Aranthis drops to one knee in front of the dwarf, clutching the bolt protruding from her chest. "You would shoot someone who approached you unarmed? Why?" she manages to stammer out incredulously.
She looks down at the bolt in shock, blood oozing out from the wound, finding its way along the shaft and running in rivulets down her pristine armor.
Zogar's amusement evaporated when Aranthis dropped to her knee. "By Gorum! You will not live to regret your treachery, dwarf!" Swinging his sword up over his shoulder, he charged with a battle yell on his lips!
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Ghorza moves into to assist Zogar, moving to place herself between Aranthis and the crazy dwarf.
"Forgive me, Aranthis. It was my idea to try and calm down the dwarf, and that shot barely missed your heart.' she looks on as Zogar cleaves into the Mad-Dwarf's side.
'And although I would like to question him, he is too dangerous. An unfortunate turn of events."
Phoenix runs forward upon seeing the dwarf take a shot at Drallidur. Obviously out of breath from the sprint, he attempts to say something comforting to the armorclad woman, but manages only gasps and wheezes.
Zogar shook his head sharply, mustering the will for his steely eyes to pierce the illusion. He slashed his sword through the pattern of colors, sneering, "Faugh! Your evil magics will not conquer the mind of an Utwind warrior! Your ancestors weep to see you resort to such trickery rather than face me with an honest weapon in your hand!"
With an outraged howl, Zogar slashed at the dwarf with powerful, sweeping two-handed blows, pressing him back. "GORUM!"
Phoenix's eyes seem to cloud up as he empties his mind of all thought. With a quick exhalation, the wizard projects the empty void of his own mind towards the dwarf.
"Calm," Phoenix intones, as his eyes regain their former clarity.
Aranthis coughs and fights for breath through the pain. "Ghorza... The potion... the bag we found..."
Moving slowly, she half-crawls over to the wall nearby and lays back, propping herself up against against the wall to rest. Once she's settled down, she takes a deep breath and grabs on to the bolt. Pulling with both hands, she lets out a yell as she pulls it out of the wound. Tossing the arrow to the side, she closes her eyes and waits.
She goes back over the approach and exchange with the dwarf, trying to understand what went wrong. Was he truly crazed? Why else would someone fire at point blank at someone unarmed? Were my words just not the right ones?
Aranthis manages a brief smile and thanks to Ghorza. Biting the cork to pull it out, she downs the potion quickly. As the healing magic kicks in, a look of relief crosses her face.
After a few moments she gets up and digs out a rag from her pack to wipe the blood off her armor as best she can. "Ugh, I think I'm going to feel that in the morning." she says, prodding at the wound through the armor with her fingers."Thank the gods for magic healing, and for leaving that pack for us to find."
"Also, in the future I think I'll stick to greeting dwarves with crossbows from around the corner or behind the nearest wall." she says jokingly.
Wiping clean his blade, Zogar strode over to see how Aranthis was doing. He nodded soberly at her joke. "I do not think you should approach anyone unarmed down here. This is a dark place in more than just a lack of light."
He went back to the dwarf to search the body for anything useful, including some clue as to why he had been mad.
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The dwarf's meager gear is gathered near his camp, consisting of a ratty bedroll, a small pack filled with dried meat of some sort (you do spy a couple withered tentacles), preserved fruits, and some moldy cheese. You would estimate that there are about six day's rations total. In addition, you find a small marble statue about six inches in height, of a humanoid throwing a spear. Finally, a small book that appears to be filled with shifting words and symbols.
The book appears to be a spell book containing the following:
blur, levitate, detect secret doors, fog cloud, grease, color spray, mage armor, magic missile, acid splash, detect magic, ghost sound, read magic, invisibility, resist energy, shocking grasp, and silent image.
The book has about thirty empty pages.
Peering into the darkness past the dwarf's corpse, you spy a steeply inclined tunnel leads upward to the north, its walls lined with numerous nooks, handholds, and dozens of iron pitons that have been driven into the walls long ago. So numerous are the handholds, foot holds, and pitons, you estimate that it might be easier to climb this shoot than it would be to climb a ladder.
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Ghorza walks to where Aranthis, still gloomy.
"We will refrain from approaching anything alone from now on, though it should've been an obvious thing to do right from the start." she scowls when she notices the blood on her comrades armor.
"I feel I have wronged you, Aranthis. Be sure that I will set this right in the future, you have my word."
She claps Aranthis on the arm opposite her wound, and is both startled and in awe when a warm, calming sensation emits from her hand. Judging by Aranthis' face, she feels it as well.
Ghorza pulls her hand away once the feeling subsides and stares at it for a few moments before clenching it as a huge smile crosses her face.
Haha!' she says, barely controlling her volume at her elation, noticing some of the colour coming back into Aranthis' face 'Surely this could not be a better sign! She has forgiven me yet a again for my shortcomings, and has even enabled me to repair some of the damage my misjudgement caused' Ghorza is in such a good mood she doesn't seem to realize what she just said could come off as a bit cold.
She gleams at Aranthis, overjoyed at this sign from Sarenrae.
"This is surely the path I was meant to walk. Blessing us with such power when a paladin of her own causes those around her grief, and a devotee of another god no less. Good is good in the eyes of the Dawnflower. How do you feel? What did it do? Though this doesn't reverse my mistake, and the wrong is not quite righted, you seen to be looking much better than before." Ghorza asks, curious as to the extent of her new ability.
Turning to Zogar, she says "You're certainly right Zogar. In the future I will endeavor to be more cautious. I truly hadn't expected him to react that way."
Aranthis looks in amazement as Ghorza manages to heal her wounds further.
She gives Ghorza a smile and puts her hand on her shoulder reassuringly.
"You shouldn't feel that you've wronged me, and it's clear that Sarenrae doesn't think you did wrong either. I should have known better than to approach that close when he was barely making sense. Thank Torag that my armor kept it from killing me outright."
She stretches and twists around a bit to see how the wounds feel. "It seems that the wound from the bolt is completely gone, I barely even feel it when I move. Even the scratches I got from that giant fly earlier are mostly gone!" she says cheerfully.
After it is clear that Aranthis is recovered, Phoenix turns his attentions towards the book that the dwarf had in his possession.
"Hello, what's this?" Phoenix says, stooping to pick up the book. He squints at the book through mostly shut eyes, evidently wary. After a quick riffle through its pages, attempting to only half-look at the symbols in the book, Phoenix's eyes widen to their usual size. "Pah, I was almost hoping for some sort of tome of eldritch horrors, but it's merely a spellbook. Ah well, I suppose I'll transcribe a few of these spells when we have the time," Phoenix says, more to himself than anyone else, as he closes up the book and places it delicately in his pack.
Seemingly struck by a bit of inspiration, Phoenix takes a knee and pulls his own spellbook from the pack, and quickly marks in a few symbols, muttering absentmindedly to himself, "Of course, casting from a state of anger and confusion, rather than calm...the implications of a full range of emotions...joy, love, sadness, and so on..."
Zogar looked on as Aranthis was healed; only the slight widening of his eyes and the tension around the claw marks in his stoic, weathered face revealed how impressed he was. "Did you doubt your goddess would forgive you, even though she forgives the faithless fallen?" he asked curiously, still coming to terms with the idea of limitless forgiveness.
"It is well you are healed. Your strength is needed," he told Aranthis, nodding his respect.
"Beware the scribblings of that mad dwarf," Zogar harrumphed, peering at the book suspiciously as Phoenix picked it up. "It would be a poor end for a man seeking a second name to be infected with his madness."
He moved to peer up into the chute with many handholds. "Can our charges navigate this path? I think it would be best for them to be tied together, lest one fall. Have we rope enough?"
Phoenix finishes making a few mad scribblings of his own, then closes his book with what he clearly hopes is a dramatic flourish. The book slips slightly from his grasp, causing him to bobble it until he manages to get it under control. He then returns the book to his pack and stands up, looking around to see if anyone noticed. The wizard turns his attention towards the chute.
"If you were a roc, this would be much easier; you could fly us all up together on your back," Phoenix quips at Flitwing.
"But...rocks can't fly, Flitwing responds, confused.
Phoenix shakes his head, and turns to Zogar. "If the height isn't too great, it may be just as easy to climb the chute ourselves. That way, we would be able to lower down the aforementioned rope. This is assuming, of course, that our injured are unable to climb," Phoenix responds, and then turns to face Anevia and Aranthis. "Drallidur, am I correct to assume you are uninjured enough from the potion and Lightseeker's newfound powers to climb? And Tirablade, are you able to climb as well with your leg? I assume Gwerm and Aravashnial are well enough to make the climb even in spite of their injuries, yes?"
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The tunnel opens into a large cavern, about seventy feet across. Cylindrical rock formations along the walls arch up to make a domelike chamber, but the walls and floor are riddled with cracks. At the center of the cave, a stone tower that may once have reached the fifty-foot-high ceiling has collapsed onto its side.
Clearly wounded, Aranthis fails to take not of two malformed individuals carefully removing rubble from the area of the fallen stone tower. It does not appear the two have yet noticed you.
Zogar said nothing, but slowly and quietly took his bow from his back. Then he touched Aranthis' shoulder, jerking his head in the direction of the strangers.
He began to creep around the edge of the cavern, keeping the column formations and tower between him and the strangers as much as possible.
Upon having the two figures pointed out to her by Zogar, she drops down into a crouch and does her best to stay still, knowing that her armor is likely to draw attention if she moves around much.
She turns and gestures to Horgus, Anevia to stop and keep Aravashnial silent.
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Anevia nods back to Aranthis, and covers her eyes while miming stumbling about as she points back to Aravashnial. Taking the old elf by the hands, she whispers in his ear, then tries to take him by the shoulders, and quietly guide him around the chamber, following Aranthis' suggestion.
Horgus glares a moment, then shrugs, and follows the lead.
One of the mongrel men looks up as Aravashnial crunches a large gravel pile underfoot, the sound reverberating through the chamber. Spotting the tail end of the group, she? taps her companion on the shoulder, and he looks up.
Immediately the two take a defensive posture in a raspy voice, speaking in strangely accented but quite eloquent Common, the taller thin man with a face that melds the features of a lizard man, elf, and ram asks your intentions. “If your intentions are ill, we ask you to move on and leave us in peace. If they are good, then perhaps you can help. As you can see, misfortune has befallen us.” Once he has spoken, the woman returns to work, but the male keeps his eyes on the group. He does not appear to be taking any hostile actions.
The male's hands end in dull, spade-like talons. The larger woman next to him has a face so covered in tumors you are amazed she can see, and are a little curious as to whether or not she can speak.
You notice that the pair has been clearing away rubble, and all that remains in their general area is an impressively large stone.
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While Ghorza relaxes slightly, the encounter earlier has let her warier, though not enough to keep out her sword.
Keeping her shield ready, but arms open, she walks ahead a bit, being the one best suited for an attack while unarmed. The dwarf incident earlier also leaving her unwilling to send anyone else.
"We mean no harm and it seems that misfortune has been more than generous today, as we are also facing our share of problems.' she gestures to the group, though doesn't point out Zogar 'Perhaps we can help each other."
Ghorza's confidence is still shaken, as her words aren't as strong as they could've been, but she hopes they at least came across as honest.
Flitwing cocks her head to the side.
"Are you trying to make the rock fly? Humans are wrong. They can't. Fly, that is. The rocks, I mean. Some humans can fly. Rocks don't fly," Flitwing chirps, nodding her head sagely.
Phoenix cuts Flitwing off with a dismissive wave.
"Never mind her," Phoenix says, obviously exasperated. "I assume that when you say that misfortune befell you, you also mean that a cave-in befell you, and beyond the rubble lies an exit? Your lodgings, perhaps? As Lightseeker said," Phoenix adds, nodding towards Ghorza, "We may be able to help each other."
Aranthis was a little shocked by the appearance of the two.
Such twisted forms, truly Aravashnial was not lying when he spoke of those down here. I shouldn't hold their appearances against them, though, it's not their fault. I'm sure they didn't wish for this.
Despite her recent lesson in trusting strangers down here, she quickly decides that aiding them is the right thing to do. Aranthis stands up and adds her voice to that of Ghorza and Phoenix. "Hello Laan, Dyra, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I'm Aranthis." she says with a smile.
"We will help you, and I swear to you that we will get your friend, Crel, out safely!" As she uttered the promise, it rang in her ears, carrying a certainty and weight as massive as the boulder ahead.
As she takes her first step, images of the dwarf's bolt piercing her chest flash her mind. She hesitates for a moment, and takes a deep breath to steel herself. Relax, it will be ok, if there's a chance there's someone trapped there's no time to waste. Mentally focused on the boulder, she takes another step and begins walking slowly towards the two. With each step she feels a bit more confident, and as she nears the boulder she is determined to free their comrade.
Upon reaching the obstacle, Aranthis spends a few moments examining it. She utters a small prayer to Torag asking for aid in removing the obstacle, then turns around and says "Come give me a hand Ghorza!", fully expecting to need aid to remove the boulder.
Putting her hands on the stone, she grabs tight and gives it her all to see if she can get it to move at all while Ghorza approaches.
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Aranthis asks for help, then with near herculean effort heaves the boulder single handedly off the rubble pile, depositing it safely some small distance away.
"You are truly heroes! We must return to our village, Neathholm. You will be welcomed and celebrated!" Lann exclaims, obviously overjoyed that you have saved his friends life.
"I am heartfully sorry that I questioned your motives. I hope you will forgive us. Allow us to guide you as far as our home. On the way, you can tell us how you ended up here, perhaps?"
Crel is alive, but injured. It is apparent that he will need some form of medical aid soon. Being buried under tons of rubble is almost never good for one's health.
Zogar returned from his scouting trip to find the party together with the strangers. Since they seemed harmless, for now at least, he reslung his bow and nodded to them.
He helped to carry Crel out from the ruins he(?) had been trapped in, but left the talking to the more gregarious members of the party.
As Zogar came to lift Crel, Aranthis replayed past minute in her head. Had she really lifted the boulder all by herself? Unable to really grasp how it had happened, she turned to look at Crel as Zogar picked him up.
His wounds look pretty bad. We need to do something quickly.
As looked over his battered body, words formed in her mind. They were unlike anything she'd ever heard before, and yet she understood them. In her mind their sounds expressed a warmth not unlike what she'd felt when Ghorza had laid her hand on her not too long ago. Focusing on that sensation, the words issued from her mouth, "ພັກຜ່ອນແລະຮັບການປິ່ນປົວ."
"Rest and be healed."
As she finished, a healing light emanated from her hand, washing over Crel.
Seeing his wounds close brought a smile to her face. Torag has answered my prayers, he has granted me tools with which to see us to safety. Silently she grabbed her holy symbol and knelt to give thanks for this new-found gift.
"Well, that's new," Phoenix says, cocking an eyebrow at Aranthis. "It would seem that Torag has taken a shine to you after the business with the temple."
Phoenix stares down at his own hands and chuckles, "First Lightseeker, now Drallidur. I suppose that there is a sort of silver lining to this entire situation."
The wizard turns to Laan, and forces himself to make direct eye contact. The less common features of the other man are distracting, and Phoenix's eyes occasionally wander despite his efforts. "We come from the city that lies above. Kenabres was attacked, unexpectedly, by demons, and one of the demons had the strength to cleave the earth. We do not know the current status of the city; whether the demons were repelled, or..." Phoenix trails off, leaving the unthinkable unspoken. "We are hoping to find our way to the surface. Any information you can give us on the matter would be greatly appreciated. I also have several questions as to how you ended up here, as well."
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"The way to the surface lies beyond our home. We can accompany you that far at least. Be aware though, there are enemies down here. Below lies a foul and evil dwarf, we keep our eyes on him. Spends most of his time killing off all the dark mantle he can so that he might eat. They are terrified of him now, and anything that looks like him. In addition, there are other men like us who might deem you enemies. Lann informs you.
"What kind of men are you? I am blind you see. And I would very much like to question you all, each and every one, as to how you came to be down here. We have heard the stories above, and are most intrigued." Aravashnial inquires, clearly prepared to launch into a full series of invasive and embarrassing questions.
Anevia notices the mongrel men's reaction, and quickly asks Aravashnial to hush a little "There will be time enough, sir elf, perhaps now is not the time to question these men"
Horgus remains silent for the most part, contenting himself to simply snort derision each time anyone refers to the mongrel men as 'men'.
Clearly perturbed, Lann continues "I think it clear enough that the calamity that befell those above has befallen us as well. The breach in the earth is no doubt the cause of our tower's collapse. I hope our village, and yours above, fared better than this simple work of earth and stone. Come along."
With that, Lann helps his friends to their feet, and begins to head for one of the many tunnels leading out of the cavern.
You follow patiently as the injured party makes its way through the long and twisting tunnels, after a half hour, Lann signs heavily. Ahead, a wide chasm splits the tunnel floor. The floating rock dust in the air and the groans as the tunnel walls settle indicate that the tunnel split recently.
The chasm is 10 feet across, 70 feet wide, and 30 feet deep.
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Ghorza crouches down by the edge of the chasm, close enough to peer down into the gap, her darkvision coming in handy for the lower and farther parts of the divide.
"It is going to be a bother, but it looks like we may need to scale to the bottom, walk across and then climb back up the other side." She says, surveying the area.
"We have rope and tools enough for that, but if there are any who cannot climb then they will need to be lowered and hoisted instead. Looks like teamwork will be greatly needed here, if we are all to cross." she says, giving Horgus a brief look before looking around for anything that looks like it could be a good place to tie a rope.
Aranthis nods in agreement with Ghorza's plan.
After digging out her rope and getting ready to help, she asks "Who should go down first? Do you want to Ghorza? I think your eyesight is probably the best among us in the dark."
"None should go alone," Zogar rumbled. "Will another of you go as well? I will lower everyone, then climb down and up the other side, ready to raise those who cannot climb." He looked at the rope. "Knots tied in the rope might help speed us on our way."
"I shall go as well. I can provide my own light, and will not need to potentially remove any armor to keep from overburdening the rope. Flitwing should be able to fly to the other side and alert us to danger if anything is lurking in wait," Phoenix says, raising his hand as he volunteers.