"Hey!" Rizo exclaims when you pack up to continue your trek into the dark, "The Tiefling has disappeared!"

(Anything you wish to do or do we just start our descend into the bowels of the rock?)

"Speaking from experience, it is seldom a good sign when someone disappears.  They have either been taken by something nefarious or they are waiting behind a rock to bust your head."

Rizo lights his shield, "We better be careful down here. I'm not sure how dangerous a carpenter's apprentice can be but if someone or something took him, then, I think we must try and rescue him." 

"Yes, I think we should look for him.  Allow me to lead - I am accustomed to the dark, and I can take a few hits."

In preparation for a likely battle, Spark re-activates her Rite of the Storm, taking 4 damage but infusing her sling with energy.  She also makes some more Magic Stones.

Well rested, you start your descent deeper into the caverns. Spark and the chuul, who seems to have regained its strength during the short rest (HP 74), lead the way with Rizo, Minty and Bappy following on their tracks. Rizo's light illuminates the path around you and you notice that the cavern quickly becomes more of a large, twisting tunnel some 20 feet high and wide. Its walls are smooth white rock and the path features occasional patches of relatively deep sand but few opportunities for anything or anyone hiding behind a rock. After several tens of minutes of walking through the tunnel, you notice a very dim light coming from behind the next twist of the tunnel. You approach carefully and find a marvellous sight waiting for you. The tunnel opens into a new, enormously large cavern filled with a mushroom forest dazzled in bioluminescent light. The light isn't bright but it definitely lets you see the top of the cavern that must be several hundred feet high. The sheer size of the cavern is astonishing and you cannot see how far it extends to the sides as many of the large mushroom trees block your view, some of them as large as 30 or 40 feet high. The path that you've been following continues into the forest and you feel you have little choice but follow it. Certainly, your senses are on edge here as you expect an ambush behind every tree, or mushroom actually. Slowly, Spark advances the path looking out for danger, and the rest following her lead. Then, in a 60 feet distance, Spark notices a clearing on the side of the path. When you approach the clearing, you see that several large mushrooms had been cut down there and lay half prepared to be carried off. By whom, you couldn't say as there's no one here. You draw in closer to inspect it in more detail and find that on the opposite side of the 50 feet diameter clearing lies a small abandoned campsite. Shuffling through the remnants you discover, that there must have been duergar here who apparently harvested the mushrooms, quite likely as timber. The campsite has been abandoned since a long time but by the looks of it not voluntary. There are clear marks of a battle but you cannot easily discern who was battling who. What do you want to do? Search or study the campsite? Leave and continue the path? Anything else?

(I've decided that due to Bappy's absence, the chuul will not require a bonus action to be controlled, anyone of you can mind control it with a free action, as long as you are within 30 feet.)

"There might be some clues in this campsite, but we should be ready in case there are monsters nearby."

You can do Investigation with Rizo’s help.

Spark’s Investigation: 24

(Sorry, I’m on mobile and couldn’t revise and format the text. I might edit it later but the information stays, this was a good roll.)

Spark and Rizo take a close look at the campsite. They start by checking the perimeter of the campsite and are able to determine that there are tracks corresponding to different events. It looks like 4 duergar were accompanied by 2 Minotaurs and they came here to cut down zurkhwood as they first prepared the campsite and then organized it into a the timber camp. After some time a battle occurred with the large zurkhwood mushrooms themselves. Three felled zurkhwoods show signs of battle and damaging spells and have not been prepared for transport as the other cut down zurkhwoods. You note particularly that you don’t find any remains of the duergars and minotaurs. The camp was left behind untouched, which you find strange if the inhabitants have left alive. Lastly, much more recently, maybe even earlier today, more fresh tracks of a humanoid and, Spark especially recognizes, several undead have left the campsite.

 

Then you check the campsite itself more carefully and you confirm that it was set up for harvesting timber. Something ill must have befallen the occupants because it has been left in a state of disorder in midterm of the harvest even before the timber could be transported away. You find several sets of carpenter’s tools, a mess kit, three tents and bedrolls for 6 persons, two of them rather large, several axes and saws to cut down trees or mushrooms and rations for a few days which all have gone bad.

 

Searching the tents you find a journal that confirms your suspicion that they were foraging timber. Noteworthy entries in the journal are that they knew, that a chuul would pass regularly along the path and that they went into hiding every time to avoid it. They scouted the area and noted the path that went to the chuul’s typical hiding place (from where you came); they mention an underground river from which they ascended and that leads to the underdark, presumingly to their home; upstream of the river they report a forest with real trees, which might be the forest of wonders and could be your way home; and the path out of the mushroom forest continues into another large cavern where they've found a dragon turtle, and even when it is absent, there is an abomination guarding the place. The duergar considered the dragon turtles lair dangerous and avoided it.

 

They did scout the mushroom forest in detail and mention a particular interesting area a little bit north of the exit into the dragon turtle's lair. They report that that area is particularly flush and the trees there are higher and stronger and it looks like the duergar were considering to move their camp there to get the best timber first. This is the last entry in the journal. You don’t find anything else.

"I think we ought to check out this area to the north that they mentioned.  And we should watch for undead."

Rizo notes, "Sounds like that area is the local druid's grove, we should definitely check it out. Maybe they can help us to figure out how to get back home."

You find your way easily to the described area and find it as it was portrayed in the duergars' journal, the mushrooms have grown larger the closer you get but the underbrush also is denser by the step impeding your approach. You break through a particular dense bush that you wouldn't actually expect to find underground, a forty feet diameter clearing opens up with an illuminated meadow. A tiny hole in the ceiling allows a beam of sunlight to cast bright light on the open area and apparently the fresh rain water and the little sunlight is enough to maintain this small lush green heaven of vegetation that is otherwise impossible to find underground. Not more than 20 feet from you, you find two small trees inclined towards each other and overgrown with dense moss just in front of a small cave entrance. It looks as if the combination forms a small cabin. Actually, you also see a small bed inside. You enter the cabin and Rizo is convinced that this must have been the local druid's grove but that, for some reason or other, he has left permanently. Spark notes that the druid must have been a forest gnome. Before you can search the cabin, you notice that something large moves through the forest towards you. Four awakened Zurkhwoods just broke through onto the clearing! (Roll Initiative). At the sight of the awakened trees, Rizo says, "These must be the protectors of the druid's grove in the druid's absence. They should not harm us if we do not disturb the balance. We must make our intentions clear." Rizo gulps and yells at the Zurkhwoods in an ancient tongue (Druidic), then he informs you, "I've just told them that we mean no harm to the forest and came to visit the elder. Peace in balance. That should stop them." As in reply to Rizo's statement, the Zurkhwoods continue their approach aggressively, undeterred by his attempted parley. 

Initiative:

Rizo: 16

Chuul: 3

Awakened Zurkhwood #1: 12

Awakened Zurkhwood #2: 15

Awakened Zurkhwood #3: 8

Awakened Zurkhwood #4: 3

Spark's initiative: 7

Minty's initiative:23

(Sorry, death in the family has taken me out of circulation for the last few days)

(My condolences for your loss. We can keep it slow and we wait until you have time and feel better. I don't want playing to be a chore.)

When Rizo realises that his words find no ear, he murmurs, "They shouldn't be attacking us unless we pose a threat, I'm sure the druid left them as guardians. They do not seem to understand me. I wonder in what language the druid instructed them."

 Initiative: Minty (But you can have a short conversation first if you wish to coordinate.)

Minty, Chuul, Rizo, AZ2, AZ3, AZ4, Spark, AZ1

Here's the new map, you're opposing four Awakened Zurkhwoods. 

Minty puts his faith in Rizo.  He loads his crossbow, retreats behind the others and  prepares to shoot anything that tries to harm any of his allies. (Hold action to shoot if any of the wakened plants come within melee range of anyone.) 

(The chuul is under Spark's command but keep in mind that you must be within 30 feet of it or you risk loosing control. You don't need to have the rod in hand, it's enough that it s on your person. Another note on the map that I forgot to mention before, the green outline shows the extent of the clearing. The area outside is difficult terrain and heavily obscured. The cave is outlined in brown and the large zurkhwoods cannot enter there as it was the dwelling of a forest gnome.)

As Minty retreats into the cave, he immediately notices a small chest in a dark corner. Certainly that must be where the druid had kept his belongings. You wonder if he left anything of worth behind. Meanwhile, the Awakened Zurkhwoods retreat back into the forest. It appears they know well that they cannot reach you inside the cave. Nevertheless, you feel that their eyes are following your every move. 

(For now we're out of initiative.)

On a hunch, Spark takes one step into the forest and yells out in Gnomish: "We mean no harm.  We only wish to visit the elder.  Peace in balance."

"The ... elder... has left, " booms a deep, gnarly voice that is in utter contrast to its gnomish language. "He will ... return," a Zurkhwood, perhaps the larger one of the lot, steps out of the foliage into clear view, "But... you... must leave." It reveres the druid grove with a wide gesture, "You... must not... disturb."

"When will he return?  Where is he?"

The tree pauses for a significant period and then when you start wondering if it had heard you, "We do... not know... We protect... You must... leave."