Session 20 - The Death of Ashrem!

Day 46

Makoa had been watching the Ironfang camp since dawn but by midday had given up waiting for a patrol to leave. It seemed that the patrol he had observed the day before was not a daily occurrence.

Returning to the others, hidden deep in the woods, he informed them of this new development. The companions decided that they would try and find the trail the Ironfang used to travel to and from the camp, setting up an ambush in a suitable spot for the next patrol....whenever that might be.

The trail was not difficult to find but several hundred yards from the camp it broke off in various directions. Deciding to set up the ambush just before that point, the companions settled into the dense undergrowth either side of the trail. Makoa and Cullen on one side, Xin and Ashrem on the other.

But no patrols came. The companions set a watch and settled down for the night, ready for the next day.

Day 47

Dawn broke, its pale light slowly filtering through the canopy and the early morning mist, as the companions readied themselves for another day of waiting.

The sun had not yet reached its high point, when Makoa suddenly tapped Cullen on the shoulder. Pointing down the trail, the half-Orc readied his crossbow. Cullen slowly stretched his legs, before picking up his longbow and loosely nocking an arrow. On the other side of the trail, he could just make out Xin hidden in the undergrowth, face tense as he looked back down the trail in the direction of the camp.

Makoa tapped Cullen on the shoulder again. Beckoning, he pointed in the opposite direction from the noise and began to move off through the undergrowth away from whoever was coming.

What's he doing? wondered Cullen, confused.

Unable to move as quietly as the rangy half-Orc, he was unwilling to risk revealing their hiding place. Deciding to stay where he was, he crouched a little lower in the undergrowth and trained his bow down the trail at whatever was coming. As he did so, he caught sight of Ashrem rising from the undergrowth and heading after Makoa. Unfortunately, the lanky half-Elf had not moved more than a couple of paces before he stepped on an old branch, the noise of it snapping seeming to echo among the trees.

The noise from down the trail stopped. Moments later three figures emerged, spread out and weapons at the ready. One was a hobgoblin with a bow, a pair of axes in his belt. The other two were Bugbears. One with a javelin ready to throw, two more in his other hand. The other a big beast of a creature holding a short-bow, arrow nocked and the head dripping a black substance.

Cullen rose from the undergrowth and let fly with his arrow, missing the big Bugbear by a couple of inches.

“Bastards!” he shouted, dropping his bow to unsling his shield and draw his sword, then moving onto the trail, “Come and get some, then!”

The big bugbear ignored the burly warrior, aiming his bow at Xin. The sorcerer was standing in the undergrowth, muttering under his breath and making arcane gestures with his hands as the arrow struck, wounding him.

The hobgoblin followed the big bugbear's lead, letting fly an arrow that also struck the half-Elf sorcerer.

Xin managed, despite the pain, to finish his incantation...a faint blue haze momentarily appearing around him.

“Come on, you big, ugly bastard!” shouted Cullen, trying to draw their attention, as he made straight for the big Bugbear.

The creature turned towards him, snarling, before stepping back and letting loose another arrow. “Is that all you've got?” Cullen spat, as he batted the arrow away with his shield.

The other Bugbear threw a javelin at Xin. This was almost immediately followed by another arrow from the hobgoblin. Both missed...a shimmering blue haze appearing around the sorcerer for a moment as they were deflected. The wounded half-Elf sorcerer took the opportunity to pull out a vial, quickly downing the contents.

Makoa, meanwhile, had moved to a well-protected position in the undergrowth, from which he proceeded to fire his crossbow..narrowly missing the javelin-throwing Bugbear.

Momentarily distracted by the half-Orc's crossbow bolt, the Bugbear left himself open to Cullen who, lunging forward with his sword, wounded him before turning to deflect an attack from the bigger Bugbear who had drawn a pair of short-swords.

Makoa shouted something in a guttural language to which the big Bugbear just laughed. Turning to the wounded Bugbear, he barked an order. The creature nodded and set off back down the trail. Xin, seeing this, raised his hands. Fiery missiles spat out...hitting the running Bugbear and dropping him.

Ashrem, by this time, had managed to push his way through the undergrowth, launching himself at the remaining Bugbear who span around and parried the blow with his twin swords. Cullen tried to take advantage and lunge at the creature's back, but he deftly turned and deflected the burly warrior's blade, too.

Grunting something in his guttural language, the beast nodded at the hobgoblin who set off at a run back down the trail. The Bugbear, moving lithely, then stabbed out with both swords at Ashrem. The half-Elf gasped in surprise as both blades cut deep.

Cullen smashed forward with his shield, momentarily knocking the Bugbear off balance and managing to slice into the creature's arm...followed moments later by a bolt from the half-Orc's crossbow.

From the corner of his eye, Cullen saw Xin unfurling a scroll and chanting but seconds later the scroll disintegrated, a look of frustration passing over the Sorcerer's face.

The big Bugbear snarled, lunging at Ashrem again with his twin swords. Ashrem parried one of the blows but the other slipped past his guard, stabbing through his breastplate and into his chest. Crying out in pain, the half-Elf swung his great-sword but the Bugbear easily sidestepped the weakened blow and, using the half-Elf's own momentum against him, parried the blade so hard that the edge of the great sword cut back deeply into Ashrem's thigh...dropping him, blood spurting out from the wound.

Xin began another chant and, raising his hands, hurled a giant ball of flame at the Bugbear...scorching him. A moment later, and the earth under the creature's feet took on a familiar oily sheen as the Sorcerer cast his Grease spell. Despite this, the Bugbear remained on his feet.

Cullen, taking advantage of the Sorcerer's distractions, lunged at the beast, cutting deep. The Bugbear, beginning to look a little weary and continuing to suffer from the flaming sphere...could not get past the burly warrior's shield.

Cullen, with one last effort, smashed his shield into the Bugbear's face as he thrust his sword into the Bugbear's guts, dropping him. Not content with this, the burly warrior grabbed the fallen creature by his lank and greasy hair and began to hack away at his head.

“This...is...for...my...brother,” he shouted, chopping away. A moment later and he held up the severed head, staring into the lifeless eyes. “Headless and food for the crows!” he spat. Picking up a javelin, he thrust one end into the ground, skewering the head on the other. “Let that be a warning to the others!” he said, turning towards his companions. It was only then that he saw Makoa on his knees next to Ashrem, head in has hands.

“Ash?” he shouted, rushing to the half-Elf's side. “No!” he gasped, as he saw the terrible wounds in the half-Elf's chest and thigh...and the sightless eyes. Ashrem was dead.

“No!” cried Cullen, cradling his friend's lifeless body, “Not you, too! How many more have to die at the hands of these bastards!”

Kneeling in the mud, the warrior gently brushed the leaves out of his friend's hair and wiped the mud from his face.

“We need to go before that hobgoblin comes back with reinforcements,” said Makoa, softly, eyes darting back down the trail in the direction of the Ironfang camp.

Cullen face pale and drawn, nodded numbly. “I'll carry him back to the caves.”

“The caves?” repeated Makoa, surprised. “No. We need to finish this fight.”

“We've got no chance,” said Cullen, in a hollow voice, “Not with my friend here, dead. Three of us against more than a dozen? It'll be suicide.”

“We can do it,” said Xin, as he finished stripping the Bugbear's body of anything of use, “We just need to draw more out.”

“Like we did this time?” said Cullen, with an empty laugh, “Won't be long before we join my friend here. Still...if that's what you want, I'm not going to argue. Like Ashrem, I will stand by you until the end...and take as many of the bastards with me as I can.”

With that, the companions set off, making their way deep into the forest, Cullen carefully carrying his friend's broken body through the tangled undergrowth.

For a slightly easier read, a PDF of the write-up on Google Drive here.