In the Underdark with Vox Machina

Despite having previously delved into the depths of the Underdark a few times before, it never got any easier. The pitch-black world miles below the surface is filled with all manner of traps and creatures waiting to pounce on unsuspecting travellers from every direction.

The minds of weaker adventurers would often snap from the pressure of having to walk for weeks on end, the flickering light from their torches tricking them into seeing movement that wasn’t there and then jumping from the echoes of their own footsteps.

Your remember exactly how you felt the first time your party came down here in search of Lady Kima. Since then you have learned to relax more on the journey ever-downwards. The most important thing was to remain in high spirits so that you could stay calm in any circumstance to avoid slip-ups.

“I’m so bored! And hungry! But mostly bored! How much farther have we got to go to this city?” Scanlan complained from the rear of the group.

“About 2 leagues less than the last time you asked!” Vex snapped back, obviously close to her wit’s end from the bard’s incessant whining.

Scanlan opened his mouth to say something back, but you caught his eye and shook your head at him, wordlessly warning him not to piss off your sister any further. He deflates slightly and continues walking in silence.

Once again, the archanist Allura Vysoren has asked you all to complete a quest for her down in the Underdark. This time the object she desires is some kind of orb which supposedly holds a long-forgotten spell. The book she discovered it in wasn’t clear on what kind of spell, only that it was powerful and potentially dangerous. To prevent it from ever falling into the wrong hands, Allura asked Vox Machina to return it to her for research and possible destruction.

Allura’s book mentioned an old, abandoned city called Tharûm that was once filled with mages who wanted to utilise magic that fell outside the laws of the civilised world. The city was only accessible via a teleportation crystal, but the paired crystals on the surface have been lost to time.

After another 5 minutes of travel, Keyleth’s rumbling stomach indicates Scanlan isn’t the only one ready for a break. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to do that!” She apologises as her face reddens with embarrassment.

Vex sighs and gives a curt nod of agreement.

“Hey, why do we stop when it’s someone else asking?” Scanlan blurts out, his words echoing around the cave walls.

“Shhh! Do you want every creature in the place to hear us?” You hiss back, motioning him to stay quiet. “Do you want to camp or not?”

He grumbles some more but once again falls silent. You move up to the head of the group where Vex is acting as the group’s scout, using her tracking knowledge to keep watch for any worrisome tracks or clues.

“See anything Sis? I think we might need to take a break after all.”

“Give me a minute to check things out.” Vex drops into a squat to more closely examine something on the ground, her leather trousers and corset creaking slightly with her movements. You hold up a hand to the rest of the party to signal them to pause. Grog and Percy keep watch from the rear of the group while you look ahead.

After peering at something for a few seconds, vex reaches out to touch the ground with her fingers. Holding them up to the torch and spreading them apart, you can see a see-through strand of something wet and sticky stringing between them.

“That’s disgusting. Any idea what it is?” You ask her, not looking forward to her answer.

“I’m not sure. Considering the ground has been wiped completely smooth, it must be something fairly large, but without any legs. I would probably guess a kind of giant worm. It's either that or something with a long tail to wipe away its tracks. Whatever it is, I don’t much fancy meeting it in these cramped passageways to be honest.”