”A missing eye is truly wayward. That sounds More like the song’s true meaning. If we are wrong, we will simply climb over to the other eye.”
Chumtooth shrugs as if the matter is of little consequence.
"Just tell me which one to go into."
"Good thinking master dwarf.. Let's go!" Satinder replies, before leading the way towards the right eye.
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A narrow earthen opening ascends into the cliff above. The cave mouth is a tight fit behind the screening vines and roots, but it looks accessible with a little effort. Some grunting and squeezing later, the tunnel climbs to a point just below the island’s surface. Sunlight filters faintly through a rent in the earth above, where a gargantuan tree grows down into the rocky soil, its prodigious root system blocking any further progress ahead. The fissures and crevices in the bark of the tree’s trunk, just visible at the roof of the tunnel, vaguely resemble a wrinkled human visage with a craggy crown upon its brow, while the spread of roots below seems like the hoary growth of an ancient beard.
Faengrim scrambles into the tunnel. He comes upon the visage of the 'old king'. "I guess this is where we start digging." Once he gets the ok, he does.
Chumtooth nods to Faengrim, acknowledging his desire to begin digging.
Satinder grabs another shovel or pick, and helps Faengrim.
Dantes watches on, with avarice in his eyes. He'll look for ways to help shore up the hole, if it gets to that point.
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The group eagerly digs, anticipating what treasures may lie beneath the rocky soil. The digging is difficult work, but eventually, you have excavated a 10-foot deep pit. That's when you strike wood! Excitedly, you uncover the wooden object to reveal a floor of wooden planks. With considerable effort, you manage to break through the planks.
The removal of the wooden planks reveals a sinkhole descending into the rock. It drops thirty feet to the still, dark surface of water below. The broken remnants of a wooden platform and stair cling to the wall, but the structures themselves have long since rotted away and dropped into the inscrutable depths.
"Give me some rope and lower me down. I'll be able to see and have a look around."
Chumtooth nods. "More rope, and light if he needs it," he says to the others.
”What do you see?” Chumtooth calls down to Faengrim.
Faengrim stands there a moment allowing his vision to adjust better to the minimal light he has.
Faengrim will look all around the chamber and even go to the bottom and search. Digging if he has to.
Follow the tunnel until it opens up or ends. Faengrim will be cautious here especially if it ends in an air filled cavern.
fav terrain
fav terrain
If he encounters sahaugin, he'll retreat to tell the crew.
Satinder grows restless, staring at the hole in the ground...
Dantes paces with his hands clasped behind his back, waiting for the report back and wondering if it has been too long yet to declare that Faengrim has betrayed us and fled with the treasure, knowing full well how little sense that makes.
Chumtooth waits another few heartbeats, then finally says, ”let us follow.”
He climbs down onto the lowered rope and prepares to descend. ”Dantes, can you give us light?”
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Remainder of the party: You descend into a chamber that is filled with seawater around 15 feet deep. There is no sign of Faengrim or any treasure.
Chumtooth waits another few heartbeats, then finally says, ”let us follow.”
He climbs down onto the lowered rope and prepares to descend. ”Dantes, can you give us light?”
"There's an air filled cavern but it would take all your breath to get there. I didn't scout it, but saw some furniture like someone was living or being kept there."
"Lead on," Chumtooth replies, holding his harpoon at the ready and preparing to take a deep breath and follow his boatswain.
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Faengrim leads the crew a short distance down an underwater corridor, into a passage that opens into a small room (no air pocket) with exits to the south, and a sloping exit going up to the west. He heads west. By the time the passage comes back into air, your lungs are near bursting. You emerge into an air-filled chamber. The tunnel rises above sea level here, creating an air pocket in this series of chambers. The floor is sand and a few items of furniture are scattered about, including a table, a poorly repaired chair, a bed with a sagging frame, and a crude fence of driftwood in the rear of the chamber. The entire cavern is overgrown with vines bearing tiny violet flowers that fill the room with a cloying fragrance.
Chumtooth moves a little farther into the room. He allows his light-sensitive eyes to adjust to the dark.
Faengrim tries to get in front of Chumtooth. "Let me go first, Captain. It might be trapped."
As soon as they emerge in the chamber, Dantes casts detect magic and scans the place. Assuming he doesn't find a vast arcane treasure hoard, he grimaces in disappointment. If he does detect any auras, he'll warn Faengrim, doing his best to describe what he senses.
Faengrim looks all about the cave to try and figure out who or what was living or being held captive here.
He tries to figure out what the vine-flowers are.
"Search the furniture," Chumtooth says. "There may be writings or things that tell us who lived, or was held here."
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As you explore the chamber, Satinder and Faengrim begin to yawn heavily. Both of you are incredibly tired and cannot resist the urge to lie down and go to sleep. Both Satinder and Faengrim sink to the floor, snoring blissfully.
A scan with detect magic does indicate the presence of magical auras, specifically from the bed.
Chumtooth’s eyes go wide as his boatswain and first mate collapse to the cavern floor. ”Dantes, has something used magic against them?”
Chumtooth looks around the room for a bucket, bowl, cup or anything that might hold water. He then runs back to the flooded tunnel, collects some water, and splashes it on the faces of his sleeping officers.
ZzzZZZZzZzZZZZZZZzzZZZZzzzz
Dantes will approach them, and use detect magic to try and puzzle out what spell may be upon them.
Spellcraft
Failing to wake them with water, Chumtooth attempts to shake them awake.
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Dantes is convinced that this is not a spell that has been used.
Chumtooth attempts to shake them into wakefulness but is unsuccessful. Wait, did those flowers move closer to the sleepers? Surely not. It must be a trick of the breeze, but the cavern is still and no breeze blows through it.
Dantes frowns, finally letting his treasure lust subside enough to focus on the peril of his crew.
Vines, underground? And that smell, where did I read about that? He closes his eyes a moment as he tries to recall.
Knowledge check to identify the plants. .
Chumtooth reacts to the movement and draws his kukri. He stands ready to strike if the plant moves again.
Chumtooth stows his weapons, grabs Satinder by one arm and Faengrim by the other. He drags them as far away from the flowers as the room space will allow.