The Stalker Watches

[Kardel 1054]

 

 

The Dwarven Legionnaires marched through the rocky terrain of the fog-ridden woods next to Kal'Ithrun. The thick canopy of dark leaves and the constant fog that lingered at the foot of the trees choked sound as well as light from traveling across the forest floor. The dwarves stayed next to each other, expecting an attack at any second. The party consisted of many young legionnaires, a kha trophy hunter, and something else. SOMETHING would be the best word to describe the disguised Harbringer Orokana, who trailed behind the party like a shadow. They had set off to train: they were hunting a monster sighted in these parts

 

As the dwarves marched through the muddy forest floor, where no grass grew because of the lack of sunlight, a stench like death itself clung on to the foggy air. "Wut be dat" said a legionnaire, as they drew closer to a farmhouse. "Manure" another answered "Sumun' mayde un farm o'er 'ere".

 

The sun was disappearing, making the forest too dark to navigate through, so the dwarves decided to spend the night in the abandoned farmhouse, until something red caught their eye. They decided to go investigate, as the stench got more intense the closer they got to it. Then, before them, lay the carcass of a cow, its guts ripped apart and its entrails spilled.

 

A young beardling ran over to the side and vomited, as other, older soldiers tried to hold their vomit in. The way the animal had been massacred was inhuman, like some sort of creature had dug gigantic teeth into it and bitten large parts off. The Kha trophy hunter kneeled by it, and felt the blood "Eets awn owld keel. . ." Zahrer Irongrider looked down at it "Aye. . .check da 'ouse. . .maybe dere be mure clues en dere." The dwarves rushed into the house. . .and there, out of the window. . .

 

 

. . .they saw it for the first time, the Stalker was Watching.

 

Many dwarves screamed, many ran, but the disguise harbringer simply conjured up a ball of frost and flung it at the creature. The thing ran with great flexibility, using its hind legs like arms.

 

The dwarves caught their breath, as some tried to run, but were stopped by their commander. "C'mon ya dolts! Ye afraid o' sum lil' DEMUN? Get yer arses op! W'ere killn da fing!"

 

And so the dwarves continued marching up the mountain, deeper into the forest.

 

 

Halfway up, they encountered some sort of unfinished dwarven city, a vault of sorts that branched off into many caves. "Wut be dis?" asked on dwarf, as there it appeared again. Against the faint torchlight its pale skin gleamed, as those eyeless sockets stared at the dwarves from the confines of the stony chambers in which it resided. It appeared like thunder, and drew back into the caves as quick as it came, a blinding flash of white.

 

 

 

The dwarves tried to chase it into the cave, and though they had it cornered, but they found nothing. . .nothing but the creature staring at them from the entrance of the cave in back of them. They thought it was going to lunge, but the creature knew its limits, it hisses a deafening screech, and climbed out of the cave, as the dwarves hastily followed it.

 

Orokana was one step ahead. It rushed forth, floating above the ground as quickly as it allowed itself to the creature, but yet again this nasty thing escaped, and Orokana's blue flames could not kill it. The creature fled further up a steep slope to the top of the mountain.

 

Tired, but afraid to rest, the dwarves marched up the mountains. They were being worn down by this creature, and when they reached the other side, they found another gory sight. They found a female boar, ravaged like the cow they found, but there was something different here. Deep within the entrails, there was a silver piece, like a tooth, but sharper.

 

A legionnaire, suffering from the eternal greed of the dwarves knelt down and tries to steal the silver, but he was caught by his commander. "Wut be dis?" asked Zahrer, as he turned to the Kha for another opinion "Wut be dis?" The Kha looked the object over, and knelt over the boar. "Dis eessa awrrowhead. . . silvaw awrrowhead. . .sawmwan trai taw shwoot et." 

 

The trophy collector looked about, and traced the flight of an arrow downwards, by the forest at the foot of the mountain they were standing on. It took most of the day, but in the end the foudn the source of an arrow. An Adunian, crushed against a pine tree clutching on to a hunting bow, lay dead. His throat was slit as if something had cut it with a knife.

 

Night fell, and the dwarves made camp, as the howl of a wolf was heard in the distance. The howl went on for around a minute, as it turned into an agressive snarl. Soon, it was a number of barks, and then, the whimper of a dying dog. Moments later, the headless body of the canine creature rolled down the side of the mountain, into the dwarven camp. 

 

The dwarves screamed and some drew their weapons, as the same gaping red eyesockets popped up above them, higher up the foot of the mountain. The dwarves spent no time and gave chase, the monster moving at a blinding speed. The legion followed it up the mountains, and eventually came by a clearing, where some sort of structure sat.

 

 

 

The dwarves looked about, but their strange companion Orokana had other things in mind. The Harbringer communicated with the creature through telepathy, and the creature screamed eerie messages into its mind. After listening to what the creature had to say, the harbringer revealed it to the mortals surrounding it in a cold, harsh voice.

 

"The Watcher wants sacrifice"

 

The dwarves went mad, they turned around, expecting an attack from Orokana now. They did not know who to fear more, the monster hunting them, or the monster within their own ranks.

 

"This is its master's altar. . .it wants you to leave or die."

 

One dwarf tried to break the altar, another attacked Orokana. At this point, the Watcher had its enemies where it wanted them, and drew in for the kill. Meanwhile, the Kha Trophy Hunter was concerned. If such a creature could rip cows to bits and piece, imagine what it can do to cats or dwarves? it leaped forth, and caught the weakest dwarf it could find. After a bloody brawl, the kha emerged victorious and severed the dwarf's head, throwing the body into the forest for the creature.

 

And the watcher was satisfied.

 

 

It seized the dwarf's carcass and ripped it up, retrieving the heart and swallowing it whole. It hissed something in its own, dark language, as the dwarves retreated casually. A creature such as this could frighten even the bravest of souls. The creature left, satisfied with the flesh sacrifice.

 

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"Khavan'zo'yanazz" it hissed, as it handed the Harbringer a small, yellow object, and pointed to the altar in back of it.

 

 

The Harbringer nodded "We shall converse in the future, Khavan,".

 

The creature nodded, and jumped back into the canopy, as Orokana looked at the gem it had received by the creature.

 

"Why. . .amongst mortals this is the most useful one I have met. . ." it whispered, as it faded into nothingness.

 

 

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((This was a fun little monster hunting event we had with the legion! Thanks to everybody that attended, and remember, you can try to hunt down the Bloody Stalker yourself, as well as many other monsters part of the dwarven monster board of Kal'ithrun. Its fun RP, and for the REALLY hard ones the rewards are pretty good. Happy hunting y'all!))

[Hanrahan 2983]

The ghost of Hanrahan giggles. Any stone circle in Anthos, he built. Silly dwarves!

[Malaise 1570]

((The Rake gets me every damn time.  ))

[A Bunch of Mimics (Knyghtfalcon) 88]

Orokana took the orb, and the information he had gathered, back to his icy home. The Harbinger began planning, planning how to use his new found creatures as allies and tools of destruction. The mortals had not seen the last of these, Orokana would make sure of that. As it departed the lands of the creature, returning to the dwarves and disguising itself yet again, thoughts already entered its mind of the coming doom...

 

[The Fact Core 511]

((I hope your are not in the scary nut tree forest :O))

[Birdwhisperer 1174]

Moved to the Great Library. It shall be sorted into appropriate category shortly.