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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Nonlethal Force" data-source="post: 3040476" data-attributes="member: 35788">Before they were ready to move forward once more, Rhema thought she heard a noise from the direction in which they’d already come.  “Ischarus.”  She called quickly up the tunnel and then replied much more quietly to Charis, “I think there is something coming up the tunnel after us.”Ischarus quickly rose to his feet, looking back to Semeion and saying, “Stay here and guard this end of the tunnel.  I know that tone from Rhema.  Something has gotten her attention.  I don’t want it to be a diversion and we get blindsided from behind.”Semeion nodded, realizing that this time through the tunnels this type of scenario had already become a routine for him.  He hoped deep inside that he was more useful to the rest of his friends than just a horse guard.While Ischarus lightly jogged to the end of the passageway where Rhema and Charis stood, Charis replied to Rhema.  “Well, we have been in this place for a while.  Surely something had an opportunity to catch up to us if it could track us through the tunnels.  But those things just don’t have any eyes!”Ischarus heard the end of Charis’ comment as he slowed to a quiet walk.  “Semeion was down there teaching me how dependant we are on our ability to see.  We can’t imagine getting through this life without our eyesight because we are so accustomed to it always being on.  Yet, our other senses can be used just as easily with enough training.  It is Semeion’s bet – and I am with him – that these creatures have tremendous touch and hearing.  They may be able to feel vibrations through the rock floor and use them to locate their foes.  They may be quite skilled at using sound to triangulate their positing.”As if on cue, Rhema held out her hand and listened once Ischarus was done.  She had thought she heard breathing down the tunnel.  Once the tunnel had grown quietly still Ischarus raised his sword above his head for the sake of illumination.  “I heard it too.  Step behind me, Rhema.”The sound of flesh upon stone echoed down the tunnel towards the trio of adventurers at this end.  After a few seconds of the sound, Charis and Ischarus could both see a familiar imagine pass through the darkness and into the illuminated portion of the tunnel.  It was another gray skinned figure, and this one had brought a friend as well.Ischarus leapt into battle, tired of feeling hunted by these creatures who needed no light to stalk them.  “I have had enough of your kind!  We are merely passing through these tunnels, leave us alone!”  His anger guided his hands true, and his blade struck the first creature solidly in the shoulder.  His blow knocked the creature back a few steps and Ischarus hoisted his shield high in defense.The one that Ischarus had struck regained his composure and swung away at Ischarus.  His strike was weak and inaccurate due to the severe blow that Ischarus had just given him.  Ischarus easily used his shield to steer the blow away from hitting him.  The creature spoke.  It was the first time that any of the creatures had done anything except howl and grunt.  The voice was deep, raspy, and hard to understand.  “You are within our hunting grounds.  All who pass through these tunnels are rightfully ours to claim!”Charis was surprised to hear the creature speaking in the common tongue that her friends had just taught her only a few months earlier.  She had originally intended on striking against the creature that Ischarus had struck so hard, but the shock from hearing the voice of the gray skinned creature disrupted her motion.  Her swing was mistimed and short.The other creature approached Charis with caution after watching Ischarus rip into its friend.  As it drew its axe and thought about striking Charis, the primitive handle slipped out of its hand and landed on the floor at its feet.  Charis adopted a defensive position as both of the creatures focused on her for a second.Rhema shouted from her protected area from behind Ischarus.  “Nobody has the right to injure another person simply because they are passing through!  These tunnels are not marked as your own, you cannot own this!  You gave us no warning of our trespass!”  Rhema yelled from behind Ischarus, equally surprised to hear the creatures speak as Charis was.Ischarus continued Rhema’s reasoning as he swung his sword.  “We have no quarrel with you.  We have already defeated four of your brethren, but we left them to recover in the tunnels.  We mean you no harm; we simply desire to pass through!”  The blade of his sword caught nothing but air as he swung.The seriously wounded creature returned Ischarus’ blow awkwardly, missing Ischarus horribly.  It left itself open for an attack and that was all the opportunity Charis needed.  She swung hard with her pick.  She had recovered from the shock of hearing these creatures speak.  The pick landed hard against the creature and drove deep into its flesh.  The force of the blow knocked the creature to the ground.The other creature howled in anger.  “So this is what you mean by you mean us no harm?  You assault and injure my brothers?”  By this time the creature had retrieved its stone axe from the floor and it struck out at Charis to avenge his kind.  His blow connected hard with Charis’ chest, knocking her back.  Charis found that she was winded and needed a few seconds to recover to catch her breath.  The weight of the stone axe against her chest had almost ended her life in spite of failing to cut her deeply.Rhema saw Charis stumble backwards and decided to no longer hold back her powers.  In an angry voice she cried out, “Do not do that again!  You attacked us first, we are merely defending ourselves!”The creature howled in pain as Rhema’s words assaulted its mind.  The creature felt for a minute as if its head were about to explode.  In this moment of uncertainty, Ischarus finished the job.  “This is the last you will see of us, creature!”  Ischarus’ sword plunged deep into the creature’s side.  As Ischarus removed the blade, it fell over onto its side beside its kin.  Rhema looked on in shock as Ischarus released such a violent strike.“Ischarus!” Rhema shouted.  “You didn’t!”A smile crept over Charis’ face as she bent down to examine the injured creatures’ injuries.  “No, Rhema, he didn’t.  He almost did, but I can make sure it doesn’t die.”  Her hands quickly went to work by putting pressure where it was needed and making sure the creature didn’t lose any more blood than was necessary.As she finished up her work and prepared to move to the first one that had fallen she looked to Ischarus and directed him to help.  “I need you to hold this in place for another minute or so.  That was a risky blow, Ischarus.  You almost did kill him.”Ischarus nodded to Rhema, knowing that his anger had almost gotten the better of him.  “I know.  But you were hit pretty hard, too.  This battle needed to end quickly and I was tired of being hunted by things I didn’t want to fight.”With Ischarus applying pressure where it was needed, Charis moved over to treat the wounds of the other creature.  This creature’s wounds were not bad, although they would take some time to heal without magic.  Charis stabilized this one as well.  When she was convinced neither of them would die she nodded to Ischarus and Rhema.Semeion called from the other end of the tunnel.  “I think that’s our cue to move as quickly as we can.  I for one am tired of this route already, and we’ve only been down here less than a day!”Ischarus motioned for the others to follow and nodded in agreement with Semeion’s words.  It was time to leave.The rest of the trip through the mountains passed by slowly.  The adventurers didn’t know night from day below the earth, although they were accustomed to this process having each been through the mountain tunnels at least once before.  This route took nearly three times as long to traverse on account of not knowing precisely which direction to head.  Several times Rhema made the wrong decision and the party had to spend hours backtracking after finding a collapsed tunnel or a tunnel that headed in the wrong direction.  After over a week underground, the party finally emerged into Quehalost.  As luck would have it, it was night when they again saw trees.Knowing that they were on the other side of the mountains and that they would be less likely to be surprised out in the forest as they were underground, Charis expended the rest of her healing spells and headed for bed.  Semeion volunteered to take first watch, letting Ischarus get some much needed sleep.  The horses were loosely tied and allowed to graze or lay down as they saw fit.  As he looked upon his friends and their ease in falling asleep, Semeion spoke softly under his breath.  “Fresh air does wonders for the soul.  One day I’ll learn the teleportation spell Brandt used.  That way we can avoid the dark dangers of the deep mountains.”[Sblock=Color-Free Speech Section]Before they were ready to move forward once more, Rhema thought she heard a noise from the direction in which they’d already come. “Ischarus.” She called quickly up the tunnel and then replied much more quietly to Charis, “I think there is something coming up the tunnel after us.”Ischarus quickly rose to his feet, looking back to Semeion and saying, “Stay here and guard this end of the tunnel. I know that tone from Rhema. Something has gotten her attention. I don’t want it to be a diversion and we get blindsided from behind.”Semeion nodded, realizing that this time through the tunnels this type of scenario had already become a routine for him. He hoped deep inside that he was more useful to the rest of his friends than just a horse guard.While Ischarus lightly jogged to the end of the passageway where Rhema and Charis stood, Charis replied to Rhema. “Well, we have been in this place for a while. Surely something had an opportunity to catch up to us if it could track us through the tunnels. But those things just don’t have any eyes!”Ischarus heard the end of Charis’ comment as he slowed to a quiet walk. “Semeion was down there teaching me how dependant we are on our ability to see. We can’t imagine getting through this life without our eyesight because we are so accustomed to it always being on. Yet, our other senses can be used just as easily with enough training. It is Semeion’s bet – and I am with him – that these creatures have tremendous touch and hearing. They may be able to feel vibrations through the rock floor and use them to locate their foes. They may be quite skilled at using sound to triangulate their positing.”As if on cue, Rhema held out her hand and listened once Ischarus was done. She had thought she heard breathing down the tunnel. Once the tunnel had grown quietly still Ischarus raised his sword above his head for the sake of illumination. “I heard it too. Step behind me, Rhema.”The sound of flesh upon stone echoed down the tunnel towards the trio of adventurers at this end. After a few seconds of the sound, Charis and Ischarus could both see a familiar imagine pass through the darkness and into the illuminated portion of the tunnel. It was another gray skinned figure, and this one had brought a friend as well.Ischarus leapt into battle, tired of feeling hunted by these creatures who needed no light to stalk them. “I have had enough of your kind! We are merely passing through these tunnels, leave us alone!” His anger guided his hands true, and his blade struck the first creature solidly in the shoulder. His blow knocked the creature back a few steps and Ischarus hoisted his shield high in defense.The one that Ischarus had struck regained his composure and swung away at Ischarus. His strike was weak and inaccurate due to the severe blow that Ischarus had just given him. Ischarus easily used his shield to steer the blow away from hitting him. The creature spoke. It was the first time that any of the creatures had done anything except howl and grunt. The voice was deep, raspy, and hard to understand. “You are within our hunting grounds. All who pass through these tunnels are rightfully ours to claim!”Charis was surprised to hear the creature speaking in the common tongue that her friends had just taught her only a few months earlier. She had originally intended on striking against the creature that Ischarus had struck so hard, but the shock from hearing the voice of the gray skinned creature disrupted her motion. Her swing was mistimed and short.The other creature approached Charis with caution after watching Ischarus rip into its friend. As it drew its axe and thought about striking Charis, the primitive handle slipped out of its hand and landed on the floor at its feet. Charis adopted a defensive position as both of the creatures focused on her for a second.Rhema shouted from her protected area from behind Ischarus. “Nobody has the right to injure another person simply because they are passing through! These tunnels are not marked as your own, you cannot own this! You gave us no warning of our trespass!” Rhema yelled from behind Ischarus, equally surprised to hear the creatures speak as Charis was.Ischarus continued Rhema’s reasoning as he swung his sword. “We have no quarrel with you. We have already defeated four of your brethren, but we left them to recover in the tunnels. We mean you no harm; we simply desire to pass through!” The blade of his sword caught nothing but air as he swung.The seriously wounded creature returned Ischarus’ blow awkwardly, missing Ischarus horribly. It left itself open for an attack and that was all the opportunity Charis needed. She swung hard with her pick. She had recovered from the shock of hearing these creatures speak. The pick landed hard against the creature and drove deep into its flesh. The force of the blow knocked the creature to the ground.The other creature howled in anger. “So this is what you mean by you mean us no harm? You assault and injure my brothers?” By this time the creature had retrieved its stone axe from the floor and it struck out at Charis to avenge his kind. His blow connected hard with Charis’ chest, knocking her back. Charis found that she was winded and needed a few seconds to recover to catch her breath. The weight of the stone axe against her chest had almost ended her life in spite of failing to cut her deeply.Rhema saw Charis stumble backwards and decided to no longer hold back her powers. In an angry voice she cried out, “Do not do that again! You attacked us first, we are merely defending ourselves!”The creature howled in pain as Rhema’s words assaulted its mind. The creature felt for a minute as if its head were about to explode. In this moment of uncertainty, Ischarus finished the job. “This is the last you will see of us, creature!” Ischarus’ sword plunged deep into the creature’s side. As Ischarus removed the blade, it fell over onto its side beside its kin. Rhema looked on in shock as Ischarus released such a violent strike.“Ischarus!” Rhema shouted. “You didn’t!”A smile crept over Charis’ face as she bent down to examine the injured creatures’ injuries. “No, Rhema, he didn’t. He almost did, but I can make sure it doesn’t die.” Her hands quickly went to work by putting pressure where it was needed and making sure the creature didn’t lose any more blood than was necessary.As she finished up her work and prepared to move to the first one that had fallen she looked to Ischarus and directed him to help. “I need you to hold this in place for another minute or so. That was a risky blow, Ischarus. You almost did kill him.”Ischarus nodded to Rhema, knowing that his anger had almost gotten the better of him. “I know. But you were hit pretty hard, too. This battle needed to end quickly and I was tired of being hunted by things I didn’t want to fight.”With Ischarus applying pressure where it was needed, Charis moved over to treat the wounds of the other creature. This creature’s wounds were not bad, although they would take some time to heal without magic. Charis stabilized this one as well. When she was convinced neither of them would die she nodded to Ischarus and Rhema.Semeion called from the other end of the tunnel. “I think that’s our cue to move as quickly as we can. I for one am tired of this route already, and we’ve only been down here less than a day!”Ischarus motioned for the others to follow and nodded in agreement with Semeion’s words. It was time to leave.The rest of the trip through the mountains passed by slowly. The adventurers didn’t know night from day below the earth, although they were accustomed to this process having each been through the mountain tunnels at least once before. This route took nearly three times as long to traverse on account of not knowing precisely which direction to head. Several times Rhema made the wrong decision and the party had to spend hours backtracking after finding a collapsed tunnel or a tunnel that headed in the wrong direction. After over a week underground, the party finally emerged into Quehalost. As luck would have it, it was night when they again saw trees.Knowing that they were on the other side of the mountains and that they would be less likely to be surprised out in the forest as they were underground, Charis expended the rest of her healing spells and headed for bed. Semeion volunteered to take first watch, letting Ischarus get some much needed sleep. The horses were loosely tied and allowed to graze or lay down as they saw fit. As he looked upon his friends and their ease in falling asleep, Semeion spoke softly under his breath. “Fresh air does wonders for the soul. One day I’ll learn the teleportation spell Brandt used. That way we can avoid the dark dangers of the deep mountains.”[/Sblock]</blockquote>

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