"You know werewolves?" Jominda asks surprised.
"Of course I do! I'm a werewolf hunter. Come along and you'll see one too!" Duristan boasts, despite the eye-rolling of Delgros.
"One moment!" Kendra tells the hunters, before grabbing Herm by the arm and taking him aside for a whisper.
"I'm not sure it's a good deed to hunt a sentient creature like this. I'm unsure of their alignment, but what if they're innocent, and just trying to defend their home against the invaders of these forests: these hunters?"
She looks the paladin in the eyes. "I'm not saying we shouldn't do this. I'm just not certain of our moral right to do so."
Jominda is all smiles. "That would be exiting!"
But her smile vanishes. "I can't follow you on a hunt with this coach."
"I'll take you along on my horse." Duristan offers and hold out a hand to the fair maiden.
Jominda takes the hand and with an elegant move she hops from the coach on the horse behind the handsome noble.
"We can go and observe what is going on and make our decision at that time. I agree that hunting sentient beings like a Werewolf does not feel like hunting for food. I have to go to protect Jominda who seems a bit taken by that young man." Herm says to Kendra
"Don't dawdle. Come along! I'll treat you to dinner as well as pay for your accommodations at Ascanor upon our return from the hunt later that day." Duristan tells.
"Hope nobody is forgetting about our other lord back here?" Harrold says indicating the bundle on the cart. "Mr Courtaud, I can try throw the body over the wall to you, or you could let me in."
"Do you have any proof, that this is the lord you claim he is?" Courtaud demands to know.
"Well there is hiss invitation, and I guess at this point I am his retinue, so the letter applies to me too." Harrold says finding and digging out the piece of paper. "It would also be a very strange ruse to come all the way here with a body just in case you didn't accept our invitation."
"You expect me to accept this bloody mess as an invitation to the lodge?" the porter replies in disgust without touching the thing.
"I expect you to look after your guests. And he is a guest as per this invitation."
"So what is this supposed Lord's name?" Courtaud asks, eying the paper from afar.
"One... Echtmoor Dravin" Harrold says straining past the bloodstains
"I'll go and check if we expected someone with that name." Courtaud tells. Then he leaves to the main building of the lodge.
Harrold stands outside the gates for quite some time - the guards make sure he stays there - as suddenly another man who seems agitated comes out of the house.
"Let me through, I heard Echtmoor finally arrived." he demands and pushes past the guards who make way for him.
Seeing Harrold standing in front of an empty coach still holding the bloody reservation he staggers. "Oh, no! So the worst has happened?" he asks, with little hope to get a no as an answer.
"Unfortunately so. We found him killed by a weaverworm."
Kendra nods at Herm. "Will you be ok?" She asks Harrold, torn between staying with the older man or going with Herm and Jominda.
"By a worm?" Craydon inquires, not knowing what that creature is. He takes a look into the sleeping bag at the back of the coach. "Yes it is Echtmoor. This is horrible."
"Guards, bring the body inside, we need to schedule a burial for my friend."
"And you sir, please come inside with me. You're my guest. You need to tell me everything about the circumstances you found him." Graydon invites Harrold.
"A weaverworm..." Harrold says, "I will be fine. Thank you. Will you?"
"I hope so," Kendra says, giving Harrold an encouraging nod before hurrying to catch up with the already moving hunting party.
The guards do as told and Graydon takes Harrold with him. On the way inside they meet Courtaud.
"Porter, take care that the coach and horses of this gentleman are taken care of." he orders the halfling.
Courtaud is annoyed, that these two nobles crossed his plans. But he has to live with it and turns to pass the task onto the stable master.
Duristan and Delgros begin to trot in a westerly direction. After a few miles, they reach the spot where the dead stag was found. The trail leads to a small clearing, where the trampled ground and snapped brush show signs of a great struggle. The soil is soaked with blood, and more has splashed upon the tree trunks and leaves. Despite the telltale evidence, Delgros’s jaw drops and his eyes dart wildly with shock at the situation. "It’s gone!" he cries. Delgros jumps off his horse and starts to search the area.
are found in the clearing, besides those of the stag. Frustratingly, most are only partial prints and all are badly trampled.
Kendra introduces herself to the two nobles during the ride to the clearing.
"You act surprised, Master Delgross?" Kendra says. "Would you hang about after taking down a hunt? I doubt werewolves are witless beasts that make a kill and then fall asleep at the scene once their belly is full."
"I agree with you ma'm, but the situation was different. And we haven't seen any werewolves, just some people jumped to conclusions. But a stag that size simply gone? A normal animal would devour it right here. And a hunter would take it apart, leaving the inedible parts." Delgros answers while searching the ground.
Jominda's manages to take her keen eye off Duristan. "That is interesting."
"There are two sets of footprints besides those of the stag. Are all animals extra large in this forest? Because that could be prints from dire wolves, just with too long claws. And these here look like dire boar."
"Wolves, I knew it! It has to be werewolves!" Duristan concludes staring at the prints Jominda points out.
"Does anyone know what kind of tracks those are? Why do you think Werewolves Mr. Ariesir?"
"The fair lady here told it's large wolf prints. What more proof do you need?" Duristan replies, unpatiently looking around where to find them with his silver sword drawn.
Delgros follows the pointed out prints and the signs of recent passage in the bushes. He disappears in the shrub, only to reappear a moment later - running - and shouts "Go for cover - dire boars."
Behind him you can hear the sound of some angry boars and the breaking of branches where they come through the undergrowth.
The horses become nervous and want to run away.
Jominda hides behind Duristan and reasies a bomb, to throw it at the first boar that comes into reach.
Kendra holds her horse in check, though barely,
The large boar breakes out of the shrubs and charges Duristan. It is hit hard by the bomb, but it isn't stopped by it, and rips open Duristan's leg.
Duristan swings his sword, paying the boar back in same coin.
The second boar goes after the fleeing Delgros, who gets also ripped open with the fear inducing tusks.
The third one goes for Herm's horse, but the horse jumps to the side the last moment.
Herm dismounts and draws his hammer waiting for the enemy to come at them.
Kendra knows Herm can handle himself, so she steers her horse past Duristan and touches him on the shoulder as she rides by, giving him the Seer's insight. She looks around for where her help is needed now.
Delgros takes a step away from the beast and peppers it with arrows.
Jominda keeps firing bombs. This time at the boar that faces Herm.
The boar again hurts Duristan badly.
Duristan heroicly stands, and stabs at the beast with his sword.
The boar takes the fire as well as the stabbing from Duristan without flinching.
Delgros also has to take another cut, hurting him badly. But stepping away again he ends the beast with some more arrows.
Kendra turns the horse around, but as it is confronted with the sight of the dire boars once more, it rears up fiercely. Kendra, who had just let go of the reigns in preperation of casting a spell, tries to grab a hold of anything, but is thrown of the horse instead.
She lands very unceremoniously.
Herm Swings his mighty hammer at the Boar that was attacking his mount.
"These are regular boars or wereboars?" Herm asks hoping his weapon choice was right.
Herm's Hammer works as he is used to. He deals the boar two hard blows, but it's clear, that it can take more.
Kendra falls painfully on her back, her horse taking off without her. Which results in all horses fleeing into the woods.
Herm is lucky with his boar as it again fails to draw blood.
As Herm seems to fare well, Jominda throws another explosive at the boar to save her still handsome noble from more mutilation.
The boar in front of Duristan drops dead.
Kendra gets up, adrenalin fueled, and looks about. Seeing Herm as the only one still in combat, she decides to help by speaking a word of power. she points at the board, and her arms grows gleen shortly before an arrow of green acid flies from her outstretched finger.
Herm Swings his hammer again, just mere seconds after the Acid Dart streaks by him.
"Are these animals common here?" Herm grunts out as he works.
The hide of the boar is too hard for Herm's slightly off bashes.
But Delgros helps out and kills the boar with a few more arrows.
"There are all kinds of strange creatures in the Shudderwood. It has it's name for a reason. But such an assembly of dire boars is not common. I'm glad I was with you and not with the normal noble hunting groups for that." Delgros replies.