Palace of the Vampire Queen (Inactive)

Game Master Terquem

Rownig and Mazrim were walking ahead of the remaining members of the party.

Helgen - You cannot tell how many prints there are, and they have to be pointed out to you for you to see them at all (they are faint, and drying as the afternoon sun shines down). They do look like boot prints, and not foot prints, I should have been more clear about that.

Someone might be able to track them

Everyone

Do you have a plan?

"keep t'gether and keep yer eyes open. Weapons out. We're takin' th' detour."

Hal begins to move down the trail where the tracks lead.

Helgen will follow Hallister, his hammer at the ready.

Rowning pulls off his shortbow and grabs an arrow as he heads down the path. Since Hallister took the lead, Rownig will walk five feet behind him.

Mazrim waits at the edge of the road waving everyone else forward. Speaking quietly while watching the two spears behind the rocks "I'll take the rear, everyone else follow Hallister"

The path that leaves the road, on the south side, just before the gorge, is step, but not difficult. There are loose rocks, shale, and gravel, but there are also large rocks embedded in the ground that are placed almost as if they were put there on purpose. The path is five feet wide, and runs downward for thirty feet where it turns to the left, at about a forty five degree angle, and forks. The path continues to curve, eventually turning southward and following the river, at a height of eight to ten feet above the water, but it also forks to the right and curves toward the underside of the bridge.
Hallister is in the lead, followed by Helgen, Rownig, Moralane, Atharessa, Azram, and then Mazrim bringing up the rear. When Mazrim steps off of the road, behind the line of the others, he hears a shout from the other side of the bridge. He can’t make out the word, but it sounds like, “Hey!”

Just at that moment, Hallister sees a dwarven man step out from under the bridge, followed by three others. They are moving quickly, but they are surprised to see you’ve come this far. They stop, in a space just ten feet by teen feet, just to the south of the bridge, and at the bottom of the trail you are following. There is fifteen feet of open trail between Hallister and the dwarven men. The dwarf in the lead is older, wearing leather armor, and carrying a long sword. He wears a leather cap, with a short brim, that looks more like a driver’s hat than any kind of armor. The other three dwarves are not wearing armor and their clothing is ragged and worn. Two of them are armed with clubs, bu the third has a loaded crossbow (it is difficult to tell from the crowding and the angle if it is a light or heavy crossbow).

The old dwarven man in the lead of the group below shouts, “Hold on thar pilgrims. Where is it tha’ yer thinks yer going, eh? This is private property, and yer tres pass inin. It’s terrible dangerous terrain down this way, not safe for men and women like yerselves, so go back the way ya came, and be good fellows and pay the nice men at the bridge yer toll. Don’t make trouble and ya won’t get none from me.”

(Technically you have the initiative and a surprise round to act, before he finishes what he is saying. You can roll for your initiative in the discussion thread. If you mean to act first and ask questions later, do not roll initiative, and instead, just list what action you would take, and any very specific things that could happen that might change your mind.)

"Wait, wait." Hal says with a disbelieving stare and a stifled laugh. "Did ye jus' tell us where t' go so yer boys could extort money from us, but tell us ye dinnae want trouble? Pal, ye got a real strange way o' not lookin' fer trouble."

"Tell ye what, how's about ye give us a hand wit' our little errand, an' then we pay ye fer yer services? What d' ye usually charge fer yer 'bridge toll'"

Helgen will move up to the front of the line even with Hallister, but say nothing for the moment.

Can these people not count? We outnumber them seven to five and we're all armed.
Mazrim keeps an eye behind them just incase there are more that he hasn't noticed.

Rownig notches his arrow and ready's his acton.

Scanning the faces and the he looks over the terrain for any additonal bandits.

Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (20) + 7 = 27 Apparently his eyes are honed in this day.

The old Dwarf has a confused look on his face, and says, “We’re not looking for trouble, but you are if you’ve come this way. Are you lost, is that it? Where’re ya tryin to get to anyway? If yous a mind to cross the river, the bridge is the only way, less than you be thinking of swimmin, and the waters mighty fast, so that’s never a good idea. So just go back up the path, pay the toll, and cross the bridge, Eh? What’s this you’re say’n? You’re on an errand? What kind of Errand? Look’it it’s not safe to be fool’n around on this path, so let’s all go back to the road, and talk there.”

Rownig draws his bow string and shoots near the shadow at the bottom of the path. Not attempting to hit the person, or creature, just a warning shot to call it out. "Ye don't need t'be, if ye mean us no harm."

Bow Shot: 1d20 + 2 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 + 2 = 6 The additional +2 was for higher ground, if that applies. As the arrow stick in the ground a good distance way fromthe shadow.

"Are ye daft? We aint lost, we ain't crossin' the bridge, an' we're def'nitly not payin' you a gods damned thing jus' fer th' privilege o' walkin'. So yer either gonna help us out an' make some money or yer gonna leave us be an' go on yer merry way."

Wattching Rownig's shot he says "An' ye c'n tell any friends ye got they c'n come out an' say hi. We ain't in any mood fer this s!%$."

"You've got some stones old man. Drop your weapons and hit the dirt. NOW!" Helgen says with a loud growl.

Intimidate 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (19) + 3 = 22

So much for the pleasantries

Mazrim will raise his weapon and take a defensive posture.
Declaring a ready action to trip any enemy that steps into his reach (and will use any attack of opportunity to trip as well)

Hal looks at Helgen with undisguised aggravation on his face.

F&+@ing dammit, kid!

Looking back at the older dwarf and his band, he waited.

Let's see what they do.

Rownig notches another arrow. Glad I was aiming to miss on that one. Me finger's a pick lazy on that last draw.

When Helgen growls, the Dwarves below on the path take a small shuffle backward, and the old Dwarf says, pointing to the long reach of Mazrimn’s weapon, “Alright, we understand each other, well and good, we want no trouble, and you want no trouble, Tanner, come out of there.” The person, who steps out of the shadows, is not a dwarf, but is a small green skinned gnome (a half Dwarf, half Goblin). You can’t tell if it is a boy or a girl, but the gnome is young, and wears clothes much too large. “Tanner won’t do you no harm. Now please, leave us alone. We don’t mean to trouble you good folks. Go on your way. But I still don’t know why you came down here. I am telling the truth that there is no way across the river here. If it’s help you’re looking for, there is little to nothing we can offer you, we don’t mean to harm travelers. We ask a toll, and only what a traveler can spare, to buy food, and goods. Listen stranger, we were once soldiers, like yourselves, and by the look of you, and your determination, you're working for one of the wealthier nobles, unlike us, we’ve been discharged. We’ve no place to call home. No land to farm and nearly nothing left to sell. If you’re lost, we’ll help you find your way, but there is little else we can offer you.”

"Ah c'n unnerstand bein' down on yer luck. Ye have t' recognize tha' t' us this looks like common banditry. Yer all armed, ye had ambushers waitin' under th' bridge an on th' other side o' it. Yer all armed. That don't send a friendly message, ye know?"

Tapping his chin, he thinks a moment. "But it sounds t' me like you lot aint got much. Ah got an offer fer you an' yer boys. We're tasked t' find out whatever we can 'bout th' attacks commin' outta Witch's Valley. Ah think we're walkin' inta some bad business an' there ain't 'nough o us. We got a bit o' coin fer our expenses. Ah'm willin' t' feed the lot o ye an pay ye t' boot if'n yer willin' to join us an' watch our backs. If'n ah'm wrong, ye jus git paid t' walk out there an' back wit' us. If ah'm right, it's gonna be bad, but anyone who makes it back 'll be a hero o' th' kingdom."

Helgen frowns, but allows them to respond to Hallister's offer.

Mazrim will relax a little but still keeps his weapon at hand.

"Hallister is right, we could use extra men on this journey and if you're willing to join us I'm sure you'll be in a better position than you're in now."

Rownig simply listens and watches the crowd's reponse. Doubt they want a death march.

“Witch’s Valley, you say. Well now I understand why you came this way after all. You intend to follow the river southward into the valley. That’s not very wise, it’s a rough way, but it will be shorter than going the long way around, I suppose. You say you’ll pay us to watch your back, alright let’s talk about that. I’ have, well, let’s say I have contacts up this river, people I know, who might make trouble for you and your friends, so if the money’s good we’ll take you as far as Witch’s Valley, and try to keep you out of trouble on the way. There are six of us, and Thomaz and Ulan have wives and children. We can’t all go with you, but I will go."

"My name is Turrand, and Tanner will come with me, I’ll explain along the way why. Galana, Voranzil! Get down here!” He shouts. “Pack your things, we’re taking a trip up river. These two will go with us, and Orson here,” he points at the Dwarf holding the crossbow, “will come as well. Thomaz and Ulan will stay and keep our camp here. It will take us well past dark to reach the village near Eight Fountain Springs. It’s not far, but it is all up hill, and we’ll have to climb a few short cliffs. There could be danger along the way. So, stranger, I’ve told you our names, and I’m willing to hear what you’ll offer. We’ll show you the safest way up the canyon, and take you to Eight Fountain Springs, but not for less than five silvers each. Once we reach the village, I’ll talk to the head woman there, she might not want to see you folks hang around, but I’ll see what I can do. She’s a tough one, but she’s fair. The village is small, and they don’t like, well that don’t like strangers. What do you say?”

Hal nods, not quite ready to offer his name yet, but definitely willing to negotiate.

"So the five o' ye, fer no less'n five silvers each. Sounds fair. I'll even do ye one better. Ye'll each git one silver now, two silvers at the halfway mark, and four at th' end o' the trip. Tha's seven each in total. In addition when we're some place we c'n buy meals an' rooms, we'll cover 'em for ye. Other'n that yer in charge o' yer own supplies. Sound fair?"

Rownig stands back watching, listening as Hallister negotiates with the Turrand. Trying to ascetain Turrand's trustworthiness. Sense Motive: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20

Rownigs's impression is that Turrand is sincere when he is speaking of how they (Turrand's little band of mercenaries) are living at a poverty level, but he is definitely being evasive when it comes to his offspring.

Now Tanner is obviously a gnome, and in this campaign setting Gnomes are not a race unto themselves, but are half-breeds (being half-dwarf and half-goblin, but otherwise have all of the racial characteristics of Pathfinder gnomes, generally speaking). Now if Turrand admits that Tanner is his child, then Turrand has had a relationship with a Goblin woman. Normally, that is among most Dwarves, this kind of relationship is frowned upon, but not treated harshly. Dwarven miners, living in remote areas where it is difficult to keep a Dwarven family, one accustomed to a certain quality of life anyway, often engage with goblins in this way. It is a social taboo, but one that is quietly ignored.

Turrand accepts Hallisters offer, with a nod and a smile, and says, “Let’s be on our way. There is a foot path here that follows the river, southward, it is narrow at times and we should go single file. I’ll lead, if you’re comfortable with that. It’s a steady uphill walk for about two miles, and then we have to climb about fifty feet up a rocky escarpment to another trail above. That trail is a treacherous one and follows a ridge line that we’ll have to take slowly, after that it is another three miles to the valley, and the village near Eight Fountain Springs. The place where we’ll need to be on our guard is just after the climb. There are some goblins in some caves along that ridge, and they are not the kind of goblins we’ll be able to negotiate with. Our best hope is that if we do encounter them, we’ll out number them by enough that they’ll just shout a few insults our way, and leave us be.”

Two Dwarves appear at the back of the party. They do not approach in a threatening way, and announce themselves well in advance. The two of them say, “Excuse us,” as they make their way through your ranks, and down toward the camp under the bridge. Both of these Dwarves wear leather armor, and carry spears. One of them wears a large helmet, this one is probably Voranzil, and he is a middle aged male Dwarf. The other Dwarf, the one called Galana, is a young Dwarven girl, with red hair, cut very short. She looks to be younger than Atharessa, and is perhaps barely out of her teens.

Rownig notices the leather armor on two dwarves working their way through the ranks. He asks one "Ye know where a dwarf can git 'imself some leather armor for a fair price?'

Helgen unhappy about the new additions to their ranks, but unsure of anything he can reasonably do about it simply follows the other dwarves silently. He keeps his hammer ready and avoids conversation for now, making sure to keep behind the newcomers to the group.

"Ah'll be right b'hind ye."[b] Hal says. [b]"The name's Hallister, by th' way. we appreciate your help."

Mazrim will follow along afterwards within easy speaking distance of Turrand, "So Turrand, what can you tell us of the area we're heading to?"

As the two Dwarves pass by Rownig, he asks, “Ye know where a dwarf can git 'imself some leather armor for a fair price?” and Voranzil replies, “Oh, aye, we’ve a bit of leather armor here in the camp. But a fair price, now what is that, today, does anybody know. Have you anything to trade? I need a new pair of boots, and in the city they want forty silvers for a pair built tough enough to last more than a season. If Turrand agrees I could sell you a leather tunic, for ten silver, I suppose, but soft leather scraps would be more welcome.”

Turrand disappears back under the bridge, he talks, without trying to lower his voice or cause you to be suspicious, to the others in the camp as he collects a backpack, a water skin, and some fresh fish on a line. He hands the line to Galana, overhears Voranzil talking to Rowning, at just about the same time he is headed up the path to the fork, when Mazrim asks him, "So Turrand, what can you tell us of the area we're heading to?"

“The gorge, or Witch’s Valley? Well let me tell you, oh just a moment, you say you need armor. I can fit a few of you with leather, and I’ve one suit of chain that’s too large to fit any of us, we traded a haul of salmon for that, seemed like a good trade at the time, but haven’t run across anyone who would pay or trade fair for it. We need tools, a saw, hammers, shovels, and a pound of nails would do us more good than you know. We’ve been thinking of moving down river and building a lodge close to the shore. I have a resource upriver who will fell us a few good sized trees and float them down to us, but I’ve been putting it off until we have all the material we will need. Oh, and an adze, a few chisels, that would be nice as well. I don’t like to bargain for coin, really, it seems that we can’t get anything in the city for a fair price, and trade always does us better.”

“The gorge is beautiful, the water runs fast and tumbles over several rocky drops, the spay keeps it cool, but sometimes the rocks along the path are washed, after a hard rain, and it can be slippery. We’ll take it slow, stay close to the canyon wall, where we can. We'll eventually get to Patterman’s Falls, that’s a fifty foot drop, it’s not straight down and the salmon make it up the channels, we’ll climb up the cliffs on the east side, but there are caves in those cliffs, and a tribe, they call themselves Red Throats, sometimes they camp there. The salmon aren’t spawning, so I wouldn’t expect to run into them, now, but you can never know. There is a small lake below the falls, just an acre or so in size, but the fishing is good. After that is a steady incline to the valley, and the river has three switchbacks. Now we can try and cross, if you’re good swimmers, we can even get a rope across, but if we don’t, it’ll add a few hours to the trip. Up that way you might see wild goats, and there have been trolls, but not for a few months, they seem to have migrated to the east, higher into the mountains.”

“The valley, Witch’s valley is just about the prettiest place I know. It gets a lot of rain, and there are streams and creeks all over. It’s rolling country, perfect for farming, and there are a lot of villages, Dwaven and Goblin alike. The villages are small, and not friendly. The King’d put some noble down in those lands and tame them, but for two reasons. It’s damn near impossible to get anything grown in the valley out of the valley until someone tries to put a sturdy bridge over the gap in the west, or worse, cut this river down to size. I’ve heard stories that the humans have built things called locks, that raise and lower boats along rivers like this one, but to tell you what I think, there’s no money in the King’s treasury to pay for that kind of work here. The second reason is this, and I’ll be damned if you’ll find anyone who will admit to it, but the valley, it’s good and fertile, and populated by a lot of folk who don’t want to pay taxes, even if they could grow enough that it won’t be nothing to them. But what I’m trying to say is this. Any noble going into that valley will be fighting the locals every step of the way, and there just ain’t no money in that. Hell’s Dead Winds boy, why do you think we’re free men, because some noble ran out of money to pay us.”

Turrand walks at a steady pace zigzagging up the trail, around boulders and piles of rocks as he talks. There are short hardy trees growing out of the ground in places, and small patches of grass and wild flowers, where the sun shines. Mostly you walk in a cool shadow, and feel a light mist from the water tumbling over rocks ten to twenty feet below and to your right.

“Once we get near the valley, the river will turn west, and actually breaks apart into several streams. There are more than eight of them, and sometimes they change, one’ll dry up, or the water will find a new way down out of the mountains, but up those mountains, to the west, there are springs, and some people say that up there are eight fountains built by folk who lived on these islands thousands of years ago. I ain’t never seen them. We won’t follow the river, but we’ll go south, we should be able to see a village set between two low hills once we get to end of this gorge. That village is called Eight Fountains Village, and it is run by a Goblin headwoman. They got all kinds living in that village, so if you’ve a mind for looking down on people who don’t look and act like yourselves it’s going to be a shock for you. And they don’t like strangers, well they don’t like strangers coming into their village and telling folks how to live their lives, so keep your mouths shut, and let me do the talking. I don’t think there’s an inn, the kind you folks are used to, but there are barns, dry and warm, and we can find a place to sleep for the night. Maybe even get a meal. It’ll be full on dark by the time we get there. The moon’s will be in half and half so we won’t be coming into the village in the dead dark night, still, it will be touch and go there, so keep you wits and weapons under control. A little display like that arrow back at my camp will get us all killed for sure.”

“There’s one more thing. Folks don't use this gorge to travel to the valley for another reason. At the second switchback of the river, before the valley, is a little clearing. It’s a good sized piece of land, and there was once a mining camp there, but the mine ran out. Now there are bandits, real bandits that live in that camp. These are hard folks, and they will not want to negotiate or listen to your boasts and growls, they’ll want to cut us down and take everything we have. I’ve not got enough men to challenge them, but if we work together I think we can drive them off long enough to get by their camp. I know they have friends in the mountains, so if we do drive them off, we ain’t coming back this way, and it will be the long road back for us. Where you folks decide to go after we reach Eight Fountains, is your business. But if you agree to stand with me and challenge these bandits for the camp, I’ll make sure you get what you need in the village. I’ve seen enough of my kinsmen’s blood spilled over the years, I’ll make a show of force, or make a run for it, but if we stand and take them on to the last man, and I ain’t saying we are sure to lose, but if it comes to that, it will be the real thing.”

Turrand comes to a short rocky obstacle, and he climbs, hand over foot, up about eight feet, turns and looks down at the whole group of you and says, “From here it’s going to be a hard climb, and it will take something out of us. We’ll build a fire here, eat something, and rest for a bit, then you folks, all of you, can decide if we are going to do this thing or not. Take the long road, all the way around, or face what is sure to be a hard fight. Think about your friends, loved ones, family, and be ready to decide after we’ve finished off the fish and smoked a pipe.”

"I personally can't abide people that prey on others. I think we should get rid of that group of bandits, all of them."

"I agree with Mazrim," Moralane says. "Times are hard all over, but you don't see everyone turning to crime. Some work the land, or the sea, to make their living. It may not always be a life of luxury, but it is honest work. In my father's house, we have tried very hard to keep everyone fed and in a dry home. You don't see as many bandits in our county as you do in others.If there are people who use violence to take from others, they should be stopped, and since they use violence, that is what they should get."

Edit: Bah! Double ninja'd....

Helgen listens to everything that Turand has to say while walking along with the group. "Agreed, bandits need to be dealt with. We can't afford to waste time anyways." He drifts back to walk along next to Moralane. "Glad to hear we agree on this one, I was just about to ask your opinion."

"Aye Voranzil, fair price is a matter of point of view. Don't have boots to trade, but that'll b eon the list for the next time I'm coming this way from the city." Pausing, "A leather tunic would help, two if ye got 'em - me an me companion there." thumb pointing towards Azram.

Hearing Turand, "Got an extra hammer I could give, and pound of marbles, and a pint of oil that's about all the extra goods that I've got on me person."

"As ye can see I'm a bit lean for dwarf's standards, so the chain won't work for me."

"I won't shoot no arrow in the village." Nodding towards Turand.

Azram has much the same equipment as Rownig, so a pint of oil. We could spare 100 ft of hemp rope and one grappling hook between the two of us.

"Dealin' with local color ain't our mission." Hallister growls, looking around at the rest of his group.

Turning to Turrand, he shrugs. "You want 'em dealt wit', an' need our help t' do it, well, that sounds t' me like another business negotiation. We're payin' you t' watch our backs to the valley, but we didn't intend on pickin' fights on the way there. It's one thing t' drive 'em off so we c'n git through. It's another t' endanger our mission t' rout 'em fer good. What c'n ye offer us that'd make it worth the risk?"

“Um, what?” Turrand stammers from above. “Look, lad, we’ll help you find your way, get you to the village, and keep our eyes and ears open for the dangers we know about, but I’m not asking you to do anything you don’t want to do. Seems like your friends and you have a difference of opinion on the matter, so why don’t you take the time while we eat to agree, among yourselves, just how much of a risk you’re willing to take. We’ve enough show of force to put those bandits on the run, I hope, but if they stand and fight, well, all I’m offering is that we won’t abandon your people and I hope you won’t abandon us, together we are stronger. I’m not even going to offer to pay you or any of your friends to stand with us, if you won’t stand, should they decide to fight us instead of take to the hills, then we’ll just make a run for Eight Fountains, once we are within sight of the town wall, any bandits chasing us will be sure to give up. You can try to keep up, or choose to run some other direction, that’s your choice. But the matter is simply this, we try and run ‘em off long enough to get far enough away that they won’t consider coming after us with reinforcements, or, if they don’t run away and choose to face us head on, we either run for our lives, apart, or stand, together.”

Rownig steps up to Hallister, Mazrim, Azram, and Helgen gathering them together. Then he begins to speak, "me vote is to 'elp these folks out. Banditry can't be tolerated, I know it's not part of the group mission but I've been asked to look for a particular bandit. Maybe he's in that group, if so I have a job to do."

Looking at each members eyes.

Helgen nods. "It's the most expedient route to our destination, and who's to say that we wouldn't just encounter more bandits if we had to travel the long way around instead? I'm not proposing we hunt down all the bandits and kill them, simply that we do what we need to do to get past the ones in our way. Turrand has the right of it." He looks at Hallister. "Believe me, our mission is my number one priority."

Hal sighs. "Fine."

Damn kids an' their bleedin' hearts.

"Sure hope this 's worth th' extra risk."

"You're quite the mercenary Hal. Can you give us any reason aside from the fact that we weren't ordered to stop bandits to convince us that we should let them continue plaguing the people living here?"

Mazrim finds a spot to rest and turns to Antheressa "You've been very quiet, what do you think?"

"Ah ain't a mercenary. Ah also ain't a soldier or a sheriff. Ah've stuck mah neck out for more people Ah didn't ever know than the whole lot o' ya put together, but Ah never did it needlessly." Hal scowls.

"Ah just know how t' look at the bigger picture. If'n one o' us gets dead on th' end o' some bandit's spear that's one less person when we git t' the Valley. That's mah concern. A few bandits are way lower on may list o' priorities than the plague o' creatures we're supposed t' be dealin' with."

Atharessa steps close to the group,and says, "It sounds dangerous, but look around. There are a lot of us, and we are armed. Unless these bandits number as many or more of us, I think we'll probably scare them off."

"I have to agree with Hallister, somewhat," Azram says, "But then again Rownig makes a good point. I just don't know. Look at if from Hallisters point of vies. We don't even know what we'll be facing, and it doesn't sound like these people are interested in searching for the Palace, and I don't even know if we should mention that at all, until we get to the village he is talking about. But Rownig is right, we can't just ignore them if they are hurting other good folk."

"Hallister is right," Moralane moves in close keeping her voice down. "We can't forget that the people who sent us on this mission are expecting us to fail. I've already told you that. So why take a chance to make that happen. I say we make a show of force, and run the bandits off, if the stand to fight, we make a run for it."

"No," Azram shakes his head. "That puts all of us at risk. If the bandits fight, we should fight back."

"We can take them. I know we can," Atharessa says, and smiles at everyone.

"It's settled, Moralane. Wish they thought like ye, but Ah can't really disagree with their reasons. Sometimes the good thing aint th' smart thing." Hal says with a shrug. "Mosta these boys ain't never seen a real fight anyways. They wanna do a good deed, an' we might as well git alla you blooded now rather than later. This 's as good a way as any."

"How many o' ye 'ave actually killed a man b'fore?"

"I've fought but I've never killed." Helgen says looking at the ground uncomfortably and kicking a stone.

"Pretty soon, yer gonna. Make peace wit' th' idea now. That goes fer alla ye. People are gonna die, an yer gonna be th' ones that kill 'em. The right reasons fer doin' it make good armor against the weight o' th' notion, but in th' end you gotta come t' grips wit' the fact that yer killin' people because you can. Everythin' else is just rationalization."

Hal looks around at them. "An' that's the hardest part. Ye gotta admit t' yerself that ye can, an' be willin' t' live wit' yerself after. The fight can be avoided, so yer choosin' this. In effect, yer killin' 'em right now. It ain't self defense. It ain't murder either. It's jus' killin', an' once ye get past the idea that shouldn't is really the only reason that most folk don't, you have t' face the fact that it's easy an' it don't actually change ye at all. Yer still jus' you livin' in a world wit' one less them. Only it's yer fault. Takin' responsibility is th' hardest part o' anythin'. Once it's yours an' ye own it, yer a killer, an that's that."

"So ye better get used t' the idea now, cause if it makes ye freeze up in th' moment, well, then th' other guy's th' killer an the world has one less o' you."

"I won't hesitate. The gods can sort them out." Helgen replies.

"I doubt anyone will hesitate when the time comes, after all we are all out here ready to face death itself."

Hearing the group's decision Rownig turns away and heads towards Turrand, pulling him to the side for a private conversation.