The party attempt to flee their giant pursuers
Score: 661 | 07/06/19 |
15/06/300 (mid-afternoon)
Horns sound in the distance. A short discussion ensures as Braith and Ruric Ironfoot head to the horses, leaving the rest to wait for them.
Heskan attempt to destroy the Orium stone focus of the ritual. This fails and the party are forced to flee.
The party manage to evade capture and reach the edges of the mists as they run for a few hours. Bankanir, however, falls at the last sprint and his captured by two Frost Giants. Ruric heads out to offer himself as trade. The giants point out that Ruric is as guilty and take him prisoner. Heskan then heads out and offers to go with them. Disarmed, the three men are led towards the Giant camp. Elnorin and Braith follow on, sending Savina to the cave they had stayed the previous night.
At the giant camp the three members of the party are led to a nearby tent and held until Oddlief, the chief, is ready to hold a trial. All three decide to take a short nap.
Outside Braith and Elnorin watch on. They see Kartash, Adal and their mercenaries get challenged by their giant hosts. Adal teleports herself and Kartash a short distance before the senior member of the Cabal casts a teleportation circle. The Cabal has retreated to their base for now. The mercenaries are left with the angry giants. A couple fight and are killed. The remaining surrender and are cast out with only the clothes on their back.
Ruric, Heskan and Bankanir are put on trial for attacking their guests. The chief quickly decides that weregild stands at 100 weight (or 500 GP) due to the behaviour of Kartash and the Cabal. Ruric pays and the three look to leave.
Rannveig, a rival of Oddlief, speaks up. She says that Oddlief has lead them to this dishonour in the 'fools errand' seeking the Bifrost here. She challenges Oddlief to Holmgang and declares she will stand for herself. Ruric calls out and states that he will stand for Oddlief, having gleaned that Rannveig has manipulated the situation (having brought Kartash to their steading in the first place). Three shields and a hand axe was brought our for Ruric to use for the duel.
The holmgang commenced with Rannveig bringing a crushing blow down on Ruric's shield. In any normal situation, Ruric's shield would have given way but Heskan had passed him the Mysterious Shield and, striking platinum sparks, the blow slid off of the surface of the shield.
The pair exchanged blows off each other's shields, Ruric splintering part of Rannveig's first shield (who deftly rotated the gap up and away from the dwarf. It wasn't long before Ruric struck out and, with a mighty blow, struck deep into her leg wraps. Her blood fell on the floor. Ruric had won. Ruric stated that hostility between dwarves and giants did not have to persist (something the gathered giants didn't seem to strongly agree with). Oddlief granted them hospitality before beginning to speak of Niflheim, Jotunheim and Nidavellir (all lands to the north). She gave the party directions to her home in Niflheim (beyond the Great Drift, travel to the small tower, journey north for two days, pass through the cold forest, follow down slope to the great lake and on the far bank lies her steading). Oddlief stated she would realign with Skadi. She had been building trade relations with the Vannin (well, with the Lugi) and there was a trading post in the Maw of Umberlee. This was something no-one new of.
The party then asked if they could inspect Kartash's camp, something Odllief agreed with.
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Holmgang - A retelling
Ruric steps onto the fur, a pelt of some unknown beast from the mountains. Marked with dried blood from previous Holmgangs. A duel to first blood is the rule.
Rannveig looks down at him. "I may accidentally cut you in half little Dwarf," she says with a smirk. Her axe is longer than he is tall, her shield wider.
Ruric flexes his grip on the battle axe the giants have lent him and lifts up the dragonscale shield, hoping the defence lessons from his childhood will come back to him.
Rannveig strides forward, coving all the space between them, swinging her axe down hard. Ruric puts the shield between them catching it. The force of the blow pushes him down, he bends his knees to absorb the blow, holding himself steady. Rannveig's axe, he's sure, would have hit his head were his reflexes with the shield not faster than he'd feared.
Rannveig brings her axe down for another blow, aiming to come in from the side, or so it looks. Ruric spots she isn't fully committed and is readying to change her swing at the last moment. Detecting the feint Ruric puts the shield just where it needs to be. Rannveig's attack knocks the shield, ringing out a heavy note. The tactic leaves Rannveig exposed on one side, Ruric pushes his advantage and strikes, but Rannveig is too fast, pulling her vast shield up to block. Still, his blow is enough to cut a split though Rannveig's shield. Shards of wood splinter out and fall outside of the Holmgang pelt. Rannveig rotates her shield to keep the damaged part out of Ruric's reach.
Finding his shield skills better than he expected, Ruric feels the momentum is with him. He tries to use the giant's style against her, making a feint to one side, while intending to strike actually the other as she brings her shield down. Rannveig sees straight through the ruse and bashes the attack aside. Ruric takes a half step back and apologises for attempting to use deception in a duel. His opponent though pays no heed and pushes on to break his guard. Ruric's foot nearly slips on the soft fur, but he holds his ground and parries the blow. Letting the shield take the full force, he keeps himself in the fight. Rannveig frowns, she is starting to suspect this shield cannot be broken.
Spotting the frustration in her eyes, Ruric goes on the attack. Rannveig's defence is good, Ruric's axe grinds on the edge of her shield. He feels strength surge through him from the platinum dragonscale gauntlets, working together with the shield for the first time. He cuts yet another chunk from her shield, the axe following through to strike her ankle. Bloods instantly begins to pool on his weapon.
Ruric steps back and waits. Rannveig snarls at him, spits at the pelt, then turns and walks away from the Holmgang skin. Casting her shield to the ground. Ruric is the victor. Oddlief retains her seat as chief. Ruric quietly thanks his blessings that the shield lessons he'd had as a child from his father were specifically on defence against giants.