"We shall have to plan that then" Berrus says with a chuckle,   "with yer mind im sure we can come with some nasty surprises"

Glasses:

Once everyone is ready, the Professor takes one last look around and smiles...They have done some good here, and survived at the same time--he'll call that a win.  "Fang, this is your corner of the jungle.  Once Shae gets back from her aerial reconnaissance, we'll follow your lead," the Professor says, looking at the surviving members of their troop with a satisfied grin.

Not completely unexpected, when Shae would break through the canopy, shew would be hit with the sun's full intensity. She had almost forgotten about her headache but was quickly reminded at that moment. It didn't stop her though. She shielded her eyes to push through it, flying into the sky. She dared go a little higher than she probably should. And her heart soared just as high and free with her.

Shae would not break the clouds, nor would she lose sight of the group below, but she had gone a little further than just grazing the canopy. Reaching the threshold of her 'allowed' maximum flight height, she'd be guilty of spinning around in place to feel the weightlessness of being airborne before really taking her moment to soak in the panoramic view. She'd gasp. At this little sliver in time, she was actually able to enjoy a birds-eye view of the Chult. Unlike their first impression as they tumbled to their fate onto the jungle floor. Holding her hands to her chest, the cartographer would take it all in, mapping and committing all she could and could not recognize to memory.

Then a smirk would break her lips, again. Shae would close her eyes, taking in then exhaling a deep breath. And with that, she'd 'let herself go', dropping back into a free fall.

Her heart pounded hard, threatening to leap out of her chest. Shae was exhilarated.

Shae!

Hi Kam. The warlock would chuckle, twist her body and open her eyes again, catching herself only a couple of feet above the canopy where she should have been. Shae would circle the circumference of the camp, rustling the leaves above as she'd pass. Her laugh would echo through the trees to the camp below. She had not expected to enjoy flying so much.

Shae would make another wider pass before breaking off to scout a little down the proposed path of travel. The scholar would be sure to keep Fang's hunting area and the groups range in mind as to not stray too far. Should she see any wildlife, threatening flora, or hazards, she'd make note of them before eventually circling back, beelining it back to the crew.

Pumping with adrenaline and uncontainable excitement, the warlock will come barreling through the trees a little faster than expected. "Coming in hot!" Was all she could get out before crashing into... 1

looking skyward periodically to try and keep an eye on Shae, while loading everything Berrus grins back at the professer

turning suddenly at the shout he barely has time for a surprised OOOF before catching Shae fully in the chest, bowling the Dwarf over

It felt like she was caught by solid rock? "Oof!" Shae would echo who she hit. Berrus!? Of course it was Berrus. It would take a second for her to catch her breath for a plethora of reasons. "Good... catch." She'd offer a cheeky smile to try to hide her embarrassment. Realizing she was still on top of him, the elf will scramble to get off hoping she wasn't restricting his breathing. "Sorry! Sorry!" The only thing she could think to do was offer him a hand to help him up after she got back on her feet.

Berrus lies there for a minute just staring at Shae

"Ye do pack a whallop lass ill give ye that"

He accepts her help getting up

"Im thinkin ye need to work on yer landings" he says with a laugh

Maybe her heads were still in the clouds. Shae's cheeks were red hot and the impact obviously didn't help her lightheadedness, but the laughter was infectious. And Berrus was one hundred percent right. She needed to figure out her landings. Calming herself was probably a good first step. But she was so excited! "I-I'll work on slowing down a little bit..." Something she has to remind herself, more often than not.

It was obvious she was stumped and completely emBerrussed, stumbling over herself and fumbling her words. Eventually catching herself and remembering she had a report to give, Shae will clear her throat and start brushing herself off to buy herself some time to remember all the things she had to report back to the group.

Her ears twitched, listening to hear from Maxine, the Professor or even Fang who she hadn't turned around to face yet.

Together with the crew and Fang, you decide to try and make it to northeastwards towards the sea. Today, you're going to try to head to the lake, following it's edge onto Palebank, where you can rest for a bit before heading further northeast into the jungle again. With the all clear from Shae, the group heads off, giving their farewells to the grung. Fang and the weakest of the crew are making up the front of the line, Shae, Berrus, and Maxine walk in the middle keeping an eye on everyone, and the Professor and his two porters are making up the rear.

 Since most of you know the way to the lake, you get there fairly quickly and without much trouble. Faekin and Thasselandra are still a bit weak on their feet, and the cement-like mud tires them more quickly than you expected, but you still make good time. Following the edge of the lake, you reach Palebank about two and a half hours after setting out from the grung village. The Professor knows the village, but for the rest of you, the odd collection of scavenged materials heaped up into hovels and abodes is an odd sight, and you're all fully aware that without Fang at the front of your group, the guards at the edge of the village would likely have made short work of you. 

Is there anything you wish to do here?

Berrus walks happily between Maxine and Shae knowing this would probably be the easiest part of the journey  (he does occasionally touch his chest)

Glasses:

The Professor wishes to thank the Lizardfolk warriors who joined their cause and see what they have done with their trophies, letting them know that the Skull is theirs if they want it.

At least for half of the distance Maxine would talk with Shae about flying - that was the trait one can only dream of. After all, even her journey on the airship Maxine spent in the cargohold, the only part of flying she knew was hard crashing. And think of all the strategic advantages it was giving! "Promise my you will be fighting only from hovering above position!" The opportunities were so numerous - recon, collecting samples from the tallest trees, even simple weather check would be useful! - Maxine could not help it but to plan ahead. "Gods, you are lucky! Or should I say "Kam, you are lucky"? An amazing gift!"

Lizardfolc village was a safe enough (with their guide and newfound neighbouring friendship) place to get rest, so, Maxine welcomed it. And spent the visit precisely on that - resting. 

When Maxine would engage in conversation with Shae about flying, she would gently excuse herself past the too content Berrus to stand next to her so she could absolutely gush about the experience. Shae would have to remind herself to take a pause to breathe and to be mindful of where she was throwing her arms around in excitement as she’d try to explain what she saw, felt and experienced. During one of those breaths when her friend would chime in, eyes sparkling with a hint of awe and childish wonder, Shae knew how much Maxine would appreciate the gift of flight. The realization touched her heart and she’d reach out for her hand to give it a squeeze. “I promise, if, I use flight during battle, I’ll use a Maxine approved range.” She’d smile to Maxine before glancing to Berrus, figuring he wouldn’t argue with Maxine’s request. Looking back ahead and with a sway of her hips she’d bump into Maxine playfully, “Maybe if we ask nicely, Kam might be able to allow me to gift it.” She’d give her friends hand another squeeze, hoping she could help make her dream come true. The scholar knows wizards can cast their flight on others, maybe she could too.

Once at Fang’s village, Shae would start by not letting Fang, Snively or Maxine get too far without a quick once over. She’d then take her time checking over the rest of the crew, specifically spending extra care with Faekin and the Captain who were still recovering. She’d clean wounds and change bandages as needed. The medic would check everyone’s hydration levels, taking extra care to make sure Berrus and Bertrand were having the right intake to make up for any extra exertion from their gear. She’d do a full physical assessment on both of them too, reviewing to see how Bertrand was handing the new plate and if Berrus was suffering any side affects from her ‘whallop’. Once done with their shield bearers, Shae would finally take a seat to review herself and, remove her own bandages, revealing the pattern of scars beneath them. She’d flex her hands and stare at her legs taking in the fact that she felt like she was in completely new skin. She was healed and never to be without these marks... their story. Although rough, crude and in plenty, she embraced her new wild imperfections. Besides the headache, she knew she was fine. Actually, emotionally, she felt... wonderful. 

Shae would make point to set time aside for the Professor should he desire to discuss anything dagger related before the departure.

Should she have any free time after finishing all her tasks, she’d want to go for a walk and take a good look around to see and learn where Fang’s from, eventually settling somewhere under the stars. She’d wait for the opportunity to commune with Kam over what the Professor would want her to ask, and to learn if she could give up her flight to Maxine even if it spent her use for the day, heck the week! Ever!

Berrus accepts the once over somewhat grudgingly  "check the more seriously hurt lass i be fine"  reaching up to brush the hair out of her eyes.

Once Shae is done he goes to Bertrand and checks to see how he is handling the plate, making sure the armor is sitting correctly for weight distribution and freedom of movement

then he goes in search of the professer and fang

Glasses:

The Professor does worry about the captain getting into a fight with the dagger on her person, as its curse might cause her to be severely wounded again.  While Snively would prefer not to use deception, he feels it might be necessary to safely get the dagger away from Thasselandra without undue emotional trauma.

While they are in the village and the Professor is thanking the warriors, he makes a point to talk to Big Momma about anyone who knows magic, especially that might be used to remove a curse.  If a powerful enough priest is present, he relates the story of the dagger with the Hag's plan to plant the cursed weapon in the hands of any innocent passersby, then asks for help removing the curse.

Most of the lizardfolk regard you with a somewhat bemused curiousity, seeing before them a bunch of people that have been hardened by the jungle but still don't seem to fit in here. When approached, Big Momma shrugs, since the magic users she knows in the village are either specialist herbalists, focusing on the healing properties of the nearby wildlife, or trying to improve their weapons with paralysing substances and toxins, or they are shamanistic druids that channel the energies of their animal brethren to better track or fight. In retrospect, you're not too surprised though- after all, you spent most of your adult life studying magic in its various forms, and you're stumped by the curse as well. As far as the Captain is concerned, you notice that she keeps the dagger on her hip at all times, and she seemed already very reluctant when handing it over for identification. But perhaps you could try to steal it from her.

Shae, Berrus is a little bruised from the impact, but seems fine otherwise. Thasselandra and Faekin's wounds are healing nicely, with no sign of infection, but both have lost a lot of blood recently, and are still weak as a result. The other members of the crew are still scraped and bruised, but fit enough to fight, should it come to that. After doing your rounds, you sit down to meditate, and you quickly feel Kam's presence: "Shae, how can I help? You want to help your friends to fly as well? Hmmm... I'm sorry, but I can only grant you that gift because of the connection we share. But you could try and take her with you, next time you take to the air, no?" Kam sounds somewhat sad to point to his own limitations.

Maxine, some of the lizardfolk hatchlings approach you cautiously, curious to see a "soft one" with eyes similar to them. They don't know you understand draconic, and you can overhear two of the older ones daring the younger ones to get closer and to poke you, to see whether you were really soft, and to ask you to show them your teeth. The younger ones seem reluctant, having heard from some of the adults that you were a part of the group that fought the evil old ladies. Then, an argument breaks out between the hatchlings over where the youngest one heard that from, and how they could tell.

Berrus, you are proud to see that Bertrand took your instructions to heart and made sure to take the time to put his armour on properly in the morning. One of the straps around his forearm is causing some chafing, and with your help, you adjust it, but otherwise he seems to have taken your advice to heart. Once you're done with Bertrand, you approach the Professor, who seems somewhat irritated at not finding any priests that can help him with the cursed dagger either.

Fang, what are you doing?

Maxine allowed the small one to come closer and then made a sudden move toward it with "Arf" making her teeth do a snapping sound. Then laughed and said in Draconic: "I have human teeth. But it does not mean I can not bite your head off."

She let the effect settle then added: "Its a joke, I am not here to bite." And whispered in a scary manner "One evil old lady was enough".

The small ones jerk back and then start to giggle. Once they learn that you speak draconic, they start to bombard you with questions, wanting to know what you eat, where you're from, what a "city" is, and where you're going next, among a dozen other topics that they ask you in quickfire succession.

Fang replies to Berrus “Seems sensible.” And then helps load the groups supplies on to the floating disk. Which he marvels at for a moment ... how does it stay off the ground with no supports or ropes ... amazing

———————————————————

Fang would tell Shae relative directions for where things were in relation to each other and which direction the coast would be in. He would take a few moments to go over her notes on herbalism and fill in any missing information(if there is any, and assuming he would know being a jungle native) Shae would note that the berries she received from Fang were very similar in flavor to the ones she found, since Fang uses a sprig from that bush to make his appear. He would then add his information to the map to make it a bit more complete.  Finally he would answer her question “Of course I’ll help you get them to the safety of port. Consider me your guide now.” Then he would try and crack a smile getting closer to one but still coming off more like a sneer than a smile.

———————————————————

Before the group sets off towards Palebank he would watch as Shae took her first flight in the air tracking her until she broke through the tops of the trees. Then he would tell Mushu, who was in his new pouch on Fang’s chest, ‘keep an eye out for her return’. He would finish loading any additional supplies and materials(I assume the group recovered the items buried at the campsite where the grung first attacked?) During the conversation between Bolt(Maxine) and Rings(Berrus) he would pipe in “Perhaps someone in my village could show you how to add poison to your arrows or your sword(he does have the sword now right?)”

Fang gives a curt nod to Glasses when being told he will be leading the group to his village. When Shae returns from her flight he would hear Mushu in his head ‘Danger’ and look over just as Shae and Berrus collide. Then look to Mushu “try and say something a little sooner next time”

———————————————————

On the journey to Palebank, Fang would have Mushu darting from tree to tree about 80 ft or so ahead of the group to warn him of any potential danger or easy animals to kill for the midday meal. (What time is it when we arrive? I figured it was midday but some of the posts make it seem like it is later and we are staying the night)

Upon reaching the village Fang would immediately go and see Crawler, Trala, and Red to say goodbye to them and let them know he was helping the squishy ones get someone safer for them. This would be after Shae’s insistence that he wait for her to look over him and make sure he was okay. He would implore Red to take care of Crawler in his absence. He would direct Trala to speak with Shae about any medicinal items the lizardfolk have that Shae might not be aware of. Then he would head to his ‘home’ and grab his book making sure to tell Crawler he was welcome to be there anytime as always. Then he would meet up with the rest of the group. He would look over and see Maxine chatting with the young ones and chuckle a bit seeing their excitement and hers. Then would turn to Berrus, “Rings, I heard you were looking for me?” Fang would be ready to continue traveling for any remaining time today or staying the night here as the group would like. 

"Hey just wanted to confer with ye an the perfesser the route we be following"

Glasses:

"Excellent idea, Berrus," says Snively, "Let's pull out our maps and chart a path that is reasonably straight but skirts the known dangers."  He calls over their jungle guide Fang as well, since he knows the terrain so well.  With Shae already there and having done the aerial reconnaissance, the Professor feels good that together they will come up with a reasonable route and be able to follow it accurately.

Later that evening, the Professor offers to entertain the young ones with magic, offering a somewhat educational tale about the interaction of the four elements and demonstrating each one in turn.  He speaks of the elements individually as well as their combinations.  As a culmination of his story/lesson, he uses the pipe to summon the steam mephit and speaks with it in Primordial, asking it to be gentle and demonstrate its capabilities for those present.  Not sure if the magic summons the same Mephit each time, the Professor tries to get to know the creature before the duration of the summoning effect expires--who is it, where does it come from, what is life like for it, etc., then shares in Draconic his audience...as much an educational experience for the Professor as for the others.