After Arcus won his helm back from Daemon Mooncleaver in a resounding archery contest victory, the band of River Voices and their friends set out for Waterby Grotto. The 5 Eyes took them downriver to the entrance to the tunnels where chaos had been seen. Arcus climbed up the 15m ledge to the tunnel with the rope, and was instantly hit by a black, tarry gorp. Disruptions from the party nailed it, but not before it ate his L arm + chest armor (and almost him).
100m down the tunnel, Caernak noted that the narrow, steep passage led down a twisting route to water. The party avoided it and strove ahead down the wider passage. They spotted a pinkish, pulsing glow ahead and heard odd noises: moaning, laughing, grumbling, sobbing? They came close enough to the cavern ahead to see a circle of figures inside, within a 20m diameter cave lit by phosphorescent, throbbing sponges on all of its surfaces. One humanoid figure was moving out of view as the PCs magicked up. Arcus's Farsee spell noted that 3 were gorp, 1 was gorp-like but vaguely humanoid, 1 was a 2-headed dragonsnail, and the other was a well-armored broo with 2 swords (katana, actually!).
Naturally, Pachala charged ahead as the others cast magic and peppered the snail with arrows. It befuddled Pachala with its chaos feature, then bit his ?R leg and L arm? badly, before it was slain by a combined effort. The circle of figures ignored them, and the broo bowed to Pachala, saying "My fight is not with you, please let me pass." When Tison shot the hunched gorp-thing, a black wave of magic hit him from above, and his L arm began turning into gray slime. This stopped in 2 rounds, luckily. The broo was quick enough on his feet to escape BVoN and Elohwyn, but stumbled over a sponge and dropped a scroll case. Elohwyn and Pachala engaged the gorp while Arcus slew the gorp-man (a priest of Pocharngo, the cosmic cancer) in one skillful thrust of his spear through its throat. BVoN was lashed by acid tentacles but lived, minus some scales that will regrow at 1pt/week (with CONx5% roll). Arcus also was afficted by the corruption magic, but also resisted it before it ate his arm. The gorp proved nasty (long acidic pseudopods!) but easily stoppable with Fireblades.
Emboldened by victory, you set on down a sloping tunnel from the cave. This led down to the waterline, where the tunnel opened into an 11m diameter cave that was mostly submerged. River Eyes and light revealed 4 dragonsnails coming at the party from below. Caernak and Pachala killed the first (which then became a weak ghost and attacked Caernak in spirit combat, to no avail). Another LEAPED into the midst of the party (!) but was quickly slain by BVoN and Arcus (?) A third came up to the water's edge but someone killed it (who?). Pachala waded into the water and slew the venom-fanged fourth snail, which then exploded and maimed Arcus's foot. The party headed home to recuperate for the next stage, which looked to be wholly underwater (1 tunnel led from this cave, and there was the first, narrow tunnel above).
The scroll tube was cleansed of Soul Waste by Chalana Arroy. It was translated from Carmanian (northwestern province of Lunar Empire, quite mysterious and very far away) by Lhankor Mhy scribes. Note that this occurs AFTER the PCs head back to the caves (ditto for POW/experience checks). The parchment inside gave directions to Dyskund valley in the S central river valley, not far from Muriah's domain. It sounds like a treasure trove of crystals, perhaps hidden Humakt ("master of death") and ?Chalana Arroy? Eiritha? ("the fertile source") shrines, and apparently an abandoned temple to Thanatar! Thanatar is a scary chaos god of headhunters, knowledge theft, and darkness. Foe of Lhankor Mhy especially. Known for stealing people's heads to use their magics and knowledge. Smart, sneaky, and deadly. The scroll seems to be written by a Thanatari who was looking for the temple; recopied from an earlier account, with recent notes written in the margins. Why the broo had it is unclear. He looked like a warrior (perhaps even Kralorelan? [eastern]), and some of you might suspect that he could be allied with K'rana, the scorpion queen Humakti who was discovered in the Vulture Country canyons to the east. Or....???
A new mystery, what fun!
Next time (July 25): Return to the River's Womb to go diving, then some Storm Season hijinks back in Pavis. Should take 1-2 sessions before Sacred Time, and the opening of the Third Portal to the Inner Circle of Rapture.