Ten gold pieces!  It was a small fortune.  And all she'd had to do was crack a nasty orc over the head for it!  Feeling a bit like a bandit, Finna stuffed the coins one by one down the sides of her boots.  They were expensive, a present from Jarith Gorton – whose son she'd been promised to since he was a little boy – for her 18th birthday.  The thought that little Xavven was now only a summer or two away from being of age to marry her was one she tried not to dwell on lately.<br/><br/>Much richer, Finna explored the rest of the area, and was shocked out of her reverie when she discovered Aesa's basket.<em>Oh no!  She's been taken by the orcs!</em><br/><br/>All thoughts of gold and weddings gone from her mind, Finna stood frozen to the spot in gut wrenching indecision, staring helplessly north into the darkness.  Part of her wanted to charge along the trail, swinging her crook and rescuing her friend.  But she knew she'd felled the first orc with a<em>lucky</em>blow.  What if Aesa had been taken by a dozen of them?  A whole tribe?  This was bad, really bad.<br/><br/>Her best friend was counting on her.  Finna forced herself to make a decision.  She needed to get back to the village - Trot<em>couldn't</em>ignore this, not if she showed him the body.  She grabbed hold of the dead creature and started dragging it back south along the path, heading for home at an urgently fast pace.