The group decide that taking Alohan's new boat is the best idea and also set about ensuring that they have sufficient rope and torches. With the final plans made the party disbands for the night.

The next morning finds them all down at the eastern boundary of Barge End and Panchi's boat yard. Alohan welcomes them onto his new purchase - he has done as much as he could in the short time possible and has at least gotten the broken mast out of the way - but even to those with no sailing talent it is obvious that this is not a vessel that should be taken a great distance. But since Parrot Island is just a few hundred yards into the main channel, everyone decides to chance it and with Alohan manning the oars they pull away from the wharf and out into the great lagoon.

Water traffic is light that early in the morning and they get to the eastern end of the island without encountering anyone, and the three men get out and drag the boat up onto the island through the mud flats.

The isle is thickly vegetated, the trees above serving as the roost for hundreds of noisy, brightly coloured parrots. They are disturbed as the party pull the boat well up onto the shore and into some of the undergrowth, so that Kassius can make an attempt to disguise it and make sure it is still there when they come back (OOC: DC check if you want to do a good job Kassius).

There is not much else to see - true to Fartellamous' words the island is boggy with a thick layer of parrot shit covering almost everything. It looks like a very unlikely spot for the lair of a thieves guild but presumably that is the point...

OOC: Where to now?

Logan inspects the land, before carefully stepping foot onto the boggy, messy surface.  At first, the rogue tries to step around the piles of guano, but after a few steps, gives up.  "Looks like there's no choice here."

He scans the island, looking for Farty's landmarks.  "Our information said we might be able to see some flagstones, and we were supposed to follow up those up a bamboo stand which was roughly in the center of the island.  There we'd find a hatch that led down into the tunnels.  Anyone see the flagstones?  I suppose if not we can just hike until we spot the bamboo, though I'd rather not wander around this place any longer than we have to."

Logan tries to scrape a particularly foul-smelling piece of excrement from his shoes. "Ugh, I never thought I'd think Shadowshore was a clean place!"

11:19, Today: Logan rolled 23 using 1d20+9.  Perception.
Trying to spot any of Farty's landmarks.

Logan skirts along the line of the undergrowth, each step coming free from the mud with a soft *plop* and leaving behind a hole that smelt of sulphur and then quickly filled with mucky greyish fluid. Up above the parrots continued their screeches of protest... It was becoming clear why this part of Sasserine was not inhabited.

But the rogue does manage to find an old paving stone after a few minutes of looking -  it had been originally about two feet square but was now fractured like glass and overgrown with weeds. After searching a little more Logan finds the next stone and sure enough there is a sort of path leading away from the shoreline and into the middle of the dense jungle of the low island.

Kassius and Kibeti dismount the rickety boat, rather glad to be back on solid land. Kibeti in particular seems to stare distastefully at the boat, as if it was a hated enemy. Finally, the cat gives it a distasteful hiss and stalks off. Kassius starts gathering some vines and undergrowth and draping it over the boat, to hopefully conceal it.
Wasn't sure what check you meant, so I'm trying survival?
13:32, Today: Kassius rolled 17 using 1d20+8.  survival.


Having done the best he can, Kassius looks up, taking in the sights of Parrot Island. He breathes in deeply, enjoying the many strong, natural odors. "Logan, I at least still don't think Shadowshore is a clean place." Kassius says with a straight face. "This place is natural and clean of the city muck. Welcome to the jungle." the half-orc says.

After Logan finds the path, Kassius relates one final thought. "The advantage of surprise might be valuable. Perhaps Logan and I should sneak ahead?"

EDIT: I should probably include this:
13:36, Today: Kassius rolled 19 using 1d20+8.  perception (doesn't include +2 if a hidden object).
I had rolled it intending to search for the path that Logan had mentioned, but the GM posted before me indicating it had been found so I just didn't bother.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:43, Mon 24 Aug 2015.

OOC: yeah, survival was what I was after

Kassius does a good job of covering the boat with branches he cuts off from the surrounding jungle - it is not going to be spotted unless someone gets very close.

Slowly and meticulously climbing out of the derelict pram, Celene silently thanks her goddess for not granting her a watery grave. With a satisfied sigh for being on solid ground again, she looks around.

Seeing Logan search the place, she queries "Logan, did you see any signs of other people while searching for the path? Tracks in the mud, broken plants and such?" Obviously he would have said if he had, but she thought she'd just remind them all to be on the lookout.

For the moment, finding any tracks set here would be easy, considering the muddy ground, but people expecting them could very well avoid setting tracks, and take cover behind all this dense foilage. On top of that, any sound they made would be drowned out by the cacophony of the parrots. She could not shake the feeling of being watched, but maybe it was just all those parrots.

But they sure were pretty. Yet, the sounds and sight sent jolts of hidden memories through her mind, of a time long forgotten, stumbling through endless jungle and other wilderness. Alone and orphaned. Fleeing a certain death sentence...

But now was not the time for flash backs. Mumbling a few prayers to her goddess, Celene made her own observations on the area. Seeing nothing except the expected, she continued "Ok, if we are sure we're not watched, let's head out slowly. You're right, you two should scout ahead, then Alohan, Angati and I will follow. How about a signal, in case you get in trouble and need us? Can you make some kind of sound signal we can hear over this noise? We'll follow close after you, and try to keep you in sight, ok?"

Despite not seeing any dangers present, Celene kept close to Alohan. Not too close, though!



23:29, Today: Celene rolled 21 using 1d20+4.  Perception, for hidden ambushers or tracks of them.

OOC: Logan didn't see any tracks. Mind you, he doesn't know anything about spotting tracks in a jungle environment.




OOC: Actually no, tracks won't be that easy to spot...

Celene scans the mud-flats between the water's edge and the high tide mark where the jungle begins. She can't spot anything that suggests that anybody passed by recently (OOC: Not least because doing so requires the 'survival' skill, not the 'perception' skill'! Perhaps Kassius should take a shot at it?) but then again, as she looks back at her own footprints she sees the holes filling up and smoothing out in the mud as she watches. Considering that the beach is also swept by a high tide every six hours, maybe it isn't surprising that she can see no trace of anyone passing before.

The sorceress lifts her grey robes clear of the smelly mud and looks up at the jungle tress and screeching birds. She can't see anyone hiding in there but... the jungle is just so dense here.

OOC: I'll assume that all of the character as looking for trouble and will make perception rolls for all of you.



OOC: Cool, we'll just give Kassius the chance to check for tracks and then move the action 'inland' with the hunter and rogue leading.



OOC: Yes, considering the barbarian hasn't had sex in three days. Your character should probably give him as wide a berth as possible...

Kassius rolls his eyes at Logan's bumbling efforts to look for tracks. The man clearly had a good eye, and absolutely no idea what he was looking for. City-boys , he thinks derisively to himself, remembering when he himself was the same.

07:14, Today: Kassius rolled 22 using 1d20+9.  survival (tracking).

Kassius doesn't waste anytime on the muddy shoreline, and instead focuses his efforts on the jungle around the big flagstones. He quickly finds what he is looking for - some of the undergrowth bears evidence of having been recently cut with something sharp - probably a machete Kassius judges from the marks left in a nearby tree. The cut branches and vines have only just started to heal over so the half-orc estimates that this was done only a couple of days ago.

The hunter also searches several yards left and right of the first stone and finds a spot where he is sure a small boat was dragged up into the jungle and hidden in a similar way that he has done to their vessel.

OOC: Feel free to share as much of this as you wish. I'm going to move the story on a bit now.

With the hunter and his cat taking the lead and the rogue close behind him, the party heads into the interior of the island by following the route that the old flagstones make. They quickly come to realise that 'Parrot Island' really is very tiny - only five hundred feet in length and one hundred feet at its widest point excluding the coastal mudflats. It is also low lying with the highest point being about 10 feet above the high water mark, although the height of the trees disguises this flatness a little. It is a sand bar with a few trees on it.

The pair locate the bamboo thicket that Fartellamous spoke of in the highest and driest point on the island, and notice that several of the plants have been cut down in order to allow easy access to the middle of the thicket. Kassius again estimates that this was done only a couple of days ago. And in the middle of the thicket, just as the fat thief had said, there is a stone trap door with a rusty iron handle on top. The trap door is closed.