In the dark of the Annon-en-Groth Mines Snori walked, pushing deeper into the deapths of the unknown relm, he had passed the expertly hewn stone that the dwarfs carved out long ago and now was exploring abandoned tunles of the lost dwarf lords before him. His probing eyes searched every dwarf statue and every wall carving looking for the answer to what was in his head. He looked on with his eyes unclouded by his demon, the halls of his ancetors was protecting him from the probing evil that moved ever deeper into the void of his mind.

He keeped his hammer ready to kill any scaven that dweld with in, the vermin that plauged the dwarfs, whos tunnels undercut whole halls, whos screams and screaches echoed in the dark stalking those dwarfs that ventured from the protected mine.

A small light followed him, bobbing in the air ducking and weaving befor him lighting the way with a pale flickering light that gave everying a jerky shadow. It was the only light for miles of tunnels and it hoverd above him.

A sound ahead caught his ears atention, as the silence was broken by a foot step. He tenced to the sound and began to move slowly to the corner it originated from.
He raised his hand and it was coverd in a white flame that iluminated the statues of old heros in a pale ghastly light.

He reached the corner and ran out pointing his hand before him ready to fire at the rat men that lay beyond the darkness but there was none. Insted there stood...

Lost...that is the only word to describe sarah right now...she was split up with her friend for a while. she entered the mines hoping to find her but with no success. on her way out she took a few wrong turns and was compleatly lost. she ran into some Friendly drow who kindly showed he the direction to go in. she headed into that direction but now thinks that she was lied to. she ran into some unfriendly creatures which she dispached of quickly to prevent them from getting more of their kind.
"few that was close. hmm I'm hungry. I've got to get out of here soon*sniff* I don't want to die of old age here alone." she begins to cry untill she heard foot steps. she was a very proud person who didn't like to have people see her cry. she stoped crying and grasped the staff that she carries. she saw that it was a dwarf.

"at last signs of life in this wreched place." she begins to cry again but very quietly praising the gods and godesses.

Seeing it was a woman and not the scurge of the dwarfs he let the fire subside from his hand and he placed it at his side, cocking his head to the left he spoke. "Down so far that even a dwarf would tremble... Why?" He wondered what was this young woman doing down so deep, what was her buisness in the darks of the mines?

Hearing the woman praise the gods he spoke again. "the gods wont help you if you are down this far." He smilled "How long have you been down here anyway, by your look its seems to be a long time." He looked about then sat on the plinth of a huge stone dwarf holding a rune axe.

Pushing his hand deep into his pack he withdrew with a small brown paper pack. He placed it in her hands.

she ALMOST answered that first question, when she saw the food in the brown paper bag that he handed her. in an instant she began devouring it talking in between bites.
*munch* how long I've been here." *devoures an apple* "well let me think umm...at least 3 weeks.*goes looking into the bag for more food* I remember because a week and 3 days into this I ran into some strange looking creatures. then at the two week marker I ran into and engaged the same strange creatures, and then three day ago I ran into some friendly drow. they were nice. they offered to let me live with them. but when I declined they showed me where to go to get out of here. they also gave me some small food rations but those are gone now....do you have any more food" she says that with big adorable eyes.

"Drow are rarely friendly and I would suspect it was their fault you are lost down here." He sat back glad to take the weight off his feet, he had been down here for about 2 weeks himself, yet he was no closer to his desired answer asuming there was an answer and he could find it.

"I do have food but it was for my quest.... well i can ofer it to you if you join me, I will be leaving here in due time all though i can not tell you why im here but would you consider it?" Indeed he could tell her nothing of what he was doing here it, some times even he didnt know and it ay scare her off if he even tryed.

He sliped off the plinth and raised a hand. "So what do you say you keep me company for a while and I will giude you out." he smiled, he could do with the company here, nothing but the blank stares of the lords of past.

she thinks his offer through. she wanted to get out of here as fast as she could but there was still a chance that her friend was in here. She smiled and huged the dwarf as she said "of course I'll go with you" truth was she only went because she liked the company that this dwarf was. she gave him a nice kiss on the cheek and went to lay down to streach her wings really quick. *yawn * she got up with a big smile and the same adorabe eyes. "well lets go then."

He shoke his head, hugs and kisses wouldnt purswade him though he had missed them... "Fine but i dont what to have to save your ass every time we have to fight somthing." he joked. He began to walk down the long hall the light ducking and weaving behind him. It was going to be a long time till they saw sunlight.. all though some dwarfs never came above ground... but they were considered weird even by other dwarfs.

"So whats your name anyway?" He looked over his shoulder, judging by her wings she was a celestial... talk about stating the oviuse. "Mines Snori... dont laugh it does get anoying after the first few times." he added.

she tried her best not to laugh and succeded. she found the name to be very funny.
"my name is Sarah. nice to meet you snori." they continued to walk down the hallway she spotted somthing up ahead of them. it wasn't a drow. she hoped it wasn't another one of those creatures she encountered earlyer. "ummm did you see that?"

(sorry for the short post I have to go soon)

((meh i dont mind about sort posts mine have been very sort normaly their a lot longer))

"Yes somthing up ahead...." Their were plenty of things that dwelt in the ruins of the dwarf halls and most of them were none to friendly. He held his warhammer befor him and began to take tentative steps forward. "Stay back if you can i'll just check to see what it is." he called back.

Slowly he advanced and as he did so the light followed, leaving sarah in darkness realising this he cast a second light spell and an orb of light flickerd into life around her head.

Turning back now to his task he continued forwad with small steps his ears and eyes probing the dark to try to find what was a head, then up ahead just in the circle of light that the orb cast a slender leg like apendeg shifted behind a statue. It looked spider like.

Now on total gaurd he stepped side ways to get a look at the creature, then with every passing step it braught it into view, it was a drider.
(incase you dont know what it ishttp://www.jaestudio.com/Drider.jpg)

Snori stepped back in surprise, it was huge, larger than most of its kind. He began to back down the hall to Sarah, hoping it wouldnt follow. It did, it turned around on its many legs and looked around the corner its body in limbo between the floor and the wall, some stuck to the statue of a dwarf and some on the hard stone floor. Its eyes peirced the dark and sighted the two of them.

(((Hope you don't mind one more joining)))

Arkas moved silently along the tunnels. He carried no torch, the extra heat and light would stick out like a sore thumb. He was looking for a rogue band of drow, ones that had been cast out from the great cities under the world. He turned a corner, and saw light. Some other race was around. He hadn't moved quietly enough to avoid detection by the drow, but if they had heard him they would have doused their fire. Arkas unslung his longbow, and notched an arrow. He pulled the string taut. Arkas padded up silently to the corner. He leaned out around, and jerked his head back quickly. He saw the source of the light at the far end. Snori, an old friend of his, was standing beside an angle of some sort. What was directly around the corner was a problem. His drow parts told him it was a drider, the product of a drow who failed a challenge set forth by their goddess.

The drider was a drow from the torso up, but below that... It had six spider like legs, and a spider's abdomen. It was talking to itself; thought Arkas could make out what it was saying. It was moving steadily toward the two at the far end of the tunnel. Arkas swung round the corner and yelled, "How many times am I going to have to bail you out of this kinda stuff Snori!?" The drider turned to face him, and caught an arrow in its eye. The thing staggered about, yelling in pain, but it wasn't dead yet...

"Bail me out arkas? Me a dwarf? just you try it." He joked. Running around the drider he shouted at it and sure enough it looked at him and began to move towards him. "You two cover your eyes, dont ask just do it!" He shouted, then cast medusa eyes.

The Drider was despite its half drow apearnce, feral basicly just another creature and didnt have the inteligence to sheild its eyes from Snoris stare. It caught the full blast of it and in its middway charge, turned to stone from the bottom of its spiders legs then rising up till it was another statue that joined the ranks of forgoton dwarf heros in the hall.

"Ok you can look now." He began to walk around the drider, it ceirtely was a huge one, all stone exept the arrow protruding from its eye.
"Not a bad shot Arkas, but nothing compared to magic." he smilled

Pulling his warhammer back he swong it in a large circle and struck one of the slender legs shattering it and then jumped back as the creature fell. A few of the other legs shattered with it but the main body stayed intact. "Better make sure... some idiot will cast the soft spell on it eventualy." He drew back his hammer one last time and let it fall onto the back of the driders head, craking it in half then it fell and shatterd on the floor.

"Right then sarah this is arkas and arkas this is sarah."

"yay you guyes got it." truth is she really was happy that the monster was killed.
it was one of the things she was trying to get away from. She ran up to arkas and was about to shake his hand when she remembered some of the elvish she knew so instead greeted him in elvish. after greeting him she walk tward snori to thank him for getting rid of the monster. about midway to him she collapsed on the floor.

Lori stepped from the shadows, smiling slightly. "Not bad, Arkas...Snori. Not bad at all..." Then, in Lori's mind, something clicked...it was like a little warning sign...a small feeling that she needed to pay attention.

Watching the girl fall, she rushed forward and, scooping the girl up as she began to fall, kicked up off the ground. She soared and nearly tackled Snori as something erupted from the stone floor, the force pushing her a bit farther than she had calculated.

One Drider came up form the rumble, looking particularly furious. It was female according to its human features, and was carrying a spear. Then, up from behind it, came another fourteen driders, give or take a few.

Lori wasn't really counting...she was a bit busy dodging an arrow that was shot at her by a male drider.

"Snori! Take the girl and run! There's no way the three of us can handle all of those things...and that girl needs help. You're the strongest of us...get her out of here!" She layed the girl somewhat roughly in his arms, then turned.

"I'll distract them...you two run." Figuring the two males would pick this time to be little knights of chivalry, she snarled. "Now! Both of you run...now is not the time to be gentlemen! If you want...to be...such gentlemen...you can listen...to the lady!" At each pause, she was leaping and dodging as the driders struck at her, furiously attempting to batter her with everything they had as if she were a rag doll.

Her almost perfect understanding of the Drow language allowed her to realize a bit of what was going on, though certain words thay said were replaced with insect-like clicking sounds...

"They killed clickclickclick...the dark-clothed girl is a clickelclickcli...ignore her and go for the other clie..."

Agitated and hoping to direct their attention to her, Lori took her sword and sliced at one of the driders, an older looking one with weird white symbols all across his skin and a white mark down the spider's abdomen. He let out a horrible shriek as her blade cut through one of his legs and turned, eyes enraged at her as he stumbled about, trying to regain balance. Making some more spider-like clicks ratehr angrily, he focused his two human arms towards her, making hand motions.

"Now what do you think you're..." Lori was interupted by a blue bolt of energy that shot at her from the drider. Dodging quickly, Loriauna's eyes were wide with surprise. The drider then healed its leg with a sharp click, the leg regrowing, though slightly shorter than before...it was difficult to regrow an entire limb. Wait...how was he regrowing his limb? And shooting blue energy...unless... Lori's eyes grew wide as she realized the truth.

"You beasts have a bloody MAGE?" She shifted into a purely defensive stance, rolling away from another three arrows. All she had to do was distract the driders...give Snori and Arkas enough time to get out...it wasn't going to be easy, particularly having to fight against a mage, but she hoped Snori and Arkas would take her advice and run away.

What a fun day she was having.

"No I dont think we need us to even fight them." He shouted. He pushed Sarah into arkases arms roughly, it was no time for finese. He cracked his fingers this was casting under pressure. He held hid hands before him palms down and began to chant the spell.

On the floor a circle of green light apeared, in it vines and plants began to grow as if speeded up by some unseen force. The light that the circle gave out began to increes dramticly the driders eyes could not cope and halted their charge covering their eyes agaiced the light.

The brightness increesed untill it was all one could do but look away from it. Fromt he blinding light a siloet apeared, it was huge 6 ft 5" at least. Then the light began to subsied and standing in the circle was the hulking frame of a stone gollem. Only magic could harm it and so would be more than a match for most of the driders.

"Keep em busy!" He shouted. The driders were still recovering from the light, he might just have enough time, hell if he wanted to he could raise an army!

Again he pushed his hands out and chanted a new verse, this time it happend amediatly. Rocks, dirt and rubble began to skid and roll together, banding up into a shape. A few seconds of frantic movment and the earth had created an earth elemental in the shape of a ent, it was as tall as the driders themselfs and no sooner had it been created it began to moved towards them with huge strides.

He laughed he loved creating constructs they were in his eyes beuties to behold.

***
The gollem and the ent struck the driders at the same time, laying about themselfs with huge fists of stone. The driders used their huge spindaly legs to stab them but the cheasts of stone could not be penitrated by the natural weaponry.

***

"Nows our chance lets get out of here!" he shouted be began to run backwards, facing the driders so he could cast the holy spell on them. Balls of white fire that did large amounts of damage to evil creatures.

"Come one they wont hold them back for long!"

It was then that Lori saw what Snori hadn't seen...a rather large drider coming up behind him, about to hit the dwarf with a quickly forming energy bolt the dwarf. he would have no time to react...

Leaping, transforming into a dragon in midair, Loriauna sped forward and knocked Snori out of the way. The bolt hit her square across the chest and the dragon shrieked as the magic pulsed through it, then, in a final attack, sliced the drider with its claws and beheaded it. However, she was greatly weakened and slowly detransformed, leaving a mostly naked and badly wounded Loriauna to collapse on the ground. She had managed to pull a piece of the drider's clothing off and it layed on top of her shivering body.

She looked over at Snori, glaring weakly and trying hard to speak, her normally cold yet clear voice now raspy. "I told you...to run...you stupid...dwarf..." Her eyes fluttered and then shut and there Lori lay, nearly dead and practically comatose.

He laughed, it was unapropriate for the situation but you had to laugh some time. Even as she was inches from death she still managed to preserve her desency. He ran forward and scooped her up in his arms, and began to run with her clutched to him.

Even as he ran he began to cast the supirior heal spell, it could heal mortol wounds so she should be fine and combinded with the dragons constitution she would pull through he told himself.

His hands glowed blue as the magic began to flow through them and into her body, healing her from the damage of the driders spell. "Come one Lori if i can carry out of this gods damn mine that you can sure as hell live." He rounded a corner and despite his strenght it was indeed very tiring to carry her whilst running for your life.

Lori twitched a bit as the magics mixed within her, her dragon magic fighting the driders and the dwarf magic attempting to help. So much magic inside one small body...she shuddered as the magics battled within her.

This was all wrong...her conscious was slowly surfacing and her eyes snapped open. Okay, assess the sitaution. She was being carried by Snori, was about an inch shorter from how she felt, was naked and being covered by a piece of cloth not unlike a sheet. she could hear yells behind them and saw light ahead.

What the bloody hell?!?

She'd buy clothing later or steal some...though it would be a pain to get those armwarmers. And her blade...

The sudden realization that her sword was behind them caused her to pass out again. She had really liked that sword...

He ran as fast as his short legs would take him and they were already under strain from carrying lori all this way. He skidded down a hall way.

"Lori are you ok?? Just hang on dont do anything just rest as best you can." He shouted. Running round a corner another smaller passage way caught his eye. He turned on the spot and sprant down the narrow passage.

He was a fair way down when he stopped, he did so when he found a small stone table lodged in an alcove in the wall. He set Lori down gently on it and began to unfasten his cloak.

"You look cold... as well as other things." He said as he pulled his cloak around her. He looked further up the passage, he could tell it led to a main shaft it should be easy to get out from their. "Its not to far now."

Lori had woken up when he set her down and her voice was coming back, though still a bit raspy. "You make one comment about my lack of clothing, and I'll beat you once I'm able to move, Snori." It was a feeble joke, but the best she could do with her foggy brain. She allowed him to put the cloak around her, already feeling better.

"Damn...we need to get out of here. One of their mages is sensing all the magic in me. Once we're in the light, they can't get us." Her thoughts were floating out of her mouth with little control on Loriauna's part, probably because her wits were focused on keeping her alive.

"Dont worry the way out isnt to far away, and i can make sure they dont follow us down here but im not sure about the other two I still havent seen them." He looked back down the tunnel, sounds stone cracking and breaking up could be heared. The gollem and the earth elemental wouldnt last long. Right now his priority was getting Lori out arkas could handle himself fine.

He made a small gesture with his hands and a ring of fire burst up blocking the entrance to this smaller passageway. The driders didnt like bright lights and the heat of the fire would be very damaging to them they would have to wait for it to subside.

"Right come on we better get moving all this magic is starting to wear me down." He slid his arms under Lori and began to run once more, he couldnt keep this up she woud have to walk some of the way and besides it would be to cleche for him to carry her out of here.

Lori nodded. "Put me down, Snori...I think I can run now." She longed to stop being carried as well...she felt rather strange being carried in nothing but a cloak and sheet...she'd rather be running on her own anyway. She was no damsel in distress...

She'd rather run on her own two capable feet.

"Sure i dont like the way that was going anyway." He set her down gently and looked around down the passage way. The glimmer of the fire could still be seen down the narrow tunnel. They were safe for now maybe he could extend that and leave a little somthing for them to find.

He spoke the spell for summon demonic being, and a hole in the floor apeared halfway between them and the fire. Flames shot upwards and born from the heat, a demonic beast was spawned. Its body smoulderd and it waited for his orders.

"Stay there kill only driders let anyone ells past." If it wasnt destroyed then he didnt want it killing any inocent dwarfs.

He turned back to Lori. "You good to walk then?"

Lori nodded, the cloth wrapped around her like a toga with the cloak on top of it. "Yes." She began to run calmly down the apssageway, somehow still keeping her dignity as she dashed. "As strong as that spirit is, we'll be in trouble soon. Even it can't keep all those driders back."

"all we need is enough time to get us out in the open then we can find you some cloths." He smilled the situations he found himself in somtimes were more than funny.

He ran along side Lori but her longer legs and general phisique made it hard for him to keep up with her but he pushed himself to run at her pace.

"You'll be the death of me loriauna." He said

"Right back at you, Snori." She smiled, slowing down slightly so that he would be able to catch up easier. "Why do I even try to save your sorry butt?" she joked, running for the exit. "And what did I say about the no-clothing comments?" She whacked the back of his head lightly with her palm, then ran a bit faster so he wouldn't catch her.

((Sorry, I'm hyper. WHEEEEEEEE!*swings from ceiling*))

"It wasnt a comment it was a statement!" He shouted, spuring himself on to try and catch her. "Damn you and your long legs!" He panted. Soon daylight apeared at the mouth of the tunnel. That was it home free.

"Anyway i didnt need saving you just jumped in i could have taken em." He shouted ahead. He found his second wind and managed to catch her.
"Ha your not so fast." He panted. Soon he reached the outside and stopped dead in his tracks.

He held out his arms in the sun and felt its warmth. Even a dwarf doesnt like to spend to much time underground, and he had been there for two weeks! "It feels good to be outside." He looked about and around the mountine. "You can borrow my shirt if you want." He joked.

Lori laughed, an odd yet rather pleasant sound coming from the normally rather shadow-like woman. Calming down, she smirked at him. "You never learn, eh Snori?" She turned and, playfully raised an eyebrow. She reached over and, in a moment of sheer playfulness, she gave his beard a short, soft tug. "Damned shortie." She grinned and, with the grace of many days of practice, dashed off, running barefooted across the rocks and green grass that grew alongside the mountain, surefooted and, for once, seemingly carefree.

It was odd...yet strangely refreshing for Lori to be so...un-Lori.

"Pah never touch the beard." He wraped it up in his arms, looking wounded. His beard was well his it was a private part of him, even though he realy didnt mind her touching it, but it was still private.

He sat on a rock, still basking in the glory of the sun light. He whatched her run care free over the stones, it was unlike her but it was a side of her that he liked that little bit more.

"You seem to have forgotn that you are nearly naked lori!" he shouted after her.

"Doesn't matter right now, eh?" Lori stuck her tongue out playfully, then leapt and twirled in the air. Damn, for some reason, she was really hyper...and giddy. Was Snori feeling like it too? Must have been all the magic in her system...it felt like she had drunk a barrel of ale. "Snori...I think the magic...is getting me drunk..." She swayed slightly, having stopped when the epiphany hit her. "I feel really...giddy..."