IC XIII

[Atlictoatl]

Tev Meren, Fighter

Tev adds the small hammer to his backpack and follows Rhys up the stairs, halberd at the ready. He stays back enough to not interfere with the other man's inspection of the stairs as they ascend.

[Koren n'Rhys]

Quint Kacie, Scholar-Mage
Quint accepts the dead cleric's things at Severi's insistence, tucking the holy water away in his pack, as well as the coin, until he can store it on his mount. Curious, he checks the seal on the scrollcase, and will open it to examine the contents if nothing tickles his suspicions.

"Too much in common for it to be a mere coincidence, I'd say," responds the magic-user to Tev's question. "I'd surmise that as these beastmen died off the spider gathered up their remains and brought them here, as it seems to have been tasked with keeping this place clean and tidy. It's too long ago to say if they died off over time, or if the city fell to a plague of some sort." As he talks, Quint examines the patterns of the tilework, trying to determine if it is anything more than decoration.

"I too agree with starting up above while the light lasts. That hole will be dark no matter what time we choose to descend. Should we go back and fetch our horses first?"

[Alethan]

Rhys the Traveler

With the party in agreement, Rhys moves up the stairs, checking them for traps as he goes.

[MonsterMash]

Thurgan,dwarf

Thurgan carefully examines the stonework looking for any signs of traps or secret chambers.

[thirdkingdom]

Rhys finds no traps as he ascends the staircase. Unlike the rest of the first floor, a thick layer of -- until now, at least -- undisturbed dust covers the treads. Thurgan examines the stonework, and finds that he is unable to identify the manner of workmanship. Certainly, it is not dwarven, nor human, and seems to be at least a thousand years old, if not older.

The stair treads are also spaced further apart than is comfortable for the average human, much less the shorter-legged dwarf. After a dozen treads the stairs dogleg at a landing and continue upwards, opening into a large hall some twenty feet wide and running the length of the building. The floor in here is inlaid with another intricate pattern, this time in green. At least, that is what it looks like, under a thick layer of dust, from the head of the stairs. There are four doors, in roughly the same position as below; three of them are closed, the fourth is ajar. Large, open windows frame the hallway at both ends; the dust here is disturbed, possibly from weather.

[Atlictoatl]

Tev Meren

Tev waits for those more skilled at determining threats to do so. With too many weapons at hand, he doesn't ready his crossbow, instead keeping a grip on the halberd.

He eyes the open doorway and keeps watch on it as the others explore the room.

[Wyzard]

Severi, curious as to what other ancient relics lay past the ancient spider's guardianship, creeps up to the ajar door and listens closely at it. If he hears nothing, he'll hurl it open.

[thirdkingdom]

Severi hears nothing at the door. He hurls it open, revealing a room well-lit by windows. The walls are covered with tattered tapestries, by this point little more than threads; low benches are built into the wall, circling the room. On these benches he beholds the skeletal remains of three of the large humanoid creatures, prone. The rest of the room appears empty and undisturbed.

[Alethan]

Rhys quickly examines the other doors in the hallway. If they look safe, he will open the one opposite the door that was already open.

[Wyzard]

Severi examines the room for hidden treasures or jewelry.

[Atlictoatl]

Tev Meren, Fighter

Tev positions himself centrally in the room so that he can be as responsive as possible should someone need help.

[Koren n'Rhys]

Quint Kacie, Scholar-Mage
Seeing that Tev has followed the elf into his chosen room, Quint decides to follow Rhys and see what else they can find behind another door.

[Atlictoatl]

To clarify, Tev is standing in the middle of the main room while the others explore the side rooms.

[thirdkingdom]

Room with door ajar

Severi finds, amongst the remains, a gold hoop earring and several rings, still on bony phalanges. The rings are likely far too large to fit on a human's fingers. Two of the rings are of beaten gold, whilst the other is silver. The two golden rings are tarnished and dull from the weather, but the silver ring still retains its shine and lustre.

Room across the hall

Rhys listens at the door. Hearing nothing, he opens it. The room is similar to first one, with narrow benches lining the walls. No remains repose in here; a circular staircase carved from white marble chased with blue tiles rises in the center of the room, piercing the ceiling. Unlike the rooms thus far on this level, which are brightly illuminated by sunlight streaming in the windows, what can be seen of the third story is dark and unlit.

[MonsterMash]

Thurgan, dwarf

Thurgan curses the builders of the stairs and follows Severi.

[Alethan]

Rhys the Traveler

"Found another staircase here," Rhys calls out (albeit somewhat quietly) from the room opposite the one Severi is in.

He steps out into the hallway. "Seems dark up there, so we might need some light. I'll check out the other two rooms down here before we head up, though."

He moves down the hall and opens the other two doors, one at a time, to see what is inside.

[Wyzard]

Room with door ajar

Severi finds, amongst the remains, a gold hoop earring and several rings, still on bony phalanges. The rings are likely far too large to fit on a human's fingers. Two of the rings are of beaten gold, whilst the other is silver. The two golden rings are tarnished and dull from the weather, but the silver ring still retains its shine and lustre.

Severi pockets the jewelry. He calls back to Rhys, "Magical ring here, I think."

[Alethan]

Rhys the Traveler

"Ah, excellent find, Severi," Rhys replies from the hallway. "Now... who is to try it on, I wonder? Doubt it would be harmful if one of these creatures wore it. But I wonder if it would even fit one of our hands? Or maybe it adjusts to size automatically - I've heard stories of rings of such power that do so..."

[Wyzard]

Severi Silvertongue, Elf

"We're not trying anything on without knowing what it does. We'll have it identified by a sage, and then if we find that it doesn't resize itself, we'll just have to try it on different-sized appendages."

Severi checks the other rooms for items of interest.

[Koren n'Rhys]

Quint Kacie
"I'll be able to determine if the ring, and anything else we gather up, is magical at least. We can avoid paying for the identification of non-magic items anyway. I'll have to commit the correct spell to memory beforehand, of course, but it's within abilities."
Inquisitive by nature, Quint sticks nearby Rhys as he moves to explore the remaining rooms.