwards. Not a graceful connection, but she lifted up with a single fluid motion ripping the bug's head off, yet still attached to it a section of back like a spine as bits of the bug are removed with the head out the back. A single swift motion as if the half giant were swinging a pick axe and going to split a giant boulder. The head, still attached to some of the bug would find itself flying off towards the bug she faced, and what was left of the creature would collapse into the the borrow it attempted to dig, though not fast enough it seems. The hammer in Kathryn's hands never finished the motion, stopping just a few feet off the ground after the bug's head and bits had been launched.

Standing up strait, she looked over the battlefield. Much of it now covered in guts, acid, and thankfully not too much non bug blood. Looking at herself, she found a fair amount of acid, bug goo, and chitin across her person. "Well, that wasn't too bad." Kathryn chuckled as a piece of chitin slid off her helmet and onto the ground. She turned her attention back towards the non combatants and spoke up with a cheerful tone. "I think we got them! We should be good. But we can go make sure they're dead first to be safe." Kathryn had no idea how to make sure giant bugs were dead, but she figured it couldn't be too hard. Her next problem though. How did she get... un-big.

@Sigil Let Victoria do her thing!

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

Had some free time, made a backup.

Eddy Glynfield

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Eddie Glynfield

Wood Elf, Ranger (Subclass Optional), Level 05

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STR: 10 (+0) DEX: 20 (+5) CON: 14 (+2) INT: 10 (+0) WIS: 16 (+3) CHA: 12 (+1)

HP MAX: 44 Armor Class: 16 Movement: 35 ft Spell/Save DC: 14

Alignment: LG Defenses: N/A

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Full Character Sheet

Description

Eddie Glynfield at a first glance seems like little more than the neighborhood friendly old man. An old war vet who likes to share his over the top adventurous stories from his more youthful years, and always has a positive spin on every one of his stories. Making them just fun and joyous tales for all who would be willing to listen. Though no where near the physical peak he was in his golden years, he is still fit enough he can run about reliably, and and is always standing proud and tall! Though this impression is easily hidden by his overall relaxed demeanor, and his greying hair. Including a hefty over trimmed beard that in his old military days, would have gotten him chewed out for being unkempt. Eddie Glynfield gives the appearance of a half elf who is pushing the very end of their life span, maybe 200 years, while pushing around 800 years. And though he acts younger than he is, the end of a long day has his body begging him to finally sit and sleep. He finds himself standing a rather average height of 5'10", but has the self confidence of a man who was 10 feet tall.

Much of his attire nowadays is light, common clothes, a comfortable fishing hat to keep the sun out of his eyes, and comfortable boots. He is dressed far more for comfort than anything else, though under his tunic and other attire is an old, worn, yet well maintained set of studded leather. Something he figured would provide him with all the protection he would need for anything major, while being light enough to not wear him down after a could days travel. Not that he could afford to wear anything much fancier than that. Every scrap of clothing he wears has an air of being well used, while being well maintained. His clothes show patches, but the seams are well stitched. Some clothes are faded, but show no wrinkles. Though dirt may be present, it is soon cleaned off. Not an ounce of dirt older than a couple days shy of some rather stubborn stains that refused to come out. But even those would begin to fade with effort, and much of his attire is colored in a forest green, brown, or black to help negate the harm such stains could cause.

Gone are the weapons of war Eddie used to carry. Sold off, or passed down to younger relatives who needed them more. Armed with a well made bow, specifically made to help handle is failing strength. On his side, well made blades to defend himself in close quarters, armed much like his early days. A short sword that had been stored away for many centuries, and a bill hook looking scimitar to fill defend the old adventurer should someone come in close.

Personality

Eddie Glynfield is a cheery old man who has a quip or story for every possible scenario! Ranging from battle hardened stories of adventure, to whimsical stories that are so over the top, that chances are they are made up for entertainment value. He’s a man who is fascinated bu every small marvel, and a man who treats even the smallest victories as a job well done.

In his many years he’s developed a guilt of sorts. He finds himself wishing he had done more with his life. The peak of his life having been spent paving the way for others to be their best selves. While time would continue on, forgetting him as the years turned into decades, and into centuries. And though he still wants to help others be their best selves, and help bring just a bit more good in the world, he wants to pave the way for his own adventures. And becoming the hero of his own story.

Eddie Glynfield is also a man who has seen the world and the creatures who live in it at their worst. Pillaging, murdering, possession, and worse. War, famine, pestilence, and more. And that dark weighs on him and every choice he makes. But with that, he has seen so much good. People risking their lives to save strangers and loved ones. People standing up to their own, knowing the actions they take are wrong. People helping each other when times are tough, and making each hard day just a little easier until things can get better. And it is that inspiration that drives Eddie to see the light even in darkness, and to see hope for things to always get better.

Backstory

Eddie Glynfield grew up on a rather poor farm stead under some lord who would come to pass long before Eddie himself would. His education was minimal, but far from low quality. But he struggled with years to gain mastery of his natural skills unlike most wood elves that could be found within his region.Being a wood elf who's family lived under a human lord and within an area ripe with humans though, he found himself torn between two worlds. The natural world of his heritage and the temptation to return to it, and the industrial world of the humans who his family lived under. When the lord of his lands had passed, when Eddie was not even 40 yet, he had decided that he wanted to live his life, and get as much out of it as he could before death came knocking on his door as well. So grabbing the cheapest longbow he could get his hands on, a fist full of arrows, and a pure determination to face the world, and make a name for himself! Where he figured after serving as an imperial archer for some years, he would have a better idea of what his goals and plans would be. That is... except for the fact he didn't leave after just a few years.

Eddie had seen his first real battle not long after. And despite the chaos and absolute savagery that came up around him, he found he was rather good at this sort of life style. And still unsure what to do with his life, he found his couple years, turning into a couple decades. He found his skills not only useful on the battlefield, but in camp and campaign life as well. Many skills he had learned from his parents, and other wood elves who passed by had come in handy as his responsibilities grew, and the men around him grew to trust and respect him. Over time, his responsibilities would grow, and he would rise in ranks. Not necessarily due to any outstanding skills or abilities, but through a slow grind of experience and trust built with the people around him. In several cases, an officer would join his unit, serve until they retired, and soon then died of old age, where Eddie would still be a functioning member of said unit. That was a challenge that took Eddie a long time to get used too. Most of the men he served with were humans, halflings, or half elves. Very rarely would he see another elf with him, and if one did come up, many found themselves retiring within a few years like their human counterparts.

He would soon take on command roles, leading whole units of men into battle. But this part of his career struggled more than any of it. He found himself struggling with the loss of his own men, and at more than just over 375 years old, he had seen enough war for several lifetimes. And he decided, he was done with it all. Though when he attempted to retire himself from the King's Royal archers, he was given a new direction. And offer that rung true with his goals when he first set out. A purpose in life, and a chance to live it to the fullest! "The king's boy has decided stubbornly that he is wanting to become an adventurer. And his majesty has tasked me with finding a dozen or so men to make sure his heir isn't stabbed by some goblin while dicking off, or maimed so badly he won't be able to take the throne when this phase ends." There was some more with it, but Eddie had been sold the moment he heard Adventurer.

The next few centuries were full of so many tales of adventure, mischief, and chaos, that when Eddie Glynfield tries to retell it, it sounds like he is making it up on the spot. And in some cases, he has taken artistic liberties in telling his stories. The king's boy would only go adventuring for about 8 years or so. But several other high lords also liked the idea of their amateurish heirs not getting shot by some random bandit while they "Adventured" to be rather appealing. So Eddie and several others would find themselves being reoccurring body guards for many of this lords, and in some cases ladies, who wanted to go out and face the world head on. Much like he did some centuries prior. Most wouldn't amount to much, and protecting them was closer to babysitting than anything else. Others, held interest and would take his advice with serious consideration, and he would even attempt to train some of them up so they could actually fight for themselves! And a few, would become ones who would make names for themselves that would live on in history forever. Dragon slayers, lich killers, grand warlords, and one cheeky mage who was determined to do some creepy stuff with a bunch of mushrooms. And Eddie was there for all of it! About 50 feet behind said adventurers. Picking off goblins, kobolds, cultists, archers, and one giant spore monster. Keeping the way clear so that these grand adventurers didn't need to exert themselves on such... meaningless tasks.

Then it seemed one day, that the need for his services were not needed anymore. A time of peace when for so long, something always needed to be done. There wasn't a war to send him off too, there were no grand adventurers to protect so they could save the day, and few optimistic lordlings who wanted to take on the world. Shy of a few who needed more babysitting than anything else, that line of work had seemed to have closed for Eddie. And he wasn't even 550 yet. Many nobles would still keep him around. Sometimes he would serve as an honor guard of sorts, sometimes he was just present because many of the now current lords were those same adventurers he had helped rise to glory, and they wanted to thank him for his work. He would go to balls, make friends, spend some quality time with people that when he was younger, wouldn't have given him a second glance. But the life of parties, balls, and guard duty, just wasn't for Eddie. But yet, during one of these events, he could meet a lovely half elf woman, and they would decide to spend the rest of their lives together.

Between a life savings of a rather extensive career, a couple land grants, and just being rather lucky, Eddie Glynfield with the help of his new wife would get a rather large plot of land for someone of rather low birth, and build it up to be a home. First building their home, a couple barns, a few other smaller homes that would soon become homes for his kids and their families, a few travelers who needed to catch a lucky break, and an assortment of cattle and fields for them all to maintain. And for the first time, he felt like he was living a life worth living. And he enjoyed every aspect of it. If it could go on forever, he would do everything in his power to do so. But by the time Eddie had turned 730, his wife would pass peacefully in her sleep. His kids would have moved on with their lives. Some following in his footsteps, some deciding to follow their heritage and learn what it was like to be a woodelf. Much of his wartime memorabilia would be sold, or passed off to his children who he decided needed it more. But by the age of 760, he decided this life he found himself in was not enough anymore. He would take time and care to make sure things would work smoothly without him, and set out on horseback to make his own story, instead of standing in the backdrop of someone else's.

Bestiary

Oliver in Eddie's current ride of choice. A loyal horse that Eddie has taken care of since birth. A full blooded warhorse brown and black warhorse eager to join his master on all of the exciting new adventures. Raised from stock Eddie has assisted in raising for generations in his off time. Though much of it was left to other family members.

Extras

Likes

• Adventuring
• Partying
• Folk and Tavern music
• Story Telling
• Singing
• A really good nap.

Dislikes

• Marching and formal ceremonies
• Baby sitting
• Orcs
• Goblins
• Turnips

Hobbies

• Horse raising
• Singing/Music

"Did you ever hear of the battle against the great Dragon Khalahan? I was there ya know. That painting with Prince Triston standing victorious over the dragon? I'm in it. That stick figure looking fellow over there in the background by his shin. Right next to Frank there holding his household colors. That's me!"

"Look me lads, there's not a problem that can't be solved with some patience and careful skill. You know, except maybe goblins. Goblins you should just wipe out the first chance you get yeah?"

"Did I ever tell you about the time I [Insert completely over the top story with comically impossible details here]"

Many of the stories Eddie shares are told in such a way that they could be read from a fantasy book. And explained in ways that give the impression of being totally fictitious. Though most of his stories hold some semblance of truth to them, a few have been changed for artistic liberties, and for making the story more "Interesting" or "Dramatic" or "More appropriate for younger ears." In his old age though, it can sometimes be unclear how true the stories are, or if apart of Eddie has begun to go senile.

Eddie's role in a party would primarily to be a skirmisher, with several out of combat tracking skills, and some casting capabilities for battlefield control or other utilities.

Feats: Elven accuracy

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Kathryn Pyke Human, Fighter (Rune Knight), Level 05 HP: 39 / 49 Armor Class: 19 Conditions: Giant's Might Location: Avonshire Grazing Field H12--> K12 Action: Multi Attack Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A

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The battle continued on with semi reliable success. The creature infront of Kathryn burned and struggled against the fiery chains. Kathryn was beginning to think that this battle wouldn't be nearly as difficult as she thought. Kosara was off to the side, blasting and raging like a wild animal with magical eldritch magical fireballs against her own creature. They seemed to hold little effect. Kathryn couldn't be sure if it was because of dumb luck, or the creatures were somehow resistant, but the beast seemed to shrug off the attack for the time being. She looked ready to fight the thing hand to hand, and likely try to take a bite out of it. Kathryn wasn't so sure that the small tiefling woman could, but in her current state she seemed like she would try. She had been very... different since the battle with Cavendish. And after his Patron had called out to them all. She was concerned for her friend, and worried apart of her was lost that would never heal. She was beginning to think that maybe this was now the only way she could express her trauma. Kathryn just hoped it wouldn't completely take over her.

Kathryn however, was deep enough in thought that she had noticed that the giant bug she was facing had at least one more trick up it's sleeve. A trick she saw just a bit too late, as her person soon became assaulted with an acidic force that would burn even through her steel armor. "Son of a bitch mother Cunt Fucker!" Kathryn exclaimed in far less than polite terms. As she turned to shield herself from the worst of it, she saw that V had also been hit. This was starting to be a reoccurring theme. Kathryn would attempt to shield her party, she would then attempt to defeat her enemies quickly to end things as soon as possible, and V would take a hit meant for Kathryn. Gods be damned it's like the universe wanted V to take a brutal end and just saw Kathryn as a simple ditch to be avoided or run over in it's place. On a back thought, she realized she would also have to now clean her new tunic and new armor tonight to prevent the corrosion from the acid from ruining the armor int he long run. Her last set had already struggled due to its over extended service life. Already showing extreme signs of wear, tear, and rust. Kathryn being new to maintaining such gear she struggled to keep up with the nearly ruined set of armor. her own fear as well getting in the way of things. Stabbed in the back a few too many times, stabbed in the front a couple times, and trust issues she wanted desperately to work past. Tonight she would be apologizing to V for letting her get struck so brutally again, and she'd likely have to spend much of the evening without her armor so she had time to clean it up. V was the priority though. She would have to find a way to make it up to the poor bard.

V still seemed determined to not let the creature slow her down. Though Kathryn had a solid understanding of Elvish, the magical tune that came from the bard made Kathryn feel... unwell. Not sick, but as if there was a sinking feeling inside of her that could not be avoided. Thankfully, said magic was not directed at her. But she wondered what other tricks the small woman had hidden up her sleeves. Things that definitely gave Kathryn the chills. She'd pity the creature who was targeted by it if they weren't actively trying to kill them. The sharp turn in V's voice confirmed that Kathryn was very glad to not be on the receiving end.

Whatever Kosara was doing to the beast, it seemed to be working. Maybe too well. Like the one Kathryn fought, it was fighting like a cornered animal. Trying to do whatever it could to get away. Unfortunately for it, and the one Kathryn was battling, that would not be allowed. The creature retaliated and struck Kosara hard enough to send her back. Punishment that Could be lethal to some. Thankfully, not Kosara. She would need help, looking back to Blackberry, he held some comparable concerns. Now it was time to finish things. Thankfully the dragonborn was holding up going toe to toe well with his bug. With V's support the two had it down for sure. "Aye, fast. Can do!" And that is what she did. It helped that the bug she faced had already taken a beating, but while it struggled Kathryn looked for a window of opportunity to retaliate at the creature for its cheeky acidic attack.

Kathryn bounced back and forth on both feet as she closed the distance. As she did so attempting to feign the restricted creature, she dropped low and swung the giant hammer upwards with enough force it dug a small trench into the field bringing dirt and stone upwards as the weapon grazed the ground, and impacted with the creatures chest. A sickening crunch as the hammer inserted itself past the chitin like plates, the fiery chains holding the creature in place as Kathryn's force continued upwards. Soon creating a hole in the creatures back where chitin, guts, and the creatures blood exploded out. And with what appeared to be little resistance, Kathryn yanked the hammer out of the monster flicking off the gore from her weapon and in the same motion, turned her person to let the momentum of the hammer and body guide her person and destructive force into the bug that struck her friend. Bringing it down with enough force to cause another sickening crunch. Though not as destructive as the blow on the last one, Kathryn hoped that it was on its last legs.

@rivaan