ity n he ky - art II
ost n he ndercity (ii)

Trimus dusted down his hose and straightened his tunic, shaking his head as he noticed a hole in the elbow of his shirt. Just then a sticky slithering sound like an army marching through mud could be heard from ahead. Emerging from a side corridor, and almost filling it from floor to ceiling was a cube of jelly. Ordering everyone back behind the metal door Jodotha pulled a flask of oil from his pack and tossed it at the floor before the cube. The clay jar shattered spreading a slick of strong smelling lamp oil across the floor. The cube hesitated, sending out small tendrils of protoplasmic material towards the oil. Lighting a small piece of kindling with his tinder box Jodotha stepped back and tossed the glowing ember gently into the oil. With a loud "Whump!" the oil ignited and engulfed the gelatinous cube in flames. The heat scorched Jodotha's face even from ten feet away and the stench of burning ooze was enough to cause the rogue to gag. The flames soon burnt out leaving behind a hump of charred ooze. Poking through the remains the companions found a few handfuls of coins scraped up by the ooze during it's travels around the tunnels.
"No bones." Said Gilbo with a smile, "Parboo may still be alive."

They walked up the corridor from which the ooze had emerged and came to a door marked with a sign written in a tidy gnomish hand.
"Engineers Only! Workshop. DANGER!" said Gilbo reading the sign. "Oh this sounds interesting." The impetuous gnome opened the door and stepped into the room. Inside 'L' shaped large benches filled all four corners of the fifty foot by thirty foot room. Opposite the door a furnace, rusty and cold, stood with doors agape, a last load of charcoal still filling the firebox awaiting a gnomish engineer to ignite it. Gilbo poked around amongst the boxes, chests, drawers and shelves, pocketing a tool here and a coil of wire there until his pockets and pouches bulged.

They continued south from the engineers' workshop till they came to another sealed door. This time there was no space for Darkhawk to insert his crude crowbar so they returned to the still steaming remains of the gelatinous cube and followed the corridor east. At the next junction Jodotha stopped and smelt the air. "I can smell earth, moist earth and rot that way." He said pointing south. The others shrugged and set off down the corridor. The smell became stronger and stronger as they continued south, passing another corridor on their left as they went. The corridor ended in a large metal door with a smaller one in the wall to the right. Behind the small door was a strange collection of gardening tools. Buckets and spades hung from hooks on the wall and a neat array of tall leather boots rested against a wall. The large pair of doors opened as Gilbo turned wheels and manipulated knobs on a panel to the left of the door. Beyond the doors was a strange sight. A pale green luminance filled the room. Growing on every surface were large mushrooms and other fungi. Some shelf like growths were over a foot thick and some twenty feet in length. Gilbo jumped up and down in excitement.
"It's a fungi farm." He exclaimed joyfully stepping into the room and pulling a handful of fungus from a wall. To Ako's horror he took a bite from it and smiled. "Hmm. My favourite, Giant's Ear. Want some?" The gnome held out the glowing morsel to the others who shook their heads vigorously seeing the gnomes lips were now faintly glowing the same colour as the fungus he had just eating. "Suit yourselves" he said. "You don't know what you're missing." He popped the last crumbs into his mouth and wiped his hands on his shirt before following the others northwards back to the last junction.

Turning east they passed another waste shaft before they reached a cross-roads.
"This place is like a maze." Grumbled Trimus. "I haven't a clue as to where we are or how we are to get back to the surface."
"I do." Replied Gilbo smugly. "I have a map." He tapped his head and grinned. To everyone's relief his lips had now stopped glowing. "But first we must find Parboo even if it means searching every one of these corridors."
"I think he is actually enjoying this chance to explore these tunnels" whispered Ako to Trimus.
"I agree, but can you blame him? Did you see the way he went through that workshop. Things disappeared faster than free gifts at a thieves convention." The young mage replied with a condescending smile towards Gilbo.
"What time do you think it is?" asked the cleric.
"Teatime." Muttered Darkhawk from up ahead. "It must be teatime."

They continued east to another cross-roads where they turned north, the eastern corridor being blocked by another metal door whose mechanism had jammed shut. They spent the next hour or so exploring a trio of empty store rooms which contained no evidence of Parboo nor of what the rooms may have contained when the Undercity had been inhabited. The next room they entered was far more interesting. At the centre of the forty foot square chamber was a circular shaft some fifteen feet across. Shiny metal struts placed at regular intervals around the gaping hole led upwards into the ceiling where they surrounded a similar hole. Gilbo dashed into the room and stuck his head over the edge of the pit.
"Oooh!" he exclaimed. "Look at this." The others joined him taking more care than the gnome had in approaching the dark void. Looking over the edge all that could at first be seen was darkness, then as their eyes grew accustomed to the light level and all the parties light gems had been extinguished features could be made out. "We're looking out of the bottom of the city." Said Jodotha calmly. "Look there is a forest and a stream." The thief pointed to a twisting length of river illuminated by the last rays of the sun.
"It is dark." Said Darkhawk seriously, "It must be teatime."
The others laughed and agreed. While Gilbo sat beside the hole watching the world pass by below the others sat with backs to the walls and eat what remained of the food they had brought down with them.
"If we don't find Parboo soon we should return to the surface and try again tomorrow." Suggested Ako.
"No!" called Gilbo by the shaft. "He could be injured. We must keep looking."
"A few more hours then." Agreed Trimus "Then we should return to the surface." "You can return." Said Gilbo, standing and crossing his arms over his chest. "But I will stay and look for him. Alone if necessary."
"I will stay with you." said Darkhawk. "I will have no one say that at gnome was braver than I."
"Good grief!" sighed Trimus. "All right then, we shall all stay. Let us keep looking for a while longer then find some where to sleep for the night."

They left the strange chamber and crossed the corridor to a pair of double doors. The doors opened after a little effort with Darkhawk's crowbar. Inside they saw a large store room piled high with sacks. Scuttling away from their glowing light gems numerous rats made for whatever shadows they could find. With Jodotha on guard outside the door the others pressed on into the room to see if Parboo had made himself a shelter amongst the rotting chests and crates. A screeching sound turned them around to see the doors grating shut till only a six inch gap remained. Jodotha pressed his face to the crack and shouted through "Someone better come quick another of those gooey blobs is heading this way." He tried for a moment to free the doors before turning away. Darkhawk and the others ran to the door and tried to free the mechanism but they were soon forced back as a tendril of protoplasm inched its way through the door. With surprising speed the blob was soon inside the store room.
"Anyone got some oil?" asked Cain as he and the others tried to attack the blob without being harmed themselves.
"Jodotha might." Panted Trimus striking out at the translucent cube with his staff, his offensive spells long since used up.
The exhausted heroes eventually dispatched the cube and rushed to the door to look out into the corridor. To their horror they caught a glimpse of another cube sliding down the corridor with Jodotha in its midst. With a superhuman effort Darkhawk wrenched the doors open and led the others in a charge towards the gelatinous cube. Before being assimilated Jodotha had been able to do considerable damage to his assailant and so it took scant minutes for the others to dispatch the creature.
Jodotha plopped out onto the floor of the corridor, barely breathing. Ako sluiced the rogue with what remained in his waterskin before laying hands upon him and using his last healing spell upon his badly injured companion. Some of the wounds faded but he was still very weak.
"I have something that may be of use." Said Gilbo pressing forward. "I have a healing potion." Ako took the small flask from the gnome and lifted Jodotha's head and poured the rich, sweet smelling liquid down his throat.
Jodotha blinked then sat up rubbing his face. "That was far closer to the hereafter than I normally like to get." He said smiling before bowing in thanks to Ako and Gilbo. Amongst the remains inside the pair of gelatinous cubes they found a few handfuls of coins and a flask of potion. Jodotha sipped the liquid inside and judged it to be a potion that enhanced the imbiber's strength. The rogue tucked the flask away inside his pack as he watched Darkhawk close the heavy doors and Trimus cast a locking ward upon them.
They pooled what food they had left and sat amongst the sacks to get what rest they could for a few hours before resuming their search in what they judged to be the morning. During the night Darkhawk heard another cube slithering past but it either didn't notice them or was not able to find a way in and it continued on its way down the corridors of the Undercity.

The following morning they awoke, stiff and feeling just as tired and bruised as the night before. Trimus and Ako spent some time while the others poked around the refuse memorising spells for the day ahead.
"I think I know where Parboo might be." Said Gilbo as everyone was ready to go.
"Where?" asked Trimus irritably.
"He may have been trying to find the eleverterons. Rooms that used to go up and down between the Undercity and the City Above." Replied Gilbo.
"What did these eleverterons look like, and where might they be?" asked Ako.
Gilbo shrugged. "Dunno. But it might be worth looking for Parboo in one."
"Great." Sighed Darkhawk. "We still don't know where Parboo is but we think he might be in an eleverteron. But we don't know where that is either. Help me open this door Cain."
They pulled the door open and stepped back with a start. Outside the door standing with hands on hips was an elf. The elf tipped his head on one side and examined Trimus and the others with his heavy lidded almond shaped eyes. "I am Rellan of the North Star Clan." The elf said bowing gracefully. "You must be Rintrah's friends. Rintrah sent me here with some more information regarding Heydrech. It seems that others are searching for him. Who they are working for is unknown but Rintrah suspects that they are working for one of his enemies. But what are you doing down here? Is Heydrech working his evil magics in these strange caverns?"
"No." replied Trimus sheepishly. "We were hired by Gilbo here and the mayor of Serraine to find a missing gnome. It seemed the right thing to do."
Rellan ran his fingers through his black hair and shook his head. "I'm not sure Rintrah will be pleased about this diversion. But still it is done now. Perhaps I can help with the search." He turned to Gilbo and conversed with the gnome in Gilbo's own tongue.

They moved out of the room and turned south. They explored a number of abandoned gnomish homes similar to those they found the day before. Gilbo poked about in drawers and chests but found nothing of interest. Turning north they came to another sealed door. Again the best efforts of Jodotha, Gilbo and Darkhawk were not enough to budge it more than a fraction of an inch. Peering through Trimus could see enough to recognise that this was the door that had frustrated them so much before. A few tens of feet away he could just make out the vent where they had entered the Undercity.
They walked back to a side corridor and headed east. The corridor soon opened out into a large room lined with stacks of barrels. Some of those at the bottom of the sacks had collapsed slightly giving a sticky coating to the floor.
"Look there!" exclaimed Gilbo pointing at one of the sticky patches. "Footprints!"
Sure enough gnome sized footprints lead away from the sticky patch to a door at the far end of the room. Gilbo rushed over to the door and stopped. The others skidded to a halt behind the gnome. Looking over Gilbo's shoulder Trimus could see nothing but blackness.
"It's an eleverteron." Gasped Gilbo. "The footsteps stop at the edge. I hope Parboo didn't fall down it." The Gnome cupped his hands together and yelled down the shaft. "Paaaaarboooooo!" They all listened carefully and were rewarded by a faint cry echoing up the shaft.
"I'll go down." said Jodotha tying a length of rope around his waist and attaching the other end to a solid looking iron pillar beside the opening. "Wish me luck." He grinned as he dropped himself over the edge. The rogue absailed down the side of the shaft. After about fifteen feet he could see the metal floor blocking the shaft with another gnome lying awkwardly against one of the walls of the shaft. Jodotha swiftly dropped the rest of the way. "I've found him!" shouted Jodotha back up the shaft. "Throw me down some spare rope or sheets, I need to make some sort of cradle to get him up. I think he has a broken leg."
A few minutes later a bundle of sheets from one of the gnomish rooms were thrown down. Jodotha tied them around Parboo who moaned quietly. After using the rest of the sheets to tie Parboo to his chest Jodotha called up the shaft. "You'll have to pull me up. I need to hold Parboo and I can't do that and climb."
Ako, Cain and Darkhawk slowly pulled the heavy load up the shaft, while Jodotha used his arms and legs to fend himself of the walls. By the time Jodotha could pass the swaddled gnome into Trimus' hands Ako and Darkhawk's arms were burning with the exertion.
Ako unwrapped Parboo and examined his injuries. "You were very lucky." He said as Parboo groaned at every poke and prod. "Lots of bruises and a broken leg. It was lucky that you only fell a short distance." The cleric used his staff to heal the broken leg and with Gilbo's help the gnome was able to walk, slowly, back to the vent shaft. All the way Darkhawk and Jodotha kept an eye and ear open for the approach of more of the gelatinous cubes but their journey was uneventful. When they got back to the shaft they could here calls from above. It seemed that the gnomes were getting worried and were about to send another rescue party. Gilbo scampered up the shaft using the rope left behind from their arrival. By the time the others made it to the top and Parboo had been hugged by all the members of his family a large crowd had gathered to welcome them back. Gilbo was being interviewed for the Serraine Flyer and an artist was making sketches of all the companions. Rellan however had slipped away to watch the events with a jaundiced eye.

They were escorted back to the mayor's office where the centaur shook everyone's hand and praised them.
"Thank you for rescuing Parboo, he is one of our more able engineers. Here is your reward as promised." He indicated a small chest of coins. "I will have to make plans for a mapping expedition to the Undercity, from what Gilbo has been saying there are a lot of interesting items and places down there. Would you be interested in working on such a project?"
Trimus shook his head. "I'm sorry your Worship, but we have other pressing business in your fair city."
"That is fair enough. But if you change your mind, please let me know."

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