Blood Drop Crew

As we arrive back in the material plane and get our bearings, I was furious with Dru for leading us into that circle without knowing what it was and then offering to help a strange unicorn we knew nothing about. Frustrated, I punched the firbolg, the first time any of us in the group had come to blows with each other. Before it could go any further though we realized we were surrounded by a dozen bandits. Their leader stepped forward and introduced himself as Rolf, and demanded 100 gold payment for safe passage along the road. We tried talking our way out of having to pay, but the leader revealed he was wearing dragonscale armor and boasted about how he and his group, the "Blood Drop Crew", had felled dragons and would make quick work of our small party. Dru then offered to pay out of his own pocket with the caveat that Rolf show us the way to the Shadowtop Cathedral. The man reluctantly agreed, and we set out along the road once again.
The trek became difficult as the road grew narrower and the atmosphere darker from the thickening trees. We stopped a few times to rest, and Dru tried to strike up a conversation with Rolf. I'm not sure if Dru was purposefully flirting with him or making very naive compliments, but seeing the bandit's obvious discomfort talking to the druid was quite hilarious and satisfying. We eventually had to make camp for the night at a place the bandits apparently used frequently. I didn't trust that these bandits wouldn't bring us to their camp just to kill us or capture us, so we divided up into watches through the night. Po and Dru took first watch, but all stayed quiet. Dru spoke with an owl that flew close to the camp, and learned that we were close to a place called Leska Caves where a coven of hags lived. Zarruk and I took second watch, and that's when the specters appeared. At first just one, far in the distance just at the edge of sight, then more. They never approached too close to the camp, but circled around the edge of it. We woke the other, but Rolf said they had been appearing recently and so far had not bothered them. We kept an eye on them and the never ventured to close, but it was still unsettling.
In the morning while we were discussing what they could be, we noticed that Rolf had a strange gem cut in the shape of a lynx's head. When we asked him about it he said the expression on the face changed sometimes. Dru took it and cast detect magic, discovering that it could be used to grant some sort of luck. It may have belonged to a local tribe that worshipped the lynx. Dru tried to persuade Rolf to sell him the gem, but he foolishly told the bandit what the stone could do before offering to buy it and the man realized its value and refused. Dru was still holding onto it, and not wanting to give it up. I saw an opportunity and pointed out that having a mage identify a magic item usually cost some sort of fee, and suggested that Rolf pay Dru 100 gold for identifying the gem. He grudgingly handed Dru back his coin purse, and we got back on the road to Shadowtop.
We began to hear whispers in the forest and eventually lost the trail. While looking about for the road, we heard a voice say "Did they notice us?", and Dru recognized that the trees were talking to each other. He began speaking with them and discovered that two of the trees and some of the shrubs were talking. The names we got were Silvia, Banion, and Lindon. Zarruk was getting impatient and wanted to cast fireball to clear the whole road, but Dru was able to convince the trees that he was a servant of Chauntea and they allowed us to pass.
We made it to Shadowtop shortly after that, where Rolf left us. The path forward was lined with trees and music filled the air as a satyr played a set of pipes from a perch in the branches above us. He introduced himself as Greenwhistle, and was trying to compose some sort of love ballad. Zarruk gave what advice he could on the tune, then we asked the satyr about this Turlang person we were sent to meet. Greenwhistle said Turlang had been gone for several days, and as we were talking a female elf ran in and said that Turlang had been attacked by a druid named Aerglas. A kraken called Slarkrathel had corrupted Aerglas and turned him against the Emerald Enclave. He had betrayed Turlang, luring him into a ravine and attacking him.
Then as she was telling us this, Aerglas himself burst into the clearing riding an owlbear, 5 other owlbears in tow.