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For her part, Alicia stays out of the crew’s way—but also does her best to eavesdrop.
Alicia fights down a snicker-fit at Marikel's unexpected snarkiness. "Snrk--" she starts, then shrugs her backpack from her shoulders and drops it with a thump at the side of the ferry to hide her potential impropriety.
Alicia regards the half-orc coldly as the party boards the ferry, sparing a glance to Melira. Suppose we shouldn't expect much help from people in the backcountry.
"Ours," Alicia mutters to herself once it becomes apparent that those weren't enemies to be dealt with. She even ignores Dorn calling her 'lad'. As they near the ferry, she wordlessly boards the craft.
Alicia frowns at the sight. Looking over to Marikel, she asks, "Are those ours, or should we be ambushing them?"
Alicia looks to Dorn. "Can't see in the dark. Want to look, or shall I?" she says, with a jerk of her head in the direction of the burrow.
Clutching a bloodied arm, Alicia nods to Marikel and grunts in response to his question. "Fine." The rogue breathes a sigh of relief as her wounds (mostly) close, and she looks to Tama. "Happy now?"
Alicia tries to pry the drake's jaws open with her rapier after it collapses. Finally able to free herself, she breathes a long sigh of relief. "Well, that's over with."
Alicia attempts to stab the thing grappling her again, thrusting her rapier at the side of the drake's maw.
No more 504 Bad Gateway errors for me, anyway.
It's not just you, I don't think. It was working fine for me when I looked at it a few days ago, but it just times out for me now. For all the past several links Joana posted. 504 Bad Gateway errors.
At the twang of a bowstring, Alicia darts forwarding, sacrificing stealth for speed now that she's so near her target. The rogue stabs at the river drake with her rapier before it can react.
Alicia continues to sneak closer to the river drake, hoping that it hasn't seen her yet. As she moves, she draws her rapier and dagger.
Alicia attempts to sneak her way down closer to the river drake.
Alicia shrugs and dismounts her horse. "Fine. Let's get this over with." She starts heading in the direction that Tama had come running from.
Alicia relaxes as it turns out the other party is known to them--but only a little. "Looking for us? Or do you come out this way a lot?" she calls to the Shoanti.
Alicia does as bade, dismounting and hiding in the rocks at Melira's warning. After the danger is passed, she is quick to remount. With a nod to Dorn, she says, "Best to not be here in a week."
Alicia nods in response to Melira. As the group travels, she strays a little bit from the group, acting as an outrider or scout on the inland side.
Alicia gives Melira dirty looks as soon as she's awake, and continues to do so as long as it takes to pack her gear and get on the road again. "How much of a head start does Gorewillow have from here, anyway?" she asks, not bothering to speak softly.
Alicia snickers. "I think she called you the groom. Dorn is the financial backer, apparently."
Alicia eyes Melira balefully. Speaking to Marikel, she asks, "So are we staying here the night and setting out in the morning, then?" As if she expects an answer already, she heads for the shattered gate and waves Mahath in.
You know, I just realized how wildly inappropriate Alicia's avatar is for her: she's smiling.
Alicia scowls at Marikel and grouchily replies, "Alicia. I stab things." She pointedly looks at both the newcomer half-orc and the overgrown snake. Conjuring up a very forced smile, she adds, "I'm sure we'll get along fine."
Alicia glances at Marikel before returning her stink-eye to Melira. "Yes, but who'd trust you when you let half-orc murderers into Trunau, just for a few coins? I hear the Patrol are even looking for you, now."
"Yes, well. I'll just assume you're Melira then. Seen Gorewillow lately? Been to Freedom Town?" Alicia says, ice in her voice to match the smirk on the Mwangi woman's face.
"Usually common courtesy to give one's name when someone else tells you theirs," Alicia says flatly.
Alicia nods her head and grunts at the Mwangi woman when Marikel introduces her. It's as much noise as the blonde makes in the ensuing conversation.
Alicia looks to Marikel, then boldly strides into the fort's courtyard. "Don't worry, I don't look like an orc, either."
Alicia shrugs. "If there's only one of her, we may as well just go introduce ourselves." She starts heading back for the ruined hill fort.
Cursing under her breath, Alicia doubles back to the group. "Definitely occupied, but I can't see who or what's in there. The walls are too hard to climb, and the gate looks like it's too hard to sneak up on."
Cursing, she sneaks closer to the ruined gate and tries to see if she can spot whatever is inside without having to climb over any loose rubble.
Noting the fort's state, Alicia looks to see if there is a place where she can scale the stone walls and observe the occupants that way. Assuming she finds such a spot on the walls, she quietly climbs them.
Alicia nods and dismounts, then slowly stalks her way closer to the not-abandoned fort.
Alicia groans as the fort comes into view at last. "Are we there yet?"
Alicia throws her pack back on the horse burdened with her kit and saddles up. "I assume when we get closer to the fort that you'll want me to scout ahead again," she says to Marikel, less a question and more a statement.
Waking up groggily, Alicia rolls out of her bedroll and stumbles out the door. She looks around briefly once again, then goes back inside with a grunt at whoever's on guard duty come morning. She packs her gear up again and silently chews on a breakfast of hardtack and washes it down with water. Looking to the others as they prepare for the day as well, she asks, "West to the source of the Kestrel?"
Alicia secures their horses outside, then takes a quick look around their surroundings. Finally, she starts settling in to the dilapidated hut for the night.
Alicia nods. "Don't have any better ideas, here," she says.
"Wait...wyvern's nest? I thought it was a river drake's nest," Alicia says. "Could a wyvern have been here at this farmstead and flown off to settle at that cave? Or did that tack get left behind by something a wyvern ate?" "Or maybe that lady down the way we came might know something more about the tack?"
Alicia returns to the others. "Pretty sure it's the place. No one there now, but someone may have been recently."
Softly cursing, Alicia does a cursory inspection of the rest of the rough farmstead. She then quietly returns to the rest of the group.
Alicia slips inside the room silently, still on the lookout for traps. She makes her way to the nail-studded chest and starts poking around it, looking for tripwires or locks, and if she fails to find any of either, opens it.
The rogue slips up to the door and checks it for traps.
Once she's satisfied that there are none, she draws her hopeknife and cautiously opens the door.
Alicia grunts and dismounts. Crouching low, she advances toward the hillock, flirting from shadow to shadow as she can.
Alicia slows her horse and squints in the direction of the hill. She glances at her companions. "Think that's the place?" A second look at the hill and she adds, "Looks like it. How long do you think it'll take us to get there from here?"
"Think it's still around, then?" Ali asks, looking around warily. "The hatched bug, I mean."
Alicia takes a moment to regain her breath, then stabs the insect's corpse a few more times, just to make sure it doesn't get up again. "Thing's dead. Is Mahath?" she asks as the others tend to their stricken wizard.
Alicia clambers to the top of the slope and draws her rapier again. Wordlessly charging the overgrown insect, she stabs at it with her sword.
Alicia makes another unladylike mention of Calistria and tries to scramble back up the side of the gully.
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