Session Eleven
After eating, Thorn
again uses the ring on first the gloves, then the quiver of arrows but decides
to leave identifying the bracelet until later. The gloves, he tells Grace, aid
the wearer's manipulative skills & the arrows are enchanted to so as to
have a better chance of striking their target & doing greater damage. Grace,
unhappy about not knowing what the bracelet can do, refuses to co-operate with
Thorn, realising that co-operation is essential their survival he quickly changes
his mind about the bracelet & having run his fingers over its surface tells
Grace that it has a spell of protection cast upon it & presumably any who
wear it.
Gathering their packs up they listen at the middle door, all appears quiet so Grace trips the lever & the door swings wide. Reaching the top of the spiral staircase they begin to descend, however a brief argument between the two concerning the items recovered masks the feint echo of voices from below, ignorant of their surroundings the two almost fall over the bottom step of the stairs & into a group of four orcs within the guard room below. Fortunately the attention of the orcs was taken up by the cards laid out on the table & they are as surprised to see our two companions as Grace & Thorn are to see them.
As the orc leap for the weapons on the rack near the door both Thorn & Grace can do little other than draw weapons & strike, immediately two of the orcs are butchered & a third quickly follows however the fourth makes it through the door locking it behind him.
Looking to follow the orc Thorn glances towards Grace & can see blood pouring from a gash on her forehead, his own hand badly cut he stops his pursuit, bars the door from the inside before seeing if he assist Grace, as before however he notices how quickly the wound on her head stops bleeding, although it doesn't completely heal as before, like his ring of identification he assumes the necklace she wears has limited power. Bandaging his own hand they cast an eye over the guard room, in the corner a smoky fire burns, the smoke only in part escaping up the chimney in the corner. Several flea infested beds are around the walls, as well a rickety table & chairs, a couple of chests containing clothes, bed covers, food, cooking pots & a few coins, by the door is rack containing heavy armour, spears & wicked looking stabbing swords.
Listening at the door all appears quiet so with a well place kick Thorn breaks the lock & pushes the door open, moving along the corridor, lit by spluttering torches, there is an opening to both left & right, taking one a piece the two investigate further to discover the rooms are filled with barrels & box's containing half rotted food stuffs & the like, however they make a hasty retreat as rats flood out of the rooms as their darkness is disturbed. Grace safe in the corridor shivers,
"I hate rats, they've got really beady eyes, just like you"
Thorn
however merely grunts & spits out the blood from his mouth that he has just
sucked out of a couple of rat bites on his arm.
Reaching the end of the short corridor it splits left & right, turning right their progress is soon halted as the passage widens to a natural cave however the roof is collapsed & the passage rubble choked, a few old discarded & rusted tools are strewn about the floor. Turning back they take the left fork & enter a second low cavern, to their left is a dirty well & to the narrowing right hand end of the room is a iron gate, as they stand quietly listening noises can be heard echoing from the corridor beyond the gate.
Looking through the gateway the corridor stretches of into the distance however immediately beyond the gate iron grills, possibly more gates, line the walls, faintly a voice can be heard pleading for water.
About to try his strength
on the bars of the gate, Grace touches Thorns arm & points through the bars,
on a hook about five feet along
are a bunch of keys, using her spear Grace knocks the keys to the floor &
drags them towards Thorns grasping fingers.
Unlocking
the gate they edge forward until they can peer through the bars to either side.
In the cells, for that is clearly what they are, several small goblins are manacled
to the wall, in one cell however there is a dwarf in chains strung up on the
wall, his toes barely touching the floor.
Thorn has no sympathy for the goblins & quickly dispatches them however the dwarf is freed & given water. Over the next hour he tells them who he is & that he & his friends were set upon one night as they took shelter in some old cave dwellings, the next thing he can remember is being dragged along a corridor & manacle in this cell, when questioned by Grace it is clear that he entered this complex by some other route. Thorn returns as Grace & the dwarf, Stunty Grimlock, talk & tells them both,
"Good news, & bad news, in the next cell is what I assume is your armour & mace however your pack has been ransacked, the bad news though, well, the corridor on the right is collapsed, but the passage to the left is barricaded & I can hear voices beyond, lots of 'em"