PBEM - Episode 222. Stairs...and more stairs.

TWO HUNDRED TWENTY TWO

(I/C)

"And I thought they smelled bad on the outside!” Lannis gagged, turning his head and coughing. “Oh gods, I think I can taste it.”

Wiping her face on the bottom of her cloak, Lyra pointed a shaky finger at the dead Trog and said sarcastically, “Why don’t you take a little taste of it, maybe they’re like one of the foods that smells bad and tastes good? Let me know how it goes.” 

“Monsieur, I actually ‘ave de oils in my mouth, so stop your moanin’,” Wyn had dropped his hands to his knees and was trying to gather up deep breaths.

The wizard pointed further up the steps. “You three, go find the off switch, I'm not risking crossing that until it’s off."

Clapping Lannis on the shoulder, Kovid called out, "Good luck finding a switch up there Wyn, I'm going to go feed Lannis to the locusts. Haha! Just kidding, Big Brain.” He pointed at the landing with the dead Troglodyte on it. “Help me look around and see if there’s pressure plate or something we can jam a spike under.”

“Can use a bit more light, McBeerBeard.”

“Wyn?” the dwarf called out. “My lantern break?”

Meanwhile Wyn was muttering while sheathing his sword, "I really hope dat be the last of deze smelly bastards... hm now where is that..." Seeing the lantern still on the floor he picked it up with a smile, “De lantern is still in one piece, Dwarfriend. Now worries dere."

“Well, that’s great. What are we gonna do for light if you guys go upstairs?” Lannis complained.

Lyra nudged him in his backpack, rapping the 2 torches sticking out of the top. “Hello? Right here?”

“Ugh, I have to use my own stuff?” Lannis pulled out the torch that had been lit earlier and spent a minute working on lighting it. “Fine, fine. We’re good.”

Meanwhile Wyn handed the lantern to Brendon and said, “I go check around de corners with my elf eyes en ears. Monsieur du Lac, cen you start looking for a lever or switch to turn dat trap off? Dwarf, use dat dere stone knowledge of yers to see if you cen find a switch in de wall or sometin, oui?"

Wyn made his way up the stairs and with his infravision flaring to life, was able to see past the door. To a closed room. Everything was a swirl of light greens and yellow, no active heat sources up here, a door closed on the south wall. Confident he waved the others up and Brendon and Abraxas climbed to take a look as well.

It was a guard post, a few low stools, some very worn and oily stained cloaks, an iron brazier currently cold. There was a door on the south wall closed, that opened into the room. And on the north east corner of the room was an ornate steel lever currently in the down position. Above the lever were the words, “Blade Defense” in elvish.

After Wyn read it to the two, Brendon pointed to it and said, “There it is.”

“Gosh. Thanks.”

“Let me just check it out,” the Scout said. “I’m feeling better at this lately.”

“Madre de dios knows you can’t get any worse.”

“What?”

“Nada.” Looking around one more time, Abraxas shrugged. “I’ll go down and help them across when you say it is ok.”

Brendon looked over the mechanism (<Find Traps, +20 bonus, Red 36) while Wyn wandered to the south door and listened (<Hear Noise -2 penalty nausea, Orange 2), hearing nothing. “It’s all good,” Brendon said with a smile. “This is not a Hobgoblin thing, but part of the original castle defenses. All I need to do is…”He grabbed the lever and lifted, the iron bar clacking in place and from the landing, the group could hear something shift in the ceiling and one stone in the center of the landing’s ceiling dropped down about 2”. “Ah,” Kovid said pointing to it, “A subtle signal the Ispan must have had put in place so that people coming up the stairs would look to see if the stone was showing, knowing the trap was disabled.”

“Vamanos,” Abraxas waved the party across the Landing without issue, and the group all reconvened at the top of the stairs. There was very little of interest in the chamber other than the redolent stink of the now dead troglodytes and the south door (no roll needed) was without any way to lock it and not trapped.

Time now is Day 6, 2:28 PM

(OOC)

Explore XP: 30 xp each.

Alright! Sooooo. Close! Door? Abraxas still on point for door opening?