Post by Dead Greyhawk on Jul 22, 2007 18:34:48 GMT -5
The Company sprawls next to their melting ice raft. The water flowing through the adjacent passage stirs the air, drawing new, though not fresh, air past them. Pfiffwin and Dell, both recovering from their different ailments, attempting to regain their focus. Dell, recently restored from death, is hale in body and mind, but lacks the prepared magics that he so arduously memorized earlier that day. Pfiffwin, weak from his extended nausea, still trembles with weakness, but does not lack his magical acumen.
Otto collects his grappling hook from the wall and recoils his wet rope. "How long do you need Dell?" he asks.
Dell knows just what Otto means. "Around eight hours," he replies. "Can't be rushed."
Otto grunts and looks at Killain Anvilsplitter's map. He traces several routes on the vellum with his finger. "Take an hour here," he finally says. "If we rush, we may get a few hours on the other end as well. I've built time for accidents into the plan."
Dell nods, sighs, and pulls out the strange tiled box found in Grugnir's stronghold. With deft, nimble fingers, he slides the platinum, electrum, and silver plates about in strange patterns until the top of the box slides open. From the box's narrow mouth, he carefully pulls out a thin tome that barely fits diagonally in the box. It is deeper than the box is, surprising all who watch him take out the book. "I'll need to look at one of yours as well, Winthrop," he mutters, ruefully.
"I'll summon the chest then," opines Winthrop, drawing out his miniature replica.
"You mean you have them all in the chest?" asks Dell, startled to say the least. When Winthrop nods, Dell's eyes narrow. "Perhaps you can give them to Jasper to carry instead? He like hauling heavy objects, and then we won't have furred elephant-gnats flying about blowing snot on us!" gripes Dell.
Winthrop frowns, but summons his chest into being. The chest, quite heavy with the assorted items and coinage placed inside it, sinks slightly into the tunnel floor, the stones beneath the chest compressing into the tunnel floor. He draws out one heavy tome, hands it to Dell, and then sends the chest back into the ether. "Don't drop it. I like my books to be kept clean," dictates Winthrop witheringly to Dell.
"Enough, enough," commands Otto, as he sends Alouicious and Diego to the edge of the light to keep watch. The Company hunkers down in the muck, resting while Dell memorizes some of the more basic enchantments. The diversion of the catacombs from the map clearly distresses Otto, as he keeps drawing with his finger on the map, memorizing different paths and turns. The noise of the rushing water sets everyone on edge, but none of those on watch see anything of concern. After a long hour, Dell replaces his book and hefts Winthrop's, ready to go.
"We're going to have to wade down the passage to the next intersection. This tunnel that we are in leads past and under the Silent One's compound, and I don't think that's wise. If we head down to the next intersection, we bypass that section, and it looks like the tunnels are more irregular there. The map has a big gap in the middle of that area," explains Otto. Otto hefts Pfiffwin onto his back and passes his rope along for everyone to tie themselves to. The water in the tunnel behind them is swift, but shallow. So long as everyone treads carefully, Otto believes they will have no problems.
Carefully they wade into the water and hike up against the current, Otto's glowing, golden form leading them forward. As they clamber forward, the pressure and the noise of the water increases. A tunnel leads off to the left side, and the sound of cascading water is nearly deafening. Otto carefully sidles along the right wall, hoping to cross by the tunnel mouth without difficulty. Seeing down into the tunnel, Otto spots a huge geyser of water jetting from the wall of the tunnel and spouting away from the Company. The Javan must break through, to some small amount, here and flow back to itself through the catacombs. Fortunately for the Company, it appears to do so in a different, parallel tunnel. Shouting a warning over the roaring flood, Otto pushes on past the passage mouth until his goal comes into sight. Wet and cold, the Company drags themselves into a passage on the right side of the tunnel, staggering up out of the water until they stand on dry land.
The catacomb passage appears to be the remnant of some road of sorts. The ground is covered with cobblestones and irregular arches overhead support the crushing weight above. To Otto and Hugh's eyes, the ground beneath their feet is unlike the mire and muck filled passages they have slogged through previously. These passages are traveled, at least infrequently, and by those that wear clothing and occasionally shoes. Otto and Hugh confer, discussing the signs before them, and agree that humans, or similar folk, hide down in these tunnels, traveling up to the water and then back down the tunnel.
Otto leads the others carefully down the tunnel. Pfiffwin croaks that the tunnel is rising upwards, and indeed, the passage becomes drier. The smell begins to clear somewhat, until suddenly a strong, charnel stench permeates the air. Otto waves Dell forward to investigate, possibly expecting his great experience at moving lightly and quietly and his keen half-elven eyes to ward off danger. Dell looks at Otto in surprise, but moves ahead, staring at the floor and the walls as he patiently takes single steps up the passage.
The rest of the Company stares at Dell's slow moving frame, never having seen him move so cautiously before. After several hundred mincing steps, Dell stops and lies down on the ground, looking at something invisible to the rest of the Company from several different angles. He then climbs back to his feet and begins searching the walls and the ceiling, first with his eyes, and then gingerly with his hands, lightly touching the things in reach. Finally, he tugs at his hands and fingers, as if making certain his gloves were firmly wrapped around his digits. Reaching into his belt pouch, he pulls forth a glowing stone and throws it down the corridor, quickly taking up a strange stance, his arms stretched out before him. The stone bounces off the floor and ricochets to a stop, providing light a hundred or so feet away. Dell stares into the illuminated space, searching out hidden objects and individuals as well as he can.
When Dell returns to the others, they are bored and somewhat restless, urging him to hurry up so they can move forward. "Well," he says, "the floor has a big pit hidden under the stones, most of which are fake, by the way. The pit is covered and probably has a pressure release. Before the pit is a series of plates in the floor that look like they drop part of the wall and ceiling on you. Some tension wires lead from the ceiling back into the passage; that's a spear trap or a dropping grate or something like that. The pit reeks and probably has dead in it already. No one is at the far end of the wires though. An alcove up the wall is empty and that is where the wires lead to."
The Company stares down the tunnel, seeing nothing out of the ordinary, and only smelling the charnel odor. "You're kidding me, right?" asks Otto. Dell sniffs. "What madman traps a sewer?" explodes Otto.
"It looks like a guild hideout," explains Dell. "Either that or the back way into the guild hall. Some sigils are scrawled on the walls, but I don't recognize them. The Keoish guilds are so unorganized; never can tell what they are trying to say."
Otto points to the map, showing Dell and the others how no other passageway easily leads to where they need to go. Resignedly, Dell goes back up the corridor and begins disarming the traps, using small pieces of metal to wedge the pressure plates, snipping the trailing wires, and jamming the locking mechanism on the pit cover. Crawling over the pit, Dell searches for more hidden surprises, but fails to find any. "Come on over, but don't step on any of the obvious things that will kill you!" shouts Dell back to the others. The rest of the Company, seeing the surprising care with which Dell places his feet, slowly approaches in single file.
Dell, on the other hand, sizes up the inside of the passage. To his trained eyes, this appears as a heavily fortified guild entrance, complete with hidden alcoves and judgement chair for a guard and watchers to occupy. The signs and sigils are freshly limned on the walls, but no one impedes their entry, as if the guild was deserted. If it is deserted though, who set the traps? Dell carefully walks over to the judgement chair, searching for any sort of paper or markings to show what might have transpired. His careful search finds nothing, but a sharp pain goes through his right hand. "Oh no," he thinks. He looks at his hand carefully, but no blood drips out of the fine magical leather gloves he wears. A brief numbness spreads through the hand, but fades away as quickly as it came on. "Got to keep close to Cedrus," mutters Dell, "just in case."
Once the Company passes through the danger, Dell finds the release for the pit cover and opens the pit. The contents are plain to see: the rotting, bloated remains of a dozen humans or humanoids. The stench is eye-watering, and Pfiffwin staggers away again, his stomach unprepared for another assault. Hugh calmly stares into the pit, looking at the corpses. "Tough to say without climbing down, but I believe the smaller corpses to be women and children," he says. The Company girds for battle, in case whatever led to these people's death is still nearby.
Otto collects his grappling hook from the wall and recoils his wet rope. "How long do you need Dell?" he asks.
Dell knows just what Otto means. "Around eight hours," he replies. "Can't be rushed."
Otto grunts and looks at Killain Anvilsplitter's map. He traces several routes on the vellum with his finger. "Take an hour here," he finally says. "If we rush, we may get a few hours on the other end as well. I've built time for accidents into the plan."
Dell nods, sighs, and pulls out the strange tiled box found in Grugnir's stronghold. With deft, nimble fingers, he slides the platinum, electrum, and silver plates about in strange patterns until the top of the box slides open. From the box's narrow mouth, he carefully pulls out a thin tome that barely fits diagonally in the box. It is deeper than the box is, surprising all who watch him take out the book. "I'll need to look at one of yours as well, Winthrop," he mutters, ruefully.
"I'll summon the chest then," opines Winthrop, drawing out his miniature replica.
"You mean you have them all in the chest?" asks Dell, startled to say the least. When Winthrop nods, Dell's eyes narrow. "Perhaps you can give them to Jasper to carry instead? He like hauling heavy objects, and then we won't have furred elephant-gnats flying about blowing snot on us!" gripes Dell.
Winthrop frowns, but summons his chest into being. The chest, quite heavy with the assorted items and coinage placed inside it, sinks slightly into the tunnel floor, the stones beneath the chest compressing into the tunnel floor. He draws out one heavy tome, hands it to Dell, and then sends the chest back into the ether. "Don't drop it. I like my books to be kept clean," dictates Winthrop witheringly to Dell.
"Enough, enough," commands Otto, as he sends Alouicious and Diego to the edge of the light to keep watch. The Company hunkers down in the muck, resting while Dell memorizes some of the more basic enchantments. The diversion of the catacombs from the map clearly distresses Otto, as he keeps drawing with his finger on the map, memorizing different paths and turns. The noise of the rushing water sets everyone on edge, but none of those on watch see anything of concern. After a long hour, Dell replaces his book and hefts Winthrop's, ready to go.
"We're going to have to wade down the passage to the next intersection. This tunnel that we are in leads past and under the Silent One's compound, and I don't think that's wise. If we head down to the next intersection, we bypass that section, and it looks like the tunnels are more irregular there. The map has a big gap in the middle of that area," explains Otto. Otto hefts Pfiffwin onto his back and passes his rope along for everyone to tie themselves to. The water in the tunnel behind them is swift, but shallow. So long as everyone treads carefully, Otto believes they will have no problems.
Carefully they wade into the water and hike up against the current, Otto's glowing, golden form leading them forward. As they clamber forward, the pressure and the noise of the water increases. A tunnel leads off to the left side, and the sound of cascading water is nearly deafening. Otto carefully sidles along the right wall, hoping to cross by the tunnel mouth without difficulty. Seeing down into the tunnel, Otto spots a huge geyser of water jetting from the wall of the tunnel and spouting away from the Company. The Javan must break through, to some small amount, here and flow back to itself through the catacombs. Fortunately for the Company, it appears to do so in a different, parallel tunnel. Shouting a warning over the roaring flood, Otto pushes on past the passage mouth until his goal comes into sight. Wet and cold, the Company drags themselves into a passage on the right side of the tunnel, staggering up out of the water until they stand on dry land.
The catacomb passage appears to be the remnant of some road of sorts. The ground is covered with cobblestones and irregular arches overhead support the crushing weight above. To Otto and Hugh's eyes, the ground beneath their feet is unlike the mire and muck filled passages they have slogged through previously. These passages are traveled, at least infrequently, and by those that wear clothing and occasionally shoes. Otto and Hugh confer, discussing the signs before them, and agree that humans, or similar folk, hide down in these tunnels, traveling up to the water and then back down the tunnel.
Otto leads the others carefully down the tunnel. Pfiffwin croaks that the tunnel is rising upwards, and indeed, the passage becomes drier. The smell begins to clear somewhat, until suddenly a strong, charnel stench permeates the air. Otto waves Dell forward to investigate, possibly expecting his great experience at moving lightly and quietly and his keen half-elven eyes to ward off danger. Dell looks at Otto in surprise, but moves ahead, staring at the floor and the walls as he patiently takes single steps up the passage.
The rest of the Company stares at Dell's slow moving frame, never having seen him move so cautiously before. After several hundred mincing steps, Dell stops and lies down on the ground, looking at something invisible to the rest of the Company from several different angles. He then climbs back to his feet and begins searching the walls and the ceiling, first with his eyes, and then gingerly with his hands, lightly touching the things in reach. Finally, he tugs at his hands and fingers, as if making certain his gloves were firmly wrapped around his digits. Reaching into his belt pouch, he pulls forth a glowing stone and throws it down the corridor, quickly taking up a strange stance, his arms stretched out before him. The stone bounces off the floor and ricochets to a stop, providing light a hundred or so feet away. Dell stares into the illuminated space, searching out hidden objects and individuals as well as he can.
When Dell returns to the others, they are bored and somewhat restless, urging him to hurry up so they can move forward. "Well," he says, "the floor has a big pit hidden under the stones, most of which are fake, by the way. The pit is covered and probably has a pressure release. Before the pit is a series of plates in the floor that look like they drop part of the wall and ceiling on you. Some tension wires lead from the ceiling back into the passage; that's a spear trap or a dropping grate or something like that. The pit reeks and probably has dead in it already. No one is at the far end of the wires though. An alcove up the wall is empty and that is where the wires lead to."
The Company stares down the tunnel, seeing nothing out of the ordinary, and only smelling the charnel odor. "You're kidding me, right?" asks Otto. Dell sniffs. "What madman traps a sewer?" explodes Otto.
"It looks like a guild hideout," explains Dell. "Either that or the back way into the guild hall. Some sigils are scrawled on the walls, but I don't recognize them. The Keoish guilds are so unorganized; never can tell what they are trying to say."
Otto points to the map, showing Dell and the others how no other passageway easily leads to where they need to go. Resignedly, Dell goes back up the corridor and begins disarming the traps, using small pieces of metal to wedge the pressure plates, snipping the trailing wires, and jamming the locking mechanism on the pit cover. Crawling over the pit, Dell searches for more hidden surprises, but fails to find any. "Come on over, but don't step on any of the obvious things that will kill you!" shouts Dell back to the others. The rest of the Company, seeing the surprising care with which Dell places his feet, slowly approaches in single file.
Dell, on the other hand, sizes up the inside of the passage. To his trained eyes, this appears as a heavily fortified guild entrance, complete with hidden alcoves and judgement chair for a guard and watchers to occupy. The signs and sigils are freshly limned on the walls, but no one impedes their entry, as if the guild was deserted. If it is deserted though, who set the traps? Dell carefully walks over to the judgement chair, searching for any sort of paper or markings to show what might have transpired. His careful search finds nothing, but a sharp pain goes through his right hand. "Oh no," he thinks. He looks at his hand carefully, but no blood drips out of the fine magical leather gloves he wears. A brief numbness spreads through the hand, but fades away as quickly as it came on. "Got to keep close to Cedrus," mutters Dell, "just in case."
Once the Company passes through the danger, Dell finds the release for the pit cover and opens the pit. The contents are plain to see: the rotting, bloated remains of a dozen humans or humanoids. The stench is eye-watering, and Pfiffwin staggers away again, his stomach unprepared for another assault. Hugh calmly stares into the pit, looking at the corpses. "Tough to say without climbing down, but I believe the smaller corpses to be women and children," he says. The Company girds for battle, in case whatever led to these people's death is still nearby.
