How to Kill a Dragon Turtle (High Seas & Dragon Turtles 1.10
Oct 5, 2019 19:28:02 GMT
Jamie J and Wil Frozendagger like this
Post by Tazmuck on Oct 5, 2019 19:28:02 GMT
A small crowd had gathered round his table at the Flourished Hook. The taverns of Port Ffirst had long been awash with talk of this dragon turtle - 'teeth sharper than swords' and 'breath that could melt your armour from 60ft away' - the stories taller each time they were told. So, when they had arrived in the port with the head strapped to the bow of their ship, everyone had wanted to know the story.
And the crowd got even more than they asked for, because instead of describing it, Taz lent back and smoked his new pipe. Animated plumes of smoke rose up around him, recreating the scene in stunning detail - showing Taz leaping through the air with his maul and the dragon turtle screaming in pain.
'How?'. Asked a sceptical halfing who had joined the table. Only a legendary warrior could have taken that on. And so Taz told the whole story to an enthralled audience of how he, Wil, Bones and Laurel had slain the mighty Shivon.
________________
It was about 250 miles east of Port Ffirst that the group hit their first signs of trouble. They'd been having dinner on the deck of the ship, once again enjoying the fine hospitality of the Drunken Mermaid. Wil, a familiar face to him now, was savouring a bowl of soup. Bones and Laurel enjoying their own meals, too. Taz was chatting to Sherlock, the minotaur he'd now spent a few days with at sea and was growing quite fond of. Conversation flowed easily between them - sharing stories about their times at sea and life on the ocean.
And then the ships bell, crew scrambling to their feet, alarmed shouts that they were under attack. Creatures climbing up the sides and appearing on deck out of the darkness, trying to grab crew members and pull them into the water. They fought most of them off quickly, but in the midst of the fight one still managed to grapple Sherlock and drag him overboard. Wil and Laurel went in after them - diving fearlessly into the freezing black water - but the creatures had been too fast, and Sherlock was gone.
They found out that Wil had heard the creatures talking about Shivon, and their plan seemed to be to feed Sherlock to him. At least Sherlock'd likely still be alive, albeit in the lair of the dragon turtle. The next move was obvious to all of them - go and find Shivon's lair, rescue Sherlock, kill the turtle. The captain ordered full speed ahead, and the crew shook the reefs out and hoisted the mizzen, causing The Drunken Mermaid to heel sharply under the full weight of its sails.
When they arrived, the captain and the chef agreed to join the group - concerned for their crew mate, and so the six of them set off, swimming down to the underwater entrance to Shivon's lair. The cave they surfaced in huge - but Shivon still filled most of it.
At first, Taz noticed the gargantuan shell, the near impenetrable green hide, the huge jaw that snarled even in the monsters sleep. And momentarily, he thought they would all die here - that a single swipe from the claws would tear straight through his armour and into his flesh, just like the rumours had said they would.
But then he began to notice more. The black veins running down Shivon's side weren't natural, and sticking out of its throat there was a huge spike. Taz recognised it instantly as the coral dragon's tail spike: Shivon was poisoned, and wounded. It would still be dangerous, but they had a chance. The captain and the chef crept in first to untie Sherlock. Sherlock was unconscious, bloodied and drooping over his captains shoulder. Taz's heart leapt at the site, but there was no time to dwell on it: a huge, yellow eye had opened, and the battle was starting.
Taz moved first. As a fighter he knew a weak spot when he saw one, and the huge spike sticking out of the the throat of Shivon was there for the taking. Before Shivon could act, he made a run for it - leaping into the air with his maul. It landed. Hard, heavy, perfectly timed; the weight of the jump and the hammer swing working together to drive the spike deep into the neck, like a skewer being driven into a haunch of meat. Shivon screamed out in pain, and they were in business.
They all took their turns then - Bones giving Taz and Will strength before shooting fire at it, Laurel healing anyone that went down, Wil using his dark magic to inflict further pain. In the face of such immense danger, the group were clinical and organised. Shivon was still a formidable foe - it's steam breath doing immense damage even after they narrowly dodged the main funnel, and it's bite crushing through the chef's armour like it was cloth. At one point Wil went down, and Taz took so much damage that he was on his last breath, barely able to stand and fight. But from somewhere, he found the spirit of the fighter inside himseld, and came back with suprising strength to strike the final blows. The last strike was to the poisoned spear again - this time severing an artery in its throat and covering Taz in its blood.
___________________
'Show us the final blow! Show us with the pipe!' said a tall Elven woman who had been listening the whole time. So Taz obligingly took another toke and recreated the final scene for them - the grey wisps perfectly emulating blood as it splattered out of the dragon turtles neck, the crowd gasping at the realism. By this time, a sizeable number had gathered, and some were asking for the whole story to be told again.
I think I'm going to enjoy this Taz thinks, and he says; 'I'm too thirsty to talk right now - but if someone could me a bottle of the finest whiskey in the house - and perhaps some steak with that rare Elven cheese they've got here - I suppose I could probably tell it one last time'.
And the crowd got even more than they asked for, because instead of describing it, Taz lent back and smoked his new pipe. Animated plumes of smoke rose up around him, recreating the scene in stunning detail - showing Taz leaping through the air with his maul and the dragon turtle screaming in pain.
'How?'. Asked a sceptical halfing who had joined the table. Only a legendary warrior could have taken that on. And so Taz told the whole story to an enthralled audience of how he, Wil, Bones and Laurel had slain the mighty Shivon.
________________
It was about 250 miles east of Port Ffirst that the group hit their first signs of trouble. They'd been having dinner on the deck of the ship, once again enjoying the fine hospitality of the Drunken Mermaid. Wil, a familiar face to him now, was savouring a bowl of soup. Bones and Laurel enjoying their own meals, too. Taz was chatting to Sherlock, the minotaur he'd now spent a few days with at sea and was growing quite fond of. Conversation flowed easily between them - sharing stories about their times at sea and life on the ocean.
And then the ships bell, crew scrambling to their feet, alarmed shouts that they were under attack. Creatures climbing up the sides and appearing on deck out of the darkness, trying to grab crew members and pull them into the water. They fought most of them off quickly, but in the midst of the fight one still managed to grapple Sherlock and drag him overboard. Wil and Laurel went in after them - diving fearlessly into the freezing black water - but the creatures had been too fast, and Sherlock was gone.
They found out that Wil had heard the creatures talking about Shivon, and their plan seemed to be to feed Sherlock to him. At least Sherlock'd likely still be alive, albeit in the lair of the dragon turtle. The next move was obvious to all of them - go and find Shivon's lair, rescue Sherlock, kill the turtle. The captain ordered full speed ahead, and the crew shook the reefs out and hoisted the mizzen, causing The Drunken Mermaid to heel sharply under the full weight of its sails.
When they arrived, the captain and the chef agreed to join the group - concerned for their crew mate, and so the six of them set off, swimming down to the underwater entrance to Shivon's lair. The cave they surfaced in huge - but Shivon still filled most of it.
At first, Taz noticed the gargantuan shell, the near impenetrable green hide, the huge jaw that snarled even in the monsters sleep. And momentarily, he thought they would all die here - that a single swipe from the claws would tear straight through his armour and into his flesh, just like the rumours had said they would.
But then he began to notice more. The black veins running down Shivon's side weren't natural, and sticking out of its throat there was a huge spike. Taz recognised it instantly as the coral dragon's tail spike: Shivon was poisoned, and wounded. It would still be dangerous, but they had a chance. The captain and the chef crept in first to untie Sherlock. Sherlock was unconscious, bloodied and drooping over his captains shoulder. Taz's heart leapt at the site, but there was no time to dwell on it: a huge, yellow eye had opened, and the battle was starting.
Taz moved first. As a fighter he knew a weak spot when he saw one, and the huge spike sticking out of the the throat of Shivon was there for the taking. Before Shivon could act, he made a run for it - leaping into the air with his maul. It landed. Hard, heavy, perfectly timed; the weight of the jump and the hammer swing working together to drive the spike deep into the neck, like a skewer being driven into a haunch of meat. Shivon screamed out in pain, and they were in business.
They all took their turns then - Bones giving Taz and Will strength before shooting fire at it, Laurel healing anyone that went down, Wil using his dark magic to inflict further pain. In the face of such immense danger, the group were clinical and organised. Shivon was still a formidable foe - it's steam breath doing immense damage even after they narrowly dodged the main funnel, and it's bite crushing through the chef's armour like it was cloth. At one point Wil went down, and Taz took so much damage that he was on his last breath, barely able to stand and fight. But from somewhere, he found the spirit of the fighter inside himseld, and came back with suprising strength to strike the final blows. The last strike was to the poisoned spear again - this time severing an artery in its throat and covering Taz in its blood.
___________________
'Show us the final blow! Show us with the pipe!' said a tall Elven woman who had been listening the whole time. So Taz obligingly took another toke and recreated the final scene for them - the grey wisps perfectly emulating blood as it splattered out of the dragon turtles neck, the crowd gasping at the realism. By this time, a sizeable number had gathered, and some were asking for the whole story to be told again.
I think I'm going to enjoy this Taz thinks, and he says; 'I'm too thirsty to talk right now - but if someone could me a bottle of the finest whiskey in the house - and perhaps some steak with that rare Elven cheese they've got here - I suppose I could probably tell it one last time'.