"Can anyone disable this? I would rather have it taken care of just in case," Tarkov says stepping easily over the wire, [b]"possible we won't have the luxury of caution on the back."[/ooc]
Tarkov follows on behind Krah, paying special attention for any more traps or tricks.
Tessara holds back a yell of pain as she holds onto her arm where the short sword hit. She slowly pulls it out and throws it to the ground, "Damn f@+%ing runt. Wait 'till I get my hand on you,"she mutters in pain.
Tarkov: You can see a tunnel leading north that seems to open into a larger chamber. You can hear chittering in some unknown language in the same direction. There are many branches off to the west along the way. You are also fairly sure there are no traps along this path.
Jade follows suit and steps over the wire as well. Between the traps and the small creatures hurling swords, she draws her own. She looks to Tessara with worry. "You okay?"
It's probably fair to say you are all acting on the same init now. Gremlins spent their turn moving/climbing into view as you advanced in sync.
Tarkov rushes out into the open, drawing his cold iron great sword and hurling his scabbard into the creature as he passes Krah. Fainting towards the wall, to send the grelim the wrong way he darts along the edge of the pit spinning to a halt behind it and slamming home his greatsword!
Krah steps right up to the gremlin in front of him by by the pit.
He then takes a five foot step up and to the left.
Unlike Tarkov, Jade approaches the gremlins head on - to her detriment, as they are quite easily able to avoid her sword.
Setting herself up for an attack, Tess slams the pointer end of the spear right into the flesh if the Goblin.
The scabbard flaps harmlessly on the tiny creature's right ear and descends into the scrap heap. It raises an eyebrow at Tarkov's acrobatics, ducking promptly at the last moment. "Ohhh-ho-ho!" it grins evilly, ducking Krah's blade as well. Finally, Zael steps forward and thrusts forth his sword cane blade.
but it is flicked out of the way by the long nails of the snarling monster.
On the western front, Jade and Tessara are having their own share of trouble...the spear strikes true, but the gremlin just laughs, saying "ASfhvn jkfns asdjlk! Ha ha ha!!!" Tessara realizes the creatures have some sort of damage resistance
From behind Tarkov a gremlin emerges, getting right up under his legs and biting madly.
The tougher looking one does the same to Krah, provoking from both Zael and Krah.
Krah also notices the damage resistance as his greatsword unearths the small belly, only to instantly renew again.
The yellow striped one attacks Jade visciously with its sword.
Tarkov steps sheaths his greatsword and steps forward towards the larger gremlin. Then with a smooth motion he draws the coldiron blade again sending the scabbard flying towards the smaller gremlin behind him dismissively, but with the kind of aim not really looking at your target usually provides.
Then with a growl he hacks the bigger gremlins head off, covering krah, and Zael in gore, "Break that you little gits!"
"Weeee!" Krah squeals with glee as the gremlin's head explodes all over him.
He moves takes a step North and slashes into the next gremlin.
"You little runts!"
Tessara, your target squelches beneath Jade, apparently you can damage it...if you just hit hard enough.
With the death of their leader, the tiny gremlins attempt to scatter and flee...
...but are cut down once and for all.
As Krah's blade pins the gremlin briefly Tarkov stabs his sword down cutting it in twain the cold iron again doing its work.
"Nasty little buggers," Tarkov says, picking up a tiny sword and examining it, "do we think its worth searching the junk pile there? Could be some valuable stuff mixed in... Worth a few minutes perhaps?"
I don't like killing without a cause, but anything that lives to break things deserves to die.
With combat over you get a better look at the small junkyard, it is a large mass of disassembled things-some of which likely coming from Torch. A single circular door, tightly closed, sits on the metal wall just above the upper level of the rubble resembling the open one from before. It seems the pile was used as a stairway of sorts.
Tarkov peers down the unexplored tunnel, scanning carefully for more traps, "So should we head back to the Skulks and see if they are willing to share the information they promised us, or maybe there are more gremlins beyond the door?"
"Information first. I want to be more prepared for the next battle than I was for these gremlins."
Tess Spears the little gremlin, flinging it the deceased little creature aside.
The chieftain raises an eyebrow "You've done this thing? But I think if you didn't keel the big one they will be back...oh even that one?" she ponders something momentarily before producing a small satchel "Thees is vat was promised to the purple-haired lady...you take it. I don't know what they are for, but she wanted them..." She dumps the contents onto the cavern floor. Looks to be about 49 silverdisks and 5 strange looking cards made of a white, smooth, flexible material. The cards each have a brown stripe.
"I know where you go. Don't. We are quiet, we can mesh with shadow. There are zings dere no one can keel. None have come back from there but us...and I think we will not go again now..."
"We appreciate the warning. Can you tell us anything else you know about this purple haired woman? And anything more about these unkillable things? What they look like how they fight?" Tarkov asks.
"The lady...she was first to pass. Ze gremlins did not touch her, she took the north door with her orc and ratfolk. But she had made a pact with our previous leader to find these things and guard this wall..." she pauses "This one did not speak with her, but she had strange tatoos...like dis..." She draws geometric shapes with her fingers across her skin, which become real after a slight delay.
"Listen. There is a cavern there unlike any in Darklands. That place is haunted by skeletons...great hulks with 4-arms! ...Luepel has studied the dead and even knows not what they could be. We have not crossed that place...we can not fight them."
Wary of Zael's aggression she adds "Mmm...I show you... she fetches a parchment and sketches out a rough map of the area beyond the wall. There are a few rooms before opening into a massive expanse. "A strange light fills these ones..."
"Thank you, we also saw another wet passage earlier, and another place where the air seemed cooler, could you tell us what lies down those passages?" Tarkov Asks, rubbing his knuckles against the back of his head awkwardly, those shapes on her skin, am I crazy or are these Skulks kind of pretty? Gah, keep your head in the game Tark!
"Yes...the cold room. There was one with the elder, who killed our people...a human from that group was captured there by...I know not how you say...it is the dust that chills. We did not disturb the remains of that one...the dust still sits silently."
"We did not go near the liquid...even before the pet was freed it liked to rash our skin like flame. Only the one from above is safe..." She points to a dripping stalactite.
"Hmmm, well perhaps we can tackle this cold thing when we are in better health. Both Tessara and myself are injured, so I would say we either tackle the wet passage and then head back, or just head back to recover, and possibly pick up some kind of healing magic. You mind leading the way again Krah? That tunnel might be a bit cramped for me again."
"I will take us back to the water. Not looking forward to that dip again. We should sell off those disks we've found for some supplies."
"Agreed, but if we need to go in again might as well get wet before we have to swim out and get soaked anyway," Tarkov responds.
As you're speaking a skulk you haven't seen before emerges from the far west and slowly begins taking down their little technological tipis. It would seem they are packing up for a journey as well.
"Well good luck to you, what route will you he taking out of here? Will you be coming up through the water, maybe we could see you out to ensure there is no trouble with the villagers?" Tarkov offers awkwardly.
"Nae, we are not for the light...the gremlins had taken our gear, but now we can once again traverse the gape to Nar'Voth..." she motions to the huge, endless, chasm to the south. Any attempts to estimate its depth put it beyond 300 ft down.
"Ah, well then good luck, sorry for your losses," the big Kellid replies, eyes going to the gaping hole.
"Lead on Krah."
A shallow creek runs through the middle of this cavern, while to the south a stony bank rises up from the water. Thick carpets of green and gray mold and fungus grow on the bank, particularly around a trio of three-foot-high, foul-smelling mounds. On the western side, just over some of the aforementioned mounds, you can see a halfling etching something into the wall with his back to you. *tink tink tink*
Krah leads the group back taking the northern most route. When he sees the halfling chiseling into the wall he halts the column. A little above a whisper, "Hey, halfling. What are you doing down here?"
*tink* The halfling seems to start walking backwards towards you. Wait a minute...
You all realize its the corpse of a halfling embedded into some sort of bioluminescent slime, slithering this way and that. From the other mounds rise gelatinous tentacles, lurching themselves along the stony bank...accelerating...
As they come closer more halfling corpses are revealed...it would seem you've found the first expedition.