Theophilus begins wiping his clothes down.
Off to see the wizard; the wonderful wizard of Oz!
Julius cocks an eyebrow. "The who now?"
I once knew a Doctor....Who?
The captured patient who has so far not spoken belts out, “D-d-dr. West, but I c-c-can’t rec-c-cognize him when he wears the face of a d-d-dominion toad.” The second patient looks at the exchange and motioning to Theo, ”I’ll have what he’s having.”
Sara listens enraptured by the story but when Dervak goes on to explain his theory about ghosts she screws up her face and adds, ”I see a nightmare inside you. If you die here will it escape too?”
Theophilus takes a seat on the floor next to the two patients.
Fascinating! I once tailored a hat that was actually made to resemble a frog. It was for a princess. She was a very particular customer, I must admit!
Dervak is startled at Sara's perception.
She is more than she seems. A messenger, maybe? Not from Gorum, I think, but from another of the gods? Or she is at least touched by the gods in some way?
He replies quietly, so the Apostles can't hear.
"Yes, there is a nightmare inside me. A curse from my birth father. It is from a place beyond reality. That is what a wise man told me; my foster father, a cleric of Sarenrae. After his passing I went to the Kellid lands. Mulgar taught me to resist the nightmare and told me I wasn't a monster. I sometimes believe him. The nightmare can come out when I get very very angry. So I have tried to not get angry. Sometimes in my life I have failed. It offers such power... It mocks me and taunts me for not letting it out.
When we were fighting the shape-changers and I almost died, you saved me, Sara. I was on the verge of either dying or losing control of the nightmare. You did a good thing for me. Thank you. Does a god give you your magic?
To answer your question, if I die bravely in battle, my soul will go to Gorum where I may fight at his side forever. The nightmare can't follow because Gorum is stronger than it is; he is the mightiest god of all. I don't know what will happen to the nightmare when I die. It may get loose in the world, or go back to its own place. I wish to find a way to get rid of the nightmare. One of the last things I remember before here was going to meet a wizard who said he could cure me. It was a trap."
Mara consulted with her team-mates. "Maybe we should take these fellows back to the chapel, and see if Winter can do anything for them. They seem pretty out of it!" All things considered, it was surprising that the ghouls hadn't eaten these cultists by now!
Engaging with Theo seems to have smoothed the Apostle's stuttering, "But what about a gorilla suit for a noble's costume ball? I hear Sir Wade is asking for his wife."
Sara listens to Dervak and finally says, "I dunno. Does a god have to give you magic?" Returning to the topic of Dervak's Nightmare, "Maybe if you let it out more it won't be so angry all the time. I don't like it when my brother won't let me out."
Most fascinating! Mara, you have the right of it. Gentlemen, we off to see the wizard!
The Witch jumps up excitedly! He then asks Ishta if she can use Prestidigatation to color a path of gold.
Follow the yellow brick road!
Sara listens to Dervak and finally says, "I dunno. Does a god have to give you magic?" Returning to the topic of Dervak's Nightmare, "Maybe if you let it out more it won't be so angry all the time. I don't like it when my brother won't let me out."
"Where is your brother? Where does he keep you and not let you out?"
Sara looks away and says quietly, "I dunno."
Dervak looks confused at Theophilus. "I thought by the 'wizard' you meant Zandalus. Or was it Winter? Either way is fine by me."
Dervak starts heading to the library. "Anything else we want to check out on our way back?"
Mara huddled with the others. She kept her voice down so she could speak privately. "Let's drop these patients off with Winter first. I'd like to look though our patient records, but I'd rather not be managing this lot at the same time!"
”That seems like a good idea. It would be bad to over-extend ourselves. Especially when we are only just starting to grasp what is going on.
The party backtracks with their prisoners in tow. They reach a barricade that has been set up by the Chapel Survivors. When you are spotted York holds up a broken piece of wood, the more perceptive in the group notice that he's nervously looking between you and the piece of wood. Another guard, DaNae, holds a heavy crossbow at the ready. Sara hides behind Mara, her shadow flickering violently.
Mara noticed the guards' nervous behavior, and wondered if something was up.
She hailed the defenders at the barricade, "York, DaNae! It's me, Mara! We're returning to report to Winter. We've found some more Survivors."
Dervak pulls out his broken chair leg that is a match for York's piece. He hands it to York so he can fit it together. Or if that isn't the right one, Rowan's chair leg. Dervak's low-tech "lock and key" solution.
"See? It's us."
He looks at Sara's shadow, but says nothing. Does she keep her brother there, and they switch?
When the pair of wood matches up York looks much relieved. “What’cha got there?” He motions to the bound patients. “Baisily is that you?” The patient now high on opium just give an affirmative nod. “Supposin you want us to look after these folks. Well the way I see it we don’t know if their one of those dopple whatevers and they’re showin the colors of Zandalus’ cult. The chaplin had a bunch of files locked behind some bars, but he’s nowhere in sight and Losandro didn’t see fit to give me a key. If you can get the lock open we can stick ‘em in there until we can do better.”
"I'm sure Julius can manage the lock," Mara replied. She moved closer and said in a low voice, "Keep an eye on them — we don't want them damaging the files."
"How many files are there behind the bars? Maybe we could move them out first?"
York leads Julius to one of the southern rooms, "Oh a couple of cabinet's worth. I'll help ya move 'em." Candles array themselves before a violet wall hanging embroidered with the shape of a spiraling comet. A wall of bars divides the room, locking away a row of filing cabinets.
Julius peers at the lock. "Seems easy enough, just gotta wiggle this in here and pop the pin out...there we go!"
The cabinet and the files come out and the prisoner's go in.
Theophilus follows along with the group. He helps where he can.
Mara nodded with satisfaction. "Very good, Julius."
She told the others, "I'll let Winter know about the new arrivals. Then, I'd like to return to the patient records, and and find out how we got here!" She headed off to find Winter Klaczka.
When Mara tried to enter the chapel proper Sara says, "Do I have to go in there? It's scary." This stikes anyone who's listening as odd because Sara has otherwise endured the horrors of the asylum with stoicism.
Dervak helps move the files. Then he sees Sara's concern.
"Something bad will happen to you if you go in there? Does your brother make you go away?"
She replies, "I think so. I feel him in there. He doesn't want to talk to me. When I was in there last you stopped listening to me."
Theophilus has listened to the continual discussion between Dervak and Sara. The Witch begins to consider the meaning.
Theo theorizes there might be some magical field in the chapel hedging Sara but not the rest of the party. First he notes that there is a hallow effect coming from the shrine of Pharasma. Second from a statue in the shrine to Desna radiates a zone of peaceful slumber, which would prevent anyone from having a nightmare including those of a magical nature such as the nightmare spell. On a hunch Theo looks back at Sara and notes she is radiating an aura with the following descriptors: illusion, phantasm, mind-effecting, evil.
Theophilus smiles benignly at Sara.
The gentleman then will inform the group individually whenever Sara is out of ear shot.
Mara wondered what it was about the chapel that frightened Sara. Could her bother's spirit truly be around here?
"You can wait here if you want, honey; I won't be long."
"Ok..." Sara smiles, takes out her dolls, and starts to play with them.
Winter is just inside the Chapel helping split apart a chair. She looks at the party, "I wasn't expecting you back so soon. Is there something you needed?" On seeing some of their wounds "Oh some of you are injured." She holds up her holy symbol and offers a short prayer to Pharasma.
Mara told Winter, "We've brought back some prisoners; I think they're former patients. They seem to be followers of Uther Zandalus. They don't seem to be entirely in their right minds, but perhaps sleeping in the chapel would help their condition."
She related some of what the group had found on their explorations, "We've found Administrator Losandro, I think. I can't tell if she's even alive at this point. She's kneeling in a pool of blood in her office, head back, spewing blood and foam from her mouth. When I tried healing her, her color improved slightly, but there was no other response."
Mara moved closer and said to Winter in a low voice, "We also found Sara, the little girl I was telling you about. She's afraid to come into the chapel — something about her brother. I'm not exactly sure if she's a spirit of some sort, or what. Can you come out and tell me if you can see her? Apparently I couldn't for a while!"
"Not for nothing, but I've never heard of someone losing that much blood and surviving. But who knows? There's so much weird stuff going on right now...this is all just such a headache."
Winter considers, "I'll let Naysa and York decide how to handle patients, they have the best chance to know what conditions they have and have experience working with them."
"I only met Dr. Losandro once right before the revolt. Her office was rather well appointed. It's a shame she's insensible, I would think she'd have insight into this whole mess."
Winter pokes her head out and looks around, "I see a young woman playing with some dolls, she's definitely not someone I've met before." She casts a spell and returns.
"She's alive and healthy as far as I can tell."
"Wasn't Losando spewing mist, or fog, like what is all around this place? Anyway, we also killed a couple of what looked like doctors but were undead. I don't care about my file staying secret; I don't mind if we get some of these other survivors helping out to read through them. There's a lot, and we are the ones best suited to exploring the place some more."
Then he addresses Theophilus, after the witch has filled the party in.
"An evil phantasm? Then she is not what she appears? How can we see through this illusion? Bring her into the chapel?"
Mara replied, "Sara saved my life, and others too! Perhaps there's something magical effect on her, but I can't see her as evil!"
Mara proposed to the others, "Shall we find out more about ourselves, and how we got here? I'd like to look through the patient records. We may also find out more about our foe in the special records."
Rowan is going to walk around and discretely ask if some other people recognize Sara.
Also, he wants to ask one of the coherent cultists if they recognize Sara. He will bribe the cultist with wine.
Theophilus pats Dervak on the shoulder.
-Not quite certain, but no worries, my good man, we shall out the truth. If we could perhaps get to that nurses station, as planned, we may be able to secure much needed medicinals.
Rowan is going to walk around and discretely ask if some other people recognize Sara.
Mara replied, "Sara saved my life, and others too! Perhaps there's something magical effect on her, but I can't see her as evil!"
"That's true, but sometimes evil things... forces... offer to help you for their own reasons. I know something about this."
Dervak takes a deep breath. He makes sure he is within the Chapel when he says this: "There is such a thing within me, Mara. And It asked me to keep Sara safe - said she would be 'useful'. Useful to me, or useful to It, I don't know. But the thing, I call It the Dark Whisper, is a... what's the word... 'aspect'. 'Aspect of a horror beyond reality.' That's how the wise describe my Dark Whisper. A curse from my father, along with these."He indicates his tusks.
"I think it's something like the King in Yellow, but only a part of such a thing. So it can't control me, and can't even influence me except when I lose control, like berserk. It knows something about what's going on here, but anything It tells me is for Its own purposes. As best I can tell, It does want to keep me alive so It can use me. I told more about It to Sara than was smart, I think."
Theophilus pats Dervak on the shoulder.
-Not quite certain, but no worries, my good man, we shall out the truth. If we could perhaps get to that nurses station, as planned, we may be able to secure much needed medicinals.
Didn't Dervak put the patient records in the Handy Haversack? He starts pulling records out. Dervak is trained in Knowledge (History), Knowledge (Religion), and Spellcraft, so might be able to make some headway with research. He is willing to go out and get the other records, which we forgot to put in the pack.
I see, well then, a celebration is in order!