[Child of the 7th Age]

Hearing a soft knock at the door accompanied by a familiar voice, Luindal glanced up from the piles of papers and maps he had been studying, which were still strewn haphazardly over his desk, "Come inside, Rôg. It's open. Please sit down." He gestured towards the seat opposite his own and noticed that his friend looked considerably better than the last time he'd seen him.

Luindal went immediately to the subject that was uppermost on both their minds. "The crew is concerned about tomorrow?"

"Yes, deeply concerned, and some are frightened, although they would never admit it." Rôg went on to explain some of the things Bear had shared with him concerning the cavern.

Luindal listened carefully to the description of the dangers and then suggested, "This Bear sounds as if he at least knows more than the rest of us. Perhaps he should be the one actually leading the party through the caverns as far as what path to take. I would gladly be led by someone who knows these parts better than I do."

"As far as the danger goes, he is certainly right. But Alahseey has told me that this is where the Elders feel the Stones would most likely be, half buried on the cave floor. Come have a look."

Luindal gestured towards two charts that were set side-by-side on his desk. "This one," the Elf explained, "is a copy of the map that Cirdan originally provided the ship that sailed to rescue Ardui. And here is the other that the Snowmen just gave me. See how much smaller the Bay is now. The Bay used to cover nearly all the caverns and hilly cliff, with only the topmost peak showing above the waterline. All that would have been iced over in early spring and it is possible that a ship could have been hurled against the cliffs and crushed.

The shape of the Bay is different today: the caverns are at the edge of the shore. They are relatively dry at low tide, especially with the drought we've had the past two years. Only when high tide occurs do large parts of the tunnels become flooded. The most important thing for us is to get in and out fairly quickly, or else we risk the danger of drowning, especially if the weather outside turns bad."


"I've tried to take every precaution I could think of. I am advising the men to wear small packs about their waist with food and water and to carry at least two torches and a rope. No packs on the back since these could catch on the low ceilings in the tunnels. We'll make sure to have flints in case the torches are gutted. And everyone will be wearing a metal helmet to protect their heads. I also understand that Freyn has some basic skills with healing. I've asked him to bring along his kit with herbs and splints should anything go wrong. I'll be carrying some Elvish herbs myself, but I think that the Snowmen's local remedies are probably better suited for the kind of things that might happen in a place like this."

"If you or Bear have any other ideas, I'd like to hear them as I am certainly no expert on caves."

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Rôg

‘Hmmm . . . I don’t think Bear will have any suggestions for you at present. By this time, he should be fast asleep. Poor felllow was as nervous as a sand rat catching sight of an owl shadow.’ Luindal’s brows went up at these last two disparate pieces of information. ‘And . . .?’ the Elf queried.

‘And . . . well . . . I gave him a nice strong cup of valerian tea with comfrey and some honey. Calmed him right down.’ Rôg glanced up at Luindal and shrugged his shoulders. ‘He was snoring, in fact, by the time I left the room.’

Rôg looked at the crudely drawn map that the Captain had made of the area they would be exploring when the morning came. It was a composite of the old elven map and the one the Lossoth had provided. ‘We should keep in close contact with each other in the caves. I had thought that perhaps I could keep the groups informed of each other’s presence. What do you think? I can use one of my little winged forms as needed.’

Luindal nodded his head at the suggestion. ‘I’ll tell the Lossoth and Elves that you’ll be doing this tomorrow just before we leave the ship.’ He grinned for a split second at Rôg. ‘Wouldn’t want to find one of them roasting the southron on a stick as a tasty tidbit for dinner.’

The bells that marked the beginning of the late night watch rung above, their soft tones carrying down the companion-way to alert those who would be next on duty. ‘I should take my leave of you,’ said Rôg. ‘The bells to wake us for tomorrow’s venture will ring all too soon.’ He paused at the entry way. ‘I did have some interesting thoughts which might prove useful whilst I was bent over the ship’s railing and observing the passage of the ship through the sea. I doubt we’ll need to implement any of them in the cave. But should that search prove fruitless and we have to consider searching beneath the waters of the bay, then I think they might aid us. Let me think on them a little more before I present them to you.’

The Elf turned back to his consideration of the maps as Rôg closed the door firmly behind him.