Dorbi kicks some dirt over any unwanted bodily fluid left around the camp before the two gnomes join the back of the group. Dorbi shouts out “We’ll stay back here and protect the rear of the group. I’m good at tracking animals, I’ve not tracked wagons much before, so let me know if you need my help up front”

"They went south." Thammita says, in her thick voice. "Or at least, I guess so. That awful headache gets in the way of concentrating." She holds her head for a moment, shaking it powerfully. "Anyone want to bet on who will kill these two first?", She smiles kindly to Forbi and Dorbi, as all the wild animals share a common thing: the lust of hunting, and that lust was a common factor between the half-orc and deep gnomes. "Maybe you guys, little guys?"

Admora: While everyone else was prepping to move south along the road, you had slipped off into the woods, searching along the ground around the rocks and trees. Just as you were prepared to give up, you find what you were looking for, Goat's Rue and Napweed, two things you knew could be combined in a sort of tea-like brew to ease and remove the effects of several known poisons. You pick more than enough and make it back to the camp as several of your party had begun to move south along the road.

Rose nodded as Admora came back. "Good thinking." She said then called to the others "Wait a moment!"

Hercule stops and breaks into another coughing fit. "This better be good," he says in-between his coughs.

Forbi’s eyes widen when he hears Thammita‘s suggestion “A bet? Now you’re talking my language!” Dorbi grins “Does Five gold to whoever gets the final blow work for you? Five for Terrance and five for Phil?” She then looks up to see Admora carrying the Goat’s Rue and kicks herself while muttering “Dammit, why didn’t I think of that?”

"come on!" Snorts Thammita. "A bet is not a bet as long as you don't risk it!" She swings ten fingers at the gnomes. "Ten for Phil and Ten for Terrance." She holds her head, giddy. "On second thought, I think I'll take the medicine before I find myself betting on my sword ..."

Dorbi looks down briefly at her dwindling coin pouch and then back at the half orc "Sure, ten gold for each will be fine" She extends a hand out to Thammita.

Deception: 11

Forbi shouts out to Admora "A cure for this bloody illness will be great. Killing on an empty stomach is no fun!"

"And how many times must I remind: you must wait for the fruit to grow before looking to pick!" Admora projects while busy preparing the Goat's Rue and Napweed to release into a decent enough brew. In truth, she's a little flustered how long it took to find, but then she had to remind herself she was not in peak condition.

As unfortunate as it was, she sees Hercule's coughing fit as an opportunity to grab his attention in Elvish, "Apologies to disturb and to request your skills for such mundane activities, but can you please light a flame to get some water boiling. We have a tea to help with the pain, I will tell the others."

Admora looks to spread news of her eventual success...

Admora hastily, but meticulously blended her herbs together and dumped them into the boiling water Hercule had prepared for her and after about ten minutes decided the concoction was at full strength. She placed the pan off to the side of the small fire to allow it to cool some and then strained it into an empty water skin with some cloth cut from a thin garment someone had offered. When it was cool enough to drink, everyone passed the skin around, taking small mouthfuls to make sure there was enough to share with everyone.

The tea worked wonders. The stomach cramps and headaches faded away over the course of around fifteen minutes and everyone was up on their feet and ready to go. Rory had finally woken up and was out of his delirium, which was a good thing, but after absorbing all the info of what had transpired, his mood grew dark and he seemed troubled. "This is not good, not good at all. I hand picked Phil and Terrance, I've used them more times than i can possibly count. I can't believe they would have done this. Especially not on a job like this."

Finn laughed, "Don't worry, we'll find them and make them pay for this. We've already got bets going." Rory looked up at him incredulously, "I don't think you quite understand. This isn't just a guild job that got screwed up, it came straight from Griskel himself. It was something he wanted specifically done for reasons and interests of his own. It should have been a milk run, and apparently we've been outplayed by two wagon drivers... How do you think that's going to make us look in his eyes? He's going to hold us all responsible for the loss of whatever was in that crate, and we don't even know what it was or it's value. Let's get moving, the wagons are going to be faster, but maybe we can hitch a ride if someone comes along. This is a trade route after all."

You set off at a brisk walk south along the road, eyes wary of anything that might come out of the dense woods on either side, and after roughly two hours you find some tracks veering off the road and to the east, seemingly straight into the midst of the trees. 

Hercule is going to use Mage Hand to poke and prod the ground for any additional clues in the tracks. 

Investigation 11

As the group walks, Forbi and Dorbi remain at the back, keeping an eye out for anything that moves.

Perception: 9

Dorbi tries to get the attention of Rory and once he's close she'll talk to him reasonably quiet "So you have no idea at all what could have been in that box? We might not know what it's worth but Griskel was prepared to pay us each a hundred gold for it. If he was planning on spending a thousand on it, imagine how much it's really worth! Or imagine what it does... Who or where do you think Phil and Terrance would take it to?"

(Insight check on whatever Rory says, trying to work out if he knows more than he's letting on)

Insight: 4

Hercule: As you move the dirt and grass around with your mage hand, you just happen to make out a small smear of red, examining it closer, you believe it appears to be a drop of blood.

Dorbi: (As far as you can tell, he is being straight up and honest with you.) "Not even a clue. Once in a while Griskel asks me to gather up a crew, people newer to the guild and capable of handling themselves if anything goes astray. People who prefer to get paid and not ask many questions. Every single time it's been extremely easy, we go somewhere, we pick something up, and we return and we get paid. This job paid more than any of the others I've put together and nothing like this has happened before. I agree with you though, if Griskel was willing to pay that much money for one crate, it had to have been much more valuable to him. There is no telling what will happen to us if we can't resolve this quick."

Admora sighed at relief with the effectiveness of her brew, but this was short-lived as she was quick scorned herself; she was surprised the pull of successful wins with much to be gained. But she was all too aware now was not the time to look back... 

"Then why are we waiting for the seasons to pass. Let us move at once..." The elf scans the area to ensure a trail, asking for Melora's blessing, and suggesting the group travel at a fast pace.

=========

Survival check: 19
Plus Guidance: 1

Thamita shakes Durby's hand suspiciously. From her little acquaintance with the young gnome, a handshake is worth it for him as the garlic peel.

She sighs with pleasure after drinking the herbal drink. "that's better! Now we can start the party!", and she run to the road, always before the party, exploring the area. When the gang arrive at the intersection, they find Thamita standing at the intersection, looking carefully at the rocky ground with the intention of finding traces, depressions and what not.

Survival:21

Rose felt better after drinking the tea and waited for the group to set off, silently glad that she hadn't expended all of her healing energies. It would doubtlessly be a dangerous road ahead and who knew what they'd have to face before they'd reach their destination.

Pelaios is going to keep an eye out for an ambush along their route.

perception 7

”looks pretty clear,” Pelaios whispers, looking up more often than out or back.

As you check the tracks going off into the woods from the road, you notice there are two sets, which make sense as there were two wagons. The thing that doesn't make sense though, is that the tracks looked reckless and wobbly, as if one wagon had been trying to run the other off the road, which, apparently it had. one set of tracks had gone into the woods, and the other had pulled to the side of the road, and then at some point headed further south on The Long Road. As you slowly make your way into the forest cover following the tracks, you find the smashed remains of one of the carts almost completely wrapped around a tree. 

In front of the wagon and slightly to the left was what looked like drag marks of something large being pulled off into the forest, the horse pulling the wagon you can only assume, and to the right,  you find two human male forms, lying face down in the blood soaked dirt. You turn them over to find that both of them have had their throats sliced open. Phil and Terrance lay dead on the forest floor.

Pelaios looks to see if he can tell what happened to the horse. Investigation 17

Forbi grins slightly at the sight of the blood “Well I guess that’s the end of the bet then…” He sticks a finger or two into the gash in Terrance’s throat to try and gauge the size of the weapon, whether it’s a dagger, a sword or something more natural like claws. 

Investigation: 

7

Dorbi draws her bow and stares at the trees around her. “Keep an eye out. I don’t like this at all”

Perception:

10