Game table

"If we go, there’s no going back. I can’t foresee us being able to climb back up and I can’t see an end either. Who’s ready for an adventure?"

Hey Tecuani, would you be able to slip your shadow in the foyer room have it get next to the portal, then you swap places, grab the portal, then swap back before the creatures know you are even there?

"Don’t risk that. I’ll sneak back down there once we’re out of here."

"Creative thinking, though, Sparky! So, should I grab my stasis rod? Are we riding the canoe down the hole?" I say with a chuckle.

"I can swap with my Shadow only if it strays no more than thirty feet from me. In fact, I'm unable to sustain the shadow if I send it farther than that unless I transfer my consciousness to it. Which is something I can do to examine the depths of this chute."

"And ... are you? What light does your shadow need for you to see? Can you hear?"

Tēcuani regards Duke with his mismatched eyes. With a nervous flick of his tail, it seems the tabaxi is neither accustomed nor comfortable speaking about himself this much. Nevertheless he answers the question.

"When I inhabit my shadow I can see and hear through it as well as if I was there myself. I can see in dim light within sixty feet as if I was in bright light, and in darkness as if it was dim light. But I'm unable to discern color in darkness, only shades of gray."

Knight to Knight, Duke appraises the tabaxi. Student of Qotal's Eagle Knights, turned pirate and then turned Paladin of Kiltzi was ever a contradiction, Duke is not without faults, but this tabaxi was all contradiction. Duke wasn't comfortable with the race of tabaxi, having had too many bad experiences with them. He observes this tabaxi's nervousness. "You seem both confident and vulnerable at the same time. That contradiction is a sign of strength that is more telling to me than any contradiction between eye colors. I appreciate your candor. I've been in battle with you now and I trust you. I'll trust your abilities too. Please, lead on."

Tēcuani's eyes both go white as he transfers his consciousness to his shadow, which detaches from him and slinks toward the opening Xoch found. The shadow perches on the edge for only a heartbeat before sliding down the chute.

What does Tēcuani see?

"Hold on, I'll be right back." I say, stepping out the door.

A few seconds later, you hear some stomping, followed by a brief silence, and then I come sliding back through the door on my stomach. About two seconds after that, the ceiling of the outer room has dropped halfway down the door and continues slowly.

I stand up nonchalantly, dust myself off and place my stasis rod in my pack, choosing to ignore the fact that I dove through the doorway unnecessarily.

Describes everything he saw and heard in as much detail as he can:

The sensation of falling weightlessly down a pipe of darkness is disorienting. Sliding down the pipe would have given at least the sensation of grounding to the smooth stone, but the shadow stuff does not give any substantial feeling or orientation beside the curves of the stone or the focused echo of the concavity. Distance is also hard to discern, but time passes quickly before the pipe curves. Does it curve upward? The shadow seems to maintain plumb, but how can Tēcuani tell? Perhaps he maintains at a right angle to the pipe and he hopes he is orienting to the bottom of it, though gravity does not help him. No matter, the pipe curves and twists until one side opens up and he sees magma reflections in stone walls beyond the pipe. Is this up? The smooth stone of the pipe reflects the warm light as fire appears in the hot magma nearby. The shadow continues to float along what is now a sluice. It curves in the direction of what he believes is a ceiling, the whole space that the sluice constricts into a tight opening, as he hears the echo of the chamber disappear and the blackness grows intense up ahead. Through the opening, the sluice abruptly ends and disappears and the magma is left behind. As the shadow continues, there is now only blackness. The echo comes back but faint and far away. Lost in orientation, there is a faint glow of magma, but after a thousand feet, the sensation of even floating and falling disappears as the shadow passes its limit of 1000 feet.

"Well, I say we give it a go." Grabbing Duke’s hand, she gets up and pulls him over to the canoe. She takes a seat in it in the middle, pulling her husband with her.

this is a bad idea. But it also seems like fun, so I’m in. I suppose I could use my whip to pull us and get us started.

Xoch’ will take a spot near the front.

Duke follows his wife’s lead and joyfully joins her in th canoe, without a concern in the world that this idea is completely crazy. There is a clear military option to sneak or fight our way out. It’s practical, feasible grounded. This chute, however, is a leap of faith, illogical and highly romantic. The two love birds giggle and neck in the middle seat while Xoch takes the helm next to browsprit made of carvings and mystic symbols to ward evil away. One hand of a carved wooden feather serpent points forward and another reaches back nearly to where the pluma weaver sits. "Warriors and rogues, doth thou seek out our suicidal affair as well? I despise magic, but I trust my wife and her knowledge in magic and in her bravery. Of her I love blindly. It allowed us to mutiny against our vampire pirate captain and has channeled Kiltzi herself to our aid, and leads us to the First Man’s Chalice of the Gods. Kitty bears our child who she foresees being the avatar of the goddess Uhti. In Kitty, I shall put my trust and in my party to make the wise decision. What say you all?"

Ready to get outta here, I pull myself up and over the side of the giant canoe. Settling near the front I recast the light spell on my axe, you know, so we can see our death as we hurtle towards it.

I hop in the back, and lay down compactly. Good thing this is a long canoe!

"Come, Oddeyes, join us! I believe the phrase from the old songs is 'Geronimo!'"