TheKurdrunMission part 9
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The night begins with us trying to find our way to the basement.
Upstairs the two archers have disappeared. We investigate and discover that one of them has run off for the authorities.
We head back down and begin a thorough search.
By the privy off of the kitchen, we find the trapdoor leading downstairs.
It is pitch black down there. We descend, Volorn with the help of a spider.
Once below, we hear the sound of a door closing in the dark.
A quick inspection by hooded lantern light shows us two doors, one ending a short piece of hallway and the other to the side of a hall that extends further. We go to the latter of the two doors and listen. Zali'haro bends down to pick the lock.
After a minutes worth of trying, he is rewarded by a needle stabbing him in the finger. Shortly after that the lock clicks open. We open the door and view what appears to be an empty room.
Zali'haro, equipped with the best Sjer can must steps into the room. Instantly two swords come whistling towards his head. He dodges one and the other seems to bounce backward an inch from hitting Zali's armour.
Sjer in the far back behind Volorn, sets down the lantern and hefts his spear. Dancing back and forth he is confident that Zali with deal with these fellows one at a time by staying in the doorway.
Zali'haro, ever wont to leap unexpectedly dodges past his two assailants completely into the room.
Sjer, suddenly exposed, urges Volorn into the breach.
Volorn, with a sigh of exasperation tinged with trust, steps forward to attack the smaller of the two assailants, thereby securing Sjer his unassailable position.
Zali quickly established his defensive superiority by sometimes dodging, sometimes blocking, and sometimes watching his attacker's blade bounce off of the magic defense Sjer provided. Enhanced with the strength of a bull and the grace of a cat Zali leaps onto the table top and begins hammering his opponent from on high.
In grim determination the large man wields his sword two handed and chops downwards toward Zali's legs, but a quick dodge sees the blade embedded in the table. Weaponless, the man steps back.
Just then Sjer hurls his spear at the shorter man guarding the door. The spear is hurled with good force. It sails directly over top of Volorn, but the shorter of the two dodges, calls out a warning, and the larger man plucks it out of the air.
Armed once more he attacks Zali with Sjer's spear.
Sjer, shocked at such a reversal pulls out 2 darts and hurls them at his stocky adversary. One of them sticks in the mans leg and the other in the door. Volorn trips the man and bites his other leg.
Zali and the large bearded warrior continue their dance of death.
Suddenly the man at the door steps back and slams it in Volorn's snout casting the room into pitch blackness. Zali can hears Sjer's frustrated shout, then instinctively ducks at the swishing sound of the spear.
Zali cuts out into the darkness, but his scimitar glanced the wall and is ripped from his hand. The only clue to its whereabouts is the sound of it hitting the floor. Suddenly a loud thump hits the door, then another. Obviously, Sjer and Volorn were taking turns at the door. “Oh why don't they learn to work together,” thinks Zali. Then he jumps from the table and scuttles underneath of it.
The big man growls at the smaller one to keep that damned door shut as he stabs out at the air. He hears Zali searching under the table for his sword and stabs there instead. Fortunately for Zali'haro, the table leg could withstand the damage. Then Zali hears the rending of wood as the man found and yanked his sword from the table.
Suddenly a doubly loud crunch hits the door and there is a metallic crack as the lock breaks.
“Keep that damn door closed” grunts the large man. There is a scrape as some furniture is packed up against the door. Then another crunch pounds the door and it opens enough for light to spill in.
Zali spies his sword laying 4 feet away and launches his body towards it. The large man's sword bites into Zali's back but he manages to come up with the blade. The door swings wide as Volorn and Sjer shoulder their way in, the lantern light streaming behind them.
The smaller man then turns to help his companion, but that only ends his life sooner as with a mighty grunt Zali chops into the big man and then rips his scimitar back out and into the smaller man ending both of their lives.
What follows is a long search to no avail to find any other hidden passages. Afalar is clearly not here. There must be another way, but it eludes our worthy would-be rescuers.
As we explore further down the tunnels both Zali and Sjer fall into a pit. This puts Sjer near to unconciousness and Zali not much better off.
Then the trapdoor at the privy opened. Voices were talking there. "They must not have found it yet because they are still there."
Volorn goes upside down on the ceiling toward the trapdoor.
Up above two teenagers are staring down into the gloom, too afraid to come down, yet brave enough to stay and guard the entrance.
Suddenly Volorn come snarling out the opening, grabs one of the kids by the arm and yanks him through. The boy lands heavily on the ground while the other one slams the trap door with a cry.
There is no time to question or look at our fortunes as Zali immediately plants his blade into the back of the youth.