nowbound

Part Eight - The Circle Of Drokhon - Communication Breakdown

Trimus looked worriedly at the dwindling food supplies as he and the others rested after the trials of the day before. Who knew how long they would spend down in this desolated underground city? The age of the bones scattered on the floor suggested that they were unlikely to come across any source of food in the near future. And why had they come down here anyway? The Phoenix wasn't likely to be here and they must find that to get home. That should be their first priority, not chasing down every rabbit hole they came across. He shook his head wryly, he knew he was as bad as the rest, couldn't let a mystery go by without investigating it. Curiosity didn't only kill cats it seemed. With that cheery thought still in his mind Trimus dozed for several hours until Jodotha woke him with a shake.

They pressed on down the corridor that led eastward from the statue cave. The featureless passage ended some way on in a spiral staircase leading down into the darkness. Jodotha went ahead scouting for traps and other dangers. He was gone for some time before he returned to report that the stair ended in a wide passage leading north.
The others followed Jodotha down the stairs and then with Darkhawk and Ako at the fore moved along the wide passage. After about a hundred yards pale patches of purple light could be glimpsed in the darkness ahead. Trimus signaled that all light sources should be hidden and once everyone's eyes had adjusted to the darkness several of these purple glows could be seen.
"They're not moving" whispered Ako, "I thought they may have been will-o-the-wisps or something similar at first."
"Too large as well" agreed Darkhawk.
Drawing out the light gems they continued along the passage which soon started to widen into a huge cave that stretched beyond the reach of their small light sources. They could see a forest of stalagmites and stalactites and amongst them small buildings from which the purple glow leaked from windows. A larger, brighter glow emanated from the north-west while at the centre of the congregation of buildings stood a larger column formed from a conjoined stalagmite and stalactite. As they stood quietly the sound of running water could be heard from the east. Small figures passed before the lights leaking from the buildings.
"Look at this" hissed Jodotha pointing to some crude runes on the floor of the passage where it emerged into the cave.
"They look like some form of warding glyphs" said Trimus, "But they don't look right."
"There are some odd dwarven characters mixed in with the glyphs, very strange" continued Jodotha, "Is it safe to cross them?"
"Yes" replied Trimus firmly and stepped across the writing, "I want to speak with these people."

The others followed Trimus who hailed the nearest figure who on closer inspection turned out to be a dwarf.
"You there, what is this place."
To his great surprise the two dwarves prostrated themselves and started to babble in dwarven. From the way they were shaking and the glimpse of horror on their faces Trimus was under no illusion that they were worshipping him. These dwarves were scared, very scared.
Trimus took the strange bejeweled helm from his pack and stuck it on his head and waited for a moment or two as the dwarves continued to babble.
"No, it isn't a helm of comprehension or anything like that." He said stuffing it back into his pack. "Ako, do you recognize any of what they are saying? Can you make out the name of one of their gods or anything?"
Ako thought for a moment. "It is some kind of litany, I think. One word does get repeated more often than any other, 'Braedech' but it is not an immortal I have ever heard of.
"I've had enough of this." Darkhawk stepped towards the dwarves and went to lift them to their feet but before he could reach them they screamed and ran away into the darkness. Jodotha stifled a chuckle as Darkhawk glowered back at the rogue.
Trimus cast a spell of invisibility upon himself and ran after the dwarves but within moments he had fallen flat on his face as the darkness hid the irregular nature of the cave floor. He stood up and felt his way towards one of the small houses. Looking through one of the windows he saw that the purple light came from a shallow bowl set upon a table. He turned as he heard Darkhawk's voice bellow into the night.
"Trimus! We are heading for the big purple light"
"Excellent Darkhawk, once more the master of surprise," muttered Trimus as he headed towards the bright zone of light that surrounded his companions.
As he got closer Trimus heard Ako shout out a command and the mage hurried towards his companions.
"What's up?" he asked on his return.
"A skeleton, covered in mould, we've met them before, you don't want to breath in the spores they give when struck." The cleric replied, "It has gone, for now at least."

The source of the brighter purple glow turned out to be a large cave the walls of which were covered in bulbous lumps of fungi that gave off a luminescent glow. A number of dwarves were tending and harvesting the growths. "Well at least that is where the light comes from." Cain mused, "But we really need to speak with these dwarves, we need supplies."
"I have a few spells that could possibly help, but I cannot cast them today. Perhaps it would be best if we returned to the statue room and rest until I can learn them." Trimus suggested, he tried to sound more confident than he felt.

After a period of waiting in the statue room were Jodotha had to be persuaded not to dump all the bones outside they eventually managed to sleep. They returned after a spartan breakfast to the glyphs at the entrance to the large cave and Trimus cast a read magic spell upon them.
"They are not magic; they have been placed there to keep evil out of the cave it seems by someone who doesn't know what they are doing."
As they stepped into the cave two more of the mould encrusted undead staggered into view. Jodotha missed with a crossbow but Ako managed to turn one of them. Darkhawk stepped boldly into the fray and struck forcefully with his sword held at arms length to avoid the miasma of spores that surrounded the creature. The skeleton struck back releasing more spores as its twisted claws struck Darkhawk. The others moved in to strike, Ako's mace seemingly ineffective due to the spongy nature of the creatures form. Darkhawk eventually dispatched the creature without any of the others taking any damage from it.
"Perhaps we should show this to the dwarves, perhaps then they will see us in a better light." Trimus suggested as he tied a rope around the creature's legs. Darkhawk started to pull the creature behind him across the rough ground, the others stood well clear to avoid the puffs of spores that belched off each time the creature's skull bounced off a rock. They soon spotted a trio of dwarves a short distance ahead. Two immediately prostrated themselves while the other ran off into the shadows.
Trimus cast a spell of polymorph other on one of the prostrate dwarfs but to his disgust the dwarf didn't change.
"Damn dwarves and their magical resistance." Spat Trimus who then dragged the skeletal corpse in front of the babbling dwarf. The dwarves' eyes flicker up and they stops speaking, then with a snarl of rage they stepped forward and started to attack Trimus with their bare fists.
"I don't believe this," Trimus sighed fending off the blows. Ako stepped forward and knocked one of the dwarves out with his mailed fist while Darkhawk struck the other with the pommel of his sword. "What are you doing?" Cain asked as Jodotha rifled through the dwarves' belongings.
"There might be some indication of who these people are, some clues we can use to communicate with them," the rogue replied sheepishly returning the handful of copper coins to the pouches. "They had the same crossed hammer device on them that the doors to the cave did."

After tying them up, hey took the unconscious dwarves and the mouldy skeleton back to the chamber with the ruined statue and waited for them to wake up.
"How are we going to talk with them?" asked Darkhawk.
"I have tried polymorphing one of them into human form but that failed so I am going to change myself into a dwarf and see if that helps," replied the mage.
"It won't," muttered Jodotha.
The rogue was correct. When the first dwarf had come round Trimus cast a polymorph spell upon himself and he now resembled Grabthroat Shinkicker. It made no difference. Still the dwarf babbled in his strange tongue, still he seemed more frightened of Trimus and the others than seemed warranted. Shaking his head Trimus dispelled his illusionary form and slumped to the floor with the others.
"We will have to wait till tomorrow. I will try again with the polymorph other spell, hopefully this time it will work. If it doesn't I have no other ideas how we will communicate with these dwarves."

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