Gawain takes one of the healing potions and a flask of the holy water, leaving the rest to whomever. Though he doesn't voice it, he's nervous about leaving the town and eager to return. It wasn't that he didn't trust the Castellan's own men to scout out that army properly...He just would have felt better about being the one to do it. "We should move quickly I think," he says when Hildr suggests slowing down. "If we travel as far as we can today and wake up early again tomorrow, we should be able to arrive at the tower with plenty of daylight. Any slower and I'm afraid we'll get there as night sets once again."

Hildr begrudgingly relents. Perhaps I'm merely trying to delay my arrival there? she thinks. "You're right," Hildr says. "We certainly wouldn't want to arrive at the keep at night..."

As long as they don't move too quickly, she can still Help Crannoc with Wisdom skill checks.

Crannoc unthinkingly falls into his role as leading his companions, including the new additions, into the wilderness towards the tower.  Relieved to see Hildr's energy apparently returned, he is grateful for the help and reaching out for Silvanus' guidance, alternates between watching for enemies and hazards, and looking for tracks or other signs of passage.  Whether of the missing bandits, the army sneaking through the wilderness, or other creatures.

If nothing of note comes up, he also keeps a lookout for a good place to camp as the daylight winds down.

Crannoc's Perception plus Guidance:  24 + 3 = 27
Crannoc's Survival plus Guidance:  13 + 4 = 17

Nothing moves in this region without Crannoc knowing it - not even an insect could sneak up on your party unless he allowed it. The roads are relatively clear as you travel through the day, save for passing a few others on their way into town. Likewise, there aren't any tracks you would mark us suspicious on the road. The usual tracks made by wagons and people moving in and out of Greenest. Nothing like what you found on your way back from the tower.

Still, there is something worrying about the air that bothers the cleric of Silvanus. It's almost too quiet - there are too few birdsongs and chittering insects for this time of year. And you haven't see a hair of squirrel, rabbit, or other small mammal since around midday. Almost like they've all been scared off into hiding.

After 8 hours of travel, there's still about 3 and a half hours of daylight left. Is your party trying to push further, or settle down for the day?

Crannoc keeps looking around strangely, as if a city-dweller in a mysteriously deserted city.

Something is not right.  "It was not like this last time.  The animals are almost all hiding or gone.  Something is happening, but I know not what.  Only that it cannot be good."  The words come from Crannoc's mouth absent-mindedly.  As if what he is speaking aloud should be readily apparent to everyone.

He looks torn on whether to make camp or press on.  "As bad as that vampiric abomination was, I cannot see it corrupting Silvanus' domain at such a distance.  And it is certainly not bandits.  I think this must be something else.  Perhaps the army to the south is coming."

Try as she may, Hildr cannot dispel the image of her father beckoning to her from the tunnel—the tunnel at the bottom of the pit. Might there be another way out of there? Perhaps... In any case, Crannoc must be right: The vampire bride could not be haunting the world of the living at such a distance from its resting place, assuming that the tales Hildr has heard about this species of undead are accurate.

Nevertheless, she must remain more vigilant than ever, particularly throughout the night. For something is amiss—something outside her understanding.

Hildr swats a mosquito that has landed on her neck. A chill runs down her spine. She eyes the sun warily as it descends across the heavens towards its inevitable extinguishment.

Gallant looks at the uneasy feelings of his party and says, “ We have been traveling for a while today and I think it would be better camp and leave early in the morning. Don’t want to be too close while we are tired.”

"Camp for the night," Gawain agrees. "We have enough people, maybe assign two to a watch as well. If the birds are freaked out, so am I."

Iris slows to a stop with the others, looking around with uncertainty. "Perhaps a few of us should take a look around the area before camping then? Not too far." She adds quickly, fearful of them finding trouble while separated. "Maybe we can get an idea for what has the rest of nature so spooked though." 

"It is not just this particular area we are in now, Iris.  It is all of Silvanus' domain since we left Greenest at daybreak.  As if the wilderness is holding its breath.  And what happened to all those tracks we saw yesterday on the way in?  I do not understand.  Nevertheless, I will help look around if you like."

Crannoc agrees to do a circuit around the planned camp site with who ever else wishes to, perhaps a few hundred yards in radius?  When he is on the far end of the circle nearest Greenest, he strains his senses back towards the city, sensing for different coloration or scent in the air.  Smoke perhaps.

Once done, if nothing unexpected interrupts, he volunteers to take first watch, remaining vigilant out of deep-seated unease.

The night is long, and she is one of many, so Hildr volunteers to stand watch twice, in the two hours after dusk and in the two hours before dawn.

Due to her human limitations, however, she cannot see beyond the radius of firelight unless there is a full moon or she lights a torch. Therefore, she should pair with Crannoc at first watch and with another companion who has darkvision at last watch.

In between watches, she suffers from a troubled sleep, awakening periodically with a start. She remains on her back, keeping her shield donned across her chest and never letting go of the magical sword.

Gallant will do the second watch with whomever wants to join, but he can’t see in the dark.

Gawain will take a circle around the campsite with Crannoc, eyes out for anything particularly out of the ordinary. His worries of Greenest distract him however, and he isn't really able to focus much on the environment around them. 

Afterwards, he'll go talk to Dorra. "We're splitting up the watches, two people per watch tonight. You go second, then divvy up the rest of your group with us." Gawain himself will take the third watch.

Perception: 6

Walking a radius around the campsite, you don't really notice much out of the ordinary - aside from Crannoc noticing the unusual quietness of the wildlife as he had earlier. The cleric of Silvanus himself doesn't notice anything different towards the city as he expected.

Dorra hastily agrees to the arrangements, ordering the other three to their respective watch turns.

It's not until several hours have passed and the sky has turned dark that you notice it, a faint smell of smoke on the air. However it's not from the town, as Crannoc had expected, but the north. In the direction of the tower, you see an orange glow blooming on the horizon. 

Having been on edge, Crannoc is up immediately with the scent of smoke.  A dread scent all woodland creatures (and woodland humanoids) recognize.

"I do not know what that fire is, but I sense it cannot be good.  I do not think stone towers burn - perhaps someone is burning the surrounding tangleweed?  We must decide, do we press on now?"  Crannoc looks to the entire group with a sense of barely restrained urgency, not wanting to go against the collective will of the pack, though it is clear what the answer should be in his mind.

Hildr awakens from the shallowest of sleeps, ready to fight but not quite ready for this. She eyes the conflagration warily.

What shall be my renown? What shall they say of me after I have gone? Will this bard—who, like all skalds, surely has a knack for evading danger unharmed (for what else is the fortune of a skald?)—praise me in his songs? Fine, Fate, fine. If it is destined that I shall fall tonight, so be it!

"O Tempus," Hildr kneels, leans upon the longsword, and whispers a prayer, "I beg of you: When I die, let it not be by fire. Let it not be by the fangs of the undead. Let it be by the blade of a worthy foe."

She stands and nods to Crannoc, "Onward then. Onward toward the flames. At least they will light our way."

Gallant wipes the sleep from his eyes and hears the worry in his friends and he supports whatever the decision the party chooses.

"I'm not sure if we can make it there without exhausting ourselves, but we can certainly try." Gawain says, watching the orange glow grow brighter and brighter in the sky. "At the very least, we can get closer."

((To get to the tower, you still have like ~ three hours of travel at a normal pace, or we'll call it two hours at a fast pace. So it would be two or three CON saves against exhaustion.))

Irisviel stares at the signs of a blaze in the distance, nothing the urgency in her companion's voice. "We press on then, but if anyone gets dangerously tired speak up."