Tazla stands up her long black silken hair still slightly damp. As she is feeling along the wall back turned towards the strange company. "The names Tazla though I dont plan on keeping you all company much longer if I can help it." She lets out coldly a hint of anger swelling beneath the words now moving alongside the room checking the wall with her hands , leaning in against it and listening. She didnt like hearing that voice in her head and judging by everyone else reactions they either heard the same thing or something close. "And I dont plan on being some pawn on someones board!" She snarls out stomping her feet out of frustration as she stares at the ceiling then the hole unsure if and where their would be kidnapper is watching from.  She would chastise herself on that later and feel guilty over letting her anger spill out but for now her panic is overtaking the better of her. A shaky hand holding a stone with string looped around the hole in its center.     

Atticus

I slowly rise to me feet using my staff for leverage. I fix my beard into a tidy fluff of white hair before brushing the dust from my robes. I do not panic. I’m too old to panic. I find my hat on the ground where I had been laying. I reach over to pick it up and cover my head. I look at the others. 

Strange. Very very strange Atticus. The last thing I remember is being in my study. It was a late evening, picking through potion books trying to find an invisibility spell. Could this be my own doing? The reason I’m here? No, most positively not. Why would the others be here as well. Who are these other anyways? There must be an explanation for all of this. But what.........?

After noting the unnatural darkness and the sudden appearance of a rope, I approach the hole. Can I tell if this is some sort of harmful magic causing this? 

Arcana: 18 (that’s not a great start) 

After checking the hole, I turn to tell the others of my discovery (if there is one). I lean hard on my staff as the blue gen begins to slightly glow. “I am Atticus Kane. Seems we are in for some adventure together. I am not sure how we have arrived here, but it seems this is the only way out. Who is going to be the first down?”

Atticus, you peer at the dark hole. Its darkness is definitely caused by some kind of magic, You are unsure if it could be dangerous or not. Yet there is only one way to go in this cave, and thats down. 

Who's doing what?

"Oh how rude of me, my name is Felicity. I wish we were making each other's acquaintance under better circumstances." 

She'll peer down into the darkness below. "Well... I don't exactly relish the thought of going down there but... we also can't just sit here forever can we." Nervous, but also itching with curiosity she will reach for the rope. "Well you know what they say: Ladies first and all that."  She will dip a foot down into the darkness and, provided nothing terrible happens, will start to inch her way down the rope.

As you foot touches the darkness of the Hole Felicity you notice a temperature difference, The space in which the darkness holds is slightly colder then the room temperature of the cave. Its not chilly or freezing by any means but definitely a few degrees colder. 

After a few moments Felicity vanishes into the darkness after having inched her way down the rope.

Felicity

You descend down the rope for what seems like 20 feet without hitting bottom, The darkness still surrounds you. Strange dissonant whispers float by your ears, Unable to make out what they are saying. after another 10 feet you come to the end of the Rope, Looking down all you see is darkness. 

"Once more into the Fray, Into the first Ordeal you must go, There is no going back only forward, For that you must Let Go." The Voice returns to you Felicity, you instantly understand what you must do and you do not like it.

Blue kept a close eye on the brave woman who went first and watched until she slipped past the darkness unseeable. He grabs his hammer with both hands and whispers to it for a few seconds. 

For anyone listening.

The light on his hammer grows brighter shedding red light like fire embers around him. He holsters his hammer still shedding light and goes down the rope carefully and slowly calling out to Felicity to check she is safe.  

Stanford 

While the Ember like light does fill the cave in a soft reddish glow as soon as you Enter the Darkness of the hole the light is swallowed, All you see is darkness you cant even see the rope you are holding onto. You descend for 30 feet, Strange dissonant whispers floating threw the darkness. Eventually you come to the bottom of the rope but you do not find Felicity.

The same Guttural voice seeps into your mind.  "Once more into the Fray, Into the first Ordeal you must go, There is no going back only forward, For that you must Let Go"

You reach up to grab the rope on a higher angle but your hand meets a smooth, stone surface. You find the rope protruding from a slab of stone 2 feet above your head, You know what the voice meant by there is no going back.

Felicity

You do not hear anyone calling out to you, Just the strange whispers floating by. 

Atticus 

I stow my staff and will follow behind the paladin as he descends into the darkness. I cast light on the gem of my staff as the tip protrudes from my pack. 

Felicity will look up at Blue, looking a bit pale. "This is unfortunate." She will swallow heavily and close her eyes. "I'll shout up that I'm okay... if I can."

 Though not a very religious woman, Felicity will mutter a little prayer to the platinum dragon... and let go of the rope.

Felicity You let go of the rope and fall. Falling and falling, the rush of wind passing you. You close your eyes as you expect impact yet you feel your feet hit ground. Opening your eyes you find yourself in a 40 foot wide, 60 foot high square room. Fashioned from worked stone bricks that the entire room is lined with. Looking up, expecting to see where you came from you see a smooth stone ceiling with no sign of a passage in it. 

The sound of bone grinding against bone, 20 feet from you you see two piles of bone begin to shift and move. The bones connect to eachother and rise, Now standing 20 feet from you are Two skeletons, each carrying a rusted longsword.  

(Should have said this previously but Felicity actually didnt know Stanford was in the hole with her, She did not feel him or notice his presence in anyway. While she was clutching onto the end of the rope, So is stanford.)

Atticus

The same darkness swallows your being, Your light is overcome by the darkness and soon you are descending into nothing. You cannot see anything, you cannot hear anyone. You cant hear anything for that matter no whispers float by your ears. The voice does creep back into your mind, "Once more into the Fray, Into the first Ordeal you must go, There is no going back only forward, For that you must Let Go"

Tazla looks around at the ones remaining and lets out a sigh. Seeing others take action as she threw a tantrum has calmed her nerves down a great deal. As she steps towards the hole and lets her glaive dip in and eerily sink into the darkness she pulls it back up reholstering it to her back. She holds tight to the stone tied around her neck before readying her self, "Talos if we meet today .... I'll kick your ass." Taking refugee in no one from her church being near to chastise her unique way of prayer. Being reminded of how it feels to dive into the dark depths of the ocean Tazla simply takes a step forward. Thinking to herself if its magical a rope wont make a difference and would only have her constantly doubting herself. She steps off the edge and falls into the darkness gracefully.

Hawk and Imrass watch as the Triton walks up to the hole of darkness, In which three of the strangers has already vanished. A seeming display of either confidence, faith or stupidity. Tazla leaps into the air over the hole and falls into darkness. 

Tazla your being is swallowed by the absence of light, a rush of cold chills you but its comforting. Your not falling, it almost feels like floating. After a moment you blink and your standing by the Elven female who introduced herself as Felicity. 

Felicity you see Tazla fall threw the ceiling of the cave and land gracefully next to you. 

Hawk watched as the humans and elves introduced themselves. Either they could not tell he was a Orc, or they did not care. Either way it was good for the Soldier of Arc. Before Hawk could say anything the goodly races began to move toward the hole. One after another they went into the darkness. Why were they so fearless? Here Hawk was scared of being attacked, and they were marching into the unkown. Bah! It was a shame. A shame upon him. 

"In the name of Arc", roard Hawk. "When I find you, who have kidnapped us all and brought us to this place I will bring the law down upon you. I swear this!"With that Hawk prepared himself for whatever horrors awaited him. He would beat this twisted game and bring this fiend to justice. Hawk had a city to clean up and a legacy to build. He did not have time to waste in this dirty cave. 

"Light", spoke Hawk as he cast his cantrip on his shield. He then moved to the hole, and grabbed the rope. Hawk prepared himself as he climbed down into the darkness. 

Imras watches as the others take turns climbing (or jumping) into the hole.  He's somewhat comforted by the fact that he hasn't heard any screams, but only marginally, since there's also been no shouts confirming that they were safe.  Peering around the cave one last time, confirming that there is no other way out, he makes his way to the hole, shaking his head at what he knows is required.  Finally, with a shrug, muttering to himself the whole time about what a terrible idea this is, he casts a Minor Illusion over the hole to make it look like a pool of water, then grabs the rope loosely in one hand and jumps in.

Blue will drop will continue down to the very edge of the rope, seeing that there is no other way to go her will drop down. 

Hawk vanishes into the dark, lowering his large form down the rope hand over hand. Eventually coming to the end of the rope.

Imras you leap, with a loose grip on the rope. As soon as your entire body is in the dark hole your feet hit ground and you find yourself staring at Tazla and Felicity. 

Stanford, you let go off the rope and in the blink of an eye you find yourself standing next to Imras, Felicity and Tazla

At this point the Four in the new chamber hear the rattling of bones and a horrible laugh echo threw the chamber as 2 more skeletons rise from the pile of bones and join the others. Now four in total, they stand 20 feet away from the three of you. Unmoving but facing in your direction. 

Hawk you eventually come to the end of the rope yet no voice comes to you. You reach up and find a solid slab of stone blocking the way back. 

Hawk and Atticus the two of you now hang from a rope, near the very end. You have not encountered each other on the rope, you have no idea where the others are.

Blue looks around to each of the faces of the people next to him.

"So you are down here to, weird that the rope stop at the roof, never the less... are any of those yours?"

He pulls his hammer in his right hand and his shield in his left, which is the shape of half a cog that almost fits to the edge of his body. The light still spilling embers from it. 

“The rope stopped...huh?” Imras says. “The rope went down into the hole: it was nowhere near the ceiling. And it wasn’t more than a handful of feet deep before I ended up...wherever here is.”

Atticus will release his grip at the end of the rope. After making contact with the ground, he will withdraw his staff, again leaning on it.