Wallace removes his heavy winter gloves and picks up the chain weapon by what approximated a handle. "Perhaps the magic of this device is hidden somehow?" the human asks, mostly to himself as he prods the device trying to divine its function.
1. Well Made.
2. Probably one of a kind as stand alone weapons.
3. And under the iron clad and deadly grip of the Technic League of Numeria.
Without a doubt if the group passed through Numeria, they would not come out unscathed due to carrying such items. The League was noot to be trifled with nor the barbarians of Numeria that hated all technology in part because of the league but mostly because of the many horrors this technology has unleashed upon their lands.
Upon closer inspection the items appeared to have unknown writing on them, none of which any of you could read...
Aradacemorn eyes the boulder in the way and regards the group once more before looking to where the pike is so adamantly pulling. The technological items held his gaze for sometime before he finally spoke. "I'd becareful Wallace, what little I know of Numeria is that the items that sometimes are found there are not to be taken lightly."Aradacemorn approaches the tall glowing weapon and lifts it in his small hands like it were a toy. It was awkward due to his size but his vast strength made it look like child's play as he moved it around.
As soon as his fingers brushed the grip the weapon started to thrumm, a deep pulsing noise that reverberated throughout the cavern the instant Aradacemorn's halfling hand neared the trigger. But upon the sudden and unexpected reaction he withdrew his hand and set back in the place he got it from. "I rest my claws."
the winged body past the boulder reminds you of yourselves in wing span and style, being reptilian and all. While the others are discussing you note grimly that whoever it is has yet to move since your arrival. It is likely they have perished like everything else in this death filled cave.
Wallace glances over to the glowing weapon with interest before giving the halfling a nod placing the weapon he held back down gently. "Yes it is true that many things coming from that place are dangerous. It answers a few questions I had about that queen if she came from there as well. I can't imagine the Technic league of that place would have willingly let an object like that out of their hands. The rest of these objects are obviously of incredibly fine craftsmanship as well. A shame we will very likely not be able to actually sell them though." The man says gesturing specifically to the glowing weapon as he shakes his head and looks in the direction of the jumping pick's tug.
" Assuming we can take it with us I can attempt to divine their purpose with better suited blessings tomorrow. To our present concern though I can say that I'd like to grant the dead of this cavern some measure of peace. Unless there are objections I'd like to see if we can find what this object pulls to. Who knows, perhaps the fortress is real as well. If the stories I've heard before are any indication Dwarven fortresses are a point of prestige for a dragon to have as a lair."
The human suggests as he looks toward the dragon in his company then to the path forward.
Looking at the weapons and armor Rhavenna is vaguely intrigued, though not overly much so since the armor would clearly do her no good. Working together we could probably move that boulder pretty easily" She says to Aradacemorn
Aradacemorn gives the armor one last look, looking between the strange looking leather armor and the rather oddly formed breastplate that appeared to be made of black scales. "Indeed. Even in this form my strength is no less, but height is an advantage."
Between Rhavenna and Aradacemorn the boulder moves, its sore work but Aradacemorn is able to fit by standing under Rhavenna due to the difference in height.
The boulder rolls back on what appears to be a worn track, however due to the weight getting it started proved the biggest issue. By the time it had finished half a rotation odd marks on the stone were revealed and in an instant Aradacemorn ran his halfling hand over it. "Claw marks... Strong claws indeed."
His eyes shine in the dark as he turns to look at the winged body in the back. His nostrils flare as he inhales deeply, a low growl escaping his lips. "Something smells wrong..."
The moment the boulder is moved aside the harpies skull starts clacking its jaws ever so slightly. Just enough you can feel its movements but no one else appears to notice...
Wallace glances to his belt for a moment before looking into the murk.
"Beware the corpses, ghouls and ghasts are masters of playing possum." The human retrieving his banner and mace, cautious of what might come next.
The corpse in the room is accompanied by a Dwarven skeleton some several feet away, this one appears to have died face down, their pike off to the side discarded.
Aradacemorn eyes the more complete body from some distance away, not overly concerned but wary of it as a precaution. He finally steps back out of the room. "I will watch out here."
Wallace shrugs to the dragon shifting grip on his mace " I doubt they'd be able to hide from a dragons eyes but one can never be too careful. Though I suppose just keeping watch in general would be best. I'm curious to the nature of that corpse, its more complete than most of the other bodies and seems to be of a different nature." the human states gesturing to the corpse with his weapon.
Rhavenna follows cautiously with her bow ready.
"That's because it's of a nature with us..."
Wallace looks over to Maiathreen, then back to the corpse.
" Well I suppose that explains some of my interest in it. Curious though I wonder how they got here."
The wings flicker visibly and sluggishly they start to part. Revealing a shriveled figure. The creature has obviously been starving and as it opens its wings its joints loudly crack and pop in cavitation as though it had been sitting still for a long time. Clouded eyes stare blankly in the eerie torchlight as its mouth moves wordlessly, scales flaking off of its cheeks as its jaw moves. Yet it doesn't speak, not a whisper only the sound of short gasps as it starts to breath heavily.
Like something out of a dark dream it rolls onto its stomach, its face momentarily brushing the rock floor. It lays there for a few seconds before lifting its head on its bony neck and gazing out towards where you all were last talking its clouded eyes appeared unmoving. It pressed itself up onto bone thin legs, every rib was showing on its body which now that it was standing had no shred of clothing whatsoever.
Its breathing is harsh and rapid as it's head moves back and forth unsteadily, its yellow scales reflecting strangely in the green torch light.
"Who are you old one?" Maiathreen asks his voice a mix of hisses and growls.
The yellow scaled, bone thin creatures milky eyes move towards where Maithreen's voiced echoed...
... their eyes nearly meet, though it appears to be still unable to do much more then stare. Unfocused in Mai's direction. It starts to stagger towards him then its knees trembling with each step. Yet still its mouth moves wordlessly its breathing now more of a raspy gasping now. As it staggered it kept its hands out in front of it and left its wings to drag behind it as they now hung limply on its back.
It's at this moment that Aradacemorn steps back into the room to see what is going on and halts the moment he sees the staggering scaled creature heading for Mai. Aeria appears to be unable to approach and visibly backs away as it moves towards Mai...
Wallace pauses on seeing the corpse rise. " Well I did just say it." The human readying his mace as his brow quirks.
" Though I have no idea why it isn't trying to eat us if its a ghoul. Are you intending to fight us or do you seek something else?"
Bow leveled, Rhavenna calls out. "STOP!"
Everyone's talking seems to distract it, it stops, its head swiveling. Searching once more until Rhavenna's sudden challenge makes its movements more frantic. Which in turn makes its breathing more ragged as well. It's clawed tipped fingers start to grow longer, elongating into full length claws.
Wallace rather than readying further for battle loosens the grip on his weapon as his brows knit. " Does anyone else feel a lack of I suppose... threat from all this? It almost feels like I.. I wasn't in danger from that creature, like it isn't real. Hrmm.. Or that my natural instincts to a threat are being suppressed somehow. I'm going to check to see if there is magic in the air." The human posits as he mutters a word and begins concentrating.
" Does the creature.. 'Feel' real to your senses everyone? I doubt its a simple illusion but it could be something more esoteric if my more primal senses are not registering this as a threat."
With its claws elongated the winged reptillian stands in the eerie light of Wallace's torch looking ready to fight. Its rasping breathes though seem to indicate otherwise and after a few seconds it falters, collapsing to its knees as its claws slowly retract. It sits on its knees, gasping for breath, looking utterly exhausted despite having done so little.
Aradacemorn entered further into the room then, the polymorphed silver was mumbling something under his breath. Though it was loud enough to catch the reptilian creatures attention by the time he finished.
As soon as he was done speaking his halfling face twisted into a thoughtful expression. "Interesting, this one is not easily seen from on high."
Wallace quirks a brow and channels a wave of healing energy into the room keeping a close eye on the new arrival to see if its appearance changed. " Undead don't get exhausted."
The healing wave touched all those present, including the thin reptilian but there didn't appear to be any change in its condition. It appeared to still be as tired as it was before. Though after Wallace's and Aradacemorn's recent actions it was getting more animated again, though its exhaustion made its actions appear more distressing than threatening. It's wings fluttered so weakly they were barely moving at all, its gasping breaths were slowly coming in fits and were more and more irregular by the minute. It's body was thin and the exposed ribs were only covered by its scaled skin.
Aradacemorn appears to be doing something again, his eyes beginning to shine as he focuses on the pathetic creature before him. It's easy to tell what he was doing, he was detecting magic on the creature...
Aeria soon follows suit now seeing that the threat seemed to be passed...
Wallace looks at the creature in question and begins examining it further himself. The human taking a few cautious steps forward and crouching or bobbing as needed to examine the creature.
The human states in Draconic, gambling on the beings potential knowledge of the language.
Lowering her bow, Rhavenna studies the creature, trying to discern it's motives.
Wallace finds there is no magical aura to be seen on this creature, though his words appear to get its attention and again it looks in the direction of his voice but does little else. The momentary shaking of its arms shows it clearly can't do much else now save for sit as it appears to lack the strength to move.
His heal check reveals what was obvious from the start, the creature was breathing, suffering from exhaustion and severe malnutrition. Also he is able to clearly discern it was blind as well, as his torch light didn't even register a blink from its clouded eyes. Though at this close he noticed it was sniffing the air through its thin nostrils and now that he was close it was starting to lose interest. It was sniffing in Rhavenna's direction and eventually Mai and Livains.
The pike continues its frustratingly annoying tugging, pulling you back towards the wall you had come near before...
_
Rhavenna can tell that the creature was no longer hostile in fact it was her sudden shout that sent it into a defensive stance. Which ultimately led to it using what little strength it had left in a mere few seconds it tried to defend itself. Now from what she could tell it was just sitting there, unable to do anything and completely at the their mercy.
" They're starving and exhausted, blinded as well along with what I can only assume is a laundry list of other maladies. Its a pitiable state but they do not seem interested or capable in harming us. I think they are hungry." The human informed, unsure of even the creatures gender as he tried to decide on how to treat the humanoid acting so much like a starving stray.
Not all who you encounter are foes thin one. the human smiles thinly seeming to be recalling something as he reaches into his gear and procures a heavily squashed bundle of rations. Wallace placing the package down and a canteen of water with the cap open next to it.
" Near as I can tell this one is in no danger of dying immediately, we should press forward. We can decide what to do here later on. The spirits are beginning to grow more insistent." The human suggested as he stood up and began striding to to wall the pick so desperately drove toward.
Maiathreen watches the emaciated dragon-kin in confusion wondering how something so similar to Livain and himself appeared here.
Wallace's words only have it staring in his direction blankly, its clouded eyes blinking occasionally but still too tired to do much more then that. As you all turn to leave the emaciated creature seems to take notice of the food and scratches with its clawed hands until it finds the canteen. From there it instinctively starts to try and feed itself. Though at its current state its attempts would be hampered immensely.
Aradacmorn leaves with the rest of you and Aeria hesitates before eventually staying behind...
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Approaching the wall from before the Pickaxe was tugging nearly violently once more and causing Wallace to actually strain some to hold it back...
A cursory check with detect magic reveals a heavily faded aura of magic but the stone radiates magic from the ceiling to the floor and even in some of the adjoining caves on either side of it. Digging further it is identified as a magical reinforcement spell. The stone had been enhanced to resist the pickaxes the dwarves had been using specifically...
By the time you have discovered this Aeria has returned and hangs towards the back of the group with Livain.
Wallace looks at the wall and then to the desperate tugging pick before grinning. " Well the enchantment that trapped you all here still remains. Lets see if it can still withstand you eh?" With that Wallace shuffles the items he'd been holding to free up both hands and swings at the wall with the pickaxe.
Wallace grins sheepishly and looks to rhavenna and Aradacmorn specifically. " Well that didn't work. Either of you think you could break through this? This is the path we need to follow."
Wallace looks at the wall, then back to the pick and shrugs continuing to work. " My anytool can be formed into a pick and you all can likely grab some tools from around here. The path is through here and I'm certainly not going to be able to do this alone. Help would be greatly appreciated."
Wallace takes up the pickaxe and for an instant the world greys, as he lifts the pickaxe for the strike it suddenly feels like the weight of a mountain was on his shoulders. As he swung it at the wall, the world came back into focus and the hard, magically strengthened stone. Shattered. The stone gave way as though it had been hit by a boulder, the rock flew outward away from Wallace and into three unsuspecting dwarves on the other side of the wall...
... crushing them completely and leaving them covered in the rocky rubble of the destroyed wall.
The way was open now, into what appeared to be the worked stone of a lightless area. The Pickaxe's movements have died down completely...
You are unable to drop the pickaxe, it is througholy stuck to you...
Though oddly your mind recalls this as a sub basement to the fort that was partially constructed using the rock out of the mine you are standing in. Most of the fortress was imbedded into the cliff and mountaintop to make it less noticeable to untrained eyes.
Though the basement level is a sprawling area to cover...
Wallace stared dumbly at the pick, back up to the hole and then returning to the pick.
"Well..." the human starts weakly "That certainly lights the path forward. We seem to have crushed what might have been a vanguard, doubtless something heard that though." The man then goes to switch around his weapons and reprepare himself but stops looking at his hand instead. An opposing finger tapping on a hand with the dull thwock of stone. His right hand grinding audibly as the digets move slightly before settling back into a death grip on the ancient pick.
"Thats however, is going to make things somewhat harder. Fortunately a little petrification won't be putting me off, there are damsels to slay and monsters to rescue." The human jokes, mostly attempting to fool himself more than others about the somewhat concerning event unfolding.
As the group lingers in the new opening the smell of rot finall hits, as a light breeze carries it through the gap in the wall. So upn closer inspection the three dwarves are not of the living of course, their bodies, clothing and armor rotting and rusted. Their figures appear quite gaunt as well...
Wallace easily identifies them as Dwarven Ghouls...
Aside from rotting equipment they are each equipped with long, nasty looking claws and broken dwarven weapons, consisting of Waraxes, hammers and heavy crossbows.
However little else of value is seen...
Wallace nudges one of the newly identified undead with his boot, nodding as he notes their various features.
"Unless any of you feel like now would be an excellent time to test those strange devices we found I'd say we ought to move on."
"Keep an eye open. there are doubtlessly more of these poor souls and possibly whatever it was that made them in these winding halls." With that the human rests the pick on one shoulder and begins walking forward.
Aradacemorn covers his face with a look of utter annoyance on his halfling brow. "A few less to worry about at least..."
Aeria approaches the corpses and tilts her head before prodding at their flesh with a wing claw. She continues her examinations for a moment before a deep gong sound echoes through the halls on either side of you. This gonging continues for several moments...
At the sound Aradacemorn plunges into the open area, his halfling hands raised and clenched into fists. "Not much room in here but if I must I can... Make do." He smiles as he watches the right hand hallway.
The area you are all standing in is a long hallway of work stone with high ceilings and no light to speak of save for Wallaces Torchlight . The hallway proceeds beyond your vision and about 20ft in and on the right is a hallway heading off as well...
Vengeance's Pickaxe
Has the statistics of a Heavy Pick with the additional properties.
+1 and Bane vs Undead.
_______________________________________________________________________
At the sounding of the gong you remember immediately from the borrowed memories, of the deceased dwarven miner, that this is a warning gong in the highest point of the fort. The number of gongs indicates that these ghouls know the party is here! It's the call to rally!
" They know we are here. Do we stay and prepare an ambush or advance and try to strike before they are ready?" Wallace states with conviction as he looks into the cavern. the human glancing at the pick as he first considers where everyone might gather once the gong was sounded and secondly where some of the better choke points were in the fortress. And perhaps how best to reach those places.
Moving forward into the cleared area, stepping over the rubble and crushed ghouls, Rhavenna readies her bow, staring down the hall straight ahead, her eyes searching the darkness.
Memories of this level start to flood into your mind. Though seen from a time when torches lit the worked stone halls and their was once life in this place.
The overlapping memories and your vision momentarily makes you lose focus but you easily shake it off for now and focus on the path ahead. Though right now you are seeing the ghostly wisps of once living dwarves going about their day despite knowing full well they really weren't there.
From your knowledge there was two sets of stairs, one roughly 50 ft ahead on the left, that lead to the dormitories and living quarters and a second set at the end of the miners area that lead up to where the mining equipment was kept.
Between these two areas were a few workshops and a small mining area and an unfinished hallway due to a tunnel collapse during the excavation process.
Nothing jumps out of the darkness ahead of Rhavenna but Aradacemorn nods in approval as you all move up to group with him. Aeria readies her claws for combat, appearing to be saving her casting ability for later if needed.
With your superior senses being able to reach out upto easily around sizxty feet ahead you can make out what appears to be a broad opening on the left hand side and a change in the walls texture on the right along with what appears to be an open doorway on the right hand side.
The gong sounds have died down but not much else can be heard.
Wallace looks distant for a moment, cheek twitching slightly as he turns his head to follow something for a few seconds. The man then coming back from whatever it was as he looks to the left.
" There's a passage on the left, it should lead up into the fortress. The tunnels are the lowest point. If we go further I think it leads into the rooms for processing ores and replacement mining equipment."
"If we're moving we should do it before we're swarmed by undead." Rhavenna says urgently.
Wallace nods and begins walking toward the indicated path.
Aradacemorn nods in agreement, while giving Wallace a strange look, his eyes narrowing as Wallace explains what lies ahead. He shifts from his position once the group moves past and dashes his way back up in front. Despite his smaller form he was no less capable it seemed.
A wide stairwell comes into view as you make your way down the hallway, the shuffling of everyone's feet on the ancient stone is more than enough noise to intermix with what could be approaching attackers. The stairwell on the left was wide enough to allow two normal sized people to walk side by side, it was tall enough to even allow Rhavenna to climb the stairs without stooping.
With the stairs on the left there were more sights ahead, a large room that faded into darkness beyond the furthest darkvision lay ahead, while two doors, the closet one ten feet away being wide open and the second one some 40ft away was closed. Battered wooden doors by the look of them hung from equally damaged hinges. The walls here show the signs of a battle long since past, scared by blades and the broken metal of the fight litters the ground at everyone's feet.
Sounds came from the door on the right, a sort of plodding dragging noise until eventually the sight of a jawless dwarf ghoul came into sight. It's claws raised as it rasped through the hole in its throat as the remains of its rotted tongue hung freely...
Rhavenna's releases her bowstring, having been at the ready this whole time, plunging an arrow into the ghouls chest and causing it to stagger from the arrows impact...
The sound of her bowsnap brings about the sound of activity from up ahead. The noise of doors being jostled and the sound of rusted hinges grinding open was more then enough warning that more enemies were on the way...
AC 14, touch 12, flat-footed 12 (+2 Dex, +2 natural)
hp 4/13 (2d8+4) (If it reaches 0 hp it is destroyed)
Fort +2, Ref +2, Will +5
As Rhavenna's arrows slams into the ghoul's chest a ball of fire quickly follows it to consume it to ash.