Near the coast of Middenheim a small landing party arrived. It took a while, but finally they were here, on a mission. Tze-Ixl looked at his brethren, all ready for their sacred duty. He then looked at the mighty general. Kre-Toah was scanning the area, no enemies nearby. His brother Kro-Haoh held their Totem high, signalling the scouting parties to break cover. These small parties of skinks had landed earlier, and had planned the landing on this very day. With them was also another skink priest, Ilok, who had maintained contact with Tze-Ixl. This pair of skink priest were very adept at reading the skies for a favourable moment. This was one of them. These four individuals led the landing party and all 3 of the scouting groups. A lot of lizardmen were present, Saurus were just entering the beach. Their spears shining bright in the morning sun. Skinks were running around left and right, nimble bodies moving around the landing zone. Terradons who flew out of the woods every now and then, to try and spot something. Some Salamanders were even brought over, the handlers prodding the beast to the main camp. Only if you looked close, and only then, one could sometimes see a small figure in the woods. These skinks would carry out the most dangerous of missions, for they were nearly invisible to the human eye. Earlier landings and missions had failed. Though the last party to land here had almost completed it’s mission. The remnants of that group were soon to be added to the current one. The Empire knights and cannons having inflicted great casualties among the troops, now; they were back for revenge. Kro-Haoh and Kre-Toah lead the way on the march to the camp. Nothing would stand in their way this time. Some weird forest sounds could be heard all around, as the animals were scared of the new creatures. Soon, camp was reached. It wasn’t much, but it had an old temple on which both priests could read the sky. Some sort of barracks for the Saurii was also present, as well as a small stream. It looked like an old woodsmen camp, long forgotten by the short living humans. Some skink workers were busy carving glyphs into the stone features. The landing party got ready for their mission. Their duty was clear: retrieve 2 trinkets the Slann needed, retrieve a glyph Tze-Ixl and Ilok found most interesting. Knowing that not only the Empire were patrolling here, but also Bretonnia and the elves from Ulthuan. The job was harder then it looked. This became even harder as Ilok found a clear sign in the sky above. They had to fight the High Elves first, to get closer to the trinkets. Kre-Toah heard of this and was pleased. He remembered some battles versus the elves, and all were good battles. Kro-Haoh wasn’t afraid either, he was there with an earlier landing party, which he managed to destroy 2 reserve divisions from the Empire. And fending of the brets two times in a row. There were too few troops to continue the mission however, but their mission was nearly completed. A pair of chameleon skinks, breaking their cover, came closer. They had found a scouting party of High elves nearby, and they were discussing a fact with a human diplomat. It was unsure at this stage if that diplomat was a Duke or a Captain. Word came moments later; it was a Duke of Bretonnia. Tze-Ixl wondered what they did here at this time, but the sky wasn’t clear. Patrol duties were started, and everybody came to rest. Soon, their sacred duty would be called upon once more. The Hunted
That's sweet! You should write some more. It just ends! There should at least be a battle or something!
Chameleon skinks came racing back through the woods, alarming the other sentries. Bretonnian raid, they shouted, get ready! Saurus Warriors were still slumbering, the skinks racing across the camp preparing them for the battle. Kre-Toah was nearly ready for battle, as was his brother. They had seen this enemy before and knew what to expect. Kre-Toah and Kro-Haoh were not afraid, the enemies would die at their hands. As they had done many times before! Saurus Warriors were now ready to fight, and the small trek towards the battlefield began. At least they had some honor, Tze-Ixl thought to himself, it would not matter. Soon, all of them would lay dead. Soon, all of them would be gone. Kre-Toah and Kro-Haoh were on the right flank, with their respective saurii. To the left of them were skirmishers, terradons and the chameleon skinks. On the other side of the big hill, more skinks and the fearsome salamander. They were facing the Knights errant, eager to prove themselves to the mighty grail knights next to them. Facing Kre-Toah were the pegasus knights and the realm knights with their BSB. When the humans kneeled and prayed to the Lady, Kre-Toah took the initiative. The salamander and the skinks were hararssing the knights errant, making life very hard for them. A thundering charge saw a unit ofskink skirmishers flee the battlefield though, and the gaze of this made the terradons also fly of! They did not care that Kre-Toah had his furious gaze upon them! Moments later, battle commenced. The pegasus knights charged the skirmishers, surpassing them with their great speed; but the were halted: The mighty Saurii had charged them! After cutting down every single one of the flying knights, it was the Duke’s responsibility and even more: his duty to do something back. And that he did. A mighty shout and all the knights came into action. The realm knights made a long sprint to the flank of Kro-Haoh crashing into the slow Saurii. Grail knights moved in for the kill on Kre-Toah and his unit. The errants saw of more skirmishers that were in the way. Kre-Toah watched the battle between his brother and the enemy BSB, and was stunned by the look of it. The enemy managed to break the saurii’s morale as if they weren’t there! He had no time to think, nor mourn, before the grails came in with a thundering charge. Half of his unit was instantly slain, and still thrown off by the blow Kre-Toah was not able to damage the impressive armour of the knights. They held on for more bloodshed. The realm knights and errants were now charging skinks left and right, making sure they would not stand in their way again. The grail knights and the mighty duke slew another full rank of saurus warriors. Kre-Toah was amazed, where did these knights gain that skill? Why didn’t the Saurii fight back? The unit scattered, leaving Kre-Toah on his own. It mattered not, he would stand and fight. Then, after blocking a blow from the duke, he saw more humans engaging him. He then quickly broke of the fight, and fled. Knowing that this battle was not his to fight. Tze-Ixl was also amazed. He had been staring at the battle from a distance, how could the two mighty scar-veterans fail their sacred mission? Why didn’t they fought back? He decided it was better to stay low for a while, and headed back to camp. Only a handfull of skinks and Saurrii managed to get back to the camp. The salamander came in too, although be it late, holding his skink handlers in his mouth; the handlers that he killed himself! It seemed that even the most fearsome beasts have a feeling of remorse… The Hunted
Tze-Ixl was still stunned by the events that he witnessed. A heavily wounded Kre-Toah and Kro-Haoh were taken care of. Saurus warriors and skinks were now low in number, this way; their mission would fail. Evening fell and the forest spoke. Several animals could be heard throughout the night and if you would sat down and listen; even noises of skinks could be heard. Though, it would be the last thing you heard. The ripple of the small stream was the loudest thing you would hear. Gerald had been looking for days now. His platoon had enough of him already, but were still loyal. A few days earlier the dreaded lizardmen came back. The Bretons had given them a beating, but now they were nowhere to be found. Although some bodies were taken back to the universities for study, the battlefield itself was nearly empty. It was a new order from the general he had received 2 weeks ago. He had been given command of a so called ‘hunting party’. Gerald was hunting. Hunting lizards. He just couldn’t find any of them, ironically enough. His study to the art of war had made him captain, a honourable job his father was very proud of. Gerald knew better, the job wasn’t glorious at all. The missions he was sent on were boring, and most of the time; without any success at all. Nothing honourable about that. He sighed, another mile had passed, another mile lay ahead. When would this job become like all the tales he had heard? Sooner than he had possibly hoped. A small border patrol came to meet them, with a message. Their leader, Gawain Magnus, handed over a scroll. Gerald broke the imperial stamp and could not believe what he read. The small patrol and the hunting party would head straight into the woods; direct orders. Gerald was stunned, an adventure? In his life? He was sure he would be called back the day after, but still; he obeyed. Gerald and Gawain set up base camp, in true basics, at the edge of the forest. Here, a small group would protect the supplies and pass through messages. It was nothing more than some crates, tents and an old hut though. Kre-Toah could sense something was about to happen. If the ancient warrior could sense it, Ilok and Tze-Ixl already had. And they did. Word from chameleon skinks were combined with knowledge from the stars, battle would soon commence. To Tze-Ixl the stars did not look favourable, Ilok questioned this. They would have no time to counsel, the enemy was too close. The chameleon skinks saw the humans set up their camp at the edge of the forest. Soon, this squad would try and hunt them down. They had to know better than that, Kre-Toah thought to himself. The last of the wounds were pretty much healed, at least he was battle ready. At dawn, the horn sounded. Human soldiers woke up, grabbing their gear as they got out of there respective tents. Captain Gerald was ready, soon his men would be. Lizardmen were already marching up, Kre-Toah, Kro-Haoh, saurii, skinks, terradons and a salamander. The battlefield was set. The most important feature was a small, clear pond near the middle. The water was so smooth, it was like a mirror. Kre-Toah and his army seized the initiative, they moved across the battlefield; fearless. Gerald was anxious to fight, it had been months ago since his last battle, and ordered his troops forward. Gawains swordsmen and his greatswords were ready to meet the Saurus warriors. His knights would move down the sides, pincer style. The great cannon ended all thoughts for just a moment, the bang so loud it hurt your ears. The cannonball was gazed upon by everyone on the field; and it failed. Kre-Toah could see this respons coming from miles away. The empire always try to cover the flanks with their knights, while the puny infantry hold the center. Kro-Haoh moved to face the heavily-armed knights. While the skinks harassed the other squad on the other side of the battle. His saurii moved up further, skinks and terradons were closing in. The salamander could not be pushed to fire a decent gout, it was still early; even for these beasts. Gerald and the infantry body moved up more. Gawain saw his chance and spurred his horse into the fearsome salamander. He could not kill the beast, but Gawain also knew the psychological factor this beast had on his men. Gerald ordered his knights to charge the lone warrior-standard bearer, Kro-Haoh was happy; today blood would flow. The knights crashed into Kro-Haoh with great speed and force. But after the initial impact, Kro-Haoh proved to be too much the knights could handle. Over the next few moments, and several broken limbs, the knights fled the field; Kro-Haoh in hot pursuit. Kre-Toah marched up his warriors to face the humans. His confidence was high, this day was his! Terradons dropped their rocks on an enemy detachment; destroying it outright. Skink blowpipes were fired from the pond, rippling the water. The human infantry stood fast though. Then, a standstill. The humans denied to charge the oncoming Saurii and waited for the flanking knights to arrive. Gerald halted both squads, he wanted the knights on the flank to move in closer. As his other flank was busy dealing with the enemy warrior. Kre-Toah had no such time. He ordered his troops to charge in, and charge they did. The slow saurrii came to life as battle was commenced. Even some skinks made their way into battle. The human infantry was scattered in their formation, the enemy proved to be to strong and they fled. Kre-Toah raced past the Greatswords as he cut every single one of the swordsmen down. Gerald was flabbergasted. His fine men, trained and commanded by him for many months. Were overrun as if they didn’t were there! Gerald knew his veteran greatswords would stand the test, but could he? He mumbled some commands, but they never reached anyone’s ears. The knights on the flank were still harrased by skinks, and were not making much progress. Kro-Haoh had dealt with the other flanking knights, and thus it came down to the center of the battlelines. Minutes later, more and more adrenaline started flowing as all lizardmen came closer. Spears vs greatswords, lizardmen vs humans. Gerald was afraid of what to come, his study of tactics proved to be useless. He had seen it with his own eyes! The sheer force of the lizardmen was great, greater than he had ever imagined. Yet, within moments; they would clash. Kre-Toah and his saurii cut down many humans. The knights never made it to complete the pincer movement, the cannon was abandonded by its crew, the greatswords crumbling under the pressure, Kro-Haoh waved the battle totem high. Victory was ensured! The Hunted
That's more like it!!! I like the way you portray the slowness yet sheer ferocity of the saurus. It makes them feel like actual beings and not just mysterious reptile warriors. Good job dude!!
Thanks! I always like a response, be it positive or negative, and i'm glad you liked it! Unfortunately, this part of the forum isn't very active. So not many people will read this. The 'story' isn't coming together very fast, but i'm pretty busy and I write loads of other posts on here. What I do like is the end result of things. And I hope many more people will like it! Any requests? I find it easier to write when i'm working towards something. Rather than making stuff up / trying to 'fluff up' an actual battle I fought. The Hunted
If you look on your post about a request, I have suggested an idea of mine. It involves "sea lizards" per say. You should check it out. It's in the lizardmen discussion forum section if you forgot. No problem about the comments. I tried writing a fluff of my own and it didn't go so well, so I can respect a good fluff when I see it. Also I'm just thirsty to read about other people's interpretations of lizardmen emotion and adventure.
I haven't forgotten it superskink My plan was to leave it be for some time, hoping for more replies. That, and the fact that I am in the middle of my tentams (1 BIG one to go). Means you have to wait for another piece a little longer You should also try, write and post stuff! It's the way I started, so why can't you? Let's just see what you can do! I'll play with the sea-lizard-thing for a while and post it here when I'm done. The Hunted
Very good. Stupid Brets and their lances! I'm not going to lie when you started writing about the forest I was almost 100% Wood elfs were going to clash with Kro-Haoh and Kre-Toah. (I have a soft spot for WE's as they were my first army) When and If i get a chance I was going to Fluff my Frost Lizards vs (pix of my lizards still to come). Once again I like it keep it coming, I only wish I would have seen this before Your Friendly Thunder Lizard
Re: The mission of Tze-Ixl Thanks Thunder Lizard Glad you can appreciate it. There is a new story coming up shortly, so stay tuned Too bad this part of LO isn't active. I wasn't a fluff lover at all, that is; 'till i started writing myself. I don't really like to read the 'real deal' on fluff, although nice. Just my view on lizardmen is very fun to put on paper (or, forum). And if people seem to enjoy it, even better! The Hunted
Walter was exhausted. He had already run 10 miles, he estimated. The jungle heat was sweltering. His heart pounded in his chest. He looked back again, nothing. He kept on running nonetheless. Walter had seen things, no living being should ever see. And he knew. He stopped for just a moment, removed his breastplate, his bracers and his longsword. He had to travel as light as he could. He toyed with the idea of dropping his pistol as well, but kept it safely on his belt before he looked back once more. And took off. He had pain, a lot of pain. The low jungle plants with their long thorns scraped across his shins over and over again. He was sure he could see an open wound, but didn’t care. He had to reach camp. He just had to. Thoughts raced through his mind. He had to reach camp. Walter thought back of what had happened. He and his small scouting party were patrolling through the thick jungle undergrowth. They cut their way through it, their sharp machetes making short work of the plants. The jungle was so thick, that sometimes Walter and his friends could not see further than 30 feet. At that time, he felt safe. He had finished training and had minor encounters with small groups of lizardmen. They stood no chance versus the guns his party carried. Ned was absolutely murdering if you gave him a pistol. He was called ‘the sharpshooter’ for a very good reason! Walter was in the back of the group, and was the last one to see it. A big open space, in the middle of the jungle. He was surprised, and could not believe his eyes. The whole party thought the jungle must have made them mad. A small temple, with a totem-like structure on it. And it had a lot of gems on it. But as they came closer the temple wasn’t what it seemed to be. It had something majestic around it, a mysterious weave. The party advanced upon the temple, stubbornly removing the gems; until they could carry no more. Everybody felt uncomfortable when near the temple. And then Demetrius spotted something, something strange. There was a small gap in the temple; the years have worn it out. Demetrius looked inside, and saw a pond of water. He ordered the group together, and all looked through the gap. Why on earth would the lizardlings build a temple over a pond? They pondered. Then, as Ned took another look it happened. Walter nearly cried, but he couldn’t. Ned and all the others would be avenged. If only he could reach the bloody camp. He looked at his feet for the first time. His shins looked horrible, his feet were bleeding and his shins had become one big wound. Yet he didn’t feel anything, the adrenaline was stronger than the pain. Walter looked ahead. He thought the jungle was getting easier on him. The undergrowth was fading away. That meant he was close. Thoughts raced through his mind. He had to reach camp. Ned fell off the temple in amazement. He tried to speak, but couldn’t. All he could do was point at the gap. Demetrius looked. Walter looked. Freddy looked. What they saw was unreal. There were spawning small lizardlings out of the pool. Only a handful, but they all had something strange. These weren’t ordinary skinks. Freddy then shouted: “look! They can do magic!” The party stopped thinking, looked at each other. Then everybody thought the same. They grabbed some bags of gems and started running. They did not came far, as the whole jungle appeared to came alive! Small lizardmen came out of nowhere and shot at Ned. Freddy got his head chopped of by a big lizard. That saurus was the epitome of ferociousness. Charles was next, he drew his pistol and squeezed. The gun malfunctioned, the humidity of the jungle made the gunpowder useless. Charlie had no time to draw his sword, as more saurus raced out of the jungle. Long spears drove through him. Demetrius and Walter had already started running, only Walter saw what had happened to Charles. Run, that was all they did. Demetrius and Walter dropped all the gems and their backpacks and sprinted away. Walter was sure he was nearly there. Demetrius’ lucky stone had worked. His last deed, but it was a well-spent one. Thoughts raced through his mind. He had to reach camp. Demetrius and Walter raced through the jungle, Demetrius in front, Walter right behind him. They came across a path, and moved along it. Running as fast they could, not looking ahead. A fatal mistake. Walter wanted to tell Demetrius to slow the pace, and lifted his head. He saw a saurus, and Demetrius didn’t. “Watch out!”, was all that Walter could do. Demetrius was way too slow, the saurus drove his spear right through him. It nearly reached Walter too! Walter had found new energy and passed the Saurus in full sprint. The beast was too slow to grab him, but Walter was on his own now. Walter thought he’d saw some light through the trees. It could be his mind fooling him, he did not know. Thoughts raced through his mind. He had to reach camp. Walter had cleared the undergrowth. Only trees now. The canopy shed their first light on the jungle floor here. Walter knew it, he was almost there. His heart pounding even faster, founding it harder and harder to pump the blood through the veins. -- Doug always hated the jungle, or lustria as it was known to men. The heat, the moisture, the threats. Doug hated the jungle. And his commander who had sent him here. Doug was sent to explore and retrieve any gold he found. His platoon had set up camp and the patrols were already moving. Most of them had returned, only Demetrius took a long walk it seemed. The moment he set foot on Lustria he hated it, he’d much rather be on his ship than anything else. But as the highest in rank, he was supposed to be on land. Bah. Walter heard something. He was sure of that, he glanced around. Nothing. A sudden sting in his neck had him focused again. He stopped, touched his neck, looked around. His vision was getting blurry, his knees felt weak. Not now, Walter thought, not when I’m so close. The poison raced through his body, Walters’ heart pumped it around full-speed. Walter saw the damned creature. A skink loaded another dart to finish him. Walter grabbed his gun, and fired. Doug was startled. He heard a gun, which could only mean trouble. He left his meal and rushed out. All the men were arming themselves, but nobody seemed to know why. Walter never even came close to hitting the skink. The small lizard hit him once more and fled. Walter was left in the jungle, exhausted. His last thoughts raced through his mind, he had not reached it. Only moments later. Dead. Doug climbed the tower. Nothing he could see. He yelled to his officers: “Go back to your meal, it was probably just a misfire”. And so they did. Doug went back to his tasty beef. Never thinking about Demetrius again. He was sleeping well, until a guard rushed in… The Hunted
Sorry for the long read boys I hope you enjoy it, it's to be continued as well. Any comments on this style? (from Walters' point of view) Do you like it? hate it? Love it? Rather tear it apart? I'll wait with the second part. Untill I get some feedback, so I can adjust the writing. The Hunted