Session One Hundred and Thirteen (Graveyard of Empires Summary)
Session 113 June 29th, 2016
25th of Joureldon 2:50 pm, about ½ hour after the battle.
While mopping up, Admiral Dyconson comes ashore and asks to speak privately. She says the best time to move the experimental vessel would be the 15th of Tanrildon with an secondary alternative 4 days from now. Both days will have higher tides that will help unbeach the vessel. We suggest that Cannis and Edan can magically extricate the vessel sooner without the higher tides. She returns to the Bitterhorse expecting our help the next day as we prepare to enter the tunnel below the broken tower.
We pile our gear and ourselves into the rail cart and have the monkeys push us along the tunnel at a walking pace. About two hundred feet into the tunnel, the arching walls are suddenly sheathed behind a clear 5” thick substance. Edan and Kalgunn discuss the discovery and speculate it might be a strengthening reinforcement or leak proofing of ancient dwarven crystalline technologies. 50’ further along we notice a light glowing from tunnel walls, whose source appears behind the actual walls. Another 50’ and we find a shaft of light cast from the ceiling of the tunnel. Eventually we realize the tunnel is no longer lined with stone but is simply the clear coating and above us can be seen the dark murky waters of the hidden cove.
The tunnel is sectioned every 50 feet by an opened transverse doorway as wide and high as the entire tunnel arch. When we can see beyond the clear sheath around each doorway, we see a stone adjunct extending 10’ perpendicularly to the tunnel in either direction. Undoubtedly the opened doors are nestled within the stone adjuncts. Near each transverse doorway are smaller hatches in the tunnel arch that have circular handles. The hatches alternate at each doorway, either to the left or right sided walls. We bar each hatch as we go along after Edan divines how to do so.
The terminus of the tunnel is 450 feet beyond the lift shaft. Here a transverse door occludes the tube. A larger shadow looms over the stone adjunct. Later we learn the shadow is the broken hull of the Dusty Gnome. We investigate the hatches next and discover a 10’ square alcove beyond each. The alcoves contain ancient dwarven helmets and environmental suits meant to be used with the canisters we found at the lift shaft base. We collect a total of 8 each. Unfortunately, the suits are all dwarven sized. Each alcove has another hatch that must open to the water beyond and curious holes in the floor.
We spend the night camped on the top floor of the tower. The next morning, we speak with Admiral Dyconson and Captain Evenwod explaining freeing the vessel might take longer than expected. They are somewhat dismayed, but we assure them we will work hard to finish by the 4th day. We want to spend the interim exploring. To placate their concerns, Cannis does some perfunctory stone shaping around the vessel. Edan studies the mechanics of the vessel some more. His mind is awash with design possibilities. His avarice mirrors Thorfus’ for Xen’Khel.
Setting off from the wreck in a long boat, Chuq uses his Manta Ray cloak to survey the waters. This is when we first discover the actual wreck of the Dusty Gnome. The wreck broke evenly across the tunnel with the bow resting on the western side and the aft the eastern. The impact must have flooded the tunnel section below it. The ancient dwarves obviously designed the tunnel to sequester failed sections in such an event. The tunnel continues beyond the Dusty Gnome, perhaps going as far as the small cliff island that hides the hidden cover. Strewn over the seabed are items or cargo among the kelp. There are no bodies to be found except a pile of bones near the aft section. After surveying the bow, Chuq returns to the surface to report his finding and enlist Cannis to investigate the aft.
The two note 5 different chests worth recovering from the bottom before they investigate the wreck. As they both swim towards the lowest deck, Chuq ESPs hate, anger and anticipation in the shadows. Cannis grabs hold of Chuq as they swim quickly to the surface. We strongly suspect at least one Sea Hag and as many as four Sea Trolls lie in wait, likely with murderous revenge in mind since we massacred their brethren the day before on the beach.
We do what we do best and analyze the danger with an open debate. The consensus is leaning to exploring the tunnel beyond the wreck with the hopes of discovering the fabled sonic weapon to use against these foes.