[KAUAI]The Rod of Seven Parts: Of Hexes and Gems

When Voadam presents his question, the giant slug nearest Brakkus ever so slowly twists its head away from Brakkus to regard the Green Wizard. The second slug stops its raking and looks up in Voadam's direction, its stalks wriggling in a manner not terribly unlike the eyestalks of the cave teeth encountered yesterday. Milky white eyes on the first slug blink once, slowly, as the creature turns. The giant slug nudges the tip of Voadam's boot with its rake as if testing for resistance to see if Voadam is something that needs tending. Brakkus stands his ground, as does Chev. Gamad eyes the slugs with aloof interest but remains safely ensconced behind Brakkus and Chev.

Arrow nocked and bow raised, Maelicent pads forward to the open iron door and peers inside. While completely devoid of torch- or lantern light, the goblin easily determines the room's basic features. Some 25 feet deep and 20 feet in length, the room obviously served as a lair to the owlbear; the southeastern corner of the masonried room contains a large pile of spoor, and stray molted feathers the same size and hue as those adorning the owlbear's arms litter the flagstone floor. A series of angry slashing claw marks have been raked across a set of double stone doors at the end of a 10-foot long arched hallway past the owlbear's quarters.

Brakkus to wait for the slugs to make the first threatening move, figuring that drawing the slugs attention will at least give Mael a chance to look around unmolested.

Seeing the creature's nonresponse response and noting its lack of a mouth Voadam says to his companions "They don't seem to be hostile or likely to block us, keep an eye on them but let's begin to search. Gamad some focusing direction for our efforts would be helpful."

Warily Voadam avoids being raked and maneuvers around cautiously, scanning the room but keeping an eye on the slugs and their actions. "They probably will act to protect their mushroom farms, so try not to destroy their work as you search."

The Gudwulf warrior, hearing that its allies seemed to be in no danger from the giant slug-creatures, risks scouting the large finished-stone hall. Cautiously moving forward, Maelicent slowly pivots to scan the surrounding floor, walls and ceiling of the chamber as he advances, all while listening for sound issuing forth from the distant stone door. Having crossed the great hall, the goblin stops momentarily in the corner to search the dead monster's nest.

Though his companions seem to think the possiblity of the slugs becoming hostile isn't that great, Chev still holds his weapon firm in his hand and remains between the slugs and his friends while they start their search. "If you need my help with something, let me know."

Gamad

Right on
Reply the albino dwarf.
He pulls out the wand and inspects the slugs for any reaction, if none is demonstrated …
Here I go … prepare your selves for any demon who might appear, especially shadows.
He then focuses one more of the possible location of the second segment.

Maelicent crosses the antechamber to investigate the owlbear's nest. Consisting of mostly spoor with only a few intermingled feathers, the nest's scent is cloying. The Gudwulf gives the nest the once-over but finds no particular feature noteworthy. The many claw marks on the masonry walls are evidence that the owlbear either used this room for no short amount of time or that the creature was pre-disposed to habitual violence. The pile of dung isn't large enough to have been around years and years, giving rise to the conjecture that someone either occasionally cleaned this room or that the owlbear only lately arrived. Either way, Maelicent finds no further physical clue in or about the nest.
Pausing a moment to give his ears full reign, the goblin listens for noise issuing from behind the closed set of double doors down the hall. All is silent in that direction.

With Brakkus and Chev keeping a watchful and careful eye on the slugs for any sign of aggression, Voadam hunts around in the northwestern area of the mushroom chamber for evidence of the next part of the Rod. Coming away totally empty-handed save for anything he might have wished to take from the tool rack (hoes, rakes, four crude-looking longspears, along with some very queer-looking pots of earth containing mildered wood rests along the cavern's natural rock wall), Voadam expands his search to include the stalagmite areas.

Gamad extracts the wand and, holding the implement, channels his thoughts until he has at their focus a clear and brimming desire to find the second segment of the Rod. Gamad is the last to see the wand's matte black metal grow white hot in his hand, scorching his dwarvish flesh to such an extent that an oblong bubble of skin lifts up from the muscle and connective tissue beneath as a 3-inch-long angry blister snakes across his palm.

The wound is not without reward; the albino closes his eyes and, in a fevered dream, clearly sees an alchemist's disheveled laboratory. While the laboratory's masonry walls bespeak the precision of craft possessed only by dwarfkind, the lab itself is a horror of broken glass vials lying scattered on the floor, their contents all spilt. In a flash, Gamad leaves the laboratory and stands alone on a sandstone cliff overlooking a fiery pit. A large purple tentacle, perhaps not unlike something belonging to a fearsome creature from the depths of the sea, emerges from the licking flames and gingerly snakes upward over the sandstone precipice until close enough to caress Gamad on the cheek. Too late the albino wizard realizes the trap; the tentacle closes about his neck and begins to squeeze, pulling him down to a fiery death.

Released from his waking vision, the dwarf opens his eyes, only to have his hand scream in pain. Gamad suffers 1 HP of fire damage.

Voadam continues his search while Gamad pulls out the rod. Seeing as the slug men currently are not interfering he continues into the stalagmite area while Gamad concentrates.

Leaving the nest behind, the goblin cautiously approaches the large stone door at the end of the eastern hallway. Bow and arrow in hand, Maelicent again pauses to thoroughly search its surface (search 0, taking 20). He ends his examination by pressing a pointed ear to the door and trying to peek around its four edges.

CanadienneBacon said:

only to have his hand scream in pain.

Click to expand...

OOC: Eek! The freak's hand is screaming! Cut it off! Cut it off!

Gamad

Bah … Mother of all dwarves!
The dwarf shouts in pain and drops the wand on the rocky ground.
Pulling out his waterskin, Gamad drains half the water on his palm, he then inspects the new blister.
Curse upon the creators of the stick.
The sweat covered dwarf calls, he then kneels and rolls the wand with the leather and place it in his pack.
Draining the last half of the waterskin on his face and down the throat, the dwarf shakes and speaks in a low gravely tone
I saw an alchemist's laboratory, with crafts and items belonged to my people, I think this is the place of the wand, but someone sensed me, possibly the darker powers who are looking for the rod too, I was transferred to a cliff, looking over fiery pit. A large purple demonic tentacle emerged from the licking flames and gingerly snakes upward over the cliff and pulled me down to a fiery death.
He then sits and rest upon the cave's wall, catching his breath once more, but his watchful eye lies on the slugmen.