The Rise of a Ranger

triptoy2002

Dalayan Adventurer
The rain came down hard. Hard enough to mask the sound he made as he slipped out of the window. His heart raced, excitement welling up inside. Almost silently he darted from tree to tree. His ancestry on his mother's side had granted him not only keener senses, but a lightness of foot that had allowed the Elven people to pass unnoticed on many occasions.

Mentally he went over the checklist as he ran, trying to make sure he had all the supplies he needed for the journey. He didn't need much, he had been trained for many years to suvive in the wilderness, learned to track, forage, not to mention combat skills such as swordsmanship and archery. He paused as he reached the passage that led out of the glade. Two guards watched the pass. He had planned for this, and waited silently for his moment. Noticing some edible mushrooms at his feet, he picked them, carefully stashing them in the lightweight pack he carried. He looked again toward the guards. He congradulated himself on his timing as the night shift came to relieve the day shift.

The guards laughed and joked for a moment, and that bought him the time he needed. Moving toward the pass under cover of the shadows, he thought he had made it past them perfectly, until a stick broke under his foot. Quickly he made it into the pass, risking only a brief look over his shoulder to see if it had been heard. When he saw that nobody had followed him, he breathed more easily, glad that his practicing had paid off...

The sound of a stick breaking near the mouth of the passage caught the attention of one elven guard, while the three human guards remained oblivious. He had seen the young ranger hiding in the bushes nearby. He knew the time had come, and much as he had done when he was younger, the boy was trying to strike out on his own. The world was very dangerous with the aftereffects of the Kaezulian invasions, but there was only so long Surefall Glade could house a restless teenager. He silently asked the Gods to watch over the lad...

The cool air of the hills was welcome to him, the glade rarely had much breeze due to the large trees and rock formations encircling it. He had only been beyond the glade a few times, and only then with an instructor. Now he was moving around the face of the rock to the west of the pass, toward the centaur encampment near the shore of the lake. He would skirt the eastern shore of the lake until he was well out of sight of Warden Tarval, who seemed to have eyes like a hawk, despite his human heritage. Once out of range he would make his way back to the path that ran south and head for the city of men that lay beyond the hills. He had heard the stories of travelers that had stopped by Surefall on a few occasions, heard that the city of Newport was open to all, and heard that many mighty adventurers had gathered there in times of war. It was there he would seek his fortune. It was there he would become a hero.

Some berries grew along the path that led south, and he stopped to pick some as he passed. As he was picking, his sharp elven hearing picked up strange sounds. He had been watching for tracks, and had seen a set that led off from the path and headed east just a short ways back. He headed in the general direction that he believed the tracks had been going, thinking the sounds might be coming from there. As he crested a small hill, he caught sight of a group of creatures on the grasslands below, having the appearance of both dogs and men. He had heard tales of these too, but had thought them a myth. The great Gnolls of Blackburrow they were called. The three creatures were attacking a single figure, dressed in mail, and wielding both shield and sword. This person was so heavily armored that he could not see their face, but they seemed rather confidant in their combat ability, depite being out numbered three to one.

He thought he would just watch for a moment, and see how the battle went. The armored person struck hard at the gnolls, drawing blood with nearly every swing. They even used the shield as a blunt weapon, an excellent move the ranger thought. The small warrior severed the sword arm of one of the creatures, and then knocked it to the ground, crushing it's skull with their shield. The other two gnolls howled in fury, and renewed their attacks with added vigor. But they seemed to be no match for the small figure, who expertly defended against their blows, and struck back, killing a second one with a deep slash above its shoulder.

The battle was all but won he thought, this warrior had truly proven superior to their foes. Just then however, there came a howl from the east, and the sound of many gnolls running. They had seen the battle, and had come in force to avenge their fallen brethren! He counted seven well armed gnolls running to battle. He realized then that the skill of this warrior was not going to be enough against such odds, and without thinking about it, fit the nock of an arrow to his bow, and shot. Once the arrow was fired, there was no going back, so without waiting to see the arrow bury itself deep in the abdomen of its target, he started running. Using a potion he had purchased from a visitor to the glade, he called upon the spirit of the wolves to guide his steps, closing the distance in as much time as it took to fire a second arrow and then draw his sword.

The gnolls were surprised by this sword wielding stranger, and hesitated slightly, wondering if he had also been the bowman or if there were perhaps others out there shooting from a
distance. The small warrior however proved their experience once again by not missing this golden opportunity to strike several undefended blows, partially decapitating their target. The
two then fought back to back, each swinging their sword with great skill in comparison to the barbaric gnolls. The ranger used a technique he had learned from the powerful Druids of the
Glade, and turned both his and the warriors skin into a strong, barklike hardness. He shot a grin at the warrior, hoping for some praise for the spell, but the warrior was a true professional, not allowing any distractions during combat.

They managed to bring the total number of attackers down to five, but the warrior was already weakened from their encounter with the three gnolls earlier, and was showing signs that their strength was waning. The ranger once again called on the magics learned from the druids, this time using a spell that helped the heal the wounds of the warrior, and followed it with a spell that seemed to shake the ground as he chanted it, and left one of the gnolls burning with a great fire. Four gnolls remained, and the warrior's strength had returned somewhat due to the spell, so the ranger took this opportunity to put some distance between himself and the battle, and fired four arrows, dropping two gnolls to the ground. Running back into the fray, he slashed at the remaining two gnolls from behind, but one saw him coming. It turned, parried, and knocked him off his feet to the ground with the butt of its spear. Before it could strike the killing blow however, the warrior lunged at it, tacking it to the ground, buried their sword in its face and left it there. The final gnoll tried to flee, realizing its doom was near, but the warrior had other plans. They bashed it, breaking its leg, and then the warrior brought their plated boot down on the back of its neck, killing it.

The warrior slumped to the ground, exhausted and injured, pouring blood from numerous cuts and gashes. The ranger rose, calling upon the magics again to heal the warrior, and then began binding their wounds with a field dressing. When he looked at the warrior's face however, he recieved another surprise. It was a woman.

Her skin was a dark blue, nearly black in color, as if the deep midnight sky had been pulled down into one place. Her eyes returned his gaze, glowing with a piercing white light, as if they
were two stars pulled from the heavens along with the blackish-blue of the sky. Her features were distinctly elven, more so that his own in fact, showing her blood to be closer to pure
elven than his half breed blood. When she spoke, her words were clear, and her voice was calm and controlled, "Your aid is appreciated, traveler." Her voice reminded him that he was staring at her, and he quickly retured to bandaging.

"I am glad to have been of service," he said, "these creatures are far more difficult than the pests that live in the caves in Surefall."

She chuckled a bit, "You haven't been out of Surefall Glade before this, have you?"

"I have, a few times." He tried to make himself sound experienced. She didn't need to know that he had run for his life the first time he encountered a fire beetle with his instructor.

"Of course, my mistake," she said. She nodded her head in the direction of the corpses, "I can finish the bandaging, thanks, why don't you go see what items or coin those dogs might have had."

He rose and began rummaging through their clothes, searching for a pouch, a nice piece of armor or weapon, anything that could be considered spoils. Meanwhile she rose, and also began searching the corpses. He found little more than a few rusty weapons, one piece of chainmail that he was rather interested in, and a few small coins. He showed the chainmail tunic to her with a smile, and she motioned to him to take it for himself. Happily he began putting it on, admiring the fit and durability of it. Then he realized that she was not so much looking through the pockets of the corpses, but instead cutting off their ears with her beltknife. He watched as she looped the severed body parts onto a short lenth of cord with other ears she had collected, and then slung them onto the outside of her pack to dry.

"Uh, what are you going to do with, uh, those ears?" he asked nervously.

"I'm out of food, so I figure I'll use them as a snack along the way," she said, looking pointedly at him. After seeing the disturbed look on his face, she threw her head back and laughed
loudly. "I'm going to turn them in for the bounty, don't you collect ears?"

He chuckled and said, "No, I guess I wasn't aware there was a bounty."

She said, "Yes, the Newport Guardsmen offer a bounty token for them at the outpost just south of here."

Suddenly his mind raced. Newport! His dream of being a hero was just to the south a short ways! He could picture the look on the faces of those in the Glade as he returned to them, and told stories of his adventures. They would smile, and call out his name, applauding as the hero returned from battle, like in the stories of old.

Again she cut into his thoughts, "Would you like to journey with me to the outpost? I'm not sure where you are heading, but I will be going to Newport afterward to turn in the bounty tokens I recieve. You are welcome to come with."

He gladly accepted her offer and gathered his portion of the spoils into his pack for the trip. As they walked, he absently started to chew on a bit of squirrel he had managed to
kill and cook earlier. Remembering her, he offered her some, and some vegetables he had foraged, "Unless you're happy with your gnoll ears..." he said jokingly.

She chuckled, and accepted the offered food. The rain had subsided to a light drizzle just before he had encountered the battle, and hadn't changed since then. They were both soaked to the bone, which was somewhat welcome, as it was washing some of the blood from their clothing. He sniffed his armor. Wet dog. Yuck. His mind started to wander back to the lake he had passed earlier, and how nice it would feel to bathe and be clean. Perhaps in Newport...

His thoughts trailed off as he caught sight of the tower in the distance, rising over the grassy hills. It reminded him of the big trees back in the glade. He had never seen a structure so tall! As they drew closer he could see a few guardsmen, in golden armor, gathered in the firelight to ward off the chill of the rainy dawn. The guards picked them out in the darkness only after they were within 100 paces of the tower.

"Hail, strangers. Identify yourselves in the name of Newport." one guardsman called out to them.

The elven warrior replied, "Hail, Guardsmen of Newport, we come to speak with Sergeant Eldrig about the bounty on gnolls."

A stocky human wearing rank insignia stepped forward from inside the tower, and the warrior strode directly up to him, confidant in her purpose. The ranger stayed a step or two back, a little intimidated by the whole scenario. The warrior brought forth the ears she had collected, and handed them to Eldrig for inspection.

"Ah!" Eldrig said, "You HAVE been busy since last we spoke. Thirty two of them I count. Excellent work. Did you kill these all yourself?"

She replied, "No, he has been my comrade, half belong to him." pointing to the ranger.

The ranger was stunned. He had only helped with the group of eight, he hadn't been there to kill a whole sixteen of them for his own count!

Sergeant Eldrich clapped the young ranger on the back, nearly knocking him off his feet, "You look quite young for being so deadly! Good work, Elf! If you manage to slay some more gnolls, make sure you bring the ears to me, it would be a service to all Newport." He gave sixteen tokens to each of them, and bid them safe journeys, and then returned to the tower. The warrior smiled at the ranger, and began walking south. He chased after her. "I didn't kill sixteen of them, at most I may have dealt the killing blow to two or three."

She looked at him and said, "I see the look of adventure in your eyes. You want to be a hero. Part of being a hero is having the reputation of a hero. Nobody will ask you to slay this or that, or to join them in their adventures unless they think you are worth their time. Now you have a name, you just have to live up to it... by the way, what is your name?"

"Dagruz." he said.

"Very well, Dagruz Gnollslayer, I am Atrella." she said.

"Would that be Atrella Ear-eater?" he joked.

She smirked, "Just Atrella will do."

They walked on in silence for a while, his mind racing over all that had happened in the last few hours. It would be daytime soon, the sun was already starting to brighten up the sky, and the clouds were moving on. In the distance to the south, he saw what appeared to be a wall. As they drew closer, he saw that it was indeed a wall, one that occupied the entire horizon for a vast area. His jaw dropped. Newport! Finally! The exhaustion pulling on his body began to fade as the excitement washed over him. This is where he would become well known. This is where his dreams come true. This was it! As they came closer, he started to see many people walking about near the gate, and many more inside. So many people! He had never seen so many!

Atrella glanced at him and saw the wonder in his eyes. "Stay close." she said, "And watch your purse, there always seems to be a pickpocket about." He clutched his coin purse and tucked it farther up under his tunic. He saw men and women of all sizes and shapes here, many were well armored, and some bore weapons that looked as if they had amazing power. Atrella pushed her way through the crowd, glancing occasionally at Dagruz to see that he was still with her. Finally after weaving through the enormous city, they made it to the building Marked Office of the People. There they handed the tokens in to the Desk Sergeant, a big man named Ranald, who looked as though he would rather be out killing gnolls himself than sitting behind a desk. Ranald thanked them, and then turned to Atrella.

In a low tone he said to her, "There is a band forming of others who plan to go. They are meeting in the Lion's Mane soon. Gormlor is among them."

Atrella thanked him, and headed toward the nearby Inn, Dagruz following just behind. As they got to the door of the Inn, she stopped and turned to Dagruz. "You fight well. I don't know what plans you have, but if you would like another round with the gnolls..." Dagruz didn't even let her finish, such was his excitement, "Yes! Absolutely!"

Atrella smilled and his youthful exuberance. "Very well. There is a merchant here that will buy whatever spoils you would like to part with, and you can probably restock your food and drink, as well and maybe find a larger satchel. Also, you should get some rest. I have a room reserved for my friends and I, you can use one of the beds there if you like."

Dagruz nodded, and they proceeded into the Inn. Atrella showed him the room, and said she would go and meet with her friends and return, and Dagruz gladly decided to stay at the room and rest. The noon mealtime came, and Dagruz awoke to the sound of footsteps. When he opened his eyes, there stood the largest person he had ever seen. An Ogre named Gromlor, trying to walk quietly toward the table at the back of the room. At the table sat Atrella, a very large man named Rosol with shifty eyes, a blond haired elf man named Relwoh wearing a robe, and another robed figure named Jussuaco who looked like a man, but had an extremely high forehead. What appeared to be a being made entirely of fire floated near the corner of the room, watching with vacant eyes. Atrella saw Dagruz's eyes open, and motioned for him to come to the table.

Gromlor sat on the floor, as he was too large to sit on any chair, and even sitting on the floor he was just a bit taller than Dagruz. Gromlor explained in a crude language that he was a shaman, and old friend of Atrella. He and Atrella had been working to put together a group to go into Blackburrow, the home of the fearsome gnolls. After discussing strategy, they all gathered at the front gate of Newport. Dagruz's journey had begun, and now he was well on his way to becoming a hero. He had aided a person in need, fought the gnolls, and even gained standing in the eyes of a major city, Newport. Now the six of them, Warrior, Shaman, Rogue, Ranger, Magician, and Wizard, were poised to go into Blackburrow, for honor and glory, or for death. There was no more fear in his heart.

And somehow he knew, no matter what happened, he would never be the same.

(some names have been changed to protect the guilty)

I wrote this today in about 45 mins time. What inspired me? Idk, I've never played a ranger. Infact, I've never written any fiction either. Might be good, might be bad, idk, read, enjoy :D
 
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Moving it to RP - I really like this sort of stuff. Considering adding it to an in game book if you like.
 
Ah, yeah, I guess it is in the wrong spot. I didn't really even think about the fact that we have an RP forum, I was too focused on getting it typed out somewhere before I lost inspiration.

P.S. I lol'ed @ Drizzly's comment ;)
 
haha thanks <3

It was really good, I didn't really read it because I can't stand these sort of things but it was very well written from what I did read.
 
Is there a video of this book?

Its hard for me to read more than 3 lines unless there are moving pictures to keep me entertained.
 
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