The older girl turns to you and smiles, "Afternoon - what can I do for you? Are you here about Mili?"
"We are. The Father sent us to help."Ioben looks around at the toddlers who had just finished listening to the story."You do an amazing job with these young ones. You seem to care for them a lot. Mili is stable for now, but we are hoping that some of the children might be able to help us. We think he picked something up, an object, that made him sick. We are worried it might make others sick too. Do you have any idea where he might have put it?"
When the older girl lifts her top slightly to scratch at her lower back you definitely notice something... Something which chills you to your core. Teeth marks. As far as you can tell the bite does not appear human and is red and blotchy.
"Oh I like the Father"the older girl says earnestly, "Thank you for your kind words. Truth be told, it has been a tough time as of late, Mili was very much the icing on the cake... so to speak." She speaks in a very matter-of-fact way, possibly subconsciously mimicking Ms Belasco. "An object that made him sick? Oh Mili, what have you gotten yourself into this time? I have a couple of ideas where he might have placed an object."
She once more absent-mindedly scratches at her back, "See - me and Mili go way back." She adopts a look of faux-pondering, "I think if I were Mili... I mean, as you expect hiding anything around the Orphanage is tough. Why I remember receiving a gift once, a genuine Blinsky Toy, a stuffed monkey with a little hat. It was the most charming thing!" She gets lost in her memories,"Tried to hide that, but it were found... someone took it, never saw it again."
"So, if I were Mili, I'd either bury it some place safe... or maybe hide it under a floor board or some place no one goes." She looks at you curiously and lowers her voice a little, "You believe one of the kids has seen him hide it somewhere? It's like a game of hide and go seek." She smiles at you,"The name's Moira, by the way."
Sandu - The girl buries her face in to her arms as you speak to her. Her friend speaks up,"Sorry sir, Nia's a bit shy. Can I help at all?"
'Oh, I was also quite shy when I was your height.' Sandu chuckled. 'And yes, I do think you can help me.'
He briefly looked across the room at the door of Milivoj's chamber. 'Father Lucian, the kind old man from the church across the street, asked me if I could help Mili.' By using the young man's nickname, Sandu hoped to endear himself a bit to the girls. 'He's... not doing well.' He slowly spoke the words before switching to a more hopeful tone. 'But I believe I can help him. I just have some questions and I think you can help me discover the answers. Will you help me help your friend, miss...?'
OOC: the questions are the following: - When did Milivoj become ill? - Is anyone else sick? - How did Nia get those bruises? (will gently try to address Nia directly but will not push her on it) - Has anyone been having nightmares? Bad, scary dreams Sandu will clarify in simpler terms. Will this be needing an Insight check or similar? If so: 8
Listing the questions here to save on posts. Unless our DM want to roleplay this entire dialogue?
Sandu - "Hannah... my name is Hannah, sir." She grins and does a little mock-curtsy.
Hannah acts as an intermediary of sorts between yourself and Nia as they try their best to answer your questions;
When did Milivoj become ill?
They are not sure, but to the best of their knowledge within the last day or 2
Is anyone else sick?
Again, they are not sure. They do not think so.
How did Nia get those bruises? (will gently try to address Nia directly but will not push her on it)
Nia snaps her arm behind her back, clearly afraid and then whispers to Hannah. "She says she doesn't know." There is nothing from the girls demeanour to suggest they are lying. "She had a bad dream and woked up and she had sore arms."
Has anyone been having nightmares? Bad, scary dreams Sandu will clarify in simpler terms.
At this both girls shift uncomfortably. Hannah drops her voice down low,"We all has them sir. Not all the same thing. But really scary stuff." She looks around and leans in a little, "Nia said she had one where she was trying to run away from this dark figure. No matter how much she ran, she couldn't get away.", "Yeska says he had one where he was bein' adopted... only when he see's by who, it's an old woman - an' she wanted to putted him in her big black pot and cook him.", "I even has one myself sir... It were of a clown only he had these big sharp teeth... he wanted to gobble me up sir... I knows it."
She relays a number of fiendish stories of bad dreams the children have been experiencing. You gather that 1. there does not seem to be any direct correlation between the topics of the dreams, 2. In each case the children woke up in with a palpable sense of fear and terror.
((Can I ask for a further Perception or Investigation check - there might be more information you can garner.))
"It less like fortune telling, but a feeling you have done something before, or remembering something that hasn't currently happened yet. You know you can trust us Ismark. We are outsiders, but you have been nothing but kind to us and we are have been through alot for you. If there is a person to trust with your ideas and feelings I and I think the others won't judge," says Dormark noticing Ismark's reaction.
Sandu - "Hannah... my name is Hannah, sir." She grins and does a little mock-curtsy.
Hannah acts as an intermediary of sorts between yourself and Nia as they try their best to answer your questions;
When did Milivoj become ill?
They are not sure, but to the best of their knowledge within the last day or 2
Is anyone else sick?
Again, they are not sure. They do not think so.
How did Nia get those bruises? (will gently try to address Nia directly but will not push her on it)
Nia snaps her arm behind her back, clearly afraid and then whispers to Hannah. "She says she doesn't know." There is nothing from the girls demeanour to suggest they are lying. "She had a bad dream and woked up and she had sore arms."
Has anyone been having nightmares? Bad, scary dreams Sandu will clarify in simpler terms.
At this both girls shift uncomfortably. Hannah drops her voice down low,"We all has them sir. Not all the same thing. But really scary stuff." She looks around and leans in a little, "Nia said she had one where she was trying to run away from this dark figure. No matter how much she ran, she couldn't get away.", "Yeska says he had one where he was bein' adopted... only when he see's by who, it's an old woman - an' she wanted to putted him in her big black pot and cook him.", "I even has one myself sir... It were of a clown only he had these big sharp teeth... he wanted to gobble me up sir... I knows it."
She relays a number of fiendish stories of bad dreams the children have been experiencing. You gather that 1. there does not seem to be any direct correlation between the topics of the dreams, 2. In each case the children woke up in with a palpable sense of fear and terror.
((Can I ask for a further Perception or Investigation check - there might be more information you can garner.))
OOC: both Perception and Investigation have the same modifier: 18
Sandu listened with great attention to what the girls told him, taking in all the details they mentioned. The dreams were scary when related by a kid but they seemed unconnected. Aside from being scary, they had nothing in common. And then there were the bruises. Were they related to the bad dreams? Could a nightmare affect someone physically? That certainly was a concerning thought.
'When did everyone start to have these bad dreams, Hannah?' Sandu focused on her as she was the more talkative one. 'And is there anything different from before they began?'
He then leaned in bit, placed his hand on the side of his mouth and whispered so that only the girls could hear him. 'Does Ms Belasco also have these bad dreams?'
Dormark - ((That’s ok, it was more of check of how much he might be compelled to share rather than a pass/fail)) Ismark nods in agreement as you speak,“You have all helped myself and Ireena in countless ways over the last few days. I truly thank you all.”He pauses a moment before continuing,“In truth I am starting to feel like there may be greater powers at work here. Why would the childhood sketches of Ireena match a real person here in Vallaki? It has caused me to question…”
”You must have gathered that Ireena and myself are not blood siblings by now… in truth I have no idea what her life was before she was adopted into my family. Could there be more to… everything?” Ismark asks absentmindedly, the answers alluding him.
Galqarin - As you listen along to Ismark you do not get any sense of deceit or insincerity from his words…
The girls gently whisper back and forth to each other. Unknown to them your heightened senses pick up a number of tidbits of information which Hannah has, maybe not intentionally, withheld from you.
When asked about anyone else being sick… Nia whispers,“What about Lazlo, Hans, and Franz? They might be…”. To which Hannah simply responds, “They’ve gone now. Chose to leave us.”
When asked about the nightmares… Hannah relates the stories of the different nightmares the children have been having, Nia hisses, “What about Cedrick, that were no bad dream.” Hannah responds, “That was an accident, Ms Belasco says.” Nia meekly says, “Happen ‘bout same time as Mili got ill, s’all.”
Finally, when asked about how she got the bruises… Nia does state initially that she is unsure, but your ears pick up more,“He done it…”. Behind the hand placed over Hannah’s mouth, as she whispers a response to her friend, you see uncertainty, “We don’t know that… no proof.” Nia, however, seems adamant, “I don’t like him Han, I don’t… he scares me”. There is a pause before Hannah responds, clearly understanding her friend’s fear, “I know Nia, I know. We’ll catch him doin’ somethin’, I’m sure… then he’ll leave”.
Hannah looks like she is counting out the days in her head,“I reckon the bad dreams started a week or so ago”. Nia tugs at her sleeve and whispers something into her ear,“Maybe two weeks ago, sir”. She allows herself a brief smile, “Things we’re better before… things changed quite a bit after”.
When approaching the topic of Ms Belasco, Hannah puffs her chest out a little, “Truth be told, I don’t know for certain, but I don’t think she has any. I’m sure she would have told me otherwise, she trusts me, see?”. Nia tugs once more at Hannah’s sleeve and whispers something. Hannah’s eyes widen and she shakes her head stubbornly, “No she ain’t!”. Nia covers her mouth, stifling a giggle, before once more whispering into her friend’s ear.“That ain’t true Nia!”Hannah says, clearly dismissing whatever her friend said. Nia laughs.
Once more your keen hearing picks up;
”Two weeks Han… similar time to when they escaped and when he joined” when considering the timeframe the nightmares started.
”Ms Witch more like” in relation to Ms Belasco, followed by;
”I ‘eard she used to be married an’ all, but turned ‘er ‘usband into a frog”.
You get a sense that laughter has not been forthcoming to either girl for a while; but Nia’s laughter very much breaks through the somber mood.
"Adopted... as she was an orphan," asks Dormark a puzzled but something close to an realization seems to spring to his mind. "How young was Ireena when she was adopted.. No there would be physical differences if she was a child... A connection that distance doesn't affect... Siblings? Twins," says Dormark in a puzzled matter before shaking his head.
"All I've have is conjecture at this point, but I have developed a theory that might explain why Ireena and this individual know and have created images of each other. At the very least, they were raised in the same orphanage and by Galrqarin's account being the one here in Vallki. Or a deeper connection that may explain each other actions. A traumatic experience, or they are blooded siblings, possiblly beings twins," says Dormark listing a couple of possibilities that popped into his head.
When the older girl lifts her top slightly to scratch at her lower back you definitely notice something... Something which chills you to your core. Teeth marks. As far as you can tell the bite does not appear human and is red and blotchy.
((and additionally))
From your training and skill as a Paladin, not to mention your learnings on all sorts of unholy creatures, you are sure that the bite is not only inhuman but likely fiendish in nature. Furthermore, there is a good chance that Moira ((the older girl)) would not have felt the bite as it occurred.
Dormark - Ismark stands, mouth agape, as Dormark theorises on the origins of his sister. Losing a little of his composure, he stutters,"I-I di-didn't mean literally adopted... well I'm not sure, I guess it could have been possible. You believe that she has a shared heritage with this Izek monster?! Preposterous!" He shakes his head and slumps down in a nearby chair.
Valerie is taken aback by what she sees. She tries to adjust herself and keep her smile. Her hand slowly reaches out to the girl, in fear it may startle her. She asks the girl. Her tone is calm and gentle. "Do you remember when did you begin to get those dreams? Did everyone get them on the same night?"
While asking, she also puts a protection spell on the girl. Then she looks at the bite mark again to see is there any changes.
Ioben & Valerie - "You know about the dreams?" Moira asks, her face paling,"The only person I know that doesn't get them is Ms Belasco - I assume it's because she's an adult." She takes time to think about the answer to your question,"The dreams all started around 2 weeks ago. People were on edge you see after those boys left. That's what we thought it was at first, people just worried for them, y'know? But the bad dreams have stayed around, really affected the mood in the Orphanage."
As Valerie castsProtection from Evil and Good, Moira looks at her questioningly, "What are you doing Miss? That a spell?".
Valerie - You get a sense that your spell has been cast successfully - though most of the damage has already been done, you feel that the spell should provide a level of protection from any residual effects of the bite, as long as it is maintained.
“Hmmm if Ireena witness such an event she definitely would have been traumatized. She could have blended the event Izek became the monster and his destroyed arm got replaced. Now somehow it has actually happened,” says Dormark. Looking at the now sitting Ismark the warforge begins to say, “I could be wrong Ismark. Like I said I don’t have any proof, I’m just trying to figure out what may have happened.”
Ioben listens carefully as Valerie speaks to the girls and deals with the injury."Have you spoken about your dreams with the other children? Do you dream the same thing? or are they different?
Perception: 16
"We are. The Father sent us to help." Ioben looks around at the toddlers who had just finished listening to the story. "You do an amazing job with these young ones. You seem to care for them a lot. Mili is stable for now, but we are hoping that some of the children might be able to help us. We think he picked something up, an object, that made him sick. We are worried it might make others sick too. Do you have any idea where he might have put it?"
Ioben's Perception check:
When the older girl lifts her top slightly to scratch at her lower back you definitely notice something... Something which chills you to your core. Teeth marks. As far as you can tell the bite does not appear human and is red and blotchy.
"Oh I like the Father" the older girl says earnestly, "Thank you for your kind words. Truth be told, it has been a tough time as of late, Mili was very much the icing on the cake... so to speak." She speaks in a very matter-of-fact way, possibly subconsciously mimicking Ms Belasco. "An object that made him sick? Oh Mili, what have you gotten yourself into this time? I have a couple of ideas where he might have placed an object."
She once more absent-mindedly scratches at her back, "See - me and Mili go way back." She adopts a look of faux-pondering, "I think if I were Mili... I mean, as you expect hiding anything around the Orphanage is tough. Why I remember receiving a gift once, a genuine Blinsky Toy, a stuffed monkey with a little hat. It was the most charming thing!" She gets lost in her memories, "Tried to hide that, but it were found... someone took it, never saw it again."
"So, if I were Mili, I'd either bury it some place safe... or maybe hide it under a floor board or some place no one goes." She looks at you curiously and lowers her voice a little, "You believe one of the kids has seen him hide it somewhere? It's like a game of hide and go seek." She smiles at you, "The name's Moira, by the way."
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
'Oh, I was also quite shy when I was your height.' Sandu chuckled. 'And yes, I do think you can help me.'
He briefly looked across the room at the door of Milivoj's chamber. 'Father Lucian, the kind old man from the church across the street, asked me if I could help Mili.' By using the young man's nickname, Sandu hoped to endear himself a bit to the girls. 'He's... not doing well.' He slowly spoke the words before switching to a more hopeful tone. 'But I believe I can help him. I just have some questions and I think you can help me discover the answers. Will you help me help your friend, miss...?'
OOC: the questions are the following:
- When did Milivoj become ill?
- Is anyone else sick?
- How did Nia get those bruises? (will gently try to address Nia directly but will not push her on it)
- Has anyone been having nightmares? Bad, scary dreams Sandu will clarify in simpler terms.
Will this be needing an Insight check or similar? If so: 8
Listing the questions here to save on posts. Unless our DM want to roleplay this entire dialogue?
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
Sandu - "Hannah... my name is Hannah, sir." She grins and does a little mock-curtsy.
Hannah acts as an intermediary of sorts between yourself and Nia as they try their best to answer your questions;
They are not sure, but to the best of their knowledge within the last day or 2
Again, they are not sure. They do not think so.
Nia snaps her arm behind her back, clearly afraid and then whispers to Hannah. "She says she doesn't know." There is nothing from the girls demeanour to suggest they are lying. "She had a bad dream and woked up and she had sore arms."
At this both girls shift uncomfortably. Hannah drops her voice down low, "We all has them sir. Not all the same thing. But really scary stuff." She looks around and leans in a little, "Nia said she had one where she was trying to run away from this dark figure. No matter how much she ran, she couldn't get away.", "Yeska says he had one where he was bein' adopted... only when he see's by who, it's an old woman - an' she wanted to putted him in her big black pot and cook him.", "I even has one myself sir... It were of a clown only he had these big sharp teeth... he wanted to gobble me up sir... I knows it."
She relays a number of fiendish stories of bad dreams the children have been experiencing. You gather that 1. there does not seem to be any direct correlation between the topics of the dreams, 2. In each case the children woke up in with a palpable sense of fear and terror.
((Can I ask for a further Perception or Investigation check - there might be more information you can garner.))
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
"It less like fortune telling, but a feeling you have done something before, or remembering something that hasn't currently happened yet. You know you can trust us Ismark. We are outsiders, but you have been nothing but kind to us and we are have been through alot for you. If there is a person to trust with your ideas and feelings I and I think the others won't judge," says Dormark noticing Ismark's reaction.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Galqarin observes Ismark closely, himself inscrutable behind his raven mask. ((Insight: 8))
Dormark - Please can you make a Persuasion check, to see how much your words have resonated with Ismark.
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
OOC: both Perception and Investigation have the same modifier: 18
Sandu listened with great attention to what the girls told him, taking in all the details they mentioned. The dreams were scary when related by a kid but they seemed unconnected. Aside from being scary, they had nothing in common. And then there were the bruises. Were they related to the bad dreams? Could a nightmare affect someone physically? That certainly was a concerning thought.
'When did everyone start to have these bad dreams, Hannah?' Sandu focused on her as she was the more talkative one. 'And is there anything different from before they began?'
He then leaned in bit, placed his hand on the side of his mouth and whispered so that only the girls could hear him. 'Does Ms Belasco also have these bad dreams?'
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 does not succeed with a guided 5. He may talk with the rest of the party later about this.)
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Dormark - ((That’s ok, it was more of check of how much he might be compelled to share rather than a pass/fail)) Ismark nods in agreement as you speak, “You have all helped myself and Ireena in countless ways over the last few days. I truly thank you all.” He pauses a moment before continuing, “In truth I am starting to feel like there may be greater powers at work here. Why would the childhood sketches of Ireena match a real person here in Vallaki? It has caused me to question…”
”You must have gathered that Ireena and myself are not blood siblings by now… in truth I have no idea what her life was before she was adopted into my family. Could there be more to… everything?” Ismark asks absentmindedly, the answers alluding him.
Galqarin - As you listen along to Ismark you do not get any sense of deceit or insincerity from his words…
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
Sandu -
The girls gently whisper back and forth to each other. Unknown to them your heightened senses pick up a number of tidbits of information which Hannah has, maybe not intentionally, withheld from you.
Hannah looks like she is counting out the days in her head, “I reckon the bad dreams started a week or so ago”. Nia tugs at her sleeve and whispers something into her ear, “Maybe two weeks ago, sir”. She allows herself a brief smile, “Things we’re better before… things changed quite a bit after”.
When approaching the topic of Ms Belasco, Hannah puffs her chest out a little, “Truth be told, I don’t know for certain, but I don’t think she has any. I’m sure she would have told me otherwise, she trusts me, see?”. Nia tugs once more at Hannah’s sleeve and whispers something. Hannah’s eyes widen and she shakes her head stubbornly, “No she ain’t!”. Nia covers her mouth, stifling a giggle, before once more whispering into her friend’s ear. “That ain’t true Nia!” Hannah says, clearly dismissing whatever her friend said. Nia laughs.
Once more your keen hearing picks up;
You get a sense that laughter has not been forthcoming to either girl for a while; but Nia’s laughter very much breaks through the somber mood.
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
Perception 21 (for the girls back, sorry a bit late for this one.)
"Adopted... as she was an orphan," asks Dormark a puzzled but something close to an realization seems to spring to his mind. "How young was Ireena when she was adopted.. No there would be physical differences if she was a child... A connection that distance doesn't affect... Siblings? Twins," says Dormark in a puzzled matter before shaking his head.
"All I've have is conjecture at this point, but I have developed a theory that might explain why Ireena and this individual know and have created images of each other. At the very least, they were raised in the same orphanage and by Galrqarin's account being the one here in Vallki. Or a deeper connection that may explain each other actions. A traumatic experience, or they are blooded siblings, possiblly beings twins," says Dormark listing a couple of possibilities that popped into his head.
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Valerie's Perception check:
((Your check would reveal similar to Ioben's))
When the older girl lifts her top slightly to scratch at her lower back you definitely notice something... Something which chills you to your core. Teeth marks. As far as you can tell the bite does not appear human and is red and blotchy.
((and additionally))
From your training and skill as a Paladin, not to mention your learnings on all sorts of unholy creatures, you are sure that the bite is not only inhuman but likely fiendish in nature. Furthermore, there is a good chance that Moira ((the older girl)) would not have felt the bite as it occurred.
Dormark - Ismark stands, mouth agape, as Dormark theorises on the origins of his sister. Losing a little of his composure, he stutters, "I-I di-didn't mean literally adopted... well I'm not sure, I guess it could have been possible. You believe that she has a shared heritage with this Izek monster?! Preposterous!" He shakes his head and slumps down in a nearby chair.
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
"They say Izek arm eaten by wolf when he small", Galqarin says slowly. "After family died, he go orphanage. Maybe not all family dead?"
"Maybe Izek knew her mother" ponders Baern aloud with a shrug.
Valerie is taken aback by what she sees. She tries to adjust herself and keep her smile. Her hand slowly reaches out to the girl, in fear it may startle her. She asks the girl. Her tone is calm and gentle. "Do you remember when did you begin to get those dreams? Did everyone get them on the same night?"
While asking, she also puts a protection spell on the girl. Then she looks at the bite mark again to see is there any changes.
(Cast: Protection from Good and Evil)
Ioben & Valerie - "You know about the dreams?" Moira asks, her face paling, "The only person I know that doesn't get them is Ms Belasco - I assume it's because she's an adult." She takes time to think about the answer to your question, "The dreams all started around 2 weeks ago. People were on edge you see after those boys left. That's what we thought it was at first, people just worried for them, y'know? But the bad dreams have stayed around, really affected the mood in the Orphanage."
As Valerie casts Protection from Evil and Good, Moira looks at her questioningly, "What are you doing Miss? That a spell?".
Valerie - You get a sense that your spell has been cast successfully - though most of the damage has already been done, you feel that the spell should provide a level of protection from any residual effects of the bite, as long as it is maintained.
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
“Hmmm if Ireena witness such an event she definitely would have been traumatized. She could have blended the event Izek became the monster and his destroyed arm got replaced. Now somehow it has actually happened,” says Dormark. Looking at the now sitting Ismark the warforge begins to say, “I could be wrong Ismark. Like I said I don’t have any proof, I’m just trying to figure out what may have happened.”
Dormark Calling of Strahd (warforged cleric) 4
Ioben listens carefully as Valerie speaks to the girls and deals with the injury. "Have you spoken about your dreams with the other children? Do you dream the same thing? or are they different?