Captain Ace Fodder tightly grasps the rail as First Mate Morgana shouts the orders to the rest of the crew.   “Easy does it!  We’re almost to port.” 

It had been a long journey, and not an easy one.  He already lost seven crew members to his lucrative cargo, and The Tabatha Tart was already operating on a skeleton crew.   He hopes that the buyer will be generous with his payment.  He makes a mental note to include the lost crewmen when collecting his reward.

Suddenly, a large crash can be heard from below, and the ship makes a sudden lurch and begins to groan.  After a moment of silence, screams can be heard, followed by a large crack, as a leathery wing suddenly bursts through the hull of the ship. 

“Roll for Initiative”

Shaya slowed as she turned the corner, and she gently placed a hand on the ancient stone wall beside her, carefully crossing the threshold of the corbel arch.  Raising her torch, she stifled a gasp as the gentle glow from the fire spread over the rows and rows of ancient texts and dusty piles of forgotten treasure.  While she knew the value of her mark, the volume “Draculian Arcana”, a large tome of forgotten knowledge that was said to be made of pure gold, she had not expected the sheer volume of what the library held, and that it all seemed to be untouched.  She glanced over at the rest of her party, who were now rounding the corner, and offered them a sly smile, hoping that she might be able to pocket some of the more valuable trinkets without their noticing.  And yet… it all seemed too easy.  Sure, they had to avoid the traps of noxious gases and poisons, but she could scarcely believe that all this treasure would remain untouched for so many eons. 

She was about to say as much, when Dimitri placed gloved finger to his lips, his crossbow aimed past her.  And then, she heard it.  A strange, faint, slithering sound.  She raised the torch higher, her eyes groping into the darkness, searching for the source of the sound.  But, it was too late.  She felt a sense of dread begin to fill her, as she realized that whoever (or WHATever) was making the noise would surely alerted of their presence by her light.

I look up as a voice from the other end of the table cuts through my thoughts- “Roll for initiative.”