literature

War Trial 5

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Having cleared the ambush, Thomas and Dorado pressed on.

Dorado snorted and pranced, nerves jangling. Thomas's nerves felt pretty jangled too, but he tried to calm himself. He would only wear himself out if was twitching at every broken twig between now and the end of the Trial.

The next part was supposed to be the "Boss Fight". They would face the King of Fayley himself once they found him; a tall blonde demon aboard a massive cream and blue stallion. Thomas was glad he'd brought his spear as well as his sword as neither he nor Dorado were close to matching their opponents in height. 

They picked their way slowly through the mountain pass, looking for a trail as the sun began to peek up from beyond the mountain peaks. Thomas was glad for the sun's aid, as he had to rely on mortal means to track them. As much as he'd pestered his father, William had refused to teach Thomas the tracking spell the old goat was so adept at. 

He had no idea how long this pass was. There was probably a map somewhere back at the starting camp but he hadn't thought to look for one. William would give him hell for that when he got back. Always know the terrain. At the very least, Thomas didn't want to corner themselves in a dead end or steer Dorado off a cliff. 

They came across a few broken twigs on brush around the mountain pass, but it was hard to tell how recently they were broken. It could have been from the previous night as the dummy wargs got into position or tracked Thomas and Dorado. It could have been from other competitors who got here first and already tracked down their quarry. Thomas had gotten close enough to see a glimpse of the King and his monstrous mount, but not to smell him. Not that his nose was good enough to track anything short of a wet bear anyway. Dorado, for all his shining achievements, was a thoroughly mortal horse with no magical or super-horse abilities of any kind.

Finally they came across hoofprints. Not warg prints; unmistakably the prints of a giant of a horse. Thomas hadn't seen any other mounts that size at the base camp, so he trusted these had to belong to King Sig's Cullen.

He reined in Dorado slightly, urging him to quiet and caution. Dorado tossed his head once and settled into a quiet walk, ears pricked and alert. 

Again, it was one of the wargs who gave away the game by brushing against the brush that lined the pass. Dorado swung around to meet them, and Thomas readied his spelled sword. It turned out to be unnecessary as Dorado pummeled the artificial creature to the ground with its hooves and it didn't get back up again. 

Before the first creature was dispatched, the second sprang. Thomas whirled in his saddle, hampered in his movements by the high back of the jousting saddle. As much of a godsend as it was when facing an opponent from the front, it did more harm than good for facing an attack from behind when his mount was too occupied with his own warg to turn around. 

He did the best he could, flailing with his sword and knocking the creature back with his armored forearm. Add that to his growing collection of bruises. Finally Dorado wheeled, having finished with the first warg and lurching towards the second. This one had the advantage of open ground and was able to use its superior agility unlike the first which had been trapped among the brush. It feinted and toyed with the pair until Dorado was able to lash out a shod hoof and stun it while Thomas was able to deliver the death blow to its throat. 

Thomas wasn't sure exactly how many other wargs to expect, if any. He didn't see any signs of others, but he and Dorado returned to the path carefully, just in case. 

If that really was the last of the wargs, all that was left was the King himself. Thomas didn't know much about the society of Fayley, but he wouldn't be surprised if their military leader had in fact worked his way up with military experience and earned his place at the top. So he had Thomas beat in both size and experience. And he rode an Elven Warhorse- from what Thomas understood, they could have magic. Dorado was an exceptional mount but he was only magical in the figurative sense.

The terrain began to open, and Thomas caught sight of the pair they were pursuing over a rise. They were indeed quite impressive; the tall blonde man on the tall white horse fairly glowed in the light of the rising sun. Thomas wondered if they might sneak up on them, but the jangling of Dorado's armor seemed to have already given them away. King Sig turned and saw Thomas, and urged his steed into a canter. 

Thomas clucked to Dorado and they picked up the pace. They were tired from the night before, but it was easier once they reached solid ground and had their quarry in their sights. The end was within reach. Just one more hurdle to clear.

They did have one thing going for him. Dorado was smaller and lighter than the Elven Warhorse, and more lightly armored. His lope wasn't much faster than Cullen's, but it was enough to close the distance before his energy was completely depleted. 

Thomas decided not to let out the fierce warcry that was his family's tradition on the battlefield. He was pretty sure the goat-shriek would do little to intimidate the much larger demon and it was better to save his breath. 

Once they closed in, he was glad to see the King's sword carried the same shimmer of protective magic as his own. He was sure the much heavier man could swing that thing mightily, and Thomas didn't really want to lose his head today. 

The King's bright green eyes met Thomas's own, and he smiled a predatory smile. Both raised their swords, and the game was on.
Event: First Annual Fence Post Festival
Prompt Set: War Trials
Prompt Number: 5 - Boss Fight
MountDorado 031
RiderThomas 

Just going to leave it there, since the victor is determined by RNG :D Poor Thomas is probably going to get pummeled XD That's what you get for challenging a King!

Wordcount: 1007

Daler Points (estimated):
  • Training image ("Mounted Combat") - 2 daler
  • Including a handler - 1 daler
  • 1000 word story - 10 daler
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Matsi-Doodles's avatar
Another FANTASTIC entry! Get ready for a long post :la:

FOR THE PROMPT PRIZE.
For this prompt you rolled a 2! Which means you do not get a prize, maybe next time!

FOR FINISHING THE WAR TRIALS PROMPTS::
YOU CAN CHOOSE A TIER TWO PRIZE!
-20 EWH Coins
-Custom Semi-Precious EWH With no Magic, up to two mutations
-Free Summon Pet from Altars Pet Altar containing up to 5 Items
-Custom Fairy dragon with standard wings
-Custom Elven Forest Hound of any rarity EXCLUDING Unknown
-Semi Custom character design from Matsi
-One Moving Page doll from Matsi (Premade lines only)


FInally.... To face the king. You must roll a 1-20 to win, 21-30 to have it counted as a tie, and 31-100 is a loss....

Thomas and Dorado rolled... A 29!! 

The battle goes on for what may seem like hours. The two warg dummies have long since fallen, and both King and Challenger are starting to wear down. With the threat of another storm beginning to roll in, the officials call it. It is a tie!
YOU GET 25 EWH COINS FOR THE TIE!


Please just let EWH Admin know what prizes you choose so we can update your log! CONGRATS, BOVIDAELOONY! Wonderful participation!