The finely worked stairs and flagstones of the dungeon give way to a wide, natural cavern. The ceiling drips with dozens of stalactites, and the floor rises unevenly with loose rocks and stalagmites. The rocks and debris become thicker to the east and west, and both directions offer only narrow paths of unobstructed terrain.
Varro, Brann, Arden, Belimir, and Jiles move down the stairs. The sound of rodents squeaking and squealing grows louder as they descend into the pitch black darkness of the roughly made caverns.
As they reach the bottom of the stairway, small patches of stalagmites and stalagtites can be seen along the floor. Giant rats can be seen along the walls, floor, and ceiling just to the side of the stairway. They don't even look up as the party reaches the bottom of the stairs, as they appear to be feasting on something around a bend in the cavern wall.
Varro looks to Francis, and whispers "get da Wilam, and da cat Belimir, der be more rats down ere"
Varro moves to a position to defend the rest of the party as they disembark from the stairs.
Rats! A cat that has any respect for it`s stomach doesn`t eat rats. They kill rats. I hate rats! Belmar changes back to his human form and sends a torrent towards the rats. "डूब मैल कीड़े, कीट कृंतक, डूब!"
"I believe he is coming," Francis whispers back. He moves to attack the giant rat but stops when he sees that the rats are feasting on a fresh corpse. Although their fur and claws are in the way, Francis suspects that it is Ehud. It would have to be him. Francis moves and strikes his target.
"I see Ehud!" he shouts to the others. "We have to save him!"
Arden moves into the room to help clear the rats from Ehud. "I hope that we are not already too late!" Arden begins chanting and drawing his power from the infernal pact, pointing at the giant rat.
"Hold on Ehud, help is at hand"
Brann rushes down to get close to his injured companion, blasting at the closest giant rat with a divine word.
Varro whispers to Francis as he moves down the stairs, ready to protect the group if anything attempts to attack.
Belimir shifts from his cat form back into his elven body, moves down the stairs, then summons a torrent of water to drown the rats around the corner.
The immense amount of water washes through the rodents, drowning them in its wake. Only one rat manages to escape the attack, hiding behind several large rocks.
Francis begins to move in to help clear the rats when he spots what the rodents are feasting on...a human corpse. Suspecting that it is their missing friend, Francis calls out to the group as he rushes in to try and save their friend.
Dispatching the remaining rat as he closes the distance, Francis arrives at the half eatten body of Ehud.
Arden follows close behind Francis to help with Ehud, Brann at their heels, ready to smite any rodent that dares try to attack them.
Chittering of rodents mixes with odd water-sounding noises in the other pitch black areas of the caverns.
"Der be more o'er ere" Varro lifts his axe and charges.
Arden follows the living cannonball known as Varro, and picks out another target amongst the rubble. Uttering a dark curse under his breath he moves into and fires a blast of energy at the rat. "How do these dirty goblins live in such conditions!" He chuckles as his blast rips into the beast.
I...................AM..................AWESOME! SEVEN IN ONE BLOW! COME HERE RATS! I`VE GOT SOME MORE WATER FOR YOU!
Belimir confidently walks forward.
Wilam finally stumbles into the area, late because of his confusion in missing the rock-hewn passage. The stink of dead rats nearly makes him vomit, but he holds back his lunch and looks for any threats. Spotting the rats struggling to survive Belimir's thrashing waves, he attempts to freeze them into watery prisons.
Seeing that the two visible rats are taken care of, Francis moves to L9.
What will become of Ehud? he wonders. Will Brann be able to save him? He fights back the urge to cry or lash out in anger against the walls and the rubble. He takes three quick breaths and calms himself. He imagines that he is a river. I must move and wind my way through the world. I must adapt to new situations.
Varro spots more rats past a pile of rubble, charges the closest one and cleaves it right in half.
Arden following close behind the living cannonball blasts the other rat, exploding rat guts all over the cavern walls.
Belimir, pleased with his well-placed spell, walks with confidence into the caverns.
Wilam finally stumbling into the caverns nearly vomits, but maintains his composure. Wilam summons a cloud of cold to help protect the area.
Francis, noting the death of the other rats, moves around the dark cavern a bit. He struggles against the loss of Ehud, taking a few moments to himself to collect himself.
Varro and Arden are congratulating themselves on their easy killing of the last visable rats, hear a slimey, squishing sound. They slowly turn around to see a huge slime-creature making its way hungrily towards them.
As Francis is taking a moment for himself, another rat stealthily makes its way out of the stalagmites and attacks the halfling, looking for an easy meal. The rat is unable to peirce the halflings armor though.
"oo oi ... Whatdahell be dat" asks Varro.
It took some time for Belimir to realize that the corpse under the now dead rats was Ehud. He was shaken by the fact that his friend was dead, but didn`t let it show. He whispered a short prayer for Ehud`s soul and continued fighting. There was a large slimey creature in the cavern. It didn`t look friendly.........or tasty. Belimir thought it would be better to attack this enemy with claws than with his staff. He changes shape and races across the cavern floor, roaring angrily. A swarm of carrion beetles rushes to attack the slimey creature.
On seeing the monsterous blob, Wilam's eyes grow large. He notes the creature seems to be having trouble fitting through the doorway into the next room and he sees a chance to keep the enemy at bay. "I can trap it in the opening there... keep your distance and we can dispatch it with our distance attacks. Jiles and Arden, give it all you've got!"
Jiles moves swiftly to gain some cover from the blob, readying his crossbow. He nods to Wilam, awaiting the storm pillar before loosing a bolt.
With a smooth motion, Jiles reloads, preparing for his next shot.
Arden turns to face the new foe as his comrades immediately launch into action. He points and utters a dark curse at the foul creature as he mentally prepares his next spell. This blob doesn't look very sturdy... could probably blast it away with thunder. Arden begins chanting and suddenly a loud clap of thunder washes over the creature, making it shudder. He then slips into the shadows, moving away from the blob for safety.
Brann stares at Ehud's body for a brief period, instantly knowing that there is nothing further he can do for his companion.
Another one? Why...I should have been here. I should have kept an eye on everyone. What must I do to keep them alive?
He looks over and spots the large mass and it gives him a target to focus his grief on.
"For Ehud, you'll pay", says the dwarf as rays of divine light spark from his fierce gaze.
Vitality flows into Arden as the rat explodes into peices. Death feeds his soul...
Varro is surprised by the appearance of the monsterous blob. He wastes no time in charging at it, axe held high.
He swings a wicked strike at the blob, his axe cutting deep into gelatonous mass, coming out the other side. A hole is left where his axe cut through, but then fills up again after a moment.
Francis strikes out at the rat but misses as dust clouds his eyes.
Belimir, after a short prayer for Ehud, shifts into his panther form and engages the slime. He roars, summoning a swarm of beetles from the cavern to swarm the blob. The beetles crawl along the surface of the jelly, only to be sucked into it, feeding the creature.
Wilam's eyes go wide as he spots the giant jelly. It seems to be having trouble fitting through the doorway, then the blob changes its form and takes up the entire doorway to the lower caverns.
Wilam, intent on keeping the jelly in that section of the caves, summons a raging storm pillar, threatening to harm the creature should it move forward.
Jiles avoids notice of the blob, waits for Wilam to release his storm pillar, then fires off a crossbow bolt from the shadows, scoring a solid hit into the mass of the jelly.
Arden throws a curse onto the jelly, then calls for a thunderous Clarion to harm the creature.
Thunder claps and the creature tremors with vibrations so powerful that bits of jelly fling off and stick to the cavern walls, floor, and some even cover Varro and Belimir.
Arden disappears into the space between worlds as he moves to a better position.
Brann shouts a curse for Ehud at the jelly, vowing to make it pay for the death of his friend. Rays of divine light escape Brann's eyes, but even with the vigor of revenge behind them, they have little effect on the blob.
The blob swells up and covers the entire cavern, walls, floor, and ceiling. It then begins to flow freely through the cavern, splitting and moving around Varro and Belimir, somehow avoiding attacks from either of them. As it reforms behind them, a long arm-like appendage protrudes from its mass and slams into Belimir, acid goo splashing onto the Druid, burning at his fur and skin.
The rat snips at Francis as it tries to protect itself, but misses the halfling completely.
Seeing that his swarm had little effect, Belimir changes back into his human form, stepping away from.......Bob. Can it be drowned? He summons a torrent of water which splashes the creature. He goes into the cave and quickly examines what`s in there.
Wilam is frustrated at the slime's ability to move despite his electric barrier. He abandons that tactic and switches to his cold attacks.
He realizes he's with distance of another strike and moves back to what he feels will be a safe distance.
Arden looks more worried than usual as the blob moves towards them, striking a damaging blow on Belimir. "Looks like this thing isn't going down without a fight!" Arden begins chanting and fires a bolt of dark, crackling, eldritch energy at the blob. He then moves further back against the wall, entering the shadows for protection.
Varro growls in protest as the jelly shifts past him.
Raising his axe he charges back at the ...thing.
Belimir's hurt again but he's too far away. This thing looks rather more serious than mere goblins so I'll have to be careful, no rushing straight headlong into it. I've got responsibilities to all of our comrades.
Brann cautiously moves into a better position to assist his wounded companion while attempting to bolster the attacks on the blob.
Belimir shifts back into his human state, and begins the motions of summoning the torrent of water.
The water surrounds and splashes into the Blob, but again has little effect on the gelatenous mass.
Belimir then moves further into the cave to investigate.
He finds that the section of the cave is empty, minus several spots full of slimey goo.
As he moves farther into the cave, the sticky acid burns his skin some more.
Wilam, frustrated at the ineffective electric storm, pulls forth cold from the frozen elements to assault the creature.
An icy blast of cold assails the Jelly, freezing parts of the slime covering its mass, falling off and shattering on the floor.
Wilam, cautious not the be hit, moves back several steps, well out of reach of the blob.
...Something seems to be happening to the Jelly.
It collapses in on itself slightly and begins to quake and shake violently.
The slime then begins to part straight down the middle, slowly seperating into two halves.
Each side falls apart from the other, and there are now two jellies in the caverns.
The slime has split!
Arden, wasting no time, begins chanting and fires a bolt of dark, crackling lightning at the closest part of the blob. It strikes, sending eldritch energy coursing through the jelly. He then jumps back through the shadows once again, seeking protection.
Varro growls at the slippery goo sneaking past him. He raises his greataxe and charges back at the thing...or part of it...his axe slicing clean through the body of the blob, but not connecting with it at all. The slime anticipated his attack and apparently 'dodged' the swing...
Brann caustiously moves into a better position to help Belimir and bolster the attacks of the rest of the party against this creature.
His defiant gaze is overlooked as the slime is focused on an easier target.
The slimes begin moving closer, hungrily persuing the weaker party members.
The weaker of the two halves moves steadily towards Brann, weaving in and out of the stalagmites.
It reaches out and slams the cleric with a gooey appendage.
Francis strikes the rat with grief and vengence, smashing it into the rocky wall.
The second slime follows Belimir into the lower caverns, but as it passes Varro, cannot pass up a chance at weakening a closer meal.
It tries to slam Varro with its acid-dripping arm, crashing in hard into the dwarves side, Acid sticking fast to the dwarves armor and skin.
Belimir didn`t realize how much damage the blob had realy cauzed him and was paying the price for that. He finds new strength within him and get ready for the oncoming half of the blob.
Varro growls again in defiance of the slime and the pain it just inflicted on him. He once again raised his axe and attacks the nearest slime.
Still hiding silently behind the cover of the wall, Jiles looks on in horror as the jelly splits apart. What the?! Waking up from his stupor at watching the gelatinous creature split, Jiles fires his crossbow at the creature nearest him.
After firing the bolt, he shifts quietly back a few steps, reloading as he does so.
Seeing Belimir in some bit of pain, Jiles takes aim at the creature and fires again.
I need to get to Belimir, that acid is taking its toll. First I'll have to get past this blob though.
Brann attempts to finish off the slime closest to him while trying to use his divine powers to aid against the acid eating away at himself.
Wilam smiles as the nearest blob gets overwhelmed. He summons his Astral Wasp to torment the second Jelly. "Τσίμπημα του από χίλιοι πόνοι"
Seeing that the nearest jelly is under control and Belimir is getting cornered, Arden rushes forward into range for the second jelly. He utters a foul curse at the gelatinous blob and unleashes another dark bolt of energy, crackling as it shoots from his rod.
Belimir stops to catch his breath while he is in the empty section of the cave. He finds new strength in himself and prepares for the persistant half of the blob. He also manages to swat away the last of the sticky acid that was clinging to his skin.
Varro growls in defiance he raises his axe and brings it crashing down onto the slime, goo flying everywhere as his axe obliterates the ooze. The flying goop cleans off the acid that was sticking to him as well.
Jiles slips out of the shadows, finally taking action against the slime, firing a crossbow bolt into the heart of the creature, he then slips back into safety of the shadows, reloading his crossbow as he does.
The first half of the jelly quivers and then deflates as it sinks into the ground, defeated.
Jiles prepares to fire again at the ooze, but is relieved to find that it is already dead.
Brann notices the acid eatting away at Belimir and makes a valiant effort to get close enough to tend to his wounds.
The cleric spots Jiles finishing off the first half, so he continues on his way towards Belimir, inacting a holy flame upon the second half, scorching the jelly, wisps of smoke rising from the burning ooze.
Brann shakes off the effects of the acid, and calls out soothing words, drawing power from his diety to heal Belimir's wounds.
Wilam is pleased as the last jelly is overwhelmed by the Cleric, and saves his spells for when they are needed next.
Arden rushes forward hoping to help save the cornered Druid, luckily the threat has been dispatched.
Francis moves to rejoin the group, unaware of the jelly they had been fighting.
Varro wipes ooze from his axe and looking in Wilam's general direction, "Whatdahell was dat?!"
Belimir takes a deep sigh of relief. The battle with Bob was hard. It got him. It really got him! One minute he was triumphantly walking in this cave and the next, some giant tar monster ate all his friends, and it hurt him as well. He was begining to feel really tired. I hope there isn`t more to this keep.
"Let`s just keep going.......I`m getting tired. The front just isn`t that interesting. I`m going to stay back, with Wilam."
Wilam walks up to the lifeless ooze and shakes his head at Varro, "Some sort of gelatainous creature." He catches a whiff of the dead creature and his stomach wretches. He holds his stomach and gags, but keeps from vomiting. "Vile creature, indeed."
"From what I know of them, they're barely sentient creatures that scour caverns and underworld places in search of food... their jelly 'bodies' simply absorb and digest anything it comes in contact with. Make sure none of it gets left on your armor... or it will be eaten away before nightfall."
Arden peers around the room from the puddles of slime, to the rat guts, and eventually his eyes settle on Ehud's corpse. "What are we going to do with him? We can't just leave him here like this...." While Arden didn't know Ehud very well, you can tell that he feels the sting of loss and would like to show respect for the dead. "We could cover his body and give him a proper burial on our way out, though I have nothing to cover him with." Arden looks around the room and tries to remember if he saw anything in the other rooms that could be used to keep off the corpse.
"Ehud deserved better, but he would not want us to suffer now. We should come back once the keep is cleansed of evil and give him the send off to the next realm that he deserves."
His life shall not be in vain, we must rid this keep of evil.
"Well, da cat be gettin tukered out an wit Eduh bein dead, I recken we could be takin him body back ta town and rest up a bit den we could be makin anudder go at da keep. Not likely dat da be havin much ov a way ov restockin der defences. I don't recken der be much harm in takin Eduh's body back, he be deservin dat much befere whatever critters be eatin his flesh ta a bare pile ov bones. I me self be good edder way, but I be reckenin dat Eduh be deservin ta be honored proper like. But Lik-I-said I be good edder way."
Varro waits for the others to weight in on the idea.
"I think we should at least explore the rest of these caverns... unless they get too deep. But I agree that we shouldn't over-extend ourselves."
"Poor Ehud. But he is dead now. I say we make camp here, find a room, clean it up and rest. It might not be safe, but we`ll save time. I really hope there isn`t much more to this keep. Is anybody mapping it?" Belimir looks at his frineds.
Arden nods at the others, "I do agree that we should keep exploring at least a few more rooms. I suppose now that we have killed the rats in here his corpse should be safe for a while. As for the mapping, we agreed to handle it when we have cleared this place... it should be easier to do in one shot than pausing in each room to map out the dimensions."
With one last glance at Ehud's corpse, Arden looks to the group.
"So which way then?"
As the group calms down after the fight in the caverns, Varro, Arden, and Brann all notice something suspicious about the wall to their left. It doesn't quite match the rest of the stone around it.
Varro examines the wall, looking for a way to open the secret door.
" ey Sneaky, come er. Der be sometin not hanky dorry wit dis wall"
Varro runs his hands along the edge of the door, showing Jiles where the edges are.
"Ya tink ya can be gettin it open?"
A small notch in the secret door appears the be what is used as the handle. The door has no hinges, but looks as if it would slide open and shut.
"Damnit sneaky, get yer head outta yer arse and be checkin if we can open dis ting wit out blowin any ting up er be killin ourselves. Is just be likely ta be findin out da hard way."
Varro points out the handle.
Getting impatient Varro grabs the handle "Stand back!" and opens the the sliding secret door.
The door slides easily open, a large cloud of dust explodes into the room blocking the view and choking Varro up a bit. The dust settles after a few minutes. Inside the secret room lay basic adventuring equipment.
"Jack Pot!" Varro grabs the ale sniffs it once and drinks from it twice.
He picks up the rations, sunrods, and both wineskins.
"a'ight, Lets get ta goin." He hoists his axe over his shoulder, and heads south.
That secret room looked very comfortable to Belimir. Maybe we can curl up in there and rest for a while. I`ve never felt this exhausted before. But I`m not going to show it. What would Vid think? A hunter giving up on it`s prey. I am going to live through this keep and make sure to be smarter in combat. Stand back like Wilam and drown everything that doesn`t like us.
Belimir feels his determination rising. He starts going to the next room, but remembers his own thoughts and is impatiently waiting for the party to move forward.
"Do those look like Goblin supplies? And why were they stashed behind this secret door? Although judging from that dust it may have been a while since that room has been used."
Brann pauses.
"Still I think we'll be best off trying to clear out this keep today. Not sure we want to be curling up for bed this evening with the thought of ghosts around, eh Belimir"
Brann winks over at the druid hoping his words have lightened the situation.
Wilam is startled by the sound of the sliding door. He walks over to the newly discovered room and studies it for clues of origin or anything that stands out of the ordinary.
Arden looks over the basic supplies found within the hidden room. Thought there would be more in there than that... guess it was just a hidden sleeping place. Bored with the empty secret room, Arden follows Varro through the southern exit and on into the next room.
Varro and Arden make their way south deeper into the caverns.
Belimir follows the two, although he is determined to stay back if possible.
"I am going to follow the others. I do not want to miss anything, as we do not know what we could find in these caverns. Care to join me?" Francis pauses for a moment waiting for responses, then moves off south to catch up with Varro, Belimir, and Arden.
"Right behind you." Wilam walks beside Francis.
"Indeed, let's see what we can find." Brann moves up to catch up with the others.
