Douena picks up her stone and tosses it into the water near the bridge. If there are more oozes, it'll just shine through their clear forms, but if there are undead of some sort under the water, she hopes to reveal the shadows of their bodies before she and Sasha move into the next chamber.
Douena's stone is dampened only a little by the water. It creates a kind of shimmering light throughout the chamber. Now that Douena is closer to the corner, she can see much further into the chamber than Sasha can. At the far side, there appear to be a few chambers branching off, one to the south, one to the southeast, and one to the northeast.
There's no sign of anything in the water, which remains still and unmoving apart from a few ripples created by the stone dropping into it. The only shadows visible are Douena's and Sasha's, and the shadow of the bridge on top of the water.
Douena shakes her head across the water at Sasha. "Lots of different ways to go," she murmurs. "But the reflections out of the water are pretty." Turning and waving the rest of the group forward, she continues around the corner into the next chamber, admiring the shimmering ripples reflected onto the ceiling.
Coming fully around the corner, Doeuna sees a small alcove just south of the bridge. In it is the remains of an old camp with an old rusted mining cart filled with rusted mining equipment and the desiccated remains of a mule.
Sasha continues along the other side towards the north end of the bridge, while the remainder of the party moves up towards the corner.
Suddenly, there is a splash as three creatures rise out of the water form hiding places under the bridge. They look like people, but with brittle, dry skin (despite having just been in the water), stretched hideously over skeletal frames. They lash out at Douena and Sasha.
Order: Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou, Makoa, Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Creatures, Mahjik.
The creature on the north side swipes at Sasha while the one on the south swipes at Douena. The one in the middle moves out from under to the bridge towards Douena .
#1 kicks Sasha across the legs, making her stumble back slightly with a yell. #3 smacks Douena in the side of the head. Along with the pain of contact, Douena suddenly feels a terrible thirst and her skin where she was hit dries and becomes brittle. The creature's fist retracts covered not in blood, but in water drawn from her.
Hearing the yell, Pezock moves eagerly forward. However, he moves too quickly along the thin bit of land, and the presence of Mahjik and Urza put him off balance. He comes close to falling over, but manages to steady himself.
Sasha draws her weapons and then stabs at the creature in front of her, her rapier piercing its shoulder.
Ishirou takes more care than Pezock and moves up to the edge of the corner, drawing his katana.
Next Up: Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Creatures, Mahjik, Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou.
"What's happening? There's a fight! Get to it!"
"Excuse me, Ishirou." Makoa says as he tries to get past without knocking his ally into the water. He doesn't get far though.
He tosses a dart at the creature in front of Douena, trying to at least distract it.
Douena cries out in pain, which only makes the dry patch of skin on the side of her face pull and crack. "They're salt wights," she calls out, trying not to move her mouth too much. "They'll pull all the water out of you if they can. You live in a pool!" she tells the menacing creatures angrily. "There's more water under that bridge than there is in me!" Presenting her butterfly with an anxious glance at the rock ceiling above her, she pleads, "Desna, help!" before withdrawing further into the alcove.
Urza readies to move once he can do so safely.
Lorenz begins to push forward as he hears the shouts of alarm from ahead.
"I'm coming!"
1d20+3
Urza readies to move once he can do so safely.
Makoa tries to move forward quickly, but slipperiness and Ishirou in his way hold him back.
Douena calls out to Desna, and the Song of the Spheres can be distantly heard, but it is weak. The wights are only mildly affected by it, and Sasha and Douena only heal a tiny amount.
Urza waits, and Lorenz edges his way forward as much as he can. With too many people in his way, Shokambe also delays.
Jask edges forward carefully, keeping a grip on the wall. He squeezes past the others in front and makes it just round the tip of the corner .
Wight #2 shambles forward towards Douena , blocking #3's access to the alcove. #3, instead, turns and wades through the water toward Sasha .
All their blows go wide.
Next Up: Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou, Makoa, Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Wights.
With the new information, Urza will do a full move to V39
With the new information, Urza will do a full move to V39
Mahjik decides to stay where he is, but takes and drinks a potion of mage armor.
Mahjik pulls out and consumes the contents of a potion vial.
Pezock again attempts to spring forward. This time, he keeps his footing steady and slips nimbly past everyone between him and the action. He stops near Sasha, one foot in the water, one foot out, and glares at the wight in front of him .
As Pezock arrives, Sasha stabs with her rapier, the blade sinking into wight #1's side. She quickly follows this up with her kukri, but only gets a small nick on the wight's arm.
Ishirou continues his approach, edging around the corner and then attacking #2 .
He slashes the wight across the back, but the blade doesn't go very deep.
Next Up: Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Wights, Mahjik, Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou.
Taking a bit more time to get around the corner, Makoa moves behind Pezock and tosses a dart over the tengu's shoulder.
Urza looses a jet of flame at #1.
Scorching Ray: RTouch, fire into melee
to hit damage
"Desna!" Douena snaps, shaking her butterfly vigorously. "I'm talking to you! Down here! It's Douena Trestleben!" She presents her holy symbol once more.
Growing increasingly more frantic to get within range to help Sasha, Lorenz hurries past Mahjik and Shokambe, stepping into the water in the process.
Makoa edges around the corner and tosses a dart. The dart flies over Pezock's shoulder and over the shoulder of the wight as well, landing on the bridge behind the wight.
Douena calls out to Desna and once more the song is dim and distant. However, it does damage the wights ever so slightly and heals the injured just as slightly.
At that moment, Urza lets loose a jet of flame over Sasha's shoulder. She flinches slightly as it passes close to her. The flame licks across wight #1's face, burning its dried flesh and setting its straggly hair aflame. The wight shudders as its entire head then bursts into flames. The flames are then snuffed out as it topples over into the water.
Lorenz hurries to catch up to the battle while Shokambe continues carefully forward, positioning himself between Urza and Sasha .
Jask raises his own holy symbol up and calls out to Nethys. A warm, tingly feeling spreads across the chamber, healing the injured and sending slight spasms through wight #3. Unfortunately, Jask is not far enough round the corner to be able to affect Douena and wight #2. Sasha's wounds are completely closed over now.
The wights continue their attacks. #2 hits Douena on top of the head, but this time it doesn't succeed in drawing water from her. #3 punches at Pezock, but the tengu steps aside of the blow.
Next Up: Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou, Makoa, Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Wights.
Mahjik squishes and squeezes passed his companions. His body has an uncanny knack to bend across, through, over and under obstacles as he moves along.
Mahjik manoeuvres his way through the crowd and past Sasha. As he does so the wight swipes at him and almost gets him. Only the magical field from the mage armour effect protects him.
Pezock attempts to leap between the two wights, but the water trips him up a bit. #2 takes a swipe at him, but he is still able to avoid being hurt. He attacks #3.
Although he places a solid blow across the wight's neck, the wight moves at just the last moment, lessening the severity of the attack.
Sasha attacks the same wight, but it avoids both attempts.
Ishirou swings at the wight in front of Douena. His katana cuts deep into the creature's neck, almost severing the head. Amazingly, the wight remains standing.
Next Up: Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Wights, Mahjik, Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou.
Makoa steps into the water and bites at the wight on the bridge.
"Watchout Douena! We're getting to you!"
Douena sees the approaching legs of her friends behind the salt wight with a sense of relief. "I think I'm claustrophobic!" she shouts to them. "Or Desna is! Either way, I don't think we should go into any more caves!" She remembers the starknife Desna hid for her back on the Shiv, draws it, and stabs at the wight.
Makoa steps into the water and bites at the wight on the bridge.
Makoa steps up and bites at #3, but it steps aside from his attack. Meanwhile, Douena pulls out her starknife and stabs it right into #2's stomach. The wight, already badly damaged from Ishirou's attack wobbles slightly then falls over with a light splash.
Next Up: Lorenz, Shokambe, Jask, Wight, Mahjik, Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou, Makoa, Douena.
"Pezock!" she squeals excitedly as the tengu is revealed by the toppling salt wight. "Did you see that!? I slayed it! Ow," she moans, as her smile pulls at her dry skin, "my face hurts."
Urza projects another jet of flame.
Scorching Ray: RTouch, fire into melee
to hit damage
Lorenz steps out of the water to get a better angle. At last in position to aid in the fight, Lorenz lifts his bow, squints in an effort to get a better fix on the undead beast and looses.
"Pezock!" she squeals excitedly as the tengu is revealed by the toppling salt wight. "Did you see that!? I slayed it! Ow," she moans, as her smile pulls at her dry skin, "my face hurts."
"Excllent!" Pezock responds. "Now let's kill this other one!"
Urza fires off a ray of fire, but his aim is off and the beam goes much too high.
Lorenz shifts over and fires an arrow. It flies over the wight's shoulder, coming close, but not close enough.
Shokambe waits for now.
Jask moves forward a little and calls out to Nethys once more.
This time, the warm tingling energy causes large cracks and tears to appear in the wight's skin. Unfortunately, the effect still can't reach Douena in the alcove.
The wight looks about, realizing that it is being surrounded. With a snarl, it lunges forward at Makoa, knocking his head backwards. It causes only minor damage, but Makoa feels his skin drying as water is sucked out of him.
Next Up: Pezock, Sasha, Ishirou, Makoa, Douena, Urza, Lorenz, Shokambe (subject to delayed action), Jask, Wight.
Mahjik's first attack thrusts his fist wide of the wight - but he follows up with a devastating knee to the midsection that hops the wight a little with the impact. "I got him distracted! Finish him Pezock!"
As the wight reels from Mahjik's attack, Pezock quickly swings, his sword arcing down and cutting straight through the wight's back from one side to the other. The wight falls in two pieces into the water.
"Sasha!" Douena calls, stepping over the the fallen wight. "Are you all right?" Now that she's no longer fighting for her life, her sympathy for the people the undead once were is reawakened. "Poor things," she says, glancing down at the dessicated husks. "They were probably some of the miners, or some unfortunate people who stumbled in here afterwards. Like the log book said, it would have been very quick. They're desperately thirsty so they draw the water out of living creatures' bodies, but it doesn't satisfy their thirst and when a person gets all dried out ... they join them, right away." She touches the dry skin on the side of her face and retrieves her waterskin for a drink. "Jask," she says, "I can't see my own face. Will it get better?"
Jask comes over to Douena and examines her face. "It doesn't look serious," he says. "It should clear up in a day or so. Just drink lots of water."
Disappointed at his lack of usefulness, Lorenz hurries forward, readying an arrow just in case.
"Since the water is so shallow, maybe some of us should walk in the water rather than being single-file like we have been. I'm of no use if someone is as far ahead as the both of you were," he says, looking at Sasha and Douena.
"Are you okay?" He asks Sasha. "I'm sorry I wasn't of more help. What are these things, anyway?"
"I'm good," Sasha says, smiling at Lorenz. "I got a couple light bruises but Douena and Jask cleared those up. You make a good point about people in the back, but wading through the water could be slow and who knows what might be hiding in it, especially in areas like this where it widens out?"
"Wise man would ponder the mistakes of gods." Mahjik treads along at the front now; trusting in the magical deflection. "What do we suppose caused this entire mess? Anybody have a clue what dark secret should not have been unearthed?"
"What are these things, anyway?"
"They're salt wights," Douena repeats impatiently. "I said that. They're made when a person dies from getting all dried out and their husk keeps walking the world trying to satisfy its unquenchable thirst." She punctuates the explanation by taking another drink from her waterskin. "They reproduce really quickly; it's not like ghoul fever where you have a couple of days to get treated. You can go from fighting one to being one in a matter of seconds." She shudders at her own proximity to that fate. "So it would make sense that whatever happened in the mine was so fast and catastrophic instead of drawn out like an epidemic. But what the blue orb was that started the whole thing, I don't know. Whatever it is, if it's still down here, we have to destroy it." She squeezes past Jask out of the alcove and onto the end of the bridge, lights up another stone as the one in the water beneath her goes out, and tosses it ahead into the center of the pool, both to light up more of the cavern ahead and judge the depth of the water.
Lorenz smiles with relief that Sasha is okay.
"If there's enough space, maybe some of us can travel on each side of the water? It might not be safe to walk in the middle of the water but I do think we might want to spread out if we can."
Shouting after Douena as she scurries away, "I couldn't hear you say what they were when I was waaaay back there! Anyway, they sound awful. We should definitely destroy this strange orb, if it's related."
Douena's new light-stone splashes into the water in the middle of the chamber and sinks quickly to the bottom, again casting shimmering light throughout the chamber. The water appears to be only a little bit deeper where the stone fell--between three and four feet.
The light also reveals a little more of the way ahead. To the south, there's another bridge crossing the passage leading that way. The passage to the northeast curves to the north.
"Well, underground or not, at least we know Douena knows how to handle a star. I'll stick to wading through the water. I'm already wet, and probably fated to keep getting soaked."
Douena conjures 2 gallons of water over Makoa's head with a grin. "What?" she asks innocently. "It's medicinal."
"Oh? Then let me help you." Makoa says before he chants a quick spell and conjures 2 gallons of water above Douena's head. "Feel better?"
"I wasn't already wet," she protests, albeit laughingly. "Ow, laughing makes my face hurt," she complains. "And you almost drowned Sir Ralph," she points out, as the chameleon emerges crossly from her dripping pocket. She considers the slain wights for a moment. "Athyra said to return them to the earth, but they've been so thirsty for so long, it seems kinder to bury them at sea. Or at pond, at any rate. They'll still be underground," she points out, glancing up at the rock above her head. "Push them back under the water, and I'll say a funeral for them. Oh, and we need to decide which way to go: the narrow way or the wider way."
"Very well," Mahjik agrees, "I'll see if I can find some rocks to weigh them down as well."