The fifth bell hangs just beyond striking when the eastern gate shudders open. Mara’s caravan waits inside: lead wagon, sealed reliquary, and three companions gathered beneath the gray dawn.
A bloodied young man in a torn brown courier’s coat stumbles through the gate. His empty hands tremble; a broken dispatch tube hangs from his belt, marked with a seal like the reliquary’s.
the courier
Close it. Close the gate. They followed me from the pass.
The courier collapses beside the lead wagon, catching himself on one knee. Dark stains spread across his sleeve, while the shattered tube clatters against the wheel.
Mara
Bar the gate. Nobody enters until we know who is hunting him.
the stocky dwarf woman
I will search the road. Spear carrier, watch the walls and do not chase anything alone.
The stocky dwarf woman moves beyond the threshold, red hood low as she scans the ruts and roadside brush. Mara kneels by the courier, one hand near his shoulder but not touching.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure a safe route for the caravan
✓ Quest Accepted
Discover who is hunting the courier
“I offer to help the dwarf search for the people hunting the courier after all my stealth athletics and acrobatics may make surveying the threat an easier task”
SUCCESS (Good Perception, rolled -1)
Sobekov Kerensky
I will help search. My footing is quieter, and I can look over the brush without drawing attention.
the stocky dwarf woman
Then stay low and watch the road, not your own shadow. If you find them, signal me.
Sobekov slips beyond the gate and follows the wagon ruts at a crouch. His athletic stride carries him over a drainage ditch and up the bank without disturbing the wet grass.
From the rise, he surveys the pass. Three figures crouch behind a toppled milestone, bows and hooked blades visible through the scrub, watching the gate and the courier.
Sobekov Kerensky
Three hunters. They are waiting for the courier to move.
A loose stone shifts beneath Sobekov’s heel and clicks down the slope. The nearest hunter looks up, while a sharp pebble cuts his ankle through the boot.
the stocky dwarf woman
I see them now. Good eyes, monk. Get back behind the wagon before they decide that noise was an invitation.
“I sneak back to the wagon being careful not to be spotted and ask what the plan is to help the courier”
SUCCESS (Fair Stealth, rolled +2)
Sobekov lowers himself behind the bank and retraces the wagon ruts, placing each foot on damp earth instead of stone. The hunters, three adult human figures in weather-dark cloaks and layered leather, with bows and hooked blades ready remain focused on the gate.
He slips through the threshold beneath the gate’s shadow and reaches the lead wagon unseen. Mara looks up from the courier as Sobekov emerges beside the wheel.
Sobekov Kerensky
What is the plan? How do we help the courier?
Mara
First, we keep him alive and learn what he carried. Then we move before those hunters decide to test the gate.
The courier presses his uninjured hand against the wagon wheel, breathing shallowly. His eyes flick toward the broken dispatch tube, then toward the eastern road.
the courier
The reliquary is not the only target. They want the route ledger. I hid it beneath the milestone before they caught me.
Mara
The ledger comes first. Sobekov, stay with the wagon and guard him while I decide whether that hiding place is still safe.
“I attempt to help with the courier’s injuries while staying on guard”
FAILURE (Mediocre Healing Arts, rolled -1)
Sobekov crouches beside the courier, keeping his mismatched eyes on the gate while he examines the torn sleeve and presses folded cloth against the wound.
Sobekov Kerensky
The blood is still warm, and the cloth is already soaked through.
the courier
Not there. You are pressing the wrong place.
The courier jerks away, breaking Sobekov’s pressure. The cloth slips, and fresh blood darkens the sleeve as the young man clamps his own hand over it.
Mara
Back from the wound, Sobekov. Keep watch. I have better hands for this.
Mara replaces the cloth and binds the injury tightly beneath the courier’s arm. Sobekov remains beside the wagon, facing the road while the courier’s breathing steadies.
the courier
The ledger is under the milestone. If they find it, the reliquary’s route is exposed.
“I keep watch waiting on whether or not to the ledgers hiding spot is safe”
SUCCESS (Good Perception, rolled +1)
Sobekov settles behind the lead wagon, eyes moving between the gate, the road, and the toppled milestone beyond the ditch. Dawn mist thins across the pass.
The three hunters remain behind the milestone, watching the gate. None approaches the stones, and their attention stays fixed on the wounded courier rather than the ground around them.
Sobekov Kerensky
The milestone is still undisturbed. The ledger has not been found.
A crow lifts from the brush near the milestone, startling one hunter into turning. The movement reveals untouched earth beneath the fallen stone and no fresh footprints around it.
the stocky dwarf woman
Mara, the hiding place is clean. I can reach it without crossing their line of sight.
Mara
Then we move now. Sobekov, hold the wagon and keep their eyes here while I retrieve the ledger.
The hunters continue watching the gate, unaware that their target remains secure beneath the milestone. Mara rises, and the dwarf woman begins edging toward the ditch.
