Lia turns and runs (as much as she’s able through the shallows) and jumps back into the boat beside Thom, ready to continue on to the village.

She pulls her bow out again too and keeps an eye on surroundings.

The KT in robes frowns, which is quite the facial expression for them, he speaks to the Prince, Thom and Lia as she returns to the boat.

"One of yours was ritually killed? I am sorry for your loss... but it doesn't make sense for one of hers to do it here... it wouldn't bring her power... she'd want you back in Sloobludop, at her alter, in front of a crowd. Could you ask your friends if we might see how it was displayed?"

Lia frowns, and carries it off slightly better than the fishfolk. She looks to Thom to approach the others with the question. He seems to have a better rapport with Stena.

Thom also frowns at the question and looks at Lia with concern. Since Thom hasn't said anything yet about the upcoming sacrifice plans to Stena and Gal, he doesn't really know the best way to handle this.

The longer the situation goes on, the more shady it might seem to Stena and Gal.

And Thom really wants to get out of here.

So, he just goes ahead and asks Stena this:

"er.. Commander Stena, ma'am. They want to see Eldeth. They want to help. They might be able to determine who did it she said." and he points to the KT with the robe. 

Thom also says "um... they can also help us get out of here." and he waves his arms everywhere, trying to explain 'here' as down here in the underdark. "...if we help them with something. Right, Ploopp?" and he tries to push Ploopp and Stena into conversation. 

"Perhaps we shall disucss during the rest of the trip to the village, madam Stena?"

"Gal, you said Eldeth is right over there by those other sandbars, yeah?" 

"Just Stena or ma'am. Aye'm not yer commander. They aren't going to get at Eldeth and we know who did it, aye put an arrow through its head."

She points out to where Galigal pointed and says,

"The kua-tao gutted and...decorated the sand with another kua-toa. They can look at that."

With conditional permission granted to inspect the dead KT, the robed one gestures and one of the fishfolk dives over the side and circles wide around the militant standoff from Stena and Galingal.

There is a yelp, and splashing, and a short while later, the scout scrambles back aboard their boat, babbling in Undercommon.

"What's a... 'Gut Plucker'?", Jimjar asks.

The KT are visibly shaken, some of them moving their hands in gestures on might be supposed to ward off evil, and looking around warily. The robed one attempts to calm them, before calling out.

"It wasn't my daughter's followers that killed one of their own like that, and killed your friend! We should all go! NOW! The creature that did it might still be here right now, watching us, waiting..."

((Thom and Lia, you get the sense that Ploopp is genuinely worried.))

"Right! Madam Stena. Ma'am." and he nods at her in obedience. 

As Ploopp begins to sound worried, Thom says "wait, commande.. er... I mean, Madam Stena says that she got it. Arrow right through its head, yeah? So don't worry, Ploopp!"

"Right?" and he looks around aimlessly. 

"She killed it?! She slayed the Gut Plucker? That monster is dead! Oh, Sea Mother be praised for delivering you all to us! A hero! A hero to my people!", Ploopp crows, and the boats full of kuo-toa cheer.

"Let us load the monsters body into one of our boats and pull it to Sloobludop, her head will pop with jealousy when she sees us return with it as offering to the Sea Mother!"

"Stena did kill kuo-toa," Galingal says. "But we not see this killing happen."

He looks back to Buppido.

"You see?" he asks in common and elvish, but gestures at Jimjar to ask too.

“Gut Picker is a regular Kuo Toa?…”, Lia asks the KT leader. “Or something else??….”. She then quickly looks about in case ‘something else’ is still at large.

Jimjar catches on, and calls across the water, "Oi! Buppy!"

They go back and forth in Undercommon a bit, the Kuo-toa growing silent and fearful.

Ploopp interjects, asking Buppido questions that you understand despite them being asked in Undercommon, but can't understand Buppido's response, though it seems to make sense to Ploopp.

"Did you see its eyes, big and glowing?"

Buppy: [Undercommon and nodding]

"And the hands? Fingernails like daggers?"

Buppy: [Undercommon and pulling back a sleeve to show slashes in the back of his forearm.]

((It was clear to Thom and Lia, but if Galingal and Stena haven't picked up on hit, there is some sort of magic that is allowing the robed KT to both understand and be understood by those of you conversing in Common.))

Jimjar calls out for the benefit of those who don't speak Undercommon, "Buppido says he was in and out of consciousness after getting captured, woke to the KT screaming, then blacked out as he was hauled from the boat by something that matches the Archpriest's description of one 'Gut Plucker', then woke up when Galingal revived him. I bet he heard us coming and is long gone..." 

Despite his claim, the deep gnome doesn't sound confident in the wager.

Stena looks increasingly annoyed at Buppido,

"Ye didn't think that was worth bringing up immediately when we got ye in the boat?"

((What was the description beyond the claws?

Nature: 8))

Regardless of any apparent confusion, Lia calls out, “That’s all sorted out then! Let’s go let’s go!!”.

Buppido throws up his hands in exasperation, biting back a response in dwarvish.

The description that was gleaned through various cross-translations was grey skin, long limbs, big glowing eyes and long fingers tipped with razor sharp claws and a taste for kidneys. It seems that 'Gut Plucker' is a bit of a bogeyman for the kuo-toa of Sloobludop.

Lia continues, and urges the KT leader to urge the boats onward again, “Uh huh.. Uh huh!.. Let’s go!”, with a smile.

Galingal keeps an eye on the water as much as he can but signals he's ready to get going. He and Stena have not rested since the attack in the zurkhwood grove and need to get somewhere they can. This clearly isn't that place.

The consensus seems to be to get going as soon as possible, and the KT take point, as they know how to navigate the delta, leaving Galingal, Stena, Shuushar, and Buppido to follow as they are able, at whatever distance the dwarf deems suitable. The kuo-toa monk eventually revives, and takes in his surroundings. Buppido fills him in in Undercommon as he gets the fishy version of a 'hairy eyeball' from the followers of Blibdoolpoolp the Sea Mother

Sloobludop spreads out along the rocky shore of the waters of a broad cavern lake, with high fences of woven netting to the north and south of the village boundaries. From a distance, it looks like a massive tangle of reeds stretching up into the darkness, lit by glowing spots of phosphorescence. Upon closer approach, a series of rickety towers can be seen, lashed together by rope and plank bridges set in haphazard patterns. Even above ground, the kuo-toa build in line with their three-dimensional aquatic sensibilities, constructing their "great city" as if it were underwater. 

Ploopp's spell seems to have expired, as he converses with Jimjar, who tells the party, "She controls the docks in the name of the Deep Father, we will go aground north of the village and enter through the gate."

((Stena does speak undercommon and would stick to that to communicate with everyone except those in the group that can't speak it.))

Stena growls back at Buppido in dwarven,

Stena follows close enough to stay in bow range, but not much closer than that until they reach the settlement.

Upon hearing about a "she" and a deep father Stena asks in undercommon,

((Ah, sorry, I should have checked Stena's sheet, I'd forgotten that, but knew that Buppy could speak dwarvish.))

Buppido sputters back at her.

The robed kuo-toa shakes his head sadly, walking towards Stena to converse in Undercommon, his followers trailing behind him like a school of fish. 

He explains, and is translated into Common by Jimjar, much of what he'd already told the party he'd rescued from their captors.

He introduces himself as Ploopploopeen, Archpriest of Blibdoolpoolp the Sea Mother, and he has been the leader of the town since he inherited the position from his father. A new cult, claiming to worship Leemooggoogoon the Deep Father has been gaining power, at an accelerated pace since his own daughter, Bloppblippodd defected from her position at his side to claim to be the archpriest of the Deep Father. There have often been minor cults (he glances to Shuushar, who does a good job of pretending to ignore him),  but never popular enough to rival worship of the true goddess of the kuo-toa, and never as violent and worrisome. He fears the infighting is destroying Sloobludop. Violence is spreading, and visitors are randomly sacrificed, which harms the city economically. He wants to put an end to the cult to save his people, returning them to proper worship.

He wants the party's help to publicly capture or kill Bloppblippodd and destroy her shrine to the Deep Father. It needs to be witnessed by the people to show that the new cult is weak, especially since she has been claiming that the shrine itself is divinely tied to the city, and has been using that to manipulate people into worshiping there.

"I asked your fellows to help by posing as sacrifices provided to the Sea Mother to the Deep Father, to allow us all to get close enough to her to take her out. I cannot otherwise get close during her rituals, her followers will prevent the Sea Mother's from getting close... but if we were to have a ruse, with you as the lure, we can get close, take out the shrine and the head of the cult and begin to restore proper order. Afterward, the Sea Mother will grant you whatever aid you need in returning your Prince to the surface. No one knows the Darklake like a kuo-toa guide, we can get you to Gracklstugh, or to Blingdenstone by way of Mantol Derith, you should find people there who know routes to the surface. Though surely your drow knows a way from Menzoberranzan, we can help get you there too."

 "But I know it's a lot to ask, but posing as sacrifices was what came to mind... but if you've better ideas, the Sea Mother is not one to throw away things of value. As long as the cult is broken, I will consider our agreement met, if you can find other ways to ruin the Deep Father's followers. Perhaps you should see the state of the city for yourselves first? You are not my prisoners, but my guests. I have not restrained you, or taken your belongings, I see us as partners in this, each getting what the other can provide. Please, be on your guard, but go ahead, enter Sloobludop and see what this cult has wrought for yourselves, and meet me at "The Beer Room" in a few hours?"

((Jimjar did a fair bit to smooth up the dialogue, he's a bit prone to meandering thoughts and rants in the original Undercommon.))

Stena lets Buppido say his bit and adds sourly,

 Stena takes in Ploop's story and request silently and before saying in undercommon,

 She'll then turn to the others and bring them in to ask in common and undercommon, summarizing the responses in common for the undercommon speakers and vice versa for those that can't speak undercommon,

"Aye presume ye have already agreed to Ploop's offer? Do we want to get involved in this? Can they be trusted Shuushar?"