Battle Priest

We traveled at a leisurely pace and avoided most of the forest’s dangers.  Once I nearly led us through a patch of large purple fungus that turned out to be deadly poisonous, but Fayne was alert to the danger and warned me in time.  On another occasion two gangly creatures like living stick men erupted from a dead fall as we neared it.  They were about five feet tall and had champing mouths full of wicked triangular teeth.  As they came Fayne shouted to me that the brown men could clamp their jaws like a weasel’s.  They were terrifyingly fast but they came with no finesse, just a straight on charge.  I smashed the one on the right in the ribs.  Its spindly body crumpled and it fell.  The other was already lunging with a hiss so I fed it the corner of my shield.  As Fayne had warned me, its wicked jaws locked on the edge of the metal.  With effort, I managed to hold it at arms length as it tugged with its head and clawed frantically with sharp fingers and toes.  Never taking my eyes completely off the still fighting brown man; I kicked the twitching body of the other over onto its stomach and stepped firmly on the back of its neck.  Then I dropped my flail, drew my short sword and beheaded the creature attacking my shield arm.  Its body moved spasmodically for an inordinately long period of time.