Lia drops down as well, draws her scimitar and casts Light on it. She directs Lao to follow and continue to defend.
"And they tried to escape by running UP into the collapsing tower? These few couldn't have done all this. Guess we'll have to keep going down to find out."
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"Just the rubble an' bodies. I think the view was better from up there."
Reynaldo follows behind, trying to keep an eye out for trouble.
Opening the lower trapdoor reveal a darkened room. From the faint light filtering down from outside, Hammerfist can see that the walls of this chamber have buckled precariously in several places, and masonry and dirt are scattered across the floor. The collapse above plainly caused this structural damage. The dry-rotted frames of five simple beds lie against the north and south walls. To the southwest, the room broadens into a larger chamber. A rusted, grinning iron statue stands in an alcove in the north wall between the two wings of the room itself, and in the wall to the south is an old iron door.
As the party finishes dropping down through the trapdoor, you all notice a noise and some movement to the west! Turning, you see two six foot long centipedes!
Lia drops her scimitar on the ground, its light illuminating the room the best it can, and draws her longbow. A single arrow flies over Ares' shoulder at the southern-most centipede.
vs Flatfooted I hope?
Ares grabs his bow at the sight of the crawling worms. He steps forward 5' closer NW and unleashes an arrow at the closer of the two.
"Bah! Vermin approach! "
Lia quickly fires an arrow upon seeing the large vermin. The arrow pierces the chitinous back of the centipede.
The centipedes move towards the party!
[Dice=fort ]1d20+3
Are steps back and puts another arrow in the wounded centipede, ending it's movements.
Lia instructs Lao to attack the southern baddy, which he pads over and does... or at least tries to do.
Lia herself curses her short-sightedness and picks up her scimitar before moving back, giving others a chance to fall back if they desire.
Reynaldo moves over around the tiger, drawing his gladius along the way.
Lia sends her tiger to bite the bug, but it manages to dodge Lao's jaws.
Reynaldo swings his gladius, striking the centipede, but not quite ending it.!
Mr. Hammerfist will step back and try and squish a bug with his giant hammer.
Hammerfist backs up and swings his hammer at the beast, but the strike goes wide.
The centipede attacks the one the hurt it, burying it's fangs into Reynaldo.
Lau continues to attack the vermin.
He menaces it all he can, but nothing connects. Lia instructs him to back down and step away, leaving room for her to come in.
Lia steps up and swings with her glowing scimitar.
Ares will shoot again if the creature still wiggles.
"Stay still, quit movin' all dem legs" Hammerfist shouts at the beast before trying to squish it again.
"Well struck, master dwarf."
Lia and Lao strike at the beast, but neither succeed in hitting the bug.
Ares follows suit, striking and missing.
Hammerfist then swings hard and smashes the centipede with a massive overhand swing!
Reynaldo grits his teeth as the centipede chomps on his side.
Arrgh...
"Vicious little buggers, everybody okay?"
Askes Mr. Hammerfist as he looks around for a good way to clean bug off of his hammer.
"Aye, pesky bugs no doubt. Renaldo, that bite looks like it got into the skin. Let me see if I can help before it gets worse."
"Drats. The poison is beyond my ability to treat."
Reynaldo feels the poison from the centipede begin to course through his veins. He actions and movement begin to feel less coordinated.
The centipede's poison continues to effect Reynaldo for a moment more before he shakes off the effects.
After Reynaldo fights off the lingering effects of the poison, the party takes a look around. Opening the iron maiden causes the last victim’s bones to tumble out. Within the rubble, you find a rusty iron key.
A search of the rubble in the western wing uncovers several rusted weapons and ruined fragments of armor, as well as a pair of mithral daggers with a strange series of notches carved into the flat of each blade, stored in a tightly latched iron case.
Certainly take the mithri daggers and anything else of value.
" Reynaldo, you do not look so healthy. Are you ok to continue?. "
Lia picks up the key and looks at the latched iron case. She focuses to see any magical aura on it and checks for any sort of booby trap or key hole.
"Hrm, no false bottoms or illusions. I suppose that's all we have here. What's with the notches on the blades, though? Banged up in a fight? Or several?"
Urp... Reynaldo looks a little green. I feel so...slow.
"An iron maiden? I thought this wizard bloke was supposed to be a good guy... Why's he torturin' people to death and where does this key go?"
Lia tosses the key to Hammerfist. "Only one way to find out. Reynaldo, are you okay to go on? Do we need to get a cleric for you?" Despite the awkward words, she is sincere in her question.
Reynaldo coughs a bit on some bile, then slowly draws his gladius and manages a weak smile. I'll manage, Lia. Let us away!
Seeing that only exit from the room is an iron door to the south, the party tries the door, but finds it locked. Trying the rusty key, the door is easily opened, leading deeper into the complex. Immediately ahead of you there is wall ten feet away. The corridor turns east and west for about fifteen feet, before they both turn south again.
Numerous jail cells line these long-abandoned 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.
"Well, lets stick together an' check out the right side first."
"Right behind you." Lia keeps her scimitar out and lit with magical light so those who aren't the dwarf can see.
Going down the west corridor, you find all the cells empty and hold nothing of interest. As you turn the corner, you notice a curious semicircular stone ridge runs along the ceiling of the hallway. Halfway down the western corridor, another hall from west intersects the hall you are in.
At the most southern point of the corridor you are in, Hammerfist and Lia notice a concealed door. The door was once much better disguised, but decay has left it poorly hidden.
"Looks empty enough. 'Cept for that secret door. Do we want to check it out, or clear the other side first?"
"I am for checking it out. Not wanting to leave something behind us and our way back. Besides, we might forget on the way back if we are being pursued by a pack of kobolds." Ares says the last part with a smile.
"Good point."
Hammerfirst will check the secret door for traps, assuming he doesn't find any he'll nod to the party before opening it.
Lia will also have a look see for traps.
Moving through the secret door, the party spots no traps. Inside this corridor are more empty cells, once again devoid of anything of interest. The corridor travels south for about forty feet before turning east. Following the corridor east, the party makes it about halfway down the corridor when at a cell to the north, a pale face appears at the door’s window, and filthy hands grip the bars. The desperate face immediately calls out. “Oh, gods, kind faces! Aroden bless you, noble souls! 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, we’re all gonna die in here! Kindness, noble souls, we’ve suffered awful! Good Baron Sarvo wills it!”
Reynaldo is taken aback somewhat. Aroden? he mumbles quietly to the others. Surely this person can't have been down here that long...
"You lot know where they keep the keys?"
Something seems out of place here... Reynaldo will point out what he sees to Lia.
Lia will have a look as she judges the person's words.
Lia stares at the man, but can't quite see what Reynaldo is talking about. Neither Hammerfist, nor Lia can get a sense of the man.
"Good Baron Sarvo wills it!” The man replies to the dwarf's question.