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Exiting the acid-carved tunnel into the wider, natural chamber, Neve turns the group left and follows the passage a ways. A few minutes only before she comes upon signs of battle. A hastily constructed fortress, small and now ruined, sits in the middle of the tunnel and Neve has little trouble spotting the disused pit traps that flank it. A strongpoint of sorts, and the scarring on the walls marks intense fire in the past. A battle here, and one that collapsed the tunnel completely. A few skeletons still litter the area, mostly bone and rotted cloth, so to judge the battle and a couple years done seems likely. The size of the skeletons, both human height and smaller, shows different races involved. Sister Clairese notes carvings in the some of the walls that are clearly religious in iconography, though the deity they appeal to is lost on her. Which is saying something given her upbringing. A dead god? One that never rose to prominence in the sunlit lands? What is certain is this conflict had a religious focus to it. It doesn't take long to ascertain that this site has been picked over and offers little of value to the group.

Turning back, the group follows the path south and then east until it branches north in a smaller tunnel that would be easily missed given the way the rock juts out around the entrance. Moving in a single-file line down this shaft reveals an opening upward at the end from which sunlight can barely be glimpsed at the top. An egress to the swamp above? Not likely their path but good to keep in mind if things get difficult. Back at the main tunnel, they follow it further to another split. The right path is shorter and ends in a pool of water that seems to be moving south through a break in the stone. An underground river, the water cold but fresh. Val spots a few crustaceans on the banks, fist-sized with many legs and pinchers but no real threat to them. A possible meal, perhaps. They skitter and scurry, chewing on lichen and moss that grows along the banks of the pool. Her eyes follow their path until they disappear into a crack near the base of the southern wall, large enough to shove an arm through if one were inclined. With the light's at their disposal, it is Wicke's keen eyes that pick up on the glimmer beneath the water's surface. As far back as one could go, an easily twenty feet down, there is a glint of something metal on the bottom of the pool. No, several somethings. The water is not still, but the current is not significant enough to pose risk. Still, the pool is dark and somewhat ominous and venturing into it could have other risks besides. Neve's mystical senses tingle as she stares that way, the flicker of an aura beneath the dark declaring some magical potential to the gleam.

Following the left fork north and then east, the group finds what they seek. A large chamber, this one carved out by mortal hands, opens beneath them. Never spots signs of life in time to signal the others to douse or hide their light sources before they stumble through. A bit of slick maneuvering on the smallfolk's part reveals a bit about the area ahead of them. The rivers continues here to the south, but where they stand is now below it as it runs atop a cliff to the south and sits higher than the rest of the chamber. A small waterfall dumps into a carved ravine that runs the length of the room to the north. It is easily ten feet across and just as deep, the dark water dotted by the soft glow of cave fish darting about beneath the surface. Near the cliff that separates the river from the room, several stone slabs give evidence of structures once dominant here. They appear to have been cannibalized, walls torn apart and their blocks hauled away to the north where a few walls still remain. That area is where the cave becomes decidedly unsafe, as movement among those walls is clear to Neve as are what appear to be makeshift beds and stools. Voices carry in these environments and it doesn't take much effort to hear the exchange of words in a clipped, guttural tongue not unlike dwarvish, but distinct enough in dialect to make translation a bit of a chore.

Derro. Dwarves of the deep dark, a people that those of the surface might attribute to rumor but they seem very much real here. In her observations, Neve counts five distinct figures but knowing they likely share her keen vision in this environment she determines the line that separates safe from risky and notes to the others where they should remain. Poking about, she catches sight of another shaft to the west and a well-like structure with an iron grate over it near the back of the area. The derro grumble back and forth during her observations, complains about accommodations, about this middle-of-nowhere assignment, about the dwindling food sources. Morale, it seems, is not high among this crew. Occasionally one will stray into the side chamber and not return, or a new face will arrive from the same. This makes the numbers of their opposition somewhat questionable. Every so often a sound echoes from that western tunnel, a clicking shriek of such bestial intensity that it can only be what they initially feared. Ankhegs...bound to service by these derro, perhaps?

I've provided the info the group was able to gather without drawing attention with an hour's investigation.

The pool in the southern tunnel holds something magical. Determine if the risk is worth the possible reward there.

Further investigation into the populated area will require more involved stealthing, or some other plan of action. The small stones to the south of the large chamber are where the group is able to remain undetected, with light sources doused, and still observe the derro in the ruins. Roughly a hundred yards between those and the ruins so a good distance to cover in open terrain.

Clarifying questions about the areas you've investigated can go in the OOC for quick answers before your responses if you prefer.