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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 9830387" data-attributes="member: 143">Chapter 37Ravani cautioned them to quiet as he carefully pulled open the secret door. They were immediately greeted by the sounds of voices; Greghan couldn’t understand the language, but it sounded like an argument was taking place.“Goblin tongue,” Folgar whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.From the sound of it the speakers weren’t immediately behind the door, but they didn’t seem that far away, either. Greghan could barely see anything beyond the faint outline of the door; Ravani had already confirmed that the space on the other side was unlit, and Leana held her sigil in a cloth wrap so that only a tiny sliver of the magical light she had conjured seeped through. They had agreed that Ravani and Folgar, who both could see in the dark, would take the lead here.First the elf, then the dwarf vanished through the door; to Greghan it seemed almost like the darkness had swallowed them up. He started after them, but Leana laid a hand on his arm before he could venture the opening. “You’re too likely to betray yourself with that heavy plate,” she said. “Wait for their signal.”They didn’t have to wait long. The argument continued, dominated by a deep voice that sounded like it was on a tear, punctuated occasionally by a squeak of protest from someone smaller. The exchange reminded him of the way his father would berate the hired hands at harvest, back when their farm had been an actual business. But just as the unseen critic’s tirade reached its crescendo, it was interrupted by sounds that Greghan knew all too well, the snap of a bowstring and the hiss of Folgar’s ray of frost spell. The deep voice protested in a tone that spoke of rage more than pain, but Greghan was already charging forward, almost stumbling on the threshold of the secret door before Leana unfurled her sigil and sent light ahead of him into the space. It revealed a small chamber that bent around a corner to the right. Even as he charged forward, he saw Folgar step back, his fingers forming the patterns for another spell.Greghan charged around the corner, ready for anything. The rest of the room was barely visible in the dim light that made it around the corner, but it was enough to see the hulking figure that loomed a full two feet over Ravani. There were two smaller figures behind the big one, readying bows, but Greghan focused on the big one, slashing his sword around in a powerful arc. The monster dodged with a speed surprising for its size, but couldn’t fully escape a slice that ripped through its coat of leather and hides and deeply scored the furred flesh beneath. The creature snarled and swung a heavy hammer at Greghan; the impact rang heavily off his breastplate and send a shudder through his entire torso, but the enchanted armor protected him from harm.Leana came into the room behind him, her light fully illuminating their foes. Greghan had never seen a creature like the one he was fighting; it looked a bit like a hobgoblin that had gone feral and gained a few sizes. But it fought nimbly, its long arms easily matching the warrior’s longer sword in terms of reach. And apparently it could take a serious amount of punishment.The cleric turned to the monster’s two companions, who Greghan now could see were goblins. The pair had readied their bows but hesitated, apparently unsure whether they wanted a piece of this fight, especially now that they were obviously outnumbered. Leana sought to take advantage of this, and held up her sigil, which pulsed as her voice echoed through the room. “Flee this place, you cannot win this fight!” she said, the words reverberating with potency.Unfortunately, the goblins didn’t seem impressed; they each took two steps to the side, spreading out to get a clear line past the melee before they fired their bows. The first arrow caught Folgar high on the shoulder, inflicting a painful but not life-threatening injury, but the arrow from the second sank deep into Ravani’s gut, staggering the elf. The goblins didn’t stick around, retreating to a door on the far side of the room, shouting an alarm as they went.“Eat frost, bugbear!” Folgar said, unleashing another ray of frost with an antagonism uncharacteristic for the usually calm wizard. Once again the icy spray caught it across the body, forming a crust of frozen crystals that extended almost to its neck. Greghan had no idea what a bugbear was, but he didn’t stop attacking. He managed to hit the creature again, but again it was able to dart clear before he could do anything more than add a superficial cut to its tally of wounds.The bugbear glanced back at the fleeing goblins and uttered a curse that Greghan could clearly understand despite not knowing the language. He tensed as the creature hefted its hammer for a last desperate surge, but the delay had given Ravani an opportunity to recover from his injury. His face twisted with obvious pain from the effort, he launched an arrow that slammed deep into the bugbear’s neck. This wound was not something that the creature could ignore, and it finally stumbled and then collapsed, clutching at the protruding shaft with bloody fingers that soon fell still.Greghan moved to the door, which the goblins had left partially open in their haste to leave. Not seeing any immediate threats, he retreated back toward the others. “Think we’re done?” he asked.Ravani coughed heavily, spitting up a fat gob of blood, then shot him a dry look. “No way,” he said.Game Notes:The goblins scored two consecutive crits with their initial attacks. Seems like it might be one of those days for the Heroes…</blockquote>

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