[h3]Freagon, Irah, Lhirin, Yanin, Jaelnec, Nabi, Jordan and Madara – Borstown[/h3]
Indeed, there was not much more to do in this guest bedroom, and just moments later it would seem that there was little more to do in the manor as a whole, as Jaelnec arrived to convey that the surviving guest had been secured and that everyone were convening at the Fadewatcher station. They stayed in the manor only long enough for Caleb to alter his garb to be less eye-catching while also concealing his nature – to fit the company he found himself in, he opted to don a bulky suit of dusty brigandine armor, a full helmet, heavy boots and gauntlets, and even conjured a bearded axe to hang from his belt – before setting off. Caleb also explained, though the facts would be evident once he started moving, that altering his outfit like this was technically not “magic” for him, almost effortless and would require nothing of him to maintain. To avoid misunderstandings, the thalk also revealed to them that though it now looked as though he was wearing heavy armor and a weapon, everything he had formed this way was just for show and actually no more durable or protective than the flimsy cloth of his robe.

Outside, the group found the baroness' manor staff waiting for them, including the recently returned scout, Quintin. Though he had seemed stiff and reserved when Jordan, Nabi and Jaelnec had spoken to him, Quintin seemed to immediately relax and even smile a little as soon as Vela Bor stepped out of the door. There were introductions as appropriate, with the new arrival once more introducing himself simply as “Quintin,” and then quickly made their way to the Fadewatcher station. Whether because Jordan mentioned him or for some other reason, Tedwyn tagged along, too, albeit somewhat hesitantly.

Once there, Quintin – after receiving the paper and writing utensils with an expression of wonder, handling them with excessive care and remarking that he had planned to just draw in the dirt with a stick – quickly cleared a table at the back of the station and went to work drawing a map of what he had seen. As soon as everyone had assembled around him – with the baroness standing on a stool beside him to see what was going on – he started reporting what he had seen.
“As I already told some of you, the bandits are staying in an abandoned farm past the forest north of here. It took me about an hour to get back here on foot, and will likely take as long to get there from here. We will have to go on foot, too; the direct path there is too densely wooded for horses, so they would only slow us down.”
Vela nodded her head, tapping one bone-clad finger on the tabletop thoughtfully. “Could we go around the forest to the west or along the road to the east?”
“We could, but it would be a major detour. It would likely take longer to go around the forest on horseback than to go through it on foot.”
Quintin leaned over the table again and tapped on the rough annotated map he had drawn. “I counted at least twenty-six bandits moving around the area, but obviously I couldn't get a good look inside the buildings. Most activity I saw was centered around here –” He pointed to the shape annotated as “barn”. “– and here.” He pointed to the smaller shape annotated “farmstead”. “I saw some of them bringing out horses from the barn to graze in the dilapidated fields to the north, but aside from bringing the horses out and back in through the main doors, people mostly used this side entrance.” He pointed. “I think the majority of the bandits are staying in the barn, with maybe a handful or so in the farmstead. I haven't seen the ones wounded in the attack around, so I'm guessing they are either being cared for by Bren – our healer – or dead and discarded somewhere.”
He sighed. “I got there too late to know for sure which building Bren is in, and they didn't move him anywhere that I could see. Patrols came through about five times an hour, two or three men in each, not following any identifiable routes, but generally moving along these paths.” He quickly traced several lines across the map to give a rough idea of their patrol patterns.
Leaning back from the table again, Quintin crossed his arms and frowned. “They are rather well-equipped for bandits, too. Almost all of them are wearing gambesons, chainmail or both, and their equipment looked appropriately maintained. I saw spears, halberds, axes, swords... and at least three crossbows and a handful of war bows. They seemed pretty cautious and alert at first, but by the time I saw my chance to get out of there they had calmed down some, so they might not be fully on guard anymore.”

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