Rescue from the Goblin Horde Part Five
Rytahl stared into the smoldering campfire, wondering what exactly she and Vanidorr had gotten themselves into. Though their once and future companion, Sjoberg, had been with them for a while now, Vanidorr and Rytahl had been adventuring together for quite a bit longer. Realizing that the barbarian seemed a lot more eager for battle and bloodshed than even she had imagined, Rytahl wondered if she really knew Sjoberg at all.
Vanidorr wasn't with them. He had stayed in the trees to watch the Goblin Camp overnight. Rytahl felt alone when Vanidorr was gone, and she worried about him. This much was evident to most of her companions.
"He'll be fine," Tamos said in an attempt to comfort Rytahl.
"I know," she replied. "It's just... those Goblins... they are dangerous in numbers."
"Vanidorr seems resourceful," Tamos said. "I doubt the Goblins could even find him, keeping hidden in the trees as he does."
"Yes," Rytahl said, looking into the fire. "He is one of my only close friends. It would be a shame were anything to happen to him."
The pair continued talking about the current situation, and soon, Lenalia got the group's attention.
"All right, everyone," she said. "We are still in danger, so I propose watches overnight, so that in case the Goblins find us, we will be warned."
Rothrusk smiled. "As we were taught by the eminent Harrian Thane," he added.
The rest of the group agreed, and watches were set in pairs. Lenalia and Sjoberg were first, followed by Tamos and Rothrusk, with Rytahl by herself at the end of the night. Lenalia said she would be awake by then, so she could watch with Rytahl.
But the group didn't need to wait that long for something to happen. In fact, as soon as most of the Heroes had bedded down, and Lenalia and Sjoberg (along with Valkyrie, his pet wolf) were on watch, figures began to appear in the treeline!
Lenalia spotted the approaching figures first, just before her barbarian companion did the same. There was a total of 4 Goblin Warriors, armed with spears and maces, entering the camp as if no one were on watch at all. The Goblins sure were surprised to find two of the adventurers ready for battle, and others being roused.
The Elf sorceress charged forward to meet the incoming Goblins, bashing one of them to the ground with her quarterstaff in one blow.
"Impressive, Elfling," Sjoberg noted, steeling himself for melee with the others, at the same time kicking Tamos awake.
"Thanks," Lenalia replied. "I feel... stronger... somehow."
Tamos rolled to his feet, and swept the feet out from one of the Goblins bearing down on him. He followed this up with a swift kick to the midsection, effectively knocking the Goblin unconscious.
After seeing that Tamos was awake and aware, Sjoberg sent his wolf Valkyrie into melee with one of the spearmen, while he worked to rouse Rytahl, who was already half-awake due to the sounds of battle.
Valkyrie, at the behest of her master, jumped one of the Goblins, taking it to the ground and ending its threat.
At this point, one Goblin Warrior remained, and faced off against Rytahl, Sjoberg, Lenalia, and Tamos, as well as the wolf, Valkyrie. Seeing that it had no chance against such odds, the Goblin fled.
But the good news, if anything could be considered good about the ambush, was that the Heroes now had a Goblin captive, whom they could question when he awoke from his Tamos-induced slumber.
When the last Goblin was gone, and the Heroes had gathered up the equipment that had been strewn all over the camp during the short battle, Tamos kicked Rothrusk awake. Somehow, he had missed the entire combat, and despite the wolf growling, swords clanging, and cries of the wounded and slain Goblins, the aspiring Cleric had napped through it all.
"Had a good rest, brother?" Tamos asked sarcastically.
Rothrusk rubbed his eyes and looked around at the field of battle. "What did I miss?"
...
Ariel struggled against the ropes that bound herself and her cousin, Mirra to the pole at the center of the Goblin Encampment. Though Ariel thought herself to be emotionally tough and mentally strong, it was her lack of physical might that was the problem right now.
"You getting anywhere on your ropes?" Ariel asked her cousin.
"Nope," Mirra replied. "I think we're stuck."
"Ha! We're not going to be stuck for much longer."
"What makes you say that?" Mirra demanded.
"Just a feeling," Ariel replied. "Call it a hunch."
"I wonder why the Goblins haven't eaten us yet," Mirra wondered.
Ariel struggled some more, until she heard a pair of Goblins wandering nearby. She stopped to eavesdrop on their conversation. "Interesting," she said.
"What?" Mirra asked.
"Remember that commotion earlier?" Ariel asked. "Apparently, the camp was attacked."
"Attacked?" Mirra said. "By who?"
"No idea," Ariel answered. "But I'm willing to bet it has something to do with the reason we were brought out here."
"I was wondering about that," Mirra admitted. "Why not just leave us inside the tent if they want to keep us hidden."
"Do you have any friends back in the Keep who might be brave enough to attempt a rescue?"
Mirra thought for a moment. "The only person I really know at the Keep is Sandros, and he's too old for this sort of thing. Well, Sandros and..."
"Who?"
"Well, I have become friends with an adventurer, Rothrusk, and his allies," Mirra explained. "They have been to the Caves of Chaos of late. I wonder..."
"Someone attacked the Goblins," Ariel said. "I would prefer it to be your friends than some other competing warband."
"Do you really think the Goblins will trade us to the Ogre?" Mirra asked.
"Yes," Ariel replied. "In fact, they plan to do so in the morning. That's why I've been so eager to escape. I'm not looking forward to what that Ogre might want to do with us."
...
Rothrusk, Tamos, and Lenalia surrounded the captive Goblin, whose name as it turned out was Grex. The little guy was bound with rope, and several melee weapons were pointed in his direction as the Heroes questioned the Goblin Warrior.
Grex did not speak the Common Tongue, only the Goblin Language, so unfortunately, only Rothrusk could speak with him. The aspirant knelt to be face-to-face with the captive.
(The following conversation is in the Goblin Language)
"Tell us all you know about the captive girls," Rothrusk demanded. "We know you have them."
"Girls?" Grex asked. "Yes, two human girls."
"What do you want with them?" Rothrusk queried.
"Me?" Grex said. "I want nothing of them."
"No, I mean your tribe or whatever," Rothrusk clarified. "Why have you captured them?"
Grex shook his head. "They are for Ungeheuer. A gift from our Chieftain."
"So they are alive?"
"Yes," Grex replied. "They will be kept alive. Such is the will of our Chieftain."
"Very well," Rothrusk said. "When are you giving the girls to the Ogre?"
"No idea," Grex answered. "Chieftain will tell us."
"All right, how about another topic," Rothrusk said. "What are all of you doing out here so close to Merghis Keep?"
"We strike... soon!" Grex replied, smiling.
"Strike the Keep?" Rothrusk demanded.
"Oh yes," Grex said. "And we are not alone. There are other Warbands."
"Goblins?" Rothrusk asked.
"Goblins and others," Grex said. "We have many friends... well, not friends... more like they also hate the people of Merghis Keep."
"And so... why are they all gathered here?" Rothrusk asked.
Grex smiled. "To attack, of course."
(End Conversation in the Goblin Language)
Rothrusk stood. "We have a problem."
...
The situation was desperate, not just for the recovery of Ariel and Mirra, who were captives of the Goblin Horde, but also for stopping the Goblins' attack on Merghis Keep! The Heroes collected themselves and, after securing the captive Grex, headed back to the encampment.
The first order of business was for Tamos to find Vanidorr, to ensure that he was still alive, and to find out what he had learned from watching the camp overnight. While Tamos scurried into the trees, the rest of the Heroes bided their time, at a spot they had found about 100 feet from the edge of the encampment.
"They are weaker now," Sjoberg pointed out. "We have destroyed half their numbers."
Lenalia joined the barbarian in watching the camp. From this distance, she could see some of the activity within, but not much seemed to be going on at the moment.
"I'm sure they will be ready for us to return," the Elf maiden said. "They sent a scout party to kill us in our sleep, and they never returned."
"One of them returned," Rothrusk said. "Remember, one of those little guys escaped."
"Oh, that's true," Lenalia said. "So, they will know we're coming."
"It's a valid assumption," Rytahl said. "I don't know how smart Goblins are, but if they sent out a search party for us, and that search party never returned... it would stand to reason the Goblins know that we're coming for them."
Meanwhile, Tamos made his way to where Vanidorr had been hiding, and quickly found his ally, who had moved a few times during the night, but was still in the trees.
"Enjoying yourself up there?" Tamos asked.
"Nah," Vanidorr replied. "It's been pretty boring. Not much going on."
"We're getting ready to attack," Tamos explained. "Be prepared. We could probably use a little aerial support."
"You got it."
...
Plans were set into motion, and the Heroes charged into the Goblin Camp. Sjoberg, his wolf, Valkyrie, Tamos, and Rytahl formed the first line, with Rothrusk and Lenalia providing secondary missile support. Before they charged in, Rothrusk invoked a blessing on the group, explaining that this would help them in battle.
The Goblins were not unprepared at all, though it was clear that the sunlight in their eyes was displeasing to them. Already in the camp when the Heroes charged were eight Goblin footmen, armed with maces and javelins. The Goblin footmen, after throwing their javelins uselessly against the Heroes, charged to meet the front ranks.
Eight on four wasn't as unbalancing as it might sound, as the Heroes individually were equal to at least two or three of the footmen they faced. Adding the missile and magic support of Lenalia and Rothrusk, it was a fairly short exchange.
But those eight Goblin footmen were not the Heroes' only foes. After the footmen engaged in close combat, Goblin archers emerged from the tents and split into a pair of formations - one heading across the field of battle, firing as they went, and the other forming a line approximately 30 feet away from the scrum.
In addition, a pair of Goblin lieutenants, notable for the pair of shortswords they wielded, moved into position to join the melee. They also employed javelins at first, then charged in. This seemed to be a fairly common Goblin tactic. When the lieutenants had emerged from their tents and joined the combat, a pair of most unusual Goblins rounded out the defense. One, a larger Goblin wielding a double-headed axe, was easily recognizeable as the Goblin Chieftain. The other, a normal-sized Goblin with a staff wore the telltale headdress of a Goblin Shaman.
Whereas the Goblin lieutenants joined their fellows in melee combat against the bunched Heroes, the Chieftain and the Shaman stayed close to a post in the center of the camp, where Mirra and Ariel were bound captive!
While Rytahl, Sjoberg, and Valkyrie kept the Goblin footmen busy, Tamos, seeing the captive girls tied to the post in the center of camp, decided to take matters into his own hands. Without a word, he dove into the treeline, with the hope of circling around to sneak up to the captives and free them.
Tamos wasn't the only one with such ideas. After peppering the Goblins with arrows, Vanidorr saw an opportunity to free Ariel and Mirra, and clambered from tree to tree in an effort to get closer to the clearing and that part of the camp.
Vanidorr and Tamos arrived nearly at the same time at the edge of the clearing and spotted each other.
"I see you had the same idea I had," Vanidorr said.
"Free the girls?" Tamos said. "I figure we could take out the leaders at the same time."
"My only interest is to free the captives and get out of here," Vanidorr explained. "We get our gold, and everyone is happy. I don't want to risk my neck just to take out a few extra Goblins no one will miss anyway."
"They are planning to attack Merghis Keep," Tamos said. "We have to try to stop them. Taking out the leadership may be the only way to do it."
They hatched a plan to confuse the Goblins. While Tamos rounded the tents and got the attention of the Shaman and a few of the Lieutenants, Vanidorr would swoop in and free Ariel and Mirra.
The Shaman engaged Tamos, but the deft hero proved too much for the spellcaster, who though he had a few tricks up his sleeve, did not slow Tamos much. Soon, Tamos had the Shaman on the ground, and down for the count.
The Heroes' plan worked well, except for the fact that the Chieftain had ordered guards to stay close to the captives. He knew that freeing the girls was the Heroes' true objective here, so keeping them closely guarded would be key to winning the battle.
What he didn't count on was Vanidorr's ingenuity. The roguish hero jumped right in the middle of the guards, including the Chieftain himself!
"Don't mind me!" he said, dancing around the wild swings of the Goblin guards. "I won't be here long."
He somersaulted into the middle of the area, ending up right next to the very post where Mirra and Ariel were bound.
"Hi," Ariel said. "Do we know you?"
"No," Vanidorr said. "But you will... Now hold still." He drew a small knife and with one hack, severed the rope that had kept the pair of cousins bound together. "Here," he said, giving Ariel the knife. "I've got some more work to do."
The Goblin Chieftain, not at all pleased with this turn of events, charged at Vanidorr, swinging his mighty axe in the hero's direction. Vanidorr proved too quick for the Chieftain but nonetheless expedited his escaped from the area before the Chieftain had another chance to attack.
"Come now, cousin," Ariel said, deftly slicing Mirra's ropes, "I believe we have spent quiet enough time in this camp."
The girls were freed, but still surrounded by Goblin Guards. While Ariel was armed with a small knife, Mirra was totally unarmed. Tamos, seeing the situation, charged into the fray, drawing away the Goblins' attention from the cousins. Mirra broke for the treeline to the north of the camp, with one guard giving chase. Ariel tumbled past Tamos and the Guards who were engaged, and headed toward one of the tents.
"Where are you going?" Tamos asked as he fought off the remaining Guards.
"Gotta get my stuff," Ariel explained as she went. "And who are you anyway?"
Before Tamos could answer, Ariel was gone into a tent. She must have known where the Goblins had been keeping her things. A Goblin gave chase, but was surprised when Ariel emerged on the other side of the tent, a hand crossbow leveled at his head. Ariel fired, dropping the Guard in his tracks.
"Where did Mirra go?" Rothrusk asked as he bounded up into the center of the clearing. Most of the Goblins had dispersed, giving the Heroes a chance to enter the camp without much trouble.
"I'll go find her," Tamos said. "She went this way." As he went, Rothrusk followed, hoping to help in Mirra's rescue from her lone Goblin tormentor.
Before Tamos could get very far, the Goblin Chieftain emerged from behind a tent and dropped Tamos with a blow from his mighty double-headed axe. The Chieftain said something to Tamos, but not knowing the Goblin Language, all Tamos could think about was his own survival.
Tamos jumped to his feet, bleeding from the shoulder, where a huge gash would definitely need medical attention later. He kicked at the Chieftain, plunking the creature in the midsection. In response, the Chieftain dealt Tamos another serious blow, cutting him across the chest, and nearly tearing him in half. Tamos dropped, but was soon replaced.
Sjoberg, the barbarian, seeing what was happening to Tamos, joined the battle just as Tamos dropped. The Chieftain, who was oblivious to what was going on, didn't see Sjoberg until it was too late. The last thing he saw was a sharp bony protrusion sticking through his chest.
The barbarian pulled his pickaxe from the dead Chieftain. "It is done," he declared. "They are running, and will not return."
At this point, Rothrusk and Mirra emerged from the treeline. "I found Mirra," the aspirant said.
"Tamos needs your help," Lenalia said, pointing to the downed hero. "But we are pretty much done here."
Vanidorr appeared from behind one of the tents. "Let's give the camp a good search, just to be on the safe side. Especially these tents. I wonder if the Goblins have any treasure."
The Heroes gave the Goblin Encampment a very thorough search, spending the first half of the day there. They found a chest containing some coins and other valuables, including a pair of matching Elven rings. Lenalia discovered that the Chieftain and the Shaman were both in the possession of magically enchanted weapons and armor, and those would need to be studied more carefully back at the Keep.
They returned to Merghis Keep with Ariel and Mirra in tow, victorious. But the question that lingered on the minds of many was... what about the other warbands? Was there still an attack in the offing? And if so, when?
They would soon found out...
END GAME SESSION FIVE