While holding the door open for everyone else to get out, Galenus takes a moment to look for his pet spider, and if it's still around, he takes the little guy with him. Come on, Ceda, let's get out of here.
Once everyone is ushered out, he'll follow suit with a leap off the cliff side.
Like a doomed lemming Eddrikk follows the others over the precipice with a leap and a curse.
Stool nods silently at Tiberius and holds on tightly around Tiberius' waist as he begins climbing down. But Tiberius finds the wet rock hard to climb down.
But the dragon man's great strength manages to hold onto the rock. He can barely see the other prisoners go sailing overhead as they jump nimbly past the spider webs and splash into the pool. Even the orc seems to come to in time and jumps out after the rest. Tiberius makes it down to the bottom and stands near the edge of the pool.
Then a strange and unfamiliar voice speaks into all your minds.
Flesh for the faceless lord!
The center of the pool raises up in an amorphous blob that begins moving toward you. There are three passages leading out of this cavern to the north, the west, and the south.
Cyrus tries his luck once more and creeps across the bridge toward the armory.
Stool, can you see in this darkness? If so, which way do I go? My eyes are not suited for these depths.
At the voice in his mind, he he readies his metal bar and shortsword.
Oh dear f%!$! Galenus exclaims, a horrified look on his face. Swim for it!
Putting words to action, Galenus swims towards the nearest exit out of the pool.
Flee towards Galenus! A blob rises from the middle of the pool!"
The mental image includes Galinndan's low-light view of Galenus and the exit both of them are urgently swimming towards.
Irdril see's the blob and swims as fast as she can towards an exit.
Kanzen strikes out after Galenus as well, adrenalin pumping through him.
You find yourself in the armory. Hanging on the walls around you, you see
6 chain shirts
6 suits of studded leather armor
6 shields
6 hand crossbows
20 cases of hand crossbow bolts, each case containing 20 bolts
6 shortswords and 10 daggers
6 bags of caltrops (20 caltrops per bag)
4 100-foot-long coils of silk rope
2 building hammers (not usable as weapons)
2 bags of iron spikes (10 spikes per bag)
There is a rough cloth sack in the corner that could hold 30 pounds of gear.
The sprout replies into Tiberius' mind. Yes I can see fine. There's something scary in the middle of the pool. The rest are heading that way! No to your right! There you go! Careful! It takes a little while but Tiberius catches up with the other prisoners.
Galenus leads the charge blindly toward a tunnel, the other prisoners following him.
The strange ooze in the middle of the pool shudders its way towards the group but stops once its slimed its way a little bit out of the pool.
You all hear again Flesh for the Faceless Lord!
The kua-toa leans on his knees, breathing hard. He looks around.
Ah! Excellent! We can go to the Darklake this way, though it will take quite a while. We can share my teachings with my people.
Above you, you hear an other-worldly shriek.
The four strange creatures seem to have just finished off the other two and are flying away through the south tunnel. The Drow are attempting to restore order in the outpost.
Cyrus gathers some items in the sack as quickly as he can manage then throws a coil of rope over his shoulder and a dagger between his teeth before he dives off the cliff to join the others.
8 Daggers 8 lb
2 hand cross bows 6 lb
2 cases of bolts 3 lbs
1 Shield 6 lb
1 Bag of Spikes 4 lb (Counted as 10 pitons)
Hammer 3 lb
Galenus looks around to get a counting of everyone here.
Beyond that, he's happy to follow the Kua-tao, moving at a slow pace so those who can't see can keep up. Since they're moving at a slow pace, Galenus will cast Mold Earth every so often to cover tracks and footprints in the dirt.
The dragonborns deep voice is heard. I'm here. I think I saw Cyrus run across the bridge again before I began my climb down. Does anyone have a torch?
"A torch? The dwarf doesn't even have pants. We are in desperate need of equipment and supplies."
I have no issue following Shuushar for now but we need weapons. Cyrus, can you hear me? We are in a tunnel off the lake.
Yes, pants would be nice, Galenus says as he waddles along. Fortunately, he is hairy enough not to show anything undue.
"Anywhere but here is fine. Let's get moving from this place and we will figure out the rest as we go."
The ooze reacts quickly, arounsed by the previous activity in its pool. It strikes at Cyrus as he lands gracefully in the pool.
but his agility is too much for the slow ooze. It shrieks into his mind
BUT I NEED YOUR FLESH!!!
Having fallen too far behind for the telepathy to work, Cyrus looks around to try to determine which tunnel his friends took.
Unable to make out tracks on the hard stone, Cyrus heads in a random direction.
Rushing along, the goblin catches up with his allies. He nearly faints with relief when he gets close enough and hears Galinndan's voice calling to him inside his head. He rejoins the motley group led by the Kua-Toa. Three deep gnomes, the kua-toa, a strange little fungus guy, a quaggoth, a derro, a useful dwarf shield maiden, and a grumpy orc all trundle along through the Underdark with a human-looking person, two elves, two darves, a dragon-man, and a goblin.
As the group moves along slowly, they manage to catch their breath and recover some of their ability to fight.
The derro cackles joyfully.
Yes! Yes! We have escaped! Exactly as I planned.
He claps the nearest person cheerily on the back.
Well done, my fine friends!
The noble elven prince-turned Quaggoth shakes his head wearily.
He ever carries on and on about his own brilliance...
The female deep gnome speaks up.
Yes he's a pain but at least he's not a stinking drow.
She eyes Kanzen warily but gives no apologies.
The kua-toa speaks calmly.
Now, now, we must not judge any sentient creature merely by their race. After all, Derendil is nothing like other Quaggoth. And I am rather different from other's of my own kind.
Cyrus! Good to have you back with us!
For want of something to occupy his mind for a moment, Galinndan indulges his curiosity. After all, the group is heading for other kua-toa.
Shuushar, I have not met others of your kind. How are they different to you?
Shuushar stares ahead with tranquility and responds to Galinndan.
My people are known for madness. It is only through long weeks of contemplation and tranquility that I have overcome this flaw of the Kuo-Toa. I will teach my people to do the same.
As the party moves forward through the Underdark, those in front notice a slithering, rustling noise. They look into a small passage to their left and draw the attention of three horrifically large creatures that dash toward you on far too many legs.
Galinndan barely feels recovered after the walk.
Irdril sits and rests as the others have a convo in a language she cannot understand.
"Can someone try to get these off of me?" she holds her wrists out..
Shuushar tried to free Irdril at her request
but the Kuo-Toa can't get a good enough grasp on Irdril's chains. Some of the other prisoners also attempt to free themselves.
Topsy manages to nimbly slip her bonds while none of the others were able to.
The deep gnome in the back pipes up.
I'll bet anyone 10 gold that at least one of us is knocked down by these creatures before we kill them all!
Underneath the hostile creatures can be seen a skeleton with some slightly moldy armor on its body and an ax lying near it.
"I've brought plunder me boys have at it." he says dropping the sack to the ground.
---
"There ain't be time for this. Keep moving." He urges the others.
After a quick dip and a sprint for his life, Eddrikk enlists the help of anyone available to get him out of his chains.
Before the fight Galenus tries to break the chains.
Wait. I see something. Something we should make time for. I'll try and get around to toss it to you, and then we can try to make our escape.
He grabs a dager and carefully circles the monster, making his way to the treasure behind it, prepared to toss the treasure to the group and them try to make an escape.
Tiberious hears about weapons and exchanges his metal bar for a shield.
I'll take the shield, someone can use this metal bar I found, it should make a decent blunt weapon.
It is clear Tiberius is not fully trusting of this Kuo-toa's "sanity".
Tiberius curses under his breath. Curse this dark place, I cannot see anything.
Galenus breaks free from his chains, the muscles he built up carrying around all those magical books bulging and making him look absolutely jacked.
The kuo-toa nods at Tiberius' complaints.
I can't absolutely guarantee we wouldn't be bothered. Sometimes my people get bizarre ideas in their heads but generally it's nothing too harmful.
Hearing Tiberius' complains, Shuushar holds him back and thinks to the others.
Do be careful! There are some dangerous beasts to our left.
Galinndan is pleased to see Cyrus.
"Well done! And a dagger is most welcome."
He takes it, feeling the balance.
To Tiberius:
"I work better with blades, but I appreciate the offer."
Galinndan, seeing Galenus moving in, readies his dagger and himself.
I will hold, either to catch or to charge."
Kanzen gives Topsy an empty look at her remark about stinking drow, but says nothing. He moves towards Cyrus, taking a dagger with a nod of thanks.
Stool speaks into Tiberius' head
There are a bunch of creepers over there! If you step over there, you'll be right in front of all of them.
The centipedes move up to Galenus and Galinndan, who strike at them with their daggers.
Galenus bisects one of the many-legged crawlers while Galinndan, hampered by his chains, can't quite land a blow on the other while it winds towards him.
Galinndan keeps slashing at the crawler.
Galenus and I are under attack here.
The monsters chitter, chatter, and hiss horrendously and attack Galinndan and Galenus with their alien fangs.
Both of the brave front-liners fall under the fangs of the strange creepy crawlies.
The orc grunts from the back.
I'll take their daggers.
Jimjar whines in Undercommon.
Why oh why didn't anyone take my bet? I told you! I told you!
"Does no an' listen to reason around here?" Cyrus grumbles under his breath as he approaches the creatures with his dagger. He swipes at the creature before tumbling away.
Cyrus destroys another one of the terrors, leaving only one remaining, rasping and hissing its strange mouthparts.