"OH COME ON."

Juerai is spamming area-of-effect spells, but - "We might want to work our way out. See about getting to higher ground - "

Once blasts through his fireball, slams into him with a tentacle, sending him flying back -

"I hate water."

Carillia heals him.

And Jet takes down the one that broke through their perimeter.

Any nearby buildings? She'd be probably be able to climb up, and that might be a kind of higher ground.

Do these creatures have eyes? Eyes seem like a good weakpoint to aim at.

Most of the buildings are crumbling ruins, but there's one a few hundred feet away that looks more stable-ish.

(The monsters do indeed have eyes, sunken into their heads.)

Well, let's see if shooting them in the eyes puts them down any quicker.

(The building is tempting, but a bit far. Probably not a great idea to get spread out too thin.)

"I can cover a retreat to a building - get their attention - but probably not out of the water," Liliane says.

(Shooting them in the eyes indeed helps.)

"If the building's our best bet, it's probably worth it."

And they are getting very shot in their eyes.

"Right."

She steps forwards - 

And proceeds to make a very, very big target of herself, as the others begin to fall back.

Zerri falls back, firing as she goes. (It'd be churlish to run and not try to be a little bit helpful.)

Liliane gets hit a few times, and a few of the monsters try to slip past her, but she's tough, and she's able to cover their retreat all the way back to the building.

There's no remaining stairs to the upper floor, but they should be able to climb up fairly easily. It'll probably be safer to wedge themselves into the window holes than risk what's left of the second floor.

Window holes are so good for firing from!

Liliane has the most trouble getting up out of the water, but luckily Rune gets a rope down to her. Once they're out of the monsters' reach, they're able to just snipe them until the numbers finally dwindle and the rest give up the hunt and slink off.

"Well, let's hope they don't try to bother us again."

"Seriously. Pretty damn sure those were baby kraken. I don't want to meet the mother..."

"...they can be bigger?"

"Yeah, they get - about the biggest thing around, honestly? I think the full-sized ones are bigger than some dragons... Only live in deep oceans, though."

"Yay for relatively shallow water?"

"Seriously. Limits the trouble we can get in."

"Well, want to press on after that malarky?"

"I do."

There's general agreement.

Onwards, then!

There's a few more minor skirmishes, but nothing their group can't handle, and they reach what looks like the next shrine around dusk. Monoliths adorned with prancing, frog-like figures rise from the swamp. Beyond, a ruined edifice shaped like an arrowhead squats in the muddy water. Bushes and trees grow from its roof. At the pointed front of the building, steps ascend to a stone door caked in slime.

Zerir wanders over to take a closer look at the arrowhead-thing.