Thunderhoof Huff and Thjoldmondr Bluff

Life, Milestone

The Fractured Pack encounter a tribe of the Risen Caste, rescue the white-haired woman of their prophecy, and call in the Dominus Porta's favor.. In they end, they find themselves in a secret campsite with an Anvilguard of Dul Kag.

The next morning continued the Fractured Pack's travels into the Ulgoine Valley. Seeing the marks of settlement far to the southeast upon higher ground, the party made their way in that direction. The day was extended, but they slowly closed in on their destination: a palisaded village upon a ridge with a coral of horses below. Before the Fractured Pack could finish their journey, the village's guards spotted the heroes in the distance and sent out five riders to meet them. Upon the horse's flanks were similar crossed thunderbolts as had been seen in the deceased horses and foretold of in the Oracle of Heartfire's prophecy.   The riders attempted to ward the adventurers away, wishing them to come no closer. The flaunts of the cyclop's head that Broxon sent bouncing down the hill earned them only permission to rest in the general area and to be gone by morning. Broxon pushed, attempting to play on the Fractured Pack's hero status as well as prod for information on any missing dwarven woman with white hair. It wasn't until the riders looked among each other and sprung into action that the dwarf realized the proper connection of data: The woman wasn't missing from here, she was missing because of these horse riders.   Reacting in a flash before the horses could fully kick up, the dwarf barreled down hill, using his Density Warp Half-Plate to fold space and appear before the Captain. Hali's dissonant whispers caused the captain to lurch off of his horse and away from his steed before he could fully act. The other horse archers began to scatter, circling for volleyed shots up hill. Buck returned fire with deadly accuracy while Anna incinerated one of the horses. In the end, the heroes took the captain hostage and sent the riders back to retrieve the white-haired dwarf. Instead of an instant trade, the warlord of the Thunderhoofs came out to meet the heroes on his own. Negotiations were brief. Attention was gained by claiming the heritage of Dul Kag. Merit had been won through the cyclopean conquest and fortuitous pulls on the role of Fate in this endeavor. The warlord accepted a trade of hostages but it would not be one of comfort. The Thunderhoof riders would join in the Fractured Pack's departure of this land, riding along at a distance, ready to begin raining arrows from afar should they try to make camp. The Pack had already forced their march to get here. Continued labored hiking would run them ragged in the best of cases. The party agreed to the trade with a final card up their sleeve.   As the white haired dwarf was presented to the Pack, Buck delivered immediate medical attention to “prepare her for the coming night of travel”. While the first aid was quite real, the purpose was false. Dwindling the last few minutes necessary for their plan to spring, a portal opened up behind the gathered Pack for them to step through. You see, during the time that the Pack had waited for the warlord to return to the compound and for the prisoner to be produced, the party had used the Dominus Porta's sending stone to contact him and request extraction. They had requested a destination across the Ulgoine Valley hoping to get as close to Dul Kag as possible. While they had journeyed on foot up until this point to save the final favor of the archmage for later travels, this immediate usage would not only save them the immediate danger but also the hazards of being in the center of the Ulgoine Valley entirely exhausted without knowing what dangers would still harass their travels.   After stepping through the portal provided by the Dominus Porta, the Fractured Pack made formal introductions as Anna took to wing to scan for any immediate dangers. The woman they saved was Simdala Bonegrip, an Anvilguard of Dul Kag. After determining safe association, Simdala limpingly led the party 45 minutes onward to the bluffs of the nearby mountainside of Thjoldmondr. Simdala showed the Pack into a dwarven made outpost tactically carved into the mountainside. Beds and basic supplies greeted the party and a fireplace was eventually ignited. Despite a drive to deal with her problems on her own with first aid, both Broxon and Buck provided the aid they could with the levels of forwardness each were known for.   The evening's main entertainment was conversation, enlightening the party to the truths of the Ulgoine Valley. Simdala's role as an Anvilguard was of border patrol and covert intelligence gathering for the good of Dul Kag. She had been captured in the lands of the Risen Caste and was treated accordingly. The nearer lands that had once been Tersule and Kag Bhurim's foot hills were now home to goblinoids and the like that farmed the lands. Broxon's pride and will for war against the ancestral enemies butted up to an apathy and desire to be left alone. When challenged with a desire for gold and glory, Simdala laid plain that gold from trade only happens if you have people to trade with, and all the dwarves with a desire like that had long left Dul Kag to head off to New Derth. With Broxon headed off to rant to his god for first watch, the others were assured that returning Simdala would prevent any possible hesitance of Dul Kag's guards letting the nondwarves in.