" Question how do I know the difference between a bandit snd a prisoner?" She asks almost as if it pains her.
" Ive been told I should not just bash people outside my party in combat. My journey here was...difficult" she says with a bothersome sigh.
A bandit Will attack you, a prisioner will be in some way restrained - after a moment in thought he adds - did you have problems with prisioners coming here? How did that happened?
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" I mean, I had these guys jump us, fight brole out, and I smashed a few of the merchants knees and hips. You know they kinds where in the melee." she says her finger going up to twirl her hair.
" They got in the way"She says with a chuckle.
" They didnt seem to like my answer, so they lefr me on the road side until I found another caravan"
Dobin looks into his pack and rearranges a few items.
"Well I am ready when you are. Shall we go and examine these areas for missing caravans and bandits?"
He is ready to go out and start looking for the bandits and lizardmen.
Ready here.
Riaza I think you better Stay out of bodyguad jobs or they'll need bodyguads to protect them from you - says Lan with a chucle to Riz
" Is that why they were mad? Maybe I should give them something that if I see it, mean No bash here" She ponders as she shrugs.
" We can if too long suppliment our rations with hunting"
d'Reco lets out a good laugh
It seems like we can cover the area in a week, so I think I have all I need. Is any of us a good tracker? I think we'll need one.
"Don't really have the coin to pick anything else up if I wanted to. I'm as ready as I'm gonna be." Kallum grumbles.
Don't look at me Draco, tracking it's not my thing.
To Kallum (and everyone really):
I'm not high on gold either, but if there's any gear that could improve our chances here I'm ok to pool our coin and get it.
To Al'Lan (and everyone again):
Not my thing either. Do y'all think we should hire someone or can we manage?
" I mean their should be signs to follow right?" she says still esger ro find and hit someone.
We're all short on gold, I think. I'd say we go and see If we can manage
" Ill try and see if I can track. If I can catch a fish or stalk a rabbit I should beable to do the same with a bandit?"
Hahahah right, and we can always come back if bandits prove to be beyond our skills. Let's be off then!
Preparing to leave the safety of the keep, you gather your gear and make your way towards the overgrown road leading into the wilds. The path ahead is uneven, with tall grass and tangled underbrush encroaching from both sides. The air is heavy with the scent of earth and vegetation, a stark contrast to the bustling, fortified atmosphere of the keep.
The guards at the gate watch you as you pass by. Their expressions are friendly but stoic, showing a mixture of respect and concern for those brave enough to venture into the dangerous wilderness. One guard nods in acknowledgement, offering a brief but sincere - "Good luck out there". It's clear they’ve seen many adventurers come and go, and they hope to see you return safely.
You move cautiously, aware that the further you get from the keep, the more dangerous the journey becomes. The road is poorly tended, and progress is slow. The forest around you is alive with the sounds of nature - birds chirping, leaves rustling, and occasionally, the distant howl of a wolf.
About three hours into your trek, you arrive at the area where the first caravan attack was reported. The location is approximately one kilometer from the keep, a short distance, but enough for danger to lurk. The site itself shows signs of a struggle. The remains of a campfire, now cold and scattered, lies to one side of the road.
This is it! - says Lan to his companions - We better keep our eyes open for someone aprouching while we're in here. I'll keep whatch while you go through all this.
Rizana loads a stone into her sling and crouches down low to the ground. A Ahlfling wasnt worth thier weight in gold if they cant see tracks of a rabbit or signs of other critters sneaking in to get to your gardens.
" Do we think they have heavy soles or light soles. I mean if you were a bandit what would you do? Where most of them human? Maybe if we make a few prints of the human feet of our partt we can look for signs? Thats what I did for rabbits and ganecocks" she said looking at the others
Dobin also searches the area for any sign of the ambush and clues of the group's direction after taking the caravan over.
"I would assume more bandits are outfitted like me than Dobin." Kallum says to Riza's question while drawing his blade.
Approaching the ruined campsite, he tries to study the scene to determine the number of assailants, where they came from, and more importantly, where they went to.
I'm thinking, bandits would have to make off with the stolen goods, so their tracks would be deeper than normal or there would be signs of a cart being moved along with them.
Also, they killed a bunch of people right? They wouldn't carry the bodies away I think. I wouldn't anyway. So they must be stashed around here somewhere.
So on the road d'Reco looks for deeper footprints, or those accompanied by wheel tracks, probably making off into the woods (wheel tracks along the road would be normal he reckons).
He then expands his search out of the road, looking for tracks like mentioned above, but since it's probably much harder to spot anything among the vegetation, he focuses more on finding the bodies. Are there buzzing insects over a particular area, any carrion birds around, things like that.
As Al'Lan keeps watch, the group spreads out to investigate.
Rizana spots sets of what seem to be human footprints leading away from the campsite. She discerns variations in size and depth, indicating multiple individuals with different builds.
Dobin scans the ground for any disturbances or tracks but finds the signs ambiguous. There are faint impressions that suggest movement, but they're difficult to interpret clearly. He does however notice distinct marks left by wagon wheels leading in the direction of the Keep.
Kallum examines the area thoroughly and discerns signs of about half a dozen individuals based on the scattered footprints and disturbed earth. He notices that the majority of the tracks lead in a southeastern direction.
Pah d'Reco diligently searches the area but finds no signs of deeper footprints or wheel marks indicating the passage of a cart outside the ill-kempt road. However, as he moves through the undergrowth, he stumbles upon a gruesome scene: the bodies of the caravan drivers, brutally slain and left behind by the bandits. Flies buzz around the corpses, and the air is heavy with the stench of death.
" I found some people tracks. Cause Im hunting peoples!!!" she saud with a mirthful smile.
"Southeast." Kallum says, gesturing vaguely at the trail of tracks he had found. "Looks like a half dozen or so..."
"I have located the tracks of a wagon heading for the keep. Nothing else jumps out at me, however."
Probably the bandits are the ones disturbing the lizard folk. If on purpose to throw out the attention from them or Just by making a fuss on lizard lands I have no idea.
Kallum can lead us I think. But we need to go quietely, they probably have people on whatch duttie.
There's also the matter of the rotting wagon driver flesh over yonder..., d'Reco adds matter-of-factly.
I say we leave them, at the moment they're of better service like this than in a hole.
They were probably already looted as well...
With this, d'Reco moves back to the corpses to check once more for tracks leading away from the scene. Leading SE probably, but better to check.
Guys I don't think there will be nothing that valuable among the remains but check for weapons and armor like arrows and daggers and stufff like that before we go
Dobin will search the area for weapons and armour, as Al'Lan has suggested. Once the area has been thoroughly searched he will stop and lean against a tree, whipping his face with a handkerchief.
"Well we've certainly given this area a good going over...what say we follow the trail south-east and see what we can locate there?"
As you search the area for weapons and armor, you find that the corpses have already been thoroughly looted. The bandits have left behind nothing of value, and what little remains is either broken or rusted beyond use. It's a grim task, sifting through the remnants, but such is often the fate of adventurers.
Amidst the scattered debris and bloodstains, something catches Dobin's eye. Half-buried in the dirt beside one of the bodies lies a bloodied piece of parchment. Most of it is torned out or otherwise unreadable - you can only make out:
"XXXXXXXXbeen foolsXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXtialXXXXXXXXXXwere incorrectXXXXXXQuXXXXXXXXXXXXnot locatedXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXfar to the West,XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXnorth ofXXXXXX"
It is signed only "M"
Dobin takes the bloody paper to Draven.
"I found this trampled in the mud over there. Some sort of message but most of it is ruined. Not sure if your magic might be able to clean it up or something."
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So the note has blood, and mud and is torned, any change I can clean it somehow?
I would do it slowly and carefully so as not to make it any worse, e.g.:
- Hold the parchment vertically and gently tap it to dislodge any remaining loose particles.
- use a clean cloth, which can be from my jacket/shirt, and gently remove loose mud. I do this carefully to avoid rubbing the mud into the parchment and worsening it.
I would see if I'm able to read any more after trying the above, if not:
- Moisten a soft cloth, with water, ensuring it is damp, not soaking wet, and blot the muddy areas gently avoid scrubbing to prevent abrasion.
The parchment appeareth to be in disarray; I shall see what may be done.
'Tis torn, so let all be vigilant for any fragments that might be concealed.
I read out loud whatever I can make out of it.
Draven carefully cleans the parchment, but despite his best efforts, the message remains mostly illegible.
He quickly realizes that deciphering the full message and understanding its significance will require access to a well-stocked library, and better materials than he is able to muster out here in the wilds.
"Hmmph." Kallum lets out with a shrug.
"Well no point in trying to deal with it right this second. We followin' those tracks or not?"
" Yeah O wanna follpw those tracks so we can get to bashin'" she says mace in hand.
As she does she grins ready to get to crackin'. She takes a couple practice swings one hand, then teo hand, then the other hand. She then stands eager to swing it at something.
Onwards then, brave companions! Let's leave the cleaning of parchments and deciphering of words for later and get on with the chasing of bandits!
The sweet smell of death is upon us now!, d'Reco bellows with perhaps unwarranted enthusiasm, then stomps forward energetically, tripping over some stones...
He moves along, muttering something about those stones not belonging there... damn things, don't know their place in the world. Out of balance is what they are, meddling fools...
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I store the parchment as carefully as I can to protect it from further damage.
It would be most fortuitous if we were to discover something else in this vicinity.
I say this while I search around the area where the parchment was found.
Alas, there is but so much we can achieve in a single place.
Let us thus follow the trails.
Moving on Guys. - says Lan, with a serious demeanure
As you all agree to follow the tracks southeast, the trail proves increasingly difficult to follow. The soft ground begins to grow wetter, each step becoming more challenging as mud clings to your boots and the underbrush thickens around you.
The sun reaches its zenith, and you pause briefly for a quick meal, feeling the fatigue of the journey setting in. After lunch, you resume your pursuit, pushing through the dense foliage and marshy terrain.
Not long after you continue, you notice something in the distance. Through the trees, a bear stumbles into view. It appears to be in distress, an arrow jutting from its flank, its movements slow and labored. The bear lets out a low, pained growl, clearly suffering as it moves along.