The Seven Rings of the Dwarves RPG

[Haradrim]

OOC: Sorry I didnt post this yesterday...

They had all moved into Merry and Pip's Tavern (named after the brave warriors in the War of the Ring) There they all sat down. Drut requested a pint for everyone. Everyone seemed a little nervous. The dwarf seemed to be remaining a little reclusive. "They seemed like a good crew," thought Drut, "Well seasoned, experianced and very powerful." When the pints came Drut started talking.

"King Elessar has appointed me head of this mission. We will be heading into the mountains of shadow. According to the king's scouts numerous orc parties have been spotted around there. We don't know where it is exactly but thats are job. We are to go in, kill anything that moves, and bring back anything we find. Its nice to see you again Encaleet. We will be leaving tomorrow. Take tonight to prepare yourself for tomorrow. Bring any weapons, armor, or healing supplies you might need. We meet back here at sunrise."

Drut checked out their reactions. They all seemed up to the task but he wouldnt know that until the fighting started. Encaleet was a good warrior and he knew he could count on him but he knew nothing of the others. "Before we leave I thought it might be nice to have a little celebration before we go. It's a little custom of mine. I never fight with someone I haven't had some fun with." He smiled deeply and the others seemed to get a lot more cheerful as well. "This might work afterall," he thought. They had fun together for a little while but after a while Drut called it to an end and everyone went home to prepare.

On his way home his thoughts traveled over the members of his party. He knew they were all good warriors and he thought eh could rely on them. His belief in their chances suddenly took off. Before he knew it he was home. He grabbed his sword and set it upon a whetstone. He sharpened the blade and thought about the quest. He had never done something like this before. It was usually kill everyone that moves but now he had to recover something. Also he knew that the numbers would be against them. Maybe a little stealth wouldnt hurt this time. He smiled while thinking about his previous journeys. He always laughed at his usually cloddish maneuvers. He remembered once when he awoke a guard and let him scream before he killed him not remembering the hundred or so other orcs that were asleep nerby him. He packed his bag and laid out his clothes for the next day. An early rise was always good. He wne t to sleep not knowing what the next day would bring.

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

Drut awoke early (around 4:00am) as usual and was ready waiting outside Merry & Pip's tavern at 5:00 as agreed. He was there for a couple of minutes when he heard a gruff voice and Encaleet stepped out of the shadows.
"Drut. You ready. Where is Marek and Durik? They should be here by now."
Drut chuckled quietly to himself, Encaleet's stealth would be a much needed if the quest was to be succesful.
"We are here," said a voice before Drut could reply. Both Drut and Encaleet lokk and sure enough there they were. Marek was not the tallest of men but compared to Durik he was huge. Durik stood, as most dwarves do at around 5 ft but was stout and bore a great axe.
"Well, we are all here so let's get off, we are as ready as we will ever be," said Drut in a cheery voice.
They set off out of the great gate that had been forged anew by Duriik's folk after the crowning of King Elessar and defeat of Sauron's armies.
They started off quietly on foot, knowing no horses would dare enter Mordor as it was a job for a full grown man to. Drut leading with Encallet then Marek with Durik bringing up the rear. As the day grew on the Company grew louder and were soon chatting gaily with one an other.
Night fell and Drut, Marek and Durik sleept lightly but Encaleet was ever sat up alert and watching if they ever awoke.

[Haradrim]

It went on like this for several days. Travel. Rest. Travel. Rest. Every night oen person would tell their stories. Drut talked about his first adventure. Which dealt with band of orcs who were rampagin his hometown. Now n orc wouldnt even come nearby that tow. He had heard Encaleets tales before but he never tired of them as he was such a great story-teller. THis is what its all about he thought. Going on an adventure. Talking with your friends and sharing a pint. One night riught before they set up camp, Drut heard what sounded like a horse. He told the others to hide. When he peered out of his bush he noticed it was a lone horse. He stepped out and immediately it started pushing him. Eventually he and the others followed it.

They reached a small clearing and saw a man lying in the middle of it with orc bodies littered around him. Drut rushed up and pulled out his bag of herbs and tended to the young mans wounds. They built a fire and disposed of the orc bodies. They tended him until the next day when he opened his eyes. He explained that he was one of the Rohirrim. He hd been sent late by King Elessar and he was looking for them when one night he discovered a band of orcs. He set upon them. HE killed many of them but in the end he was overwhelmed. They left him for dead and they moved on.

The company waited a week until he was fully recovered. He said that he wanted revenge. Drut was happy to have another adventurer but the horse was a problem. Horses make noise and they are too large. He told the man that he would have to tie his horse up somewhere or do somethin because he was a liability to the rest of the party. Also they would be going through heavy mountains and it is safer around here for animals he explained. The man nodded and sent his horse back to Minas Tirith. Drut was amazed that he knew they way. Someday he thought this young man will haev to teach my horse that.

[Kalile]

Thedon stirred and groaned, full of pain. For a moment, panic washed over him as he realized he couldn't see or breathe, then subsided as he thrashed and an orc fell of of him.

Memory returned; King Elessar Telcontar, Minas Tirith... Riding.... Orcs. He pieced together the disconnected fragments of memory, handling each in his mind like fragile glass, a delicate puzzle of events. At last he was satisfied, and did not fear for Nahar, for he did not truly believe that any harm could come to his magnificent horse.
Sure enough, a whicker by his ear made him smile and reach up his hand, regardless of injuries, to stroke Nahar's nose.
"My beautiful Nahar," he murmered, and coughed.
Darkness came again, and Thedon lost conscious thought. Even before then, he did not fear what would happen if no one came; he was young, and invincible still.
* * *

He awoke to the touch of a stranger. Not fully coherent, he nonetheless realized that this was no foe, so he lay in silence, in a waking dream of pain and then healing light.
The following week Nahar was ever by his side, and Thedon began to walk again within a day by leaning on the stallion. Within three days he picked up a sword again, and within seven, was healed well enough to move on.
Throughout the week Thedon got to know his companions and discovered that he had arrived in the mountain before them, and it was almost a mixed blessing that he had been so wounded. The young man was still weak, but he knew that they must soon move on.

"I want revenge for my lost comrades," he said one day, simply.

When he was told to leave Nahar behind, he almost refused with all the impetuous pride of a seventeen year old.
He stood in silence while the dwarf Drut explained. When the other had finished, he nodded once, curtly, and whispered to Nahar.
The faithful horse looked at him, and blew in his face, then leaped lightly away and back toward the white city.
"Now we may go," Thedon stated.

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

Early the next morning they reached Osgiliath, which was being rebuilt under the instructions of the King. Here they stopped for the rest of the day. They were in no hurry even though Theoden's wounds had held them up. Late that night one of the watch men of Osgiliath burst in to a room were Drut, Durik and Encaleet had been deep in conversation.
"Orcs," he said, gasping for breath. "Quite a number too. Around a hundred. Beyond the East Wall. They are heading towards Mordor."
"Leave it with me," replied Drut with guard leaving the room. "Encaleet, go and find Marek and Theoden. Durik put on your mail. We got some fighting to do."
A few minutes later Encaleet returned with Theoden and Marek who he had told what was happening.
"Nothing silly now. We just get in there, kill them and get out,"said Drut matter of factly as they left the room.
They reached the East Wall and before Drut could say anything Encaleet was over the wall but Drut didn't worry. Encaleet had extensive knowledge of orcs and his fued was bitter for they had kill his close friend and chieftan Halbarad.
"HALBARAD," he roared charging at the orcs, his long blade unsheathed. "HALBARAD OF THE DUNEDAIN." He was among them killing all near him. At that moment the others were over the wall and among them with all battle cries heard.
"ELESSAR. ELESSAR OF GONDOR."
"BARAK KHAZAD. KHAZAD AI-MENU."
"EOMER. EOMER OF ROHAN.
"ELESSAR. ELESSAR OF GONDOR."

[Aewionen]

Marek, upon seeing the impending battle, readied his bow.
"HALBARAD!" shouted Encaleet, and that was all the youth needed to hear.
Shouting out the battle cry of his own, he rushed towards the orcs arrows as he went. The orcs roared in protest as they came to meet the charging group.
Marek stayed at distance for some time while his comrades took up the close combat. But soon, with bodies moving about in the bedlam of the battle, Marek decided to unsheath his sword and do the same.
Charging once again at the group of orcs, but this time sword in hand, he soon met up with one of the brutes that had challenged him.

[Haradrim]

Things werent going so well. Apparently there were significantly more than one hundred orcs out here. Everyone was handling themselves well. They had all taken care of more than their share of orcs but they just kept coming. Drut knew he had to do something soon to turn the tide of this battle. As he thought his blade whirled around him in crazy patterns felling orcs at an alarming rate. He stepped back as several arrows flashed past him. As he followed their path he thought of something. Osgiliath was still being repaired from the War of the Ring. One of the walls was still unfinished and fortunatley he was standing right next to it. He ran back through the mobs of orcs. One orc substantially larger than the others stepped in his way. The orc swungg down and Drut nibly dodged out of the way. The orc took several more swings at him. Then when the orc was swinging down again he raised his hands and grabbed the sword before it hit him. He swung the orc's sword around and pushed it right into his chest. Then with his own sword he stuck it through the orcs head. Without stopping for a second he ran inside and climbed up the wall. He shouted, "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" His fellow comrades saw him and understood. They all ran out of the way and he started cutting the ropes holding the timbers which were keeping the wall in place. On the last rope he broke through it and the wall came crashing down killing 100 orcs in a matter of seconds. The few remaining orcs saw that they had lost and ran away. However the rest of the party drew their bows and shot them down before they got too far away.

[Kalile]

Thedon stood surveying the damage, feeling the charge of his heart still carrying him on a wave of endorphins. He smiled inwardly, then sheathed his sword and went back to his companions.
"There should not be orcs of such numbers now. May we assume that someone has found a dwarf ring?"

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

The companions felt pleased with themselves, which is more than could be said for chief at Osgiliath.
"What did you think you were doing. That wall was six weeks from completion and now you go and destroy it," he yelled at Drut.
"You weren't there. There was more number than we expected and the wall was the only way that we win without a casualty," he shouted back and with that he stormed out telling eeverybody to pack there things and they were leaving immediatly.

[Haradrim]

Drut was furious." How could that idiot be angry because he set them back on the wall?" Drut thought. They had done a body count. They had found more than 300 orcs. "That guy must be insane! How could he get upset?" he thought. Then something darker passed through his head. "How could they so wildly undercount the number? Something's wrong..." He thought.

He went to his company and told them to stop packing and to get their weapons and armor out but to keep the weapons sheathed. "Encaleet come here," Drut said. "Encaleet. Something's up. There is no way you can undercount that many orcs. The cheif here counted them himself he told me. I think there may be a small problem with the chief. I want you to ask around. Ask some of the men here when he arrived and anything unusual about him."

Encaleet came back a few hours later to find the company in Drut's room. They were sitting around the fire brooding. "Well I found out something." Encaleet said.

The company turned to him. "The cheif only arrived last week. he came with a brigade of men and he had a paper signed by the king putting him in charge of Osgiliath. He removed the former chief and he immediately assumed control. The funny thing was that none of the men had ever seen the guards faces. They had assumed they were men but I think it may have been something else. Also ever since the chief came there have been numerous accidents. Nobody has blamed the chief for anything but several have aroused suspicions."

There was silence for a moment. Then Drut stood up and said, "Well I think we all know what we have to do. Its up to us to stop him because he is obviously not good. Encaleet I want you to go back to the men and see if you can get any of them to follow you. Tell them all you know about him. I dont think he is the only one left of what I am guessing are Haradrim in disguise. Be careful I dont want you hurt. The rest of us will station ourselves around the quarters of the chief. Don't look suspicous and be on your guard. Wait for my signal to move. You will know when I am signaling you. Okay everyone?" They all nodded their heads. "Then let's move."

[Telcontar_Dunedain]

With that Encaleet left the room and headed down to the Southern Wall where he knew some men. Drut, Durik, Marek and Theoden headed off towards some of the stations of the chief and his men. They were not their for long. Soon a cry came out from one of the stations.
"Stay where you are," roared Drut. "We know all about you."
With that Durik, Marek and Theoden came rushing in with their weapons unsheathed.They looked at the chief but he wasn't worried.
"You've met a power to great for you," he hissed and with that he disappeared and a cloud formed over where he had been standing. It was black and misty. The room seemed to cloud over and with that he passed throught the roof.
Just at thet moment Encaleet came rushing in with a number of men at his back, all with swords unsheathed, but were suprised to see only Drut, Durik, Marek and Theoden standing there.
After Drut had explained the situation to Encaleet he jumped outside to see the clod heading towards the mountains. At that moment an arrow flew towards Encaleet which he swiftly jumped away from. With that Haradrim archers stepped out from the shadows.