To Honor the Man Made God

On a morning that everyone is preparing for the day Red approaches Rask. Rask is DOING SOME SORT OF MORNING EXERCISE. Everyone else is around.

“Morning Rask! For some reason I find my missing home today. I haven’t built anything in a while. Makes me miss the old shop in Aigier. Make me miss the grand city.

This got me thinking that maybe knowing more about Raiden might warm my spirits. My parents never really taught me too much about Raiden. I am curious about any stories about Raiden you might know?”

Not Just an Arm

Ethelred on watch hears some of Rask’s utterances, seeming to be open to turning on the group.

A night later while Rask sleeps Ethelred chooses to awaken Alexis and Ca’armine. Taking great pains to make little noise. He signals them each individually to be quite and to move away from the group. The three move out of vocal range, but can still see the sleeping Rask (and Gustav).

Whispering and keeping a solid eye on Rask as he sleeps…

“Gentleman, I am worried about Rask. I have heard disturbing utterances from his own lips last night. He seems to be pondering, relishing?, attacking us.There is something not right with Rask.

If we are to pursue taking the fight to Bandesingh we must all be aligned. We do not know enough about Bandesingh. Bandesingh might be able to effect Rask in a way that would leave his even more vulnerable to the soul that seems trapped with in him.

I have racked my brain for things that I might be able to do to help free Rask, but the magics that posses him are beyond my understanding.

Do we need the skull that was involved in the ‘ritual’ that Rask performed to take the soul into this sword?

Car’armine might you have some healing, or turning that could help?

Alexis what light might your goddess shed onto this situation?

It would seem that combining the powers of Ave and Raiden might prove to be a challenging knowing some of the history of them. But maybe that is an option?”

Red looks between his companions, a clear expression of concern is upon him.

The Little Death that Brings Complete Obliteration

Rask moans in in his sleep…

“No… not Gus…”

“…Ca’armine…”

Sad moans shift to flat mutterings…

“… exis… join the horde… sword…”

“… ‘thelred is the weakest…”

“Two swords… the only real threat…”

“.. ‘us… at a distance…”

And finally, grim determination.

“Break the bow… cut Red down… then the Priests…”

The Hobgoblin of Little Minds

Rask approaches Alexis as the group prepares to follow the hobgoblins tracks into the grasslands.

“Boss, I’m not going to be able to use a sword, given what happened to Ca’armine this morning…”

Rask pauses, and looks apologetically at the priest, then the Ethelred and Gustav.

“I think Zrithak has… influence over my sword arm… I’m pretty sure he was one of the escaped chained creatures connected to that crypt in Sutheron, and somehow his soul is… more aware? stronger? than the others trapped in… my sword.”

“I’m concerned simply destroying the sword will free the all the souls trapped there, including Zrithak. My preference would be to force him out of my body and back into the sword somehow and eventually to turn the sword over to the Hoodites.”

“In the meantime, I’m afraid I need to fight with just my hands, and perhaps a bow.”

Rask In the Morning

In the morning before departing from the camp where the barghest battle occurred, Rask does his usual set of sword exercises, including the new flat-of-the-blade less lethal techniques. Rask starts with a plain longsword, and before he can do anything else, he tosses the plain longsword into the woods with abandon and starts his exercises with the Black Blade.

Demons In Our Midst

While riding away from the Spider of Illceros’ ruins and bridge, Rask approaches Alexis and Ca’armine.

“When was last time we heard from Balls Wrecked? Back in Ghanil, right? It seems the demon’s interest in us vanished as we approached the First Gate? He only works in crowded places?

The Cycle of Neef

A bit after their conversation about dwarves and mountains, Rask perks up suddenly, looks around and approached Alexis.

“Alexis, do you remember the song Grimsby Thorne was signing when we first met him? The Cycle of Neef? Neef was the squire right? But Igvar, his master, was a holy crusader of Raiden and founded Fellsbee… right? There was something about a wizard too…”

Legends and Lore: Raiden… Of the Storms?

Rask approaches Alexis in moment where the others are busy.

”Alexis, have you ever heard of Raiden being named a Storm God?”

Rask looks around warily, “My connection to Aegir is lost here, and it has been difficult…”

He gestured at the tattoos on his chest and back. Clearly a saddened and a bit lost.

“I have a vague… memory? “My… grandmother? Referring to Raiden as the Storm God…”

Rask’s brown furrows… Alexis gets the sense that’s not quite right, and that Rask is hoping for help understanding…

Rasky Mutterings

After the creepy blue goblin-wolf things are driven off and everything settles back down, Rask mutters in his bedroll to himself:

“taste like blood and steel…”



“War… man.. abomination spirt… pester you?



War… sh… what… the dwarveson ThuBalDor fell?



“Knock knock… gifts… How many souls… the blade is full? war …man?”


Later… sleepily…

“…ak the Endless… wh.. talk.. with… soul’s in the blade…”

Marching On

Rask follows Alexis direction and keeps his distance from Drinos as much as possible throughout the journey. When not marching on the opposite side of the wagon from Drinos, Rask keeps himself busy with camp chores, helping Gus and Ca’armine hunt and gather when needed, and tending to the group’s horses. He prays with Ca’armine to Raiden whenever he can, and listens closely when anyone in the group talks about the gods.

Rask puts very little of his kit on the wagon most days. He typically wears his armor at all times as far as anyone notices. Those close to him can hear him singing Raiden-themed songs, sometimes to a marching cadence.

Rask stays up on watch for much of most nights. Over the first week or so he pushes his sleep schedule to the point of exhaustion and naps a bit in the cart one day before finally sleeping a bit each night.

Rask starts focusing on the last watch, early in the morning. He still sleeps for some portion of most nights, and avoids sleeping in the daytime again. Occasionally he sleeps thought most of the night.

In the wee hours of the morning, always after he is certain Drinos is sleeping, Rask removes and services his armor, and works through his full set of sword forms using the red blade, he does a set and then starts over, this time slightly modifying each strike to turn the blade just so to not do deadly damage. Somewhere near Earamos, he switches to carrying and using his black blade for these exercises, wrapping the red blade.

Rask still manages to make a point to be kind to Sally-Crow and he helps Gus train her as needed. Rask follows Gus’s lead and copies and reinforces and rules for tricks Gus works to train Sally on.