Barbarian Nightmare - Session 1 - Part 2
Whisper - Thief 4
Thorr - Barbarian 4
After waking up after a long night of drinking ale alone in his small cabin, Thorr is woken by the sounds of armoured men moving through the brush outside. Grabbing his warsword and cursing these men for bothering him so early, he ventures outside, challenging any who wish him harm.
A brief tense standoff occurs in which another barbarian wearing a scale corslet and having a long blond beard attempts to assure Thorr they mean him no harm. Thorr counts 20 men, all armed and decides its best not to push a needless fight, however bloody and honorable it would be!
The man introduces himself as Bragi, the son of a local village king named Erik. The village of Erda needs the strength and bravery of Thorr for a particularly violent endevour. Bragi promises much glory and bounty if Thorr chooses to help their village in a time of need. With those promises, Thorr can't possibly decline.
The journey to Erda, which normally takes three days, takes the barbarians six. They spend time challenging one another and drinking until late into the night. The delay seems to be common amongst the men of Erda as they live a life of comradery and courage.
Upon finally reaching Erda the men are greeted warmly by King Erik who takes them into his longhouse/hall and offers Thorr more drink and a selection of women. Thorr accepts both and there is another night of drinking and storytelling without ever talking about the mission in which Thorr had been asked to help.
The next morning, after recovering from hangovers, the king, Bragi and Thorr finally discuss their problems. It seems there are two different merchants headed for the small village and king Erik does not want a bidding war to start over their wares. He has struck a deal with the Aquilonian merchant to lower his prices if they can stop the Nemidian merchant from arriving. Erik asks Thorr to accompany his son Bragi and twenty warriors in a raid against the caravan. There will likely be nearly 40 men guarding it, as they have been travelling for quite some time. Bragi and Thorr assure the king that glory and victory will be theirs! If not, they will surely go to Valhalla with blood on their blades!
After a night of planning, the men venture out to ambush the caravan. In a perfect ambush, the Aseir fight proudly and bravely. Thorr charges headlong into the fray, headless of the dangers and shows his courage as his warsword strikes true. He severs limbs, beheads men and even dismounts a warrior by killing his horse. He suffers heavy wounds, but the glory of victory pushes him harder. He kills the last fleeing Nemedian Mercenary and looks across the battlefield. Within minutes, the guards are dead or fleeing by horse with whatever little they could save and the rest lie dying and dead amongst the blood stained snow. Bragi kills the merchant, holding his head high.
...
Whispers journey north proved rather easy. She was well prepared and stocked and moves as quickly as her horse would take her. Stopping for directions she learned the path to the village of Erda where the Aquilionian merchant would arrive.
After several days of travel she hears the sounds of battle in the distance. Perhaps it is a raid, or a party struck by bandits, but she sees the opportunity to possibly help some barbarians or at least make contact with them to get where she needs to go. She arrives as the battle is heated and watches men fight fiercer than she had ever seen. The barbarians overwhelm the caravan although they are outnumbered they show courage unlike any man she had ever witnessed.
...
The barbarians begin collecting their loot from the caravan and agree to grieve for their lost brothers later that night. Only ten Erda men are left standing. Thorr killed 11 men alone.
They spot the lone rider and demand to know what he wants (whisper is still disgused as a man). When she wishes them no harm, they tell her she must accompany them back to Erda. She agrees and helps them loot the dead soldiers and damaged caravan.
The journey back to Erda is quick and the king greets them as heroes. They are treated to a grand feast and told the Aquilionian merchant (Yasar) will be arriving sometime the next day. They tie up Whisper in fear she is working with the Nemedians and agree to let her go once Yasar has come and gone.
There is much sex and drinking, while Whisper tries to hide her true sex from the rowdy barbarians. They grow suspicious as she sits alone most of the night and barely drinks although they offer her many women and much ale.
Later that night, when the men are passed out, a maid stumbles over Whisper and discovers her disguise. She agrees not to tell the king and gives her one night to escape. Whisper fails in her escape as the king awakens. The maid tells all and King Erik demands to know her true purpose or they will behead her.
Reluctantly, Whisper tells the barbarians her true plans to assassinate the merchant. Erik refuses to let her kill the man bringing wares in peace to his village, yet agrees that she may kill him once his caravan leaves Erda territory the next day. Whisper agrees.
Meanwhile, a drunken Thorr tries to seduce Whisper but fails miserably. This begins a lifegoal for the warrior. Instead, he settles for two handmaidens.
When the Aquilionian merchant arrives, he meets privately with the king. There is a standoff between Bragi, Thorr and Whisper and a group of rowdy mercenary's escorting the caravan. They decide to settle the standoff by fighting one-on-one with Thorr. The big barbarian makes short work of the mercenary in hand-to-hand combat, breaking his nose and arm with many hard and swift blows. The Aquilionians leave them alone...
Using his bravery to try and impress Whisper again fails. She wants nothing to do with the brute.
The merchant does his trading and sells his wares. Packing up, he leaves with his caravan, leaving only a small group behind to finish some smaller deals. Whisper prepares to leave when she is warned by thorr that there are nearly 30 guards with that merchant and she will not be able to kill him alone. He offers to help, for a share of the reward. She agrees.
Bragi and King Erik thank Thorr for his courage and tell him they will sing songs of his blade for generations to come. He honours them by sharing one last drink and promises to return in the near future. Whisper grows impatient with all the chest-smashing manliness and rides on ahead.
They settle on a plan of attack on route. Thorr will cause a distraction by attacking the smallest force of the caravan while Whisper will sneak into the merchants wagon and kill him. They will both then ride off into the darkness. Thorr mutters something about him taking the most risk, but Whisper ignores him.
The attack at dusk with Thorr riding headlong into a group of ten soldiers caught off guard. He kills two quickly, but they regroup and pull him from his horse. He is stabbed twice as spears snap the mail he is wearing and pierce his skin. The pain makes him angrier. His sword manages to kill several more with hard smashing blows that crushes a skull and a shoulder.
Whisper arrives at the wagon to find it empty with no merchant inside. There is a scantily clad woman who tells her the merchant never left Erda...
Betrayed again, Whisper tries to leave quietly but fails. She is confronted with three guards, whom she fights quickly and deadly, slashing her short sword into critical areas while feeling the warmth of hot blood warm her cold hands.
She is wounded by guards hidden in the trees, shooting arrows. An ambush! The merchant knew they were coming for him! She tries to get Thorrs attention, but the clanking of swords and the death knells of wounded men drown her out.
Instead she gets into the lead wagon and spurs the horses into action, trying her best to flee. Thorr finally spots Whisper fleeing and catches onto the wagon as she passes. The soldiers give chase and three men climb onto the slowly moving wagon. Thorr fights one while holding onto the rotten wooden railings. He kills the man with a thurst to the chest, yet falls off the wagon in the process.
Whisper looks back for him, but presses on, only concerned with saving her own hide.
Thorr once again fights bravely, taking on several mounted men and taking several deep wounds to his chest and shoulder. He manages to dismount a mercenary and steal his horse, catching up with the wagon and jumping inside.
As if called back, the soldiers stop giving chase and allow the wounded would-be assassins to escape.
Thorr bandages his wounds as best he can and then when assured they are safe, takes advantage of the scantily-clad slave trapped in the wagon with him. Whisper does her best to ignore him.
End Session 1
