"More practical, of course...specifically..about the curfew...and if anyone's come through looking for maps leading to Har'akir" Andre said, as he looked over an old necklace, as if he showed interest in buying. "And not the usual traveler..someone trying to keep things quiet."NeoTiamat wrote:
"Yes Effendi, One-Eyed Faruq hears many strange and exotic stories," The bandit-like pawnbroker grinned. "Would you perhaps like to hear the tale of the Great Horse of the River? Or maybe you are searching for the final epic of Kemustar, for such a story as few have heard. Or mayhaps something a touch more practical?"
The Eye of Anubis: Book Four
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yalenusveler
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 1266
- Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2007 10:44 pm
- Location: Pennsylvania...or Baator
"Sometimes, Mr.Liquor cabinet is my only friend"
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Rock of the Fraternity
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 6828
- Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2007 1:16 pm
Lia literally leaps into action as the Anubite begins to depart, running to cut her off and hiss to her in an urgent tone of voice: Akiri: "And so you walk off, without even considering simply telling us what is to be found in Menetnashte's sepulchre? I may agree with some of what you say, but not all of it. I am a guard against oblivion, and I would not let the meaningless sands cover all that was once great and splendid. If you want us to leave the tomb alone, tell us what it might teach us. It would not mean forsaking your duty as the guardian of the dead, it would simply be another way to do your duty, an easier way which will not cause bloodshed between us!"
Lia backs off now, her hands firmly gripping her cane. "No matter what you say, I am not a graverobber. Knowledge and the preservation of the past are, have always been, my goal in seeking Menetnashte's tomb. Provide that knowledge so we may preserve the legacy of the ancients, and I will do my level best to dissuade the others from proceeding to Har'Akir. That is a deal I offer you.
Or else, if you have some sound reason to believe that these 'twisted desires' you mention run contrary to my own goal of preservation, tell me what they are. I am my own agent before I am the University's. I am not completely unwilling to follow your 'request', so long as you give me solid reasons.
But continue this policy of intimidation and obfuscation, and I can only see you as oblivion's handmaiden. Think on that, if you will. If you wish to end this matter peacefully, rather than force a vendetta between yourself and the rest of us - and the blood is on your hands, not mine, if you do after I have suggested this alternative - I assume you have spied on us enough to know where you might contact us to arrange a more diplomatic meeting than this one."
Lia backs off now, her hands firmly gripping her cane. "No matter what you say, I am not a graverobber. Knowledge and the preservation of the past are, have always been, my goal in seeking Menetnashte's tomb. Provide that knowledge so we may preserve the legacy of the ancients, and I will do my level best to dissuade the others from proceeding to Har'Akir. That is a deal I offer you.
Or else, if you have some sound reason to believe that these 'twisted desires' you mention run contrary to my own goal of preservation, tell me what they are. I am my own agent before I am the University's. I am not completely unwilling to follow your 'request', so long as you give me solid reasons.
But continue this policy of intimidation and obfuscation, and I can only see you as oblivion's handmaiden. Think on that, if you will. If you wish to end this matter peacefully, rather than force a vendetta between yourself and the rest of us - and the blood is on your hands, not mine, if you do after I have suggested this alternative - I assume you have spied on us enough to know where you might contact us to arrange a more diplomatic meeting than this one."
Last edited by Rock of the Fraternity on Sat Mar 15, 2008 4:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Nathan of the FoS
- Fiendish Enforcer
- Posts: 5247
- Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2003 3:39 pm
- Location: San Francisco CA
Charles hesitates, fumbling at his jacket for a moment, as the Anubite rises to leave, but he follows Lia as she leaps to interpose herself between the Anubite and the exit. Arms out, as if attempting to arrange an embrace between quarreling sisters, he says in Draconic, "I think there is more here than we are aware of...you know something we do not about this Expedition. Who is it you fear will abuse the knowledge we might find? Who are the "old men" you speak of?"
[b]FEAR JUSTICE.[/b] :elena:
Ulsaon removes a pair of boots. She clutches them tightly, wiping a tear from her cheek. Then in resignation, she hands them over to Faruq. In barely audible whisper she says to him Pharasian These belonged to a dear friend of mine, who has since died a horrible death. I would trade them with you, Effendi, for this list I have compiled for just such an occasion as meeting someone as esteemed and honest as yourself. Ulsaon reaches into a pouch in her armor and hands over a piece of paper with writing on it.
With the help of Otto's smooth talking she receives several scrolls , a wand and some gems in return for the boots. Both parties were pleased with the exchange. Ulsaon seemed very happy with her exchange. In fact, she walks up to Kuzan and smiles at him, handing over the wand. "This is for healing. I doubt you can continuously cast healing spells. Anyways, I know you'll put it to good use, sir."
She stands back from him and waits for everyone to be done with their purchases. Putting away her purchased scrolls she muses Now I can't wait to get back to a room and start inscribing my new spells! These will help us a lot more than the ones I already knew, that's for sure!
With the help of Otto's smooth talking she receives several scrolls , a wand and some gems in return for the boots. Both parties were pleased with the exchange. Ulsaon seemed very happy with her exchange. In fact, she walks up to Kuzan and smiles at him, handing over the wand. "This is for healing. I doubt you can continuously cast healing spells. Anyways, I know you'll put it to good use, sir."
She stands back from him and waits for everyone to be done with their purchases. Putting away her purchased scrolls she muses Now I can't wait to get back to a room and start inscribing my new spells! These will help us a lot more than the ones I already knew, that's for sure!
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Nathan of the FoS
- Fiendish Enforcer
- Posts: 5247
- Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2003 3:39 pm
- Location: San Francisco CA
As he speaks Charles' eyes fall on the book the young woman (if she is young, and still a woman, rather than one of the Ancient Dead) is carrying in her arms.
"WHY, WHAT LUCK!" he says quite loudly in Draconic, making an almost successful attempt at lifting the slim volume right out of the woman's grasp as he speaks. "THE VERY BOOK I WAS LOOKING FOR! HONORED ELDER," (this to the librarian) "I WONDER IF I COULD TROUBLE YOU TO MAKE A COPY OF THIS WORK BEFORE OUR FRIEND LEAVES WITH IT?"
Sleight of Hand to pop it out of her grasp and into Charles' grubby little mitts: 19. @#$%$%@#!!!
"WHY, WHAT LUCK!" he says quite loudly in Draconic, making an almost successful attempt at lifting the slim volume right out of the woman's grasp as he speaks. "THE VERY BOOK I WAS LOOKING FOR! HONORED ELDER," (this to the librarian) "I WONDER IF I COULD TROUBLE YOU TO MAKE A COPY OF THIS WORK BEFORE OUR FRIEND LEAVES WITH IT?"
Sleight of Hand to pop it out of her grasp and into Charles' grubby little mitts: 19. @#$%$%@#!!!
[b]FEAR JUSTICE.[/b] :elena:
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NeoTiamat
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 4119
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:00 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
The Library of Phiraz, Academic Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:29 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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As Lia spoke, a thoughtful look entered the Anubite's eyes, as though possibilities, ideas heretofore unconsidered, were spawned by the Mordentish girl's words.
And then Charles made his lunge for the Jackal Wars. Without so much as a movement, the Anubite's demeanor changed. Cold, elemental fury sparked in her eyes, and to Charles's and Lia's amazement, her eyes changed color, no longer soft brown but a dark grey-blue like a stormy sky.
The librarian frowned at the odd display, and started to come closer, while elsewhere in the room the Confessor looked up and gazed at the two foreigners by the seemingly local woman. With a concerned look, he stood up. The others, the professor and students, the matron and son, they pretended they hadn't heard.
Gripping the book, the Anubite took a step away from the pair, and a strange, eldritch whispering neither explorer knew filled the air, the Anubite's silent mouth exhaling the arcane phrases. And then she dissipated, into a tiny mound of sand and some old robes, leaving nothing behind, certainly not the book. The librarian and the Confessor both stopped, obviously not expecting this.
Silence reigned, even as your eyes scanned futily for the lost woman. And then came another arcane whisper, and eldritch phrase in a lost language, and suddenly Lia and Charles heard a thumping from behind them, and an slithering sound.
The books were coming alive. Over a dozen of the largest folios, heavy, leather-bound books with metal edges and thick, parchement like pages, were coming to life. The stretched and they lunged, teetered and tottered off the shelves, their pages flying and covers flapping, like so many malevolent buzzards, slowly flapping their way towards Charles and Lia.
[OOC: Two spellcraft Checks to identify the spells cast, and a Knowledge Arcane to figure out just what the living books are, if you're interested.
Also, Rock, Nathan, when you're both online, I'd like to run-through the combat via AIM]
The Grand Bazaar, The Merchant's Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:29 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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"As to your first, I fear, Effendi, that no man sought maps to my knowledge, and if I have not known it, it has not happened."
"As to the curfew...." Faruq shuddered, his normally sneaky face going still and somber. If you did not know better, the fast-talking, rascally pawnbroker was frightened.
"Effendi, there is a demon loose in Phiraz."
Slaughterhouse District, The Old Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:25 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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To Tomas's dubious pleasure, the door was unlocked, only blocked by a simple waxen seal that snapped in a heartbeat as the Lamordian threw his weight on it. The flimsy, cheap wooden doors collapses under his weight, falling to the ground, and Tomas falling with it, the crashing din ringing in his ears. Slowly, the Lamordian looked up, and rather wished he didn't.
One thing was certain. No one here had caused any screaming, not recently. The flies buzzed loudly in Tomas's ears, and the carrion stench, that sickly-sweet scent of decay, was overwhelming. Rivulets of blood drained down the steps of the house from the trio of bleeding, broken corpses within the room.
One, a woman, was quite nearly embedded into the wall, the force of the blood that killed her crushing her midsection like a melon. The other, an older man, had been thrown aside after his body had been squeezed to death, the blood having drained from dozens of ruptures in the skin. The third, a younger man, had been ripped in half by main force, the two pieces of the body at least six feet apart, entrails spilling out from either half.
And not a one of them had a face. Upon each battered corpse, where once was a face, was only a smooth, rounded oval. No eyes, no nose, not mouth, no cheeks, no brows, no chin, not a single feature broke the glassy surface of the corpses's faces. It was like they were a trio of dressmaker's dummies, save that the blood and gore was sickeningly real.
[OOC: DC 17 Horror Check.]
May 22nd, 761, 4:29 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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As Lia spoke, a thoughtful look entered the Anubite's eyes, as though possibilities, ideas heretofore unconsidered, were spawned by the Mordentish girl's words.
And then Charles made his lunge for the Jackal Wars. Without so much as a movement, the Anubite's demeanor changed. Cold, elemental fury sparked in her eyes, and to Charles's and Lia's amazement, her eyes changed color, no longer soft brown but a dark grey-blue like a stormy sky.
The librarian frowned at the odd display, and started to come closer, while elsewhere in the room the Confessor looked up and gazed at the two foreigners by the seemingly local woman. With a concerned look, he stood up. The others, the professor and students, the matron and son, they pretended they hadn't heard.
Gripping the book, the Anubite took a step away from the pair, and a strange, eldritch whispering neither explorer knew filled the air, the Anubite's silent mouth exhaling the arcane phrases. And then she dissipated, into a tiny mound of sand and some old robes, leaving nothing behind, certainly not the book. The librarian and the Confessor both stopped, obviously not expecting this.
Silence reigned, even as your eyes scanned futily for the lost woman. And then came another arcane whisper, and eldritch phrase in a lost language, and suddenly Lia and Charles heard a thumping from behind them, and an slithering sound.
The books were coming alive. Over a dozen of the largest folios, heavy, leather-bound books with metal edges and thick, parchement like pages, were coming to life. The stretched and they lunged, teetered and tottered off the shelves, their pages flying and covers flapping, like so many malevolent buzzards, slowly flapping their way towards Charles and Lia.
[OOC: Two spellcraft Checks to identify the spells cast, and a Knowledge Arcane to figure out just what the living books are, if you're interested.
Also, Rock, Nathan, when you're both online, I'd like to run-through the combat via AIM]
The Grand Bazaar, The Merchant's Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:29 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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"Ah, Effendi, that is an interesting question of curfew, for our Prophet, he does not seek to trouble our minds with distractions from the quest of Purity." Faruq said with a smile. "And yet, perhaps something can be arranged."YalenusVeler wrote:"More practical, of course...specifically..about the curfew...and if anyone's come through looking for maps leading to Har'akir" Andre said, as he looked over an old necklace, as if he showed interest in buying. "And not the usual traveler..someone trying to keep things quiet."
"As to your first, I fear, Effendi, that no man sought maps to my knowledge, and if I have not known it, it has not happened."
"As to the curfew...." Faruq shuddered, his normally sneaky face going still and somber. If you did not know better, the fast-talking, rascally pawnbroker was frightened.
"Effendi, there is a demon loose in Phiraz."
Slaughterhouse District, The Old Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:25 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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To Tomas's dubious pleasure, the door was unlocked, only blocked by a simple waxen seal that snapped in a heartbeat as the Lamordian threw his weight on it. The flimsy, cheap wooden doors collapses under his weight, falling to the ground, and Tomas falling with it, the crashing din ringing in his ears. Slowly, the Lamordian looked up, and rather wished he didn't.
One thing was certain. No one here had caused any screaming, not recently. The flies buzzed loudly in Tomas's ears, and the carrion stench, that sickly-sweet scent of decay, was overwhelming. Rivulets of blood drained down the steps of the house from the trio of bleeding, broken corpses within the room.
One, a woman, was quite nearly embedded into the wall, the force of the blood that killed her crushing her midsection like a melon. The other, an older man, had been thrown aside after his body had been squeezed to death, the blood having drained from dozens of ruptures in the skin. The third, a younger man, had been ripped in half by main force, the two pieces of the body at least six feet apart, entrails spilling out from either half.
And not a one of them had a face. Upon each battered corpse, where once was a face, was only a smooth, rounded oval. No eyes, no nose, not mouth, no cheeks, no brows, no chin, not a single feature broke the glassy surface of the corpses's faces. It was like they were a trio of dressmaker's dummies, save that the blood and gore was sickeningly real.
[OOC: DC 17 Horror Check.]
Last edited by NeoTiamat on Sat Mar 15, 2008 10:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Ravenloft GM: Eye of Anubis, Shattered City, and Prof. Lupescu's Traveling Ghost Show
Lead Writer & Editor: VRS Files: Doppelgangers; Contributor: QtR #20, #21, #22, #23, #24
Freelance Writer for Paizo Publishing
Lead Writer & Editor: VRS Files: Doppelgangers; Contributor: QtR #20, #21, #22, #23, #24
Freelance Writer for Paizo Publishing
"See, that always happens when I try and do something..." Tomas looks up.
"...dramatic." he trails off, face pale, eyes wide and the carnage before him. It should be worse. He should, Tomas thinks, be throwing up, spitting, frozen or insane with disgust at the horror in front of him. But all he can feel is...
...angry. "These were people." Angrier than he's felt...since...since Barovia, really. "These were PEOPLE and they just GAARGH!" Tomas swings at the wall, slamming his fist into it with a meaty thump! He regrets this, rubbing some life back into his hand as he reigns in his temper. "Hello?! Hallo?! Please, if someone's here, say something! I am being here to help!"
(OOC: 26 on the horror check.)
"...dramatic." he trails off, face pale, eyes wide and the carnage before him. It should be worse. He should, Tomas thinks, be throwing up, spitting, frozen or insane with disgust at the horror in front of him. But all he can feel is...
...angry. "These were people." Angrier than he's felt...since...since Barovia, really. "These were PEOPLE and they just GAARGH!" Tomas swings at the wall, slamming his fist into it with a meaty thump! He regrets this, rubbing some life back into his hand as he reigns in his temper. "Hello?! Hallo?! Please, if someone's here, say something! I am being here to help!"
(OOC: 26 on the horror check.)
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The Whistler
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 1454
- Joined: Thu Jun 07, 2007 7:38 pm
- Location: Southshore
Busy helping Ulsaon load scrolls into her pack (while comparing total party expenditures against what he knew about the local economy in the back of his head), Otto hadn't exactly been paying attention to Andre's conversation with the merchant--but that sentence came through just fine.NeoTiamat wrote:"Effendi, there is a demon loose in Phiraz."
Leaving aside the fact that a demon on the loose implies an externally imposed good/evil standard, or that the gods have a reason to still be around...fact is, you don't have a right to discount this sort of thing anymore, at least not right off the bat.
...Other hand, it could just be a sorcerer with an allergy to price-gouging. Either way, bears finding out more.
The gunsmith leaned toward the conversation from his position, pushing his spectacles up on his nose with a free hand.
"You do not say...What acts has this demon committed so far, that he has become known?"
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yalenusveler
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 1266
- Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2007 10:44 pm
- Location: Pennsylvania...or Baator
"A...demon?" Andre's brow raised. "Are we talking someone who acts with unpleasantness the sort of which one would not want to assign to goodly folk...or are we talking a literally spawned from hells demon? Has anyone seen it?" His words picked up speed as he spoke, intensely curious...and more than a little worried now.
"Sometimes, Mr.Liquor cabinet is my only friend"
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Rock of the Fraternity
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 6828
- Joined: Wed Nov 21, 2007 1:16 pm
Lia stands stunned when Charles suddenly lunges at the Anubite. Her mouth actually falls open, though this is not visible to the outside world. When she dodges him and her eyes change colour, Lia is ... not that surprised, really. When the Anubite disappears and the books start to animate, she says a few simple words: "Charles, we almost convinced her to stop fighting and be helpful. For Heart's sakes, why did you do that?"
Then the books start to approach.
Then the books start to approach.
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Nathan of the FoS
- Fiendish Enforcer
- Posts: 5247
- Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2003 3:39 pm
- Location: San Francisco CA
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Kaitou Kage
- Evil Genius
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- Joined: Thu Nov 29, 2007 11:53 am
- Location: Here and there
- Contact:
"A demon?" Kuzan repeated, looking up from a few scrolls he'd been looking over. He stood and turned to face Faruq, though the questions he had were already echoed by Andre and Otto.
One other thing concerned the priest. These prices were rather high. As someone who crafted magic, he had a rough idea of how much money various pieces of gear should cost. He glanced back down at the scroll in his hands for a moment, then looked up at Faruq. If not for the somber revelation, a faint smirk might've tugged at the edges of his lips.
One other thing concerned the priest. These prices were rather high. As someone who crafted magic, he had a rough idea of how much money various pieces of gear should cost. He glanced back down at the scroll in his hands for a moment, then looked up at Faruq. If not for the somber revelation, a faint smirk might've tugged at the edges of his lips.
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NeoTiamat
- Evil Genius
- Posts: 4119
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:00 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location: Boston, Massachusetts, USA
One-Eyed Faruq's Pawnshop, The Merchant's Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:35 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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"Thrice now, upon the stroke of midnight, has there been an attack of the vilest sort. A home is entered, yet no doors or windows are forced. The inhabitants of the home are torn apart by main force, rended limb from bloody limb."
Faruq gazed idly at the massive stuffed crocodile, wondering.... who knows what was passing through his mind.
"And upon each of the dead, their faces are wiped clean as slates, eyes and ears and mouth and nose all lost. As though a working of smooth clay, so say the rumors." Faruq's voice dropped a notch, deathly serious as it whispered through the shop. "And Effendi... I have heard a priest say that these faceless ones.... something has stolen their souls, that the Prophet's way is denied them forever."
"And so I call it demon."
Slaughterhouse District, The Old Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:35 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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Silence greeted Tomas's cry. Loup padded into the two-room home, ears pressed flat against the Alsatian's head, tail curled up and head slung low, whimpering slightly. The dog pressed its head against Tomas's side, looking around the room with open eyes.
"Ezra, Lady in the Mists..." Guy mumbled a prayer under his breath, bracing himself against the doorway before he became sick. The carrion-stench of the corpses was overwhelming. "...Deliver us from the Mists of Death...."
After a half-minute, the Dementlieuse militiaman got his breathing under control. He looked about the room with professional eye, speaking softly to Tomas.
"I doubt there's anything we can do here. It's been at least a half-day since they've been killed. Bit longer, probably." An unpleasant thought came to Guy. "And I think we just broke a Gendarmerie seal... or whatever the local equivalent is."
May 22nd, 761, 4:35 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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YalenusVeler wrote:"A...demon?" Andre's brow raised. "Are we talking someone who acts with unpleasantness the sort of which one would not want to assign to goodly folk...or are we talking a literally spawned from hells demon? Has anyone seen it?" His words picked up speed as he spoke, intensely curious...and more than a little worried now.
"Effendi, if this being is demon or ifrit or mortal magus, I know not. But surely no being of the normal sort can cause such horror." Faruq's voice was tight, as if this wasn't the sort of thing he relished talking about.The Whistler wrote:"You do not say...What acts has this demon committed so far, that he has become known?"
"Thrice now, upon the stroke of midnight, has there been an attack of the vilest sort. A home is entered, yet no doors or windows are forced. The inhabitants of the home are torn apart by main force, rended limb from bloody limb."
Faruq gazed idly at the massive stuffed crocodile, wondering.... who knows what was passing through his mind.
"And upon each of the dead, their faces are wiped clean as slates, eyes and ears and mouth and nose all lost. As though a working of smooth clay, so say the rumors." Faruq's voice dropped a notch, deathly serious as it whispered through the shop. "And Effendi... I have heard a priest say that these faceless ones.... something has stolen their souls, that the Prophet's way is denied them forever."
"And so I call it demon."
Slaughterhouse District, The Old Quarter, Phiraz
May 22nd, 761, 4:35 PM; Day 66 of the Menetnashte Expedition
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Silence greeted Tomas's cry. Loup padded into the two-room home, ears pressed flat against the Alsatian's head, tail curled up and head slung low, whimpering slightly. The dog pressed its head against Tomas's side, looking around the room with open eyes.
"Ezra, Lady in the Mists..." Guy mumbled a prayer under his breath, bracing himself against the doorway before he became sick. The carrion-stench of the corpses was overwhelming. "...Deliver us from the Mists of Death...."
After a half-minute, the Dementlieuse militiaman got his breathing under control. He looked about the room with professional eye, speaking softly to Tomas.
"I doubt there's anything we can do here. It's been at least a half-day since they've been killed. Bit longer, probably." An unpleasant thought came to Guy. "And I think we just broke a Gendarmerie seal... or whatever the local equivalent is."
Ravenloft GM: Eye of Anubis, Shattered City, and Prof. Lupescu's Traveling Ghost Show
Lead Writer & Editor: VRS Files: Doppelgangers; Contributor: QtR #20, #21, #22, #23, #24
Freelance Writer for Paizo Publishing
Lead Writer & Editor: VRS Files: Doppelgangers; Contributor: QtR #20, #21, #22, #23, #24
Freelance Writer for Paizo Publishing
"Go back to the Professor." Tomas speaks slowly, hollowly, as if his soul had just been knifed in the gut. They were too late? They were too late. "Take Loup. That way, the Confessors can only charge me, instead of all of us. You two can say I threatened you, if it comes to that."
"I just...need to be sure. I'll be right behind you." There's got to be something. A basement, stairs, a sewer, SOMETHING, dead bodies don't scream!
"I just...need to be sure. I'll be right behind you." There's got to be something. A basement, stairs, a sewer, SOMETHING, dead bodies don't scream!