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| Assailants from the woods rain darts and sling stones, then come out swinging! |
The dart hits
Chonkorchuk in the shoulder, and is followed by two pebbles launched from
slings. Four men dressed in sheepskin overcoats and hats, and with scarves tied
around their faces to conceal their identity, step from out behind trees, and
charge the group, waving cudgels. They surround Chonkorchuk and Plamen, while
Fox-Raskel flees deeper into the woods. The battle initially goes badly for the
companions. Chonkorchuk is struck square in the ribs with a cudgel, and decides
to flee when he has an opportune moment. Plamen is left face to face with all
four, though one turns to pick off the fleeing Chonkorchuk with a dart. He
initially tries to fight back with his own cudgel, but to no avail – the men’s
coats are too thick, and he lands only a glancing blow. He draws out a spirit of bear-kind from beyond, which bolsters the party’s morale, and likely keeps
Chonkorchuk alive. He then summons forth a wave of thunderous force to lay low
the assailants. The first wave does not deter them, but the second sends three
to the ground, blood coming out of their ears because of the impact. The last
one standing attempts to flee, but Plamen finally connects with his cudgel, and
cracks him upside the head.
Fox-Raskel watches all
this from behind a tree. The assailants seem to pay him no mind, but Kutkh the
crow shortly informs him that another assailant approaches from the direction
in which the companions were walking. He is similarly dressed, but otherwise
looks different – bigger, faster-moving, and better armed. Raskel soon sees him
– a dark-haired, bristly man armed with a spear and shield, and carrying a
quiver and bow on his back. Raskel prepares for the worst, and changes into a
fox-man in full view of the man. The man stops before closing with Raskel, and
surveys the scene, though shortly, Plamen dispatches the last of the four
assailants, and goes over to minister to Chonkorchuk does not pass out from the
pain. Raskel asks the new arrival why he is following them, and the man
explains that he was actually following the other four, who he claims are
smugglers.
The armed man
announces himself as Dmitri, and says he is in the employ of Yurii Yelizarov –
the boyar whose fort the companions passed earlier in the day. Yelizarov asked
him to track the smugglers, to see what they are up to and where their hideout
might be. He lost them in the woods, and came upon a frightening cairn (which
the companions also passed), and which he claims nearly killed him. He then
assists Chonkorchuk and Plamen in checking to see if the assailants are still
alive. One has apparently died from the impact of the blast, but the other
three are still hanging on. Chonkorchuk ties their hands with their scarves,
while Raskel takes the dead man’s overcoat, and rifles through their pockets. A
few darts, sling pebbles, copper pulo
coins, and two hunting knives are discovered, but nothing else of value, and
nothing that indicates who they might be. Their faces don’t look familiar –
they simply appear to be young villagers heading out to trap in the forest, but
Raskel detects a slight meady, honey smell about them. Dmitri indicates that
one of them has only one mitten, which matches a mitten he saw earlier on the
cairn.
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| Dmitri - a well-armed hunter with a canid scent |
Plamen uses one of his
magical berries to revive one of the survivors, who is quite scared, and
willing to spill the beans, apparently honestly. Though he does not directly
admit to smuggling, he says that he and his companions were “working”, and that
they were going to their hideout to meet up with other associates, who are
preparing the base for winter, when sled traffic will travel freely upon the
frozen Vydra River. Among their associates is someone named Radei, who
apparently stays at the hideout, as well as Vasya – a one-armed guardian whose
description matches that of the Galumphing Oaf the companions have been
seeking. The smuggler indicates that they were aware that Dmitri was
following them through the woods, and tried to mislead him by throwing a mitten
onto the cairn. He is quite surprised, however, that Yelizarov had them
followed, because he is under the impression that Lionia had “arranged
everything” with the boyar. It thus appears that Lionia is part of his band as
well, though the smuggler insists that he works with him, not for him. The
smugglers attacked, he says, because they thought the group was trying to
surround them on their own turf, but he denies they were trying to kill anyone.
It is now decision
time. Dmitri and the others are a bit taken aback by Yelizarov’s role in this,
but they conclude he was probably trying to press the smugglers to get a better
deal out of them. The nearby cottage might contain the band’s cache, but there
is little desire to move against Lionia’s allies at the moment. Unsure what to
do, the companions decide to go to Yelizarovka to search for Lionia so they can
get some answers, figuring he would have an easy time finding them there.
Dmitri follows them, thinking he can at least learn more about what he was
really doing, and pick up some new work after his deal with Yelizarov expires –
the companions indicate they are looking for treasure, and might be interested
in taking on a little muscle. They release the prisoner, who runs off in the
direction of the hideout, and leave the two survivors warming one another under
their coats (they take two others sets of clothes, as well as the other objects
found on the smugglers), and head back to Yelizarovka.
After a few misadventures
(Raskel gets caught in a snare near the fresh grave, Dmitri pokes at the mitten
on the cairn, and feels a bit queasy as a result, Plamen sends the flock of
crows to feast on a dead body near the smugglers’ cottage), the four arrive in
Yelizarovka, and buy a place to stay for the night at the local waystation.
After they finish off the venison, Kutkh informs Rodion (who by now has changed
back) that a sizable group of people is resolutely approaching the waystation
compound. They take positions around the perimeter, and one of them heads for
the front gate, converses briefly with the host, and then heads toward the shed
where the companions are holed up. Nervous, Dmitri slips out the back, and
hides.
The man turns out to
be Lionia. He tells the party that it’s time to deal, as he has something they
want, and they have something he wants. There is a bit of wrangling regarding
who was responsible for the altercation. The companions now know where Vasya is, and where the
hideout is located, though Lionia points out that they can’t relate this
information to Yelizarov, because they are responsible for the death of one of
his peons, and he will want restitution. He does seem grateful for the
information about Yelizarov’s spying on the smugglers. In turn, he pointedly
reminds the group that the longer they wait, the more likely it will be that
someone else will move to take the treasure. Plamen is still reticent to move
against Plamenka, though he is willing to stand aside and let Lionia and the
other companions take the treasure provided they use stealth or magic to keep her asleep,
instead of trying to kill her. The old fox suggests that the tracker may make a useful
ally, and replacement for Plamen in this endeavor, and asks if he might come back inside and join the parlay. Dmitri returns, and the rest of the group fills him in on
what they know about the poleviks under Crows' Meadow warren, the treasure, and its
ultimate destination. Lionia agrees to meet the group outside of Lazarevo in three days
time, when everyone has finished recuperating. With regard to Yelizarov, Lionia
agrees with the group that it’s a good idea to play for time, and then to blame
the death of the smuggler on the crows (who were invited to eat his body
anyway). Before he departs, Lionia asks for the two sets of winter clothes the
companions took off his smugglers, and they acquiesce.
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