Facets of the Past (IC)

[Pessoptimist]

After taking two steps towards the open door, she hears Jaremi's suggestion and makes a leisurely casual about-face,

"Ah yes, stuff. Sure, why not."

and makes for the cloth nest.

Spoiler: Pro-tip: Fernweh's investigate is not the best

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(1d20-1)[6]

[Svithrir]

Jaremi can't deduce anything about the song, and Fernweh doesn't find anything in the nest.

Spoiler: Numbers

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(1d20+1)[14]

[Svithrir]

Also, Jaremi, the ceiling and corners of the room look clear.

[DannyBoy]

Jaban pockets the remainder of his wax with a mental shrug. "Suit yourselves," he thinks, "more good common sense for the rest of us."

[Syekate]

After seeing Fernweh's rather lame attempt at sifting through the remains (and that new critters jumped out at her in the process), Jaremi says, "Nevermind, I'll do it myself. Such remains have the potential to house inedible trinkets."

Investigate? (1d20+5)[20]

[Svithrir]

The nest is composed mainly of wood and bones, lined with moss, hair, tattered clothing, and scraps of sailcloth. One shirt has a patch bearing what looks like some sort of insignia. You discern that the nest has been heavily disturbed very recently. All you find of interest left behind are three copper pieces, a silver piece, and half a broken compass (the circle-drawing kind).

[Syekate]

"Well, naught but a few coppers, but more importantly this nest has been disturbed relatively recently. Let us continue, but warily." The elf pockets the coin, to be redistributed later, and washes his hands in the water column running through the room.

[DannyBoy]

"I say, toss me that sigil, old chap. Might have seen it somewhere before..."

Spoiler: Investigation check, maybe? Insight?

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(1d20)[14]

[Svithrir]

(We'll call it a generic Intelligence check)

Based on the style, the patch looks like it might be a pirate insignia, but you don't otherwise recognize it. It stands to reason, given the location, that the cloth here would have been collected from sailors of various stripes.

[DannyBoy]

"Hm. Nope." Jaban tosses the scrap over his shoulder.

[DannyBoy]

"Right-o chaps," Jaban half-shouts, owing to the wax in his ears (the scatological irony temporarily lost on him), "what's the plan of attack? I don't fancy meeting our singing friends unprepared. Not to be un-gallant, but shall we say the lady first with each of us to either side behind?" He unsheathed his rapier most manfully, its metallic SHING drowning out the sound of his churning innards.

[Svithrir]

The singing, by the way, has since gone silent since it became clear you were not enthralled.

[Syekate]

Jaremi looks at Jaban as if he's dense. "Yes, well, ready when you are, Fernweh."

[Pessoptimist]

After half-trying to look through the dirty pile of whatsit, Fernweh turns back to her path towards the door from which the singing came. She steps quietly, toe-to-heel, eyes open, now absent-mindedly humming the actual lullaby the earlier melody had initially reminded her of. They're nothing alike, in retrospect. This pleases her her.

[Svithrir]

The stairs leading through this doorway are a bit steeper than the ones you just came through, the stone hewed a bit more roughly, the walls less even. The hallway gets even rougher as you proceed; eventually the water channel carved in the center of the path gives out to a natural flow, and some time later the water disappears down deep narrow cracks in the floor. There's a faint light visible ahead of you.

Spoiler: OOC Numbers

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(1d20+3)[15]
(1d20+3)[15]
(1d20-1)[10]

[Svithrir]

Fernweh and Jaremi, you just barely hear a faint shuffling ahead of you.

[Pessoptimist]

Fernweh hears the shuffling ahead of her and continues forward.

[Svithrir]

The passage grows rougher as you continue until it's just a natural fissure in the stone. There are occasional alcoves to either side, but you continue toward the light.

You reach the end of the fissure, which opens into a wide cavern, just in time to see a harpy flying away burdened with a couple of sacks. You surmise that she must have heard you as you were breaking down the door to the last chamber, gathered her valuables from her nest, and made a break for it.

The mouth of the cave opens to the cove you saw from above. The ship is visible in the distance. To the right, you see the pirates' rowboat that you saw disappear into the cliff earlier, pulled up onto a sandy beach within the cavern. The pirates had been talking to one another, but their attention is momentarily drawn by the absconding harpy.

Is there anything you would like to do?

[Pessoptimist]

Fernweh notes the pirates do not appear to have noticed their approach yet, falls back a bit and tries to melt into the wall just outside the mouth of the cave, eyeing her companions in a way to suggest they might do same. Might as well try to hear what the pirates are up to before ambushing them.

[DannyBoy]

Not one to miss an opportunity to hide himself from danger, Jaban takes Fernweh's implication gladly and retreats in quiet haste back to the shadows from which they came.

[Syekate]

Jaremi has his glass bauble out and looks as though he is about to fire a spell at the fleeing harpy in attempt to catch its prize goods, until he notices the pirates and falls back. His lips move in ways that might form some choice curse words if there were any breath behind them. If nothing can be heard from what the pirates might be discussing, he indicates for his companions to quietly return to the initial fungus chamber.

Spoiler: Rolls if applicable

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Listen (Perception?): (1d20+3)[18]
Stealth: (1d20+3)[4]
Knowledge (Harpy): (1d20+5)[8]

EDIT: In an attempt to be quiet and sneaky, Jaremi manages to lose his footing on a slick surface, falling flat on his face with a loud thud that echoes down the cavern.

[DannyBoy]

On realizing their cover is blown, Jaban's practiced liar's mind has a plan in a flash—provided, that is, that the odds aren't dreadful, and that the pirates don't look or sound familiar...

Spoiler: Perception

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1d20-1

[Svithrir]

Spoiler: Perception all around

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Jaremi made his roll already.
Here's Jaban's actual: (1d20-1)[16]
And Fernweh for good measure: (1d20+3)[14]

The opening to your crevasse is about 10 feet off the ground. At the current tide, there's shallow water immediately below you, but the beach with the pirates isn't far away.

There are five pirates in the cavern--the same five, you surmise, as you saw disappear into the cliff face from atop the cliff. Apparently, they disappeared into this cavern.

Two thin men are huddled over a pile of fuel, trying to light a small fire. A third, with long black hair pulled into a ponytail, is unloading a crate of supplies from their rowboat. To the side, a wicked-looking orc is conversing with a stocky man in a long brown coat and beaten tricorn hat.

They're all momentarily distracted by the sudden sight of the harpy flying out of the cavern. One of the thin men actually wades a short way into the water after it in astonishment. But at the sound of Jaremi's face-plant, their attention turns toward your direction.

[Svithrir]

Spoiler: Reroll for Jaban

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That wax in his ears is going to give him disadvantage: (1d20-1)[14]

Fernweh just barely can't quite hear what the pirates are saying, and their voices are muffled through the wax Jaban has stuffed in his ears. Jaremi, however, can just make out:

Spoiler: Jaremi hears

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The man in the overcoat says to orc, "...said he had some business with one of the higher-ups in town. Look, I know you think Vendredi's an odd duck. That's 'cause he is. But he and I go way back, so I figure I owes him a listen."

[Pessoptimist]

At Jaremi's misstep, she sees his fall happening in a sort of slow motion. Knowing that, at this, their cover will be blown, she darts out into the opening of the cave hopefully in time to look like they were just standing there and not overtly coming out from hiding. Shel flashes a friendly grin to the man speaking with the orc:

"Sir! Sorry to bother. I just must ask: your hat. Where did you get your hat? I have always wanted a hat like that" she asks, genuinely.

[DannyBoy]

Once more into the breach, old chap. Sometimes the only way out is through. Following right on Fernweh's tail...

"I say! You there! Hulloo! Yes, you chaps! That's right!" Jaban flashes a big grin and saunters down out from the shadows and over toward the pirates. "I say, jolly good luck running into another soul here. You haven't happened to have seen an owlbear burst through this way have you? We've been tailing one all day—jolly good sport they are, too!—and we thought we'd cornered her in the ruins here but, dash it all, it looks like it's got the better of us. Who knew there'd be such a whopping big cave down here. Blimey!"

Spoiler: A couple of rolls

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Bluff check: (1d20)[3]and a Cast Minor Illusion of a small Owlbear off in the medium distance, emerging from somewhere plausible, and off towards somewhere less piratey. I'm pretty sure it's a cantrip, but in case I'm wrong (1d20)[10]

[Syekate]

Jaremi stores what he hears, as with most tidbits of knowledge he comes across, and uses the others' stalling to right himself, getting back to his feet as quickly as he can and making sure his arcane focus is in hand should the talking lead to a fight.

[Svithrir]

Jaban's illusion of a small owlbear (images from Minor Illusion are constrained to a 5-foot cube) emerges from behind a rock jutting out from the middle of the little cove inside the cavern. It appears to walk on water and opens its mouth in a silent roar. The men before you drew cutlasses as soon as you emerged from the crevasse, but now they're hesitating in slack-jawed confusion.

The orc starts moving as if to attack you, but the man in the tricorn puts out a hand to stop him. "Who. Are. You. And where did you come from?" the latter asks.

"A trap?" the orc mutters.

The man in the tricorn replies in a low tone, "I've seen Vendredi set a trap, and it's never looked anything like… that."

[Syekate]

Jaremi steps forward so as to be visible. "Wait, you are friends of Vendredi? Strange fellow, isn't he? Do you think he may have sent us here on similar pretenses?"

[Svithrir]

Spoiler: Deception check

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Jaremi definitely needs a Deception check on that one: (1d20-1)[5]
Contesting their Insight: (1d20)[19]

Edit: Ouch, you guys are not very convincing here...