TWO HUNDRED TWO
(I/C)
After the group turned to the south and put a little distance between them and the Jailer, Abraxas let out a breath and chuckled nervously, “Vamonos! Let's get to that hall. I think that went pretty well... for the most part,” he gave the Magic User a hard side stare that he refused to meet, “We are trying to work better as a team, si? Hacemos that then.
"Ok...gasp cough swallow cough gasp... let's go...," Wyn was struggling to finish a sentence, barely keeping the bile down. "I feel like I need a few minutes before...*gag cough gag...continuing. Can we go a bit farther down the hall?"
Brendon nodded, leading the party further south until the miasma coming from the Jailer faded behind them. Navigating my lantern light they followed the path south until the cavern turned to the west and then after a dozen paces, turned back to the north again.
No longer feeling any ill effects, Lyra took out her jar of honey and unscrewed the lid, dipping two fingers in for a generous dollop. “See, I told you he wouldn’t want the honey,” she said with a smile. “Man... I could go for some honey right now,” popping it into her mouth she sucked her fingers clean and then smiled, closing the jar again. “Nothing like the putrid smell of rot to make you kind of hungry... huh?”
“I am going to vomit in your shoes tonight, you know this, don’t you?” Lannis asked, trying not to look at the Cleric and her snack.
“Why do you think he wants that key so bad?” she wondered aloud as the group continued walking, the Scout and dwarf looking carefully for any traps or shifting areas of the cavern (no roll – none). “Maybe it’s a ‘fuck you, look what I got?’ If we find it we should check to make sure it doesn’t unlock any other goodies before handing it over... if we hand it over.”
"We need the key to get the crown Lyra, you know?,” Lannis pointed at his head, making a circle and then giving himself bucked teeth and waggling his face in her direction. “The crown? If we give him the key we will never see it again.” He sighed. “However, that sounds like a problem for Future Lannis, and that guy’s an asshole.” Snapping his fingers he pointed at Abraxas and asked, “Did anybody touch the Trog? Maybe we can get his stink on us."
“Hey, Big Brain,” Kovid snarled from the front, “Want to keep it down or just let the orcs and whatever the hell is down here that we want them to kick our ass?”
“Touchy. Your beard hair get caught in your zipper again?”
Brendon frowned. “Zip. It.”
Wyn was troubled. “I don’t know everyt’ing bout everyt’ing, but I t’ink we need to get closer to de fungi to see dem to see if I kin know anyt’ing ‘bout t’em, ya know?”
“Same here,” Kovid muttered. “I mean, I’ve seen some in the caves for sure, but I want to SEE what we have here before I make any decisions.”
“Almost there,” the Scout alerted the group. The passage had gone north for a shorter distance and then opened westward to a larger cavernous area. According to the lantern light there were clay pots of various design and different sizes all over the place, many of them gaily decorated with elven figures prancing about happily. However any plants within them had died some time ago and the floor here around the pots had some loose soil and brown stalks and leaves littering their base. Any sign of living plants in the pots were some time ago. There was a passage going south and another one on the war end of the room looking like it was heading south and west. Just outside of view on the south hall, the group could see the western wall of the passage had some vile yellow fungi growing on it.
Looking about the chamber, Abraxas questioned, “Who will scout down the Fungus hall? Brawnda? Señor Wyndu? Señor Koovio? I can keep a look down the hall at the group's back. Let's get to it."
Pointing to the other side of the room, Brendon whispered, “I’ll park myself there to make sure any orcs don’t sneak up on us.”
“Excellent idea,” Wyn whispered, watching Brendon go. “So we don't know enough 'bout deze funguses yet. I tink we need to go to de hallway per de Trog map en see if the light starts making de shriekers or fungus react to us at all. We will probably know immediately. Dey cen sense heat and or motion... but light? Mayhaps? Mayhaps not?
“Alright Wyn,” Kovid twisted his hammer around once and handed his lantern back to Lyra. “I shall go with you down to the hall. Let’s see if we can see anything in the dark.”
“So much to make sure of. Dey may be hotter or colder den de surroundings... or maybe even phosphorescent. How densely they be packed in the hall? Dat be very important.”
“Wyn,” Kovid touched the elf lightly on the arm. “It’s ok. Let’s go look.”
“Oui, Oui. Just fungus, y’know.”
The two drew closer, looking at the yellow fungus on the western wall as well as peering down the passage. At the limit of the lantern light, they could see a 5’ diameter, 4’ tall, pale and purply fat crowned toadstool set just about in the center of the hall, weird pink pustules set in ovals randomly around its surface. (>Wyn Int Fungi +2 elf nature check, Orange 19..<Kovid Int Fungi +2 dwarf cave check, Yellow 13)
“Hokay, 2 diff’rent t’ings here. Fungi ‘ere? Smells faint, yellow, seems ta be all o’er dis wall.”
The dwarf nodded. “Yeah. Why just the west wall? It’s not any drier or wetter than any other part.” Moving his hand behind him he motioned for Lyra to shield the lantern, making the cavern darker and allowing the dwarf and elf to have their vision flash over to infravision. “Well,” he continued, “If I didn’t have the light on, I’d never know the fungus was on the wall here. It’s radiant neutral.”
“Oui, I kin see dat.” The elf frowned. “Sneaky fungi.” They both looked down the hall to the Shrieker and smiled. “And dat, it ees a big mushroom, oui, but it is also a bit warmer den de air. So kin be seen in de dark.”
“Agreed.” He turned back to Lyra, “Thanks, Lady. Light please?” She moved the lantern around again so they could all see. “Ok, the fungus here. It’s pretty vile looking, but it’s a dry fungoid. Should be able to be burned.”
“Is dat gonna be safe?”
“If it releases spores, the fire will consume them before they have the opportunity to fly. And that’s what has me concerned.” He crouched low and pointed up slightly. “See under those ridges? That black vaned area? That’s the spores and they WILL billow out if we get too close.”
“So, choking you?” Lannis asked.
“Not always, although I’m sure that’s the case. I’ve seen this before. This type of fungus plays havoc on your nose, mouth, and lungs – and even devours wood and leather in small bits and starts.”
“Just lovely,” Lyra groaned.
“As for the Shrieker,” he pointed down the hall. “Get too close and that damned mushroom WILL sound off. It can ‘see’ and can ‘feel’ in its own way. So if you stomp on by or get too close, it will yell and attract anything nearby or far away.”
“Like orcs?”
“Thors’ Balls. Indeed. Like orcs.”
(<Hear Noise +10% alone, Red 09) Brendon had been standing there quietly, listening to the group mutter but straining to hear. “Guys, somewhere down here. Echoey a bit and far away from where we are standing. I can hear…Chirping.”
“Birds?” Lannis asked.
“Nope…Crickets.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. That’s weird, huh?”
Time now is Day 6, 11:15 AM
(OOC)
OK – told you what you can know. What you guys do is up to you. Stay in one area too long, and WMC check – you have some time now though – unless you set off the Shrieker.
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