'Ho there! Be careful, this is no time for frolicking in the river!'

The barbarian turns back to the statue, 'Tarja, does this look familiar?  Any idea what this is doing here?' ( Help)

Ethan is able to hop the rocks but is too slow to catch Fae before she splashes into the water.

(Fae can still try to swim, or can float downstream unharmed and try rock hopping again if she wants to get to the statue.  Elra also needs to make the DC10 swim, rock hop, etc. check.)

Fae appreciated Ethan's attempt to catch her as she stumbled into the river. "Oop!" As she went tumbling, the wizard lobbed her spell book that was in her hands safely onto the bank. She hadn't expected to get swept away as she did, but she was at least able to avoid most of the sharp looking rocks.

Honestly, Fae had tried to be careful. She hadn't meant to go for a swim.

Dex DC10: 11

The wizard would find footing on a rock and she'd kick off towards the bank. She'd grab hold of a root that stuck out to pull herself out. Needing to take a moment to catch her breath, she'd run her fingers through her hair to push it out of her face. Fae felt a bit foolish.

Padding off to the side while the others inspect the statue, Fae would pull her robe off to begin wringing it out. Feeling a little exposed, she'd go find a sunny patch by some shrubs out of the way. Little by little the wizard would go through her items to try to quicken the drying process as to not hold up the group when they were ready to proceed. She'd keep her book in sight, but would not pick it up until she was dry, not wanting to damage anything.

Ethan hops the remaining rocks to get to the others.

"Sorry Fae."

Ethan then comes over to the statue to take a look himself.

Quinn continues to over over the group, keeping a watch for danger.

Tarja examines the statue, trying to see if it would give them directions. She'd look for whether there was Arvel or Impostor scent anywhere around it (wolf smell 14). Or even the trail of any other humanoids, perhaps there's some other trail that goes past here. 

Was the statue recognizable as something connected to her ancestors, to the Thunderhearts? After all, both the Rockseekers and Glasstaff had mentioned the lost Mine. Perhaps this has something to do with it. (History: 13)

Finally, she would take a close look at the statue, looking for whether it has anything on it that could be interpreted as directions. Maybe it's a waypoint and points towards a trail, or maybe it's marking an entrance. After all, the Impostor did bring Arvel near here for some reason... (Investigation with help from Zeke: 17)

Tarja doesn't smell the fresh trail of anyone around the statue, but does find traces of relatively recent visitors, probably within the past few weeks.  Broken twigs on the ground, pine needles brushes aside into tiny piles by feet and other easy to miss signs reveal someone or something all around the statue, circling it possibly for inspection just as the party is doing now.

Tarja's gut tells her that this stone dwarf must be related to her family lineage, or at least the dwarves who inhabited this area in recent centuries, during which time the now lost mine was both established and lost.  Something about that just seemed to fit.  She then remembers being told when she was very young that 'their ancestors may lead them back there some day'.  She never really knew what that meant, and probably hadn't pondered it in many, many years.

Despite being drawn to the statue, Tarja, nor Ethan for that matter, find anything particularly interesting or revealing about it.  A moment later a very wet Fae arrives to take a look. 

Elra successfully crosses the rushing water and she and Fae are the last two members of the party to arrive amidst the thick, needle covered branches surrounding the stone dwarf.

"It's a nice statue, but I think it might just be art."

Ethan steps back to allow others to have a closer look, just in case they have anything that would explain what the statue is for and if it is in anyway useful.

Zeke leaves the investigation to the more cerebral members of the party and keeps watch on the surrounding woods.

Seeing the waterlogged wizard stumble onto the piece of land, the barbarian looks to her to make sure she's ok.  Seeing that she is mildly bruised but otherwise unharmed, he gives her a wry smile.

He's ready to move out and carry Fae across the river when they are finished inspecting the statue.  

Unable to find anything interesting, Tarja turns back into dwarf form to talk with the rest of the party again. (If it's been less than 2 hours since the short rest, she's got 1 wildshape. If it's been more than 2 hours since the short rest, then she's out for now.)

Can't find any sign of Arvel or the impostor around here. There's been visitors here within the last few weeks, though, so there must be something here!

This must be somehow connected to the mine. Perhaps it's a trail marker, or a secret entrance. I think it has to show us the way, somehow. Fae or Elra, do you have a way of checking if it's magical?

“It’s okay Ethan. I guess I can be a little clumsy when I get excited...”

Fae would return a sheepish smile with reddened cheeks when Zeke would come check on her. “I’m sorry.” She’d apologize quietly, glancing down at her feet. “I’m okay.” She’d confirm for him.

At Tarja’s ask, the wizard would look back up. She’d nod softly. “If we can spare 10 minutes, I can cast a ritual to see what I can pick up?” Fae would peek Zeke’s way, then Elra’s. If she had something faster, it may be preferred. 

At Fae's glanced question about time the barbarian would nod, drawing his blade and shaking it out to it's full length.  If they were going to stop here for a moment, he would ensure no one disturbed them while they contemplated their next steps.

Fae would return Zeke’s nod in thanks. She’d get right to work, settling in to begin incantations and the scribing of runes to ritually cast Detect Magic.

Fae finds that there is absolutely nothing magical about the stone statue.

Ethan ponders what Tarja has said and the results of Fae's spell.

"If this is a trail marker, perhaps we should have a look around for more of them?"

Ethan looks up at Quinn.

"Quinn, can you do a search around this immediate area for more of these statues, or any statues really."

Ethan points at the statue and then points off into the trees beyond.

"My guess would be that there could be more somewhere in there."

Quinn flies down and takes a look at the statue before turning to Ethan.

"Θα φανεί αφέντης, μην ανησυχείτε."

The little homunculus flies back up into the air and then plunges into the tree line behind the statue, doing his best to search for any more statues nearby.

Ethan turns to Fae and Elra,

"Perhaps your own little friends could help? More eyes make for better results, as professor Olad liked to say."

Quinn does not find any other statues in the area.

Quinn comes bursting back out of the tree line.

"Δεν υπάρχουν πια δάσκαλοι αγαλμάτων, μόνο πολλά δέντρα."

"Hmmm, Quinn found no more statues nearby, I wonder where we are supposed to go next."

Ethan looks down the river and then turns to look up first one and then the other, of the two rivers that join at this point.

Hm. So there's no trails to or from the statue. Arvel and the impostor don't seem to have passed by it directly, at least I can't find their trail. No secret entrance underneath it or secret levers to pull that we can find, no magic on it. There's no other statues nearby.

And yet, there must be something about it. There's a reason our quarry passed by here. I know my ancestors are supposed to show me the way - an ancestor like this stocky dwarf here. But how?

Perhaps it is showing us the way literally - it's either pointing the direction we're supposed to go, or greeting us on the way to a nearby entrance.