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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Capellan" data-source="post: 864964" data-attributes="member: 6294">Kull's Second Report - Part 2I led the way down into the cellar, following the trail of footprints to the far wall, where they appeared to walk straight into solid rock.  Knowing that there was doubtless a secret door present somewhere in the wall, I ordered Troilan forward, to search for it.For a wonder, the girl obeyed: I had expected her to be busy looting the dead.  When I turned, however, I discovered the reason she was not - she had been beaten to the task by Brodnak.  The barbarian was already pawing through the man's belongings.  He is a fine warrior, but he lacks discipline: it is foolishness to search the fallen when the field of battle is not yet secured.Suddenly Brodnak jerked back, bellowing "Worms!  Worms!"  It took a moment to see what caused his alarm, but then I spotted them: fat, white grubs that were burrowing into his hands.  I immediately moved to assist him, but even in that short time the creatures had disappeared beneath the skin.  Brodnak tried to cut the creatures out with his knife, but succeeded in doing little more than bloodying his blade with his own flesh.Spotting more of the grubs emerging from the corpse, the druid conjured fire, and charred them to a crisp, though one managed to wriggle far enough to reach Troilan, and burrowed into her leg.Seeing that fire killed the vermin, I thrust a burning torch against Troilan's wound.  She screamed and tried to jerk away, but I held her fast.  She swayed and almost blacked out - weakness - but the fire did its job, destroying the grub.Brodnak too, was then held down, and a torch applied to his flesh.  Only once I was sure that he had been cleansed of the vermin did I allow him to stand again.  The druid healed Troilan's injuries, while I invoked Hextor's Will to relieve the burns on the barbarian's flesh.Hale once more, Brodnak lost no time in turning the torch against the corpse, after first dowsing it in oil.  Only once the body was completely blackened, and the cellar was filled with the scent of burnt flesh, did he inspect the corpse once more.  The man's clothes and perishable items were destroyed by the flames, of course, but his armour and blade had survived unscathed.  Both looked of fine make, and the barbarian stowed them in his pack with a grunt of satisfaction.In the mean time, I had set Troilan back on her task of finding the secret door; a task in which she duly succeeded, discovering a latch hidden behind a loose stone.Once again, the others' lack of discipline would count against my efforts.  Although it was plain that anyone beyond the door must have become aware of our presence - accompanied as it was by the shouts of battle and the smell of burning flesh - the fool girl immediately activated the latch, and then she and Brodnak rushed toward the door, pushing it open without thought of what might lie beyond.The instant the door swung open, a blast of multi-coloured washed over them, and they both crumpled silently to the ground.  From where I stood, I could just see the spell's source: a robed wizard, flanked on either side by armed men.Over a dozen of them; and just three of us left standing.I drew my flail and leapt forward, Hextor's name on my lips.</blockquote>

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