-----Sol dismounts and nods pleasantly to the woman, replying, "Firstly, just Sol is fine. I'm no lord. Our intention is to take ye all t'a small village, not too far, t'th' east an' north. We had helped fight off some slavers there, an' th' people were armed an' their defense organized. They should have what they need t'defend themselves until more formal help arrives. It was th' best place I could think t'take ye all." The Gorian now raises his hands placatingly as he continues, "I'm sorry we had t'leave yer side briefly, we just wanted t'make sure th' house o'er th' field was actually abandoned... we're still close t'East Bend, an' we don't want t'be discovered."
-----Looking relieved that they had returned from the house without needing more battle, Jeilin stands alone for a moment. She then quietly approaches Dilton, and asks him where Lovan had gone off to.
-----“Oh yea, him,” Dilton croaks in answer to Jeilin, “I seen him movin’ round some o’ them briar bushes.” The warrior points to some of the dark shadowed scrub plants in the field before them. He then explains further, “If’n ye sneak closer, ye can hear him snorin’ a bit.”
-----"Well, even storms need a break now and then to gather energy, at least on this world." Jeilin smiles at Dilton's remark. "I should do the same soon, I hope."
-----Garrison then comes up to Sol and says, nodding toward distant East Bend, “We might want to plan right now what we’re going to do with these people during the day.” Nodding toward the field of scrub bushes, he says, “We could try to hide them all here, or. . .” He then nods toward the house they just left. “We could try to hide them or some of them around that abandoned home.”
-----Turning back to the Gorian warrior, he adds, “It might be too risky to cross country in the daylight.”
-----The woodsman then ponders a bit and asks Jeilin, “Do you think there are any chances we could run into more forces heading northward?”
-----To Garrison's question, she replies, "There is that chance. The battle is being joined up north, and if there is a good path between East Bend and the front line, that might be where they will be heading along." She opens the local map and begins to study it again in the moonlight.
-----"How long do ye reckon it will take us t'reach th' village from here at our current rate?" Sol asks Garrison shortly, obviously not happy about having to make a stopover.
-----“We’re probably a little over ten miles from the village,” the woodsman replies to Sol. “Taking these wagons across the open country will be going slow enough, and that’s without running into a forest or swamp in our way. Maybe some of the healthier people can walk part of the way. If we hide during the day and start off again in the evening time, we can reach there by early morn.”
-----Checking the position of the moon, the woodsman adds, “Another idea might be for me to scout ahead for the best path once I get some rest. I could even do that during the day.”
-----"We'll do it that way then. Garrison, fer now just find us a place we can keep hidden fer th' day. It should also be somewhere where these people can rest properly if possible." Sol idly taps the pommel of his blade as he considers a moment longer before continuing, "Then ye can get some rest an' as ye say, scout a little ways ahead fer a better path."
-----Suddenly Jeilin is seen waving to Garrison and Sol. "See," she points out on the map. "Looks like there're two roads we need to cross, one northeast from East Bend and another straight north. And these markings here seem to be troop movements, using precisely this road. Hmm." The girl nods to herself again, as if more interested in the academic aspects of the map than the immediate danger it indicates.
-----“Oh no,” Garrison utters as he looks at the map that Jeilin produced. He then looks up and off toward the northeast beyond the house they visited.
-----Turning back towards them, the weariness is evident in his face, but his eyes register concern. “If there is going to be troop movement through this area, we need to get these people on further east if we can. I was hoping for a rest here tonight, but I would hate to hide here in this field and then have a patrol or army stray across us. We may need to load everyone back up and go . . . now!”
-----Sol musters every bit of willpower to not mirror Garrison's display of weariness, as he snapped himself into action. Turning to the clustered people, he addressed them as calmly as he could, "Fergive me, but we need t'take ye all further on tonight. We'd like t'find a safer spot t'rest properly, though if any o' ye are tired enough t'do so on th' wagon, please do so. Fer now, please get back ont' th' wagon so we can move on as quickly as possible."
-----Sol turns back to his companions, and is about to ask Dilton to do something when he thinks better of it. The Gorian is then seen heading in Lovan's direction.
-----Oblivious to the renewed activities, Jeilin continues to study the map for a while longer. Then finally, she carefully puts it away again, and retakes her seat back on the wagon.
-----Sol soon retrieves Lovan and they are both seen riding in front of the wagon. Garrison at first rides along side of the wagons, keeping a wary eye on the village to the southeast. Soon the woodsman rides up in front of the wagons and points to Dilton to drive the team toward the house he had helped explore earlier.