#87 - Things That Crawl and Ooze

As told by Magnus of the Island of Seren.

I waited at the bottom of the stairs, my fighting rage subsiding as the place quieted down. I thought I’d stand guard while the party sorted out that woman who claimed to be a friend of Dar the Druid. There was a LOT of talking up at the top of the stairs. I ignored it, focusing on the job of keeping guard.

What Magnus thinks Cypher
could look like if he spent less
time talking and more time
arming up.

It was very dark down there. I do not question the dragons' decision of not bequeathing the ability to see in the dark to humankind, but I have lately wondered if Serens should be exempt from this curse.

It wasn’t long before the whole group made its way down the stairs, minus Dar and her long lost friend. Everybody was talking about her departure and how the friend had told us repeatedly that we were in over our heads (of course, we were underground!) and that we should run for our lives. Not likely.

It seems that the friend had been a captive down here and told us again about the governor vampire Trazzen; more about the Blue Wraith, a criminal and wizard from the city we had recently departed; and some about what was going on down here. Seemed like there are areas in Glyphstone Keep that even Trazzen has yet to explore. It also seemed like they had a teleport circle set up and were bringing in help from Droaam. That seems like a great place to start, shutting down the flow of enemy warriors (more gnolls!).

I was feeling very beat up and I had seen lots of spells since we had a rest. With my own blood trickling down my skin, I suggested we take some time to rest. The party insisted that we had to go on, so we did. There were some healing spells cast, including Cypher using the Wand of Eternal Healing or whatever it is he calls it. But Aleae had been carrying it, so when she realized he possessed it now made the elf very angry. Those two will end up fighting one day.

As we made our way toward the unknown areas south on the second level of the dungeon, we tried to be sneaky. It just isn’t our style. A few fumbling minutes in the dark and I heard a voice simply say, mockingly: “Shhhhh.” I flared my stolen everbright torch to reveal the "friendly" oni from upstairs. This was Sorrell. He asked what we had learned—not enough—and he added his ignorance to our pile of questions. He returned Aleae’s Wand of Wonder and we agreed to share notes when next we meet. While we ventured south in search of the some Brelish wizard who disappeared in these ruins some years ago (I don't know the significance of him), Sorrel went east toward the known lair of our enemies.

Once more we head into the dark, trying to be both silent and lightless. The darkness hid our fumblings and stubbed toes, but not much of our noise. I think it was there that I decided to give up and just use our lights.

In front, Alea spied a missing section of floor, an open pit of some kind. Cypher sent Rungo (Mrs. Rungo?) to scout around us. Back behind us we heard a whistle and we soon saw a couple of disgusting, moving corpses shambling from a side corridor. I attacked. Sahlessh joined me and got more of their rotting juice on his hands.

When not attacking adventurers,
gray oozes enjoy long slides
down the stairs, pretending
to be oily puddles, and crocheting.

Clarion heard something by the pit and found some kind of multi-legged worm-slug, with a saddle, being ridden by a nasty, wrong-colored little goblin or something. The worm turned out to be a carrion crawler, which Cypher and I had faced before—also underground and also in the company of undead foes. It is not a good memory for me. The crawler was big and nasty, just as the others had been, but twice before my eyes Clarion intercepted and fended the thing's paralyzing tentacles away from us.

It wasn't long before we wiped up our foes (and Sahlessh took my torch for a walk, we should steal him one soon). During the mop-up, Aleae was attacked by some kind of dark, stone-colored slime which left nasty acid burns. Lots of attacks, lots of spilled holy water, and lots of damaged armor and weapons resulted .It makes me glad to have given up wearing armor at all. I finally grabbed a dead goblin and smashed the slimy puddle into oblivion. The goblins, too, we killed, but then they came alive again—well, undead—but we made short work of them.

Kard used a very helpful spell that healed all of us a measure and without even having to touch us. The cleric has grown more powerful than when we first met him. It makes me wonder at the powers given to humankind by the dragons—yet he does not seem to think he is praying to any.

Soon we were ready to search more of this old dungeon. We carefully jumped across the pit and begin making our way further into the dark. Only a short distance, two tiny balls of fire came shooting out at us from the dark.