Chronicle Day: 153 (continued)
The moment between breath and battle, where the stone itself seems tae listen.
Rudy muttered, “He called us rats… I think he’s confused,” but Thratsnik wasn’t listenin’. He stared Throsh down like a butcher sizing a cut.
“Why are you lookin’ at me like that?” Throsh asked.
“You look delicious,” Thratsnik replied.
Throsh’s voice tightened. “Are you the one who took my people?”
“Sure,” Thratsnik said. “I’ll take the credit.”
Something cracked behind Throsh’s eyes — fear, rage, grief, all churnin’ together.
He summoned his Starry Wisp, the air around him warpin’ with arcane light.
“If it’s the last thing I do,” he growled, “I’ll kill you.”
Thratsnik vanished in a blink and reappeared beside him.
“Prove it.”
Throsh tried to shrink him with Reduce, but Thratsnik slipped away before the spell could land.
Fizbang — the corpse grinder — muttered something guttural back and forth with Thratsnik.
And then the fight began.
Combat I — The Weapon Teams and the Corpse Grinder
From one of the tunnels, a rattling gunner and his Johnny‑on‑the‑Spot hopper scrambled into view. They opened fire immediately. Crossfire clipped me — light damage, but enough to sting.
Rats surged forward as well, swipin’ at Sergei. Most blows bounced off him, but one caught the back of his leg for six.
Sergei Unleashes Hell
Sergei charged.
His first strike — a critical hit — landed with fire‑infused force. He followed with an uppercut for eight, a missed gut punch, then a spinning heel kick that crit again, smashing into the rat’s volatile tank.
The tank exploded, tearing the creature apart and blowing its arm off. Sergei rolled with the blast, taking only six.
Rudy Drops the Weapon Team
Rudy targeted the hopper first.
- Hit: 21
- Damage: 9
- Hopper dead
Then he hurled a soul knife at the gunner.
- Critical hit
- ~35–40 damage
- Gunner instantly killed
Rudy ducked behind rubble.
Ryn Shatters the Line
Ryn enlarged himself, hurled his new G‑weapon, and triggered Shatter.
The blast hit another rat’s tank. It ruptured immediately, exploding in a violent burst.
Ryn took 4 damage from the shockwave. Everything around the tank was obliterated.
Throsh Speeds the Barbarian
Throsh cast Haste on Kaz and gave Sergei Bardic Inspiration.
Fizbang Fights Back
The corpse grinder picked up his own severed arm and used it as a club.
He struck Sergei three times, even through Cutting Words.
Sergei took 30 damage.
Sergei retaliated with his flame whip, dragging Fizbang 10 feet and slamming him into the stone for 8.
Kaz Ends the Monster
Kaz, now hasted and raging, charged in.
- Attack 1: 30 damage
- Attack 2: 13 damage
The corpse grinder tried to deflect, but Kaz overpowered him.
Kaz’s final blow killed Fizbang, dropping the brute in a heap of metal and meat.
Abercrombie Targets the Flamethrower
I lined up a shot on a flamethrower rat’s fuel tank.
- Hit: 18
- The tank exploded, engulfing the creature.
Counterfire and Chaos
A rattling gunner hit Throsh for 16.
A rotating barrel mechanism warmed up and sprayed the room with shrapnel.
- Kaz: 3 damage
- Sergei: 6 damage
- Others: mixed hits and misses
Fizzbang’s corpse was still cooling when another explosion echoed from deeper in the tunnels — the entrance collapsing behind him as he fled.
Clan Rats Swarm
A wave of clan rats leapt over the rubble. One struck Sergei for 6 (halved). Sergei dragged one with his flame whip and slammed it into the ground.
Between the Battles — The Map and the Portal
The chamber fell quiet except for the hiss of cooling metal.
Rudy crept toward the only tunnel not collapsed. His hackles — in this case, his sideburns — rose. Something shifted in the shadows. Red eyes glimmered in the dark.
Ryn recovered an unexploded warpfire thrower, carefully stowing it in the bag of holding.
I downed two healing drafts, the burn of the concoction cutting through the ache of battle.
We returned to the portcullis. The brake had shattered earlier, but the fallen crossbar made a workable replacement. With all of us pushing — Kaz bracing, Sergei hauling, Ryn adjusting the mechanism — the gate rose.
Beyond it stretched a 60‑foot corridor, ending in a bull‑head door like the one above.
Beyond the door: inky blackness, rippling like an event horizon.
A portal.
We stepped through.
A short corridor led into a large circular chamber. Torches lit themselves as before. A raised dais stood at the centre, a metal orb atop it — inscribed with runes strange yet familiar.
A massive minotaur statue loomed behind the dais. Rudy immediately tried to tie its legs together.
I could barely read the runes. Ryn could. Same root form as the vault’s runes — but different, older.
Small holes covered the walls, floor, and ceiling.
“WWKD?” someone muttered.
Kaz teleported to the orb.
And the chamber awoke.
Combat II — The Iron Minotaur
Kaz struck first — a 26‑damage crit — but the iron hide barely dented. A second blow left only the faintest crease. The door slammed shut behind us.
As the construct shifted, we glimpsed part of its inner frame through a gap in the plating — a twisted lattice of wrought‑iron bars, braided together like a metal basket. The structure flexed and groaned with each movement, glowing faintly from the heat within.
Ryn swore, grew in size, and prepared his weapon.
Sergei blurred across the chamber and struck three times. Two hits landed — but the blows barely scuffed the metal.
The minotaur roared, venting scalding steam. Everyone except Rudy and myself took 5 damage.
Rudy twisted aside, using Uncanny Dodge to reduce the blast to 2.
Throsh cast Slow, halving its speed and limiting its actions.
I fired — 16 damage — but the bolt pinged harmlessly off its armour.
Rudy unleashed a flurry of blades. One ricocheted into a torch, extinguishing it. Rust began to form on the construct’s frame — spreading across the twisted iron lattice.
The minotaur launched both mace‑heads on chains, pulling Rudy into melee range.
A wave of fire and bludgeoning struck the party:
- Kaz: 7
- Rudy: 5 (Uncanny Dodge to 2)
- Throsh: 10
- Abercrombie: 5
Kaz roared: “PUT OUT THE TORCHES!”
Kaz hammered the construct again — 27 damage — cracking the skull plating.
Ryn struck twice, trying to draw its attention.
Sergei dashed across the chamber, extinguishing two torches with elemental strikes. Rust spread further across the iron lattice.
More steam burst from the creature. Rudy, Throsh, and Ryn took 8 damage (halved to 4 for Rudy).
Throsh healed himself with Cure Wounds.
I tore strips from my undershirt and soaked it with my waterskin, placing them in a couple of my firecage arrowheads.
I fired again — one torch sputtered, another went out.
Rudy, hasted, extinguished multiple torches in rapid succession.
Kaz extinguished another with a precise blast from his water skin.
Sergei finished the final torch.
The chamber dimmed.
The minotaur groaned, flames guttering. Steam vented one final time. The twisted iron lattice seized, rusted through, and collapsed.
The construct fell apart in a rain of corroded metal.
Aftermath — The Carvings and the Return
As the dust settled, the torches reignited — all but the one Sergei had obliterated.
Behind the statue, markings revealed themselves on the stone. A map — carved deep, old as the vault itself. Beside it, another image: six figures locked in battle with a shadowed, unknowable entity.
The figures were unmistakably familiar:
- Two dwarves
- One lizardfolk
- One halfling
- Two goliaths
And then — barely visible, almost erased — the hint of a seventh shape, a silhouette with one horn and one wing.
A sense of dread settled over the room.
Rudy nudged Throsh. “Record these.”
Throsh nodded and sketched quickly.
Kaz stepped toward the map, orb in hand.
The runes pulsed.
Three locations lit up:
- Mount Druitt
- Rooty Hill
- Quelburn
Stone ground against stone. A section of wall slid open, revealing a chamber beyond — empty but for a strange symbol etched into the floor, glowing faintly.
Kaz stepped onto it and vanished.
One by one, we followed.
Light folded inward — and we stood once more at the entrance to the vault.
Final Thoughts — Abercrombie’s Recollection
There are moments in a delver’s life when the stone feels heavier than it should. When the air tastes of old secrets and older warnings. When the runes whisper of things best left buried.
Today was one of those days.
I’ve fought beasts, machines, and men. I’ve seen magic twist the world into shapes that defy sense. But that carving — six figures against a shadow, and a seventh half‑erased — that chilled me deeper than any steam vent or iron fist.
Because I recognised us in the stone.
Not perfectly. Not clearly. But enough.
Enough to wonder who carved it.
Enough to wonder how long it’s been waiting.
Enough to wonder whether we’re walking a path laid out long before we took our first step.
Kaz laughs in the face of danger. Sergei dances with it. Rudy stalks it. Ryn studies it. Throsh sings at it.
And me?
I write it down so it’s no’ lost tae time or ale.
But tonight, as I sit with quill in hand, I can’t shake the feeling that the vault is watching.
That the runes know more than they’re telling.
That the shadow in the carving is not done with us.
Stone above us.
Shadows ahead.
