Tobin:

”Not that I have figured this out, but the four directions we have not gone are northwest, southwest, southeast, and south.  It doesn’t make a lot of sense to me to backtrack going south, but one of the other three directions might be worth a shot,” says Tobin.

Bazavur changes directions to the north west path at Tobin’s suggestion. 

Tobin:

Marking the ground with entrance and exit signs as usual, Tobin nods and follows.

#10621 one shadow, went north

#10643 two shadows, went west

#10741 two shadows, went northeast

#10755 three shadows, went west

#10854 thee shadows, went east

#10947 three shadows, went north

#10957 four shadows, went north

Now four shadows, going northwest.

You follow to the north-west...

And after a few minutes walking, you return to the same clearing, or an identical one.

Aiwin just points to the path in the upper right corner "That one, maybe?"

“We haven’t tried southwest or southeast.” Bazavur says looking around trying to discern if there’s any variation between this sundial area and the other sundial areas they’ve been in. 

Tobin:

Shrugging and making the requisite ground markings, Tobin says, “Might as well,” without much enthusiasm.

Varan sighs, "I'm startin' to really hate this place. Also, is it just me or has it not been gettin' darker? We did enter late in the afternoon, right?"

Any of you can see easily that no time appears to have passed at all, judging by the sky.

So, what are you doing?

Bazavur will start going the direction he indicated. (Does this area seem the same at all the others we’ve been in?)

Bazavur, give me a fresh Perception check.

And if you're leaving, are you heading southwest or southeast?

Perception: 15

(would prefer south east. But either works for me)

Bazavur, you look around the clearing, the hedges, the sundial, the shadows, the sky above and the ground below, and you just... feel like you're missing something. Heading in this direction or that doesn't seem to make any difference - you keep returning to this spot. You have a feeling that the solution somehow must be very close to hand...

Bazavur moves closer to the sundial to get a better look at it. Looking for a button or switch. Some raised element that can be pressed down. (Really hoping there’s a secret door!)

Bazavur, you don't see a button or switch. The sundial appears to be exactly the same as the other sundials you've observed.

(In the picture, at the bottom of the sundial it looks like there’s markings of some kind. Would those be similar in size/shape to the gems we’ve found?)

Bazavur climbs onto the sundial to get a better look at the markings on the southern side of it. 

The markings don't look like they have any meaning at all.

You put one hand onto the sundial, adjusting your weight, getting ready to climb...

Everyone else, you see Bazavur disappear. Not just vanish, like becoming invisible; it looks like he was sucked into a single point, infinitely small, and then just gone. There's an appropriate slooooop sound. And you're left with... no Bazavur.

Tobin:

Rushing over, Tobin tries to see what Bazavur touched and diagnose the magical effect.  He remembers closely examining the sundial in the first clearing, but nothing like this happened there.

Arcana:  28

Tobin, you don't have Detect Magic active so you don't see an aura or the exact school of magic, but you have a deep understanding of magic and its effects. Bazavur has not been destroyed, and probably not harmed. You know the spell Misty Step - the effect is more like that than anything else, though more powerful you think.