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"Hmph!"
Kade stifled a cry as the remaining centipede snaked around his arm and then dug its mandibles deep into his shoulder. That hurt. That hurt something fierce. By whipping his arm forward he managed to shake off the bug, but those jaws stung almost as bad going out of flesh as they did going in.
"Careful, feels like ... poison"
Oh. Fantastic.
It was true. As he was eying Marcus's leg, Kade felt his own arm start to go all pins and needles. But it was odd; it was just a faint prickling, and he didn't feel altogether hampered. But to hell with the arm, regardless! What use were his fists? Kade had a moment of despondency as he wondered what the heck he was doing down here. Next to the rest of the group he felt ridiculous. Here he was standing among divine agents, spell slingers and storied elves (half-elf, he corrected himself), and what was the best he could do? Try to punch centipedes? He was just a meathead bruiser; he wasn't cut out for this.
Besides, nobody could possibly box with a centipede. Its body is too malleable and its too low to the ground. All the force of the strike goes to waste. It would have to be crushed, but...
Kade looked from the ground level centipede to his own feet. And then he just stopped thinking. Where his next maneuver came from he had no idea; it just seemed logical, but before he knew it he had raised one leg high. Very high. So high, in fact, that the sole of his worn but well maintained shoe was staring at the cracked ceiling. From that perfectly vertical position his foot suddenly came crashing down, in a maneuver that some other martial artists would have called an axe kick. Kade didn't know what it was called. His body simply knew that the centipede could be killed by crushing its head between his plummeting heel and the floor.
With a crunch, Kade stomps the remaining centipede to death.
The stiffness has spread to most of Marcus's leg.
Releasing her grip on her quarterstaff, Cira drops to her knees beside Marcus. ”Are you alright?” She looks to the wound on his leg. ”How bad is it?” Turning hopefully towards Francis, she adds ”Is there anything you can do?”
Trembling a bit from adrenaline, she turns to look at Kade, a look of pure appreciation on her face. ”Thank the gods for you, Kade. We weren’t faring very well.” She notices the wound on his shoulder and stands, moving towards him. ”Your shoulder… are you alright?”
She felt helpless, knowing absolutely nothing about healing outside of potions and scrolls… of which she had neither. They were far too expensive for the likes of her.
Marcus staggers a bit as the venom continues to do its terrible work in his body. He still manages to gasp to Kade "Nice kick man! I'll ... have to... remember that in a song.. ugh"
Taking a few breaths to steady himself and attempt to ignore the increasingly uncomfortable stiffness in his wounded leg, he looks to Cira. "Not feeling so well." , turning to Francis; "Hope you can help me Francis."
Killed by a giant centipede, not a very heroic way to go. Not sure I can think of a less heroic way to die, I guess I'm not thinking clear.
HP: 12/13
DEX damage [5] -2 Penalty
AC: 14
Grargath hangs his head in shame as he puts back his axe and shield. He thought he was ready for this life now, but things were starting to turn out just like last time. "Aye, thank yah Kade," he says solemnly. "We woulda been lost wit'out yah. Those bugs were just too fast fer me."
Grargath hangs back from Marcus, now wanting to get in the way of the holy man. "Dinnae worry, Marcus," he says, trying to reassure him. "We ain't gonna let an insect of all things take yah down!"
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Francis shakes his head. "I might be able to bolster your body to give you a better chance of resisting the poison, but I can't cure it." Francis examines Marcus's wound, applying pressure on one spot, and sucking some of the venom out with his mouth. He spits it out with a grimace. "I'm afraid I didn't get enough out to help you this time. We can try again if your body can't fight off the next round of poison on it's own."
After a few moments under the care of Francis, Marcus gently pushes him back. "I think that's all we can do, the poison seems to have stopped."
He tests his leg, it seems to work fine, just very stiff. Some pain, but he can deal with some pain.
"I won't be dancing any time soon, but I think I'll be OK. You had better check on Kade's arm.", looking over at Kade; "How are you doing, friend? Is your shoulder going to be OK?"
If only I hadn't missed that second bug he might not have gotten bitten, I will have to do better next time. I can't be letting my partners get hurt like that. Good group though, dependable, quick to act and skilled. I like these people, hopefully we can stick together for some time longer.
Once he regains his equilibrium he moves back to the rubble, "Before those... bugs... attacked I saw something interesting in the rubble." He moves to retrieve the iron case he saw earlier.
Hmm, interesting
HP: 12/13
DEX damage [7] -3 Penalty
AC: 14
Grargath nods as Francis begins his work to heal Marcus. He continues to observe, when a memory flashes in his mind. What was he doing before the centipedes attacked? That's right, the skeleton in the iron maiden! He hadn't had a moment to examine the bones that fell out of the casket when Cira opened it. As Marcus starts to get back on his feet, Grargath moves back over to the scattered bones to give them a closer look.
Grargath steps back from the bones, frowning. He could've sworn there had been something amiss when the skeleton shattered, but now all he saw were the dusty bones that littered the ground. Shaking his head, he concedes to let the body rest for now.
Once he regains his equilibrium he moves back to the rubble, "Before those... bugs... attacked I saw something interesting in the rubble." He moves to retrieve the iron case he saw earlier.
"'S tha' so?" The dwarf retreats from the skeleton and hurries back over to the group. "Aye, tha' is a nice find. I wonder wha's inside?"
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"I'll see what I can do for Kade." Francis said as he put his weapon up and walked over to examine the man. "The cut is deeper than it looks. Thankfully I do know a spell or two of healing." Francis grips his holy symbol in one hand, lifting his other hand to hover over Kade's shoulder. "By the light of the Sun, burn away death and pain! Be healed!" Francis feels the power rush through him like a furnace blast, tingling up his back, through his arm, and out his hand with a warm orange glow.
Huh. Well, that worked.
Kade was still looking at the centipede he had squashed under his heel like the bug it was. He was relieved at seeing it dead but somewhat worried about the manner in which it had been dispatched. He had never executed a maneuver like that before. And yet his body had determined it to be an appropriate counter to a crawling critter and followed through just like that. Kade was concerned at the implications; why did it feel so natural? He didn't consider himself violent by nature, despite the years behind bars. But then, it hadn't been a solely violent move. It had been... artful? Was that an appropriate description? It wasn't something anyone should be capable of doing without some serious tutoring, something Kade had never received.
A thought suddenly came to him. Had he perhaps seen a monk from the local monastery do something similar before? Had he just emulated something he'd seen when young? He couldn't recall anything like that...
”Thank the gods for you, Kade. We weren’t faring very well.” She notices the wound on his shoulder and stands, moving towards him. ”Your shoulder… are you alright?”
"Mh? It's fine, it's... Are you okay?"
He was awoken from his rumination by Cira's query. Good thing too, he immediately decided. This was not the time. He answered her before even considering her question. Rubbing his shoulder he resolved that he was indeed fine; that numbing feeling had already disappeared from his arm, and the wound wasn't especially deep.
What bothered him far more were the kind words of her, Grargath and Marcus. Like so many other introverts praise was not something he took to easily, and especially not from any one of these. What had he done to earn it from the likes of them? Dispatched a centipede that Cira had already wounded? And only after Marcus had eliminated the other on his own and suffered for it. Kade hadn't done anything special. He'd just acted with the others, as part of the group. He was simply a cog in the machinery that was the party. He was just part of the team. After all, they were all... equals.
Oh.
Kade stood up a little straighter, and the awkward look disappeared from his face. Yeah. Yeah, he supposed he had helped out. No more than anyone else in the party, but that was exactly the point: perhaps he was comparable to Grargath, Marcus, Cira and Francis. Maybe there was some use in him.
"By the light of the Sun, burn away death and pain! Be healed!"
Kade really needed to stop spacing out. He flinched again as Francis laid his hand over his shoulder, and a warm feeling started spreading throughout it. He then watched, somewhat alarmed, as the open flesh started knitting itself together, soon leaving it as good as new. There wasn't even a scar. Kade was very impressed.
"You're a life saver, Firestar," he said, matter of factly.
Looking past him to the cleric's previous patient, he eyed the still limping Marcus.
"How are you doing, friend? Is your shoulder going to be OK?"
"Please worry about yourself," he said, moving his arm about to reassure the bard that it was going to be perfectly fine. His face was a curious mixture of severity and worry, however. Still looking at Marcus's leg he continued:
"Marcus... Should we stop here for now? If you're not feeling up for it...
"Marcus... Should we stop here for now? If you're not feeling up for it..."
Marcus continues testing his wounded leg, "Thank you for your concern, but lifesaver Firestar here has helped me significantly, I think I will be OK to move on. Besides, we still need to get to the bottom of this mystery and get paid."
Gonna need some more gold if I need to get this leg seriously looked at.
The iron case is tightly latched and shows damage from the rubble, but the contents are in excellent shape: a pair of silvery daggers with strange notches worked into the flat of each blade. Both weapons are incredibly light.
Marcus lets out a low whistle as he opens the box and observes the daggers.
"Truly beautiful weapons, what is this material?" hefting one of the blades, "Mithral?"
Hmm, such fine daggers might be magical
He casts Detect Magic and looks at the daggers, just in case.
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"Marcus, switch me places in the party order. That leg will make you an easier target to hit until you have time to rest and recover from the poison." Francis eyes the daggers Marcus has found curiously. "Mithral? Whoever made them had quite some skill in their trade. It might make a nice weapon for Cira, or a good backup weapon for someone else. And I've heard that they can be quite effective against some creatures who are supernaturally tough."
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As her companions look over the daggers, Cira stands off to the side, arms crossed and toying nervously with her bottom lip, silently berating herself for her previous excitement in exploring the ruins. She hadn’t seriously considered the danger they might face; she’d just been thrilled with the opportunity to find and learn new things
Not everything is fun and games, Cira. You need to start thinking before you act.
Perhaps if she’d been more prepared, more aware, Marcus and Kade wouldn’t have been injured. She glanced between them and felt a surge of guilt. There’s more than just your life on the line now. Although she’d been traveling with Grargath, Marcus, and Francis for some time now and was quite fond of them, she still wasn’t used to being around people who, well... seemed to want her there.
She snaps back to the present when she hears her name.
”It might make a nice weapon for Cira, or a good backup weapon for someone else.”
Moving back towards the group, she offers what she hopes is a convincing smile. ”I’d be glad to take one, if no one else claims it.”
Marcus nods at Francis, "Aye, I'll hang back a bit."
Looking down to the daggers, "I agree, Cira might find one of these useful and, if as you say Mithral is good vs mean creatures, we might want to have Grargath hold the other for the time being. He'll most likely be face to face with said supernatural beasties. Though I hope we don't run into anything like that down here."
There's a glint in the dwarf's eyes as Marcus removes the daggers. "Tha's a beautiful find, lad. Yah've certainly earned it."
"I agree, Cira might find one of these useful and, if as you say Mithral is good vs mean creatures, we might want to have Grargath hold the other for the time being. He'll most likely be face to face with said supernatural beasties. Though I hope we don't run into anything like that down here."
"Aye, Cira should definitely 'ave one. An' if yah want me t' take care of th' other fer now, I'd be more than happy to." Grargath moves to take the other dagger, but stops short and glances around. "As long as there're no objections?"
Cira carefully takes the weapon in her hands, peering at it in awe. It was a beautiful dagger, easily the nicest thing she’d ever been in possession of. Truth be told, she was rather surprised that everyone had so readily agreed to give her one.
Grargath moves to take the other dagger, but stops short and glances around. "As long as there're no objections?"
Gingerly tucking the dagger into the belt at her side, she shakes her head. ”No objection here.” With one last glance around the room, lingering for a moment on the horrible centipedes, she looks to the group. ”Shall we move on?” She couldn't help but think there was something they were missing in the room, but damned if she knew what it could be.
Yeah, perhaps it was time to move on. Kade narrowed his eyes in observing the room, trying to take in its detail in the sparse light.
"Grargath? That's a door over there, isnt' it?
Grargath's dwarven eyes could no doubt tell so better than his, but with a nod of his head Kade signaled over to the southern wall where he thought he could see an iron door. He walked over to inspect it.
Weapon situation settled, Marcus asks "What was in that iron maiden?", as he wanders over to look at the scattered bones. "Bones, poor soul. Wonder if they deserved it" he mutters as he looks over the jumbled pile.
"Huh, looks like a key here" stooping to pick up the object in question.
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Francis smiles Cira takes the dagger with a look of wonder on her face. The he turns his attention to the Iron Maiden. Glaring at the intrument of torture he makes his way over. "When we are done I want to destroy this thing" he mutters to himself as he looks sadly at the remains of the poor soul who had tumbled out of it. He squats down to get a closer look and pay his respects. "Be at peace poor soul." he says "May your gods guide you safely to your new home."
Retrieving her quarterstaff from the ground, Cira casts light on the tip of it and moves to the door with Kade, scanning it for traps.
"Grargath? That's a door over there, isnt'the it?"
"That it is," Grargath replied, as he sheathes the dagger. "Maybe tha's wha' th' key is for." He regards Francis' prayer with solemn reverence. Sarenrae may not be his god, but a dwarf respected another's faith. He goes to join the others at the door. Thank Torag they found this key. He cursed his eyes for not having noticed among the bones earlier. It very well could be what they need to get through the door. Hopefully there wouldn't be much more danger, for Marcus' sake.
After examining the key, Marcus hands it to Grargath; "You will likely be the one needing this, assuming it unlocks a door."
He then hangs back, waiting for the group to form up for further exploration.
Numerous jail cells line these long corridors. Each of their solid iron doors hangs ajar, and includes both a peephole at eye level, covered with a piece of sliding metal, and a smaller slot for food and water at floor level.
Grargath nods with a grunt, and takes the key from Marcus. Aye, lad. If there're any nasties on the other side o' th' door, let me tae th' punch." After Cira has finished checking for traps, Grargath tries the doorknob. "Looks like it's unlocked," he calls out. He carefully opens the door, bracing himself for what may be waiting on the other side.
As Grargath steps through the door, he takes out the key and examines it again. "Lookit this dreary place," he says quietly. A prison connected right t' the execution chamber. This tower has a dark history fer sure. I wonder 'ow many knew about it in town? I wonder if the Baroness knew?" Grargath, shaking his head, looks at the numerous prison cells. "Should we see if there's anythin' of use in these cells?"
Marcus subconsiously nods at Grargath's question. "We should check them, probably nothing but we still don't know what brought down the tower. Gotta check all avenues."
"Lookit this dreary place," he says quietly. A prison connected right t' the execution chamber. This tower has a dark history fer sure. I wonder 'ow many knew about it in town? I wonder if the Baroness knew?" Grargath, shaking his head, looks at the numerous prison cells.
Cira shakes her head solemnly as she moves to the first cell on the left, opening the door and peeking inside as she lights it with the tip of her staff. "I’m having a hard time believing no one knew what was going on here, at least to some extent.” She moves on to check the second cell. "How do you live so close to something like this and not notice anything?"
"Aye, we should ask around when we get out o' here." And hadn't the Baroness said she had lost her husband in the tower? Grargath had felt some shame when he brought it up, and hadn't thought to ask if they had ever retrieved the body. Maybe the Baron had made it too far into the tower for anyone to find him. Maybe they would stumble upon his body. The dwarf gave an involuntary shudder; that was a grim prospect indeed. Nonetheless, Grargath moves to search the first cell on the other side of the room.
"People do know. Well, in a sense."
Kade had been following Cira in inspecting the prison cells, if for no other reason that it was only by the light of her staff that he could see anything at all. Now he found himself speaking up as the one Belhaim local in the party. He was somewhat surprised at himself. He wasn’t one to offer exposition, but with these people it felt appropriate, even necessary. He continued quietly:
”Lady Origena said that this is what remains of the old lords of Belhaim, the…”
He searched his head for the name for a moment.
”Canteclures.”
“The Witch Tower is what’s left of their castle. Guess it makes sense that there’s a dungeon in the… dungeon. I dunno anything much about them, but people know that the tower’s bad. People talk. I grew up hearing that this place was cursed, that it was haunted.”
Kade’s soft baritone couldn’t help but sound eerie in the surroundings. He was in a wistful mood himself; inspecting these cells reminded him heavily of his own decade behind bars. But while he had had freedom to look forward to, he wondered what prospects prisoners of this jail had once had. His brows furrowed thinking of the execution device in the other room.
“Some even say a witch moved in here once. That’s where the name comes from; Witch Tower. So people know. They stay away. Everyone except the old baron.”
He stopped himself from explicitly naming the fate of Lady Origena’s husband. He was dead and they all knew that already. Kade had nothing to add on that subject. But it suddenly seemed wrong to acknowledge this out loud; as if they themselves, in the exact same situation, would be jinxed to share his fate.
Kade looked into the darkness.
Marcus notices the group spreading out and speaks up "Maybe we should all stick together, strength in numbers. Perhaps check the west side rooms first?
Either way, Marcus will follow Grargath in his explorations.
Cira turned to Kade as he spoke, regarding him with interest. As quiet as he usually was, she couldn’t help but study him as he talked. Plus she found his information interesting. She’d led a sheltered life, so she had next to no knowledge of anywhere outside of Iadara, and she was more than willing to learn.
She nodded thoughtfully as he finished. ”I guess that makes sense. I’d just assumed people stayed away based on rumors and superstition alone.” As she looked around at the cells, and thought back on the iron maiden in the previous room, she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe it was haunted. Surely the things that happened down here had left some unhappy souls behind.
It was an uncomfortable thought.
Kade seemed to be a bit on edge, perhaps even more so since they reached the room with the cells. She wondered why only for a moment before she remembered him mentioning that he’d only recently been released from a prison himself. For murder, if she’d heard him correctly.
Strangely that knowledge didn’t bother her at all, though it did seem odd based on what she’d observed. Kade seemed to be kind and friendly enough, though quiet. And he’d been just as willing to help the Baroness as the rest of them had. Those didn’t resemble the traits of a murderer to her, but then what did she know? Maybe she’d inquire about it later. Or maybe not. That was probably something you weren’t supposed to ask someone outright.
She moved close to his side, looking up at him as she quietly asked, ”You okay? I just thought that being back in a prison, maybe...” She gave a small, one shoulder shrug, suddenly feeling very self conscious in bringing up such a personal subject. ”I’m sorry if that’s rude to bring up, I just… never mind.” She flashed a quick, awkward smile, then moved away from him, silently chiding herself for her odd behavior.
The party continues down the divide, inspecting each cell in turn. All the cells on the block are empty, except for dry-rotted cots and rusted floor drains. As you follow both paths, they eventually turn away from cells and branch off to the east and west.
The eastern branch, explored by Kade and Cira, is sealed off by rubble, although they do find a secret door set into a south wall. The western branch curves northward into the darkness, but Grargath, Francis, and Marcus find a secret door in the south wall as well. Both doors seem to lead to hidden corridor of cell blocks. The secret doors were likely well camouflaged when originally built, but age and the recent collapse made them rather obvious.
"We should probably meet back up with the others before continuing."
The words are mumbled after she sees the doors, as Cira is still embarrassed by what she percieves as her social slight. Still, she waits for Kade so that he can use her light to see.
A curious semicircular ridge runs along the stone ceiling of the western branch.
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Inspecting these cells brought the oddest feeling of deja vu. Kade supposed that prison cells everywhere looked much alike, so there was no helping that. The whole architectural concept of 'square box' had pretty much been perfected already. Turning his back to the room, he wondered for a moment why the lighting had gotten brighter, only to realize that Cira the torch bearer had snuck up right next to him.
Gah!
The half-elf had gotten too close for Kade's interpersonal skills to handle once again. How did she do that? He managed to maintain his stoic facade this time though, just barely. However, the look on Cira's face immediately got him worried. She looked... troubled? Cira Illivar, troubled? She'd been nothing short of buoyant all he'd known her. Even with his impassive manners, she had always treated him well and although he had difficulty showing it Kade had great appreciation for anyone who managed to tolerate him, especially these days. Seeing Cira serious now just made him anxious.
”You okay? I just thought that being back in a prison, maybe...” She gave a small, one shoulder shrug, suddenly feeling very self conscious in bringing up such a personal subject. ”I’m sorry if that’s rude to bring up, I just… never mind.” She flashed a quick, awkward smile, then moved away from him, silently chiding herself for her odd behavior.
"Wh...?"
That's what preoccupied her? Here they were, deep underground, in a 200 year old dungeon presumably full of kobolds ready to ambush them just around the next corner, and she found it in her to ask the reserved thug about his feelings? Kade rarely knew what to say, but here he was truly lost.
"N-no! You're not being rude... You... Thank you."
Thank you? Yes, Kade did feel the need to express his thanks. This group, the party, had been the first people to treat him cordially since he returned to civilized society, and now Cira showed genuine consideration for his well-being. It was almost too much to handle. What in the world had he done to earn this?
"For asking, I mean."
When Kade had gone to prison he'd largely given up on making any new social ties for the rest of his life. This hadn't bothered him overly much, introvert that he was. He knew that he could manage just fine on his own; he was the type. But this one little query from the half-elf threatened to overwhelm him. It reminded him of what it was like to have people who cared. And damn if it didn't feel good.
He looked at Cira awkwardly, but his mouth widened into an honest smile, his first in a long, long time.
"Yeah. Let's go."
Marcus limps slightly along behind Grargath as they explored the line of cells, noticing each room as empty and observing the strange ridge on the ceiling.
"I wonder what the heck that is for?" Marcus mutters mostly to himself as he looks around. When they reach the formerly hidden door he tries to halt Grargath.
"We really should get back with Cira and Kade before we move on, being separated is a bad idea if either we or they run into trouble."
Absently rubbing his numbed leg, thinking of the centipedes, he shudders, he would hate for either shorthanded group running into a nest of those things, or even something more nasty.
Can't forget about the Kobolds that we found, could be a whole tribe of those things down here for all we know
He tightens his grip on his longsword in response to that thought.
Cira laughs in surprise, caught off guard by Kade's response. It wasn't at all what she was expecting, but it was much better than what she had prepared herself for.
"Well... okay. Good!" she says, running her fingers through her hair, her smile genuine this time. "I'm glad. We should, ah... still probably get back to the others, though."
She takes a step, then pauses, turning back towards him slightly. "You should smile more. It looks good on you." Feeling her face heat, she was suddenly very grateful for the darkness as she moved to meet back up with the other group.
Grargath silently moves down the corridor, Kade's history lesson echoing in his mind, too engrossed in the design of the room to heed Marcus' warning. He couldn't help but wonder, terrible place as it was, what it must have looked like when it was originally built. As he and his companions that follow him reach the hidden door, Grargath silently removes his axe, just in case anything came barreling through. He looks around and notes that the path winds around past the door.
"I wonder what the heck that is for?"
Grargath looks up at Marcus' comment. How had he missed the ridge right above them? Too focused on watching out for anything that might be lurking in the darkness.
"We really should get back with Cira and Kade before we move on, being separated is a bad idea if either we or they run into trouble."
"Aye, lad," Grargath agrees. He turns away from the door to look at Marcus apologetically. "Sorry 'bout that. I was lost in my own 'ead fer a while there. Yer absolutely right, we should go back an' see if they've found anythin'. Grargath glances back at the formerly secret door before leading the retreat to the jail's entrance.
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Francis walks along behind the others, deep in thought. If this was a place of death and suffering, no wonder a witch would settle here. This place must have been saturated with necrotic energy. It probably still is. As several people suggest sticking close together he shakes his head out of the fog of his thoughts and voices his agreement. "That is probably a wise decision. I doubt Centipedes will be the only thing we run into down here." Shaking his head he walks up to take his place behind Grargath.
After winding back through the rubble in the corridors, Cira is relieved to reunite with the rest of the group. The feeling of unease was growing with every moment they were in these dungeons. She definitely felt better with everyone around her.
As she walks up to them, she motions back the way she came. "There wasn't anything in the cells that we checked worth noting, but we did find a door. I'm not entirely sure where it leads to, though. More cells, maybe."
She glances at Marcus and sees him limping, sending another another flutter of guilt through her. "Hey Marcus, how's your leg feeling?" she asks softly. "Are you managing alright so far?"
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As he limps along back up the hall to rejoin his companions, Marcus' mind wanders a bit. He remembered his leg being messed up like this before, but he couldn't recall when. Something about at... yes.
Verna, Veirna, something like that. Ravandas? Man, V R something anyhow. She was a fun one, I think
His face is briefly graced with a smile as he reflects on his much more simple life as a spoiled, rich, merchants son. His only concerns in those days were drinking, chasing women and dodging their vengeful parents and siblings. The V-something woman in question was one such conquest. He had messed up his leg bolting out of her window and jumping off the roof of their compound, over the wall, and into a midden heap. Not his most dashing story, but his friends laughed over that story for years.
Thinking on his friends immediately removes the smile from his face. How quickly those "friends" abandoned him once it was known that his father had lost the family fortune, friendships he hand thought built on common experience and trust were simply built on family worth.
His face turns downright grim as he recalls his last moments in Absalom. Harsh words and insult, a duel with his best friend. He still sees the blood spurt has his blade pierced Fredrick's chest. Fleeing from the city and signing on the first caravan he could find. He wondered if Fred had lived, he wondered if he was wanted by the law, or if Fredrick's family had a bounty out on him. He supposed it wasn't a concern in this backwater town plus, he supposed, he needed to worry about the dangers right in front of his face.
With this thought, he snaps out of his reminiscences.
Hearing Cira's kind words of concern, Marcus' face lights up with a genuine smile, it felt good to have people care for his well being again. At least for a reason other than gold.
"Thank you for your concern, Cira." With a small bow of his head,"My leg is pretty stiff and will slow me down, but it seems to be quite alright. Once we get this mess cleared I'm sure a local healer can fix me up right as rain, if simple rest won't do it."
Once the group meets and shares their findings, Marcus speaks up.
"Looks like we've got doors to explore east and west; which first? I say east, what say you all?"
Cira lays a hand on Marcus' arm and squeezes gently, smiling. "Those things were nasty, I would have expected it to end up much worse. I'm glad I was wrong."
She glances back the way she and Kade came from. "East works for me. It’ll probably take less time, too. The rest of the corridor is blocked by rubble, so the door is the only thing to check on."
For now, anyway. Who knows how many passages this place has.
"There wasn't anything in the cells that we checked worth noting, but we did find a door. I'm not entirely sure where it leads to, though. More cells, maybe."
Grargath nods and glances back at the path that he, Marcus, and Francis just returned from. "We found a door, too. Looked t' be a secret once upon a time, but 's clear as day now. The hall seemed to go on fer a while past th' door, but we turned back b'fore goin' any deeper."
"Looks like we've got doors to explore east and west; which first? I say east, what say you all?"
"Aye, I think Marcus has th' right of it. Sounds like th' west hall has more to explore than th' east, so we should tackle the simpler path first."
Grargath looks around at his companions, waiting for their take. Before, when he traveled alone, he could have just charged headfirst whichever way he wanted to. Of course, monsters like those centipedes would've had him for dinner, and monsters like them almost did once. It was good to have others watching your back, even if it did conflict at times with his dwarven stubbornness.
The secret door to the east leads to another set of prison cells. Unlike the previous set, the occupants of these cells were never freed. Skeletons dressed in rags lie in each chamber, remnants of prisoners that died of thirst or starvation, forgotten in the darkness. You follow the hall south before it abruptly turns west.
Suddenly, a pale face appears in one of the cell's windows, grimy hands gripping at the bars. "Oh, gods, kind faces! Aroden bless you, noble souls!" the man cries out. "I ain’t seen the jailers in ages, I think they forgot about us! We ain’t eaten in days and the water’s all but gone—my cousins’re both sick. I swear we’d give back the boar if we could, but we ate it, starvin’ as we was. We didn’t even know it was the baron’s lands, didn’t know we was poachin’! I beg you, some food an' water! Kindness, noble souls, we’ve suffered awful! Good Baron Sarvo wills it!”
Grargath jumps back, surprisingly high for a dwarf, and curses loudly as the unexpected voice startles him. "Wha' in th' name o' Torag is goin' on down here!?" He stares in the face of the prisoner, questions running through his mind. The first one to espace his lips is, "How long 'ave yah been down here? Who put yah and yer fam'ly here?"
Oh, but he said they ran out of water, didn't he? Grargath hesitates for a moment, but empathy takes over instinct as he sees the sorry conditions the prisoners are in, and reaches for his waterskin. "I 'ave some water for yah righ' here."
Marcus nearly jumps at the sudden discovery in the cells. As he hears their story he thinks of the decrepit nature of the tower and the rumors of ghosts.
This place seems too long abandoned to have survivors.
"Something doesn't seem right here."
He shines his lighted buckler into the cell.