Hnng been out and about today, so no more storytime for now. ;w;However, since I've been catching up on the first couple kills made before I remembered I was posting about it in the thread, I do have one more while I have a break on the laptop.
The two wanderers continued north, their next target soon in sight. Hidden among the sweeping plains and sparsely-forested hills lay a strange absence of trees and grass, dotted with numerous weathered stone pillars, any artwork or writing long since worn smooth. The only plant life present there were scant patches of moss clinging to the crumbling pillars, or growing in the cracks of the few surviving signs of cobblestone.
Neither of the wanderers knew the origin of the place. The serpent woman knew a scant few tales of the place, one like various other such sites scattered across the world. Some remnant of the civilizations that struggled and fell in this blighted world. Or perhaps a place of sacrifice, built in a desperate bid to placate the monsters that often lingered there. She'd also heard tales from the human lands, overheard once from the sole non-goblin in the warlord's band, that the gods themselves built these structures, either to contain ancient evils or to empower them.
And what they found was indeed an ancient evil. A massive reptilian form could be seen lingering, resting in the very heart of the ruins. Being vaguely aware of dragons and other great scaly beasts, the human could tell at a glance it was unlike any such beast he knew. It resembled quite mundane, even benign, reptiles. But its hide displayed sparse scales of a sickly green color, and strange entennae seemed to grow from the sides of its head.
But although the beast was awake, its attention was directed elsewhere, to the west and downwind from them. He decided this time he could direct the serpent woman to follow behind her, his plan being to cripple the beast as he did with the last hunt, and then working together they could finish it. His companion had proven very effective at seeing off aggressive wildlife before.
When they approached toward, the beast stirred, abruptly turning towards them. Its eyes fixed a cold gaze upon them, head lowered to reveal a third reptilian eye atop its head. Rather than making any sound of alarm it made an erratic scramble towards them, a splash of strange, foul-smelling liquid spat at the human, which he sidestepped with ease.
This sight was enough to alarm his companion, setting her fleeing frantically, the wanderer once again facing the beast on his own. As before his strikes first sought the feet, an easy matter given the unsteady movement of the creature.
The human fell into a frenzy, cautious prodding quickly devolving into frantic stabbing, clambering on the beast to jab the makeshift spear deep into its neck. At this point the beast, once intimidating, was reduced to frantic attempts to swipe and snatch at the human, frequently trying and failing to spray its strange venom to deter the attacker.
By the time his companion worked up the courage to lend aid, the human had opened such grave wounds in the monster that blood pooled all about, muddying the soil and staining ancient stones. When he'd time to collect himself he saw the beast dead, and that thankfully even with his carelessness neither of were harmed. Once more he carved his morbid trophies, carefully collecting some of the strange material the creature used as venom, some of his older scavenged armor given to the serpent woman as well, leaving them both clad in a mix of bone, leather, and what little iron the brigands possessed that either of them could wear.
With that they set off again, sights set on more places they knew of, rumors of other possible villages and more great beasts along the way...
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Topic: What's going on in your adventure? (Read 2130696 times)