Late Morning - Day 6 - Vallaki Burgomaster's Mansion

Sandu's Insight check on the maid:

Dormark & Sandu - You are not kept waiting long, soon enough a squat man in fine silks enters the room, accompanied by two large mastiffs; a frightening sight to even the toughest of adventurers.  The Baron has long greying hair and a pallid complexion.  "Ahh, esteemed guests!"  The Baron's voice booms in greeting, "Welcome, welcome.  I am glad you paid me the honour of a visit."  Though his words contain niceties, there is no warmth behind them.  He extends a hand to Vasili, "and Vasili... you old dog!  This is a most pleasant surprise.  Most pleasant, indeed!"

((Baron Vargas Vallakovich, Baroness Lydia Petrovna, and their two mastiffs - 'Nic' & 'Karl'.  Currently, Lydia is not with you.))

Vasili bows courteously and looks across at both of you, his eyes imploring that you follow suit.  "Dormark, Sandu, may I present the Burgomaster of Vallaki - the great Baron Vargas Vallakovich."  You notice Vasili's voice has affected an even politer tone than usual.  "Baron Vargas, I am sure you are awa..."  Vasili starts.  "Yes, yes.  The most welcome guests I have been hearing so much about."  The baron finishes, smiling broadly.

"May I start Baron by stating that these men surely didn't..." Vasili once more begins.  "Oh," The baron interrupts, "The business concerning poor old Henry.  Terrible business that.  A nasty way to go - am I right?".  "Henrik, Baron," Vasili corrects.  "That's what I said, wasn't it!  Poor Henrik!"  The Baron sweeps aside Vasili to get a better look at the both of you.  "Oh, I know these gentlemen are not responsible for such a heinous crime.  No, no, I can always tell bad blood,"  he says shaking his head, "No sir, this fine gentleman and... metal gentleman - are capable of course - but not the sort, no sir!"

You notice Vasili rolling his eyes behind the Baron.  "If I may then - dear Baron - why did..."  he starts barely getting the words out before he is once more cut off.  "Why did I ask my loyal servant - Mr Strazni - to bring them to see me?"  The Baron asks.  "Why to protect them, of course."  He says, simply.  "You know how people can get - even decent, honest Vallakians mind - when they hear of this spate of murders coincidentally occurring since these gentlemen entered the town."  As the Baron delivers his answer you can tell that Vasili is confused.

"Murders?!  There have been multiple?"  Vasili asks in disbelief.  "Ahh yes, Vasili.  I am afraid that is exactly so.  Each victim with their heads dashed in, or their bones crushed to a pulp.  Why, you can see how people might erroneously,"  Vargas glares at Dormark, "believe that a large metal gentleman may have been responsible for such an act."  The Baron quickly adopts a lighter tone, "Which is why - when people see that I have cleared very publically investigated and cleared them - why, then they will be above reproach."

"Besides, I was slightly taken aback that they had not seen to pay me a visit,"  The Baron says with a pang of sadness in his voice, "Especially given they travel with the son and daughter of my once dear - and now sadly departed - friend, Kolyan Indirovich"  He shakes his head.  "It is a shame that it has been so long since I have seen both Ismark and Ireena," he says to himself.

Drawing his attention back to the current state of affairs the Baron looks at you both, "Oh I suppose I can give you some form of a writ or something clearing you of any involvement in these crimes."  He draws a piece of rolled-up parchment from his silk robe, you can see it bears his wax seal, and passes it towards Sandu.  "I mean unless you could find your way to investigating these murders.  I am sure that all of Vallaki, myself included, would be most grateful.  I could even get Mr Strazni to..."  Vasili shakes his head at the Baron, "No, no, you are right.  It takes a little more tact and finesse than Izek is used to."

"So what say you?"  The Baron asks.  "Ready to do a little sleuthing?", he grins and gently pets the heads of his giant mastiffs.

Late Morning - Day 6 - St. Andral's Church

Galqarin & Valerie - Father Lucian seems a little bewildered as you lead him back up the stairs from the crypt and towards his room.  He emotionally asks, "Are you sure Vallerie - a curse?  On the bones of Saint Andral himself."  The Father gets choked up, "I have failed!  I have failed the Morning Lord, the memory of Saint Andral, the town of Vallaki itself.  I-I-I..."  He blithers, "This place was supposed to be a haven, a place of safety for the people... what will it become now?!"

The old man seems to have aged a great deal since you first met him, the stress of recent events clearly getting to him.  "You must Valerie... and you Galqarin.  You must fix this..." he hisses under his breath, "The Church has, for as long as it has been recorded, stood as a symbol of defiance against Strahd.  If it should fail..."  He lets the thought trail out.

Upon reaching the great hall both Ismark and Ireena dash to help you both.  "What happened?  Father, Father Lucian, are you alright?"  Ireena says, tearfully.  "The bones?"  Ismark questions cooly, "Something has happened to them, hasn't it?"

Sandu was a bit flabbergasted to say the least. The baron was not at all how he had imagined him prior. He was not entirely sure how he had imagined him but certainly a friendly reception had not been in his mind. It was more unnerving than if the baron would have stormed it with loud words and frantic gesticulation. It took Sandu a moment to compose himself. The dogs did not help.

"Besides, I was slightly taken aback that they had not seen to pay me a visit,"  The Baron says with a pang of sadness in his voice, "Especially given they travel with the son and daughter of my once dear - and now sadly departed - friend, Kolyan Indirovich"  He shakes his head.  "It is a shame that it has been so long since I have seen both Ismark and Ireena," he says to himself.

'Well, we were... preoccupied.' Sandu replied less elegantly than he would have wanted. 'Pardon me but to be clear: there has been a slew of murders and you wish to hire us, outsiders,' He stressed the word, 'to investigate? The town guard was ready to arrest us: I don't think that inspires much confidence or trust on our behalf for the people of Vallaki.' 

He glanced at Dormark to see what the warforged had to say about it. 

Vasili shoots a quick look at the Baron, clearly unsure as to how he would take Sandu's comments.  The Baron smiles broad and waves his hand towards Vasili, "Come now Vasili.  Mr Sandu has every right to say what is on his mind."  The mastiff to the Vargas's right snarls and bares its teeth.  "Enough Nic!  An outburst like that is more fitting of your namesake."  The Baron chastises.  Overall you could cut the tension with a knife.

"In truth, I had considered it to be a test of your soundness.  Yet..."  he chuckles, "You expertly turn it back around on me!  That my fellow Vallakians should have to prove their worthiness to yourself.  Delightful."  You watch as Vasili nervously wrings his hands together, "I am sure that is not...".  "Oh, I took no offence Vasili," the Baron says bluntly.  Turning back to Sandu, he explains,  "It is your mistrust and your ability to operate as outsiders that makes you ideally positioned."

The Baron calmly moves to the decanter and pours himself a drink.  "Officially, I think it best that Izek appear to be looking into the murders.  Unofficially, well..."  He smiles at Dormark and Sandu.  "Do this for me and I - as the representative of the people of Vallaki - will be in your debt.  Choose not to and you are free to leave."  He takes a seat and makes himself comfortable, "I do not need an answer straight away, you are free to consult with the others you travel with.  Either way, I shall ensure that Mr Strazni keeps gives you a wide berth... for the time being at least."

Valerie nods to Ismark. "It has been desecrated. But Father is alright now." She pause for a moment.

"While I don't like how you asked, if there is something killing the people in the town I can't vey well ignore... Sorry Sandu, I think you know I can't ignore this. Other than having there heads crush in, is there any other know connection between the victims," asks  Dormark taking the write from the Baron. 

"Also, out of curiosity do you happen to have a pearl worth around 100 gold for sale. I don't currently have the money for it, but I am looking for one because it would have use in an important spell of mine, I thought I would ask since nobles tend to keep certain types of jewelry," he says in a polite tone.

As Dormark speaks the Baron's eyes light up.  "Excellent, excellent."  He says gleefully, "I have access to such a pearl and would be willing to provide it as a reward of sorts for your assistance.  Catch the killer and the pearl is yours."  Vasili smiles, relieved at how things are playing out.  "I could tell these were decent folk from when I first met them," he says warmly, "quick to help out the people - not expecting anything in return."

With a flourish of his hand, he continues, "That said, I would state that such a reward would be small for a task of this importance."  The Baron gives Vasili a quizzical look, "What then would you propose is more fitting?"  He asks curiously.  Drawing himself up, Vasili looks dignified standing in the small room, glass in hand, "As a representative - of sorts - of many of the businesses of Vallaki and given that the crime has robbed us of poor Henrik, perhaps a reward of property is more in order.  More precisely - Henrik's shop.  Given he had no inheritors, it would fall to yourself, Baron, to decide what becomes of it."

Vargas claps Vasili on the back, "Splendid idea!  The town's 'resident protectors' - I like it.  Restoring peace to the streets of Vallaki.  So, how about it Mr Dormark?  Does that sound like a reasonable exchange?"

“I have no grievance with this arrangement. Sandu,” asks Dormark.

Galqarin is starting to get concerned about what fate has befallen the others. He has no desire to visit the Baron, however, so for now he is in a quandary. His anxiety exhibits as repeated stalking up to the doors of the church and back to the Father's bedside.

Sandu took a moment to ponder what was being offered to them and, more importantly, what was being asked of them.

'A place of residence would be nice.' He softly muttered more to himself than anyone else. He rapidly weighted the pros against the cons. Ultimately there was but one argument that tipped the scales.

'If you feel you need to do this.' Sandu strode up to Dormark, 'then we'll do this.' He did give a slight shrug. 'Not sure what the others will think about it though.'

"We seemed to be in agreement than, we would need to talk to the rest of our team, but a criminal going around killing innocent folk is especially evil affair. I think the would agree to this. Is it possible to get access to the individuals who were killed? There wounds could reveal more evidence of the killer," asks  Dormark.

Sandu let Dormark handle most of the, well, he figured he might as well call it the job description. He wondered how they would need to go about it. That thing at the orphanage had been fiendish in nature with all the telltale signs that came with it but with this they had little to go on. Someone or something was going around killing people? That could be just about anything. Though with heads caved in and bones crushed, the culprit must have considerable strength.

He shuddered when a single image from his vision flashed into his mind. Henrik had been terrified and now he fully comprehended why. That did beg the question: was Henrik killed because he could not hold up his end of the very one-sided deal? And if so, what did that mean for the previous victims?

Sandu bit his tongue slightly to focus. Giving Barovia's nature, it could just as well be a deranged person acting out their base instinct or some sick pleasure. But unlike some of the mystery books he had read, Sandu doubted he could solve this from the comfort of a warm, pleasant room at the inn. 

'Once we made sure Father Lucian is all right back at the chuch,' the young man replied to the burgomaster, 'we shall look into this. We... uhm... thank you for not detaining us.' He added a tad awkwardly. Casting an eye to Dormark he continued: 'I'm not sure how the others will take this. I think Valerie would be in agreement but I can't speak for the others.'

Early Afternoon - Day 6 - Vallaki Burgomaster's Mansion

"Not at all, not at all.  I must, once more, apologise for Mr Strazni's 'crudeness' when approaching you earlier."  The Burgomaster says fawningly.  Moments later the maid returns and proceeds to show you out of the mansion, once you have said your farewells.

Once outside Vasili looks visibly relieved, "Thank goodness that is over", he sighs.  "You both done well in there - the Baron is easily enraged, do not let his 'easy-going' demeanour fool you."  He looks around the quiet streets, "I am afraid I must take my leave.  I have an appointment I really should keep.  It was nice to meet you both."  He smiles and shakes you both by the hands, "I am sure we shall meet again.  If you need any further assistance with anything during your stay, my house is located near the Morning Gate, opposite the stockyard."  Vasili gives you one final smile before heading towards the town centre.

The short trip back to the church is uneventful, save for the odd raven here and there, the streets appear to be quieter now.  Though the crowd and guardsmen no longer occupy the space outside the church its door remains firmly shut.  Upon your approach, it creaks open and Ismark peers out.  "What news?" he asks in a hushed tone.

"We are not being arrested yet, but we must cooperate with the Baron in order to clear our names from a rash of murders that have taken place in town. If we do succeed the mayor will reward us the late coffin maker's store/home for a place to stay," says the Warforge

“I no trust Baron”, opines Galqarin. “Maybe we should leave. Go Krezk.”

Sandu walked into the church and slumped down on his previous spot. 

'Not like we had much choice.' He sighed and waved his hand around empathically. 'They already have it out for us to paint us as a scapegoat. If we skip town, that would just make us look even more suspicious.' He rested his hand on his eyes to give them some respite from the light. 'We basically have to solve their problems and they are expecting us to be glad for it too. The store's nice but that's just another way to keep an eye on us.'

He rolled his shoulders to stretch, sat upright and turned his gaze to Valerie. 'What's the situation with the bones? Everything back in order now?' 

Ismark's face is grim, "The Baron?  I must admit it has been years since I last saw him.  I've heard he can be quite slippery."  He looks like he is going to say more but bites his tongue, "I've come to the conclusion...  If Vallaki is not safe for Ireena, Krezk is our best bet.  Though I if you skipped town - as Sandu says - it could be that Vallaki becomes closed off to you in the future.  This seems like a decision that should not be made lightly."

It is then Ireena speaks up, clearly upset, as though she and Ismark are covering ground already walked, "I will not allow your concern for my wellbeing to put our friends at risk, Ismark."  As Sandu mentions the bones she looks at him and shakes her head, "It looks like the bones were changed somehow; desecrated." she whispers in a hushed voice.  "Whatever protection they afforded this place - if any at all - is unlikely to be restored," she says bleakly.

"Abbey of St. Markovia is in Krezk. Maybe monks restore bones", says Galqarin not a little stubbornly.

Valerie returns to the group after helping the father to his rest chamber. "Not good. The bones were desecrated. It cannot be put back to it place." She takes out the bag of bones. "… If anyone can remove the curse that would be great, but I will keep it with me in the mean time."

'That's all fine and dandy but you're skipping the part of us being functionally trapped here.' Sandu chipped in exasperated. 'If we don't fulfill the burgomaster's request,' Sandu accentuated the word with a sarcastic undertone, 'the entire town will descend upon us and that's not a fight we can win. Or even afford. We're hostages but with a fancier name. We can't just-'

He bolted upright and looked Valerie straight in the face, his mouth pulled taut. 'What do you mean the bones cannot be put back? Desecrated?'

Sandu paused for a moment. 'Have you tried to, you know?' He struggled to find the right words and shrugged. 'un-bless and bless them again?'