Marklin and Valthur lead the way into the cave. The opening of the cavern is worn smooth, indicating the passage of a lot of traffic at some point in the Hill's history. The opening is 10 feet high but burrows down underneath the hill. Peering inside, the cave mouth opens into an irregular oblong cavern about 30 by 60 feet in diameter. The walls are unworked stone and the floor is natural stone. Neither the Beast nor Ebermund's companions are in the cavern below, but it does smell musty, like an animal.

No other exits are evident.

Despite being out of the wind, Sarah remains cloistered beneath her cloak.  If anything, she holds it more tightly, with one hand extended from within to hold it together near her throat.

She remains in her position in the midst of the others, but cocks her head to one side as she looks with suspicion to the edges of the torchlight . . .

11:05, Today: Sarah rolled 1 using 1d6 with rolls of 1.  Listen (1-3).
This message was last edited by the player at 16:08, Mon 03 Apr 2017.

Feeling responsible for the torch, Aldara holds it for her companions.

Pausing to listen, Sarah does not hear anything unusual within the cave. With the benefit of torchlight, the party now notices what must be the roots of over a century of growth within the caves. Roots both hang down from the ceiling and nearly cover the ground. Curious given the paucity of living vegetation on the Hill's exterior. Barren Hill must not have always been so.

The eerie interior of the chamber gives Valthur a moment's pause before he enters. With axe at the ready, he scans the room, especially the ceiling. "Keep your eyes open," he instructs. "The beast could be hiding anywhere in this mess of roots."

With a nod, Aldara draws her silvery dagger and holds it with her other hand.

"Look around for any sign of Byron and Sharlayne," Eoni whispered.  "If it's out hunting, we may be able to find them and escape before it returns."

She didn't feel they would be so lucky but prayed to Avandra for her blessing.

"I'll watch the entrance in case it returns."

Eoni tried to find a spot to crouch out of the way of the entrance where she might see anything appear at the dim edge of torchlight.

Valthur scans the room and notices an unusual addition within the large cavern: what appears to be a secret stone door along its southwestern wall. It's clever stonework, for sure, perhaps even magical in nature. Quite clever really. But not clever enough to fool the cunning eyes of a dwarf skilled in stonecraft.

The door appears to be of the revolving variety.

No other features of interest capture Valthur's attention.

"Over here," Valthur informs the others. "I've found something. Looks like a secret door."

Without thinking too carefully, the dwarf tries to open it. Pushing directly on it first, and if that doesn't work, then looking for mechanisms to activate it.

Sarah watches Valthur's efforts with professional interest.

 Marklin moved behind Valthur, ready to back him up.

Eoni retreated from the entrance to join the others.  She made sure that they hadn't already lost Ebermund along the way.

"Are there any signs that someone's used this recently?" she asked.

Valthur approaches the secret door and gives it a shove in an attempt to push it open. Marklin stands just behind the dwarf while the rest of the party observes from a distance.

The door easily rotates on an unseen axle, but unfortunately, the area immediately surrounding the door erupts in fire the moment the door begins to move...a trap!

OOC: Valthur and Marklin, please make save vs Spells, otherwise take 5 damage from the scorching, magical fire.

When the Dwarf opened the hidden portal, a flash of fire erupted out of nowhere. Marklin threw up his shield to ward himself, out of reflex, and jumped back.  Somehow, the Warrior seemed to avoid the worst of the magical conflagration.


00:04, Today: Marklin rolled 16 using 1d20-1 with rolls of 17.  Save vs Magic.

 Saves on a 16
This message was last edited by the player at 04:10, Thu 06 Apr 2017.

While her knowledge of stonework begins and ends with "stonework involves stones", Aldara watches Valthur with just as much interest as the others.  And ducks out of the way when a gout of flame erupts from the door!  "Corellon's grace!"

Eoni rose from the crouch she hadn't known she'd dropped into and called out, "Is everyone all right?"

She looked around for each of the others and watched pinpricks of light dance about the darkened cavern.  She'd been looking directly at the blast when it erupted and she kept blinking and shaking her head to clear them away.

"Moradin's beard!" Valthur gasps as the flames erupt around him. To his fortunate luck, the flames do little more than singe his eyebrows.

He turns to Marklin. "This beast is more clever than I thought. You all right?"

After the smoke settles, he approaches the door, more carefully this time, and attempts to see what's on the other side. (OOC: not sure if the rotating door is positioned such that Valthur can see beyond it or not)

21:29, Today: Valthur Ironhelm rolled 19 using 1d20 with rolls of 19.  save vs. spells (target 12).

Marklin felt like his eyebrows where burned off. He heard Valthur's question. “Aye, I am well enough. But I know how it feels ta be a meat pie in th oven. Blood stained gods, what be we facing?"

 The Warrior peered at what might be beyond the hidden door, spear raised to strike again.

Sarah arches an eyebrow at the conflagration.

With the heat brought by the sudden fire, she stops holding her cloak tightly around her.

"I don't know, but keep that spear ready. I think we're going to need it."

Marklin and Valthur jump free of the scorching flames moments before either is caught unawares. Both members had their heads, and bodies, on a swivel and do well to avoid becoming victims of the cunning trap.

At any rate, the door swings open revealing a natural tunnel leading deeper into the Hill. The tunnel stretches away to the southwest, veering westward after about 20 feet, disappearing beyond the edge of either the torchlight or Valthur's infravision. Marklin and Valthur stand at the secret door, peering down the tunnel, while the rest of the party awaits their appraisal.

"There's a passage," Valthur calls to the others. "No signs of any beast."
He prods the doorway with the end of his axe then takes a step through the doorway into the tunnel beyond. He scans in all directions for anything waiting to  ambush them. Then he examines the floor for any sign that a creature may have passed through the tunnel.

Valthur detects signs of frequent back and forth passage through the tunnel though its difficult to determine beast, humanoid or otherwise. The fact is the stone is worn smooth here, as a dwarf might expect from a busy throughfare. Valthur then notices a strange-looking bulbous mushroom hanging upside down from the cavern ceiling. The mushroom is pockmarked
with holes and about 20 feet southwest of the secret door, directly over the tunnel, about 10 feet above the ground.

"Why would a beast use a trap like that?" Sarah asks in a whisper so faint that it can barely be heard.

 Hearing Sarah's question. Marklin smiled to her. " Let's find out Lass." The Warrior dared to step beyond the doorway into the great unknown.