Brynn take a step back, just in case.
"Heh, good idea Vors. After we get in there, you should get to pull the lever, Beth." Grilnik leads the way to the cell where they found the haunt, looking in the other cells on the way.
You look into the other cells, nothing seems to have changed.
But as you approach the center cell, a similar sight appears. A pale face appears at the doors window.
"Oh, gods, kind faces! Aroden bless you, noble souls! I an't seen the jailers in ages, I think they forgot about us! We ain't eaten in days and the water's all but gone - my cusins're both sick. I swear we'd give back the boar if we could, but we ate it, starvin' as we was. We didn't even know it was the baron's lands, didn't know we was poachin'! I beg you, we're all gonna die in here! Kindness, noble souls, we've suffered aweful! good Baron Sarvo wills it!"
Grilnik hesitates a moment before replying.
Well, I've heard that undead don't like cure spells...
"Sure, Good Baron Sarvo wills it. Cure Light Wounds."
Grilnik reaches through the window to touch the pale face.
You look into the other cells, nothing seems to have changed.
But as you approach the center cell, a similar sight appears. A pale face appears at the doors window.
"Oh, gods, kind faces! Aroden bless you, noble souls! I an't seen the jailers in ages, I think they forgot about us! We ain't eaten in days and the water's all but gone - my cusins're both sick. I swear we'd give back the boar if we could, but we ate it, starvin' as we was. We didn't even know it was the baron's lands, didn't know we was poachin'! I beg you, we're all gonna die in here! Kindness, noble souls, we've suffered aweful! good Baron Sarvo wills it!"
"Aw Cayden! Not again!" The half-orc flings his arms over his face and chest in a vain and silly attempt to ward off the spirit.
Back at the entrance Bethany smiles when told they will pull the lever. Clearly not having the proper trepidation.
------
Moving with the others her earlier confidence a bit shaken by the appearance of the ghost, she grips her hammer.
"Leave us be. We may find the way to put you to rest in here."
As Grilnik reaches out to push some positive energy into this creature, for a second he makes contact. Releasing all the energy into this creature, but it is not quite enough. The ghost's figure starts to waver, but it reaches out "SO Hungry!!!!"
All of you within 5 feet of this (I assume Grilnik, but others might as well, leave it up to you) suddenly have the flash that they have been stuck in these cells for ever and are about to starve to death.
Its a quick flash, but there is a lingering hunger that strikes at you.
After which the hall seems quiet and still again.
"Aaaaah! Godsmammit! The f#<king ghost did it again!" Vors cursed. "I fricking hate the undead!"
"Ugh" Grilnik kneels, holding his stomach. He calms his stomach with the gifts Kurgess has bestowed upon him and gets back up.
"Let's try to make sure no one has to go through that anymore..."
He turns to Beth, extending his arm towards the cell "After you."
Damned ghosts.
"Are you guys alright?" Brynn asks from the back of the line.
"There has to be some better way then letting them starve you every time Grilnik." she hands him another portion or rations "Have a snack."
As the hall goes quiet you can see down the hall, at the extent of the light generated by Verik's lanterns, the contraption with the lever. Just waiting to be pulled.
"I'm fine, everything is fine. Beth, please pull the lever. I'm going to move these skeletons outside, down the hall."
Grilnik pulls a waterproof sack out of his backpack and starts putting ancient bones into it.
Bethany smiles and heads to the end of the hall.
"Let me know when you guys are ready. Honestly I got a little obsessed when I was laying in the bed."
Once everyone is ready she takes a deep breath and pulls the level with the intention of quickly grabbing her hammer when done.
The chain mechanism jumps to life. The machine pulls down and the chain gets dragged out from the ceiling and into a spool next to the machine.
The walls of the dungeon seem to vibrate with the sound. To the west you can hear the chains in the walls clicking and rubbing against stone.
The sound seems to reverberate. You are pretty sure anyone else that might be down here, heard that.
Grilnik gathers up the bones. They are old, and many of then nearly fall apart into dust.
Verik looks to the cleric. If you use your channel you can keep the spirit at bay, but only for a day...
When the contraption begins moving Verik shivers. Uuhh... I have a bad feeling about this...
As the chains and contraption begin to grind and move, Brynn looks around nervously, watching for any sign that the noise has attracted enemies or further danger.
If nothing is obstructing her her path Bethany moves back to the south to join Grilnik and waits for the others.
Grilnik manages to mostly ignore the sounds of chains dragging against stone, hesitating only a moment as he moves bones out of the haunted room.
Stupid undead, whether burying these bones works or not, we won't be seeing you in that stupid room again...
Once he carefully empties his sack of bones down the hall a ways, he turns to the others while putting his empty sack back into his backpack.
"Well, only one way to explore now, eh?"
"Lead the way, Grilnik." Brynn replies, though she keeps her eyes on her surroundings instead of on her comrades.
Clearly she's worried we'll attract something dangerous.
The halls go quiet once the sounds settle down.
You guys move to the torture room, without difficulty. The secret door is still there, unchained.
"Alright everyone, get ready..." Grilnik opens the secret passage.
As the door creaks open, countless years of being stuck has sealed this quite well.
Inside the door is a dark corridor. It seems to take a sharp left turn from the entrance. As you follow the tunnel down it seems to extend farther taking another turn.
The floor drops away here as the corridor turns east, though a seven-inch-wide ledge continues along the south wall. The walls are very smooth, offering few handholds. the remainder of the passageway is filled with a five-foot-deep trough filled with foul-smelling, thick green sludge.
Grilnik looks at the sludge barring their path "anyone wanna bet whether the lever is related to this?"
Brynn hangs back and doesn't reply, worried saying anything might cause someone to realize they should probably send her across the narrow ledge first...
Looking to the unsure and fearful looks from his companions, Vors grumbles, "Fine. I'll go first."
The half-orc, despite his mass, gets across the ledge safely, doing a little bow upon completion.
Vors make it down the side of the tunnel's small ledge, as he reaches the end it turns around a corner. The ledge continues, but farther down the there are chains coming down from the ceiling. They come down and attack themselves to a portion of the ledge that continues to a more secure section of the hall. It looks like these chains pulled up a portion of the path from the green sludge, making it easier to cross. Vors is able to get accross without any difficulty.
The other people in the party can not see him, as he turned the corner, but he is safe around the corner on another section of floor. In front of him is another door.
"Looks like there's another door around the corner." Vors yells. The half-orc comes back to the edge to encourage the others to come across.
"Alright, I suppose I'm least likely to get over there unscathed, I'll go next. Right after I try cleaning the sludge."
Grilnik casts Purify Food and Drink
Grilnik then attempts to cross along the ledge.
"Right, avoid the.. well that stuff."
Using her hammer for balance Bethany trys to shuffle sideways past the pit of yuck.
Brynn smiles at Vors as he bows. "Well done, Vors." she cheers.
She waits for the others to cross (including Verik) and then makes her way over last. She keeps her bow in hand, but replaces the arrow in her quiver before crossing.
The spell seems to have no effect on this thick green substance.
Grilnik steps out onto the ledge and makes it the first half, as he makes it to the second portion he is able to run accross without issue, making it over to where Vors is.
As he turns around he can see Bethany make it part of the way, but her hammer seems to snag on something and she trips and falls into the sludge. She can feel it burning her skin, eating away at her clothes.
Brynn, you notice Bethany fall into the sludge as you start making your own way through.
Leave her.
Despite her inner desires, Brynn reaches out a hand to Bethany. "Come on, dear. Up we go." she says, pulling Bethany up out of the sludge and back onto the ledge. She lets out a hiss of pain as the sludge residue on Bethany stings her own hand.
"You alright?"
"Ahhh.. nasty stuff that is but it didn't get me too badly. Thank you for the hand. Not sure what happened there, I am normally pretty nimble."
What is happening to me. I didn't think I would be a liability to the others.
Verik looks at the others and hesitates, not sure he would make it across... Esspecialy when Bethany falls in. Oh... This is not my best area...
He gently moves across, very slowly... It looks Corrosive... Verik says.
Without too much difficulty you all make it across.
In front of you a door. It does not look locked.
You see down another long corridor. At the end of the hall is an iron door with a barred window. Inside the room is a small 10 foot square room with a windowless iron door on the opposite wall.
The windowed door in front of you seems to have a keyhole. The edges of which have rusted a bit.
When Brynn and Bethany finish crossing, Brynn casts a spell. Then she waves it at herself, cleaning her hands, clothes and skin. She aims the spell at Bethany, magically cleaning her as well.
"There. Good as new," she says with a smile.
---
Brynn takes a step back when someone moves to open the door, wary of traps and undead. She keeps her bow in hand and ready.
Brynn doesn't move down the hall until the others go--and it seems safe.
"Well thank you for that Brynn. Makes me wish my dad had taught me spells instead of using a hammer."
- - -
Bethany, knowing she is not one with a keen eye, waits while the others check the door.
Probably not going to open since we don't have a key anyway.
Once everyone thinks its safe-ish Bethany stands near the door and either tries opens it or is one of the first few threw the door depending on how the group is moving.
Grilnik stands before the iron door admiring it a few moments before he finds the rusty old key from earlier in his belt pouch. Grilnik takes a deep breath and attempts to open the door with the rusty key.
The key from earlier fits right in. There is a bit of resistance as some rust residue has be broken through, but the key is definitely designed for this door.
Inside this room is very bare. Solid metal on all sides, except the barred windows in the door you just opened.
Grilnik opens the door wide and then steps into the metal room
Huh." Vors looks in. "Why would they lock an empty room?"
As soon as Grilnik takes a step into the room there is a booming voice, seemly coming from the everywhere in the room, "Please close the door before proceeding with the passphrase"
Not one to take her time Bethany gives the room a once over finding nothing of interest.
"Welllll that was not exciting after all the fuss."
"Great, first the 'good baron Sarvo' has some pet ghosts, and then a torture chamber (complete with torture imp), and now a passphrase." Grilnik sighs "Any guesses before we close the door?"
Brynn eyes the talking room warily. slowly, she enters behind the others.
Hanging by the door Bethany regrets not keeping the little flying devil creature.
"Unless the password is password I have no idea."
She looks around.
"I don't see another door to try and break so where would we proceeded to? Hey voice where are we trying to go?"
Let me in there and I'll see if there is someway I can bypass it", stated Vors. "And keep the door open until I say so."
Every 5 feet, Vors hammers one piton into the wall at ankle height, placing one on either side of the door.
Since the room is not an immediate threat, Vors takes a 20 on his Perception roll, for a total of 24, to look for any trap mechanisms inj the door. If he finds it, this is his Disable Device roll.
Grilnik's step into the room seemed to start something. About 12 second after the message was heard the floor starts to fall, the entire floor flaps open revealing a small pit.
Vors does not quite have enough time to fully analyze the door/trap before it drops. Vors tries to jump for the piton he hammered in before the floor drops out from under him.