Welcome to Gaia! ::

((I see no objections to moving along. All right then. Clendyx will equip the sword and the rest goes in the "treasure bag" pending somebody claiming it.))

You follow Poa into the now open tower, descending down a long, winding staircase to the next floor. It seems that this one floor is nearly halfway down the tower, though it's hard to judge thanks to the lack of windows. The stairway opens into the next floor through an ornate doorway, but that is where the pleasantries end. Cages line the entire room and dangle from the ceiling, and while most of them are empty, some of them contain living creatures. Most are wild animals, but several humans are trapped in the cages. They seem to have been subjected to some mighty terrible tortures, covered in wounds as they are. Their gear and weapons have been stripped (if they had any) and now all that shields them from the permeating chill of the place is what appears to be potato sacks with holes for appendages in them. One of them perks up at your approach, fearful at first. Then the realization of who you all are (or aren't) washes over him like a tidal wave of relief. He stands in his cage and waves frantically at you, completely ignoring his grievous wounds.

"Hey!" He whispers harshly, "Come here! Please don't leave me and my men here!"

"I'd bet money to say that most of these are probably the men we're looking for." He looks around, taking a moment to observe everything. "Maybe Smartass was pretty smart to have an exploding sword. Hmm...if these guys aren't wearing anything, then there's got to be more of those...tribesmen...around. They'd probably stash the clothing somewhere...like a storeroom. And the way they were with our weapons, I'd say that they think metal is pretty valuable. If we get out of here, I'm going to figure out how to close that damn gate for good." He turns to the man who spoke up. "We need to know who you are, how you got here, and any weaknesses about these people. As far as I can tell, they can block magic, which means they don't practice it themselves."

Poa, touched by their tragic tale, reaches through the bars and grips Alexander with her wooden yet strangely soft hands. Her gaze was strangely comforting. "We were sent here by your employer Dr. Dreitzler. I promise you, by the strength of my father, we will get you out of here and do our best to rescue your other men. Now I need you to stand back from the lock." Waiting for the gentleman to move to the corner of his cell, she points her finger atthe lock and with a magic word blasts it with a small burst of energy.

Alexander steps gingerly from his cage, the scope of his wounds obvious in his steps. "Thank you..." He says, relief obvious in his voice. Sten though, doesn't move from his cage. Instead he begins to mutter mind-numbingly fast in some indecipherable yet oddly familiar language...

A torrent of horrifying images of his torture, the terrible emotions he feels and some kind of inner protection all batter your mind at once. But in the moment or two that you managed to break through, you can tell that nearly half his mind has been dominated by some powerful being. And while you can't understand the language the intention is clear: kill them all.

Oblivious to what was going on in the minds of Van and the other explorer, Poa casts some minor heal spells on Alexander to mend his wounds and relief some pain. "What!" she exclaims when Van tells them what is going on. We have to get him out of here then and through the portal. We must break whatever has a hold on him!"

(Rolling for stun attempt)