Laughing with Mock, she climbs on her shoulders and looks over at Zhi. "Oo. He doesn't look so good." she waved. "Hi Zhi! Watch out for that first step! It's a goober!"

Doc was relieved when Zhi finally backed down and released the undead servant he had created; time was of the essence and intersquad squabbling was not what they needed at the moment.  That being said, he was worried that the squad's relationship was frayed after this incident (he even thought that Zhi looked a bit crestfallen if that was even possible)! 

So, as he pondered on group "bonding" solutions the squad could do to improve morale like a camp counselor in summer camp, Doc absent-mindedly trailed behind the party deeper into the forest.  He didn't even notice the broken bridge or the gaping hole in front of him and fell face first into the chasm floor below!

(Assuming the fall doesn't kill him) Doc winced in pain as he slowly peeled himself off the floor.  Groggily getting his bearings, he spotted Zhi up ahead and called out quietly, "Well that was rather unfortunate... perhaps we need to do some extra training on our physical skills once we're back home..." Smiling faintly before slowly shambling his way towards him, Doc held out his hand to help him up before asking, "How hurt are you?  Do you need help?"

• Athletics #1: 1 (rolled a 2)
• Athletics #2: 7

The first time you fell, you take 8 damage. Ouch. That chasm's a little rocky.

Raza watches Doc take the same tumble as Zhi as she's making her way through the mushroom stems to the edge of the chasm.  Well, at least there was someone down there to help Zhi now.  She reaches the edge, peering down.  "Doc?  Zhi?  Do you need help getting back up or can Zhi do his rope trick thing?"

Zhi splutters another cough as he presses his eyes shut. People were already in the midst of laughing or clamoring about in order to get him up after another fall. He was more injured in spirit than physically, though he wouldn't let that show. He never did. 

Spitting out another glob of blood, Zhi slowly leans forwards and unleashes another snarl at the pain. Why did this involve so much physical activity? All the time? He was much more comfortable seated in his office at the Orzhov and commanding the grunts to do their work. Now this idiotic mission was ruining his chance of a promotion further into the guild. How long had he spent chasing after Drow? Far too long. Best to end that quickly. A jolt of pain rocketing through a broken rib jolts him back to reality from his delusions of grandeur. 

He casts his usual, crippling gaze at Doc. He would have read in Zhi's file that Zhi tended to shrug off injuries. Dulled emotions came with dulled response to pain - Zhi adamantly maintained physical injuries could (and should) be ignored until whatever task they were incurred from was completed. As a result, Zhi tends to ignore injuries - even if they are apparent or crippling. His breath is quite ragged and some ribs may be broken, but otherwise, Zhi seems to be relatively functioning. 

"There are spells which I can learn which deals with all of these issues. There is no need for training aside from magic, which I have found solves everything," Zhi snaps back at Doc's words. A pause. Doc's tone was more calm and soft than his usual attempts at being intimidating. Zhi supposes he best do the same. Reluctantly, after a moment of consideration, he leans forwards and accepts Doc's hand. He was, frankly, injured, though it would be presumptuous to assume Zhi would admit to that fact, even if it is plainly obvious. "I am fine." Zhi's voice seems to be carefully manicured to remain devoid of what little emotions he is capable of. And though he genuinely feels less emotion than an average person would, he isn't the best at deceiving people - while he is physically fine to continue, something seems to weigh on Zhi's mind. He makes a gesture indicating Doc and himself should join the rest of the group up top as he, once again, creates a levitating rope which should be high enough to reach the distance indicated by the fall damage.

Zhi rounds the bend and gives a vacant stare at Kasha. He isn't sure what a 'goober' is, and knowing Kasha, Zhi certainly knows he probably shouldn't ask. 

Raza sees Doc help Zhi up and the rope appear.  "Doc, Zhi can you wait until I make it across just in case?"  She shouts as she clambers up the mushroom for her own try at crossing.  "Oh! That was easier than it looked!  She says happily as she jumped off the fungus on the other side.

ST Check  0

Kasha returns your vacant stare.

Daewen recovers from her Olympic-level aerial walkover, quadruple scissors leap, double cartwheel with roundoff, and poses for the judges to score her.  When she realizes that no one was looking, she shakes her head and turns to proceed down the path again.  And that's when she hears Zhi's perilously whiney scream and whimper.  Snickering silently, she returns to the rest of the group congregating around the recovered Zhi and Doc.  Tapping her imaginary wristwatch, she points down the trail and impatiently waits for the group to proceed.  She walks silently up to Mock, who towers over her, and taps on her arm, mouthing Drow and points down the trail.

"Good let's keep moving then."  Doc replied to Zhi as he helped him up to his feet.  Following him up the magical rope and back towards the others, Doc gathered the squad and said, "Lets keep moving.  It makes me uneasy that we haven't yet run into a single thing in this jungle but we might as well use it while we can.  Keep you eyes and ears open."  He then began to move down the path.

“Righto Doc.  Will do.”  
Neph moves into stealth mode and goes along the opposite end of the trail than Daewen, but frequently messaging back and forth like a walkie talkie.  He keeps his eyes open for Drow, mushroom men, or any members of the lollipop crew.  

Stealth :  29 

Perception :  24 

As we all mushroom bound or fall across to the other side of the chasm, we approach AREA 16. 

This entire stretch of fungal forest appears to be under construction - meaning, something is deforesting the area on this side of the chasm. Aside from the buzzing of insects and spores, this area for miles on end contain dwarves that appear to be slaves led by patrols of Drow making them do deforestation activities. From a vantage point where you are unseen, there are dozens upon dozens of both of them working and supervising. The drow don't look more powerful than those you have faces already, but their sheer numbers is what concerns you. The dwarves appear to be mindless slaves.

Mock peers over the ledge with everyone else, about to call out that she'll jump down and help them back up when Zhi does his magic rope trick again. Hells, that's coming ridiculously in handy on this mission, ain't it? Maybe she oughta try to learn it. Can she even learn magic? She looks down and wiggles her fingers before shrugging. A question for a later time.

When Daewen taps on her arm, she turns and looks at the little one. It takes her a solid moment to understand what she's mouthing; listen, she's learning, but it's a process. Finally, she gets it and gives her a little finger snap. "Absolutely right. We gotta focus on the drow." She gestures for Daewen to lead on and follows the group down the path. She's trying to stay more focused now, her eyes snapping back to the people ahead of her each time her attention starts to wander back to the fungi around them.

And then suddenly her focus is crystal clear, her vision resting on the drow ahead of them now.  Mock stops right where she is, still subscribing to the whole 'don't move and they won't see you' mindset. They haven't seemed to have been spotted yet, so that's a bonus for them. She looks at the others, waiting to see what they're going to plan to do. She feels a little stronger after their sleep in the hut, but, well. That's a lot of drow.

"Oh man, that's a lot of Drow." Kasha moaned, peeking above some large fungal shrubbery, looking beyond. "That's like..one Drow too many."

So many slaves.  It breaks Raza's heart to see the dwarves treated so.  She knows the drow would work them to death, literally, and they would have no one with them at their last moments to help them pass on.  Evil, wretched creatures these drow were.  The tip of her tail flicks back and forth in agitation.  She is no tactician but the odds seem well stacked in the drow's favor in this situation.  She wonders if there is a way around them.

Arora stops... That's a lot of Drow... too many... we will need to come back to help the dwarves.  "Didn't expect that" she whispers "I think we may need to find another way."

OOC: Since area 16 encompasses the entire upper right-hand quadrant of the map...can we see down to area 18 from where we currently are?  Maybe that's our way around this mess - sneak down there, to head to area 17?

No, but there is an obvious path that leads south through the deforestation, dwarves, and drow.

Neph says "We have to sneak by them.  I can go into mushroom jungle sneak mode, make myself look like a walking mushroom, but we need everyone to sneak by, all quiet like.  Does anyone have a spell that can help?"

Kasha was dancing on one of the lower mushrooms she could crawl on to. "Sugar do do do do do do aw honey honey do do do do do do..!"

"I do have a Pass Without Trace spell, but I don't think it will work with so many drow out there watching."  She hates saying it because it means that she was wrong in the path she chose for the group "We may need to double back to find another way across"