March 18th is overcast and cold...as you bring your equipment down and load up the party wagon and steeds.
"Gonzo, my friend!" Gilstrock says to the ugly dwarf. "Where did you get to?"
"I took me a detour behin' a tapestry in the baronnet's chambers... hear'd me a bit o' stuff, not much to speak about. Seems a fellow is missing by the name of Roget? Any one hear'd o' him? Seems he's da one should be speakin to us about deez 'ere dragons. Dere be some kind o' deal between the baronette and dem dragons too... might not want to tie ourselves to him too closely as dey might not treat dem people too kindly should we fail in our effort. On de oder han', he might be in wid em and dey be workin a big deal on the peoples 'ere abouts."
"Which way are we going?" asks Valdar in a low voice. "East...away from the dragons and orc-hold...and then we can circle back around...or west...directly back towards the dragons and orcs?"
"How about north or south," Gilstrock says, "or northwest or southwest? That way we aren't going directly along the line the dragons would fly if they wish to do another town pass. But, we wouldn't have to circle all the way around the town to make our way to the lair."
"Yes, that is true ... though I would like the oppurtunity to scout the dragons and study them as they pass if we can avoid the fear ... " Cat says, biting her lower lip in thought. "We can perhaps gain useful information if we could study them ... "
"After we pass through a gate, you mean? I'm sorry...I wasn't clear," says Valdar.
There are only two gates into/out of Inner Sanctum...the Eastern Gate or the Western Gate.
Occa says, "We shall go away from the dragons...moving back round shouldn't be too tough...maybe a few miles and then we circle around again. The more we can convince them we are heading in the opposite direction, the better."
Valdar nods.
"Then through the Eastern Gate...follow the road until we hit the forest again...then we can turn off and circle back. It will be a slow job getting this cart through the woods, but I'm sure we can do it."
Stiff says "I believe that the party should go directly to the vicinity of the orc hold. I will tell you what spells I am taking in shortly".
Pharian says, "I agree with Stiff. Going overland in a wagon will be a more trouble than it is worth. Anyway, after our magnificent performance before the Baronet yesterday, it's a little late to be worrying about stealth."
Occa says, "Well, then we have three votes to the East and two for the West. Anyone else have a vote in this matter? Speak up quickly...we are burning daylight."
Valdar pulls out a ballot box.
"Okay...I'll take votes for the next two minutes!" he says.
"I suggest we go around, it might lower their guard if they see that we are leaving. Occa, if you don't mind telling me, where did you disappear to ?" asks Salaam.
Occa says, "I went by to see the Sage to see if he had finished looking at my book...alas, not information was revealed. I must find the legend lore spell somehow." He sighs.
"We gonna set up a base camp before we go to the orc stronghold? If so, it's probably best if that isn't right on a line between this town and the stronghold. That's why I suggested we go north or south," Gilstrock says.
Looking about at the 20-odd collected people, Gilstrock says, "How many of us are going to actually go to the stronghold, and how many will remain behind as support at base camp? It's nice to have healty people for healing and defense of the base camp."
"Ta da east o' course. An' if we kin git farther away from dem dern dragons I'll be happier" says Gonzo very loudly.
"I would suggest east - and let me know if you are desirous of a diversion" Cat adds.
"Yours appears to be the majority opinion, Cat," says Valdar, tallying up the votes. "East it is. What sort of a diversion do you have in mind?" he asks in a low voice.
Cat grins. "Well, most anything ... maybe even another swoop of dragons ... or maybe a pack of chemeri ... some incredible apparition ... spelling out doom to come ... anything at all."
Valdar turns to the others.
"What do the rest of you think? Is such a diversion necessary? Or should we just slink away?"
Jesse finally speaks. "We have already shown our hand to the baron or whoever is in league with the creatures. Thus, our leaving will be noticed and I would suspect that we will be followed. I would suggest we save the illusions for later. We will need to try to figure out how to hide a large encampment from the farmers, scouts and the like. I say we just leave."
"Slink away..no need to draw more attention to ourselves." says Occa.
"Agreed," Gilstrock says. "A large bombastic diversion while we left might make them not notice us going. But don't we want them to see us going? Leaving, moving on, forgetting about it all. Let's just slink out and say some final goodbyes on the way."
Stiff has learned his spells, and Woody, Arrghhh!, Rodenstock and Hardboard will gather up their stuff, ready to start the long trip to the nearby orc hold.
And so you do...leading your mounts and wagon through the streets of town, and finally out through the Eastern Gate. It is impossible for a large party such as yours to leave unnoticed, and many heads are turned as you go.
Passing through the gate beside the baronet's tower, you see ahead of you some six miles of farmland...then the woods close in again. There are a fair number of farmers - peasants - on the rutted and muddy road and in the fields, for the planting season is approaching...the one of the busiest times of year.
By midmorning, though, you have reached the end of civilization again, and the road you follow plunges into the wilderness. Once you are out of sight of the last farmstead you turn off the road, to the south, for the land seems easier for your wagon in that direction. With the rangers Op Code and Woody scouting out ahead and marking a route for the rest of you to follow, you move parallel to the edges of the outermost fields but out of sight of any observers. Bringing up the rear are Op Code's followers, led by Robert, trying to obscure your trail as best they can.
Early on in the afternoon you turn west again...still keeping out of sight of the lands around Inner Sanctum. It is a long, hard trek, and frequently the wagon - groaning under the weight of the Community Chest and Cat's luggage - becomes mired.
When darkness falls you make camp and pass an uneventful night.