Chapter #1110
previous chapter (#1109)
next chapter (#1111)
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+ THE ADVENTURERS +
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+ Epic VI +
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+ Many of the locations, non-player characters, spells, and other +
+ terms used in these stories are the property of Wizards of the Coast +
+ which has in no way endorsed or authorized their use. Any such +
+ property contained within these stories are not representative of +
+ Wizards of the Coast in any fashion. +
+ The player characters depicted in these stories are copyright +
+ 1991-2022 by Thomas A. Miller. Any resemblance to any persons +
+ or characters either real or fictional is utterly coincidental. +
+ Copying and/or distribution of these stories is permissible under +
+ the sole condition that no money is made in the process. In that +
+ case, I hope you enjoy them! +
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+ Belphanior 18th/18th/18th level elven fighter/wizard/thief +
+ Paige 13th level human female warrior +
+ Razor Charlie 12th level human fighter +
+ Skektek 14th level human wizard +
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+ Mongo 20th level dwarven fighter +
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+ Date: 4/18/586 C.Y. (Common Year) +
+ Time: late morning +
+ Place: the town of Flen, in the Good Hills +
+ Climate: cool +
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+ "Like I said before, running isn't my style. Killing these +
+ bastards is." +
+ - from _Punisher Max_ #74 +
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MCX. Mongo's War Stories
Belphanior and a handful of companions have tracked down the dwarven
warrior Mongo Thunderhead, and now sit around a table inside his tent,
within some sort of military encampment.
Skektek: (shifts, trying to get comfortable on his seat, which is really
just a large barrel of ale)
Mongo: Yeah, and my planning table's a big tree stump with one side
smoothed out. Sorry about that. Some things are in short supply here.
Belphanior: What's this "General" business?
Mongo: (having poured mugs of ale for everyone, he takes a big gulp from
his) Well...as you know, after helping kill that two-headed dragon and
leaving your vault, I wandered around. (he wipes froth from his beard,
a pointless task if ever there was one) A lot. For a time, I was in
the Yatils, where I destroyed a mountain fort. And the hill giants who
built and used it. From there, I headed east and then south...a path
that put me in these parts when the wars began.
Belphanior: Yes, I missed that. Most unfortunately.
Mongo: You sound pissed about it.
Belphanior: I am. For more than one reason. But we'll get to that...
please, do continue.
Mongo: So here I was, in and around Geoff and Sterich. I decided to
help fight the humanoids and giants that started to come out of the
Crystalmists. At first, it was just one here, one there. We'd chase
them down, sometimes find them and get rid of them, other times we'd
miss them. And then their numbers started increasing, I mean they were
showing up everywhere, and in greater numbers. (he sighs) I must've
killed a hundred in the first few months alone.
Paige: A hundred foes?
Mongo: A hundred _giants_. If you added in all the ogres and gnolls and
such...hell, maybe five hundred. (he takes another long drink) It got
hard to keep track, after a point.
Paige: (takes a sip from her own mug, despite finding the dwarven ale a
bit strong for her liking)
Mongo: Anyway, the battles, the wars, went on...and on. I was all over
the place, doing what I could. One time I fought for two days straight
without more than an hour's rest.
Belphanior: Your strength, and your hammer, must have helped immensely.
Mongo: (wearily) They did, but I couldn't be everywhere at once. For
every settlement I helped save, another fell somewhere else. And more
than once, I came up against spellcasters...learned all their tricks
the hard way. Turning rock into mud - won't kill me, but it stopped me
for a while. There was another time when I got picked up and hurled a
long ways away. That hurt, and it took me forever to rejoin the fight.
Some magical attacks were turned back by my armor, but others slowed me
down, maybe hurt me a little. One time, I got hit so hard by some blast
that I could've sworn my armor was dented. (he nods to the shining
silver coat of mail that hangs nearby) But it wasn't, of course. I'm
told it would take a blow from a god - a strong one - to do that. (he
frowns) All of this to say, it was a long damn three years.
Skektek: What about the "general" part?
Mongo: Oh, yeah. So one time I showed up late to a battle after getting
waylaid by a small tribe of gnolls...dealt with them, finally got to the
real fight, and this big force of dwarves, gnomes, and halflings was
completely surrounded, cut off, and slowly getting worn down by an even
bigger bunch of goons - bugbears, ogres, and giants, plus about a dozen
shamans, all led by a giant in plate mail with a huge magical axe. Big
son of a bitch, he was. Anyhow, I leaped off my warhorse, who was half-
dead from the ride, and charged into one flank of the enemy. My second
hammer-throw hit that giant, their leader, smack in the face and with a
thunderbolt right behind it. That was the end of him, and a couple of
his chiefs. (he frowns) And most of the shamans, too.
Paige: (somewhat incredulous) All that from one hammer?
Skektek: (quietly) It's true. I've seen it. It's some kind of dwarven
super weapon.
Paige: This I have to see.
Mongo: Stick around here long enough and you will. Anyhow, that single
strike broke the monsters' morale and turned the tide of the battle,
and I never let up. And after the fighting was all done, two things
happened: the demi-humans asked me to take command of their force, and
they started calling me the "Killer of Giants."
Skektek: Whoa. Cool name.
Mongo: (shrugs) At least it's simple, easy to understand...and accurate.
Long story short, I led that force into another battle, and then another.
We kept winning, slaying foes and turning them back into the mountains,
if only for a short time. We showed them that they couldn't run wild
here...and more soldiers came and joined our ranks, and over the months
the force turned into an army. (he drains his mug, then refills it) It
also helped that I had some experience with the tactics needed to fight
giant-folk, and some knowledge of military discipline from my time at
Greyspire. (he grins, patting the short, thick warhammer at his belt)
And of course, it helped to wield Stormcrest into all of these battles.
Same goes for the armor, and my belt.
Paige: Sounds like fun.
Mongo: Fun would be beating back those scum without knowing that some
other town or village fell because you couldn't be in two places at
once. I mean, we did great work here, but in the end, Geoff fell, and
then Sterich. (he cracks his knuckles) But. As you can see, there
are plenty of people who aim to take it all back someday. And this is
just one of a dozen such armies. It's coming together...I think we'll
be on the move soon, probably into the southern reaches of Sterich, to
the south of the Davish River. Reports have them weakest there.
Skektek: I'd love to help. I could get airborne and blast the hell out
of them from above...it would be great.
Mongo: (to Belphanior) What about it? Want to help us set things right
here? We could use your magic. (to Skektek) And yours, of course.
(to Razor Charlie) And your knives. (to Paige) And your sword.
Belphanior: Normally, I'd be all for it, and I'd bring more help. But
we have some wrongs of our own to right...
The elf gave a brief but complete account of his group's recent trials
and tribulations, concluding with their return from the Center of Time
only to find their companions missing and the vault empty.
Mongo: (whistles) So you're going to find whoever stole everything?
Belphanior: Find them, and make them pay.
Mongo: I get it. I'd do the same damn thing, if my treasure got stolen.
(he pauses) Have you thought about the possibility that, after five
years, some or most - or maybe even all - of your stuff might be gone,
spread all over the place, never to be found again?
Belphanior: Oh, I have. It's not just about the missing items. Someone
chose to attack and to steal from me...me and the group. Neera and the
other two could easily have been killed. Whoever did this has basically
declared war, and though it's a different kind of war than the ones that
ravaged Oerik...it's still war, and they still have to pay.
Mongo: (nods)
Belphanior: But I'll tell you what. After I get my stuff back, and make
the thieves sorry for what they did, I may bring the group back around
these lands, and we'll see what happens. (he frowns) Understand that
I have to go talk to all the others...Rillen, Halbarad, everyone.
Mongo: Yeah, I understand. I heard a rumor, third-hand, that Halbarad
was at the siege of Chendl, in Furyondy. You might start there.
Belphanior: (nods) I think I will. Thanks for the tip.
They stood and clasped hands again, each pleased that the other was
alive and well - and each silently wishing that the other was available
to help him with his current endeavors. For the moment, though, that was
not to be...and a short time later, Belphanior and his three companions
were outside the camp, the elf preparing to use his potent magical items
to find his next friend and then journey to that one's location.
Skektek: Good tip, but I guess you didn't really need it, did you?
Belphanior: No. I was already going to visit Halbarad next, and I knew
where he was. (he watches as the Seeking Scroll's surface generates a
map leading from their current location to one north and eastward...
the mighty city of Chendl, capital of Furyondy) Ah, there you are.
next: Halbarad's tale
www: http://www.peldor.com/download.html
homepage: http://www.peldor.com/
email: tmiller@peldor.com
released: 6/3/2022
notes: In case you didn't catch it, Mongo went up a level. All that
means in game terms is +3 HP and -1 to thac0...but for bragging rights,
he's now reached the coveted 20th level. Peldor is the only other one
of the original group to achieve this so far.
As several of these reunions will be, this was a blatant adventure
hook...maybe for Mongo, maybe for Belphanior to join later. If nothing
else, it ties into the canon events after the Greyhawk Wars.
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