Session+73

**6-13-15** **Leitha Sul - unicorn prince, Delving into the Red Fungus Forest, and The Guardian of the Red Lord** The morning after the catamaran race celebration Erevin, Shri, Posy, Mali, Thorn, Azarius, Wren, and Kale packed up and headed out on horses, dogs, and a massive frost giant wolf. A horse-drawn wagon carried the barrels Dominic and Bishop had prepared against the Red Fungus. Uther and Ursus stayed behind in Lyrabar. Trieste stayed to watch over Amara. Wren asked Crowe to help out Annaisuru in the embassy while Loch traveled with some elves back to Myth Coramanth to deliver the message that Parula was alive and freed, but she was broken and not ready to travel home. Traveling about a week through the dense Gray Forest to the west of Lyrabar, the group passed the broken path where the giants had stomped through on their way to war. The sylvans in the woods kept to themselves though their occasional presence was felt. After another week, the group halted their steps as they broke through to the other side of the woods... a reddish growth covered the ground of the horizon... as though the entire small forest to the west of the Gray Forest had been overtaken by the red fungus. Armed with the knowledge that the red fungus had unnatural and evil intelligence and worked at problem solving, there was a concern that the plant would send an alarm back to the core and send everything it could to defend itself. Mali took the form of a fast hummingbird and Azarius used his ring of flight to scout the forest in opposite directions in an attempt to find a more direct location to mount their attack.  Thorn sent Mali with one of his two marbles so he could keep an eye on her travels. As they moved through the thick forest that was heavy with red fungus... it was a little creepy with no animal sounds, bird songs, or even bug noises. A few random squirrels scampered about with red vines crawling out of their noses, mouths, and eye sockets! It became clear that we didn't have enough barrels to clear the entire forest... and finding the core became even more important!

Mali flew nimbly through the vines that slowly reached for her as she zoomed by. A giant circle of white stones had a tiny gap, big enough for a hummingbird to get through. She could feel the druidic power humming from the circle, barely keeping the fungus at bay. A loud whinny came from inside and Mali flew through the gap into a circle of pure untouched forest. Several animals were gathered in the center... most of which wouldn't normally gather together due to the food-chain, but here they all were... with a perfect sparkling white horse that had deer hooves and a pure white horn. He impaled a red-vine-covered bird with his horn, pulling out the fungus and stomping the vines to death. "Leitha Sul," Mali shifted into her red-haired halfling self, and bowed in greeting. Leitha lowered his head, whirling around to her presence.  He relaxed and nodded to her in greeting, "Sister of the forest, you are the first to have come. Have you brought a circle with you?"  "A circle? You mean my companions?" Mali tilted her head.  "Of nature wardens," he nodded."Um well... you could maybe call us that..." Mali thought for a moment, pulling a feather from her pocket to send a message back to the group of where to meet her, "but I have something for you... I was with your father when the fungus took him. I saved his horn for you." She laid the still pure horn at the prince's feet. Leitha Sul nodded to Mali, "I felt my father's passing last year."  "I'm so sorry it took me so long to get this to you," Mali's shoulders were heavy, "My companions and I were on a great mission to learn more about this fungus to learn more about how to stop it."  "Have you found a way to defeat it then?" He looked interested, "Only in the power of this circle has my power to purify been enough to stop the fungus. I have gathered what I could of what remained of the forest's creatures here... it is but a pitiful few."  "Do you know where the start of this comes from? We need to find that to stop it," Mali nodded.  "Before I was forced to come to the circle... I looked throughout the forest for where this thing might have come from. The only thing that I found that was suspicious to me... was a group of forest giants that had been taken by the fungus... as opposed to all of the other creatures that had unfortunately been taken to go berserk and mindlessly spread this fungus... these giants stayed in their camp, and seemed to be guarding something." "That definitely sounds like something," Mali nodded.  "They are dangerous creatures. Even more so now that they have been taken by the fungus," he shook his head, "And I can not leave this circle again."  Mali quickly shook her head, "Nor do I think that would be wise. I think you should stay here, keeping what remains of the forest safe." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> There was an abundance of plants that replenished themselves quickly to keep the vegetarians and omnivores sated, and there was a clean crisp pool of water in the center... but it seemed that some sort of rationing had been put into place to feed the carnivores. Mali gave them all the food that she could offer from her pack, and they graciously accepted it. Waiting for hours as Azarius and Mali explored the forest, Erevin moved slightly closer to the the forest, watching with interest as the red fungus reached out for him. It was aggressive and wanted nothing more than to infect everything around it. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Thorn glanced over at him, "Erevin... why are you antagonizing the evil fungus?" He shook his head, "Please stop." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Wren giggled. Leitha leaned down near the druidic halfling, he was pure and perfect... young and in his prime... he drew a rough map with his horn in the dirt of where the forest giants could be found near the mountains. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Mali thanked him, looking carefully over the map and showing the others with the marble. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> He nodded to her, "I thank you for returning my father's horn. There are many who would have used it for themselves." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> She nodded, "I tried to keep it as safe as I could." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "Come to me and tell me if these giants are the source of this. I've never seen anything like it. I've heard unnatural whispers from the mouths of the creatures infected... they seem to chant Red King." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "I have heard this name before," Mali nodded, "I'm guessing this Red Lord has taken the giants and is using them as pawns. I'm sure they have no choice in what they do." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "Be careful," he nodded to her. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "And you all stay safe," Mali nodded back. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> "We will hold as long as we can," the unicorn prince nodded, and trotted back to the gathering of animals... his muscles rippling... g olden mane, sparkling... pure as the driven snow. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Mali resisted the urge to ask him if she could ride him, thinking to herself ... perhaps someday. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Azarius and Maliumpkin returned to the group. The mounts were drawn away into a camp where they had access to plenty of food and water. Mali casted ant-haul on herself, shape changed into a huge roc, and pulled the wagon of barrels with her. Erevin, Shri, Kale, Posy, and Thorn rode on top of her. Azarius and Wren flew beside her. They flew over the forest of red as it twitched and reached for them as they went by. A dense part of the forest, where the trees were larger, housed a few cabins where the immense forest giants stood around in a clearing. Eight of them milled about the area, seemingly defending a cave entrance. They were draped thick in red fungus... vines came out of their eye sockets and mouths, writhing... their skin seemed to be all red and bubbling with fungus. The fungus seemed to be controlling them, making them smarter... more precise than their normal behavior. The cave narrowed to about 10 feet... they were going to have to land and shrink down to get in... and to encounter all eight giants at once seemed an impossible task. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Azarius casted invisibility over the barrel and Erevin drank a potion as Thorn engaged his ring of invisibility. Erevin and Thorn dropped in, sneaking a barrel around to the other side in a plan to distract them by releasing the liquid onto the fungus... in great hope that the screams of the fungus would call for defense and bring all of the giants running. Azarius wove an invisibility sphere around himself, hiding Mali and the wagon. <span style="color: #222222; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px; line-height: 1.5;">The witch joined the others riding Mali, hidden by Azarius's sphere. Thorn and Erevin hauled the invisible barrel stealthfully around to the other side of the clearing, tipping it over to spread into the fungus... the patches of red fungus turned brown and a soft high pitch screaming came from the plants as they died. Two of the giants walked to the barrel as Thorn and Erevin skirted around the edge carefully. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Disappointed by the reaction and lack of attention the barrel was drawing... Azarius wove a greater invisibility around himself and sent a lightning bolt to explode the barrel, spraying the liquid outward! A cloud of steam and liquid spray showered the two giants near the barrel. The two screamed in horrible twisted agony, drawing the views of the other giants as they swept their view around the sky, trying to find where it came from. The two forest giants, cleansed of the fungus, screamed in horror and pain as they were left shredded and missing eyes from the gaping wounds left in their bodies! They ran into the forest, screaming! Mali summoned in a group of 4 raptors and Azarius summoned forth 3 earth elementals that moved as a large group up to meet the giants who moved to swarm them, opening a path for the group to move through. Only the lead giant stood in the way of the entrance. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin and Thorn continued skirting the edge of the forest to move up near the cave. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Mali managed to land fairly softly near the giant, Posy leaping off of her, and popping out of the invisible sphere with her axe, slicing into him deeply and splashing him with acid! <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The enormous forest giant grappled the little gnome, wrapping her in red vines! Automatically triggered by the grapple, Posy's shirt burst into flames charring the massive red vines of fungus around her! <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Wren stepped out, pointing her wand toward the giant and sent a powerful bolt of cold to slam into the other side of him contrasting to the fire on the other. Kale leapt off right behind her, charging in to hack at him with his magic blade. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Azarius flew in over the summoned monsters distracting the other 5 giants to land in near the others. Thorn carefully stealthed in behind the great giant to sneak attack his back with a powerful precise strike! <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin took in the scene of his companions pouring their strikes into the massive giant and he toppled it to the ground with a final fatal piercing of his blade! As the body fell to the ground, the vines still writhed, smelling of burnt flesh. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Mali transformed into a dire bear, pulling the wagon of barrels with her into the cave. Everyone followed her in quickly, running through the entrance. The red-haired halfling paused to close off the entrance of the cave behind us with a great wall of stone. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Posy, spotting an infected forest giant deeper in the cave, charged forward to slash into his immense body with two direct strikes! Wren, concerned for the gnome rushing off alone, moved in and warded Kale who charged in next to Posy to strike with his blade. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Azarius moved forward in the passage to get a clear shot past Wren and sent in a green beam of disintegration that turned the giant into dust!

Some thumping came from the stone wall behind the group as they moved through the passage coming to a dead end. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> After drinking some of the anti-fungus Mali dropped out of bear form and leapt into the pool of water on the floor. The water was deep... 40-50 feet! She donned the pearl underwater helm to breathe under the water and swam down to scout out the long cylindrical shaft. Fungus vines clung to the walls and drifted in the water like seaweed, but it shied away from her body carrying the antifungus. 200 feet down, it emptied into a bigger cave. With only her ioun stone as light, Mali resurfaced to tell the group of the dark cave far below.

With only Azarius and Mali being able to breathe under the water... Azarius volunteered to teleport back to Lyrabar. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Could you pick up some bread and snacks while you're there?" Thorn grinned, "And drop off my laundry?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Azarius smirked and vanished, appearing on the merchant street in the city to a few surprised glances, "What? I was here the whole time." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The passing citizens hurried on their way, and he entered the House of Wonders to be greeted by Shandra, "Mister Azarius! This is quite the surprise! I thought you and your companions just left weeks ago... you're back already?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "No... actually we're in a cave and we need some water breathing potions," he smiled at her, jingling a bag of gold, "So I'm here to shop... because we weren't prepared for an extended underwater sojourn, so to speak."

"Well, for //you//... I have several available at 150 gold a piece," she nodded, "How many do you need?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> He counted everyone on his fingers, adjusting for himself, the druid, and the helmet, "I'll need 10." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> She nodded, packaging them up, "I have another helmet of underwater breathing if you'd like one of those." She smiled charmingly, "Only 25,000 gold." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "It is a rather nice helm," he agreed, "but I think I'll just take the potions." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> She nodded, "Alright. Well you be careful." She handed him a neatly tied up box in exchange for a bag of gold. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> He nodded, "Thank you." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "You're welcome! If you need anything else, feel free to come back. I appreciate your patronage," she nodded, "And for spending 1500 gold today, here... take these for you and your companions." She handed him a box of cinnamon rolls, fresh from the Sokolov Bakery. "Have fun storming the dungeon!"

The golden-blonde sorcerer returned to the cave with a box in each hand, "I have potions and donuts!" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Everyone happily took one of the delicious pastries, eating it and following it with a water-breathing potion chaser. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Taking a swig of the antifungus, the group swam down into the water, assembly lining a drop off to send all of the barrels down the 200 foot shaft into the dark cave below.

Maliumpkin, in water elemental form, moved into the cave to scout ahead of the others who were bringing the barrels in. Caverns filled with fungus to the left and right left her alone. Sconces along a narrower passage lit up with an eerie green light. As she moved in, she could see an enormous serpent coiled on top of a circular area on the floor etched in runes. Fungus coated it's skin and vines wavered in the water. She moved in closer to see a large seam line bisecting the circle and the wards that had been placed to keep something imprisoned were broken. It appeared he was once a guardian who had been overtaken. She drifted forward with a barrel of antifungus, and the serpent woke and rose up. The others began to follow her through the eerie green passage.

Posy moved the barrel closer to the wingless dragon beast, and as she approached about 30 feet away... the serpent breathed out a deep cold into the watery passage! Thorn and Erevin managed to avoid it while Shri, Kale, Mali and Wren took endured through the freezing damage. Posy and Azarius were caught frozen in blocks of ice! Erevin sped through the passage to bash open the barrel with his moonblade, leaving the liquid antifungus to float in the water like a cloud. Azarius unfurled all of his tentacles to force and break his way out of the ice. Being in the back, Thorn was the only one who noticed.

Mali whirled her water elemental body, picking up the cloud of antifungus to disperse into the serpent.The fungus receded back from the serpent's face, vines vanishing to leave open wounds. Thorn grabbed more barrels, sending them further into the cavern toward the serpent and the others.Posy, floating up toward the ceiling of the passage, managed to exert her great strength to shatter the ice around her. Kale and Shri moved up, staggering the line to push the barrels in with Thorn.

The giant tail, still controlled by the fungus infection, whipped out to try and grab Erevin, but the elf evaded him. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Wren pushed more barrels down, speaking in draconic, "Be calm... we are not your enemy." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin broke the next barrel toward the back of the serpent, and Mali whirlpooled around him, sending the cloud of liquid over the scales of the serpent. The infection receded, fungus and vines turning to brown and fading to dust... disappearing as the liquid seeped into his wounds. Black blood seeped into the water around him, and he screamed in pain, but he stopped attacking the group. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Wren moved in quickly to touch him, hexing him with a witchy heal, followed by Shri who sent out a powerful cool wave of moonlight to heal everyone around her.

The blood seemed to stop flowing from the serpent and he calmed, speaking haltingly in draconic, "Thank you... warm ones... In much pain." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Feeling better?" Wren soothed him, patching up more of his wounds with herbs. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Better," he nodded, still visibly in pain. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The witch nodded, "We're here for the Red Lord." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Red Lord is below," the serpent nodded, gesturing beneath him, "Warm ones like you broke seal." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Dark skin? White hair?" Wren asked. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Dark skin, light hair," he agreed.Wren frowned at Erevin, "Drow..." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "How long ago?" the elven prince asked in draconic. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Long time," the guardian nodded thoughtfully. It was difficult for him to assess the years being stuck down in a dark cave and infected by the fungus. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "When were you charged with guarding this place?" Erevin asked. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Loooong time..." the serpent nodded, "The Red Lord was the first to be imprisoned." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Have there been more since then?" Erevin inquired. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Then the Mother... and then the Mindbreaker," the serpent nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "So you know of them," Erevin nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The guardian blinked his eyes, "I am a serpent of Umberly." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "The sea goddess," Wren nodded, recalling the pirate captain paladin speaking the name before. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Many gods are enemies of Ghaundahaur," the serpent nodded, agreeing.

Erevin blinked in pleasant surprise, "Someone is actually educated on the subject." "So... do we need to kill him or reseal this rune stone somehow?" Posy asked, looking over the circular etching on the floor. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Well if we kill him... we don't have to worry about him escaping again," Erevin answered. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Posy nodded, "Do you think the Mother is here as well?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin shook his head, "I think the Mother will be elsewhere." He turned to the serpent, asking for confirmation, "Is the Mother elsewhere?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The watery wingless dragon nodded, "Yes, only Red King here." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "The Mother is imprisoned in a great city under the sea," the serpent offered helpfully. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "A great //city//... that's under the sea?" Wren blinked, confused. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Ancient civilization of water people," he nodded to her. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "They worship him?" Erevin asked. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The serpent nodded, "The people there worship Ghaundahaur. The city is full of treasure and gold to lure in the greedy." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Sounds like a good trap," Erevin nodded, "When did they come here?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Long time," the serpent had no concept of time. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Azarius nodded, "I know of a city underwater... with treasure." He glanced at the breastplate he wore on his body from the same city. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Well there can't be that many," Erevin shook his head, "Do you know how to get there?" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Azarius nodded.

"Is the Red Lord still below?" Posy asked. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> The guardian nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Is he alone?"<span style="display: inline !important; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Wren asked. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "I do not know," the serpent shook his head. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "Well we are here to slay this ... Red King... once and for all," Erevin nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "He will be in the temple below... I do not know if he has any enslaved creatures with him or not," the serpent nodded. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Erevin nodded his thanks, "You are free to go or to join us if you like." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> "I can not go down there, but I will stay here... you will see why," he nodded in reply. <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Mali blinked, "Well that sounds ominous..." <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> Wren agreed, "Right?!" <span style="color: #222222; display: block; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"> With the runes all broken, it was easy for Mali and Wren to decipher how to open the seal. Opening it up... it was disturbing to see a watery surface beneath their feet as it was open air below. A spiral stairway led down... the top half of them still in water as the bottom half walked on dry land until they moved down completely in air to see the water surface above them. Dripping water and remnants of fish blood, they could see the dragon-like serpent looking down at them.The group went down another 200 feet following the spiral stairway into the warm humid air, breaking out into a large cavern where a temple resided. Strange angles made up the cavern and Ghaundahaurian temple. An eerie green fire illuminated the cavern.