Episode 23- Eye Spy

Henry moved and sat next to Theamen. “Hey.” He nudged his shoulder.

Theamen didn't move or speak.

Thok picked Henry up, taking him from the room to Menelwen and Theamen time. They spoke a bit more, about Kerris and why he didn't tell her. Luca sided with her, rubbing against her legs. “..To certain death?” She offered him her hand.

He glanced up at her, taking it. “To certain death.”

They regrouped and noticed Vega missing. “Where's Vega?”

“Don't worry about it.” Thok answered.

“If we come across her, what do you want us to do?” Menelwen asked Henry as they traveled to the crevice.

“Knock her out? No lethal. Hopefully she won't even be there.”

“Got it. Well then, to certain death?”

“To certain death.”

Thok rolled his eyes. He was the only one who hadn't pledged to his death.

“Oh, where's your sense of fun?” Theamen asked. “Besides, if I die I never have to deal with Kerris or my father again. I'm fine with that.”

Thok passed Menelwen the circlet to attune to. Then started sliding down the cliff to the ledge with the crevice. They arrived at the entrance.

“I have a bad feeling about this...” Henry frowned.

“We're going into a crevice full of cultists. I would be more concerned if you had a good feeling.” Theamen shrugged.

“Ah Henry, you'll need light.” Menelwen pointed out as the crevice was pitch black. Henry lit his dagger. Theamen used Light on a copper piece in order to be a little more stealthy.

They moved slowly down the steep steps. It became clear that these were Dwarvish in construction and it was a back entrance. It took about three hours to descend the stairs until the Dwarven city came into view. A misty waterfall fell into darkness on one side of the cavern.

Agonized wails, whimpering pleas and cries of pain or torment echo in the cavern.

Making their way to the gate, they begin investigating. The door was barred from the inside. Thok stuck his sword through with the intent of lifting it out of the way. He ended up cutting it instead. The door opened, revealing a hallway that zig zagged with arrow slits in the wall.

There didn't appear to be any traps..

Thok stabbed through an arrow slit. Nothing happened. “Go and check ahead.” He told Henry.

Henry stealthed ahead, nothing happening. He came back without checking the other arrow slits as Thok had intended.

So Thok sent him back to check. But Henry is human and can't see in the darkness. So peering through the arrow slit with a lit dagger...

An arrow found purchase in his eye. Henry screamed. It echoed in the hallway. He crawled back to the party after going the wrong way, just in shock. Blood poured from his eye.

“How...how bad is it?”

“It's bad.” Theamen sat him down. Taking a deep breath, he started looking to see what he could do. “So Henry, how are your Elvish lessons going?” He asked in Elvish.

“Eeeh...”

“Oh good, he understood that.” Theamen switched to Orchish to talk to Thok. “I need to take it out and I'm a little afraid it'll take the eye with it.”

There weren't really any other options. Menelwen held Henry tight while Theamen worked. He got the arrow out...with the eye attached.

After it was done, there was the sound of a mole falling down stairs as Vega caught up to them. “What happened?”

His eyes go to Henry, seeing Menelwen holding him, covered in Henry's blood. Theamen held the arrow with an eye attached.

“Shit.” Vega walked over, casting cure wounds on him.

Henry reached up and found out his eye was missing. He started freaking out. He puked, Menelwen managed to avoid the splatter. She cleaned him up.

“Do you think he learned anything?” Thok asked.

“You're the one who told him to stick his head into the hole!”

Menelwen helped wrap the wound.

Theamen didn't know what to do with the eye until he decided to put it in a jar. He then offered it to Henry. He didn't take it, just the arrow. Shrugging, Theamen pocketed the jar with his eye.

“I'll shoot the fucker with it.”

“Oh, so you got a good look at him.” Theamen said without thinking.

“I was just screaming ten minutes ago.” He got up, adjusting. “I'm taking charge. As leader.” Henry said. Everyone started laughing.

Theamen took Henry aside for a moment, explaining that it wasn't meant to be malicious. They were just contact high from the relief that he was alive. He had crawled back with blood, so much blood and an arrow in his eye. It could have been much worse.

The party moves on, army crawling through the hall. Through the trail of blood. Vega puked. “You've seen blood before. You've eaten worse.” Theamen rolled his eyes.

After reaching the door, and going through, the next hall opened into a T shape. The hallway was clear.

Thok heard bad music, very bad music coming from a door on the left. The party moved with as much stealth as possible.

At the intersection, they went left. There were several humans chained at the base of obelisks. It was clear that they were starving to death. What's more...they were wearing cultist robes.

Henry asked why they were put there.

“We, we were left for the test. We must survive on air alone...”

“Fuck that, we're going to save you.” Henry started cutting them down. As he did, they started screaming. Out of fear that they would alert other cult members, Vega, Menelwen, and Thok killed them.

Further down the hall, it turned south. Vega reached over and cast Darkvision on Henry. That earned him a good solid punch. If Vega had been there to cast it earlier...he never would have held a lit dagger up and lost his eye.

The room they find was actually the one Henry was shot from.He takes a crossbow and bolts. “Don't fall asleep on me.” He glowered at Vega.

Vega flexed his claws. “Watch it. You deserve it.” Thok warned. Vega shrugged, letting the claws receed. He followed the party back to the hall.

Menelwen made a motion to take over the leadership. Theamen shook his head. “Wereboar, teleport, alone.”

“It would have worked. Besides, look at your options.”

“Yes, I know. Mr. Eye-pokey, the child, the other child, or yourself.” Was his response.

She snorted, knocking her shoulder against his. “Have I told you lately that I love you?”

Before checking the right of the hallway, they return to the room with the bad music.

“What's the worst that can happen?” Henry asked.

“You lose another eye followed by death.” Theamen answered.

“You're just a ray of sunshine today, huh?”

Henry snuck in, checking it out. It was a grand plaza with a fountain in the middle of the room. There was an elf trying and failing to play the pipes that seemed to be made of bone. Everyone was wearing feathered robes, very hard. They were practicing hard, so much so it appeared that their very lives may have depended on it. Henry made his way back, informing the party.

“Maybe they're practicing for some kind of ceremony...?”

The party put it to a vote, to attack or not to attack.

Two votes yes: Theamen and Henry

Two votes no: Menelwen and Vega.

“Why?” Menelwen asked.

“They're music is offensive to my ears.” Theamen shrugged.

Thok broke the tie...to attack!

The party gets the drop on them. Henry attacked first, using shadow blade then dropped one. Vega used ice knife which hit three of the musicians. Three of the musicans dropped, leaving two standing.

Menelwen knew how much Theamen wanted to fight so she used a firebolt. “Go on, I know you wanted this.”

He rushed forward, killing the remaining two.

With combat concluded, Vega recognized the instruments as being made out of human ribs. The elf was a moon elf, strange.

The party moves on to the passage north of the obelisks. It opened up to a path that lead across water to a pair of double doors.

Behind the doors, chanting could be heard. “Yan-C-Bin” over and over.

Peeking in, there was a collection of cultists hovering off the ground. Pillars lined the sides of the chamber and a huge pit that appeared to have a column of air coming from it.

The chanting was getting faster.

They close the door, prepping to fight. Menelwen summoned Scruffy, intending on sending him in first before drppping a fireball.

Deep breath...

~To be continued...~