The Wagon

        Suddenly stopping dead in his tracks, Malcolm grabs Carideth by the
back of his armor and pulls him a bit closer. In a half-whisper, he says "Why
steal a wagon? I'll give you plenty of good reasons to steal a wagon. Number
one, relieving those evil, cruel slave traders of their possessions can hardly
be considered stealing. Number two, a wagon would certainly be a valuable
asset if we wish to transport our equipment at maximum speed. Number three,
the traders are most likely heading north, and we're heading east. There's no
way we can get caught, especially since this slave wagon looks just as much
alike as any other slave wagon I've ever seen. Come on, Carideth, are you
really that worried about law or morals? All that matters is that we save this
man and indirectly punish his evil captors!"

        Overhearing this conversation, Borack takes up a rather indifferent
position. He does remark that there doesn't seem to be a town guard in sight,
and that since we're so close to the edge of the town, we might as well take
it. Still, he makes it quite clear to everyone that he'll be happy with
whatever course of action is taken. "Enough deciding what to do with the
wagon!" he finally says. "Our first priority is to rescue this man!"

        The three of you begin attempts to work on righting the wagon up
again. Soon later, you are joined by Aardvarkin and Ruinad, and are able to
quickly turn the wagon back onto its wheels with a minimum of effort and
noise. A few minutes of fiddling with the lock by the thief and it harmlessly
drops off, falling to the dusty gravel road with a loud thud. The gladiator
hops out and immediately rushes over to the man that was under the wagon. He
checks to see if he is breathing, finds that he is, and immediately snatches
the man's backpack and climbs up onto the driver's seat of the wagon. Taking
hold of the reins firmly in both hands, he calls out to the rest of you to
throw your supplies into the back and then either hop in yourself or mount
your steeds and prepare to flee.

        In reaction to the reluctant looks he seems to be getting from some of
you, he snaps, "Come on! This is the right thing to do. Nobody will find us,
and if you have any qualms about stealing the wagon, just think of it as
borrowing it! We can leave it a short ways outside the city once we have
covered some ground if you like, and I'm sure my former masters will find it.
We haven't much time to lose, so please hop on and tell me where we're going!"

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Sage's Desk AD&D