"Well don't look at me." Celest says defensively.
"No celest, this gal has been down a while. It wasn't from your lashing about."
"That manor sounds great though. A real cotton bed with real feather pillows, warm water bath with lilac oils---ahhhhhhh! Now does't that sound inviting?"
Lilly looks at Celeste and Flynn both sternly. "The comfortable bed and bath will still be there an hour from now. Let us continue on. No sense in having to return later."
"Not to mention we'd need to get more water breathing potions!"
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Um, I can swim."
Retracing your steps, you take the SW branch. This is a dry tunnel, which leads some distance before coming to a crossroads.
A collection of crates, boxes, rubble, and scavenged metal lies heaped in the northwest section of this damp cave.
Several strange chalk drawings of twisted, spiny plants, a strange three-legged creature, and emaciated four-armed humanoids mark the walls.
You realize that they’re some unknown, and perhaps undiscovered, creature.
You discover here several ruined bits of technological devices—nothing recognizable or even all that useful can be found here, but the presence of strange tangles of wires and unusually crafted fragments
should confirm the hope that more ancient technology can be found deeper in the caves.
A character who succeeds while searching the rubble discovers
a scattering of 7 silverdisks but nothing else of value.
Two tunnels lead out from here, one to the southwest and one to the southeast.
"Ooo, maybe there's a bed in there!"
Celest tears through the pile inspecting each broken bit of tech she unearths before tossing it aside completely unaware of its previous function. "Oh hey, there's a... thingie." she says producing a irrecoverably broken +1 sonic screwdriver "Huh, who looks at a screwdriver and the says 'oh, hey that could be more sonic?'" Toss.
"Yeah, I once knew a guy who thought he had three legs... And a guy I thought had four arms."
"Hey Elise, have you got a coin?"
Peering at all the junked technological stuff, Lilly frowns. She frowns at the drawings too. She likes to frown, for some reason. It started when she was small, she supposed. "I say southeast, if we're resorting to coin-flipping."
"This is exciting! The stuff here looks like junk, but maybe there's something better inside!"
Elise finds a random piece of metal to flip. "Heads we go southwest, tails we go southeast." "Southeast it is!"
"Well, nothing here appears dangerous at least."[/dice]
[b]"Oh yeah buddy, look at these wires and ceramic stuff. There has gotta be tech stuff in this place. This stuff is junk, but it is right at the entrance. We need to get father in and make pay dirt."
To Celest he responds.
"Heh heh, my nickname at boot camp was tripod."
About which way to go.
"When given a preference and there is no obvious way to go, I always go left."
"Well that's certainly sinister." Celest says as she nabs the odd bit or two for later inspection.
Lilly rolls her eyes at Flynn's supposed nickname, leading the party down the southeastern corridor, sword and shield at the ready.
"Yeap it's been called that before, heh heh. I'm ready to move on to the good stuff."
Gathering your people together, you take the Southeast tunnel. You travel some 70-80 feet when it opens out again.
The ceiling of this vast chamber rises nearly thirty feet overhead.
A five-foot-wide ledge runs along the western wall, sloping down to the cave floor ten feet below.
Four ramshackle huts made of what appear to be strips of metal, hides, and some sort of fibrous plant matter sit in the cave, while to the south yawns a dark pit.
Before you have a chance to explore more, you see a hairless grey skinned humanoid appear as if by magic in front of you. It carries a crossbow, covering you. You then see two more appear flanking each side of you, and a couple more blocking your exit behind you.
It is hard to see them due to their skin shifting to match their surroundings. Their faces seem featureless, and they could be male, female or other.
It pointed to you.
"You." It said in a dead flat voice. "Half of you will
come with me to speak to our chieftain."
"And the other half?" Lilly asks warily.
A chieftain, that could be useful. "Maybe I should go. I have a way with... things."
"Let me think---ummmmmm---hell no. I mean granted you are hot and all and have a great set of . . . Uh, daggers, but you aren't really group spokesman material and I don't want to end up in an underground cook pot or something. Let's send Lilly and the Doc."
"Or how about this? Why don't we all just go see the chief. What do you say fellas? Let's all be friends here huh!? We aren't here to cause your little village here any trouble guys."
"Come now, can't we all go to visit your chieftain? As Flynn says, we are friends, and we all want the privilege of meeting the great leader of your people .."
As she says this, Elise begins to utter some strange incantations, hoping to make the fellow more cooperative... assuming its mind was susceptible to such things.
"Let's send Lilly...."
"So take us to your leader already."
Lilly shrugs. "I'm willing to go, if everyone thinks that's a good idea. I'd like to hear from our friends here, first."
"Well don't everyone talk at once."
"And the other half?" Lilly asks warily.
"They stay here." The leader said coldly.
"Or how about this? Why don't we all just go see the chief. What do you say fellas? Let's all be friends here huh!? We aren't here to cause your little village here any trouble guys."
"Come now, can't we all go to visit your chieftain? As Flynn says, we are friends, and we all want the privilege of meeting the great leader of your people .."
"No." She said coldly.
"Alright." Lilly frowns, but the group doesn't seem to have much choice in the matter. She looks to Flynn, then Celeste, then Doctor Rhaym, then Elise. "How about Elise, Celeste, and I go? Or does someone else have a preference?" If no one does, or they do not voice it, she nods to the creature to continue.
"Yeah, just take Elise."
"Okay, let's see what this is about."
The leader takes Elise, Celeste and Lilly along with a couple of the guards. The rest of the party waits here.
She takes you north and east around the perimeter of the cavern, then ducks into a side tunnel. It quickly opens up into a crowded cave.
This cramped cave is filled with metal junk covering almost every inch of ground. The precarious pile rises up in a heap-like hut to the northwest.
A cowled Skulk sits crosslegged here. It raised its hand.
"Peace human. I wish to make a... temporary alliance. One that benefits us both."
"Psst, I got this girls." She steps forward and looks at the assembly. "Alright, let's hear it chief."
Resisting the urge to smack her forehead, the warpriestess holds her tongue, thinking that a show of solidarity would be the companions' best bet in this situation.
The cowled Skulk leader looked at Celest blankly.
"Yesss. I offer you, new strangers, a proposition.
"I will give you free passage through our home caves here; and, in addition, there is a strange device we have recovered from the ancient wreckage. It is useless for us, but I think it will be of use to you.
In return, you are to agree to two things.
You are to leave us strictly alone and you are to clear out the annoying nest of jinkin gremlins to the north."
It cocked its head, awaiting your answer.
"Uh, jinkin gremlins?" She wracks her brain for anything she can remember about jinkin gremlins.
She mutters those things that she things she knows about them: "Don't get them wet... Don't feed them after midnight... and don't expose them to sunlight? I think.... Maybe. Ah, whatever."
Satisfied that jerkin goblins should be a pushover compared to crappy slime and frog people she turns to the skulk chief and says: "No sweat! What can you tell us about jerky gobblers?"
Things not turning out nearly as bad as she had thought, Lilly pays attention closely to the skulk as they await more information on the gremlins.
"You know them not?" It said, looking puzzled.
The Skulk leader thought for a moment.
"They are tiny. Two feet tall at most. They have batwinged ears, glowing red eyes, and malevolent beyond their size.
"They like to lead larger folk into traps and ambushes, they will attack from the shadows and retreat into cracks no one bigger can follow.
"They like to infiltrate camps and either steal or sabotage equipment; even magic items they cannot use can be cursed or reversed.
"They can carry grudges for weeks, following their targets until they see a weakness.
"Weapons besides cold iron do little against them."
Elise wasn't entirely sure she liked where this was going, but the promise of alien technology proved irresistable. "Cold iron, you say? Do you happen to have any such weapons around? If you give us such tools, I think your request shouldn't be a problem."
The skulk Leader pulled out a normal looking cold iron dagger, and a rusty looking cold iron shortspear.
"This is what we have."
The rake looked about at his would be captors. In return they sat wordless and looked on with enormous eyes.
"So . . . What do you guys do for fun around here? You guys get out much?"
Lilly looks skeptically at the offered items, but seems agreeable to the terms, all the same. Though their capture of the group rankled her, they were at least intelligent and seemed to have a serious problem. "We will do our best to solve your problem, sir."
"We are in agreement then." The Skulk leader rose bonelessly to his (her?) feet and waived at a guard. "Bring the rest here."
Soon, you are led to a narrow tunnel.
TACTICAL OVERVEIW
Elise takes the offered cold-iron knife and rusty shortspear - seemed better than nothing. She gives them to any party members who might want them.
Celest takes the knife.and tests it for balance in the air before her.
Lilly waves off the spear, indicating Flynn. The cold iron might work better, but she was much better with a sword than not. Once everyone gets prepped, she proceeds down the North/South tunnel.
"Okay . . . Sooooooo . . .someone want to fill the Doc and I in on what happened? This spear, as rough as it is, appears to be cold iron. I hate to think what I need it for. Rusted as it is it's still worth some serious coin. Skulks don't hand out stuff for free. i was suprised they didn't shank us and keep you girls for sport. I don't like those big eyed bastards. They'll kill out of hand if there is something they want."
"We have struck a bargain with these big eyed bastards to take care of a nuisance for them. In turn they will help us. We will fight some gremlins, whatever those are. They are apparently susceptible to cold iron, hence the weapons." Lilly keeps her soft brown eyes on the man for a few moments, waiting for any more forthcoming questions. If not, she continues along.
"Okay . . . fair enough. Gremlins . . . grrrrrreat. <<<sigh>>> Okay, lets go and try not to die. Point the way."
Flynn takes the spear. Watching him manipulate it, it is obvious that bearing a spear is second nature to him.
He checks down the way indicated by Lilly looking for threats and traps.
Eh, this isn't so bad after all. Yeap, looks like the coast is clear. Nothing threatening down here.
I am assuming that puts are backs to the skulk village?
Celest: Yes.
Proceeding north up the passageway, you come to an intersection.
Straight west leads back to the skulk leaders cave.
Northwest leads up another passageway.
Straight East leads into another cave.
After a quick analysis, Lilly decides the eastern passage is most likely to bear fruit. She starts to head down the east way, waving her companions forward as she creeps along.
Flynn nods and tries to walk next to her as he scans the passageway ahead.