Be Still, Oh Silent Night
The suns' radiance and brilliance slowly begins to die over the oceans expanse, giving way to dancing shadows and, ultimately, the darkness. No moon shines this evening and the dark forest just beyond the gates is gripped with a dense fog. Despite the numerous torches along the wall your vision is severely hindered. This was not a good night.
As the evening progressed, the town slowly fell into blackness. One by one the candles, lanterns and torches were extinguished as the townspeople fell into an uneasy sleep. All around you, the world was now blanketed in a pitch as black as ink. Restlessness and trepidation began to sweep through the ranks. Footmen began tightening their hands around weapon pommels and archers carefully knocked arrows, many of them turning their gazes skyward.
Suddenly, in the distance, a loud shriek tears through the silence; no creature alive mistakes the sound of a goblin pack. Soldiers on the ground leapt to their feet, racing to their respective battle positions and rechecking the main gates lock. Stepping out from his quarters, Rasmir immediately begins barking orders throughout the compound area. In his left hand he waves an impressive warhammer and tucked under his right arm is a worn old helmet, deep scars covering its surface. On his order, the archers take up cloth wrapped arrows and light them using the torches. They launch a volley into the distance, the arrows landing at various points giving you a larger, albeit temporary, field of vision. The shrieks and yowls begin to grow louder and seem to be concentrated to the west. As everyone falls into position, silence begins to radiate and the distant chaos begins to focus. As you hold your nerves, waiting for what may come, a soft noise begins to appear on the road to the west. Like rapid water droplets the sound grows slightly louder until it becomes clear that what you hear is a set of footsets...someone or something is running at the gate. Just as the realization hits, a figure appears at the furthest arrow. A lone person...wait, no, a halfling...is racing towards the gate. From somewhere in the darkness behind him, a pack of goblins is in hot pursuit....
