Vienna, Chapter One
Here it is. Hundreds of miles of walking and we've finally made it. Hopefully you know where you're going. I take a deep breath as I look down the tunnel. It's a near free fall for 30 feet before a stone slope catches the fading light. Who knows how much further it goes past that. I cradle Sant Dreylla in one arm as I look down and I feel their comforting presence. The fall won't hurt, I know. It's whatever comes next that I'm afraid of. After a deep breath, I don the Face of Sant Dreylla who, without warning, propels my body down the shaft, sliding down hewn stone on my heels as if my body were weightless.It takes over a minute to slide down the twisting slope, Sant Dreylla balancing perfectly even though I can tell the heels on my boots are about to give out. As we reach the end of the ride, we are embraced by total darkness with the pinprick entry light hundreds of feet above us. With enhanced senses, Dreylla finds a wall to lean against while searching our Wondrous Belt of Utility for something to repair my heels. While you're looking, can you get a light, too? I can't see anything down here!
They don't immediately listen as they fumble through the capsules looking for something to keep my heels attached. This is a common occurance, but I can't help the feeling of being watched- Hurry up, please! They try to push out the feelings, but my fear outweighs their stubborness until they too can feel something start to close in on us. Sant Dreylla thumbs back a few lids and slights out a small kindling torch, then strikes it agianst the wall and illuminates our surroundings- a yellowish-gray stone structure, almost like a castle buried under sand. Certainly weird, but no danger to be seen. I'm about to tell them to go back to what they are doing when I sense the hairs on my body standing upright. I still can't tell what's going on but Sant Dreylla takes a defensive stance, torch in one hand and ready to pull Dulliol with the other. As Dreylla backs my body into a corner I can see it- a handful of undead humanoids.
The skeletal frames stagger towards us in unison. They've been here a while, it seems, as their flesh is picked clean where their armor and heavier clothing don't get in the way. I can feel Dreylla's commanding confidence in their abilities to deal with this, but something isn't right about the scene. That sound, listen! More than 5 pairs of feet struggling to pull themselves forward. Way more. Sant Dreylla raises the torch and straightens my back, arching to get a better look. They cut the torch light out and I hear the hissing voice eminate from behind me, "Too many," and Dreylla gives me some control over my arms. That means they want me to find something to get us out of this. I wish you made this decision before turning off our light. Blindly, I start thumbing through the capsules. I've started to get used to the random items that the belt produces, so I have a good idea of what to search for- a firework. During my quick search I find an adhesive stick and make sure to put it in my bag to use once Dreylla gets us to safety. Luckily, I find three firework pods all in the bottom right row of the belt. Using this many charges might bite me in the ass later, but the undead haven't stopped their charge while I fumbled with the belt. I strike all three against the carved stone wall with one motion and toss them over the crowd of five closing in on us. Sant Dreylla immediately pulls back into motion, turning away and I can only hear the hiss, pop, and boom as they explode, painting my periphery in green and red for a few seconds.
Content with the escape, Sant Dreylla slows from a sprint to a stoop, sticking lower to the ground in an attempt to be sneaky. Not either of our specialty. Did you keep track of which direction we ran? In case we need to get out? Silence. I think we ran southwest, but I couldn't stop to check my compass in the time that I had control. I guess that means we're lost. Though I suspect getting up and out would not be as easy as getting in was, anyway. Sant Dreylla hops up and snatches a ledge that was invisible to me seconds ago and pulls us up. It seems like some sort of dip in a parapet, with raised walls on either side of us continuing for a few feet before another dip. This ledge is just deep enough for Sant Dreylla to sit against one of the walls and pull the adhesive stick from my bag, fixing my boots. It'll be an hour before the adhesive sets. Sant Dreylla nods my head and leans against the wall, looking back in the direction that we came. Seems like we're safe, for now. I'll update when we start moving again.
Comic
