[center][b]Sarah's Request[/b][/center]

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Kasim pulled his hand back from the dwarf's head as if it burned him, drawing in a hissing breath through his teeth. He backed away from the pile of dwarves and wights and pulled his glove back on before addressing Naream, who was the only one of the group that he could see. "I was not expecting that. First I got into some thoughts that were..." Kasim sketched a vague square in the air with his right hand, his brows drawn together in a classic expression of confusion. "Too orderly. Most people's heads are like big piles of paper and garbage. This one was like a book, with one of those lists that tells you where to find certain information. I also saw a pale face that didn't seem very human, but I didn't get a good look at it. Then it switched and I was in another dwarf's head while it fought some kind of giant insect I think, eight eyes and too many legs and huge fangs, and it said something about 'the barrow of the master' before I had to pull away." He was shaking visibly by the time he finished, and he took a few deep breaths to calm himself before speaking on.

"It felt like something was attacking my mind, probably that thing with the strange mind and the pale face. I guess that it was trying to take control of me like it has with these dwarves, that it was the master the insect thing was chittering about, and you," he turned round to find Andrea and pointed at her, "were probably right about it being a mind flayer, I think." He noticed the dagger she was holding and frowned, though it disappeared almost instantly to make way for an expression of grave seriousness that was accompanied by a slow nod. "Smart thinking. I guess this means you're the ruthlessly competent member of the group, just as I suspected." Kasim slipped back into his slightly too eager way of speaking just as quickly as he'd become serious. "Anyway, given where we are and what I saw, I figure the insect thing was a giant spider and that it, and probably many others, serve the mind flayer or whatever it is that's the master of this place. We've got a proper adventure on our hands now, with dangerous ruins and even more dangerous monsters who serve a yet more dangerous master. This is going to be fun."

Turning round once more to face Naream, Kasim gestured down at the dwarves. "I guess we'll just have to tie them up or knock them out, probably toss their weapons over the edge just in case they wake up or get free. I can help your undead friends with that if they can't handle it, and so can-" He cut himself off and looked around again, talking to himself. "Where's what's her name? The one with the armor? Wait, Eins, that was it." Kasim spotted her down at the end of the bridge opposite where they'd come in, and saw that the way forward was now open in front of Eins. He let out a sound that was something like a choked off scream, a loud gurgling that somehow managed to convey both fear and anger. Once the awkward sound was out of the way, Kasim called out to her urgently. "Armor lady! Eins! Stop! People who go on ahead of the rest of the group always end up setting off traps or waking up monsters. Come help us deal with these dwarves, then we can keep moving ahead safely together." In truth he was more concerned with the idea that the woman might do something brave and become the hero of the group and thus the focus of the story this adventure would spawn before Kasim had a chance to cement that place for himself, and appearing to be very concerned with the well being of the other members of the party would make him a nice and sympathetic hero. He hadn't exactly lied about how he viewed the dangers involved with forging on alone, but it was mainly a convenient reason to call her back without revealing his true motivation. Heroes were allowed to skirt the truth for a good cause, after all, so Kasim felt no guilt whatsoever for doing so now.