Blackburn's Crossing Chapter 4: Snake Eater

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Arisss grabs Jonathan by the arm, and looks him in the eye. “We cannot just give in to Legba’s whims. You still have time left on the clock, and to give up now would be to disgrace those who love you. Think of your father, Annabelle, Perian, James, even Heather. All of these people care for you deeply... as do I.”

Arissa pauses, releasing Jonathan’s arm as she realized she had grabbed it harder than intended. “Sorry... but you have not yet run out of options, Jonathan, so there is no reason for you to act as if you had. Now, I am not certain if Godefroy could be of aid to us or not, but there is little harm in asking his terms. He may be powerful, but he is no devil... I believe him to be a man.” Arissa frowns briefly before turning to Jonathan. “Unfortunately, I am afraid I am unsure how to call for him. He sent you a letter before, ja? Did he not give you a means to respond?”
 
Einhorn Haus:

"I guess it would be a pity not to think of all your feelings huh?" he said giving a thin lipped smile. "I believe the letter mentioned to knock five times and he would come. You really think that will work?" asked Jonathan before looking at the door to his room. Jonathan shrugged before bracing himself and standing. "Only one way to find out right?"
 
Arissa felt relieved that Jonathan seemingly had not resigned himself to his fate quite yet. She stood as Jonathan did and offered him a shoulder to help him walk before looking at him warningly. “Godefroy is not Legba. He will not be so forgiving of humor or jokes made at his expense. Please, if this is to work, I ask that you show the man some respect... remember, he may be able to give us answers. From what I know, Godefroy’s influence is vast and powerful. It is likely he already knows we wish to speak. If anyone could tell of what happened to your mother, it is likely him.”
 
Léone looks over to James with a bit of uncertainty. "He's got... some hold over this town. That shrine in your parents' vault could attest to that well enough," she sighs, mulling it over herself. "There's clearly a history behind Legba's relationship with the town and surrounding area, and it's not something we should consider lightly."

Glancing back up she moves closer to him and pats him on the shoulder, trying to comfort him. "It's not your fault, it feels like there's all sorts of strange things coming out after being buried for so long. I think we just need some more communication between parties, so we can help each other through all of this." She looks to Bernard and nods, hoping he'd agree.
 
Bernard nodded back to Leone, "As I have said, secrets will ruin this town and only by working together can we hope to succeed. When the infection is in your chest, you cannot simply cut off your head." Bernard thought the analogy was poor, because Legba truly had a grip on the heart of the town, but decided to keep it going if it would help James understand. "I will share what I know when I can. At the moment my focus is on finding justice for Maria to ease Jonathan's burden. There's also the matter of Isaiah's book, which I burned, but it continues to give off potent necromatic energy. Van Richten recommended destroying it, I will likely need to try harder. There's the snake which Van Richten was going to meet with Peri about this morning - the armor will be put to good use by the way, thank you, James. My mother is trapped in her story book and Lina was found nailed to a tree in the swamp by Isaiah. Flora is missing. And I have a Vistani deck of Tarokka cards which I need to return. Oh, and I almost forgot I owe you my assistance in discovering how the machine works." He steps over to the armor putting a hand on it before looking back over his shoulder to Leone, "Would you mind identifying some things? The sword and the book ash seem most pressing."

Bernard took a seat in one of the chairs, rubbing the bridge of his noes. "Jonathan is a good man, he doesn't deserve to die like this. Perhaps if we know what this book is, we can trade Him for Jonathan's life, or buy him more time."
 
Einhorn Haus:

Jonathan knocks five times on the wood and then goes to sit on the bed next to Arissa feeling all at once anxious and silly. When the slight tapping of a cane is heard he grabs Arissa's hand for a moment before the door opens as if afraid of what might be on the other side of that door. An older man with a young girl in a pretty dress enter the room. He stares from Arissa to Jonathan who lets go of Arissa's hand now that he sees it's just a man and a girl. She looked maybe fourteen maybe fifteen?

"Hello... Mr. Godefroy," says Jonathan unsure of what to say. The man gazed him up and down before taking his hat off dusting a seat and sitting down his hands resting on the silver griffon handle of his cane.

"Jonathan, what a disappointment you've been," he says shaking his head slowly. "A bright future thrown away for nothing." He tsk's a few times before his head comes to a stop. "And after all this time you finally decide to speak to me when you think things have begun to look bleak. Well I'm here, and I'm listening. Do not waste my time."

"I already know I'm going to die soon, and I know it's my fault for the situation i'm in. There's no changing that or going back," says Jonathan before Godefroy cuts in. "Its what happens when you consort with stick witches, and hedge spirits."

Jonathan swallows a dry throat but continues on. "I just want to find my mother's killer before I die," he says deciding to just come straight out with it. Godefroy looks at him with a long straight face and then laughs out loud.
 
Arissa slips her hand away from Jonathan just as quickly as he did his own, and looks at the girl in confusion. Godefroy has the souls of the children of Blackburn’s Crossing... could this be Fiona, Jeremiah’s daughter? Why would he have brought her here...

Arissa waits as Godefroy and Jonathan spoke, but saw that Jonathan was getting absolutely nowhere. She stands and curtsies to Godefroy respectfully. “Please, Master Godefroy, pardon the interruption. It is my fault, not Jonathan’s that you were disturbed. We were foolish for consorting with Legba... I see that after having spoken with you before. I apologize for our mistakes... we did not know any better at the time. I am an outsider of these lands, and the people of this town hold many secrets even from their own.”

Arissa straightens up to look at Godefroy. “I had thought from our lunch several days back that you held interest in preserving the noble bloodlines of Blackburn’s Crossing, ja? Foolish as he may be, Jonathan Einhorn is the last of his name after the death of his mother. Still, he is not yet dead, is he? I know your powers to be greater than those of this ‘hedge spirit’. Would it not be a mutual interest of ours to preserve his life?” Arissa glances over to Jonathan, already beginning to regret her decision, but knowing it was far too late to turn back now.
 
Einhorn Haus:

"Oh yes, but I'm afraid and you'll pardon me for being so forward here but unless you intend to get someone to jump his bones soon, I think that ship has already sailed on that," says Godefroy his face after his laugh returning to his more neutral and almost permanent scowl. Jonathan looked between Godefroy and then the younger girl. Why did she look so god damn familiar? Was she someone he had forgotten? Why would he even get a tingling feeling that she was if Legba had taken back the memories again.

"Is that what you're asking? Me to get in someone's pants before I die so I can find out the killer of my mother?" asked Jonathan thoroughly confused. Godefroy shakes his head. "I'm afraid you didn't get why I found your request so amusing."

"Yeah, want to run that one by me, they say I'm a funny guy but I like it when I'm in on the joke," says Jonathan. Godefroy points over that the girl.

"Take a closer look Jonathan," says Godefroy. With his cane he pushes the girl forward towards Jonathan. The younger girl complied without complain, giving Jonathan a bit of a faint smile. She had been looking at him with interest since she had entered the room. "Really look at her face. She look familiar? She should."

"I can't grant you're request because your mother has been dead for over two decades," said Godefroy looking over to Arissa. "Now just MAYBE there may be a way to preserve Jonathan here, but I suspect you wouldn't like the answer very much."
 
Expecting Van Richten to respond to his question, he is surprised when it is in fact Kallisto that knows how to kill the beast. Seeing her indicating her axe, Yelcan looked over the weapon before listening to the rest of what Kallisto had to say. It was a powerful weapon, and he was very interested in where she might have been able to obtain this weapon here in the Crossing, perhaps she had it made? Either way, he figured he could count on Kallisto's judgement in ending the beast for good, she seemed to know what she was talking about.

As for the talk of its potential purpose, the reason it might have been some sort of hybrid, as well as the talk about the original people who lived in the swamp...all of these things ran around Yelcan's brain as he took note of them so that he could research them in the library later in the day.

Yelcan thanked Van Richten for his help, and with these unanswered questions in mind he stood up from the table himself. "Well that created as many questions as it answered. I think we have a lot of preparation to do before we tackle this beast, so I will go and do my part and head over to the manor to look up some information on these Naga's, as well as the people who lived here. Maybe I'll even find a map of the swamp." Seeing Kallisto packing up her things to go run errands of her own, Yelcan gathered his gear and went over to ask Peri if she would like to join him. Upon hearing that she needed to take care of Lina, he replied "Alright, you know where to find me, let me know if you need anything at all. I'll see you later Peri." After an uncertain glance towards Kallisto, Yelcan decided he didn't care and went in to give Peri a quick kiss goodbye, then set out for the manor.

Upon arriving at the manor, Yelcan heads immediately to the main library, finding a comfortable chair to set his stuff down on, claiming the spot as his own. He set off looking around the library and manages to find a few books that could possibly relate to Nagas. After some time looking through these books, he found a lot of the same stuff that Van Richten had mentioned, but he noted some accounts from people who had studied or fought Naga's stating that they were very resistant against charms, which he made sure to make note of. In another book that talks of the Great Serpent that is in the swamps outside of the Crossing, some accounts say that the Serpent has respawned as soon as 24 hours, while others say it can take almost a week. Yelcan replaces the irrelevant books while he goes to find more information on the people that lived in the swamp before Blackburns Crossing was created.
 
Arissa looks at Godefroy with an expression of shock and confusion. Out of all the things she had expected to come out of his mouth, this was entirely unexpected. “Dead? What do you mean dead? Who was Maria if not Jonathan’s mother?”

After another moment of thought, Arissa looked at Godefroy apprehensively. “Well, Master Godefroy, I would ask that you share your thoughts. I believe you may be surprised the lengths that I would be willing to go to in order to save my friend.”
 
Einhorn Haus:

"Maybe it will be better if she explains herself," says Godefroy. "Speak girl."

She nods obediently. "My name is Maria Lily Einhorn, and you Jonathan are the son I would have had if I had not died. It is very nice to meet you finally," she says smiling at Jonathan who's face was a combination of confusion, sadness, and horror. "Your... my mother?"

She nods sweetly. "uh-huh, that is right. You've grown up to be quiet handsome," she says with a giggle.

"Enough prattle, tell them to the best of your knowledge how and when you died," says Godefroy. The young girl looks briefly back at Godefroy for a moment seemingly worried but then turns back to Jonathan. "As far as I know I died just before my sixteenth birthday, I remember eating an early birthday cake from James' parents, and then I was at Mr. Godefroy's Estate. I did not initially believe I was dead but as time pressed on, and Godefroy's insistence that I was indeed dead I came to accept it. He showed me that someone else lived on as me, and that no body missed me though the answer to this mystery has eluded us."

"Then whoever gave birth to me... and raised me...?" asked Jonathan trying to come to terms with the revelation. The girl frowned reaching out a hand to touch Jonathan's face. He was surprised that it felt warm to the touch. To make sure he wasn't hallucinated he reached up feeling her hand against his face.

"I'm sorry, I would have loved to have given birth to you and raised you. I think I might have even possibly fallen for Derek as well though I'm not entirely sure..." she says sorrowfully. Godefroy's attention came back to what Arissa had claimed to be willing to go through the lengths for.

"Then kill yourself," he said bluntly without fanfare.
 
Léone nods solemnly at Bernard. "That's... a lot to take in. Thanks for sharing." She frowns slightly at how much there actually was - his mother, even? - but pushes through. "I'll do my best to help how I can. We'll start with the ash I think, necromancy is always a concern," she starts, taking the items from Bernard and setting them down in front of her. Reaching into her bag she fishes out her pearl and slides over the urn, opening it slowly and reaching a hand inside. "I do believe I have to touch it for the duration of the ritual, so I'm not sure how that works with ashes but I'll try--" Her hand touches a loose book-like form inside the urn, and she raises an eyebrow. "What in the...?"

Proceeding with caution, she pours her personal arcane energy into the spell to speed up the identification ritual. After a minute or so her mind begins to flood with foreign knowledge about the book, raw necrotic energy spewing forth from the urn as she worked. As soon as that happens she senses a dark presence within the ashes, almost sentient... which turns its mental gaze to her. The focus feels like knives stabbing into her brain, backed by an ancient entity with an endless hunger and a malice that she had never experienced in all her years of life, not even during the darkest of her family's crimes. With each passing moment it cut deeper into her psyche, almost as if it was stopping her from fully identifying it.

Once she realized what was going on she wills herself back to reality, bolstered the comforting presence of Bernard and pouring her own energy against the influence. Finally coming back to her senses she shudders out of the spell, pushing the urn back and dropping the pearl. She stares at the foreign object, eyes wide as she catches her breath. "... What the fuck...?" She clutches her head in her hands, slowly turning to face James and Bernard. "It... it has forbidden necromancy knowledge, it regenerates over time and it's... sentient, I think." She winces in pain, trying to clear her head. "I feel like there was more to it but it was... trying to stop me. Whoever or whatever that thing is... it's pure evil."
 
Blackburn Manor:

James takes all the news in shaking his head. He was trying to help the town overall but there was so much happening in town that he didn't know about, that maybe he could have helped if he hadn't been focused on improving the town's chances of new people, new jobs, and finalizing his fortune. When Leone recoiled from the book he was at her side quickly. "Are you OK Leone?" he asks concerned reaching out and squeezing her hand for reassurance.
 
Arissa watched the girl who called herself Maria Einhorn in confusion, but then things began to click as she realized what the “early birthday cake” from the Blackburns likely meant. So the Blackburns were involved in the murders as well, ja? Hardly surprising. Whatever foul magics they worked, I would think that Jeremiah had his hands in this as well.

Arissa turns to look as Godefroy addressed her in a mixture of confusion and incredulousness. “Pardon you? Godefroy, you yourself have said that this course of action only ‘may’ work. I had thought that you had more to offer than an idea that results in the death of both of us. Unless you would care to explain further, that is.”
 
Bernard stepped close to Leone as she began the identification. As she reeled in pain, Bernard grabbed the lid of the urn locking it back into place then with a glowing hand touching her head, mending her mind. "Very Evil. Got it." He nodded. "Are you alright?"
 
Einhorn Haus:

Godefroy stood up calmly from his seated position as if he hadn't heard Arissa. As he put his hat back on he spoke as if to the air, "You two are bonded so intimately that only death will split you apart. Jonathan's soul is forming a bridge between that blade of yours and you, if he could still see he would have seen himself slowly leaking out and growing faint. I suspect his death will make it permanent, while your death would free him from this bond, now if you are both done wasting my time, I have more important things to be getting off to. Come Maria, its time to go."

Young Maria looked at Jonathan's eyes smiled a bit more, and then pulled her hand away. Jonathan's tears where all that remained on his cheeks as he began to watch her go. His face was a twist of emotions instead of the smiles he normally wore. "I.... can't do that," says Jonathan under his breathe more to himself than anyone else in the room.
 
Léone settles her breathing, grasping James's hand for comfort. "I'm... I'm fine. Really." She feels a reassuring light flow through her brain, and the slight stabbing sensation fades away as she looks up to Bernard. "... Thanks for that. I appreciate it." She sits up and forces a small smile, then looks to the urn. "It's already forming back into a solid book form, I grabbed it in my hands." Her smile fades. "Scattering the ashes would just delay the reforming, I think... could we store it away somewhere? It'd have to be secure, we don't know what else it can do..." She shakes her head, at a loss. "There's a powerful force at work there, and I don't know how we'd even begin to deal with it."
 
Arissa stands up, and looks at Godefroy with greater intensity than before. “No, I am not finished discussing our mutual interests. If I were to do this, what would happen to my spirit? As fine as I am certain your manor may be, Master Godefroy, I would rather defer my stay to a later date. I have heard tales in my lands of men who were capable of returning souls back to their bodies... Does the breaking of this bond neccessitate my death to remain permanent?”

Arissa pauses, glancing over to Jonathan, and then to the ring on her hand before looking back to Godefroy. “As much as I care for Jonathan, there are others relying on me as well. Killing myself is not a decision I can make lightly. By your best estimate, how long does Jonathan have remaining?”
 
Bernard collected the urn, putting it back in his pack. "I'll hang on to it for now. I was charged with it's destruction and it is my burden until we have a better idea of how to destroy it." He looked at the other items laid out. "Do you need a break or will you be able to continue?"
 
Einhorn Haus:

Jonathan continued to remain distant as if thinking something over or left in a state of shock his focus squarely on where Maria had been standing a moment before. Godefroy opens the door even as Arissa continues to speak. "You're soul would just be like every one else's soul. You are not special, I'll either decide to keep you, or in a few generations you'd be reborn. I've heard of holy men that can rip you back from the beyond before you are reborn but I can't say I've ever seen it done."

He stops in the door way half out of it and looks back at Jonathan seemingly with a bit of contempt. "That entirely relies on both of you, his strength of will to go on, and the power you amass. Maybe he'll live for another week, maybe a month? What do I know of it? Do take care Jonathan, if you do muster up the courage however, I will make sure your progeny receives the best of care," says Godefroy tipping his head to both and disappearing into the hallway where the tap is heard twice of the cane and then is gone.
 
After some more reading and multitudes of books, Yelcan finally slumps back in his chair, giving up on the research for now. He hadn't found out much that was new about these people, and he didn't think he would if he kept at it. Yelcan found a bunch of historical texts that described these people as indigenous cannibals, who were known to attack travelers at random, but that was not enough, he needed to find the connection between them and the Great Serpent. What he needed was a better source of information. He remembered James' private study that he had taken him to all those days ago when he was first hired and he stood up and stretched his legs that had cramped for the extended period of sitting. Yelcan reaches out with his mind to see what Hyde was up to, but he was out of telepathic range, and Yelcan rubbed his face wearily. He put all of the books back where they belonged, then set out to find James. He wandered the many halls, not seeing anyone for a while, before he spotted a familiar head of white hair. Jogging towards her, Yelcan called out "Hey, Violette!" Once she stopped and turned, he waited until he got close before asking "Hey, how you doing? Quick question for ya, have you seen Mr. Blackburn around anywhere?"
 
Blackburn Manor:

Violette turns to meet Yelcan. "Oh hiya Yelcan. I'm doing well enough. Had a message last night from James that maybe he might hire me on for protection so that's something," she says making small talk before answering his question. "Ah, James? I think I just saw him go by recently with Leone, and Bernard. We could probably sniff them out easily enough. Come on."

Through a little bit of searching eventually Violette manages to lead you to the door everyone is behind. She knocks on the door. "Mr. Blackburn? Yelcan is here to see you, do you have a moment for him?"

Violette leans in lowering her voice. "Maybe they want to practice their vows with Bernard before the real thing you know..." says Violette with a bit of girlish excitement.
 
Léone shakes her head, rubbing her eyes with her free hand while continuing to hold James with the other. "No... I'm fine. The healing helped, thanks again for that." Reaching around for her pearl, she takes a deep breath and glances around at the rest of the table. "The sword, you said? It might even be better to dive straight into it, get my mind off of it," she chuckles, starting up the ritual again.

This time she takes it slow, gradually allowing the ritual to pass over the Falkovnian sword. After a few more minutes the sensation of foreign knowledge comes back to her - this time, in the more familiar language of arcane enchantments and runes. She raises an eyebrow glancing at Bernard momentarily before turning back to the weapon and giving it a solid once-over. "This... is the Adaptive Weapon."

She holds it firmly by the hilt and leans in to whisper, imagining a common iron dagger in her mind's eye. "Subcinctus...?" She watches in awe as the large Falkovnian sword suddenly morphs into a common dagger in her hand, lightweight and seemingly completely mundane. Thinking again, she whispered the activation word again and imagined it... if it wasn't a weapon. Suddenly it shrinks a bit more, turning into little more than a small metallic orb in the palm of her hand. "Okay... so that's one missing piece accounted for," she continues. "But why did it look like that...?"

Just as she's about to question it, she hears the knock on the door with Violette's voice. Thinking quickly she takes the metal ball and shoves it into her bag, before glancing at the two of them. "I guess you ought to let her in...?" While she waits, she glances in Bernard's direction and quickly makes a small gesture, whispering a message to him. "So you mentioned Violette? Are you confronting her now?"
 
Arissa glares at the door after Godefroy leaves and spits before muttering under her breath. “Ik bid dat je voor die tijd aan een hartaanval sterft, oude klootzak.” She turns to look to Jonathan, who seemed entirely unresponsive. She quickly moves to him and puts a hand on his shoulder. “Jonathan, I am so sorry... I cannot imagine how you are feeling right now. I had no idea what that man was capable of...” She trailed off, unsure how to comfort a man who had just learned that he had been living with a person involved with his own mother’s murder in a sense.
 
Einhorn Haus:

Jonathan didn't seem to register the touch. Instead he kept looking at the floor as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. If he heard what Arissa said he did not make any outward signs of it. In this state his mind wandered the the possibilities, of what the revelation meant. How his life might have been different, and did he really care if someone had already murdered his mother? Or was did he still consider her to be his mother and he had two murdered mothers? Unsure of what to feel he sat there, hollow.

He looked over seeing similar things going on in Arissa's head by the look on her face. He forced his smile as he always did. "Guess that settles it huh? Who knew my greatest creation would be a bridge huh? I should didn't," said Jonathan a bit of humor climbing back into his voice.
 
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