Dragged to a town... but not alone

Shadowheart was exhausted by the time they emerged from the forest. They had moved her bindings to her wrists, tugging her alone on the shameful march. The goblins had given her nothing to cover up her body. She was ogled by the goblins the entire time, their lustful gazes even more tiring than the **** march. Still, they had begrudgingly followed their masters orders, and none of them dared grope her. The snarling worg behind her probably helped dissuade them as much as it unnerved Shadowheart.

Their destination seemed to be a beat up town that the goblins had taken over. Signs of a struggle were everywhere. The roofs had holes in them, windows were broken, and some parts were still smoldering. The bridge leading to the town was covered in human corpses, their grizzly deaths adding to Shadowheart's unease. As she passed under the gate, she saw the goblins that now inhabited the town emerge from the buildings, some even occupying the roofs. From the looks on their faces, they were not exactly friendly.

Her observations were cut short, however, when she felt a throbbing sensation in her head. She almost cried out as the pain of the tadpole amplified tenfold. Images flashed by her eyes. A pair of tiefling parents. Working as a bodyguard in Baldur's Gate. Dragged down into the hells, **** to fight in a vicious war. Experimented on. Chased by a dashing warlock. Trapped on the mind flayer's ship.

A single name, uttered by a handsome young man. "Karlach..."

Shadowheart felt these memories as if they were her own. She could practically picture what the woman was like, too. A red tiefling as beautiful as she was muscular. Scarred by cruel demonic experiments, capped off by an infernal engine in her chest. Most of all, though, an indomitable spirit that refused to give in to despair. She did not know where this woman was, but she knew she was around here somewhere. A fellow survivor of the nautiloid.

Another ally, perhaps.

"Ah, look who returns with their head hung low!" The cleric's attention was brought back to her current situation. It was one of the goblin in town shouting, a woman on the roof. "Za'Krug and his band of losers!"

"Spare me your insults, bitch!" Za'Krug shouted back. "We are to return to camp with our loot. Minthara's orders!" The arriving group were quickly surrounded by goblins from nearby buildings, non of whom seemed happy.

"Don't bullshit me!" The woman yelled back. "Your orders were to capture the runt mercenaries who got away, not find yourself a girlfriend!"

"The bitch is just a bonus!" Za'Krug shouted back. "We found an even juicer prize... the home of those flower-picking druids!" There was a murmur of excitement in the goblin crowd.

"Well I'll be..." The woman on the room cocked an eyebrow. "You finally tracked 'em down, eh? But ya still don't have the mercenaries. So ya still failed yer mission!"

"This is bigger than the mission!" Za'Krug was getting frustrated. "Just let us pass and let Minthara decide for herself, why don't you! If she hears you held us up, I bet she'll be mighty pissed."

"Maybe..." The scout's eyes fell on the bound cleric. "...we can work out a deal. Leave the slut with my men and you can pass. We'll call it a toll!"

"Wait, what!" Shadowheart squealed. She looked nervously around at the nearby goblins, all eyeing her like a peace of meat. "You couldn't possibly mean-" The worg shut her up, cowing her into silence with its barks.

"Ya gotta be fucking kidding me," Za'Krug grumbled, looking mournfully at the bound half-elf. He clearly did not want to give her up. "Ah, Hells! Fine, take her! Minthara will reward me with twenty bitches for the info I got!" Tossing her leash on the ground, the goblin's parted and let his group pass. Shadowheart was left behind, somehow even more worried about her fate then before.

Unbeknownst to Shadowheart, she was being watched. It was the woman from her vision, the tiefling barbarian Karlach! After having her pod crash land outside of town, she had wandered over in search of civilization. Instead, she had found the place infested with goblins. She had shared Shadowheart's vision, seeing into her mind just as much as the cleric had seen into her own.

The tiefling watched as the party continued on without Shadowheart. It was clear what the goblin's intended to do with their new pet. Karlach knew she could not let these bastards have their way with the girl. Shadowheart was a fellow infected. Their chances of getting the tadpole out were much better if they worked together. More than that, though, Karlach just couldn't stand by while these goblins **** the poor cleric. She had to act!

However, she also knew the reality of the situation. She was vastly outnumbered, even if they were just goblins. They also had much better positioning. They had scouts on the roofs and archers in the windows. She even thought she saw a spellcaster among them! The only advantage Karlach had was the element of surprise.

Would that be enough?