looks around in distaste
"Not really up to standards, is it? Oh well, needs must while in the field."
Extremely uneasy about the dwelling, Angalia looks hard.
"Just wait a bit. I don't trust anything at the moment."
Not having had much sleep the previous night and walking all day today is starting to catch up with Nathaniel, and he doesn't approach with his usual caution.
Res carefully peers into the cottage. Perception:
Tiff hesitates beside Eliva before entering, waiting to see if the other woman senses any danger, before entering.
Perception:
"I know we're all tired and frightened, but a few elementary precautions won't hurt." Angalia tries not to sound exasperated as only she and Eliva seem to have any sense of the possible dangers.
Angalia points to a tattered and faded doll lying in the debris of the cottage.
"A weeping child and a lost doll."
"Angalia, I see the tattered doll now, and I hear a weeping child, but I can't see where the sound is coming from. Something isn't right?"
Res stops at the doorway of the cottage, stows his greatsword, kneels down and calls in, "Hello, is someone in there? Don't be afraid little child, we aren't going to hurt you. Please come out so that we can help you."
Nathaniel shivers. What is a child doing by themselves in a place like this at night? He’s starting to think that some tragedy has taken place here, though of exactly what nature he’s not yet sure … is the prickling at the back of his neck a clue?
As the party listens to the plaintive sound from the cottage, it abruptly becomes an inhuman shriek, sending everyone into a panic.
Eliva began to wander over to the side of the cottage, crouching in the thick grasses to peer at something on the ground, when an unearthly shriek ripped through the air.
"Not a child after all ..." Angalia fights for control.
Will Save:
The gypsy sighs, and shrugs her slender shoulders,"Is there anything in this spirits damned place that won't try to kill us!?"
[occ]Of course that's if she MADE the save, if 19 isn't good enough then she shrieks instead. [/ooc]
Res tries to identify the source of the shrieking.
Will Save:
Knowledge (Religion):
Belanos and Erfan are utterly unnerved by the supernatural shriek, and cannot bring themselves to come close to the cottage. While the others find the sounds unsettling, they remain determined to investigate.
Eliva and Res recognize the presence of unquiet spirits in the structure, and are familiar with hauntings. As she approaches the cottage, Eliva notices a marker driven into the ground, long overgrown with weeds, and looks closely at the markings. Much of it is worn away, but it does appear to indicate a burial site. She does not recognize the date system used on the inscription, but, based on the short span of life indicated, it could well be the resting place of a child.
Eliva jumped at the shriek that split the evening air, but after looking around, managed to calm her heart enough to finish examining the grave marker. "This looks like it is the resting place of a young child. Do you know of anything we could do to set this spirit or the other spirits within to rest? Or do we seek a different campsite for the evening?"
"Free the spirit or calm it or whatever we need to do, but let's do it fast."
Angalia's voice is shaking. "I'm not sure how much of this I can take."
Erfan shrinks back from the cottage, slowly backing away as his eyes dart about, glancing at shadows.
I am sure they're just kidding about the haunt- they just don't want to mention spiders in front of me. Yes, that's it. That's it excatly., thinks Belanos.
Nathaniel fingers his weapons nervously, knowing that they will probably be useless in this situation. Although he manages to control his panic, the thought of a ghost or spirit – particularly that of a child – unnerves him.
“How,” he stops and clears his throat, “How would we know how to lay it to rest? If there is the spirit of a child unable to find its way to the heavens ... I would like to help, but I am afraid I will be quite useless. Will it even know we are trying to help it? Maybe ... do you think it wants it’s doll?”
"This cabin is definitely haunted. Eliva and I can quiet the spirit for now but its effect may only be temporary. On the other hand, I think I would rather contend with the haunt then what else may be lurking outside. I am fast coming to the conclusion that no place in this strange land we have found ourselves in is safe.
Perhaps, after we have calmed the restless spirit we can figure out what happened here and determine how to bring this soul some peace. Also, it may provide us some good will with the village below. Based on what we have seen so far, I don't think they will be in a welcoming mood when they see us."
Cure Light Wounds:
Positive Energy:
As Res channels positive energy at the haunt, the child's voice cries out and then subsides. The supernatural fear keeping Belanos and Erfan away diminishes... for now.
“Is ... it gone? For now? Let’s go inside before it comes back.”
Warily, Nathaniel enters the run down cottage, holding his lantern aloft, looking about.
"Is that permanent, Res?"
Angalia looks cautiously at the cottage.
"I mean, if there's something else we need to do to help that poor child rest, I think we should do it."
"No Angalia, the haunt will return. I don't know when but it will keep returning until we can figure out what has made it so restless and remove that source of restlessness. I agree, with you and Nathaniel, let's try to find the source of the poor child's torment and end it permanently."
Res follows Nathaniel into the cottage and searches for clues to what happened to the child.
Perception:
Acute as Nathaniel’s senses are, time and the elements have eroded what clues the dwelling may have offered. What remains of the furnishings are simple, typical of what a family of peasants might afford. Most of it would be of no interest to a child: a weathered table, broken crockery, a few well-used tools.
Nathaniel’s sharp vision and keen memory did pick up one interesting detail, however. During the child-haunt’s keening, the party was rather distracted, but when it quieted down, Nathaniel could swear that the doll is not in the same position as it was when he arrived. The doll itself is tattered and worn. Made of cloth and batting, a seam has come loose and spilled some of its stuffing, while it retains only one of the beads that served as its eyes. It doesn’t look like its destruction was due to any sudden trauma, but rather the slow wear of time and the rough handling of its erstwhile owner.
wiping the cold sweat from his face, Belanos says,
"Maybe we need to give her toy to her. Add it to the burial or something. Possibly even fix it first. Or maybe there's something hidden inside we have to pass on."
Nathaniel crouches to pick up the doll, and (assuming this doesn’t cause the spirit to return) gazes at it sadly for a moment. “Yes, I think the dead girl wants her doll,” he says. “Can anyone repair it? And Res, Eliva,” he turns to the two most religious members of the group, “do you think the gods would forgive us digging up her grave to lay this down with her?”
"With the intention of laying a tormented soul to rest, I am sure the gods will approve of disturbing the little girls grave. That is if we can find it. While you search further in here, I will go back outside and look near the cottage, perhaps she was buried nearby. Does anyone want to come with me?"
Res heads back outside to search for the girl's grave. He will not venture too far from the cottage however just in case more trouble is lurking.
"With the intention of laying a tormented soul to rest, I am sure the gods will approve of disturbing the little girls grave. That is if we can find it. While you search further in here, I will go back outside and look near the cottage, perhaps she was buried nearby. Does anyone want to come with me?"
Res heads back outside to search for the girl's grave. He will not venture too far from the cottage however just in case more trouble is lurking.
Tiff steps forward and examines the tattered doll for a moment, her brow furrowing in thought, as Res turns to step outside she says, "I don't think it wise for any of us to be alone, someone go with him.".
Res goes back to the grave marker that Eliva found and examines it to first determine if its the grave site of the little girl and second if there are any clues on the grave marker that indicate anything about the being buried beneath.
Despite the lifting of the seemingly unnatural fear that had swept over him, Erfan remains at a cautious distance from the cottage anyway, constantly searching the outlying lands with his eyes in hopes that the wailing had not attracted...... other things.
Nathaniel doesn't spot any doll parts, but Tiffana suspects a Mending spell should do the trick.
Eliva had noticed that, based on the dates of the marker (which use an unfamiliar calendar), it is the resting place of one who lived a very short time.
Eliva, up hearing Tiff's comment, nods once and follows him outside, leading him to the small grave marker she'd found. "I think this is it. I hope returning her doll to her will help her rest easy." Eliva did her best to stay aware of everything around them as she kept an eye on Res and Erfan.
Tiff reaches out for the doll, and taking it reverently in her slender hands channels her magic into the doll. She smiles at a distant memory as the cracks and blemishes fade until the child's play toy is whole once again. "Who wants to do the honors of placing with our little friend?" she ask as she fishes out a couple of coins from her purse to lay with the doll, "She'll be needing these as well, The Ferryman will need coin to take her to her proper place."
Nathaniel goes back into the cottage and inspects the tools, to see if anything can be used for digging. Failing that he will break up some of the furniture to use as very makeshift digging tools.
Once Res has inspected the grave and given his blessing, Nathaniel begins clearing the weeds and grass away by hand and with his makeshift tools, then digging down into the ground. He works as carefully as he can, not knowing if the body will be in a coffin and not wanting to disturb the bones.
He tries not to think while he works, just concentrates on the task at hand.
Res watches as Nathaniel begins to dig into the grave. "The pain this poor child must have endured. It had to be immense if the spirit still haunts this cottage. I believe we are doing what is best to soothe its soul, Nathaniel."
As Nathaniel digs, the faint crying resumes, although not so loudly as before. A few feet down, he reaches some wrappings. Inside is little more than bones, but small in stature. As the doll is brought close, the crying begins to fade away.
Nathaniel gestures for the newly cleaned and mended doll (suppressing a shiver at the resumed crying) and places it carefully on top of the small, sad pile of bones. Then he climbs out of the shallow grave.
“Anyone want to say anything before I close it up?” he asks.
"Yes - give me a moment." Res moves to the tomb stone. Murmurs to himself, and then continues, "Mighty Gorum, Please bring comfort to this tortured soul, now united with its most prized possession, protect this soul from those evil gods which may attempt to intercept it on its journey, and help it find solace in whichever god claimed it when it was alive. Assist your humble servant in finding whatever evil inflicted it with such pain, that I may be able to dispatch in a similar fashion."
Res stoops down, grabs a handful of dirt, and tosses it in. Then nods to Nathaniel to continue reburying the remains.
Angalia watches silently, but while the grave is being dug, she rummages in her pack and extracts something. As Res throws the earth, she follows gently placing shreds of wool and crumbs of trailbread into the grave before sprinkling a little soil over both.
"Food and clothing to help you on your way, little one."