After Thwip’s request, the image reforms into an aerial view of the hillside above, with the underground map schematic faintly visible through the ground.
As with the previous view of Thwip’s hometown, the view is apparently from a great height; substantially more than 150 yards. Also in common with the view of Thwip’s hometown is the ability to faintly perceive individual figures moving in the scene.
There appear to be about half a dozen figures moving around Aronn’s carriage. It is hard to discern details; it may be a few men and horses, or it may be a group of centaurs. At least some of the figures appear to be bipedal and man-sized.
“I don’t suppose this thing does teleportation, does it?”
Thwip rubs his chin in thought for all daft ideas are just detours on the way to the sane ones. He immediately stops rubbing his chin because it makes the claw marks hurt. "Ol’ Eyegouger once toldt me a notty story ‘bouta seeing-door spell anna lonely halfling but tis don’ look like tat. I’m no wizzardt, but I tink tis table works like a crystal ball mebbe? Lord Arron’d prolly no bitter. "
“Do we have a better than other than open that door”, he gestures, "and run (or swim?) for it?
“Underground place should have chimneys or air shafts…”
– Right! One thing at a time. Focus. –
Thwip speaks to the table, “Shew ziz facility agin. Include zee location off all air shaftz, vater intake valves, vaste disposal pipes, und all doors to zee outside in zee display.”
The map returns to the schematic of the underground complex. Two spots are highlighted in the entrance hall that appear to correspond to the metal features that were on the ceiling. A third highlight marks a spot in the centre of the main chamber, although it is unclear whether it is indicating a feature of the floor or ceiling.
– Logical. The people stationed here would know what each room does.–
Thwip points out the feature in the center hall. “I’m tinkin tat tis might bea hole in t’ seelin’. T’ dors in t’ entrance closed outwarts in etter direction so I’m tinking tey’re meant t’ be heldt shut by t’ weight off t’ water. Ifin somebuddy from t’ al-Wazif army wants t’ get in t’ get t’ box from sum dead teefs like us, tey’d needa diffrint way in.”
He distractedly waves over his shoulder at the locked and Eabd-wedged door. “But tere’s only won way t’ find tat out.”
– I’m still missing something. What is it? God, my face hurts! –
In Arabic, “Shew zee previous facility map vit landscape on zee top agin. View at und forty fife dekree ankle.”
– Where’s my burning glass? These images are too small. –
Thwip pats his torn up jacket in the hopes it made it through the Thing attack that he will likely spend the rest of his life waking up screaming about.
As the angle of the map changes, it reveals a chamber above the entrance corridor, of slightly larger volume than the corridor below.
No other additional information about the complex is apparent; this additional chamber appears to be entirely isolated apart from the corridor ceiling features beneath it.
The figures on the surface seem to be ransacking Aronn’s carriage. Aronn, slumped semiconscious in the corner, does not appear to notice.
As the angle of the map changes, it reveals a chamber above the entrance corridor, of slightly larger volume than the corridor below.
– Ah-hah!! –
He points out the new room. “Ifin tis is the water tank, I tink t’ front hall will schtop floodin b’for we kin drown up here. Soes it mite be posshible t’ get t’ shields n’ weapons wit’out a swim.”
Should we wake Aronn up? What’s in the box?
Thwip frowns and tucks his burning glass back into a relatively untorn pocket. “Ifin we’re goin t’ confront him aboot it, ten meebee we should do it now b’for he gits his magick back.”
Thwip frowns harder, causing a couple of scratches to ache. “But we might needt his magic at full powah t’ get oota hear. Ifin we wake him up he won’t be a help.”
The seems to be a problem that falls within the specializations of the party’s tacticians. Thwip returns to rotating the map about as he waits on their expertise.
Ranar, enjoying a bit of rest, debates on whether to throw his opinion into the mix. “W-we seem t’be secure enough right now. We do need Aronn’s … knowledge ‘fore we do anythin’. But don’t want to have to carry him out into a fight. If he’s looking magic-sick, let him n’ the shaman rest.”
He wonders about people around the carriage. Might they come down here? Or summon reinforcements and wait outside? Nothing to do about it now though, that will be a problem for later.
As he waits for rest of the party to reach a consensus, Thwip continues to explore the map. Anything to keep his mind off of a potential fight with Lord Aronn over the contents of the box.
“Shew me zee facility map at und sirty degree ankle from zee horizontal. Vunce more highlight zee locations off all zee pipes, vater intake valves, vaste disposal pipes, und air shaftz. Highlight zeir complete structure. Zen rotate zee map about zee zentral axis on zee horizontal at zee speed off und galloping horse.”
– I really hope all of that doesn’t break it. It’s quite old. –
The mead was delicious, the festival dancers were dancing perfectly, and the dim starlight from the mouth of the cave was relaxing. But something was dreadfully wrong. The drumming wasn’t at all in rhythm. At first he’d thought it was a new song that he hadn’t heard before, but no, it was just random pounding. And aside from that, silence. No singing, no laughter, no cheering or boasting. With a surge of adrenaline, he stumbled to his feet.
And then opened his eyes. Swaying slightly, he let out a sigh of disappointment. Back in the map room. No mead, no dancers. Must’ve dozed off. Not the only one either. The team lay slumped around, recovering. At least the door was still holding out against the non-rhythmic pounding from the other side, Eabd braced against it sturdily, still as a statue.
After a sip of water from his flask, Ranar moved carefully around the room, waking the others gentle prod and a “Hup! Wake it up! Tis a new night for a new fight!” Waking Aronn last, he hunched down in front of the elf and nodded towards the table. "Ye should take a look at that, let us know what we’re up against. If we’re gonna get outta here - with that thing - " he gestured toward the box, “we’re gonna need to know what we’re dealin’ with.” Unsure whether the elf might be frail or unnaturally spry, he stood and offered a hand to help Aronn up.
There is a time when one sleeps and is unaware of it. Normally this is fine as long as the cart isn’t winding its way around a mountain trail. It’s also fine while standing and staring at at map.
“Hup! Wake it up! Tis a new night for a new fight!”
“Ta hull zimmin samship chon! Guh!”
Thwip looks around at the moving party in confusion.
After being awoken, Aronn slowly hauls himself to his feet, leaning on his staff and Ranar’s arm. As he sees the table displaying the map and the figures on the surface, he bursts into a stream of loud Elvish:
Switching back to Anglish, he asks “how long have they been there?”.
Hawk is pulled out of his restoration trance by a prod and a few words, and adrenaline briefly starts to flow through his veins. Then his mind catches up to his instincts, and classifies the tone of the words as “not urgent” and the words themselves as a simple wake-up call.
For some reason, he feels hesitant to move at this point, so he takes a mental inventory. The shaman casts his inner eye upon his mind and finds that most of his resources have been replenished: he should be up to casting several spells if necessary. He starts limbering up his muscles and taking a physical inven…
NNNNNNNNggggghhhhh.
Lines of fire skate across Hawk’s skin as the scratches are pulled tight and he realizes exactly why he was reluctant to move. The trance and his immobile position on the floor had minimized the pain inflicted by the Things, but now it is all rushing back to him. He contemplates casting a healing spell, but that would not be fair to the others, unless he heals them too, and that would require taking another long rest.
The healer gets to one knee and then pushes himself to his feet. "Have you learned anything new while we rested?
“Yas. Tat were in deep dragon du-du,” he states. Pointing between the scene on the surface, the swearing elf, and Eabd the door jam.
He then replies to Lord Aronn, “I tink they arrived b’for we got bit up by t’ tings. Tat’s a signiffikant force and yir reakshion tells me tey are bad noose.”
Thwip looks around at his companions, confident they’re of the same mind as him. “Ve are surrounded, out-numbered, and I tink it’s time yi toldt us aboot tis magikal item b’cuss were goin t’ need everyting we kin t’ get oota tis alife.”
