After a long time of back-breaking work, you’ve managed to open up the hole, and deepen it a bit as well.

Ayaci-The-Badger responds to Ink’s enticement and clears out the rubble in record time, allowing you to make more progress. Eventually, she will transform back into a person; but before that happens, she will attempt to burrow some more where you are all taking a break. She is looking for a nice clean place to make a den. 

Ink takes up his adamantine scimitars and goes to work on the wall! This time concentrating all his energy on cracking the wall so that the others can dig through..

// Scimitar attack 1... 18, slashing damage (auto crit) 8

// Scimitar attack 2... 13, slashing damage (auto crit) 12

// Scimitar attack 3... 11, slashing damage (auto crit) 11

Ink manages to shave off a bit more of the rock with his scimitars, but it is tiring work. At the end of it, he feels as if he hasn't made much progress at all.

Thankfully, the edges of his blades are as sharp as ever. But Ink is tired and needs a breather. 

When everyone else keeps working, Marav will stop and use natural recovery to take a short rest to recover some depleted magic.

 But before he does that he shifts into a raven and goes to scout.

Aya is THOROUGHLY enjoying her time as a badger. It just feels... right. Feeling the spell beginning to wear off, she pushes one last burst of effort into shoring up her makeshift den, in which she fully intends to take a nice long nap. 

Ayaci returns to humanoid form, and finds herself curled up in a cold tunnel. She has fleeting memories of the last hour, and can taste the remnants of dry food and rock dust in her mouth. 

Marav, in raven form, takes to the winter sky. It's still a bit windy, but not so much that he has trouble flying. Marav notices the following...

Ink... depressed, but not surprised, by his ineptitude at trying to break through solid rock with a pair of scimitars... is nevertheless determined to create some cracks in the wall that the others can exploit with their picks...

// Scimitar main hand attack 1... 24, slashing damage (auto crit) 11

// Scimitar main hand attack 2... 26, slashing damage (auto crit) 6

// Scimitar off hand attack 3... 23, slashing damage (auto crit) 9

(Just using the one attack roll)

With a series brilliant shimmer noises, Ink's adamantine scimitar slices through an impressive amount of rock, and Ink finds it quite easy to shave off large chunks at a time.

Finally, 3-foot chunk of stone crumbles and smashes into the floor of the makeshift tunnel, and Ink feels a little puff of warm air on his face. 

You've broken through to the elevator shaft, if only just a little hole, about 8 inches in diameter. 

Ink stows his scimitars and sighs, "Marav, care to shape a door out of the stone for us?" 

8 inches... big enough for Quill to squeeze through and scout ahead before I make the hole bigger?

Quote from Hardcopi >>

8 inches... big enough for Quill to squeeze through and scout ahead before I make the hole bigger?

 If you wanted to reduce her so that she got super tiny, then yes. 

Ink peeks through the hole, snapping his finger once causing Quill to disappear. A few seconds later she reappears in midflight within the elevator shaft.

Ink whispers, "Be silent. Be safe."

He tells Marav, "I could use some guidance." Then he slips into Quill's senses to take a look around. 

// Quill's Stealth Check 8 

// Ink's perception through Quill's senses... 20 plus 3 guidance if applicable

// Using an old DM inspiration to reroll Quill's Stealth Check... 13 

Quill pops into existence in the elevator shaft, where there is a powerful updraft of hot air. 

From Quill's vantage point, the elevator currently rests far below, where there is a warm, hazy light flooding the bottom of the shaft. The elevator isn't where you left it days ago, which might mean they have found some way to move it. 

Quill has the option of ducking quickly into a nearby mining tunnel (north or south, your choice), or flying further up or down to explore yet more mine tunnels. The occasional sound of a ringing pickaxe echoes off the stone walls, and you can also hear some kind of great machine churning away down in the depths of the forge.

Quill explores the southern tunnel. 

Quill quickly dips into the southern tunnel, her wings silently floating on the warm air down here. You can hear a deep voice giving orders in giantish; the voice is coming from somewhere nearby, and is punctuated by taps and clinks of pickaxes. 

<Faster, you runts,> says the deep voice. <Over there!>

Quill pushes in further to the limit of her and Ink's telepathic bond. She will stay high to hopefully blend somewhat with the ceiling... She won't get too close (20ft) to any giant or other threat. If spotted, she behaves flustered (like a bird trapped in a shopping mall) and wheels away looking for an exit. 

// Quill Stealth 11

// Perception Check 21 

(From discord, side RP and OOC chat is in spoilers)

 
Ink says aloud in the cavern, "Was that a furry orc?"

Traveling up, Quill is able to identify several more mine tunnels entrances. It sounds like they all have mining activity going on in them, but they are a little too far away for you to scout with your telepathic link active.

Quill turns around and heads down the elevator shaft to the limit of her bond with Ink.

Quill hears more of the same...general mine activity. And the machines at the bottom of the elevator shaft are a bit louder here.

With a clunk, the elevator starts back up and begins to rise! But there is no one on it.

Marav, readies a blanket to cover the hole, then when Ink assures him it is clear he opens it up.

Then he covers it quickly with the blanket to block out light.