Knight Terrors: The (Mis)Adventures of Smoke the Dragon

August 16, 10:55 AMRPG ExaminerMichael Tresca

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Courtesy Cyberwizard Productions

Nick Ozment has recently found a publisher for the stories of Smoke the Dragon. Nick Ozment teaches English at Winona State University, where he has also taught a Topics in Literature class on J.R.R. Tolkien. His Master's Thesis explored the mythopoeic vision of the Inklings. His essay "Gandalf's Staff, Prospero's Books: Magic in Tolkien and Shakespeare" appears in *Tolkien and Shakespeare: Essays on Shared Themes and Language* from McFarland & Co. (Spring 2007).

This summer the collected stories will be published by Cyberwizard Productions in book form, under the title Knight Terrors: The (Mis)adventures of Smoke the Dragon. He has been posting them in installments at http://knighterrors.blogspot.com.

This latest chapter is a short, enjoyable stand-alone read. Its a one-off, chapter 6.5: Poached Unicorn, which shows the events of chapter 6 from the point of view of a band who call themselves the Necatrine Hunters (they're actually unicorn poachers). It has a real D&D feel to it, lots of subtle humor that D&D players will appreciate.

“Sodsak is right, that scent would not fool any unicorn into thinking one of you is a female or a virgin.” He slipped the rod into a saddlebag and mounted his horse. “The unicorning rod indicates he’s still moving north. Boys, let’s ride. Today we take a horn.”

“But, Teeran, I ain’t packed up Rosey yet!” Big Org pointed off through the trees to a crude effigy of a woman in a once-white dress, perched like a scarecrow in a nearby glade.

“Rosey don’t work either. Any unicorn that would mistake that thing for a woman needs to lay off the laughing-clover.”

“But—but—Malwart the magician cast a imitation-of-life spell on her, guaranteed!”

“Malwart is a snake-oil salesman and a shoddy wizard.” Teeran kicked his boot-heels into his horse’s flanks and cantered away. The other hunters quickly mounted, though Big Org did so with a long face, casting a wistful backwards glance.

Crass chuckled. “Big Org’s taken Rosey to his bedroll a time or two, to ‘snuggle with,’ so I don’t even know if she still counts as a virgin.”

Big Org made a noise like a growl. “It makes a good pillow! I cramp up sleeping on the ground all the time.”

Crass quickly spurred his horse after Teeran, hoping he would not feel the sudden, sharp burn of an arrow in his back.