Daria lifts the flask while Petar gathers the board and dry branches. Makeda, Sofia, Angela, and Julia rise beneath the charcoal shelter’s low roof, ready to leave.
A middle-aged Armenian man steps through the brush carrying a mattock. He is lean and weathered, with a gray-streaked beard, dark wool clothing, and ash whitening his boots.
Mikayel
Stay where you are. I have no wish to summon soldiers, but this shelter is mine, and I must know why fugitives are using it.
Mikayel lowers the mattock without releasing it. His eyes move from the women to Petar, then to the chipped jug and the bundle hidden beneath Sofia’s cloak.
Mikayel
They came asking about escaped captives. Soldiers search the eastern roads, and they question charcoal burners as if every tree conceals a rebel.
Mikayel
There is an old mule road beyond the next ridge. It bends toward the country past Samsun, away from the garrison road. I know it, but pointing it out may ruin me.
Daria’s hand closes around the sickle. Petar remains still, while Mikayel watches the hidden travelers and weighs the danger of one more word.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure Mikayel's guidance
“"We are Christian slaves taken from our homes by the Turks. We want nothing more than to go back again. We do not wish you any harm."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Oratory, rolled +1)
Makeda
We are Christian slaves, taken from our homes by the Turks. We want nothing more than to return. We mean you no harm.
Makeda speaks evenly beneath the low roof. Daria keeps the sickle lowered, and Petar’s empty hands remain visible while the others stand quietly behind them.
Mikayel
I believe you. A robber would not speak of home with such weariness, and a soldier would not hide from the roads he commands.
Mikayel sets the mattock against the shelter wall. His guarded expression remains, but his shoulders loosen as he looks again at the women and their scant belongings.
Mikayel
You will not harm me, and I will not summon the soldiers. Stay here until dusk, then take the mule road beyond the ridge.
Mikayel
There is a spring beneath the second stand of firs. Keep away from the houses, and do not light a fire where smoke can be seen.
Daria gives a small nod. Mikayel steps aside from the entrance, leaving the path clear and offering the fugitives his shelter without surrendering his caution.
Quest Complete
Secure Mikayel's guidance