Ro listens quietly to Lelith's pointed remarks and Rum's comment. The elf-dwarf did not add anything more to that topic, though he had the feeling it would come up again in the future. The elf-dwarf simply joined Rum in his tired sigh and returned his mind to the task at hand.
As they proceed towards the farmhouse with the secret passage, Rum moves to a flanking position a little closer to the castle, keeping an eye out for anything hostile.
He wonders as he goes whether meeting Lady Kaede was coincidence, or truly the will of the Great Dragon. He also ponders whether the introduction of another personality into the already fraught mix is for the best. The Lady, after all, has significant issues of her own with her recent experiences.
The conclusion to these thoughts is a short whispered prayer in Draconic.
"Great Dragon, show us the true purpose of the Twilight Embers. Make the true and righteous path clear to us. Ensure we are able to stand as beacons of hope, and not descend into the very darkness we struggle against".
They finally reach the farmhouse, even as the first sign of the flying Guardian loomed into view and the strange, orange-yellow spotlight on its front end began to scan the ground. It was making pretty quick work of its trek as it moved toward the farmhouse, and clearly had a pretty good idea of where the destroyed constructs alarm call had sounded...
Rum watches the airborne Guardian perform its search from an obscured position, and turns to Ro.
”We should be quick, friend Ro. We need to be in the secret passage before that thing spots us or it will not be secret any longer”, he says not taking his eyes from the Guardian.
”Assuming it is still secret now. We should be cautious, fellow Embers”, he adds warily.
Kaede grits her teeth in anxiety at the looming airborne Guardian, fighting back memories of their attack on her home. She catches herself not breathing for a few moments, until she is shaken out of her stunned fear by Rum’s announcement that they need to move down to the tunnel quickly. What tunnel are they referring to? Some sort of root cellar? What’s there? she thinks to herself as they hustle into the tunnel.
I like this group….they seem to have a shared mission that parallels mine. I wonder if they’d be willing to help me rescue any survivors in the castle? she continues, lost in her own thoughts.
The Twilight Embers find the entrance to the tunnel network in the bottom of an empty barrel in the farmhouse basement, exactly where Ro expected it. The entrance to the tunnel system is dark. The tunnels are even darker as they drop into the mossy, paved corridors. It's mostly quiet, save for the scurrying of rats in the darkness. There's a musty smell that pervades everything...
Rum looks into the barrel that Ro explained housed the secret passage, and then back at the group.
"If this is a tunnel as we suspect, we must be tread carefully, fellow Embers. Sound will echo a long way down there, and we don't want to give away our presence if we can help it", he says, smiling at Ro and Oten as he focusses more on them. "Oh, and last one in replace the top", he adds
He looks to Lelith. They have their differences in philosophy and methods, but they are both Embers, and they have a job to do. Their jobs are to scout. He gives her a silent nod, and jumps up and into the barrel.
His head pops back up unexpectedly. "Friend Ro, you can keep in touch with your whisper magic, right?", he says before descending into the tunnel, with a little bit of a clatter.
"Watch the step!", his whispered voice can be heard.
Stealth: 2+8=10
As he sneaks forward through the musty tunnel, he squints through the gloom, trying to spot any trouble. He listens carefully as well, knowing sound travels as he warned the Embers. That will be to their advantage if it is not them making the noise.
Once he gets to the intersection, he pauses and listens, sharing a look with Lelith if she is there also. Unless he hears something he waits for word from Ro, or for the others to catch up before deciding on a path.
Whether Lelith will be inclined to wait is anyones guess, but he won't leave her scout alone if she chooses a path and presses on.
Greko climbs down the ladder and into the tunnels. He may not be the stealthiest in this form but he can provide other aids to his friends. He lifts his Staff of Flowers in the air which blooms several Kadupol or more commonly known as the flowers of the celestials. It provides a little light for everyone to see their surroundings and not stumble and fall. He follows behind Rum and Lelith who are stealthing their way through the tunnel. Greko lifts his snout and takes in a deep breath sniffing around for anything that may seem out of the ordinary
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Kaede is quite hesitant to jump into the tunnel, as she’s a neat freak and quite fastidious. Hesitating at the top, she quickly glances over to the Guardian desperately searching for them with the roving spotlight before a shiver once again goes down her spine.
With her thumb, she flicks off the stopper on the potion that Ro gave her, downs it in one long swig, and jumps down into the tunnel.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Tuto, could you pull out one of my light orbs and give it a good shake? My eyes are as yet only attuned to the visible spectrum of light, so I'll need some illumination to guide me." With that, he descends quickly down the ladder behind Kaede, trying his best to keep his movements smooth and quiet.
Should he be the last one in, Ro makes sure to replace the barrel lid to the tunnel's secret entrance. His eyes adjust to the darkness below but he welcomes the sources of light Greko and Oten are setting up. Ro communicates quietly to those around him, "The castle should be directly east of us, but from what I recall the tunnel does not have a straight path to it. We'll have to travel north first. The middle path should take us in that direction." The elf-dwarf also messages the same information to those who have scouted ahead.
Rum heads to the next junction, still moving quietly, all his senses directed towards spotting trouble.
As he stands at the junction, he looks West and then East.
"As friend Ro said, the castle is East, but I wonder if it is too simple a choice to head East here", he says to Lelith.
"I guess it can't hurt to check the tunnel whilst we wait for Ro to make contact", he adds with a shrug, slowly and carefully moving into the East tunnel.
"Oo...o...o...o...O!" It took Tuto a bit longer than he would like to find what his friend needed. Just how many bits, bobs and doohickies does Oten have? "..." Tuto has answered his own question. He gives the orb a quick shake, nothing. Once more. The gnome remaines lightless. He smackes the org against his mask and nearly blinds himself with the sudden light. He then crawls down behind Oten's shoulders, holding up the light orb over his friend's right shoulder.
Rum moves quietly down the eastern tunnel and follows as it turns south. With still no word from Ro, he moves further, finding two branches that head to the east; the first about 50 yards onwards from the turning south, and then again 50 yards beyond that.
His keen hearing picks out increased rat activity in the first eastern branch, but there are no other sounds of trouble.
Moving back to Lelith, he whispers, "If it is east we must go, we now have two choices. The first sounds like we will come across a number of rats, the second is quieter. We need to wait for direction from Ro, ideally".
If he hears from Ro, or the others catch up, he will relay this information.
When Kaede finally catches up with the scouts, you can see that she's definitely not in her element. Dirty, dirt-laden tunnels are no place for royalty. She'd much rather be back in her palace, being tended to by her retinue of attendants, without a care in the world. But those bastard Guardians changed all of that, didn't they? Suck it up...
What was it that my old Zen master used to say? Human life has sorrow....they who meet must part...he that is born must die.
To center herself in the here and now, she repeats those phrases over and over again in her head.
Pointing down the quiet tunnel, she whispers to the gathered team: "In solitude, we are least alone. This path, although much quieter, is likely laden with surprises."
Greko listens to Kaede and smiles seeing her relax and offer sage advice to the group. If she continues down this path of clear thinking and less “princessy”, he thinks she’d be a welcome edition to the group.
"Oo...?" Tuto's head shifts side to side. There was something else here, invading his friends privacy. Possibly too small for Oten to notice. Well, Tuto is also small, so this invader has met its match.
Investigation:18
Tuto's head cocks to the side. That cube...did it change? It reminds him of the cube, just, now it's a pyramid. Odd. Magic is often odd. Magic changes shapes all the time.
As the group meets their next set of intersections Ro advises the group, "We turn east here."
Ro then sends a message to Rum to exchange information, when inquired about which eastern branch to take Ro responds, "Both eastern branches should take us to the castle. Lady Kaede thinks the path with rats may be best, as the path that bears silence may have worse to hide. What do you th-"
Ro's telepathic communications cut short, leaving Rum alone to his own devices. The elf-dwarf feels a sudden hitch in his chest, as if something knocked the wind out of him. He leans against the tunnel wall, one hand up against the wall while the other clutching his chest. His eyes unconsciously dart across the room before laying themselves upon Oten. For a moment, Ro is entranced. Although he stares at Oten, his focus is not on the warforged specifically.
In a brief moment of clarity, Ro quickly pulls out Kazek and summons his magical quill. He scribbles hurridly into the spellbook and turns to Greko. He hands the lizardfolk Kazek, some rope and a strip of cloth, "The cube, I fear it beckons for me once more. It is but only a nagging feeling now, but I won't take any chances. Bind my hands and gag me to impede my spellcasting. I have drawn a map of these tunnels within Kazek, it shall replace me as your guide."
Within Kazek is a map of the tunnels. The map suggests the band take either of the two east leading tunnels. Then the group will take a south leading tunnel which will take the group to the exit.
"Quiet does not mean safe, it can suggest the opposite instead," Lelith replied with some hesitation to Rumble, she looked uncomfortable and disgusted by the dark damp tunnels even one who was so familiar with the wilderness as her, she didn't truthfully go about wandering in caves and sewers in her spare time. Thankfully, she could fly and not a single hair would make contact with these tunnels. Not even the barest touch with her skin or her careful and expensive fabric she called armor would be allowed. "Hmph, if I was alone I would have just flown high into the sky and entered the castle."
Ro listens quietly to Lelith's pointed remarks and Rum's comment. The elf-dwarf did not add anything more to that topic, though he had the feeling it would come up again in the future. The elf-dwarf simply joined Rum in his tired sigh and returned his mind to the task at hand.
Ro Aleron (Ro the Red) -> Illithid, Wizard 8 (Chronugist) // AURYN
As they proceed towards the farmhouse with the secret passage, Rum moves to a flanking position a little closer to the castle, keeping an eye out for anything hostile.
He wonders as he goes whether meeting Lady Kaede was coincidence, or truly the will of the Great Dragon. He also ponders whether the introduction of another personality into the already fraught mix is for the best. The Lady, after all, has significant issues of her own with her recent experiences.
The conclusion to these thoughts is a short whispered prayer in Draconic.
"Great Dragon, show us the true purpose of the Twilight Embers. Make the true and righteous path clear to us. Ensure we are able to stand as beacons of hope, and not descend into the very darkness we struggle against".
They finally reach the farmhouse, even as the first sign of the flying Guardian loomed into view and the strange, orange-yellow spotlight on its front end began to scan the ground. It was making pretty quick work of its trek as it moved toward the farmhouse, and clearly had a pretty good idea of where the destroyed constructs alarm call had sounded...
DM of AURYN: The Measure of Devotion - Escape from New York
Rum watches the airborne Guardian perform its search from an obscured position, and turns to Ro.
”We should be quick, friend Ro. We need to be in the secret passage before that thing spots us or it will not be secret any longer”, he says not taking his eyes from the Guardian.
”Assuming it is still secret now. We should be cautious, fellow Embers”, he adds warily.
”Where is the passage?”.
Kaede grits her teeth in anxiety at the looming airborne Guardian, fighting back memories of their attack on her home. She catches herself not breathing for a few moments, until she is shaken out of her stunned fear by Rum’s announcement that they need to move down to the tunnel quickly. What tunnel are they referring to? Some sort of root cellar? What’s there? she thinks to herself as they hustle into the tunnel.
I like this group….they seem to have a shared mission that parallels mine. I wonder if they’d be willing to help me rescue any survivors in the castle? she continues, lost in her own thoughts.
Last to know and first to be blamed...
As a free action, can I regret my life choices?
The Twilight Embers find the entrance to the tunnel network in the bottom of an empty barrel in the farmhouse basement, exactly where Ro expected it. The entrance to the tunnel system is dark. The tunnels are even darker as they drop into the mossy, paved corridors. It's mostly quiet, save for the scurrying of rats in the darkness. There's a musty smell that pervades everything...
DM of AURYN: The Measure of Devotion - Escape from New York
Rum looks into the barrel that Ro explained housed the secret passage, and then back at the group.
"If this is a tunnel as we suspect, we must be tread carefully, fellow Embers. Sound will echo a long way down there, and we don't want to give away our presence if we can help it", he says, smiling at Ro and Oten as he focusses more on them. "Oh, and last one in replace the top", he adds
He looks to Lelith. They have their differences in philosophy and methods, but they are both Embers, and they have a job to do. Their jobs are to scout. He gives her a silent nod, and jumps up and into the barrel.
His head pops back up unexpectedly. "Friend Ro, you can keep in touch with your whisper magic, right?", he says before descending into the tunnel, with a little bit of a clatter.
"Watch the step!", his whispered voice can be heard.
Stealth: 2+8=10
As he sneaks forward through the musty tunnel, he squints through the gloom, trying to spot any trouble. He listens carefully as well, knowing sound travels as he warned the Embers. That will be to their advantage if it is not them making the noise.
Once he gets to the intersection, he pauses and listens, sharing a look with Lelith if she is there also. Unless he hears something he waits for word from Ro, or for the others to catch up before deciding on a path.
Whether Lelith will be inclined to wait is anyones guess, but he won't leave her scout alone if she chooses a path and presses on.
Perception: 13+8=21
Greko climbs down the ladder and into the tunnels. He may not be the stealthiest in this form but he can provide other aids to his friends. He lifts his Staff of Flowers in the air which blooms several Kadupol or more commonly known as the flowers of the celestials. It provides a little light for everyone to see their surroundings and not stumble and fall. He follows behind Rum and Lelith who are stealthing their way through the tunnel. Greko lifts his snout and takes in a deep breath sniffing around for anything that may seem out of the ordinary
(25 Perception roll)
Kaede is quite hesitant to jump into the tunnel, as she’s a neat freak and quite fastidious. Hesitating at the top, she quickly glances over to the Guardian desperately searching for them with the roving spotlight before a shiver once again goes down her spine.
With her thumb, she flicks off the stopper on the potion that Ro gave her, downs it in one long swig, and jumps down into the tunnel.
Healing: 8
Last to know and first to be blamed...
As a free action, can I regret my life choices?
Tuto, could you pull out one of my light orbs and give it a good shake? My eyes are as yet only attuned to the visible spectrum of light, so I'll need some illumination to guide me." With that, he descends quickly down the ladder behind Kaede, trying his best to keep his movements smooth and quiet.
Stealth: 18
Should he be the last one in, Ro makes sure to replace the barrel lid to the tunnel's secret entrance. His eyes adjust to the darkness below but he welcomes the sources of light Greko and Oten are setting up. Ro communicates quietly to those around him, "The castle should be directly east of us, but from what I recall the tunnel does not have a straight path to it. We'll have to travel north first. The middle path should take us in that direction." The elf-dwarf also messages the same information to those who have scouted ahead.
Ro Aleron (Ro the Red) -> Illithid, Wizard 8 (Chronugist) // AURYN
The next intersection goes west, and branches, and east before it drops off south. The tunnels remain quiet...
DM of AURYN: The Measure of Devotion - Escape from New York
Rum heads to the next junction, still moving quietly, all his senses directed towards spotting trouble.
As he stands at the junction, he looks West and then East.
"As friend Ro said, the castle is East, but I wonder if it is too simple a choice to head East here", he says to Lelith.
"I guess it can't hurt to check the tunnel whilst we wait for Ro to make contact", he adds with a shrug, slowly and carefully moving into the East tunnel.
Stealth: 2+8=10
Perception: 14+8=22
"Oo...o...o...o...O!" It took Tuto a bit longer than he would like to find what his friend needed. Just how many bits, bobs and doohickies does Oten have? "..." Tuto has answered his own question. He gives the orb a quick shake, nothing. Once more. The gnome remaines lightless. He smackes the org against his mask and nearly blinds himself with the sudden light. He then crawls down behind Oten's shoulders, holding up the light orb over his friend's right shoulder.
Stealth: 14
Rum moves quietly down the eastern tunnel and follows as it turns south. With still no word from Ro, he moves further, finding two branches that head to the east; the first about 50 yards onwards from the turning south, and then again 50 yards beyond that.
His keen hearing picks out increased rat activity in the first eastern branch, but there are no other sounds of trouble.
Moving back to Lelith, he whispers, "If it is east we must go, we now have two choices. The first sounds like we will come across a number of rats, the second is quieter. We need to wait for direction from Ro, ideally".
If he hears from Ro, or the others catch up, he will relay this information.
When Kaede finally catches up with the scouts, you can see that she's definitely not in her element. Dirty, dirt-laden tunnels are no place for royalty. She'd much rather be back in her palace, being tended to by her retinue of attendants, without a care in the world. But those bastard Guardians changed all of that, didn't they? Suck it up...
What was it that my old Zen master used to say? Human life has sorrow....they who meet must part...he that is born must die.
To center herself in the here and now, she repeats those phrases over and over again in her head.
Pointing down the quiet tunnel, she whispers to the gathered team: "In solitude, we are least alone. This path, although much quieter, is likely laden with surprises."
Last to know and first to be blamed...
As a free action, can I regret my life choices?
Greko listens to Kaede and smiles seeing her relax and offer sage advice to the group. If she continues down this path of clear thinking and less “princessy”, he thinks she’d be a welcome edition to the group.
"Oo...?" Tuto's head shifts side to side. There was something else here, invading his friends privacy. Possibly too small for Oten to notice. Well, Tuto is also small, so this invader has met its match.
Investigation:18
Tuto's head cocks to the side. That cube...did it change? It reminds him of the cube, just, now it's a pyramid. Odd. Magic is often odd. Magic changes shapes all the time.
Arcana: 24
As the group meets their next set of intersections Ro advises the group, "We turn east here."
Ro then sends a message to Rum to exchange information, when inquired about which eastern branch to take Ro responds, "Both eastern branches should take us to the castle. Lady Kaede thinks the path with rats may be best, as the path that bears silence may have worse to hide. What do you th-"
Ro's telepathic communications cut short, leaving Rum alone to his own devices. The elf-dwarf feels a sudden hitch in his chest, as if something knocked the wind out of him. He leans against the tunnel wall, one hand up against the wall while the other clutching his chest. His eyes unconsciously dart across the room before laying themselves upon Oten. For a moment, Ro is entranced. Although he stares at Oten, his focus is not on the warforged specifically.
In a brief moment of clarity, Ro quickly pulls out Kazek and summons his magical quill. He scribbles hurridly into the spellbook and turns to Greko. He hands the lizardfolk Kazek, some rope and a strip of cloth, "The cube, I fear it beckons for me once more. It is but only a nagging feeling now, but I won't take any chances. Bind my hands and gag me to impede my spellcasting. I have drawn a map of these tunnels within Kazek, it shall replace me as your guide."
Within Kazek is a map of the tunnels. The map suggests the band take either of the two east leading tunnels. Then the group will take a south leading tunnel which will take the group to the exit.
Ro Aleron (Ro the Red) -> Illithid, Wizard 8 (Chronugist) // AURYN
"Quiet does not mean safe, it can suggest the opposite instead," Lelith replied with some hesitation to Rumble, she looked uncomfortable and disgusted by the dark damp tunnels even one who was so familiar with the wilderness as her, she didn't truthfully go about wandering in caves and sewers in her spare time. Thankfully, she could fly and not a single hair would make contact with these tunnels. Not even the barest touch with her skin or her careful and expensive fabric she called armor would be allowed. "Hmph, if I was alone I would have just flown high into the sky and entered the castle."
Stealth Check: 2d20kh1 (14, 8) + 7 = 21
Perception Check: 1d20 (5) + 7 =
12