Bandin and Velnar case an abandoned house. A search for flame leads them into a thieves’ den. Hiding within a hollow house. A deformed visitor. Descent into the Lower Streets. The guardian of the Kelspar portal. The Lensman. Waiting in the dark.

Continued from The Master’s Cellar.

Talídor, 10 Maran 653

They had been watching the old house for days and not once had they seen anyone come in or out. Its windows were shuttered and its plain wood door closed and locked. A metal plate on the front door once held a knocker, but thieves had made off with it years before. Satisfied that the strange house was abandoned, Bandin and Velnar darted from the crowded street into a dark alley that ran along the house’s side. The walls of the alley rose high above them. Windows peered down from the first and second stories, but there were no openings at their level. Immediately inside the alley, a staircase descended to a basement door on the side of the house. Beyond the stairwell, the alley split into a “T”. While Velnar kept watch, the younger Bandin walked into the shadowy stairwell. He tested the rusty old knob. The door was locked, but its wood was old and rotten. Kicking the door in, a swarm of gray city rats poured through the cracked door, rushing up the stairs, and dispersing into the alley. Bandin peered in through the cracked jamb, but the interior was too dark. Climbing out of the stairwell, the two began searching the alley for something to light.

While walking toward the back of the alley, the two stopped and ducked into a deep shadow as a door opened. Stepping from the doorway was a gentlewoman carrying a bundle of laundry. As she pulled wood-clips from her mouth, to pin the clothes to a line, the murderous Bandin rushed up behind her, running his sword through her back. The woman became stiff, her bundle dropping to the wet alley floor. Collapsing into a bloody pile, Bandin pulled his sword from her back. As the swordsman stepped through the rear door, Velnar crossed the alley and followed. Inside the house, the two found a simple kitchen with two tubs of water sitting on the floor. A wood stove glowed warmly in the corner. From a front room, they could hear a man coughing and mumbling to himself. As Bandin dragged the dead woman’s corpse into the room, the coughing stopped and heavy footsteps drew near. Soon a large man bristling sideburns appeared in the doorway. He held a large brass candlestick and a smoking pipe. Bandin drew his sword and stabbed him, but was alarmed to find that the man could fight back. Time and again the man clubbed the young swordsman with his heavy candlestick. Velnar stood back and Weaved a bolt of Arcane magic, which burned holes into the man’s shirt and skin. Finally, Bandin was able to side-step the man’s swing and bury his blade deep into the man’s gut. The man shuddered and collapsed to the floor.

As Bandin wiped the blood from his sword, Velnar was listening to the sound of footsteps from the floor above. Motioning to Bandin, Velnar pointed to stairs leading up to the first floor. As Bandin moved toward the stairs, the sounds of movement stopped. Velnar snatched a candle and moved back toward the kitchen. Bandin looked up the stairs as a crossbow bolt fired from above, striking him in the arm. Enraged, the swordsman charged up the stairs and stabbed the archer. As the crossbowman tried to stand, Bandin sunk his sword into the man’s chest. Moving into the alleyway, Velnar weaved a Phlōgòstrū across the back wall of the house. The house’s old shutters and windowsills burst into flame. Inside, Bandin rushed back downstairs and back through the kitchen. As they looked for a place to hide in the alley a third man stepped from the burning house. As he approached, he drew two daggers. Velnar weaved an >ildra Kadàktrū that dazed the the man as Bandin ran forward and impaled him. Clutching his side, the thief stabbed Bandin in the side. Bandin fell to the ground. Velnar retreated toward the main street, Weaving a series of spells until the thief too had fallen. Grabbing his fallen companion, Velnar dragged his body into the nearby stairwell and kicked open the splintered basement door.

Lighting the candle, Velnar stepped into the dark basement, dragging his unconscious friend through the doorway. Closing the door behind them, he stopped to look around. The house’s cellar was a large room with stairs rising into a low ceiling against the far wall. The floor however was a ragged hole ringed by broken timbers as if a Bloodling’s fist had punched through the floor. Keeping his back to the wall, Velnar pulled Bandin’s body into the corner and settled down for a long rest.

Padídor, 11 Maran 653

Resting and healing in the dark cellar.

Bærídor, 12 Maran 653

Resting and healing in the dark cellar.

Virídor, 13 Maran 653

Resting and healing in the dark cellar.

Palídor, 14 Maran 653

The silence was broken by the distant sound of humming somewhere far below. As the two sat and listened, they heard the coiling and uncoiling of ropes and the crash and splinter of wood. Eventually they could hear someone climbing up through the darkness and readied their weapons to greet them. After several long minutes there was a final grunt and the sound of someone dusting themselves off. Into the dim light of the broken door stepped a misshapen figure with a wiry beard. Most strange about the hunched creature was the third arm jutting from his back. He regarded them from behind wide round glasses, holding an unlit lantern in his third hand and a sword in his left. Velnar weaved an Orádra and discovered that the Dwürden’s sword and lantern were magical. Peering into the dark corner, the visitor sized-up the magician and his injured companion. Glancing back down the hole he had just emerged from, he said “Nice place you have here.” After some talk, the Dwürden introduced himself as Balog. He explained that he had never been to this Portal and was checking to see if it was still secure. When asked about the hole, Balog explained that the Portals were entrances into the Undercity of Oð. He went on to say that there were may such Portals throughout the city and that their locations were generally a secret. When asked about his unlit lantern, he gestured for Velnar to come closer. When the reluctant magician drew close, the Dwürden handed him the thing. Looking around the basement, Velnar was shocked to see luminous bodies lying about them. “The lantern lets me see the invisible world”, the Dwürden said as he took his lantern back. Balog explained that he was searching for a number of Undying that were believed to have escaped through the Portal. When Bandin and Velnar informed him that they had not noticed anything coming up through the hole, Balog nodded and moved back toward the rope. As the mutant positioned himself for descent, Bandin offered their help. Balog agreed and told them to follow him down, before sliding out of view.

Bandin stood up for the first time in three days. He was still injured from days before but was slowly recovering from his brush with death. Velnar grabbed the rope and grapnel, climbed over the edge, and slid down into the pitch darkness; Bandin followed. After sliding for some time they came to an old floor where a tiny iron pot had been left on the floor. A pile of crystals inside the pot gave off a faint blue glow which illuminated the chamber around them. On all sides, windows and doorways opened into deep darkness. Balog was nowhere to be seen. Circling the hole, they found another grapnel secured to the floor with a rope dropping farther into the darkness below. After some looking around, the two slid down the second rope, and a third and fourth line beyond. At each level they found a small glow pot, and could see the ancient remains of a buried city.

At the bottom of the last rope they were deposited into a wide space that looked like a city square. The square was surrounded on all sides by great brick arches that supported a ponderous ceiling above. Standing at the base of the rope stood a large feathered creature with a long beak. Its eyes shone blue in the dim glow of the light pots that circled the area. Beyond the circle of pots, other ropes led up through other holes in the dark ceiling. The Craw introduced itself as Skarkarrak, Guardian of the Kelspar Portal. When the two explained that they had followed Balog, the bird-thing shrugged its feathered shoulders. “He has not returned,” explained the Craw. “You are Uren” Skarkarrak observed after a time. “You cannot see beyond the pots.” Bandin and Velnar confirmed this. “You need glasses. You should seek the Lensman.” Skarkarrak pointed a curled hand toward one of the dark streets that led from the square. “His shop is that direction.” With a small Weaving, the bird cast an Ilûm on Velnar’s staff. “But you should hurry, the light will last a watch, and the shop is half that distance.” The thanked the guardian. Using the light of Velnar’s staff, they wandered down the underground street hoping that the Craw had not led them astray.

Despite having lived under a store for several years, the dark street made Bandin and Velnar claustrophobic. Ceiling braces and timbers strained under the untold weight of the many city layers above them. At times the ceiling rose into impenetrable shadows, while at other times the two had to crouch as they passed beneath. Everywhere, black and empty windows and doorways greeted them, daring them to explore their lightless recesses. As the two walked cautiously along the ancient cobbles, they couldn’t help but feel the eyes of those that watched from the dark, waiting for their light to flicker, wink, and fail.

It was with great relief that they finally spotted a dim glow in the distance. Picking up their pace, they found a group of people standing outside a shop front. The store was lit and strangely alive, the only source of light in a long avenue of abandoned buildings. Inside they found a thin man wearing a strange contraption on his head. It appeared to be a leather mask with a brass plate strapped to his face. As he spoke, the man would rotate the plate which was inset with five lenses of varying sizes and hues. After speaking with the Lensman for some minutes, the shopkeeper explained that his glasses cost 100d. The young men looked at each other. They didn’t have that much money. Velnar looked at his staff and wondered how much longer they had until its light winked out. They had to do something. The Lensman rotated the plate on his face and looked at Bandin. “The potion will do fine,” he explained. Reluctantly, Bandin handed over his only potion, and the Lensman produced two leather caps with round glasses mounted in metal frames. After adjusting the lenses, the two exited the store and walked back toward the guardian’s post. Not long after heading back, the light vanished from Velnar’s staff.

After some time, they returned to the square where Skarkarrak watched the many ropes leading up and away from this place. The Craw explained that he hadn’t seen Balog. Bandin, still weak from his injuries, suggested that they find a place to rest. The two explored some of the surrounding buildings until they found one that appeared empty. Settling inside they rested.

Not continued.

Characters

• Bandin of Kelspar
• Velnar of Kelspar
• Balog
• Celder Murgdo (Fat Man): killed
• Jaralda (Maid): killed
• Lensman
• Plad of Damdan (Crossbowman): killed
• Skarkarrak
• Svalidis (Knife-man): killed

Played: 14 Jul 2007