"No I don't, but I do have something that may help us later on when the contact arrives. As long as we can get them into the right space, I can use a magical snare to trap them." 

Fenro focuses again on Alan. "We have your back. We can protect you, but it is important that you work with us."

Alan just gives a nervous nod and you can tell that the spell has now worn off. As the sun begins no move towards dusk he moves towards the entrance of the alley and begins pacing back and forth as he waits.

(What would you like to do?)

"Fenro, unless you have a significantly faster way to move about than on foot, I think it is best I try to find the others to help us. I shall start at that tavern we had visited before and if they are not there I will try another and another until I find them."

Fenro heads back out to the alley with Alan. When he gets there he scouts around the area for the best place to create a trap, somewhere narrow enough to be able to funnel their prey through the trap, but also allow people to avoid it if needed. After finding an area he finds suitable, Fenro takes out the rope from his pack and cuts it in half (25 feet). He carefully creates a circle on the ground in the alley. As he does so, he mutters the words he had been instructed to create a snare (Dex14). 

"Alan, this area is now ready for your contact to show up. If you can get them to stand in this space, they will be whipped up into the air, as if they have been caught in a snare like a rabbit. Be careful not to step in it yourself. While we wait, help me move some of these crates around so that there is somewhere we can wait out of sight." 

The alley is 10 feet wide between the outer wall of the city and the back of the church. There is a pile of crates and a few rain barrels but it is otherwise empty.

Aramae, you make your way back to the street from before and find your friends. They're not to hard to spot.

Aramae approaches them, concern on his face, and his voice quiet.

"Ah, my friends. Please, we must go. There is no time to explain everything but we need to work together to ensure the safety of one man and the capture of another. And we must remain out of sight so the latter is not suspicious. Very, very important business is at hand."

Despite the vagueness, Edgar at least should be able to tell that Aramae is serious.

"I don't know," Lyrika answers Edgar. "They don't seem to really need us.  Maybe we should just go off and start our own investigation. How far away is Coldhope, does anyone know?"

 ”It would take us about a week with well rested horses, maybe two and a half on foot... damn it I can’t believe I'm saying this but lets park this conversation for later.  It sounds as if Ara is serious so lets go help him.” he downs the last of his drink and stand up. “Lead the way Ara.” 

Aramae leads everyone towards the alley but stops a couple blocks short.

"Okay, Alan, the man we are here to protect, is standing in an alley over there."

Aramae points towards the alley.

"We are to wait for another man to approach Alan and talk to him. A human man, just to be clear. Fenro is also nearby and has set a trap. We must all keep ourselves hidden so as not to spook the one we are here to capture. Edgar, I know you are quite adept at remaining unseen. Oryxis, Lyrika, if you have any means of obscuring yourselves, please utilize them. Or at least, seem nonchalant and aloof. As for me, I think I may do the latter, as subterfuge is not my specialty."

Aramae takes a moment to prepare himself.

"The reason we are doing this is because Alan is the sole survivor among those who had raided the tent. The man he is to meet is the one who hired the men who assaulted us. That is our true target. Now rest assured, Alan will be brought to the keep for his punishment after this, but this is to reduce his sentence from execution to imprisonment. He fears this other man may kill him, we are to prevent that. And bring the other man to the keep as well. I realize this all sounds strange, but Alan was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was a friend of his that was approached by this individual we are waiting for, Alan was merely swept along by events. There is more that I have to tell you all but that must wait. First we handle this, if you are willing."

"Fine," Lyrika sighs. "Just be aware, Aramae, that while you and Fenro were gallivanting around having adventures, the rest of us got some serious sitting and drinking done. Try to be more responsible." She picks up her lyre and finishes her drink (and a few others that were standing around looking neglected) and follows Edgar and Aramae out.

“I’ll hope I’ll see you all when this is over.” then he disappears into the shadows (stealth: 25)

 Edgar will look for a building on the opposite side of the ally and climb it. He take out his bow and ready his quiver so that the arrows are in easy reach and then he start to spy for any suspicious people. (Perception: 23)

"I do apologise, Lyrika. I..."

For the first time, Aramae finds himself at a loss for words.

He just keeps silent, finding a place that is as far from the alley as possible without preventing him from seeing the alley.

Lyrika finds a sheltered place to sit and watch, hoping that if anyone notices her, she can manage to be mistaken for some drunken reveler sleeping off a few too many ales.

Stealth: 6

Deception: 14

Having moved some of the boxes around, Fenro has made what he believes to be a good place to remain out of sight during the coming meeting. He will be close enough to hear and respond, but hopefully hidden enough not to draw attention. 

stealth: 18

Oryxis nods at Ara: "Thank you, that was informative and concise. I don't worry too much about the punishment parts, all men get what they deserve. I'm glad your investigations led you somewhere. Maybe it's time I reconsidered my position on the faiths..." The last was said with a sarcastic twist to his lip, but the words sounded sincere enough. As the others started to get ready for the ambush, Oryxis is at a loss as how to hide his bulky form. Deciding that he best not try to hide, he instead heads to the opposite side of Aramae, making sure that between all of them they had circled the meeting place and would prevent the contact from escaping. Then Oryxis remained leaning against a wall, looking up at a lit window, and started calling out to it, softly: "Hey, lady? What's keepin' you up at night? D'you need some company?" He made sure the voice was loud and slurred enough to be mistaken by a drunken suitor.

Deception or Performance: 7

It takes a little while, Alan pacing back and forth just behind the area indicated by Fenro, but eventually those of you in the street see a human male, dressed in dark brown travellers clothing and a black cloak, wandering towards the church. He whistles a bit of a jaunty tune as he walks. He neglects the entrance of the church before going around the side and back towards the alley. 

Perpection: 5

Insight: 1

He doesn't seem to notice anything amiss about all the new faces on the streets around him. As he turns the corner he begins speaking. "All right Alan, I've stashed the bard in a safe spot. I still think it was a terrible idea to grab him like that, too much attention, but what's done is done. I've also 'taken care' of the man you bribed to help grab him, no loose ends and all that. So now, I suppose it's time to give you your reward and then never see you ag... whoa!" The man's voice turns from calm and cocky to surprise as he's yanked up into the air by Fenro's spell. 

Dexterity: 21

As quick as he goes up though the man twists and frees his foot, coming down gracefully in a three point landing. "You traitorous bastard." He says to Alan before a dagger flashes out. Alan grabs at his throat but it's clear to Fenro and Edgar, hiding nearby that the man is quickly dead without help. With that the man begins to run out of the alley and back the way he came through the city streets.

Aramae casts Message to Edgar.

'That could be the man. Let us see if he heads down the alley and if Fenro's trap snares him.'

Aramae keeps his position down the street.

Perception: 17

Having seen the attack and the man rushing towards him, drops all pretense and charges out into the street, his greataxe on his back. "Bad time to take an evening stroll." With that, Oryxis is trying to tackle the man to the ground.

Athletics: 22

Aramae chases the man along with Oryxis, but sends a message to Edgar.

'Keep eyes on Alan, he may choose to run away during the chaos.'

If Oryxis catches him, Aramae will aid in keeping him under control.

Edgar can see that Alan is very much dead unless he gets help.

Acrobatics: 9

Oryxis goes for the grab but the man sees him coming at the last second and just manages to spin out of the way. With his pursuers now revealed he begins a full sprint away from you all, moving 90 feet.