"You wouldn't dare!" says the voice inside the room, and the door flies open again, this time to reveal another human man, a bit older and much nicer dressed than Farrow. "You can't just leave me here as... as... bait!"
Farrow just shakes his head, exasperated. "Then get your wares and move, you useless spade for brains!"
Grumbling, Clidon rapidly grabs up his traveling pack and lifts a long pole off of a rack, with dozens of thin strips of dried, seasoned meat hanging from it. He hoists it across his shoulders with practiced ease, and although he still seems sour-faced, you hear no more protests from him as he and Farrow follow you back down the stairs to join the others waiting in the kitchen. Jet and Aubrin seem pleased by the men's arrival, the innkeeper going so far as to give Clidon a quick hug.
Jie turns around and walks back to Farrow to help with the chest. "May I?' she asks politely, but doesn't wait for an answer as she opens it up to look inside.
Lissa pulls on her shield and sheaths her glaive, then in her best sergeants voice addresses the civilians.
"This isn't going to be easy. If you cant fight, stay out of the way. We have to circle the village to get to the bridge, and we're not leaving the smith behind. So we're going this way, in a quiet quick run until we get there. If we run into hobs, your job is to be quiet, stay safe, and haul the wounded while getting out of sight. Pay attention to these supplies, we may not have much more than this, so carry them securely. Don't put stuff down. We'll make camp in the woods tonight and we can argue about anything that bothers you then. For now, our lives depend on this. If you f@%~ up, we all die. So don't. You can do this. We're going to live. We're going to win.". She slips out the door at the signal, running down the alley for the next door.
Jie is afraid of mounting Feng, the horse is going to draw to much attention as it is and a mounted rider would be sure to provoke a response. Instead she stays with the civilians, leading her horse and tries to subtly herd the noncombatants after Lissa and Grum.
Benedict glares in Lissa's direction, then turns to Aubrin.
"I don't know who these strangers are, but it appears they are our allies. Still, if anybody is in charge, it should be you. Do you think our plan is sound?"
As Benedict knows some of the locals, and is reasonably good at talking to people, he will attempt to persuade any who are reluctant to follow the odd foreigners.
Amkarang whirls his meteor hammer and smiles, muttering a prayer to Hei Feng in Tian. He looks at the crowd and says loudly, "What my friend here says is true. You have a fighting chance to get out of here if you stick with us. Come on then, we move or we die, make your pick.
The group of followers you have assembled don't seem to know exactly what to make of Lissa's speech, but with the support of Amkarang - and the somewhat less enthusiastic endorsement of Benedict - they are nonetheless willing to go with you.
Aubrin looks doubtfully at Benedict when he nominates her as the leader. "I can barely hold my feet, young man, let alone lead us to freedom. Tonight, I look to you and these others to get us to the forest. What happens after that..." she shrugs, and Benedict can't help being suspicious that Aubrin is avoiding claiming a leadership role simply because she doesn't fully expect to live long enough to reach the safety of the Fangwood.
Outside, Phaendar is a maelstrom of blood and chaos. Several buildings are on fire, and troops of hobgoblins sweep through the streets, running down fleeing villagers or knocking in doors in search of captives or treasure to loot from the dying town.
Not aware of anything amiss.
"Aubrin, I understand you are wounded, so I will not ask you to fight, but your guidance is valuable. I have no combat experience, and these others are all outlanders. The locals trust you, myself included. So at least speak up if you think we are being overly reckless. And if we make it to the woods, teach us."
Lissa holds at the edge of the alley, and motions the group past her toward the shrine with their flock of followers. She nods at Benedict and Jie as they go by, trusting them to see the group to the shrine safely. Then she grabs grum and amkarangs shoulder, and motions down the alley towards the wolf.
A moment later she charges the beast, trusting her new friends to remain silent.
The alley is about 50 feet long, with the cart taking up the last 10 feet of it. It's about 10 feet wide and the wolf is 40 feet away. As the wolf has no noticed you, you have a surprise round - one standard or move action only.
Amkarang is similarly distracted but notices Lissa's motion.
Chang Jie definitely notice the dire situation of the citizens behind the wagon. She says "Wolf in Alley along with people" as she sends an arrow down the alleyway.
In a low voice to the civilians,
"Keep moving towards the shrine. Three or four can handle one wolf and save those people."
Benedict will take point, if Jet or Aubrin can bring up the rear so we don't lose any stragglers.
Jet's arrow comes nowhere near its target, while Benedict and Aubrin continue to shepherd the Phaendarites on toward the Shrine.
Jie curses under her breath at her poorly aimed shot.
She stores her short bow and draws her sword, warily approaching the fight.
Jie lets loose another arrow.
Amkarang runs forward and swings his meteor hammer at the wolf, the iron ball hurtling through the air with tremendous force. He smiles and roars, "By Nalinvati's coils, it feels good to finally fight again."
Amkarang is first into the fray against the wolf, and even as the metal ball of his meteor hammer strikes home against the battle beast, there is a small cry of relief from behind the cart. Jie makes her way up the alley to support Lissa and Amkarang, but it is the ex-pirate that draws the wolf's ire as it spins on him, growling, and then leaps. Savage jaws clamp down on Amkarang's thigh and with a shout of pain, the warrior falls to the ground.
Grum runs up next to the fallen pirate and attacks the wolf with his falchion, but the animal rolls beneath the attck and snaps bloody teeth in his direction.
Jie steps 5ft to make her way around and interpose herself between the wolf and the civilians. She darts in and hacks at the wolf.
Lissa moves in, her shield making space and jabs her fist, the kunai clenched tight, against the side of the wolf.
,
Lissa's wall of steel shields her from the wolf's fangs, and Jie rushes in behind her while the animal is distracted. Kunai and longsword both find their targets, and the wolf's growls turn from threat to pain. Crying in agony, the animal tries to flee by leaping over Amkarang and making for the alley mouth. The prone pirate catches the wolf as it leaps, though, slamming it into the side of the alley and keeping it from leaving.
Having been tripped by the wolf, Amkarang is startled but tries to attack the beast nonetheless.
Lissa tries to catch the wolf as it scampers past, but can't reach past her shield.
Jie swings at the wolf as it scampers off.
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Jie cuts the wolf down, ending its misery, and its threat.
After a brief pause, two human women carefully raise their heads over the edge of the cart to peek out. One is middle-aged, the other just out of her teens, and they are clearly mother and daughter. "Oh, Vault of Ages, thank you!" the older woman cries. She runs to Lissa and gives her a hug, and her daughter does the same with Jie. After a few brief seconds, she has introduced herself as Tishuna and her daughter as Shillein, and you have also located some additional supplies in the cart to take with you.
Amkarang is badly wounded, but you have little trouble re-grouping with Benedict, Aubrin, and the others just before you all reach the Riverwood Shrine.
Lissa smiles, then motions to the Shrine with a questioning look.
"Doesn't seem likely this is going to get any easier. Faster is probably better."
A wooden deck surrounds the front of an octagonal structure with broad archways leading into a place of worship. To its left stands a moss-encrusted stone monument. Carved birds, branches, and fruits decorate the wooden supports of the temple’s entryway. A dead villager is curled up on the wooden deck before the temple, and another Ironfang-trained wolf stands over it, savaging the remains to sate a ravenous hunger. Just to the northwest, a small shack is linked to the shrine by a short stone path.
Amkarang clutches the large bite wound on his side and winces, "Gods, stings like seven daggers in the ribs. Would anyone mind healing me?"
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Grum had no earthly clue as to who the shack belonged to. Still, he could recognize the threat posed by a ravenous wolf. Deciding that it was a threat to all who remained behind, and perhaps more importantly, that with Amkarang bleeding as he was, the creature might well decide to make a snack out of him as well, he charged right at it.
Aubrin converts a obscuring mist into a cure light wounds for Amkarang.
Grum's charge cuts the wolf down in a single swing. From inside the shrine, he can hear more violence being done - weapons slamming into walls, pews, bodies.
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Looking up from the bloodied bodies at his feet, Grum could hear the sounds of violence. He hesitated for a moment before saying "Whomever is in the shrine is being slaughtered. We can't save everyone, and if we try we'll just end up being surrounded by the entire hogknob force. Their sacrifice will buy us time while we get who we can out of here. Let's move on."
Benedict doesn't know the shrine; not a place he visits in Phaendar.
"Their sacrifice will buy us time? They did not volunteer for this. If we have a chance, we should try to save them."
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Grum scoffed. "Their sacrifice. Their misfortune. If we get bogged down we'll die just like the rest of this town. Better to find and save those who aren't already in the process of dying. Or would you rather take on the entire hobknob army? If so, by all means lets charge into every combat we come across so hobknob runners can bring reinforcements down on our heads. Hobknobs are disciplines, they aren't your usual orc savages. We can't assume that they'll keep fighting us in small groups of one's and two's..."
Jie escorts Tishuna and Shillein to the rest of the group, arriving just in time to see Grum cut down the other wolf. As the others deal with the Shrine she goes to the shrine, kneels, pays her respect and looks for some birds.
She casts Speak with Animals and asks the birds for a favor. "Oh Bright Ones, would you be so kind to fly over to the river where the man's way crosses it, look around and come back to me. Don't get hurt, I merely want to know what the situation is there."
Amkarang's eyes narrow and he roars with unexpected fury, "By Hei Feng's beard, we must save as many as we can. If we let them die we're no better than the hobgoblins!" With that, Amkarang starts spinning his meteor hammer and follows anyone else who's going into the shrine.
"Amkarang, hold! If you and Lissa flank the door, out of sight, I may be able to draw them out and you can cut them down as they pass. Once they come to us, another can open a back door to lead the survivors out. Jie? Yes, yes, praise the gods, but people are dying in there.
Any other suggestions?
Grum... They won't send reinforcements unless a messenger escapes."
Actually, while you can hear the wet-sounding thunk of weapons hitting flesh, the expected cries of pain or agony aren't accompanying them.
Benedict's words strike home to Chang Jie. She nods and says. "I will cover the back door." She then heads around the side of the shrine, making as little noise as possible.
Once she arrives she listens at the door and checks the area for tracks to see how many hobgoblins came in this way or if anyone fled recently.