Session 5: A Sudden Reversal Part One
Sabrina and Wistul have recently spent time together and decide to find a solution to their necromantic corruption. Jack is corrupted as well, but drinking keeps him busy.
After putting their heads together and deciding that the solution to the issue would be either magical or religious they decide to experiment this second angle. Sabrina recalls that the Cult of the Underground Vault worships a subterranean facet of Vorn, and that their holy symbol is a coffin. She remembers that some of their priestly rituals involve being locked in a coffin underground for long periods of time to be reminded that death is very much a part of life. (1) The two decide to head to the District of Under the Mountain where the Cathedral of the Underground Vault lies.
There is no city wall in Under the Mountain because Vornheim buildings there directly touch the cliff face. The Cathedral stands in the middle of a square where beggars, peddlers and street merchants abound. It's a low stone building, not unlike a very big longfarm. There are no visible windows and the stone it's built from is pitch black and offers no reflection.
The only ornament atop the low arch at the entrance is a representation of a coffin. There are two urns on either side of the entrance that are filled with earth. Sabrina and Wistul notice that some (but not all) of those who enter put their hands in one of the urns and rub a handful of soil on their faces. As they walk in, Wistul decides to do so, and Sabrina doesn't.
Inside, it's very dark except for small shafts of bright light probably originating from slits in the roof or walls. There is no altar, nor, in fact, any particular feature or ornament inside the vast low chamber. Petitioners seem to wander aimlessly in contemplation. As Wistul and Sabrina move further down inside, they notice a woman standing next to the ledge of a well, about two-thirds in the room. She teeters on the edge, seemingly hesitating, and suddenly jumps in. Wistul runs, expecting to see her crushed down below, but in fact he sees only pitch darkness which, considering how well he can see in the dark is decidedly uncanny.
Sabrina comes to stand on the ledge and waits for a while, hesitating. Finally, she hands her backpack to Wistul and jumps. Her fall quickly turns into a floating sensation. She is surrounded by darkness, it feels warm around her (a welcome sensation in Vornheim). After what seems like a long moment of silence and contemplation in darkness, a male voice speaks next to Sabrina. She does not see anything, nor can she pinpoint a direction the voice comes from.
-" You have taken the leap of faith. Vorn welcomes you in this place of peace and darkness where the warmth of His embrace makes us all secure...
- Vorn sounds a lot like my aunt Gertrude...
- Are you here just to pay homage to Him or do you seek his blessing?
- Well, of course I pay homage to Him with all my soul... but I would indeed like his blessing on something... I have these wounds... They have healed badly. I am told they are necromantic in nature and could turn me into an undead which, I'm sure you'll agree, is not desirable.
- That is not for me to judge... But indeed, you are corrupted with necromantic infection, even I can see that.
- Can Vorn do something about it?
- Vorn's Will is unlimited. And I am told that he will indeed help you, provided you pass the challenge he will lay before you.
- And what will this challenge be?
- You will see. Know this: once Vorn has healed you, you will owe a favor to him. Once, and only once in your life, he will express His will directly to you. On that day, you will follow his wishes or incur the Wrath of Vorn and, through Him of the entire Church of the Underground Vault.
- I would definitely not want that. I heed your warning, and accept the God's challenge.
- So be it.
Meanwhile, Wistul waits by the well. He expected Sabrina to come back quickly and now he's hesitating himself. Finally, he puts the backpack she gave him down on the floor and hesitantly walks over the ledge into the darkness below. He also feels the weightlessness in the darkness, and here's a female voice:
-" You have taken the leap of faith. Vorn welcomes you in this place of peace and darkness where the warmth of His embrace makes us all secure...
- Err... Sure. Thanks, I guess.
- Are you here just to pay homage to Him or do you seek his blessing?
- I, errr, have a friend, who jumped earlier. She's, I mean, we're infected with some undead thingy, and she thought...
- Yes, your friend has accepted the Challenge of Vorn. She now faces that challenge, and if she succeeds, she will be cured. Do you wish to face your challenge?
- What's the challenge?
- You will see...
- Well, in that case, I mean, thanks, but I'd rather not.
As he utters these words, Wistul finds himself standing again by the well, as if he'd never left. Next to him, Sven the Hen clucks in the backpack.
The darkness around Sabrina seems to shift, to take on a more tangible quality. She gradually realizes that while she still is in pitch black darkness, she can feel a hard plane behind her back. She stretches her fingers and touches something above her head. She starts to suspect where she may be, and a close examination with her fingers confirms her fear: she's in a coffin. Tapping the lid suggests there is earth above the box as well.
Sabrina starts pondering how she may get out. She has no doubt that this is Vorn's challenge. After a while, she feels inside one of her belt pouches and, with a few strands of rat hair in her fingers, she starts intoning the worlds to Drojafin's Faunal Assistance. There is a flash of lightning and a thunderclap, during which she sees a skeletal giant rat appear and quickly acquire flesh and muscles. As the darkness falls again, she feels the rat scuffling around. She crouches in one corner, not at all at ease with the giant animal she now has to share a coffin with. But she forces herself to calm down and orders the rat to gnaw at the coffin lid. After a few minutes, the rat breaches the wooden plank, and soft earth starts falling inside the coffin. The rat enlarges the hole, and soon Sabrina's torso can get through, but she is getting smothered by falling earth. She tells the rat to dig a passage ahead of her, but that only causes more soil collapsing. Sabrina starts to choke and realizes this is not the solution.
She fights mounting panic and tries to think about how her powers could help her more effectively. Finally, as an earthworm wriggles next to her eye, she grabs it and intones the words to Djorfin's Assistance again. This time a gigantic earthworm appears in the flash of lightning. She orders it to swallow the earth liberated by the rat above. Slowly, the three creatures progress towards the top: rat first, then earthworm, then Sabrina. Finally, the rat emerges and Sabrina quickly burrows her way to the surface, where she lies down for an instant. Then she realizes there is faint sound and light around her. She's lying next to the well in the Cathedral, with Wistul above her saying: "Wow, I was starting to worry!"
Sabrina stands up and passes a hand under her tunic to check the wound on her abdomen. The scar seems to have disappeared.
- "It worked", she says cheerfully.
***
The next day, Sabrina receives a message from Dwimberg the dwarven antiquarian to come and visit him. Once in the shop, Dwimberg takes Sabrina to his private office and reminds her that she owes him a favor:
- "You may have heard that the Halfling Circus of Signor Rallentando has recently come into town. Rallentando is a previous associate of mine. He is also a rascal. When we parted ways, he stole something from me that I would very much like to retrieve. I want you to find this object for me. It is a bracelet made of the finest gold with delicate ornaments. I do not know where he keeps it, only that it is undoubtedly very precious to him."
- "Do you have a sketching of the bracelet that I could use as reference ?"
- "I have better than that: its exact copy."
Dwimberg takes a golden bracelet out of a jewel box. It is indeed of exquisite make. The ornaments seems to replicate the links of a very delicate chain all around the bracelet. Once Sabrina has looked at it Dwimberg quickly puts it back in the box and then inside one of his jacket pockets.
- "So that is what I want in exchange for the favor you owe me. Take a burglar with you, I doubt it will be easy..."
Sabrina rounds up Wistul and Elan and explains what she is after. They decide to go and reconnoiter the circus first.
The circus has settled in the District of the Little Moon in the middle of one of the frost parks. There's a high circular palisade which blocks the entry except where the ticket booths are. At the center of the palisade is a high circus tent where the show takes place. All around the tent, alongside the palisade are many wagons with various attractions, animals on display, the abode of Madame Sosotris the fortune teller, etc.
Sabrina, Wistul and Elan pay a few coppers each to get inside the circus. It's midday, and there isn't a crowd inside yet, although they are far from being the only ones there. Sabrina heads towards the animal wagons and finds what she is looking for: two green tigers lazying behind bars. She crouches and speaks to one of the tigers.
- "Greetings, oh mighty one. It is not often one can bask in the glory of the sight of a green tiger so far from the Jungles of the South."
- "Oh! The tigers responds, visibly startled. A hairless ape that speaks. That is unusual."
- "I spent many an hour practicing the language of the most intelligent of the creatures of the Earth..."
- "Are you trying to flatter me?"
- "Errr..."
- "Because it's working!"
The tiger grins.
- "Are you treated well here?"
- "We are well fed, and the tamer dares not actually lay the whip on us for fear of ending in our bellies. So yes, I would say, although it is damnably cold."
- "That is Vornheim, I'm afraid..."
- "Is it always this freezing?"
- "This is mild actually. It can get a lot worse than this in the winter..."
- "Cursed place..."
- "Are you unhappy that Rallentando took you here?"
- "Well, it's part of the job... We can be lazy and not do very much at all while the crowds gawp at us, and in exchange we go where he takes us. Occasionally he feeds us the meat of his enemies. It's a mostly beneficial arrangement."
- "You don't long to return to your native jungles?"
- "Not really. Although a powerful male to scratch our hides and our itches wouldn't go amiss once in a while..."
Sabrina blushes.
- "On another topic, do you happen to know where Rallentando's wagon is?"
- "It's the one at the back of the tent from the entrance. Red shutters, and round door, it looks like a halfling hole on wheels. You can't miss it."
- "Thank you so much."
- "You're welcome, most pleasant talking to a talking hairless ape!"
Meanwhile Wistul spends a fair amount of time looking at the three bearded ladies who perform songs and tricks. Not only is the elf fascinated by the barely concealed femininity of the women, but he's never seen such beards on elfs, let alone elvin maidens.
Elan wanders around, checking for guards, identifying places where he could hide and assessing potential escape routes (his conclusion being that there are none apart from the main entrance...)
The three of them then assist to the afternoon show in order to time it and get some auditory cues as to how the show progresses. Signor Rallentando is the circus Ringmaster, which suggests that while the show is on they may have some freedom to wander around near his wagon.
During the evening show, they do just that. Sabrina stays inside to check on Rallentando's presence, while Elan and Wistul head out towards the wagon that the tigers described to Sabrina as being Rallentando's.
Wistul hides near the wagon while Elan creeps towards the round door as quietly as possible. He notices that there is some light coming from the inside but no movement or noise. He knocks lightly on the door, but there is no response. He quickly manages to pick the lock and enters the wagon, pushing the door close behind him. The wagon is lushly decorated by empty. On the left is what looks like a sleeping area, and on the right a tiny kitchen with a table and some stools. On the table is a lit candle which Elan looks at with fascination.
Ten minutes laster, Wistul is starting to get concerned. He creeps towards the wagon and, checking that nobody is around, pushed the door open. He stoops to get inside, and seeing Elan says "What on earth are you do..." Wistul has seen the candle and is now starting at it in fascination too.
Inside the circus, Sabrina is getting worried. Only half an hour of the show to go and Elan and Wistul aren't back. Annoyed at the ineffectiveness of males, she exits the circus tent and quietly makes her way towards Rallentando's wagon. She sees the light inside and the door ajar, but nothing seems to be moving. Sabrina walks briskly towards the wagon and swings the door open.
She sees Wistul and Elan motionless, staring at the candle. Shaking her head in disbelief, she snuffs the candle's flame (2) and grabs the candle. She then lights her lantern while Elan and Wistul rub their eyes.
- "What happened?" asks Elan.
- "You two louts were staring at the magic candle like infants at a box of sweets. Now let's get a move on and find the damned bracelet."
The three of them quickly search the little wagon, and they do find a jewelry box; it contains a medallion and some earrings, but no bracelet. In desperation and conscious that the show is ending in only a few minutes, they exit the wagon.
The start circling the tent towards the left, but Wistul stops Sabrina and Elan with his arms: he has just spotted a large silhouette in the shadows. Inhumanly large in fact. The creature walks forward ponderously. It looks like an impossibly tall and fat humanoid wearing an animal pelt. It has an enormous club in its hands and is flashing its half rotted teeth in a hungry grin.
Wistul mutters the formula of the Mighty Embiggenment while the creature approaches slowly, but the tension makes him fumble the complicated words and the spell fizzles. Sabrina and Elan have already turned around to circle the tent from the other side, but they find themselves face to face with Signor Rallentando himself in his ringmaster costume. He has the two tigers on a leash and a lady wearing a black veil is standing behind him.
- "Well, well, well... It looks like your divinations were right once again, Madame Sosostris. We were going to be burgled. I recommend you drop your weapons, interlopers, or I'll let the tigers have their ways with you. Unless Gorm gets to you before them."
The tigers growl, but only Sabrina understands what they are saying:
- "I'll leave the little female ape to you, sister. She and I had a nice conversation, I wouldn't be able to truly appreciate the taste of her."
- "How do you know the males from the females?"
- "Never you mind. The smallest one I leave to you."
- "Good! It looks plump and tasty!"
Sabrina puts her hands up in the air to show she is unarmed:
- "Look, let us be reasonable here. We were sent to rob you, we failed. There is no need to get violent: we will find a way of making it up to you."
- "Who sent you to rob me?" the halfling asks.
- "A dwarf by the name of Dwimberg, says you were an old associate of his."
- "The old fox. I should have guessed. And did he point you to an item in particular?"
- "Yes, a golden bracelet."
- "Indeed. Well, you failed."
- "Look, I can give you this very previous phial if you let us go." Sabrina slowly takes the glass phial with the green gas inside from her pocket.
- "I don't think so..."
- "Then keep these two fools, feed them to the tigers for all I care, but let me go!"
Wistul and Elan both stare at Sabrina in shock. Rallentando laughs and says:
- "Well, thank you for being so candid. I was going to make a counter proposition that involved you leaving and they staying as hostages, but I can now see that's pointless. I think I will feed you all to my tigers instead. It's been a while since they've had fresh human meat, and they've developed a taste for it. As for elven meat, I don't think they've ever had it, but elfs are delicate or so I'm told. I'm sure the cats'll appreciate it."
He turns to the difformed giant and says "Gorm, knock them senseless, we'll dump them in the cage tonight."
- "Wait! Elan shouts. Sabrina may not care about us, but I care about her. She saved my life and I have a debt of honour towards her. So tell me what it is you want and I'll do it. I won't abandon her and Wistul here, I swear it! (3)"
- "Interesting", Rallentando says. "I think I'm going to trust you on this, you seem sincere. I pity you of course, but then what do I care. It's simple: bring me the other bracelet, the one that is currently in Dwimberg's possession, and I'll let your friends go. You have until the end of the show tomorrow night. After that, the tigers will have their meal."
***
(1) This was a player contribution that I liked and adopted.
(2) Elan and Wistul failed their Will saving throws.
(3) Elan's player rolled a 20 on what I had deemed would be a very hard roll...
