#darkgatefortress

"Can I put my foot down now?" Berry asked, even as Straw nodded, "Then I got it right the first time, a lizard"

Reinhold ROLLED his eyes... "Step anywhere you want as long as it isn't on a living creature"

Straw smiled. It was typical of nerdy little guys. When they found out the big guys in their lives weren't going to bully them after all, they sometimes indulged in intellectual disdain. Like Big people had to be dumb. Oh well. It gave him an in, while Reinhold fussed at Berry, the skink became one of the enchanted.. lit up quite pretty.

"Here," Straw offered, "You want to hold the lizard?"

"SKINK" Reinhold declared firmly in a almost loud voice.

It was the last 'almost loud voice' he'd use for a long long time. He took the Skink, and..the glow from it spread like cooking oil on a pan.

"Here we go" Berry stepped back

Dream Dances can be wonderful, terrible, or both. Unfortunately for the two thanes, while they weree armored and armed and ready for chimerical war, Reinhold did not make it easy on them. His memories of bullies and stupidity were made manifest and came for him with a vengeance!

Meaning, while the two trolls tried to get Reinhold to be brave and believe in himself, all the usual speeches, they also had to fight the chimera spawned by the event!

Meaning, that a Carriage coming for this might just slip by

Straw didn't even see it. He was too busy taking his sword and shoving it into the heavy made up face of a mean girl chimera that was, in the dreaming anyway, literally venomous!

Berry however, did see it, and kicked the chimera of an Ape with a male bully's face in the gut to knock it back, yelling to his partner, "CARRIAGE!"

The mission was to save the Chrystlaid from abduction, and Straw was a troll of priorities. Whirling around , he saw what his partner saw and yelled at the carriage "SKYRIM BELONGS TO THE NORDS!"

The hollystrike was spectacular... the carriage wasn't destroyed, but the wheel came clean off, causing it to spin and weave missing it's target. A door opened, a whip like construct shot out to grab at the sluagh, but it was at the extent of its full range... and Reinhold was indeed smart, and more.. he had good instincts in survival. He ..stepped back a whole foot and a half meaning the coil thing waved in his face, but couldn't seize him.

This came at a cost though, as Straw was BIT by the toxic mean girl Chimera from behind. Filled with the horrid feeling that 'no decent girl will ever date you' Straw cried out as the venom entered his mein.

Berry cast his own cantrip, and weeds and grass wrapped up the other wheels of the carriage, "Straw, hang on! Fight the slander toxin! Don't let it unman you! " A look to the sluagh "Help him! I've got two foes to fight, and stay away from that carriage"

It was all so loud.

So damn loud.

Reinhold heard everything of course, and while he didn't know what was going on, he knew the Toxic creature was from HIS fears, his humiliation, and that Straw, while three steps away from being a linebacker who did underwear commercials, had just taken a toxin MEANT for him. He owed this blockhead.

And that was the big clue that Reinhold Wiggins was an Attic Pooka. Memories of a vague past life hinted at the power he had, and with desperation, he threw one of his new used books he was going to read INTO the toxic mean girl chimera's still open mouth. The title was 'the Hate U give' or something like that. HE just thought he'd give it a try. The art was Autumn...

and like a proverbial apple going down a gullet... the book was swallowed, and then... the Chimera began to cry out, wither, and finally, die.

"I.. I killed her" Reinhold said horrifed "SHIT SHIT... I mean, it was COOL but... "

"You just may have given me time to save Straw's life" Berry assured him as he coudl now focus on the trained ape without the training bully face night mare, his own weapon hacking "He's in a bad state, tell him he's a stud."

"WHAT?" Wiggins was so shocked he was pulled out of his moral quandry about maybe killing a maybe real thing?

Then he turned to see Straw, the venom was bad, and Straw was going paler and muttering "Oh god. I'm gonna end up as an Incel asshole. Why would any girl want to be with me? I mean... my hands are too big... and my feet. I look like a clown."

Wiggins realized that the guy litterally was dying from the emasculating attack of the nightmare's venom, and ... moved to him and said reassuring words

UNFORTUANTELY, it was just a fucking whisper? What the hell. The Dude didn't even hear him.

HE tried again, getting uncomfortably close to Thane Straw to BE heard "Are you kidding? Big hands, Big feet? Girls have myths about that combo and that myth is in your favor. They'll think you're a stud with a huge you know what to match! You're also crazy sstupid brave, saving people . Girlss LOVE those guys in movie and novels and here you are in Real life"

Straw fought the negativity flowing his veins "I'm a stud?"

"If I were a girl, I would tottally bang you, by third date for sure" Wiggins hoped, sincerely HOPED, NO one remembered this... or he'd just never talk to anyone again. He'd find a nice dark hole, grab some books, and never come out again.

"THanks.. that.. that means a lot" Straw said, recovering... and rose to his feet. He gestured at the carriage again, and bunked once more "Like Dungeon Crawler Carl said, "Fuck you, you will not Break me. I WILL Break you!"

And the carriage exploded!

"ow" Reinhold said, not because of shrapnel from the holy strike, but because of the noise.

The now out numbered bully faced ape was soon dispatched between the two thanes.

"That's that... patrol worked" And straw passed out

Berry picked up his partner, "Dude, follow me."

"Reinhold, Reinhold Wiggins" The Sluagh said.

"Great sluagh name" Berry assured Reinhold "You picked a use name fast."

"It's ah.. actually my.. .birth name. Had it for years." The sluagh whispered and followed.

Berry blinked "NO WONDER you don't trust anybody, you poor bast.. I mean, works for now. You okay?"

"Fine" Rienhold said, still going along "mmm .. what's a sluagh?"

(Fade to a long walk and a longer talk)