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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 2756873" data-attributes="member: 1210">The group of small heroes begins exploring the ruined keep in earnest, now that the main threat facing them has been dealt with (at least, as far as they can tell).  Airhead Ed, though weak, accompanies them; she is currently too weak to blather or spout drama.  She’ll be back to her normal self soon enough, thinks Martini bemusedly.  The upper level of the keep is burned out and unstable.  The group finds no valuables or items of note.  Fortunately, even though some of them might be stout for a halfling, none of them weigh enough to cause the rubble to collapse or shift disastrously.  A few stones shift a little bit here and there, but on the whole the party does not disturb anything noteworthy.They do, of course, find a hidden stair hewn from the living rock of the foundation.  It leads them downward, into a series of natural caverns.  Chief Jawbreaker leads the way, weapon at the ready.  Our heroes have been in the Underdark; they are all too aware of the potential hazards to be found below ground.When something begins scrabbling out of a nest of rubble, the party collectively tenses.  A long centipede, its body longer than a halfling’s and as thick as Naomi’s chubby arm, skitters free and begins skittering towards the group.Ari gestures and calls out to nature in a loud, firm voice.  There is a white-hot blast of flame and the bug is blasted to oblivion by the druid’s flame strike.“Impressive, buddy,” Erasmuz declares. The party starts walking along the left wall of the cave.  Soon an opening gapes; a side passage awaits.  Jawbreaker leads the way, and then something wet falls on him from above.“Rarggh!” he cries is dismay.  “Green slime!” screams Ed in dismay.Jawbreaker roars in pain as the slime starts rapidly growing along his body.  He begins to writhe and twist, but there is no enemy to strike, nowhere to run.  He takes a single, staggering step.  “Flame!” cries Ed.  “Try flame!”Jawbreaker gives out a wordless howl.  Nara struggles to find a torch, then finally pulls one out and lights it.  I wish I hadn’t used my flame strike, thinks Ari.Nara’s torch blazes to life, and Jawbreaker yet struggles.  It’s not too late! Nara thinks.  The cleric rushes to him and starts applying the torch.  Chief Jawbreaker yells again, gritting his teeth against the touch of the flames, but the slime blackens and gives off a foul smell where the torch touches it.  In another moment the slime has been charred to ash, and Jawbreaker moans, wounded but alive.  “Close,” the Chief gasps.“We should probably rest,” Nara opines.  “Then I can heal you, and maybe Ed will be in better shape.”  The others agree.Then, nearby, Erasmuz’ voice floats out of another side passage.  “Hey, buddies, I think you better come over here!”  He sounds excited.“What is it?” asks Ari, walking to the cave- and stopping with a start.  Then he walks into the cave, a look of wonder on his face.“What is it?” wonders Ari.Nara’s head pokes out of the cave entrance.  “Come check it out!  I think it’s a shrine to some kind of halfling goddess!  And- there’s food.”Next Time: The false promised land!</blockquote>

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