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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 4335684" data-attributes="member: 2323">[PLAIN][Realms #442] Over, Under or Through?[/PLAIN]"A dungeon crawl presents unknown dangers. The climb is the safest way to go," Anania offered. She glanced at Shamalin's armored form and added "Well, except for the priestess.""You've made that clear," the Mercybringer muttered, scowling at the elf. "Huzair? Where are those Slippers of Spider Climbing?" The wizard opened his traveler's purse and drew forth the Slippers as if they had been lying on top. He handed them to the cleric and looked up at the top of the cliff."Yeah, like I would climb that!" he scoffed. "I can use a pinch of the Levitation Dust... but we are running a little low." He looked meaningfully around at the others."I have a spell that gives me limited flight," Ahlear told them. "I could perhaps ferry some of you up to strategic points... just over the really difficult parts.""Hold on," Morier said. "Before we start burning resources let's see what we can learn about the tunnel. I think the tunnel represents a better option than a cliff climb." Anania nodded."I will check the area for traps," she said and, with an arrow notched in her bow she headed for the concealed entrance. Huzair grinned and released his familiar into the sky. the hummingbird circled once and then flew rapidly upward."Sparky will scout above and I will help beautiful locate any traps," he said and followed the elf maid."I can try a Divination spell to see which way would be best - climbing or the tunnel," Shamalin said. "It will take me a few minutes to cast." Morier nodded."Good," the eldritch warrior said. "Ahlear, you and I are on reconnaissance. Check out the immediate surroundings. You go north. I'll go south." And without waiting for a reply the albino ducked into the trees, one hand keeping his sheathed greatsword from tangling in his legs.Huzair caught up with Anania as she squatted at the base of the cliff intently examining the dirt there. "What did you find, sweetheart?" he asked, peering over her shoulder and seeing nothing but dirt."Tracks," she said simply. "Dwarf tracks. More than one set. Going in and out of this tunnel.""Huh," Huzair intoned, uncertain what to make of this revelation. "Were is Karak when you need him, right?"Anania eyed him gravely and then pulled aside the tangle of dried vines that obscured the tunnel entrance. She paused then and studied the frame of the tunnel, tracing some cracks with her fingers. "There's carving here," she told him in a low voice that barely carried above the roar of the waterfall. "I don't recognize the script and it's too worn away to read in any case." The mage looked where she indicated, but saw nothing except weather worn stone."You have good eyes," he told her and she looked at him strangely for a moment. Then she looked away, peering into the darkened tunnel."It is my purpose," she told him and proceeded slowly into the tunnel. After creeping forward they reached a bend where the hall angled back in the direction of the falls. It was getting too dark for them to see much even with lowlight vision and the elf was obliged to shoulder her bow and light a torch. By its flickering glow, Huzair could clearly see the gate that Anania had mentioned earlier.It was stoutly made and rust-free and it completely blocked the passage ahead. He could see no obvious locking mechanism. It actually looked as if the bars were set directly into the floor and ceiling. "I wonder if there is a lock on the gate?" he said aloud and started to move forward. "If there is I could pick it... or someone in the party could just smash it with his ham-""Stop!" Anania said, gripping Huzair roughly and dragging him back. She was stronger than she appeared. The mage looked at her annoyed."What?" he asked, straightening his clothes while she drew out a dagger. She hunkered down again and, holding the torch high in one hand, traced a line in the tunnel's floor."There's a seam here," she told him and as she worked with the dagger, it became obvious to the wizard that she was right. "It's probably a pressure plate. Or a trapdoor.""Trapdoor," he told her after a moment's study. "Standard pit trap.""Regardless. It is not something that you would want to step on," Anania said and stood. "There is a narrow path around the pit so we can avoid it." And as proof of her statement, she darted lithely along the wall until she reached the gate then turned back to Huzair. He followed in her footsteps with somewhat less aplomb until they were both pressed up against the bars."I see no lock," he said, annoyed. Anania sniffed."But there is a way passed this gate. It is used," she told him. "I smell mineral oil. The kind used to maintain mechanical parts.""You had better watch that torch then," Huzair said, activated the Ring of Blinking and stuttered his way passed the gate. He grinned at her through the bars and extended a hand between. "In fact, why don't you let me hold it."Morier stepped back into the grotto and saw Shamalin gathering her still smoldering incense. The smell of it hung cloyingly in the air. Ahlear sat on a rock at the water's edge, one hand scratching his dire rat's fur. He met Morier's eyes and shook his head. The albino nodded once; he'd found nothing either.Shamalin gathered the two men close enough for them both to hear her over the sound of falling water without undue shouting and then she related the results of her spell."Start at the end or end at the beginning, the middle remains unchanged," she said. "So I think that no matter which way we go the result will be the same. More or less.""A reasonable interpretation," Morier said and looked up at the top of the cliff. "So that leaves us back where we started. Unless we can figure out some way around that gate, we-""I found a way to bypass the gate," Huzair beamed as he and Anania rejoined the group. "There was the nice, shiny lever a bit down the corridor on the other side of the bars that made them retract into the ceiling. It's all clear now.""Well that makes the decision a little easier," the albino said, looking around at the others. "Is everyone agreed that we take the tunnel?""Thanks for opening the gate, Huzair. Nice work, Huzair," the mage groused under his breath."Nice work, boss," Sparky twittered into his ear. "Thanks for opening the gate." Smiling, Huzair gathered the bird into his hands to warm it and listened to what his familiar had to report."There's sort of a lake at the top of the cliff with an island in the middle of it," the bird explained. "There's a little sort of rocky hill on the island with a funny kind of shiny rock on the side of the hill. There's also a kind of fence or wall that runs across the whole island and some big rocks that are set up in a circle around a firepit on the far side. There are some giants and dog men there. More than us, boss. And they've got weapons. Big ones."-----------------------------OOC- I'm going to be out of town on Sunday, so I thought I'd post the weekly installment a little bit early this week. Hope you like it.</blockquote>

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