Melanthios shrugs.

"You're the guide, not me."

"I'm not great at bearing loads, especially through the jungle, so the river sounds easier. Are we sure we can find the right pathway?" Poole says, scratching her head.

Qawasha says, "I am certain. But just in case - River, would you know of a specific landmark that would indicate when we should arrive and how to proceed along River Soshenstar?"

River swats away a bug and replies, "Just keep to the right, there isn't a way to miss it."

"I'm glad we are staying in the boat as well," Anzir says.

He eyes the tabaxi, having only seen a few in his life. In his gruff manner, he says, "Have you heard of any mages or clerics causing trouble in Chult?"

The tabaxi thinks for a moment, "Mages or clerics? Not really, no. It's usually the undead and bugs and diseases."

(I'll post next bits tomorrow about the next days)

"Anything you'd recommend we do or not do to stay safe and comfortable out here? We're not from Chult, you might have guessed that. We lost someone, to a dinosaur. It... well it wasn't fun. Not all of this is not-fun, but most of it is not-fun. We are trying to stop a curse. If you don't like curses, sure'd be shiny to have any help you can offer." Poole's talking mostly to River, but also to Qawasha, and perhaps to someone who's not there.

Persuasion: 15

River considers this for a moment. "You know how the things that are most visible in the jungle are poisonous, right? The same advice goes for everything. Anything out here that draws attention is at best not safe and at worst a deathtrap."

Melanthios sighs.

"It can never be simple, can it."

River nods. "Stay safe out there. I'll meet you on River Soshenstar in a few days, I was heading south anyways."

----

As you turn around and start heading downstream again then the rest of the day is peaceful.

Day 8:

 In the morning you pass the goblin village where everything seems to be as it was couple of days earlier. The rest of the day is uneventful.

Day 9:

 It's an overcast day and by about noon a light rain starts to come down. It lessens the usual heat a bit and actually makes for a nice change. Everyone is strongly sunburnt and has calloused hands from handling the paddles and poles all day.

As Qawasha is looking around for a good place to pause for a mid-day break then he directs you to a small pond type marshy area off the south side of the river. Paddles are used more for pushing here than paddling, but there is a nice clearing on one side of this area. As you take your break then he wanders around as usual and upon coming back he says, "It might be good news. This waterway seems to be connected to both the tributary and River Soshenstar itself. The place we got off course is still several miles downriver, but this here seems to be a shortcut."

After getting back into canoes he directs you along a fairly low and narrow waterway, which opens up to a wide slow-moving river after a few hundred feet. The rest of the day goes by faster than usual with the spirits lifted by this small bit of good fortune.

In the evening you find a camping spot on the south side of the river and after you set up then Poole climbs a nearby tree to get a better view of the land around.

What she sees is a thing to the south that looks like a huge boulder jutting out of the jungle a few hundred feet away.

Any way to know what the boulder is?

It looks like a fairly large round stone peaking out over the jungle about 20ish feet or so. From this distance it looks to be about 10-15 feet in diameter. Hard to distinguish anything further in the fading daylight.

"Anyone want to take a quick look so we know what we're sleeping near? Then again, River said to avoid obvious-looking things, and a giant boulder is an obvious-looking thing. I'll go scout it out quickly and quietly unless there's strong objection." Poole says, then looking at Melanthios in a "what's thee worst that could happen OH RIGHT" series of expressions.

Qawasha listens to the description and a lightbulb goes off in his head, "It's the House of the Crocodile! Oh I'm glad to have arrived at a known landmark!"

His expression immediately changes though, "I heard there was a camp around it that got overrun by the undead. Undril, a lot of your people died there I believe. I am sorry."

Undril has also recognized the place now that Qawasha gave it a name. "They did. Whoever survived fled south and made a new camp - Camp Vengeance. It's where I'm headed now. I would love to see the state of the first camp, but we should wait for morning. It was overrun by a horde of undead a few months ago and I'd rather not venture there in darkness."

Qawasha nods, "We should be extra careful now that we are so close to the undead territory. From here it is about two days journey to Camp Vengeance."

(which is not to say that Poole or anyone else can't go and check it out)

The description of the camp (Camp Righteous) is as follows, whether you scout it in the evening or morning:

You come upon an abandoned riverside camp strewn with wreckage. The tents are moldy and tattered, and all the permanent structures appear to have burned to the ground. Two intact rowboats are tied off to a short dock. North of the camp is a ridge, built into which is an 80-foot-tall stone statue carved to look like a man with a crocodile on his back. Between the statue’s feet is a stone archway leading to a dark tunnel. To the left of the statue is a crude animal pen with a small, panicked bird running around inside it. There are no other signs of life.

Melanthios volunteers to scout ahead in the morning, pulling his usual vanishing act.

Stealth: 22 

Day 10:

 The light rain of the previous day is a distant memory the next morning. There isn't a wisp of cloud in sight and the air stands still. It's going to be a very hot day.

Melanthios ranges ahead as the others are finishing breakfast and packing up the camp. It's his favored terrain and picking a fast and quiet path straight to the camp is easy enough.

The first thing that indicates he's arrived is the stench. There seems to be a couple of abandoned outhouses (5 on the map) on the north side of the camp in a small gulch next to the mound the statue is on. Just beyond that is an animal pen (4 on the map) with a large and obviously flightless bird trapped in it.

Before going any further though he notices something familiar - a weird wooden mask and a goblin hiding behind it. Not the same design as they encountered a few days ago, so it might be a different tribe. There seems to be more than one and they seem to be lazily keeping watch towards the river. Doesn't look like any of them is paying any attention to what's behind them, including Melanthios.

(map. Melanthios entered from the north side next to the number 5 on the map)

Melanthios fixes the goblin's mask in his mind, then creeps back to the others.  He attempts to describe the mask, and asks Qawasha if he knows what it is.

Anzir sits at the camp fire brewing java as he stares out into the jungle. He looks antsy without even had his morning cup. After his cup, he pulls out a piece of chalk and begins sketching the scene with the large rock to their south.

“Strange, no? Where are the undead? And where did the bird come from? Someone else has moved in, I’d think. Might even know something about the Soul Monger.” Aurok looks around at the group’s faces for input.

Qawasha listens carefully at the mask description and says, "No idea to be honest. There's dozens of tribes all together, at least. They're like bees - multiply like crazy and when the concentration gets too high in one area then a group splits apart and finds a new place for themselves."

He looks to Undril, "Unless you want to investigate then we can also just pass it by as quietly as possible on the other side of the river. It's fairly wide here still and it seems that they're not after river traffic, but more for trapping someone coming along the river to the camp."

Undril replies, "The camp was abandoned at least two months ago and with the goblins there I'm sure there is nothing to investigate. On the other hand the camp was placed here at the statue because it is hollow inside. It wasn't the focus of the campaign to come out here, but it is very curious. Last I heard there are traps inside that nobody has been able to get past."

Qawasha picks it up from there, "Yes, a lot of people know about the place and the legend about it."

When others just stare after he shuts up then he realizes they want to hear it.

In the early days of the world, Man stood by the banks of a river, frightened. Crocodile raised his head from the water and asked, “What troubles you, cousin Man?”

Man said, “I must cross this river, but I fear to enter the water alone, because it teems with your brethren.”

Crocodile replied, “It’s true, you would not be safe. But I will carry you across the river safely on my back, if you promise to return the favor.” Man agreed, and Crocodile bore him safely across the water

When they reached the far bank, Man asked, “How can I repay you?” Crocodile replied, “I wish to see the realm of Humans, but I fear to go there alone, because it teems with your brethren. You must carry me on your back across your realm.” Man had been tricked, but a promise is a promise, so he carried Crocodile safely on his back across the entire realm of humans, a journey that lasted many years. He also swore, in his anger, that never again would Men and Crocodiles be friends, and so it has remained to this day.

Anzir stops his sketch, looking up with a frown. "You can't be serious," he says. "We are so close to an ancient monument like that..."