The voice calls out his acceptance of Ardo's payment.
The pass is long enough that once you get out on the other side, looking back gives no indication of the people who assailed you.
The party moves on and leaves this bad experience in behind them.
As the trail begins to climb more steeply near the summit, it is once again blocked by a wall of rock, taller and more imposing than the first. The stream, smaller than before, forms the left-hand side of the cleft, and the trail, climbing steeply, hugs the opposite wall. A low moan, probably caused by the wind, throbs through the gorge. So steep and narrow is this cleft that steps have been carved in the rock to allow the climber safer footing. (Area 4 on the map)
Once in the gorge, it is nearly impossible to hear anything because of the reverberation of the wind's moan and the thunder of the tumultuous stream.
Edited: Falrun on 4th Nov, 2017 - 11:50pm
The paladin will follow Drethen, hoping they didn't run into anyone else. Silently Gabriel was more than a bit annoyed that the others are willing to give up the gold under such a threat, as he felt it encourages bandits to continue their activities. The he did also admit, they seem good to their word and let them pass.
Drethen and Gabriel lead the party through the gorge. Carefully they make their way through and fortunately, they don't run into any trouble. Emerging on the other side, they continue up the path.
After another short trek, they find set 50 feet to the left of a tributary path, a spring bubbles forth amidst the rocks. The pool is irregular in shape, no more than 2 feet across, and the overflow pours down the mountain alongside the path. It is the source of the stream that has parallelled the trail to this elevation. The banks of the pool are a carpet of tiny purple and white flowers, graced occasionally by larger crimson blossoms and pure white lilies.
The guards accompanying the party inform you that this is the last source of water before you reach the desert.
Drethen will make sure all of his water skins are full and that everyone is able to get a good drink. He is going to look around for any signs of a trail leading onto the higher parts of the canyon as a possible way to come back and rid the area of the bandits.
Ardo tends to the camels and dogs he purchased to make sure they are well watered. "Gentleman are we going to travel by day or by night? Also who has the map and what location shall we try travelling to first?"