Hahaha... looks like the town folk have a plan of their own... not as spineless as they first appeared...
Arnek walks over to the wagon to see if there are any more bundles... and tries to get a closer look at the villagers bundles as he walks past them.
There's a few different packages, but there are only two types. One type has one or two bundles but the rest numbering up to 15 are the same. They seem to be filled with something. Sand? Dirt? What is that?
"Yes, quickly, Just put that one over there. and set these two a bit further in."
The group of guards work fast and before long its seems that everything is set up. The head guard approaches you all again.
"You all should get a safe distance back. Not sure how big the explosion is going to be."
"Explosion?!? How far back could possibly be safe?"
Explosion?
"Further away than this, at least another 20 to 30 meters to be sure."
"These are people from Terrace inside the mines! They are wrong to harass the townsfolk but we can't just kill them? Korunar says to the group.
I'm sure this will achieve the same plan..... in a safer way for the townsfolk.
Emerich moves back 20 feet.
"We're ready over here!" one of the other guards calls out. She's thin for someone who's seen combat, but she hurriedly makes her way over to you all.
"Here," she says as she hands the head guard what looks like thin wooden rod. Its engraved with what appears to be runes and symbols. [b]"We convinced Wackabee to make us a detonator. Safest way to set the thing off. After we activate it, the whole system should collapse."
"Excellent!" the head guard exclaims. He turns to you all.
"Would you any of you like to do the honors?"
Sure.
Emerich takes the device.
Thanks.
Everyone clear?
Emerich holds the device.
How does it work?
Emerich hands it to Arnek.
Here. You know magic.
Arnek looks down at the stick wondering how it works.
he casts detect magic and examines the magical device...
Wow... Um... so are you guys ready for this?
He scratches his head with the stick.
I mean, we're about to kill allot of people.
Arnek looks at his companions trying to figure out whether they REALLY want to side with the towns folk over the other groups from Terrace.
"You can't be serious?! We're here to help to progress with the Abyss, not to kill a lot of people we might even know! There has to be another way!"
"Before we kill our own people, we should try to convince the townsfolk not blow them up. When the people in the mine are done, the Abyss might be done and they can return to Teracce, leaving the townsfolk alone. And if we can't convice them, we should try to delay them until the people inside finish their plan. Or do you want to return to Terrace and tell Gregor that we watched how all the progress disappeared in a big firework?"
"I agree with Korunar. As little harm as possible was one of the guide lines, was it not?
We might even talk a bit of sense into our 'colleagues', what does the town have to lose if we try? I'd like to kill as few people as we have to....."
"I wonder if these townsfolk have some goblin blood....trying to make the most spectacular BOOM...."
Trini nod. "There are so many of us, I'm sure we'd succeed in battle. I think that is how Gozreh would want me to fight."
Seems like a minor enchantment has been set on the stick so that if it breaks in half, it will activate the magical inscriptions on the packages, detonating them. In other words...If it breaks, things go boom.
The head guard seems to be getting impatient.
"If you're not going to detonate, I'll do it myself. Give it here."
He reaches for the trigger stick Arnek is holding.
No matter what happens, someone dies.
They might find the artifact that ends this iteration. Ending this struggle. But what if they don't? We'd have squandered our only chance to help these people.
What if they don't find what they need, then, huh? They'll stay here for as long as it takes. Months, maybe years.
Arnek does what every smart person does when he's not sure what to do. He Stalls.
Looking at the head Guard.Look first off we are WAY TOO CLOSE to the blast area. I know allot about Geology and this is a very tricky type of substrate that your going to be blasting through. I'm pretty sure that there's a sandstone inclusion here which with all the seismic activity could liquidate and possibly kill all of us here. That's not even taking into account the local fault line. You could easily cause not just a landslide here, and send huge boulders flying in our direction but this might even trigger an earthquake that could hurt allot of people back at the village. Before we do this we should back off at least 100 yards further than we are now.
The head guard looks at you oddly, but shakes his head.
"Then you lot should get out of here. After all, now that they're inside we probably won't have a fight on our hands. As for us, let's just say our constitution could handle a bit of a rough tumble, eh?"
He laughs.
"Give the trigger here. I'll do it myself."
By Torag's beard....
While Arnek was making a particularly good bluff, Daniel removed his crossbow from his back, inspecting its lever, and setting the tension to have it shoot at the slightest.
"A moment, if i may, there's something wrong here.
Could you pass me the item, Arnek?"
Daniel 'accidentally drops' the trigger on his on-tension x-bow, ...
"Whoa...come here.."
It is bolted into the cave.....
"Oops.....i guess we'll be on a retrieval then."
The head guard looks at Daniel with bewilderment.
"By the Great Tree mother were you dropped as a child!?"
He stands there thinking to himself, growing more nervous as he glances towards the caves.
"Alright." He announces as he places both hands on Arnek, giving him a stern look.
"Since the trigger's gone and we haven't got much time, I want you to set it off yourself. C'mon, we never know when they'll send back the injured."
"By the Great Tree mother were you dropped as a child!?"
"I must've slept worse than i thought, or the climate is getting to me."
Daniel says with a shrug.
He turns his head to the others, a sparkle of excitement shining in the dwarf's eyes.
"Shall we get going and retrieve it?
It would be a waste of careful engineering if it were lost just like that.
Even the good sir guard here would have to admit that."
"Yeah, let's go and find the detonator. Your cheap crossbow won't have send it too far." Korunar says with a brief wink to Daniel.
Then he turns to the guard.
"We'll find the detonator and set it off as soon as we get out again. If Arnek is right, you better get yourself and the other guards into safety."
Emerich screams.
You f$%&ing ba$+@rd! You ruined our chance to save this town!
Emerich calms down, sighs, and facepalms.
You had to be clumsy...
The head guard curses with Emerich.and shoves Arnek back, hard enough for Arnek to fall to ground. He's clearly on edge.
"Fine! Go get the detonator. But we'll be out here waiting.
He holds up his hand to his chest, just above his heart and whispers something to himself.
"Mother Tree be with us as we drive these intruders from our land." is what he mutters under his breath.
Trini pats Daniel on the back for his quick thinking (and, while she's at it, casts Guidance on him).
She will bless her bow with Storm Strike and cast Light in the air above them right before entering the cave.
Emerich screams.
You f$%&ing ba$+@rd! You ruined our chance to save this town!
Emerich calms down, sighs, and facepalms.
You had to be clumsy...
Daniel raises a brow.
"No need for insults, Emerich. I doubt we've ruined those chances, as we can still detonate the charges."When called clumsy, he chuckles and a rogue-ish smile shows.
"Your eyes might still be a little wary, i did that on purpose."
When outside of hearing of the guard (probably others heard it too):
"That guard just now, his words sound to me like they want to get rid of all outsiders."
As you make your way into the cavern, you can see all the work that the previous adventurers from Terrace had put into this place. Fresh scaffolding along the walls and ceiling, magical torchlight to not waste the precious oxygen.
With this much explosive powder, the explosion would have to problem taking down the entire cavern entrance and then some. Possibly caving in the entire cavern system.
You can see the Trigger Stick embedded into a patch of loose soil in the wall. Its amazing that it didn't break from the impact of the crossbow shot.
There are no signs of any of the adventures that went inside, but you do see a few crates near the entrance next to what a bunch of personal backpacks and totes (most likely personal belongings of the adventuring party that didn't want the added weight), as well as a few open barrels filled to the brim with water. You look to the entrance and the guards that were with you aren't in sight, and if they remained where they were, are also out of earshot
To Daniel.
He probably has good reason to...
"Ah, the device is over there, and still in mint condition."
Daniel picks it up and dusts it off.
"Now, to have a look at these crates, there might be stuff we could use."
Emerich crouches near the crates.
Oh, alright.
Emerich inspects the crate closely, looking for traps. After all, who'd leave gear like this out in the open?
Most of the supplies here are basics you would find at any encampment. Some food, rope, a crowbar, water stores in barrels, etc. You notice some crates and chests have been magically sealed, others just chained up. You surmise theme might be either personal belongings or important items.
Regardless, one item does catch your attention, a book with a metal cover lying against a extra backpack in the middle of all these items. It seems it was someone's personal journal.
Trini listens for any signs of people further down the corridor.
So... Um guys... What's our play here? I mean if we spend too much time in here the villagers WILL find another way to blow up the entrance to the mine. I think we have to choose a side. To be honest I am kind of inclined to help the villagers. You have to push them pretty far to get them to fight you... So you guys should ask yourselves wouldn't terrace be better off without the people who mistreated the people of the village so much? This iteration would have been solved along time ago if the various guilds hadn't been working against each other. And don't the villagers have the right to defend themselves?
"That's all true... but if we blow up members of the Alleyway Guild, what are the odds we pass our recruitment then?"
Nothing interesting here guys...
A journal?
Emerich reaches for the book, but pulls his hand away.
Should I? Their bad people, but it's their private stuff...
It might be important later on.
... Except if you consider a book interesting.
Emerich opens the book and flips through.
We can find who they work for. If its another group, we can use the town folks plan. If the work for the Alleyway, we can parlay.
You spend some time flipping through the journal. You find notes on the village inside, some about specific people but mostly examinations about their behavior. It seems that the writer believes them to be a bit a religious group that is centered around the tree. Harmless enough, but something feels off to him.
Other passages catch your attention, including the following:
"...already been a few weeks since this iteration began. No one has a clue on what could be the trigger for the next one. I tried asking the captain about it again, but he just gave me the same answer. The only ones who know the trigger are the ones who beat the last one. Guess whatever made the Abyss didn't realize people could die right after they leave it..."
"...think the mine's the answer....some forging parties haven't come back....the town seems happy enough to see us out....still gives me the creeps...."
[i]"...the Rat's Nest may be up to something....should have a truce going....need to be careful...."[/b]
Trini peers over Emerich's shoulder.
"Does that book say who's who? What's in it?"
"If we blow up any 'colleagues'?
Not very high, but we're down here to ascertain ourselves, aren't we."
Daniel, having found nothing of super importance, sees Emerich reading a journal. He patiently awaits Emerich being done with reading.
What have you found there Emerich? Does it say something important?
Korunar inspects some of the crates, looking for useful supplies like potions or magical scrolls. He doesn't want to steal from these people but they might need every little help if they want to get out alive.
Well, it says something about triggers, for iterations. Apparently, the only ones who know what the current one is solved the last one.
Emerich puts his finger on a paragraph.
The writer of the journal thinks the mine is the answer. Wait.... they also think the Rats Nest is up to something...
"I think we'll need to investigate more of this mine, then, and keep an eye out for trouble. What is the Rat's Nest even doing over here?"
"Maybe they've struck the big one, and have been preparing to haul it out."
It's been a few minutes since you entered the cave. Every moment you linger you all start to wonder what's really going on between the town and the adventurers of Terrace.
"We need a decision now or the villagers will blow us up with the rest of the guide. Either we go further in and try to find out more, risking our own lifes or we leave the cave and detonate the explosives. So let's vote. Who wants to go further into the cave?"
Korunar raises his arm to show his choice.
Daniel smiles faintly.
"I'm up for a good cave exploration."
Trini nods. "We need to find some answers."
As much as this goes against my common sense, I vote to go in. We need answers.