perception
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
The hills you've been walking through are covered in deep snow and the wind has erased any prints that had been there. However, Az sharp eyes notice a small crack in one of the valleys you are about to cross.
The instructions of the tengu were clear. The shortest route for the crevice were to follow that crack as it tuned south then east to get to a place were it was possible to go down. You dutifully follow the indications until the small crack grows to a crevice about four feet large and turns west.
Survival
"Finally, we're getting somewhere!" Cay briefly fantasizes about a nice warm bath back at town.
Vardara has followed the group, reveling at the progression in the snow and happy to be out of the city walls.
After the bend, the crevice waves for miles westwards as you follow it. Just before sundown, Az and Caydee spot a place where the side of the crevice seems to have be eroded by a heavy weight.
Looking down, you can see that the bottom of the crevice, about 40 feet down, is wide enough so that someone can walk without being constrained.
"Not sayin anything to be o offense but we should return to town post haste for I have begun tah smell as an Orc!"
"I'll go last, because I probably won't fall. Though our cleric here has been making me wonder if he wants my job." She gives him a mock glare.
"I shall go second"
Climb check
On her turn, Vardara, unhindered by armor, glides down the rope to join everyone else.
As you climb down the crevice without injuries, the ice changes from a dull white to an eerie blue, almost as if it was pulsing with its own light.
The bottom of the crevice is solid rock recovered by a thin ice crust from time to time. At this place, the crevice is about 4 feet large but seems to widen further on. You can easily squeeze one past the other but you need to move one behind the other for now. Despite the ice glow, it is quite dark and you see the sky turning pink and gold as the sun set.
"Everyone happy breaking camp around here?" Cay suggests.
"I think it best tah find a defensible spot fer this stop over an remember fallin ice....Perhaps moving forward and findin ground where we have our feet under us."
"I agree with you, Az, the ground has been like that all day long and it's not bound to change."
After half an hour walk along the crevice, the scenery has not really changed. The light is getting really low and the sky has turned black. Luckily, the moon is up but down the crevice, its light is not enough to go by.
As you eventually settle for the night, you realise that without the wind and due to the narrow crevice, your heath is reflected by the ice and you spend an uneventful night.
Just before sunset, you are all woken up by a strange sound reflecting all around you. The volume increase, drilling into your head and suddenly, it stops.
Vardara stands up from her couch and like she did the day before, mutters an indistinct formulae, waving her hands in strange and complex moves. The ice at her feet grows up, covering her from toe to head.
"What was that?
Caydee stands up in alarm, fumbling with her bow.
Standing in silence for a few minutes, you do not hear anything else.
Fubar moves to position himself alongside Vardara noting that the two of them should be able to turn aside the onslaught of evil.
"I have thought to protect those who can not see in the darkness"
Cay rolls her eyes and drags the human cleric behind her to take up position behind Fubar. "Of course it's cold." She remarks to Fubar and Vardara, "I had thought to take point position; me eyesight's good, and I have a bow."
"yer bows only as good as the next turn in this ice crack."
"No need to get so uptight about things, I'll leave my place to you KD, so you're just behind Fubar."
As you walk forward, still worrying about the strange noise that woke you, the crevice slowly widens and you arrive at a point where two of you can walk side by side. On both sides of the chasm, the ice is bluer and colder than ever and you realize you are about 40 feet under the surface.
About 30 feet in front of you, there is a sharp bend to your left.
Cay begins to feel uneasy. "Everyone has their weapons ready, right?"
Perception
"Yeah I have my falchion here in my righ I mean left hand..."
Grashnak sniffs the air like some sort of wild animal.
I cannot detect any evil from here. Anyone wants to have a look?, murmurs Vardara, or do we move together
"I can have a look."
Cay follows quietly, just behind Ahz.