Nenne turns to him, impassive and projecting calm. "Such as what, marksman?" she asks, her tone controlled and betraying little. "It's somewhat out of character for you to be so anxious when the danger is not immediate. Do you know something we do not?"
“Thats the thing!” He scrambles his hands in front of himself. “We don’t know what it could be! This lack of knowledge puts us in danger. We must approach this place with extreme caution!” He looks back up the stairs. “Maybe that creature lured us down here to flank us.”
"Ye seem to be gettin' yer undies in a bunch gnome. Ye feelin' alright?" He looks to Nenne and nods, "Lookin' fer the creature be a good idea. It might lead us somewhere or... nowhere. Be better to find out if ye ask me."
Allister walks up and down the entrance of the tunnel, his impatience very obvious. „Okay, we have to go now or turn around and get back upstairs. Whatever that was knows we’re here anyway. Just squishing moss will not bring us any further.“ His rapier pointing down the tunnel, his left hand pointing up he asks „Where do we go?“
"Could try the ol' try to talk the the guard." Figiting with the mask on Lemon, he walks about 10ft to the guard and looks to the group. "Ye all can watch, or join me. But somethin' be behind that there door."
"I doubt upstairs is any safer than this," the cleric says with a listless shrug. "We came here to find the Soulmonger. We will be in danger until it is destroyed and we are outside once again. And if Acererak indeed awaits us, there is much more danger to face until our task is complete. Now is not the time to lose heart." She looks kindly upon Glimbul and Orvex. "Or be reckless," she adds to Lemon, with patience.
"Direction matters little to me," she says to Allister. "At this stage, we are chasing specters and guessing no matter which way we tread. It's very possible we were lured down here. If our goal is to search every crevice of this tomb, we should backtrack. However, I doubt our prize is hidden anywhere this close to the entrance. So if our goal is speed, we should press onward. All this begs the question: what is our strategy?"
"If there be a god per floor, there be at least nine. If a floor alone is reserved fer the soul thing... then there be ten. It also seems to be that there be a guardian on each floor. There be six undead up stairs, and maybe these two represent the guardians on this 'ere floor." He looks to his companions. "No more jokin' around. No cowering, none. We advance like ye said elf. I say we figure out this puzzle, then get out of this 'ere tomb." Lemon eyes Glimbul. "Be yerself gnome. Let not the god make ye choices. Ye too came 'ere for a purpose. It may be down 'ere."
“These are my choices!!!! How do you all think you can handle an arch-lich at your current level? How do you know there is only one god per floor? We have only explored one room of this place before coming this far! Do you think things will be easier the further down we get? This is madness!!” The gnome growing in frustration rants to the dwarf
Allister stares in disbelief at the bickering. Finally he throws up his arms in defeat. „You know what? Let’s get back upstairs. Whatever that was is long gone, maybe coming with reinforcements. I don’t wanna stand here next to these beasts when it or they come. We can look for clues how to get through this on the first floor. That’s how games work, right? The rules are explained at the beginning.“ Allister starts walking to the stairs. „Nenne, there is no strategy here. We search everything, find everything we need, kill everything and survive.“
It looks as if Lemon has something to say, and yet stops himself. He looks to the two guards and gives a sigh. "It better be somthin' worth it than jus' talkin' to these fellas." The dwarf turns to the stairs and begins muttering to himself, his shield showing viable displeasement.
"I believe the warrior just laid out our strategy, then," the eladrin comments in a composed tone. She speaks up, "Let's go on, then. Back up and investigate cautiously, as we did before. And please, for the love of all things holy, stop touching things until we reconvene upstairs." She sighs and follows the fighter.
Back upstairs Allister points to the alcove to the east. „You wanna check this place over there? At least we don’t have to make a decision where to go from there.“
The undead creatures gnash through the door holes as the party passes them a second time, but the ascent back to the first floor goes by otherwise uneventful.
Allister leads the party around the balcony to the wide passsage flanking the way in to find a curious skull carving. A giant stone skull crusted with moss juts out from the end of the passageway. A flame flickers within each of its eye sockets, and a view into a chamber beyond can be seen through its open jaws. The jaws are big enough for a man to step through.
Skulls crusted with dried mud glower from niches cut into the walls of this tomb. A stone sarcophagus stands at the center of the next chamber, its lid adorned with a coiled serpent carved in relief. Behind the sarcophagus, resting atop a marble pedestal, is an ornate crystal box with a small humanoid skull floating inside it.
"Yes, I've seen the eyes as well," Nenne replies mildly. "It is safe to assume we are constantly being watched."
She turns to the fighter. "There is no sign of this creature. We can attempt to find it, though I suspect it might be luring us somewhere."
“See there is nothing here. Let us go back to the top floor. Otherwise we may be surrounded from what lies above!” Glimbul says a bit panicked
Nenne turns to him, impassive and projecting calm. "Such as what, marksman?" she asks, her tone controlled and betraying little. "It's somewhat out of character for you to be so anxious when the danger is not immediate. Do you know something we do not?"
“Thats the thing!” He scrambles his hands in front of himself. “We don’t know what it could be! This lack of knowledge puts us in danger. We must approach this place with extreme caution!” He looks back up the stairs. “Maybe that creature lured us down here to flank us.”
"Ye seem to be gettin' yer undies in a bunch gnome. Ye feelin' alright?" He looks to Nenne and nods, "Lookin' fer the creature be a good idea. It might lead us somewhere or... nowhere. Be better to find out if ye ask me."
Made you look.
Glimbul looks to Lemon as if he is crazy. “Are we going to listen to someone that just lost a fight with moss?”
Allister walks up and down the entrance of the tunnel, his impatience very obvious. „Okay, we have to go now or turn around and get back upstairs. Whatever that was knows we’re here anyway. Just squishing moss will not bring us any further.“ His rapier pointing down the tunnel, his left hand pointing up he asks „Where do we go?“
"Could try the ol' try to talk the the guard." Figiting with the mask on Lemon, he walks about 10ft to the guard and looks to the group. "Ye all can watch, or join me. But somethin' be behind that there door."
Made you look.
“Of course we should head back up. Lemon seems to be suicidal” he says as he looks between the upstairs and lemon walking ahead.
"I doubt upstairs is any safer than this," the cleric says with a listless shrug. "We came here to find the Soulmonger. We will be in danger until it is destroyed and we are outside once again. And if Acererak indeed awaits us, there is much more danger to face until our task is complete. Now is not the time to lose heart." She looks kindly upon Glimbul and Orvex. "Or be reckless," she adds to Lemon, with patience.
"Direction matters little to me," she says to Allister. "At this stage, we are chasing specters and guessing no matter which way we tread. It's very possible we were lured down here. If our goal is to search every crevice of this tomb, we should backtrack. However, I doubt our prize is hidden anywhere this close to the entrance. So if our goal is speed, we should press onward. All this begs the question: what is our strategy?"
Lemon turns to Nenne, points behind him and says, "Ye or I can check with them guards and see what they want us to do."
Lemon, looking up and shouting to the guards Lemon says, "Hey! Ye know what be behind those doors?"
Made you look.
“The strategy should be to be cautious. When searching through this place. There could be more gods to help us on the floor above as well”
"If there be a god per floor, there be at least nine. If a floor alone is reserved fer the soul thing... then there be ten. It also seems to be that there be a guardian on each floor. There be six undead up stairs, and maybe these two represent the guardians on this 'ere floor." He looks to his companions. "No more jokin' around. No cowering, none. We advance like ye said elf. I say we figure out this puzzle, then get out of this 'ere tomb." Lemon eyes Glimbul. "Be yerself gnome. Let not the god make ye choices. Ye too came 'ere for a purpose. It may be down 'ere."
Made you look.
“These are my choices!!!! How do you all think you can handle an arch-lich at your current level? How do you know there is only one god per floor? We have only explored one room of this place before coming this far! Do you think things will be easier the further down we get? This is madness!!” The gnome growing in frustration rants to the dwarf
Allister stares in disbelief at the bickering. Finally he throws up his arms in defeat. „You know what? Let’s get back upstairs. Whatever that was is long gone, maybe coming with reinforcements. I don’t wanna stand here next to these beasts when it or they come. We can look for clues how to get through this on the first floor. That’s how games work, right? The rules are explained at the beginning.“ Allister starts walking to the stairs. „Nenne, there is no strategy here. We search everything, find everything we need, kill everything and survive.“
It looks as if Lemon has something to say, and yet stops himself. He looks to the two guards and gives a sigh. "It better be somthin' worth it than jus' talkin' to these fellas." The dwarf turns to the stairs and begins muttering to himself, his shield showing viable displeasement.
Made you look.
"I believe the warrior just laid out our strategy, then," the eladrin comments in a composed tone. She speaks up, "Let's go on, then. Back up and investigate cautiously, as we did before. And please, for the love of all things holy, stop touching things until we reconvene upstairs." She sighs and follows the fighter.
Back upstairs Allister points to the alcove to the east. „You wanna check this place over there? At least we don’t have to make a decision where to go from there.“
The undead creatures gnash through the door holes as the party passes them a second time, but the ascent back to the first floor goes by otherwise uneventful.
Allister leads the party around the balcony to the wide passsage flanking the way in to find a curious skull carving. A giant stone skull crusted with moss juts out from the end of the passageway. A flame flickers within each of its eye sockets, and a view into a chamber beyond can be seen through its open jaws. The jaws are big enough for a man to step through.
Skulls crusted with dried mud glower from niches cut into the walls of this tomb. A stone sarcophagus stands at the center of the next chamber, its lid adorned with a coiled serpent carved in relief. Behind the sarcophagus, resting atop a marble pedestal, is an ornate crystal box with a small humanoid skull floating inside it.
Allister sighs. „This is not what I expected. Did anyone see a plaque anywhere?“