The bottom of the well appears to be a solid surface, rather than some kind of liquid.  The grime and hair are pretty disgusting, but seem like they could be cleared away if you wanted to take the time.

Lenny decides that it might be worth the time to clear it away. He also decides that two shovels are better than one and gives one to Ati, leaving Vale and Walker to guard the four approaches to the chamber of the well. With their bows in hand, they could provide a piercing greeting to any interlopers.

Should enough muck be removed, Lenny will attempt to wipe the bottom of the well clean -- again should his suspicions be confirmed.

Vale takes the pole, holds it at one end and, when folks are ready, pokes the other end in the bottom.

This message was deleted by the player at 11:20, Sun 15 May 2022.

The grime is not very deep, and whatever's below it is solid.  Shovels won't do it - you'll need your hands and maybe some rags.  This will also entail standing in the pit, since it's 5' deep.

Having gained a clearer apprehension of the requirements of the job, Lenny stows the shovels and retrieves three small bags from his pack, hands one to Ati, and clambers into the pit and gets down to work -- careful not to break anything beneath his boots.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:56, Mon 09 May 2022.

Ati grudgingly follows Lenny into the pit, refraining for the time being from pointing out that he did not sign on to be a janitor.

Vale stands guard, on the looking for trouble while the others dig for a decent indication at to how the well thing might work. He pushes aside the thought as to him being completley out of his depth both mataphorically and literally.

After about 10 minutes, Lenny and Ati manage to clean off a portion of the base of the pit.  Underneath is what appears to be a large mirror, unbroken and unmarred despite the abuse it has suffered.  You figure an hour would be enough for you to finish the job entirely.

With what passes for a sage nod, Lenny wraps up his janitorial work and hoists himself out of the bottom of the pit. It doesn't seem right to call it a well as the light well terminated when it reached the ceiling of this chamber. Or should it be more properly be called a light chimney? Maybe it starts off as a well and then becomes a chimney. These thoughts almost drown out the ever present sound of death's footsteps padding after them.

Leaving the rest of the work for daylight, Lenny leads the others east to where Vale had said the statue and frescos were.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:34, Wed 11 May 2022.

While hoisting himself out, Ati suggests the party hire a cleaning maid, and assures everybody that when he said he planned to clean out the dungeon, this wasn't what he had in mind.

Your group heads east.  You pass two more hallways that run parallel to the well room, as well as a narrower hallway that runs a short distance south before ending in a door.  The statue room itself is as advertised: a 30' square room, in the center of which stands a statue depicting a springing baboon with raised fists.  The statue is 20' tall and stands on a 10' diameter plinth.  The frescoes on the wall depict humans and baboon working together to fight other creatures, including crocodiles, other humans, and bipedal amphibians.  A large human ear is painted on the north door, a detail Vale's infravision would not have detected.  Another hallway leads south out of the room.



The hallway leading here contained more mirrors, as does this room.  Unless otherwise mentioned, assume there are mirrors wherever you go in this area..

Despite every horror that has befallen them, Lenny marvels at the height of the statue. Might its height be connected to its purpose? Once again he enlists Ati in another exercise in manual labor: seeing if the goliath statue could be pushed into the well room.

If the exercise proves futile (and nobody has other plans), he leads the ragtag group back to the branching southern passageway that ends in a door (the one just past the parallel hallways). So long as they hear no gibbering, they will open the door and peer within.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:14, Sun 15 May 2022.