An Adventurer's Tale/The Daimons Part 1

Roleplay from Baldhart
Message sent to all adventurers in the vicinity of Enweilieos (19 recipients)
"Hurry up! I'm up to my arse in mud!" Baldhart hollered.

It was actually just up to his thighs, but he was wet and hungry and in no mood to split hairs.

"Just hold on, I'm coming!" Danost screamed back, doing his best to extend a tree branch out towards his partner.

Baldhart, struggling forward through the sucking muck, strained to reach the branch, just inches from his grasp. "C'mon, just a little Farther!"

Danost sighed, letting the limb dip slightly, shrugging his sore shoulders, working the kinks from his exhausted muscles. He had been stuck for two hours, and for two hours Danost had been struggling to find a way to get Baldhart out. "We should have stayed in Grehk," he mumbled.

They had left days ago, after their new partner, Calibann, had been called back to Mesh by a Duke who wanted to give him an important assignment. He had awoken earlier and slipped from their small room in one of Grehk's many Inns, leaving only a note explaining the situation and the route he would be taking.

"To hell with Grehk, Calibann needs our help!" he roared, forcing his right leg a little farther through the thick mud. It had started raining when they were on the road to Lopa, and had been forced to make camp hours later when it began to storm. Now, the rain had passed, but it had turned the ground into mud. Baldhart had just happened to stumble into a particularly bad patch of ground. "Now, get that damned branch out here-" he stopped just long enough to pull his left leg forward through the mud until it was even with his right, "-and get me the hell out of here!"

With a tired sigh, Danost reached the branch out once again, teetering on the somewhat solid embankment where he had a slight foothold, and held it there until Baldhart finally grabbed the limb, wrapping his arms tight around the bark and holding on with his life as Danost pulled with all his might.

Mud popped and churned as Baldhart was pulled forward until, finally, he got to his stomach on the embankment and was able to grab hold of a root. Cursing Calibann and the weather and Mesh and everyone and everything he could think of, he slowly pulled himself from the mud and up onto the embankment where he finally collapsed beside his exhausted partner, both men straining for breath.

"I think I lost my boots," he said, pushing himself to his feet.

Baldhart (Freeman)

Roleplay from Danost
(Personal message to Baldhart)
There was a pallor of fear hanging over the city of Creasur as Danost approached the gates. Commoners were flooding into the city in a continuous stream. Some had donkeys to carry their belongings, and a few of those even had carts. Some of the less prosperous were dragging sledges. The poorest carried their goods on their backs. Danost stood and watched them for a while, wondering what was happening. After a few minutes a routine city patrol came along to make sure things were going smooth. The guard captain caught sight of Danost standing and watching things. He approached Danost, slapping his free hand with a billy club held in the other.

"Hey, you! What are you doin' here? This ain't no place fer sightseein', move along!"

Danost regarded the man with mild amusement. "Good constable, might I ask what is happening here? Why are all the farmers fleeing into the city? Are the undead armies approaching the city? I haven't heard anything about an army nearby."

The constable looked at Danost suspiciously. "Where you been, haven't you heard?"

"No, good constable, I haven't."

"It's the daemons. The daemon army that we thought we beat in Cwellndell has reappeared, and is headed here. They'll be here at sunrise."

Danost wasn't sure he had heard the constable correctly. "Excuse me, did you say /daemons/?"

"Yeah, I did. The daemon army lead by Invisible is in Jaekind, and is almost here. The gates're closin' in about two hours. If you want the protection of the city walls, you had better get inside soon. Anyone outside the gates when they close will have to fend fer themselves. Now, either get inside, or get lost." The constable punctuated his last statement with anoer slap of his billy club.

"Uhh.. yes, constable, I think I shall head inside the city." Danost started toward the gates and the constables continued on their patrol.

About twenty yards farther down the road Danost stopped again. He turned and scanned the road leading away from the city. Still no sign of Calibann and Baldhart. What's keeping those two? They should be here by now... Not wanting to get locked outside the gates and left to face this daemon army, Danost turned and headed into the city. He'd have to search the cheap inns and whorehouses to see if by some chance they'd already made it into the city. If not, well... They were both good with a sword or a spear. But what good would a sword or a spear do against a daemon?

Danost (Freeman)

Roleplay from Baldhart (1 hour, 25 minutes ago)
Message sent to all adventurers in the vicinity of Creasur (16 recipients)
The walls of Creasur were little more than corpse-strewn rubble when Baldhart finally reached the city, the men and Knight's of her garrison broken and scattered, the path of their retreat marked by bloody and mutilated corpses.

He picked his way slowly through the line of broken bodies and rubble, his ears and eyes open, looking for any sign of life. Nothing, but the wind howling through his ears.

A gut-wrenching shriek erupted suddenly somewhere deep inside the city, joined by others, all rising into an howling crescendo. Baldhart jumped, scurrying across the battlefield, taking refuge behind a pile of rubble, and when it stopped he could hear the inhuman roar still ringing inside his skull.

I've got to find Danost.

Baldhart (Freeman)