Eithne also feels… something from the freshly dug grave.
First of all, the savage stranger recovers the book that represents the main hope of being able to start fighting Stradh! She hastily puts it back in her backpack, while the voices in her head congratulate her as if all the credit for the feat had been hers alone: 'Well done Eithne! Now run, bring him back to Blinsky and Van Ritchen!' 'You did it! The Devil Stradh will know our vengeance!' 'We knew we could count on the last of us! It's not by chance that we chose you...'
'Yeah, sure, not by chance...' thinks the last of the dusk elf maidens sarcastically '...but because I was the only one left!'
Immediately after, however, the savage stranger runs to Lucian and Chara: "I think an undead would show less panic..." and she immediately starts frantically digging with them, trying to be as quick as possible "it is more probable that it's some poor soul on whom our witty persecutor may have played a joke. If so, at least, then it's not a personal matter... they is not only interested in us. Perhaps as soon as we free this poor soul and go away, they will finally leave us in peace".
"The sounds, they're getting near!!", the bard thought to himself, his heart leaping in his chest, "Am I ...? Am I going to make it? Gods, oh, gods..."
He stops pounding and changes his tactic. He didn't know any spell that could get him out, but he could at least make sign that could help his potential rescuers locate him quicker.
Bran puts his hand in the box lid and mutters the words of the incantation, making a glowing sign appear on it which hopefully would show a little though any whole the wood could have.
Bran casts Prestidigitation inside the coffin's lid
- I'm here!! Please get me out!! Please! - he yells with what little strength he has.
"Hey! Do you also see that glow?" wonders Eithne, hurrying with the shovel "Keep on guys, we are almost there!"
"You, down there..." the savage stranger tries to make herself heard by the poor buried soul "We are about to free you, keep calm! Just a few moments! And..." the last of the dusk elf maidens worries about possible reactions at the look of some of the party members "...Don't let appearances scare you, okay? We have good intentions! If we meant to hurt you, we would have left you right where you are, right? Well, still just a few moments..."
At Eithne's words, Chara suddenly realizes what the unfortunate soul trapped in the coffin might think upon the coffin lid being thrown back to reveal a demon standing over him or her... this poor bastard might think that he's already dead and has been transported to the Nine Hells. But there really isn't time to think to worry too much about that.
"We'll have you out in a few minutes!" Chara calls out, throwing aside earth as fast as she can, any fatigue she felt from digging the last grave completely replaced with an adrenaline rush as she does her part to save the victim in the coffin. "J-just try to stay calm... and please don't attack me as soon as we get you out, okay?"
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The people outside hear a muffled:" Att...? Wha...? I don't think I could even stand on both legs, they're stiff as sticks! My arms too!". And then nothing else but anxious breathing. Seems the man inside has calmed down enough to stop screaming and just let them free him.
As the last bit of earth is cleared off the coffin, Chara glances at Eithne and Lucian. Even though the person trapped in the coffin claimed that he was too weak to attack anyone, Chara is still a little bit worried that seeing a demon could put him right into fight-or-flight mode.
"It would probably be best if the first thing he sees is one of you," Chara tells her companions, moving aside to the foot of the grave. "And Ichabod... you can stay right here with me. He really doesn't need to see you as soon as he gets out either."
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"...Ichabore might as well become invisible" suggests Eithne, while opening the coffin.
'...or even better disappear forever!' does she NOT say aloud.
So the entity in the coffin sees the curious face of a woman with so chiseled features that would not look bad on an elf's face, straight brown hair, so long and thick to cover her ears, wearing a half-open cloack that reveals only skimpy common clothes, probably made from animal skins, and a harmonious physique, but one that is at the same time well sculpted by the wild life. And speaking of wild life, a she-wolf cub pokes curious in turn, keeping close to the woman's right leg.
"I'm Eithne!" the woman holds out her hand to help the poor soul get up and get out of the quite unenviable position "And she is Juhowly" she nods to the she-wolf cub, who responds with a howl when her name is spoken. "Come out and meet the others! Lots of interesting people to know. Who are you? And how did you end up in there, if I may ask?"
"A...are you alright?" Lucian asks after Eithne opens up the coffin. He almost offers the bard a hand, but backs off when it seems that Eithne has it handled. "Who did this to you? And...why?"
Lucian is clearly a dusk elf, his dark purplish skin, pointed ears, and white hair show that much, though he seems far younger then a dusk elf has any right to be. He's wearing simple, threadbare cloths and a long sleeveless overcoat. He is barefoot, and arms and legs are wrapped in strips of cloth. He is thin and lanky and seems quite timid.
"Oh..." he ducks his head once the stranger is on his feet. "Uh... I'm Lucian." He rubs the back of his neck, eyeing the graveyard. "Uh...seriously though. Why did someone bury you alive?"
Chara doesn't say anything right away, not wanting to draw too much attention to herself until the man has recovered a little bit from his ordeal.
When his gaze does inevitably fall upon her, what he sees is a creature that appears to be a devil, with dark-blue skin and gold markings that look like they might be tattoos. She has a pair of large wings, and gold horns protrude through her long silver hair. While her face and her wings are probably what the man in the coffin will notice first, if he looks down a bit he will see that the she-devil's legs look more like a goat's than humanoid, with cloven hooves in place of feet. But strangely, the expression on the she-devil's face is one of concern.
"Sir... are you injured?" she asks the man once he notices her. "If you have any wounds I can heal them... if you'll let me."
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When the lid is finally lifted, his first reaction is to take a mouthfull of air, breathing heavily and welcoming back fresh air - and in more than meager quantities - into his lungs.
Then, panting, shaky, and still not believing his finally out of his imprisonment, he takes with his right hand the one that the unknown woman is offering, while his left is clutching a lute like it is his most precious treasure. Now that she's holding that hand, the woman can easily notice a simple golden wedding band in the man's ring finger.
When he's finally standing up and looking at the group they can see a tall slender human in his thirties. Fair skin, shoulder lenght blond wavy hair tied up in a loose ponytail. His green eyes - showing clear signs of the tears he's been shedding in his ordeal - look at them with a mix of relief, gratitude but also a little bit of fear. His eyes widen a bit when he sees them in detail to find a ... is that a demon woman? She looks concerned, and that beautiful pattern of gold and blue calls more to his sensitive artistic soul than to his fear. But even so, he takes a few steps back. They have just saved him, but who knows what can happen next.
- I ... I ... I don't want trouble!
Those are his first words, but seeing the three of them talking calmly offering kind words - even healing! - he relaxes a little bit.
- My name is Bran. And I don't know!! I just woke up here a few hours ago. I... I... I don't understand! Yesterday was a perfectly normal day for me: I did some chores around the house, we had dinner, I sang my girl a few songs in her bed like every night, I kissed my wife good night. I ... for god's sake... I remember the tingling of her hair in my face as I embraced her before I fell sleep. And... and suddenly this is where I am. Where the hell am I? Are we near Kreszk at least?
DM, do I recognize this place?
He then freezes.
- Oh, no no no. Oh gods. All this time inside that stupid box I have been thinking that they would be worried about my dissappearance. Stupid me!! What if they have been hurt, what if....?
He looks around wide-eyed. Upon seeing more graves he gives the lute to the woman that has helped him out of the cofffin - Eithne, was it? - and without so much of a second tought he runs to the closest grave. He doesn't care to check if it is fresh or not, his mind is just to distressed to think about it. He begins digging with his own hurt hands, mud mixing with the wounds on his fingers from punching and sratching the coffin he had been in while he yells:
Eithne takes the lute, while replying: "Not a bit, sorry; you are quite far from Kreszk. The nearest villages are Tser Pool and Barovia. Is it... in Krezk that you went in bed yesterday?"
The savage stranger notices that the man (as far as he looks... ehm... let's say interesting) seems really upset. Why is he trying to dig up those not-so-recent graves with his bare hands?
'He must be crazy and dangerous Eithne!' advice begins to rain from his voices in her mind 'Run!' 'You already got an imp as a hindrance... you don't need this one too!' 'But, well, at least he's a nice hindrance...' 'He doesn't suit you Tatyana! You are dead!' 'You too, for that matter!' 'Oh, girls, as if that were a problem… Sooner or later, everyone comes to our side!'
'Err... with 'to your side' you do not mean in my head, I hope?' shudders the last of the dusk elf maidens 'I'm not sure I'm ready to host everyone... Anyway I'm not dead. And neither he is. Since we have so much in common, let's at least see if I can help him...'
"Bran," Eithne places a hand lightly on his shoulder "I'm sorry for your pain and for whatever may have happened to you, but personally, I don't think digging here will help… Can't you see that the only recently dug grave was the one you came out of? These have been here for who knows how long... Anyway" she holds out a shovel to him - while she stands ready to help him dig with another one "if you really want to check what's down here, with these we will do better and sooner".
As the man finally, sratching the coffin's lid, begins calling names, the savage stranger feels a deep empathy for him... does he, like her, have holes in his memory, perhaps? He looks so much like her, when she found herself, without remembering how or why, in that meadow, with some pigeon droppings on her head… and a plethora of voices inside her head!
"Look," she tries to tell him, staring at him with her azure eyes "I know how it is. It happened to me too. It's like being... somewhere else, isn't it? Or in another time. And it seems It's all absurd. Mind you, I don't know how it's happening... I don't understand much... but one thing I understood about our situation. There's no going back. Something has been taken from us that we can't get back. But we are here, now. And we can go on. Maybe still do something about it".
'Well, way to go Eithne' she thinks, in retrospect. 'By now, I must have convinced him that I'm totally insane...'
You do recognize it. This a crossroads to the west of Barovia. Something truly strange must have happened.
Eithne:
When you took the package from the grave, you noticed that it didn’t feel like a book, more like a package with several things inside, rolling and sliding around.
Lenn goes with the others and help them dig the recent grave. He closes his eyes for a moment and assures the rest that no undead is down there as they keep digging to rescue whoever is inside. Then, the tall man clad in armor takes a step back and just beholds the exchange between his companions and this poor man. His concerns are justified. If he has been buried alive here, anything could had happened to his family. Lenn clenches his right fist. Family. He had one,his parents, his sister, he had hopes to have one of his own someday.. now... another thing that He took away.
He tries to focus on the present, not his everlasting hate or.. hunger. The fast pounding of the human's heart and the smell of his blood are intoxicating, but he keeps his urges under control. He doesn't know how much time without feeding he could be, those two thieves will not be enough for the Beast inside him, not for much longer.
He just waits for reason come to this new man and whispers to Chara.
"I am going to check other tombs, in case they are recent too. I wouldn't be too far away, call me if you need me... "
In his distress, it takes a while for Eithne's words to reach Bran's mind. But when they do he notices, well, everything. His exhaustion. The fact he cannot barely hold the shovel. The fact that, indeed, the rest of the graves seem ancient. And that he's nowhere near his home.
Bran finally stops digging, drops the shovel, sits on the ground and buries his face in his hands ignoring the blood, the dirt and the mud in them. After a moment he raises his head and looks at Eithne and the rest:
- I'm sorry, you must think me crazy- he takes a deep breath and then exhales, trying to calm down - Our home is in Kreszk, yes. I don't understand how I came up to be here. I now recognize where I am and it's truly, truly far away. As for the reason- he looks at the one called Lucian, who had asked precisely that - I wish I knew! If I did I could try to undo whatever it is that I may have done wrong. Mi wife Elia and I we are private people, we don't mess with anyone, we don't look for trouble. Our Cassie is five and as you may understand our sole concern is for her to grow healthy and as happy as possible. How could have we offended anyone? We spend most of the time on our own! We do have some friends among our neighbours, but even so ... they are good people. They wouldn't hurt us...right? We don't go around giving anyone reasons to do it...
He looks to Eithne again:
- I ... I thank you for your kind words. You seem to have had a tough time, too. Gods, I do hope I can do something about all of this - but he shakes his head, not truly believing it.
Returning to the group, he asks:
- By the way, I don't mind to pry or to judge, not specially after you've helped me, but ... why are you here? Why are you digging ...? You don't look like evil-doers to me, but I have to say it's a bit weird - he laughs nervously and adds - Sorry, you don't have to answer if you don't want. I only need to rest a little and can gather my things and not bother you any more.
(Perception and investigation are the same for me: 15)
Eithne does not want to lie to the man... but she does not want to tell him all either! That could only endanger the poor soul even more.
"Well, Bran," she comes up with "short explaination: a false raven advised us to dig here".
The savage stranger gives the man a few moments to absorb the absurdity, then explains a little: "The raven was too smart and communicated too well to be an animal, but I don't know what it was exactly. We were already looking for something - we are not serial tomb profanators - so we choose to take rhe advice and dig there".
"We could tell you more, should you choose to stick with us" adds the last of the dusk elf maidens before even realizing it. "I don't know if advise you to accept or not... because, you see, if you really are like me, as I suppose, you have probably abundance of loneliness and hardness awaiting you. And whoever put you in a tomb, he could easily do it again - maybe even do worst. Sticking with us, you would at least not be alone. On the other hand, we also are in danger - so sticking with us would bring our danger upon you too".
"The choice" her azure eyes are not leaving a moment that of the man "is yours".
"Thanks, Lenn," Chara whispers back. "I'll go ahead and have Ichabod scout around a little bit more... since we found Bran alive, he couldn't have been put there more than a few hours ago."
Once she's made sure that the man that they just dug up is uninjured, Chara climbs out of the grave to clean up a little bit from the dig and make sure that Lydel is still in the cart where she put him (she made sure to put a leash on him to prevent him from wandering away from the cart). She gives Ichabod a command to check the area around the graveyard for any signs of Bran's would-be killers or anything else out of place. As much as she hates to agree with the tiny devil, she can't help but find the raven suspicious as well, especially in conjunction with finding Bran buried nearby.
When he hears Eithne talking about the crow and then the armored man's response, Bran let's out a soft chuckle.
- That's what I get for asking too much - he says, not seeming upset at all, but rather more and more calm. "These people do not seem bad at all", he thinks, "They merely have their own business and don't need to share any more than they want to".
Upon hearing Eithne next words, he hesitates for a moment.
- Danger, huh? It seems I'm already there. I need to look for my family, I need to know what happened. But maybe going home right now doesn't seem like the best of ideas. If Elia and Cassandra are there and allrigth...well... best not to bring whatever I've been involved with to them for the moment. And if they aren't there, then...that is not a place I want to go back to. Well, perhaps only to look for clues.
When the Eithne offers him to stick with them he looks directly into her eyes:
- Would you have me? That's a kind offer and I thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I promise I will make myself useful. I'm not particulary good with weapons, but I do have a way with people. I can be rather persuasive if you need me to be and I can wield some useful magic. I can also help with my music if you guys want. It can be helpful ... calming... and can even make people rest a little better.
At this point, his gaze wanders to the rest of the group, hoping they are as welcoming as the azure-eyed woman of the wilderness.
Eithne also feels… something from the freshly dug grave.
First of all, the savage stranger recovers the book that represents the main hope of being able to start fighting Stradh! She hastily puts it back in her backpack, while the voices in her head congratulate her as if all the credit for the feat had been hers alone:
'Well done Eithne! Now run, bring him back to Blinsky and Van Ritchen!'
'You did it! The Devil Stradh will know our vengeance!'
'We knew we could count on the last of us! It's not by chance that we chose you...'
'Yeah, sure, not by chance...' thinks the last of the dusk elf maidens sarcastically '...but because I was the only one left!'
Immediately after, however, the savage stranger runs to Lucian and Chara: "I think an undead would show less panic..." and she immediately starts frantically digging with them, trying to be as quick as possible "it is more probable that it's some poor soul on whom our witty persecutor may have played a joke. If so, at least, then it's not a personal matter... they is not only interested in us. Perhaps as soon as we free this poor soul and go away, they will finally leave us in peace".
"The sounds, they're getting near!!", the bard thought to himself, his heart leaping in his chest, "Am I ...? Am I going to make it? Gods, oh, gods..."
He stops pounding and changes his tactic. He didn't know any spell that could get him out, but he could at least make sign that could help his potential rescuers locate him quicker.
Bran puts his hand in the box lid and mutters the words of the incantation, making a glowing sign appear on it which hopefully would show a little though any whole the wood could have.
Bran casts Prestidigitation inside the coffin's lid
- I'm here!! Please get me out!! Please! - he yells with what little strength he has.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
"Hey! Do you also see that glow?" wonders Eithne, hurrying with the shovel "Keep on guys, we are almost there!"
"You, down there..." the savage stranger tries to make herself heard by the poor buried soul "We are about to free you, keep calm! Just a few moments! And..." the last of the dusk elf maidens worries about possible reactions at the look of some of the party members "...Don't let appearances scare you, okay? We have good intentions! If we meant to hurt you, we would have left you right where you are, right? Well, still just a few moments..."
At Eithne's words, Chara suddenly realizes what the unfortunate soul trapped in the coffin might think upon the coffin lid being thrown back to reveal a demon standing over him or her... this poor bastard might think that he's already dead and has been transported to the Nine Hells. But there really isn't time to think to worry too much about that.
"We'll have you out in a few minutes!" Chara calls out, throwing aside earth as fast as she can, any fatigue she felt from digging the last grave completely replaced with an adrenaline rush as she does her part to save the victim in the coffin. "J-just try to stay calm... and please don't attack me as soon as we get you out, okay?"
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The people outside hear a muffled:" Att...? Wha...? I don't think I could even stand on both legs, they're stiff as sticks! My arms too!". And then nothing else but anxious breathing. Seems the man inside has calmed down enough to stop screaming and just let them free him.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
As the last bit of earth is cleared off the coffin, Chara glances at Eithne and Lucian. Even though the person trapped in the coffin claimed that he was too weak to attack anyone, Chara is still a little bit worried that seeing a demon could put him right into fight-or-flight mode.
"It would probably be best if the first thing he sees is one of you," Chara tells her companions, moving aside to the foot of the grave. "And Ichabod... you can stay right here with me. He really doesn't need to see you as soon as he gets out either."
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"...Ichabore might as well become invisible" suggests Eithne, while opening the coffin.
'...or even better disappear forever!' does she NOT say aloud.
So the entity in the coffin sees the curious face of a woman with so chiseled features that would not look bad on an elf's face, straight brown hair, so long and thick to cover her ears, wearing a half-open cloack that reveals only skimpy common clothes, probably made from animal skins, and a harmonious physique, but one that is at the same time well sculpted by the wild life. And speaking of wild life, a she-wolf cub pokes curious in turn, keeping close to the woman's right leg.
"I'm Eithne!" the woman holds out her hand to help the poor soul get up and get out of the quite unenviable position "And she is Juhowly" she nods to the she-wolf cub, who responds with a howl when her name is spoken. "Come out and meet the others! Lots of interesting people to know. Who are you? And how did you end up in there, if I may ask?"
"A...are you alright?" Lucian asks after Eithne opens up the coffin. He almost offers the bard a hand, but backs off when it seems that Eithne has it handled. "Who did this to you? And...why?"
Lucian is clearly a dusk elf, his dark purplish skin, pointed ears, and white hair show that much, though he seems far younger then a dusk elf has any right to be. He's wearing simple, threadbare cloths and a long sleeveless overcoat. He is barefoot, and arms and legs are wrapped in strips of cloth. He is thin and lanky and seems quite timid.
"Oh..." he ducks his head once the stranger is on his feet. "Uh... I'm Lucian." He rubs the back of his neck, eyeing the graveyard. "Uh...seriously though. Why did someone bury you alive?"
Chara doesn't say anything right away, not wanting to draw too much attention to herself until the man has recovered a little bit from his ordeal.
When his gaze does inevitably fall upon her, what he sees is a creature that appears to be a devil, with dark-blue skin and gold markings that look like they might be tattoos. She has a pair of large wings, and gold horns protrude through her long silver hair. While her face and her wings are probably what the man in the coffin will notice first, if he looks down a bit he will see that the she-devil's legs look more like a goat's than humanoid, with cloven hooves in place of feet. But strangely, the expression on the she-devil's face is one of concern.
"Sir... are you injured?" she asks the man once he notices her. "If you have any wounds I can heal them... if you'll let me."
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When the lid is finally lifted, his first reaction is to take a mouthfull of air, breathing heavily and welcoming back fresh air - and in more than meager quantities - into his lungs.
Then, panting, shaky, and still not believing his finally out of his imprisonment, he takes with his right hand the one that the unknown woman is offering, while his left is clutching a lute like it is his most precious treasure. Now that she's holding that hand, the woman can easily notice a simple golden wedding band in the man's ring finger.
When he's finally standing up and looking at the group they can see a tall slender human in his thirties. Fair skin, shoulder lenght blond wavy hair tied up in a loose ponytail. His green eyes - showing clear signs of the tears he's been shedding in his ordeal - look at them with a mix of relief, gratitude but also a little bit of fear. His eyes widen a bit when he sees them in detail to find a ... is that a demon woman? She looks concerned, and that beautiful pattern of gold and blue calls more to his sensitive artistic soul than to his fear. But even so, he takes a few steps back. They have just saved him, but who knows what can happen next.
- I ... I ... I don't want trouble!
Those are his first words, but seeing the three of them talking calmly offering kind words - even healing! - he relaxes a little bit.
- My name is Bran. And I don't know!! I just woke up here a few hours ago. I... I... I don't understand! Yesterday was a perfectly normal day for me: I did some chores around the house, we had dinner, I sang my girl a few songs in her bed like every night, I kissed my wife good night. I ... for god's sake... I remember the tingling of her hair in my face as I embraced her before I fell sleep. And... and suddenly this is where I am. Where the hell am I? Are we near Kreszk at least?
DM, do I recognize this place?
He then freezes.
- Oh, no no no. Oh gods. All this time inside that stupid box I have been thinking that they would be worried about my dissappearance. Stupid me!! What if they have been hurt, what if....?
He looks around wide-eyed. Upon seeing more graves he gives the lute to the woman that has helped him out of the cofffin - Eithne, was it? - and without so much of a second tought he runs to the closest grave. He doesn't care to check if it is fresh or not, his mind is just to distressed to think about it. He begins digging with his own hurt hands, mud mixing with the wounds on his fingers from punching and sratching the coffin he had been in while he yells:
- Elia!? Oh gods?? Elia!! Cassandra?? Cassie???
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Eithne takes the lute, while replying: "Not a bit, sorry; you are quite far from Kreszk. The nearest villages are Tser Pool and Barovia. Is it... in Krezk that you went in bed yesterday?"
The savage stranger notices that the man (as far as he looks... ehm... let's say interesting) seems really upset. Why is he trying to dig up those not-so-recent graves with his bare hands?
'He must be crazy and dangerous Eithne!' advice begins to rain from his voices in her mind 'Run!'
'You already got an imp as a hindrance... you don't need this one too!'
'But, well, at least he's a nice hindrance...'
'He doesn't suit you Tatyana! You are dead!'
'You too, for that matter!'
'Oh, girls, as if that were a problem… Sooner or later, everyone comes to our side!'
'Err... with 'to your side' you do not mean in my head, I hope?' shudders the last of the dusk elf maidens 'I'm not sure I'm ready to host everyone... Anyway I'm not dead. And neither he is. Since we have so much in common, let's at least see if I can help him...'
"Bran," Eithne places a hand lightly on his shoulder "I'm sorry for your pain and for whatever may have happened to you, but personally, I don't think digging here will help… Can't you see that the only recently dug grave was the one you came out of? These have been here for who knows how long... Anyway" she holds out a shovel to him - while she stands ready to help him dig with another one "if you really want to check what's down here, with these we will do better and sooner".
As the man finally, sratching the coffin's lid, begins calling names, the savage stranger feels a deep empathy for him... does he, like her, have holes in his memory, perhaps? He looks so much like her, when she found herself, without remembering how or why, in that meadow, with some pigeon droppings on her head… and a plethora of voices inside her head!
"Look," she tries to tell him, staring at him with her azure eyes "I know how it is. It happened to me too. It's like being... somewhere else, isn't it? Or in another time. And it seems It's all absurd. Mind you, I don't know how it's happening... I don't understand much... but one thing I understood about our situation. There's no going back. Something has been taken from us that we can't get back. But we are here, now. And we can go on. Maybe still do something about it".
'Well, way to go Eithne' she thinks, in retrospect. 'By now, I must have convinced him that I'm totally insane...'
Bran:
You do recognize it. This a crossroads to the west of Barovia. Something truly strange must have happened.
Eithne:
When you took the package from the grave, you noticed that it didn’t feel like a book, more like a package with several things inside, rolling and sliding around.
All:
(Please make a perception or investigation check)
Tamryn - lvl 4 Wood Elf Rogue - Circle of Light Campaign || Drusilla - lvl 1 Half-Elf Ranger - Sleeping Gods || Grrzark - lvl 1 Goblin Barbarian - Danger at Darkshelf Quarry || DM - LTG - Curse of Strahd
Lenn goes with the others and help them dig the recent grave. He closes his eyes for a moment and assures the rest that no undead is down there as they keep digging to rescue whoever is inside. Then, the tall man clad in armor takes a step back and just beholds the exchange between his companions and this poor man.
His concerns are justified. If he has been buried alive here, anything could had happened to his family. Lenn clenches his right fist. Family. He had one,his parents, his sister, he had hopes to have one of his own someday.. now... another thing that He took away.
He tries to focus on the present, not his everlasting hate or.. hunger. The fast pounding of the human's heart and the smell of his blood are intoxicating, but he keeps his urges under control. He doesn't know how much time without feeding he could be, those two thieves will not be enough for the Beast inside him, not for much longer.
He just waits for reason come to this new man and whispers to Chara.
"I am going to check other tombs, in case they are recent too. I wouldn't be too far away, call me if you need me... "
( Investigation if needed: 20 )
PbP Character: A few ;)
In his distress, it takes a while for Eithne's words to reach Bran's mind. But when they do he notices, well, everything. His exhaustion. The fact he cannot barely hold the shovel. The fact that, indeed, the rest of the graves seem ancient. And that he's nowhere near his home.
Bran finally stops digging, drops the shovel, sits on the ground and buries his face in his hands ignoring the blood, the dirt and the mud in them. After a moment he raises his head and looks at Eithne and the rest:
- I'm sorry, you must think me crazy - he takes a deep breath and then exhales, trying to calm down - Our home is in Kreszk, yes. I don't understand how I came up to be here. I now recognize where I am and it's truly, truly far away. As for the reason - he looks at the one called Lucian, who had asked precisely that - I wish I knew! If I did I could try to undo whatever it is that I may have done wrong. Mi wife Elia and I we are private people, we don't mess with anyone, we don't look for trouble. Our Cassie is five and as you may understand our sole concern is for her to grow healthy and as happy as possible. How could have we offended anyone? We spend most of the time on our own! We do have some friends among our neighbours, but even so ... they are good people. They wouldn't hurt us...right? We don't go around giving anyone reasons to do it...
He looks to Eithne again:
- I ... I thank you for your kind words. You seem to have had a tough time, too. Gods, I do hope I can do something about all of this - but he shakes his head, not truly believing it.
Returning to the group, he asks:
- By the way, I don't mind to pry or to judge, not specially after you've helped me, but ... why are you here? Why are you digging ...? You don't look like evil-doers to me, but I have to say it's a bit weird - he laughs nervously and adds - Sorry, you don't have to answer if you don't want. I only need to rest a little and can gather my things and not bother you any more.
(Perception and investigation are the same for me: 15)
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Eithne's perception: 10
Eithne does not want to lie to the man... but she does not want to tell him all either! That could only endanger the poor soul even more.
"Well, Bran," she comes up with "short explaination: a false raven advised us to dig here".
The savage stranger gives the man a few moments to absorb the absurdity, then explains a little: "The raven was too smart and communicated too well to be an animal, but I don't know what it was exactly. We were already looking for something - we are not serial tomb profanators - so we choose to take rhe advice and dig there".
"We could tell you more, should you choose to stick with us" adds the last of the dusk elf maidens before even realizing it. "I don't know if advise you to accept or not... because, you see, if you really are like me, as I suppose, you have probably abundance of loneliness and hardness awaiting you. And whoever put you in a tomb, he could easily do it again - maybe even do worst. Sticking with us, you would at least not be alone. On the other hand, we also are in danger - so sticking with us would bring our danger upon you too".
"The choice" her azure eyes are not leaving a moment that of the man "is yours".
Investigation: 17
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(23 on Investigation... nice!)
"Thanks, Lenn," Chara whispers back. "I'll go ahead and have Ichabod scout around a little bit more... since we found Bran alive, he couldn't have been put there more than a few hours ago."
Once she's made sure that the man that they just dug up is uninjured, Chara climbs out of the grave to clean up a little bit from the dig and make sure that Lydel is still in the cart where she put him (she made sure to put a leash on him to prevent him from wandering away from the cart). She gives Ichabod a command to check the area around the graveyard for any signs of Bran's would-be killers or anything else out of place. As much as she hates to agree with the tiny devil, she can't help but find the raven suspicious as well, especially in conjunction with finding Bran buried nearby.
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From inside the fog, not to far away but obscured, Lenny’s voice suddenly replies Bran’s question.
“Diggin tombs to rescue good husbands with lutes… apparently “
He doesn’t want to sound rude, it seems that’s his attempt at some kind of humor but… it doesn’t goes well…
PbP Character: A few ;)
When he hears Eithne talking about the crow and then the armored man's response, Bran let's out a soft chuckle.
- That's what I get for asking too much - he says, not seeming upset at all, but rather more and more calm. "These people do not seem bad at all", he thinks, "They merely have their own business and don't need to share any more than they want to".
Upon hearing Eithne next words, he hesitates for a moment.
- Danger, huh? It seems I'm already there. I need to look for my family, I need to know what happened. But maybe going home right now doesn't seem like the best of ideas. If Elia and Cassandra are there and allrigth...well... best not to bring whatever I've been involved with to them for the moment. And if they aren't there, then...that is not a place I want to go back to. Well, perhaps only to look for clues.
When the Eithne offers him to stick with them he looks directly into her eyes:
- Would you have me? That's a kind offer and I thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I promise I will make myself useful. I'm not particulary good with weapons, but I do have a way with people. I can be rather persuasive if you need me to be and I can wield some useful magic. I can also help with my music if you guys want. It can be helpful ... calming... and can even make people rest a little better.
At this point, his gaze wanders to the rest of the group, hoping they are as welcoming as the azure-eyed woman of the wilderness.
- Where do your steps take you from here?
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra