Ghosts of Gauntcliff, Chapter Seven

[Rock of the Fraternity]

Everline does, indeed, wake up with a scream -- but at this point, it is a scream of pure rage. "Bastard!" she howls as she struggles to sit upright despite the renewed tremors in her body. "Filthy, burn-faced bastard! I'll kill you kill you kill you kill kill kill~!" The words stop due to a brief bout of vomiting, then resume as a profane screech of pure hatred...

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

The Expedition

Dorgio eyes the crawlspace. "I can fit, but not like this." He takes a few minutes to doff his banded armor.

"I'll need you two to be watching my back--somebody's got to pull me out if this turns out to be a bad idea."

He says a prayer of illumination over his spear, then crawls into the space using his weapon as a torch. Once he comes in range of the chest, he tries to hook the chest with his spear and give a few testing tugs to see if he can drag the chest to him without damaging his weapon.

[steveflam]

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Dark One wakes Jürgen at the witching hour.

"Whu.... Oh... yawn.. Oh Dark One..” The boy stretches and stands. “I am thinking it better
for us all to get off the island....... If Dodds is sleeping we can get the rest of Gruz and Smezels kind, commandeer a boat as all will be asleep or busy looking for me....... then leave the island."

''Good idea. Your two minions are close. Shall I waken them?"

“Maybe I should because you frighten them, ok?”
Jürgin rouses the two gently "Wake up Gruz and Smezel.."

The two little goons squeal ''We ready, we ready!"

"Okay I have a better idea. We go find the Chief and the others. Dodds sleeps I think. We get a big water vessel, a boat, and we leave for a better place, ok? It is better with me than with Dodds isn't it?"
Jürgin will rely on them to lead him out so he can at least see by moonlight.

Gruz mumbles, ''Boat go on water?"

Smezel says, ''Okay. You real smart. We do what you say."

"Yes, but I am a very good sailor and you will all be my crew and help me. This will be fun and you will all actually enjoy it. You'll get to row the boat! Now, let us go find the rest of your friends and the Chief ok?"
"Dark One, lead the way."

"Smezel, what else can you do with your dagger besides open a portal?"

Dark One leads the small party into the moonlit hills.

Smezel replies,''I can cut stuff with it."

"I Mean, opening the portal you made magic, right?"

''Um, yeh."

"So, what else can you do like that? Can you help someone if they are hurt, like fix his wound?"

"Um, wound is hurt?"

"Yes, like when fat ones ear got cut off or eaten that is a wound. A wound bleeds and hurts"

''Fat One's ear taste so nice."

"I'll tell you a secret. I was pretty sure you were responsible for cutting his ear, but I didn't tell him. I like you both too much to do that to you, ok?"

''You nice, yay!"

"You know I am nice and would never hurt you."

Walking down through the hills, Jürgin notices the fog getting thicker.

Gruz looks about, his single eye blinking. ''Fog be magic?"

Jürgin tries to remember what Dodds said about the fog but has forgotten.
"Smezel, can you use your dagger in some to know if something is magic?"

Smezel answers, ''No."

"Well I am not sure if it is magic because I do not know any magic. Let us just be careful."

Smezel shakes his oversized head. ''But you gots the shadow magic."

"I have my friend, Dark One... he is not magic but just a shadow,,,, is that what you mean?"

Gruz trips on the long shirt he wears--one of Juergin's tunics. ''Oops."

"Be careful, Gruz. Here stay close to me."

Gruz crawls up on Juergin's back like a little monkey. Dark One continues to scout ahead.

"Gruz and Smezel, we'll shorten your shirts so you won’t trip on them, ok?"

The little goblin-men exchange words in the weird gibberish they sometimes use.
Smezel adds, ''That's good."

After walking and talking for a while, Jürgin and his friends pass through the dunes and onto the level sands of the little bay where the wharf and boats may be found.

"Smezel, what else can you do with your knife that is special, like opening the portal?"

''Um, dunno. Maybe can do more stuff than I know?"

"I think you are right. We can work on that together, ok?"

''Okay.''

Jürgin looks for the cave now.

The mists are thicker here, close to the sea. Jürgin sees a flicker of warm light from a spot beside the pier.

"Gruz, Smezel, we need to find the Chief now help me please."

....After several minutes spent searching the area between the bay and the central hills, Jürgin finds the cave where the Chief and the others are hiding.
The little monsters emerge under the light of the moon and stars and stare at Jürgin.

"I come to take you away from Dodds and be your new leader...... will you come?"

The Chief adjusts his tinsel crown and waggles his carved stick at the boy. ''Me Chief. "

"Yes you are Chief. Will you follow me then? "

Several of the creatures point at Jürgin and babble in their strange tongue.
The Chief blinks. ''Oh, like with Dodds? I be chief, you be, um....something?”

"Gruz, translate please."

Gruz looks up. ''What be translate?”

"Yes, I be something but nicer and treat you better. I will never ever harm you or your people, I promise.

Translate means tell me what everyone is saying in your language as I do not understand what they are saying, Gruz."

Gruz just looks confused.
Smezel says, ''Gruz not so smart. Maybe I should..."

Diplomacy roll

"Gruz is fine. What I mean is this...." Jürgin says something in Lamordian then says to Gruz.....

"You did not understand, right?"

The creatures all bow down and worship Jürgin.
''Master! Master!"

Jürgin is a bit surprised at first. "Okay, listen, we need to go steal a boat to get away from here. Are you with me?"

''Yes!"

"Okay we need to be quiet though."

The Chief whispers, "Okay."

Smezel whispers, '' We real good thieves. We always be stealing stuff.'

"Okay then" in a whispering voice,,,,,, "We go now to the docks. That is good because I am too," whispers Jürgin and he giggles, reaching back and patting Gruz on the back softly.

The whole tribe, over a dozen of the one-eyed creatures, follows Jürgin to the shore.

Dark One moves ahead, checking the ground and the flanks.

Jürgin hears two voices ahead.

One of the rough, deep voices says, ''Bah! How the heck did we get stuck on guard duty, and everyone else gets to party at the big house. I tell ya, Claude, it's cuz the captain hates me."

Jürgin keeps away from the voices, as silent as possible. "Dark One," he whispers "We need a boat,,,, find which one is less occupied."

Dark One flits off into the mist.

When the shadow returns, it reports- ‘’The men have two bigger boats from the ship. Looks like both could transport all of us and supplies. There are two men, both with lanterns and swords. They are watching over the boats. I couldn’t get too close without them maybe seeing me. They are very alert.”

Jürgin thinks a moment. "Gruz, Smezel, Chief - we need to steal the boats but there are guards there, can you make the guards go away so we can steal the boats?

Smezel whines “Um, they gots swords."

"You are good at hiding right?"

All the creatures bob their heads at once/

"Okay so let us all pick up some stones.... Dark One,,,, do we throw the stones at the men or away from them?"

''I don't know, do you?"

Jürgin talks out loud to himself mostly "If we throw at them they might come after us
If we throw near them will they move and go investigate?"

Dark One remains silent.

Smezel rubs his belly. Gruz picks his nose.

"Okay we get close to the bad men. Find great hiding spots,,, then we throw stones at them, ok?"

The creatures fan out into the mist, vanishing in the hazy night.

Jürgin finds a spot as well

"I will whistle when it is time to throw," he whispers to them as they
move to hide.

From his hiding spot behind a clump of beach grass, Jürgen sees the two men seated on barrels near the boats. Two burning lantern rests on the sand to either side of the men, and the two boats are pulled up on the sand behind them.

When Jürgen gives the signal, stones fly. The men leap up and cast about in surprise.
‘’What the deuce?!?”
They pull out their swords and reach down to retrieve the lanterns from the sand.

One of them says,
‘’Someone’s trying to trick us. Blow the horn and signal the other men.”

The larger of the two men, whom Jürgen recognizes as the bosun’s mate from the Peryton, sets his lantern back in the sand and pull a bull’s horn from his belt…

"Dark One, distract the man about to blow the horn." Jürgin removes his dagger from his boot and moves closer........ he is going to try to throw the dagger at the man as an attack. Not again..... I must survive, but killing, killing is not a good thing. If it is to survive however, it makes it right, doesn’t it? I don’t want to die. The blond haired grips the dagger tightly, not happy with what must be done. His heart beats fast.

17 initiative

Dark One leaps out before the two guards and waves his shadowy arms at them. They stagger back, but do not flee. The man with the horn raises it to his lips, inhaling deeply. He places his lips over the mouthpiece and...

Jürgin moves up and throws the dagger at the mans face/head as an attack, removing his scarf at the same time, his mouth open... grinning maliciously.

Attack 19
4 damage dagger
4 sneak attack damage

The dagger strikes the bosun's mate between his shoulder blades. He falls forward onto the sand. The other man spins towards Jürgin, but one look at the boy's mouth sends him running through the dunes. He dropped his cutlass.
The running man is headed straight for the chateau!
The downed man groans, rolling over, and feebly lifts the horn to his lips...

Jürgin kicks him in the face hard
“Gruz, Smezel stop the running man!”
15 attack

The kick knocks the horn away, but the man can still shout-''Help, help, we're under attack!"

I’m so sorry but I live or you live...I chose...to live. Jürgin jumps down and bites the man on the neck as hard as he can, trying to rip his throat out!
21 attack

Jürgin rips out the man's throat. Hot ... ttack roll
5 rapier damage
5 sneak attack damage[/quote]

Jürgin runs the man through. The man coughs and twitches, and then falls still.

The boy applies the coup de grace, closing the mans eyes. “I.... am sorry, I had to kill you.” .

The one-eyed monsters stab and beat him, but he's already dead.[/quote]


Jürgin finds some money and useful items on both men. Twenty or thirty silver and copper coins between the two men, some dice, a couple of clasp knives, the lanterns, two swords that his goons could use, an ivory toothpick, a whetstone, some playing cards, a blanket and some twine.

"We share all the treasure we find, ok? So here is half of the coins for all of you."

''Yay!"

"Wait!"

The monsters wait.

"We share the coins and treasure. No fighting or biting for it, ok?
This is fair for everyone, even me. So everyone gets some, right?"

The monsters nod like obedient little kids.

Jürgin gives them a first lesson on how to count.
"Okay now we get all the supplies and take the boats, but first, Gruz, come here."

Gruz approaches.

"Okay, Gruz" and he holds out his hand "Pull my finger."

Gruz does, a sound is heard and laughter and giggles ensue between Jürgin and his new friends.


After the boats are loaded, Smezel whines, Me so hunggy."

"Guys I have an idea.”

Several of the other creatures begin to beg Jürgin for 'snacks'.
Smezel asks, ''What idea?"

" An idea is a thought , something you think of. You eat fat ones, right? I can’t believe
I am even thinking this and going to actually do it. They need to eat, I must keep telling myself that.”

''Yes.''

"So, if I help you cut up the two dead fat ones will that be enough food for you for a few moons passing. Or can you just eat them like that?”

''Cuts them''

"Okay." Bile rises in his mouth even as he moves to retrieve the cutlass. The boy moves off after the farthest one. "Bring me something to put the fat ones pieces in please."

He goes about his gruesome task of butchering the dead men, throwing up more than once, but telling himself it is for the best. They eat human flesh is his reasoning and they need to eat. He has to provide for his new family now. Stomach now empty, grim task completed. They board the boat, load the supplies. He constructs a makeshift sail for each boat and satisfied, they depart the island.[/quote]

[ewancummins]

Everline does, indeed, wake up with a scream -- but at this point, it is a scream of pure rage. "Bastard!" she howls as she struggles to sit upright despite the renewed tremors in her body. "Filthy, burn-faced bastard! I'll kill you kill you kill you kill kill kill~!" The words stop due to a brief bout of vomiting, then resume as a profane screech of pure hatred...

Everline's screams rouse Benn and his family. Jonas begins to cry.

[ewancummins]

The Expedition

Dorgio eyes the crawlspace. "I can fit, but not like this." He takes a few minutes to doff his banded armor.

"I'll need you two to be watching my back--somebody's got to pull me out if this turns out to be a bad idea."

He says a prayer of illumination over his spear, then crawls into the space using his weapon as a torch. Once he comes in range of the chest, he tries to hook the chest with his spear and give a few testing tugs to see if he can drag the chest to him without damaging his weapon.

After getting stuck for a few nerve-wracking seconds, Dorgio passes his shoulders through the gap and slides into the crawlspace with ease. He pokes about with his spear till he hooks the chest. It takes him a couple of minutes to maneuver in the close space and shove the chest out, then crawl out behind it.

Eustace and Primeiro don't see or hear any enemies approach while Dorgio recovers the chest.

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

Dorgio wipes a layer for sweat from his brow and stares down at the chest. "I am not knowing about you two, but I'm eager to be seeing what's in here after all that work."

"Here, let's be prying these nails out, then we can see what's inside. But when we open it, make sure it's facing away from us, in case there is a trap."He draws his spare knife and begins to work at the nails.

[Ail]

"Wait. There's been no sign of our foe yet, but that doesn't mean danger is not around."

Eustace casts Bless around the group.

[ewancummins]

The expedition to the shadow's lair



Eustace blesses the trio of delvers.

With some effort, for the nails have been pounded deep into the wood, Dorgio pries the lid loose. A sickly sweet taint leaks out of the ruptured container, turning Dorgio's stomach. He looks within to find a dead man twisted to fit into the chest. Even as desiccated and decayed as it is, the naked, broken figure still shows the marks or torture with branding iron and knife. A closer look reveals that the man was castrated before being crammed into the chest. Wooden splinters stick out from the fingernails on both hands. The lid interior is covered in deep gouges.

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

The Expedition

Dorgio is no stranger to violence--he'd een, healed, and inflicted countless wounds. He'd investigated corpse that had been not merely slain but nearly torn apart. And yet this corpse is beyond the pale even for the stalwart priest. He takes a step back involuntarily, then freezes. His normally dusky featurs turn sallow, and though his mouth mov he maks no sound.

[Adam]

Benn stands with a start from the table, hustling over to Everline. "Compose yourself, madame. Are you alright?"

[Rock of the Fraternity]

Everline snarls like a tiger when Benn approaches, and for a moment there is no recognition in her eyes, only bestial rage. Her eyes are so bloodshot that the blue has turned purple...

Slowly, some semblance of rationality returns to the girl's features, and she whispers in a hoarse voice: "Dodds. Fredrik Dodds. In my dreams. Came back... for a second... helping. I am... wrong inside... So... sorry... to frighten your child... your wife... Benn... He is eating me in small bites."

A single tear escapes Everline's eye, and then the madness and rage fill them again as she whispers: "Fredrik Dodds deserves to die. Everline deserves to kill him. Help me kill him, Benn."

[ewancummins]

The private bar
Charlotte murmurs to Jonas in an effort of calm the little boy.


Benn and Everline hear some commotion outside the bar, from the general direction of the ball room.

A moment later, they hear heavy knocking at the door to the hallway.

''What's goin' on in there? Is everyone alright?"
The voice sounds like Captain Griffith.

[Rock of the Fraternity]

Everline's head swivels towards the door and she bares her teeth in a soundless snarl. They are perfectly normal, human teeth, but Benn can see that the girl must have bitten her own mouth during the height of the nocturnal attack; a little blood is trickling from her lips.

[ewancummins]

The knock falls again, heavier this time.

''You okay in there?"

[Ail]

Eustace notices the shock that suddenly washes over Dorgio, and unsure of what happened, he says.

"You are white as chalk, Dorgio. Here, let me help."

He casts "Cloak of Bravery" on the group, hoping that somehow helps in releasing Dorgio from the grip of horror.

"Let's hope this helps us in our journey a while more."