Mission: Snake's Bites

A young child named Karen stumbled into town after finding Chappy at the giant beaver's dam. She pleaded with whoever she found to help her rescue her brother who was trapped in a cave after he injured his ankle running away from a swarm of snakes. A day of travel brought the adventurers to a cave south west of town near a small tributary. Travelling through the cave, the group fought off some of the wildlife inhabiting the cave before facing off against hundreds if not thousands of snakes. After a short rest Karen lead the party down a long tunnel that showed signs of being hand made which culminated in a small open cavern. The group found a figure in a sleeping bag which turned out to hold only a skeleton, picked clean of any flesh. A trap was sprung as the tunnel entrance was blocked, and the party were set upon by a group of intelligent rat-like humanoids lead by the were-rat, "Karen". It was a bloody battle, but the party was eventually triumphant. Investigation of the cavern lead to the discovery of a series of interconnected tunnels leading further into the earth.

The Personal Journal of Solomon Kinsley - Fifteenth Edition
Entry 15.5

The old Solomon might have known.

A girl, couldn't have been more than 12, she came to town with snake bites all over, claiming her brother was injured in a cave to the west. I was quick to help, to live up to the standards Rowen expects. I don't regret that. But when the girl, Karen, insisted on accompanying us, alarm bells should have rung out. Maybe they did for some of the others, Dando and Chappie and Koristos, but we let her come along anyways.

We followed her guidance to the cave she had mentioned, probably too easily. We ventured inside and found ourselves set upon by bats, but we were able to dispatch them with relative ease. As we continued further inside, we disturbed a massive nest of snakes, all shapes and sizes. I won't lie; there was some justice in destroying those monsters. I try to appreciate all of nature as Rowen would want, but I have no patience for snakes. While I was in the monstrous form, I even tasted their blood...and I admit I delighted in it.

We rested, despite the girl's urging. With a sharper sense, I might have put together that she was eager to push us to venture deeper without tending to our wounds. Thank goodness we ignored her. After resting, we discovered a small chamber, with a slumped creature in the corner. The creature turned out to be a long-dead humanoid, just as the exit was blocked and we were set upon by ratfolk. I angled to protect the girl at first, but her shape changed and she herself became another of these rat creatures. We fought them, nearly falling to them, but our combined efforts were enough to finally dispatch them all. The cave continued further, but we were exhausted. We returned to town, but we'll need to go back to confront whatever dangers lurk down there. Hopefully with a little more firepower.