The Mayor steps forward with Gel, one of the local horse trainers, and assure Mist that Thunder will be safe with them during the groups' rescue mission into the mine.
Then, with many good-byes, your party heads into the cave.
The mining super, Heimel, walks into the mine with a battle axe in one hand and a shield in the other. "Just follow me," he says. "I can take you along the path we took out this morning." Heimel's assistant, Krodo, nods in agreement and tightens his grip on his great axe. When Mist steps into the front, though, Heimel backs down and lets her take the point, but directs her with hand gestures. The other miners who come along have their axes and swords slung and collect dropped gear along the way, staying toward the rear of the group. After the first split in the tunnel, the mine turns sharply, and the light from the entrance all but disappears.
Mist takes another "reading" and detects that the spirit has moved in the same direction Heimel is leading them. As you all continue, Mist's readings show that the phantom has retreated the same way it chased the miners out earlier.
There are torches throughout the mine, every 30 feet, so you can all see by their shimmering orange glow, however dimly. About the time your eyes have adjusted to the darkness you have gone down rough stairs and sloping passages until you can actually feel the weight of the mountain above you. The air is moist and cold and those of you not used to this (everyone but Lars and The Padre) have an urge to douse the torches, despite the darkness, because of the oxygen they are eating. Kah’s palms begin sweating (although unafraid, her Elven blood is far from comfortable). It begins to feel like the torches will surely go out any moment from lack of oxygen, when Heimel takes your minds off of the air by speaking:
“Since the cave in, we’ve been working in only one crew. All of us tapping this same nice, juicy vein a couple miles in. This morning, we’d just arrived at the worksite, when we saw that thing, the dragon that is, wiggling its way out of a crack in the wall—like a chick comin’ out of its egg. Just crumbled the rock and clambered out. It looked like Hel herself had been beating on it, mouth all frothy and eyes wild—just like when you saw it. It fell to the floor gasping for breath. At first we backed away just because it was panting so hard and looked so crazed, and we honestly couldn’t tell what it was until Krodo pointed out that it was a gold dragon."
Krodo nods in agreement. "Aye, that's how it happened."
Heimel nods back to him then continues: "‘This is a great boon,’ I thought ‘we’ll be done with that tower very soon now.’ So I says to Krodo, ‘Hold me pick’ and I step up to talk to the thing. I told it good day and asked if we could help it. Was it on the run from something? The tower? Its eyes rolled around and it wheezed like it was trying to answer, but couldn’t speak. I was reaching for my Waterskin to offer it, when them black mists came out of the crack that it had come through and started floating around it and the dragon rose up and howled.” He stops talking for a while and everyone walks in somber silence. Finally he says, “It killed Hilik and Ren before we could even start running.”
Suddenly he stops, and stops everyone else by pointing ahead into the hard shadows where a figure, doubled over, moves haltingly through the darkness. “What’s that?!”
* * *
A "Medium" sized huminoid shape is in the shadows about 40 feet ahead of the party. You all have initiative, so just sound off with what you want to do.
