Draalûsh simply nods in agreement.
Swift-Palm says nothing, but bows deeply to show his agreement.
Bendalis's eyes widen at the disfigurement, and she glances around as the others accede.
It is your land, and your justice. Perhaps he will repent.
She speaks quietly, her voice tightly controlled.
Branding and amputation. They don't have spellweavers here then. No wonder hailey is so circumspect about Nethys if this is how they ensure wizards don't practice. I'm glad I didn't stay in that town.
"I'm ready to go there!"
Flandrion says, "I am willing to go wherever we have to in order to put a stop to this nonsense."
Draalûsh looks at Hailey with a look of feigned innocence. That wouldn't fool anyone. Then smiles.
"Well, I'm not sure, actually. On the other hand, I can always try to help cleanse some of those things with fire. And hope it works."
Flandrion says, "I am willing to go wherever we have to in order to put a stop to this nonsense."
I don't think anyone actually searched him closely.
"His sentence will be passed tomorrow," the baron says, "Cousin do you have any thoughts on this?"
The count turns from pouring himself another drink, pausing in thought for a moment. "Your plan seems reasonable, though perhaps I could speak to him, a third party not involved in his arrest. A traveller interested in the exotic, the arcane and perhaps even the forbidden."
"I think it wise do so under supervision... For your protection of course." Swift says with another respectful bow.
Flandrion nods in agreement with Swift-Palm.
"Sounds good to me"
"will he be forthcoming if he thinks or knows that his captors are listening. I will take some of my own men as protection and let you know if I find out anything."
.
"I will let you know how my interrogation goes in the morning"
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morning comes quickly and the baron and the count are already taking breakfast by the time you are awake.
"Good morrow my new friends, the necromancer was mildly forthcoming. In my travels I have encountered several death cults and all death cults share some ties. So I made some of the right noises and found out that his cult is an offshoot of the one that led to the rise of the whispering tyrant. Apparently they had some kind of council based out of a fortress far to the north of Ustalav. Said fortress was destroyed by their enemies many centuries ago and they went underground, but have occasional meetings there on special occasions. He claims there will be some kind of initiation there at the winter solstice."
"One moment, Hailey …" says Draalûsh as he rummages through his rucksack.
"… yes, here you go." and passes the Gnome a piece of parchment and a pen for her to use.
"I came prepared. I'm not just pretty face you know!" and snickers a bit at his own little joke.
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"No, but you are pretty. I'm learning to like half-orcs."
Hailey looks at the baron's cousin.
"I will be back in a little while, once I've found someone to deliver my letter after I've written it."
She will find a safe and quiet place to write, and update her church completely on what is going on, and inquire if the church has written her back with new instructions yet.
Flandrion says with a grin, "Draalush, could you do me a favor? If you ever see an ugly face, please be kind enough not to point it out to me."
"I shall indeed!"
Interesting. We might want to arrive before the initiation in that case. Handling the problems as they arrive is likely safer than interrupting their gathering once it begins.
Bendalis muses.
"It would probably put them off their stride too, if they were preparing for something else."
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After leaving and writing her letter, Hailey goes to a quiet place and quietly meditates and prays.
"Lord Nethys, I need your guidance. What am I to do? I confess, I am somewhat tempted, and yet I know some of the evils that the tyrant has done and the way he's left these people. Help me strengthen my heart that I may shun him and his Dark Path and reclaim the magic of this land for you.
"I will do your will, my Lord, as I have ever done your will. I have come to this land to please you, investigated these wonderful horrors to please you, even accepted the blessed burden of wizardry, all in hopes of pleasing you.
"Yet in all of that, I grow increasingly afraid. I do not waver in my knowing that those who have abused your gift must be judged, but I fear I lack the power and the will. I grow concerned that the archbishop or his assistant priestess have not responded. So I ask you to tell them of the things that I have written them if they have not heard.
"I beseech you, help me not to fail you. You saved me from kidnapping and certain death. I will stand tall, preaching your word and doing your will. But I am becoming uncertain as to exactly what your will is?
"When I came here, Lord, I was inspired by the visions of making evil destroy itself. But I wonder if I have lost my dispassion and becoming too concerned with these non-casters. And I have made some foolish mistakes.
"I ask forgiveness for my hubris and my pride. If I have erred, correct me and put me back on the proper path. I will do as you say, Lord. Don't I always?
"Show me how to deal the justice you want to do, and the side you want justice to be done to. I am open and I am empty. Fill me with your wisdom, my beloved god. Speak your will. I shall listen. Please cleanse your wandering child of her hubris and her emotionalism, and show her the way. I will obey any direction you give me, Lord Nethys. I just beseech you to provide one."
The rest of the prayer is much more passionate, and in gnomish.
After some more talking, Swift decides to politely excuse himself from the meeting, opting to move about the mansion and ponder. As he does so, he stumbles upon Hailey, deep in prayer, her back to him. He quietly slips away, but not before smiling to himself.
"I have quite the interesting group.", he muses.
"I should not linger and interrupt her otherwise private moment with her god."
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Chewing over the situation in his mind, Garekk approaches the count and his brother the next day. "My lords" he says with a bow "Was any further information gained before the sentencing? And what was the outcome? I was thinking that if he lives, he will attempt to rejoin his master. We could follow him straight to the source of this trouble. This could also pose a problem if we were to go to this fortress and he finds another, quicker, way of alerting the rest of his group."
Chewing over the situation in his mind, Garekk approaches the count and his brother the next day. "My lords" he says with a bow "Was any further information gained before the sentencing? And what was the outcome? I was thinking that if he lives, he will attempt to rejoin his master. We could follow him straight to the source of this trouble. This could also pose a problem if we were to go to this fortress and he finds another, quicker, way of alerting the rest of his group."
"He has not been sentenced yet, I will do so after breakfast. Decisions should not be made on an empty stomach."
After breakfast? Good plan! I'm hungry!
Some reflection is always wise, and breaking fast allows time for it. In less unpleasant tidings I meant to ask permission to view your gardens in the morning, the parts I can see by moonlight hint at vastness and someone's love of flowers.
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Garekk spends the morning wandering around waiting for the Baron and contemplating his mission. It feels as if it has been forever since he last reflected on the task set before him, and this pause in the chaos and the problems they face seem to force his introspection. Looking out over the sleepy town as they wake up, he considers the necromancer. How can so much hate exist? The things that this man has done.. they are awful.. what drove him to end up this way? I fear that I will never understand such things. Is it not good enough to just let others be?
As he is musing, Garekk finds a quiet nook for him to set in, watching the sun rise. he cannot comprehend why such things occur, and fears that he will never find the answers that will allow him to return to his tribe.
That this is evil is if no question.. but what of good? Where does that play in any of this? These people are simply trying to survive, and the baron is a hard man out of necessity, but that makes neither good or evil in itself. Where is the hope and courage? Where is the Good that must exist for there to be a balance?"
There are many things disturbing the half-orc, all compounded by the youngster missing his home.. but looking forward, he feels different. Needed. Attached. All things that he never expected to find out here, least of all to those that remained of his companions. And the new ones? They are.. Different. Not good or evil either.. but time will tell, as in all things.
Flandrion will enjoy a hearty breakfast when he gets the chance to do so. Afterwards he will think about the information that Hailey had provided in her briefing last night.
Draalûsh gulps down a hearty breakfast, with uninspiring rustic table manners …
"This is less predictable than defending against Orc raids in Trunau. It is interesting, though. Hope my fire magics can be used to purge some of those undead things. Nasty business, that. Good grub here; much better than back home!"
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Hailey will eat breakfast solemnly, and has prepared the following spells for the day:
Wizard:
Ray of Frost, Detect Magic, Mage Hand, Shield, Ray of Enfeeblement, Sleep.
Cleric:
Purify Food & Drink, Light, Mending, Comprehend Languages, Protection from Evil, Summon Monster 1.
She will allow Alice to patrol the house for rodents until it is time to go, but Alice never strays far from Hailey and returns to her frequently to rub on her legs (and share scraps of breakfast.)
"I'd like to apologize, for I've been rather distracted. I must focus on the task at hand and not permit myself any idiotic mishaps, such as failing to ensure that the prisoner was fully searched and interrogated. Such is what happens when you put personal desires before the task at hand.
"And the task at hand has to do with stopping Mr. Devil and this cult that wishes to return . . . him. But I must not allow myself to be drawn into concern for these anti-intellectuals here, and I must also concentrate on the matter at hand, not on my own pride and wishes. I was excited and I became rather careless. Power can be a potent drug on its own. If I become too overly concerned with people, including myself, please do point it out."
"Perhaps, Hailey, you are putting too much responsibility onto yourself. While you might be partly at fault for the way some events unfolded, blaming yourself completely is doing a disservice to your name. You are a brilliant young priestess, with more zest for knowledge than I or any I've met. Do not let your thirst for the truth die in the face of more mundane activities. Being yourself and following your own path helps us even more than you can imagine."
Swift gives her a smile. He tries to comfort her and assure her she made the right decisions, although he worries he did not express himself correctly.
Flandrion shrugs. He says, "Just do the best you can and get on with life. Elves don't live long enough to be constantly second guessing themselves all the time, so why should anybody else do that?"
Hmm. Where did you say this fortress was? We'll want to be sure we have sufficient rations and water for the trip and make any repairs to your wagon that might be needed. Prayer to nethys or shelyn might suffice for refilling our stores, but we should still be certain we are provisioned properly to begin with.
"True enough. Having provisions is always a good thing."
"And anyway, Hailey, you know more about these undead matters. How vulnerable are they to fire magic?"
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At first, she is shocked and horrified at Draalûsh's question.
"Those poor little things don't deserve to be burned to a crisp! It's not their poor blessed little hearts' faults that they've been put to a horrible use by such awful . . . They are morally the same as vipers. They do as they are commanded, or else act on instinct. That makes them harrowing, but not evil by default. Alice here would tell you all dogs are evil by default but that doesn't make them so in a true sense."
Hailey sighs with exasperation.
"If you really want to kill them, holy power works best. It's their natural opposite. As for fire. Let me think."
Then she mulls the question over.
"I wasn't passing judgement. But it sound like we will have to fight them. Like it or not. I can damage undead with a little life magic, but not a lot. If any of them try to kill us, it will beyond embarrassing to learn we have the wrong weapons."
"Not really. Just want to be able to do my bit, that's all."