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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 4227221" data-attributes="member: 16069">Turn 12: “D’you think I’ll be like them one day?”The Upper Ruins of Castle Whiterock“Are you sure?” Gina asks.“No, but…” Twiglet tails off.Grungarak moves past the Dwarf, hugs the wall and heads up the crumbling stone stairs; Ronnie draws his sword and follows after.Gina shrugs at Twiglet, the Dwarf gingerly takes a few steps up the stairs, follows on, he’s not a great fan of heights, now depths, depths he doesn’t mind.“What are we going up here for?” Gina asks out of breath a little while later, “surely it just heads back up to the Hawks?”Which makes Grungarak think, the Half-Orc stops in his tracks, which in turn causes the Paladin to come to a sudden halt, there’s no side to the stairs and it’s a long way down.The adventurers concertina on the stairs.“Back down.” The Half-Orc growls, Ronnie looks a little peeved but turns tail, three of the group manoeuvre round and head back down, which just leaves Twiglet.They’ve not gone far when- “There’s something up there, something moving.” Twiglet states and in the next instant is swathed in sticky strands, a web shot from the spider above, the Dwarf scatters down the stairs, breaking through the web with ease, alas the sticky substance appears to have had an adverse effect on the Dwarf’s armour, a fine tracery of rust creates a lattice work affect, bits of it fall away- ruined.“Urggggggghh.”The Dwarf cannonballs past the other adventurers causing all manner of confusion, Gina nearly ends up plummeting over the side of the stairs saved in the last moment by Ronnie.A nasty looking albino spider descends down the centre of the tower, a huge creature, it’s leg-span some eight feet across, Twiglet makes it to the bottom of the stairs, the others hot-footing it after the Dwarf, not far behind.FWUNGTwiglet’s crossbow sings, the bolt arcs into the air, missing the great arachnid by a mile, careens off a stair and disappears up into the darkness, but only for a second or so… what goes up must come down.THUNGThe bolt’s return journey is suddenly curtailed, by a stocky dwarf, Twiglet gets his bolt back, buried in the Dwarves right thigh.The spider descends further.“Missile weapons- keep out the way.” Grungarak screams and fires.FWUNGAnd sinks an arrow into the spider’s abdomen, which is enough, the huge arachnid quickly heads back the way it came, the adventurers breathe a sigh of relief.“Let’s check the trapdoor down then.” Gina states and scrambles through the trapdoor, and down a ladder into an empty circular chamber, clearly the base of the tower- with no visible exits.“We’ll see about that, I know about stone, leave it to me.” Twiglet traces his finger around the outer wall of the chamber, “nope, nope, nope, ahhh… rock and coal- here it is.”A shove later and a stone door pivots open, otherwise the chamber is empty, Twiglet heads into a very small chamber, “hang on”, the Dwarf shouts back, and then thumps the wall ahead of him, which springs open too, another hidden door.“You’re quite good at that aren’t you?” Gina states as she follows Twiglet through to yet another newly discovered chamber.“We know about stone, the Dwarves I mean, my father worked in the quarries, as did my grandfather, and his father, and his father before that… and his father, no, hang on Festan Middlegrip Rockhammer AKA Goblinbane, my great-great-great-great grandfather he wasn’t a quarry Dwarf.”“What’d he do? A Warrior?” Gina enquires.“Goblinbane, no he made wigs- out of moss, he was one for the theatre, mostly leading ladies- he loved cross-dressing, or so the stories go, there’s a beautiful shield with his image etched into it back in the mine- he looked lovely in a dress, and heels.”Gina smirks and starts to laugh, then catches sight of Twiglet, he’s serious, she stifles her laughter.“Come on.” Ronnie pushes his way past the little people into the newly discovered chamber, which is a mess, like everything else around here. This large room is covered with a thick layer of dust and appears to have lain undisturbed for many years. In the centre of the room are the shattered remains of a huge dark wood table, its some kind of defunct meeting chamber, possibly. Broken chairs are strewn about the room. Hanging on the north wall are the frayed remains of an elegant tapestry.Grungarak rips the thing down, tries to make sense of it.“What is it Or… Ranger?” Ronnie comes over to take a look. The tapestry is no more than a dark smudge, ripped and torn. “Nothing of value.”Grungarak nods, folds the ruined tapestry up and stows it away in his backpack.“’Nother one.”GRINDTwiglet opens another secret door and marches the adventurers back into a chamber they’ve been in previously; back in the ruins.“Right.” Twiglet states.“Is that it then?” Gina asks.The are a pair of double doors centred in the opposite wall, the wall to the left contains a single door that appears to have been recently repaired and reinforced with iron supports. A pile of rubble intermixed with the shattered bones of the destroyed Owlbear skeleton head off back into the Great Hall.“Check these two.” Grungarak states.The double doors reveal a wide hallway; the floor is covered with the rotting remains of once-fine carpeting. Stone pedestals, each about two feet high, are spaced along the walls. However, the hall ends in a massive pile of rubble, atop which sit two Centipedes tearing their way through the body of what must be the last of the false monks.Twiglet unleashes his greataxe but Ronnie stops the Dwarf’s progress- “Leave them be, vermin feeding on vermin, Kord will be pleased.”A little fazed, but convinced nevertheless, Twiglet backs out of the chamber, which just leaves one door.Gina has the key, there are a set of stairs heading down into darkness, Gina is sure she can hear voices down there, but that’s for later.“Come on, let’s go.” Ronnie states, Grungarak nods.“Back to the Inn?” Twiglet asks.The Paladin nods, “Time to deliver the miscreants to justice”, which causes him to grin.An hour or so later the adventures, now mounted, with many more horses to spare wend their way back towards Cillamar, their three captives secured and the Slavers of the Iron Manacle no more.“So…” Twiglet starts while gripping on for dear life to the mane of his mount; he’s not very good at riding.“So.” Gina confirms.“I’m an adventurer?” Twiglet asks.“Yep.” Gina confirms and grins.Twiglet grins back.“How do you like it?”“It’s okay, I’m not sure I like all the fighting, although… anyway, it’s a bit, you know, scary- at times.”Gina nods back; it goes quiet for a while.“Did I do okay?”“Yes, of course, you did great.” Gina states.“Good, I mean… good. How can you tell?”“You’re alive, we’re alive.” Gina shrugs.“Oh. Okay. I guess.” Up front the Paladin and the Ranger ride side by side, not speaking, proud and erect, ready for any sign of danger.“D’you think I’ll be like them one day?” Twiglet asks and nods towards the pair.Gina thinks about it- “I hope not.”Cillamar appears on the horizon, home, for now.</blockquote>

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