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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 7349590" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 125</p><p></p><p>The adventurers got an early start the next morning, resuming their journey south through the densely wooded floor of the valley. The forest remained almost preternaturally silent, even the wind growing calm until they could almost hear the pounding of the blood rushing through their bodies. The canopy was thick enough overhead that there wasn’t much undergrowth, but the land was rugged enough that they made only a slow but steady progress as the day advanced.</p><p></p><p>They paused for a brief lunch from their stores, as none of them really had the skill to successfully forage for fresher fare. Bredan’s uncle had taught him how to hunt, and how to identify edible foods in the hills around Crosspath, but his attention remained focus on the journey, and their destination. The others would occasionally glance over to see his gazed fixed on a distant point to the south. No matter how their path twisted and turned to negotiate obstacles, his attention always remained on that same spot.</p><p></p><p>They had walked for maybe two more hours since their break when the ground began to rise ahead of them. The forest thinned as the terrain grew rockier, and they could see the stark outlines of steep cliffs rising ahead.</p><p></p><p>“We’re running out of room,” Glori said. She glanced over at Bredan, but he looked no less determined, his focus now on a spot slightly east of due south.</p><p></p><p>They came to a stream that gurgled over bare rock as it made its way down into the valley. They forded it without difficulty, and entered another stand of trees that extended almost to the base of another cliff that grew steadily closer.</p><p></p><p>Finally, they emerged from the wood to find a rocky ravine spreading out in front of them. A crumbling slope descended into it. The depression extended for a few hundred paces before ending abruptly at the sheer cliff they’d spotted earlier. Tangles of growth sprouted up here or there when there was enough soil to support them, though none of them were thick enough to offer a serious barrier.</p><p></p><p>But the dominant feature of the ravine was a massive mound of rock that rose up from the far side of the ravine, near the base of the cliff. Pillars of stone rose in front of it, flanking a cleft that penetrated into the interior. From their current vantage, it wasn’t clear what waited for them inside that space, but it was too obvious to be anything but what they were looking for.</p><p></p><p>“This is the place,” Bredan said, putting their thoughts into words.</p><p></p><p>“There’s a strange presence here,” Xeeta said, rubbing her arms as she looked around. “I feel as though something is watching us.”</p><p></p><p>“Any idea of what we’ll find in there?” Glori asked, looking at Bredan. “Bredan?”</p><p></p><p>He started and looked at her as if surprised to see her. “I don’t know,” he said.</p><p></p><p>“Only one way to find out,” Kosk said. “Let’s go.”</p><p></p><p>With that the dwarf started forward, leading them down into the ravine.</p><p></p><p>The mound appeared even larger as they approached it, easily twice the size of the inn back in Wildrush. The cleft that had appeared narrow from the edge of the ravine was now wide enough to easily allow several of them to enter side-by-side without feeling crowded. They could see that it widened into a small clearing once past the entry, and as they got closer they could see what looked like a dark cave mouth within.</p><p></p><p>“I guess that’s our destination,” Glori commented. None of the others said anything; they were all busy looking around or touching their weapons. All of them could feel the vague sense of disquiet that Xeeta had commented on earlier.</p><p></p><p>Kosk paused as he neared the closest of the pillars that flanked the entry. They all appeared to be natural, with none of the markings that would have indicated that they had been placed here deliberately. However, it was obvious now that what had looked like a cave earlier was a worked passage, the narrow opening flanked by huge blocks of rough-hewn stone.</p><p></p><p>“We’re a long way from anything,” Glori said. “I wonder who built this?”</p><p></p><p>“It’s not the first such place we’ve encountered in our travels,” Quellan said.</p><p></p><p>“Yeah,” Glori said. “Seems to be one every time we turn around, almost.”</p><p></p><p>“We need to go inside,” Bredan said. He started forward, but stopped when Kosk shot an arm out in front of him.</p><p></p><p>“Better let me go first,” the dwarf said. “I don’t trust anything about this place.”</p><p></p><p>The others followed after him, carefully examining every shadow and every crevice that came into view as they approached. The interior of the cleft was studded with massive boulders, leaving plenty of potential hiding places for an ambush or a trap.</p><p></p><p>But when the trap was sprung, it wasn’t anything hiding <em>behind</em> the boulders.</p><p></p><p>A deep rumble was all the warning that they got before one of the boulders rose up and shifted toward them. Arms and legs erupted from its sides, one of the former slamming down toward Kosk even as it took shape. The dwarf planted the end of his staff and used it to push off, springing backwards so quickly that he almost collided into Bredan.</p><p></p><p>“What the…” Glori began, but before she could finish she was overwhelmed by the sound of the animated boulder striking the ground where Kosk has been standing. The ground shook from the impact, and dust flew up in a plume around its misshapen fist. It was joined by a second entity a moment later, which stepped out from the opposite side of the canyon to face them.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 7349590, member: 143"] Chapter 125 The adventurers got an early start the next morning, resuming their journey south through the densely wooded floor of the valley. The forest remained almost preternaturally silent, even the wind growing calm until they could almost hear the pounding of the blood rushing through their bodies. The canopy was thick enough overhead that there wasn’t much undergrowth, but the land was rugged enough that they made only a slow but steady progress as the day advanced. They paused for a brief lunch from their stores, as none of them really had the skill to successfully forage for fresher fare. Bredan’s uncle had taught him how to hunt, and how to identify edible foods in the hills around Crosspath, but his attention remained focus on the journey, and their destination. The others would occasionally glance over to see his gazed fixed on a distant point to the south. No matter how their path twisted and turned to negotiate obstacles, his attention always remained on that same spot. They had walked for maybe two more hours since their break when the ground began to rise ahead of them. The forest thinned as the terrain grew rockier, and they could see the stark outlines of steep cliffs rising ahead. “We’re running out of room,” Glori said. She glanced over at Bredan, but he looked no less determined, his focus now on a spot slightly east of due south. They came to a stream that gurgled over bare rock as it made its way down into the valley. They forded it without difficulty, and entered another stand of trees that extended almost to the base of another cliff that grew steadily closer. Finally, they emerged from the wood to find a rocky ravine spreading out in front of them. A crumbling slope descended into it. The depression extended for a few hundred paces before ending abruptly at the sheer cliff they’d spotted earlier. Tangles of growth sprouted up here or there when there was enough soil to support them, though none of them were thick enough to offer a serious barrier. But the dominant feature of the ravine was a massive mound of rock that rose up from the far side of the ravine, near the base of the cliff. Pillars of stone rose in front of it, flanking a cleft that penetrated into the interior. From their current vantage, it wasn’t clear what waited for them inside that space, but it was too obvious to be anything but what they were looking for. “This is the place,” Bredan said, putting their thoughts into words. “There’s a strange presence here,” Xeeta said, rubbing her arms as she looked around. “I feel as though something is watching us.” “Any idea of what we’ll find in there?” Glori asked, looking at Bredan. “Bredan?” He started and looked at her as if surprised to see her. “I don’t know,” he said. “Only one way to find out,” Kosk said. “Let’s go.” With that the dwarf started forward, leading them down into the ravine. The mound appeared even larger as they approached it, easily twice the size of the inn back in Wildrush. The cleft that had appeared narrow from the edge of the ravine was now wide enough to easily allow several of them to enter side-by-side without feeling crowded. They could see that it widened into a small clearing once past the entry, and as they got closer they could see what looked like a dark cave mouth within. “I guess that’s our destination,” Glori commented. None of the others said anything; they were all busy looking around or touching their weapons. All of them could feel the vague sense of disquiet that Xeeta had commented on earlier. Kosk paused as he neared the closest of the pillars that flanked the entry. They all appeared to be natural, with none of the markings that would have indicated that they had been placed here deliberately. However, it was obvious now that what had looked like a cave earlier was a worked passage, the narrow opening flanked by huge blocks of rough-hewn stone. “We’re a long way from anything,” Glori said. “I wonder who built this?” “It’s not the first such place we’ve encountered in our travels,” Quellan said. “Yeah,” Glori said. “Seems to be one every time we turn around, almost.” “We need to go inside,” Bredan said. He started forward, but stopped when Kosk shot an arm out in front of him. “Better let me go first,” the dwarf said. “I don’t trust anything about this place.” The others followed after him, carefully examining every shadow and every crevice that came into view as they approached. The interior of the cleft was studded with massive boulders, leaving plenty of potential hiding places for an ambush or a trap. But when the trap was sprung, it wasn’t anything hiding [i]behind[/i] the boulders. A deep rumble was all the warning that they got before one of the boulders rose up and shifted toward them. Arms and legs erupted from its sides, one of the former slamming down toward Kosk even as it took shape. The dwarf planted the end of his staff and used it to push off, springing backwards so quickly that he almost collided into Bredan. “What the…” Glori began, but before she could finish she was overwhelmed by the sound of the animated boulder striking the ground where Kosk has been standing. The ground shook from the impact, and dust flew up in a plume around its misshapen fist. It was joined by a second entity a moment later, which stepped out from the opposite side of the canyon to face them. [/QUOTE]
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