Below the Undercroft (Solo)
Below the Undercroft, Delve 13 - by Lilliaquil Dec. 6
Hanging from the large yew, the corpses of the orcs were already bloating. Amongst the orcs were hobgoblins and kobolds who had been captured by the village militia. But there were also a couple of humans, leaders of the group of bandits that were apprehended by Dalieliquin and Rockmound a couple of weeks ago. That was just after Dalieliquin and I arrived in the area to visit Dal's acquaintance Jebriel, who now lies in the village cemetery. Many of the other bandits were from the region around the village. Rather than execution, they were to be exiled and branded as outlaws; their lives forfeit if they ever return. At least one or two armed caravans were passing through weekly. The mayor and the council decided it would be best for the community to pay caravan leaders to escort the remaining bandits beyond the border. The council knew it would create unrest if the local bandits were executed in the style of the goblinoids.
Farm-wives wailed and cursed the husbands and sons who fell in with the bandits. Rather than stay and become pariahs, these family members chose exile with the bandits. No amount of coercion revealed with whom the bandits were in league.
Oddy's mother cast stones at the bound bandits and their families as they were escorted away from the village. Oddy was Rockmound's young linkboy who had been killed by giant centipedes a couple of weeks ago.
We spent a couple of days going over the plan for the next expedition. Gabriel was adamant that we stop poking around the corners of the complex and, instead, take the fight to the evil below, specifically pointing to the area on the map by the kobold lair where I had seen the skeletons and venomous centipedes. Breccia and Denby were recovering from their fall and wanted us to wait for a few days longer but Gabriel's honour and oath were at stake. If Breccia wasn't going then Willa surely would stay behind with her father. Fortunately Dargo and Rockmound were both fully recovered from their wounds and were ready to join us. We came up with many schemes about how to get past the kobolds and thought we could use the screaming mushrooms as a distraction. Dargo would sneak down the hall to see how many kobolds were in the lair. He would come back and we would cast a torch down towards the screaming mushrooms. As they rushed by to investigate, we would count how many passed by and have an idea about the number remaining. Dispatching the beasts shouldn't be too troublesome and the screaming mushrooms would cover the noise. Then we would slip in the room with the hidden door and open the passage. Rockmound would seek the favour of Berronar then we would face the skeletons and giant centipedes. The plan, if we made it that far, was to cast oil before us and ignite it to keep the centipedes away while Rockmound commands the undead to stay away from us in the name of Berronar. Failing that, Gabriel, Dargo, and Rockmound would attack the horrors. Surely this is where the necromancer must hide.
On our way to the undercroft we crossed paths with a couple of small patrols of militiamen. They recognized us and wished us well, hoping that we would kill more of the goblinoids or bring local bandits to justice.
The undercroft was quiet. We perched ourselves in a room off the hall we expected the kobolds to pass by when investigating the screaming mushroom distraction. Barris hooded the lantern and Dargo, quiet as a whisper, disappeared towards the kobold lair. He returned quickly... "There's nain in the chamber. Their gear is gone. And I couldnae find that bloomin' large chest you said would be in there." No need for a distraction so we all followed Dargo down to the chamber and, sure enough, the huge chest that the kobolds had been dancing upon was gone.
We knew there was a stairwell down and another adjacent room. We checked them quickly and then proceeded to the hidden room.
Rockmound's blessing filled us with confidence. When we breeched the hidden door we weren't immediately noticed by the skeletons but they were a mere few feet away. There may have been more beyond the lantern light. Rather than adhering to the plan, Rockmound and Gabriel were boldened by getting the jump on the skeletons. Dargo cursed and began launching a volley of darts at the more distant skeletons. Gabriel and Rockmound were taken aback as several of the skeletons were hosts for the giant centipedes. The insects were wriggling and writhing around the ribcages, shoulders and arms of the skeletons. Unlike zombies, the skeletons were agile and carried swords.
A few good blows from the skeletons and our initial advantage was lost. Dargo had to move into the fray and was soon struggling to fend off the attack of two skeletons while avoiding the bites of the centipedes. Rockmound took command "Focus yer attacks on the beasties. One bite from them could mean death." Between defending against sword blows from skeletons, they poked and sliced and bashed the centipedes until they were no longer a threat. But by this time, all three of them, Rockmound, Gabriel and Dargo were exhausted and bleeding. Sword blows obviously had less effect on the skeletons than Rockmound's mace which shattered bone after bone, causing the undead to clatter to the floor. The battle was hard fought and eventually won.
After a brief rest as we gained our breath, we knew that, if the necromancer was in the area, it would surely be aware of us. At the back of the room was a door that Gabriel opened easily. Beyond, a slanted passage took us to another set of rooms with another stair down. After consulting the map, Dargo was convinced that a hidden door must be located at the end of a short deadend hall but couldn't find anything. It was clear that someone or thing had been residing here but had recently moved out. Gabriel cursed and was upset that we had waited too long and the necromancer had moved on. But to where? Down the stairs seemed likely. Gabriel wanted to forge ahead but Rockmound talked him out of it. All three were injured and needed rest. Plus, he suggested that when they returned, they should all be armed with clubs or maces.
And that's how we left the undercroft, limping, without having vanquished or even seen the necromancer and with our purses as light as when we entered. We had nothing at all to show for the blood spilt today.
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