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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 9807318" data-attributes="member: 143">Chapter 26Ravani was fast; he spun and got a quick arrow off even as the enemy archers unleashed their missiles. His shot sliced through the barricade, but it bounced off the shield of one of the forward warriors.The hobgoblin archers were more effective. One shot nearly clipped Folgar, but at the last instant it struck an invisible barrier and was deflected. Ravani, however, had no such protection, and he hissed in pain as an arrow struck him in the shoulder. The wound didn’t look too bad, but a moment later he staggered and nearly fell. “Poison!” he said.Leana stepped up to the barricade. This close, she could see that there were only four hobgoblins; two shield bearers protecting two archers. One of the archers was favoring her side; clearly that was the sentry who had raised the alert earlier. Leana raised her sigil, and it released a flare of light. A deep tone echoed down the length of the corridor, and the injured hobgoblin screamed, clutching her head as blood began pouring from his nostrils and ears. The other three looked down at her as she collapsed to the floor.“We did not come here to fight you, but we will kill you if you persist in this senseless violence,” the priestess said into the moment’s silence that followed. “Lower your arms, and we can still talk. Tell us what we want to know, and we will leave.”Greghan, who still hadn’t had a chance to react to this new threat, resisted the urge to rush forward and step in front of the tiny cleric. From the twisted grimace on Ravani’s face, whatever the hobgoblins put on their arrows was nasty. But the companions all held their ground, unwilling to undermine their companion’s gambit.The hobgoblins shared a look. Then, to the amazement of the three men, they lowered their weapons.* * *The companions carefully made their way up the side of the ravine, the slope so steep in places that they were more properly climbing than walking. Ahead of them another cave waited just below the crest, its opening silent and dark but holding a hint of malevolence in the light of what they had learned from the hobgoblins. They did not discuss whether the intelligence provided by the warrior humanoids was accurate. They didn’t have to; after their explorations in the Caves and the misadventures between here and the Keep their suspicions were fully primed.“Are you sure you’re all right?” Leana asked Ravani as they negotiated a particularly steep stretch of exposed rock. Dead bushes and struggling trees occasionally clung to the walls of the ravine, leaving protruding roots that could offer an assist to the climb, or a dangerous hazard when a sudden weight caused them to snap. The elf was usually the nimblest of all of them, but it was clear that the poison he’d absorbed from the hobgoblin arrow had left him fatigued.“Yeah,” Ravani said, as he pulled himself up the last stretch of rock to the next tier. “Your healing was top-notch, as always, Leana. I just don’t like poison.”“A sentiment I believe we all share,” Folgar said.“Easy for you to say,” the elf returned. “You dwarves are resistant. In fact, your ale is toxic to most species, if I’m not mistaken.”“It is true, dwarves are known for their stout stomachs,” the wizard replied.“Quiet,” Leana cautioned. “There it is.”They sidled close to the cliff face as they approached this latest cave. Behind and below them, almost the entirety of the ravine was visible. They could see now that there were eleven caves altogether, including the three they had already explored. No creatures were visible; it was almost as if the entire complex was deserted. They were alert to any signs of the hobgoblins following them, but thus far it appeared that they were honoring the agreement they’d made.“No sign of those red bastards,” Ravani said, putting that thought to words. “But the caves might be connected or they might have some other way to spread a warning.”“Or they could have been speaking truth, and they are happy to leave the cult to us,” Folgar pointed out. “The cult members mostly seem to be humans, and the goblinoids have little love for your kind.” That last was accompanied by a nod toward Greghan.“I guess they have good reason,” the warrior acknowledged. “Before I’d come here I’d never seen a single goblin or hobgoblin, but the stories all speak of them as monsters to be destroyed.”“Reality is usually more complex to the narratives we create to justify our own superiority,” Leana said. She slowed as they neared the mouth of the cave, which remained silent. “Remember, be prepared to fall back if we run into something that we cannot handle.”Ravani nudged Greghan as he moved back to the front of the line. “And don’t be afraid to hold them off while we retreat,” he said.The cave looked to be natural at first glance, but as Ravani slipped inside they could see a set of featureless stone doors that were slightly open. The others followed the elf in as he silently crept forward and glanced through the narrow opening.“This looks pretty culty,” he said, stepping back so that the others could get a look.Greghan couldn’t see anything at all, but he remembered that the elf and dwarf possessed the ability to see in the dark. As he leaned forward, however, he heard something: a bestial, high-pitched laughter, too distant to make out clearly. “What is that?” he asked. “It sounds… nasty.”“Whatever it is, it doesn’t look like they set guards,” Ravani said.Folgar looked through the door and grunted. “Those faces on the walls,” he said. “Demons.”He glanced back at Leana, who used her magic to summon light to her sigil. The glow barely brightened the space beyond the door, but it revealed a heap of what looked like trash a short distance into the room. The room looked to be about thirty feet square, with a passageway in the center of the far wall just barely visible.“Careful,” Leana said.“I’m always careful,” Ravani said. He slipped through the doorway, giving the heap of trash a wide berth. After a moment, Gregan stepped forward and pushed one of the doors to widen the gap enough for him to slip through. It ground open another foot, but before he could enter there was a loud metallic clatter as several rusted weapons and a few broken scraps of armor fell from the top of the door onto the floor. Instantly the distant laughter ceased, replaced by a loud, eager baying.“Here we go again,” Ravani said.Game Notes:Leana: Charisma (Intimidation): 17 (+2): 19 vs. DC 19 (Success). I increased the DC from the initial number noted in the book since hostilities had already begun, but she still managed to end the fight.Entering this latest cave: Ravani failed to notice the trap above the door, with Wisdom (Perception): 5 (+2): 7 vs. DC 13 (Failure)Next: The Heroes face their toughest foes yet!</blockquote>

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