Midnight: A Lost Faith's Shadow. Book 1, The Awakening. Chapter 4, Pursuit

[Hrothgar]

Apologies. Been travelling for work and haven't been able to access internet much

Starhl grabs a paddle and furiously paddles away. "We'll return it... we're just borrowing it for a second!" the barbarian mutters, rowing as fast as he can.

OOC: Damn it, Krug! LOL. You do come up with some good ones!

BTW, the Heroes are headed south (actually, more southeast) while the approaching craft is coming from the north. Both craft are headed upstream.

Herger, Starhl, and Lodric are all in the boat being towed by Mardo's boat; Kaela and Valurel are in that boat.


Slowly Mardo's skiff gains headway, pulling the great weight of Herger, Starhl, and Lodric in the decrepit skiff behind. As the two craft slowly wind around a bend in the river, the Heroes can see several townspeople gather around the man on the docks, the little man jumping up and down in frustration.

Slowly the two craft wind up the river. With Mardo's practiced eye, the craft navigate around submerged, dead trees, their skeletal arms raking the boats at times. Small sandbars also present hazards; bigger craft would have problems navigating through such a twisting waterway.

Slowly the scent of death from the north fades. However, Valurel's sharp ears pick out several screams from south. The people of Elswier. Whatever the large craft was has now landed at the small, dingy town.

The day proceeds uneventfully. The Heroes nervously listen to the north, straining for sound of the strange craft. Whatever it was, it has stopped or lacks the speed of the Heroes craft.

As the sun sets in crimson, Mardo frowns. The treeline has broken and the plains of Erenland spread to the south, the tall grasses waving in the warm wind. The river is getting smaller this far upstream. The crafts will have difficulty soon, espcially in the dark, with snags and sandbars. And with the heavy weight in the second craft, that boat will founder soon.

It is now decision time for the Heroes. Will they proceed into the night on the river? Will they tie up for the night? Or will they strike south into the plains, hoping for spoor of their quarry?

 

[Bihlbo]

Slowly the scent of death from the north fades. However, Valurel's sharp ears pick out several screams from south. The people of Elswier.

OOC: pretty sure those screams are from "the north" and not "south" if they are the people of Elswier.

As Mardo's covered skiff cuts into the current of the humble river, he moves from side to side, adjusting ropes and trimming the sail as they gain speed. "I can deal with them ninnies back in the 'burg when I come back through, no worries there - but you lot'd better have some good trade comin my way or I don't..." As he notices the elf's keen attention and everyone's tension, he gets quiet and focuses on keeping them between the banks.

Upstream, long past the point at which he last saw Elswier, he hangs off the side of his skiff and dips his hand in the stream, tasting the water. Quietly he says to the elf, "The water here's clean and warm - there must not be too many farms up ahead. You'll need to do some hunting for food, I'm afraid."

OOC: Bluff check - he's talking out his butt

As things seem more calm, he continues more quietly, "You know, your friends here would probably get by just fine if it weren't for them traveling with an elf. What is it hunting you? Sniffers? An ambitious legate? I don't know how loyal you all are, but you might consider saving them a lot of strife by travelling alone."

 

[Toric_Arthendain]

Upstream, long past the point at which he last saw Elswier, he hangs off the side of his skiff and dips his hand in the stream, tasting the water. Quietly he says to the elf, "The water here's clean and warm - there must not be too many farms up ahead. You'll need to do some hunting for food, I'm afraid."

Valurel is only half listening to the gnome talk, his attention focused on the riverbanks with food being the furthest thing from his mind at the moment.

As things seem more calm, he continues more quietly, "You know, your friends here would probably get by just fine if it weren't for them traveling with an elf. What is it hunting you? Sniffers? An ambitious legate? I don't know how loyal you all are, but you might consider saving them a lot of strife by travelling alone."

Valurel answers without looking at the gnome. "My friends make their own decisions and we are all hunted. My friends would be in the same amount of peril with or without me. Together we survive," the elf says quietly, a hint of emotion in his voice."I suggest you concentrate on guiding this boat," he finishes, turning to stare at the gnome for a moment before continuing his watch on the riverbanks.

 

[maddmic]

Herger is uneasy as the sun sets. The craft that he is in seems to sit lower and lower in the water. Even though this isn't the case, he is clearly unsettled once his eyes have to begin adjusting to the lack of light. He looks at the gnome in the craft up front and wonders how desperate the little guy is to rid himself of them. Perhaps it would be best to land and be on their way.

As if on key, as the gnome speaks, Hergers stomach begins to rumble. Unlike the elf, food is not the furthest thing from his mind. Aislinn is their number one priority, yet there had been no signs that he could see of their quarry yet. He listened to the gnome finish and Valurel respond. He cleared his throat before breaking the silence from the rear craft.

"Perhaps it is best if we land for the night. I don't know how difficult it is to make our way in the darkness, but I would guess that it would be easier with the break of day. Also, maybe you could see if our Quarry has been this way Valurel? I am getting hungry." He hoped that the elf had caught his meaning, but then again, the giant was not skilled in deception.

 

[Bihlbo]

Valurel answers without looking at the gnome. "My friends make their own decisions and we are all hunted. My friends would be in the same amount of peril with or without me. Together we survive," the elf says quietly, a hint of emotion in his voice."I suggest you concentrate on guiding this boat," he finishes, turning to stare at the gnome for a moment before continuing his watch on the riverbanks.

With a deep gulp, the gnome's eyes widen and he grips the rope in his hand even tighter. With a slight waver in his voice he replies, "Yes, perhaps so."

When the man behind him speaks, the gnome lets out a slight gasp, not having realized that he was holding his breath.

"Perhaps it is best if we land for the night. I don't know how difficult it is to make our way in the darkness, but I would guess that it would be easier with the break of day. Also, maybe you could see if our Quarry has been this way Valurel? I am getting hungry."

"Ah yes good elf," the gnome says with relief clearly evident in his voice, "I sometimes forget that the sun does set earlier for the humans. We should be accommodating, no?" Just then he spins his head around to look back downstream in the direction of Elswier, with a face of consideration. "But... well maybe we should put more distance between us and the slighted peasant who seemed to think of us as thieves"

 

[Hrothgar]

Valurel answers without looking at the gnome. "My friends make their own decisions and we are all hunted. My friends would be in the same amount of peril with or without me. Together we survive," the elf says quietly, a hint of emotion in his voice."I suggest you concentrate on guiding this boat," he finishes, turning to stare at the gnome for a moment before continuing his watch on the riverbanks.

OOC: Love the picture in my mind. Keep up the roleplaying, guys! Nice!

As the setting sun flashes crimson through thin clouds in a bleak gray sky, far on the southwestern horizon a line of orange and dark clouds hang in the sky. Even when darkness consumes the sun, the horizon stays lit, as if some fiery conflagration slowly consumed the world at its far edge.

Mardo pushes the boats upriver for almost an hour after dusk, but pulls to the southern shore under a fallen oak, unwilling to test his luck against treacherous river snags in the rapidly narrowing river. As the Heroes settle in for the night, they make use of the meager provisions provided by the insurgents in Baden's Bluff. Stomachs continue to grumble after eating, matching the slow roll of thunder from the south. By midnight, a thunderstorm breaks overhead, lightning flashing and thunder booming. Valurel can only snarl at the irony: his forest thirsts while the plains slake on the life giving fluid. It is not mere chance that the rains are held in check from the Elven forests, but the cruel hand of Izrador.

When morning arrives, dull clouds greet the Heroes. The boats now ride on a river swollen with rainwater, the current swift and dangerous. Standing at the edge of the river, far to the south, stretching like a mighty, winding snake, a dirt road spans the Erenland plains. The Road of Salt and Tears and the Road of Ruin, two roads used by Izrador's forces on the plains. At this distance, the roads look bare, free of orc patrols or marching armies. The plains of Erenland are vast; maintaining vigil on such a long highway would prove to taxing even for the Shadow's forces. The reputed orc garrisons are not visible either. Most likely these horrific structures are located further south or west.

Do the Heroes continue upriver? Mardo feels that the higher water may provide relief from snags and shallow bottoms, but they cannot continue indefinitely upriver. The river is nothing more than an oversized creek at this point. Do the Heroes press south or west, hoping to intercept the trail left by Ibor and his accomplices? The thunderstorm last night might have erased all signs of their passage. How do the Heroes proceed?

 

[Krug]

Starhl eyes the gnome, still slightly suspicious of the wee folk. He considers the road ahead. Tired of rowing, he turns to his companions. "Perhaps we should attempt the road, and see if Ibor left any trails. With a large group, it might not be that difficult to track."

 

[maddmic]

Herger watches the fast moving water and remembers how low his craft had been in the water. He shivers for a split second at the though of getting back on that thing with the current so much faster. He also seriously doubts that their headway will be near as quick as the night before due to the increased current. Relieved that Starhl spoke first, he nods. "I agree. The road is not without it's dangers, but with the current as fast as it is now, I doubt we'd be making up any time by continuing that way."

He pauses and looks at the small gnome and then back at his water craft. "I am sorry little one, we do not have much to offer you in return for speeding us away. Some would say that giving you warning about the death that came from the north would be enough, but I fear that is not the case with me. Where will you go from here? To go back north would surely mean that you would run into that boat again. All I can offer is my ability to help you carry your belongings if you'd like to make your way towards another river if there is one near here. I doubt that your canoe would slow us down at all."

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Lodric sighs deeply. Harsh reality has shattered the dreams he had. He once thought that when he found those bound together in the common cause of resisting the Shadow, life would be simpler. Certainly there would be danger, but he would know his purpose and what he had to do to accomplish it. The betrayals within the resistance pierced him to his soul. While he enjoys the comradarie of his new friends, he feels like he and they have as little control as the raft he is sitting upon.

Slowly he rousts himself from his self-pity. Aislinn. He must keep her in the forefront of his thoughts. Resistance, Shadow, they are all flawed people doing what they think is best for themselves first. Aislinn is different from them and must be protected from those who would hurt her or use her to their own selfish ends.

Let's get ashore. We are gaining little over the speed of a horse and if they changed direction, we might sail past without knowing. Perhaps we can find someone who has seen them pass and would be willing to speak with us. And I too am getting hungry and would like to see if we can find some game. If we can catch enough, perhaps we will have something to trade for information.

 

[Bihlbo]

"Yes, it's good that you decide to continue on foot, but as soon as I'm paid, I'll roll back downstream. I still need to get to the 'Sea, you see, and return this pathetic boat - preferably as quickly as possible. In the way of payment, perhaps you have some items of metal with which you could part? Or maybe you could help me give the peasant's boat a few repairs - I'm sure that'd be enough payment for the man to justify having to go without it for a day."