Khardruketh beckons...

Setting out for the mountain of Khardruketh, the party made good time with the help of Jakkar's superior tracking skills. Checking the ground Jakkar was certain that orcs has passed along the same paths as they were following. Some were certainly those they had killed at the villa, but there were others. Settling for the night the group made camp a short distance from the trail, setting watches although the night passed peacefully.
As they rose the next morning, Jakkar searched around and found a set of old, overgrown wagon tracks leading further up the mountain. Setting out they began to climb into the foothills, following the old wagon trail. Stopping and looking further up the mountain, Jakkar was certain he could see smoke dissipating through the trees. Setting off in the direction of the smoke Dandellion found a tall, strong tree and scrambled up it. Looking out over the canopy he was slightly confused as he could see the smoke but couldn't see a campfire or any other signs of people. Scrambling down the tree Dandellion relayed this to the group and they decided that he and Jakkar should scout forwards and determine where the smoke was coming from. As they moved forwards it became apparent that the smoke was coming from a hole in the ground. Waving the others forward they surrounded the hole. Kneeling, Torban smelt the hole and smelled woodsmoke as he looked down into a deep natural chimney in the mountainside. Looking down he could see a campfire at the bottom but couldn't tell exactly how deep down it was. Volunteering to be lowered down Barb secured a rope around herself as the others tied off the ropes to a tree and slowly lowered her.
Descending down the chimney Barb emerged into a small cavern, a large cooking fire at its centre. Battered pots and pans littered the crude kitchen as a large pot of stew bubbled over the fire. Signalling the others to come down, the party scrambled down the rope, Art acheiveing this with almost balletic grace. Dell swiftly sneaked down the connecting passageway, seeing the passage split into two ahead, Barb coming up behind him in support. As they neared the junction of the passages they heard the sound of gentle crying from the next cavern. Listening for a few moments they both heard the sound of approaching voices. Dell didn't know what they were saying but felt a sense of foreboding as he recognised the language of the newcomers as Orcish. Moving back Dell let the rest of the group know what he'd heard as Barb went to the bubbling stew pot. Lifting the lid she saw a thick potage of meat and vegetables. Lifting a ladlefull to her lips she tasted the pork-like stew and found it not to be unpleasant. Looking back into the pot a mounted sense of unease came over her as she saw a large piece of meat float to the surface, its rind still on it and with a curious tattoo of the word 'Mum' on it. Swiftly spitting the mouthful of stew back into the pot she rejoined the party and simply said that she thought the orcs might be eating people. As the group listened they realised that there were at least two prisoners in the next cavern and that the orcs were arguing over which one to eat next. Solstice smiled as she had an idea. Calling out in her best orcish she announced how lovely the stew was tasting and that she hoped there'd be enough. Sudden raised voices from the next cavern asking "where's Grelk" and "he'll learn to wait his turn over food" were heard before an orc appeared round the corner. Momentarily confused by the sight of a lone gnome in the cavern, the orc's confusion was cut short by a neatly placed arrow to the head.
Seeing their companion felled, the other orcs in the cavern charged round the corner to be met by Torban and Barb. As the three orcs traded blows with the heroes, Art and Jakkar tried to get shots off but missed, Dandellion unable to fire for fear of hitting his friends. Barb felt other worldly powers suddenly flow through her as her rage took hold and her axe began to swirl with shadowed power. Slamming the axe home into one of the orcs it screamed as its brain felt like it was on fire and then died. Torban unleashed a guiding bolt as point blank range, temporarily lighting up the creature as Solstice conjured a dart of pure ice into being and hurled it behind the two orcs. The exploding shards drove deep into both orcs, felling one and badly injuring the other. Dandellion pushed his way forward, angling for a shot on the remaining orc. Finding his mark Dell unleashed an arrow into the orc, killing him instantly. Victorious, Dell charged into the neighbouring cavern. Seeing several exits from the room, Dell's attention was drawn to the worked stone corridor ahead and the two orcs charging down it. Retreating back swiftly, Dell signalled the others and Art ran in, unleashing a scorching blast of energy on both orcs. Barb ran forwards and hurled her shadowed axe into one orc, killing him instantly, the axe disappearing and reappearing in her hand a moment later. Torban hurled a blow at the last orc, missing and being hit in return as Jakkar and Dell fired a hail of arrows into the creature, Dell finally landing the killer blow.
As they realised that all the orcs were dead, the group spread out to cover the three ways into the cavern and be sure that there were no more orcs coming in. Torban went towards the crudely constructed cell. Thick wooden beams had been lashed together to form a stout cell within which were a number of humans, two women, 3 men and a small child. As Torban and Barb made ready to smash open the cell, Dell interrupted them and began to pick the simple lock on the door, opening it and allowing the prisoners to walk free.
The three adventurers regarded the group carefully, the women seeming very open and thankful, but the men seemed wary and suspicious of their newfound rescuers. One of the women introduced herself as Geradil, her companion as Courana and the small boy was Tarib. They were journeying to the free Drow settlement of Marabin. The party sensed no deception on their part, whilst the free Drow were a notoriously insular community, it was by no means unusual for them to accept outsiders if those outsiders shared their desire to be left alone.
Barb and Dell spoke to the three men. Their garb marked them out as hired thugs or militia types. Their retiscence to answer questions only made the two adventurers more suspicious and it took some harsh words from Dell to convince them to come clean. After several minutes of fruitless discussion, the three introduced themselves as Balg, Talig and Vorn. Balg (the self appointed leader of the group) explained that they had overheard a discussion in one of the taverns about the deal between Mara and the adventurers and believed that they could get in ahead of the group and find some riches in the mine. The youngest of the group, Vorn, said all he wanted to do was find his brother and leave. He said that the orcs had taken him out of the cell the day before and they hadn't seen him since. It was at this point that Barb, somewhat bluntly, explained the stew. Vorn went silent, deeply in shock as Balg and Talig continued to ask how they could get out of the mine. Barb spoke to them of revenge on the orcs, convincing Balg to join them in their quest to clear the mine. Talig and Vorn were unconvinced and merely wished to leave. Agreeing to escort Geradil, Courana and the boy to Marabin, the adventurers helped them climb the rope to the surface and freedom.
Spreading out, the group and their new companion started to evaluate which passageway to take next....
Heading back to the intersection, the party felt a slight breeze coming from down the tunnel to their left and decided to head away from it, deeper into the caves. Moving down the narrow passage, they talked to Balg, asked him what he knew of the place. He said that he and his companions had come to the caves to try and beat the adventurers to any treasure and had come down the chimney into the caves as the other entrance they'd found seemed to be guarded. They'd headed down the very passageway the group were now going down. At the end he'd found an old well, that was when the orks had attacked him and his men, capturing them.
Seeing a passage to the south, Torban investigated the tunnel, finding a blank wall of rock. Torban gave it a cursory examination and decided to head back up the passageway away from this dead end.
Emerging into long cavern, the party saw that there was indeed an old well, the water murky but fresh. Seeing various piles of goods stacked along the length of the cavern the group spread out to search through them. As Torban went into the northern passage to search a stack of crates Jakkar stopped him. He had noticed the spoor of a creature he recognised in the passageway, that of Stirges. Recognising that the pile of crates and blankets seemed to be stacked to block the passage entirely, instead of simple storage, Jakkar and Torban backed away carefully so as not to disturb the hidden creatures.
Dell advanced cautiously up the cavern towards a passage made of finished stone and felt deeply annoyed when Barb blundered past him and stood at the end of the cavern. Turning he saw a smiling Art lift a small chest from under the loose flagstone she had found. Dell came over and quickly checked the chest to see if it was trapped in any way. Happy that it wasn't he picked the lock on it, the lid neatly springing open to reveal a bag of gold and a small flask of clear liquid. Examining the symbols on the flash Torban easily recognised the religious symbols to be that of holy water. Pocketing their loot, the party moved into the corridor, spreading out and finding a door to the east and a small passageway to the west off the main corridor. Dell listened quietly at the eastern door, hearing nothing and carefully opened the door. It's fair to say, both Dell and the ork he was eye to eye with were quite surprised at their meeting. On seeing this Balg decided to try and prove his worth to the group by booting the door in and rushing into the room. The other three orcs were equally surprised by the newcomer in their midst.
Balg swung his scimitar at the nearest ork, cleaving into the creature as Barb channelled her rage and threw herself at another orc, her axe hewing deep into his skull and killing him. Solstice flung a bolt of pure ice at a third ork, the shards exploding into it as Dell launched an killing arrow into the third ork before it could even react. Both the remaining orks attacked Balg, their swords biting deep. Jakkar launched arrows into both orks, nearly killing both before Art and Barb finished the job.
As the group searched the orks room, Solstice gave Balg all her remaining goodberries, healing many of his wounds. Looking through the ork sleeping pallets, crates and sacks they upended a cooking pot and found the orks stash of gold and some precious stones. Barb used her skills to appraise the stones, realising that they were quite valuable. Leaving the room Dell advanced down the passage, turning into the narrow side corridor and signalled the party. As Torban and Barb went to the stout door in the passage, the rest of the party stayed in the passage. Whilst the human skull nailed to the door was unnerving Torban tried to barge the door anyway but it didn't budge. Girding himself he went to try again, just as the door was torn open in front of him. Staring up into the eyes of Great Ulfe the ogre, Torban straightened as Ulfe bellowed "Who dares challenge the Great Ulfe!" as he let slip the chains of the two dire wolves he held at bay.
Dell had been aiming at the door and chose now to unleash his arrows, striking Great Ulfe twice as the wolves went for Torban. Torban summoned the power of his god and blasted Ulfe and his wolves with a thunderous blast of elemental energy. Ulfe swung for Torban, wounding him before Torban turned his attack into a blast of lightening. Art and Jakkar let fly with their bolts and arrows, Art missing and Jakkar cursing as the string of his bow snapped. Solstice summoned healing energies, keeping Torban alive to continue fighting. As Balg threw a dagger at Ulfe, distracting the brute, Barb swung hard for Ulfe killing him with an eviscerating blow. Torban and Barb continued to fend off the wolves, just as a bellowing voice came from beyond the main corridor and four orcs charged round the corner into Art and Solstice. Art fired a blast into one of the orks as Solstice unleashed a blast of thunderous energy, slamming one ork into the wall. Jakkar restrung his bow just as Old Yarrick, the orog, came round the corner bellowing orders at the orks. Barb and Torban continued to fight the wolves, Torban finally unleashing another thunderous wave into them to end their threat.
Trading blows with the orcs, Art conjured a scorching ray, wounding all three of them as Solstice was wounded. Jakkar and Dell fired shot after shot at the orks just as Solstice morphed into her bear form, the orc before her stepping back aghast and narrowly avoiding her bite! Yarrick charged in, slashing Balg with his axe and dropping him to the floor before hitting Art and smashing her to the ground. Barb vaulted onto Solstice's back and then launched herself at Yarrick and narrowly bouncing off his armour. Torban grabbed Art and dragged her clear, pouring a healing draft down her throat before casting a shattering blast of magic into the orks and Yarrick. Art, Jakkar and Solstice landed blow after blow on Yarrick before Art finally landed the killing blow, his blood spraying across the corridor.
As the adventurers stopped to catch their breath, Torban knelt by Balg and spared him from death...

Dragging the unconscious Balg into Ulfe's room, the smell of ogre and dire wolf making the small chamber quite ripe, the party settled down to tend their wounds. Barb set about stripping the corpses of the orcs and orge, gathering the various weapons and pieces of armour from the bodies. Whilst usable the weapons were not of good quality but the metal would prove useful to any smiths. Art and Dell spied two large chests which must have belonged to the ogre. Investigating both chests they found a goodly supply of gold and silver, along with a potion which the two of them both recognised the arcane symbols on, Dell from his time in the circus and Art from her studies. A potion of climbing would prove very useful. As Torban laid Balg down to rest the party began to rest, all except Barb who decided to look back in the corridor they had come from. Stepping to the corner she saw a fierce looking dwarven statue, the warrior depicted wearing heavy mail and holding a sword and hammer. Standing twice as tall as a dwarf Barb was transfixed and approached the statue. As her foot stomped down onto one of the paving slabs there was a loud click. Startled, Barb looked up into the face of the statue and the cloud of gas spraying from the mouth. Surrounded by the green gas Barb felt woozy and staggered back to the room and her companions. As Torban examined her, he realised that she was poisoned and administered a dose of Keoghtom's ointment to cure her symptoms.
Finishing their rest, the group carefully approached the statue, avoiding the trapped paver. Solstice read aloud from the dwarven text at the statue's plinth "These are the halls of Khardruketh, beware those who are not welcome". Barb, Torban and Dell entered the bunk room from which the orcs had rushed. Torban began to explore the room, seeing nothing untoward, until a laughing Dell pointed out the barely concealed door at the end of the room. Barb searched the room and found a loose stone. Carefully moving the stone aside with a javelin, Barb eagerly pulled out the cloth bag inside the alcove. Opening it she found a topaz gem and two onyx stones along with a collection of gold coins. Assembling by the hidden door, Art pushed the door open and reeled backwards as an orcan arrow buried itself in her shoulder.
As Solstice pulled her back and applied soothing magicks to the wound Jakkar and Dell took aim at the door before Torban charged through the door and unleashed a mighty blast of thunderous energy into the three orcs in the chamber beyond. As one orc flew backwards, immediately slain by the force of the blast, Torban rode a blow from his companion and unleashed another blast of energy to down the second creature before a howling Barb ploughed into a third orc and hammered blows onto the creature and cleaving it in half before reversing her axe swing and burying it in the chest of the final creature.
Seeing that she could do nothing in the narrow corridor and worrying that he may be vulnerable, Solstice ran back to the ogre's room and channeled energy into Balg to heal him before guiding him to the bunk room. Dell slunk down the corridor past the dead orcs as Barb began to search the corpses. Seeing the firing slits built into the corridor Dell silently thanked the group's collective gods that they had come in via the chimney and not the guarded chambers beyond the murder holes. As he emerged into a small room he heard the urgent pounding of heavy feet coming up the corridor. Falling back and signalling the others Dell made ready as Barb and Torban took up position the orcs charged into the chamber and caught him. As Dell fought his way free, Torban struck from his hiding place, driving his warhammer through the first orc's skull giving Dell time to loose shots into another of the orcs as Barb and Jakkar fired into the last of the orcs. Leaning past Torban, Solstice unleashed a blast of poison into the orc's face. Watching as the orc's face bubbled and melted off, Solstice and Torban's noses wrinkled in disgust.
Taking a moment to gather themselves, the party moved further down the passage and found another door which led onto a wide stone entranceway, shallow steps leading down into the wide espanade beyond. As Art looked back to the east she saw a rickety wooden bridge, her keen eyes seeing that it would be dangerous for people to cross as a group or too quickly. Working their way back around through the bunk room and many corridors the party went back to the mysterious stone wall Torban had found hours before. Recognising the stonework as dwarven Barb pushed and found that the wall was another door. Moving carefully down the narrow passage she came to another disguised door, this one covered in arcane orcan symbols and curses. Pressing her ear to the door she heard chant like murmurs from the space beyond.
As the party burst through the door the orcan priestess turned and shouted a curse at them, her two acolytes drawing weapons and throwing themselves forward to defend their priestess. Dell drew a bead on one of the acolytes and launched his arrow across the chamber, the shaft driving through the orc's eye to kill her. Jakkar aimed at the priestess and wounded her as Torban launched a bright bolt of energy into the other acolyte. Yelling in rage the priestess hurled magical darts across the chamber, watching in glee as they exploded against Barb's flesh. Balg ran into the room, slashing at the acolyte as Solstice ran at the orc and morphed into her most recently learned animal form, a mighty dire wolf who locked its jaws round the orcs throat and ripped it out. As the acolyte gurgled its last breath the party turned on the priestess. Dell sent an arrow deep into her chest as Jakkar followed up and wounded her grievously. The orc hurled curses at Dell and sent another cluster of missiles into him, almost ending the young Gnome's life. Seeing the threat to her friend's life Barb swung wildly for the orc as Balg dived in, slashing her across the throat. As her blood sprayed over him he smiled as her head rolled back and she collapsed to the floor.
Surveying the carnage in the small room, Torban began to tend to Dell's wounds as Barb carefully sensed for magicks in the room. Further searching the room found the source of the magicks. Opening the priestesses robes the group found two leather bags of silver pieces, a red potion which Torban soon recognised as an elixir of health and several vials of a liquid which none of them could identify.....
Looking around the chamber, Torban was repulsed by what he saw. Crude orcish curses and glyphs adorned the walls of the once devout dwarf prayer room. Examining the remains of what the orc priestess had been doing Torban realised that she had been working on some form of orcish religious ceremony, perhaps a blessing of some sort. Jakkar looked at the large stone doors leading into the unexplored area of the hold where he had previously sensed stirges and saw that the door held a key. Removing the key Dell and Solstice took turns to look through the keyhole, but could only see darkness and hear the blowing of a breeze in the chamber beyond. Deciding that they needed to rest and commune with their gods, the party settled in the small, smokey chamber for many hours. Once they felt ready they assembled by the doors, an ever eager Barb shoving the doors open and stepping into a large chamber. The ceiling rose to thirty feet above them, the walls decorated with murals of dwarves at their forges and a natural cleft in the stone floor before them held a long and staircase of worked stone which led into the darkness and the sound of running water.
Cautiously spreading out to either side of the stairs the group slowly made their way up the chamber, the light from Balg's torch illuminating the murals. The sudden flapping of wings shattered the silence as four stirges flew from a side passage directly at Balg and his torch. Spearing him with their sharp proboscii the stirges grasped Balg and began to feed. Dropping to his knees in pain and horror Balg tore one of the creatures from himself as Barb grabbed his torch and shouted into the darkness "C'mon you fuckers!".
Distracting the stirges from Balg, Barb launched a javelin one handed into the darkness, hearing it clatter off the walls. Jakkar sensed one of the creatures fly near him and sent an arrow into it as Solstice flew to Balg's aid, feeding him goodberries to heal his wounds quickly. Art stamped her foot in frustration as her crossbow bolt went wide but Dell had more luck and successfully shot a third stirge from the air. Trying to gain his companions an advantage Torban cast light into some small pieces of stone and hurled them across the chamber. Silhouetted in the pale light from the stone, the last stirge was shot clean through by Jakkar.
Realising that there were no more stirges in the chamber Solstice looked down the stairway, seeing a long flight lead into the darkness beyond as Dell went to look at the stirge nest. Deciding that no Gnome should have to deal with that much poop, Dell returned to the rest of the party who regarded the door at the end of the chamber warily. Torban carefully made his way round the edge of the chamber as all the party looked at the three burned and charred skeletons lying before the door. Observing the door and the wide nozzle like spouts sticking out around its frame, Torban quickly worked out that it must be some form of trap. Art decided to try and open the door carefully using her mage hand but it proved too heavy to pull open. Carefully examining the floor in front of the door yielded no sign of trapped flagstones, so Torban looped some rope over the handle and together the group pulled the door open.
No sooner had it opened halfway than a great jet of flame shot from the spouts, scorching the stones where only moments before Torban had been stood, and burned through the rope holding the door. As the door swung shut Solstice caught a glimpse of a mechanism on the reverse of the door and told the group that it must be the reason the door was closing. As the flames died down Torban decided to gather loose stones and rocks and block the spouts on the wall. Satisfied they were as blocked as they could be the party repeated their rope trick and pulled the door open. Once again there was a mighty whooshing sound but fire only oozed from the blocked nozzles this time. With the door held open Torban was able to get behind it and sever the counterweight which closed the door. As he turned into the room he was astonished at the myriad sets of copper piping, globes and other things which led from the spouts back to two large copper vats. Looking inside them he saw two different liquids, one opaque and one light yellow and clear. Thinking that these must be the source of the fire he carefully took a couple of used potion bottles and filled them with the liquids, being careful not to mix them. Returning to the rest of the party with his bottles of reagent, the group gathered at the top of the stairs and started to make their way down.