They moved carefully down the hill as they approached the small camp. There were no horses but there was a donkey and a few sturdy ponies under a tarp that had been used to create a makeshift stable. They seemed to have not been fed or watered in several days, and Crick took a few moments to take care of them as they searched the rest of the camp. Michael checked the firepit in the center of it, noting that the fire there hadn’t burnt out, but had been intentionally put out with a shovel full of loose dirt. The others looked through the tents and Michael helped Crick while they searched.Jakub was frowning. “It looks to me like they went into the mountain a few days ago, but haven’t come back.”Marcus nodded. “Yeah, it seems like they hadn’t expected to be gone for long either.”They all looked to Lance, who was frowning as he left one of the tents. “I count fifteen. A few had stayed in camp, but must’ve gone looking for the others when they didn’t come back.” He took a breath. “From what I can tell, at least one started heading West, possibly for help.”“How long ago?” asked Jakub.“A day, maybe two.”Jakub sucked some air through his teeth. “So there could be reinforcements any time now.”Lance nodded as he looked over to the small trail that led to the mountain. “We need to move now. He looked at the others. “Get on your armor, we don’t have time for subtlety and with their numbers we’ll need the advantage. We don't know how many are soldiers.”They all nodded, and slung their packs onto the ground. They quickly armored up, muttering their tightening spells to lock their armor into place. They’d had a lot of practice, so it only took them a few minutes. Once they were ready they quickly moved up the narrow path toward the mountain, seeing no signs more recent than two days past. After a half hour on the path they reached a cave opening that seemed to lead into the mountain.Ollie went to the (...)