Patizamo decapitates the centipede with his burning blade, then Mokhasi buries the other one in a spray of scree. Baldrek delivers a strike with his ranseur, then, guided by Mokhasi’s magic, Raknar is able to finish off the beetle with a claw blade to the back of the head!
The other students and teachers have managed to defeat the other giant insects that had been rampaging through the auditorium. Mafika and Zuma dart into the tunnels to finish off a few fleeing insects, while Koride examines the dead ones left behind. ”Very curious. These different types of insects don’t work together naturally. They must have been compelled to attack.”
Takulu ensures that your injuries aren’t too dire. ”Well fought, initiates—or attendants, I should say!” he corrects himself with pride. ”You should ensure everyone made it to safety outside the auditorium before heading back to your dormitories to rest and recover from your wounds. I can assure you that the instructors and more experienced students of the Magaambya will conduct a full investigation into the cause and extent of this strange attack. We will get to the bottom of this once and for all!”
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Mokhasi looks troubled, "more arthropod attacks. I am no expert on these creatures, like Patizamo, but Koride is right. How did these creatures get so large, and so dangerous? How many times has this happened? With each attack - this enemy grows bolder." He looks at his air compatriot to commiserate.
Raknar knelt down beside the fallen beetle. He placed a hand on its head and closed his eyes, muttering something under his breath. Once finished, he leans over and cuts away its two largest mandibles.
Once finished, he stands and steps over to Baldrek. He looks the man in the eyes, his own expression mostly covered by his dragon mask but his eyes seem a mixture of respect and anger. After an awkward, silent moment, he reaches over and presses one of the mandibles against the humans chest before turning and walking over to the other new attendants.
”Bugs like this generally act on instinct. As Koride said, these were either compelled by magic, or baited here by someone intimate with their behaviors.”
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Mokhasi nods, "yes, that is my point. Someone has been invading the Magaambya with these... as you say bugs. Many different types. Testing defenses. Do you think they are connected somehow to the Gremlins, Raknar? They are the other major foe we have encountered." He folds his hands and waits attentively for an answer, though Mokhasi seems to be mindful to avoid the ichor that may permeate Raknar's clothes.
”Rrrrrnnnnnggggg,” Raknar growls. ”Most likely. The gremlins are mischievous by nature. And trying to confound us by using the insects as pawns would be just the sort of thing they would do. But…there could be someone behind even the gremlins, instigating them into action as well. We need more information.”
He looks over to the massive dead carcass on the stage, and mumbles ”I think I will go hunting in the morning.”
Patizamo says, ”Instructor Koride has the right of it, but who or whatever is behind these attacks is growing increasingly bold. I hope the instructors can solve this mystery quickly.”
Baldrek takes the beetle's mandible from Raknar, not really knowing what to do with it. For a moment he thought about tossing it back with the rest of the dead insect, but realised this would probably offend the amurum. He instead nods to Raknar, accepting the trophy. He then looks for his healing supplies and starts to help Takulu in tending the wounded, but just after the checks if Esi is not harmed. He tends to his own wounds once he is done helping the others, since he was sure he was not in danger.
Baldrek can see both the points of Patizamo and Mokhasi. "We can certainly help, if our instructors wishes for us to help. Despite our good intentions, it is possible that we might hamper their efforts."
Esi is not injured, and she hugs Baldrek tightly when she sees he will survive his wounds. ”We cannot sit back and suffer these attacks much longer. We must take action to uncover what is going on!” she asserts.
***
As the dust settles and those injured during the First Masking ceremony recover, the Magaambya’s instructors begin the precarious balancing act of investigating the strange activities of the insects on the grounds, calming the students, and making sure the unusual attacks don’t extend into the city of Nantambu. The faculty’s first order of business is to explore and clear the meandering passages and recently carved tunnels beneath the campus. Relying upon trustworthy students is vital, since quickly exploring as much ground as possible may help prevent another attack.
Once you are fully rested, you are summoned to the summon the steps ascending to the imposing entrance of Archhorn Library. Teacher Ot and Teacher Ulawa stand on the wide stone steps. While Teacher Ot carefully reviews a sheaf of papers, Teacher Ulawa looks annoyed, the corner of her mouth in a sneer. “How good of you to finally arrive,” she says. “Your little cohort is far from my first choice for something so critical to—”
“Koride, please,” Teacher Ot says softly, but firmly, then turns to you. “After your services to the Magaambya during your First Masking, we feel you are ready for an important task. Something is going on underneath Tireless Hall, and indeed beneath more of the Magaambya than we first realized. We are sending groups of students into the tunnels we have discovered in an effort to map them as thoroughly as possible. You will be one of these groups.”
Teacher Ot points across to Tireless Hall. “There is where the attack occurred. But in the lowest levels of all these buildings,” he waves to the buildings around it, including Archhorn Library behind him, “we’ve found more tunnels. Many lead to old cave networks, now connected together by recent digging. Intentional, directed digging.”
Teacher Ulawa picks up the explanation. “I sent some students into the basement here in Archhorn Library, to explore and map the caves. It rapidly became obvious that this would be a more involved task than we originally anticipated. I withdrew that group, and you will be going in; you may even manage to make it back out in one piece.” She chuckles grimly. “We’ll at least wait and see how you manage before sending in the inevitable help.”
Teacher Ot steps aside and gestures to the library building. “The first group’s notes should still be in the basement. We can hope that Koride’s handpicked students were... comprehensive before learning that their feet might get muddy and then pleading for a different assignment.”
Teacher Ulawa shrugs. “Their skills were needed elsewhere, Takulu. It’s up to your motley band of novices to pick up where they left off.”
Takulu adds, “We’ll be making our own explorations beneath Tireless Hall, where we believe the danger is greater, should you need to draw us away for anything. But your task is before you, as ours is before us.”
Koride’s repeated insulting words were wearing on Raknar. He had been working hard to actually impress her, and clearly wasn’t living up to the mark. But such derision was not necessary.
Raknar can’t resist letting out a low growl and then replies ”We will not fail, Teachers.”
Grim-faced, Patizamo nodded in agreement with Raknar. Teacher Koride’s derisive words not withstanding, Patizamo felt they were up to this task. After all, if that Pugwampi was connected to these attacks, they’d been involved in these tasks for a while.
”We are ready for this.”
Baldrek never liked Koride, and he liked her even less after her piece. In his mind, her words and attitude were unacceptable both as a person and specially as a teacher. "We'll do as we are asked." He answers to both of them, before turning to Koride.
Despite his anger, Baldrek is respectful with his words, as it is the appropriate behavior between a student and a teacher. "Teacher Ulawa, in my ignorance, I fail to see how your words towards our cohort will help in this mission." Now looking between the two teachers, he continues. "Could you explain us the reason for them, or is it a lesson we should learn during our assignment?"
"There will always be those who will lack faith in your abilities," Koride says. "Prove yourself and silence the doubters." That the teacher herself is one of those doubters goes without saying.
***
When you are ready, you make your way into the Archhorn Library, heading to the staging room that Koride's first group used for their expedition into the tunnels. The wooden wall panels in this long, low room have been
broken apart in four places to reveal narrow passages burrowed into the stone. The railing which spans the walls and the low rail in the middle hint that this room once served as a dance studio. Several desks have been relocated here with a few books and papers; more papers nailed to the wood near each entrance feature hastily sketched maps.
The books and scrolls on the desk are some texts about Archhorn Library; Koride’s initial team hoped they might give some information or schematics, but the infested caverns don’t appear in these old books and so aren’t of any use.
The papers tacked to the walls provide sketches of the nearby passages. One passage in particular has a portion of the wall circled with a question mark.
A few minutes after you enter the room, an intensifying drone begins to emanate from the passage in the center of the south wall...
"Bees?" Baldrek asks the others for confirmation. "If so, they must be really big!"
Baldrek moves a couple feet ahead of the others, trying to take advantage of the reach of his ranseur to strike at the bees when they come out.
"You are correct, Baldrek - that is the droning of enormous bees. We should be prepared for their stingers to be more like daggers or short swords, likely with a potent venom." Patizamo draws forth his short sword, then casts a quick spell to conjure a shield before him. Drawing some of the power from that shield, he diverts it into his form, enhancing his fighting prowess.
Raknar readies his blades and more to the side of the tunnel exit, waiting to strike when something emerges.
Mokhasi knows that bees are susceptible to heavy smoke. It slows and disorients them, and in sufficient amounts, can drive them away.
You take up positions near the tunnel, a few moments before two enormous bees emerge! Each insect is four feet long, with bristles that resemble fur.
Baldrek and Raknar both lunge at the first bee, but neither one hits! Mokhasi entangles it with a sticky vine.
Baldrek attacks the entangled bee before sending an arc of lightning at both of them.
Both bees nimbly dodge the lightning, and the one Baldrek attacks avoids his ranseur as well! It scuttles forward to get to him, jabbing with its stinger and landing one hit. The other one attacks Raknar but does not hit him.
"Argh..." He lets the pain show as he skirts around the bees to flank with Raknar before attacking, keeping his distance from the bees.
Raknar took the miss from the insect as a moment to study it’s movements, then lashed out with measured strikes!
__________
Patizamo looked for an opening, then moved forward to get a good strike on one of the bees. As he did, he cast a spell, shaping his sword into a claw.
Patizamo delivers a critical strike taking down the nearest bee with a magically empowered blow! Mokhasi batters the second bee with a barrage of rocks, then Baldrek and Raknar team up to take it out as well.
Raknar proceeds down the tunnel in front of Baldrek, crouching down and slipping forward as quietly as he can. He will continue to lead the way through the passageways looking for clues or threats.
__________
The tunnel opens up into a large, irregular cavern that has moisture dripping down the walls. A large, blue, glowing mushroom faintly illuminates the space. The mushroom is roughly the size and width of a dwarf, and it has plainly been gnawed at. You recognize that the mushroom is not harmful.
Before heading down the tunnel after Raknar, Patizamo grabs the crudely sketched map. Looking over the map as they reach a room with a blue mushroom, he says, "Perhaps we should investigate this question mark first. Koride's students clearly thought there was something worth looking into over there."
"I'd say that we should make sure no more insects are being sent towards us first. The mysteries will be solved in time, when we find ourselves in a safer situation." Baldrek offers as he approaches the mushroom to inspect the gnawing marks, looking for a clue of a potential other danger.
The bite marks on the mushroom seem to have been left behind by gremlin teeth, perhaps unsurprisingly.
Raknar continues on towards the spot labeled with the question mark to investigate that.
The portion of wall marked with a question mark on the map proves to conceal a secret door--a thin sheet of stone that rotates on a hidden peg. The room beyond it is jammed with hammocks, blankets, and bedrolls, all heaped into makeshift nests for little creatures. Discarded bits of food, twisted lumps of metal, and bits of stone litter the floor.
No creatures are present in this room, but you find an assortment of trinkets worth--
--5 gp in total.
You can hear high-pitched voices arguing from beyond a tunnel to the south. Raknar creeps forward to peer into the next chamber.
A table bearing a large cloth map pinned down with heavy rocks along the edges occupies much of this room. Though dirty and tattered, the aged map provides a detailed view of the Magaambya campus. Drawn atop the map are several caves and tunnels, creating a connected web of passages between the buildings.
Numerous gremlins of various types are trying to decipher the instructions on the map in this room. They appear to be arguing as to how best to take action. The gremlins include a blunt-snouted and pugnacious gnagrif, a gangly jinkin, and three warty mitflits. There’s a sixth gremlin here who isn’t part of the planning: a lice-infested grimple. She's currently trying to scrub insect entrails off of a knife in a corner of the room.
The gremlins are absorbed in their argument and do not notice Raknar spying on them...
Raknar slips back to the others and whispers ”Six gremlins. Arguing over a map and planning things,” also describing each of them in detail.
Patizamo frowns. "Do you think we can scare them into running away? What is the map of?"
”The school,” Raknar replies.
"I believe it is too risky to show ourselves now. They will likely attack us, but if one of them escapes, it could warn others we do not know about... without knowing their numbers, they could surround us easily." Baldrek voices his concerns.
He then points to the other exit to the planning room. "I believe we should return through the secret passage and block it. We then explore the place... if we reach the other exit, these gremlins would be trapped. They would not know their 'secret passage' is not secret and is blocked. We should take advantage of this knowledge."
”Works for me,” Raknar agrees, even if his tone is a bit begrudging.
Following Baldrek’s suggestion, you barricade the secret door and head west and south, looking for the way into the other side of the gremlins’ war room. A flickering light reveals a dark tunnel leading west and three people huddled together, speaking in hushed voices.
As you get closer, you can see the people are your dorm mates: Ignaci, Okoro, and Tzeniwe. Ignaci lies propped up against a wall, and he seems to be in bad shape. His skin has broken out into hives and his tongue and throat are swollen.
”Hey! Hey, guys, please help us!” Okoro shouts. ”Please, Ignaci’s hurt and we don’t know what to do!”
”If only I had paid more attention in Teacher Ot’s class on poultices!” Tzeniwe says, wringing her hands in worry. ”This is bad. This is very bad.”
Raknar steps closer and says ”Breath. Focus. Calm your spirits so your minds can work clearly,” Raknar says surprisingly calmly.
As Raknar tries to calm the others, Baldrek wastes no time in inspecting Ignaci's wounds and condition. "Yes, calm yourselves. We'll help you."
Okoro and Tzeniwe follow Raknar's advice, managing to get a hold of themselves.
"We were assigned to map the tunnels beneath Warden House, but a cave-in blocked our way back," Okoro explains. "We were trying to find another way out when we ran into some giant bees! Ignaci stepped in front of me to protect me, but one of the bees stung him. He must be allergic!" He kneels beside Ignaci and squeezes his hand. Ignaci weakly returns the gesture.
"Neither of us has the medical expertise to help him," Tzeniwe says. "And we've been too nervous to move him."
Baldrek pulls out his healer's kit and begins tending to Ignaci. He rubs medicated creams onto the site of the bee sting to reduce the swelling and pain. Ignaci sighs with relief. He's still in a bad way, but he's now well enough to walk with assistance.
"Thank you!" Okoro says as he helps Ignaci to his feet. "If you tell us how to get out of here, we'll get him to the surface."
"Oh, and I spotted a secret door across the way," Tzeniwe says, pointing to the east wall. It seems to correlate to the opposite side of the gremlins' war room.
"We encountered a pair of giant bees ourselves." Holding up the rough-sketched map, Patizamo says to Okoro, "If you follow the path that way to a glowing blue mushroom, and then take the south-west passage out of that room, you will find yourselves in the basement of the Archorn Library. You can get back to the campus that way. Would you like us to show you the way?"
Ignaci nods. "It doesn't sound like it's that far... I can walk," he says weakly.
"And we'll make sure nothing else bad happens to you," Okoro says to the wounded mage.
The trio thank you again before departing, leaving you alone in the tunnels once more.
Deciding to continue exploring this section of the tunnels, Raknar once more takes the lead, scouting to the south. This natural chamber has strangely sticky walls. The air is filled with a heavy scent vaguely reminiscent of flowers.
Three enormous bees are spread out about the chamber, nibbling at the paste on the walls. They do not immediately notice Raknar.