Keep of the Borderlands -part one

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Milo Windby made some new friends. He's not too sure where they all hail from, nor
what brought this motley crew together. He does know that they all seem to get
along in their own way and there is strength in numbers. He met Mazithra Liadon at
the gate on his way into the dismal keep in northern Karameikos. The willowy elf had
a battle-hard edge to her that belied her age, not easily determined at first glance
among elven-kind, much less to a halfling. Milo was always the observant type
though, he had no trouble noticing those small signs of age. A weary look to the eyes
at an unguarded moment, a regal grace that hearkened back to days when elves
were the paramount of civilization, the odd twist of the wrist that only serious sword
masters seemed to display. There was something else about her too though, a
mystical quality that was a little hard to define. No matter, he would discover those
secrets in time, he always did. It was a skill that served him well in his home shire
and then in the courts of Darokin. But that was another time, now he had purpose
and goals, and every scrap of information he obtained would bring him that much
closer to his objective. The two of them hit things off immediately, she seemed to
think of Milo as a little brother, someone to watch after in this "big" world full of "big"
people. He never did think of other's size unless it was to exploit any weaknesses
that were inherent in those of large stature. He was naturally drawn to her obvious
strength as a warrior and her easy attitude. "Big" people do have their advantages
after all.

The next to join this ragtag party was Brigit of the Deeperdown clan. Pity to the
hapless soul that finds humor in that clan name. Brigit has settled many a dispute in
and out of the tavern over her name, or her beard, or her table manners, or the
perceived color of the sky. In fact that's how Milo and Mazi met her, she had just
finished mopping up a "debate" on the origins of her clan name right outside the
tavern. They were so impressed with her skills at getting her point across that they
offered to buy a nice pint of dwarven ale and sit down to discuss some of the finer
details in the world of street politics. "Aye, never one to pass up a good pint O ale,
dwarven at that! Don't know how anyone kin stand anything but, unless supposin
nuthin else be onhand." Her colorful manner of speech was as delightful to hear as it
was to watch her down one pint after another.

Inside the tavern they met her traveling companion, one Jeremiah Tansden. A wild
looking young man that obviously hailed from the lands of the plateau. He had well-
tanned skin and a giant greatsword strapped to his back. Other than his pack he
didn't carry much, and he said even less. Quiet and brooding, he'd put back as much
ale as Brigit could, well almost as many. Brigit invariably had him passed out under
the table before the faint rays of dawn made there way into the smoky interior of the
common room. She was quick to comment on his prowess in the field though. Seems
she found him on her way to the keep, hacking away at some recently deceased
goblin corpses. He was in a rage and had obviously quickly dispatched both goblins
with one blow. Very impressive, if a little moody. If time went on too long between
hacking and slashing, Jeremiah would get a little antsy. It just happened to be one of
those dry periods and they all decided it was time to find out what was amiss at the
Keep.

Tall tales abound in outposts on frontiers and in the wilderness. Castellan Keep was
no exception. Milo and his friends heard many while nursing (or guzzling in the case
of Brigit and Jeremiah) their ale in the common room of the tavern. Stories of
haunted caves to the northwest, full of little beasties and the occasional undead,
hungry for the brains of the living. Undead always gave Milo the creeps, he hated
them with a passion. Probably due to his strict religious upbringing. Some of that still
stayed with him, not quite worn off by the dust of the open road or the blisters that
it granted. Still other stories told of masses of goblinoid creatures raiding the
occasional caravan. Most of these could be discounted outright due to the amount of
obvious exaggeration that seems to accompany all such tales.

One in particular had a ring of truth to it though. It seemed that a much loved and
much respected caravan owner had recently gone missing. Victim of the goblinoids
or the hungry undead no doubt. The tragic turn to the tale was the loss of his lovely
wife who traveled with him. Even worse still to Milo was the thought of the vast
unclaimed wealth that a caravan of that size must have carried. He was curious to
say the least. Any Darokinian worth his blood would be, one of his nature even more
so. He wasn't sure, but he could swear that he was slightly in tune with Brigit on that
line of thought. After a few well placed questions and decidedly hard-earned copper
Milo and Mazi tracked down a little more of the truth. There was indeed a caravan
that was taken over recently, suspiciously near the trail that leads up to the haunted
caves. The caravan leader's wife was also with him, even if the tales of her beauty
were a tad overstated.

There was word also of a traveling priest, known and loved in these parts, that was
willing to assist any brave souls that might venture forth to save the doomed
caravan. The four of them discussed the information they found and after obtaining a
map decided to pursue this story a little deeper into the wilderness. Perhaps the
caravan was salvageable, the drivers, leader and wife too, he supposed. Milo, Mazi
and Brigit, trailing a slightly inebriated Jeremiah behind, found there way to the
traveling priest's quarters. A dour young man answered their knock, not a word
uttered. The group had heard of him and his peer, two disciples of the priest. Not
talkative at all and rather suspicious in their manner for their age and position. After
a polite request to meet with the priest they were led into the small dwelling. A
kindly middle-aged man warmly greeted them. He was fit from his travels and had a
ruddy glow to his face, whether this was from a little early evening partaking of
sacramental wine or just his cheery demeanor it was hard to say. His name was
Bordamere and he traveled the road spreading the good word and good cheer where
he could. Mazi had a hard time believing in him right from the start and conveyed
this to Milo through a subtle gesture and look. Milo, unusually unobservant, blithely
ignored the unspoken warning and engaged the priest in a discussion about the
caravan and the possibility of rescuing any survivors or leftover goods. The priest
was willing enough, even going as far as donating some holy water to the cause at
Milo's request. Milo hated undead, really. Bordamere also recommended two stout
mercenaries that could be found and enlisted at the tavern. One Sir Paul and one Sir
Charles. ('Barkley?' Milo asked. 'No, Berkley. Why do you ask?' answers Bordamere)
Milo was shocked to hear of two knights of the realm selling their services for coin.
That is until Bordamere displayed a particularly annoying speech pattern. Apparently
everyone in his eyes was "sir" or "lady". Thus it was that Sirs Milo and Jeremiah, and
Ladies Mazi and Brigit found themselves on their way back to the tavern, after
arranging to meet with the priest near the gate at 6:00am the following morning.

A quick discussion later and very little persuasion it was decided Milo and Mazi would
arrange matters with the hired swords while Brigit helped to keep Jeremiah
entertained at the bar. It seemed Jeremiah was getting a little antsy again. A few
pints of ale were preferable to a few broken jaws and a night in the stocks. A couple
of the frequent guest to the tavern pointed the two towards Sir Paul and Sir Charles.
The pair were slowly drifting towards the floor during a drinking game that had
obviously started much earlier in the day. After introducing themselves to the
wavering eyes of the mercenaries ('No, there's only one halfling, one elf') Milo dived
right into the proposition. He hoped that some coherent dealing could be done before
the two of them became a little too personal with the floor.

"We have need of aid in retrieving, er, rescuing the members of the caravan that
was recently waylaid near the keep. We have it on good word that you two stout
individuals would be willing to assist us for a price," Milo started.

"Yesh?" came the soggy reply from Sir Paul.

"Yes, the priest Bordamere sent us your way," said Milo.

"Ahhhhhh! Good ole ::hic:: Bordy! Boy kin he put away ale like nobody!"

"Yes, that's the man. So, what do you say?"

"You would be outfittin ush with materialsh, eh?"

Ahh! That's is what Milo was looking forward to, a good haggle! "Well we assumed,
you being old war veterans and all, that you would have your own sturdy arms and
armor."

The warrior gave him a look that would curdle milk, had it not been watered down by
untold pints of ale. Paul answered back, "That'sh true. Ya will be provishnn-
provishnn-givin ush food an the like?"

"Of course, standard procedure in this sort of arrangement I gather."

"An a share O' the booty too?"

"Ah well, a share of the booty would imply that you were partners, not hired hands.
Perhaps if you'd like to come along without the fee we could come to a different
arrangement?" Milo warmed up to the bargaining. Just then Mazi seemed to need to
speak with Milo rather urgently, "Hang on a sec lads." The two of them retreated a
ways from the table,

"We don't know these two, can they even be trusted?" Mazi asked.

"The priest recommended them, and everyone loves him around here. I don't think
there will be a problem." Milo responded. Mazi seemed to accept this reasoning.

They approached the table again, noticing that a new round of pints had been
delivered to the soldier's table in their absence. 'Ah, this should make things even
easier,' thought Milo. "So, what is your going rate for employment, boys? We'll plan
on a journey of four days, two out, two back."

"Hmmm, four daysh you shay? ::hic!::" Paul paused, whether to choke down some
ale coming back for a visit or to consider the price it's hard to say. "10 gold pieshes
for the two of ush."

"Ten gold for four days! Are you mad?" Milo was in his element now, these two
inebriated swordsmen had no idea what was about to hit em. "2 gold along with a
weapon and/or piece of armor from the loot, if we find any. That doesn't include any
magical items we may find."

"2 gold? Bah! We'd make more shovelin dung fer the local farmersh. Make it 8 and
you have a deal"

"6 gold, no more. Imagine how much ale that can buy you." Milo replied.

"Fine then, but we demand payment up front." Again Mazi signaled Milo to step back
for a little conference.

"I don't think we should pay these two in advance, look at them! We probably won't
even see them tomorrow morning, either they'll be too drunk to show up or they'll
be who knows where with our gold!"

"Good point Mazi, how about we give them half before we leave tomorrow and half
when we get back?"

"Agreeable." Mazi agreed.

"Well then gentlemen," as they once again approached the table, "We'll give you half
tomorrow morning when you show up for the trip and half when we get back to the
keep."

"How about half now and half after inshtead?"

Milo gave them another look-over. 3 gold would certainly be enough to rot what was
left of their livers and put them in a comatose, if not permanent rest. "I think 5
silver now, 2 gold and 5 silver in the morning, then 3 gold when we get back. That
way you can drink your silver tonight and still have some left over for your victory
celebration when we get back."

"Fair enough little one, hand over the shilver and ya've got yershelf a deal. ::hic!::"

"It's a deal then, here's your shil-silver." Milo handed them five silver. "See you at
six o'clock tomorrow. Near the gate. The priest will be with us as well."

"SHIX O'CLOCK!?" There was that look again. Milo had to bite his lip to keep from
grinning. He partook of the drink here and there, but he preferred to have his fun
with those that were more liberal with the libations. It never failed to amuse him
when they were delivered a little shock to the system after a good bout of
drunkenness. Yes, he could see he'd have a little fun with this group after all.

Milo and Mazi made their way back to the bar. Funny, they couldn't see Jeremiah
anywhere near Brigit at the bar. Upon wending there way past tables, chairs, and
wandering servers they discovered Jeremiah hadn't strayed far. He was slumped
against the feet of his stool, reeking of cheap ale. Ah, youth. Brigit just looked at him
and giggled. "Ya big boys never kin drink a dwarven lass down. Well here's to ya lad,
on account of ya tryin!" She tipped another pint back, from the frothy top to the very
bottom of the tin stein, slamming it down onto the bar afterwards. "Barkeep,
another rou-"
"Actually, it may be time to call it a night Brigit," Mazi interjected, "We've got a long
way to walk tomorrow and it'll be a little easier without having to drag two of you
halfway there."

"Ach, yer always tryin ta spoil ma fun, elfie. Ah well, Jer here couldna keep up wi'
me. I spose I'm done fer tha night." Brigit answered and then, "Any luck wi' them
boyos at the table?"

"Not a problem at all, 6 gold for four days of service and a piece of weaponry and
armor from any loot we find." Milo said.

"Weapons and armor! They'll be gettin nuthin magical from me loot, I kin tell ya
that!"

"Not to worry, only mundane equipment that may still be of use."

"Aye, ya be right there little-un. Very well, let's drag Jerry here up to the room,"
Brigit hiccupped.

With that they heaved Jer's rather large frame up the stairs to our room. That is to
say Brigit and Mazi dragged his rather large frame. Milo dragged his boots up after.
Somehow the heavy leather boots had made there way to the other side of the bar
during their carousing. Milo didn't want to know.

In the morning they approached the gate, seeing that the priest and his disciples
were there waiting. Thank goodness those two wouldn't be coming along. Nothing
like a couple of melancholy youth to bring down an entire adventure. Bordamere
informed them that he was sending a couple of letters with his associates to bring to
the high priest if they didn't return within a week. With that he dismissed the two
and cheerily looked on at our little party. Brigit had recovered rather well from the
night's festivities. She was chipper as ever, all trussed up in her shiny breastplate
with her stout dwarven axe strapped to her back. I'll never cease to be amazed by
the bottomless stamina of dwarves when it comes to alcohol. Even their women
could drink an orc into a stupor. Not that you'd ever catch a dwarf celebrating
anything with an orc. Poor Jer didn't fare so well. His eyes were bleary and he kept
smacking his lips, as if trying to get rid of a bad taste in his mouth. That couldn't
have anything to do with his rather hasty rush to the window that morning, could it?
Mazi and Milo were composed and ready for anything. Mazi with her longsword and
finely crafted elven bow, one in the scabbard at her side, the other lashed to her
pack. Milo with his light crossbow stowed at his waist, almost hanging to the ground.
His short sword at his side and his dagger in his belt. It was another half-hour before
Sir Charles and Sir Paul made their appearance. They looked much like poor
Jeremiah, pasty faced and watery eyed.
"WELL," Milo said, just under a parade ground shout, "Shall we be on our way
gentlemen and gentleladies?" He grinned as Jer, Paul, and Charles all winced in
unison. Yes, it was going to be a very good day.

They started out on the winding mountain path out of the keep. They made good
time on the well-traveled road. Milo noticed the wheel ruts from the many caravans
that came this way. After they passed the marshlands the road started to show its
wear. Sir Paul mentioned the long abandoned moathouse, former seat of power in
this small region. It had been overrun by the local beasties long ago, before the Keep
was built. Some parts of the road were a little soggy from the swampy residue of the
marsh and other parts were overgrown. Since they were on foot and had no wagon
wheels to worry about, the party made it through these areas with a minimum of
difficulty. As evening approached they found a large clearing up on a hill, just north
of the road. Figuring the clearing to be a good place to camp they all set about
finding a comfortable place to rest. Being a half-day from the caves they figured a
little fire couldn't hurt either. 'Especially if it kept the undead at bay,' thought Milo.
He hated undead, really. Milo and Bordamere took the first watch, discussing the
merits of ale, mead, wine, and other drinks on the road. Mazi and Paul took the next
watch, discussing very little. Mazi's distaste for the mercenaries wasn't outright
evident, but she made no show of being friendly towards them. Jeremiah and the
equally quiet Charles took third watch with Brigit taking a lone watch during the
early morning hours. Not a soul, or soulless thing, disturbed their sleep that night.
This oddly set Milo on edge, rather than relaxing him.

The next morning he was ready to start into the caves and see some action. He and
Jeremiah shared that feeling a little more than usual this day. The winding trail
meandered north, closer to the gorge where the caves started. As they neared their
goal the party noticed that the trees took on an especially gnarled appearance.
Twisted and haggard, their branches pointed like the bony fingers of skeletons
towards the gray sky. Milo hated the undead, really. "So what say you, priest? Any
feelings for this place, can you tell if anything may be close by?" Milo asked.

"Only that things appear worse than we feared," Bordamere responded gravely.

They reached the caves after a slightly more difficult hike up the rest of the road,
then more of a trail. The trail petered out into a depression, almost a small valley,
dotted with cave mouths all the way to the top. Unsalvageable wreckage and
skeletons littered the ground. It indeed appeared that the caravan had been taken
here before the drivers and their kin were slaughtered by the evil denizens of the
caves. There appeared to be 6 or more entrances, plus the brush may have hid more
that. The party decided to handle the caves in a more-or-less organized manner,
starting at the bottom to the East and working their way around, then up. That way
they left no caves empty behind them. All of them readied their weapons as they
approached the first cavern. Slowly Milo crept into the dim recess, able to see now,
but he knew he'd have to break out his lantern before they got too deep. The rest of
the group followed about 10 feet behind. First Jer and Brigit, then Mazi and
Bordamere, followed by Paul and Charles bringing up the rear. Milo would work as a
scout, using his keen powers of observation and experience with dangerous traps to
rout out any danger to the party. When and if any beasties reared their ugly heads
he would retreat back into the midst of the party, letting Jer and Brigit rush up to the
front lines.
Keep of the Borderlands -part two (session one)
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Milo crept forward, not trying to be too quiet. As he ventured into the cave Milo
noticed stonework on the walls. This was not a natural cave, at least farther in. Not
ten feet into the cave he happened upon it's inhabitants. Goblins! Luckily they were
just as shocked as Milo. "Bree Yark!" the lead goblin shouted when he spied Milo.
With a startled "Eep!" Milo raced back the ten feet to the rest of the group and
warned them of what lie directly ahead. The goblins seemed very unorganized as
they all tried to ready their lances and get a formation going. The narrowness of the
tunnel prevented the six beasties from charging en masse. They had trouble deciding
who would go first. Goblins were a cowardly lot when it came to even numbers.

In the rear of the group Charles was the first to react to Milo's return. He noticed the
goblins but was unable to reach them through the party members before him. Not
wasting a moment Jeremiah let loose a great battle cry and rushed forward to hack
away at the nearest goblin. It didn't stand a chance, his greatsword cleaved the
miserable beast in two and almost did the same to his companion, had it not ducked
at the last moment. Unfortunately for it Brigit was right behind Jeremiah, charging
forward with her mighty dwarven waraxe and chopping the hated goblinoid nearly in
half. Mazi was next to act, firing an arrow from her elven bow right past Jer and
Brigit into the shoulder of the next goblin in line. Meanwhile, the priest Bordamere
had been chanting a strange, ominous litany. Milo, suspecting something amiss,
barely avoided the priest's touch. As he moved he could see a deep, glowing, black
discharge from Bordamere's hand right where he stood moments ago. "Bree Yark!"
the cleric shouted.
"He's one of them! Get the priest!" Milo shouted.
Sir Paul, though surprised at this turn of events, noticed the evil chanting and
discharge of energy as well. He pressed his attack behind the priest but was still off
balance from the sudden turn of events. The cleric heard him behind and ducked out
of the way. Just then Brigit spied some movement down the right passage, four
more goblins were rounding the corner. She shouted a warning to her companions
before returning her attention to the fray.

Recovering from the near miss of the evil priest's attack Milo attempted to fire his
crossbow pointblank at the turncoat. He found that firing on a moving target up close
is harder than he thought as his bolt flew past Bordamere to bounce uselessly off the
cave wall. Charles, following his friend's example, engaged the priest in combat.
With three attackers the priest was hard pressed to avoid the next attack and
groaned in pain as Charles' longsword finds its mark. The goblins finally got
organized after watching two of their own fall under the mighty charge of the
barbarian and fierce dwarven warrior. The goblin closest to Mazi thrust his javelin in
her general direction but Mazi easily sidestepped the clumsy attack. The goblin next
to him attempted to pierce Jeremiah through but was similarly avoided. The other
two goblins moved closer but were unable to attack due to the narrow passage.
Jeremiah swung his greatsword in a huge, diagonal arc once again slicing clean
through another green beast. His sword bounced off the cavern floor before he could
complete the arc through the goblin standing next to him. Brigit followed Jer's attack
with another of her own, easily dispatching her racial enemy with a snarl. She
paused long enough to spit on the twitching corpse. Mazi, ignoring the danger of the
goblins near her took aim with her trusty bow at the evil Bordamere. Whispering a
silent prayer to the powers that be she let the arrow fly. Her aim never more true,
the flying missile found its mark, the evil priest's head. The arrow sunk to the flights,
right between his eyes. The traitorous cleric didn't even have a chance to cry out
before he fell to the floor, dead. Mazi recognized the true nature of the priest and his
evil spells. She put his murderous actions to rest with one blow. While the party
shouted in victory over the amazing shot of Mazi, the group of four goblins move up
the hall, closer to the melee. Just then another group of six more goblins appeared in
the left passage, moving towards the battle as fast as their stumpy legs could carry
them.

Not being near the action and holding an empty crossbow, Milo decided to take a few
moments to reload another bolt into the weapon. Charles, his way free now that the
battle had spread out and the priest had fallen, moved forward to attack the two
remaining goblins. His attack swung wide and the goblin that was his target laughed
cruelly. The two goblins in front of Charles pulled back simultaneously before
thrusting their lances directly into his groin. The poor mercenary cried out before he
fell silent to the ground, beyond help. Paul, seeing his best friend dying in front of
him began to look a little green around the gills. He let out a sob and started toward
the goblins responsible for his friend's death. Jeremiah also saw the fighter fall. He
heaved his bulk behind a mighty blow of his sword as both goblins virtually explode
on contact. Brigit moved next to Jeremiah, sealing off the way they came so the two
goblin parties couldn't flank the group. Mazi fired another arrow into the approaching
group from the right corridor. She's rewarded with a shout and groan as her arrow
finds its mark. By that time the two groups of goblins had made their way down the
hall and clashed futilely into the stalwart defense of Jeremiah and Brigit. Their blows
easily avoided by Jer and glancing off of Brigit's shield.

Seeing no easy target Milo quickly searched the cleric's body after a prompting from
Mazi. She and he thought alike, what kind of loot might an evil cleric hide? He found
a rolled parchment on the body along with the priest's mace and full plate armor.
Milo decided to leave the loot until the battle was over. Jeremiah, rage in his eyes,
once again brought his weapon to bear. This time the goblins were wearier and
stayed clear of his swinging blade. Brigit attacked the third group of goblins from the
left hall and killed the first to reach her easily. As Jer and Brigit fended off the hordes
of goblins, Paul, Milo, and Mazi heard a clatter coming from the mouth of the cave.
Milo was the first to see the huge ogre stomp up the corridor, followed by two more
goblins. Mazi, fearing that the ogre might squash Milo in his charge, switched to her
longsword. In the meantime Paul stabbed forward with his longsword at the nearest
goblin, missing by the breadth of a hair. Once again the mass of goblins pressed
against the two warriors. Again Jeremiah danced away from the lances while Brigit
stood steadfast in the rain of blows that bounced harmlessly off her armor and
shield.

Milo fired his crossbow at the approaching bulk of the ogre. He watched it sink into
its thick hide as a slow smile spread from one side of the ugly beast's face to the
other. On the other side of the hallway Jeremiah was slightly off balance from
dodging the lances of his enemies and missed with the next swing of his greatsword.
Fighting behind him Brigit sunk her ax into yet another hapless goblin with a
satisfyingly meaty thud. Mazi, noticing the size of the ogre and his equally huge club,
decided to cast a protective spell upon her. A faint glow surrounded her briefly and
her skin seemed to harden. Paul rose to the challenge of the new threat and moved
to block the ogre's path to his newfound, and only, friends. Unfortunately the brave
action was to be his last. The ogre, with one mighty downward thrust of his club,
drove Paul down to the earth. Never to rise again, Paul gave his life to defend those
to whom he pledged his service. Milo looked on in horror as the ogre laughed at the
broken body at his feet. Back at the other front Jeremiah, still dodging blows from
the goblins, made a slight misstep and was brought up short by the tip of a lance. He
groaned as it sunk into his arm, temporarily thrown off by the wound. Brigit was
busy fending off the other group of goblins that were still attempting to get past her
seemingly invincible armor.

Milo took a moment to switch to his shortsword as he shook his head sadly at the
loss of first Charles, then Paul. Truly these foul creatures will pay. The pain in his
arm distracted Jer and his next attack fell short of its mark. The goblins cried out
thinking to take advantage of his lapse. Brigit swung her ax down on the latest
foolish goblin that braved her reach. She laughed as she mowed through the goblins
like so much wheat in the field. Mazi took a moment to find an opening in which to
attack the ogre to the best advantage, readying her longsword to dispatch the beast.
She heard a shout of triumph from the goblins behind her as both sides managed to
sneak their lances through Jeremiah and Brigit's defense. Their cries are cut off short
however when they notice what small effect their lances seemed to have on the pair.
Mazi's attention was brought back to the fight near her when she heard Milo cry out
from a near miss of the ogre's club. He felt the club whiz by his head as he rolled out
of the way.

Mazi felt this was her best chance for an opening and drew back her sword a little
too quickly. She began to lose her footing on the bloody ground and has to take a
few moments to right herself. Her opening lost, she must wait until another
opportunity presents itself. Meanwhile, Milo decided to put some of his training to
use as he tumbled behind the ogre. The ogre took a swing at the flying halfling but
slammed his club so hard against the ground that the vibrations from the impact
shook him. If it were another time and place Milo would probably find humor in the
comical expression on the ogre's face. At that moment he was more concerned with
coming out of the battle in his own skin. He turned quickly and swiped his longsword
across the ogre's ankle, bringing a roar of rage from the monster. It'll think twice
before it assumes the smallest of them is the weakest. Back in the tunnel Jeremiah's
hands slipped on his hilt. The sword had become thick with blood, mingled with his
own, its grip had become slick. He took some time to find a firmer hold on the
weapon. Brigit was unaware of Jer's predicament as she turned another goblin into
minced meat. "That's six of ya scum!" She spat out to the remaining forces. A fury in
her eyes glowed with fuel beyond that of the normal dwarven hatred of goblinoids.
The goblins seemed shaken and failed to mount an effective counterattack. Perhaps
fearing that the tide was turning against them, regardless of the presence of the
great ogre. While the ogre was regaining his composure from his fumble with the
club his cohorts attacked the halfling that rolled into their midst. One of them tagged
the nimble rogue with his lance, drawing a small amount of blood.

Heedless of the wound Milo took a stab at the ogre in the back, right near his spine.
His shortsword sunk in almost to the hilt before he twisted it and slid it back out of
the great beast's hide. The ogre reared his head back and roared in pain. Mazi,
seeing her opening, slashed the monster's neck, giving him a second, more
permanent smile. She sighed in relief before refocusing her attack at the remaining
goblin cohorts. Brigit attacked and missed for the first time against the goblins. The
cowards had moved back a little from her deadly ax. The goblins' weak jabs with
their lances failed to connect even with her armor from their safe positions. Jer was
wounded once more by the lance of the nearest goblin. Though he is still fighting
bravely Brigit notices that his strength is lagging. He had taken a lot of damage since
the battle was joined. Both of the ogre's cohorts converged on Milo, intent on
trapping him between them. He leapt out of the way, but not before a goblin lance
pierced his flesh once again.

Angered by the wounds and his inability to dodge the clumsy goblins Milo jumped at
the offending goblin. With perfect aim he impaled the goblin straight through its
heart. The goblin died with a shocked look on his face. It didn't even have the
chance to groan as the sword slid out of its body. The goblin's companion was still
distracted by Milo's critical blow when Mazi's sword tip appeared through his leather
jerkin. He too died with a look of surprise on his misshapen features. Jeremiah
fought on bravely, but it was apparent to his friends that he was in dire need of aid.
He looked a little dizzy as he swung his sword wildly. Behind him Brigit scored a
glancing blow on one of the remaining goblins. The goblin turned tail and ran down
the tunnel. "Coward!" She shouted after it. Just then she heard Jer cry out as
another lance created a jagged hole in his thigh. Near death, Jer was persuaded to
move back a little to let the others finish off the goblins. He rests for a moment. The
remaining goblins in front of Brigit surged forward at the sight of Jeremiah retreating
but they were still unable to pierce Brigit's defenses.

Milo sneaked over to the corner of the forked passage from where Jeremiah
retreated. In the partial concealment he took careful aim and once again found the
perfect mark for his shortsword. His arm snaked out and his sword traced a deep
gash across the throat of the goblin, felling it instantly with another critical blow.
Mazi also came to the aid of her barbarian friend, finding her target's heart with her
longsword. Many goblins have died between she and Milo's carefully aimed attacks.
She dispatched the goblin without a sound. Leaving one goblin out of the original
four that attacked Jeremiah. Brigit swung her ax again but was unable to land a blow
on the pitiful goblins. The final goblin that attacked from the right passage made a
pitiful attempt to injure Mazi but his blow bounced harmlessly off her magically
strengthened skin. The final goblin from the other hallway made a similarly pitiful
attempt to attack Brigit. She batted its lance aside with her shield and swung her ax
in the opening, killing the goblin with one mighty blow.

Milo, taking advantage of the lull in combat, tumbled past the last goblin to flank it.
He turned too slowly to land an attack but was able to watch with satisfaction as
Mazi inflicted the final blow. The goblins were no more.

After conferring quickly over the mass of bodies the party decided to loot what they
could and run back to safety. In the distant halls they could hear the angry noises of
reinforcements on their way. They would have to return and clean out these warrens
another day. Milo shook his head sadly over the bodies of the mercenaries. He felt
somewhat responsible for their deaths, being the one that persuaded them to come
along. Still, they're gold is no good where they are now. He searched their bodies for
the payment he gave them that morning but left all of their other valuables as they
were. The rest of the group rummaged about the goblin bodies, finding copper and
silver pieces on each. They had another hurried discussion over the matter of the evil
priest's full plate armor. It would fetch a good price at the market, no damage was
evident since Mazi's arrow pierced the shirt in-between plates. Still, the time it would
take to divest the cleric of the armor was more than they had. With another sad
shake of his head Milo agreed with the rest that it wasn't worth dying for. The group
made their way out of the cave and moved down the trail at a steady pace.
Eventually they reached their camp and stopped for the night. The excitement of the
battle had since worn off and they all seem to be in a melancholy mood. Not only did
the seemingly good-natured priest betray them, but they lost the two young
mercenaries to the horde as well. They all vowed that their new friends' lives and the
murderous priest's betrayal would be repaid in the blood of the goblins. With that
they settled down for the night. Milo, Brigit, and Mazi taking turns at watch. They let
Jeremiah rest, he was near death by the time they reached the camp anyway.
Keep of the Borderlands -part three
------------------------
The night passed without incident. The morning broke, finding the group in much
better shape. Jeremiah could walk on his own, though he was still a little shaky. The
rest of the party were physically fit if not still saddened by the loss of the
mercenaries. Their journey back to the Keep was uneventful. Conversation was
limited as all four were lost in their own thoughts.

Upon arriving at the Keep Milo noticed the gate was shut and the portcullis down.
Fearing the worst, the group approached with caution.

"Hallo!" Milo called to the guards. Two haggard men appeared at the gate and eyed
the crew suspiciously.

"What business do you have here?" One guard asked.

"We have returned from the haunted caves with bad news. The traveling priest
betrayed us to the goblins, we barely escaped with our lives. There are more in the
caves, we've come to warn the Keep and recover from our wounds." Milo responded.

Still wary, the guards open the gate. The party was greeted on the other side by
more armed guards, all look pale and gaunt.

"Please come with us. The priest of the Keep would like a word with you," said the
captain. It sounded like a request, but Milo heard the unspoken command and
warning. They could decline and risk death at the hands of the guards or they could
go peacefully. "Your weapons, please," prompted the captain, pointing to a large
sack one of his subordinates was holding.

"Now wait just a minute!" started Brigit. She was never one to give up her ax.
Jeremiah looked defiant as well.

"Hang on Brigit, I think it would be a good idea to cooperate right now." Milo
interrupted.

"I agree," said Mazi, "as much as we don't trust priests now it would be foolhardy to
risk death over this. Justice will be done once the truth has been told."

Grumbling all the while Brigit handed over her ax and bow, Jeremiah likewise with
his greatsword. Mazi placed her longsword and beloved Elven bow in the sack as Milo
divested himself of his dagger, shortsword, and light crossbow.

"Very well, follow me," stated the captain.

The party trooped after the sickly man, surrounded by over half dozen guards. Milo
notices that very few people are about the grounds of the Keep. Those that are look
much like the guards, worse for wear and not long for this world.

They're taken to the Keep's church, a fair sized functional building. Nothing fancy
this far out in the hinterlands. The interior is well kept with the main chapel lit
brightly. The pews are all polished and gleaming and the altar is covered in worn
velvet. Nothing special, thinks Milo. His father's church was much more impressive.
The group is led to a medium sized office where behind a huge oak desk sits a
decidedly unfriendly priest. He was getting on in years but still looked strong,
thought Milo, unlike many of the unadventurous priests he had met before. The
priest muttered something under his breath before addressing the party.

"I know who you are by descriptions given at the tavern. Where is the cleric and
what have you been doing for the past three days?" he asks brusquely.

Milo was taken aback by his direct manner. He related their journey and travails to
the priest, leaving nothing out of the story. After his tale was done the priest leans
back in his oversized chair and lets out a deep sigh.

"Your story rings true. You should know that I cast a truth spell upon you before you
shared your experiences," After a pause the priest finally said, "I regret that you did
not come to me before you ventured to the caves. I have had my suspicions about
the traveling cleric for some time now. What do you know of his disciples?"

"Only that they're quiet and depressing. He gave them a letter to pass on to the high
priest if we did not return by the end of a week." Milo told him.

"They have disappeared, and shortly after this plague fell upon the Keep. As you can
see many of our inhabitants are ill," the priest states. Milo thought back on the odd
absence of people on the Keep grounds. "I appreciate your honesty and we mourn
the loss of the adventures that traveled with you. They will be missed. However they
knew the risks when they agreed to join you," the priest said sadly. "I must ask for
your further cooperation in this matter. Please remain at the inn until we can
discover more about this issue. You will be sent for when we have completed our
investigations and have contacted the duke."

"And our gear?" Milo prompted.

"You may have your weapons, we only ask you to keep them stowed while at the
inn. We don't need to lose any more residents than this plague has already claimed.
You may go now," the priest finished.

"Before we leave we'd like you to examine this 'holy water' Bordamere gave us. Can
you tell if it is indeed blessed?" Milo said hurriedly.

"Let me see," answered the priest. Milo dug the holy water out of his pack. The
priest took one look at it before making a sound of utter disgust. "This is far from
blessed, my halfling friend. This water is cursed. It would do you no good against
undead or anything evil. I suggest you dispose of it immediately."

"Perhaps you, being a man of faith, could find a way to dispose of it safely?" Milo
asked, "Might you be able to provide us with replacements as well, real holy water of
course?"

The priest took on a pious look, "The church's funds are limited and blessing holy
water is a taxing process. Perhaps if a donation to our faith was made we could
oblige you."

This was one time when Milo had no problem forking over a few coins. Milo hated
undead, really. The priest sent an acolyte off with a written note requesting four vials
of holy water. He dismissed the party after the acolyte returned with the promised
bottles.
The guards led them out of the church and their gear was returned to them. They
were then escorted back to the inn and given a room to share for the duration. Brigit
and Jeremiah wasted no time making their way to the common room. As soon as
their gear was stowed they were at the bar, reveling in their survival of the goblin
ordeal. Milo and Mazi even joined in. Mazi regaled the locals in the inn with the tale
of their adventure in the haunted caves. Not one of the party members complained
when she exaggerated the number of goblins or the size of the ogre. Her retelling of
the arrow that felled the priest may have been slightly over dramatic, but Milo
figured she earned it. Besides, it was his skin she likely saved. Her stories seemed to
lift the people's lagging spirits. Mazi was quite the spinner of tales.

After three days the priest sent his acolyte to the tavern. He brought with him a
short letter that stated the party was free to go. The duke had been notified and
their names cleared. The four of them discussed their choices. It was unanimously
decided that they would return to the caves and finish off the goblin threat. Milo
wanted to retrieve the evil cleric's full plate and any other goodies those monsters
might be hiding from the caravan.

They all prepared to leave for the caves once more. Milo brought the ring and the
parchment he found on the cleric to the priest. After another 'donation' the priest
identified the ring as mind shielding device and the scroll contained the divine spells
'hold person' and 'silence 15' radius'. "So this is why I could never really figure out
the cleric," the priest said, holding up the ring, "Whoever wears this ring is protected
from mind reading and the like." Hmm, thought Milo, not something he could use
offhand. The scroll he would keep though, divine spells always fascinated him. Mazi
decided to wear the ring, she said you can never tell when it might come in handy.

With that they left the relative safety of the Keep once again. The road to the caves
was empty and they met no resistance. The party camped at the same site they had
before the fateful day of the battle. This time Milo slept much better than before. He
trusted his companions with his life. The next morning, after Mazi finished preparing
her spells and they all had a bite of cold rations, they continued on their way. (Milo
knew he'd figure out her mystical quality, he'd heard that all elves had a magical
affinity.) They reached the gorge and noticed something a bit different. Not too far
from the cave they entered before they could see trampled brush and huge tracks.
Obviously the ogre and his goblin entourage came from there. Upon further
inspection they found a cave mouth that was hidden by more brush. They all readied
their weapons, Milo with his crossbow, Mazi with her Elven longbow, Brigit and
Jeremiah with their ax and sword, respectively. Milo decided to do things a little
differently this time. For once he tried being quiet as he moved into the cave.
Keep of the Borderlands -part four (session one)
-------------------------
Not that it mattered how quietly Milo was treading. The scene that was spread about
before him wasn't completely unexpected. There was a huge pallet in the corner of
the small natural cave. Milo could see it went deeper into the side of the gorge to the
East. Rags were strewn all about. On one side of the room was a pile of bare bones,
mostly human sized. A couple leg bones had been snapped in two, the jagged edges
perfect for an ogre toothpick. No big thing, Milo thought, that's one ogre that won't
be doing much bone crunching anymore. He motioned a thumbs up to the others
outside the cave mouth. As the rest of the party trooped in Milo did a little more of a
search and asked the others to do likewise. Though Milo didn't uncover anything but
more smelly rags and bones. Brigit on the other hand turned over the sleeping pallet
and found some arrows, a small vial full of an unidentifiable liquid, and a rolled up
parchment.
Brigit handed the parchment to Mazi, "I kin read, but I've no truck wi' this magik
stuff. It's all yer's."

Mazi examined the scroll but was unable to make much sense of it, "It's not of
arcane origin, that's for sure."

"Mind if I hold on to it then?" Milo said quickly, "Just for safekeeping of course." He
finished as he snatched the scroll out of Mazi's grasp and stowed it with the other he
held before Mazi could utter another syllable. If it wasn't arcane, he theorized to
himself, it must be divine. That might come in handy, especially if it had anything to
do with killing undead. Milo hated undead, really.

Satisfied that there was nothing more of value in the room they headed out into the
hallway. Milo once again led, treading quietly with his hooded lantern lighting the
way. Well, he thought wryly to himself, if the rest of the beasties in here are blind I'll
have no trouble sneaking up on them. The passage opened back up into a smaller
cavern, completely empty.

"There's something odd about this wall," Mazi said.

"Aye, I feel it too Elfie," Brigit agreed, running her hands along the rough stone wall.

Milo sprung up to the wall, peering closely at it. "Uh yeah, something, uh, odd." Mazi
and Brigit both gave him a look, then each other, and finally a up, as if to say
'halflings!'

Brigit was the first to find the secret catch. She refrained from triggering the
mechanism, their past experiences taught them a little healthy paranoia. "Come on
up here, Milo, do yer thing on this here catch. Trapped, ya think?"

Milo looked closely at the catch, examining it as best he could without triggering it.
Not finding anything obvious, he shrugged and pushed in on it.

"Wha!? Are ye daft boy?" Brigit sputtered. The door swung open with the sound of
stone grating on stone. Milo just stood back and grinned ear to ear. He then bowed
and motioned his hands from Brigit to the door.

"After you, milady."

"Harrumph," harrumphed Brigit, shaking her head. "Healthy paranoia indeed."

The door opened into a small room with passages leading in two directions, east and
west. Both branched off not too far from the room. Figuring that the passage to the
East would take them near the entrance they used during their last visit, the group
moved that way first. The extra branch off the East tunnel led around a corner as the
cavern walls slowly closed in. It eventually just turned into a dead end. As the party
trooped back the hallway they noticed a distressing lack of bodies in the passage
they came through originally. No goblins, no ogre.

"Someone likes their warrens tidy, that's all" Milo said, "Something big, or a lot of
little somethings. I hope that ogre didn't have a friend-or a mate." He shuddered.

With that heartening thought they headed the opposite direction, down the western
passage. The branch off that passage turned left and ended as the other one, the
walls closing into a dead end. They could tell these walls hadn't been worked, this
was just the natural cave structure, with crevasses and cracks like any normal
cavern would have. Milo just hoped the rest of the cave turned out to be "normal".
The main passage led further west, with an opening to the South. The group moved
together, not wishing to split up with the thought of more ogres about. Jeremiah and
Brigit led the way around the corner, walking right into a large room. Besides crude
beds and furniture there were live occupants in this room, goblins, and tons of em.
Milo could just make out a couple in front of Jer and Brigit. Here we go again, he
thought before yelling, "Incoming!" With that he loosed his crossbow bolt at the
nearest green ghastly, and so the battle was joined.

Milo's bolt sunk into the shoulder of the goblin in the front. They were waiting and
ready for the group of adventurers though. Could it have been the pile of bodies they
left a few days before? Jeremiah wasted no time, and raced towards the goblin Milo
had wounded. His initial swing neatly chopping the ugly little head off of the beast
and finished up in the belly of the goblin standing beside it.

"They may have been ready for us, but that isn't going to help them any!" Mazi said
to Milo after she pegged another goblin in the leg with her bow.

Brigit moved up past the Jeremiah's kills, slipping a little in the fresh carnage, she
missed her first attack. The goblins in the second rank, outraged by the invasion of
their home and the death of their many comrades, moved forward and attacked both
Jeremiah and Brigit. Neither blow landed its mark though, the human and dwarf
easily sidestepped the lances. With the rest of the group farther in the cavern Milo
could make out the remainder of its inhabitants. There must have been over a dozen
more of the monsters with weapons, and in the far corner of the room were three
human sized female and three large male goblins carrying longswords. Just behind
them Milo could make out a bigger, bulkier goblin in chainmail, looking none too
happy. In addition to the fighting goblins he could see some startled goblin women
and their spawn in another corner of the room.

His attention drawn back to the battle at hand, Milo took some time to reload his
crossbow. Jeremiah attempted to fell another goblin but swung a little too high and
wide. There was a great "CLANG!" of metal hitting stone as his sword bounced off
the wall. The vibrations of the quivering sword stunned Jeremiah, looking much like
the ogre with the club from their previous battle. Trying not to laugh at the comical
sight, Mazi took the opportunity to cast her mage armor spell and target Jer. His skin
shimmered with the mystical energy. Near him Brigit's attack barely missed her
target as the goblin ducked down to all fours and scurried to the side. It made an
attack of its own but it bounced off her armor harmlessly, as did the blow of its
companion off of Jeremiah's hardened skin.

Milo attempted to shoot a goblin through the melee but missed the wildly moving
form of the goblin. Jeremiah, his composure regained, slashed at the next goblin. His
sword cut through the beast like a hot knife through butter but it failed to connect
with the other goblin close by. Mazi stood back and completed some more arcane
gestures, her skin shimmering much like Jer's had a few moments before. Brigit,
tired of the dancing goblin in front of her, put all her force behind a vicious blow of
her waraxe. The goblin all but exploded, "No more dancin fer ya, little beastie!" she
crowed. The other goblins were startled by the attacks of the front-line fighters and
drew back to regroup and give their leader time to enter the fight. By that time the
cavern's occupants were crowded around the entrance, the bigger goblins in the rear
jostling for an attack position.

As the goblins moved back Milo took careful aim and fired another bolt. Bulls eye!
Goblins eye, rather, he thinks as he watched the corpse fall with the end of the bolt
protruding from it's left eye socket. Jeremiah pressed farther into the room but got a
little too close to the goblins to bring his sword to bear. Mazi took advantage of the
opening he created though, shooting another arrow into the shoulder of a goblin,
wounding but not killing it. Brigit moved forward as well, leaving more room for Mazi
and Milo to attack, she easily sliced through the goblin in front of her. Three goblins
then converged on Jeremiah, he was able to avoid two attacks and his magically
thickened skin absorbed the third. Two goblins attempted to breach Brigit's defense,
neither was successful. Their blows harmlessly bounced off her expertly wielded
shield.

Milo, who thought he could get up close and personal to a goblin's back, switched
weapons and waited for an opening to spring through. Jeremiah moved back a half
step and swung his greatsword through yet another ex-goblin, his follow through
barely missed the next one in line. Mazi, unable to take a direct shot, fired another
arrow into the melee. She scored a hit into the side of one of the goblins attacking
Jer. It crumpled to the ground, ichor oozing out of the wound. Brigit made good use
out of her dwarven ax and slashed a vertical line head to toe in one of the beasties
attacking her. Both of the two remaining goblins attacking Jeremiah managed to tag
him with their lances. Luckily for him the mage armor Mazi cast held true and he
escaped damage once again. Another goblin moved along side the one attacking
Brigit, but neither was able to get past her whirling ax.

Milo sensed his opportunity and somersaulted forward, right past one of the goblins
attacking Jer. He sprung up in the corner of the cavern, turned around, and plunged
his shortsword deep into the back of the goblin. He smiled in grim satisfaction as it
slid off his blade to the ground. Jeremiah, intending to attack the goblin Milo just
dispatched, instead swung his sword around and just missed the next nearest
creature. Brigit tried to sink her waraxe into another goblin, but they both leapt
back. They were wary of this dwarven fighter, she fought as ferociously as the
barbarian did! Mazi again shot an arrow into the fight, wounding another monster
but not dropping it. Her bow got quite a workout during the battle. Milo rethought
about his acrobatic display, he was then in range of one of the bigger goblins. He
ducked the blow coming his way and mentally kicked himself for not sticking to the
back with his crossbow. One of the goblins in front of Jeremiah started to gibber,
seemingly unable to fight any longer. Its larger companion had no such problems as
it swung its longsword right into Jer's arm. The sword managed to cut through his
magically strengthened skin, wounding him slightly. The two goblins fighting Brigit
missed again. They were visibly distraught over their inability to land a blow on the
dwarf.

Milo attempted to stab the large goblin with his sword but was unable to pierce its
armor. Jeremiah spotted the gibbering goblin and put it out of its misery with a left
to right slash clean through. The blood from his recent wound had once again made
his grip slick though. He almost lost hold completely, grabbing onto the hilt as the
sword nearly flew out of his hands from the mighty swing. Mazi took aim again and
planted a feathered arrow into the throat of one of the few remaining average
goblins. Brigit drove her ax through the shoulder of another goblin, the ax head
sinking fully into its body. In the corner two goblins had reached Milo's position. He
deftly avoided one blow but moved a little too close to the other. He was rewarded
with a prick of its lance, opening a small wound on his upper arm. Jeremiah was
similarly wounded with a thrust of a longsword. The blade barely pierced his
toughened skin and only a small amount of blood appeared from the wound. By then
two of the large goblin females had engaged Brigit but both missed with their initial
attacks. The one remaining small goblin facing Brigit weakly poked its lance at her,
not coming anywhere near.

Milo landed a blow with his shortsword on the small goblin that wounded him,
puncturing a vital organ and felling the beast. Jeremiah had a much better grip on
his sword as it swung at his assailant. The goblin fighter was cleaved through from
his groin to his head, falling neatly in two. Jer was unable to follow through with the
attack though, since the next goblin moved just past his reach. Mazi targeted the
furthest female, hoping to take her out before she reached one of her friends. Her
arrow flew wide, clattering to the floor near a group of screaming goblin young. Near
her Brigit attempted to follow her last kill with another but overextended herself. She
pulled back before reaching far enough to drop her ax, thankful for her training as a
fighter that kept her from fumbling the attack. The largest of the goblins, apparently
their leader, reached and engaged Jeremiah. His first swing missed the angry
barbarian, the other goblin made contact and drew more blood through his
augmented armor. The remaining female and its companion also missed their target,
Milo, as he ducked and moved as fast as he could to avoid the multiple attacks. The
two females attacking Brigit managed to distract her enough for the small goblin at
her feet to plant his lance through a chink in her armor, wounding her for the first
time that battle.

Milo, still weaving and bobbing to avoid his attackers, dropped his shortsword. He
cursed under his breath at his luck and moved around, looking for a way to pick it up
without being hit. Jeremiah recognized the threat of the stronger goblin leader and
took a swing at him, the tip of his greatsword causing tiny sparks to fly off the
goblin's chain shirt. Mazi attempted to fire a shot at the leader as well, but missed
while it was recovering from the close shave of Jer's sword. Brigit ignored the smaller
goblin and took another swing at the nearest female. She missed by mere
millimeters as the creature hopped back a scant couple of inches. The female and
large goblin focused on Milo were unable to land an attack as he reached out and
snagged his sword, lightning-quick. The leader of the goblins couldn't recover
completely from the two near misses and his opportunity to attack Jeremiah passed
by. On the other side of the cavern all three goblins pressed against Brigit were
unable to make a dent on her newly wary defense.
Milo paused another moment to ensure his grip on the shortsword wouldn't slip
again. Jer swung against the leader again, as he missed he realized that this huge
goblin was a more formidable opponent than the rest of the beasties he'd been used
to mowing through. Mazi decided it was time to put away her bow and wade in
against the leader, coming to the aid of her human friend with her longsword. Brigit,
concentrating on defending herself from the three goblins facing her, was unable to
make contact with her waraxe. In an amazing display of almost simultaneous attacks
and nearly acrobatic dodging, all seven goblins attacking the intrepid adventures
missed! This heartened the four of them and they attacked with renewed vigor.

Still concentrating on hanging onto his sword, Milo missed with his stab and pulled
back to watch for another chance. Jeremiah's greatsword at last hit the leader,
slicing through the chainmail and inflicting a mighty wound on the monster. It was
still standing, though not nearly as hale and hearty as before. Mazi spied her chance
and snaked her longsword towards the leader, piercing through the gap Jer's sword
opened in its armor and killing the huge goblin. She winked at Jer as she pulled her
sword out of the body, ready for the next goblin to attack. Meanwhile Brigit landed a
blow on one of the females, wounding it severely but not enough to drop it. The
large goblin and the female were still after Milo, not realizing their leader had fallen.
One made contact and drew a little more blood from the wounded halfling. One of
the goblins that had been concentrating on Brigit switched focus along with his large
companion as they both charge toward Mazi. They had seen her kill their beloved
leader and wished for revenge. Mazi was ready for them both and avoided their
blows. The two in front of Brigit, distracted by the death of the large goblin, made
half-hearted attempts to hit her.

Feeling a little light headed from the loss of blood, Milo missed his next attack and
concentrated a little more on avoiding further blows. Jeremiah swung his greatsword
past the two goblins that charged Mazi but was unable to hit either. Mazi on the
other hand brought her longsword down on the goblin that she sidestepped moments
ago, easily running the wounded beast through. Brigit also landed her attack, killing
one of the females that had been taunting her. Regardless of Milo's attempt at
avoidance, one of the goblins tagged him with his sword, drawing more blood. Jer
avoided a blow from the other goblin that previously charged Mazi. Close by Brigit is
wounded very lightly from the other female goblin. The group could see they had the
upper hand, even with the wounds they had taken so far.

Milo's vision went a little fuzzy as he thrust his sword at the nearest goblin, missing
its mark. Near him, Jeremiah dispatched one of the bigger male goblins with a
mighty swing of the greatsword. He looked around for another to attack with the
follow through but none were near. Mazi aimed at one of Milo's attackers, unable to
hit but hopefully drawing its attention away from the beleaguered halfling. Brigit
made contact with her ax again, wounding the large goblin badly but not killing it.
The female still focused on Milo easily slashed him through his weakened defense. He
felt a little more faint, feeling the blood draining from the wound. He wasn't going to
last much longer if this kept up, he thought as he staggered from the blow. The
other female swung at Mazi, hitting her but unable to cut through her magicked skin.
The wounded goblin attacking Brigit thrust his longsword into her shield feebly, she
grinned evilly at it. It would fall with her next attack, she thought to herself, or she
weren't a dwarf.

Not thinking straight, Milo attacked and missed the female who then proceeded to
mock him in its guttural tongue. Jeremiah moved up to protect Milo with Mazi but
wasn't able to attack before Mazi beheaded the creature. She once again turned to
wink at him, a grim smile on her elven features. Brigit swung her dwarven ax at the
last goblin near her, but the wary beast hung back from her range. She nearly
overextended herself again, chiding her over-eagerness to dispatch the hated goblin.

Milo, his loss of blood clouding his mind, nearly fumbled his attack and almost
dropped his sword again. Jer and Mazi both attempted to pin the last goblin female
to the wall but it avoided their attacks again. They feared another blow to Milo would
be his last. Brigit recovered from her swing and jumped the half step between her
and the goblin to plunge her ax deep into its chest. It died with a croak. The female,
then the last fighting goblin standing, was hard pressed by the elf and human. It
missed its attack on the nearly unconscious Milo.

That would be its last, as Milo feebly slashed at it with his sword, Jer roared and ran
the female through with a mighty thrust of his huge greatsword. The goblins were at
last vanquished, with only the crying spawn and their dames surviving. The group
considered them from a distance. All of them were exhausted but exhilarated by
their victory. They had won against incredible odds and extremely tough opponents.
Even including the cleric and ogre Milo figured this battle was much more of a
challenge. He loved challenges, unless they almost got him killed.

After a rest to catch his breath and clear his head Milo said, "They need to die." as
he motioned to the mewling ilk in the corner.

"Aye, that they do, they be evil spawn and will do nothing but plague us if we let em
live," Brigit agreed wholeheartedly.

"Do what you will," Mazi stated, "I won't stop you, but I won't join you."

Milo shrugged, looked at Brigit and nodded, "It's gruesome work, but it needs to be
done."

The two of them set about the grisly work of dispatching the brood. Milo was in a
foul mood as they made certain none would grow up to pester the Keep or the
adventurers again. Meanwhile Mazi and Jeremiah had searched the bodies of the
goblins. They found some coins on each, but nothing else of worth. Their weapons
were old and notched and the best armor in the place was the damaged chainmail
the leader wore. After searching the room for any hidden caches of goods they
discussed their options.

"I'm willing to continue, as long as I can stay in the back," Milo told the group. He
appeared to be in a better mood after clearing away the remaining living monsters.

"If you're certain, then I'm up for some more exploring. I'm curious as to what
happened to the bodies of the others we killed." Mazi responded.

"Yeah, that and the full plate on that twice cursed cleric," said Milo.

"Yer as hardy as many a dwarven lad I know, little halfling," grinned Brigit, as she
pounded Milo on the back. "Ya make me proud. What say you, Jeremiah? Press our
good fortune and see if we can roust out any more gobbies?" Jeremiah just nodded
his agreement.
Keep of the Borderlands -part five (session two)
---------------------------------------

"This time you guys go first," Milo said as he held his hand to one of his wounds. "I
don't feel all that good."

The four of them started down the southern passage, moving as quietly as possible.
Considering one of them was a dwarf in a breastplate, it wasn't too quiet. Brigit and
Jeremiah led the way with Mazi and Milo a short pace behind. They were all battle
ready, with weapons drawn. No way they were going to be taken by surprise. If
there were any goblins left, they were making themselves scarce. The party met no
resistance as they explored the passages out of the room. Eventually they came to a
large cavern stacked to the ceiling with boxes and barrels, large sacks lay strewn
about. Milo's jaw dropped.

"What I wouldn't give for a couple of packhorses right now," he said. "Imagine how
much in goods there is here!"

"Beer, beer, beer. Ain't there any good dwarven ale in these barrels?" Brigit could be
heard to say while looking over the stacked barrels in one corner.

Mazi just shook her head at the two of them while Jeremiah headed over to where
Brigit was running her hands over some smaller casks of alcohol. "Beer?" was the
only word he uttered.

They had found what became of the caravan. The caravan's goods at least, still no
sign of the drivers and the leader or his wife. Milo turned to his companions and
began to discuss how they would search the room for the more valuable goods to
haul back to the keep. As the four of them considered the finer points of a nice
orderly search they heard a small rumbling. A piece of the wall they were facing
opened outward and four equally surprised hobgoblins stood before them.

"Get em guys!" Milo shouted as Brigit and Mazi surged forward to engage the
startled monsters.

Brigit reached them first, her short legs propelling her forward with her ax raised
high. Her attack barely missed the leading hobgoblin's shoulder, bringing a smile
from its lips and a curse from hers. The hobgoblin attempted to return the favor but
missed its mark as well, that time the smile was Brigit's as she avoided next blow
from the other creature. The two remaining beasts had no more luck than their allies
did when they swung wildly at the nimble elf, Mazi. She easily dodged their blows
with a mocking grace. Unfortunately She failed to connect with her longsword as
well. Milo stood back and fired his crossbow at one of the ugly brutes, pegging him
square in the shoulder. The beast grunted as it was pushed back a bit, but continued
to press its attack. Behind Brigit and Mazi, still wounded from the previous battle,
Jeremiah made a surprisingly wise decision and drew his bow rather than joining the
sword fight.

Brigit completed another fruitless arc with her waraxe, again barely missing her
target. The two hobgoblins arrayed against her grinned again as they attacked. Both
swords bounced harmlessly off her shield and a grim smile reappeared on her face.
Mazi spun her sword through the air, dazzling her opponent before running it
through. She danced away from the falling body as she withdrew her weapon from
its body. Meanwhile Milo had reloaded his light crossbow and thunked another arrow
into the same hobgoblin he hit before. This time he pierced a vital organ and was
rewarded with the sight of another fallen enemy. He crowed victory as he reloaded
his crossbow, preparing for another strike. Next to him Jeremiah knocked his first
arrow to the bow and let it fly. The close melee made it hard to find a mark and his
arrow flew wide.

By that time Brigit had grown frustrated with her inability to slay one of these
goblinoid creatures. She let loose a warcry and nearly hacked one of the two
remaining hobgoblins nearly in twain. Its lone companion realized its plight a
moment too late. It attempted to strike Brigit before turning to flee, the beast's
sword bouncing off her armor. It never had a chance to turn around before Mazi's
longsword came down in a diagonal slice, cutting its body open from shoulder to hip.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," said Milo as he lowered his crossbow. "Goblins,
hobgoblins, ogres, whatever! Let em come, we can take em!" This time all three of
his companions shook their head at the diminutive halfling.

"What?" Milo said loudly, "I'm serious!" He paused as he seemed to think about
things a little longer. "Then again, Jeremiah and I probably couldn't take much more
punishment."

"Why don't we block this door off and find out what's in the other room we saw on
the way over here?" Mazi suggested.

"Alright, I guess we can pile up some of this stuff in front of the door. Some of those
crates are pretty heavy, it should keep whoever else from that side of the door out."
Milo said.

don't think they might break through then?" replied Brigit. Milo couldn't be sure, but
there might have been a hopeful tone to her voice.

"With the amount of goods we can pile in front of that thing, they'd have to be pretty
dang big to push through." Answered Milo.

"Ach, I guess so." Brigit sounded disappointed.

The four of them set about the room, finding the heaviest things they could carry to
stack in the way of the swing-out wall. Brigit could be seen shoving a huge box of
pewter pots and dishes, Jeremiah strained at heaving a crate of horseshoes and pot
metal. Mazi rolled a few barrels of fish and beer to stack on top of the boxes and
crates Brigit and Jer hauled over. Milo did his best, hauling a couple of casks of wine
to place neatly on top of the pile.

"There," he said, wiping off his hands. "That should keep em out," he finished with
satisfaction.

They filed out of the room as Mazi and Brigit once again took point. Back in the
warrens they decided to head west. One dead end and another non-trapped door
later they made their way into a medium sized, well-furnished room. There was
actually a bed here, along with a chair and a table. Hmmm, thought Milo, single bed
and nice furniture, this has got to be the leader's room. After expressing this theory
Milo went into search mode. He looked all over the room, finding a bag full of copper,
silver, and gold. Eagerly opening another bag they discovered, Milo's senses were
assaulted by a foul stench. Inside was a half eaten, moldy piece of cheese.

"Ugh, no thanks," he said, moving on to look under the bed.

He struck gold there, or rather silver, as he pulled a beautifully crafted silver cup
from under the unkempt bed. Just looking at it he could tell it would be worth right
around another ninety gold pieces. His eyes glinted with something more than the
reflection of silver. In the chair Brigit found a secret drawer under the cushion. She
called Milo over to check it for any traps or locks. After looking over the hidden space
carefully he declared that it was just a normal secret compartment and it could be
opened without worry. Inside was a richly woven tapestry, gold and silver thread
interwoven throughout material. Milo glanced once at it and declared it practically
worthless. Before Brigit tossed it away Jeremiah broke his usual silence and asked to
see. Exhibiting an amazing eye for detail, especially for one such as he, Jer pointed
out the gold and silver filaments in the cloth. He finished by saying it had to be worth
at least another hundred gold.

"Worth more than the cup? Not likely," Milo scoffed, "you can hang onto it if you like,
I'm not hauling it out of here." He was never all that interested in wall hangings or
the like.

They determined that all of value had been found and trooped out of the goblin
leader's room. Besides the secret door they had blocked, this end of the cavern had
been completely investigated. The four of them decided to find out what was at the
other end of the long passage. They passed the cavern entrance where they
vanquished the ogre days ago and continued up the diagonal passage towards the
Southeast. After one dead-end branch they came to a widening of the passage that
ended in another room. All they found here was a barrel of spears, 3 score or so,
Milo guessed. Jeremiah grabbed one of them, figuring it might come in handy. They
decided to leave the rest on move on.

Another passage branched out from the opposite end of the room. It began to lead
up a sloping ramp. After a corner and more upwards climbing they spied a closed
door. The party conferred about the wisdom of continuing on past the door. With
Milo still bleeding through the crude bandages he patched together with rags and
Jeremiah feeling just about as bad, they all decided to head back to the keep for a
well deserved rest. The caves weren't going anywhere after all.

Milo and his friends trooped out of the caverns in good spirits. They saw no more
goblins or hobgoblins on their way and they were feeling pretty confident, despite
the wounds they were dealt. They had come out on top this foray and not one of
them was lost to the goblinoid buggers. The four made their way back to the crest of
the hill they camped at the night before. Mazi volunteered to take first watch, then
Brigit, Jeremiah, and finally Milo. They went this night without a fire, still aware that
more creatures may venture from the caves and realizing that the top of a hill is not
the best place to light a fire when you're trying to be inconspicuous.

The night fell and Milo drifted off to sleep. He slept deeper than usual that night, so
deep his normally edgy reflexes relaxed and he started to dream:

Your eyes have been closed for what seems to be only a moment when you
feel surrounded by a bright light. A portly halfling appears before you, smile
on his face, glowing radiantly. "My boy, I have been watching you and you
have something that I like. Spunk. So I have decided to take you under my
wing." A serious look overcomes his face. He reaches over and touches you
on the forehead with his finger, "You now have My Mark...I have chosen you
to be My hands in this matter...do not fail Me. Have faith and courage and
you shall succeed. Beware the Evil, it shall attempt to enslave you My boy."
The light fades and the halfling disappears.

Milo awoke with a start. He realized that it was morning now, somehow one of his
friends on watch fell asleep as well. "So much for elves not having to sleep," he
joked to Mazi. She had fallen asleep as soon as the rest of the group drifted off. "You
know, I had the weirdest dream."

"So did I!" said Mazi.

"Was there a halfling in yours?" Milo asked, half jokingly, half hopefully. He didn't
recognize the halfling in his dream, though he was obviously important, even holy.
He felt uplifted, bolstered in spirit. It was as if a part of him that had been dormant,
sleeping, had awakened. He remembered many of his father's teachings, they came
flooding back to him in a staggering burst. He also realized that he could remember
things that he never even knew. Divine spells, their somatic and verbal components
leaping to mind. He felt stronger in body as well as in spirit.

"No," replied Mazi, looking at him funny. "No halflings." She muttered something
about "darn trees" under her breath though. Odd, another mystery for Milo to figure
out. There seemed to be a lot of those cropping up lately.

"I dreamt too," Brigit said, she seemed a little shaky. "Don't think I wanna talk about
it."

"Do I have a mark on my forehead?" Milo asked Brigit as he held up the hair above
his brow.

"No, ya don't. Yer actin strange, Milo." she responded.

Milo masked his surprise over the newfound knowledge and strength by changing the
subject. "And you, our savage friend, did you have any dreams last night?" he said
as he turned to Jeremiah.

"Yes, I dreamt that I fought a giant ogre and killed him with my sword, then I fought
a man with a bull's head-" Jeremiah started.

"Ah! A minotaur." Milo said sagely.

Jeremiah glanced at him for a moment after the interruption. He continued, "but I
didn't beat him, I woke up first."

"Very strange goings on here. Do either of you want to talk about your dreams?" Milo
asked Brigit and Mazi.

"Nah." said Brigit, still looking a little shaken.

"No, I don't." answered Mazi.

"Well, I feel different. I think that's all I'll say about mine right now. I have some
things to figure out. Shall we head out to the Keep then?" he asked while gathering
up his bedroll.

The four broke camp in relative silence. Each of them reflected on what they dreamt
the night before. Milo was in a good mood though, and he tried to cheer up the rest
of the group as best he could. They struck out about an hour after dawn and made it
back to the keep by evening. Again they noticed the lack of people on the roads, no
other travelers, no caravans, no brigands or bandits. Not even the animals of the
woods crossed their path.

They met the guard and were let in without a challenge, they were recognized from
their last return trip. Their first destination was the church and the priest's quarters.
An acolyte ushered them in almost immediately. The priest stood to meet them, a
grave expression on his face.

"Welcome adventurers. I have news." he started in a low, strained voice. "This

disease that has plagued our Keep is beyond my powers to abolish. I have sent word
to the duke of our plight, but it is unlikely that help will arrive in time." He shook his
head sadly. "The people are dying, and I must ask for your aid. Last night I had a
vision-"

"You too?" Milo interrupted with a startled glance to his compatriots.

"I know not of what dreams you may have had. In my vision I beheld a cup, crusted
with blood. It was a thing of great evil. It was revealed to me as the source of this
plague. You, halfling, filled the cup with blessed water. You, dwarf, destroyed the
cup with a bright hammer. This vision must come to pass or the people of this Keep
are doomed. Will you help us?"

The four of them spoke briefly, coming to a unanimous decision quickly. "We will aid
you in this. What is it we should do, where is this cup?" Milo spoke for the others.

"The cup is in the caves you have already visited. Take this scroll, halfling, it
contains on it a blessing that you must confer upon the cup after it is filled with holy
water." the old priest said as he handed a rolled parchment to Milo. "A warning
though, do not touch the cup, it is evil and will corrupt you completely. You must not
touch the cup."

"Got it, don't touch the cup. Okay, no cup touching here, understood." Milo
answered, a little excited at the role he was to play in this new quest.

"Now you, brave dwarf, you must destroy the cup with the blessed hammer of my
dreams. Even now I have the Keep's blacksmith crafting the hammer. It will be for
this one purpose only and we will invoke the gods' blessing upon it when it is
completed." He said to Brigit. "Now, I have good news. You will not be alone in this
quest. Two of our men-at-arms will aid you." He called to his acolyte and spoke to
him briefly. The young robed man rushed from the room and returned shortly,
followed by two armored men. "This is Maruf," the priest said as he pointed to a
swarthy man in a blue surcoat. "And this is Thorgrim," he finished as he pointed to
the other, more fair skinned warrior in chain.
After greetings were exchanged Milo asked the two fighters, "That's great, but we
found that the last two hired hands we brought with us were pretty inexperienced in
melee. Have you two seen battle?"

Maruf answered by pulling a longsword and a dagger from their sheaths and dazzling
them all with a graceful display in the cramped office.

"Aye, he can swing a sword." Brigit said as she ducked instinctively. Her breastplate
and shield might protect her well in active combat but she wasn't too keen on the
swords swinging near her in this packed office. "I'm willin ta bet ya can fight too, no
need ta whip yer weapons out too." she mentioned to Thorgrim. He just smiled.

"Well, friends, it will be another day before the hammer is completed and it grows
late. Please return to the inn and come here in the morning. We will impart to you
the hammer and any other help we can give." the priest said as he dismissed the
party.

They headed off to the inn above the tavern, had a light dinner and retired for the
evening. The next morning found the four adventurers with their two new members
at the front of the chapel. The priest came outside to the morning light to greet the
group. "Well met, friends. We are about to start the ceremony to bless the hammer."
He said. "We also blessed these vials with healing spells, there is enough for each of
you to carry two," he stated as he handed eight potions to the group, each of them
stowing two into their packs. "They will strengthen you when you are wounded. Now
I must return and begin the rites."

"Um, excuse me," Milo started before the priest could turn to enter the chapel. "I'd
like to spend some time in your library. I have some-ER-religious questions that I'd
like to have answered."

"You are welcome to any knowledge we have to impart." the priest answered kindly,
"I'm afraid our library is rather limited. You are welcome to any aid my acolytes and
scribe can give you."

Milo spent the day poring over the few books the priest had in his library, searching
for any mention of the halfling from his dream. Neither the books nor the scribe
could aid him though. Even the priest admitted he was unfamiliar with the figure
after he emerged from the room where the rite was being held. He requested that
Milo fetch his friends, the hammer was ready.

When the others arrived he presented Brigit with a glowing hammer. It was of
normal size and shape for a carpenter's hammer but it was metal from haft to head.
The smooth surface glowed with a warm light. Brigit smiled as she picked up the
hammer from the priest's open hands.

"Remember, you must not touch the cups. First fill it with the holy water you have,
bless the cup Milo, and then destroy it with the hammer, Brigit." he said as he made
a religious sign with his hands. "Now I bid you farewell, please do not fail us."

It was afternoon when the six set out for the caves once again. Milo found on the
way that Jeremiah was indeed right about the tapestry, they managed to sell it for
nine hundred gold! Live and learn, he thought, maybe there is something to
tapestries and wall hangings. The silver cup did garner the group ninety more gold.
Mazi had exchanged the gold for platinum and the four of them split the earnings on
the way to the caves. They left a few platinum and gold in a 'party fund' for
unforeseen expenses and the like.

The group made good time and arrived at their campsite as dusk deepened into
dark. All six of the party members took a turn at watch, none slept past their allotted
time, and no one dreamed anything out of the ordinary.

The next morning Milo felt refreshed. He said a short mental prayer to powers that
be. "I don't know who you are, but you've awakened something in me. Whatever it
is has already changed my life. I hope you know what you're doing, because I sure
don't. Anyway, keep my friends safe and allow me to aid them as I can. Well, um,
what do you want, I'm new to this holy thing. Oh, and don't let our new companions
die this time, please?" Milo felt a little silly, he hadn't prayed since he left home, and
then they were the memorized prayers of his father's.

Well, he thought, it can't hurt, right?

With that the adventurers headed the rest of the way to the caves, pausing at the
mouth near the ogre's den to group. "Once more into the warrens, right guys?" Milo
said as he readied his crossbow and headed in, taking the scouting position again.

Brigit and Jeremiah followed with Mazi close behind. Maruf and Thorgrim brought up
the rear, keeping their guards up.
Keep of the Borderlands -part six (session 2)
--------------------------
They decided to check out the secret door in the room of caravan goods first. Milo lit
his lantern once again and the group moved down the tunnels. When they arrived in
the goblin warrens they noticed that once again the bodies had been removed. While
this didn't really surprise any of them, Milo heightened his senses even more,
tensing in preparation for any action that might come their way. They continued
down the hall to the storage room and the secret door that waited there. The group
was treated to a minor shock when they entered the room, all of the goods were
gone. Not even a single cask of wine or bolt of cloth was left behind. Milo rushed to
the door, checking for any newly laid traps. After he found none he tried to open it,
and discovered that it was bolted from the other side.

"Well, I think we know who's been cleaning up after us now," he said. "Looks like the
hobgoblins have more than one way into the warrens. Let's keep on guard."

The only other unexplored area was the door they left on the other end of the
cavern, up the ramps.

So up the ramps they went after a non-eventful trip back through the tunnels. If the
hobgoblins were out and about they weren't making themselves known. Milo reached
the door and listened in. He heard faint scuffling noises and guttural grunts from
through the thick, heavy door. Before doing anything else he decided it'd be best to
check for traps. There was obviously someone behind there, he thought, and they
were probably waiting for the adventurers. He motioned back to the others to hold
off and keep quiet while he ran his hands over the rough wood door and its frame.
His keen eyes picked up no sign of tampering or treachery, but he did notice that the
door was locked. Ahh! Finally a chance to use his shiny new lock picks.

He rifled through his pack and produced the small leather pouch with the delicate
tools inside. Milo peered at the crude lock on the door and chose the sturdiest of the
picks. He carefully pushed the pins of the tumbler until he heard the familiar 'click'
of an open lock. Just as he was about to flip the last tumbler his grip slipped and all
of them snapped back to place. Milo started again, and hoped that the creatures on
the other side of the door didn't overhear the small noise he made. That time he
easily moved the pins and the door opened just a little bit. Milo leapt back, fearing a
charge by whoever was in the room. He gave the go ahead signal to Brigit and
Jeremiah then pressed himself against the wall as they ran past him.

Jeremiah booted the door and paused for a split second at the sight that met him a
few feet into the room. Over a dozen hobgoblins stood arrayed in the large room,
they growled and snarled and were obviously intent on taking a chunk out of the
infidels that invaded their caverns. They had been waiting for the group. There was
another passage leading away on the opposite end of the room. As soon as the door
had been kicked open Mazi let the arrow from her bow fly. It whizzed by the head of
a particularly ugly hobgoblin near the front of the mass. It didn't stand long though,
as Jeremiah's slight pause came to an end and his greatsword met its neck. Through
one hobgoblin and the next it went, one clean arc as if there weren't two thick
creatures in its way. As he swung Jeremiah let loose a loud battle cry, his ferocity
startled the closer hobgoblins.

Maruf worked his way up to the front lines, he looked eager for battle. He missed as
his initial attack was a far space from the first hobgoblin. Milo took advantage of the
gap between Maruf and the beast as he fired off a bolt into the hobgoblin. It lurched
back, wounded. Brigit, Jeremiah, and Maruf blocked Thorgrim from reaching the
front lines so he held back a bit, waiting for his chance to enter the fray.

As Milo watched, Brigit swung her mighty dwarven axe at the goblinoid in front of
her. The axe head made an even uglier mark on the shocked looking hobgoblin as it
fell to the floor. Three more hobgoblins moved up to the front line to fill the space
and attacked Brigit and Maruf. One of the monsters facing Maruf made contact with
its weapon, inflicting some minor damage on the man-at-arms. The other three
hobgoblins' attacks were far too clumsy to hit the front line fighters.

Mazi, who was still in the back, let another arrow fly into the battle, grazing the face
of one of the monsters near Jeremiah. The beast howled with pain. Jeremiah moved
in to attack it but was brought up short by the next hobgoblin, snarling and baring its
fangs. Nearby, Maruf regained his composure and expertly sliced the beast that
attacked him previously, he wounded the creature badly.

Milo took a moment to survey the scene before him, including the three that were
down he counted thirteen hobgoblins in all. He hoped it wouldn't be an unlucky
number as he pulled the trigger on his crossbow. He cursed as the mechanism
jammed and crouched down to work on the jammed string. Ahead Brigit had worked
herself into a frenzy, swinging her ax from one side to the next. The pathetic
hobgoblin in front of her didn't even see the blow coming as the waraxe sliced
through its belly, spilling its innards to the floor. The body followed soon after as the
dwarf snarled her distaste of the vermin before her.

Meanwhile, the hobgoblin that blocked Jeremiah's attack countered with its own,
slicing its longsword along his exposed arm. Jer hissed at the wound and drew back
his sword to retaliate. Near him one of the hobgoblins attacking Maruf actually
swung its weapon back too far and bashed its companion in the head, it was
temporarily stunned. The following swing was successful though, as the blade cut
Maruf through his chain armor. He groaned, heavy on his feet.

Mazithra again fired an arrow into the fray, wounding another hobgoblin with her
expert aim. She had enough time to see Jeremiah finish his back swing and slice
through not only the hobgoblin that wounded him, but clean through the one next to
it. His greatsword was shiny with the creatures' blood and his face had a feral look to
it.

Maruf was already weakened by the wounds he had taken before he made his next
attack. His sword was unable to land a blow on the hobgoblins before him. They
grinned as they pressed their advantage. Thorgrim finally reached the battle next to
his fellow man-at-arms. His weapon also fell short of the mark but he hoped to at
least draw some of the goblinoids' attention.

Brigit hacked away at any hobgoblin stupid enough to get near her. Her swinging
blows felled another as more of the monsters moved up to the front of the fight. The
four that were engaged failed to hit any of the adventurers at the forefront.

Another arrow flew from Mazi's bow as she took careful aim. Not careful enough
though, her target moved at the last moment. Jer had no such problem, dodging or
no, the next two in front of the 'Hobgoblin Killer' went down in a spray of blood as
his huge weapon sliced through the air. Maruf didn't fare so well, he swung his sword
hard at the hobgoblin attacking him and overextended himself. Just as the
hobgoblin's blow was about to land, Milo sprang into action, rolling along the floor to
stop behind the attacker. He was too late though, the creature moved with
uncharacteristic swiftness and delivered the crushing blow that knocked Maruf to the
ground. Thor shouted as he saw his friend fall, he swung his sword wildly to fend off
any hobgoblins that might try to finish Maruf off.

Milo began to prepare a spell to aid the fallen Maruf but was pierced by a longsword
before he could get the first words out of his mouth. The hobgoblin grinned as it
withdrew its sword from his side. Milo ignored the pain and began the mantra that
sprang to his mind, determined to use his newfound power to save his newfound
friend.

Brigit dispatched her latest victim as she had the others, with another vicious blow of
her axe. She grinned to herself as she realized that not one of the hobgoblins had
made it past her defense.

Determined to finish off the beasts, Mazi fired another arrow, this time exclaiming in
satisfaction as she saw that it pierced the throat of her target. The hobgoblin loosed
a breathy sound as it tried to scream its death cry.

Up ahead Jeremiah moved behind the hobgoblin that mortally wounded Maruf, intent
on finishing it off. Near the floor Milo crouched down as he finished his chanting and
placed his hands on Maruf's wounds. A warm tingling sensation traveled from his
spine down his arms and through his small fingers. He watched in amazement as
Maruf's wounds stopped bleeding and the skin stitched itself closed. 'So this is what
the healers feel', he thought, 'I could get used to this.' The sensation left him before
the wounds were completely healed, but Maruf's eyes fluttered open and he had the
strength to stand.

Just as the hobgoblin near Maruf and Milo was about to strike the woozy Maruf down
again, Brigit's thirsty axe found its mark again. The last beast fell, nearly on top of
the still crouching Milo. He scarcely noticed, still thinking about the amazing feeling
he just had. 'I'll have to figure out how to make the healing more effective', he
thought absentmindedly to himself.

Maruf thanked Milo profusely. He told him that he could feel himself slipping farther
away from life before the halfling brought him back. Milo, feeling a little self-
conscious from everyone's attention, played it off.

"It was nothing, I did what I had to do. We're just glad you're still alive, right
everyone? Hey, is that a money pouch I see on that hobgoblin?" Milo swooped down
on the corpse that Brigit created and pulled up a little bag of silver. "See, money! I
bet the rest of them have some too!" He started industriously searching the rest of
the bodies lying about the room.

Eventually the rest of the group joined in and they pooled the various coins they
found together. They would split the loot later.

Satisfied that attention was sufficiently distracted away from him, Milo handed Maruf
one of the potions that the priest had given him. He told the man-at-arms to gulp it
down before anything else happened. He gratefully complied and the rest of his
wounds were soon healed. Milo couldn't find anything else of interest in the room
besides the money they found on the bodies. The adventurers readied themselves to
continue on through the passage leading out of the room and into unknown danger
ahead.

The tunnels were extremely dark this far in. Milo, Jeremiah, Maruf, and Thorgrim
were unable to see anything past Milo's lantern. They decided that Brigit, being the
only one of them with the ability to see in complete darkness, should go ahead to
scout out the way. She moved up a bit, her armor jangling. 'It's either me blind and
silent or Brigit loud and aware', Milo thought to himself, 'we can't win.'

After some slanting passageways and a couple of straight tunnels the group found
themselves at a fork. The passage continued west and the side passage veered
south. They decided to head down the left passage and headed south together. After
a couple of curves the passage opened into another cavern.

Two large and very surprised hobgoblins stood in the middle of a grisly scene. One
had a sword and a whip, the other just a longsword. Across the room, chained to a
wall were three human men and one woman as well as an orc and a gnoll. Before
anyone could react Milo started rummaging through his pack.

"Ahah!" he shouted as he found one of the divine scrolls he carried. He quickly

chanted the contents of the scroll and pointed his finger at the hobgoblin carrying
the whip. The creature made to move, but was frozen in place. A look of surprise
crept across its dull features.

The other hobgoblin jumped into action. It lunged at Brigit, its hated enemy. She
easily fended off the blow as the other four adventurers closed in. Attack after attack
rained down on the hapless hobgoblin. Thorgrim finished off the beast with a stab of
his longsword to its chest, right through the chainmail. Milo sauntered over to the
frozen hobgoblin and pulled out his dagger. He walked behind the straining monster
and took aim, right through the thin muscles in the back to the monster's black
heart.
Keep of the Borderlands -part seven (session two)
Milo found a ring of keys on the corpse and handed them to Mazi. She immediately
let down the four humans. One was slightly older and pudgier than the rest, Milo
astutely guessed that this would be the caravan leader. The other two men
immediately armed themselves with the hobgoblins' weapons and chainmail. The
woman stood slightly behind the caravan leader almost in a deferring manner, he
guessed she was the leader's wife. Milo noticed that she wasn't quite as beautiful as
the stories told, but he was never that good of a judge of human attractiveness.

The leader introduced himself and his wife, thanking the party over and over. His two
guards were introduced as Charles and Gerwin. Another Charles, thought Milo to
himself, here we go again! The caravan leader explained that he was a very wealthy
individual and he would pay the party well if they helped him escape back to the
Keep. The four looked at each other, an unspoken conversation seemed to take
place. All of them wanted to see the hobgoblins dead and they didn't fancy leaving
their backs exposed to the enemy as they turned tail and fled.

Milo explained the situation to the caravan leader thusly, "See it's like this, we have
to finish taking out these beasties or they're just going to get to you or someone
else again. Now you could leave here the way we came in and take your chances on
meeting a roving pack of slavering goblins and hobgoblins-" he let that statement
hang in the air, his voice dripped with implied violence and danger. "Or you can
follow us as we abolish the rest of the vermin in this cavern and rid you of future
threat." Milo wanted any reward the man was offering but he wanted the hobgoblins
dead even more. This seemed to be the best way to get both.

The pudgy man considered the offer for an extremely short amount of time before he
emphatically agreed that the best course was to stick together. Smiling with
satisfaction Milo surveyed the rest of the room, his eyes finally resting on the orc and
gnoll chained to the wall.

"What of these two? Anyone here speak orc or gnoll?"

Brigit stepped near the orc, her racial hatred made her eyes glint like steel. "I speak
this vermin's tongue," she spat out with obvious distaste. "But I'd rather gut tha pig
than ask 'im about tha weather."

"Um, hang on to that thought for a moment, Brig. How about the gnoll? Anyone
speak its language?" Milo asked. He was answered with shakes of the head from the
rest of his travelling companions. "Okay then. Brigit, I know you're eager to take out
the orc, but maybe you can get some information from it first?"

"Aye, but I canna promise ya anything," she said.

She then uttered some guttural syllables at the chained orc. It answered her back in
the same guttural sounds but with a wheedling tone.

"It says it will help us if we help it. I'm fixin ta help it to me waraxe tho. Orcs canna
be trusted, they're all lyin vermin."

"Mayhap, what do you think guys, can it be trusted?" Milo asked the rest of the
group.
Jeremiah and Mazi studied the orc while Brigit spoke with it. As far as either of them
could gather from the orc's mannerisms it had been as honest as they could tell.
Neither of them thought that the thing would help them as soon as it became
convenient for it to do otherwise. They all discussed the matter and voted to leave
the orc chained for the time being, perhaps coming back to free it when they were
done killing hobgoblins.

Milo walked up to the gnoll, "You, do you speak common?" All he was able to get out
of the jackal headed creature was a whimper and a lost puppy dog look. "I guess
not. I say we leave the gnoll here too, at least until we clean out the rest of the non-
chained beasts."

The party agreed and they all prepared to continue on. Milo told the caravan leader
that he should stay in the back with his two guards in front. They looked eager to
fight after their harsh imprisonment and torture.

Brigit and Jeremiah rounded the corner of the hallway leading out, directly into a
barrage of crossbow bolts. Big crossbow bolts. The two heavy bolts skimmed past
Jeremiah, they missed him by the breadth of a hair. The hobgoblins holding the
crossbows cursed in their throaty language and started to reload the heavy weapons.

Jeremiah raised his sword and charged with a scream. Behind him Mazi quickly fired
and arrow at the evil beasts down the hallway. She was unable to take aim with Jer
charging down the tunnel in front of her. Milo had a similar problem when Brigit
stumped off ahead of him. His bolt flew too high and ricocheted off the ceiling, it hurt
nothing more than some loose stone that fell to the floor with a rattle.

The hobgoblins saw their previous target looming before him and decided against
reloading in favor of drawing their swords. Nearly oblivious, Maruf and Thorgrim
hadn't turned the corner yet, but they glanced at each other as the sounds of battle
echoed down the tunnel.

Right as Jeremiah reached the T-intersection of the passage four more heavy bolts
flew, two from each side. Three missed their mark but one sunk deep into his
shoulder, breaking his stride. Milo groaned as he watched Jeremiah run right into the
trap. He started to tumble forward, intent on using his divine power to protect the
barbarian.

Mazi fired another arrow at the hobgoblins, frustrated at her line of sight to her
targets. Her arrow flew wide again. Jeremiah paused to pull the bolt from his
shoulder and quaff one of the potions he was given. Milo reached Jeremiah and
placed his hand on the shoulder that so recently bore the wound. He chanted quickly
and a faint glow passed from his hand to Jeremiah, spreading out over his body
before fading away.

"You'll find the evil beasts have a harder time hitting you now, Jer," Milo said as he
turned to see who fired from the other hallway.

By then Brigit had reached the hobgoblins and laid waste to one with her axe,
splitting its skull. The other original ambusher attempted to strike Jeremiah but was
repelled by an unseen force just as its sword was about to hit. A look of perplexion
crossed its porcine features.
Down the two passages the other four hobgoblins dropped their crossbows and
prepared to attack the adventurers. Up the other passageway Maruf and Thorgrim
strived to reach the fight.

Mazi and Milo both fired their weapons simultaneously. The arrow from Mazi's bow
missed its target, but Milo's bolt found its mark in one of the approaching hobgoblins
down the hallway. Jeremiah, bolstered by the potion, sliced the one in front of him,
finishing off the original ambushers.

Thorgrim and Maruf had made it to the fray by then, Maruf sidling up to Milo and
Thorgrim protecting Brigit's flank on the other side. Just as they reached their
positions the other four hobgoblins attacked. The one with Milo's crossbow bolt
sticking from its shoulder smashed its longsword through Milo's defense, wounding
him badly. Thorgrim also felt the sting of the enemy's weapon, equally wounded.

Brigit swung her axe at the beast that attacked Thorgrim after she dodged a blow
herself. The axe head met home as it smote the goblinoid creature. Down the hall
Charles and Gerwin stood guard while the caravan leader and his wife peeked around
the corner frightfully.

Once again Mazi fired her bow at the melee, still unable to enter the fray directly.
Once again her arrow missed the hobgoblin of her aim. Milo quickly downed a potion
of his own, he felt its restorative powers as they coursed through his veins.

Brigit swung her axe at the next monster, sending it to its maker with the rest of the
vermin she'd dispatched. Standing besider her, Jeremiah looked around for a target,
he prepared himself to lunge at the hobgoblin Maruf fought in case the man-at-arms
fell. Maruf nimbly dodged an attack and countered with his longsword. The blow
wounded the hobgoblin in the leg, drawing blood and causing it to snarl in pain. The
hobgoblin made to attack again, ignoring the gash caused by the longsword. Its
companion attempted to hit Milo but the newly restored halfling dodged the sword
with ease.

Mazi moved closer, hoping the proximity would improve her chances of shooting one
of the beasts. The distance didn't help as her arrow was thrown off course at the last
moment as she refocused her aim when one of her companions moved in the way.
That companion was Jeremiah, seeing an opening in the fight between Maruf and the
hobgoblin, he shoved his greatsword tip-first at the creature. It died with a gurgle as
it slid off the huge blade.

Milo moved a half-step away from the last hobgoblin and fired his bolt pointblank
into the monster's chest. It too fell to the ground while a gurgle escaped its lips.

Flush with victory the group quickly assessed the situation. Milo and Mazi's sensitive
ears picked up the sound of more hobgoblin footsteps approaching from the
northwest corridor. The six combatants conferred and decided to set up an ambush
of their own.

Milo motioned the body guards to stay down the hall. All of the party members with
range weapons readied their ammo, three bows and one crossbow aimed down the
hallway, waiting for the first hobgoblin to appear. Maruf and Thorgrim, both still
wounded slightly from the battle so far, stayed to the rear.
All four strings were released as the first of the approaching mob made their way
around the corner. Mazi and Jeremiah's arrows barely missed. Brigit's missile winged
one of the surprised hobgoblins. Milo's dead aim led his crossbow bolt straight into
the eye of his target. The beast fell straight back onto the floor, the only noise it
made was the sound of its sword clattering against the stone.

The hobgoblins didn't take long to recover from their shock and the remaining three
charged at the group. Milo was overconfident with his critical shot to the previous
hobgoblin and misloaded his bolt. He cursed quietly when the string snapped past
the bolt, damaging it and causing him take time to reload.

Since she was in front and preferred her waraxe to the bow, Brigit took a moment to
switch weapons. Mazi took the difficult shot and tried to hit the hobgoblin that
approached her. The beast was too close and her arrow missed as the hobgoblin
shuffled to the side quickly.

Jeremiah was behind Brigit and attempted to fire his arrow into one of the
approaching enemies. The arrow skittered across the wall as he was nudged by Brigit
trying to draw her axe.

Maruf was able to move past the crowd and attacked one of the hobgoblins that had
reached the front. His swing failed to connect though. Behind the others Thorgrim
waited impatiently, unable to find a way into the fight in the tight passageway.

Brigit released her axe from its holster on her belt and brought it up into the face of
her enemy, splitting the head vertically from chin to skull. Mazi and Jeremiah
released their arrows once again, Mazi's missing her opponent as the unusually
nimble hobgoblin danced out of the way. Jeremiah's arrow sunk deep into the chest
of one of the hobgoblins approaching Brigit. Brigit laughed as the beast fell before
her, unable to raise its spear in time to attack before the arrow robbed it of life.

Next to Mazithra, Maruf snaked out his longsword at the nimble hobgoblin, ending its
threat to the elf. She glanced over to the man-at-arms, a quick expression of
gratitude on her face before turning to aim at the next beast. The hobgoblins kept
filing around the corner, an unending flow it seemed to Milo. Luckily not one had
connected with the deadly short spears they carried.

One approached Mazi, hampering her aim again as she fired her arrow wide. Another
distracted Maruf, its spear deflecting his sword as he attacked. The third hobgoblin
approached Brigit carefully, avoiding her waraxe but not making any headway with
its own weapon.

Milo and Jeremiah were unable to hit any of the beasts as they engaged the party in
a swirling melee. They both quickly reloaded, looking for another opening.

Milo found one and let his bolt fly. It sunk into the hobgoblin facing Mazi. The bolt
pierced a vital organ and the beast dropped to the ground.

Brigit swung her axe past the longer reach of the hobgoblins spear to slice it right
across the chest. A spray of blood followed the axe's trail before the goblinoid
dropped dead.
The opening allowed Jeremiah to target one of the beasts farther back and his arrow
sunk into its leg. The hobgoblin howled with rage and charged towards the fight.
Unable to reach Jer, the monster lunged at Maruf, piercing his armor and dropping
the man-at-arms to the ground for a second time that day.

Milo saw his friend drop and prepared another incantation. His new powers were
coming in more than handy, he thought. Mazithra shot her arrow point blank at the
monster that stabbed Maruf. The yew bow she carried snapped straight, propelling
the arrow into the hobgoblin, the tip emerged from the other side of its shoulder.

His incantation finished, Milo touched his hands to Maruf's wound. The ugly gash
closed and the man-at-arm's eyes opened. Milo could tell that the spell didn't heal
the Maruf's wounds completely though. Milo helped Maruf up and they retreated a
few feet carefully.

Mazi and Jer both aimed at different hobgoblins, ones they had wounded before.
Both arrows flew true, wounding the beasts fatally. The one remaining hobgoblin
turned to flee just as Brigit's axe fell. The beast didn't even have a chance to turn
down the hall.

The six adventurers stood over the bodies of their vanquished foes, breathing
heavily. Maruf was still wounded badly and Milo was out of spells. The caravan leader
approached them and expressed his deep desire to see the light of day again. They
all decided that the rest of the hobgoblins, if there were any, could wait a few days
more.

Milo and the rest searched the bodies, coming up with more coins. Brigit carried the
'burden' of copper, silver, and gold. Their stash of currency was getting hefty and
she was about the only one of them that didn't mind the extra weight in her pack.
Nothing else of interest lay with the bodies.

"Well, let's get out of here and regroup guys, that cursed cup isn't getting any closer
with us standing around," Milo said as the group headed down the eastern passage.
Keep of the Borderlands -part eight (session two)
The group, then inflated to ten strong, filed their way outof the caverns. They were
constantly onguard for any more ambushes, but the trip out was uneventful. The
caravan leader seemed shocked at thecarnage that lay in the group's wake.
Milosmirked, we don't mess around, he thought to himself while glancing over at
thepudgy, frightened man. The going was alittle slower to the hill this time due to
the leader and his wife. The group stuck together on the way up,deciding strength in
numbers was more important than scouting ahead to theirold camping grounds.

After setting up another cold camp the party slept. Two stood watch at any given
moment exceptfor the caravan leader and his wife. Noone complained. The night
passedquickly and no dreams were mentioned the next morning. The caravan leader
was anxious to make it tothe Keep that day so they headed out as soon as their
camp was struck. They made good time on the road back to thekeep. Milo again
noticed the lack ofpeople along the roads, the plague seemed to be taking its toll.

They reached the Keep by early evening and were greeted bygaunt looking guards.
The guardsrecognized the caravan leader immediately and ushered the ten of them
throughthe gate. Charles and Gerwin led the wayto the caravan leader's home,
setting a fast pace. They seemed more than relieved to be home. Milo didn't have
the heart to tell them ofwhat was happening in the Keep currently, or that they
would most likely bepressed into service as guardsmen. Oncethey reached the
ostentatious home of the caravan leader he turned and beckonedthem inside.
As a gesture of gratitude he handed the group a hefty bag ofcoins. He also handed
each a signetring. "For saving my life and thelife of my wife and men-at-arms I
present to you this money and theserings. Those rings you hold will markyou as
exempt from taxes and fees for one year. The moneychangers will not charge you for
their services and themerchants will not charge you taxes. This is just a small token
of our appreciation. Please accept these gifts," the caravanleader gushed to the
adventurers. Theyaccepted the rings and money graciously, thanking the leader for
thereward.

Before they left to check in with the priest the wife pulledMazithra aside. "Please take
this dagger, it's been in my family foryears," she said as she pressed the hilt of a
large dagger into Mazi'shand. "It's magically sharp andwill serve you well. Thank you
so muchfor saving us, I thought I would die in that horrible place." Mazi thanked her
and asked if there wasanything in particular she knew about the knife. "Only that it
cuts meat and cheeses well. I've always used it in the kitchen,"the woman answered,
turning slightly red. "I was told by my mother and grandmother that it had an
enchantmentplaced on it, that's as much as I know." Mazi thanked her once again
and the party headed to the temple.

Milo was eager to see what the woman had imparted to hiselven friend. He
practically stood onhis tiptoes to get a glance at what was in her hands. Mazi shook
her head in amusement as she held out the dagger. "Here you go, Milo. I don't think
I have a use for this. It seems more your style anyway. The Goodwife said it was
enchanted. It should be better than that little knifeyou carry around anyway." She
saidas she handed the magic dagger to Milo.
"Really? Youmean it? Thanks Mazi! You're the best!" Milo said as helooked over the
well-crafted weapon. Hecould feel a slight tingle as she handed it to him. Yes, this
would serve him well, he thought as he stashed it inhis belt, removing the mundane
blade that was in its place. I'll just have to sell this one I guess.
The group made their way to the chapel to meet with thepriest. The elderly man met
them,eagerly awaiting news of the cups and their quest. Milo related to him their
battles in the caves and the rescue ofthe caravan leader, his wife, and his guards. He
also related that there was no sign of the cups from the priest'sdream. The old man
looked crestfallen.
"I am very disappointed and saddened that you have notfound the cups yet. The
people of theKeep grow weaker day by day, some have died from the plague
already. I fear that if the cups are not destroyedsoon then the guards will not be able
to fend off any attacks from the denizensof the caves or the hills." Thepriest told
them. "We will ofcourse heal your wounds and provide you with more healing
draughts. I beg of you to find those cups. The Keep's safety and our very lives
dependon it!" He left them to theacolytes then. Once the six of themwere healed and
given more potions they decided to restock their provisions andhead out in the
morning.

While Milo was changing in the coins they found Maziinquired of the banker about
higher valued coins that may be easier tocarry. Though the banker did not
carryanything worth more than platinum, nor had he ever heard of any coin
mintedthat was more rare, he was able to point her in the direction of the
Keep'sjeweler. At the mention of jewelsMazi's pointed ears seemed to perk up. With
a glint in her eye she headed over to the aforementioned shop. The next time Milo
saw her he noticed aconsiderable decrease of the size of her money pouch. He also
noticed a small blue gem set in gold, hanging from herear. It was hard to miss, she
had herhair swept away from that ear as if to showcase the beautiful gem. Milo
guessed at its value to be somewherearound 500 gold. A hefty bit of changeto be
wearing on your ear, he shrugged. "Women," he thought.

The party spent a restful night in their rooms above thetavern after a refreshing
dinner. Brigit and Jeremiah went easy on the drink that night. Perhaps they felt as
Milo did, that theworst was ahead of them yet. They got anearly start the next
morning, heading towards their favorite campsite atop thehill. It was past dusk by
the time theyreached it. They once again set threewatches of two. The night
passedwithout event, each of the watches struggled to stay awake. They spoke of
their homelands to each other,getting to know Maruf and Thorgrim a little better.
The dawn found the six adventurers already heading towards thecursed gorge and its
deadly caves.

The gorge was still uninhabited when they arrived. The cave mouths hanging open
like hungrymouths, ready to swallow unprepared victims to the center of the earth.
Milo was feeling a little dramatic thatmorning. They started into the cavescautiously,
on the watch for any more ambushes like the last. The party made their way to the
hallway thatthey fought the ambush and reinforcements in. Once again the bodies
were gone, no trace of the carnage or the clean upcould be found. Again Milo
attributedthe lack of bodies to the denizens of the caves. He figured that he wouldn't
want dead people lying about thestreets where he lived either. Carefully they moved
past the intersection and around the corner of thenext corridor. No heavy bolts shot
outof the darkness, not even a sound echoed through the abandoned tunnels. They
came to an opening on the left of thepassage, a small room with some poorly kept
weapons. Probably where the reinforcements were waiting. Milo tread softly down
the corridor, henoticed a thin string suspended at human knee level. Along the string
were tiny bells, a lot of them. It was a primitive alarm, buteffective. If any of them
had trippedover it they would have made quite a noise. Milo quieted his friends down
while he studied the simple trap. Well, he thought, here I go. He carefully cut the
string at one end ofthe line with his new dagger, keeping it as still as possible as he
lowered itto the floor. Unfortunately he couldn'tstop some minor tinkling from the
bells as they reached the ground. He winced, knowing that someone waslistening for
that precise sound. Hehoped that the noise did not carry as far as he feared it would.
"Alright, if anyone was listening for the bells thenthey're probably ready for us.
Howabout we get the big ones up front, just in case?" Milo whispered as he turned to
thegroup. He almost laughed when he caughtsight of them. They were holding
theircollective breath, to the last one. Heshook his head a little and motioned for
Jeremiah and Brigit to lead theway. Milo and Mazi followed with Marufand Thorgrim
bringing up the rear again.

As they came around the next corner they could see thehallway ended in a wooden
door. AfterMilo quickly checked for traps, finding none, Jeremiah kicked it in. The six
of them charged into the room,hoping to catch the occupants somewhat unaware.
They plowed into a large room, filled with hobgoblins. There were two tables turned
on their edges,feet away from the party, with two hobgoblins behind each. Behind
them Milo could see another dozen orso hobgoblins, including a very large,
particularly mean looking one to theback. Thorgrim and Brigit wasted notime, they
ran towards the tables while dodging all four crossbow bolts flyingtheir way. The
hobgoblins seemed verysurprised at this tactic, they had assumed that their cover
put them at anadvantage. Jeremiah gleefully strodeinto their midst after Brigit and
Thorgrim yanked the tables down, leaving thelegs standing straight in the air.
Jerswung his greatsword as he walked forward, slicing through one, then another
ofthe surprised crossbowmen. Milo andMazi let their own missiles fly, the bolt finding
the shoulder of one of theremaining crossbowmen. Mazi's arrowflew past the other
hobgoblin as it leaned down to hurriedly reload its weapon. Maruf didn't give the
beast time as hecharged towards him, he missed with his swing but distracted the
hobgoblin fora moment.

Brigit and Jeremiah were proving their prowess against thehobgoblins once again,
each dispatching one of the ugly brutes. A look of fear spread among the
assortedhobgoblins. One of the remainingcrossbowmen managed to fire another bolt
off before falling to Brigit's ax. The bolt struck home in a chink through herarmor,
wounding her in the side. Shegrimaced through the pain as she hacked through the
monster. Milo and Mazi loosed another volley at theenemy, Milo's shot finding a
target in one of the dumbstruck hobgoblins. Mazi's arrow flew wide again, she cursed
asit clattered off the wall. Three morehobgoblins moved up to engage Jeremiah,
Brigit, Maruf and Thorgrim. One of them made contact through Jeremiah'sthin
armor, causing him to wince in pain. The wound was at the cost of its compatriot's
attack as it stepped onthe beast’s foot, bringing a roar of pain from its mouth. The
other attackers were unable to make adent in the adventurer's defense.
Thecrossbowmen slowly retreated as they reloaded their weapons, allowing the
otherhobgoblins to move in front.

Mazi pulled her bowstring back again, taking careful aim atthe nearest hobgoblin.
She fired thearrow straight at the beast and pierced its lung, felling it instantly. It
gasped for air past the blood that wasnow filling its lung. Milo's boltwounded another
hobgoblin, grazing its arm as it raised its sword to attackMaruf. Disregarding the
wound, thehobgoblin slashed at the man-at-arms. Maruf received the blow on his
own arm and was unable to complete hisown attack. Near him Brigit andJeremiah
fought on. Brigit missed withher next swing but looked on as Jer took out the second
to last crossbowmen,two with one stroke. She admired hisability to cleave through
the goblinoids so easily and tried to study histechnique as the battle raged on. Onthe
other side of their fighting Thorgrim was engaged in a near even battlewith the
hobgoblin in front. They bothswung at the same time, their swords grating as they
slid to the hilts. Both pivoted their blades simultaneously,choosing to accept a wound
in order to inflict one. Thorgrim's blade bit deeper than the hobgoblins, killing
thecreature as it did its damage to the brave man-at-arms.

Milo fired another bolt into the fray, this time sinking thequarrel into the leg of one of
the hobgoblins. Maruf also made contact with his weapon, scoring a glancing blow on
hisopponent. Thorgrim, flush with hisvictory but wounded by the mutual sword
thrust, wavered a little. It was just enough for the next hobgoblin tomake it past his
defenses. He cried outas the sword was pulled from his gut, sinking to the ground
unconscious. The hobgoblin laughed as it licked the bloodfrom its blade. The wound
was severeand Thorgrim's blood quickly pooled on the floor. Milo quickly moved to
his side, readying his incantations. Brigit and Jeremiah pressed forward throughthe
hobgoblin ranks, not landing any blows but stopping their progress towardsthe
halfling and the fallen Thorgrim.

With his friend fallen, Maruf had two hobgoblins to dealwith. The clumsy beasts
attacked him,one shoving the other out of the way as it slid its sword into
Maruf'storso. Maruf cried out like his fallencomrade, wavering on his feet as Thorgrim
had before him. Milo finished his chanting as Mazi, Brigit,and Jeremiah fought to fend
off the hobgoblins. They had seen two men fall and their morale was raised as
theirleader shouted in hobgoblin at the rear, struggling to move forward through
thefight. Thorgrim's eyes fluttered openas the wound in his belly closed. Milocould
see that the man-at-arms was still injured and he whispered to him totake it easy.
The soldier nodded andgot to his feet, readying his sword for another attack. The
leader had almost made its way toJeremiah, obviously intending to take out the
largest threat first. Milo noticed its progress and quicklyprepared another
incantation. The lastcrossbowman let out a guttural curse as its weapon jammed. It
pounded on the mechanism while itscompatriots attempted to wound the standing
party members.

Mazi decided her sword was needed more than her bow. She switched weapons as
she moved to thefront of the battle, near Brigit and Maruf. Jeremiah roared in rage,
his eyes had a crazed look in them. A bit of foamed spittle escaped his mouth ashe
slashed through another hobgoblin. His muscles bunched and he seemed to grow a
bit bigger as his ragecontinued. Milo had a moment to reflecton this apparent change
in his friend as he finished his spell and touched thebarbarian. He would be protected
fromthe vile goblinoids a little more now. Just in time, thought Milo. Hewatched as a
blow fell short of Jeremiah, the hobgoblin seemed to shy away fromthe towering
human as it got near enough to strike. Brigit swung her axe in a great arc, keeping
the hobgoblins atbay. Maruf moved up to engage thehobgoblins near the dwarf,
directly in the path of a sword intended forher. He crumpled to the ground, ashocked
stare at the ragged wound the sword caused. The beast the struck down Thorgrim
seemed personally insulted byhis recovery. It charged the soldierwith a shout.
Thorgrim took the attackhead-on and the sword pierced his armor. He sunk to the
ground from the loss of blood. The hobgoblin grinned at Milo, as if challenging him to
heal theman-at-arms once again.

Jeremiah, in an inarticulate rage, swung his sword at thecowering hobgoblins before

him. Theyslunk out of his range, but not out of the range of Mazi's
spinninglongsword. She slashed at one of themonsters, killing it with the graceful
stroke of her blade. Near them Brigit knelt to feed Maruf one ofher potions of
healing. He made it tohis feet shakily, thanking the dwarf as he stood. Milo was
undaunted by the challenge of the hobgoblin, he loweredhis hands over Thorgrim,
healing the latest wound but not bringing his fallencomrade to consciousness.
Thorgrim wasstabilized, that's all that mattered to him then. A bolt whizzed by Mazi
as she danced through the melee. Maruf took another minor wound from
anadvancing hobgoblin. Jeremiah felt thesting of a longsword as well. A smallslash
that enraged the angry human even more.

The hulking barbarian swung his huge greatsword out awayfrom himself. It
pulverized first onehobgoblin, then the next. He shoutedsomething unintelligible and
cast about, looking for another victim. Mazi tried to fight her way to the
remainingcrossbowman. Her sword found anotherweak point and the beast that she
was fighting crumpled to the ground. Brigit moved next to Maruf, both of
themswinging their weapons at any hobgoblin that dared to come near the two. Milo
was out of healing spells for theprostrate Thorgrim. He took aim withhis crossbow
and fired another bolt at the approaching hobgoblin leader. It grazed the huge beast,
only serving tomake it angrier. The monster stabbed atJeremiah, but was unable to
hit him through the magical enchantment that Milohad cast. The two other
smallerhobgoblins could not penetrate the party's defense.

Mazithra was in rare form as she spun around the clumsyattack of one hobgoblin.
She expertlyslid her sword into the beast's breast, stabbing it through the heart. The
hobgoblin didn't even have a chance tolook shocked, its face stuck in the same
grimace it wore as it attackedMazi. Brigit moved to attack thecrossbowman, her ax
falling short of the beast. It let a bolt fly at the other approaching enemy, Mazi. The
bolt came nowhere near the dancingelf. Jeremiah towered over theconsiderably large
hobgoblin leader and swung his greatsword. The sword sliced through the
creature'sarmor and traced a nasty gash through its flesh. The leader held its wound
and weakly stabbed at Jer. Milo took the opportunity to fire a quarrelat it. The bolt
found its home in thebeast's brainpan, forever rendering it incapable of any coherent
thought, oraction for that matter. Mazi made onemore graceful pirouette before she
plunged her longsword deep into the body ofthe crossbowman. It gasped out in
painas it fell to the ground.

Milo raced to the fallen form of Thorgrim. He confirmed that the man-at-arms was
stillstable. He channeled some minorcantrips he had prepared into a small amount of
healing and the brave soldierwas once again to his feet. The two ofthem stood to
look around at the carnage. Not one hobgoblin remained standing. Many died by
grisly wounds dealt by all six of the party. Milo spied a shine from the waist of
thehobgoblin leader. He moved aside thetattered tunic the large hobgoblin wore and
found a bejeweled silver belt. Near the back of the room Brigit uncovered acache of a
gem, a potion, and a wand. Mazi eagerly snatched the gem, holding it out and trying
to appraiseit.
"Let's leave that for later, Mazi. I think we can find out what all this isworth back at
the Keep." Milo spoke up. "Maruf and Thorgrim are looking pale from the loss of
blood and Ithink we could all use a little rest after this battle."
Mazi agreed and they stowed their findings. After searching the rest of the bodies
andfinding more coins on each, the group trooped out of the caverns to the lightof
day once again. Though they had onlybeen in the caves for a short while this time, it
felt to Milo that they hadspent days within. He felt emotionally,spiritually, and
physically drained as the group made their way back to thecamp. The battle was
long and taxing. He had not exercised his divine powers tothat extent before and he
felt the difference. Once they made it to camp he said another little prayer to
hismysterious halfling benefactor, thanking Him for helping Milo to saveThorgrim's
life. Exhausted, he fell asleepand didn't wake again until it was his turn at watch.
They would go back to the Keep for more healing before trying tofind the cups in the
caves again.
Keep of the Borderlands -part nine (session three)
The party made it to the Keep, hauling some of the treasurethey found in the back
rooms of the hobgoblin's lair. Brigit had stumbled across two suits of full plate armor,
onedwarven size and one human size. Theonly things that gave off magic after Milo
and Mazi cast a couple of cantripsat the hill were the wand and their rings, as well as
Milo's dagger. As soon as they made it past the gate sheheaded off to the smithy to
get the suit modified to her dimensions. She mumbled something
about"impenetrable" and "tank" as she stumped off. Milo and the rest took their gear
to thepriest, hoping he could identify the wand and the potion they had found. The
priest seemed distraught at the factthat they had not found the cups. Heunderstood
their plight as he caught sight of the two men-at-arms. Though Milo had healed them
to the best of hisability he could not bring them to full health that morning. The
priest welcomed them in and usheredMaruf and Thorgrim off with an acolyte to
receive healing. He took the potion and wand Milo offered tohim and promised to find
out their nature by the next day. Mazi and Jeremiah excused themselves, theyboth
wanted to spend some time meditating in their own way, Mazi in her innroom and
Jer at the bar in the tavern. Milo decided to stay at the chapel until evening,
spending more time inthe library. He learned from theirscribe how to commit his
incantations to parchment for later use. After spending his hard earned coin on
somewriting utensils and supplies Milo found that he could produce his spells
onpaper, in effect storing them for later use. He had heard Mazi mention the
technique but didn't realize that it wasuseful for divine spells as well as arcane. It
turned out that Jeremiah and Brigit spent some time comparing notesbefore the
night was through. Shelearned his peculiar technique of slicing through enemies and
he learned somegeneral strategies to use in close quarters. Mazi had taken care of
the party’s other loot. She sold the gem and belt for a hefty amount, doing
Miloproud. Mazi also changed the group’ssmaller coin for higher denominations, easy
to carry. The four split the coin evenly but left some set aside for groupexpenses.

The next morning the four met at the chapel. Maruf and Thorgrim were completely
healedand carrying a short bow and longbow that they had found in the caverns. The
priest saw them in his office. He handed the wand to Milo, stating that itheld multiple
charges of a healing spell, though he couldn't tell how many wereleft. He had
discovered the keyword forthe wand in its glyph's. Milo wouldhave to utter the word
"Abernathy" in order to discharge thewand. Milo looked at the priest with anodd look
in his eye. He could havesworn he'd heard that name before. Hewas certain some of
the more weathered sailors told tall tales about anotherland and a powerful wizard
by a name not unlike that. Odd, he thought, oh well, no matter. Milo shrugged off
the thought. The priest further related that the potion they found was no potion atall.
It was poison, a deadly varietythat usually resulted in death. Miloand the others
asked the priest to dispose of the foul brew rather than takingit back. The priest was
glad to helpthem in that manner. He also gave eachof them a healing potion if they
had already used theirs. The old man excused himself for not handingout more, but
the people of the Keep came first. They found that even healed by the priest's divine
magic andprayers the people would fall sick shortly after. Milo also noticed the ever-
present crows and vultures circlingthe Keep. They seemed to be circlingcloser than
the night before. With afarewell and the promise to return with word of the
destroyed cups, Milo andhis friends headed out of the chapel and through the front
gate of the Keep.

The journey to the hilltop campground was uneventful, if notdismal. The sky
remained graythroughout the morning and afternoon. Dark fell early that night.
Bythe time camp was prepared it had been an hour after nightfall. Their watch was
also uneventful. All six of them were on edge from the denseatmosphere that
seemed to pervade the surrounding countryside. The next morning Mazi and Milo
preparedtheir spells for the coming day and inevitable battles. Not far from the camp
up the winding trailto the gorge they heard a thumping sound. The party stopped
and listened, straining to make out the sound. It was definitely drums, their deep
rhythmicpounding only deepening the ominous feelings that were shared by
thegroup. It was decided that Milo shouldsneak up the path and scout out the source
of the drums while the rest of theadventurers hid themselves among the trees and
brush. Milo took a deep breath and worked his way quietly towards thegorge, careful
to stay off the trail. He arrived at the upper parameter of the small valley after a
littlehike through the wooded area. Peeringdown into the cauldron of the gorge he
could make out little lizard men liningthe sides of the hills, beating on taught skins
stretched across primitiveframes. Well there was the source ofthe pounding, he
thought. At the end ofthe narrow valley he spied a robed figure, holding up a cup
and shouting incoherently. Milo sensed that the being near the top ofthe gorge was a
powerful enemy. Withthe knowledge he had gleaned Milo made his way back to the
concealed party.

They discussed possible approaches and decided to use Milo'spath. Remarkably

enough the six of themmade it to his vantage point without calling down an alarm.
Perhaps it wasn't so remarkable, they couldsee that the lizard men were in a frenzy.
They were oblivious to everything as they pounded away at theirmakeshift drums,
the man in robes whipping them up into a religious fervor ofsome kind. The group
watched as the manraised up a cup, all six of them recognized it from the description
the priestgave them. That was one in the set thatmust be destroyed, thought Milo, if
only we could get to him. They started to discuss the best way to takeon the man in
robes, not too worried about the small lizard men along the hillsof the gorge. As they
talked the tempoof the drums increased and the man's shouting became harder to
hear. Then a deep rumbling emanated from theground of the gorge, felt all the way
up where the group was hiding. Milo watched in horror as the groundchurned,
clumps of dirt rising like molehills. As they looked on fingers clawed their way out of
the mounds of raisedearth. Skeletal and partiallydecomposed hands, arms, and then
heads followed the fingers, as a mass ofundead broke the surface. Milo hatedundead,
really. He shuddered as theunholy figures shambled from their shallow graves. The
group recognized many of the walking corpses as the enemiesof the past few days,
goblins and hobgoblins made up a large portion of theundead army. Two giant
skeletal figuresappeared from the rear of the undead. The huge skeletons had a
moving mass suspended in their breastcages. Straining his vision, Milo madeout the
forms of the two disciples of Bordamere inside. He couldn't tell if they were
controllingthe giant mass of bones or if they were merely hosts powering the
unholyconstructs. Milo shuddered again, wrenchinghis eyes from the massive force of
undead. He looked up to the man in robes to see the figure motion with the
cup,towards the mouth of the gorge. Thedrums stopped and the undead army began
to shamble out of the clearing, towardsthe Keep. Just as Milo was about tosuggest
that he down the potion of invisibility and sneak up on the robed manhe noticed
movement on the top of the hill. The shrouded man then turned towards the group.
He can see us, thought Milo. Before they could do anything else a hugepillar of
blinding light struck the earth near them, miraculously missingall.

By the time they made it to their feet and cleared theringing from their heads the
man had fled. They could see the lizard men filing back into the caverns. Milo, Mazi,
and Brigit conferredquickly. They couldn't let the undeadarmy march on the Keep
without warning. Milo asked Maruf and Thorgrim if they would brave the journey
back tothe Keep to warn their fellows. Thatwas all the men-at-arms needed to hear.
They turned to rush out of their concealment after a brief warningto stay off the trail
and roads and to make it to the Keep as fast as humanlypossible. As the two men
made their wayback down the hills the group spotted a huge shape detach itself from
the wallof the gorge. Wings unfurled and agiant vulture clawed its way to the sky,
intent on following the soldiers. All four adventurers drew their bows andcrossbow
and took aim. After oneunsuccessful volley all four hit the grotesque bird. Each
missile finding the bird in the air as it seemed to sprout afew more feathers. With a
wounded crythe vulture wheeled in the sky and headed the opposite way. The bird
was too far away for any morepotshots, but the group felt that they had
accomplished something.

The four of them conferred briefly on the best course ofaction. They decided they
had done allthey could for the people of the Keep in sending Maruf and Thorgrim to
warnthem. Milo suggested that if they foundand destroyed the cups first that the
army might never reach the Keep. Mazi agreed and they decided they'd headinto the
caverns that they had seen the lizard men file through. After preparing themselves
as much as theycould the four intrepid friends ventured into the caverns once again.
Keep of the Borderlands -part ten (session three)
Milo moved ahead of the group once more, scouting carefully for any traps that the
lizardmen may have laid. A short distance into the cavern mouth the passage ended
in a "T". The wall facing them was adorned with grisly heads in various states of
decay. Milo moved cautiously forward to get a better look. As he walked forward he
felt the ground move out from beneath him. The floor began to revolve under his
feet and he barely jumped back as a giant stone panel spun down and back around,
covering a pit about ten feet deep. The others rushed up to see why Milo was
jumping about only to find an empty intersection decorated with skulls and heads.
Before any of them could walk to the wall Milo shot out his hands to either side.
"I don't think that would be a good idea." Milo stated. "That floor isn't exactly
stable." He finished as he placed the tip of his foot on the edge of the rotating stone
slab, pushing it down slightly.
"Ah, it's just a little pit trap, Halfling." Brigit scoffed. "Ah've seen dwarven littl'uns
craft better!" She said, pounding Milo on his back with her open hand. He
cartwheeled his hands as her emphatic pounding almost pushed him into the pit.
"Why don' we tie a rope to tha halfling and toss em across?"
Milo gave Brigit a horrified look, not certain she was kidding. "Thanks but no thanks,
Brig! I'll just skirt the wall if it's all the same to you." He said in a huff. Brigit just
chortled a little while reaching in her pack as if to draw out a piece of rope.
"Aw c'mon Milo, we kin have Jer here throw ya the whole way, eh Jer?" She broke
out into an unruly bout of laughter.
"I've got another idea," Milo said back, "how about we don't? Just give me the rope
in case I slip and fall. No throwing!" Milo said to Brigit with a sidelong glance to
Jeremiah. The barbarian simply smiled. Mazi had an amused look on her face. She
shook her head and raised her eyes to the ceiling.
"Maybe we can get across this thing before all your talk and laughter brings down
the whole place around our ears?" She said to her diminutive companions.

With that Milo tied the end of Brigit's rope around his waist. He made sure he was
out of arms reach of Brigit and Jeremiah as he inspected the edges of the revolving
floor. Milo carefully tiptoed out along the narrow lip of the pit, his heels hovering
over the slab. He managed to complete the little balancing act and arrived at the
eastern side. As he peered into the darkness past his lantern he thought he caught
sight of moving figures. The light from his lantern glinted off a spearhead and he
could hear the shuffling of many feet from an alcove farther down the tunnel. The
shout of alarm that came from the dim passageway caused Milo to remember that he
was the only one on that side of the pit. Should the denizens of the caves rush him
he would be alone and outnumbered. Ever the self-preservationist, Milo quickly
turned about and shouted to his friends to pull him back. The words had barely left
his mouth before the wind was pulled out of him, the rope going taut. He was
heaved through the air like a fish on a line. Just before he landed on the false floor
he managed to twist his body and roll acrobatically. Milo sprang to his feet next to a
grinning Brigit and Jeremiah. Both had hauled him back as hard as they could, nearly
braining him and making him think twice about who's hands should hold the rope
next time. Milo turned to see the enemy for the first time and nearly fell over
laughing as several little kobolds approached the lip of the pit, shouting in whatever
language the small lizards used.

Two of the little creatures threw their spears at the party, both missing badly. Milo
laughed and shot a missile of his own. He nearly tripped as he brought his weapon to
bear, momentarily forgetting that the rope was still tied to his waist. He watched as
his bolt flew above the heads of his opponents. Mazi moved to the far end of the pit
and sighted one of the creatures with her bow. She fired the arrow straight into the
little beast's chest. The kobold fell backwards, a little chirp escaping its mouth. Brigit
took a grip of her ax, hoping one of the kobolds would brave the pit. Jeremiah wasn't
so patient. He moved Milo to the side and took a running jump towards the small
lizards. The rope still tied to Milo's waist was lying in his path though. The hulking
barbarian yelped comically as he tripped over the obstacle right onto the false floor.
He scrabbled at the surface of the slab, as it quickly became a vertical wall. He found
no purchase and plummeted to the bottom of the pit, taking a small amount of
damage. The pit floor revolved back into position, sealing off the poor barbarian.

Milo bit back another giggle as he plopped down to prop the floor open with his feet.
Giving Jeremiah a way out by lowering the rope still tied to his waist. The kobolds
were chattering excitedly on the other end of the pit. Two more spears sailed by
Milo. He didn't even try to dodge as the clumsy throws caused the spears to fly wide.
Mazi took aim again and watched in satisfaction as another kobold fell with feathers
protruding from its small chest. Brigit figured she could do better than her barbarian
friend. She took a deep breath, crouched, then sprang forward, intent on leaping
over the gap. What she didn't realize was how heavy full plate armor can be,
especially when there was nothing beneath her feet. She plummeted into the pit,
right onto Jeremiah. Milo howled with laughter, not able to keep it in any more. He
was echoed by the kobolds on the other side of the pit and he could swear that he
heard a slight chuckle from Mazi's direction. From the pit emanated a few colorful
dwarven curses and a grunt as Jeremiah pushed the bulky form of Brigit off of
himself. He grabbed the rope and started to haul himself up. This caused Milo to pay
a little more attention to his position on the lip of the pit. He braced himself as the
human made his way to the top.

Two more spears flew over the pit towards the three party members. One wounded
Mazi, grazing her leg and drawing blood. She sucked air into her teeth at the pain.
The offending kobold witnessed the damage and pranced around in a comical jig,
adding insult to injury. Mazi was none too happy as she drew her bow. She let the
arrow fly as the lizardman spun around in his insane little dance. The arrowhead
sunk right into its left cheek, its left REAR cheek. The kobold's victory chant changed
to a shriek of pain as it scampered off into the dark. Mazi smiled to herself. Brigit
had been trying to climb her way out of the pit during this display but was having
just as much luck in that endeavor as her last. She couldn't seem to find purchase
enough to support the weight of her gear as she slid back down the rope. Jeremiah
decided once wasn't enough and crouched down again. He jumped mightily, right
into the upturned floor. Milo again couldn't stifle his laugh as the poor barbarian slid
down the relatively smooth surface of the slab, right onto Brigit. More dwarven
curses floated up from the pit. This time it was Brigit's turn to shove off the bulky
form of Jeremiah.

The two kobolds left on the other side of the pit chattered loudly at Mazi. They threw
their spear and missed completely, tossing the missiles down the other passage in an
attempt to injure the elf. Mazi drew another arrow to her bow and aimed at the
closest lizardman. Her bowstring twanged as the arrow flew, directly into the
kobold's chest. Milo looked at her in admiration. Mazi was on fire today, he thought.
Jeremiah and Brigit worked together to get out of the pit this time. Jer gave the
dwarf a boost while she used the rope. Once to the surface Brigit helped Milo haul
Jeremiah back out. They were both breathing heavily, bruised from their falls in the
pit and on each other. Milo stood back grinning at the two. He hadn't seen a show
like this since his days back in Darokin.
The kobold with an arrow sticking out of its backside slunk back to the edge of the
now closed pit. It had brought more spears and it chucked one over the other side.
That spear and its companion's clattered off the wall. Milo shook his head again. He
thought bemusedly, that is what I ran from? Milo decided to try a different tactic and
tiptoed his way back across the pit, hugging the wall. He managed to make it across
without receiving any blows from the lizardmen. They actually seemed scared of the
diminutive halfling. Another arrow sped from the other side and Mazi felled the next
kobold. Both Brigit and Jeremiah had learned their lessons. They glowered
impotently at the final remaining kobold.

The lizardman with the arrow tail poked its spear towards Milo, who easily
sidestepped it. Milo and Mazi shot their weapons at nearly the same time, Mazi's
arrow finding the kobold before Milo's did. The little beast went down with the second
arrow protruding from its chest. After confirming that no more kobolds remained Milo
started to giggle. His giggle turned into a laugh which in turn developed into a full-
blown guffaw. His laughter was infectious. Mazi joined in, slapping Jeremiah on the
back. The brooding barbarian glared at her for a moment before his faced cracked
into a lopsided grin. Brigit eventually joined in, seeing the humor in their recent
encounter. There's nothing like a good belly laugh, thought Milo as he looked around
for some way to disarm the rotating slab. In the alcove Milo found a few wide planks
of wood, obviously what the kobolds used to cross the pit. He dragged a couple of
the planks over to the edge of the pit and formed a makeshift bridge. The others
made their way across, Brigit and Jeremiah taking extra care as they traveled the
planks. Mazi and Milo stood at the other end, grinning.

"Now if you three hooligans are done goofing around, maybe we can finish exploring
this cave." Mazi said.
Keep of the Borderlands -part eleven (session three)
Before moving on Milo decided to try out his new toy. He pulled the wand of healing
out of his pack and aimed it at Jeremiah. Milo spoke the activation word,
"AberNATHy!" A dull glow emanated from the tip of the wand and came to rest on
Jeremiah. He watched as a couple of the barbarian's wounds from falling into the pit
closed. He was disappointed when he noticed that Jeremiah barely seemed restored
at all though. "Maybe it's the activation word? I wonder if it matters how I pronounce
it." Milo muttered to himself. Jeremiah merely shrugged and pointed down the
tunnel, wishing to continue on.

The group ventured further down the eastward passage, Milo led once again to ferret
out traps. Eventually the tunnel branched off to the left, one passage continuing east
and one leading north. Deciding to stick with the trusty, always-turn-left-never-get-
lost principle, the party took the north passage. Not far ahead the tunnel ended in
another "T" intersection. Milo carefully advanced, searching all over for any traps,
especially a giant rotating stone slab. None were found and no sounds echoed down
either passage. Again turning left, the party walked on. This tunnel ended in a stout
wooden door. Milo searched the frame and lock for traps while the party waited a fair
distance away. They had already seen Milo's trap disabling abilities and decided
caution was the better part of valor in the face of his technique. Milo scoffed at their
temerity before turning around. He waited until he knew they couldn't see his face
before he let a slightly worried expression creep across it. After double checking the
door and declaring it trap-free, he pulled his trusty lock picks from his pack. The
crude lock on the door was no match for his skill and he heard the satisfying click of
the tumblers. Brigit and Jeremiah moved forward to open the door and lead the way
into the unknown room. Inside they made a disgusting discovery. They had stumbled
on the kobold's food storage room. Milo held back his gorge as he investigated some
piles of meat, obviously human. The smell that pervaded the room made all four of
the adventurers nauseous. Tattered cloths still remained on torn limbs that were
strewn about the small room. After a cursory examination of the area Milo decided
that nothing of worth was in the foul pantry. He left the room with the other three
following. As he looked back Milo noticed Jeremiah gripping the hilt of his greatsword
tighter than usual, his knuckles turned white. He knew that holding back the
barbarian against any more kobolds would be out of the question. Probably for the
best, thought Milo, his sword will make short work of the others we saw enter this
cavern.

They followed the left wall down the passage, carefully treading past the intersection.
The ambush by the hobgoblins made the group especially wary of blind corners. The
tunnel widened into a small natural cavern as the party continued on. Two spears
flew out of the darkness not yet illuminated by Milo's lantern. One spear pierced his
leg as he let his own missile fly in the direction of the kobold that just revealed itself.
His bolt was a little more deadly than the spear and the kobold fell to the ground
with a rattle from its pierced lung. Mazithra fired her bow from the rear of the party
but was unable to make out a solid target and her arrow flew above the little lizard
men. Brigit and Jeremiah moved up past Milo simultaneously. Brigit swung her
dwarven war axe at one of the diminutive creatures. The kobold all but disintegrated
as her weapon cut through. She would have followed through to the next beastie if
Jeremiah hadn't already sliced the lizard man into two pieces with a powerful vertical
slash. The two warriors seemed eager for battle after their disappointing show at the
pit.

Milo's lantern revealed no more kobolds hiding in the small widening of the cave.
They did notice another door leading out of the room though. Just as Milo moved
forward to examine it, the door flung open. Another kobold, dressed garishly in robes
with crude stars and moons painted in blood, appeared in the doorway and wiggled
his fingers at the party. Just as he raised his crossbow to fire Milo began to see
swirling colors spiraling out of the lizard man’s hands. The fascinating display drew
close to Milo and the rest of the party at an alarming rate. Soon Milo, Brigit, and
Jeremiah could only see a dazzle of lights and multihued shapes dancing across their
vision. The colors dispersed before reaching Mazi near the tunnel opening. The
kobold chittered something, seeming frustrated that his little lights didn't affect the
elf as they had her friends. As for them, Milo and the others couldn't get their
bearings, blinded and stunned by the sparkling of lights in their eyes. Mazi had no
such problems as she quickly drew back her bow and fired at the kobold sorcerer.
Her arrow grazed the creature as it let out a startled shriek.

The kobold wiggled its fingers at Mazi again, this time two globules of bright energy
shot from its fingers. The globes raced towards Mazi, hitting her hard and pushing
her back a bit. She groaned at the bruising blow of the spheres. Mazi shook her head
clear of the dazzling stars that filled her vision and let another arrow go at the little
sorcerer. This time the missile stuck, wounding the creature in its shoulder. The
other three adventurers were also shaking their heads. Milo finally rubbed the colors
out of his eyes but was still slightly dazed. He noticed Brigit and Jeremiah in similar
shape.

The little lizard man tried once more to stop the inexorable advance of the willowy
elf. It flexed its fingers at her again. This time nothing happened. It looked down at
its hands with a bewildered expression. Unbeknownst to it, Mazi's ring of mind
shielding blocked the spell, it burned hotly around her finger. She later related that
the little kobold must have tried to cast some sort of mind affecting dazzle spell at
her. The sting on her fingers seemed to be just enough to throw off her aim as she
fired another arrow. It flew into the doorframe behind the kobold, quivering in the
wood. By now Milo, Brigit, and Jeremiah had recovered and all three of them
attacked at the same time. Milo's bolt barely missed the kobold, as did Jeremiah's
greatsword. Brigit was the one that ended the creature's miserable existence with a
great diagonal slice of her ax.

"So the kobolds know a little magic," Mazi said. "I guess we'll all have to be on the
watch for any more finger-wigglers here."
Milo decided to try his luck at the wand before they found any more sorcerous
kobolds. "AbernaTHY!" he muttered as he pointed the want at Jeremiah. Again the
barbarian's wounds closed slightly, but not completely. "I guess I'll have to keep
trying," he said to himself.
The group set about the four corpses, finding a few gold coins on the guards. Milo
carefully unhooked a gold chain from around the sorcerer's neck. A heavy red gem
rested at the bottom of the chain. Mazi snagged the jewel from his hands. "Aww, it
won't match my earring" she said, disappointed at the lack of blue. "Oh well. Here
you go." She tossed the bauble back at Milo. He stowed it in his pack, thinking to
cast a magic detection cantrip on it later. Milo also found a tiny key in a hidden
pocket on the body. He looked up at the open door while holding the key. Tiny keys
like this fit tiny locks, he thought, tiny locks keep treasure chests closed. The four of
them started into the kobold sorcerer's room.

A harem of kobold females hissed defiantly at the four. Brigit and Jeremiah made
short work of the evil beasts.
While Milo was searching for the chest that matched his key Brigit and Mazi made
their own discovery. Brigit found a lump while inspecting a wall hanging. Mazi joined
her in front of the tapestry, running her hand along the irregular hem. She cut along
the stitch and a cache of about fifty gold coins dropped out of a pocket sewn into the
cloth. The clatter of the coins made Milo's ears perk up a bit and he would have
investigated further if he hadn't found the chest he sought. It was a small chest and
his key fit perfectly. A turn of the wrist later and he had plenty of coins to investigate
right in front of him. A literal treasure trove of copper, silver, and gold winked back
at him from the top of the box. A quick search through the coins confirmed that this
was all the chest contained. Milo wasn't complaining though. He hauled the chest to
Brigit, who was quickly becoming the party's defacto packhorse. She stowed the
chest in her pack along with the other coins. Another search around the room
revealed nothing, the party was ready to head out into the rest of the cavern once
more.

They traveled back down the hallway to the intersection and turned left then left
again. This put them back in the original eastward passage past the revolving trap.
The dark passage stretched before the group and Milo once again took the lead. His
cautious tread making much less noise than his armored friends trailing behind. He
came to another widening in the tunnel. This one opened to a huge room, much too
large for his hooded lantern to illuminate. In the darkness the group could make out
countless glinting, beady eyes, all at kobold level, peering back at them.

Mazi reacted first, reciting a speedy chant and gesturing into the middle of the
cavern. Jeremiah and Milo heard a rustling sound, as if a score of bodies fell to the
ground. The eerie silence was punctuated by soft snores. "Ten are down," Mazi said,
"that's all my magic can put to sleep for now." With that Brigit and Jeremiah rushed
into the room, each to one side, Brigit to the south and Jer to the north. Neither
connected with their blows, as the lizard men closest to the tunnel had been ready
for them. Milo turned to use his wand on Mazi, recalling the nasty hit she had taken
from the kobold sorcerer's energy bursts.
"ABernathy!" Milo uttered. This time he could see a noticeable difference in Mazi's
health. Maybe it really was the way he said the word, he thought as he turned to
survey the army of kobolds facing them. Milo could dimly make out a mass of
kobolds asleep in the middle of the cavern, their compatriots shaking them awake.
So much for the sleep spell, Milo said to himself, at least they were out for a little
while. The kobolds in the front didn't waste time waking their allies. Ten of the little
creatures tossed their spears in an impressive if low volley at the party. Amazingly
all ten missed or were outright dodged. Things looked good for the adventurers.

Milo stayed to the rear as Mazi drew her longsword, moving forward to wade into the
fray. A bolt flew from Milo's crossbow, piercing one of the frontline kobolds through.
The creature dropped with a ragged hiss. Brigit swung her ax through the kobold
facing her. The ax very well could have continued its vicious deathblow had another
lizard man been in its path. On the other side of Mazi Jeremiah was having trouble
hitting the agile kobold with his greatsword. His weapon described great arcs in front
of the barbarian, each arc bringing him closer to his prey. Another huge volley of
spears flew from the second row of kobolds, now awakened from the mystic sleep
Mazi placed them under. Their spears were thrown without skill though, and all ten
flew past the party members without a hit. One kobold that moved to engage
Jeremiah did make contact however. Its short spear drew a small amount of blood
from his leg. Milo watched with apprehension as another row of kobolds moved into
the light. This was going to be a pitched battle, more than seven to one
outnumbered them.

Mazithra did her part to winnow the numbers of the massive kobold force. Her
graceful spins and pirouettes making her sword flash in the lantern light. She slashed
through a kobold without any apparent effort, the attack appearing more as a move
in an elaborate dance. Jeremiah finally made contact with his heavy weapon, a spray
of blood flew up from the severed neck of the lizard man before him. The blade
barely missing the kobold closing in on his flank as it finished its deadly arc. Milo
shot past his comrades, a little too high to have any effect. He quickly loaded
another quarrel into his crossbow. Brigit seemed to be imitating Jeremiah's earlier
attempt at dispatching the kobolds. Her ax swung closer and closer to the aggressive
lizard men. By now three kobolds had engaged the stout dwarven woman, one poked
in between Mazi and Brigit at Milo, two attacked the elf lass to no effect, and three
more pressed in on Jeremiah. One spear scratched his side, wounding him slightly.
The rest of the kobolds crowded behind their comrades, some from the back
throwing their spears directly at the fight. None of the spears hit the party or the
kobolds, most flying high over the heads of the combatants. The kobolds appeared to
value the lives of the others fighting after all.

In a simultaneous counter-attack the party repelled the advancing kobolds. Each

weapon found its mark. Mazi's sword traced a red streak across the chest of another
kobold, the creature died at her feet. Brigit and Jeremiah both swung their weapons
at the creatures trying to get behind them, killing those that would attack their
flanks. Their blows did not connect with the follow through, some of the kobolds
were more cautious than their companions. Milo shot through the gap between Mazi
and Brigit, killing the beast that was attacking him. More kobolds pressed in after the
attack, another rain of spears came from the rear of the horde. One lucky shot
grazed Milo in the arm, causing him to wince and place his lantern down before he
dropped the precious light source. The next row of attackers moved in, two more
attempting to move around Jeremiah and Brigit to distract them from the rear. One
of the kobolds in front of Jeremiah tagged the barbarian with its spear while he was
focusing on the other kobold sidling behind him. Some of the other kobolds thrust
repeatedly with their weapons, another one filling the gap between Mazi and Brigit to
poke in at Milo. The party repelled the attack again and prepared for another
counter-strike.

Mazi executed a near perfect stab with her longsword, killing the kobold that recently
tried to do the same to her. On either side of her the human and dwarven fighting
machines sunk their weapons into two kobolds each, with one swing apiece. Brigit
grinned in satisfaction as she performed the technique taught to her by her
barbarian friend. Jeremiah was fighting back the urge to let his blood boil and turn
himself into a raging maniac. He feared that the kobolds would have more of an
advantage over him should he wade too far into the throng. His greatsword sliced
through the kobold moving behind him and through the one rushing to take its place.
Milo shot his crossbow at the most recent lizard man to brave the gap between his
friends. He wounded the creature but it did not fall. The kobold nearest Mazi made a
horrible misjudgment and thrust his spear right past the spinning elf. It lost its grip
and the weapon clattered to the floor. The creature hurriedly ducked to pick up the
weapon and was pushed from behind by the next kobold itching for a chance to
attack the intruders. The kobold fell to the ground, its limbs splayed comically as it
flailed to regain balance and its spear. It caused enough of a diversion for one of the
kobolds attacking Brigit to find a critical chink in her full plate. The wound might
have been more grievous if the two plates didn't shift as she recoiled. The spearhead
slid back out of the chink and Brigit escaped with a minor wound.

Milo spied another kobold that had made its way behind Brigit, dividing her attention
between multiple fronts. He stepped back a pace and fired his crossbow at the
cowardly creature. The bolt skimmed past its head, causing it to duck before moving
into position. He cursed and flipped open his next case of bolts to reload. Mazi
moved back to create a straight line between herself, Brigit, and Jeremiah. Her
attack fell short from the distance created by her move. Brigit and Jer readjusted
their stances to accommodate the new formation, both missing their targets as well.
The kobold behind Brigit sunk the tip of its spear into an unguarded spot on her calf.
The tip withdrew before it could inflict too much pain though. The one on the floor
had regained its footing and its spear. It moved in to fill the space left by Mazi's step.
One of the kobolds attacking Jeremiah apparently hadn't learned from its
companion's mistake. It too thrust too far and lost its grip on the spear, ducking
immediately to find the fallen weapon. More kobolds moved in to harass the party.

Brigit was distracted by the amount of enemies facing her, she hesitated for a
moment allowing the kobolds just enough time to see her ax coming. Milo shot at the
kobold flanking Brigit and watched the beast drop with his feathered quarrel
protruding from the side of its head. The kobold that moved to fill the gap in front of
Mazi was easily dispatched by her longsword. She turned slightly to address the next
attacker. Next to her Jeremiah swung his sword almost blindly, striking down
another lizard man but loosing his grip. The sword made a loud clatter as it fell to
the ground. Jeremiah now joined the kobold on the floor in a strange dance of four-
limbed weapon recovery. The kobold found its spear and stood back up before
Jeremiah, just in time to block the way of the other lizard man about to stab at him.
Brigit's defenses were strengthened by the extra attention she was able to give to
her frontline. No spears breached her expert shield play. Mazi's sword was a blur as
it deflected thrust after thrust from the kobolds arrayed before her.

Mazi concentrated on keeping the kobolds around Jeremiah and herself at bay. Her
defenses were too thinly spread though and Jer took two light spear thrusts as he
regained his footing. He growled at the kobolds through the pain. Milo shot his next
bolt at one of the kobolds attacking Jeremiah. He let out a breath of relief as he saw
the quarrel skim past his friend. Milo swore to himself that he'd take even more
careful aim next time. Brigit missed on her swing, provoking a thrust from the
nearest kobold. The spear tip scratched her side through the gap in her plate, not a
major wound, but enough to anger the already incensed dwarf.

Mazi spun around again, her sword reflecting broken shards of light at the kobolds.
One was so enthralled by the lightshow that it didn't seem to realize its wound
before it dropped dead to the ground. The other kobolds weren't as impressed, they
were waiting for her to try another fancy move like that. The two still facing her
stabbed in at the same time, both connected and pierced through her light armor.
She winced but kept fighting, the wounds felt more like scratches than the ragged
holes most spears inflicted. Next to her Jeremiah redeemed his fumble with a grand
swing of his recovered greatsword, right through the two kobolds that wounded him.
One of them had just inflicted a nasty gash down his leg as it nearly trampled its
companion to wound the barbarian. The two top halves of the creatures dropped to
the floor to along with the rest of the corpses that lay at his feet. Brigit likewise
dispatched the kobold that wounded her, narrowly missing the beast next to it. Milo
cursed as his bolt again whizzed by his companion's head, barely missing him and
coming nowhere near the kobolds. Shooting from the back was becoming
increasingly difficult with so much going on at once. One of the kobolds facing Brigit
poked at the heavily armored dwarf. The spear somehow managed to get caught
between two of the plates of her armor. It was wrenched out of the shocked lizard
man’s hands before its very eyes.

Brigit swung back around, causing the snagged spear to drop. The kobold didn't have
a chance to reach for it though, as her ax bit into the creature after slicing
completely through its fighting companion. She kicked the spear away and taunted
at the remaining two kobolds near her. Mazithra and Jeremiah wove a tight defense
against the last approaching line of kobolds. Neither side landed a blow on the other.
Milo aimed carefully with his crossbow, waiting for one of the beasties to come
through his sites. He pulled the trigger but watched in dismay as the missile flew
dangerously close to Jer, continuing in between the approaching kobolds. He cursed
and shook his head as he reloaded his crossbow once again.

Mazithra connected with a particularly vicious swipe of her longsword, nearly cutting
her enemy in twain. The other kobold attacking her thrust just as she was recovering
from her attack and tagged her free arm, blood followed the line the spearhead
traced. Though their numbers were diminished the fierce lizard men continued to
press their attack. Milo could see desperation in their scaly features. He figured that
this must be the lot of them, none had come from behind to outflank the party. It
was no wonder they fought with such tenacity. He pulled the trigger on his crossbow
and gave a little shout of joy as it sunk home into one of the lizard men. The
creature fell straight back, stiff as a board with the arrow protruding from its
forehead. Next to him it was Brigit's turn to come dangerously close to hitting one of
her companions. The kobold she was attacking had feinted right and nearly led her
into a swing at Mazi. She muttered a dwarven curse and renewed her effort to down
the kobold.

Brigit's next attack was much more successful, slicing through the dancing kobold
and ending halfway through the breastbone of the next. She hauled on her ax and
kicked the creature off as it rose with her recoil. Mazithra ran her sword through the
kobold that inflicted the last wound on her. She looked around and noticed that only
four of the scaly monsters remained. One fell before her as Milo let loose another
happy shout. His bolt stuck out right between its eyes. The look on its face made him
laugh, both eyes crossed in looking at the feathers of his quarrel. The kobold
dropped from the critical wound. One of the three last kobolds made a desperate
thrust at Mazi, causing another bloom of red to appear down her leg.

Mazi spun on her other leg, her sword following her in a wide arc as it sliced through
the kobold. Brigit moved forward and slashed into the last kobold before her, the
head of her ax sunk deep into the beast's brainpan. Milo bounded through the
opening created by Brigit's move and fired a shot at the last kobold. The bolt
uselessly clattered against the far wall. He watched Jeremiah take a moment to line
up his attack and masterfully run the kobold straight through the heart with his
greatsword. Jer used his boot to slide the creature off his sword, cleaning the blade
with a rag torn from its clothing. The four lowered their weapons and looked around.
The air reeked of kobold blood mixed with their own. Bodies were literally piled in a
swath in front of the adventurers. Milo shook his head at the grisly scene. He knew
somehow that worse was to come, even after that tiring battle.

He set about assessing the damage done to his friends. He himself had taken a light
wound, but nothing as bad as Mazi and Jer. Even Brigit in her heavy armor took
more damage from the assault than he. It turned out that the wand was good for
four more uses. "ABernathy!" he muttered on the fifth try. A funny fizzling sound
emanated from the tip, but no dull glow. Milo shrugged and stowed the wand back in
his pack. Maybe he could find a way to recharge the magic later. He chanted his own
spells to heal his friends, all three of them nearly back to full health. They then set
about searching the bodies. A few silver were scattered here and there on the
corpses. A piece of cloth caught Jeremiah's attention in the far corner of the cave,
barely illuminated by Milo's lantern. He reached down and pulled up a finely woven
piece of silk.
"Soft," was all Jer said.
Mazi's ear's perked up and she spied the cloth that Jeremiah found. "Is it blue?" She
asked excitedly. She looked crestfallen when Jeremiah shook his head in the
negative. Milo wondered at her recent obsession with blue, fine gems, and cloth.
He shrugged again and filed the question away for another time. Milo asked to see
the silk swatch. "Well it'll fetch a pretty copper, there's enough her to make a blouse
or the like. It's not even stained." He noticed while running his hands through the
purple cloth. "One more tunnel to check out fellas," Milo said to the other three,
"Erm, fella and girls that is." Brigit harrumphed at that. "What say you? We're all
pretty hale and hearty thanks to the wand and spells. Shall we check it out? Might be
a blue gem over there somewhere-" He trailed off as he winked at Mazi.
Her eyes seemed to brighten at the prospect and she agreed readily. Jer and Brigit
shared the sentiment, if not for the same reasons. With one more search around the
room revealing nothing, the party left down the way they came.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twelve (session three)
The group moved back down the passageways to the tunnel entrance and the pit
trap. Milo quickly looted the kobold bodies they had left from their first battle. He
couldn't help but chuckle at the memory of Brigit and Jeremiah falling all over each
other. That seemed like days ago to Milo for some reason. After adjusting the boards
across the pit to reach the other side the party continued. Not far into the new
passage Milo's sensitive nose crinkled. Something smelled bad, very bad. He looked
back at his friends and noticed that they too detected the foul stench. As he turned
back to look down the tunnel, Milo noticed that it widened into a large cavern. He
motioned the others up to the front and pointed out the cavern, motioning Brigit and
Jeremiah to their battle positions as quietly as possible. The last cavern they ran into
was full of kobolds, no reason to assume that this one wouldn't be either. Mazithra
still had her sword out so she moved up with Brigit and Jer as they entered the dim,
dank cave.

The odor was worse in the cavern than outside, Milo didn't even think that possible.
Towards the middle of the cave the group heard some loud squeaking. Milo swung
his lantern around and the source of the noise, as well as the smell was revealed.
Nine huge rats faced them, long yellow teeth bared. Their den consisted of piles of
refuse. The group had just stumbled into the kobold's garbage dump.

Jeremiah reacted quickly, he moved forward and swung at the closest rodent. His
sword caught nothing but garbage as the rat scurried to the side, avoiding his blow.
Jeremiah deflected a bite at his calf, the rat scratched his blade with its wicked teeth.
Brigit and Mazi fanned out from Jeremiah's position, each choosing their targets
carefully. Neither seemed too eager to be overrun by the vermin. Brigit's ax
decimated two rats with one swing, bloody bits of the rodents raining down in the
already putrid waste of the garbage pile. Mazi tagged the rat in front of her, causing
it to hiss in pain and bare its broken teeth. Milo fired his crossbow at the rest of the
approaching rats, missing as he attempted to shoot past his comrades. The other
rats reached Brigit and Mazi and attacked. Three of them swarmed around Mazi. Her
blade became a swirling maelstrom of light as she repelled bite after bite. Brigit
wasn't so lucky, one of the large rodents pierced the armor on her ankle. She winced
as she felt the large incisors sink into her flesh. A wave of nausea coursed through
her body, passing quickly.

Brigit shook the rat from her leg and stepped back a little, trying to bring her ax to
bear. She missed, her ax swinging wide. She bared her own teeth at the vermin,
almost growling with anger. The rat pounced on her again, plunging its teeth into her
other ankle. Brigit roared at the rat, causing it to disengage and cower from her
ferocity. Mazi finished off the wounded rat before her and turned to face the other
two pressing in on her defenses. Milo shot his crossbow at the beast that wounded
Brigit. His quarrel pierced its tough hide and pushed it back a half step. The rat
advanced on Brigit once again though. Jeremiah found his rhythm as he scythed his
greatsword in a great swath before the rats. First one rat fell from his sword tip
slicing a deep gash in its side, then another as the blade created two halves out of
the previously whole creature. The two rats still facing Mazi came at her
simultaneously, both managed to get past her defenses. One bit her calf and the
other found purchase for its teeth in her outer thigh. She faltered for a split second
as nausea washed over her as well.

The wounds they had received chagrined the group. Mazi slashed fiercely at one of
the rats that wounded her, her blade biting into its furry neck. The beast fell before
her. Milo slipped past Mazi where the rat fell and fired his bolt unfettered at the rat
he had already attacked. He missed, but watched as the rat fell to Jeremiah's sword.
Jer followed the first kill with an impressive display of strength. The unsuspecting rat
he cleaved through literally exploded with the force of his blow. Brigit performed a
similar feat of strength, if not more so. Her ferocious attack left nothing but a bloody
pulp where the last rat's head used to be.

"Well how do you like that?" Milo said, "We can wade through a cave full of kobolds
with nary a scratch, but a swarm of rats can bite us into oblivion."
Brigit and Mazi gave Milo a dark look. They stepped out of the room to mop up the
blood from their bite wounds. Milo poked through the garbage, trying to find
anything of value in the huge compost heap. He pushed one of the rat corpses to the
side and noticed a glint in his lantern light. A silver chain was nearly overgrown by
the fur around the rat's neck. He found the catch and released the necklace, cutting
away the fur with his dagger. After he pulled the last of the foul matted fur from the
chain he noticed five bright gems inlaid in the chain. "Looks to be worth some
money," Milo said to the others. "Probably around 400 gold or so." He stashed the
chain in his pack for later.

"Doesn't to be much else to do here." Milo stated. "Let me heal you two up a little
before we head out though." Milo completed some minor cantrips before placing his
hands over Brigit and Mazi's wounds. He felt something different as he cast his pa
healing spells. Something foreign in their systems that he couldn't quite place.

"That's odd. There's something strange here." Drawing from the limited knowledge
of healing he gained from his studies at the Keep's chapel, Milo looked over the two
women. After a quick examination, not really finding much. "Just from our
surroundings and the nature of these rats, I think you two will probably get a fever
of sorts in a few days. I hope it's not too rough. I can't even slow the disease, so
you'll have to ride it out. Sorry." Both of them accepted the news calmly.

"Well if we're going to get sick in a few days then we should find those cups soon."
Mazi said to the three of them.

"Aye, I'm wi' tha elf. Let's get rid o' tha cups and get back to tha Keep, I don' relish
tha idea of gettin' sick in here" Brigit agreed with a wave at the caverns.

"It's settled then, let's check out the next cave." Milo said after a nod from Jeremiah.

They filed out of the garbage dump and trooped over the pit. They chose the last
cavern at ground level and approached the opening carefully. Once again Milo took
the lead while Brigit and Jeremiah followed, Mazi taking up the rear with her bow at
the ready.
Keep of the Borderlands -part thirteen (session three)
A familiar sight greeted Milo as he crept into the cavern. The tunnel ended in a "T"
intersection. It was the grisly display of severed heads that was really familiar. Milo
recognized several races on the wall, human, elf, dwarven, even some kobolds and
orcs. He shuddered. Milo carefully advanced, searching for another pit trap as before.
Some distant sounds reached his ears from the left passage.

"Running feet!" Milo whispered back to the group.

Brigit and Jeremiah wordlessly moved up into the intersection. Mazi walked up
behind them and readied her bow. Four orcs came tromping down the tunnel before
Milo could retreat to the relative safety behind the two warriors.

Jeremiah swung his greatsword a little too early, coming up short before the orc
reached them. Mazi fired past Jer at the same orc. Her arrow hit the monster with
such force that it actually fell backwards a few feet as it died. Then Milo fired a
grazing shot at one of the rapidly approaching orcs, barely wounding it. Brigit's
nostrils flared as she sighted her ancestral enemies. She went into a dwarven rage
as she sliced into the first orc to reach her, its belly opening up in an unnatural grin
and its guts spilling to the floor. Her ax wounded the next orc viciously as well,
nearly toppling it on top of the other. Three more orcs rounded the corner as the
other two made their way to Milo. Both attacked the halfling. Milo was able to avoid
one blow but was nearly knocked down by the other. The orc's spear came back
bloody and he could hear it chuckle at his pain.

Brigit moved up in front of the orc that wounded Milo, brandishing her ax at the
beast. The orcs attacked their hated enemy. Both spears glanced off her shield as
she swung her ax at the orcs. Jeremiah cut a swath through the two in front of him,
creating a great "V" in the air as his sword slashed down diagonally through one,
then up through the other. The second was neatly cleaved in two by his critical
attack. Mazi and Milo fired their attacks at the orcs. Milo's grazed another orc while
Mazi's arrow flew past, barely missing Jeremiah's head. She grimaced as she
knocked another arrow to the string.

Jeremiah cut through the final orc facing him, easily felling the beast. He looked
around, a hungry battle lust apparent in his eyes. Milo was unable to find a target as
he shot his crossbow. Mazi had the same problem firing past her comrades at the
last two orcs. Brigit swung her ax once again at the hated creatures, her ax deflected
by their armor and spears. The orcs had no more success than she did, her shield
once again protecting her from their thrusts.

Mazithra loosed another missile into the fray, this time she hit. The orc that Milo's
crossbow bolt grazed previously fell from the wound her arrow inflicted. Jeremiah
moved to engage the last orc, but was unable to find room to swing his greatsword.
Milo took a moment to cast a heal spell on himself, worrying that the wound he was
bleeding from may take a turn for the worse. He sighed as he felt the magic
penetrate the ragged hole caused by the spear. A frown crossed his face when he
noticed that the wound did not close completely. The final orc attacked Brigit in a
rage. It was still unable to penetrate her armor.

The orc took one more attack at Brigit, feinting left with its spear before attacking to
the right. She saw the move for what it was, not fooled for a moment. She easily
deflected the orc's attack. Mazi carefully took aim with her bow. After a slight pause
she let the arrow fly. Her bowstring made an audible twang a split second before the
arrow pierced the orc in the back of the neck. Brigit could see the arrowhead
protrude from the beast's neck as it keeled over. Milo was in the process of quaffing
a healing potion when the last orc fell. He felt much more refreshed.

The party heard some noises coming from the west passage. They had a hurried
discussion and prepared themselves for another force of orcs. This time Milo made
sure he was behind the big beefy warriors, Brigit and Jeremiah. He and Mazi had
their range weapons drawn at the ready while the dwarf and human kept their melee
weapons at hand.

After a few minutes of tense waiting it was apparent that no more orcs were coming.
Milo listened intently down the hallway. Nothing. A plan started to formulate in Milo's
head. A particular spell had been knocking around up there since he was
"awakened". The chance to use it hadn't presented itself.

"Hey everyone, listen up." Milo said quietly. "I'm going to change myself into an orc."
That particular statement brought some strange glances from his companions. "Trust
me on this one. I'm going to change myself into an orc, head down that hallway, and
see if I can draw them here. Once I run back here, you open fire on the buggers and
we'll wipe the floor with them!"

"Sounds good to me, I've heard of the spell to which you're referring. I'd be
interested in seeing it in action." said Mazi.

"How about you two?" Milo asked Brigit and Jeremiah.

Brigit shrugged, "Suit yerself, halflin', I'll be ready wi' my bow. Jus' don' kill any
before ya get back. I'm itchin' ta send more O' these vermin back to their maker."

Jeremiah just shrugged and put away his sword. His bow was soon in hand as well.

"It's settled then, here goes nothing." Milo said as he formulated the words to the
chant in his head. Soon a medium sized orc was standing in front of the crew,
complete with rusty armor and drool. Milo was proud of that last little detail. "Ok, I'm
off!"

"Uh, Milo," Mazi interrupted before he could turn. "I don't think you should talk at all
when you get to the orcs. They may notice the decidedly high pitch of your 'orc'
voice." She finished.

Milo nodded gravely. Brigit just snorted at him and pulled out an arrow, ready for the
first real orc to show its face. Milo started down the hall, leaving his lantern behind.
For the first time he began to reconsider his artful scheme. The tunnels were awfully
dark, and he couldn't see all that well without some sort of light source. Then there
was the fact that he couldn't talk to the other orcs either. Even if he knew their
language his voice would be a dead giveaway. That last thought was cut short as he
stumbled into branch off to the north. He decided to check it out. The tunnel came to
another "T" intersection before long but he couldn't see down too far. Milo returned
to the original passage, figuring that he could come back to that passage later.

The main passage terminated in a large room. This room was lit by a couple of
torches in the wall, their flickering flames guttering and belching off dirty smoke into
the ceiling. Two tables lay in his path, behind each were three orcs, spears at the
ready. He flinched slightly before he remembered his current form. Beyond the
tables were half a dozen more orcs. One of them was a female, her grotesque form
belying her gender. Another was a huge beast of an orc. It was this one that called
out to Milo in its guttural tongue. Milo gestured wildly back the way he had came. He
hoped to convince the orcs to follow him back to their ambush. The lead orc bellowed
out another line of unintelligible commands, pointing with its sword. Milo once again
motioned frantically down the way he had come. The leader finally turned to two of
its ilk and spoke to them. The two orcs started towards Milo.

Not waiting to see if the orcs were following or chasing, Milo turned and bolted down
the passage. He passed his friends before too long, the orcs about 15 paces behind.
Once he was about ten paces past the intersection where his companions lay in
waiting, Milo spun around and fired off a bolt from his crossbow. The bolt flew into
the ceiling as he nearly lost his balance from spinning around at a full run.

The orcs didn't have time for the attack to register. Two arrows stuck straight out of
their skulls as they fell to the floor. They wore a slightly surprised expression on their
porcine faces. Milo breathed a sigh of relief before returning back to his friends. He
told them of the forces that awaited them.

Once again they formulated a plan, all four of them giving their input this time. Milo
noticed another passage coming into the main room from the north. He figured that
it must be connected to the "T" intersection he ran into earlier. If they could come in
from the north and the east they may have a better chance of surprising the wary
orcs and gaining an advantage. Mazi mentioned the oil she had been carrying. She
thought it might work well as an impromptu firebomb. If they lit a cloth stopper on
fire it should almost explode on impact. The oil would spread and inflict a good
amount of damage whether it hit an orc or not. The very least they could do is light
one of the tables on fire.

Their final plan came down to Brigit and Milo throwing oil bombs from the northern
passage as Mazi and Jeremiah fired arrows from the eastern passage. The group
prepared themselves for the onslaught.
Keep of the Borderlands -part fourteen (session 3)
Milo and Brigit readied their oil bombs and sneaked up the northern passage.
Jeremiah and Mazi would wait for the chaos from the oil to break out before they'd
rush in from the eastern passage. Just as Milo suspected the tunnel to the east of the
second intersection came back down into the fortified orc cavern. Brigit was
surprisingly quiet in her full plate, but they both knew that the orcs would hear them
coming.

They burst into the room and tossed their flaming oil. Milo's oil broke on the center
orc behind the northern table before the creature could react. The oil spread from
the glass flask and caught fire immediately. The room was filled with the scent of
burning orc flesh. Brigit's toss was hampered by her armor, the oil fell to the side of
the table, inadvertently causing a flaming barrier between the orcs and the group.
Mazi and Jeremiah made their entrance with their bow's firing. The general confusion
caused by the flames allowed Mazi to pick an easy target. Her arrow flew into one of
the orcs behind the southern table, killing it immediately. Jeremiah's own arrow
made a dull "thunk" as it sunk into the wood of the table.

The orcs behind the front lines were in confusion, their leader tried to rally them. The
flaming orc behind the table had the presence of mind to drop onto the ground in an
attempt to put itself out. The five other porcine beasts behind the tables lobbed their
spears at the adventurers. The missile intended for Brigit fell pitifully short, the orc
throwing it was still distracted by its burning compatriot. Three spears were aimed at
Jeremiah. Two of the missiles struck him. He grunted at the impact and took a
moment to pull the spears out. Milo winced inwardly when he saw the wounds that
were left. Mazi dodged the spear meant for her as she drew another arrow from her
quiver. Two more spears flew towards the elf, catching her by surprise. She cried out
involuntarily as the short spears struck her. One grazed her side but the other
pierced her shoulder. She pulled the spear out and readied her bow again. Two
spears each flew at Brigit and Jeremiah. The metal spear-tips clanked harmlessly off
Brigit's armor. Jeremiah was hit again, taking another spear in his thigh. He roared
as he pulled the spear from his flesh, yet he continued to advance.

Brigit was near the northern table and figured that if the orcs could take advantage
of cover, she could too. She dropped her bow and slid out her ax, the head glinted in
the firelight. Brigit moved next to the table and used the partial cover to ready her
next attack against her hated enemy. Jeremiah strode forward, also dropping his
bow. His greatsword made an audible scrape as he drew it out of the scabbard on his
back. Milo fired off the crossbow that he had switched from his offhand. The bolt
struck the closest orc behind the table, causing it to gurgle as it slumped forward
over the side of its protective barrier. Mazithra let her arrow fly at another orc behind
the southern table. Her aim remained true as the arrow created a nasty chest wound
in her target. It gurgled as it slumped to the floor, dead.

The party's fierce assault had momentarily confused the orcs. Only one combatant
lay in reach due to the burning oil on the ground though. Three orcs attacked
Jeremiah. One of them was the slightly burnt orc from behind the table. Growling in
rage it hurled its spear at the hulking barbarian. The flying missile shattered on the
far wall, the force behind it immense, but poorly aimed. Two of the orcs from the
group beyond the tables pressed in to attack Jeremiah. His swinging sword repelled
them. It almost seemed thirsty for orc blood. One more spear flew through the air,
this one aimed at the elf. Mazi neatly sidestepped the weapon as it slowly arced
through the air to clatter to the floor. She had reached the relative cover of the
table.

Jeremiah was filled with an inner fire. His rage was building slowly from the wound
he received and it finally broke through the surface. He roared a loud battle cry,
almost causing the orcs before him to cower. Jer swung his sword with such blind
ferocity that the blade could be heard to slice through the air. Unfortunately no orcs
felt its bite, but chunks of stone flew from the impact it made in the floor. Jeremiah
was forced to pause in his berserk, recovering his tenuous grasp of the hilt from the
vibrations caused by the blow. By then the fire had died down and Brigit moved into
the gap. She attacked the orc closest to her. The huge waraxe easily found purchase
in the orc's body, spilling its lifeblood. Milo took careful aim at the blackened orc
from his earlier attack. His quarrel pierced its flesh, causing it enough damage to fall.
On the south side of the room Mazi pulled her bowstring taut, another arrow
knocked. The missile whistled through the air before sinking deep between the eyes
of her enemy. The orc fell without a sound from the critical attack.

The two orcs facing Jeremiah attacked again. One made it past his rage-weakened
defense and inflicted a horrible wound with its spear. Jeremiah bellowed at the beast,
not even showing his pain. This seemed to cause a reaction in the rear of the orcs.
The orc leader bellowed a similar shout, almost as if in challenge of the raging
barbarian. Milo noticed quite a bit of frothy spittle beginning to drip from the orc's
mouth. He worried for Jeremiah, the orc leader appeared to be a berserker as well!
To Jeremiah's right Brigit blocked a spear thrust with her shield and pulled her axe
back for a vicious blow. To the left of the barbarian Mazi used the cover of the table
to defend herself from the spear thrusts of the orc beyond her. More of the orcs
pressed in, as well as the raging leader and his concubine.

Milo found another target past the table, his bolt grazing the orc's face. It didn't
seem to notice, focusing solely on the berserker attacking its tribe. Mazi fired her
arrow at her would-be attacker, making the point blank shot look easy. The orc was
thrown back a foot or so from the force of the arrow before it fell to the ground.
Brigit completed her back swing and carried straight through the orc before her. The
ax bit through the air mere centimeters before the next orc's nose. It caused the
beast to pause in its advance for a moment. Milo shouted at Jeremiah, trying to
penetrate the battle-induced haze that had come over him. "Step back and drink a
potion Jeremiah! You're bleeding to death!" He could only hope the barbarian
understood him. Jeremiah looked slightly dazed, his arms still quivering slightly from
the vibrations of his earlier fumble.

Only two orcs were within range of the party now. One thrust its spear at Brigit,
finding nothing but shield. The other attempted to take advantage of Jeremiah's
hesitation. Jeremiah wasn't too dazed to dodge the clumsy attack. He took a half
step back as the spear came at him, arching his back so it fell short of his stomach.
The shouted warning from Milo seemed to have sunk in. The berserking orc and its
concubines moved to the front of the battle but were unable to quite reach the
combatants. The raging orc bellowed again, completely unintelligible to even Brigit,
who understood their guttural language.

Jeremiah fished into his pack as he completed his wary retreat. In a second he had
quaffed a healing draught. He then made to pick up his discarded bow. Milo was
amazed at his friend's self-control. He knew what the battle lust did to Jeremiah. It
was impressive to see the barbarian withdraw to fight from a distance. Milo fired off
his own ranged attack, aiming for the orc he had already wounded. The bolt flew
with precision, scoring a similar mark to Mazithra's earlier arrow between the eyes.
Milo grinned over to her in satisfaction. He watched as she released her bowstring.
Her arrow soared towards the raging orc. It passed by, ricocheting off the wall to fall
unnoticed at the floor. The angry beast didn't even realize it had been attacked. One
of the orcs approached the table Milo was hiding behind as he loaded his crossbow.
He was unaware of the danger as he crouched behind the barrier. Brigit attempted to
end the threat but her ax swing was dodged by the wary orc at the last moment.

The raging orc reached Brigit and brought its longsword to bear. The massive orc
made a huge vertical blow cutting through the air as Jeremiah had moments ago.
Brigit was not there, she moved swiftly despite her heavy armor. More chunks of
stone flew up from the impact of the orc's blow. This time the blade was stuck in a
crack on the stone floor. The berserking orc wrenched at the sword, attempting to
dislodge it. Near the orc leader the beast behind the table stabbed its spear over the
top. Milo didn't see the blow coming as it pierced his shoulder deeply. His instincts
reacted immediately and he dropped down further before rolling to the side away
from his enemy. He left a red smudge on the ground where his wound came in
contact with the stone. Milo nearly rolled into the attack of one of the orc leader's
concubines. He narrowly dodged the female orc's spear thrust, swearing at his
inattentiveness.

Milo quickly fired off a shot at the female. He was surprised by her agility as she
dodged the bolt. A smile spread across her grotesque features. Jeremiah had
reached his bow and he picked it up while drawing an arrow from his quiver. He
looked up to chose a target, his eyes falling to rest on the leader. As he watched, the
berserking orc pulled its sword from the ground and jumped back right before Brigit's
ax made contact with its torso. On the other side of Brigit was Mazi, aiming her bow
now at the orc leader. Her arrow missed its mark however, the orc once again
displaying remarkable speed as it dodged the missile.

All three orc concubines had made it to the front. All three attacked different
combatants. One focused on Milo along with the last remaining orc guard. Milo
moved nimbly, avoiding their spear thrusts with halfling grace. The other two
focused on Brigit and Mazi, neither landing their blows. The leader started forward
again. It roared a challenging war cry as it lifted its sword above its head.

Jeremiah switched targets, realizing that the orc leader could be taken down easier
without its concubines cluttering the battlefield. His arrow pierced the concubine
attacking Milo, almost running straight through. The orc concubine died before it hit
the floor. Brigit attacked the approaching berserker, her ax finally biting into its skin.
The orc bellowed again and continued its approach. Mazi and Milo were unsuccessful
in their attacks, both of their missiles flying past the intended targets to shatter or
ricochet off the far wall. Halfling and elven curses could be heard as they drew more
shafts to reload.

The orc leader completed its swing at Brigit, somehow clearing her shield. The blow
struck her hard, inflicting great pain to the dwarf. Brigit gritted her teeth and set her
shield before her, preparing to swing her own blow at the raging beast. The last
concubine attacked Mazithra past the table, but was unable to get past the cover of
the table. The orc attacking Milo had a similar problem. Its spear didn't have enough
reach to tag him as he moved swiftly around the table.

Mazithra pulled back her bowstring and let an arrow fly at the concubine facing her.
She scored a glancing hit as the arrow sliced past the orc. Near her Brigit swung her
ax at the orc leader, again biting into the beast's flesh. The orc raged on, almost
oblivious to the pain. Behind Brigit, Jeremiah loosed his own arrow at the last orc
facing Milo. The arrowhead sunk deep into its chest and Milo was no longer
threatened. He decided to take advantage of the gap created by the dead orc. Milo
tumbled past the raging leader and spun about to fire his crossbow. He may have
landed a bolt if the weapon did not snag on a rock protrusion. The crossbow was
ripped out of his hand as he spun about. Milo cursed again.

Now only two orcs remained, the raging leader and his last concubine. The orc
female thrust her spear at Mazi. She used the partial cover of the table to her
extreme advantage, ducking and weaving around the orc's thrusts. The leader put all
its force behind a thrust of its sword at Brigit. The point pierced a thin portion of her
armor, wounding her badly. Brigit did not cry out though, she reached down with a
gauntleted hand and forcefully withdrew the blade from the joint in her shoulder
where the orc found a weakness. Her strength was impressive as she pushed the orc
back a fraction while removing the blade.

Brigit was furious, nearly raging herself. She brought her dwarven waraxe around in
a horizontal slash, nearly laying the orc leader's belly open. She could tell the ax met
muscle though, and a grim smile spread across her face. Mazithra and Jeremiah let
their arrows fly almost simultaneously. Mazi found that the partial cover that served
her so well worked in reverse too. Her arrow missed the bobbing and weaving orc
concubine. Jeremiah's arrow flew past the wounded orc leader, barely missing the
beast's shoulder. Milo had finally recovered his crossbow and finished reloading it, he
took a moment to aim at the back of the raging orc.

The concubine thrust its spear at Mazi again. The orc was unable to overcome the
table and Mazi's graceful dodging. Mazi was in rare form as she pulled another arrow
from her quiver and knocked it to the string, all the while avoiding the spear aimed
at her. The orc leader took another swing at the stout dwarf. It was obvious that it
was weakening as its blow fell short of Brigit. The dwarf's grim smile widened as she
gripped the haft of her ax, preparing to cut down the berserking leader.

She didn't get the chance as Milo's careful aim paid off. His crossbow bolt punctured
the orc leader's lung from behind. It rasped a weak sound before toppling to the
ground. The orc's concubine wailed before it was cut short by Mazithra's arrow,
silencing the grotesque female forever. Milo stood from his stable crouch and let out
a ragged sigh. Even with tactics and strategy this battle was close. All four of them
had taken a lot of punishment, but they were all standing and none of the orcs lived.

Milo surveyed the damage to his companions. Wounds greeted him everywhere he
looked. He was grateful for his healing spells. He used all of them in a short space
and stopped most of the bleeding. Milo was unable to bring any of them back up to
complete health, but they all looked much better than they had a few moments
before he started.

The group set about the corpses, looking for valuables. Quite a bit of silver was
found on many of the bodies, over ninety pieces all told. The orc leader also carried a
ring and some gold in a pouch at its belt. They stowed the ring for future
examination. Two passages led out the back of the room. The party decided to
investigate further. The fight had exhilarated them and Milo's healing bolstered their
morale. They were also eager to find the cups before the undead army reached the
Keep. Milo hated undead, really.

A short tunnel led to the orc's warrens. The leader's brood was here, along with
smaller females. Brigit wasted no time in dispatching the evil spawn. She worked
methodically, ridding the caves of one orc at a time. Once she was finished the group
set about searching the room. Nothing was found in the warrens so they decided to
check down the other passages.

Milo led them to the second intersection and they moved cautiously down the
passage to the west. No reinforcements came during the battle, but they weren't
going to assume that no orcs were left. After a few paces past the intersection
another hallway branched to the south. Milo investigated it quickly. It ended in a
curtained opening. He drew the curtain to the side carefully and found an empty
alcove. A hole in the wall was all that he could see. Jeremiah looked through the hole
and found that he could see the entrance to the cavern. He related the fact to the
others. They deduced that they were on the other side of the grisly display of heads.
If one were to put his or her head through the hole no one would be able to pick it
out easily, making it a perfect vantagepoint for spying. It was no wonder to the
adventurers that the orcs knew they were coming so quickly.

The group returned to the main passage and followed it up a slope to another
intersection. They decided to continue on through the main passage before
investigating the northern branch. The tunnel ended in a stout wooden door. Milo
motioned the others back and checked the portal for traps. There were none he
could detect and the door was unlocked. He signaled Jeremiah to move up and kick
in the door, making sure that all had their weapons ready. The room was devoid of
life, but was full of supplies. They found spears and other weapons as well as
crossbow bolts. Milo picked out enough to restock his supply and the party finished
searching the room. Besides some mediocre weapons there was nothing of value
there.

The group made there way back to the northern branch of the last intersection and
found a shallow alcove. Brigit ran expert fingers over the stone, sensing something
different about a portion of the wall. She found a loose stone that covered a sizable
niche. Inside was a small flask of liquid and what appeared to be a parchment tube.
Milo inspected the flask and determined it to be a healing draught. Brigit took the
potion back from him and downed it in one gulp. Her wounds were still the most
severe and none in the party argued with her. She sighed contentedly as the potion
restored even more strength to her limbs. Meanwhile Mazi was inspecting the
contents of the tube. She declared the scroll inside to be a powerful fire spell. She
stowed the scroll in her pack while mumbling something about "To cast or scribe,
that is the question."

Mazi decided that the shield that the orc leader had used would serve her well. She
told the others that she'd like to go back and retrieve the large metal shield before
they explored any more of the cavern. They trooped back into the main room, the
bodies of the orcs still lie where they left them. For some reason that comforted the
group. At least none were shambling about undead or worse yet, disappeared
completely. Mazi lifted the shield from where it fell after the berserker's death. She
remarked on how light and easy to wield the shield was.

Milo reminded them that there was one more passage to investigate. The four
headed back to the cavern entrance and continued past to the west. This tunnel
ended in another alcove, this one with furniture and tapestries. One thing caught
Milo's eye though, a chest in the corner. He moved quickly to its location and
immediately set about searching it for traps. After he found none he used his small
lock picks to work the lock. With a satisfying click the lid opened and a mass of coins
greeted his eyes. Another good haul, he thought to himself before motioning the
others over to see. While he was working on the chest they had found two suits of
chainmail. One was dwarven sized while the other would fit a human. Consideration
was given to equipping Jeremiah with the chain, but the decision was put off until
later.

The group was exhausted. By then the excitement from the battle had worn off and
the pain from their wounds had hit. It didn't take long for them to agree to find a
camping ground and rest for the night. They were slightly disappointed in the fact
that the cups were still at large, but mostly heartened by their hard won victory over
the orcs. Especially Brigit, once they trooped out of the cavern and found a clearing
in the forest nearby, she could be found carving small tick marks in the back of her
shield. Milo guessed she was tallying off the body count from their most recent
battle.

The adventurers set up watch with Brigit first, Milo second, Jeremiah third, and
Mazithra last. Before they slept Milo asked Mazi to cast her magic detection cantrip
on the items they had found. To their surprise her shield glowed with a similar light
to his magic dagger. They figured that this explained its uncharacteristic lightness.
Mazi was even more pleased with her decision to keep the shield. Night fell
uneventfully as they settled down to rest.
Keep of the Borderlands -part fifteen (session four)
A strange thing happened while Brigit kept watch. The air seemed to coalesce before
her, right above a low boulder. The swirling mist solidified. Suddenly an old man in
robes and with a long staff appeared before her, a mountain lion at his side. He was
a kindly man, Brigit could tell as he looked down at her. The man stepped down from
the boulder and moved to each party member in turn. He touched each of them on
the head with his staff, first Milo, then Mazi, then Jeremiah, and finally Brigit. The
other three awoke, completely refreshed and strangely at peace.

"I have healed each of you of your wounds." He said to them all. Then, turning to
Brigit and Mazithra, "The fever will not affect you, I have cleansed your bodies of the
infection." The old man shook his head sadly. "I have tried to remain apart from this
conflict, but the events that you witnessed yesterday have forced me to take hand in
the matter. Now I must help you to bring the Balance back to my forest."

"You will help me. You must continue in your quest, find the cups and destroy them
so my children may find rest." The old man turned to each of them.

"You, Milo Windby, know that the One whom you follow has plans for you that will
conflict with your responsibilities. When the time comes you must chose well." He
said as he pointed his staff at Milo.

"Brigit Deeperdown, know that revenge is futile. Once completed your life will be
empty." The old man told Brigit. The taciturn dwarf only glowered.

"Mazithra, know that the faster you run from your destiny, the closer you draw to it."
He said to Mazi. She looked slightly embarrassed to Milo.

"Jeremiah Tansden, know that you are almost the warrior that your people need for
the struggle ahead." The barbarian ducked his head at the statement. It almost
appeared that he blushed.

The old man disappeared in a wisp of mist before any of them could respond.

"But wait!" Milo cried, "I have so many questions!" Milo spoke thin air. The man was
gone, without a trace. The mountain lion was gone too, no tracks to indicate where it
had loped off. The four friends looked at each other, at a loss for words. Each of
them had many things to think about. They set up another watch and settled down
to consider the old man's words. Milo was very curious as to what the old man meant
to the others. He had a pretty good idea of what he was trying to tell him though. He
thought about how long it had been since he sent a letter back to Darokin. People
were likely to become concerned if he didn't communicate with them soon. These
were his thoughts before he drifted back to sleep. It was an extremely restful sleep.
He even got a few good hours of sleep after his uneventful watch.

The morning found the group hale and hearty. All felt completely refreshed and
much better than they could remember for a long time. Milo smiled and slapped
Brigit on the back.

"Well everyone, ready to find us some cups to break?" Milo said good-naturedly.
Jeremiah even smiled at him. The adventurers gathered their belongings and made
their way from the clearing back to the gorge. Not even the oppressive atmosphere
could bring down their spirits. They chose the north most cavern at the top of the
depression to investigate next, methodically working their way around the upper
level of the shallow valley.

Milo led the way again, with the others following him in their standard formation. A
few paces into the cavern they came to a natural fork. Bones and debris scattered
the floor. A horrible stench filled the air, almost palpable. Milo searched the area for
traps, making sure that a repeat performance of their kobold adventure was not
forthcoming. No traps were evident so the party moved on. They took the left
branch, heading west. The cavern grew dark as they ventured deeper. All four of
them heard a growling noise coming from deep within the caves. Jeremiah whispered
that it sounded to him like a bear. Since they didn't want to light up the whole
cavern it was decided that Brigit would go investigate the sounds. She moved past
the light cast by Milo's lantern and crept into the darkness.

The noises grew slightly louder after a few moments, then quieted again. Just as the
group began to fear the worst for Brigit she emerged from the depths of the tunnel.
What she described to the group was a hideous mix of beasts. The bear shaped
creature had a beak like a bird and was covered with feathers and fur. Milo knew
what it was from her description right away. He had seen one in the travelling
Darokin zoo when he was young. It was an owlbear. A crazed mix of the nocturnal
predator and the feared beast of the forest. Milo warned them that owlbears were
extremely ferocious and territorial. He asked Brigit if the owlbear had seen her.
When she responded in the affirmative he readied his weapon. The beast had heard
her coming and saw her around the corner. The loud sounds they heard were the
monster rising up and shambling towards her. If they didn't attack the owlbear, it
would come after them. The four moved forward through the caverns carefully,
almost expecting the creature to pounce on them from the darkness. They reached a
widening of the cave and saw the owlbear, the beast reared up on its hind legs and
let loose a cry that was somewhere between a roar and a screech.

Milo was in the rear, they were prepared for the fight in their normal battle positions.
He fired his crossbow into the body of the monster, causing it to howl in pain. It
swiped out with its claws at the closest party members, it missed with one swipe
then stumbled as it moved forward to strike at Mazi with its other taloned paw. As it
regained its balance its beak snapped at Brigit, scraping a long line down her steel
shield with its sharp point. Jeremiah was in the rear with Milo, unable to come to the
front in the confines of the cave tunnel. He sheathed his greatsword and drew his
bow, readying an arrow to fire at the unnatural creation before them. Brigit and
Mazithra made a beautifully concerted attack, both scoring good hits on either side of
the beast. Once again it howled in pain.

The wounded and enraged beast swiped at Brigit, missing her by the breadth of a
hair. It took another bite at the party, this time towards Mazi. It's jaws snapped on
air. Just as she dodged the beak Mazi brought her longsword down across the
creature's neck, slicing a long gash through its hide. Brigit swung from under and up,
into the underside of the owlbear's chin. Her ax clove through the monster's jaw and
embedded itself within the bottom of its brainpan. The beast fell heavily to the side,
taking Brigit's ax with it. She reached down and yanked the ax out with one foot
steadying the owlbear's head.

"Ain't so tough, Milo. Ya had me thinkin' we'd be up against a challenge!" Brigit said
to the side as she pulled on her stuck ax.
"We got off lucky there Brigit, I've heard tales of owlbears rending a man apart once
they get a hold of him. They're no joke, we can count ourselves blessed for coming
through this unscathed." Milo responded to Brigit. "I wonder if anything else lives in
this cave, owlbears are pretty territorial."

Near where the beast bedded at night Milo found a parchment tube made of bone.
Inside was a scroll containing the spell of protection from evil. Milo explained the
spell to his friends and stashed it in his pack for later. The entire group found in the
owlbear's den besides that was more refuse and stench. Milo noticed two other
branches of the natural passage on their way into the den. He suggested to the
others that they might want to check them out just in case.

Milo took lead again as they left the den. The first branch they came back to
extended east beyond the southern branch they came from. After a turn to the right
the passage narrowed into nothing, just a dead end. Back in the southern passage
the party continued through the other branch, this one also petered out into a dead
end. The last unexplored area of this cave was to the west of the entrance.

After a turn to the left the cavern widened again into a natural room. A shallow pool
of water filled the northeast corner of the cavern. The walls glistened with slime and
moisture dripped from the stalactites. Suspicious, Milo picked up a bone from the
debris that littered the floor and tossed it into the water. He half expected some
other monstrosity to leap from the pool and attack. Nothing happened. Milo
shrugged and ventured further in the cave to explore the water. Just as he
approached the pool the dripping from the ceiling intensified. Milo heard a loud
sucking noise emanated from above Milo and he jumped back instinctively. It turned
out to be in the nick of time, a mass of gray ooze plopped onto the ground before
him, its tendrils reaching out hungrily.

Milo tumbled backwards and fired his crossbow at the slime. The bolt sank into the
gelatinous mass and began to sizzle. Milo did notice that a bit of runny ooze seeped
from the ragged hole his quarrel created.

"Don't hit it with your swords or anything, it's acid! See the bolt melt?" Milo shouted
to his friends. "Back away and fire at it with your range weapons!" The others
responded by drawing their bows and moving away from the room. Just as Brigit and
Jeremiah moved two more oozes dropped from the ceiling and began to reach for
Milo. Mazi fired her arrow at one of the new oozes, her missile also starting to sizzle
as it pierced the mass of goo.

Milo couldn't back up any more from the approaching ooze, he fired his crossbow and
sighed in disappointment as it flew past one of the gray blobs. All three of the others
moved back a pace and fired their bows. Mazi's arrow found its mark and more liquid
spewed from the ooze, her arrow sizzling as it suspended within the creature. Brigit's
arrow grazed one of the ooze, causing some of the brackish liquid to seep out as
well. Jeremiah's shot flew high, he was attempting to fire above Milo. Only one ooze
was in contact with Milo, the creatures couldn't move very fast, he noticed. Tentacles
formed from its amorphous body and reached for him. He jumped back in alarm,
barely avoiding the surprisingly fast tendril.

Milo hopped back another pace and fired his crossbow. His bolt went clean through
the previous hole he created and out the other side of the ooze. More liquid spewed
out of the mass, it deflated as the grayish muck pooled on the ground. One down,
two to go, Milo thought. Mazi, Brigit, and Jeremiah ran out of room to back into. The
three of them turned and moved down the tunnel from where they came, ready for
the ooze to round the corner. The one ooze in range of Milo formed two more
tentacles, reaching out to him. He dodged the grasping arms of goo, shuddering to
think of the damage that the acid might cause him.

Milo could see no way to retreat from the ooze without it attacking his back or sliding
up to him if he took a backward step. He tumbled backwards in an acrobatic
somersault, attempting to put space between himself and the gray mass. He was too
slow, the ooze reached out with a tendril and slapped his foot while he was tumbling.
The contact made him wince and he felt his foot burn. Once he completed his
backward roll he fired his crossbow at the ooze that attacked him, wounding it as
well. The other ooze moved towards Brigit, who wasn't able to move very far away
due to the encumbrance of her heavy armor. Its formed tentacles raced out and
smacked into her as well. Milo could actually hear the sizzle as the ooze made
contact. Brigit grimaced and pushed the tentacle away.

Milo moved back another pace and fired at the ooze, creating a new hole in the
creature. Brigit moved back with him and fired as well, her own arrow sinking into
the shifting mass before sizzling away. Jeremiah and Mazithra fired their arrows from
down the hall, Jer's making contact with the ooze advancing on Milo. The ooze
absorbed the arrow, bleeding more of the gray liquid. It reached out for Milo again,
barely missing his arm as he weaved and bobbed to avoid the disgusting blob. Brigit
was not as nimble and the ooze slapped into her again, the sizzling noise was even
apparent to Jeremiah and Mazi down the tunnel. Brigit once again pushed the blob
away.

Mazi and Jeremiah moved back another pace to leave room for Brigit and Milo's
retreat. Both fired their arrows at the approaching ooze, both hit their target with
unerring aim. The two masses of ooze deflated as the first one, the gray liquid that
passed for their innards creating two puddles of putrid goo on the ground.

Milo breathed a sigh of relief and moved to Brigit. She was hurt, but not too badly.
Her skin was red under her armor where the acid had seeped through. Milo used a
spare tunic to wipe the excess acid off her armor and tossed it into one of the
puddles. They noticed that the cloth continued to sizzle in the leftover acid of the
ooze. They stepped gingerly around the puddles and made their way back into the
cavern. No more ooze dropped from the ceiling as the entered the cave. They
couldn't see any more in wait above. Milo figured that they couldn't be that
intelligent, he hoped that they all came at once.

A glint from the pool caught his eye. Deeper in the water he could make out the form
of a goblet. After making sure it wasn't one of the cups the priest described Milo
asked Jeremiah to wade in and grab it. The water was a little deep for halflings.
Jeremiah retrieved the goblet and Milo examined it. He guessed the value to be over
1000 gold. Mazithra looked over the cup as well, her guess was closer to 1300 gold.
Not a bad deal, Milo thought.

"That seems to be it. I don't think there's anything else here." He said as he handed
the goblet to Brigit for safekeeping. The party still felt good, especially after a quick
healing spell for Brigit. The party readied themselves for an assault on one of the
other caverns.
Keep of the Borderlands -part sixteen (session 4)
Milo and the adventurers emerged from the cavern into the gloomy half-light that
seemed to pervade the gorge. It was a short hike to the next cavern opening along
the slope. Brigit and Mazi followed a few feet behind Milo with Jeremiah bringing up
the rear. Milo approached the entrance carefully, stepping inside with a cat-like
tread.

Just about five paces in he spied a thin wire suspended between the cavern walls. He
motioned for everyone to stop. Following the strand with his eyes he could see it
lead up the right-hand wall to the ceiling. When he looked up he saw to what the
wire was attached. A large net stretched across the ceiling. It was covered with what
looked like tar and spanned from two paces back to five or so paces down the
tunnel. Just past where the net was hanging they could make out an intersection.
The passage continued straight while two branches went off from either side. Milo
and the crew slowly backed out of the cavern to regroup and plan.

"How about we make a lot of noise and attract whatever guards that are in there?"
Milo suggested. "They'll come running, thinking someone is caught in their trap, then
we can surprise them."

"Wi'out springin' tha trap? Don' ya think they'll be a bit suspicious if they come
a'runnin' and they see that their trap ain't sprung?" Brigit retorted.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Well how do we spring it without getting caught? The
wire is right under the net." Milo said.

"I know a spell that would do the trick perfectly." Mazi interjected. "I haven't had the
opportunity to use it much yet. I can spring the trap from here and we can wait for
the guards to come from out here. We all have the range to hit them."

"Perfect Mazi! Any objections?" Milo asked Brigit and Jeremiah, when there were
none given, "Ok then, everyone get your bows out and Mazi can do her stuff."

The group arrayed themselves right at the parameter of the net, Mazi and Brigit
directly in front of it while Jeremiah and Milo waited behind them just outside of the
entrance. Mazi spoke some arcane words and made a few slight gestures with her
hands. A faint light emanated from her fingers before floating out away from the
concentrating elf. The light slowly moved towards the tripwire. When it reached the
destination the glow rested on the wire, then snapped forward. The net came down
with a loud clatter, there were rocks to weigh down the edges.

Mazi brushed her hands off each other while she grinned in satisfaction. She readied
her bow and crouched with Brigit, aiming down the passage. Before long stamping
feet could be heard approaching from a distance. Four orcs rounded the corner,
armed with swords. Brigit and Jer shot their arrows at the first orc they saw. Brigit's
missile flew past its ear, but Jeremiah's sunk deep into its chest. The orc died in mid-
run. Milo fired his crossbow at the other sword-bearing orc. He too sunk his missile
into the beast's chest, killing it in mid-stride.

Mazi could see from her vantagepoint over half a dozen more orcs with swords
approaching. She realized that the monsters would be on them in no time and put
away her bow. She wanted to have her sword ready to take out the orcs at close
range.
Brigit and Jeremiah began to draw their own melee weapons. The dwarf and human
moved towards the intersection and the orcs, being careful not to get their feet
caught in the tarred net. Ahead of them Mazi had already drawn her long sword. She
slashed expertly at the first orc to approach her. Her blade cut into its throat, the
wound was critical. The orc fell with a spray of blood from its neck. Milo winged one
of the other orcs visible to him. His bolt barely caught the beast on the arm as it
raced by. An orc made a move to attack Mazi. She parried the blow with expert skill,
her hand twisted and the orc's sword clattered to the floor. The shocked orc ran for
its weapon.

One other orc attacked the elf but she blocked his sword thrust as well. She began
her graceful sword dance, weaving away from attacks and moving in to slash at the
openings. Rather than face the willowy elf and her strange swordplay, another orc
advanced on Jeremiah. The creature scored a blow with its sword, slicing a nasty
gash along Jeremiah's upper arm as it bypassed his guard.

Jeremiah tried to return the blow but nearly lost his sword from his weakened grip.
He held onto the hilt firmly and avoided the fumble. Brigit moved up to engage her
hated enemy. The orc she attacked growled as it dodged her waraxe. It too
recognized it's ancestral adversary. Another orc from the left passageway pressed in
on Brigit. Neither was able to breach her defense as she wielded her shield before
their blows.

The orc that dropped its sword finally recovered it and jumped back up before Mazi.
She was busy attempting to dispatch the orc that Milo wounded. Her sword danced
in the air but failed to make contact. The orc had no more luck hitting her. Her spins
and twists made Mazi an elusive target. Milo fired his bolt at the wounded orc. The
quarrel whizzed past, breaking on the cavern wall behind it.

"Keep moving orc, doesn't matter. You're going down." Milo muttered at the beast.

Milo hurriedly reloaded his crossbow as the action continued before him.
He fired off his crossbow at the bleeding monster facing Mazi. It sunk home and the
orc fell back. Brigit moved forward to engage more orcs, staying within the initial
passage so none of the foe could surround them. She missed her target and snarled
at the elusive orc.

"Move Mazi, please." Jeremiah said to the elf almost impatiently. Because of their
positioning he could not bring his greatsword to bear. Mazi grumbled a bit but took a
step back, disengaging from the orc that tried to hit her. She sheathed her sword
and drew her bow. Milo hoped that bad feelings weren't going to form between the
two.

Jeremiah swung his sword in front of himself. The great blade cleaved through two
orcs in one blow. Mazi nodded appreciatively as she knocked an arrow to her bow.
Maybe they'll be all right after all, Milo thought.

Two heavy bolts flew at Jeremiah and Brigit. It seemed that they had come in range
of some crossbowmen in the back. Both bolts missed the adventurers but they did
serve to hasten their efforts. They needed to get to the orcs in the rear before they
reloaded. A clatter came from the other passage. Four more orcs followed by two
more heavy crossbowmen charged down the tunnel. The two orcs before Brigit and
Jeremiah attacked. Jeremiah batted the sword away with his own weapon while
Brigit fended off the attack with her shield.

Brigit followed her successful block with a doubly successful attack. Her ax hacked
through the orc in front of her and continued on to the orc before Jeremiah. The
second beast didn't even see the blow coming as her ax cut its spine in two.
Jeremiah charged past the corpses to attack the orcs that were preparing to reload
their crossbows. Milo fired off a bolt at one of the orcs from the other tunnel. The orc
moved forward right before the quarrel struck and it fell to the floor.

This put him in the line of fire of the fresh crossbowmen from behind. Luckily for
Jeremiah they had to shoot past their own comrades and were unable to aim
accurately. The other orcs turned their crossbows around and tried to club Jeremiah
with them. Jer swatted them away with his sword and stabbed at the beasts. He
missed, but the barbarian did strike fear into the orc's faces. The look they gave
each other hinted that they would have fled, if a barked orcish command hadn't
stopped them dead in their tracks. Milo spotted a huge orc stomping down the
passage straight ahead. He could also make out another guard and a female with the
leader. It shouted more commands in its snarling voice and the orcs rallied against
the group.

Milo fired his crossbow again, this time his shot went high. He had tried to avoid
hitting Brigit who was engaged with the orc front. She heaved her ax down through
the shoulder of her enemy. The ax head sliced through the orc as if it weren't there.
Jeremiah swung his great sword at the two crossbow men. Splinters flew as the
heavy blade bit into their weapons. The orcs were soon to follow the crossbows into
oblivion, as his weapon sliced through them both in one powerful motion.

More orcs moved up to Jer and Brigit. They attacked swiftly and caught the
adventurers off guard. Jeremiah was wounded in the side by one of the wicked long
swords. Brigit bled profusely from a ragged wound caused by a stabbing thrust. The
sword had found one of the few chinks in her armor and the orc wielding it had
twisted the blade as he withdrew.

The other two crossbowmen were busy cranking their strings to fire another volley.
Up the other passage the orc leader's guard moved towards the combat. Behind him
the leader waited with arms folded across its chest, waiting for the outcome to be
more certain before it committed itself to the battle.

In the original passage Milo and Mazi took aim separately and fired. Mazi's arrow
flew down the hallway, missing the general maelstrom of the melee. It skimmed
along the wall for a few moments before falling to the earth. Milo's bolt pierced his
target's chest, the flight protruding from its breastbone.

Near the dying orc Brigit's ax scythed through the air. Two more orcs fell from her
viscous onslaught. She vanquished many of her hated enemies that day. Jer swung
his sword next to Brigit, but no orcs fell from his blow. The porcine beasts were wary
after Brigit's massive attacks. After his mighty swing the beasts pounced on
Jeremiah, both of them slashing at him with their long swords. He took two ugly
wounds from the viscous attack.

Mazi fired her bow at the crossbowmen, which in turn fired their weapons at the
hated dwarf. None of the missiles found their targets. Mazi reached back for another
arrow as the orcs bent down to crank their strings back into position.

Down the main passage the leader and his female started towards the fray. The
leader evidently decided that he could turn the tide of the battle. They were blocked
from direct combat by the other orcs facing Brigit and Jeremiah. The leader shouted
something in orcish and pointed its sword at Brigit. Apparently it wanted a chance to
fight its despised foe. Milo noticed as the orc drew near that it was armored
completely in plate. He grimaced before turning his attention to his friends.

Milo was concerned about Jeremiah. He noticed that the barbarian's wounds were
bleeding badly and thought that Jer may not be on his feet much longer. He chanted
quickly and ran up to place his hands on his companion. A powerful feeling of well
being emanated from his hands into Jeremiah. His wounds closed and he drew in a
deep breath, invigorated by the stronger spell. Milo was getting better at this healing
thing.

Brigit brought her ax down on the last normal orc that they faced. She spit on its
corpse before surveying the scene. There was still the two crossbowmen, reloading
their weapons, as well as the leader, his female, and his guard. Brigit saw the leader
charge at Jeremiah, its sword held high and its shield poised in front of it. The sword
came down in a feint before thrusting forward past Jer's sword block. It pierced his
abdomen and started another bleeding wound. Jeremiah was unable to recover in
time to retaliate. His great sword swished through the air, inches from his attacker.

Mazi spied the opening left by her friends' movement. She slung her bow across her
back and moved to engage the crossbowmen with her longsword. The orcs took a
lesson from their compatriots just moments before. They turned their crossbows
around, abandoning hope of reloading in time, and brandished the weapons as clubs.
Neither was able to hit the nimble and graceful elf with their clumsy makeshift
cudgels.

Before the orc leader could attack Jeremiah or Brigit again Milo began a different
chant. He finished and pointed dramatically at the orc leader. The beast threw its
head back in a throaty laugh at the diminutive halfling. When it tried to move
forward it stopped laughing. Its limbs were frozen in place. A look of fear and terror
filled its eyes. It was Milo's turn to laugh.

Three things happened in quick succession. Brigit gave a mighty heave and swung
her waraxe straight down the middle of the leader's orc guard. The beast was cut in
two separate pieces. A mist of blood suspended for a brief moment between them
before they topple to the ground on either side. Next Jeremiah stood up straight and
peered at the frozen orc. A broad smile spread across his face. He lined up his sword
with the leader's unprotected face and pulled back. He thrust forward with his whole
frame, splitting the orc leader's head in two. Lastly, Mazi slashed her sword past the
upheld crossbow of the orc before her, slicing through the beast's armor and chest.

The orc female realized that she was out numbered and in serious trouble. She
turned up the main hall and fled. The other crossbowman made a feeble stroke at
Mazi. She sidestepped the crossbow as Jeremiah charged towards it. He ran the orc
straight through and skidded to a halt. He pushed the orc off his sword with his boot.

Milo, Brigit, and Mazi chased the female up the passage. They caught up to it around
the corner and in front of a wooden door. It stopped fumbling with the door and
turned to run again. Brigit cut her down in her tracks before she could take more
than a half step.

"Ah, nuthin like a good ole fashioned orc slaughter, eh boyos?" Brigit said as she
leaned on her ax.

"Riiiiggghhht." Milo said as he breathed heavily from the run.

The four adventurers returned to the intersection, viewing the mass destruction that
lay at their feet. If nothing else, thought Milo, we're clearing these caves of the
hordes of orcs, kobolds, goblins, and other assorted beasties. Just as he started to
think about the undead army and their contribution to its forces the past few days,
Milo saw Brigit hacking away at a corpse.

"Just- in- case- tha'- robed- guy- tries- ta- raise- these- suckers-" Brigit said in-
between swings, "I'm- gonna- make- it- hard- for- the- bugger- ta- get- any-
satisfaction!" By the time she was done talking four of the orcs were completely
dismembered, head, legs, and arms.

"Hmm, not a bad idea. How about we check them for valuables before we hack them
to pieces though?" Milo replied.

They got down to the business of stripping the bodies of valuables. The leader had a
silver belt with a gold buckle, Brigit stashed it in her pack for safekeeping. In the belt
was a handaxe. The haft was crafted of bone and the head was exceedingly good
craftsmanship. They decided to stow it for later examination, not wanting to throw
something potentially valuable at a lowly enemy. The leader's sword had a beautiful
gem embedded in the pommel of the hilt. Mazi snatched the sword up and examined
the stone. She weighed it against her own sword, obviously considering using the
new weapon for aesthetic reasons alone. Milo grinned at the vain elf.

They decided to strip the plate mail from the orc and bury it to take back to town
later. Milo tossed the shield in with it. The pile of armor was left near the entrance so
they could check out the rest of the cavern before heading out. Jeremiah helped
Brigit finish dismembering the corpses. The grisly work took a few minutes and Milo
and Mazi spent the time discussing differences in divine and arcane spells.

After the human and dwarf were finished the four traveled back up to where the
female fell. Milo spotted an ivory bracelet around her thick wrist. It wouldn't fit Mazi's
slender arm so he stashed it for later.

The door was unlocked, the female had almost made it in before they struck her
down. Inside they found some crude furniture and a bed. On a table next to the bed
a copper bowl sat filled with garbage. Milo dumped it out and looked over the bowl.
It would fetch a good price for its quality. In the corner they found an untapped
barrel of wine. Brigit, ever the connoisseur, recognized the vintage stamp and
pronounced to be high quality wine. Good enough to haul back with them, for
drinking or selling. The last thing they found was a coin bag tied with a rope. Inside
were fifty platinum pieces. Milo whistled at the haul. All told he guessed they had in
excess of two thousand gold pieces of money and valuables.

Before they went any further Milo decided to use one of his magic detection spells on
all of the items they came across. They returned to the entrance and placed all of the
new gear next to the pile of plate mail. Milo spoke the minor cantrip and gestured to
the pile. Two faint glows could be detected. One came from the bone-hafted
handaxe, the other from the rope that tied the coin purse.

"Interesting! I wonder what this rope does?" Milo said as he fingered the braided
rope. "We need to get this stuff identified." Milo considered what he said and the
reason they were in the caves. "But not until we find those cups."
Keep of the Borderlands -part seventeen (session 5)
Before heading to the next cave complex Milo decided to use one of his healing spells
on Jeremiah. After he had finished the chant and touched his hands to the
barbarian's wounds, he shook his head sadly. The spell didn't heal much, perhaps
Milo wasn't focused enough. Jeremiah supplemented the spell with his last healing
draught, healing many of the wounds he had received.

The group made their way up the slope and to the next cave mouth. Near the
entrance was a multitude of signs in many languages. Mazi and Brigit only
recognized one, orc. Jeremiah and Milo couldn't make out any of the characters and
waited for the two women to translate. Brigit muttered something about a
recruitment office. Mazi told them what the sign said:

"Welcome humanoids. Come inside for food, shelter, and warmth. Please apply to
the guard station at the left."

It was obvious to the adventurers that they would encounter intelligent foes in this
cavern. They discussed various options, finally settling on a stealthy approach. Milo
and Mazi would go invisible, Milo using a spell that was specially granted to him and
Mazi using the potion that they had found days ago. Milo readied his short sword
before casting his spell. He hoped to get close to his opponent and surprise them
with a viscous sneak attack before they knew what hit them. Brigit and Jeremiah
would come in after Milo and Mazi as soon as the fighting started.

The two stealthily crept into the cavern. Not far from the entrance they arrived at an
intersection. Remembering the sign, they headed to the left. After another
intersection and a length of passage they spied a fire. Around the fire sat three large
humanoid shapes. Bugbears! All three were roasting something over the heat with
skewers.

Milo tiptoed behind one of the hulking beasts and took careful aim. Both he and Mazi
struck simultaneously. Rendered visible, the two adventurers were spied by the
bugbears. The beast before Milo dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding his sword.
Mazi slashed down at the bugbear in front of her, leaving a nasty gash along its
back. The bugbears roared in defiance.

One roar was cut short as Jeremiah's arrow whistled out of the darkness. It plunged
deep into the wounded bugbear's chest. The creature fell to the ground with a great
"whomp". Brigit quickly ran in after Jeremiah's arrow, hacking away with her
dwarven waraxe. The head cleaved through the gut of one bugbear, spilling its
contents on the ground. The weapon continued through the air to slash through the
hide of the next monster. The bugbear bled profusely from the wound but mustered
the strength to spear Brigit with its skewer. The flimsy weapon skittered off her
shield as Milo moved behind the beast. His sword flashed quickly and the bugbear
fell to the floor.

"Whew, fat lot of good the invisibility did me." Milo said as he wiped his blade clean
with a rag torn from the bugbear's tunic. "At least we took them down before they
could sound an alarm. I'm sure there's more about."

The others agreed and they set about looting the corpses. After they had found a few
gold pieces on each corpse, Brigit began her grisly work. She hacked away at the
large bodies until she was satisfied that no necromancer could bring them back, at
least not easily.

They decided to skip the second intersection after noticing that the passage sloped
upwards and possibly into another cave system. As they continued past the
entrance, trying to tread as softly as possible, Brigit stumbled. Her armor clanked
loudly as she righted herself. The sound startled Milo who was already on edge. He
too stumbled, his lantern swinging wildly before it bounced off the cavern wall with a
loud din. Mazi shushed them both as they stood as silently as possible. They waited
for a few seconds, fearing that an alarm may be sounded. But they waited in vain.
No running feet, no shouts down the halls, nothing.

The party continued on, suspicious that no one came to investigate the clamor. The
passage terminated in another intersection. This one branched to the north and
south. The southern passage led down a flight of stairs. They decided to head north
and finish the main level of the caverns before going down into the depths.

After a short curve to the east the tunnel ended in a door.

"OK everyone, considering that the whole cave probably knows we're here, why
don't we take the old tried-but-true approach?" Milo said after checking the door for
traps. "Which one of you wants the honor?" He asked Brigit and Jeremiah, bowing to
them while motioning to the door.

A glint appeared in Jeremiah's eye. He stomped up to the door, leaned back, and
heaved himself forward with his foot extended. The door burst open behind his
weight, slamming into the opposite wall. Over a dozen mildly surprised bugbears
stared back at them. Three large males stood in front of seven considerable females.
Three young bugbears peaked through from the back, their own weapons ready.

Milo fired a bolt at the first bugbear, winging the beast. Brigit rushed in past Jer and
hacked into the wounded bugbear. Her ax clove through the first and into the female
standing next to it. Both died almost simultaneously.

Mazithra moved next to Brigit and slashed at the male to her right. Her sword
swished through the air, failing to make contact with the snarling monster.

The bugbears recovered from their initial shock and pressed in on the two fighters.
Mazi deftly dodged the ugly brutes' attacks. The male she attacked swung a heavy
blow down at her, but she was no longer there. She spun to the side and hopped
back a half step to avoid two attacks from the females to her right. Brigit was not as
agile as her companion was, but the bugbears had no more luck attacking her than
they did her elven friend. The bugbears' maces made loud reverberations throughout
the large cavern as they bounced off her magical shield.

Jeremiah spied an opening from his position next to Milo and fired his bow. The
arrow sped past Mazi and Brigit but did not meet any resistance before it shattered
against the far wall. The barbarian looked anxious to draw his great sword and wade
into the battle but drew another arrow instead.

Another bolt from Milo's crossbow flew into the fray. It sunk into the big male's hide
with expert precision. Regardless of the accuracy of Milo's shot, the beast roared and
fought on. It swung its bludgeon at Mazi. It roared again as she dodged the blow.
Mazithra performed a graceful pirouette, attempting to avoid the two females. She
completed her spin and swung her sword arm out to attack the male when one of the
females brought its mace down hard. She pulled her arm back quickly, a large bruise
already forming under the skin.

Oblivious to Mazi's plight, Brigit swung her ax for another attack. The other male fell
to her mighty swing. It made to claw at her as it fell back, barely missing one of the
approaching young. Her ax continued its lethal work and the female attacked her
moments ago fell with a harsh scream.

Two more females took their place against the hated dwarf. Three females and one
youth were arrayed against the dwarf. Unfazed, Brigit warded off each of their blows
easily. She scoffed at them and watched in satisfaction as an arrow grazed the
youth. She glanced back to see Jeremiah reloading his bow. He nodded to her
quickly then focused on the enemy, taking aim.

Another young bugbear approached Mazi. Milo lined up his crossbow and pulled the
trigger. The youth fell with the bolt protruding from its chest cavity. Mazi was busy
attacking the last male and avoiding his mace. Neither combatant hit the other, but
one of the females landed a blow on the slender elf. She jumped away from the
offending mace before it could strike again.

Mazi took care not to get too close to Brigit's deadly ax. The head bit through
bugbears as easily as air. The dwarf didn't even appear to break a sweat as she
cleaved through two more females. A mist of blood floated to the floor, following the
bodies of the dead monsters.

Two more youth approached Brigit. One had a chance to swing at her before it was
cut down by Jeremiah's arrow. The other youth and the female tried to bring their
maces down on the dwarf. Her shield once again deflected the heavy weapons.

Brigit pulled back, heaving her ax above her head. The lethal blade crashed down
upon the unprotected shoulder of the bugbear youth, cutting it from neck to waist.
She brought the ax up in a curving motion, slicing through the female to the side. It
fell atop the cleaved body of the youth.

Mazithra sprung at the last remaining male, her sword finally inflicting a wound. The
bugbear bared its yellowed fangs at the elf and roared. Its mace swung at the elf,
causing the wound Mazi dealt to bleed even more. It missed her completely, she had
already spun around the reach of the clumsy bugbear. The two females tried to hit
the madly whirling elf but couldn't land a blow on her graceful form.

Jeremiah and Milo moved into the room, through the pathway cleared by Brigit. They
fired their missiles at the male. Jeremiah's arrow landed in its chest, puncturing its
lung. The beast fell back with a loud wheeze. Its body crashed to the floor.

Milo quickly reloaded his crossbow and fired at one of the remaining females. His bolt
found its target, wounding the bugbear gravely. Mazithra spun to the side and sliced
through it. Her sword made short work of the injured female.

Brigit stumped to the final female. Her ax literally whistled in the air before sinking
deep into the female's chest. Brigit grunted as she pushed the heavy bugbear off of
her ax blade.
"Not a very hardy bunch, is they?" Brigit said to no one in particular.

"Bah, I hate the stupid louts." Mazi said as she spat on the corpse of the bugbear
that gave her so much trouble. "They can all rot!"

"A little upset at your battle prowess today, Mazi?" Milo teased. "I'm sure you'll have
more chances to spill bugbear blood." he finished with a grin.

Milo was already floating over the corpses, his little fingers working deftly to remove
any valuables he found. One of the males had a large key ring. Milo clipped it to his
belt for future inspection. The males and females all carried gold. It began to strike
Milo as suspicious. Almost every humanoid they had fought so far had some sort of
coin on them.

"All of these beasts we've been battling have got to be in the employ of that robed
guy." Milo thought some more. "Well, maybe not the cultist kobolds, but I've noticed
that the rest of them have all had money. I bet they're paid by that fiend."

The others considered the idea while they finished looting the bodies. Once they
were done, Brigit set about hacking the arms, legs, and heads off the corpses. The
others stood to the side and looked on. The dwarf was quickly earning the nickname
of Brigit the Butcher. At least it's for practical reasons, thought Milo.
Keep of the Borderlands -part eighteen (session 5)
They left the room in good spirits, intent on investigating the lower portion of the
cave complex before heading north to the sloping passage. A flight of stairs led them
into a widening of the cave. Two hallways branched from the main cavern to the east
and west. All along the walls were stacked boxes and sacks of supplies.

"Well here's the supplies they won't be needing anymore." Milo said as he toed one
of the sacks on the ground.

"Aye, them undead don't need no grain 'n food." Brigit agreed.

Jeremiah hushed the two impatiently. He had a concentrated look on his face. After
peering intently into space he spoke to the others.

"People shouting for help that way." Jeremiah said, pointing to the east.

"We should probably help them then, but that makes me a little too suspicious." Milo
said. "Everyone keep your guards up, this could be a trap."

The crew readied their weapons and advanced down the hall. The quarters were tight
due to the stacked boxes and sacks. After a zigzag in the tunnel they came to a
door. All four could now hear the shouts for help. There was more than just one
language too. Milo checked the door for traps. Nothing caught his trained eye. He
fished out the key ring he found on one of the guards and located a key that would
fit the door. A couple of tries later he heard the satisfying "click" that he loved so
much. He swung open the door, ready for an ambush.

What he and the others saw was far from an ambush. A variety of humanoids were
chained to the walls. They were all in a horrible state, some of them had been there
for a long time. Milo spied three kobolds, a goblin, four orcs, and two humans that
wore the remnants of a familiar livery. All of them cringed when he opened the door
until they noticed that he wasn't quite the size of a bugbear. They all started
clamoring for attention as soon as they realized that the adventurers could rescue
them.

Milo ignored the beasts and made his way over to the humans. "Hello, who are you?"
He asked them.

"We're caravan guards," one answered weakly, "we were captured and brought
here."

Milo and Mazi walked back a pace to discuss the situation while Brigit talked to the
orcs. Mazi was distrustful as always. Milo reasoned that they were wearing the
remnants of the caravan's livery and that the other caravan guards were
trustworthy. The least they could do was escort them out of the caverns. Mazi
agreed reluctantly.

"We're going to let you down," Milo told the humans, "Just beware that there may be
other bugbears about, keep behind us and don't get into trouble."

Mazi whispered to Jeremiah to keep an eye on them. Milo found the keys that
matched the shackles and handed them to Jeremiah. While the barbarian released
the humans Brigit walked over to talk to Milo and Mazi.
"The orcs're askin' ta be let go. I don' trust em tho." Brigit said to her friends. "They
be a pitiful bunch. Apparently them bugbears keep this rabble on hand ta
supplement their food supply." She said with a wicked gleam to her eye. "I kin think
of some more creative ways ta use em."

The orcs and other creatures were whining by that time. Brigit further relayed that
the orcs promised to help them if the party freed them. The dwarf and elf couldn't
seem to decide what to do. Milo stowed his crossbow and drew his dagger. He
decided to take matters into his own hands. Milo walked to the kobolds first,
methodically slitting their throats and ending their lives. He moved from creature to
creature until none remained alive.

"I don't fancy having my enemies travel with me when there's a much more simple
solution available." Milo said to the slightly shocked stares of his companions. Brigit
cracked a smile while Mazi just shrugged. The dwarf set about hacking off the legs
and arms of the prisoners.

Jeremiah had released the humans and the party took stock of their situation.
Nothing of value remained in the room so they moved back into the corridor. When
they reached the main cavern again they could hear more shouts for help faintly
down the other hallway.

The inflated group moved through the western passage. A branch headed south
while the supply corridor continued west. The shouts were coming from behind a
door at the end of the hallway. Milo found the key that matched the lock and they
peered into the room. No ambush greeted them here either. Chained to the wall
were three hobgoblins, two gnolls, a large bearded human, and surprisingly, a
bugbear.

Milo moved first to the hulking bearded man. "So who are you?" He started
companionably.

"A traveler." The man replied.

"Riiiiiight. So you 'traveled' into those chains? Doesn't sound like a good journey.
Where will you go if we release you?"

"I will travel." He answered cryptically.

Nonplussed, Milo asked, "Alright then, are you any good in a fight?"

At that the burly man grinned. "Oh aye, I can swing a weapon."

"You wouldn't by any chance be a berserker, would you?" Milo asked hopefully.
Another barbarian at their back could be a good thing, though he didn't quite trust
the furry human.

He just shrugged, "Ye'll never know if yeh leave me up here, now will yeh?"

"True enough, then you can travel with us until we get out of these caves. We'll find
you a mace from the bugbears."
"It's not an axe, but it'll do." The big man said as Jeremiah reached up to his
shackles to release him.

Mazi trusted this fellow even less than the caravan guards. She once again
whispered to Jeremiah to keep an eye on the newly freed prisoners. The poor
barbarian is going to have his eyes full, thought Milo. While the mountain man and
Milo were discussing things Brigit had kept herself busy. The other prisoners were
already dead and dismembered by the time they were ready to leave. The caravan
guards looked a little green and they seemed to avoid looking at the dwarf.

The large party now moved back up the stairs. They only paused for the guards and
the mountain man to pick up a mace each from the bugbear's corpses. No sounds
echoed down the hallway but the sound of their boots. The adventurers passed the
cavern entrance and turned the corner to look up the sloping passage. They could
see it curve up to the right, but more interestingly, they could see a door on the
western wall.

Not one to leave a stone unturned, or a door unopened, Milo cautiously stepped
forward. He quietly searched for traps before examining the latch. It didn't appear to
be locked. Milo motioned to Jeremiah, pointing to his boot. The barbarian grinned as
he moved in front of the door. Brigit moved herself next to Milo as Jer kicked in the
door.

Milo fired his bolt at the first bugbear he saw. There were only two in the room, a
large male and an equally large female. The male snarled as the bolt sunk into its
shoulder. The great beast hurled its handaxe at Milo. The axe head sunk into his left
shoulder, almost causing him to drop his lantern. Milo staggered from the blow and
looked down. He dimly recognized the axe through the haze of pain. It was exactly
like the handaxe they found on the orc leader's body. He ripped the axe from the
wound and sucked in a deep breath of air at the fresh wave of pain.

Brigit moved in next to him and hacked at the female. Her axe cut it down even as it
swung its mace at the dwarf. Jeremiah fired his bow from behind the crew, his arrow
whizzed by the head of the huge bugbear. Mazi readied her sword, waiting for an
opportunity to attack.

Milo quickly moved to the side and fired another bolt from his crossbow. The quarrel
missed but his movement gave Mazi an opportunity to move in. She worked out her
frustration with the previous bugbears on the hapless beast. Her sword inflicted a
grave wound on the monster. Near the back Jeremiah loosed another arrow at the
bugbear.

His arrow missed the retreating form of the bugbear. Apparently it had a
rudimentary knowledge of arithmetic and found the numbers to be against it. It
pressed an unseen switch and the wall beside it swung away. The beast ran down
the passageway. Brigit gave chase. She ran full tilt with Milo, Mazi, and Jeremiah
close behind.

They all reached the bugbear just as it was turning back to watch for the pursuers.
Brigit heaved mightily with her axe as the bugbear tried to run again. The blade cleft
through the monster's skull and it fell face-first with a heavy thud.

"Good job Brigit!" Milo said, out of breath from the chase.
"Stupid bugbear, shoulda knowt better than ta turn yer back on a dwarf!" Brigit said
to the dead body.

Milo stooped down and searched over the body. He found a pouch with a good
amount of platinum coins and a key. Under the coins he found three small gems, he
guessed to be about 50 gold apiece. A key was at the very bottom of the pouch.

"Not bad guys, check out the coin he was hauling around!" Milo said as he showed
the pouch to the others. "I'm guessing this was the bugbears' head honcho."

Brigit merely grunted as her axe swung again and again, severing the leader's limbs.
Mazi peered into the pouch and agreed with Milo. Jeremiah simply stood to the side
and stared down the secret passage.

Milo and the others decided to investigate this passage before they rejoined the
guards and mountain man in the leader's room. A short distance from where the
bugbear fell they emerged into a small room with four other tunnels branching in all
directions. All four experienced a queasy feeling as they entered the room. They had
no time to reflect on the odd sensation as three large, glowing beetles skittered
towards them, their pincers snapping.

Milo and Jeremiah reacted quickly, firing their crossbow and long bow respectively.
Milo's bolt skittered off the hard carapace of the lead beetle. Jeremiah's arrow found
a soft spot on one of the two following bugs, but it didn't seem to damage the beetle
much.

Mazi slashed down at the first beetle before it could close its pincers around her legs.
The insect made a piercing sound as her blade bit into it. Its legs twitched as it
flattened to the ground. The other two beetles reached Mazi and Brigit. Mazi winced
as the razor sharp pincer of the beetle sliced a gash on either side of her right leg.
She beat the beetle off and backed up.

Brigit swung her axe at the bug reared up before her. The insect fell back to its legs
just before the blade passed through it. Milo shot another bolt at the beetle attacking
Mazi. It again skittered off the glowing shell of the bug. Mazi kicked at the beetle
that wounded her other leg, cursing the luck. She was unable to bring her sword to
bear while she fended the beetle off.

Brigit gave a hoarse battle cry and swooped her axe low, she sliced the legs off the
first beetle before pulling the blade up through its mandibles. The axe continued its
journey through the air and finished in the carapace of the beetle that wounded
Mazi. A green ichor covered her axe head as she withdrew it from the beetle's back.

Milo noticed that the beetles' shells still glowed after they died. He figured that it
must be a way for the insects to find their way around the caverns. Milo walked to
the other tunnel openings and listened to any sounds filtering through. In one tunnel
he could hear flapping, like leathery wings rubbing against each other and the air.
Not good. He heard the skittering of insect feet down another tunnel. Milo wasn't
eager to fight more bugs. Yet another tunnel yielded a heavy, monstrous breathing.

"I don't think we should investigate these tunnels just yet." Mazi said.
"Yeah, I feel a little disoriented and we may still have some bugbears to deal with."
Milo agreed.

Before they left Milo cast a healing spell on Mazi. Her wounds sealed and some color
flushed into her cheeks.

The adventurers trooped back up the tunnel into the bugbear's room. The guards
and the mountain man were still in the room, waiting. The caravan guards looked a
little nervous but the mountain man was sitting in the corner, disinterested. Milo
leaned over the body of the female, noticing a glint on its ear. He found a pair of
gold earrings and pocketed them after showing them to Mazi. She seemed
interested, but it could wait for later.

Brigit was peering intently at a bare spot of rock a space above them, near the
cavern roof. Milo looked up where she was staring and saw nothing. He just
shrugged and turned to search the rest of the room.

Brigit tapped him on the shoulder and pointed up to the wall. "Ya see that, halflin?"

"See what?"

"That little spot on the wall, jus' a tad differnt from tha rest." Brigit said, trying to
point out what she saw.

Milo stared at the wall for a long moment. After a good thirty seconds he noticed
what Brigit had seen. There was a square of rock, almost indistinguishable from the
wall. Milo called Jeremiah over and asked for a lift up. The barbarian obliged and
heaved Milo up to his shoulders. Milo inspected the rough patch closely.

"It's a chest! Brigit, you are amazing! You sure you didn't get any training on the
streets?" Milo teased Brigit. "It looks like it would take two of you to heave it out,
but it's possible."

Jeremiah called over the burly mountain man and they heaved on the chest. A low
rumble could be heard as the chest slid from its cavity. It fell with a resounding
thunk to the floor. The lid flew open and the adventurers were treated to an
impressive sight. Over a thousand silver pieces were piled in the stone chest. An
alabaster and ivory statue rested on the pile of silver. Two small flasks that were
wrapped in silk lay next to the statue.

Brigit unwrapped the potions and handed the silk to Milo. "Let's see what we got
here." she said as she sipped from the first flask. She perked up a little and sighed.
"I think it's a healin' potion. I feel pretty refreshed." She sipped from the second
flask and related the same. They stowed the two healing potions for later. Brigit
loaded up the coins and statue in her pack. She was feeling the weight now. They
had to unload some of these goods soon.

"Let's check out the other door we passed up before." Milo recommended as he
gestured to the door. "I think we can leave the other complex for later."

The party filed out of the leader's room and returned to the original passage.
Considering the amount of noise they made in the other room they figured that any
more bugbears would be ready for them. The tunnel branched to the other door. Milo
listened carefully, his head pressed up to the rough wood. Hearing nothing, he
checked the door, frame, and lock for any traps. He noticed that the lock matched
the key they found in the leader's pouch. Milo retrieved the key from the pouch in
Brigit's pack and tried it in the door. The lock clicked and the wooden door swung
open.

A medium sized room lay before them, more supplies stacked to the ceiling. There
was ale, dried meat, oil, and even an old shield. The group restocked their rations
and Milo refilled his oil flasks. He asked the group to lay down all the items they had
found so far so he could cast his magic detection cantrip. After he completed the
short chant he could see a faint glowing around the handaxe the bugbear leader
threw at him. Another faint glow was around the large shield that Brigit had been
using. It was a similar glow to the magic shield Mazi had picked up. Everything else
was either mundane or had already been detected as magical, so Milo ignored them.
He imparted his findings to the rest of the group.

With only one more passage to investigate the party trooped on. Back up the
sloping, curved passage the group came to a door. Milo listened in again, this time
hearing grunting and shuffling. He quieted his friends and motioned from Brigit to
kick in the door, figuring she could surprise the inhabitants and have the advantage.

Brigit brought up her steel boot and smashed it into the door. It flew open and was
greeted by the ugly faces of more bugbears. They were ready for the infidels. Mazi
was a split second faster than the monsters, she let an arrow fly from her elven bow,
straight into the heart of one of the males. It keeled over without a sound.

Three bugbears, a male and two females, rushed at the elf. She dodged two swings
of their maces when she felt a clipping blow on her shoulder. She stumbled but
righted herself before another mace could land. Brigit moved past the door and
introduced her axe to the closest bugbear. The beast fell before her mighty slash.

Milo pulled the trigger on his crossbow, only to see the string jam in the mechanics.
He cursed and went to work on the faulty crossbow. Jeremiah shook his head at the
halfling and let go of his bowstring. His arrow sunk into the leg of an advancing
female. He smirked at Milo. He might have been offended if he wasn't so intent on
fixing his weapon.

Mazi dispatched the bugbear that Jeremiah wounded, her long sword pierced the
female's chest. She withdrew her sword and readied herself for the other two
bugbears' imminent attacks. She twirled past one mace and parried the other with
her long sword.

Brigit closed in behind one of the attacking bugbears. Her muscles bulged under her
armor as she heaved her axe down. The axe head swung straight through the
bugbear's head, through its neck and continued down its torso. The monster fell in
two perfectly even parts, one to the left, one to the right, from the critical blow.

Jeremiah loosed another arrow at the last bugbear. He took care to aim away from
Mazithra and his arrow flew wide of the mark. Next to the barbarian Milo was still
muttering under his breath about his crossbow. He almost had another bolt loaded
before a whirlwind of action brought the fight to its finish.
Mazi parried a blow from the bugbear. She in turn was repelled from her opponent.
The bugbear couldn't concentrate on the elf and the dwarf at the same time though.
Brigit's axe flew through the air and sunk into the monster's hide. The blade bit deep
before the bugbear fell in a heap.

"Aha!" said Milo as he jumped up with his crossbow aimed towards the former
battleground. His face fell when he realized that there were no more bugbears to
take out. Milo lowered his weapon, shrugged, and set about to relieving the dead of
their valuables. These bugbears carried gold as well, a few pieces each. Milo also
noticed something funny about the fireplace in the back of the room. Behind the old
fireback he found a blackened spittoon. On a hunch he ripped off a rag from one of
the corpse's threadbare clothes. After some vigorous polishing he found that the
spittoon was really a silver urn. A valuable one at that.

He motioned to Brigit and tied the urn to her pack. He didn't notice the look of bare
avarice in the mountain man's eyes. They all searched the rest of the room and
found nothing.

"I'm just about out of energy and spells, what say we camp before we check out any
more caverns?" Milo suggested. He thought about the other cavern they found and
the disorientation they felt there. He'd rather be fully rested before tackling that
place.

"I agree with Milo, let's find another campground and rest for a little bit." Mazi said.

[I]"Just...let...me...finish...what...I'm...doin..." Brigit said between strokes of her

axe. The butcher was at work.

The guards' queasy faces returned at the sight of Brigit's handiwork. The mountain
man only had eyes for the urn, the most valuable item he had seen the party pick up
besides the statue that was stowed in Brigit's pack. The adventurers left the cavern
with the former prisoners trailing behind.

After a half-day's walk the party found a suitable campground. The four friends
discussed watch and decided that the two guards and the mountain man could sleep
while they stood watch. Mazi still didn't trust them. The seven of them set about
making a cold camp.
Keep of the Borderlands -part nineteen (session 5)
The party and the liberated prisoners settled in for another cold camp. Watch was set
and Milo slipped into his bedroll after doffing his chain shirt. It wasn't nearly as
comfortable as his old leathers but he had to admit it offered him much more
protection. It was a few minutes before Brigit had finished removing her plate mail.
The heavy pieces of metal clanked noisily to the ground. Milo sighed, he was going to
have to teach her how to be quieter with that stuff. He had drifted off into a light,
alert sleep before the thought was even complete.

Milo awoke with a start. He heard a leathery flapping and a shout from Jeremiah. He
was up in a flash, reaching for his crossbow and lantern before he even knew what
had happened. Milo looked about the campsite and saw what made the sound. He
could barely make out a huge bat hovering over Jeremiah. Milo found his flint and
steel and struck a light to the lantern.

The others were up by then, each reaching for their weapon, not even taking time to
don their armor. Jeremiah was in trouble as he dodged the bat as best he could. In
one uncharacteristically fluid motion Jer sidestepped a lunge from the beast and
brought his great sword straight down. The blade bit into the foul monster's hide,
splattering the barbarian with blood. The creature snapped its neck back and sunk its
fangs into his arm. Jeremiah jumped back, hand held to the twin wounds on his
forearm.

Mazi wasted no time, as soon as she stood up from retrieving her bow she loosed an
arrow. Her aim was remarkable and would have wounded the bat seriously if it
hadn't raised a hair's breadth from its position. The arrow skimmed along its
underside, grazing through its hide. Milo drew back his crossbow string, loading a
bolt as quickly as he could.

Brigit had drawn her bow as well. Her shot was not as successful as Mazithra's. It
flew past the huge bat's wings on a downbeat. She swore and tossed the bow to the
ground. Jeremiah and the bat continued their deadly dance. They exchanged a flurry
of blows, the bat's glistening fangs biting at Jeremiah's sword. Somehow the huge
flying beast made it past Jeremiah's guard. It pierced his armor at the shoulder and
drew more blood. Jer returned the favor with his sword. He brought the great blade
down on the bat's flank, slicing through the furry hide.

Brigit rummaged through her gear and heaved out her waraxe with a satisfied
exclamation. She turned to charge back into the fray. She noticed the mountain man
and guards cowering at the edge of the camp and snorted her disdain before
returning her attention to the giant bat.

Milo loosed his first crossbow bolt at the creature. He sighed in disappointment as
the bolt bounced harmlessly off the bat's thick hide. He grabbed his bolts and moved
closer for a direct shot. Mazi suffered a similar problem. Her arrow grazed the beast's
underside again, but no wound trailed the arrowhead. She grabbed another arrow
from her quiver.

Jeremiah slashed at the flying monstrosity a moment too late. The bat flew in too
close and bit down on his other shoulder. Jeremiah staggered back, bleeding
profusely from many wounds. The bat looked to be about to finish him off.

Milo grabbed one of the flasks he always kept handy on the outside of his pack and
rushed it to Jeremiah. The barbarian recognized the vial and immediately downed its
contents. His wounds stopped bleeding immediately and he looked greatly refreshed.
He let out a loud roar and gripped his sword, ready to dispatch the loathsome beast.

Brigit moved in and swung her axe. For the first time she cursed her smaller stature.
It was as if the bat taunted her, flying just inches above her swinging axe. The bat
waited for a pause in her attack and lunged at Jeremiah again. Its glistening fangs
sunk once more into his flesh, this time two puncture wounds in his leg began to
bleed.

Mazi sensed a perfect moment to attack as the bat pulled away from its bite. She
drew back hard on her bowstring, ready to plunge the arrow into the bat's heart. A
resounding snap could be heard in the clearing as her string whipped off the top
notch. Her arrow remained in her hand and a bewildered look crept across her face.
She immediately set about rummaging through her pack for her spare string.

Meanwhile Jeremiah roared again and charged at the bat before it could rise above
the group. His muscles bunched up around his shoulders as his sword swung down at
the huge, le creature. The blade sliced clean through its hide and didn't stop until the
bat's head was completely severed from its body. Its heavy corpse fell like a rock to
the ground. Jeremiah stood over the dead bat with his sword tip embedded in the
earth. He was breathing heavily and his wounds were bleeding again.

Milo rushed over to Jer and began his chants. After a couple of healing mantras
Jeremiah felt revived and healthy. Mazi had found that in the confusion the mountain
man she distrusted so much lived up to her expectations. The silver urn they had
found that day was gone, as was he. She muttered under her breath and threw a
nasty glare at the remaining caravan guards as if challenging them to flee with any
more of their goods.

The guards were happy to still be alive and they thanked the party profusely again.
They swore their trustworthiness and promised to keep a low profile if the party
would allow them to stay. Milo saw no problem with the guards, the one he didn't
halfway trust had already fled. He was glad that all the burly mountain man took was
the urn. They had many more valuables that could have gone missing.

Brigit hacked off the wings of the great bat and they rolled it out of the clearing. Milo
was half-worried that the carrion may attract other residents of the cursed forest but
the party was too tired to move out. They decided to set up watch again and brave
the rest of the night where they were.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty (session 5)
The party woke the next morning with no more visits from the evil denizens of the
woods. Milo stretched and surveyed the scene. There was an area of crumpled grass
and brown stains that the party had avoided sleeping on. The clearing was empty
save the group and their gear. They set about donning armor and eating cold rations
for breakfast. All four adventurers shared a bit with the two guards. They decided to
stay at the camp rather than venturing back into the caves with the group. Milo
shrugged and wished them well. He didn't have too much confidence in their
chances, but they refused to go back into the den of creatures from which they so
recently escaped.

Another half-day journey brought them back to the gorge. The ominous presence
remained throughout the small valley. It was as though a blanket of doom covered
the gorge, oppressive and bleak. The sooner we destroy those cups, the better, Milo
thought.

The next cavern had rough, natural walls. They could hear the same leathery
flapping they heard in the bugbear cave. Milo just hoped they were done with giant
bats. They approached an intersection, more of a branching of two passages from
one. A slightly disorienting feeling washed over the party. Milo felt a little sick to his
stomach.

Ignoring the discomfort Milo asked the others, "So shall we take all left turns? Keep
ourselves from getting too lost at least."

His friends agreed and they took the left. Milo noticed that the others had the same
discomforted expression he wore. He shrugged and tried his best to ignore it. They
came to a slight widening of the tunnel and the leathery flapping increased in
volume. Ever paranoid, Milo glanced up at the ceiling. He was just in time to see a
cluster of giant insectoids detach themselves from the cavern roof and swoop down
on them.

Milo fired off his loaded bolt and watched it tear into the translucent wing of an
approaching bug. The missile left a ragged hole through the membranous tissue. The
mosquito-like insect came on.

Mazi fired her arrow directly into the body of one that was buzzing towards her. The
flying bug faltered in the air for a moment before recovering itself and continuing its
dive.

Brigit waited patiently for the insects to come to her. "Stirges," she said as they
moved closer. "Used ta get tha nasty buggers inna caves back home. Don't let em
latch on wi' them needlenoses, ye'll be weak fer days." Three of the stirges attacked
her at once. She swatted one away with the flat of her axe then turned the motion
into a full swing at the next. The stirge fell in pieces at her feet. It was barely noticed
as her weapon continued to cleave through the air. The third stirge that attacked her
fell in pieces as well. The first insect buzzed angrily around her, looking for a spot to
land.

The stirges broke away from each other, three on each of the adventurers besides
Brigit. Two swooped at Milo, buzzing above his head as he leapt away. The
distraction caused by the stirges above prevented him from spotting the one behind.
The large flying insect landed hard on his shoulder, immediately plunging its
proboscis into his arm. The bug was the size of his head and his vision swam as his
blood was forcefully pulled from his veins.

Mazithra was busily fending off the stirges attacking her when Milo was hit. She was
unable to move to his aid as she spun and ducked the swooping stirges. One grazed
her arm, its sharp footpads seeking purchase. She wrenched her arm away and
rolled to the side, safe for a moment.

Jeremiah watched the insect approach him and readied his sword. One stirge
swooped at him from the front as another attacked from behind. He stepped
sideways, avoiding the stirge aimed at his back, but the other swerved to match his
position with blinding speed. The bug attached itself to his arm and plunged its
needle-like snout down. Jer stumbled a bit, narrowly avoiding the third insect
swooping down at him. He roared and slashed at the attached stirge, slicing its snout
off and dropping it in one blow. His sword caught the hind side of the stirge he just
dodged. That insect dropped as well. Jeremiah paused to pull the proboscis from his
arm and looked around for another target.

Milo fought down panic as he struggled to reload his crossbow for another shot at the
wounded stirge attached to his shoulder. He carefully pulled out the bolt from the
hipcase and notched it into the string. He took aim at the huge bug on his shoulder,
careful to avoid hitting himself, and fired. The bolt skimmed over its insectile head,
causing no damage. He cursed and reached over to load another bolt.

Brigit ignored the last stirge buzzing over her head and turned to Milo. Her axe came
dangerously close to Milo's neck as she swung at the insect on his shoulder. Milo
ducked and threw a terrified glance back at the dwarf.

"Kill the stirge, the stirge! Not me!" Milo shouted.

"Hold still, halflin! I canna kill tha stirge wi' ya bouncin round like that!" Brigit
shouted back.

Mazi turned from her current target, an angry stirge buzzing above her, to see Milo
with one of the insects latched on. She shifted her aim with a smooth movement and
released the bowstring. The arrow pierced clean through the stirge, the arrowhead
stopped a mere inch from Milo's neck. He gave a startled exclamation and pushed
the giant insect off his shoulder before making a thumbs up signal to Mazi.

Mazi's move cost her dearly. All three stirges circling the elf swooped in, swarming
over her. They alighted on her, two on her shoulders and one in a tenacious lock on
her arm. Mazi almost fell over from the attack, her already pale elven skin turning
white.

Jeremiah and Milo avoided the stirges tailing them as they turned to help their
comrade. Milo rolled under a particularly vicious dive. Jeremiah merely batted a
stirge aside as he made his way to where the beleaguered elf stood. Jeremiah took
careful aim and ran the stirge on Mazi's arm straight through. He lifted it off of his
friend and flung the corpse at the other buzzing insects.

Milo aimed at one of the stirges on Mazi's shoulders. He fired his bolt and hoped that
Mazi would stand still before it reached her. The quarrel sunk into the stirge. It
paused its draining of the hapless elf momentarily, but continued on.
Brigit swung her axe at Mazi in much the same way she had when Milo was in a
similar predicament. This time the heavy weapon ground through the huge bug. The
sharp snout flew from her skin as the stirge was propelled across the cavern from
the force of the blow.

Mazi herself managed to strike the final stirge before it could continue its grisly
drain. She pierced the wounded insect and it dropped at her feet. She nodded her
thanks at the others quickly then turned to take aim at any remaining insects.

Milo had looked down to reload his crossbow when he felt the foul touch of a stirge
on his back. He shuddered as the insect's proboscis sunk into his back, through his
chain shirt. Another stirge swooped down and landed next to the first, also plunging
its snout into Milo's back. He cried out softly as he felt the life being drained from his
body.

Jeremiah was no more fortunate. He swung at one of the grotesque insects in vain.
The mosquito-like stirge zipped to the side with blinding speed before diving towards
the barbarian. He too shuddered as the bug landed on his upper arm. The stirge
began sucking his blood as soon as it had landed.

Jer scraped at the giant insect and snapped off its snout. The stirge fell to the ground
dead. Jeremiah pulled out the proboscis, his second during this fight. The others
could tell Jer had no more patience for these insects. Neither indeed did they.

Milo shot his crossbow over his shoulder, tearing through the membrane of a stirge's
wing. The creature continued to sap his strength, oblivious to the pain caused by his
quarrel.

Brigit stepped up behind Milo, "Now hold still, halflin!"

She swung her axe just a hairbreadth away from Milo's chain shirt. The sharp
dwarven steel sliced cleanly through the wounded stirge before exploding into the
second. Two halves of a stirge fell amid the giblets from the second insect. Milo
turned and glanced at Brigit's work with approval.

The last stirge swooped at Brigit. Her plate mail protected her beautifully. A sharp
"CLANG" could be heard echoing through the cavern as the insect rammed nose first
into her breastplate. Brigit grinned as she watched the stirge flop to the floor. It's
wings flailed around as it struggled to right itself and take back to the air. Brigit
didn't give it the opportunity. Her axe flashed from the light of Milo's lantern as it
swung straight down, chopping the stirge in two.

"Okay, it's official. I don't like stirges at all!" Milo stated.

"Aye laddie, they can be a serious threat, no doubt. Ya gotta get em offa ya quick,
'fore they start ta suck out yer innerds." Brigit answered him back. "I don' fancy
none O these comin' back at me undead an' the like." Brigit walked to another stirge
corpse and hacked it beyond recognition. Milo was quick to help. Milo hated undead,
really.

Their grisly work done, the adventurers took stock of the situation. Considering that
all of the stirges had been removed before they could do serious damage, they were
all feeling relatively good. The party decided to venture deeper into the disorienting
cavern.

After two more left turns past seemingly identical intersections, Milo spotted a
strange, somehow familiar glow. The chittering and scrabbling sound of insect feet
approaching them refreshed his memory. He alerted the group just as two of the
same type of glowing beetles they had fought previously emerged from a three-way
intersection ahead.

Milo shot off a bolt at one. He remembered to aim low, under their glowing carapace.
The beetle emitted a high-pitched keening when his missile found its mark. It
continued to advance, too stupid to notice the pain over its hunger for their flesh.

Jeremiah strode forward, meeting the two beetles up the corridor. They reared up,
moments away from lunging to attack. Jer was waiting for their move. As soon as
they reached full height he swung his great sword in a wide horizontal arc. Both
beetles exploded in gray and green ichor, splattering the cavern walls. The barbarian
strode back to the group with a smug look on his face.

"No work for you Brigit, already cut in two." said the normally silent human.

Brigit shook her head in mute amazement. Milo laughed and clapped Jeremiah on the
back.

"Was that a joke, my reticent friend? I'm impressed!" Milo said. Jeremiah actually
seemed to blush a bit.

They moved on, always turning left at any intersection they reached. After three
more turns they came to a familiar room with five entrances. One of them led to a
door. This was the same cavern they left in the bugbear's lair, Milo realized.

They decided to take the next left out of the familiar cavern and continue on. Three
more lefts brought them right back into the room with five passages. Mazi moaned in
frustration. Her impeccable mental map didn't make any sense at all. She shared her
information with the group who had already come to the realization that they were
definitely lost.

"We've tried turning left at every intersection and it hasn't worked. Tell you what,
let's go through the same passage here," he said as he pointed to the tunnel they
had entered earlier, "and we'll turn right at the next intersection. Sound good?"

They all nodded affirmative so Milo led the way down the next passage. As they
came to the next intersection they veered right, hoping to break the circle they were
running in. Not far down this passage they came to another intersection. Figuring
they were in a different part of the caves, they returned to the all-left pattern. They
heard an ominous noise mere feet into this passage. A heavy, animalistic breathing
emanated from the tunnel ahead.

"Well, we're certainly not alone here guys," Milo said quietly. "I'm willing to bet
that's no beetle or stirge. Everyone get ready for a biggun." Milo had a bad feeling
about the rhythmic breathing. He readied one of his favorite chants, thanking his
unnamed patron that he had prepared it that morning.
The passage ended in a large room after about another ten feet. They had barely
entered the natural cave when a rumbling bellow echoed towards them. From the
other end of the room a huge humanoid charged. The large male figure had the head
of a bull and a fierce battle-axe. Milo's lantern reflected off the finely sharpened tips
of its horns.

"My dream!" Jeremiah said breathlessly.

Milo shuddered inwardly, thinking about what those horns could do in front of that
powerful head, neck, and body. He called the mantra from the front of his mind forth
and gestured fiercely at the charging minotaur.

The minotaur's bellow was cut short, ending in a slightly quizzical tone as it slowed
to a halt. Its muscles seemed to freeze after Milo finished his incantation. The great
beast's axe was raised high above its down-turned horns, frozen in place like a
statue.

Jeremiah loosed a hoarse cry of his own and charged at the minotaur before he knew
what was happening. He was caught by surprise as the beast stopped dead in its
tracks. His sword sliced into the minotaur's abdomen, severing muscle but not killing
it.

Brigit walked up to it and set her axe to its waist, much as if she were about to chop
down a tree. She pulled her arms back, turning her whole body before swinging
back. The dwarven waraxe bit into the minotaur unlike any axe to a tree. Brigit
finished her movement facing the opposite direction, practically spinning 180
degrees. The minotaur's legs and waist fell to the ground, on top of its torso and
head. She turned and gave a jaunty salute to Milo.

Jeremiah looked somewhat disappointed. Apparently he had never finished the fight
in his dreams and this wasn't quite what he expected. Milo gave him a pat on his
back and told him to keep watch for any other minotaurs that might live here.

He very much doubted that there were any more. Right as Brigit made her fateful
attack Milo noticed the disorienting feeling lift. He guessed that the minotaur had
some sort of constant enchantment that prevented them from finding their way
through the labyrinthine caverns. Probably to weaken them by the time they found
their way to the middle, the lair of the beast.

At the far end of the cavern Milo found the minotaur's sleeping area. It was obviously
a fastidious beast. There were bones stacked neatly from the floor to level with his
chest. Skulls topped pyramids of bleached bones. He found a dwarven waraxe, it was
in remarkable shape and looked sharper than Brigit's, if that were possible.

Before he could show his discovery to Brigit he heard her exclaim. She had found an
odd section of wall. She discovered a large loose rock that slid away from the wall
easily. Behind the rock was a shallow alcove with a small chest, a suit of plate mail,
and a long stick.

Jeremiah looked very interested in the plate mail. It looked just his size. Milo was
more concerned with the chest and stick. He checked the small box for traps, eyeing
the lock carefully. He noticed a tiny needle just inside the mechanism. It was
perfectly placed to snag anyone too careless as they tried to force the lock. He
withdrew his tools and set about disarming the spring-set needle trap. As careful as
he was, the trap sprung as one of his tools slipped. He steeled himself for a quick
poison or a sick sensation. A slight shudder coursed through his system but he was
able to shake it off. He guessed the poison was a low grade. One more attempt at
disarming the trap and he was successful, pulling the needle out carefully with
tweezers.

The lock was no match for his lock picks after he was warmed up with the trap. The
lid sprung open and three bottles met his gaze. Under the bottles was a pile of gold
and electrum, with a bit of jewelry poking through. Mazi looked over his shoulder at
the sparkling, very interested in the colors of the stones.

Brigit volunteered to taste the potions, relying on her dwarven constitution to

prevent any complications. She described the first liquid as slightly smoky. Milo
noticed that she appeared slightly hazy around the edges as she sipped.

"That's got to be some sort of gaseous form potion. You could change to smoke and
slip through cracks after drinking that!" Milo exclaimed.

Brigit shrugged and tried the next. She described the same refreshed feeling that
she felt after she drank healing potions. They stowed that one as a curing draught.
The last potion seemed the most alarming. After sipping a bit an alarmed expression
appeared on her face.

"My armor is too tight! Ack, I canna breath!" Brigit said with shock.

The sensation was only temporary. Mazi theorized that it must be an enlarge potion.
If Brigit had drank the whole thing her armor probably would have grown with her.
They stowed the three potions for later use.

Milo turned his attention to the long stick. It was sturdy and had some runes carved
into it. Neither he nor Mazi could figure out what it might be used for. They both
agreed that it had to be magical, whatever it was. Mazi stowed the staff since it was
much too large for Milo to haul around comfortable.

The adventurers discussed their finds with excitement. They decided to camp again
to ready themselves for the last two caverns. Mazi also mentioned a spell she had
been researching that would identify magical items. If she only had a few more hours
to devote to it she thought that it might be ready for use.

Their course decided, the friends set out to find their way through the maze. Without
the disorienting magic they found their way without a problem. No more beetles or
stirges bothered them on the way out.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-one (session 5)
A horrible sight awaited the party back at the camp. The two caravan guards had
been slaughtered, their heads and limbs severed from their bodies. They found the
appendages far from the corpses. Milo was both sickened and furious.

He pushed his anger to the back and forced himself to think clearly. They needed a
new campground, which was obvious. The guards were buried in shallow unmarked
graves. He was sad that more could not be done.

Their new campsite was farther up the trail to the gorge, but not so close that the
trees had become twisted and black. They found a small clearing in the forest and
began shedding gear. Mazi needed time to finish her research and meditation before
they could begin to identify the items they found. She immediately went to work,
pulling out her spell book and various components.

Milo took Brigit aside and started a conversation about her armor. She expressed her
interest in moving with a little less noise. Milo showed her some of the secrets he
learned in his own training, placement of feet, bits of cloth between plates to muffle
the clinking metal, how to pack gear for a minimum of noise. Brigit was a fast
learner, she sneaked up on Jeremiah twice without him hearing a whisper of sound.
Milo was very impressed in his apt pupil.

Brigit mentioned his skill with the lock pick and trap disabling tools. Milo enjoyed
having a student and was glad to teach her the basics. They used one of the chests
they had found. He would lock it, show her step by step how he used his picks to trip
the tumblers, then let her try. Her hands were amazingly dexterous considering her
short fingers and stocky frame. Milo gave her his backup set of lock picks as a gift
when she showed that she was able to pick the lock without any of his help. He was
proud of his student.

Disabling traps was much harder to teach, without any complex traps to demonstrate
on. He gave her some basic tips on finding and recognizing different traps. As well as
how to disable said traps. He also tried to impress upon her the importance of
success and the drawback of failure. He didn't think she'd be able to dodge a sprung
trap very well with her heavy armor, but he did know that if there was anyone of
them that could take the punishment, it was she.

Mazithra had finished her research by the time Milo was done teaching Brigit. She
waved them over excitedly and showed them her discoveries. She had found much
more about the dwarven waraxe than she thought her spell would reveal. She told
her three friends the following:

Trollgrater
Description: Trollgrater is a magic waraxe that inflicts double damage
against trolls and other regenerating creatures and in addition, trolls are
unable to regenerate limbs severed by Trollgrater. Trollgrater's blade never
dulls and always feels warm and pulsating (like a heartbeat) to the touch.

History: This was the battle-axe used by Mesmira Jericho during the Virago
campaign against "Eve of the Poisoned Nails" and the Orcs of Tyr Bannon.
She lost it somewhere on the Astral plane after a brief encounter with
minions of the Greater God, Za'adun. During the Forgotten Isle invasion of
Nuria, it was recorded that a great warrior wielded a powerful, magical
battle-axe that fits the description of Trollgrater

Brigit was in awe. She vaguely remembered hearing about the Trollgrater when she
was younger. She picked up the axe reverently, with a wide-eyed look on her face.

"Thank ya, Mazi. Ya don' know how much this means ta me. This axe served me
ancestors well, I'll do it justice by them, I will." She said to Mazi.

Mazi waited for a moment before picking up the staff. She turned to Milo and told
him in hushed tones that it was a powerful healing staff, with multiple magical spells
embedded in it. The staff could cast a great healing spell, it could cure disease,
magical blindness or deafness, it could restore weakened minds, bodies, and will.
Mazi carefully handed the staff to Milo before she told him the word to activate the
effects. "Abercromby" she said. Milo gave her a quizzical look before shrugging his
shoulders and looking back down at the staff. It was as though Mazi's spell had
awakened some power within the staff and he could feel a peaceful emanation of
power from it. She warned him that there were eighteen more charges within the
staff and to use them wisely. Milo nodded gravely.

The last item Mazi had before her was the rope that tied the orc's bag. It turned out
that the rope was almost sentient. It would obey simple commands to attach itself to
almost anything, releasing only after a command from its wielder. It would tie knots
in itself for climbing as well as hold an impressive load before giving out. It was
indeed a useful little item to have around.

While Mazi studying and Milo was training Brigit, Jeremiah had been training himself
as well. He showed Brigit a new maneuver he discovered that could possibly allow
him to cleave through not just one enemy, but multiple enemies in one attack. Brigit
was very impressed. Jeremiah had been practicing in the magic suit of plate mail
they had found in the minotaur's cavern. Though the magic allowed him to move
freely, Brigit could tell he was still somewhat clumsy in the hefty armor. Before een
they set up watch she instructed Jeremiah in some of the finer points of fighting in
heavy armor. Jer was a quick learner and was soon moving agilely about in the full
plate. He was considerably louder than Brigit, but he would be much harder to
wound.

They set up watch, paranoid of midnight visitors after the attack from the dire bat
the night before. None of them slept too soundly, but they were refreshed enough
the next morning. Milo and his friends journeyed back to the gorge and its cursed
caverns.

They decided to skip the next cavern down the row. It was set high up along the
gorge, straight back from the entrance. They figured that the robed man probably
entered that cavern during the lightning bolt attack from a few nights ago. They
chose instead to enter the cave set lower and farther over from the entrance in
question.

Once again, Milo led their way into the darkness. His hooded lantern shedding light
into the rough cavern tunnels.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-two (session 5)
Dawn broke over gray skies the next morning. No creatures disturbed their rest and
the group felt refreshed and prepared for the day. Milo found a quiet corner to pray
while Mazithra prepared her daily spells. Finished with their preparations, they set
back out for the caverns.

They reached the gorge a couple of hours before midday. After a quick rest and a
few bites of trail rations, the party steeled themselves for the challenges ahead.
There were only two visible cavern mouths that were unexplored. One at the very
rear of the gorge, near the top, and the other to the south and lower. Milo swore the
robed figure was heading towards the upper cavern before the lightning bolt hit
those many nights before. They couldn't be sure, but decided to take the lower
cavern to be on the safe side.

Milo tread softly as they entered the cave. Brigit and Jeremiah led the way with Milo
and Mazithra following behind. Brigit practiced her new skills at detecting hidden
traps. Milo kept his eyes on the walls, floors, and ceilings. There was no way he was
going to be taken by surprise and trigger any traps. Just then a crossbow bolt
whizzed by, barely missing Brigit. One was followed by another, Brigit was ready for
it this time and raised her shield to intercept.

"That's what I git fer payin attention to tha walls." Brigit could be heard to say as
she readied her axe for the inevitable charge.

A hyena-like howl rose from four inhuman throats down the tunnel. Two humanoid
creatures charged from the darkness, Milo recognized them immediately as gnolls.
Their slavering jaws dripped with drool and their fur was matted. They brandished
old battleaxes. Two other gnolls dropped heavy crossbows and drew their own axes.

Milo fired a crossbow bolt of his own at the approaching dog-beasts. His bolt flew
past his target, as did Mazi's arrow. Both drew their next missile with grim
determination as the gnolls clashed with Brigit and Jeremiah's steel.

Jeremiah reveled in his new armor. Every blow that the gnoll landed caused a brief
glow to spread out from the impact. Not one to dwell too long on novelties, Jer
brought his great sword into play. He was a daunting figure, clad head to toe in
shining steel with a great two-handed sword swinging at the bestial gnolls. His sword
bit into gnoll hide and kept going. The two gnolls attacking Brigit and Jeremiah fell in
pieces.

Brigit immediately advanced, her magic waraxe raised high. The sorcelled axe head
came down hard into the breastbone of the crossbow wielder. Brigit cursed at her
luck, heaving at the lodged axe. The other gnoll was still drawing its axe as its beady
eyes focused on the struggling dwarf.

Milo had reloaded by that time and he fired another bolt. His quarrel sunk into the
gnoll's thigh, drawing a hoarse howl from the creature. Mazi fired her next arrow at
the noisy beast. Her missile found its mark as well.

The wounded gnoll raised its battleaxe, fury shone in its red-rimmed eyes. Its axe
glanced off Brigit's shield, causing sparks to fly from the hardened steel. She had
just pulled out her axe and brought her shield around in the nick of time.
Jeremiah rushed behind the gnoll and slashed down with his sword. The wounded
gnoll fell with a severed spine. The four adventurers paused, listening intently. They
worried that the commotion may have alerted other cavern dwellers. A few moments
passed with no audible effects. Amazingly enough it appeared that no other gnolls
heard the howling of their brethren.

Milo and the others stooped over the corpses to check for valuables. Each of them
carried a few pieces of gold. Their battleaxes were worn and rusty. Not worth the
effort to haul them out. Their armor was in similar disrepair. The party ventured on.

They soon came to a guardroom of sorts. It was more of a widening in the tunnel
than an actual room. A couple of stools and a small table indicated the room's
purpose. Milo and Brigit searched the room for any secrets. Finding none and hearing
nothing down the hallway, they continued.

The passage narrowed past the guardroom before curving to the north. A long tunnel
stretched before them. They moved as quietly as possible, no mean feat considering
the amount of metal the party carried. The adventurers came to a staircase leading
up the passage. At the top of the passage they could see the tunnel continue to the
north as well as a branch to the east.

The northern tunnel widened ahead into a room. They decided to investigate that
area first. Their stealthy approach was somewhat ruined by the clanking of their
armor. Three growling gnolls awaited the party in the rough-hewn cavern. Milo
loosed his crossbow, the bolt raced towards one of the three and sunk into its hide.
Another howl rang through the cavern.

Jeremiah charged at the cluster of creatures with his sword trailing behind. He
brought the huge weapon around and cleaved straight through the two leading
gnolls. Their torsos severed, the corpses toppled to the ground. The third gnoll
hacked at Jeremiah with his axe, but couldn't get past his armor. The mystical glow
spread from impact to impact as the gnoll pressed its attack.

Brigit moved into position next to Jeremiah, bringing her own axe into the fight. The
gnoll was no match for her expert axe wielding. Just as she dispatched the furry
beast, five more gnolls could be seen approaching from an irregular outcropping of
the cave wall. They howled in a high pitched keening after they saw the bodies of the
slain gnolls. These were females, and they were angry.

Three of the females cast their spears at Brigit, the closest culprit. The weakly
thrown weapons rang off her armor as she turned to face the new threat. The
females growled deep in their throats and continued to approach.

Milo caught sight of the gnolls as they rounded the outcropping and fired his bolt. It
ricocheted off the rock, narrowly missing the lead female. The bolt splintered against
the wall and fell to the ground, useless.

Jeremiah waited for the females to reach him before lunging into action. His sword
sliced deeply into the gnoll Milo missed. The ugly gash that trailed his blade was
fatal, the gnoll toppled. His sword swung mere centimeters from the face of the next
female. It blinked its beady eyes at the barbarian then continued to advance.

Mazithra loosed her bowstring at the females. Her arrow performed a similar ricochet
off the rock near the gnolls. It too shattered from the force of hitting the wall. She
grumbled under her breath as she quickly drew another arrow from her quiver.

Two of the gnolls reached Brigit. They didn't get a chance to attack the dwarf before
her magical axe whirled through the air, lantern light gleaming off its polished edge.
It soon reflected red as she hacked through first one, then another gnoll. She cut
them down to her height with her powerful blows.

Two gnolls remained with spears brandished. They howled their anger at the group
and ran at Brigit with spears raised. Milo let another bolt fly, aiming low at the
charging females. His target's howl faltered and she fell back an inch before
continuing on with a bolt lodged in its arm. Jeremiah stepped before Brigit and met
their charge. His sword moved quickly as it sliced past their meager guard to pierce
their matted hides. The gnolls fell at his feet, their lifeblood pooling beneath them.

The bodies had a few gold apiece. The party quickly divested them of their valuables.
A single door led out of the room they were in. They could see a side room past the
outcropping of rock where the females had dwelled. As they were examining the
room and its wall hangings Milo came across an exceptionally fine quality hide. After
a closer look he determined it to be made of sable. The hanging turned out to be a
cloak of excellent craftsmanship. They stowed the garment for later use or sale.

Milo searched the door for traps but found none. He did discover that it was locked.
None of the bodies had a key so he reached for his lock picks. His nimble fingers
worked the small tools into the narrow space of the lock. The mechanism was stuck,
perhaps slightly rusted. His lock picks slid out of place and he lost the progress he
had made through the stiff tumblers. He heard someone clear her throat behind him
and turned to address the interruption. Brigit stood behind with an almost pleading
look on her face, holding the bigger training lock picks he lent to her. He shrugged
and stepped to the side before bowing with a flourish before her, gesturing to the
lock in a deferring manner.

Brigit grinned and moved forward to try her hand at the stubborn lock. After a few
seconds of fidgeting with the lock picks they could all hear the familiar click of the
tumblers falling into place. She withdrew her tools and smirked at Milo.

"Sure, after I've loosened it up for you!" Milo whispered with quiet mock indignation.

Inside was a supply closet. All that was of value was a dwarf-sized suit of chain mail.
The rest of the supplies were either too old to bother with or of an unfamiliar origin.
They grabbed the suit of chain and turned to leave the room.

The party moved to the other passage outside the room, heading east. An entryway
opened on the northern side of the passage ahead of the group a few feet. They
readied themselves, assuming that whatever was in the room would be ready for
them. They rounded the corner and were met by a room packed with gnolls.

Rather than jumping in and wading through the gnolls, risking attacks from every
angle, Jeremiah waited for the slavering beasts to approach his position. He didn't
wait long, the males in the fore charged at Jeremiah and Brigit with their axes high.
The full plate armor that the fighters wore protected them from the gnolls' attacks.

Jeremiah returned the attack but met no more resistance than air. The gnoll had
jumped back with blinding speed. Brigit's attack found a similar lack of contact.
These gnolls were more agile than the last.

Mazithra loosed her bowstring at the gnoll attacking Jeremiah. The arrow skimmed
by its head, barely missing its neck. She didn't even pause as she pulled another
arrow from her quiver and set it to the string.

Milo fired his bolt at Brigit's assailant. It howled at the pain a crossbow quarrel
causes when it punctures the chest. The gnoll turned its baleful gaze on the halfling,
intent on squashing the annoyance that just made itself known. The gnoll couldn't
reach Milo through the heavy fighting before it.

The gnoll attacked Brigit instead. The sturdy dwarf ignored the clumsy swing and
readied her waraxe to show the gnoll how much damage they could really do. The
other gnoll attacked Jer, trying to penetrate the defense provided by his steel and his
armor. Jeremiah batted the axe aside and slashed down. The gnoll jumped back a
moment too late as the sword tip traced a bloody line across its chest. The wounded
gnoll wavered but did not fall, determined to kill the dwarf.

Another bolt flew from Milo's crossbow. It skimmed past Brigit's assailant, trailing
blood as it grazed its snout. The gnoll shrieked and threw itself at Brigit in an
attempt to reach Milo. Brigit's axe was waiting. She thrust her axe into the gnoll's
abdomen, slicing through its stomach. Her axe emerged from its side to hack
through the gnoll Jer wounded. Both gnolls fell with their hands clutching their guts.

Jeremiah seized the opportunity Brigit's attack provided. He jumped into the gap left
by the ex-gnolls and slashed at the waiting enemies. Jeremiah's companions were
amazed at the carnage. Jeremiah's sword flashed in the lantern light as he slashed
away at gnoll after gnoll. Three dead and one narrowly missed. The gnolls were just
as shocked as the adventurers were. A red mist settled around the barbarian.

With an outraged howl the gnolls pressed in to attack Jeremiah. Their blows rained
down futilely. His magic armor protected Jeremiah from the axes his sword did not. A
single female moved in to attack Brigit. She scoffed at the beast as she swatted its
axe to the side.

Mazithra and Milo aimed for the hapless female. Both loosed their weapons at the
same time. Milo's bolt sunk into its chest, causing it to grunt from the impact. Mazi's
arrow flew by its snout, barely missing a fatal blow.

Brigit ignored the weak attacks from the female and strode forward. She spun 180
degrees, her axe trailing behind her. The blade eviscerated first a female that
charged her as she moved then the original female that attacked her. They both
dropped without so much as a groan.

Jeremiah continued the carnage farther into the room. He sliced through another
male, his sword barely missed the next victim. The beasts were cautious of this
gnoll-killing machine.

The gnolls circled Jer warily. Four of the hyena-headed beasts surrounded him. They
all attacked simultaneously. Only one was able to do any damage to the hardy
human. He groaned as an axe sliced his arm in-between the plates of his armor.
Brigit was busy with more of the females that seemed to fill the cavern. She dodged
a blow and returned the attack. The gnoll facing her was not as quick as she was. It
fell to the ground, joined shortly by one of it's kindred. Brigit hacked through the
gnolls as quickly as they came at her.

Mazithra and Milo tried to choose their targets carefully. By now there were no
enemies that were not fully engaged in combat with Jeremiah or Brigit. Milo fired at
the group surrounding Jeremiah but was unable to hit the fast moving beasts.
Mazithra shot at the other side of the group but had the same problem Milo suffered.
The gnolls moved too quickly to hit without firing directly into the fight, risking
further injury to Jer.

For his part Jeremiah lunged at the nearest gnoll. His blade sunk hilt deep into the
breastbone of the hairy creature. He pushed at the corpse with his booted foot, but
was unable to dislodge it. He let the gnoll corpse hit the ground and tried to use the
additional leverage to pull his sword out, to no avail.

One male and three females still bracketed Jeremiah. He dodged lithely while trying
to pull his sword out. Two of the attacks landed but had no more effect on Jeremiah
than the glow they caused from his armor.

Meanwhile Milo and Mazithra heard a commotion from the eastern passageway. More
gnolls approached. Two large males in higher quality armor and one huge gnoll,
towering over the rest. Four females followed closely with spears of their own. It
appeared the party attracted the leader of the gnolls and his entourage.

Milo spun around and fired his crossbow bolt at the approaching gnolls. They saw the
bolt fly and had plenty of time to dodge. Mazi calculated the distance between the
gnolls and their position, did some quick math, and decided to draw her long sword.
She looked excited to get into the thick of battle finally.

Back in the room Brigit faced two more females. She blocked an axe with her shield
and swung her own at the gnoll. She felt the satisfying crunch as her axe sliced
through bone and muscle. The gnoll growled before it fell dead.

Jeremiah finally wrestled his sword out of the gnoll corpse, just in time to dodge
more attacks from the remaining gnolls. He saw Milo and Mazithra turn to face a new
threat and redoubled his efforts to dispatch the gnolls in the room.

The reinforcements arrived enmasse. The two that must have been lieutenants or
sons of the leader converged on Mazi, putting their considerable bulk behind their
axe swings. Mazi dodged one but was clipped by the other. She hopped back with a
wound dripping blood from her arm. She noticed with gratification that the gnoll had
a similar wound on its own arm.

Milo bounced and tumbled as he dodged the gnoll leader's surprisingly fast battleaxe.
He sprung to his feet and stowed his crossbow, opting to fight the burly gnoll with
his short sword.

With his great sword swinging, Jeremiah spun in a full circle. The gnolls around him
fell back, flung by the force of the huge barbarian. All four of the gnolls that
surrounded him lay dead. Brigit paused for a second to whistle in amazement. She
had never seen such a lethal blow. Once again a red mist settled around the
barbarian who grinned in its midst.

The last female in the room made a feeble attempt to wound Brigit. She nearly
batted its axe from its grasp with her parry. Beyond the room in the hallway a
pitched battle was at hand. Mazi barely avoided the large gnoll plaguing her. Her
sword nearly slipped from her grasp as she spun to the side. She recovered her grip
before it caused disaster.

Milo moved as fast as his small limbs could carry him. The other large gnoll focused
its attention on him instead of Mazi. Milo dodged its axe only to roll practically into
the leader's grasp. The huge gnoll's axe whistled through the air before it sliced a
deep gash in his arm. He sucked a sharp intake of breath through his teeth at the
wound.

Time to even the odds Milo thought. He tumbled past the two sons into the open
hallway. As he did so he bumped their legs, not quite getting a proper start to the
maneuver. Both gnolls hacked at him, barely missing the lithe halfling. He flipped
around and stabbed one in the back, scoring a critical hit to its vital organs. The gnoll
fell with a rattle from its lungs. The leader saw its son die and growled deep in its
throat before yelling something in gnoll at Milo.

Brigit and Jeremiah converged on the final female in the commons room. She was no
match for their charge and fell before Jeremiah's blade. Both turned to aid their
friends in the passageway.

The leader thought better of chasing the small halfling and turned instead to Mazi,
alone in the corridor to the room. The leader's axe swung down and sliced into Mazi's
shield arm. She gasped at the severe wound that opened. She turned a steely gaze
onto the gnoll, intent on its death.

One of the females in the hallway moved past the leader and engaged Milo. She
thrust her spear at Milo. He sidestepped and ducked the son's blow as well. Milo was
hoping Jer and Brigit would finish up in the room soon.

Milo stabbed at the axe-wielding son but his short reach prevented him from scoring
a hit. Mazi tried to slice the leader with her long sword, barely missing the agile
gnoll. It growled defiance at her and pressed in. Brigit moved to block his advance,
thrusting down with her axe.

Jeremiah moved forward to join the battle in the hall. He shouted as he heaved his
sword at the leader. The gnoll howled in pain as the blade bit through its thick
matted hide. It slashed blindly at Jeremiah, he blocked the axe with his great sword.

The leader's son and the female continued to attack Milo. He hopped and weaved
about to dodge the blows. The female's spear snagged a ring from his chain shirt but
he was able to jump back before the weapon could inflict any more damage.

Milo moved in close and slashed at the large gnoll. The quick beast parried his move.
It raised its lip in a sneer and pressed back at the halfling.

The leader's son failed to notice the plight its father was in. Mazithra and Brigit
overwhelmed the huge gnoll as they struck in unison. Mazi's sword bit into his chest
while Brigit's waraxe sliced through its belly. The leader snarled as it fell, dead
before it hit the ground.

Jeremiah moved past the corpse to attack the leader's son. It didn't see the blade
coming as he cut it from buttock to shoulder. The gnoll turned with a yelp to face its
new assailant. It hacked at Jeremiah ineffectively as another female moved to close
the gap. Its spear was no more successful as it clanked against his armor. Milo
continued to dodge the female that harried him, finding it much easier with only one
enemy to focus on.

Milo's sword snaked past the female's spear and tagged its leg. Blood soaked
through its legging and it snarled at Milo. What it didn't see was a full steel clad
dwarf move behind and take a mighty swing with her axe. The female spontaneously
split in two from Milo's vantage. The leader's son fell as well just moments later from
the deadly dwarven forged steel.

Jeremiah turned back around to face the last three females. He growled at them in a
close approximation of the leader and jumped with his sword flailing. The females
cowered back from the daunting figure, obviously cowed.

They stabbed uselessly at the towering barbarian. He scoffed as Brigit moved up

next to him, her devastating axe slicing through the air. Two more gnolls fell to her
furious assault. Jeremiah stabbed at the last female. Her death cry turned to a
gurgle as the blood filled her lungs. He kicked her off of his sword and stood up
straight, surveying the scene with satisfaction.

Milo noticed Mazi panting slightly as she leaned against the wall. She had taken a
nasty hit from the leader's axe. Milo moved up to her and chanted a healing mantra.
He placed his hands on her wounds and the bleeding stopped. The wounds
themselves remained open but appeared a bit healthier than before.

She waved Milo away and stooped down to retrieve a silver armband from the
leader's thick wrist. Milo noticed a matching armband on the other side and removed
it for Mazi to inspect. He also found a hefty coin purse on its belt, full of gold. Brigit
found necklaces on each of the leader's concubines. They looked valuable so the
party stashed them. The two sons had a few gold pieces in their coin purses as well.
Each of the other gnoll corpses in the room had silver in various pockets and purses.

They decided to check out the hallway the leader and his entourage emerged from. A
short distance down the tunnel led to an open door. Inside they found crude
furniture and a fireplace. The furnishings were lavish compared to what they had
seen so far. They figured the leader must have lived in this room.

Milo set about searching the room. He was quick to remember some of the valuables
they had found in other rooms similar to this. He discovered a loose flagstone which,
when lifted, revealed a literal pot of coins. Gold, silver, copper, and electrum winked
back at the happy halfling.

Meanwhile Brigit was giving the far wall an odd stare. Mazi recognized the same look
from the orc cavern and the incredibly concealed chest Brigit had found in the stone
work. After some long minutes Brigit moved forward slowly and pushed at a single
stone with her axe head.

The stone moved in a fraction of an inch and a deep rumbling sounded. The wall
before her swung outward, stone scraping on stone. Milo was impressed, he had
completely missed that secret lever. Brigit never ceased to amaze him. His thoughts
were cut short at a startled exclamation from Mazithra.

Just inside the revealed passage was a broken body. It had been there for a long
time, its skeleton belying the cause of death and its race. It was obvious that it was
once an elf, and judging from its clothing, a very important one. Its left leg was
broken, the injury apparently kept the elf from escaping the tunnel.

Mazi knelt reverently before the corpse, she retrieved a finely tooled scabbard. Elven
runes were set into the well-preserved leather. She slowly drew the sword. Looking
closely Milo noted that it appeared to have wood grain down the length of the blade.
More elven runes were etched into the sword itself.

Mazi held the blade before them and spoke softly of the sword:

This is Sylvanglade, it is an elven sword made out of the wood of a tree

sacred to elves (the tree is nourished with a fertilizer with a high-mithril
content, and the wood, once shaped into weapons, is indistinguishable from
steel. Sylvanglade (and its twin Greencopse which was destroyed, or so say
the legends) is a silvery Longsword with an ornate golden crossguard to
protect the hand. The hilt is wrapped in silver wire.

It's said that the blade is masked from detect magic, dispel magic and even
anti-magic shell will not negate the powers of this elven blade. The blades
were used for ceremonial battles between the champions of elven
kingdoms. The blade has one unique ability; it temporarily negates the
enchantment on the blade of the opponent
(thus, if the opponent has a long sword +5 it operates as a simple long sword. If
there is more than one attacker then only the first attacker of the round has his/her
"plusses" negated if Sylvanglade's wielder does not specify otherwise. The blade
functions as a +2 magical blade with regards to Damage Resistance/what it can hit.)

Mazi was gently stroking the blade as she spoke, the reverence and awe in her voice
was apparent to all. Milo noticed a pouch on the skeleton's belt as she finished
speaking. He scooped it up and peered inside to find a dozen gems. He guessed their
value to be about fifty gold apiece.

Mazi had sheathed the blade and reached down to the skeleton's hand. She retrieved
a signet ring and explained to the group that there would be no problem with her
wielding the blade since she had the signet ring. She stooped over the elf one more
time, removing exceptional fine elven boots. Milo whistled at their craftsmanship. He
figured boots like those would be quieter than a cat's tread. Too bad they didn't
come in his size.

While Mazi was looking over the skeleton, the others peered down the new passage.
Tired after the grueling battles with the gnolls, they decided to leave it for the next
day. Perhaps it led to a back way into the robed figure's inner sanctum.

After Mazi finished her work the group started back. Brigit stopped at each group of
corpses to hack off the arms and legs. She remarked on the keen edge of the
Trollgrater. It hacked through the corpses in a fraction of the time of her
unenchanted weapon.
The friends emerged from the gnoll cavern at dusk. They made their way from the
gorge to a new campground, not willing to take a chance and lapse into habit. They
found another clearing a good distance from the caverns and set about making
camp.

Mazithra found a quiet spot and grabbed Milo's handaxes. She wanted to identify
them after her other discoveries. She didn't think they'd be normal weapons like his
enchanted dagger. Milo shrugged, he wasn't quite sure how to use the unwieldy axes
anyway.

They set up watch and slept, each taking their turn until near morning when Mazi
finished her spell and had a few hours of meditation. She woke Milo and the others
excitedly. She had found some background information on the axes as well as what
they were enchanted with. She told them in an excited voice:

Reft and Rend, the Axes of Ambidexterity

Haft of bone
These weapons are a matched pair. When used individually, they confer the
Feat of ambidexterity upon the wielder, he is able to fight with an additional
(one-handed) weapon in either hand. When used together, the wielder
maintains the Feat of ambidexterity, and each axe functions at +3.

History: These weapons are probably of Duergar origin since the symbol to
the entrance of every Duergar Place of Power is a relief of the crossed Axes
of Ambidexterity.

Milo whistled as he took the axes from Mazi's outstretched hands. He turned them
over in his hands, examining them as if he had not seen them before. To think, one
of those was buried in his shoulder not too long ago. He would have to give some
serious thought into learning to use these weapons.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-three (session 6)
Milo stowed his handaxes, there'd be time later for practicing. They had some cups
to find. Milo and his friends struck camp and prepared for their next assault on the
caves. He hoped it would be their last. The pervading evil of the gorge seemed to be
spreading across the countryside. It made him nervous.

They talked as they journeyed back to the caves. Only one cavern remained
completely unexplored. There was also the secret passage they discovered in the
gnoll cavern. Mazi theorized that the secret passage could be a back way into the
other cave complex. Whether it was or not, none of them felt right leaving it
unexplored. They decided to head into the secret passage and find what lay in store.

They ventured into the gnoll cave cautiously. No dismembered corpses littered the
floor. No gnolls attacked them from the darkness either. The cave was eerily quiet.
The only sounds they heard were from their own armor and gear. They made their
way to the secret door that Brigit found the day before.

She triggered the catch and the door once again rumbled open. The skeleton of the
elf lay exactly as they had left it. No obvious signs of passage were evident. It
seemed that this hidden path was not known to the other denizens of the caves. The
party carefully moved forward, all senses straining to hear or see anything out of the
ordinary.

The passage led them to another secret door. They were on the other side of the
camouflage and found the catch easily. Before opening the door Brigit listened
carefully through the solid rock. Milo smirked and made a comment about listening
to a brick wall. Brigit cast a nasty glance back his way and opened the door.

On the other side were stacks of supplies. They were in a small room with an open
entryway. Boxes and crates were lined up along the sides and in the middle of the
room. Just down the hall they could hear a faint sucking, slurping noise. It almost
sounded like a child playing with his gelatin dessert in a bowl, magnified tenfold. It
dawned on Milo.

"Gelatinous cube!" he whispered loudly to the others, just as a translucent square of

jelly rounded the corner outside the room and started to flop towards them.
"Probably the hallway cleaner, it's stupid, but it will attack if it senses us. Don't let it
touch you, you'll be paralyzed."

Milo and Mazithra took the initiative by firing their range weapons before the
creature could reach them. Both hit the cube, their arrow and bolt sinking deep into
its mass. They sat suspended like fruit in a fancy upper crust dish.

Brigit also wasted no time. She began pushing at a couple of crates, blocking the
entryway before the cube could reach them.

"Brilliant idea Brigit, only now I can't see the thing to shoot it!" Milo said. The crates
were about a foot taller than the diminutive halfling.

Brigit shook her head and ran to a small box, positioning it so Milo could hop up and
see past the blockade.

While they worked on the makeshift stool, Mazi had knocked another arrow to fire at
the cube. Jeremiah had also drawn his bow and readied an arrow. They let them fly.
The large mass of gelatin made an easy target and both plunged into the cube. The
arrows made ugly puncture marks but otherwise just hung in the middle along with
the other missiles.

Milo crawled onto the box Brigit positioned for him and fired his crossbow. His bolt
joined the rest in the center of the goop. He hoped the thing was being damaged as
it flopped up to the barrier and began to ooze over the top.

The adventurers backed away from the blockade, Milo hopping down right after he
finished loading his crossbow. After two steps backward he aimed and fired again.
The quarrel burst through the membrane of the gel and the entire cube collapsed.
Thick jelly poured through the holes their arrows and bolts had created. A large
puddle formed on the ground before them, stinking of decay and chemicals.

Crinkling his nose, Milo toed the edge of the puddle with his boot. No reaction, these
gelatinous cubes weren't corrosive like the slimes from the other cave. At least not
after they were dead.

The party regrouped. There was nothing of value they could find in this room and the
corpse wasn't exactly anything Brigit could dismember. They hadn't made a lot of
noise in the battle so they hoped that nothing was alerted to their presence, yet.

They moved into the hallway. Milo noted that the stonework was deliberate, much
more so than the other caverns. Brigit remarked on the same, her trained dwarven
eye noticing the obvious labor that was put into carving the walls. After a few feet
the party came to the bend that the cube emerged from. Around the corner was a
long hallway punctuated by a door midway.

The friends approached the door cautiously, Milo leading to watch for traps. There
was something odd about this portal. The door was bolted on their side. A quick
discussion followed about whether it was to keep something out of the tunnels or
something inside a room. They remembered the bolted door in one of the first
caverns, merely leading to the outside.

They decided to check it out anyway. Brigit removed the bolt and rigged the door so
it could not be locked on them after they entered. They peered into the darkness,
unable to see far even with Milo's lantern. After a few feet they came to stairs
leading down as far as they could see. Something made Milo feel that this staircase
would be better left for later. He told his friends and received no objections. They
walked back out the door and Brigit bolted it shut. Whatever dungeon awaited them
down the stairs would be visited later.

The group moved down the hallway, rounding the corner cautiously in case more
cubes or worse were waiting for them. An even longer hallway stretched before
them. Two passages led to the right and left at different points before the passage
curved back off to the right. The checked the right hand passage first, it was closer
and they decided to clear out what was at hand before venturing down any further.

The branching passage continued for a ways before cutting to the right. There was a
door at the corner, on the left side of the hallway. They moved to search the area,
Milo checking for traps on the door while the rest kept watch. The door was unlocked
and untrapped. Milo pushed it open.
Inside was a furnished room. Hangings adorned the wall, depicting grisly scenes,
demons, sacrifices, unholy symbols. There were beds as well. Filth littered the floor.
If it weren't for the garbage Milo thought this looked like a guestroom in some
demon lord's estate. He shuddered at the evil that seemed to fill the room. There
was nothing of interest in the room. No secret caches or hidden compartments were
behind the hangings and beds.

Moving out of the room they continued down the hallway. It cut back to the left and
led down a steep staircase. They decided to clear out the level they were on before
heading down the stairs or behind the bolted door in the other hall. Before they left
Milo listened intently at the top of the flight. He heard nothing.

Back in the main passage the group moved to the left hallway. It too went for a few
feet before cutting, this time to the left. Another few feet and it cut back to the right.
At the end of the hallway was a door set into the stone to the left. It was solid metal
with bars set up about human eye-level. Obviously it was a prison of sorts.

Jeremiah and Mazithra were the only ones tall enough to peer through the bars. Jer
moved forward and looked into the room. He described skeletons hanging from
shackles on the wall. After a second he exclaimed in surprise. He could just barely
see a girl hanging in a corner. She had her head down and he couldn't make out
much, but she looked alive.

Milo grabbed his picks and set himself at the lock. He had the door open in a flash
and moved aside to let Brigit and Jeremiah lead the way. Brigit walked in with a
stride, ready to rescue the girl. A hissing came from the corner where the girl hung.
Brigit stopped suddenly froze in her tracks. Jeremiah nearly walked right into her. He
stopped himself short and began to ask Brigit what was wrong. Before he had the
chance to utter the first word they noticed a strange change coming over the dwarf.
Her skin started to pale, her position remained the same, axe raised and in mid-step.
Seconds later a stone statue stood in Brigit's place. A perfect replica of their dwarven
friend in every way, down to the braids in her hair and the whisper of beard on her
chin.

"Oh no! Medusa! Everyone come back into the hallway, we've got to think about this
one." Milo said hurriedly.

"Help me pleassssssse." came a sibilant plea from the 'girl'. "I have a potion ssssssss
it will change your friend ssssssssss back to fessssssssssh."

A quick look at each other told Milo that neither Jeremiah nor Mazi trusted the
medusa farther than any of them could throw her, which was nowhere while she was
shackled. That gave Milo an idea.

"Hey, if it's chained to the wall, we can pick it off from a distance. I can fire my
crossbow over my shoulder without looking at it, or getting close to those snakes in
its hair." Milo said to his friends. "But I'll have to shoot blind. It can't move much,
but I'm not going to be able to see it. Maybe you guys can tell me how close I'm
getting? Hmm, that wouldn't work either, you'd have to look at it to see."

"Eep!" Mazi exclaimed with an excited look on her face. She took off her pack and
started to rummage through her belongings. "Ahah!" she stated as she pulled out a
polished mirror.

"Mazi, your vanity will never cease to amaze me! I'm glad you're with us." Milo said
with a grin as he slowly shook his head side to side. "Okay, you stand to my side
and hold up the mirror and I'll fire at the abomination." he finished.

Mazi and Milo sidled past the statue of Brigit and took up position next to the wall
opposite of the medusa. Mazi held up the mirror and Milo looked into the face of a
medusa for the first time.

"I sure hope you've got that potion, spawn of hell." Milo said to it.

"Pleassssssse help me." came the reply.

Milo didn't answer. He set his crossbow over his shoulder, aimed as best he could,
and fired. A shriek answered his shot. The bolt pierced the medusa's belly. Milo could
see the snakes in its hair writhe and hiss at his direction. The medusa was impotent
to protect itself.

He fired again, this bolt slamming into its shoulder. He tried to aim closer to where
he hoped her heart was. His next bolt missed, breaking against the stone wall under
its armpit.

Milo cocked the crossbow and fired a fourth shot. The bolt protruded from the
medusa's chest. It shrieked again, writhing in agony. He reloaded and took aim. His
next bolt missed. It was trying to move now, its lithe body swayed back and forth
erratically. Milo had a hard time aiming at the wildly flailing creature in the mirror.

He fired again and again and again. Three more bolts shattered against the rocks.
His next bolt struck true. The quarrel plunged into the medusa's chest, straight to
the heart. The medusa stopped thrashing and hung limp. Milo fired another bolt into
the body, to make sure it wasn't trying to trick them.

The medusa didn't so much as twitch when the bolt thunked into it. Milo turned
around slowly and approached the body. He kept his eyes squinted, just in case it
moved. He hoped he could shut his eyes before it could work its fell magic on him.
He prodded the body with his loaded crossbow, certain that a point blank shot would
finish things if it were still alive.

Nothing at all happened. He breathed a sigh of relief and examined the body. He was
still careful to keep from looking directly at its face, just in case. He found a vial tied
around its neck, concealed by the rags it wore. He removed the potion and walked
over to the statue that was Brigit.

"I hope this works, I certainly can't haul Brigit out and we won't be able to make it
to the keep with her through that undead army."

Milo pulled out the stopper as he held the vial away from his body. He slowly tipped
it over Brigit's arm and let a drop fall to her stone skin. The color immediately
returned to her flesh, just a spot of living tissue in the middle of the statue. He
handed the vial to Mazi carefully and pointed at Brigit's head.
Mazithra took the vial and poured its contents onto Brigit's helmet. The steel shine
returned immediately and spread down. As it reached her forehead the pink of flesh
showed through the stone. The color flushed through Brigit's body in a wave.

"What the!?" The startled dwarf exclaimed. "What in tha blazes is goin on? Milo,
Mazi, how'd ya git in front of me. What's with tha bolts in tha girl. I just stepped in
an..." realization dawned on Brigit's face. "I was - I was - that thing -" she pointed at
the medusa with her axe. "A medusa!?" she finished.

Milo giggled and nodded. He explained what happened to the dumbfounded dwarf.
She pounded him on the back and thanked him for risking his and Mazi's life to bring
her back. Milo stumbled from the impact but stood back up grinning.

"Well, ready to brave more doors, Brigit? We're not done here."
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-four (session 6)
Before they left the room Brigit kicked apart the skeletons and dismembered the
medusa. They certainly didn't need an undead medusa chasing after them. They left
the prison cell and returned to the main passage. Brigit was ready to crack some live
skulls after her experience with the medusa. They decided to check out the staircase
beyond the 'guestroom'.

At the bottom of the long staircase they learned what the guestroom was for. It was
a visiting station for the torture room below. Torture racks lined the far wall. An iron
maiden stood in the corner, open wide with its rusty, bloodstained spikes ready for
another victim. Torches were guttering in brackets at random points along the walls.
Various torture tools hung from the sidewall. In another corner sat a low bed with a
very large man. He wasn't sitting still either. As soon as the four entered the
chamber he was up and charging with his battleaxe.

Milo reacted quickly, he shot a bolt at the fast approaching bulk of the torturer. The
missile skimmed past his head as he charged on. The burly man reached Mazi first.
He brought his battleaxe down on the slight elf, cutting a shallow wound in her arm.
She danced back as she stowed her bow, readying her longsword for melee.

Jeremiah and Brigit moved up to engage the dealer of pain. He dodged quickly out of
their range. His dexterous movements were startling for his size. Milo stashed his
crossbow while he circled behind the large human. He drew his shortsword and
approached the torturer from behind.

He was attentive and he caught on to Milo's game. Down came the battleaxe, this
time wounding Milo. He took the vicious blow to his side, sparks flew from the axe as
it sliced into his chain shirt.

Milo's distraction was enough to allow Mazi's sword to bypass the torturer's defenses.
Her grace belied the deadly accuracy of her blade as she cut through the torturer's
armor. Blood appeared from the wound she inflicted under his arm. The large human
whirled around. In a freak happening his battleaxe tangled with Jeremiah's incoming
great sword. The two wrestled for a split second before Jer's sword was flung from
his hands. The large blade clattered to the floor and skittered to a stop next to a
torture rack across the room.

The torturer was about to follow through on his advantage against the weaponless
barbarian when Brigit's axehead emerged from his chest. Brigit had swung from
behind and buried her axe in the torturer's back. She had learned another of Milo's
maneuvers, taking advantage of distracted or unaware foes. Brigit kicked against the
body, pulling her axe out as it fell to the floor.

Milo congratulated his apt student. Brigit caught on to his lessons quickly. He was
very impressed with how far she had come in just a couple of days. He stooped over
the body of the human and looked through his person for valuables. The torturer
carried nothing but his battleaxe.

Jeremiah had retrieved his great sword and was sheathing the weapon when he
spotted a coin bag on the torturer's bed. Inside were well over a hundred gold and a
finely crafted golden bracelet.

The only other thing they found in the torture chamber were the tools of the grisly
trade the dead man had plied. Brigit once again butchered the body, feeling
vindicated knowing the atrocities the torturer had likely practiced in the macabre
room.

Luckily there were no current victims in the room. All of the tables and devices were
empty. A slow day in hell perhaps, Milo thought as they left the chamber.

The resolved to clear out the other dungeon behind the bolted door after they saw
what that staircase revealed. The party moved back to the original passage and
approached the door.

Brigit once again slid the bolt off and opened the door. Before they began down the
stairs she rigged the bolt to remain open. They didn't like the idea of being trapped
with whatever was down there.

At the bottom of the stairs the tunnel opened into a long room. They emerged in the
middle of one lengthwise wall. All along the walls were coffins, dusty and old. Milo
immediately thought of undead creatures, crawling out of the coffins and reaching
for him. He gave an inward shudder before bracing himself. He was going to clear
out all of these coffins, dead or undead.

Milo moved to the nearest coffin and heaved at the lid. He had a hard time reaching
the lid from his precarious perch on the coffin pedestal. Brigit moved to help him and
they managed to pry the lid up and back. Inside was a withered corpse, long dead
and completely undisturbed. Milo shrugged and moved to the next coffin. Brigit went
with him and helped him lift that lid as well.

Half expecting another undisturbed body, Milo and Brigit jumped back as a grey
decrepit humanoid sprang out of the coffin. It bared its fangs and claws at the two
and made to attack them.

Milo felt a surge of divine power and holy inspiration. He stood to his full height of
three feet and raised his hand. A bright light shone from his outstretched palm that
seemed to sear the undead creature. It wailed in a pitiful voice and cowered in the
coffin.

Brigit had her axe at the ready, she hacked down at the undead abomination. Her
weapon chopped clean through its arm, severing it from the body. It wailed again
and turned to flee. The only way it could turn was to the foot of the coffin as Mazi
and Jer had taken up position on the other side.

Mazi struck out at the aberration as it tried to slink away from Milo's outstretched
palm. Her sword bit through the grey, tough skin and hit the creature's backbone. It
severed the spine and the beast fell into the coffin. Dead for good this time.

Milo explained that the creature was a wight. He had learned about them in his
studies at the Keep's chapel. They were particularly nasty undead that could actually
turn a living being into undead after it killed.

The group was a little taken aback by his display of light. Milo couldn't explain that
phenomenon as easily as the wight. He tried to tell them more about the power that
seemed to infuse him at the time and the sudden insight, but couldn't quite convey
his meaning properly.
He gave up after looking into their blank stares for a few moments and turned to
examine the coffin the wight had sprang from. The wight had been on top of a false
bottom. Milo lifted out the plank and gazed down at the trove of gear. Inside was a
polished helm, a great sword, a scroll, and a silver dagger encrusted with gems.

Jeremiah had his hands on the great sword before Milo could turn to tell him. He was
admiring the beautiful craftsmanship of the blade and the amazing balance. He
turned to look at the helmet and would have reached for that too had his friends not
stopped him.

"How about we find out if these are magical and what they might do before you use
the sword or helmet, Jeremiah?" Mazi said to the eager barbarian.

"Aye laddie, that helm er that sword mayhap is cursed. We wouldna want ya down 'n
out when we need ya tha most, now would we?" Brigit further explained.

Jer looked crestfallen, but understood the need for caution. He put the sword back
with the others. Mazi chanted a brief cantrip and looked across the gear. She pointed
to the sword, the helmet, and the scroll, indicating that they each had a magical
aura. She picked up the scroll and looked over the text. Unable to read it properly
she figured Milo might have more luck.

Milo glanced over the parchment. It was definitely divine. He recognized it as a ward
against evil. He told the others about its effect and stowed it with his other evil
protection scroll. Jeremiah put the helm and sword in his pack and Brigit put away
the jeweled dagger in her gear.

After all was accounted for they moved to the next coffin. Surrounding it, they
heaved open the lid. Underneath lay another withered corpse, nothing special. Each
of the remaining coffins revealed the same. It appeared there were no more undead
for Milo to hate in this room.

They trooped back up the stairs and into the corridor. Nothing seemed to have
disturbed the door or bolt. Brigit returned the door to its original condition and they
carried on.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-five (session 6)
The four adventurers moved back into the long hallway past the wight room. At the
end was a right hand turn and stairs leading up. They each readied their weapons
and climbed the flight of steps. Around another corner they came to a sturdy oak
door. Brigit tromped up to the door, being the first to reach it, and started looking
about for traps. While she was scanning the edges of the door and its latch she could
hear faint sounds on the other side. She described them as groaning and shrieking,
muffled as though they came from a far distance. This didn't exactly fill any of her
friends with confidence.

She finished up her search for traps, declaring the door clean. It was also unlocked.
She and Jeremiah stood side by side at the door and opened the latch. The portal led
into a cavernous tunnel, twenty feet wide with vaulted ceilings. The walls were rough
hewn and a sooty black. A strange ore ran through the rock in blood-like veins. Milo
shivered, this place was evil. The tunnel stretched off to their left and turned a sharp
corner to the right of the door before it continued straight ahead. They couldn't see
anything or anyone down either hall. They hoped that they had arrived unnoticed.

They could see another door to the right, just another ten paces in. Figuring it to be
a good place to start as any, they approached the stout door. Brigit once again
searched for traps, putting Milo's lesson to good use. She found none and was about
to try the handle before Milo stopped her. He moved past Brigit and placed one
pointed ear to the rough wood of the door. Inside he could hear muffled voices. They
sounded human, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. He informed his
friends and they prepared for a hostile encounter.

Milo moved back to stand with Mazi as Jeremiah and Brigit approached the door.
Brigit raised up a steel-clad boot and kicked in the door. Four men in deep black
robes waited for them. They were prepared for the intrusion, as one raised a finger,
pointed at Jeremiah and shouted, "DIE!" A stunned look appeared on Jeremiah's
face and he fell backwards, stiff as a post. He lay on the floor with his eyes wide
open, staring unseeing at the ceiling. One of the other men jumped at the prone
barbarian. He brought his mace down on Jer, bruising his arm.

Another of the robed men pointed at Brigit and chanted a profane litany. Brigit
shivered and a wild look came to her eyes. She looked as if she were about to flee
for a split-second before she shook off the effects of the spell cast on her. The fourth
robed man sprang at the dwarf, swinging his mace. She let the blow ring off her
shield and swung her axe around to end his life. Milo wasn't sure if she was still
shaken by the fear spell recently cast on her or not, but he noticed that her grip
slipped on the axe. She almost lost hold of the weapon as her swing went wide.

Milo held back to allow Mazi room to attack the priests. She leapt over Jeremiah's
body and stabbed at the man that clubbed her friend. He yelped in pain and shrunk
away from the fast-moving long sword. Behind her Jeremiah was coming to. He
shook his head and groaned as he struggled to his feet. Milo was relieved to see that
the Word of Power was a lesser version and not capable of truly killing.

The same fell priest that spoke at Jeremiah pointed at Brigit. Again he shouted,
"DIE!" Brigit glared at him and shouted herself, "Put a cork in it, wizzie. I'll get to
ya soon enough!" With that she side stepped a blow aimed at her skull and whipped
her axe around. The magically sharpened blade sliced into her attacker and spilled
his lifeblood. He sank to the ground with his hand over the deep wound, he died in
seconds. Brigit didn't wait to see the result of her blow. She carried through to the
mace wielding man that was attacking Jeremiah. He had just swung at the now
standing barbarian and didn't see the axe flying towards him. A sickening crack could
be heard as Brigit severed the man's spine. He dropped his mace to the ground and
fell, the light of life fading from his eyes before he reached the floor.

Mazithra and the fourth priest circled each other. She speared her sword at the
robed man, tearing at the cloth but not piercing his flesh. He swung down at her
exposed arm and scored a hard blow. She withdrew, her arm already turning purple
from the impact.

Meanwhile Milo had been biding his time to get in a shot at the dark priest that
started it all. He brought up his crossbow and aimed carefully at the black-clad
human. When the opportunity presented itself, he fired. His bolt sped from the
crossbow and planted itself deep into his skull, right between his eyes. Milo crowed
with his critical blow.

Mazithra and the last priest were still locked in combat. His mace came down again,
bruising Mazi's shoulder. She danced back a half step and rotated her arm, loosening
the muscle that was brutally assaulted. Before she could engage the mage, Brigit
moved in behind and buried her axe head into his back. The priest coughed blood
and then fell with a thump to the floor. Brigit hauled her axe out and spat on the
corpse.

"Good riddance, finger-wiggler" She muttered.

Mazi massaged her shoulder as she moved further in the room. There were four cots,
a desk, and some shelves in the room. She looked over the books on the shelves,
hoping to find some useful spells or formulas. She grumbled in disgust on finding the
grotesque nature of the volumes. They outlined various rites and rituals of the evil
persuasion. She tossed the book she was perusing back onto the shelf, complaining
about the contents. Brigit walked to the shelf, pulled out her tinderbox, and lit a
spark to the dry, dusty pages before anyone could say anything.

"If they be evil, they're better left unused by anyone." was all she said to the party's
perplexed looks.

Milo shrugged and stooped down over the body of one of the priests. They had
nothing but an amulet around their necks. He felt revulsion when he focused on the
devices. He couldn't bring himself to even touch one. He left the amulet where it was
and searched through the robes. He found nothing, not even a copper piece.

By then the smoke from the books was filling the room. They decided to leave and
shut the door behind them. The shelf was isolated and not likely to start a major fire.
Even if one started, the materials in the room would burn themselves out upon the
rock floor.

They turned down the left hall. Milo noticed that the red veins of ore seemed to pulse
in the rough black rock. A few paces further a branch opened to the left. Down the
new tunnel they could see the light of day. They figured that they were looking out
at the final cave opening in the gorge. They continued down the main hall. The
cavernous path branched in a "Y" further down. Deciding to stay with consistency,
they chose the left branch. The hall continued on for a few paces before veering
sharply to the left, almost a switchback in the huge tunnel. There was a caved in
passage leading off to the right before the sharp turn. Just looking at the rubble Milo
guessed there were tons of rock blocking the way. Brigit told them it was likely an
old deadfall trap for some escaping force, that or an earthquake long ago.

Down the tunnel to the left they saw the hall open into a large cavern. The vaulted
ceilings were even higher than in the great hall. They could see a dais at the end of
the hall with a grand throne. Milo could see the sparkle of jewels from the other end
of the throne room. Lining the walls were skeletons, standing with swords. They
appeared to be guardians of some sort. At the time they were still. Milo didn't trust
that, he knew as soon as they set foot in the room, or approached a skeleton, or
approached the throne, whatever, that they would spring to life and attack. Milo
hated undead, really.

Milo loved jewels more than he hated undead though. He volunteered to investigate
the throne and risk the chance of the skeletons attacking. There were six on each
side of the room, evenly spaced and ominous looking. The other three stayed near
the entrance as Milo tread softly into the throne room proper. There was no reaction
from the skeletal sentries. He approached the dais cautiously, still nothing. He put
one foot on the raised platform-

The room burst into life. All at once the skeletons lurched forward, their swords
lifted. Milo groaned. The skeletons looked around the room, spotting the trespassing
halfling as well as his companions. Six moved towards Milo and the other six turned
towards the others.

Jeremiah gave a battle cry and ran at the two closest skeletons. His great sword bit
into white bones, causing shards and chips to fly in all directions. The first skeleton
he cleaved to pieces at its waist. Jer recognized the single spine as a weak point to
exploit. He swept through the first skeleton and into the second, likewise severing it
in two at the waist. Both skeletons tumbled to the ground, inert piles of bones.

Milo said a silent prayer and lifted his hand as he had against the wight. The light
shone from his palm again and some of the skeletons slouching towards him opened
their jaws in silent screams. A couple of the skeletons approaching his friends did
likewise. Six of the undead constructs turned immediately and made for the only exit
in the room.

Two skeletons made their way to Milo's position on the dais. They swung their
swords at the nimble halfling. Both missed as Milo dodged and weaved. Two others
attacked Brigit, one sword made it past her shield and bit into her armor. The rusty
blade came back with her blood. Brigit grimaced and hacked at the offending
skeleton. She aimed for the neck, her axe skimming clean through the neckbone.
The skeleton's head flew off its body and landed some feet away, spinning on the
rock floor. The body fell to a pile at her feet. She pressed her attack on the other
skeleton, but her axe found no purchase on its skinny bones.

It occurred to Milo that they would do better with something a little more blunt
against these undead, as he watched Jeremiah slice into another skeleton. The
skeleton collapsed as Jeremiah maneuvered his sword past its guard and into its
spine. The great sword didn't cut all the way through this time though. Jer grunted in
frustration as the blade lodged into the skeleton's spine and he lost his grip.
Milo focused on his current situation. The two skeletons were pressing in on him and
he felt slightly unprotected. He chanted a protection against evil and felt the power
surge through his body. The skeletons attacking him seemed unable to land their
blows, almost shying away from his presence.

Near the entrance Mazi was waiting for the fleeing skeletons. Jeremiah had already
destroyed one of them, but five more were on the way to the hall. Her blade was a
blur as she attacked each of them as they shambled by. She missed only one but her
long sword reduced another to a pile of whitened bones. The skeletons seemed
oblivious as they continued on.

Two passed close enough to Brigit for her to make a couple of opportunistic attacks.
She hacked at the skeletons that Mazi had wounded and watched them crumple to
their own separate heaps. She turned back to the skeleton that was not fleeing and
slashed down on its arm, severing the limb at the shoulder. The skeleton continued
on, using its good arm to wield its rusty weapon.

Jer lost precious seconds as he wrenched his sword out of the spine of the fallen
skeleton. Up on the dais Milo switched to his short sword. He recognized that his
crossbow would have even less effect on these undead than the slashing weapon he
was drawing. The skeletons continued to attack him, causing him to bound about
wildly as he attempted to stow his crossbow and unsheathe his sword.

Near the entrance Mazi had pursued the fleeing skeletons. She reached one and
slashed down at its retreating form. Her sword sliced through its ribcage, reducing
the undead creature to another pile. One other skeleton remained to flee. Her sword
snaked out to cut through its leg as it shambled forward. It didn't fall, but lurched
with a pronounced limp, still trying to get away from the room in which Milo stood.

Brigit dispatched the last skeleton that faced her. She ignored the single arm
wielding the sword and aimed for the tried and true weak point under the rib cage.
The skeleton toppled to the ground in pieces, its sword clattering atop the bones.

At the other end of the throne room Jeremiah had finally recovered his sword and
ran to assist Milo. He cut into one of the skeletons from behind. A few bones flew
from the impact of his attack, but the skeleton remained standing. It turned to face
the barbarian, swinging its rusty sword in his general direction. Jer easily avoided the
blow but raised his sword to guard against any further attacks.

Milo moved in quickly to the other skeleton and scored a minor break on its leg. The
skeleton attempted to return the attack but couldn't land a blow on Milo as he about
moved swiftly.

Mazithra ran after the last fleeing skeleton as it limped past the entryway. She
reached the stumbling construct and slashed down through its shoulder and ribcage,
reducing another skeleton to a heap of bones. Brigit, upon seeing that all the nearby
skeletons were destroyed, charged towards the two attacking Jeremiah and Milo.

She reached them a moment too late as Jeremiah's great sword turned one
skeleton's skull to powder and completely demolishing the second's structure. All
that remained standing besides the adventurers were small mounds of bones.

Milo grinned at his compatriots and gave a thumbs-up sign. He turned to the throne
and got a closer look at the shining gems. Four large red jewels adorned the fancy
throne. He drew his magic dagger and pried at the closest one. It popped easily from
its setting into his open palm. He whistled as he looked over it. He concluded that it
must be worth at least 400 gold if a copper. He passed it to Jeremiah and pried off
the next red stone. He handed this one to Brigit. By the time he had the third stone
pried Mazithra had made it to the dais. He handed that gem to the elf as she stepped
up on the raised platform. The fourth jewel he kept for himself. He may be roguish,
he thought to himself, but he was always fair.

They searched the rest of the room, finding it to be rather bare for the apparent
importance of the throne and the protected dais. The adventurers left the throne
room and backtracked to the main cavernous hall.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-six (session 6)
Back at the "Y" intersection Milo and his friends turned left, up towards the other
passage. There was still no sign of alarm throughout the cavern. No sentries roamed
the hall. Milo guessed that the undead didn't care. He did wonder about the
mastermind of the caves though.

His musings were cut short when they reached another cavern. The passage
terminated in a long room. As soon as they entered, the inhabitants came alive. Four
zombies on either side of the cave shuffled forward as soon as Jeremiah's foot
crossed the threshold.

Milo groaned again. Milo hated undead, really. He uttered another quick prayer and
waited for the zombies to close in. Jeremiah was not as patient. His sword gleamed
in the lamplight as he slashed into the nearest oozing undead. He gouged a great
deep cut through its flesh but it kept shambling on, intent on damaging the
intruders. The zombie clawed at Jeremiah, its fingers scrabbling against his armor.
He kicked the zombie away as another heaved its bulk at him. He dodged the zombie
and glanced over to his friends.

Mazi moved forward, next to Jeremiah, and slashed at a zombie as it grew near. Her
sword inflicted a lighter wound than Jeremiah's. It would have given any live
opponent reason to pause, but the zombie shambled forward, a low moan emanating
from its putrid mouth. It swiped its heavy arms at Mazi, trying to slam and disorient
her. She spun lithely out of the way. Another zombie lurched at her but was likewise
gracefully avoided.

Milo chose that moment to raise his hand and call on the power of his deity. Nothing
happened. No light shone forth, the zombies didn't even pause in their advance. Milo
shook his hand and looked at it in puzzlement.

He didn't have much time to wonder as two zombies converged on his position. They
took clumsy swipes at the nimble halfling. He jumped out of the way and readied his
short sword. I guess we'll do this the hard way, he thought.

Two more zombies shuffled forward and Brigit met them. She hacked at the lead
zombie with her war axe. The head bit deep into the foul creature's flesh, buried into
its chest for a moment. The zombie groped for her while she struggled to free her
weapon. She kicked it away in time to deflect the other zombie's attack.

Milo had a sudden revelation. He had read in his studies at the keep about another
way to combat undead. Their negative undead energies were the exact opposite of
the healing energies he used to cure wounds. He chanted his most powerful healing
spell and reached out to touch one of the zombies. Just as he was about to place his
hand on the creature he was forced to dodge the other. The healing spell discharged
into the air. Milo cursed his luck. It was the sword or nothing then.

Farther in the room Jeremiah was a sight to behold. His great sword sped into the
wounded zombie, chopping off its half-rotted head. His sword continued into the
torso of the next. The unholy construct was weakened, but continued on. Jeremiah
narrowly avoided the zombie as it tried to slam into him.

Mazithra pirouetted around a clumsy attack and sunk her long sword into the
zombie's flank. Already limping, the zombie persisted in its offense with a definite
angle to its awkward gait. The other zombie swiped at the agile elf. She continued in
her spin, neatly avoiding the zombie altogether.

Both zombies beset Brigit simultaneously. They threw themselves on her, attempting
to bypass her rock solid defense. She kicked one away with her steel-booted foot.
The zombie stumbled and fell. It moaned horrifically as it struggled to regain its
footing. Brigit shrugged the other off her shield. It slid down and backwards before
starting to surge forward again.

There were still two zombies pressing in on Milo. He slashed at one, wounding the
enemy for the first time in the battle. It moaned and struck at him. He switched
focus to the other zombie only to see it turn to fight Jeremiah. Jeremiah slashed at
the zombie he had wounded, again scoring a dire hit on the putrescent construct.
The zombie hammered at him again, only to be deflected by his adept swordplay.
Jeremiah wielded his great sword in an impressive display, dealing damage as well
as preventing it.

Mazi's sword was equally occupied. She parried a blow from one zombie before
turning the blade to strike the already wounded foe before her. The creature groaned
and buffeted her with repeated blows, each expertly fended off. The zombies were
slowly wearing down the adventurer's defenses.

Brigit only had one zombie to deal with at the time. The other was still striving to
attain an upright position from where she had kicked it down. She blocked the
pounding fists of the zombie with her magical shield as she readied her own strike.
She brought her axe down in a mighty arc but narrowly missed the oozing beast
before her. The zombie had just lurched backwards in an attempt to get a bigger
swing of it's arms as it assaulted the dwarf.

Jeremiah and Milo fought side by side. Three zombies assailed their stand. In a
splendid display of teamwork Milo reached in and sliced at one of the moldering
creatures as Jeremiah swung his own sword. Both blades met the foe at once and
the zombie fell to the floor in a rank heap. Jeremiah continued his attack and
brought down the other zombie that had attacked him. His sword dripped black and
green muck from the wounds he had inflicted.

One of the two zombies fighting Mazithra turned at the happening and struck at Milo.
He found his position very perilous all of a sudden. He ducked under the blow and
fended off another from his original assailant. For her part Mazi slashed down at the
one zombie that continued to attack her. Her sword sliced into the unwounded
construct. It oozed green slime from the fresh wound across its chest. The injury did
not prevent it from pounding at Mazi. She stepped away from the zombie's swinging
arms just before its meaty fists pummeled her.

Brigit swung hard at the wounded zombie, finally driving her axe home. The creature
all but exploded in a shower of decomposed flesh. The other zombie bashed at Brigit
as she pulled back her axe. Its large fists bruised her through her armor. She roared
at the pain and brought her axe back around, slicing deep into the zombie's hide.
The construct faltered but did not fall.

Milo and Jeremiah continued to work together. Milo slashed in at the zombie,
wounding and distracting it, while Jeremiah brought his sword into play. The huge
blade sliced deep into the zombie and it fell, twice dead and never to rise again.
Mazi moved slightly to work with Brigit. Her long sword sliced deep into the zombie's
flesh, causing green and grey ichor to leak from the grotesque humanoid. Brigit
weighed in with her axe then, chopping through the creature like so much soggy
firewood. The zombie could not withstand their combined assault and fell as the rest.

Two remaining zombies faced the females. They had different ways of avoiding the
damage, but both brought about the same results. Brigit stood stoically in the path
of the oncoming zombie, warding against its blows with her magic shield. Mazithra
was a picture of grace and elegance in the ugly background of the grisly battle. She
spun and danced around the zombie's clumsy blows as though in tune with an inner
music.

Milo moved in to assist his friends, stepping behind one of the zombies. He slashed
ineffectively at the zombie, his sword slashing at the tatters that were the remains of
its clothes during its living days. Jeremiah moved in likewise. His great sword was
much more effective against the zombies than Milo's shorter weapon. The blade
sliced down upon the shoulder of one of the wounded zombies. It sunk as far as its
breastbone before the creature slid to the earth, unmoving. Mazithra, still twirling to
the beat in her mind dealt a similar blow to the last standing zombie. Her sword did
not sink quite as deep but the final effect was the same and they all watched the last
zombie slump to the ground, truly dead.

The four friends were all breathing heavily when the battle was over. The zombies
proved to be formidable opponents. Jeremiah actually looked disappointed that he
wasn't able to use his technique to mow through the enemies like he had in the past.
Milo stooped over one of the stinking corpses to do a quick search. As he had
suspected there was nothing on the bodies worth noting. Not many pockets in the
tatters they wore. It seemed the room was merely a guardhouse of sorts. The
zombies had stood lining the walls until they were needed, not requiring food, sleep,
or other upkeep.

The room was empty save the bodies of the undead. Milo and Brigit searched the
walls for any secret catches or doors but came back to the others with no news.
After a brief assessment of their condition it was decided that they would continue
on. Though the zombies were hard to kill, none had dealt much damage to the crew.
Milo conserved his remaining spells in case they were needed for more vital matters.

They followed the hall all the way back to the door they had entered through. Around
the corner past the smoking room where the mages books and belongings still burnt
they trooped. The hall opened into a wide intersection. The rough walls continued in
its blood vein pattern, the veins of ore seemed to become more numerous as they
continued. The pulsing through the ore was very disconcerting.

They looked either way down the new hall. The vaulted ceilings spanned down to the
left and opened into a large room. Milo mentioned that the room was probably full of
skeletons like the other. They could see two doors down the other way, both on the
right side, before the hall curved to the right. Never one to pass up a closed door,
Milo voted for the right-hand hall. The group agreed and they set off for the nearer
of the two closed doors. An open invitation if Milo had ever seen one.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-seven (session 6)
Milo crept up to the door and placed his ear against the wood. He motioned for his
companions to be a quiet as possible as he strained to listen. He heard muttering
and movement inside. He thought it sounded human. He considered the fact that
besides the medusa and gelatinous cube, everything else in this cave complex had
been human or undead. Milo checked the door for traps and locks. It had a simple
untrapped and unlocked latch. He lifted the latch and stepped aside as Brigit and
Jeremiah moved into the room.

Following close behind with Mazi, Milo found himself in a short corridor leading into a
large room, some kind of living quarters. Just inside were four more black robed
priests, waiting and ready for them as the others had been before. Milo wished they
could be quieter as they trooped about the hallways.

Milo fired the bolt that was already strung in his crossbow. It whizzed by Jeremiah
and Brigit to land squarely in a bedpost between two of the robed men. He muttered
and reached for another quarrel. Jeremiah ran at the closest man, his sword up and
behind him, just as he moved to swing the blade down upon the priest, the man
shouted. "SLEEP!" Jeremiah's sword clattered to the ground behind him shortly
followed by his considerable bulk. An almost comical snoring emanated from the
floor where he lay.

Another of the evil priests chanted for a second before pointed ominously at Brigit.
She paused for a second then shouted at him. "Ha! Yer buddy already tried that 'un
on me. I ain't scared of ya now, any more than before ya cast yer spell!" With that
she charged forward and brought her dwarven waraxe down on the priest. She
hacked clean through his breastbone, stopping his heart instantly.

The other two men advanced with their maces. One stood over Jeremiah's prone
form with his weapon brandished high. Milo winced as the mace crashed down on his
friend but was relieved when he saw that the blow glanced off Jeremiah's mystical
armor. His attention was brought quickly to the other priest as a mace whistled a
scant space from his face. He finished cocking the crossbow and fired at his
assailant. The bolt tore through the folds in his robes just under his mace arm. The
priest barely seemed to notice the shot. A bloodthirsty gleam shone in his eyes as he
pulled back his mace for another blow.

Down on the floor Jeremiah was coming to. He shook his head and opened his eyes.
He seemed slightly disoriented. Brigit had moved to defend her friend and blocked a
blow from the mace-wielding priest that stood over the barbarian. Jer scanned the
ground for his sword as he struggled to get on his feet. Just as he reached for the
large weapon Brigit came crashing down atop the blade. The priest that shouted the
Word of Command at Jeremiah had just done the same to Brigit. She lay on the
ground snoring as he had moments ago.

Mazithra parried a vicious attack from the robed man she was locked in combat. She
turned the parry into an impressive riposte, stabbing the priest between two ribs. His
crazed battlelust faded as he gurgled blood from his lungs. He fell dead from the
wound.

Milo managed to reload again as he ducked another swipe of the mace. The robed
priest's offensive was daunting. The crossbow was difficult to aim at point blank
range. He fired at the priest. The bolt tore through the loose fabric of his robe again,
but missed the priest himself. Mazithra moved near Milo to aid him against the
merciless onslaught of the priest. Her first attack would have rained down on the
human's unprotected skull had he not lifted his mace to block.

Jeremiah shook Brigit who was gradually returning to consciousness. She sat up
slowly and Jer was able to reach his sword. He grabbed the hilt and whirled around
just as the priest's mace came down. He took the brunt of the blow on his gauntlet-
clad arm, sustaining some damage from the block.

He ignored the pain as he gripped the hilt of his great sword in both hands. His
muscles bulged as he put all their considerable power behind his stroke. The sword
carved a perfectly straight and deep diagonal gash from shoulder to hip. The priest
toppled to the ground, his mace made a dull clank against the rock floor.

Milo dodged another strike from the last standing priest. His face was fixed in a
crazed grimace as he swung again and again. Milo fired another bolt at the fiercely
swinging madman. The quarrel skimmed by his head, barely missing. It seemed to
cause him to pause for a second though. The maniacal expression dulled marginally
and his swings slowed.

Mazi chose just that moment to plunge her long sword into the priest. The magical
Sylvanglade drove deep into his crazed heart. He died with a grim rictus affixed to
his face. Milo slapped Mazi on the back for her amazing aim and attack.

"Evil priests, who needs em?" Milo quipped.

"I could sure use without em!" Brigit said gruffly.

Milo chuckled and crouched next to the body of the fallen priest. Once again there
were no valuables on the corpse, just a single amulet around his neck. Milo tried to
examine it more closely but felt the same revulsion as he had earlier.

"Pure evil. I don't even want to pick that thing up." Milo said as he pointed at the
amulet.

No one else seemed interested in examining the pendants so they left the bodies and
searched the room. A set of copper dishes and a few copper belts were all that they
found of value. The dishes looked to be worth anywhere around 150 to 175 gold
pieces. They were worth enough to haul out. Along the same side of the room from
which they entered they found another hallway. The passage led to the other door
they had seen in the main hall.

Again no alarm had been sounded and there were still no patrols in the passages.
They decided to investigate the large room at the other end of the hall before
checking out the angled portion of the main hall.
Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-eight (session 6)
They approached the wide opening into the large chamber with trepidation. It
seemed that they all felt that something momentous was waiting for them. From a
distance Milo could make out four large pillars stretching to the vaulted ceiling. Three
robed figures had their backs turned to the entrance. As they drew near Milo could
hear them chanting. A queer shiver crawled up his spine and he felt somehow defiled
by just the sound of the words that were being chanted. He could see the figures
hunched over some kind of desecrated altar.

As they entered the room, weapons drawn, the chanting stopped. The central
figure's hooded head raised and he turned around slowly. Grey skinned fingers
reached up and pulled the hood back to reveal a face that none of them thought to
see ever again.

It was a kindly face at one time. Once rosy cheeks were fallow and dull. The smile it
wore was much different than the welcoming, friendly grin that it had once shown.
There was no doubt who the figure was, he had a gaping hole right at the center of
his forehead where one of Mazithra's first arrows had once lain. Bordamere, the
rogue cleric stared back at them.

"At last! Do you have any idea how much this hurt?" came the raspy voice
from the figure as he pointed at the grisly wound in his head. "I miss the taste of
wine! But I have learned to love the taste of flesh!"

With that he gestured at Mazi, hate gleaming in his eyes. Mazi stiffened, it appeared
she was being held magically. As suddenly as she went still she was moving again
though. The ring she had taken from Bordamere's body weeks ago was now burning
hot on her finger. She grinned at the undead cleric and began her own incantation.

"ARRRGGHHH!" Bordamere shouted in inarticulate rage.

The other two figures had turned and started to approach the party. They were still
shrouded in their robes. Milo chanted as well. He finished before the cowled figures
reached them and touched Brigit. A glow passed from his hands to suffuse her body
before fading away.

"Evil will have a hard time harming you now Brigit, go get em!" He said to her.

The figures reached the group and attacked. Their hoods fell back as they both threw
themselves at Jeremiah. Their faces were familiar as well. It was Paul and Charles,
the mercenaries that fought with them in the goblin caves those many days ago. Milo
felt a pang of guilt for leaving the bodies of the once stalwart warriors. Now they had
been twisted to evil. Jeremiah was successful in fending off the initial attack of the
undead mercenaries, their sharpened fingernails clawed ineffectively at his armor.

Jeremiah was unable to bring his great sword to bear. He kicked Paul away to make
room for his weapon. Paul stumbled back just as Brigit swung her axe. The axe head
bit deep into the dead man's side. He kept clawing despite the deep wound.

Behind the battle Mazi had finished her incantation. Two bright orbs or light formed
on her hands. She shot her arms out at Bordamere and the spheres flew straight at
him. The light impacted with force into the undead cleric, wounding him and drawing
another cry of outrage.
Bordamere tried a different tack. He completed another chant and pointed at Brigit.
She paused in the battle for a split second, shivering in her armor, before throwing
the effects of the spell off.

"Hah! Yer lackeys already tried that 'un Bordy! It ain't gonna work on me." Brigit
scoffed.

"ARRRGGHHH!" came again from the evil cleric in frustration.

Milo raised his hand and willed the power of his deity forth. The light shone from his
palm, but the two undead mercenaries seemed completely unaffected. Milo look
quizzically at his hand, he didn't understand why it wasn't working.

Charles and Jeremiah were locked in a brutal battle. Charles clawed at Jer,
scratching his face and drawing blood. Jeremiah roared in anger and swung his great
sword into the undead mercenary. The blade cut deep into his shoulder, leaving one
arm truly lifeless at his side.

Paul and Brigit were in a more cautious fight. It was as if the soldier could feel the
effects of the spell Milo placed on the stout dwarf. She taunted Paul with her axe. He
sprang at her, trying to claw past her shield. He jumped back as quickly as he had
jumped forward, Brigit's axe tore through the fabric of his tunic. Paul held the hand
that scratched Brigit's shield, as though attacking her hurt him.

Behind it all Mazithra finished a different chant and formed her hands in a strange
symbol. A large badger appeared behind Bordamere, glowing faintly. It immediately
attacked but its bite was unable to pierce his armor. Bordamere turned to the badger
and swiped at it with clawed fingernails. The badger died instantly, shriveling as if its
life force had been sucked out.

Milo raised his hand again. The light shined yet again, but still there was no effect.
He was getting frustrated, thinking that perhaps his god had already abandoned him.

Right in front of him Brigit blocked another clawed attack with her magic shield. She
did not pause as Paul cringed back nursing his fingers. Her axe fell in a vicious arc,
cleaving into the undead mercenary. The light of unlife faded from his eyes as he
fell. He looked almost peaceful, as if Brigit had released him from a great pain.

An inhuman scream came from Charles as he leapt for Jeremiah's throat. Jer swung
his sword in a desperate attempt to keep him at bay. The blade tip slashed through
his tunic and gouged into his grey flesh. Charles screamed again, a high-pitched,
piercing cry.

From across the room Milo saw the badger stir. He thought that maybe it was made
of sterner stuff than he was aware. He was sorely disappointed as he noticed the
feral attitude of the once celestial beast. It was wightspawn, which meant Bordamere
was a wight.

"Don't let Bordamere touch you, he can turn you undead if we're not careful!" Milo
shouted to his friends.

Bordamere growled and gestured at Jeremiah. "DIE!" he said in his gravely voice.
Jeremiah didn't even notice, he was deeply involved in his battle with Charles.

"ARRRGGHHH!" yelled Bordamere again.

Milo almost laughed in spite of the situation. Good old Bordy couldn't get a break. He
grew serious as he raised his hand again, determined to turn these undead away.
For a third time the light shone from his palm with no effect whatsoever. Milo was
disheartened as he watched the wightspawn badger approach.

Next to him Mazi finished a minor incantation she memorized especially for that day.
She gestured at Bordamere. The undead cleric convulsed for a few seconds.
Whatever Mazi had cast at him had disrupted him severely.

The undead badger reached and bit at Brigit but was unable to penetrate her armor.
She kicked at the beast before stowing her axe and drawing her bow to fire at
Bordamere from a distance.

Next to her Charles and Jeremiah struggled back and forth. Jeremiah fended off claw
after claw but couldn't quite get in an attack of his own. His sword always seemed
one second behind the undead mercenary. He was surprised by the soldier's
dexterity.

Mazithra chanted the same cantrip and pointed at Bordamere. The evil priest was
ready for her spell this time. He made a sign with his hands right as Mazi gestured.
The convulsions didn't affect him this time. He screamed at his enemies and jumped
towards Brigit. His claws found no purchase in her armor as she shrugged off his
attack.

"ARRRGGHHH!" he screamed impotently.

Worried about the relative proximity of the wight, Milo chanted his protection spell
again, this time conferring its defenses to Jeremiah. Just in time it appeared, for
Charles made it past his defenses and scratched at Jeremiah. The spell prevented
the undead creature from damaging the barbarian. Jer once again pushed Charles
back, this time his sword found its mark. Charles fell with a brutal thrust to his chest.
Jeremiah pulled his sword back and thrust again, this time at Bordamere. The cleric's
full plate armor protected him though. The sword skittered off the breastplate.

Brigit drew her axe and shield to attack the undead priest hand-to-hand. Mazithra
gave up her spell casting for a space and leaped into the battle with her sword
brandished. She circled behind Bordamere and slashed at his back. The wight was
well armored though, and her blade caused no wound.

Bordamere sidled away from Mazi and attacked Brigit again, his claws scratched at
her shield and armor, but no damage was caused. Milo ducked and rolled to get
behind the cleric. His tumbling was clumsy and as he brushed past the wight he
reached down a claw. Half-lucky, Milo rolled safely past him. He sprang to his feet
and whirled around to fire his crossbow. The bolt bounced off Bordamere's plate
mail.

Jeremiah moved up to Bordamere's flank, he was quickly becoming surrounded. Jer

thrust in his great sword again, this time puncturing the steel of the undead wight's
armor.

"ARRRGGHHH!" Bordamere shouted one last time.

Brigit cut his anguished cry short with a brilliant sneak attack to his unguarded waist.
Bordamere fell to the ground, dead again.

"And stay dead!" Mazi said with a nod.

Keep of the Borderlands -part twenty-nine (session 6)
The group had no time to celebrate their victory. No sooner had Bordamere fallen
then a gong from the corner of the room sounded loudly. Milo looked around and
spied the altar Bordamere, Paul, and Charles had stood at. Upon it stood three
goblets, crusted with blood.

Milo grabbed Brigit and ran towards the altar, fishing out his holy water on the way.
Mazithra heard, or rather felt, a deep rumbling. She looked down the hall and saw
what caused it. Two score skeletons and zombies were marching in step up the main
hall, straight towards them.

"We've got company!" She shouted back to Milo and Brigit. "Lots and lots of
company!" She pulled a scroll from her pack. It was one she had been hoping to
save to scribe into her spell book, but it would serve them well now.

Milo carefully emptied his holy water into the three cups. He was sure not to touch
the goblets or the altar as he split the blessed water evenly between them. All the
while the marching was getting louder. He pulled out the sanctifying spell scroll the
Keep's priest had given him and quickly read over its contents. It was easily cast. He
cleared his mind of all distractions. No easy feat considering the rumbling he felt
under his feet. He chanted the word of the spell and watched as the holy water
within each goblet began to sparkle. The specks of light began to coalesce and grow
brighter and brighter. The cups themselves began to glow, it was as if the light was
cleansing them physically, pure white shone under the dirt, grime, and dried blood
that covered them.

"NOW Brigit!" Milo shouted.

Brigit had readied the blessed hammer before they even reached the altar. With a
powerful blow she shattered the first goblet, holy water and shards flew everywhere.
She moved to the second cup and smashed it as well. The gong in the corner of the
room sounded softer. Brigit moved to the last cup, raised the hammer high, and
brought it down with amazing force. The cup shattered with a brilliant flash of light.

The gong stopped suddenly. The rumbling under their feet did not.

"Here goes nothing!" shouted Mazi over the din.

She read over the scroll one last time before reciting the incantation. The scroll
turned a red orange in her hands before catching on fire. Mazi let go and it floated in
the air in front of her, crisping and curling. When it had curled completely into a
small flaming sphere she thrust her hands towards the horde of undead approaching
them. The fireball flew forward, over the heads of the first four ranks of zombies. A
giant conflagration sprouted from the center of the army, spreading out in all
directions. An intense wave of heat washed over the adventurers as the blast
reached its maximum size.

In moments the smoke cleared. Charred skeletons and zombie corpses littered the
grand hall. Milo whistled, he was very impressed. Through the smoke shambled
three zombies, still smoldering. Behind them eight skeletons advanced. The fireball
destroyed most of the forces but there were still some to mop up.

They decided to let the undead come to them. Milo pulled out another scroll, this one
a protection spell. He cast it quickly on Mazi. All four of them would be protected
from evil, undead and otherwise. Mazi cast a spell of her own. She chanted the same
cantrip that had disrupted Bordamere and gestured at the closest zombie. The
creature convulsed but moved forward after a few seconds.

The four friends formed a line, four abreast, and drew their weapons, waiting for the
zombies and skeletons to reach them. The three zombies and one skeleton shambled
forward and attacked. Not one blow landed on the protected adventurers.

Jeremiah's sword sprang into action. He mowed through the zombie to his left,
cutting it completely in half. His blade continued on to sever the spine of the
skeleton in front of him without slowing a fraction. He completed his swing by
burying a good foot of the sword into the zombie to his right. All three undead fell
before his attack.

Brigit swung her axe at the only remaining zombie. It sunk deep into the burnt flesh
of the undead construct. The zombie slumped to the floor as Brigit jerked her axe
out of its corpse.

As more skeletons advanced to take the place of their fallen comrades Mazi chanted
her cantrip again. The skeleton before her convulsed, rattling its bones together and
loosing cohesion. It recovered enough to slash at her with its sword, but Mazi wasn't
there. She dodged the blade deftly. The other skeletons attacked. Milo ducked under
a horizontal slash that came his direction while Brigit and Jeremiah used their armor
and weapons to deflect the blows aimed at them.

Milo and Jeremiah attacked the same skeleton. Milo's shortsword bit through bone
seconds before Jeremiah's sword finished the job. The skeleton crumbled to a heap.
Jeremiah's great sword cleaved into the skeleton before him. The tip struck bone and
knocked a few out of place, but the skeleton still stood.

Brigit made short work of the skeleton facing her. Her axe slashed down at an angle,
cleaving through neck and shoulder. Bones littered the floor and flew through the air
from her attack. The Trollgrater continued its deadly arc through the spine of the
skeleton to her right. More bones scattered as it fell to pieces.

Mazi slashed at the skeleton Jeremiah wounded. Her sword chopped through the
ribcage and into the pelvic bone. The skeleton flew apart, the magic holding it
together dissipated.

Three skeletons remained. They advanced on their enemies, compelled to attack.

The magical protection that Milo's spells afforded kept Jeremiah, Brigit, and Mazithra
safe. The skeletons couldn't quite focus on the adventurers.

Milo and Jeremiah worked together again. Milo's sword weakened the skeleton,
causing it to lose its coherence. Jeremiah slashed down at the wounded undead and
shattered another set of bones. He continued to the next, his strike growing even
more powerful in the follow through. The skeleton flew apart, the bones that met the
sword powdered instantly.

Brigit aimed for the spine of the last skeleton. Her dwarven axe cut cleanly through
the bone. The final enemy fell into a heap at her feet. They all stood back and
surveyed the wreckage. Bones littered the floor and zombie corpses still smoldered
down the grand hall.

"WOO Hooo!" Milo crowed. "Take THAT undead!"

His friends grinned at Milo and they turned to look back into the foul altar room.
Everything was still. Brigit and Milo approached the body of Bordamere.

"Poor sap just couldn't learn when to quit." Milo said to no one in particular as he
shook his head slowly side to side.

"Aye, he looks good wi' that hole in his head, don't he Mazi?" Brigit said.

"Heh heh, that he does. Let's make sure he doesn't come back, okay?" Mazithra
suggested.

The four set about removing his plate mail. They noticed an amulet matching the
priests around his neck. They left it and finished removing the armor. Once he was
stripped to his tunic and leggings Brigit went to work. She chopped his arms, legs
and head off.

"I don't think you can raise undead twice, but I don't want him coming back either."
said Milo as Brigit butchered the corpse. "Well, we finally got those cups! Good job
with the hammer Brigit. I don't know if that stopped the armies marching on the
Keep. I hope they're okay. I'm certain that Bordamere wasn't the mastermind
behind this. I bet whoever did all this is still here."

They left the altar room and headed down the main hall. Mazi picked her way
carefully past the smoldering remains of the undead horde. They made it past the
scene of carnage and came to the curve in the passage. It straightened back out and
opened into another large throne room.

The ceiling stretched far higher than the grand hall, completely carved in the manner
of some of the throne rooms in castles Milo had been to in his youth. Curtains
adorned the side walls but the far wall is what drew their attention. The wall was
slightly translucent and reflective. It was a deep red color and had the appearance of
depth. Other than the curtains, the jeweled throne, and a few candelabras the room
was empty.

They adventurers approached the wall cautiously. The black candles in the
candelabras lit as soon as they stepped into the room. They jumped collectively and
readied their weapons. Nothing sprang from the curtains or from behind the throne.
They continued in, candles lighting with every step they took.

Drawing closer to the wall they could see it pulsed rhythmically. A red glow beating
in time with the ore veins in the rock walls outside the throne room.

"Does this remind anyone else of a heartbeat?" Mazi asked. Her voice sounded quiet
in the huge space of the grand throne room.

"Too much-" Milo started before cutting himself short. Brigit had walked closer to the
wall and was reaching out to touch it. She suddenly stood stock straight and began
to mumble in a strange tongue. All three of her companions tackled her, breaking
the contact with the wall.
"How about we leave the wall of evil alone for now? I don't want to lose any of you
to that thing." Milo said in relief as Brigit shook her head clear of whatever overcame
her. "What would you bet that this is how Bordamere was subverted? This thing is
pure evil. I wonder if we could destroy it?"

"Mayhap, but let's come back to it later. I wanna find that robed scoundrel what
started all this. We owe 'im big." Brigit said after a few moments.

They all agreed and set about searching the room. The throne was the main
attraction. One large red gem adorned the high back near the top. Milo pried out the
jewel and handed it to Brigit. She estimated the weighty stone to be worth at least a
thousand gold. She remarked on the crystal clarity of the stone as Milo worked on
the smaller gems that encrusted the throne. He was able to pry ten opals and ten
rubies from the arms and sides of the cushioned seat. He guessed the rubies to be
worth around five hundred gold apiece and the opals around a hundred each.

There was also a single door near the entrance, on the right wall. Milo searched it,
finding no traps. They entered the room, Jeremiah and Brigit in the lead. A short
passage led into a long waiting room of sorts. From the garments and gear littering
the room they could tell this was some sort of preparation chamber. Another door
led to a passage that ended behind a curtain leading into the main room.

A further search of the curtains around the side walls revealed another secret
passage, this one leading to the side of the mirrored wall. They followed the passage
into a well-lit, well-furnished waiting room.

Three zombies rose to their feet as they entered the room. Milo and Mazithra leapt to
attack the undead creatures. They each scored a hit, slicing into the grey, rotting
flesh of the zombies. Brigit moved past Mazi and hacked into one. It fell before it
could even attack. Her axe struck the unwounded zombie next. It caused a wound
the width of its body deep into its torso.

The zombie didn't even notice as it swiped at Milo, who was standing near. Milo
jumped back and gave Jeremiah room to move in. The other zombie moaned and
swung its fists at Jeremiah. Once again Milo's spell protected him. The zombie wasn't
able to strike the large barbarian. Jer roared as he swung his sword into the undead
creature. The zombie fell, its head severed from its body. His sword continued
through, chopping straight into the wound Brigit had started in the other zombie. Its
legs and waist stood for a moment before toppling over to join its torso on the
ground.

They looked around, wary of any other undead approaching. No other enemies made
themselves known. A door led out of the room to the left. They searched the
contents of the waiting room before they checked the door. On a table in the corner
were an ornately carved flagon and a set of gold goblets. They looked askance at the
cups before handling them. Not completely certain that they were done with cursed
vessels.

Milo braved it and picked one up. It was a normal drinking goblet, with a bit of wine
still at the bottom. They poured out the remaining wine in the cups and stowed them
along with the flagon for later.
Brigit searched the door for any traps. She didn't find any, nor was the door locked.
She kicked it in and she and the rest stormed into the room. A robed man waited for
them. As soon as Brigit and Milo entered a voice spoke in their mind.

Milo heard, "I can give you anything you desire...you fear the Undead? You can
become their Master. Riches untold can be yours in a heartbeat.
Anything you desire...

all you have to do is give me the Elf woman and they will be yours."

Brigit heard, "I can give you anything you desire...I know the secret desires of your
heart.
Your sister? I can reunite you with her. You wish vengeance on those who
slaughtered and enslaved your Clan? I can give you the one who planned it and
carried it out.

Anything you desire...

all you have to do is give me the Elf woman and they will be yours."

Milo and Brigit didn't even consider the offers.

"Not a chance, she's my friend and you can't have her." Milo said.

"Aye, she's not fer you, finger-wiggler" Brigit agreed.

The wizard didn't say a word. He raised his hand and darkness fell. Milo was
disoriented for a second. He heard a crash come from the corner of the room where
the man was standing. He chanted a cantrip quickly and light blossomed from his
short sword.

The robed man was gone. There was a screen near where they saw the man last.
Behind it was a passage and a door. Brigit swung the door open and a secret panel
sprung open from the ceiling. A shower of small gems and jewels rained down on the
party. They ignored the riches and charged through the door. The emerged back in
the grand hall just in time to see the robed figure turn the corner. They gave chase,
Jeremiah pulling forward quickly, his lanky form and muscles propelled him down the
hall after the wizard.

They rounded the corner and saw the man turn to the right. It seemed he was
heading for the other throne room. They ran after him, not quite fast enough to
catch up. He ran down the slanted portion of the hall and took the left branch at the
"Y" intersection.

They near end of the intersection in time to see the robed figure stop in front of the
rock fall. He laughed ominously before chanting a spell. His form went hazy, then
smoky. He seemed to dissipate into thin air. The smoke left from his outline moved
unnaturally. It seeped into the rocks of the deadfall.

"He's getting away!" Milo shouted.

They ran to the wall as the last of the smoke seeped through the cracks. Milo
considered the potion of gaseous form they still had. Perhaps Jeremiah could drink it
and catch up to the wizard. That gave him pause. They knew the wizard was
powerful, he wouldn't want to face him alone. He was pretty sure that the robed
spell caster had some tricks in store and he didn't want Jeremiah coming to a foul
end while they were trapped on the other side of the rock fall.

"That's it. We almost had him!" Milo said in disappointment. "You can bet he'll be
back again."

"What was that all about? You said 'she's my friend and you can't have her' Milo.
What did he want?" Mazi asked.

Milo and Brigit explained what they heard in their minds when they entered the
room. Mazi looked concerned but thanked them for their loyalty and protection.

They made their way back to the secret door leading into the wizard's room. The
passage was littered with small gems. Milo was careful to get them all. He may not
have been greedy enough to stop for them earlier, but he was of the firm believer of
'waste not, want not'.

Upon entering the wizard's chambers the group noticed a full size mirror standing in
a corner. The mirror was full of smoke. The smoke solidified and a stranger stood in
its midst. He reached forward and passed his hand through the glass. In it was a
piece of parchment. He dropped it and smiled at them. The smoke began to fill the
mirror again before it shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. Milo examined one of
the shards, all he saw was his own reflection.

Mazithra picked up the note. It was written in a unique handwriting.

"I await you beyond the Black Mountains.

Do not disappoint me."

She shrugged and handed the note around. None of them recognized the man or the
handwriting. They all exchanged puzzled looks. Milo shrugged too, pushing the
mystery to the side to search the room. He found some papers on the wizard's desk.
He read through them before handing them to the others.

In the same handwriting as the note that was passed through the mirror was this:

"All has gone according to plan. Do not be concerned that you have been discovered.
Have faith in Me and all will proceed as it should. You may now destroy them. Leave
only the elf woman. She MUST NOT BE HARMED or I shall be most displeased. Take
her and bring her to me."

Two other notes were on the desk. Both in different handwriting.

"L,

The merchandise has been delivered to the Baron. The gold has been deposited in
your account in Luln. The girl is with me as per our agreement and the spell is
working as advertised. There was no sign of the sister. I am going to lay low for a
while 'til the heat is off. I think Snurre is due for a visit.
O"

The other note was more of a list:

"2,000 Cavalry
4,000 Light Infantry
4,000 Heavy Infantry

350 Giants
150 Air Cavalry
500 Undead

10,000 Auxiliary Units

300 Wagons
500 Extra Mounts
45 Ballistae
50 Light Catapult"

Brigit's breath caught in her throat as she read the note about the sister. Milo
deduced it must be in reference to her sister. The man named "L" had offered her
reunion.

"I think we all need to talk. There are sides of each of us that we haven't shown. It
may be time to let down some walls." Milo said seriously to his friends.

"Aye, I think yer right, halfling." Brigit agreed.

"Perhaps, but I don't think this is the place to do so." Mazithra indicated the room.

Jeremiah nodded his agreement.

"Very well. Let's make our way out of here and camp for the night. Tomorrow we'll
make our way back to the Keep. I only hope it still stands." Milo finished.
Keep of the Borderlands - fini
The four friends spoke long into the night. They discussed the newfound information
they obtained from the caves. They talked about each other's backgrounds and what
brought them to the Keep. They spoke of directions and what they would do after
they made it back to civilization. Soon they grew tired and decided to set up watch
before they all drifted to sleep.

A few short hours later they awoke to the sun rising. Mazithra had been busy during
her watch and the early morning, only requiring a few hours of deep meditation. She
had identified the great sword and helmet that the party had found.

Windsword of Sharda
GreatSword +1
Once per day the wielder can perform a Whirlwind Attack.

The helmet was cursed, she looked meaningfully at Jeremiah, a mute warning not to
take magic weapons and armor lightly. Jeremiah remembered how closely he had
come to donning the helmet.

By the time camp was struck it was a bright cheery morning. Off in the distance Milo
could see the caves. He thought they didn't look quite as bad from the distance.
Everyone's mood was bright, even Jeremiah smiled all morning.

The journey back to the Keep took most of the day. They could see evidence of the
undead army's passage along the way. Milo worried that the army might have broke
through to the Keep. They reached the foothills of the mountain and started up the
long winding road to the gate.

They could make out the destruction wrought by the enemy at the gates from a
distance. The rest of the journey was made in haste as the adventurers hurried to
the Keep. They feared the worst as they approached the scene. One of the doors to
the massive gate hung from one hinge, moving side to side in the breeze, squeaking
like a plaintive dire rat. The other door lay on the ground, flung not a few feet from
its casing. One of the enormous bone constructs powered by Bordamere's lackeys lay
atop the door. Its progress had been halted where it broke through. Zombie bodies
and heaps of bones littered the base of the outer walls. A putrid smell wafted
through the air, it reminded Milo of the meat market in Darokin on an exceptionally
hot day.

As they drew near they were relieved to see a guard, a living, human guard, step
through the gate to challenge them. He was disheveled and wore a bandage on his
arm. What appeared to be a permanent scowl on his weary features evaporated
when he realized who approached the gate. He called back to the guardhouse and a
small commotion could be heard. Four more guards and the captain emerged from
the broken gate, while Milo could make out another one running in the direction of
the chapel.

The captain welcomed them. He had spoke with the priest and knew the mission
they had embarked on. The grizzled captain told them of the undead siege they had
endured. The bone construct had broke through last, the guards were ready for the
monster and dispatched it quickly in a concerted effort. The other undead swarmed
the walls but were handled with burning pitch and oil thrown over the sides.
As the captain finished telling them about the attack the Keep's priest had made his
way to the gates. He greeted them warmly and, noticing the crowds beginning to
gather, invited them to retire to his private quarters in the chapel.

They moved through the small streets with the priest and the captain of the guard.
Windows opened and people stood in their doorways, watching the heroes pass. A
couple of the bystanders cheered as they continued. Milo felt slightly embarrassed
and a little exposed.

The priest led them into his office and directed them to four comfortable chairs.
Jeremiah and Brigit clanked to their seats and settled as comfortably as they could in
their full plate.

After they were settled, the old priest related their battle with the plague to the
heroes and their miraculous recovery. Given the timeframe Milo suspected the
disease had been lifted at the same moment Brigit had destroyed the goblets.

Milo then related their story, starting with the secret passage into the foul temple of
the enemy. He skimmed over the elf skeleton they had found as he glanced
knowingly to Mazithra. When he came to the unveiling of the chief servant in the
scheme, the evil cleric turned wight, Bordamere, the priest nodded. Milo then told
him about the wizard that seemed to mastermind the siege and plague. The old
priest knew nothing of him by description, nor did he know of the man they saw in
the mirror before it shattered.

He welcomed them to stay in the inn, free of charge for the services they had done
for the Keep. He also asked if there were any other magical items they needed
identified. Milo declined and told the priest proudly that Mazi had discovered a means
to identify their spoils on her own. The priest saw them to the door and wished them
well.

A raucous, impromptu party took place in the inn that night. The newly healed
citizens of the Keep were eager to celebrate the victory at the Keep and the
cleansing of the nearby caves. Milo spun stories for any willing ears in his clumsy
way. Jeremiah and Brigit won many drinking contests that night. Mazithra could be
found performing dazzling maneuvers and graceful dances. The festivities lasted far
into the night and the party trickled into their room one at a time.

Milo slumped into bed, as exhausted as if he had just fought a horde of undead, but
exhilarated too. He drifted off to sleep almost immediately.

[Below was provided by Frog, it is unedited]

After the long trials of the Caves it feels good to be back at the Keep and in a warm,
SOFT bed for once. As you drift off to sleep you can't help but wonder what will
happen next...

A soft, familiar glow fills the room as you open your eyes. Your companions lie
sleeping around you, seemingly oblivious to the light emanating from the short,
rotund figure that has appeared in the room.

"Good job my boy" He says. "I knew I was right in choosing you...although your lack
of faith there at the end was most disappointing."

You think back to your attempts to "turn" the undead that had met with failure after
you had questioned your Deities faithfulness to his servants. Perhaps it wasn't His
fault at all, but your own lack of faith in Him that had rendered your attempts in
vain?

He smiles at you knowingly "You are beginning to catch on after all, good. I was
worried that you may need more time than you have left." A troubled look crosses
His face for a moment. "In answer to your questions...I am Usamigaras." He sits
down as a glowing chair appears beneath Him. "Boy, I have a task for you. You must
save my people."

"They are in thrall to an Evil of unspeakable proportions. They are blood sacrifices to
satisfy the cravings of this Minion of Death. They have need of a champion...I have
chosen you."

"Your task will not be easy. First and foremost you must destroy the Beast that holds
them under Its sway. This will not be easy as it has corrupted some of my people
into serving It as if It were a god. They will try to protect It. They MUST NOT
succeed. After destroying the Beast comes the second part of your quest...make the
desert grow green so that it will once again nourish My people, that they may rise
from the darkness and back into the light."

He stands again, the chair dissolving. "This is not easy my boy, not easy at all. I
cannot tell you much more at this time...I am prevented from doing so. One last
thing may I tell you...the Beast has a Name...and it is Xargon." Usamigarus fades
away as the Name echoes in your mind...Xargon.