“It may be the only way through. We could be stuck here for an eternity trying to find a way out. I’m thinking the Stronghold will be our best bet. We can spend some more time looking for an alternative route, but as numerous as these foes are, they are unarmed and unprotected. But lets exhaust all options before committing to another battle.”
“It’s alright Kitz, as long as we stick together and watch each other’s back we’ll make it through this with plenty of gold in our pockets and another mission completed.” Arrow said to Kittix
“I agree with the dwarf, we should continue.” To the group.
“Well I’m gonna scout the area, I’ll be back. Kitz, you stay with the group and rest you’re still wounded” Arrow will try to move around silently and look for anything interesting.
As long as the group is still moving, Khan will stick close to Dur’dan. Karikhan has his suspicions about the halfling Hob, though, and will keep a wary eye on him in case it seems he might be disturbing the dead.
Khan is also on the lookout for evidence of animals living in the subteranean depths, especially bats or rats. If Khan comes across such a creature, he will attempt to command it to approach.
The party pulls back from the courtyard and stops at the staired entrance to a large tenement. Arrow continues on alone to scout the area, alert for any hidden undead that he might stumble upon unawares. He winds down streets and passes through alleys for some time until approaching another courtyard perhaps twenty minutes later. One of the buildings here is quite tall and the half-elf decides to risk entering it in hopes of finding a way to the roof. The interior is very dark, but the ambient green light outside is enough for his keen eyes and he heads down a hallway, passing rooms on either side occupied with the slumbering dead. He locates a stairwell and makes upward until coming onto a landing fifteen stories up. There doesn’t seem to be roof access but there is a balcony from which he can overlook his surroundings: The safehold is in the nearby distance, ringed by a fat wall that separates it and the rest of the city. Below there is some sort of walled compound that extends for nearly a hundred yards. If the party could clear its wall they could move through the compound and bypass the ruined sector entirely.
Content, Arrow turns to go just as a knife makes to plunge into his side. The half-elf turns aside the attack with his palm but is knocked over as his attacker surges forward. The two bodies roll together on the floor of the balcony, one smaller but stronger, heavier. Arrow frees himself from his attacker’s grip and stumbles back towards the stairwell. His attacker gets to his feet: It is superficially a dwarf, short and wide with thick limbs as is typical for its kind. Its skin, however, is grey as stone. The dwarf is square-jawed with a coal black beard and shimmering grey eyes. He is armored in black boiled leather bands, his head capped in iron. He growls at the half-elf, eyes flitting between his prey and his knife between them on the floor.
Meanwhile, the rest of the party remains waiting in relative quiet on the street. The minutes pass uncomfortably for them, with Kittix in particular showing signs of strain. Khan is investigating the surrounding area, but stays close to the party. He walks along a narrow road a corner down from the group, still in sight of the others, peering into the windows of buildings he passes. Looking into one, he spots a mass of webbing in a corner. It looks fresh, perhaps whatever creature made it is still nearby. There don’t seem to be any skeletons in the room, which is full of dust-caked stone furniture.
Arrow will rush for the knife and try to attack dwarf using all his might (willpower)
If more enemies start to show up Arrow will try to fight his way out of the room and make his way to the party as fast as he can trying not to run into anymore dwarfs.
Arrow and the grey-skinned dwarf both dive for the knife simultaneously, the half-elf snatching the weapon and rolling aside as the dwarf crashes to the ground. Arrow circles around his attacker as he rises before darting forward and plunging the weapon down with both hands, burning Willpower. The dwarf catches him by the half-elf’s wrists, the blade inches from his snarling face, before pushing Arrow back against the short railing of the balcony. Arrow’s back is slammed against the railing and he takes one bashing damage as the pair continues to wrestle over the weapon.
Arrow roars in defiance, burning another Willpower and rending the knife free, its blade slashing across the dwarf’s forehead, blood spraying into his own face. The dwarf reels, his gloved hands going to his face even as Arrow does likewise, wiping his attacker’s blood from his eyes. The grey assailant charges in a fury, spearing the half-elf and nearly sending him over the balcony to the street below, dealing another one bashing damage.
Arrow will try to sink the knife into the dwarf’s spine. Burning up another will power.
Arrow struggles against the dwarf, the pair locked in a brutal grapple. The dwarf continues bashing Arrow against the railing as the half-elf scrambles to stay on his feet, finally getting the knife back into both hands and slamming it down repeatedly into the dwarf’s back, the weapon bloodier each time it is rent free. The dwarf yanks Arrow side-to-side, getting the lighter fighter off balance before tossing him against the railing again, its stone supports snapping as it starts to give way, dealing another two bashing damage.
Arrow will try to get back into the room before the balcony gives way and will shove the dwarf into the railing using the last of his energy. (Willpower)
Arrow manages to shove the dwarf free and get back into the stairwell, his attacker in pursuit immediately. The dwarf nearly pushes Arrow over the railing of the stairs, slamming the half-elf’s gut against it and dealing two bashing damage, pinning him.
Arrow groans as he slumps over the railing, the floor far below seeming to rush up at him as vertigo momentarily overtakes him. A light trickle of blood rains from his mouth to the ground nearly a hundred feet below and sweat fills his eyes. His feet leave the ground as the dwarf attempts to hurl him over and within him his will to live ignites what little energy he has left. He plants a boot on the railing as his attacker hefts him onto his shoulders. With a grunt he plants his second boot and roaring, he kicks off from the banister, sending both back onto the balcony where the dwarf crashes through the railing, hands wildly scrambling for a grip.
Arrow lurches out with a hand, his saddlepack tumbling its contents like a waterfall along with his bow and those scant remaining arrows in his quiver, and grabs a hold of the balcony floor and swings violently on his arm. His assailant continues to flail as he tumbles down along the side of the building and crashes in a heap on the street below. Arrow’s rations, picks, arrows and bow rain to the ground around the dwarf, who rolls onto his back with a pained moan before going still.
The half-elf’s grip is slipping and he sighs as gravity drags him down. Above him is an endless, luminescent green ocean. He screams, heaving his other arm up and over the edge of the balcony before coming to a stop, panting. A few moments pass and he drags his upper body onto the ledge, stopping again. With a final groan he swings his legs up and rolls to safety, his muscles and heaving chest feeling likely to explode. He is alive and his injuries amount to heavy bruising and a few scratches, but he feels completely drained. He only survived through his sheer force of will and now his willpower has been completely exhausted. But he lives.
Arrow drags himself against a wall panting. resting for a while before he makes his way down to get his belongings and back to the party as stealthy as possible.
Arrow limps back into the stairwell and heads downstairs, each step torturous. The dwarf’s weapon is on the bottom landing and Arrow stops to painfully bend over and pick it up. Its thin, silvery metal blade is about 13 inches long and is remarkably lightweight and Arrow’s thoughts immediately go to Dur’dan’s description of mithril. The blade has a glyph etched into it near the hilt: A pair of crossed axes within a volcano. The handle is part the same piece of metal as the blade and has a wrap grip of supple black leather.
Pocketing the weapon, Arrow continues outside and finds his gear scattered around the body. He collects it all and gives the dwarf a once-over. Finding nothing else of interest he slowly makes his way back to the party. It’ll probably take him about half an hour to get back.
Khan will investigate the room in which he found the spiderweb. If he finds the creature who made the web, Khan will beast-speak to it;
Sister, are you and your prey the only living things left in these depths?
Khan quietly climbs through the window, stalking across the dusty chamber and towards the webbed corner. It is difficult to see in here so he proceeds cautiously. Arriving at the web he crouches to investigate what seems to be a wide humanoid skull caught near its base. There is a skittering sound behind the shaman and he turns, spear at the ready, as a pair of long, sharp-tipped legs curl around a doorway. The massive spider pulls itself into the room, its abdomen about the size of a house cat, each leg more than a foot and a half long. It drops to the ground and skitters across the floor, circling the human, always keeping several items of furniture between it and the intruder.
Karikhan speaks in a chittering hiss, baring all his teeth to the creature. The spider stops immediately, considering him. It responds to him with rapid clicking as it draws closer, climbing up the leg of a granite chair and then stepping over to the top of a table before drawing itself up to its full height before the human.
(Orders based on private communication between Mosier and myself.)
Khan continues speaking in the strange tongue and the spider suddenly goes rigid and unmoving. The shaman lifts his spear high over his head, his foreign chatter unrelenting and increasing in volume as he drives his weapon at the spider’s abdomen, plunging through its hairy and red chitinous shell. The spider’s legs all flail as it wriggles on the spear, a translucent green muck dripping from its wound and down the side of the table. The spider chitters and clicks for a few more moments before shuddering, its legs curling tight against its body as it dies.
Hob sits and waits. After a while, he becomes anxious. “Boy, they sure have been gone a while. Wonder if they’re ok?” he says.
(The only one more than thirty yards or so from the group, and the only one who’s been gone for more than a minute or two, is Arrow. :))
Hob sits and waits. After a while, he becomes anxious. “Boy, he sure has been gone a while. Wonder if he’s ok?” he says.
Kittix can’t take the tension anymore: “Tiny man is right.” He hops to his feet, tail swishing back and forth nervously. “Gone too long.”
Karikhan returns to the group holding the carcass of the spider he killed. He uses some of the leather straps he fashioned earlier to secure the spider’s body to his traveling gear, careful to avoid the fangs.
To Jikhal, Khan says, “She will serve gloriously.”
As soon as the party takes a long enough rest, Khan intends to begin the binding ritual.