[WFRP] The Bloody Crown X

[LCP]

Adelbert

Leaving the others in the mortuary room, Adelbert guided Raqiyah out into the corridor and - at her indication - through into the main hall. The high priestess didn’t seem old - not like Hieronymus, who Adelbert was sure had been born with a mental age of fifty-six. There was something ageless about her calm, unseeing eyes. Nevertheless, as he held her arm through the shadowed hall, Adelbert was struck by how frail and tiny she seemed, as if a gust of wind might blow her away.

Taking a seat on a stone bench, Raqiyah motioned for Adelbert to sit next to her. The main doors were shut, leaving the hall empty except for the two of them and a pair of initiates setting out candles for the holy day. The sun slanted in through the high windows, casting long shadows from the statues of the gods. Dust motes glimmered in the morning light, shining a little redder than usual through the smoke that still hung over the Old Town.

“This creature you saw,” said Raqiyah, “the vampire. Describe it to me.”

She listened closely to Adelbert’s description, without interruption. When he was finished, she sat for a long while in silence, seemingly considering the words that would follow.

“Ever since the death of the Estalian,” she said at last, “I have been seeking answers from Morr. Our god is the god of death and dreams, but my dreams have been… clouded. Not my own. I seek our enemy here, and instead I see… dust, and thirst, and darkness. A shadow in the south.” Her voice grew faint and monotonous, and her face grew cold and distant. “Rivers will run dry and the forests wither. The stars shall grow dim, flicker and die. And death shall reign from forever to forever.”

She blinked as if coming out of a trance. “Last night was the first time I saw the true face of the enemy. The same face you describe. Perhaps there was some… concealing enchantment that perished in the fire.” She smoothed her robe over her knees. “Or perhaps he simply feels he no longer needs to hide from me.”

“The necromancer may believe he is in control. He is not. This is something that has been building for a long time, perhaps as long as the stones of this temple have stood.” Looking up at the statues surrounding them, Adelbert found his gaze lingering on the statue of Morr, with the great, sleek hound at his feet. The likeness to the beast he had seen on the roof was troublingly close. “Whatever our lords and princes may believe, it will not be defeated without the help of the gods.”

Slipping out of her dreamlike tone, Raqiyah became more brusque and businesslike. “I have been speaking with Father Hieronymus. We have agreed that although your conduct has... not always befitted a priest of your order, your courage and commitment in pursuing this enemy cannot be faulted. We have need of that courage now, and it is past time you were anointed a Father of the Temple.” She turned her unseeing face towards the ceiling. “The Day of Mystery would be an auspicious day for such an elevation, wouldn’t you agree?”

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Sieghard & Ludo

Irene arched one perfectly-plucked eyebrow.

“A vampire,” she repeated, her level stare giving no clue as to whether she believed the claim. “And did you kill it?”