[Bee Blueglade][Session 1 - Level 0][Part 2]

The four of them traveled down into the basement. Haren cranked the side of his lantern, closing metal flaps to create a bullseye lens. He shined the intensified ray around the room. Catching a few rats in the light before they scurried behind cover.

The light landed on one and a crossbow bolt slammed into it pinning it against the wall. Alerias reloaded his crossbow.

"Sheesh. You sure know how to shoot." Haren remarked.

"Archery was big in my family. Crossbows make it effortless." Alerias replied.

"So you're lazy?" Bee said in jest.

"Don't ridicule our employer." Rand flared his nostrils.

"It was just a light ribbing." Bee said with a smile and a slight whine to his voice.

The group started to move crates, barrels, and sacks of flour towards the middle of the room. As they did Rand flattened rats with his shovel, Haren stabbed one or two with his spear, and Alerias shot a few more.

As they cleared the room they found more and more rat droppings towards one wall. Clearing away debris they killed larger and larger rats. Rand picked up a pallet and moved it out of the way.

The head of a rat reared up from the rubble as it charged at Rand. The rat was easily the size of a cat. Much larger than any rodent any of them had ever seen before. But most curious was the horns sprouting from its skulls. Horns that Bee noted were similar to the demon orc's.

The surprise and shock of seeing this creature quickly turned to panic as the rat slammed its head into Rand's thigh. It fell down to the ground, its horns stained with crimson blood, and Rand almost toppled over. He dropped the palet, one of his hands gripped his wound, as blood spurted from the two holes in his leg.

Haren lept into action stabbing his spear down at the rat. He missed it as it slinked away.

Alerias shot the rat as it tried to flee. Bee took his apple slicing dagger, tossed it at the giant rat, but the blade clattered across the ground.

Rand took a few running steps towards the rat and kicked the beast in its side. He slammed his boot into the bolt as it sunk further in and twisted upward. The rat tumbled forward into a heap, dead.

"What was that?" Haren whispered

"Well it's fucking dead." Rand spit on its corpse.

"It has the same horns as the orc." Bee stated, as he walked over to the corpse, and picked up his knife. "You think whatever made the orc look like that was contagious?"

"Could be some kind of curse." Haren shrugged.

"There's some sort of tunnel behind the rest of that rubble. I think more of them ran that way." Alerias said.

"Let's just get out of here." Rand limped toward the ladder that led back up to the trapdoor.

"I'm right behind you." Haren swung his lantern around to point at Rand's back as he followed.

Bee turned to follow when a hand wrapped around his mouth and kept him from moving forward.

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"Don't say anything." Alerias whispered as his elven eyes adjusted to the darkness.

Bee listened to Alerias, staying silent as their two companions moved to the ladder, but Bee raised his lantern up. The light was dimmer, not going as far, but lit up a larger radius than the bullseye of Haren’s lantern.

Dozens of red glowing eyes, illuminated by the light, watched Haren and Rand as they approached. There was a collective hiss as they were revealed by the light. Rats dropped from the walls, ran from the stacks of crates and barrels, as they flooded towards the closest person, Rand.

Haren quickly stumbled backward as rats flooded over their friend. The large man screamed as they tore through his clothing and skin. He fell over as one wiggled their way into his jaw, silencing him.

"The tunnel." Alerias whispered.

The elf turned, lowering to his hands and knees, as he crawled down through the burrow the rats had dug.

Bee ran forward, tossing his lantern at Rand's body, as he tried to save Haren. Some of the rats went up in flames but the majority scurried away.

Bee quickly grabbed Haren by the back of his collar. He directed him to the tunnel. Helping the older man to his knees and sending him downward. Bee quickly followed him.

Haren dragged his lantern down the tunnel. Eventually he tumbled forward out of sight from Bee. The young villager could hear rats scurrying down the tunnel behind him, so he didn't hesitate to follow. He fell down, tumbling into a cavern, and bumped his head. He looked up trying to shake off the minor injury.

Haren started waving the lantern around as panic set in. He tried to gain his bearings. A screech echoed through the cavern as a rat removed itself from the wall and leapt towards Haren. As it extended its arms, skin flaps caught the air, and it soared straight at the old man. It slammed into Haren, claws extended, and grabbed onto his face.

Bee charged forward and stabbed a dagger into the side of the rat. He dragged the rat off Haren. Its claw sunk down onto his eye and slashed through the eyelid before it was ripped away. Bee slammed the rat onto the ground and plunged his dagger into it again.

Scratching sounds came from the tunnel. Haren, with one good eye, making a shivering moan of pain, turned with his lantern to look at the tunnel entrance. The swarm of rats was pouring out.

Haren took the lantern, swinging it, and tossed it at the tunnel exit. The old man had copied the actions of Bee in the hopes of slowing the swarm down. It hit slightly to the right but the oil splashed and the fire leapt to a few rats.

"This way!" Alerias called out from the darkness.

Bee and Haren stumbled through the cave with the fire at their back. Haren whimpered as he held his injured eye. Something loud shifted nearby. Moving toward them. It leapt across the cavern. The two humans instinctively ducked. The creature, whatever it was, landed on the far side of them. No telling who it was aiming for.

Alerias grabbed Haren and Bee by the arms. He pushed them along another tunnel with much more uneven flooring. The soft earth had given way to hard natural stone beneath them.

"There were more big ones in that room. I don't know if they are trying to kill us or corral us." Alerias said.

"They're just rats." Haren groaned.

The group ran down the tunnel until Alerias stopped in his tracks. Both Bee and Haren bumped into him as they had to stop as well.

"What?" Bee whispered.

"There's one in front of us. Standing up. Our size, taller." Alerias whispered, his breath shaky, and his words were choppy.

"Shoot at it as soon as I move forward." Bee said.

Bee ducked down as he charged forward. Alerias shot at the beast which caught it by surprise. The bolt struck the rat-man in the neck. Bee lunged forward slamming the orcish dagger into the rat.

The dagger struck true. But the rat-man grabbed Bee by the shoulders and pulled him closer to bite him. Bee shoved his free hand upward and popped his palm across the bottom of the rat's jaw.

Haren scrambled forward but was unable to find them in the dark. He refrained from stabbing his spear out without knowing where Bee was.

Alerias reloaded his crossbow and fired at the large rat-man again. The bolt struck its shoulder. As Bee twisted his knife in the belly of the creature, blood poured out over the young man’s hand.

Haren finally reached Bee, scrambling through the dark, and quickly set his spear on his shoulder. He stabbed forward and into the rat-man.

The rat-man pulled Bee off the ground and used him like a shield. Bee, thinking quickly, raised his feet and kicked off of the rat. He tumbled backward slamming into Haren. The two fell to the stone floor.

Alerias fired another shot at the monster. This bolt flew true piercing between its eyes. The monster slammed down onto the stone. The elf quickly kicked a small rat off his shoe and ran past the two humans. Bee knew by the sounds of their pursuers that the swarm was catching up to them.