Shol'a'saul comments softly to Aerys, "No, the mark does nothing to diminish your features." She moves to touch his face and with an arcane word soothes his wound. She then repeats the process for both Ad'ifaah and Corey.
Shol'a'saul visibly trembles at the sight of the ghostly figure, but maintains enough presence to ask her "My...La...la...Lady, what is your name?"
|
The ghostly woman looks up, "What? My name? Yes, I am Vesorianna. My husband, Lyvar, was the warden here when the fire destroyed us all."
She looks even sadder. "But now he is gone and the evil man who engineered the prison break is trying to break free."
She turns to Ad'ifaah, "When I learned of the escape attempt I came to see if Lyvar was safe. I found out that he and several guards were trapped below with the prisoners. In my desperation I dodged several guards and released the winch to the elevator in hopes they could jump on and be pulled to safety. But it didn't work. That's when several guards subdued me and locked me in here. When the fire started later, everything was madness. They left me here when they fled."
Aerys bows his head. "My regrets, Lady Vesorianna. Who is this man? How might we stop him?"
Nodding in understanding. Yes, who is this evil man who is trying to break free? Strange things are happening and dark magic is being used in the town, and we are seeking to determine its source. This evil man sounds like a possible cause.
Also, is there a way that we could help your soul to be at peace? A way to bury your remains for instance so that you can leave this cursed prison and be with your good husband?
|
|
"The Splatterman! He is the one that started the riot years ago and now his spirit is growing stronger since the evil men took my Lyvar." Vesorianna seems to overcome her grief a bit and become more determined.
"The angry spirits of the prisoners were held in check by my husband, but now he is gone. I have taken my husband's burden, but I am not as strong and the prisoners do not fear me as they did Lyvar. Now there influence is slowly seeping into Ravengro. Also, the Splatterman is performing some sort of ritual and I fear that if he completes it, my power will be completely broken. You must help me! Please!"
Where and what is the Splatterman? We will help you, both to allow you peace, but also to protect the town and the innocent people who still live there.
What must we do to help you? What must we do to stop the Splatterman?
"Yes my Lady, tell us. The prisoners may not fear you, but by Shelyn's good grace they will fear us, I promise you that."
"Oh I understand now. I thought you were missing your husband in life, but you and your husband's spirits have been actively fighting the prison riot, even now in death so many years later! How brave and valiant for the both of you. Yes, Ad'ifaah's right. We need to help. Perhaps we can also discover what became of your husband's spirit."
"Do you know where the Splatter-man is lurking right now? Is he somewhere on the lower level of Harrowstone? We need to find a way to access the lower level, as the fire caused the stairwell leading down to collapse. Is there another way you know of leading below?"
|
|
"No. only the stairwell and the lift, which collapsed, leads down there, but who knows what damage was down to the east wing, maybe there will be a way in through there. If you are truly going to help, then you should look in the valuables room near the auditrium. There are five items, each belonging to the five prisoners that are the strongest spirits here. These items will have power over their owners, but beware, they will also probably be cursed. They have only started growing in their power since the robed, evil men came and took Lyvar. They left after killing the man from the village a few weeks ago."
Ahol'a'saul takes out the silver flute and shows it to Lady Vesorianna. "We have recovered the items which you speak of, so you may rest assured we are as prepared as we can be. We did see another possible way below, if you call a hole in the floor a 'way down'.
She turns to her companions, "I believe we are ready to head below now to confront the evil spirits, unless we should explore the upper level of Harrowstone beforehand?"
Wasn't there a name being scribed one letter at a time on the monument in town, in blood? As I recall it started with "VEN". Definitely sounds like the Splatterman is seeking to restart his horrific study. We definitely need to finish this off and stop him now. I am sure that the letters are the start of his next victim, the only question is who.
Actually, it was just "VE", and I would guess the name the spirit plans to spell is our good lady's here. We definitely need to stop him."
I stand corrected, yes, it was just VE. - - Wait, who were these robed men of which you speak? Were there other living people here in the prison recently?
"I suspect those robed men are the same men who murdered the Professor, Whispering Way cultists, without a doubt. Did you see or recognize any of these men, Lady Vesorianna?"
|
|
"Unsettling visitors— men and women in dark robes who spoke only in whispers—came to Harrowstone not long ago and began to work strange magic around the building’s foundations. I am unable to leave this room, nonetheless I was able to observe through the walls to the northwest as these strange people inscribed runes along the ground. I also saw the sad end of the man from the village, slain by foul magic wielded by the leader of the black-robed villains (she describes this man—a thin, gray-skinned human who wore a bone breastplate and carried a black staff capped with a skull gagged by a black cloth—but knows nothing more about him). The cultists then bashed in the dead man’s head and face with a fragment of gargoyle from a roof above in an attempt, I surmise, to make the man’s death seem more like an accident. Later that night, after they murdered the man, the black-robed cultists finished their ritual. Whatever they did, they did so out of sight of my view through the walls, but I felt the repercussions immediately. It felt like a horrific storm, yet one with no wind to chill the flesh. This windstorm chilled the soul—it felt to me as if my very being was being pulled apart. Yet the horrific sensation passed in an instant... and when it had, the presence of my husband’s spirit was gone. I can only assume that the black-robed cultists somehow managed to abduct my husband’s spirit, for since that hateful day I've felt no sign of either my husband or the black-robed cultists."
"Then we must head upstairs. My Lady, do you know which spirits lurk upstairs?"
All, it is starting to get dark out. I do not think that I wish to be here after dark. Perhaps we should all return to the house for the night. Get a good night sleep. Then return tomorrow to search upstairs and down.
Shol'a'saul nods in reply, "A wise decision, Ad'ifaah. I was not aware the hour is late. We should return to Kendra and makes sure she is OK."
Shol'a'saul nods in reply, "A wise decision, Ad'ifaah. I was not aware the hour is late. We should return to Kendra and makes sure she is OK."
"That is good advice indeed. There seems to be much evil in this place, best to face it while the sun is up outside."
"Okay, if everybody insists," Venedictos says, relief evident in his voice as he's already turning to head towards the main entrance.
Aeleanor listens to the woman silently, taking her story in and chewing it over. When she finishes, she nods and bids her farewell, heading towards the entryway to look for a suitable place to stay.
Perception:
Should we stay here in the prison or camp outside?
Rather surprised that Aeleanor would want to stay near this haunted decrepit place. You are welcome to stay here. I think a warm bed in Kendra's home would be much appreciated. We can also tell her that we now know how her father was killed and by whom, sort of.
I do not think we should return to the town yet, Ad'ifaah. If you think it would be unwise to stay here, let us set up a camp nearby. It would not do to start a panic in the town when we ourselves still know so little.
What panic? We head back, report to Kendra, go to sleep, get some rest, then return in the morning when the sun us out and the things that prowl around undead infested crypts are asleep. It is not as though we are crossing the Inner Sea each time we revisit the prison.
Shol'a'Saul lays an arm on the dark elf's shoulder. "Ad'ifaah is right. Staying in close proximity to these five spirits during the nighttime is unwise. We need to retreat to a safer location so these spirits do not assault us while we recover our strength."
Aeleanor nods consent.
|
|
As you leave the building and head towards the gate, you all see a rider sitting uneasily on a horse waiting outside. As you approach, you recognize him as one of the deputies from Ravengro.
"Oh, thank the gods!" He exclaims.
"I was afraid I would have to go in there and find you. The sheriff asked me to find you and bring you to him. Lady Kendra told me I could find you here. He wishes to speak to you."
Sense Motive:
Unless I sense something amiss.
Lead on deputy.
Ricven frowns a little at seeing the deputy, wondering what tales the prisoner from the night before has been spinning.
Shol'a'saul does not appear concerned about the strange appearance of the deputy. "What does the Sheriff wish to speak of to us?"
Aerys nods in response to Nyx's soft chittering. "Yes. It would be nice if the sheriff merely wanted to provide us with a nice lunch. I fear that will probably not be the case, however..." he whispers to his familiar.
"I'm open to a lunch," Venedictos says.
"I could eat," Ricven says.
|
|
You make your way back to Ravengro and follow the deputy to the jail. It is dark when you arrive, but the sherrif is waiting inside.
"It looks like you have been busy." the sherrif says with w wry smile at the battered look of your group.
"I had an interesting night myself. Late last night Gibs here suddenly threw a fit. He was shouting and beating aginst the bars in a strange voice for about a minute then he collapsed back into sleep. He claims to not remember anything, but I have decided to keep him locked up for a while more until this is sorted out. Things are strange and now I feel you are right that it is related to Harrowstone. The town council is neverous and have called a meeting for tomorrow night. I would like for you to be there and maybe shed some light on the circumstances. What say you?"
Sense Motive:
What time? We shall attempt to be there, but our plan is to return to the prison tomorrow morning once the sun is up. I do not know what we will find, or how long it will take. If we do not return in time for the meeting, then you should infer that to mean that something has befallen us.
Aerys leans towards Venedictos and whispers, "I'm guessing no lunch..."
Turning to the sheriff, he asks,"Would you happen to have any recollection of an influx of strangers in your village, perhaps some time before the Professor's death? In particular, a thin, grayish-looking man?"
"What we can tell you, however, is that the spirits of Harrowstone have definitely become restless, and some have gained enough power to reach beyond the walls to this town. I would not be surprised if the spirit of the Splatterman has reached out to possess Gibs. It is attempting some profane ritual to gain itself more power and freedom from the confines of the prison, and will probably seek to possess another townsperson tonight. We might have a means of preventing it from continuing its ritual, but you should let your deputies know that if they do see somebody acting suspiciously, they may not be doing it of their own accord, and should attempt non-lethal means to detain said person."
"Should we stay here and watch the prisoner Gibs to see if he manifests the possession? It may give us additional insight as to how to defeat the spirit."
More important would be to have someone stationed at the monument should the Splatterman take control of someone else and attempt to continue writing the name. As long as he does not complete the name, I think she is safe. At least for the time being.
"I will help guard the monument."
I would hope that the town guard could station a few men there. I think that we will need all our strength for the Harrowstone in the morn. Many of us had a long night last night, and a full nights rest is probably advisable. As long as the guards have nets and other non-lethal weapons, they should be able to easily disable whoever the Splatterman attempts to control.
"Let us at least take the spellbook to Gibs and see if it's presence might force the spirit from him, or at least, manifest in some way that we could question it."
"That is a good idea, Venedictos. I am curious to see how these items we have recovered are tied to those foul spirits." As she talks, her hand strays over the tarnished flute fingering the holes on the metallic surface, like he was playing a dirge in her mind.
"I can help with guard duty, too," the fighter says.