The first volley drives the Orc scouts into the hollow. Several lie wounded, disarmed, or pinned beneath elven arrows, while the remaining archers hold the retreat among fern and stone.
Tuiwen’s bowstring has opened her drawing fingers, and blood darkens her grip. Beyond the trees, the eastern road and hidden beacon remain shielded from the broken advance.
One surviving scout clutches a waxed strip marked with ridge lines and signal signs. He crawls behind a root, keeping the strip tight against his chest as the archers cover every movement.
Orc Scout 1
Keep back, elf. You have broken the first line, not the host beneath the ridge.
The archers maintain their staged retreat, leaving no wounded elf behind. Tauriel remains with the eastern guard and beacon defense, while Tuiwen’s picked band holds the hollow.
Orc Scout 1
If they take the strip, the moonrise signal is lost.
The waxed strip bears more than the ridge: small notches mark concealed approaches and a signal point aimed toward the eastern road. The pinned scouts cannot regroup, but distant horns answer from beyond the trees.
Tuiwen’s bleeding hand tightens around the bow. The hollow is theirs for a breath, the retreat remains open, and the enemy’s larger force is beginning to move.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure the waxed signal strip
“She gives the wounded orc the mercy blow and takes the map, "Remove the bodies and prisoners. The rest of the orcs must not know what happened here. When that is done, we retreat to the next stage." She examines the map.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Melee Weapons, rolled -1)
Tuiwen steps to the wounded scout. Oath-Bound restraint keeps the Elven blade’s mercy precise, while her Dol Guldur Veteran’s knowledge finds the swiftest end without spectacle.
Hunter’s Ruin guides the strike through the scout’s remaining resistance. The Elven blade lands cleanly, and the Orc dies without another cry. Tuiwen takes the waxed map from his hand.
Tuiwen
Remove the bodies and prisoners. The rest of the Orcs must not know what happened here. When that is done, we retreat to the next stage.
The Picked Archers move at once, gathering the fallen, securing the living, and erasing the clearest signs of the hollow’s fight. Their work stays quiet beneath the answering horns.
Tuiwen's Picked Archers
As commanded. The wounded come with us, and no prisoner is left behind.
Tuiwen studies the map separately from the blood-darkened ground. Ridge lines, concealed approaches, and a signal point converge on the eastern road, while a narrow retreat marks the next stage.
With the prisoners secured and the hollow cleared, the archers withdraw by marked stages. Tuiwen leads them into fern-shadow, carrying the enemy’s route before moonrise can reveal it.
Quest Complete
Secure the waxed signal strip
+ New Item Acquired
Waxed signal strip