Chapter 4b - Spelunking

Garak leading the way, the duo moves down the left-hand path, walking slowly and watching carefully, until they reach what had seemed as the end of the path. Instead, you now realize that the tunnel continues to the right, with the left-hand side ending in solid rock.

Gingerly peeking around the corner, you pull back slightly as the tunnel comes into view. Some eighty feet down the line, a pair of Orcs lean against either side of the path, perhaps taking a break from whatever task they had been engaged in. This far away, you can't make out much about their garb or possessions. It is quite obvious, however, that each is armed and armored, the tell-tale glint of steel reaching your eyes through the blackness of the tunnel.

Beyond them, a vague blocky brown-ness, its presence in the center of the path making its meaning quite clear...

Garak looks around the corner with his mirror. He takes in all the details available, such as light sources and features of the tunnel walls.

He looks back briefly at Tamrik, studying him slightly to determine if he'd be able to move along the wall in silence as well. With a whisper, "You able to sneak eighty feet?" Garak knew that he could essentially walk up to the pair of guards, but he also knew that he couldn't take down both of them. Perhaps there was a way to lure them to the corner...

The assassin smiled for he had a plan. He decided to use the strange hand pendant that he had earned from killing Berekal. Looking around the corner with his mirror, Garak attempted to spot something on one of the orcs that he could move with the pendant's magical power. He attempted to move it so it would head towards the other orc's hand. His hope was to time it correctly so the one orc would think the other was trying to take something. In the midst of their fight, he could strike from surprise and kill them both.

A few moments later, however, Garak realized that his device was not working for some reason. He would have to figure it out later, and made a mental note to study the device further. He figured it was simply too far for it to work, so he looked for a rock on the ground that was the size of his fist and attempted to move it. If it moved, he would very slowly move it along the ceiling of the tunnel and then drop it on one of the orcs when it was looking away from the other one. He hoped it would have a similar effect of causing them to fight. Garak took his time with the movement, as he did not want the rock to hit the ceiling or walls or be spotted by the orcs.

I can sure as hell try, but couldn't you drop a globe of darkness just before them, and we could still have an element of surprise? Tamrik knew he could probably make it to them, but he did worry about any slight chance. He allowed time for the assassin to answer, giving him a moment to think and secure anything of his that he may need to silence.

Garak nods but doesn't reply for his focus was on moving the rock towards the orcs. He could use the darkness, but it would be obvious to the orcs when it was cast and Garak was trying to take out the orcs without alerting them to the presence of Tamrik or himself.

Slowly lifting the rock up to the height of the tunnel's ceiling, some 8 feet off the ground, Garak guides it to just overtop of the right-hand Orc, floating tantalizingly in the air above him. At an opportune time, it drops, falling right onto the creature's head.

Shaking its head in surprise, the Orc looks across to his partner, clearly agitated. Shouting for an explanation, his sharp and unfamiliar words reach your ears quite easily, though the other Orc merely shakes his head in confusion, gesturing with his hands for innocence.
With a grumble, the first Orc draws a short blade from his hip, pointing it menacingly at his companion. The message sent, he re-sheathes the blade, turning his attention back to what he'd been doing before - absolutely nothing.

With a smile, Garak watches the plan begin to work. He picks out another rock and does the same thing again.

Same Orcs, same plan, different rock...and this one's sharp!
Plunking right onto the head of the already-sore Orc, he snaps up violently, drawing his blade and waving it at his partner. Not wanting a fight, the other Orc quickly turns away from his knife-wielding compatriot, backing up slowly in your direction.
Spouting pleas of innocence all the way, the cowardly Orc continues to backpedal, his friend screaming after him, blade stabbing threateningly forward...

Garak smiles at the predictable temper of orcs. He slowly draws both his blades and presses his body against the wall of the tunnel, now relying on his ears to tell him what is happening.

Tamrik is amused as the orcs act as if Garak was puling the strings of a puppet. He takes out his weapons quietly, readying himself for the battle to come.

Pressed against the tunnel wall, you wait as the Orcs continue down the path. Moments later, the retreating Orc finally reaches the intersection, and promptly backpedals into the wall. His attacker, seeing his prey cornered, moves in with blade raised, ready to strike...
"Skai! Or yigak!" the frightened Orc exclaims, his eyes blasting wide open at the sight of an intruder, in this case Tamrik, moving faintly in the darkness of the tunnel. Pointing his finger at the man, he calls out to the other Orc, pleading for him to turn around...


DM OOC