Grung, Grung, Grung - King Groak wants to do what now?

The weather turns very hot and wet. During the night Yesne notices three grungs in the night who notice the rain catchers but drift away again. We wake the next day to hot but still heavy rain. The water around us has risen. Upon inspection, there appear to be no grungs around. The party head towards the archway (with an invisible Kailyn). The hedge is of thick thorny plant, not like most plants we have so far seen in the jungle. The path is muddy, has obviously been well trodden. Through the opening we see more hedge. Kailyn casts alarm at the entrance to the hedge. Fang notices drag marks going into the maze and amphibian like creatures going in both directions. It appears to be a long, well used route. The route to the left, the thorns close in. The party begin to make their way through the maze.   Whilst walking through the maze the party are attacked by missiles. They all miss but Yesne catches one. The Orange grung, I knew King Groak would want to see you. Shall I take you to him now. We will take you in time for the next ceremony. Groak will be bringing the great Nang Nang to help us rid of all the undead and the sick tadders. King Groak will make love to Nang Nang. The party agrees to go. We are guided further into the maze. There’s a portion of hedge which doesn’t look quite right. The Grungs touch it and a door forms, it is a secret door. The door opens into a large, 300ft circular area of flooded water. There is a small lake surrounded on the outskirts by reed huts ferns and lilypads. Rising up in the middle is a 60ft shrine made of painted mud of a giant frog with snakes protruding out of it’s back. Stairs climb from the lake shore to an open door carved into the fat belly. Around the perimeter are green grungs carrying spears and bows. Stood on the ledge to the side of the steps and decorated with bright feathers is a very large statue of a humanoid with one arm missing.   Roark appears to be the only one who is able to speak common – it is quite broken. There are around 100 or so Grungs in the nearby area. Most of these are green, there are a few who are blue in colour. Roark blows a trumpet, at which point there is activity amongst the blue grungs on the other side of the island, they head into the doorway. Blue ones are Acolytes. The high priestess is Red. A blue grung emerges from the doorway and speaks into a hollowed out tree trunk, it is lunchtime. The king doesn’t have time to talk to us. They ask us if we can swim. Yesne and Nisus ask for another way other than swimming. There are boats tied up to the side of us. Bjorn has a look at them, they are old and unmaintained. We are told they are taking us to the ‘guest quarters’ (jail). Yesne and Fang head towards the boat and get in. Nisus gets in the boat. Kailyn removes a vial to drink it. As he does so, the grungs persona change instantly. Bjorn and Fang notice that they appear to change their body language into a prepositioned aggressive attack formation. And it is clear that they know what they are doing. Roark ‘what is that’. Kailyn ‘it changes my form to allow me to swim’. Roark ‘slowly’. Kailyn drinks it slowly and his hands turn webbed to allow him to swim. Kailyn gets in the water with Bjorn. As they enter the water Kailyn notices the water is a lot more viscous than usual. He realises it’s the poison off the grungs skin. Yesne and Nisus are in one boat and Fang in another. As Bjorn realises the water is poisonous he attempts to climb into Fangs boat. Fang leans over to help him climb in and Bjorn is safely pulled into the boat. Kailyn, almost fish like attempts to jump into the second boat, however misjudges the boats location and hits his head on the bottom of the boat. Eventually, with a splash he does manage to land in the boat. The boats make their way around the central island to a larger outcrop of land which has some low mud huts around of various sizes. Various warrior type grungs are at work, intermingled with commoners. At the back end of the outcrop is a large gridlike bamboo structure laying on the floor. About 15ft square. We are led to this and the structure is lifted up. There are steps made from wood going down around 30ft, landing into soggy ankle-deep water. Coming off there are more cages cut into the mud. We are encouraged two to a cell. Bjorn and Yesne led to the first, Nisus and Kailyn in the second and Fang in the last cell. There are three grungs, two green and one pinky/red. Ilonas decides to stay outside, on her way up through the cells she tells Yesne that Fang isn’t alone. Yesne relays this to Fang.   Fang meets an elf, and says hello. Her name is Elessa. Nisus asks why she is here ‘I went for a walk and haven’t stopped’.   Kailyn establishes that we cannot use magic. Yesne tells Bjorn to see if he can break-out but he is unable. Fang shares some of her rations with Elessa, she’s never tried this food before.   Nisus, wondering whether his connection to Shagambi is still active realises his face is smushed up against the bars.   Yesne tries to cast light outside the cell (through the bars) but it doesn’t work. Yesne tells Kailyn magic doesn’t work outside the cell. He wonders if that’s because it doesn’t work down here. The Red Grung begins to cast and Kailyn says ‘oh you can understand me’ Grung ‘yes, what do you know of the tadpoles’, K ‘we have heard yes’. G ‘my friend has brought us to this place’. G ‘are you friends with the young curious one’ K ‘the elf?’ K ’are you Kru’uk?’, G ‘yes’, K ‘I am Kailyn’, G ‘nice to meet you’. K ‘we don’t know the elf, I;m sure she is enjoying Fangs company’. G ‘Fang? The hellblood?’ K. ‘yes’. G ‘Only Roark knows common’ (Grung has cast understand languages). G ‘it is sad’ K ‘how long has it been?’ G ‘they don’t survive, the tribe haven’t realised’ K ‘do you believe in reincarnation?’ G ‘no’ K ‘this started a month ago?’ G ‘possibly around then in your time’ K ‘did something happen? A change in the weather, new ritual, altering of the land?’ G ‘can I trust you’ K ’you have me locked in a cell where all our magic is nullified, you have all the power, I’d say you can trust me’ G ‘I would say that is the opposite, can I trust you when you are locked up and can’t hurt me? Do you care about life Kailyn’ Y ‘I do’, B ‘and I, I care for children already’ G ‘a dragon who cares? Tell me how’ B ‘we saved a village and the children in a church, they were left to die. I’ve sent children in need to get help’ G glacnes back at the other grungs behind her ‘We need your help. King Groak is convinced that we will be able to save ourselves and from all the undead if he can bring back NangNang. King Groak is not focussed on protecting our people. Only focussed on bringing Nang Nang’ Y ‘he wants to have sex with Nang Nang so how can he do that’ G ‘because I told him sooooo’ Y ‘so how will you bring him’ G ‘I have a plan, you seem very wise. The young one she was very sneaky. Anyway I found these….’ She produces a box with a little brush in it. G ‘so when I paint with these, they become real. But I can’t do it on my own. If I paint these and then we can pretend it works. What King Groak says, it is. He once thought the world had flipped on it’s head so we call had to walk in the sky for 3 days’ Y ‘why don’t you just kill King Groak?’ G ‘no, no, no’ Y ‘ok, how can we help’ G ‘maybe you can help with the ritual’. K ‘did you change anything in the temple’ G ‘no, we blocked the back up where the bad things were’ N ‘Kar’uk I know you said time is different for you but when did you block up this hole’ G ‘3 monsoons ago’ (much more time than when the tadders got sick).   Grungs have been in this site for many years and have altered it many years ago. More pressing; there are more undead attacking them, King Groak is more focussed on NangNang and the newborns are not surviving which has been relatively recently. Realising that Grungs reproduce quickly and thinking back, Yesne is convinced that she has not seen or heard any newborns in the last month. It appears that the soul monger also stops life from being created. Yesne asks Kar’uk to sit down so she can recount the soul monger story.   The party suggests we use the NangNang ritual to impart her blessing and tell King Groak what we want him to.   A small voice talks to Elessa, Yesne intrigued by this searches for the sound of the voice… On Elessa’s lapel is a tiny little monkey with four arms. His name is Grampo.   An orange grung comes through the door and says ‘King Groak has finished his lunch and is ready to see you… why are you out of your cages’ ‘we heard you coming’. Kar’uk is panicking now. We start to head out of the cage. On the way up, Kailyn takes the brush from Kar’uk. We climb into the boats. We are brought to the steps of the temple. There are several orange grungs around, some green and some blue. We are escorted up the steps and into a large open void. The interior of the shrine is one large hollow room, a shallow pool covers the front area. Short grungs of varying colours are fussing with the fungi that is floating in the pool as if they are adorning / prepping the area. A semi circular basin has been created at the end of the room. Wallowing in the basin is a large golden grung who is being fanned by several grungs, other grungs are spraying him with water. He wears a giant headdress, around him are some orange grunged guards. He is about 4 times the size of the others. The grungs around us kneel. The party follows suit. Kar’uk goes over and casts a similar ritual as before. King Groak sits up. ‘What you bringing to King Groak’ and slaps his belly. Yesne says hi, ‘I like your headdress it is beautiful did you make it?’ ‘Come over to me rainbow girl’ ‘oh I’d hug you but you are poisonous’ ‘drink this and you can hug me’. Yesne drinks it and then hugs him.   Kru’uk ‘oh majestic king groak we have brought warriors who might be able to defend….   Groak ‘Nooooo, we need to focus on the ritual of NangNang’   K ‘you are a wise king indeed to focus on such an important ritual and the power it can bestow’     Groak ‘Me’s like these ones you have brung, they are obviously of high intelligence to understand the importance of King Groaks’ plans’   B ‘yes absolutely’ K ‘simply acknowledging your great wisdom’   Groak ‘you look a good warrior, maybe if you help in the ritual I will teach you to be great like King Groak’   B ‘oh yes, you look like a great virile warrior’   There is a boarded up door at the back, Nisus is trying to walk towards it.   Ku’ruk. ‘yes we must clear the chambers musn’t we warriors’   Groak ‘me needs to be here surely?’\   K ‘no a grand entrance for a grand king’   B ‘yes after all a man does not wait on the bed for his lady’   Groak ‘so me come up the stairs, who will prepare everything for me?’   We will, because rainbows, I like rainbowsl   K ‘yes and NangNang is rainbow’   Ku’ruk, ‘yes and it will be ready for tomorrow, and when she has given you her blessings this place will need it’s protecting’   Groak ‘me will be responsible’   Groak gets touched on the head by one of the fans, and so he eats the grung who did it.   Yesne in her disgust gets out   Groak ‘where is my rainbow haired omen going?’ Y ‘you ate someone I’m going over here out of your eating area’   Groak ‘put these people back in their holding cells until tomorrow’   B ‘but we need time to prepare the area’   Groak ‘me needs the omen to stay with me. Tell me what you will provide omen rainbows’   The party asks if the rainbow omen can stay.   Groak ‘tell me what you will do rainbow omen’   K ‘she can make a dome of rainbows from where NangNang will emerge’   Y ‘I can make a rainbow dome, yes’   Groak ‘it is time for me to leave’ he claps his hands and is taken from the room.   The party is left with Kur’uk   Kur’uk states the ritual will have fire but feels we have gone over and above what she had promised.   Kailyn wants to go to the door. It looks boarded up but it’s basically just a reinforced door with a large central, ancient looking lock.   Kur’uk says there will be fire and a sacrifice…   Kailyn suggests it could be Vorn   Kur’uk tried to convince Groak not to sacrifice half the tribe. She hasn’t said what it is they want to sacrifice, just something powerful.   The party decide Vorn will be the sacrifice and get it brought inside so they can repair it.   Whilst looking at the autonotom and it’s parts Yesne deduces that the crystal for teleportation can be altered enough that it will take anything in a sphere to the location with it so we are unsure if we want to teleport Vorn right away.   Bjorn and Kailyn manage to successfully repair Vorn to a very high degree. Kailyn tries to activate Vorn with the gauntlet. It awakens and steps towards Kailyn. Kailyn feels like there is something stored in him, a raging storm of ice but doesn’t really understand what it is. All the damage that was done to Vorn is now repairing itself since being reactivated.   Whilst repairing Vorn, Elessa starts to look at the door. The principles of locks have always intrigued her and she has spent many days practicing and reading about unlocking doors. It’s an intricate lock but it just clicked in her mind and, though complex, Elessa manages to unlock the door.   The party feel a shift in air pressure, Kailyn in particular notices and turns to the door as it is opened.   A horn sounds which signifies that King Groak is returning. Kailyn tells them to close the door, so they do.   Groak ‘hows you going?’\   K ‘preparations go great for your great ascention and bonding with NangNang’. We worked tirelessly to work upon your great trophy to show the might of your great people   Groak ‘he looks good’   K ‘this will show how powerful you are as a king of your people and we have discussed and felt a worth sacrifice to help usher NangnNang in. the great warrior Bjorn to wrestle with bare hands to throttle and defeat a great chultan crocodile within the pool where the mating will begin’.   G ‘me’s like this but think maybe something more impressive would be good. Me ok with this’   K ‘yes a regular crocodile would be too small, but a great beast three times Bjorns size’   G ‘me’s like it but think all should wrestle. I shall bless you with my power to make you wrestle the beast’   K ‘thank you wise king’   G ‘we begin a sunset tomorrow’   K ‘yes as the moon begins to rise’   G ‘me’s leave you to prepare’   K ‘yes and we should not be disturbed until your grand entrance’   G ‘me’s go prepare my regalia’   With that, Groak departs again.   Kailyn and Elessa start investigating the door to see if it has any hidden traps. Kailyn sees nothing wrong with the door but upon inspection Elessa notices in the frame there are small holes that will release powder or gas when the door is opened. This upsets Kailyn greatly as he didn’t spot it. Elessa successfully disarms / sets off the trap. A fine powder like substance is released and it seems like the powder turns things to stone.   Kailyn slides the door shut, puts a single lock pick in it and locks it shut. He then walks off to bed.   Kailyn and Elessa take the second shift. Kailyn tells Elessa to go to bed, she does but pretends to sleep. Kailyn notices and then turns himself invisible. Elessa seeing this then throws a rock at Kailyn.   The night passes and the party wakes to prepare for the ceremony.