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Ever "God's mercenary", Bishop Vitelleschi collects his payment for defending Rome and rides back to Recanati. A tithe of his reward goes to poorbox in his home church, and some portion of the remainder he keeps to enrich his own estate, and the rest he uses to finance his own company of loyal men at arms.
I will buy you all you can drink, my Lord Perpireen! Heheheh...
Vitelleschi raises Sanctifier in salute to the Champions. Bravo, Cardinal D'Borja! Bravo, Johann, and Ogon Fox! Brava, Princess Dracul, and Mwikali! Brava, Habiba! Bravo, Lord Perpireen and Abe no Toshiro! We have saved Rome from the dragon! Wormwood has fled to lick his wounds... I fear we did not kill the beast... But it knows, now, the quality of Rome's defenders, and will think long and hard before it tries such a thing a second time! The Bishop of Recanati flies to each of the heroes and embraces them firmly, laughing with relief and the thrill of victory.
The bishop reels, savaged by the great dragon, but does not yet FALL! OUCH!! YOWWW!! OOF!! HA!! OOF!! *WWHHUUFF!!*
Okay, that hurt...
Flying the last sixty feet to melee with the great dragon, the Fighting Bishop of Recanati smites Wormwood with Sanctifier How do you like THEM APPLES, WORM!!
YOUR BREATH STINKS OF EVIL AND FOOLISHNESS, LITTLE WORM!!
Also cognizant of the Lord's blessing upon him, Bishop Vitelleschi slings Grayflame over his shoulder and draws his Holy Avenger Sanctifier, then flies to close the 400-foot distance still remaining between himself and the dragon... See, "Little Worm?" The Bear and the Fox are both hungry! YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED IN YOUR HOLE!!
Bishop Vitelleschi flies up above the bell tower of Saint Peter's Church and shouts a challenge to the gargantuan red dragon, in Draconic: I AM BISHOP VITELLESCHI!! I SERVE GOD AND HOLY MOTHER CHURCH!! YOU COME TO BURN THIS CHURCH, YOU GOTTA GO THROUGH ME FIRST, DRAGON OF HELL!! COME ON!! I SMITE THEE IN THE NAME OF SAINT MICHAEL AND THE VIRGIN MOTHER!!
Taking aim at the monstrous red wyrm with his magic composite longbow Grayflame, with the most potent kind of dragon bane brilliant energy arrow nocked on the string, he lets fly one arrow,...
Spying the red dragon in the eastern sky, Bishop Vitelleschi orders his terrified squire to sound the alarm... Pale-faced and quaking, the young squire pulls the ropes to ring the bells of Saint Peter's... Bishop Vitelleschi begins to prepare himself for battle, praying to Saint Michael to ward him against dragonfire, then quaffing various potions--fly, haste, etc. To his squire, in Italian: That's good enough, my son... Now, run! Take cover in the catacombs! I will come and find you once the danger is past... The young squire bows and races down the spiral stairs of the belfry...
Bishop Vitelleschi remains above ground, posted in the belfry of Saint Peter's Church, watching for the first sight of the dreaded fire dragon with his magical bow and dragon bane arrows in hand...
Bowed head, eyes closed, clasping the pope's hands in prayer: Amen! Releasing the hands of the pope, the fighting bishop of Recanati smiles reassuringly at the worried-looking Eugene... Italian: Trust in God, Your Holiness... and trust in this... He draws his Holy Avenger longsword and holds it in salute to the pope... Sanctifier never fails... And this Wormwood will not like my dragonbane brilliant energy arrows ignoring all his impressive iron-hard scales and biting straight into his evil dragon heart! HAHAHAHOHOHOHO!! Be of good cheer, Holy Father! The full-plate-clad bishop claps his gauntleted hands and bows. Just food for thought, but, yes, Your Holiness, we must begin to withdraw the populace from above ground, and secure as many as we can in the catacombs until the danger is past...
On Thursday afternoon, January 31st, as hailstones hammer the slate rooftops of Rome, the bellicose Bishop Vitelleschi of Recanati meets with the Holy Father to make confession and to express concerns he has regarding the coming dragon attack. After giving his confession and receiving absolution from Pope Eugenius, Bishop Vitelleschi speaks to His Holiness about the coming holocaust... Italian: Holy Father, I fear that the enemy will have heard that the plot to burn Rome with the vile breath of Wormwood the Fire Dragon on the Feast of Saint Valentine has been unearthed. Would the Church of Lucifer be so mad as to go on with the plot as planned? Would they not rather, cunningly, change the hour at which the Holocaust is to fall, to catch the city off guard? It is the tactical way... It is what I would do, were I the Antichrist...
Visiting the Holy Father in Rome, which he fought for during the Schism, the formidable fighting bishop of Recanati, Giovanni Vitelleschi, pays his respects to Cardinal Lucius D'Borja at his Palazzo the very night the Champions return to Rome. He attends the Cardinal's table, feasting on steamed lobster in drawn butter, filets of roasted zebra from Africa, and other choice dishes. To Lucius: Your Grace, I thank you for your hospitality tonight, when you have so many unusual and exotic guests from afar! It pleases me greatly to attend your generous table at this fortuitous moment! It seems we have less than a moon's cycle before the dreaded fire dragon, Wormwood, falls upon our beloved and holy city of Rome. You have my assurance that I will be here to defend her against her enemies, with all the soldiers I can muster... with His Excellency, Duke De'Medici's generous financial contributions, of course... |
