Hairy tosses the fruit back where he found it. "Probably just jungle fever. Yeh, I agree with Duck. We'd better get moving. I can drag him behind us if we need."

It won't take him long to pack up. He didn't exactly bring a change of clothes with the boat sinking.

"The doc going to be okay? We can restrain him..."

"We can't carry him the whole way back. If he's not going to be able to move, we have to wait here until he is."

Dr. Saunders seemed relatively compliant.  He continued to nurse his arm and mumble unintelligibly, but if pointed in a direction, he would walk under his own steam.

The other two scientists packed up their gear and got ready to move out.  The mood was significantly more somber and tension-filled than it had been the previous evening, though.

Anything more anyone wants to do before the party continues their hike?  How are you organizing yourselves?

Caduceus went about conjuring a forest spirit for the group soon after the sun finished rising. Only one this time, as he felt he had been asking too much of the forest lately. Unrelated, he felt sorry that he hadn't been able to do more for Saunders, but at the same time he did not feel sorry. Caduceus wasn't the expert on bad drug trips, and he had plenty of other responsibilities to occupy his time. As long as Saunders didn't wander off and get hurt, Caduceus would be able to sleep at night.

Once his spirit was present and he had asked it to Guard the scientists, Conceal the scientists, and Guard the 'runners, Caduceus hovered over the group as they moved. Both to help keep an eye on things from a higher vantage point, and so that he could avoid being slowed by the rough terrain.

---

Caduceus will take position hovering over the middle of the party as they hike.

Conjure a Force 3 Forest Spirit:
20:52, Today: Caduceus rolled 3 successes using 6d6 with the Shadowrun system with a target of 3 with rolls of 4,1,2,5,4,2.  Conjure Force 3 Forest Spirit.
Three services, all used. Guard, Guard, and Concealment

Drain:
20:52, Today: Caduceus rolled 2 successes using 6d6 with the Shadowrun system with a target of 3 with rolls of 2,4,2,3,1,1.  Drain test.
Two successes should mean no drain.

If Duck wants to be stealthy in front, Hairy is fine taking the rear. He doesn't have much of a plan, except to wear less. He's not too worried about the parasites growing in Saunders' blood or the ants eating his brain or whatever, except to make sure he has gel rounds loaded in his gun.

The group moved out, somewhat somberly.  Bichu took point and, given the daggers he occasionally still cast back at the scientists, that seemed as good a place to have him as any.  White Duck followed close behind and Kate herded the scientists along while Caduceus floated above.  Dr. Saunders wasn't super speedy, but he headed more or less the right direction, most of the time.  However, that slow pace only increased Bichu's frustration and the overall tension of the group.

At one point, Hairy thought something was shadowing them, but it was next to impossible to get a solid enough sense of what it was or where it was to get a proper bead on it.  However, by mid afternoon, it seemed to have disappeared - or at least moved far enough off they could no longer detect it.

The jungle heat continued to be miserable, and the runners sweat and general filth finally overcame the noxious odor of the bug repellent Julia had provided and everyone was covered with more than their fair share of bites and welts before Bichu finally called a halt beside a small stream that presumably snaked its way to the nearby Amazon.  The runners gratefully refilled their canteens, but at the guide's warning, resisted the temptation to try swimming.  "Candiru."

No one seemed in the mood for celebration and after a tasteless meal of Nutrisoy Everlast bars washed down by creek water, the scientists returned to their tents, Dr. Al-mansour assisting Dr. Saunders to get ready.

What is everyone's plan for the evening?

Kate settles in and keeps an eye on things until it's decided on watch order.  Too many surprises on this trip to get comfortable and, if she can't get comfortable, she might as well be watchful.  And what the hell was a Candiru, anyway?  She sat by the fire, watched and generally tried to get the fire to kill bugs near her.

After making camp, Caduceus checked closely on Dr. Saunders' aura to see if his condition might be getting better, worse, or remaining consistent. He then shared with the others what he had learned. And, as usual, after the sun set he made sure to call forth a new spirit to guard over them during the night.

As much as Caduceus loved the powerful spiritual energy of their surroundings, he was looking forward to reaching civilization again soon.

Duck makes an attempt to lighten the mood whilst keeping vigil. He knows now is not the time to relax, but a more relaxed atmosphere would probably benefit those hauling the fruit.

Hairy is fine doing the same watch schedule as the night prior. This time through though, he'll be peeking in the scientists' tents now and again to make sure they're not doing anything stupid like getting eaten by monsters.

So same watch order/process as last night?  Anyone else doing anything different?

In reply to DeusEx (msg # 84):

Kate is too wired to sleep, she's going to take first watch and see if she can calm down a bit before passing out.

After setting up his tent, Caduceus decided to do a little astral reconnaissance on their destination. "I'm going to fly ahead and take a little looksie at our destination. In astral space. I'll check the distance and make sure there are no deadly auras to avoid between here and there. Make sure nothing eats my body while I'm gone."

Caduceus then hovered in his tent, a mosquito net draped over himself, and began his trance for astral projection.

---

Caduceus is doing a quick astral jaunt before sleepy time. He is mostly checking on the distance to their destination, but also keeping an eye out for any obvious hazards in between. (rivers, forest fires, dragons, etc.) He also wants to actively avoid the attention of anything else flying around in astral space.

Did his examination of Saunders' aura reveal anything noteworthy?

Caduceus slips into the astral and takes a good thorough look at Dr. Saunders.  The initial excitement of almost cutting off his arm and generally being rather freaked out had faded somewhat, which made the aura slightly less chaotic than it had been first thing in the morning, though it was still quite a mess.  Mentally, the good doctor was pretty freaked out - and seemed to be responding to things that weren't visible to the shaman in either the physical or the astral space.  Whatever it was was purely inside the good professor's head.

However, as he continued to study the man as he faded off to sleep, he saw a faint hint in the man's aura that he'd witnessed before in some of the addicts who roamed Seattle's darker streets.  None of the darkness typically associated with street drugs was there, but there did seem to be some sort of compound or toxin there - presumably of natural origin given the challenge spotting it within the man's aura.

It was nearly impossible to follow the 'trail' the group had been following on their physical march to the valley.  The signatures of the plants and animal life were too vibrant to clearly see any open path.  However, the river was nearby and it was easy enough to follow it to the village.  It wasn't a huge place, maybe 40 people max, but there appeared to be a few boats in the harbor and presumably someone there would have a communication device.

It was easy enough to find wildlife - monkeys, birds, jungle cats and stranger things.  Some of which he certainly wouldn't want to meet on his own - and a few of which seemed to notice his passing on the astral.  However, none that seemed to be obviously stocking him or the camp.

I'll give you a chance to act on what you've learned before I advance the timeline to morning.

Caduceus let his fellow runners know about all he had learned of Dr. Saunders' condition. He gave Hairy especially detailed information about the effects the drug seemed to be having on Saunders, since Hairy seemed to be... well-versed in the subject.

He also shared his knowledge of what he had found out about the village they were headed to. But only with his fellow runners. That way it would be easier to know if they were being intentionally misled or misinformed about anything related to their destination, as unlikely as it may be. He had no reason to suspect they were currently being played, but Snakes do like to keep their information close to the chest.

"I'm better with stuff ya get on the street, but I guess it's close to a few things I've heard of. Mebbe I can put together a downer for next time he's tripping balls?"

Not sure if I roll biotech plus half of a background skill, or just the linked background skill, so I rolled twice:

21:44, Today: Hairy rolled 2 successes using 5d6 with the Shadowrun system with a target of 4 with rolls of 2,1,2,5,5.  Just drugs skills.

21:44, Today: Hairy rolled 1 success using 6d6 with the Shadowrun system with a target of 4 with rolls of 1,1,3,2,2,4.  biotech + 1/2 drugs skills.

Obviously I hope you rule I can only use the background skill, since it turned out better overall ;)

What materials are you using as ingredients/equipment in creating your concoction?

“It’s gotta be related to our cargo...” says Duck, playing with a small stick he’d found that was kind of shaped like a cigarette. Cadeuces notices a series of smaller sticks broken from a large one and somehow wedged into a nearby tree trunk. He flings the one in his hand swiftly into the tree itself, explaining the mystery of it with the swift flick of a wrist.

“Can’t be any other variable. The fruit made the guy crazy, but he didn’t eat any. People don’t usually deny things like that when they’re dying of blood loss, so, uh, what could it be?” He asks, grabbing a palmful of the kiwi seeds from his pocket. “I took these out earlier and my skin definitely came into contact with it. If it had hallucinogenic properties I probably would be out there thinking I could talk to jungle animals and going all Hearts of Darkness on you guys. Problem is I can’t do anything but walk through this fucking jungle with these idiots in tow who are making it like living on the set of a reality show with all the squabbling and beat up *some* of the weird monsters that attack us during the process. All for less than the price of a fancy car for each of us.” He sighs, reaching down into his palm and flinging a couple of the seeds into the tree.

I can’t wait to go home, and I’m going to tell anybody else that comes to me with the bright idea of flying to a foreign country and going on an expedition into unknown territory underequipped and the people responsible for making decisions terribly uninformed, I just hope they leave room for my fist, because I’m going to shove it into their stomachs and rip out their goddamned spines.”

In reply to DeusEx (msg # 90):

Without getting too fancy, a tranq patch and a medkit. I also have some scopolamine, but I'd prefer something cheaper. I imagine we have some tobacco and alcohol on hand as well. I don't want to knock the poor guy unconscious. Just make him pliable and safe.

In reply to White Duck (msg # 91):

"Nah man, lotsa stuff can trip out an old geezer like him. Maybe he got an old fruit, got some mold on. Maybe a critter bite. Maybe it's the stress of realizin' he's wasted all his time growing his balloon head and now he can't do nothin. Maybe some magical fragger. Maybe it's something in his pockets he brought along to calm his nerves. I mean, I brought enough blow to keep me going. Big balloon head, would be too shy to tell us 'bout it too. Really, best way, strip him naked, check for bug bites, then punch him in the stomach 'til he barfs and look what's in there. But pretty sure that would void any bonus."

Dr. Sanders had been willing to eat the ration bars passed to him and to drink whatever was offered - which was good, as each of the party had probably lost at least a couple of liters of sweat during the day's hike.  Waking him up to quaff Hairy's concoction proved to not be too difficult.  However, it didn't seem to have any noticeable effect on the man before he went back to sleep - and Caduceus didn't notice any change to the man's aura even after he'd been dozing for a bit.

Bichu watched the preparation and administration with a degree of curiosity, though the group sensed it was more about whether Hairy's mixture would kill the scientist than whether it would help him.

A spirit slithered out a Caduceus's command and agreed to keep watch over the party.  Everyone headed to bed, apparently more than willing to adhere to the warnings of "don't eat the fruit".  It stayed thoroughly wrapped in the backpacks used to carry it.  The scientists and Bichu all fell asleep almost immediately, exhausted from the exertion and being mentally on edge all day.  Those runners not taking first watch happily joined them, and not even the hum and repeated bites of mosquitoes kept them awake for long

PM

Hairy goes about his evening rounds, overriding privacy with a possessive curiosity, peeking in bags and chests, tents, flashing his flashlight on and off at shadows around camp. Now and again he gives a reassuring grunt and continues on. Finally he comes to Doctor Saunders' tent, lets himself in. His flashlight flickers on... and he backs out, bellowing loud enough to wake up the camp. "Hoi! Wake up! The doctor needs some uh... medical care. And probably a tarp. Oi, wake up!" He steps back into the tent to look at the doctor again. "Drek... I'm not cleaning that up."

Caduceus had been dreaming about walking through a field, where every blade of grass was a snake with a juicy secret. But every time he would reach out to grasp one, it would slither just out of reach. He was getting more and more frustrated until he finally figured out the trick to catching them. The trick was to-

And then he was stirred into the realm of the waking by Hairy's voice. The details of his dream were already slipping away. "Uh," he moaned as he rolled over and lifted himself into the air magically. He didn't feel like walking at the moment. In fact, he hadn't even bothered to open his eyes until he started moving toward the opening of his tent.

Unfortunately, Caduceus knew that in their camp when someone said "doctor" it likely meant "we probably need a spell cast." Still he was entirely willing to let the people with actual P.H.D.s to get their two creds in first if it looked like it was out of Caduceus's area of expertise. But to know that, he first had to take a look at the scene of the... mess? Based on Hairy's reaction, mess sounded like a good bet.

"What happened now?" Caduceus asked tiredly as he hovered over. He reluctantly took a look at the scene with both physical and astral sight.

Kate had finally fallen asleep, we knowing that her turn watching out wasn't making for restful sleep.  "Why didn't I stay in the city?  I could have slept well there".

Hearing the soft, gentle sounds of Hairy's voice ripping her out of sleep meant that the world was 3cm from ending again.

"What happened?  Who ate the bad thing and who needs to be told to stop that?"

She opened her eyes and started moving toward Hairy.

Duck was roused from his dreams of cigarettes by Hairy's call to action, immediately moving over to Dr Saunders' tent and taking a close, almost paranoid look around the perimeter of the jungle.

"Just the smell of them," he thought. "Raw, fresh tobacco and burned sticky ashes that cause others to complain about the way I smell." He moved into the confines of the tent, standing on his toes to see over Hairy's shoulder.