Pizazz's Ravenloft and Beyond

Ulthan likes her. She's...really nice...to look at, and he doesn't like talk much, but her voice sounds real nice. 

She glances at him curiously then steps forward, "So, big guy....we all friendly? My name is Ezmerelda, you can call me Ezz. What's your name?  What are you doing here? Did the Abbott let you in?" 

Weapons still out, but in a more relaxed stance, she steps forward. Looking behind her Ulthan sees a bed, a backpack, a cook pot. She's been living in this room that was once a barracks.

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The group turns away and starts heading towards the gate house and the whiny iron gate that leads back to town. The door to the Abbey opens and the two guards come walking / hand-walking after you.  They don't make eye contact and look to be returning to their posts after you leave.  You all look around.  Where the heck has Ulthan got to? 

"hrmpfh ulthan looking no hrmpfh" Assuming she asks to expand he continues trying to make himself understood by this apparent slow minded woman. "hrmpfh looking at stuff place no fit hrmpfh" "hrmpfh abot no invite". "hrmpfh ulthan go not go hrmpfh" Ulthan seems confused why leaving this room is taking so long.

"Ulthan better be at Burgomaster's house!" Lionel looked around quite concerned. Some of this Belviews the Abbot did not even dared to show, who knows what they can do to a lone  ranger! "Meepo, I hate to ask, but before we go, can Rat make a quick round above the abbey? Then we can begin the full search, if there is a chance he is kept there."

     "I don't imagine the Goliath would go down quietly," Ketch speculates.  "But if you are worried I could beseech Gruumsh to point out his direction for us..."

"Well, it's not like he'll have got chatting to somebody... Perhaps our ranger got lost though?  Ketch, that might be useful."

Meepo just follows along, adding anything that could be lost to his floating disk.

Before you have a chance to start casting spells in search of your errant skittish barbarian, you see him emerge from the fog around one side of the abbey.  Rather surprisingly, he has a woman following him. A beautiful woman, with auburn hair, who appears to have a bit of Vistani to her, but otherwise is clearly a 'woman of action', since she wears studded leather armor and has weapons bristling from her.  As Ulthan arrives, and...under the watch of the two mongrelfolk who are keeping their distance but witness the exchange, she walks up besides Ulthan, sliding her arm through his arm and then leaning up against him with a cheerful look in her eyes, and says, "Well, hello there fellows. What a fine lovely evening it is." 

 "Would you look at that - he walks into the monster den and emerges with a pretty woman in tow." Before answering, Lionel came closer and squinted, checking girl's face for the presence of scars. Not finding any (?) he stopped his inquisitive staring (though activating Divine Senses, just in case) and lowed his head politely: "Lovely indeed. And the place can not stop to amaze visitors. Would you be a part of that lovely family as well?" He pointed slightly towards the guards.

She shakes her head, "Oh...no..the Abbott was just letting me stay in a room up top. The....sounds were unpleasant...but the walls were solid."  No scars, she seems to be a real live person. And your senses don't reveal anything about her.  

    "What of it, Ulthan?  The abbot let you have the pick of the litter?" Ketch asks sarcastically.  He's found the entire day trying and is in a bit of a foul mood. "I've never seen you to be social so how did you get yourself such a woman as...  This."

Ulthan "hrmpfh wants stad dead to hrmpfh" Ulthan says in his monotone voice amidst his normal throat clearing as if speech is still somehow foreign or something is perpetually stuck in his throat. His expression is likewise nonchalant as he tends to be, as if this is an everyday common occurrence. If the group made camp he sits down and rests by the fire if not he stands there ready to travel.

A bit more at ease, Lionel apologized "Please, forgive my companion, we had a rough day." (More like a rough month - or was it a year? - but that day was not an exception) "And suspicions too - the Abbot introduced us to a lovely lady here, that looked as if she was stitched up, though never explained anything about her. May I ask what brought you to this strange place?"

     Ketch studies the duo and tries to figure out what he thinks about this.  It's odd that Ulthan would just turn up with a woman in tow, especially after exiting such an abbey or horrors...  But it is entirely like Ulthan to not think such a thing would require explanation.  

Insight check to see if this feels overly odd to Ketch?  12

Ketch tries to take stock of this situation. Ulthan is behaving...oddly familiar with this woman who he doesn't know. That is really the best he can figure. This woman, with her eyes appraising each of them, seems to him as suspicious of them, as they are of her, which is a good sign. Also, the way she holds herself, the way she walks and the weapons and gear on her, it's clear she's an experienced warrior. How she's befriended Ulthan so quickly is the oddest part of this whole thing, otherwise Ketch finds himself believing what this lady has to say. 

She looks at Ketch and makes a pouty lip, "Awww...don't be jealous of the big guy here..."  She pats Ulthans' shoulder and bows deeply, though keeps her eyes on the group as she curties, "My name is Esmerelda. You may call me Ezz. And though we should not speak openly of such things, indeed, I have been looking for allies in my quest, and it seems we are aligned in purpose. What brings me here is a great evil that needs destroying. If you'll permit me to accompany you, then I will likewise permit you to accompany me."  She smiles a mischevious smile and goes back to leaning on Ulthan's shoulder.  Ulthan clearly has no idea how to react to that, so just stands there like a statue.

She glances over at Lionel, "And the Abbott is clearly insane. He may have meant well once upon a time, but his mind is unhinged and he seems to think that building a construct that looks like Strahd's love is going to somehow let the devil go off and live happily ever after, freeing this land."  She makes a spinning finger motion around her right ear and shakes her head.  "The only thing that's going to free this land is a hard silvered steel and a wooden stake."

     Ketch shrugs and looks to Lionel, making it apparent that he feels the decision is Lionel's to make.  

((Was fishing for a reason to use detect magic or something but don't really have one... So Ketch will begrudgingly accept the woman.  For now.))

Meepo looks over the new big to join the group. He just shrugs, not knowing what Bigs are doing most of the time anyway. He humms happily to himself as he walks around, picking up the silver arrow the giant-kin was about to lose out of his quiver. He really should take better care of things like that. Those silver arrows were going to come in useful after all.

Sleight of hand: 13

"That was his plan?" Lionel was so surprised he forgot the rudimentary manners but immediately correcter himself. He bowed too "Lionel Silverstone. Pleased to meet you." He nodded the last thing the girl said "No arguments here about the steel and stakes. We have some of both and more. But does it mean that you intended to get to the castle and fight Strahd? How did you plan to do it?"

The arrow silently goes missing from Ulthan's quiver and is found by Meepo, put onto the disk of stuff.  Ezz glances behind Ulthan as the arrow is pulled free, and winks at Meepo. Then she turns back to Lionel.  "Ahh, lovely sir dwarf. Monsieur Silverstone. A pleasure, I'm sure. Plan?  Plans tend to be short lived. But, I thought I'd just walk up to the front gates and if he didn't show himself, walk around the castle until I find him. Then...."  She makes a jabbing motion.  "Jabby jabby," she adds unnecessarily.  "I've been waiting for a sunny day, but I'm guessing there won't be one. Not until we're done." 

She pushes herself off of Ulthan and then swings a hand down, slapping his ass hard, before walking forward, "If you need a place to sleep, the barracks are safe. Otherwise let's get some shut eye then go kill the bastard."  

The sting of her slap echoes on Ulthan's buttocks.

Mordekai had been silenced by surprise that Ulthan had emerged with this woman, but snaps out of it and introduces himself with a warm smile. 

"Our previous accommodation is taken up by Lydia Petrovna's guards at the moment, and I'd rather not deal with her again, except possibly to delay her in her attempts to get her son's body to the Abbott, but there are more pressing matters at hand. The barracks might serve better as accommodation for us for the moment?"

     "Weren't we just nicely kicked out of the abbey?  We're now going to ask to use their barracks to nap?" Ketch asks, confused.  He then shrugs and gives up to the momentum of the group...