Ill news is an ill guest

[thesniperknight1]

Eirenaios stands menacingly waiting for him to answer the others

[tooleychris]

Francis starts openly sobbing. "I....they paid me fer weapons...good steel ingots from the mine..
.and...information. The chest is mine...payment from them."
He puts his face in his hands then looks up to those gathered. "We can split it. All of us and run South before the attacks. There's enough for us all to be rich.
All us. But we gotta move."

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm fuming "You what?! Durned idiot you sold to the enemy don't yah know them filthy orcs have already gone round killin folk razing villages? Do yah know what you did, yah just helped doom everyone." the dwarf storms off to get to the guard and inform him of the treason the merchant committed.

[Blazeguard]

Thorgrim brandishes his axe menacingly "The only thing gettin' split is yer skull if'n you don't help us out. Now tell us everything you know about those dirty orcs, and quick-like!!"

[Dram]

Craxzus- Has never been so mad in his life. You would let innocent women and children die for some coin! You should be burned at the stake! He pulls his sword from his Scabbard and begins walking towards Francis. Where did you last see these orcs. Tell us now! Or I will turn you into a bug and pull your legs off one at a time.Bluff roll needed?

[tooleychris]

"Twas that Lady Angela put me up to it. She says them orcs were here 'fore any a us. Says we gonna Killin and drive 'em away and they all armed with sticks is all.
Then she remindin me how no one gots love for me.
Always spitting on me an anything I do." he starts to cry again as Throm and the guard walk back to The group.
"Seems there's reason not to trust you after all Francis." the guard says grimly.
"Them orcs they are gonna storm Charlotte.
They was waiting for Lady Angela but she never come. " says Francis.
"Where are they then?" asks the guard.
"You promise not ta kill me. Just let me run off.
You'll never see me again. You promise an I'll tell ya."

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "I won't deal any justice unto ya but know if i see yah again I will have less faith in ya and trust ya not. Yer a coward an I can sorta understand since yer always underfoot and looked down on. Been there not every tall fellow looks kindly on us shorter folk. But an act of treason? Though ya were duped as most of us were with that false Lady Angela, was a durned demon playin pretend. Bastard I'd have loved ta beheaded that dastardly demon." the dwarf grumbles more quietly nobody can make out what else he says just obviously regretting something.

[Dram]

Craxzus- Your gonna tell us where the Orcs are know. Begins chanting pointing finger at Francis.

[thesniperknight1]

Eirenaios stands silently waiting for an answer

[tooleychris]

Francis sighs, looking completely defeated. "They goin ta sack Ironton north a Charlotte. With their numbers they'll take the town easy. From there..."
"The Iron Road!" answers the guard for him.
Seeing the party's confusion he explains "There is a mining camp in the mountain just up from Charlotte.
Ore is brought down to be smelted from there. A few years ago the miners dug straight through the mountain and found a sizeable coal deposits on the other side. Lots of forest and deer as well. They set up a little village over their and moved their mining operations to the more convenient area. Ironton was born. They still mine iron but they widened the main tunnel enough that wagons can go between the town's instead of the long road around. If the orcs take Ironton..."

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "Aint good, how by the hairy arse of Moradin are we ta stop an orc army an not leave the area here defenseless? We need an army o' our own an we needed it yesterday."

[tooleychris]

The guard nods grimly. "An army we don't have. But there may be hope yet. The Iron Road is long through the mountain. It could take at least a day for a host to make it through that narrow pass."

[Blazeguard]

"Hmmm, a narrow pass you say," muses Thorgrim. "Could we set up some sort of ambush for them there?"

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "Aye that we could. Though I'm wonderin I know it'll hurt the economy but could we collapse part of the pass onto the orcs? Er even better collapse behind em and in front of em leave em trapped."

[tooleychris]

The guard shakes his head, thinking. "That tunnel is reinforced, made strong by your dwarven brothers ,no less. Is said to withstand earthquakes. Collapsing it isn't likely. Most of the loose stone around the entrances were used in the reinforcing so blocking the entrance would take time. And we could only block this side of the tunnel...which might buy us some time for more troops to arrive from Elizabeth Bay, if any are sent..."
He shakes his head. "These are decisions for people much smarter than me, but if there are survivors in Ironton, I'd hate to cut them off from any aid we might bring. The long road around is a four day march and we'd still have the orcs between us and them."

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "Durn me kin an our ingenuity. Alright then lets proceed back ta town an report. Bring the merchant along too."

[tooleychris]

"Wait...What?" cries Francis. "We had a deal!"

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "Yeah my deal was not ta harm ya, I'm still turnin yah in."

[tooleychris]

"Wait! Here!" he says taking the key from around his neck. "Its a small fortune! Yours!
Just...just let me walk away!"

[GreyWolfVT]

Throm "No! I get it yer tryin ta save yer own skin. But yah need ta tell the story ta the captain. I aint gonna turn yah in fer trason er nothin' just call yah an informant alright keep yer money and just mention ya were tricked deceived by the false Lady Angela, we all were so they won't fault yah fer it."