Andy was faintly aware of his head tossing around as he faded back to consciousness. He began to open his eyes, but all he could see was faint golden light filtering through the small holes in a burlap sack over his head.

Andy's hands were tied in front of him, which was surprisingly polite. He had expected that, if he was still alive, he'd be more brutally restrained. He pulled his ankles apart, and they moved without resistance.

No foot binding? Either they're in a hurry or they're negligent. Or both.

The ground beneath him was not ground, but rather wooden planks. There was a slight vibration running through the boards, and Andy could hear hooves. They were likely on a wagon.

"You awake?" Morwen's muffled voice came to him. It sounded like she was in the same situation.

"Yep," Andy said quietly. "Do you know what's going on?"

"Not sure," she said. "Just woke up. Seems like we're on a wagon, and we are restrained…"

"What do you think?" Andy asked.

"I don't know what to think," Morwen said, "but we need to be ready for anything. Who else is in here?"

"I am," Arlene's groggy voice came, similarly muffled. "And Kermit is here beside me, still asleep."

Andy breathed a sigh of relief, it seemed like a miracle that they were all still breathing. But there were two more unaccounted for.

"What about Sven and PL?" Andy asked.

"I think we're alone, just the four of us here," Morwen said. "I've been listening and no one else is breathing, but it does sound like there are multiple wagons surrounding us."

Andy listened, and Morwen was right. There was a creaking wagon behind them, and at least one more ahead of them. By the sound of it, they were moving fairly slowly.

"How many others do you think there are?" Andy asked.

"Not sure," said Morwen. "At least two drivers on this wagon, and I've heard several people on foot. I'd say there have to be somewhere around a dozen."

"Where are our weapons?" Andy asked.

"Couldn't tell you," said Morwen.

"How do we escape? I don't have any feats for this situation," Arlene said.

"Neither do I," said Andy.

"Neither do I," said Morwen. "As a fighter, I've always focused on battle. My fighting skills were meant to help me avoid situations like this… But nonetheless, sometimes it happens. Especially with charlatans, bards, and the more deceptive spellcasters like warlocks. Damn tricksters. Magic is a mono-class fighter's worst enemy. You can't slice a spell in half, at least not normally."

Andy heard the frustration in Morwen's words. She was not used to being in a situation like this, and she was clearly frustrated that Atnar's mind-control spell had gotten the best of her.

"Maybe Kermit can help us," Arlene said. "He's got Arcane Gesture, which can summon an elemental. I'm not sure what an elemental could do for us, exactly, but it couldn't hurt."

"Not a bad thought," said Morwen. "At least it could give us eyes on what's going on outside..."

"Before we wake him up, though," Andy said, "do you think Sven had something to do with this? He's the only one, besides PL, who isn't in the wagon."

"I had the same thought," said Morwen, "and we don't yet have enough information to make a judgment. On the one hand, it wouldn't really make sense. Sven didn't plan the route, and he was only included at the last moment, so he couldn't have orchestrated an ambush in that time unless he was extremely well connected with Atnar's network. That's always possible. And we should also consider that, of all of us, he has the most to gain. There's not much upward mobility – whether social, financial, or System-wise – for a low-level farmer who's been a pig handler for so long."

"This could've been his big break," said Arlene.

"It could be," said Morwen, "we'll need to withhold judgment one way or another until we have more information. Don't trust anyone outside this wagon."

"Fair enough," said Andy. It would be a real bummer to be betrayed by Sven. He hoped it wasn't the case.

"Alright, I think we can get Kermit awake now."

"Ok, I'll wake him up," Arlene said.

There was a rustling as Arlene repositioned herself and began lightly shoving Kermit.

"Huh?" Kermit said as he awoke. "A bag on my head… there's a–"

"Hey buddy, good morning," Arlene said softly. "Don't worry, it's just a temporary problem."

"Where's PL?" Kermit asked.

The boy loved his pig.

"Not sure yet, but we're going to get ourselves out of this situation real soon."

"Are we in a parade?" Kermit asked. "It feels like we're in a parade."

"Kind of," Andy said. "Like a very quiet parade."

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Oh," Kermit said, hushing his voice.

"The challenge is to get out of our hoods and get ourselves untied without making a lot of noise."

Andy began feeling around the rope that was binding his wrists. He wouldn't be able to untie them himself. They weren't overly tight, but the knots were positioned in such a way that he couldn't grasp them with any dexterity. Someone else would have to do it.

"Can someone give me a hand with these ropes?" Andy said.

"My hands are behind me," said Morwen.

"Mine too," said Kermit.

"Huh," Andy said.

Why would Kermit and Morwen be more tightly bound? Did Atnar's people view them as more dangerous?

"Mine are in front," said Arlene. She shuffled over beside Andy and began working on the bindings around his wrists. They tightened and loosened, tightened and loosened repeatedly before finally falling off.

"That's it," she said, pulling off the ropes.

"Perfect," said Andy. "Thank you." He stretched his newly freed wrists as he removed the bag on his head. Light overwhelmed him as his eyes began adjusting. They were in a covered wagon with a white canvas roof. It was clearly a cargo wagon. Besides the four of them, there were a few sacks toward the back of the wagon. That was it.

"Alright, let me get y'all untied," Andy said. He moved toward Morwen, pulling the bag off of her head.

"Damn, it's bright," she said, chuckling. She rolled over so that Andy could access the bonds that immobilized her hands and arms.

They were tight, but with some fidgeting, Andy was able to get them loosened.

In addition to the horses, or whatever kind of beasts of burden were pulling the carts, there were footsteps too.

"Did you hear something?" came a voice from up front. Someone hopped out of the wagon while it was moving and started walking around to the back. It seemed like one of the drivers was going to check on them.

"Quick," Morwen said, "get your hood back on and your wrists together."

Andy understood the urgency in her voice. They could very well be busted in this vulnerable position. Three quarters of the party were bound, they were all still groggy from their magically induced sleep, and there were no weapons to be seen. Even a low-level bandit could end their lives here if they wanted to.

"Are we–" Kermit began, innocently.

"Shhh," Arlene whispered. "Pretend you're asleep."

Kermit went silent quickly.

Andy brought his hands together, throwing the rope around a few times. But it was too loose to be convincing. He threw his hood on and put his knees around his wrists, hoping to obscure the untied binding.

He couldn't see anything as he heard the rear canvas flap pull back. Sounds from the outside flooded in with more clarity.

Shit, he can see my untied bonds, I'm sure of it, Andy thought as he tried his best to obscure his wrists. With the hood on, he really couldn't tell if he was hiding them well or not.

The sounds of the outside continued flooding in. The plodding hooves, the creaking wagons, the conversations and communications of the bandits, and even the chirping of the birds. They sounded like they were deep in the woods. And as long as that flap was opened, it meant someone was examining them. Checking on them. Spotting Andy's sloppy attempt at deception, perhaps.

Every moment the flap remained open increased the tension in Andy's chest, but he had to do his best to remain relaxed, limp, asleep-looking.

Finally, the flap closed again.

"They're all back there, still asleep," said the man as he scurried back up to the front seats of the wagon, jumping up with a thud that rocked the wooden cargo bed slightly.

"We'll be there in no time," said the other driver.

***

A few minutes passed and, once he was absolutely sure no one was coming back to check on them again, Andy removed his hood and continued on Morwen's bonds until she was free. Morwen then helped Kermit, and Andy helped Arlene. Soon enough, they were all out of their bonds and hoods.

"Now, we need to be ready to fake it again at any moment, so make sure you keep your ropes and hoods handy and be ready to put them back on."

Kermit nodded.

"Now, Kermit," Andy said, "we need some help."

"I love helping," Kermit said quietly. "What do you want me to do?"

"We can't see out there without blowing our cover," said Andy, "but we need to know what's going on. We need to know where exactly Sven and PL are, and we need to know where our weapons are. We need to know how many people are out there."

"Want me to count?" Kermit asked.

"No, no," said Morwen. "We want you to remain exactly where you are."

"Ok," said Kermit.

"Do you think you could get Perry back here?" Andy said.

"Oh, yes," said Kermit. "I can call for Perry."

Kermit made his Arcane Gesture. The spell stirred up a green glowing breeze in the wagon, blowing the flap back for a second.

Andy caught a glimpse of the horse and driver of the wagon behind them. Thankfully, the driver seemed to be staring off into the woods absentmindedly and didn't seem to notice Andy's lack of headgear or the elemental wind that blew the flap back.

The flap closed again as the the wind calmed down.

A small magical rift blipped in front of Andy's eyes and a green light appeared, with small fairy wings.

"Hello, I am Perry, minor elemental, at your service," the small creature said. "What is it you need?"

"Hi Perry," Kermit whispered. "Do you think you can do some spying?"

"Spying? Why yes, certainly. What kind of intelligence would you like me to gather?"

Kermit looked toward Andy.

"We need to know a few things," Andy said. Perry turned to 'face' Andy, fluttering at eye-level. "We're currently being held captive. We've managed to get out of our bonds, but we don't want to blow our cover before we know the situation. Can you discretely go out and see how many bandits are in this caravan? And can you see if there's a giant pig named PL out there? And if so, is his handler, Sven, with him?"

"I can certainly do those things," said Perry. "But my summoner will have to give me the order."

"Do what he said," Kermit said.

"Certainly," said Perry.

"Oh, one more thing," said Andy, "Can you see where our weapons are at? Should be a greatsword, a katana, a longbow with a quiver, and a… cast iron skillet."

"Certainly," said Perry. "If my summoner is the one who commands it."

"Yes," said Kermit. "Find the weapons too. And can you also tell me if we're in a pretty part of the woods and what kind of flowers there are?"

"Sure," said Perry. "Right away."

The elemental sank between a crack in the wagon's boards.

"I sure hope our weapons are easy to get to," said Andy.

"I hope PL is still here," said Kermit.

"Good," said Morwen. "Good. Keep up hope. That is what's going to get us out of this situation."