"So are we taking the river route, closer to the Skell and dangerous creatures, but closer to water, or the road, father from Skell but also farther from water," Aelar asks.  "My vote is the road as the safer option.  Good cover either way.  But we've gotta decide quick."

Quote from KinaJardine >>

(His argument was still valid, though; traveling by the river would have the advantage of stealth, avoiding any possible Skell search parties, and getting a drink whenever someone got thirsty wouldn't be a bad thing.)

 ((Wouldnt that imply that it would be safer to travel by the river?))

Maybe we should trust our route to the winds of chance? Kallista- why don't you flip one of those silver coins to decide? Heads we take the road and tails the river. I'm horrible at making decisions.  Indecision... it gives me indegestion. 

OOC: I'm not sure if Kallista shared her find with us but I'm assuming she did. Maybe roll odds heads evens tails? Or something?

Quote from BaconExpert982 >>

Quote from KinaJardine >>

(His argument was still valid, though; traveling by the river would have the advantage of stealth, avoiding any possible Skell search parties, and getting a drink whenever someone got thirsty wouldn't be a bad thing.)

 ((Wouldnt that imply that it would be safer to travel by the river?))

 Perhaps though that’s noncharacter knowledge and I’m not sure how much stealthier it is to trapse through the vegetation around a river for a bunch of kids that have no knowledge of the wilderness versus moving through the trees in sight of the road which would offer just as much concealment and maybe more. As a player as far as I can see the river offers the advantage of water, though at a risk. That’s it. And I’m not sure why the search parties wouldn’t search the river blanks anyway....they are closer to Skell territory. It’s probably also a longer journey time wise.

(To keep things moving, let's say that they split the difference; they keep the road -just- within view which keeps the riverside close by. They will have trees to hide behind should they hear something, and if they need to make a break for an emergency escape to the river, they have the option, which could be the argument. Sound good?)

Yes!

((Sounds good to me, sorry I was getting very confused.))

(Sounds good to me.)

(Sounds good. Do you need our marching order? If so, Leon can take the front.) 

(Not necessary, because the group will be so on-guard and cautious, they would see trouble coming before it would see them and have a chance to react.)

By the time it's midday, the group is getting tired and hungry. The going has been tough, but staying in the treeline and taking a cautious pace has kept them out of danger and free of injury. The area they're traveling has seen some logging in the past few years, as wall maintenance is a constant worry to the peoples of Aden, as well as expansion, and wooden walls are still the most common in the smaller towns and hamlets. Even Guiston primarily uses timber walls except for around the main keep. The city of Valis has tall, dwarven-cut masonry and the most powerful and populous city-state in the region, Corwin, has hewn its walls out of the very mountain it backs into.

The ground is littered with cut, thin branches. Too thin to be used as effective weapons, but perhaps sufficient for kindling or making into other things. The logging also gives the group an excellent view of the road, so it's unlikely anything is going to sneak up on them.

There's not quite enough food to keep the whole group from being hungry for the rest of the day's walk, but it's still better than nothing if they choose to stop and rest. If they just power through the fatigue and hunger, they'll make it to Guiston by nightfall, though the gate guards may not be very hospitable at that hour, but at least they'll be at the town.

(DM encounter percentile check: 66)

(results will be apparent after some reactions)

On the way, Leon will carry some of the kindling in case it is needed. 

I'll help Leon gather/carry kindling.

(does the group want to keep moving?)

Kallista seems ready and willing to keep moving till they make it.

My vote is push on.

As the group trudges along the river, Aelar keeps a careful eye out for any of the many predators they'd all heard about as well as the Skell.  He also tried to find any of the edible plants and roots his father and cousin had described to him from their time with the caravans.

Perception: 3
Survival: 2

As he walks and watches, Aelar replays the night before over and over.  His thoughts keep returning to the growing certainty that he knows the Dragon, that its voice was...familiar, that he'd heard it before.  As they moved through a clump of trees, the young elf noticed an oddly shaped lump of wood and picked it up.  After turning it over in his hands for a awhile, he borrowed the whittling knife and, reaching into that place inside where he'd heard the Dragon, that place that seemed to know the Dragon, he began to try to carve the Dragon, feeling he knew what it looked like even though he hadn't seen it the night before.

Carving 10

Aerlar also voices his desire to push on through the night.  The sooner they get to Guiston, the safer they will all be.

(That's 1 success to artistry-carving! Just waiting to see if Balgrim or Hyre want to do anything at the clearing.)

Balgrim

Balgrim looks around intently for any items of use that may have been left by the logging effort.  He'll gather up some of the thin branches for later use.

Perception: 15

Balgrim doesn't find anything special, but he DOES find a length of twine in the debris. Never know when some tough string might come in handy, especially if the group has to do some foraging. It at least helps to keep the tinder branches all together in a bundle, making them much easier to carry. It's about 20 feet long, so it can bind things up quite well.