You are standing shoulder to shoulder, weapons drawn, in a wooded hollow, deep in some tall grass. Twin crescent moons peer down upon you, dimly illuminating the scene. Pairs of red eyes glint out at you from the tall pines that encircle you.
One massive shaggy warg stalks towards you, probably the pack leader, head hung low, drool slavering from its fangs. At least four more hunched shadows are visible as shadows further back in the darkness, but it's hard to tell their number. They are cunning hunters and hard to spot.
Kane draws his flaming sword out in front of him and stands his ground.
The wargs of Tol Nedra are an especially wicked and cunning breed, smarter than normal wolves. Although they cannot speak, they have a low level of sentience after their kind, smart enough to serve the Vorghol Lords with loyalty.
Khom-Bei raises his warhammer above his head and speaks calmly; "Great Father, grant us your blessing in this fight against these evil beasts." This invocation to the Powers heartens you all.
Thragga is in the middle, Kane to his left, Khom-Bei to his right.
Khom-Bei steps back with arms raised: "Great Father, shine down your light upon us."
A blinding light suffuses the circle as if the sun has risen. Thragga throws an arm over his eyes and grunts in pain. The pack leader blinks long and hard, growling, shaking his head to throw off the effects.
Thragga raises his axe and bellows in his native Urag-ta: "Arrbakh bura-bak!" He charges forward at the pack leader in front of him, slicing and hacking. His attack slices into the pack leader's hide, driving the creature back.
Kane joins Thragga in the attack of the warg leader. He raises his blazing sword and strikes at the beast's heart. The blow sears the beast's fur. It snaps back at him with massive fanged jaws.
Kane dodges the warg's teeth. Four wargs take this as a signal and charge into the hollow, howling and growling.
Khom-Bei steps forward and brings his warhammer down swiftly. His blow appears to miss, but he reverses direction and catches the beast in the snout.
Thragga brings his axe overhead in a massive strike, and chops down at the pack leader. The Urag warrior lops the head off the creature, blood spraying him from head to chest, and he roars in bloodlust at the oncoming pack of four.
Seeing Thragga has the pack leader in hand, Kane slashes on an onrushing warg.
The warg pack reaches you. They leap, claws and fangs slashing at you. Two assault Thragga; the other two go after Kane and Khom-Bei.
Kane slices at his foe as it leaps on him, injuring but not killing it.
The beasts pounce on Thragga, one sinking its teeth into his bicep. Thragga is overborne by the attack, falling backwards into the tall grass under the onslaught of the massive wolves.
Khom-Bei takes a step backwards and swings his hammer at the warg attacking him.
Kane turns to help his fallen friend. He stabs at the warg attacking Thragga.
Khom-Bei's axe strikes the warg a glancing blow.
The warg on Thragga's chest falls back under Kane's assault.
Thragga rolls to his knees. He strikes at the retreating warg, clumsy from his posture. The Urag axe catches it in the flank and it yelps as Thragga opens up its side.
Its partner leaps at Kane, and the one who was attacking Kane previously snaps at him from the rear.
The wargs snap and snarl, but their attacks miss, under your furious defense.
Khom-Bei swings his hammer furiously at the beast pursuing him. His hurried attack allows the creature to roll nimbly under his blow.
Thragga gets to his feet, the better to strike a more powerful blow. He roars and spits at the wargs.
Kane twirls his sword above his head. Then he stares the warg in front of him in the eyes, and stabs at the warg behind him.
The warg behind Kane gives a surprised howl as his blade catches it in the snout, shearing it off. It drops, bleeding to death.
A warg leaps on Khom-Bei and rends flesh with its teeth. Although the warg tugs at him to bring him down, Khom-Bei keeps his feet.
Three more wargs lurk in the woods. They watch the battle, judging their chances.
Khom-Bei swings his hammer at the beast clinging to his arm. The warg hangs on, grimly, snapping and spitting.
Thragga gives an enormous leap in his magical boots. He sails through the air out of the midst of the battle, and lands near the three on the edge of the woods. Then he lashes out at the largest one there.
Kane charges the warg facing him and slashes his sword down. His flaming sword crashes down on the warg and slices it clean in half. Not knowing it's dead, the warg continues to howl in pain.
Warg blood and gore sprays all of you, soaking your hair and clothes. The two remaining wargs turn to flee.
As the wargs turn to run, Khom-bei swings his hammer. Khom-Bei's foe catches the hammer in the spine as it turns to run. Trailing blood, howling in terror, it lopes off for the safety of the tall pines.
Grasping his sword with both hands, Kane lunges into the air and stabs down on the fleeing warg. Kane's blow goes high and the warg flees off alongside its packmate.
Thragga stands in a circle of three wargs, about 20 feet from you. One is injured. It will take a full turn to run up to him and you won't be able to attack with a melee weapon. Thragga is grinning at the three of them...baring his own fangs.
Khom-Bei turns and runs toward Thragga and the wargs that surround him.
Kane charges into the wood to aid his friend Thragga.
Thragga strikes at an uninjured warg. He slices the front limb off his foe and the thing slips in its own blood.
The three wargs redouble their attack, leaping and tearing at the Urag. Thragga topples under the ferocious onslaught. He is completely hidden by bloody wolf pelts.
Khom-Bei swings his hammer down at the nearest warg crouching over Thragga. He batters at the creature, which is snapping at Thragga on the ground.
Thragga attacks the same one from the front, swinging his axe in a short stroke.
Kane crashes into the group attacking Thragga and furiously slashes at the frenzied beasts.
Thragga's axe beheads the creature in mid-howl. Blood gouts all over him as the thing's corpse collapses on him.
The remaining two wargs turn to flee. You can read terror in their slitted red eyes!
Khom-Bei swing his hammer in a vicious arc at a fleeing warg. He brains the big wolf as it turns, striking it dead.
Thragga hacks at the remaining big wolf, slicing it, but it still has enough strength to try to totter away.
Kane slams his foot down on the retreating warg's tail, then swings his blade at the beasts neck. He slices the head in two, brains and blood spilling out over the tall grass.There is a pause, and the night is still.
Thragga rolls to his feet, wiping wolf blood from his eyes. His own greenish blood streams from bite marks over his arms, shoulders and neck. "I could have taken them!" he snarls.
Kane says, "But why let you have all the fun? Warg's blood stinks. I need to wash up."
Khom-Bei laughs softly at the bickering. "Sit down, Thragga, and let me fix your scratches."
The big Urag frowns. "We passed a stream few hundred paces back, if you are feeling dainty about the blood, Kane."
Khom-Bei places his hands over Thragga's wounds and begins to chant softly in a tongue known only to the clans of the plains.
Thragga allows himself to be tended to. As Khom-Bei works, Thragga hisses at a warg corpse, "I will wear your coat, beast!"
Kane says, "You forget where we are, my friend. Fresh blood will draw all types of things."
The healing energies course over Thragga's body, knitting wounds and staunching the flow of blood. He nods in grim acknowledgement of Kane's words.
Khom-Bei continues chanting as he moves his hands to another injury on Thragga's arm.
Thragga looks back off the way the wargs ran, to the northeast. He points. "They've fled off through the Ghostwood, Kane."
You've heard of the Ghostwood. A thick, tangled forest, where 30 years ago, King Leonic of Ress led an army of riders on the Second Crusade...and where they disappeared, never to be seen again by mortals. "Lorn has gone around it. He probably couldn't get the cart in there. But if we cut through it, we can gain time on him."
Thragga grins, drawing a big lungful of air. "Northerling, you do good work!" he says, stomping his feet and swinging his axe.
Kane says, "Sounds like a good idea. But first let's wash this blood off us so we can hope to emerge again from it."
"Killing is hungry work," Thragga says, eyeing the small steppe pony speculatively.
Khom-Bei says, "If you're hungry, Thragga, eat the warg."
Kane wanders back to his horse and untethers her. "Let's get moving."