The light of a new day was just beginning to rise over the hillsides surrounding Arrowhaven. A messenger from the ranger, Saeradan, had arrived just moments before. After summoning Sir Gaildrin, one of her personal guards, Alkawen sent the knight to assemble any of the Order he could find around the village to gather at the Carriage House immediately. Within minutes a small party of the Order saddled horses and were ready to do as their Lady required.
Alkawen explained as they rode toward the gates of Arrowhaven, the mission was to extract Sir Balisan from the clutches of his captors before the noon. Time had run out, the ransom was due and though the Iaurmenel had said they would pay, it was only said to give the Order time to find and rescue the Komtur. No ransoms would ever be paid for any one of them. For the past two days, the best scouts and informants were concentrating on locating Balisan but until that message arrived from the Ranger, they had been unable to find out where he was being held nor by whom he was being held.
Riding fast and with purpose, the band aimed for the cabin in the North Bree fields where Ranger Saeradan had arranged a meeting. Lady Alkawen arrived there first, followed by Gaildrin, Brulk, Fairlain and Aewel. Just as they gathered around the ranger, out of a shrub hopped a Hobbit lass who, after Saeradan pointed at Alkawen, made a bee line to the elf and handed her a small pouch emblazoned with the seal of the Order. A quick round of questioning and the Hobbit told them the pouch had been traded for with one of the refugees who frequented the old ruins of Amon Raith.
Turning their horses back to the road, the rescuers hurried north, their destination, the ruins of Amon Raith. Though time was critical, the Lady slowed everyone to a walk as they passed through Trestlebridge. Soon as they cleared the town proper, however, the horses were urged into full gallops once again. In short order they arrived at the old tower. There they found the man who had traded the pouch to the hobbit lass. He told them he found it on a goblin that he had killed then explained where he had found the pouch carrying goblin. On foot, the five ran to where the goblin had been found with orders to find a goblin and see if it could be questioned.
Brulk managed to catch one of the mealy buggers and held it up by its throat while Gaildrin placed his blade to its head. At first the wiggling creature refused to say anything but when the knight's blade pressed into its flesh, out come the information they had hoped to find. The goblin, in his odd way of speaking, told them the story of a refined man who they found collapsed on the road, bleeding. They figured the man for dead but just as one of them grabbed the pouch, the man leaped to his feet, fought them back then ran toward Trestlebridge. The goblins gave chase but as they neared Trestlebridge the man fell again but this time another person was there and it scared them off.
Satisfied they had the information they'd hoped for, Brulk was about to release the now smarmy goblin when it bit him viciously. Aewel, with the swiftness of a fox, drew her blade and cut off the head of the goblin with one clean slice. The party then returned to their mounts and hurried toward Trestlebridge, the sun was nearing it's apex as they arrived at the bridge. The members of the Order then questioned the guards if there had been any reports of an injured man passing through the area. To which the guard remarked, naturally, that with all the goblins and orcs in the area, many injured people would seek refuge in Trestlebridge. Just as they thought the trail had run cold, one guard recalled hearing that the stablemaster had called for a guard when he saw goblins running away from a man that had fallen.
Hastily, they went to the stablemaster who relayed a story of a man he saw, bleeding, falling in some tall grass near the trail to the river and goblins running in the opposite direction. When asked why he did not go to aid the man, he replied that with goblins about, and being unarmed, he called for guards instead. However, by the time the guards when to look in on the situation, all they found was blood-matted grass and no sign of any men nor goblins. Again, the trail was growing cold just as the sun was reaching nearly noon. It was then the stableman recalled seeing a slight woman wandering up and down the river trail and heard she had been buying healing supplies. He knew she lived in the old fishing cottage near the river, he was renting the place to her but had never seen her and didn't care about her name, only the silvers he collected.
Deciding it was worth investigating, the rescuers raced down to the river's edge and the cottage. All was quiet but there was smoke coming from the chimney. Gaildrin knocked on the door which bolted open to reveal three goblins ransacking the place. The skilled warrior dispatched the pests quickly. While the rest of the group stood near the cottage slightly stunned, Fairlain slipped inside to investigate then returned with a few items. A man's shirt, a few vials and a shed snake skin of a peculiar yellow shade.
As Fairlain was giving the found items to Alkawen, the sharp eyed Aewel spotted some movement near the rivers edge more than 200 paces from the cabin. Brulk called out to the Elven woman to be careful and not go too far as she raced to the water's edge and within a moment or two, she called out for the rest to come quickly. There, face down, his head nearly in the water, was the body of Balisan. Hackles rose on the back of necks and breathing stopped as Alkawen went immediately to the fallen knight. All sighed with great relief when the Iaurmenel proclaimed he was unharmed but it was clear he was stupefied, likely poisoned or drugged.
Heaving the knight onto his shoulder, Gaildrin placed Balisan on his horse and the party returned to Arrowhaven. There had been no sign of any of Balisan's captors at the cabin but for now, it didn't matter. All that mattered was they had found Balisan in time! Returning the Komtur to the Manor and nursing him back to full health was now the priority. There would be time to hunt the kidnappers later.
