Twisting Caverns
Layla's mood was unusually good. She could forget about the deaths of family members and the debts owed to the temple of Earth. Her companions were becoming good friends, and growing more capable of protecting her. There were no signs of undead about, or other mindless creatures which her magic was weak against. Perhaps best of all, was the constant flow of entertainment her companions were providing in the twisting caverns.
At the rope bridge which had crossed through a cascading funnel of water, the warriors had sighed, unbuckled their armour and waddled across the slippery ropes. Where the rock passages continued on the other side, Sam donned his breastplate, Burc his chainmail and Ra his banded armour, while the other patiently waited. A few minutes later they found it had been in vain.
The layers of scree and loose rocks had not been as treacherous as first thought, and the rope ladder into the deep pit had proved little trouble when taken slowly. A carved stalagmite in the centre of the corridor had provided a brief scare, looking like some strange creature of the depths below before Burc took away it's decomposing eye, which had once belonged to a living creature. It was the slippery ledge beyond, not even a foot wide, which caused dismay in the heavily armoured members of the group.
Layla tried to conceal her smile as the dwarf, cleric and desert warrior began to remove their armour once more. Derris had no troubles with the water-drenched walkway, but then he was nimble as a cat and probably enjoyed any risks as well. This was no doubt the same chute of water they had encountered at the rope bridge, plunging down into the depths of the subterranean world below.
When Layla and her drenched companions were all across, she helped Sam into his sodden armour once again, hoping it was the last time that day. The others were mostly miserable, but she sang a melody under her breath, dancing in the damp footprints left by those up front. Snarf gave her a strange look, but then everything about the freak was different. He was unproven in battle as yet, though related somehow to their short-lived companion Bennin.
She heard Burc swear loudly in dwarven from the front of their expedition, and the groans of others when they too saw what lay beyond. The tunnel opened into a vast natural cavern, covered in stalactites above and filled with the roar of rushing water. A grove of giant mushrooms, bathed in white phosphorescent light, could be seen to the left, while a harsh indigo glow beckoned from the right-side of the cavern. In the distance, deep in the recesses of the cave, Layla could see the bright glow of a fire, surely sign of some intelligent life down here.
But these were not the cause of the dwarf's outburst. The stream from their tunnel tumbled down below, raining onto a cone of rubble fifty foot in height and forming into a pool at it's base. A gap one foot taller than Samson would need to be leapt from where they stood to the top of the cone. It didn't look like something a fully-armoured warrior should attempt. Luckily Derris and Snarf weren't heavily armoured, both making the jump look easy.
The noble threw up rope, which Krunk tied on before attempting the gap with long strides. A stumble at the last moment brought him up short and the knot came undone under his weight. Layla watched him drop out of sight and heard the following splash in the pool below. Only slightly hurt, the halforc crawled to the edge of the water by the time Layla had secured the rope with Zorbaka's aid. Her jump was no more successful, but at least Derris and Snarf were there to hold on.
The sound of javelins clattering from stone walls was the first she knew of the attack, trying to maintain her balance as she twisted to look at their assailants. In the dim light of the noble's lantern, she watched three reptilian forms charge down Krunk, the halforc lifting his wicked scythe in response. Derris shouted a war-cry and leapt down the slope with no fear for himself. At that moment Layla lost her footing among the rubble and Snarf lost his grip on her rope, sending her head over heels into the water below.
Icy cold washed over her, but the water was shallow here, allowing her to drag herself from the pool just before a bouncing dwarf came crashing down beside her, drenching her yet again that day. Vibrant chanting to Sun from above was followed by a light thrown among the attacking lizardlike humanoids. It also showed the battle turning, as the noble joined the halforc, with Samson and Snarf descending the mound close behind and the tiefling a little above them.
In the cleric's light, the features of their foes were clearer. They wore no armour and few adornments, bearing only crude javelins as weapons. Up close they fought with claws and teeth, attacking with feral ferocity. One used a bluish tentacle to attack, a thing longer than a human was tall and not of natural origin. At that moment Layla could smell them too, retching at the stench they produced, trying to keep to her feet as her eyes watered. Without thought her magic welled up from within her, channeled through moving lips and lulling her foes to slumber.
But her foes were strong-willed, resisting her enchantment and battling on. Krunk’s scythe pierced one’s skull, spraying blood and brains in a wide arc over the combatants, with the last pair soon surrounded as dwarf, nomad and the berserker joined the fray. Bolts of eldritch energy burst from the warlock's hands, arcing down from where Zorbaka stood, narrowly missing the desperate reptilians. Their lives were ended shortly thereafter, brought down by scythe and rapier, longsword, waraxe and bloodied greatsword.
Layla had been happier up by the rope bridge, where water was their only foe. There were signs of more of these creatures, ferocious and noxious foes who carried little wealth and bore strange mutations. She and Krunk both recognised the tentacle, likely taken from a creature known as a displacer beast, not easy foes to take down. Layla gave a quick prayer to Moon, not wanting to join Kai Rifter as a body among the dark depths.
? I had been happy with the 2 6's I rolled on my last turning attempt (though, yes, if I'd been able to roll 2 6's and use a greater turning in that last room the battle would have been a lot easier)
