Sorasuna took in the entire situation and still felt confused. Dead bodies outside of the door, the poor innkeeper's head splattered all around... what could Sorasuna make of such things? It seems to her that a couple of the others were inspecting that strange device Missus Dudley had dropped. She frowned, worried about the others messing around with such a thing. They should have left it where it dropped.
The dragonborn stayed by the door. "What do you think could have done such a thing? Those poor people..." Sorasuna asked no one in particular. She remembered their screams and felt shame.
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DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd[Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player] Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale Ru's Current Status
Orel turns towards the dragonborn and looks down at the corpse. "If I were to guess, bats," he says. "I've encountered them before, long ago. A sort of bat that could lob off a head whilst flying by. From the crone's reaction," he adds, taking the title the half-elf had used in her song, "this is not the first time. The town was targeted, and we were spared." He gestures to the Inn with its indicators of an old temple.
That darkness of the early morning made the scene even more ominous, and the small stream of light pouring from the Inn's single lantern didn't help. "I suggest we stay in the Inn until morning and investigate further during the day. Or be on your way at that time... your choice. But travelling now is suicide." He says this last part as he looks past those assembled in the doorway to the old crone.
"And we should dispose of her body before it rises."
Rey gathered her bow and arrow, then takes his hand to stand. "Thank you. You're very kind, Marius." She could hear people at the door. "What's going on?"
"Well, let's find out," the young human smiles. He moves up to the door in time to hear Orel. "Should we burn it?" he asks the half-orc, looking around for wood and oil.
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Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid,Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions! I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Sorasuna looked at the man that spoke to her and nodded along. She hadn't heard of these bats, but from his apt description, it seemed like they were the culprit. "I see, that makes sense."
As he continued to speak, Sorasuna looked outdoors, then to the poor, dead woman, and back to the man. "R-rises? I hope it doesn't come to that." The dragonborn coughed, covering her mouth, but a few puffs of smoke escaped. She continued, "The poor thing suffered enough..."
Sorasuna made her way to the woman, taking a bed sheet from a lonely cot, and looked at her as if thinking of a silent prayer. "Well, I suppose she may start to reek if we leave her here..." She started to wrap the woman up in the sheet, hoping to offer her a modicum of decency despite the loud and sudden way she died. Of course, the sheet was bloody, but Sorasuna thought it was better to wrap the woman up in her blood rather than lifting the woman up and risk her brains spilling out even more than what splattered already.
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DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd[Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player] Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale Ru's Current Status
Rey clung to Marius as if he were her only hope for survival. Maybe this smelling human would have a bit of coin she could pilfer. Once they got to the door, Rey could sense the destruction, and she gasped. "They're all dead," she whispered.
Rey clung to Marius as if he were her only hope for survival. Maybe this smelling human would have a bit of coin she could pilfer. Once they got to the door, Rey could sense the destruction, and she gasped. "They're all dead," she whispered.
"I think so, lady," Marius whispers back. "We were spared, I think, because this place was once hallowed to a sun god of some sort. Stay here -- I'm going to help care for our hostess' remains." He shrugs his arm free, and gives a gentle encouragement before kneeling to help Sorasuna with the wrapping.
"I will be right back."
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Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid,Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions! I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Sorasuna nods a smile at the human helping her. "Thank you, friend, for the assistance..." She looked back at her handiwork, hoping she had at least secured the head. "Not quite right what happened to this lady, even if she was a little mean about her rules." Sorasuna felt a mighty cough coming on, and looked away from the body and her helper, hacking and wheezing for a few seconds.
"Ahhh, pardon," She apologized. "Anyway... what was that thing she dropped?" She hoped this human would know. Sorasuna learned humans seemed to pick up lots of things quite quickly.
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DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd[Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player] Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale Ru's Current Status
"I would suggest burning every body in the town, but not until day. For now, we should leave her outside with the rest." They would rise, he was sure of it. It always seemed to be the next step in his tale of darkness. For now they knew they were safe, and if the building had anything to do with it there would be a story behind its existence. He steps inside and heads over to the crone's chest. Shoving the woman's legs aside, he begins his search. He's not looking for valuables, but more for anything that might shed some light on this building... even this town's history.
Lady? Rey raised an eyebrow. Was Marius as blind as she was? Who in their right mind would think her a lady? Ears still ringing, she stepped outside, the stench of death surrounding her. Covering her nose and mouth to block as much of the smell as possible, she started repeating over and over, "I need to get out of here."
"None of us are getting out of here until morning, I'm afraid," Elaine wiped brain matter from her face and shook it onto the floor. What she wouldn't give for a bath. "Come inside and shut the door. Now. If we have anything, perhaps a barricade wouldn't be a bad idea."
She turned around, looking back at the trunk with the paintings. The half-orc was now pilfering through it, an enterprise Elaine would not mind partaking in. "Do we have time to wait until morning to burn the bodies?" The bard asked quietly. "You seem far more knowledgeable than I in this area. My name is Elaine, I wish we could have met under better circumstances."
Rey stumbled backward into the inn once again, still covering her face. Leaving the door wide open, she made her way back to her corner and huddled in a ball, hoping this was all just a terrible nightmare. "I need to get out," she whispered to herself.
Orel continues digging through the chest. Any bit of lore on the area would help. Who were these people, what burdens were they hiding, and who wanted them dead?
He responds to the gorgeous half-elf as he digs through the crone's things, "There is often protection in the light. When you can see further than the dead, you have an advantage. If they do rise, as I fear they might, it will be while your arms are wrapped around their corpse, your vision will be limited by your half-elf eyes, and you will not know how many have surrounded you. We can gather the corpses during the day. Any that are survivors will have to wait." He stops for a moment, "Apologies... I'm used to working alone. I am Orel." He adds as an afterthought, "I am a hunter." He then resumes his search.
"I'm glad to have your expertise, Orel the Hunter," Elaine said, holding one of the small parchment paintings she had seen Missus Dudley remove earlier. The bard's fingers traced the woman's outline, a younger Dudley standing beside a bearded man. They stood before a tiny, wood-framed home with a tiny, decorative white fence. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before, much like the woman's weapon.
"I wonder what stories have died with Missus Dudley," she whispered to herself. Clearing her throat, she folded the parchment and placed it in her pack. "Excuse me a moment, Orel. I believe you know better than I what you are searching for."
Elaine rose, walking over to the corner where the thief was currently huddled. "Thief," she said, the word not unkind on her lips. She knelt down so she was at eye-level with the woman's milky-white orbs. "You look like a survivor. I can tell, just by looking at you, that you have lived through some exciting stories. You will live through this one as well."
"I..." Rey swallowed hard. "I've never been witness to an entire town murdered, have you?" Her blind eyes stared the bard down. "This is beyond me. This is beyond you. It's beyond any of us. We're all going to die here."
Sitting down, Elaine began to pluck at her viol's strings. It was no song, just separated notes being picked from the air. "This is the beginning of a story," the bard half-sang, her voice quiet and soft. "Why would we die if our journey is just beginning? The dead and dying cannot touch us in this once-holy place."
The isolated notes began to creep closer together, beginning to form a coherent melody. Elaine began to sing, a lullaby to ease the suffering and fear.
"There once was an old beer bottle, a floating on the foam,
And this here old beer bottle was far away from home.
The note inside this bottle had these words written on;
The finder of this bottle shall find the beer all gone."
Pleased with her work and the help of the human, Sorasuna hoisted the innkeeper over her shoulder and stood. The sound of the woman's open head made a sick splish sort of sound as it was lifted off the floor. Sorasuna hoped the sheets would keep the contents therein. She moved over to the door where she overheard the half-elf and elf possibly about to bicker. "We don't know that the entire town is murdered, do we?" Sorasuna offered as a positive. "Certainly there are souls in hiding, possibly, just as we are in this building. As long as we don't panic, everything will probably be fine!" Despite the situation and how Sorasuna felt about all the death and decay on her shoulder, she sounded chipper. "By morning, I'm sure it will be safe to go outside..."
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DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd[Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player] Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale Ru's Current Status
"We don't know the whole town was murdered? Listen!" Rey paused, letting the silence set in. "Do you hear anything? Screaming, panicking? Anything? No. There's nothing. Anyone who was alive in this town, save us, is now dead." She leaned back, listening to the song. She appreciated the effort, but wasn't sure it was everyone needed right now.
Marius finishes knotting shut the innkeeper's sad shroud. He watches Sorasuna boost the body over her shoulder and nods as the material holds together.
He hurries back to Rey. "Easy now, lady. Take a deep breath. Focus on the beating of my heart. Hear that?" He lays her hand on his chest. "Feel that? Steady as she goes. You're not alone. You're NOT alone. And we're not going to die here. Y'know why? Because we are too damn pretty to die in this pissy little bywater. We're not gonna die for many and many'a, and singers like her'll be spreading our fame far and wide. Believe that."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid,Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions! I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Elaine continued to pluck at the strings of her viol. The song had faded, but the notes remained. She was grateful for the company of the human, whoever he was. The gods knew, calming this thief down was no easy task. Her notes matched the rhythm of his speaking voice. "I happen to agree," she laughed. "We are gorgeous."
"For the night, the dead will remain outside these hallowed walls," she reassured everyone. "Our friend, Orel the Great Hunter will ensure it."
The beating of Marius' heart and the music combined was enough to help Rey start calming down. "I'm sorry I stole one of your purses," she said to the bard. "You're very smart to keep some between your breasts." She smiled, and let that just hang there between them all.
Sorasuna took in the entire situation and still felt confused. Dead bodies outside of the door, the poor innkeeper's head splattered all around... what could Sorasuna make of such things? It seems to her that a couple of the others were inspecting that strange device Missus Dudley had dropped. She frowned, worried about the others messing around with such a thing. They should have left it where it dropped.
The dragonborn stayed by the door. "What do you think could have done such a thing? Those poor people..." Sorasuna asked no one in particular. She remembered their screams and felt shame.
DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd [Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player]
Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale
Ru's Current Status
Orel turns towards the dragonborn and looks down at the corpse. "If I were to guess, bats," he says. "I've encountered them before, long ago. A sort of bat that could lob off a head whilst flying by. From the crone's reaction," he adds, taking the title the half-elf had used in her song, "this is not the first time. The town was targeted, and we were spared." He gestures to the Inn with its indicators of an old temple.
That darkness of the early morning made the scene even more ominous, and the small stream of light pouring from the Inn's single lantern didn't help. "I suggest we stay in the Inn until morning and investigate further during the day. Or be on your way at that time... your choice. But travelling now is suicide." He says this last part as he looks past those assembled in the doorway to the old crone.
"And we should dispose of her body before it rises."
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Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid, Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck
Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions!
I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Sorasuna looked at the man that spoke to her and nodded along. She hadn't heard of these bats, but from his apt description, it seemed like they were the culprit. "I see, that makes sense."
As he continued to speak, Sorasuna looked outdoors, then to the poor, dead woman, and back to the man. "R-rises? I hope it doesn't come to that." The dragonborn coughed, covering her mouth, but a few puffs of smoke escaped. She continued, "The poor thing suffered enough..."
Sorasuna made her way to the woman, taking a bed sheet from a lonely cot, and looked at her as if thinking of a silent prayer. "Well, I suppose she may start to reek if we leave her here..." She started to wrap the woman up in the sheet, hoping to offer her a modicum of decency despite the loud and sudden way she died. Of course, the sheet was bloody, but Sorasuna thought it was better to wrap the woman up in her blood rather than lifting the woman up and risk her brains spilling out even more than what splattered already.
DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd [Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player]
Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale
Ru's Current Status
Rey clung to Marius as if he were her only hope for survival. Maybe this smelling human would have a bit of coin she could pilfer. Once they got to the door, Rey could sense the destruction, and she gasped. "They're all dead," she whispered.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"I will be right back."
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid, Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck
Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions!
I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Sorasuna nods a smile at the human helping her. "Thank you, friend, for the assistance..." She looked back at her handiwork, hoping she had at least secured the head. "Not quite right what happened to this lady, even if she was a little mean about her rules." Sorasuna felt a mighty cough coming on, and looked away from the body and her helper, hacking and wheezing for a few seconds.
"Ahhh, pardon," She apologized. "Anyway... what was that thing she dropped?" She hoped this human would know. Sorasuna learned humans seemed to pick up lots of things quite quickly.
DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd [Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player]
Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale
Ru's Current Status
"I would suggest burning every body in the town, but not until day. For now, we should leave her outside with the rest." They would rise, he was sure of it. It always seemed to be the next step in his tale of darkness. For now they knew they were safe, and if the building had anything to do with it there would be a story behind its existence. He steps inside and heads over to the crone's chest. Shoving the woman's legs aside, he begins his search. He's not looking for valuables, but more for anything that might shed some light on this building... even this town's history.
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Lady? Rey raised an eyebrow. Was Marius as blind as she was? Who in their right mind would think her a lady? Ears still ringing, she stepped outside, the stench of death surrounding her. Covering her nose and mouth to block as much of the smell as possible, she started repeating over and over, "I need to get out of here."
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"None of us are getting out of here until morning, I'm afraid," Elaine wiped brain matter from her face and shook it onto the floor. What she wouldn't give for a bath. "Come inside and shut the door. Now. If we have anything, perhaps a barricade wouldn't be a bad idea."
She turned around, looking back at the trunk with the paintings. The half-orc was now pilfering through it, an enterprise Elaine would not mind partaking in. "Do we have time to wait until morning to burn the bodies?" The bard asked quietly. "You seem far more knowledgeable than I in this area. My name is Elaine, I wish we could have met under better circumstances."
PBP: DM of Titans of Tomorrow
PBP: Lera Zahuv in Whispers of Dissent
PBP: Evaine Brae in Innistrad: Dark Ascension
PBP: Cor'avin in Tomb of Annihilation
Rey stumbled backward into the inn once again, still covering her face. Leaving the door wide open, she made her way back to her corner and huddled in a ball, hoping this was all just a terrible nightmare. "I need to get out," she whispered to herself.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
Orel continues digging through the chest. Any bit of lore on the area would help. Who were these people, what burdens were they hiding, and who wanted them dead?
He responds to the gorgeous half-elf as he digs through the crone's things, "There is often protection in the light. When you can see further than the dead, you have an advantage. If they do rise, as I fear they might, it will be while your arms are wrapped around their corpse, your vision will be limited by your half-elf eyes, and you will not know how many have surrounded you. We can gather the corpses during the day. Any that are survivors will have to wait." He stops for a moment, "Apologies... I'm used to working alone. I am Orel." He adds as an afterthought, "I am a hunter." He then resumes his search.
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Please feel free to message either Sorce or another moderator if you have any concerns.
"I'm glad to have your expertise, Orel the Hunter," Elaine said, holding one of the small parchment paintings she had seen Missus Dudley remove earlier. The bard's fingers traced the woman's outline, a younger Dudley standing beside a bearded man. They stood before a tiny, wood-framed home with a tiny, decorative white fence. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before, much like the woman's weapon.
"I wonder what stories have died with Missus Dudley," she whispered to herself. Clearing her throat, she folded the parchment and placed it in her pack. "Excuse me a moment, Orel. I believe you know better than I what you are searching for."
Elaine rose, walking over to the corner where the thief was currently huddled. "Thief," she said, the word not unkind on her lips. She knelt down so she was at eye-level with the woman's milky-white orbs. "You look like a survivor. I can tell, just by looking at you, that you have lived through some exciting stories. You will live through this one as well."
PBP: DM of Titans of Tomorrow
PBP: Lera Zahuv in Whispers of Dissent
PBP: Evaine Brae in Innistrad: Dark Ascension
PBP: Cor'avin in Tomb of Annihilation
"I..." Rey swallowed hard. "I've never been witness to an entire town murdered, have you?" Her blind eyes stared the bard down. "This is beyond me. This is beyond you. It's beyond any of us. We're all going to die here."
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
Sitting down, Elaine began to pluck at her viol's strings. It was no song, just separated notes being picked from the air. "This is the beginning of a story," the bard half-sang, her voice quiet and soft. "Why would we die if our journey is just beginning? The dead and dying cannot touch us in this once-holy place."
The isolated notes began to creep closer together, beginning to form a coherent melody. Elaine began to sing, a lullaby to ease the suffering and fear.
"There once was an old beer bottle, a floating on the foam,
And this here old beer bottle was far away from home.
The note inside this bottle had these words written on;
The finder of this bottle shall find the beer all gone."
PBP: DM of Titans of Tomorrow
PBP: Lera Zahuv in Whispers of Dissent
PBP: Evaine Brae in Innistrad: Dark Ascension
PBP: Cor'avin in Tomb of Annihilation
Pleased with her work and the help of the human, Sorasuna hoisted the innkeeper over her shoulder and stood. The sound of the woman's open head made a sick splish sort of sound as it was lifted off the floor. Sorasuna hoped the sheets would keep the contents therein. She moved over to the door where she overheard the half-elf and elf possibly about to bicker. "We don't know that the entire town is murdered, do we?" Sorasuna offered as a positive. "Certainly there are souls in hiding, possibly, just as we are in this building. As long as we don't panic, everything will probably be fine!" Despite the situation and how Sorasuna felt about all the death and decay on her shoulder, she sounded chipper. "By morning, I'm sure it will be safe to go outside..."
DM: Adventures in Phandalin [Khessa], The Dread of Strahd [Darya], Dragons of Stormwreck Isle [Rook], Baldur's Gate Mysteries [4-Player]
Player: Oona in MO's Icewind Dale
Ru's Current Status
"We don't know the whole town was murdered? Listen!" Rey paused, letting the silence set in. "Do you hear anything? Screaming, panicking? Anything? No. There's nothing. Anyone who was alive in this town, save us, is now dead." She leaned back, listening to the song. She appreciated the effort, but wasn't sure it was everyone needed right now.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
Marius finishes knotting shut the innkeeper's sad shroud. He watches Sorasuna boost the body over her shoulder and nods as the material holds together.
He hurries back to Rey. "Easy now, lady. Take a deep breath. Focus on the beating of my heart. Hear that?" He lays her hand on his chest. "Feel that? Steady as she goes. You're not alone. You're NOT alone. And we're not going to die here. Y'know why? Because we are too damn pretty to die in this pissy little bywater. We're not gonna die for many and many'a, and singers like her'll be spreading our fame far and wide. Believe that."
Eshuvenniel Kazander Ravid, Valor Bard and Acolyte of the Goddess of Luck
Caradoc Langham, Halfling Rogue - Lost Magics - Epic of Pre-made Proportions!
I'm not looking for heaven or hell... just someone to listen to stories I tell...
Elaine continued to pluck at the strings of her viol. The song had faded, but the notes remained. She was grateful for the company of the human, whoever he was. The gods knew, calming this thief down was no easy task. Her notes matched the rhythm of his speaking voice. "I happen to agree," she laughed. "We are gorgeous."
"For the night, the dead will remain outside these hallowed walls," she reassured everyone. "Our friend, Orel the Great Hunter will ensure it."
PBP: DM of Titans of Tomorrow
PBP: Lera Zahuv in Whispers of Dissent
PBP: Evaine Brae in Innistrad: Dark Ascension
PBP: Cor'avin in Tomb of Annihilation
The beating of Marius' heart and the music combined was enough to help Rey start calming down. "I'm sorry I stole one of your purses," she said to the bard. "You're very smart to keep some between your breasts." She smiled, and let that just hang there between them all.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?