Ghiv looks around
The long and narrow chamber is only illuminated by Kiddrik's ioun torch, which sends stretched, dancing shadows upon the walls and floor. There is a narrow walkway through the center of the chamber, and on each side the grates of the oubliettes hang open. A similar heavy door is on the far side of the room, which looks to be about sixty feet long and thirty feet wide.
"Uh oh. You here those chains clinking or that distant whimpering? Those sounds--combined with those there oubliettes--are telltale signs of a haunt!"
Kage shivers despite himself and murmurs, "We'd better get past this area quickly if we can."
Steeling themselves against whatever the unquiet dead may unleash, the assassins move swiftly through the chamber. The oppressive pall over the whole room weighs down as the living steps into a place of ancient anguish.
The low susurrus echoing around the room suddenly swells, and both Mama and Sa'Kage feel a rough shove at their backs, forcing them toward one of the open oubliettes.
Though the unseen hands may have had an ill malice toward the living, they had little force behind them. Bess and Kage keep their footing and avoid the open grates.
You reach the far door and see that it is similarly barred, though weakened through age and a crumbling foundation. As you test yourself against the door, the haunt seems to be gathering its strength for another assault.
Ghiv rushes forward to shove against the door.
Kage takes a run up at the door, hoping to barge it down, but a spectral hand clutches at his foot causing him to fall flat on his face. Kage curses softly as he picks himself up off the floor.
As the team moves through the darkness, Kiddrik watches the newcomer and Kage throw themselves against the far wall .... so he does the only smart thing there is to do.
... gets a running start and slams into it himself.
Seeing Kidd running toward it, Mama squats low to give him a boost from behind, granting him a bit of extra momentum and guiding him toward what looks to her like the weaker part of the door.
Ghiv and Kage carom off the door with no effect except for sore shoulders. Then, Mama's bit of aid sends Kidd up against the weakest point of the door and he forces it open. The rest of the assassins pour out of the chamber as the faint, etherial howling echoes from the oubliettes behind them.
As the group moves into the next chamber, dusting themselves off and staying wary, they realize they've entered into an abandoned block of cells. After moving all the way through the corridor flanked on each side with old barred doors, they reach the guard station at the far end. Two passages move off from the guard station, but each end abruptly. The one to the west is another caved-in passage, while the eastern route shows signs of reconstruction and is walled off with solid brick and mortar. Picks, hammers, or other mining equipment would be able to breach the wall, but not quickly or silently.
Stymied by that direction, Eris' map does show a sub-level that should run below the cell block you just crossed. A quick retracing of steps locates a grate in the floor that is just big enough for a medium-sized person to squeeze through.
"I'll go first," Myra offers. She removes the grate, and peers down into the hole. If the distance is short enough to hop down safely, she will.
You bypass several ancient and corroded methods of preventing prisoners from escaping this way, before reaching an opening, like a spout. An old grate is still covering the exit. Peering through the gaps, you see that you are at least twenty feet above a flowing underground canal. There is a narrow walkway running along on either side of the channel, which itself is about fifteen feet wide. It stretches beyond your darkvision in either direction.
Myra turns back to the hole and calls the others down, "There is a grated entry into some kind of canal. It's safe to come down." While she is waiting for them to descend, she carefully examines the grate.
It's pitted with rust, and can probably be forced open with some effort.
Ghiv watches with some interest, they have now gone farther into the sewer and tunnel system than he had dared to go in the past.
Kiddrik slips down behind the halfling, his ioun torch illuminating the new area for everyone.
You slide down on decades-old filth and grime. Light sources are nonexistent, so using the darkvision granted by your mask you are able to navigate through the trough-like passage that was obviously used to move prisoner waste out of the dungeons.
You bypass several ancient and corroded methods of preventing prisoners from escaping this way, before reaching an opening, like a spout. An old grate is still covering the exit. Peering through the gaps, you see that you are at least twenty feet above a flowing underground canal. There is a narrow walkway running along on either side of the channel, which itself is about fifteen feet wide. It stretches beyond your darkvision in either direction.
Kiddrik pulls out a length of rope, ties it around his waist, and hands it back to Kage.
"Be ready to pull me out if something goes wrong. I'll see if I can help Yamyra prepare our next step."
Then he squeezes down the filthy path, trying to keep the ioun torch in front of him to illuminate what's ahead in the cramped space.
As they leave the door they'd struggled so hard to open, Mama takes a look to see if she can find a way to jam it back closed as tight as it was before (or even tighter!) "Anyone have a way to jam this shut behind us, to slow any pursuers? Perhaps some pitons to hammer in?"
. . . .
As they start down into the cramped hole, Mama looks over her fellow mantises with worry creasing her eyes. That won't be a fun place for trouble, if we meet it. Please Desn--err, Achaekek--watch over your children.
Kage accepts the rope and nods. When Mama asks for help, Kage wracks his brain. Dubious about the value of it, Kage mentions, "I have a tanglefoot bag, but I doubt that'd stop anyone for long."
Yamyra strains at the grate without success until Kidd reaches her and is able to lend some assistance. Finally the grate pops off and falls into the canal with a splash. Since Kiddrik is carrying 100 feet of rope, he estimates there is just enough for him to reach the water with Kage still holding onto the other end, were he to drop out of the chute.
Kage ponders, "Maybe we can use that door we busted to block the grate somehow? Not like we have anything to glue it with however... Maybe if we where to wedge something down the hole, that would make following hard."
Ghiv doesn't have much to add, his Blessings of Achaekek wouldn't help in this situation.
Hearing no one seems to have a piton, Mama will look for some junk that could be used to jam the door.
Once she collects some wedge-shaped rusty bits of old bars and other useful-looking detritus she sets about slowly and methodically preventing anyone from opening the door from behind them.
Considering the door was already weakened through age and crumbling mortar, Bess is unable to reinforce the door beyond it's previous state. However, she is able to wedge it back in place roughly the same as before.
Kage inspects Bess's handiwork, thinking 'Probably wouldn't take more than a good solid kick or two. Still better than anything I could have done in the time.'
Kage beckons the group on, saying "We'd better get a move on, pronto. Or Mama's work will be for naught..."
He heads over to the grate and takes a hold of the rope and tells his fellow Mantises, "Well you know what comes next. I'll hold this while you climb down, and then I'll try and chimney down myself. I've done that sort of thing before - just got to hope this is mostly dry on the way down and I'll be OK."
"Of Course", Eris answers, sliding nimbly down the chute, hoping that they end up in a much better place than they are now.
The Red Mantis all squeeze through the chute, and with a bit of acrobatics, are able to reach the walkway along the canal. Only a few end up getting wet, but the water is not deep, relatively clean, and not moving swiftly enough to pose any danger of being swept away.
Consulting Eris' map, it becomes obvious that this underground canal is new construction. The old chamber had been nothing but a sewage system that fed into a lair of oozes or other refuse-feeding creatures. Now, this canal stretches in two directions. As best as you can tell, downstream leads east, toward Egorian, while upstream leads west, towards the forest and likely the redoubt.
Kage examines the canal with interest, "So this is what they've been busy building. We should head upstream towards the redoubt. It might be best to send somebody stealthy to scout ahead in case of surprises..."
Kage will follow a bit behind any scout, keeping his eyes and ears open.
Mama nods in approval to Kage's suggestion. "Myra, I suppose that's our cue. We'll stay a bit ahead, and periodically signal you forward when we know it's clear.
"Kage and Kidd, do you mind keeping your eyes and ears on the path behind us? I worry that the Hellknights might not be too far behind."
Once the plan is agreed Mama drops her Mantis Mask on for the first time today, activates the Darkvision, and walks quietly forward...keeping her family just behind her, but far enough back that they are very difficult to hear (despite their big, clunky feet).
The assassins move steadily along the canal westward. The repurposed chamber soon gives way to a much more rough-hewn corridor in the walls and ceilings, although smoother sections with occasional buttresses show where uses of stone shape were applied. The walkway sometimes widens to about fifteen feet wide, and sometimes narrows to about ten feet, and the walls are rough and uneven.
After moving roughly a thousand feet or so, Myra and Bess come hurrying back in advance of a distant light up ahead. With hand signals, Bess informs the rest of the group that six Hellknights were moving this way -- three on this side, and three on the opposite side of the canal. They were using a magical light source that illuminated the canal with normal light. You have about a minute to prepare for their arrival.
Kage tells the others, "Six will be a hard battle, but one we can win. I have some oil of darkness, that'll dim their light. Anything else we can do to blind them and spread confusion will help."