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The Lightbringers' Expedition to Castle Ravenloft - updated 12/19
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<blockquote data-quote="Dr Midnight" data-source="post: 3639979" data-attributes="member: 69"><p style="text-align: center"><em><strong>Session 2 - Chapter 3</strong></em></p> <p style="text-align: center"><span style="color: DarkRed"><strong><span style="font-size: 22px"><span style="font-family: 'Impact'"><u>OVERNIGHT ACCOMODATIONS</u></span></span></strong></span></p> <p style="text-align: center"><span style="font-size: 9px"><em>Some text taken or paraphrased from EXPEDITION TO CASTLE RAVENLOFT</em></span></p><p></p><p>The group walked down a dark hallway, led by Strahd, who was holding a candelabra. They came to a spiraling stone staircase that circled upwards into one of the towers of the castle. They walked up and up and up, passing cobwebs that swayed with their passing… but not with Strahd’s. </p><p></p><p>They were led to a large door that opened into a lavish guestroom. In this room a king-sized canopy bed was veiled in black with gold tassels. Two overstuffed chairs flanked a small table, upon which sat a decorative lamp. A closed door inscribed with decorative floral carvings occupied the east wall. The ceilings were maybe twenty feet high.</p><p></p><p>“Here we are,” Strahd said with his polite smile. “I apologize for lumping you all into one room, but I fear my other guest rooms are occupied.”</p><p></p><p>“They are?” Arianna asked. She recalled pulling up to the castle and seeing no lights anywhere but in the entry chamber.</p><p></p><p>“Just so. You are an adventuring group, though. You are used to all sharing the same quarters.”</p><p></p><p>Gerrit said “Crickbourn’s not really… one of us, in matter of fact. He was with us on the road when the carriage came and he came with us for safety.”</p><p></p><p>“Oh,” Strahd blinked. “I had no idea. Well, you are welcome just the same, noble Crickbourn.”</p><p></p><p>“That’s okay,” Crickbourn said as he unfurled his bedroll. “I probably wasn’t going to get to stay in a nice place like this tonight anyway.”</p><p></p><p>“Tonight, roam of the room freely but do not leave it. The castle is very old, and its corridors are not entirely safe without the right perspective. If you must leave the room for anything… don’t.” He bowed with a smile. “And now if you will pardon me, brave heroes and kind Arianna, I must visit my beloved.” </p><p></p><p>Crickbourn looked up sharply to the Count from his bedroll as Gerrit asked “Your… beloved?”</p><p></p><p>“Yes. The fair Ireena, who resides in Barovia. Her father has recently passed on, so she will be grateful of my coming. Ahh. Someday we are to be wed.”</p><p></p><p>Crickbourn said “Goodnight, Count.” </p><p></p><p>The Count looked to him and said “Yes. Goodnight.” The door clicked shut and a bolt slid home, barring them in. </p><p></p><p>Gerrit shook his head. “A guy his age, going after a girl young enough to have just recently had a living father… ‘get the fruit while it’s fresh’, eh, Count?”</p><p></p><p>Arianna sneered as she unpacked her satchel for the night. “That’s disgusting.”</p><p></p><p>“Hey, he’s your relative.”</p><p></p><p>The dwarf lay down and said “This is a different land, with different customs. It may seem odd to us but we must accept.”</p><p></p><p>“Ehh,” Gerrit said. He was investigating the room. He lifted the mattress. “Hey! I’ve found something!” He pulled out a thin silver ring and a journal of some sort. He read it briefly, flipping forward through the pages. “This belonged to some guy named ‘Harp’. Came to the castle forty years ago… because he was told he might be the last heir to Castle Ravenloft.” </p><p></p><p>Arianna paused and looked up. “That’s odd.”</p><p></p><p>“Yes it is,” Gerrit said, skimming ahead. “He was invited to the castle… held… not allowed to leave? Huh. This says Strahd was holding him captive, apparently while assuming control of Harp’s property in a distant land.”</p><p></p><p>“How does it end?” Arianna asked. Jade had hopped up onto the foot of the bed and was already snoring softly. </p><p></p><p>Gerrit cleared his throat and read. “It says ‘I cannot live any longer in this captive manner. The things I hear at night! The things I have seen! I will go mad if I don’t escape, even at the risk of death. I will attempt to flee the castle tomorrow. Dwinnea keep me safe, and may I see my wife again. –Harp.’ There’s nothing else.” </p><p></p><p>Arianna sat on the bed. “I wonder if he made it.”</p><p></p><p>“I’m sure he did,” Crickbourn said. “Let’s get some sleep.”</p><p></p><p>Gerrit tossed the journal on a nightstand and began to rummage through a closet. “I’m not really tired yet… this place is creepy. Hey, robes!” He began admiring simple black robes that were hung in the closet. </p><p></p><p>“You always are impressed by the most mundane things,” Arianna said, bemused.</p><p></p><p>The halfling had already forgotten the robes and was bracing himself in the closet, climbing up to the low ceiling. “I think I’ve found something.” He pulled and the panel in the ceiling swung down on a hinge. An extending steel ladder fell from its concealed position, threatening to make quite a racket, but Gerrit reached out quickly and caught it before its feet could clang to the floor. The corridor went straight up, the ladder disappearing into darkness.</p><p></p><p>Arianna walked over and even Crickbourn, who’d been sullen, showed interest. “Secret passage?” Arianna asked. </p><p></p><p>“Looks that way. Want to check it out?”</p><p></p><p>Crickbourn walked forward. “You hold the ladder steady, I’ll climb. I can see in the dark anyway.” He climbed and whispered “Looks like it goes up the rest of the way to the fourth floor.” Despite his best efforts to creep silently upward, he was a dwarf, and one who’d had a trying day. The ladder’s frame rattled slightly in its moorings. He got to the top and pushed gently upward on the hinged panel there, lifting his head only enough to see into the room.</p><p></p><p>Something pulled up on the trap door, exposing him completely. “Now!” someone yelled. Crickbourn gasped as two men in black robes, the blood mages of earlier in the evening, began to tip a large bubbling cauldron towards him. Above him, the third mage had opened the trap door while sitting on a sturdy table. The dwarf hadn’t been remotely quiet enough, and the alchemists had readied themselves for a trespasser.</p><p></p><p>The cauldron clunked down to its side and boiling, opaque, dark red liquid gushed out over the cobblestones toward the startled dwarf. He had only a moment before it hit… but luckily, a moment was all he needed. He called upon his magicks and summoned a seven-foot diameter sphere of energy that hovered in place around him. Its pearlescent surface resembled a soap bubble. It trapped the arm of the alchemist holding up the trapdoor firmly in its grasp. </p><p></p><p>The boiling liquid hit the bubble, splashing and covering it in its sticky red color. The bubble had acted as a ramp and the arm that was trapped in the bubble with Crickbourn clenched and spasmed from the pain of the burns. While the mages in the room began rushing about, looking for a way to help their trapped peer, Crickbourn waited for the liquid to subside.</p><p></p><p>“What the hell’s happening?” Arianna asked, running over. </p><p></p><p>“I have no idea… sounds like liquid sloshing up there,” Gerrit said. He was at the bottom of the bubble, looking for a way to climb up. “I heard voices shout ‘now’ and then Crickbourn cast a spell. Crickbourn, if you can cancel the spell, I can get up there and fight!”</p><p></p><p>Crickbourn let the spell go and climbed down as Gerrit hustled up around him, heading towards the room above... which was entirely dark now. Something above spoke, just above the passage, from the darkness. A spell struck Gerrit in the chest. Later, he could only describe the feeling as being “shot with a heart attack.” His hands crumpled into claws and he grimaced from the pain. </p><p></p><p>Gerrit began climbing down, now, quickly. He was a sitting duck in this corridor, and he’d be almost helpless above in the dark. He didn’t think he’d be able to take another hit like that.</p><p></p><p>As he neared the bottom, the feeling struck him again and he fell the rest of the way. He struck the cobbles of the floor hard and his spasming lungs wouldn’t let him breathe. Arianna pulled him back from the line of fire and shut the trapdoor, bracing it. As Gerrit began to cough, color came back into his cheeks. The other two waited for sounds, signs of the mages coming down to continue the attack. There was nothing until the door at the top of the shaft slammed shut. </p><p></p><p>“I think they’re done with us,” Arianna whispered. </p><p></p><p>“That’s good,” Gerrit wheezed from the floor, “because I’m done with them. They only hit me twice and just about finished me off.”</p><p></p><p>“The Count will hear about this for certain,” Arianna said. “We’re bound to be in trouble tomorrow.”</p><p></p><p>“Hell with him,” Gerrit said as he sat up. “We’re not captives, like this Harp was. We’re not children to be spanked. If he doesn’t like that we looked about, he’s free to kick us out.”</p><p></p><p>Crickbourn muttered “We should stop and do as the Count said. This exploring has only done us ill, as he’d hinted it would.” </p><p></p><p>“Yeah,” Gerrit said, healing his wounds with his holy power. “Let’s turn in. Jade, uh… guard that closet door. If anything starts coming through, meow loudly.”</p><p></p><p>Arianna positioned herself by the closet. “I’ll watch it. I don’t sleep anyway.” She sat down and watched the closet door as the others slept. </p><p></p><p>Gerrit tossed and turned all night. He was having the most awful nightmares.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><em><strong>Coming up</strong></em></p> <p style="text-align: center"><span style="color: DarkRed"><strong><span style="font-size: 22px"><span style="font-family: 'Impact'"><u><span style="font-size: 15px">EPILOGUE:</span> DISPLEASED </u></span></span></strong></span></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dr Midnight, post: 3639979, member: 69"] [CENTER][I][B]Session 2 - Chapter 3[/B][/I] [COLOR=DarkRed][B][SIZE=6][FONT=Impact][U]OVERNIGHT ACCOMODATIONS[/U][/FONT][/SIZE][/B][/COLOR] [SIZE=1][I]Some text taken or paraphrased from EXPEDITION TO CASTLE RAVENLOFT[/I][/SIZE][/CENTER] The group walked down a dark hallway, led by Strahd, who was holding a candelabra. They came to a spiraling stone staircase that circled upwards into one of the towers of the castle. They walked up and up and up, passing cobwebs that swayed with their passing… but not with Strahd’s. They were led to a large door that opened into a lavish guestroom. In this room a king-sized canopy bed was veiled in black with gold tassels. Two overstuffed chairs flanked a small table, upon which sat a decorative lamp. A closed door inscribed with decorative floral carvings occupied the east wall. The ceilings were maybe twenty feet high. “Here we are,” Strahd said with his polite smile. “I apologize for lumping you all into one room, but I fear my other guest rooms are occupied.” “They are?” Arianna asked. She recalled pulling up to the castle and seeing no lights anywhere but in the entry chamber. “Just so. You are an adventuring group, though. You are used to all sharing the same quarters.” Gerrit said “Crickbourn’s not really… one of us, in matter of fact. He was with us on the road when the carriage came and he came with us for safety.” “Oh,” Strahd blinked. “I had no idea. Well, you are welcome just the same, noble Crickbourn.” “That’s okay,” Crickbourn said as he unfurled his bedroll. “I probably wasn’t going to get to stay in a nice place like this tonight anyway.” “Tonight, roam of the room freely but do not leave it. The castle is very old, and its corridors are not entirely safe without the right perspective. If you must leave the room for anything… don’t.” He bowed with a smile. “And now if you will pardon me, brave heroes and kind Arianna, I must visit my beloved.” Crickbourn looked up sharply to the Count from his bedroll as Gerrit asked “Your… beloved?” “Yes. The fair Ireena, who resides in Barovia. Her father has recently passed on, so she will be grateful of my coming. Ahh. Someday we are to be wed.” Crickbourn said “Goodnight, Count.” The Count looked to him and said “Yes. Goodnight.” The door clicked shut and a bolt slid home, barring them in. Gerrit shook his head. “A guy his age, going after a girl young enough to have just recently had a living father… ‘get the fruit while it’s fresh’, eh, Count?” Arianna sneered as she unpacked her satchel for the night. “That’s disgusting.” “Hey, he’s your relative.” The dwarf lay down and said “This is a different land, with different customs. It may seem odd to us but we must accept.” “Ehh,” Gerrit said. He was investigating the room. He lifted the mattress. “Hey! I’ve found something!” He pulled out a thin silver ring and a journal of some sort. He read it briefly, flipping forward through the pages. “This belonged to some guy named ‘Harp’. Came to the castle forty years ago… because he was told he might be the last heir to Castle Ravenloft.” Arianna paused and looked up. “That’s odd.” “Yes it is,” Gerrit said, skimming ahead. “He was invited to the castle… held… not allowed to leave? Huh. This says Strahd was holding him captive, apparently while assuming control of Harp’s property in a distant land.” “How does it end?” Arianna asked. Jade had hopped up onto the foot of the bed and was already snoring softly. Gerrit cleared his throat and read. “It says ‘I cannot live any longer in this captive manner. The things I hear at night! The things I have seen! I will go mad if I don’t escape, even at the risk of death. I will attempt to flee the castle tomorrow. Dwinnea keep me safe, and may I see my wife again. –Harp.’ There’s nothing else.” Arianna sat on the bed. “I wonder if he made it.” “I’m sure he did,” Crickbourn said. “Let’s get some sleep.” Gerrit tossed the journal on a nightstand and began to rummage through a closet. “I’m not really tired yet… this place is creepy. Hey, robes!” He began admiring simple black robes that were hung in the closet. “You always are impressed by the most mundane things,” Arianna said, bemused. The halfling had already forgotten the robes and was bracing himself in the closet, climbing up to the low ceiling. “I think I’ve found something.” He pulled and the panel in the ceiling swung down on a hinge. An extending steel ladder fell from its concealed position, threatening to make quite a racket, but Gerrit reached out quickly and caught it before its feet could clang to the floor. The corridor went straight up, the ladder disappearing into darkness. Arianna walked over and even Crickbourn, who’d been sullen, showed interest. “Secret passage?” Arianna asked. “Looks that way. Want to check it out?” Crickbourn walked forward. “You hold the ladder steady, I’ll climb. I can see in the dark anyway.” He climbed and whispered “Looks like it goes up the rest of the way to the fourth floor.” Despite his best efforts to creep silently upward, he was a dwarf, and one who’d had a trying day. The ladder’s frame rattled slightly in its moorings. He got to the top and pushed gently upward on the hinged panel there, lifting his head only enough to see into the room. Something pulled up on the trap door, exposing him completely. “Now!” someone yelled. Crickbourn gasped as two men in black robes, the blood mages of earlier in the evening, began to tip a large bubbling cauldron towards him. Above him, the third mage had opened the trap door while sitting on a sturdy table. The dwarf hadn’t been remotely quiet enough, and the alchemists had readied themselves for a trespasser. The cauldron clunked down to its side and boiling, opaque, dark red liquid gushed out over the cobblestones toward the startled dwarf. He had only a moment before it hit… but luckily, a moment was all he needed. He called upon his magicks and summoned a seven-foot diameter sphere of energy that hovered in place around him. Its pearlescent surface resembled a soap bubble. It trapped the arm of the alchemist holding up the trapdoor firmly in its grasp. The boiling liquid hit the bubble, splashing and covering it in its sticky red color. The bubble had acted as a ramp and the arm that was trapped in the bubble with Crickbourn clenched and spasmed from the pain of the burns. While the mages in the room began rushing about, looking for a way to help their trapped peer, Crickbourn waited for the liquid to subside. “What the hell’s happening?” Arianna asked, running over. “I have no idea… sounds like liquid sloshing up there,” Gerrit said. He was at the bottom of the bubble, looking for a way to climb up. “I heard voices shout ‘now’ and then Crickbourn cast a spell. Crickbourn, if you can cancel the spell, I can get up there and fight!” Crickbourn let the spell go and climbed down as Gerrit hustled up around him, heading towards the room above... which was entirely dark now. Something above spoke, just above the passage, from the darkness. A spell struck Gerrit in the chest. Later, he could only describe the feeling as being “shot with a heart attack.” His hands crumpled into claws and he grimaced from the pain. Gerrit began climbing down, now, quickly. He was a sitting duck in this corridor, and he’d be almost helpless above in the dark. He didn’t think he’d be able to take another hit like that. As he neared the bottom, the feeling struck him again and he fell the rest of the way. He struck the cobbles of the floor hard and his spasming lungs wouldn’t let him breathe. Arianna pulled him back from the line of fire and shut the trapdoor, bracing it. As Gerrit began to cough, color came back into his cheeks. The other two waited for sounds, signs of the mages coming down to continue the attack. There was nothing until the door at the top of the shaft slammed shut. “I think they’re done with us,” Arianna whispered. “That’s good,” Gerrit wheezed from the floor, “because I’m done with them. They only hit me twice and just about finished me off.” “The Count will hear about this for certain,” Arianna said. “We’re bound to be in trouble tomorrow.” “Hell with him,” Gerrit said as he sat up. “We’re not captives, like this Harp was. We’re not children to be spanked. If he doesn’t like that we looked about, he’s free to kick us out.” Crickbourn muttered “We should stop and do as the Count said. This exploring has only done us ill, as he’d hinted it would.” “Yeah,” Gerrit said, healing his wounds with his holy power. “Let’s turn in. Jade, uh… guard that closet door. If anything starts coming through, meow loudly.” Arianna positioned herself by the closet. “I’ll watch it. I don’t sleep anyway.” She sat down and watched the closet door as the others slept. Gerrit tossed and turned all night. He was having the most awful nightmares. [CENTER][I][B]Coming up[/B][/I] [COLOR=DarkRed][B][SIZE=6][FONT=Impact][U][SIZE=4]EPILOGUE:[/SIZE] DISPLEASED [/U][/FONT][/SIZE][/B][/COLOR][/CENTER] . [/QUOTE]
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