>>40303171
The door closes behind you as you leave the building. The wagon's sturdy, with a bit of weight to it, and its reinforced wheels grind against the stony ground. You're the one pushing the wagon, and Teomo guides the way. You can hear the voices of the other groups echo through the cave. It's sort of peaceful. The light of the crystals comes and goes as you walk, and seems to get brighter as you go deeper, which is the strangest thing to you. As the sounds of the other groups get quieter, and the tunnel narrows, Teomo breaks the silence.

"Looks like Awendi won't be coming along this time. He must trust us! Or, at least me. Haha." There's not much joy in his laugh, though. He's got a rather sullen look about him, and his disheveled hair and lazy stride complement that. "You're new to this- new here, even. Most new people pick softer jobs, but you're here working one of the dangerous jobs we have here! Why did you sign up for this, after all?" He turns back to you, with an inquisitive look in his eye.

>Remain quiet.
>Change the topic. [Write in.]
>Tell him.

>>40303641
>Tell him.
Because we wanted money? And maybe a little of adventure?

>>40303171
>>Change the topic. [Write in.]
"It's fort he same reason everyone else has this job. What are we going to do today?"

>>40303641
>>Tell him.

>>40303641
Money?
>>Change the topic. [Write in.]
And what's a human boy like you doing in a place like this? I never saw humans much before at all.

Rolled 1 (1d4)

ROLLING

[low]
>>40303695
>>40303753

[high]
>>40304480
>>40303706

>>40303695
>>40303753
"I have to make money somehow. This seems like a good way to do it."

He gives you an incredulous look. "There are ways to get paid that don't revolve around not getting eaten by spiders, you know."

"Well, I felt a little adventurous!"

The idea makes him giggle. "Adventure? Only an idiot comes here looking for adventure. Let me tell you something about Ksatul. It seems nice and cozy, but there's not much room for error. If they think you can't do a job, you're out. If you don't pull your weight, you don't get fed. If you break the rules, you get punished quick. People that come down here for adventure's sake learn that there's no adventure down here, or they don't last long."

"Well, I didn't mean it like that-"

"It's not really my business either way. I just need to know if you're going to be serious when we're down here. You're new here so I don't know if you really get what it's like dealing with giant spiders. Most people here haven't ever seen one. Even those of us working here. Of the people here, I think only Awendi and Bilja have seen them up close, and you've seen Awendi. You don't want to see one. Do you understand me?"

His tone is pretty serious, but also has an air of dismissiveness to it. You can tell from the look in his eyes that he doesn't quite take you seriously.

>"Absolutely.
>As above, and ask about Awendi.
>Scoff and ask him how old he is.
>Stay quiet.

>>40305407
>Scoff and ask him how old he is.
It's not like either of us get much choice in whether we see one or not anyway. We got the poppers, right?

>>40305407
>As above, and ask about Awendi.

>>40305407
Changing >>40305529 vote to

>As above, and ask about Awendi.
But still with the same commentary that spiders gonna spider along with it.

>>40305407
>As above, and ask about Awendi.

In fact, I'm so serious about this, I think we should never stray further than arm's reach, or else tie a string between us to tug on to signal the other if we think we see something.

This will let us use Teomo to verify if the spider is real or not without shouting like a dumbass which would attract the spider.

File: doom.jpg (23 KB, 441x594)

23 KB JPG

>>40303171
>Recently, you discovered that he knew your father, and doesn't exactly have the fondest memories of him.
And has sworn revenge on his bloodline effectively.

He can never know. The exile-on-exile violence is inevitable.

>>40306249
>>40305955
>>40305543
"Absolutely."

"Good." His gaze goes back to the front.

You follow along, not interested in making him dislike you any more than he already does. But, you do have a question.
"Say, what's with Awendi, by the way? Was it just a spider attack, or was there more to it?"

"Oh yeah, it was a lot. I was there."

He doesn't say anything else.

"And?"

"What do I look like, a storyteller? Ask him yourself."

His attitude is irritating. But, he is the more experienced one. You wouldn't mind hearing a little less smack from him though.

"We're close." Where you're at, the tunnel is almost as illuminated as Ksana. It's kind of beautiful. Almost like you're walking through a bright dream of some kind, with all the luminescence of your former city, without all its distressful chatter. You could almost feel at home here if it weren't for the fact that spiders live in these tunnels.

And just as you're about to start wondering about giant spiders and what they look like, the tunnel opens up into a more spacious cavern with similar-looking tunnels leading in and out of it, blocked by a variety of wooden barricades supplemented by metal beams and boulders. A few show signs of wear. It's quite the sight.

He puts a hand on the wagon, signalling you to stop. "Okay, so here's what we do. We check each tunnel from behind the barricades, one at a time. You're looking for fresh-looking prints, broken crystals, spiders themselves, or webbing closer to the barricades than ten meters. If you don't see any of that, head inside and start gathering. Do you need me to come with you or is that clear enough instruction for you?"

>"I could use some help."
>"No, I've got it."
>"Before we start..." [Write in.]

>>40308428
>"No, I've got it."

>>40308428
Aw fuck we have to split up.

>"Before we start..." [Write in.]
So spiders showing up is really unlikely, if we don't find any of those things? How unlikely?

>>40308576
>>40308979
"No, I can do it on my own. But..." You've got a question that desperately needs answering.

"What is it?"

"So if none of those thing you said are there, then a spider won't be there?"

"A spider is not likely to be there. It could still happen. But I wouldn't count on it?"

"Has that happened before? Someone checked and it still happened?"

"Shit, kid, you ask a lot of dumb questions. You'd think someone old enough to work would have a little sense. How old are you, anyway?"

>Answer honestly.
>Lie.
>Deflect the question by asking him his age.
>"It's none of your business!" [Grab your gear and walk off.]

>>40309201
>Deflect the question by asking him his age
What a faggot.

>>40309201
>Deflect the question by asking him his age.
This quest is suffering.

>>40309252
It's just his fault the protagonist is unlikeable.

It says so right here in his character sheet:
>Unlikeable. Liked by no one. A delusional, lonely boy whose passing shall not be mourned. Not even by his mother. Because she's dead.

>>40309252
>>40309357
"How old are you?" You look the smug little shit up and down, trying to get an understanding of what's up with him. "You can't be older than 20!"

"I'm sixteen. Just because I'm shorter than you doesn't make you any less of a little brat!"

Oh boy. Sixteen? What a joke. "I'm twenty-four years old! I'm eight whole years older than you! Maybe I should be in charge!" You're about to start laughing, when Teomo interrupts you with a laugh of his own.

"What's so funny? Huh? Why're you laughing?"

"Didn't anyone ever tell you about humans? We don't live as long as elves. To a human, an elf saying he's 24 is like saying he's 12. In your years, I'm, uh..." He counts on his fingers, under his breath for a second. "32."

32? There's no way! You're absolutely shocked. How could you not have known this? There wasn't a single mention of this in Kohme's stories, you just assumed that humans aged like elves. And nobody told you! Humans really are strange.

"W-well..." You're not quite sure what to come back with.

"In any case, just check and only bother me if you need help with something." He grabs a pole and heads off to the left, in the direction of a barricade.

You really made yourself look bad here, but there's not really any time to worry about that if you want to get paid. There are five other barricades you can see.
You can turn your head all the way to the right and see one which looks to be in great condition.
There's another to the left of it, which uses more stone than wood in its construction.
Straight ahead, you can see a worn looking barricade which has plank after plank slapped over it. Must see a lot of use.
And then, to the right of Teomo, you can see a fresh-looking barricade that uses a lot of metal.

>Grab your tools and head off towards a tunnel. [Pick a tunnel.]
>Grab your tools, follow Teomo, and apologize.

>>40309895
>Grab your tools and head off towards a tunnel.
This one
>There's another to the left of it, which uses more stone than wood in its construction.

>>40309951
Okay why not.


I can already tell that
>apologize
will only mean dropping more spaghetti. He'd probably say he told us not to bother him unless we need something.

>>40309895
RIP in pieces OP

Glad you could make it today, I like the atmosphere and misery of this depressing elf child quest.

>>40312065
I'm here, I took a break again to eat and forgot to tell you all.
Again.
Fuck me.
I'm writing right now, trying to spit out an update

>>40312083
Brain problems? You remind me of my friends with ADHD.

>>40312157
i'm autistic, i have a hard time keeping my shit in order, it's a real pain but not really an excuse for the speed i've been going at and how unreliable i've been with scheduling, i can and will do better

>>40309951
>>40310068
You elect to go for the second right-most barricade.
It seems like a good choice to you.

As you approach it, you can hear the faint sound of rushing water. There's no water to be seen, but it's probably past the barricade if at all. The tunnel itself is very large, definitely big enough to accomodate a giant spider if such a thing were here. The dark, wooden parts of the barricade look old and rough, while the lighter, stone bits comprised of heavy boulders and well-placed slabs put the whole thing together, giving it a complete yet slightly questionable feel.

You run your hands over the massive stones, and even give one a kick with the flat of your foot. Didn't budge at all. Maybe this can hold back a giant spider. There's a wooden rope ladder that takes you up, and it sways gently as you climb up. You're not sure how you feel about heights, really. You never did much climbing in Ksana. No room for it. Only thieves, builders, and chimney cleaners did much climbing, and you didn't really fall into any of those three. You didn't even have a chimney.

By the time you reach the top of the ladder, you're about forty feet up. You walk along the top, wooden platform creaking under your feet, and see that a large arrangement of metal bars separate you from the tunnel. Looking around, nothing seems to be out of sorts. The crystals are all intact and shining brightly, the ground is neat, and you can see a little webbing but it's all farther back into the tunnel. It's all clear.

There's a iron gate to your right, held shut by a latch. There's a friendly warning with a big red X on it, reminding everyone that only spider workers are allowed here, and that leaving the gate wide open is a serious offense.

>Open the gate and start gathering.
>Give it another look.
>Go for a different tunnel. [Pick a tunnel.]

>>40312643
>>Open the gate and start gathering.

>>40312643
>Open the gate and start gathering.

>>40312643
>Give it another look.

>>40312692
>>40312734
No more time to delay. Better just get started.
You undo the latch, step through the gate before shutting it again, and find yourself at a rather sturdy staircase leading down into the crystal-laden tunnel. There's a ramp to the side of it as well. Each step feels solid, and doesn't even creak. Whoever constructed this did a great job. You can even skip down to the bottom without much noise. Touching down on the ground, you take a moment to look through the whole thing. There's a few signs sitting around, with various warnings and guidelines on them. Most of it is stuff you've already seen.

One sign says "Please keep distance from barricade in the event a spider approaches." Looks like they really don't expect anyone to outrun one.

Another states "Injured persons please turn back immediately, unless a spider is present." This is just depressing.

There are extra, lighter wagons by the staircase, each with a metal arm to pull on. You put your things inside, and start pulling one along, gathering pole resting on your shoulder like a spear. The pole itself is pretty strange. It's a lengthy wooden rod, with several dull-pointed protrusions on the end. You think you're supposed to spin it around a web and wrap it up, much like a candied stick. The opposite end has a short metal hook on it, possibly for gathering loose bits.

You reach a few of the stray webbings you noticed before. They quickly go into the wagon. It's not that hard, really. And then you turn the corner, and notice a lot more. They cover the walls, coat the floor, and overlap each other. A lot seem to be parts from broken or displaced webs, all accumulated there naturally. This should take you some time.
[cont.]

>>40314256
What feels like half an hour later, you have a wagon full of webbing and a brow glazed with sweat. The tunnel isn't clear entirely, but you've made a lot of progress on it. There's something on your mind, however. The water. It's only gotten louder as you've gone deeper into the cave, and if there's a waterfall, you'd like to use it to cool off for a moment. Web clearing is sweaty business. Then again, you should really meet up with Teomo at some point. He is your partner, even if he is an ass. Either way, you should get paid nicely just for this wagon. Pushing it to the staircase, you push it up the ramp, and take it through the gate, careful not to forgetfully pull on the latch in the progress.

You could turn this in now, and go to a different tunnel.
But you've never seen a waterfall before. When you sat in the cold, unpleasant shower at home, you tried to make it more bearable by imagining a waterfall. With no point of reference, that was always tricky, but you made it work.

---

Next thread will be on Wednesday at 3 PM EST.
Follow @belowquest for updates. I'll be more consistent in the future! Promise!

>>40314270
Thanks for running bro. Catch you then.