Chapter 1: A Friend in Need

Vatra tosses a firebolt at the floating monstrosity.

The Gazer has gone from mean to frightened as it realizes what it is up against. Stitches tries to line up a shot with a +1 arrow before it can make a sound.

The magic arrow impales the Gazer right through the central eye. It falls to the ground, dead.

Alastriona sheathes her blade, then picks up the tiny body. She studies the other eyes, ignoring the blood that seeps from the larger central orb.

They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but all you see in the Gazer's glazed-over, elliptical irises is spite and malice.

Prince wrinkles his nose in disgust at Alastriona's hands-on inspection of the dead booger. He points down the marked tunnel and arches an eyebrow quizzically at the others.

Pulling out the torn sheet of paper from within her clothes, Alastriona compares the image of the alhoon with the gazer. Seeing no resemblance, she returns the paper upon her person. She kneels and carefully settles the corpse of the tiny creature on the ground next to the wall, grasps her holy symbol, and hums a short dirge.

Her brief ceremony for the dead complete, Alastriona stands. She looks at Prince's pointing finger, looks down the marked tunnel, and walks directly for it.

Alastriona makes her way down the marked sewer tunnel, stepping over the hints of crossing tunnels below. Eventually the tunnel expands into a circular hub with a pair of arrow slits carved into its outer walls, directly across from each other. Two passages continue on to the north and south, and branching pathway to the south. A stone door is set into the back wall of a stone ledge to the west.

The aasimar attempts to see if there are any markings which might indicate the passage to take. However, she does not advance to the circular room just yet, opting to gauge the environment first.

No markings are apparent from Alastriona's vantage point.

Butler carefully moves forwards to where Alastriona is and takes a quick look around the room.

Alastriona points to the door, then to the arrow slits.

Butler and Alastriona move out into the hub. The dripping water echoing in the tunnel mask your footfalls, and the foul odour of the sewer mask your scent. You know better than to take comfort in the darkness however, many denizens of the underworld are more than capable of seeing in the pitch black.

You keep a wary eye on the arrow slits as you approach. From behind you can hear the loud snore coming from behind. Coming up on the stone ledge, you make your way to the door and find it is unlocked. You quietly push it open and advance forward.

The group opens the door and creeps up the stairs. There is a tight, winding hallway with another arrow slit at the end. You pass through a stone archway marred with mold and grime into a set of chambers.

To your left lies a messy chamber (Q3). Rusty weapons and threadbare clothing litter the floor of this area.

To your right (Q2a), a single goblin has fallen asleep on a wooden stool by the arrow slits. It bears a short bow in its hands and has a quiver of arrows at its feet.

To the north, the stone hallway descends down a grime-stained stair and veers east at the bottom, beyond your line of sight.

Alastriona walks up to the goblin and silently stares down at the small creature. She then puts a hand on its shoulder, her other hand holding a finger to her lips to signal silence.

The goblin's eyes bulge fearfully as it wakes to the sight of Alastriona above her. Her bow falls from her hand, clattering against the floor. IShe winces at the sound, grins a yellow-toothed apologetic smile, and makes no further noise.

Alastriona smiles. She taps her ear as a signal to the goblin, then points to Butler and anyone else from the party that joins them in these chambers.

Vatra keeps to the back of the group, a firebolt at the ready in case of trouble.