A cool stream shares the cave's entrance

Part 4 of Lost Mine of Phandelver. The full series may be found here. Here lies actual accounts of fictional events. Spoilers exists if you haven’t yet played this adventure.

A cool stream shares the cave’s entrance, the flow indicating an upwards grade leading inside. The main corridor continues forward, but just to the right is a room housing snarls and growls. Gosef turns the corner with his bow ready, identifying a couple of wolves just as they jump at his face. The wolves are contained as quickly as they pounce, bound by chains linking them to a nearby stalagmite. Gosef takes his shots and Welby joins from behind. The wolves continue to pounce, but the chains provide just enough strength to prevent major damage until downed.

The room is foul from rotted garbage and bone, likely serving as a kennel for the wolves. On the far side sits a chimney of sort, more frequently used as a garbage chute it seems. Welby, convinced it leads somewhere useful, begins climbing. The chimney leads him nearly 30 feet straight up before a terrible decision, loose grip, and wicked gravity pull him back down to his companions. Gosef notices the crumbling debris, correctly predicts Welby’s fall, and throws his backpack at the base of the chimney just as Welby crashes into view, converting his fall from deadly to death defying.

Barely breathing, Welby looks to his saviour and smiles- or perhaps it was a grimace. Studying the effort, the party decides they should find another route and heads back through the main corridor.

Not long into their new path, a flood of water races through the cave directly at them. Welby and Gosef jump against the walls, resting their bodies flat and finding just enough grip to hold against the tide. Erdrick wasn’t so lucky and takes the mass directly against his chest- pushing him down the corrider back to the cave’s entrance.

Barely able to stand, Erdrick takes a deep breath and once again considers their path.

There is more to this story! The full series may be found here.