[Note: Esso wrote these two posts, but then never followed up.] Date: Mon, 29 Jun 1998 01:04:00 EDT Subject: [ffml] [MW] A New Player Arrives From: It was hot on the training field at Garion Castle. Damn hot. One thousand pandonian knights were performing their rigorous morning excercises. One knight dressed in his practice armor watched his small militant force at work with sincere aproval. It had taken him every waking hour since word of the great Moogle War had reached him for Sparhawk to sharpen his men's skills to an adequate level. Having seen the ordeal with he Dark Moogle and the materia, Sparhawk had decided that it was at last time to Joing the war. He wasn't quite sure how much he and his men would help, but it was help that the forces of "good" desperately needed. "Sir Sparhawk, are you ready?" The question came from a tall young knight just below Sparhawk. The youth was on of the best fighters Sparhawk had. His slender features made him look deceptively weak and innocent. "No Milan, the question is are you ready" Sparhawk stated rather sarcasticly as he made his way down to the grounds. Sparhawk made it his duty to spar with five knights every day, and Milan was the last of the day. Milan knew that he had no chance against the fighting prowess of Sparhawk, but he was determined to at leat wear his captain out. "What weapon will it be today milan? Perhaps the lance again?" having said that remark, images of their last duel flashed into Sparhawk's mind. It had taken but one pass to both knock Milan off his horse, and render him unconcious. "Not on your life Sparhawk" the prideful young man said "I was thinking more along the lines of sword and shield." "Milan! You? A traditionalist? I'd have never guessed. How about something a little more interesting? Let's just say something along the lines of twin short swords? Milan knew where this one was going. One of the qualities which made Sarhawk such an efficient killer was that he was ambidextrious. "As you wish my Captain." Milan said bowing so low that the weight of his armor nearly fell him. The two made their way to a rack of varying swords, and each removed two dull edged practice swords. They then proceeded to the center of the training grounds and started to warm up a bit. After a few minutes, Sparhawk struck his swords together and calmly asked "are you ready?" In answer to his question Milan went into a combination of brilliant overhead swings, and dazling thrusts. So expert were Sparhawks parries, that he lost not a single step to the youths tantalizing manuvers. "This is combat, not a play. With swings such as those, I could have brained you inbetweed attacks. Never commit so fully to any atack unless you fell you blade bite into flesh." To emphasize his point, Sparhawk went to the offensive himself. Pure instinct was the only thing that kept Milan from losing the match on Sparhawk's first wave of attacks. So quick and precise were Sparhawk's swings and thrusts, that Milan couldn't even keep track of both blades at once. At the last possible second, Milan saw a vicious high thrust coming for his head. His sword was up in an instant to deflect the blow, but his sword met only air. He located the sword he had meant to block when it was too late. He saw the twin blades flash forward toward his gut with the upmost admiration. Having won the Match, Sparhawk returned his short swords to the rack, and called all knigts on the grounds to him. "That's all the training we will do today. Tomorrow we will leave to join forces against the Moogles. Tomorrow we march to join the armies of Bacca and Jaana." With that said, Sparhawk left to oversee the preparations for the long journey. END From: Esso69@aol.com Date: Wednesday, July 01, 1998 8:16 PM Subject: [ffml] [MW] March of the Masses From: By the time the sun came up, more than half of Castle Garion's knights had left. Sparhawk had thought it best to on the trail before the break of dawn. Though he knew it was dangerous to ride in the dark, he had to be through the Elirian forest before nightfall. Sparhawk sat atop his mighty horse on a hilltop watching the column of knights ride by at a gentle canter. As he was thinking that the group just might make it through the forest before dark, Sparhawk heard the hoof beats of an approaching rider. He turned to look at the man on the horse, and saw that his best of friends Belthazar was coming. Belthazar was a monster of a man. He was Sparhawks heigth and half again. His torso was a mountain, and his limbs trees which blosomed on it. He was by far the strongest man that Sparhawk had ever seen. His long brown hair blew around the hilt of the massive clamore strapped to his back in th gentle breeze. He had ridden hard from the front of the column, and took a moment to catch his breath. "What news have you, Belthazar?" Sparhawk asked "We're at the edge of the wood sir" replied the winded knight. "Come now Besthazar, we've been friends for longer than I can remember. You really needn't call me 'sir'" "Sorry Sparhawk. I guess it's just habbit. I'm not used to thinking of the lord of Garion Castle as an equal." "Well, start!" Sparhawk felt incredibly better now that his friends were starting to call him by his name and not 'sir'. Sparhawk had become lord not eight months ago when his father died, and it took a time for people to realize that he was no different just because he was now a Lord. Belthazar and Sparhawk started to trot off toward the Elirian Forest and the incredible danger that awaited there. The Elirian forest was the home of the Renshai. The Renshai were a troll-like creature possesing amazing strength and agility that did not fit the clumbsy make up of their bodies. The only real difference between trolls and Renshai was that renchai did not have the ability to regenerate. A few minutes later the two reached the head of the column and lead their men in. The road that they had been following went around the forest, but since he was pressed for time, Sparhawk decided that he would take the risk and go through the forest. As the hours passed, Sparhawk became more and more nervous. He had only traveled through the forest once before without incident, but the tales he had herd of the forest were horrifying. About four hours before sunset, the group exited the forest to see the rocky expanse of a ravine before them. "We'll set up for camp in there" said Sparhawk to Belthazar as he pointed to athe narrowest part of the ravine. "That's exactly what I was thinking. There's no way we'll get through the ravine before dark, and it's best to camp now so we can set up some defenses than to have no defenses when the Renshai attack." "Do you that sure that they'll attack?" "Absolutely Sparhawk, there've been some watching us for about two hours." "Where?" asked the shoked captain "Our scouts have seen movement in the brush. Do have any other explanation? "None that I can think of. Have some men cut some trees down and set up spikes on this side of where we'll be camped." "Sparhawk, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but that won't stop them." "It's not suposed to. I'm planning to keep a path down the middle of the spikes open. That will slow them down enough so that our archers can take a few out." "Excelent idea. I'll get some men on it right away." Over the next two hours, stakes were made and place, and other measures to slow them down were taken. Small spikes were set all along the trail in the middle. As a giant balista was being tested for range and accuracy, a deafening scream was heard. A few moments later, several thousand other screams were heard. "Good God!" exclaimed Milan "There must be thousands of them." "Sparhawk, I think we have a problem." Belthazar's eyes never left the opening of the ravine as he spoke. Sparhawk shifted his gaze to where Belthazar was staring, and he saw it. Thousands of the beasts. All the Renshai in the entire forest must have gotten together to defeat the relatively small band Sparhawk had taken with him. "Alright men," Sparhawk turned his horse around to face the mounted knights and archers "Here they come. You know what to do. Lets finish this up in a hury. I don't want a three week seige here." With that the knights moved back a ways and lined up in a row four knights across. The balista was placed on a large flat rock behind them, and the archers fanned out behind the knights. As soon and the first Renshai reached the sharpened stakes, the arches started their barrage of deadly missiles.