Chapter Thirty-eight
Infiltration
I awoke to Sindus beckoning us to the entrance of our hiding spot. "Come on, let's go! We just saw some guards walk by, let's follow them!"
I shook my head in confusion. "Why are we following guards?"
"Well, it's either follow them, or find another way to sneak in."
I shrugged my shoulders. "Okay. We can at least see where they're going."
"That was my idea," Sindus said. Sindus and Ari'yasa ducked out with Ari'yasa's cloaking spell, while the rest of us gathered our things.
They came back a few moments later. The guards had walked to the wall, one of them putting their hand into the stream of lava and pulling up a hidden door. The rest of the guards went into the opening while the first one held the hatch, then he went in and closed it above him.
A secret entrance, perfect. There were a few guards on the wall, but it was much less guarded than the front gate would be. "So, we'll have to create some sort of diversion to get our party into there," Ari'yasa said.
"Like, a large stalactite falling from the ceiling?" Sindus asked.
"Ooh, I can fly!" I said, holding up my broom.
"Can you break a stalactite off the ceiling?"
"Potentially, it depends on how big it is." We discussed a few ideas to break one off, but decided it would be too difficult or give away our position. We also didn't know how thick the ceiling was, holding back the lava.
Ari'yasa said she was considering a spell that sent out a loud shockwave, but it would alert the whole city and give away our position. I asked about her spell that created daylight. If she could put the light above the wall it would cause the guards to turn away from the entrance, giving us a chance to sneak in.
Sindus asked if I could fly to the lava and see if I could put my hand in it, finding the handle. I had a feeling that it was either visible from the side, or there was an enchantment that prevented someone from getting burned. "I don't feel like burning my hand off today."
"Yeah, I don't think you should either," Sindus said. I asked what spells Melima and Naidaroe had that might help with a diversion. Naidaroe mentioned she could create a minor illusion, either an image or a sound. I got really excited about that one. Combining a sound with the light would make our distraction stronger.
Melima reminded us she could teleport a short distance, like to the hatch. It all was coming together. Ari'yasa and I were slightly concerned that the daylight might give away that it was us there, but decided it was worth the risk that someone may have made it down to report what had happened earlier.
Someone mentioned that Melima could also make herself smaller to make it easier for her to sneak to where she could teleport, then hide by the wall. She'd make sure she could find the way to open the door before giving us the signal to go.
We decided to create the light, and Naidaroe would create a sound close to the light. I suggested a bloodcurdling scream. Melima asked about making it more of a religious experience.
"What kind of sound goes with a religious experience?" I asked.
"Choirs of orcs singing? I don't know," Melima said. We all laughed. None of us had any idea what dwarves believed, let alone dark dwarves.
"All I know is they like gold and jewels," Sindus said. We were taking a while to make a plan, but I knew that meant it was less likely we'd run into someone in the entrance.
"I like the scream idea," I said.
Ari'yasa laughed. "It's confusing!"
Melima shrunk herself and stepped out to the stalagmite in front of us. Ari'yasa followed so her shrouding spell would cover Melima. She tripped on her way, but the guards couldn't see her for her spell.
Melima disappeared from my sight, and Ari'yasa and Naidaroe crept closer to the wall to cast their distracting spells. The rest of us moved closer to the secret entrance, where Melima was crouched down. It looked like her hand was in the lava.
One of the guards stepped closer to the edge of the wall, looking out towards where our "distraction committee" was hiding. A bright light appeared behind the guards, and a horrific scream pierced the air.
Melima went back to her normal size and pulled up on the door. She struggled, but got it open enough for us to get through. Lava went off of the side of it, keeping it away from the hole in the ground.
We all made a dash for it. Keothi got there first and took over holding the door. Melima ducked under, then me, Sindus, Naidaroe, and Ari'yasa. Keothi squeezed himself in and the hatch slammed above him.
The room we were in was small, and Melima had lit her staff so everyone could see. The room was made of carved obsidian, which it seemed the entire building was made of. There were crates around the room, and a single door at the end of the room, which we knew we would have to go through.
The group looked to me to decide what to do next. "I don't love the idea of having a light that makes us a beacon. We'll have to help those who can't see in the dark."
There was general agreement, and Sindus shifted away from the door. There was a faint blue light coming from beneath it. "There might be more of the stuff we were following in the tunnels, there's blue light glowing there. Let's turn out the light and see if we can see anything."
Melima turned it out, and Sindus opened the door slowly. There was more blue light, but this light seemed to come from large crystals embedded between the wall and the floor. The ceiling was several hands taller than Keothi, which I thought was odd for a Dwarven stronghold. Sindus moved forwards and to the right. We all followed.
Immediately to the left there was a metal door, which I figured was probably where they would hold prisoners. Naidaroe stopped at that one. Sindus was moving towards a wooden door that was ajar to the right, most of the party was following him.
Naidaroe started moving past the metal door, further up the hallway straight ahead. I quickly but softly grabbed her arm. "Let's not all split up."
Sindus was at the door that was open just a crack. I could hear a muffled scream and a deep voice. I started that direction and readied my bow as Sindus pulled out a hand crossbow and aimed through the crack.
He sent a bolt through as I reached the door. Inside was a gruesome sight. Torture devices were hung along the walls, blood dried onto them. Someone was chained to a table and gagged, and a duergar was standing over them. His hair was silvery-white, until the ends, which appeared to have been dipped in blood. He was holding a curved, serrated blade with a hook on the end and was wearing a soiled leather apron.
Sindus' bolt pierced the duergar's neck and he dropped, clinging to the table's edge to avoid hitting the ground. I sent in two arrows, but getting them through the crack of the door was more difficult than I expected. The second arrow almost took Sindus' hat off his head as he reloaded his crossbow. He fired two more shots before Melima and Keothi rushed in.
Melima shot off a firebolt, but the duergar ducked just in time so the bolt hurled harmlessly into the wall. He could only dodge one of Keothi's blows, however, and as he backed away Keothi crushed him into the ground.
The rest of us rushed into the room, closing the door behind us, at Sindus' suggestion. It was a female gnome on the table, and she wasn't breathing. Naidaroe darted to her side and moved her hands over the gnome in a healing spell. The gnome took in a sharp breath.
Sindus picked the locks on the manacles that were keeping her arms chained outstretched. She slowly sat up as she regained her strength. She had on only enough clothing to keep her decent, and we could see a gash through it starting to knit together. "Thank you, thank you."
Melima looked her square in the eye. "Are you Kima?"
"Yes. Who are you?" Her furrowed brow bespoke confusion and alarm.
"We are Vox Imperium," Melima said.
"We were sent to find you by Allura Visoren," I said. She turned sharply at the name, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
"Allura? Allura sent you? Good, good." She winced in pain. "I've been in here for a long, long time. I don't even know how long, but it seems like forever. I was tortured by this duergar."
She spit on the body of her tormentor. "The duergar wanted to know where the tunnels to the Dwarven mines were, which I have no idea. But there were others trapped here that were tortured, I don't think many of them are still alive, if any at all.
"I think it was just my faith that kept me alive. I know there were a few times that I went unconscious, being on this, being tortured many times. And for some reason, they brought me back. I think it was just for me to endure more torture to get me to talk. They must have some sort of healer here."
Her mention of faith stuck out to me. It was her faith that saved her. What kind of faith was I going to need to complete my mission? And faith in what? She said they had brought her back, had they actually killed her at some point? I knew we had a scroll that could bring someone back, but I was glad we hadn't had to use it for Sindus earlier. We would only be able to use it once.
Kima continued, "I've lost track of how long I've been down here. I'd almost lost hope that anyone was going to come. I didn't know how I was going to escape. So, thank you. Thank you."
"Why did you come down here?" Melima asked.
Kima shifted on the table, hanging her legs over the edge. "Since Allura sent you, I'm sure she told you a little. While I was at the temple one day I was taken in a vision, across the forest of the Northwood, and down, through a temple guarded by these snake creatures, and then I went through rock, tons of rock into darkness, into this underworld. My vision passed through this fortress of black, I saw this citadel, this fortress, and the lava went through, past this place, into a deeper place full of a forest—I almost can't explain—a forest of what almost looked like giant mushrooms of some kind, I wasn't sure. But I saw as I flew over this forest, this temple, sort of ziggurat like building, and I was thrust inside. And when I came inside it was dark. All I could see was one giant, evil-looking eye, and a deep, cackling voice.
"And then I woke up from my vision. I knew I needed to do something about this, I knew I needed to follow it."
"Are you saying the vision wanted you to thwart this evil eye?" Keothi asked.
"Of course, yes."
"Is that still your intent?"
"I fully intend to try and finish my mission, yes." I'd had a feeling that we might have to help Kima accomplish her mission once we found her, before she'd come back with us.
Keothi pressed further. "Do you have any more understanding of what this vision means?"
"From what I've gleaned on my way down here, and from the other prisoners who I've talked to in the cells down the hall, I've been able to glean a little bit of information that these duergar are somehow controlled, mind-controlled by some kind of entity. A large entity, they call him K'varn, this evil entity of some kind.
"Or at least he has taken control of their minds, and is controlling them through these creatures, I think they call them illithid, that can use their mind powers."
I shuddered. Naidaroe had mentioned something about the squidlike creatures controlling people. Were these the creatures Kima mentioned?
Kima concluded, "But I intend to continue, if we can find a way to escape this place and get out. Though I am not prepared to. I would like to—if I can—find my armor and my weapons. They took them from me when I came here."
Melima stretched out her hand. "We have options for you Kima. If you want to hang out in a void of non-existence until we get out of here you can, or you can fight with us, or, what are your abilities? How are you feeling?"
"I would prefer to find my weapons and my armor, they are very unique and special to me. And powerful," Kima said.
Sindus offered her a hilt. "Well, in the meantime, here's a dagger!"
She took the dagger. "Well, I guess this will do in a pinch, it's better than nothing. I prefer my longsword."
"Where did you lose your armor?" Naidaroe asked.
"They took it from me as they drug me here through the Duergar city. They captured me just as I was entering the outskirts of the city." A fire started to flame up inside this little gnome.
"Sword you say? Why don't you take my rapier too?" Sindus held it out to her.
Kima held it a moment, turning the thin blade over before handing it back to him. "I'd honestly rather have the dagger. I prefer my weapons."
