Descent Into the Malachite Fortress

5 November, 595
Part Two

After disposing of Jimmy's remains, our heroes reequip themselves and prepare for another foray into the ruins. When they arrive at Keygan's shop, they find a pair of half-elves waiting for them. The newcomers introduce themselves as Fario Ellegoth, and Felian Shard, sent by the mayor's office to help in the investigation of the missing children. Fario is an expert with a sword, and Felian is a cleric of Fharlanghn.

Descending the staircase, the group decides to investigate the secret doorways found on one of the landings. Lyra turns a nearby sconce counterclockwise, and the lower stairs collapse into a ramp, sending Nodonn and Felian tumbling down into the mask room. Felian seems a bit bruised but dusts himself off and climbs back up the staircase. Lyra turns the sconce the other way and the door opens into a short corrider. Bruinor inspects the end of the passage and finds another hidden door. As Lyra attempts to open it the floor underneath her gives way, and she jumps back in time to avoid falling into a pit trap filled with bubbling acid, holding onto Bruinor's beard for dear life.

The torch sconce is fiddled with again in the hopes that the pit trap will close, but this has no effect, apart from sending Nodonn hurtling down into the mask room again. Lyra finds that she is able to disable the trap by closing the far door and jamming it shut with a dagger. The second door is opened to reveal an elevator platform populated by a pair of hobgoblins. The foes get off a few javelin tosses, then melee ensues, and the hobgoblin threat is removed. Afterward, another secret door is found to lead to a room featuring a lever in one of the walls. After some experimenting, it is discovered that the lever enables and disables the acid pit trap on the other side of the wall. The group takes up position around the elevator and Plenty pulls the switch, sending them down into the depths of the Malachite Fortress.

They come out into a room with a pair of empty cages and a stone statue from which protrude several tendrils ending in crystalized spikes. Nodonn whacks at the thing and it springs to life, swinging its tendrils about threateningly. The statue is surrounded and defeated fairly quickly. At the same time, a large brutish humanoid emerges from a door shouting "More carrion for my larder!" and joins the fray with his ridiculously large falchion. The creature is surrounded and takes blow after blow from the party, but holds his ground while dropping both Throckmorten and Plenty each with one swing of his sword. Fario also takes a severe beating but remains on his feet. It's Bruinor's axe which slices through his abdomen that fells the foul creature. The fallen party members are revived, and the beast's filthy "larder" is explored. A chest is found which contains a couple of thousand silver pieces, two deep green spinel gems, and a fungi flask containing some kind of magical potion. Plenty finds a secret door which leads down a long passage, but the group decides to head back up to the surface to recover after a hard battle.

The party pays a visit to the temple of Wee Jas, and their wounds are attended to. The members of the party then part ways and rest for the remainder of the night.