Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cerebral Paladin" data-source="post: 3050583" data-attributes="member: 3448">After a few minutes, Lady Constance entered the room.  She gestured at Aurelia and then said, “Yes, I can see why you called me.  The rider is clear.  They have implanted a thought demon, riding along with her fetus.”  She scrutinized the magical patterns.  “Probably about three days ago.”“A thought demon?  What is that?”“Thought demons are minor demons, but they are particularly effective against psionics.  It is incapable of taking a physical form and is a servitor at the bottom of the demonic hierarchy.”“Can you remove it?”“Not without grave risk to the fetus.  It would be better to have a priest exorcise it, which should be simple enough.  But you must make sure that there are no pregnant women within 200 yards, or it will simply switch hosts.”The sergeant on duty outside the Archducal chambers knocked and entered.  “Guardsman Trevor has arrived, Captain.”“Send him in.  And have a sweep of guards make sure that there are no women who are or might be pregnant within 200 yards of this chamber.  If there is any doubt, have them moved.”Trevor came to attention and saluted and then noticed Lady Constance and the scared look on his wife’s face.  “What’s the matter?  Is Aurelia in danger?”“No, Guardsman,” replied Dame Brionna.  “She is under a magical effect, but we will have it dispelled.”He relaxed.  “How may I serve, Captain?”“We would like to know more about Aurelia’s great-aunt.  The one with the interests in seances.”“Well, you see…”  Trevor looked apologetically at Aurelia.  “Frankly, ma’am, she’s gone crazy in her dotage.  She means well, but she’s not all there.  And she’s become obsessed with a medium.”“Do you know the medium’s name?” asked Kit.  “Or where she keeps her shop?”“No, m’lady.  And she doesn’t have a shop.  But all the old women know how to find her, by word of mouth.”“Was there a séance three days ago?”Trevor blinked.  “Yes, m’lady.  A special one, with about twenty women.  Aurelia’s great-aunt insisted that she go, and I walked her over.”“Were there any other pregnant women there, besides Aurelia?”“Aurelia definitely is?”  Excitement and pride flashed across Trevor’s face, but Dame Brionna’s firm gaze quickly brought him back to focus.  “I do not know for certain, but I think that Brenda is, and I saw her there.  Brenda is a tavern maid at the Golden Antler, where they held the séance.  She looks it again, and she almost always is.  She has eight already, Captain, and it’s been a year and a half since her last…”Dame Brionna’s eyes narrowed.  “The séance was at a tavern?  How often are the seances there?”“More often than not, Captain.  I think the medium may be related to the owner, although as I said, I don’t really know her.”One of the senior palace priests entered the chambers.  “You wished to see me, Dame Brionna?”  As he saw Lady Constance, he frowned, and she glared back at him.Dame Brionna gestured at Aurelia.  “We hoped that you could help her.”The priest made a minor prayer to Glor’diadel and then took a half-step back.  “I see.  Yes, I should be able to cast it out without great difficulty.”Kit inclined her head towards Lady Constance.  “We hoped that you could work with Lady Constance.  If she can bind it after you cast it out, we’ll be able to gain some badly needed intelligence.”The priest swallowed hard.  “I can’t say I approve of working with people like that.”“I don’t approve of working with pompous fools, either,” Lady Constance replied.“Please, Father, Lady Constance… The Archduchy needs this information.  If you do not work together, other demons will likely go undetected.”“Very well.  I will work with her if she’s willing to accept my aid.”Lady Constance and the priest began quietly negotiating the terms of their cooperation.  She wished to perform the ritual in her lab, where it would be easiest to bind the creature, and he responded that he would need to sanctify the area where the exorcism would take place, which she would permit as long as he did not disturb any of the long-running experiments and spells she had in place, and so forth.  They led Aurelia away, still negotiating, while Trevor tagged along with a look of terror on his face.</blockquote>

Verification