Board Thread:Archive/@comment-24866242-20140526230611

Subject: A Bard's Tale Date: Thu, Jan 22, 1998 12:58 PM From: Alyston

The Beasts of RhyDin:

A Bard's tale as told to a newcomer to this land.

"Does that happen often?" The question had brought her attention back to the stranger with a soft smile.

"I'm sorry. Does what happen often?" She hadn't realized his newly acquainted companion had suddenly vanished until he mentioned the incident next, repeating the question once the scene was related.

"You're new to this land and its ways, aren't you sir?" The man only nodded his affirmation. "As a matter of truth, sir, I must say that, yes, disappearances happen quite often in this land. You see, it is plagued by beasts far beyond even fantasy. I fear your companion has been attacked by one of the most fearsome of those beasts; the dreaded Punties."

In rapt attention, his dark brown brows shot upwards then furrowed themselves tightly. "These beasts roam the land free?! What sort of beasts are they?"

"Ahh....there are several beasts of this land that will plague a man and, although by far, not the worse, the Punt beasts are a viscous lot. You see, the attack sometimes singularly, sometimes in packs, but they are almost *always* invisible. Most who encounter a Punt Beast will not know they have been attacked until well after the battle begins. And there is no help in friends. Like you, acquaintances and friends know only after an attack that a beast was even in the room and, once gone, there is nothing to be done. Take heart however. Most of the Punties are ill equipped for battle and are defeated quickly. There have been occasions, however, when the battle is long and hard. I hope this is not the case with your friend."

The look on the man's face was a combination of emotions; fear, awe, even fascination and intrigue. His next request came as no surprise to the bard.

"Tell me more of the creatures of this land." She smiled.

"There are beasts, though not usually harmful, that can be quite annoying. They swarm like gnats on rotted fruit and, like the Punt beasts, will attack anyone at any moment. They are commonly referred to as Typo Demons, though it is my belief that they are more of the gremlin nature than demon. Watching a Typo Demon at work can be quite amusing. It can take the words of the most intellectual and twist them so the person not only sounds like a blathering fool, but one who speaks in a strange language or forgotten dialect."

Lightly, she strummed her mandolin as she continued on. "Another swarming beast is the IMsect. These creatures, though not *usually* malevolent in their appearance, are of varying degrees of alignment ranging pure evil intent to one of love and joy. They appear to their intended victim as merely a voice within the mind sometimes bearing bad tidings, sometimes good. They can be quite useful at times, sometimes more often than not, but some people do find them annoying."

"Now, I mentioned the Punt Beasts are not the most viscous of the beasts. I have saved the one creature who sends ice shards down the spines of even the bravest of souls for last; the Newbie." She shudders at the name. "This is a creature that, in some cases, only the great God of ToS can defeat. There are times that banishing it to the ninth plane of the Abyss, Ignore Hell, will remove this monster, but that will only work for the weaker of the kind. A Newbie will wreak havoc, using all the beasts I have mentioned before to do his bidding only for his own perverse amusement. He will taunt and torment and, at times, appear to be the demon Rasmath himself. Only with prayer and sacrifices, preferably of the Newbie itself, can these monsters be truly vanquished."

The man shuddered, clearly considering removing himself from such harm. Smiling softly, she reached over and patted his hand lightly, the music she had been playing coming to an abrupt halt mid note. "Be comforted, friend. You will not be the first or the last to undergo these trials of life. There are many of us who willingly understand, though not much can be done except accept."

Releasing his hand, she stood and placed the mandolin over her shoulder, sliding it to rest against her back. With another warm smile to the man, she turned and headed for the door, leaving him in his torment over whether he should stay in RhyDin or leave quickly. His hurried "Thank you" barely squeezed itself through the closing door as she stepped out into the cold afternoon gloom, wary of any Punt beasts that may have been lurking down the alleys. 