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The party is under way for about an hour, when a group of 15 -20 riders appear in the distance, coming on the road in your direction. The riders still are about two miles away and are riding at a normal pace.

Serena, followed by Balnor ride ahead to check out the lay of the land and get a better view of the riders. After only quarter a mile, she pulls up. A hundred yards to the south of the road lies an outcropping of rock, littered with large boulders. Judging it to be a possible good defence point, she waves the party onward to join with her, using the time to study the approaching horsemen, now just over a mile away.

By the time the rest of the Unknowns catch up, the riders are just over 1/2 a mile away. Watching them approach, Serena becomes more relaxed, as they appear well ordered, well armed and well armoured. One of the riders bears a flag, which appears to look like a figure outlined in yellow on a black background. As they get even closer, it becomes clearer - the figure is a burning troll. The shields of the warriors bears the same symbol. "I think that is the symbol of the Riders of Nesmé" says Larz.

As the group approach within 50 yards, it becomes apparent that the members of this group are experienced fighters, although two most likely are mages and one is a priest. One member of the group is a dwarf, although large for a dwarf, nearly 5 feet tall. He also has mastered horse-riding, despite his size. No doubt necessary to be a Rider of Nesmé. A pony would slow the patrol considerably. One of the leading riders shouts out, "Well met! Amsradel, captain of the Riders of Nesmé at your service. What news is there on the trail to the west? Signs of orcs, barbarians? Uin! Come forth!" The dwarf in the group rides forth to Captain Amsradel, who says, "Uin here is our scout. Things you see often mean more to his eyes and ears than to ours."

Uin, a grizzled dwarf if ever there was one, nods and says in a raspy voice, "Well, met! Bear ye news?"

<Serena aka Archon wrote>:
> "Greetings, Captain Amsradel . . . Uin . . . Riders All!
> I am Serena Shadoweaver of Neverwinter. My comrades and
> I are travelling from Longsaddle. We have met with many
> hardships on the road. Our news is news of battle and
> slaughter."

Captain Amsradel leans forward in his saddle, his face suddenly dark.

Uin looks at Serena sharply. "Tell more," he growls. "What have you encountered?"

One of the riders further back - looks like he might be one of the mages - also leans forward in his saddle, making a few arcane gestures as he listens to Serena's response.

<Yvandel aka Sebastian wrote>:
> Yvandel tried to study the gestures of what
> appeared to be a mage. He couldn't quite
> determine what spell was being cast, but
> Yvandel suspected it was a truth detection spell.

Yvandel nodded to himself, convinced that he was right.

<Serena aka Archon wrote>:
> Serena addresses the Riders. "First day out from
> Longsaddle, we were set upon by a score of Uthgardt
> Barbarians from the Black Raven clan. We slew most
> of them -- including their captain -- in a heated
> battle. We chased off the rest. They had just
> massacred a party of merchants. We brought one of
> their wagons along with us." Serena gestures to
> Herod's wagon before continuing.

Uin and Captain Amsradel concentrate on Serena's words. At the mention of the dead merchant's wagon, Amsradel glances around at the mage further back, who nods almost imperceptably. The Captain turns back. "Do you know who the merchants were? I take it there were no survivors? Do you know if they were based out of Nesme or from somewhere else? They may have family or friends in Nesme who might want to know..."

> "Last night, we camped with Rostar's Trade at the
> Goblintide Ford. About three score goblins swept
> down on us in the middle of the night. They used
> a pair of rafts to land on the riverbank behind our
> barricaded wagons. We fought them off as well.
> Luckily, no one was killed in Rostar's group or our party."

Amsradel nods. "Good man is Rostar, glad to hear everyone survived!"

Uin also nods knowingly. "We've heard something similar about the goblins using rafts..."

> Serena looks a little circumspect. "We took a few
> goblins prisoner. I questioned one of them. He didn't
> have much to say, except that his tribe was the 'Pig
> Killers' and his leader was named Halk."

Captain Amsradel barks a short laugh, leaning back in his saddle for a moment. ""

> Serena looks steadily at the captain of the troop.
> "Rostar told us that Nesme is being threatened by
> barbarians. I don't know if you ever considered the
> goblins as allies. I released the prisoner. I bade
> him carry a message to this Halk. I told Halk to
> come to Nesme under a white flag, if he was interested
> in fighting the Sky Ponies alongside the Riders of
> Nesme. Through the messenger, I told Halk that he
> would be rewarded for this."

The captain shakes his head momentarily, but holds his tongue.

> Serena stops and looks cooly at the officer.
> "I know that my message to Halk tramples all over
> diplomatic protocol. I know that I do not represent
> Nesme in any fashion whatsoever. But I also know
> that you Nesmians are hard-pressed, and might welcome
> an ally -- even one as unexpected as the Pig Killers.
> Most likely, nothing will come of this. But, if a
> troop of goblins approaches your gates bearing a white
> flag . . . well, I thought you should know about this
> beforehand."

He nods at her last words. "You are right, it is likely that nothing will come from it - goblins have never been very good at negotiations, treaties or alliances - all they understand is strength - the only creatures I have ever seen goblins allied to are creatures much stronger than them... and never with a civilised town." He smiles at Serena. "It was a good idea though. You are young and idealistic - it is a shame the world is not filled with more people like you." The captain's eyes travel briefly over Serena at his last words, but he then looks away quickly, glancing back down the road to the east, changing the subject.

"You should make it to Nesmé today without much trouble. There's no sign of anything coming down from the North today."

The dwarf, Uin, adds, "One of our other patrols has found out that the goblins are already keeping the orcs busy most of the time. The Pig Killer goblins lair up in the Lurkwood, near the source of the Goblintide. The Screaming Fist orcs lair near the source of the Lurking River. That's only 10 miles or so east of the Pig Killers, but they do have the two rivers between them.

"Usually when they start fighting with each other it's because the one tribe or the other gets too active in the no man's land of forest between the two young rivers. The Pig Killers usually do their raiding west of the Goblintide and the Surbrin. And the Screaming Fists usually raid east of the Lurking River and north of the Surbrin.

"But the Griffons - that's a barbarian tribe recently settled up in that area - they have been making life hard on the Pig Killers when they come out into the open. So the Pig Killers have started building river rafts to take them down the Goblintide, and after the confluence with the Lurking River, they've been raiding on both sides of the Goblintide and the Surbrin all the way down to Mornbryns Shield.

"The Screaming Fists haven't been standing for it. They've been slaughtering every goblin they find east of either river. It seems that the Pig Killers haven't gotten the message yet however. So less than a ride ago, the Screaming Fists decided to deliver the message in person. They marched through the forest and launched a full-scale attack on the Pig Killers camp. Since then, there's been an all-out war between the two tribes in the Lurkwood. A section of the forest is burning, but that probably won't get too much out of hand. It's been wet up there lately."

The dwarf spits down on the ground from his horse.

"Let's just hope the mangy bastards manage to wipe each other out!", he adds.

Captain Amsradel speaks again: "As I said, I don't think you'll have much trouble. The main problems in this area come from the Griffons and the trolls. We have two patrols to the north, and they've seen no signs of the Griffons in the past few days. Another tribe was in this area about more than a ride ago - the Sky Ponies. But they rode up the east bank of the Goblintide, made an arc around Nesmé and crossed the Surbrin above its confluence with the Rauvin and rode off into the grasslands between the Surbrin and the Rauvin, towards Silverymoon, where they're more at home.

"As for the trolls, well, there were some that threw trees over the narrows and crossed to the North early this morning. But I think we've gotten all of them. There's nothing left of those we got but ashes. We removed the trees too. And there are three patrols riding the south bank of the Rauvin between here and Nesmé today, destroying any trolls they find within the perimeter area. You'll may run into a few more patrols before you reach Nesmé, but I don't think you'll have any trouble today. The trouble's concentrated inside the moor and to the east of Nesmé right now. "

<Serena aka Archon wrote>:
> "Your words are welcome news indeed, Captain,"
> replies Serena. "We have ridden a hard road from
> Longsaddle. We owe you Riders a great debt for
> making the way ahead safe for us. Perhaps we may
> share a pint or two with you in Nesme, when your
> troop returns from its patrol?" Serena smiles
> graciously, impressed with the quiet efficiency
> of these guardsmen.

The captain smiles warmly back. "I'd be happy to share an ale. I expect you'll find temporary lodgings at The Fallen Temple, but if you're staying for a long period of time, there are plenty of rooms to rent elsewhere, you'll see the signs. When off duty, I tend to frequent the Duke and the Hunter - you'll find it near the bridge."

There is an awkward pause for a moment, when the captain suddenly seems to remember that everyone is watching him flirt with Serena, before he abruptly nods a farewell and reins his horse aside, gesturing to his men. The Riders separate their column, making a clear path for the Unknowns to continue their journey.

Nodding their farewells, the two groups move apart, the Riders of Nesmé heading west and the Unknowns continuing their journey towards Nesmé .