Ruefully Oso shakes his head as he taps the thin money pouch at his waist. "This one is poor, sick and tired. He has much space and no gold, I fear. Ha, but those hills we can find and sneak up to."
Aredhel nods to Oso. "This guard is clearly seeking to take advantage of us. While a map would help, knowing that the kobolds are in the valley between the hills narrows their location down dramatically. With patience and care I'm sure we can locate them on our own."
She gazes up at where the guard is no doubt waiting anxiously for fortunes and gold to materialize. "If anything, we're doing their town a favor by killing the kobolds. They should offer us the map for free." She gives her characteristic one shouldered shrug.
"They seem like desperate people, and desperate people sometimes do stupid things. I would pay them for this map. Not because we need it, but rather that they need the coin."
He rummages through his possessions and removes his money pouch.
"Here, give them this. I am sure I can come across more money in our search for Bargle."
Mandraiv declines to take the pouch from Imsh and says:
"I will go back and haggle with the guard. If I can get the map for what I think is a good price I will buy it from him. If not, I won't. We can't just give them their first asking price because it is too expensive and because doing so will put us at a disadvantage for our later transactions. That will be especially important when we need to arrange passage to the mainland."
Mandraiv waits a few moments to see if Artius has anything to say and then goes to talk to the guard.
Mandraiv returns fifteen minutes later with a crude map showing the easiest way to the Cursed Place along with the locations of all the sources of fresh water between here and there. After some convincing, Mandraiv was able to bargain them down to 8 gp.
According to what the guard said, even taking the most direct route should take about 10 hours of walking. Since it is already afternoon, this means that you'll be spending tonight on the trail.
The High Elf smiles as Mandraiv walks back, map in hand, pouch considerably heavier and indicative of a successful bout of bargaining.
"Excellent work, my loquacious friend."
Turning, she sets her helm back on her head and walks with the group back along the path, heading toward the distant twin hills.
"Good work, Mandraiv."
"Nice work, Don," smiles Artius, returning Mandraiv's now empty scabbard. "Though I can't decide whether you've just got us a bargain or whether the guard was trying a bit of legal extortion. I'll have to catch up with him on the way back. See if he'd like to play some cards before we leave the island. Something tells me his luck would be quite good for the first few hands..."
Mandraiv replies to Artius, "Just make sure to finish your game moments before we leave."
Mandraiv gets his equipment back from Artius and summons his pact weapon while everybody is gathered around and other people would have a hard time seeing what happened. Rearranging things so that the can carry his longsword as normal he says:
"I am somewhat worried about the wildlife here. We might want to take a day or so once we get close to the ruins to make some sort of concealed tree house or platform where we can sleep without having to worry too much about unwanted visitors."
Mandraiv replies to Artius, "Just make sure to finish your game moments before we leave."
"That's usually how it works," replies Artius.
Mandraiv gets his equipment back from Artius and summons his pact weapon while everybody is gathered around and other people would have a hard time seeing what happened. Rearranging things so that the can carry his longsword as normal he says:
"I am somewhat worried about the wildlife here. We might want to take a day or so once we get close to the ruins to make some sort of concealed tree house or platform where we can sleep without having to worry too much about unwanted visitors."
"That's probably safer, plus it would give Oso something to do and burn off all that excess energy. However, I'd be more concerned about kobold scouts. I doubt we'd be able to construct any meaningful defence without drawing attention to ourselves. Plus, if we do need to withdraw from the kobold lair, I think mobility will be a better defence from any pursuit.
It seems to me that whoever we're hunting may not even know we're on his trail - just because Aleena had contacted all of us, it doesnt mean she'd advertised the fact. I think surprise may be one of our few advantages. I'd rather spend a little time scouting and then try and sneak in before they know we're coming. A secure base would be helpful, but I think it's a luxury we can't afford."
Mandraiv shrugs. He says, "Right now I think time is on our side. But that may change. The way I see it, taking down Bargle in the midst of some sort of semi-fortified ruin guarded by a tribe of kobolds is a project that could take several days worth of raids on our part. In which case having a place to fall back to about 1 or 2 hours travel from the ruin could come in real handy."
"Even if we were able to get lucky and take out Bargle in one shot, it is unlikely that we would also be able to take out all the kobolds. In which case again having a safe spot could be real handy."
"The most likely alternatives would be either to take over and hold part of the ruins ourselves in the face of continuous attacks by the kobolds, or to flee to the woods with no known safe spot to go to."
Aredhel listens in silence as her companions discuss their options, until they reach the part where the path curves away from the direction they wish to go, forcing them to leave its easy surface for the wilderness beyond.
"Let's take a look at this kobold camp and try to get a sense of its size before deciding how much effort to invest in a safe camp. For all we know Bargle could have joined forces with a mere half dozen of the creatures. The island is small. Or, possibly, he's working with scores of them, and we're going to need to come up with a new plan altogether other than a full scale assault. Reconnaissance seems to be in order."
Imsh nods in agreement with Aredhel's idea.
"I would council speed myself, but I agree that it is in our best interest to examine this place before we commit ourselves to any course of action. Lets go!"
"Who speak kobold language? We grab one and get answers. Then plan attack...diversion...hidey hole...whatever. We got to run then find rocky ground or water to slow trackers. But I not run unless You all in bits."
Aredhel glances over her shoulder at Oso. "I speak Draconic. I learned it from an elder elf who in turn learned it some five hundred years ago from the gold dragon Aurillion the Fair. While I shudder to think what dialect the kobolds speak, I should be able to make myself understood."
Mandraiv says, "I can 'talk' to anything that can understand a language. Though no one else will be able to hear the conversation."
"Very good. Let's head toward the hills. And be on the lookout for giant spiders, dire wolves and dire apes, not to mention the aurumvoraxes. Whatever those might be. Warlock Island doesn't sound very hospitable."
Aredhel places one hand on the hilt of her sword, and with helm squarely set, turns toward the hills and begins to march.
Mandraiv says, "Given that Bargle didn't exactly roll out the welcome mat for Aleena, I doubt he would be that hospitable to anyone else. Which definitely includes his choice of where to set up shop."
The group heads away from the village, following the trail on the map. It quickly begins to rise and enters a wood of small, sparse trees surrounded with waist-high dry grasses. The rain continues at the party climbs into the hills, but eventually slows to just a light mist that would be quite pleasant if you weren't all already soaked to the bone. The sunset is masked by the clouds, but it begins to quickly grow dark.
You quickly find a decent place to camp under the protection of a large oak tree out of sight of the trail you have been traveling on.
Aredhel takes a moment as they set up camp to investigate the immediate area. While she's no ranger, she's spent many decades in forests, and as such she simply tries to attune herself to the area; listening to twilight birdsong, looking for animal paths that might run close by, and checking for tracks or other signs of recent passage.
That done, she finds a space to one side of their camp, and works her way through half an hour of sword forms, her greatsword gleaming icily as she slashes, parries, and chops at endless invisible opponents. She doesn't work to build up a sweat, but rather to limber her muscles and stretch her body, working out stiffness and aches.
Finally she sheathes her blade and joins the group, sitting cross-legged and drawing forth Aleena's flute. Playing very softly, so that only those gathered close by can hear, she works through several simple, haunting melodies before tucking away the instrument with a fond smile.
"I'm happy to take the first watch," she volunteers. The group is familiar with her lack of need for sleep; four hours is all she needs while in one of her nocturnal trances.
If that's agreed on, she'll climb the closest, largest tree, and with her blade laid across her thighs, watch the darkness and listen intently, allowing her companions to rest until well past midnight, when dawn is but four hours away, at which point she'll awaken whomever volunteered to watch.
Mandraiv will take the watch while Aredhel goes into her trance.
Imsh uses his time to pray and care for his armor and weapons. When the time comes, he stands watch.
Oso hunts a little on the way up from the village. He keeps an eye out for dinner, and grabs for any roots or grasses that may favour the food. Optimistic by nature, the warrior keeps on trying until camp and then fetches water and wood while the elf does her katas.
Someone will wake me when its Oso's turn
The man sits back against a tree, slowly falling asleep and snoring. He will keep the sword and shield within easy reach of each hand.
Artius drifts off quickly as Aredhel prepares for the first watch, used to catching sleep when he can, the discomfort of being out in the open is easily ignored. He wakes late in the night, donning his armor and stretching the kinks out of his muscles before beginning his watch. To keep alert, he circles the camp quietly, straining to hear any sound out of the ordinary.
The night passes without incident, although those of you on watch have a couple of moments where you hear things moving through the underbrush. Upon closer inspection, they turn out to be curious animals, including a family of mule deer and a possum.
The next morning the sun rises to reveal another overcast day, although the rain seems to be holding off for the moment. After breaking your fast, you leave your campsite and continue on the trail heading toward the valley between the island's two largest hills.
In the mid-morning, the trail climbs an exposed ridge and near the top you get a brief glimpse of your destination. A long, snaking valley winds its way between the two hills, both of which are topped with scree fields and are devoid of trees or any larger vegetation. About a half-mile distant from your current position, you can see the edge of some kind of stone tower peeking out from behind the trees in the valley. From this distance it is hard to discern any fine detail.
Aredhel takes advantage of their pause to remove her helm and wipe the sweat from her brow. Several long, black hairs are slicked against her skin, having escaped her braid, but she doesn't bother with them.
"Finally." She narrows her cobalt blue eyes as she stares into the distance. "A guard tower? I wonder if there's one at each end of the valley. Bargle will have no doubt imposed his will upon the kobolds, so we can expect them to act intelligently."
Aredhel turns to the others. "What do you think? A swift assault on the tower, then a lightning strike on the kobold lair beyond? Or should we take a day to observe activity, try to detect patterns, and then use them to our advantage? If the kobolds are sending out patrols, we could ambush a couple and weaken the force that we will eventually fight within."
After a moment of further reflection, Aredhel smiles wryly. "I counsel patience and observation. But then, I am an elf. Rarely do I see the need to proceed blindly and with haste."
The tower seems to be some ways into the valley. Because you did not get very specific information about what the "Cursed Place" actually is (or why it is cursed for that matter), you don't know if this is an outlying guard tower or the actual "place" itself. In either case, the tower you see looks to be about three stories tall and is quite weathered.
Mandraiv says, "Given that this is Bargle we are dealing with and that there are far too many unknowns for my taste, I also council patience. Let us scout the place thoroughly, ambush a patrol or two and interrogate some kobolds. Then once we know what we're dealing with we can try going for a lightning strike."
Oso nods at that and begins again to sharpen the longsword.
Imsh looks over the valley and shakes his head.
"Not much to hid behind out there. What do you plan to do with the prisoners you take to interrogate once you are through with them Mandraiv? Let them go? Tie them up? I think it might be better to simply move ahead swiftly and deal with the enemy as we encounter them. But you know me...always wanting to push on, eh!"
Mandraiv says, "If we were dealing with humanoids who had been taken prisoner deciding what to do with them would pose a problem. Given that we are dealing with kobolds a quick and merciful death may be the best alternative for them. If that strikes you as harsh consider what happened to Aleena as an indication of the stakes involved."
Imsh smiles as Mandraiv answers his question.
"Just wanted to make sure we were on the same page, as the wizard's say! Did not want any hesitation when the time came."
Artius scans the valley also as the group discusses plans. Having considered his adventuring days gone, he couldn't deny the thrill of excitement he felt at once more plunging into the unknown. The ease with which his companions were prepared to assign blame to Bargle bothered him, but without any evidence to the contrary he didnt see any point in arguing. Once the true perpetrator was discovered, they'd realise their error. With luck, there'd be some clue as to the true Bargle's whereabouts also. Returning to the problem at hand, Artius joined the discussion.
"I'm still in favor of moving swiftly," he insisted. "What's going to happen once some patrols start not returning? The whole place is going to be on their guard. We may learn some incidental information, but how will we know how reliable it is anyhow?"
"Learning what we can is valuable, but so is the element of surprise. No matter what we find out, we're always going to want to know more - but with every kobold waylaid, there's an ever greater chance that our quarry will send his allies out looking for us. Or worse, realise we're on his trail and just move on to who knows where."
"I suggest we find a decent spot to watch the valley and a couple of us scout out the lay of the land from there - see if there's any other structures further ahead. Possible ways inside and so forth. Let's not spend too much time watching though - we've kicked in doors without knowing what's on the other side before." Pausing at the end of his speech, he grins at the others. "I trust nobody's gotten too unfit in the last few years to run away if the need arises?"
Mandraiv replies, "Given what the guard at the village told us this is a relatively dangerous island. If only one patrol goes missing it might not cause too much concern. Though I agree that the more patrols we take out the more waves we will make."
"I suppose Artius and I could do a scout while everybody else hides. This brings us back to our discussion about making a small base first. That could help those people who can't hide very well."
Aredhel nods to Artius in agreement. "Let's get close to the tower. Mandraiv and Artius go in front, and see if you can observe the enemy. Imsh, Oso and I will hide as best we can, but hopefully be close enough so that if you get in any trouble, we can come help."
Aredhel says this in an almost dreamy, distracted manner, her eyes locked on that distant and ominous tower.
"We'll wait for you to come back with either word of a patrol or information on the tower. I think we should interrogate at least one kobold before moving forward. With that information, we can plan our next move."
Aredhel looks to Mandraiv. "I don't think we need to go to the effort of building a safe haven for the moment. We can simply wait in the branches of a tree. If for some reason it turns out we'll need to camp out here for longer than we expect, then we can revisit that idea."
Mandraiv nods to Aredhel and says, "That sounds reasonable to me."
Mandraiv moves out as stealthily as he can to begin the scouting foray.
Oso looks at the scouts leaving, wistful for a moment. Then he remembers his own crashing attempts to follow the elf and the way every few steps she looked back at him.
Afterwards he throws himself into making a hide not far from water but with a good view of the tower trail. Branches and bushes come from a thicket way aways and he finishes by removing his tracks into position.
Once done the man sleeps until it is time to move on. His favourite touch is the vine flowers placed high in a tree cleft, above the hide and making it easier to find the base.
Jus' need to see dem big white trumpets in that tree and we be cool.
Imsh nods in agreement to the plan, but still seems troubled.
"I worry that Bargle will discover our actions before we get to him and disappear. I hope the scouts are quick and quiet and get back soon!"
He takes out his prayer beads once again and starts to mumble a prayer as he slowly clicks the beads on their string.
Aredhel watches as Mandraiv and Artius fade away into the brush, and then takes a deep, decisive breath and turns to her two remaining companions.
"Come," she says, not unkindly. "Let's find an advantageous vantage point. We'll follow behind them for a ways, and then seek the shelter and height of a good tree."
She clasps Imsh on his boulder of a shoulder, giving him a reassuring squeeze, and then with a nod to Oso, begins to tread in the faint trail left by the scouts, moving slower and more cautiously, keeping a look out for a particularly large and well positioned tree to climb.
Oso keeps doing what he is doing. It isn't what Aredhel wants but she can get him later when ther is anything useful from the scouts. Meanwhile he is busy and not bored.
"See you in a while," mutters the native as he carefully picks his way through the undergrowth, finding a well hidden site.
Accompanying Mandraiv, Artius slips automatically into the familiar role of scout. Keeping an eye on the tower he moves as quietly and unobtrusively as possible.
As Mandraiv and Artius carefully approach the tower structure, they see that it actually part of an outer wall of a castle of some kind. The walls of the outer wall (which the tower is attached to) are full of small holes where stone blocks have tumbled to the earth, now scattered around the ruins. A gateway in the center of the front wall stands empty, and the massive outer doors lie nearby rotting on the ground, although the inner doorway still stands. This gateway seems to be the easiest entrance through the wall, although a gaping hole to the left of the entrance could provide another. Peeking over the outer walls in places are the ruins of a castle, backed against the sheer wall of the canyon itself.
The scouts find a good place to hide behind a large boulder approximately 200 meters from the main gate, but despite waiting and watching from there for about 10 minutes, discover no signs of life.
Is the inner doorway open or closed?
Mandraiv starts communicating telepathically with Artius:
"Any ideas?"
Is the inner doorway open or closed?
Closed
Starting slightly as Mandraiv's voice suddenly sounds in his mind, Artius motions in a wide arc, suggesting they scan the ruined castle from all sides.
"Let's check for any other entrances" whispers Artius softly. "I'm not that keen on walking in the front door. Unless we see some activity, I'd suggest we settle in for an hour or two before heading back to the others."
Mandraiv replies telepathically, "Sounds good to me."
Artius and Mandraiv carefully scout around three-quarters of the walled compound (the fourth being the side of the cliff it is built into) and discover that the rest of wall is in as good a shape as the front: largely in ruins. Other than the big one in the front they have already seen, there are no other obvious holes in the wall big enough for a person to fit through, however.
The two scouts also hear some high-pitched chittering of unknown origin coming from inside the walled compound.
Mandraiv comments telepathically to Artius, "Given the condition of the outer walls and the fact that the inner gate is closed I think the best bet for getting into the castle is by climbing and sneaking in to the tower. Playing with either the inner gate or attempting the large hole near the gateway may not be a good idea. Another possibility would be to climb a section of wall on the far side of the castle from the tower. But I would prefer trying the tower. If we can take it quickly and quietly enough we have an area we can hide in while we check out more of the castle."
Artius crews up his face in concentration as he replies silently. "I agree," he thinks with a nod. "That break in the wall is almost certainly trapped as well. The further we can get without raising the alarm, the better. Luckily, it doesn't appear they do much patrolling of the surrounding area, which is encouraging. Let's return to the others, see what they think of the plan."