bloodpaladin88
Unlucky Member
I played in a Pathfinder campaign for almost a year, and for about 9 months we had sessions almost every night. It was my very first campaign and character. We played from level 1 all the way up to level 20. Some people left, but a lot still joined, and at the peak we had 11 active players, averaging on 6-7 a session. From the original party, only three character remained, the others were either new players, or players that retired old characters to play as new ones. Being there from the beginning, my character grew a lot, and it was were I really started roleplaying since we would often stay after session to do some character bonding. My character evolved as much as I did and I eventually gave him a proper backstory that was far better than the small one he originally had, and I went through several builds for him. His name is Ren, and he's a multiclassed Ranger/Druid, whose most formative event was his first encounter with a dragon. A few weeks before, he'd been travelling to a new city when the party met a half-dragon NPC woman who was going to "rob" them of their food. After a bunch of shenanigans, she introduced herself as Asche and joined the party. Then, while resting at the inn after some adventuring, news arrived at the town of a dragon attack, and the party went to fend it off. While flying on top of a Roc that was the party's pet, they got to a smouldering city. Ren, being the party's nature boy and an elf with insane Perception, was the first to hear a child crying coming from a burned down church. Unwilling to leave someone behind, Ren landed the Roc and took the young girl, despite the party warning him that it could be the dragon in disguise. But he wasn't going to risk, he wasn't going to sit idly by when he can rescue someone. While flying back to the city, the girl asked for a potty break and, escorted by Ren, went behind a rock to take care of her business. After a while and with no word from the girl, Ren called out to her and peaked around the rock to check on her, and that is when the dragon struck. She bit into Ren and held him on her jaws, and all that was heard then was Asche saying "Hello, mother...". One of the players actually made a meme about this whole mess:
The rest of the party began their attack and she dropped Ren, who was extremely hurt and bleeding from all the teeth marks. Someone got him up onto the Roc, and it took flight with the dragon in pursuit. While flying, the dragon let out her breath weapon and burned everyone, cauterizing Ren's wounds in the process and leaving him with horrible scars. He passed out because of that, and didn't witness the rest of the fight, but the dragons eventually died and the party found her hoard. Inside were a myriad of magic items, including a magic bow. It was made of ivory with inset gold in a celtic design with a black leather wrapped handle. It also had no string, and if pulled with no arrow nocked, a magical arrow of pure fire would form. This would become Ren's signature weapon, and he would even meet with a elder master archer who would teach him to connect with Ren's weapon through meditation and unlock new powers. Ren learned how to change the element of the bow and could choose from fire, cold, acid, lightning or positive energy. He also learner how to fire a massive arrow of energy that would pierce foes, or to cause a rain of arrows.
Back to the dragon encounter. After that, when they got back to the city which is ruled by an order of knights know as the Dragon Scale Knights, who specialize in hunting dragons, Ren asked any tomes they had about dragons so he could learn how to hunt them, and avoid a situation like the one from earlier. But this wasn't what sparked his hatred for dragons, that would come later. After some more months spent adventuring, the city would come under attack from an undead horde, led by an undead red dragon. While fighting off the siege, they managed to kill the dragon, but Ren was completely useless inn the last attack because he shot a fire arrow, against a red dragon. If you're familiar with D&D and Pathfinder, you're probably facepalming right now. Yes, I had my character shoot a fire arrow at the fire immune dragon. The cherry on top is that I actually took a story feat that has as a prerequisite to get knocked unconscious by a dragon, and then gives me bonuses against dragons. It has an additional completion benefit if I defeated the original dragon that KO'd Ren, but the DM ruled that helping to kill this undead one would count. So in the end, Ren contributed nothing to defeating the undead dragon, meaning no completion benefit for me. However, after the fight was over, fire began raining on the city, and once it stopped, an armored figure crested a hill and we went to confront it. When we arrived it was finishing a ritual, and brought back the undead dragon. Turned out that the figure was a Dread Knight, like a Lich but knight instead of a wizard, and the dragon was its steed. We hadn't defeated the dragon after all, and we would meet them again. And indeed we did later that week. That event is detailed below, but TL; DR, we had our first character death while fighting against the dragon. While everyone was grieving, the DM's like "Well, good news Ren, you completed you story feat". That was the most bittersweet thing ever, and I'll remember that session forever. That was the day when Ren truly began to hate dragons.
This is what he looks like:
Alright, first up we have the backstory proper:
Now the fight that resulted in a PK:
And lastly, one more encounter with said dragon that only reinforced his hatred:
I hope you enjoyed reading. I might post similar things in the future.
The rest of the party began their attack and she dropped Ren, who was extremely hurt and bleeding from all the teeth marks. Someone got him up onto the Roc, and it took flight with the dragon in pursuit. While flying, the dragon let out her breath weapon and burned everyone, cauterizing Ren's wounds in the process and leaving him with horrible scars. He passed out because of that, and didn't witness the rest of the fight, but the dragons eventually died and the party found her hoard. Inside were a myriad of magic items, including a magic bow. It was made of ivory with inset gold in a celtic design with a black leather wrapped handle. It also had no string, and if pulled with no arrow nocked, a magical arrow of pure fire would form. This would become Ren's signature weapon, and he would even meet with a elder master archer who would teach him to connect with Ren's weapon through meditation and unlock new powers. Ren learned how to change the element of the bow and could choose from fire, cold, acid, lightning or positive energy. He also learner how to fire a massive arrow of energy that would pierce foes, or to cause a rain of arrows.
Back to the dragon encounter. After that, when they got back to the city which is ruled by an order of knights know as the Dragon Scale Knights, who specialize in hunting dragons, Ren asked any tomes they had about dragons so he could learn how to hunt them, and avoid a situation like the one from earlier. But this wasn't what sparked his hatred for dragons, that would come later. After some more months spent adventuring, the city would come under attack from an undead horde, led by an undead red dragon. While fighting off the siege, they managed to kill the dragon, but Ren was completely useless inn the last attack because he shot a fire arrow, against a red dragon. If you're familiar with D&D and Pathfinder, you're probably facepalming right now. Yes, I had my character shoot a fire arrow at the fire immune dragon. The cherry on top is that I actually took a story feat that has as a prerequisite to get knocked unconscious by a dragon, and then gives me bonuses against dragons. It has an additional completion benefit if I defeated the original dragon that KO'd Ren, but the DM ruled that helping to kill this undead one would count. So in the end, Ren contributed nothing to defeating the undead dragon, meaning no completion benefit for me. However, after the fight was over, fire began raining on the city, and once it stopped, an armored figure crested a hill and we went to confront it. When we arrived it was finishing a ritual, and brought back the undead dragon. Turned out that the figure was a Dread Knight, like a Lich but knight instead of a wizard, and the dragon was its steed. We hadn't defeated the dragon after all, and we would meet them again. And indeed we did later that week. That event is detailed below, but TL; DR, we had our first character death while fighting against the dragon. While everyone was grieving, the DM's like "Well, good news Ren, you completed you story feat". That was the most bittersweet thing ever, and I'll remember that session forever. That was the day when Ren truly began to hate dragons.
This is what he looks like:
Alright, first up we have the backstory proper:
The town of Nelvalin is known for its animal trainers. Anything you can think of, it was trained there. Nelvalin is most famous for the warhorses it supplies to its kingdom, Driodan. Driodan, in turn, has one of the most formidable heavy cavalries in the world. Few things are scarier than holding against a charge of Driodan Cavaliers. There were also plenty of artisans in town, such as blacksmiths, saddle maker, leather workers, and many others that made gear for use by the trainers
One of the reasons why the town was so good at it, is because of the druid circle that inhabited the neighbouring forest and ran a boarding school orphanage and an academy, the Thelvanae Institute.
I wound up there when I was 5, after my parents died. We were a fairly normal family; they were horse trainers working for a ranch. I spent a lot of time around animals in my youth, and my infant years were easy going. Then, one night, a beast jumped the fences and broke into the stables, trying to get a midnight snack. Worrying about the safety of the animals they cared for, and unconcerned for their own, they tried to save as many as they could. But before help could arrive, the beast slaughtered them. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I admire their dedication to their work and their charges, but I also resent them for choosing the lives of the animals over my own. I doubt they thought they were sacrificing themselves, and were just unlucky, so I don't fault them too much.
My happy childhood changed dramatically after their death, when I moved into the academy. The easy going, nurturing, nature of my home was replaced with the strict and choking environment of the Institute. The rules, the dorms, the schedules, so contrasting to what I had known before. And I didn't like it. It took me a long time to fall in with their rules and discipline. I spent a lot of time in solitary because of my rebellious behaviour.
Then one day, when I was around 8, I met one of the Druids, Hérik. He disliked seeing me rebel so much, recognising a kindred spirit, so he took me under his wing. Just like me, he disliked rules but had learned how adapt. He was still strict, but I could tell he had a playful side to him, hidden beneath his stoic demeanour. He helped me adjust to the boarding school, explaining to me why it was important that I follow the rules, to give me discipline. But he also showed me ways to get around the rules. We got into quite a bit of mischief together.
In the academy, along with the regular subjects, we were taught plenty about nature, about the circle of life, natural selection, the food chain, and many other such things. The reason for this is because the Institute is the primary recruitment method for the druidic circle that ran Thelvanae. They kept a keen eye for any that had a particular affinity with nature.
Outside of studying, we had plenty of responsibilities. Cleaning around the Institute, working the small farm plot they kept to educate us, taking care of the Academy's animals and cleaning the stables. Many of these tasks served as a test as well. Kids who showed an aptitude in any given area would be given further study. I was one such kid, I had a particular affinity with animals, and they were one of my favourite subjects. I loved, and still do, to learn about them. Hérik, my mentor, decided it would be a good for me to eventually follow in my parents' footsteps, so he gave me special education. He too had a special connection to animals. He even had a wolf as a companion.
One other field of practice that was common throughout the Academy was archery practice. Every child at the age of 14 would be required to practice with the longbow every week. That was another thing I excelled at.
Rather than become an animal trainer, however, I wanted to be a part of the Ranger Corps of Driodan, who also protected the druids. Growing up, I became enamoured with them, and joining them was my dream. How they would go to far off lands, how they stalked the woods to keep everyone safe from the more dangerous beasts, and how in tune with nature they were. I also knew that several of them had animal companions, and hoped I'd get one as well, but alas I never did until after I joined the Explorers Guild years later. After I graduated from the Academy at 21, I was accepted into the Corps, much to the pride of my mentor. While many who graduate Thelvanae apply for the Rangers, it's not everyone that gets to join, but we still have a better chance than most.
Ranger training was intense, we were expected to be expert trackers, masters of stealth, learned survivalists, and intuitive hunters. We were also taught how to work the hides of the animals we hunted. The longbow practice we got at the Institute helped immensely, and I supplemented it with the longsword, spear and javelins.
For many years, I kept the borders of the town safe, hunted, and protected the Druids when they went to neighbouring towns or faraway lands to care for people or animals.
When I was 48, my mentor died of old age, he was only human. During my years at the Institute, he became like a father to me. He continued teaching into his old age, and I would occasionally attend his lectures to refresh myself. Even after I graduated, I still played a bit of mischief during his classes, and he would berate just as though I were still a child. But we both knew it was just a play. I mostly did to help the younger kids feel comfortable. I will always miss him dearly.
While I was a part of the Rangers, I was in a squad of 6, myself included. We were very close, and always competing with each other to see who was the quietest, the fastest tracker, or the best hunter. In the squad, there were 4 guys and 2 girls, most were graduates of the Academy like myself. One of the girls and a guy, Evanath and Erevan, were from the town and were the only humans in the squad, the rest being elves. They were a couple who joined the Rangers together, even though romantic relations within the Corps were forbidden. But they were good at hiding it, and the rest didn't mind helping them. The last girl, Gaelira, was kind of being pursued by the rest of the guys, me, Keryth and Arun. We were always trying to impress her, and we would often get hurt in the process, but nothing ever too serious.
Many years passed, Eva and Erev eventually left the Corps when they got older, to settle down, and only the 4 of us remained in the squad. The dynamic within it stayed pretty much the same, until one day, when we were hunting a dire boar that was roaming too close to the town.
The mistakes I made that cost the life of half of the rest of my party. After catching the beast in one of the traps we had setup and finishing it off with our bows, me and Arun were arguing which of us deserved credit for the kill. It was his trap that stopped the boar, but it was my bow that finally felled it. While we were yelling at each other, the boar got back up and out of the trap. Turns out we didn't actually kill it. It charged after Arun, and I just stood paralyzed, fearing it would come after me if I moved. There was nothing I could do to defend myself that close to the boar. I watched as it ran Arun down, and before it turned its tusks on me, the rest of the squad arrived. I stood there the whole time, while Gaelira and Keryth fought and killed the creature, but not before it claimed Keryth’s life as well.
Just a few days prior, Gaelira had finally accepted Arun's advances, and they became an item. Gaelira blamed me for it, saying I did it just to try and get Arun out of the way. Regardless of why, the Rangers had no use for someone who just stood there while his comrades were killed, and I got kicked out.
So there I was at the age of 71, with no place to call home after losing the job I'd always dreamed of, that my mentor had educated me for and was so proud to see me get. The whole town heard of the incident and I was ostracized.
Looking for a job and a place to live, I went to the animal farms. I was hired as an animal trainer at one, near the outskirts of town. The owner didn't really care for the gossip from the town, and my credentials from Thelvanae impressed him, so he saw no reason why he shouldn't hire me. During my time there I trained all kinds of animals. Warhorses, hunting dogs, carrier birds, you name it, I probably trained one. During these years, I spent more time with animals than I did with the town's people. While most of the other trainers and farmhands didn't really care for what had happened while I was in the Rangers and actually felt bad for what had happened to me, some still gave me a wide berth and the stink eye.
Even years later, people still hadn't forgotten what happened, and I'd get weird looks when I went into town to get supplies. The looks that the animal charges that accompanied me dissuaded them from further actions, though. Not many would contend with a guard dog or a warhorse, so I was mostly left alone.
I became a bit more closed off during that time, focusing a lot more on the animals than people
It was good, to do what my parents had once done. But people never really treated me the same after Arun's death. I became a bit more closed off during the following years, focusing a lot more on the animals than people. Not like many people outside the ranch wanted to talk to me anyway.
While I did love being training animals and working for the ranch, there was still that part in me that wanted to get out there and travel, so when I turned 100, I decided to pack up and go far, as I once had when I was a Ranger. During my travels I heard of the Explorer's Guild, and how they were sending people to far off lands that had never been explored. So, I set of to (Insert city name), and that was when I met the group I'm with now.
One of the reasons why the town was so good at it, is because of the druid circle that inhabited the neighbouring forest and ran a boarding school orphanage and an academy, the Thelvanae Institute.
I wound up there when I was 5, after my parents died. We were a fairly normal family; they were horse trainers working for a ranch. I spent a lot of time around animals in my youth, and my infant years were easy going. Then, one night, a beast jumped the fences and broke into the stables, trying to get a midnight snack. Worrying about the safety of the animals they cared for, and unconcerned for their own, they tried to save as many as they could. But before help could arrive, the beast slaughtered them. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I admire their dedication to their work and their charges, but I also resent them for choosing the lives of the animals over my own. I doubt they thought they were sacrificing themselves, and were just unlucky, so I don't fault them too much.
My happy childhood changed dramatically after their death, when I moved into the academy. The easy going, nurturing, nature of my home was replaced with the strict and choking environment of the Institute. The rules, the dorms, the schedules, so contrasting to what I had known before. And I didn't like it. It took me a long time to fall in with their rules and discipline. I spent a lot of time in solitary because of my rebellious behaviour.
Then one day, when I was around 8, I met one of the Druids, Hérik. He disliked seeing me rebel so much, recognising a kindred spirit, so he took me under his wing. Just like me, he disliked rules but had learned how adapt. He was still strict, but I could tell he had a playful side to him, hidden beneath his stoic demeanour. He helped me adjust to the boarding school, explaining to me why it was important that I follow the rules, to give me discipline. But he also showed me ways to get around the rules. We got into quite a bit of mischief together.
In the academy, along with the regular subjects, we were taught plenty about nature, about the circle of life, natural selection, the food chain, and many other such things. The reason for this is because the Institute is the primary recruitment method for the druidic circle that ran Thelvanae. They kept a keen eye for any that had a particular affinity with nature.
Outside of studying, we had plenty of responsibilities. Cleaning around the Institute, working the small farm plot they kept to educate us, taking care of the Academy's animals and cleaning the stables. Many of these tasks served as a test as well. Kids who showed an aptitude in any given area would be given further study. I was one such kid, I had a particular affinity with animals, and they were one of my favourite subjects. I loved, and still do, to learn about them. Hérik, my mentor, decided it would be a good for me to eventually follow in my parents' footsteps, so he gave me special education. He too had a special connection to animals. He even had a wolf as a companion.
One other field of practice that was common throughout the Academy was archery practice. Every child at the age of 14 would be required to practice with the longbow every week. That was another thing I excelled at.
Rather than become an animal trainer, however, I wanted to be a part of the Ranger Corps of Driodan, who also protected the druids. Growing up, I became enamoured with them, and joining them was my dream. How they would go to far off lands, how they stalked the woods to keep everyone safe from the more dangerous beasts, and how in tune with nature they were. I also knew that several of them had animal companions, and hoped I'd get one as well, but alas I never did until after I joined the Explorers Guild years later. After I graduated from the Academy at 21, I was accepted into the Corps, much to the pride of my mentor. While many who graduate Thelvanae apply for the Rangers, it's not everyone that gets to join, but we still have a better chance than most.
Ranger training was intense, we were expected to be expert trackers, masters of stealth, learned survivalists, and intuitive hunters. We were also taught how to work the hides of the animals we hunted. The longbow practice we got at the Institute helped immensely, and I supplemented it with the longsword, spear and javelins.
For many years, I kept the borders of the town safe, hunted, and protected the Druids when they went to neighbouring towns or faraway lands to care for people or animals.
When I was 48, my mentor died of old age, he was only human. During my years at the Institute, he became like a father to me. He continued teaching into his old age, and I would occasionally attend his lectures to refresh myself. Even after I graduated, I still played a bit of mischief during his classes, and he would berate just as though I were still a child. But we both knew it was just a play. I mostly did to help the younger kids feel comfortable. I will always miss him dearly.
While I was a part of the Rangers, I was in a squad of 6, myself included. We were very close, and always competing with each other to see who was the quietest, the fastest tracker, or the best hunter. In the squad, there were 4 guys and 2 girls, most were graduates of the Academy like myself. One of the girls and a guy, Evanath and Erevan, were from the town and were the only humans in the squad, the rest being elves. They were a couple who joined the Rangers together, even though romantic relations within the Corps were forbidden. But they were good at hiding it, and the rest didn't mind helping them. The last girl, Gaelira, was kind of being pursued by the rest of the guys, me, Keryth and Arun. We were always trying to impress her, and we would often get hurt in the process, but nothing ever too serious.
Many years passed, Eva and Erev eventually left the Corps when they got older, to settle down, and only the 4 of us remained in the squad. The dynamic within it stayed pretty much the same, until one day, when we were hunting a dire boar that was roaming too close to the town.
The mistakes I made that cost the life of half of the rest of my party. After catching the beast in one of the traps we had setup and finishing it off with our bows, me and Arun were arguing which of us deserved credit for the kill. It was his trap that stopped the boar, but it was my bow that finally felled it. While we were yelling at each other, the boar got back up and out of the trap. Turns out we didn't actually kill it. It charged after Arun, and I just stood paralyzed, fearing it would come after me if I moved. There was nothing I could do to defend myself that close to the boar. I watched as it ran Arun down, and before it turned its tusks on me, the rest of the squad arrived. I stood there the whole time, while Gaelira and Keryth fought and killed the creature, but not before it claimed Keryth’s life as well.
Just a few days prior, Gaelira had finally accepted Arun's advances, and they became an item. Gaelira blamed me for it, saying I did it just to try and get Arun out of the way. Regardless of why, the Rangers had no use for someone who just stood there while his comrades were killed, and I got kicked out.
So there I was at the age of 71, with no place to call home after losing the job I'd always dreamed of, that my mentor had educated me for and was so proud to see me get. The whole town heard of the incident and I was ostracized.
Looking for a job and a place to live, I went to the animal farms. I was hired as an animal trainer at one, near the outskirts of town. The owner didn't really care for the gossip from the town, and my credentials from Thelvanae impressed him, so he saw no reason why he shouldn't hire me. During my time there I trained all kinds of animals. Warhorses, hunting dogs, carrier birds, you name it, I probably trained one. During these years, I spent more time with animals than I did with the town's people. While most of the other trainers and farmhands didn't really care for what had happened while I was in the Rangers and actually felt bad for what had happened to me, some still gave me a wide berth and the stink eye.
Even years later, people still hadn't forgotten what happened, and I'd get weird looks when I went into town to get supplies. The looks that the animal charges that accompanied me dissuaded them from further actions, though. Not many would contend with a guard dog or a warhorse, so I was mostly left alone.
I became a bit more closed off during that time, focusing a lot more on the animals than people
It was good, to do what my parents had once done. But people never really treated me the same after Arun's death. I became a bit more closed off during the following years, focusing a lot more on the animals than people. Not like many people outside the ranch wanted to talk to me anyway.
While I did love being training animals and working for the ranch, there was still that part in me that wanted to get out there and travel, so when I turned 100, I decided to pack up and go far, as I once had when I was a Ranger. During my travels I heard of the Explorer's Guild, and how they were sending people to far off lands that had never been explored. So, I set of to (Insert city name), and that was when I met the group I'm with now.
Now the fight that resulted in a PK:
Today was a cursed day.
We awoke this morning to the sounds of panic. The fields we had been guarding were under attack, the dragon we had previously defeated had returned. My companions and I got our bearings and moved to challenge the beast, but by the time we had arrived, the wicked creature had already made minions of a poor family unfortunate enough to be its dread path, its foulness raising the butchered souls to damned servitude.
We moved quick, loosing arrow and spell at the monstrosity as it prepared to dive at us. Dear Maya, anticipating the hell fire it sought to breath upon us, swept up Buttons and Tony and carried them back to protect them from the killing flames. But we had, all of us, misread its intent. It did not bear down on us, its dread gaze fixed on Maya, and on her it brought its fury.
The first time we had encountered the beast, it was Maya's lance that struck the truest blow. As we rode to meet it, I foolishly loosed an arrow of flame, doing nothing to its crimson hide. Tony released a burst of holy flame that combated its wicked breath, and Rhogar in turn unleashed the frigid power of his ancestry. But of those, it was Maya's blow, into its vile core, that wounded the most. The dragon had not forgotten.
Jaws with teeth like daggers plunged into Maya, and there was little we could do to respond. Tony unleashed bursts of light that clearly seared the fiery beast, but the dragon paid no mind. Sweet Buttons gave Maya an enchantment that caused her to vanish, but the dragon, sorcerous beast that it was, saw through the spell. I loosed arrow after arrow into it, but it's armored hide was proof against my attacks. Gloria, drawing on might I'd previously never seen from her, blasted a large chunk from the beast. Ki rushed into peril, striking at the dragon and receiving a vicious wound for it, but struck the beast deep.
It did not matter. The beasts onslaught was relentless, it's thirst for revenge too great. Maya stuck at the dragon and the dragon stuck back.
I do not know if it was a kindness that we could not see Maya as the dragon struck. Her blood became visible, staining the ground as it tore into her. It bore down savagely, tearing and biting with murder its only goal.
Our barrage, arrows and spell, brought the monster low, a final burst of light from Tony burning away the dragon. We went to Maya, but it was too late. The dragon had taken her from us.
Maya was dead. And the dragon had in her place left us a damned gift.
Maya arose from the dead, the dragons foul touch robbing her of the peace of death. Dead hatred had replaced our friend, and she struck Dusk with her lance.
We once again joined battle, this time our vision clouded in tears. It was Ki's holy blade that struck her down. In the end, something of our friend was left, as Ki came in to lay her to rest, she dropped her lance and asked him to finish it. The holy might in his weapon purged the evil from her, and in her last moments, she was herself.
As Maya burned away, her last words to us echo in my mind. 'I love you.'
And she was gone.
I am lost. We each grieved in our way. We were left with only Maya's lance and not even a body to bury. We cried, Ki screamed his anguish out, Tony comforted the young squire and Buttons, my friend Thrak gave what comfort he could to a distraught Gloria, Helena and Torusa in tears, and Gen sympathized with me in our helplessness to the loss.
I built a small shrine to Maya, far too humble for bold Maya, but it is what I could do. I said my last words to her. I love you, too.
I do not think I could stand to lose another friend. This has been too much. But we will avenge you Maya. The dragon was stopped for now, but his cursed master will just bring him back, so it is the lich I must destroy. I will end your cursed life, that I promise.
-Ren
We awoke this morning to the sounds of panic. The fields we had been guarding were under attack, the dragon we had previously defeated had returned. My companions and I got our bearings and moved to challenge the beast, but by the time we had arrived, the wicked creature had already made minions of a poor family unfortunate enough to be its dread path, its foulness raising the butchered souls to damned servitude.
We moved quick, loosing arrow and spell at the monstrosity as it prepared to dive at us. Dear Maya, anticipating the hell fire it sought to breath upon us, swept up Buttons and Tony and carried them back to protect them from the killing flames. But we had, all of us, misread its intent. It did not bear down on us, its dread gaze fixed on Maya, and on her it brought its fury.
The first time we had encountered the beast, it was Maya's lance that struck the truest blow. As we rode to meet it, I foolishly loosed an arrow of flame, doing nothing to its crimson hide. Tony released a burst of holy flame that combated its wicked breath, and Rhogar in turn unleashed the frigid power of his ancestry. But of those, it was Maya's blow, into its vile core, that wounded the most. The dragon had not forgotten.
Jaws with teeth like daggers plunged into Maya, and there was little we could do to respond. Tony unleashed bursts of light that clearly seared the fiery beast, but the dragon paid no mind. Sweet Buttons gave Maya an enchantment that caused her to vanish, but the dragon, sorcerous beast that it was, saw through the spell. I loosed arrow after arrow into it, but it's armored hide was proof against my attacks. Gloria, drawing on might I'd previously never seen from her, blasted a large chunk from the beast. Ki rushed into peril, striking at the dragon and receiving a vicious wound for it, but struck the beast deep.
It did not matter. The beasts onslaught was relentless, it's thirst for revenge too great. Maya stuck at the dragon and the dragon stuck back.
I do not know if it was a kindness that we could not see Maya as the dragon struck. Her blood became visible, staining the ground as it tore into her. It bore down savagely, tearing and biting with murder its only goal.
Our barrage, arrows and spell, brought the monster low, a final burst of light from Tony burning away the dragon. We went to Maya, but it was too late. The dragon had taken her from us.
Maya was dead. And the dragon had in her place left us a damned gift.
Maya arose from the dead, the dragons foul touch robbing her of the peace of death. Dead hatred had replaced our friend, and she struck Dusk with her lance.
We once again joined battle, this time our vision clouded in tears. It was Ki's holy blade that struck her down. In the end, something of our friend was left, as Ki came in to lay her to rest, she dropped her lance and asked him to finish it. The holy might in his weapon purged the evil from her, and in her last moments, she was herself.
As Maya burned away, her last words to us echo in my mind. 'I love you.'
And she was gone.
I am lost. We each grieved in our way. We were left with only Maya's lance and not even a body to bury. We cried, Ki screamed his anguish out, Tony comforted the young squire and Buttons, my friend Thrak gave what comfort he could to a distraught Gloria, Helena and Torusa in tears, and Gen sympathized with me in our helplessness to the loss.
I built a small shrine to Maya, far too humble for bold Maya, but it is what I could do. I said my last words to her. I love you, too.
I do not think I could stand to lose another friend. This has been too much. But we will avenge you Maya. The dragon was stopped for now, but his cursed master will just bring him back, so it is the lich I must destroy. I will end your cursed life, that I promise.
-Ren
And lastly, one more encounter with said dragon that only reinforced his hatred:
It almost happened again
On our second day of travel to the harpy clans, we came across a group of dwarves, that had come to the surface to look for materials, which was under attack by a dragon. From what I could gleam of the dragon’s appearance, the size of its horns and the sheen of its scale, we were dealing with a mature adult one, of the blue variety.
Natural inhabitants of the deserts, blue dragons love to scheme and ambush their prey, and they also have a tendency to travel in packs, unlike other examples of the species.
Since it was a few centuries old, I expected this to be an easy hunt, but the dragon soon proved that to be completely wrong. It was far more formidable than that, but it was ultimately unable to withstand against our combined power. During the fight, Gloria kept goading it on, and it fell for her taunts, focusing its attention on her. We managed to defeat the dragon before it caused any real harm to anyone, thankfully, but Gloria’s attitude is troubling. One of these days, we’ll come across a foe that will make her learn if she doesn’t temper it.
Feeling elated and confident after felling such a mighty beast, I set us down so I could harvest the creature’s hide and extract any useful substances. After five hours of gruelling work, I am loading up the materials onto Regalia when I spot a winged figure on the horizon, flying straight toward us. As it approached, I realized it was another dragon. On wings of fire it flew, its body covered in black, bony plates, its eyes glowing red in hatred. When he landed, in a cavernous, familiar, voice he spoke, saying; “Hello mortals, remember me?”
It was him, Obrist’s foul pet. The one that raises his armies, lays waste to the countryside, and the one that took Maya from us. I could hardly believe my eyes. In my arrogant, blind, purpose to become stronger in the hopes of defeating the beast on my own, so no more of my friends would come to harm, I forgot to consider the possibility that the dragon could also have become stronger. But in such a short time span? We had seen him not a few days earlier as we crossed Kutha. What could possibly have caused this?
As everyone else prepared to fight, I started my volley, my first two arrows hitting true. I had infused my bow with frost for this leg of the journey, and I knew red dragons such as he are vulnerable to it, but he somehow found a way to make himself immune.
Before anyone else had a chance to do anything, the dragon looked at Gloria, and as I noticed the familiar motions of a dragon casting a spell, she vanished right before our eyes.
Rhogar let out a savage roar as he allowed his rage to consume him, and his shout awoke something in me, something primal that I had never felt before. I imagine this is what he feels every time he enters that state. Such strength, such mindless hatred, and all of it directed at the bastard that had caused me so much grief and sorrow. The dragon reacted by going invisible and with it gone, my hatred turned to the person closest to me, Baru. He avoided my first arrow with that amulet of his, and before I could fire anymore, Asche flew in and grappled me, all the while Rhogar and Thrak turned on each other, in the same state as I. With Asche, the half-red dragon, right in front of me, and nothing but pure hatred clouding my mind, I could not see beyond her red scales, scales so similar to her mother’s, the same bitch that gave me my scars. My bow was useless in this situation, so I dropped it and drew a dagger, stabbing her repeatedly with savagery. Meanwhile, the dragon circled and taunted us, watching us succumb to in-fighting.
Sensing the dragon’s presence, Asche couldn’t do much with me in her arms, and if she let me go, I would just attack the closest person. She turned to Baru and said “Bring Ren back”, as she beat me within an inch of death.
I don’t know what happened next, obviously. The next time I came to I was on Regalia’s back, feeling like I’d ran several marathons without rest. From what I was told, the dragon revealed himself and engaged Asche, while Baru healed everyone he could, those that could stand walk carrying the ones that couldn’t onto Regalia.
When I rose, I noticed Asche still fighting the dragon, and Aly nowhere to be seen, nor Gloria. With the worse possible scenario in mind, I violently yanked Thrak from the reins, as he’d been flying Regalia away from the dragon, and in desperation I turned her around, spurring her down to the ground as fast as she could fly. No way in Hell was I about to let this damned dragon claim another of my friend’s life. Asche, who’d done so much for; Gloria, who was the lifeline of our group, my sister-in-law to be; And Aly, the newest addition to our party.
As the wind blanketed my face, I yelled a prayer to Ketephys to bless my aim against this wicked enemy that refused to stay down, and I felt a warmth suffuse my body. The incredible pain and soreness I still felt in my muscles vanished, and refreshed, I did my best to rain arrows upon the beast that threatened my friends, my family. I saw Alceras come out of invisibility in front of Asche in an effort to protect her, and be struck down by the dragon. But as that happened, a lightning bolt struck her from the sky, and left an after image of Ancalaryu above her. Crackling with electricity, she rose once more and unleashed her fury upon the beast. It was also at this point that Gloria emerged from whatever hole she’d been thrown into, and desperately began letting pulse after pulse of healing, glad to see us still alive.
With everyone’s combined efforts, my arrows once again doing next to nothing against this creature, we fought on. He tried his best to topple us, attacking us with his claws, jaws, wings, and fire breath, but we could not be stopped. As Aly struck the final blow, it laughed. It laughed. Almost as though victory was his. His body then erupted in a fiery explosion, hurting everyone around it. Aly was thrown back from the force of the blast, her body limp and lifeless. The distance she travelled put her too far away from Gloria to be healed. In a panic, I ran over to her, as did many others. Gloria continued releasing pulse after pulse, but Aly did not stir. In desperation, I grabbed the Treant’s Gift we’d gotten so long ago, suspecting it to have some of reviving properties. I held it above Aly, praying to every elven god I knew to let her come back to us, but cold she remained. It wasn’t until several excruciatingly long seconds that she finally rose. According to her, she saw her father and had remained for a while to talk to him.
I could barely hold myself back. This would have been the second time that bastard took someone close to me. I wrapped my cloak around her to cover her charred clothes and hugged her as tight as I could, tears running freely down my face. This was close… too close… When I was sure Aly was fine under Gloria’s ministrations and everyone else’s attention, I left her with them and went to apologize to Asche. I never meant to hurt her, but the rage and hatred were too overbearing. I hope her and Baru can forgive me.
I swear upon every god that will listen to this oath. I will not stop, I will not rest, until this dragon and its dark master lie dead. I will end Obrist’s cursed life, this again I promise. I must push myself to the limits, become stronger, so that for once I can be of use against this damned beast. I refuse to let another friend die at their hands. I will throw my own life away before I let that happen again.
On our second day of travel to the harpy clans, we came across a group of dwarves, that had come to the surface to look for materials, which was under attack by a dragon. From what I could gleam of the dragon’s appearance, the size of its horns and the sheen of its scale, we were dealing with a mature adult one, of the blue variety.
Natural inhabitants of the deserts, blue dragons love to scheme and ambush their prey, and they also have a tendency to travel in packs, unlike other examples of the species.
Since it was a few centuries old, I expected this to be an easy hunt, but the dragon soon proved that to be completely wrong. It was far more formidable than that, but it was ultimately unable to withstand against our combined power. During the fight, Gloria kept goading it on, and it fell for her taunts, focusing its attention on her. We managed to defeat the dragon before it caused any real harm to anyone, thankfully, but Gloria’s attitude is troubling. One of these days, we’ll come across a foe that will make her learn if she doesn’t temper it.
Feeling elated and confident after felling such a mighty beast, I set us down so I could harvest the creature’s hide and extract any useful substances. After five hours of gruelling work, I am loading up the materials onto Regalia when I spot a winged figure on the horizon, flying straight toward us. As it approached, I realized it was another dragon. On wings of fire it flew, its body covered in black, bony plates, its eyes glowing red in hatred. When he landed, in a cavernous, familiar, voice he spoke, saying; “Hello mortals, remember me?”
It was him, Obrist’s foul pet. The one that raises his armies, lays waste to the countryside, and the one that took Maya from us. I could hardly believe my eyes. In my arrogant, blind, purpose to become stronger in the hopes of defeating the beast on my own, so no more of my friends would come to harm, I forgot to consider the possibility that the dragon could also have become stronger. But in such a short time span? We had seen him not a few days earlier as we crossed Kutha. What could possibly have caused this?
As everyone else prepared to fight, I started my volley, my first two arrows hitting true. I had infused my bow with frost for this leg of the journey, and I knew red dragons such as he are vulnerable to it, but he somehow found a way to make himself immune.
Before anyone else had a chance to do anything, the dragon looked at Gloria, and as I noticed the familiar motions of a dragon casting a spell, she vanished right before our eyes.
Rhogar let out a savage roar as he allowed his rage to consume him, and his shout awoke something in me, something primal that I had never felt before. I imagine this is what he feels every time he enters that state. Such strength, such mindless hatred, and all of it directed at the bastard that had caused me so much grief and sorrow. The dragon reacted by going invisible and with it gone, my hatred turned to the person closest to me, Baru. He avoided my first arrow with that amulet of his, and before I could fire anymore, Asche flew in and grappled me, all the while Rhogar and Thrak turned on each other, in the same state as I. With Asche, the half-red dragon, right in front of me, and nothing but pure hatred clouding my mind, I could not see beyond her red scales, scales so similar to her mother’s, the same bitch that gave me my scars. My bow was useless in this situation, so I dropped it and drew a dagger, stabbing her repeatedly with savagery. Meanwhile, the dragon circled and taunted us, watching us succumb to in-fighting.
Sensing the dragon’s presence, Asche couldn’t do much with me in her arms, and if she let me go, I would just attack the closest person. She turned to Baru and said “Bring Ren back”, as she beat me within an inch of death.
I don’t know what happened next, obviously. The next time I came to I was on Regalia’s back, feeling like I’d ran several marathons without rest. From what I was told, the dragon revealed himself and engaged Asche, while Baru healed everyone he could, those that could stand walk carrying the ones that couldn’t onto Regalia.
When I rose, I noticed Asche still fighting the dragon, and Aly nowhere to be seen, nor Gloria. With the worse possible scenario in mind, I violently yanked Thrak from the reins, as he’d been flying Regalia away from the dragon, and in desperation I turned her around, spurring her down to the ground as fast as she could fly. No way in Hell was I about to let this damned dragon claim another of my friend’s life. Asche, who’d done so much for; Gloria, who was the lifeline of our group, my sister-in-law to be; And Aly, the newest addition to our party.
As the wind blanketed my face, I yelled a prayer to Ketephys to bless my aim against this wicked enemy that refused to stay down, and I felt a warmth suffuse my body. The incredible pain and soreness I still felt in my muscles vanished, and refreshed, I did my best to rain arrows upon the beast that threatened my friends, my family. I saw Alceras come out of invisibility in front of Asche in an effort to protect her, and be struck down by the dragon. But as that happened, a lightning bolt struck her from the sky, and left an after image of Ancalaryu above her. Crackling with electricity, she rose once more and unleashed her fury upon the beast. It was also at this point that Gloria emerged from whatever hole she’d been thrown into, and desperately began letting pulse after pulse of healing, glad to see us still alive.
With everyone’s combined efforts, my arrows once again doing next to nothing against this creature, we fought on. He tried his best to topple us, attacking us with his claws, jaws, wings, and fire breath, but we could not be stopped. As Aly struck the final blow, it laughed. It laughed. Almost as though victory was his. His body then erupted in a fiery explosion, hurting everyone around it. Aly was thrown back from the force of the blast, her body limp and lifeless. The distance she travelled put her too far away from Gloria to be healed. In a panic, I ran over to her, as did many others. Gloria continued releasing pulse after pulse, but Aly did not stir. In desperation, I grabbed the Treant’s Gift we’d gotten so long ago, suspecting it to have some of reviving properties. I held it above Aly, praying to every elven god I knew to let her come back to us, but cold she remained. It wasn’t until several excruciatingly long seconds that she finally rose. According to her, she saw her father and had remained for a while to talk to him.
I could barely hold myself back. This would have been the second time that bastard took someone close to me. I wrapped my cloak around her to cover her charred clothes and hugged her as tight as I could, tears running freely down my face. This was close… too close… When I was sure Aly was fine under Gloria’s ministrations and everyone else’s attention, I left her with them and went to apologize to Asche. I never meant to hurt her, but the rage and hatred were too overbearing. I hope her and Baru can forgive me.
I swear upon every god that will listen to this oath. I will not stop, I will not rest, until this dragon and its dark master lie dead. I will end Obrist’s cursed life, this again I promise. I must push myself to the limits, become stronger, so that for once I can be of use against this damned beast. I refuse to let another friend die at their hands. I will throw my own life away before I let that happen again.
I hope you enjoyed reading. I might post similar things in the future.
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