Once the Crown of Thorns have been dealt with, the party continues on the road. Through the trees, the party can see a small clearing with something manmade within it. The manmade thing turns out to be the trap Smith spoke of! This trap is a very complex snare with some electronic elements. Upon looking around at the environment the party discovers strange things around the trap. 4- Red ties on tree branches 6- Paint marks on a tree 1- Arrow stuck in a stump 2- metal bolts on the rope 5- Rocks in a stack Via marks on the lock of the box the electronic components of the trap are stored in, the party soon figures out the combination from the materials in the environment. Oval (rocks), Arrow (arrow), Line (paint), Hexagon (Bolt), Bow (ties) Once the combination is put in, the party discovers they were right! First try! But, after the trap is successfully disarmed and dismantled, something from the shadows of the trees speaks up... "There you are..." It had been watching them. The figure steps forward out of the shadows, a strange mix between a paw and a foot comes into the light as a strange face dips out of the dakness. It stands at a much smaller stature than Smith, but it’s presence is no less offputting. It’s eyes are piercing one blue, the other a milky white. the face of a fox greets you, but it has the body of a man. A disturbingly large grin appears on it’s face, looking at the group, circling them and studying them carefully. “What a strange band of travelers… Smith always picks the weirdest ones to come stomping through my forest.” The party soon figures out, this creature is Vulpes, the very thing Smith had warned them about.

The party discusses that they need the fleshjammer from Vulpes. Vulpes snickers, explaining how he knows Smith needs that from him, and to him, the party seems like proxies to do Smith's bidding. He states that he'd be willing to trade for the fleshjammer... but it's not quite what the party expects. Vulpes seems to take great interest in the tattoo on Jax's arm. Jax is obviously quite hesitant at this fact, and Vulpes offers the party time to think it over. He invites the party to his home, stating they can discuss further what it would take to trade for the fleshjammer. Right after Vulpes states this to the party, he disappears into the shadows, running off into the dense woods. The party decides to continue to Vulpes' den, making their way through the unforgiving forest. As they walk down the path Vulpes directed them down, they soon discover something odd about the soil beneath their feet... its... malleable, soft... They're sinking. It's quicksand! After the shock of this discovery wears off, the party begins to think strategically on how to escape the fleshy mud. They find a rock and a tree they're able to tie a rope around. They tie the rope into a lasso, throwing it over the nearby rock, passing it to each other and using it to tug themselves out. Rainn and Jax escape the mud first, soon helping Seven, Scraps, and Bishop escape the muddy menace. They then turn their attention back to trying to find Vulpes' den, finding it in a small clearing in the trees. The den is partially underground, a makeshift wooden door covering its opening. It's rather shabby, but it certainly works as shelter. The faint rumbling of the king of the forest can be heard in the distance, the party now is faced with what to do in this situation... To Rainn's dismay, Bishop, Jax and Scraps decide to invade Vulpes' home and begin searching for the fleshjammer. They discover something quite disturbing about the space, there are specimens in jars, suspending in formaldehyde each unique in some way, scars, tattoos, etc. Some hospital equipment lies in the other corner of the room, chords leading to the back of the room, snaking beneath a door at the very back of the den. Bishop, Jax and Scraps soon take it upon themselves to begin searching the den. Most things in Vulpes' house are labelled, and the three can't seem to find anything remotely resembling the fleshjammer let alone labled that... But, scraps finds something beneath the bed, a key... and it must lead to the door in the back of the room. Scraps walks over to the door, unlocking it and cracking it open... They hear a slow wheezing breath before...