1.2 - In Search of Sanity - The Dead Don't Dream

Iosef takes a moment to patch himself up and, for the time being, removes his life essence connection to Axon.

Shall we head downstairs and check it out? Elias says as they stand around examining the contents if the shed.

He focused on his breathing, not the void face, not the sharp claws, not the night wings... At least he was still breathing. Since that wasn't working, he looked around for arcane auras and upon finding some, inspected their sources.

The yawning hole before him wasn't helping his concentration.

"We... We should check down there," he said in a shaky voice.

He'd had enough of darkness after some of it tried to carry him off.

የዳንስ መብራቶች

Four glowing spheres of light appeared at the edge of the pitch blackness, and he moved them further into the underground chamber.

Axon's magically-created orbs of floating light descend down the stairway and into complete darkness. Following them down the brittle, wooden stairs a short distance you find that the stairs suddenly stop after about 20ft. The wall continues downward another fifteen feet below that, but then falls away, along with any evidence of a worked floor. Even the sides of this subterranean chamber giv3e way, leaving the lowest steps and mortared bricks hanging exposed in a vast, airy expanse.

The space beyond is open darkness, the void of an immense cavern beneath Briarstone Island.

Axon's lights, if commanded to travel downward into this hole's depths, fizzle out completely after they travel about 120ft into the darkness. At no point can he see the bottom.

"Endless darkness..."

He shuddered.

"We've seen all we can here. Grab what you can and let's get the Abyss back inside. Can any of you use this poor bastard's armour?"

Indeed my friend, let us leave this place and rejoin the others. Elias says as they return to the shed.

Retracing their steps back up into the shed, Elias and Axon report their findings and try to determine what their next steps might be.

"A vast cavern lies beneath us. Nethys only knows what else is down there but I have no desire to find out. Let's grab what we can and get back inside before something else swoops down. Take the armour. If none of you can use it, one of the defenders surely can."

He grabbed the shovel and the scroll, and pointed out the other items of interest.

---

Axon takes a moment to more closely inspect the arcane inscriptions upon the scroll they found. He realizes it is a Scroll of Freedom of Movement.

Iosef helps gather the items of note, placing what he can into the haversack they found the day before. When it comes to the shovel, he takes a close look over it, attempting to identify it's magical purpose.

"Intriguing he says after a moment. While this tool would function quite well for it's obvious purpose, also carries with it several remaining charges of a spell call Expeditious Excavation. I would surmise the spell could be used twelve more times before its relegated to just being a shovel again."

"I'm sure it will do well for burying the dead," he said with a distance in his voice and his eyes. "The scroll gives a measure of freedom to move in circumstances where moving is impeded. It won't set us free of this place..."

"You should hold onto the scroll," Iosef says to Axon, "the spell is beyond my abilities and I know not how to make such a thing function. Perhaps you would have better luck. The shovel too, I should think - though I can hold onto it if necessary."

He looks around, nodding to Elias, "Knight- shall we return to the safety of the main building? I foresee we have much left to discovery of this place, ever we find a way free of this island."

Indeed, let us rejoin the others and continue our exploration of this place. Elias as they walk across the open area.