The knotted rope creaks and groan's beneath Raun's weight as the half-giant slips over the edge of the ravine and descends into the darkness. The climb is not difficult - once over the edge, Raun can see wide hand- and foot-holds have been carved into the rock alongside the rope.
About 50 feet down the rope drops onto a broad ledge covered with sand and debris from above. Carved steps on one side of the ledge continue the descent into the chasm. At the edge of her vision, Raun can just make what appears to be another ledge below and another set of steps that switch back below the ledge she is standing on.
Sand and dust trickle down onto the ledge as the others descend. Wrapped in rawhide thongs to create handles, Cradokk's fiery rocks cast a flickering light on the canyon wall, illuminating crude glyphs and pictograms painted there in blue and rust colored paint. A jawbone and a four-clawed hand are the only symbols that make any sense.
Other than the faint outline of the next ledge down, the darkness is complete.
Based on the sounds of shuffling and the direction of the voices, you'd guess there's a ledge directly below your own, perhaps 75 feet or so, where as many as half a dozen creatures are attempting to hide.
Raun leads the way, shifting from the rope to the handholds, not happy with the way it had been creaking. She is about to start down the steps after reaching the first ledge when something from below causes her to pause. She looks up, then down over the ledge, before settling onto her haunches until the next person reaches her.
"There people on ledge below this one. Five or six." she says softly "Waiting for us."
<<You can talk in our minds if you dont want them to hear you>> the kreen communicates mentally in response to Raun's warning.
<<I heard the chittering. Not sure what that may have come from. When you say waiting, are they preparing to attack or greet us? Either way, we might need some light soon. When we get closer, my psicrystal should be able to see them, but I can't say the same for myself.>>
Raun looks uncomfortable as Nnn'tkklik'l speak in her head again.
Raun bellows into everyone's heads suddenly.
Grit nods at the group as he scratches his cat between the ears and checks the harness he is using to lower the animal from ledge to ledge.
<<I see well in the dark. So, how do we proceed?>> he thinks at the group?
<<If I could see them, I can drain their life until they flee. Are we sure they are enemies?>>
w/darkvision
<<There isn't much we can do about them I think, other than just go on.>> Even though she hadn't heard it herself she had learned to trust her companions in matters like this. <<I can send my new friend down the stairs to take a look. Keep in mind his mind isn't as complex as our own.>>
Raun looks at the others as they voice their opinion before shrugging. They would seem to need to push on, the creatures too far away from their current vantage. She leads the way down to the next ledge, hammer gripped in both hands.
Shouldering her pack, Raun begins to pick her way down the narrow steps carved into the ravine wall, the light from one of Cradokk's rocks flickering behind her. Shallow and worn nearly smooth in places, the steps are treacherous, but handholds have been carved into the wall for extra support.
The next ledge down is empty, a thick layer of grit and pebbles covering the smooth rock. Shuffling over to make room for Grit and the others following, the half-giant spies a wide hole carved into the rock shelf. Just wide enough for her to squeeze through, the hole leads to another set of steps leading down and back to the east to another ledge just barely visible in the flickering light of the stone.
Studying the middle ledge:[/ooc]
Raun mentally yells at the others, pointing to some clawed footprints and scuff marks heading in the direction of the hole. She scratches her head when she peers out the hole to the steps beyond, finding two dead rats, looking at the others quizically
<<No need to yell>>
The kreen looks for himself.
middle
lower
<<Big gall, stop yelling, you make my head hurt.>> Safia's sounds friendly but mildly annoyed. <<I see tracks and two corpses, but I doubt those two are all that's responsible for the tracks. There are more, I just can't see where.>>
<<They're definitely down on the lower ledge. One of them broke silence to chitter something.>>
More hushed squeaks and chittering drift up from the ledge below. A furred shape separates from one of the boulders, stepping tentatively into view. You feel the feather-light touch of a peaceful mindlink.
<<Naked not-gith, us is not wanting fight-eat. Us is tari, Split-Tooth Clan. Us is taking back gith-killed clan mates. Go past no fight-eat. Why naked not-gith come to mountain's belly?>>
<<we are looking for other naked not-gith who came this way. Have you seen them?>>
"HOW ELSE YOU HEAR RAUN?" she bellows back, though she has 'lowered her voice' somewhat. She still seems not to quite understand how this whole telepathy thing works however. Suddenly she tenses up, looking at something on the wall before punching it with her fist. She crouches low, glaring at the spot and then all around the platform and beyond. Her stance relaxes only marginally as the kreen speaks.
Grit and his cat stay low and somewhat hidden. After the mind probe, which is technically mot an attack but still not totally friendly, he is cautious and content to let other talk to the gith.
The tari appears startled by the thri-kreen's mention of other "naked not-gith." Through the mindlink you catch a brief image of an abyss from which crawl black roots or tentacles.
<<No, no. Tall not-gith pass, but not come back. They gone, gone ... below. Not come back. Not-alive-not-dead now. Other naked not-gith not follow or be not-alive-not-dead, too. Should go back sun-place before gith come, fight-eat.>>
The tari motions to its fellows, who cautiously emerge and pick up the corpses of their fallen brethren. Most wear only wide leather belts that appear to be meant to protect their vitals. All carry bone blades of some kind, including star-shaped weapons meant for throwing.
<<We go now back to clan. Quiet-walk so gith not fight-eat. Naked not-gith go back, not look tall not-gith, not look below.>>
<<how long ago tall not-gith come?>>
The tari considers the thri - kreen's question for a moment.
<<Many suns... Two litters born since then. Chief know better, talks to fire and reads scratches on wall. >>
<<Grit, how often are ratman litters born?>>
<<we should continue then>>
Grit, knowing that he is fairly well armored, stands and after looking for signs from his mentor, begins to descent to the next platform.
He wears hi shield defensively but his weapons are stowed and he walks with care in a non-agressive manner.
Picking his way down the crudely-carved stairs, Grit makes his way toward the ledge where the tari are gathered. Dust and grit cover this platform, as well, but he easily spots the petals of a faro blossom amid the detritus. Faro plants are a common crop in and around the city-states, but few have the distinctive blue veins Durwadala cultivated in the plants kept at his oasis. The carefully dried petals scattered on the floor are of that variety.
<<Why naked not-gith not go? Only wake evil if go below, end up not-alive-not-dead like other not-gith. Or fight-eat with gith.>>
The furred ratman appears to consider something.
<<Maybe you want fight-eat with gith? Make room for tari so gith not fight-eat Split-Tooth Clan? Chief might show way to not-alive-not-dead ones.>>
<<our clutch would appreciate Split Tooth Clan help>>
<<We have lost a friend and need to find him. He is below, so we must go below. We will fight evil if it blocks us. >> Grit confirms through the link, still approaching the location of the rat men.
<<Yes, yes. Chief know what doing. Look with fire eye, find friend maybe, fight-eat gith so tari have more nesting. Naked not-gith follow tari, quiet-walk so gith not know we pass.>>
Gathering up the bodies of their slain clan members, the ratmen move to the opposite side of the ledge, where another set of steps lead down in to the darkness. You follow, mindful of the sand and dust gathered on the shallow steps and listening carefully as the flap of heavy wings echoes from somewhere off in the black abyss.
Perhaps 80 feet below the ledge, the steps meet up with a ragged pile of stone that forms a crude ramp leading away from the canyon wall. You carefully picking your way along the stonework - clearly the remains of some kind of fallen structure - when the flickering light of Cradokk's fire stones illuminates other sandstone ruins. Quickly the blackness gives way to a vast field of shattered sandstone walls and towers, the remains of a vast fortress of the ancients seemingly dropped into the bottom of the ravine. Nothing in your field of vision remains whole, but the path the ratmen follow appears to be leading toward the remains of a squat tower tilted at a slight angle.
As the rubble roadway ends, the tari drop down into what might have been a courtyard outside the tower. At first glance there seems to be no way out, but the ratmen duck behind a fallen buttress concealing a gap just wide enough for Raun to squeeze through, dragging her pack.
Inside, the ruined tower is open to the abyss, a crack of fading daylight barely visible at the top of the ravine. Ahead and to the right, a battered doorway - repaired with bone and thick hide straps - appears to lead further into the ruin. Another opening, its door long ago collapsed, lies ahead and to the left, where the flames illuminate a dust-filled room, its sandstone walls set with tall pillars and carvings in red marble.
The tari telepath motions you on as the ratmen creep softly through the repaired doorway.
<<Quiet-walk, or gith come out to fight-eat. Make lots noise, maybe wake other things. Quiet-walk so reach tari nest all not-dead.>>
The kreen relays the message to the collective to be as quiet as possible to avoid stirring enemies.
Raun remains crouching, uncomfortably listening to the mental conversation, struggling to follow it. What were ratmen talking about. Naked? Tall? The conversation mostly left her behind and she leaves it to the kreen and mul, muttering to herself. she questions at last as Grit leads the way and she struggles through the hole to follow, waliking as lightly as she can. She still manages to scatter more than her share of loose stones, sending them clattering from the stairs and later the ramp. When they eventually reach the courtyard she grumbles again as she is forced to squeeze through the opening.
Grit tries to keep silent and, knowing that he is not exactly silent himself, cringes at the inevitable noise from Raun trying to squeeze through spaces half her size.
Paying too much attention to the half giant he brushes against a wall and dislodges a storm of pebbles onto the hard floor. Shrugging apologetically at the angry glares he keeps moving.
Following suit with his compatriots, Nnn'tkklik'l is uncharacteristically clumsy in his approach to the ratman enclave.
Gorkhan sat back, allowing the others to take the conversation where it would go, ready in case things turned south. He nods at Nnn at the instruction and moves ahead quietly with the others.