Thinking of a different plan he adds "Or we could try to bribe the dragon for the berries.  I speak draconic fairly well from my time studying back home.  So I bet I could communicate with it."

"And I have a magical dagger and fifty gold with which to bribe it with.  It isn't much buy maybe if we pool our resources of the things we could part with it might make a good enough offer for enough berries to heal us with."

OOC:  Tahldar also has a set of "bracers of the magus" he got from one of the tests he would rather keep if he could.  He has nothing else of worth.

You place the onyx orb on the pedestal...

Two things happen.

Both the pedestal and the wall behind it begin to rise toward the ceiling.


As the dragon pedestal rises, you see words carved into the rising portion of blocks.  It reads:

THE DRAGON

Then it continues to rise.  The next line carved on the blocks reads:

HAS AWAKENED

The pedestal then connects with the ceiling.  Meanwhile, the wall beyond the pedestal has risen to reveal yet another bas relief carved into the tile below the first.  It looks like this:



Behind you can be heard a sound.  Turning quickly, you see that a small segment of wall has come down back in the semicircular room.

In this map, it is the location directly west of you in the center of the straight wall.


The opening is small--no more than four feet high and three feet wide, but it leads to a new passage never before revealed to you.

As a reminder, here is what you had found on the western straight wall previously:

But on the wall behind you (the west wall), there are more intricate carvings, which read:


 "THE TEST OF THE FAITHFUL. Only those who prove true may transcend and descend.  Only those who prove true are worthy.  The seventh test revealed below."


 A tapestry is hung on either side of these engravings.  Though they must be old and are filled with dust, they are in impeccable shape, obviously preserved through magic.

 The left tapestry portrays the back of a black-cloaked man standing atop a mountain, his hands held high.  At the bottom of the mountain, hordes of followers bow in obeisance.

 The right tapestry portrays a silvery dragon with piercing blue eyes, its tail winding around a black-cloaked figure.  In each of its foreclaws, it also holds a black-cloaked figure, and yet another is crushed between its teeth.  The dragon peers out from a cave in a mountain, and at the top of the mountain, you see the small figure of the cloaked man, hands still raised.

 Below the wording and in between the two tapestries, there is another "shelf" that is closed to viewing.  You imagine it will open if the right conditions are met.


What has just happened is that this "shelf" has opened to reveal that it is not so much a shelf as a small, narrow passage.

Here is the final map of this level with the new entryway showing.  It slopes down and is made of stone.  Room 8 has the pedestal, and room 7 is the semicircular room where the gnomes have been waiting.  The tunnel in the center of the other two is what is new there.



OOC: Also, I wanted to remind Borimer that his severed hand was healed in the room with the statues, so he has both hands.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:43, Fri 23 Dec 2016.

Leo sees the small opening and heads in just far enough to report on what can be seen beyond adding, "Well, I can get through this easily enough, let me see what we have here."

Borimer rubs his hands together, "It's getting cold in here." He watches Leo, ready to crawl in after him if necessary and hoping it won't be. "I agree with Tahldar, the dragon can't be killed, but perhaps distracted long enough for quick hands to gather berries."

Leo moves in closer, crawling into the tunnel a little.  His infravision picks up that it goes for quite a ways in and looks like a secret tunnel.

You begin hearing clicking sounds from where the pedestal was.  You realize the back side of the pedestal has opened a previously sealed opening that had been below the level of the floor.  Through this opening, more of those acid beetles become flowing through.  They will quickly fill the room if you do not hurry.

Knowing the time for discussion is over, Tahldar rushes after Leo to avoid the oncoming beetles.

Borimer will stand guard until the rest of the group is in the tunnel and then he will follow.

Hearing the rush of the folks behind Leo picks up the pace so others can get through.

Upon seeing the beetles, the gnomes with you begin to panic, and they follow behind Leo, remembering what damage and pain the beetles can cause.

Borimer enters last, just as the beetles are swarming around the tomb and pedestal room and turning it into a black, moving mass.

You crawl through the opening and down the tunnel.  Leo stops when he sees that the tunnel ends at the chasm.  Whatever earthquake or seismic event happened here cut off this tunnel as well as the rest of the temple.

And then you hear a crack.  And another crack.  The granite floor cannot handle your weight and it comes crashing down, sending all of you sliding and the falling over the edge and into the chasm...

...you are currently falling...

Your memory goes back to Hatchman the paladin and his fall from the rope bridge leading into this temple complex.  He took the better part of valor to ensure you all got across before being pierced with a gian't spear.  You remember his fall down the ten thousand or more feet into the mists and clouds, and you wonder how far down it really is to the bottom.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:08, Wed 28 Dec 2016.

...Borimer continues to wonder as he plummets...

"Ahhh!" is all the mage can utter as he falls.

OOC:  Tahldar will cast feather fall if it looks like he'll hit the ground hard.  Otherwise he'll free fall with everyone else and see how it goes.

Leo tries to make the best of it by looking down and hoping to guide himself to somewhere softer as futile as that likely is.

Shae transforms into an eagle and begins soaring down to the bottom to see if she can reach it before the others and lend assistance.

As you fall, you have time to realize that this was not part of the original floorplan.  The floor has broken away into this chasm.  You look across the chasm but don't see where the narrow tunnel would have taken you had the years not resulted in this chasm.

But then your thoughts turn downward as you continue to fall for what seems an eternity.

Your lantern goes flying out of your hands and smashes against the nearby chasm wall as you fall.  You hear below you the sound of splashing and moving water and feel yourself falling into a mist...

OOC: You have a few more seconds to take any action...

Also, each of you please roll against both strength and dexterity on d20 and let me know the results. 

Tahldar doesn't like not knowing what lay beneath him and he thinks the hard landing is very close.  Speaking a short keyword he uses the spell feather fall.

OOC:  Will cast feather fall.  Made the DX roll by 8.  Missed the STR roll by 5.

Correction: Shae does not need to roll for strength or dexterity.

..."Ahhhhhh! Not my lantern!"...

16:15, Today: Leogold Silvershaper rolled 10 using 1d20.  dex roll. made by 9
16:15, Today: Leogold Silvershaper rolled 16 using 1d20.  strength roll.  missed by 5

You are falling for what seems an eternity.

Tahldar casts feather fall and leaves everyone else to fall far past him as he floats downward.

Shae turns into an eagle, swooping up as the others continue to fall past her.

As you near the sound of rushing water, the mist clears momentarily and you have but an instant to see around you.  Luckily, the luminescent purple crystals are scattered about the wall providing some illumination.

Your fall will land you directly into the center of a 15 foot diameter wall (#11).  The wall is set in the center of a raging river that goes from left to right (east to west on the map).  About 25 feet downstream is a waterfall.



In a moment, you realize that the inside of the circular wall is the only place where there are not fast rapids that would carry you away and possibly drown you or dash your head upon the rocks over the waterfall.



Luckily, the inside of the wall appears to be calm, dark water.

As you fall toward the wall...

(Everyone made the Dex check except Vuzyl)

Vuzyl's arm hits the side of the circular wall as he falls.  You hear a loud crack as his left forearm is broken.  (-8 hp)

Everyone except Shae and Tahldar fall into the dark, calm water...

They do not come back up.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:45, Tue 17 Jan 2017.

Borimer tries to swim in the darkness to...wherever he can.

Tahldar looks for his companions with worry.

OOC: Tahldar will swim to the edge of the wall once he hits the water.  He will help anyone up and out if he sees anyone.

Shae will perch on the edge of the wall before transforming back into her half-elf state and diving in the water to rescue her friends.

Leo tries to hold his breath and avoid hitting anything wherever the current takes him.

Leogold Silvershaper rolled 9 using 1d20.  con check.