Darkstar Inc
Adventurer
The rising sun cast a soft light beneath eastern clouds as it peeked above the horizon, and in the dim, early dawn several paladins assembled upon the dew-drenched grass of Paladin Isle, each one armed from head to toe... all but one. The commander burst through the doors of the barracks and marched briskly to the lone man in the ripped knickers, a thin, ill-fitting tunic and strangely, a pair of bear-paw shaped slippers; with each step his bulky platemail armor jostling, squealing and clanging away with each heavy stomp. Finally, the commander stood before the unarmored initiate as he shivered in the brisk morning breeze.
"INITIATE! YOUR ARMOR!" the commander barked.
"Y-yes, commander!", the initiate's voice stuttered out.
"REPORT!"
"It's.. it's a long sto-"
"REPORT!" the commander interrupted.
The initiate hesitated at first, and then, gulping, he began..
"Well sir, it all began just a few days ago when, while carrying out my trials of initiation, I was set upon by, umm.. a talking bear, sir."
"A TALKING BEAR??"
"Not at first! At first it simply charged out of the brush, roaring loudly! I tried to take up a defensive position, and knocked it on the head with my hammer! That is when it responded with 'ow! What did you do that for??'. I could not believe my ears! After all, a bear that can talk? That's impossible!"
"ARE YOU LYING TO ME BOY??"
"No sir! I swear!"
"WELL WHAT DID YOU SAY??"
"I told it that I hit it because it was charging at me! That is when the creature apologized to me, and said, 'Allow me to introduce myself! I am Short-Tooth!' So I told her my name and my rank. She said she was in need of a good man of my abilities and virtues, and asked if I would help her for a most serious matter. The matter, she said, was of utmost importance, a matter of life and death. By my honor, I was obliged to assist this creature in need. She said a hunter was tracking her, not far behind, all because of a fair deal she had made for some food to feed her cubs. She showed me the food which appeared to be a wide assortment of donuts, sir!"
"DONUTS?!"
"Donuts, sir! I told her I would do anything I could to help, and she said, 'Anything?'. I said of course!, so she explained that to the east was a guard tower among which she was certain she could hide among, if only she had a suitable suit of armor with which to blend in! I was unsure at first, her being a large bear, how could she resemble an armored man at such a size? Yet she was very persuasive, so I reluctantly relinquished my armor for her protection. Then she gave me these pair of bear slippers, and said I should go a separate direction to trick the hunter. She gave me a donut to eat along the way, and said I should meet her at the guard tower once the hunter had passed by. I must admit sir, despite how ill-fitted the armor was upon her, and how much fur stuck out between the plates, she looked quite convincingly like a paladin. When I went my separate way she looked back and told me to remember to walk on all four to 'make it more convincing'. So as she instructed I got down on my feet and hands and crawled through the forest in my knickers until I heard a man approaching from the west.
"I turned and saw a man who had the appearance of a ranger, I believe. He took one look at me and groaned in despair. He said his name was Tserim Arryth, and that the bear had tricked me out of my armor! I asked him what deal he had made with the bear that resulted in the loss of his donuts, and he said reluctantly, 'It's a long story, okay??' And, when I returned to the guard post, as the ranger had warned me, the bear was nowhere to be seen. She tricked me, sir!"
As the initiate fell silent, the commander stared at him from behind his shut visor.
"Donut thieves? Talking bears? That is THE WORST EXCUSE I HAVE EVER HEARD INITIATE!" As he yelled, the visor would occassionally bounce up enough to catch a glimpse of his reddened faced. "IF YOU WANT TO BE A PART OF THIS ORDER YOU HAD BETTER SHAPE UP! YOU HAD BETTER GET YOUR ARMOR BACK! WE DO NOT ACCEPT HALF-WITS IN THIS GROUP! COME BACK WITH YOUR ARMOR OR DON'T COME BACK AT ALL!!! GET OUT"!
Shaken, the initiate bolted for the barracks, where he remained, lamenting the sad loss of his armor. His only desire was to fight in the name of virtue among his fellow paladins. Were there any crafters that could help restore his honor and place among the Paladins of Trinsic?
"INITIATE! YOUR ARMOR!" the commander barked.
"Y-yes, commander!", the initiate's voice stuttered out.
"REPORT!"
"It's.. it's a long sto-"
"REPORT!" the commander interrupted.
The initiate hesitated at first, and then, gulping, he began..
"Well sir, it all began just a few days ago when, while carrying out my trials of initiation, I was set upon by, umm.. a talking bear, sir."
"A TALKING BEAR??"
"Not at first! At first it simply charged out of the brush, roaring loudly! I tried to take up a defensive position, and knocked it on the head with my hammer! That is when it responded with 'ow! What did you do that for??'. I could not believe my ears! After all, a bear that can talk? That's impossible!"
"ARE YOU LYING TO ME BOY??"
"No sir! I swear!"
"WELL WHAT DID YOU SAY??"
"I told it that I hit it because it was charging at me! That is when the creature apologized to me, and said, 'Allow me to introduce myself! I am Short-Tooth!' So I told her my name and my rank. She said she was in need of a good man of my abilities and virtues, and asked if I would help her for a most serious matter. The matter, she said, was of utmost importance, a matter of life and death. By my honor, I was obliged to assist this creature in need. She said a hunter was tracking her, not far behind, all because of a fair deal she had made for some food to feed her cubs. She showed me the food which appeared to be a wide assortment of donuts, sir!"
"DONUTS?!"
"Donuts, sir! I told her I would do anything I could to help, and she said, 'Anything?'. I said of course!, so she explained that to the east was a guard tower among which she was certain she could hide among, if only she had a suitable suit of armor with which to blend in! I was unsure at first, her being a large bear, how could she resemble an armored man at such a size? Yet she was very persuasive, so I reluctantly relinquished my armor for her protection. Then she gave me these pair of bear slippers, and said I should go a separate direction to trick the hunter. She gave me a donut to eat along the way, and said I should meet her at the guard tower once the hunter had passed by. I must admit sir, despite how ill-fitted the armor was upon her, and how much fur stuck out between the plates, she looked quite convincingly like a paladin. When I went my separate way she looked back and told me to remember to walk on all four to 'make it more convincing'. So as she instructed I got down on my feet and hands and crawled through the forest in my knickers until I heard a man approaching from the west.
"I turned and saw a man who had the appearance of a ranger, I believe. He took one look at me and groaned in despair. He said his name was Tserim Arryth, and that the bear had tricked me out of my armor! I asked him what deal he had made with the bear that resulted in the loss of his donuts, and he said reluctantly, 'It's a long story, okay??' And, when I returned to the guard post, as the ranger had warned me, the bear was nowhere to be seen. She tricked me, sir!"
As the initiate fell silent, the commander stared at him from behind his shut visor.
"Donut thieves? Talking bears? That is THE WORST EXCUSE I HAVE EVER HEARD INITIATE!" As he yelled, the visor would occassionally bounce up enough to catch a glimpse of his reddened faced. "IF YOU WANT TO BE A PART OF THIS ORDER YOU HAD BETTER SHAPE UP! YOU HAD BETTER GET YOUR ARMOR BACK! WE DO NOT ACCEPT HALF-WITS IN THIS GROUP! COME BACK WITH YOUR ARMOR OR DON'T COME BACK AT ALL!!! GET OUT"!
Shaken, the initiate bolted for the barracks, where he remained, lamenting the sad loss of his armor. His only desire was to fight in the name of virtue among his fellow paladins. Were there any crafters that could help restore his honor and place among the Paladins of Trinsic?