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Message: <blockquote data-quote="StalkingBlue" data-source="post: 1626312" data-attributes="member: 645">Pallas's account, by Pallas's player: The Mail BoatWe survived the next few days. A bonus. Then the reinforcements from the South arrived. More archers. They settled under Tom’s command. The netted bridge had been repaired. It was in our hands. Until the next time.  We went back to Dargham’s Folly. We left Tom and his men behind.  We probably wouldn’t see them alive again. I took the Oruk half plate. There were some snickers. It still puzzled me that people didn’t understand. The point wasn’t loot. I had what I needed. It was denial of use to the enemy and use to people of our side. It was a massive amount of metal that could be made into armour, swords, shields.  One Oruk half plate didn’t make any difference. But if everyone started taking things…..  I had been laughed at all my life. It wasn’t new. We went back to camp. The journey was uneventful. As we approached, it was nearing evening. Strangely quiet. People had probably gone to Treetown. Then we arrived. There were still some people in the camp. The smith was at the forge. Not working. Naith met us at the entrance. Told us to keep quiet. Bernt, the old man, was sleeping. For the first time in days, he said. So be it. It was a good idea. Then I heard hoof beats. It was Zana. She was back. She greeted everyone. Including me. I was a little surprised. Well she had a good swordarm; and she wasn’t dead. Yet. She and Apari were civil to each other. Better, considering she wanted to kill him the last time she had seen him. Bernt’s idea was good. I was going to sleep as well. I went out of the camp and slept as usual. The next morning I went back. I picked up the half plate and took it to the smith. He looked at me. “What do you want for this?”“Nothing” I replied. “This is really good steel”!“Then use it well.”I walked away. No one understood. It didn’t matter. It was one of the reasons we were all dead men. The smith just didn’t know it yet. At that point, Katrin stuck her head out of Bernt’s building and called out: “Pallas, Apari, get in here.”Apari came trotting over. I walked. The captain was awake. We entered into his Map Room. Katrin and Zana were already there. A map was spread out in front of them. The three were talking.“Ah good. Now you are all here. First, who said that there were no ghosts in Treetown? Some are still there. We had a panic. Children were hurt. Everything is fine now but things were difficult. We really don’t need more tension between us and the elves right now. Things are not good.”Apari looked down. It was his report. He had not mentioned the remaining ghosts. I don’t know why. I thought it was his affair. He mumbled that he said that the ghosts were no longer unfriendly to humans. He wasn’t convincing.  “So next time, don’t forget to mention such important factors in your reports.”He’ll be lucky, I thought.Bernt asked for a report of our activities near the Bridge. Katrin gave it. It was a short accurate report that failed to mention that the Assassin Vine had been cleared in a perimeter around the tree which supported one of the ends of the Netted Bridge. It left that tree and therefore the Bridge, very vulnerable. Boats full of enemy could land there unopposed from the forest. Bernt also asked whether we had seen any supply boats going up river. There had been none.  Then he said he had another job for us. A place called Atta’s Camp. It was another encampment, South of the Felthera. It had been abandoned. Now, it was now in the hands of the orcs. A Hunt, Bernt said. That meant three score and some; and reports of a channeler. Going by Bern’t past record of intelligence about the enemy, I doubled that in my head; and probably more channelers as well as oruk. They had been trying to make a path between the camp and the River, but this path was veering mysteriously in the Forest. I thought this might actually be true. Things veered in the Forest. Like people’s minds. This information came from an elven scout who had been a prisoner in the Camp but who had been rescued. If we could retake the Camp and hold it, Bernt felt he could forge a link across the river between his forces here and Southern reinforcements. Bernt also told us that Tom had been in Atta’s Camp before and there was an escape tunnel there. Tom could give us first hand information.  For help we would have Horgred, leader of an orcman band. He was overdue. That meant he was dead. Also, if he could convince her, we would also have Ortemia, leader of another orcman band. She was helping halflings. She also wasn’t back yet. That left the four of us. Nothing new there. Katrin and Bernt then had another discussion. About Kraith, an orc general and the deployment of his forces.  The situation of the Keep of the Cataracts, which seemed to be going badly for the orcs. Katrin then mentioned a “hypothetical” situation, whatever that meant. Bernt said that he would like to free the Keep of the Cataracts. Katrin didn’t like that. She preferred to talk “hypothetically” about the fortress at the Black Weir. Then they talked about the deployment of the orc legions. Katrin knew a lot about this. I became restless. We needed to go. We arranged for supplies. Then we left. The journey back to the Netted Bridge was uneventful again. We hailed Tom and his comrades. We told them the news and the possible target. He had been to Atta’s Camp. He told us that they had seen a supply convoy going upriver towards the Keep. He didn’t look very happy about leaving the Bridge. He also said there was no sign of Horgred. We had a discussion about Apari scouting the Camp. Zana and Katrin were very much against it. We decided then to wait for Horgred. I thought we would be waiting for eternity. Then a call came in. A single mail boat was going to pass under the bridge soon. A quick decision was made. We were going to attack it. There were eight oars and four orcs on deck. With crossbows. The plan was simple. Apari would make Zana and I fly. I would carry Katrin. Then we would engage the orcs while the archers sniped from the Talons. So it went. Drumming announced the approach of the boat. Soon it came into sight. Then Apari also made us fast. Katrin and I landed and started carving through the orcs. Zana followed up, no less effective. Orcs fell. They couldn’t touch Zana and I but Katrin was severely hurt. She had no shield. The orcs concentrated on her. With good effect. Again and again they struck her. I noticed Zana had a new way of using her shield. Effective. The fight was over quickly. All of us still stood. Katrin was pale and her wounds spouted blood. Apari gave some of his Light to her. We had been lucky. That would run out. There were two gnomes on the boat. Wendol and Ran Gale. Father and son. The boat was theirs. They were scared. Katrin convinced them they were safe. We took the supplies off the boat. Then we scuttled it. We had several barrels of supplies. A box of cheese. Another of hardbread. There was a barrel of poisoned jerky. A box of perfumed oils. The gnomes resigned themselves. They were still alive. For now.  We settled down for the night.</blockquote>

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