Realizing that entering the chamber could be dangerous with the party scattered, Keil cautions "That one is most foolish. Varg, move back my friend. Let them come to us. Grezzor! Burn the fool if you can. Then regroup, we don't want to loose you again. " Keil readies his weapon should the zombies change their minds, but otherwise seems as though he is settling in to watch a show.
Brok runs across the room to join up with Keil.
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"I have little ability to effect these creatures." Grey said, moving back to where the orcish captives were.
He took off his mask, revealing himself to be one of them and addressed them in their native tongue.
"I am Grey, Praetor of Hel."
"We are here to establish this place as a refuge. No mere banditry. We mean to create a commune dedicated to the advancement of those of us forced to the gutters of the world by the advance of humanity and its allies."
"There is a place for you among us, if you wish to join."
Seeing as no one moved forward to assist, Grezzor shrugs and backs away from the room - "Very well then. You best leave also" - he adds to Vargrenz.
As Keil and Vargrenz retreat out of the room, a brief look of panic appears on the lone remaining bandit. With a look of desperation he weaves his way around the zombies to where his companion fell, managing to avoid their blows for a few seconds before one of them drops him with a solid fist to the chest.
Once the bandit has fallen, the zombies move to take position surrounding a sarcophagus which lies on the north wall.
The orc turns to face his unconscious companion before turning to face Praetor. The witchdoctor can tell his words did indeed have an effect here, though the look of opportunism on his face does not escape Praetor's notice.
He replies to Praetor in the brutish orc tongue, "Your words make sense. These humans be weak. You be strong. I and my brother, we shall serve you."
Grey nodded and moved to check the vitals of the fallen orcs. He ignored the human bandits. "Your names." he demanded of the orc who had spoken.
The orc rises to his feet slowly. "I be Gubdagog." He then points to his companion. "That be Hegug,"
Praetor can see the orc Hegug is in no danger of dying. He should regain consciousness by the morning.
"He will live." Grey said.
Turning to the others, Grey looked down the hall toward the zombies. "They seem to have no interest in us as long as we do not enter the chamber. That means they are unwittingly acting to guard our flank."
"I suggest we take this time to rest. Arlok is down, and much of our magical support is expended."
You bind the bandits up noting that both Tall Jack and one other bandit are still alive, though their wounds are quite severe. Searching the bodies produces in addition to the weapons found on the other bandits a total of 3 silver and 5 coppers. Tall Jack also has a suit of leather armor, a rapier, dagger, shortbow (with its string broken), and 40 arrows. Also secreted in a hidden pouch is a steel vial filled with potion labeled 'Heal'.
"Keep their leader alive. They have to have more loot somewhere."
Keil watches the zombies in the other chamber and scratches his chin, Odd.
As Grey converses with the orc, Keil walks over to Tall Jack and stands over the unconscious bandit. Quietly relishing the idea of watching the leader's fluids spill across the floor, Keil grabs Tall Jack by the hair, lifts the bandit's head into position and rests the blade of his sword across the man's throat. He is about to finish off the leader when Brok suggests keeping him alive. Keil pauses. With a look of disappointment clearly written across his blackened face, the fetchling drops Tall Jack's head to the cold stone floor and spits on the bandit's face. "As you wish."
Keil stands to view the chamber with the zombies and watches them crowd around the sarcophagus. Addressing Grey he adds, "Its not this room. Its the box. "
Grey too seems unthrilled at the idea of letting the bandits live. He nods to Keil. "I agree. Something to investigate tomorrow."
"We should retrieve the others as well." Keil is referring to the other two bandits tied up in the first room Sliding his sword into its scabbard beneath his cloak, the fetchling moves to do just that. Pausing at the southern entrance Keil adds, "Who will join me?" and looks to Brok and Varg for assistance in escorting the bandits.
"Better to kill them. They are human. They cannot be trusted." Grey said flatly.
"I would like to burn them to a crisp" - the wounded goblin snarls - "But information is too valuable to be wasted - we should see if they posses any that might be useful to us"
"If the humans want to live, they will tell us what we want to know. We should rest up and kill the not-deads tomorrow."
"If the humans don't tell us what we need to know we kill them, but cut off heads so that they cant see if they come back as not-deads."
It does not take very long for Brok and Keil to return lugging the two unconscious bandits back to the hidden lair. Seeing the place is guarded by two secret doors, you all feel confident this is a safe place to rest.
Grey hung his mask on a wall. It adhered without aid and the eye of the skull half of the mask lit up. Grey stared without speaking for a quarter-hour, then cut the back of his arm and let blood flow. It hardened almost instantly, adding another thin scar to the lattice that already covered his arm. He spoke a soft word of thanks and moved to Arlok's side.
Praetor is satisfied to see most of the two arrow wounds close and the blood stop flowing from them. Arlok's breathing grows more steady and regular, though he still remains unconscious.
"He was grievously wounded." Grey said. "I believe he will be awake in the morning, but we may need another day of rest to have him at fighting strength."
"Heh, its another day of play time." Keil looks menacingly at the human captives as he rubs his hands together.
"We need to know who they work for and why they're here, where the hidden tunnel to the dungeon is, and why the not-deads in the next room are standing around the stone box."
Keil smiles maliciously, rotates his head back for a few satisfying cracks then draws his dagger. The shadowy man half skips to where one of the bandits sits bound then leans in close enough for the human to catch a whiff of his foul breath. Lazily dragging the dagger across the man's cheek Keil speaks clearly, "You." Quickly grabbing the man by the throat, Keil drags him to the makeshift table and sits the bandit onto one of the rickety old stools. "It seems that one is no longer in need of your services." The fetchling's yellow eyes move to indicate the bound and bleeding Tall Jack on the other side of the room. "Fortunately, we're hiring." The shadowy man nonchalantly waves his dagger in the air while he seems to search for the right words, "Consider this an interview. First question. What's in the box?" Keil forces the man's head around towards the chamber of zombies currently crowded around the sarcophagus.
"We need to know who they work for and why they're here, where the hidden tunnel to the dungeon is, and why the not-deads in the next room are standing around the stone box."
Grezzor nods in appreciation of Brok's reasoning - "Perfectly put"
With the bandits all tied up and secured, watched over by your new orcish 'ally' you settle into your new lair to rest and recover from your injuries.
Raaz eyes the unconscious prisoners coldly. "What do you intend to do with these scum, torture them for your own amusement? I say slit their throats and be done with them." He then channels another wave of diabolical energy bringing Arlok and the unconscious orc awake. He spits in disgust. "That is the last time I may call on the glory of Baalzebul. We should rest here. This lair is ideal for our purposes."
After a couple of hours, one of the bandits starts to stir. As Keil gets to work on him and starts his interrogation his face pales and he quakes in terror. "I dunno, man! We never risked openin' it. Boss says it be too risky. 'Sides they were a perfect way ta guard our rear exit!"
Arlok awakes and sit up.
"Arlok went to sleep. Too many arrows. Arlok still in pain. Arlok rest."
"Good! Good!" The fetchling's black teeth flash a kind of twisted smile, "That is as we expected. Question two." Keil traces a small pattern across the bandit's face with his dagger. The pressure of his blade is firm, but not hard enough to break the skin."How much of this place have you explored?"
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"Humans are not stupid. It is a mistake to thing so." Grey said quietly to Malzii. "They are not like our peoples, who have the forethought to kill off the weak and the stupid among our numbers."
"Instead, humans push the stupid and the weak out to the fringes of their territory, and then use them like a strange kind of bait. Those ones look for trouble, and excel at finding it. Usually they are committing theft, or attempting to move into territory that is not theirs. Then, when the weak and the stupid humans are killed it gets the attention of the more capable."
"Stronger humans move in to investigate, and consider it some sort of righteous act to slay the things which slew their stupid kin."
"There is no people anywhere able to twist right and wrong to their own devices as humans. It is a collective madness which sets them against the world, and often against each other. In that way, only the most mad among them survive to shape their cultures."
"Our peoples kill the weak to better the rest and send the strongest out into the world. Humans kill the sane and send the weak. To them, strength and madness are synonymous."
"That is why humans are dangerous. The more powerful they are, the more insane."
"Good! Good!" The fetchling's black teeth flash a kind of twisted smile, "That is as we expected. Question two." Keil traces a small pattern across the bandit's face with his dagger. The pressure of his blade is firm, but not hard enough to break the skin."How much of this place have you explored?"
The bandit pales even further, clearly wishing he was anywhere else but here. "I...I...dunno...we haven't gone any place that we don't needs to in this accursed place! I know we ha' heard ta beware the hand! I dunno what that means, we ain't never seen such a symbol 'ere at all! Also There are one or two places under the Mouth of Doom where the air is bad; don’t sleep in those places if you want to wake up again." The man is clearly about to go into hysterics now. "Look all we does is stay 'ere ta go after th' merchants in Zelkor's Ferry. That's all...We gots no desire ta go anywhere nears Rappan Athuk!"
Yellow eyes narrow as the bandit spills what little knowledge of this place he has. Keil's foul breath carries on a sigh which slowly escapes the fetchling's lips. When the human finishes Keil frowns curiously letting the man know this is the first time he'd ever heard of a place called Rappan Athuk. Slowly repeating a few of the bandit's words Keil presses his questioning, "Go near,... Rappan Athuk? Why do you not go there? What sort of place is this?"
Yellow eyes narrow as the bandit spills what little knowledge of this place he has. Keil's foul breath carries on a sigh which slowly escapes the fetchling's lips. When the human finishes Keil frowns curiously letting the man know this is the first time he'd ever heard of a place called Rappan Athuk. Slowly repeating a few of the bandit's words Keil presses his questioning, "Go near,... Rappan Athuk? Why do you not go there? What sort of place is this?"
The bandit is nearly babbling incoherently now, "Only fools and madmen would dare to go there! We just wanna get rich quick, not end up in the maw of some beast lurkin' there! They don't call it th' Dungeon of Graves fer nuttin!"
Malzii blinks slowly as she processes Praetor Grey's words concerning the strength and insanity of humankind. "So...these humans here, weak." she says, indicating the bandits. "Listen talk, they just thieves like Praetor say. But stronger humans still come for us if we kill them, even though we do them favor by killing weak?" She shakes her head incredulously. "Malzii will file wisdom away; pass on to other kobolds when can. Never underestimate humans."
"Malzii is correct - they have spoken of what they know, which is not much indeed" - Grezzor sighs - "They are definitely irrelevant. We should remove their weaponry and armors, perhaps selling them later on for additional resources, and just let them go "
With an insane look in his eye, Keil bares his teeth and slashes his dagger across the man's throat.
As the prisoner's blood spills on the floor for everyone to see, Keil curses in a most foul tone. Showing clear displeasure with the human he advances towards Grezzor and those gathered around him. Speaking subdued, the fetchling scorns, "Our Lord was clear on this matter. Avoid. Contact." Speaking louder for the others to hear, Keil continues as though seeking permission, "I say we ask another about this Rappan Athuk. Perhaps we can pry a more suitable answer from his tongue." The shadowy man's cold eyes scan the room to survey the other human's reactions, settling on the bandit known as Tall Jack before turning his back to the prisoners and resumes speaking quietly to Malzii and the goblin. "We do as we see fit, yes. But these humans are walking dead. Mere tools at our disposal." Keil exhales to try and calm himself then, his hands on his hips and his head down whispers, "They admit having contact with Zelkor's merchants. Do not risk setting them loose...where's the first place you think they will go to resupply? What's more, our presence is valuable information to the right people. With Tall Jack beaten, their loyalties lay with no one save a purse of golden coins. "
Avoid any contact with anyone from Zelkor’s Ferry. (Jun 25, 2015, 03:12 pm)
"I would not recommend this. They know we are here. They cannot be trusted. Should we leave them to guard the entrance there would be nothing to stop them from simply leaving, or from making contact with stronger humans to report our presence." Grey said with a shake of his head. "Better to risk others coming behind us than to ensure it by letting these ones go."
"Ask your questions, kill them and be done with it."
"Arlok hungry. I eat humans while we rest."
Arlok goes over to the one that Keil just killed. Puts his foot on his chest and rips one of the arms off.