Chapter 3: In-Character Adventure Thread

Cord

Once Hawkler relays his findings, Cord nods his head grimly, If they be but an hour ahead we should press on an' catch 'em, an' that we dinna stop until we do!

Olo

The halfling looks determined, at the fire and the surroundings. "Strange, the tracks last night looked much older. They must sleep more than we have been; but yes, we should catch them soon. Try to be as quiet as you can, without sacrificing speed..." he advises, glancing about with the others.

Sariel

Flexing her itching, aching feet, Sariel grimaces a little in pain, but the prospect of catching the mysterious abductors of the Half-Orc is intriguing. She nods her agreement with Olo and Cord. "Let us make haste."

Cord

Cord says not a word in response to Olo's comment about stealth. Instead, he eloquently lifts his arms to indicate his blue-green scale mail. He then does the best he can, clanking and banging down the path like a rolling tin can full of rocks.

Hawkler

Hawkler laughs a little at the idea of stealthing, and catching up to the evaders. Lets just try and catch them. I might be able to talk to them.

With it painfully obvious that stealth is not an option, the small band hustles down the trail after the former occupants of the camp. Once on the trail away from the camp the muddy track is easy to follow even while hustling along.

A half hour down the trail Hawkler, leading the way, notices a vine suspiciously strung across the trail just in time to avoid it and call a halt to the whole procession. It's still early in the day, but the hustle has begun to put a strain on the smaller of the group, Lilianna and Olo are both gasping for air. The tracks, however, have been getting fresher by the minute, you are definitely catching up.

Hawkler

STOP! Hawkler notice's the vine. Back up. There is a vine across the trail. It looks out of place. Let me see If I can see what it does, or why it is there? Take a quick breather. Catch your breath. The tracks are also getting fresher. We are getting close.

Examining the vine, Hawkler finds it attached to a cunning trap. A snare that would yank the victim up into the air and slam them against a set of hidden spikes tied to the tree 10' above the trail. Disabling it was a simple matter, a slash across the trigger vine sends a counter-weight suspended nearby crashing to the earth. The spikes are crude, just sharpened branches lashed into place with some woody, fibrous cords.

Sariel

Sariel sits on the moss-covered trunk of a fallen tree while Hawkler examines the vine, glad to take the weight off her diseased feet. Given the increased speed of the group they have moved from painful distraction to outright hindrance.

As the counterweight crashes to the ground the Elf glances down at the well traveled path. "Do you think they know they are being followed? Or are spike traps their way of greeting anyone who gets too close to their camp?"

Due to evil Boot Soup Sariel's base speed is also currently 20 ft. She is probably as tired as Olo and Lilianna.

Olo

"I don't know, but since there was the trap on the bridge, and since both of the ones we have found so far would be easy to avoid if you know they are there, I think they are probably just left as a standard thing. Not because of any particular threat. It would take too long to make these traps, if they were trying to stay ahead of us." The halfling, likewise, appears a bit winded, but eager to keep going when they get the trail clear.