Session 22 - 26 : All roads lead to the tiara

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Dearest diary,

Oh my god, you would never guess what happened! I found this most awesome tiara and it fits me PERFECT! Sooooo shiny, soooo beautiful… I think it is destiny that I found this tiara!

Anyway, I suppose I should just recap how things came to be. 

A week ago, after Strahd’s party, Serenity suggested that we go get back the Strahd diary from Rictavio. Serenity says he was probably in Krezh, so off we went.

Instead of Rictavio we found a flesh eating boy who ate all the town’s live stocks. What's the chance that this happened just as we arrived? It's like things were waiting for us to happen! In fact he became so hungry that he started eating the town folks. He even tried to eat Serenity and Hoskgak, except Hoskgak chopped his head off. Though not before the boy ate his father.

As it turns out, boy’s father was the burgomaster, so kind of an important fellow. But rather than mourning the death of their leader, the citizens was more concerned about being hungry themselves now that the boy ate all the cows. This town does seem a rather unhealthy relationship with eating. Perhaps we shouldn't have been surprised that it produced a flesh eating boy!

Naturally, being the Heros of Barovia, we offered to help find them find food. Apparently there’s a mansion half a day away owned by a certain Lady Fidatov who might have food stockpile. What a coincidence - or is it?

When we arrived, instead of an alive Lady Fidatov, we found a dead Lady Fidatov along with her many dead party guests. Well, they were alive when we arrived, but then they turned dead as the night falls. The mansion was filled with undead zombie like things along with rotten bodies of Lady Fidatov and her guests. It seems they have all been dead for over a decade and was probably murdered by the burgomaster himself! Another coincidence? I think not!

While talking to the guests during the day, we discovered that there’s a secret family crypt in the near by maze garden. Apparently we shouldn’t go there under any circumstances because it’s really dangerous. But I asked my tail if we should go and it said we should because "in there lies power” - whatever that means. I was beginning to feel that my tail has lined up all the events to guide me here. We decided to go to the maze the next morning.

Admittedly the maze was indeed dangerous and getting through it wasn’t easy. I nearly didn’t make it if it wasn’t for Watch sacrificing himself to distract this giant ugly dog chasing after me. Oh, he is so sweet to keep putting himself in front of danger for me! Anyway, in the middle of the maze was this crypt and inside was piles of treasure. I mean piles and piles! I thought to myself, there must be something in here that my tail wanted me to find.

As I search the pile for something that seemed important, my eyes were caught by the tiara! Delicate silver rim, patterned with hundreds of small diamonds and a large ruby in the centre. Even though the room was filled with so much treasure, I felt myself drawn to it as if nothing else existed. I knew then that THIS was what my tail wanted me to find. Our journey to Krezh, the flesh eating boy, leading us to help the villagers to find food then to here. It was never about finding food for the villagers, it was to guide me to this heavenly object. I am not sure what power it will bestow on me, but I did feel somewhat more whole, more beautiful, more confident just having it on my head. Perhaps this is the different kind of power my tail wanted me to experience.

Even Watch said I looked good with it on. But then he told me that taking someone else's treasure was stealing and all these treasures are probably cursed by the same magic that cursed the house.

So reluctantly I placed the tiara back where I found it. Perhaps this wasn't my destiny after all. It seemed my tail has played a cruel joke on me.

We headed back to the house to discover that it was cursed to repeat the same day again and again. There we found a very much alive Lady Fidatov once again preparing for a party. We asked her if the treasures in the crypt were cursed, and sadly they were. But Hoskgak, who also had his eye on a piece of treasure, asked if he could keep it should they help remove the curse and Lady Fidatov said she could consider it.

Serenity believed the key to unlocking the curse lies in the crypt, but unlike last time where we went during the day this time we should go at night.

And so we find ourselves once again at the entrance of the maze. It seems no matter what we did, it always lead back to this place, to the tiara.

I know now that you cannot escape destiny. It was foolish of me to try to put it back the first time, curse or not. All that stands between me and the tiara is that ugly dog and whatever unworldly being lies inside that crypt.

***

"Watch, go in and see if that giant dog is still there."

"Why is it always me who has to go? It killed me once already!" Watch moans.

"Don't worry, I won't let it kill you this time. Now go!"

Watch flew in. The giant dog leaps out and kills Watch.

"Oops."

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