The firenewt gets up slowly, hands out, looking around somewhat in disappointment, before calling to its companion in the passage, getting a reply and backing towards the exit. You can hear the sounds of the two of them scrambling up the now cooling rocks.

Gal, Kolose and company keep watch up above, the creature's impatience eventually answered by their two who went down the once fiery tunnel reemerging, and a conversation back and forth between them and their leader. The leader doesn't seem pleased, seemingly asking the same question multiple times, and getting what seems to be a negative response. One of them seems to have returned sans scimitar, and is ashamed. The fire shooting out of the hole has now dwindled to a thin stream of smoke still drifting out and rising along the ceiling, but it seems to no longer hold the interest for them that it once did, as they prepare to continue on in the direction they were traveling.

The one who lost its blade is not given back a torch to carry, and is made to walk behind the pack lizards as they depart.

Stena waits until the sounds of the newts have quieted before motioning the others forward.

"Aye go up first. Aye'll call down if it's clear. Grab the scimitar. Now ye have a crossbow and sword."

Stena begins her climb.

Galingal watches the exchange with interest but makes no effort to move. Once the caravan of firenewts has gone, he climbs down from the alcove they’ve hidden in.

The firenewts head off, uninjured except for one of their pride, and Stena taking the lead up the twisting chimney of rock reaches an opening that she just barely doesn't have to duck under. The stone has been radiating heat back at her, and she's feeling a bit sweaty by the time cool air caresses her face as she peers out and sees a familiar shadow elf, deep gnome, tiefling, goblin and aged human clambering down from a nearby alcove. No one can see her yet, since she's invisible in the dark.

((Stena, make me an Investigation check during your climb upward?))

Investigation: 16

Stena takes a deep breath as she watches the others climb down, eyes narrowed. She considers not saying anything, but Galingal is too much of an asset despite the baggage that's with him.

Taking a deep breath she wills herself back into visibility, working to quash the... feeling she needs to quash.

She gives a simple wave to rest then calls down,

"Climb up, it's clear."

((If you're talking to Lia and the others, it'd have been a long route up, the equivalent of a good many flights of stairs, but they could have been trailing along a flight or so back. If you're talking to Gal, you're on either side of a tunnel that is below you running right and left.))

Galingal looks over at the now visible Stena.

He nods a greeting, almost smiling, but not quite. If he had to admit it, he'd say he was content with the dwarf being back.

"Any of others make it?" Galingal says to Stena.

((Stena was calling down to Lia and the rest to come up.))

Stena gives Galingal a returned nod and answers some.

"Some. We'll see how many make the climb."

Leaving that topic she'll ask,

"You saw the newts, a pair of them?"

She'll also lower her voice and say,

"Whatever creature that eviscerated... Whatever creature that the kua-toa were afraid of, the disembowler, was down there."

She jerks a chin behind her towards the tunnel.

"It made a mess of a spider and a drow. Not a proper predator, didn't eat anything that aye could tell."

Galingal nods in the direction the firenewts went.

"Whole group of them," Galingal says. "Eight or nine."

He then looks down the tunnel for a moment, thinking about what Stena has just said. Something makes him think of Buppido.

"Should double up on watch when rest," Galingal finally says.

He looks back down the tunnel. If Lia wasn't down there, he thinks he'd likely just start moving. And he's pretty sure Stena would do the same.

In the end he takes out a coil of rope, quickly knots it an lowers it down the tunnel to help the others climb out, finding a boulder or crevice to loop the rope through to act as an anchor.

With assist from some rope, and Spiderbait providing his expertise, Lia and the halfling make their way up and out.

"Found some coin on someone the spiders must have ate.", Lia says, holding up a handful of dull coins. "Guessing they are duergar stamping?"

"See, told you it'd be fine.", Neth chimes in.

"Double watch."

Stena agrees.

Once Lia is up Stena looks at the coins briefly, before turning to the goblins.

"Where is the city from here?"

She then pauses and turns to the halfing,

"Ye. How did ye get down here and do ye have a way back up?"

Kolose seems unreasonably perturbed with the potential of needing to stay awake for a part of the night to help keep watch, but willing to take the burden if needed.

Although it is lofty to presume any of the group would trust him enough to allow him to be on single watch.

Galingal gathers the rope back up and heads in the direction the goblins point out, while at the same time listening carefully to whatever the halfling says about a potential way out.

He also keeps an eye out as they go for trouble (or a place to camp if it's near the end of the day - Perception: 21  )

Yuk Yuk and Spiderbait confer in goblin, before the smaller, more verbose one nods and addresses Stena's question, "Sure dudes, gotta head a ways down on this side, then cross back over the Silken Paths to the other side, then should be fairly straight shot from there to the city for yah bruhs."

The halfling looks up from where he is checking over his new handcrossbow using a pebble that Lia lit up for him. "I regret to say I don't, I came down here with party of a group looking for adventure and a treasure, and found rather more than we bargained for of the former, and not enough of the latter."

((I believe your last long rest was on the island where Jenny Ragbones approached in the night, you have found and lost Thorum since then, and crossed the Silken Paths from one side the other, are you wanting to rest up before crossing the silk again to the other side?))

(If the area looks like there's some space, yes, resting probably a good idea before they have to cross over again)

"What happened to the rest of year group?"

Stena'd be hesitant given what she saw below but if they're going to cross again she'd agree they need a rest.

"We weren't in good shape after running from some drow, spent the night in a place with all sorts of glowing crystals, figured it'd help us see any of them coming, and Jorp kinda snapped, tried running off in the middle of the night with the ma- supplies, we managed to track him down and get the pack away from him, but he threw dirt in my eyes and took off. Last we saw of him. Torst, Verna and I kept on, but hook horrors routed us and we lost Torst, I can only assume for good. I'm... I'm not sure what happened to Verna, things get pretty fuzzy until I remember waking up wrapped in silk, and then you lot freeing me."

((If you wish to rest this side, the goblins can guide you to a place with enough room for the party that should be safe for the night.))

Stena doesn't take her eyes of the halfling,

"Unfortunate."

She offers without much conviction.

"Now, aye need to see that map you managed to wrest back."

She extends a hand.

"Ye will get it back, but aye will be checking it to verify it isn't of use in getting us out."

((Any rolls?))