Kevin's Watch

You enter the dark passageway and begin a slow descent downwards. The walls of the tunnel are supported by wooden struts every few feet. The tunnel curves slightly this way and that as you advance further and further. It's on a slight downward slope, and you're going deeper as time goes by. The rails follow the passage down.

After a few minutes you come to a large cavern. It's much wider than the tunnel you've just been through, and its walls are sparkly with small silver specks. The walls and roof have a latticework of wooden supports. Hanging from hooks driven into some of the support you can see hooded lanterns, 5 in total. None of them are lit.

The rails part ways in this room, splitting off in two different directions. Both lead into new tunnels, leading downwards, one off to the right, one straight ahead. There is a third tunnel to the left, but there are no rails leading that way.

Stepping to the side of the entrance tunnel to put the stone wall at his back, and keeping his bow at the ready, Xavier looks carefully to see whether or not he can spot any sign of activity at any of the tunnel mouths.

"Light be an ally to us in such a place. Let us light these lanters, and take at least one more with us, no matter which passage we choose." Charn moves to begin lighting the lanterns in the cavern.

The lanterns are all empty of oil and cannot be lit.

Xavier sees no sign of any activity in the tunnel mouths.

"These all be out of oil. I have a flask full." Charn starts filling and wicking one of the lanterns to provide a second light source. "Another light we need - the rest must be left, to save oil. Who would like to carry the second light?"

Xavier moves over to lift one of the hooded lanterns, filling it with oil from one of his flasks, and using the remainder to fill the rest of them, while leaving them hanging.

Then he lights them all with flint and steel, before turning to the party. "Well? Brother Charn? Anybody else? Which way?"

After lighting the rest of the lanterns something glinting on the floor catches your eye. There is a mining pick lying in the middle of the room.

Walking over to where the pick is, Charn turns to Vargon and smiles, "Your apprenticeship as a miner begins today, sir." He points down, "Know how to use this?"

Vargon grabs the pickaxe and stashes it in his backpack. "I can't use it, but I can sell it", he says.

Vargon searches the rest of the room to see if he can find anything else and comes across the following lying in various places throughout the room:

2 more pickaxes (he puts them in his backpack too) some dented tin cups, an empty lunchbox and two huge barrels. One of the barrels is empty and one is half-full with some kind of liquid.

[you guys should always search rooms when you're exploring places. You'll miss loads of stuff if you don't. I'll give you this one for free though, since I'm pretty sure if Paolo had been here he'd have searched the room]

Charns wafts the top of the half-full barrel.

It smells like lamp oil. There's a good 10 gallons in the barrel at the moment.

Charn refills his oil flask using one of the discarded tin cups, and motions Xavier to do the same. He taps the barrel with his mace and remarks grimly, "Now we have a siege device, should we be outnumbered by the walking dead."

Following the Cleric's lead, Xavier also refills his flasks, nodding at the idea of burning a few of whatever monsters would be waiting for them.

"Now, which tunnel? And don't forget, we'll be vulnerable behind now too, so the monk and I need to keep sharp watch."

Irian also refills her small pint of lamp oil. Best to stay full up as she can.

"Do we have a means of choosing a direction available to us? Or shall we flip a coin or something?"

"Mayhap we begin with the tunnel that has no rails?"

Irian bites her lower lip in thought. "Should we come upon some already mined metal, and a cart to load it in, would not the rails ease our returning with it?"

"First take care of the monsters, then worry about treasure. One way is as good as another, although I suspect the miners would have met their...accident...in a tunnel with rails if they were mining."

"A straight line is the shortest distance between two points," Irian mused. "Perhaps that applies to our search, as well as geometry, in this case?"

The rogue looked confused..."Say what you mean magic-user..."

"Just thinking out loud.

"If we entered the mine with a goal in mind, then the quickest way to that goal should be applied. It seems we have no definitive way to choose our course, so perhaps old adages might help.

"If you draw two points, the shortest distance between them involves no turns. Just a straight line between them. We have three paths before us. If there is no other reason to choose, perhaps the adage about shortest distance would help us choose the middle tunnel, as it is straight ahead of where we entered. No other meaning. Not even as reliable as a coin toss.

"But, we are dealing with the Undead. And my trust is in Brother Charn regarding this. He initially suggested the tunnel without rails, although he has not given a reason why. Perhaps faith should guide us when there is no other reason...

"...and I do need a lot more practise with my spells..," she muttered to herself so softly she hoped no one else would hear. "Must you think of me only as a spell caster?"