It seems that the infected workers haven't yet noticed the group. They seem to be totally fixated on whatever it is that they're doing further into the tunnel, where the fumes just get fouler.

There's red crusted blight around the trench, where the water has touched the mucus of different infected creatures. The roots that have broken through the masonry to seek out the trickle of water don't look healthy, either. They're reddish-tinged as well, and as the group have now observed the movement of the infected ones, they can see that the lights seem to be blocked out up the way. It'd probably be a safe bet that the creatures, given their aversion to light, have taken to slopping the red sludge over the structures that provide the light source. Again, they're agitated and focused on dousing the lights to the point that they're oblivious to the group's presence.

((Alright exams over, what have i missed?))

Krinix seeks the wisdom of the group on how to proceed.

“It’s late, and I’m not keen to fight off a whole army of these parasite-monsters. What should we do now?”

(The group's still trying to figure out whether to press on or turn back.)

Qiran had not had his fill of battle, but it had been a long day and the horrors ahead seemed like a challenge best faced with a fresh rest. Begrudgingly, he agrees with Krinix.

"We should unopen these caves as we depart.  No desire to let them get into town. Prepare better and return at early light?"

"I recommend we attempt to contain whatever maledict this is inside this cavern," Chroma says, sharing similar concerns with Qiran. 

Faerieth nods, still looking ill. "I shall... talk to the trees. They may know something."

When Faerieth reaches out to the trees, the sense she gets in return is ... panic and confusion. It's like they're drugged. When they feel Faerieth reaching out to them, it's like they're clinging to her as an anchor of sanity.

"Poison! The water is poisoned! Can't feel... the others... only burning! Everything is burning! What do we do? Where are the others?!" is what she receives from the trees that have dipped their roots in the trench. The roots of the trees that have come through the cracks in the masonry are still touching the water, and the roots themselves are encrusted with that sickly red 'rust'.

((Going to go out on a limb and assume there is more than 10 gallons of water down here XD))

((You assume correctly... but if you're planning on using destroy water, it will make the trench dry for about 10 feet))

((Also these are the trees from the luminous chamber?))

Faerieth starts to shake, "We... we need to help. They're being... poisoned," she says looking at the roots. "This... isn't natural." Faerieth seems to be in actual pain, though if it's her own or her feeling the trees pain is unclear.

((These trees are separate from those ones, they're a little too far away. And Faerieth can feel that they're somehow 'cut off' from the rest of the forest due to their poisoning.))

Krinix recognizes that Faerieth is sensitive to these sorts of things and asks,

"Alright, how can we accomplish it?"

"G...got to find the... source," Faerieth says. "Get rid of the poison... so they can heal and find the others. They've been... cut off."

Krinix says,

“I will follow the wisdom of the group.”

"These creatures seem to abhor light," Chroma notes, pointing out the doused sources and lamps. "If we want to investigate the source behind this poisoning, we likely will need to progress further into the cave. I do not get the sense that fighting all of these creatures is wise. If we can turn them away by relighting the lamps, it might make the venture possible. Or, perhaps, someone more talented in the arcane could conjure a source of light to aid us in that task. Either way, these trees seem to be alive, and I would like to root out the cause of this illness before it spreads," says Chroma, uncharacteristically chuckling at the attempt of a pun she made. 

"Maybe alive..." Faerieth says, not appreciating the joke, "but... to be separated from the others... is torture to them..."

(Everyone make an investigation check!)

Investigation 5