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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Amaroq" data-source="post: 1391865" data-attributes="member: 15470">Issue #10: "I hate the Swamp" - Episode 4 of 5We push our way further into the swamp. Though the army seems to have followed a fairly dry route, there are numerous points where we have to slog through water at least knee high, and we are all spattered with mud. The trail of the ratman army is becoming more difficult to follow. When we first entered the swamp, all of us could see the track clearly, but the swamp is already beginning to swallow every trace of the doomed army, and it takes all of Chuck’s tracking skill to keep us on the trail.In the mid-afternoon, Chuck notices a pond of clearer, fresher water covered in lily pads off to our right. The lily pads appear to have brilliant blue jewels on them. He points them out to the rest of us, saying that he’s never seen or heard of anything like this. Though the jewels might have been tempting treasure under other circumstances, we are all convinced that everything in the swamp is malicious, and we move past them, watching them warily as we pass by.As a little lizard bends down to drink from the clear water, it comes too close to one of the lily pads, which suddenly grabs it and pulls it into the water. Telryn shakes his head, muttering, “I hate the swamp” under his breath. We move on, staying well clear of the pond. In the late afternoon, the land gets very marshy and wet. The tracks we’ve been following seem to lead through a large pond, almost a lake, although at the edges, it doesn’t appear too deep. It is covered in some sort of reddish-brown bracken, which looks like it hasn’t been disturbed in several days. The swamp is quiet, except for the constant buzz of insects.The pond is long, and looks wider at other points, but where the tracks enter the pond it is fairly narrow. Chuck gestures at the pond scum, which appears much thicker to either side, but where the tracks enter, it is fairly scarce. “See that?” he asks, pointing. “It looks like they crossed here, across the narrowest part. I think we can probably cross it ourselves.”  He takes his pole, and tests the depth. As far as he can reach from the relative firmness of shore, the pond is only three feet deep.We have a brief but heated discussion about whether to cross it, or to go around. It is hard to see the borders of the pond, so it is impossible to judge how long it would take to circle around it. Miriel casts detect magic on the lake, and when she doesn’t find anything, we agree to cross.Stone takes the pole, ties the end of Chuck’s rope around his waist, and gives Chuck his pack. He walks into the lake, testing the depth as he goes. We chain ourselves together, with the rope looped around our waists.We wade through the scummy lake, which is increasingly covered in red algae. When we’re about halfway through, Miriel feels a stinging wire lash across her thighs, and she shouts “Hurry up! Something is grabbing me.” We all start rushing through the murky water, Stone dragging us from the front. He sweeps the bottom with his pole as we go, trying to avoid falling into any sudden pits on the lake bottom.As we push through the slime, we realize that it’s the algae itself that has tendrils grabbing at us. The tendrils burn with acid, and as we rush across, it whips itself across our legs, injuring Miriel, Telryn, and Stone. Chuck, in desperation, drops some pepper on its surface, but that does not seem to have any effect.The algae’s acid is very strong, and Telryn passes out from the pain. Paks, bringing up the rear, grabs him before his face hits the acidic bracken. She picks him up, throws him across her back, and staggers after the rest of the group, barely able to keep up. The algae begins to thin out as we near the far shore, and everyone else makes it safely across. We gratefully make our way clear of the lake, up a slight incline. We’re on a small spit of mostly dry land, but we’re still covered in acid. Stone rolls around on the ground to rub it off. We all follow his example, and clean ourselves off. Miriel and Paks work at cleaning Telryn, who is by far the muddiest. Our boots and clothes, already muddied from days in the swamp, are quite damaged. They’ll need to be replaced.Miriel prays to her patron, Madriel, for healing for Telryn. It seems that the sun pokes through the overhanging trees for a moment, and the young mage wakes up. His legs, bleeding when she started, now show the pink of fresh scars. Chuck grabs a couple of vials, empty bottles that we have left over from healing potions, and goes to the water’s edge.  He carefully brings one of the algae clumps to the side of the water, exposing its long pink tendril. Being careful not to get any on himself, he squeezes acid out of the tendril, and into the vials. He gives one of the flasks of acid to Telryn, and keeps the others. Goldpetal, looking around us, warns us, that it won’t be safe to stay on the spit, and we keep moving, looking for a dry spot to rest through the gathering gloom of evening.</blockquote>

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