The Tortle Package (DM Lerus)

"Aye, I'm ready. Let's be careful. There might be more o' these uglies 'round here." Rhogal says after nursing his knees a bit keeping and an eye on the ceiling.

Perception: 17

Seeing Rhogal hurt strikes an unexpected chord within Krodhen and he finds himself approaching the stoic dwarf and laying a hand on him, letting some of the energy he finds within himself course between the two of them Cure Wounds for 4HP of healing. "You doing okay?  Nasty fall from up there..."

As he finds his place in the marching order he pulls energy into himself to find himself renewed once again (Channel Divinity to Harness Divine Power to regain the spell slot just used) and smiles unexpectedly at his actions, before fallen back into his more serious posture. 

Regardless of the decision of the group, Yulmiath still takes a tentacle from the roper, wrapping it about this torso like it's another coil of rope.

"I'm ready to head out. Let's see where this path goes, shall we?"

Survival - 13

(OOC Assume that Krodhen is taking that flail?)

"Wow! Look at this thing!" Kairus was waiting to see the type of meat they were getting here, but an unexpected trophy was even better (at least until the party still had some food with them). "I bet it's magical! At least somehow enchanted to withstand the harshest conditions possible. Can not say I know how to use it, but we are keeping it." He formed a a spectral, floating hand and pulled the flail out of the mess. "Anyone wants to take a closer look?" 

If no one did, Kairus used the magic hand to somewhat clean the weapon and packed it for later studies. Then he was ready to go.

(OOC: Forgot to roll the fall damage, so here goes: 9.)

"... I have no swifter means to study that weapon. But a fitting one it would be regardless in Krogal's hand. And given its resilience and the threats we faced so far, having an enchanted weapon can only be a boon. Once we've rested and he has a chance to study it more, of course." Hun mentions, forgetting as usual to say the Half-Orc's name properly. Although in his defense for once, the Kobold had appeared distracted studying his other finding and considering its potency.

In the end, he opts just to carefully remove the large sack, tying or binding any tubing as necessary to preserve the concoction, before seeing it safely secured in his satchel. With his trophy secured, he offhandedly assures everyone that there would be no snacking on any remains of the beast, least they wind up some tentacled horror themselves or worse.

"Wouldn't know. We've seen plenty examples of how twisted up these tunnels can get. But the one's with the most fungi might suggest the path that our myconid, uh, acquiantances took. And here, a little pick me up." By the time he's once more on the back of Mr. Thicc, but well before Yulmiath had completed his survey, Hun he'd feel a pat on the shoulder from Mr. Thicc, alongside a strange tingly sensation.

-> (If able)Hun is casting Guidance on Yully, adding another 2 to his previous roll.

OOC: Not really Krodhen weapon of choice, but he will grab it for now

As the weapon becomes apparent in the contents of its gizzards, Krodhen's interest it more than piqued "Int'restin - not me first choice of weapons, but I'll take it for now unless one of you can make better use of it?"

Unless there is an objection, Krodhen will grab it and do his best to clean it off, using the outside of the beast if necessary, before putting it in his backpack.

Rhogal crooks an eye at Krodhen as he heals him, "I've taken more'n a few tumbles in my time. But, thanks..."

Yulmiath's pointing hand very slightly corrects it's position at Hun's touch. Nodding his thanks to the kobold he emphasises the second sentence to give it added gravitas.

"Much obliged, wee one. This is the path."

As Hun analyses the creature, the rest of the party does not stand idle. Krodhen spots the companion who has possibly suffered the most in the roper's tentacles and, in a rare display of compassion, approaches Rhogal with a healing hand. (Rhogal recovers 6 HP.)

Kairus points out the trophy the creature housed within itself and enlists the help of his magical hand to retrieve it. Krodhen shows some interest in it, doing his best to clean it while avoiding the goo, and then packs it up for travel and future study/use.

In the meantime, Hun carefully extracts the sack of digestive juices and secures it within his endless satchel. He shares his concerns about eating the monster with the rest of the group and then does what he can when it comes time to choose a path forward. He manages this display of multitasking despite hurting a bit from his earlier fall. (Hun takes 9 bludgeoning damage.)

The task of choosing a path ultimately falls on Yulmiath's shoulders. The dragonborn accepts some advice from his companions and decides to move towards the path to his left (right on the map.) Despite it nursing more mushrooms than the alternate path, the tunnel soon becomes a generic, dank, tight path into darkness. As the group advances, Rhogal is sure to keep an eye out for further encounters with suspicious rock formations, but is comforted when he does not spot any eyes on the boulders, stalactites, or stalagmites they come across.

Another hour of cave delving eventually leads the group through a few more forks on the road. Using the mushrooms to guide them forward, the group enters a chamber that has been partially caved in. Rocks of many sizes are piled up on one side of the room but there is still enough space for the party to walk around the rocks and continue on their way. That said, you all stop, at least momentarily, when you notice a human's torso poking out of the pile of rocks. The man's lower half has clearly been crushed under the boulders, causing him to lose his life. He wears the cloth and leather of a traditional adventurer, and some gear spills forth from his backpack which is open and still looped around his shoulders. He looks like he has been here for a while, though not long enough for severe decomposition to have taken hold. Perhaps this is the man the myconids had mentioned.

"Oh, damn... Never gits easier ta see. Could this be yer man?" Rhogal asks in a consolatory tone upon seeing the man under the cave-in, not knowing what exactly Volo looks like.

Hun just stares at the body for a long moment, saying nothing even in answer to Rhogal. Then he finally utters a word in draconic, spurring his mount close enough to eventually hop down and examine the man's features; his face the whole time having been set into a studious, but otherwise emotionless mask while giving the body a once over.

(@lerus: Given Hun's background, his intereactions with Volo would be somewhat distant and largely second hand via the books, reputation, and descriptions of the man told by others. That said, does he recognize the dead man as Volo? If a check is needed, here's a history one below.)

-> History: 15. 

If he recognizes the man to be Volo, Hun grits his teeth, squeezes his eyes shut, and just knelt there shaking slightly as if trying to hold back an outburst. But if he doesn't, he'd breath a sigh of relief and finally would say to the others, "No thankfully. This isn't him. But, we still have to continue on to find our Geonids all the same." Either which way, though it might take him a little longer in the first instance to calm down first, he'd set about searching the body for anything of use, even if only as scrap material to throw into his bag. 

-> Investigation: 8. 

"You have the most peculiar smells on the surface!" For Kairus the very thing still felt strange and he suspected he will never get fully used to the sense of smell. For him the smells are mostly differentiated by intercity rather than a pleasantry, and that particular was quite intense. "Is this the human you were looking for?" He did not want to be insensitive and waited for Hun to react first. "Good thing nobody ate the body. Does it mean we are safe in this part of the tunnels? Aside from the roks, of course." He looked up. Just in case. (Perception: 20 )

Kneeling by the body, Yulmiath says nothing but helps Hun go through maybe-Volo's things. He sticks to scrolls, books, anything that might have a way to identify the poor bastard. Should he find anything, he passed it silently to Hun to verify.

(OOC Happy for this to help Hun or be its own investigation check, in which case 14.)

(If able to cash in the help, here's the adv. roll: 16.)

Rhogal is the first to voice everyone's fear. Once the question is followed by a moment of silent doubt, Kairus repeats it as to ensure it is not ignored. Still silent, Hun finally moves closer to the body. Yulmiath follows closely, assisting the kobold as he can.

While the reptilian-like duo advances, Kairus takes a look around. The rocks are just that... rocks. However, the triton spots something on the ceiling. A simple mechanism of sorts, involving some rope, a net, and a familiar wedged-stone trigger.

Hun knows Volo to be a short, somewhat stout human male of enviable facial hair. The man is said to have a flowery personality, which comes across not only in the way he writes, but also in the manner in which he dresses. If he had to guess, Hun would bet that Volo would never let himself be caught in the common fabrics and leathers of an average adventurer, no offense meant. Furthermore, unless Volo become more slender, muscly, and shaved off his beard, then this corpse is not his.

The question remains, however, on who could this be. Yul and Hun start pouring though the corpse's belongings, still both a bit shaken by the close call. Nonetheless, the artificer's professional approach to examinations eventually kicks in and discoveries are made. First, there is nothing within the bag that is made out of metal which could be considered common adventuring gear: no pitons, hammers, weapons, ammunition, shovels, or coins. There are no metal armor pieces either, and should this adventurer be lucky enough to have found any gems, there are none on his person now. Second, what the group finds include a few changes of clothes (no metal belt buckles), an abacus, quills, ink, tinder for fire-starting (no metal tinderbox), a bedroll, and rope. Most valuable of all, there is a leather-bound journal. Skimming its passages, here's what Hun comes across:

"Stupid Volo is making me do this. Says it is part of the fee he paid me: I have to keep a travel log. Small man and his small ideas. I wish father hadn't preached the importance of being literate. I'd be able to avoid this chore. Who cares about what I have to say. He's the one selling books!"

"Writing on this journal has been the hardest past of the trip so far.  That and Volo's incessant yapping. I am being paid to keep him safe but no sane creature would ever approach such a loudmouth in the wild. They'd have their ears rotten away."

"We made it to the tortle island. Ahoyhoy is pleasant enough, as small-minded as these folk can be. No human settlement would leave such a mass of land unexplored or unclaimed. These walking turtles lack ambition, if you ask me."

"Off we go again. Volo says he wants to catalogue the creatures in the island but he has been asking repeatedly about these mud pools. I won't complain if we find them. It might be a good chance to ask for a raise on my fee once he is all relaxed and malleable. It is not like he'll want to be left there alone, is it?"

"Volo rushed out of the pools as soon as he heard about some snake ruins. Said ruins are a great location to find long forgotten species of monsters. Pfff... If you ask me, this island's birds are all the monsters one needs. The feathered fiends are vicious out here."

"We found the ruins and camped outside. It took some convincing but Volo finally listened to reason. There is no point in entering the snake's mouth in the night."

"Disaster. We were ambushed inside. Some undead snakes took him when we refused to go on a MacGuffin search for them. I fought but Volo was useless, as usual. Now I am being forced to go on the search anyway, or Volo is done for."

"The search continues. There is no end to these caves. I know nothing of this land. I should have hired a local guide myself."

"Another cave. Why am I doing this? There is only failure ahead. I will fail and Volo's fate will be sealed. I have no chance here. He has no chance. Why am I still advancing. Why am I still searching. Why am I still writing on this cursed journal..."

If Hun read or summed up what he read aloud, the only response from Kairus would be "Hm, I do not remember a human corpse in the snake cave." He was busy studying that trap on the ceiling.

If it looked triggered (and be the one that killed Volos' helper) all that could be said here is "If not a monster, then a trap. That human forgot to look up."

If the mechanism looks still intact and we can expect another rockfall, Kairus will try to disarm the thing. Or many ask Hun to do it. There is still some music in the cittern and one can get to the ceiling to make the trap harmless.

Yulmiath shakes his head. He had hoped they could give those skeletal snakes the swerve but now it looks like the Snack Pack was on a collision course. They just needed the statue first. From the lack of metal in that poor humans pack, he could only assume that they were close to the group of geonids who had taken the statue and that those myconids warned them about.

"Let's find that statue first. We can find Volo once we've something to bargain with. Maybe there's a deeper level where they're holding him?"

"Aye. Considerin' the reason for that shrine, it's no surprise that they're the types ta hold hostages." Rhogal says. "I didnae see anything when we were there last. But, we were distracted by the existence of them bony fellers."

Hun had indeed summarized the tale after a once over, smirking towards the end. "Leave it to Volo to know just how to get under one's skin, or inspire them action." He commented. "But yes, Mr. Yully. On that we can agree. Though it could just as well be he managed to escape them all the same, best to hedge our bets for sure." He gives the journal as a whole another look over before packing away. 

Though if able to trace kairus gaze up to the trap(or it remains at that point), he rubs his chin and murmurs, "Clever... Very clever. Didn't think the pebble heads had it in them, but I'm starting to stand corrected." If the trap had already been sprung, Hun eagerly ushers folk onwards through the gap. But if not, or if it seemed as if Kairus play at magic might not be enough, he'd begin searching for a means to scale up and disable it, least it somehow be tripped by their attempts to bypass the deadfall. 

The trigger mechanism on the ceiling does indeed look already triggered. Kairus is pretty sure it was what released the boulders onto the fallen unnamed adventurer in front of him. It is unclear whether the adventurer accidentally triggered the trap himself or another creature did it when they saw the approaching adventurer. 

After Yulmiath and Rhogal agree that another visit to the snakes might be in order, Hun spurs the group forward. The Snack Pack advances for no more than 100 yards before their boots or foot-wrappings begin to disconnect from the ground with a little added difficulty (It feels sticky like when you are walking on a bar/pub floor after someone has spilled their drink). A thin layer of sticky substance coves most of the path ahead and, even though the group can see its shine, you can't yet tell in complete darkness whether it has any coloration to it. 

Soon, some light begins to emanate from a chamber ahead. It is not like something was just lit, but as if you are finally coming within range of the light source already lit within the chamber ahead. Because of the light, which is bright blue, you can now see the substance covering the ground a bit better. It has the same coloration as the light, though less bright. You can also now tell that this thin layer of whatever substance is also on the walls and ceiling of the tunnel around you. The light beyond reminds you of the bright bioluminescence emanated by the mushrooms within the myconids' realm.

(OOC: How would you like to proceed?)