There's an exchange of missiles, with javelins going one way and sling shots the other, and then the Rangers charge once more, this time aiming at the group stood fast before the entrance to their nest.

It takes Hoskar a couple of moments to register what just happened mind on the dead instead of the job. He shakes his head to clear it, then yells Coward! Try someone who's looking! as he launches himself at the bowman.

Amara was half expecting the ambush. It would have been something she would have done in their place. The thing that needed to be done, was to convince the Impala riders that the cost for this would be too high. She kicked her heels into thunderfoot, with her crystal now attuned to her, she could rain javelins all day onto the Impala riders. Rising she picked her javelins out with care, using them to pick out the impala riders. Kobal and his new bride and their herd would be all to good a prize for them.

Armour, both man made and natural, protect their owners from the various missiles being flung, so all there is to do now is charge...

Bisons and Rhinos surge forward, or almost all do as Henal suddenly finds himself pitched forward as Whiteblaze stumbles, the Bison's font legs giving out from under him. As the ground comes towards Henal the Thunderbird brave realises that his mount must have been poisoned during the initial combat.

From where he ends up, shoulder against an old tree stump, Henal is able to watch as his companions smash into the wall of creatures, lances, backed up by the mass of charging beasts, bursting through armour as if Bison butter. Then it's a general melee of tossing horns, flaming axe, and chopping swords.

Voras cuts a barbed tail in two, as Salen parries a heavy blow that would have likely taken his head clean off. To the side Ohanzee is cutting valiantly, opening the face of one of the vile creatures with a backward slash, only to take a bruising blow to his side from another Scorpion Man, the creature's tail simultaneously pumping poison into Wihakayda's rump.

Other tails dart back and forth, another getting stuck in Voras's shield, only to be hacked by the brave's flaming blade. Amongst it Bisons and Rhinos bellow in pain as they are repeatedly stabbed, burning venom coursing through their veins.

A shower of arrows lands, several finding their marks, followed immediately by magically summoned replacements. It's the Vingans shooting from the other side of the hole, come to the aid of their beleaguered friends.

It's enough to tip the balance and the remaining two Scorpion men back down their hole, injured and battered from the melee.

They leave behind a dying Rhino, bruised and battered Rangers, three poisoned bison and six dead chaos beasts.

Henal picks himself up and goes to see what healing he can do for Whiteblaze. Damned chaos. Too many for us to fight that easily and the damn impala riders still lurking somewhere.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:23, Wed 23 Mar 2016.

Jella slips off her bison Kaolin with a cry and crouches next to Whispers from the Sky, checking her condition.  With her hand hovering over the wound, she chants a mnemonic to heal the injury.

Voras yanks Melock's lance out of the dead scorpion man's throat and hands it back to him.  He turns towards the ailing Wanderer and speaks clearly.

"I don't have the skills to treat this.  Our bison are in no shape to make the trek back over the ridge, so the healers will need to come to us.  As you're the only one with a healthy mount, could you please retrieve Sehana or Whispers?" 

In reply to Voras (msg # 51):


He nods, "I'll be back as quickly as I can, in the mean time you might want to throw," he gestures at the dead chaos, "them down the hole and burn them." He turns Stinky round and urges him in to a trot back to the others.

As Melcok and Voras speak, a message comes from Talon far above

"Impalas attacking the herd!"
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:23, Wed 23 Mar 2016.

The herd begins to panic, especially when two of the Impala braves begin waving bull roarers above their heads, the noise causing the animals to surge southwards and away from the braves and their stolen beasts...

Hoskar leaps, a second too late, and an arrow flies true and fast, hitting Kobal in the shoulder just as the brave is beginning to cast a spell of binding. Never the less the Condor brave unimpalas the Rock Leaper, landing heavily on top of him. The Impala brave begins to scream, his leg broken by the fall.

Greeshar pulls up short as Kobal is hit, leaning over to pull out the arrow and quickly cast a healing charm on his friend, but it gives the rustlers precious moments to move their stolen animals away and into the cactus field.

They leave behind two dead braves, javelins still quivering in their unmoving bodies, cast by Amara, who even now has another in her hand. Both Impala mounts had been magically slowed by Kobal, creating easy targets for the Vingan.

As the Rangers decide whether to go after the thieves, Whispers from the Sky moans as Jella begins to heal her wound...

No time for talk.  Kobal gives a nod and grunt of appreciation to Greeshar before kicking Black Hoof to the edge of the herd, after the stolen animals.

When the message is passed on by Umbra he shouts to the Vingans "Thunder Girls, they have doubled back to attack the herd. We've got this!"

"Don't listen to that arse Voras, not unless you can get your flames to flow down into the earth!" Ohanzee says bending over Wihakayda with the anger and sorrow clear in his voice. He whispers a prayer to Great Rhino as he cuts the beast's throat to end his suffering.

Great Rhino accept the spirit of this mighty beast
Slayer of Chaos, strong and proud to his end
Let his graze your plains until his return to us.

Rising he grabs a hand full of arrows and stabs them into the bulbous sting of the Chaos creature he killed making sure that they are dripping "Do you know how to make a wall of light like Tarnessh can?" He walks towards the hole looking determined "They've likely got eggs down there the Earth needs ridding of!"
This message was last edited by the player at 09:48, Wed 23 Mar 2016.

Fighting scorpion men

Henal heals himself using Strongwing's power and his healing herbs and after making sure his cats are safe walks over to Ohanzee..
I'm with you, lets get rid of this nest of chaos.

The Vingans ride off on mass after Melock, leaving Voras, Ohanzee, Salen and Henal to peer down in to the steep sided hole.  It curves steeply downwards, levelling out a lance length below them, the tunnel entrance in full darkness. A fetid stink comes from it, of carrion and worse. There's sounds too, of things scuttling...Preparing defences and summoning reinforcements....Perhaps.

Voras could indeed cast a charm that creates a wall of light, and if not doing anything this could be made to advance slowly, or he could cast light charms centred on his friends shields so as to provide them light enough to see and fight.


Melock, followed closely by the Thunder Girls crests the ridge and sees below them a scene of disarray...

Their herd is beginning to trot off southwards, the mob of assorted animals picking up speed, spooked no doubt by the recent battle. On the ground lies Whispers, attended to by Jella and Sehana, whilst Hoskar sits astride a screaming Impala brave. Two more lie dead nearby, their mounts calmly eating shrubbery, as Greeshar, Kobal and Amara look to be about to ride in to the Cactus field to the east...

Looks down, expression still grim, at the screaming Impala brave.

Right.

Oh stop that noise, man.

Not much time here. I could twist your leg, or I could stick a hole in you, or I could leave you be; maybe even patch you up later on.

Speak up quickly: got to decide then go chasing a herd thanks to you knobs. Give me a reason to be nice.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:25, Wed 23 Mar 2016.

Amara went chasing after the remaining impala braves, primarily to chase them off. She considered the trade worth it. Sure the group lost some bison and one of their number, but the impala riders had lost three of their number. She cast her movement charm on her rhino, using her connection to Vinga to make her rhino move even more swiftly.

She intended to use her javelin if she ever caught up with any of them, even using her soul to cover the extra distance. They needed to stop the raiding.

Peering down the hole Ohanzee rethinks the options and puts aside the bow muttering "I'd rather have a shield in hand when we go down there!"

Umbra come along, extra senses in there will be useful, but stay behind us out of harms way!

He shifts his shield ready and readies his weapon for the descent "Wish we had Emesh-Ga with us. I can't feel what's happening down there, can any of you feel anything?"

He looks at the Sun Hawk "Voras can you cast something on our shields to light the way, we'll likely need your sword arm down there."

Looking a bit shocked by the state of the group after such a short time, Melock points out Greeshar, Kobal and Amara to the Vingans, "I'm guessing that's where the raiders have gone," His eyes snap back to the herd as it picks up speed, "The herd needs bringing back, your help would be very welcome, but I totally understand if you want to go after Bubble's killer." He doesn't wait for a reply, instead urges Stinky to go as fast as he can along the ridge, hoping to cut down in front of the escaping beasts and turn them round.

"Are you sure going down there immediately is the best decision?  We don't lack for courage, but that might be foolhardiness while our herd is under attack.  We should wait until we can fully muster our strength to strike."

Voras glances at the three other braves with him.

"Let's do what we can to get rid of these corpses first.  Once that's taken care of, we can prepare to cleanse this nest of Chaos.  I'll be more than happy to provide light in the darkness."

"Don't arse around with them, they're not going to get up and go anywhere and the more we delay the longer they've got to prepare and heal."

He retrieves a couple of javelins then stands guard at the entrance "Didn't Emesh-Ga each you lot how to sense what is happening in the ground?"

Gathering his wits for a moment the Impala brave bites Hoskar hard on the hand, then spits the blood in the Ranger's face

"Feck you Condor Shit..."

It's enough to make poor Hoskar see red and throttle the hapless raider to death...



The rustlers' trail isn't hard to follow as the Bison have knocked over cactus and churned up the ground, but after about a bow shot in distance the trail splits into three...






With the help of the Thunder Girls the runaway herd is soon caught up and the three Impalas added to their number.

With the help of Yamsur's eye it is but a moment before the corpses are alight, the Sun Hawk brave's boosted magic causing the chitin of the chaos creatures to quickly buckle and melt in the fierce heat.

As he casts the ignite charms the rune on his forehead burns brightly as if a living flame now resides in his head.

Whilst Voras burns the chaos like a good Sun Hawk should, the others try their luck at seeing if the earth will give up any information...

Henal, both hands in the soil, immediately senses the twist and turns of the multiple tunnels below, picking up movement some ten metres down the shadowy entrance to the nest.

"Our thanks," shouts Kobal to the women, raising his lance in salute, and "Let's keep spread out and on the look out for any other raids!"

He rides back to Jella and Whispers to check on how the shaman is doing, leaving Hoskar to take care of the injured raider.

Whispers seems to be okay now, the wound healed, and under the care of both Jella and Sehana she manages a smile for Kobal.

"Well that hurt I must say" she adds whilst rubbing the spot where she'd been hit. "I don't know how you lot put up with so much pain all the time. Did we lose much of the herd?"

Then spying the body of Bubbles her hand flies to cover her mouth "Oh no...We have lost someone...who is it?"