Absence of Empathy IC

[PolkaBear]

Below

Rach winces at the pain of hundreds of little bites and scratches. The smell of filth carried by the rats--and now smeared on him--makes him slightly queasy. Concern stabs through his gut when he sees that his myriad wounds have been fouled by it.

Arfondt hands the pouch to Kayte; then he and Ulf switch places, interposing the armored dwarf between the scholar and the attacking vermin.

The dust that Kayte had cast seems to twinkle in the darkness above the writhing mass of rats in the shaft. Then, as if a gigantic invisible hand were pressing upon them from above, the mass settles. Within less than a second her spell has stilled their violent motion. Those close to the shaft can see that the rats still breathe despite their repose.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Chaim

"Thank you, sir." Chaim says a little tightly and beckons to Ferah as he heads back in the direction of the bulkhead.

"They will not like this one little bit..." Chaim says softly as he approaches it, "But there are people down there in sore need of our help and we cannot wait."

He approaches the door the bulkhead and draws a sickle from the sheath. It has been shaped perfectly to fit his hand, and the work-stained wood of the handle has a strange grain. Carved expertly into it is the scene of a field of grain wafting in the wind. The curving blade is as bright and sharp as the day it was made. Despite its looks however, this is obviously a hard-worked tool.

He lifts it, and examines the inside mechanism. He holds out the sickle to gage his blow and with a swift downward stroke he slashes it through the crack.

[PolkaBear]

Above

Chaim runs the tip of his sickle down either side of the door, but the implement does not penetrate deeply enough to reach anything of substance. Most of the mechanism is either inside the steel door or on the far side. The hinges and the lock are the only structures obviously accessible to him.

Ferah speaks up. "I don't think you're going t--wait! Here comes a guardsman."

The dark-skinned man wears the city's colors, argent on sable. His very-servicable shortsword is still in its sheath; but his hand is not far from it.

"Can I help you with something, sir?" His reedy voice is touched with a tone of suspicion.

[tgva8889]

Kayte Mursai AC 13 HP 41/41

"Sssh, they're sleeping. My spell must have put them out. It doesn't last for an eternity, though, so we should either get out of here or finish them off," Kayte explains at a low whisper, pushing her hand down as a signal to be quiet. Holding the pouch, Kayte now goes about casting her enhancement spell upon Sir Kylen, drawing the necessary cured leather from the sack. "If you'll excuse me, sir..." She attempts to slip past him, switching positions with him so that he can get better aim at the rats. As well as stand between her and their oncoming attack. She also slips a small bit of red-colored powder from the pouch, holding it in her hand with great care. "Don't worry, Arfondt, I'll be sure to get this back to you should you need it," she says at a whisper, so as not to wake the rats from their slumber.

[Mr the Geoff]

Ulf

Ulf reaches in his pack with his free hand and pulls out a shovel, and passes it along the line. "If it doesn't wake em, I reckon we should shovel em over the side into the current"

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Chaim

"Yes sir, you can, I think." Chaim responds calmly, resheathing his sickle so as not to alarm the guard.

"You've heard tell of those who were swept away from the street collapse? I was one of them. As I was being pulled up I continued to hear their voices from deep within." he continues, telling a small lie as the truth would take too long.

He indicates the building, "This will take us down to where they may be found if they still live. I tried to get the key as you'd imagine, but those in charge of the rescue are... indisposed. Would you be willing to help us down? I am Chaim Hyman if you have heard of me and if so you know I am a man of my word."

-=-=-=-=-=-

OOC: *curses* I've been checking this every day and somehow never saw your post.

[Irrealist]

Arfondt

"Thanks, I'd appreciate that." Arfondt nods to Kayte, his voice lowered to a whisper so as not to wake the rats. "I have to admit I'm feeling a little uneasy without it." He turns to face the rest. "Is everybody alright? Crennik, calm down." Arfondt moves over to him and calmingly lays a hand on his shoulder. "They are gone now. Nobody got hurt."

[Mr the Geoff]

Ulf

"Nobody but Rach got hurt, you mean" corrects Ulf as he tries to get closer in towards the hole, to see if it is just an alcove or a proper tunnel.

[tgva8889]

Kayte Mursai

Moving to Arfondt, Kayte hands him his bag again, muttering "Thanks, Arfondt." as she moves to hand him his pouch back. "Sorry to make you feel uneasy." Her voice is constantly low, as to avoid awakening the rat horde. Looking towards the rats, Kayte whispers, "Can we get these rats out of here? They truly are starting to make me sick." Unable to use any of her spells to great effect, Kayte waits for the others to move. "Come on, we have to get out of here."

[LurkerinthePlaygnd]

Rach Diggerson AC 13, HP 36/40

"I second that idea Kayte. The sooner the better," says Rach as he attempts to rinse the filth from his wounds.

[PolkaBear]

Below

With the rats quieted in sleep, the sound of the water dominates the tunnel.

Nevertheless, Ulf and Sir Kylen hear...

Spoiler

Show

...a murmuring that does not sound like water, more like voices in hushed conversation.

It comes from far along the rat-filled shaft.

[Mr the Geoff]

Ulf

Ulf's eyes widen as he hears the new sound. Speaking as softly as he can to be heard over the sound of the water, Ulf warns the others "We're not alone, there's someone down there" and points down the shaft past the sleeping rats. A perplexed look crosses his face as he ponders why did I just whisper? it's probably a rescue party

[The Glyphstone]

Kylen
Also whispering, "Indeed. Though if they were seeking us in the tunnels, it seems unlikely that they would be speaking so quietly...I wonder why else they would be here?"

[Irrealist]

Arfondt

Arfondt feels the hair on his neck rising. He whispers to the others: "We are whispering too, so that doesn't have to mean anything. Even if they aren't looking for us, they could still point us to a way out. Maybe we should try not to behave as suspiciously as we do now."

[LurkerinthePlaygnd]

Rach Diggerson

Speaking quietly so not to wake the little biters, Rach says to Kayte, "How far ahead can you send those lights? Maybe we can get a look at what's up there without having to wake the little beasties."

[PolkaBear]

Above

The guard relaxes at Chaim's explanation, and he doesn't appear as threatening as a moment before; but his frown doesn't disappear, either. "Well if there's a rescue going, you're best off leaving it to them."

The man is slightly older, marking him as a career guard, not a serviceman; and he scratches at a bit of grey stubble on the underside of his chin. "I can understand your concern--you were one o' them that was caught? Nasty business, that. The repair guys will probably be working on it for a week. Roped the whole intersection. Cause a mess with foot traffic, too. Anyway, I was saying--" he clears his throat, but the reedy quaver continues "--that you're best off going home and getting some rest. You look like you could use it. If there's news you have o' them below, I'll make sure it gets to the rescue crew."

At this point, Ferah turns away from the door and steps from behind Chaim.

"Sir, a moment."

The guard's eyes go wide. "Miss Ferah, ma'am! I didn't realize--"

Ferah's blue eyes twinkle, as if she enjoys discomfiting the guardsman. "You will assist this man in whatever fashion he requires. There are people trapped down there; and we must do anything we can for them in a timely manner."

"But what--"

"As a servant of the city, these people are your responsibility now. See to your duty."

The guard's brow furrows, but he is nodding. "Yes, ma'am. If we don't have time to notify the authorities, I guess the thing to do is to go to the Ag building and get the key. They should have a copy."

The guard leads the way into the Ag Exchequer and crosses the waiting room to the woman seated at the front desk. "We need the key for the sewer access bulkhead outside. Civic emergency. There should be one on reserve here."

"I'm sorry, sir; but they already came for it. The team is down there now. We only have the one copy." Chaim notices that the clerk is speaking more to Ferah than to the guard.

"Team? Like a rescue team? There are people trapped down there: the intersection collapsed a few streets over."

"Exactly, sir. This woman here--" she gestures to Ferah "came in twenty, thirty minutes ago and notified us; so of course we passed word to the authorities immediately. They came and got the key not too long ago. I assume they're down there now."

The guard turned back to Chaim and Ferah. "Well there. You see? They should be fine. When it comes to tunnels and underground, Drim's got a lot of experts. Can't ask for better help than what they got."

[tgva8889]

Kayte Mursai

"Hey, I've got an idea. It might envolve some work. Anyone have a source of light and some sort of writing implement?" Here's to hoping you're smarter than you think you are... She holds out her hand, her plans not clear, but she looks rather determined that this will work. "Ulf, you have the shovel, right? Think you can get these rats out of here?" Her whisper seems to be in more of an order form and less of a question as Kayte begins to take the helm of the group. "Arfondt, can you do anything of use? Do you perhaps have a light spell?"

(Party, read below if you think your character's smart enough to figure this out:

Spoiler

Show

Ok, here's the plan:
1. Find something to write on.
2. Cast light on it.
3. Write some message informing the people below of where we are.
4. Hope they find us.
5. Optional: Yell our heads off at them. This requires rat removal, though, as yelling while a swarm of rats attacks us seems like a bad plan.

)

[PolkaBear]

Below

Crennick protested in a whisper. "Let's just get out of here before those rats wake up! If you want to do anything fancy and magical, do it where you won't wake them. A light would rouse them. And kill the noise!"

Erwin, who had resumed humming his earlier song, caught Crennick's glare in the witchlights and stopped. "How long will they sleep, anyway? Could we dump them in the water without waking them? They can swim, I believe."

[tgva8889]

Kayte Mursai

Thinking quickly, Kayte tugs on Arfondt's robe and whispers in his ear, "Can you levitate them somewhere without waking them up?"

[Mr the Geoff]

Ulf

Ulf repeats his earlier statement, elaborating slightly "I'll happily shovel em into the water myself if Kayte can assure me they'll stay asleep long enough to get into the water. I don't know how magic sleep works"

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Chaim nods his head in respect to Ferah and a hint of a smile to his lips as she takes charge.

"Thank you, sir." he responds to the guard. "I'm most glad to hear it."

He then glances to make sure Ferah is ready to leave before walking quickly for the door to meet with those heading for the sewer entrance.

[PolkaBear]

Above

You walk out of the Ag Exchequer, but the rescue party is not in sight. You cross the street to the bulkhead, but the door is locked as it was before.

"Perhaps they came and went while you were talking to the construction worker," Ferah offers. "It appears that we've missed them."

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Chaim

"That would be quick work, and would they lock the door back with themselves within?" he ventures thoughtfully, and runs a hand through his now dried hair. "Something about this is not settling well."

-=-=-=-=-

OOC: Btw, I'm going to be here for some time, so if you let me know we can try to hurry this a bit more if you want. Will just keep a look out for a response as soon as it comes.

[PolkaBear]

Above

"Perhaps they didn't want to leave the access point open behind them, in case they have to search the sewers for a while. It could be easier for them to use a different exit. And they wouldn't want to keep somebody behind to control access." Ferah shrugged. "Maybe I'm just not suspicious."

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Chaim

"Oh, I wouldn't care to think I'm being suspicious. Just don't feel right leaving this alone though until I know for a certainty something is being done." Chaim responds, thumbing his beard as he glances at the shut door.

He looks about for a window, a crack, or some opening in the structure to glance within.

[PolkaBear]

Above

There is nothing through which Chaim can peek. Being a militarily strategic location, Drim has guarded its sewers from intrusion, so that potential enemies can not use them to escape detection or to disperse throughout the city.

[The Glyphstone]

"Well, we need to do something..it's really quite dreary down here."

[Mr the Geoff]

Ulf

"Well seein as you didn't answer my question, I'll assume you don't know the answer any more than I do and I'll get shovellin' then"

Ulf Squeezes past the rest of the party and starts shovelling sleeping rats into the water, hoping that they do not wake until they hist the water and are caught in the current.

[LurkerinthePlaygnd]

Rach Diggerson: HP 36/40, AC 13

Receiving no answer to his query, Rach remains silent. As Ulf begins shoveling the slumbering vermin into the current, Rach sidesteps up-current as far as the rope will allow and readies his dagger should any of the squirmers wake.

[tgva8889]

Kayte Mursai

"Yeah, you do that Ulf." Kayte prods Arfondt some more, waiting for him to spill his spellbook so she knows what spell she can cast for the day. She stands watch over the rats, ready to unleash another spell should it be deemed necessary.