Adrian: Baldur's Gate

Finding the entrance--a trapdoor to what had once been the catacombs of the school--was easy enough. However, it was guarded by a ghost.

"Nyaaargh!" Adrian roarted, slashing and hacking at the apparition.

"Adrian?" Safana asked softly.

Adrian kept hacking.

"Calm yourself," Viconia murmured.

Adrian went right on slashing.

"It is not attacking, Adrian," said Edwin.

"Whah?" Adrian asked, lowering his sword.

Edwin and Xzar exchanged one of those terrible, knowing glances.

Hands on his knees and panting heavily, Adrian saw that, indeed, the ghost was not fighting. Indeed, it seemed not to have noticed his attacks at all. It stood, staring straight ahead into the aether.

Edwin spat a curse in his own language. "It's Ulcaster himself!"

"Can ye be sure?" Kagain asked him.

Edwin nodded grimly. "His appearance was known and passed down the ages in texts. My teacher..." and here he flinched, "...made sure I learned such things."

Safana raised an eyebrow at that, but Adrian was staring at the ghost.

Ulcaster was portly, yet tall, large in both directions. A long handlebar mustache drooped from his face; his mage hood shadowed his spectral eyes.

((History is so important....))

"What?" Viconia and Adrian asked together.

((History is so important....find the tome....)) the Ghost said.

"Why should we do that?" Kagain sneered.

The ghost fixed cold eyes on Kagain, and he shivered.

Adrian turned to look at the dwarf as well. "How exactly, do we refuse him? We can't hurt him."

"We don't refuse him," said Edwin, clearly shaken. "We do as he asks."

"Are we suddenly developing a conscience?" Kagain asked, but he was obviously scared.

"No," said Adrian. "But how do we refuse him?"

((You do not refuse.)) the Ghost took in all of them in his spectral gaze, and none save Viconia and Xzar could long withstand his glance. ((Find the tome.))

They descended into the dank remnants of the school.

"Reminds me of my home," said Viconia. "But home does not welcome me."

Adrian nodded, looking around. "Tis a place of darkness."

It was, indeed. The mines of Nashkell were nothing like this; they had been lit by periodic torches. The tunnel beneath the halfling village, too, had been lit for the sake of those evil folk that dwelt there. Here there were only shadows, and the mist.

"The poison fog is thicker here," said Edwin. "We stay more than a few hours and it will begin to harm us."

"Are you backing out?" Xzar giggled, but his giggle was muted.

"Nay. I'm saying let's find it and get the hells out of here."

The chittering of spiders could be heard....