"Speak quickly, then. What are the fey plotting? What are the kinds you are dealing with?"
"If you want to live you better tell us where is Lady Argantea" Samuel looks around trying to see if there are other enemies perhaps waiting to ambush them "And then you tell us where are the other High Sentinels"
"The fey paid us to kidnap the lady. said they had some plans for her, but didn't tell me much. The sentinels were killed trying to resist the fey invasion, we just took over this empty lodge"
Samuel grits his teeth not truly believing all the Sentinels could be that easily slaughtered by the fey without the help of the necromancer.
The man is very worried about Greadra and being in the back of the group, he profits to approach the half-orc and checks her state trying to do whatever is possible for her "What have you done to her? Recover her!"
Letitia's eyes narrow. "You just said you were the unwilling servant of the fae when you were begging for your life. Now, you admit to being their hireling. Again, I ask you: what kind of fae were you dealing with? And how did they promise to pay you? In gold?" She didn't like the way this man's truth was shifting.
She looks to Samuel and shakes her head. "It's no use. He stole her ebbing life force. She's gone."
"I am sorry, there is nothing to be done for your friend. She fought well but is beyond even my aid.
He looks back and forth between the two who are questioning him
"Please, don't kill me. I will help you. I will give you the Lady Argantea. I will tell you what I know of this invasion force from Irrisen. just lower your weapons and let us talk!
"You killed our companion not a moment ago. Skeletons nearly killed me. You've admitted to helping the fey kill the sentinels. You've participated in kidnapping a woman for purposes I can only imagine. And now you seek mercy? COWARD! You will not leave here alive" Alec said through gritted teeth as he strode forward.
His falcata slashes forward, aiming to open the man's throat.
Samuel gets a stern look at the necromancer, he wants to recover Lady Argentea, but when Alec attacks with his falcata, he does nothing to stop him, he knows the necromancer is the responsible of his companions, the High Sentinels death.
If the necromancer survives Samuel moves in to interrogate him "Ok, this is the deal. Give us Lady Argentea and you will have a judgement in Zimar or Oppara. Don't and you will be here executed by your crimes against the High Sentinels and Taldor"
Alec cuts deep, but doesn't kill the bandit leader.
he sits back, coughing up a trickle of blood. he laughs but is obviously in a lot of pain.
"I know you want to kill me, lad. Kill me and you might still find the Lady. but you won't learn what I know about the real threat to this country. the Fey have put things in motion and I've learned a bit while working for them.
Your Sentinel friend here knows how this works. I'll give you what I know and you'll bring me in to the proper authorities. they can sort things out. this is Taldor, we have laws. this isn't the frontier. so what do you say Sentinel? can you call off your hunter and we can discuss things more properly?
Samuel looks back at Alec, then Baradim and Letitia "Do we agree on this? Can we make this deal? He speaks truth, there are laws in this lands." the Taldan fights with his own desire to revenge the death of his Sentinel colleagues. He seems to bear it with difficulty "The life of Lady Argentea and Taldan itself might depend on our ability to extract the proper information from this living demon"
Letitia folds her arms and stares sternly at the events playing out in front of her. It didn't surprise her that Alec had lashed out when he saw Greadra was dead. The man had surrendered, though, and had promised information that they needed. If Alec had killed him, she wouldn't have felt that bad, since she wondered how reliable he would be.
When Samuel looks at her, she shrugs. It was true they were still in Taldor, though it didn't feel like it anymore. And unless the door to Irrisen could be closed, they may soon be dealing with Winter Law instead of Taldane authority. "I agree," she says.
"Someone search him for additional weapons, and make sure he doesn't have a spell component pouch."
The man lets you search him without protest. a search of his person reveals:
1 scroll
2 oils
masterwork studded leather armor
masterwork thieve's tools
a ring of keys
a spellbook
25 gold pieces
pointing ot one of the keys on the ring, he says "This one is to the cellar, you'll find the Lady and her last surviving bodyguard down there. the door is hidden under the bear rug that you all are standing on"
"Once you finish what you're doing, you should bring me up to the maps room upstairs. I can show you some things that should be of great interest to you. and hopefully enough to help my case with the authorities."
Samuel looks at the necromancer displeased to do deals with such a humanoid, but he takes the key to the trapdoor "Of course, the cellar. I should have thought on that possibility before"
Without more delay he leaves Alec and Baradim manage the necromancer while he removes the bear rug and opens the trapdoor to the cellar. The Taldan does not fully rely on the necromancer anyway. He takes a cautious approach, listening carefully before slowly entering into the cellar "I will need light here Letitia"
"Certainly," she says, still holding the torch she lit to be a weapon against the frozen skeleton. Now utilizing it for its usual purpose, she moves so its light can reach down the steps. Unless he plans to use both hands to steady his weapon, she'll let Samuel have the torch.
With her other hand, she traces some arcane symbols while voicing the verbal components, and four pale blue globes appear deep within the cellar, casting cold light into the full area. "That was also me; do not fret," she tells Samuel.
While the gunman explores the cellar and someone goes to retrieve the maps, Letitia turns back to the captive.
"Your name, please. And then you will answer my questions, which you have yet to do. What fey have you dealt with? What were their specific instructions to you? What was the promised payment, and have they paid you anything yet? The paltry sum in your coin purse tells me that they likely haven't."
to Letitia, the man replies:
"My name is Rohkar Cindren. I have communicated directly with only two fey. One is a winged blue creature named Izoze. she is one of two in charge of this expedition force. the other fey I've talked to is a little Atomie that I captured and am keeping in secret to try to learn more about what they are doing here.
We were told to capture the Lady and hold her here. they refused to tell me the plans they had for her. They were supposed to come collect her, but didn't tell me when. We have not been paid in full yet, since they haven't taken her from us yet. our payment was to be gold, along with protection and safety when the fey take over this region"
____________________________________
Samuel makes his way into the lit cellar, and sees dozens of boxes and barrels taking up the majority of the small room. Many have been pushed to the side, making room for 2 rough blankets and a few plates with half-eaten food.
Lady Argantea is indeed in the room, her green dress dirty and torn from her ordeal, and her face is dirty. but she still holds herself with a regal posture and shows very little reaction to another person entering the cellar.
The woman with her quickly stands up and places herself between the Lady and Samuel.
The second woman is quite tall, with very light blonde hair that almost looks white. she is wearing bright clothing that doesn't quite fit her thin and lanky frame, but she does her best to look intimidating
Letitia nods, having suspected this was the Rohkar of Rohkar's Raiders. Her eyes widen and head whips around to face him when he claims to have an atomie captured.
She leans in close, her ice-blue eyes boring into him. "Show me."
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As the men descend into the cellar, Callix leaps to her feet, putting herself between the Lady behind her and them, They're back... Now to drive them away... again... Oh what I wouldn't give for an axe to make this a more even fight... Her expression is furious, her face all but twisted into a snarl of hatred as she stretches to her full height, brandishing a small wooden dowel she managed to work free, but her voice is calm and ice-cold, "I told you lot last time that none will be laying a finger on the Lady. Whatever that commotion was up above won't be changing that. Back off, or it'll just meant that more of you will be wasting your cleric's magic. "
She stands still, locking her eyes on each of the newcomers, her lanky form tense and coiled to strike.
Samuel Rohkar ignores for now, not at the place while the interrogation proceeds.
The Sentinel descends into the cellar lighting the place with Letitia's torch. When the captured women appear before him and he is addressed, Samuel draws a smile full of irony "Easy woman. My name is Samuel and I am a High Sentinel." he moves the torch to have a better sight of her "We have recovered the Lodge. You are saved" he then moves the torch to observe the state of the Lady "How is she? Are you injured?"
Once the situation seems under control, Samuel frees the women from whatever bonds they have "But who are you and why do the bandits hold you here with Lady Argentea?"
Callix looks at the self-proclaimed High Sentinel for a moment, unsure as to whether or not to trust him until he asks on the status of the Lady. She lowers her arm and her makeshift weapon, whispering, "By the Tankard, thank you." She sighs, then says, "We're fine, now. Waited until they locked us up and left us alone before I called on the Accidental God to heal us... and they were being pretty careful not to damage the Lady, as they have -- had, now, I guess -- plans that involved handing her off to someone. Sadly, they were a lot keener on taking out their frustrations on me, at least until I could free my hands." She winces a little at the memory of fists, then shudders about some of the promises to come back at night, then shakes away the dark thoughts, and looks at her self-proclaimed saviour. "To answer your last question, I am Callix. I was one of the caravan guards for the Lady -- a replacement, actually, who took the job because my previous employer's wagon lost a wheel to the unexpected ice. As for how I came to be here, now, well, from what I could put together from the sneering of these bandits, I am here because she agreed to come peacefully if they'd spare me after I fell... and they agreed because they wanted to avoid damaging her, even accidentally. Of course, I think they had some other plans for me once my 'protection' was sent away."
She steps back, allowing Samuel to access the noblewoman and see the truth of her statements, then asks, "You didn't happen to find a set of light axes and a rapier anywhere? The rapier's replaceable, but the axes are Ulfen-made, and family weapons.... and I'd feel a lot better being armed. Especially since, while I'd never have admitted it, the dowel was falling apart in my hand. Cracked in two places when I pulled it out."
Samuel stares at the woman taking measure of the guard and looking at Lady Argentea for her to confirm Callix explanations.
"We have barely defeated the leader of the bandits, and one member of our patrol group was killed during the assault. We have had no time to search deeply to find any axe, but some extra hands would be appreciated to control the situation" trusting the woman Samuel searches for the masterwork handaxe the group found and offers it to Callix "That's the closest think we found so far. Please, take the Lady upstairs, to a more pleasant space. Be aware there might be still some errant bandit around, do not lower your guard"
And so Samuel helps Lady Argentea and Callix upstairs, putting out the torch and readying his musket once more. With a broad smile he calls the attention of Alec, Baradim and Letitia "Look whom I found in the cellar"
Callix takes the weapon, testing its balance, then nods in thanks, "Well made, but doesn't quite have the heft I'm used to... but it'll work, especially if there's more of these bandits about..." Her tone almost pleased as she trails off, as if she might look forward to running into more of them. She says, "Happy to help, though I suspect I'd be even more useful if we can find where they've hid my holy symbol. I've used my fervour to heal us, but with that, I could actually cast spells."
She then nods and turns back to Lady Argentea, offering her a hand and leading her back up into the room, starting to tense up at the sight of the others, but then relaxing as Samuel calls out to them. She starts to ask, "So, these are your com--", but stops suddenly as she sees the brigand leader. She lunges forward, crossing the room in a few strides, her alto voice cold and harsh as she snarls, "Remember the things you promised to do to me once you sold the Lady? You and your little pack of scum? Well, I made a few promises of what I'd do to you when I was freed... and since these folk seem to have exterminated most of the vermin, I guess I'll have to take all of it out on you."
Letitia makes her presence known with a sharp hiss. "Стой, Ульфен. Это наш заключенный, а не ваш," she bites out, not cowed in the least that the Ulfen woman stands nearly a foot taller than her.
"Stand down, Ulfen. This is our prisoner, not yours."
Callix stops short, shocked to hear her mother tongue spoken, then looks at the smaller woman, nodding, clearly reluctantly, "Справедливо. Я возьму свой клинок. ". She takes a half-step back, then looks at the prisoner, and back to the witch, before adding in a solemn tone, "Но знай, что человек должен мне долг, который я соберу. Ради меня и леди."
Fair enough. I will hold my blade.
But know that the man owes me a debt, which I will collect. For my sake and the Lady's.
Letitia's mouth twitches as her eyes flick over to Samuel, then back to the Ulfen woman. Calmly, she nods her head in the direction of the dining hall where a bench has been propped up against a door. "There are two bandits that we trapped in that room there. They're sick, but you can take your vengeance out on them if you'd like."
Her icy gaze turns back to Rohkar. "This one has promised us information that he has yet to deliver."
Everyone in the room could feel the tension rising. Alec's arm stood straight out, holding his falcata inches from the man's neck. His arm shook with the rage that he was trying to hold at bay. He didn't even register Samuel's descent into the cellar. However the sound of multiple footsteps drew his attention. He hazarded a glance towards the trap door in the floor. As the woman emerged, he spared a polite nod of his head before his eyes darted back to the necromancer in front of him.
"I would answer the lady's questions, and quickly. She does not strike me as a patient one."
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"Come with me upstairs to the map room," Rohkar says, ignoring the blades leveled at him now that the initial scare has worn off and he has controlled his emotions again.
"I will show you my fey captive, and the maps i have been making.
Assuming no one stops him, he will slowly ascend the stairs. He leads any who follow into a large planning room
An L-shaped table with many chairs takes up most of the floor space in this loft. A second smaller table sits near the entrance, and several windows look over the snowy grounds of the lodge. In the southwest corner, a large map hangs on the wall, opposite another door in the northeast wall.
He indicates the second door
"This is a small storeroom where I am keeping the Atomie. here is the key to his cage, but I would recommend against setting him free...
He places a simple key on the table.
You know that Atomies are diminutive fey, similar to the sprites you fought in the woods, but slightly more advanced in their spellcasting ability. they also are able to use sneak attacks
Samuel looks at the women not knowing what they talk about, but he understands their words talking about revenge. For all his own rage, the Sentinel, feeling his duty to keep the order, attempts to deescalate the situation "Callix, Rohkar will pay for what he has done to you and all his crimes to my brothers. But there is something bigger now in game, the stability of whole Taldor. He must deliver us all the information about the fey and their plans"
Without waiting for an agreement, the Taldan follows stairs up the necromancer to check what he is saying. He does so taking care not to fall under a new ambush.
Samuel secures the small key from the table while giving Rohkar a gauging look "Tie his hands, I do not have any confidence on what the necromancer is plotting behind our backs... We will see this atomie, I have no intention of freeing her" he looks at the others trying to guess what the others think "If you want to show us your good will, you better tell us what the Atomie has explained you before we talk with her. Everything"
The Sentinel studies the large map, then opens the door to the northeast looking for the Atomie.
Callix nods, "I agreed to stand down... Though if we're getting useful information from this one, let's ask him where he and his hints put my gear. My axes and holy symbol, especially, but all of it would be even better."
As the group starts to head upstairs, Callix says firmly, "I'll come with you... I wouldn't trust this one beyond the length of a spear... And besides, this way we can see if he's being honest now that his life depends on it.... I'm more than happy to compare what he's telling you with the bits and pieces I've overheard."
Letitia grabs the key to the atomie's cage before stepping through the storeroom door that Samuel opens. She cinches her cloak around her shoulders as her eyes adjust to the dim light, and casts dancing lights again in case it's too dark.
She looks for the atomie's cage, then studies the fey to determine if it's of winter.
Baradim's eyes were full of malice and anger at the one who had mercilessly killed his charge and then had the audacity to ask for mercy. The others seemed inclined to let the man deal with the authorities but Baradim's eyes were like an encroaching storm; calm but impossibly destructive. He had secretly hoped that Alec's strike would end the man's life, removing a threat and exacting justice. How unfortunate, he lived. Quietly, he followed the others as they began to move upstairs, only giving the woman that had appeared from the basement a cursory glance. She was not a threat and for that, required little scrutiny. The half-orc dressed in hide knelt down beside a woman of similar heritage and for a moment, the storm broke.
A look of regret spread across his face as he traced her face before shutting her eyes, leaning down to kiss her upon the forehead before whispering words to her. "An còrr, deagh mhadadh-allaidh. Bheir mi thu air ais chun na blàth-thalamh a dh'aithghearr." Taking a blanket from her pack, he'd place it over her body before turning to glare daggers at the necromancer that climbed the stare. "Na gabh dragh. Nì mi cinnteach gu bheil companaidh agad gu fiadhaich" He whispered, running a hand through the thick fur of the tiger beside him who nudged the still body once more.
Baradim would walk up the staircase, as silent as death, before he stepped beside the newcomer that had joined them. The woman's imposing shape seemed to impact the scarred and ugly half-orc not in the slightest as he looked back at her. "You may hurt the necromancer. Wound him even. However...I will be the one to kill him. He will not leave these woods alive."
Upstairs, Baradim stays nearby Rokhar with his falchion drawn on one side and Snowpaw's fierce presence. Let the others search, he had his prey in sight.
Letitia turns her head away so no one could spot her rolling her eyes. It's as Mother taught: the barbarians will tear themselves apart if you throw them a haunch of meat.
Samuel takes a look at the large map, which is one that was used often by the High Sentinels to plan patrol paths and to make notes about nearby villages.
It looks like the bandits have used it for much the same purpose, adding notations about possible ambush points, and other points of interest. There is one spot near the center of the forest marked with a blue circle and a question mark.
Moving on from the map, both Samuel and Letitia move into the small storage room.
Dozens of small boxes, bottles, and papers fill this musty storeroom. A small iron cage sits on the top shelf, emanating a flickering light like that of a candle. They quickly identify that the flickering light is coming from the atomie, just as Rohkar said they would find.
Seeing new people come in, the atomie stands up in its cage and calls out "Please let me out of here! This horrible man captured me and stuffed me in a cage! you will certainly be rewarded if you let me go free!
Samuel approaches the atomie cautiously "We still have to find where the necromancer hid the key. But we can perhaps look for other tools to open your cage. We are freeing all the prisoners around" the Sentinel tries to show an amicable face to the fey in an attempt to gain its favor without compromising any deal "But what is your name? You can perhaps help us explain why the other fey are invading the forest and who has launched this plan?"
As the others step into the small room to talk to the fae, Callix waits, then turns to the necromancer, "Maybe I was too subtle before, so let me ask you again, directly, while reminding you that the ones who seem to think you're useful alive went in there, leaving you out here with us. So: Where. Are. My. Things? I want my axes, my holy symbols, my rapier... Heck, all of it, even the coin I was carrying... And I think you want to keep being seen as helpful."
Letitia freezes in shock, as she had not expected Samuel to begin questioning the fey. She presses her lips together tightly as she waits to see if the atomie buys the gunman's bluff.
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Alec followed the necromancer, never more than a few feet between them. His falcata stayed in his hand, and it was never more than a few inches from the man. It would seem that losing one of their own had changed them. It was one thing to be fighting for their lives, but now with the man surrendered, could they kill an unarmed man? Would they? Would he? He longed for the man to try something...anything, give him any reason to slay the man. His thoughts began to drift to a darker place.
Kill him, and say he tried something. None of them would blame you...
"Good choice, human. Release me and you will be spared the torments about to be heaped on this traitorous Rohkar for capturing me and hiding me from my superiors.
My name is Vrixx, a simple soldier in the service of Irrisen. This land is to be annexed to the Land of Eternal Winter, and we are the forerunners of the invading army. side with us and you will be spared. Resist and you will spend your last days wishing for the warmth of summer as you freeze to death
_____________________________
outside the room
Rohkar eyes the brightly-dressed woman.
Your things are here, kept in a chest in my rooms on the north side of the hall. it's all there, along with some other trinkets i have collected recently
Letitia steps into view and eyes the atomie imperiously. Folding her arms and looking down her nose at the fey, she tsks in disappointment. "Is this all you're reduced to? Hollow threats? I'm sorely disappointed."
She taps in on the side of her cheek, as if thinking. "Rohkar will get what is coming to him, though capturing and tormenting you is the least of his crimes. Come to think of it, he may have simply exposed your incompetence. The Pale Tower expects much better than this," she gestures to the cage the atomie is in.
"Shall I invoke Winter Law and ransom you from Rokhar?"
Samuel is surprised by Letitia, but he then remembers of her origin and nods reinforcing her words.
The Taldan places grabs his musket strongly "I see Vrixx. We want to be in the winning side here. Were do we have to flock to in order to unite your forces?"
Vrixx looks back and forth between the two humans, clearly confused by what he sees as contradictory statements.
He then narrows his eyes and chuckles to himself
"Ah, I see. More deceit from the humans. I should have assumed. But tell me young man, why do you insist on resisting? you cannot stop the coming winter. wouldn't it be better to just give in?
the atomie turns his eyes towards Letitia
"And you. a Jadwiga here in the south? You speak the name of the Pale Tower, but Nazhena didn't mention an ally embedded as a spy. So what does that make you? an imposter? an exile? hmmm... You speak of Winter Law, but what would the Law say should be done with you I wonder."
Recoiling as if she'd been struck, Letitia backs out of the small storage room. Her face has gone even paler than usual. Upon seeing the Ulfen woman, she pauses and tries to compose herself. She moves to stand next to Baradim as she works to steady her nerves.
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Callix nods, "Excellent. You're making good use of the breath we allow you to keep drawing. Now, before I go get my things, and not to seem untrusting, i just want to ask: Is this chest locked, trapped, or otherwise going to sour my mood? Might there be a key I should use? Was thinking it might be a nice change to not have to heal myself because of you lot for at least a few hours."
"Everything okay?" Alec asked as Letitia came out of the room. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
His head spun towards Callix. "Wait, did you say you can heal? My friends and I have sustained some injuries. If you are able to assist, it would be much appreciated" he said, still with his sword on the necromancer's shoulder.
When the Atomie sees through his rouse, Samuel calmly raises his musket and points at him. The Taldan stays silently pointing at the Atomie for some seconds "It seems you do not fully understand your situation here Vrixx. We might end perishing to those cold hordes you talk about, but if you do not prove useful to us right now, it is clear you will not have enough life to see it happen. Understood?"
"So now that things are clear, tell us who is this Nazhena and where are the supply lines and headquarters of the cold fey invading army" Samuel holds his musket pointing directly at the Atomie in its small jail.
Callix nods, "I do have the ability to heal .. or I will, once I recover one of my holy symbols. As I said to your companion, I used all of my fervour to heal myself and the Lady earlier... But I can turn some of my spells to healing.". She says, "Once our... friend... Gives me a key to the chest, I'll be more than happy to help."
"Everything okay?" Alec asked as Letitia came out of the room. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
Her head turns to look at Alec, her icy veneer wavering. "I'll be... okay," she says finally, regaining some composure.
In her head, she begins reciting the various concepts and edicts, using the mnemonic devices taught to her and her sisters as children. Her mother had broken Elvanna's order by not killing her, but that was hardly Letitia's fault. And though the death sentence presumably still hung over her, she was only breaking Elvanna's law by living.
Ultimately, she couldn't think of a specific code of Winter Law that she had violated, though she could think of nearly a dozen gray areas. She begins breathing more steadily.
"Your threats are idle, human. I cannot betray my masters, even if I wanted to. Which I don't, by the way. any harm you could cause me is nothing compared to the creativity and cruelty of the White Witches.
You may not know much of us in these forsaken summer lands, but fey cannot speak a lie. so to keep secrets safe, the witches employ magic to prevent us from speaking at all about certain topics."
You would know of Nazhena Vasilliovna, another Jadwiga witch. she is a middle ranking Jadwiga, a direct descendant of the previous queen before Elvhanna. she is known for her ruthlessness and ambition after killing her own mother (allegedly) in order to take her position.
As for winter law, you know you have not committed any crime other than surviving a kill order. but you do know of many infractions that could have resulted in exile. Vrixx likely assumes you did something along those lines.
Rohkar listens with half an ear to the conversation with the Atomie while also being threatened by the other two.
"Yes, here is a key to the chest. it is not trapped, you may retrieve your items.
To the others he says:
You won't get much from him. he is not very free with information about the fey. I have picked up a little, but not from him
Callix takes the key and heads to the chest to retrieve her gear, a tentative expression on her face. White witches? Winter law? Did I hear that right? By the Tankard, has all of mother's talk about my destiny come true?! Have the witches come south to find her?
She takes a deep breath to center herself, and nods, Need to find out that the dregs is going on here... Which means I'll have some pointed questions when I get back...
Baradim listens closely to the others, his eyes closed as he runs his hands through the thick fur of the tiger beside him. The vicious nature that he had shown throughout the fight finally dims away and there a soft breath that escapes him, a release of some sort before he opens his eyes again. They still held an anger for the necromancer but no longer did it seem like he was going to immediately chop the man's head off and throw him down to join his fellows there. Letitia comes out and for a moment, she seems shaken. It seemed that the little fey within the room had more uncomfortable truths to give. "A hard road this one will need to follow." He thinks to himself, looking back at the interaction between Callix and Rokhar. The tall, Ulfen woman finally had a key for the chest and went to retrieve her belongings. It seemed that she was a healer of some sort, a protector. His thoughts drifted back to his charge and a soft sigh escaped him.
"I think we should return back to Heldren, for now. The battle here has taken quite a bit out of us and there are fiercer battles ahead." He looked towards Callix, giving a small nod. "The lady has no business being here on a hunt, especially when a war is ready to break out. Would you agree, Strange Hat?"
Letitia draws in a sharp breath when Baradim talks about going back to Heldren. "No!" she exclaims, wide-eyed. "No, there's no point to going back! There's the gate we need to close!"
She goes over and points to the map at the spot with the question mark. "What's the significance of this spot?" she demands from Rohkar. "Could this be the gate? What else did you learn?"