"These are the souls of adventurers. Perhaps they do still hold a grudge against the darklord. They do this every midnight. Unresponsive, they march to Ravenloft, and disappear in its halls."

Kessintra's eyes widen for a moment. All of the spirits are adventurers...All like them? This seems to support her theory about the Vistani's possible ulterior motives for bringing them here. Who were these people, if not sacrifices?

All the more reason to defeat Strahd and end the curses here. This gives us more purpose than before. As the party moves into the church, Garrick checks into the 4 rooms along the hallway.

1. This dirty, lightless room contains a wooden bed with a straw-filled mattress. Mounted above the bed’s headboard is a wooden holy symbol.

2. This dirty room contains a wooden bed with a straw-filled mattress, next to which rests a small table with an oil lamp burning brightly on it. Mounted above the bed’s headboard is a wooden sun-shaped holy symbol.

3. Time and neglect have punched holes in the ceiling of this moldy room, which contains a few broken roof shingles amid puddles of water. In one corner, set into the floor, is a heavy wooden trapdoor held shut with a chain and a padlock. A young man’s screams of anguish can be heard through the door.

4. An old desk and chair stand against the south wall, a wooden holy symbol mounted above them—a sunburst. A ten-foot-long iron rod attached to the north wall stands bare, suggesting a tapestry once hung there. Against the far wall stands a wooden cabinet with four tall doors.

Kessintra gives a nod at Garrick's statement before taking a seat near the window and pulling out her lyre. It wouldn't soothe the poor souls outside like it did her own spirits, but it was just instinct to play for the dead.

Performance 13

Garrick investigates the desk and cabinet in the fourth room.

Investigation 14

The desk drawers contain a few sheets of blank parchment, along with a couple of quill pens and dried-up jars of ink.

For its size, the wooden cabinet contains very little. Inside are a tinderbox, a few wooden boxes full of candles, and two well-used books: Hymns to the Dawn and The Blade of Truth: The Uses of Logic in the War Against Diabolist Heresies, as Fought by the Ulmist Inquisition.

Am I able to see if the books are valuable or contain any useful information?

History 24

One is a volume of chants to the Morninglord, and the other is a strange book that mixes logic exercises with lurid descriptions of fiend-worshiping cults. They only have value in religious circles.

Garrick will investigate rooms 1 and 2 also, leaving room 3 with the trapdoor.

Investigation 18

There is nothing of value.

Do you know what type of creature your son has become? That information could help us put him to rest. To the others Garrick asks, is everyone ready to face him below?

"He is a vampire spawn. Plain and simple."

Kessintra gets up, hearing Garrick's question. "A stake should work. We might try talking to him first, see if he remembers anything about what happened or the castle."

Father, are you and the coffin safe here? Ismirk are you joining us or going to stay here?

The priest replies first. "I will be safe here." Then Ismirk. "I will be joining you." "Me too," Ireena interjects. 

Ismirk turns to his sister, disappointed. "Ireena..." "Ismirk." "What if he turns you?" "He's only a spawn; he can't turn me." "What if he kills you?" "Under Strahd? No way would he kill me. Not without Strahd here."

Alright. Let’s go then, and he opens the trap door.

The church’s undercroft has rough-hewn walls and a floor made of damp clay and earth. Rotting wooden pillars strain under the weight of the wooden ceiling. Candlelight from the chapel above slips though the cracks, allowing you to glimpse a gaunt shape in the far corner.

Kessintra somehow finds the siblings' bickering lightens her mood, even in such a dreadful situation. She follows Garrick into the undercroft, looking around carefully with her superior darkvision.

Perception 18

"Uh...What's the priest's son's name?" She whispers to Ireena and Ismirk, figuring they knew him to an extent.

Ireena responds, "Uhh.... Doru, I think?"

You can see a slumped over figure with hitched breathing. He's insane.