In response to Børak's words, Nikolay raises his hands in conciliation, his eyes flicking back and forth between Børak and Visayn. "My sincerest apologies to you both! I did not intend to imply that Visayn was wicked - indeed, I suspect that in many ways he is a better person than I! Rather, my statements referred to myself and certain... personal attributes of mine that I hoped to speak more of at a later date. I was simply expressing my concurrence with his statement that we know little about each other, a failing that I hope to remedy over this month. My hope is that we can eventually count each other as friends, though for the moment our efforts would best be applied to researching the nature of Harrowstone and those interested in it so we can find out what Lorrimor was looking for."
He turns to Magdali, his tone and expression likewise conciliatory. "As for your words, Miss Kiritescu, I fear that I was hasty in my analysis of your intent, and for that I apologize as well. You do raise some valid points regarding the hypothetical danger of these tomes, but if Professor Lorrimor thought them safe to use for research, they can't be that harmful, can they?" And if they are, what does that say about Lorrimor? For that matter, what does it say about me? I thought my research was helping people, but what if I am an agent of evil and remain unaware of it?
"Got to say, Doctor, your talent for alienating folks is near miraculous."
Visayn tries to laugh off idea that Ramada or anyone had offended him "If anyone was implying I'm bad or wicked somehow, it was me and that was in jest. Ramada, in other words, has nothing to apologize. In fact, he just said what I was thinking, that even though what is written in these tomes is evil, Lorrimor thought they may be useful for studying evil groups."
"Can we please now focus on researching this prison and Whispering way?"
Nikolay nods at the young sylph's words. "Indeed, Visayn speaks most veritably - we need to focus on the task at hand. I think I know which sections of Petros's collection to search for information on an organization of necromancers, though I will need to check before coming to any conclusions. However, I will need some time to collate any meaningful data from the sources I find, so I will likely be studying the tomes here for most of the rest of the day."
He turns to the other three pallbearers. "Meanwhile, I understand this town has a quite well-appointed temple with extremely diligent scribes. The priests there seem the most likely to possess backups of any records from Harrowstone, some of which may give us information on who resided there are the time of the fire. Miss Kiritescu, you spoke quite eloquently at the funeral and have contacts in the clergy - it seems to me that you would be a logical member of any research team operating at that location. Likewise, at some point I would like to go to the town hall and ask permission to investigate Harrowstone itself for more clues. Of course, you yourselves would have a far better idea of your capabilities than I would, so I defer to your judgement in this area. Perhaps we could reconvene later this evening and discuss our findings?"
After she has moved her luggage into her room and unpacked a little Magdali helps with looking for information on the Wispering Way among the books in the house, excluding the three she has called out previously as danagerous.
She also tells the others she will go, alone, to speak with the the priests at the local church the next morning about using their facilities.
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Raising an eyebrow when the 'doctor' reveals that Visayn was probably a better person than himself, Børak takes the apology with a grain of salt. Considering the whole conversation about the evils of knowledge 'water under the bridge,' he tries to sort out the important parts of the following conversation, while he waits to see if anyone points him towards a book about the prisoners in Harrowstone at the time of its burning.
As the subject changes to the village, Børak realizes no help with Lorrimor's library was forthcoming. Remembering what the 'Doctor' had said about the unique categorization system, Børak proceeded to the shelf which was mostly history. Selecting a couple of books and a collection of ledgers, Børak asked Kendra, "May I take these to the attic with me?" Having stayed in the home a couple of other times Børak had found that he preferred the small attic room. Turning to the others, he nods, "We should explore the town tomorrow. For now, it has been a long day, I am off to bed."
Shifting the books and ledgers to his left hand, he proceeds to the doorway and collects his rucksack and heads towards the stairs. Eventually finding himself in the small attic, he drops the rucksack near the western dormer neatly placing the stack of books beside it. Taking off his weapons belt and breastplate, he places his sword and shield near where he intends to lay. Spreading out his bed roll in the dormer, he lays down with the books facing the window so he can read by the light of the setting sun and eventually the moon. When it get's too dark, he shifts shape, enabling his 'darkvision' and continues reading well into the night; looking for information on what seemed to be five key prisoners.
Nikolay browses the shelves for a few more minutes, collecting a stack of useful-looking books, then returns to the chair near the window in the living room to read, taking extensive notes while he does so. However, the results are somewhat frustrating - the few treatises on the Whispering Way itself invariably fail to say anything significant, merely stating that little is known about the mysterious organization.
Eventually, he gets to a tome entitled A Complete History of Ustalav, by Emil Pavlenco - the young scholar raises an eyebrow at that, amused to find a sample of the work of Sincomakti's rector before he entered administration. The history book is slightly more useful than the other books, and he eagerly takes note of an ancient votive inscription from an Age of Destiny site near Adorak that references the "Whispering Ones," as well as a few offhand references later in the book that indicate the mage-king Tar-Baphon was an ardent member, both in life and in undeath. He also makes a sketch of the carving associated with the inscription, a skull with cloth tied over the mouth, labeling it as a sigil potentially associated with the dangerous group.
Despite the discoveries contained within the weighty history book, Nikolay stands in frustration, taking the useless texts back to their place in the Faiths and Philosophies section and pausing to speak with Magdali as he does so.
As he speaks on this new subject, his voice shrinks to barely above a whisper, and he seems to be trying not to make eye contact with Magdali. "Miss Kiritescu, may I speak with you for a moment? Near the village of Renaki, where I grew up, there was an old blind man who spent his days in prayer to Pharasma, a hermit who lived a solitary life in the hills around the town. He never did any harm to anyone, but everyone feared him: the rumors in the village said that those who his shadow crossed had a piece of their soul drained away, and the children told each other that to walk on the ground he had walked on was death." The young physiologist looks up at Magdali, quickly clarifying his statements. "Simple superstition! Rumors, nothing more! The reason the townspeople feared the hermit was because he was one of the om întristat - the grimspawn, those born to mortals but bearing the blood of the soul thieves of Abaddon."
Nikolay looks away, sighing. "I wanted to speak with you now because you don't seem to like me very much, and I fear you would think poorly of me if you discovered the truth from someone else. I've always been terrible at keeping secrets, in any case. You see, like the Renaki hermit, I too am grimspawn, descended from soul eaters. I'm sorry for hiding it and telling you only now, but I thought it best that you know that I am trustworthy, that I will not keep secrets from my colleagues. I intend to tell Børak and Visayn soon, but I thought it best to tell you first, as I fear that you would distrust me if you learned it from another, and I suspect we will be working together on the upcoming Harrowstone excavation. Rest assured that I am neither a monster nor a blasphemer - I am a faithful servant of Pharasma, just as you are."
After returning the irrelevant texts and concluding his talk with Magdali, he takes two more books on a hunch: Marandola's Justice Through the Ages, a history of major legal cases in Avistan over the past hundred years, and Cernat's Arms and Armaments, an encyclopedia of obscure weapons. After a few more hours of study, he does manage to uncover a reference in the legal textbook to the trial of Master Temerith, the head of necromantic research at the Acadamae in Korvosa, who was discovered to be a member of the Whispering Way. Looking through samples of the necromancer's confiscated research notes, Nikolay identifies most of them as one of two categories - unfinished lich apotheosis formulae and fragmentary structural analyses of the Whispering Tyrant's prison at Gallowspire. In Cernat's text, he finds a diagram of a rather complex-looking implement known as "susurrus scissors," a nightmarish tangle of clamps and blades mentioned to be used by the Whispering Way to cut out the tongues from those who work against their order, ensuring silence in death, but adopted as a weapon by certain sadistic gladiators.
After he finishes his research, he makes a sketch of the cover of the Palatine Eye manual, copies small sections of several star charts in On Verified Madness, and retires to a room on the second floor with a large window. Unlike Magdali's large trunk, the only storage items he has brought with him are a well-made but utilitiarian backpack, which contains his research notes as well as several small personal items, and the bulky leather pouch he pulled his lockpicks from earlier. However, as he reaches into the extradimensional space of the pouch and begins to extract pieces of alchemical equipment, it becomes clear that it has more storage capacity than it would seem. He arranges his tools around the room before spreading out his bedroll on the floor, arranging it so he can see the sky from the window as he sleeps.
Pulling an ink pen and a vial of ink from his backpack, he begins to write a letter to one of his fellows at Sincomakti on a piece of paper.
I hope this letter finds you in good health. As you know, I have been in Ravengro for the past few days, attending poor old Lorrimor's funeral - his death was a great loss to each of the myriad fields he had his hand in. In his will, it was requested that I remain in town for a month so I can make sure his daughter Kendra has everything she needs. After that, I'm supposed to take a few of his books to his colleagues at Lepidstadt so they can take care of them - ordo et methodus, and all that - but I should be able to return to Rozenport within the next two months. Naturally, I'll have to request an extention to my leave of absence, if you're willing. I know, I know, I'll never get tenure at this rate, but I can assure you I won't be idle in my time away from the School: I have a lead on an ancient elven city that predates human habitation in the area by centuries! Of course, our guide has a list of artifacts the elves want recovered, but I'm sure I could send back a few rubbings for Kramer and the rest of Linguistics, as well as a few minor finds to boot, like as not.
By the way, do you remember those scarab pins Antonescu and her friends always wear? The Esoteric Something-or-other? Lorrimor had a book with that same symbol on it mixed in with a number of strange texts: books of dark cults, as well as On Verified Madness - with the Tyrius data von Junzt was looking for, if you can believe it! He and the rest of the astronomy team would have had a field day were they here, but I can still send back some information. Anyway, the book with that scarab symbol was mixed in with the rest of them. It's written in code, and I haven't been able to decipher it yet, but let's just say I suspect that this "scarab society" isn't as benign as Antonescu says. Obviously, I don't need to ask you to keep this quiet, but I thought it might not be a bad idea to give you a bit of warning.
A number of Lorrimor's other acquaintances will accompany me on this archaeological expedition. Unfortunately, I appear to be the only member of the dig crew with an academic background, and some of my fellows fail to appreciate my pursuit of knowledge. Of particular offense in this area is a priestess named Kiritescu, affiliated with the cathedral at Lepidstadt. I only just met her, so I'm trying to be open-minded, but she immediately started spouting some nonsense about "secrets too dark to be known" - she actually wanted me not to touch the Tyrius data! Von Junzt would have had one of his fits were he in my shoes! Anyway, I will attempt to recover what information I can with such uneducated companions and send it back to the scholars at Sincomakti.
With luck, my next letter will contain a veritable treasure trove of archaeological information. As always, lata scientia, ignorantia custodita.
-Ramada
The young physiologist seals his completed letter in an envelope alongside the sketch of the scarab tome and the fragmentary star charts, then signs the envelope with "Dean Falko Mortimer, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Sincomakti School of Sciences, Rozenport, Versex." He spends some time preparing a number of concoctions for the following day before falling asleep.
[dice=knowledge: (Local) the four prisoners]1d20+7
The few books that you though would help about the prisoners were about prisoners of other dimensions. Nothing that leads to what you want to find out.
As no one has engaged him for a while, he meditates in the comfort of the chair.
Flipping through pages of Urgathoa's unholy book, Visayn is quickly loses interest on it and gives it to Magdali. "We haven't known each other very long. You can't really know how twisted I am." he winks
He reads the entries on Lorrimor's journal falling silent for a moment "First thing we should do, as we delve into these secrets, is to build trust with locals. That way we can gain access to libraries, which otherwise would be closed to us. We are not yet ready to go to Harrowstone."
Knowledge (local)]1d20+10= 20
Knowledge (local)]1d20+10= 18
On Five prisoners Knowledge (local): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (10) + 10 =20
You know:
Originally, Harrowstone housed only local criminals, but as the prison’s fame spread, other counties and distant lands began paying to have more dangerous criminals housed within this prison’s walls. At the time of the great Harrowstone Fire, the number of particularly violent or dangerous criminals imprisoned within the dungeons below was at an all-time high.
The five most notorious prisoners in Harrowstone at the time of the great fire were Father Charlatan, the Lopper, the Mosswater Marauder, the Piper of Illlmarsh, and the Splatter Man.
On Harrowstone Knowledge (local): 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (8) + 10 =18
You know:
Harrowstone is a ruined prison— partially destroyed by a fire in 4661, the building has stood vacant ever since. The locals suspect that it’s haunted, and don’t enjoy speaking of the place.
Harrowstone was built in 4594. Ravengro was founded at the same time as a place where guards and their families could live and that would produce food and other supplies used by the prison. The fire that killed all of the prisoners and most of the guards destroyed a large portion of the prison’s underground eastern wing, but left most of the stone structure above relatively intact. The prison’s warden perished in the fire, along with his wife, although no one knows why she was in the prison when the fire occurred. A statue commemorating the warden and the guards who lost their lives was built in the months after the tragedy—that statue still stands on the riverbank just outside of town.
The next morning Kendra has made a hot breakfast for the house.
Having spent more time than he should have searching for information that wasn't forth coming, Børak yawned and stretched as he wandered down the stairs and saw Kendra putting breakfast on the table. Greeting their host, "Good morning, Kendra, I trust you slept well?"
He wasn't surprised when he saw the large bowl of oatmeal, the pile of toast and the selection of fresh fruit. He'd know the professor was trying to live a 'healthy lifestyle' and knew he'd preferred fruits and vegetables over meat products. They'd had several conversations about food, Børak stuck to his firm belief that if the gods had not intended for them to eat meat they wouldn't have given them canine teeth. Of course he'd always resisted the urge to point out some of them had larger canine teeth than others.
Sitting down at the table, Børak helped himself to a bowl of the porridge like substance, making sure to dump plenty of cream and honey in it, he slathered a piece of toast with butter and honey, greeting the others as they entered the dinning room. Eventually he asks, "Kendra, may I have a cup of coffee?" While making a mental note to find 'meat pie' stall while they were in town.
After Magdali and Børak have left, Visayn continues casually reading in library when Nikolay comes to return books "By the way, during my research on the prison I found several pieces of information, including names of five most notorious prisoners, who were called Father Charlatan, the Lopper, the Mosswater Marauder, the Piper of Illmarsh, and the Splatter Man. The prison’s warden perished in the fire, along with his wife, although no one knows why she was in the prison when the fire occurred. But we'll talk more tomorrow. I'm off to my room now."
In the morning he eats porridge, fresh fruits and a toast before saying much. "Hope you slept well. Today we should get out of the house and maybe visit town hall or other place where they would have relevant information?"
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Magdali is very surprised to hear from Dr. Ramada that he believed there was anything personal involved in their earlier disagreement.
"We disagreed about something earlier, but that is all. It didn't affect how I view you in general, or whether or not I like you. I don't know you."
"I have heard the term 'grimspawn' before, but beyond that recognition, I know little. Certainly not enough to inform my opinion of you."
Magdali pauses for a moment, considering something, before she continues speaking.
"There is something I would like to show you."
She stands and goes to the door of the room they're in. Closing it for privacy, Magdali returns to stand in the center of the room.
"Please don't be shocked by what you are about to see. I should warn you as well, you may want to avert your eyes so you do not look directly at me. You might find it painful if you don't."
Magdali closes her eyes and spreads her arms out slightly, so they no longer rest by her side. Then, in a split second, she manifests a searingly bright, white light. Starting from within her, it almost instantly engulfs her completely. Her body is gone, leaving a thing of pure, gently pulsing light shaped into a human-like form.
An uninformed observer might believe something like a fire elemental stood before them. Brightness shimmers across the body, rising in visible flickers and waves cast off into the room at the edges, while the core of the body is too intense in brightness to look at directly without discomfort, like staring into the sun. However, in this case there is only a pleasant warmth emitted rather than heat.
After a few seconds, the energy form disappears as suddenly as it appeared, leaving Magdali standing before Dr. Ramada as she had been before.
"I may not know much about you specifically Dr. Ramada, but I do know something about being not perfectly human. I also know something about having that difference alter the course of one's life. I live where I do because of what you just witnessed. My life has been placed on a path I did not choose, although I have come to embrace it."
"There is no convenient label for what I am, nor is there an easy answer to the question of whether I am truly the person you see now, or the other person I have shown you. Perhaps I am variously both. What I can say is this, because it is what I have been taught and what I believe."
"While I may embody positive energy, something most agree is an unambiguous good, my character and thoughts are a separate thing. I can bring ill to the world, harm others, serve only my own desires and interests if I were to decide to. That is why, when I was eleven years old, my family gave me over to the Cathedral. I still needed to learn how to be."
"I think you are the same as me. Whatever the facts of your birth, they are incidental to who you are."
The next morning, Nikolay is third downstairs, carrying an armful of notes with him. He looks grateful for the food provided and thanks Kendra profusely, but while his fangs seem more suited to consuming meat than porridge, he seems to care less about what he is eating than the simple fact that it is there, filling a bowl with oatmeal and grabbing an apple as he reviews the last night's research. As soon as everyone else is seated, he looks up from his notes. "I was planning on visiting the town square in a while, after I finish with that scarab tome we had so much difficulty with yesterday. I have a letter to deliver, does anybody else want me to take anything to the postman? I'll gladly bring your letters with me. After that, I was planning on seeing if I could help the healers at the temple or some such - I'm hoping to put my medicinal and alchemical expertise to use." He shows the other pallbearers the page with the copy of the Adorak inscription. "As for my research, I have found out quite a bit about this Whispering Way - this gagged skull motif repeats alongside the phrase "silence in death, secrets in the second life" in every verified instance of their writings, and I suspect these two may be the seal and motto, respectively, of the order itself. It's not unreasonable to assume that any you see with that sigil will be affiliated with the Way itself in some form or another, and in any case they should be followed if possible."
"As for their goals, confiscated research notes from scholars affiliated with the Way indicate that they are primarily concerned with freeing an important leader they once had, the Whispering Tyrant, as well as binding the soul to ensure life beyond death. However, they seem to have a fascination with undeath in all its forms. Yesterday, Visayn told me that five dangerous prisoners perished in the Harrowstone fire - Father Charlatan, the Lopper, the Mosswater Marauder, the Piper of Illmarsh, and the Splatter Man - as well as most of the prison's guard complement." The scientist nods in thanks to the young sylph, then shudders as he discusses the Whispering Way's interest in the abandoned prison. "It's a chilling thought - the twisted souls of five murderers mixed with the fear of the prison's inhabitants as they all faced an agonizing demise. If ever there was a location haunted by restless spirits, it would be Harrowstone, an analysis corroborated by the seeming interest of a cabal of necromancers in the prison itself. We must stop them before they recover whatever - or whomever - they came here to find."
After breakfast, Nikolay turns to Visayn. "Mister Visayn, I was wondering if I could speak with you in private? I would like to avoid the gaze of outside observers." He nods towards the windows before moving into a secure room elsewhere inside the house.
After his talk with Visayn, he returns to the living room and picks up the scarab tome. He sips one of the two linguistic extracts he created the previous day and begins looking through the book, transcribing its contents with a manic speed as the potion overstimulates the linguistic center of his brain. A rapid-fire torrent of words begins to spill from his mouth, nearly indecipherable in its speed. "It's-got-to-be-an-impure-abjad-of-some-sort-I-read-this-as: "High-priest-divided-temple-court-in-nine-parts." Someone-check-my-work-no-wait-that-has-to-be-the-symbol-for-negation..."
He works feverishly for a few minutes, then examines the translated result.
Ramada shrugs. "It seems to be mathematical formulae of some sort, but I can't understand its significance. If anyone else wants to examine it, perhaps others could find something I missed." He sets his translation on top of the book so any who examine it later can work with the full text rather than the undeciphered version in the book, then leaves for the town square.
She yawns in response, you can see dark circles under her eyes, then she says, "I kept turning in my bed. Then there were the nightmares."
"I was just boiling water for the coffee, I will be right back."
Visayn nods to Nikolay and, before following him out of kitchen to secure room, turns to Kendra "Thank you for your kind hospitality, Kendra. You're a wonderful cook." he says while pouring himself cup of coffee.
Nodding as Kendra answered his question, Børak makes a mental note that she'd had nightmares. He wasn't surprised, between her father's death and the topic of Harrowstone, the whispering way and the Urgathoan faith, it was fortunate that all of them hadn't had nightmares. As she said she'd be back with coffee soon, Børak smiles "Thanks."
Seeing Visayn approaching, Børak nods as the sylph sits down. Swallows some of the toast in his mouth, shifting the rest to his cheek, to try and speak clearly, "Got to sleep late, but slept ok. If you think we need to head to town I'm willing to join you." Nodding as Kendra answered his question, Børak makes a mental note that she'd had nightmares. He wasn't surprised, between her father's death and the topic of Harrowstone, the whispering way and the Urgathoan faith, it was fortunate that all of them hadn't had nightmares. As she said she'd be back with coffee soon, Børak smiles "Thanks."
Seeing Visayn approaching, Børak nods as the sylph sits down. Swallows some of the toast in his mouth, shifting the rest to his cheek, to try and speak clearly, "Got to sleep late, but slept ok. I agree maybe we should head to town." Børak didn't love the idea of going to town, but he should learn more about the prisoners and he didn't trust the townspeople. So none of the professor's friends should be alone.
Shifting his chair over so there would be space, he nods to the 'Doctor' as he helps himself to a second bowl of oatmeal. He tries to follow what the alchemist was talking about, doing fairly well while he's putting the honey and cream in the oatmeal, but get's distracted when he sees the bowl of blueberries. Dumping some of the blueberries into his bowl of porridge, he glances at the book Nikolay opens. Seeing the gagged skull motif, Børak makes a mental note to ask what 'Silence in death, secrets in the second life' means and begins to eat his second bowl of oatmeal.
His ears perk up when Nikolay starts speaking about the five 'twisted souls.' He nods, hearing the names of the fellows that were there to be executed. Swallowing the porridge, he adds, "Those must have been the ones that were so dangerous. I'd heard it was fortunate that the fire stopped them, even if it took the lives of everyone else as well." Taking another bite of the honey and blueberry oatmeal, he asks, "Do you really think there will be restless spirits? I have some experience with that."
As Kendra returns with the coffee, Børak chimes in with Visayn, "Yes! Wonderful!" accepting a cup of the coffee, he tops it off with honey and cream, slurping the hot beverage he tries not to burns himself, "So after breakfast, to town?"
Watching the good 'Doctor' and Visyn head elsewhere, Børak finishes his coffee and starts collecting plates and bowls. Carrying the dishes into to kitchen, he asks Kendra, "Where do you want me to set these, I'm happy to help wash the dishes Drake always told me I should be willing to help clean up a mess if I helped make it."
Magdali is last to breakfast. It was an almost unheard of luxury to be able to sleep until she was ready to awaken on her own schedule. She is every bit as put together and perfectly groomed as she had been for the funeral, with her waist-length black hair carefully combed and subtle cosmetics to enhance her facial features. The only noticeable change is in her clothing, from yesterday's black to a medium gray.
Aside from the standard greetings manners demand, Magdali eats the the small bowl of porridge she takes mostly in silence, preoccupied by her own thoughts. She is still somewhat bemused by her various conversations with Dr. Ramada the previous day, and has come to view him as extremely intelligent, but perhaps... emotionally delicate, perhaps given to a degree of paranoia.
The others are still mostly a mystery to her, but that is not something that concerns her. They are all detained for a month in Ravensgro so there is plenty of time yet for chatter.
Instead she wonders about the Whispering Way, and how much confidence she should place in the theory the group has been present in the town anytime recently, possibly because of some interest in the old burned-out prison, and if so how troubling they or their interest might be.
Magdali lingers on in the kitchen after breakfast to help Miss Kendra clean up, but she does repeat her promise from the day before to the others.
"Later this morning I will go speak to the priests at the church about accessing their records."
Nikolay looks concerned as Kendra mentions her nightmares, recalling his own fear-ridden dreams of being buried alive, the night terrors that haunted him in years past. "Are you well, Miss Kendra? These reports of nightmares are disturbing - if you feel able, could you tell us what the dream was about? Perhaps if we know what your subconscious fears are, we can help give you some peace of mind: for instance, if you're worried about those thugs from yesterday exhuming your father, we can take turns guarding his grave. Again, if there is anything I can do to aid you in this difficult time, you need only say the word and it is done, and I am sure my fellows feel similarly."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Before setting off for town, Nikolay spends some time creating a number of similar-looking posters on sheets of paper. Each one features the gagged skull alongside the directions "Southeast entrance to the Restlands" and "9 at night." After waiting for the ink to dry, he places them alongside his alchemical equipment in his lesser bag of holding, then exits the house, headed for town. Regardless of the state of the weather, the young physiologist seems to be quite relieved to be outside, and where his attitude was apprehensive within the Lorrimor residence, he seems more relaxed in the open. He waits outside for a few minutes, seeing if any of the other pallbearers plan on walking to town as well, but sets off on his own if nobody else joins him.
As he walks, he hums a strange song that he remembers from his childhood, its eerie melody evoking one of the few pleasant memories he has of his family.
As they help in the kitchen Børak hears Magdali reiterate that she would head to the church to speak with the priests. He looks towards the closed door where Visayn and the 'doctor' had gone to talk alone. He thought about how the towns people had reacted the day before and wasn't sure that any of them should wander the streets alone.
As he washed the bowls from breakfast he asked, "Miss Kiritescu I don't know if any of us should wander town alone. Would you mind if I escorted you?" He looks down at the soapy water, "I'll keep my hood on, so folks won't see what you travel with."
As Kendra returns with the coffee, Børak chimes in with Visayn, "Yes! Wonderful!" accepting a cup of the coffee, he tops it off with honey and cream, slurping the hot beverage he tries not to burns himself, "So after breakfast, to town?"
Visayn returns his coffee cup to kitchen and informs others of the poster-creation plan Nikolay had envisioned. "Yes, I'm ready for a walk around the town."
After cleaning his boots and shaving, Visayn chooses not to take his backpack placing only masterwork thieves’ tools in his pocket. He walks past Nikolay's room to inspect the posters. "Hey, doctor, I told others of our plan so they could weigh in and contribute." he mentions and heads outside pausing to see who else is coming to town.
"Of course you can come with me Borak. But, I think it's better if you leave the talking to me."
"Do you really think there will be restless spirits? I have some experience with that."
Ramada raises an eyebrow at Børak's question. "You and Magdali likely have more experience than I do, at any rate - Father Vãduva of the Rozenport Chapel had a long talk with me about soul binding and assorted blasphemies when I showed him the schematics for my Electrochemical Revivification Apparatus, but other than that, I know little about the undead."
"If I'm not mistaken, however, they form either when the deceased bears unnatural wickedness in their heart or when the death takes place in an especially gruesome manner. Given that the Harrowstone fire involved the immolation of a number of mass murderers -" He taps the bound skull symbol on the page. "- as well as the circumstantial evidence of these necromancers' interest in the site - I would suggest that there is at least one unquiet spirit floating around those ruins."
Visayn nods to Nikolay and, before following him out of kitchen to secure room, turns to Kendra "Thank you for your kind hospitality, Kendra. You're a wonderful cook." he says while pouring himself cup of coffee.
She quietly responds with, "Your welcome, I am not sure what other things I can offer besides a warm meal and a place to stay."
Watching the good 'Doctor' and Visyn head elsewhere, Børak finishes his coffee and starts collecting plates and bowls. Carrying the dishes into to kitchen, he asks Kendra, "Where do you want me to set these, I'm happy to help wash the dishes Drake always told me I should be willing to help clean up a mess if I helped make it."
Kendra thanks Borak and Magdali for his aid, "Thanks Borak just set them next to the wash basin. I would gladly accept your aid with the dishes. Where is Drake, I haven't seen him all morning. Magdali would you please clean off the table."
Nikolay looks concerned as Kendra mentions her nightmares, recalling his own fear-ridden dreams of being buried alive, the night terrors that haunted him in years past. "Are you well, Miss Kendra? These reports of nightmares are disturbing - if you feel able, could you tell us what the dream was about? Perhaps if we know what your subconscious fears are, we can help give you some peace of mind: for instance, if you're worried about those thugs from yesterday exhuming your father, we can take turns guarding his grave. Again, if there is anything I can do to aid you in this difficult time, you need only say the word and it is done, and I am sure my fellows feel similarly."
Kendra relays with relief from all the sympathy, "I am tired but okay. I will likely try to nap. The nightmare was about a lot of things, I can only vaguely remember a few flashes. Drowning out in the ocean, the unquiet dead, scratches upon metal. No I am not worried about my father, if he gets unburied the sheriff will take care of it. Thank you for your offer and I will take you up on it when I feel the need to do so."
Listening as the doctor talks about his limited experience with the undead, Børak considers his hypothesis about how undead are formed. Either way, he decides that this may be the reason he is here at this time.
Nodding as Magdali says that he can accompany her, he smiles when she tells him to leave the talking to her. Looking up from the dishes, "Not a problem at all."
Hearing Kendra ask about Drake, he shrugs. He'd not remembered if Drake had claimes a room in the house or not. It wasn't uncommon for the fellow to wander off in the woods and use his hanging tent for the night. Setting the dish aside he asks, "Do you know if Drake slept in one of the guest rooms?"
As they get ready to leave for town, Børak will leave his rucksack in the attic, but will gather his heavy cloak and bardiche from their place at the door.
Setting the dish aside he asks, "Do you know if Drake slept in one of the guest rooms?"
Kendra wonders and states, "I don't know. I had assumed you would all take accomodations in a guest room or at least what was suitable to you."
Shaking his head, Børak shrugs. "I've no idea if he did or not. I'm sure he'll turn up." Setting down the towel he was drying dishes with, he looks towards the oracle. "Magdali I'm ready to go if you are. Should we tell the others we're heading towards town?"
As they get ready to leave for town, Børak will leave his rucksack in the attic, but will gather his heavy cloak and bardiche from their place at the door.
"Give me an hour or so Borak. I have some things to take care of before I can go."
Magdali goes back to her room and shuts herself in. She takes a small velvet pouch from her belongings and settles on the floor so there is some open space in front of her. She opens the pouch and gently pours its contents, a number of small bones of various types, into a pile.
She picks through the bones, choosing one at a time to assemble a spiral design on the floor. When all the bones are so arranged, Magdali takes out a small piece of parchment with a name written on it, which she places at the starting, narrow end of the bone spiral. She then writes Professor Lorrimor's name on a second piece of parchment, which she places at the other end of the spiral.
She stands and picks up a black scarf from the bed. Holding one end in her hand, Magdali starts walking with slow and stately steps around the design on the floor as she begins chanting in a solemn voice. The loose end of the scarf drags along on the floor behind her.
After three hymns have been chanted, and the bone spiral has been circled a couple dozen times, Magdali sits down again, focusing her eyes on the spiral. She meditates on the certainty of the passing of all life to complete the hour.
When the bones, parchements, and scarf have been put away, Magdali rejoins Borak.
"Ready to get going now?"
as you head towards your locations of research you hear people milling and talking about the latest strange event. Apparently the Harrowstone Memorial had a visitor last night, who used blood to write a “V” at the statue’s base. Blood is also splattered around the rest of the statue and the surrounding area.
A group of five little Varisian girls dressed in shawls
and dresses are playing a skipping rope game at the side
of the road. Each of the girls takes turns jumping in the
rope while singing two lines of a rather disturbing song,
then skips out of the rope to let the next girl take up the
next two lines. The way in which the girls switch from
skipping to passing the ends of the rope to each other to
keep the whole thing going is strikingly well timed and
well choreographed—and the verse itself, which the girls
sing in Varisian, is rather disturbing. The five repeating
verses are as follows:
"Put her body on the bed.
Take a knife and lop her head.
Watch the blood come out the pipe.
Feeds the stirge, so nice and ripe.
Drops of red so sparkly bright.
Splatters spell her name just right.
With a hammer killed his wife.
Now he wants to claim your life.
Tricksy father tells a lie.
Listen close or you will die."
"Dr. Ramada, have you seen those insects before? If you can find a way to deal with them somehow, I'd be grateful. They look so horrifying." Visayn reacts in disgust and moves away from insects
Alerted by Visayn, Nikolay looks up at the mosquito-like creatures, trying to remember if he has heard of creatures such as these before.
He pulls a pair of vials from the pouch at his side, pours one into the other, and throws the resulting admixture into the gazebo's eaves. "I have a number of volatile exothermic compounds for emergencies - I would say this qualifies. Whatever these insects are, they should burn easily enough."
Visayn quickly moves away, leaving the good doctor to fend for himself.
Round 1
The dozen or so creatures charge forward and swarm the poor doctor. Though he concotes and throws one of his bombs at the cluster of insects, one of them drops.
Nine of the insects attach with their barbed feet on the good doctor. They begin to gorge on his blood and inflate.
Ramada 25
Visayn
Stirges
Round 2
When Nikolay is overwhelmed by mosquitos, Visayn turns around running back to alchemist touching gently his shoulder. "You should be safe as long as you don't attack them." he whispers
Knowing that his mentor liked to be alone and tended to wander through the woods, Børak comments to Magdali as they head towards town. "When we get back, If Drake isn't here, I may go look for him."
Hearing the little children's rap rhyme Børak leans closer to Magdali, "That's a catchy, if not morbid, little tune, have you ever heard it before? Should we ask them where they learned it?"
As he listened to it several times, he remembered there were five lines, and five prisoners of note. Shaking his head, he was sure it was a coincident, but he did make a mental note to find out 'Why' the five prisoners had been sent to the prison.
Round 2
Ramada tosses a second bomb on the ground next to him and all but two of the blood sucking monsters die. Many of them explode covering Ramada with blood. Their barbed feet still stuck in the doctor's flesh.
Visayn casts a spell of protection on the doctor, though the two remaining threats continue to suck,
Round 3
---
As Borak listens to the children he thinks he remembers something of this from his own childhood. You believe it is about the prisoners of Harrowstone.
Magdali would have passed on by the girls but she's willing to indulge Borak's curiosity. Before she angles off to walk toward the girls she says in a quiet voice "Don't underestimate the casual grimness of young girls".
When she gets close to them, Magdali speaks to the girls in a bright, pleasant voice.
"The way you move those ropes is really amazing and beautiful, like an art. Did you create the song you're singing as well?"
Round 2
Nikolay looks down in horror at the mosquito-like creatures rapidly bloating with his bodily fluids. "Stirges! Get them off! Get them off!" He frantically fumbles for another one of his explosive concoctions, throwing it at his feet in an effort to rid himself of the exsanguinating insects. He shudders as the flame washes over his body and most of the stirges explode, covering him in his own black blood, but his burns don't seem nearly as bad as they should be.
Round 3
As Visayn approaches, Nikolay takes a moment to collect his thoughts, a task which proves slightly more difficult than he had anticipated. There are only two left, and while I don't burn easily, I doubt the same could be said for Visayn. Perhaps another explosive would be unwise. Reaching down to his side, he draws a mace-like instrument covered in holes and makes a woozy attempt to squash one of the two remaining insects.
'I wonder if she's speaking from personal experience.' Trying not to smile as Magdali tells him not to underestimate the casual grimness of the girls, Børak nods, "I've remember something similar from my childhood, I'm sure it's about the prisoners of Harrowstone."
As they neared the children, Børak keeps his head down, and his hood pulled tightly around his face, holding his bardiche casually resting on his shoulder. When they stop and Magdali begins speaking with the children, he conveniently stops a little behind her, casually turning the left side of his face away from the children.
Only two of these horrible blood suckers remain. But there is no time to waste or it might be his end. Visayn slices the other mosquito with his weapon.
As Magdali interrupts the children, they immediately stop playing and stand quietly and nervously but with her reassuring words and curiosity the kids begin to relax.
As you get the children to talk, they unfortunately have little to say about the rhyme they were singing—it’s just something the children in Ravengro have sung “forever.”
---
Nikolay squashes one of the insects. Visayn sticks the last blood sucker from Ramada's back. Many townsfolk begin to gather a few do step forward and ask, "Can we help take your friend to the temple?!"
As the last stirge dies, Nikolay breaths a sigh of relief. "My thanks, Visayn. Those mosquito-like creatures were stirges, bloodthirsty parasites that latch onto their victims' flesh and drain their lives away. Potent disease vectors in wetlands - I recall an antiquarian who suffered a stirge attack in Iobaria and contracted the Dvezda Plague!" The physiologist shudders. "Have you ever seen a man bleed to death via his tear ducts? It's not a pleasant experience!"
The battle seems to have taken a toll on him: the young alchemist is cadaverous and wan at the best of times, but now he seems extraordinarily weak, the inexorable pull of death almost overwhelming his tenuous grasp on life. His speech is slurred as he speaks to Visayn, and he appears to be mildly delirious, rambling and going off on seemingly nonsensical tangents. "I'm sure I'll be fine - it takes more than a few overgrown mosquitoes to kill a tiefling! I lost more blood than this when I tried to subcutaneously graft chameleon scales to my skin as part of an ill-advised experiment that..." He trails off as he looks down in alarm at his trembling hands.
Rallying, he makes a valiant but ineffective effort to focus on the sylph directly in front of him, concern on his face. "Are you okay, Visayn? Your soul's all... bendy. Incidentally, my friend, do you happen to have two identical brothers? If not, I would like to revise my earlier statement..." Nikolay turns to look at the approaching villagers, swaying unsteadily on his feet as he attempts to avoid losing consciousness. "I thank you for your willingness to help me, and I would appreciate your aid in reaching the temple."
When townsfolk come near, Visayn sheathes his rapier and whispers to tiefling "Doc, now is not great moment to talk about your experiments. You need rest so you can recover. And no, I don't have brothers, only a sister."
Magdali hadn't really expected it be that the children had created their rhyme they were reciting. Her asking the question as she did was to give them credit, which usually makes people feel good, and leave it to them to take the credit or not. The real question is the follow up that comes after she has them talking and the opening creted.
"It's a scary rhyme isn't it? It gives me a chill. Do you know if it's about any real people, or is it all just made up?"
Trying not to draw attention to himself, Børak wasn't surprised that Magdali hadn't answered him. She understood it was more important for her keep the children's attention focused on her rather than to get them looking at his scar. Once they left the children's play area, he'd tell her what he knew about the poem and it's relationship to Harrowstone.
Magdali hadn't really expected it be that the children had created their rhyme they were reciting. Her asking the question as she did was to give them credit, which usually makes people feel good, and leave it to them to take the credit or not. The real question is the follow up that comes after she has them talking and the opening creted.
"It's a scary rhyme isn't it? It gives me a chill. Do you know if it's about any real people, or is it all just made up?"
The children nod their heads to the first question. One of them answers the second, "We picked it up from somewhere. I think some of our older brothers and sisters sang it."
As the villagers approach, Nikolay remembers the posters he had earlier created and placed in his magical bag. He attempts to surreptitiously pass them to Lorrimor's former employee, hiding his actions as simply dusting off Visayn's coat in case some of the eyes on the two adventurers are hostile. "My friend, you seem to have some of my blood on your shoulder. Let me get it off for you..."
He also whispers a quick message to the young sylph as he makes the pass. "I will meet you as soon as I am able. The Way's shadow assassins may suspect us - watch to ensure you are not followed."
His task completed, he accompanies the villagers to the cathedral, though he does take Visayn's advice and tries to avoid mentioning things the townspeople might find disconcerting, specifically his fiendish nature and some of his more... esoteric experiments.
Listening as the children answered Magdali, Børak nodded unconsciously. That was how he'd heard the simple song the first time. He and his mother had been visiting the local village. They'd only go to town about once a month, normally when the moon was waning. She'd gone inside the general store to get provision: Salt and flour and such, trading the rare plants and herbs she collected for magical potions. He'd stayed outside and watch the kids. They weren't jumping rope, but playing a game like hopscotch, rhyming as they skipped.
That had been before, Shaking his head at the memory he pused it aside, focusing on the here and now. Pulling his hood lower he looked towards Magdali, making sure he didn't expose too much of his face towards the children. Asking softly, "Magdali, shall we proceed to the temple?"
Magdali gets the picture from the children, someone older would need to be asked.
"Well, it was nice to meet you. Enjoy your game."
She continues on toward the church and addresses Borak's comment when they are out of earshot.
"And it looks like any questions about Harrowstone would need to be asked to someone a couple of generations older at least."
"All right, I will follow you farther away and watch for stalkers." Visayn takes the bag from Ramada and follows villagers to the cathedral lagging behind them.