Emma wants to reply but... she simply shakes her head instead. She did nothing, except landing a final blow on a weakened piece of metal. There was no point in saying that, though. If anything else happens, she should just keep out of danger and leave everything to the others, who seemed competent.
As no answer comes, Emma opens the door and walks in to what littlen space there is, to lean over the crib. Moving empty armours and disappearing babies, and they said the house wasn't creepy. Emma's so tense she'd probably jump out of her skin if someone even calls 'boo' from behind.
"There really is no baby, how did you know?" Emma asks Kal. She thought the strange man was spouting nonsense, but it seems he knew what he was saying.
Kal gives Emma a knowing look as they walk into the room to an empty crib and no baby to be seen. "We're travelers," he responds to the new woman's question. "We seem to have lost our way in the fog outside and came across the house here. We saw the two older chilidren outside, and came inside to make sure everything was okay after they told us of a monster in the basement."
"Are you the children's nanny?" he asks.
Turning to Emma when she asks her question, he tells her, "I didn't know for sure. Just seemed like it would fit with all the rest of the strangeness going on. Mysterious fog somehow resulting in me being in the middle of this forest, doors closing and locking behind us on their own, the sounds of a harp with no one there to play it..."
There was no one there before, I’m sure of it. And no tracks on the ground. No one living has been here for a long time. And that explains it.
Juniper regains her composure, quietly watches the exchange with a heavy heart. She looks carefully at the bed. Is there an indentation where the woman’s body lay? Do the woman’s feet leave tracks in the dust?
Vice’s brow furrows at the sight of the empty crib, and the woman cowering in the room. “We should have listened to you.” He whispers to Kal.
“We really mean no harm, miss.” Vice says, “If you know how to open the front door, we’ll let the children in and leave right the way. I promise.” Then he gestures for others to slowly back out the room, not turning their back on her, like backing away from a cornered animal.
Upon hearing Emma saying that there is no baby, the woman leaves the corner of the room.
"You must be mistaken," the woman says, trying to stay calm. "Walter must be in his crib."
She continues making her way around the foot of the bed, and then you notice that she doesn't seem to avoid the bed end altogether but rather passes through it. Then as she moves even closer, you see that the woman is translucent. The woman continues to walk to the adjacent room, passing through Emma to look into the crib. She begins to chuckle nervously to herself.
"H-he must be with his siblings. That's where he must be."
Then she seems to remember the other questions that she was asked.
"The nanny? Yes, I was the nursemaid for the Durst family. I took care of Rose, Thorn and Walter for Mr and M-Mrs Durst."
As she says the name Mrs Durst, a look of fear is seen in her eyes. Then she recomposes herself and puts on a smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"As for the front door, it should be unlocked. I have no idea why it would be at this hour."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
"Well, I didn't se-" Emma was sure she was imagining things - being too so tired and all - when the person passed through the bed. Even the translucency... she's probably just having a hard time focusing, for some reason. Like when one's finger looks translucent if you try looking at it when it's very close to one eye. But still, because of all that happened before in this house, maybe she wasn't imagining it.
When the woman gets too close without slowing down or making any signs of trying to go around Emma, Emma sticks to the side of the doorway. No, more than that. She presses against it as hard as she can, to leave as much room as possible for the woman to pass. She'd merge with the wood if she could, only to avoid standing in the woman's path. Her heart pounds rapidly, her face pale. Emma's so frightened she doesn't even scream when, despite her best effort, a part of the woman passes through a part of her. A single word leaves her mouth, so silent it is nearly inaudible. Could easily be mistaken for the exhalation of air. "G- ghost!"
Frozen in place, Emma doesn't move out of the way while the ghost searches the crib, and not even when it goes back out to talk with the rest. Only her eyes - wide with fright - follow the ghost, fixed on its translucent figure.
Vice's jaw tightens as the nanny reveals her true nature, her incorporeal form passes through the bed. He draws in a breath, and the expression on others' face seem to confirm that he's not imagining this. The woman seems calm now, but she could be easily irritated. He tries to soothe the woman, affecting calm. "Yeah, you're right. Walter must be with his siblings." Are the children they saw outside even real? But the woman's concern for her child and the fear in her eyes definitely seems real.
"Do Mr. and Mrs. Durst treat you badly? If you tell us, maybe we could help you and Walter."
"I was crying?" the nursemaid repeats. "I don't remember that."
The nursemaid shakes her head before turning to Vice. She tilts her head and raises an eyebrow.
"What about Rose and Thorne? Why specifically Walter and I? But no, I can assure you all that everything is quite alright. However, I must go and check on the children."
With that the ghost moves to a door in the room, the nursemaid doesn't open the door and instead passes through the closed door.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
Star watches all that occurs with growing amazement. He had always been told that the spirits of their ancestors watched over them, led them to good hunting grounds. The souls of the dead even featured in some of the stories he would tell the tribe, that he had learned from his father. He had always suspected that they were just that, stories, however important they were. But now he was having to reassess his whole view. Perhaps there was more truth in them than he had thought...
After the woman leaves - right though a door no less! - Star loudly whispers to the others "A spirit! What does this mean? Do you think she knows? Do the children know? Or... are they also..." For the first time since entering the house Star's face shows less then interest or excitement. In fact it bears a look of wide eyed concern as he glances around the group.
Kal slowly backs away from the ghost as it moves through the bed to check the crib, watching carefully to see what it's doing. When it moves towards the door to go 'check on the children', he moves quicker to the side, getting away from the door to let the ghost pass by. Once the ghost passes through the door, he opens it again and follows to see where she goes.
Vice rubs his temples, letting the new reality sink in, no matter how unbelievable this is. There’s always fate worse than death… like haunting an empty house looking for your lost child. The corner of his lips lifts up in a bitter smile, “Yeah.” He says, after the woman has left, “I think the children are ghosts too. It’s the only way this makes sense.”
He pauses, a thought scratches at back of his head. “Who’s been feeding the dog then?” He goes to the door and looks out, to see if Lancelot is still around.
Kal opens the door to find a staircase that leads up. This is stairway is filled with cobwebs, and the steps are covered in a thick layer of dust. However, the nursemaid is no where in sight. With no other choice, Kal begins to climb the stairs. The steps creaks as Kal walks, but they do not break and are otherwise sturdy. At the top of the staircase, Kal finds a hall that is choked with dust and cobwebs. There is not much else in this attic hall. Although, there are several doors that leads from the hall to other parts of the attic.
Meanwhile, Vice returns to the third floor balcony area in search of the missing Lancelot. He was last spotted just before the incident with the suit of armour. It doesn't take long before Vice finds the dog peeking up over the top step of the stairs checking to see if it is now safe. Once Lancelot realises that is coast is now clear, he climbs up the step and sits down in front of Vice wagging his tail.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
“Hey, buddy.” Vice smiles, his mood seems to lighten as he sees Lancelot. He kneels down and pats the dog, meanwhile checking to see anything unusual about him, worried that Lancelot will turn out to be a ghost as well.
Vice kneels to pat Lancelot. He feels the soft fur of the dog under the palm of his hand. The dog is corporeal, not like the nursemaid, not like ghosts.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Kal pauses at the stop of the stairs to peer down the hall and listen to see if he can hear anything from behind the doors there. If he doesn't hear anything, he shrugs after a minute and tries the first door he comes to.
Juniper had the same thought as Vice and silently accompanies him to Lancelot. She had put her arm around the dog earlier and knew it to be solid and breathing. As Vice assures himself that the dog is alive, the young elf’s eyes dwell on the pooch.
Not every creature here is dead. At least two are flesh and blood.
“Who is feeding and letting out Lancelot when nature calls?,” she asks Vice rhetorically.
As Kal stands at the top of the stairs, the attic seems quiet. There is no sign of the nursemaid's ghost anywhere. The first door that Kal comes to is padlocked. The key is probably somewhere else in the house, although, it could be easily picked with the right tools. This leaves three doors left to check in the attic. One door on the other side of the attic, and two doors on opposite sides of a short corridor to Kal's left.
Moving to check the doors to the left, the first door squeals open onto a spare bedroom choked with dust. The wardrobe lies open and empty. The desk is stained red—wine, perhaps?. A rocking chair rocks slightly in the draft Kal's created, while a doll in a lacy, yellow dress smiles at him. Webs drape her head like a wedding veil.
With no signs of the nursemaid, or children, Kal opens the other door to a storage room. The room is packed with old furniture draped in yellowing sheets—chairs, coat racks, coaches dappled with mold, standing mirrors, mannequins that loom out from the shadows like forgotten widows and witnesses to ruin. A wooden trunk sits nearby, its cover slightly ajar.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
Star carefully follows Kal up the stairs. He peers into the spare room after Kal leaves the doorway, then enters while Kal explores the storage room. Going over to the desk he tries any drawers in case they open.
Vice and Lancelot both look up at Juniper, the half-elf scratches the side the little hound’s neck absentmindedly, letting it lick his palm. He shrugs, not knowing the answer either. “Maybe there’s a dog door somewhere.”
“I’m thinking,” He says slowly, getting up, “the house is technically empty. What if we rest here? It’s too late to go anywhere else. It’s haunted… but the woman seems pretty harmless. We’ll just be careful not to set off anymore moving armors.”
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Emma wants to reply but... she simply shakes her head instead. She did nothing, except landing a final blow on a weakened piece of metal. There was no point in saying that, though. If anything else happens, she should just keep out of danger and leave everything to the others, who seemed competent.
As no answer comes, Emma opens the door and walks in to what littlen space there is, to lean over the crib. Moving empty armours and disappearing babies, and they said the house wasn't creepy. Emma's so tense she'd probably jump out of her skin if someone even calls 'boo' from behind.
"There really is no baby, how did you know?" Emma asks Kal. She thought the strange man was spouting nonsense, but it seems he knew what he was saying.
Varielky
Kal gives Emma a knowing look as they walk into the room to an empty crib and no baby to be seen. "We're travelers," he responds to the new woman's question. "We seem to have lost our way in the fog outside and came across the house here. We saw the two older chilidren outside, and came inside to make sure everything was okay after they told us of a monster in the basement."
"Are you the children's nanny?" he asks.
Turning to Emma when she asks her question, he tells her, "I didn't know for sure. Just seemed like it would fit with all the rest of the strangeness going on. Mysterious fog somehow resulting in me being in the middle of this forest, doors closing and locking behind us on their own, the sounds of a harp with no one there to play it..."
There was no one there before, I’m sure of it. And no tracks on the ground. No one living has been here for a long time. And that explains it.
Juniper regains her composure, quietly watches the exchange with a heavy heart. She looks carefully at the bed. Is there an indentation where the woman’s body lay? Do the woman’s feet leave tracks in the dust?
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Vice’s brow furrows at the sight of the empty crib, and the woman cowering in the room. “We should have listened to you.” He whispers to Kal.
“We really mean no harm, miss.” Vice says, “If you know how to open the front door, we’ll let the children in and leave right the way. I promise.” Then he gestures for others to slowly back out the room, not turning their back on her, like backing away from a cornered animal.
Upon hearing Emma saying that there is no baby, the woman leaves the corner of the room.
"You must be mistaken," the woman says, trying to stay calm. "Walter must be in his crib."
She continues making her way around the foot of the bed, and then you notice that she doesn't seem to avoid the bed end altogether but rather passes through it. Then as she moves even closer, you see that the woman is translucent. The woman continues to walk to the adjacent room, passing through Emma to look into the crib. She begins to chuckle nervously to herself.
"H-he must be with his siblings. That's where he must be."
Then she seems to remember the other questions that she was asked.
"The nanny? Yes, I was the nursemaid for the Durst family. I took care of Rose, Thorn and Walter for Mr and M-Mrs Durst."
As she says the name Mrs Durst, a look of fear is seen in her eyes. Then she recomposes herself and puts on a smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"As for the front door, it should be unlocked. I have no idea why it would be at this hour."
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
How long has her body lain dead while her spirit has withered, trapped in this house of death and sorcery?
Juniper clears her throat and speaks to the ghost.
“You were crying. Why? Has something happened? Open your heart, I beg you. We mean no harm.”
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
"Well, I didn't se-" Emma was sure she was imagining things - being too so tired and all - when the person passed through the bed. Even the translucency... she's probably just having a hard time focusing, for some reason. Like when one's finger looks translucent if you try looking at it when it's very close to one eye. But still, because of all that happened before in this house, maybe she wasn't imagining it.
When the woman gets too close without slowing down or making any signs of trying to go around Emma, Emma sticks to the side of the doorway. No, more than that. She presses against it as hard as she can, to leave as much room as possible for the woman to pass. She'd merge with the wood if she could, only to avoid standing in the woman's path. Her heart pounds rapidly, her face pale. Emma's so frightened she doesn't even scream when, despite her best effort, a part of the woman passes through a part of her. A single word leaves her mouth, so silent it is nearly inaudible. Could easily be mistaken for the exhalation of air. "G- ghost!"
Frozen in place, Emma doesn't move out of the way while the ghost searches the crib, and not even when it goes back out to talk with the rest. Only her eyes - wide with fright - follow the ghost, fixed on its translucent figure.
Varielky
Vice's jaw tightens as the nanny reveals her true nature, her incorporeal form passes through the bed. He draws in a breath, and the expression on others' face seem to confirm that he's not imagining this. The woman seems calm now, but she could be easily irritated. He tries to soothe the woman, affecting calm. "Yeah, you're right. Walter must be with his siblings." Are the children they saw outside even real? But the woman's concern for her child and the fear in her eyes definitely seems real.
"Do Mr. and Mrs. Durst treat you badly? If you tell us, maybe we could help you and Walter."
"I was crying?" the nursemaid repeats. "I don't remember that."
The nursemaid shakes her head before turning to Vice. She tilts her head and raises an eyebrow.
"What about Rose and Thorne? Why specifically Walter and I? But no, I can assure you all that everything is quite alright. However, I must go and check on the children."
With that the ghost moves to a door in the room, the nursemaid doesn't open the door and instead passes through the closed door.
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
Star watches all that occurs with growing amazement. He had always been told that the spirits of their ancestors watched over them, led them to good hunting grounds. The souls of the dead even featured in some of the stories he would tell the tribe, that he had learned from his father. He had always suspected that they were just that, stories, however important they were. But now he was having to reassess his whole view. Perhaps there was more truth in them than he had thought...
After the woman leaves - right though a door no less! - Star loudly whispers to the others "A spirit! What does this mean? Do you think she knows? Do the children know? Or... are they also..." For the first time since entering the house Star's face shows less then interest or excitement. In fact it bears a look of wide eyed concern as he glances around the group.
DM - Storm King's Thunder
DM - Torosevia (WIP homebrew world)
Kelytha Meliamne - Matti Silverstorm - Silver - Star-Setting-In-The-East - Tor Baltos
Kal slowly backs away from the ghost as it moves through the bed to check the crib, watching carefully to see what it's doing. When it moves towards the door to go 'check on the children', he moves quicker to the side, getting away from the door to let the ghost pass by. Once the ghost passes through the door, he opens it again and follows to see where she goes.
Vice rubs his temples, letting the new reality sink in, no matter how unbelievable this is. There’s always fate worse than death… like haunting an empty house looking for your lost child. The corner of his lips lifts up in a bitter smile, “Yeah.” He says, after the woman has left, “I think the children are ghosts too. It’s the only way this makes sense.”
He pauses, a thought scratches at back of his head. “Who’s been feeding the dog then?” He goes to the door and looks out, to see if Lancelot is still around.
Kal opens the door to find a staircase that leads up. This is stairway is filled with cobwebs, and the steps are covered in a thick layer of dust. However, the nursemaid is no where in sight. With no other choice, Kal begins to climb the stairs. The steps creaks as Kal walks, but they do not break and are otherwise sturdy. At the top of the staircase, Kal finds a hall that is choked with dust and cobwebs. There is not much else in this attic hall. Although, there are several doors that leads from the hall to other parts of the attic.
Meanwhile, Vice returns to the third floor balcony area in search of the missing Lancelot. He was last spotted just before the incident with the suit of armour. It doesn't take long before Vice finds the dog peeking up over the top step of the stairs checking to see if it is now safe. Once Lancelot realises that is coast is now clear, he climbs up the step and sits down in front of Vice wagging his tail.
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
“Hey, buddy.” Vice smiles, his mood seems to lighten as he sees Lancelot. He kneels down and pats the dog, meanwhile checking to see anything unusual about him, worried that Lancelot will turn out to be a ghost as well.
Perception: 9
Vice kneels to pat Lancelot. He feels the soft fur of the dog under the palm of his hand. The dog is corporeal, not like the nursemaid, not like ghosts.
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
Kal pauses at the stop of the stairs to peer down the hall and listen to see if he can hear anything from behind the doors there. If he doesn't hear anything, he shrugs after a minute and tries the first door he comes to.
Perception: 10
Juniper had the same thought as Vice and silently accompanies him to Lancelot. She had put her arm around the dog earlier and knew it to be solid and breathing. As Vice assures himself that the dog is alive, the young elf’s eyes dwell on the pooch.
Not every creature here is dead. At least two are flesh and blood.
“Who is feeding and letting out Lancelot when nature calls?,” she asks Vice rhetorically.
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
As Kal stands at the top of the stairs, the attic seems quiet. There is no sign of the nursemaid's ghost anywhere. The first door that Kal comes to is padlocked. The key is probably somewhere else in the house, although, it could be easily picked with the right tools. This leaves three doors left to check in the attic. One door on the other side of the attic, and two doors on opposite sides of a short corridor to Kal's left.
Moving to check the doors to the left, the first door squeals open onto a spare bedroom choked with dust. The wardrobe lies open and empty. The desk is stained red—wine, perhaps?. A rocking chair rocks slightly in the draft Kal's created, while a doll in a lacy, yellow dress smiles at him. Webs drape her head like a wedding veil.
With no signs of the nursemaid, or children, Kal opens the other door to a storage room. The room is packed with old furniture draped in yellowing sheets—chairs, coat racks, coaches dappled with mold, standing mirrors, mannequins that loom out from the shadows like forgotten widows and witnesses to ruin. A wooden trunk sits nearby, its cover slightly ajar.
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don't need any rules.” ― Gary Gygax
Star carefully follows Kal up the stairs. He peers into the spare room after Kal leaves the doorway, then enters while Kal explores the storage room. Going over to the desk he tries any drawers in case they open.
DM - Storm King's Thunder
DM - Torosevia (WIP homebrew world)
Kelytha Meliamne - Matti Silverstorm - Silver - Star-Setting-In-The-East - Tor Baltos
Vice and Lancelot both look up at Juniper, the half-elf scratches the side the little hound’s neck absentmindedly, letting it lick his palm. He shrugs, not knowing the answer either. “Maybe there’s a dog door somewhere.”
“I’m thinking,” He says slowly, getting up, “the house is technically empty. What if we rest here? It’s too late to go anywhere else. It’s haunted… but the woman seems pretty harmless. We’ll just be careful not to set off anymore moving armors.”