Session 10 : The Perfect Storm

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“Why?” That is the only thought in Serenity’s head as she races for her life through the backyards and backstreets of Vallaki.

“Why didn’t we listen to that old lady in the shop”, Serenity leaps the fence, the fur on her back and neck standing on end at the thought of what is in pursuit of her. “She said there was more than one person there… but six… we should have listened… six vampire spawn”.

“Why didn’t we tell the city guard and let them deal with it”, she vaults over a pile of firewood. “We didn’t have to tell them about the bones, just the theft… Millivoj and Father Lucian would have backed us up”. Mud splatters the wall as Serenity dashes down a swampy alley.

“Why didn’t we interrogate that man more, if only we had listened to him about the box…”, Serenity lands badly and stumbles through white sheets hanging on the line to dry, she leaves a streak of blood across them. “He said he was warned not to touch it… “

“Why was I in such a hurry to open the box…”, she knows the answer to this… “Fear… fear of the nightly visits from the hags, fear of being powerless again to escape”.

“Why didn’t we keep a look out? If only we had seen them coming”, Serenity glances back into the hazy mist behind her as she leaps the next fence… “looks clear… but those vampires walk on walls as easily as the floor”, even in the middle of the day in Barovia, there is not enough sun to offer protection against these spawn.

“Why did we not fall back and barricade the door?… No, they are too strong for that… they would have come in through the windows…”, Serenity is nearing the town square now “If I can just get to the square, I can head North to the Inn, if anyone made it out, they must be there”, her heart aches at the thought “surely someone else made it out…”.

“Hoskgak… why didn’t you leap out the window you heroic fool…” stopping momentarily to catch her breath, she remembers the sound of the Half-Orc’s body crashing down the stairs as he bravely charged through the stunned vampires. “We should have all gone straight out the window with the bones…”, Serenity is not sure who was more surprised, her or the vampires, when Hoskgak grabbed the bones and charged straight through the vicious creatures, who clawed and hit at him as he passed.

“What became of Destiny and Watch?” There is so much unknown to Serenity, who had moments ago been mortally wounded, lying on the floor of the room surrounded by the enemy. “How did I recover? What had the vampire seen to distract it?” But it does not matter.

“Now everything is lost, Ireena is gone, the bones taken and vampires stalk the streets of Vallaki... and my friends? What has become of them...”

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Progress. The investigation was going well. Millivoj had been coerced to steal the bones and had delivered them to the Arasek Stockyard. We even had a description of the perpetrator. Gunther at the Arasek Goods Store thought the description sounded like Henrik from the coffin shop across the yard. Gunther’s wife Yelena had been watching the comings and goings of the shop and noticed there had been people moving about upstairs a few nights back.

Once we arrived at the coffin shop Henrik was reluctant to let us in, but we easily made our way past the locked doors with assistance from Destiny’s familiar Watch. With the help of a spell of suggestion, Henrik was eager to confess and tell us exactly where the bones were located. Apparently a strange, beautiful woman had forced him to arrange the theft of the bones. The poor man seemed terrified, mumbling about her warning him not to touch the bones now they were in the shop.

This had all been so straightforward, easy almost, all that was left to do was to head upstairs, grab the bones and return triumphantly to Father Lucian to restore the sanctuary of the church, all before anyone in the town even knew there was anything amiss…

 

 

 

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