A figure falls gracefully to the ground, crouching.  He sniffs the air, "Tell 'em come out, elves" sniff, "dwarf," sniff..."goblin."  Walking toward you, he lowers his bow but doesn't disarm.  You see this is an orc: about 6 and a half feet tall, heavily muscled but not as wide as the orcs you normally hear of.  It's possible this one has a bit of human in its blood.  In addition to the bow in his hand, he sports two large hunting knives (closer to short swords really) on his belt.  He is draped in animals skins, tooth necklaces, and tattoos.  You would guess him to be a huntsman.

Lorell walks out of the brush holding a large assortment of edible and medicinal plants, looking at the orc "Would you like any for your stew?" Lorell asks.

[[OOC: Could I roll a persuasion check to see if he is a bit receptive to possibly sitting down and eating? Persuasion: 21 ]] 

He grunts and gestures to the fire. “Fine. I Nerazyn. I run boat. 2 silvers each to go.”  He lowers his bow and in strings it, putting it on his shoulder and slipping the arrow Into his quiver.  He looks back to the forest where the rest of you wait.  "Come," he says simply.  He looks at you warily, Garnet, but walks over to the fire, stopping to stir the pot.  "Deer stew.  Um hmm.  I be careful nowday.  Kobolds is thieves," he growls the last part.  "I eat.  And den take you, if want."

Ithelion moves forward from the forest edge tentatively, then asks Elosa what she can see of the track across the river. She steadies herself and closes her eyes briefly to see what she can. When she is done, she tells Elosa to be cautious and keep a lookout, then approaches campsite behind Garnet.

Finally she moves to her side and addresses the orc "Nerazyn...this track...where does it lead?"

Daemyar will let Ithelion take the lead, as she seems to have a handle on it. But he comes out into the open

Garnet nodded after Nerazyn finished speaking " Take your time we didn't mean to interrupt your meal." She remains at the edge of the campsite when Ithelion and Daemyar step forward.

"It okay.  I follow you for long time," Nerazyn says, grinning at the group, little tusks showing white.  Nerazyn looks at Ithelion with surprise.  "It go down to river, where you think?  Wizards think so smart, hmmm."

Ithelion stifles a laugh, "Maybe you should handle this" she says to Garnet.

Garnet grins back at the half orc "You followed us?" She paused generally impressed but also concerned. With a note to herself to try and be more aware, she continues. "That is why you you must be a good hunter, we didn't know you were there." Garnet tapped her chin in thought deciding to be as direct as possible. "Nerazyn we are looking for the road. Is it across the river?" She ponts out that direction.

(Don't forget Lorell he posted a little ways back with a question for Nerazyn.)

Nerazyn beams at Garnet's assessment of his skills, nodding slightly.  "Me know, me good."  The orc turns to Lorell and shrugs, "Me food eat that, and I eats food. Yes, I try."  Nerazyn allows Lorell to add whatever he's found to the pot.

Turning again to Garnet, "Yes, dis a road and over," he points to the other side of the river, "it goes.  It be goin' to da' New Road north to Oak'rst.  You goin' to there, huh?"  

"What you do wit' 'im?"  he nods towards Daemyar.  "Me not like big goblins, they mean."  His forehead creases in what can only be conflicting thought.  "But me know I diff'rent. So maybe he diff'rent?"  He looks at both of the elven members and a vicious laugh rumbles forth.  "Me brothers, though, they be eatin' yous two if they sees ya!  Haha!"  Nerazyn's guffaws travel across the clearning.  "Okay. Me eat."  He goes over to the pot and pours some of it into a wooden bowl and starts slurping it down.  He pauses and looks up.  "Ohm, you get own,. I not slave." and nods to the other bowls nearby.  A couple of you will have to share - it looks like he only has a couple of bowls.  "Dis good elf, real good," Nerazyn smiles (you think it's a smile) at you, Lorell.

Ithelion will do the math with the bowls then smile and say "I've already eaten; smells good though."

If the group spends much time here, she will take the time to sort out her notes.

"Mmm, this music to ears, elf," Nerazyn grins as he gets another portion.  

@Ithelion - as mentioned earlier, your notes are detailed and accurate.  The combination of you and Elosa allow you to make an excellent collection of notes on the terrain, but also the local flora and fauna.

Krom walks over and sits down near the edge of the camp wearily eyeing the boat more than the orc, "Thank ye fer the offer, but I'm not hungry. Me stomach still upset from our initial trip here. Umm.. ye know of any other place to cross, Nerazyn?"

“Ughm, Not easy. Path ahead take you ‘round mountains. Other way hard travelin’.  Maybe there other ways.  But you here.”  He goes on to describe the surrounding area, including a steep elevation to the West and Thundertree. It’s some way off but other than the ruins (apparently currently infested by hordes of undead), taking the ferry saves travelers time and offers a safer path. After following the path on the other side, it passes under the shadow of the plateau and continues towards the New Road. 

Lorell appreciates the gesture of the orc towards his addition of plants to the stew. Lorell while eating some berries asks the orc "You mentioned Kobolds. How many are there? Are they in our route that we are traveling?" 

[[OOC: so this might be a tad bit of a stretch, but could we (per say) if we helped our new orc friend with his kobold problem that we could possibly get a reward or some more indepth information of the surrounding areas, etc.]]

@lorell - “Ughm, not know. Maybe five? Theys take boat and no pay!  And meat too.  Lose boat downriver.”  Nerazyn thinks for a moment, “Dunno where they go but they cross river..  Maybe you see them on way but maybe not. 3 sleeps ago they come.  You find them, I give you fish pole.  Me get it from wizard! It always work.”  

[ooc - you can consider Nerazyn friendly and someone with whom you could buy things from. He’s a forester with some common things you might expect someone living in the forest to have.  The fishing rod he’s talking about is a Rod of Abundance and will procure fish from any water source.]. 

“Hm. I think a ferry trip is best. And a trip down a kobold hole with a knife. Yeah, that sounds good.” Daemyar taps his knives under his cloak a few times.

 Ithelion breathes in sharply, "I've had enough journeys in dark places today. Let's take the ferry...and then...then let's see what we find."

"Thank you for the information Nerazyn" Lorell says, "it is very helpful. If we do take care of these Kobolds, should we come back with a trophy from them for the fishing pole?" Lorell asks, his hands not certain how to convey what he means by a trophy.  

[[OOC @ group : I think we should go out of our way to help him with the kobold issue. That rod of abundance can essentially cut our need for food supplies. Plus it's a magical item, we could use it as a trading piece or sell it to a magic shop.]]

[[ 2OOC @Lothar: Are we to assume that these Kobolds are a small group and just terrorizing the hillside/area, or that they are a scouting and gathering pack that is a part of a larger grouping. A Rod of Abundance is a pretty huge addition to our group at this level, and seems like a pretty good carrot. Could we roll a perception or an investigation check to see how many kobolds and in which direction they went to follow them?]] 

Investigation: 16 
Perception: 8

Nerazyn nods, "Yes, ughm, help.  You bring them to me if you find.  Maybe they swim in pot."  You're not sure if he's joking or not...

[OOC: I won't presume to tell you what to think about the kobolds.  The only thing you know for sure is the task Adathar has asked of you.  You can certainly try to roll an investigation or survival after you get to the other side to see if you can pick up the trail.  Nerazyn said they came 3 sleeps ago but who knows where they went.  You also have Lorell to forage for food if you're worried about rations.  You're about 8 hours of travel from the New Road, which if/when you meet up with it, will speed up your travel to Oakhurst, which is still quite a ways off...].