Well, thats a bad situation to be in. At this rate we are going to need a reset or a Dues-ex-machinma or something. Anyway...
Rush Nal. Try to slip around/through him for better positioning at least. Take a swing or two at him with your knife as you do so.
I think we failed to sufficiently motivate our mule. Jump/scramble up atop its rump where its legs can't reach, entangle fingers of off hand in the hair of its tail (we're not looking for style points, just a secure grip), then stab it in the butt.
[Knife 5+2 vs Dodge 20!+2, Dodge 16+0 vs Wrestling 7+2, Dodge 12+0 vs Knife 9+0]You rush at Nal, trying to shiv him in the gut in a desperate bid to distract him, but he expertly side-steps and knocks the blade from your grip (
Damn, must be a family trick.). He tries to grab you by the waist but you slip through his fingers and duck a clumsy swipe from Jirn. You try and go for the mule, but the pair move to block your escape - until one of them falls, you've no choice but to fight.
[Athletics 13+0, Knife 12+2 vs Dodge 20!+2. Dodge 18+0 vs Wrestling 7+2, Dodge 9+0 vs Knife 7+0]
[Athletics 16+0, Knife 9+2 vs Dodge 20!+2. Dodge 19+0 v Wrestling 11+2, Dodge 11+0 vs Knife 17+0]
[Athletics 12+0, Knife 11+2 vs Dodge 16+2. Dodge 12+0 vs Wrestling 8+2, Dodge 19+0 vs Knife 7+0]
[Knife 10+2 vs Dodge 14+2. Dodge 4+0 vs Wrestling 15+2, Dodge 11 vs Knife 4]
[Knife 14+2 vs Dodge 20!+2. Dodge 17+0 vs Wrestling 20!+2, Dodge 9 vs Knife 4]
[Athletics 10+0, Knife 14+2 vs Dodge 6+2. Dodge 4 vs Wrestling 2+2, Dodge 20! vs Knife 13]
[Knife 10+2 vs Dodge 18+2. Dodge 19+0 vs Wrestling 5+2, Dodge 11 vs Wrestling 18]
[Knife 1! vs... Dodge 1!. Dodge 18-2 vs Wrestling 11+2, Wrestling 10+2 vs Wrestling 12]
[Wrestling 2+2 vs Wrestling 15, Knife 7+2 vs Dodge 5+0. Dodge 9 vs Wrestling 5+2. Dodge 10+0 vs Wrestling 13]
[Knife 4+2 vs Dodge 9, Wrestling 13+2 vs 4. Dodge 15 vs Wrestling 13+2, Dodge 16 vs Wrestling 11]
[Knife 20!+2 vs Dodge 8+2.]A vicious two-on-one knife fight ensues, Nal knocking your knife away again nearly every time you manage to reclaim it. Jirn gets a lucky stab in early on in the fight, goring you in the leg, and shortly thereafter Nal barrels you to the ground and lands several hard punches on your face and ribs. You struggle beneath Nal's weight, scrabbling and losing the knife several times until you manage to get in a slash above the hunter's eyes. He recoils, blood obscuring his vision, and you scramble out from under him. Jirn makes his sixth attempt at stabbing you with the knife and in a moment of rage-filled inspiration you pull the same trick Nal keeps doing to you and wrench the blade out of Jirn's hand, throwing it away into the night.
You turn back to face Nal, but Jirn grabs you by the shoulders from behind in preparation for Nal's next strike. You nearly stab yourself trying to get to Nal, but Nal nearly puts himself directly in the path of your blade and you both pull back in time. You struggle with Jirn's grip for a moment - which tightens, almost crushing the life from you. Rather than try to wriggle out, you flip the dagger around in your hand and plunge the blade into Jirn's side. The farmer howls in pain and releases you, just in time for Nal to throw another punch. You leap back to avoid it, but Jirn grabs you by the chest again.
Your second stab at Jirn goes amiss, but it does distract him enough for you to break free. You duck a pair of blows from your opponents, falling again to the ground. Pain and exhaustion wrack your body and something deep within you roars to life. The world tinges slightly with red and you feel rage replace agony in your battered muscles. You spring upward from a crouch, driving the dagger in front of you. Your lunge carries the point straight through the gap between Nal's collarbones and in a reflex action you twist it, shattering his windpipe and spraying hot red blood across your face.
Nal strikes the ground, jerking convulsively. You turn to face Jirn, blood dripping from your visage and blade. The farmer's fear gets the better of him and he flees into the night. You collapse by the campfire, the distant sound of cackling accompanying you to sleep.
****
You wake up around mid-morning, alive and in extreme pain. You pass out a few times, eventually regaining full consciousness around noon. You force yourself to get up and take stock of your situation.
You have suffered numerous bruises and your skin is broken and discoloured (going from ashen to a distinct yellow-purple-black melange) where Nal battered you. Your ribs feel delicate from the crushing, but nothing seems broken. In fact, you managed to avoid broken bones entirely. On the flip side, the wound in your leg is still oozing thick black blood clots and too much movement might break it open again (never mind sickness later).
The wagon seems to be intact and the mule is busy munching from his nosebag - you fully intend to put your knife in that half-ass' arse the next opportunity you get. The bedrolls and packs of all three humans are nearby and Nal's stiffened body remains unsearched. You also suspect your original belongings are still on the wagon somewhere. The nearby campfire still has a few glowing embers and even one or two intact brands still glowing; it must have burned all the night through and kept you safe from bogeymen.
You could start searching the packs or wagons, see if you can find a new place to hide, or even try driving the wagon again. Or, possibly, decide how you're going to deal with the multiple injuries and your growing hunger.
Well, that escalated quickly.Vitality: 2 (Severely battered, one knife wound in leg.)
Hungry
Status: Extremely Injured.
Kills: 2 human huntesr.
Inventory: Ragged, formerly fine black clothing (the shirt on your back).
2 plain iron hunting knives
Expert Administrator
Proficient Historian
Proficient Law Scholar
Skilled Geographer
Competent Negotiator
Competent Persuader |
Competent Liar |
Competent Judge of Intent |
Adequate Dodger ||||
Adequate Leader
Adequate Knife-Fighter
Novice Wrestler ||
Novice Athlete ||
Dabbling Forager
Dabbling Pump Operator
Dabbling Biter |
Dabbling Stealther ||
Languages: Perfect Goblin, Fluent Human, Broken Dwarven, Poor Elven
Things got slightly away from us there. Part of the problem was Nal's unerring capacity to score natural 20s. He pulled off no less than three disarms and critted on a wrestling check. Still, luck sort of played out here.
On the other hand, you levelled up both knife-fighting and dodging (dodging skipped a level, in fact). Yay for extremely risky combat!