Quest #28 "Kegenstien's Expedition Over the River"

[Darklin2]

Darklin

Gets up and Looks for a high water mark on the walls to try and calculate if it is High or Low tide right now.

Should be a line where the salt water scours the walls clean at High tide there should be a water mark.

He will assists Keg with getting Elnaerel up on his shoulders when they are ready.

[Ahlmzhad]

Feanol

The young elf will assist Darklin looking in the cave and at the walls below as well trying to find a tide line.

[Paladin]

Keyon

"If there's seaweed hanging from the holes above us, wouldn't that imply that sea water floods the entire chamber at times?"

Calling upon his time spent at sea, the young elf surveys the room in an attempt get an idea of how high the water normally gets and when.

[OGRE MAGE]

The Dark Cave
Moonday, 22nd of Goodmonth
Late Morning, Hot, Humid, Buggy

Keyon, Darklin, and Feanol find that the high water line in this chamber is only a few inches above where the water level is now, making it unlikely that the area ever fills completely with sea water. TK follows that up with some gnomish logic of his own.

Keg hoists Elnaerel upon his broad shoulders so she can get a closer look at the cracks in the roof. She is able to scrape enough of the dried funk away from the edges of the hole to stick her head and neck through. Up top, she can see outside the cave again, looking at an amazing formation of black cliffs and huge natural rocks that have been eroded into incredibly interesting shapes by countless years of the sea smashing against them when the weather gets rough. There are deposits of what must have been flotsam at one time scattered everywhere, with more seaweed, rotting vegetation, scraps of wood and other refuse, along with a few more of the small blue crabs that the group saw earlier. From her limited vantage point, she cant actually see the ocean or the beach they entered the cave from.

There is no noise coming from the passage beyond the watery chamber, but a slight hint of decay lingers in the air past the rock plateau.

Actions?

map:

6F23536E-5DCF-41C6-9C68-F240404FAEA9.jpeg (77.43 KiB) Viewed 540 times

Keyon 6/6
Keg Woodwright 13/13
Elnaerel 10/10 3/3
The Knife* 5/5
Feanol 4/4 1/1 CL, DM, RM
Darklin Sylvanas 8/8 1/1 CL, DM, RM

[Bluehorse]

Keg

Is mostly concentrating on keeping his feet firmly planted and keeping Elnaerel steady. Okay... more crabs... more food... That's a start. Anything else? He keeps his breathing steady and remains still as possible to support his teammate.

[Darklin2]

Darklin

Darklin asks.

Does it look like you could chip away the edges of the hole to open them up so all of us could get through? We could go back out and get wood or bamboo to make a ladder. Might be worth seeing what is up there?

[Karaunios]

Elnaerel

"There's flotsam laying around. I don't know if there's anything to see here, but who knows, maybe we find something of interest among the wood? I could try climbing up. Maybe."

She will give it a try if it seems feasible.

[Jernau35]

The Knife

"If we really want to go up there," The Knife says, "wouldn't it be easier to climb up the cliffs outside? The rocks probably have lots of handholds and we could hammer in spikes".

"Also, if we want to use this as a base camp in the future, making those holes bigger makes it easier for things to get in. So we'd have to watch the cave mouth and the tunnel".

[Bluehorse]

Keg

Still holding onto the elf's ankles unless she herself lifts them up. Let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet... There is more tunnel to explore. Once we know what we can up there, we still need to get across in here.

[Paladin]

Keyon

During this endeavor, Keyon remains focused on the water below them and the cavern beyond. He catches the reek of decay on the air and peers cautiously into the gloom.

"I could jump it and fasten a rope on the other side, I suppose," he muses. "Though with my luck over the last couple of days, I'll be in the drink and half-digested by some enormous beast before I know what's happening." He grins to himself and rakes a hand through his hair, shaking his head.

[Bluehorse]

Keg

One... thing at a time.

[OGRE MAGE]

The Dark Cave
Moonday, 22nd of Goodmonth
Late Morning, Hot, Humid, Buggy

Elnaerel chips away some of the crust of dead weeds and algae formed around the hole, but is only able to make it slightly bigger than it was. She wouldn’t be able to squeeze through it without chipping away at the stone for some time, but someone smaller than her might fit through.

TK mentions the fact that the area could likely be accessed from outside the cave mouth as well, and that making the holes any larger might be counterproductive as a security measure.

With the remaining dark tunnel almost beckoning him, Keyon eyes up the obstacle. With only about a five foot gap between the passage and the rock, the agile elf could almost walk across to the other side.

Actions?

map:

no change

Keyon 6/6
Keg Woodwright 13/13
Elnaerel 10/10 3/3
The Knife* 5/5
Feanol 4/4 1/1 CL, DM, RM
Darklin Sylvanas 8/8 1/1 CL, DM, RM

[Karaunios]

Elnaerel

Goes back to the ground. "Too tight for me, but The Knife could fit through it for sure." She then looks at the water in front of them. "I don't think there's anything in there. We should risk it."

Without saying anything else, she jumps to the central islet. That is, if the jump looks feasible enough and the rock is landable enough.

[Bluehorse]

Keg flexes a little and nods to Elnaerel then blinks when. She jumps to the center. He looks impressed but says nothing.
He will get out his rope tying it around his waits on one end and then tossing the other to the elf maiden. Here! In case some of us aren't so nimble. I'll anchor this side.

[Jernau35]

The Knife

Since the gap to the rock looks bigger when seen through gnomish eyes, The Knife waits for the rope bridge to be set up before he jumps. He also decides to wait for one or two other tough folk to jump across, to deal with anything nasty on the other side.

[Karaunios]

Hold on, guys, we still don't know if she made it or if you'll have to search for her teeth in the rock at the center.

[Paladin]

Keyon

Keyon's gaze remains fixed on the beckoning darkness beyond, curiosity mingled with dread. He secures his belongings to prepare to cross, then waits for his comrades to finish their task.

[OGRE MAGE]

The Dark Cave
Moonday, 22nd of Goodmonth
Late Morning, Hot, Humid, Buggy

Unwilling to try to squeeze back outside through the tight crack in the ceiling, Elnaerel gets down from Keg's shoulders and times her leap across the first gap of water to the island plateau in the center of the chamber. In her heavy armor and full compliment of weapons, she barely clears the distance, yet she lands gracefully enough to remain on her feet. The water then slowly rises again, soaking her boots and everything inside of them.

Keg's eyebrows raise slightly at the display before the large fighter ties his rope around his waist and tosses the rest of the coil to the lone elf stranded on her island. The others all watch and wait to see what will happen next. Keyon winces slightly once he is shown up again by a member of the fairer sex, but at least he is still alive.

Elnaerel looks deeper into the next tunnel, spotting a dark chamber that looks to have been recently ransacked. There is debris laying all over the floor, some of it spilled out nearly as far as the opposite stone ledge. The smell of decay coming from that chamber now prevalent, she cant make out any details, but at least she doesn't spot movement or any other signs of danger as she waits for the others to join her.

Actions?

map:

FEE9AAB5-7E1B-495C-BB34-23D0B78752C9.jpeg (86.53 KiB) Viewed 423 times

Keyon 6/6
Keg Woodwright 13/13
Elnaerel 10/10 3/3
The Knife* 5/5
Feanol 4/4 1/1 CL, DM, RM
Darklin Sylvanas 8/8 1/1 CL, DM, RM

[Jernau35]

The Knife

With Keg acting as the anchorman and presumably bringing up the rear, The Knife volunteers his own place in the order. "I'll wait until after Keyon and Darklin go over. Then I can cross when Feanol does."

[Karaunios]

Elnaerel explains what she sees beyond the next corridor and will tie her end of the rope to any jagged rock that might be on the central islet and, if not, around her own waist, and then help the rest cross to her.