Thrown Together: The First Day
Our intrepid adventurers assembled quickly at the garrison of Duvik’s Pass, some still rubbing sleep from their eyes others brushing the dust off their clothing after a hard nights ride. The four were complete strangers however, Bongles the bard, who never misses an chance to entertain, attempted to remedy that situation the moment he strolled through the door. The remaining individuals appeared to eye the meeting with an understandable level of distrust.
Grim, a half-orc barbarian, was their at the behest of his human aunt and uncle, Ethany and Silus. Ethany met him at the garrison and they had a brief but strangely warm moment; maybe it is possible that blood ties can remain strong even through great adversity and strain. Silus, a wily and quiet halfling, arrived on the tip of the local innkeeper, Andrew “Fleece” Carlson and seemed intent on being inconspicuous and riding out as soon as possible. Kasumi, who received orders to ride north to the frontier and report to the garrison for further orders, seemed to feel the most out of place. Her work for the kingdom as an investigator has largely kept her in the major cities and towns and the sudden orders to the frontier; the mountains, cold, and wilderness are not counted among some of her favorite things.
Captain Sandoval, head of the garrison and the point of contact for Kasumi, by appearance is a slovenly and undisciplined man. His troops, either drunk or asleep, were dressed in stained and tattered uniforms. It is clear that these soldiers might only be capable of defending their ale but not the garrison and certainly not the frontier. Sandoval, gruffly and vaguely, issued his orders for the party: investigate the attacks on the homesteads and if possible solve the problem. His take on the situation is that the orcs of the High Plains are responsible and he made his prejudices quiet clear with the barbed observations that “orcs are orcs,” leveling it at Grim. Bongles, seeking both edification and entertainment, proved himself to be quite noisome to Sandoval however it is possible that the feeling was reciprocal. Sandoval, absentmindedly, also requested that the party transport supplies to the homestead on three mules. The party gathered under the lead of Kasumi with Grim to guide them through the mountains and headed north to the frontier.
The first days journey went with little excitement beyond the antics of Bongles and the sudden squall that swept into the pass. The party reached the way station and halfway point of their journey under the capable survival skills of Grim and made camp for the night in a crude but sheltering lean-to. The party decided, after some debate, to split into three watches with Kasumi on the first, Silus and Bongles on the second, and Grim rounding off the third. It was not until the middle of the second watch that something seemed amiss. Silus’ sharp hearing caught the sound of someone or thing moving about in the diminishing storm; his suspicions were confirmed when he sighted a shadowy figure lurking near the mules. With uncanny aim and ferocity, Silus let loose a stone from his sling and soundly struck the interloper. The action awakens both Grim and Kasumi who both spring to their feet with Grim heading straight towards the scuffle and Kasumi judiciously slipping around the other side to intercept any other possible foes. Bongles, who Silus let sleep in during his turn at watch, continued to slumber wrapped tightly in warm dreams of his sylvan friends.
Grim swiftly made his way round the mules to the person or thing that Silus had struck to find the member of a goblin raiding party. With a mighty swing of his sword he cleaved the injured goblin in two and carried his stroke deep into the bugbear leader standing nearby disemboweling him before he could react. The raid at this point fell apart with one goblin turning to flee only to have one of Kasumi thrust one of her arrows deep in his neck as he ran by. The other in his confusion ran up to the mules and his fallen comrades only to be struck by a volley of stones from Silus’ sling; blinking back the blood from his eyes he swung wildly at Grim connecting only slightly. He was met by the terrifying visage of an angry half-orc barbarian bearing down upon him who forcefully pushed him to the ground.
Bongles finally made his way out the confines of sleep and waded out into the gnome chest deep snow and promptly hopped up upon his mount, Wondermint, and inspired a great deal of courage amongst his fellow adventurers with a scathingly line of comedy and parody at the expense of the routed goblins. However, it seemed that as soon as Bongles’ routine warmed up the fighting was over. The goblin wounded by Kasumi was followed and swiftly dispatched by Grim leaving one for the party to interrogate. The questioning was brief as it was clear that the survivor had little to tell other than he was a common foot solider pressed into service and eager to find another line of work if he lived to see morning. The party did learn that he served for a group known only as Ghost Monkeys and that they ride under the insignia of a froth mouthed simian, something that gave great delight to Bongles as he mercilessly mocked the cowering captive and casted Tasha’s Hideous Laughter upon him causing him to convulse in involuntarily waves of giggles made only worse by the the rope about his wrists and ankles, deftly tied by Kasumi. Grim took pity on the captive and with great generosity and compassion gave him several days of rations and sent him on his way with a stiff warning to never return and with that the party spent the remaining night resting as best as they could.
[Note: Image from Ratqueen]
