In reply to Brengalyn (msg # 15):

Barg just flitted right up the corpse. It was goblin soldier in good equipment, that was plain to for Brengalyn to see from twenty feet away. A he astonishingly took the rope between his teeth his teeth and twisted his head, she noticed a subtle motion. It took a moment for her to realize what it was.

It was a rope. Another rope secured between two knots on the rope Barg was gnawing on. Looking about the trees she soon spotted a notched limb, a leaf covered log, and it dawned on her. It was a trap! And the body was not only the bait but also the counter balance.

In reply to Thamkis Slybones (msg # 21):

In a weak sing-song voice the elf maiden answered, "Yes, please, and some water too. The both of us are famished. And thirsty. And ready to see my Lord and husband."

In reply to GM (msg # 22):

"Barg! Stop gnawing that rope! It's a counter-weight trap!"

Brengalyn didn't rush, as the presence of one trap suggested more, or enemies waiting nearby. She approached her goblin ally calmly and slowly

"Get down from there."

In reply to Brengalyn (msg # 24):

Barg raised his head with a confused look, looking around

"Is a trap? Barg doesn't smell a trap, but if tall lady says trap Barg will listen!"

Barg did his best to stop gnawing tasty tasty rope and tried to climb down without setting anything off.

Thamkis plated up some food for the hungry and elf and handed her a waterskin

"There you go, won't be long now."

Brengalyn and Barg fiddling with a trap caught her attention

"We may end up with fewer companions though . . . "

Penny looked at Bren with admiration "That was very impressive for you to notice that Bren! I would not have seen that coming!"

In reply to Penny Perseus (msg # 27):

"Seen a lot of these, set a few in my time, though usually with food or supplies. Bodies . . . that's something else. It's a punishment for having the decency to cut them down, or in this case they likely figured we'd take the bait for a suit of mail."

Brena took a nip from her flask, her eyes not leaving the tree branch until Barg was down.

"That's terrible! Barg! Are you alright?" concerned, Penny walked closer to the tree, hands covered in dirt.

Barg twisted, the rope slid from his teeth, and he shifted his weight carefully. Then his urges overtook him. One last bite on the rope!

His teeth sank in satisfyingly deep, the feeling was like biting the head off of a fat little snargling and feeling the blood well up. Then there was a creak, a snap, and Barg went sailing, flung like a stone from a catapult into the gaping maw of the cleverly concealed pit just off to the south of the corpse.

The ground rushed up. Barg smiled, it was a thrilling sensation right up until he went unconscious.

As they all watched, Barg chomped down on the rope with particular relish and the trap engaged. To their amazement, the little fellow seemed to smile around the rope as the corpse laden rope seemed to draw buck with yank and then suddenly go slack and fling the corpse, and Barg, into a pit that had been very craftily concealed nearby.

As Barg sailed into the pit, the corpse acting like anchor and catapult, it looked almost like he waved to them before he disappeared into the hole in the ground. There was loud wamping impact and a puff of dust from within the hole.

"Whhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" *thud*

Thamkis groaned and grabbed her walking stick, walking over with some frustration at the scene that had played out.

"Is he dead? We might be able to still use him if he's dead . . . "

"Skai."

Brena drew her ankus and cursed in Orcish, approaching the area where Barg had sailed through the air

"Barg! Barg if you can hear me say something. Get out of that hole."

19:52, Today: GM rolled 8 using 3d8.  Barg's damage from the trap.

Borg opened one eye. The other was caked up with mud where his face was partially planted in the gelatinous muck. He could feel the mud in his nostril. When he realized the taste of blood in his mouth he felt around with his tongue; one tooth knocked out, a split lip, and he had bitten his tongue.

Barg could feel one arm under his torso, at the wrong angle and knew it was dislocated at his shoulder. The pain was intense, it made him smile. Pain, blood, injury; now that was ride!

Taking little steps with his feet, Barg walked his feet in under his lower body, jacking his but into the air where he realized he could feel the breeze on his exposed buttocks. That made him laugh, well chuckle into the mud really. This made him cringe in pain. That made him fart, sending mud spattering away from his butt. This in turn made him laugh hard enough to twist over onto his back and so he stretch out with his arm folded the wrong way across his chest.

Looking up he saw the rope still hanging overhead and remembered the corpse. Then he smelled it. He had landed hard riding the corpse. When the corpse erupted under the impact he was sprayed with its rotting guts.

Not bad he thought.

Barg scrambled to pick up his tooth and gripped it tightly, putting it away in his belt pouch inside his loin cloth and trying to bound up the sides of the pit to come back out, popping his shoulder back in before he scrabbled up the earthen walls

OOC: Climb check 14

Brengalyn watched the goblin fumble his way around in the hole, farting and throwing . . . mud, she told herself, everywhere.

Unhitching a coil of rope from her pack she threw one end down

"Climb up, damn goblin."

She shook her head, this was the most dangerous member of their group by far, a beast who could eat his way through to the far side of an enemy, and he was entertained by bodily injury . . .

Thamkis strode up, waving her club in the air and whistling a low bird call. The others would dig Barg out, but this did not seem like random chance

OOC: commune with birds, asking the question "Are there people hiding in the forest?"

A fat quail flew up to Thamkis, very uncharacteristically, and landed on her shoulder. It bobbed and cawed. Speaking its peace.

The other little green skins had wondered away with the rains. Ambling along in their ungainly, ugly way after stealing one of her eggs and devouring one of her unborn children. They had gone toward the rising sun two moons hence, but their foul stench still clung to the places were they had lain.

"These traps are patrolled by goblins. They've been gone for a couple days . . . or months. Either way the birds here have no love of them, but haven't seen them since."

Thamkis warbled a response to the quail and set it on its way

"We'd do well to be cautious, but it sounds as if the danger is not immediate."

"Thank you"

Brengalyn pulled up Barg and tried not to be weirded out by the strange halfling woman she'd fallen in with.

Though magic was not unheard of among the mercenary camps, these nature magics seldom found alliance with sellsword companies, and more often than not were opposed. Shamanic orcs had occasionally assisted the companies when she was little, but that was more to do with Relgruk Crackjaw's contract rather than any natural affinity. And those were arcane spells, not nature.

"I'm glad you are on our side, Thamkis. I'd hate to think how we'd fare with empty stomachs, sore feet, little common sense and a wise woman set against us."

"Pah!"

Barg spat on the ground in derision

"Barg fears no goblin! Goblins are not making Barg afraid!"

The goblin himself showed his lack of fear by running back to the wagon to get his gear, so as to be ready for goblin-fights

In the distance the sound of a blaring trumpet could be heard. That is was a signal was understood, but what was it signalling? And who?

Penny stood close to the elven woman "Don't worry, if there are bandits in these woods we will protect you" Penny looked nervous though. They were wide open for attack where they were.

"Is call to adventure! Is most important sound in life after dinner bell!"

Barg tried to scramble up a tree to see what was coming

Moments later the thunder of hoof-beats could be heard. A lot of hoof-beats.

"Well, looks like we need to prepare for a fight. Get your weapons, keep them close. Show them we mean business . . . hopefully they're the mercenary company we've been looking for."

Brengalyn grabbed her ankus and strapped on her buckler, heading out to the road to see if she could see the horses approach