Anyone got anything to drink? A man's suffering here, Borden groans, evidently placing reality and new relationships one step lower in his priorities than curing his hangover.
Celeste takes a bottle of Oldlaw whiskey from her backpack and hands it to Borden with comment.
You're a goddess! Did anyone tell you that?.
He twists at the corks and takes a deliberate pull of the bottle, then splutters slightly.
Smooth, he rasps in a strained voice.
He takes a second pull and hands the bottle back.
Just have to let it kick in....
Well. Time for introductions. Borden Read - tomb raider, heart breaker, muck raker and all round cad, scoundrel and gad about rascal.
That he could come up with rhyming prose while still hung over would likely indicate that this man is well at home with words... or that he'd done this introduction so often it had become second nature.
Corlan points at Borden, mock-seriously.
"You seem... like a fellow worth knowing," he says.
Indeed I am, I'd offer to sell you a second hand treasure map, only used once, guaranteed, but it's too early for that s%$~.
He rubs at his unshaven jaw.
Anyways, 'nuff said 'bout me. I'd ask for your names but until my brain kicks itself into anything more than a staggering stumble I'd likely forget them. No offence.
Scruffy is a good word to use to describe Borden. He stands a broad shouldered 5'11 with some good heavy muscle tone under a layer of belly fat. He is ill shaven and his hair is worn long and a bit on the shaggy side.
He's clad in a mail shirt with a fine broadsword belted at his side and a shield over his shoulder. He leans on a long spear for support.
Looking around blearily he points down the hall and at the door on the right.
Wanna try that one? Hopefully they got some sort of dining room or something in there.
"Down the great hallway, second on the right" the butler had said, and Lucia leads the group down the oppulent hallway. Just beyond the second door on the right, a high gallery crosses the hallway like a bridge.
Opening the second door on the right reveals a large, warmly-lit dining room. A single great table dominates the room, and all but five chairs are currently occupied by transparent, ghostly figures who are in the middle of a great feast. The table is piled high with roasts, fruit, baskets of bread and other delicious foodstuffs.
A hobgoblin in a starched waiter's uniform walks forward to greet you, one hand behind his back. He looks identical to the hobgoblin butler you met earlier, except that he has a thin, pencil mustach.
He bows, straightens, and looks over the group, managing to appear subservient while simultaneously sneering at Mordan's dishevelled appearance.
"Good evening ladies, gentlemen. Will you be joining us for dinner?"
Celeste starts using Detect magic to scan her surroundings.
Everything. Everything. Celeste has never been in such a magic-rich environment. The walls, the floor, the very air itself tingles with a mixture of magics. That is not to say that she will not be able to notice items with a stronger aura, but magic has been used endlessly to create and shape this place.
Dinner? I've overslept then but I'd be mad to knock back a free meal - this is real food, right? Not boiled Kobold or whatever it is goblins eat?, he asks the hobgoblin without a trace of shame or self consciousness.
It's likely testament to Bordens carousing, indeed he smells faintly of stale booze, that the ghostly feasters don't seem to register on the man.
"I am sure that... sir.... will find the food to his satisfaction. Although we could have the kitchen prepare boiled kobold if sir preferred? The family are anxious that we see to guests welfare while the Master is absent."
Corlan, still hanging back slightly, checks to make sure the door doesn't lock behind them or anything. Assuming an escape, if needed, is available, he asks the servant, "Is there assigned seating and service, or is this more of a family-style dinner? If the former, we may be a bit under-dressed."
"Not at all, sir. We cannot stand on ceremony in these trying times. Please - I believe we have some seats for you. If you will join the other guests, the staff will serve you. If anything is not to your satisfaction, then please let me know immediately. I'm afraid that the family prefer to dine privately in the circumstances, so it will just be yourselves and other guests tonight."
"Who is this Master you speak of?" Lucia asks the hobgoblin waiter. She's obviously in no rush to sit down at a table of ghosts.
"Why, madam, Etienne D'Ambreville, that is, Stephen Amber in the local tongue. He is the master. Unfortunately he is indisposed at the moment, but the family await his imminent return. In the meantime, guests are welcome to make themselves at home."
Borden is already on his way to the table when he notices the fellow guests are not so substantial as he is normally accustomed to.
Abadars' bottom burps! What manner of undead infestation is this?!
He takes a hop backwards but tangles shield, spear and backpack that sends him crashing into an awkward looking heap on the floor.
Corlan turns to the nearest ghost. "Do you come here often?" he asks.
Mordan will help Borden up, "They don't seem hostile. Not yet anyway."
Corlan turns to the nearest ghost. "Do you come here often?" he asks.
The ghostly diner completely ignores Corlan - indeed, it seems that he doesn't even react to his presence. None of the diners seem to notice that the new arrivals are there at all - they all continue eating ghostly food while having silent, jolly ghostly conversations with their neighbours. The diners are a mixture of humans, elves, dwarves, halflings, a few gnomes and orcs, and a mixture of other more exotic races that Corlan doesn't recognize - of course Mordan doesn't recognize any except the humans.
Corlan notices that at the five empty place settings each have namecards set in them. They read.
Corlan of Greyhawk
Borden of Absalom
Celeste of Varisia
Lady Lucia von und zu Hendriks
Mordan Whoisnotawitch
"Well... I'm not."
Lucia approaches the table, pulling out the chair in front of her namecard warily, as if expecting it to come alive and seize her when she sits in it. Nevertheless, she lowers herself onto the seat, but not before surreptitiously drawing a dagger from her boot, which she keeps hidden from sight in her lap beneath the tabletop.
"Are we supposed to just chat amongst ourselves--because I'm not sure a single one of us has anything in common with the others--or will a representative from the manor be joining us?" she asks the hobgoblin waiter.
"The family wish to dine privately, given their bereavement. Please do not feel inhibited by the other guests - perhaps madam might feel more sociable after the brandy. Shall I serve the soup for madam and her companions now?"
"Uh...sure? Lucia replies, totally at a loss for how to proceed.
"Who died?" she inquires of the waiter.
"Oh, the Master." says the waiter, unfolding the napkin and placing it in her lap. "Most unfortunate, of course. He will no doubt be most put out. We expect his return imminently."
Once everyone has taken their seat who is going to, the waiter returns with a large tureen, and proceeds to ladle out bowlfuls of soup to those who are dining.
"soupe à l'oignon avec croutons" he announces. "A speciality of the Family's homeland."
This is a dark, pungent liquid seemingly containing grated onion, with chunks of toasted bread floating in it.
Lucia picks up her spoon...and her figurative jaw off the tabletop. The Master welcomes you....the Master expected you...the Master is indisposed...the Master is dead...the Master's return is expected imminently. She knew Glantri's noble families were powerful, and she'd been warned that some were eccentric...but this was madness!
Lucia's nose perks a bit as the soup's aroma rises up and into her nostrils. "The soup smells exquisite," she announces to the other guests. "Will anyone else be sampling it?"
Or using magic to see if it's poisoned? she adds mentally. Eh--who knows? Maybe in this place, telepathy will work.
In for a penny, in for a pound. Lord hates a coward. Three other things that mean I hope this works out." Mordan screws up his courage and asks the waiter, "You didn't set a place for my little sister. Is she not invited?"
Corlan makes a show of smelling the soup in appreciation while looking at the ghosts' lips as they talk.
Celeste examines the soup with Detect magic, wondering what Mordan has against Witches?
"Do you have... Coffee?" She asks hopefully.
Borden recovers after a few moments and puts himself to pulling himself up, which he does with a certain panache. He leans spear and shield against the wall and joins the rest.
He seems to fixate on the place card then grins and throws it over one shoulder.
The man then falls to eating soup with a will. He isn't dainty about it but his manners are practiced and he uses the correct spoon.
Lucia is too preoccupied with her own scattered thoughts to even notice the scraggly man as he digs into the soup. When she finally does, he's already consumed a third of the bowl. Lucia's mouth opens as if she's about to speak but then she closes it again and simply watches Borden chow down. Once he's half way through the bowl, she finally speaks up.
"How I love watching a hungry man eat!" she says through a smirk. "How's the soup? It smells wonderful. I was going to try it myself, but then I realized that all the ghosts seated at this table are eating as well, and now they're...well...dead. I wouldn't read too much into that if I were you, though."
Celeste examines the soup with Detect magic, wondering what Mordan has against Witches?
"Do you have... Coffee?" She asks hopefully.
The soup certainly has its own distinct magical aura.
"I can arrange for coffee to be served in the drawing room, after dinner if madam prefers?" comments the waiter.
Borden recovers after a few moments and puts himself to pulling himself up, which he does with a certain panache. He leans spear and shield against the wall and joins the rest.
He seems to fixate on the place card then grins and throws it over one shoulder.
The man then falls to eating soup with a will. He isn't dainty about it but his manners are practiced and he uses the correct spoon.
Borden finds the soup hearty and pleasant - not overseasoned, and with a nice contrast between the sweet onions and the sharpness of the cheese croutons.
In for a penny, in for a pound. Lord hates a coward. Three other things that mean I hope this works out." Mordan screws up his courage and asks the waiter, "You didn't set a place for my little sister. Is she not invited?"
The waiter looks momentarily startled. "We were only expecting five guests." he frowns. "This is most irregular. But of course I will set a place for sir's sister. Will she be joining us shortly?"
Corlan makes a show of smelling the soup in appreciation while looking at the ghosts' lips as they talk.
1d20+7
Everyone seems to be speaking common, and carrying on a harmless, if banal conversation of the "Isn't the food marvellous? Yes, you must try the beef." variety.
One thing Corlan does notice is that every other diner has a ghostly glass of half-drunk brandy in front of them. There are no brandy glasses at the group's settings.
Corlan gets the servant's attention, "I shall certainly wish to sample the brandy, please."
Then he tries the soup.
"Is that wise?" Lucia asks Corlan. Then, realizing that the hobgoblins have been quite forthcoming with information thus far, she asks the butler, "How did these other dinner guests die, if I may be so forward?"
"Die madam? Oh no, they have just opted to remain with us a little longer. In spirit, if yo will." He chuckles,as if at some private joke. "Shall I serve the salad course now, madam?"
"I seem to have lost my appetite."
Lucia excuses herself without partaking of the food and stands up. To the waiter she adds, "Are we free to wander about the manor or would that be considered bad manners?"
"The Family encourage guests to make themselves at home." responds the waiter. "If madam and her companions wish to dine at any time, I will be happy to accommodate them." He begins to clear away the soup plates.
In for a penny, in for a pound. Lord hates a coward. Three other things that mean I hope this works out." Mordan screws up his courage and asks the waiter, "You didn't set a place for my little sister. Is she not invited?"The waiter looks momentarily startled. "We were only expecting five guests." he frowns. "This is most irregular. But of course I will set a place for sir's sister. Will she be joining us shortly?"
"Yes, she'll be here in a minute.
Mordan will summon Sister"You dismissed me. That was foolish"
"I didn't want you to get hurt!"
"What do you think happens to me if you die? I only exist while you are alive and well. And awake for that matter, though I can't ask you to stay awake forever. I would appreciate it however, if you didn't actively seek death."
"I didn't think they would really do it. I mean, they were my friends and neighbors..."
"When they attacked they ceased being allies and became foe. Speaking of which, where are we and who are these people?" She asks, looking about warily.
"Sorry. As for where and who, I don't know and I don't know. I was tied to a stake like a suckling pig over a crackling fire then suddenly I was here. It's odd but a step up from burning alive so overall I'm happy about it."
"You were summoned? Are you someone's Eidolon then?" she asks, amused.
Mordan blinks, "I...hadn't thought of it like that. I don't know!"
She appears to be a young girl with mirrors for eyes (almost like mirrored sunglasses set into the orbital sockets of her eyes). There is a glowing blue rune on her forehead matching the rune that has suddenly appeared on Mordan's. She looks around warily then sits at the table.
"This is my little sister"
"Will madam be requiring soup?"
Celeste isn't eating, she just watches the others curiously as they eat.
She shows no interest as Sister is summoned. "I wonder what the soup does?' She comments to Lucia, "It was very magic."
Sister turns to Mordan.
"This is wrong." she says. "I am all in one place. Normally I am here and there. Now I am just here. I don't like it. How will I go there when you sleep, or you send me away?"
"Will madam be requiring soup?"
Sister shakes her head
Sister turns to Mordan.
"This is wrong." she says. "I am all in one place. Normally I am here and there. Now I am just here. I don't like it. How will I go there when you sleep, or you send me away?"
Mordan looks startled when Sister speaks, "All in one place? What do you mean?"
"I've never hard you say two words aloud. Now suddenly you're speaking in full sentences?"
"I didn't want them to think I'm weird."
"Oh." Mordan looks around at room full of spirits and monsters from a gleeman's tale, "Good thinking."
Sister frowns. "Usually I'm here, and in the place I come from. Now I'm just here. I don't know how to get back."
Whatever the effects of the soup are, they are not immediately obvious.
The waiter appears at Celeste's elbow. "If madam and her companions would like to follow me, coffee is served in the Drawing Room."
He ushers them through a door off the dining room into a room next door (see updated map). This room is a richly appointed sitting room, with many comfortable armchairs, and small table holding vases and ornaments of various sorts. One group of chairs is gathered around a table where a large coffee pot and six cups have been placed, along with a sugar bowl and cream jug.
Also in the room is a humanoid figure with the face of a tiger. It is sitting on its own in one of the far armchairs reading a book. It wears a silken robe and a smoking cap with a tassle. On seeing the group enter, it raises one furred hand briefly in greeting and then goes back to reading its book.
Delicious! I don't know what the hullabaloo is about. Maybe these people died as the result of a mass killing or poisoning or something... We're not staying for the next course ?
In any case as the group leaves he follows.
Borden stops when sees the figure.
Errr... Hello Kitty?
"What is coffee anyway? Is it an elf thing?."
"Toodle-pip, old boy" says the tiger-creature. "Don't mind me - just reading. Carry on with whatever you're doing. Just here to see Stephen, you know, like you I should imagine. Turns out he's, well, dead or some nonsense. Dashed inconvenience. Have to wait for him to get back I suppose. Still, I have to say they're looking after me jolly well here."
He seems to notice the coffee and accoutrements on the the table for the first time.
"I say!" he purrs with enthusiasm. "Don't suppose I could have a saucer of that cream by any chance?"
Celeste pours herself a cup of coffee, adding sugar and cream, she hands it to Mordan, "Try it." She also pours a saucer full of cream and serves the Tiger-man.
She then makes herself a strong cup and drinks it with relish.