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jaythevoid-dnd-characters · 6 years ago

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The Danger in Tranquility

Short Story about a Spectrium exploration group landing in California(technically). Enjoy!

The old ship creaked as the whistling winds and crashing waves of the night tested its resilience. Despite its age, this fine old vessel had endured many a voyage, and this one would

just be another for the records. But unlike the previous trips, this time the ship would not be returning home. This time it would find new home.

The ship would not be the only one in search of a new home; among the worn wood slept a few dozen voyages, young and old alike. This was the way of their people, the Spectriums,

endlessly in search of new worlds, becoming one with the land just before departing once more. Of course not everyone would leave the new realms they found though it was to be expected of their younger civilians. The thirst for exploration only grew weaker with age.

So it was no surprise that someone was too excited to be sleeping. Capering around the deck, young Zoru Idiopsy thought it was better to duel one of the military training dummies rather than rest. He would rest when he was tired, now was practice. Some evasive footwork, a quick glide to the left, and STRIKE!

If that were an opponent, they'd be bleeding out right now, Zoru smirked. He pulled his father's spear out of the dummies' neck, twirling it in his grip.

"But I need to be quicker. I probably left myself open for too long." He sighed. A warrior's form needs to be perfect in and out of training; if not, it could cost one's life. That's what his father always told him. He'd probably be saying something similar right now if he was awake, Zoru thought.

"You forgot to lunge with your strike again. Still not perfect."

Speak of the devil.

Zoru knew that nagging tone all too well. "I thought you were asleep," he remarked,

turning to face his audience.

"You underestimate how quiet your grunts are." His father was unfortunately a bit of a

light sleeper, so this was not too surprising. It was better if a warrior could leap into action if they could hear it coming. His father walked over to him, gesturing for the spear. Zoru obliged, returning the weapon to its original owner.

"Now, you want to step into the strike. Get the full force of your body into your attack," his father said as he stepped forward with the spear. "And give yourself a foundation to push off of so you can maintain your distance." He then swiftly returned to his initial stance, effortless and strong. Zoru nodded.

"Use your young energy. It is your greatest weapon." His father handed back the spear. "Perfect your form and none can stop you. Get some rest now." He turned to leave, heading back below deck.

Zoru knew he must be tired. His father served in the military for many years back in Aquavine. He was well known and respected throughout the entire city, and his reputation was to be inherited by Zoru.

It would be high standard to uphold.

I'll rest when I'm tired, he decided, taking stance in front of the dummy once more.

*************

The dummy less resembled a humanoid and more so a sheep. Stuffing was spilling out of

several tears, and had made its way to the floor. Zoru himself was starting to get sloppy with his movements. It wasn't helping that the winds had picked up and waves crashed against the sides of the boat, making the deck damp and slippery. Or was that the rain's fault. Wait a moment, when had it starting raining? Zoru didn't have time to answer his own question before a giant waves bombarded the ship, knocking him off his feet.

"Get below deck!" Lanpher shouted, securing one of the sails, "We've got a storm blowing through here!"

You don't need to tell me twice. Zoru grabbed the spear and making his way to the stairwell. He hadn't made it further than a yard before he saw a wave as tall as an oak tree

seconds from crashing into him and the ship. Zoru braced himself but it was no use. The force of the water was unbearable, cold and crushing, as it ripped his hand away from the railing of the ship. As he was plunged into the icy darkness, all he could hope was the others would be alright while everything around him faded.

*************

Zoru awoke slowly, feeling the ache from his training earlier. At least this sand was

warm and soft. Wait a moment, sand? Zoru's eyes shot open as he stumbled to his feet, groaning. It was morning; he was on calm beaches that lead into a lush forest a little ways ahead. He looked down at himself. His bracers and right shin guard were still on him, but his chest plate and helmet were gone. His clothes were a bit tattered in places, too. Oh no, did he still have his father's spear? Zoru searched frantically at his feet and around where he had been lying. There! Stuck in the sand a few yards away, the spear seemed just fine.

"Thank goodness," he sighed, "I can defend myself properly. Not sure what I'd do if I lost this." He twirled the shaft in his hands. Zoru turned back to the waves. They were so gentle it was weird to think that there had even been a storm.

"I wonder if everyone else made it through alright." He pondered for a moment. I think we were heading north east. Maybe the others are close? The party had left home in search of a new island, continent, or whatever was beyond the ocean. Zoru squinted, searching the horizon. The smooth waters glistened and sparkled in the morning sunlight. No ship though. He relaxed his eyes and plopped down.

"Should I stay here and wait, or travel up the coast? They may be further north."

His stomach growled. How long had it been since he had eaten last? Standing, he turned his attention back to the forest. There'd be something he could catch and cook in there.

"Let's see what this new land has in store for me."

*************

The sun shone warm through the trees as Zoru got a small fire started. He had returned to

the beach as to avoid a forest fire, and was certainly lining a ring of stone. The pile of wood and kindling he had gathered was minimal but it would suffice. What was important was that he had found a rabbit borough, and had managed to spear a couple.

Having finished the stone ring, he stacked the twigs and dried leaves he found in the center. Now, some flames. Zoru didn't know how to start a fire from scratch however his mother

had taught him a simple spell; a weak lightning spell that was intended to be a last resort in combat. Maybe I could use the heat and sparks to catch the kindling alight? Placing his hand just

above the pile, he recited the incantation.

"Spítha!"

A small jolt of electricity jumped from the palms of his hands, shocking the kindling, and setting them alight. Zoru yelped, jumping at the raw energy that sparked out of his hands, leaving his fingertips with a minor stinging sensation. Upon further inspection, he noticed tiny lightning-like streaks across his fingers. I guess that spell has a bit of a drawback. Trying to shake away the sting, he reached for the small pile of wood and began stacking sticks around the new little flame.

While the fire grew slowly, Zoru constructed a simple spit to cook the rabbits on with some of the sticks. Having placed it carefully over the flames, he began skinning the rabbits with his spear. After he had finished the first one, he noticed himself squinting. Looking up from the rabbits, he realized sunset was already approaching. Hunting and scavenging had taken longer than he would have thought. Well, I guess this will be dinner instead of lunch. He got back to work on the second rabbit, put them both on the spit once they were both skinned.

The sun dropped lower as the rabbits cooked. Zoru had found a spring that bubbled up near the beach which he had a drink from. As his dinner neared doneness, he found a large leaf to try and use as a plate. Eating the rabbits, which were pretty tasty considering that they weren't seasoned, Zoru watched the sun finally set. Finishing the last one, he added some more wood to the fire. Even though it was late spring, the fire was still a comforting source of warm. As Zoru fell asleep next to the flames, he could have sworn he saw a tiny light on the northern horizon.

*************

Zoru awoke to the sound of a low growl coming from behind him. Opening his eyes to darkness, he slowly turned to look behind him. Less than ten feet away were three grey wolves, snarling viciously in the dawn light. But one of them looked a bit strange; it was noticeably larger with piercing green eyes, and what appeared to be a pair of small horns....and did it have two tails?

The strange wolf approached him, its eyes locked on Zoru's. Though he was scared, he tried not to show it. He knew that when confronted with a wolf the best course of action was to hold your ground. His hand slowly reached for the spear behind him.

"Don't try anything you might regret." Zoru's train of thought halted suddenly. Where had that voice come from? Was that the wolf!?

"Why have you come here?" There was no questioning it as Zoru saw the bizarre

wolf's mouth open slightly at that comment, displaying razor sharp teeth.

"I...um...we came here in search of a new home," he stammered out. The wolf's ears

perked up.

"We? There are more like you?"

"Y-y-yes. But we are but a small group, mostly just family."

"And you claim to have come to live here. Does that include tearing my home apart?" "No! No, no, no! We have no intention of harming your forest, quite the

opposite. My people are that of researchers, we hope to learn about this new world. Even help it if it is suffering." Zoru knew he sounded a bit little like he was pandering, but it was true; for

generations his kind traveled throughout the universe studying unique life forms wherever they found them.

That seemed to satisfy the wolf enough. It turned its back to Zoru, and began returning to the brush. Before it made it too far, it turned back to look at him.

"I hope you keep your word, lest all of nature see to it that your people perish."

Then it vanished.

Zoru exhaled deeply, not realizing he had been holding his breath. That must have been

a guardian or god of this land. Thank goodness it decided to spare me. He stood finally. Stretching slightly before he turned back to the shore and-

"THE SHIP!"

There it was, not too far north from him! Making sure the douse the remaining flames of his campfire, Zoru grabbed his spear and took off in the direction of the boat.

As he got closer, Zoru could see that the ship had survived the storm, but only by a hair. The sails were torn in places, some of the wood was damaged, but nonetheless it was holding together.

"Father! Mother!" He cried out as he drew nearer. He had been running for some time now, throat sore from the cool morning air, but he didn't care.

"Zoru, is that you!?" No doubt it was his mother. She sounded overjoyed yet worried at the same time.

Zoru stopped at the shoreline nearest to the ship, roughly a hundred meters out into the water. He could see people's heads peering out over the railing, calling to him excitedly. In a few moments a row boat was lowered, soon making its way toward him as he caught his breath. He could clearly see his mother and father on board as well as Lanpher, the crewman from the night he got swept of the ship.

"Zoru! Oh, thank goodness you're safe!" His mother cried as the boat reached the shore, running over to hug him. Zoru returned the hug gratefully, relieved to be with his family once again. As quickly as his mother had hugged him, she pulled away.

"Are you hurt? Have you eaten?" His mother scanned him, "Oh goodness, and your armour! What happened? Oh, what does it matter? You're alive! We can make new ones."

"I'm safe, I'm fed, I'm ok."

He looked over to see his father approach.

"I'm so glad to see you alright. We've been so worried," his father sighed, embracing

him firmly.

Zoru returned the embrace, feeling his mother join in once again.

He was home. Safe.

"Oh, there's something I should probably tell you...everyone, actually."

*************

"So, a demon approached you?"

"No, I think it may have been a god of this land, at least a guardian of some sort. All it asks is that we not harm to forest while we're here." Zoru repeated, perhaps for the third time.

"How can we do that? Wood is fairly essential in building," a crew member questioned, others nodding in agreement. "Perhaps we could build more with stone and glass, and just try to use already fallen trees and branches," Zoru suggested."That way we'd have strong sturdy buildings while not disturbing the nature of the forest."

"That sounds like it could work," Zoru's father commented, putting a hand on his son's shoulder.

"From now on we shall construct glorious settlements out of stone and glass, as to appease the guardian's desires," he declared. He turned to Zoru, "Did the beast ever tell you its name?"

"No, perhaps we could find a name for it," Zoru proposed, "It was a wolf with two tails, horns, and bright green eyes. Perhaps......Shiritua?"

"Shiritua...yes, that sounds like a name worthy of a god. I wonder if there are any rituals we should perform to appease it?" Zoru's mother concluded.

"I'm not sure, I think respecting the forest is a good start though," Zoru declared.

Everyone nodded in agreement, to which Zoru's father raised his spear. "Then may our people flourish in this new land, and may we learn the many secrets of this land!"

#zoru the spectrium #short story #humanoid zoru #D&D homebrew

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