stonegod's Expedition to Castle Ravenloft: Ch. II [IC]

[s@squ@tch]

Marot the Deadly

"This zombie seems out of place -- unless it has been here for centuries, lying undisturbed, which would be highly doubtful -- as Sir Urik and the other Knights of the Raven have stood vigil in this Chapel -- I would have thought he would have mentioned the corpse or perhaps gotten rid of it."

He paces slightly back and forth.

"So I would hazard a guess that this creature was part of the Emerald Claw detachment that charmed me. Which would beg the question of whether they have already infiltrated the castle."

He looks somewhat concerned.

"They could be anywhere, I would imagine, possibly in league with Sergei..."

OOC: Does this place feel at all holy to Marot? Or perhaps the better question is, does it feel less evil?

 

[James Heard]

"Perhaps the statue is what the agent sought?" Janis muses.

Frowning, Janis strides forward and holds her hand over the altar as if testing it for warmth.

"I wonder if my heart is truly black?"

Janis places her hand upon the altar.

 

[stonegod]

OOC: Does this place feel at all holy to Marot? Or perhaps the better question is, does it feel less evil?

The taint of the Castle gives it a weighty presences, but it does seem less here. But like a pool of clear water surrounded by a bog, it is not as clear as it would be by itself.

Tessa nods at Marot's words, mentioning that the Claw agents that attacked the caravan as it entered Barovia had undead with them.

 

[stonegod]

"I wonder if my heart is truly black?"

Janis places her hand upon the altar.

As Janis places her hand on the altar, a flash of blinding white light feels the darkness. As it washes over Ashlyn and Jarrith, they feel the coolness of fresh breeze. Janis braces herself, the burst washes over her harmlessly. All the party near the altar straighten as they feel the taint of the place briefly part, only to come back once the flash is gone.

Sharp eyed Jarrith sees the corpse blacken and smolder some as the wave crashes over it, and Tessa, outside of the effect, recognizes it for what it is: An evocation of holy might to destroy the faithless, a weapon against those of pure evil. [Spellcraft: holy smite effect]

A brief glance with Marot's magical senses show the altar is still warded.

 

[James Heard]

"Curious," Janis says, not sounding as if she quite believes it.

"Anyone else?"

 

[pathfinderq1]

"Perhaps the warding will not trouble us as it did the formerly-undead agent. It seems to be a burst of holy power- to those who have good in their heart, or at least no overt evil, it should not cause harm." Tessa tried to sound sure of herself, but the power of the ward was impressive. "It seems like a sure sign that the divine energy and sanctity of this altar is still fully intact."

 

[s@squ@tch]

Marot the Deadly

"Curious thing is that the altar is still warded -- even after discharging that burst of holy energy."

"I'd say that I quite enjoyed a brief respite from the forboding evil of this place -- I might be inclined to lay down on that altar for quite some time, feeling each surge of holy energy -- would be like chicken soup for my soul...."

 

[stonegod]

Seeing that approaching the altar seems safe, Marot and Ashlyn take a better look at the undead while the others look to room. The former zombie's full plate armor is warded with some sort of protective magic, while the skull-shaped mace at its belt is also enchanted---a quick touch by Marot causes him to flinch a moment, suggesting something ill at work. Interestingly enough, the blood drop medallion at its through, a common Volite sign, is also magical, an enchantment of some sort.

Ireena makes the sign of the 'V' as she approaches the altar, and looks curiously at the dead body a moment. "The marking of its armors... almost akin to the signs of the Sacred Blood. But you say this is a recent visitor to our lands?"[sblock=Tessa]Kn: Religion and History]

Her question is one of interest. If what you have heard is true, then there is little way the Blood of Vol symbols and similar religion beliefs that the Barovians hold could have come from the mainstream Volite faith---Barovian has been isolated for millennia. The only thing that makes sense is that either the original Barovian inhabitants or their later Karrn sponsored rulers brought a Proto-Volite belief here that melded with some Sovereign-based beliefs based with the Ravens.[/sblock]

 

[Stormwind]

Ashlyn leaves the Symbol of Ravenkind hanging from her neck as she takes one more look at the raven statue and then stands.

As she stands up from beside the once undead creature, Ashlyn muses aloud, "Odd that a Karrnathi zombie should bear armor that is decorated with symbols of the Blood of Vol ... odder still if it should be of the Emerald claw ... and yet it is the only thing that would make sense for that would imply that the 'she' that Sergei spoke of was also a member of the same Emerald claw group that caused problems for us earlier."

Ashlyn then turns businesslike as she addresses the others, "If some of us are to sit vigil here tonight then it behooves us to tidy this place up a little, if for no other reason than some additional comfort for us all. I for one feel that a little simple respect for this place which has survived intact in the midst of darkness would not go amiss and I for one intend to attempt to restore a little cleanliness to this place. ... It must have been quite something in its full splendor."

Ashlyn then begins to move pews and benches upright into what might have once been their proper positions, neat and ordered rows. Broken and shattered remnants of wood she picks up and places in a neat pile by the doors.

Once that is done she surveys the room once more and then walks over to the corpse and removes the cadaver from its gear, undoing belts, buckles and clasps and leaving the armor and equipment where it falls on the floor. She then places the corpse in a clear space in the center of the room, pulls a dagger like stake from a pouch at her belt and thrusts it into the blackened remains of the body. Stepping back a pace she then watches as the body burns to a small pile of ash.

[Use Alchemical flare stake on corpse to burn it.]


Finally Ashlyn turns towards Janis, and her tone is calm and polite as she asks, "Might I ask a favor of you? Could you use your arcane training to move all the dust and ashes from this place?"

 

[pathfinderq1]

Once Ashlyn began to clear the chapel up, Tessa put down the lantern, carefully placing it so that it threw what light it could. Then she set to work as well, trying to do her share of the restoration, limited though it might be. Just in case, though, she kept casting worried glances at the door...