"Solvi, Ilona, Ragnar, can any of you sense the nexus from here?"
With the help of Pebble, Gilian looks at the three tunnels for tracks or anything that could have gone through.
Kneeling, Gilian carefully inspects the soil of each tunnel, as Pebble hovers over her shoulder, pointing here and there.
After a moment, she nods to Pebble and stands up.
"Pebble has found some ripples in the stone of this tunnel. They do not seem natural. I propose we check that one first.", she says pointing towards the leftmost tunnel.
Solvistania can only shake her head helplessly, in response to Gilian's question. Apparently, her senses have been overwhelmed by the Nexus, and her preternatural sense is no longer working here.
She pauses, and pulls out the Librarian journal she recovered earlier, looking for any clues as to the nature of the Nexus.
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Solvistania can only shake her head helplessly, in response to Gilian's question. Apparently, her senses have been overwhelmed by the Nexus, and her preternatural sense is no longer working here.
She pauses, and pulls out the Librarian journal she recovered earlier, looking for any clues as to the nature of the Nexus.
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Solvistania puts away the notebook, and points a slender, pale finger down the first tunnel, "That is where our destination lies." She pauses and then continues, Ware yourselves, there is danger down here, and they know we are here."
Sorok walked toward the head of the party lost in thought about the wonders the structure held. The design so familiar and yet alien at the same time, the large veins of ore some of which even he could not identify, everything about this place left him wanting to explore it, to learn what secrets it held, left him surprised when he was dragged out of his train of thought by Solvistania who began to scream.
Immediately the rest of the group was there keeping her from rushing off into the darkness of the caverns. He had seen this before, surface dwellers feeling suffocated by the weight of the mountain. To him it was the opposite, the stone overhead was a shelter protecting the Dwarves from the vastness of the open sky. He recalled long ago the first time he had stepped out of the darkness of the tunnels and into the light of the surface. He had felt like the sky would swallow him whole or that the whipping winds would blow him away, he had hated the light of Father Sun, he had burned his eyes as though searing the darkness of Izradors taint.
He watched as the weight of the mountain constricted around her and drove her away from reality. He looked on silently as the others spoke soothing words and tried to call her back, Sorok doubted anything he said would even be heard by her much less help. He instead turned his attention outward toward the three intersecting points. Those screams would attract whatever moved in the darkness, and he could see it coming sooner than anyone else.
Kneeling, Gilian carefully inspects the soil of each tunnel, as Pebble hovers over her shoulder, pointing here and there.
After a moment, she nods to Pebble and stands up."Pebble has found some ripples in the stone of this tunnel. They do not seem natural. I propose we check that one first.", she says pointing towards the leftmost tunnel.
Once Solvistania had calmed, and Gilian pointed out the ripples in the stone Sorok looks from the tunnel and inspects the ground where she indicated.
Lyj finds himself to the side of the emotional scene, watching dispassionately. He makes a mental note of the connection between Solvistania and Chops with a cool detachment, but when her cries echo down the corridoor, his eyes snap open and he glares down the passages, highly alarmed and clearly agitated.
She pauses and then continues, Ware yourselves, there is danger down here, and they know we are here."
He mutters under his breath, "If they didn't before..." Struggling to keep the frustration off his face, he says aloud, "Indeed. Might I suggest that we continue with a bit of caution? No sense in giving away our exact location."
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1d20+10Once Solvistania had calmed, and Gilian pointed out the ripples in the stone Sorok...Kneeling, Gilian carefully inspects the soil of each tunnel, as Pebble hovers over her shoulder, pointing here and there.
After a moment, she nods to Pebble and stands up."Pebble has found some ripples in the stone of this tunnel. They do not seem natural. I propose we check that one first.", she says pointing towards the leftmost tunnel.
** spoiler omitted **** spoiler omitted **
Lyj finds himself to the side of the emotional scene, watching dispassionately. He makes a mental note of the connection between Solvistania and Chops with a cool detachment, but when her cries echo down the corridoor, his eyes snap open and he glares down the passages, highly alarmed and clearly agitated.
She pauses and then continues, Ware yourselves, there is danger down here, and they know we are here."He mutters under his breath, "If they didn't before..." Struggling to keep the frustration off his face, he says aloud, "Indeed. Might I suggest that we continue with a bit of caution? No sense in giving away our exact location."
"It might or might not be on its way to us. What if I hauled ass down a tunnel here, screaming my head off? Then the rest of you move further down as sneakily as you can and set up an ambush. Shit. Rags. Your loud as shit with them ghosts. What if you and me ran rabbit while the rest positioned up, then we get whatever out there to chase us, and we lead it back to the rest to unleash all hell?"
Ragnar nods. "Muni, with me." he says to the bird. He glances to the side for a moment, and nods.
"Eyvindr recommends we clash weapons as we go, and mock battle once in position to make it sounds as though we are already engaged."
Hugi flaps off the bear's-head pauldron on Ragnar's shoulder and lands on Ilona's. "Ragnar leaving will remove the main group's light sources. This will aid us in stealth of course, but may be a hazard. I can see in the dark, and Pebble has little need of light. We should be able to warn of any unseen dangers approaching."
Felina speaks telepathically, As can I...I can sense any minds as they approach us...puuurrr....puuurrrr...
Hugi flaps off the bear's-head pauldron on Ragnar's shoulder and lands on Ilona's. "Ragnar leaving will remove the main group's light sources. This will aid us in stealth of course, but may be a hazard. I can see in the dark, and Pebble has little need of light. We should be able to warn of any unseen dangers approaching."
"Seein's no' 'nough. Wha' ever made those ripples can move through stone. Other'n Pebble an' Felina we'd 'ave no warnin. No poin'n splittin up."
"I see the wisdom in that too. I was just thinking if it had a bead on our location, we might be able to buy time. Ragnar, I like that idea. Quick vote everyone? Sorok against, Ragnar and me for? Thoughts?"
"Through stone? Hmm. Ragnar suddeny seems dubious about the plan. "I would prefer that if these creatures ambush anyone that we be able to better encourage who they choose."
"They are unlikely to attack a larger group than a smaller. Perhaps if Ragnar remains with the main group to make it sound as if we are even more than we are while Chops and another move out as a sort of bait?"
"How 'bout Sorok? He's slower an' smaller'n the rest. Predators like that kinda thing. Surprise t' them when they find out he's more rock than meat, too."
"No!" Chops snaps. "The small group needs to be quick. I'm the fastest here, so it best be me alone, or with someone else who can keep up," the young dworg swallows hard. "The bird is right. If Ragnar stays with the group, you will all seem like a huge party. Me alone may seem like an easy target." He looks at Solvistania longingly. Three weeks and he feels like she is a part of his being.
"Chops, if you get yourself killed I will sooo kick your ass." Ilona says with a grin, her expression shifts to serious.
"Seriously though, be careful."
"To be honest, I don't like it one bit. There will only be the two of you, and if something cuts your escape route off, say by emerging from the stone we might not get to you in time. And who is to say there are is only one such creature. You might find yourselves surrounded in an instant."
Thinking back to all the people he had seen dead over the years, Duncan becomes concerned once again for this motley crew of people that had become more dear to him in a short while than Roland's band of rebels.
No amount of courage can make you stop being afraid. It is easy enough not to get frightened when personally in peril, but with those close to your heart... A different matter altogether.
Looking at Gilian, Duncan waits to see what the leader has to say about this.
Gilian thinks long and hard about the reckless dworg plan.
"Well, Chops, there is one big thing you just forgot in your plan. The creature can move through the rock, so there is no way we can ambush it. So even if you drag it away, it can still follow you and come back to us or just attack you when you are alone."
"I didn't realize it could move through the earth until Sorok mentioned it, and now that you mention it, my plan sucks against such a creature. Perhaps we should get into a battle formation and try to find a wide open space quickly to meet this threat."
Solvistania shudders again at the thought of being trapped in the embrace of the rock creatures. What a terrible way to die. She speaks up, her voice almost inaudible, "We may not have time to search for an ambush spot, as the King's minion will be returning for us soon. We must press on."
"So, we're stayin' together. Stealth's gone, we can' ambush i', 'nough talk le's move, I'll take poin'." With that the Dwarf hefts his shield in front of him and moves to the front of the group.
Unless otherwise stated Chops and Anang are up front as an advance group. The ravens are scouting in the air, felina is sniffing about near by looking for brain waves and Pebble is moving beneath the surface if possible looking for potential dangers and testing for thickness of floors and walls and whatnot. All are being stealthy (taking ten on stealth and perception is good enough for more passive exploration I think. It will cut down on time rolling) They will stay about staying 60' feet or so ahead of the group. They all have Darkvision (except felina, but she's a cat), so won't need light (also, moving in darkness grants a bonus to stealth!)
Sorok is next taking point with the main of the group, followed by Ilona, Gilian and Solvistania. Duncan and Ragnar are rear guard.
Ragnar's 3 Ghost Lights will sit around the group in a generally triangular formation, two in front one in back, making a sort of ven diagram with the party at the center. Each casts light in a 30' radius (out to 60' for dim light). That's a total of apx 604 square feet of light, so we're good there.
As they start walking, Duncan is doing his best to spot anything around them, and prepared to react in an instant if something decides to emerge from stone corridor and attack any member of the party. He is almost touched by the eerie lights that are floating in their menacing silence around the dark and threatening figure of Ragnar.
While many would be at least unsettled by this, Duncan never even flinches from them, using their light to observe the line of the group as they trod on, silently counting heads he can see before himself, and occasionally turning around to make sure there is nothing in the darkness that collapsed in their wake like a soundless wave.
Never having been this deep underground, Duncan understands lady Solvistania's reaction.
Her people come from the forests, and no matter how thick the trees get and no matter how dark their shadow, it can never compare to the darkness in the roots of the mountains. If you just let yourself think about it, you can almost feel the pressure of the miles of stone above your heads, compressing the darkness, making it thicker, almost suffocating... And if some sort of trauma connected to the underground is added to that, the terror is understandable.
For an instant, just those thoughts of the depth they are in threaten to overwhelm him, but he draws some warm comfort from the gem in the hilt of the bare blade in his hands, and he just shivers and shrugs it off, keeping his cool as his gaze once again dances around in the threatening gloom.Nothing will strike us from our backs as long as I can hold a sword.
Sorok first, followed by Anang.
Lyj stares out into the darkness, eyes on the stone. He knows, better than most, how a place like this can be more deadly than any one creature, self-styled King or no.
The talk earlier found him to the side again, trying not to take sides. Not yet the time to make waves among these people. Naive they might be, but Eredane does not suffer true fools to live long.
And now, at the head of a party headed into dwarf-made tunnels. His lip curls into a sneer at the dark ahead. Just like old times.
Taking a deep breath, he focuses himself, throwing his mind inward with meditations he learned as a child. Memories attempt to assault him, memories of chastisement and pain, but he thrusts them aside with practiced ease, focusing on an image he knows better than any other - flame. Not a candle flame, flickering and inconstant, but an inferno, burning hotter and higher every moment. Shuddering, Lyj can almost feel the fire within his chest, trying, as is flame's constant desire, to consume all within their reach. As always, he finds himself tempted to let it loose, to burn and rage as far as it wants, but once more, he tamps it down with an effort of will. In his mind, he forces it to the shape he needs. A lantern, flikering with an angry light behind his eyes.
All this takes only the briefest moment, and as he finishes, the darkness seems to recede before his eyes, although colors remain within the range of the torches.
I can find my way in the darkness, but the color is lost... He shakes his head. A poet would find something to say about that.
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Slowly and carefully you enter the tunnel in your long battle line. By now, you take your places without thinking, incorporating newcomers where your dead comrades used to stand. Once again you descend deep into the bowles of the Earth, not knowing what awaits in the darkness. But you are strengthened by your brothers and sisters in battle and once again you find the courage to spit into Shadow's eye.
The tunnel in front of you is narrow. The more burly need to bend their legs a bit in order to walk. The air is stale and thin and everything is cramped. It's very cold this far beneath the surface of the earth and those of you with smaller bodies are starting to feel it. You swiftly loose the track of time. It seems that you are walking for hours. A lot of time has passed, that is certain, but you find it difficult to remember just how much. The air smells funny. Sort of musty and you want to sneeze a lot. In the distance you can see a soft glow, clearly emanating from the clusters of fungus and moss growing on the tunnel walls. You find yourself looking at the glow, fighting not to sneeze, and wondering why are you in that tunnel exactly and who are those people around you...