"Anyone whose worshippers gather in a place like this is not someone i want to pledge myself to."

As you enter the large room beyond, you notice some creepy looking items in the shadows of thirteen alcoves situated in the wall around the perimeter of the room. There are two doorways on the wall to the right of where you enter the space. The chanting is louder yet here, rising in a steady thrum.

Creak will further examine the items.

As you search through the alcoves, you find the following items, displayed almost as if they were trophies.

• A small, mummified, yellow hand with sharp claws on a loop of rope;
• A knife carved from a medium-sized humanoid bone;
• A dagger with a large rodent's skull set into the pommel;
• An 8-inch-diameter varnished orb that looks like a murky eye;
• An aspergillum carved from bone;
• A folded cloak made from stitched ghoul skin;
• A desiccated frog lashed to a stick;
• A bag full of bat guano;
• A withered severed finger;
• A 6-inch-tall wooden figurine of a mummy, its arms crossed over its chest;
• An iron pendant adorned with a devil’s face;
• The shrunken, shriveled head of a halfling;
• A small wooden coffer containing a dire wolf’s withered tongue.

Creak just mimics a very confused, “Why...” He’ll check for any traps in the area of them: 17. If he deems it safe, and with that nine he probably does, he’ll swipe the dagger, orb, and the frog. He doesn’t quite trust anything else.

 "What happened to not touching anything again....." And Balmaris looks at Creak and sighs.

Adric has his sword and shield out and is ready for some horrible thing to pop out as a result of Creak pocketing random loot. 

Creak swipes the items and after a collective breath holding, a very anti-climactic nothing happens. Creak, you now are in possession of a few weird trophies. 

"Hmmm....." Gralwynn eyes the dagger curiously, her eyes becoming murkier for a second, then snaps out of it.

She moves to collect the bone-knife, guanno, tounge, rope-claw, and shrunken head.

She wonders if the head could be refitted into a lantern...

Giving Creak a disappointed look, Rynna looks over the items hoping to detect any magic.

Creak shrugs, “Could be important- No- dead- I checked.”

"I would see only 3 reasons they would be on display like that, 1 worship, 2 they were important, or 3, it's a mousetrap.

And seeing as the alcove wasn't very grand, and our necks are still intact, I'd bet on 2"

*meant 2, not 3, typo*

"Maybe but I knew a fellow who thought he had a reliquary of one of Torm's avatars.  Ended up being a troll's toe.  At least he figured that out before it regenerated."

The gallery of strange things didn't seem all that impressive to Rynna.  Of course the best magics were often hidden and the bat guano and aspergillum served a function.

"That aspergillum might be useful if we find some holy water.  The bat guano would be good for fireballs but I have a focus.  I'm not interested in anything else- not sure I trust it, magical or not."

Nothing seems to give off any magical energies as you check all of the room. It really looks like these people had collected these and treated them almost like artifacts of importance, though to what purpose you cannot guess.

With a shrug, Creak will continue leading the party. To the doorways on the right! We’ll take whichever has the louder chanting.

Gralwynn, a little peeved, grabs the rest of the items, with plans of "gifting" them to her companions later...

Following the others, nervous sweat pinpricked Rynna's back.

Adric has his sword and shield out, ready to smite any undead abominations or insane cultists that might pop out. 

Creak, you advance across the room to the doorway furthest from where you entered. The chanting gets louder and clearer with every step you take. The tunnel is blocked with a rusty portcullis and has a small downward ramp into ankle deep water. It looks like it could be raised, possibly.

Creak puts his hand under his chin in a “Hmmm” position. He turns to Adric and gestures for him to lift it. He then gives a thumbs up.