It is Day 9 of Fireseek and Arnd, Kyro, Tyrion, and Lhoss find that half of the party has disappeared. Niki, Gnorcia, Feno, and Llqui are nowhere to be seen, although Niki's screams still echo hauntingly off the walls. The magical flames have also dissipated, revealing an empty room with many octagonal burial alcoves. The party sets to work searching the burial alcoves (respectfully removing and then replacing any remains) and discover a silver statuette, an electrum cup and some gold pieces. Fortunately, their work does not attract any denizens of the maze. Somewhat anxious about adventuring in the crypts with their reduced size, the group decides to head back to Orlane.
The walk back to town is cold and uneventful. At the Slumbering Serpent, all of our adventurers welcome a mug of warm drink. Arnd inquires if any supplies of good dwarven ale have been received (hope springs eternal!), but alas, that particular trade has not yet been restored. The mood at the inn is muted and, why hello! There I am snoozing and snoring on a table. I will say that even though we have no dwarven beverages, Florian has a nice selection of spirits that will have any respectable body in a fine and relaxed state, should they choose to partake. I remember that I was in the midst of a particularly vivid dream when, say! Look at me now! I am reciting the epic poem describing the battle between Hextor and St. Cuthbert (and even doing it in old common). I should have Florian serve me gin more often, it is quite effecting!
By the next morning, Feno has joined the group once again. With their strong protector in toe, the quintet head back to the barrow maze. They head back to the area they had been exploring and come across a door that is swarming with worms. The group considers passing it by solely based on their collective revulsion. Arnd, however, is able to turn the handle and kick the door open without coming into contact with any of the worms. Inside is a bag containing silver pieces. Another door appears somewhat dilapidated and Arnd can view some light passing through it. The door is opened and the room is checked. Feno locates a secret door that he presses upon. With a strange groan, it opens and leads to a slanting passage. At first, the passageway seems to be completely empty and void of anything of interest. But Feno has an idea. He shoos out Kyro, Arnd, and Tyrion and closes the door. The lamps are extinguished and in the dark, Lhoss and Feno search the hallway again. With her dark vision and superior elven eyes, Lhoss spots a hidden latch. Feno activates the latch to reveal a 20' x 20' room with a raised dais, two silver-colored urns, and a bricked-over wall on the southwest side. The elves revel in their particular skill at revealing hidden spaces for a moment and then call in the others. Arnd had almost given up on the pair, chiding them for taking so long.
The party examine the room and notice several interesting details: the dungeon floor looks different from any other floor they have seen yet (this is an entirely new section of the barrow maze!); there are two shafts covered in lichen and moss that water is slowly trickling from; the floor is gently sloping downward to the east. Lhoss spider climbs up on the ceiling and peers down into the urns. One contains some sort of gray material and the other holds what appears to be gems. While she is up there, she gets a closer look at the dripping shafts and sees some sort of sluice gate mechanism that is holding back water. She also observes that there are drains in the slated hallway. Wait, the door at the end of the hall is closed! Nobody remembers closing it, though. Lhoss walks down and opens it. Aha! The door at the other end simultaneously opens. Then she opens the door leading back into the dais room and, as expected, the door at the other end of the hall closes. It is a simple, automatic air lock.
Back in the room Arnd is itching to break down the brick wall. While Lhoss looks out for danger, Kyro, Feno, and Tyrion break down the brick. Arnd has the audacity to criticize the laborer's technique! The job done, Tyrion decides that he will brave the task of retrieving the urns. He steps onto the dais and picks up the two urns. Being close up, Tyrion can tell that one urn contains cremains and the other indeed holds many gems. Unfortunately, a trap seems to have been tripped as water begins to pour from both shafts, flooding the room with about a foot of fast-moving water. Tyrion is able to keep his balance. The water is flowing in so quickly, it is clear that if the brick wall had been intact and the door to the slanted hall had been closed, the room would have quickly flooded and the party would have been drowned. As it stands, the water flows out into the hallway and into the drains. Tyrion places the urn with cremains back to the dais, but the water continues to flow. He also sets down the gems and this shuts off the water. The group gathers some rocks and debris and with some trial and error is able to replace the valuable gems with worthless detritus to leave behind and reset the trap. The only remaining problem is Tyrion's wet boots (which Lhoss quickly dries with a simple cantrip). Old Vilma can't wait to see what puzzles and traps the Saviors of Orlane will encounter next!
No comments:
Post a Comment