Lord Sal'zar was surprised at how well the negotiations were going. That is to say, they weren't. Instead, Jack seemed content to go off on any tangent that presented itself and stay there for an unreasonably long time, making Salazar's job that much easier. But, of course, that begged the question, was it a breach of his oath to continue delaying negotiations when it was so painfully clear that's exactly what Jack also wanted?

That was when a clamor behind him attracted Sal'zar's attention. Turning around, what he saw was almost one of the last things he'd expected. Marching forward as resolutely as his inebriated body allowed was Lord B'arthon, flanked by several guards different from his usual oversized escorts, who were struggling to keep their Lord upright as much as protect him from would-be assassins.

Looking back, it was clear Jack was trying to suppress a smile. Even Dek'thul let loose a quick bark of laughter, though he quieted himself when Angela laid a metallic hand on his shoulder. Only Lady Angela remained stoic in the face of such a sight. Sal'zar had to wonder who'd allowed B'arthon to approach the front lines in such a condition.

Finally settling into position while leaning against a spear that was more for stability than protection, B'arthon glared a silent accusation at Jack, swaying in place for a moment before opening his mouth to verbalize his thoughts. "Yooo... You are behind... behind this!" To punctuate his words, the noble pointed to himself, almost falling over in the process before one of his guards steadied him.

Jack grinned a moment before answering, still being translated for by Lady Angela. "I'm afraid I'm not sure of what you mean, Lord B'arthon. You'll have to clarify."

B'arthon seemed to ignore the human and instead focused on the torches behind him before pointing another accusatory finger in their direction. "Distraction! Those are... a distraction! Where's his people..? Where's... the camp? Where's S'haar?!?"

Sal'zar merely nodded to the drunken Lord before answering politely as though speaking to a child. "Of course they are, Lord B'arthon. I figured that out some time ago. Even so, with our people closing on on all sides, where are they going to go? At worst, they could be waiting in ambush, but if so, they'll still be facing more than two to one odds, with a bunch of workers fighting against veteran warriors while wholly surrounded. Even if Jack and S'haar can pull out a miraculous victory with their weapons and magics, they will take such heavy casualties as to be rendered an impotent threat against your father's empire going forward."

Judging by Jack's lack of reaction, he wasn't exactly surprised at the news of the army closing on his position. That confirmed Sal'zar's earlier suspicion that Jack was also buying time, but to what end, he could not fathom. However, B'arthon seemed even more annoyed at his reaction as he turned to Sal'zar. The noble's rage seemed to be sobering him up...slightly. "You can't trust this...human! If he says he wants you to go right, he's got something planned for if you go left! We had them trapped! We were winning! What did you do?"

Sal'zar looked at his drunken Lord and sighed patiently before answering. "Your council did what we had to do given the situation and your...condition. Perhaps next time, you should remain sober on an active battlefield."

B'arthon's face twisted into a snarl as he pointed sideways at Jack while still leaning heavily on his spear for stability. "You don't get it! He's behind all of this! Me, the torches, you, everything! This is his plan, and you're playing right into it!"

Sal'zar nodded to his Lord. "That has occurred to me, but I suppose it'll just come down to whose plan was better, won't it?"

As a larger ring of torches lit up surrounding the one at Jack's back, it became clear Hal'dek was in position. Appearing to notice something was off for the first time, Jack looked around before returning his attention to Sal'zar. "Well, it seems our time is up, and we must take our leave. But feel free to keep Dek'thul as our gift to you; we've already gotten everything we needed in exchange. Oh, and I don't recommend following too close behind us for your own safety."

B'arthon pointed in Jack's direction, his hand only wavering somewhat. "Your people may have escaped somehow, but I'll take you at least! Surround them! Do not allow Jack to leave this place alive!"

Jack seemed to ignore the noble as he slipped something like a mask over the wolgen's head. As the warriors began to move forward, Sal'zar noticed the mask appeared to have odd crystal lenses covering the eyes and cloth muffling the animal's ears before he was distracted by Lady Angela speaking on her own behalf this time. "Surround a nine-foot-tall metal goddess and a man riding a wolgen? Do you even hear yourself?" With that, she threw something on the ground, and the world exploded in light and sound.

Sal'zar wasn't sure how much time had passed before his vision slowly returned, revealing that Jack and Angela were nowhere to be seen.

-

As Sare'en sat watching over Kunes and Kunshee, she couldn't help but notice how sweet the two troublemakers looked at the moment. But, of course, that might be because of the deep sleep they were in, brought on by the drugs Lady Angela had given them before she'd left.

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It had been a necessary part of the plan. If anyone or anything in the camp would give away their positions at an inopportune time, it would be these two. So to avoid that potential complication, Lady Angela had spent a few days developing a concoction she'd declared "safe enough for limited use" to put the two into a restful slumber. They were now resting on a couple of sleds, tied to an Arlack, ready to haul them to safety.

Thankfully the arlack were easier to deal with. Sare'en had given them a few sacks of grain, and they were all happily munching away. Because they were used to being locked in pens overnight, they didn't even mind being in an underground cave, dug out by Lady Angela over a few days, secured with a trap door over which they'd transplanted a few thorny bushes to dissuade anyone from walking over.

Despite all their preparations, Sare'en felt her heart skip a few beats when she heard the enemy march over the cave, and a few bits of dirt had shaken loose. Not that Sare'en could see much in the gloom of the cavern. She had only a weak lantern Lady Angela had given her to keep an eye on the animals, and it barely lit up more than a couple feet beyond herself. Even knowing the AI had tested the lantern to ensure it wouldn't glow through the trap door, Sare'en avoided getting anywhere near the door lest she gave away their position. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the sounds of the warriors walking overhead faded into the distance.

However, Sare'en's heart almost gave out when a tumultuous sound indicated the trap door was being lifted out of position. Lifting the lantern and turning it to face the door, she could see the outline of an argu'n before S'haar's quietly hissing voice broke the silence. "They've passed. Get the arlack out of the cave. We need to get moving now!"

With a nod, Sar'en started leading the confused animals back to the surface. They weren't often led about in the dark, especially when they'd been locked inside a pen for the night, but thankfully it didn't take much prodding for them to get moving.

As she broke the surface, Sare'en turned off the lantern and let her eyes adjust to the moonlit night. She could just make out several other nearby argu'n coming out of their own respective holes in the ground. When someone grabbed Sare'en's shoulder, the poor girl felt like her heart was going to explode before she recognized Em'brel's grinning face as the younger girl spoke. "See, I told you everything would be fine! You can trust in anything Angela builds!"

Sare'en took a moment to catch her breath and steady her nerves before answering. "Maybe so, but from now on, I prefer my dwellings above ground. Thank you!"

They didn't have much time to banter, though, because Sare'en had to finish double-checking all the harnesses on the arlack. As soon as she was done, S'haar had everyone in position, and the caravan began moving again for the first time in weeks. As good as it was to get some rest in one spot again, the herder girl wouldn't miss the rations they'd been on the whole time. S'haar had insisted they not butcher any more arlack than absolutely required because they'd need the pulling power the animals provide to get out of the valley they were in. For several days now, their meals had been down to a sliver of meat with primarily plants and bread to fill their stomachs, and it hadn't been sitting well with anyone. Lon'thul and the hunters bringing in hauls of fresh meat was as motivating as anything, and Sare'en's mouth began to water at the thought of it as their march into the dark night continued.

-

Jack held tight as Grim surged forward after Angela, who led the way to the line of warriors who'd appeared at their rear. As they neared, the warrior's readied their spears, but Angela simply threw out a couple more flashbangs. Grim's goggles protected his sight, but they'd only had enough time and materials to make one set, so Jack had to make do with turning his head, closing his eyes, and covering his ears. As far ahead as Angela could throw the grenades, his precautions were enough to prevent all but some mild discomfort, but judging by all the shouting ahead combined with the formes of many argu'n crawling around on hands and knees, their opposition wasn't as lucky.

The few warriors who maintained enough awareness to be standing while clutching their spears for support were thrown bodily aside as Angela plowed into them, launching them several feet before they landed well outside any range at which their spears could hypothetically pose a threat to Jack and Grim as they ran past.

There were calls from further down the line on either side to give chase, but as fast as argu'n are over short distances, wolgen and AI are faster, and soon the difference in endurance left their pursuers far behind. Not that their trail would be hard to follow, but that wouldn't matter much before long. After what seemed like an hour of riding, even if it was closer to ten minutes, Grim's breaths were coming in pants. They finally slowed their pace to a fast walk, knowing the B'arthon's forces wouldn't be able to catch up before it was too late. After a while longer, they broke the treeline on the far side of the valley in time to see Lon'thul and his hunters placing the last few charges along the ridge.

Cresting the ridge, Jack could see S'haar waiting at the back of the caravan, eagerly awaiting Jack's appearance. The remnants of the enemy's camp were deserted, with most of the warriors in the valley and any remaining hangers-on probably fleeing at the sight of the vastly superior numbers of the caravan. As he rode up, she spoke while reaching up to grab hold of his hand. "You're back and in one piece for once! Your goddess must have been watching out for you!"

As Angela came running up, she replied wryly. "Why yes, I was, but I didn't know you bought into that whole 'goddess' thing, S'haar!"

Before S'haar could reply, Lon'thul's voice came in over their headsets. "All the packages are in place, and we're clear!"

With that, Angela turned to S'haar. "Might want everyone to turn away and cover their ears!"

Once the orders were given, Angela sent a silent signal, and the bases of a couple of nearby mountains exploded, causing several massive landslides that filled a large portion of the valley they'd escaped from, securing their escape. Whether B'arthon decided to climb over the rubble or go around, they had plenty of time to get ahead of the enemy and regain the initiative. The only problem was they were now locked into heading south again, right back into A'ngles' territory.