The door at the western end of the pendulum-scythe corridor was untrapped and unlocked upon inspection. The group cautiously moved into the next room in which they found a heavy iron portcullis leading north.
The 20'x20' room offered nothing else. Beyond the portcullis they could see a tiny 10'x10' room with alcoves flanking it on the east and west and another portcullis leading north. Benjaar plied his muscle to the gate as Hadarai and Olan inspected the small room. Olan, almost instantly, noticed the faint tracings of a ward on the room's floor. It appeared to be a similar ward to the one they encountered in Amros' "carriage house". Hadarai, after wedging the portcullis open, disabled the ward so the group could open the next portcullis. Beyond, they found another long room winding back to the east.
Along its northern wall stood three large dragon statues and at its eastern end was a large, vault-like double-door inlaid with intricate gears. The whiny call of kobolds shortly followed their arrival and the battle found the PCs facing brutal blasts of fire from the open mouths of the dragon statues. The lead kobold managed to unlock the vault door, in an attempt the call for reinforcements. But the PCs cut him down before he could make good on his plan. The room beyond stretched further east with raised platforms flanking the hall at the far end. A pair of totemic pillars capped the hall at the far end, each segment a stone carving of one of the chromatic dragon heads. Beyond the pillars the walls of the corridor gave way to the roughly hewn walls of a cavern. As the group moved in they noticed some kobolds assembled at the far end of the hall around the raised platforms. They appeared to be waiting for the PCs to move further into the room.
Once battle was ensued, Benjaar was struck by one of the crafty hammer-throwing kobolds and stumbled forward onto a tripwire. The stone dragon heads at the end of the corridor began to rotate slightly and tilt and from their open mouths came a barrage of poisoned darts. The hail of projectiles caught most of the party but sailed over the kobolds heads further up the hall. Eventually, after many failed saves, the group managed to make it to the far end of the hall where they couldn't be targeted by the darts. One of the kobolds slipped into the cavern beyond the pillars, apparently to warn someone of the PCs. After a short rest the group moved to follow the kobold. The tunnel twisted north sharply, and three minutes into the trip they found the little lizard creature at the bottom of a narrow crevice, dead.
The sound of rushing of water greeted the PCs as they emerged from the tunnel into a vast cavern with an underground river running through its center (east to west). Massive pillars flanked the river in pairs and along the banks were ruined structures which may once have been trading posts or barracks. The group noticed the mineral rich scent of the waters and thought it might be acidic. So Benjaar trekked five minutes back into the dungeon to grab a few kobold bodies which he stuffed into the bag of holding. Once he rejoined the group he promptly tossed one of the carcasses into the water. It didn't dissolve or smoke, and the current took it and carried it into the distance. The current was fairly strong, a fall into the depths of this river would prove quite dangerous to those unable to swim or wearing heavy armor. The group saw no bridge or other means of ingress to the opposite bank.
Benjaar, in a surprising display of perception, noticed a switch hidden in one of the pillars. Upon pressing the switch, a narrow bridge raised from the water, spanning both banks. Hadarai noticed movement on the opposite side; more kobolds. Sneaking across first, the eladrin ranger observed a total of 10 of the little scaly bastards, two of which were wearing scale-mail. While attempting to sneak back to the group, he was spotted by one of the kobolds. In the ensuing battle, most of the kobold minions were taken down hard and quick by Benjaar's dragon breath. But, the other kobolds proved sneakier and a good bit more deadly. Two other kobolds that Hadarai hadn't seen were the stealthiest they'd encountered yet and left wounds that bled profusely. Eventually, the group bested the kobolds, and decided it would be a good idea to rest, especially for Benjaar who took the brunt of the kobolds' offense. To the north, past the ruined structures, Voodoo could see a massive stone staircase leading up to an ornate stone entryway. Out of the entry poured warm firelight and the sounds of chanting. Perhaps there they would find their quarry; Amros Kamroth.
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