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The World of Georic 1989-Present

Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Lost Dispatches of Feraso #35 - Bungi the Wonder Dog

Caltaran, Viscounty of Verbobonc, Kingdom of Ras-Prythax

1st of Undec, Year 1022

His Honor, Freigraff Alwin Warmark, Totenlinden of the Barony of Amberstoll, Weissmach.

My Dear Friend, may it bring you incredible joy of these first days after Yule that we all arrived safely in Feraso City!

I hope you have received the correspondence related to our escapades after you assumed the role of Freigraff of Totenlinden.  I am still amazed that we lost only an ally or two during our endeavors, which is why I'm relieved you agreed to the appointment.  You and I were equally incompetent when we first drilled in Dolksford, and I have prayed to Akana, Guya, the minor deities within the pantheon, and a few Galmar animal totems that I am still intact after multiple encounters with dragons.  I hope your judgements and rulings are not as violent.

The entire Order of Merit, including our new friend, Purvmo translator Andrei, made it to Feraso City without issue. I was disappointed that no one in Krugraf Mykul's court had time for us, but I was quite pleased to discover a cache of correspondence from Viscount Wilfrick!  My constant letter writing was not in vain!

While in the capital, we divested ourselves of most of the excess treasure and enchanted artifacts, and resupplied.  My biggest purchase was a new horse.  My old mare, Mary, served me well this entire time, but general wear of riding the countryside has taken a toll on her.  I found a farmstead that was willing to take her on for a few silver.

Her replacement is a bold stallion, I've named Nestkar.  It's a bastardization of the Purvmone word for "Integrity", but knowing Andrei, part of me is still worried that it actually translates to something like "soiled britches."

One sad bit of news, our dear companion Morya Silverbough announced her intention to leave the Order of Merit and return to The Weissmach for more adventures.  She was best suited for the land and the people, with Rolgrim a close second (may he rest in peace).  We certainly separated amicably and I wish her the best.

Let this be a warning that you may have a guest from time to time, if and when she passes through.  Keep the fire hot, some warm-blooded men hotter, and an extra barrel of ale or two... just in case.

Knowing our previous issues with magical demi-goddesses, temples of evil elementals, and Wyrmnalian Jarls putting prices on our heads, I felt it safer for the four remaining members of the order (Myself, Andrei, Celeste and Murag Mountainhammer) to take the roads directly north of the capital, until we reached familiar roads or rivers to get us to Caltaran.

We reached Caltaran on the first day of this new year unscathed, and with only one amusing story of our travel:

A few days back, in the midst of Yule, we could hear the screams of terrified goblins.  By the time we got close enough to observe, the goblins had vanished into the woods, but standing in the middle of the road was some woman ranger of the forest, bow out and sword drawn, with her smaller dog beside her.

We gingerly announced our appearance and met Monica Margaron, a woodsman of some skill.  While her act of dispatching a pending goblin ambush was quite a show of talent and appreciated, her incessant stories about her dog Bungi were quite annoying.

Bungi was a white and black terrier mutt that barely followed Monica's orders, except for... acrobatics.
Bungi ... The Wonder Dog in all their glory
Upon command, the dog would follow a routine of running leaps, backflips, and general gymnastics, bouncing off of rocks and trees unscathed.  This Bungi the Wonder Dog was quite an amusing show to behold, if not for Monica constantly detailing the dog's training, diet, and previous routines.

We regret waiting for the voluntary deluge of information from Monica, for we had offered her safe passage with us to Verbobonc City.  We've used candle wax to block out Miss Margaron's never-ending commentary, but the "Dog of the Gods" in nimble enough to sleep behind my saddle on Nestkar.   It's not a bad dog... the whole situation is annoying.

Your Friend,

Elsderth Greyhawk
Sage of the The Order of Merit, Sellsword - Extraordinaire
Wielder of the Legendary Betrayer.
Defiler of the Temple of Tiamat.
Freigraff of the Totenlinden of Amberstoll.
And Personal Bodyguard of Bungi the Wonder-Dog.

DM Notes: Elsderth and company are safely with the true borders of civilization. 

Monica and Bungi were my Mom's lone attempts at making a D&D character.   The character was fine, she just wanted this super-bouncing dog traveling companion, and as a young teen-ager, I really didn't know how to handle things.  "Yes And" hand waving was still seen as a negative, so I botched the whole thing.

Like all good stories, not all characters last the length of the tale.  Morya, the viking warrior, had already survived travelling through Ras-Prythax once, and the freedom of The Weissmach proved much more appealing than visiting Elsderth's friend, Viscount Wilfrick. 


Adventures in Weissmach, and its letters, are over for now.  Elsderth would like some R&R before heading out again.  Anyway, his mortal enemy of travel, the "infernal elf" Talanth Blackash was nowhere near the most evil person in the pirate city.  

Next: #36 - A Visit with the Viscount

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