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Message: <blockquote data-quote="NoOneofConsequence" data-source="post: 606479" data-attributes="member: 5400">Test of the Demonweb III“I hear something!” cried Tellara.“I hear it too!” cried Mark. “Coming from near the statue.”The whole company turned to face the statue in the middle of the chamber, with Mark and Tellara taking the flanks, aiming bow and crossbow in turn. As we scanned the area it was clear that we could hear something moving near the statue, but we could not see anything.“Perhaps it is invisible,” offered Pax, in a moment of insight.“We’ll see,” said Aria, and she invoked a spell to dismiss invisibility enchantments. As the power of Aria’s magic shifted the interplay of mystical forces about the statue a form came into view; a form so unrational that the mortal mind could almost not accept it. Standing upon the statue and observing us keenly was the face of a dark elf female, a not unattractive drow. Her arms and chest were clad in the admantite chainmail characteristic of her race and she wielded twin short swords of the same metal. This unremarkable figure was however fused at the base of her torso to the thorax and abdomen of a gigantic black widow spider, so that she went about on eight legs like a perverted centaur. Several of us swore at the sight of this creature, but it was Pax who gave the monster its name.“Drider!” she whispered hoarsely.When the drider realised that it was no longer invisible it crawled from behind the statue and leapt to the floor. Brandishing both swords it announced in a loud voice, “ We are all Lolth’s food. Surrender your spirits to the Queen of the Demonwebs, and your lives will be spared until she calls upon you for sacrifice, as she calls upon us all.”No words passed between the party members, but with our weapons already drawn, we threw down and charged to the fray. Bowstrings hummed as first Mark and then Tellara fired accurate shots, piercing the carapace of the drider’s lower body. The creature screamed and reared, but fell back to the ready in time to receive the charge from Pax and myself. Whipping her spiked chain in a wide circle, Pax didn’t even need to close with the beast in order to rake its bare skull. I was forced to contend with the two short swords however. I ducked a brutal slash from a short sword to get inside the drider’s reach and drive my own long blade upwards under the chainmail and into its heart. The thing’s black blood splashed to the floor as it fell, dying on the flagstones. Pax walked to the dying monster and, wrapping her chain about its throat, choked the life from its body. The battle was over as swiftly as it had commenced.Feeling especially pleased with our easy victory, I turned to my friends and said, “I guess someone should tell Lolth, dinner’s served!” ----Leaving the drider’s body for the moment we decided to head down the western passageway, since we could not find any more tracks of the Golden Band. The floor of this wide passage was covered in glittering stones that offered the promise of gems or jewels. Like a greedy and overeager greenhorn I strode quickly into the passage, examining stones at random, expecting junk rocks but hoping for wealth. Bent over as I was, not to mention separated some distance from my companions, I was easy prey for the monstrous spider which was lurking in the shadows on the ceiling above. It’s pony sized bulk dropped from the roof onto my back, its envenomed fangs scraping along my breast plate. I was thankful beyond measure that the thing’s bite never struck my skin, only my armour, as I sprang away and turned to face my ambusher. A hail of arrows and a swift pass with my sword put an end to another of Lolth’s pets/meals. After some close examination by Aria and Mark, we came to the conclusion that the whole area contained only a single gem of any worth. The rest of the apparent “horde” was merely paste. I felt especially foolish to have fallen for such an obvious trap.To the north of the gemstone passage were two small rooms, probably chapels, as each contained a small altar to the drow’s spider goddess, not to mention more carved admonitions that we were “all Lolth’s food.” Each of the two rooms gave palpable impressions of enchantment and we none of us felt comfortable standing there. However, it was in the western of the two rooms where we found more than just a chapel. Close inspection of the walls revealed a secret passage, leading down stairs and into darkness. The nearest steps showed signs of bodies having been dragged, making us think that perhaps we had found the trail of the Golden Band once more.As we descended the stairs, torches at the ready, we came to a long passageway of simple stone, cut from the earth. Less than twenty feet down the passageway was a curtain of darkness, impenetrable to our torches. Walking closer to the curtain made no distance and passing a hand into the darkness caused the extremity to disappear as though passing beneath water and then reappear upon withdrawal. There was no doubt in our minds that we faced more magic. Aria used the last of her day’s art to try to dispel the darkness. However her spell was either mistargeted or else lacked the necessary power, for the darkness remained. Faced with being forced to relinquish our quest, it was decided that we would press on in the hope that the darkness would not last for long and that we might be able to come out on the “other side” of it. Using one hand to trace the wall of the passage, and with my sword held ready, I went first into the realm of darkness. For many paces I groped my way along, doing my utmost to not stumble or fall. It didn’t count for much because there was a sudden groan and shaking and then the roof fell on me.</blockquote>

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