Day Three of the Odinsleep (The Plains of Vígríðr) Part Three

DAY ONE (Day Three of the Odinsleep), 9:30 am

Shadow launches himself into the air, racing to a height even with the face of the towering Jotun.  His rigid metallic fingers struggle to perform the precise motions required for the spell and the arcane power is slow to respond.  The dark elf shouts, “Πυροσβεστική” and points at the massive giant but the fireball fails to detonate.

Raven, still shaking off the blow from the Jotun’s grazing axe, grabs the hilt of the cursed sword, Thorgrim.  His vision instantly goes red as rage floods into his body.  All thoughts of tactics and strategy are swept away by the primal desire to hit, slice, stab, and kill the giant standing before and all around him.  The elf snarls, spitting foam as he dashes in between the Jotun’s feet.  The cold iron blade, enchanted specifically for giant-slaying burns in his right hand as it rips through the giant’s thick boots, slicing into the tendons and ankle bones while Nightwatcher, the nigh-unbreakable adamantite blade rends flesh.  Blood sprays with each swing of the two swords.  Raven is soon drenched in the sticky red fluid.

Drax views the battlefield, noting routes to the nearest enemies and allies.  The troll closing in on Arthur is closest so the assassin chooses it to be his first victim.  The professional killer calls upon the training he received at the monastery where he was raised and whispers the words “تحسين الخفاء” and vanishes from sight.  He creeps silently forward, waiting for the troll to pass him by and then strikes from behind.  Drax flickers into view for just a moment as his blade pierces the troll’s back at the base of the spine.  The monster staggers forward, its legs going weak in the wake of the deadly strike.  The troll’s eyes go wide in panic as it realizes the wound is not healing the way it should and it spins around, looking for the deadly fighter. 

The wounded troll slashes with its claws at the spot where it thinks it saw Drax before the assassin vanishes but his blows are aimed far too high to hit his invisible attacker.  One of the other trolls changes course, veering away from Ra’ziir and his flaming sword and rushes toward the knot of Arthur, Niklas, and Morn.  Drax manages to slash it across its left thigh as it passes him by and the monster stumbles for a moment before righting itself.  The monster manages to make one off-balance swipe at Arthur but the blow is easily turned aside by the paladin’s shield.  The final troll, this one blistered from Ra’ziir’s earlier fireball closes in on Hansuke.  The monk drives a knee into the beast’s belly, blowing the wind from its lungs as it rakes one set of claws down his left forearm.

Grotto, barely holding his own hatred for the despised giants in check, calls upon his god, Hanseath to bless him and his allies in this battle.  The magic pours through the scarred dwarf and washes over those nearest to him, Korbin, Hansuke, and Desmond.

 

The Jotun stomps the ground, shaking the earth and nearly knocking Raven from his feet as it tries to line up a shot against the tiny and nimble elf.  The towering giant turns his axe sideways to cover more area with each swing and brings it down at Raven as if it were swatting a fly that had landed on its table at home.  The only thing that saves Raven from being crushed is the ability to duck beside the low berm of earth and stone but even then, the smashing blade pulverizes rock and flattens the ground with each blow.  As the giant stops for a moment to survey the results of its handiwork, the enraged elf rises once more and roars his battle cry.

Arthur brandishes Lawbringer.  The holy sword flares brilliantly in the presence of the evil trolls and yells “I SMITE THEE IN THE NAME OF MALAZZARR!”  He brings the silvered blade down upon the head of the troll closest to him and there is a blinding flesh as the sanctified silver meets the monster’s corrupted flesh.  The troll is driven to its knees, raising one hand to shield its eyes from the glare of the luminescent glow emanating from the saintly knight.

 

Hansuke explodes into motion.  Knees, fists, and elbows rain down on the troll in a blur.  Bones snap and internal organs burst as the tattooed monk pummels his green-skinned foe.  In moments, a broken heap of twitching muscles and nerves lie at Hansuke’s feet.

 

Desmond raises his bow to fire at the troll battling Hansuke but as it falls, he pivots, instead taking aim at one of the approaching ogres.  The former sergeant snaps off three shots in rapid succession.  The first two strike the nearest ogre high in the shoulder while the third sails off into the distance.  The ogre brushes his hand across the arrows, snapping them off just above their heads and continues to bear down on the group.

Ra’ziir goes into his dance, his feet moving rhythmically across the ground as he shifts his fiery sword, Deathblossom into is right hand.  He whispers the words “Cutis est lapis” in time with the beat of his steps and his flesh transforms, becoming as hard as stone. He lashes out with his blade at the massive ogre standing before him.  The flaming sword tears through the fur hide the ogre wears, leaving a deep slash across the chest.  The bladesinger presses his attack, ducking a swipe of the ogre’s maul to split open the brute’s abdomen.  Entrails spill out and the ogre howls in pain but a pair of quick slashes across its face and throat sending the monster down into the abyss of death, silencing it forever.

Korbin skims the ground, scant inches above the dirt and snatches up a stone in each clawed foot.  He banks toward Ra’ziir, intent on aiding the bladesinger until he sees the troll fall so he angles his flight up toward the Jotun’s face and releases the rock carried by his left foot, sending it on a ballistic path toward the titanic giant’s face.  The stone tumbles end over end as it sail through the air before it strikes the giant squarely in the right eye.  The Jotun howls in surprise and curses aloud, stamping the ground and wiping tears from the orb as they stream down his face.

Morn lashes with his glowing silver whip at the troll struck down by Arthur.  The enchanted lash snaps whistles as it slices through the air and snaps against the pebbled hide of the beast.  Flesh splits open with the first stroke of the eldritch whip and a second strike crosses the first wound, leaving a bleeding “X” in the center of the troll’s chest in its wake.

Cedron raises the horn taken from the Pied Piper outside of Hamelin to his lips and blows.  A thunderous detonation of sound roars out from the horn’s bell in a cone that slams into the ogre closing on him.  The blast shakes the leaves from the brush ahead and batters the small giant.  The ogre’s forward momentum is momentarily halted by the force of the shockwave but it shakes its head and takes begins moving toward the bard once more.  The priest of Malazzarr lets go of the horn and its drops, swinging from its cord as he pulls out his flute and speaks the word “Allegro”.  Two blades slide out from the sides of the instrument and fuse together, forming a sword to face his powerful enemy with.

 

Kysek twists the gem on his ring and disappears from view.  He moves quickly and quietly across the battlefield, angling directly toward the horn-blasted ogre.  The monster passes him and he falls in behind it, raising his blades as he prepares to strike.

 

Niklas raises Blaze and begins launching arrows across the field at that same monster.  The distance is great and while the first shot flies true and pierces the ogre’s thick hide, his second two shots go wide. 

The remaining ogres continue to close in with three of them angling to face off against Hansuke, Grotto, and Desmond, one racing to assist the trolls fighting Drax and his allies, two heading toward Ra’ziir, and the last one rushing toward the Jotun and Raven.

 

= = = = = =

• Inspire Courage (+2 hit/dmg/save vs charm/fear) from Morn: Arthur, Drax, Morn, Niklas (5 rounds remaining)
• Bless (+1 hit/save vs fear) from Grotto: Desmond, Grotto, Hansuke, Korbin (5 minutes, 9 rounds remaining)

• Arthur: 100% health;

• Bubo: 100% health;

• Cedron: 100% health;

• Desmond 100% health;

• Drax: 100% health;

• Grotto: 100% health;

• Hansuke: 94% health;

• Korbin: 100% health;

• Kysek: 100% health; Stoneskin (80 of 80; 89 minutes, 9 rounds remaining)

• Morn: 100% health;

• Niklas: 100% health ;

• Raven: 50% health; Rage (8 rounds remaining)

• Ra’ziir: 100% health; Stoneskin (150  of 150, 169 minutes, 9 rounds remaining)

• Shadow: 100% health; Overland Flight (14 hours, 49 minutes, 9 rounds remaining); Iron Body (DR15/adam, immune to blindness/critical hit/deafness/disease/drowning/electricity/poison/stunning and effects that affect physiology or respiration, Str 21 (+5)/Dex 16 (+3) attack bonus/penalty cancel out, gains +3 damage, ASF 50%, -8ACP, 14 minutes, 0 rounds remaining)

• Spewer: 100 % health;