Kartakass: The Barovia Chapter

[ewancummins]

Cornelius was worried. Why did the Count want this woman? Why would he even need the party's help in the first place? He was obviously a very powerful mage. He had minions. Why not send them to fetch this ''criminal''? Something wasn't right. The Count wasn't telling them the truth.

''Well, then, off to bed with the lot of us.''

Cornelius managed an uneasy smile and tried to look cheerful, failing miserably.

[VAN]

Van stops eating for a moment and listens carefully the others words, then says:

"I think we have almost no choice here, we actually have to fetch this woman to this Count Strahd not only to get the answers we want and to help our friend Draven here, but most of all because I doubt he will get a "no" as answers. He or his minions will be after us and I really don't want that. On the other hand I think we should learn something more about the woman in the painting, like her name, why and how she died if possible why the Count wants her so much. But to be honest since she is already dead makes me believe that she cannot be just a criminal. Why someone would want a dead criminal? So I guess we should rest, regain our forces and tomorrow morning leave from this village Immol."

[steveflam]

"I'm all for that as well, you guys should rest. I'll keep watch for you in case something else crawls out of the woodworks, hmmm?" Tarlyn offers.

Gordo looks at you all and beckons you to follow him back through the corridor leading back to the entrance. You pass through and to your disbelief the 8 Zombies are walking through a door and closing it behind them! Gordo keeps walking and leads you up the stairs to the next floor turning right. He opens a door for each of you and motions for you to enter each of your rooms. Inside each room are huge beds, nice dressers and night tables. A hot bath has been put in each room. Gordo waits untiul you have each entered your own separate rooms before closing the doors behind you.

[BigBadQDaddy]

After entering his room, William simply stands there for sometime.
"This is not going well..."He thinks. He nervously walks toward the bath, looking at it curiously before turning and checking out the rest of the room.

Search
Roll 1: 16+6=22
Roll 2: 5+6=11
Roll 3: 11+6=17

Spot
Roll 1: 7+5=12
Roll 2: 13+5=18
Roll 3: 17+5=22

*the extra rolls are there only if you need them*

If everything seems within the limits of ordinary, William enjoys the luxury of a freshly drawn bath and a good nights rest.

[VAN]

Van enters to his room and looks around, he doesn't check anything particular just if is anything out of order. The wizard is quite that the Count doesn't want to harm them, he needed them alive in order to do his quest.

OOC> Spot:7, Search: 9

[steveflam]

Once you are safely inside your rooms the doors lock behind you. You are presuming that the Count doesn't want anyone wandering the castle unaccompanied perhaps?

[lostboy]

Draven stands in the centre of his room, listening as the butlers footsteps receede down the hallway, once he hears nothing but silence he moves back to the door and tries it. Locked, maybe thats for the best he thinks.

He walks across to the windows looking out in to the night and hearing the rain start to patter against the window. We are at his mercy now, nothing to be done with it, we are here until morning.

He glances around the room, not noticing anything out of the ordinary. After today, Im going to need some sleep. The thought of sleep however sends a shiver down his spine. What if it happens again? No I must get some rest, I cannot fight anything off without some sleep.

With that he strips his travel worn clothes form his body, reaches for his belt pouch and sinks into the hot bath. Shortly he gratefully slumps into the warm comfortable bed.

[NeoTiamat]

Click.

Sefi whirled at the sound, crossing to the threshold in a few strides and gripping the doorknob. It was locked. Who does this Count think he is? The sparse hairs on the back of Sefi's neck flexed and densed as she warred for control of her emotions, and her shape. Wonder how he'd like it if I took a stroll. And tore this door off its hinges.

The lycanthrope forced herself to relax. One transformation per day is plenty, thank you very much. With a final, disdainful toss of the head, as if dismissing the locked door from her thoughts, Sefi threw the Warden's tattered cassock on the bedstead and looked through her pack for the spare clothing she'd bought in the last village they'd stopped in. I'll need to buy some more soon. No one but a werewolf could work their way through clothes at such a rate.

Sefi dressed, leather pants and a slightly tasselled shirt (she was a Kartakan, after all), then sat on the side of the bed. She was far too nerved up to even think about sleep. Instead she sat there, glaring at the door as if sheer force of will would put the obnoxious Count within reach.

Finally, sometime in the small hours of the morning, she slept.

===============================================

Click.

Valerian nodded soberly. As expected, and not really an issue. The Warden spent a few minutes getting off the armor, all the time humming an old hymnal to himself. The Grand Scheme takes the strangest turns some days... Satisfied, the Warden bathes and sleeps. Whatever the next day would bring, he'd be ready for it.

[VAN]

After has looked around and be sure that everything is as it should be, Van finally relaxes a bit.

"A hot bath is what I need". Thinks the wizard.

After the bath he gets to bed, but the thoughts don't let him sleep for a couple of hours. Some points are really weird: 1) He is very surprised that the ruler of such a big land is an undead! 2) He finds strange how the Count has learnt about them. They have done nothing particular in Barovia and none of them was from there, but still the Count send his zombies to get them. 3)Why Strahd gets them. Why he trusted foreigners to do a quest for him. As a Count he could very easily hire a mercenary band from Barovia or tell to some people who work for him, or even send his zombies to fetch him the woman. 4) Who is this dead woman. 5)Why an undead wants her back? Many questions that Van is almost sure he will get no answer, still the wizard decides to discuss them with his companions once out of the Castle.

[steveflam]

Morning after

You wake near the noon hour. On your night tables are notes from the Count inviting you to a sumptuous lunch before you depart for Immol. He has prepared horses and supplies for you from the Village of Barovia and amongst the supplies are official papers giving you the authority to arrest Ms Tara Kolyana.

The doors unlock and after gathering your belongings you are greeted once again by Gordo by the stairs who leads you back down to the dining table and the feast the Count promised. Once you are seated and eating he disappears through a hallway.


After lunch

You are escorted once again by Gordo. He leads you back through the entrance, which has been cleaned up since. No chandeliers have been replaced as of yet. He opens the doors for you and points down towards the gates. You see horses which are saddled as with supplies. He moans at you, Strahd....Strahd....Strahd, pointing at the horses. Once you've descended the stairs he closes the door.

The horses are well equipped with many supplies. You won't go missing for anything on your trip, the Count was very generous.

Tarlyn choses a horse and opening a saddlebag he smiles. He removes 2 envelopes, one thicker than the other. Removing the parchment from the fthicker envelope he opens it. "A map, how quaint of our host to give us one. It says here it should take us about a week traveling through the mountains to Immol, our destination."

Handing the map to the Warden he opens the other envelope. Carefully removng the papyrus from inside, he unfolds it. "Ah, an official paper as the Count promised. So we have the authority to arrest Ms. Tara Kolyana now." He shrugs as he passes the paper around. "Each of us must have one, which would make sense." He added.


To whom it may concern:

By the authority vested in me, Count Strahd Von Zarovich XI, I grant these men, elf and dwarf the power to arrest one Tara Kolyana and have her brought to justice of which I will administer personally at Castle Ravenloft. Her crime is severe and the punishment shall be discussed between Ms Kolynana and myself upon her arrival. Any refusal to follow these men will result in severe consquences upon Ms Kolyana and her family.

Yours,
Count Strahd Von Zarovich XI
July 8th 760

[BigBadQDaddy]

After some time spent in the bath, William finishes getting himself cleaned up and treats himself to a nip from his flask in an attempt to unwind. It doesn't work. The silence of the ancient castle is unnerving.
An hour goes by. Then two. The thought of sleep carries about as much temptation as putting his pistol to his own head. The room seems to grow smaller, and grows dim as the hours drag by. After a time, William begins to quietly sing to himself, completely subconsciously.

"There was an old woman, lived by the seashore
Bow and balance me
There was an old woman, lived by the seashore
A number of daughters: one, two, three, four
And I'll be true to my love
if my love will be true to me"

The sailors eyelids grow heavy, but refuse to shut. He lays on the elaborate bed with his head propped up upon a pair of old pillows. Staring at the closed door of his room.

"While these two sisters were walking the shore
Bow and balance me
While these two sisters were walking the shore
the oldest pushed the youngest o'er
And I'll be true to my love
if my love will be true to me"

His throat grows dry, his voice cracks. eventually his eyelids drop. He never finishes the song. William falls asleep.

[BigBadQDaddy]

The next morning, William goes with the others outside to see the supplies and horses provided by the Count.

"Stranger and stranger this is getting...This Count is givin us here a kings bounty to find some petty crook. Horses and the whole works!"

He idly scratches his head as he yawns, looking over the supplies and awaiting the parties decision.

[ewancummins]

Cornelius turns to Wllliam, looking relieved to be outside in the daylight.

''Ah, well we ought be be going soon. No sense wasting daylight. We'll have plenty of time to talk on the way...''

[Ail]

Lucius enters the room meditatively. Although he had accepted Strahd's words at face value, that was more due to his numbeness than his heart. The castle felt oppressive and the others had called his attention to the many strange things in their situation. But at any rate, that was not the proper time to think. He needed to rest and to decide on the best spells to prepare for the next day.

He took a bath and quickly went to sleep.

--------------------------

The next day, he was happy and relieved when he saw the feast the Count had prepared for them. As expected, while they were needed, nothing would harm them inside Castle Ravenloft. Travelling on the road would be another matter, though, and heavens know what would happen if they failed the count's mission.

And that was precisely what he began considering after he read the official note given to them by the Count. What kind of crime would have a punishment discussed by the criminal and the executioner? Not to mention that Valerian was adamant that she was dead.

This whole issue smelled fishy, and he began to consider that Ms Tara Kolyana might not be fairly persecuted after all. He kept these thoughts for himself, but he was decided to judge this woman's character before giving her back to the count, and ponder very carefully if they should deliver her at all.

With a stern grim face, he mounted his horse and prepared for the journey.

[NeoTiamat]

Valerian looked calm and almost cheerful, as happy as his grim countenance ever looked. He hummed a hymnal as he ate breakfast but steadfastly refused to even join any conversations, motioning 'later' to any attempts. He saddled his horse and with Tarlyn's help set a course for Immol.

Sefi, for her part, looked a strang combination of ragged and dapper. She was dressed well, but looked as if she hadn't slept, and seemed to withdraw into a shell, looking at the plate during breakfast. It took a bit of calming for her horse to accept her. She rode a little apart from the others.

==============================================

It was several hours after they had left Castle Ravenloft that Valerian pulled his horse up in the middle of an open field. He raised a hand, signalling the others to halt.

"If anyone has any magics of detection, now is the time to use them."

The Warden gazed out about the empty field, as Sefi perked up and leaned forward.

OOC:
Valerian Spot Check (With Ghostsight): 8+8=16
Sefi Spot Check: 14+14=28 (30 vs Humans)
Sefi Listen Check: 12+14=26 (28 vs Humans)
Sefi Scent