As darkness fell the four travellers were bathed in the glow of the campfire, the glint firelight reflecting off of Olsteads plate armour was distorted by the green blood fresh from the last orc he had killed... The scars on his face read like a book of battles fought and won... As Jomark soaked up some gravy with the last of his bread and downed it, Aeolys began to speak... Tell us of the days when you first started adventuring Olstead, his youthful voice all full of hope and excitement... His pulse was still racing from the battle shortly before they set up camp... Yes tell us of the old days piped Lyssa who was fetching some arrows... OK, OK Olstead grumbled as he took a swig of ale then studied the rim of his tankard as if to be profound... Then his face grew taught as he thought of the sagas of his life. after a long minute he began to speak with gravity in his voice that lent a somberness to the story...
I had left my smithing days behind to search out treasure in distant lands, after years of repairing the armour of travellers who would recount tales of such wonders treasures they had seen in the lands beyond Trinsic, and the glory they found defeating those monsters who hoarded it... It was the Tuesday after the festival of the defenders, the streets had been full of warriors there to celebrate the battle of the walls, when the defenders of Trinsic held the city against the forces of the orc warlord Gorebash Eadbitta... The ale houses were full of bards singing songs of bravery, and I had just crafted the finest warmace I have ever forged, I gathered up some armor I had made for defence when travelling the to and from the mountains with ore for smelting, and took some bread and a flacon of ale, and I was off to see the world...
Not fully realizing the dangers of the landscape at large, I took off on my own, and headed for the nearest dungeon... I had heard tales and seen the bands of warriors heading west past my favorite mining spot in search of a dungeon called despise, it was said that in the lowest bowels of the labyrinth tunnels was a dragons lair... It was also said that the upper levels were populated by fairly mundane creatures consisting of mostly headless, now I had killed the odd headless in my day whilst transporting ore to be processed at the smithy, and so thought that if I kept to the upper levels I should be capable of handling myself... With the mountains nearing my plan set, I started my search for the entrance to the cave... For the first couple hours, I scoured every inch of the mountains for sign of entrance, to no avail, but then I started to see the discarded remnants of past expeditions, the rucksack of monsters, discarded torches, bandages and empty bottles that no doubt once contained healing spirits...
As I followed these signs, a sense that perhaps this was not such a good idea crept into the back of my mind, but I persisted on, reassuring myself that I would not need these things for after all I was not going to go that deep into the dungeon, and headless were likely all I was going to see... It was nearly nightfall when I first laid eyes on the entrance, strewn about were countless bottles and other refuse, this should have been my second warning not to enter... Reasoning that it soon would be no darker outside the cavern than inside, I crept inside, my warmace in hand and tower shield ready, the stench of death was about this place, but I paid no heed, to me it was the smell of dead monsters... Olstead paused raising his nose to the sky as if to sniff the stench of the monsters on the air, convinced that they were nowhere in sight, he took another slug of ale... My first encounter with the beasts of the dread gloom was not very exciting by adventuring standards, a sewer rat dropped out of a hole before I got five paces into the darkness pushed out by another of his kind... With a startled jump, I swung my mace flattening the creature... That was it, I was a bonafied adventurer,
Olsdead commented dryly, with a bit of sarcasm in his voice that he reserved for the nobles who like to commission adventuring groups to escort them on grand adventures and then tell the tale of how they single-handedly slain the beasts of the dungeon saving their retainers from certain doom... As I crept deeper into the gloom, I heard them first I think, that warbling sound made by only one creature, the headless, but this sounded different, like perhaps two were having a conversation... I tried my best to creep up on where I thought the sounds were coming from, but in a cavern sound is distorted, and bounced an such and a sound from only ten feet away can seem like several yards... I almost tripped over what I thought was a rock only to find myself in the middle of an encampment, the warbling more frantic now, I caught sight of them, there must have been at least ten of the buggers lumbering towards me from all directions at once...
Faced with the odds, I ran towards the nearest one, swinging my mace to keep it off balance, I bashed his neibor with my shield, and made a break for it... Not knowing what I was doing, I was heading deeper into the dungeon, I had not taken any precautions such as tying a string to the entrance to find my way out... As I proceeded deeper into the cavern, I could hear other sounds sounds I had not heard before chittering, and hissing... Just as I was sure I had lost the pack of headless I found myself confronted by a sticky substance, what was this I muttered catching myself in mid thought as the answer came to me, webs I had heard tales of giant spiders roaming caverns such as these and to my knowledge they were solitary creatures a plus for me I thought surely if I was careful I could take one of these creatures down...
Then in the half gloom I saw one of the monstrosities for the first time, it raised itself to its hind legs and was half again taller than me... I raised my shield to brace the blow from its fangs when I felt a sharp pain jab me in the wrist, its fang had gone clean through my heater shield, and pierced my flesh... I struck back blinding it I think, and considering the pain I had, I made a run for it yet again... deeper into the dungeon I fled, not stopping till I was quite sure it had stopped following me... Where was all this treasure the adventures had spoken of, I had not seen one sight of loot... I now realized that I was not ready for this not to mention illequipped... I decided to head for the entrance, but which way, I was in no hurry to face that beast again so I thought I would just kinda go around it, but I did not count on a side passage leading to a dead end... I turned round and went back the way I came, but having no sense of the proper direction, I turned the wrong way, and headed deeper into the tunnels, by this time, the wound on my arm was festering, I had been poisoned by the spider, and soon its effects would start to incapacitate me...
As I rounded a corner, I hear the sounds of battle, and saw faint torchlight ahead... I drew my mace, and as quietly as I could stalked up to the battle, when I got in sight of the battle, I saw two other adventurers being attacked by four lizardmen... On of the adventurers was wearing robes, and from his hand throwing what appeared to be great gouts of molten rock, the other on horseback was wielding a massive halbeard... Seeing the odds, and with the poison making my judgement a little less than normal, I rushed headlong into the battle yelling as loudly as I could, You'll not take me without a fight you abominable dungeon...
As I neared the first lizardman, who was attempting to spear the rider, I bashed him to the ground with my shield, then drawing my mace up to its full height, I let it fly in the familiar arc I had used all my life pounding metal into the shape of armor and weapons... I kept bashing at it, till I lost consciousness from the poison the others would tell me, but I know know it was the dance of life, when you for a short time become a perfect instrument of your craft... The adventurers said it looked as though I had been forging a open helm, or other such piece of craftsmanship, for I kept hammering till its head was flat as a blade, long after it was dead I continued bashing... I finally collapsed to the ground the poison overtaking my system and knocking me into unconsciousness... Fortunately the mage was well versed in his arts and cured me without much effort tapping into the magic that permeates this land... I was told that he opened a moongate and the rider carried my limp body through, I woke up the next morning in a strange bed, one that reminded me of the Travellers Inn in Trinsic, I would come to find out that it was in fact the Sweet Dreams Inn in the bustling town of Britain...
The adventurers had paid for a weeks stay in advance for me... On my rucksack, was my armor, and weapon, and fixed to my shield was a note with an address... I got dressed and headed off to the address, it was to a house that I came to find was the property of the rider, once there he explained that I should not be going into dungeons by myself, that it was dangerous when you know what you are doing, and are well equipped... As we shared a meal and a tankard of ale, I told him my story, and my plans to continue adventuring to which he replied, If you are going to continue adventuring then at least take this, it was given to me by my mentor, and good friend Bathias it is his journal, and guide to adventuring...
And with that I was on my way, I studied that manuscript and learned my lessons well it was not long after that I left Britain with an expedition to the dungeon known as Covetous, much better prepared... I was an adventurer now, and so I adventured... Olstead paused a moment, then reached for his rucksack, and pulled a leather bound journal from its depths, this is that journal, and now I think it is time that I passed its wisdom on... Without another word, he handed the book to Aeolys, Learn its lessons well young warrior, for it can save your life as it has mine...
-Marcalla... Primarch, Iron Priest TAA