Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sniktch" data-source="post: 417285" data-attributes="member: 7704">Aftermath and The CaveThe battle rage slowly left Welby and he finally became aware of the two bolts sticking into his body.  He slumped to the ground with a stifled gasp.  Jack, having already seen to his own injuries, moved over to examine the wounds but the halfling waved him away.  “Go…see…Eli,” Welby gasped, “he…hit…too.”“Nonsense, Welby, you’re hurt bad.  Let me take care of it.”Welby shook his head and pushed Jack away.  “No…fine…used to…pain.”Jack shrugged and pulled Ike aside, telling him to keep a close eye on the brave warrior and call for him if he lost consciousness.  He turned and started trotting up the hill, calling for his friend.The Royston Crow’s voice answered, “He can’t answer Jack, he’s hurt bad.  I think I’ve got him stabilized but he’s lost a lot of blood – I can’t say how he is.”Jack broke into a run, moving as fast as his stubby legs could carry him.  He came to the top of the hill and found the Crow kneeling by Eli’s side, pressing against the side of his neck where the bolt had torn a ragged gouge through the flesh.  The elf’s chest barely moved, and his skin was turning an icy blue.  Jack cried out and rushed to his friend’s side, holding his hands to the wound as he called out to his god.“Great Clangeddin, grant your servant the power to heal this warrior whose time has not come!  Give me the strength to heal my friend who paid the price for my foolishness!”A warm glow enveloped Jack’s hands and spread into the cold flesh of the stricken elf.  The Crow gasped in wonder as he watched the torn flesh knit together before his eyes, the jagged edges of the wound growing back together and sealing over as if no injury had ever existed.  Eli’s breathing steadied and the color began to return to his face, and Jack choked, trying to stifle his sobs of relief.Meanwhile Ike was finding that other casualties of the battle had, in fact, survived.  Kneeling to examine the man he’d shot down, he found that his bolt had only grazed his temple, injuring him and knocking him instantly unconscious, but sparing his life.  The man groaned as Ike hurriedly searched him, confiscating a dagger and a pouch that felt like it contained several coins.  He also found a holy symbol of silver under the man’s coat.  “The Morrigan,” he muttered disgustedly as he slid it into a pouch.  The Morrigan was an evil deity of war and pestilence whose followers were capable of any vile act in her name.Glancing over at Welby, he saw that the small warrior did indeed seem to be doing fine.  He appeared winded, but he had cleaned and dressed his own wounds and was watching Ike silently.  The others all seemed to be on their feet, and were slowly making their way back down the hill.  The packhorse, forgotten in the combat, still stood in the road defiantly, seemingly daring anyone to try to move it.  Ike yelled to the others, “We got one alive,” then proceeded to tear strips of cloth from the man’s clothing, bandaging his head and binding his hands and feet securely.  Welby had risen and was examining the nearby area.  As the others made their way over, Welby waved his arms, catching their attention.  He then pointed to a clear line of tracks leading away toward the edge of the Twilight Forest.“They come that way,” he intoned solemnly.Jack turned to Eli, “Lemme see that map,” then back to the others, “So, whatta we do now?  We oughter get this food back to Lord Travens, but these three mighta been part o a bigger group.”“Obviously our first responsibility is to deliver the supplies to the village.  If we wake the prisoner, we can question him on the way back before we hand him over to the lord.”  Eli paused a moment before continuing, “Jack, according to the map, their tracks do head in the general direction of Duernfast.”The Royston Crow spoke next. “Look, the town is only, what, a mile away at the most?  We should be able to deliver the supplies, drop off the prisoner, and be back here in less than an hour.  We need to hurry, though – if these three have friends waiting for them, they might start to get anxious for their return.”Ike looked at the wreckage of the wagon and the scattered crates and sacks.  “Well, we can’t carry all of this.  I say we lighten the horse’s load and carry the supplies already packed into its saddlebags.  Then we just throw our bandit on the horse and we can lead the villagers back to collect the rest.”Jack ran his thumb down the blade of his axe, drawing a bright bead of blood.  “Aye, and then we foller these tracks back to their source, and we slay any more scum we find there.”______________________________Welby pause at the edge of the woods, listening intently and scanning the trees for any sign of movement.  As the Royston Crow had predicted, the group arrived back at the scene of battle in a little less than an hour, a group of townsfolk following them to gather any scattered foodstuffs still lying around.  They had tried to question their prisoner about what they might find – how many allies he had, their purpose, where they were camped, etc. – but he had proved most unhelpful.  The only information he had imparted was that his name was Marsem Trember and they would pay for their transgression, that the followers of the Morrigan would “flay the skin from their bones and feed them to the orcs.”Jack had been very unimpressed with the skinny, fanatical Trember and had to be restrained at one point lest they return to Lord Travens without a prisoner.  The man had also quickly offended Alexei, and soon he had been hauled off to the gaol until the time of his appointment with the gallows could be decided.  Lord Travens implored the companions to find the bandits’ camp and either kill or scatter them so they would no longer threaten the citizens of Travensburg.  Of course, they told him that had been their plan all along.Now Welby scouted the trail, moving silently through the drifts about twenty paces in front of the others.  The trail had led them southeast from the road for approximately three miles, into the rugged hills bordering the outskirts of the Twilight Forest.  According to the map that Jack and Eli kept referring to, they should be very close to the entrance to the ruined mines of Duernfast.  It seemed quite likely that this is where the attackers had holed up.  Welby hoped so – he wanted to get indoors soon.  Normally he loved the cold, frigid air, but he had been hurt by the two bolts worse than he was letting on, and he was freezing.He stopped, waving at the others to approach him.  The tracks ended at the entrance to a shallow cave.  The area at the mouth had been churned into slush and mud by the passage of many booted feet.  The air was quiet and still.  The companions regarded each other silently as they rested from the march, the air filled with the smoky trails of their hot breath.The Royston Crow spoke first, “It would seem we have arrived.”“Shhh,” Ike warned, “we don’t know if they’ve any guards.”Jack peered at the hole before them.  “Don’t see anything in there,” he said. “I think anyone in there’s smart enough to go further back the caves where it’s warm.  C’mon, let’s get this done with.”  He shouldered his axe and began approaching the entrance.Ike detected a hint of movement by the cave walls as Jack strode into the open.  “No, Jack, wait!” he yelled, but too late.  A volley of crossbow bolts already sped through the air towards the dwarf…To be continued...</blockquote>

Verification