The camp is secured, and the body of the creature dragged off several dozen yards and buried, at least shallowly.  Provisions and water, along with other gear, are stowed, and one of the guards stays with the drivers and quartermaster, beside the wagons, as you proceed up the meager little track toward the rock face.

Upon arrival you find the marks of regular traffic in and out of the area, but the ground is rocky enough that it's impossible to get clear prints.  A bit further out you see tracks of several animals with which you are familiar, and a few which you are not.

The mouth of the cave is small and tight, only a couple of feet across, but high enough that all but Roak only have to bend down a bit to enter.  The opening into the rock face quickly bends down, and appears to be a slight widening in a natural seam in the rock.  Foul odors faintly waft past you on a cool and moist breeze.

Hamburg lifted his newly refurbished lantern and crept into the mouth of the cavern. The sickly green light was the same as it had always been, and it cast eerie shadows about. He held it aloft and breathed in the cavern air, a smile on the face beneath the odd Cynidicean mask. He waited patiently for his companions to enter, petting the stuffed raven on his shoulder absently.

With an easy manner Lanliss crouched slightly and made his way into the cavern, taking the lead as requested. The sickly green light from Hamburg's lantern obscured his infravision somewhat, but not as bad as a normal lantern or torch might have done. The elf trod carefully, keeping an eye out for tripwires or traps as best he could - and for any fiendish beast ready to jump out at him, for that matter.

Voran follows Hamburg, keeping his eyes peeled.

Roak brings up the rear.

The natural seam in the rock twists and turns, but still allows careful passage, although it requires that hands be placed on the walls here and there to continue to move forward without resorting to crawling.  After some 30 or 40 feet it opens into an irregularly-shaped cavern that defies your ability to get a sense of its size.  Most of its walls are well beyond the range of Hamburg's meager lantern.  While the light from the lantern fouls the elf's eyes somewhat, Lanliss can still see a multitude of small, warm bodies above him, likely clinging to the ceiling.

The stench is much worse in this place, and there is an animal muskiness that adds itself to the sharp and disagreeable smell the party has been dealing with.

Roak and Elder Voran emerge into the space, and the halfling soon realizes that there is what appears to be a faint path worn through the rubble on the uneven floor, and that it appears to split several ways, just at the limit of his vision.

Fearing bats (or worse) overhead, Lanliss tries to communicate with hand signals as to their next move. He points to the faint path, indicating they should take that, but waits to see if anyone prefers any particular split in it to follow.

Roak leans around the others to give the thumb's up indicator that he agrees with the elf.

Hamburg notices Lanliss' gesturing and seems confused for a moment as he raises his sickly green lantern up high and squints at the ceiling.  His puzzled gaze returns to the elf before comprehension dawns on a face totally concealed from his fellows.  He makes exaggerated "walking-slowly-and-quietly" motions as he starts to laboriously move to the path.

OOC:
NPC'ed
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:19, Sat 09 Mar.

The faint path winds between scatterings of stone and upthrusts in the uneven cavern, past mounds of odoriferous guano, and around piles of scree and detritus.  Careful attention to the path keeps the group from making any mis-steps, keeping their passage quiet and without any fouling of their footwear.

Several long minutes of careful travel bring them beyond the first cavern, and the ceiling becomes lower, with the walls pulling in.  Just as there is some concern that this might not actually be a path, and that the cavern just narrows to impassibility, a crude stone arch in the far wall comes into view at the limit of the party's light, appearing to be at the end of the path.

Just for a moment, Roak's keen eyes catch twin flashes, just a couple of inches apart, and just about on the level of where his head would be, beyond the arch.  He quickly glances away and back, but is unable to see the glimmers again.

Roak moves to the others, pulling having them lean in. "I saw two flashes of light, from over there, about my height," he says quietly. "I think they were eyes reflecting light. Lanliss, can you fire an arrow over there to see if we can flush whatever it is out?"

"With pleasure," remarks the elf, drawing his bow and immediately letting an arrow fly to the spot where a hobbit might have stood in the darkness of the arch. And a fine shot it is too.


14:46, Today: Lanliss rolled 20 using 1d20+1.  attack roll, longbow.
14:46, Today: Lanliss rolled 1 using 1d6.  dmg.

A high-pitched cry of pain in the distance is followed by enraged yowling, and a creature launches itself out of the darkened archway.  It travels on four feet, moving fast, patchy fur interspersed with areas of pale flesh that is riddled with weeping sores, and leads with sharp and ratlike teeth bared.  A second creature is just a few yards behind the first, but doesn't have an arrow sticking out of it like the lead animal.  Shouts in a high, rasping language come from the archway, and it sounds like a plurality of speaking creatures are excitedly calling out to one another.  Multiple sets of reddish eyes appear inside of the arch, reflected in the dim light.

OOC:
You guys have initiative.  I'm going to discard the BECMI initiative and just have you guys take turns with me.  Lanliss got the first shot in, in a surprise round, and there's quite a bit of distance between you and the archway, so you'll have another round of missile attacks available to you before the quadrupeds get to you, and first strike when they do get there.

"Looks like Hamburg's family and pets are here!"

Lanliss switched immediately from jokery to casting his Sleep spell upon the space beneath the archway.

Cast Sleep.

Voran's eyes go wide and he raises his holy symbol, uttering an intercession that wraps the group.

Cast Bless, giving everyone in the party +1 to hit, +1 to damage and +1 to morale for 6 turns.

Roak chortles and, picking his target, fires his bow...

Fire short bow at a creature that remains standing after Sleep, preferably an injured creature. Hits AC 2 (note: I forgot to add +1 for Bless, so total should really be 15) for 4 hp nonmagical damage.

17:21, Today: Roak The Quick rolled 4 using 1d6+1.  Damage. – 4
17:20, Today: Roak The Quick rolled 14 using 1d20+2.  Short bow, preferably on damaged creature. – 14

Hamburg raised his lantern with one gloved hand in order to cast just a little more light on the foes they now faced. His other hand reached forward, palm upward as if waiting for something to be placed in it. He didn't wait long. The disembodied hand, skeletal in form, which frequented his person, skittered off his shoulder. It dragged with it a dart from the quiver at the odd wizard's back. This dart was perhaps the length of Hamburg's forearm from fingertip to elbow, weighted slightly with a heavy point, and fletched with black feathers. He'd had them custom made for him prior to their departure upon this new outing.

With a quick flick of his wrist, Hamburg sent the dart hurtling toward his foes, even as the pull of his magic began to tug at the edges of his mind.


Dart Attack: Hamburg rolled 4 to miss!

The distant sound of several bodies collapsing, presumably, is masked by the noise of the two charging quadrupedal creatures.  Roak drops an arrow into the one in the lead, which Lanliss had previously struck, and while it stumbles and yelps in pain, it keeps coming on, as does its companion, and both will be in range to bite and savage the party very soon.

A cry of alarm comes from the archway, and an arrow flashes back toward the group, and Hamburg's lantern, cutting through it and causing the weird wizard to drop it, its light going out.  Hamburg and Elder Voran suddenly find themselves unable to see in the darkness.


OOC:
08:53, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 3,4,7,19 using 1d20,1d20,1d20,1d20 - Save vs. Spell.
10:24, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 12,6 using 1d20,1d6.  Attack, Damage vs. Hamburg's lantern.

Alright, guys.  They'll get to you this round, but you have initiative.

Roak shouts, "VORAN! GRAB THE LANTERN AND OIL FROM MY PACK!"

Having no issues with the dark Lanliss steps to the fore with sword and shield up, ready to meet the attack. Anything that came close would soon regret their decision.

21:50, Today: Lanliss rolled 13 using 1d20+4.  attack roll, sword.
21:57, Today: Lanliss rolled 10 using 1d8+4.  dmg.

Were it not for the strange mask Hamburg perpetually wore, as well as the darkness they suddenly found themselves within, the party members might have seen Hamburg's jaw drop nearly to the floor. He stood stunned for a few brief moments...

"Fell sorcery Creeth! Dangerous! What foe has the power to snuff the light of an eternal flame?" Hamburg seemed to be consulting himself and the stuffed raven wired to his shoulder. The raven said nothing of course, though its ruby eyes seemed to glow ever so faintly in the gloom.

In a rush, the odd wizard picked the lantern off the floor and began shouting arcane and eldritch words of power at it. He seemed to grow increasingly frustrated that the sickly green light did not immediately burst back into existence. He was about to throw it at the oncoming attackers, but paused.

"Yes! Yes, that is correct my pet, sinister sorcery might have snuffed the magical manifestation of illumination, but a conventional flame might still work!"

Hamburg knelt and began fussing with flint and steel to get the lantern re-lit!


Taking turn to relight the lantern!

Lanliss' blade takes the throat and part of the jaw out of the lead quadruped, and it falls both heavily and wetly, no longer moving.  The second, however, is hot on its heels and leaps to bite at the elf, slipping in its compatriot's blood and deeply failing to connect.

Another arrow flies out of the dark, from the direction of the archway, and high-pitched, harsh shouting is heard from what is probably a single voice.  The arrow misses Elder Voran by a wide margin.

As Hamburg struggles, he finally manages to get his lantern lit again, the small spark from the flint leaping to the tattered wick, and the sickly little flame coming to life again with far less effort than it should have taken.

OOC:
07:13, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 5,6 using 1d20,1d6.  Attack, Damage vs. Lanliss.
07:14, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 5,6 using 1d20,1d6.  Attack, Damage vs. Elder Voran.

The dead quadruped's blood seemed to be everywhere, and now it was Lanliss' turn to slip in it as he tried to fend off the other creature.

16:09, Today: Lanliss rolled 7 using 1d20+4 ((3)).

Seeing this, Voran shakes his head in disagreement with Roak. He pulls out his sling and flings a stone at the charging beasts...

Attack with sling; hits ac 7 (forgot to add +1 for Bless, ironically). If that miraculously hits, does 6 damage.

22:14, Today: Elder Voran rolled 6 using 1d4+2.  Damage, just in case. – 6
22:13, Today: Elder Voran rolled 9 using 1d20+3.  Sling on wounded beast. – 9

Roak snorts. He drops his bow and, drawing his blade, steps forward to meet the foes...

Attack a dog-thing with longsword. I forgot  to add Bless again. Hits AC 1 for 4 damage.

22:16, Today: Roak The Quick rolled 4 using 1d8+3.  Damage. – 4
22:15, Today: Roak The Quick rolled 15 using 1d20+3.  Attack on beast. – 15