(On a little vacation through Sunday, posting will probably be pretty spotty- feel free to bot me)
Zefla looks annoyed over at the shop keeper. Not like they have a lot of business. The whole idea puts her in a sour mood and her itchy fingers start wandering…
But as the nephew comes out, she stops. Just in time too as the shopkeeper starts looking them over.
Giles looks up and without missing a beat, he says “Gertrude, dear little Gertrude! Where has she been, have you seen her?” He sets down the whistle. And he starts to flip through the book, occasionally looking up for reactions.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Even to Soren's untrained eye, several of these prices look high. He does not have to fake it for Bildrath that he has been browsing and looking at cost of several of them items and being genuinely surprised each time. 20 gold for a shovel or a grappling hook? Was it customary in a city for an extra zero to creep in at the end of the number representing the item's price? Or perhaps just here in Barovia?
When the big strapping lad appears and Burr and Giles speak up, Soren thinks he understands what they are doing. "I knew her as Gertruda, not Gertrude, but then brothers always have their nicknames for their sisters. I remember something about her loving to read stories out her window?"
Soren sighs and picks up a sack which he is fairly sure should cost a copper, but lays a silver (the marked price) on the counter next to Bildrath anyway. As he does so, he glances at the boy he takes to be Bildrath's son curiously as if to ask - do you like hearing stories, young man?
The 'big strapping lad' looks curiously at the customers, his eyes widening when they mention the girl's name. He gasps. "You know Gertruda? Have you seen her?" he asks breathlessly. Then a sad look passes over his face. "I think she's mad at me. I don't know why. She doesn't read to me any more...".
The shopkeeper had been looking on with mild irritation at all of this. That is, until he sees the young man's reaction. He slams shut the cover of his book and takes off and folds his glasses. "That's enough. Have you been talking to that mad woman? Did she put you up to this? Pariwimple doesn't know what happened to that fool girl, and the mother needs to understand that. He's a good boy, a simple boy. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Unless I asked him to." He leans into that phrase, as if to impress a point. "So either make a purchase, or I will have to kindly ask him to remove you from my shop."
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM -(Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown *Red Dead Annihilation: ToA *Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
“A long time ago…” Pariwimple says sadly. “She was reading to me from her window. Not one of the fun stories. It was one of those romantical stories… Rapunzo, I think. She wanted to read that all the time, nowadays. Yuck.”
He looks even sadder. “I told her I wanted her to read something exciting, like the Green Knight. She got mad and hasn’t read to me since…”. He looks near to tears.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM -(Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown *Red Dead Annihilation: ToA *Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
"Pariwimple, I am sure it has nothing to do with what you said or did. These things just happen, she isn't mad at you, she has disappeared." Not wanting to get into it with the shop keep and itching to know more about their new mission, Zefla starts backing up towards the door. Looking to each of her companions willing them to do the same..
Giles takes his time, slowly looking among the items, but taking in the back and forth from Pariwimple. He twirls his coin on his fingers and listens, lingering, but making his way to the door.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Soren cannot imagine shunning a friend or potential mate for weeks or months over a preference in stories. Is that what most city folk do? Somehow, he thinks not. Not even in this strange, unnatural land and town of Barovia.
"It is as my halfling companion assured you, Pariwimple. Gertruda is not angry with you. We are trying to find her. As my other, bigger companion here asked, anything she may have said the last few times you saw her might put us on the scent." he pauses, his voice quiet. "Even about her dreams."
Having paid Bildrath his silver piece (still ten times too much), Soren loops the sack around the straps of his pack and puts his rope inside it to free up the clutter inside his backpack. Taking his time so as to give the large youth time to answer before ambling towards the exit.
Pariwimple looks back and forth at all the people speaking and asking questions. "Disappeared? Like magic? Like in the stories? She always wanted to disappear. She always talked about being taken away on a magical carpet, or sailing off in a big boat, or having a handsome prince come take her away to become a princess... Do you think she will ever come back? I think she liked it in the stories better than here...?" He hangs his head, distressed.
Content for a moment to conduct the transaction with Soren, the shopkeep turns his attention back to the boy. "Satisfied? The lad will be out of sorts all day now, thanks to your prodding. He knows nothing about what happened, and couldn't explain it to you even were he an eye-witness. He's a kind boy, but dim as a hooded lantern. Now stop harassing him or I am going to get very cross with you."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM -(Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown *Red Dead Annihilation: ToA *Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
Giles heads out and says “Well, we learned a little more, but achieved nothing. Let’s keep an eye out for dear old Gertruda. Should we be on to Ismark’s house?”
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Zefla heads out as the proprietor starts *****ing about what they did. As Giles joins her, she rolls her eyes at the whole dear Gertruda bit, "You've never met the girl! For all we know, she ran off with some stud and is happy for the first time in her life."
She nods at the mention of Ismark and starts heading off toward the big house, keeping her eye out for others along the way, in particular the Vistani.
"Aye Zefla," Soren muses thoughtfully as he joins the others on the way to the late Burgomaster's house to meet Ismark. "Pariwimple's words do make it sound as if Gertruda simply ran away to follow her dreams. Perhaps after reading of so many heroes, she wished to find her own." He leaves the rest unsaid: I only hope she did not find a villain instead. Such as perhaps one who lives in a dark castle on a bluff and rules the land...
Soren keeps a close eye on the town streets and buildings, in case another angry mob might form. "And now we are to aid Ismark Kolyana's sister Ireena in her own escape of sorts... I just hope she is of the same mind as her brother. Ismark seemed to be trying to convince himself of that. People and beasts should live free and wander as they wish. Perhaps we should convince Ismark himself to come with us so he can persuade her."
Burr smiled sourly, " If the lord of this land truly has his eye on Ismarks sister we're likely to not be here too long anyway........based on whats happened to others that have gone against him."
"Aren't you a optimist, Burr." And Zefla heads up the front stairs of the manor, starts to reach for the door knocker, thinks better of it and knocks her fist against the door. Then backs up a bit as she waits.
"Aren't you a optimist, Burr." And Zefla heads up the front stairs of the manor, starts to reach for the door knocker, thinks better of it and knocks her fist against the door. Then backs up a bit as she waits.
" Have you seen our luck lately?", Burr grinned as she knocked.
As you make your way back down the street toward the Burgomaster's manor, you don't pass any more villagers. It is midday now, and the lack of pedestrian traffic or laborers make this feel like a ghost town. Whether it is always like this here, or if the empty streets are a result of this morning's political violence, it is hard to say.
Speaking of midday...
Soren:
Something troubling occurs to you. Since you first arrived in Barovia, you've had a difficult time getting your directional senses (North/South/East/West) straightened out. A source of the problem occurs to you now... you can't find the sun. While the thick cloud cover explains the suns obfuscation, what it doesn't explain is the lack of any clues whatsoever as to the location of the sun. Even on the cloudiest of days, eventually there is some break in the clouds to allow a few rays of light through, or a thin patch which brightens to reveal the location of the light source. Here... everything is uniform. There is no doubt it is daytime... you recall how dark it was by comparison last night, when the wolves were hunting and you were trapped in that house... but the sun itself can't be located. It is almost as if the world is illuminated by some soft, ambient light rather than a central, blazing sun. It's a crazy thought and a little disorienting, but now that you have noticed it, it is hard to ignore.
As you draw close, you see a peasant man leaning on the wall outside the front door of the house. Burr, Sorenand Gileswould recognize him as one of the people who had been inside when they followed Ismark in earlier this morning. Now, he is smoking a crudely rolled cigarette, looking very tired. He glances in your direction as you approach, but he moves a few steps to the side to allow you in without having to interact with you.
Entering the home, Zeflasees the interior for the first time. While the exterior has the same drab, faded and broken down appearance as the rest of the village, the interior here is warmer and full of more creature comforts than the tavern. You are in a main hall. Two staircases rise to the second floor and a fancy rug covers part of the stone floor - Burr, Sorenand Gileswould note the bloodstained rug upon with the old man had lain is missing. Paneled wood doors lead off in all directions. One such door stands open. On the other side, a parlor has been transformed into a makeshift shrine. The body of the Burgomaster lies on a table, covered in a thick grey bedsheet. His wound has been cleaned and from your vantage point you could almost mistake him for being asleep, rather than dead. Seated beside the body, back to you, is an auburn-haired woman in leather pants and a doublet.
Above you, at the top of the stairs, Ismark sees you enter and descends, practiced footfalls quietly avoiding and squeaks from the old wooden steps. "Good of you to come," he says in greeting. And then, without missing a beat or changing his tone, "We have a small problem." You notice a welt is rising below his right eye... it looks like a bruise is forming there.
His voice hushed, he gestures over your shoulders at the woman in the parlor. "My sister, Ireena. She has agreed to my proposal - that the four of you shall escort her. To Vallaki, and to safety therein." He turns and opens a cabinet in the wall. He runs his hand over crystal decanters, nearly all of them empty, before snatching one with a small amount of clear liquid at the bottom. He grabs some tiny glasses to go with it. "However," he continues, "she refuses to leave until she has seen our father laid to rest in the local cemetery. I cautioned her on the potential costs of sentimentality at a time like this but... she does not see the matter as negotiable." He holds up the uncorked bottle. "Chacha?" he offers. Though it resembles vodka, you detect an odor of dried fruit rising from the spirit.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM -(Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown *Red Dead Annihilation: ToA *Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
(On a little vacation through Sunday, posting will probably be pretty spotty- feel free to bot me)
Zefla looks annoyed over at the shop keeper. Not like they have a lot of business. The whole idea puts her in a sour mood and her itchy fingers start wandering…
But as the nephew comes out, she stops. Just in time too as the shopkeeper starts looking them over.
" Do you think Gertrude would like this?", Burr calls out to Giles holding up a book on perennial herbs..
Off Giles look ( no matter what it may be), " My sister, Gertrude. Do you think she'd like it?"
Giles looks up and without missing a beat, he says “Gertrude, dear little Gertrude! Where has she been, have you seen her?” He sets down the whistle. And he starts to flip through the book, occasionally looking up for reactions.
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Even to Soren's untrained eye, several of these prices look high. He does not have to fake it for Bildrath that he has been browsing and looking at cost of several of them items and being genuinely surprised each time. 20 gold for a shovel or a grappling hook? Was it customary in a city for an extra zero to creep in at the end of the number representing the item's price? Or perhaps just here in Barovia?
When the big strapping lad appears and Burr and Giles speak up, Soren thinks he understands what they are doing. "I knew her as Gertruda, not Gertrude, but then brothers always have their nicknames for their sisters. I remember something about her loving to read stories out her window?"
Soren sighs and picks up a sack which he is fairly sure should cost a copper, but lays a silver (the marked price) on the counter next to Bildrath anyway. As he does so, he glances at the boy he takes to be Bildrath's son curiously as if to ask - do you like hearing stories, young man?
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
The 'big strapping lad' looks curiously at the customers, his eyes widening when they mention the girl's name. He gasps. "You know Gertruda? Have you seen her?" he asks breathlessly. Then a sad look passes over his face. "I think she's mad at me. I don't know why. She doesn't read to me any more...".
The shopkeeper had been looking on with mild irritation at all of this. That is, until he sees the young man's reaction. He slams shut the cover of his book and takes off and folds his glasses. "That's enough. Have you been talking to that mad woman? Did she put you up to this? Pariwimple doesn't know what happened to that fool girl, and the mother needs to understand that. He's a good boy, a simple boy. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Unless I asked him to." He leans into that phrase, as if to impress a point. "So either make a purchase, or I will have to kindly ask him to remove you from my shop."
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM - (Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown * Red Dead Annihilation: ToA * Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
Burr ignored the older man, " Pariwimple? When was the last time you saw her? And where?"
“A long time ago…” Pariwimple says sadly. “She was reading to me from her window. Not one of the fun stories. It was one of those romantical stories… Rapunzo, I think. She wanted to read that all the time, nowadays. Yuck.”
He looks even sadder. “I told her I wanted her to read something exciting, like the Green Knight. She got mad and hasn’t read to me since…”. He looks near to tears.
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM - (Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown * Red Dead Annihilation: ToA * Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
"Pariwimple, I am sure it has nothing to do with what you said or did. These things just happen, she isn't mad at you, she has disappeared." Not wanting to get into it with the shop keep and itching to know more about their new mission, Zefla starts backing up towards the door. Looking to each of her companions willing them to do the same..
Romance....teenage girl....
" Pariwimple? Did Gertruda mention anyone else in the village at all by name? Around the time her taste in stories changed?"
He nodded to Zefla but waited for a reply....
Giles takes his time, slowly looking among the items, but taking in the back and forth from Pariwimple. He twirls his coin on his fingers and listens, lingering, but making his way to the door.
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Soren cannot imagine shunning a friend or potential mate for weeks or months over a preference in stories. Is that what most city folk do? Somehow, he thinks not. Not even in this strange, unnatural land and town of Barovia.
"It is as my halfling companion assured you, Pariwimple. Gertruda is not angry with you. We are trying to find her. As my other, bigger companion here asked, anything she may have said the last few times you saw her might put us on the scent." he pauses, his voice quiet. "Even about her dreams."
Having paid Bildrath his silver piece (still ten times too much), Soren loops the sack around the straps of his pack and puts his rope inside it to free up the clutter inside his backpack. Taking his time so as to give the large youth time to answer before ambling towards the exit.
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Pariwimple looks back and forth at all the people speaking and asking questions. "Disappeared? Like magic? Like in the stories? She always wanted to disappear. She always talked about being taken away on a magical carpet, or sailing off in a big boat, or having a handsome prince come take her away to become a princess... Do you think she will ever come back? I think she liked it in the stories better than here...?" He hangs his head, distressed.
Content for a moment to conduct the transaction with Soren, the shopkeep turns his attention back to the boy. "Satisfied? The lad will be out of sorts all day now, thanks to your prodding. He knows nothing about what happened, and couldn't explain it to you even were he an eye-witness. He's a kind boy, but dim as a hooded lantern. Now stop harassing him or I am going to get very cross with you."
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM - (Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown * Red Dead Annihilation: ToA * Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
Giles heads out and says “Well, we learned a little more, but achieved nothing. Let’s keep an eye out for dear old Gertruda. Should we be on to Ismark’s house?”
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Zefla heads out as the proprietor starts *****ing about what they did. As Giles joins her, she rolls her eyes at the whole dear Gertruda bit, "You've never met the girl! For all we know, she ran off with some stud and is happy for the first time in her life."
She nods at the mention of Ismark and starts heading off toward the big house, keeping her eye out for others along the way, in particular the Vistani.
"Aye Zefla," Soren muses thoughtfully as he joins the others on the way to the late Burgomaster's house to meet Ismark. "Pariwimple's words do make it sound as if Gertruda simply ran away to follow her dreams. Perhaps after reading of so many heroes, she wished to find her own." He leaves the rest unsaid: I only hope she did not find a villain instead. Such as perhaps one who lives in a dark castle on a bluff and rules the land...
Soren keeps a close eye on the town streets and buildings, in case another angry mob might form. "And now we are to aid Ismark Kolyana's sister Ireena in her own escape of sorts... I just hope she is of the same mind as her brother. Ismark seemed to be trying to convince himself of that. People and beasts should live free and wander as they wish. Perhaps we should convince Ismark himself to come with us so he can persuade her."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Burr smiled sourly, " If the lord of this land truly has his eye on Ismarks sister we're likely to not be here too long anyway........based on whats happened to others that have gone against him."
"Aren't you a optimist, Burr." And Zefla heads up the front stairs of the manor, starts to reach for the door knocker, thinks better of it and knocks her fist against the door. Then backs up a bit as she waits.
" Have you seen our luck lately?", Burr grinned as she knocked.
As you make your way back down the street toward the Burgomaster's manor, you don't pass any more villagers. It is midday now, and the lack of pedestrian traffic or laborers make this feel like a ghost town. Whether it is always like this here, or if the empty streets are a result of this morning's political violence, it is hard to say.
Speaking of midday...
Soren:
Something troubling occurs to you. Since you first arrived in Barovia, you've had a difficult time getting your directional senses (North/South/East/West) straightened out. A source of the problem occurs to you now... you can't find the sun. While the thick cloud cover explains the suns obfuscation, what it doesn't explain is the lack of any clues whatsoever as to the location of the sun. Even on the cloudiest of days, eventually there is some break in the clouds to allow a few rays of light through, or a thin patch which brightens to reveal the location of the light source. Here... everything is uniform. There is no doubt it is daytime... you recall how dark it was by comparison last night, when the wolves were hunting and you were trapped in that house... but the sun itself can't be located. It is almost as if the world is illuminated by some soft, ambient light rather than a central, blazing sun. It's a crazy thought and a little disorienting, but now that you have noticed it, it is hard to ignore.
As you draw close, you see a peasant man leaning on the wall outside the front door of the house. Burr, Soren and Giles would recognize him as one of the people who had been inside when they followed Ismark in earlier this morning. Now, he is smoking a crudely rolled cigarette, looking very tired. He glances in your direction as you approach, but he moves a few steps to the side to allow you in without having to interact with you.
Entering the home, Zefla sees the interior for the first time. While the exterior has the same drab, faded and broken down appearance as the rest of the village, the interior here is warmer and full of more creature comforts than the tavern. You are in a main hall. Two staircases rise to the second floor and a fancy rug covers part of the stone floor - Burr, Soren and Giles would note the bloodstained rug upon with the old man had lain is missing. Paneled wood doors lead off in all directions. One such door stands open. On the other side, a parlor has been transformed into a makeshift shrine. The body of the Burgomaster lies on a table, covered in a thick grey bedsheet. His wound has been cleaned and from your vantage point you could almost mistake him for being asleep, rather than dead. Seated beside the body, back to you, is an auburn-haired woman in leather pants and a doublet.
Above you, at the top of the stairs, Ismark sees you enter and descends, practiced footfalls quietly avoiding and squeaks from the old wooden steps. "Good of you to come," he says in greeting. And then, without missing a beat or changing his tone, "We have a small problem." You notice a welt is rising below his right eye... it looks like a bruise is forming there.
His voice hushed, he gestures over your shoulders at the woman in the parlor. "My sister, Ireena. She has agreed to my proposal - that the four of you shall escort her. To Vallaki, and to safety therein." He turns and opens a cabinet in the wall. He runs his hand over crystal decanters, nearly all of them empty, before snatching one with a small amount of clear liquid at the bottom. He grabs some tiny glasses to go with it. "However," he continues, "she refuses to leave until she has seen our father laid to rest in the local cemetery. I cautioned her on the potential costs of sentimentality at a time like this but... she does not see the matter as negotiable." He holds up the uncorked bottle. "Chacha?" he offers. Though it resembles vodka, you detect an odor of dried fruit rising from the spirit.
PC - Ethel - Human - Lvl 4 Necromancer - Undying Dragons * Serge Marshblade - Human - Lvl 5 Eldritch Knight - Hoard of the Dragon Queen
DM - (Homebrew) Heroes of Bardstown * Red Dead Annihilation: ToA * Where the Cold Winds Blow : DoIP * Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts: HotDQ * Red Wine, Black Rose: CoS * Greyhawk: Tides of War
Burr grunted, " I can serve as gravedigger if needed."