Centoriel

[Graybeard]

"Is anyone any good at light magic? Maybe we can illuminate the pit..."

Sister Rose and Brother Miguel exchanged a look. "Surely you're not thinking ..." Miguel said.

Rose didn't look happy, but answered anyway. "I am. Got a better idea?"

Miguel didn't look happy, either. "Honestly, no. But would it be considered sacrilege?"

"I don't think so, at least not in our denomination. Of course, if someone from the Orthodox branch wandered along, we'd be screwed, but during Departure, I think we can take that chance. And consider the cause that it's for. The only thing is that it takes an enormous amount of mana. I'm not sure we can do it so soon after dealing with the bear, and if we can, it won't last very long."

Rose turned back to Argus. "There's ... something ... we can do, but probably not quite yet. Unless someone else has some light capabilities, it might be best to poke around on the surface for a little bit while we recharge." She waved at a set of decaying buildings on the other side of the pit. Maybe by the time they were done looking at those, Argus would have forgotten about the need for "light" here, and they wouldn't have to do what they were thinking of.

But probably not...

[Sareth]

Lillith's eyes roved about, carefully evaluating the terrain, attempting to learn everything she could. This place certainly seemed to be it. She just needed to get a good sense of what was there. Her guess was that anything truly important would be underground where it would be safe from casual raids. It sounded like Argus was interested in seeing what was below ground as well.

Still, his idea sounded about three steps across the line into crazy. It might be what had to happen, but she didn't think it made a good plan A. Plan E or F, but not plan A.

"What about those buildings over there? I mean, you'd expect there to be some way to get down inside that was a little easier." She paused, trying hard to wince. It wouldn't do her too much good to sound too knowledgeable about this place. Quickly she moved to cover her tracks. "I mean, whoever or whatever went and made this place and that gollum thing had to get in there to do whatever to it, right? So, I mean, I think they'd want something easier than a rope and a long drop, right?"

[Graybeard]

"One would think so," Brother Miguel replied, glad to get a chance to stop thinking about the "solution" he and Sister Rose had thought of to Argus' call for light in the shaft. "I wonder, though: are those surface ruins even connected with what's down below? And even if they are, how are we going to get to them? Look at where this pit is."

He had a point: the road ran straight into the shaft. There were no warning signs (of course), no roadblocks, nothing to keep the unwary traveler from following the road over the edge to a most unfortunate journey's end at the bottom of the shaft. It looked like the road continued on the opposite side, similarly unblocked and abrupt, into the surface ruins. The wagon wasn't going to make it across unless it could fly.

"I'd just about conclude that this hole in the ground is more recent than the road," Sister Rose said. "I wouldn't be too surprised, in fact, if it just opened up for the first time when that thing popped out of it. In that case we're not going to see anything too exciting on the walls of the shaft." And we won't have to cast a spell I really don't want to cast to try. "Anybody got any ideas on how we're going to get around? The surface is too rough for the cart, and these are horses, not pegasi..."

[Drannin]

"Well, said Argus, if you want, I can just yank a flat piece of rock out of the ground. We get on the stone slab, i float it across the pit, we get off. Pretty simple, though I'd like a moment to clear my mind."

The subsequent expressions of ultimate horror sort of surprised him. "What?"

"What if you drop it, Boss?" Harker's groggy voice, from the cart.

"I just won't drop it."

"That's the logic we're afraid of."

[Sareth]

"There's no way to go around it?" Lillith looked slightly queasy at Argus' suggestion. She looked to the left and right, to the narrow stretch of land between the crest of the ridge and the edge of the hole, then shook the head. "No, I guess there isn't. Not with this cart and the horses. I think we might be able to make it through on foot, but it seems like you wouldn't like leaving the cart behind very much, would you?" She sighed. "Float it across if you have to, but it it's all the same to you, I think I'd prefer to maybe take my chances walking around to meet the wagon of the far side."

She leaned forward and reached out to gently pat one of the horses on the flank. "And blindfold these poor things. They won't like the trip much, so it's best they don't see it."

[Graybeard]

Sister Rose looked off to the west. The sky had briefly cleared overhead, but another large cloud mass was moving in. The coastal mountains were catching most of the storm, but this one still looked nasty. "We'd better make a decision and get moving," she said. "Lillith, I think you're right, it might be best to do some reconnaissance on foot and then decide whether to try to bring the wagon over. I can't think of any way to do that other than what Argus is suggesting, but maybe we'll find something. Let's block the wheels and hobble the horses, then try to get around this hole."

Nobody having a better idea, the group set to work securing the wagon and started around the pit. They'd only made it about half way to the other side, however, when a low rumble, felt as much as heard, interrupted their progress. "Thunder?" Brother Miguel asked, as the group stopped to look at the sky.

"I don't think so ... not unless thunder starts underground," Rose said, alarm in her voice. "Look at that."

The far wall of the shaft was reflecting a weird green light. It was still faint, but brightened perceptibly as the next low rumble came up from below. No doubt about it this time; something was down there, and from the looks of it, it was on its way up.

[Sareth]

"Ooooooooooh, that is not good, is it?" Lillith commented, looking nervous. She was starting to get the feeling that her plans were a Bad Idea. In fact, she felt they were such a bad idea she decided to give voice to the fact. "I'm starting to think this may be a bad idea..." She glanced around. The terrain made for rough going, rough enough that the wagon likely wouldn't have made it around. But unfortunately, it didn't seem rough enough to really provide much to hide behind.

Nervously, she sidled behind Brother Miguel. "If you have any sort of god breathed magics capable of hiding believer and appostate alike, I think this is probably the time..."

[Graybeard]

The rumbling intensified as Sister Rose answered. "Not really, Lillith, at least nothing that makes a group this size invisible. Argus pulled a neat little trick earlier, and we in the Church have basic Barrier and Shield spells, but they don't exactly make one inconspicuous. I think we're better off getting to cover. Let's move, and stay away from the rim."

The group hurried toward the ruins on the far side, finding that the going got easier as they got away from the ridge. They were most of the way there when Brother Miguel noticed another parrot inbound from the base. The bird seemed confused, though. It circled several times over Miguel and Rose, who recognized that it was looking for a place to land away from the other people. Another classified message, Rose thought. Wonder what's in this one? She thought for a moment about how to get away from Lillith, and probably also Sasha and Argus, to retrieve it ...

... And then one of the parrot's circles took it over the pit.

An emerald-green bolt of magic shot out from below, impaling the bird with a deafening CRAACKK. When the group's dazzled eyes recovered, not even a feather floating in the air could be seen. The air was redolent of badly overcooked chicken.

Nobody said a word, but the trot toward the ruins turned into a sprint.

[Graybeard]

[OOC: So where did everybody go? Sorry for the twofer, but to keep things moving...]

A distance to the south, Father Egbert paused to rest, believing for the first time since he left Saus that he actually had a chance of surviving.

The incident in the small-town bar was fresh in his mind. I probably didn't handle that as well as I could have, he thought. He'd panicked when the drunk had seized him by the shoulders and started to unzip his pants, and that was understandable enough. The ruffians in the background looked like they were up for some serious abuse, too, and maybe it wasn't a bad idea to give them some indication that he was not to be messed with. But that "indication" didn't have to be fatal, did it?

Well, yes, it did, actually, he realized.

At least the three searchers had bolted to the east when the ground opened and that incredible walking statue emerged. That was good; he didn't want to have to deal with them, not in his current depleted state. It looked like they'd headed into the sprinkling of tiny towns back in farm country, not the best place for obvious foreigners to be during Departure. With any kind of luck, they'd not be seen again until he was at his destination and well hidden. Or maybe not seen again at all; some of the towns' aversion to foreigners was, one might say, terminally severe...

He was thinking that it might be safe to resume human form again, for only the second time since he left Saus, when his amplified vision picked up a lone rider on horseback, coming from the west.

Willy.

[Sareth]

[OOC]Sorry. Loooooooong weekend.[/OOC]

Lillith ran as quickly as she could towards the cluster of buildings, not daring to look behind her. She was uncertain what might be coming out of that shaft, but the bolt that had blasted the bird was more than enough to convince her that she probably didn't want to stick around and find out.

Ahead of her she could see Argus and Brother Miguel slowly pulling away. She was in good shape, but she simply did not have the length of leg they did. Sister Rose was maintaining about the same pace, though, and Sasha was right behind her.

Just as she thought she might make it to the buildings safely, her foot hit a round stone unexpectedly. It rolled beneath her, and she felt her footing slip.

*CRACK!*

There was a sickening sound from her ankle, a flare of pain, and she went down with a shriek. Biting her lip and clutching at her leg, she rolled over from where she had collapsed to the ground and looked back towards the pit.