Jawrak: “We can pay you good. Meet us here”, he taps on a folded map, “and bring some gear. You do know what to expect… right?”

Damasus: “Skellys!” he nearly shouted.

Jawrak: “Quiet.” He looks around and then smiles. “Discretion, please. We are talking about a lot of gold. We don’t want any tagalongs.”

Damasus: “Right, sorry. Me and me mate will be there, swords and shields.”

Jawrak: “Good, but bring clubs and maces, as well as swords?”

Damasus: “Right, sorry again. Don’t think swords work that well ‘ganst them skels.”

Salvadore: “I ‘avn’t got a club.”

Jawrak: Rolling his eyes, “Don’t worry, I’ll bring a couple extras. You two say you’re from way south? And you don’t have families and you just arrived in town and you really haven’t met anyone yet?”

Damasus: “Dat’s right. You is the best friend we’ve got in town. Thanks for the ales and rooms and the work.”

That night about an hour late, the clumsy pair meet up with Jawrak in the woods just a mile outside of the city.

Jawrak: “Fellows, I’d like you to meet my employer, Renald.”

Nadlyn: “Let’s start hiking.”

Cackling breaks the silence of the night as the two hires joke, recalling stories of their travels to the city.

note: whispering in Orcish

Nadlyn: “I’m trying to ignore this pair of fools. They will be perfect for what we have in store.”

Jawrak: “Boss, do you know we are being followed?”

Nadlyn: “Yes. I noticed him eavesdropping on your interviews yesterday. I sat him down earlier today and told him our ‘plans’ tonight. I also told him not to follow. Luckily, we can see that he came alone. The funniest part is that he used to be a crusader.”

Jawrak: “Paladin?”

Nadlyn: “Fallen. Probably has a death-wish.”

A few hours of hiking and the party arrives at a gaping fissure in the ground.

Jawrak: “Here’s the climbing gear. Let’s get to work.”

Jawrak and the boys work quickly setting four anchors so the team can lower themselves into this underground cave.

Salvadore: “I think I see gold.”

Damasus: “You idiot, that’s the torch light reflecting in water. We’ve got to find a crypt down here first, before we see any gold.”

The cave is large and damp. Tiny bats shriek by as shadow’s dance around every corner.

Jawrak: “Stop!” he nearly cries as he grabs a torch from Salvadore and hold it up to show bones on the floor.

Nadlyn: Starts to walk backwards. He starts casting spells. Casts Mage Armor and Shield on himself from scrolls.

Suddenly, from the bones all around them, skeletons spring up. Four at first and then soon they are swarmed by many more. Jawrak and the hires fight frantically to knock them down but more keep rising.

Jawrak: Fighting defensivly, he manages to dodge most of the attacks.

Salvadore: “Aaag. I’m hurt real bad, Dam.”

Damasus: He looks back towards the wizard. “What are you doing? Help us out.”

Nadlyn: Two magic bolts fire from his hands, spinning around the combat before bursting on the chin of the skeleton grappling with Damasus. The skeleton falls to pieces as the boy looks terrified and continues swinging.

Jawrak: “Now boss.”

Nadlyn: “No. wait for it.”

Salvadore: “Awww. I need help.” Down and bleeding out, he calls for help before going unconscious.

Damasus: “Sal! No. I have a potion, I just can’t get to him.”

Now there is a halt to the number of undead coming. Both Salvador and Damasus were able to thwart a few each. Nothing seems to have fallen by Jawrak’s hand. And the wizard who seems to be doing nothing has bested just one of the skeletons.

Damasus: “Curse you both. You do nothing while me and my friend just die.”

All the skeletons stop at that moment and turn their empty eye sockets to the darkness ahead. Something is coming. They pause only briefly before swinging again.

Nadlyn: “Here he comes. Are you ready?”

Jawrak: “Ready.”

Nadlyn: Pulls out a scroll of fireball and points his finger directly on Jawrak. With the last word spoken a glowing bead fires from the tip of his finger, detonating on the rogue. The blast is so large that it encompasses all the skeletons and the two hirelings.

Damasus: “Aaaaah!” He dies in the blaze.

Jawrak: Instantly, at the moment of impact he deftly tumbles , evading the blast. Surveying the scorched remains of his party and many bones, he backs up and stands beside Nadlyn.

Nadlyn: “Remeber, he should be alone. Take out anything that’s with him.”

Around the corner of the cave, barrels a tough looking skeleton with a greatsword raised over his head.

Nadlyn: Pulling out a peice of raw meat and a small bone he starts to cast, “Halt” casting Command Undead.

Saimon: Stops and lowers his blade.

Jawrak: Smiles in relief and then starts to loot the dead hirelings.

Nadlyn: “Come minon. We have plans for you. Plans indeed.”

They continue deeper and find the tomb but something is wrong.

Nadlyn: “It’s not here. Someone has taken the artifact from this hiding place.”

Jawrak: “At least it’s not a complete loss. Look at all the stuff I found, armor and weapons and gems.”

Nadlyn: “Give me that.” He snatches a large round onyx from the pile of gems Jawrak is carrying.

They place the body of the hirelings into stone coffins and pack up the treasure and head out of the cave. They get out of the breach when they are stopped by a man with weapons drawn.

Pate: “You killed them! You killed them both and for nothing. Nothing more than a few gems and some old armors.”

Nadlyn: Casts charm person on Pate. “Friend, we’ve been waiting for you. Part of this treasure is yours. You’ve earned it. Come with us, tonight we sleep in better beds.”

Pate: Now enchanted. “We really did show them, huh? Tell me again, what did I do to earn the gold.”

Nadlyn: “Remeber, we hired you to watch our backs, to make sure that no one follows us and to guard our escape route so we can leave the cave.”

Pate: “Now I remember. You’re great, boss.”

Saimon: “Uhhh”, he moans quietly.