Coldeven 2nd, 591 CY

The heroes were ready to leave Oakhurst. The Old Road wound through rocky downs, near stands of old-growth oak, and past two abandoned farmshacks. The lonely road was empty of all travelers except for the heroes.

After a couple of hours of walking the Old Road passed to the east of a narrow ravine. At the road's closest approach to the cleft, several broken pillars jutted from the cleft where the ravine widened and opened into something more akin to a deep, but narrow, canyon. Two of the pillars stood straight, but most of them leaned against the sloped earth. Others were broken, and several had apparently fallen into the darkness shrouded depths. A few similar pillars were visible on the other side of the ravine.

The ravine ran for several miles in either direction. At the point where it most closely intersected the Old Road, it widened.

The heroes investigated the area and discovered that the pillars were generally worn and broken, and graffiti in Goblin covered most of them. Arton recognized the inscriptions as warnings and threats against potential trespassers.

Standing next to the ravine the heroes immediately noted a sturdy knotted rope tied to one of the leaning pillars. The rope hung down into the darkness below. Judging by its good condition, the rope couldn't have been tied there long. The heroes could also see older and weathered hand- and footholds carved into the cliff face.

The heroes easily climbed down the knotted rope, using the wall to brace themselves. Arathorn first hit the ledge.

A sandy ledge overlooked a subterranean gulf of darkness to the west. The ledge was wide but rough. Sand, rocky debris, and the bones of small animals covered it. A roughly hewn stairwell zigged and zagged down the side of the ledge, descending into darkness.

The heroes could not see the far wall of the chasm, nor the bottom of the subterranean vault. Three dire rats were hidden amid the debris and attacked Arathorn. Dire rats look like more feral, 3-foot-long versions of normal rats.

The stairs were not particularly well made. Flaxia revealed footprints not made by the heroes heading down the stairs. Three switchbacks were on the stairs, each of which opened into a small landing. The second landing allowed Aranthor a view of the area below with his low-light vision.

At the edge of sight, a fortress top emerged from the darkness. The subterranean citadel, though impressive, seemed long forgotten, if the lightless windows, cracked crenellations, and leaning towers were any indication. All was quiet, though a cold breeze blew up from below, bringing with it the scent of dust and a faint trace of rot.

The narrow stairs empty into a small courtyard, apparently the top of what was once a crenellated battlement. The buried citadel has sunk so far into the earth that the battlement is now level with the cavern floor. The floor stretches away to the north and south, and it is apparently composed of a layer of treacherous, crumbled masonry, which reaches to an unknown depth. To the west looms the surviving structure of what must be the Sunless Citadel. A tower stands on the left side of the courtyard. The stone courtyard, surrounded by crumbled masonry, contains a wooden door.