The Hornsounder - Volume 2, Edition 8

[Lanette]

[Lanette]

 

 

In the Beginning....

by Northstar (Raw Recruit!)

 

 

In the beginning there were very few banders. Corki and I had been at DM for a year and Corki was looking for a new challenge. The advert for the Band of the Red Hand Org Leader came up and he applied. Io thought he was mad. But he got it, and his madness went onto create the best and most active org at DM.

 

There were very few of us to start with, and we decided to have divisions of infantry, cavalry and archers in preparation for our coming Org status, as we were only a discussion forum at the time. Corki, was given the title Marshal; - General (i.e. God of the Band), Cumadrin was named Under Commander, and Canis became the Cavalry CG and I became the Archer CG.

 

Cumadrin and I laid the foundations of the Archer Regiment we know today. We set up the boards originally and began recruiting new members by competing with the other two divisions. The cavalry numbers grew the fastest, but the Archers, kept up the pace, with a majority of male members.

 

As fledgling Archers, we decided to take on the mighty cavalry. Cumadrin and Blade masterminded the prank, which started in the American evening, and ended a day or so later. Cuma, Blade, myself and a few others managed to deposit over 5 pages of spam in the cavalry public boards, and almost as many pages in the cavalry private boards once someone let slip the password. The Cavalry Retalliation was carried out by Canis mainly, and he gave the Archers a good few pages of spam, which was great fun to read and to work out where it ended.

 

Since then the Archer division has grown and spread to become female dominated, and the largest division in the Band. History is continuing to be written, but it is important not to forget the roots of this great divisions. It is important to remember what it was like in the Beginning.

 

 

P. 02

[Lanette]

 

 

September in the Cavalry

by Froix (Captain - Red Arms, Cavalry Regiment)

 

 

The Wheel of Time turned and a month came and passed leaving memories that became threads. Threads woven by the Pattern and stored at the Band's boards. Threads in the Yard even, where the ladies and knights, and pages and squires of the Band reside..

 

The Cavalry continues to flourish, thanks to the magnificent work the staff of the Cavalry has done with the recruits, the members and the regiment overall. The usual Bandy drinking, tavern brawling, jousting and recruit recruiting and some unusual events continues in the Yard.

 

Riva's quarterdeck, built by fellow pirates. A queit place to drink and rest til a mysterious kidnapping occurs... Flicker

 

A knight finds himself trapped in the brig, joining infantrymen and archers. The sound of bidding is heard outside. Yet another pirate, auctioning banders... Flicker

 

Pounding Thunder. The grounds for knights challenging knights. The echos of challenges lost in time. Almost a year later, a knight steps up once more calling Sir Staffy's name. Sir Staffy with Stumpy's reins in hand accepts the challenge as they proceed to the arena to beat each other up. Both bloodied through the long jousting, Sir Staffy prepares for the final blow and... Flicker

 

Lord Rayden steps back and draws forth his kitana, the sound of it exiting the scabbard leaves a loud pitch reverberating through the air. Lord Rayden then places the blade onto the Cavalier's left shoulder and then to his right. "Rise Auld Manriva, a KNIGHT of the Cavalry of the Band of the Red Hand"

 

Across the hall Manriva's voice was heard, ".... I humbly ask the Templar Knights to accept me as one of their Order." Sir Manriva then goes on to choose a large Frieisan gelding at the Pasture for his horse, naming him Destiny.

 

Flicker

 

Sheli storing her nurse's clothing and renaming her horse Silken Kiss...

 

Flicker

 

Lord Rayden steps back and draws forth his kitana, the sound of it exiting the scabbard leaves a loud pitch reverberating through the air. Lord Rayden then places the blade onto the Cavalier's left shoulder and then to his right. "Rise Katiora, a KNIGHT of the Cavalry of the Band of the Red Hand"...

 

Katiora smiles and hugs Ray, then turns to face the crowd, blushing slightly, "I choose to join the Sarmation order, if they will have me...

 

Flicker

 

Lord Rayden steps back and draws forth his kitana, the sound of it exiting the scabbard leaves a loud pitch reverberating through the air. Lord Rayden then places the blade onto the Cavalier's left shoulder and then to his right. "Rise Son of Battles, a KNIGHT of the Cavalry of the Band of the Red Hand"...

 

"I thank you my Lord Rayden!!! This truly is a wonderful honor!!!," He turns and looks over the crowd of onlookers with a triumphant look. "I choose the Arthurian Order.. if they will do me the honor..

 

Flicker

 

Just as the month ends, a new member joins the Cavalry. Angyl is welcomed by countless shots of Bandy...

 

Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker Flicker

 

A cavalryman suddenly gets up, his face covered in sweat. He touches his face only to realize it's not sweat but his horse licking him awake. He hastily gathers his stuff, hops on his horse and rides back to the Yard to sign in for October Roll Call

 

P.03

[Lanette]

 

 

The first RLO I met

By Angyl (Raw Recruit)

 

 

As a new member of The Band of the Red hand, I participated in their Raw Recruit program. In this program, a new member (recruit) spends seven days with each of the three regiments; Cavalry, Infantry, and Archers. Each regiment has Regimental Liason Officers (RLOs) whose job is to welcome recruits and assign them tasks for the week. As a current Archer recruit, one of I disagreeignments is to write an article for The Hornsounder, the Band's monthly newsletter. The topic I was given to write about was the first Archer to welcome me. For me to write about that, however, I'll have to include some backstory.

 

I spent my first week as a Raw Recruit with the Infantry, where Ash and Woolhead were the RLOs at the time. I certainly had fun that week, and when I left I felt like I had made some new friends. My second week was spent with the Cavalry, where Twinflower was the only RLO. After a shaky first couple of days, I also had a good time there, and again walked away feeling like it had been a good week. On to week three, off to see what the Archers had in store for me.

 

The Archers regiment, I noticed, had several busy RLOs that seemed to be in a flurry of activity. It only took me a couple of days to figure out why. They were welcoming a new RLO, Woolhead! Well, Wooly was the first person to welcome me to the Archers, which was perfect for this somewhat shy recruit. It felt almost like I had moved to a new town, away from everyone I had known, to this new town where I didn't really know anyone. Only when I met my new neighbor, it was the same neighbor I'd had two towns ago! I still don't know everyone in town, but it sure is nice to see a familiar face.

 

P.04

[Lanette]

 

The Winner of the Best Holiday Reveiws Contest!

 

Six Flags Darien Lake, NY/Niagara Falls

by Footman (Chmapion, Infantry Regiment)

 

 

This last weekend I took my family up to Six Flags, Darien Lake in New York. The park is located just outside of Buffalo, NY in a rural section of upstate New York. The family left early Thursday morning followed by my in-laws in a car behind us and my parents on their way from Michigan across Ontario, Canada. The trip had already started out on a bad note as the night before we get a pre-recorded call from Six Flags explaining that there were some rides and attractions closed down. Now, we had made reservations 5 weeks prior, and had read that we could cancel up to 72 hours before our arrival date with only a nonrefundable $25 fee that we would loose. Unfortunately, and purposefully they called the night before to tell us half the children rides, half the water parks, one of the major coasters and the main show (Batman Thrill Spectacular) was now closed for the season. I re-read the web page that said the main season was Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend (End of May to the Beginning of September). We were furious. My son is a huge Batman fan as am I and I was excited to see the show, meet Batman and check out the Batmobile (all supposed to be there!). My excitement was nothing compared to my son’s. And his disappointment was immense, but he was stoic about it, knowing he would get to ride some rides. That, and the daily parade featuring Bugs and the gang and the Justice League was still there. He could see Batman that way!

 

Eight hours after leaving Home (just north of Baltimore) we show up at the campground. If you plan to go, this is the way to do it. They have rental campers, and they are fairly nice. You bring cooking utensils and bedding, and stay in an air conditioned/heated camper that sleeps 7 (sort of). Now, we didn’t cancel as we would be out $750 dollars for the camper rental and tickets for the weekend. The campers are a 2 night minimum rental and include park tickets for the day you arrive until the day you leave. We stayed Thursday through Sunday. Three nights, four days for $750 US. Not bad, as the campground is nice, and we were right on the lake. Do take note, that if you stay at the campground, you will be charged at least for four tickets into the park. My folks told us that they had to pay almost as much as us, and they brought their own camper! If we had known that, we would have put at least one of us in their package and saved everybody a little bit of money.

 

When we entered the park, we stopped at the information cabin to find out why they told us the night before about the rides and show being closed down. We were informed that they had only found out about the closings the day they called us, and were very sorry about that. No big deal. Poo happens, I think to myself. So, now we have access to Six Flags Darien Lake and we go into the park that Thursday night to see when the parade is, so my son can see Batman. Sorry, no parades. Closed down for the season. Half the shops: closed. The park hours had been changed to open an hour later and close an hour earlier. That is when I noticed the sign. The sign was a nicely made sign, professionally made, saying what rides and attractions were closed. The sign had a bit of a water stain to it, like it had been out in the weather for a couple of weeks. Hmmm…

 

I bought my tickets for the Toby Keith concert that was going on the next night. I asked half jokingly if that had been closed, too. Nope, the show must go on. I did inquire when the rides and show had close. The response I got was: “The park notified people with reservations as soon as we could, and we are sorry for any inconvenience.†Tell that to my heart broken son!

 

We rode some kiddy rides and went back to camp for a late dinner. Then we went to the laser light show they have at the park entrance from the campground. That was an impressive display of lights and fireworks that lasted a bit over an hour and is done every night there.

 

Friday, I took the kids to Hook’s Lagoon, a water park inside the park. This is a very kid friendly water park with the deepest water being 3 feet (.9144 meters), but rages from 0 to 1.5 feet (.46 m) deep, with a pirate ship and a very wet structure with climbing nets rope bridges, and a large barrel (several hundred gallons) that dumps itself every few minutes on the waiting crowd. It was a very fun morning, but somewhat hectic trying to lead my 2 year old around, while keeping an eye on my 6 year old (wife was at camp with the infant).

 

That night we went and saw Joe Nichols open for Toby Keith. I’ll do a gig review on that later.

 

Saturday began and ended with rain, so we packed up the group and drove an hour to Niagara Falls. This is truly an awe inspiring sight! We spent a few hours there, looking at the three different falls (horseshoe, Bridal Veil, and American Falls). We did not take the Maid of the Mist Ferry, but my wife, son, father and I went on the Cave of the Winds tour. For the four of us it was $37 ($10 per adult and $7 for kids aged 6-12), and it was worth it. You are issued a pair of sandals and a very thin poncho/trash bag, and then they take your picture and you stand in line for the elevator. That drops you 17 and a half stories to the river level and you walk a series of wooden platforms and walk ways until you get to the hurricane deck. It is aptly named as you have to lean forward and use the handrails the last few steps up. Once on the hurricane deck you are 20 feet (6.1 meters) from the base of the Bridal Veil Falls (the smallest of the three) and the wind is whipping around and you are totally soaked by the time you step foot onto the top step of the deck. A totally humbling experience to feel the awesome power of the falls. A few things to know: there is a line to get down the elevator and one to get back up, you will get SOAKED if you go on this tour, the “Cave of the Winds Tour†does not mean you go into a cave behind the falls (that collapsed in the 1920’s, and they use the name as a remembrance). All-in-all, Niagara cost us $5 for parking, $37 for the tour, and about $50 for some t-shirt, hat, and toy souvenirs. Food is super expensive there!! Eat before you go and pack some snacks. It was $6 for a hotdog and stale fries!

 

Sunday was another day at the park, mostly for the kiddy rides and finally some coasters for the wife and me. The Boomerang , The Ride of Steel, and The Mind Eraser were great rides.

 

Sunday we packed up. Check out is at 11 am, but the traffic gets thick on Sundays around 10 am on. Even so, we were in the park parking lot and back into the park for one last day by 11:30 am. Here we met a kindly older lady that worked at one of the open shops. Here we learned that Six Flags is selling 6 of their parks in a package deal, and are sucking the parks to be closed down of all the fun (hence no shows, closed rides, and no parades)! The laid off the Parade characters 6 weeks before we got there (a week before we made reservations), and closed the rides down 2 weeks before we got there (plenty of time for us to cancel and rebook at another amusement park elsewhere in the country)!! The employee informed us that they had received a couple inch thick packet on keeping this information secret and how to basically BS the disgruntled customer!!! I’m writing the Better Business Bureau, Six Flags Corporate HQ’s, and a few law makers from the State of New York, just to be thorough. So, if you plan a Six Flags adventure this year, call ahead to find out what rides may or may not be open, before you are unable to cancel!

 

Overall, I spent 4 days and three nights. It ran me about $600 for my half of the camper rental, gas, groceries, and memorabilia. I recommend bringing your own food to save money, as the campers have small stoves and a microwave, grill, or over at each camp rental sight. The campers have a decent sized refrigerator to keep your food cold, and a good bit of cupboard space. The large full size bed is comfy, as is the couch/bed. The bunk beds in the back are a bit crowded for a 6 ft. tall guy (Felt like a coffin!), but do alright for a couple of nights. The park is of course great for any aged person, and they have concerts there every few days.

 

The link to this particular sight is:

http://www.sixflags.com/parks/darienlake/index.asp

 

Overall, it was fun for the family, but a major disappointment that they would treat their customers like we are complete idiots and wouldn’t be able to figure out their ruse! It is because of this, that I may not return to a Six Flags, unless they do one heck of a job apologizing!

 

P.05

[Lanette]

 

 

The English Ravenwood Longbow

by Bjorn (Raw Recruit)

 

 

The English Longbow, more than any other weapon of its time, was responsible for vast changes in the nature of medieval warfare. In doing so, it made England the foremost power in Europe during the 14th and 15th centuries. England's armies became the most feared units in Europe, and with good cause. Almost every battle fought was won by an intelligent utilization of massed archers and men-at-arms. Upon many occasions, English troops were sorely outnumbered, only to win the day.

 

Such was the power of the Longbow, that contemporary accounts claim that at short range, an arrow fired from it could penetrate 4 inches of seasoned oak. The armored knight, considered at one time to be the leviathan of the battlefield, could now be felled at ranges up to 200 yards by a single arrow. One account recalls a knight being pinned to his horse by an arrow that passed through both armored thighs, with the horse and saddle between!

 

Modern tests have verified that this was indeed possible. A 700-800 grain arrow can pierce 9 cm of oak at close range, and 2.5 cm at 200 yards. No armor up to plate was proof against an arrow at less than 200 yards, and even plate could be penetrated at less than 100 yards.

 

Another aspect of the Longbow was the archers themselves. Archers began training at a very early age, traditionally at the age of seven. Training at long ranges was mandatory, complete with fines for violations. Local tournaments were held regularly, and the best archers were chosen for military duty. As these were all hand-picked troops from among the best archers in England, the archer units were an elite group of infantry. These were no base peasant levies; they were all hand-picked craftsmen who well knew their worth in battle.

 

The average English Military Archer could fire 12 to 15 arrows per minute and hit a man-sized target at a minimum of 200 yards. The maximum range was about 400 yards with flight arrows. An archer could not even consider himself skilled at his art if he could not shoot 10 arrows a minute! Note: I know that 10 aimed shots per minute at a man-sized target at half that range is quite a feat

 

P. 06

[Lanette]

 

 

Mudfight!

by AngrealMaker (Raw Recruit)

 

 

Ladies and gents, welcome to tonight’s main event-the MUD WRESTLING!!!

 

The first fighter comes into the ring - it's lady Sheliara from the Cavs. She waits for her new opponent and looks at the crowd applauding her.

 

Ooooo! Look at that! No other then Caddy jumps into the ring and tackles Sheli into the mud! And the challenge is accepted! The two women fight like animals in the mud!

 

The crowd goes crazy! Look at those moves! Caddy flips Sheli over her head and lands on her! On her I tell you!! ! She straddles her legs, pinning them together with Sheli's and pulls each arm across her body tightly so she can barely move!!! O my! She liked her noseeeeeee! But it looks like Sheli isn't beaten yet!

 

She knocks Caddy off and throws both arms up at once, and tripping her with her feet my god! Sheli isn't over! She grabs Froix and hurtles him at Caddy, knocking her to the ground, with a huge splash of mud, the piles on top of the both of them, pinning her to the ground with Froix! Didn't see that comin'!!!

 

Sheli's goin for Footy's PLC!!! O my GOD! No mercy in this match! She uses the PLC to throw several mud balls at Cads and she........she hits her, she hits her!!!!!!

 

But that's not the end of Cads! She uses an empty brew-mug to build a wall around her and then starts to throw mud over it at Sheli. And she hits!!! Sheli can’t see and Cads uses the moment to take the PLC and use it as a blindfold for lady S! OOOOOOOOOOOh! What's that?!?!?!?!?!

 

Sir Shadowhelm makes a challenge!!! Ladies and gents, the fight is now 2v2 - Sheli and Cads on the one side and Ash and Shadowhelm on the other. Who’ll win in this epic struggle?!?!?

Shadow makes the first move-he hits the lasses and sends them in the mud! What strength! But the ladies aren't finished! They grab Shadows arms a drag him into the mud and Sheli sits on him! He’s outta the game for a few seconds and that should mean that....yes, Sheli heads for Ash! But she isn't over - look, she’s got the PLC and is throwing mud balls at he boys! Cads joins the fun-she sits on Ash and makes him make mudangels! MUDANGELS I TELL YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Suddenly Ash wakes up and grabs Cads by the arm, twists it behind her back, shoves her face down into the mud and puts a knee on her back (making sure the mud cushions her impact).

He's throwing mud bricks at Sheli now! I see!!! He tries to save his teammate! But Sheli dodges the mud bricks, and tackles Ash, bowling him over and sits on his chest, giving Caddy a moment to get up. And she does! While Sheli’s keeping Ash busy, Cads dive tackles Shadow before he can pounce, flying across the pit into the defense wall, where his body cushions her impact. And now she's pushing the mud bricks on him, building a mud igloo! But I see that Sheli isn't actually doing so good with Ash....

He retaliates to Sheli’s tackle by rolling, making her fall off of him, and getting up assuming stance he learned in Mud Battle Tactics 101(I always smile on that part).

 

But Cads gets help from the audience-there is no other way she could get that broomstick! And now she's jabbing Ash with it! Poor guy.....don't wanna be on his place.....

 

In the mean time the sun has backed the igloo around Shadow! There seems to be nothing going by the boys...what's happened to them??? Aah! Ash stands up and asks for time-out...

 

But Sheli attacks him again and pushes him into the mud! What a harsh answer! She shouldn't have done this...Ash does a pushup, except rapidly, sending Sheli flying off his back and Sheli hits Cads who was turning and running towards him in an attempt to help Sheli contain his inner beast...those girls.....they just wanna have fun.....

 

And now the two land in a heap to the side. And here goes Ash again! He does a cannonball into the mud! Owww, girls! That's got to hurt! But Cads takes her broomstick....

 

And yes, she starts beating the hell out of Ash! He’s in the mud again! And Cads makes sure he stays there! Look at how she pinned him! And the poor lad gets mud in the mouth also...Sheli throws Ash into the ropes, and catches him bounce back, then slams him into the mud again, grabbing Caddy, they both run towards the ropes on the opposite side, and bounce back towards Ash, and smoosh him into the ground some more! That was bad for the boy! And suddenly Sheli disappears and is replaced by a second Caddy!

 

Or is this Sheli undercover? Or was Sheli always looking like Caddy?!?!?!?! I don't know!!!!!!! Cadsuane and Caldara double team Ash, seemingly his worst nightmare come true... TWO Caddys!!

 

But what's this? Shadow kicks his way out of the poorly constructed igloo. Points to the sky and and yells:

-Look at the flying elephants!

 

And now all he has to do is to wait for Cads and her doppelganger to look in the sky and then takes them out at the knees. Both mud covered women flip over his head and land on their backs.

And he starts throwing HUGE amounts of mud at the lasses. Using the help of Shadow, Ash goes and wrestles with both Cads until he has both broomsticks... takes one, breaks it over his leg, and throws the other to Shadow to do with as he pleases....Now that's teamwork! Shadow uses the broomstick for a catapault! Now this can’t be seen every day you know......

 

But the triumph of the boys doesn't lasts very long-Sheli snags the broomstick Shadow disposed of, shaking off the near unconsciousness, and starts twakking Shadow with it. She chases Shadow around the room while twakking him, made all the funner cuz with each twak, he gets more mud on him. Dang this is going better and better......

 

Cads on the move again! She launches her self at Ash and both start wrestle in the mud! Cads makes it to the top and starts pinning Ash’s face in the mud, screaming..... O my! She’s screaming "Say Uncle!! Say Uncle!!!" Crazy girls these days........

 

But Ash ties her curls to the corner post and goes to help Shadow a bit....Again the boys have

outmastered the puny lasses .But Shadow isn't doing that bad either. He sees Muddy Caddiara preparing to thwack him again with the broom stick and ducks. Muddy Caddiara misses completely and her balance shifts. He pushes Caddiara in the back and watches her face slamming first into the mud. And now...He sits on her back facing her feet. Grabs her ankles and pulls them up and starts tickling her feet. Now that's nasty....But Sheli seems to have lost her mind! She found some stick somewhere and is now beating Shadow on the head with it! Look, she's building something wicked there....can’t understand what it is...

 

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Now I see...it was some sort of catapult! And they hit the boys with tons of mud! Bad girls, very bad indeed...But Ash stands up! What a man! He pulls Shadow too and even finds in his self enough strength to throw the broom stick like a mud javelin at one of the Caddys. But Caddy dodges the javelbroom, yanking Caddy II over with her to safety as it whizzes past either one of their heads. Sheli rolls to the side with Caddy I, then watches the broom hit one of the spectators. Sheli is really nuts now! She stifles a giggle, and takes the broom back from the now angry spectator, and turns Ash over her knee to spank him with the broomstick!!!

 

But Shadow sees the ladies are distracted with Ash and sneaks up behind the mud catapult and yanks the wheel out of the contraption. Starts rolling it around in the mud creating a huge mud boulder in the process. He rolls mud boulder at the Caddys and watches as it smashes into both of them (and sadly Ash too) and then pins them to the ground. Drags Ash out of the mess and then gives the Caddy's a big moon from right in front of the band. Now he grabs Caddy's arms and pulls them behind her and holds them together with one hand while scooping up a big clump of mud with the other hand and smashing it in her face. But then Caddy does some weird move and is free again! She tosses Shadow back in the mud! But what are they talking about?

 

They want to quit! Maybe we'll see some cool moves before the fight is over! But what's this?!?!! Shadow sees Caddy considering his offer of peace and then rams her in the stomach with his head while she is pondering. Caddy falls back on her rear! Now he grabs her legs and starts dragging her through the mud. He seems to be preparing something......

 

I live for moments like this one! Shadow just did something NICE! He began spinning in circles holding Caddy's legs. She slowly came out of the mud in big arching circles. Just as he about lost control, he let go of Caddy and watched her fly through the air and land face down in the mud right at the edge of the ring!!!!!! It seems that Cads has got all she can stand! She offers Shadow brew and shower, because she has no peace-pipe, but it seems that for the dirty, tired soldier this is enough....It seems that Sheli and Ash are off the fight too......

 

So I think that this mud fight is officially OVER! Have a good evening and drive safely!

 

 

P.07

[Lanette]

 

 

Siggie/Avie Story

by Jaina (Raw Recruit)

 

 

Amavia wandered along the side of the creek, careless of the effect the damp grass may have on her soft deep blue gown. Her fingers lightly caressed the feathers of the arrows that filled her quiver. She may be a small woman but she was far from helpless. A small red creature that might have been a monkey loped along with her happily dipping its legs into the stream and then leaping out of it to bound beside Amavia again.

 

Finding the spot she sought Amavia stopped, humming aimlessly to herself she walked to a nearby tree and studied its bark intently. She then turned around and began counting the paces she took from the tree. As she reached sixty paces she turned pulling her bow from her back and strung it easily. Taking a deep breath she drew an arrow and knocked it, another breath and the fletching brushed her cheek, she steadied the bow and then as she released her breath she let the arrow fly. Reaching into her quivers she drew another arrow and repeated the process four more times. After her last arrow struck the tree alongside the others she quickly covered the distance and discovered, as she had expected, a tightly grouped bunch of arrows. Each arrow punctured the knot in the wood she had singled out earlier.

Pulling her arrows free she repeated the process ten more times.

 

On her tenth trip to the tree to retrieve her arrows, she was stunned to hear a loud clapping come from behind a tree near where she had been standing to shoot earlier. As Amavia spun to see who it was she had to laugh as she saw the monkey creature run for the person who had been clapping and leapt up and down at her feet. With a smile, Danya knelt down to pat the creature gently on the head. “Nice shooting.â€

 

“Thank you.†Amavia said as she turned to pull the rest of her arrows free. “What brings you out here Danya?â€

 

“Nothing more than a need for fresh air,†the Captain replied as she straightened to a standing position pulling her quiver to a more comfortable position on her hip. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, but we all know how dangerous it is to try and walk past someone who is shooting.

 

“Not at all,†Amavia replied, waving her hand dismissively. She stepped away from the tree as Danya walked towards her and replaced her bow on her shoulder. As the other woman got closer Amavia had to blink a second time as she saw what appeared to be a small creature of light peeking out from the midst of Danya’s white blond tresses. “I see your little friend is still with you.â€

 

Danya smiled absently as she reached a hand up to remove Kiri, her fairy companion, from her shoulder. She wasn’t actually sure if Kiri was a fairy, but it was the best definition of what she was that either Danya or Kiri could come up with. “Of course, she doesn’t let me out of her sight these days. I make her stay away from my face when I am shooting though.†She grinned at the little shinning creature in her hands, “If I didn’t I would never be able to hit anything, she is so bright.â€

 

Amavia chuckled and nodded, “That is why I stick with less shiny companions,†she said, reaching down to let her red hued friend climb to her shoulder.

 

Danya laughed at that, and held her hand up to her shoulder so that Kiri could sit at her favorite perch. Glancing up at the sky she frowned a little, “It is getting towards dusk. Would you mind company on the return walk?â€

 

“I would welcome it,†Amavia replied. Shifting her bow slightly to make it more secure on her shoulder she matched her steps to Danya’s and the two began the mile walk back along the creeks edge.

 

 

P. 08

[Lanette]

 

 

The Red Ogre Finds a Home

by Footman (Champion, Infantry Regiment)

 

 

The hulking red ogre felt lonely and unwanted. For years he had been shunned by humans for his size and brutality, but more importantly he had been shunned by ogres. The reason for this was two-fold: he was red and he wasn’t originally an ogre. Long ago, a tricksome young man had bequeathed an amulet to the red ogre when the red ogre was a man and a member of the fabled Band of the Red Hand. The young man claimed the amulet was very powerful, full of magics, and would prevent the wearer from receiving damage like normal men. Thinking back, the young man had been truthful from a certain point of view. The amulet had changed the Band member into a hulking, ugly, red ogre. Even after removing the amulet, the soldier stayed a red ogre. Yes, it had been full of magics, and he would no longer take damage like a normal man, for he wasn’t a normal man. Fearing ridicule and humiliation the soldier deserted his fellow soldiers and ran deep into the Black Forrest and hid. Many months past before somebody found him.

 

The man was the stoic leader of The Band of the Red Hand, M-G Corki. Corki talked with the once soldier for many hours and finally convinced him to come back for a trial period. The red ogre ventured back, and amazingly found acceptance within his former home. He had had no reason to flee. The more he thought about it, the more he realized his error. Looking about, he saw that he wasn’t ugly at all compared to the likes of Spacey, Cam, Horn, and especially Cads. As far as the fabled ogres’ lack of intelligence, the red ogre had but to look at his fellow Banders to see the same dim and vacant stare he himself possessed! Several of his fellow Band mates were even drooling!! Oh, why had he ever left!! The red ogre had found acceptance with whom and what he was!! As this realization settled upon the red ogre’s meager and overtaxed brain, a wondrous thing occurred. The vile curse inflicted upon him by Doc’s evil amulet suddenly lifted! The red ogre began to dissolve, leaving a stunned Footman with that same dim and vacant stare! So happy was he, that he began to hug all the Banders he could find!! Yes, he truly was home!

 

 

P. 09

[Lanette]

 

 

The Winner of the JotS Contest

 

 

Ok, the subject of this month's JotS Contest was "Old Pirate turned Knight" and the winner is Kristine

 

 

The old man of the sea came ashore,

From that time life was not a bore,

So full of life none could scarcely ignore

To sail with Jak o' the Shadows."

 

For horse he traded rudder in,

With knighthood a new life to begin,

Joust for him and Matey to win

To ride with Jak o' the Shadows.

 

 

 

The other entries for the Contest were as follows: Option 01 - by Jimmith; Option 02 - by Kieran & Option 04 - by Froix

 

 

P.10

[Lanette]

 

 

Infantry Row - September

by Taymist (Crusader, Infantry Regiment)

 

 

This has been a very busy and successful month for the Infantry and I'm delighted to be bringing everyone up to date with all the changes and goings on.

 

Starting with some happy news, September was brought in with the Banding of Taymist (Infantry) and Bridmorgan (Cav) to Manriva (Cav), in an Aiel like ceremony and came to a close with an equally delightful turn of events when Banner Captain Kristine, just ending her term as BC, banded her dear friend Kieran in a very moving private ceremony. Warmest congratulations are of course sent out to each of them in the strong bonds they have found.

 

The month also started with a bang promotions wise as Daetirion, Ashanderai and Taymist all made it to the rank of Lieutenant/Crusader and earned the right to name their swords (Triskelion, Soul Harvest & Desecrate and Windsinger respectively). This involved much debating on and polling of suitable names with many great suggestions put forward and the results, along with some history of each weapon, can be viewed in The Armoury at the Infantry Library. At the half way stage, Duinn was also promoted to Sergeant/Legionnaire and Kieran was recently appointed as the Infantry's 3rd Red Arm. Congratulations to all of them and condolences to Duinn on his recent accident, we hope he is fit and back with us on active duty soon.

 

There was a great deal of bustle around The Barracks during September with new Officer's Quarters going up on 4th September and a sword form training school being established for Raw Recruits. Excitement abounded mid month as a new Blademaster, in the form of Aan'allein/Ashanderai, earned his heron mark sword in a duel with Blademaster Cam and joined the elite ranks as their 4th member. Also, a large number of Raw Recruits passed in the doors and out again as usual, into the arms of other regiments but had profitable stays with us.

 

A sad loss to the Infantry, Wooly departed after a long thought out change of heart to join the Archers. We wish him all the best in his new regiment and extend thanks for all his hard work in the past.

 

However the Infantry are highly delighted to welcome a new member to their ranks this month. The announcement was made that Evrem Floyd has chosen to join us and take up his position as Battle Bard to the Infants. Welcome to The Barracks, Ev and good luck with your future career.

 

Just prior to her resignation as nurse, the Cavalry's Lady Sheliara took great delight the opportunity to visit the Infantry and dole out the latest round of vaccinations. In spite of general terror and much hiding, she did succeed in injecting 7 stunned members with her rusty needle prior to laying it down forever. In compensation, an extremely attractive band aid was passed out to each victim of them.

 

Two other very important events took place, involving some cross regiment co-operation and raiding. Throughout the month Kristine and Taymist were kidnapped, along with ladies from other regiments, by a parcel of rascally rogue pirates and taken to a secret destination. Kieran, Ashanderai and Spacey, with the help of their counterparts in the Cavalry and Archers, then had to track down and solve various clues to rescue them. We're delighted to say the ladies were returned unharmed to their respective homes.

 

The conclusion to that episode was swiftly followed by more Pirates, in the shape of Leanne (Archers) and Staffy (Cavalry), dragging Kieran and Footy off to auction at The Yard, where they were eventually won, by Kristine and Vorkia (Archers) respectively, and put to good use.

 

We look forward to October with a new command team in place and much more fun to be had with the usual visits from our Archer and Cavalry friends and even more uproarious drinking and brawling as is our wont. Thanks and appreciation are proferred to our outgoing Captain General, Apollo and Banner Captain, Kristine for all their work.

 

 

P.11

[Lanette]

 

 

The Winner of the Album Review Contest! What can I say? He knows what he's talking about and you all know what he says here is true!

 

 

One-Word Reviews For Junk Albums

by Apollo (Champion, Infantry Regiment)

 

People always ask me why I don't get a job as a music critic. Answer: no. Then they ask, "why not?" Easy, I estimate about 70% of the music released is worthless, from mainstream to small label to no label. As for being a music critic, knowing that 70% of what I listen to I would hate and couldn't be creative in panning them, I just wouldn't succeed. Thus, this is why blog templates were created.

 

So I wanted to write up sentences that record labels can paste on their album. You know those stickers they throw on them. "**** - A Classic! -- Rolling Stone" or "Restores Your Faith in Humanity --Blender". If I could, here's what I would want to say:

 

Justin Timberlake, Sexxyback/LoveSounds: "The only way I could listen to this album is to cut my thingy off, put it in a pickle jar and save it. That way, the surgeons can sew my sexy back on because I couldn't listen to this album and be a man at the same time."

 

Fergie, Dutchess: "I highly doubt this girl would have a career if she had small breasts."

 

Clay Aiken, A Thousand Different Ways: "There are a thousand different ways I want to vomit right now."

 

Beyonce, B-Day: "Isn't that a french toilet you wash your bum with that looks like a fountain? Oh, that's a bidet. My bad."

 

Paris Hilton, Paris: "No wonder the French hate us. In fact, I think I hate us, too."

 

P.ussycat Dolls, PCD: "It's good to see RuPaul back in the spotlight where she belongs."

 

Under the Influence of Giants, Under the Influence of Giants: "It's music for people who find Maroon 5 not-douche baggy enough."

 

The Pink Spiders, Teenage Graffiti: "For those who can't wait until Weezer make another sell-out, bland album, this will tide you over."

 

Hellogoodbye, Zombies, Aliens, Vampires, Dinosaurs: "Nothing says emo punk dreams like yearning to be on TRL."

 

 

P. 12

[Lanette]

 

 

Interview With A Zombie

by Evrem Amergin Floyd (Private - Infantry Regiment)

 

 

We all spend a lot of time with each of our respective regiments. We may even know a few of that regiment especially well. This article is meant to shed some light on a single person that perhaps, others outside the archers, may not know. It is also for those that are archers so that they may know one of their own peers even better. It was a strange interview I had with my subject. Downright odd you might say. So odd, in fact, that it was with the one and only Odette.

 

Odette, archer captain, brain-eater, friend, and so much more, joined the Band on May 18th. After rigorous raw recruit training, she laid an egg, and out came an archer. During her training, she was shown such great hospitality and camaraderie that the archers were the way for her. She was told on a few different occasions that she was “a naturalâ€, and that, if she chose another regiment, she would always be an “archer at heartâ€. Among her workings while in the regiment, she disguised herself as Froix for a prank played on the other regiments, and started a whodunit game in the archery boards that ended up leading to a zombie invasion led by none other than herself. She claims to have no “favorite†memory from her time in the regiment, rather, that she loves every single moment with her peers. The members of the archers that she feels that she has grown closest with Caddy, Oz, and Danya, and has also recently grown close with the one and only Lanette. “She is fantastic!†is the general consensus among the regimental personnel. She has taken part in the regimental competitions, and added her thoughts and views to other “non-recruit eyes†subjects.

 

Now, for a bit about the lovely Odette away from the Band, as if such a thing truly exists. Her favorite book is “Book of Haikus†by Jack Kerouac. Of the Wheel of Time series, her favorites are “Eye of the World†and “The Dragon Rebornâ€. Her favorite character from the series is one, Juilin Sandar. She has read the entire series except for the latest title, “Knife of Dreamsâ€. Her favorite color is blue. She spends her days as an assistant manager at a fair trade store, but is a musician at heart. She has played the violin for over twenty years. Her favorite piece to play is "Preludium and Allegro" by Fritz Kreisler.

 

When asked if there was anything she wished to say to her fellow archers, she replied, “I love you all. ^_^†I hope that with this article you know my subject a little better. Maybe you and Odette have something in common that you didn’t know about. I consider myself lucky being given this assignment, as I got to know a very interesting person.

 

 

 

P.13

[Lanette]

Leane CG of Archers

by K’Jar (Raw Recruit)

 

 

With beauty and brains our CG Leane has become a loved and cherished leader. She is modest and at times a little rambunctious. Aren’t we all. Anyway, Leane has served as CG twice and has made an incredible impact on this organization. As CG she has helped develop the Raw Recruit system. Which I may add is very good. She is also Queen of Pegasi.

 

One thing that strikes me about Leane is her leadership ability. I am a former soldier and from her response to my request for information about her, I know she is a great leader. She knows that she cannot do things by herself and thus uses her staff with great effect. Learning and using the strengths and weaknesses of her staff Leane has made the Archers a truly magnificent organization. Her humility in giving credit to all those under her command for any success is truly the sign of an excellent commander.

 

Leane, I haven’t had much time to know you or this organization. But just reading your response to me and the posts you have made…. I am at your service Commander.

 

 

P.14

[Lanette]

Winner of the Gig Revews! The Maestro has struck again!

 

 

Dirty Pretty Things @ Bowery Ballroom, New York

by Apollo (Champion, Infantry Regiment)

 

 

Tonight was a guaranteed exceptional show. There was no way Carl, Didz, Gary and Tony would phone it in. With a built in fan base ready to rock out in their New York debut, this was going to be a night to remember. You know what? It was there, a riotous, foot-stomping, fist-pumping evening. British rock 'n' roll debauchery is back in New York, and it's wearing a sling around its shoulder and smoking f*gs.

 

Setlist:

 

* Dead Wood

* Doctors & Dealers

* If You Love a Woman

* Wondering

* Gentry Cove

* Bloodthirsty Bastards

* You f**king Love It

* Gin & Milk

* Death on the Stairs

* The Enemy

* Last of the Small Time Playboys

* Bang Bang Your Dead

* Encore: France

* B.U.R.M.A.

* I Get Along

 

There's no way to write a post without mentioning The Libertines. Yup, this is the other band that has spawned from that short lived, but mightily influential and entertaining foursome that sent kids tongues wagging, British music journalists fawning for them and heads jerking around. Pete Doherty is off doing Pete Doherty things, which includes an incomprehensible band called Babyshambles with a mess of an album, Down in Albion. Meanwhile, Carl Barat has persevered through some tough times, reading everyday about his partner in the tabloids and pondering his next step.

 

There will come a day where we can mention Dirty Pretty Things without mentioning The Libertines, the same way we can mention New Order without name dropping Joy Division. I look forward to that because even if this band didn't come with a history, I'd still find them rocking as f**king hell. Their music is distinctively British. Waterloo to Anywhere is chock full of Clash-y guitar riffs, 60s British mod stylings and sing-a-long choruses.

 

Tonight's show had everything I want in a British rock show -- jumping around, British soccer chants, songs played faster than normal, a band that is on the mark with their playing, short Asian girls storming the stage and just a lot good energy flowing around. Plus, it was over by 11:30, good timing on a school night.

 

Even while nursing a broken collarbone, Carl managed to dance and stomp around like a southern preacher during a gospel revival. He even picked up his guitar for the encore. Mostly, the guitar duties went to The Paddingtons' Josh Hubbard. The band as a whole managed to be rock 'n' roll without looking like a bunch of drunken idiots, playing loose and with a lot of fortitude.

 

One of my great regrets in my music adventures is only having seen the Libertines once back in the day, which would be like 4 years ago at Coachella. Nothing much has changed, but I got a reminder of what it had been like when they closed the night with "I Get Along." With this band doing it, I'm spared the Doherty antics and ramblings. Although, I'm much more of a fan of "Boy Looked at Johnny."

 

There you have it, Carl Barat and Gary Powell live to sign another song and make a name for themselves, which should be commended.

 

 

P.15

[Lanette]

 

 

Footnote

by Lanette (Champion - Infantry Regiment)

 

 

Well there you have it, the September Edition of the Hornsounder. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Unfortunately this month my trusty assistant Jimmith was not able to make the front page and I had to do it on MSPaint as my Photoshop just went haywire! Sory about the resulting shabby appearence folks. But I know that the contents of the newsletter more than compensates for it!

 

As always, I would like to thank each and everyone who submitted articles for the Hornsounder and all the others who contributed in various ways. A very special thenk you goes out to Son of Battles for helping me with setting up the polls when I was down with flu! Thanks Mattum!

 

Lastly, I would like to remind everyone to please submit your articles by the given deadline. The delay results in me being unable to submit points on time to our XO, and ultimately in your points getting delayed until the mid-month count.

 

So until next month....

 

Carai an Shen an Calhar!