Darkhawk: The Horror Begins

[dave_o]

Allister peers down the hall as Balin walks toward the stairs, the torch kept in his left hand, behind the door, as to not ruin his night eyes. "I will tell you," he whispers to Jonathon.

 

[Blind Azathoth]

Kyros, until now lurking in the darkness behind the others, slips as silently out of the cell block as he can manage while Balin proceeds to the stairs. He presses an ear to the similar door on the other side of the hall, listening for noises beyond.

 

[airwalkrr]

As Jonathon peers into the cells (assuming Allister loans him the torch temporarily), he sees a few souls trapped behind the doors. In one, an old woman with ragged grey hair mutters ever so softly to herself. She does not seem to notice you. In another, a young man lies shaking and huddled in a ball on the floor. His flesh is covered with dark black splotches and his skin is dry and parched. Within a third cell is a middle-aged man rocking himself back and forth as he sits on the floor stroking his beard. He looks up when he sees you peer into the cell, but he merely shakes his head and looks down at the floor. There are several more, but most either fail to notice you or seem trying to actively hide in the corner from your light, possibly assuming you to be a guard. At any rate, it does not appear that the guard at the door has keys to any of the cells, so rescuing any of these poor sods seems a fruitless endeavor.

Balin approaches the stairs quietly and can see faint light coming from above. As he nears the steps, a blood-curdling scream ripples through the air. It clearly came from down below. Each of you can hear the painful cry, sending shivers down your spine.

Kyros hears nothing on the other side of the door on the opposite side of the hall but faint murmuring.

 

[Le Noir Faineant]

Balin hurries back to the others and reports what he has witnessed.

"We must free those people. Now."

 

[dave_o]

It would come to this, I knew as soon as I saw their eyes. Allister's cold gaze lingers over Balin and Jonathon, the solider absently rubbing at his upper arm. "We cannot," he states, "not without being discovered and not without all dying." He blinks heavily, staring out into the hall as he speaks. "But imagine how many lives we may live to save if we escape this place, half a hundred, perhaps?" Allister's eyes return to their faces. "More than a handful, already broken, for a certainty."

Wringing his hands, Allister's eyes finally come to rest on his bare feet, on the floor. "And we may return."

"We may come back."

 

[Le Noir Faineant]

"You are right", Balin answers maliciously, "but those prisoners storming upstairs would make a good frame-up for our own flight."

 

[Jemal]

Jonathon glares angrily at Balin, then turns to Allister. "We WILL return to free them, once we have escaped and properly equipped. We will make these monsters pay." HE turns back to Balin for a moment, waiting for a response before walking towards the stairs "Well? Are you leading or following?"

 

[Le Noir Faineant]

"Fine. I'll lead. But try to be... Well, not too noisy. And give a bit of space so we don't loose the element of surprise."

With that, Balin will step upstairs and check if there are any guards near, the mortar alway ready...

 

[Blind Azathoth]

Looking at the other two with a slight frown, Kyros moves to stand beside Jonathon.

"Do not worry," he tells the warrior softly. "Even if the others do not, I, at least, will return with you to help our fellow prisoners...and to have vengeance...once we are in a position to do so. You have my word on this."

 

[Jemal]

Jonathon nods thankfully at Kyros, then moves to the stairs, awaiting some signal from their other.... 'companion'