A stranger no more

The last of the beastmen fall, and the party now stands in a clearing. Tal is standing off to the side, conversing with Clayton, and Belak is kneeling in the middle of the bodies, bleeding profusely. Jornath is standing in the middle of the carnage, grasping his emerald-bladed sword, breathing eavily, while Jocosa and Myrage look none the worse for wear. Blake and Rondad also seem to have escaped with only minor scratches. Indeed, only Belak seems to have taken any serious hits at all.

Seeing the battle over, Tallandril turns to Clayton and says, "Perhaps I should meet the rest of your friends?" Suiting actions to words, he walks over to where Belak is leaning on the ground. Helping him up, though grunting with the effort, Tallandril says simply, "Thank you" and he means it. A touch embarrassed, since he is now in the relative center of a group of people he doesn't know, he says, "Um, my name's Tal. Pleasure to make your acquaintance."

With something akin to battle-lust, melancholy, and a grim smile washing itself of Jornath's countenance, he peruses the party, and rushes over to Belak. Crying out in loud prayers for Tyr's blessing upon those wounded in Righteous Battle, Jornath lays his hands on Belak's body. All immediately notice Belak's wounds stop bleeding, and all but the most serious close up completely. "Let none dispute the Might of Tyr! He is All-Powerful and Just!"

"I may not be the easiest to get along with, but I'm really starting to like yooze. Thanks for the assistance...perhaps Tyr isn't that bad after all. Perhaps Tyr and Clanggedin are good ol buddies up there"

Jacosa reigns in her dancing stallion and dexterously slides from his back, reigns held firmly in her hand. She extends a very military bow to Tal<taps heels together and slightly bows her upper body, eyes never leaving Tal's> and smiles upon straightening, "My name is Jacosa Huxley, m'lord Tal <her eyes dance with mischeif and breifly slide towards Myrage at the word `m'lord'>. How did you manage to become so...beseiged...by those wretched beasts?"

"Well, m'lady," Tallandril began, she could just be one, you never knew... "I was wandering through these woods, quite caught up in their beauty when the little vermin, if I may call them such, decided I'd make a good dinner, or something of the like. They shot one of those poisoned darts which Belak seemed to have no problem with into me, and I'm afraid that my slight body weight doesn't help me fight toxins off very easily." Seeing the group is headed to Shadowdale, Tallandril says, "If none of you have any really strong objections to a little more company... I'm getting a touch hungry myself, vand I don't recall ever having visited Shadowdale. Besides, I still feel somewhat indebted to you," waving off Jornath's objections, he says, "I am good at getting into places others can't, and you never know when another sword may come in handy." So saying, he looks askance at the group.

"Of course they are! I mean really, who else is fit to fight at The Lord of Justice's side? Not to mention the fact that Tyr needs someone around who he can whip at arm-wrestling!!!"

Belak gives a deep hearty laugh as a response. "Me thinks this is going to be a long, enjoyable friendship!"

Blake looks up from pulling his hatchet out of the green cat thing, to see the dwarf and the elf embracing, and says "By the Great Mother, this is a sign." Wiping the blood of his hatchet he walks over to the group.

Blake turns to the party with a look of fanaticism in his eye and preaches "Our God's are with us! May Chauntea the Great Mother bless this ground where Dwarf has spilt blood for Elf." He then pulls out an acorn from a pouch and plants it right where the elf and dwarf had been standing.

Blake mounts his horse and says, "We ride to Shadowdale, for tomorrow we battle the forces of evil!"

Jacosa smiles at the newcomer and shrugs a little, "You are more than welcome to join us, the more the merrier as far as I am concerned. We seek to protect the Dalelands from untoward forces and untold dangers. But I'm sure it'll test our mettle."

So saying, she mounts again her fine black. Looking down at the newcomer she asks, "Do you have a horse, Tal?"

Myrage stands shakily, shrugging the fallen bodies aside. The poison coursed through his blood, making him ache, he felt his tendons tighten with the strictneen. He immediately recognised the symptoms, and motioned to Az' . The dog came padding over to the ranger, an apparently worried look on it's canine face. "Beruzia, go find me some Beruzia leaves." The dog was running before Myrage had even finished his sentence.

The servant of Mielikki stood shakily, and walked to the newcomer, "Greetings friend." Myrage offered his hand to the elf, which was taken and shook in the usual warrior wrist shake. "And that....." Myrage pointed after the disappearing dog, ".....Is Az'Gash."

Myrage turned to include the whole group as he spoke, "Twas a fine fight. It would appear that the majority of the Pantheon is to be having a representitive in this quest........Let all who stand against our creed, fall in a flurry of Justice dealt by our united blades." Myrage smiled as the 'flowery' speech left his lips, before winking at the dwarf, "And for all the Dwarves here, Let us kick some goblinoid ass." Myrages' grin lasted until Az' came darting back out of the undergrowth, assorted leaves and plants hanging fom his mouth. The ranger dropped his hand to the flank of the dog, stroking him softly, before retreiving the leaves. He passed a few to Tallandril, and began to chew on a couple himself. The ache left his joints almost instantly, and he turned to retreive his horse. "Let us waste no time, evil lurks and we're to be needing a haven for the night, before we start out tomorrow."

With that, Myrage urged the great stallion into a leisurely trot toward town . Chewing on a few of the leaves Myrage had given him--they did help alleviate some of the symptoms--Tallandril turned to Jacosa, and with a fair imitation of a courtly bow says, "Nay m'lady, I have no horse, but the gods gave me two good feet, and plenty of forest to roam in. With the trees, I should make nearly the same time as you until we reach shadowdale wherein I can hopefully procure a horse." Retrieving his thrown dagger from the humanoid corpse and wiping it clean, Tallandril says, "Perhaps we should be going, there's no telling when these things will start smelling the place up like death. Never did like the smell of death..." He begins to meander after Myrage towards shadowdale. You notice that he certainly seems capable of maintaining his pace for long distances, and with Myrage's healing herbs curing him of the poison, he even begins to trot along side the horses, not even breathing hard for all his lack of musculature.

Having completed this ceremonial act, Jornath once again bestrides his horse and begins his battle with the equine creature to stay aboard while the group travels to Shadowdale. As he looks down to Tal's progress, a small look of envy does begin to creep in.....

The calm before the storm