"One-way? That would be ... unfortunate."
Peladus' eyes widen at the thought.
He glances around at his companions, as if assessing them as potential life-long allies. Without making it obvious, he includes the captain and his men in his scrutiny. Whatever conclusions he comes to, he wisely keeps to himself.
[sblock=OOC]Sense Motive +0 re the captain's previous speech and the soldiers' response to it.[/sblock]"You say that you create undead as servants? Where do you get the raw materials? Ah, of course, from your fallen enemies ... and, no doubt, from any of your own fallen, since they would be a resource too precious to waste in the battle against an unrelenting foe. Hmm."
The wizard pauses, pensively rubbing his jaw.
"Do you know who set up the portal in the first place? What research has been done on it? What makes you so sure it is exclusively a one-way ride?"
Then he draws himself to his full height and sternly looks the captain in the eye.
"And what options do you think you have in 'deciding what to do with us all for now'?"
For a moment the young man holds that pose, then he smiles and adds, "After all, you've admitted that you can ill afford the resources it would take to deal with us aggressively; and we have no interest in fighting you if we don't have to. Why don't we try to work together, instead?"