Ah, you could have Thomas tell Ntaj that the orc chief is still in his cave. IC Ntaj thought the chief left the cave with the rest of his warriors (Seemed like something a chief ought to do anyways). Thomas could just tell Ntaj that, which would make Ntaj realize that would likely be a smarter idea, and no one has to go into the forest. Thomas would still have to stick outside, but he could just, I dunno, watch the perimeter.