Kolgun joins Bengal in the aftermath. He nods in admiration. Wet-work isn't for the faint hearted.
He works his way carefully along the corridor adjacent to the stairs, examining the stonework for any secret passages or strange construction that might indicate a trap . . .
He'll return to report his findings, or lack thereof.
Thel surveys the damage, frowning. "A shame I took these out for nothing," and sheaths his daggers. He goes over the weapons, casting them aside. "At least we'll be able to sell them back in town," and makes a pile of them to collect on the way out.
He joins Kolgun at the end of the hall, and walks up the stairs. "This way looks as good as any other..." and peers into the torch-lit darkness.
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Squinting into the gloom at the top of the stairs, you can make out rubble, old barrels and casks, rotted wooden crates, and other debris clogging this area. Cobwebs fill the corners. The air is dank.
From somewhere to the west you can just barely hear the sound of water dripping.
At the top of the small flight of steps to the south you can see a number of old wine racks filling the attached chamber, though it looks as if most of them are empty.
Bengal will smile, and shake her head at the elf's offer, "I don't have much problem seeing in the dark."
Kolgun joins Thel near the entrance to the wine cellar.
"I'd expect something nasty indeed if there's a single bottle left un-touched by the goblins or their kin," he whispers.
He moves in a little farther, out of the circle of torch light to allow his darkvision to work. His warhammer clinched in his right fist, his iron shield ready.
Bengal follows quietly behind Kolgun, then moves over to the boxes and looks to see if she can find anything interesting.
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BENGAL
When your eyes lower down to the parchment, you spot a thin square in the floor where there is no dust. You realize it is the outline of a trapdoor where the dust has fallen through the cracks.
Bengal seems to take a little bit of time around the boxes, grabbing the two intact bottles she sees and putting them behind her for the others to grab and store.
She picks up the piece of paper first, looking at it as she tells Kolgun, "I found a trapdoor over here."
She tilts her head as she reads the paper, raising an eyebrow. She walks back to the others and holds it out to them, "I am not sure what to make of this."
Tarlane,are the two bottles magical?
Kolgun examines the diary page and considers the words so carefully scribed there.
"Well, this may help explain why the keep was razed so long ago."
Rivenyk . . . . He searches his memory and schooling for anything he may have learned of this creature, or the knife that seems connected to it: Knowledge Religion - (1d20+5=25)
Aldrin begins pouring over the letter, while quickly getting into another discussion with himself.
"Raven-neck? The heck is a Raven-neck? Well, besides what a raven uses to keep his head up. A knife? What is it with highborn women and knives. Oh, the butler wanted to off her, huh? How cliche. North tower? North of where, here? Deeper down? Bah! It's just too damn vague!"
He Throws the letter to the ground in a huff, and then eyes the two bottles with interest.
"Anything interesting in the bottles? Magic they may not be, but useful they may yet be!
Thel reads the note, and casts his memory back to the ruins above, trying to recall if there had been any northern towers with a staircase going down into the ruins.
Kolgun considers what he knows of Rivenyk and relates it to his companions, unconsciously holding his holy symbol as he speaks.
"No being to be trifled with. I suggest we seek to learn more of the knife and tower mentioned on the page before we venture deeper into these ruins."
Bengal nods, "Yes, that is probably the best. But what about the trapdoor? Shall we return later?"
"Yes, let's return when we're more prepared. Can you rig it so we'll know if it has been used while we explore?"
Bengal nods. She then turns and presses her ear to the door, trying to see if she can hear anything beyond the door.
Kolgun joins Bengal near the door, peering underneath to see if any light creeps beneath, and takes a moment to listen for any signs of movement or speech from the otherside . . .
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Kolgun
[ooc]And I did want to note that for the trapdoor I did remember to roll your automatic perception for it, I just rolled low which is why bengal spotted it. So you don't feel like those abilities are forgotten, even though they are done in the background.[ooc]
Kolgun lets the group know that he hears the sound of a bat beyond the door.
Whispering "Could mean another way into this place. And another way out. Good to know if we have to leave in a hurry. Might be worth investigating."
With that, he looks to the others to see what they have in mind. . .
i think we should clear out this level first before we descend, if we go down that trapdoor now, we may find it blocked later on when we need to leave (or escape) so lets go through that door!
"Another level?!" audibly groaning. "How deep could it possibly go?"
Walking over to the door, he whispers to the others, "Could be another way up. Maybe we can find a clue to the hidden staircase in the note."
Whispering "Aye,let's try the door, then. Bengal, do you feel up to scouting? I'll keep an eye out if we move the light back enough . . ."
While the group prepares to open the door, Kolgun places a broken glass from a wine bottle on the trap door, explaining that it might indicate whether the door's been used.
She nods, "Oh yes, I have no problem scouting." She motions to the door, "Shall you open the door for me, so that I may move on?"
After placing the broken glass on the trap door Kolgun returns to next to Bengal.
He nods that he's ready, the carefully opens the door a crack to see if any light seeps into the room they occupy.
Absent any light, he opens it farther alowing Bengal to slip into the room in her stealthy, noiseless manner.
Bengal smiles to Kolgun, then quietly slips into the room, pressing her back against the wall and taking a look around.
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Creaking open the door, the room looks much like the previous one with rotted casks and crates piled around it. The primary difference is that it looks like there once was a stairwell that went up along the western wall but is now completely collapsed in a pile of rubble.
Bengal and Kolgun
Sudden rapid screeching of what sounds like panicked rodents fills the room that bengal went into, its cause out of sight of the rest of the team, though there is obviously a flurry of motion from within.
Bengal lets out a loud yelp, "Bats!!"
Thel stands ready, a dagger in each hand. When Bengal shouts her warning, he spins the daggers in the palms of his hands, a look of dissapointment on his face. "Bats...? Who's that going to impress?"
Init: 1d20+3=12
Kolgun snarls as he sees the swarm descend on Belgan . . . Torag tells that among the hideous creatures that live under the earth, bats are the most fiercly hated.
He steps in to defend the tibbit . . .
Initiative (1d20+1=20)
iniative 1d20+3 =
16
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Litterally thousands of bats fill the air of this chamber as they come down from the roof and out of the cracks where the old stairway had crumbled. They seem to fill your hair and just cover your body when you are in the swarm.
Bengal make a DC 11 Fort save, if you fail look below.
Kolgun steps into the room and attempts to grab Bengal to pull her back out, giving a shout to provide her with a sense of direction . .
"Over here!"
If he's unable to bring her to safety he'll try to drive the wicked beasts off with his hammer:
1d20+3=18, 1d8+2=3
As the bats close on him Kolgun tries to remain focused on the job at hand, no easy task as they surround and engulf him . . .
Fortitude Save (if necessary) (1d20+5=15)
She swings her arms at the bats, then tries to move over to Kolgun as she listens to his voice.
loren delays
Kolgun shuts the door behind Bengal and checks to make sure none of the filthy lurkers became tangled in her hair.
Considering broken stairway, "We may have discovered the remains of the tower. If there is anthing left of it, or if it's accessible is anyone's guess."