The tarot card I pulled this morning was the five of pentacles, comfort in companionship. Is this supposed to make up for the lack of treasure to get me out of this moldy hole? Clarisse finally made an appearance. Anister said it was going to storm in the afternoon, and Clarisse wanted us to wait for her to bathe and clean her clothes, so we decided to make a rope ladder. I bought the rope and cleaned out my pack to make room for it. Anister put it together. Lounged by the fire with an ale while it stormed and dumped hail outside.

Headed out the next morning to the main dungeon entrance. Installed our rope ladder. I was all for heading east down the corridor to the passages beyond the snake room, but no, we went south again. Where the black ooze is. We heard munching noises, which sounded like zombies. One promptly decided we looked more tasty than whatever it was munching, and came for us. Clarisse, who opened the door, stabbed it. Anister shot it. I moved up to take Clarisse's place, but bumped my elbow and just grazed it. The zombie hit Bancroft and licked his blood. The second one ran up. They moved way faster than zombies should, and are attracted to blood. Bancroft tried to turn them, but only one ran away. Clarisse threw a dagger and hit the remaining one. I finished it off.

Anister made a poltice because Bancroft was bleeding unusually. It didn't work. I held the door closed while Bancroft tried to pray for healing, which stopped the bleeding. Bancroft whacked at the other zombie that was scrabbling at the closed door down the hallway. Clarisse missed with a throwing knife. Anister stuck an arrow in it. The second zombie went for Bancroft again, but Bancroft dodged.

Bancroft cracked it over the head and dropped it. We went through the door and heard wolf growls, and I called out to the mongrelmen that it was us and we were friends. Unfortunately, the sound drew something with flapping leathery wings. We all moved in, and I closed the door again. Searching for a second secret door next to the already found secret door found nothing. We went through the secret door and I talked to what turned out to be only one mongelman, Stickman. He said the others were dead or fled. I told him about the group to the south, and wished him luck. He warned us that the leathery flying things sucked blood.

The guys decided the flying things should be easy to kill. I wasn't so sure. Stirges, aka stingbats attacked. One immediately bit and attached itself to Clarisse. I hit it and freed Clarisse. Clarisse and I tagged teamed and killed the one on Anister. The remaining one flew off. Bug is smarter than the tomb raiders we fought a while back that I warned to run as I killed each one. We stared at the pit trap that almost killed me last time, contemplating filling it with debris or Clarisse fixing it permanently closed. As we discussed, a bunch of rats started squeaking and clawing at the door we closed behind us. Clarisse disabled the pit trap to permanently close it.

We headed south and around a bend to a room. On the wall was written “make no sound or they will come for you.” A stone statue of a winged monster was in the room, one hand broken off. Clarisse checked the door, hearing a wolf growl. More mongrelmen, so we ignored that door. As Clarisse and Anister were searching the room, we were attacked by more stirges. Two attached to Clarisse, drinking her blood, and she went down. Anister killed one. I killed two. The remaining one flew off. I turned Clarisse over and staunched the bleeding. She was almost dead, and would have a nasty scar. Anister and Bancroft healed her up some.

We didn't get a chance to finish searching as the blood zombies, drawn by the blood, ran in. Unforeseen side effect of fixing the pit trap so it stayed closed. Three of them went for Anister, and one started munching on a dead stirge. All three hit Anister, doing significant damage. Bancroft turned two of the four.