Using the violet key, they gained access to another room on the first floor. In an adjoining closet, they found a fine longbow which Ferris took up. They spent little time searching, for Ghevont’s wounds were not healing and Aderian suddenly felt quite ill. He lay in the bed in this newly-opened room while they make a quick search.
After a debate, they agreed to move on from the mysterious underground tower. There was some discussion about returning to the mine and the barrel of pickled cave worms. The plan would be to eat from the barrel, as rations were low, perhaps spending a week while slowly resting. Wisely, they turned away from this plan, perhaps considering the dogboys and other demonic creatures that seemed to show up in that area.
They climbed the stairs and cross over to the roadway, offering some assistance to Aderian. He could barely walk and needed to lean on the shoulder of an elf warrior.
Circling around the tower, the road plunged into the rock again. After about half an hour of walking, they came upon an opening about three feet round heading off from the main road. Inside, the walls were smooth and damp. Courious, Longstream proposed exploring. Given the weakened state of the crew, Ghevont attempted to push back. Eventually, the halfing insisted.
He borrowed ropes, totalling 150 feet. The tunnel twisted left and right while also diving down at a steep overall angle. When the came to the end of the rope, he hammered a spike into the floor and descended another length. He heard wet flapping in the distance that slowly approached. Turning around, he emerged from the hole.
Expecting trouble, the party assembled to one side of the hole, waiting for whatever would come out. Soon, tentacle worms squirmed out. Only Ferris and Longstream dared face them, and Ferris quickly froze under the paralyzing stings. The mage, Tienarth, let loose a wall of fire that extended down the tunnel road. The fire engulfed the worms and burned them to death.
When Ferris had recovered and the magical fire had burned itself out, they walked another half hour, passing up another side tunnel and finally arrived at a wall and a gate.
Over the wall, they saw the face of a dwarf. They would come to know him as Bali Bonegrip, one of the town guards. He was used to finding only demons coming to the gate, so was surprised. He let them through on condition of putting weapons in a safe. They entered the village of Kegh Buldohr, a waypoint along a north-south dwarven trade route.
Bali directed them to The Rusty Axe Tavern for rest. It offered nothing more than a flop room. Ghevont and Aderian made straight for the soft straw.
Longstream, Ferris and Tienarth made conversation with the barkeep, called Rusty, owing to his rusty-colored beard. He told them about the heavy use of the north-south road and another community to the west, Dimfaldir. He also told them about the local fishmonger, Dayhve.
Longstream subsequently went to visit the fishmonger to trade fishing stories. Dayhve told him of cave fishing, and a lake with giant fish that ate giant bugs. Some of his crew died immediately on being bitten. Some became feebleminded.
Endnotes
- Treasure: +1 Longbow
- Kills – 696 xp
- 4 Tentacle Worms
- Characters
- Tienarth/Tre – used magic – 176 xp
- Ferris/Henry – 191 xp
- Ghevont/Jeff – 191 xp
- Longstream/Bob – curious – 176 xp
- Virtues: none
- Vices: none