The orcs
Subject Fight, round 5
Harp glowers at Ran, working to control his rage at being reprimanded for doing what he thought he should have done. Finally, he nods at Ran, in recognition of his authority over the group, moves off to the side, and reloads his crossbow, in case any of the orcs get any ideas when Salix tells the forest to let the orcs go. He still wonders what they are going to do with 5 orc prisoners - they can't take them with them and they can't leave them behind. Harp is also thinks it is very unlikely that his companions will have the gumption to do what needs to be done for the good of the group (and society at large) and kill all of these creatures once they have divulged any usefull information. Harp thinks about how he can assure that the creatures will not bother them without having to kill them.
From: Randy
Subjet: Fight, round 5
Ran berates himself silently for being too trusting and possibly endangering his companions by freeing the orcs too quickly. Ran quietly says "Right you are Salix. Leave them bound and please send the birds out to scout the area."
To the orc leader Ran calls out "We are unable to stop the forest from entangling you at this time but we are prepared to talk. Why were you pursuing this man?" Ran points to the human body still laying on the ground. "And are there more of your friends about the area?" Ran waits for a response and will press for more information if the answers are unsatisfactory.
To his companions he says "If there are any questions any of you would like answered, please feel free to ask away."
From: Randy
Subject End of combat
Ran curses himself as he thinks over his inventory and realizes he forgot to bring rope. 'A great leader I'm turning out to be' he silently comments.
"Does anyone have a good amount of rope among their posessions?" he asks the group, keeping his voice quiet so as not to allow the orcs to hear.
From: Kevin
Subject Rope
Harp responds with a grunt.
"I have a goodly length of rope on my pack horse, though it will be wasted on these creatures. I say have the ranges keep their bows nocked and let us deal with them with a swords drawn."
There is 50' of silk rope hanging on Harp's pack horse for use.
From: Mark
Subject Hello?
Is anyone out there? Kevin and Randy have replied? Did the rest of you get the last turn?
From: Abby
Subject End of Combat
Surin, being too far to hear the soft voices, just concentrates on blending into the forest scenery.
From: Derrell
Subject End of Combat
Fal continues to ba wary and hold his crossbow at the ready. He will gladly allow his raven to be sent on patrol with the other birds. All Ran has to do is ask. Fal wonders what will become of the prisoners when they have been interrogated.
He calls to Ran, "I offer Lenore's services as a scout".
From: Ami
Subject End of Combat
"I also have a length of rope, but we cannot sustain prisoners for long, and we cannot simply let them go to warn others. I wonder if there is a town or friendly outpost near here where we can leave them. (knowledge, geography OOC: how does that work, anyway?) Perhaps the man can tell us somewhat about the area."
Grey has been circling the area of combat, and now Cai asks him to scout the area for more threats.
From: Kevin
Subject End of Combat
If the topic reaches this point, Harp will mention that he believes he has a way to deal with the orcs. It will not involve killing them, though it will cause them some pain. It will keep the orcs from following our group, but will allow them to, albiet with some difficulty, make their way back to where ever they came from.
Harp has no questions of the captives.
From: Karl
Subject End of Combat
Salix also has a rope, but since one has been offered, he will hold off mentioning until it is needed.
From: Karl
Subject End of Combat
Salix does as requested, leaving the "entangle" spell running while asking Noctis to scout ahead. He will send Noctis out to scout the wooded area where his vision won't be hampered by too much light.
"Ran, I'm concerned. As I said, the accent of the fallen man sounded like that of Muhn. We are meeting an envoy from Muhn. The coincidence seems a bit much, don't you think? Ask the creature where this man came from an why they were chasing him. I'd be careful not to give on about the envoy in case they don't know about it already."
From: Rob
Subject End of Combat
Bel says that he has already sent Ebon ranging behind them and to the sides, and that he had no warnings from him at this point.
"I wanted to make sure we weren't fighting a diversion", he tells Ran, "so I sent Ebon ahead at the beginning of the fight."
From: Mark
Subject The Orcs
Harp looks at Ran with surprise. They were not going to kill the orc's? But that is how you dealt with creatures like that. He stared at Ran for a few seconds, until he remembered that Angelwing put Ran in charge. Still disgusted with the turn of events, Harp moves to one side, reloading his crossbow, trying to decide what they are going to do with the orcs. They can't take them along. They could not be left behind. All of a sudden a wicked grin crosses Harp's face. He has a good idea what he will have to do. He is fairly sure that none of the others will have the gumption to do it. He would enjoy it.
Ran takes Salix's suggestion about sending the birds out to scout and questioning the orcs from a distance to heart. ?Would those of you who have feathered companions mind sending them out on a little recon?? At that Bel, Cai and Fal all send their birds into the air. Salix hoots at Noctis and the owl also takes off into the woods. Ran calls out to the leader and tells him ?We are unable to free you from the forest at this time, but we are prepared to talk. Why were you pursuing this man? Are there more of your people about?? While the orc leader thinks, Ran asks the group if they have any questions they would like to ask. He also asks the group ?Did anyone think to bring any rope along??
Harp replies from the side of the road, ?I have some rope on my pack horse, but it would be wasted on such as these. I say have the rangers keep their bows trained on them and let us deal with them with drawn steel.? Cai also says that she has some rope,?but we can not sustain prisoners long and we can not simply let them go. I wonder if there is a town or friendly outpost near by where we could drop them off. Perhaps the man can tell us some what about the area.?
At that comment Harp speaks up. ? I have an idea. It does not involve killing the orcs,though it will cause them some pain. It will keep them from following, but allow them to move, albeit painfully. I can hamstring them.?
Salix confers with Ran and the others who are close by. ?Ran, I am concerned. As I said, the accent of the fallen man was that of Mnuhl. We are expecting an envoy from Mnuhl. The coincidence seems a bit much, don't you think? Ask this creature where this man cam e from and why they were chasing him. I'd be careful not to give on about the envoy in case they don't know anything about it already.?
Ran relays that question to the orc leader. Again in halting common the orc leader replies.? Me Bonegnasher. This my tribe. We come down from hills 6 days ago, look for food and shelter. Saw man running with no one around. Good sport. We chase man, catch man, get slave. Maybe food. Maybe gold. You kill tribe. We go back to mountains. No more bother powerful man things.?
A few minutes pass and eventually the other orcs wake up and the forest stops grabbing them. Bonegnasher tells them not to pick up their weapons. He and they lay down on the ground waiting for the group to decide what to do with them. . The birds also start to show back up and none of them seem to be bothered by anything at all. Lenore and Ebon sit on the shoulders of their masters and shake their heads sideways, seeming to indicate that there is nothing out there.