Code

As hard as he tried, he simply could not find an answer this time. It had to be somwhere, hidden in the text, but this code was unlike anything he'd ever encountered before. There seemed to be no cipher whatsoever, no clue as to how he should interpret the apparently random sequences of letters and numbers.
     "Any of you fluent in Ugaric?" he asked.  "It was rhetorical," he muttered as one of the men started to answer.

Down Draft

An ear-splitting screech filled the night, waking Tohl and the others and sending them scrambling for their weapons. The camp was covered in temporary darkness as a huge form flew overhead, blocking the moon. A violent down draft caused by massive wings knocked over two tents and scattered the coals from the fire, and men rushed to stomp the embers out before the dry grass could catch.

     "By the Great God, what is it?" Kyram shouted, sword and shield shaking in his hands despite his training.
     "Such a monster is not the work of God, Kyram," Tohl replied, adding in a whisper, "but may he have mercy on our souls..."

Countdown

The ancient mechanism took up the entire chamber, with gears of stone slowly grinding away everywhere you looked. In the centre of the room, a short pillar was topped by some kind of sundial, which upon closer inspection was turning very slowly, pillar and all, likely due to the grinding of more gears hidden beneath the cracked sandstone floor.
     "It's a timer," Amelia gasped.
     "So it would seem," Hartley replied. "The only question is... what is it counting down to?"