"Perhaps we should check with Mother Mahree and see if perhaps she has any healing potions to take with us?"
Revjak nods.
"Aye, that would be wise. The goblins will surely try for our blood as we push against them."
I agree. You heal up, sir. We will be about it.
Reynwyn thanks Mother Mahree again for her assistance and grasps hands with Sillon when the man funds the purchase. "Thank you, goodsir. These will greatly aid our endeavor. Take care of your man, we shall retrieve his property and return forthwith."[/b
He looks to his companions eagerly. [b]"Are we ready?"
"My thanks again, devout one. We shall return easier with these at hand!"
"My thanks Sillon, we will put your coin to good use!"
"Aye Reynwyn, it is a good day to hunt goblins!"
You congregate in the common room before leaving at about lunchtime, and there are a few people in for lunch today. A pair of them, a dwarf in plain brown clothes and a small, wiry man who appears to be a trapper, eye you with interest from their table where they are eating stew and drinking beer. The dwarf, who has smudges of soot on his face, says to your group, "Looks like you folks are going hunting. Four legs, or two?"
Carric looks down at the dwarf.
Two, goblinkind. Come, let us get on the trail.
When everyone is prepared to go, Cartic leads the group to the markers he and Revjak left the day before. He examines the ground in an effort to pick up the trail.
Revjak grunts at the familiar spot. He attempts to assist Carric with his own woodcraft.
Signey follows quietly letting the others work, her skills lacking in this area.
Carric and Revjak scout around their marker from the previous night, and manage to pick up the trail once more. It crosses the road and into the lightly wooded area to the west.
It is mid-afternoon when the trail is interrupted by a shallow, rocky creek with steep, overgrown banks. A fallen tree provides a natural bridge, and Carric lightly leaps upon it and begins crossing.
There is a sudden roar from the far side – “That is Wuzig’s bridge! You can’t use it!” A large bugbear crashes out from the wood, a club in his hand and a nasty snarl on his face.
"Actually, this bridge belongs to the Netherese Empire, which I am a lawful citizen of and thus have permission to use." says Piety with the same monotone voice he says everything with.
"Is NOT Nedeez bridge! Wuzig's!" the hulking creature roars, smashing his club on the ground.
Revjak stands his glaive on the ground, holding it steady with his right hand, and attempts to parley with the bugbear - in a fashion.
"We will borrow bridge to cross. Wuzig keep it after. Right with you?"
Wuzig takes a deep, deep breath, then roars out, "NOOOOOOOO!" He then begins to advance on the bridge.
Carric backs off the log and draws an arrow to his bow, fixed on the bugbear.
Reynwyn pats his companions on the shoulder as he moves up to engage Wuzig in a battle of wits. "Let me handle this one, gentlemen."
He raises his hands upward to show Wuzig that he carries no weapons. "Wuzig, stand your ground and listen for a moment. We have been sent by the Netherese Empire to your bridge to assist you in cleaning it up a bit. It appears dirty and slippery from moss. I can make it so your bridge is safe and clean." He quickly casts prestidigitation to clean a section of any dirt of moss from the log directly in front of Wuzig. "We are part of the Department of Overpass Reclamation. Now I can see you are a busy bugbear. So, I will waive the normal fee of 5 silver pieces for our services and do this free of charge! What do you say, Wuzig?"
Wuzig ignores Reynwyn's baffling barrage of words and keeps advancing... until the warlock cleans a section of the tree, making it dry and less slippery. He tilts his head to the side and squints as Reynwyn continues talking, until his face lights up like he's just solved an advanced math theorem.
"Okay... puny meatbags clean the bridge for free, but pay Wuzig, say... five silver for crossing. Wuzig is reasonable." Then he gives a self-satisfied grin, and holds out a huge furry hand.
Reynwyn winks at Wuzig and begins to clean the 'bridge' with his prestidigitation. Once completed, he takes a gold coin and flicks it over to the bugbear. "Payment for this crossing and the return crossing. Let's continue onward to the next bridge, my friends!"
"Aye. Onwards!"
Revjak crosses the bridge swiftly, not trusting himself to say anything more in front of the bugbear. He does not have the way with words that the half-elf has just demonstrated.
Wuzig chuckles as you continue on following the goblins' path, bouncing the coin on his palm. "Wuzig so smart... got a shiny gold now..."
5pm, 6th of Eleint, 335 NR (1367 DR)
The shadows have started to lengthen, and the sun is shining through the yellowing leaves of the trees now rather than shining down from overhead. The trail has been relatively easy to follow, as it has gradually turned into a well-travelled track, the grass beaten down by many goblin feet over weeks, if not months.
Then, up ahead, you see a low rocky hill pushing up from the surrounding trees. A large natural cave is plainly visible near the base, and the trail leads right up to the entrance. As you creep closer to the entrance, you see a set of stairs just inside the entrance, hewn from the rock and descending into the earth.
The air still and heavy around you; not even a bird stirs in the trees overhead. Night will be here in a couple of hours, and a chill wind has picked up. The cave entrance beckons.
Revjak sees the cave entrance.
And quietly says to the others:
"Can anyone see any foes?"
He looks up and around while he say this.
There is no sign of any enemies.
Reynwyn, still thinking about his cleverness with the bugbear is a little distracted at the moment, but nonetheless glances about the area. "I see nothing at the moment."
"I hear nothing and I don't like it, feels like calm before a storm." she sighs heavily and looks at Carric "I can bless you if you want to scout, or would you prefer we enter together?"
I prefer we enter together at this point. Revjak and I will take point.
A large room lies at the bottom of the stone steps, full of dust and rubbish, dimly illuminated by shafts the allow sunlight to penetrate the hill. The only other exit from the room is a wide corridor to the north, flanked on either side by dark statues. A single goblin lies near the statue on the left, snoring loudly.
Revjak nods towards the goblin and then makes a cutting motion with his left hand. He then grasps his glaive tightly and steps forward as quietly as he can manage, swinging his glaive with brutal speed when his walk ends.
"Wait," Signey whispers as Revjak moves on the goblin. "I can use magic to make it friendly, it might be able to tell us where the box is before we have to hack our way through them all?"
Carric moves into the room and circles right as quiet as he can, sticking to the wall, and making his way to the North hallway exit. His arrow is trained on the sleeping goblin in case Revjak somehow does not dismember it.
Rewynwyn follows the group into the room quietly, waiting to see what the outcome will be...
Revjak steps up and can see the killing blow in his mind's eye...and then Signey's whisper gives him reason to pause.
He holds the glaive aimed at the goblin and motions with his head from Signey to it.
Signey quietly incants her spell. Pushing it's energy to the sleeping goblin, she then gently shakes it awake.
"Hush now, we're not here to hurt anyone, if you can just let us know where to find the box taken from the caravan?"
Revjak returns to a less aggressive stance, with his glaive pointed upwards and at his side, but he is still a very large man standing ten feet away, behind and to the side of Signey.
The goblin wakes, looks up into Signey's eyes, and gives a sleepy grin. Then it sees Revjak standing behind her, and its eyes bulge in fear. It reaches forward, grabbing Signey's leg tight for support, and hides as best it can behind her. It burbles fearfully in the ugly goblin language, "Gaaah! Gishna bolo krokuk? Kik naksha plokka!"