# DM Brainiac's Age of Worms (Mostly Restored 5/12/06)



## ltclnlbrain (Jul 10, 2005)

_"Since the beginning of history, humanity has measured time in Ages. Ages of Glory, of Dreams, and even of Great Sorrows mark the human tally of years, giving a sense of order to the events of past centuries. But one age has yet to occur--an age of darkness, of decay, and of writhing doom. Witty bards and wrathful preachers know it as the AGe of Worms, weaving it into the peripheries of their passion plays as a mythic era of destruction that could begin at any time. Astrologers, diviners, and the servants of Fate know more. The canniest among them fear that the Age of Worms has already begun."_ 

Greetings once again, fellow EN Worlders. Some of you may know me from my first Story Hour, Prison of the Firebringer. Now I'm proud to present another story hour based on a play-by-post game of mine over at Playbyweb.com, "Age of Worms," based on the new adventure path featured in Dungeon magazine. The game is being played here if you want to check it out and spoil the story hour for yourself.   I hope you guys enjoy it; feel free to leave comments.

Dramatis Personae:
Carpal, male human paladin of Heironeous
Davi Knockdoor, female halfling cleric of Wee Jas
Ezreal Barrowson, male human rogue
Ju'lindra Amraphen, female half-elf monk
Keira Kalari, female human barbarian
Pyrius, male human cleric of Pelor
Sardonic the Sane, male human wizard
Tash Frelan, male gnome illusionist


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 10, 2005)

*Chapter 1*

A chill wind blew around the building in the distance. An abandoned mine overseer's office, lain fallow now for decades, in the hills outside the decrepit mining town of Diamond Lake. But tonight it would bear witness to more visitors than it had seen in a long time, for a meeting was scheduled to take place there very soon. A meeting that would set in motion the wheels of destiny and change the lives of eight individuals forever.

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Sardonic waited for nightfall. It was darker out than he had wanted. He didn’t have a choice, because he needed to meet an opportunity. There was no telling when another would present itself. He stepped out into the fetid street. A light drizzle had muted some of the rank-smelling trash and soil from chamber pots. The smell was potent. It stung his bloodshot eyes with its aggressive tendrils. 

He walked slowly at first and tried to get his bearings. His hangover began to fade into memory. His stride quickened. He had to get to the overseer's office. 

What was that? A short haired mutt nudged at his leg. Sardonic looked down and smiles. It was cute, and its tail was wagging. The skinny young man squatted down to pet it. “Hey there boy…you are a boy right?” The mage looked under the dog’s tail. “Yep… how you doin’? You ok? You’re a cute dog aren’t you? Yes you are.” 

Sardonic wrestled and played with the mutt. Eventually, the young wizard searched in his backpack for a treat to give his new friend. The dog took the treat with enthusiasm. Suddenly, Sardonic remembered he needed to be somewhere. “Damn it,” he cursed as he resituated his backpack. The mage started running awkwardly toward the old abandoned mine office. The dog barked and ran after him. 

He reached the overseer’s office in the hills outside of town. A light flickered in one of the windows, and he could see two figures within. Good. He was not too late. Out of breath, he moved into the building. The interior was dusty and bare. The other two occupants proved to be a bearded gnome in simple traveler’s clothes, and an attractive half-elf woman clad in sandals, a loose shirt, and breeches. Both looked to Sardonic as he entered.

The half-elf looked at him for a few moments before clearing her throat. “Hello. I’m Ju’lindra Amraphen. And you are…?”

Sardonic looked behind himself. He turned back to the pretty half-elf. He pointed to himself as his eyebrows raised. “Me?” he asked. The young mage stretched out his hand to the woman, cradling her hand while bowing forward in respect to her gender. ”I’m Sardonic, beautiful Ju'lindra,” he said in Elven.  

"Yes, but what's your name?" Ju'lindra asked.

Sardonic frowned a bit, clearly missing the joke. "My name is Sardonic."

“I’m Tash,” the gnome said, also in Elven. Sure, he wasn’t as pretty as Ju’lindra, but he still wouldn’t be ignored. “Tash Frelan. I’m assuming Davi sent you?”
Sardonic’s eyes lit up as he looked at Tash. A gnome! He had never seen one before now. _Dainty,_ the mage thought. “Well met Tash,” he said, smiling.

A slight smile played around the corners of Ju’lindra’s mouth. “Well met, Sardonic. And well met, Tash. I am not sure who else will come. And who is this Davi you speak of? I have not heard that name before…unless she was the one who left that note for me.”

Before Tash could answer, the door swung open and a powerfully built red-haired woman strode through, closing the door behind her without even looking. _I’d like to climb that mountain,_ Sardonic though, checking the new arrival out. It was obvious that she had come prepared. Strapped to her back was a large pack, to the back of which was tied a large wooden shield. To the side of the pack was a massive blackened steel glaive with a curved wooden shaft. The wood was dark and polished. On the other side, something cruder: a greataxe, no less imposing to the mage’s eyes than the glaive.

To the assembled people, she spoke after letting her eyes briefly roam. "I am Keira Kalari, Third Daughter of the Kalari tribe. Where is Davi Knockdoor? I am ready to leave at once and there are many hours of this night left." She shifted the pack on her shoulders, the glaive casting strong shadows in the lantern light. With no answer forthcoming from anybody called Davi, she walked to an empty space. "I will wait," she said calmly, settling herself in an relaxed stance, her fingers tucked into her belt.  

"Though not for long," said a halfling woman, opening the door wide before her.  _She’s cute, _ thought Sardonic. This opportunity was getting better and better. He was glad he had invited himself along for the ride...


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 11, 2005)

*Chapter 2*

Davi Knockdoor greeted all those within the mine office with an amiable nod. The halfling woman was neatly dressed in her priestly vestments, a deep scarlet in hue, though a thin layer of armor encased her form beneath the robe--a special provision for tonight's festivities. Davi left her backpack down on the floor by the doorway before venturing further into the room, where she smilingly held out her green-gloved hand for Tash, the nearest recognizable soul--and the only one anywhere near her height, at that.

"It's wonderful that you could make it, Tash," she said with all proper cheer, "I think you'll find this project will be quite worth your time."

Then, finding the barbarian just out of the corner of her eye, "And Miss Kalari! Bless you for lending your skill to this little venture. Forgive me if my tardiness tried your patience; I had to finish my evening prayers before coming." Davi flashed a unmistakably genuine smile towards Keira, accentuating her gratitude with a slight bow.

Then, turning to the others, she continued. "Now, then, greetings. I am Davi Knockdoor, a novice in the Church of the Witch Goddess, Wee Jas. I trust you are associates of Sir Carpal?" Davi made her way around the room, clasping each adventurer's hand in her own as a sign of formal introduction. If anything, Miss Knockdoor was a genial hostess, perhaps a bit more.

Once finished, Davi looked around the room once more, absentmindedly toying with her necklace as she took mental inventory. "By the way, where is that paladin?" she asked no one in particular.  

As if on cue, a stout, strong man entered the building. Carpal squinted slightly, examining each person’s face in the lantern light until settling on Davi. Nodding as though satisfied, he moved to the corner of the room and rested the glaive he carried and placed the rest of things beside it.

“So…” He paused, as if searching for a name. “Davi,” he decided. “Well, it was where you said it would be. What’s next?”

Behind him, the door opened once more as a slender, sideburned man entered, his eyes darting around. Carpal nodded in greeting, seeming to recognize him.

Biting her lip, Davi took another scan of the ever-filling room while she considered Carpal's question. "Well, let's see..." she thought aloud. "Both Tash and Keira--my invites--have arrived. They both have excellent reputations, I assure you. And are these," said Davi in reference to the numerous others present, "all of yours?" To accent her question, Davi then lifted her hand in the direction of the huddled masses. Her eyes landed on the human magician, and her eyebrows raised as she noted his undue attention to the other females present. Could he be trusted?

_If he numbers among Carpal's friends,_ thought the cleric, _perhaps I've misjudged my errant knight._

“Ezreal is a friend,” Carpal said, gesturing to the silent, slender man. He peered again at the others. “This one," he said, indicating Ju'lindra, "would sooner gut me than accept an invite from me." He fixed Sardonic with a stern gaze. "Him I have no idea. If I didn't invite him someone I talked to probably did. He's here now. He'll only follow us if we tell him to leave." His gaze didn't leave Sardonic for some time. It was obvious that Carpal was appraising the young man, though what conclusions he drew were not shared.

Ju’lindra raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? I would rather gut you? Or am I misunderstanding you? I don't think I have given anyone reason to think I would do such a thing!"  

"It's only an expression, miss,” replied Carpal as he continued to study Sardonic. “Given my personality and your matter-of-factness, I figured it was an apt one. I meant nothing by it."

Sardonic returned Carpal’s gaze with an amused smile. “I have found Ju’lindra very gentle,” he said sternly. “Such remarks are not worthy of a knight.”
the paladin's expression grew even darker. "I take back my prior statement. This one is obviously a spy and must be destroyed." He took a step forward as if to put action to his words, but he could hold his countenance no longer. His glare dissolved into a broad grin as he said, "As you obviously have no idea what it means to be a knight, I will take your words to mean I am doing quite well." He looked from Saronic to Ju'lindra and back again. "I like this one," he said, indicating Sardonic. "He is unafraid to turn a situation to his advantage. He can stay."  

The door opened once more, and a blonde man in white robes stood on the threshold. Uncertainty crossed his face at the sight of so many people. Sweat formed on his brow, and he struggled to find words to say. “We-well. Hello there. Umm…I'm not late, am I? He he, umm…I'll just stand over here.” He moved beside Ju’lindra.

"Excuse me,” said Ju’lindra, looking warily at the new arrival, “but I would like to know who arranged this little get-together. More specifically, who invited me. From your words I understand it wasn't you. But this guy I have never met before,” she said, pointing to Carpal. “Someone must have had a reason to invite me and I would like to know who and why.”

"Davi Knockdown, are we all assembled?” asked Keira firmly, standing to accentuate her speech. “The paladin has arrived." She turned only briefly to nod to Carpal, "I see no reason that we should delay this excursion if we are all assembled. If you will show us the way, then I will follow." She let her head fall slightly forward and to the side, her eyes cutting a hole into the little halfling.  

“Yes, why don’t you refer to your map, young knight,” Sardonic said to Carpal. “I am in need of coin. Lead us to your booty.”

Davi had remained wordless for the past few seconds, but when the last man entered and failed to introduce himself--another priest, must watch him--Davi could hold her tongue no longer. This was far too disorganized for her liking.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" she called out with her hands on her waist, raising her voice above the general clamor of the room, "I would like to once again introduce myself; I am Davi Knock_door_ (she stressed this last syllable to correct Keira's earlier error), and I want to thank all of you for turning out for Carpal's and my own little expedition!" Once she felt that the attention was on her, Davi removed her hands from her sides and clasped them together in front of her chest, and a genial smile became apparent on her face. "I must admit, I hadn't expected quite so many, but the more the merrier, really." Her smile seemed a little forced at that statement, but she continued.

"Now, as most of you know, there is a tomb approximately ten minutes east of this office. Our sources indicate that it was known to the public at least 70 years ago, but in the following decades awareness of its presence seemed to, well, slip away. That is probably for the best, as it was on land owned by a former mine manager--which to me at least connotes wealth--and chances are bandits have not reached it in some time. Thus the purposes for our exploring party.

"In recompense for your services, each of you will receive a fair portion of whatever treasure (for a lack of a better word) we find, though I have one small caveat to that: Any items of value for records--be they mundane or of the more, er, irregular variety--are to be reserved for my church's library, where they will indirectly serve the public at large for many years to come. And also, the actual resting place is not to be touched or affected in any way by our presence; any who violates this rule with be dealt with by the Supreme Necromancers of the Stern Lady, who have sanctioned this trek of ours. And just as a friendly warning," she added with a girlish laugh, "they're really good at making people cry. Really good."

Davi paused here and took a good, long breath. The cleric hesitated slightly before continuing, as she unconciously shot Tash a rather defenseless look, like she wasn’t sure whether to go on or not. But, finally, tapping her gloved fingers together, she added, "I think that about covers it.”

There was silence for a few moments as the others took in Davi’s words, then Tash nodded. “Well then. We should get moving.”

“He speaks true," Keira boomed when, waving a strong arm in the direction of Tash. "We leave now. We can rest when we're done."

“Alright!” Davi cheered. “The Whispering Cairn awaits.”


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## HalfOrc HalfBiscuit (Jul 11, 2005)

Itclnlbrain,

Let me be the first (though I'm sure not the last) to say that I shall be watching this story with interest.

In all honesty, I wasn't that struck by the Whispering Cairn when I read through it in Dungeon - though the Diamond Lake backdrop was better - but I have enjoyed your tale in Prison of the Firebringer, so I look forward to your interpretation of the Age of Worms.


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## sniffles (Jul 11, 2005)

I'll be following this one. I've decided to dabble my feet in the GM pool by testing out The Whispering Cairn on a couple of friends. I'm surprised you have such a big party.

And, oh, some of those character names - cringe!


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 11, 2005)

I was surprised I had such a big party, too!  I had originally set the limit to six players, but I received so many requests to join the game within 24 hours of its creation that i let in a few more people. We actually started off with nine (!), but one had to drop within the first week of gameplay. The posting pace has been relatively fierce so far.

Regarding player names and actions, that's one area I have no control over. The players are responsible for the cringeworthy, so blame them.


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## Graywolf-ELM (Jul 11, 2005)

I'm curious to see how you run it.  I've considered running that adventure path series myself, as it comes out.

GW


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 13, 2005)

*Chapter 3*

Though some confusion still lingered on how what was supposed to be a four or five-man expedition blossomed to include eight people, and who exactly invited who, everybody was eager to get underway and see what the Whispering Cairn might hold in store. Each person there had lived in Diamond Lake long enough to know that they needed to get out, and this was the best chance any of them had had in a long while to get enough coinage to afford to leave. So with doubts and questions on hold for the moment, Davi and Carpal lead the way out of the office and into the hills.

After a few minutes of travel and a few more of consulting Carpal's map and searching around the hills, they discovered what must be their destination, a wide monolith-lined portal partially obscured by underbrush and boulders. It seemed that nobody had been there in a long time. The more physically inclined of the party set to work clearing away brush and debris, and after about ten more minutes of work, the way into the tomb was clear.

Davi struck a sunrod, the light of which dimly illuminated a long hallway extending north into darkness. A faint breeze brought with it sibilant whispers that sounded almost like a sighing breath. It must have been a trick of the wind, but the effect was almost lifelike. The halfling peered into the cairn, then shook her head, tossing her dark curls about. "Actually, I really shouldn't be up front. There are many dangers in these crypts, and it's far better than one skilled to deal with such things be in a place to do so. Miss Kalari, would you?" 

Keira removed her gauntlets from her pack as they reached the entrance of the mine. They looked handcrafted - rough leather, probably crocodile, covered in sharp spikes, curved and looking like they could hurt, again appearing to be crocodile teeth. She slipped a dangerous looking weapon on each hand, carefully pulling the leather guantlets onto her hands. She slipped the edge under her tough leather armor, tying them down with thick leather bracers to hold them in place. She shifted the leather bracers into place and the bunched her fists to stretch the gloves to her hands.

Around her neck she shifted her fur and leather cloak to give her arms more room, tucking in the cloak underneath her heavy pack. With a quick flick of her gauntleted fingers, she released the curved glaive, slowly bringing it forward. The weapon was well-crafted for a people as obviously rural as Keira's, those who lived off the land and wore and used what they could gain from it. She spun it around one, grinning almost wickedly at the thought. Into short slots in her belt went two throwing axes, while she left her bow and greataxe attached to loops on her pack.

Only then did Keira look down at Davi and nodded sharply. "I will lead the way," the barbarian said, taking the sunrod from the halfling.

"I'll use my lantern too. It's quite bright," Tash said as he retrieved a bullseye lantern from his pack, filling it with some oil and then lighting it. The light from the lantern was focused through the front slats and projected a bright cone of light into the tomb as the group entered.

The walls bore horizontal bands of deceptively simple geometric patterns at waist level. In places the bands revealed startling detail, but in others the walls looked as though they had been hacked apart with weapons or eroded by the rigors of time. Flakes of ancient paint, brilliant purple and a dull mustard hue, still clung to the walls in plaes, hinting at what must once have been a riot of color. A thin coat of dust coated the floor.

Just inside the darkened tomb, the hallway branched into shallow alcoves to the east and west. Here the walls bore the most significant damage. Dozens of clumsy etchings marred the beautiful ancient masonry like grafitti on a city wall. A clump of soiled cloth about the size of a halfling rested in the rounded terminus of the western alcove.

Outside, the wind picked up, and a chorus of almost human sounds rose from the darkened hall. 

"Anybody want to check out that pile?" Tash asked, shuddering slightly from the eerie sounds echoing around him.

"I'm on it," said Ezreal. He set to work searching ground and the masonry walls for traps. Satisfied that there were none, he prodded the lump with one soft-toed boot. It cracked a bit beneath his touch.

"You will kill yourself that way," Keiar said matter-of-factly, frowning at Ezreal. "You give it the opportunity to strike back." 

"I don't think we have to worry about that in this case," the rogue replied as he bent closer to examine the pile. "It's just a brittle old bedroll."

Carpal was squinting off to the north, where he could make out a flickering green light in the distance. "Davi," he said in a hushed tone.

The halfling turned from the examination of the bedroll to look in the direction the paladin indicated. "I see it. Let's move toward it...slow and cautious."

The party moved deeper into the tomb. After a short distance, the hallway again branched to the east and west. Fifteen feet down the east passage, a huge pile of collapsed rubble blocked the alcove from top to bottom. It looked like it would take weeks to tunnel through the densely packed debris.

The western hall extended perhaps forty feet, ending at a small marble platform raised about six inches off the floor. A strange, shattered arcane apparatus rested upon this platform, its curved ovular frame giving the appearance of a noble's dressing mirror. Only a third of this frame remained. An unusual arcane glyph about the size of a man's head had been delicately carved into the baseplate of the support platform.

Keira glanced at the apparatus but quickly turned away. "We go to the light," she said simply.

Yes, well," Davi hesitantly began her response to Keira, "I agree with you, but I do think that glyph bears closer inspection as well. I don't want any mishap to befall us just out of clumsiness.

"Tash," she called out to the gnomish mage, "let's you and me take a look at that--and Sardonic too!" Beckoning the two spellcasters forth, Davi turned back to the rest of the group, and the paladin in particular. "Carpal, would you like to lead the others up north while we investigate this? We'll catch up soon, I'm sure," she said.

Carpal nodded. "I would be lying if I said that light was of no concern to me. If you need us, give a shout. I don't want to lose anyone. Except maybe this fellow." He slapped Sardonic on the shoulder, but smiled and chuckled a bit to let the man know he was only joking.

"Hey, I haven't _done_ anything yet!" Sardonic replied innocently, his face a mask of wounded pride.

Carpal merely laughed as he led the main group onward as the Davi, Sardonic, and Tash remained behind to inspect the strange apparatus.


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## Grundar (Jul 18, 2005)

*fast paced action*

Initially i was concerned with the huge party but so far, everyone's putting in lots of effort and we're speeding along like the wind. Now if we can start gaining some levels, level 1 can be so boring for a spellcaster.


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## A'vandira Silvermane (Jul 19, 2005)

Grundar said:
			
		

> Initially i was concerned with the huge party but so far, everyone's putting in lots of effort and we're speeding along like the wind. Now if we can start gaining some levels, level 1 can be so boring for a spellcaster.




Not to mention a 1st level monk that also has a problem getting decent results when rolling attacks.


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## Pinotage (Jul 19, 2005)

Well, the game is going great so far. Pity I'm going on holiday, so I'm going to miss nearly two weeks of posting. At the rate the game is going we might be finished in that time. At least Keira will be quiet - the party can have some friendly time!   

Pinotage


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 19, 2005)

Pinotage said:
			
		

> Well, the game is going great so far. Pity I'm going on holiday, so I'm going to miss nearly two weeks of posting. At the rate the game is going we might be finished in that time.




Haha, well I don't think you have too much to worry about, Pinotage. The game's going to take the characters all the way to level 20 eventually, so it'll still be around by the time you get back. 

*Chapter 4* 

"Do you have any idea what this was?" Davi asked, peering curiously at the broken apparatus.

Tash traced his finger over the glyph carved into the structure's base. The gnome had seem similar things before, in one of the many books in his mentor Allustan's library. "From what I can tell, this glyph is reminiscent of arcane symbols representing the element of air. It represents a name, probably of somebody important or high-ranking." 

Tash leaned closer to inspect the remains of the structure. He noticed numerous runes and glyphs carved into a slot on the inside of the frame, where the "mirror's" glass should have been. The gnome recognized them as arcane symbols signifying transportation. Looking around the base, the gnome then came across a few shards of an unidentifiable shiny black substance that felt like stone. It was slightly cold to the touch. 

Tash picked up all of the black shards and then passed them to Sardonic. "Any idea what these could have been? Looks like this frame might have been some kind of transportation device, judging from the runes on the inside."

"So it's possibly a portal, then?" Davi asked the wizards. "One that someone wanted out of commission..."

"Portal, gate or transportation device...doesn't matter now that its broken," said Sardonic. "I agree that it probably has a connection with the Plane of Air." He straightened up from his stooping position. He had lost interest in the device. Why it was here was puzzling. It did seem out of place, but he wasn't here to solve mysteries.

Tash took the shards back from Sardonic and placed them in a pouch. "Looks like there's nothing else here. Should we rejoin the others now?" 

The idea of transportation magic had awakened an unfortunate suspicion in Davi. Taking another good look at the runes and then quietly sighing, hoping not to be too obvious in her doubt, Davi nodded at Tash's suggestion. "Yes, I suppose we must catch up," she agreed. 

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"Hello, I'm Pyrius."

Ju'lindra felt herself jump a bit, startled by the sudden voice beside her. The monk turned to the white-robed man, the last arrival to the party at the abandoned office. She forced herself to relax as she chided herself for her lapse in awareness. _Watch it Ju'lindra. Too much focus will leave you vulnerable and may get you killed. Always keep your mind open to all sides, and your body ready to react without thought or hesitation._

Still, the man's sudden willingness to talk intrigued her. He had not said very much since he had shown up, and she was curious as to his motivations for joining the expedition. Besides, he certainly seemed friendly enough. 

"I didn't mean to startle you," Pyrius said apologetically.

Ju'lindra smiled and extended her hand. "Don't worry about it. I am Ju'lindra. Ju'lindra Amraphen. It is good to meet you, Pyrius. Would you care to explain why you haven't introduced yourself at the meeting? And why you came to me first, even though I'm obviously not the leader of this group? In Heironeous' name, I still don't know who invited me in the first place."

Ju'lindra had never been one for subtlety.

Pyrius seemed to be at a loss for how to answer the questions. He thought for a bit, then opened his mouth to speak when Carpal made a silencing gesture. The group was entering another room. The central hallway opened into a large chamber with wings leading to the east and west. Across the chamber to the north yawned a twenty-foot-wide open arch draped from top to bottom in translucent cobwebs. An eerie green light flickered from beyond the webs, casting strange shadows about the room. The place smelled of animal spoor and wet fur.

To the west, three short stairs led to a wide marble dais, but the far end of the wing was obscured by darkness. Huge slabs of cracked masonry and irregular piles of scattered debris choked the eastern wing, giving the appearance of complete collapse. The sibilant, almost human whispers present in the passage became a chorus in this massive chamber, eerily echoing off the walls. 

Unnerved by the whispers, Ezreal turned back to the others, one eyebrow cocked. "What the hell do you suppose that is? Did our pint sized priestess forget to mention that we are graverobbing a _haunted_ tomb, Carpal? Traps are one thing, but I'll tell you now if the dead want to hold on to their treasures so bad that they have crossed back over to hold on to them... well little miss can handle that business on her own. I'll take a guardian with a throat that can be slit any day over this creepy banshee wailing."

Carpal waved his hand dismissively. "It's probably nothing. A lingering magical effect, some fancy construction or something. Still..." The paladin gripped his glaive tightly as he looked around. "A little caution never hurt."

Keira sniffed the air and frowned. She cocked her head to one side to listen, then pointed to the collapsed eastern hall. "Something's coming," she said.

The others too heard it then, sounds of breathing and scuffling in the rocks. From a concealed narrow passage in the debris emerged three wolves, snarling and baring their fangs. Two of the mangy curs looked as if they hadn't eaten in days. The third wolf was a little larger than the others and did not look hungry in the least; a straight line of scar tissue bisected its face from forehead to muzzle.

"They've fought humans before," Ju'lindra said, pointing to the scar.

"Yeah, and it looks like they're ready to do it again!" shouted Carpal as the wolves leaped to the attack.


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## Dguy (Jul 22, 2005)

*First Fight*

I play Sardonic (one of the names that make people cringe). This was our first battle. We work well together I think. Of course our battles probably turn out well because we have such a big group. Oh Well, I can live with that.


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## Neverwinter Knight (Jul 28, 2005)

So far, I like it very much! Any updates for this story?


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## ltclnlbrain (Jul 28, 2005)

Neverwinter Knight said:
			
		

> So far, I like it very much! Any updates for this story?




Yes. In fact, here's an update now! I'm trying to stick to a once-a-week posting schedule, but it may vary a bit due to laziness. 

*Chapter 5* 

As the wolves lunged forward, an orb of pure force tore through the air and slammed into the large wolf in the back. It yelped in pain and turned toward the source of the attack: Davi, Tash, and Sardonic had been coming up the corridor when the wolves emerged, and Tash had seized the initiative to blast the wolf with a _magic missile_.

The growl of the wolf. Keira's reaction was delayed by the sound, a fleeting moment of horror passing through the confident woman. Some of her people had been killed by wolves passing near the borders of the swamps. She spun around to face the creatures, snarling in savage challenge to the wolves. Almost without thinking she swapped weapons in her hands, hurling the throwing axe at the large, scarred wolf, before gripping the remaining curved glaive with both hands to await the charge of the wolves, only for a moment stepping in front of these new people she found herself with, instinctlively protecting them. The axe clanged into the rubble-filled area, sounding hollow on the ground.

"Stay together. Fight as a tribe, not a man. Live longer." She'd seen too many people that threw away common sense in the face of danger. It was much more effective against natural creatures to await them and use your superior intellect to deal with them. A group fought more effectively than a man, and a smart man more effectively than an animal.

The others nodded, drawing weapons and awaiting the animals. Unfortunately, Carpal wasn't listening. He was silently cursing himself for letting the three weakest members of the group go off without an armed escort, especially now that the wolves were eyeing the smaller halfling and gnome. Pushing past Keira, the paladin set off at a full run, charging the beasts with no heed to his personal safety. In the dark, however, and with his mind on the safety of the others, he made a poor showing. Something caught his foot in the darkness and the man stumbled, nearly falling face-first.

Taking advantage of the paladin's clumsiness, the wolves ganged up on Carpal and snapped at him with their jaws. The first starving canine clamped solidly onto his leg and drags him to the ground. 

Ju'lindra watched with alarm as the paladin fell. "Look alive! I'll watch Carpal's back until he regains his feet." The monk darted forward, tumbling past the fallen knight to come between him and the other wolves. Despite this, the other two animals avoided the half-elf in favor of the easier target. They clamped onto Carpal's arms and worry their heads, opening up terrible wounds in the poor man's body. Blood leaked freely from Carpal as he wavered on the edge of consciousness.

Sardonic was surprised at the wolves’ viciousness. This was his first time seeing such violence first hand. Carpal was a silly sod. Sardonic did not want to see harm come to him. Carpal was the only one in the group with a sense of humor. He knew what to do. The wolves would be no match for his magic. The two emaciated wolves paid no attention as Sardonic weaved through the throng of adventurers. As soon as the wizard was within range, he deftly retrieves something from a small pouch. With harsh reverberating words and a flick of his wrist, a shower of twisting colored lights shot out from his palm engulfing Carpal and the two wolves. The two smaller wolves' eyes rolled back into their heads as they fell to floor, unconscious. Carpal too stopped moving, though whether he had passed out from the pain or fallen victim to the spell was unclear. The large wolf shook its head vigorously to clear it, releasing its grip on Carpal's arm and staring menacingly at the skinny spellcaster.

A dagger whizzed by the wolf's head, followed quickly by a curse as Ezreal reached for another blade at his belt. Tash nodded at the effectiveness of Sardonic's spell as he set the lantern down and retrieved his crossbow from his belt.

Horror crossed Pyrius' face. Horror at seeing the paladin Carpal bravely throwing himself into the midst of the wolves, and being savaged by them. And horror at seeing the woman who had so recently been standing next to him, Ju'lindra, leap in to fight the beasts! Pyrius was torn between his urge to try and protect her, and his instinctive concern for the fallen warrior. Seeing the way she and some of the others were handling the wolves, he made his decision. Pyrius ran up to the edge of the fight. 

Grasping briefly at a medallion tucked under his shirt, he laid his hand on Carpal, while also trying to drag him to safety and avoid the fighting. Unfortunately he tried to do to much at once, and his healing spell fizzled. Still he managed to pull Carpal away from the remaining wolf, glancing anxiously at the other combatants.

Ju'lindra squared off against the large wolf, holding her siangham up by her shoulder. She feinted a strike before lashing out with a kick, but the animal was quicker as it dodged aside and made a dash at Sardonic. A dart suddenly stuck into its side, hurled by Davi, but the beast didn't even seem to notice. 

"Aargh!" Keira bellowed, gripping the glaive in both her hands, the tingling sensation of power and destruction burning her hands to the hilt. Ju'lindra was facing the large wolf and while her fighting styles betrayed her intelligence in Keira's esteem, she would not let somebody die to something as foul as wolves. The glaive moved upward in an arc, raising the blackened blade above the tall woman's head, dark and menacing.

Keira charged, her feet surprisingly light on the stone floor of the tomb, silent death moving towards the remaining wolf. Her anger burst in the excitement and terror of her charge and fear of her foe, and her blood boiled. She reached the wolf in no time, intercepting its dash and leaping into the air to give her strike some extra force. The blade cut cleanly across the wolf's exposed side, a deep gash drawing a spurt of blood, a few drops splattering on her face and clothes. "Pthrari!" she exclaimed as she raised the glaive back again, her eyes meeting those of the wolf, challenging it.

The wolf howled in pain and staggered, but just as quickly turns its ire on the raging barbarian. It snapped at her legs, but she was able to quickly bring the glaive down and bat its slavering maw aside, deflecting the blow.

Another dagger sailed past the wolf, and another curse followed from Ezreal. The animal prepared to lunge again, but it was stopped short as Tash fired a bolt into the melee with great accuracy, striking it deep in its flank. Ju'lindra took a deep breath to focus herself, then struck out with her siangham again--right between the wolf's legs as it stumbled away, its movements beginning to slow now from blood loss.

The raging and powerful Keira slammed the glaive's blade in the path of the wolf's maw, and grimaced a half-smile, nervousness being overcome by adrenaline. She shoved the blade into the wolf's face, keeping it at bay while trying to get into a better position against the wolf. She'd been taught by experience that fighting in a group was the only way to overcome foes more powerful than you, and this is what she tried to achieve. Her eyes only momentarily floated to Ju'lindra, and then she pulled the blade back.

The wolf dove forward and she spun the glaive to the left, bringing it across in a low sweeping arc, catching the wolf on its side, a blow augmented by her raw power and fury, and the swinging pendulum of a blade. Thick blood splattered all over the place as the wolf fell silent and limp, dead on the end of the weapon.

Davi scurried forward once the last wolf had fallen. She drew her dagger and cleanly glided it over the throat of one of the wolves that had previously terrorized Carpal but was now in a magically conjured stupor. The cleric, one used to death--though not on such a visceral level--still had to avert her eyes as she did this. _Still, it has to be done,_ she acknowledged.


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## A'vandira Silvermane (Jul 29, 2005)

Wonderful to relive this first serious fight. And I love the way you have managed to meld all those separate posts into a cohesive and very readable story. Thanks Brain, for being a great DM (that let me into this game even after applying so late) and a good writer that brings this story really to life.


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## ltclnlbrain (Aug 3, 2005)

*Chapter 6* 

Sardonic leaned over the unconscious Carpal, wincing at his wounds. "Come on, big guy, wake up. It's too early to be sleeping on the job." The mage took what remained of the paladin's torn sleeve and used it to bandage his wounds, doing quite a good job of it. As the others were making sure the wolves stayed down, Pyrius came over to lend his aid. He took note of the mage's bandaging and nodded in approval.

"Are you a healer as well? Your bandaging is expertly done. I'm Pyrius." 

Sardonic looked up from his handiwork with a big smile. "Thanks, Pyrius. I'm Sardonic. Actually this is my first attempt. It seemed like the right way to do it." 

"Well, for a first try, it was a good one. Now. Let's see if we can get him back on his feet. Maybe some divine help can shed some light on the problem." Pyrius reached once more for the medallion tucked inside his tunic. There was a brief, warm glow, travelling down his arm into Carpal's prone body. The paladin stirred, but remained unconscious.

"Is he going to be okay?" asked Ju'lindra.

Pyrius nodded. "He's healthy enough now. He must have been affected by your spell, Sardonic. Give him a little while and he'll come around."

Davi peered down at Carpal, noting the bandages and patting Sardonic on the back. Then she looked up at Pyrius. "It's good you're here, Pyrius--and you too, Sardonic. I am not nearly the healer you gentlemen are, despite my vocation."

Indeed, after a short while, Carpal regained his senses. "What happened?" he asked.

Keira looked sharply at Carpal. "You fought to give the wolves the best advantage. They hunt in packs, selecting a single prey and bringing it down together." She spat on the body on the wolf and then walked over to retrieve her throwing axe where it lay against the wall. Returning to the bodies, she said, "We can take the bodies back to Diamond Lake. The furs will be worth something, and the teeth as well." She bent down to inspect the teeth for their cleanliness and quality, frowning as she looked.

"We should keep moving," said Ezreal, inspecting the archway now that he had the leisure. Peering through the cobweb-shrouded arch, he could see that a short flight of stairs descended from the other side, but more detail than that was impossible to make out. Dozens of tiny spiders crawled along the webs. The rogue looked back into the hall, a thought occuring to him. "Where did Tash get off to?"

"In here!" came a call from beyond the tunnel the wolves had emerged through. The gnome soon returned to the group, holding an intricately-carved armband and an elaborate lantern of indigo metal inset with indigo glass panes. "I found these in a backpack in there. Looks like they're valuable. Let's check out that other gallery before going through the arch."

The other gallery proved to contain a wide marble dais spanning that called attention to a faded fresco upon the south, west, and north walls. From a vantage point at the center of the dais, the wall painting made it look like the adventurers stood within a massive room with seven short hallways radiating outward from a central point. A chain dangled from the ceiling at the end of each hallway, and each chain bore a gleaming colored lantern: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. 

Intrigued, but not really attributing much meaning to the fresco yet, the explorers pressed on. Keira struck a torch and burned the cobwebs away, then lead the others down the stairs beyond. The wide stairway descended into an immense domed chamber. Seven short tunnels branched from the room in all directions, extending some thirty feet before ending in rounded walls. At the terminus of each passage, a thick chain dangled from an unseen high ceiling. Five of the chains bore colorful lanterns, but two held nothing at all. Opposite the entry stairs, a bright green lantern containing what looked like a torch cast a weird, murky light about the room. Countless chips of glass and shiny metal inset into the chamber's domed ceiling reflected this light, giving the impression of starlight and falling snow. 

Below the dome's peak, a long dais held what appeared to be a marble sarcophagus. A milky white bas-relief figure, perhaps of a human, rested passively upon the sarcophagus lid. Unlike the rest of the tomb, this room was completely silent.

Davi entered the room alongside Carpal, and her eyes beamed with excitement as she took in the wonder of what she presumed to be the burial chamber. "It's... glorious," she excitedly exclaimed. The tomb as a whole had yet to captivate the priest's imagination; indeed, thus far it had been a treasure hunt, no muss no fuss. But this, this reminded her of the teachings of her elders in the church, of just how sacred one's final resting place really is. Davi looks down to find that ever since she had been here she'd been fingering her necklace, which was formed of the ruby skulls that symbolize her deity. Now conscious of their actions, her gloved fingers clutched the little skulls, and Davi said a prayer in homage to Wee Jas. It just felt right to her.

"_Sharak!_" Keira exclaimed. She turned to Davi. "This is a place of the dead. They must not be disturbed." She gingerly, for a warrior of her stature, entered the domed room, her eyes gazing upward at the dome.

Sardonic looked about the room. "Looks like the frescos were referring to this room. We have an indigo lantern, which would go over on that chain," said the mage while pointing to an empty chain. "Looks like a red lantern is missing, too. Maybe part of some elaborate trap?" 

Davi took a moment to mull over the contents of the room, and her immediate conclusion was that Sardonic is right; it's a trap, or at least a security device. "So perhaps we should just retrieve the corresponding lantern from the previous hall and place it in the right place. Or is that just far too mind-numbingly obvious?" she asked the paladin by her side. "Doesn't it just feel--" she began, but then her speech trailed off, as the cleric became lost in thought.

"I would not assume anything to be too obvious," Carpal said. "Remember, such a puzzle would need to be solvable by any of the tomb's caretakers, as well as secure enough to keep out thieves such as us."

The group moved forward to inspect the sarcophagus at the center of the chamber. The lid bore a white stone relief of a tall figure cloaked in a simple garment of flowing cloth. It was difficult to say why, exactly, but the outfit conjured thoughts of ancient times. The figure at first looked human, but a cursory examination revealed that it was about seven feet tall, completely hairless, and of indeterminate sex. Its arms and hands rested at its side. 

The figure wore a scarab-like amulet around its neck, inscribed with another strange glyph similar to the one on the ruined arcane apparatus. To Sardonic's and Tash's eyes, it seemed to indicate an individual of lesser status than the one on the apparatus. The sarcophagus rested upon a small raised platform carved in the shape of a stylistic arrow, with the tip aligned with the head of the relief figure upon the lid and a short "shaft" extending from the foot of the sarcophagus. 

Tash moved over to the green lantern and, standing on his tiptoes, opened it up. Inside was a strange-looking torch, which the gnome removed. He passed his hand through the heatless flame and nodded in understanding. "An _everburning torch_," he called to the others. "This will be useful."

"Well, let's get started," said Davi, clapping their hands together. She first instructed Sardonic to hang the indigo lantern on its hook. Tash brought the torch over and placed it within the orange lantern, which the sarcophagus' platform was pointing at. Nothing happened, so he brought the torch to the indigo lantern. Again, nothing happened. Tash suggested trying to turn the entire platform, and Carpal and Keira, working together, managed to do just that. It rotated clockwise until it was pointing at the yellow tunnel, then it clicked into place.

A great rumbling came from below the chamber as the circular stone at the end of the tunnel rose eight feet into the air, pushed up by a five-foot-diameter metal cylinder that seemed to arise from the ground itself. The rumbling stopped as it came to rest, and seconds later two thin doors slid into the sides of the cylinder, revealing a small empty chamber. 

Davi's eyes widened in wonder. She stopped right in front of the doorway, and she pressed the palms of her hands together before it, staring up and into the chamber. The shadowy nature of the tomb coupled with the eerie indigo light reminded Davi of legends of the underworld--not quite hellish, just mysterious and strange. 

"Let's try lighting the yellow lantern," said Sardonic.

"Shouldn't we check out the chamber first?" Tash asked. "I wonder if it goes anywhere when it goes down." The gnome took the everburning torch and, before anybody could protest, stepped into the chamber. As soon as he entered, the doors slammed closed behind him. With a great rumble, the contraption lowered itself into the floor. The stone "cap" locked into place, but the rumbling continues for a short while. Once it stopped, there was a brief pause, then the rumbling started again as the chamber rose up and opened once more, revealing it to be empty.  The adventurers looked inside in shock.

"It ate him!" Sardonic exclaimed.


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## ltclnlbrain (Aug 23, 2005)

*Chapter 7* 

"Tash!" cried Davi, stomping around the strange platform. "Tash?"

"_Pthrari!_" Keira exclaimed loudly. "What kind of devilry is this!?" Fierce eyes wide in anticipation of danger, she lunged at Sardonic and gripped him by the breast of his clothing. "What have you done with him, little man?" Her eyes were glowing in uncertain anger. "Get him back or I'll gut you like a lamb ready for roasting." She shoved him away and looked around wildly, her eyes moving quickly from lantern to lantern, unsure what to expect.

The barbarian appeared to be thinking about something, then grabbed at Sardonic again. "Think quickly, little man! The sun's light rose at the calling of the blue sky. And so it remains. Will the sun glow the color of pumpkin if the arrow is rotated? Or become grass if further rotated? Are the lanterns just different hides for the sun to lie on?" 

"Calm down, Keira," Davi said peaceably, but with certain firmness. "And let Sardonic go; he did no harm to Tash--though he's a total idiot if he thinks I'm willing to lose him to the-gods-know-where." She thought about Keira's confusing words, trying to make sense of them. It seemed that the barbarian thought that the arrow platform called up a chamber, and the lanterns told it where to go. "Let's test your theory," she added. "Carpal, Ju'lindra, rotate the dias to point out the indigo lantern, and Keira, light the lantern again with your torch. Tash shall survive this trap, may the Witch Queen preserve him."

Carpal shrugged. "Well, what if it isn't a trap? I mean, it could be a chamber as Tash suspected. I will do as you wish, but if we change something, Tash may not be able to get back up." 

Davi bit her lip while considering Carpal's thoughts. "Well... Uh... Gee, this is the kind of things I brought Tash along for." The halfling folded her sleeves us within each other; it was plain on her face that she had no idea what to do. 

"Hang on, Tash! I'm coming!" Sardonic cried suddenly. He rushed toward the open chamber, intent on getting inside before the others could stop him.  As he was about to pass the threshold, however, the doors slammed shut. His life flashed before his eyes as the cylinder wall rushed towards him. Not that he had much to view given his age. The flash concentrated on the more tawdry bits. Then he smashed into the wall and sprawled out on the floor, dazed.

The cylinder rumbled as it sank back into the ground again, then it reemerged a few seconds later. Tash stood within, completely unharmed.

Davi whipped around to see the source of the sound, and nothing but pure, sweet relief was apparent on her face when she saw Tash. She beamed at the gnomish wizard welcomingly, and she lifted back the hood of her priestly robe to wipe her brow, inadvertantly revealing her long, wavy brown locks for the first time in the trek. She hardly thought about this however. Her mouth even gaped open for a few seconds, until she finally remembered her propriety; so great was her relief. 

So it took her a few moments to gather her wits, but then she spoke, her welcoming smile curving into a smirk. "Oh hi, we were just talking about you. Where've you been?" she asked Tash, all innocence and nonchalance. 

"I'm okay," Tash said, grinning. "I had just stepped out of the chamber when it slammed shut and went back up. It looks like these chambers are transportation devices, going down into other rooms. There's a button down there that I pressed to call the chamber and come back up. I suggest we go down this chamber and explore the place below before trying anything else."

Keira walked over to stand beside the small gnome, imposing for her strength and near six feet in height. Bending down, she put her fist around the gnome shoulder and tried to form it inside her fist. Tash squirmed from the pain, and Keira relented. It seemed, at least, that the process of being swallowed by a metal cylinder did not change him in any apparent way. 

"I don't like this place," the barbarian commented to nobody in particular. She was starting to have doubts about this whole business. They were invading a tomb of the dead, after all, something which rather strangely excited Davi Knockdoor. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. "Davi Knockdoor, is the purpose of this mission to invade the tombs of the dead, and remove the treasures of the afterlife? I do not wish to tamper with the dead themselves, but they have not need for treasures. How are the ancestors of our people supposed to guide us if they spend their time counting coins?" She gave Davi a serious look and a frown. She wanted to know what she'd signed up for, simply because several facts had taken their time registering in Keira's mind. "To whom does this tomb belong and what do we know of its history?"

Davi listened considerately to Keira's concerns, and the halfling seemed to take the barbarian's thoughts into careful deliberation. "In truth," she began at last, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear and folding her arms back together, "I know very little of the origin of this tomb, called by the title 'Whispering Cairn' on a single map of Carpal's. I believe it to be the resting place of someone related to a former mine manager, or possibly the manager himself. As for what it holds or any dangers therein, I haven't a clue; it was the very unknown nature of this place that led me to gather aid in the first place.

"As for grave-robbing, I assure you that for all that we might take, the resting body is not to be harmed or even touched by us. My elders at the church sanctioned this journey under that very caveat. However, we do wish to see if any object or records of note were buried here as well, something that could be utilized by our facilities to further our purpose. As you yourself say, Keira, the departed souls guide us, at least through what they leave behind; I am merely seeking that wisdom." Finished, Davi replaces the hood back over her head, adding a more formal, clerical feel to her appearance. "So, then, what is our course of action?"

"I wonder what would happen if we lit all the lanterns at once..." Pyrius mused idly.

Ezreal had watched the whole panicked proceedings with a mixture of amusement and derision. _Turn this, light that, jump in here, now rearrange them all before Tash comes back, and then light multiple lanterns before trying to pursue a path we know is currently not lethal. Apparently we are not so strong on logical behavior as a group._ 

The rogue cleared his throat and spoke from his position leaning against a wall. "At this point it's pretty clear that this is merely a gateway to the rest of the tomb rather than a trap. There is no path left unexplored other than these shafts and we haven't encountered whatever Ms Knockdoor was expecting as of yet. It is possible of course that one or more of the shafts descends into an area that is lethal, but why design a trap that takes at least two very strong and curious people to actively trigger? It doesn't make any sense. As traps go they could have designed anything that would heve been more effective, less expensive, and required hundreds of hours less to craft. We haven't seen anything so far that would act as a guide or clue to whoever would be a welcome guest in this tomb unless there was a hidden message or clue in the fresco indicating which combinations to avoid. So we know that by restoring the system to the settings when Tash went below, we can explore further without getting anyone killed immediately, and we can return to the surface at will. That sounds like our next move to me. Not that anyone was asking, mind you, but it does make sense. I would add that I'm not going down any shaft as long as you all keep tinkering with the system as much as you possibly can before you have any idea what it does. Multiple lanterns, spinning that sarcophagus back and forth. 'dimmara's dice! It's like you are all trying to get someone killed. You'll never figure out what mechanism does exactly what if you keep changing them all at the same time." 

Carpal chuckled at his friend's statement. "Davi, what Ezreal says makes sense. We should see one path through to its completion before causing more changes."

The cleric nodded. "All right." She gestured toward the metal cylinder, still waiting patiently at with its door open. " Let's see what you found down there, Tash."


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## ltclnlbrain (Nov 11, 2005)

*looks at calendar*  Oh my, it's been a while hasn't it?  Well, let's try to get back into the swing of things.  Look for more frequent updates again (I hope).

*Chapter 8* 

The cylindrical chamber lead them down one by one into the chamber Tash had found below. The walls here were covered in bas-relief images similar to the slender figure upon the sarcophagus lid in the chamber above. Nearly a dozen androgynous, hairless humanoids stood in poses of deference, almost as if they were paying homage to the gathered adventurers. Many extended their hands in adoration, faces awash in adulation. Several of the statues lacked heads, arms, hands, or anything else easily hacked off by long-absent tomb robbers.

About fifteen feet to the west, a dark passage extended from an elaborately carved arch. Only a little of the hallway was visible, however, as a large stone block obscured most of the passage.

Davi moved about the chamber, taking in the beautifully carved statues with an appraising eye. Ezreal's inspection of them was more practical, though, as he searched them for any signs of traps.

Carpal looked at the enormous block, trying to peer around the edges. "Is there a trigger that might move this thing?"

Tash shrugged. "I didn't see one. Maybe some of you bigger folk can try to push the whole thing aside?"

 "My guess...it's a sprung trap. Probably a squished robber underneath it," stated Sardonic.

"One way to find out," said Carpal.  He, Keira, and the two mages strained and pushed on the slab of stone. It rose up a bit, beginning to topple over, but then the weight became to much to handle and with a booming thud it fell back to the ground. 

Ezreal ignored the distracting noises as he poked around the statues' smiling mouths. His eyes widened, and before Carpal could direct the others to move the stone again, he called out, "Wait!"

The others looked at him curiously as he moved over to the big stone block.  "There are valves inside the mouths..."  The rogue searched around the stone's base, and nodded to himself before turning back to the others.  "And there's a pressure plate under the block.  It's set to trigger when the weight is removed from it.  Probably pumps some nasty gas in here to choke us all to death."

"Morbid," remarked Davi.  "Can you disable it?"

"I think so...just have to find out how to close the valves."

Ezreal worked for a few minutes, finding hidden seals on each of the valves and activating each one.  When he felt certain the trap had been neutralized, he nodded at Carpal. "Okay, try it now."

The paladin directed the others to push on the block again, and this time they managed to topple the entire stone off to the side, clearing the hallway.  When no poisonous gas began to fill the room, Ezreal allowed himself a smile.  "Well, there you are then.  I've earned my share of the treasure."

Davi smiled and touched the rogue lightly on the arm.  "Thank you, and I trust you will continue to do so."

Curious carvings that seemed to represent a shifting tempest covered the walls of the passage. At ten-foot-intervals, small alcoves flanked the passage, and each alcove contained an androgynous humanoid figure with cupped hands. The figures stood roughly seven feet tall. A faint wind seemed to play within the passage, but it was difficult to tell where it was coming from.

Sardonic looked at the statues with interest, an idea beginning to form in his head.  "What if these statues represent the race of Vaati? How ancient this tomb must be... The traps here would be numerous."

"What are these Vaati of which you speak, Sardonic?" asked Carpal, poking around for the source of the fresh air. It was entirely possible that the mage was talking merely to impress the women again, but he was just as likely contributing something constructive. 

"I can tell you what little I know. The glyphs look like a language called Vaati. Some scholars think its the precursor to the Auran language used on the Elemental Plane of Air. I was just wondering out loud if they were sculptures of the Vaati people. Just imagining. I don't know any more than that." The young mage shrugged. "I just imagined an ancient people from another plane would be a tricky lot."

"But what would bring them to Diamond Lake?" asked Davi, her tone giving a rather full impression of her feelings about the town that all the adventurers call home.

Keira snorted.  "Perhaps they..." the barbarian began, but then she suddenly stopped. The air was moving. It was a sign of change in her tribe as the wind moved through the quiet and humid swamps of her home. The elders knew how to interpret the signs, or at least Keira had never seen them get it wrong in her lifetime. Had the elders seen the pale yellow ray of light strike her on the forehead, they'd have had all sorts of things to say about her inability to react to changes, how she was not like the swamp willow, bending towards the water. She blinked once, briefly comprehending a strange shape emerging from the shadows of a nearby alcove. Then she fell forward, collapsing into a heap as her body gave way to sleep and all thought was lost from her mind.


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## Pinotage (Nov 18, 2005)

Heh! Barbarians and Will saves don't mix very well.   

Pinotage


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## ltclnlbrain (Nov 28, 2005)

*Chapter 9* 

"What is that?" cried Tash.

"What in the Nine Hells?" Ezreal asked.

"That's just weird!" shouted Sardonic.

"That cuts it. If there are any more of thises things, I am going to need a lot more alchohol," grumbled Carpal.

The disgusting creature was a grotesque three-foot-long strand of striated muscle that connected two eyeballs. The thing floated in the air a few feet off the ground, flexing and twisting. It had shot the ray that put Keira to sleep out of one of its bulging eyes.

Pyrius glanced at the sleeping barbarian, but seeing that she was unharmed for now, he turned back to the strange creature. He reached into his tunic and ulled forth his wooden holy symbol of Pelor. "In the name of the Sun God, begone, foul beast!" he cried, channeling positive energy to turn undead. The creature was quite alive, however, and the turning had no effect.

"My turn, Pyrius," said Carpal. He sprung over the sleeping barbarian to engage the monstrosity. He brought his glaive down hard on the strand of muscle between its eyes, cutting it deep. The paladin was rewarded by a spray of blood from the wound that splattered on his chest and face. He then moved his weapon across his body in a dfensive stance.

Sardonic began to gesture wildly and intone words of power. Meanwhile, Ezreal moved over toe the fallen Keira and gently shook her, calling her name. The barbarian's eyelids fluttered open as she looked around in confusion.

Ju'lindra tumbled over Keira's prone form, coming up in a crouch before the writhing creature. The roll left her unbalanced, though, and the chop she aimed at the creature went wide as it squirmed out of the way.

The strange creature floated back away from Carpal and Ju'lindra. Its eyes glowed briefly before emitting rays, a yellow one striking Carpal and a black one colliding with Ju'lindra. While the paladin began to feel sleepy, the monk's mind was assailed by an irrational fear that threatened to overwhelm her. Fortunately, both of their minds proved strong enough to resist the effects.

"You did not just blink that stuff at me!" Carpal said indignantly. Keeping pace with the creature, he turns his defensive stance into a swift, powerful upward attack. The cut nearly severed the thick strand connecting the two eyeballs. Another spray of thick blood showered the paladin.

Sardonic finally completed his long spell. With a flash of light, a white dog with golden eyes appeared about five feet away from the floating pair of eyes. The wizard shouted,  "Sick 'em!" The summoned creature crouched on his hind legs and leapt, tearing into the strange beast with its teeth. This time the strand did sever, and the two pieces of the eye-monster fell to the ground with wet thumps. "Good boy!" the mage called in delgiht, ruffling the dog's fur before it disappeared back to whence it came.

"Is Keira alright?" asked Carpal. The paladin's voice was remarkably calm despite what had just happened. His face held a sinsiter quality in the lamplight, spattered with blood as it was. He looked down at the barbarian and her caretakers before finally wiping most of the ichor away with a hand. He glanced at the filth encrusted hand for a moment, making as if to wipe it clean on the wall, but thinking better of it. 

Keira rose to her feet, shaking her head a bit to clear the cobwebs. "Yes," she said gruffly in response to Carpal's question.

Ezreal nodded, then stood and stretched, his eyes following Tash as the gnome bent to examine the creature's remains. "What do you say Tash, ever seen one of those before? Gotta say it is the kind of thing I always imagined Allustan would have floating in jars up in that place of his."

The gnome shook his head. "I've no idea what this thing is, or where it came from."

Seeing that Keira would be just fine, Davi left the barbarian with a mollifying smile, going over to Carpal to offer him her napkin. "To wipe off all the gore," she explained through gritted teeth, closing the paladin's hand around the hankerchief with her own--though being careful not to spoil her robe beyond necessity. He accepted the handkerchief with a nod of thanks. "You did great," Davi added before leaving the paladin for the two grotesque eye-like masses on the tomb floor. She leaned down opposite Tash, trying to figure out what the monster they just fought was, but she too could reach no conclusion.

"Well, it doesn't look like we're going to figure out much more here. We should continue, I think." As the others began to venture further down the corridor, the halfling felt Keira's hand on her shoulder, indicating that she should remain behind for a while. Davi acquiesced as Keira looked down at the smaller woman.

"Davi Knockdoor, the Kalari tribe demands strict discipline from those that have failed in their duty. Ours is not a people that easily survive without it, and as such any failure is met with a suitable means of ensuring that it does not happen again. In the absense of the elders of my people, and my father Butamar Kalari, I must call upon any other suitable authority to administer this judgement. Failing that, I am to report it at a later stage to the village elders when I return to the tribe. Davi Knockdoor, it has fallen to you to decide a means by which I would not forget my failure against this creature and in this battle. You may refuse, in which case I will ask the man called Carpal for his judgement. Or, should it come to that, return knowledge of my failure to my tribe when I am no longer lepsha. I await your judgement, Davi Knockdoor." 

After hearing the barbarian's explanation, Davi was at a loss for words. _The Kalari culture is so different from anything I've ever known,_ the halfling thought. _Even Wee Jas cares little for the concept of "penance." It seems like so small an infraction--not her fault at all, really--but if I and Carpal refuse, then who knows what kind of punishment her elders will devise. _So, Davi stumbled over her words in her reply, eventually managing to offer, "I will consider your request carefully."

Keira nodded, seemingly pleased for now. The two women then moved to rejoin the others. However, it seemed that Ju'lindra had stopped about halfway down the hall, and had apparently heard the conversation with her keen ears.  "Keira? Can I have a word with you?" the monk asked.  The barbarian nodded, and the two moved off as Davi rejoined the main group.

"I've noticed you're not very talkative and neither am I, so I'll keep this short."  Ju'lindra paused a moment to collect her thoughts, then continued. "Look. I can see you think you failed because of the fact you were put out by that eye-thing. But remember that Ezreal didn't see it coming either, nor did anyone else. And if none of us did, we are all equally responsible. Or all equally innocent, if you look at it from that angle. You saved Carpal from that wolf, more than anybody else did. Remember that. And know that I would have you watching my back anytime in total confidence. If you want punishment for failure, take it when it is due. Not when there is no blame to be taken."  She looked up at the proud woman, so much taller than herself, and smiled amiably.

"I am the only Kalari here, am I not?" Keira responded. "No other has undergone the initiation ceremony, no other is Third Daughter to Butamar Kalari, chief of the Kalari tribe?" The questions were enough of an answer in Keira's mind, but she elaborated nonetheless. "How are we to learn from our failures if there is not suitable judgement for them? Do you not imprison people when they fail your society, or punish those that offend you?" She stopped, her mind clear on what had happened and what was needed. "Come, the others need us."

Ju'lindra walked alongside the barbarian, not quite ready to drop the matter. "Look, Keira. I understand and agree that punishment must be given to those responsible for their failures. Especially when someone comes to harm through such failures. But in this case there is no failure and certainly no blame. What could the lesson possibly be, to be learned from that? To pay even more attention to possible danger? Are you telling me that you are not going to be doing that anyway? If you wouldn't, I would call you a fool. If you would, then I say you have learned the lesson already, and without the need for any punishment."

Keira looked askew at Ju'lindra as she continued to press the issue. "Ju'lindra Amraphen, why is it different whether someone comes to harm or not? Is it not true that your ancestors could decide on either path, and so as long as the possibility for either exists one must be prepared to accept both? In which case one must accept the judgement for failure as long as the possibility for harm exists, and be thankful to your ancestors that if you survive your failure and no harm was done, that they chose another path. But the failure remains, because the ancestors could've chosen differently, and so you must accept judgement.

"A warrior fights for his tribe and his brothers and sisters, yet if he fails, he knows not in that moment of failure the consequences of his failure. He knows only that he has failed. The outcome of his failure is undecided at this point, a path to be chosen by the guiding ancestors. So the failure must be addressed because the possibility for two path exists, and both must be accepted. One who fails does not choose the path, but one can learn not to fail so that your lack of failure might result in a path that leads not to harm. That is why judgement is given and accepted. It is still failure despite the outcome." She looked up again. "Davi Knockdoor will decide the judgement I must be given, and if she does not, then when I return to my tribe, suitable judgement will be given."

Ju'lindra let out a sigh of resignation. _By the tail of the great dragon! Did I ever meet a more headstrong woman? Or man for that matter? She is so obsessed with being punished you'd almost believe she's got a massochistic streak in her character. Well, so be it. I give up. Let her have her punishment if she is so convinced she needs it to learn to pay more attention._

By this point, however, the two women had rejoined the main group, and the others had caught the end of the conversation.  "If you really want to be punished, go out on a date with Carpal," Sardonic said lightheartedly. 

Davi rolled her eyes, but Carpal leaned over to the halfling. "I think I can handle this, if you wish." She nodded at him, and the paladin moved up to Keira.

He looked seriously at Keira for a bit. Whomever said the barbarian tribes were wild and reckless obviously had never met one. Finally, he let out a sigh. "Look, personally, I agree with Ju'lindra. But I think I understand your perspective." He had to resist a number of potential jokes here, but he could see that this matter was serious to her, and so he tried to respect that. "None of us, and I mean NONE of us were able to forsee the creature's ambush. Until you develop the ability to see the future, you are a part of that. So that is not where fault lies. Let's look at what happened to find the problem that can be fixed.

"We both were hit by the same thing, whatever it was, and it tried to put us both to sleep. I forced myself to focus through the haziness. It was a matter of will. Perhaps you need to practice focusing your mind. Perhaps a punishment of that order is required. I would suggest that when we break to rest, you stand watch alongside whomever is posted for half the night. I do not wish to deprive you of sleep entirely, but it would allow you to contemplate your 'mistake' and strengthen your willpower as you stave off sleep." Carpal did not know the first thing about this woman's tribe, or if this was appropriate, but it sounded reasonable to him. And it made more sense than scrubbing pots, which always seemed to be the priest's favored punishment whenever he stepped out of line. "Does this sound fair to you?" 

Ultimately, he had to give in to the moment, and at the end, he added, "Or there is always Sardonic's suggestion. I have been told that spending an evening with me without trying to kill me takes a great deal of willpower."

Keira looked to Davi, who nodded firmly. "I find Sir Carpal's penance to be entirely apt to impose upon you, Keira. Though, I must add that I too find you to without blame in this instance. Still, well, if you truly must, then you must. I hope you find this penalty to your liking and that you might grow from it as well."

Keira nodded. "Very well, Carpal. Davi Knockdoor. I will accept your judgement on this matter." She didn't indicate whether she believed Carpal's judgment was fair, and it seemed she would be willing to accept anything that was thrown at her.

There was a brief moment of silence, then Ezreal coughed. "Right then, now that's settled. Shall we continue?"


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## ltclnlbrain (Dec 6, 2005)

*Chapter 10*

As the explorers neared the end of the passage, the air began to grow unnaturally cold. Their breath frosted in the air and gooseflesh ross beneath their clothes. The hall opened up into a large chamber, the center of which contained a dull gray stone pillar that reached from floor to ceiling. On the north face of the pillar was a deep recession that ended at what looked like a fountain basin about four feet off the ground. A large patch of brownish mold grew in and around the basin, spilling out across the floor of the chamber and into the northern hall.

 "By the tail of the great dragon!" Ju'lindra cried, shivering in the sudden cold. "It's darn cold in here all of a sudden! And these clothes of mine do not help very much against that." The half-elf gestured helplessly to her loose-fitting monk's outfit. She tried to focus on her inner power, her _ki_, to bring warmth to her body, but it wasn't working too well.

Pyrius seemed to be faring much worse than the monk. His eyes watered and a bout of sneezing beset the cleric. "Are you alright?" asked Tash, and Pyrius nodded in response. "I'm allergic to things that grow underground. Mushrooms. Mold. I'll be fine in a minute, thanks."  He tried to smile at the gnome, but instead had to cover his face to keep from sneezing on him.

Carpal smiled wryly. "Things that grow undergournd? Well then, friend healer, it is a good thing we have no dwarves in our number."

Wrapping her fur cloak around her for warmth, Keira scanned her torch around. "This place is cursed," she said calmly. "Burn the mold away and let's finish with this place." She rested the hilt of the glaive on the ground, standing near the column but away from the mold.

"No!" cried Tash. "That's brown mold. It draws heat from everything around it, and fire makes it even bigger. Everyone stay back!" Tash moved forward and pulled at everyone's sleeves to stop them from advancing further. "Cold will destroy it. Anyone have anything that has a cold effect?"

"Not me," Sardonic said through chattering teeth. "Most of my spells have been used up today. I had no idea that I'd need a cold spell. Besides, it's plenty cold as it is."  

"Its cold because the mold has sucked out all the warmth from this room; if we're not careful, it'll freeze dry us as well."

Carpal let out a laugh. "If it is cold we need, let Sardonic try and woo the ladies again. That should give us all the cold we require."

Sardonic crossed his arms at Carpal's comment. The paladin must have thought he was funny.  "Why do you lash out at me, Carpal? Could it be you yearn for my attention? I'm no flighty boy. And quit looking at my butt."

Carpal laughs at the mage's retort. If Sardonic was offended at all, it is totally lost on the paladin, who appreciates that someone is willing to trade jibes. "But it is so ladylike. It is easy to confuse you for the fairier sex." The paladin sobered from his sarcasm, and put his mind on the problem, for what little good that did. "Tash, two questions. First, it's a plant, right, if we just scrape it off the wall, won't it die? Second, I know exposure to cold can be lethal, but this is hardly a blizzard. Can this mold kill us?"

Tash shrugged. "You could try to scrape it off the wall, but even if you come within 5 feet of it will drain the heat from your body causing hypothermia, you could pass out and die and if you stayed near it too long. Touching it would be even worse."

"Let's explore what we can," said Sardonic. "The mold doesn't go into the southern room here."

Circumventing the mold for the moment, the group moved on to the southern room. After Ezreal made sure the way was free of traps, they entered it. The wide chamber must once have been the living quarters of an important figure. A large stone slab that suggested the shape of a bed rested against the east wall, under a huge bas-relief of a robust, long-nosed bald humanoid with outstretched hands. The figure wore a lovingly sculpted wind-tossed robe that gave him the appearance of a triumphant god. A glyph that looked like a stylized arrow marked an amulet worn around the figure's neck. It looked similar to the other two symbols you've seen on the broken apparatus and the sarcophagus, though according to Sardonic and Tash, this one signified an individual of less rank than either of the other two. Wardrobes and dressers seemingly carved from the stone walls looked to have been ransacked a long time ago.

Disappointment was plain on Davi's face as she peered into the wardrobes, only to find cold, empty air. It was more proof that the thieves had already looted the entire tomb, and that this entire venture was a wasted effort. Still, the cleric said nothing of her thoughts, for there was still much to explore and many mysteries to solve, and the higher the group morale the better.

Carpal frowned as he listened to the mages' explanation of the symbol. "If Tash and Sardonic are correct, the more out of the way we explore, the lesser the importance of the people within. Does that seem odd to anyone else?"

Folding her arms together and keeping her hooded head bent towards the floor, Davi looked positively monk-like as she answered Carpal's concerns. "I've studied numerous blueprints for tombs, and occasionally other, less-important relatives or servants will be also buried there when their time comes," she said, keeping her eyes locked on the floor and her mind off of the cold. "Sometimes their crypts are less well-secured than that of the primary dead and the main areas--just utilizing the magic rather economically, I imagine."

"These people protect their lesser dead well," Keira remarked with a snort.

AS the majority of the group poked about the room for anything of value, Ju'lindra noticed Pyrius hanging back, still sneezing and wiping at his watery eyes. The monk smiled bemusedly and moved over to the cleric. "Are you okay? If you keep sneezing like that, you'll be running out of air sooner or later."

The golden-haired priest nodded. "It's alright...don't worry about me."

Ju'lindra shook her head and took out a small piece of cloth from her pocket. Opening her waterskin, she poured a bit of water onto the cloth and then handed it to Pyrius. "Here, take this and tie it around your mouth and nose. Breathe through it and it should be a little better."

Pyrius accepted the wet cloth and, not wanting to appear rude, put it on as she suggested. To his surprise, it did seem to help, and his sinuses calmed down a bit.  _I'm supposed to be a healer, and I never thought of doing this! Maybe I can learn something from her. At any rate, now is probably a good time to talk to her. She needs to know why she's here._ He began to say, "Ju'lindra, there's something I need to tell you." However, with the cloth covering his mouth and nose, it came out as,  "Mumminmra, mers mumming ma neeb ma mell mu."  Hearing himself, he groaned inwardly.

The half-elf raised her brow. "What?  I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."

Pyrius took a deep breath and started to speak again, but he was interrupted as the rest of the group made their way over. "There's nothing left here," Carpal was saying. "Let's try to scrape that mold aside so we can clear a path to the other room." The priest replaced the wet cloth and fell into step beside Sardonic. His conversation with Ju'lindra would have to wait.


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## ltclnlbrain (Dec 17, 2005)

*Chapter 11* 

Working with their glaives, Carpal and Keira were able to scrape the mold over to the western edge of the hall while staying far enough way to avoid having the heat leeched out of their body. After several minutes of cautious work, enough of it had been cleared to form a safe path into the northern room.

The ceiling of this large chamber glowed with what looked like natural sunlight, illuminating a series of worktables, vises, spinning wheels, and blocks of unfinished marble that identified the room as a sculptor's workshop. A huge unfinished statue of an imposing bare-chested warrior wielding a staff-like wooden rod in its left hand dominated the north wall. The hairless figure looked similar to the bas-relief on the sarcophagus upstairs, but it was clearly meant to be a different person. 

A short red metal pedestal against the south wall displayed what appeared to be a jet-black stone egg the size of a small boulder. A gold glyph--an equilateral triangle with short hash marks through each leg--marked the face of the egg. 

Upon seeing this strange egg, Sardonic's eyes lit up.  The mage began to jump up and down with excitement. "The egg! I need to see that egg!"

"Why?" Carpal asked as he moved alongside the excited mage. Sardonic, while genuinely helpful thus far, was still a wild card, and this level of enthusiasm was odd. 

"Yes, why?" Davi asked, echoing Carpal in both words and tone. She placed herself in front of Sardonic, so as to be the first to enter the room once Ezreal signalled that it was clear. "What is it, Sardonic?" 

Sardonic looked at Carpal like the paladin was crazy. "Law and chaos." He waited for it to sink in. "Law and chaos." His hand moved in rapid gestures. It looked like he was using his hands to help gather his thoughts, or maybe just get them out. Finally, the excited mage blurted out, "An ancient war between Law and Chaos. This must have been a... base...of operations...I think. Get me the egg; I need to look at it." 

Ezreal turned to the others, having finished searching the entrance to the room. "Looks clear."

Sardonic rushed to the egg as soon as Ezreal gave the okay signal. He began to look for any way to open it. He pointed to the golden symbol as he did so. "This is the symbol of Ogrémoch, an elemental prince. Not a very nice guy. He was on the Chaos side during the primordial war between Law and Chaos."

"Should you be playing with that, then?" Carpal asked.

"We came here to get rich. If we're not going to touch or take anything, we might as well go home." The mage didn't look up. "I'm sure it could be worth quite alot to someone." Before anybody could protest further, he delicately touched the stone egg with his index finger.

As Sardonic touched the stone egg, it began to rumble and shake as it unfolded. Two featureless legs of rock emerged from its base, and clublike arms of jagged stone sprouted from a rocky torso as it rose to a height of four feet. A featureless head stared at the wizard, then the creature let out a roar that sounded like the rumbling of an earthquake. "Jrrgle starx rrrakorx!" it rumbled. 

Sardonic nearly leaped out of his skin as the elemental rumbled to life. He opened his mouth to reply to the thing. "Um...run!" he shouted, stumbling away from the angry creature. Roaring in rage, the rocky monster stomped after him.

Davi sighed in annoyance as the mage rushed by her, chased by the very item he sought so eagerly. "You are an idiot, Sardonic, though in a way that I cannot classify," she dryly informed him as he dashed past, scared white. 

"No, an idiot would stand there and get beat on!" the mage retorted. 

"It must be a woman to react so to Sardonic's touch," Carpal laughed.

Ju'lindra and Carpal moved in on the creature to distract it from its quarry. The half-elf tumbled into melee range, but her focus momentarily slipped and her tonfa slid from her belt as she went. Cursing, she stooped to retrieve the weapon. Meanwhile, Carpal slashed at the elemental with his glaive, the blade skipping off its rocky form. The paladin did succeed at drawing its attention, though. The creature strode forward and delivered a powerful punch to his chest. The attack left a nasty bruise, but the paladin's armor kept him safe from any real harm.

Realizing her failure in the previous battle, Keira fueled herself on the anger and resentment she felt towards herself, and with a raging and anger-filled strike smashed at the egg-creature, just after trying to move into a more favorable flanking position. The glaive cut through the air, force enough so that the air almost visibly parted, but it missed its mark as the elemental shifted. "Surround it, keep it threatened, keep it in close quarters," she commanded, hoping that the sheer number of forces arrayed against this creature would give them victory. The barbarian tossed aside the weapon and unslung her greataxe from her back.

Davi said quick but fervant prayer to Wee Jas for protection, a prayer requesting a manifestation of her lady's awesome, intimidating presence. Though there was no outward sign to show the spell was effective, the elemental's movements seemed a bit more hesitant and halting, as if it was shaken.

Ezreal slid his dagger out of his sheath, watching the fight. He looked at the tiny blade and frowned. He couldn't help but wonder what in the hell it was going to do against something made of rock. _Dull or break my blade, that's what,_ he thought to himself. He cast about the chamber for a weapon, then his eyes alighted on the wooden staff in the statue's hands.  He slid it out of the stony grasp, finding the weapon to be quite well-balanced. _This seems a bit more appropriate._

Ju'lindra lashed out with her tonfa, the weapon skipping across the elemental's rocky body.  "Pyrius, how about some help?" she asked the cleric. The priest fumbled with his light mace as he moved beside the monk. He swung the weapon, but it seemed to do little to faze the rocky monster.

Carpal backed up and swung his glaive again. The blade sheared off a few fragments of rock, but it wasn't enough to do any lasting damage.

Tash had drawn his crossbow and loaded it, hoping for a lucky shot as he fired into the melee. Unfortunately, luck was not on his sign, and the missile shattered against the far wall.

The elemental bellowed again as it moved up to follow Carpal. It lifted its stony arm over its head before bringing down in a crushing blow. The paladin was not quite fast enough to avoid it, and the arm connected with his head with a sickening crack. Blood flowed from the vicious wound as Carpal collapsed to the ground.

Keira barely thought as she saw the paladin fall for the second time this day, her mind awash with anger at her previous failure, her only thought to strike this thing down. She barely saw Pyrius standing opposite her, but the creature was distracted by his presence, and she struck with all her might. 

She stretched her arms, flexing her powerful adrenaline filled arms, and then quickly and with great agility and power struck with a calculated swing against the egg-like creature. The blade connected with the stone, crunching through the thick protection of the creature. "Pthrari!" she bellowed as the plucked the blade free like a feather from a chicken. The creature crumbled to pieces on the ground, utterly destroyed by the powerful attack. The axe twirled in Keira's hands, her face flushed red with gushing blood in her veins, her lips white in anger and rage.

Greataxe still drawn back to strike, Keira took a careful step forward and crunched some of the rocks beneath her feet. "Even the stones are against us," she intoned, her mind wondering what they had let themselves in for, and what price they would have to pay. She let her own anger slide, her recent performance making her feel satisfied that in most situations she would be able to help and fight. After executing her given judgment tonight, she would remember to not suffer again at the hands of those who believed her weak-willed.

Ezreal looked at the weapon he had taken to help in the fight, reflecting a bit bitterly that he hadn't even had a chance to use it. He stirred the elemental's remains with the end of the staff, poking at them listlessly.

Davi rushed to the paladin's side, and she leaned over his body, attempting to assess the situation with her own amateur knowledge. The sight is bit of deja vu, but never once did Davi take this as a sign of Carpal's weakness--only his courage. Instinctively she sought to heal the paladin, to stop the vile wound from leaking such. Following Sardonic's lead from earlier, Davi ripped a strip of cloth from Carpal's own attire, this time his breeches, and she attempted to bandage the gaping hole in the paladin's head.

Alas, just as Davi had said before, she was no healer, and never was this more apparent than now. Clearly untrained in the use of bandages, the poor girl attempted to strap the cloth around Carpal's forehead horiztontally, which made it impossible to fully cover the wound. Not only this, but the cleric had been far too conservative in her ripping, and this small scrap of cloth wouldn't have blocked the flow of blood even should she have applied it correctly. All in all, Davi's efforts were a sad sight to see, and the stress and worry was plainly reflected on her face. Beads of sweat formed on the little halfling's forehead, and for the second time this night she prayed to Wee Jas to spare Carpal's life.

"Pyrius, I could use some of that sun god magic right about now," she called to the group, abandoning the whole affair, now vainly attempting to stop the blood flow with her own (gloved, thankfully) hand. "Please."

Pyrius dashed over to Carpal's side. Kneeling down beside him, in response to Davi's summons, he laid his hand on the holy warrior, his other grasping the sun symbol under his tunic. His hands flashed briefly, the warm color of the sun, the light flowing in to the unlucky paladin's body. The visible wounds closed up, and Pyrius poked and prodded to make sure that any broken bone had mended. The paladin groaned and sat up, holding his head, and Pyrius nodded.

"I don't have the strength for any more healings today, and I'd like to keep an eye on Carpal, to make sure there hasn't been any lasting damage. He has nearly been killed twice today. Before carrying on, I suggest resting and regrouping. Though, it's your call." Saying this, Pyrius looked up at Davi.

"That was close," said Tash, panting. "Yet again, we find traps and strange creatures abound. I agree with Pyrius, we need to be prepared for the next time we go into battle. My selection of spells today isn't suitable for combat; perhaps some rest would be good."

"Of course; it has been a hard evening on us all," Davi replied, her voice slightly shaky, slightly nervous, but she continued. "Well, if it's all right with everyone else, we shall rest on this level. Ju'lindra and myself can take the smaller chamber, the one with the air-bed; whoever is on guard may stay in the center area I suppose. Though you'll have to bring plenty of blankets with you Keira,--there's still a lot of mold out there."

Folding her hands together, Davi continued, "And the men can take this room. And they are expected to stay here," the cleric said, raising an eyebrow at Sardonic. "We've already seen how damaging rash actions can be to one's health."

Sardonic shrugged his shoulders noncommittally. As Keira moved past him, the barbarian grabbed him lightly by the robe. "The people of my tribe get punished severly for cowardly conduct. Be thankful that you don't have to spend the night hanging from your ankles over a slow-burning fire!" She let him go with a light shove, her contempt clear for Sardonic's behaviour.

This was too much for the mage. "Ok, listen to me," he began. "If you and I were to get into a fight to the death, me with my dagger and you with your glaive, you know and I know, in fact everyone here knows, that you would send me to a dirt nap in no time. Knowing this, and not being suicidal, what should I do? Stay and die, or run? I make stuff appear out of nowhere, remember? You stick to fighting, and I'll help with a spell when you fall asleep."

Keira's face hardened as Sardonic mentioned her earlier failure. Her eyes grew dark and her jaw set, yet it took a moment for her to speak again. When she did though, a glint of wickedness appeared in her eyes and she let a half-smile form on her lips. Cocking her head slightly to one side she said wryly, leaning into Sardonic's face, "Little man, the egg must hatch into something. Only you will choose what that is. A chicken..." She pulled her lips up in measured disgust. "Or a crocodile." Leaning back she stood back and laughed a deep, hearty laugh. "When you must, little man, you will shed your feathers. Better hope something doesn't gut you or any of us until then." 

The barbarian laughed again, then turned to Davi. "Davi Knockdoor, I have accepted my judgment. I will guard the hallways that enter this chamber until I am relieved. If I accomplish this, my judgement is considered executed." She turned around and strode purposefully to the corridor that led back to the alcove-ridden corridor. Back to those behind her, she stood her guard, not accepting any food, until such time as she was relieved. Only then did she unfold a great fur bed and wrap herself in it for some rest, restless as ever inside, but content for now to sleep.


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 12*

The night passed without event, and in the morning the party ascended back to the main level of the cairn. The adventurers looked around a bit, noting nothing had changed since last they were here.

"Do you think we should call up another passage and see where it leads to?" Davi asked.

"It seems to make sense," Carpal replied. "Assuming none of them are trapped, that is. Which one would you like?"

"Well, I've always been partial to green..." the halfling replied, clutching the sleeve of her robe with one hand and smiling slyly.

"Let's to it then."

Carpal and Keira pushed against the sarcophagus in the room's center, and slowly it turned to point down the center of the tunnel that sported the green lantern. As soon as it moved into position, though, a cacophonous creaking of stone against stone emerged from the ground below the lantern. The terrible din filled the chamber.

"Fornicate me!" Sardonic shouted as he dropped down to one knee and steadied himself against the roar. Looking on all sides, he prepared for the worst.

Carpal frowned as the noise continued, but nothing further seemed to happen. "I guess that one was not as well made. Let's try the next one."

The barbarian and paladin tried to push the sarcophagus some more, but they couldn't quite get it to move. It seemed to be caught on something or jammed. They tried again, and this time it started to turn, but it was too late. The mechanisms had taken too much stress, and with a great crash, the stone circle at the end of the green hallway and the apparatus beneath it completely gave way, clattering down the shaft.

Davi winced at the noise of the collapse, but as the room grew silent, her ears pricked up. The cleric shoved her hood down and listened carefully, and a look of confusion crossed her face. The confusion soon gave way to open disgust and slight alarm. "Do you...?" she began, but a quick look around noted that the others heard it too. A chittering, skittering noise, distant but rapidly approaching, climbing up the shaft. "I believe we've awakened a nest."

"By the tail of the great dragon," breathed Ju'lindra. "How many are needed to make such a noise?"

"We're about to find out," grumbled Ezreal.

"Quick!" shouted Pyrius. "Who has oil? We'll put up a screen of oil around the hole."

"They're almost here! I'll try to slow them down!" Sardonic shouted the words to a spell, and a large swath of the floor by the opening was coated with a thick layer of slippery grease.

The chittering noise became louder, echoing around the chamber, and a living geyser of beetles burst from the broken shaft! The swarm trailed a thin coat of bright yellow acid in its wake, but the beetles slipped and floundered on the magical grease, temporarily halted in their advance.

Not so the monstrosity that emerged beside them, a skittering aberration with six sharp legs sprouting from a central body that was little more than a disgusting eye. It fixed its malevolent gaze on Sardonic, its clawed forelimbs scratching the ground eagerly.

Tash's eyes went wide as he recognized the foul creature. "Everyone spread out! Don't stay together! It's a mad slasher!" He spoke a brief incantation and sent a missile of force into the aberration's body, eliciting a squeal of pain.

Keira grinned as she moved to Sardonic's side, dropping her torch to the ground and taking her glaive in both hands her stance firm and steady. "Tash Frelan, a slasher I may be, but I'm not mad."

"Not you!" shouted the gnome. "That!"

"I wonder who thought of the name," Davi mused as she readied a dart. "I would have gone with Genial Ocular Critter Who Likes Marmalade on its Toast myself; it seems nicer." The halfling took aim and hurled the weapon, and it sunk into the monstrosity's eye. The thing staggered a bit, then charged forward, claws extended.

It did not get far. As it closed with Keira, she brought her glaive down hard, cracking its body and drawing blood. Squealing, it continued forward, letting its guard down as it passed through the barbarian's reach, and the woman took an opportunistic attack, tearing open the thing's central eye. It collapses to the floor, its six legs thrashing uncontrollably in its death throes as thick fluid seeped from the broken body. Keira spat on the dying beast, a feral grin on her face, her eyes burning with bloody pashion

The beetle swarm recovered its footing, though, and it made its way off the slippery grease, hungrily advancing on Keira and Sardonic.

Carpal and Ju'lindra moved to their companions' side, brandishing lit torches low to the ground. "Pull back. If you have fire, now is the time to use it." The two swiped their torches back and forth, warding off the advancing beetles and incinerating a few that had surged out ahead of the main swarm.

"How about this?" Sardonic asked, sending a twisting spray of blinding colors out over the beetle swarm. When he saw the spell had no effect, though, he let out a small yelp of terror and began backpedaling quickly.

It took Keira a bit to realize what was going on through the haze of battle. When she did, though, she retreated to the sarcophagus and searched through her pack, finding and retrieving a flask of oil.

Tash clambered up on the sarcophagus next to her, a flask of his own in his hand, and he made ready to throw.

The beetles skittered forward, heedless of the torch before them, and as they closed with it Keira and Tash let loose their flasks of oil. The oil impacted with the torch, igniting a small fire on the floor, and the screech and crackling of burning beetles filled the air. While many were burnt, the swarm mindlessly continued forward at Carpal and Ju'lindra. The paladin and monk swung their torches at the beetles, igniting even more of their number, but hundreds still remained, and they hungrily began crawling all over the two of them, getting under their clothes and armor, biting and burning their skin with the acid dripping from their mandibles.

Ju'lindra staggered out of the swarm, several insects falling from her body as she went. She gasped for breath and slapped at her body, trying to get the biting bugs off.

"The bugs are everywhere!" shouted Sardonic. "Quick, get her clothes off!"

Even through the pain, Ju'lindra rolled her eyes.

Pyrius quickly went to the half-elf's aid, helping her get the remaining beetles off of her. He quickly checked over her wounds, but the bites and burns were the extent of the damage; luckily, there was no accompanying poison.

Carpal waved his torch frantically, scorching swaths of destruction through the swarm as he backs away.

Keira drew another torch and rushed forward at the swarm. Dodging the beetles, she stooped and ignited the torch on the flaming oil. The beetles turned to attack her, but before they could get close, she thrust the torch directly into their mass. The flames quickly incinerated most of the remaining beetles. The few that survived dispersed in all directions as the swarm broke up.

Tash let out a sigh of relief as the threat was neutralized. "Carpal, Ju'lindra, are you two okay?"

"I am well as can be expected, Tash," said Carpal. "It hurts, though. I am fortunate that Pyrius' healing touch leaves no scars. Who would have expected the beetles to have such a bite?" He stretched, wincing at the multitude of little burns on his skin. "I am surprised the things wouldn't fear the fire. That means they were crazed or hungry...or both. That is a good sign. No one has bothered them in a long time."

As Pyrius and Davi tended the wounded, Tash made his way over to the collapsed shaft and peered in, shining the everburning torch for a better view. The light revealed a scarred and pitted shaft, most likely eaten away by the acid from the beetles. The metal cylinder lay broken in a pile of rubble at the shaft's bottom, which opened up into another room.

"It looks like we can climb down here. There's another hall below."

"I will go first," said Keira, shouldering her glaive. "If there are any more slashers down there, they will be mad to come at me and my blade." She grinned and then burst out into laughter, a deep rumbling laughter.

Tash chuckled and shook his head. "Go on then. We're right behind you."


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 13*

The descent down the shaft was rather easy; the pits and scars provided numerous handholds and ledges. Soon enough, the entire party made it down below.

Dozens of bas-relief figures similar to the one on the sarcophagus lid in the room above stared disapprovingly from the walls here. Many sported crossed arms and stern expressions. A few of the statues' heads were missing, and some had huge chunks torn out of them. Others had a weird melted appearance, as if they'd been sprayed by something terrible. A large glyph that looked like a stylized arrow, identical to the one on the bas-relief in the living quarters of the previous sublevel, pointed down a short corridor to the north that leads to a four-way intersection. A keening insect chorus filled the air.

The adventurers moved down the western hall first, coming to a room filled with eight man-sized slabs arranged in two rows. A long-dead corpse, possibly a human, laid sprawled out upon one of these slabs, its red leather armor the only hint of color in the otherwise drab room. The short west wall abutted a small stone stage. The red clay statue of a powerfully built warrior wielding a cylinder-headed greatclub stood tall upon the stage, its eyes surveying the room.

Of more interest was the enormous beetle, perhaps six feet long and as tall as a halfling, that skittered between the slabs. Its compound eyes fell on the party, and it chittered as it made its way toward them.

They moved quickly, forming ranks behind Carpal and Keira's glaives. The barbarian scored a solid hit through its chitinous shell as the beetle drew near. Rearing back, the insect turned around a sprayed an acidic vapor on the glaive-wielders! The acid burned Keira, and she snarled as the rage took her. With a curse on her lips, she brought the glaive down in a tremendous arc, tearing through the beetle's shell and into its vital insides. Green ichor sprayed from the wound as the beetle collapsed, thrashing about in its death throes.

A small smile crawled up onto Davi's face, and she clapped her hands eagerly as the beetle fels. "Delightful! You are truly an agent of the Green Lady, Keira!" she announced, crossing over to the crushed shell and examining it appreciatively.

She heard Davi's comment, and through cletched teeth spat, "I serve no Green Lady, Davi Knockdoor!"

Davi had meant her mention of the Green Lady as a compliment, praising Keira as a fine agent of death; and, ignorant of barbarians and their methods, she was severely surprised at Keira's quick response. Her first, reflexive reaction was to catch Keira by the eyes with a reproachful glare, but the consequences of that action--namely, being squashed just like that beetle before her--rang clearly, so she merely looked off into the room, her insulted eyes now scanning it as well as possible. "Of course you don't," was the only meager response that Davi managed.

Keira turned away, and Tash quickly stepped forward to interrupt the uncomfortable silence that lingered. "Well, there's lots of stuff to look at in here. Let's get started with that body."

The skull of the man's corpse on the southwest slab had been utterly crushed, and the remains still were quite gruesome even though he was long-dead. The red leather armor he wore seemed to be quite well-made and was emblazoned with an eight-pointed white star over the left breast, a symbol that Tash recognized.

"This one wears the symbol of the Seekers, a group unscrupulous archaeologists and pseudohistorians," the gnome said condescendingly. "Probably came to loot the place...like us eh?"

"Not at all like us, Tash," Davi said, smiling coyly. "We at least have scruples."

The gnome laughed at that. "I wonder what crushed his head." His gaze went to the statue standing on the pedestal.

"Best not to stir it up again," Carpal cautioned. "Let's check out the east hall."

The room at the end of the east hall contained a wide stone basin backed by a five-foot-tall shelf. A hardened orange paste spilled out over the two-foot basin lip and covered much of the shelf. Thousands of tiny beetles with bright blue carapaces skittered and tunneled through the chalky substance. A huge organic mass completely filled the room's southwest corner. Judging by the beetles spilling from within, it appeared to be an enormous nest.

Another enormous beetle was here, and the beetles in the paste quickly coalesced into another swarm. But the adventurers were prepared this time, and a barrage of lit torches incinerated most of the little beetles while a well-placed dagger from Ezreal and a powerful slash of Carpal's glaive put an end to the big one.

With the threats neutralized, Davi noticed some strange lumps in the orange paste. Ju'lindra scraped away at the substance with her siangham, shaking some stray beetles aside, and uncovered moldy red leather emblazoned with the symbol of the Seekers. Clearing away the sludge completely revealed the skeletonized remains of a long-dead human clad in rotting red leather armor. The two other lumps produced similar results. Though their armor was moldy and useless, there were three small potion vials on the belt of one skeleton, and another corpse had a dirty pearl in the remains of a pouch.

"More Seekers," the monk said. "Do you think they got to the treasure already?"

"They might not have found all the treasure that's here," Tash mused. "Look, we found one dead body in the other room, and three more in here. Chances are these Seekers did not fare too well in here. Perhaps they gave up after losing too many of their number?"

"Maybe none of them made it back," Sardonic suggested darkly. "The Seekers supposed to be a society of archaeologists and historians, but they're really looters. They're well trained looters, which gives me pause. Something horrible must have happened for four to go down."

There was an awkward silence, but then Davi clapped her hands cheerfully. "Well now, as long as we keep our wits about us, we'll not suffer the same fate. Shall we continue?"

The party moved back to the intersection and headed north, where a set of stairs lead down to another chamber. However, the lower half of the stairs were obscured by dark water. It seemed that whatever rooms laid beyond the staircase had somehow become completely submerged.

Davi peered into the water. "Do we have any swimmers amongst us, preferably those experienced in battling aquatic acid-spewing beetles?" she asked half-jokingly.

Sardonic unshouldered his pack. "I'll take this one," he said resolutely.

"We should tie a rope to you in case you need us to pull you back," Carpal said, and the mage nodded his assent.

"If needed, I can cast a light spell on your crossbow," Pyrius offered. "It'll help you see whatever's down there."

Sardonic opened his mouth to reply, but Keira suddenly stepped forward. She shed her fur cloak and drops her glaive on top of it. "You will not go down there alone, little one. I will go with you."

The mage smiled. "Can't turn down a chance to get wet with me?" he asked teasingly.

Keira made no answer, turning to Pyrius and gesturing to the spiked gauntlet she wore on her right hand. "Pyrius, your light on my glove," she half-asked, half stated. The cleric complied. "Let's go," she said to Sardonic, and the two of them waded into the water. Taking a deep breath, they submerged.

"Be careful," Tash called after them, but the dark waters made no reply.


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 14*

With Keira's lighted glove and Sardonic's everburning torch providing illumination, the barbarian and wizard dove beneath the water's surface. The pair made their way down the submerged stairs and into a large, cavernous chamber. Four columns made of tan stone were spaced around the room, surrounding a large central structure. Investigation of these structures revealed numerous shower spigots about eight feet off the ground, all non-functional. A door was set in the north wall, and two open halls lead east and west.

As they got their bearings, their attention was drawn by a whirling vortex of water quickly slicing toward them from the west. Two malevolent orbs reminiscent of eyes peered out at them, and two wavelike appendages emerged from the vortex, prepared to strike.

The water blurred in front of her, a whirlpool of swirling water, with eyes and limbs. Keira's face would've looked shocked to those that would see it, but Sardonic did not see her as she turned away. The creature approached and Keira closed the gap. With one arm she waved Sardonic away, a signal to get out or get help, while she moved forward, her lungs burning in her chest.

She covered the gap easily, half-swimming, half-walking under the weight of her armor. Reaching towards the creature she swung clumsily, unused to the water terrain and the nature of it. She had to buy Sardonic some time, until she herself could do what was needed. Holding onto the internal rage, the injustice of being called lepsha, and the humiliation of it, she braced herself on the floor, hoping to survive and live.

The creature seemed to falter a bit. With Keira's feet touching the ground, it seemed unsure of itself, as if anything but water was anathema to it. Nevertheless, it lashed out at the barbaric woman, but she twisted aside and the strike went wide.

Sardonic's eyes bugged out as he saw the dangerous creature. He lifted Tash's crossbow and let loose a bolt, but the water interfered with its momentum and it didn't come close to hitting the creature. The mage quickly turned around and swam for the stairs to seek further aid. He tugged on the rope to alert the others of the danger.

Meanwhile, Keira remained focused on the elemental, striking out with her spiked gauntlet. It was difficult to tell whether she had hit the elemental or just water, but the creature made no indication of pain, so it was safe to assume that she did not hit. The watery creature flailed wildly at the barbarian, lashing out repeatedly with its fists but not managing to connect to Keira's benefit. However, the stalemate wouldn't last forever, as Keira's lungs continue to burn in protest.

The rope around Sardonic's waist tightened as Carpal pulled him up, and the wizard broke the surface of the water, gasping and spluttering. "Sardonic! What is it?" asked Tash.
"Elemental...fighting Keira...needs help..." the mage panted.

Ju'lindra did not hesitate. "Pyrius, quickly. Tie your rope around my waist. I'll go and see if I can help Keira. Perhaps I can get her some relief by distracting whatever might be facing her." As the priest complied, the monk dropped her backpack and tonfas tonfas to the ground. She drew her siangham and kicked off her sandals, then took a deep breath and plunged into the cold water.

Keira glanced briefly backward to see Ju'lindra coming to her aid. She turned again to the elemental and smashed at the water. This time she could tell that she'd only hit water as the creature pressed the advantage. She forced her open hands into the water, lifting herself up slightly and moving a little bit closer to the others on the shore. But the barbarian's luck ran out, and the elemental slammed a powerful fist into her chest. She felt something give way, and a cloud of pain danced before her eyes.

She remembered. A young warrior, from a quiet family in the tribe. He'd valiantly fought alongside them as they stood to hold off yet another attack. He'd been dragged under the water, taken down. It was a cunning tactic used by the lizardfolk. She remembered it clearly. She would not let herself be similar to that. Another failure would not do.

Help was clearly arriving around her, and so she timed her retreat more slowly, punching again before moving closer to the steps. It was a particularly weak effort. Part of her was enjoying the challenge, but part of her was not relishing it. Ju'lindra arrived at her side, and Sardonic fired some sort of missile of cold energy that looked like it had been wayward. It left only a trail of ice in the water, not hitting its intended target. They needed to retreat, slowly, to make sure that survived this.

Ju'lindra's feet settled on the floor as she struck out at the water elemental. The weapon sloughed off its syrupy hide, doing no damage. The creature fixed its gaze on Ju'lindra, choosing her as its new target. The half-elf ducked as the elemental's fist passed over her.

The two women turned as the water shimmered beside them and a sleek, silver porpoise appeared. Summoned by Davi, the animal let out a trilling call as it swam at the elemental, slapping it with its heavy tail. The sturdy creature seemed unfazed by the blow, but it was enough of a distraction to provide Ju'lindra and Keira with an opening.

Ju'lindra flicked her wrist out again, a well-aimed blow that drove the siangham deep into the elemental's body. It punctured the syrupy hide, and the monk was rewarded by a blast of steam from the wound. She moved back away, leaving an opening for Keira to step back into melee range. Finally getting a feel for the aquatic surroundings, the barbarian drove her spiked fist into the wound that Ju'lindra opened. Another blast of steam rocked the barbarian backward, and the elemental seemed to deflate in on itself. In a few seconds, all that remained were ripples in the water to mark its previous existence.

Smiling grimly to herself, Keira kicked upward and broke the surface of the water, drawing in a deep breath to ease her burning lungs. She saw Sardonic stumble out of the water, dripping wet and grinning broadly. "We did it! We're alive!" he cried, and before she could protest, the mage gathered Davi into a big, wet, sloppy hug. The halfling stiffened in his embrace, thankful for her thick robe to keep his moistness at bay.

"Yes, well, that's delightful. Bravo. Ahem."


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 15*

Keira staggered out of the water and put her hands to her knees. She was breathing heavily, having spent nearly a minute under the water in heavy combat. Shedding her overtunic and armor next to her cloak, and removing her gauntlet, she tenderly touched her chest beneath her left breast, unconcerned by Sardonic's possible glances. Lifting it up the bruise had turned purple and blue, all shades of dark reds, yellows and even the occasional green. She grimaced, breathing heavily, almost like one of her ribs had been cracked and come close to a lung. Her acid burns had turned purple too, with hues of deep blue.

Cursing softly, she let her undertunic fall, not conscious of the wet clothing or how exposed it left her. Her figure was strong and athletic, yet elegant in some way, with nice subtle curves. She stroked her hands down her breeches, rubbing the water out of them while massaging her muscles and buttocks gently. Following that, she wound the water out of her undertunic, and then proceeded to remove the water from her overtunic. She gave the armor a glance, but decided that there was very little she could do about the leather.

Sitting back against the wall at the edge of the water, she rested her head backward and tried not to concentrate on her burns and bruise. She had succeeded in surviving yet again, with Ju'lindra's help and some distraction from the others. She did not know how much longer she could continue these battles, but she would go as long as Davi said so. You did not become clesha by being weak.

Sardonic, of course, was staring lustfully at the barbarian all the while. Biting his lip, he sidled up beside her. "Hey Keira, tell me about the mating rituals of your tribe. I don't have to kill and eat something do I?"

Opening her eyes, the barbarian looked up at the mage. "You are not a Kalari. You will not pass the ritual initiation ceremonies." She grinned a wicked grin, pointed at a most inappropriate place on Sardonic's body, and made a simbol indicating something very akin to snip. Sardonic grimaced. Throwing her head back, Keira burst out laughing in her deep voice.

Ju'lindra stood in the hall, water dripping from her clothes and body, and shook her head. Picking up her sandals, backpack, and tonfas she moved toward the far endl of the corridor, motioning for Pyrius to follow. Once there, she handed him a blanket. The priest looked at it with confusion.

"Hold it up," the half-elf instructed. And then without further delay, she pulled her shirt up over her head.

Pyrius blanched and quickly averted his eyes, holding up the blanket to use as an impromptu chamber screen. By the Light, I hope no one can see me blushing, he thought as he stared at the ground. Ju'lindra seemed not to notice his embarassment as she finished disrobing, then pulled out a towel from her backpack and vigorously rubbed herself dry. Soon, she had changed into a fresh set of clothes.

"Sorry for using you like that, but even though I'm not ashamed of myself or my body, I can very well do without Sardonic's eyes all over me. Besides, now you can finally tell me what you wanted to say before. So, let's hear your story. I'm all ears." Sitting down, Ju'lindra took out some pieces of dried meat from her backpack and sunk my teeth into one of them. She offered one to Pyrius, but the priest shook his head.

"Well," Pyrius began, "what I've been meaning to say is, well, the reason I'm here is... Look. I know you don't know your parents. But I was sent here to Diamond Lake. To look after you. By your father."

The word caught her like a blow to the chest. Ju'lindra jerked her head up and stared at Pyrius. "SHAE POR O MAE? TIA THARAES?" she shouted. It took her a moment to realize that she had shouted in Elven, and she switched back to Common. "What did you say there? My father? What is the meaning of this? My parents left me in the forest to die. They couldn't have known I'd be found by the monks. Why would they suddenly show an interest in me? How dare they meddle in my life after all these years?" Out of breath and overcome by a torrent of emotions, she paused. Tears welled in her eyes as thoughts spun and tumbled through her mind.

Pyrius wore an expression of shock. He looked around and noticed the others were staring at them, particularly Carpal and Davi. He put his finger to his lips. Looking up at Pyrius, Ju'lindra wiped the tears away. "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. You didn't deserve such an outburst. It's just that I thought I was finally over it, and now I know I was not. Tell me. Who is my father? And what about my mother? Where do they live? How are they?"

"My apologies for bringing back painful memories. Come, let us go where we can talk privately, and I'll try to explain what I know," the priest said calmly. The half-elf nodded, and the two moved further away from the others.

As they walked away, Davi tugged on Carpal's belt to get his attention. "So...not going as well as it could, huh? So where did you find this Pyrius chap?"

The paladin frowned. "The cleric is not one of mine. I assumed he was contacted by you. But now that I think about it, his attention has always been on Ju'lindra. And she likewise was not contacted by either of us. Do we have a patron, or a pest, we do not know about?"

Davi's eyebrows arched suspiciously as she took in Carpal's information. Then, tucking in her chin with her hand, feigning a sort of delicate deliberation, she responded. "It seems we do--two in fact. Hmmm...let's let this scene close, and then have a chat with our players. I'd rather like to know who I'm dealing with." A thin, sharp smile developed on the cleric's face.

Ju'lindra and Pyrius were out of earshot now. She looked at him with pleading eyes. "Please, tell me," she said.

Pyrius nodded and took a deep breath. "Your father was a good man. His name was Tycho. He took me in when I was a youth and taught me the ways of Pelor. He passed away from natural causes two years ago, but on his deathbed he told me about you.

"He lived in Diamond Lake years ago, and that's where he met your mother, Brianna. She was in the employ of a mine manager named Ellival Moonmeadow, and it wasn't long before the two of them fell in love. They would meet in the woods outside town because Moonmeadow looked down upon anybody who was not an elf. And on one of these trysts, Brianna became pregnant.

"What Tycho didn't know was that Brianna was Ellival's cousin. When Moonmeadow found out, he was furious. He arranged for Tycho to be exiled from Diamond Lake, and he left nevery knowing the fate of his child. I made an oath to him on his deathbed to find you and look after you."

"And my mother?" Ju'lindra asked hesitantly. "What happened to her?"

Pyrius shook his head. "I don't know. Tycho never heard from her again." He paused and laid a hand on Ju'lindra's shoulder. "I was the one who sent you the note. I overheard Carpal talking about the expedition to the Cairn the other night, and...well, we've both been here in Diamond Lake for too long. I thought this might be our chance to forge a new life for ourselves."

Ju'lindra was silent for a long time. Then, she shook her head as if to clear away a bad dream and looked up at Pyrius with resolve. "Thank you. I think you are a real friend for all the effort you put in to find me and bring me this news. It hurt, but I'll get over it." She smiled bravely. "And I am glad that we've finally met. It's always felt like I've had a guardian angel watching over me. Now I know that I do."

Pyrius smiled back at her and brushed a loose strand of hair back from her face. Suddenly remembering himself, he blushed and quickly drew his hand back. "The others must be wondering what we're up to. We should go try to explain it to them," he stammered.

Ju'lindra opened her mouth to say something, when suddenly a commotion arose from down the hall and they heard Ezreal shouting for them. "Ju! Pyrius! Something's coming!"


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 16*

Ezreal had his dagger drawn, pulling Sardonic back from the water's edge as Ju'lindra and Pyrius ran up. "Don't they know we're done fighting for the day?" the mage asked, exasperated. Carpal and Keira stood in a line, glaives ready for whatever was coming. And something was coming, churning the waters as it swam up the stairs.

"Noooooo!" cried Davi. She ran towards the pool with as much speed as her clumsy robe allowed, worry breaking out on her face in sweaty tears. "Don't! It could be Georgette!" The halfling had momentarily forgotten to mention that she'd already named her summoned porpoise, though heretofore she hadn't even met it.

But when the creature crested the surface, it was immediately clear that it was not Georgette. The foul creature appeared more or less humanoid, but had mottled and decaying flesh drawn tight across clearly visible bones. Mostly hairless, its eyes burned like hot coals in their sunken sockets. Davi and Pyrius recognized the undead monstrosity: a ghoul.

Even as it emerged, though, Carpal and Keira laid into it with their glaives. Their weapons tore into its body, and it shrieked as pieces of flesh were torn from it. Consumed by a burning need to consume, though, the ghoul seized upon the still flat-footed Tash, tearing into the gnome's neck with sharp, carnivorous teeth. The pain was intense, and the gnome felt his body threatening to seize up.

"Nyaah!" the gnome cried, his fortitude proving stronger than the paralysis. Clutching his neck to staunch the bleeding wound, he withdrew behind the warriors.

Pyrius fumbled for the sun-shaped medallion around his neck. He grasped it and held it at the ghoul, saying, "By the Light of Pelor, be gone!" However, shaken by the proximity of the frightening creature, he wavers; the creature merely fixed its gaze on the cleric, hissing and baring its fangs.

The distraction was momentary, but it was enough for Carpal to take advantage of. He tore through the ghoul with his glaive; the weapon cleanly severed the body in two, and both halves fell back into the water with a splash, unmoving.

"Two halves ares better than one!" Keira proclaimed, looking at Carpal. She grinned wickedly as she surveyed the water, her ears trying to listen for anything else.

Davi bent to examine the remains of the ghoul, and her eyes caught a glint of gold in the darkness. She reached for the dead thing's hand. There it was: on his third finger, a golden ring shaped in the eight-pointed starburst symbol of the Seekers. The ring alarmed her immediately, and the priest's face reflected this; her slender angles seemed more narrow suddenly, and her rosy cheeks sunk into pensive repose. She took the finger off of the ghoul with her dagger, ring still attached to the decaying flesh, and then brought it to the others.

The halfling was distracted by Tash's injury. The ghoul had packed a nasty bite, but Pyrius declared that luckily it was free of disease. Once more Davi withdrew a hankerchief from her pocket, and she mindfully delivered it to the wizard. "I don't carry bandages, I'm afraid. Here," and with that Davi tenderly wiped Tash's neck. "Forgive me for endangering you like this--all of you, really."

Davi turned to the group, and she held up the finger before them, displaying the ring. "I thought this tomb would be bountiful, easy to loot as well as we should... But we've all seen that it's a strange place, a dark one--and not a good dark. I guess it's also the site of a large set of murders, presumably of these 'Seekers' Tash told us of. I thought maybe they'd turned on each other--gang rivalry, happens so often with base brutes and 'secret societies' alike--but now I wonder..."

Turning to the gnome, Davi slid the finger back into one of the many pockets on her robe. "Tash, these fellows wouldn't happen to be necromancers, would they? Because then we're dealing with an entirely different scenario." Tash shook his head, and Davi nodded. "I didn't think so," she said.

"This complex was probably built by the Vaati," offered Sardonic. "I'm assuming that any elementals we find will be their doing. Elementals are usually used as guards. They never tire, eat or sleep. The water elemental was probably set there to prevent us from moving further into the dungeon. As far as the moving dead guy, your guess is as good as mine."

Carpal frowned. "If the elementals are guards, why wouldn't the water thing attack that ghoul? Or was the ghoul a guardian as well? And moreover, what was the water elemental guarding?"

Sardonic could only shrug.

Davi put a hand to her temple. Too many questions, not enough answers. "Carpal, I believe we've all received too many wounds this morning--mayhaps we should find a resting spot. Where do you suggest?"

Carpal looked around a bit. "I would not consider this hall 'secure' but it would accomodate us all. And it is more defensible than the great hall."

The halfling nodded. "Alright then. We'll take some rest here then, and continue our explorations tomorrow."


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## ltclnlbrain (May 12, 2006)

*Chapter 17*

Nothing further harassed the party during their rest, and soon enough they were refreshed and energized for the coming day. Pyrius cast a few minor spells of healing to patch up Tash's lingering wounds. Ju'lindra made her way over to the priest, smiling. "Good morning Pyrius. Do you have more surprises for me today?"

Pyrius smiled and shook his head. "Nope, just that one, I'm afraid."

The monk inclined her head, and spoke in a slightly lower tone of voice. "So, you knew my father. I want you tell me all about him. What he was like and everything else you remember. For now you're my only link to my past. A past that untill now did not look like it was ever going to reveal its secrets. I want to learn as much as I can about my parents and I need you to help me."

Pyrius nodded. "Sure. I'll help in any way I can. And I also have a promise to keep. I'm supposed to protect you. Though so far it's been all of you protecting me."

Keira and Sardonic once more braved the cold, dark waters to find what lay past the elemental and the ghoul. It seemed that those two monsters were the only ones that lurked within the submerged rooms, and the barbarian and wizard were able to make several expeditions down to the side rooms, going back for air every minute or two.

Both the east and west rooms were small, containing four benches each and several niches along the walls. In the west room was a human corpse wearing the red armor of the Seekers. The corpse's bones were very badly gnawed, and its armor had been torn apart and ruined as if by sharp claws--likely a victim of the ghoul. In one hand, the corpse clutched an elaborate red lantern, very similar to the ones located in the large hall above. In a molding scabbard at its belt hung a finely crafted short sword, curiously free of any rusting or pitting despite the fact that is had likely been underwater many years.

Stuffed into one of the niches in the wall of the east room was a pile of tattered clothes. Rummaging through the pile produced a pouch with several coins of silver, gold, and even platinum inside.

Sardonic looked like a wet rat when he emerged from the water. His thin body was accentuated by his clinging wet clothes. He shook his head like a dog, and water droplets sprayed from left to right.

Ju'lindra smiled mockingly at the mage and began to whistle. "Hey Sardonic, how about that? Want me to hold up a blanket so you can change without everybody staring and laughing? "

"There's nothing on my body that I'm ashamed of. Some say I'm taller when laying on my back," the mage replied with a wink.

Tash looked at the red lantern with interest. "This is the last one. Maybe if they're all lit up and assembled, something will happen. Let's go try it."

Davi nodded. "Alright, let's move back up then."

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The torch they had left in the lantern above had long burned out, and the light from Tash's everburning torch failed to completely illuminate the room. The gnome handed the red lantern to Carpal, who placed it in its proper position. All seven lanterns now hung from their respective hooks, though nothing seemed to happen.

Sardonic thought for a bit, then his eyes lit up. "Oooh, ooooh! I got it." The young wizard began to point and flail. "Add the colors together in light, very soon the rays become white. It might trigger a thing or two...er, even though the corpse is glue." He frowns a bit at the last rhyme.

Carpal held up a hand. "Look, everyone. We may be dealing with this place better than the Seekers did, but it is still taking its toll. Are we sure we are ready to face the next challenge. Whatever comes out of that next chamber will probably be some other form of crawling or floating eye. Are we really ready for it?" He glanced meaningfully at Keira. The barbarian had taken a beating yesterday, and she was still not fully healed.

Standing next to Keira, Pyrius suddenly felt dwarfed by the barbarian woman. He was a bit unsure how to approach the subject. A barbarian! What if her culture has strange ideas about healing magic as well? Thinking quickly, he says, "I think Carpal is right. It's probably going to get more dangerous from here. It will mean everyone working together, so we need to make sure we're all in good shape. Keira, shall I start with you? How are your wounds?"

Keira gave Pyrius a sideways glance, a look of uncertainty on her face. In her tribe healing was rare - the shamans did their best, concocting all manner of healing salves, potions and weeds, even calling on the aid of the gods for healing. But with so many regularly wounded during battle, healing was only given to those that needed it most. Those that were dying or with serious wound, those that needed to go back and fight for another day. The stronger warriors mostly, as resource was always lacking.

"Very well, Pyrius," she said slowly, "If there is no-one else." She pointed to her wound on her side and chest, and waited with the same look of uncertainty on her face. She was starting to realise that if she wanted to become clesha she might be required to forge these around her into her own tribe. And to do that, she would need to be the strongest.

Pyrius cringed as he inspected Keira's wounds; they were more serious than he had thought. He really should have insisted on looking at them straightaway. They also looked like they would need the strength of Pelor to heal adequately. He reassured Keira, then grasping his symbol, he said a prayer to the Shining One, smiling as her wounds healed.

Once the healing had been done, she turned around. "Let's go!" she almost commanded. She stomped to Sardonic. "You, little man, do some of your magic and get another box here." She looked at Carpal. "Come, we must turn the arrow."

"But the lanterns..." Sardonic protested, then sighed. He had even rhymed his theory! "You guys suck," he muttered under his breath.

Turning the sarcophagus to the blue hallway seemed to have no effect. Turning the sarcophagus to the indigo hallway, however, produced another metal elevator that grinded up out of the floor. However, numerous crushed bones and moldy clothes littered the floor of the contraption.

A search by Ezreal and Tash confirm the group's suspicions; the entire elevator mechanism was false, merely an elaborate trap. The floor of the cylinder was unable to move, so anybody who entered would be crushed when the ceiling descended, trapping them between it and the floor. Working with his thief's tools, Ezreal managed to jam the mechanisms and render the trap inert. Tash entered and searched the bones, finding a pouch with some coins and a gem.

The group worked to turn the sarcophagus to the remaining halls. Nothing further happened at any of them, though.

"The lanterns?" asked Sardonic.

"I want to check out the ledge above the blue tunnel first," said Carpal.

"Fine," Sardonic replied, resuming his pouting.

The group moved into the blue tunnel, where the skeleton still slumped at the far end. Carpal looked up at the chain holding the lantern. He tugged on it a bit, testing its strength. "Looks pretty sturdy; somebody want to climb up there?"

"I'll do it," said Ju'lindra. With a little boost from the paladin, she began to skillfully climb up the chain. Years of training made themselves evident as she clambers to the top, then nimbly leaped off onto the floor of the shadowed passage above. A thin passage extended into the shadows to the northeast. Perhaps seventy feet away, the passage ended in what looks like an enormous stone human face, its mouth open in a heavy scream.

"Toss me a rope," the monk shouted down. "There's something up here Ezreal should look at. Might be a trap."

Taking some rope from Davi, Carpal tossed one end of it up to Ju'lindra. He then handed the other end to Ezreal, who tied it around his waist so that the monk could help support him as the rogue scurried his way up the chain. Once at the top, he began to slowly make his way down the passage, searching the walls, floor, and ceiling for traps.

"There's lots of scratch marks in the floor," Ezreal called back. "It's as if something had been dragged toward the lip of the passage. Maybe the cause of that poor blighter's skeleton down there." The rogue continued on with his methodical search, and he stopped about ten feet from the face. "Pressure plate in the floor," he said. "Not sure what it does, but I doubt the results would be pretty. Looks like a doozy, too. I think this is a dead-end though; the face is made of solid stone. Doesn't look like there are any openings."

Pyrius' stomach began to growl, loudly. The others looked at him, and he blushed. "S-sorry. We've been in here for a while...I'm out of rations."

As if in response, Tash's stomach began to grumble too. The gnome looked at the others. "We should head back to get some supplies and then continue. Who knows how much we have left to explore? We should get some torches and some food as well. Maybe one of us can run into town and grab the stuff while we figure out what to do next?"

"Light the torches," Sardonic mumbled to himself.

"If you feel it is necessary," Davi said to Tash, "then perhaps it is best for you to be our agent, Tash. Your reputation, and your tutelage, allows only the smallest amount of suspicion of all of us here."

"I'll go with him, in case he runs into trouble," Carpal said.

The halfling nodded. "Very well. We'll wait here until you return."

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It was near midday when Carpal and Tash finished their trek from the Cairn back to town. Few people were out in the streets; most were at work in the numerous mines that dotted the outskirts of Diamond Lake. The paladin and the gnome were dirty, bloodied, caked with dust from the tomb and the trail, though they were not much different in appearance than the other sorry folk they saw moving about. Most paid them no mind, but a few seemed to recognize them and quickly look away, trying to pretend that they didn't.

The two made their way to Taggin's general store. Tables lined the walls within, stacked high with rope coils, lanterns, bottles, gloves, and gear. Wagon wheels rested against barrels filled with nails and candles. The proprietor grinned at them as they enter and cheerfully provided them with the supplies they request. He didn't question where they'd been or what they needed the items for, and that suited the two of them just fine.

It seemed that they might have been able to make it back out of Diamond Lake without anybody taking too much notice of them. But as they neared the outskirts, somebody called Carpal's name. Turning around they saw a young, red-headed woman wearing white and blue robes over a slim suit of chainmail. The paladin recognized her as Mélinde, a fellow knight of Heironeous.

"Carpal!" she called. "Where have you been? Commander Dun's been having a fit; you haven't reported for duty in three days." She took in their battered appearance and glanced quizzically at Tash, then back to Carpal, concern evident in her eyes. "Have you been drinking again?"

Carpal let out a long sigh. "Why? Would you like to?" The paladin let out his best grin, which, skin still irritated and red from the beetles' acid burns, looked more ghastly than usual. Mélinde's scowl showed that she was unimpressed. "No. I am very very sad to say that I have had only one drink in three days. It has taken everything I have not to go drinking now. And I am more than a little irritable about it.

"Now why would it matter if I don't report in for duty? You all have odds on how long before I drop out of the order anyway. Who really cares?" He realized that he has been steadily raising his voice and self-consiously looked around. He also suddenly realized that Tash and he are almost strangers, and this display must not be impressing the gnome very much. Under his breath, he muttered, "Ah, pike it."

Aloud, but more reasonably, he said, "Look, this guy has some friends who need some help. They have a couple of injured people down in a hole, and these things," he gestured to their new supplies, "are needed to help. Look, I know I am hardly the ideal memeber of the order, but this is a chance for me to do more than avenge wronged serving girls or fill the pockets of bartenders. This is the first time I came back to this pit we call home, and to be honest, I never once in all this time considered checking in.

"Report in for me, if you like. I should be back in a few more days. The gnome and I have things under control." He looked at both his and Tash's appearance and realized that they did not project the image of "under control," but he didn't really care. "I'll buy you a drink when I get back."

"Carpal, I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to berate you. We've just been worried and all." Mélinde looked away for a moment, then turned back. "I'll let Commander Dun know you're okay. I'm sure he won't fault you for helping somebody in need; after all, he's always telling us we should do just that, much to Captain Trask's chagrin." Mélinde laughed lightly. "Are you sure you can handle it though? If you need help, I'd be more than willing to lend a hand. You know how boring it is around here usually."

Carpal really expected more of a tongue lashing than that. For once, the lush seemed genuinely ashamed. "Believe me, I know. That is why I lept at this chance. But honestly, we have it under control. Thanks." He placed a hand on the woman's shoulder and gently squeezed. Now he really needed a drink. He'd rather be mauled by wolves again than feel this low.

Mélinde smiled again at Carpal. "I'll smooth things over with Dun. But do try to report in when you get a chance." The paladin nodded at Tash, then turned and moved off into the town.

Carpal was silent for a bit as he and Tash left town. Eventually, he turned to the gnome. "Sorry about that. I hate making a scene."

Tash shook his head. "Its all right. I guess she was concerned for you. Master Allustan would be worried too if i went missing for a few days. Let's finish exploring this place and find what treasure we can."


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## Neurotic (Nov 9, 2007)

*Continuing*

Hey, DMBrainiac, do you still play? Will you be updating this SH or I may unsubscribe?

I followed your thread for a while, but it gets unintresting when not participating in all discussions. Your SHs are good and easy to read so if you continue it would be appreciated.

I subscribed because I liked it and didn't realize it isn't updated


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## ltclnlbrain (Dec 13, 2007)

Hey Neurotic, thanks for your interest in my story hours. Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to update them now that I've graduated from college and am working full time.  However, I am still running the games over at Playbyweb.com and you're welcome to head there and find out what's been going on with the story and characters.  Perhaps one day I'll get around to updating the story hours, but I am not sure.

At any rate, my Age of Worms game can be found here.


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