The Journal of Red Haus

Red did his best to keep his wits about him throughout the journey. However, he became aware that he was fully lost within the dark depths of the Baron's complex. He had faith in his companions though, especially the Gnome who seemed to have a good understanding of where they were throughout the exploration. Traveling through magical doors was far from something that Red was accustomed to having grown up on a rather plain farm for most of his life.

And the magic user seemed to be pretty intelligent. He often spoke about things that he really didn't understand. But that just seemed to be the way of magic-users. They could perceive mysteries that others would never fully comprehend.

When the party came to a rather dingy looking room covered in bat dung and broken furniture, he fully expected that there would be monsters popping out to eat them. He scanned the room with his torch, looking for any large piles of dung that might conceal lurking creatures. He was wrong, of course, and his companions proved to be the most dangerous foes for the moment.

The bats didn't bother him much, beyond putting out his torch. However, when the cleric of Thor tossed a torch on the broken furniture, he had his doubts that things were really going well. Again, he started to wonder if he should be at home eating a warm meal and enjoying the comforts of the farmhouse.

The danger of the bonfire that resulted from the cleric's torch was one thing … but when the wall fell open releasing a torrent of water that washed away the crew's magic-user … he was certain that the gods were against them. Perhaps Loki was playing a joke on them, he thought, recalling tales told over campfires by his Uncle.

Using the Gnome like some kind of fishing lure, they lowered him through the gush of water into a cavern where the magic-user was busy drying out his spellbook. Finding that the magic-user was safe, but soggy was good news. However, he had his doubts that the Druid would survive the inferno in the next room started by the cleric.

However, it all turned out for the best. Smelling of guano and smoke, the party regrouped. They managed to negotiate through a few more magical and secret doors until Red was once again completely lost as to his true location within the complex. Even if he had any doubts about adventuring with this motley crew, he was bound to stick with them if he'd ever get back to Hogsend. But they all seemed to be a good lot of folks, so he figured if he stuck with them for long enough, everything would work out in the end.

Finding another room, Red started to light a few of the torches on the wall in case of any melee that might break out. Light was important, and since it seemed like someone had been in this room recently, that was his focus for the moment. As he started to put some fire to the sconced torches within the room, the Druid snatched up a rug and hurried away to set it on fire. Maybe setting things on fire was a normal activity during such expeditions. Who knows? Red certainly wasn't a veteran at these sorts of things … and it seemed to be important to light everything on fire for some reason …

And then suddenly, Red found himself in a different room. Everyone seemed to be just as surprised at the sudden, apparently magical, shifting of location. And he couldn't help but notice that the Druid was no longer with them. Apparently, he was too busy setting things on fire in the other room to have been magicked into the current location.

It wasn't long until they found another magical door which ultimately lead them into a cavern. The ceiling was littered with holes, and there was a cluster of boxes far off in the rather huge cavern. Before Red could suggest that he walk over and check things out … the Ranger tossed his torch out there to provide a better glimpse of the boxes. Rangers seem to be good at a lot of things, and this was no exception. The Ranger managed to land his torch on the boxes with adept skill, setting them on fire! Yes, again with the setting of fires … Red was sure now that setting things on fire was an important part of exploring a dungeon. He would have to remember that for later! If all else fails, set something on fire!

With the boxes burning bright, everyone became grossly aware that these boxes were actually coffins. And the coffins … naturally … contained the dead. Or in this case … the Undead. Yes, Red's stomach dropped a bit as several Skeletons stood up, and started to rush towards them. It was a thing of childhood nightmares, and Red prepared for a scrap. He stood his ground, pushing down the natural instinct to run away from the Undead creatures lurching towards him. He raised his shield, dropped the torch, and withdrew his newly acquired short sword.

Red was aware that most of the others started to retreat towards the door. He decided that he would make a stand, hopefully allowing some of the others to escape. With any luck, he could fight the monsters off until everyone else got through the door, then he could get the Hell out of there before they feasted on his warm flesh.

Red was amazed as the cleric started to shout out the name of Thor. The skeletons seemed to be deterred by the might of the Thunder God, and retreated. However, not all of the creatures feared the wrath of Thor. Despite the mighty effort of the cleric, a few continued forward. Red raised his shield, gritting his teeth for the initial crash of melee. He prepared to smash at them with his blade, but did not get the chance!

Both skeletons lashed out at him … and he reeled backwards. He fell back, aware that boney fingers were tearing at his skin. He thought he could hear the cleric shout out to Thor yet again, but it seemed far off … and then everything went black.

Fire, Red. You should have set them on fire, you fool! Have you learned nothing during this adventure?!

Almost every good story has a struggle between good and evil, with evil usually having the upper hand. Evil can be in the form of a vicious conqueror, an invading alien race or a dark, faceless syndicate. In this case, it was a pair of chickens. A pair of uncooperative, clandestine chickens. No really. You'll come to understand later.

The city of Hogsend seemed to be a good place for Bo to begin his new career as a Treasure Hunter. His departure from the farm was looked down upon by this Uncle and Aunt who had taken him in at a very young age. His mother died at birth, and his father had been placed in prison for stealing horses. Working on the shared farm lands bred Bo into a broad-shouldered, husky young man. Called "Red Haus" by his family and friends, he was well liked as much for his good nature as his work ethic. However, "Red" wanted more. And when it came time, he set off on his own.

Now Red found himself browsing at the Armorer's stall, comparing his new chain mail to the available wares. After some time, the proprietor's hard gaze finally caused Red to turn and consider seeking out something to fill his belly. Instead, his attention was drawn to a ruckus at some nearby tents.

A mostly naked man, wild in the eyes, was running away from several angry pursuers. Red raised an eyebrow, surmising that from the strange assortment of loot in the madman's arms that he was likely a thief. As Red watched, he realized that the madman thief shifted his path rapidly, and was heading directly towatds him. Caught off guard, Red raised his hands defensively seconds before the collision. The madman smashed into him, pausing only for a second before running away.

The young man shook his head, and laughed. And then suddenly, his heart sank. "My sword," he shouted. He slapped at his empty sheath helplessly.

And so Red joined the chase with the odd troupe of other victims, chasing after the madman. As luck would have it, the final victim was a priest offering blessings to players entering the gambling tents. The madman collided with the priest, slowing just enough to allow Red to catch up with him.

Red launched himself forward, tackling the thief. Although Red was big, the thief's stamina was fueled by his madness. Realizing that he had staggered the thief, Red started to pummel the madman with his meaty fists in an attempt to knock him to the ground. The last thing Red saw was the pommel of his own sword lurching towards his face. Then, everything went black. As he went down, Red could swear that he heard chickens squawking. How strange.

When Red woke up, the rest of the group was carrying on a conversation with the thief. Well, he wasn't really a thief, but instead a Baron down on his luck. Really down on his luck. Apparently someone had killed him, and then assumed his identity through some kind of witchcraft. But apparently, he was raised from the dead by something called a cleric. But then the cleric was killed. It was all very confusing.

His Uncle had told him of witchcraft and magic, although he really didn't understand how it could be possible. Red listened to most of the conversation, gathering that the Baron wanted them to get some kind of ring from a underground complex. He would have caught more of the details, but his attention was fixed on the strange assortment of folk around him. Especially the one holding a writhing knapsack holding two rather ill-tempered chickens.

So after awhile, Red joined his new friends on the quest to help the Baron. Apparently something called a Doppleganger was the chief foe, a mythical creature able to assume the likeness of others ... in this case the Baron.

They traveled to a cluster of trees near the Baron's manor. Finding the entrance to the dungeon was easy enough, what with all the other people who did the searching and finding part. Red just stood around and watched. He kept an eye on the odd fellow with the chickens, and made sure to keep his trusty guard dog, Viceroy, close in case of danger.

Entering the dungeon, through a secret doorway embedded in a large tree, Red used one of his torches to provide a source of light. He took the lead, and kept his shield at the ready fully expecting terrible beasts to leap from the shadows at ant moment. Strange creatures indeed must lay ahead. I mean, who puts a door in a tree anyway? Odd and cruel beings, that's who!

The odd fella with the chickens took out from feed, and coaxed the chicken to enter the room before the group. Apparently, the chicken was meant to be a patsy for any murderous intent that might be lingering in the darkness ahead. Nothing exciting happened, other than the chicken strutted around and made a lot of noise. Stupid chicken.

Entering into a large room, Red noticed that one of the walls was made completely of thick glass. Dark shapes lingered beyond the glass. He gave it a wide berth at first, but was coaxed closer by the priest. Giving his new companion a second torch, they stepped closer to the glass wall.

They saw that it was some kind of odd display with three bird-like beings posed in an elegant manner. Raising an eyebrow, Red watched as the others looked around for a concealed entrance to the room with the bird-men. He glanced at the chickens again, fully reminded that he could be hanging out at the farm filling his belly with a home cooked meal instead of rummaging around in the musty darkness with this motley crew.

After a little while, Red agreed with the others that it was time to move on. The priest suggested the left hand door leading north. This door led into a large round room mostly taken up by a big, muddy pool. In the midst of the mud was some badly rusted armor and a fancy looking sword. It almost seemed that the sword gleamed in the torchlight.

The man with the chicken seemed to think it was a good idea to toss the ornery thing into the pool for some reason. Maybe it had something to do with some other kind of poultry witchcraft. The chicken refused, of course, and ended up causing a ruckus at the edge of the pool. The odd man started chasing his chicken, trying to herd it into the water. The priest gave chase as well. Within seconds, Red was watching something that seemed like it should be happening at the fairgrounds in the Bazaar, not a dungeon. Not being a part of the nonsense, Red stepped back by the door to make sure that nothing nefarious was sneaking up on them from behind. After all, those damned chickens were loud as the Hells.

Suddenly, the chicken ran between the priest's legs and there was a loud splash as the man fell roughly into the muck. Red could have sworn that he saw the chicken crack a sinister grin. Not possible, right? Chickens can't smile can they? As the priest sat in the mud, the chicken did sort of a victory dance at the water's edge. The other chicken started to made a lot of noise, almost seeming to cheer in sinister satisfaction.

Red started to laugh, but not for long. Suddenly, the mud began to move as if by magic. The mud formed into the shapes of men, and started to hurl balls of mud at the priest. There was a flurry of activity and someone tossed Red the end of a rope. "Pull!" someone shouted, so he did. All of the excitement had the big guy dazed for a moment. Red realized that they were making a group effort to pull the priest away from the mudmen and out of the pool. This plan proved fruitless as the mudmen pelted him with mud, and the rope broke in half.

Red rushed forward and did his best to put himself between the priest and Mudmen. We was aware that someone was shooting arrows at their enemies as well, but his focus was keenly on the advancing monsters. He was pelted with mud, fighting off the creatures who literally flung themselves at him as living weapons. He helped to carry the priest to safety at the pool's edge. A powerful slash of the sword from the pool, tossed to him by the priest before he fell, splattered and destroyed one of the mudmen. Red kept trying to fight them off, taking steps backward to get out of the pool.

As Red finally exited the pool, the mudmen seemed to lose interest and slowly returned to their quiet slumber. As the others helped the priest remove the hardened mud from his body, Red started to break away the rapidly hardening mud from his own body.

He cast a look at the chickens, and frowned. He shook his head, and mumbled under his breath. "Damn chickens."