Lt. Dan Got New Legs!

[DrifterUK]

''Stick close Colton' Simone called out to the boy, urging him to move faster. ''You need to stay near us.''

[Seloine]

"I-I'm trying," Colton said, yelping slightly as he tried to hurry up and instead slipped on a crumbling brick, scuffing his knees and palms. "Sorry, I... I'll try to be faster."

He scrambled forward again, catching up and shifting his meagre belongings about, then pulled his ragged cloak tight about himself, trying to hide away inside it.

"I'm sorry, I... I-I'll do better," he said, wheezing and pressing a hand to his side.

Morgaine glanced back, then gestured down the road.

"I recognise this place," she said. "It's this way, come on."

[DrifterUK]

''Relax kid, you're not on trial. We're all here to help each other out'' Simone replied before sighing. ''We'll take a breather when we get to the bridge. Looks like a bit of easier going from now on too.''

Kara was up ahead with Morgaine, sticking close, still keeping an eye on the tracks in the ash, hoping to spot some human foot prints.
As the group pressed further down the road, Kara spotted tracks that concerned her. Whatever had left them was large. Very large. Drops and splashes of half dry blood lay in the tracks every so often, along with marks where something had been dragged.
Wose still was that whatever had left them had headed in the same direction they were going now.

Kara signalled to Simone to stop short so the others, mainly Colton, didn't see, at least right now. She waved Morgaine over to take a look.

[Seloine]

Colton gave a small, shaky smile, but then nodded and he did manage to keep up a little better, even if his breathing did remain slightly wheezy. Tucked behind Simone, he was well shielded from the tracks Kara had found.

Morgaine moved over silently and frowned.

"That's no ghoul," she murmured, keeping her voice low. "Looks almost were instead, but... Thoughts, Kara?"

[DrifterUK]

''I think the two of us should scout ahead a bit as we're the fastest. See if these tracks continue towards the bridge, and possibly head straight to the docks if they do.''

She looked up at Morgaine.
''As much as I dislike her, I hope Mari didn't run into this thing...''

[Seloine]

Morgaine nodded.

"Agreed," she said. "I'd rather not run into this thing with Colton in tow, he wouldn't stand a chance if it paid him any attention." She traced the shape of one of the prints with her finger. "I... I don't believe the sorceress met this. I think if she had, we would have heard - she seemed loud, what with her fireballs and explosions."

[DrifterUK]

''True''

Kara got to her feet and walked over to Simone and whispered the plan to her. Simone looked apprehensive but agreed it was probably the best plan of action.

'We'll stay here, on the street, nd wait for you two to get back'' Simone said, before settling down on top of a singed crate near a wall. ''Colton, Wolfgang, you two stay here with me''

[Seloine]

Morgaine stayed over by the tracks, examining them closely, chewing her lip thoughtfully as she waited for Kara to rejoin her before setting off along the creature's path.

Colton nodded, slinking over obediently to sit on another nearby crate.

"What's going on?" he asked, stroking Kemp's head as the dog padded past him to nose at Wolfgang's pack, his master having put it down, taking the opportunity to rearrange things slightly. He was also counting up precisely how much food they actually had.

[DrifterUK]

''Kara found some tracks'' Simone replied carefully. ''It's... probably nothing, but we want to be sure before we continue.''


Kara rejoined Morgaine having put her pack down with Simone and the pair set off down the street following the tracks, and being observant of the area around them.
The tracks followed the main street towards the bridge for perhaps twenty minutes, before leading down a side alley off the main street.

''Should we follow them in there?'' said Kara, hesitantly.

[Seloine]

"Oh, okay," Colton said. "I-I... That makes sense. Hopefully it is nothing, there... This district has a lot of places to hide, l-lots of shadows." He picked at his lute nervously. "W-we're pretty safe, so long as it's light, yeah?"

Morgaine stopped, looking at the patches of blood on the ground with the tracks. They were bigger than they had been.

"I... I don't know. It had something, or someone, with it, though..." she paused, frowning more deeply. "The blood's not dry yet but... But I don't know. If it is a person, and they're still alive... If they're still alive, we might be able to save them."

[DrifterUK]

''With the amount of blood... it's doubtful'' Kara swallowed hard, then drew her swords. ''We'll keep following for now, but we'll turn back at the first sign of trouble.''

The pair headed into the alley way, and followed for a few more minutes, before coming to an almost identical door as they had found underground broken. It was hidden behind some old crates and some tarpaulin, and the tracks led straight to it.
It was partially cracked open, and Kara approached it carefully, but stopped when she saw Morgaine's worried expression.

[Seloine]

"It... The smell of blood," Morgaine said uneasily, shifting her grip on her weapon. "This... It might lead into the underground network. There was a door, earlier, just like this... There was nothing good beyond it, Kara."

[DrifterUK]

Kara stood up and moved away from the door.

''Morgaine... what did the two of you find down there?''

[Seloine]

Morgaine swallowed hard and shook her head, backing up the alleyway slightly.

"Nothing good," she said quietly. "It... It was dark, Kara, and the door... It was ripped to pieces, and so was the man we found. When we went down the corridor, it... There was more blood and it was dripping from... From the ceiling somewhere. There was a great puddle of it, it was sticky under my hooves. Let's go back."

[DrifterUK]

Kara went a bit pale, and nodded.
''Let's head back to the others, and get out of here''

The pair headed back at pace to the others so they could move off as quickly as possible.

''Find anything?'' Simone asked calmly as the pair returned