Boros offers little in the way of suggestions. The trek out and back, the latter under the threat of a dragon, has thoroughly sapped him and he just wants the comfort of the group's little hidey-hole. So with the final stretch, he's ready to do whatever is necessary to pass the gate with no trouble, even if that means temporarily shedding his rather obvious gear. Addressing the subject of the recent trip, he does try to reassure the man. "Trust me, I know it's not comfortin' to be stripped o' your kit like this, but it might not be necessary. And if it is, we can probably work out a way to get it inside separately."
The Lector sighs...the armor was...part of him. More important than he was comfortable to admit. But it also was a liability in the city. He knew that - moving around in it would paint a large target on him, and his men and women, who he hoped to rescue, would perish for his pride and vanity.
He reluctantly - and slowly - takes the armor off, then hides it beneath some sticks and dirt at the base of a tree, the middle-aged couple helping to prepare the hiding place.
Meanwhile, Nezari heads to the gate. She is cautious in her approach, and very lightly knocks on the smaller gate. A small see-through opens, and she believes that she recognizes the eyes - she only has a moment before a small piece of paper is thrown through and the hole closes again. She picks it up and manages to make out the text in the dim light(her darkvision of little use)"Here is no good. Gate is watched. Arrangements are made. Go about 200 meters to the east."
Varuzhan frowns. They were so close. Why wasn't the checkpoint open? Why was it suddenly compromised?
"Feels like a trap to me. I'll scout ahead." Which is precisely what he does.
Varuzhan moves on ahead - for a moment, he believes he sees a silhouette moving away from the wall towards a tree line some distance from the wall, but he is not certain if that was just tension playing a trick on him, or if someone - or some kind of animal - was really there. Either way, the figure had vanished into the wilderness.
Near the wall, he first sees nothing, but then notices 2 ropes dangling down, going all the way up to the parapet, vanishing in a crenelle out of sight.
It should be possible to scale the wall using the rope and bracing against the battlement, if one was inclined to do so.
Miranda felt some unease at the change of things. Not as much as being eaten by a dragon, so it was still an improvement though... "Good luck... And be careful." she offers before V sneaks off to scout.
Not terribly inclined to sneakiness, Boros waits with the rest of the party and tries not to fret about what could wrong at this point. It's a bit boring, but it does give him time to think over the matter of the stashed armor that the Lector had shed. After a bit of consideration, he approaches the old woman and quietly addresses her. "You know, I'm more than a bit ashamed to admit this, but I don't ever recall askin' your name back at the shrine, or your husband's either. Guess that dragon was a powerful bit of distraction as far as manners go." After a bit of a pause on his part to gather his thoughts, the soldier continues. "Anyway, I've got a bit o' an idea about that armor and how to get it into the city. Specifically, that bird form o' yours, can do you wear anythin' more than clothes while takin' it?"
"Phyllis, and no worries. My mate's Darrell. Pleased to make your acquaintance. We...are used to keeping to ourselves, so I should also apologize for not reaching out.", she offers a warm smile to the soldier.
"As for the armor...I could wear it, but the transformation could fail...and I could not cast anything else while I maintain that form. It had passed my mind, too, I'm just not sure it's worth it. As I understand it, he won't be able to wear it inside the city? But I am willing to give it a try if you think it's worth it. Just know that I am somewhat limited - the form I take has to be of sufficient size, but not necessarily a bird."
"Bugger, then so much for that idea. While it's true enough that he couldn't wear it out and about, having kit he's familiar and comfortable with in a fight is pretty important, never mind how it would make him the best-armored o' our little group besides," Boros explains with a frown as he considers the heavy armor. However, something that Phyllis says sparks a further idea and he eagerly pursues it.
"Sufficient size, you say? Would somethin' like one o' those air-breathin' fish, a 'delphin' or whatever it is they're called, be something you could manage? Because I saw I few o' those while crossin' the Inner Sea on my way here, and sailors told me stories about men gone overboard bein' pulled to shore by them. So if we could get together a bit o' net to hold the armor and a harness or somethin'," he concludes with hopefully questioning look at the woman.
"Oh but remember there's supposed to be elementals in the moat. Or something terrible ... Unless they're just inside the city, but that seems odd?" Miranda warns, trying to remember exactly how that nugget of information went. There were water elementals *somewhere* in the way - she was sure of it - but lately all that had been on her mind was a large, scaly lizard looking to toast her for dinner.
Varuzhan sends his trusty owl, Lore, to the parapet, just to see if it triggers any reaction. If all seems quiet, he returns to the group. "Took a while, but I saw the alternate entrance about 200 meters east, just like they promised. There's a couple of ropes dangling down from a parapet. Follow me."
And with that, Varuzhan seems ready to move right back to those ropes.
"All right." Miranda was starting to feel anxious. So close to home, yet so far. But soon she'd see a real bed again!
"I can do fish. kind of. If you think wings are a complicated concept for someone not supposed to have them, you never tried fins. But I could go in through the harbor, but then what? How would I find you again? Or you me?"
Lore heads up to the parapets, and all seems quiet, there is nobody there. There is a mobile trolley system - it seems the ropes are used to move heavy things up and down on the side of the wall, a quick pull indicates that currently it is in a locked state.
"Let's hope for the pulley system - and that it doesn't creak too much."
One eye on what the rest of the party is doing, Boros answers the question. "Aye, good points, those. I suppose fish aren't too noted for their eyesight, so you poppin' up and gettin' a look at the shore for one o' us probably wouldn't work out too well."