OODM: Lovingly written with a wink, a nod and a nudge...
Arim first thought about someone using the tunnel to move stolen goods in or out of Jalston grates on him as he recollects his brother's crimes and perceived transgressions. Someone in this town or, at least, somebody who was in this town a year ago knows more than what came out. Someday he might be able to get to the bottom of it and exact some form of revenge. Time will tell. The immediate problem is figuring out where this tunnel goes and if the Chandler Zelper used it, or was made to use it. With a quick jibe at the Watchmen, he suggests a course of action.
Finding no alternate source of light in the outer room to that which burns brightly in the back room, Arthael returns to the group. He prompts Crow to have a closer look down in the pit, and to where the tunnel might lead. Using his powerful beak, Crow picks up the Sunrod from where it had dropped and hops into the pit, though seems hesitant to proceed into the tunnel itself. Arthael quickly proposes that they, or at least he, retreat to the house of the Chandler, and the fair Ponulia, to inform her of the discovery despite having any solid evidence of the whereabouts of Zelper. He trails off, glancing nervously at each of the others, assessing their reliability.
Taking a closer look at the tunnel, and its southwest direction, Haggerty leans down into the pit far enough to see by the light of the Sunrod. It goes along, nearly straight, for thirty feet and continues. The rounded walls give it a fairly circular shape about three feet around almost consistently. The damp clay sides, top and bottom are sure to mar any clothing, armor and whatnot worn by anyone trying to traverse its length.
Seeing the Crow deftly handle the Sunrod in its beak brings a thought to Danmor's mind. He recalls the merchant from whom he had purchased the device some time ago mentioning it would last for half a dozen hours. Unless this tunnel is over a couple of miles long, even at a crawl someone could move its length and return before the light was extinguished.
Haggerty notes the tracks run as far as can be seen and further still. Looking along its southwest direction, he stands, points to the Chubby Chandler's direction (the southeast) and begins to comment on its destination. Before realizing his compass is off, he begins to theorize on the means by which it must be used. He then notes that the Chandler may have purchased this place knowing of the existence of the clandestine crawl-way, proposing a plan to go, over-ground, to the Chandler and seek its end.
Arthael, still a bit unnerved by the prospect of proceeding into the unknown without more than what he is carrying and but subconsciously beginning to pick up yet on Haggerty's directional miscalculation, realizes that going to the Chandler's might simply mean getting closer to the trouble in a quicker way. Mentally taking a one eighty, he now puts forth the notion that the tunnel needs to be explored more fully before abandonment. Barring that, he suggests doing neither and heading across the street to the tavern for reinforcements and gear.
Perhaps sensing the mage's uneasiness, the Shepherd's son mocks him. Pointing out a number of flaws in his reasoning, Arim reaffirms his own faith in the honesty of the Chandler's daughter, dismissing any subterfuge on her part as unlikely. Unfortunately, he also looks to the southwest running tunnel and points to the southeast, where lies the Chandler's shop, and expounds a number of reasons why going there first is a better choice than crawling along the hole. With a wink to the Watchman, he makes a quick comment regarding Ponulia's anatomy. Ducking under Haggerty's arm outstretched toward the southeast, he hops into the five foot pit and takes a look southwest, the direction of the tunnel, and gets a look at its pitch. It seems to move in that direction on a level plane.
The Acolyte, pointing southeast while standing near the edge of the pit that marks the entrance to the southwesterly running tunnel, interjects that Ponulia should have known of it if the tunnel led to her father's shop. Ignoring the fact that a Sunrod is as good as a filled lantern, he claims acquiring a lantern will be necessary to their task. Slipping down into the pit, though a tight fit, he takes a quick look for additional blood drops and does indeed see several heading southwest along the tracks. He raises his arm to point them out to the others.
Continuing to point southeast, but now beyond the Chandler's and toward the smithy's shop, Haggerty explains that a lantern can easily be had from his home. He suggests securing this end of the tunnel, explaining that someone on the far end (he now also gestures southwest) may well be at the far end awaiting their pursuit.
Arthael now proposes that in one twelfth of the time it would take for the Sunrod to expire, they could be back here with an equally useful lantern. They could also bring other equipment, possibly thinking to himself that an extra flask of oil would make it more useful, by that time, than the Sunrod that is right in front of them all.
Arthael starts for the door but is stopped in his tracks by Danomr's exclamation that he could procure a lantern from a much nearer location. He does, however, acquiesce that there might be more to Arthael's trip home than only procuring a lantern.
Arim further befuddles the Mage by producing yet another Sunrod from his backpack, holding it up for them to see by the light of the currently blazing Sunrod. The latter of which has now been shining brightly for all of a quarter of an hour, merely one twenty-fourth of its light expectancy. By its highly underestimated illumination the rascally Rogue notes that to traverse the tunnel will surely cause some discomfort and uncleanly results. He continues by way of suggesting that the bird that is seemingly in the keeping of the Mage might be persuaded to do the trip for them. Before allowing the plan to be considered completely, he dismisses it and proposes that the whole group crawl forth valorously to wherever the southwest passage might lead. He does add the caveat that he thinks it would be unwise to explore further, opting instead to head southeast to the Chandler's place.
Arthael turns back for a moment, heads over to Crow and lifts atop the Acolyte. Depositing him there, he turns again for the exit.
Haggerty concurs with the final suggestion of Arim which coincides with his own previously stated position of heading to the Chandler's shop. He points again to the southeast as it begins to dawn on him that it is certainly not a direction shared by the southwestern tunnel.
Danmor now incensed that Arim could have factored in future laundering needs to their strategy, gives in to the idea that leaving this fresh clue and new-found escape route is also the best course of action. Surely if the Mage doesn't have all of his worldly belongings, and the others believe that leaving this scene of the possible crime means going to where the daughter of the recently missing Chandler is located makes sense.
Of course, it's in the wrong direction, they have little more to report other than that they have all given up on following the blood trail and there's a secret hole that would leave the Shepherd's son dirty and might be part of a theft ring. With no news of her father, they may have to deal with her disappointment. Nonetheless, they can wait there for a half an hour and chat with the Chandler's daughter while the Mage encumbers himself. The four of them, as they walk out of the back room of the warehouse, have a brief moment to reassess their scheme…
*end edit*
