Journey Under the Mountains

((( continued from here: https://dragonageafter.forumotion.com/t286p75-journey-from-highever-to-the-north-road#5128 )))

Kaine checked over his horse just to make sure everything was in its place, and there were no problems with the hooves or rest of the body.

Selene maybe a whoring mage in Kaine's eyes, she did know how to cook up some good food.

"I figured since this is probably the last good meal we will eat that it should be a hearty meal." Selene said as she began dishing out generous portions of pancakes, sausages, bacon, eggs and buttered rolls.

Kaine took a plate, put it up to his face and sniffed, "I suppose this will do." He snorted and went about eating his small feast.

"I think its best to start rationing now. Half rations start now. The lead and the rear guard will carry torches. That should be more than enough light to encompass the entire group and see far enough ahead and back to see what is going on."

"Any problems with that?" Kaine asked his companions.

Sloane shook her head as she returned to camp and saw how much Selene had cooked for breakfast. Obviously this woman hadn't done a lot of hard travelling before. Oh well, no sense wasting it now.

After she had consumed her meal Sloane helped pack up the last minute supplies so they could head out.

"Sounds like a good plan boss. What's the marching order for today?" Sloane asked as she walked over to Loshad.

"Everyone keep a tight hold on your horses when we enter." Recommended Lamont. "They aren't going to like this, and until we're far enough in that they can't smell the way back they are going to be uneasy and may fight." As Lamont spoke he tied the two mules tightly together and added a rope from them to his hand in addition to the normal teather to his horse. He knew Sloane and Kaine were experienced riders and would be fine, but he was worried about Selene's ability to control her mount.

"You take lead; if you die, I get meat for at least a week." Kaine replied, his voice showing no signs of humor.

"Oh, and one more thing. I don't think we should ride the horses at all through this trip. We need them to save their energy to conserve food."

Kaine lit two torches, handing one to Sloane before he headed to the back of the line.

"At least I get to watch her walk; couldn't think of a better view." Selene commented.

Kaine shook his head, "I dare you to even try." He whispered to Selene as he passed her by.

"I like a good challenge." Selene said in a seductive voice.

"Take us in."

"Well at least I know my death shall be avenged." Sloane replied with a chuckle. "Anything down there that kills me likely wants me for a meal itself, so you'll have to fight over my corpse."

Sloane took the torch in her left hand and got a firm grip on Loshad's reigns close to her head. She gave a whistle and Sobaka ran a few paces infront of her, nose to the ground, leading the way. She listened to the banter behind her with a smile on her face, before turning serious once more.

The beginning of the tunnel was tall and wide offering plenty of room and light. The light quickly began to fade behind them though as they moved away from the entrance. Sobaka ran infront of her, just at the edge of the light cast by the torch.

As darkness descended around them Loshad began to get nervous, her steps becoming hesitant. Sloane moved her hand to Loshad's bridle and began whispering soothing words to the horse. She could hear Lamont behind her doing the same.

The templars and their companions descended into the dark tunnels that lay beneath the mountains of the Coastlands.

This part was unknown, even to the two guides that were with them. Lamont was a very skilled guide; he knew this area very well, yet had never been asked to venture down below.

Selene was always eager for excitement; this was one of the main reasons she traveled Thedas so much. However, she had never ventured below the surface as she had heard to many frightening stories of darkspawn and how few ever returned.

The tunnel led downward at a steady angle. Leading the group further and further into the dark unknown, only the two torches lighting their way.

Only the sounds of horse hooves walking against he stone ground could be heard.

For what seemed like hours at a steady descent,the tunnel finally leveled off. After only about a hundred yards of straight tunnel, they finally came to an impasse in the tunnel. There was no way to move forward any longer; their only choices were left or right.

Kaine walked forward pass Lamont and Selene, and came to stand next to his second in command.

"Well at least there is something to do now, you know, besides walking." Kaine chuckled, which echoed slightly against the tunnel walls.

"Yea, that is getting a little annoying. All the sounds echoing like that." Kaine just shook his head; looking down both pathways. The torch light did not reveal anything, as the light only pierced the darkness about thirty feet in front of them.

"Well Sloane, which way do you think we should go?" Kaine asked, still looking back and forth down each tunnel.

The trail seemed to go down forever. After awhile Sloane was able to release Loshad's bridle and hold her reigns once more. Sobaka continued to scout at the edge of the light until the tunnel leveled off and split in two directions.

"Well Sloane, which way do you think we should go?"

Sloane turned to look at Kaine. The man sure didn't seem to be big on making decisions. "What does your nose tell you Sobaka?" Sloane asked after a moment of contemplation.

Sobaka barked once then ran with his nose to the ground first down one path, then the other. After a few minutes in each tunnel he cam back, ran a circle around Sloane and then ran back to the lefthand tunnel. He barked twice, wagging his stubby tail and then sat down looking down the tunnel.

"Well boss, my nose says to go left. But the final choice is up to you."

"Every good leader uses their best resources in every situation. Right now, you are mine. And yours is Sobaka."

Kaine clapped her on the back, "Well, I trust your judgement and Mabari's are smarter than most people." he said this as he made a sideways glance back at Selene.

Kaine looked at his torch for a moment, "Hmm, I wonder." he said quietly.

"Stay here."

He looked down both tunnels again, and chose the left one.

Kaine walked down the left tunnel for what seemed like at least a hundred yards. He kept a close watch on his torch, yet nothing seemed to happen.

He reappeared back in front of Sloane, "Maybe the right is the right way." he said with a wink.

Again Kaine walked for about a hundred yards; just as he was about to turn back, the flame of his torch flickered and the soft whistle of the wind blowing caught his attention.

He jogged back down to where Sloane and the rest of them were waiting, "We go right. Sloane, you take up the rear."

Sloane watched as Kaine went a short way down each tunnel and came back.

"We go right. Sloane, you take up the rear."

"Sure thing boss," Sloane said as she turned Loshad around and headed for the back of the line. "Sorry you're losing your nice view," she said with a grin as she walked past Selene. Sobaka chose to stay upfront with Kaine.

"Ready when you are boss," Sloane called out, and chuckled at the distorted echo of her voice.

Selene grinned at Sloane as she passed her by, giving her a seductive wink.

Kaine watched her go, shaking his head as he overheard her comment to Selene.

Kaine knew it was dangerous to flirt with a mage, for you knew not what kind of spell they might place on you.

He grabbed the reigns of his horse, wishing he had left the creature on the surface.

He went slowly at first; doing is best to keep the light in front of him so that he could see far enough ahead to be ready for anything that may come their way.

His torch flickered as the draft he had felt earlier swept through the tunnel. He was curious as to where this might lead. He knew they were to far underground for there to be a way to the surface, yet there is a draft coming from somewhere.

The walls of the tunnel were soon covered in a greenish slime that seemed to ooze down.

Kaine grabbed on to his horse as he almost lost his footing. He looked down; the ground was covered in the ooze, making it quite hard to keep ones footing.

"Becareful everyone, the ground seems to be pretty slick." Kaine called back in warning.

Kaine shook his head for a moment, trying to clear it. There was this soft yet distracting hum. At first he thought it was his ears; soon he realized that it was coming from up ahead.

"Hold the line." he called back. "I need to check something up ahead."

He whispered softly for his horse to stay and carefully headed forward.

Soon the light from his torch vanished; he must have went far up ahead or turned around a bend in the tunnel up ahead.

It wasn't long before the flicker of Kaine's torch was seen up ahead. It grew larger as the mighty warrior approached.

"You have got to see this!" he yelled down the line.

He fulled his horse forward, careful not to slip in the build up of ooze. They rounded a bend in the tunnel; which is where the light from Kaine's torch vanished.

The air was now filled with a deafening roar of water. The group had come to another impasse; the tunnel forked left and right.

To the left was more darkness. A gentle cool spray of mist came from the right; a dim natural light was also quite apparent.

"Leave the horses here. There isn't room for all of them." he called.

Selene braced herself against the horses as she followed Kaine down the right path.

The roar of water was deafening. Yet the cool spay was quite refreshing.

The tunnel opened up into a large pool of water; a thundering water fall came from above. The pool was lit by what appeared to be the sun breaking through where the water was falling from; it reflected off the falling water, enveloping everything in a soft blue light.

The water seemed to sparkle against this light, but with a closer look it was apparent that there was something beneath the surface that refracted the light back.

Sloane followed the others in silence as they made their way down the tunnel.

"Becareful everyone, the ground seems to be pretty slick." Kaine called back in warning.

Sloane looked down at her feet. "Yuck, that's disgusting!" Was her only reply as she continued on.

Waiting for Kaine to return put Sloane on edge. She didn't think splitting up in the dark deep underground was such a great idea. Luckily he returned a few minutes later excited about something.

As Sloane left Loshad to follow Kaine she stared in wonder at the waterfall. "It's beautiful! I've read about this phenomenon but never seen it in person. I wonder what river this is. Do you have any idea Lamont?" She asked, turning to their guide.

As she turned her head she realized the sparkle of the water was more than just the light on water. "Hey boss, what's that under the surface of the water?"

"Yea its a river that runs through the mountains, it was heavily used in some mining operations. However, they have all been shut down. There was a gold mine, a silver mine as well as some others. However they all had to be stopped because veins of lyrium were found." Lamont replied.

Selene knelt down and splashed her hand in the pool.

She quickly withdrew it, "Whoa!! It's ice cold!!"

"I see them too, however I am not sure what they are."

He scanned the far edge of the pool, "Look there." Kaine pointed to the the far side of the cavern. Just below the surface of the water a dark shape could be seen.

Sloane nodded as Lamont spoke. That explained why these tunnels existed but were now so empty. "Lyrium eh? Is it safe to be down here then?"

The templar laughed as Selene quickly withdrew her hand from the water. "Mountain water usually is ice cold. Need me to warm that hand for you?" Sloane asked with a sly smile. She knew Kaine dissaproved of flirting with mages but she simple could not help herself.

Sloane went to stand beside Kaine and look where he was pointing. She could see a dark shape under the water but could not make out what it was. "Any volunteers want to stick their hands in the water and find out what's down there?"

"Any volunteers want to stick their hands in the water and find out what's down there?"

Kaine raised an eyebrow, "It looks a bit deeper than a hand Sloane. You might need to strip and go check it out."

Kaine winked at her, grinning.

"Yes, stripping would be fun. That is, if it was you stripping." Selene smirked

Lamont could only shake his head, "Well the water is clear, which means that whatever is down there might be a bit of a ways under."

Sloane looked over at Kaine and Selene and gave them both an icy stare. She was NOT going in that water! For one it was freezing. For another she was pretty sure that was lyrium under the water. For a third there was no way they could light a fire down here to warm up.

"Not going to happen, keep dreaming." She said to them. "Why don't we try that other tunnel? Unless someone is anxious to go lyrium fishing? Someone other than me." She added with a pointed look.

"Come on, I'm getting slime all over my boots, it's disgusting."

Kaine's laughter echoed through the tunnels, "You are quite right, I think we should take another route. As interesting as this seems, it will have to wait for another time."


Kaine turned back, pushing passed Selene and Lamont.

As the group took their respective places in the line, they began to move again.

The tunnel twisted and turned; soon the dampness was gone along with the slime. With their footing regained they were able to continue on their way at a much brisker pace. They traveled through the rocky tunnels, trying to make up for lost time.

Just as Kaine was hoping for a good lunch spot to take a break the tunnel opened up into a large cavern. A dark chasm could be seen through the flickering light of the torches. A small passable ledge could be seen going around either side.

Kaine looked over the edge; picked up a stone and dropped it down. He listened for a moment or two; no sound was heard as the stone fell into the dark depths of the chasms maw.

"Well, looks like we had better not fall in there." Kaine chuckled.

Through the dim light of the torches, he was able to see the shadowy outlines of two passage ways. One on the left side of the chasm, the other on the right.

Kaine called back to Sloane, "Come up here a moment Lieutenant."

Sloane made her way slowly to the front of the line.

"We have two ways we can going. Each one means we have to slowly work our way to either side of this chasm." he pointed to the outlines of both passage ways.

"We had best untie the mules from themselves. If one were to fall I would hate for them all to go. Same with the horses. The path looks like it can fit a horse single file, just barely. We are going to have to be very careful when leading them."

"Lamont, I need you to get the rope and pitons out of the gear." Kaine called back.

"Secure a way for us on both sides. We will investigate them further before we decide on a route to take."

"Right away ser." Lamont called back.

Sloane was very pleased when they finally got out of the slime. She would have to give her boots a very thurough wash when she had the chance. Loshad and Sobaka would probably need good baths as well.

The day wore on and Sloane was starting to feel quite hungry when they reached the cavern. When called Sloane went up to survey the situation with Kaine.

"I agree boss, we should take a closer look before making a decision. Perhaps we should leave the horses a ways away from the edge while we investigate." She went back and traded Lamont her horse's reigns for the climbing gear. She also snagged a small piece of jerky from her saddle bag to chew whilel they investigated. She doubted they would have much time for lunch.

"So which side first boss?" Sloane asked before taking a bite of the jerky and offering him the other half.

Lamont slowly brought the horses back a few steps, so they were out of danger from falling into the maw of the chasm.

Selene causally walked up and looked down into the dark depths below.

"I wonder whats down there." She smirked, not talking to anyone in particular.

"If you fall, you will eventually find out." Kaine commented.

"So which side first boss?" Sloane asked before taking a bite of the jerky and offering him the other half.

He smiled at her as he took the offered jerky.

"Lets try the left side first. If it leads nowhere, then we go right."

Kaine went about unraveling the rope, putting it into a neat coiled pile on the ground. He took one of the pitons and with a hammer, he forced it into the wall. He tied one end of the rope on to the piton, taking extra care that the knot was secure.

"Doesn't look like there are many cracks or crevices to put these pitons in. We are going to have to hammer as we go. It's going to be slow. Especially since we won't have the light as we go."

"Horus, wait here with the horses." With a reluctant caw, the falcon hopped off his shoulder on to the saddle of one of the horses.

He put on one of the climbing harnesses, securing the rope to it. He started out slow, hugging the wall. He slide slowly along the path. It may have been wide enough for a horse, but he knew that it would be just as easy to slip and fall.

He had gone about five feet when he secured another piton into the wall, securing a quickdraw to it. The rope was easily clipped into the quick-draw, and allowed an unhindered rope movement that allowed me to continue.

Kaine soon disappeared into the darkness as he left the safety of the torches flame.

"Ok all secure over here," he yelled. "Just put on a harness and secure yourself to the rope with a quick-draw. You should be safe to walk over after that."


(((OOC: A quick draw is a duel locking device that allows you to secure one part of it to a piton. The 2nd half of it is a clip that you can clip your rope into. This allows unrestricted movement along a rope line, instead of being limited by a piton.)))

Sloane signaled to Selene and had her stand as close to the edge as was safe so Kaine would have light for as long as possible. While Kaine moved down the wall Sloane removed her sword and shield from her back and strapped on a climbing harness.

When she was strapped in she went over to one of the mules and removed a small lantern she had purchased in town. She had bought it with the intention of using it to read by at night. Since they had been able to have a fire every night it had not yet been needed. She thought it would be far safer than an open flame by the rope, but it would have to be used sparingly as she hadn't brought any extra oil.

"Ok all secure over here," came the call from Kaine and Sloane lit the lantern and headed toward the edge. Once she was securely clipped in Sloane slowly walked out onto the ledge, holding the lantern infront of her.

Hearing a whine behind her Sloane turned and saw Sobaka trying to follow her. "No buddy, you stay there and guard the horses." She called to him and he let out a whine, but then moved off to carry out her orders.

"Heya boss, how's it hanging?" The templar called out, grinning, a she approached Kaine. "Lead on, oh fearless leader."

Kaine removed the restrictive harness, leaving it near the entrance for when they returned.

Taking the lantern from Sloane, he cautiously crept into the tunnel.

The dust was thick and untouched for quite sometime; each step he took dust plumed up from the tunnel floor.

It wasn't before long when they came to another impasse. Kaine took out a piece of chalk, marking the wall.

"No sense in getting lost. There seems to be quite a few side tunnels in here. All of them are natural too. That means we haven't even gotten to the mines, or the deep roads yet. That is, if these even connect to the roads at all."

Kaine put the lantern close to each new tunnel; both of them seemed to be thick with webbing. With closer inspection of the ground, he saw many small spiders scurrying around.

"Seems like both are going to be a bit sticky. We can continue, choosing a path. Or we can go back the other way, seeing what lies beyond the other tunnel. What say you?"

After removing her own harness and seeing the amount of dust Sloane took a handkerchief from her pocket and tied it over her mouth and nose. Sneezing at an enemy wouldn't help matters very much.

Sloane followed Kaine's lead and sighed as they came to another branch in the tunnels. "So much for this taking a week off our trip eh?" She commented as she shook her head and sighed again. "I assumed when Lamont suggested this route that he actually knew the way. That'll teach me to assume anything. At least if we end up in Orzammar we can take a break. No mages down there!" She joked with a grin.

The dark haired templar examined both tunnels for several minutes before replying to Kaine's question. "I don't know about you, but I'd rather not walk into a nest full of giant spiders. Perhaps we should try the other side?"

"Are you scared of a few giant spiders? A warrior like yourself; does she tremble?" Kaine grinned at her.

"If you would like we can go back and check the other side though." Kaine shrugged his shoulders and began walking back the way they had come.

"Scared? Of course not! Sloane replied in mock disgust. "I just hate picking the webbing out of my hair! Takes days to get that stuff out! I'm sure Selene will back me up on that one." She laughed and she turned around and followed him back dow the tunnel to the ledge.

Kaine shook his head, his laughter roared through the tunnels.

"So, you don't like slime or webs. There goes my idea for a birthday present for you."

He secured his harness once again, running along the wall land back at the first entrance to his chasm.

"Lamont, I thought you said this would shave a week off of our trip?"

"It will Ser, I have not been this way myself, as most of my employers would not dare take this route. Once we get passed the old mines we should be able to reach the deep roads. From there its quick and easy. Well, as easy as the deep roads are, ya know?"

Kaine grinned evilly at the thoughts of being able to trek into the deep roads.

He completed the rope line to the other tunnel, whistling for Sloane to follow.

Sloane laughed at Kaine's jokes. "I suggest a good book, or perhaps a new dagger. A girl can never have enough daggers."

Sloane got back into her harness and followed Kaine back to the beginning. While he began work on the next ledge she jogged over to Loshad and grabbed two more pieces of jerky. Breakfast had been large but it had been a long time ago.

"Let's hope for better results this time." Sloane commented as she attached herself to the rope and followed Kaine. When it was safe to have both hands free again she began chewing on a piece of jerky and offered the other one to Kaine.

Kaine nodded as he took the jerky. He took a healthy bite, before putting it away in one of his pouches.

This tunnel showed signs of activity; the dust was disturbed in places and there was not such a thick layer of it.

"Looks like we might not be alone down here." Kaine commented as he pointed at the scuff marks.

His falchion was attached to his right leg; with a quick flip of a lock it fell easily into his hand.

He crept along; sword at the ready, the lantern in his left hand lighting the way.

Soon they pair came to another branching of the tunnels; the one to the left seemed to slop down, while the one to the right sloped up.

"Well Sloane, it would see we can go up into the mountain, or continue to travel beneath it. I say we go down, as that is the most likely way to the deep roads."

"What say you?"