Richard Rawen
First Post
When in doubt, quote Dar:
"Oh Crap!"
"Oh Crap!"
The Doomed Bastards: Reckoning (story complete)
- Thread starter Lazybones
- Start date
Lazybones
Adventurer
Heh, that's not what he really says, of course.Richard Rawen said:
* * * * *
Chapter 230
THE GUARDIANS OF THE PRISON
With their companions apparently slain by the two demiliches, Allera, Honoratius, and Alderis faced the deadly undead entities alone.
Allera sobbed as she fell beside Dar, pulling him over onto his back. One of the skulls loomed over her, but she ignored it, feeling at his neck. She was surprised to feel a fluttering pulse there.
Alderis started casting, but Honoratius lifted a hand to forestall him. “Save your magic; they are but an illusion.”
The elf turned to her, confused. “What?”
“They are not real.”
Alderis blinked, and held his spell, although he flinched as one of the demiliches hurled some power at him, enfolding him in a spray of pulsating energy. But the elf’s will was considerable, and he was able to focus it in time to disbelieve the effect before it could fool his mind into accepting it as real.
Allera poured healing energy into Dar, seeking to wipe away whatever fell effect held his mind hostage. The fighter lived, and he bore no wounds that she could see or feel, but he remained limp, comatose. She looked up at the skull, which hovered there, as if mocking her. A light flickered in its left eye, the one that had “absorbed” Dar’s life force.
“It is not real,” she said to herself, echoing Honoratius’s words.
The skull became indistinct, its solidity replaced by a vague outline. She heard Honoratius speaking again, but his words came to her across a great void, and she could not make it out.
Everything became dark. She stood, and Dar vanished at her feet. She looked around, her heart pounding in her chest. Honoratius, Alderis, all the others, they were gone. She could no longer see the walls, or the floor. Her own hands were vague outlines in the murk.
She was not alone.
She clenched her jaw to keep from crying out. The figures that materialized around her were potent, ancient. Dark outlines like men, but not men, she knew instinctively.
The darkness withdrew slightly. She could see them now, if not clearly, at least enough to identify them. Wrapped in bandages, the way that the Drusians of old preserved their dead. Mummies, ten of them, clad in bronze breastplates of antique design, armed with huge two-handed swords with curving blades, that they held before them in salute. They did not move, but Allera could sense them watching her.
Then another appeared. She perceived it coming before she could see it; the darkness clung to it like a cloak. When the shadows finally parted to reveal it, she sucked in a surprised breath.
There was just enough lingering humanity to it for her to observe that the being before her had once been human. It was clad in a suit of half-plate armor crafted from what looked like dragon’s scales, frayed and faded with age, creaking softly with its movements. It bore a light mace in one skeletal hand. Its face... gods, its face... was a desiccated shroud, wrinkled and leathery flesh stretched tight across a narrow skull. Its eyes were dark orbs deep within its skull that fixed Allera with a stare that was both powerful and intelligent. When it spoke to her, its husk of a jaw only twitched slightly, but she could hear its words echo softly in her mind. To her surprise, its voice was feminine.
I am Amarru, it said.
“Where are my friends?” she asked, with as much force as she could muster.
You are different than they, Allera Hialar. A flame bright and intense burns within your breast. I felt its pulse, the moment you came into this place.
“What do you want with me?”
The creature’s gaze held her, she could not turn away. You have intruded into a sacred place, healer. My soldiers and I have stood guard over what lies within... for millennia uncounted, we have warded that which cannot be allowed to walk upon the world again, but also cannot be destroyed...
“The creatures... we battled two of them, in the world above.”
What you fought... were but the spawn of the Ravager. It was not to be... could not be... and yet it has transpired. A dark shadow has fallen over the prison... and within it changes, has changed, will change.
“What have you done to my friends,” she pressed.
The one you love has not been harmed. The others that fell to the spectral guardians are with them. The creature’s gaze shifted slightly, releasing her. She turned, and saw that the darkness had retreated further, and that Honoratius and Alderis were with her. She saw at once that both were held by some invisible force; they were frozen in shadow, and neither appeared to be aware of their surroundings.
“What have you done to them?”
Each of these bears a part of the key, she said. It was taken from here in three parts, sundered throughout the world, against the day that the forebearers knew might come. The day when the Ravager must be sought out in its prison... to be used again... or to be destroyed for once and all time.
“Is this Ravager... a creature of Orcus?”
The ancient lich turned slowly back toward her. You do not understand. Come then, and see...
Reality shifted around Allera, and the blackness rushed in, enfolding her. She felt a surge of panic, but within just a few heartbeats it drew back again, revealing a sight that caused her breath to freeze in her chest.
She was in a chamber... vast did not begin to describe it, a space so huge that the Great Cathedral of the Father in Camar could have fit comfortably within its expanse. The place was a vast hemisphere, the curve of the dome above her a perfect sweep of dark stone. The veins of crystal they’d seen in the stone above were prominent here, adding swirls of color that she could clearly distinguish, even though there was no obvious source of light here. It was as if she’d learned an entirely new way to perceive her surroundings, not linked to any one of her mundane senses.
The interior of the dome was dominated by a great pyramid of gray stone. No... no, not stone at all, she saw, as she shifted her perceptions to it. The pyramid was a field of energy, rippling faintly with eldritch power. Hints of color swirled within it as well, red and blue and yellow twisting at the edges of her awareness.
It took her a few minutes to tear her attention away from the incredible barrier. Then she saw that there was a ring of mithral set in the floor, encompassing the entire circle of the chamber, surrounding the pyramid. And above, ordinary in contrast, she could make out a catwalk that ran around the perimeter of the room, dark metal secured somehow to the walls above her head.
Following the line of the catwalk, she saw a breach in the cavern wall, adjacent to the metal walkway. From it came a beam of red light, constant, coherent. It emerged from the wall and penetrated into the barrier, sending ripples of color out through it.
She could not see them from here, but she knew that there were two other such beams, blue and yellow, elsewhere in the chamber.
It is here, Amurru said, drawing her attention to the side.
Silent with awe, Allera followed her. Her footsteps made no sound, and some aware part of her mind whispered that she was not really here, that this could not be real.
What was more frightening, however, was that this was real. For she was becoming aware of something else, something incredible and unbelievable that twisted and surged in a deep but uncertain sleep behind that barrier...
Here.
Allera stopped and looked. She felt it at once, the black slick that penetrated through the stone wall, like a skein of bubbling tar, only part of the stone. It had seeped across the ground, passing a scant foot from where she now stood, across the room...
To the barrier.
She could feel the corruption in that black mark. She knew it all too well; it was an embodiment of the evil that she had felt in the temples of Orcus, deep within the bowels of Rappan Athuk. She had felt it in Gudmund, in the dark demon Maphistal, in the touch of the incorporeal undead that had eagerly sought her soul.
“What... what is in there?”
The Ravager. It sleeps.
“Not for long,” Allera said, before she could think. She could not look away from the gray pyramid, especially at the point where the black slick touched it. She imagined that she could see the field there weakening, straining...
Or had she imagined it?
No, the lich said, turning to fix her with a cold stare. Its slumber had grown light indeed.
Something in the lich’s voice, the sinuous whisper in her head, made her turn back toward it. Amarru was there, right in front of her, looming over her, although the two were of similar stature. The lich extended a bony hand, and seized Allera’s forehead.
Icy cold needles of pain stabbed into her skull, and Allera screamed, as the black rushed in at her once more.
Lazybones
Adventurer
Chapter 231
TRAPPED
Dar felt as though he’d been worked over by one of the back-alley gangs that frequented the dark corners of the Pike in Camar. He groaned, and with an effort managed to roll over.
Where the hell was he?
He blinked and looked around. He was in a cavern, lit only by the tenuous flickers of one of their everburning torches. There was a stale, sterile odor in the air, and a persistent bubbling noise, like a cauldron left too long over the flame.
He felt a momentary pang of panic, then his hand closed on the hilt of Valor, in its scabbard once more. He pulled himself up to a seated position, and saw that he wasn’t alone. The others were there, lying unconscious around him... wait. Honoratius was missing, and Alderis.
And Allera.
Something cold and hard clamped down inside his chest, and he dragged himself to his feet. They were on the edge of a small island in the middle of the cavern. They were surrounded by a pool of boiling water, the bubbles rising through it the source of the sound he’d detected earlier. He frowned... something wasn’t quite right about that, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
He moved over to Talen. “Commander!” he hissed. There was no response. “Damn it, get up, you bastard!” he said, poking the prone knight hard with his boot.
Talen groaned; at least he wasn’t dead.
Dar took another look around. There were two other figures lying on the far side of the island. At first he thought it might be the mages, but then he saw that they were quite obviously dead. One was a skeleton, still clad in the remains of armor, while the other... well, it wasn’t alive, that much was obvious.
“What... what happened?” It was Shay, just coming to, clutching her head. “Talen?”
“He’s alive,” Dar said. “See if you can bring the cleric around.” The fighter’s gaze remained on the second dead guy. Dar recognized its tattered garb; he’d certainly seen enough priests of Orcus to know the livery. Again, there was something not quite right there, and his fingers itched on the hilt of his sword.
As a result he wasn’t quite surprised when the creature stirred, and started getting to its feet. The smell came on in a wave; Dar was surprised that he hadn’t detected it before.
“We got trouble,” he told Shay, putting himself between the creature and the others. Talen groaned again, but Nelan and the two elves had not even stirred as of yet.
The monster came to its feet, and Dar could clearly identify it now, a ghoul, or perhaps a ghast by the stench that rose from its body like a cloud. It was slow at first, like a man rising from a deep sleep; Dar wondered how long it had been here. But it recovered quickly in the presence of living flesh, and after a few tenuous steps it lowered its head and charged, extending claws caked in old dirt.
Dar held his ground, and at the last instant swept Valor around in a glittering arc. The axiomatic blade bit deep, and the ghast was flung to the ground. At least most of it; its left arm landed on the edge of the island, and the upper part of its head rolled into the bubbling water, bounced for a moment on the flow, and then dropped out of sight.
Dar went over to check on the other body. No, the skeleton was actually dead. Its clothes had been reduced to scraps, but the other gear was actually in pretty decent shape. There was a longspear, its head dipped slightly into the pool, and a sword in a leather scabbard that had gone to pieces. The skeleton’s breastplate was in better shape than it had first appeared, but looked to be fashioned of large scales of faded red hide, rather than metal. When Dar prodded it, he found a steel buckler under the man’s body, its straps rotted away but otherwise intact. There was also the remains of a pack, now just a rotted heap.
“Where... where are we?” Talen asked. Shay was helping him to his feet, but the knight was still pretty unsteady.
“We’re in a cell,” Dar growled, looking around the cavern. And indeed, there were no exits as far as they could see. The cavern wasn’t very big, and even their weak lights fully illuminated its extent.
“Where’s Honoratius?” Talen asked, as he shrugged off Shay’s assistance. He didn’t see the scout’s hurt expression, but Dar did, before she turned to help the others. Nelan and the elves were starting to move, but it was clear that the aftereffects of their run-in with the evil skulls were lingering.
“Gone. Along with Allera, and the mad elf,” Dar said.
Talen looked down at the dismembered ghast. “What was that?”
“Undead. Lucky for us it was napping when we arrived.”
“Yeah, lucky,” Talen said, looking around. The knight was still getting his bearings, and he removed his helm, running a grimy hand through his hair.
“Headache?”
“Yeah,” Talen said, but he didn’t elaborate as he replaced the heavy helmet and secured the strap.
“Looks like we might miss our deadline,” Dar said.
“At the moment, we need to focus on getting out of here, and finding the others,” Talen said. “Shay, how are the others?”
“They’ll live,” the scout replied. Nelan was on his feet, but Mehlaraine and Selanthas were still having difficulty. Shay offered a hand to the elven duelist; after a moment’s hesitation, Mehlaraine took it. But as she got to her feet, she hissed a warning, and pushed away from Shay, drawing her rapier from its scabbard in a still-unsteady motion.
The companions turned as one, weapons at the ready, to see a ghost floating above the skeletal remains of the dead warrior.
TRAPPED
Dar felt as though he’d been worked over by one of the back-alley gangs that frequented the dark corners of the Pike in Camar. He groaned, and with an effort managed to roll over.
Where the hell was he?
He blinked and looked around. He was in a cavern, lit only by the tenuous flickers of one of their everburning torches. There was a stale, sterile odor in the air, and a persistent bubbling noise, like a cauldron left too long over the flame.
He felt a momentary pang of panic, then his hand closed on the hilt of Valor, in its scabbard once more. He pulled himself up to a seated position, and saw that he wasn’t alone. The others were there, lying unconscious around him... wait. Honoratius was missing, and Alderis.
And Allera.
Something cold and hard clamped down inside his chest, and he dragged himself to his feet. They were on the edge of a small island in the middle of the cavern. They were surrounded by a pool of boiling water, the bubbles rising through it the source of the sound he’d detected earlier. He frowned... something wasn’t quite right about that, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
He moved over to Talen. “Commander!” he hissed. There was no response. “Damn it, get up, you bastard!” he said, poking the prone knight hard with his boot.
Talen groaned; at least he wasn’t dead.
Dar took another look around. There were two other figures lying on the far side of the island. At first he thought it might be the mages, but then he saw that they were quite obviously dead. One was a skeleton, still clad in the remains of armor, while the other... well, it wasn’t alive, that much was obvious.
“What... what happened?” It was Shay, just coming to, clutching her head. “Talen?”
“He’s alive,” Dar said. “See if you can bring the cleric around.” The fighter’s gaze remained on the second dead guy. Dar recognized its tattered garb; he’d certainly seen enough priests of Orcus to know the livery. Again, there was something not quite right there, and his fingers itched on the hilt of his sword.
As a result he wasn’t quite surprised when the creature stirred, and started getting to its feet. The smell came on in a wave; Dar was surprised that he hadn’t detected it before.
“We got trouble,” he told Shay, putting himself between the creature and the others. Talen groaned again, but Nelan and the two elves had not even stirred as of yet.
The monster came to its feet, and Dar could clearly identify it now, a ghoul, or perhaps a ghast by the stench that rose from its body like a cloud. It was slow at first, like a man rising from a deep sleep; Dar wondered how long it had been here. But it recovered quickly in the presence of living flesh, and after a few tenuous steps it lowered its head and charged, extending claws caked in old dirt.
Dar held his ground, and at the last instant swept Valor around in a glittering arc. The axiomatic blade bit deep, and the ghast was flung to the ground. At least most of it; its left arm landed on the edge of the island, and the upper part of its head rolled into the bubbling water, bounced for a moment on the flow, and then dropped out of sight.
Dar went over to check on the other body. No, the skeleton was actually dead. Its clothes had been reduced to scraps, but the other gear was actually in pretty decent shape. There was a longspear, its head dipped slightly into the pool, and a sword in a leather scabbard that had gone to pieces. The skeleton’s breastplate was in better shape than it had first appeared, but looked to be fashioned of large scales of faded red hide, rather than metal. When Dar prodded it, he found a steel buckler under the man’s body, its straps rotted away but otherwise intact. There was also the remains of a pack, now just a rotted heap.
“Where... where are we?” Talen asked. Shay was helping him to his feet, but the knight was still pretty unsteady.
“We’re in a cell,” Dar growled, looking around the cavern. And indeed, there were no exits as far as they could see. The cavern wasn’t very big, and even their weak lights fully illuminated its extent.
“Where’s Honoratius?” Talen asked, as he shrugged off Shay’s assistance. He didn’t see the scout’s hurt expression, but Dar did, before she turned to help the others. Nelan and the elves were starting to move, but it was clear that the aftereffects of their run-in with the evil skulls were lingering.
“Gone. Along with Allera, and the mad elf,” Dar said.
Talen looked down at the dismembered ghast. “What was that?”
“Undead. Lucky for us it was napping when we arrived.”
“Yeah, lucky,” Talen said, looking around. The knight was still getting his bearings, and he removed his helm, running a grimy hand through his hair.
“Headache?”
“Yeah,” Talen said, but he didn’t elaborate as he replaced the heavy helmet and secured the strap.
“Looks like we might miss our deadline,” Dar said.
“At the moment, we need to focus on getting out of here, and finding the others,” Talen said. “Shay, how are the others?”
“They’ll live,” the scout replied. Nelan was on his feet, but Mehlaraine and Selanthas were still having difficulty. Shay offered a hand to the elven duelist; after a moment’s hesitation, Mehlaraine took it. But as she got to her feet, she hissed a warning, and pushed away from Shay, drawing her rapier from its scabbard in a still-unsteady motion.
The companions turned as one, weapons at the ready, to see a ghost floating above the skeletal remains of the dead warrior.
Lazybones
Adventurer
Chapter 232
A HERO’S GRAVE
The creature hovered a foot above the ground, vague and insubstantial. It was clearly recognizable as the fallen warrior, however, armed and armored in the gear that was now strewn about his remains.
“Hold your attacks!” Talen urged, even as Dar started forward to engage. “It could have struck already...”
“A friendly ghost, that would be a new one,” Dar muttered, but he held his ground, Valor at the ready. Talen glanced back and verified that the others were prepared, especially Nelan. The cleric met his gaze and nodded.
The ghost had made no notice of their presence, although the empty hollows of its eyes seemed to be focused in their general direction. Talen stepped forward to address it. “Who are you?”
The ghost shifted, slightly, and a look of vague comprehension crossed its face. “Thou... art real?” It spoke in an archaic form of the Camarian language, but one which they could clearly understand.
“Real enough to blast you into oblivion, spectre,” Dar said. “Where’s Allera? What have you done with the others? What is this place?”
The ghost wavered, and Talen shot Dar a cautionary look. “Spirit... We are from Camar, come to do battle with a great evil. Who were you, in life?”
The ghost seemed to become slightly more distinct as it focused on the knight’s words. “Camar... Camar... be that one of the kingdoms beyond the sea?”
“Great, it’s crazy to boot,” Dar muttered.
“We do not know how long it has been here,” Nelan said, coming forward to join them. “This place, it may have been here for thousands of years.”
“Is there a way out of this vault?” Talen asked.
A look of grief crossed the spirit’s face. “No... no escape... I... I starved to death, here.”
“Ah, damn,” Dar said.
“Why did you come here?” Talen asked.
“I... the memories, so... distant... I came... with my companions... to seek the origins of a terrible beast... it decimated the lands, laid waste to Ravalsber...”
“Let me guess. Big red bastard with black eyes?” Dar said.
Something flashed in the spirit’s eyes. “Yes! Yes! We slew the monstrosity, tracked it here, to this place... Celedros deduced a way to open the vault, and we progressed inside, in the traces of the creature...”
“Apparently you had about as much luck as we did,” Dar said.
“Traps... guardians... misdirections... we overcame them all, but the final guardians... the undead servitors of this place, they defeated us, decimated mine brethren... I alone survived... I sought to flee, but she caught me, banished me to this place... where I drew my last breath...”
“Who caught you?” Talen asked.
“Amurru,” the ghost replied. “Ancient... so powerful... devoid of mercy...”
“My father...” Mehlaraine said, the words heavy with dread. Selathas placed a hand on her shoulder, his own face grim.
“We’ll find a way out of here,” Shay said. “There’s air to breathe; there must be a vent or some other access.” She bent down at the edge of the pool that surrounded the island. “This water, it’s not hot. The bubbles must be trapped air coming up from below.”
“There would also have to be an egress point, for the air to escape,” Mehlaraine noted. “Else the pressure would build up, and the bubbles would have stopped.”
“Who are you?” Talen asked the spirit again.
The spirit paused a moment, as if searching its memory for a nugget of long-lost data. “In life, I was Mailliw Catspar,” he said at last. “I was a soldier of the Order of the Dragon, adventurer, traveler of the seven-fold paths. Many were the foes I battled and defeated in the name of the Light, and the creatures of the under-realms had reason to fear my spear.”
“You served the Shining Father?” Nelan asked. “The god, Soleus?”
“Yes...” The ghost shifted its gaze from Talen, registering the cleric for the first time. “Yes, holy one... but to my people he was Arad-Uhn, Bringer of the Dawn.” The ghost drifted closer to them, oblivious to the not-so-subtle shift in Dar and Talen as they brought their weapons up in readiness. But its entire attention was focused upon Nelan now. “Please... I beg of you, grant me release from this place. Take my bones from this prison, see that I am buried with the rites of passage...”
“Yeah, small problem there,” Dar said.
“If we escape, I give you my word that it shall be done,” Nelan said.
The ghost nodded, and disappeared.
“Wait, we have more questions!” Talen asked.
“Your questions will be answered,” came a familiar voice from behind them.
They turned, and saw Allera standing there, flanked by Honoratius and Alderis. The healer stood there with an oddly distant expression.
“Allera!” Dar said. He hurried toward her, but something in her stare stopped him before he could take her in his arms. His fist tightened around the hilt of his sword, and growled deep in his throat. Behind her, Alderis moved over to join his daughter and her consort, but Honoratius did not move at all, watching them with intent eyes that missed nothing.
For a moment, Dar and Allera shared a deep stare.
“What’s wrong?” Shay asked. She started to move around him, but Dar lowered Valor, blocking her.
“Release her,” he said.
“What?” Shay asked, but Dar wasn’t looking at her. His stare had not shifted from Allera.
“Dar?” Talen asked.
“I mean no harm to your beloved,” Allera said, in that same voice that was both hers, and not at the same time.
“Amurru, I presume,” Nelan said.
A HERO’S GRAVE
The creature hovered a foot above the ground, vague and insubstantial. It was clearly recognizable as the fallen warrior, however, armed and armored in the gear that was now strewn about his remains.
“Hold your attacks!” Talen urged, even as Dar started forward to engage. “It could have struck already...”
“A friendly ghost, that would be a new one,” Dar muttered, but he held his ground, Valor at the ready. Talen glanced back and verified that the others were prepared, especially Nelan. The cleric met his gaze and nodded.
The ghost had made no notice of their presence, although the empty hollows of its eyes seemed to be focused in their general direction. Talen stepped forward to address it. “Who are you?”
The ghost shifted, slightly, and a look of vague comprehension crossed its face. “Thou... art real?” It spoke in an archaic form of the Camarian language, but one which they could clearly understand.
“Real enough to blast you into oblivion, spectre,” Dar said. “Where’s Allera? What have you done with the others? What is this place?”
The ghost wavered, and Talen shot Dar a cautionary look. “Spirit... We are from Camar, come to do battle with a great evil. Who were you, in life?”
The ghost seemed to become slightly more distinct as it focused on the knight’s words. “Camar... Camar... be that one of the kingdoms beyond the sea?”
“Great, it’s crazy to boot,” Dar muttered.
“We do not know how long it has been here,” Nelan said, coming forward to join them. “This place, it may have been here for thousands of years.”
“Is there a way out of this vault?” Talen asked.
A look of grief crossed the spirit’s face. “No... no escape... I... I starved to death, here.”
“Ah, damn,” Dar said.
“Why did you come here?” Talen asked.
“I... the memories, so... distant... I came... with my companions... to seek the origins of a terrible beast... it decimated the lands, laid waste to Ravalsber...”
“Let me guess. Big red bastard with black eyes?” Dar said.
Something flashed in the spirit’s eyes. “Yes! Yes! We slew the monstrosity, tracked it here, to this place... Celedros deduced a way to open the vault, and we progressed inside, in the traces of the creature...”
“Apparently you had about as much luck as we did,” Dar said.
“Traps... guardians... misdirections... we overcame them all, but the final guardians... the undead servitors of this place, they defeated us, decimated mine brethren... I alone survived... I sought to flee, but she caught me, banished me to this place... where I drew my last breath...”
“Who caught you?” Talen asked.
“Amurru,” the ghost replied. “Ancient... so powerful... devoid of mercy...”
“My father...” Mehlaraine said, the words heavy with dread. Selathas placed a hand on her shoulder, his own face grim.
“We’ll find a way out of here,” Shay said. “There’s air to breathe; there must be a vent or some other access.” She bent down at the edge of the pool that surrounded the island. “This water, it’s not hot. The bubbles must be trapped air coming up from below.”
“There would also have to be an egress point, for the air to escape,” Mehlaraine noted. “Else the pressure would build up, and the bubbles would have stopped.”
“Who are you?” Talen asked the spirit again.
The spirit paused a moment, as if searching its memory for a nugget of long-lost data. “In life, I was Mailliw Catspar,” he said at last. “I was a soldier of the Order of the Dragon, adventurer, traveler of the seven-fold paths. Many were the foes I battled and defeated in the name of the Light, and the creatures of the under-realms had reason to fear my spear.”
“You served the Shining Father?” Nelan asked. “The god, Soleus?”
“Yes...” The ghost shifted its gaze from Talen, registering the cleric for the first time. “Yes, holy one... but to my people he was Arad-Uhn, Bringer of the Dawn.” The ghost drifted closer to them, oblivious to the not-so-subtle shift in Dar and Talen as they brought their weapons up in readiness. But its entire attention was focused upon Nelan now. “Please... I beg of you, grant me release from this place. Take my bones from this prison, see that I am buried with the rites of passage...”
“Yeah, small problem there,” Dar said.
“If we escape, I give you my word that it shall be done,” Nelan said.
The ghost nodded, and disappeared.
“Wait, we have more questions!” Talen asked.
“Your questions will be answered,” came a familiar voice from behind them.
They turned, and saw Allera standing there, flanked by Honoratius and Alderis. The healer stood there with an oddly distant expression.
“Allera!” Dar said. He hurried toward her, but something in her stare stopped him before he could take her in his arms. His fist tightened around the hilt of his sword, and growled deep in his throat. Behind her, Alderis moved over to join his daughter and her consort, but Honoratius did not move at all, watching them with intent eyes that missed nothing.
For a moment, Dar and Allera shared a deep stare.
“What’s wrong?” Shay asked. She started to move around him, but Dar lowered Valor, blocking her.
“Release her,” he said.
“What?” Shay asked, but Dar wasn’t looking at her. His stare had not shifted from Allera.
“Dar?” Talen asked.
“I mean no harm to your beloved,” Allera said, in that same voice that was both hers, and not at the same time.
“Amurru, I presume,” Nelan said.
Richard Rawen
First Post
Excellent update LB, now . . . how much time has transpired, or will the spirits help the heroes out of the Ravagers cell... ?
Lazybones
Adventurer
That question is addressed in today's (and tomorrow's) update.Richard Rawen said:
* * * * *
Chapter 233
AMURRU
“RELEASE HER!” Dar shouted, his voice echoing off the confined walls of the cavern. He shifted forward, menacingly, his sword coming up.
“You would strike her down to save her?” Amurru said to him, the faintest hint of amusement in her voice. Allera’s voice; but now that it had been pointed out to them all of them could detect the shift in mannerism, the way that the ancient lich carried herself in the familiar body of their companion. Allera had always had a considerable force of presence inherent in her will and dedication to her calling, but that paled in comparison to that of the undead guardian.
“What do you want with us?” Talen asked, coming forward. The others remained behind, but ready for any action. Only Honoratius had not moved; the archmage seemed content to observe the developing exchange, her own thoughts hidden behind her usual inscrutable expression.
“It was you who intruded into this place,” Amurru said. “We who were set as guardians were entrusted with ensuring that this complex remain hidden from the eyes of the world, and that what is ensconced herein remain forever secure. Any who threaten that mandate must be destroyed, for the good of the world.”
“We came here because of terrible creatures that have been unleashed upon our people, from this place.” Talen said. “The seals and vaults were broached from within; we did not break them.”
“I know. That is why you yet live.”
“If you have hurt her in any way,” Dar growled, “I swear to you...”
“Allera Hialar will be returned to you unharmed. You have her to thank for your lives. I have shown her what is at stake, and she has agreed to see that what we protect remains secure.”
“We have our own quest,” Talen said.
“Yes. And they are linked, Talen Karedes. For it is the taint of your foe that is responsible for the escape of the spawn of the Ravager, and the destruction thus caused to your civilization.”
The companions shared a look. “Spawn?” Shay asked.
“I am limited in the aid that I can grant to your enterprise,” Amurru said. “I have given what I can to Allera. You may take the weapons left by the warrior here; they are of considerable power. There is one other gift that I can provide... a power placed within my keeping, when my service began.”
She stepped forward, and lifted one hand, opening it so the palm faced upward. Within her hand there blazed a brilliant blue light, a self-contained orb of shining energy. It cast the healer’s features into stark relief, and even those of them who had no experience with spellcasting could sense the power radiating from it.
Dar frowned, but she went past him, and stopped before Talen. “Extend your blade, sworn soldier of the Light.”
Talen hesitated. “Do not refuse this offering, knight,” Honoratius said, the first words he’d contributed since their reappearance. Talen looked at him, and then thrust out Beatus Incendia, their light glimmering off the perfect steel length of the holy blade.
Amurru seized the blade with her left hand, tightly enough to break the flesh of Allera’s fingers. Talen started to jerk the sword back, but she held it with surprising strength, keeping it fixed between them. The lich extended her other hand, and pressed the globe of energy into the sword.
There was a flare of energy and light, potent enough so that those nearest had to shield their eyes. When they could see clearly again, they saw the blue light of the orb rushing up the length of the sword, flaring from the edges of the blade. The sword’s white flames had appeared unbidden, and as they watched the blue light infused itself into the flames, forming an azure corona within the holy fire. The blue glow reached the hilt and seeped into Talen’s hand. The knight flinched, but did not release the weapon. The azure glow persisted a few seconds longer, and then faded... leaving just the faint blue tinge in the sword’s fire.
“What... what did you do to me?” he asked.
“Your weapon has been augmented,” Amurru said, releasing the weapon and stepping back. She looked weary, but ignored the blood that dripped from her left hand. Her right hand was scorched black across the palm, where it had struck the sword.
Talen opened his mouth to speak further, but the lich had already turned to face Honoratius and Alderis. “I should take the keys from you, but the elders decreed that they should remain in the world of man, against a day where they might need to recover what was left here. Should you find the third, you could return to this place... but mark my words; should you seek to enter the inner sanctums of this shrine, it would fall upon me to destroy you.”
Honoratius nodded. Mehlaraine said, “I have no desire to return to this place.”
“You have an incredible amount of power and knowledge,” Nelan said. “Can you give us more information... about our enemy? You said that the two quests were connected..”
“I am sorry, priest of the Father,” the lich replied. “Once my knowledge passed far and wide across the planes, but when I accepted my duty here, my ability to see beyond the walls of this place was circumscribed. I cannot aid you further.”
“Fine, then take us out of here, and get out of Allera,” Dar said. He tromped across the island, and grabbed the remains of Mailliw Catspar by the front of his armor. Bones scattered, and Selanthas helped him, collecting the scattered pieces. Dar reached down and grabbed the ancient warrior’s longspear, while Mehlaraine recovered his sword and shield.
Amurru waited until they were ready. “How will we know that we were successful in helping you?” Talen asked.
“Your world will survive,” the lich said. Then she spoke a word of power, and everything around them became indistinct, and reality shifted as they were transported away from the confines of the chamber.
* * * * *
Author’s note: the gifts provided by Amurru are as follows: Allera received a +1 inherent bonus to her Wisdom score, and the energy field that augmented Beatus Incendia is from area 3B-7, and has boosted the weapon to a +5 enhancement bonus.
Nightbreeze
First Post
Pah...Talen always gets the shiny gifts....as he is not able to gain them on his own 
Lazybones
Adventurer
I have a day off work today, and since 234 isn't much of a cliffhanger (let alone for Friday), I'm going to double-post today.
Check back this afternoon for chapter 235.
* * * * *
Chapter 234
THE LAST CAMP
In the blink of an eye, they found themselves standing once more at the lip of the vale that held the entrance to Rappan Athuk. They were not far from where they had battled the spawn of the Ravager, but the creature was gone, as though the earth had swallowed it up into its embrace. It was late in the day, and the light coming through the dense gray clouds above was fitful, weak.
Allera sighed and collapsed; Shay only just caught her before she hit the ground. “Is she all right?” Talen asked; behind him Dar stood looking like a thunderhead. Nelan crouched beside her, and examined her wrists and eyes, carefully pulling back the lids to examine the pupils beneath.
“I think she’s just dazed,” the cleric said. “She needs to rest.”
Talen looked around. “We should retreat into the hills a ways. Honoratius, can you summon another secure shelter?”
The archmage nodded. She looked as tired as any of them; clearly the strain of maintaining the long-distance connection was wearying both caster and host. “Letellia carries one more copy of the spell upon a scroll; I will leave it to her to conjure the dwelling. My time is nearly depleted; if you have no further immediate need of my aid, I will take my leave of you.”
“All right. Thank you, archmage. We will return in the morning.”
“I will be prepared.” He sat down, and vacated Letellia’s body. The process took about a minute, and when it was done the sorceress blinked, and slowly got her bearings.
“Do you actually perceive what happens when he’s... in your body?” Shay asked her.
“No. The spell allows Honoratius’s mind to overlay my own awareness, but during that time I am not conscious of my surroundings. I only dimly sense the passage of time; it’s almost like falling asleep.” She stood, and grimaced, rubbing her back. “I assume that there was trouble?”
“I’ll tell you about it later,” Shay said. “Right now, we need to find a good place for your secure shelter.” The sorceress nodded, and they headed out toward the hills.
“I will carry her,” Dar said to Nelan, handing Catspar’s spear and armor to Talen, and taking up Allera in his arms. The healer groaned and shifted, but did not wake. The nine companions retreated from the edge of the dell, retracing their steps back into the hills to the north.
An hour’s passage found them ensconced within Letellia’s secure shelter, resting in a sheltered gap between two adjoining hills. Shay and Selanthas went out to gather fuel for the hearth, after being enjoined to remain close enough to call out if they encountered any trouble. Dar laid Allera gently in one of the beds, and Letellia likewise retired early, drifting off to sleep almost at once. Mehlaraine attended upon her father, assisting him as he removed his boots and pack and slumped into one of the far bunks. On the far side of the cottage, seated on stools around the long table near the hearth, Talen and Nelan watched them. After covering Allera in a blanket, Dar joined them.
“What kind of crazy bastard brings his daughter to a place like this?” the fighter muttered.
“The aelfinn address familial relationships differently than we humans,” Nelan said. “They place a great deal of emphasis on personal autonomy and responsibility for one’s own choices and actions. I do not doubt that Lord Alderis would prefer not to see his daughter here, but he would not consider it his place to tell her not to come.”
“They’re nuts, whole damned race,” Dar muttered. He grabbed a hunk of trailbread from the plate in front of Talen, and bit into it. “Might as well eat the rocks outside,” he said, dropping the bread back onto the plate.
“Shay will make us something hot when she returns,” Talen said absently. He looked at Nelan. “What is your story, priest? From what the others said back in Camar, I gathered that you were somebody pretty important. Why did you end up way out on the frontier?”
Nelan sighed. “I do not like to speak of it.”
“C’mon, we’re your brothers, now,” Dar said. “I don’t like clerics keeping secrets. Spill it.” He reached for the bread again, and scowled at it before taking another bite.
“Very well. I was exiled... for writing a pamphlet.”
“What?” Talen asked.
“Yeah, what’d you do, let slip the name of the doxy that the Patriarch was screwing?” Dar asked through another mouthful of bread.
“Nothing quite so dramatic. What I wrote was a brief critique on the political leanings of the church. I argued that secular concerns were undermining the spiritual mission of the order.”
Dar laughed. “Yeah, I bet they loved that.”
“I was young, and naïve. In the aftermath, I was given my choice of postings, as long as they were far away from Camar.”
“Well, you got the last laugh,” Dar said. “That prick Gaius is gone, you’re back in the inner circle, and I don’t know the new guy, but he seems holy enough.”
“Bishop... ah, Patriarch... Jaduran is a good man,” Nelan said.
“Old,” Talen commented. He is what, seventy-odd?”
“Closer to eighty,” Nelan admitted.
“Well, look at it this way,” Dar said. “You get to go to Rappan Athuk.” He chuckled to himself, and stood. “I’ll go see if Shay needs help with the wood.”
They ate their meal quietly. Allera, Letellia, and Alderis did not stir, and the others let them sleep. Afterwards Selanthas took out a small silver flute, and played softly. The device seemed too compact for the complex melody that the elf coaxed out of it, and as the gentle notes drifted through the cabin, they each felt themselves relaxing, the hard fights of the day fading in their memories. Dar and Mehlaraine settled down to the first watch, while the others retired to their beds.
The night passed without incident. As the spellcasters refreshed their spells in the morning, Shay and Selanthas conducted a quick reconnoiter of the area. They reported that nothing stirred in the vicinity of Rappan Athuk, although the dense gray clouds that hung over that fell place had not broken, drifting low over the site like a cloak. Mehlaraine made everyone green tea, which nearly sparked a revolt by Dar, but the fighter subsided when Shay tossed a bag of ground coffee at him with concise instructions about the specifc locale where he could insert it. This might have developed further but for the intervention of Allera. The healer had woken wan but fully aware, although she was a bit murky on the details of what had transpired after their capture by Amurru. They had slept a bit late, and Letellia had to usher them out of the cottage before it expired, but Allera invoked her power to conjure a remarkable heroes’ feast, complete with table, chairs, and silverware, right there in the gap between the two hills. For a moment the companions just stared at the bounty.
“Now, this is more like it!” Dar finally exclaimed, hastening forward to the table. He didn’t even sit down as he started shoving food into his mouth. He turned back to Allera and grinned. “Mruf mus mufuct, ergel,” he said through a mouthful of food.
“The feast will provide protection against toxins and fear,” Allera said, smiling as she came forward and sat down next to Dar. The fighter kicked out a chair and sank into it, without slackening the pace with which he ate. He grabbed a pitcher of amber liquid and downed half of it in several deep swallows, ignoring the mug set beside his place. “Damn... this stuff is good!”
“We’d better join in before it is all gone,” Talen said. The companions all partook in the feast, which took the better part of an hour to consume. The good night’s sleep and the fine meal buoyed their spirits, and by the end there was even some laughter around the table. However, the upbeat mood did not long survive the disappearance of the table and the remains of the meal. The reality of what they would confront again today weighed heavily on each of them.
“I will try to prepare one of those each day for us, if we get the opportunity to use it,” Allera said.
“Are you all right?” Talen said. “After... yesterday.”
“I am well. She did not mistreat me, Talen; she believes deeply in what she does, enough to dedicate millennia of servitude to protecting what she guards.”
“I just cannot easily accept the idea of an undead creature as an ally,” Talen said.
“Well, better that then the opposite,” Shay said. “She could have easily left us there to expire, like Catspar.”
They delayed for another hour to attend to their promise to the dead warrior. Talen had initially suggested that they wait to return to Camar, to bury the ancient fighter with full estate and ritual, but Nelan gloomly noted that they might not return from Rappan Athuk to keep their promise. So they built a cairn here in the dell, and laid the bones of Mailliw Catspar to rest right there. Nelan spoke the Ritual of Passing, and invoked the power of the Father to guide the spirit of the fallen man to his rest. There was a faint flicker above the grave, faint enough so that each of them could not be sure that they had seen it. Then it faded, leaving only the cold stillness of the winter morning.
“All right, let’s get going,” Talen said.
They had divided Catspar’s possessions among the group. Dar had taken the man’s breastplate, crafted from dragon scales, remarkably intact. The suit fit him surprisingly well, in contrast to the heavy plate armor he’d taken from the high priest in Rappan Athuk. That suit they wrapped in oilcloth and buried near the cairn, against possible future need.
Shay took the warrior’s longspear, while Selanthas took his sword. The small shield they restored with some spare leather throngs that Shay carried in her bag of holding, and gave it to Nelan, for now. The cleric looked somewhat awkward carrying the shield, but Letellia remarked that the device carried a potent dweomer, and they could not afford to reject anything that might enhance their defenses.
Thus fortified, they returned to Rappan Athuk.
Check back this afternoon for chapter 235.
* * * * *
Chapter 234
THE LAST CAMP
In the blink of an eye, they found themselves standing once more at the lip of the vale that held the entrance to Rappan Athuk. They were not far from where they had battled the spawn of the Ravager, but the creature was gone, as though the earth had swallowed it up into its embrace. It was late in the day, and the light coming through the dense gray clouds above was fitful, weak.
Allera sighed and collapsed; Shay only just caught her before she hit the ground. “Is she all right?” Talen asked; behind him Dar stood looking like a thunderhead. Nelan crouched beside her, and examined her wrists and eyes, carefully pulling back the lids to examine the pupils beneath.
“I think she’s just dazed,” the cleric said. “She needs to rest.”
Talen looked around. “We should retreat into the hills a ways. Honoratius, can you summon another secure shelter?”
The archmage nodded. She looked as tired as any of them; clearly the strain of maintaining the long-distance connection was wearying both caster and host. “Letellia carries one more copy of the spell upon a scroll; I will leave it to her to conjure the dwelling. My time is nearly depleted; if you have no further immediate need of my aid, I will take my leave of you.”
“All right. Thank you, archmage. We will return in the morning.”
“I will be prepared.” He sat down, and vacated Letellia’s body. The process took about a minute, and when it was done the sorceress blinked, and slowly got her bearings.
“Do you actually perceive what happens when he’s... in your body?” Shay asked her.
“No. The spell allows Honoratius’s mind to overlay my own awareness, but during that time I am not conscious of my surroundings. I only dimly sense the passage of time; it’s almost like falling asleep.” She stood, and grimaced, rubbing her back. “I assume that there was trouble?”
“I’ll tell you about it later,” Shay said. “Right now, we need to find a good place for your secure shelter.” The sorceress nodded, and they headed out toward the hills.
“I will carry her,” Dar said to Nelan, handing Catspar’s spear and armor to Talen, and taking up Allera in his arms. The healer groaned and shifted, but did not wake. The nine companions retreated from the edge of the dell, retracing their steps back into the hills to the north.
An hour’s passage found them ensconced within Letellia’s secure shelter, resting in a sheltered gap between two adjoining hills. Shay and Selanthas went out to gather fuel for the hearth, after being enjoined to remain close enough to call out if they encountered any trouble. Dar laid Allera gently in one of the beds, and Letellia likewise retired early, drifting off to sleep almost at once. Mehlaraine attended upon her father, assisting him as he removed his boots and pack and slumped into one of the far bunks. On the far side of the cottage, seated on stools around the long table near the hearth, Talen and Nelan watched them. After covering Allera in a blanket, Dar joined them.
“What kind of crazy bastard brings his daughter to a place like this?” the fighter muttered.
“The aelfinn address familial relationships differently than we humans,” Nelan said. “They place a great deal of emphasis on personal autonomy and responsibility for one’s own choices and actions. I do not doubt that Lord Alderis would prefer not to see his daughter here, but he would not consider it his place to tell her not to come.”
“They’re nuts, whole damned race,” Dar muttered. He grabbed a hunk of trailbread from the plate in front of Talen, and bit into it. “Might as well eat the rocks outside,” he said, dropping the bread back onto the plate.
“Shay will make us something hot when she returns,” Talen said absently. He looked at Nelan. “What is your story, priest? From what the others said back in Camar, I gathered that you were somebody pretty important. Why did you end up way out on the frontier?”
Nelan sighed. “I do not like to speak of it.”
“C’mon, we’re your brothers, now,” Dar said. “I don’t like clerics keeping secrets. Spill it.” He reached for the bread again, and scowled at it before taking another bite.
“Very well. I was exiled... for writing a pamphlet.”
“What?” Talen asked.
“Yeah, what’d you do, let slip the name of the doxy that the Patriarch was screwing?” Dar asked through another mouthful of bread.
“Nothing quite so dramatic. What I wrote was a brief critique on the political leanings of the church. I argued that secular concerns were undermining the spiritual mission of the order.”
Dar laughed. “Yeah, I bet they loved that.”
“I was young, and naïve. In the aftermath, I was given my choice of postings, as long as they were far away from Camar.”
“Well, you got the last laugh,” Dar said. “That prick Gaius is gone, you’re back in the inner circle, and I don’t know the new guy, but he seems holy enough.”
“Bishop... ah, Patriarch... Jaduran is a good man,” Nelan said.
“Old,” Talen commented. He is what, seventy-odd?”
“Closer to eighty,” Nelan admitted.
“Well, look at it this way,” Dar said. “You get to go to Rappan Athuk.” He chuckled to himself, and stood. “I’ll go see if Shay needs help with the wood.”
They ate their meal quietly. Allera, Letellia, and Alderis did not stir, and the others let them sleep. Afterwards Selanthas took out a small silver flute, and played softly. The device seemed too compact for the complex melody that the elf coaxed out of it, and as the gentle notes drifted through the cabin, they each felt themselves relaxing, the hard fights of the day fading in their memories. Dar and Mehlaraine settled down to the first watch, while the others retired to their beds.
The night passed without incident. As the spellcasters refreshed their spells in the morning, Shay and Selanthas conducted a quick reconnoiter of the area. They reported that nothing stirred in the vicinity of Rappan Athuk, although the dense gray clouds that hung over that fell place had not broken, drifting low over the site like a cloak. Mehlaraine made everyone green tea, which nearly sparked a revolt by Dar, but the fighter subsided when Shay tossed a bag of ground coffee at him with concise instructions about the specifc locale where he could insert it. This might have developed further but for the intervention of Allera. The healer had woken wan but fully aware, although she was a bit murky on the details of what had transpired after their capture by Amurru. They had slept a bit late, and Letellia had to usher them out of the cottage before it expired, but Allera invoked her power to conjure a remarkable heroes’ feast, complete with table, chairs, and silverware, right there in the gap between the two hills. For a moment the companions just stared at the bounty.
“Now, this is more like it!” Dar finally exclaimed, hastening forward to the table. He didn’t even sit down as he started shoving food into his mouth. He turned back to Allera and grinned. “Mruf mus mufuct, ergel,” he said through a mouthful of food.
“The feast will provide protection against toxins and fear,” Allera said, smiling as she came forward and sat down next to Dar. The fighter kicked out a chair and sank into it, without slackening the pace with which he ate. He grabbed a pitcher of amber liquid and downed half of it in several deep swallows, ignoring the mug set beside his place. “Damn... this stuff is good!”
“We’d better join in before it is all gone,” Talen said. The companions all partook in the feast, which took the better part of an hour to consume. The good night’s sleep and the fine meal buoyed their spirits, and by the end there was even some laughter around the table. However, the upbeat mood did not long survive the disappearance of the table and the remains of the meal. The reality of what they would confront again today weighed heavily on each of them.
“I will try to prepare one of those each day for us, if we get the opportunity to use it,” Allera said.
“Are you all right?” Talen said. “After... yesterday.”
“I am well. She did not mistreat me, Talen; she believes deeply in what she does, enough to dedicate millennia of servitude to protecting what she guards.”
“I just cannot easily accept the idea of an undead creature as an ally,” Talen said.
“Well, better that then the opposite,” Shay said. “She could have easily left us there to expire, like Catspar.”
They delayed for another hour to attend to their promise to the dead warrior. Talen had initially suggested that they wait to return to Camar, to bury the ancient fighter with full estate and ritual, but Nelan gloomly noted that they might not return from Rappan Athuk to keep their promise. So they built a cairn here in the dell, and laid the bones of Mailliw Catspar to rest right there. Nelan spoke the Ritual of Passing, and invoked the power of the Father to guide the spirit of the fallen man to his rest. There was a faint flicker above the grave, faint enough so that each of them could not be sure that they had seen it. Then it faded, leaving only the cold stillness of the winter morning.
“All right, let’s get going,” Talen said.
They had divided Catspar’s possessions among the group. Dar had taken the man’s breastplate, crafted from dragon scales, remarkably intact. The suit fit him surprisingly well, in contrast to the heavy plate armor he’d taken from the high priest in Rappan Athuk. That suit they wrapped in oilcloth and buried near the cairn, against possible future need.
Shay took the warrior’s longspear, while Selanthas took his sword. The small shield they restored with some spare leather throngs that Shay carried in her bag of holding, and gave it to Nelan, for now. The cleric looked somewhat awkward carrying the shield, but Letellia remarked that the device carried a potent dweomer, and they could not afford to reject anything that might enhance their defenses.
Thus fortified, they returned to Rappan Athuk.
Lazybones
Adventurer
Chapter 235
ONCE MORE INTO THE BREACH
The valley was quiet, muted in the fog that never fully burned away. For a moment, they stood there, watching.
“I wonder that we haven’t encountered more resistance,” Shay commented. “It has to know we’re coming.”
“Don’t poke the sleeping lion,” Dar said. “Besides, I’m sure there’s a nice welcome committee waiting for us inside.”
“All right, move out,” Talen said. They started down, old bones crunching under their boots as they made their way through the ruin of ancient graves. Many of them had been recently uncovered, their contents now strewn across southern Camar in the aftermath of the undead invasion. Patrols from Highbluff were still coming across stragglers in the hills and forests of the region, weeks after the battle of Aldenford.
They passed the Well, giving the wide stone opening a generous berth.
“Don’t forget about the green gargoyles,” Dar said, as the first of the hulking mausoleums rose up out of the mists ahead, off to their left. The main tomb, the one that concealed the entrance to the dungeon, was still lost in the haze ahead. Talen called a halt next to the warrior statue in the center of the valley, where they had found the key to the tomb doors on their first expedition here, what seemed like so long ago.
“Letellia?” Talen asked. “The archmage?”
The sorceress shook her head. “I have not felt his presence yet this morning. The transition is extremely draining for him, and he takes a considerable risk each time he casts the spell. He is not a young man.”
Dar snorted, but said nothing. “Do we wait for him?” Allera asked.
Talen looked at them, and then at the elves, standing a short distance away. “No,” he said. “It’s going to take quite some time to get to the first temple; the mage can join us when he is ready. Let’s get moving.”
They pressed on, as the huking outline of the mausoleum rising up out of the fog ahead. They tensed, expecting resistance, but the green gargoyle guardians did not make an appearance. The form of the building looked... odd, without them.
Wary of a trap, they continued forward. Shay found that the doors were ajar. The interior of the place was as they had left it, scattered with bones and bits of debris. The entire mausoleum was one huge trap, designed to crush intruders inside as the floor rose up to smash against the ceiling.
This time, nothing stirred. On their last visit, Varo had stone shaped the plug that concealed the shaft leading down to the dungeon; it gaped open still, inviting.
“I don’t like this,” Shay said. “Too easy.”
“Keep an eye out, but keep moving,” Talen said. Nothing stirred, even when fragments of bone crunched noisily under their feet. Talen, Shay, and Dar gathered around the dark hole in the floor; the rungs of the shaft were just visible against the shadowed walls. The smell that rose up from below was familiar and overpowering.
“Gods, I’d almost forgotten,” Shay said, grimacing.
“I don’t think I’ll ever forget that,” Dar said. He looked up at Talen. “So, once more into the breach, commander?”
“One of us can scout ahead, using my magic to empower flight,” Alderis said. The elf looked pale, but whether it was just mundane exhaustion or the memories of his last visit to this place was uncertain.
“Save your spell,” Talen said. “We might need it.” Shay began to bend to enter the shaft, but the knight beat her to it, taking Dar’s offered hand for help as he lowered himself to the first rung.
Trying to ignore the stench, the companions made their way down. There was only one moment of trouble, as Letellia froze on the ladder halfway down the shaft. Selanthas, who was bringing up the rear, saw that something was wrong, and he called a warning to the others. But after a minute, the sorceress took a deep breath, and was able to finish the descent.
“Are you all right?” Talen asked, when she made it down.
“I am sorry for the disruption,” she said. “And for the delay in my joining you this morning.”
“Ah, archmage, glad you could join us,” Dar said.
“I imagine it could be a bit... disorienting, finding yourself hanging from a rung in a dark shaft, surrounded by the foul reek of a sewer,” Shay said.
“Quite. But one grows used to such things, when one is accustomed to travel by magical means.”
“Okay, if you’re all right to continue?” Talen asked. The archmage nodded. “Shay, take us forward.”
They made their way down the tunnel, familiar to most of them from their repeated visits. Nelan, Mehlaraine, and Selanthas, who had never been here before, covered their faces in a vain effort to keep out the stench.
“It gets worse,” Dar pointed out.
“That reminds me, we’d better get the contingency plan ready,” Talen said. “Shay.”
The scout paused, and dug into her bag of holding. She found what she was looking for, and handed it to Dar, who sheathed Valor and tucked it under one arm. “Gods, what a waste,” he muttered.
“If we’re lucky, we won’t need it,” Talen said. “We got past it last time without any trouble.”
“I don’t know if Zosimos would agree with you,” Dar returned.
“I know that I would greatly prefer not to meet the monster that you described,” Nelan said, adjusting the straps on his new shield.
They made it to the pit at the end of the passage, and Shay quickly set a rope to ease their descent. Talen helped Dar with his burden, holding it for him as the fighter descended, and then carefully dropping it down to him before taking up the rope himself. Shay had started working on the secret door at the bottom of the shaft, but the stone panel was jammed, and it took Dar’s help for her to work it free. The scout paled a bit as a fresh wave of stench greeted her, but she swallowed, recovered, and probed the tunnel beyond with her torch before stepping through. The others followed behind. Alderis slipped on the rope coming down into the pit, but Mehlaraine was quick to arrest his fall, and no injuries were suffered.
The tunnel widened slightly ahead, and they could see the wrecked doorway that gave access into the first level of the dungeon. To their left lay the dead end where they had twice dodged the dung monster, while the right fork led to their ultimate destination, several levels below them.
Mehlaraine, pale, voided her stomach. The others waited for her to recover; none of them offered any recrimination; each of them knew exactly how she felt.
Scanning carefully for threats, Shay moved through the empty doorway. She had barely cleared it when the dung monster, clinging to the stone ceiling on the far side of the opening, dropped down onto her.
ONCE MORE INTO THE BREACH
The valley was quiet, muted in the fog that never fully burned away. For a moment, they stood there, watching.
“I wonder that we haven’t encountered more resistance,” Shay commented. “It has to know we’re coming.”
“Don’t poke the sleeping lion,” Dar said. “Besides, I’m sure there’s a nice welcome committee waiting for us inside.”
“All right, move out,” Talen said. They started down, old bones crunching under their boots as they made their way through the ruin of ancient graves. Many of them had been recently uncovered, their contents now strewn across southern Camar in the aftermath of the undead invasion. Patrols from Highbluff were still coming across stragglers in the hills and forests of the region, weeks after the battle of Aldenford.
They passed the Well, giving the wide stone opening a generous berth.
“Don’t forget about the green gargoyles,” Dar said, as the first of the hulking mausoleums rose up out of the mists ahead, off to their left. The main tomb, the one that concealed the entrance to the dungeon, was still lost in the haze ahead. Talen called a halt next to the warrior statue in the center of the valley, where they had found the key to the tomb doors on their first expedition here, what seemed like so long ago.
“Letellia?” Talen asked. “The archmage?”
The sorceress shook her head. “I have not felt his presence yet this morning. The transition is extremely draining for him, and he takes a considerable risk each time he casts the spell. He is not a young man.”
Dar snorted, but said nothing. “Do we wait for him?” Allera asked.
Talen looked at them, and then at the elves, standing a short distance away. “No,” he said. “It’s going to take quite some time to get to the first temple; the mage can join us when he is ready. Let’s get moving.”
They pressed on, as the huking outline of the mausoleum rising up out of the fog ahead. They tensed, expecting resistance, but the green gargoyle guardians did not make an appearance. The form of the building looked... odd, without them.
Wary of a trap, they continued forward. Shay found that the doors were ajar. The interior of the place was as they had left it, scattered with bones and bits of debris. The entire mausoleum was one huge trap, designed to crush intruders inside as the floor rose up to smash against the ceiling.
This time, nothing stirred. On their last visit, Varo had stone shaped the plug that concealed the shaft leading down to the dungeon; it gaped open still, inviting.
“I don’t like this,” Shay said. “Too easy.”
“Keep an eye out, but keep moving,” Talen said. Nothing stirred, even when fragments of bone crunched noisily under their feet. Talen, Shay, and Dar gathered around the dark hole in the floor; the rungs of the shaft were just visible against the shadowed walls. The smell that rose up from below was familiar and overpowering.
“Gods, I’d almost forgotten,” Shay said, grimacing.
“I don’t think I’ll ever forget that,” Dar said. He looked up at Talen. “So, once more into the breach, commander?”
“One of us can scout ahead, using my magic to empower flight,” Alderis said. The elf looked pale, but whether it was just mundane exhaustion or the memories of his last visit to this place was uncertain.
“Save your spell,” Talen said. “We might need it.” Shay began to bend to enter the shaft, but the knight beat her to it, taking Dar’s offered hand for help as he lowered himself to the first rung.
Trying to ignore the stench, the companions made their way down. There was only one moment of trouble, as Letellia froze on the ladder halfway down the shaft. Selanthas, who was bringing up the rear, saw that something was wrong, and he called a warning to the others. But after a minute, the sorceress took a deep breath, and was able to finish the descent.
“Are you all right?” Talen asked, when she made it down.
“I am sorry for the disruption,” she said. “And for the delay in my joining you this morning.”
“Ah, archmage, glad you could join us,” Dar said.
“I imagine it could be a bit... disorienting, finding yourself hanging from a rung in a dark shaft, surrounded by the foul reek of a sewer,” Shay said.
“Quite. But one grows used to such things, when one is accustomed to travel by magical means.”
“Okay, if you’re all right to continue?” Talen asked. The archmage nodded. “Shay, take us forward.”
They made their way down the tunnel, familiar to most of them from their repeated visits. Nelan, Mehlaraine, and Selanthas, who had never been here before, covered their faces in a vain effort to keep out the stench.
“It gets worse,” Dar pointed out.
“That reminds me, we’d better get the contingency plan ready,” Talen said. “Shay.”
The scout paused, and dug into her bag of holding. She found what she was looking for, and handed it to Dar, who sheathed Valor and tucked it under one arm. “Gods, what a waste,” he muttered.
“If we’re lucky, we won’t need it,” Talen said. “We got past it last time without any trouble.”
“I don’t know if Zosimos would agree with you,” Dar returned.
“I know that I would greatly prefer not to meet the monster that you described,” Nelan said, adjusting the straps on his new shield.
They made it to the pit at the end of the passage, and Shay quickly set a rope to ease their descent. Talen helped Dar with his burden, holding it for him as the fighter descended, and then carefully dropping it down to him before taking up the rope himself. Shay had started working on the secret door at the bottom of the shaft, but the stone panel was jammed, and it took Dar’s help for her to work it free. The scout paled a bit as a fresh wave of stench greeted her, but she swallowed, recovered, and probed the tunnel beyond with her torch before stepping through. The others followed behind. Alderis slipped on the rope coming down into the pit, but Mehlaraine was quick to arrest his fall, and no injuries were suffered.
The tunnel widened slightly ahead, and they could see the wrecked doorway that gave access into the first level of the dungeon. To their left lay the dead end where they had twice dodged the dung monster, while the right fork led to their ultimate destination, several levels below them.
Mehlaraine, pale, voided her stomach. The others waited for her to recover; none of them offered any recrimination; each of them knew exactly how she felt.
Scanning carefully for threats, Shay moved through the empty doorway. She had barely cleared it when the dung monster, clinging to the stone ceiling on the far side of the opening, dropped down onto her.
Lazybones
Adventurer
Chapter 236
ONCE MORE INTO THE DUNG MONSTER
Some instinct, a subtle warning from the shift of mass above her, triggered Shay’s body into motion. The scout leapt to the side, but while she was able to keep from being crushed under the entirety of the dung monster’s mass, she could not escape it completely. She cried out as a heavy slick of noisome material splashed across her back and stuck hard. As the entirety of the monster dropped to the floor, its weight dragged her down, its caustic substance already burning at her back, legs, and hair.
“Shay!” Talen yelled, rushing forward to assist. But Dar was ahead of him, and the fighter moved even quicker. A dagger had appeared in his hand, and as he charged he used it to stave in one end of the small cask he carried. Clear liquid splashed up around his hand as the wooden planks collapsed, but most of the two gallons or so remained inside until he upended it over the monster.
The nearly pure grain alcohol splashed over the body of the creature, forming a clinging slick that trailed down its body, dissolving the sticky secretions that oozed from its body. Dar had tried to focus the discharge toward Shay, but in doing so, he had gotten almost on top of the creature, and it was quick to counter. A massive pseudopod formed out of its body and smashed into the fighter’s chest, driving him back against the empty threshold of the ruined door. The alcoholic dousing had weakened the adhesive properties of the creature’s skin, so it did not get a grip on him with the attack, but it had still struck him with the force of a battering ram striking a castle gate.
Unfortunately for the creature, Corath Dar was a bit tougher than your typical castle gate.
Talen rushed past him through the doorway, Beatus Incendia flaring in his hand as he rushed to Shay’s aid. He clove into the creature, opening a big gash in its foul substance, but the flames spilling from the blade appeared to have no effect, and the wound, if it could be considered such, quickly vanished as the monster’s bulk twisted and roiled in the face of the knight’s assault. Flames flared up from around the impact, as the sword’s fire ignited some of the alcohol spilled upon the creature, but that too seemed to have no effect save to add a new smell to the fearsome stench radiating from the monster.
Shay was still struggling to get free, but even the alcohol had not been enough to fully loosen the monster’s grasp. But she was on her feet again, trying to rise against the weight of the creature splayed across her back.
Dar took his club into both hands, and strode forward at the creature. His boots smacked into its bulbous slime, hissing as the creature’s substance swelled and engulfed his legs almost to the knee. Dar smashed his club down into a pseudopod as it formed, driving it back into the mass of the creature. The blow opened a tear in the creature’s body, from which a gout of utter foulness rose, splattering upon his armor. Vomit exploded from his mouth as his stomach roiled, but he did not stop raining blows upon the monster, two-handed strikes that sent quivering pulses through its entire hulking body. Each time he hit the head of the club clung to its outer hide, but not enough to prevent Dar from yanking it free and striking again.
Beside him, Talen staggered and nearly fell as the creature surged, but Nelan was there at his back, and steadied him with a ready hand. The knight hacked at the part of the monster that was holding Shay, careful not to strike her with his blade. His first attack cut a long swath in its body, but on the second hit Beatus Incendia stuck in its body as its substance swelled around the blade, and he nearly went down again as the monster tried to pull the weapon from his grasp.
The others were attempting to aid in the melee, but the crowded space of the doorway was limiting their effectiveness. Selanthas had fired a few arrows into its body, aiming for the densest portion between Dar and Talen. A wave of heat accompanied a series of scorching rays that knifed past the melee combatants and blasted its body, but the spell’s potency dissolved without affecting it. The same thing happened to a series of magic missiles that peppered it a moment later. Talen had warned them about the creature’s resistances, which apparently were proof against even an archmage’s magical talents. And with them so closely entangled with it, a wall of force could offer no protection against its attacks.
But they were hurting it. Its regenerative powers put those of a troll to shame, and the wounds that the companions tore in its hide oozed back together with each shifting of its amorphous “body”. But even the dung monster could not absorb the punishment that the companions, and in particular Dar, were inflicting upon it.
Mehlaraine appeared in the doorway, and leapt out over the creature’s body, narrowly avoiding another pseudopod that was forming in front of Dar. The nimble elf landed just clear of it, and hurried to Shay’s assistance. The scout, unable to bring her longspear to bear, had dropped it and drawn her elf-forged blade, trying to hew away at what was left of the vile substance clinging to her back. Blood was running down her shoulders now, coming from the mangled flesh at the base of her skull where the creature’s vile substance had struck her. The duelist struck with Avelis, her flashing blade, finishing the cut that Shay had begun. The scout fell away from the monster, stifling a cry as its acids continued their terrible work upon her skin.
Talen held onto the hilt of Beatus Incendia, shaking the blade through the creature’s insides like a maid churning butter. He could still not get the weapon fully free of its substance, but the sharp edges of the sword continued to tear into it, countering its regenerative powers.
The monster heaved and surged forward, but toward Dar, not Talen. The fighter was driven back against the threshold of the doorway, threatening to overbear him completely. Dar lifted his club in both hands and plunged it hard into the creature’s body, thrusting it down and off him. It refused to relinquish him entirely; a wide splatter of its substance clung to the stone, completely enveloping the fighter from the waist down. Dar was beyond conscious thought now, and he roared something incoherent as he thrust the club’s head down, again and again, into whatever part of the creature seemed densest. He was covered now in sprays unleashed from his impacts, and he looked like nothing human.
The others were doing the best to aid him. Nelan was smashing the monster with his mace, but he was too far back to do much damage, and he was striking the floor as much as the creature’s substance. Behind him, Allera channeled positive energy through the doorway into her companions, countering the damage that they were taking from the monster’s caustic secretions. Selanthas only had a small opening between them, but was using it to put precisely aimed arrows into the monster’s body, one after another. Alderis, realizing that his spells could not harm it, instead cast a grease spell on Dar’s armor, causing the creature’s grip on him to loosen. It was still trying to flow up onto him, the simply envelop the struggling fighter, but Dar’s furious assault was hindering that attempt. Honoratius likewise aided the fighters with a haste spell that added speed to their attacks.
And then the monster just started to come apart. The dense core of its body slumped, and a spread of foul gunk splashed outward, covering the floor in every direction for a good twenty feet. It still sizzled somewhat as it reached their boots, but it no longer held the deadly effect of the creature’s secretions when it had been fully intact.
Dar collapsed and heaved again, spewing what little remained in his stomach. He was coated in the monster’s gory innards, and despite Allera’s healing his flesh burned where it had been most exposed to the monster’s touch. Allera, ignoring the filth, came to him and helped him up, offering him a clean towel for his face. He nodded gratefully, too overcome to speak.
“Is everyone all right?” Talen asked. He supported Shay, who looked worse than she was. The scout held another rag against the back of her head, where there was a wide patch where all of her hair had been destroyed. Looking around, he saw that everyone was intact, although he, Shay, and Dar would need new clothes, and likely some repair work on their armor as well.
“Let’s get to the river, and get this freaking gunk cleaned off,” the knight said wearily. Shay pulled away from him, somewhat reluctantly, and took up her longspear, moving once again into her position at the head of their column. Honoratius lingered behind a moment, and knelt over the center of the creature’s remains, where the puddle of filth was densest.
“What are you doing?” Nelan asked him.
“I am taking a sample,” the archmage said. She efficiently scraped a portion of the sludge into a small glass container, and tightly stoppered it. “A truly unique creature; it would be interesting to study its properties, and possibly determine its origin.” The container disappeared into one of her magical pouches.
“I have never fought anything like that before,” Mehlaraine said, her expression tight as she struggled to retain her equilibrium against the lingering stench.
As they were leaving, Dar glanced back. “I can’t believe we killed it,” he said. He spat back at it. “That’s for Ukas,” he muttered, and turned back to join Allera as they moved ahead once more, deeper into Rappan Athuk.
As the light of their everburning torches faded, darkness surged back into the tunnel. The slick covering the floor glistened as the last lingering glow shone in its repellant surface.
A bubble appeared in the mess, and then, a few seconds later, another.
ONCE MORE INTO THE DUNG MONSTER
Some instinct, a subtle warning from the shift of mass above her, triggered Shay’s body into motion. The scout leapt to the side, but while she was able to keep from being crushed under the entirety of the dung monster’s mass, she could not escape it completely. She cried out as a heavy slick of noisome material splashed across her back and stuck hard. As the entirety of the monster dropped to the floor, its weight dragged her down, its caustic substance already burning at her back, legs, and hair.
“Shay!” Talen yelled, rushing forward to assist. But Dar was ahead of him, and the fighter moved even quicker. A dagger had appeared in his hand, and as he charged he used it to stave in one end of the small cask he carried. Clear liquid splashed up around his hand as the wooden planks collapsed, but most of the two gallons or so remained inside until he upended it over the monster.
The nearly pure grain alcohol splashed over the body of the creature, forming a clinging slick that trailed down its body, dissolving the sticky secretions that oozed from its body. Dar had tried to focus the discharge toward Shay, but in doing so, he had gotten almost on top of the creature, and it was quick to counter. A massive pseudopod formed out of its body and smashed into the fighter’s chest, driving him back against the empty threshold of the ruined door. The alcoholic dousing had weakened the adhesive properties of the creature’s skin, so it did not get a grip on him with the attack, but it had still struck him with the force of a battering ram striking a castle gate.
Unfortunately for the creature, Corath Dar was a bit tougher than your typical castle gate.
Talen rushed past him through the doorway, Beatus Incendia flaring in his hand as he rushed to Shay’s aid. He clove into the creature, opening a big gash in its foul substance, but the flames spilling from the blade appeared to have no effect, and the wound, if it could be considered such, quickly vanished as the monster’s bulk twisted and roiled in the face of the knight’s assault. Flames flared up from around the impact, as the sword’s fire ignited some of the alcohol spilled upon the creature, but that too seemed to have no effect save to add a new smell to the fearsome stench radiating from the monster.
Shay was still struggling to get free, but even the alcohol had not been enough to fully loosen the monster’s grasp. But she was on her feet again, trying to rise against the weight of the creature splayed across her back.
Dar took his club into both hands, and strode forward at the creature. His boots smacked into its bulbous slime, hissing as the creature’s substance swelled and engulfed his legs almost to the knee. Dar smashed his club down into a pseudopod as it formed, driving it back into the mass of the creature. The blow opened a tear in the creature’s body, from which a gout of utter foulness rose, splattering upon his armor. Vomit exploded from his mouth as his stomach roiled, but he did not stop raining blows upon the monster, two-handed strikes that sent quivering pulses through its entire hulking body. Each time he hit the head of the club clung to its outer hide, but not enough to prevent Dar from yanking it free and striking again.
Beside him, Talen staggered and nearly fell as the creature surged, but Nelan was there at his back, and steadied him with a ready hand. The knight hacked at the part of the monster that was holding Shay, careful not to strike her with his blade. His first attack cut a long swath in its body, but on the second hit Beatus Incendia stuck in its body as its substance swelled around the blade, and he nearly went down again as the monster tried to pull the weapon from his grasp.
The others were attempting to aid in the melee, but the crowded space of the doorway was limiting their effectiveness. Selanthas had fired a few arrows into its body, aiming for the densest portion between Dar and Talen. A wave of heat accompanied a series of scorching rays that knifed past the melee combatants and blasted its body, but the spell’s potency dissolved without affecting it. The same thing happened to a series of magic missiles that peppered it a moment later. Talen had warned them about the creature’s resistances, which apparently were proof against even an archmage’s magical talents. And with them so closely entangled with it, a wall of force could offer no protection against its attacks.
But they were hurting it. Its regenerative powers put those of a troll to shame, and the wounds that the companions tore in its hide oozed back together with each shifting of its amorphous “body”. But even the dung monster could not absorb the punishment that the companions, and in particular Dar, were inflicting upon it.
Mehlaraine appeared in the doorway, and leapt out over the creature’s body, narrowly avoiding another pseudopod that was forming in front of Dar. The nimble elf landed just clear of it, and hurried to Shay’s assistance. The scout, unable to bring her longspear to bear, had dropped it and drawn her elf-forged blade, trying to hew away at what was left of the vile substance clinging to her back. Blood was running down her shoulders now, coming from the mangled flesh at the base of her skull where the creature’s vile substance had struck her. The duelist struck with Avelis, her flashing blade, finishing the cut that Shay had begun. The scout fell away from the monster, stifling a cry as its acids continued their terrible work upon her skin.
Talen held onto the hilt of Beatus Incendia, shaking the blade through the creature’s insides like a maid churning butter. He could still not get the weapon fully free of its substance, but the sharp edges of the sword continued to tear into it, countering its regenerative powers.
The monster heaved and surged forward, but toward Dar, not Talen. The fighter was driven back against the threshold of the doorway, threatening to overbear him completely. Dar lifted his club in both hands and plunged it hard into the creature’s body, thrusting it down and off him. It refused to relinquish him entirely; a wide splatter of its substance clung to the stone, completely enveloping the fighter from the waist down. Dar was beyond conscious thought now, and he roared something incoherent as he thrust the club’s head down, again and again, into whatever part of the creature seemed densest. He was covered now in sprays unleashed from his impacts, and he looked like nothing human.
The others were doing the best to aid him. Nelan was smashing the monster with his mace, but he was too far back to do much damage, and he was striking the floor as much as the creature’s substance. Behind him, Allera channeled positive energy through the doorway into her companions, countering the damage that they were taking from the monster’s caustic secretions. Selanthas only had a small opening between them, but was using it to put precisely aimed arrows into the monster’s body, one after another. Alderis, realizing that his spells could not harm it, instead cast a grease spell on Dar’s armor, causing the creature’s grip on him to loosen. It was still trying to flow up onto him, the simply envelop the struggling fighter, but Dar’s furious assault was hindering that attempt. Honoratius likewise aided the fighters with a haste spell that added speed to their attacks.
And then the monster just started to come apart. The dense core of its body slumped, and a spread of foul gunk splashed outward, covering the floor in every direction for a good twenty feet. It still sizzled somewhat as it reached their boots, but it no longer held the deadly effect of the creature’s secretions when it had been fully intact.
Dar collapsed and heaved again, spewing what little remained in his stomach. He was coated in the monster’s gory innards, and despite Allera’s healing his flesh burned where it had been most exposed to the monster’s touch. Allera, ignoring the filth, came to him and helped him up, offering him a clean towel for his face. He nodded gratefully, too overcome to speak.
“Is everyone all right?” Talen asked. He supported Shay, who looked worse than she was. The scout held another rag against the back of her head, where there was a wide patch where all of her hair had been destroyed. Looking around, he saw that everyone was intact, although he, Shay, and Dar would need new clothes, and likely some repair work on their armor as well.
“Let’s get to the river, and get this freaking gunk cleaned off,” the knight said wearily. Shay pulled away from him, somewhat reluctantly, and took up her longspear, moving once again into her position at the head of their column. Honoratius lingered behind a moment, and knelt over the center of the creature’s remains, where the puddle of filth was densest.
“What are you doing?” Nelan asked him.
“I am taking a sample,” the archmage said. She efficiently scraped a portion of the sludge into a small glass container, and tightly stoppered it. “A truly unique creature; it would be interesting to study its properties, and possibly determine its origin.” The container disappeared into one of her magical pouches.
“I have never fought anything like that before,” Mehlaraine said, her expression tight as she struggled to retain her equilibrium against the lingering stench.
As they were leaving, Dar glanced back. “I can’t believe we killed it,” he said. He spat back at it. “That’s for Ukas,” he muttered, and turned back to join Allera as they moved ahead once more, deeper into Rappan Athuk.
As the light of their everburning torches faded, darkness surged back into the tunnel. The slick covering the floor glistened as the last lingering glow shone in its repellant surface.
A bubble appeared in the mess, and then, a few seconds later, another.
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