A/N: The wonderful world of Avernum/Exile remains the property of Jeff Vogel and Spiderweb Software. I promise to return to the game unharmed the following persons: Dexter, Bertraud and the Ghost; and places: Almaria, Mertis, the Grim Cavern, Cotra, the Foul Cavern, and the Crypt of Drath.
As they entered the city of Almaria, Brynja said, "Want to see if Dexter has any other work for us?"
"Why not," said Ansel. "You never know when we might make a bit of money doing something we were thinking of anyhow."
They walked into Dexter's shop, and Brynja said, "You wouldn't happen to have any work for us, would you?"
Dexter produced a small, hardwood box, doubtless from the surface, and handed it to Brynja. "I need you to take this book to Meena in Spire. I would advise you, however, to avoid letting the Avernum guards see it. The city of Spire is in the Abyss. Don't concern yourself too much with what's in the box. Simply focus on delivering it."
"No problem," said Brynja, seating the box in the bottom of her pack.
After they left Dexter's, Jynx said, "Want to see if the statue here has more current events?"
They found a statue, one of an Avernite hero of the slith wars, and Jynx said, "Divulge."
"You are in luck," the statue said, "for I heard two mages discussing a spell. Would you be interested?"
"Of course," said Jynx.
The statue recited, with great care and precision, a long string of magical syllables. At the conclusion of the recitation, the statue closed its eyes, conversation over.
"Well, that actually was useful," said Jynx. "Don't you think so, Rudel?"
"Yes, I have a feeling there will be very few doors that will stand in our way now," said Rudel.
"So, we going back to the Abyss?" asked Brynja.
"Not yet," said Ansel. "I want to get up to Cotra and talk to Asp. Might as well deal with nabbing the circlet at the same time we have some reason for being in town."
"That makes a lot of sense to me," said Jynx.
The progress across the caves now was fairly easy, for the slith wars and bandits were much more active in the Great Cave than in eastern Avernum, and soon, they were in Mertis, where they found Bertraud skulking about in the shadows.
Cornering the shady fellow, Ansel decided not to waste time with pleasantries, and said, "Do you have Eldin's brooch?"
Bertraud yelped in horror. "It's mine, not Eldin's! Whatever he says! It's mine!" He looked the group over and smiled slyly. "Although you could purchase it. Just a hundred gold."
"Ok, calm down. I'll buy your brooch," said Ansel, handing over the required coins with a sigh.
Bertraud took the money, and handed over a tiny, beautifully crafted amulet of platinum. He said, "Thank you. I was tired of carrying that thing anyway. It's done me no good. Now money, that's useful!"
"You didn't happen to get this out of the Grim Cavern, did you?" asked Jynx.
"The Grim Cavern?" repeated Bertraud, eyes, growing wide. "No, no ... I can't stand the undead. Wouldn't go near the place."
"No problem," said Jynx. "Just checking."
"Well, thank you for your time," said Ansel.
"It's been a pleasure doing business," said Bertraud.
"I'm sure," said Brynja, as they edged out of town.
"Well, I guess we're going to have to go into the cavern," said Ansel. "Do we have everything we need?"
"We'll be fine," said Duncan.
Making their way north, they headed into the Grim Cavern, finding that there were none of the undead who had plagued their way before.
"See, piece of cake," said Duncan.
"Yeah, it's almost too easy, if you ask me," said Ansel. "Just stay on your toes."
Nonetheless, it was still quiet, their way unobstructed, until they reached the magical barrier that had blocked their progress before.
Rudel said, "I'll get this one, if you like."
"Please do," said Jynx, standing back.
Rudel cast the spell, and the barrier faded away. The newly revealed cave was long, seeming to be the lowest point yet in this dizzying spiral of a cave. It was freezing cold down here. Crystals of ice coated the walls and floors, and the bodies scattered on the floor as well.
The bodies were fairly well-preserved, and they all clearly died of extreme violence. They were not all human—many appeared to be related to the sliths terrorizing Avernum in the present day. This morbid scene had to be the center of the curse that had infected these caverns and the area outside.
"If the curse is to be lifted," said Brother Theo, "I believe we must do it here."
Taking a few more steps in, time suddenly seemed to stop. As they entered the final chamber, the companions were gripped in a strange ghostly vision. They saw the huge caverns of Avernum, bare of the settlements that would have been landmarks to them. A group of humans in archaic armor ran through them, clearly panicked.
Moments later, the cause of the flight could be seen. A horde of sliths were chasing the humans, weapons drawn, howling for their blood. The humans fled into these winding tunnels, and fought a desperate running battle down to the deepest level. Eventually, aware their cause was hopeless, the survivors magically sealed themselves into this cavern. There they starved, slowly, consumed with hatred for their killers and everyone else who dared to be alive.
"It is the force of their hatred," said Brother Theo, his voice barely above a whisper. "Their hate causes the dead to rise again, and yet again, and attack the people of this area. I don't know we'll be able to affect such a powerful curse."
"Undead!" cried Brynja.
The force of undead here was smaller, and more easily turned aside. Last of all, they slew the ghost of the commander of the humans who died here. Immediately, the evil forces weakened, and there was the slightest touch of warmth in the air.
"It must have been the strength of his soul that kept the evil forces focused here," said Rudel.
"Indeed," replied Brother Theo. "I fear, however, we have not removed the curse, only driven it back for a time."
"Well, just the same, I'm sure people will be grateful," said Jynx. "It's a little breathing room, and maybe we'll be able to destroy the curse some other day."
"Anyway," said Brynja, "we're looking for something, so I guess we better get to it."
Searching through the frost-covered corpses, they finally found one whose staff was broken, but the silver brooch set with several pearls was still intact.
"I think this is it," said Brynja. "Looks about the same size and all as the others."
"In that case," said Ansel, "let's get out of here. The place still gives me the willies."
Finding minimal resistance from the re-animated again undead, they made their way out into the freedom of the larger caves of Avernum.
"Glad that's over with," said Ansel.
"So am I," said Jynx.
"Well, let's go over to Cotra, and then back to the Abyss," said Ansel. "We've a package to deliver and a circlet to steal."
The journey to Cotra was uneventful enough, and they managed to relatively discreetly take a seat at the table with Asp.
"So, what brings you to the Darklake Pub?" said Ansel.
"Just passing through," said Asp.
"Scab said you could help us," said Ansel quietly.
He smiled humorlessly. "Ah, an old friend. And he sends you to me. I'm afraid I'm not working now," said Asp. "Keeping a low profile. Perhaps you are looking for information?"
Rudel said, "We heard you know about some sort of powerful circlet?"
"Why, yes I do. I know how to get the circlet hidden in the city of Spire. Though I have no use for this information at the moment, I have no interest in telling you how to get it for free," said Asp. "So, for one hundred coins, I will divulge the information."
"All right," said Ansel, trying to pass over the coins without drawing too much attention.
"Hmm. Someone I met ... um, while working, told me that the mayor owns it," said Asp. "She trapped it. It blasts anyone who tries to get it without saying 'Ankh'."
"Thanks," said Ansel. "I'm sure the information will come in handy."
"Well, now what?" said Duncan, after they had moved away.
"I think it's time we visit Spire again," said Ansel. "Going through the scree pits, of course, not the fort."
"Quite so," said Brynja.
As they walked back through toward the scree pits, they saw some people working on the shore, and drew closer to investigate. Unfortunately, they actually found a slith raiding party coming ashore. The sliths seemed unperturbed, and turned their attack from the unsuspecting workers to the approaching party. However, for a party who had easily fought off Sss-Thsss, the slith raiders were no contest, and the workers exchanged greetings, thanked the party, and got back to their work.
Moving through the scree pits, they had an uneventful, though thoroughly illegal, trip into the Abyss, and made their way into Spire, and the office of Meena.
Meena was, despite the things they had heard, a short, strong-looking woman with long, black hair and a leather jerkin. She stood in front of a fine, carved wood throne, and watched the group carefully. Her throne room was full of wood, a sign in Avernum, of great wealth.
"We brought a small package for you," said Ansel, seemingly in a negligent manner.
She took the package, inspected it closely and grinned. "Excellent," she said, handing over a disappointingly small pouch of coins. "Return to Almaria, and speak with Dexter. I'm sure you'll be rewarded further."
"So, who's in charge here?" said Duncan.
"I'm the boss in this town. The mayor. I watch over things, and I don't want any interference," said Meena. "Do your business, and when you get called a vole, take it as a compliment. I run this town. No thievery, no killing, no trouble. Anyone messes up, and I stretch their necks. That goes for voles, too."
"We don't mean to interfere," said Ansel, hoping she didn't have any truth detection devices about.
"I've had you vole visitors before. You come here, all high and mighty, seeing your rejects, and you think you can do what you want, take what you want," said Meena. "Well, I'll kill you in a cold second if you don't behave, and Micah can't do a thing about it. Believe me."
"What if we don't like being called a vole?" said Jynx.
"Tough. Get used to it. That's what we call you. You try to live in this pit, and make your own docile copy of the hell above," said Meena. "Well, we're free, and we'll stay free, no matter where you throw us."
"All right," said Ansel. "Have a nice day, then."
After they had left, and were standing in the town center, Brynja said, "There's something I noticed. That blacksmith—his shop doesn't run to the back of the city wall. I think that would bear looking into."
"Lead on," said Ansel. "And I figure we better be quick about it, too."
Slipping out of the city, with a careful eye out for patrols, Brynja searched the walls until they found themselves an opening into a room where a group of bandits were dividing loot.
"Damn it," said Ansel. "Be quick, and hope it doesn't raise too much ruckus!"
The fight was over quickly, and there did not seem to be much of an alarm raised, and so they moved on, finding a concealed tunnel which was filled with cave slimes—easily dispatched, and that let out into a bedroom, and from the bedroom, they found another hidden room with a small steel box firmly bolted to the floor. It had a small padlock, and every available surface was engraved with small runes.
"That's gotta be it," said Brynja.
"You're right, I'm sure," said Ansel. "Shall we, then?"
"We didn't come this close, ow!" said Jynx, and they realized that although their foe was unseen, they were not alone in the room.
The invisible things were quickly dispatched, and Ansel took the tiny key they'd found in the cave Scab mentioned, and holding his breath, he put it into the lock. Inside, sitting on a small pillow, was a delicate, finely wrought silver circlet.
"The runes look like a magical trap," said Jynx nervously. "I'm not sure ..."
"Ankh," said Ansel, and nothing happened. He picked up the circlet, expecting to be baked at any moment. Nothing happened, and he stowed the circlet out of sight in his pack. "Let's get outta here, pronto," said Ansel.
Back in the scree pits, they saw another large band of scruffy, heavily armed men and women sitting around a cavewood fire. As they talked, the sound of their conversation carried poorly. Figuring it had gone well the other time, they approached to talk to the strangers.
However, it turned out these were actually bandits, and when the group came within sight, they shouted, "Look! Rich travelers! Get them!"
The fight was quick, and when it was over, they found several sacks of loot in the camp, some of it still stained with the blood of previous owners. The people here had been bandits—downright successful, and so the group, finding no sign that the rightful owners were alive or could be found, filled the packs with supplies and coins.
"Look, another cave," said Jynx, spotting the opening through the cavewood growth. "Let's look in there."
"Glutton for punishment, you are," said Ansel, but he started that way nonetheless.
There was a sign in an illegible language, and the group squeezed through a crack in the ancient stone wall. The crack no doubt had been created by a cavequake, but inside, the air was chill and stagnant. The chamber was very old, nearly all in ruin, and once many murals and frescoes were on the walls, but now tiles and plaster chunks were on the floor, and only vague shapes could be guessed at. All was deathly still and quiet within.
Searching around, they found that they were definitely in a long-abandoned crypt. In one room, there was a large sarcophagus in the corner, but its top ajar, they found a sheaf of vellum within. Most of the sheets had faded with age, but there was still enough to discern.
The vellums had been left by a band of soldiers, undoubtedly from the surface world, who were in here hiding from a band of slithzerikai. They were about to leave, not finding the undead preferable to the slith menace. In their brief exploration, they found that it was built by or for someone named Drath. They had also found a small marble key which they took with them. The final note indicated they were heading east to where another group was staying with a dragon named Motrax.
"Before we go any further, we probably better see if Motrax remembers where the key is," said Jynx. "We should go now."
"Fine," said Ansel.
As they made their way by boat, Brother Theo consulted his journal, and said, "Motrax did say something about where a battle long past had taken place, somewhere in tunnels near his cave. We'll just have to search."
Finally, after moving through many dead-end tunnels, they came to a larger area where tiny scraps of armor and bits of metal gave evidence that a heavy battle had once taken place here, and an eerie feeling hung over the cave, as though someone were watching their progress.
Picking through the remains of a battle long past, a small key made of smooth gray material—stone—poked out of the mess.
"I guess that's the key we're looking for," said Brynja. "Is there anywhere else we need to go while we're in these parts?"
"Nah, let's go back to the boat," said Ansel.
As they started rowing, Ansel said, "Anyone notice the cave on the other side of the river there? I'd like to check that out."
"I think that means going through the waterfalls," said Brother Theo.
"Is that a bad thing? Let's give it a try," said Ansel. "After all, it might be quicker getting where we're going."
"And fun," said Jynx. "I hope."
As they rowed, they came to an ancient sign which bore the legend "Waterfall Warren, discovered by the First Expedition of Thralni."
As they traveled down what was actually more like rapids, perhaps true waterfalls at the time of the First Expedition, they came to a tunnel, and decided to explore. The tunnel opened up on a section of river long ago cut off from the tumult of rapids outside. The water in here had long been still and stagnant, and a foul smell pervaded the place, forcing the companions to tie cloths over their faces to avoid gagging.
As they walked further, they could see several human skeletons, surrounded by the mostly rotted wreckage of some small boats. Clearly, a large group of people met an unpleasant fate in these caves. These small remote caves were also filled with what looked like a variety of remarkably realistic statues. All were variants of a common theme: a man or a woman in the armor of a soldier of the surface world, bearing an expression of extreme surprise.
"Basilisks," said Brother Theo. "Don't use much light, as we need to keep from being spotted before we spot them. It's going to be very dangerous."
"Hey, here's a boat in decent shape," said Brynja. "Let's explore."
They started rowing, hugging the shoreline, and came to another opening. Deciding to look further, they rounded the corner to come face to face with a ghost. The pale shade of a human was hiding in the tunnel. The ghost wore armor bearing the insignia of the Empire army, but the armor was very old-fashioned, and had not been worn for over a hundred years.
"What are you doing here?" asked Ansel, after the ghost did not immediately attack.
"I long to get outside again," replied the ghost. "I don't want to spend forever in these tunnels."
"How long have you been hiding?" asked Duncan.
"Oh, it has been so many years," replied the ghost. "The forests must be so beautiful."
Ansel asked, "What can you tell us about these tunnels?"
"Curse these caverns. Curse the day they sent us to clean them of vermin," said the ghost. "Triple curse Thralni for taking us to explore them."
"Clean these caves of what?" asked Jynx.
"Of the monsters. The lizard things, the demons, the snakes, gremlins, eye beasts and such. They sent us down, but there weren't enough of us. I sensed the deaths, one by one. You can do that when you're dead," said the ghost. "We all died. Every last one of us."
"What were you trying to explore?" asked Brother Theo, trying hard to contain his excitement as he realized they were conversing with the ghost of a member of the First Expedition.
"We went to explore these rivers. We got split up. My group got beached here. Some of us stayed to fix the boats. No materials," said the ghost. "Some of us went to look around. I sensed them die."
"What were you even doing in Avernum in the first place?" asked Brynja.
"Avernum? I am confused. What is Avernum?" said the ghost.
"That is what we call these caves now," said Ansel. "They are our home."
"Really? That is passing strange. When we came here, there were no humans at all. We are the First Expedition," said the ghost. "Our wizards discovered these caves. It was very exciting. So we were all teleported down here. We were the first expedition to explore these caves. The first humans to see them. But it didn't work out. We all died, slain by lizard men and basilisks. And worse."
"What do you know of Thralni?" asked Brother Theo.
"Curse him for ordering us down here. He promised us we would be safe, and forced us to go when we wouldn't go of our own free will. He said his magic would save us," said the ghost. "As you can see, it didn't. I was murdered."
"Was Thralni a mage?" asked Rudel.
"No, but he had an orb. When rubbed, the holder and several others could fly for a short time. Too short and for two few people to help us," said the ghost. "It was a famed and remarkable item. It's gone now."
"So, who murdered you?" asked Brynja.
"Thralni, by brining me here. That statue around the corner was me. A basilisk caught me unawares. They're extinct aboveground, of course. They turn people to stone. Watch it, or you'll be next."
"We won't be so foolish," said Ansel.
"Foolish, eh?" said the ghost, getting angry. "Not so foolish am I that I can't punish you for your impertinence!"
"You shouldn't have ..." said Jynx, but as the ghost was attacking, the only thing to do now was defend themselves.
After that, they managed to clear the caves, unlike the luckless First Expedition, finding the place infested with basilisks, snakes, lizards, and gremlins and eyebeasts. Once it was safe, they found their way to a cave which had been a scene of intense destruction. A tunnel led out of the cavern to the east, where apparently someone had set off a trap. The flames from the resulting explosion poured into this room. Most of the supplies had rotted or rusted away, though a few items remained as a final testimony to the quality of workmanship of the Empire army. However, in the southeast corner, there was an unusual glint of light.
"I think it's the orb of Thralni," said Jynx. "We'll have to test when we get outside."
They continued, searching everywhere, finding a mysteriously deep well, and a lair of a lich which they thoroughly looted before continuing. "There's the cave," said Ansel. This cave was fairly benign, it seemed, and they went in until they found a short sword in perfect condition, but upon exiting, they were set upon by eyebeasts and ogres, which were handily defeated.
"Now, we'll just go to the other side, and use that key," said Ansel. "Agreed?"
"Agreed," said Jynx, looking to the others for disagreement.
With no disagreement, they went back in, and returned to the stone bridge they had stopped at before.
"I don't trust that," said Brynja. "Let's make sure there's not another way."
"Good idea," said Rudel, and he started to help Brynja look.
A few feet to the right, Brynja discovered a secret door, and they found a narrow passage. They continued, until arriving before a huge granite door with a marble keyhole set into its center. Brynja took the stone key and put it into the lock, and with a slight click, the door unlocked.
They found themselves in a horror of a room. Corpses, skeletons, and parts of bodies were in alcoves, and it appeared that they were converted into undead here. Even worse, it appeared that undead had recently been created here. Nonetheless, they continued on, finding some sort of shrine within the crypt which had been taken over by imps. The imps were cut down, as little more than annoyance, and fighting their way past living statues, they found their way down a stairway to a large chamber in which many individual chambers of the dead had been built. Here, undead had proliferated, and they found themselves constantly under attack as they searched through the level, remembering now Solberg's words about where the last piece of the demon-slaying sword might be found.
As they searched, they found a corpse wearing the tattered armor of the Empire army, devoid of treasure except for a diary of which only a few words were still legible: "... luck. Demonslayer is lost. It broke into three pieces, when we could use it most. A ghoul carried the tip below. It is lost in this crypt. We are taking the other two pieces west, in the hope ..." The rest of the writing was marred by crumbling pages and mildew.
They continued, finding a boat, and opening gates, and then fought their way through a maze of a level. Suddenly, the passage became icy cold, and a soft voice sounded in their minds, saying simply "Closer. Closer. Closer. Closer."
They continued, finding themselves in a large chamber where there was a lich surrounded by more undead. Finally, though, they laid to rest Drath, the master of the crypt, and the darkness seemed less oppressive and the icy coldness receded.
"Now, we just need to find that tip of the sword and a way out," said Ansel. "Ideas?"
"Just start searching," said Brynja. "There's bound to be another room down here, probably full of treasure."
While they did not find more treasure, they did find a narrow walkway, and in the midst of the dark, eerie cavern, near the subterranean lake, there was Drath's sarcophagus. Inside, there were several thick sheets of rotten cloth that the creature apparently wrapped in when retiring within to recharge. Beneath the scraps of gray cloth, there was the tip of a sword, a shiny six-inch long shard of steel.
Taking this along, they made their way out into the fresher air of Avernum itself.
"Now to find someone who can put that thing together," said Rudel.
"I understand there's a good deal of mining and the like at Fort Draco," said Brother Theo. "Perhaps we should head there."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Ansel as he got into the boat and they pushed off from the shore.