Ruckus' Journal

### Expedition to Fort Harrow

Ruckus sits at the table of the stuck pig and stares at his honey mead. He stopped by the merchant and picked up some meager supplies. He is still almost flat broke, despite almost being killed… Twice! He is not discouraged though.. This is what being an adventurer in an unknown land is all about right?… Now he does take a drink of the mead. He looks at what he has purchased with his meager haul:

1 water skin

1 bag of caltrops(content 20)

20 arrows.

He takes another long pull of the mead, and he hangs his head in shame. He was an embarrassment to the elven rangers. Maybe they were right. Maybe he wasn’t cut out to be a ranger on account of his condition. Maybe he should choose something more suitable for someone of dwarvish stature.

No, he is an elf. He just needs to remember his training. He lost patience, and he almost got himself and worse… Almost got his team killed.

He made the mistake of taking the lead in a situation when he should have been trusting in the experience of others. He had just been so confident after their battle with the swamp creatures. Yes, the snakes had been an unexpected bother, and they had managed to subdue a member of the team, but they had regrouped, and in the end, they triumphed over beasts. They had a good thing going….

The abandoned; or what appeared to be abandoned mausoleum seemed to hold such promise when they had found it before making camp for the night. They had bonded over the fire and started their exploration with optimism the following day. He had taken up his role as elven ranger scout confidently and moved into position to make sure all was safe for the group.

All was quiet, and he signaled for them to move in. He waited, and then kept waiting. It seemed like there was some disagreement, and he was eager to get on with their adventure. To see what treasures lay in wait for the inside. He forgot himself. He forgot his training and the lessons of his mother.

He speaks out. He thinks he is being quiet, but he is not. He raises his void. He doesn’t even see the gargoyle coming and t is upon him. It’s all teeth and red eyes It’s goring at him with horns, slashing with claws and…..

black\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_

He awakes to screams and chaos. He is laying on his side facing towards the mausoleum, and the thing that attacked him; which he now sees is a god's damned Gargoyle!, has picked up one of his comrade and is about to take flight with him. He wants to help, but can’t move. The party seems scattered and in disarray. He has the impression of someone diving for one in the gargoyle's clutches. The next flash shows the gargoyle's wings getting ready extending, and the fellow warrior still prone and nonresponsive. The beast starts to take flight, and something hits it at the last minute and shatters… He thinks it almost sounds like glass breaking, but why would someone hit a beast of stone with glass? The fact that he can think this coherently means his faculties are returning to him. He starts to glance around. He’s hurt bad. He still can’t get up, but he sees… The berries!

Ruckus notices his bag of spilled goodeberries scattered out before him. If he can just reach one before he fades back out. Everything is starting to flutter again. He is just on the edge of consciousness, as he manages to stuff one of the magical healing berries into his mouth.

It gives him just enough energy to get to his feet, start stumbling back towards the exit to the cursed graveyard and start screaming for his friends to follow. Everything is still hazy after that. He remembers the dirty looks from the other warriors, and passing out the goodberries to the injured without complaint. He doesn’t remember the journey back to town at all, so it must have been uneventful.

There was discussion of the sharing of profits for the crocodile hides, but Ruckus was barely aware of this and took the handful of coins he was offered without even looking at it. He had felt the evening, and up until now feeling sorry for himself, but he feels his resolve building again.

The most important lesson was to learn from your failures. The promise of high reward had allured him, but he now realized this was a fool's errand. He was not ready for this. He needed more combat experience, he needed to know the lay of the land, he needed better gods damned equipment! He's going to be humble. Start small and work his way up. They did pretty well against those crocodiles, even when they got ambushed by the snakes, and those things were nasty! Maybe there is a better way to hunt them.. He is a ranger after all. That would be his job to figure that out wouldn't it?...

   He finished his honey mead and stomps up to the bar.

“May I use that parchment and quill barkeep?” The barkeep eyed him suspiciously, and then looked over his shoulder… “No, I don’t want to use it to stab anyone. If I was going to do that I would just ask for the quill…” At this, the barkeep shrugs agreement and hands them over”

Ruckus begins to write.