"Means Ioben is in trouble, and this is most likely a threat to encourage us to go to this meeting," says Dormark reading the letter out loud to those in the cabin.
"Art created by a madman, I am guessing, in this land, that that is not something we would really want to see." Dadeveth says with a frown, her tail swishing nervously. "We don't really have a choice though, as we cannot leave your friend in such a dangerous situation."
Sandu did not notice someone or something sliding a note under the door as he pondered Dormark's latest revelation about his past. Truth be told he would rather dwell on it in the morning after a night's sleep. But the way the wolf, something he was not completely on board with yet, pawed at the door stalled the sweet, sweet onset of sleep.
'I hope he's housebroken 'cause-.' Sandu began when he noticed Dormark was holding a piece of paper he definitely was not holding moments prior. Galqarin inquired what was written on it and Dormark read it out loud to the others. It seemed that Ioben had found himself into a spot of trouble. How that connected to an art exhibit Sandu had not the faintest idea.
'Do we have to?' He groaned already knowing the answer himself. Of course they will. They would not abandon one of their few friends in this godforsaken land. 'That's tomorrow evening though. Means we can sleep this evening and dwell on it come morning.'
Sandu shifted back and forth on his feet. He wanted to go back to sleep before something heavy in his pocket reminded him of another pressing matter.
Sandu walked over to Dormark. 'Dormark, a word if you will.'Sandu glanced around before leaning in a bit and cupping his hand to the side of his mouth. 'In private.' He tilted his head towards the door. He strode over to the front door where the animated armour stood motionless in complete silence. 'Guard this building and don't let anyone come inside that is not one of us.'He gestured at himself and the others in the cottage. Finding that command sufficient for the night, Sandu doubted something more complex might not mesh well with the armour's capacity for orders, he stepped outside to wait for Dormark. Sandu did not step too far, that would be foolish, and kept well in sight of the armour and hoped that a whisper would not pass the walls overheard.
Galqarin observes with curiosity Sandu whispering to the tin man, Dormark, then stepping outside together. He is sure that he could get in a position to overhear their words, but something tells him this would be wrong. No, whatever the mercurial Sandu had to get off his chest, let him do so in private. Dormark is a solid and dependable type and could be trusted to do the right thing with whatever information, or opinion, he was about to receive.
"If we need not worry about this gathering until tomorrow, then I am for bed." Dadeveth says as she puts a hand to her mouth to cover a yawn. "Wake me only if the house is burning down, ok."
Dormark stepping outside closes the door and looks toward Sandu. "What's the matter Sandu? Do you need to speak to me," asks the Warforge.
Sandu crossed his arms and rubbed his upper arms to get a bit more warm in the cool night air. He heard the door close and after taking a deep breath turned to meet Dormark face to face.
'Apologies for calling you outside.' Sandu began. He would have made a remark about the cold but he was not sure the warforged felt cold the same way he did and disregarded the notion. 'It's just that I don't know who else to trust.' He glanced at the cottage, 'I'm sure that Cerio, Dallid and Dadeveth are all fine people, even if the wolf situation is disturbing, but we hardly know them and with Alder staying in Barovia, Baern on his own looking for his mother, Valerie leaving to protect Vallaki and Father Lucian and now Ioben...'
Sandu kicked a clump of mud with the tip of his toe. 'You're about the closest I have to a friend in this unholy land.' He said without looking at Dormark, opting to rather stare out to the village. There was one other name he had not yet mentioned. 'And Galqarin,' he kicked another clump of mud, 'I'm trying, okay?'
He put his hands in his pockets, back turned to Dormark. 'Do you remember Madam Eva's card reading?' He paused for a moment. It seemed that every mention of Madam Eva's title and name demanded a dramatic pause, as if stating her name added a certain gravitas to the situation. Sandu recited the words in a manner recreating the initial reading. Or tried to at least. 'This card tells of a powerful force for good and protection, a holy symbol of great hope. Look for a wizard’s tower on a lake. Let the wizard’s name and servant guide you to that which you seek.'
He pulled something heavy out of his pocket and turned around to show Dormark. From Sandu's hand dangled from a golden chain a platinum amulet shaped like the sun beset with a large red gem in its centre. 'I retrieved this from the tower when we met Ezmerelda and Ricta- Von Richten.' Sandu corrected the name. 'Well, that one pulled it out of the wall and offered it to me.' He corrected himself further with a nod towards the animated armour standing as sentry near the door.
'There is power in it. Real power. Divine power.' Sandu held the amulet up to eye level. 'I can sense it. It's odd to think something like it exists in this godsforsaken land. But it is not mine to wield. Guess I have cursed the gods' names too many times for them to care about me. But you, Dormark,' Sandu looked past the amulet to meet Dormark's gaze eye to eye. 'you're a man of faith. A good man. A better man than I am.'
Sandu managed a wry smile at what he had said. Somehow he had not thought of Dormark as a tin man or something unusual to behold in the past conversation but just a man who, like him, had been tossed into this ordeal and was trying to make the best of it. Yet he did more than Sandu: Sandu looked out for himself, Dormark looked out for everyone. He was in many ways Sandu's complete antithesis. Clerics.Sandu made a mental sneer bordering on fondness.
He pressed the amulet into Dormark's hand. 'You should be the one to hold on to this. Find a way to use it.' He closed the warforged fingers around the sun. 'There might come a time when we will be at a loss of what to do. I'm hoping your flame will guide us through the darkness when it comes to that.'
An embarrassing flush of red crept onto Sandu's face and he punched Dormark in the shoulder. 'Listen to me getting all melodramatic.' He reached for the back of his neck and let out a hearty laugh. 'I really ought to stop reading all those fantasy tales, hehehe.'
TL;DR Sandu gives the platinum amulet found in the wizard tower to Dormark.
Dormark looking at the necklace looks back at Sandu and says, "Sandu... I am your friend." HIs hand reaching towards Sandu shoulder in a comforting grasp.
"I don't think you give yourself enough credit when you need it. You are a smart individual but considering how smart you are you see the world in a simplistic world view. There is a good man in you, hiding behind the abuse, the fear, and the anger. I wish you could see what I see. The potential you as a man have. One day Sandu if you wanted it, you could find love, get married, and have a family. Then when you old and gray surrounded by your loved ones you can pass to the next realm no fear for your soul, as you have lived a good life. There are very few souls beyond redemption my friend, and you... you don't come even close to them," says Dormark patting the Warlock on the shoulder. He turns and looks out across the way.
"I used to see the potential in me too. To help lost souls find their way, to make my new family out of them. To live and maybe someday die as someone beloved as a father. However, since the day that man stole my soul, my potential, I can't help but see the darkness in others and in myself... Sandu please promise me if I become something I wasn't supposed to be, you'll direct me down the right path. I don't wish to die in darkness & alone...," says Dormark bundling the amulet in his hand. He heads towards the door.
Looking back and Sandu Dormark says in Dwarivsh, "Goodnight Brother." Before opening it and heading back inside to resume his position.
Dormark looking at the necklace looks back at Sandu and says, "Sandu... I am your friend." HIs hand reaching towards Sandu shoulder in a comforting grasp.
"I don't think you give yourself enough credit when you need it. You are a smart individual but considering how smart you are you see the world in a simplistic world view. There is a good man in you, hiding behind the abuse, the fear, and the anger. I wish you could see what I see. The potential you as a man have. One day Sandu if you wanted it, you could find love, get married, and have a family. Then when you old and gray surrounded by your loved ones you can pass to the next realm no fear for your soul, as you have lived a good life. There are very few souls beyond redemption my friend, and you... you don't come even close to them," says Dormark patting the Warlock on the shoulder. He turns and looks out across the way.
Sandu actually cracked a smile. 'Me, married?'He replied with a heartfelt chuckle. 'Might as well become king and live in a castle.' He laughed at his own joke.
He used his sleeve to wipe his eyes. 'You know, doesn't sound so bad the way you put it.' It reminded him of a previous conversation he had with Dormark spent around the campfire talking about love and the face he had pictured about the flames drifted into his mind. 'Not bad at all.'
"I used to see the potential in me too. To help lost souls find their way, to make my new family out of them. To live and maybe someday die as someone beloved as a father. However, since the day that man stole my soul, my potential, I can't help but see the darkness in others and in myself... Sandu please promise me if I become something I wasn't supposed to be, you'll direct me down the right path. I don't wish to die in darkness & alone...," says Dormark bundling the amulet in his hand. He heads towards the door.
Made of metal he may be but Sandu could feel the distress plaguing his friend. A very palpable, very human fear: the idea that you will fail; that you will not measure up to the person you thought you would be. He could relate. Sandu placed a comforting hand on the warforged's shoulder.
'I'll watch your back if you watch mine.'He was not very keen on making promises but exceptions could always be made. Sandu reached for a small pocket on the inside of his vest and pulled out one of his most cherished possessions: a well used, well worn pack of card. 'Here.' He slid out the ace of hearts and stuck the card to Dormark's clothes about where he had previously shown the empty compartment. 'A placeholder until we get yours back.'
Sandu gave Dormark a smirk. 'And then you better return it or else people are going to say I'm not playing with a full deck of cards.'
He heads towards the door. Looking back at Sandu Dormark says in Dwarivsh, "Goodnight Brother." Before opening it and heading back inside to resume his position.
Sandu looked out over the road going back to the village. 'Brother, huh?' He said it softly, more to reassure himself that he did hear what he had heard. The smirk turned into a genuine smile. 'That's a first.'
A cold breeze blew by and urged Sandu to return back inside. He passed the animated armour posing as sentry and after reiterating his previous command, Sandu opened the door and headed in. He could use a good rest. Right before sleep overtook him, Sandu glanced at the others and mused that maybe, just maybe, the night might not be as dark and full of terrors as Barovia would want them to believe.
Night (well the early hours of the morning) - Day 7/8 - Do Warforged Dream Of Enchanted Boggles?
Settling down for the night, the party soon slowly head towards the land of nod. That is to say, they fall fast asleep, barring Dormark who enters a trance of sorts (akin to a daydream), still, however, able to keep sentry along with the newly acquired animated armour. Their sleep is uninterrupted, save for the now-familiar visions that had dogged them since their arrival within this land.
A distant wolf-howl pierces the silence. Fleeting images of a giant, white she-wolf running through the mists cross your mind. She stands a lot taller than the rest of her pack. The pack had recently accepted a new member. Feelings of pride swell within the she-wolf's heart as she looks across at her nephew -- Ilya. The name echoes in your head as the image fades to black.
The images are replaced with feelings of loneliness and shame. You are isolated and cut off from your friends. Yet, it was all your fault. "What I offer you is a chance. A chance to be the master of your own destiny," you recall the words, they invoke nothing but bitterness now. You hear the sound of dripping, though you are unable to see its source, blinded and alone. "Well, you've really done it now, Ioben. Heh, she told you to take a chance and look where it has landed you. Gods, I should never have left them." Tears stream from your eyes, yet no one is there to see them, or to provide comfort. "I took the ultimate gamble and failed... truth is... the game was rigged from the start."
A sharp wicked cackling fills your mind... followed by a blazing bright light.
The party wakes. It is the dawning of a new day in Barovia. Thick mists roll across the village of Krezk. The night has brought only more questions. Thankfully, the party feels rejuvenated, in spite of the interruptions, having completed a long rest.
((EDIT: Sorry, shouldn't have been a spoiler, should have used a quote. Its a vision that everyone has, the party has been experiencing them since they arrived in Barovia. It has yet been discerned who/what is responsible for them.))
Cerio sits up, yawning and scratching all over. Fleas are such a bother. "Welp, ya think they's any chance 'o breakfast? Can't investigate on an empty stomach, can we?"
Night (well the early hours of the morning) - Day 7/8 - Do Warforged Dream Of Enchanted Boggles?
Settling down for the night, the party soon slowly head towards the land of nod. That is to say, they fall fast asleep, barring Dormark who enters a trance of sorts (akin to a daydream), still, however, able to keep sentry along with the newly acquired animated armour. Their sleep is uninterrupted, save for the now-familiar visions that had dogged them since their arrival within this land.
A distant wolf-howl pierces the silence. Fleeting images of a giant, white she-wolf running through the mists cross your mind. She stands a lot taller than the rest of her pack. The pack had recently accepted a new member. Feelings of pride swell within the she-wolf's heart as she looks across at her nephew -- Ilya. The name echoes in your head as the image fades to black.
The images are replaced with feelings of loneliness and shame. You are isolated and cut off from your friends. Yet, it was all your fault. "What I offer you is a chance. A chance to be the master of your own destiny," you recall the words, they invoke nothing but bitterness now. You hear the sound of dripping, though you are unable to see its source, blinded and alone. "Well, you've really done it now, Ioben. Heh, she told you to take a chance and look where it has landed you. Gods, I should never have left them." Tears stream from your eyes, yet no one is there to see them, or to provide comfort. "I took the ultimate gamble and failed... truth is... the game was rigged from the start."
A sharp wicked cackling fills your mind... followed by a blazing bright light.
The party wakes. It is the dawning of a new day in Barovia. Thick mists roll across the village of Krezk. The night has brought only more questions. Thankfully, the party feels rejuvenated, in spite of the interruptions, having completed a long rest.
((EDIT: Sorry, shouldn't have been a spoiler, should have used a quote. Its a vision that everyone has, the party has been experiencing them since they arrived in Barovia. It has yet been discerned who/what is responsible for them.))
Sandu tossed and turned in the spot he had laid himself down. Sleep had come quickly but was anything but peaceful. Once more did visions of events that he could not possible have experienced fill his dreams. This time Sandu dreamt of wolves. Not ordinary wolves but that most accursed and loathsome kind: werewolves. One of the pack stood out: a tall she-wolf, Sandu had no idea how he could determine that, with white fur and the imposing presence of someone who leads. And who was that with her? Her nephew? Ilya? He knew that name...
The dream images faded and were replaced by a new scene. Feelings not his own filled Sandu's mind. The tears were not his own. He spoke with a voice not his own. But he knew the voice. Ioben! How? Where? Why? The questions blurred together into a maelstrom until a blazing bright light jolted him awake, transitioning from dream to the view of a new sunrise barely visible beyond the think layers of mist that rolled in and around the cottage.
'Whazzut?' Sandu slurred the words. His brain was still progressing waking up. 'Breakfast?' He reached for his backpack before realising that whatever he might have packed away would be stale and not all that edible anymore.
Cerio sits up, yawning and scratching all over. Fleas are such a bother. "Welp, ya think they's any chance 'o breakfast? Can't investigate on an empty stomach, can we?"
'Don't think Krezk has a tavern or inn.'Sandu replied. He tried to clean himself up as best as circumstances allowed. 'We could try the winery? If they sell wines, they might also have food to go with it.'
Cerio is in the process of lacing up and tightening his shoes when the memory of the dream comes back to him. The vision creeps up from behind, much like the predators it revealed.
“Ilya. Ioben.” He mutters the words out loud, trying to find meaning in the sounds. Perplexed, he shakes his head. “I think this place’s gettin’ to me. Seepin’ int’ ma dreams, even.”
He stands and stretches, yawning real big and then smiling at Sandu’s suggestion.
“Well! Any rate, I reckon the winery sounds like a perfect start t’another gray day.”
"Hmm base in last night's vision our theory on Illaid may be correct. It seems like someone in his family also has the werewolf curse," says Dormark beginning to move as the others are waking up.
"I hope you understand my curiosity, but you've been here longer: who sends these visions? It's a bit disorienting, but some of you seem so familiar with it."
"I was born here", Galqarin answers matter-of-factly. "The dreams have only come since" - he pauses to feel his neck before gesturing towards Dormark and Sandu - "I was hung... then met these folk... then Madam Eva". Not that his dreams were much better before; Galqarin had become adept at shutting out the nightmares once daylight arrived to banish them.
Dadeveth shakes herself as she gets to her hooved feet. She frowns as she overhears several of the others making comments that indicate they had similiar dreams to the ones she had that night. As she has nothing to add to those comments,s he remains silent on the matter of the dreams.
"How far away is this winery?" She does ask as indications of where the others wish to head are made. "If it is too-far away, we may need to wait on that, as we need to be close by for going to that gathering this night."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Having followed behind Dallid and Dormark, Galqarin cranes his neck curiously as they read the parchment. "What does it mean?", he wonders aloud.
"Means Ioben is in trouble, and this is most likely a threat to encourage us to go to this meeting," says Dormark reading the letter out loud to those in the cabin.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Cerio wrings his hand, nervous-like. "'N we can bet this like t'be more 'n some fancy shmancy art showin'. Who's this JB feller?"
"Art created by a madman, I am guessing, in this land, that that is not something we would really want to see." Dadeveth says with a frown, her tail swishing nervously. "We don't really have a choice though, as we cannot leave your friend in such a dangerous situation."
Sandu did not notice someone or something sliding a note under the door as he pondered Dormark's latest revelation about his past. Truth be told he would rather dwell on it in the morning after a night's sleep. But the way the wolf, something he was not completely on board with yet, pawed at the door stalled the sweet, sweet onset of sleep.
'I hope he's housebroken 'cause-.' Sandu began when he noticed Dormark was holding a piece of paper he definitely was not holding moments prior. Galqarin inquired what was written on it and Dormark read it out loud to the others. It seemed that Ioben had found himself into a spot of trouble. How that connected to an art exhibit Sandu had not the faintest idea.
'Do we have to?' He groaned already knowing the answer himself. Of course they will. They would not abandon one of their few friends in this godforsaken land. 'That's tomorrow evening though. Means we can sleep this evening and dwell on it come morning.'
Sandu shifted back and forth on his feet. He wanted to go back to sleep before something heavy in his pocket reminded him of another pressing matter.
Sandu walked over to Dormark. 'Dormark, a word if you will.' Sandu glanced around before leaning in a bit and cupping his hand to the side of his mouth. 'In private.' He tilted his head towards the door. He strode over to the front door where the animated armour stood motionless in complete silence. 'Guard this building and don't let anyone come inside that is not one of us.' He gestured at himself and the others in the cottage. Finding that command sufficient for the night, Sandu doubted something more complex might not mesh well with the armour's capacity for orders, he stepped outside to wait for Dormark. Sandu did not step too far, that would be foolish, and kept well in sight of the armour and hoped that a whisper would not pass the walls overheard.
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus
Dormark stepping outside closes the door and looks toward Sandu. "What's the matter Sandu? Do you need to speak to me," asks the Warforge.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Galqarin observes with curiosity Sandu whispering to the tin man, Dormark, then stepping outside together. He is sure that he could get in a position to overhear their words, but something tells him this would be wrong. No, whatever the mercurial Sandu had to get off his chest, let him do so in private. Dormark is a solid and dependable type and could be trusted to do the right thing with whatever information, or opinion, he was about to receive.
"If we need not worry about this gathering until tomorrow, then I am for bed." Dadeveth says as she puts a hand to her mouth to cover a yawn. "Wake me only if the house is burning down, ok."
Sandu crossed his arms and rubbed his upper arms to get a bit more warm in the cool night air. He heard the door close and after taking a deep breath turned to meet Dormark face to face.
'Apologies for calling you outside.' Sandu began. He would have made a remark about the cold but he was not sure the warforged felt cold the same way he did and disregarded the notion. 'It's just that I don't know who else to trust.' He glanced at the cottage, 'I'm sure that Cerio, Dallid and Dadeveth are all fine people, even if the wolf situation is disturbing, but we hardly know them and with Alder staying in Barovia, Baern on his own looking for his mother, Valerie leaving to protect Vallaki and Father Lucian and now Ioben...'
Sandu kicked a clump of mud with the tip of his toe. 'You're about the closest I have to a friend in this unholy land.' He said without looking at Dormark, opting to rather stare out to the village. There was one other name he had not yet mentioned. 'And Galqarin,' he kicked another clump of mud, 'I'm trying, okay?'
He put his hands in his pockets, back turned to Dormark. 'Do you remember Madam Eva's card reading?' He paused for a moment. It seemed that every mention of Madam Eva's title and name demanded a dramatic pause, as if stating her name added a certain gravitas to the situation. Sandu recited the words in a manner recreating the initial reading. Or tried to at least. 'This card tells of a powerful force for good and protection, a holy symbol of great hope. Look for a wizard’s tower on a lake. Let the wizard’s name and servant guide you to that which you seek.'
He pulled something heavy out of his pocket and turned around to show Dormark. From Sandu's hand dangled from a golden chain a platinum amulet shaped like the sun beset with a large red gem in its centre. 'I retrieved this from the tower when we met Ezmerelda and Ricta- Von Richten.' Sandu corrected the name. 'Well, that one pulled it out of the wall and offered it to me.' He corrected himself further with a nod towards the animated armour standing as sentry near the door.
'There is power in it. Real power. Divine power.' Sandu held the amulet up to eye level. 'I can sense it. It's odd to think something like it exists in this godsforsaken land. But it is not mine to wield. Guess I have cursed the gods' names too many times for them to care about me. But you, Dormark,' Sandu looked past the amulet to meet Dormark's gaze eye to eye. 'you're a man of faith. A good man. A better man than I am.'
Sandu managed a wry smile at what he had said. Somehow he had not thought of Dormark as a tin man or something unusual to behold in the past conversation but just a man who, like him, had been tossed into this ordeal and was trying to make the best of it. Yet he did more than Sandu: Sandu looked out for himself, Dormark looked out for everyone. He was in many ways Sandu's complete antithesis. Clerics. Sandu made a mental sneer bordering on fondness.
He pressed the amulet into Dormark's hand. 'You should be the one to hold on to this. Find a way to use it.' He closed the warforged fingers around the sun. 'There might come a time when we will be at a loss of what to do. I'm hoping your flame will guide us through the darkness when it comes to that.'
An embarrassing flush of red crept onto Sandu's face and he punched Dormark in the shoulder. 'Listen to me getting all melodramatic.' He reached for the back of his neck and let out a hearty laugh. 'I really ought to stop reading all those fantasy tales, hehehe.'
TL;DR Sandu gives the platinum amulet found in the wizard tower to Dormark.
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus
Dormark looking at the necklace looks back at Sandu and says, "Sandu... I am your friend." HIs hand reaching towards Sandu shoulder in a comforting grasp.
"I don't think you give yourself enough credit when you need it. You are a smart individual but considering how smart you are you see the world in a simplistic world view. There is a good man in you, hiding behind the abuse, the fear, and the anger. I wish you could see what I see. The potential you as a man have. One day Sandu if you wanted it, you could find love, get married, and have a family. Then when you old and gray surrounded by your loved ones you can pass to the next realm no fear for your soul, as you have lived a good life. There are very few souls beyond redemption my friend, and you... you don't come even close to them," says Dormark patting the Warlock on the shoulder. He turns and looks out across the way.
"I used to see the potential in me too. To help lost souls find their way, to make my new family out of them. To live and maybe someday die as someone beloved as a father. However, since the day that man stole my soul, my potential, I can't help but see the darkness in others and in myself... Sandu please promise me if I become something I wasn't supposed to be, you'll direct me down the right path. I don't wish to die in darkness & alone...," says Dormark bundling the amulet in his hand. He heads towards the door.
Looking back and Sandu Dormark says in Dwarivsh, "Goodnight Brother." Before opening it and heading back inside to resume his position.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Sandu actually cracked a smile. 'Me, married?' He replied with a heartfelt chuckle. 'Might as well become king and live in a castle.' He laughed at his own joke.
He used his sleeve to wipe his eyes. 'You know, doesn't sound so bad the way you put it.' It reminded him of a previous conversation he had with Dormark spent around the campfire talking about love and the face he had pictured about the flames drifted into his mind. 'Not bad at all.'
Made of metal he may be but Sandu could feel the distress plaguing his friend. A very palpable, very human fear: the idea that you will fail; that you will not measure up to the person you thought you would be. He could relate. Sandu placed a comforting hand on the warforged's shoulder.
'I'll watch your back if you watch mine.' He was not very keen on making promises but exceptions could always be made. Sandu reached for a small pocket on the inside of his vest and pulled out one of his most cherished possessions: a well used, well worn pack of card. 'Here.' He slid out the ace of hearts and stuck the card to Dormark's clothes about where he had previously shown the empty compartment. 'A placeholder until we get yours back.'
Sandu gave Dormark a smirk. 'And then you better return it or else people are going to say I'm not playing with a full deck of cards.'
Sandu looked out over the road going back to the village. 'Brother, huh?' He said it softly, more to reassure himself that he did hear what he had heard. The smirk turned into a genuine smile. 'That's a first.'
A cold breeze blew by and urged Sandu to return back inside. He passed the animated armour posing as sentry and after reiterating his previous command, Sandu opened the door and headed in. He could use a good rest. Right before sleep overtook him, Sandu glanced at the others and mused that maybe, just maybe, the night might not be as dark and full of terrors as Barovia would want them to believe.
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus
Night (well the early hours of the morning) - Day 7/8 - Do Warforged Dream Of Enchanted Boggles?
Settling down for the night, the party soon slowly head towards the land of nod. That is to say, they fall fast asleep, barring Dormark who enters a trance of sorts (akin to a daydream), still, however, able to keep sentry along with the newly acquired animated armour. Their sleep is uninterrupted, save for the now-familiar visions that had dogged them since their arrival within this land.
The party wakes. It is the dawning of a new day in Barovia. Thick mists roll across the village of Krezk. The night has brought only more questions. Thankfully, the party feels rejuvenated, in spite of the interruptions, having completed a long rest.
((EDIT: Sorry, shouldn't have been a spoiler, should have used a quote. Its a vision that everyone has, the party has been experiencing them since they arrived in Barovia. It has yet been discerned who/what is responsible for them.))
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
(Who is that spoiler for?)
Cerio sits up, yawning and scratching all over. Fleas are such a bother. "Welp, ya think they's any chance 'o breakfast? Can't investigate on an empty stomach, can we?"
Sandu tossed and turned in the spot he had laid himself down. Sleep had come quickly but was anything but peaceful. Once more did visions of events that he could not possible have experienced fill his dreams. This time Sandu dreamt of wolves. Not ordinary wolves but that most accursed and loathsome kind: werewolves. One of the pack stood out: a tall she-wolf, Sandu had no idea how he could determine that, with white fur and the imposing presence of someone who leads. And who was that with her? Her nephew? Ilya? He knew that name...
The dream images faded and were replaced by a new scene. Feelings not his own filled Sandu's mind. The tears were not his own. He spoke with a voice not his own. But he knew the voice. Ioben! How? Where? Why? The questions blurred together into a maelstrom until a blazing bright light jolted him awake, transitioning from dream to the view of a new sunrise barely visible beyond the think layers of mist that rolled in and around the cottage.
'Whazzut?' Sandu slurred the words. His brain was still progressing waking up. 'Breakfast?' He reached for his backpack before realising that whatever he might have packed away would be stale and not all that edible anymore.
'Don't think Krezk has a tavern or inn.' Sandu replied. He tried to clean himself up as best as circumstances allowed. 'We could try the winery? If they sell wines, they might also have food to go with it.'
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus
Cerio is in the process of lacing up and tightening his shoes when the memory of the dream comes back to him. The vision creeps up from behind, much like the predators it revealed.
“Ilya. Ioben.” He mutters the words out loud, trying to find meaning in the sounds. Perplexed, he shakes his head. “I think this place’s gettin’ to me. Seepin’ int’ ma dreams, even.”
He stands and stretches, yawning real big and then smiling at Sandu’s suggestion.
“Well! Any rate, I reckon the winery sounds like a perfect start t’another gray day.”
Galqarin stretches. "To the winery", he concurs.
"Hmm base in last night's vision our theory on Illaid may be correct. It seems like someone in his family also has the werewolf curse," says Dormark beginning to move as the others are waking up.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Dallid steps to Galqarin.
"I hope you understand my curiosity, but you've been here longer: who sends these visions? It's a bit disorienting, but some of you seem so familiar with it."
Paladin - warforged - orange
"I was born here", Galqarin answers matter-of-factly. "The dreams have only come since" - he pauses to feel his neck before gesturing towards Dormark and Sandu - "I was hung... then met these folk... then Madam Eva". Not that his dreams were much better before; Galqarin had become adept at shutting out the nightmares once daylight arrived to banish them.
Dadeveth shakes herself as she gets to her hooved feet. She frowns as she overhears several of the others making comments that indicate they had similiar dreams to the ones she had that night. As she has nothing to add to those comments,s he remains silent on the matter of the dreams.
"How far away is this winery?" She does ask as indications of where the others wish to head are made. "If it is too-far away, we may need to wait on that, as we need to be close by for going to that gathering this night."