All seems quiet as Philgor silently follows the group.
Following Terrin's advice, you sneak into Arwyll Manor and descend to the basement, where you find blankets, broken bottles, candlesticks, and other detritus litter this unfinished cellar room. A thin layer of dust covers everything in the cellar. The walls are made of stone and packed dirt, and the only obvious exit is a crumbling ladder leading up to a trap door in the ceiling. A large flat stone has been propped against the northern wall. The eastern corner of the room glows lightly with warm yellow light, where a number of glowing, cat-sized beetles appear to have congregated.
Looking across at the glowing insects in the eastern corner, Qiola tries to determine what they are and if they are a threat to be wary of.
If she moves about the space, will will do so mindfully/carefully/quietly as possible.
Rizu lifts his nose in the air and attempts to use scent to locate anything noteworthy or any possible threat in the space.
He moves on quiet paws.
"Are those...?" the half-elf asks about the beetles. The leaning stone seems out of place, so she wants to start there but is mindful of the beetles and the cat's Stealth.
You believe they're a type of fire beetle -- they can be dangerous, but likely will not bother you if you don't disturb them.
The leaning stone slab seems to mask a doorway.
Qiola finished Kyra's sentence in quieter voice, "Aye, they're fire beetles. Dangerous, aye, but if we leave 'em alone, they'll probably leave us alone."
For now, Qiola noted the presence of the fire beetles, but decided upon searching the remainder of the space and leaving them undisturbed.
She quietly moved toward the large, flat stone propped against the northern wall and examined it to see if it served a purpose or there was something beyond.
"I agree with Qiola. Leave the beetles alone. The last thing we need to do is start a fire and bring the whole manor house down on top of us. Follow me."
With that said he move to the stone. He pulls out an ever- burning torch and looks behind it.
Lyra gestures for Qiola to lead the way through the door way, then the other halflings. "I'll go last to provide cover if we need it," she whispers.
EDIT: or let Philgor lead... : )
As Philgor stepped in first to look behind the slab, Qiola moved behind him, with Rizu behind her. Since Lyra was covering the back with her bow, Qiola would cover the front with her bow. The Halfing's eyes roamed across the narrow space, Philgor's torch providing light - looking for any traps before attempting to step through the opening.
Lisbet follows, not really expecting trouble but ready for anything.
Xorrin keeps by his wife's side as they progress.
You make your way out of the room, being careful not to disturb the beetles.
Looking back, you realize the slab masks the passage far more effectively from this end, making it nigh-invisible if you didn't know what you were looking for.
Ahead of you, rusted picks, shovels, and hammers lie scattered on the ground in this wide cavernous area, tunnels branching off in three directions.
Lisbet claps the front of her shield with a Hai! and a light grows across its face. "Now that we can see a bit better, which way? Any trails in the dirt?"
Argus will ignite a sunrod (can't have too much light when exploring underground.)
The abandoned mining gear is much more in Argus's ballywick than devils and wild creatures.
The gear appears to be rusted and of little use, Argus.
You hear, coming from the southeast tunnel, the sound of orcs' voices.
To her companions, she warns in quiet voice, "I hear Orcish voices comin' from the southeast tunnel."
"How long do we have? Dark places like this are better with Olive." She moves to flank the tunnel to the south.
Lisbet offers sarcasm to the news there are orcs nearby, "So close to, almost inside of Arwyll's? Maybe they have come to trim the hedges?" She adjusts the grip on her sword and adds, "Should we go and speak with them? Words of silk or words of steel?"
"Orcs aren't interested in silken words, lass. Best we be ready with our weapons," the Halfing responded in quiet voice before moving to take cloaked position on the other side of the south-eastern tunnel, bow readied.
Rizu follows his mistress and waits silently in the shadows by her side. He will smell the Orcs when they draw nearer.
Lisbet chuckles at the way the halfling missed the sarcasm. "True enough, but at least one alive to ask why they're here."
You move quickly and stealthily toward the far cave.
Unfortunately, while you can hear a female voice and at least a couple other orcs responding, they have no light, preventing you from seeing exact details.
Philgor moves to the mouth of the southeast. Reaching down with his weapon he draws a line on the dirt floor.
In a hushed voice he whispers to Qiola, "I will hold here. Retreat back or call for help if you need it."
"We have light. The chances are we have been spotted. Since they haven't attacked we should parlay," the half elf states. Lisbet and the halfling must be wearing off on me, I don't think it will work.
Argus cups his ear, trying to hear more clear...then he realizes the voices are speaking Orcish.
"Lady Vegazi, why do I have the feeling we are about to meet more of your siblings?"
Vegazi nods.
"Maybe," she says, unhappily.
It sounds as if they're searching for something.
"There must be an entrance," the female voice tells the others. "It's somewhere here, I'm sure of it. Look harder!"
As Philigor takes her position and instructs for her to move back, Qiola does, her bow ready. Rizu moves back with his mistress.
In a whisper she says, "They're lookin' for an entrance. I don't think they've seen us."
"Everyone in position? Let's hold them at the door," the half-elf says. Once Philgor, Lisbet Rizu and the others are flanking the door she pulls back her arm in the bowstring gesture and unleashes an arcane arrow toward the orcish voices.
(plus poison DC 13 for 6 rounds)
Lisber grins eager to engage these orcs. Hanging to the side of the passage entrance add she waits, sword ready.
In low voice, the Halfling states, "I'm calculatin' they're less than a hundred feet from us."
She nocks an arrow and waits in her position, sensing Rizu's eagerness to engage with the Orcs. "We're ready for 'em."
Xorrin readies himself to charge at the first orc that comes in range, causing a bottleneck for the archers to pick them off.
You hear sudden screams and shouts of outrage from the cavern as Lyra's arrow explodes into three vermin that disappear into the darkness.
O2: 2, poisoned
Lyra nuges her bow anxiously.
Philgor moves up and waits for the enemy to arrive.
"That seems to have gotten their attention."
"Let's bring them to us." Lisbet shouts, "Do you think the crawlies will hold them long? We need to get out of here and warn the village!" She then winks at Philgor. Hopefully the orcs won't want to be discovered and will come running this way.
Xorrin: 24
Argus: 19
Lisbet: 18
Philgor: 18
Antagonists: 17
Lyra: 9
Qiola: 7
Xorrin and Philgor take up stances ready for the orcs to emerge, while Argus quaffs an extract in preparation for the battle.
But the tension seems to drag as the orcs don't come spilling toward you, instead -- from the sound of it dispatching Lyra's summoned creatures instead.
You hear a female voice in Orcish: "Machen Sie sich bereit. Ich sehe mehrere von ihnen! Lassen Sie sie nicht in die Höhle zu bekommen!"
She quietly informs her companions of the Orc's words, "The female Orc said she'd seen some of us. Told her lot to get ready and not let us get into the cave."
Qiola readies a ranged attack against the enemy.
reloads swiftly and fires again.
For now, Rizu waits by his mistress' side to see what the Orcs will do. Using scent to try to pin-point their general location in case they are trying to advance, closer, in the dark.
"Well in that case we should march on in there. And by we, I am thinking more centipedes carrying torches than us."
Once she feels the link disappear the half-elf will send more centipedes in.
"Let the light bearing centipedes proceed!", the Halfling agreed quietly - eager for more light with which to see the Orcs up ahead before moving in on them.
Philgor throws his everburning torch down the hall in hopes that it will illuminate the enemy.
"Let the centipedes loose. We need to engage them or they are just going to fall back and hinder us all through the caves."
Lyra pulls back her arm and lets loose another centipedes.
Lyra: 9
Qiola: 7
Xorrin: 24
Lisbet: 18
Philgor: 18
Argus: 19
Antagonists: 17
Lyra summons three additional centipedes as Qiola fires wildly into the darkness.
Philgor tosses his torch down the passage after them, illuminating four orcs, a woman you guess is likely Vegazi's sister, and a wolf in the far cavern.
Argus nods politely to Philgor and follows suit. His vial misses any of the enemies, but the explosion echoes thorugh the cavern the cavern -- and sends debris falling from the ceiling, a minor cave-in that sends rubble pouring onto the line of enemies, burying one of them as the others cry out in pain .
Vegazi's arrow takes out another of the orcs, but chanting from Vegazi's sister plunges the cavern back into darkness a moment later, hiding whatever actions and movements they make.
O1:
O4:
W:
Y: