Courage
by Cody Krueger
Atop my flying steed, I surveyed the city beneath me, ablaze. To my left lay the destroyed half of the castle tower, protruding from its partially destroyed castle, resting supremely atop its high peaks, hundreds of feet up. The purple, storm-filled sky swarmed with the invading, mutilated, servants of a merciless devil. Dense smoke partially surrounded me, its heat pervading the atmosphere and my armor. My eyes scanned for our foe amidst the exposed throne room, found at the top of this great hall. I flew closer into the dense smoke.
The smell of brimstone mixed with burnt timbers, blood, and steel once again greeted my nostrils. The sound of clashing armies far beneath me and the roar of the burning castle filled my ears. Suddenly, I spotted our enemy in the smoke, but alas he spotted me first.
The dark armored figure waved his hand and almost effortlessly from it sprung forth a tidal wave of force. In an instant I was thrown from my steed, by this unseen force, to the edge of the remaining great hall. It felt as though I was hit by a giant. With a loud crash, I felt my right side hit the hard stone floor and as I looked up I saw my adversary's weapon raised high above me. Instinctively, I rolled quickly my armored body to the side as my nemesis brought down his jagged sword. With a deafening clang its vicious teeth bit the stone floor. My mighty brother roared as he charged headlong to my aid, distracting the black master for just a moment. I seized the opportunity, rolling beyond my enemy's reach. Suddenly, I no longer felt the hard stone floor beneath my steel shrouded stature and my heart nearly froze as I looked on the rubble hundreds of feet down. I was free falling from the man-made precipice! My stomach tightened as I felt the acceleration downward to the rubble filled courtyard and realized with a new immediacy where I was. Just as suddenly I saw a shimmering white flash before my eyes and a jerk as my body's direction was abruptly changed. A familiar scent of warm sweating horse and saddle leather pervaded my nostrils as I began to regain my bearings. I searched rapidly for a handhold and foothold as I felt myself pitch and yaw. My hands found a saddle horn and my feet a stirrup. I fought to re-wright myself in the saddle. I was comforted, if only for a moment, to realize I was once more in a familiar place atop my faithful mount.
I expected my adversary to try to dismount me from my flying companion. Thank God, I was over the tower when he did!
I looked on from my moving vantage point. My small cousin sprinted across the open floor positioning himself for a good shot behind a large fallen support. My brother slashed at our adversary with speed and fury. Our opponent was dodging or shrugging off the mighty blows like nothing would stop him.
Surprisingly, even in the midst of this, I was not especially concerned. God always showed himself strong, especially in our times of greatest need. He had built our trust through time after time of faithful answer. Our years of experience were evidence to the truth: no matter how grim things looked at the moment, it would always turn out well in the end. We are created for this. This is our calling.
Suddenly my cousin, Thybll, was ripped from behind the fallen pillar. I saw him as his small being was flung through the air, crashing to the unforgiving floor at the villain’s feet. There the black daemon began to mercilessly strike at him. I knew that Thybll's magic rings and spells could protect him for a moment, but only a moment. He was not an armored combatant, he was not prepared for this type of punishment. Flame exploded from the sword of our enemy, and with each blow it spewed forth its infernal rage. My brother shielded his eyes as it belched forth its burning wrath. Cries of agony reached my ears, and my cousin collapsed unconscious.
My cousin's life hung in the balance. I remounted my steed whilst attempting to lead him upward in order to rush to my cousin's assistance. Without warning, a great gust cooled my sweat only to give way to a burning, the smell of acrid poison filled my nostrils. I turned to see behind me a black dragon, the servant of the vile fiend. Its great maw opened and began to spew forth a green vaporous liquid toward our 4th companion and dear friend, Ryin, who was moving to help my cousin. He leaped out of the way, acid steaming off the glance of his enchanted plate mail.
Fear tried to grip my heart, but I acted in spite of it, pulling my angelic warhorse into an even steeper climb.
I looked on with a pounding heart. My cousin’s blood surrounding him, my brother fighting amidst a cloud of flames. My friend now staring down an acid breathing dragon many times his size. I continued my climb for just a moment before leveling off and positioning for the descent.
I was prepared.
I drew my lance from the side of my equine companion and reset it once more in its familiar home, locked in the practiced grasp I learned from months of combat. All the elements of my being were in harmony as they found focus in a single point. My stomach slightly churned as I led my steed into a near vertical hairpin turn. My eyes caught sight once more of the burning city and memories of the innocent screams flooded my ears. The wind rushed past my perspiring face, as I spurred my mount into a descending charge. I felt the force of gravity lessen as I sped forward and downward. I shouted a battle cry calling out to my ever present help in trouble, as I dove forward to end this wicked reign of terror. My muscles were filled with a holy fury. My adversary was engaged in combat with my brother and so he never turned to meet my charge. I leaned forward in the saddle, and felt a great jolt as I witnessed as in slow motion my divinely guided lance drive into my dark opponent's side. So perfect was the blow that he was thrown backward, his body and armor inseparable, now both skewered by my lance. His sword fell to the ground, now losing its vicious infernal consciousness.
In a flash it was all changed. The black acid-breathing beast behind me froze before being blown away as ash. The armor of the beast's master fell to the ground in a hollow clang as his formless being was released from its cursed prison. It was merely an empty husk now, drained of its heinous intelligence. The city still aflame, but no longer did we hear the unearthly screams. The sky was cleansed of the flying hell spawn. Victory was ours!
-{+}-
It all came down to this. A single roll of the dice. A single attack. In the balance, hung five years of work, five years of memories shared by friends. The wind howled outside, as my friends all looked at me in earnest, in the dimly lit room. I had to choose: charge or hold back. My decision had already been made. I knew the choice well, for I had encountered it before. My five years of experience had brought benefit after benefit from this wisdom. I knew that this was not the time to hold back. This was the time to meet my foe head on, in a fearless charge. Fear has no place when brought before the bond of warriors we share.
The candles were flickering. The model castle cast a long shadow across the grid representing our battle field. It was my move, they were all depending on me. The blood in my veins was pumping, and my ears were oblivious to almost all else, but the sound of my heart beating. The smell of hot wax hung in the air. My palms, sweaty, were shaking from the adrenaline. My stomach had that familiar feeling, not of dread, but of excitement. The music was beckoning me on. I picked up my dice and declared my attack. It was time.
-{+}-
This is friendship, ones you entrust with your life. This is brotherhood, the lives you protect without thought to your own. This is faith, the strength of the One I depend on more than my own. This is trust, for without risk there is no victory.
-{+}-
This is Courage.
-{+}-
About the Essay:
This is a personal account from Sir Codithumas from the Battle for Ascalon also known as the
Final Battle. It was the "Final Battle," concluding the Campaign of
Obsidian, a reign of terror which saw the destruction of most of the civilized "western" world and metropolises. This in part affected substantially the number of adventurers and prevalence of magic in the known world. For more information see the
Lore Thread.
It was also the conclusion of a 5 year DnD campaign. The "Final Battle" as it has been labeled, occurred late at night in the upstairs of our cottage. The scene is well described in the Essay. The Campaign was with Ryan Persha, Cody Krueger, Carson Krueger, and Jonothan Decker.
It was written 23 January 2014
last edited 14 September 2014
This message was last edited by the player at 03:56, Tue 11 Nov 2014.