Chapter Two: Dragon Hatchery

Taking the path to the left, you make it through unharmed. After passing through a short tunnel, you emerge into another chamber. From here you can see chambers to the west and north, and a set of stairs leading down to the east. The floor of this chamber has a number of dead bats on the floor.

Bughu doesn't see anything else in the room.

Erich looks up and sees that the ceiling is covered in bats, hundreds of them all over the ceiling of this chamber. You get the impression that it would be a good idea to remain quiet in here, lest you disturb the bats.

Bughu manages to quietly make his way over to the eastern stairs. At the base of these steeply descending steps, a curtain hangs across the passage. It is made from hundreds of heavy leather strips, each about the width of a human hand. The strips are fixed to the ceiling and are long enough to drag on the floor. The curtain extends from wall to wall. The leather comes from a variety of local animals and is badly cured. The curtain is several layers thick with no gaps, so you can’t see through it at all.

Bughu moves the curtain aside, peering into the room ahead. As his scimitar pushes against the curtains there is a scrape of metal and he can see small metal barbs protruding from the strips in the middle. It appears that these barbs are meant to cut those who try to gain access without permission. You can guess that they are likely poisoned.

The smell of old blood assaults your nose. The floor is covered with dried puddles of it. Four floor-to-ceiling columns are spaced across the chamber, and chains have been strung between them like clothesline. Animal carcasses hang on hooks from the chains. You see gutted and skinned antelope, deer, goats, what might be big cats, and even a few small bears. Some of this meat has been here for a while if the smell is a reliable indicator.

You peer into the room to the west and are very glad that you moved with stealth, because you can see that there is a group of kobolds in the room. The room is dimly lit by oil lamps, showing the shadowed forms of four regular kobolds and one with wings. The northern part of this room is not visible, but you can see that there is a set of wooden stairs beyond a wooden door leading down to a lower area. On the southern wall, you can see a lot of different tools; long poles with lassos at the end, leashes, collars, sharp prods, and human-sized dummies. Beyond the tools is a set of stairs leading downward.

Light
Dim Light provided by a couple of oil lamps

Exits
Stone staircase leading south
Gated wooden stairs leading down to lower level in the north

Enemies
About 30-40 feet from entrance to room
Four kobolds
One winged kobold