(Right Handhold and foothold, 10 and 13, Both ok).
(Left Handhold and foothold, 10 and 7, foot slip ok.)
(Right Handhold and foothold, 3 and 9, Grip failed, foot ok).
(Left Handhold and foothold, 12 and 8, Both ok. Able to step onto firm ground again.)
"Well done". said Yamil, as he strode across the boards covering the pit in three paces.
(11, 9 and 16. (Added misc bonus of 4, previously tested ok)
Mal's jaw dropped at the sight."Wha.."
Yamil smirked, "If only I could capture the look on your face right now. I told you I had tested them, but did you notice that I kept my feet over different boards, so that if it did start to break, I could get a springing leap from the other board. Apart from that, these two boards on the left and right would have had the least foot-traffic wear, however long they were in use. I was pretty well in no danger at all. Let's see what's next."
He picked up the torch and began checking for other sneakiness the Cultists may have left behind for interlopers.
Mal brushed the dust from his fingers and followed Yamil along the passageway as it bent slightly downward. "I hope you are not going to take those risks too often, as sooner or later you will figure wrongly and I will have to drag you out of a hole by your hair."
They continued onwards, finding hollows in the roof and walls where they had followed an ore junction, only for it to shrink and vanish among the other rocks. Other hollows were blocked up with waste rock that had none of the white ore in it. "They were keen on following every chance that the veins presented. That hole in the other room must have been very rich in what they were looking for. I just hope they got home to spend it."
The sound of running water and splashing came from not too far ahead. They kept to a steady pace, watching out for anything unusual. Soon, they found it, an upturned barrel and in the middle of it had been placed a small animal skull, with a necklace of beads surrounding it.
Mal said, "Well, at least one of the cultists had a sense of humour. An offering to the Gods?"
"If it were, I would think the Gods would be offended at such a small gift. In that case, do you want the beads, or the skull, for that matter?"
"I think it can lie there undisturbed for a little bit longer. I do not want to offend the Gods so early in my journey to The Pit Arena by claiming something that could be theirs. I will surely need their aid and intervention later on."
Yamil laughed, "Of that there is little doubt, as shall I. Onward, mighty warrior, the honour of the next discovery shall be yours."
He offered him the lead with a wave, and Mal went forward, liking Yamil's sense of humour, so similar to his own.
(No trap check needed as they did not touch it.)
They rounded a slow curve to the left to find a chamber dug three feet into the right wall, going upward following the vein and halfway across the floor, into which a small but steady flow of water, coming from a crack in the rock face. There were fire stones to the right of it.
"The miners had hit a spring when they tried to follow the vein upwards and decided to make the best of it by turning it into their own personal spa. You can see where they first carved a groove to direct it away from where they would be digging, then they excavated the pool down four feet, then carved the diagonal channel to catch the overflow from the pool and direct it to the gutter on the right wall so that the rest of the stone floor would remain dry and not become slippery."
"It is wide enough for three of them to relax at a time, and they have lined it with sacks to prevent scratches from the rocks. They added a torch slot in the left wall and two on the right wall. The air is much better here; there must be another vent nearby."
"Is that a clay bowl in the water? It must have got knocked off the shelf that they hollowed out above the water line."
"It's a pity that it was not a hot spring."
"They had that thought too. I bet that burn patch there was not just to cook on; they could have heated water and tossed in warm rocks to generate heat. We must try that at least once before we go."
"Only after your leg has healed properly. It has scabbed over nicely; you don't want to have a setback, do you?. Speaking of legs, let's move on from here."
They skirted around the edge of the makeshift pool into a wider section of tunnel, which began to gradually shrink and widen at odd intervals. At one point, timbers had been erected to make a platform, and the ceiling they had carved out of the living rock by standing on it was twenty feet above their normal height. Then it gradually sloped downwards again to a height of 12 feet and then back to its usual height of six feet.
The pair rounded a corner to see a silhouette framed in the entrance light of the mine tunnel. It was a small humanoid of some sort. It started yelling as they came into view and ran out of the entrance. They chased after it, which was a foolish thing to do in that place, but they got out without mishap.
Once their eyes had adjusted to the glare of daylight again, they saw a young child running away from them into the steady rain, holding a spear. "Hello there. We are not going to hurt you."
(Roll for Encounter D6 = YES, Disposition 6+3+Pre=10 Friendly) 15 = Lost child.
At hearing this, the child stopped and looked back at them. Seeing them as humans, they smiled. He slowly approached them, "I was checking my traps", he patted the rabbit hanging at his belt, "And I came in here to get out of the storm and fell asleep. I woke up to tapping noises and thought you were demons from the underworld. "
Mal smiled at this, "No demons are we, just travellers like yourself. What's your name, lad? This is Yamil, and I am Mal."
"I am Farind, of the Onjos tribe. Some of our warriors are hunting below, and I sought shelter from the storm."
"Well, you are a brave warrior indeed to be hunting alone here; there are dangerous monsters about. We will see you safely back to your people."
Yamil asks the boy, "You wait here while we fetch the rest of our travel gear. It will be a while as these tunnels go quite a way into the mountain, so don't go wandering off. There are dangerous monsters out in the woods; we were not telling tales about that part."
"Can I come with you?"
"It is dangerous in the mine; we have not explored it all ourselves yet. We have already found a bottomless pit, and there is a water trap and a spike trap just around the corner. It is not safe for you to go in there alone, understand?"
"Yes."
"That's good. What you can do for us is to keep a lookout for any monsters on the prowl or your friends in case they come this way looking for you."
Mal adds, "We will be as quick as we can."
He gives him some dried meat from his pouch.
"Have this while we are gone."
"Thank you."
The pair swiftly retreat up the tunnel, the torch bobbing in Yamil's hand. The light soon vanished as they rounded the first corner.
As they swiftly moved along the passage, Mal remarked, "It was well done that you gave him something to do to occupy his mind so that he would not come in after us."
"That was my hope; we shall see if it works or not, you know what kids are like."
Soon, they had returned carrying their gear. They had left their last torch around the bend and out of sight, so that there was no recent sign of occupation at the entrance.
(? Did he run off? 1= No, and he saved the jerky for later too.)
They were glad to find Farind where they had left him. They looked out into the gloom."The rain will wash off the mine dust as we go. Point the way, Farind and then we will see if it is clear of anything dangerous."
They went downhill into the thicker part of the forest, and Farand made a shrill bird call, receiving one in reply. At track junctions, Yamil carves a notch into a tree, so that they can find their way back. After a few more calls to adjust their direction, they reach the hunter's camp and are met by two scouts on watch.
(?D: Encounter 6+3+1+10 Friendly) (I would have added +4 for child return, if needed.)
"May we approach the camp?"
"You may approach in welcome, since you return one of our own safely back to us."
(?D Farinds reception, were they mad at him? 6+3=9 Friendly) .
"Shemba, Boki, I found some new friends."
"So you have." They pat him on the shoulder, wave at the two strangers and then slip back into their hidden positions.
When they arrive at the camp, which consists of small tents with hammocks underneath them, surrounding a central fire pit. They can see and smell that the hunters have killed a juvenile Tyrant lizard, and are cooking both of its arms over a fire, while the others are dismembering the other parts for easy transport back to their village.
"I am Deramisk. Please come and eat with us, and tell us what this small destroyer of villages has been up to now?"
"I did catch our lunch. It's a start."
One of the others pokes a stick through a thigh joint on a stick, then jams the other end into the dirt, so that it hangs above the fire, cooking slowly, with the juices sizzling as they drop into the flames.
"You find us on a very good day. We have been hunting this one for a week now; it has been attacking our herd of cattle, and we were finally able to corner it and bring it down."
"Will not the smell of a kill and the fire attract other beasts?" asked Mal.
"It is a risk. Normally, we would butcher the beast, eat the heart and be on our way, but our newest hunter here had strayed from the camp, so we had to wait for his return or go and find him. We decided on a meal while we waited and set sentries out for anything coming our way."
"Did you meet a small party yesterday?"
"No, but we did come across some obvious tracks leading down to the plain."
"That would have been our new acquaintances, Ref and his friends. They had ha run into a Ghoul higher up the mountain the previous night, and it killed three of their number."
"That is sad to hear."
"There is an old hermit who lives up in the heights, too, but he seems harmless."He came upon us while we were burying a travelling historian. He had been killed by an undead Skeleton that we had found.in an abandoned mine, the one that young Farind would just love to explore. But to be fair, he had the good sense to stop at the entrance and not go in any further. With your permission, once it has been explored by us, we will give him the grand tour."
"I would like to see this too."
"Then so you shall."
"But first, you must meet the Elders of our village. They must learn of this."
(? Do they go with them? Find out next time.)
End of Episode 8
Mal-Shui (PC) - Str = 1, Tou = 2, Agi = 1, Int = -1, Pre = 1. Fate Point =1.
Male Human. Age = 24. Brown eyes and hair, 6'1" tall.
Personality: Friendly, Moody, Hp = 7 out of 7. Xp=1.
Equipment
Longsword, (Att +1, Dam +1), Staff, Dagger. Leather Armour, after being cleaned and adjusted.
15 days' rations in a sack.Tarnak Berries R=1 (Sc=3), Waterskin. Tinder and flint.
Rough blue tunic, an animal fur cloak. Terradon Tooth necklace with Tribal Totem carving.
Burvin's Journal. Eggshell cooking bowl. 2 Torches unlit, 1 just lit.
In pouch - Gold Coins = 1. Silver Coins = 13.
Threads
1) Scaleel or Goritan Village Member, 2) Wizard - Jis-Kel, 3) Khainar Yak Folk,
4) Ref Sodrav, Tan Muen and Cazen Goorte.5) Hermit, 6).Mad Folk,
7) Melek-Kesh, 8) The Onjos tribe hunters.
Yamil-Torl - Str = 1, Tou = 1, Agi = -1, Int = 2, Presence = 1.Fate Point =1.
Male Human. Age =34. Green eyes, Black hair. 5'11" tall.
Personality: Independent, Opinionated.
Goal: Wants to visit the jungle. Hp. = 4 out of 6. Xp = 1
.
Equipment
Sling, Staff, Club, (Att+0, Damage d6/disadvantage).Rough clothes. Bronze helmet.
Hand Axe. Dagger. Silver Coins in pouch = 17! sack.
Rations = 7 in a sack, including Burvins supplies. Tarnak Berries/ 1 Ration.
Sword and Shield (After being cleaned in the stream.
Regards all,
Ivor Cogdell
