"I am a kuo-toa. I am sure that you have heard of my peoples' reputation for madness, but fear not! I have spent a lifetime in contemplation and meditation, and have become enlightened."
"This small friend is Stool. He is a youngling myconid - the fungus people. It is through his spores that we are able to communicate. He was lonely and timid when he first arrived here at Velkynvelve, but he has grown more joyful since finding a friend" Shuusar smiles.
"And what, pray tell, are you, small friend? I have not seen one of your kind before."
---
"Ior, uan, uach... ail'n... dheal aichteannraib al min cheacab." Buppido clears his throat awkwardly. "Dag thi nal thi fean. A maim, ior... A maim tham a ead ma chlaidh shadh ma thica ain sin." Buppido nods solemnly, before setting himself to work.
Dwarven:
"Er, uh, um... it's... not important at this moment. Best to get to work." "You shall, er... I shall tell you of the plan when the time is right."
---
"Ok, telj er!" the orc says, glaring at Vicktor, not even bothering to open his eyes.
When Lacey talks to the fish person, he simply smiles contentedly and waves over the mushroom creature. The creature toddles over inquisitively. The fish person looks at the mushroom and seems to gesture an explosion happening. The mushroom jumps excitedly before releasing a huge burst of spores into the air.
Lacey starts a bit at the sudden burst. She wipes some spore dust off of her face, then hears an odd voice.
"Greetings, small one."
The voice seems to come from everywhere at once. She looks around for the source, then looks at the fish person, who lets out a hearty belly laugh at Lacey's apparent confusion.
"Calm yourself, small one. I suppose not all are accustomed to the practice of telepathy. It's alright, small one. Simply focus on the words in your head, and I will hear them. My name is Shuushar, The Awakened, and-"
"AND I'M STOOL!!!" a shrill, voice interrupts, loud enough for Shuushar and Lacey to both wince at its intensity.
"Inside voice, Stool," Shuushar calmly chides.
"Oh, right, sorry. I get excited!!! I like new friends!!!" The shrill voice says, at a more tolerable volume. The little mushroom dances about excitedly.
Shuushar laughs again. "...haha yes, and this is Stool. He likes new friends. What is your name, small one?"
---
Vicktor and Jimjar set about loading barrels full of water from the waterfall. After a minute, Vicktor notices that the orc isn't with them. He looks around and spies the orc simply lounging on a rock a short distance away, apparently napping. The guards don't seem to have noticed him slacking off, caught up in their own conversation.
---
The bearded fellow starts at Roark's response. "Ior, uan, uach... an. Ail ain o neith chlaidh. Ion- Che aleacheaptìn, A fhoneadha A cin'l sàchina a sreanga Mainadh..."
He pauses awkwardly.
"Che dhaica ain Buppido, de ma fu. Ma rina eaga mana gain lanan Topsy."
Dwarven:
"Er, uh, um... yes. It is a good plan. Eh- My apologies, I suppose I didn't realize you spoke Dwarven..."
"My name is Buppido, by the way. The little one there calls herself Topsy."
All eyes turn to the gate of the slave pen, where a few Drow guards have assembled, flanked by a few hulking quaggoth. One of the Drow bangs his sword on the bars of the pen before unlocking it and stepping inside.
"Ones, e thugh. Sede mif vis," the Drow says to the cell at large. All the other prisoners rise to their feet and stand along the rear wall of the cage. You decide to follow suit.
The Drow then proceeds to divide you into a number of groups, pointing and ordering slaves around the pen.
Lacey gets put into a group with Derendil and the large fish person who had previously been meditating in the corner. Much to her surprise, the mushroom he had been holding in his lap stood up - apparently, it was a creature who had been napping along with the fish person. The... mushroom creature is also in Lacey's group.
Vicktor gets placed in a group with Jimjar and the orc who had been terrorizing the small creatures.
Roark is put in a group with the short bearded fellow and one of the small creatures - the one who had been yelling at the orc.
Each of the groups is then escorted out of the cell, accompanied by a Drow and a quaggoth.
---
Lacey's group is escorted through the guard tower and across the bridge through the rest of Velkynvelve before reaching the main hall. This large cave has four circular tables along with a food prep area with stocks of fungi, fruits, cheeses, and meats, and a heavy iron brazier providing heat for cooking. Two other Drow are seated at one of the tables, playing cards and generally paying the slaves no mind. The Drow quickly set you to the task of cleaning the main hall area.
---
Vicktor's group is also escorted through the guard tower, but rather than proceed through Velkynvelve to the main hall, they stop at the other end of the bridge at the waterfall. "Ah great," Jimjar remarks, "water duty. My back will be aching for days," he groans. Sure enough, several empty barrels sit in a pile next to the waterfall, awaiting refill.
---
Roark's group stays behind in the cell. Upon seeing the last group begin leave the cell, the bearded fellow makes a face of disgust. "...braimar treark" he mutters. He breathes a sigh and says to himself "am train ead ma chlaidh" before heading off to the area of the pen with the chamber pots. The small creature makes a similar face of disgust and whines in disdain.
"Hehe! Yes, yes, all hypothetical of course." he says with a wink. "Sadly... I don't have a plan, either. But I can tell you what I know.
Three guards watch over this pen from that tower over there." he says, pointing at the massive stalactite outside. "'Course, 'watch over' is a strong term - they don't seem to much care what we do as long as we aren't killing each other. They change out the guard occasionally, but I forgot my pocketwatch at home, so I've no idea how often.
From what I know, there's three ways out of Velkynvelve - the passage you entered through, down those steps, another passage over by the kitchens, or over the edge into the cavern below. The first two are guarded. The third, well... you take that route at your own risk.
O'course, you already met Mistress Ilvara." he says, waving his hands in a mocking manner, "She runs the show around here. She's always flanked by those other two Drow you saw - Jorlan and Shoor. Used to be it was just Jorlan, till his face got all scarred up. Then all of a sudden this Shoor guy shows up. Seems like he's taking Jorlan's place, by the way he swaggers around. Between them and all the guards, I've counted somewhere north of a dozen Drow in this place, plus their spiders and some quaggoth. Oh, and o'course, moody ol' Sarith over there." He gestures to the Drow in the pen with you. "He used to be a guard round here till recently. The other guards call 'im a murderer. He claims it was a setup. Either way, he's one of us now." Jimjar shrugs.
---
Eldeth continues to look crestfallen. "An. A'sgra dàidh lana dol o bhan can... ràg, A min fhi. Lain thi mean lean thica traimhan cean lana. A'ch dheal fhona abhòl age i' ma eanrart. Gaidh'l thain chorm fichd age ead 'ioch 'gan Crinair."
None of the other prisoners seem to respond to Roark's question.
Dwarven:
"Ah. I've been here but a few days... least, I think so. Hard to know how time passes down here. I'm not sure about any o' the others. Can't talk much with any of 'em 'cept Jimjar."
---
Vicktor manages to catch the Drow's eye, but he just scowls at him before looking away, returning to his brooding.
Derendil simply gives Vicktor a confused look. He doesn't appear to understand.
---
"Oh, all sorts of fun stuff" Jimjar says. "Emptying chamber pots, stacking rocks, coiling ropes, fetching water. Basically anything they don't want to do or want to laugh at someone else doing.
Some days, if you're lucky, they'll put you to work in the kitchens. That's the best place to work, since you can sneak a bit of actual food instead of that nasty mushroom broth for once." he says, sticking his tongue out in disgust.
---
Eldeth looks a bit crestfallen. "An. A... A'ch dheal bhaicichuir fichd mail taidh. A ceadh'l fhoneadha a mean agoinrinn ead Gauntlgrym, ci a?" she asks.
Dwarven:
"Ah. I... I'm not familiar with that clan. I don't suppose ye know anything of Gauntlgrym, do ye?"
Eldeth helps untie the grimy rag from Roark's face. She asks somewhat nervously, "Aid a ceadh'l chis cha anidh' fhir, shirm taidh ci a lìomh meach?"
Dwarven:
"If ye don't mind me askin' sir, which clan do ye hail from?"
-----
Jimjar smiles. "Right, right, I believe you" he says, with an overdramatic conspiratorial wink.
"As for me, I ended up down here the same way we all did - captured by the Drow" he lets out a small chuckle before growing a bit more dour. "As for why I got captured, well... I racked up a few debts too many I suppose." He quickly defends himself, saying "I was gonna pay them back, I swear to you - I'm good for it. Jimjar always pays his dues... but they just weren't willing to give me the time I needed to pay. So they kicked me out. Left me to fend for myself, and that's when... the Drow found me and brought me in to their home" he says, with a sour smile.
-----
Derendil looks at the cavern floor, then up at Vicktor, uncertainty written in his features. He very cautiously extends his hand to meet Vicktor's, giving it a single light shake.
Eldeth appears momentarily crestfallen when Vicktor mentions not knowing Roark's clan, but quickly picks back up. "A, mail eaga. Gain linan Derendil, meach shail A gaidh nainrar. Fhàidh lich thainidh fichd mail Mean o thica ear mi. Mail'n am ma cheana A mean." she says with a shrug. "Ceadh'l feane, la'n fhonidhine gain bhear o mèaneachd. Reann an la coan'l nal chaith, agoinmhan." She shudders. "...Ceadh'l nal lich chaith."
Eldeth then walks over to where Roark is seated, blindfolded. "...er, Roark? Fhir?" she asks, "A faib cha thi lan a fichd mail minean?"
Dwarven:
"Aye, that one. Calls himself Derendil, from what I can gather. Seen him talkin with that Drow a time or two. That's all the more I know."
"Don't worry, he's surprisingly calm for a quaggoth. Long as he doesn't get mad, anyways"
"...Don't get him mad."
"...er, Roark? Sir? Ye want me to help ye with that blindfold?"
The Dwarf's eyes widen a bit. "Och, o samh eanichdar a fhu? Fam, madh. Chlàdhona thi chàil a, fhir," she says, genuinely impressed. "Ch'dhaican Eldeth. Laira a age airsa shirm taidh min... Roark? lìon meach?"
Dwarven:
"Och, a royal officer ye say? Well, then. Pleasure to meet ye, sir."
"M'names Eldeth. Have ye any idea which clan this... Roark? hails from?"
-------------------------------------------------
Lacey inspects the prison around her. The slave pen appears to be a natural cavern, barred off from the main cavern of Velkynvelve by thick iron bars and a heavy iron gate. The prisoners within are given a few chamber pots, tucked into a small nook of the cavern, but this is the only luxury on offer. As she gives the gate a tug, the lock solidly resists her, as expected.
From what she can tell, the Drow in the stalactite appear to be the guards for the slave pen, with a clear view of the slave pen from their guard tower. So far, each of the guards from the stalactite has had a ring of keys on their belt, and the Drow which locked them in here used such a key to lock this gate.
As she is thinking, she hears a voice behind her say "You're going to bust out, aren't you?"
She starts an turns around to see a dark-skinned creature about her size, with pointed ears and a large, flat nose. He is bald, but wears it well, and even in tattered prisoner's robes, he manages to look somewhat aloof and devil-may-care.
"I knew it. I saw it in your eyes. I'd bet that you're already thinking of a way out, aren't ya?" He gives a bow with an elegant flourish, tipping a hat he doesn't have, and says "Pleasure to make your acquaintance, miss. My name is Jimjar, formerly of Blingdenstone, broker, bookie, and whatever else suits me," he beams, a wide smile showing on his face.
"I'r hura tuav, I'r eríss I nul't túr yén peruerni. Lar qi, nye ai va telwi túr Aural?" the creature asks Vicktor, with a surprisingly urbane accent for such a gruff voice.
However, upon hearing Vicktor speak Dwarven, the female Dwarf takes her eyes off of Roark and looks towards Vicktor, surprised.
"A... cun Ceanadh? Ana a o coig uad Ceanan, cadh?" She gestures towards Roark "Gu a càn cin uaga?"
Dwarven:
"You... speak Dwarven? Are you a friend of Dwarves, then?" "Do you know this one?"
GM:
I'm sorry friend, I'm afraid I don't speak your language. Tell me, do you by chance speak Elven?
At the appearance of this new Drow, all the other Drow present kneel. After paying her respects, the female Drow who inspected you approaches the new Drow and converses with her in private. Whatever she says makes the new Drow's eyes light up, though her expression remains stoic. Once she is done consulting, the three female Drow who captured you take their leave across the bridge.
"Ahh, I do so love new slaves. So many new opportunities for... fun." she says with a wicked smile.
She moves towards the group, starting with Lacey. The tentacles on her rod grasp Lacey's head, pulling it up and exposing her neck. "Aaaah..." she says, an exhalation of pleasure more than anything else.
The tentacles squirm over Lacey's face as she begins speaking. "Listen well, scum. You now belong to Velkynvelve, and its fair ruler." She puts her face uncomfortably close to Lacey's and says "You may refer to me as Mistress Ilvara."
She releases the tentacles' grip on Lacey and moves to Roark, once again using the tentacles to move his head and inspect his neck. Disdain colors her voice as she says "You scum no longer have lives of your own. You will do well to remember that." The tentacles writhe over Roark's face, pulling at his hair and beard.
She releases Roark and moves to Vicktor, inspecting his neck as well. "Should any of you hold the foolish belief that you are independant, or harbor any fantasies of escape, it is best that you forget them now." The tentacles squeeze hard on Vicktor's face before releasing.
"You are mine, scum. Your bodies, your minds, and your lives belong to me. Accept your fate, learn to obey, and you may survive."
With this, she turns to leave. The young male Drow with her laughs and spits at the new prisoners, while the old scarred Drow does nothing. "Pur tar ir" she says to the Drow by the gate.
The Drow bows to her and quickly unlocks the gate, throwing the new prisoners inside. "Welcome to Velkynvelve, new meat" he says before locking the gate to the slave pen.
"Ty túr Rurul, Qirar" he says to the female Drow. He doesn't respond to Lacey's questions. He finishes binding the group, forcing them all into a kneeling position. Once he is finished, he moves to stand next to the gate of the pen.
Nothing happens for a little while, until eventually another Drow crosses the bridge from the stalactite. He proclaims "San Qerihitalwi, rurepan ull Tariorari ev vandumass ull Lolth, Púllan Mizzrym!"
A female Drow crosses the bridge, wearing exquisite robes and fine armor. In her hand she holds a rod, the end of which possesses three writhing tentacles. She is flanked by two male Drow - one young and full of swagger, the other with a melted and scarred face.
Meanwhile, Lacey sees a Drow leave the stalactite and approach the party, carrying with him the same heavy shackles worn by the other prisoners in the pen.
"Tar tiess, aur?" he remarks, before setting about to the task of binding the group in the manacles.
"Ty túr Aural?" he asks of the female Drow as he secures the bindings. "All ty nye, ty'fi civi aulor lye to tat elvot at." she responds. "Onaninin?" he asks. She shrugs. He turns to the group and asks "E spid thuas Onaninin?"
After he gets no response, he sighs and asks "What about this? You understand me now?"
Vicktor looks around, but recognizes no one within the pen. In fact, he couldn't even name the species of most of these creatures.
He sees a male Orc bullying a short, mostly-bald, dark-skinned creature, holding it upside-down by the ankles. A similar-looking, though less bald, creature is angrily yelling at the Orc, who just laughs.
He sees another one of those same creatures off a ways in the pen, though this one is clearly older. This one appears to be watching Vicktor's group with some interest, smiling and making remarks to an annoyed-looking Drow who clearly wishes to just be left alone. A small humanoid with white-blue skin, white eyes, and a flowing white beard approaches and speaks to this first creature, as if trying to spare the Drow from having to listen to him any further.
Elsewhere in the pen sits some kind of fish-person sitting cross-legged with shut eyes, as if in meditation. Oddly, he appears to have a large mushroom in his lap.
Far in one corner, Vicktor sees what looks like a shaggy white bear with human proportions. It looks much like the creature you saw in the first cage, and the other creatures seem to give it a wide berth. It sits with its head hung low, as if dejected.
Vicktor also notices a female Dwarf at the back of the pen, leaning against the wall and looking intently at the group - and specifically at Roark. She has bright red hair and a certain spark in her eyes. Vicktor can tell that despite her situation, she still has a fire burning in her heart. She appears to be entirely focused on Roark, rather than anything going on within the pen.
The female Drow who inspected you earlier calls out to the nearest stalactite: "Guldor! Imbros!"
After nothing happens, she frustratedly calls out again. "GULDOR! IMBROS! AI AMBATINDAR! Tuit tarimb yur unwan ur ev nye yén ner tur!"
You hear a voice respond "Murimalar, Qirar Nadal!" before another Drow appears at a window of the stalactite.
"Nerass ambatindar..." she mutters. "I semi tar tivular mun ti temi tar. Imbros, mar Púllan Mizzrym. Ti cir vi annararass al tavi ular." She shouts louder, "Guldor! Timb ot ti qelerar mun tavi put ev irur ti tenar."
Et ulwi, Qirar!" the drow in the stalactite responds, before disappearing from view.
The female Drow shakes her head and mutters under her breath again, rubbing her temples lightly.
GM:
Welcome to Velkynvelve, prisoners.
You imbeciles! Quit jerking each other off and do your damn jobs!
Forgiveness, mistress Nadal!
Damned imbeciles... I have fresh prisoners for the slave pens. Imbros, fetch leader Mizzyrm. She will be interested in these ones.
Guldor, bring out the manacles for these lot and unlock the gates.
At once, mistress.
You stand on a small ledge, about 15 feet wide, on the wall of an extremely massive cavern. The edge or this ledge appears to drop down into complete darkness. From the darkness above hang innumerable stalactites - a few of which are noticeably more massive than the others. These stalactites appear to have windows carved into them, and dim light emanates from the insides.
The ledge continues along the wall of the cavern a short ways before becoming a large staircase. As you walk along the ledge, you see to your left a cavern in the wall, barred off with iron. The interior of this cavern is littered with piles of scattered bones, tattered cloth, and miscellaneous debris. You see slumbering near the bars what appears to be a large, shaggy mound of white hair. Even in sleep, the mere sound of its breathing sends a chill down your spine.
The Drow lead you up the stairs, and at the top you see to your left another large cavern, this one also barred off. In this cave, phosphorescent fungus provides enough light to see the entirety of its interior. Milling about inside are about a dozen creatures of all different descriptions - all of them wearing thick iron collars along with manacles connected to iron belts by a short length of chain.
The Drow confiscate your crystals, stowing them in packs to dull their light. One of the female Drow casts a spell at Lacey, extinguishing her light as well. Another drow produces a grimy rag, tying it tightly across Roark's eyes to serve as a blindfold. And so, in utter darkness, you begin marching.
The ground is very rough beneath your bare feet. You feel yourselves dragged up, up, up inclines, only to suddenly plunge down a steep decline immediately. Sometimes the caverns you traverse are wide and spacious - but most times, they are barely large enough to fit you, causing you to scrape your arms against rough stone as you are dragged along. At times, you see glowing moss or fungus on cavern walls barely illuminate your path, but most times you are in utter darkness. When you do have light, you notice that the two male Drow who initially captured you are nowhere to be seen - They must have split off early in your journey.
After what feels like an eternity, you are surprised to find yourselves in not a twisting, natural cave, but a hallway with smooth floors. You hear the constant sounds of a waterfall echoing from the distance. Eventually, you emerge from the hallway, your exit lit by two dim lanterns on the wall of the doorway.
"Carunti lye Velkynvelve, tivular," the Drow leading you says as you emerge.
The Drow accept your surrender. They bind your hands tightly with the silk rope, tying each of you together in a line.
As they are tying the group up, three more Drow show up - all of them female. "Semi ela tolti, Jaezred?" one of them asks of the taller Drow. "Tut et er, Nadal" he responds. He nods at another of the female drow and says "Jevan'r nimilenór eri eráreni er auman. Tie quri temar mun Velkynvelve. Púllan Mizzrym cir vi car túvass."
"Tuini, tuini. Tur, pat ir arar ti rer, ter ci?" she says, and walks towards you. She walks slowly around each of you, appearing to inspect you. She grabs Lacey by the chin, turning her head to examine her face and neck. As she looks at Lacey's neck, she pauses. "Ardinwiss..." she says quietly to herself. Roark notices the barest hint of surprise in her voice.
She proceeds to scrutinize Vicktor and Roark in the same way, each time giving the slightest of pause as she looks at their neck.
As she finishes inspecting Roark, she slaps him hard across the face and lets out a chuckle. She turns to the rest of the assembled Drow, who have been standing at attention, watching her inspection. "Urer! Lye Velkynvelve!" she commands.
GM:
Nadal Perception:1d20 ⇒ 18 Have any trouble, Jaezred?
Not at all, Nadal. Jevan's divinations are accurate as ever. Three more slaves for Velkynvelve. Leader Mizzrym will be well pleased.
Quite, quite. Now, let us inspect the catch, shall we?
Illithid...
Onward! To Velkynvelve!
Roark calls down divine energy to attempt to smite the Drow, but the drow easily ignores the distraction and sidesteps the holy fire. He quickly returns the favor, loosing a bolt from his crossbow at Roark, who is taken aback at the speed of his retaliation.
"Tat var, ai tánnass fururan!! Yén tár ar er aura er yén nerass tirur!" the Drow yells at Roark
The shorter Drow stands with his crossbow ready and aimed at Roark, but says nothing.
Thanks to Lacey's light, you are able to see two figures approaching you. They are tall and lithe, and look elven - except for their charcoal-colored skin and pale eyes. They each carry a crossbow in one hand, and a length of rope in the other.
Roark, you recognize what they are immediately - the boogeymen from the bedtime stories you heard as a child - the Drow.
The shorter Drow smirks, saying to the taller one "Sar. Pier pildi ci cari fir lye to, Beremil. Aumal I nir't tir elali sess hárimass tet yurueldi!"
The taller one responds "Ev et sari ci eri, rurelli." He then says to the group, "Tur, tet ho ci nye tir ti yuva co, ev ai runti tara cir ir?"
He holds out the rope in his hands, in what seems like an almost inviting manner.
GM:
Beremil Initiative:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10 Jaezred Initiative:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (8) + 2 = 10 "Heh. Looks like we were right to stay, Beremil. Even I didn't think anyone had survived that earthquake!"
"And yet here we are, comrade. Now, what say we do this the easy way, and you come quietly with us?"
You all look around for a spot to hide, but the ravine walls offer no real hiding spots, and with your dim light you can't see much further than right in front of you.
Whatever the source of the noise is... It's getting closer.
To clarify, you basically started at the top left of a "y" shape, then went down until you met the second branch of the y. You proceeded to the top-right and found the pool. Now you're heading to the bottom of the y.
You proceed onwards down the ravine, spirits lifted now that your thirst is quenched. That is, until you hear -
BRAAAAAP!!!
A horn sounds from what sounds like the top of the ravine. You hear echoes of a voice shouting "Sari! Sari! Ti tivular!"
Where's Tenser's Floating Disk when you need it, huh?
While you are all thankful for the life-giving water, sadly none of you have any sort of containers. There doesn't seem to be any obvious food around here, either - all you see is the pool and lots of stone.
The group marches on without delay. After a while of marching uphill, the ravine eventually starts sloping dowards before it intersects with another ravine. You jump down the ledge into this new ravine, and to your surprise, the ground feels... wet! You look down and indeed, there is the slightest hint of a sheen to these rocks!
You follow the ravine downhill before finding a small pool of murky water, only just larger than a man's head. A bit of glowing moss clings to the rocks around the pool, and a bit of fungus appears to be growing as well.
GM:
There's not actually anything in this spoiler. I just wanted to catch you reading these. Shame on you! >:L
If you would like to scrounge for nearby edibles, you can give me a Wisdom (Survival) check... though I'll warn you now that the area looks fairly barren
You decide to head further into the ravine. It's a bit of a rough hike, going uphill the whole way. Sometimes you arrive at small clifss that reach all the way up to Vicktor's shoulders. It takes some effort, but you are all able to progress without too much difficulty. As you progress, the density of the crystal clusters starts to lessen. Eventually, they become rather rare. Fortunately, you can still see thanks to the ones you grabbed.
As you travel and converse, it quickly becomes clear that none of you have any recollection at all of how you got down here. It's a total blank. The last things you remember are just going about your days, normally as ever. Then, you woke up in a dark cave. You have no way to tell if your last memories are from last week or a year ago.
Roark:
As you're walking, you happen to notice something odd: Both Lacey and Vicktor have something on the sides of their necks. It appears to be... a tattoo? The especially odd thing is, it's the same on both of them. It's some kind of... symbol? You don't recognize it.
Roark looks around, but all he's able to find are boulders.
Vicktor, emboldened by how easy the previous crystal was to remove, throws caution to the wind and starts hacking away at another crystal. At the impact, it immediately shatters in a violently bright burst of light! All of you are blinded for a moment, your vision going totally white before slowly adjusting to the dim light again.
Vicktor, having learned that perhaps it was wise to be cautious and take his time, manages to carefully scour the area for 3 more fist-sized chunks of glowing quartz. He suspects that this is all the more this part of the ravine has to offer.
Vicktor looks around for a bit for a good crystal while Lacey and Roark take a moment to catch their breath. After inspecting a few different crystals, Vicktor finds one that he guesses will be easy to break free. He gently chips and pries at it with the pick, slowly working it loose, until crack! it breaks loose.
You now have a fist-sized chunk of glowing quartz, which emits dim light in a 10ft radius
The ravine looms before you still. You could try to grab a few more crystals, or you can press on while you still have strength.
Roark leads the way, with Vicktor and Lacey following behind, single-file, hands on each other's shoulders.
You march on for what feels like forever, limbs fatigued as they are. The cave remains just as small, though it is surprisingly straight. Roark guesses that there is perhaps a gentle uphill slope as you march, but even he can't be sure. Lacey finishes her song, and weary as you all are, you are all content to simply walk in silence for a time, sorting things out in your heads.
Eventually, you see a faint light off in the distance. As you approach, the cave ceiling suddenly disappears. The cave you were previously walking through emerges into what looks to be a narrow ravine. Littered about the uneven floor of this ravine grow all different sizes of glowing quartz crystals, some as large as your fist. They suffuse the ravine with a dim light, finally allowing Vicktor and Lacey the opportunity to see again.
You appear to have exited right at one tip of the fissure, with the ravine walls to your right and left. The light bouncing off the walls shows that they are rough and littered with potential footholds - you could perhaps try climbing out, but you have no idea how far the top is, and your fatigued limbs ache at the thought. In front of you, the ravine looms, its uneven floor having a distinct upwards slope. You guess that you may be able to pry one or two of the larger crystals on the floor loose with Lacey's pick if you tried.
You all hear each other calling out. You sound quite close to one another. You could probably find each other if you stumbled around for a minute.
Lacey:
You feel stone walls, floor, and ceiling. You seem to be in some kind of very narrow cave. The cave floor is covered in dust and rocks of various size. As you feel around, your hand knocks against what feels like some kind of wooden rod. You can pick it up if you like.
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You try to open your eyes, only to discover with some surprise that they’re already open. It’s so dark, you couldn’t even tell. As you come to your senses, you find yourself lying face-down on cold, uneven stone.
You slowly struggle unevenly to your feet only to hit your head on a low stone ceiling. You reach out to the sides and find two rocky walls, close enough that you can’t even fully extend both arms. The air is thick with dust, but you think you can just make out the scent of blood. Is it... yours? You’re not sure. Your head is swimming, your muscles ache, your stomach groans with emptiness and your mouth is dry with thirst. How long have you been here? How did you even get here? You struggle to remember, but... you have absolutely no memory of how you ended up here. But something makes you think you ought to get out fast. The question is… how?
You all start with 2 levels of exhaustion (you have disadvantage on ability checks and move at half speed). You have nothing on your person but some dirty rags. You are at risk of starvation and need to get food and water soon.
Roark:
As your eyes adjust to the utter darkness, you are able to see two other people not far away. Additionally, you see some pickaxes on the ground near each one of you. You appear to be in a very narrow cave just tall enough for you to stand in. The cave is filled with loose chunks of rock, of varying sizes. About 10 feet behind you, a very large pile of rocks appears to have blocked off the cave in that direction.
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