Kenneth Stern had laughed, he’d cried, he’d felt the sting of death and the exuberance that came with victory. He had watched the varied forms of the Island of Adventure with delight, seeing frozen forests and technological marvels. He’d seen his own illusory form created by the Island’s magic and had mourned over friends that had long since been forgotten to the mists of time. And at the end, after it was all over, he had chosen the groups that had proven to be the most dedicated, inventive, and adventurous of the lot.

Kennth bobbled the head of his strange stuffed gopher, imbuing the participants of the tournament with a hint of the immortality that it bestowed. Subject to the gopher’s power, all of the combatant’s wounds, both fatal and non, were sealed and healed. A twist of the Somnambulant Stone put the tournament goers back to sleep and a flip of the Reaching Stone grabbed them all, sent the ones who had not been chosen home, and jostled the rest into seven new, smaller groups.

Around the sleeping tournament goers, the Island of Adventure shifted once again, preparing for the tournament’s second round.

Welcome to Round 2 of the Adventurer’s Crown! This thread will be reserved for discussion of the round and the events going on in it.

Some rules:
1. All participants have been separated into one of seven groups. Your characters may know each other or they may not, but they all know that they signed up for the tournament and this is it. They also know that they need to participate together, at least initially (not that a bit of healthy back-stabbing isn't a part of any adventure), if they wish to advance to the next round.
2. While each group will have the same goal and will be faced with the same general challenges, the magic of the Isle of Adventure means that each group will see the Isle and anything on it in a different way. It may appear as a volcanic jungle to one group or a bleached desert to another. Further, the Isle's magic facilitates communication between members who speak different languages so there's no trouble speaking to one another.
3. Post order is determined by you and doesn't need to be constant. There is no posting requirement but your team will get a -1 on their score for every day over 2 that you haven’t posted.
4. The round will begin Friday, September 7th at noon Pacific time (where I am) and will continue for two weeks. Any threads which are finished before then, having successfully completing their task and incorporating the challenges, do not need to worry about the posting limit.
5. If you have any questions, post them in the discussion thread and I'll try to get to them as quickly as possible.

Round 2 Goal:
Your group wakes up outside the structure at the center of the Isle of Adventure. Your goal is to find a way to the inner sanctum of the structure.

Challenge 1: You may be at the structure, but it doesn’t mean you can get in. Find a way to get inside. It’s not easy.
Challenge 2: Surprise, surprise, the structure is guarded and you come into conflict.
Challenge 3: Once inside you have to both find the inner sanctum and find your way to it.