As the bear regains a footing, Fiorello offers the staff saying, "Perhaps this would be of more use to you. I would suggest spending some time to understand it's intricacies."

He looks over at Tony, "As good an idea as I've heard. But this space seems vast and it's quite dark. Should we shed some light on the situation?" (Survival: 22)

Amaruve shrinks back to his normal form and his tattered suit starts to mend itself slowly.

He examines the staff as Fiorello offers it then takes it in his teeth and slips it under the strap of his satchel next to the unicorn horn.

As they rest Amaruve paces around their soggy makeshift camp, tasting the water and feeling it's movements and temperature against his nose, seeking Mother Gaia as he does.

(Survival: (3)19)

He stops his pacing to sniff at the Fiorello. He seems to have grown during this brief journey.

Survival: 13

Jean looked down at her empty scabbard deep in thought. The ice club was fine but she keenly felt the loss of the Sword of the Tower. An idea began to percolate in her mind, but first they had to escape.

(this new and improved Fiorello is worth his weight in dice- 22 on Survival it is! I'll let you know what you find later tonight, but feel free to chat as you splash along)

Amaruve peers into the hollow end of the horn and then fills it with the water, before he corks it with a stopper from dry flask, and slips it back under his pouch.

(I'm not sure how much Penguin has read, but Fiorello would know that Amaruve is an intelligent being capable of shape shifting, but commonly in the form of a Black Bear. Though the reason for this may not be clear. He will have observed the druid take on a mostly human form at times, though never for more than a minute at a time.)

With Fiorello in the lead, the party walks for roughly twenty minutes before stumbling across something.

Standing in the middle of the empty space, a stone dais appears. It's engraved with a familiar symbol: The floating castle of Laputa balanced between two yews. Speaking of which, to the sides of the dais are the charred husks of the adjudicating guardians (Penguini- these were a pair of trees that weighed and measured the sins of the party just before you joined on. They clapped you in irons and attempted to murder Perspicacious directly. Perspicacious... dealt with them)

After some inspection, the dais and the trees appear to actually be here- they're not illusions. They're stubbornly dark, though. Even Amaruve's flames fails to lighten them, almost as though shadows are clinging to them like dust. 

"Nice to see yew all again."

Amaruve lowers his head and starts performing an (unprepared) Ceremony for these beautiful fallen beings. Who would do such a thing...

Quote from BDaddLy >>

Amaruve lowers his head and starts performing an (unprepared) Ceremony for these beautiful fallen beings. Who would do such a thing...

 Oh... Oh, Amaruve, I have terrible news

(Actually, are you really performing a funeral rite, then?)

(I neither have the spell prepared, nor will I spend an hour casting it. So he keeps it brief.)

(makes sense. Fair warning: I labeled the next encounter 'Zombie Trees', so...)

(Just kidding)

(Ah, a guy's greatest problem, dead wood.)

The party apparently goes silent and watches politely. Amaruve keeps it brief saying only a few words about the beauty of the forest in the tongue of the forest. "Caithfidh fiú biotáillí ársa teacht ar an tsíocháin" 

He then circles the area sniffing the dais. Is this the same platform that recently teleported them into the trial? (Perception: (3)21)

Perspicacious will carefully inspect the dais and the trees. Using her brief encounter with the real deal hopefully leading her towards a clue.

Investigation: 18

Perspicacious, this looks just like your handiwork. You aren't able to tell whether this is the actual scene or just a reflection, though. Chime, not waiting for an order, hops down from your shoulder and wades through the water to one of the tree husks. They fish around for a moment, then ding in excitement as they draw a piece of broken ceramic jar into the air. That's your oil canister, all right. (I imagine some shushing is in order to ensure that Amaruve doesn't see what's going on here)

(Penguini, Perspicacious has the ability to use the spell tiny servant which she has exclusively employed upon a battered steel hip flask up to this point)

Amaruve, your nose does the walking. If this were just an illusion you sincerely doubt that the scents of each member of the party would linger. Sure enough, though, each of your companions (and you) stood upon this very stone. The scents are very faint, though, nearly entirely faded. Strangely, you would guess that the smells were a day or two old. 

For what it's worth, your ceremony was very nice, brother bear. Nothing mystical or otherwordly happened as a result, though.

Tony, your lounge knuckle starts to feel a little warm. It's actually kind of pleasant in this cool, damp place.

Perspicacious calls back Chime to her. "Good job, buddy. But what does it mean? Is this the actual room where we bur..." the Tiefling gives a sideways glance to Amaruve, "er... took care of those enemies that were trying to kills us? This is where we were all judged..."

Gathering chime up on to her shoulder, and then reaching in to her pocket to grip the gold mammon coin for luck, Perspicacious steps up on to the dais to see if anything happens.

There is no thrum of power or any sign that you are about to be judged. For a brief moment, you fancy that you sense a deeper awareness of one of the trees near you. Whether that's just an agoraphobic reaction to the Void or a lingering effect of the creature's Mind Spike, though, you can't be sure. Either way, it's dead and gone. 

Amaruve tries to get a sense of the Tanooki Charm. He doesn't have any need for it at the moment, but it regenerates with the dawn (I think). Is it ready to use?