Party 4

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Dess studies the house as they enter, taking in the signs of unholy siege with a shiver, then pales slightly at the sight of the coffin in the side room. As Ireena introduces herself, Dess's takes comfort in the fact that the lady is comfortable in her armor. Hopefully she's as sturdy as her family's manor has been. Dess bows slightly, offering a sympathetic smile to the young woman.

"A pleasure, Ireena. Please, call me Dess. From the look of things, I believe eventful may be a slight understatement? Hopefully we can help ease your burden somewhat."
 
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Bowing her head as Beldar did, Arinthia looked Ireena up and down, looking at the armor that Ireena was wearing and the rapier that she was carrying.

‘Guess she must be pretty on edge. Can’t say I blame her, having seen the state of their grounds and what Ismark said.’
“Hello, I’m Arinthia.” Glancing to Ismark, Arinthia quickly added, “I’m sorry for your loss.”
 
Scratching the stubble of his beard, Has it been that long since I've shaved?, Beldar gave a quick snort, Focus on the task at hand man.
"Ismark, Lady Ireena, I would be honored to carry your father to the church for his last rites. And from there, continue on to Vallaki," wherever that may be, he thought.
Looking at Juniper, "And I hope no one else has any objections," he says in a hopeful tone as his eyes then travel to his other companions.
 
Juniper lets out a small giggle once she hears Ismark's request. "Apologies."
She straightens up, stretches her arms and legs and looks at Ismark. "I am willing to do all I can to help you take your father to the church. One can not rightfully morn until their loved one is properly buried."
Juniper pauses and smiles.
This will be interesting.
 
Arinthia nodded in agreement with Beldar, "No objections my end," Arinthia said as she looked at the coffin, wondering if between the lot of them they wouldn't need to drag the coffin as Ismark had said, but could carry it. "I'll do everything I can to help too."
 
Dess looks back over at the coffin in the side room, then purses her lips, thinking for a moment before she speak.

"I'm more than willing to help, if need be. Digging a grave and burying the body again would certainly be easy enough. Now, please forgive me for asking, but does he have to be buried? It's obviously not your custom, but given the way things have become here, would a funeral pyre not perhaps be a better option? Leaving the body intact when the dead have developed a penchant for getting back up and trying to kill you seems to carry some risk? Especially if Strahd is toying with you."

She shudders, and her teeth clench for a moment in hatred for the apparent cruelty being visited on this town.

"If he's that cruel, imagine the pleasure he would take in forcing you to fight for your life against your own father's revived body."
 
Nodding at Dess, Beldar agrees, "Yes...that would be most unfortunate of a situation, but hopefully the local clergy has a remedy for this sort of....issue."

Smiling, Beldar says to Ismark, "Then it looks like you have yourself some aid in these troubled times, we can be ready as soon as you wish."
 
Watching the procession of the dead, it made Arinthia think of a funeral procession. Though in its own way the eerie green light was beautiful.

"How does this happen?" the young tiefling asked, "Are they dangerous?"
 
Grasping his amulet Beldar quietly says a prayer to the Great Mother.
"This is a most unholy act," he immediately grumbles upon finishing his prayer.

"This cannot be allowed to continue, these souls deserve to rest in peace!," he continues in an angry tone not yet heard by his companions.

Turning to Ismark and Ireena, "Will no one else now stand against this villian? Has despair racked them so that they would rather be slaves then free men!?"

Taking a breath, he turns to his companions before his last question can be answered and in a more solemn tone says, "We must help them...both the living and the dead."
 
Dess's jaw drops as she stands there watching the phenomenon, her eyes dancing across the figures as they appear, her expression fascinated as she watches the magic work, only half paying attention to her companions' conversations, not even paying attention to the fact that she's speaking to herself aloud.

"Does this happen every night? Goddess, I'm absolutely going to have to make time some night to sit here and study this properly. How fascinating. I wonder if they're actually the spirits of the dead. Or maybe the magic fueling this is simply taking their forms, taking imprints from them as they passed, and incorporating it into the phenomenon. Illusion? Necromancy? Conjuration? Could be any of the three. Even Abjuration, maybe, if the power of their essence has been woven into serving some power trying to protect the town?"

After a short while studying, her mouth snaps shut, and she gives a sharp nod to herself.

"Hrmm. Have to remember to not die. It could be irritating to get trapped in this, if it actually is the spirits of the fallen making this march. Too much to do to die."
 
Arinthia nodded her head at Beldar's statement about helping them, her tail unravelling from the loose coil she usually kept it in around her left leg, the tip twitching against her boot. Listening to Dess' thoughts as she watched the march continue onward, Arinthia couldn't help hoping that none of them would join it.

"I hope we can help them," Arinthia said, "They don't deserve to have to march forever, they deserve rest." The rogue said, a few tears coming to her eyes which she tried to avoid drawing attention to.
 
Juniper was dumbfounded from watching the different ghostly presence emerge from the graveyard. She could not force her self to speak. As she hears her companions carry on conversations that barely reaches her ears, she is filled with rage. This shouldn't be happening. They should be at rest. This is not right.

Reaching the crossroad, Juniper still had not said a word, but her rage faltered a bit. Before Ireena stopped, Juniper was heading straight toward RAVENLOFT. She knew that was where the devil lived and she wanted to confront him.
Noticing that Ireena stopping, Juniper stopped as well and lets out a quiet breath.

She closes her eyes and begins to think about the women toting greatswords, woodwise men with slender bows, dwarves with glittering axes, and archaically dressed mages with beards and strange, pointed hats. She thinks about Badger, her mentor, and best friend. What if he was stuck like that. To repeat the struggle until someone could free him. A tear falls down her cheek.

My emotions are getting the best of me. Badger is not here. He is still alive, he has to be. I can't even think about fighting a Vampire when I can't even show self-control.

Juniper takes a deep breath. "Vel Karsh". She turns toward Ireena, her eyes stinging with grief. "That sounds like a good idea. The more people on our side the better. A detour will be the least of our problems if we show up to Ravenloft without a plan. Maybe the Vistani can help us with that."
 
Dess frowns, and looks up at the signs for a moment, as what Ireena says connects some of the events of the past day in her mind.

"Didn't you say the Vistani were supposed to be Strahd's servants, and were the only ones granted permission to pass through.. the... fog?"

Her thoughts continue to snap pieces together, and suddenly her expression turns angry as her gaze snaps up to glare down the road to the Tser Pool. Her voice goes cold and quiet as she speaks softly to herself.

"Of course. If dissent forms among those who can leave, why wouldn't they look for those they can use from the outside world? I bet they do. And if they have some power over the mists, what's to say they can't use the same abilities they were granted to keep them from getting trapped here to draw others here. Oh, there will be words lady if you are the one who dragged us here."

Dess shakes her head, and her voice loses the cold edge, though it's still tight, as though she's trying to keep firm control on her tone.

"I think that would be an excellent detour, Lady Ireena. I suspect we would do well to have a word with such a lady as well."
 
Arinthia rubbed her chin in thought as she listened to Ireena, the tip of her tail tapping against her left boot as she thought. "I agree with Dess and Juniper on that, Lady Ireena. The more allies the merrier, right?" Arinthia said as she looked at the road sign and tried to lock the places and directions on her mind.

'No mention of Daggerford on this road sign.' The young tiefling thought to herself, 'I wonder how far away we are from there? And what happened in Barovia before I arrived there. Or how Dess, Juniper and Beldar came to be there as well. Should probably find that out too at some point.' Arinthia found herself wondering how Father Donavich would fare, 'I hope he doesn't just sit there until his son finds some way out of that basement.'
 
Juniper turns around to investigate the creaking noise. Seeing the corpse swinging in the wind gave her goose bumps. "Umm was that there be..." Juniper's face was white as snow. It was like all her blood was drained from her body. As the breeze swings the corpse around Juniper was staring straight into her own eyes. Juniper stumbles backwards and falls to the ground. She pushes herself backwards trying to put as much distance between her and... her. "No. It can't......." Juniper couldn't find the words. All she could do was point at the corpse. "It's me." She whispered loud enough for her companions to hear. She has a look of pure terror on her face.
 
Looking up from what seemed an endless time of thought, Beldar seemed puzzled at what Junioer had just said. What,s her?, he thought to himself.
Turning his gaze upon a corpse swinging ahead, his mouth gaped open. Who would do such horrible deeds? mutshe muttered, as he turned his attention back to Jumiper.
Looking at the fear upon Juniper's face, he moved closer to her. I'm sorry Juni, but I fear this may not be the last corpse we see before this is done. Did you know the woman?
 
Juniper looks at Beldar with a confused and hurt look in her eyes. "What do you mean do I know her? I am her! That is my lifeless body."
 
As Beldar moved closer to Juniper, Arinthia took a look at the woman hanging from the noose. Brown hair that was flaking out of the scalp in clumps, patches of the woman's hair had already long since disappeared to the winds. a tattered, faded dress, a few strands of which were blowing in the breeze. The part that stood out to Arinthia was the fact that the woman's eyes were gone, leaving empty sockets behind.

The sight of the empty eye sockets made Arinthia feel like vomiting. Sticking her head behind a tree in the hopes that none of the rest of them would see, Arinthia vomited up what remained of her last meal into the bushes. 'I really hope that happened after she died, not before.' thought the rogue. Wiping her mouth off, Arinthia moved back towards the group as she heard Juniper claim it was her body. "Erm, Juni, as horrible as that body is and as unfortunate as her fate is - it isn't you."
 
Dess's skin goes even paler than normal as a shiver runs down her spine at the sight of the body as she tries to reconcile its presence with the empty gallows she had just passed. She frowns as she hears Juniper panicking over the body, locking back for more details, and shakes her head, certain that she doesn't see any resemblance.

"Um, Juni, you're still alive. And that wasn't there a moment ago."

Dess moves up to the base of the gallows, raising her hand, her fingertips sketch a flaming rune in midair, and a short command unleashes a bolt of ruby red fire that sears through the rope. As the body falls to the ground, dissolving to form a disgusting pool of steaming green fluid. Dess jumps back with a yelp, stumbling and dumping herself over backwards to avoid getting splashed. She sits there in shock for a moment before shaking slightly, and pulling herself to her feet, backing away, looking disgusted and nervous.

"What in the hells? It's not even flesh and blood, it's some sort of weird slime. It looked solid enough hanging up there."
 
Juniper was dumbfounded by what her friends were saying. How do they not see that it was her lifeless body hanging? Her bones ached from the fear. Was this a sign? She thought to herself. Her eyes darted around. She never felt safe in this place, now even more so. I am in danger.
She stands up from the ground and backs away from her party. She doesn't know why they keep telling her that it was some stranger hanging from the gallows. There was no way she could have imagined it. The image of herself swinging in the wind is seared in her mind. She turns away from her group and weeps.
"We should get moving then."
 
In a low voice Beldar says, "This appears to be a group of Vistani, do you folks think they will be as inviting as our previous acquaintances?"

After traveling through that town and first Beldar thinks, I could use some jovial conversation, that's for sure. He then looks around hoping to see a similar feeling of the look in the faces of his companions.
 
Seeing how very inebriated the group of Vistani were, Arinthia smiled as Beldar asked if they would be inviting. "I hope so, though I hope they will be coherent as well."

'And if they offer me a drink, I hope my stomach settles down and doesn't keep churning over that green goop that body turned into,' thought the red head, 'those plucked out eyes though, that was unsettling. And the way Juniper thought it was her, that was weird. She seemed pretty upset too, I hope meeting with these Vistani will cheer her up a little.'
 
Listening to the story that was being told and taking occasional sips of the wine that had been shared, Arinthia sat in thought, masking her worries with a calm smile on her face.

'I wonder if that wizard was one of the people we saw in that march from the graveyard?' Arinthia thought to herself, glancing over at Juniper. 'Juni was really spooked by that corpse hanging from the gallows. That was strange how it dissolved into goop.'

Following the storyteller's outstretched finger to the tent that was sat nearest the water, Arinthia smiled to her newfound friends. "Well, how does everyone feel about paying Madame Eva a visit?" Arinthia suggested as her tail stretched and coiled up, on the ground by her side.
 
Jotting down a few notes in his pad, regarding another interesting meeting with the Vistani, Beldar smiled as he put the pad back in his coat pocket. These Vistani certainly have a flair for the dramatic, and I wonder just how much of what they say is truth and how much is for effect.

"Sure Arinthia, no sense in rushing out of here before we've gathered as much intel as we can," Beldar says as he looks towards the direction the older man pointed towards.

Turning to Juni and Dess, "I assume neither of you have any issues with this?"
 
Dess's shoulders slump and she sighs, closing her eyes for a moment, before looking over at the tent the Vistani directed them to.

"Well, they certainly seem to be the same people we met before. Drunken and gregarious, with a penchant for storytelling. Anyone want to guess whether the Madame will be any more sober than her friends?"
 
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