Episode 2: Welcome to the Jungle!

The short journey up the coast passes uneventfully. Ybus is able to appreciate Valrakas' skill as a sailor, and the Kestrel responds beautifully to the minotaur's expert hands. The three of you then bid your friends farewell before boarding a small but sturdy boat and make your way upriver. As you leave the bay behind, the roar of crashing surf fades away quickly and is replaced by bird and insect calls as the deep jungle closes in around you.

The sound of the oars in the water seem inordinately loud in the quiet of the morning. Fog hangs about in blotches on the river and in the thick vegetation along the banks. Ducks and long-legged birds hunt among the lotus and river weed. A few alligators lurk near the riverbanks, and you're unsure but you may have spotted a tiger watching you from the shadowed foliage.

You paddle upstream for many hours. With Ybus' attention wandering he steers the boat willy-nilly, crisscrossing the river on the most indirect route possible. And not without quite a few mishaps - with Erden brooding he fails to spot half-submerged rocks and tree branches on several occasions. Luckily, the boat isn't damaged much in the resulting collisions. It's slow going.

Baracus' carving is crude, but Mini-Baracus now has a wooden battleaxe.

You consult the map Sashvar gave you. The plan is to take the boat upriver (roughly northeast) until you reach The Fangs, a twin waterfall in the foothills of the north-eastern arm of the Q'sulth mountain range. It's hard to tell now because of the way you've been meandering, but it will probably take the better part of the day before you land this boat. From The Fangs, you will be faced with a difficult trek south through the jungle to find the temple.

(Map)

The light-hearted mood brought on by Ybus' puppets is short-lived. As the day wears on it turns humid and oppressive. By midday you are beset by swarms of flies. Luckily Baracus finds a patch of lemongrass by the riverbank. Rubbing the crushed leaves on your skin wards off the worst of the stinging bugs. (Group Survival check: success)

In some sections the river is deep and wide. In other sections where it narrows and runs rapid over treacherous rocks Baracus hoists the boat up onto his shoulders and you trudge up as best as you can.

All throughout, the jungle, presses in on both sides, dark and brooding. At times the tree boughs extend so far over the water and so thickly foliaged that you are plunged in dark shadow as you pass underneath. During these times you are able to glimpse eyes that you've felt watching you all day, glowing yellow in the gloom.

The sun is westering in the sky when you feel a bump and a scrape underneath the boat. Your vessel lurches violently and gets turned sideways - it's now pointed at the east riverbank, 40, maybe 50ft away.

You see a shape in the water, immense and sinuous, pass underneath the boat and swim off to your right. It looks like it's coming around for another pass.

Based on Sashvar's map you're still an hour, maybe two, from where you're supposed to land this boat. What do you do?

The gang of monkeys hanging from the vines shriek madly as the monster in the water comes at you.

The temple is west of the river. On the west riverbank you only see impenetrable forest except for a small gap among a stand of bamboo trees a bit further upstream, 50ft away.

The boat is pointed at the east riverbank, where the jungle is thinner. About 40ft from your position there are some mossy rocks you might be able to climb onto.

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ROUND 1 (in progress)

Initiative order and status:
1. Baracus: 51/51hp, 3/3ki
2. Monster:
3. Ybus: 23/23hp
4. Erden: 26/26hp

Battlefield Features: 
1. Deep, murky water.
2. Up ahead: low-hanging branches/vines.
3. A gang of screeching monkeys hanging from the vines.
4. Near the right (east) bank: slippery, moss-covered rocks.
5. A gap in the trees, 50ft way on the left (west) bank.