The Pod-Caverns of the Sinister Shroom (Game Thread IV)

[Breila]

"It's good to know that you can make it quiet, Locky." Babushka smiles at the kender. "But if you do that, we cannot talk about our plans. I just wanted to make sure the head doesn't hear what we plan. I suspect that whoever created it wants to use it to spy on us from a distance."
She beckons to Locky to come close to her and Shay and whispers: "So we go down to the next level, yes? Locky, can you lead the way? Same marching order as always?"

If the two agree, Babuska walks over to Jerrard, signals him to let go of the head, then tells him quietly what they've decided to do.

[Breila]

As Locky and Shay don't react, Babushka first frowns, then smiles.

"Ah, you're lost? Well, follow the gnome, then!"

She leads the party on, back through the breeding chamber, to the base of the second waterfall (are the podmen still undisturbed?) and straight on. Then they pass the side chamber where Locky nearly got strangled, and the mill. All that time, Babushka will first check any passage or cave with her infravision. She keeps her sling loaded by her side as always.

When they arrive at the passage going down, she carefully checks the pebbles they placed there to see if they've been disturbed, or for any sign of creatures having passed the spot.

[Jenara]

Locky smiles at Bab (Collects a handful of mushrooms, and placing them in a pouch) and follows her getting the idea.

"Ohhh, of course, all these passages look the same!" She giggles quietly before following joining Bab to check the stones..

"I have an idea, one thats better than the stones." She leans over and places a single mushroom on the ground.

[Jerrard]

Jerrard follows the Gnome and Locky, hand on his sword hilt.

[Breila]

Babuska shakes her head inwardly. Honestly, how could one get lost here? There weren't that many intersections! of course, the paths wound here and there, but as long as there was no branch, you couldn't take a wrong turn... well, these were the difference between gnomes (and dwarves, to be fair) and others.

[JadedDM]

The four head onward, finding no evidence of anything have been disturbed since they were last there. They reach the descending tunnel they found earlier, carefully maneuvering around the stalagmites and stalactites and being careful not to slip in the underground stream.

Eventually, the tunnel levels off and then splits suddenly in two directions, the west and east. The river continues down both paths. Each tunnel only extends about thirty feet before curving to the south.

The floating stone head continues to hover after Shay throughout this all.

[Breila]

"Locky, which way do you want to go? And mark the passage, please."

Babushka has no preference, and she knows Locky likes to lead the way.

[Jenara]

"Ohhh I don't know, umm." She produces a coin from a pouch flipping it suddenly.. "West." She smiles as the coin reveals a Knights Shield.

Reaching into a pouch she produces another Mushroom placing it just off the path.

"Come on, I wonder what we will find?" She asks grasping Bab's hand she pulls her down the tunnel, grasping her Hoopak.

[Jerrard]

Jerrard looks curiously at the coin, he'd obviously seen it before, he nudges Shay slightly.

"West or East? Ultimately it does not matter." He muttrers as they follow the Kender and Gnome, he keeps his sword at the ready.

Looking behind he watches the Caverns they know to head into the unknown.

[JadedDM]

The tunnel opens up into a large cavern with another tunnel to the north, leading to a smaller chamber.

In this large chamber are some strange contents. Four cages of a strange, fleshy substance seem to grow from the stone floor along the southern wall, and roughly in the center of the room stands a large wooden box with a funnel on top and a sprout at the bottom. The box is connected to a small water wheel that turns with the river's flow. The river itself drains into a grate next to the box.

[Breila]

Breila stops at the chamber entrance, holding Locky back, waiting for the men to catch up.

"Well, it seems we're getting closer to where and how the podmen are made. I wonder wether this flesh is food or a first stage?"

[Jenara]

"I wonder what it as is?." Locky asks, looking to the strange contraption, the Kender looks closely yet rubs her head in confusion.

[Breila]

Babushka puts her sling away and asks Locky: "Please give me my staff" (it is tied to her backpack as usual). "Give me cover, shoot at the things when they move." She then walks over to the nearest cage, at an angle so Locky can fire without too much risk. She looks at the fleshy things carefully, approaching only enough so she can prod them with her staff.

[Jenara]

Locky nods to Bab and passes her staff as requested. "Aren't they funny?" The Kender asks preparing a few stones to fire at the cage if she needs to.

[ooc: Got home late last night, needed to sleep]

[JadedDM]

Babushka prods the nearest cage with her staff, finding the membrane fairly elastic. At the prod, the gnome notices movement on the other side of the membrane, and a woman's voice speaks up. "Who's there? Ulster! Ulster, they're coming for me, help!" she shrieks, her high-pitched voice echoing throughout the cavern.