Blackout

The five adventurers took a moment to ensure that the battle was won. In the dark cavern, the five members of the party peered into the murky blackness. Their eyes had long since adjusted to the gloom, and it hadn’t been a minute too soon as the black ichor of the ooze-like monsters had tried to consume them. The two ooze terrors had an acidic touch, having tried to dissolve the party with their corrosive tendrils. Now though, after the quick but dangerous ambush by the ooze, the monsters slowly absorbed into the stone and dirt that acted as the cavern’s natural flooring. “Do you think that was all of them?” The voice of the cleric startled the other four members who now stood still among the few remaining pools of ichor that seeped away.

The enraged berserker ran past behind the cleric, still needing to satisfy their fury but finding no enemy on which to vent their pent-up rage. The monk watched the frothing warrior as they roared off to the opposite side of the oval cavern. “Does that answer your question?” The monk felt no need to whisper like the cleric, who now watched the brute’s display.

“Look what I found!” The new voice peeped from a large pile of dirt and rocks. The gnome’s pointed hat poked out of the debris before their big gray eyes and robust nose, followed by flushed cheeks, still pink with the panic of the ambush. The gnome twisted and shuffled free of the dirt pile, rolling slightly before coming to a seat in front of both the cleric and the monk. They held out a small rectangular box. The box was made of beautiful wood, some sort of cherry or mahogany. It was bound with polished brass and, although it had been buried beneath the detritus for an uncountable amount of time, both the brass and wood seemed untouched. There was a heavy lock built into the front of the chest, and the lid was held tight.

“That could be valuable,” the wizard of the group, who had remained a safe distance from the acidic touch of the ooze, now rejoined their companions. “I could…” before they could finish though, the monk had already squatted down to the chest and began inspecting it.

“It’s fine. I can open it,” the monk reached for a set of lockpicks they kept in a small satchel on their hip. The wizard ignored the intrusion and simply took a cautious step back as the monk set about trying to pick the well-crafted tumblers within the heavy lock. There was a click, followed by a second, which was followed by a scraping sound before a third click was heard. The final tumbler almost echoed within the small chamber as the monk excitedly reached for the lid, pushing it open as the hinges moved without protest.

Suddenly, there was a puff of white as a powder exploded into the monk’s face. For a moment it looked as though they had dropped their head into a bucket of flour or a mound of chalk. The monk blinked and peered about, before blinking again. The cavern, once shadowed in hues of gray, now appeared as a black void. The monk tried to wipe the powder from their eyes, but still nothing but darkness. “Um, I don’t think the monk can see,” the little gnome announced in a panicked tone.

The cleric quickly gripped the monk by either cheek and stared into the now blind eyes as they stared silently back. He gave a quick inspection to the powder and to the effects if any the powder was causing to the monk but there was no swelling or tearing. “I don’t think this is a natural effect. The powder is geared to only relieve the victim of their sight. The sinuses are not responding as though they are inflamed.”

“So, it is magical?” the wizard cleared their throat, hoping to keep their chuckle hidden behind their inquisitive tone. The cleric nodded, still focusing on the monk’s condition. “I can remedy that,” the wizard stepped forward, keeping the lecture that bubbled in their mind silent as they waved their hands, repeating the magic words, so well-practiced in their studies and suddenly the murk and shadow crept back from the monk’s vision.

There was a brief exchange of knowing glances between the monk and the wizard, before the monk turned back to the chest. “So, what’s in the box?”