TOTD Turn Five- Exile pt.3

Once the plan is formulated with Chesir, Evilyn instructs, "Gather those able and have them begin shoring before you leave, I will tell Volgath of the plan and will then join them." As stated, she briefs Volgath in full of her plans. Returning, she ensures that the dimensions of the perimeter is sufficient for the party and then joins the task. "Gareett and Sethoroth, please take watch now as we work. We need not any surprises while are hands are in the sand." In addition to them, Evilyn instructs Razark to watch and listen for any that approach.

Setting her feet in the sand, Evilyn kneels briefly one a single thigh-high booted knee. With her softly gloved hands before her, she begins to chant as her fingers dance before her. As the seconds pass her voice builds into a forced but not loud voice. Finishing, her hands flash away from her body in an outward gesture. Evilyn stands and silently orders her summoned friend to help dig and shore.

Chesir listens to Evilyns suggestions for camp defense and nods agreement with her decisions. Although apparently demoted, having originally been assigned to plan the defenses himself, Chesir does not bring up the issue now since he is more concerned about his missing orcs. He quickly has the sturdier slaves start work on the sand wall and sentry pits, provided their owners dont protest, and makes each drow warrior responsible for the completion of a section of the wall. Chesir himself works at the digging for a while, then digs several small boot-catching traps in front of the camp. At the bottom of each hole, he places a poisoned crossbow bolt. Chesir also looks upward, trying to discern the height and layout of the cavern ceiling.

Whenever Gareett is finished and Volgath is ready to go, Chesir is ready to go. His face is still cold and set, but his eyes are on fire, letting everyone know that he will either recover his orcs or inflict tremendous suffering on whoever destroyed them.

Vol looks on at the Chesir as he stoically begins to set up the camps defenses and especially notes the determined look on his face as, finishing his preparations, he moves over to herself and Gareett to find out more about his orcs. As he approaches them, Vol speaks to him, taking the young warrior to one side. "Chesir, I have given you the responsibility of camp defenses and do not forget that. Im afraid youll have to learn to cope with us females taking things over, even when weve not been commanded to do so. Evilyn is merely helping you fulfill your duties- so remember, if there are any holes in our defenses I will hold you responsible, not Evilyn, as I placed you in charge. You will prepare the final report for me to submit to the Patrol Commander."

"Now, regarding your orcs. I think you will have to save your vengeance for the time when we will attack the true culprit, whom I believe to be the resident of the dark tower you saw in the ruins. I have a suspicion that your orcs will end up like those metal zombies we have just faced. I have already searched for signs of tracks. Your orcs just vanished into thin air- no signs of struggles, no blood was spilt. And believe me, I would have known if that were the case. This implies sorcery and links the creator of those zombies to the disappearance of your orcs. We will have to see if Gareett can divine where they went and then act on that information."

Olerathiel looks up from her work, in awe at the skill she has seen in the creation of the fine webs. After careful consideration, she speaks. "I believe Qilteral is correct. These stones most likely were in place to give the undead intelligence. I did not feel any control over them when they ceased moving, hence my caution. It turns out that my feelings were well founded. Most likely their artificial intelligence was what prevented the Dark Lady from granting my request for control. As for where they came from? Chesir is also probably correct- these creatures would not roam far from their master, and probably were sent after us. No spellcaster could have sent them after us from the city, of that I am most assured. There were undead in the ruins? Interesting. They did not follow, you say? Then they must be bound to that place. Qilteral will not be permitted by Kiaransalee to try and gain control of the undead again until she has learned more, and Jarkeena is not skilled enough to even try yet, but I will go over there and stand at a safe distance to attract them but not have them be able to harm me, and we will see how many I can take control of with the Dark Ladys blessings. Jarkeena will come with me though, for it will be a good learning experience." The Yathrinshee shows no outward signs of acknowledgement to Jarkeenas outburst, and speaks to the acolyte. "Many undead cannot be harmed except by magic weapons." Thiel pulls out her original enchanted mace and hands it to the acolyte. "We will teach you how to use this better," she says dryly. "Qilteral, see what you can do about removing and storing the stones and the gold webbing. When I have a chance to study it better, Im going to try and put those in the heads of my own zombies. Also try and take notes of how they were attached- it will come in handy." As soon as Gareett is no longer busy, she turns to him. "I request that you allow Sethoroth and Melrinthy to aid Qilteral- this knowledge should be shared by all who aid Kiaransalee in our manner. Volgath," she says. "These fire giants interest me, especially with some things I must discuss with you and the patrol commander after Jarkeena and I return from the ruins." She turns to Zaltar. "With your permission, Jarkeena, Carafnir and I will go to the ruins quickly and see what the unholy Kiaransalee will let me take control of, and then we will return to our designated posts. I would also wish to speak with you, Volgath and Gareett about the tower. Perhaps an all-out attack is not what is needed, but the subtlety and cunning our race is known for." The older drow specialty priestess smiles wickedly, rubbing her hands together slightly.

Gareett stares at the tower for a few moments and then turns to Volgath and Chesir. "The orcs are in the tower, or at least the equipment they had is in the tower." Turning to face the priestess as she approaches Gareett nods to her to show that she has his full attention. When she is finished speaking Gareett waits for a small pause, to insure that he will not interrupt, and begins to speak. "Your idea is both intelligent and insightful, Sethoroth and Melrinthy shall offer whatever aid is at their disposal." He turns to make sure both drow spoken of heard the exchange.

Volgath listens to the Yathrinshees words as she formulates her plans. "Yathrinshee, beware the shadow forms we encountered initially as they appeared significantly stronger than the skeletons of the Kuo-toa we saw initially. Also, the warrior Chesir saw the strange tower to the east, far offshore, in another set of ruins. The undead spoke to me of vengeance and blood- the Children of Kiaransalee may be able to tell you more about the mysterious tower and its inhabitants. I am at your disposal once you return from the ruins to discuss your ideas on the Fire Giants."

Zaltar listen intently and nods. "Thiel will take Jarkeena, Carafnir and the dog with her. The canines senses are far superior to our own, and will add to the Yathrinshees protection. As for the fire giants, I want scenarios- how to approach them, what to say. Keep in mind- they respect strength more than anything. As for the tower, if we can enlist the fire giants aid, they can possibly carry us to the tower. However, I want us all rested and refreshed before we encounter the giants. Just in case they seek combat."

Volgath, her eyes glowing scarlet in anticipation, answers the Patrol Commander. "Commander, I have consider several options regarding the giants and, although there will be risks in dealing with them, I feel that we will gain vital information and aid from them if we can use our native Drow guile and cunning. Firstly, if we predict that the Yathrinshee will be successful to some degree in being able to exert the power of the Unholy Mother on the undead in the ruins, then our fighting ranks will be swelled by those additions. Irrespective of how strong the Fire Giants are, every race apart from the Velddrinnsshar drow have a primal fear of the undead, and I think that even the Fire Giants will have some dread in their stomachs as we approach them. We tell them that we are ambassadors, a small diplomatic group which is part of a much larger contingent. This should make them think twice before they attack us if they think we are part of a much larger force who KNOW where we are- they will respect us more if they think that a force of 500 drow are almost on their doorstep."

"Secondly, we do NOT seek confrontation. They are sufficiently near to the City to have heard of the trade which goes on there and the profits which they could make IF we allowed them trading passes. The fire giants are strong but like all races, they are GREEDY and they know that PREFERENTIAL trading passes in the Bazaar will be a key in expanding the coiffeurs. I am sure that there will be at least one ear within the Giants enclave who will LIKE what we have to say. We tell their leaders that we have heard of them and the potential profits that could be made in trading with them."

"Thirdly, we tell them that there is a certain sorcerer in the area who disputes that they are the rulers within this particular region. As well as being strong and greedy, the giants will also be prideful. The last thing they would want is another to undermine their dominance in this area either in fact or fiction. He has told us that we should be speaking with HIM and NOT the giants regarding issues of trade! This should stir them up, and lead them into telling us what they know about the force which created those zombies which have been causing us problems. Even if they think that the situation with the sorcerer is under control, we will MAKE it into a problem. Once that has become the case, we will offer the solution. Together, the Fire Giants, with our invaluable aid, will destroy the latent threat of the sorcerer leaving them the sole masters of this region of the Underdark! What a gift we will have given them! And in return, we would ask very little. A means of crossing the Sunless Sea; a sample of what they will want to trade at the Bazaar; other gifts which we could think of at the time; perhaps even a couple of guards we could take with us to Orehammer and Skullport?"

"Finally, there is another thing, and I am sure the Yathrinshee has thought of this already. All we need is the opportunity to get to the giants dead, and through the power of the Unholy Mother, the Yathrinshee may be able to create potent undead to serve us against the giants should they decide to become uncooperative. Or should we feel that the Giants are sufficiently weak in numbers that we could manufacture a situation where we could appoint one of our choosing to take over the leadership of the giant enclave. And believe me, there will be at least one in there who will be unhappy with the way things are being run, desperate for power who WILL be willing to listen to what we have to say. If we can manufacture a situation where he can take over then we will get an important ALLY in this area who will owe us a favor."

"So in summary, we will pose as ambassadors looking to develop trade with the objectives I have just outlined. We will infiltrate the giant enclave, get assistance from the giants to assault the tower, cause a rebellion, raise there dead to support that action, appoint a new leader, who will be our puppet, and gain a method to cross the Sunless Sea. What do you think of these plans as I have outlined them Commander?"

Qilteral listens to Olerathiel and then moves over to the closest zombie and begins to work on the skull. Once open she uses her sharpest knife and begins to cut the gold threads as close to the bone as possible. She piles up the bodies she has removed the stones from and tells Chesir, "You can use these in your defense. They can give height to a wall or even stand them up to look like undead sentries."

As Qilteral begins to try and remove the webbing, she finds the first one she cuts causes the gem to crumble to dust. It appears getting them out will be more difficult than first thought. Seven stones remain.

Moving to Chesirs side briefly, Evilyn asks in a hushed voice not to draw attention to either of them, "Chesir, wouldnt those bolts be better used in a crossbow? There is a large amount of room to cover and our bolt and poison supply is limited." Enough is said and she questions the warrior no further as she continues to build up the surrounding wall.

"I do not think it is wise to use the bodies in the defense. They rose against us unexpectedly once and the last thing we need is for it to occur again. I stand on my recommendation that they be positioned as a false camp and trapped with my alarm."

"Your point is well taken, Evilyn," Chesir whispers back. "I only used a few bolts in order not to waste too many. They are clustered around the two sentry pits rather than scattered along the entire approach to our camp. In the event of an attack, the sentries will be the first to draw enemy fire, so the bolts will be in the ideal place to slow them down. I would have left poison off them entirely, but it would be unwise to assume that undead are the only minions of whatever opposes us. As for using the defeated zombies as filler for the sand wall, that was not my idea and I have not used any of them yet. Unless one of the priestesses or Volgath wants them for some purpose, I intend to destroy their remains. Whatever our enemy is, it no doubt watched the battle and is probably watching us now. It knows these undead are defeated. And a false camp is not likely to be effective because weve been preparing the real one in plain view."

As Evilyn leaves to resume work, Chesir submits the camp defenses for approval to Zaltar. "There will be a low sand wall shaped like a half-circle. The curve will protrude towards the beach and the back side will be hard against the cavern wall. At both ends of the inner curve of the wall, there will be a sentry pit with a pair of drow in each. The rest of the drow, undead, and combat-worthy slaves will rest in a place where they might easily reach their places along the wall. In front of each sentry pit, there are two small poisoned pit traps. If we are about to be overrun, I will draw as many of the enemy towards me, lead them away from camp, then use my ring of blinking to escape them. As for magical wards, I will leave their selection to Gareett, but I recommend that they be placed in front of exposed section of the sand wall." Chesir sincerely hopes something does attack tonight.

Smiling, Evilyn responds on the subject of a false camp, "Like you said, it would be foolish to think that undead are our only aggressors, but that is your reason not to use the false camp. Odd." Enjoying the discussion and leaving her tone to pleasant parlay, Evilyn finishes her task and leaves Chesir to his choice.

"If each pit is for a pair of drow then I will have to redo the watch roster." The drow warrior begins to inventory the logical pairs leaving the mages to study, and the priests to pray in an alternating fashion. With her findings, she submits them to Volgath and Zaltar.

Chesir salvages as much equipment as he can from Solomoriahs corpse before destroying it. He gives the enchanted sword to Carafnir if that soldier happens to use two longswords. That way each fighter has two magic weapons. The piwafwi and drow boots he places on a pack animal as replacements. He gives the hand crossbow to Thiel to pass on to whichever priestess could best use an extra one. Chesir keeps the crossbow bolts for himself. As far as mundane equipment, Chesir keeps any items that may be useful for booby traps and parcels the rest out to whomever wants it.

Olerathiel gives a quick nod, accepting the hand crossbow and tucking it away for later. "Chesir, perhaps we can save his more mundane equipment and put it on one of the pack creatures. That way, we have some backup. Id also like to suggest keeping his spare clothes. After all, Jarkeena has nothing." The Yathrinshee gives a slight smile as she remembers Zaltar stripping away all of Jarkeenas belongings from the lizards and sending them flying.

Qilteral keeps trying to pry as many of the gems from the heads of the dead skeletons. The story is the same- each time one of the strands is cut the gem crumbles. In no time, all eight gems are nothing but useless dust. The cleric mage occasionally glances up at her ally, Chesir. With the random attacks of the undead, she wants to make sure she is well protected. She awaits while the discussion of the camp is made.

Gathering her group, Thiel sets off for the ruins while the camp is being constructed. Zaltar orders Sols body will be dispatched with the others, as his unexplained animation and the other odd undead in the area are not to be trusted, and his items will be distributed as Chesir sees fit. By the time preparations are completed, and Vol and Zaltar are looking it over, the Yathrinshee returns with a smug look on her face. Six of the skeletons are in tow, shrouded in the misty darkness of the wraiths, while the other two pools of inky darkness float beside the woman. Watches are set, and people settle down to get rest and research done. At one point, Carafnir approaches Qilteral. He holds a rather ornate dagger in his hand, which he holds out to the priestess. "Your skeleton is sprouting." With a questioning look on her face, he leads her to the skeleton. And sure enough, daggers and knives of all kinds appear to be growing directly from the bones. Carafnir points to the spot where he broke one off, and a tiny bud is already forming. Upon closer inspection, it is determined that the bud is the start of the hilt, and that the blade of the dagger will follow. Vol rounds up the group and explains that they will head to the rift as quietly as possible. Setting out, the group leaves the mounts in care of the slaves, with some of the undead to protect them. On the trip over, Jarkeena finally has to be carried, as even with her boots, she makes more racket than an army of goblins, and it is noted for the first time that her piwafwi does not mask her body heat.

Next to the party marches two columns of undead- the Hulkear Zombies at the lead, followed by three each of the wraith-shrouded skeletons. At Jarkeenas noisemaking, Thiel requests quietly that Zaltar call a halt. "Hmmm," she glares thoughtfully. She motions for Jarkeena to be put down, and closes her eyes for a moment, then reopens them, looking at Jarkeena intently. As an afterthought, she also looks at one of her skeletons, ordering the wraith to temporarily unwrap so she can inspect the skeleton more carefully. She sees that Jarkeenas piwafwi, boots, ring, and the mace she gave her no longer radiate as enchanted, and that the tiny buds sprouting from her skeleton also have enchantment.

Olerathiel sighs and motions for her wraith to rewrap the skeleton. "Jarkeena- do you realize that you are effecting the magic of items? Please hand the mace back to me- Id like to see if it regains its magic." Her eyes narrow thoughtfully as she realizes her suspicions about the young noble might be correct- that this drow is something beyond a normal cleric. ~Maybe this has something to do with her affinity for fire. I must speak to the Fire Giants about this if all goes well,~ the Yathrinshee thinks to herself. "A disenchanter?" she says quietly.

Upon hearing Thiels query to Jarkeena, Melrinthy gives the younger priestess a wide berth lest she drain the potency from her items or perhaps her memory. She approaches Gareett and informs him, "Based on my knowledge of necromancy, the gems likely give the undead more intelligence then they normally would possess. The metal skeletons were probably created by a variant animate dead magic. If we could discover the source of this magic and bring it back to Velddrinnsshar, we could use it to promote the greater glory of Kiaransalee." She finishes, raising her voice at the last bit to insure that the clerics overhear.

"Quite a thorough analysis. Make whatever mental notes you need to ensure that once we have time to fully discuss this with our commander, nothing is left out. We will also discuss with the others versed in mage craft, to see if we can divine more about this animate dead variant."

Qilteral looks at Carafnir and grins, then plucks four daggers off and adds them to her pouches. She studies her skeleton, watching the daggers form- the rate, placement, what the daggers are made of, how sharp, how well they fly, and the effects on the skeletons bones. After all, she has never heard of anything like it. The daggers seem to grow as a medium pace. They sprout about every nine inches along the creatures bones and are of every shape and kind. The bones themselves are undamaged by the daggers being broken off.

As the patrol takes a pause, Evilyn approaches Zaltar and signs, "Commander, with Sols death, I ask that I may handle scouting and en route security. If it is your will." If agreed, she motions to Chesir in the silent language. "Take the opposing flank and watch. Stay fifteen paces away. No further. No closer." As she takes a position to the patrols side, she directs Razark to watch the front. That leaves the rear unattended. Evilyn gestures, *Gareett, watch the rear for any that would follow.* As the guard is set, she flashes to Volgath or Zaltar, whomevers attention she gets first, *We should use hand sign only. Sound discipline.*

As the group approaches the rift, Vol goes through the group checking that the patrol are aware of the answers each will give if questioned. Approaching the Yathrinshee, she speaks to the priestess. "Yathrinshee of the Unholy Mother, I see you were more than successful in your trip to the ruins as I thought you would be. Did the undead children speak more about the desires for vengeance and blood which would give us more information about the accursed wizard who appears to be plaguing us? Also you had some further ideas on the Fire Giants which you wished to discuss with me. Also, it appears that the acolyte from Andar-ros is much more than she seems- have you any further ideas on her or her mysterious powers?"

Jarkeena shakes her head in answer to Thiels question, and the group resumes its march. After a short time, they have reached the crevice, and their eyes shift to see the normal spectrum of light. As the group walks along the lip of the crevice to where the stairs are, they find the heat to be very intense and uncomfortable, all except for Jarkeena, who is not affected by the heat in the slightest. Soon the top of the stairs come into view and the patrol stops, looking down them. Each step is as tall as a drow, and some ways down them, standing as still as statues, is a pair of massive fire giant guards. Each wields a two handed sword that could easily splat half the patrol in a single swing. Zaltar looks to Thiel. "Since you are our diplomat, by all means begin to work your magic." He looks to the others. "Dont look it, but be prepared for combat at a moments notice." As Thiel nears the top step, one of the giants looks up and bellows out in undercommon, "Halt! Who dares defile Vangrums domain?" Its partner kneels down and tugs a loose boulder free from the base of the wall, standing ready to hurl it.

The Yathrinshee stands tall at the first step, and speaks loudly and clearly. "I am Olerathiel of House GimethDiran, Yathrinshee to the Dark Lady Kiaransalee. My patrol and I come from the city of Velddrinnsshar, an advance scout of many more to shortly come. We will speak with your leader, that we might fully appreciate the strength of one so great as he must be, and to form an alliance between our two strong, most feared peoples." Behind her, the "army" of skeletons and wraiths comes behind her, forming two columns on either side of her, and she stands imperiously, looking down at the two guards with a slightly disdainful look on her face.

Melrinthy moves behind Zaltar, to support the warrior with spell use should the fire giants choose combat over parley, commenting, "Well spoken, Yathrinshee."

"Blah, blah," Jarkeena mumbles so inaudibly that only those trained to hear the faintest of whispers in the wind would catch. Shifting her weight, she prepares to run to the back of the party should the giant heft the boulder. ~That way the lessers can fight without the risk of injuring me,~ she thinks.

Gareett watches the exchange with the giants and waits to notice if there is any shift of body language that might be a prelude to an attack. As Jarkeena shifts to be prepared to move to the back of the party, Gareett takes note of her position and nods towards her and signs to her in the silent tongue, *Silence is a friend best kept close at hand, most noble acolyte.* Gareett then begins to look around the party at the ground it has chosen for its interchange.

Qilteral glides up behind the... child... eyes flashing red in anger, then quickly back to the normal spectrum before blinded. Qilterals hands flash in the drow hand talk, *Show respect... and show caution. Dont be ignorant.*

Standing back from the giants sight and the step, Evilyn carefully removes the fire quarrel from her crossbow only to replace it with a glass-bulb headed one. She then stands to the partys far left, only close enough to the edge that she can see the giants, and that her lower body is hidden. Her hands are kept before her with the crossbow drawn and held relaxed in either hand.

Razark crouches at Evilyns side about two steps away. Almost in synch with one another, Evilyn and Razarks eyes seem to pan from the giants, to either side of the patrol and then back to the immense monsters.

Chesir moves to the right of the party and stands at attention, as would befit an honor guard for an envoy. He holds the enchanted spear at parade rest, but the rest of his weapons are readily at hand also. One glance to Evilyn tells him that she, not surprisingly, is also in position. Chesir then takes mental note of Zaltars, Carafnirs, and Slaveriins positions so he can coordinate his reactions with those of the other soldiers if the giants dont react well. He sees Thiels condescending look as she addresses the giants and predicts to himself that it will worsen the groups chances of success. Intimidation might work on underling priestesses and weaklings, but warriors usually take offense and start fighting. ~Especially,~ he suspects, ~when the warriors in question are ten feet taller than anyone else.~

As the Yathrinshee speaks to the giants, Vol hand carries the vial of sleeping gas, ready to throw the grenade should the giants react violently, knowing that it would not effect either the undead nor those equipped with nasal plugs, the rest possibly moving back to fire missiles or magic at the huge figures.

Melrinthy stifles an amused smile of contempt at the silent exchange between Jarkeena, Qilteral and Gareett and instead concentrates on the matter at hand. Standing near but behind Zaltar, her combat-mate, she prepares to use her unnatural abilities to levitate the boulder held by the second fire giant should the pair prove hostile.

As the Yathrinshee speaks with the giants, Volgath notices the slight frictions between several of the parties within the group. ~Such is the character and fate of the drow,~ she muses to herself, unsure as to what would happen if it came down a pitched battle against the giants. She was fairly sure that the warriors would act with discipline, but it seemed that Jarkeena was becoming more of a problem and much more disrespectful of the Yathrinshee with each day. Sighing slightly, as her partner prepared to move towards a protected position at the back of the group, Volgath assumed her duty, moving with the acolyte to protect her from any attack.

As people move into position, Carafnir slips around to the side of the speaking cleric and hangs back a bit his hands resting lightly on his weapons. His stance is loose so he can sprint down the stairs at a moments notice should things turn ugly.

As Thiel speaks to the giants, they shift back and forth, visibly nervous, and the way their eyes keep darting to the undead all know why. A moment later, two more giants appear at the base of the steps. One leads four massive red furred dogs that bear large metal collars and leashes crafted of steel. They snarl and snap in a vain attempt to break free, and from around the second giant steps a third. However, this fellow is no mere warrior, the coal black skin is marred by various paints. Upon his head he sports what appears to be the skull of a once mighty dragon of unknown color, strands of colored stone beads and various humanoid skulls hang from it. He leans on a staff that appears to be the leg bone of the same dragon that the skull belonged to. He watches the group a moment before speaking in undercommon. "I am Belcor, shaman of the Children of Fire. Why have you invaded our home, weak drow?" He pauses and a smile splits his face, revealing orange teeth. "Make it quick for, you are interrupting the hounds breakfast, and they so hate that." As if to show just how much, the four dogs begin to howl and yap loudly.

Thiel looks at the fire giant. "Done posturing?" she sneers. "Your great strength is obvious. We seek an alliance with the strong Children of Fire, rather than a fight that would devastate both of our peoples. We wish to set up a trade alliance- one that would grant you preferential trading passes in our Bazaar. Since you are obviously so wise as well as strong in order to lead your people, youve most likely heard of our great city and the items which you could trade for and with. We have heard of you and of the profits both our peoples could make from such an alliance. Originally we sought to increase our city here, but since you, the Children of Fire, obviously rule supreme here, it would be better for both our peoples if we were allied."

The Shaman watches Thiel speak and cuts in. "So like a drow, you spout off what we want to hear not what is truth. You speak of profits and of trade but what do you gain from this?" he asks.

"But this brings me to another point. There is one on the island who seeks dominion over this area. Im sure you know of this person. We would join you in taking care of this person that they might fear the true wrath of the Children of Fire and of the unholy Kiaransalee."

At this the other giants began to speak in their native tongue rapidly while they gesture madly in all directions, the shaman bellows out at them to be silent before he speaks. "We have no desire to mess with that one, it has been long time since she has taken our warriors. In peace we now live." He shakes his head. "I have seen proof of what she can do, the village south of here spoke as you did, see where it got them?" he demands. He idly pats one of the huge dogs on the head. "The bodies of those she takes washes up on shore, bloated and deformed. Not even the beast of the sea will touch them they are so repulsive. Nay, if you want help destroying her, look elsewhere. Well not mess with her," he states in a tone of finality.

The drow woman obviously chooses her words carefully and stands straight as a statue, neither letting the heat nor the long amount of standing disturb her. Her face is as emotionless as onyx as she stands looking at the giants and their beasts, and she carefully pays no attention to those behind her. Inside, she is glad she placed the undead the way she did- this way, it is far harder for the giants to see the actions of those behind her. "If you wish proof of our power, in this patrol is a daughter of the one who rules our city. Incidentally, she has some abilities which might interest you. Jarkeena, step forward," she commands the acolyte. Once the young drow has done so, she smiles cruelly down at the giants. "This is she. It is true to say that our people are nowhere as skilled as yours when it comes to fire, but this one is rather unusual," she says, hoping to perk the interests of the giants even further. Melrinthy turns her head to see if Jarkeena complies with Thiels order.

At this the giants look a bit interested, waiting for the girl to step forward.

Qilteral glides forward just enough to be seen if looked at, having all the women of faith standing forward. She keeps her head bowed, looking from underneath the folds of her cowl, hands inside the sleeves, waiting to cast a spell.

Anger flashes across Jarkeenas face, then her jaw drops for a second as if to protest, but no sound comes out of the shocked girl. After what seems like an eternity of thought she comes to a conclusion. Pridefully she steps forward, quickly finishing a short prayer to Kiaransalee before she enters the giants field of vision. As she reaches the edge she positions herself about fifteen to twenty from the others that if spells were to hit her others would be able to move. Proudly she stands tall and in a loud, commanding voice she authoritatively states, "I am Jarkeena Andar-ros, Daughter of the First house of Velddrinnsshar, and bearer of the Sacred Powers of the Eternal Flame. What demonstration would you request that this alliance might be finalized and our peoples united against any who would oppose the rightful rulers of this region, and that trade begin to strengthen both of our mighty kingdoms?"

As the girl ends her speech the shaman begins to laugh, at first small chuckles but then soon large guffaws. His fellows join in. They point at Jarkeena and slap knees, all the while laughing and speaking in their own tongue. Even the yapping of the dogs can be taken as laughter. This is all too much for the young woman. Her anger begins to boil within her. These giants stand before her mocking her, mocking her before the eyes of underlings nonetheless. She glances back briefly to catch Carafnir trying to hide his own laughter. ~Zaltar, my supposed leader is also close to laughing, that is the last straw!~ she bellows silently to herself. Her anger bubbles over, and with no place to go, it pushes outward from her body in a feeling of sheer power and pleasure.

As the giants continue to laugh and the patrol watch as a gout of searing white hot flame leaps free from Jarkeenas hand like a slave given freedom. The jet of fire zips down the stairs and strikes the boulder wielding giant in the chest, in moments his whole body is engulfed in the flames. His howls of agony break over the others like a crashing wave. The shaman looks up at Jarkeena terror in his eyes and his mouth gaping. Then it is over- the fire dies, leaving in its wake melted stone and the charred remains of the unfortunate giant caught in its path. The others look to one another then back up even the dogs whimper and try to crawl away to hide. Trying to stand tall and not let his voice break the shaman speaks "M-m-m-make y-y-your terms."

Chesir listens carefully to what the giants say about the island. The enemy is a female, either a priestess or perhaps a necromancer. To cross the water to the island means risking an attack by the beast of the sea. The she-witch abducts beings and experiments on them, it being safe to say that many are turned into her guardians. Apparently a few fire giants, and probably the ShaurakHai orcs unless the patrol hurries, will be encountered out there as her minions.

~Great~ he thinks to himself. ~Of all the slaves to abduct, she grabs mine. I should have disguised them as my manicurist and hairdressers. Then they would have blended in with the other, less useful slaves. I swear, before this is over Im going to gut that witch like a fish and drink her blood.~

Chesir watches Jarkeena spout flame without reacting visibly. He doesnt want to give the fire giants a clue that the party didnt know it would happen. He waits for Thiel or Zaltar to offer terms to the giants.

The Yathrinshee smiles cruelly, having been about to reply before the acolytes outburst. "You can see what we would gain, at least a little," she says smoothly. "Only those skilled with fire can help this young one fully with her abilities. You, or some of your people, will help train her. We want to know everything you do about this area, including the necromancer on the island and the beast of the sea. We want a way across the sea. And we want two of your people to come with us, to aid in Jarkeenas training and to cement relations between our peoples. I meant what I said about gaining fear and power for both our peoples, especially now, with her." The drow woman speaks coolly, calmly, and imperiously, though inside she is extremely pleased, for things are going even better than planned. The young acolyte was starting to realize what she had seen in her. It would only take a matter of time for her to be forged into a true drow now. "Now, what can you tell us?" Olerathiel, one of the only ones who had not started snickering at Jarkeenas words, had remained silent, pleased with the acolytes choice of words, though she had probably not known what she was saying at the moment. She gives a slight nod to the young woman as she listens, still not paying attention to those behind her. Those she would speak with later. "Kiaransalee was wise in leading us here," she says, a sneer curling her beautiful lips.

Gareett smiles at Jarkeena and when she looks his way he bows his head. Speaking softly so only the party can hear he says, "Favored of Kiaransalee, one, fire giant slaves, zero. Not a high scoring game, but a quick one."

As the power flows from the young acolyte, Vol gazes in wonder at the demonstration, knowing that the fire giants would be immune to almost any kind of flame save this one. The effect was startling, even amazing. It seemed the Jarkeena Andar-ros had the potential to become a true power- possibly far greater than any other Vol had encountered. But with true power came fearsome enemies- no wonder that the matron mother of the first had banished the woman from the City. With power like that, she could easily have ousted the current matron from her position as ruler. Matron Kless must have exiled her in the hope that she would never return again. Vol said a silent prayer to Kiaransalee that she would be able to protect this chosen one of the drow from harm and return her to the city. Focusing in the one shaman, visibly shaken by Jarkeenas actions, Vol felt that the situation would become much more under control.

As the painful light rips from the girls body, Evilyn takes a step back and looks away to hide as much of the fury from her eyes. Not questioning why the girl attacked, but preparing for battle, the last thing she needs is the burnt afterimage of the flame ruining her shot. With the flames disappearance and the incinerated giant, Evilyn readies for battle, but pauses with the giants dramatically changed tone. Instead the drow warrior just smiles, waits and watches.

Stunned by Jarkeenas display of raw power, the beautiful necromancer merely raises an eyebrow at Gareetts obvious attempt to curry favor, then bows her head to Kiaransalees chosen flame.

Qilterals eyes flare with excitement. Saliva begins to build in anticipation of battle. What other way to show and spread the glory of her goddess? What other way to show the power of Kiaransalee that to have an undead fire giant! She readies a barrage of spells for the attack, then gets slightly disheartened when the giants bow down. Still grinning, Qilteral waits for a key moment to go up and pray to Kiaransalee for control of the undead, knowing that the giant is not undead yet. She stands her ground with the other priestess.

After Jarkeenas show of power, talks are begun. The giants are given passage to the bazaar, and in return, Ember, a fire giant elementalist, along with his sister Shalla, are assigned to join the group on the trip. As the talks end, the new band makes their way up the stairs and wait away from the entrance. A moment later, the two giants appear at the shore in a giant boat carved from the stalk of an enormous petrified mushroom. The giants lift the group into it, and set off rowing towards the island with the tower. As the patrol gets closer, Zaltar pulls Carafnir to the side near Shalla and the three converse in silent tones.

Shalla barks out a command to her brother and he ceases to row. The boat drifts to a halt, and Shalla picks up Carafnir, hauls back, and launches him through the air towards the island. As he sails inland, he suddenly stops in midair and floats gently to the ground. He fumbles at his side for a moment, and suddenly the large onyx dog is next to him. The two disappear into the ruins, leaving the band to sit and wait. Zaltar paces back and forth. He stops momentarily and looks up. "I would like to commend each of you for your performance. You have done well. This is the kind of teamwork that will ensure our success. Jarkeena will begin immediate lessons with Ember." With that, he turns back to pacing.

"Speaking of me, you may now apologize, Zaltar of House KilnAdon." It almost seems as if Jarkeena spits the words. "You may Apologize for your snickering at my statements, you may apologize for acting as if a REAL noble didnt know what SHE was doing, and you may most importantly Apologize for mocking a priestess of Kiaransalee. Just because you are currently party leader does NOT give you the right to disrespect a member of a Ruling house, nor ANY," she glances as Vol, "of Kiaransalees Clergy, be they Priestess or not." She then promptly folds her arms and glowers, awaiting the apology she is due.

Smiling inwardly at Jarkeenas show of spirit, Volgath looks at the young drow acolyte with new eyes and thinks, ~Not only has she shown herself to be a true power, she is also beginning to show the type of spirit the is befitting a future priestess of the Unholy Mother. Still, she has not learnt quite yet the importance of timing.~ Casting a knowing look in the direction of the Yathrinshee as the young woman moves forward, Vol follows after her, ensuring that she will be ready to protect her partner from any surprise attacks.

Gareett steps over to Zaltar, "I would assume that I am to be involved with these lessons, since Jarkeenas power does seem to be magical in nature?" The commander looks at the mage and laughs. "It is your funeral my friend, you have seen what she does to magic. But I wonder what she can do to a mage?" he ponders.

"I do not fear magic or its ability to be warped. The Dark Lady will protect me as long as I am useful to her, and under that protection I will aid her chosen in whatever way my simple powers can." With that Gareett nods to the commander and retakes his place in the group.

The wait turns into a long one, and what seems like hours later a heat source flares up in one of the ruined buildings window. It flashes through a secret code that makes Zaltar smile and order the boat to be pulled onto the shore. The two giants put their back into it, and within minutes the craft slides up onto the sandy beach. Carafnir stands waiting with the dog next to him. His hands flash through the silent code. *The island is clear. There are no sentries, at least those of the physical kind. The tower lies twenty yards inland. It has a single door, two windows on the topmost floor, and stands twice as high as a giant.* Zaltar motions the band forward.

The giants steadfastly refuse to leave the boat. As silent as a whisper, the group covers the ground to the tower and spots the single door. Zaltar orders Thiel to see if there is any magic on the door. After a prayer and a brief moment she nods. Zaltar smiles, grabs Jarkeena by the arm and shoves her forward. He mouths silently, "Open it."

Gareett takes a position that gives him a good view of the door and of Jarkeena as she touches it.

Noticing the rough treatment Zaltar has been giving the young acolyte, Volgath makes a mental note of it to see if it is some kind of trend, still suspicious of both the patrol Commander and the warrior Carafnir in their attitudes towards the young acolyte from Andar-ros. Looking quickly to make sure that the rest of the warriors were prepared for any eventuality, Vol considers Carafnirs report- undoubtedly the sorceress would know that the drow were present on her island and the lack of a welcoming committee concerned the Deathmistress.

Moving up to Zaltar, she speaks to the leader in the silent tongue, *Commander, perhaps we should try to gain entry to the building from as many avenues as possible. The main door is too obvious; there are two windows which are easily accessible to us which could also be used, they may be trapped. Alternatively, we could move to the roof of the tower and enter in directly by removing some of the roof? I suggest two teams one going through the main entrance the other trying to use the windows to gain access. The owner of this island obviously knows we are here and is prepared. Splitting into two groups will give her more to think about- either she awaits to discern our intentions or she remains quite, waiting for her traps to be sprung.*

Thiel steps over at this. *As you said, she knows we're here, and would expect us to do something like that. The commander is wise in his decision.* She seems a bit distracted, and soon it is apparent why. As the Yathrinshee speaks, Vol listens to her council, bowing and returns to cover her partner, Jarkeena.

Witnessing the exchange between Zaltar and Jarkeena, Melrinthys expression remains stoic. However, while standing behind her ally Zaltar, her body shifts slightly towards the Yathrinshee, noting that in her opinion at least, Jarkeena got the better of the argument.

Listening to Volgaths idea for splitting the group, Melrinthy notes, "With all respect, Deathmistress, that would mean dividing our strength while facing an unknown foe. And permit our adversary to concentrate her forces upon one group at a time in an effort to annihilate us. However, any decision should be made by our leader." ~Of course just who that is seems to be open for debate,~ she ponders.

Volgath listens to the sorceress words, occasionally looking up and tying to work out where the attack would come from. Agreeing with both the Yathrinshee and Melrinthy, the scarred woman still looks concerned as the group seems to be entering through the front door. ~Unless the whole building is one big trap, the owner will have to make a move soon. She must at least have the ShaurakHai orcs turned into those fearsome zombies and Kiaransalee knows what else besides.~ Taking her position within range of Jarkeena, Vol readies herself to act.

Qilteral listens...liking what she is hearing, her deadly mind already formulating different approaches, formations and even casualties with each. She nods her head in agreement. She moves closer to her assigned open-assign drow warrior Chesir.

Thiel steps up to the fuming Jarkeena, a steely glint to her eyes- rather a truly frightening sight. She regards the both of them coolly. "Until you stop acting entirely like one whom has been pampered for all her life, you are not worthy of being treated with full respect, acolyte. The commander here is only preparing you for what should be expected unless you gain an attitude change. Do not forget- your House temporarily disowned you as well," she hisses. "You show promise, but still have a long way to go." Then she turns on Zaltar. "_However_, commander, you have gone too far. She is under _my_ control as an acolyte, and if she needs punishment, that will be left to me." Her lips press together thinly and her eyes narrow. "You at least owe her an apology for not showing your support of her when she stepped forward. _Especially_ as her commander. But we will talk of this later. We are making fools of ourselves in front of our host. Jarkeena, since you are the best capable of disarming that for us, do so now," she says sternly, her words leaving no room for argument from either side. Then she looks at the tower and sketches a quick mocking bow towards it, to where someone is surely watching them.

While the party is still outside, Chesir takes a position on the flank opposite Evilyn. He gives a quick nod to Qilteral, letting her know he still has her back. Assuming Evilyn has a fire bolt ready as usual, Chesir saves his for later. Instead he loads a normal bolt for now.

The ShaurakHai soldier also makes a point of looking to Zaltar for an order. In his opinion, the party is losing sight of who the commander is.

"I HAVE been pampered my entire life as is fitting of my station. As far as me being stuck out here in the far reaches of the Underdark, that is a temporary situation, but as the situation stands my training is in your ever capable hands, as well as my life in Vols." With a low, sweeping bow almost to her knees she continues, "I most humbly apologize to you if I overstepped my minor authority, however as a member of the church I felt as if he was slandering Kiaransalees choice of clergy. I bow before your great knowledge in these matters and only hope that one day I am as wise, thoughtful, and insightfully vindictive as you." She waits to arise until told.

Vol stands by her partner, awaiting the Yathrinshees response to Jarkeenas speech. The scarred woman looks slightly surprised at the rate at which Jarkeena appears to be developing. ~Indeed, Jarkeenas sense of station appears to be improving at a rapid rate. She will indeed be a true power once she returns to Velddrinnsshar if she can continue to develop at this rate, and it was indeed quite cunning to pose the question of Zaltars attitude towards her as an act against the clergy rather than her as an individual. The Yathrinshee would have to take that into consideration.~ Looking again at the ruined tower, Vol wondered how long it would be before the owner made her preliminary moves.

Noting the giants refusal to set foot upon the isle, but Zaltars insistence upon it, Evilyn silently wonders what his plan is. As the others deal with the door, Evilyn makes eye contact with Chesir. Like before, she takes a place to the partys left flank about ten paces away with Razark.

At his point, she changes he crossbow from a bulb-headed bolt back to a fire tip quarrel. In a crouched kneeling position, Evilyn waits with hand crossbow and longsword drawn. Constantly her eye drift from the door, to the windows, to the isles lightless horizon and back. With her movements, Razarks match as the stony lizard watches it masters rear.

Qilteral grows impatient. ~The trap has been set yet we sit around and listen to childish complaints and lessons from males. There is a time and place from all- now is the time to do what Drow do best. To kill coldly, efficiently, effectively, swiftly.~ She readies her whip and several spells, still looking at the same window Chesir is at. ~His skill with my magic- woe to the foe in the room.~

"Rise," Thiel says shortly. "Do not forget that Zaltar leads us, acolyte," she says quietly, so that Zaltar can understand that Thiel is supporting him, yet trying to keep the group from being destroyed from the inside. "I believe we were awaiting your final decision on how to proceed, commander," the Yathrinshee says respectfully, glad her words had the intended effect, now ready to deal with this skilled necromancer.

Zaltar grows silent for a moment, then his hands move in the silent tongue. *We go in the front door, Carafnir and his dog are on point. The rest teams of two, we search the whole place top to bottom- never leave your partners backside.*

Melrinthy wordlessly moves in behind Zaltar, although she is careful to put a respectful distance between herself and Jarkeena lest the acolyte disrupt her necromancy.

As Jarkeena rises at the command of the Yathrinshee, Vol takes the young woman to one side, speaking to her quickly. "Jarkeena Andar-ros you have already show your impressive power and a willingness to develop that I thought was beyond you- but now comes a true test. You must know from your training and by your faith, the task of the Deathmistress is to defend the clergy at ALL costs. I have no other function or desires apart from this, as is the will of Kiaransalee. As such, you must work with me as I work with you."

"Your powers are... strange. I have never encountered their like before and I doubt I will do so again- but as you yourself know, it seems that you find it difficult to control it. My task is to keep you alive so that you gain enough experience to do so, for if you do, I doubt youll need either my protection or anyone elses again. You WILL become Kiaransalees avenger-but we are merely on the beginning of that road and have a long way to go. From my limited knowledge of magic, it seems that you have the ability to drain magic and then transform it into another form- like that bolt of destructive power which evaporated the giant. At the moment, I am not sure whether you can CONTROL if you absorb magics or not; also, if you can transform the power into destruction, perhaps you could conversely transform it into a source of healing when you have greater knowledge of it?"

"As such I am now going to do a test- I will cast a protective spell on myself. This will blur my image, making it difficult for anyone to target me with spells or missiles. If you feel you are drawing the energy of my spell then tell me to stop- I have no wish of accidentally triggering the explosive power within you. If not, that means I can cast my magic freely without influencing you. If you have any questions please ask. Also, one last thing- if the owner of this island had any ability, I am sure she would have seen your demonstration of power and would be highly intrigued by how you managed to do it. All of us have power, but yours is the MOST potent gift. I would not be surprised if the sorceress merely has set this trap in order to capture you. But for now, may Kiaransalee lead us to victory!"

Jarkeena watches the Deathmistress cast her spell effectively. The spell goes off. "Ready?" she asks as she walks to the door of the tower to prepare and gain entrance for the party. She removes her silken gloves and tentatively places her palms on the door.

The Yathrinshee looks at Carafnir, then at Zaltar. "Am I still partnered with Carafnir, commander?" she asks. "If not, where should I be?"

Zaltar looks at the undead. "I somehow doubt they will let him too close. No, Carafnir is on his own till a battle erupts, at which point you two will work together. Till then, Yathrinshee, stay close to the middle of us."

As the group forms up, Jarkeena moves forward and places her hand firmly on the doorframe. There comes a brief sputtering of energy and then the door swings open. Carafnir and onyx move in quietly followed the others. The bottom floor is barren with a set of stairs twisting up to the right that circle the interior of the tower. The drow warrior and his dog take to the steps and is only four up them when a mouth appears on the far wall and lets loose a scream. "Intruders!"

What happens next is mostly a blur of action. The mouth dies down, leaving a hissing sound behind, followed shortly by the sound of a falling stone, then the entire west wall pivots complete around, revealing a wall of spikes which begin fire off in volleys of six. The steel rain flashes into the group with deadly intent, but the tough armor of the group helps to deflect some of the vile missiles. However Melrinthy is struck once in the hip while another takes Chesir in arm. Zaltar yells out for everyone to take to the steps and fast. Heeding his orders, the band breaks for the steps, but not before more are struck by the wicked trap. Both Thiel and Vol are struck twice in the legs forcing them be carried up to the next landing where most of the group has made it. Looking back down the steps, Thiel spots Zaltar and Slaveriin carrying Seth between them. She calls out for them to hurry when without warning a wall of bone appears in front of them, cutting them off.

Thiel looks at where they no longer can see Zaltar, then to the door, fighting through her pain. "The door is not enchanted," she reports. "Volgath, what shall we do, as you are commander until we can find a way to get him through, which I do not have?" Then she turns to Qilteral. "Save your cleric spells. I can deal with any we would need, and you are the only who can heal. The price of my higher power," she laughs mockingly at herself. Then she feels the burning in her wounds start, but unsure if it is poison or blood loss, she decides to keep quiet for the moment. "Kiaransalee guide us all," she murmurs. ~Dark Lady, I hope I have proven myself worthy in your service,~ she thinks, determined to fight through this and bend this necromancer to her will, making her pay for having brought the group to its knees so effectively.

Qilteral grabs Chesir, trying to determine if he needs healing. Chesir waves off the inquisitive look from Qilteral. Gritting his teeth, he yanks the dart from his arm and hands it to her. "I feel fine for now, but can you tell me if this is poisoned?" He moves up to the door on the landing, ready to skewer anything that should come out. Looking to the brevet commander, Volgath, he waits for an order. "We are vulnerable here. We need off the stairs, whether it be through this door or further up." Qilteral examines the dart closely, ready to aid Chesir if it is needed. She glances the way he is heading. She cannot find anything on the tips, and note that the landing is small- only four people can stand on it at one time, and that the steps keep climbing the tower.

Melrinthy winces as she pulls the spike from her hip and quickly binds her wound. Cut off from her partner, Zaltar, she looks expectantly towards Volgath for instructions as to what the group should do- carry on, or attempt to rejoin their lost companions.

"Vol, I believe I can open this door. I may be able to make the wall less of a problem as well. Which would you like done first if either?" Gareett signs in the silent tongue, waiting with little emotion showing on his face.

As part of the group make it to the landing, Vol realizes that that the Patrol has been outmaneuvered, outthought and are being watched by the owner of the tower. Ignoring the pain from the steel darts in her legs, the scarred woman tries to gauge whether the wounds will slow her down as she pries the steel from her flesh. Seeing that the bone wall has now separated her group from Zaltar and the others, Vol waits for a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking to the others, speaking in the silent tongue. *Firstly, all of you calm down and remember your training- all of us have been trained for many years to deal with these situations and now is a true test of this. Secondly, Qilteral can you tell if the darts are poisoned? If they are, then we determine who has been effected. If we have the capability, we neutralize the poison- if we dont, then speed is the essence. Thirdly, the wounded get first aid to stem the flow of blood. Fourthly, this wall of bone has appeared from nowhere and I suggest we are being watched. Can anyone tell if this is so? If this area has lighted with torches, douse them- we dont need them and it may be aiding anyone spying on us. We have set off at least two traps already, which implies that this corridor is some kind of death run. I dont know if the traps have been set off by weight or not, so to be sure, we levitate to the ceiling of the room and move from there. If I can figure out the mind of the necromancer, shell want us the go through each trap, one by one to wear us down in a war of attrition. By the time we reach her we will be no opposition unless we do something different- so now, we think outside of the box. We will try and go through the ceiling of this chamber into the floor above! Gareett - you said that you could possibly destroy the bone wall below us- could that same magic be used to blast a hole through the ceiling? Try and gauge how thick the ceiling is. If you do not think you can create a hole in the ceiling, then I want you to destroy bone wall instead. Jarkeena Andar-ros, I have seen you melt stone with the power which you possess. Can you summon enough power to create a whole in the stone ceiling? If so, then this will surely give us the advantage of surprise and circumvent many of the traps the bitch owner of this tower has set for us. We depend on you to do this for if we follow the route the sorceress has chosen for us, we will surely fail, and failure is not something that a drow of Kiaransalee can stomach.*

*So in summary, you have three minutes to achieve points one through four. If Jarkeena thinks that she can cut through the ceiling, then I want Gareett to try and destroy the bone wall. If these two objectives are achieved then we relay our plan to go through the ceiling to the Patrol Commander, so that he knows what we are doing and can follow us. Before Jarkeena makes her attempt, we cover ourselves in a globe of darkness so that anyone watching cannot see what we are doing. If Jarkeena needs any magic to absorb to boost her power to achieve this, then we will have to donate some magics so that this can be achieved. Any questions? If not we will proceed immediately.*

Gareett nods passively in acceptance of the first of his orders. He signs a quick no in response to Vols question about telling if the group is being watched. Then he signs, *Apologies, but I was not prepared to go through stone of this size. I will do what I can with the bone wall.* He turns toward the bone wall and starts to gesture with his left hand while tossing a silver powder at the wall. "Magics power, Irons might, change this wall within my sight!" After casting his spell, Gareett turns to Jarkeena to see if she requires any additional magics.

As the entrance is secured, Evilyn backs from her position with Razark scurrying up her leg and coming to rest upon her back under her cloak. Taking a place by Seth, she waits as they charge in and up past the darts. Letting Zaltar and Slaveriin carry Seth, Evilyn takes up the rear with crossbow and sword ready, on the landing with the others. She thinks on how Seth took three of the three foot long spikes in the leg and collapsed, rolled down the stairs and took a fourth in the back. Both Zaltar and Slavariin ran back to carry her up, and the rest of the group kept going.

The stairs climb up about another ten or fifteen feet before opening up onto another floor of the tower. It appears the tower was carved from granite, and in some places marble blocks here put into to make patterns. However time has ravaged the stones and made then rough and uneven in spots, lichen and moss clings heavily to the roof and walls. The steps themselves are untouched but show where once many booted feet stomped along them. Wall scornes dot the wall as it winds it way up but there are no torches or other sources of light that anyone can see.

Jarkeena watches the bandaging intently, then responds to Volgath. "I possibly could, but then we would have molten stone dropped on our heads, and not all of us have been trained in the natural skills of levitation. As far as boosting my power, at present we are still not exactly certain how it works and Id rather not experiment in a hostile environment."

Vol considers the groups responses to her ideas. With the wounded being bandaged and Gareett at work on the wall of bone and remaining questions of being watched and the steel spikes being poisoned, only a few other issues were left unanswered. Thinking out aloud, the scarred woman continues. "It seems like the only choices we have left are whether to go through the door or find another route out of here. It is possible that the door is trapped, so is there any help, magical or otherwise we could get from the clergy to ascertain this? Also, if Jarkeena could focus a blast through the ceiling, there is the problem of be injured by molten rock, unless we stand on the upstairs section of the landing whilst Jarkeena focuses her power lower down the stairs? If this is considered too dangerous then our only choice is to go through the door. I also need to know who amongst us has developed the power of levitation? Has anyone got any other ideas before we move?"

"A magical trap doesnt concern me, however a mechanical trap would hurt. If Qilteral could cast a detect traps spell that should alert us to any imminent dangers as it has a decent range and duration, if I remember my schooling correctly. As for charging me up, we could try some healing spells, that way if I dont absorb then theres no harm, however at this point Id prefer to keep those spells for healing."

Melrinthy finishes wrapping her leg with a piece of cloth in order to stop the bleeding. She volunteers, "I am capable of levitation."

Olerathiel looks at Volgath sternly. "I have already told you that the door bears no enchantment," she says. "However, let me check for traps." She pulls out her holy symbol and begins to quietly speak, hands moving through the intricate gestures as she faces the door. "Dark Lady, greatest of Goddesses, allow me to see all of the traps hidden before me," she chants, looking intently at the door, then quickly around before the spell fades, seeing what traps this woman has in store for the group in the immediate area.