((Is there anything interesting about the black marble slab that Fianna has noticed and is examining or... is is just a big black marble slab?))

     "I can allow some of us to fly down," Fianna says, absently, still examine the piece of marble that is distracting her. "Prolly the rest of us, if we take turns..."

Jahren says kiddingly "well someone had better keep an eye on our ravenous friend lest his stomach lead him astray."  While he often just uses his magical instrument briefly to enhance his magic, this time he pulls it out and plays several seconds of an enchanting melody and smiles as his feet lift off the ground.  Preferring this method over trying to navigate his carpet in too tight a space, he asks to make sure everyone else has means to make it down below and then flies after Chen, hoping to keep eyes on him in his magical cloud form.

Fianna examines the marble.  No...nothing unusual, aside from the fact that it matched her vision. But...maybe she saw it and made it part of her vision...or....  or who knows, maybe this place is actually a giant marble chess board.  Maybe it's not as symbolic as she thinks.  Either way, the slab doesn't seem to be able to tell her much aside from having an ominous existence.

Jahren flies down, followed by the rest of the group who begins taking turns. 

It is indeed a tight fit to start, but then as you descend into the pitch black, the space opens up.  Eventually a large crack in the rock leads through into these underground tunnels.  

Chen comes back out from investigating a couple of doors, his ghostly gaseous self unable to talk.  (Fianna, can you cast fly enough for Toc, Mirica, SinSin, Loane and yourself?)

Toc looks at him, "Ready for me to drop that spell?  Give me a thumbs up or thumbs down."

Jahren begins inspecting their resting spot for anything unsafe, anything interesting they might learn here about the elves or their attackers, and lastly anything magical via Detect Magic as he moves around the perimeter of the chamber they're in, only peering into adjacent halls and rooms but not straying further.

He waves at Chen's gaseous form and chuckles.

Very much as described by Fianna during FinFin's exploration, the tunnel goes down at a 60 degree angle. The first hundred feet or so is cracked rock, which widens more and more until there is plenty of space.  Then it meets worked stone, and through a large crack in a stone edifice, which you all fly through into the half-open room of an elven building that is partially collapsed.  Whatever was built here, seems have been underground, and only partially crushed by impact. You find yourselves at some sort of intersection of stone hallways, leading two north and two south, but both the north and south ones seem to meet hallways.  To the south he knows the passage leads to the one with the statue casting spells.  To the north, they both meet a small five foot wide passage leading left and right.  You sees several doors (5) and three hallways leading off of this passage.  The stone walls sport many cracks and fissures, though are clearly carved with magic, engraved with elven ruins and carved with imagery of forests and plains. Amidst these scenes are pictures of items that seem to be radiating something. (the pictures don't actually radiate, they're just pictures of a staff, or ring, or orb with carvings of rays coming off of them.)

The immediate space here, a 15 by ten foot spot seems pretty safe.

Quote from NathanPizazz >>

(Fianna, can you cast fly enough for Toc, Mirica, SinSin, Loane and yourself?)

     Fianna casts Fly on Toc, Mirica and Loane. "This will last up to ten minutes or so," she advises them. "But I cannot cast it on SinSin and myself until you three are safely down.  My familiar (cause using FinFIn and SinSin so close together is confusing) will accompany you down so I'll know once you are secure and I can allow the spell to fade so that we may follow..."

((Two of 3 slots used up but we're going down to rest, I believe, so no worries...))

In a few groups, the rest of the party eventually finds themselves down in the underground tunnels.

Seeing the others arrive and attempt to communicate, Chen reluctantly extends his arm and signals a 'thumbs-up'. Once returned to tangible form, he will share his findings, warning the others about the first room, but advocating the third door as a possible place to rest.

Before the safe hut was called out, Mirica looked around with curiosity. Even now, broken, ruined beyond any repair, it was beautiful. Of course, Mirica perfectly understood the reason behind that perfection - if you live for a thousand years, you would not worry about spending an extra year or two to turn everything around you into an art, to enjoy for centuries to come, but soul does not care about explanations - a beauty is a beauty.

"Do those shining objects mean something? Are we in a room for safekeeping magical items?" If so, it was both promising and dangerous. Probably more dangerous, though.

Jahren doesn't detect any magic specific to this spot.  

Toc glances around now that he's down here and begins looking at the wall.  "Hmmm, this appears to be the crypt of the the Thelaeneum. They were an order of elven wizard philosophers. So, being wizards, I assume the pictures represent items of importance to them, but I don't know what."

He glances around, "I can make the hut here, or in the room as Chen suggests." 

The group moves down the passage to the north, turning right to the east, and at the end it the door opens up into an ancient library that seems to have been ransacked. Old dusty books lay discarded here or there, but largely the built in stone shelving on every wall of the room are empty.  Toc casts his spell.  

A few minutes later a magical hemisphere appears. You all move within it and sit down to get some well earned rest. 

Watches are set, though Toc is quick to sit to one side and close his eyes, meditating. 

The rest of the group, weary from their encounters snack on some food and get a good rest. Four hours into it, Toc stands up.  "I will return as quickly as I can with diamonds and diamond dust. Then we may resume our quest to seek out Aldlas. Feel free to explore the crypt while I'm gone."   He walks towards the shaft, turns into a wispy cloud, then floats away. Another 4 hours pass and everyone feels they've gotten sufficient rest.  The tiny hut fades away. 

Out in the crypt there are 3 passageways, and 2 doors left unexplored, plus another door through a room with living statue.  There is also the ten foot wide passage lined with wizard statues, one of which tried to cast a spell at FinFin. 

This door here is storage, Chen says as he indicates the nearest door. Pointing further down he says: That one looked like a crypt, but a statue tried to attack me... I think.

Mirica ensured that Toc's got all the gold he needed, checked the books on the floor and sadly returned them to the shelves (Never being good with languages, you know) and then curiously walked with Chen around. "Attacking statues... Interesting, but may be not now. Shall we investigate other passages?"

Chen nods in agreement with Mirica's suggestion, and rubs his hands together gleefully. Shall we try those other two doors first? he suggests.

     Before the days adventuring begins, Fianna spends some not insignificant time going through the scattered books. She'll try to determine what types of books (Fiction? Non-Fiction? General knowledge, arcane, Elvish for Dummies, etc...) and will take a random half dozen if nothing specifically catches her interest.  Books are rare and precious and shouldn't be left to rot and and succumb to time.  Fianna would save the whole library, or what remains, if she could... Alas, even a Bag of Holding has limits.

     "Perhaps let's try the storage first?" Fianna suggests.  "I'm a firm believer in getting the easy stuff out of the way first..."

She gathers all 5 books she finds remaining in the library.  They are all unsurprisingly written in elven. Some of the writing is quite old, and the elven text a bit archaically written. One book appears to be a text called  "My Lord's Confession. A discussion on Ruinous Power."  It seems to be a philosophical text. The next is "Darkened Moon" and appears to be a detailed book on Lycanthropes. "His Spring" appears to be on book about glass blowing, along with chapters on when to work enchantments during the glass blowing process. "Hallowed Course of the Humans" appears to be a detailed book about the human settlers. It seems to be written during Hillsfar's founding and discusses the elves interactions with the humans. The last book is "Admirable Etiquette of the Recent History of the World" and appears to discuss social skills.  She figures they're all probably valuable to the right person. 

In the storage chamber you find stone shelves containing writing materials, though the ink wells are all dried up, their cork seals cracked.  There are also many candles, and some stone carving equipment, and sheets, a copper candle snuffer, two boxes of fire sticks, several small clay urns, some chalk boards and chalk, a few pairs of white linen gloves, some candle holders, as well as a broom and mop and wooden bucket, and several rags. 

You head past the room with the guardian and open the next one. The stone door slides open surprisingly easily, as do the others, and you find a ten by ten room with large shelves on the left and right. There are elven bodies laid to rest here. There is another door on the far side.  The bodies appear to have been laid to rest with fine elven made clothes.  One has a signet ring in his hand.  The other has an elven rapier.  Examining them, neither appear to be magical. 

     Fianna will toss several candles and pieces of chalk into her Bag of Holding, as well as a quill or two if they seem nice.  All handy to have.  She is delicate and respectful in the other room, not deigning to so much as touch the bodies out of respect.  

The door to the burial chamber was carefully closed. Mirica did not suspect anyone in grave robbery, of course, but the bodies could be disturbed by the air from outside. There were more doors to cover.

The next door reveals a similar room, with four more elven bodies laid to rest, and another door on the far side.  One of the passage is directly across from this room, and it leads to a room, so the group decides to investigate that next, which leads to yet another crypt, though this one has no door leading out the far side.  Just down the hall leads to another hallway, which ends at a door.  This one is opened and the group finds two old chairs and a kneeling pad flanking a huge stone statue of a partially unrolled scroll. The room has lovely details carved into the walls and is clearly a shrine for prayer. But it has nothing else of interest. 

The final passage leads up to a door, which when opened, reveals a passage running left to right.  You would figure three of the doors on the right lead to the doors that left the other side of the crypts.  There is another passage leading away and a few doors.  However, you note a statue standing in an alcove in the side of this hallway, and only a moment later, it's eyes light up, glowing azure.  The stone thing steps into the hallway, and pulls a stone sword from it's stone sheath, and then begins advancing. It's 30 feet away.

Chen readies his hammer, but turns to Fianna nervously and says: Er, say something to it in Elvish...

Ready an attack: If Fianna or anyone else can't talk the statue down, and it looks like it's going to swing its sword, Chen will hit back.

"Can we just close the door?" Would be a pity to destroy such art work (or be destroyed by it).