"Pay for clearing out your bug problem? Sounds good to me. Besides I haven't really let loose sense Argos, so I've been itching to roast something." She stands from the chair her tail lashing back and forth with her obvious impatience.

When the half elf introduces herself Cinder looks over and nods. "Hey the more the merrier," she says with a grin, "I'm Cinder. If you need anything roasted, cauterized, or generally set on fire then I'm your girl."

Ereni bobs her head shyly, touching the longbow slung at her back as if for good luck.

"Set on fire..." she drawls thickly in Cinder's general direction.  "My old Sergeant told me once that fire is a fickle mistress.  Damned if I know what 'fickle' means, but I never saw none of his 'mistresses' burn nothing 'cept soup.  Looking forward to seeing what you got."

Ereni mumbles a sincere thanks to Malenia for her condolences on her deceased comrade once she is able to shut her jaw.  Which had dropped open slightly from just now realizing that she is seeing a centaur up close in person.  She gives Stasolya, and the others but mostly Stasolya, an awkward bow.

"Felt something.  In my head while back," she manages to continue.  "I have... bad dreams sometimes, but this was... this was different.  Like I lost something.  Like we all did.  Almost forgot why I was here, but I'm glad I found you all.  Helped remind me.  Kruthiks it is, then."

Still speaking to the party, having barely acknowledged the mayor.  "You were in Argos?  Something happen there?"

"Yes, something terrible," Stasolya replies, her eyes growing misty, as if looking far off into the distance. She seems to look far beyond her companions in the room. Plaintive and high, a song comes to her lips, a reprise of one she sang back in Argos, adding new verses in her attempt to describe the tragedy.

"The highest wave you've ever seen,
Drew back from scuttled shore.
Fish beached and gasped and struggled vain,
As darkly screamed the storm.

A tidal wave! A mountain!
But it did not stop at shore!
A thousand slimy arms and fins
Struck the town and roared…

Bring me the Princess Andromeda!
The squall and gale screamed.
The sky and sea wept bitter tears,
And chaos won, it seemed.

The Princess stood alone and tall
To face the stormy sea.
Behind her Argos in the squall,
She went for you, she went for me…"

The centaur trails off at the end of her song, pain streaking her voice, one hoof that was tapping a sad rhythm going still on the floor. She bows her head.

It's clear Ereni is hardly one to turn to for lore.

Yet as she stands transfixed by the centaur's song, she is stunned.  Dumbfounded.  There are tears in her eyes.  She whispers.

"I... I've never seen half the things I wanted, and never wanted half the things I've seen.  But Princess Andromeda.  Taken by the ocean?  By the storm?"

"Taken by Queen Bavmorda," Stasolya says sadly, tears in her eyes, her voice thick with the unshedding of them. "As was told to us by one warrior of the Ivory Tower who fought the terrible beast. He gave me this." She touches the AURYN medallion hanging around her neck. "We all tried to fight, and we failed."

"But we will not stop trying. Our task is greater than our strength, surely, but we are not alone."

Ereni gapes for a moment, noticing the AURYN medallion for the first time.

Despite herself, she inadvertently starts mumbling "told by one warrior of the Ivor-" before her jaw clamps shut and her expression goes blank.

She shakes her head.  "Anyway, best be going.  Reckon it would be rude to keep those Kruthiks waiting before trying to murder 'em.  We agree on pay?"

She glances at the mayor for only the second time since she arrived.

"Ayup.  You'll be paid."  Mayor Thorin says, oblivious to if he's being asked or if its repeated commentary.  "Just don't blow up the mine, aye?  Minimize damage."  

Thorin seems disinterested in further conversation.  He licks two of his fat, greasy fingers and reaches back to the desktop, flipping through pages of paper.  

The mine was less than a mile outside of town.  A shelf of rock stuck out of the ground where a natural crack marked the entrance.  The people of Jappiter had gone into the crack, put up braces, hung lanterns, and started to dig many years ago.  Now, though, those lanterns hung dead in the deepening darkness that recessed into the crust of Hyboria.  Nothing stirred.  No rats.  No bats.  No wind.  The descending tunnel goes down and down and down...

"We goin' in quiet like a mouse hunting cats or loud like a dog hunting cats?"  Ereni looks glum as usual, voice a dolorous monotone.  "I say we do the mouse thing.  Dogs always pissed on my sleeping spot on the floor of the hovel we grew up in.  Those were my wonder years.  Later we fell on hard times.  Got leaks in our roof to let the rain in.  Dogs and gods alike enjoy pissing on me."  Ironically, she allows a small wry smile at that.

"If we go quiet, I can scout ahead.  Any of you have that trick of sending messages in my head so I can reply back like the mages in my old unit?  And if someone knows anything about Kruthiks, now's the time to speak up."  She looks around, clearly expecting others to make decisions.

Malenia flicks her hood back up, peering into the deep tunnel. Attempting to spot anything out of the ordinary, at least anything that sticks out. On que, Malenia sends a Message to Ereni. "Not quite a Mage, But I'd prefer it if we we're Mice." Malenia crouches low to the ground, intending on Scouting with Ereni. "The Newcomer and I can keep a watchful eye, the rest can follow a ways back." She looks over her shoulder, making eye contact with each of her companions. 

"Sounds like a plan." Cinder says, "Normally I don't do the whole sneaking thing. Too boring. I'd prefer a dramatic entrance with fireworks if possible. But I'll go with the mouse strategy this time since we dont know where these kruthik are or how they work."

The corridor leading into the mine is quiet.  Deep.  Long.  The path has been worn slick from years of feet trekking into and out of the belly of the world.  Nothing stirs as Malenia and Ereni take the lead.  The tunnel goes on and on, at least a quarter mile, maybe further...and then branches in three different directions...

Ereni again breaks into a brief, uncharacteristic smile on her normally glum face as Malenia sends her a Message and joins her in scouting ahead.

"Better two scouts than one dead one.  Maybe keep sending the Messages?  You might not see me in the dark, even with darkvision.  But if we keep talking, we might not end up as Kruthik bait.  I can see out to 90 feet in the dark - if the coast is clear, you can Message back to the rest to follow."

As the two advance into the darkness, sure enough, Ereni disappears to both normal vision and darkvision, her green cloak blending into the rocks around her.  Descending into the darkness.  At the three-way junction, Ereni would defer the decision to Malenia.

Stasolya, built to run over vast distances, can't shake a qualm of uneasiness at descending a tunnel deep into the earth. Especially not one so slick and smooth. It's a struggle for her hooves not to slip, and impossible to dampen the clopclop-clop-clop of her step. But she follows behind with Ventris and Cinder as quietly as she may.

Stealth: 4 

Malenia keeps low and close to the left side of the tunnel as they move through, Periodically sending a message to Ereni  to ensure they do not get seperated. Once they reach the branch, she will stop for a moment. Look down each tunnel, specifically looking at the ground to determine which path has seen the most use. 

She will also send a Message to Stasoyla, "We've reached a fork in the tunnel, Stop for just a moment to allow us to determine which one to follow." 

Ereni instinctively mirrors Malenia but on the right side of the passage, invisible in the darkness and replying to Malenia's periodic Messages to let her know her position or if she sees anything.  Trying to be quiet and keep a low profile:

Stasolya, hearing the Message, pauses and holds out a hand to halt the other two. "Our scouts have asked us to wait...there is a fork in the tunnel ahead." She stands quietly, but tense and alert, stock still.

Cinder nods and stops, but does not say anything in response. She watches the dark tunnel, her eyes cutting through some of the gloom ahead. 

The tunnels remain slick, open....unoccupied.  They stretch down into Hyboria for a considerable distance before the scouting party finally arrives at a crossroads.  There is a small base of operations in an opening at the end of three tunnels, with cots, beds, tables, and dead lanterns scattered about like it's been a camp.  

There is no sign of life whatsoever...

"Lively place," drawls Ereni in a whisper.  "Reminds me of my hometown tavern, but with cleaner floors.  Could do with a little music."

She looks around the cots, beds and tables for signs that would indicate how long ago he miners had been here (unfinished food, dust coating, etc.) and which of the three tunnels in front of them show the heaviest signs of foot traffic.  (Looking for other tracks too, though may not be possible in the rock.)

(Unless she sees something, she defers the choice on which way to go to Malenia, as if accustomed to taking orders from a superior officer.)

Ereni points at tiny divots in the stone, as if made by something walking on spiked claws, and then remembers Malenia can't see her.

I'm not used to scouting in tandem yet.  Better improve on that or two scouts will soon turn into zero scouts.

She steps closer to her fellow scout and whispers:  "I see small divots in the stone, maybe made by some creature walking on spiked claws.  Kruthiks?  There are divots down all three paths for what it is worth.  Choose one and let's keep moving?"

Ereni has her longbow held in one hand, eyes straining to see any movement with her 90' darkvision.