The Descent part 4

Jp with Lucian, Omni, Lorem, Winteroak and Bandorchu

Gonyaul was still standing near the wall just having crossed into the room from the archway. His right hand was following the grooves and breaks in the side of the wall. He wondered how long it had to take to make stone like this wear down.

He noticed Voah was looking off towards the center of the room in the direction Tarmen took his torchlight. He turned his head. He saw the mask, though being further away it was in less detail. He also noticed the spike pit.

Why would someone put spikes in the middle of a perfectly good room, the kind for catching large predatory game? Oh! He connected the dots, this must be the danger they were talking about. He pondered for a second why dark places couldn’t just be inviting and friendly.

Alas, he decided it prudent to stand still, raise to attention and turn up the volume on his situational awareness. He never thought on the fact yet, that he actually did have some very rabbit like mannerisms at times.

As Gonyaul and Alexis took the rear, Voah watched as Lucian moved from the centre of the room towards some masks carved into the east wall. From the first doorway to her left she heard the sound of something shuffling against the cobble stones. Very faint but it clearly came from the entrance closest to her.

Hearing the shuffling to her left, Voah slowly pulled her sword with her free hand and attuned her senses to the direction from which the shuffling sound came, unsure just what to make of it just yet.

Leaving the unexplored path for now, Alexis turned around at the sound of Tarmen’s voice. She looked towards the spike trap in the middle with a furrowed brow before beginning to make her way towards Tarmen.

Gonyaul saw Voah draw her sword. He also looked in the direction she was now facing. He had no weapon to make ready, instead he took a stance. He removed and lowered any gear he was toting. Then he took a deep breath to try and calm his nerves.

“We may not be alone down here.” she warned. “Keep your eyes open for animals.”

She wasn’t looking forward to another wild cat to spring on her.

Heading that warning, Alexis drew her sword as well, approaching to support Voah instead.

“Could be just rats… but I’m not taking any chances.” Voah reassured. She wasn’t paranoid, but nothing was as it seemed since she came across the sea and there had already been so many surprises. It was preparedness.

Now Alexis had drawn her sword. Two swords, double the tension in the air. Gonyaul was hoping it was nothing but a warm greeting. He glanced around the place again and realized the chances of that were not looking very high.

The shadow brought Tarmen’s curiosity to a close, drawing his machete and making note of the others drawing theirs.
“Alright, whatever it is, it’s either afraid or observin’. No more spreadin’ out, we move as a group.”
One could only lose friends and hired help to critters and cannibals so many times before they rely on steel for underground diplomacy.
Lookin’ where he had seen the movement, he called to anyone close by.
“Where to? We can keep mappin’ the room or go through one of the doorways we found.”

Gonyaul obeyed Tarmen’s orders. He began picking up all the items he had been carrying. Since he wasn’t wielding a weapon he had volunteered to take on some of the gear of the others. One by one he put the extra climbing gear, first aid supplies, water skins, ropes, rolled up blankets, food bag, and extra chalk bag back on. He sighed, perhaps he should not put everything down every time they heard something.

Back in action, he moved closer to the rest of them as instructed.

“Maybe we should finish mapping this room first.”

Alexis suggested in a lowered voice, in an effort not to drown out possible other noises.

“So far the layout seems fairly symmetrical. If so there might be more pathways on the other side.”

Gonyaul was next to them now. He agreed with Alexis. “Finish what start here, no? May no come back this way again.”

Voah was already moving herself naturally closer to the others, trying to position herself to put Gonyaul between her blade and that of Alexis. The need to protect him came with a few reasons, not least of which was their recently forged interest in one another. But Gonyaul, she assumed was unarmed and he was also the one carrying their supplies.

“Yes let us see the rest of it, shall we?”

The party explored the rest of the room finding another passageway in the north wall of the large room.

Gonyaul continued moving with the rest of the group. It was a slower process because of the recent added layer of caution and to give them time to mark, or sketch, the things the torch light illuminated.

Gonyaul whispered quietly in awe, “Tis so big a space. What must take to make room like this underground?” He couldn’t fathom the architectural and engineering feats in order to pull it off. It is not like they built it first and then decided to plop a mountain on top.

“Yes…”
Alexis murmured.
“And what could have happened for them to just leave it all behind?”

Exploring the rest of the chamber took some of the edge off. Voah's part in this, she guessed, was to be the ward against magic, so she made sure to keep her eye out for anything of the sort as well as staying alert to other signs of danger. She deferred to Alexis and Tarmen for direction, but if it was up to her, she would always go left.

Gonyaul had not yet jumped that far ahead to considered something may have forced them out. He whispered back, “maybe discovered sunlight and fresh air?”

On a side tangent. Gonyaul was playing around with an idea of what would happen if you made a torch in the shape of a ball and then were able to throw it to far off dark places so that you could get the big picture faster, as well as see things further off in strategically placed vantage points. First glaring problem, how would one handle it without burning ones hand?

With Tarmen in the lead, followed by Voah and Gonyaul and with Alexis taking the rear the group moved into the first archway in the east hall, finding themselves in a tunnel much like the one at the entrance to the the catacombs.

Half an hour later and after navigating a series of winding dark tunnels, encountering an few dead ends, cave ins and having to retrace their steps the party reached a split in the tunnels. If not for Tarmen presence they felt they could easily get lost down here. They continued north.

Alexis had for now sheathed her sword again in favor of marking their path with chalk and mapping.
It was strange. All those tunnels seemed so nonsensical.

"I'm keen to continue for a while longer if you are? Shall we proceed?" said Voah, eager to explore some more.

Tarmen’s previous excitement had been quelled with the appearance of their shadow follower. It left him on edge and unsure.
“Barrin’ our host showin’ themselves, there isn’t much to stop us. This place definitely has my attention.”

As they continued north they came across a large demonic idol with red stoned eyes sitting in an alcove before the tunnel turns west again.

“Charming.”

Alexis murmured as she added a rudimentary sketch of the idol to her map.

The Arbiter examined the stone beast, noting its state of preservation. It brought her back to the memory of the Allosi ship. She leaned in toward the gargoyles face to get a closer inspection of its eyes, allowing Alexis to take some sketches first.

The stones sparkled in the light of the torch. They could be some form of garnets or rubies.

Tarmen was beside Alexis, updating his map and allowing her to finish her sketch. Taking a glance, he had to applaud her skill.
“They certainly loved their demons it seems. No wonder the clansmen hate it here, place would make any superstitious fool tremble.”

“I just don’t get what this place’s purpose is. A temple, or something?”

That didn’t sound right to Alexis, but it certainly didn’t seem to have been lived in.

As Voah examined the eyes in more detail she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head. A headache like the ones she had after she came back from Sentinel Island. She gasped loudly and everyone turned to look at her, except Tarmen who twisted around towards the south again looking back into the darkness sure he heard footsteps behind the party.

Blade drawn and tensed, Tarmen was not liking the situation.
“Maybe they were right. This could have simply been a tomb for the damned and diein’. Are you ok, Arbiter?”

Alexis swiftly put away the notebook and went to Voah.

“What’s wrong, Voah?”

"Bloody, headaches. It's been a while, but..." she winched, sheathed her sword and grabbed at the her temple with her free hand, " ahh!"