"I just never had the funds to purchase a ranged weapon myself. I di-... Oh right." Culpa hoped the shadows of the cave hid his embarrassed blush as he slid a small, nearly forgotten, piece of leather off his belt and placed a stone inside it.
Swap out Flail for my Sling. If I still have the chance: Launch a Sling Stone at northern bat.
Sling: +5 to hit. 1d4+1
[Sling 12+5 [DAMAGE: 3+1]] The rock hurls off towards the bat, thudding into the back of it. Doesn't seem to have done so much damage, but it certainly stung. The bat screeches, and turns towards you!
Osirio let his guard down a bit, looking for the right moment to catch a bat off guard with his swinging flail. He wasn't sure how much longer he could dance around until they got lucky and injured him badly.
"Pests. Osirio hate the rats with wings!"
Action: Power attack slam, while fighting defensively
Attack: -2 to-hit, 1d8+4 damage, +2 AC (AC now 15)
27/35 HP
[Flail 20![19-2, Critial Hit!][DAMAGE: 3+4*3] Taking a break from his dodging, though still being careful of getting attacked, Osirio instead pounces at the inattentive bat. His swing hits solidly on the bat's head, breaking through the skull, plunging it into the depths of unconsciousness. If that blow didn't kill it--which it almost certainly did--, the resulting fall definitely finished it off.
The remaining bat seems to have gotten the message. It disengages from Osirio after seeing the brutal death of its three comrades, and instead disappears into the darkness. [150 EXPERIENCE EACH! Those knights certainly suck up a lot of it...]
What follows is a generally slow procession from one side to the other. Osirio dons his armor, now that getting up is easy due to the ladder. The three knights still struggle with it, but after a long string of attempts at climbing, they make their way over. Arias is transported over by a bit of a chain method; one knight stands atop the slab, another on the opposite side of the door, and one on the cavern side. The first helps him climb, before being helped up by the second, which lowers him down to be caught by the third. His wounds deepen a bit throughout this, but they're soon patched with bandages.
This room seems to be a guardroom, with a number of weapons in racks lining the walls. Most are consumed by rust, but a few are in remarkably good shape. Further examination reveals the reason for this; they're magical! Further search reveals two flails, a morningstar that, while a little large, could probably be used by Ari, a dagger, and a rapier, all enchanted with magic [Namely a +1 bonus]. Amazing how things work out like that. Ava, on the other hand, doesn't find an upgrade to her maul. Then again, there's probably little need for one.
The knights take the opportunity to inform you that the three of them will not be going any further into the fortress before Arias is well enough. They have magical balms and poultices to aid with his recovery, but it could still be a while. The five of you can press on further without them, if you'd like. Renais sets about building a fire from some supplies Arias had in his pack, while another takes the wounded aristocrat near the soon-to-be fire, and begins applying a disgusting smelling cream to the wounds.
A look around reveals two obvious doors; one to the north, and one to the east, ignoring the one you came through. The eastern one seems to have been opened recently. There also looks to have once been a door to the west, but the elements must have claimed the supports to it, as it's now a caved in pile of rubble.