Choice Results are at the bottom. Good luck!

After traveling for many more miles out on the Open Plains without any further interference from the Centaurs, you near the Bordertown of Harthorn. A place where drifters, adventurers, sellswords and warriors alike gather together to tell tales of their adventures and collect news from the outside world. Setup by the Dwarven Lords of the eight Domains as neutral ground, the town is mostly populated by Dwarves that only come out of their homes at night for fear of losing their eyesight. In any case, you find this to be a good place to rest up for the day and recover from your wounds, before continuing on your journey to the Mountain stronghold of Stonefold. As you enter the remarkably shabby town, you see hundreds of warriors from all kinds of races, Orcs, Redlings, Centaurs, Elves, Minotaurs, Trolls, and Werewolves wandering about the cobblestone streets in search of a fight, booze or female company.

Careful to avoid bumping into any of them. You walk along the street and find yourself standing right in front of several food merchants selling their wares. One is selling apple pies, one is selling freshly baked bread and another is selling raw meat. (If you wish to pay for food, it will cost you 1 gold piece each. Each item you pay for will boost your health points by 1. You cannot, however, purchase more than 3 items.)

Rolling your eyes in amusement, you walk away from the stall, and press on towards the center of the town, making sure to avoid all eye contact with many dangerous miscreants that wander the streets looking for trouble. There you find several more signposts, and raise a quizzical eyebrow in surprise. It seems the town offers more than just sanctuary and rest for the restless wanderer. It also offers training to those, who have gold to pay for it. One training on offer is mental resistance, another offers increased aptitude in battle and the last offers endurance training. However, you could just go to the inn to get a good night's sleep instead of spending the day training. Or save your gold by heading out of town a way's to get some sleep by the road. You take a moment to think about what you should do.

Choice 3. Do you visit the Swordcraft Guild (Boost your Resilience)? 20 Gold Pieces

Having spent most of your childhood in guilds very much like this one, you follow the signpost east away from the marketplace and towards the Swordcraft Guild, a two-story building opposite the statue. The wide oaken double doors that led inside, guarded by two steel gates that encircled the entire building, and decorated by two golden swords that were crossed against each other, before pulling apart when it sensed your presence. The many adventurers that were gathered outside the doorway, greeted by a heavily armed minotaur in fine plate armor that let out a bark of laughter upon seeing you enter through the gates and into the courtyard.

“you, by the light, I had heard tell that you were dead! Slain by some dastardly mage no less! Where have you been, my friend?!” proclaimed Daysword with an effusive smile as he lumbered forward to hoist you up into a tight hug that squished your insides, before letting you loose and beaming down at you with bright blue eyes. “I’m very glad you’re alive, my friend.”

“As am I,” you say with a rueful smile. “How’s Mryel?”

Daysword feigned distress. “Oh you, she has been lost without you, and pines you for daily. Sadly, besides, Jorgen that sniveling bellow-heart, no one has dared to challenge her.”

Aaaah, sweet, sweet, Myrel, daughter to Blasdel the guild master, she had light green eyes that always seemed alive with life and fire, unblemished green skin over a well-rounded body and wide inviting pink lips.

She was in many ways the very embodiment of a perfect orc female with an unquenchable appetite for battle, and an unbendable spirit that has always drawn you to her. Still, as a matter of pride, she had always said that she would never allow anyone to marry her unless they could defeat her in a fight and so had issued a challenge to anyone that would dare face her, although to hear it anyone tell it, those that did face her barely walked away alive.

Chuckling to yourself as you pat Daysword on the back, you reply, “Well, I’m off to tussle with destiny.” Causing the minotaur to hold his belly as he roared with laughter, before managing. “Best of luck, my friend.”

Knowing exactly where to go, you head through the open double doors and exit out the back of the hall where you find a training yard filled with hundreds of fighters who battle each other in mock duels with more than a few being beaten into the dust. The grounds watched over by Myrel who stares up at you in shocked surprise, before a wide smile splits her face, the comely young orca, wearing a tight-fitting formal battle dress that has your mind wandering at times.

Crossing the open grass towards her, you stop in front of her and put on your most charming smile. “And how are you my fair, Myrel?”

Laughing at you feeble attempt to beguile her, she punches you hard in the arm. “Enough of that, you. If you wish to challenge me. Then challenge me already.”

Blunt and to the point as always, you nod your head in acceptance. “Very well, I would like to challenge you for the right to your hand in marriage.”

Beaming from ear to ear, Myrel flashes you a gorgeous smile, before turning away to retrieve two wooden practice swords from a rack and handing you one. “Let’s see what you’ve learned so far, my would-be betrothed.”

Wooden blades lightly pressed against each other, you spread your feet apart and ready yourself for battle, when the young orca comes at you with a ferocious flurry of blows.

Beaten back by her surprisingly swift attack, you grin back. “Easy now, you wouldn’t want to hurt me would you?”

The orca letting a brief flicker of amusement cross her light green skin, before she replied, “We shall see.”

The new guild master coming at you again in another blitz of strikes that shake your arm, each parry barely caught in time as they danced across the courtyard. The warriors around them breaking apart to watch in awe as they fought back and forth. Myrel’s skills easily matching your own, but with greater strength and speed that has you backtracking to avoid being struck in the head or chest.

Wooden swords clacking together in a blur of movement, you balance yourself on the balls of your feet and try to meet each of her sword strokes with more power only to have the orca deflect them aside before attempting to boot you in the chest. The unexpected attack, forcing you to spin away at the last second and try to catch her on the backside as you pass her by, only to find her wooden blade instead. The sweat that pours down from your forehead, blurring your vision as you're driven back, time, and time again.

With not much energy left inside of you and form beginning to lag, you know it was only going to be a matter of time before you were defeated. So if you were going to win, you needed to act now.

Countering her strikes, you move from the defensive to an offensive stance and press your own rapid assault that pushes her back, when with one deft move she slips out of your path and thumps you hard in the ribs.

Grimacing in pain and irritation at having let down your guard, you again return to the assault, but each time you think you have her, she simply vanishes away from under your blade and smacks you again with an attack of her own without ever giving you the slightest opening.

Face twisted up into a rictus of white-hot rage, you let out a roar of frustration, and feint a series of consecutive blows to try and lure her guard down then tackle her to the dirt, her irresistibly warm form, struggling beneath you as she tries to get up when you place the sword to her throat. “I win--.”

--When the young female kicks you hard in the groin, dropping you into a ball on the ground. “I think not.”

Unable to help but let out a rueful chuckle at having being defeated by her again, you listen to the sounds of the warriors cheering around her and lay there in the dust with a grin on your face. “You’ve gotten better, Myrel.”

Myrel, gets up from the dust and holds out a hand to help you up. “As have you, you. Perhaps next time, we shall have our final dance. That is if you’re still able to bear children?”

Groan still aching, but still unable to shake the smile from your lips, you take her heavily calloused fingers in your own, and remember the many times they had sparred together as children beneath the watchful eyes of her father. The many times they had spent together in the woods dreaming of adventure. And now here they were worlds apart. You a dried a mercenary, and her as beautiful as the day you first met her.

Shaking your head at where your thoughts were leading you, you dust yourself off, and straighten up. “Looks like you’ve come along way, Myrey. Shall we go inside and reminisce for a while?”

Battle Results

+ 2 Resilience (Permanent.)

Loot

None