Back to Daggerford

[badams30]

Rory wakes Marcus and the others, and in turn several guards are up and ready, and within a minute or two, you are all sneaking up to the edge of the tree line with minimal gear (weapons and hastily donned armor)

The other guard on this shift turns to face you as you approach, and judging by his wide-eyed gaze, you assume something is afoot. He motions for you to get down, and points toward the road. The howling wind and blowing snow make visibility difficult, but after a few seconds you can make out 5 mounted humanoids... Orcs. They are talking, shouting actually. But with the wind, it's not possible to make out what they are saying. Behind them you can make out a column of at least 20 riders, possibly more.
They pause for probably one minute, one of them motioning toward the trees, but at least two of them shake their heads and make furtive gestures at the ground. They spur on their mounts, and slowly trudge past the tree line, and the other riders start to pass by as well.

Any actions or observe?

[Spanningtree]

Nahin - Elf

He will whisper to Marcus: I am sure they are looking for us... I am not sure it's prudent to engage a force of unknown number. What do you think?

[greyarea]

Marcus, paladin

Aye, especially one that looks to be quite large. Stay ready in case they discover us but we will hopefully avoid confrontation.

The paladin double-checks his crossbow.

[tumblingdice]

Rory nods silently in agreement.

[badams30]

As you quietly observe, the 5 riders you'd been watching split up, 3 going ahead, one remaining, staring back toward the approaching riders, and the other takes off to the rear at a trot. Within a minute, the column of riders gets close enough to see, and it appears to be orcs mounted on horses. Most are riding single file, some abreast, and when the end of the column passes, you'd estimate about 40 riders have passed. They disappear into the blowing snow and wind, and the road is empty again. No sooner does the last horse pass when Grossbart appears next to you all and says "Tymora shines on us this night." He motions toward the direction of the riders and says "I doubt they'll go too much farther toward Daggerford, as random patrols extend out about a day's ride from the city. We should keep the double watches up till morning, and then be on our way. There is a chance they will double back and pass here again before morning, or they could take the old side trail about 5 miles south of here, it leads toward the scrub where these things live." He waves a chubby finger and says "Keep sharp, fellas. If they double back by morning, they may try to pull into these trees to rest, and I don't need to tell you how bad that would be."

You pull back to the sheltered area and those of you not on guard return to a fitful, cold and uneasy sleep.

The morning dawns and Jayce tells you all that during the changeover of his shift and the last shift a good number of the riders passed by again heading North, but they are certain that not as many passed by this time. Grossbart shakes his head and says "Well, we've got to keep moving, so let's get out of here. If we run into these things en masse, the plan is to push the horses as hard as we can and make for Daggerford. It's our only chance if it's a large band." He smiles at Marcus and says "I'd love to stand and fight these things, but I've got some supplies that must make it to the Duke and the city, so we'll exercise some discretion rather than valor."

The snow stops about the time you push off, there is about 6-8 inches on the ground near the trees, but it thins to about 2 inches in the open. The wind lightly blows, not enough to push you around, but enough to send a chill down your backs. Grossbart urges everyone to push ahead at a fast pace, and he feels that it may be possible to make Daggerford shortly after dark on this night.

Riding on, you see signs that a large number of mounted riders has veered off to the north west, as Grossbart had predicted. He smiles and says "Well, they are headed to the scrub area, which means we probably won't see them again. Fine by me. Just the same, let's keep up the pace."

You ride along, through the day, pausing a couple of times to water and feed the horses, who seem to be doing well despite the increased speed. Darkness falls and you continue on, slowing slightly, and about two hours after dark, roughly 7PM or thereabouts, you crest a small ridge and see the lights of Daggerford ahead! Riding on, you see the caravan gates open, and a group of 5 riders approach at a saunter. From your experience on guard, you realize this is the militia of the gate, riding out to advance scout any large parties approaching after dark. Grossbart slows the caravan, and as the militia approach, you hear them welcome the caravan to the city, and to enter the gate one wagon at a time for quick inspection, as is normal.

You smile amongst yourselves, having done this detail many times. As your wagon enters the walls, a familiar face pokes through the door, it's Sgt Schultz, your old squad leader. His eyes light up and he chuckles merrily. "Welllll, what have we HERE? Looks like a band of miscreants, no doubt." He pauses and chuckles like a madman. "Glad to see you boys again! Word has it that you've been savin' the north, and all that. Sherlyn will be mightly glad to see you all back. Why don't you get some rest and come see me tomorrow morning sometime, eh?" He gives you all a thumbs up and continues to the next wagon.

Once all the wagons are in, Grossbart comes by and shakes each of your hands. "Thanks for sticking with us, men. I'm glad we didn't need you to fight, but we'd have been in a bad way if we needed to and didn't have you along. He gives each of you a sack of 50 gold, and he says I've rented the whole Lady Luck tavern for the next couple of days, so you'll be put up as my guests, food and drink included. I insist."

You all smile at each other, with fond memories of the Lady Luck Tavern - the place you started your journeys. The Lady Luck Awaits, Any stops in between?

[tumblingdice]

OC: Nope. Lady Luck straight away. I wonder if Delilah is still around...

[greyarea]

Marcus agrees on Lady Luck.

[Spanningtree]

Nahin - Elf

We've managed to get around Sargent! He will say to his old comrade. Why don't you come by the inn in a bit and we'll swap stories.

Nahin will thank Grossbart and make himself comfortable in the inn. Why don't you give my share of the coin to the poor in town... He'll make his way down to the common area and order up a decent meal and grab a tankard of ale. Sitting with the rest of the party and whoever else shows up he'll make bring up the elephant in the room: Obviously, these orc's need to perish.

[badams30]

Grossbart smiles at Nahin and says "Yes, sir. Perhaps this coin could help the young lad we rescued. Please - relax and enjoy some peace and quiet for a few days."

(BTW, Rory... Delia is the barmaid from Red Larch. You'll have to wait a bit to see her)

As you enter the Lady Luck, the proprietor Owenden raises his arms and shouts "Why hello, there, Dutybound! We'd heard of your exploits a couple of days back, it's been all the talk around town. Glad to see you. You seem to be short a couple members. And with a curious new fellow here" (pointing at Grinkle) At this time of night there are about 15-20 locals inside, and they all raise their glasses in a toast to you all, and you enjoy a hearty meal and free flowing ale, and as word of your arrival spreads, the inn fills up within the next 30 minutes. Among the crowd is Cookie, Han's friend, and several familiar faces from the militia. As expected, everyone requests to hear the tales of your exploits, and Marcus does his best to make Grinkle comfortable, and you are all surprised to see that Grinkle is the subject of much curious banter, and many odd glances, but seems to be escaping any negative publicity.

You are free to mingle, and your presence has attracted a fair number of the eligible ladies of Daggerford, including a well-muscled yet attractive woman with long blond hair, and a fair number of scars. She is attired in well-worn leather armor and has an ornate longsword hanging from her side. As Marcus makes his rounds, she smiles at him and gives him a friendly nod.

The night is yours. What's the plan for the evening and the subsequent day? You are generally expected to report back to Sherlen and Schultz, but otherwise your schedule is free - for the moment.

[greyarea]

Marcus

Marcus strikes up a conversation with the scarred one. His charisma is much higher than his player's so I'll leave the dialogue up to imagination.