Olven frowns.  He's not one for meddling in the affairs of wizards.  Their arcane machinery is beyond him, and the closest he gets to understanding them is to get out of the way when one of them is casting spells about on the battlefield.  What if we wrap it up securely in something, then?" he asks.  "Anyone have an extra sack or something?  It doesn't seem like the sort of thing to leave just lying around."

Suddenly the mask and lights collapsed back into the orb, returning to its writhing origin.

"It seems safe enough," said Des. "Either way, let's continue on. There is surely more to explore."

"Oh my." Alex said to no one in particular, it wasn't everyday you met a dragon highlord, let alone carried him around in your pack. He continued putting the orb into his backpack. "Speak your need..." he mumbled to himself. "Fascinating"

Olven waits until the orb is in Alexander's backpack, then says, "OK, ready?"  He turns and exits the room, coming back out to the hallway with two doors and a continuing corridor.  "We checked out the door on the left, so let's try the other room now," he says, and moves to open the door on the right.

The heroes continued further down the corridor. Looking to their right into the branching corridor, they noted one door on the right in the branch and one double door at the end of it.

They also noted a door on the right of the corridor they were in just before it turned to the left. Olven opened the second door on the left side of the corridor. Inside they saw rotted cots lining the walls of an otherwise empty room.

Stepping inside cautiously, Olven scanned the room for anyone who might be sleeping, given the large number of draconians they'd found thus far in the Lyceum.  He checked through the cots, looking for anything that might be useful to their group.

OOC:  Spend a few minutes checking through the room to see if anything of value is here.

The following is a map of the current area.

       S . . . .
       S . . . .
             . .
             . .
             . .D1
         D   . .
D. . . . . . . .
D. . . . . . . .
             . .
             . .D2
             . .
             . .
             . . . X
           D . . . X

S. Where you came from
X. You don't know what's around that corner
D. Door
D1. Door to the room where you got the orb
D2. Door to the room with rotten cots.

GM passing a message

Rooting around the rotting blankets for a few minutes, the mercenary comes up with nothing.  His search complete, Olven shrugs his shoulders.  "If there's anything here, I can't find it," he says.  "Shall we continue?"  Olven walks back out into the hallway and frowns.  "Somebody needs to make a map of this place.  We could get lost roaming around these hallways."

He turns left and walks down to the end of the hall and tries the door on the right.

OOC:  That's the southern-most door on the bottom of the long hallway we've been exploring.

Beyond the door is a straight corridor. At the end of the corridor there's a door on the right hand side. In the middle of the corridor there's a spectral figure dressed in a white robe.

"What is your name," the spectral figure asked.

Halting when he spots the spectral figure, Olven adopts what he hopes a non-threatening stance is, as non-threatening a guy can be when he's holding a four-pound spear in one hand and a sturdy shield in the other.  He keeps his spear pointed toward the floor as he responds to the challenge.  "I'm Olven Wolf, and these are my comrades.  They can introduce themselves if they wish.  We're exploring the Lyceum by order of His Majesty Eisen Dragonword, king of Eastlund."

As soon as Olven answered the question, the spectral figure vanished.

Impressed again with Olven, Alex decided to say so with a pat on the shoulder. "Well spoken, Olven. Very good form, indeed."

Warmed by his companion's praise, Olven nods his head gratefully, but he says, "I guess he didn't like my answer, though.  Stay alert.  We may see whoever that was again."

D'aden tilts his head to one side, and speaks, "That's two ghostly figures in a row asking, admittedly in different fashion, for our names. For safety's sake, from this point on please call me griffin-door."
He replies to the quizzical looks following his statement with little hesitation, "Recent events will make it easy for me to remember that phrase, and if it is used to address me it will obscure my real name in the event such is to be used against us."

"Griffin door?" Olven asks, cocking an eyebrow.  "This is more wizardly business, huh?   Well, maybe I can draw whatever ill attention comes our way long enough for you guys to whack 'em in the back."  He continues toward the door and opens it slowly, half-expecting a spectral figure to appear a third time and drag him off to only the gods know where.

Beyond the door was an L-shaped corridor that turned to the right and ended in a door. And in the middle of it, as Olven had guessed, was a red robed spectral figure.

"Why are you here," it asked.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:49, Tue 26 Aug 2014.

D'aden begins to nonchalantly hum a tune, the melody reminiscent of a ditty he had composed concerning draconians. After a moment or two, he addresses the spectral figure, saying, "I'm just a singer in this loosely knit clan."

Again, Olven avoids taking a threatening stance.  Keeping his eye on the spectral figure, he says politely, "We're on a mission for the king.  He has need of the resources here in the Lyceum.  Are you friend, or are you foe?"

Instead of answering, the spectral figure vanished.

[OOC: In the previous post I didn't post that there was a door at the end of the corridor. There is and the previous post has been amended.]

With his usual optimism, D'aden interjects, "Well, at least this one didn't ask our name."
Shrugging, he continues down the corridor to the door at the end, looking carefully for the chinks in the wall through which the apparitions are coming.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:38, Sat 30 Aug 2014.

Grettanah considered their explorations of the complex and the encounters with the spectral figures. Glancing about the group. Do you think the spectral figure have any specific personage they are seeking?
This message was last edited by the player at 03:08, Tue 02 Sept 2014.

ooc Bother double post
This message was last edited by the player at 05:13, Mon 01 Sept 2014.

Like other doors, this one is iron clad wood and a fist like door handle. And the corridor has masonry walls.



[OOC: I'm sorry, I didn't note that D'aden edited his post until now.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:49, Wed 03 Sept 2014.