Kemek rolls over and staunches the biggest wound in his side. He sits up, kness drawn close to his chest and holds his head in his hands.
More blood, more death. Is this what the gnomes created him for - to slough life from form? Did Lathander wish for him to be an instrument of pain or even vengeanc? Kemek looked at the finished goblins, watched unemotionally as the half-orcs "questioned" the last goblin. Were they so different? Perhaps so - the goblins - cunning creatures it seemed, borne on the wings of fury and born of cruelty. Qorin, and increasinhly Uruk were his friends and allies.
He sighed, and staggering, stood up, leaning on his staff. He approached the goblin and stood over the mewling beast, showing it the ichor and oily ooze seeing from his side. Then placed his eyes very close to the goblin's and uttered a deep mechanical snarl. He turned to Qorin.
"Tell him if he doesn't talk the metal monster will eat his fingers one by one until he does. Starting with his feet."
"Normally, I would say let them go. But Qorin's right. They'll just keep coming. And we can't afford to watch them. We need to rest."
Rasp took a long look at the Statue of Tymora and sighed.
"Just not here, I beg. This is meant to be a holy place, and I'll not be party to befouling it further."
They came from the East if we care to follow, I have their tracks. As to killing them, bring them here in the brush with their "comrades". We can end it quickly and put them in the ground. Its not my first preference, but I understand the concern.
"You have seen me spare a prisoner," Qorin says softly to Rasp and Kemek. "This is not bloodlust, but necessity."
Qorin herds the two goblins into the brush.
"I am not judging you, Qorin. I understand. This is no foolhardy treasure hunt. This is survival."
Rasp heard the two goblins beg and mewl from beyond the brush. There were two loud sounds. And then they were silent.
"No, not survival. This is war," Rasp finished sadly.
He walked over to the statue of Tymora. And this time, he did pray.
Ridel shakes his head sadly, but with a composure of acceptance. The orkenkind were correct. And as much as it might sadden him to think it, the deaths of the goblinkin were to be expected.
He looks up at the human deity, saddened all the more by the presence of the statue. "I think we should move on. If the goblins were hired to find us, there may be more groups of goblins or worse searching for us."
The Goblins are dealt with, their tracks leading East. The hour is late, and some of you are no doubt tired from your interrupted rest. What will you do?
"Pressing on is dangerous, Ridel. I say we finish resting. We have wounds to bind and Kemek used quite a bit of magic. If more come, they come. It's a risk we'll have to take. But if we leave now we'll be vulnerable and tired for sure. Better a calculated risk, than one we can't predict."
"Those who need rest should take what rest they can," Qorin says, coming out of the bushes. He scowls for a moment, and then looks around at his companions. "I am well enough. I will keep watch."
Uruk nods with acceptance as he exits the brush with Qorin and moves to get some rest and hopefully heal some of his hurts.
The night passes swiftly, without further interruption. Upon awakening, you are greeted by a beautiful spring morning, the fresh scent of the woods full and wholesome, flowers blooming, and a warm breeze wafting over you. For a moment it is almost enough to take your weary minds off the troubles besetting you...almost.
Two options seem to lie before you. To continue with all haste towards the Friendly Arm Inn and the supposed aid of Jaheira and Khalid, a journey that will take at least another week on foot following the path East and then taking the Great Coast Way Road North.
Or you can follow the Goblin Tracks that seem to run parallel to the road, perhaps leading back to their lair, and maybe giving further answers to who or what hired them to track you down. As of the moment, there is no telling if the journey will lead you astray from the Friendly Arm Inn or not.
What do you do?
Ridel sees the tracks once they are pointed out to him. "If you ask my opinion, I say it is best not to chase down trouble. We already have trouble chasing us down."
" I would normally agree with Ridel. But I think we need to investigate the goblins a little bit further. The Black Knight is a threat of some kind. Enough so that Gorian chose to leave Candlekeep. We should confirm if these goblins were just a rogue band, or if the Black Knight is trying to build an army of some sort. And hopefully it won't delay us too long. And besides, I detest the thought of constantly looking over our shoulders."
Kemek finds the nuances of the two options difficult to process, and thus trusts in Lathander to send the party the right way.
Uruk thinks on it and comes to agree with the rogue, If there is a lair or someone giving them instructions it is best to not leave a threat hounding us.
Uruk takes the lead, easily following the Goblin's wild trail through the underbrush. Minutes turn to hours as the day wears on, and despite the beauty of the untamed land, a sense of danger still clings to the wood, a sense of uneasiness and tension palpable in the air. Despite a long days travel, with few stops other than quick rest, by the end of the day you still have not found the Goblin's camp. For those knowledgeable about the creatures, you know they would not have willingly scurried this far from their lair if they have one without purpose. The only answer is they were searching for you...and somehow knew roughly where to go.
The night again passes uneventfully, and by noon the trail turns north. The Great Coast Way road can be seen in the distance, and the Friendly Arm Inn only lies 1 weeks travel north along it. Three days pass, before the trail turns westward, away from the Road and once more into the wild. Finally, on the morning of the 4th day, following the trail further you come to a ravine, a cleft in the land dropping sharply down, as if the Gods themselves carved it out. It is jagged and rough, and obviously dangerous to climb down. It seems to fall for at least 100 feet, and appears to be half that distance across, stretching for at least another 200 feet into the wood. Down near the bottom can be seen numerous caves and passageways snaking in and out of the ravine walls, the nearest of which is 50 feet down on a rough ledge directly underneath emerged from the tree line.
Uruk, you are certain the trail leads into the cave...and throughout the morning, have found numerous tracks leading to and from the ravine. This must be their Lair, and you have no doubt...there are many more than just the 10 Goblins you have already slain within.
What do you do?
"Now that we've come all the way here, it seems a shame to leave without seeing if our friend is within." Qorin says. Four days hard travel have only made him fiercer.
Kemek stares incredulously at Qorin, his face lighting up with excitement.
"You think Gorion is in the cave? What great news! Is magic not wonderful? I cannot wait to tell him all about the goblins. Though perhaps he already kn... Wait. I am confused." Kemek's face approximates a frown.
"It is not Gorion to which you refer is it? I think you mean our "friend" who dealt Gorion the killing blow. I do not think this strikes me as his style of abode, though admittedly as a gondsman I know little of such things."
Uruk cannot help but let a smile tick his lip's corner up, I doubt we would find any such dark foe but we were told the woman was here? OR some other lackey perhaps, if not simply the kin of those we killed.
Uruk frowns.
We came all this way but he way down is surely perilous. Do we risk going down or wait till night? There is no shame in moving on and going back to meet with Gorion's allies.
"One generally doesn't associate with Goblins for the sake of their company. Something is going on down there. But admittedly whether it has anything to do with the Black Knight and his ilk has yet to be seen. I still think we should investigate a bit further, but I won't mock anyone who disagrees."
"Come, then," Qorin says. "Let's find the easiest way into that rat's nest."
"Investigation seems prudent. I concur." Ridel nods from the back of his horse, though he would have to dismount to approach the ravine.
"I might have some rope if it would be useful here."
Climbing in and out does appear to be the only viable solution.
I am a liability in a climb. I will do my best but I feel it must be said out loud. My injuries make this sort of thing...difficult for me.
The ranger continues to look down around the complex as he speaks.
Rasp took the rope from his backpack and secured it to something solid. When he was satisfied that Talos himself would have to untie his rope, he threw the other end down the ravine.
He looked down and hesitated for a brief moment.
"Just like rappelling down a guard tower back home. Easy coin," he assured himself. He then eyed his compatriots.
"See you at the bottom."
He then pushed off to begin his descent.
Rasp, are you going all the way down, or just to the ledge 50 feet below you?
Kemek looks over the edge as the scarred man descends, then looks to Uruk with concern evident on his strange features.
"Uruk - Qorin, Ridel, Tessa and I can easily lower you down next..."
Qorin peers over the edge, making sure Rasp is safe before hauling up enough of the rope to lower Uruk.
Rasp, you touch down safely. Ahead of you is a tight cave opening, barely big enough for you to squirm through. It looks to go down at an angle and turns sharply to the right about 20 feet ahead of you. You cannot see any light coming from around the corner.
Everyone make me Wisdom Perception checks.
Uruk nods at the offer to lower him down and prepares for this while looking over the edge...
Qorin looks around cautiously as he gets ready to lower Uruk.
Tessa looks down at the long, long drop below.
He shouldn't go alone, we have no idea what lies below.
She grabs the rope, coiling it around her left arm, shrugs her shoulders and starts climbing down.
Ridel takes a quick hunter's look down the ravine, searching for anything that stands out or which would pose a danger.
"Being lowered would of course be necessary for myself. Since I do not have any skill in climbing at all. If I were powerful enough, magic could resolve the issue."
As Tessa begins to climb down, a faint bloodcurdling goblin shriek can be heard coming from the tunnels at the bottom of the ravine. A moment later everyone but Tessa notices a brief flash of light and a sound similiar to a roaring fire for a brief moment. Deep booming laughter can be heard, and then all is silent again.
Tessa, you reach the ledge.
Rasp drew his shortbow and notched an arrow. He decided to focus on the task at hand and search for any dangers in the area of the entrance to the cave.
Tessa smiles from down the ledge, seemingly unaffected by the goblin shouting. She speaks with a soft, assuring voice:
Alright folks, it's only a couple feet down and you're all big boys. No need to worry about it. You've bested many menaces greater than a simple ridge. Just get warmed and flex your arms a bit before coming down.
Kemek looks down to his companions on the ledge. He half hisses/half hoarsely shouts:
"Rasp. What do I do with the rope when it is my turn, or do you want it left here?"
Rasp you do not find anything that stands out.
For sake of speed, everyone using the rope can safely climb down to the ledge as long as you move slowly.
Rasp winced at Kemek's hoarse yelling. He put his finger to his mouth in a gesture for Kemek to be quiet. He then urged the Gondsman to hurry down. He just had to hope that the druid wouldn't take the rope down with him, since they would likely need it to escape.
Rasp then motioned for the others to wait a moment, as he entered the mouth of the cave.
After helping to lower Uruk and watching the remaining party members descend, Kemek fixes his staff atop his pack, then likewise climbs down the rope to the ledge.
Ridel does likewise after ensuring his steed was in a relatively safe location.
Uruk also winces as the Gondsman asks his question.
Once lowered, Uruk pulls his bow and looks to the others about how they would like to proceed from here.