Solace stared at the mushrooms in front of xem. Xey just couldn't get away from them, xey found xirself musing quietly. It wasn't really all that much of a surprise, this was the moss and mushrooms portion of the dungeon, but it was a little alarming considering xir last run in with a mushroom had resulted in carrying its mushroom corpse around for a few days. And now xey were at yet another seemingly dead end with screaming mushrooms surrounding xem. Well... screaming was perhaps a bit rude. The sound was actually quite pleasant all things considered, but it was overwhelming. 

Quietly, xey kicked at one of the large mushrooms, sending a shower of pale blue spores cascading down. Unexpectedly, it let out a much louder note, the sound causing xem to jerk and bump into a number of other glowing mushrooms, causing more notes to ring through the empty hollow. Backing up, Solace stared curiously as the fungi went quiet. Interesting. Xey sniffed around the room, looking for hints as to why the mushrooms might be doing this. A secret chest, a secret door, anything really that might make the singing mushrooms make more sense. 

With a snort, xey suddenly moved towards the far wall, ears pricked as xey picked up a whiff of something different. The air near the wall smelled fresher, or at least different from the stale, spore filled air xey were currently wandering around in. Staring at the wall, Solace wondered if they would need to kick it down, or if perhaps, the singing mushrooms were actually the answer. 

False walls and secret doors were not new to xem. Xey had beaten down their fair share of false walls and tripped many a secret door to open. If not for the smell of fresher air, xey might have thought treasure might lay just beyond the door, however it seemed there might be a larger recess beyond. And hopefully that would mean a way forward. Solace wanted to go deeper and further than xey'd gone before, and xey did not want this to be the end of xir journey. The mushroom lands were growing dull and spooky ever since xir run in with the mimic, and xey did not wish to linger any longer than was necessary.

With a huff, Solace set about to discovering which mushrooms would respond to xir touch, reaching out with a hoof, shoulder or nose to trigger a response. It took xem about a half hour to truly figure out exactly what mushrooms responded to touch or seemed to do anything. It seemed that perhaps they were indeed linked to the door, as after Solace had pressed a certain number of mushrooms they all turned red and flashed three times. So... there was indeed some type of code to open the door. And the mushrooms very much were involved. 

With that knowledge under hoof, Solace set out to figuring out the code, very methodically trying combination after combination until xey started getting somewhere. Unfortunately, whatever intelligence had set the password for the door, had made it fifteen mushrooms long. Which Solace had decided was absolutely ridiculous and a quite frankly horrible idea, actually. Still, as xey worked, xey were getting more intrigued and excited by whatever lay behind the door. How far did it go? Was there treasure somewhere within? Who cared if it took xem several hours to figure this out, there was more dungeon to be had if xey did this! 

Ever meticulous, Solace's pace sped up considerably, encouraged ever onward by the idea that this may very well extend xir stay in the dungeon. 

It ended up taking xem several hours before xey finally unlocked it, but when xey did, it was well worth the time it'd taken to open the door. Just as xey had hoped, the door had opened up to reveal a long tunnel that turned very steeply down and to the south of xir current location. Hopefully there would be no more dead ends for a while and if there were, hopefully there was some path along the way that lead even further in. Excitedly, Solace gathered xir gear and started out, xir pace a bit faster than it had been when they'd first discovered the glowing mushroom cave. Promisingly enough what was immediately visible of the tunnel, had far fewer mushrooms than xir last few stops so it was with great joy that xey continued downward, ever downwards into the dungeon.