With Hosilla defeated and much of the main resistance subdued or killed, you have no trouble forcing the few remaining mongrelfolk into surrender. Their attitudes range from defiant to despondent, but the way that you've handily dispatched so many of them prevents any attempts at an uprising - for now.
You find that there are a few other hostile animals in the complex, but they either avoid you if you don't bother them (like the giant amoeba that lives in the trash midden) or are easily dispatched (like the few giant rats in a nest near the east exit from the caves).
With the run of the place, you're able to give it a more thorough search, and you find some dried food supplies (plenty to get you back to the surface), and a lockbox that was under Hosilla's desk. Her key fits it, and it contains:
• A small leather pouch containing an assortment of semiprecious gemstones (three chips of lapis lazuli, two bloodstones, a citrine, and a white pearl) as well as a scroll of bear’s endurance and a scroll of remove disease.
• The lockbox also contains long, thin darkwood sword case.
The case is not locked—inside lies a breathtaking longsword—a weapon of obviously superior craftsmanship with a razor-sharp blade that appears to be made of shining gold.
Alexa's expression turns grimmer than normal when no sign of Miles is found among the mongrelfolk. On the one hand, that's good. On the other...
She sighs and rubs her temples, her eyes starting to sting. "...let's go."
Arloric gapes at the magnificent sword.
"That's a weapon fit for a clanliege!" he exclaims. "When we get to the surface, the very sight of it would probably bolster the morale of any survivors we find!"
As they prepare to depart, he notices Alexa's face and frowns as well.
"We'll find him, Dorne. We'll find him, Uncle Crocris and all the rest, you'll see."
He extends his arm, offering a hug.
The elf will cast read magic and inform the group of what the scrolls are.
Alexa silently nods, then retrieves her discarded shortbow and sheathes her short sword.
"...I hope so."
Aberus held up his silver ankh and cast an orison.
"You may be right about that sword, Arloric. It is infused with magic of some sort. Telerin may want a closer look at it."
Aberus sheathed his scimitar, then pulled out the satchel of potions they received from Chief Sull. "Before we go, we should each take one of these healing potions. I wasn't thinking earlier, or I would have done this already."
He handed a potion of Cure Light Wounds to everyone.
Uriel accepts the potion gratefully.
The elf will pick up the sword after casting detect magic
spellcraft check
You collect your "friends," who are overjoyed at seeing you alive again.
"This is great news!" says Anevia. "We can get out of here now!"
Aravashnial says wryly, "I won't notice much of a change, I'm afraid, but at least I'll be out of immediate danger. Assuming the city above isn't in flames!"
Horgus replies, "You'll be able to feel the warmth of the sun, you old coot! Come on, let's get out of here!"
You return to Neathholm with your prisoners, where the chief and the townsfolk are overjoyed. Chief Sull seems particularly pleased. "You've done us all a great service," he says, "in removing the primary conflict among our people. Now we are able to move about freely once more and resume business as usual. Oh! And since your town above may be in danger, we will, of course, help you as we can. We have little to offer, but if you need to pass through our tunnels, or bring people to us for safety, we will help you as we can."
With great pomp he declares you friends from above and guardians of Neathholm, and asks that you take his enchanted morningstar with you. "It is only fitting that it should see the light of the sun and end the threat of any more of these cultists, who are enemies to both of our kin," he says.
Packed with provisions from the mongrelfolk, you pass through the settlement of the cultists and make your way through a tunnel that heads east. The tunnel eventually breaks through a brick wall into a sewer, and from the sewer you find a ladder, and then freedom! And the sun and sky above!
The fresh air and sunlight are a warm balm as you break out of the underground, where it feels like you've been trapped for more than a year, even though it's only been a few days.
"What is that smell?" says Aravashnial as you break out of the underground.
The town around you is in shambles. Smoke clouds the sky. Many buildings are broken and damaged, and ash lines the streets. There are no major fires; most of them must've burned out over the last few days - but here and there you see a bit of black smoke or lick of flame from a last remnant that smolders on a rooftop or in a garden somewhere. Bodies are scattered about, bloated and buzzing with dark clouds of flies. The stench of rot and brimstone is heavy, even with wind blowing in from the west. In the skyline, the Tower of Kite and the Cathedral of St. Clydwell are both missing - completely destroyed. Getting your bearings, you think you are on the south side of the city, but where the city wall should be with a tower to the southeast, there is a massive furrow in the ground and the part of the wall that held a watchtower has been completely smashed.
You stand in the apocalyptic ruins of Kenabres, unsure of what to do next.
The sword seems, asleep remarks the wizard.
Uriel stares, aghast at the destruction of the once-bustling city. After what seems like an eternity, he tears his eyes from the destruction, and turns to the others. "We should see to the wardstone. If it has been damaged, there could be an incursion of demons through the hole, and we would need to get word out quickly."
If we can help anyone along the way, we should do so. she comments.
Alexa is dumbstruck, this time by the sheer scale of the destruction she's witness to.
The town who accepted her family... the town that gave her shelter and demanded her service... all of it is ruins. Ruins and pain.
The group is interrupted by a bugling cry from below, which causes Arloric's face to light up. A great stag with massive antlers bounds up to them.
"RED-BRANCH!" Arloric shouts in delight. He rushes over to the giant buck and embraces it by the neck.
"I knew you'd make it! No demon could defeat you!"
Aberus emerged from the sewer and into the full light of the day in the city above. Distracted at first by the sight of the sun, he was only vaguely aware of the damage to the city until Aravashnial's voice interrupted his reverie. "What is that smell?"
Aberus looked down and saw devastation in all directions. Nothing looked familiar, as though they had traveled underground for weeks, not days, and climbed out into ruins from old Sarkoris. He was aware of Uriel and Telerin speaking, but his focus was on the shattered buildings. He'd only been in Kenabres a little more than a year and was unfamiliar with many parts of the city as it was before. Now? He couldn't make sense of it: there was no Catherdral, no Kite, rubble everywhere, and huge scars in the earth as if it had been sliced open with a scythe. Eventually he noticed the hole in the city wall, and the grassland behind it, and figured they must be in the Gate District, southeast of what remained of the city's center. By the Gods! he thought. Is there anyone still alive here?
Then came the unmistakable smell of brimstone and decay.
He was about to answer Aravashnial when an enormous stag came bounding through the rubble.
Alexa flinches when the sound of Arloric's pet stag thundering up from beneath the earth fills the air. It doesn't do much to turn her eyes away from the rampant destruction.
...it's so horrible... and yet... somehow, I feel the need to capture this in sketch.
This is not hell. At least in Hell, the innocents do not suffer.
Uriel notes the deer's arrival, but once he is sure it is no threat he returns his gaze to the horizon, looking for threats, landmarks, or survivors.
Anevia says, "My spouse and I had a small house in the eastern part of the city. Could we try to get there, see if... if..."
Aravashnial raises a hand and says, "We understand, my dear. All of us are worried about people we've lost."
Horgus Gwerm huffs and says, "We should visit my manor house first - we can probably rest there, and I have many supplies stocked in my larder. It is also in the eastern side of the city, so perhaps we can do the proverbial business of two birds, eh?"
Uriel scouts about as best he can and comes to a stark conclusion: The city is definitely still unsafe, but it may be safer than being out in the open countryside nearby. The massive gash in the ground shows that demons from the demonic army went out into the countryside and are rampaging toward who knows what; being caught out in the open in the plains would be bad news. On the flip side, there are probably demons and zombies all over the city, too. Your best bet for recuperating is to find a place where you can safely hole up - probably an abandoned house. Being out in the streets is certainly risky.
Aberus stepped out of the way as the large deer sprinted up to Arloric. That's one reunion, he thought. Hopefully there will be two more. He marveled at the enormous stag. "Your companion we've heard so much about, I presume?"
Surveying the damage, Aberus thought for a moment, then said, "Horgus, Anevia, we will of course escort you to your homes, assuming it is safe to do so. And you, Aravashniel, to wherever it is you need to go. Horgus, your offer is very noble, and appreciated. Though given the damage to the city, we may need to hole up for safety wherever we can find it. Navigating this maze of rubble..."
The elf will approach the stag and attempt to pet it.
A beautiful creature. Most magnificent she says.
Red-Branch sniffs Telerin curiously before consenting to the pat.
"Thank you. He's a megaloceros. You rarely see his kind in the south, but you once many of them roamed the Sarkorian Plain. Hopefully one day that'll be true again. I have yet to see a doe of his kind yet, though. Part of me worries the demons got them all, and he's the last of them...kind of like me..."
He trails off and hangs his head, tying his eyepatch back in place.
It's currently afternoon. You can go counter-clockwise along the outer wall of the city, but if the destruction here is any indication, you may eventually hit a chasm where the fighting led to massive furrows in the ground, which might not be easily passable. Getting to a high point (a tower or something) would give you a better view.
"I hate to interrupt your reunion, but I think we need to get a better look at the city. We need to find a tall building that's still standing, one with three or more stories, so we can get our bearings and find a route through this mess."
At Aberus' words, Arloric snaps into focus and strokes his bristly chin as his one eye narrows in concentration.
"I can take a look from atop Red Branch. In case you hadn't noticed, he's pretty damn tall. I might have a better view from there."
He gives Red Branch an understanding pat, and the megaloceros lowers himself to the ground to allow Arloric to climb on his back, before standing and lifting his friend up.
Uriel takes point, just ahead of the deer-mounted druid. He leaves his blade sheathed, but is ready to draw it at a moment's notice.
Arloric scrambles up onto Red Branch to try to get a better view of the city. To the east, on the other side of the massive gash in the ground, is the park that makes up a large part of the southeastern city. Large areas have suffered fire damage, and embers still glow and float up to the sky. To the north are the cramped cottages of sages and scribes, who surround the Blackwing Library, which seems to be relatively intact. To the south is the gate leading out of the city and to the road that turns east to Trunestone Quarry. The gate itself shows some signs of damage. The famous smithies and forges that surround that area are still; there is no sound of hammers, no sign of coal smoke. To the west are collections of packed houses, the middle- and lower-class denizens of the Gate District, the outermost ring of Kenabres.
In all directions you see destruction and devastation. Occasionally you think you catch a spot of movement in a window or atop a wall, but the streets appear to be mostly empty - for the moment. There are, in some places, occasional bodies lying against walls or sprawled on the ground, surrounded by drying blood.
"The streets are mostly clear, Aberus. If there's anyone left in the city, it looks like they've hidden in the houses or buildings...Truestone Park is on the opposite side of that fissure..."
His head sinks again.
"By every god and his mother, I hope Uncle Crocris is okay."
"Truestone park..." mutters Aravashnial. "We may be near Blackwing Library. Is it still intact? It should have a tower - can anyone see it?" The blind mage perks up.
"I saw it, Aravashnial. It looks like it still stands. And it's on this side of the chasm, so unless we encounter anything in the streets, we should reach it quickly."
The library might be a good place to rest and get our bearings she comments
Seeing no reason not to try the library, you move carefully from building to building to reach the structure.
You pass by a few corpses along the way - nothing animated for now, fortunately - until you reach the forbidding structure.
While from a distance the library seemed mostly intact, as you come close you can see that the facade and great hall still stand, but the tower shows cracks and signs that it has been hollowed out - possibly blown apart from the inside by a massive explosion. The buildings all around are mostly intact: book-binders, vellum-traders, ink-sellers and similar shops that support the library and the kinds of magicians and scribes who would visit the area.
Alexa doesn't know whether to be relieved or more worried when she looks upon the corpses--on the one hand, there was no disregarding the sheer scale of the tragedy that resulted in their deaths; no matter who they were in life, even they didn't deserve to meet their ends during a demonic invasion.
On the other hand, Miles was not among them.
"...let's hole up in one of the shops here. We need to rest."
Alexa quietly pushes open the door to an old scribe's shop. It's filled with the smell of ink and burned paper, and crumpled paper is scattered across the floor. It is empty, though, and there are quarters above the shop as well as a back room with many files stuffed in boxes, and you are able to move these out of the way and get some rest at long last.
You sleep until morning, and though you hear horrid screams and occasional strange sounds from outside, the doors remain closed and nothing tries to sneak in to throttle you in your sleep. This time.
Arloric frowns as Alexa seems to get more agitated. He knew it was anger born of worry, but he felt like there was nothing he could say or do to help her. As they settle in for the night, he climbs out the window and sets his bedroll up on the roof, so he can look up at the stars before falling asleep, and in the event that Red Branch is disturbed, he can easily aid him.
Aberus awoke feeling tired from a restless night filled with chaotic dreams. "I don't think I've slept that poorly, ever. If we weren't so exhausted I doubt I would have been able to sleep at all."
He looked around at the stacks of boxes and files. I wonder if the owner fled the city, or was killed in the invasion. Or worse. The whole city seemed to have emptied in just two days. They couldn't all be dead, could they? The occasional screams over night suggested that they weren't, but that was hardly comforting either. He shuddered at the thought, then forced himself to concentrate on the here and now.
To no one in particular, he said, "I'll need an hour or so for my morning prayers to Sarenrae."
Uriel rises early, and prays to Ragathiel for courage, strength, and, if need be, the General's own righteous fury. He then dons his armor, takes up his sword, and looks around the area, trying to ensure security for the others who take longer to ready themselves for the day.
Uriel takes up a guard position outside. In the distance he can make out shouts, running footsteps, and maniacal laughter, but nothing close enough to easily spot without dodging through ruined buildings and into unknown terrain.
The library awaits. Its heavy doors seem mostly intact, even though its upper spires are hollow remnants of their former selves. Uriel can barely make out muffled clanking and thumping from inside, as well as a low murmuring that might be a conversation, but can't tell what it signifies.
Before the others enter, he'll pass that along as quietly as he can, so that they're aware. He'll also probably take point when we enter, unless y'all want to leave a guard outside.
Alexa holds a hand up to Uriel. "Wait."
She inches up to the door and listens at it.
Arloric walks beside Red Branch as they advance to the library. His mind drifts to tales Crocris told him as a child, about Sarkoris and the Living Library, the memory of his people written not on the skins of beasts and trees but in living wood. It was gone now, torn apart and burned and poisoned by the demons. As Alexa orders the others to wait, he snaps back to reality, and waits for her word to proceed.
Aberus stood outside the entrance to the Library, tensley waiting for word form Alexa or Uriel. There must be someone inside, he thought. Or something. He shuddered at that.
Almost subconsciously, his right hand found the hilt of his scimitar. He felt his fist close around it and squeeze.
I hope that the books here, the knowledge here, is not lost she comments.