Curse of Strahd

[MechanicalSnake]

Setesh does his best not to be obviously disgruntled about this, tasting the wine very slowly to buy himself some time. So this is what it is then. Another person asking for his help. Is this a new habit?! Once you agree to help one person, everyone will come running? What a vicious cycle.

"Fair enough. I would assume your sister is not a spooky looking child, who walks around in a company of a spooky looking boy?" he asks a bit suspiciously, though he can't see any resemblance there. For now, he decides not to elaborate on whether he'd arrived with other people or not, because the surprise might come in handy later.

 

[Wondertainment]

Karl swallows hard as the children vanish. Pretty much what he thought would happen, but it was still unsettling. They looked so real...

He looks at Arala. "So this is definitely a ghost-trap or something. You wanna check it out?"

 

[WlfSamurai]

At the Tavern:
Setesh, the man eyes you with a queer look. "No…Why do you ask? No, my sister, Ireena, needs help. She's being threatened and I need to get her out of town to keep her safe. I don't think I can do it alone." He sips his wine. "Oh gosh, I'm Ismark, by the way. Sorry, I should have started with that."

At the Children's House:
With the children gone, it's quiet. The silence feels hollow and empty. The house looms before you and the mists roil and press in silently.

What are you all doing?

MechanicalSnake , Vanira , Gaius Danius Griinia , Wondertainment , dae mec , ArcticFox

 

[dae mec]

"Definitely a trap," Arala agrees. She frowns at the door. "Would it be wise to approach? Whatever is inside is likely malicious... but that may be reason enough to take care of the problem." She hesitates. "I must warn you, I only have enough energy for one more powerful spell. After that, I'd need to rely on my cantrips. We could come in the morning, but if you want to continue anyway, then I shall accompany you. Dynis, Bram, what do you say?"

She rubs the handle of her axe, musing the situation over. "If we do proceed, we should let Setesh know," she says. Arala gives Karl a rueful smile, sensing his impending objection. "We might need his help." She sends a command through her bond with Angel Bones, telling him to do just that.

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Alright, this is definitely too many coincidences at once. Now Setesh would really like to see this Ireena, since everyone was so concerned about her well-being specifically. If this guy is even being honest. For once, Setesh decides that honesty might serve him best - it could shock Ismark into a honest reaction.

"Nice to meet you, Ismark. My name is Setesh. And let me say, I have never heard about your sister before yesterday, but curiously, this is the third time I hear - or read that she needs to be saved." He looks around, making sure the suspiciously silent barkeep and the women nearby aren't listening, and lowers his voice to merely a whisper. "So yes, I will help. But I have news for you, the gate back in the forest isn't letting anyone out, so if you know what to do about that, I'm all ears."

 

[Gaius Danius Griinia]

Bram was liking this town less and less as time went on. There was barely any people around, the atmosphere was creepy. Better yet, this town was almost BATHED in the fog. Bram didn't need to be a Blood Hunter to know that everything about this town was wrong. So he kept his distance from everyone and began preparing a few handy supplies. Salt to hurt monster, oil to grease things up and finally he checked to see if he had enough tinder to set things on fire. Bram was sure he probably had to burn one or two of these buildings down to draw out whatever creatures dwelled within. To Arala's question, Bram walked over to the building and began throwing flammable oil at it. Then he lit a small piece of tinder and threw it at the oil. Nope, he wasn't an idiot to run in there blindly. Better to burn it down.

 

[Wondertainment]

Karl starts to sneer, then catches Arala's expression. He readjusts his face to look more neutral.

"Smart," Karl nods, "We might need to-"

Karl barely just backs up as Bram throws his match. Karl glares at him furiously.

"What the FUCK is wrong with you? Come on, we gotta put this out. You can't just go around setting things on fire!"

Karl starts patting at the flames with his cloak, hopefully not in vain.

 

[WlfSamurai]

At the Children's House:
Arala, Angel Bones thrusts into the air and plunges into the mists. You feel your familiar panic as it doesn’t seem to make progress. Like the mists tighten their grip on the creature. Then, there is a sort of release. The mists relinquish. Angel Bones makes for the tavern.

That’s when you spread your oil, Bram. Then, you light some tinder and toss it. The oil catches immediately and a line of low flame licks the front of the house.

But, Karl, you intervene. You snuff the flames out with your cloak. The bottom of the house in the front is blackened, but not damaged.

What do you all do now?


At the Tavern:
Setesh, Angel Bones flits into the common room of the tavern and over to you. It lands on the table and emulates a word: “Death”.

What do you do?

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Usually, Setesh feels satisfiction when finding out he's been right, but upon seeing the bird, he rather wants to sigh. He leans over to pat the bird, shaking his head. "Of course there is death." Unwilling to let good alcohol go to waste, he downs the rest of his wine in one go and gets up. "Well, I need to deal with those kids at first, it seems," he smirks at Ireena's supposed brother. Perhaps he can shed some light on the issue?

"If you still want me to help you, come along and we'll do that right after. You're local after all, so..." He shrugs, leaving the sentence open and starts heading for the door, throwing one last glance at the woman who had been looking at him before.

 

[ArcticFox]

"It does feel like a trap." Dynis reluctantly admits. The children who led them here did disappear. But everything happens for a reason. She firmly believed that it was the Morninglord who set her on this path today. There was something in that house that she needed to deal with.

"I'm gonna break those doors open." She said firmly, setting her shoulder to the already blackened surface.

 

[WlfSamurai]

At the Tavern:
Setesh, you move to the door and Ismark gets up from the table. He leaves gold for drinks and strides up behind you.

“I will come with you,” he says. “Certainly more entertaining than this. Who are these kids?”

Angel Bones takes off, headed back to Arala.

Outside, the mist is thicker than it has ever been. But, you can see the road back to the street corner well enough to start moving back the way you came.


At the Children’s House:
Arala, Angel Bones returns and you know Setesh is coming.

Dynis, you open the wrought-iron gate and step through the archway of a stone portico (area 1A). The gate’s rusty hinges shriek when the gate is opened. Oil lamps hang from the portico ceiling by chains, flanking a set of oaken doors. You go to throw your shoulder into the oaken doors to break them down, but they open and you throw yourself to the floor inside instead. You’re now in a grand foyer (1B).

Hanging on the south wall of the foyer is a shield emblazoned with a coat-of-arms (a stylized golden windmill on a red field), flanked by framed portraits of stony-faced aristocrats—a man and a woman. Mahogany-framed double doors leading from the foyer to the rest of the house are set with panes of stained glass on the opposite side of the foyer.

Everyone who is there can now see into the foyer.

 

[MechanicalSnake]

"Oh, I don't know," Setesh looks around, somewhat distracted by the mist creeping in again. "A girl, about this tall," he compares her size to his own with a simple gesture, "and a younger boy. Pale, sickly looking. Fancy clothes. Does that ring a bell?"

This guy was local, after all. Sure, he couldn't expect him to know all the kids in town, but if there was something unnatural about them, they might have caused mischief before.

Through the damn mist, Setesh can see the corner where he'd left his companions, but as they approach, it seems obvious they are gone now. He follows in the direction where Angel Bones seemed to be headed to, cursing under his breath as he can barely see the tip of his nose. "Is this considered normal weather here?!"

 

[ArcticFox]

Doors giving in as she pushed on them gave her a startle and with the cluck of her heavy armour, Dynis found herself once again on the ground, unceremoniously. She had to stop doing this.

"Oof." Trying to breathe in, she pushes herself up from the ground. Then she looks around, and approaches the portraits to take a closer look.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Setesh, Ismark, nods. “Gray is our normal,” he says. “The mists move in and out. Sometimes more and sometimes less. They’re bad today. And no, I don’t know those kids. Never seen ‘em.”

You press thought the mist, heading the direction of Angel Bones. The mist thickens until you can’t see your own hand in front of your face.

And then, all at once, you’re through and you see the rest of your party. And the house.

Dynis is inside the foyer of the house. The rest are just outside.

The mists here have thickened around the house to the point that you can no longer see the rest of the town, the street, or the buildings on either side of this house.

Everyone at the house, you see Setesh emerge from the mists. Next to him is a man with blond hair and a simple face.

MechanicalSnake , Vanira , Gaius Danius Griinia , Wondertainment , dae mec , ArcticFox

 

[Wondertainment]

"Oh, yay," Karl says, his voice dripping with bitter sarcasm, "The lizard's here. Good of you to show up. This house here is probably haunted. If that doesn't give you the profit you want, feel free to take off."

He was clearly hesitating going inside, but with Karl, spite always beats fear. He casually steps into the foyer. He carefully rests his fingers against the far double doors (the ones we haven't opened yet) and places his ear against them, trying to listen for any spooky or weird noises.

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Setesh is not often surprised by someone being an asshole, because he expects little of people. But upon arriving to save their stupid asses, after having warned them about the creepy kids, he certaintly didn't expect such contempt. "I am here for Arala, as agreed," he replies in an emotionless tone of voice before that excuse for a humanoid walks in. "If your lungs were on fire, I wouldn't even piss in your mouth to put it off."

He doesn't follow inside immediately, hoping that by some kind of miracle, the entire building will collapse on Karl and rid the world of this stain. "I suppose you don't know who this house belongs... or belonged to?" he asks Ismark.

 

[dae mec]

Arala tries not to look up and beseech Death for a quick release. Of course they begin by posturing. "Setesh," she greets instead, nodding. "I thought I'd let you know of the new developments. Yes, the mist is magical, but I'm sure you've figured that out. The house is also surrounded by a thick aura of magic. I can't pinpoint the school. The children, though, were conjured by powerful illusion magic. So we have at least one likely malicious caster who wants us to go into there."

She pauses, and adds wryly, "Bram wanted to burn the house down. The rest want to see what's inside." Arala gives the bloodhunter in question a vaguely amused smile. "Though I'm not sure what the rush is. The house isn't going anywhere. We could enter after..." Dynis and Karl are already in the mansion, "we rest," she finishes, sighing.

Burning the house down is an option, but she'd rather not be run out of town... or accidentally burn an innocent to ashes. Perhaps after the others scout it. Arala isn't sure she wants to enter just now: she has one good spell left in her, a handaxe, and a cantrips. She doesn't even know if she'll be useful. Plus, it's nearing evening. Magic like this tends to gain power at night.

"And who is your acquaintance?" she asks, eyeing the blonde man accompanying him. She gives the man a careful smile. "I'm Arala Goresinger."

 

[WlfSamurai]

Ismark bows. “Ismark Kolyanovich, my lady. Son of Kolyan Indirovich, the Burgomaster of Barovia. Setesh and I had been chatting about how he might be able to help my half-sister Ireena when that fascinating creature entered the tavern and said ‘death’.” He points to Angel Bones. “I figured I’d tag along with kind of introduction. And yet...” He trails off as he eyes the house.

“This house has been abandoned for a long time. A lot of the villagers over many years have whispered about what haunts it. My father told me stories growing up of a merchant who wanted to use the property to sell his goods. After securing the deed, he entered and was never heard from again. Other stories tell of a family who used to trap travelers here for sacrifices.

“Who are the rest of you? And are you planning to go in there?”

MechanicalSnake , Vanira , Gaius Danius Griinia , Wondertainment , dae mec , ArcticFox

 

[Gaius Danius Griinia]

"See? This place is haunted, definitely haunted. In all likelihood, the Paladin is being turned into a breeding ground by whatever lives in there. I vote we sacrifice Karl as a distraction" said Bram as he tiredly conveyed his opinion on the matter. Of course he wasn't actually convinced it was JUST ghosts. It could be wraiths, malignant entities or maybe even the undead. While he was still of the opinion that they should burn the place down, it seemed as if the more hardheaded of the group wanted to head inside. Karl even went inside himself, which got rid of the pompous cocksucker for a bit. Honestly Bram would just go with whatever Arala decided, that tended to screw him over less than the decisions of their other members.

 

[dae mec]

"A pleasure," Arala says to Ismark. "I hope we can save your sister. We should discuss the her situation more tonight."

She turns to Bram. "Let's not sacrifice anyone just yet," she says, torn between amusement and exasperation. She's doubly glad that she called Setesh (and thus Ismark) because she has another solid reason to call the other two back.

Arala steps forward, opens the door to the house, and calls in, "Dynis? Karl? Ireena's brother is outside. He has more information about the woman we were hired to save. Also, most forces of darkness gain power at night. We know there's no children in danger anymore, so we don't have to go into there immediately. If we come in the morning, we'll be better equipped to fight them."

Arala hopes they come back. She'll probably have to go in after them if they don't. Though she feels that Bram and Setesh don't mind her, she doesn't think they like her that much to follow her.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Dynis and Karl, do you come back out of the house?

ArcticFox , Wondertainment

 

[Wondertainment]

"Oh, don't worry, I'll definitely piss in your mouth at some point," Karl mumbles under his breath at Setesh.

Almost reluctantly, Karl finally steps back out into the open. He shivers unintentionally and scowls.

"Wha- Oh, come on, Bram, I thought we were cool! No sacrificing, please."

Karl looks at Ireena's brother. "So you sent us the letter. Er, one of them. I'm Karl Murdoch. What can you tell us about Ireena?"

 

[WlfSamurai]

“Letter?” Ismark says with a confused look. “I haven’t sent any letters. What do you mean?”

Karl came out of the house. Dynis did not.

And she doesn’t.

The foyer where she had just been with Karl is empty. You can see in from outside. No sound. No trace.

Gone.

MechanicalSnake , Vanira , Gaius Danius Griinia , Wondertainment , dae mec

 

[MechanicalSnake]

Setesh finds himself almost genuinely smiling at Bram. Sacrificing Karl AND torching the house? Those have been two excellent ideas in about five minutes. Perhaps he should be more respectful of Karl in the future? "I believe the house definitely should have been burnt. It is the only safe way of dealing with ghosts that I know," he adds his expert opinion, glancing at Ismark briefly, "but it is not our problem to solve. It appears it has been haunted for decades, if anyone were to decide about its fate, it should be the Burgomaster. Except now it is sort of our problem, because Dynis is still in there, isn't she."

Actually, Setesh has to wonder why Ismark's father hasn't done anything about this yet, especially if people keep getting lost in there. Maybe he's had worse problems to deal with; problems so serious that a haunted hause pales in comparison. "Anyway," he rolls his eyes at Karl's obvious stupidity before turning back to Ismark - that idiot couldn't even remember that it was Ismark's father, not the young man himself who sent the letter. "Remember how I told you it's not the first time I have heard about your sister? We seem to be in possession of two letters that claim to be written by the Burgomaster of Barovia and provide conflicting information. But both say that someone called Ireena is in danger. Perhaps you could shed some light on the matter. Or arrange an audience with your father - that would be greatly appreciated."

 

[WlfSamurai]

“My father is dead,” Ismark says, keeping the pain from reaching his face. “Three days ago. His heart gave out. Ireena is in danger, to be sure. That’s why I need help to get her somewhere safe. Do you have these letters? Where did you get them?”