Fields and Forests (Falling into the Night)

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius aka "Amardir Ansellidus"
September, 4th age, year 1
In a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

How good was he at traps? Mar couldn't really say for sure. He'd left one for those rangers, back in the city, but he didn't even know if it had worked. "I've yet to have any success at setting traps," He replied. "But then, I haven't set many of them, before." He explained. Before answering whether he preferred to go first, so that he might hear Gerard's reply to how well he knew the cave. It seemed, however, that he did not know it very well. He took another moment to think while Gerard looked at the tracks around the entrance of the cave.

Mar, in the meanwhile, checked that his sword was strapped on, even though he wasn't sure if he'd be able to use it. Then he located some branches to serve as torches. "Then I suppose we go in, too." He replied, after hearing that she had gone in but not out. "Wait... Does this cave have another way out, or do you know?" He asked, thinking she may have used it as a passage to get somewhere else. Or, maybe, she was waiting inside to ambush him or something...

If there was another way out, that would make things more difficult, he realized. But either way, he began to think about what sort of tactic he might be able to use to capture her. Maybe her trail would end here? But he suspected that it was more likely that she had some sort of plan.. so, he needed to have a plan, too. "If there's no other way out, then we might be able to set some sort of trap, to capture her when she tries to leave." He suggested thoughtfully. "But if there are other ways out, then I don't suppose that'll work." He frowned.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

'I care less of how well you can set them and more about if you can avoid walking into them.' *There was a hint of a sigh. "I am not certain. I know of it's existence. I am not certain if there is another exit or where. It seems we come to a choice. We go in, or we go back.' It was a good thought, to set a trap at the other exit, he would agree on that. The problem was that no, he didn't know if or where it was. If there was one it would be narrower and lesser know. This place.. could provide shelter for a long time, he presumed. There were enough plants and water nearby to provide food and the cave itself offered shelter. She was clearly aware at one point that she was being tracked, and this would be a good place to hide, for a long, long time. And if there was another way out well... you might lose the trace permanently.

"It is your choice."
Gerard said it with a definite simplicity. He was willing to go into that cave, brave the risks. BUt you would have to make the choice. Your pursuit of the fugitive seemed a matter of duty, but you were I'll suited to the wilderness. Perhaps he should admire the fact that you went so far out of your element to catch her. And he himself felt apprehensive about the idea of leaving a murderer on the lose.
"We could also alert one of the Eoreds that patrol."
He offered it as a solution, as a way out for you. It wasn't dereliction of duty if you called in help of others sworn to protect.

[Merewyn]

Merewyn of Smoltwaeter (Age 13)
Winter, T.A. 3001
Far Reaches of the West-March
Surviving: Pt. I

Wind whipped through the ragged, unwashed hair of the girl who knelt by the riverside. She picked up a large stone that sat nearby and weighed it in her hands. It was heavy, nearly as heavy as she could lift with her thin frame. She slowly stood up, swinging the stone to and fro, struggling to lift it over her head. When she finally managed to get it above her head she held it there for a moment, before bending her arms back and throwing it as far and hard as she could across the frozen river. The stone smashed into the ice and skittered away. Merewyn squinted her eyes, struggling to see in the bright morning light. She placed a hand over her eyes and looked for where the stone had landed. There was a small dent in the ice, but no cracks, as far as she could tell. Cautiously she began to step away from the shoreline and onto the icy river.

The ice held her weight with the initial steps. She put one foot out, tapping it down lightly and sensing with the tips of her toes before fully placing her full weight down on it. With each step her confidence grew and soon she found herself in the center of the frozen river. She crossed what remained, another twenty feet or so, and made it to opposite shore. Looking back, she saw her horse, a fine golden-brown colt named Éomer. He was tied to a tree a few yards from the river, his head bent down to the pile of dried grasses and leaves that Merewyn had set out for him. A large blanket of dark grey and brown covered his body, as she had been unsure of how long she would be testing the ice. She crossed back over the river and went to the horse's side, making sure to whistle to him to let him know she was approaching.

She came up beside him and reached her hand up to his head. She could reach his cheeks when she stood up, but Éomer was kind enough to lower his head down to hers. He snorted his nostrils by the side of her head and turned his brown eyes on her. There was a strange look in his glance, but Merewyn couldn't quite determine what it was. She took her best guess and said, "I know, I know. It's cold, we are nearly out of food, and no sign of good shelter anywhere we look. " She sighed and looked back across the river. They had left the foothills of the mountains far behind earlier in the year, heading further westward in the hopes of wooded lands and fertile fruit-trees. They had found some, but nothing that was sustainable to live in for long. So, they continued on, further and further west, until they were very nearly at the furthest borders of the Land of Rohan, though neither of them knew it.

"We cross this river and we head for those hills over yonder," she said, pointing southwest towards a cluster of small hills dotted with trees. "With any luck, we'll find some sort of cave to lay down in for the winter. We'll find somewhere, I promise." She untied his reins from the tree and packed what was left of his food into a saddlebag, before leading him to the riverside. She started to walk onto the ice when Éomer planted his hooves down firmly and refused to move. Merewyn nearly fell over at the sudden force applied to the reins she was holding. She turned back to her horse with an incredulous look and said, "Hello?? What are you doing, you silly little bear? We have to cross the river to get where we're going." She turned away from him and started to walk further, pulling on his reins, but she couldn't make him budge.

After a few minutes of tugging, berating, pulling, and pleading, she finally collapsed onto the ground out of frustration. Somehow she was back on the shore and not on the ice, as Éomer had managed to pull her backwards. Sitting on the cold, frosty ground, she pulled her knees up to her chest and angrily blew the strands of hair out of her face. She stared across the ice, to the hills beyond, and silently grumbled to herself about her uncooperative mount. She didn't notice at first that he had started to walk away from her, making it nearly forty feet away before she realized. "Éomer, just where do you think you're going?" She hollered at the horse. She quickly stood up and started to run after him. Seeing her come after him, the horse started to trot further down the shore. When Merewyn finally caught up to him they were nearly two hundred feet further down.

Éomer stopped and stood on the shoreline, his head swaying back and forth. When Merewyn came to his side, he turned his head towards her and swung it back towards his saddle, indicating to her she should hop onto his back. She cocked her head to side and looked at him curiously. "You want me to hop on, now? We haven't even crossed the river yet." He stared back at her with large, deep brown eyes that conveyed a multitude of thoughts and feelings. He couldn't speak, but Merewyn had always felt that he could communicate through their minds. As if, somehow, she could tell what he wanted or meant just through the looks they exchanged. "Alright, alright. If you insist." She swung up onto his back and took the reins, but Éomer went his own way.

With cautious steps the horse made his way across the river. It was wider here than where Merewyn had wanted to cross, but Éomer was sure-footed and wise for his age. His head swayed and his path was meandering at first, but after two short minutes they had crossed the river safely. As they took the last steps off of the ice, a loud crack sounded from further down the river. Whipping her head back, Merewyn saw a deer bounding away, having nearly fallen into the river right where Merewyn had wanted to cross. She shook her head in disbelief and looked down at Éomer, then leaned down to hug his neck.

"You knew that was going to happen, didn't you?" The horse shook his head in response and Merewyn laughed. "Alright, that's decided then. The next frozen river we find, I will let you pick the crossing, agreed?" Éomer snorted in response and turned westward, making his way to the hills in the distance.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius aka "Amardir Ansellidus"
September, 4th age, year 1
A cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Mar was trying not to scowl or wince as he held the unlit torches, listening to his guide's answer. It seemed that they were both tiring of one another's company, but that would soon be over, if this really was the end of the trail. Mar was hoping it was. He wanted to be rid of this fellow, but of course.. he couldn't do that until he no longer needed his help.

"I'm not going back without her." He declared, letting it be known that he would not be budging on that. "Can you follow her tracks inside the cave?" He wondered. The man's next idea gave him pause for a moment. Alert one of the eoreds? He was not familiar with the Rohirrim language, so he wasn't really sure what that was. But he was pretty sure he'd heard that word before. Maybe while his brother was talking about the happenings during the battle of the Pelennor, a couple of years ago. He considered that idea for a moment, and slowly nodded. "Perhaps that would be helpful, yes."

He had no intention of doing that, of course, but Gerard wouldn't have to know that. With any luck, he'd capture her now, and Gerard's usefulness would be over. He might make him into an actual sacrifice, if things worked out well enough. "I don't know about my abilities to spot a trap." He admitted, sighing. It had never really come up before. It wasn't exactly the sort of thing they'd trained them for, in the basic training he'd gone through. Perhaps if he had trained as a ranger, he would have, but he hadn't been interested in ranger business.

"You've been a good guide, and I am grateful for all of your assistance so far. You will be well-rewarded for your aid in this hunt." He promised. "I shall trust your guiding skills further, so that we may apprehend this vicious murderer." With that, he offered Gerard a torch. "Let us hope it is the end of the trail."

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

"I want what we agreed upon, nothing more." he said simply. "Well, getting a murderer off our lands, I want as well."

He nodded as you agreed to alert the Eoreds. If we didn't find her here, within the cave, there were ways to draw attention to ourselves. Then we could have the Eored's help in searching a wider swath of the lands more efficiently.
For now, he took the torch, dipped in pine resin and used a strike steel to strike sparks against the rock, with the torch held close. The resin supported the flame and would until the actual wood took over. The step between light and dark was strange despite the gold flame, and within a few steps into the cave, it seemed the path carved and the outside was left behind, with noise dampened and malformed.

The beginning was wide enough and the path allowed them to stay close enough together that one torch would do. Slick stoned, watery areas were interchanging with dryer sections. The slickness was actually a good sign. It meant the cave, at least in some parts, would contain water. With the horses left behind, all they could rely upon was the contents of his large bag, and whatever you had on your person.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius aka "Amardir Ansellidus"
September, 4th age, year 1
A cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

"That's simply a bonus," Mar commented, in reply about getting the murderer off the lands. It almost amazed him how gullible the guy was, falling for all of this. But why shouldn't he? Mar had given him no reason to suspect that he was lying. And who wouldn't want to be a part of getting dangerous people being apprehended?

He followed Gerard into the cave. It was damp and dark, but Mar didn't mind that at all. He was at home in the darkness, and had spent some of his childhood exploring a cave not far from his parent's home. While his brother had never ventured that far into the woods to be aware of the cave's existence, Mar had been fascinated by it. He'd also spent a lot of time playing in the family's root cellar, which was where he had made a stash for things he didn't want anyone else to find. The cave had been another, but the most important things had been stashed in the cellar. Until that girl found it.

Vaguely, he wondered if she was still alive by now, but that was the least of his concerns.The other girl was, hopefully, about to be trapped in here. And she was the one he really wanted to catch. He carried a couple of extra torches in the crook of his arm, but fortunately they were able to get by on only the one. It felt as if they were so near, he could hardly bear the waiting. Soon, he'd have her again. And he could resume his interrogation, learn where she'd hidden the crystal, and he could finally return to his true home, to bring a great gift to his mentor.

There was an object of some sort lying on the ground ahead of them. Mar could only just see it, at the edge of the range of their light, but it didn't look like something that would naturally be lying in the cave. "What's that?" He asked, speaking in a low voice as he didn't want the cave to carry his voice down the tunnels and alert his prey to his proximity.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

A bonus. For Gerard being paid was the bonus. If he'd been asked by any of the Eored's to volunteer for this mission, he'd have done it without expecting coin. He was more than willing to accept yours. A man needed to repair his gear now and again, and while he lived of the land most of the year, winters were cold and harsh enough he preferred to spend them in his cabin, with the extended family nearby. He was, despite the fact that he wasn't very sociable, an honorable man. That meant that he would try and provide for himself, and protect others.

As you asked What's that?, Gerard moved closer first. Not asking the expected "What's what?" He would see what you meant by venturing close, kneeling down next to it, and motioning for the torch to be held closer. He recognized it at once as a torch. Not used up to the very end, but still close to it. That was.. strange perhaps, but if she had enough, she might wanted to lighten her load. Touching it, it was clear it had been extinguished long enough for the heat to be gone, but the ashes moved easily under his finger, which meant the damp of the cave hadn't had a chance to penetrate and clump them together.

"Means she went that way.." He said, indicating the direction she had likely taken, the way it peeled off from the main section, would seem to lead to that conclusion. "Might mean that she knows she's close to a way out." He didn't elaborate on how he came to that conclusion but if she was lightening her load and confident she would not need the torch much longer, it might indicate that she knew her way. Or it might be just that she was wasteful. There were a lot of mights.

"This way."
He led ahead, not wanting you to accidentally erase footprints. They were visible still in the dust, and he didn't need to hold the torch too low to follow them, the rock on both sides prevented him from losing track for now, if there was another crossing, he would lower it. Except the dim light that followed the cave's corridor didn't fully prepare him for the sudden drop off. WIth a curse, he tried to balance, shifting his weight back as his foot hit nothing but air in the darkness.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius aka "Amardir Ansellidus"
September, 4th age, year 1
A cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Moving closer as his guide did so, Mar held the torch closer so the man could get a proper look. He soon realized that it was a torch, without having to be told. But he didn't know why he was poking around and touching it. He just kept quiet and watched, until Gerard declared that it meant she had gone 'this way'. Mar looked at the wall, puzzled, because he didn't see any other way to go but the direction they were going. Obviously, she must have gone that way, he wanted to retort.

Then Gerard seemed to go right into the wall. Mar raised his eyebrows in surprise before venturing forward cautiously, finding that there was an opening there that he couldn't see until he moved closer. Interesting. He continued, sticking close to Gerard all the way down the corridor, until the other man abruptly stopped. Mar froze, seeing that the man was trying to regain his balance. For a split second, Mar was sorely tempted to give him a push, just to see what happened. But he remembered that he still needed him, or he might. So the hand that reached out that could have pushed, ended up pulling instead. He caught hold of his shoulder and steadied him.

"Careful," He said softly, wincing a little as he dropped his arm. He shouldn't have moved his arm like that, but it had been too fast for him to think about his injury. Fortunately, he was behind the other man, so he probably didn't notice the wince. With his other arm, Mar held up the torch past Gerard to get a better look at the space beyond them. He was surprised by the expanse of nothing, and intrigued by the stalagmites forming impressive spikes at the bottom. Yeah... Gerard would not have survived that fall, he was sure of that. Was that the girl's plan? To lure him here and.. what, was she hiding nearby to try and push him down there? He turned to check behind them as that thought occurred to him, but no one was there.

"Looks like the path ends here," He commented, frustrated. It wasn't too late to push him, he thought idly, but then... if the trail ended here, would Mar have any luck finding where it resumed, without his guide? He held back a sigh as he realized he needed to refrain a while longer. Being behind Gerard, Mar was not able to see the ledge running all the way from where they stood, to the opposite side where the cave floor widened again.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

Well, saving his life at least gave you points in his favor. That drop off had been almost his end. Not the way he wanted to go. Disappearing in the wild, with his body never found and his sister never knowing what happened. He breathed deeply and turned.
"thanks for that. That was.. close."

The problem, he realized once his heart rate had gone down, was though that the steps had led here. Which meant either she was at the bottom of the expanse and had gone over or there was another way. As you lowered the torch, he could see the stalagmites, the spikes, but there were no clear signs of a body, no sounds of scavengers moving and the tracks outside the cave had been fresh enough that if she were dead, like the corps would have attracted animal attention. He looked around, then noticed the ledge, slim, dangerous perhaps as close it came to the precipice but there none the less.

"The path, yes. But not her tracks. Want to bet, we can see better once we go around?" He asked, gently nudging your arm a bit as you held the torch to illuminate the way forward. "It's so narrow we won't see much tracks on it likely, but we should be able to confirm at the other side that she didn't fall down."

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius aka "Amardir Ansellidus"
September, 4th age, year 1
A cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

He said nothing in reply to the thanks. It wasn't really for Gerard's sake that he had saved him. It was simply because Mar still needed him. But he merely nodded, accepting the thanks without a word.

Their journey seemed to be at an end, however, so Mar was a little unsure what to do now. He looked back down the tunnel they had come from, wondering if there was any way that her tracks may have led in here, and then she could have slipped out and gone another way? But then, his arm was nudged and he looked to see why the man had been so bold as to touch his arm. Upon looking closer, he could see that a narrow ledge ran all the way around to the other side.

"Hmm.. does it come out?" Mar wondered. It looked dangerous, but a man with good balance should be able to get across, he thought. A girl like her, he had little doubt that she could manage it. He looked across the expanse of darkness, wondering if she was lurking somewhere on the other side, watching them. He wished they didn't have to have a torch. "I guess there isn't much choice but to go to the other side," He acknowledged, nodding to indicate that Gerard should go first.

Along the ledge, there would be a few spots where the ledge looked like someone had recently scuffed the ground, as if a foot had slipped a little where the ledge was a little more worn and more likely to crumble.

---

Strawberry
In the cave

She had been waiting for a while. She'd found a good spot to hide and wait. As far as she could tell, given the limited range of her campfire's light, she believed that she'd be able to see any light appearing at the end of the tunnel, across the chasm. While she waited, Strawberry was thinking about that old guy who'd stopped by her camp a few days ago. Some of the questions he'd asked. What did she plan to do? She had given that some thought since then, and she was pretty sure she had a plan. She only hoped it was a good one.

She had no idea how long she waited, but it felt like days. Then, finally, she saw it. A small, orange light off in the distance. She had been leaning back on her elbows, on a blanket stretched out on the ground. As soon as she saw the light appear, Strawberry was alert. She got off the ground and swiftly packed up her things, then used the blanket a bit like a broom and swept the dust around in the area to obscure any tracks she may have left. While flapping the blanket lightly in her wake to stir up the dust and cause it to settle freshly, she moved over to the place she had picked out ahead of time, a cluster of rocks near the back of the cavern where she could crouch down and watch the ledge. The light was starting along the ledge already, and she guessed it would be a slow-moving journey for him.

Her gaze remained fixed on the torch the entire time, waiting the progress. Her heart was racing as she anticipated what would happen when he arrived. There was a cold campfire left right in the middle of the area, where it couldn't be missed, so she figured it would naturally draw him to investigate, the moment he arrived on this side of the chasm.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

There was indeed little enough choice. He could say stop of course. He could call of the expedition and decide to return and you could follow him or remain here. But you'd just saved his life, meaning he was much more inclined to help you see your quest to the end.

"Careful" He pointed out as they traversed the ledge, and saw places where the edge had crumbled. "Stay as close to the cave wall as is possible, and keep handholds at all time to the outcroppings you find." A slip could end in a fall, and there would be little to do if the ledge fully gave way. He was already calculating that when they found her, it would be better if there WAS another opening and they could get out through it and then over the mountains, instead of through this way back.

They had made it across that ledge, slowly indeed, but in one piece. And as he'd led the way, to make certain there were no unseen deviations of that path from the ledge, shrouded in shadow, he was also the first to come to the cold campfire. He reached forward, though within the cave, he would have likely smelled the fire still if it had been extinguished recently. Instead, touch confirmed it had been put out several hours ago. Looking at the patterns of the wood it had been well built and extinguished efficiently. BUt then he'd already concluded that the person they were following held good skills to survive upon the land.

@Rillewen

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Ademar Androllius, aka “Amardir Ansellidus”
also aka "Nâluthor"
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

He’d kept an eye on the ground as he traveled along the ledge, and he couldn’t help but notice some of the places where a foot had slipped, or where the ground had perhaps proven itself unable to support a person's weight. And while he was no tracker, he could tell those marks looked fairly recent. And, since he was fairly sure Gerard hadn’t slipped, that told him it must have been her. That was hopeful. That meant she’d almost have to still be here... unless there was another entrance. He needed to know if there was another way out.

The campfire in the middle of the cavern made nim narrow his eyes in suspicion. That didn’t seem like someone seeking to hide from him. What was her game? He looked around, trying to spot anything that might indicate she was still around. Or, a note that she may have left, like the last place. He lingered near the ledge while Gerard was inspecting the charred wood and things that were left in the middle of the open space. That way, he could guard the only way out that they knew of, and prevent her from slipping past him. Holding the torch up as high as he could manage, he let his eyes scan the boundaries of the cavern. From what he could tell, there was no other way out. Though the farthest corners of the cave were in shadow, there was no sort of draft to indicate a passage that went through. There was nothing but old, stale air here. The pit below smelled of old death, as if it had never known any sort of breeze, and no fresh air had ever stirred down there. He knew caves. He may not know the woods as well as a ranger, or as good as this guy, but he definitely knew caves. This was a dead end. Which meant... she was here. She had to be here.

Mar’s gaze scanned the cave, trying to determine where she might be hiding. She could be hiding anywhere in here, really. He’d become familiar with how well she could hide. His gaze switched back to Gerard, deciding that it was time to get rid of him. “There’s no way out of here.” He declared quietly. And he meant it in more than one way, for his "companion" would not be leaving here. He stuck the torch into an old, dusty bracket that was conveniently near where he had been standing, where the ledge began to open into a wider area. With his hands now free, Nâluthor moved toward his victim slowly, steadily, drawing out his knife.

He stepped up behind his guide and swung as hard as his injured arm would allow him to, striking with the hilt of his knife against the back of the man's head. He used his right arm, the better of the two, and watched in satisfaction as the man dropped to the ground*. Then he looked up and scanned the shadows. “I know you’re here.” He announced, smiling darkly. "It's about time we met again." He added, while thinking quickly about how to draw her out of hiding. What would make her talk? What could he possibly do or say to make her come out of her hiding place? His smile slowly grew, and he flipped his knife around. “Come on out, girl. Unless you want to be responsible for another person dying,” He pointed the knife down toward Gerard’s unconscious form. “You don’t want that, do you?”


(*agreed in advance with Eldrith)

---

Strawberry
In the cave

She couldn’t say she was surprised when she watched him strike down the man who had led the way in here. She also wasn’t very surprised when he spoke out, addressing her. Her eyes narrowed as he threatened to murder the man who had helped him get here. She wasn’t really surprised by that, either. But what could she do, now? She wasn’t about to give herself up, but she did need to get some answers. She remained in her hiding spot, thinking swiftly, trying to decide what to do. She'd thought it would be just him and her, but instead, there was someone else present. That made things... more difficult.

“You’ve got until the count of five before I start stabbing him,” He continued, looking slowly one way, then another. Seeking for a glimpse of her. “One,” He carefully undid the belt holding his sword to his side. After laying it aside, his hand gripped the knife, hovering just over the unconscious man’s chest. He’d been looking forward to killing him for the past few days... and he certainly would kill him. After he had the girl under his control.

Strawberry held her breath, her heart racing. She knew he was dead serious, but she couldn’t fully explain how she knew that. But however she knew it, it didn’t matter. The man would die if she didn't do something.

“Two...” He kicked savagely at the man’s ribs. Maybe he’d break some of them.

He was looking away from her now, peering toward the opposite corner. She glanced around, then her gaze landed on the torch. She began to move, swiftly, but quietly as well.

“Three...” Another kick, again at the ribs. He was enjoying that.

Strawberry snatched the torch from the bracket, shoving the flame down into the dust so that the torch was extinguished. They were both plunged into darkness quite abruptly.

Mar paused, listening, his head swiftly turning toward where the torch had been. She must be over there, then. Her attempt to stop him from his kill wasn't going to work, though. “Four,” He warned with another kick, his heart speeding up with excitement at the thought of his hunt drawing to a close at long last. Still, he heard nothing. Nothing, except a faint shuffle of footsteps; nearby, but not so near that he could pinpoint where she was. “You really want to be responsible for yet another death?” He sneered, amused at being able to taunt her. “You really don’t care who dies because of you, do you? You’re-” He started to say, before a blow suddenly struck his chin from below, knocking him backward unexpectedly.

Strawberry had followed the sound of his voice, which wasn’t too hard since she already knew about where he had been. His potential victim was lying on the ground, motionless, so if he was going to stab the guy, he’d have to stay put. His incessant need to hear his own voice had aided her a lot, so that she didn’t end up walking into him. Just as he began talking again, she’d realized that she was close enough. Throwing a kick out blindly, she didn’t know what she hit, but it seemed to be effective.

Problem was, they were both blinded in this darkness. She skipped backward the moment she had landed the kick, listening to try and get a picture of what he was doing, where he was, how he was positioned. It was much, much harder than one might think.

Mar gritted his teeth, then gathered his feet under himself, listening. “What’s your plan here?” He asked with a mocking laugh. “Going to try and kill me? Avenge your family or something?” He wondered, amused at the thought.

Strawberry froze at those words. Avenge her family? Wait... he knew something about her family? What had happened to them? She took a slow breath as she tried to remain focused, trying to picture in her mind where the unconscious man was lying. She didn’t want to step on him or trip over him or something. She also needed to be very well aware of where that drop-off was... but now she had a lot of other things to fill her mind. “What do you know about my family?” She had to ask. Her voice was quiet, perhaps a bit stunned. She moved a few steps to the left immediately after speaking. She’d had a little practice at this, thanks to Dom. She remembered with a glimmer of amusement, the night she had met him, and how she’d thought he was going to kill her with that gigantic sword, while he’d thought she was coming to assassinate him or something. How they'd evaded one another in that dark shop until realizing they were both wrong about the other. An interesting way to meet a friend, for sure.

Mar paused, confused by her question. Why would she be asking that? She knew what happened to them. She had been right there. He’d made her watch while he tortured and killed her family members, one by one. There was no way she couldn’t know. He thought about that while he got to his feet, but he couldn’t come up with any answer. Maybe she was only trying to throw him off, confuse him. Well, it wouldn’t work. He focused instead on listening hard for any noise to indicate where she might be. He had spent a good portion of his childhood in dark places. His cave. His family’s cellar. He knew well enough how to move in the darkness. Of course, he did have to be mindful of that deadly drop-off nearby, but he was pretty sure they were far enough from it not to be too worried. “Your family?” He repeated with a mocking laugh. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten them already?” He smirked as he turned the confusion into taunting. “You’re the reason they’re dead, little girl.” he reminded her, with a mocking laugh. "It's all your fault

Strawberry glared angrily toward the sound of his voice. She shook her head, trying to stay focused. He was lying. He had to be lying. She drew a shaky breath, forcing herself to ignore his taunting lies. “What do you want with me?” She demanded. “Why do you keep coming after me?” She couldn’t keep the frustration, and the anger, out of her voice. She moved slowly back, away from the man he seemed to want to kill, and toward the back part of the cave. Away from the drop-off.

“You know what I want.” He insisted, moving toward the sound of her voice slowly. “All you have to do is give back what you stole from me… and I’ll leave you alone.” He smirked. Yes, if killing her slowly with as much pain as he could inflict on her, counted as ‘leaving her alone’... “But, if you keep on like this, you’re going to suffer far worse than all your family did, put together.” He promised, advancing steadily. “You’ll beg for a death as swift as Reilly’s,” He laughed. Oh yes, he very much regretted killing him as quickly as he had. But he’d learned from the mistake, and he would ensure that this girl did not die before he was ready for her to.

Strawberry hesitated, blinking into the darkness. What he said about leaving her alone was a lie. Obviously. She knew better. She didn’t trust his 'promise' for a second. But what about what he said about her family? This whole... "plan" of hers was not going the way she had hoped. She was unsure how to proceed from here. Winging it was not exactly working out like she’d expected. She hadn’t anticipated him bringing another person along, for one thing. One who, apparently, he was willing to kill to get what he wanted. She deduced then, that probably meant the guy was innocent and not involved with this guy. Maybe he'd been tricked or coerced into helping him.

The worst part, though, was that she hadn’t expected him to start taunting her with memories she couldn’t access, so she couldn’t even be sure of how true it was. And the thought that her family was dead… well, that explained why no one had ever come looking for her, but.. was it really her fault? Could it be... but no, she couldn’t think about any of that right now. If she let herself give in to all of that, then her brain would overload with all of it, so she shut her eyes tightly and let out a slow breath. That was what he wanted, to distract her with all that stuff. She had to focus on what she could control, right now. Worry about all those other things later.

“Well?” He called, frowning with impatience. He had heard nothing for at least thirty seconds. No sound of breathing. No shuffle of footsteps. Nothing. She had to still be here, right? He remembered how fiercely protective the girl was of others, so he was willing to bet that she wouldn’t leave someone to die at his hands. Gerard was better use to him as a hostage, then, right now. “Think Gerard will make a good sacrifice?” He asked with a malicious smile. “I’m going to cut him." He promised. "I'll open every vein, and let his blood soak the ground in this cave. I'll cut him open, and then-”

“Leave that poor guy alone,” She demanded, as if he would listen to her. “He helped you, and that’s how you repay him?” This guy was absolutely repulsive! She could hardly believe it, and yet, she also didn't doubt that he would do exactly what he said.


Mar laughed. “He was as good as dead the moment he agreed to be my guide. I just had to endure his insufferable company until I didn’t need him anymore.”

“I don’t know what you want from me,” She insisted, softly. “But even if I did, I’d never give it to you.” She added with defiance. He.

Mar paused, considering her words. Then he smiled and put the dagger to Gerard's chest, thoughtfully. “Shall I cut out his heart first?" He moved it to his arm. "No.. that's too quick. Maybe I’ll-”


Strawberry narrowed her eyes, thinking. His voice had told her he was right in front of her, but too far to reach out and touch him. she ran two steps closer to close the gap, then launched toward where his voice was. Praying she didn’t miss. She was relieved when her foot made contact with what she supposed was his stomach, for she heard his breath whoosh out in a surprised grunt, interrupting whatever he would have said. They both tumbled to the ground.


He wasn’t expecting it, although he probably should have been. He’d underestimated this girl once before, and it had been the biggest regret of his life so far. Mar hastily grabbed whatever he could get ahold of, ignoring the pain in his arms as he struggled to overpower her. He couldn’t let her get away this time!


They struggled for a few moments, both fighting blindly in the dark. As always, she was elusive, always dodging away just when he thought he was about to grab her, or he’d manage to get a hand on her, only to find a hand or foot lashing out to knock him away again. It had been a while since he’d encountered anyone with those skills. Mostly, because he’d killed and incapacitated the only others he knew of with those skills. She was small, hardly bigger than a child. She shouldn't be this good at fighting! He kept trying, and finally he managed to catch her ankle when she threw a kick at him. With a smug smirk, he used both hands to trap her foot into his side, and yanked with a sharp twist to her ankle, so that she fell off balance and fell to the ground. He heard her gasp in surprise, and he hoped that it hurt her. While she was still trying to kick her foot free, he grabbed his blade again and slashed just above where he was holding her leg, hoping to prevent her from being able to walk. That ought to make it difficult for her to keep fighting. He was pleased to hear the little cry that followed. Honestly, he was looking forward to torturing her further. Extensively. But first, he had to get the answer he’d been seeking. “Where is it?” He demanded, his voice raised with frustration. “Where did you hide it?!”

“I don’t.. know what you’re.. talking about.” Strawberry insisted, panting partially due to pain, but mostly she was out of breath from all the dodging and evading. It was definitely a lot harder when you can’t see where your attacker is, she discovered. She was forced to exert much more energy than usual, evading him. She felt him trying to angle her leg in such a way as to cause her pain, and she swiftly retaliated with her other foot, catching him in the side of the nearest knee, then she kicked toward the hand that was gripping her ankle. She felt her foot make contact with his arm or something, and heard him swear as he let go of her. She hastily rolled herself away from him and got to her feet.

Now, she was at a loss. She’d lost her bearings when he caused her to tumble to the ground. Which way was the drop-off? And where was that guy, the one he’d tried to kill? And how badly was she hurt? Her leg hurt, but she was pretty sure she’d be alright. Maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to put out the torch, but it had seemed like it might give her an advantage, at the time. Now, she was wishing for a bit of light.

“Where is it?” Mar demanded, grimacing as he tried to will himself to overcome the pain she had inflicted on his already injured arms, and now on his knee. He clenched his teeth shut to stop himself from letting loose a stream of curses. Umbarian ones. He wanted to beat her face in. Stab her repeatedly. He wanted to unleash some kind of violence upon her, to make himself feel better. But he also needed her alive, so he couldn’t do any of that until he had what he needed from her. The crystal she had stolen. The one that he was sure was a source of unfathomable power. One which could revive Lord Zigur. Or, perhaps, which could raise another (himself, perhaps?) into his place. Whatever the case, he needed that crystal back!

Taking a slow breath to calm himself, he listened carefully. Where was she now? Had he succeeded in limiting her mobility? He only hoped he hadn’t injured her so severely that she might bleed to death or something before he could get what he needed from her. He suddenly thought of a way he might be able to get an answer, one which he’d never tried before. He smiled slowly as he considered it. “How about we make a deal?” He suggested with a less hostile tone in his voice now. He trusted that he was not simply speaking into the darkness, but that she was there, listening. He felt around on the ground near him, and located a foot lying nearby. It was too big to be the girl’s, so he concluded it must be Gerard’s. “Your sister is still alive, you know. Assuming she hasn’t starved to death while I’ve been off chasing after you, that is.” He added nonchalantly, while he moved forward until he found the campfire that Gerard had been inspecting when Mar knocked him out. “So how about, you tell me where you hid my crystal, and I’ll tell you where to find her. Maybe, if you’re quick enough, you can find her before it’s too late.” He listened for any sort of reaction, hoping that might get her attention. Meanwhile, he felt around for the pouch he’d seen Gerard get his firemaking supplies from, hoping to get a fire going. He needed to see this girl if he wanted to have any hope of overpowering her. Of course, the light would help her, too, but he was hoping her leg injury would help him.

She blinked, though it made no difference in the total darkness around them. “My sister?” She asked, stunned as she considered the possibility. He was lying, of course... but was he lying about her having a sister? 'I have a sister..?' She thought in wonder, although she also couldn't help being skeptical. She hadn’t ever considered the possibility before, and it was startling to realize that this guy knew more about her than she knew, herself. He was, possibly, the only person in the world who could tell her what she could not remember. But she also couldn’t trust anything he said. So, where did that leave her? She stared into the blackness before her, her mind racing. Reeling with the thought that she might have a family somewhere out there. But he’d said something about her family being dead... so.. what did he mean? She was confused. And she hated the realization that this guy seemed to know things about her, and about her family, that she did not.

Suddenly, a spark flashed in the darkness, just a few feet away. Strawberry tensed. Her leg hurt, but she could still stand. She’d worry about that later. After a couple more sparks, a tiny flame appeared. Good, he was lighting a fire. She would be able to see, now. She waited to let him get the fire going, because she felt like that would help her a lot more than it would him. The moment the flame seemed steady enough to survive on its own, she struck. Her kicks came in a flurry, and he hastily retreated. She’d had a few moments to recover her breath while he was lighting the fire, and now she was relentlessly attacking, driving him away from the unconscious man. Hoping to prevent him from hurting the guy. Her leg hurt, but she could worry about that later.

He cringed as he tried to block as many of her kicks and punches as he could, but some landed on his leg, side, and arms. He kept his torso and face shielded as well as he could, although it was most painful whenever she landed a blow to his arms. Especially, his left arm, which he tried to keep protected behind the other. He kept backing away, making sure he steered away from that drop-off, until it seemed that she was getting a bit winded. Fortunately, her own brother had once taught him how defend himself from such an attack. He’d also taught Mar a few defensive moves, which he swiftly ran through in his head, now. When he deemed the moment right, and when such a chance allowed, he moved suddenly. Catching her arm as she threw a punch at him, he twisted it abruptly. She hadn’t seen that coming, he thought with amusement as she yelped in pain. Her arm was trapped in such a way that she couldn’t bend it, and if he put just a little more pressure on her arm, it would probably break.

“I should’ve cut off your fingers, instead of just dislocating them,” He sneered, yanking her arm downward so that she was forced to the ground with a gasp. He dragged his knife over the palm side of her finger joints, drawing blood. “Maybe I should remedy that, now,” He smirked. “Or, maybe I’ll break your legs. Like I did your father, and your brother, remember?” He suggested. “You always did want to be like them, right?” He smirked. “Or, maybe… I’ll start by breaking your arm.” He pressed slightly down on her arm so she gasped sharply in pain.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

He had not expected it. Not at all. Knelt down to see if there was anything more to learn from the fire, the first thing he had felt was the sharp pain and then honestly... nothing. The first thing he became aware of again was pain. His head was throbbing. The fact that he was by his very nature a silent man probably saved him, because he didn't speak, didn't complain. In nature one didn't rouse the animals or alerted anyone to your position if you were wounded. Animals who cried out in pain were devoured faster. What had happened didn't immediately register. How could it? The attack had been so unexpected. He wasn't quite ready to pledge eternal friendship to Mar. They were very.. very different people, but the man was determined, and he'd saved his life.

The air was cool within the cave, and the scent was one of old death, and a stillness now disturbed. Yet the quiet and his own lack of motion led to another awareness. Sound. Sound that formed into a landscape before his eyes, and painted a picture. First sound of a struggle. That sound made realization dawn. He had been struck. Either by a falling rock, or more likely considering the the sound of struggle, by the woman they had been following.
He opened his eyes on a slit and at first saw almost nothing. But there was no transition from light to dark for him, having opened his eyes into that darkness. And it allowed him to quickly see .. more. Shadows at least. His head was pounding. The fight yes.. the fight was logical. They were after a fugitive! A murderess. The woman was attacking Mar. Except... with the pounding of his head slightly fading, he could hear again. And the words that came out of this man's mouth painted a picture much different from what Gerard had been told.

The man seemed to get the overhand. Gerard tried to breath in deeply, each breath making his chest feel as if it would explode. Still.. he had to do something. He shifted his balance first, moving soundless as was his habit. Weight on his hand, raise his upper body, try and gather his legs underneath him. Darkness and quiet were his friends now. Once he was on his knees.. he reached for one of the ashy logs, that had remained within the extinguished camp fire. The girl, because surely she was more a girl than a woman grown, gasped in pain. And Gerard launched the heavy, half burned branch towards Mar's head.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

|
Ademar | Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Strawberry was breathing hard, her mind racing. What? Her father..brother.. who was Reilly? Was that her brother’s name? She squeezed her eyes tight, trying her hardest not to let herself get swept away in the flood of emotions that threatened to spill over. Dead… all dead? Except, maybe, for a sister? What was her name? She wanted to know so badly, but she didn’t dare ask. She had to get out of this predicament first, then worry about all those things. The guy had put her in a very bad position, one which would be very, very hard to get out of without getting injured. Except, he made one mistake. He had mentioned having once dislocated her fingers, (and now, her suspicions were confirmed that he was the one who had done that, at least), but he seemed to have forgotten that he had also dislocated her shoulder. Or else, maybe he didn’t realize what that meant.

She had often discovered that, after having had it dislocated, the joint came out sometimes more easily than it should. Especially after that last time she was here, when Xyler had to put it back in for her. She squirmed slightly, trying to move her arm just right, and then it did popped out. Yes, it hurt. But she was no longer in a bind, and that meant he’d lost his leverage. At the same moment that she felt her arm give, she twisted her torso around and flung a handful of dry, powdery dust from the cave’s floor into his face. She kicked at his knee, then hastily rolled clear of his reach.

Two or three things happened all at once. There was just enough light from the dim campfire to see by, now, but Mar didn’t see what she was doing in time to turn his head away. The dust blinded him, and at the same moment, something else struck the side of his head, while her foot connected with his knee. Both impacts combined made him fall down, which wouldn’t have been so bad except that he instinctively put his arms out to catch himself. His weakened left arm collapsed under him and he let out a small cry of pain, unable to help it. This only served to fuel his anger.

Strawberry wasn’t expecting any help, so when it came, she glanced over to see that the fellow Mar had called Gerard was now awake. He must have heard some of what had been said, or else he’d been aiming that branch at her. In the dim light of the low campfire, it was hard to be sure. With a little wince, she took the opportunity to push her arm back in the socket where it belonged, regardless. That had gotten much easier after much practice, too, and it didn’t hurt as much anymore to pop it out and back in. Then she moved toward Mar, with the intention of keeping him down before he could get back up.

While she was dealing with her arm, Mar squeezed his eyes tight, and rubbed at them with his good hand. The sand or dust or whatever it was, it hurt his eyes. He gritted his teeth as he pushed himself partially upright with his right arm, then glanced toward the two of them, his eyes stinging from the dirt she had thrown at him. He might be able to manage them both, if he hadn’t been injured. And if the girl had been any average girl. And if he hadn’t just been partially blinded. Why was this stupid girl so hard to subdue?! He gathered his feet swiftly under him, then lunged toward her with a growl of frustration.

Strawberry hastily pivoted aside, so that he went right past her, and prepared to defend herself from whatever he would do next, but… he didn’t turn back toward her. Instead, he went past Strawberry, and went for Gerard.

Mar had his knife in hand even as he moved toward Gerard. He didn't believe he could fight the girl and Gerard, so one had to go. He couldn’t kill her, since he needed information from her, but Gerard.. he was useless now. He had intended to kill him more slowly, but sometimes plans have to be flexible. The man had thrown a branch at him, but now he was weaponless, unless he could grab another from the campfire. But Mar hoped to be quicker than him. Mar's dagger struck downward toward the man, aiming for a fatal strike. “Here’s your payment,” He told him with a laugh, amused at how he had believed that lie. “I don’t need you anymore.” He said, smirking, as he aimed another strike at the man, this time aiming for his throat, just in case the first strike hadn’t been effective.

Strawberry was too late to stop him from attacking the man, but she rushed toward him as fast as she could when she realized what he was doing. “No!” She yelled as she moved to stop him, more instinctively than through any belief that he would actually listen to her. He was already going for a second strike by the time she reached him. As he brought his knife down toward Gerard for the second time, Strawberry made an X block with her wrists, catching his arm as he brought it down toward Gerard. Using his own momentum against him, she swiveled his arm around, keeping the dagger away both herself and Gerard. He ended up with his arm trapped in an armbar, her elbow pressing down on his upper arm which forced him to double over, his face close to her leg. The next thing she would have done, was to use her leg to trip him and knock him over. But he retaliated much quicker than she’d expected…

Mar was only halfway surprised by the move, and mostly because he had been focused on trying to kill Gerard and hadn’t gauged the girl’s response time well enough. Once it started happening, he remembered Reilly once teaching him this exact move. It had been a while. And there was nothing he could do to stop it. She was too swift, and too well-practiced at this sort of thing. He gritted his teeth as her grip caused pain to the gash on his arm, but then he saw something useful, just within his grasp. A small knife, tucked into a concealed sheath in her boot. He had to use his left hand to grab it. His weak arm, the one that had been torn up by that stupid dog. He could barely grip the small knife, his arm was so damaged, but he did manage to keep a grip on it. As he stabbed the small blade into the side of her leg, he was satisfied with the startled cry of pain that he elicited from her.

Her knee buckled as he stabbed her leg again, but she didn’t release his arm. He managed to stab her three more times in quick succession before she let go of his arm with one hand… only so she could slam her elbow into the side of his head, hoping it would stun him. Then she shifted her weight to her other leg. Using the one he’d just stabbed, she kicked his nearest leg as hard as she could endure, and she knew she’d gotten him in the knee. As he collapsed to the ground with a howl of pain, Strawberry kept with him, folding his right arm, which she still had a tight grip on, tightly behind his back. She twisted the dagger from that hand. She was breathing hard, and she was bleeding, and it hurt a lot. But fortunately, she was pretty sure her wounds weren't too severe. But she couldn’t tell yet how serious the man’s wounds were. She couldn't deal with him just yet. First, she had to contain Mar somehow.. so he couldn't break free of her grip. But she didn't have any rope within reach. He was already struggling, and he was bigger than her, so she wasn't sure how long she could keep him pinned like this.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

*He wasn't in time to grab another branch and the fact that his chest hurt with every branch made conscious thought a bit harder, or slower, however you wanted to describe it. But he was hardly a lamb to the slaughter and by now, it was clear WHO was the criminal in this scenario. A fact hammered home by Mar's words and him approaching with a knife. He wasn't able to block, not fully, and he hadn't gathered himself enough to get fully up on his feet, but he was able to move, and not being killed was a powerful motivator. As the knife came towards his chest, likely for a kill strike aimed to the heart, he managed to half pull aside. The knife struck but only in his left upper arm. He moved his right hand up as if to fend off that second strike but at that moment help was at hand from the girl..

The next few seconds proved one thing at least. She could fight. And she was tough. He could see the knife strike three times.. But at that kick to the knee, he finally went down. His own breathing was harsh, but he ground out words from the first time.

"I got fine twined rope in my bag. Good for snares."

And creatures like that. BUt he didn't say that last out loud. As was usual he didn't speak more words than were necessary for the situation. The fact that your first reaction wasn't to kill the man said a lot about the lies that had been told to him. He adjusted to the changed reality with the practice of a man whose survival in the wild frequently depended on his ability to accurately assess a situation, whether that was an incoming storm, an approaching bear, or a river running dry where it shouldn't.

He pulled the bag from his shoulder with his right hand, breathing sharply as the strap went over the place where he was stabbed. There was the temptation to add a kick to Mar, simply to make a point. He didn't. That also said something.

"need help?"

After all, you'd been stabbed too, and considering the fact that they had followed your trail you'd been out in the wilds for several days as well. You clearly were a lot more attuned to it than the violent miscreant that had fooled him, but you might be exhausted even before they had reached you.

@Rillewen

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

|
Ademar | Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Mar couldn't believe this. He was furious at how badly this had all gone wrong. This was not how this was supposed to work out! She was the one supposed to be pinned in his grip, not the other way around! He squirmed and struggled, trying his hardest to break out of her grasp. If only he wasn't having to deal with those injuries on his arms... that was making all of this very difficult for him.

This entire month had been going very badly for him in everything. He knew what needed to be done, too. For everything to stop turning out wrong, he needed to make a proper sacrifice. That's what had gone wrong so far, right? He'd left a few bodies, slaughtered and made to look like sacrifices, but those were just for show. To strike fear into those who found them, and to make sure that people knew that Sauron's influence lived on. But it had been far too long since he'd made a real sacrifice. But he couldn't use her. Maybe he still use Gerard, even though he'd wounded him. He was just getting a head start on feeding the earth with his blood, right? Besides, the guy was supposed to have died! Why did he have to go and move at the last second?

Mar tried directing his anger at all of these failures, toward getting himself free. When that failed, he went still, breathing hard as he feigned having given up. He gave a scornful laugh. "What now?" he wondered what she might have in mind. "You kill me, and you'll never find out where your sister's at." He reminded her, smirking as he turned his head sideways to peer over one shoulder.


For a few moments, Strawberry struggled to keep from losing her grip on him. Her leg was in pain, as well as her side. But she kept his arm bent behind his back, and she didn't let up on it even when he finally stopped struggling. She made no reply to Mar's comment, partly because she had no idea how to respond to that, and she couldn't even let herself start thinking about anything relating to her family. Not right now.

Instead, she glanced over at Gerard when he offered some twine, asking if she could use some help. "Please." She answered, without wasting much breath. As one who was not accustomed to asking for, or accepting help from others, Strawberry didn't like having to, now. But she couldn't reach the rope he had spoken of, and she couldn't risk Mar getting free while she was trying to tie him. "You're hurt," She acknowledged, meaning Gerard. "How bad?" She was, too. They were both going to need some bandages, so she hoped she had enough for them both. At least she knew there was a healer not far from here, but first, they'd have to get out of this cave.

Mar took the time in which he was lying still, to catch his breath. The girl's grip was hurting his arm more than the way she had it twisted behind him, but fortunately, it was the arm that wasn't as badly injured. His other was half-pinned beneath him, which could have been useful if it had not been injured. As it was, he didn't think he could use it to push himself up, like he wanted to do. While the girl and Gerard were discussed tying him up, Mar was waiting for the right moment to make a sudden move that ought to break her grip on him. And turn the tables in his favor. Things were not looking in his favor, but he had to try.. and he would, the moment she shifted her grip on his arm, in order to let Gerard attempt to tie his hands.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

"He stabbed me." That was a simple answer to the girls conclusion that he was hurt. Of course he was hurt. The clod STABBED him. And apparently he was holding secrets. Gerard felt something he rarely experienced: anger. Last time it had ruled him was during the devastation that was the war. Despite that rather bland reply, she shuffled closer, keeping his breathing shallow for now. He knew that couldn't continue. He'd seen warriors get ill and feel like they were drowning even while safe in beds. For now though, it would have to do.

" Some ribs, broken or bruised, I think. I'm Gerard." He added, then moved till he sat beside her so she wouldn't have to reach or take her attention from the man he had known as a guard from Gondor, opening the bag again with his right hand when it was on the ground and holding out the twine. The fact that she needed to bind him meant she wasn't intending to kill him, at least not right away. Either way, so far she hadn't lied. And she'd taken a risk to keep Gerard himself alive. In this case, the enemy of his enemy better be his friend. "He claims he's a city guard and you're an escaped murderer."

He saw the look on Mar's face as he moved closer to hand over the twine. Before she could take it, he laid it down, close to her hand, and pulled his hunting knife out of it's sheath.


"You liked the rabbit I dressed and spitted the other day." He said calmly. "I doubt you want to end up like it though." A threat. Calm. Controlled, and with the power behind it of a man who survived by being capable. To you, his life might be simple and beneath your notice. But even you could not deny that this was an environment where he thrived. And you didn't.

@Rillewen

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

|
Ademar | Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

"Yes, he's very stabby," She agreed with a little nod, frowning as she risked a brief glance down at her own side. Mar gave a scoff at her childish choice of wording, but otherwise remained still. As for Gerard, Strawberry had seen that he was hurt, but he did not answer how bad he felt it might be. But, she gathered from how he responded, that he was perhaps more upset at the fact that he'd been stabbed, than anything else. Perhaps, that he'd been betrayed, too. She could understand that.

She kept a secure grip on Mar's wrist, holding it pinned up between his shoulder blades, while Gerard moved painfully closer to her. When he offered his name, Strawberry gave a tiny nod in reply, but she was a little unsure how to reply, or if a response was even necessary. He had not asked what her name was in return, and she usually did not offer anything unless asked. But the following comment, about how Mar had claimed to be a city guard, she did respond to. "He is." She frowned as she confirmed that information. "He's a.. luna-tent-anent," She paused, trying to determining if she'd put too many syllables into that word. Whatever. "He's also a nobleman, from Lossnarach." There was confusion in her tone there, as she found it puzzling how he could be both, but the third and most serious of these, she had no doubt about. "And he works with a priest, in Umbar." She added, green eyes narrowing at the monster beneath her. Surely, Gerard wouldn't need her to explain what sort of priest that would be, since she was pretty sure one would only find one type of priest in a place like that.

Strawberry ignored the little smirk she could see on Mar's face, or the side she could see of it. As if he were amused by her confusion about all of his roles. Still speaking to Gerard, she addressed what he'd said about what Mar claimed about her. "I'll bet he showed you a poster, listing all the horrible crimes I'm supposed to have done." She guessed, huffing a little at the absurdity of it. He put the twine down near her, then drew his knife. Strawberry watched with a tiny nod of approval at the threat the man made to their captive.

Mar glared sullenly at Gerard, eyes narrowing as he strove inwardly to remain calm. He'd get free, somehow. And then this guy was going to die. He wanted to make sure it happened. He had to, because now he knew too much. He couldn't afford to let Gerard go talking to any authorities or something. Maybe Gerard was in his element at the moment, but things could flip around any moment.

Strawberry tied the string around his right wrist, then she was ready for the other. "Arm." She demanded. It was folded partly under him, which had been fine until now, but she couldn't grab it like this. "Give it."

"I can't." Mar admitted. He glared over his shoulder at her, as if irritated that she was making such a demand. "It's hurt." He didn't have the strength in his arm to push himself up off of it.

"We're both hurt, too, but we manage to do what needs doing." She rolled her eyes. Really, after he just stabbed her with that arm, he was going to pretend like he couldn't use it? Although, that would explain why his attack had seemed somewhat weak.

Mar waited a moment, debating whether to continue to resist. But Gerard was right, he did not want to be injured further. And while he felt fairly sure that neither of these two were ruthless killers (like himself), he didn't know for certain that they would not injure him. And he did not like being injured. After taking a moment to think how to get his arm unpinned, he rolled partly toward his right, grimacing as he freed his left arm from under his torso. When she swiftly grabbed it and twisted it back with the other, he let out a small, but genuine grunt of pain, because she was not very gentle about it.

Strawberry ignored him until she had finished binding his wrists together. "Must hurt a lot," She commented. Or else he was faking. But she could feel a bandage or something beneath his sleeve, and it seemed like it was a real injury. "Good. Did my sister do that to you?" She asked, with a clearly hopeful tone. Whoever her sister might be, she hoped that she might have been the one to do some damage to him.

Mar scoffed at that. "No, a dog." He grumbled. "A stupid mutt, and a girl." He scowled. "Attacked me a few weeks ago."

"I wonder why," Strawberry remarked dryly as she glanced to make sure that Gerard had him covered while she moved to tie his ankles, too. She was disappointed that it wasn't her sister, but she didn't let on. Whoever it was, they'd done well. "Good for them, anyway." She added. Finishing with his ankles, she sat back for a moment, finally allowing herself a moment to acknowledge the pain of her own injuries. Then she struggled up to her feet, one hand pressing to one of the wounds. She winced slightly while testing how painful her leg would be to walk on. It hurt, but she could walk. She'd be alright for now.

Her pack was on the far side of the cavern, behind the pile of rocks where she'd been hiding when they went to investigate the cold campfire. She limped over there, grabbed it, and returned to sit on the ground beside Gerard. "Let's stop your bleeding, first." She suggested as she nodded toward his arm, where he'd been stabbed. She dug out a medical kit that she always carried. "I know where to find a healer. It's not too far. But we gotta get there, first." She explained. "How's your head?" It looked like Mar had hit him pretty hard, earlier. If he had a concussion, it would make it really difficult for him to inch his way along that ledge without getting dizzy or something, which would be... well, fatal. "Think you can get across that?" She asked, nodding toward the chasm.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

"Lieutenant." *He recognized the word, or at least that's what he presumed you meant. "You're sure he's a lieutenant in good standing? If he is, Gondor doesn't know about his extra activities. Especially in Umbar." He looked at the girl, then at Mar once he was bound. "I don't have any contacts among the guards in Minas Tirith."

There was a pause both because he allowed himself a moment to breath through the pain, but also because these were a lot of words for a man more used to silence. "The rangers who dwell in the mountain range know who I am. My word is worth something. And there are Eoreds that patrol on this side. We can find one and see if they have a messenger they can send to the White City." If they did not know, they needed to know. And if he man wasn't a lieutenant then they needed to know someone was impersonating one. And hunting people. And trying to kill them. Not just trying.. Considering the bits and pieces he had heard, he'd killed most of the girls family. And he wanted something from her, even though she didn't seem to know just what.

The girl was brisk. Brisk in tying up the man, despite the fact that that fight must have taken quite a bit out of you as well. Brisk despite the fact that clearly you were missing a few pieces of memory, the taunts seemed to indicate that. And there was a reason he'd chosen to attack Gerard not you. He had been used to find you, and then he'd been discarded as useless or possibly even worse as bait. It was a lowering realization. But considering he was alive and with all his limbs attached and unbound, Mar was the one who had come out of the adventure the worst for wear.
"He's more of a city boy" He commented with a slight curve of his lips. "For a slip of a girl, you're rather quick to hand out commands, aren't you?"

You made decisions like someone used to rely on themselves, but willing to pull others along. You seemed too young to be officially in charge of anything but you were clearly self sufficient. And well prepared, the medical kit resembled much of the supplies he kept in his own bag. Not much, but enough to do what was needed until help could be found.

"My head is hurting." He admitted without rancor. "I think I got lucky when he stabbed me. Still bleeding though. " But it wasn't bleeding with the heavy gusts that would have worried him. He would survive this. And so would she. He made a silent vow to that, without words, in a cave where the air held the scent of old death and fresh blood. "I will let you take care of me, then I will do the same for you. Then we go back for the horses. As to the ledge... not much choice is there?"

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

|
Ademar | Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Strawberry kept quiet, listening a moment as the man responded about the lieutenant thing. Meanwhile, she reached over and took a longer branch from the fire and poked it to get it burning a little brighter so she could see better, and therefore properly see what she was doing.

"I dunno about standing," She frowned, not really sure about that. She remained quiet a moment while she gently pressed some dried, crushed herb leaves against his wound, then bound up his wound with what bandages she had. As she did, she was thinking about what he said about the guards in Minas Tirith, and that he had no contacts with them. Frowning, she shook her head. "I don't trust any of them." She admitted quietly, thinking of the one she had met, and had dubbed 'CG', short for Crooked Guard. Then there was the captain, who had apparently ignored her attempt to help him catch two different criminals in the city. No, given what she knew about this lieutenant, she wouldn't really be surprised to find that the captain and most of the guards were also dirty. But even if they weren't, she couldn't contact them.. she was considered a wanted criminal, there. They'd believe whatever Mar told them, not her. "I led him away from Gondor for good reasons," She mumbled. Though she did not mention what those reasons were, partly because she didn't want Mar to hear it. Just... on the off chance that he was able to somehow get out of this. Maybe she was just being paranoid, as Dom would say, or overcautious as Xyler might say.

Strawberry's mind was racing as she tried to sort through way too many thoughts and feelings, now with the added information that Gerard was giving about rangers, and errands, and messengers. She was trying her best to prioritize everything properly, but her head was starting to feel a bit too full, and bits of the things Mar had said, taunting her, were trying to push back to the front of it all. She kept trying to push it all back, because she couldn't really deal with all that right now. She needed to get this guy's wound bandaged, first and foremost. Which is what she was doing now. Then, she probably should try to do something about her own wounds. Although, as she carefully tied off the bandage around his arm, she noticed that she had no more bandages left in her kit.

When Gerard commented that Mar was a 'city boy', Strawberry spared a brief glance toward Mar, frowning slightly as she thought of all the occasions she had seen him in the past. "Don't let him trick you," She murmured, too quietly for Mar to hear, but with Gerard being so close, he should be able to hear her well enough. "I guess he hired you because he realized he couldn't track me on his own," She had guessed as much when she saw him come in with another. "But he's not as helpless out of the city as he probably made you think." She offered a quiet warning as her left shoulder shrugged slightly. The right one still hurt a little, but not so much that she'd admit it. "Oh, which reminds me.. I dunno how much he promised to pay you for your skills, but hopefully this is enough." She added, passing him a rather full coin pouch which she seemed to produce from nowhere. She'd heard that mocking comment from Mar, saying 'here's your payment', as the man tried to kill Gerard instead of paying what he had promised.

The comment about her handing out commands made her pause, considering. Had she been bossy toward Gerard? She hadn't meant to be, not exactly. She'd only felt as if it was her responsibility to tend to him. "He was aiming to kill you." She pointed out, frowning a little in doing so. "Figured your wound might be serious and need tending right away, just in case." She explained, in her defense. As far as she saw it, an innocent person had been caught in the crossfire during this.. whatever it was.. between her and Mar. And she felt guilty for it. Therefore, she wanted to try and fix his injuries and save his life if the injury had turned out to be serious. "I'm sorry you got hurt," she added genuinely. "I didn't figure on him hiring someone to track me for him. It was supposed to be just between me and him." And now, because of her, someone else was hurt. Just what she'd been trying to avoid happening.

Having finished tying his bandage, Strawberry shifted to sit on the ground, one hand coming up to her forehead, as if she was either concentrating very hard, or maybe she had a headache. Her fingers absently felt of the scar located just under her hairline, where she'd once had a very bad gash. The blow that caused it, she suspected may have been the start of her memory loss, but she wasn't sure. She wanted so badly to ask more about her sister, but she also figured she wouldn't believe much of anything Mar told her, so why bother? And then.. there was all that stuff he'd said about her family. She wanted desperately to know, and yet, she was also afraid to ask. Afraid to hear whatever he might have to say, partly because she was afraid it would be lies, and partly, because she was afraid that it wouldn't be. So, she swiftly tried to lock all that stuff back into a mental box, not letting herself open it any further than that.

As Gerard answered that his head was hurting, Strawberry lowered her hand to look at him, momentarily surprised by his declaration that he would take care of her, in return. "I'm alright." She insisted. "Barely grazed me." That wasn't actually true, but she didn't want to admit that it was starting to hurt more now that the adrenaline was starting to fade. She'd be alright, and that was what counted. "Besides, I'm out of bandages." She added in a 'whatever, it's fine' sort of tone.

"And you," She added with a little amusement, "didn't get lucky. You got smart, and moved when he stabbed. That isn't exactly what I'd call 'luck'." She couldn't resist pointing that out. After taking a moment to pack up her things again, she began trying to think of what to do next, thinking about him mentioning his head hurting. "But he did hit you pretty hard on the head," She recalled. "You could have a can-cushion," She'd had one before, a long time ago. It wasn't fun at all, she recalled. "Do you feel dizzy, or like you might be sick or anything like that? Cause.. that ledge is pretty narrow..." As if he needed reminding about that.

Mar was trying to listen to whatever was being said, but a lot of it he couldn't hear, or he could only hear a few bits and pieces. Though, he did he hear the girl ask Gerard about his head, and about crossing the chasm. With a note of condesention in his voice, he spoke up to ask, "How do you plan on getting me across?" He wondered whether she had any sort of plan. He couldn't go along the ledge with his ankles bound, after all.

Strawberry huffed as she glanced over at him. "I don't." She replied, her tone taking on a frosty edge when speaking to him. "I plan on you staying right where you are." She paused to let that begin to worry him, before adding, "I'm going to find the nearest Rohir guard and they'll come to get you, and then they can lock you up or whatever they do with people like you." She declared, then smiled triumphantly. "They may not listen to me, but I'm sure they'll listen to Gerard." He'd even said so a moment ago. She glanced at him, then back to Mar. "He heard plenty enough to tell them all about you." She was quite pleased by that, because now, finally, it wasn't just the word of a criminal against a lieutenant, or a nobleman. Finally, there was a witness who could tell the authorities about him, and she had him tied up so he couldn't harm anyone in the meanwhile.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

He was not a man who needed to discuss much. When the girl, no, the young woman told him she had lead him away from Gondor for a reason, he didn't ask what that reason was. He didn't ask for why or wherefore. He simply accepted it. When she told him not to allow the man to trick him, there was an almost gruff chuckle despite the pain. Too late for that, right? The sound made his own head hurt more. "He hired me to track you." He confirmed, but as you took the coin purse out, he shook his head, an action he immediately regretted. "You didn't hire me. You don't get to pay for him. And you may be out of bandages, but I am not. Once we get to the horses."

In the wild, when you got hurt, you took care of it, or you died. Sometimes it was days before you saw another. He was well prepared to tend to himself. And there would be enough to tend to another.

"The ledge is narrow. Staying here isn't possible. IF we have to scoot or crawl, we will do that."
*HE didn't speak to Mar, but for a moment there might have been the ghost of a smile as you told Mar you weren't getting him out, and allowed that to weigh. Sometimes the absence of words was more frightening, though he didn't consider himself a frightening man.

"I will speak for you."
He affirmed without the need to say more. He didn't check Mar's knots, trusting that you knew what you were doing. "Will YOU be able to get across the ledge?"
You were likely not used to someone taking the reigns from you so to speak, or to try and take care of you considering the way you brushed him off. Perhaps it was good that the cave was mostly dark because light might give both of us a headache, yet they would need it anyhow, so he could tend your wounds. And they needed fresh water and more. His own mind went to all the things necessary to survive, and get through this more than the maniacal man and his plans. He'd get you somewhere safe. Then they could plan further.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

|
Ademar | Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

He turned down the coin, even while she still held out the pouch to him. But when she heard the reason, Strawberry smiled in amusement. "I'm not paying for him. He's the one paying you, as he should have." She corrected, dropping the pouch down near the quiet man. "I'm just... the middle person, you could say."

Mar glanced over in puzzlement at hearing that, then scowled as he recognized the pouch which should have been tucked safely into his pocket. "You thief.. That's mine!" He growled.

"Not once you hired Gerard and promised to pay him." Strawberry informed him. "Some might say you were the thief, in fact." She added thoughtfully. Even though she was the one who'd done the pocket-picking, he had promised payment for services and then tried to cheat the man out of what he was promised.

She had known that they had horses, of course. But she hadn't really thought much about them. Gerard had mentioned them twice now, and this time he explained that he had bandages and other supplies on his. That made sense. But those were outside, and they were inside the cave. So, she merely nodded in response to that, and then looked again toward the ledge when asked if she could get across. Ordinarily, she'd have no trouble. She was small, and she had good balance, and she could fit into small places more easily than most people, which meant she could walk along a narrow ledge more easily than someone of Mar's, or Gerard's, sizes. She was on the verge of insisting that she'd be fine, but then hesitated and glanced at her legs. With both legs bearing an injury, that made things more difficult. The wounds were openly bleeding, although it shouldn't be fatal, nor should there be permanent damage, she was pretty sure. The slash across the lower back of her right calf was hurting though, although she had been very fortunate that his blade had missed the Achilles tendon. The stab wounds to her left leg were beginning to really hurt, now.

"I think so." She hesitated, then added, "Alright. If you insist." She agreed, somewhat reluctantly, to letting him tend to her injuries. She usually took care of her own wounds, but this seemed like a situation where that was going to be very difficult. If nothing else, just because of the placement of the wounds. She figured it would need to be done before they could get out of here. And she definitely wanted to get out, quickly. A small smile of satisfaction was all she answered Gerard's promise to give his account to the guards, concerning Mar's actions.

Given the close proximity to the phony lieutenant who had given her the wounds, Strawberry was very unwilling to wince or cringe, and she did her very best to avoid expressing whether it was causing her any pain at all, while Gerard worked.

Still, he wore a faintly smug expression, as if he were pleased that he had made it necessary for them to patch themselves up. "Better watch her, Gerard." Mar spoke up in a sort of taunting tone, while the man worked on bandaging Strawberry, followed by a quiet laugh. "She's more treacherous than I am. She'll betray you, sooner or later. She always does." He declared, in a tone that sounded quite confident. He smirked to himself. "I'd tell you to just ask her parents.. but, well.. she killed them, so... I guess you can't."

Strawberry turned to stare toward where Mar still lay tied up. What did he mean by that? She frowned, feeling a mix of confused, and angry, and uncertainty. He'd said something before to imply that she'd killed her family. But she didn't feel as if that was.. right. She couldn't remember what had happened, and she was troubled by the fact that she really could not be sure if he was lying or not.

"Why would I do that?" She demanded, frowning.

"How should I know?" He shrugged as well as he could, given his position. He looked at her, curious about the way she did not seem to remember. How was that possible? He gave it a moment's thought, then decided to try something. "I think you said something about being sick of them telling you want to do," He added thoughtfully.

She frowned harder, teeth clenched as her wounds were treated. "I think you're lying." She decided after a moment. Her hands were gripping handfuls of dirt from the ground in front of her. She needed something to hold onto, and the dirt was the only thing available.

"Think whatever you like," Mar replied, watching her.

"How do you know all of this, anyway?"

Mar was getting a bit weary of lying on his stomach, but he couldn't really do much about it. So he just kept talking. "Well, I was there. I watched you do it." He informed her. "You.. really don't remember?" He added, with a note of genuine amazement to his tone.

Strawberry continued to frown, and shook her head. "I wouldn't have done that.." She insisted.

"Ah, but you did." He insisted. "And then.. you wanted to work with me, and help me with my project. I thought you had potential, so I agreed. We were partners, once." He lied, wondering if he could convince her.

Strawberry shook her head, finding that very doubtful. "No."

"Yes, we were. Until you robbed me and took off with something very important that we'd spent months searching for," He sighed wearily at that. "See, Gerard, she betrayed me. I was her closest friend."

Strawberry continued shaking her head, unwilling to believe it, even though she couldn't really be certain. "I don't believe you." The words were whispered, and she shook her head slowly. "It doesn't fit.." She muttered, trying her best to reject this claim.

"Who do you think taught me how to do some of those fighting moves?" Mar pointed out quietly, with an amused smile lingering on his face.

She had no answer for that, but she still didn't want to believe any of this. She drew a slow breath. "If you know me so well, and you say we were friends... then you can tell me my name." She realized. She looked over at him expectantly, holding her breath as she waited. She might finally learn her real name, and she wasn't sure yet how to feel about it.

Mar blinked, the request completely catching him off guard. Her name? He thought for a moment, but he realized that he'd never bothered to ask anyone what the girl's name actually is. He'd probably heard it at some point, too, but he'd never even paid attention. Something with an M, but that was about as much as he could recall. It had never mattered to him. He knew her family name, of course, but he swiftly decided he did not want to give her that. If she didn't already know it... well, it would be to his advantage if it stayed that way. "You used a fake name with me." He answered before the pause grew too long. "Vera." He watched her to see how she might react, but she kept her face turned away.

She was... disappointed. Yes.. she decided that was how she felt. Disappointed. She had been hoping that there might be some sort of useful information she might get from talking with him, even though she was determined not to believe what he was claiming. But he couldn't even tell her what her name was? She looked at Gerard, wondering if he was believing any of that stuff. Would he be reluctant to help her, now? Perhaps he would decide to just tie her up and go get the guards to deal with them both, if he thought they were partners. "I don't remember." She said softly, regretful that she couldn't confirm or deny any of it. "But I.. I don't think it's true. I think he's lying, but I don't know it." She figured he deserved to at least be aware that there existed a possibility that it wasn't a lie. He could decide for himself what to do about it.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

For a man of few words, Gerard had had to endure quite a lot of them while on the search, but at least without answers from him the man had had relatively little to go on and on about. With the girl, there was back and forth and back and forth and back and forth.. and the cave made the sounds echo more and hurt his head more. He was tempted to whistle for them to stop bickering if it wouldn't echo off the walls of the cave again and bounce back.

"I will tend your wounds at the horses." He made it a statement, not a request. Move things along. Get back in the air. Get back to a place where decent care could be provided, and where the sound would be less difficult to handle.

"You go first." He was not a person who generally gave orders mostly because he spent a lot of this time alone. It wasn't gallantry that made him make that decision. Yes, he was wounded but his wounds were tended to and not on his legs. One arm was still fully functional and he hoped to be able to steady you with it. "One hand on the cave wall at all times. Try to find outcroppings to restore your balance."

For a moment he looked back at Mar. "We will talk later." He actually hoped they would not need to talk later, that after tending to the girl they'd find a patrol easy enough to take you off his hands, and he didn't need to dirty words on you.
In the back and forth about how she betrayed you, and what had happened and everything, there were two truths for him easily to determine who to believe in. You'd tried to kill him, unprovoked, and she had tended to his wounds, at a cost of tending to her own first. That told him enough.

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Deep in a cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

Her mind was whirling with all that had been said, and she was struggling to think. Then Gerard spoke, declaring that he would tend to her wounds at the horses. Strawberry looked at him, a little surprised that he hadn't turned against her by now. But he hadn't. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on getting out of this cave. She gave a small nod, then turned to her pack and put all the rest of her things back into it.

When she tried to stand up, she collapsed back down with a little gasp as she found it quite painful. She gave it a moment, then tried again more slowly, and this time she stayed up. Now it was Gerard's turn to be giving orders, and she couldn't help a little smile of amusement as he started telling her how to proceed across the ledge. As if she hadn't made her way across it before now. Of course, she hadn't had a leg injury the other times she'd gone across, but she did know how to go about it.

"And you, don't look down." She added, remembering his head injury. It would be hard for him to make it across if he was dizzy. Just as it would be hard for her, with both legs injured and her shoulder sore. But she'd manage. She always did. And she had good motivation to get across, too. For once, she finally had her pursuer bound, and a witness to tell the authorities what sort of person he really is.

Limping her way over to the ledge brought back memories, after she'd escaped from the pirate ship and had met up with the ranger lady. How she'd struggled to walk during the first couple of weeks. But she had endured that pain and managed to travel as hard and long as their needs required, then. And she could endure it now. The bandages Gerard had put on her leg helped some, but she was pretty sure there was still some bleeding happening. And she wasn't sure she could keep both hands on the cave wall as he suggested, but she'd try. Her right shoulder still hurt, but she'd endured far worse before. Whatever happened, she would do her best to keep an eye on Gerard and make sure that he made it across well enough, too.

There was only a couple of spots where she was really worried about falling. Once, where the ledge had partially crumbled and she had to step over a small gap that required her to step a bit further than was easy for her, even without injuries. It probably wouldn't be much difficulty for Gerard, since his legs were longer, but she had to hold onto the cave wall with both hands until she was across. At another place, as she neared the end, she was starting to feel weaker, and her leg collapsed and slipped, but her left hand had a tight grip on the wall, and she managed to recover from the near-fall without it resulting in tragedy.

At last, she reached the safety of the passage, and it was a tremendous relief. Strawberry held onto the wall for support as she waited for Gerard to join her. Once he did, she breathed easier. "You don't believe him?" She asked quietly, trying to make sure her voice wasn't loud enough to echo back to Mar, who had been quiet since they set out. She didn't know what to think about those things he'd said, and while it didn't really fit with the things she knew from after she'd awakened with no memory, she had no idea whatever might have happened before that.

[Eldrith]

Gerard
September, 4th age, year 1
the White Mountains, Rohan side

*he followed the girl, and observed, as much as the cave allowed. There was a certain kind of stoic bravery, in which she somehow didn't utter a single complaint even while he knew she must be hurting severely. The fight had been pitched and the man had not pulled any blows. The injuries by now must be throbbing with the pain, and making it harder and harder to concentrate. The contrast with the complaints he'd listened to during his travel here, even when half swallowed, was marked. He didn't say anything. Instead he followed and once they had gone past the ledge, and reached the safety of the solid ground of the cave, he moved to carefully put a supportive hand under her elbow.
There was surprise in her tone when she asked if he didn't believe Mar. There were a thousand things another person might have said. "Of course not" or "I don't think so" or an explanation offered to exactly why he didn't believe him and how he assessed both of their characters in such a short time even with his head hurting, but he was himself and so the only word he gave was "no."

The rest of the journey through the cave was uneventful as caves went. Darkness, the stale air, but he had no problem finding their paths back to the entry they had come through. The problems started again though once they left the cave, and through squinted eyes, he noticed there was one horse instead of two.
"Figured he'd have an untrained horse."
*If it sounded like a very strong condemnation, here in Rohan.. it was!*

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Exiting the cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

No. He didn't believe the claims made about her. Strawberry thought about that as she focused on getting out of the cave. She was limping more, but she didn't make any complaint about it. She almost flinched when she felt the man's touch at her elbow, but after just a quick glance, she saw that he was attempting to help her. So, she allowed him to help, while neither admitting to needing any help, nor objecting to the offered help.

"I don't 'member." She said, after a moment's silence broken only by the sounds of their steps on the cave floor. "Could all be true, for all I know," She frowned as she thought about it. "But I.. don't think so." It was a relief that, after hearing all those accusations, he wouldn't believe any of it despite not knowing her.

She didn't say anything else while they went the rest of the way through the cave. When they got back to the main passage, she started to tell him that if they went to the right, she could take them through on a path that would come out at a point about half an hour's walk from the village where the healer she'd mentioned lived. But he had horses to deal with, she recalled. And the horses would never be able to make it through the passage. So, she just let him guide her back through the cave, and finally emerged into the open air. Only to find that one of the horses had apparently wandered off.

"Guess you'll wanna go look for it." She supposed. She had no interest in going along to search for the horse, but she figured it was probably important to find the animal before it wandered too far. So, she sank down to sit on the ground, leaning her back against a rock with her legs stretched out in front of her. "Go on, don't worry about me. I'm not going anywhere," She promised with a weak smile. She'd been in the cave for a fairly long while before they arrived, so it was a relief to be outside again. Even though her wounds were hurting a lot more now, it was good to breathe fresh, clean air again, and to see the sky above, and trees beyond where she was sitting.

While she waited for Gerard to do whatever he needed to do with the horses, Strawberry began wondering how they'd find their way to the Wyndhorne village, with the horses. Because... well, she didn't know the way from here, except through the cave. And, she was also pretty sure that the mountain lay in such a way that, to try and find the way from this cave opening to the other she knew of, there was a stretch of rough, rocky terrain that wasn't really passable without resorting to rock climbing. So, the only other way she could think of to get to the village from here was to go the long way, traveling to the Wyndhorne pass which took a long, winding path across the mountains. Gerard could probably find it, she guessed, but it would likely take a lot longer to travel that route. Like, maybe even days, unless she was wrong about the distance.

[Eldrith]

Gerard



The first thing he did when they came out after you found a place to sit, was check on his horse. He considered his answer, and then shook his head.
"I got what I need to tend to you here." He said with a gesture towards the saddlebag. "I can get the horse after." After being after he had tended to you. He would have kept to that, except.. his eyes fell on something and then he started chuckling. It was a strange sound perhaps considering the situation they found themselves in, injured, attempted murder, and now trying to get back to find others to help them. But he gestured to the branch.

"Broken off. Must have tied her too tight or to a rotten branch."
He shook his head, and then inwardly scolded himself. He should have inspected the way that man had left his horse. Could not be relied upon to do it right. Of course hindsight and being attacked may have colored his views a bit there. He stood.. quietly... not moving from your side, listening until he heard something. She couldn't have gone far. You might have heard, or you might not, but his ears were attuned to nature and to the patterns within it. This time he did fully smile at you. "Only a moment..."

Before he went, he took down his saddlebags completely and laid them on the ground next to you with no more words, but it was clear from that gesture you could help yourself to anything within it. And then.. he did walk off, only to return less than ten minutes later. The horse was.. calm enough now, but you could see she'd have worked up a lather over something.
"The branch was scaring her." That might or might not make sense to you, considering there was no branch to be seen. He'd freed her from the 'tormentor' that had followed her as she found better grazing. "I will tend to your wounds now, then rub her down."

[Rillewen]

@Eldrith

Strawberry
September, 4th age, year 1
Exiting the cave in the mountains of the Westfold
Rohan side of the White Mountains

The ground was hard, and a little cold, but she was used to that sort of thing. And she was feeling too tired and in pain to try and find anywhere more comfortable to sit. She said nothing while Gerard went to check on his horse, nor when he said that he'd tend to her, first. That was a little surprising, since she had expected that he'd want to go find the horse and make sure it hadn't gotten into some kind of danger. And sure enough, he did change his mind after hearing a distant noise in the woods. A horse in distress, if she was right. Not that she was very familiar with horse sounds. She merely gave a small nod when he asked for a moment, after commenting about a broken branch.

Strawberry looked out toward the woods as well, listening. She'd spent enough nights camped out in the wild, that she'd learned to identify most noises by now. The first few weeks she'd spent camping outside, years ago, she remembered how frightening it had been. The slightest noise had her jumping up and reaching for weapons, or looking around anxiously. Now, she didn't even raise her head from the stone on which she'd rested back against.

Turning her gaze back to the man who had unexpectedly become her companion, Strawberry saw him smile before he put his saddlebags down near her. That made her a little curious. When he left to find the horse, she remained where she was, unmoving for a minute or so. She was feeling a little drowsy, and she was honestly not sure whether it was due to her bleeding wounds, or because she'd been waiting in that cave, on alert while she waited for Mar to find the cave, for... well, she didn't even know how long. She'd barely slept in that time, fearing he might arrive and catch her sleeping.

After her head dropped forward, jarring her back awake, Strawberry forced herself to sit up a little more. She shifted slightly and pulled her left leg around as much as the pain in her knee would allow, then took a look at the injuries there. Yep, the wounds were bleeding pretty heavily. She'd better do something about that, she realized. So, she took out one of her knives and began carefully cutting away the fabric, figuring it would be easiest to tend to the wounds if they were more accessible. Then she grabbed her waterskin and was slowly, wincingly, washing the blood away when Gerard returned, leading the biggest horse she'd ever seen. Surprised, she stopped and stared at the large white horse. It was pretty, except that it obviously needed a good grooming, but she couldn't get over how large it was compared to all the others she'd ever seen. "That.. is a very big horse." She stated, wondering how a horse managed to grow that big.

Gerard declared that he would tend to her wounds now, so Strawberry offered the waterskin to him without protest, and leaned back against the wall again. Her other hand found her herb pouch, which she'd used on his wound earlier, and set it down where it would be easy to reach. "Herbs," She mumbled. "For wounds. Healer gave it to me," She explained. Her eyes closed as she rested her head against the rock. "It's over, right?" She asked quietly. "We got him.." It seemed unreal. Impossible to believe that it was real. And yet, she knew it was true. She'd actually won, and now they just had to tell some of the Rohan guards where to find him, and let them deal with him from then on. She could finally relax, and maybe she could finally stop running away from others. Dom and his family would be safe, and... and she needed to find out whatever she could about her sister, apparently... but first, she'd rest and recover from her injuries.