Waiting just behind Jex to check the stairs Thurston barely waits when his friend nods to assure them that the staris are safe.

"We better hurry. I would rather got hit by a lightingn under the sky that beign buried alive under the mountain by some Codex that doesn't know how to open a door to get out." 

Thurston starts to walk down the stairs.

As Thurston steps down to the edge of the collapsed portion of the floor, the ground at the foot of the stairs rumbles again and an enormous monster leaps up, smashing through the ancient flagstones. The massive predator looks something like cross between a snapping turtle and an armadillo. Its mole-like claws tear through the stone like its nothing and the creature soars into the air, before landing on top of the Norscan with a thud. Thurston is abruptly knocked onto his back as the powerful beast slashes at him.

Thurston takes 13 points of bludgeoning damage and 15 points of slashing damage to vigour and 1 point of bludgeoning damage to wounds, reduced to a total of 19 and 1 by DR and soak ->18/40 Vigour, 17/18 Wounds, 1 Bleed

"Thurston!" Val immediately cries out as the monster bursts out of the large hole and tears into her friend. Without thinking twice, she hefts Rook in both hands and rushes down the steps, her heavy footfalls thudding loudly as she lets out an angry yell as the rage takes hold and Larkin's spiritual form appears next to her! She swings the massive hammer into this strange monster, but despite its size the creature ducks away and Rook whistles through the empty air. She gets as close as she can to Thurston, as Larkin maneuvers next to her to also distract the creature.

Thurston is caught totally unaware by the sudden attack of the creature that erupts under his feet. He could feel the sharp teeth and powerful jaws closing onhis body. 

The beast shakes his prey and on his surprised and shaken brain a word comes to the Norscan's mind. A jordhai, an earth shark who preys on their vicitims from below the ground surface. He could hear Val's voice call for him but he can't answer at the moment. When the beast stops for a second to check on his victim's he takes the chance. 

-¡ Let me GO!! -

Grabbing the creature's head with his both hand he smashes his head against the jordhai's. 

The beast blinks and opens his mouth in surprise. Thurston screams of pain and rage, rolling out of the creature's immediate reach. He touches his face, his nose was ina weird angle and was bleeding profusingly. Val could hear him 

"Ohh, c'mon not again... " 

He looks back to the earth shark and extended his hand, Rikkazarik flying back to his call. 

- You broke my ¡NOSE! -

he yells as he jumps and hits it in the forehead again. Thunder rumbles and lighting crosses the body of the beast. It takes a step back, momentary staggered by the ferocity of the impact. 

Thurston stands on his feet, slightly crouched, the hammer ready, growling at it and showing his teeth, blood pouring out of his broken nose. 

Aiden had heard drunken vikingr tell a story or two about "land sharks," but he had just laughed them off as delusions or grand tales. But this day had been full of strangeness already. So when the land shark leapt out of the hole and took a sizeable bite of paladin, Aiden didn't even blink twice. He calls on the power of Thor to bolster his allies and sends glowing bolts of electric energy into Thurston, Valaith, and Jex. 

Vark is just about to head on down the stairs behind Thurston when the massive bulette ambushes the paladin. The sorcerer braces his feet against the stairs as his companions leap into action. Knowing the thick carapace of the creature will only yield to substantial damage, Vark first mutters an infernal phrase to bolster his power. Geometric glyphs momentarily appear around the creature before coalescing upon it like a bullseye with a flash of red light. Then Vark channels his elemental magic with a primordial chant and unleashes a crackling arc of ruby lightning. The bolt strikes through the center of the glyph and connects with the creatures flank where it begins searing into its hide.

With Larking shielding Thurston, the bulette turns its wrath on the shouting goliath, lurching forwards with impressive speed to clamp its powerful jaws down on Valaith's left arm.

Valaith takes 74 piercing damage to vigour and 4 piercing damage to wounds, reduced to 70 & 4 by DR, reduced to 35 & 4 by resistance -> 10/45 Vigour, 14/18 Wounds, 4 Bleed

Jex's action.

Valen springs to action, caught by a rush of adrenaline to act! He grabs hold of Val by the shoulder of her bitten arm and hammers aimlessly at the bullette's jaw. His eyes flash a brilliant gold, and a wave of light erupts from his hands. A final heave wrenches the goliath free and renews some fight in her bleeding limb.

Jex rolls forwards, drawing a scimitar. Leaping up he slashes deep into the creature causing it to cry out in pain before leaping back out of reach. 

Val grunts in pain as the beast clamps down hard upon her left arm and ravages the muscle and bone; blood begins to ooze from the wound it leaves behind as she wrenches her appendage free when the bulette cries out from the wound dealt to it by Jex. She pants heavily even after receiving a bit of healing energy from Vale. She casts the paladin a thankful glance before turning her attention back to the beast. She raises Rook high above her head and brings it down with a heavy grunt of effort, pain shooting up the torn muscles and flesh of her left arm. With a satisfying crack, Rook splits the heavy armored hide and bone of the beast as it collapses to the ground. As the telltale black sparks of her hammer twirl up the haft of Rook and into the injuries on her arm, Val slams the maul into the creature once more for good measure to ensure it was dead. "That one... hurt..." She says between gritted teeth as Larkin turns to glance at his little sister with pride before turning into a swirl of ghostly mists and disappearing inside of Valaith... "This had better...be worth...it." She forces the words out between heavy breaths. "...need a moment... before we move on..." Her normally deep grey skin was looking a bit paler than usual after this fight.

After the battle has ended, Val sits down on the stone stairwell and allows the healer, Valen, to tend to her wounds. She thanks both Valen and Aiden as they do their best to mend her injuries and wounds. After Valen tightly wraps some healing poultices around her left arm, Val nods to the healer.She spends the next bit of time, allowing her arm to rest, but still moving it around to prevent the muscles from becoming too stiff.

As the groups wraps up their brief respite she draws a beautiful chalice from her backpack, fills it with water from her skin, and quickly downs the contents without a word. She does this four more times, wiping her lips clean with the back of her hand and leaving a slight smudge of crimson at the corners of her lips as she grimaces at the heavy iron taste of the liquid. She sits back and allows the strange magic to work in her as she feels herself greatly empowered. As she stands, the others find Valaith suddenly beautiful, incredibly beautiful even the awful scar that runs the length of her face has minimized into a sensual line. She looks very much like a warrior-queen of the mountains, a woman that any man would die for simply to stand beside...

Aiden moves over to the goliath and lays a hand on her well-sculpted shoulder. "That was quite a hit you took," he says as he channels a pulse of healing energy into her body. It arcs over her grey skin and restores some of her previous deep grey, but something about the magic within her resists some of the healing. "Well struck," he says, furrowing his brow in confusion.

He sits down on the steps for his own moment of respite. As the goliath drinks, he catches a slight coppery smell, and looks over just in time to see her stand, looking every bit like an aspect of Freya. A few different lines of thought flash through his mind at once, and the undeveloped cave-man brain at the back of his real brain jumps back and forth between fight her, mate with her, and run from her.

"Uh..." he chokes back on his stammering as his eyes trace the lines of Valaith's body. Shaking himself out of his newfound stupor, he latches onto the first distracting thing he can find that isn't part of her. "Is that old Breannian steel?" he asks, pointing to a finely-crafted sword at her side.

 Valaith notices the stammer in Aiden's voice and the flush to his cheeks, and notices where his eyes linger before they shift towards the sword at her hip. She raises an eyebrow, but part of her also finds that she appreciates the hungry look in his eyes. It had been a long time since anyone had looked at her in that way; dwarves always had a mistrustful gleam in their eyes when they fell upon her, the elves were too skinny and frail and did not appreciate her strength, and the others... the little ones. Well, they were too much like little children to ever amount to much next to massive warrior she was. Still... she draws the blade quickly and wordlessly with a flourish, aiming the tip of the blade down towards Aiden and looking down at him along the edge of Kung's former blade. "Indeed it is. Taken from the body of Warlord Kung after his defeat in the Battle of Sheercleft. This weapon spilled much of our blood on those grounds. Do you wish to see it?" She spins it around and taking it carefully by the blade, offers it hilt-first to the young Norscan.

Aiden takes the blade and examines it. It had a perfect balance, a comfortable grip, and was wickedly sharp. It had been a long time since he'd wielded anything like this. His warhammer was fine, but nothing like this. He looks down its length and gives a few precise, experimental swings. "It's very well made. This Kung must have been very wealthy," he looks back at Valaith. "I assume he's dead now."

Valaith nods grimly. "Indeed. A thief more like. He was a fox among goats. Hired by some Breannian wizards to invade the village and kill the occupants after they had finished what they were doing. Something to do with..." she gestures around the area. "All of this. He was a cunning warrior, but not smart enough. He was not worthy of such a blade. I claimed it as part of my portion of his defeat. It is a beautiful weapon, but... it is no match for the likes of Rook." She proudly pats the haft of her maul. "This was my brother's weapon after all."

The sword in Aiden's hand is forgotten for a moment. "Speaking of your brother, I meant to ask," he says, gesturing to both Rook and Valaith. "How are you feeling? Is it any...different? It seems like you...resisted...my healing magic. Is that new?"

 Valaith looks genuinely surprised for a moment when Aiden asks his question. She stops and stares at him for several long seconds, clearly unsure how exactly to answer. She could not recall the last time anyone outside her tribe had thought to ask about her. Not her intentions, her wounds, her ability to fight, but her as a person and her brother even. "I..." she rubs her left arm absently, appreciating the opportunity to look down at the bandages instead of Aiden's keen eyes. "I feel different. Good, better, I think. I do not feel as cold anymore. It is still there, I can feel it, but since Larkin came into me it has lessened. Resisted your healing? I... am not sure what the means. I do not know."

"You don't have to talk about it," he says, mistaking the aversion of her gaze as a moment of reluctance. "I'm afraid I don't know much about healing...not enough to know what's going on. Spirituality...is really not my area of expertise."

He flips the sword over in his grip and offers it back to Valaith. "Here," he says. "It's a beautiful weapon."

Val shakes her head and holds her hand out, palm towards Aiden as her gaze takes in the old, worn hammer hanging from his side. "Keep it. Such a beautiful weapon deserves to be wielded in battle, not hanging uselessly from my side." She begins to remove the beautiful fur-wrapped belt and scabbard. "Consider this repayment for what you did for me and Larkin. You may well have saved his spirit from whatever resides within Rook. I could never repay you for what you did, but I can at least give you this." Once Aiden takes the belt from her, she sits once more with a heavy sigh. "Your words earlier, they did not offend me. I... it has been a long time since anyone outside my tribe has asked me how I felt. My companions are stalwart, but..." she shrugs. "It is okay, your words just caught me off-guard. I am too used to being treated with mistrust and suspicion I suppose."

He takes the belt and sheaths the sword in the scabbard, then fastens the belt around his waist, accepting the payment without fuss. "Thank you," he simply says. Unsure what to do, he sits back down on the steps next to her. "Mistrust and suspicion...I suppose I know a bit of what that's like. Norscans generally aren't a welcoming people -- at least not to outsiders. They're afraid because you're different, and that lets them say and do bad things. And they'll never be wrong in their own minds." He shrugs, and gestures to the rest of the party. "They seem like good enough people. I know that Thurston is -- one of the few Norscans that didn't treat me like a thrall. Don't be too hard on them. I think they assume you're okay because you're usually always okay."

As the others go to rest, Jex sits with the boxes as he catches his breath. They are covered with mechanical locks and intricate carvings, but no apparent keyhole. Reading the runes, Jex is quick to discover a simple numerical puzzle. With a head for figures and twisting logic to suit his own reality a natural part of his life, the puzzle is a quick solve for Jex and one by one he springs the locks to reveal the treasures beneath. Looking at them one by one he sets them aside for Vark to assess for magical potential before casting a second eye over them to assess their potential value.