When It All Ended Pt. 2

Morgan Moonglow put a hand on Hamm’s shoulder as he fell to his knees and breathed hard, he seemed to be coming down from some sort of panic. She shouted. “Galath!” When the dwarf ran over she spoke again. “Check him out, please.”

“I’d be happy to,” Galath said. “He looks physically alright but mentally… well, we’ll see won’t we?” He pressed his hand to Hamm’s other shoulder and it glowed for a moment and the color returned a bit to Hamm’s cheeks.

“Can you tell us what’s wrong?” Morgan asked. Hamm looked at her helplessly for a moment and then at the five others clustered around. Morgan gave them a look that clearly said to back off.

“I am happy to scout ahead a bit,” William said. He was a big knight in thick, steel armor and Hamm tilted away when he spoke. He ruffled Garth Whispernight’s hair, obviously part of a good-natured rivalry between the halfling and the human. “I’ll take Garth with me. Won’t I, Garth?”

“I guess I could stretch my legs,” Garth said. The way he talked, it sounded like he did not really care much.

Henry whistled for Hengroen and climbed aboard the horse. He rode slowly to allow Garth to keep up. The halfling eyed the horse with some nervousness. That left Galath, Percival Stardane, and Cassandra Oakspring nearby. Galath went back to tend the fire and the cooking he had been doing. Cassandra sat daintily on a log and opened a book. Morgan could see Percy’s eyes give that book an envious look but he stuck by Morgan’s side with a half-smile. She smiled back and turned to the dwarf in front of her who seemed to be coming back to reality.

“Now then,” Morgan said. “Can you tell us what you’re running from? I promise that we can protect you.”

“And we will also believe you,” Percy said. “We have already seen some crazy shit.” He smiled warmly at the man and Hamm couldn’t help but smile back.

“Well, I only saw it for a moment but I swore it saw me and it killed Moira and who knows how many others,” Hamm said. He realized he was still holding the satchel of firewood over his shoulder and he put it down.

“Yes, but what was it?” Morgan asked. The question was kind but firm. She had softened some working alongside her team but that ranger training was ingrained and kept her on task.

“A dragon!” Hamm blurted out. “A green dragon.”

“A dragon!?” Percival said loudly. There was something between fear and excitement in his eyes. Cassandra’s eyes went wide over on the log and her back went absolutely straight. “There hasn’t been a dragon sighting in Eloria for the past two years or so. A green dragon is even rarer. Hmm.” Cassandra was staring into space, seemingly doing the related calculations already.

“It had to be a dragon,” Hamm said. “It couldn’t be anything else.”

“As I said, we believe you, friend,” Percival said. “Besides that, there is no mistaking a dragon for anything else. The green ones are especially vibrant and easily recognized at a distance even by the yokelest of yokels.” Morgan reached over and physically covered his mouth before he could say any more.

“Where is the dragon?” Morgan asked with urgency. She had just let two of her people scout ahead and she was now doubting that decision just a little bit. She knew that William and Garth could take care of themselves but a dragon was a dragon.

“It’s in the capital,” Hamm managed. He was very tired even with Galath’s healing and it almost physically hurt to think back to what he saw.

“The capital?” Morgan asked, her eyes going wide a bit. “That’s about five miles from here.”

“Is it?” Hamm asked, blinking at that realization. He felt a bit safer with that knowledge but also completely out of place.

“And you were there earlier today?” Morgan asked. “That’s quite some run, um, sorry what was your name?”

“Hamm Stoutfire, at your service,” He said. “I owned a shop in the merchant’s district. Well, I guess I still own it if it was not destroyed.”

“I hope it’s still intact,” Morgan said. “Cassandra, please summon the boys back here. We need to gear up and ride on. We might be the only adventurers in the area capable of taking care of this.” Cassandra pressed a finger to her ear. It was an unnecessary gesture that usually signified that she was using a sending spell.

“You’re going to fight it!?” Hamm shouted, his eyes tinged with panic again.

“We’re going to try,” Morgan said.

“Really, it’s lucky we were in the area,” Percy said, pushing Morgan’s hand from his mouth. “We were dealing with a bit of business with some hags and a prophecy and funny enough we ended up fighting a newly minted vampire lord that some other country had dumped here. So we were just riding away from all of that when we met you. See? Lucky.”

“I could do with less of that kind of luck,” Galath said. “You’re never lucky to meet a dragon.”

Morgan covered Percy’s mouth again and gave him a pointed look. “Mr. Stoutfire does not need to know all of our business,” she said. She turned her gaze back toward Hamm. “You have been very kind to give us this information. We will be riding on to the capital. Do you have somewhere safe to go in the meantime?”

“I think I still have a cousin in Stoneswallow near here,” Hamm said. “Besides, it might be better to be underground right now.”

“Probably a good call,” Galath said. “And yet.”

Morgan shot him a look and he smiled and shrugged. He was already carrying over a bit of sausage and bread which he handed to Hamm along with what seemed to be a full waterskin. Hamm bit into the food without a second glance but did manage to mumble something thankful with his mouthful. With an uneasy glance back the way he came, he hurried down the road on wobbly legs. He had no more desire to be with people who were comfortable fighting dragons than he was to be actually near the dragon.

“Farewell, new friend!” Percy shouted after him, once again extricating himself from Morgan’s grip. “Safe travels!”

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The King’s Arsenal

Garth Whispernight – Halfling Rogue

Born to nobility in a far-off country, he grew bored and disappeared and reappeared when he tried to pick the pocket of Morgan Moonglow. Instead of turning him in, Morgan recruited Garth on a quest to save the world. After the quest was over, he stuck with the party of adventurers who would eventually become the Arsenal. Learning that he could indeed be an honorable man, he slowly shed his criminal tendencies but never let the skills fade. He delivered the finishing blow to the Green Dragon, plunging a dagger into the back of its skull. When he joined the Arsenal, the King pardoned him for any crimes he may have committed in Eloria. He spends most of his time in a tavern in Whitecrest instead of his office. His home has many sentimental trophies of his past including a fake officer’s badge, forged identities, and various previously stolen items.

Cassandra Oakspring – Half-Elf Sorcerer

She was a very bright, resourceful young girl who showed some untapped magical ability. A local patron paid to send her to one of the magical academies in Coppin. Once there, she flourished and excelled in her studies. The once meek girl started to grow a spine. Morgan Moonglow showed up at the Academy, looking for somebody to release a curse. Cassandra was the one who unlocked the puzzle. She was given an expedited graduation from the Academy so that she could accompany Morgan and her team to help protect the world. An eternal student, she seeks knowledge from all corners of the world. She was delighted to retire near the old academy and is a constant visitor and consultant at most of the academies. When she is not fighting crime or studying, she socializes with whoever will have tea. She loves a good story and is eager to meet new people.

Morgan Moonglow – Elf Ranger/Druid

She was found as a baby on the edge of the Fangleth Forest and grew up never knowing her parents. As soon as she could walk, she started to carry a bow and arrow around and she showed promise. When she was old enough, she was recruited into a ranger school for the military. She served for some time before she was warned of a premonition of the return of an ancient evil. She moved to assemble a team to battle the cult who wished to remake the world in their image. Once the threat was defeated, she kept the team together to combat other threats to Eloria and even surrounding kingdoms. She asked the others to help her take on the dragon at the palace and every single one agreed to risk themselves for Eloria. She was assigned to her home district of Channon where she is reconnecting with her long-lost mother who is a druid. She also often plays host to Percival Stardane since the two of them have a growing romance together.

Sir William Havelock – Human Fighter

Chased out of his homeland by a feud with a rival family, Havelock sought a new start in Eloria. He met Morgan Moonglow under the assumed name of Calo Northwind and joined them as fighter and defender of their cause. As time went on, the group of adventurers was able to go back to Havelock’s homeland and help him sort things out so that he once again felt comfortable using his real name. With his plate armor and faithful steed Hengroen, he is always ready to charge into battle for a good cause. Both of his names were spread far and wide because he never shied away from announcing his presence in and out of battle. While Moonflow was arguably the leader and founder of their team, Havelock was often the noble face of the operation while Stardane was its voice. Havelock never sought his fame, he simply threw out his name as a calling card in case their group was needed again down the road. He is content to teach at the Battle Arts Academy but he also enjoys knocking a few criminals senseless when he can.

Galath Wyndham – Dwarf Cleric

While traveling through the woods, Morgan Moonflow and her crew found what they thought was a statue at first. To their horror, they figured out that the statue was actually a petrified man. A quick Greater Restoration spell from a local priestess woke him up. It was then revealed that he had been petrified a long time ago, during the first Great War of Eloria. He chose to travel along with the Moonflow crew so that they could help him adjust to his new place in time and he could rejoin the world. Along the way, his cleric powers were very useful in keeping the party alive. A quiet man, Galath often imparts wisdom at just the right time and he came to feel somewhat like the party’s older uncle. Having had two adventuring careers in two different centuries, he was glad to finally become semi-retired with the rest of the party. He spends a lot of time enjoying the fresh air of his district and reading books on loan from the Grand Libary in Etting.

Percival Stardane – Human Bard

If there was ever a know-it-all, Percival Stardane would definitely be a candidate. Stardane studied whole libraries full of lore in an effort to figure out what was important and unimportant in the world. If you do not know something, Stardane will be happy to teach you all about it at length. If he does not know something… Well, he will tell you that’s not very likely. Percival was left to his own devices in the libraries of Etting because his parents often had nothing to do with him. He was an only child and he barely had any interest in socializing with others when there were volumes of knowledge to absorb. All of that alone time with the great writers of the continent (and beyond) left Percival with some social peculiarities. While his father was a talented musician, Percival was an excellent storyteller but came off as too excited to tell his story. His brusk manner tended to irk and confuse people and he cannot sing a single note like his father. He seemed doomed to waste away as a librarian when Morgan Moonglow found him and he joined up to add his expertise to the team. He has since become much more well-adjusted and often chooses to live with Morgan rather than stay at his appointment in Etting.