Daria guides the group away from the fir grove, following a narrow descent between damp stones. Makeda, Sofia, Angela, Julia, and Petar accompany her, carrying the jar, hemp, cloth, and dwindling food.
Daria
Step where the stones are dry. The ravine lies below, and the hoofprints are fresh enough to matter.
The ravine opens beneath leaning alder trees. A concealed spring trickles from the bank into a clear pool, while recent hoofprints mark the mud beside an old path descending east.
Petar
That path leads toward shepherd country. Travelers still use it, though fewer than the coastal road. The water should be safe.
Daria kneels beside the pool without touching it, studying the prints and the broken grass. Beyond the ravine, the path disappears beneath brush before emerging on the eastern slope.
Sofia
If the spring is clean, we should fill the jar here. But anyone using the path may return before we finish.
The group gathers under the alder shade. Water murmurs below, hoofprints lead east, and the hidden ravine offers concealment only until someone comes searching the path.
✓ Quest Accepted
Fill the clay water jug
“"I'll fill the jug, and disappear if anyone comes. You go ahead. I'll catch up."”
SUCCESS (Good Stealth, rolled +1)
Makeda
I will fill the jug and disappear if anyone comes. Go ahead. I will catch up.
Makeda kneels beside the clear pool and lowers the clay jug beneath the trickle. Daria gathers the others, keeping the hemp and cloth concealed beneath their cloaks.
Daria
We will follow the eastern path to the next bend. Keep out of sight, and join us there when the jug is full.
Water rises steadily inside the jug. Makeda watches the broken grass and fresh hoofprints while Sofia, Angela, Julia, and Petar move east beneath the alders.
Petar
The path remains clear. If someone comes, the bank above the spring has enough brush to hide you.
The jug fills to the neck. Makeda seals it with cloth and cord, then slips behind the alder roots as distant hoofbeats sound faintly along the eastern path.
The hoofbeats fade without approaching the spring. Makeda emerges, lifts the filled jug, and follows the group’s concealed trail toward the bend.
Quest Complete
Fill the clay water jug