Cairee rushed to the arch on the left (marked I). There was a pull chain to the right of the iron portcullis. Above the gate were three symbols carved in the wall.
At the far end of a little space beyond the gate, little more than a deep rectangle, there were three stone bowls set into the floor. The space was dark but the first bowl gave off a faint orange light, the second the tiniest white light, and the third a bright orange light.
Cairee studied the three symbols. She thought the first could be a pile of stones. The second perhaps wind, or air. And the third looked a bit like a flame. Where they simple drawings? Or some kind of language?
The bowls were interesting, likely connected to the symbols. "Perhaps we need to put something in each bowl that's connected to the symbol on the wall?"She muttered to herself, trying to puzzle it out. "Or perhaps we pick one and that represents what we fight?"
Not seeing any helpful items, Dounia wondered if they were in fact connected to the currently-disable pressure plates. As she continued to run forward, she shouted, "Did anybody say where in the arena the helpful things were? In the middle? On the edge?"
As Tymythy spoke of mystical gifts of the naga, Zahra tried to think about whether she knew what kind of magic they'd be facing.
"I thought that symbol looked like a ship surrounded by a serpent. I guess I got the snake part right. So from what you said, we're facing a monster that is part woman, part snake with this portcullis. Cairee hasn't said what is in her enclosure. Should we keep looking at the other ones? I wonder how much time we have to choose?"
"Did anybody say where in the arena the helpful things were? In the middle? On the edge?"
Dounia will swerve and head towards gate IV. If I can run and get there in 1, I will.
Zahra didn't particularly like the idea of running. It was definitely not at the top of her list of enjoyable things. However, they needed to know what was behind each portcullis and so she ran for the next closest door.
Dounia bolted for the northwest gate and above in, on the wall, was carved a shield with a knife crossed by a club. Through the gate was a short dark hall with four other gates inside, two to the right and two left. They looked like prison cells. A man's arm was sticking out of the front most left gate. A belt was in his hand and he was a launching it, buckle first, into the centre of the room where a pile of weapons lay.
The right front cell, a woman's arm stuck out. She was holding a shinny dagger with the flat of the blade facing Dounia. A rough voice issued from the cell.
"Oh, girl! You, girl! Let us out! Don't worry. We won't hurt you. We're the good guys. Prisoners of that demon, Hallwyn. Common, open the gate!"
-
Zahra ran to the final gate.
Above the gate was a carving of the skull of some animal.
Beyond the portcullis was a mess of small furniture, paintings, children's toys, and torn fabric.
he hehehe he
A tiny laugh issued from somewhere in the trash heap. A child's laugh. Then whispers. Many whispers of different voices. Men. Women. Old. Young. Barely audible.
Both gates had the same pull-chain just to the right.
Dounia gave up on looking for helpful items. If there were any to be had, they weren't obvious. Maybe they were in one of the cells. Maybe they were under the pressure grates. But time was ticking down.
To the others, she called, "Let's do this one first! There's four of them at least. If we're a long time with one of the other challenges, we don't want to be suddenly surrounded. Come on!"
As she waited for the others, she tried to figure out if the "prisoners" were telling the truth.
To the others, she called, "Let's do this one first! There's four of them at least. If we're a long time with one of the other challenges, we don't want to be suddenly surrounded. Come on!"
Not knowing if there was time to question and debate, and well used to accepting commands, Tymythy turned his back to the naga’s gate, doing his best to ignore what he took as unveiled anticipation emanating from the usriev in his hands. ”Patience. The serpent’s time will come,” he whispered, hoping to soothe the weapon’s will for a moment longer.
Dounia eyeballed the woman who was clearly trying to see her reflection in the dagger's shiny surface. The desert thief now knew enough about Hallwyn to suspect that these people could be 'mostly' innocent. The story of the five pale sisters flashed through her mind. Was Hallwyn like a storm people got caught in? Those who tried to save their gold instead of running for shelter were ruined?
Zahra stared dumbfounded through the portcullis. There was some sort of animal skull above the doorway but the items inside suggested something human.
The emanating laughter sent a chill down her spine. That was no laugh of a monster that she knew of. Surely they weren't meant to fight other people or children, were they?
But before she could contemplate things or let the others know what she had seen, Dounia was yelling at them to do her door first. Zahra knew that the others were better at making tactical decisions than she was so she abandoned the portcullis labeled III and went to join the others.
"Let's do this one first! There's four of them at least. If we're a long time with one of the other challenges, we don't want to be suddenly surrounded. Come on!"
Cairee sighed with frustration at her young friend's shout. They all knew they needed to be quick in this challenge. Yet Dounia had run to the other side of the arena and now beckoned them to join her. Why hadn't they just stayed together in the first place and picked the closest door? They'd learn soon enough what was behind each.
There was no point in trying to debate the finer points of strategy now. She hurried over to Dounia's gate.
Dounia heard Cyra's voice in her head. She's lying. Dounia happened to agree. And anyway, it's not like that had a choice. They had to fight, or to die. She said, "Fine, we'll let you out. And if you're the good guys, then don't attack us, and help us fight the other monsters."
She absolutely did not expect that to happen.
As the others ran towards her, Dounia examined the place where the pressure plate system joined the edges of the arena, trying to make sense of the set up.
The floor hummed with the same vibration she'd experienced near the centre of the arena. Whatever the floor did it was all part of some great mechanism. It all seemed connected.
As she examined the great floor plates the woman called back, "Of course ... wait, 'other monsters?' What the hell are we into here!" The woman's hand disappeared and returned dagger-less. She made a swipe with it, palm down.
The Black Birds consolidated at the 'prisoner's gate'and they could all see the small cache of weapons in the middle of the floor. They could see the four gates that led to four cells. The interior of the cells wasn't visible but the front left had a man dragging an axe to his gate with the aid of a belt. The right front cell showed a woman's arms, one hand holding a dagger. Nothing poked through the last two cells.
Arriving to the scene and listening to the dregs of Dounia’s conversation with the prisoners within their cell, Tymythy set his feet and closer his heart. The people and entities in the arena had been said to all be people who had insulted, threatened or otherwise irritated their host, and while that didn’t necessarily mean they were guilty of something worth their lives, the hunter rather doubted it made much difference at this point. Even if the prisoners, once freed, would actually agree not to fight back, he doubted they would be getting out of the arena themselves as long as a single prisoner remained alive. So it was unfortunate, but they were opponents that needed defeating. Provided they survived, they could always make offerings for the souls of their fallen enemies.
”Do you know their numbers?” Tymythy whispered to Dounia. ”The one with the axe has company in his cell, at least.”
Zahra takes a moment to catch her breath outside the last portcullis as she takes a look inside the gate.
She heard scuffling and came to the same conclusion as Tymythy but her question was how many people were in these four cells? She listened harder, almost willing herself to hear all the different heartbeats.
Having come to the end of her mundane senses, Zahra sought to use her magical ones.
"If we don't make a move soon, we may be in the situation where someone opens all the gates on us. Is everyone ready?"
Dounia recognized the woman's signal as a variation of the hand-language she and Cyra used. She was telling the others to wait, or "not now". "You're in a heap of trouble," she said. "We open this gate, we're supposed to fight you. Then we open three other gates, and fight what's behind them. We either kill you, or you kill us and then you fight the next team that comes through. And the one after that. Or maybe you help us and we can find a way to get you out alive."
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Cairee stood behind her friends and peered into the dark gate. "There are people in there?" She hadn't been prepared for this. "We can't-" She stopped herself. The last time the cleric had asked her friends not to fight they had almost died. She would not put them in such danger again. They had come to fight. She had known that before they'd started lifting gates.
But she would not be tricked into harming the innocent for Hallwyn's pleasure. Cairee would not strike first. She stood behind Dounia and clutched her quarterstaff in both hands, keeping one end on the arena floor. Not threatening, but ready. "Open the gate," she prodded, her eyes on the man with the axe.
The woman, "Listen, young girl. These aren't all my people. I can't speak for everybody, but, for me and mine, we want out of here alive. If sticking together is our best chance then, we're in. If we're in then the others would be fools to fight us all. Especially with three monsters waiting. Open the gate. We promise we'll cooperate. Isn't that right, Gorigan!"
The man issued, "You're the boss, Wynowen."
Wynowen, "I think it's time for you to let us out."
But she would not be tricked into harming the innocent for Hallwyn's pleasure. Cairee would not strike first. She stood behind Dounia and clutched her quarterstaff in both hands, keeping one end on the arena floor. Not threatening, but ready. "Open the gate," she prodded, her eyes on the man with the axe.
Tymythy frowned at Cairee’s and Dounia’s attempts to make a deal with the prisoners. They had no way of knowing what kind of promises they had been given by their captor, nor what they had done to deserve their treatment. Granted, now that he knew their host to be a sort of spirit in his own right he knew he shouldn’t try to apply the logic or morals of mere men to him, so for all he knew their host had put in chain people who had let their shadow fell upon him on a moment he felt like enjoying the sun, but he had got the feel that he wasn’t the sort to do things without any reason at all.
But, again, there was no time to stand here and argue. The silver tongues of the ladies had already moved the hearts of some people when Tymythy had seen no hope in dialogue. Perhaps this would be another such a time?
”If you wish to trust their words, we should make preparations for the second gate,” he murmured, keeping his eyes in the direction of the prisoners, expecting treachery – although if it was to come, the prisoners would likely wait for the Ravens to be involved in another battle before going for a flanking attack.
”If you wish to trust their words, we should make preparations for the second gate.”
Cairee could tell Gorigan, the man with the axe, was ready for violence and eyeing Tymythy. Though he didn't seem likely to attack without orders. But when would those orders come?
"I don't trust them. But I won't attack first. Do you think it's better to leave this gate for last? If so we should hurry to another, or they'll start lifting on their own."
Dounia shrugged. "It depends how fast we get done with the others. If they lift on their own when we're in a fight, we'll be suddenly surrounded. But I guess that's the risk with any door."
She looked at Tymythy. "You have the extra Strength. What do you want to fight first?"
Dounia shrugged. "It depends how fast we get done with the others. If they lift on their own when we're in a fight, we'll be suddenly surrounded. But I guess that's the risk with any door."
She looked at Tymythy. "You have the extra Strength. What do you want to fight first?"
"IF the prisoners could open the gates on their own, there would be no point in a mechanism that does the same provided we do not finish our challenges quickly enough," Tymythy answered. "I know not what these people did to earn their captivity, but I doubt our host just picked people off the streets at random. If you want to trust in their word, let us take no extra risks and leave them there for last... or until the challenge makes the choise for us," we went on in a quieter voice.
"But we must hurry. I would open the naga gate first - my spear seems to thirsts for the creature's blood and her need is... distracting. Besides, a naga has magical gifts. I would not want that gate to open on its on while we were on the opposite side of the arena, fighting something else."
The Black Birds double timed it to the gate marked with the crescent and wandering line. The cell looked empty as it did before. Straw was strewn over a set-stone floor. The dry husk of a snake skin lay a remnant of life only just around a blind turning. On the back wall were drawings made by scratching on the surface with a loose stone. Images Tymythy confidently described as the tracking of the crescent moon with only peripheral mentions of the full moon and the sun.
Zahra followed the others back to the portcullis behind which the naga supposedly resided. When she got there, she looked for magical auras since her original attempt to remember facts about naga had failed.
Dounia pressed herself against the wall, hoping that whatever came out wouldn't see her, allowing her to get in behind it. She had her hands on the hilts of her daggers, resting in her new multi-sheathed belt.
Tymythy took position just to the side of the gate, just in case the naga was prepared to hurl herself out of her cell the moment the portal was opened and set himself into an offensive stance, the shaft of the usriev held level just below shoulder height. The hunter grimaced slightly as he felt Ki'zu'ur'a tremble in his hands, seemingly vibrating with eagerness.
”Face us, serpent!” he shouted in challenge, more to appease his weapon than to provoke the naga. ”Let us match our blades against your spells!”
Dounia looked at the chain and tried to see if it or the gate were foully rigged. There was nothing harmful but she could tell it was connected to more than just the gate. There were gears deep inside the recess where the chain was mounted.
Everyone braced themselves. Zahra used her ability to tune into the auras of magic. Dounia pulled the chain. Cairee whispered a prayer, her hand on Dounia's shoulder.
Zahra could see no auras. No magics of any kind.
As the gate raised five bricks slid forward so that they stuck out of the wall above the entry gate where the Black Birds entered the arena. The bricks were evenly spaced. The entire arena dimmed as the shadows in the foggy area beyond the arena became restless and excited.
As the gate rose enough for a person to pass under, the ground rumbled. The floor shook with a mighty ripple. All of the red 10' x 10' slabs shot ten feet into the air! A quarter of the arena was now a series of cubes. The block almost entirely cut Dounia and Cairee off from Tymythy and Zahra.
A breeze, barely light enough to waft a feather, passed by Dounia and Cairee. Dounia felt a powerful pain in her left shoulder and Cairee could see blood burst from the young woman's neck muscle! Just as abruptly, a form appeared. A lithe armless woman with a shock of long white hair. Her torso ended in a black scaled snake's tail that glittered like it were coated in stars. Her teeth were sunk into the dessert thief and, as she released her bite, she spoke with a voice as soft as a cloud.
"As you wish, spearman."
She had been just inside the gate the entire time. Invisible.
Cairee watched the ten foot long Naga release Dounia. The blood poured freely from the thin long fang marks. Then, a trace of milky white venom appeared in the blood. Dounia's stomach instantly began to churn as her eyes blurred slightly and her mind became unclear.
Dounia staggered against the wall, clamping a hand to the wound in her neck. "Where'd you come from?" she slurred her words together.
Shaking her head to clear it, she lunged forward, a dagger in each hand, slicing and stabbing at the now-visible foe.
Tymythy muttered a curse as the battlefield changed in a sudden burst of motion, hiding the Naga from view even as it shed its cloak of invisibility. Knowing there was no time to waste he hurried towards the far side of the pillar he suddenly found himself behind, feeling the usriev in his hands tremble in barely contained excitement.
The naga whipped about and struck at Tymythy as he tried to cover its' opposite position but he easily blocked its' fangs with Ki'su'gina's shaft.
The naga glanced back a Tymythy as he hurried to the fight, and Dounia took advantage of her distraction to make sure her two strikes were hitting vital parts. At least as vital as Dounia guessed, based on her snakey anatomy.
Zahra gasped as a huge block rose out of the floor, blocking her view. She was not expecting that at all. She heard a strange voice but couldn't see much. However, Tymythy's reaction was enough to tell her that something was wrong. She followed him to get a better view but stopped at the corner, twenty feet from the naga.
While Tymythy and Dounia harried the naga by flanking it, Zahra threw magic at it from her direction.