The alcoves may have held treasures and wealth, but the companions were of one mind to continue past them and onward, deeper into the cave. They continued on slowly, trying to keep as quiet as possible down the sloping earth beneath them. As they continued onwards, they noticed the ceiling overhead grow distant with the gradual descent, until it was easily some eighteen feet overhead. The group continued for another ten minutes down the long sloping corridor, passing another four alcoves along the way. The first two contained a barrel in each, upon which sat a tarnished silver candelabra with burning black candles casting their flickering light across the alcove. The second pair of alcoves, another 60’ down the path held less valuable ‘treasures.’

Nailed to the alcove wall on the left hand side is a goblin, long since dead with a spear through his gut. The naked creature looks to have been tortured for some time before finally succumbing to the pain. In the right alcove, a gnoll has been similarly tortured and impaled upon the alcove wall. The grisly sight is enough to leave a memorable impression in each of the companion’s minds. Leaving the creatures in the alcoves until later, or perhaps period, the companions continued downwards. After another 200’ the slope began to even out, the ceiling of the cave now loomed some 25-30’ overhead, with small stalagmites growing out of the roof. The natural walls turned into rough hewn stone and the floor was graded. As the group observed their newfound surroundings, they realized they had stumbled into some long ancient underground complex. The path continued another 20’, with glowing orbs of light the equivalent of candles attached to the walls at 5’ intervals providing some low light, eliminating the need for the torch. At the end of the 20’, the path veered left, right, and continued straight ahead.

It would seem this wouldn’t be such a simple endeavor after all.

Xaris sighed, and spoke quietly under his breathe.

" stupid ogre, making things more complicated."

He looked at the path ahead of them, three different ways to go. He thought back on the goblin and gnoll pierced to the wall, and shuddered. He was glad to see the evil creatures dead, but did not want to meet the same fate. This ogre seems to be to cruel for normal ogres. Maybe he was something more? Something more beastly? He shook the thought out of his mind and looked back at the group behind him.

" I say we go straight, the ogre is most likely sleeping or eating, and if I thought like an ogre, I wouldnt want me comforts to far away and not have a tricky winding trail leading to it. Especially if I had to drag a horse down into my cave."

He looked down to the floor, surprised as to how much he had opened up to the group. These people were easier to get along with than he originally thought. Maybe his many years of travel had softened him up a little? Or maybe there is just something different here....

Kas looks to Loriel, "Which way does the wolf say," she says looking at the floor. for tracks.

She was surprised at what this cave had turned out to be, and wondered if there was not something more to this, the elaborate settings in the first two alcoves was far more complicated in makeup than what a bestial mind of an Ogre could come up with.

"There is something odd in all this," she say lowly, but enought for the others to hear.

Linnix scowls at the sight of the two tortured and impaled creatures. Surely there was no reason for that sort of thing in this world, ever. Her mind wanders back to the sight of the bandit similarly tortured, but by crucification rather than this brutal impaling.

"Ugh... this is getting so disgusting." Linnix murmurs, the sights reassuring her place as essentially a non-combatant. She couldn't take it, the sight of blood, much less torture.

Linnix shivers, and her eyes glaze over as her mind now wanders off on its own without her consent, thinking to what might have happened if They had caught her... The cave suddenly seems so much colder, and her breath seems to mist in front of her... Linnix breathes faster, and heart pounds faster, its noise deafening her... She just freezes in place...

Then she thinks back to the treasure chest she could barely see in the dark. Linnix bites her lip, and her breathing steadies. No way, she was not about to stop now. There was a reward to be collected, and so, she continues.

The interesting lights at first are a welcome sight to Linnix's eyes, but then she realizes the downside: with light on both sides of the hall, there were basically no places for her to hide if she needed to. Linnix bites her lip again. Then there was also the matter of the path splitting as well.

Well, that's just great... Linnix thought.

Was all this trouble really worth that single treasure chest? Linnix began to question that. She then turned her attention to the corridor itself. The lights really troubled her; they were so... unnatural. Linnix reaches up to one curiously.

"This can't be real..." She murmurs, tentatively touching the light (if it's not as hot as a candle flame).

That brought several other questions to her head. Why was this here? What was it for? Was it a temple? If so, what was it a temple to? So many questions struck her at the same time that her eyes glazed over, and she paused, lost in thought. Linnix didn't think she heard any rumours about such a place, and Bartholomew didn't mention anything either. Then she thought about the illusion of the river that they had passed. Was this too an illusion?

Loriel became more and more convinced that this was some sort of temple as they passed the alcoves with the gruesome remains of a goblin and a gnoll. The black candles as well increased the disquiet she felt in this place. In there hunt for the Ogre and his two captives they had found something else much more ominous and perhaps even more dangerous than facing an Orge. Without healing spells or magics they could be in big trouble.

Loriel mentally calls Moonshadow over to her. Moonshadow moves nest to her and Loriel felt a low inaudible growl from Moonshadow. Across their link with each other the wolf-dog conveyed her dislike for this place. Loriel had to agree as she felt the same sort of foreboding.

"Thins place gives me a bad feeling, and Moonshadow does not like the ‘feel’ of the place. I trust her senses. We might need to go out and wait until our casters can recharge their spells before coming back into her, though that will not be a good thing for the wife and daughter of the merchant. What do you all want to do? This may be too much for us to handle."

"Does anyone recognize that horse-headed figure or any other religious symbols they might have seen?"

Linnix suspiciously ran her hands gently over the candle impersonating orbs. The light flickered under her touch, but provided no heat. The globe (much akin to a standard snow globe in size) can likely with some strength or ingenuity be removed from the wall.


As for Loriel's question, none of the religiously inclined members of the party can relate the horse headed figure to any pantheon they are learned in.

"Oh, neat!" Linnix marvels, continuing to examine the orb.

Now determined to take the interesting orb with her, Linnix begins to wonder how to get it to unattach from the wall. First she reaches behind it, to where there may be an attachment between it an the wall. Then she tries feeling above and below it, to see if there's any attachment points there.

When or if she finds an attachment point, Linnix then connects the orb to her hand. At the same time, she retrieves an unmentioned torch (because she forgot she had two of them) and tries to stick the orb onto the end. If successful, she'll repeat with a second orb for a second torch.

Loriel watches LInnix removing the globe from the wall attachement. Great idea, she thinks and does the same with two of the orbs. Using a dagger to pry either at the attachment or the orb. No knowing when the torches would give out. These would be very useful when the torches did.

With some elbow grease, a dagger tip, and some luck, Loriel, and Linnix are able to pry two orbs apiece from the walls. (everyone else interested can claim a couple if they want before leaving the hallway in darkness) As Linnix tries to stick the orb on the end of her torch however, she finds the ancient paste which once held the orb to the wall has lost its hold, and falls easily from the torch end with minimal movement. While the orbs glow faintly, the party can hear a low creaking coming from down the right hand tunnel ahead. It’s creaking is in a steady motion, like the ticking of a clock.
Creak…
Creak…
Creak…
…
…
…

Silence.

Kas will also pry off a globe and put it in her backpack for now.

On hearing the sounds she puts her finger to her lips and points down the tunnel.

Linix sighs, and puts both the torch and the light orbs in her pack.

Maybe I should grab a couple extra... Linnix thinks.

Linnix begins to pry another two off the wall, but stops as soon as she hears the noise. A sweat droplet falls down the side of her cheek, but whether it is from anticipation or from the exertion of obtaining the orbs can't be determined by her expression.

When the noise vanishes, Linnix glances around warily, but then continues to try to get these last two orbs (as quietly as possible).

‘Swift and silent,’ Aelistae thought, recounting the mantra imparted to her in the dark depths of Menzoberranzen. It was not just advice on how to move in the twisting tunnels of the Underdark, but advice on how to bear oneself around others.

So far she had stuck to both interpretations of the saying. She had been careful to muffle her footsteps and refrain from speech. She had also refused to get distracted when they stumbled upon the skewered goblin or the magically glowing candles.

The sudden interruption of the creaking sound into the otherwise still air, however, changed all that.

“It is likely that the ogre has heard us,” she whispered, “and has taken some precautions.”

“As for what you said a moment ago,” Aelistae added, turning towards Loriel, “I will not leave this woman and child to darkness and despair. Yes we are wounded and under-prepared, but if we leave now they will die.”

With that said, Aelistae moved quietly to the mouth of the right hand tunnel and peered inside.

OOC: Heh, I don’t post for a couple of days, and there’s loads of posts to catch up on! I love this game.

Aelistae is just going to see if her drow eyes can see anything down the tunnel. I suspect that there’s some trap down there that the ogre has set.

Peering down the right tunnel awhile, the keen drow eyes, (and those of anyone else for that matter) can see from the illuminated walls that a massive scythe blade has fallen from the walls and ceiling and now hangs still in the middle of the corridor. For all intents and purposes it looks as though it were once a trap, but somehow it was set off, and now lies dormant, still and in plain view in the middle of the corridor about ten feet down the right hand tunnel.

Further on, a wooden door can be seen set into the right hand wall about 10' beyond the trap, and the corridor ends in a 90 degree turn to the left another 10' passed the door..

Xaris watched his fellow party members take the orbs off of the wall and also the trap fall. Putting two and two together, Xaris quickly became interested in removing the rest.


" Maybe it was set off by the orbs. Remove them from the walls, and if you dont mind, hand me one too."

Being all to short for this task, Xaris draws his greatsword and waits, looking down the path where the trap was sprung. Who knows what else could of heard this scythe trap.

"However rather than be a trap that is set off already it could be a trigger for a trap as well. We should go carefully. checking for triggers for possible traps.

"Moonshadow. Find the Ogre"