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// Interlude: Trollbark Marauders 
// Story: Dark Alliance: A Kirin's Tale 
// by Blackdrag-rose 
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Rain found that the Trollbark Forest was definitely darker than the Trade Way, almost as if night had fallen already despite the position of the sun before they entered this area, not that it mattered since they had some small lights attached to their belts, magical ones that wouldn't burn them. In addition to their own lights there were also some torches set up to point the way forward, no doubt left behind by the goblins they were hunting down, though it did reveal some other enemies for all of them to fight, like vampiric bats that traveled in groups of four. Since there were more people in her group this time around they didn't have to worry about being outnumbered by bats, especially since each one went down in just a few hits, but that didn't stop her from keeping her eyes open for the more challenging foes. If her last adventure had been any indication each area or region they would be visiting over the course of their quest, whatever that might be this time, would have some weak foes and some really strong ones, hence her watch for those foes.

They were able to confirm that there were definitely goblins in this region, as there were some guarding a small pond that was likely used for drinking water, at least for their targets anyway, though while they cut down their foes Vhaidra took a moment to remark how shoddy some of the goblins' weapons were. It really made her wonder how in the world they had been able to ambush and take down a caravan that had guards trained for this, where Rain said that these goblins were likely just scouts or fodder soldiers, so they wouldn't have great gear, rather the force that attacked Kearia's group likely had the better gear to survive the encounter. Of course, even if that was true, it made one wonder where these goblins were getting all of the equipment in the first place, though Rain wasn't too surprised to see her new companions collecting bits and pieces of new gear, switching out their basic weapons for the rare ones that were superior to what they had, while also putting on new armor as well. That was the part that interested her, that the armor was all stuffed inside the chests that were in the camps they discovered, instead of being located in the main area that the goblins commanded, but she figured it made sense to the creatures and moved on with their exploration.

Rain also had to admit that the goblins were smarter than the kobolds she was used to fighting, as they used shields in an attempt to keep themselves alive, for a time anyway since Rain and her new companions were able to bring them down, and those who tried to flee were torn apart by Shadow.

There were also white wolves who tried to bite them, either because they were broken by the goblins or they figured that this was a good time to intrude and get some food for themselves, but a couple of swings were enough to bring them down as well, making Rain wonder if she had grown too strong over the course of her last adventure. The other thing she noticed was all the slain bodies that lined the path they were following, slain guards and even members of the caravan, since some were more like the citizens of Baldur's Gate based on what she was seeing, so it made her wonder if anyone had survived the ambush. Allessia shared her worries, that this much death could only mean that most of the caravan was dead, despite Kearia telling them that many were carried off into the forest, meaning if there were any survivors they were running out of time to prevent their deaths. Of course most of the others were focused on their own objectives, Dorn on the battles and glory, Borador on whatever wealth they might find, Vhaidra on the power this might give her, and Ysuran, well, just looked like he was totally lost, as if he had no idea why he was doing this.

It made her miss her friends, those who fought simply for the greater good and not for the wealth that the adventure would give them if they survived everything that was thrown their way, making her wonder where in the world they had been sent by the Onyx Gate, before pushing on once more.

For a while it seemed like they were making no real progress, just killing goblins to make the road safer, before Rain and the others found a path leading to what appeared to be a large cave entrance, which seemed to be their destination due to all of the goblins hanging out in front of it, plus the banners they had. After clearing out the entrance Rain found that it was more like a diagonal entrance leading down into an underground area, which appeared to be cavernous based on all of the stones that they could see, though it also meant that they were now entering the domain of their foes. What came as a surprise was that there were no guards right at the entrance, at least on this side anyway, meaning they were able to move without any resistance, though she did find a small statue of a red dragon that seemed to be made out of fine stone, with gems for eyes. She had no idea what sort of purpose it held for the goblins, or if they were even knew what it was, but with how well crafted it was she decided to take it as well, since there was a chance it might be part of the items that were taken from the caravan and the leader might be grateful to have it back.

With the statue in her bag, and everyone was sure that the entry area was clear, the group continued deeper into the cave as they sought out the captives, finding more goblins waiting for them that were using boxes to try and keep themselves safe from harm while using bows to try and take them down.

"So, what are you exactly?" Ysuran inquired, though as he said that he took down one of the goblins as the others did the same thing, showing that each of them were capable of speaking and fighting when they wanted to, especially since she could see that the others were interested in what she had to say.

"Honestly? I have no idea." Rain stated, where she approached some goblin shamans, who tried to flee from the group so they could bless their allies with power to survive the battle, and cut them down as Shadow tore another one apart, but as she did so she noticed that some of the others had raised their eyebrows, "No, seriously, I have no idea. All I know is what Adrianna told me: that I suddenly teleported into Baldur's Gate right before she and the others arrived... I don't know how I did it, but the process seems to have wiped my memory. That's all I know."

"So were the same: we're both trying to find ourselves." Ysuran said, though as he said that Shadow leapt out of a corner and tore into a wolf that was about to bite him, telling Rain that her previous thought might not be accurate, that he and the others needed time before they could split their focus like she did, "What's the cat's story?"

"Found her in the Sunset Mountains, before Ciraxis, and she bonded with me before turning on her kind," Rain replied, a fact that brought a smile to her face as she recalled that moment, since Shadow was a valuable member of her team and it was nice to have the displacer beast around, since she liked to target the enemy magic users, "Trust me on this, she was a great ally in the fights leading up to Eldrith, so treat her well."

The others said nothing to that as they reached an area that had two passages, one on the left and the other on the right, that had wooden barricades with doors in the center, locked doors as they discovered, to which they followed the main path deeper into the cave and kept an eye out for any keys. Following that there was another locked door, meaning they had to curve down another path to keep moving, making her wonder why the goblins would do such a thing since their domain was so far away from the main road, but decided not to question it too much. After that the group discovered an area that had tables and chairs, all no doubt stolen from one of the caravans that the goblins had attacked, that they were using as defenses to keep themselves safe and attack from behind cover, not that it mattered since Rain and the others cut and hacked their way through their defenses. While they were doing that Rain found a chest on a table that happened to have the key they were looking for, something she collected after cutting down the two goblins that were in her way, and once everyone was sure that the area was cleared she showed them their prize.

Of course they had to wait for Borador to loot all of the chests that there in the area, as there were a few more in addition to the one Rain found the key on, before they backtracked to the three doors and went through the one on the left, which brought them to an area that some goblins were worshiping three red dragon statues.

Sure enough the shamans in command of everyone decreed that they had to die and the goblins attacked, where Shadow used her vanishing power and stalked the couple of shamans while Rain, Allessia, Dorn, and the others dealt with the rest of the goblins that were around them. It amazed her that there were so many inside this cave, even if she believed that this was where they reproduced, though even their numbers meant nothing to her and her companions as they wiped the group out and Shadow cleared out the shamans. Once more they quickly looted the rest of the area, with Rain claiming the statues in case her thoughts about them were right, while everyone else equipped any new items that would help out with the rest of the cave, since there was no telling what else might be in this place. With that done she focused on taking out all of the goblins that were in the other chambers, as she was more interested in finding the survivors that had to be somewhere in this place, while her companions tore down most of their foes, but she did find some poison jellyfish in one of the bodies of water.

It was another thing that surprised her, but at this point she was done questioning why things were like this, before they found a section of the cavern that was devoted entirely to the bats, which were easy to take care of given everything that they had faced so far, though after a few moments in there they returned to the main cavern.

Eventually they found another chest that contained a more solid looking key, which Allessia said had to be a prison key, so they had to be near the survivors, and as Rain followed them she made sure to take the rest of the dragon statues as well, before discovering that there were iron barred cells deep in the cave. After that they found that there were some people in all of the cells, all members of the caravan, who were surprised to see the group and praised all of them for the rescue, where Rain had Shadow escort them back to the entrance of the cave, because once the area was cleared they were going to leave and that seemed to be the best place to hide. Of course most of them were a little worried about following a displacer beast anywhere, even though she was only interested in killing goblins, but a few of them recognized Rain from all of the stories about her and decided to trust her and her pet, especially since she and the others had cleared out all of the goblins before this point. Once they were done clearing out the immediate area the group continued to explore the rest of the cave and found some additional cells, where Allessia pointed out the path for them to take before learning that the caravan leader was being held by the master of the marauders.

As such the group found their way to the chamber in question and discovered that the leader was a goblin on a spider that was larger than the small ones walking around the area, who seemed to think this was funny, but Rain found that her new companions dispatched him, his shaman, and his spiders in seconds, showing her that they were improving fast and that they'd be on her level in no time at all.

"Hello? Is anyone out there?" a feminine voice asked, where it sounded like it came from deeper in the cave, causing the group to quickly loot everything else that was in the room before tracking down the cell, and as they opened the door Rain found a lady wearing a red shirt under a leather chest piece that showed off her midriff and brown pants that had a belt that a dagger was attached to, "Praise Waukeen, I've been set free! I am Randalla Brasshorn, adventurers, and I am the owner of the ambushed caravan that you no doubt discovered on your way here... allow me to express my gratitude for the rescue. No way... Rain Shine?"

"Wait, you know her as well?" Dorn inquired, though as Rain thought about what was going on, and everyone turned their heads towards her for a moment, she noticed that the lady shifted part of her chest armor and she noticed a golden pin that looked like a harp, cluing her in within seconds.

"Not quite. I work with one of her colleagues, who likely told Randalla about me." Rain replied, where she was surprised to find a Harper in a place like this, just a little anyway when she recalled the dwarf they saved from the drow priestess, but it told her that Jherek had told many of his fellows about her, no doubt to get information about her species or to spread the word that she was missing, "It's nice to finally meet you. Were you on your way to Baldur's Gate?"

"Indeed I was. Since you disposed of the goblins with ease, might I hire all of you on as bodyguards for the caravan, at least until we reach the city?" Randalla asked, showing Rain that, while she wanted to speak with her about the events of Eldrith's Tower, and all of the tales revolving around it, she was focused on being a merchant, which she likely was based on what she had seen so far, before she glanced at the others, "I am a merchant of no small wealth, so I can compensate all of you for your time."

Rain found that her companions agreed, some for the coin and Allessia because it was for the common good, especially since merchants were good for the entirety of Baldur's Gate, to which they started to walk out of the cave so they could meet up with the rest of the survivors and get on their way towards greater things.