Chapter 1: The Chase Begins!
D.Y. 500, The wee hours of the Second day of Greentide.
-----Seth waits just outside the door of Sol's room and as Kazel comes out, he asks her, "Well, are we riding or walking in the marches?" When he notices Runik follow Kazel out, he asks him, "Your patrol, did it ride or walk around the marshes or use boats?" He continues to wait for Dread and the others.
-----Runik's eyes slightly bulge as he thinks and then he answers, "Aye, we kept the horses at 'and. Most o' the time, we 'ad somebody in the troop who knew 'is way in a swamp. We'd be a'watchin' fer the quickin' bogs."
-----As The Dread Pirate joins them, he looks slightly uneasy at the mention of quicksand, "Errmmm, do any of ye know yer way around the bogs? I'd just as soon not fall in any of that stuff. I'd probably sink before anybody noticed I was gone. We'll at least need to keep our rope at hand, so we can pull people out if they get stuck."
-----Dread continues thoughtfully as he ushers them down the hallway, "I think I may have made a mistake in recommending that we join back up with those boneheads. We could, of course, leave town right now and beat 'em to the punch. Especially since they don't know where they're going. Or we could let 'em go in first and take the beating. Or we can stick with 'em. Judging by what just happened with Raven, I'd just as soon say the hell with 'em. But I'll go with whatever the majority decides."
-----Seth looks around. "What do we gain by going after Krondor? I don't think that was in our original agreement. I think Krondor is something personal with Sol. Everyone in Hearthorn thinks he is dead. The other thing is we still do not have mounts for our four friends here." He indicates the four mercenaries. "Now either we purchase a wagon, so we have something to carry out all our booty with or we do something tonight about Horses."
-----"How well do you know the bogs, Marast? Or anybody. If not, we can always hire a guide." Kazel stops and takes in some fresh air and thinks for a moment. "As for joining up with those turkeys, I say ditch them unless Seth insists. And I'm not just saying this because of what just happened. We've never worked well together. They have all the pigheaded brute force they need, and our stealth is shot as long as they are around."
-----Kazel looks around and motions for the group to head back to the inn as they talk. "Or we can ask for help from Voruna, who's been right as far as how useless Sir Greene is. I don't think we're getting paid enough for this aggravation otherwise. What do you say?"
-----The Dread Pirate grins broadly and says, "I'm thinkin I know where we can get a few horses fer our friends." He then turns to Seth and points at his disguising hat, "I know where four horses are located. I think Sol would have no problem going into the stable and gettin their horses."
-----Dread then thinks for a bit and says, "Unfortunately, I think our original mission was to get rid of the evil in these parts. Neither Devlin nor Krondor was specified. I don't think we can just leave and say our job is finished til Krondor is dealt with. I also have to admit that I'd really like to take the wind out of the sails o' those pompous bastards in there. It'd be nice to steal their horses and steal their revenge. I say that once Krondor is dealt with then our mission is accomplished. Though we were supposed to deal with the problems between the humans and the elves also. That might improve once the evil doers are dead. Or we can just leave it fer the boneheads to take care of."
-----As Seth turns to follow Kazel he nods in agreement with her. "I have no objection, and I never did tell them what Inn to meet us in for breakfast." He smiles at his last comment. "I tell you what, I need to pay Maime tonight since we are leaving tomorrow morning. I am starting to run low on funds. How about I put on a disguise as Sol and ask one of the guards to have four horses and saddles delivered to the Gilded Pony Inn within one hour. Kazel, you and Dread wait in the stable there with Brandel and Marast and bring the horses back to our Inn, but only wait for an hour or two. In the meantime Krord, Runik and I will see if we can scrounge up a packhorse with some provisions for this trip. Let's say we meet again in around 3 hours at the inn?"
-----Kazel grins at the new plan and the prospect of the three going off again. "Well, there's the three boneheads and Rinda's horses making up four. I think you should go for those first as they are the finest from Hearthorn before trying the ones at the keep. And just because they're theirs. I'll come along to help so we have one person for each horse."
-----"And I agree with Dread that Krondor is the last of this mission. I'm not one for preaching to warring factions anyway. That sounds more like a job for our former friends. And besides, there's no money in that."
-----Kazel nods in agreement to Dread. "We should leave as fast as we can, here, count my share of the mercs and the Inn." She then gives the right amount to Dread and Seth.