"That is my hope as well," Lady Johanessen somberly replies to Christoph.
"Is there anything else I can do for you?" she wearily asks, looking at the entire group now.
In spite of her polite offer, it seems apparent that she's rather spent. She's had a lot to deal with, between her dying friend, Father Yemianov, and now dealing with the bizarre evils which haunt Aliseya.
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Honing in on the sensation, Rhia is not able to identify a presence nearby. As she focuses, the breeze she thought she felt is no longer there.
She is so focused on the subtle sensations, that she is a bit startled to then hear a loud thump up ahead, just around the corner bend further down the hall...
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Ali accepts Naught's embrace. After a long moment, her sobbing abates. Though her bloodshot eye obviously still pains her, she puts on a brave face now.
"Yeah, I'll be ok now. Thanks." She smiles at the hatted storyteller, and plants a kiss on her lips.
After wiping her eyes again, she shakily sits up at the edge of the bed. She speaks to Lady Johanessen with sincerity, "You've done more for me, and in spite of my... situation... and your understandable distrust... thank you. Just, thank you for helping me. I really appreciate it. I'm, like, so glad that thing is out of me. I don't remember a thing, other than lots of pain and screaming... sorry about that," she looks slightly embarrassed now. "But it was worth it, to get that thing out of me."
She rubs her sore muscles from the body-wracking pain that the black object induced.
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Naught blushes and her lively hair begins curling up on end after the Dancer’s kiss, her lip flickering after, trying and failing to come up something to say. Turning back to the Sister she mentally collects herself before saying ”Yes. Thank you so much for helping Ali.”
Jumping slightly at the sudden noise, Rhia chides herself for being distracted. Staring down the hallway, she slows her breathing, whispering a brief invocation of protection.
"Ancestors protect me." she says softly, whisps of silvery energy swirling around as the spirits of her ancestors form a shimmering shield around her, the air around her cooling and pulsing with their protective presence.
The Ghost Whisperer moves cautiously down the hall, keeping an eye out for trouble.
"Pharasma knows you've done enough, Sister. Your help is appreciated, particularly with the difficulty of it." Given how drained the Holy Sister looks it would appear Christoph is referring to the effort of removing the unholy device, but an edge to his voice suggests otherwise. He turns to his new companions, "Shall we? I believe it best if we hurry to regroup. I dislike the idea of leaving Zelda alone any longer then necessary."
Naught nods to Christoph. "Hopefully she's happily playing with a pile of jewel and metal wires right now." she thinks aloud.
"I am happy to help," the holy sister replies to everyone's thanks. Apparently quoting some holy scripture, her parting words offer esoteric wisdom:
"'A caretaker of graves mirrors the spirit of the Lady. Uncelebrated, she has no pretense; but embraces the natural cycle of what is. Like water, she acts in alignment with providence, flowing equanimously to the depths of all things. Aware of Fate, she has the wisdom to accept destiny as greatness.'"
The acolyte leads the group back out of the chapel. As they head back down the residential hall, each of you passes the open door of the dying and comatose pastor, Father Yemianov.
Passing through the main chapel once again, you are escorted out the front door. The acolyte solemnly bows respectfully to the group, then closes the front door behind you.
Recalling to mind the meeting place to catch up with Zelda, you head east down the street towards the city's eastern gate. Within several minutes, you reach it. Not spotting Zelda in the bustling crowd, you may opt to wait for her to arrive...
The full context of the tale this passage comes from suggests she is ultimately wishing you success. She is also reminding you that success is attained not just through accomplishing brave deeds, but by also possessing the humility and grace to accept fate, the wisdom to discern the difference, and the resoluteness to carry on, come what may, with equanimity.
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Sookie adjusts her gauntlets, currently disguised as gloves by her glamer. ”A droll people, those Pharasmins. Never bothered with all that ‘fate’ business. Terribly depressing.” She pats Christoph on the shoulder. ”Nothing personal. ‘Just not my cuppa,’ as they say in certain parts of Caliphas, Mr. Metzger.” Her face slides into a dashing smile. ”Oh, is it alright if I call you Metz?” She lightly taps her knuckles against the side of her head. ”I only have enough room in here for one person of each name or else it gets dreadfully confusing, and ‘Chris’ is already taken. Delightful woman, legs like tree trunks. One of those intimate weekends that goes by without one needing to worry much about dressing-up for.” She smiles to herself, unflappable in the slightest.
She then turns to the rest of the group and claps her hands together decisively. ”Now then, my dears, with Ali taken care of, where shall we head onto next? I’m dreadfully out of practice and would rather like to find out how many of these cultist blighters I can fit on a spear.” She twirls her spear in a quick motion.
Naught silently mouths a nice as Sookie reminiscences about a previous tryst.
"Me too, except with an axe." Naught says before looking around. "I think we just need to find a certain locksmith first..."
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Christoph bows to the Holy Sister, tracing the spiral on his chest. He follows the Acolyte out without further word, clearly lost in contemplation of her parting advice. As they pass the the room where Father Yemianov lies prostrate, the young Speaker pauses midstride and gazes at the old man a long moment. He kisses the silver ring on his right hand, murmuring, "I will not fail you, Father"
The moment seems to end with the same suddenness with which it began. If anything Christoph seems to be moving with more determination. At the door, he stops only long enough to return the acolyte's bow before stepping out of the temple's gloom into the brisk morning air.
Bewildered, Christoph looks askance at the unusually dressed woman who'd just buffeted his shoulder with what felt like metal gauntlets. Just how strong is she? I'm not a weak man, but Pharasma preserve me. He clears his throat and replies, "Metz is fine, if you insist. Metzger would also be fine. Or Speaker Metzger if you're looking to be formal. I would like to think I couldn't be mistaken for a woman with tree-trunk-like legs, but here we are."
"Yes, first Zelda, then Jitters and your own horses, and then we can be off. I've a few arrows that need targets and I won't begrudge making a few more." Christoph reaches a hand over his shoulder and runs it through a bouquet of fletchings that seems to multiply before your eyes.
Sookie’s smile widens, showing off her dimples, as she notes Metz’s disconcerted reaction to her pat on the shoulder. ”Since we are to be traveling together and perhaps engaging in bit of melee here and there, I suppose I should point out that this suit is a different kind of suit, one of a much more cumbersome—and protective—variety. ‘Tis a touch of dissembling that serves various purposes, aside from making me look dashing.”
She rests her spear across her shoulders, her hands draped over it. ”Oh and I agree there is simply no comparison. I am just simply dreadful with names. I even lost the one my parents gave me.”
"Oh, you too? That's one reason I took to writing everything down." Naught says in a tangent to Sookie.
When she reaches the left turn in the hall, Rhia finds another fifteen feet of hall, leading straight ahead into a dining room. To her immediate right is another door.
Straight ahead, the hall opens to a vaulted ceiling in a large room adorned with gilt. A pair of halberds hang above a huge lit fireplace in the far wall. A large bell hangs near it. A great dining table and twelve chairs take up the center of the room. A door is on the far left wall.
"Ceryse?" an old male voice croaks at the ghost whisperer.
Quizzically yet sternly, a thin elderly man peers back at you from the table. Seated at the head, he wears a night gown and matching cap. Though finely made, you fairly easily note the signs of age: a couple of holes, the faded blue color. Caught in the middle of eating a bowl of porridge, he holds a silver spoon up in one hand.
Standing atop the table right next to him is an odd tiny devilish-looking creature. Its beady little coal eyes also gaze at you quizzically. About the size of a cat, it has a vaguely humanoid shape. It shakes its head at the old man's question. A butter knife serves as its crutch, for it has a stump where one of its legs once was.
If you beat this check by at least 10 (DC 26), you more or less know what you can read here.
Bordana and Zelda have a lovely and lively conversation for several minutes about clothes, jewelry trends, and preferred gem cutting techniques. On more than one occasion, the gnomish woman laughs out loud at Zelda's interesting stories. She seems quite taken with her fellow jeweler's charming personality, and, when noone else is nearby, tells her in confidence:
"Zellie dearie, for you, these vonderful carnelians are yours for a steal."
She gives her a wink and a nudge before placing the gems Zelda asks for in a neat little bag, after the coins are collected.
"It vas a pleasure, Zellie my dear! Do come back soon!" she waves at Zelda with a smile as she takes her leave.
Realizing how much time has passed, the artful blonde briskly makes her way to meet back up with her friends and new companions at the eastern gate of the city...
Moments after the Speaker of the Voices mentions her name, Zelda appears quite suddenly with a smile. Apparently, blending in with crowds comes quite naturally to her.
Aliseya appreciates Sookie's outfit, and even has a feel of her shoulder for herself. Her eyes open wide in wonderment at the hard surface. "Like, wow."
"Oh! Like, there she is. Hey hey."
After expressing momentary surprise at the blonde's reappearance, Aliseya waves at her returned friend. She looks her up and down, trying to notice any pretty new apparel, and does an "Ooh" at her new belt.
"I wish I came with you. This was, like, not fun. At all. It was totally needed, yeah, but... Definitely. Not. Fun."
Then, she cocks her head. With a quizzical look, she asks Sookie, "Wait. How did you lose your nam... oooh," an answer comes into her imagination as her eyes widen. "I think I get it. Say no more." Ali gives Sookie a wink and a knowing look.
"Nice," Naught comments as Aliseya zeroes in on Zelda's new belt. When the dancer laments their trip she puts a comforting hand on her shoulder.
When starts to go on about... something the storyteller looks between her and Sookie before shrugging and putting it out of her mind. If it made Aliseya stop talking then it was probably doing it's job as a confidential and she wouldn't pry.
”Come now, dear Ali, we could have hardly had a productive trip without your presence.” Sookie waves to Zelda. ”Hello again, dear Zelda. Is everything with you in-order?”
”Yeah!” Naught brightly answers before her eyes focus on Zelda’s task. ”Whatcha makin?”
Christoph's eyes flicker from their study of the crowd to briefly take in the reunion. He nods politely to the woman, "Glad you're back with us, Miss Lamplighter. We'll have to fill you in on what we've learned-" He finishes with emphasis, "-once we're out of the crowd. Let's just say we shouldn't take chances."
Christoph continues to study any passersby with suspicion as the group finishes its greeting. Once the greetings and small talk seem to be winding down, he asks, "I need to get Jitters. Do you have horses as well?"
As fate would have it, everyone happened to rent rooms at the same Tricky Flail Inn last night. It's about a twenty minute walk back west, but more or less a straight path at least. Jitters is there, along with Zelda's horse.
Ali turns to Sookie after her comment. She pensively asks, "So, like, you're a therapist. What do you think so far? Am I, like... just totally nuts or what? Or is it, like, too early to professionally tell?"
To Christoph, "Oh. Ummm, no. I mean, we did, back in Ravengro, for a bit. Though we were just borrowing Kendra's horses, really." Catching herself rambling, she repeats, "No, we don't."
Turning towards Zelda, "Oh, though I think Zel does, right? What's her name again?"
Looking at Naught, "Do you know where we can buy horses, maybe?"
Naught slowly raises her arms up in a shrug.
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Ali shrugs back. Her pensive gaze turns to Zelda, to Sookie, and then to Christoph.
Studying the odd little creature beside the old man who didn't appear to be entirely present and aware, Rhia warily moves a bit closer. "No, sorry. My name is Rhia. Is Ceryse someone here with you?" she asks gently.
"Ooo…" Naught purrs with a smirk before giddily following after the jeweler to get some horses.
"Glad that wasn't too painful. We'll make much better time on horses then we would have on foot." Christoph scratches his stubble contemplatively as he looks up at the position of the sun.
"I think it best we leave as soon as we've gathered the rest of our gear. No knowing what kind of lead they've got on us. Unfortunately I haven't been this way so I'm not so sure what the road'll be like."
"Oh..."
The elderly man, looking dejected, returns his gaze to his porridge. He does not answer Rhia's question, though the devilish creature looks between Rhia and the old man, as if it understands but does not speak up for some reason.
When Rhia gets closer, the elderly man suddenly and loudly smacks his open palm on the table, startling Rhia and the devilish creature. The little creature nearly falls but for instinctively flapping its little wings to maintain its balance.
"IT'S ZAT DAMNABLE COUNCIL'S PFFFAULT!" he hollers loudly with a mouthful of porridge. Bits of porridge spray outwards in the creature's direction, who dances its very best to evade most of it. It deftly deflects one bit with his butter knife crutch while taking a little backwards flight. It lands a few feet away, further down the table and beyond the range of the food spray.
He continues in his Palatinate accent after swallowing some of the porridge, though a few more spittles escape, "Ja, I tell you, DAT'S vat's vrong vith zis country today! Pfeon pfffools get some money and think zat's all zey need to run sie show! Hmpf! What do ZEY know, eh? Besides how to milk sie cow, or to dig in sie dirt? Hmpf!"
Froning slightly as she parses out what the old man is speaking about, Rhia considers the politics of Ustalav. "What has the council done?" she asks softly, opting to encourage the delusion for the time being. While he was most likely living in the past, it might provide some insight into what was going on here, and exactly who he was.
Christoph heads back to the Tricky Flail Inn to pickup the two horses on the western part of the city. Meanwhile, Zelda leads the remaining ladies through the east gate to where she overheard someone talking about a stable on the outskirts of town.
By the time Christoph returns on Jitters with Zelda's horse in tow, Aliseya, Naught, and Sookie are waiting for them with their new mounts. Zelda takes the reigns from Christoph, and pats her own horse.
The Speaker looks up at the sky, and notes the sun's position indicates it's just about noon. He therefore figures the group has about five hours of daylight left on this late winter's day. While chilly enough to warrant a winter coat, there's no sign in the air of snow or storm.
Given these favorable weather conditions, he believes the party might make it to Schloss Caromarc perhaps a couple hours past sundown.
As Judge Daramid had mentioned, the western entrance of the Silent Path begins about a mile south of this castle. Ali, Naught, and/or Zelda would mention having visited this very castle recently. They would know that the great Moutray River flows between Lepidstadt and the Shudderwood, so riding more directly to the Silent Path would require crossing a fairly wide river, and with horses. A bridge crosses the river at the castle, and from there the trail entrance can probably be far more easily reached.
After paying for her (and Aliseya's) horse Naught happily leads the Friesian back to the group, Roland taking up the saddle for the time being. "His name is Percival and he is a good horsey. Mainly cause he didn't try to bite or stomp me."
"Y'all ready to head out or what?"
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After planting a long "thank you" kiss on her love's lips (enough to cause the stable master to release an uncomfortable chuckle, then turn away after realizing he's staring), Aliseya mounts her new Haflinger.
"Her name is Lexy. Isn't it, sweetie petitie cutie pie?" Speaking overly sweetly as if to an infant, she fondles her light chestnut horse's cheek.
"Ready! Are you ready, Lexy? Oooh you're such a cuuutie petutie pie..."
This might be a long trip for everyone else...
Naught's hair curls then stands on end at the sudden affection, leaving her in a dreamily content state before Roland begins pecking her sides when Aliseya breaks out the cutesie talk.
She just shrugs at the peacock.
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Sookie picks out a nice russet brown Hanoverian. ”I shall name you Bradamante, I think.” She pets the horse’s mane absent-mindedly.
She packs up Bradamante and mounts her, smiling at Ali and Naught. ”Onwards and outwards, then, my dears.”
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"Tally-ho!" Naught lets out before turning to the others. "I've always wanted to say that."
"Vat have zey done?!" He looks at Rhia, a confused look in his eyes. "Zey have forced my removal from my rightful place! MEINE BIRTHRIGHT! ZAT IS VAT ZEY HAVE DONE, MEINE FRAU!! SCHWEINE!!" He then punches the table hard with a closed fist.
Grimacing in pain, he slowly unfurls his fist. He alternately flexes and grips his fingers, apparently injuring himself.
"SCHWEEEIIIINE!!!"
Shaking his fist in the air, he looks angrily at the ceiling. The small creature looks on, helpless futility in its eyes. It shakes its head, looks back to Rhia, shrugs its shoulders, and carefully approaches the old man's injured hand to have a look.
After calming down a little, he continues. "Zey do not know vat to do, vat it means to rule. Just look! Look around! Have you seen my beloved Vieland of late? Shameful vat sie betrayers have done. Shameful!"
Tears begin to well up in his eyes now. Judging by appearances though, Rhia begins to wonder when the last time this man has actually stepped outside of this elaborate manse was, to see for himself what he is actually talking about. As far as she is aware, Vieland is not in any particularly dire straits at present; and has in fact remained more or less the same for decades to her knowledge.
?!?
In the year of 4719, on this 25th day of Calastril, Absalom Reckoning, on a Toilday, about noontime, five brave adventurers set out of Lepidstadt. Their quest, to hunt down Auren Vrood, a cruel and cunning necromancer, and an agent of the enigmatic death cult know as the Whispering Way.
All properly mounted, they now head for Schloss Caromarc. There, they plan to cross the bridge over the Lesser Moutray River, and reach an old trail which begins at the western edge of the dark forest, appropriately named the Shudderwood for the frightening tales told of its dark denizens. For Vrood's last known whereabouts were of his cult heading into this very forest.
The road to Schloss Caromarc, or Castle Caromarc in the common tongue, leads first through the frozen, gray marshlands north of the city known as the Dipplemere Swamp. Nearby to the east, the wide river cuts through the marsh, and more or less follows the contours of the road. As they travel, the sound of its flowing waters becomes ever-present. A sense of foreboding overcomes the adventurers as they spot, much further east and across the marshland, clusters of woodlands... the western edge of the Shudderwood.
As they travel the road northeast, Aliseya, Zelda, and Naught begin to fill in the gaps for their new companions, Sookie and Christoph. The castle is the dwelling of Count Alpon Caromarc, the former ruler of Vieland who abdicated his position when the Palatinates threw off the heavy yoke of the aristocracy. An eccentric and somewhat mad recluse, Count Caromarc has built quite a dwelling. Known as the Hanging House, Schloss Caromarc lies to the northeast of Dippelmere Swamp, and is actually several buildings built into the walls of a gorge above a waterfall.
After just under an hour of riding, the party spots the sad remains of a broken building lying on a spur of land jutting into the river. The burnt timbers of a large house sag into the undergrowth of nettles and thistles. Nature is taking back this charred ruin, as if trying to erase dark memories. Nearby, a small cluster of gravestones jut from the weeds.
"Sanctuary..." one of the young ladies flatly names the place. Aliseya, Zelda, and Naught grow somber in mood here as they recollect the horrors of what they discovered during the Trial of the Beast. It was here that they encountered four ghasts, and the incriminating charred remains of a letter which led them to fatefully investigate Vorkstag and Grine's Chymic Works.
The road continues on straight through this melancholic place.
The adventurers quietly pass through Sanctuary uneventfully.
Continuing along the northbound road, they ride the road into a lightly wooded swamp. Several trails head off through the woods to the west and north as they ride. They easily cross a few streams along the way as well, sourced from the greater river.
As they continue the journey, the young ladies continue to tell their tale. When they first met Judge Daramid, she'd hired them to aid in the investigation and legal defense of the Beast. The Beast, whom Ali more kindly refers to as Mr. Golem, is a golem that was mysteriously bestowed with sentience by its creator, Count Caromarc. The count actually experimented with the creation of all sorts of bizarre creatures. They discovered, through a three-day investigation, that Mr. Golem, who had been charged with many counts of murder, was indeed innocent of the charges...
Two hours after sunset, the woods and fens give way to a deep, rocky gorge at the northern edge of the swamp, where a peculiar building, or rather group of buildings, clings to steep cliff edges above half a dozen plummeting waterfalls. It's hard to make it all out in the moonlight. But beyond a fortified gatehouse, a stone bridge arches gracefully over the raging torrents below. Perched precariously beyond this is a fine, fortified manse and a ruined building that appears to have partially collapsed into the river below. What appears in the dim light to be a slender rope bridge, replacing the fallen remnants of a stone bridge, links to a strange tower pierced with what might be beautiful stained glass windows. A further building teeters to the north of this, but how it is reached is impossible to see from here. Far above, a great tower rises from an isle of stone to the sky, ending in a great steeple topped with a huge lightning conductor.
You have arrived at the gatehouse of Schloss Caromarc. It is cold and dark out.
Clearly the old man wasn't all in the present. Looking around she wondered how long ago his wife had crossed over. "Yes, a true shame. Is there anyone else here?" she asks gently.
With the party ready to travel, Christoph nods his approval -"Waste not a minute," rings the Speaker adage in the back of his mind- and takes the lead out of the gate and on the road. Over the next hours he would find himself astonished and horrified to hear the extent of the trials of the young women who he found himself travelling with. The Trial of the Beast and the sacrifices of the party had made make a deep impression, but lingering always is the knowledge of Aliseya's 'talents'.
His warring thoughts and the gloominess of the story itself do not lend themselves to much gaiety and the Speaker is often a silent and taciturn listener. The dismal surroundings of Schloss Caromarc are an appropriate reflection of the Speaker's mood as they arrive. [i]What a shambles...[/b], he thinks as he surveys the broken ruins that made up the keep. He opines, "No doubt this is far enough for today. Let's see to the horses and then settle for the night. The count is still here? Might be best if you of you ladies leads. It seems unlikely he'll be happy to see a Voice of the Spire in his home."
Naught dourly looks upon the Schloss and sighs. "Yeah..." she says before looking for a safe place to tie up the horsies for the evening.
As the party approaches the two-story stone gatehouse in search of a place for the horses, they can more clearly see it is topped with a crenellated tower at each corner. The main gate stands open. The stench of death lingers in the air, emanating from the rotting body of a hideous canine-like creature to one side of the gate.
Through the open gate, you see a broad chamber with a vaulted roof. Two large fires burn in the room. A second gate stands on the far side of the room.
When your horses resist nearing the gatehouse, you realize that the deathly stench may disturb them. With a bit of cleanup, however, perhaps they can be tied up inside the gatehouse. And probably more safely than leaving them outside.
You also recall that, after Ali... "impressed" one of the trolls into respecting her dark power, it revealed that they had intended to raid the castle. But a great creature they could not defeat protected the bridge (which you then also slew). Before fleeing, the troll also revealed that agents of the Whispering Way were, at that time, still in the castle.
The old man's jaw drops at Rhia's question. He stares her straight in the eyes, and asks, "Are... are zey still here?" The tremor in his voice clearly indicates fear.
His eyes dart around the room in every direction.
The small creature hesitates a moment, but then begins to also look around the room.
After a few moments of looking around, the small creature shrugs. It then looks around for something else... a piece of blank parchment atop a small stack of books. Placing the butter knife of a crutch carefully down without stumbling, it retrieves the old man's inkpen and, with two hands, begins to scribble something on it.
It gives Rhia a look as it places the pen down, partially picks up the parchment (which is about as large as itself), and shows it to her:
"Bad cultists were here. Gone now. What do you want with the count?"
The strange creature confirms this in writing, and reveals the threat is apparently no longer present.