Session 36.1 : Hoskgak Reborn

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Legend has it that Hoskgak the Brave was reborn as a new hero in Barovia. Legend has it that Hoskgak the Brave became even mightier than he had ever been as his previous incarnation. Legend has it that Hoskgak the Brave was reborn as a woman.

***

A good story always has a start, a middle and an end. So let me tell you an amazing story about Hoskgak. I will start with the little known fact that he was, in fact, born as a half-orc. That’s right, he wasn’t even a full orc, he was only half. I know many of you thought that his greying skin was down to malnutrition, but I am here to tell you, Hoskgak the Brave was in fact very well fed and the lack of green pigment in his skin colour was partly due to the human blood, but largely due to the lack of sun in Barovia.

***

“You don’t know that mistress. I seriously doubt sun has anything to do with Hoskgak’s skin colour.” Kenny chimes in offhandedly.

“Well, how else would you explain his skin colour then?” Destiny asks matter-of-factly. “When I was young, the elders told us all kinds of stories about the origin of the half orcs and in all those stories they have green skin colour. Anyway, Kenny my dear, please do keep a close watch on what’s out there. Serenity will not be happy if we get surprised by a wolf pack again.” Destiny picks up her pen and continues scribbling away.

***

Ok, so that’s the start of the story dealt with. Now let’s talk about the middle. Hoskgak’s middle was, some would say, all muscle. He had a fearless, perfectly proportioned, killing body and there was no better middle than Hoskgak’s middle in all of Barovia. But despite the tough exterior, Hoskgak was a softy inside. In particular, he had a soft spot for Ireena. Many a time Hoskgak flexed his middle in hope that Ireena would notice, but it would seem that Ireena appreciated Hoskgak’s physical display only as much as a passer by notice a raven doing a poo - that is to say not at all.

Now that I think about it, it was perhaps Hoskgak’s desperate attempt for Ireena’s attention that lead him to his ultimate demise…

… yes, we have come to the climax of this story, the end, the ultimate, the death…

Here’s how it happened; It was a cold night and the Heroes of Barovia descended to the werewolf den. The original plan was to sneak in quietly and cleanse the den of its evil beings before anyone noticed. But as the heroes approached the den’s entrance, they noticed a lone guard standing there. Hoskgak stepped out from the shadow and shouted a challenge at the guard. I wouldn’t say that’s a smart thing to do, but I bet it was done to impress Ireena.

Well, it sure worked since immediately Ireena gave a concerned cry and begged Hoskgak to flee… or was it Serenity. Hoskgak stood taller, almost pleased as the guard approached while whistling for backup.

Perhaps running now would seem cowardly, so Hoskgak stood his ground. Seconds later the guard was joined by a pack of wolves, running towards the challenger. Still, Hoskgak stood his ground. His companions decided that fleeing was the only option, pleading with Hoskgak to come to his senses and join them. Still, Hoskgak stood his ground. The guard turned into a werewolf. Hoskgak ran like the wind.

But it was too late, wolves, it seems run pretty fast and soon caught up to Hoskgak and his companions. Suddenly, Hoskgak spun round. “Run. Remember me. Remember what I taught you. RIPOSTE!”

As the first wolf sprang across the air to Hoskgak, the mighty half orc swung his great sword cleaving the wolf clean in half. Another pounced forward. “RIPOSTE!” and another was down. But with every wolf he took down, two more took its place. By the time the werewolves arrived, Hoskgak was already blood ridden. Barely able to lift his sword, Hoskgak charged towards the werewolves. “For Andralos!”

For some strange reason, the werewolves ordered his half devoured body to be carried back to the den and placed next to the shrine of the goddess they worshipped.

There, something miraculous happened… Hoskgak was resurrected, but not how you might think. You see, what happened was that Hoskgak was, in fact, brought back to life briefly, only to die the following night. That was perhaps a blessing since he was missing part of his jaw, along with several other body parts. But what’s strange was that watching over Hoskgak’s body this whole time was a werewolf lady, who as soon as Hoskgak came back to life decided to betray her clan and help the heroes escape. She was also very protective of Hoskgak’s body and stopped anyone from taking his belongings.

What’s more strange was that this werewolf fights just like Hoskgak. She has an incredible middle, just like Hoskgak. She is a bit rude, just like Hoskgak. And I dare say, she smells a lot like Hoskgak.

This has lead me to surmise that perhaps the strange goddess in the werewolf den was impressed by Hoskgak’s sacrifice for his companions and took pity on his unrequited love for Ireena. So she wanted to give Hoskgak a second chance with Ireena… so she got the wolves to carry the body back in order to revive him. When it became clear that Hoskgak’s missing jaw was not really going to help his quest with Ireena, she used her divine powers to transfer Hoskgak’s soul to the closest being at the time, which, as it happens was this werewolf lady.


That’s right, this were-lady, “Zuleika” is actually Hoskgak Reborn! The Heroes of Barovia live on!

***

“I am not sure mistress. It sounds a bit far fetched... actually... nevermind, nobody ever listens to me anyway"

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