Escape Attempt in the Trollshaws
[Addie(#22296)] Early morning, dawn is breaking and the brief rest break for the horses is almost over, except for the non-bound man of the group going off to procure supplies and reshoe his horse. He may also look for another horse so that the horses can change off a bit.
Everyone is off the horses for the night and the slight woman sits next to the bound man, holding onto the rope that is placed around his neck. She watches around the camp warily.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)]
For two days after the finger cutting, the Ranger was violently ill with high fever and very weak. By the third day he could finally sip water or broth in small amounts without throwing it up, but his fever lingered for two more days. Rhifaroth has been absolutely no trouble, listless mostly, not speaking. There once was a brief tussle while Cordelia was giving him water in which she and he cussed each other out and the man brought his knee up to slug her in the butt and knock her down, but otherwise things have been uneventful. The weather has been overcast mostly, and some rain.
Now it's sunny and the sky looks like it will be a good day for traveling. No troll attacks so far.
With a rope around his healing, scabbed throat, Rhifaroth sits up quietly, feet bare but unbound so he can get up on the pony shortly. Whatever his thoughts are, the man has been keeping them to himself for days now.
Cordelia has spent a restless night, the girl talking incomprehensibly during the little time that she actually fell asleep. These past several hours she has been quiet, likely because Asht has left for the village. But the light now makes her stir, and she rolls over, onto her back to stare at the sky.
[Addie(#22296)] "Troll country, this." the slight woman says, by way of breaking the silence. "Do you have any experience with trolls, one-they-call-Seeker?" Her voice is calm and measure and she has given slack on the rope, not being crueler than usual.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)]
The man is slow to respond. Probably because his throat is dry and he is always thirsty. Rhifaroth, still blindfolded and his arms still bound behind imself, tries to wet his mouth. Cordelia already gave him water this morning but it's never enough, "Yes."
A pause, "You?" he asks, fishing.
The sound of voices prompts Cordelia to raise herself on her elbows, eyes blinking to clear sleep from them. Without being asked, she stands up to get her things together--likely they will move on soon enough. "There was a traveler in Bree who had run into trolls lately."
[Addie(#22296)] "Give the man some water and tell me about it, Cordelia," Addie says. Her voice seems almost...kindly? She cradles the baby on her lap, quietly as it sleeps.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)]
Seated next to the woman who holds both the babe and his throat tether, the tattooed man listens to both of the women. But he turns his head aside, catching a faint sound from the direction of the Shepherding Village. Familiar sounds, scents... very, very softly, almost inaudible, Rhifaroth hums something to himself. Sometimes he does that, as though music were imagined in his head, when he's bored. There is nothing else to do but think and sit, mostly.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] And just then, in the undergrowth nearby, there is a faint rustle.
The girl is rather slow to move to get the water. She rummages through her things, finding the waterskin she used when they ate the previous night. She hasn't had a chance to refill it, but it will have to do for now. A pause--Cordelia turns at the noise in the undergrowth, then yawns. "Here..." she says, striding over toward Rhifaroth and sounding annoyed.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)]
A rustle, some small sound? The Dundan at once is quiet again, listening. With his eyes covered for so long now, he's become very keyed to listening, thinking about things he smells, noting the direction sunlight seems to be falling upon him in the mornings and evenings... keeping track in his mind where they are and which way they are going. But soon they will pass beyound land he is familiar with and he will be less certain. He hears Cordelia dig through her things, rise and approach, but he can't see her. Rhifaroth flexes his hands, still covered in loose, stained bandages and tries to move his shoulders a little against stiffness.
"Your friend Asht is probably drinking his fill of ale while you rot here."
[Addie(#22296)] The slight woman peers towards the rustling sound for a moment and smiles thinly. "If he is, it will be his bladder that suffers once we are riding again and his body that will suffer once we are home."
"Here..." Cordelia repeats, sounding tired and increasingly irritated as she kneels next to the ranger to tip the waterskin at his lips. "You'd better pray yourself that he lets you relieve yourself before he ties you to that pony again, with all the water you're getting." The water might taste slightly off--sour? or is that a tiny bit of broth in it?
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] He's not going to refuse the water, tasting foul or not. The bound man drinks whatever Cordelia will give him, trying not to spill it all over himself. Rhifaroth says nothing about the taste.
After a moment he turns his head and wipes his mouth as best as he may on his shoulder, "Asht is ... lovely company." the Ranger says, dripping sarcasm. Their not letting him pass water for hours and hours a day is a very tedious, painful matter but Rhifaroth tries not to comment upon it - and encourage them in their petty delights.
[Addie(#22296)] "I've had worse pairings," the slight woman says and frowns again, moving the baby to a position that will let her stand more easily.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] There is another rustle from the undergrowth then louder than the first, as though some unseen foot has stepped where it shouldn't.
"What?" Cordelia answers Addie in a distracted way. She turns halfway away from both of them--partly to hide her sheer disgust at the mention of Asht, partly to stare at the bushes. "Likely we could have rabbit for dinner, by the sound of that...."
[Addie(#22296)] The slight woman rises, cradling the baby to her, and holding the rope a bit tighter and closer to her. She frowns. "You. One-Who-Is-Called-Seeker." She looks at Cordelia. "Help him to his feet."
Turning back to Addie, the look on Cordelia's face is questioning--but she doesn't stop to voice whatever is on her mind. She still has the water skin in hand, and she sets that aside now, reaching down for one of Rhifaroth's tied-up arms to try to slowly drag him to his feet.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] There's that sound again, in the same general location as before. The man sits very still, listening but mostly... waiting for Adelaide to get up and be distracted by whatever it is. Rhifaroth wants her distracted so she won't be watching him for a few moments.
But, troll dung! That dratted woman tightens the coarse rope around his already ravaged throat, and orders Cordelia to get him up. The man's jaw tightens, biding his patience.
With the young woman's help, the Dundan gets to his feet. Bare feet, without boots. But as Cordelia turns him, she might see that he's reaching the fingers of his right hand into the bandages of his left hand to get a grip on the small knife she gave him - incase it's trouble for them all.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] And all the while, keen ears might pick up the ever-so-faint mutter of disgruntlement that seeps from the underbrush. "Rabbits.. no rabbits.." the voice grumbles, tinny and barely to be heard. "Rather eat yer leg..."
[Addie(#22296)] "You. One-they-call-Seeker. Go see what's making that noise. IF it's a rabbit, I'll let you have a leg." The slight woman's voice is almost sweet, but there is a clear note of command there.
"But...." Cordelia stammers, looking back to Adelaide. "Take off his blindfold? How is he going to see if it's a rabbit or not? Or catch it if his hands aren't free?"
[Addie(#22296)] "Oh very well. You may remove the blindfold and the blindfold ONLY. IF he sees a rabbit, then we will deal with it," the slight woman says, warning evident in her voice.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] A hush falls upon the greenery there is not a fresh rustle as yet.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] Thank goodness, Cordelia's small hands reach up and tug down his blindfold. The coarse, harsh rope is still around his throat, but for the first time in ... who knows how long, he can actually see. For a long moment though, the man just stands there, trying to get his eyes to adjust to the greater brightness, squinting.
Only having a general idea of where the sounds were coming from, the Dunadan frowns and mutters something under his breath.
Then with bare feet, and not as steady on them as he would certainly like to be, Rhifaroth begins to ease into the brush, "Here kitty, kitty." He drawls sarcasticly, eyes sharp as might be, trying to watch for whatever might be about.
Cordelia stays where she is, near Adelaide, holding the blindfold in one hand and watching, though she does glance at the other woman more than a few times.
[Addie(#22296)] taking a step closer to the man, the rope slackening, the woman says, "Closer." The movement jars the baby awake though and there is a screaming baby drowning out all of the other sounds.
Very slowly, as Adelaide steps closer to the ranger and urges him forward, Cordelia draws her own blade. She's not anywhere near enough to strike Adelaide with the blade, and she is looking toward the undergrowth, squinting and trying to see what is there.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] As Rhifaroth makes his way to inspect the brush, he may or may not spot the morning's light glinting in the shadows beneath the undergrowth. Twin pricks of cruel light are there for but an instant, ere they vanish, and there is the briefest hint of movement away from the man.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] Pale grey eyes search the underbrush warily, keenly aware that his arms are still pinned with rope behind his own back. Rhifaroth pauses, noticing -something- but not sure what... it moves off or is gone before he can be certain. "There's nothing in here that I can see." A breath, then he begins to edge back out, "I'm coming out."
Now, he's not blindfolded, he has a small knife, and Asht is absent from the group. It probably can't get better than this...
Suddenly, the tall man leaps hard against the rope that is around his throat - in the hope he can jerk it unexpectedly from Adelaide's hands! Rhifaroth takes a risk and throws what strength and weight he can into the lunge, to try and go for the deeper cover himself!
[<#22296>] Trying to soothe the screaming baby, the slight woman's full attention and strength are not on the man. Though she is able to pull back for a couple of moments, the lunge is ultimately successful and the rope is dropped. "(Logathig) In the name of the Eye!" Adelaide says as the rope falls from her hand
'I'll stop him!' Cordelia shouts, leaping forward in an instant. She takes no more than a step, though--fear making her stop and turn to Adelaide. "(Logathig) Mistress, may I?" She holds an unsheathed dagger in her right hand.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] The cruel tightening of the rope suddenly against his bruised, injured throat is expected - but the choking pain is brief, thankfully. Rhifaroth stumbles at the release of tension and almost careens into a tree. He is weak, and with practically no food since his captivity started, he can hardly keep his feet. But he must.
The bound man ducks his head and moves through the underbrush as quickly as he can. Hopefully the long rope he is trailing won't at once snag on something and stop him cold before he even has a chance.
Still caked with blood on his back from his injured hand, the Dunadan keeps moving, pausing only briefly to listen for sounds of pursuit. It won't take long for them to get Asht to come looking on him, horsed.
[<#22296>] The slight woman puts both hands around the babe and bounces him, trying to stop the crying, but then holds the babe out towards Cordelia. "(Logathig) Take the whiny brat. I'll catch the prisoner!"It's a moment--precious seconds--but Cordelia has to sheathe her knife before she can reach for and take the baby from Adelaide. She hurries, though, grabbing the child and then looking nervously into the bushes.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] And suddenly a wail and a squeal erupts from the undergrowth -- fear mingled with anger as the brush is so violently invaded. A small shape, knee-high at the most scurries about this way and that in front of Rhifaroth it is unclear whether it is trying to flee his path or get in the way of it.Whichever the case, with the ways its moving, it is slower than he, and almost certain to trip the Dunadan Gondorian up as he gains upon it, unless he manages to dodge.
[Addie(#22296)] Baby out of her arm, the slight woman hurries after the escaping man, running to try and grab the rope.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] What in the hell is that?!? Something practically comes up under his bare feet, low and darting. It's in the man's way and both trees and brush make dodging difficult in the restricted space. The man pants, head reeling with the sudden exertion after ... what? Two weeks of not being able to move!
His own thoughts upon the small knife and the need to get his ropes cut free, Rhifaroth suddenly finds himself face down in deep, rich leaf mold. The rope around his throat suddenly jerked chokingly tight just at the last instant. Did he step on it himself, or did it catch on something?
Coughing, trying to suck breath, the man drags a knee up to try and force himself back to his feet.
[Bundle of things(#29186)] Thus does he knee the squealing shape before him, for it had fallen with him and been almost crushed, and it is revealed to be a tiny goblin. Barely two feet high it gnashes needle-like teeth and scrambles as best it can to escape the large, strong limbs of the man."Big one!" it hisses with hatred. "Tried to crush poor Bug! Claw its eyes out I will!" What a racket, and right next to the Dunadan's place of hiding too.
[Addie(#22296)] The slight woman manages to catch up with the man just as he falls. Reaching down for the rope, she smiles at the small goblin. Her voice is modulated, soothing, and full of syrup. "Poor Bug, yes. I owe you a debt, little brother."
Cordelia shifts the squalling baby to one shoulder, trying to better hear and see what's going on. The child is slowly settling down.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] The man isn't finished yet. Though his arms be tightly bound behind him, he's had some practice getting to his feet without being able to use them. Rhifaroth does so now, hearing Adelaide coming up and taking up the slack in the rope around his throat. But he can see her and without hesitation, whether she has that poisoned knife out and handy or not, the man leaps for her!
"B*tch!" he hisses, throwing his weight right at the woman to try and knock her down. She will have to use that knife on him, or choke him senseless. The prisoner isn't giving up yet.[Bundle of things
(#29186)] Bug meanwhile bounces around making other shrieked threats, but noticeably does not make good on any of them.
Rhifaroth attacks Addie with his Bare Hands and mildly wounds her!
Seeming almost frozen on the spot, Cordelia stands motionless, her eyes widening as she hears Rhifaroth's shout. She makes no move to run into the woods to help either the woman or ranger.
[Addie(#22296)] The man leaps for her and, hits, taking her down, though she brings the rope with her, her ankle sprained. Her knife is out though, and as she goes down, she aims with her poisoned knife for the man's shoulder.
[Combat(#13388)] Addie slips a finely crafted scimitar from its scabbard.
Addie furiously attacks Rhifaroth with her Scimitar and moderately wounds him!
Too late to be of any use, Cordelia rushes into the bushes just as Adelaide has stabbed the ranger in the shoulder. The movement jars the baby, which starts sniffling.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] If he could just knock this foul woman down, get her stunned enough to get the rope free that binds his throat, he might yet make good his escape. All he needs is somewhere he can wedge that small knife and a few minutes to cut himself loose...
But as the man and woman go down in the dim shade of the thick brush, something awful bites into his right shoulder. Rhifaroth bares his teeth at the pain, the sting of that same little knife that has drawn a bit of his blood twice before. But more the fever, the weakness, the retching the poison will cause for days, that the man dreads.
Struggling for breath, he rolls away from the woman and tries once more to get to his feet. Maybe, just maybe, before she can throttle him senseless, the Dundan might at least get a few hard kicks into the bitch's ribs...
[Addie(#22296)] The woman makes sure that both hands grip the rope tightly, reaching a hand up to shorten any slack with the rope. But perhaps this takes just enough time that the man can get a kick in to her still spread out legs.
The baby starts crying loudly now, its little feet and hands kicking at Cordelia, so that the girl can't be much use at all in this fight--the baby grabbing a handful of the girl's hair so tightly that she has to struggle to release the child's grip and try to set him down in time.
[Rhifaroth(#27282)] The man does get a few kicks in against Adelaide, but... she chokes off his air, pulling Rhifaroth off balance easily. He is too weak to fight her, too weak to put much strength even into kicking her - with bare, unbooted feet. In a moment, his faintly lame left leg buckles beneath the Dunadan and he's down once more, trying to gasp for breath against the choking rope and the leaf mold.
He's finished. The poison already burns in his blood, numbing his shoulder. There is a baby crying, wailing. Grey eyes find Cordelia, standing there with a child in her arms, looking pale. Already, the man's stomach is curling up with nausea, "Valar hate me." he breaths. No luck. Again.
[Addie(#22296)] The woman will have very bruised legs and she struggles to rise, holding the rope, looking pale herself as she puts the knife back whereever it hides on her person.
