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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Capellan" data-source="post: 488174" data-attributes="member: 6294">"Unearthing the Past" by Jesse Decker (WotC Cliffhanger) - Part 8The group loots the bodies - noting in passing that every orc they've killed so far has had exactly 20 silvers in his belt pouch - and then checks out the room, which contains many crates, barrels and sacks.  They quickly realise that this is a store room of some kind, and further note that, although there is plenty of water, as well as mining tools, there is very little food of any kind, which explains why the creatures had turned to banditry, though not why they had been accompanied by a human.Moving on, the group comes to a crossroads in the tunnel.  The passage to the right quickly proves a dead end, collapsed into rubble, but the one that continues ahead is intact, and comes to a wooden door."We should check it out." Ulfgar remarks, "I don't like turning my back on a door.""It's barred on this side." Briar gestures at a thick wooden beam that seals the door, "Nothing's coming through it.""Makes me wonder what the orcs were trying to keep out, though." Macwood muses."Or keep in." Briar suggests, "It could be a cell of some kind.""There's one way to find out." Twinkle marches up to the door and bashes on it with her fist."What was that supposed to do?" Ulfgar wonders.  The gnome looks offended,"It was an intimidating knock." She explains, "Now be quiet."  So saying, she presses her ear to the door and listens for any sound of a response to her action.  Seconds tick by."Not a sound." Twinkle announces at last, straightening up from her half-crouch, "There's nothing so much as breathing in there.""Which doesn't rule out undead." Ming Li evidently remembers her experience in the skeleton pit."Either way, it doesn't look like there's anything to worry about while that bar's in place." Briar shrugs, "Let's go back to the junction and check the left-hand passage.  We can check here later."There are no objections to this plan, and so the group returns to the crossroads, and then heads down the only remaining tunnel they have not yet explored.  This passage runs for about 40' before the dim light of Twinkle's lantern reveals a turn to the left a short distance ahead."What's that noise?" Briar stops and raises his hand, signalling the others to halt as well."Sounds like chains?" Twinkle wonders, "Some kind of machinery, maybe?  It's coming from around the corner, whatever it is.""Wait here." Macwood scurries to the corner without waiting for a reply, then drops to the floor and inches forward on his stomach.  After peering down the corridor for a few seconds, he jumps to his feet and hurries back.  "There's a room up ahead.  There's only a brazier there for light, but it looked like there was some kind of winches hanging from the ceiling, with chains going down into a pit.  The chains were moving.""There are lifts like that in some of the great Dwarven Halls." Ulfgar growls, looking around with fresh eyes. "These beasts cannot be left to despoil an ancient home of my people."With the lift in operation and company on the way, a plan is quickly formulated: Macwood returns to his position by the corner, while the others drop back a short way and cover Twinkle's lantern with Ming Li's emptied sack.  Each of them has a weapon at the ready.The clanking noise of the lift finally stops, and a few moments later Macwood hurries back to the others, feeling his way along the wall."Four orcs." He whispers, "They don't look like they expect trouble."Expected or not, trouble finds the orcs, with a vengeance."Now!" Ulfgar yells a warning as soon as he sees the humanoids appear round the corner.  Simultaneously, he pulls the sack off the lantern.  The party - ready and with their eyes half-closed against the coming light, are able almost instantly to react.  Their enemies enjoy no such luxury.Ulfgar and Macwood race forward, weapons scything into the surprised orcs.  The front two both go down, bleeding heavily from deep wounds.The other two orcs are not yet in sight, but Twinkle darts round the corner and stabs blindly upward.  Her sword finds a weak spot in the nearest orc's scale mail, and the blade plunges deep into its chest.  The orc drops with nothing more than a choked off gurgle.The last orc has only half-drawn its axe by the time Ming Li reaches it.  The young monk spins her quarterstaff, striking the creature in the temple and felling it instantly.Feeling very satisfied with the results of their ambush, the group quickly rifles the bodies."Twenty silvers each, again." Briar notes, "I think these orcs all got paid recently."  [DM's note: the players said this at exactly the point where the module said they would.  Spooky <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> ]"That means there must be someone in charge." Ming Li reasons, "but we still don't know who they are or what they're here for.""Aye." Ulfgar grins and brandishes his waraxe, "How 'bout go we find out?"</blockquote>

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