Proceeding to Ghelve's Locks the party knew to expect some resistance from the creatures that invaded the locksmith's store and had taken his familiar hostage. Saydi, the wild elf, took the lead upstairs within Keygan's shop. But as she reached the top of the stairs a crossbow bolt grazed her shoulder and she saw a gray skinned creature barely discernable to her left.
The newly recruited bard, Ian, couldn't see the creature and the rogue was also completely oblivious but quickly took up a position in front of the sorceress. After a burning hands and longsword thrust the creature tumbled over the upstairs banister to the shop's floor below.
After an overlooked trap on the Keygan's chest of drawers caused some damage to the rogue, Sicarus, the party was in possesion of an old leather map of the gnome enclave, Jzadirune. (see map below)
Newly recruited fighter Kahodon made short work of the secret panel below the shop's stairs smashing it in with his heavy mace. With a few light spells cast the party proceeded down the dusty flight of stone stairs, bard and rogue in the lead. Stopping at the second landing Saydi found a wall sconce that could be twisted and was rewarded for her efforts by a trap that flung herself, the rogue and bard to the chamber below. The cleric quickly rushed to help as the force of the fall had knocked the elf sorceress unconscious.
Examining the strange chamber they heard many woodland sounds emanating from the walls and large copper masks of grinning gnomes hung about the passages. On the southern wall there were two doors shaped like gears with strange runes burnt into the middle. The eastern door was jammed open partially and a small amount of light streamed from within.
As the fighter squeezed through the eastern gear door he was attacked by two more of the strange gray skinned creatures that were so hard to discern when they were hidden. After a quick battle the chamber seemed to be a long abandoned barracks and two five foot in diameter holes had been dug through the southern and eastern walls.
After the wounds in the last fight the party decided to return to the shop for a rest and barricaded the workroom door. After several hours of rest and nothing but the sounds of rain and sleet battering the workroom's windows, the party was ready to proceed once more into the gnome enclave.
After returning to the same strangely noisy chamber the party was ambused from the darkness. The fighter rush forward into the darkness but couldn't see any foe in the gloom until another gray creature brandishing a rapier took him in the eye. The party quickly finished the creature and his partner quickly vanished back down the hall. The cleric, Heoldon called upon his deity to heal the fighter but the eye was still milky even after the bleeding had been staunched.
After bashing through the western gear door that had yet to be opened on their first foray the party discovered an almost identical barracks (this one with no newly carved tunnels).
Venturing onward through the western hallway where the gray creature had fled earlier they found several gear doors with runes they hadn't yet seen. The cleric decided to examine them more closely and determined the were symbols denoting certain letters in the gnomish language.
