Lord Markul lifts one hand and the retreat stops. Dust sifts from the ceiling in thin veils while Bram tightens his grip on the humming scroll case.
Lord Markul
Hold here. If that thing is the cause, I want it steady before we move another step.
Bram
He glances from the case to Slaan, jaw set, waiting for her read.
Markul takes the scroll case carefully, turning it just enough to feel the pulse without waking whatever lies inside. The chamber's tremor softens to a low, tired shiver.
Lord Markul
Better. It is not angry, only unsettled. That is easier to calm.
Bram eases down onto a flat stone shelf, shoulders loosening now that no one is shouting over the rocks. He watches Markul work with quiet curiosity, then looks back to Slaan as if inviting her into the circle.
Bram
If you have a thought about it, now is a good time.
For a moment, the cairn chamber settles into an uneasy calm, just dust, breath, and the faint hum of the sealed artifact.
✓ Quest Accepted
Suppress the scroll case's energy
“"oh that will purify a corrupt bane stone, the one who uses will be the nation at war with the target. So we get it back to the bane stone open it, it purifies it, and in 30 hours the bane and tree are susceptible to attack, we take the tree, we win, they take the stone they win. Only we exposed the corruption in the church, and already demoralized their troops and splintered their army." I pause" Markul, how's the undead alliance forced, do you know?"”
SUCCESS (Superb Reasoning, rolled +1)
Slaan studies the case, then lays out the pattern in a low, careful voice, enough for Bram and Markul to follow without mistake.
Slaan
That bane stone can be purified, but only if we bring it back to the open stone and use the case to finish the work. Then the bane and the tree stay vulnerable for about thirty hours. If we move fast, we can strike the tree after exposing the Church's corruption and the split in their forces.
Bram lifts his brows, the idea landing in him like a weight and a hope at once. He keeps his eyes on the artifact instead of the tunnel beyond.
Markul turns the scroll case a fraction, listening to the softened hum as if weighing Slaan's words against old memory. Dust slips from the seam in a thin gray thread.
Lord Markul
If that timing holds, it is a clean knife. The Church loses its grip, the stone is exposed, and the tree can be struck before they recover.
He looks up at Slaan, calmer than before, but more serious now, as though the answer has narrowed the room around them.
Slaan
Markul, how forced is the undead alliance? Do you know what actually binds them together?
Lord Markul
Forced enough to hold, not enough to trust. The alliance is a chain of necessity, not friendship. If one link breaks, the others will move fast to save themselves.
“" let's get our asses back to the bane stone before Dravin trys something else then"”
SUCCESS (Fair Athletics, rolled +0)
Slaan pushes off the stone and moves, and the others fall in without debate. The chamber stays dim and steady, dust still drifting from the seams as they head back the way they came.
The crawlspace mouth is behind them, the old cut in the cairn stones ahead. Bram keeps one hand near the wall, while Markul cradles the iron case close to his chest.
They reach the bannered chamber where the bane stone tether once rose, and the air feels sharper here, as if the mountain remembers the work done in it.
Bram
Good. I would rather stand beside the stone than wonder what Dravin is doing with our backs turned.
Lord Markul
That caution is sound. The case is quiet now, but quiet things have a habit of waking when they are carried too far.
Slaan
Let's get back in position before Dravin tries something else.
Lord Markul
Then we do it together. I will not have this turn on a loose thread while we still have a grip on it.
Quest Complete
Suppress the scroll case's energy
Skill Upgrade: Athletics Fair→Good
