The Paladin's Task

Common sense and a strong sense of duty forced Fred to try a third way. To continue into the smoke, blinded and weakened from coughing, would be reckless, and Fred would be giving up his life with no good result. A retreat would be turning his back on a people in need - even if these were not his people, and this was not his town, it did not matter to his obligations as a gentleman and warrior.

Fred retreated just far enough to a point where the smoke cleared. The beastly grunting and hissing seemed to die away as well. Instead, he heard, faintly, on his left, a burbling stream. A stream meant that there was likely a path back into the town, free of trees and underbrush. He might not be able to navigate it all the way into town - if the fire were hot enough, the stream would be hot as well. If the smoke had enveloped the entire town, then he could do little once he got there - unless the cause of the fire were outside that cloud of smoke, and unaware of him. Survivors might need bandages and care beyond Fred's ability to provide it. There was a lot that could go wrong. But it was best not to overthink this - Fred decided that he would keep himself in a safe position, but take the opportunity to do good when it presented itself.

There was underbrush in the way, and many thorns, but Fred was well- protected with his thick leather armor. His sword hacked away the tangled briars cleanly. While hacking at the briars, Fred thought to himself - why would there be a stench of rotting flesh? A fire usually meant a fresh raid on a town, and the bodies would not have been dead long enough to start rotting. Perhaps there was a large slaughterhouse for the butcher in town. That seemed to be the most reasonable explanation - although he would be surprised and pleased if there were no human casualties. Fred blazed a trail within an hour to the sound of the water.

1. The water was a rocky creek. Fred would get wet up to his calves, and the rocks would slow his progress, but he would certainly reach the town.
2. The water was a deep river. Fred would either have to remove everything except his sword and swim downstream, or try to follow the bank of the river.
3. The sound of the water was that of a turbulent rapids. The river was not going to help him get into the town.

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