Corliss scratches his head a bit before answering the mage.
"Hmm...fine question there. Corin's always led us forward afore." Turning to Sizara he asks, "You wanna take point? I could follow a step or two aft, ready to support ya iff'n you come under attack or fall afoul o' another o' them blasted cannibal snares. Karia an' Hamual can follow at a safer distance an' support us with missiles an' magic. Aye? Nay?"
Sizara nods and replies, "Very well. And that plan sounds feasible. We should be extra careful though. I fear that there are probably worse things on this island than cannibals, like that ghost pirate for example."
Hamual will follow the rest, taking up beside Karia.
The damage from the recent storm is still very much in evidence as the group make their way west across the island. The game trails are scattered with fallen branches, trees tilt precariously, and branches half-ripped away hand down, their browning fronds hiding tiny snakes insects disturbed from their usual lairs.
Eschewing the open paths that they know to be snared, the group heads down towards the shore of the lagoon. Circling the shallow waters, the group notices at least one triangular fin gliding smoothly across the surface. The shore is alive with disturbed wildlife - tiny crabs scuttle between short-lived rockpools that are already drying out in the sun. Seabirds feast on the corpses of stranded fish, and snakes slither among the grass attempting to catch the rats and mice that have been attracted by the storm's feast.
Approximately a mile west of the tiny beach where the group found Hamual, is a small rocky inlet where the gentle waves of the lagoon wash against a pebble beach. Standing in the water, with the waves swirling around its spindly legs, is an immense multicoloured crab, about the size of a small house. It stands stock still, facing out to sea. It doesn't seem to have noticed you yet.
Hamual stops dead in his tracks, moving a bit closer to the tree line to hopefully escape notice of the monstrous crab. He lowers his voice, "That is a crab right? Are they supposed to get that big?"
"Aye, looks like it," Corliss replies in a low whisper. "Wouldn't wanna get hugged by that beastie! Let's circle around, eh?"
Karia nods and moves quietly in a path around the Crab.
Hamual will follow the rest "I am not built for sneaking, but I am not built for being crab food. I would like to study it though."
"I got that spyglass we found in the teeterin' shipwreck," Corliss reminds Hamual with a whisper and a wry grin. "You can study it from afar once we be past its big-arsed claws, eh?"
Hamual looks very serious at Corliss, "But how would I cut it open and find out why it is so big?"
The crab continues to stand still. Very very still. It doesn't seemed to have so much as twitched since you first saw it.
Hamual rubs his hands a bit, "I do want to take a closer look"
He turns to Sizara "Do you think you can crack that things shell if it is baiting us?"
Once he's at a safe distance, Corliss stops, gets the spyglass out of his backpack, peers at the crab, and then hands the spyglass to Hamual.
"Do you see what I see?"* he asks the wizard.
Spyglass: Objects viewed through a spyglass are magnified to twice their size. Characters using a spyglass take a –1 penalty on Perception skill checks per 20 feet of distance to the target, if the target is visible.
"I guess it depends on what you see" Hamual hands the spy glass back.
Karia shrugs and takes her turn with the spyglass.
Karia sees what neither of the others do - one of the creature's clawed limbs appears to be hollow, and there is a rope and pulley running through it.
"Huh, guys... It's a fake." Karia points out the ropes making the crab move.
Hamual will look through the spy glass again, looking at what Karia is pointing out.
"Hmm interesting, now I do wish to see it up close."
"Smart as well as lovely!" Corliss beams at Karia. "I'll tag along if we choose to examine yon fake crab. When them puppet-like claws start crushin' an' smackin' 'round folks, you'll need me healin' touch, I'm guessin'."
"Strange that someone took the time to construct something like this. Maybe it's meant to be disguise or to keep the cannibals away. So there must be someone here who has survived their time here. What do the rest of you think," the scantily clad elven barbarian said to the others.
"Agreed, it does look like an attempt to stay hidden in a safe hideaway." Karia agrees with Sizara.
She picks up a loose rock, "Shall we knock politely?"
Hamual bids the others to take the lead, " After yourselves."
He then pulls out a tiny suit of armor and holds it at the ready.
"Aye, so long as whoever be inside don't try to attack us with yon rope-an'-pulley pincher."
Corliss starts forward with Sizara and Karia, with Hamual making up the rear.
The 'crab' is very lifelike, and your best guess is that it was indeed at one time a titanic crustacean, but its shell and limbs have now been hollowed out and tied, and in some cases, nailed together. As the group gets closer they can see that in some places the great shell has cracked, and been crudely repaired with pieces of scrap wood or sailcloth that have been stained to resemble the rest of the multicolour shell from a distance.
"HELLOOOO!!! IN THERE Hamual yells, knowing it isn't the best idea but it might them time to react if it is capable of movement.
A loud booming surprised squawk echoes out from inside the great shell.
"Squaww! Er..er..go away! Yes, go away or I smash you with my claw. I am great crab, er, Crabungo. Squaww!"
There is the noise of ropes being pulled through a pulley, and one of the giant claws of the crab begins to wobble from side to side in a parodic mimic of a live creature.
"Ohh great crab, we..." Hamual looks around at his companions, "Just seek passage by you?"
Karia smiles, making sure she's out of range of the claw, she calls out "We mean you no harm. Please come out and talk with us!"
There is a pause, and then a small plate in the front of the crab is pulled aside, and a corvine head pokes out. The eyes are somewhat glazed, and the dark feathers around its prominent beak are somewhat ruffled and unkempt. You recognize it as a tengu, a somewhat idiosyncratic avian humanoid race that look like anthropomorphized crows.
It squints at you. "You not cannibals? Speak too nicely for cannibals. Squwaa!"
It waves a strage looking, jagged-edged blade at you in a vaguely menacing way. "Pezok live here. Go away! You not take crab from Pezok"
Karia smiles and stays as nonthreatening as she can. "Not at all good Pezok. We are castaways exploring this island."
She sits on a comfortable spot. "Could you perhaps share what you know of this island with us?"
"I guess I now know what is inside of the crab."
Hamual then turns to regard the Tengu, "Did you kill that crab yourself? Was it difficult?"
"Kill it yerself? Hells--did you eat the beastie by your onesies?"
"We ain't cannibals; in fact, we've had a skirmish or three with 'em an' wouldn't mind riddin' this isle of 'em all," Corliss calls out to the tengu. "Would you happen to know where their village be? Or anythin' 'bout yon purplish isle 'cross the bay?"
Pezok cocks his head quizzically, and surveys the group.
"Not cannibals." he seems to decide. "Yes, Pezok kill crab. Great battle, Pezok show off great swordsmanship. Not surprise - sqwaa - Pezok much valued member of his crew. Yes, much valued. Birds help eat crab, and Pezok now live here. Cannibals not come anymore."
He waves his strangely-shaped blade again. "Haha, them fear Pezok, and his blade given by Captain himself, for being most-valued member of crew. They hide in village to the south, not come here again."
He looks at Corliss. "Is purple island? Where? Pezok not notice"
"Purple island's......yonder-ish. Say, me fine feathered friend...Have you happened to notice the presence o' other new arrivals on this isle?" He gives the tengu a brief description of the captain of the Jenivere and his treacherous lady-friend.
Sizara is a bit startled by the strange birdlike man. She has never seen anyone like him before. In fact, she finds the strange being before her to be...quite interesting. Very quite interesting indeed.
"I'm never seen your kind before, Pezok. I'm guessing that the cannibals attacked your friends and..."
She doesn't finish her sentence, knowing that it probably pains the bird man knowing that he outlived his friends.
"If you like, you could come with us and help us in removing the cannibals from these islands. It will also give you a chance in avenging your friends. Plus...I would like to get to know you more."
She smiles at the tengu, flirting with him a bit.
Pezok cocks his head at Sizara's suggestion, obviously interested, but not quite getting all the undertones.
"Sqwaa! Pezok very valued member of crew. Yes indeed. But he live in crab for now. Emptying shell and rigging ropes very difficult. That why Pezok so valued! Cannibals not come since crab claw crush leader's head. Very clever plan by Pezok!"
He rambles on for a bit, making little sense. "Pezok think, maybe fight cannibals, with sword given as gift by captain for being so valuable! But must make plan. Yes, plan before fight. So Pezok stay in crab and make plan for now. But new shipmates come back to crab and talk to Pezok, sqwaa? Can stay in crab when storm comes. See, Pezok very valuable member of crew! Talk with Pezok, he make fish stew in pot. That is all. Ahoy maties!"
He closes the hatch in the crab's shell.
Corliss gives a baffled look to the others before another of his wide grins splits his face.
"Well, it took a while, me friends, but we finally found somethin' on this rock that be goofier than me! On to yonder purple isle?"
"Did he invite us in for food? I am not sure why he talks the way he does. Purple island it is."
"Yes, you are indeed a good crew member, Pezok. And we appreciate it very much."
The scantily clad amazonian elven barbarian flirts with the tengu some more, hoping the strange birdman gets the message, while also smiling.
It appears that tengus are immune to the attraction of scantily-clad barbarians, perhaps not seeing much value in milk glands. In any case, the birdman appears reluctant to resume the conversation. He can be faintly hears going about his not entirely sane business inside the hollowed-out crustation.
The group continues its progress around the southern circuit of the lagoon. As the tide begins to ebb, they get a clearer view of the causeways that link the small chain of islands that lead out to their strange purple target. The path seems somewhat smooth, although not obviously worked - perhaps smoothed by the constant rush of the tides over the rock. In any case, it only protrudes a few inches above the waves, meaning that there will not be much time to traverse it before the tide turns, and it becomes submerged again. The fresh corpse of a large fish, perhaps a tuna, lies close to one edge a few dozen yards from the mainland. Although plenty of gulls circle overhead, none seems interested.
"How slippery do you think this would be? I was never one for acrobatics, i can walk just fine but the ocean seems to have slicked this up."
Hamual gets right up to the cause way, looking down into the water. He turns around and comes back.
"Think the Tengu could help? He seems fleet foot not of mind though."
"Best to wait for full low tide I think." Karia suggests, carefully testing the footing of the causeway. "We don't want to be trapped over there."
"What iff'n this be as low as she goes?" Corliss asks Karia. "If that be the case, then's time's a-wastin' whil'st we stand here. On the other hand...."
"Notice them sea-pidgeons a-circlin'?" Corliss asks the others. "I'm guessin' they ain't feastin' on tuna cuz whatever killed yon fishy still be patrol the waters near the walkway. Everyone up for a bit o' danger?"
To Hamual, the ex-pirate adds, "I don't think our fine feathered friend be interested in comin' outta his shell, so to speak."
It is approaching low tide now. It looks like the causeway will only ever be a few inches above the water.
"Corliss your a sailor, do you think it is low tide or should we wait a day to see?"
"Oh well, come on then, the ominous dark isle awaits us."
Karia leads the way, checking for poor footing and other dangers, warning the others as she goes.
Hamual will follow behind Karia, a few steps behind in case something happens.
"I don't want to think how badly my spell book would be ruined if I fell in there."
Corliss draws his rapier and keeps a weather eye on the water near the causeway as he follows Karia and the mage forward.