[WFRP] The Bloody Crown XI

[Thragka]

Urgrim

The older man grunted. "We've already got one of those," he answered. He looked back to Urgrim. "Who is it you're looking for?"

"A young wi- – woman with a knack for herding goats," Urgrim said. "We've a proposition for her."

[LCP]

Now it was the younger man's turn to squint at them suspiciously. "Proposition?" he asked. "What kind of proposition?"

[Thragka]

Urgrim scratched his beard. "Meaning no disrespect, but that's her business, and I'm not sure she'd want anyone to hear it before she does. Unless you're her ... father?" he added, turning to the older fellow uncertainly. Humans could be a bit odd about that kind of thing.

Spoiler: OOC:

Show

RossN, feel free to take the lead at any point – Adelbert's got far better people skills tha. Urgrim.

[LCP]

The older man shook his head. "Can't say that I am," he said, putting a hand on the young man's shoulder. "Excuse Cornel here. I'm sure he don't mean to be offending you, but you can't be too careful with strangers these days."

He looked over his shoulder. "Not sure that I know who it is you're looking for," he said, his tone carefully level. "There's a lot of people here thrown together, as it were. But if you go up to the big house, maybe you'll find someone that does." He motioned with his chipped spear towards the ruined farmhouse that formed the nucleus of the camp. "You keep your peace, and we'll keep ours."

Standing aside, the two sentries let them pass. The camp was crowded, and as the two walked up the muddy track towards the house, they drew their share of attention - perhaps simply because they looked cleaner and better fed than most of the others around them. The wind that blew down through the camp carried with it the smell of cookfires and pig manure, the bawling of an infant and the steady sound of someone chopping wood.

Outside the farmhouse were a cluster of tents, arranged in a semicircle around a broad patch of bare, dry earth. Driven into the centre of this makeshift village square was a wooden pole. On the top of the pole was a large canine skull, blackened as if by fire. A few paltry offerings had been scattered around the base of the pole: copper coins, dolls made from knotted straw, the teeth of the latest animals to have landed up on the cookfires. There was nothing edible in the pile - clearly food could not be spared.

From inside the house, Adelbert could hear two women arguing. The house had no door, only an open doorway with broken hinges still nailed to the doorjamb. Someone had hung a ragged sheet of cloth in its place, but it didn't block the sound.

"...blind dog could see it's not safe this close to the hills. If brigands don't get us the greenskins will. Not to mention Cornel's beast. We have to move on!"

"You think it's safer in the south?" replied the second woman. "You think the people sitting on the good land are just going to give it up? I'll take my chances with brigands over the Captain's men. We have water here. If the gods have mercy we might have a harvest. You want to just leave it?"

"You've got two and a half fields, Andrea," said the first, exasperated. "How many people is that going to feed?"

"More than none," the second woman bit back. "What would you know about it anyway? You've never planted anything in your life. Otherwise you'd be doing something useful, instead of playing at soldiers..."

[RossN]

Adelbert

Adelbert paused awkwardly outside the cloth 'door'. Clearing his throat he glanced at his companion, then back at the house entrance.

'Pardon me but I was told you might be able to help with information,' he said loudly. 'I am Father Screiber of the Temple in Savonne and I am looking for a young goatherd said to be in these parts.'

[LCP]

The sound of arguing stopped abruptly. There was a pause, then the ragged curtain twitched aside, and two faces looked out.

One belonged to a human woman, tall and lean and looking older than her years. For the second, Adelbert had to look down - it belonged to a halfling, with curly, light brown hair and a stern look in her eye. Neither of them looked like they much appreciated their argument having been interrupted.

"We don't need any more priests, thank you," said the halfling. "If you could ask the Temple to send some food inst-" - she cut herself off. "...You're looking for a goatherd?"

"What does the Temple want with a goatherd?" asked the human woman. She seemed suspicious.

[Thragka]

Urgrim and Adelbert

"It's not Temple business," Urgrim said. He sighed, and spoke quietly. "Look, if you know the girl we're talking about – well, if she is a witch, she's a danger to herself and others without supervision, and some way to keep her ... affliction in control. We've come from Savonne, at the request of the Captain's northern fire witch. She – uh, the Magister Hildebrand, that is – heard tell of this young lass who can talk to goats. The Magister wants to assess her, and see if it is the beginning of witchcraft in her. If so, the Magister hopes she can help her, maybe train her, even. And if not, well, no harm done. That's the long and the short of it, really."

[LCP]

The halfling looked disbelieving. "Witch?" she asked, hesitating after the question. "Tattie's not a witch. She's just got a... a knack." Her protests sounded a little feeble. Floundering, she looked for firmer ground, and found it. "So you two work for the Captain? A priest and a dwarf... seems like he's choosing strange messengers these days."

The thin woman seemed less predisposed to bluster. "She's not here," she said. Her voice sounded flat and weary. "She went up into the hills yesterday after some lost lamb. Don't know when she'll be back."

"Andrea!" The halfling rounded on her with surprising force. "What are you doing? She's one of us, we can't just give her up!"

"You want to wait and see who the Captain sends when we turn these two away? You want to see what happens when boys with pitchforks and rusty swords try to stand up to soldiers?" She didn't raise her voice, but the bitterness in Andrea's words was real. "Besides, he's right. There's something unnatural about that girl. The Speaker said it too."

"He said she was blessed. That's different!" The halfling glared up at Andrea as if trying to burn a hole through her forehead with her eyes. "We'd all have starved to death in the pass if it wasn't for her."

Before Andrea could shape a reply, there was a rustle of canvas from the tents behind them. Looking round, Adelbert saw a familiar figure emerging into the light. He was a little thinner than when Adelbert had last seen him, his beard a little longer, but Armin still had the same mane of wild black hair, the same fanatical gleam in his eyes. He still had the same sharp-edged sickle tucked into his belt, too.

Andrea and the halfling fell silent as Armin sized the two newcomers up. "I heard shouting," he said, at last. "Is everything alright?"

[Thragka]

"Neither of us work for the Captain," Urgrim said, raising his hands. "And we're not here to abduct the young lady. We're just ... personal friends of the Magister. And it'd be, eh, Tattie's choice – far as I'm concerned at least. Isn't that so, Father Schreiber?"

[RossN]

Adelbert

Adelbert looked at Armin in astonishment before turning back to the women and finding his voice. 'As it happens 'blessed' probably is a better word and you can rest assured that I will be overseeing any observations of the Magistier. My colleague is quite correct we are not here on Temple business, but that doesn't mean we aren't interest.'

[LCP]

"Interested in what?" asked Armin.

"They're looking for Tatiana," said the halfling. "They say the Captain's wizard wants her."

"And yet you say you don't work for Sforza," said Armin, looking to Urgrim. "A very fine distinction to draw. And the Temple of Savonne are interested too?" He turned back to Adelbert. "Yes, I remember you. The poor girl is doubly unfortunate if that pack of fools are after her as well." He paused. "Who told you she was here?"

"She's not, anyway," said Andrea. "I told them. She's up in the hills."

"Yes," said Armin, not taking his eyes off Adelbert. "Tatiana is one of our family here. If you want to ask her if she wishes to go and work for the people who burned these lands, who trapped her brothers and sisters to starve in the pass, we will not stop you. But neither will we stand by and let you take her anywhere against her will." The halfling looked pleased, while Andrea looked uncomfortable. "I hope we understand one another."

[RossN]

Adelbert

Adelbert raised an eyebrow and smiled. 'And I remember you Armin. Ladies, if Tatiana returns here ask her to come visit us. We'll be camped nearby. Good evening.'

Turning to Urgrim he said: 'Time to go my friend.'

[Thragka]

Urgrim bristled at Armin's disquisitive tone. "I'm no mannish princeling's catspaw," he said, raising a terse finger. "And you'd do well to remember he's not the only one in this country that might wish harm upon a 'gifted' girl."

Adelbert's calmer intervention brought the dwarf's choler into check. The odd dynamic between the two men was palpable, and Urgrim didn't want to misstep. With an expectorative harrumph, he followed Adelbert away from the ruined farmstead.

"Who was that ardent fellow?", he asked Adelbert when they were well away from the settlement. "You knew him? Well, you can tell us all." The top of the ridge was before them, and they could see beyond it to their own camp a short distance away.

[RossN]

Adelbert

'A follower of an evil old god named Ahalt,' Adelbert explained. 'Not one of the Ruinous Powers but an agrarian deity whose worship is illegal in the Empire. That sickle of his has probably seen a blood sacrifice or two.'

Returning to the others Adelbert quickly filled them in on the news they had gathered - and their old 'friend'. It was Elsa he most wanted to talk to. 'I know you can see the mystical world, as can I, if perhaps in a different way thanks to the Lady of Wisdom. Is it possible this girl will have the sight too? Perhaps we could draw her attention.'

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"We're a long way from Greasy Drop," Sieghard said when Adelbert told his story. "What's that madman doing this far east?"

[Thragka]

"Grimnirs az! Person sacrifice?" Urgrim was aghast. "A child touched by weird forces is no safer in the 'family' of that blasphemous priest, then! I hope she may come talk to us, if they were honest about relaying our message. But I've a mind to go find her sooner, if what you say is true."

[LeSwordfish]

Sieghard

"We're a long way from Greasy Drop," Sieghard said when Adelbert told his story. "What's that madman doing this far east?"

"Greasy drop probably doesn't exist any more." Ludo said. "You saw how much the desert has expanded, and they were right on the edge of it. Once we've got this young lady we should probably have a word with him, actually - his folks might have seen something on Hexensnacht."

"Urgi's right that we should try and find this young lady before she gets back to the town. Let's split up and take one side of the stream each, see if we can find any tracks. Gustaf and Hanna come with me, Urgi and Elsa with Adelbert and Sieghard, Hilde and the rest stay up here and keep an eye out for if she returns to town."

OOC

Spoiler

Show

Hilde is of course a spare NPC who can lead team Spare NPCs Do Boring Things.

[-Sentinel-]

'I know you can see the mystical world, as can I, if perhaps in a different way thanks to the Lady of Wisdom. Is it possible this girl will have the sight too? Perhaps we could draw her attention.'

"I suppose I can tug at the Winds like the strings of a lute, if we can get close enough to her," said Elsa. "Whether this'll reassure her or alarm her is another story, but we might as well try."

She was fairly sure that Adelbert could attempt something similar if he wanted to, but he would likely reject the notion, as he believed that his power came solely from Verena.

"Greasy drop probably doesn't exist any more." Ludo said. "You saw how much the desert has expanded, and they were right on the edge of it.

"It's being swallowed by the sands, Morrslieb told me on one of his scouting trips," Elsa confirmed.


OOC

Spoiler

Show

I have only the vaguest memory of that, though. Don't ask me for a source. It's been a while.

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"Even so, that doesn't explain what he's doing here," Sieghard replied. "Shepherd's Valley is a lot closer if the desert swallowing his village was all there is to it."

Spoiler

Show

I know Sieghard had Elsa scout out Turnpike Hollow and that was swallowed by the desert, but I don't recall if Morrslieb ever went as far north as Greasy Drop. Whether it suffered the same fate or not, there's also the question of what happened to everyone else there. I imagine if there was anyone else in the camp that Adelbert recognized, it would've been mentioned. It's fishy. Doesn't mean he's up to anything, but it might be a good idea to try to find out what we can. He knows us, so we may be able to get him to talk.

In any case, Goat Girl is the higher priority. If there's still daylight, I'm all for going looking for her. Probably easier to convince her if we can find her when the others aren't around.

[LCP]

By Urgrim's reckoning, there were still a good few hours left before sunset. Following Ludo's instructions, the group divided to either side of the valley, giving the camp a wide berth. Up ahead, the splintered crags of the Teeth jutted against the sky. If these really had been a giant's teeth, Ludo reflected, he should really have taken better care of them.

Gustaf rapidly proved not to be as good a mountaineer as he was a woodsman, making slow going of the climb - particularly since he kept stopping to look for tracks. He was intently scrutinising a juniper shrub for signs of having been chewed by goats when Hanna noticed the tiny figure of Urgrim waving from the other side of the valley. It looked like the others had picked up a trail.

This high on the hillside, the dip between the two groups was less gentle valley and more rocky ravine, forcing Ludo to hop from rock to rock in order to keep up with the two humans. When he made it across, however, what Urgrim had found was worth the struggle: freshly printed on the stony ground were the tracks of a person and two goats.

The tracks led up a narrow trail that seemed most likely to have been made by goats to begin with. Two years of criss-crossing the Reaches had left all of them reasonably fit, but even so the climb was taxing. As the sun crept down below the level of the crags, Adelbert watched their long shadows stretch over the Downs below, swallowing up the encampment in the valley. They would have to turn back if they did not find the girl soon.

As if in answer to his unspoken prayer, Gustaf held up a hand. "Hist!" he said, his voice a rough whisper. "There. Is that the girl?"

Sure enough, around a bend in the track they could see a girl of indeterminate age sitting on a boulder. Her face was mostly hidden in a great tangle of messy brown hair, but she carried a shepherd's crook, and had two goats sat placidly at her feet. She didn't seem to have seen them: instead, she was looking up at a much taller pinnacle of rock that rose up on the other side of the track. At its top was a very nervous-looking lamb. How it had found its way up there was unclear at best, but as it stood knock-kneed and bleating on its narrow perch, it seemed very reluctant to come down.

[-Sentinel-]

"Must be her," said Elsa with a quick nod. "Everybody stay in hiding. I want to see how this plays out."

If they moved forward and scared the lamb even more, the girl would likely resent them for it. Elsa intended to wait until the lamb had been coaxed down the crag before she made her move. This was her opportunity to get a feel of the girl's power and see whether it was tainted with dark magic.


OOC

Spoiler

Show

Magical Sense. WP 73 +10 (Aethyric Attunement) -10 (loss of familiar) = 73. (d100)[48]

I know Sieghard had Elsa scout out Turnpike Hollow and that was swallowed by the desert, but I don't recall if Morrslieb ever went as far north as Greasy Drop.

Oops, I mixed up the two places. Turnpike Hollow is indeed the one that is now being buried under the sand.

[RossN]

Adelbert

Adelbert looked on in fascination, resisting the urge to follow Elsa. While her expertise at diplomacy was not... well... expert, she was the right person for this type of job.

[LCP]

The girl wasn't moving. She just sat on the boulder with her crook across her knees, as if waiting for the lamb to come down of its own accord. The lamb just stood there, giving the occasional indignant bleat. The girl seemed unmoved - after a while, she began tunelessly humming to herself. Ludo thought he recognised the refrain as one of Viggo's old standbys - She Was Only The Emperor's Daughter.

Elsa Only

Spoiler

Show

If the girl had the gift, she wasn't using it. Still, if she concentrated, Elsa thought she could make out an eddy in the flow of the Amber Wind around the girl, like a cat coiling around its master's legs. Ghur blew strongly out here in the crags, mixing with the mist of Ulgu that was rising from the lengthening shadows...

Crouched silently behind Elsa, Urgrim lifted his head as he heard the sound of rock skittering against rock. A single loose stone tumbled down the steep slope above them and bounced onto the track, landing at his feet. He squinted up the slope to see what dislodged it, but the sun was directly behind the craggy ridgeline now, turning the high hillside into a black silhouette. From what he could make out, there didn't seem to be anything moving up there.

[-Sentinel-]

Spoiler

Show

Crouched silently behind Elsa, Urgrim lifted his head as he heard the sound of rock skittering against rock. A single loose stone tumbled down the steep slope above them and bounced onto the track, landing at his feet. He squinted up the slope to see what dislodged it, but the sun was directly behind the craggy ridgeline now, turning the high hillside into a black silhouette. From what he could make out, there didn't seem to be anything moving up there.

Uh-oh.

Elsa was fully focused on the girl, and did not notice the pebble falling nearby. Motioning the others to stay still, she rose and began walking towards Tatiana at a steady, unhurried pace. She whistled the girl's song back to her to get her attention.

[LCP]

As soon as Elsa rose from cover, the girl noticed her. She shifted her seat on the rock, gripping her crook in one hand and planting both feet on the ground. Both of the goats beside her had noticed Elsa too, turning their slot-pupilled eyes to stare.

"Hello," she said, cautiously. "Are you from the camp?"

[Thragka]

Urgrim got Sieghard's attention with a wave. He pointed up the slope, and mouthed "Something up there," with exaggerated enunciation. Picking up a pebble, he tossed it in the direction of the source, senses pealed to catch any reaction.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

I'll give you a ballistic skill test to throw the pebble back to where he thinks the rock fell from, and a Perception test for any result.

"BS 54" - (1d100)[23]
"Perception 74" - (1d100)[39]

[-Sentinel-]

"Hello," she said, cautiously. "Are you from the camp?"

Elsa stopped in her tracks and sat down on a rock, still a healthy distance from the girl. "I am not," she said. "I've come a long way to meet you. People say you have an uncommon gift."

She tilted her head. "And some say you are strange. Because they cannot see what you can see... feel what you can feel. I've been there before."

[LCP]

Elsa's manner didn't seem to be putting the girl at ease. "Don't know where you heard all that," she said, warily getting to her feet. "Don't know who you are, either."

The sound of Urgrim's stone landing against the hillside drew her attention. "Is someone else back there with you?" she asked, craning her neck to look past Elsa. Before Elsa could answer, a deeper shadow fell across them. Elsa heard Gustaf cry out behind her - looking up, she saw the silhouette of two enormous wings, descending like a thunderbolt upon the trail.

A single beat brought a mighty downdraught down onto the hillside, scattering small stones and raising a cloud of choking dust. On its rocky pinnacle, the lamb's bleating turned to an urgent scream, cut suddenly short as two huge talons smashed into it. The impact sent a rending crack of rock echoing from the hillside.

Lifting his head, Ludo caught a brief glimpse of a long, toothy snout and a yellow, snake-like eye before another heavy beat of the beast's wings almost threw him on his back. With the bloody body of the lamb dangling from its claws, it leapt back into the air. As it soared out over the valley, a dying shaft of sunlight caught its full length - almost thirty feet of scaly, sinuous muscle, the barbed blade of its tail describing a lazy arc behind it as it climbed with powerful wingbeats back into the upper air.

"D-dragon!" stammered Hanna, eyes wide as saucers. She sounded as if she was trying very hard not to scream. "Dragon!"

Before anyone could respond, another crack rang out from the pinnacle of rock where the lamb had been stuck. The impact of the attack had fractured it through and through - now, unable to support its own weight, it was giving way. Falling with a majestic slowness, it toppled forwards onto the trail, splitting into three parts as it struck the hillside. A cascade of stones and soil followed it down, Gustaf and Ludo jumping back to avoid being swept off their feet.

When the last echoes of the rockslide had died away, the trail between Elsa and the others had been scoured away, a sheer gouge scraped down to the bedrock of the hillside in its place. Out over the valley, the beast could still be seen, flapping up towards the craggy brow of the next hill.

Urgrim Only

Spoiler

Show

Urgrim knows a bit more about these things than the umgi, and recognises the beast as a wyvern, not a dragon.

[-Sentinel-]

In surprise, Elsa instinctively fumbled for the Winds of magic, but before she could even think of what spell to shape them in, the winged beast was already flying off. If that thing was not hungry for humans today, Elsa was not about to draw its attention.

Spoiler

Show

Channeling 73. No spell, just Channeling. Tatiana may be able to feel Elsa drawing upon the Winds. (d100)[52]

For a brief moment, Elsa thought the dragon had been called here by the girl, but the idea did not withstand scrutiny. The girl obviously cared for the lamb that the dragon had taken.

"Hmm. I had nothing to do with this, I swear," said Elsa, eyes still wide. She paused. "...Sorry about your lamb."

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

Sieghard had moved free of cover during the commotion. His crossbow was loaded in his hands, but the beast had flown off before he was able to take the shot.

"We need to head back. Now," Sieghard called to Elsa. "We didn't come ready to fight a damned dragon."