Ghosts of Gauntcliff: Chapter Five

[RocEter]

THE OLD ABBEY-



Petrie calls his hound, but the dog won't enter the ruined abbey.
The Forfarian mutters, ''Beast might be showin' better sense than us.." He walks into the ruin with his lantern raised in his left hand and his sword hilt clutched in his right.

Looking around inside, he remarks to the others, "I don't see any ogre, or whatever it is you expected to find. Now, the door? Should we try that?"

"Yes I think we should give that a go." Thom says moving towards the pit. He pulls out a sun rod and activates it than proceeds to drop it down into the pit. "Pits are always more ominous at night.." He says looking down into it.

[ewancummins]

The bottom of the pit looks pretty much the same by the light of the sunrod as it did by daylight. Thom sees a lot of rubble down there. The door down there remains closed.

[ewancummins]

THE OLD ABBEY-


Primiero yawns.


Petrie and Thom are both standing over the pit peering down, when they suddenly go limp and pitch headfirst into the hole!

The two men crash into the bottom of the pit with a heavy crunch.

Eustace slumps down to the paving stones of the Abbey floor, unconscious or perhaps dead.

[steveflam]

Juergin advances to the end of the hall, to that door as quietly as possible.

Jürgen creeps across the stone floor to the door at the end of the hall.

Dark One slips under and returns a moment later to report:

"It leads to a long spiral staircase that winds down into the darkness."

The door isn't locked...

Juergin opens the door. With the lantern and pole he enters and closes the door behind him. He looks around.

[ewancummins]

Juergin advances to the end of the hall, to that door as quietly as possible.

Jürgen creeps across the stone floor to the door at the end of the hall.

Dark One slips under and returns a moment later to report:

"It leads to a long spiral staircase that winds down into the darkness."

The door isn't locked...

Juergin opens the door. With the lantern and pole he enters and closes the door behind him. He looks around.

A spiral staircase descends from the door, winding away into the black depths of the tower.

[steveflam]

JUERGIN

Juergin notes the staircase and exits. He plans to open each door and see what is behind each of them.

"Dark One. Just see behind the remaining doors what there is before we decide where to go, please."

[Adam]

Benn climbs off of the raft, dragging it up onto the islet. Once he gets it stowed, he staggers over to a bush and retches into it, finally allowing himself to take a full breath now that he's away from the fumes of the lake.

"Well," he says to no one in particular, "now that that's out of the way, let's see about this cave, shall we?"

He stands, again dusting off his clothing and picking up his walking stick, and makes his way along the islet towards his goal.

[Rock of the Fraternity]

"Hell's bells!" Everline curses. She yanks her wand out of its hiding place and runs to Eustace. If she has the time, she takes out her waterskin and splashes water in his face. "Wake up, wake up, wake up!" she shouts at the top of her voice. "Shadows beneath, wake up!"

(OOC: Initiative check: 12.)

[ewancummins]

BENN

Benn climbs off of the raft, dragging it up onto the islet. Once he gets it stowed, he staggers over to a bush and retches into it, finally allowing himself to take a full breath now that he's away from the fumes of the lake.

"Well," he says to no one in particular, "now that that's out of the way, let's see about this cave, shall we?"

He stands, again dusting off his clothing and picking up his walking stick, and makes his way along the islet towards his goal.

The islet is not large, and Benn quickly arrives at the cave mouth. Benn can only see a short distance into the cave, beyond that all is lost in deep gloom.
The black gap smells of moist earth and old bones, but at least the clammy air it exhales is free of the lake's toxic vapors.

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

"Black damn!" Dorgio shouts as he sees his comrades fall. He starts to go to Eustace, but sees Everline is already rushing to his aid.

"Primeiro!" He says, taking hold of him by the shoulders to make sure he's awake. "I need to get down to Thom and Petrie. Help me, brace this." He uncoils a length of rope from his pack and hans one end to Petrie, and readies himself to descend.

((Initiative: 6))

[ewancummins]

JUERGIN

Juergin notes the staircase and exits. He plans to open each door and see what is behind each of them.

"Dark One. Just see behind the remaining doors what there is before we decide where to go, please."

There are just two doors left to check. Behind one, Juergin finds a small empty room with no exits and a single bricked up window. Behind the other door, the boy finds a room fitted out precisely like the captain's cabin on his father's ship, down to the last detail. Looking out the glass panes of the window, he sees the rolling pearl-gray ocean! The floor sways beneath his feet...

[steveflam]

JUERGIN

Juergin frowns as he looks around the room that is exactly like his father's room on the ship, the captains quarters. He doesn't plan to stay, but is curious. HE exits, but asks his shadow friend.

"Dark One, was that room magical? How could my fathers room be here, in this place? That is impossible. I say we take the stairs. I just wanted to see what the other doors held."

[ewancummins]

''I don't know if was magical, but this whole place is very strange..."

[steveflam]

Juergin replies. "All right then. Let us take the stairs, Dark One, You lead."

The lad opens the door to the odd stairway and closes it behind him. "Here goes nothing, my friend."

He begins descending the stairs carefully, stepping one step at a time, not rushing at all.

[ewancummins]

Juergin replies. "All right then. Let us take the stairs, Dark One, You lead."

The lad opens the door to the odd stairway and closes it behind him. "Here goes nothing, my friend."

He begins descending the stairs carefully, stepping one step at a time, not rushing at all.

The air becames more and more stifling and clammy the lower Juergin goes. After what seems like the better part of an hour spent walking down the endlessly twisting staircase, the boy feels tired and a bit dizzy.
Cobwebs hang thick on the walls in this section of stairwell.
Juergin notices that his shoes stick a little as he walks, as if he were stepping in spilled rum.