Thromm shook his head at the woman and shrugged, "I'm nae a fan of the laws. At least human laws. But I'll neither be truck to killing ya now you're defeated nor will I trust your word. You're fate is of your choosing." He looked to Zenphar with some sympathy as he liked the solution somewhat. Trusting a poor, down on his luck lad to return home was one thing. This one was powerful and would go right back to it, to his mind. "Like as not, there's ta be a price upon your heads as well."

He shifted his attention to the drow and grumped, "Time can be spent gawking at items back a' the keep. Less than wise ta be doing it out here where who know what's watching." He stooped to use a dead man's clothes to clean his axe then slipped it back into its loop. "Sides, knowing what they might be won't likely serve us much good t'all should it end up it is lost goods from the keep, would it? Ain't ours til we check with the guards. Might be that ring belongs to a human noble offering a fine reward. Coin I can drink, rings not so much."

Thromm then began to pack the looted goods into a bag to carry back. He looked about for a mule or ass to aid in the matter should the bandits have kept one.

"All good and fine, Master Thromm," Nthanda says helping to pack up.  "But I prefer to have the pick of the spoils before the masters of the Keep are involved," she adds pointedly.  Once all is packed she takes up a position towards the rear, keeping an eye behind and on the prisoners.

"That's a fair point," Tegan said to Nthanda with a nod.

"When I was in the Watch in Suzail, 'twas common knowledge that many of the better items that we would bring in from raids on warehouses holding stolen goods and the like never made it onto the accounting lists."

"It seems that the quartermaster and his scribes had especially sticky fingers when it came to such things."

Thromm eyed the drow and human askance and grumped again, "Tis not the dwarven way. In my home, if'n you were walking bout with another man's axe, you'd best have a damned fine reason or your honor was stained. Aye. Tis stolen things, assuredly some effort must be made to return it. I am no thief, bandit, or embezzler. Now, once a reasonable chance to claim it has been given... well... that's another matter."

Thromm chuckled then and slapped his paunch, "I mean, how long am I sposed ta wait for a being to finish his chicken?" Laughing loudly now, he moved around looking for some way to secure the prisoner one to another to form a chaingang.

As Nthanda looked over the items collected with her magical sight, she noticed that a number of items glowed with the faint hum of magic.  The items were the cloak, quarterstaff, and all items except the halfling weed in the chest.  The ring was the one item that glowed brighter than the others.  The ring glowed yellow with conjuration energy.

If you leave now the party should be able to make it back to the keep before nightfall.

While Thromm and Nthanda gathered the plundered goods, Zenphar removed the cloaks from some of the corpses and wrapped the body of Black Torgal.

"Recall, the reward was for Black Torgal, so I imagine we will have to return her body to the Keep."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:24, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

Keeping the ring out of the sack, Nthanda looks at it intently as everything else is packed up, her violet eyes glowing visibly as she examines it with intensity.

---

She rolled crappy as usual, but she will keep the ring for now.  If anyone objects, let me know.

13:31, Today: Nthanda rolled 7 using 1d20+4.  Arcana Check.

"We can rig a rough sled, or sorts, to carry the gear and Torgal's body."

Zenphar will use the tents and poles, or will cut small saplings if needed, to build two human-sized travois.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:24, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

“I carry Torgal. Easy when not alive and struggle.”

The Halforc looked between Tegan and the archer before leaving her to grab Torgal’s body. “If she try to run, I kill her then, yes?” he asked hopefully.

Seeing the size of the pile of reclaimed materials, Thromm nodded at the consensus and moved to aid Zenphar in constructing the makeshift sleds to transport the things. Axes were good for hewing more than bodies after all.

He kept an eye on the sun and hurried so that they might make it back by nightfall so he could drain a few cups again.

Zenphar laughs, "Ukhtusk, she is bound too well to run. How about if she hobbles away, you can wrestle her to the ground again?"
This message was last edited by the player at 01:25, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

In reply to Ukhtusk (msg # 201):

And

In reply to Zenphar (msg # 203):

"Well, that's certainly one possibility," Tegan replied to Ukhtusk's suggestion, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Although you have already bested her once and proven yourself the better warrior, so where's the fun in that?"

Just about then, Zenphar chimed in, and Tegan nodded sagely. Turning back to Ukhtusk, he added "Or, you could give way to Zenphar, here, and allow the Elf some target practice with his bow." Tegan judged it a bit cruel to add what he was thinking to himself -- that the Elf could really use the practice.

But hidden in his semi-jesting words was a harsh warning to the woman who had worn the cloak of feathers that attempting to flee would be a very poor choice on her part.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:40, Wed 19 Jan 2022.

Looks like we are good to move out.  How are you planning to do this?  You have the two sleeping bandits, the female archer and dead Torgal.

Once the travois are constructed, Zenphar looks to Tegan and Thromm.

"If you can each pull one of these, then Ukhtusk will be able to carry Torgal, and Nthanda and I will watch these three."

The ranger checks a final time that the rope manacles around the prisoners' knees are secure, enough slack to walk but not enough to move faster. He also checks that their arms are securely tied behind their backs.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:25, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

In reply to Zenphar (msg # 206):

"No problem," Tegan replied to Zenphar's suggestion. He stowed his shield so that he could get a better grip on the ropes that he would use to pull what he thought of as a sled, filled with its cargo from the bandit camp, and waited for everyone to move out.

Ukhtusk offers an attempted-whispered, "Feathers: if run, I make very quick," to the archer. He gave her the thumbs up before walking over to Torgal.

He narrowed his eyes and looked at her closely before stabbing the corpse through the neck with his javelin. Cleaning the tip on Torgal's clothing, he shrugged at Tegan. "Need make sure." Then, with a swift heave, the body was up across his shoulders in a fireman's carry and the halforc was sauntering his way down the mountain with a cheerful whistle on his lips.

Thromm nodded sagely and then secured the harness he'd fashioned for his own travois across his broad chest. It was there to releive some of the pressure from his arms as he then hoisted it by the handles. he looked back at the thing loaded down with loot and grunted happily. Should even a small portion of this remain theirs, they'd be earning a fine amount of coin.

Once, lifted, the sturdy dwarf pushed his frame against the harness and loicked his arms against his side as bet he could. Hauling this thing the whole way was going to be tiresome as hell. Luckily, the hobbled prisoners meant their pace would be slow. He worried only if they'd make it back before the sun sank below the horizon.

The hobbled prisoners slow the group down, making the trip back to river take much longer than the trip up the mountain.  As the group arrives at the river crossing you predict that there is only an hour or so of sunlight left.  Even thought the water was shallow when crossed earlier in the day it would be too deep for Thromm's travois to be useful to cross the river.

Tegan halted near the riverbank and stared at the waters flowing by, which were deep enough to be troublesome for the equipment that was being dragged along on the ground.

"Well, that is . . . annoying," he muttered.

Turning and glancing at his companions, he said "I suppose that the stronger ones of us can carry the loose equipment and gear across, taking however many trips are required, then we can resume our normal means of travel on the far side."

His first inclination had been to make a jest, suggesting that they require the prisoners to lie face-down in the river so that the victorious adventurers could cross more easily by stepping upon their backs. But he quickly decided that 'twas better not to incite Ukhtusk's already blood-thirsty inclinations, jest or no.

Or," he continued, pausing as he thought, "we might want to consider asking one of the prisoners whether there is a shallower ford nearby."

"Or, you and Ukhtusk can go back and forth with one travois at a time! While I don't think it will be necessary, Nthanda can go across with the first travois and guard it on the other side; after the second travois is dropped off, Ukhtusk then returns for the corpse, and then Thromm and I march the prisoners across."

Zenphar looks pleased, he is reminded of a puzzle his mother taught him about crossing a river in a boat with foxes and gesse!
This message was last edited by the player at 01:25, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

"Or we can make the prisoners carry one across the ford," Nthanda quietly suggests.  "We keep them on a leash so they don't get any stupid ideas that would force us to kill them," she adds casually.  If the prisoners look towards her she smiles for their benefit.

Ukhtusk fords the river with the corpse and unceremoniously dumps it on the ground. He turned to re-cross, but stopped, grabbed his spear, and leaning into the thrust with his full weight transfixed the body to the ground.

He held his palm out towards Torgal.

"Stay."

He then walked back into the ford to carry the travois.

Thromm chewed his cheek silently as the trio debated then watched as Uhktusk seemed of a mind to him. He grumped at them, "Herd the prisoners, Me and Uhktusk will manage the travois."

As soon as the half-orc returned to their side, he pointed at the two ends of the limbs he was holding that had dragged along behind him the way down the mountain. Assuming UHktusk grabbed them and lofted the thing, Thromm shifted his grip to lift his end up to shoulder height. The dwarf was, if anything, a doughty and powerful being. He then started wading into the river to carry the thing across.

"So much for the fox and chickens..."

Once Thromm and Ukhtusk start across the river with the first travois, Zenphar looks to Tegan, "Let's escort our prisoners.

All right the three of you get moving!"
This message was last edited by the player at 01:26, Wed 26 Jan 2022.

The prisoners reluctantly crossed the magically hidden ford.  One looked to jump into the deeper water, but did not play heed to that thought.  He must of thought it better to hang then to drown.
"Thought they said that people wouldn't find this." A different prisoner growled to themselves.  A quick glare from the archer soon quietened the complaining bandit.