Arcus and Tison return to the ledge at the bottom of the spiral staircase after killing one of the giant things. They are certain that Caernak is in dire trouble and are very disturbed by the things they heard and saw in the tunnels downriver. Tison and Arcus implore Zola Fel to save the head River Voice, but just as Caernak's pleas fell on deaf ears, so did theirs. Tarranyr pleaded with Orlanth for rescue, but Orlanth too was not impressed.
Finally Tison asked Pavis, lord of the land within the walls, to save their comrade. The earth rumbled, Tison lost 9 POW (!!down to POW 5!), and the churning earth nearby spat up Caernak in a whirling cloud of sparkling magic! He had changed. His skin seemed normal human color except in places where he had been wounded (the left half of his face had been caved in and his left leg was mangled), where his flesh had been repaired as if it were made of grey-brown clay, much like the skin of a dwarf. Caernak recalls being in a dark tunnel on a boat piloted by a gaunt Mru (Jeset the Ferryman). Then he was wisked away from this vision to here.
You ran back to Yelmalio Hill and soon to Pavis, exhausted but ingratiated to Pavis and Tison's sacrifice.
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You passed time; Caernak spent his time in quiet rumination with his wife, and occasionally training his chums in Martial Arts. Che'enshashan spent much time training Caernak in Ceremony (now up to 39%!). Caernak feels revitalized (Pavis cured the Joint Rot as a side benefit of cleansing his body of ailments) but his mind is troubled by visions of his recent deaths in the darkness (his fear of darkness is now 10) and he feels that he must hone his skills as a leader of men lest he leave his friends in a bind again.
A gang investigated a ruin near Wyrmsjaw (rubble pile covering Damage Resist 15 pudan) but were accosted by a very aggresive war party of High Llama riders who claimed that this was a forbidden place. Naturally, violence ensued and the battle went back and forth. In the end 2riders were dead, 2 dying, but the party was sorely wounded (Pachala was maimed, then healed, then maimed; his wife was maimed; others were often befuddled/demoralized). The remaining 8 riders left, warning the party that soon they'd return with more forces and would be less merciful. The party returned with more forces from Wyrmsjaw and Pachala parleyed with the war leader, a storm khan named Vain Hornsaddle. Vain pointed to his sixteen men and beasts and convinced Pachala that they could smash the party. The party left, but alerted lunar authorities of the existence of the ruin. That night, screams could be heard from the nomad camp by the ruin, and in the morning they had fled.
Investigation showed that one had died trying to press through the magic screen while clutching a 400L necklace. More blood evidenced that others had barely escaped. A few storm bulls entered the tomb and saw that it was a Basmoli Berserker (lion nomad; almost extinct) mausoleum with 6 slabs and a menacing stone sabertooth statue. They touched nothing. Later, Lunars showed up and investigated overnight. In the morning some were carted off dead but the camp stayed put. The Irripi Ontor sage in command said that it was a rich tomb and well worth it. Blood smears around the exit showed that people had been clawed and bitten to death as they tried to flee. Eventually the Lunars left. You investigated with Tison, who saw 5 powerful spirits and 2 more in the blood-soaked cat statue. You decided to leave and settle with your finders fee, which turned out to be 220L.
More time passed. You gathered a group to explore the slimy hole under Wyrmsjaw that the 5 eyes had scouted. This appeared to be a recent Chaos infestation. A living mucus membrane sealed the tunnel entrance but was easily slashed open. Inside, the tunnels seemed alive with bony outgrowths, slimy shivering skin and mucus, and veins of soupy grey-green fluid. A troll warrior was glued to a wall, half-dead. You took a few steps and a distant figure peeled itself off of the wall to attack! More came in waves and they turned out to be horrid foes. They were SIZ10-23, strong and limber, with bony armored bodies (10AP) and piercing tongues (acid + high damage), grasping hands and tails. Luckily the front line was well magicked and the back line made smart moves. Fireblades charred them even though the things had acid for blood. After heavy losses, the things slinked deeper into the tunnels and we stopped for the night. This battle went quite well compared to previous encounters with chaos: you are becoming adept at fighting in tunnels and Tison has developed great signals for showing magic casters where to send spells.