Trials of Azeroth

Chapter 18

The two hefty oak doors swung open, revealing a long maze of stone corridors decorated with blazing braziers and purple banners to the four adventurers. It seemed dry, warm and well kept, and provided the inhabitants shelter from the wilds of the grizzly hills, along with sanctuary from any prying eyes. The doors slammed shut behind the group, and silence descended upon the network of corridors.
"Okay, let's get movi-"
"Who opened those doors?! Those slackers better not be skiving off again." Echoed a groaning voice from down one of the halls.
"Quick, hide!" Hissed Belmin.
"Hide where?!" Replied Codin, gesturing to the empty, well lit corridor they were standing in.
"Rainard, is that you down there?" Hollered the voice, louder than before.
"Oh gods, oh gods! We'll be found!" Exclaimed Fizzbiscuit.
"Think of something, man!" Barked the dwarf.
"What do you want me to do?! Conjure an invisibility field with my bloody sword? Look at him, he's the wizard!" Snapped Codin.
"I can't do that!" Replied the gnome.
"What?" Said Belmin.
"That's high end magic! I'm only a simple arcanist!" Stated Fizzbiscuit.
"I thought you were supposed to be a top notch battle mage?" Questioned the warrior.
"Top notch? There's a reason why I was kicked out of the Ironforge guard!" Declared Fizzbiscuit.
"Sidwell, you there? What's going on down there?!" Asked the Stoneraven, whose voice had grown even louder. His footsteps echoed throughout the halls, sending chills down the spines of the four.
"Oh bloody hell!" Sighed Codin, putting his head in his hands.
"What do we do?! What do we do?!" Demanded the dwarf.
"I swear, if I find those two shirking their duties..." Growled the voice.

A shadow began to creep round the corner, with the sound of hobnailed boots clanking off the cobbled floor filling the corridor.
Hwinion burst into action. He tore off his forest green cloak, ran over to the torch on the wall and snuffed out the flame. Darkness fell on the hall. The group scattered and pressed up against the side of the cold stone walls. The footsteps grew louder as a silhouette rounded the corner. Codin's heart was in his mouth.
"What the hell, why is it so bloody dark all of a sudden?" Muttered the guard, who appeared to be clad in a leather cuirass and toted a vicious looking baton at his side.
Fizzbiscuit began to utter an incantation under his breath, stepped out into the corridor and shot a ball of blue light at the stoneraven guard. The dark hall was illuminated with a blue tint, and after a flash of blinding light, the four adventurers looked down the corridor to find a small sheep standing in place of the  guard.
"What the hell was that?!" Asked Belmin, struck with awe.
"A polymorph spell, lasts about 50 seconds." Stated the gnome, panting with excitement.
"Fair enough... Good job, pal." Nodded Codin, with an confused yet impressed look on his face.
"So will he remember what happens after it wears off." Asked the man.
"I would imagine so. I've never really stuck around for long, afterwards." Giggled Fizzbiscuit.
"So do we kill it, then?" Asked the dwarf. The four looked down to the sheep, who returned the glance with a blank stare and an innocent bleat.

"I'll do it." Stated the night elf, bluntly. His comrades looked at him with expressions of disgust and horror on their faces.
"What?! You asked?" Replied Hwinion.
"Let's just tie him up and get going!" Suggested Codin.
"With what? I don't see any rope around here." Said the gnome. The warrior bent down, picked up Hwinion's cloak and presented it to his fellow adventurers. The gnome and dwarf then looked up to the elf that towered over them, who had an unimpressed expression on his lean, angular face.
"Go on, mate. Do it for me." Smiled Codin. The elf sighed and placed his head in his hands. He wiped his brow and then spoke up.
"Fine! Fine..." Sighed the hunter.

Codin and Belmin set about pinning down the animal (Which was no easy task), whilst the gnome and the elf tied up its arms and legs with segments of the green cloth, then gagged it with the final swathe of fabric as an extra precaution.
"Right, let's move on." Panted Codin, as he wiped the sweat off his brow.
"Finally, lets just make sure we try not to tip off the rest of these bastards that we're here." Sighed the dwarf mountaineer.
"That would preferable, yes." Agreed Hwinion.
The four then set out down the corridor to their immediate front, moving as stealthily as they could.
"So what's the plan, Codin?" Asked Fizzbiscuit, carefully moving down the hall.
"Well we're primarily here for loot, yes?" Asked Codin.
"Yes, indeed."
"Aye, of course."
"Ok, my idea is to try to create a distraction, which will hopefully draw all these lot into one single place. We'll then bar the entrance and trap the bastards inside, and with any luck, leave the treasury wide open, if they indeed have one. Sound good?" Stated the warrior.
"Aye, sounds alright, that." Nodded Belmin.
"Yes, it sounds very good Codin, but how are we going to create a diversion big enough to get the attention of everyone in this damn place?" Asked Fizzbiscuit. "I mean, with this amount of intricate hallways and corridors, it must be huge."
"Hmm... well I guess we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it, won't we." Smiled Codin.
"Bloody brilliant." Muttered Hwinion.