Trial of Combat - Sunderpalm

The stories and lives of the Grim. ((Roleplaying Stories and In Character Interactions))
Sunderpalm
Member
Posts: 135

Trial of Combat - Sunderpalm

Unread post by Sunderpalm »

I stumbled through a corridor of the guild hall trying not to drop my armload of things that I had grabbed from a back room. In an event to keep from falling over, I leaned against the cold stone wall and slid forward steadily. It worked quite well until I crossed another doorway lunging into the wall shoulder first. Half of my belongings fell out of arms and there was a painful poking sensation in my side. I took my now free hand and grabbed what was one of my brushes that had tried to impale me, frowned at the ruined tip and threw it behind me. I straightened up and carefully grabbed my things that had fallen and made my way into a round room with a table at the center of the room. Having reached my destination, I began to situate myself. I placed two casks on separate sides of the table, placing a seasoned mug and a cloth on the bench underneath the jutting spigots. I turned the knobs with each hand and began to organize my brushes, parchments, ink, and my stalks of self-made incense. Closing the spigots instinctively as the mugs reached full capacity, I brushed the access foam from the mugs with a wooden stem I keep tucked under my robe. The ink was readied, brushes prepared, parchment neatly placed, ready to receive. Taking careful but deep drinks from each mug, I grabbed a stalk of incense and lit it from the rusty lantern that was at the center of the table. As it was wedged between two boards in the table to sit up, the aroma filled my nostrils- a unique blend of Dreamfoil and Netherbloom, soaked in the Kafa'kota berries of Kun-Lai Summit, then dried and crushed. Eyes closed, I began to recall the past event. The brews began to take effect as I reached balanced inebriation. My senses soared, vivid images beginning to fill my head, images of an armed shadow crashing upon the plated fortress that was Ruuki. Further ingestions of the malty and spicy pale ale chased with the stout and ashy dark ale caused the images to begin moving. I knew the incense began to take effect as my vision included me as my senses leapt from my spiritual body. I began to control the images being fed to me, forcing my mind back to the beginning-

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(Quan Tou Kuo the Two Fisted, Father of the School of Balanced Inebriation)

"Are you sure this will work?" Ruuki voiced her question as she dismounted from her golden serpent, hooves clopping onto the loose rock outside the tomb. No sooner did she touch the ground that the waves of the shoreline washed over to her, almost reaching her knees. She sighed and looked back at me. I had dismounted on top of a large boulder, safeguarding me from the waves. I fought back a smile.

"Well, Phil-" I stopped abruptly catching my tongue. "Ruuki, as a mender of the Grim it is my responsibility to help you in recovering your memory. However, I have limited workings with memory loss." I hopped down from the elevated position and started forward. As we entered the tomb I hushed my voice. "So you could say I'm working with the cues you've given me to try and trigger more memories. You mentioned this tomb and its inhabiting spirit, so here we are."

She nodded seriously as she walked ahead, putting herself between the tomb and I. She rotated a shoulder, I suspect due to discomfort. Perhaps her protective armor wasn't quite fitted right as she didn't use it often. Her shield arm instinctively reached to grasp her weapon in a two-handed fashion, but she caught herself. The small cramped passageway opened into a large square burial room, with four pillars holding up the looming stones above. It smelled of stagnant water and death. I shuddered from the cold, encompassing atmosphere while Ruuki grunted her acknowledgement of our surroundings. She seemed to remember it, glancing around at the stone sarcophagi scattered along the outer wall.

"Ready?" I asked, gesturing slightly as the ever familiar Jade Serpent statue materialized nearby.

She nodded, gripping her sword so tight I could hear the leather on the hilt groan in protest. "I know what to do."

She approached the large stone tomb on the back wall on the room, stopping at a small apparatus near it. She revealed three small glowing blue stones, and carefully placed them in the 3 available notches in the small device, then stepped back, readying her shield. The room began shudder and you could hear faint moans and cries. They seemed to be coming from the sarcophagi along the walls. And then, as if the stone weren't even there, a large brutish apparition sat up in the large tomb. It seemed to be an ancient Mogu warlord of great infamy. Turning to Ruuki it seemed to understand that she was its summoner, and in one motion the shade grabbed its polearm, leapt from its resting place and struck.

Ruuki blocked the first strike clumsily, taking two steps back to rebalance. I could see her smile as my healing mists washed over her and I moved to take position behind the warlord. Ruuki held its attention as I lunged in to strike. I lashed out at all known weaknesses and pressure points but it was to no avail. Continuing the assault, Ruuki's movements became much more deliberate and fluid as she seemed to acclimate to her task. As my strikes wore our enemy down, he took measures against me. His shouts boomed, seeming to shake the foundation of the stone tower we were beneath. The sarcophagi shuddered, and one opened. The ghostly apparition within it wailed, piercing my eardrums. Its grasp tugged at me, diverting my attention away from the warlord. In an effort to get free of its grasp, I dove around a pillar. The pulling stopped, and I heard stone meet stone as the sarcophagus shut. I turned back to the warlord, who wielded his polearm above his head preparing for a mighty strike,his eyes and weapon glowing with dark energy. Ruuki raised her shield in response but I knew that may not be enough. How I summoned the strength to pull a Tauren off her hooves I will never know, but we dodged the powerful strike.

Crashing into the stone floor together, I warned "Watch out for that one!" pointing out the dark magic trail it left behind. She nodded thankfully, and immediately went back to work.

Fortunately, even ghostly warlords tire. His strikes slowed and weakened as we grew more aware of every tactic he employed. He gasped in exhaustion and I took that as a cue to end it. From behind I swept my leg, bringing the mighty warlord to its knees. Ruuki, without hesitation, brought her shield down upon its exposed neck. In a muffled grunt, the apparition slumped to the ground, defeated.

I opened my eyes, the fire within the lantern seeming to stare back at me. I took a deep breath and looked down. Raising an eyebrow at the sight, the parchment showed a beautifully drawn picture of Ruuki and I standing over the spirit of Warlord Teng.

"Interesting," I said to myself, quite amazed. Deciding it's better to meditate on it later, I grabbed a brush and began to write under the drawing-

“I've been spending time with Ruuki, doing what I can to bring her memory back. We went to the Tomb of Warlord Teng, as she mentioned it as one of the images she remembered. Spending this time on Thunder Isle and this encounter with the warlord brought back recollection of our time assisting the Sunreaver Onslaught, along with skirmishing with the Kirin Tor there. I believe with enough time it will be possible to recover most if not all of her memories. As a mender of the Grim, this has been an experience of growth for me, and I would like to submit this as my Trial of Combat.

-Sunderpalm”


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(Warning: Photo may be more graphic than picture in trial)
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Aureilya
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Posts: 2141

Re: Trial of Combat - Sunderpalm

Unread post by Aureilya »

"Supplicant,

Well done- both in defeating your enemy, and for aiding another Grim. Your first trial is complete, but now your second awaits you. I look forward to hearing of your progress.

-Inquisitor Aureliya Raindawn"
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