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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 3474760" data-attributes="member: 143">Chapter 151PREPARATIONAfter their ordeal with the ants and the umber hulks, the companions elected to seek out a secure place to camp.  Shay suggested the goblin mines to the south, near the river.  The distance from the site of the battle might give them some respite from the scavengers that would inevitably be drawn to the scene of the carnage, the scout explained.  “It would also leave us with our backs to the river, if something does come a’ wandering,” Dar pointed out.  Once the calm emotions spell had worn off, the fighter had seemed almost embarrassed, but whether it was for almost killing Allera, or from having just stood there befuddled while Shay had taken out the last hulk, it was impossible to say. “From the tracks that Shay and Baraka found, it looks like the entrance to the goblin city is to the north,” Talen said.  “Until we know the situation with them, it might be better to seek out a more out of the way corner to hole up and rest.”Once Allera, Serah, and Varo had treated the worst of their wounds, Shay led them south.  The entrance to the southern mines was a little over a hundred yards from where they had encountered the ants, a dark opening in the cliff wall about twenty feet above the cavern floor.  A narrow path etched in the stone led up to the opening, barely more than a series of foot and handholds.  The wreckage of what had once been a pulley harness lay in a tangle below the mine entrance, along with the smashed remains of a pair of wheelbarrows. Spreading out, Shay and Baraka found signs that the goblin miners here had been attacked as well.  In addition to more bloodstains, they found a pair of fairly recent tracks that ended at the river; apparently some of the goblins had taken their chances with the fast-moving watercourse rather than face whatever it was that had attacked here.  This mine site was much more defensible than the last, due to the opening being so high up, but when Shay climbed up to look inside, she reported that the place was just as empty, with only a few hints of recent use and hasty departure left behind. With the help of the scouts, the companions made their way up to the mine entrance.  The goblins had used a natural cave as the starting point for their mine shafts, so there was enough room inside to accommodate all of them.  The shafts themselves penetrated at sharp angles into the cliff wall, rising or falling depending on the vagaries of the ore deposits.  “Iron ore,” Talen said, poking at one of the mounds. “I wonder where they dumped the tracings for this one?” Baraka said.  “The river, maybe, or perhaps there’s a crevice nearby,” Shay said.  “It would have been easier to build a ramp with what they excavated, but it would have also made the mine itself more vulnerable to attack.” “That didn’t save them in the end,” Dar said.  After probing a bit more to make sure that none of the mine tunnels led to any unpleasant surprises, the companions set up their camp.  Shay used some of their precious charcoal to cook a stew with dried meat and vegetables taken from their stores, augmented with some mushrooms from the cavern that she insisted were safe.  Travius was suspect of those last, and the scout finally grabbed one and bit into it raw, chewing it deliberately and swallowing while he watched. “Satisfied?  Now unless you know how to cook, go do something useful and fill up those waterskins from the river.”“Baraka, you and Kalend go with him,” Talen said.  The pair nodded, and the three left the cave, passing Bullo and Pella, who were keeping watch at the entrance.  Talen looked around for Varo, and started when he saw the cleric standing just behind him.  “Gods, man, we need to put a bell around your neck or something.”  He turned to the others around the fire; all of them save Pella and Bullo, those who had gone for water, and Serah, who had collapsed into her bedroll almost the moment they’d arrived. “All right, tomorrow we need to find the entrance to the goblin city.  Varo, your detection spell, it can guide us?”The cleric nodded.  “Yes, but I prefer to keep it in reserve for as long as possible.  The spell only lasts for a short while, a bit under two hours, and the farther we are from our objective, the third temple of Orcus, the less likely the spell is to produce an ideal path.”“Doesn’t sound like your god’s guidance is that much help after all,” Dar said. “The find the path spell is very potent, but it only indicates the fastest route to a destination.  It does not reveal traps, defenses, or guardians.  We should rely on mundane means, such as tracking and logic, as much as possible.”Talen frowned, but Shay said, “The goblins have been moving ore out of here... it should be easy enough to follow the barrow tracks.”  The scout dumped a heap of chopped vegetables into the stew pot, and went to work on the mushrooms, working efficiently with her knife. “All right, everyone check your weapons and gear, and then...” “If I might take a moment first, commander,” Varo interrupted.  “There is one other matter I would like to broach.  I had thought to wait until we had entered Rappan Athuk proper, but this seems as good a time as any.”“I hope that this is not another surprise, Varo,” Talen said.  But the cleric merely produced a cloth bag from his backpack, dumping a collection of glittering objects from it into his hand. “Rings,” Allera said.  There were four of the rings, plain bands of metal, each set with a dark stone.  They matched the one that the cleric wore. “These are for us, I presume?  What do they do?” Talen asked. “The stone is named ul’ulira, and it comes from Razhur.  The Razhuri believe that the mineral comes from the brains of dead gods, and that each fragment holds within it some spark of the divine.”“Yeah, well, Camar has people who are screwed in the head too,” Dar said.  “You didn’t answer the general’s question.  What does the stuff do for us?”“The rings are empowered with the ability to protect the life-force of the wearer, in much the same way that Snaggletooth’s gem did for Allera.  If one of us dies in Rappan Athuk, their soul should be drawn into the gem, allowing a raise spell to later bring them back to life.”“You do not sound certain, priest,” Talen said.  Shay looked closely at the rings, and frowned.  “What you describe... it sounds like base necromancy.  Upon death, the soul should ascend to the higher planes, to the side of the Father.”“Yes, I am familiar with the concept.  Tell me, how well did that work out for Valus and Zosimos?”“The Sphere,” Talen said.  “How far does its effect extend?”“I am not certain,” Varo replied.  “But it has grown stronger, as the ritual to unleash Orcus progresses further toward culmination.  I would not be surprised if it now encompassed the entirety of Rappan Athuk.”“Wonderful,” Dar said.  “What about the others?  Dar’s legionaries, Serah, Pella, Baraka...” Allera began. “I only have a limited quantity of the rings.”“Where did you get them?” Talen asked. “From a dealer of rarities that I know in Camar.  I traded some of the magical treasures that we found on our last visit to Rappan Athuk for them.”The companions shared a meaningful look. “If you do not wish to wear them, then that is your choice,” Varo said.  “But consider this.  Any of us may fall within Rappan Athuk.  If it is the person next to you... would you prefer to have a chance to have them restored to life, or would you prefer that their soul is consumed by the cult’s artifact, to serve as fuel for their plan to free their master?”“You talk freely of raising people from the dead,” Talen said.  “You weren’t so generous before, when you refused to bring back Galen and Medelia.”Varo’s gaze was sharp, but Talen did not flinch from it.  “I have told you, bringing someone back from the dead is not a trivial matter.  The spell requires diamonds worth thousands of gold pieces, and must be cast within a limited period of time.”“Marshal Tiros gave you a huge fortune in gems, to raise those who died fighting the Duke...”Varo leaned forward over the small fire, the flickering light from the coals casting the features of his face into stark relief.  He kept his voice low, but the words hissed from him like darts.  “Do you not understand what is at stake here, knight of Camar?  Did you not grasp the meaning of the oaths you took?”  He turned his gaze upon each of those seated around the fire.  “Make no mistake, I do not make this offer out of friendship, nor did I choose each of you above the others out of a shared camaraderie.  We are in a struggle in which we either win, or lose everything, everything, that we have in this world.  For all the wealth and power of Camar, we few here are the best chance of victory against our enemy, and do not think for a moment that our foe does not know that.”For a moment, Varo and Talen stared at each other in silence over the fire.  Finally, Varo leaned back, and took up the cloth bag again, his mouth twisting slightly.  “Wait,” Talen said.  The cleric looked up. “Allera... can you examine the rings, confirm what Varo told us?” Talen said.  “Talk to Serah, as well, when she wakes.  No offense, Varo, but trust is something that is earned.  And you have been far from forthcoming in the past.”“I would consider you a fool to do otherwise,” the cleric said.  He gave the rings to Allera, and then rose.  “If you will excuse me, I have my own preparations to make for the morrow.”“You don’t want any food?” Shay asked. The cleric regarded them with a cold expression.  “I am not hungry.  Enjoy your rest. You will need it.”The cleric withdrew to the back of the cave, disappearing into the shadows.“What do you think?” Talen asked Dar. “I think what I’ve said before; you’re a fool if you turn your back on Licinius Varo.”  He took up his pack and breastplate.  “Give me a kick when the meal’s ready,” he said, heading over to a nearby mound of pulverized rock from one of the mines, lying back against it.  Within seconds, he was asleep.</blockquote>

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