Maerquin 24: Conflict in 't Slop
May. 4th, 2009 09:25 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
janestarzTwo large bags, a guitar and my scale mail endeavours and we were on our way in the train. We would play in Ermelo, which was nearer to Amersfoort than I remembered. The train trip was fine, and I did some scale mailing while NoKey read the plot.
A 74-year old bus driver took us to the location, which looked idyllic. Lots of forest around, but also some camping houses. The beds were great, and because we were very early we managed to snatch two beds adjacent to each other near the outer door. I had some time to sit on the ping-pong table and do some more scale mailing while other people arrived. Hugs all around, then getting dressed and soup, before diving into the play.
Dramatis Personae
Victor - personal assistant to Marianne, played by Sander v. O.;
Theodoor van Overstraete - a priest of Kharnun played by the Admiral;
Marianne den Schrijfster - a scribe played by me;
Polomeus - a fool, ritualist and a priest of Eleena, played by Eric;
Edith - a healer and priestess of Ishtra, played by Erna;
Hugo van der Wijs - a paladin of Ranaa, played by Raymon;
Dro'Shani - a lady, played by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
anastaszia;
Friday
It has been a year since Wateringen, and headaches have been plaguing me ever since. Now our road took us to Orkenslacht, the largest city in the barony and home to Baron Wolfgang. We arrived at the gates late in the afternoon, but were turned away. The gates were closed and no-one, not even Theodoor who lives in the city, was welcome there. We were directed to a refugee camp of sorts, two hours' travel from the city.
Two ladies, Petronella and Clarissa, had joined Victor, Theodoor and me on the road, and darkness had fallen. Our small group was walking single file through the woods, the nervous ladies in the middle and Victor at the rear. Soon enough we heard some noises, and Theodoor said he saw shapes moving in the darkness. They did not bother us at first, but then more of them gathered, and they closed in on us, trying our defenses.
Theodoor started to run, the ladies screaming in terror. At some point, I noticed Victor was no longer behind me, and I called out to him. Theodoor's strong hand at my shoulder pulled me further. "We can't leave him behind;" I said; "he's the only family I have."
"If I go back now, I'm afraid none of us will make it to safety." Theodoor spoke softly, pulling me forward. We ran, and ran. A crossroads, more people. I cried softly, wanted to go back for Victor, but was stopped again by Theodoor, who kept an eye out for me as well as trying to get help for Victor.
Finally, after what seemed like ages, we returned to the place we were attacked. Some rough voices spoke in dwarvish, and Edith talked with the dwarves. She healed Victor and we took him along. He was still groggy and hurt, but he was fit to walk the rest of the way.
We arrived at the settlement not very long afterward. The group was larger now, and we stopped at the edge of the village. A light pierced the darkness, and a scuffling sound edged closer to us. I could see it was a woman, but she had covered parts of her body in bandages, which were bloody and torn. She coughed several times, and croaked a plea for help. She was obviously very ill, and we were unsure if it would be safe to go into the settlement. She might not be the only one that was sick, and if it was contagious...
But there was little choice. Orkenslacht was inaccessible, and the guards would never allow us to camp in front of the gates. The forest was dangerous with the creatures roaming around, and there was nowhere else we could go. Theodoor again took my elbow and lead me around the sick woman, Victor following behind.
Inside things were better, but not by much. The settlement was a refugee camp of sorts, and the people in it were ruffians. Those lucky enough to have money could hire protection, but it was the smart armed people who were really running the show. A whorehouse and a temple of sorts completed the collection.
The temple was called an Ordinal, and several grey-clad monks mingled with the new arrivals. They had difficult names, and were very open about their craft. They studied meditation, and focused on the body or the mind. Though Victor urged me to participate in one of their sessions, my headache prevented me from concentrating enough.
I sighed when I took a seat on a couch next to Theodoor.
"Such a deep sigh..." he remarked, and smiled encouragingly at me. I smiled, and looked at my hands, lying in my lap. Smiled at him for a moment, and looked away again. "Are those headaches still troubling you?" he asked.
"Yes." I rubbed my temple. "They seem to just be getting worse. Especially in the evenings."
"And nobody knows what causes them?" he asked.
"Jinni didn't know, and Edith didn't either. She thinks they might be stress-related. I don't know." I replied.
Theodoor paused, glanced at the door behind me. He listened to some shreds of conversation around us. Then he spoke again. "When did it start?"
"After Wateringen." I said. "I'm not sure exactly when, but I'm sure I didn't have them before then. Do you think it might have something to do with what happened there?" I rubbed the scars on the insides of my left wrist.
"Well, our Lord is not one to give subtle signals. Perhaps he is trying to say something to you." Theodoor said. He looked grave, a small crease in his forehead betraying his worries about my health. "Perhaps He is urging you to do something."
I thought about that. "What do you think He wants me to do?"
Theodoor remained silent. We thought about it for a moment, his eyes following people throughout the common room of the shabby inn. "Perhaps it is magic-related." he ventured.
"How so?"
"Well, it could be a spell, or something that happened in the ritual." he mused. "It can be any number of things. Magic, priestly or wizardly, can be strange like that."
"I know nothing of magic." I replied. "I've never even heard how it's supposed to work, or...or where it comes from. For instance, how do you cast a spell? Can you tell me?"
"It is... it's like having the will make something happen, the intention clear in your mind, and summoning energy deep from within you to achieve it. And all those three things must be in unison, or it will fail." Theodoor replied. "Kharnun grants me the magic to do it, as His priest."
"How do you become His priest?"
"I think;" Theodoor said; "that becoming a priest for Kharnun is not a matter of being granted powers. It is a matter of taking that power. To just...do a spell in His name. You'll find out soon enough if He approves or not."
I stared at my hands. Our conversations often had pauses in them, and not just because I needed to work up the courage to ask a difficult question. Often he would be distracted by something that happened, or someone would come up to us and I would blush and stare at my hands until they would go away. I finally mustered the courage to ask him a very important question.
"Do you think I would make a good priestess?" I whispered.
"Yes, I think you would." he replied in earnest.
We sat there for a bit longer, and I think that my heart had already decided something, but I wasn't yet aware of it. I finally asked Theodoor if I could try a spell on him. He had cast a calming spell on me earlier that night, and I wasn't really sure if I could try anything else. It was hard enough for me to focus, to remember what I wanted to achieve and to remember the words that would shape the effect. The weirdest thing was that when I cast that spell, my headache was gone for a moment, only to return after a minute with one fierce stab of pain. But I had made a decision and Theodoor said he felt calmer after I tried my spell.
And so I became a priestess of Kharnun.
The headache had returned, and Theodoor said that perhaps this was something I should have tried much sooner. Still, when Edith offered her help to relieve my headaches by trying out a spell, I replied that it would be fine. Even though her diagnosis of what was wrong with me had found no diseases, she still first tried a spell that would cure a disease. I did feel a little faint, but not better. The headache was still there.
Because Edith suspected I was under the influence of a potion, she went on by purging that with a spell too. Little did Edith know it would work too well.
The last potion I drank was a year ago, after the ritual in Wateringen, when Alséma threw me out of the inner circle. Theodoor rushed to my side and poured a very powerful healing potion into my mouth. But now, as the Remove Potion spell took effect, the heart attack Alséma had given me that day returned, and I collapsed from my seat.
Edith checked my pulse, first in my neck and then at my wrist, and was shocked to find my heart was not beating. She immediately went on to call on her goddess to heal me, taking care to first cast Cure Major and then to heal the rest of me.
By the time she was done, there was so much healing energy in me, I was roaring drunk. I shall not relate what happened next, for it will only embarrass me, but suffice to say I do not wish to repeat the experience.
Saturday
The next morning I woke up, expecting to have a terrible hang-over, but this was not the case. I had had a dream, where I was safely hidden in my wardrobe, and outside a storm was raging. I was safe, and nothing could hurt me.
For the first time in a year I felt clear-headed, and when I went outside it was still very early. Despite having slept only for three hours, I was cheerful and awake, and a watery sun shon on the green. Ranon, captain of the Black Guards was already up and doing his morning exercises, and inspired by feeling so good I did some morning exercises of my own, some yoga.
When breakfast was served, more people had woken up, and afterwards we sat outside in the sun for hours. Petrik Vroeghindewei talked with Theodoor for a long time, and we spoke together as well. Later, Petrik's brother (?) Coenraad wanted to ask me if I could assist him. He wanted to have a document containing the statement of one of the hookers. I accompanied him inside, and wrote down the statement on some parchment. Coenraad himself supplied much of it, and the girl mostly repeated what he had said, clearly anxious and nervous. In the end they both signed it with an X and I handed the parchment to Coenraad.
Once outside I joined Theodoor again and we spoke shortly with a diplomat of Zepultoera. He was a most agreeable man, very polite, and he complimented me on my beauty and manners. I blushed, and thanked him, but when I looked to Theodoor for support, I noticed that he too was beaming at me.
After the diplomat left, Victor and I went into the library. A voice had spoken to me, and said he was trapped and I needed to free him. It spoke of an old building - but Orkenslacht is filled with old buildings. The castle of the Baron probably being the oldest among them. Perhaps it was metaphorical, and as Victor had figured out the Ordinal was a very old order of monks. But the library yielded no answers, and the brother who had let us in said that between 't Slop and Orkenslacht there were many more ruins, perhaps hundreds of them. The description of where the voice was trapped was just too general, and in the end I stepped up to Edith.
"Edith," I said, "can I, against my better judgement, make a call upon your powers once more?"
Edith and I sat down in the sunshine, and I tried to explain what was going on. Like Theodoor and Polomeus, Edith had not heard the voice of her God in quite a while, so I asked her if the voice I was hearing might be Kharnun's. I had written down the extent of the message the voice had given me, and I read it to her.
After hearing this, Edith insisted we ask Polomeus to help also. The man might be a jester, but he has a lot of experience in this field. Shyly I agreed, and I asked Polomeus if he thought this was a message from my God. Of course my God speaks to me, he's always done so. But Polomeus was adamant: this was a deal and Gods do not make deals.
So if it's not my God, then who was speaking to me? And why do I hear this voice in my head?
Dinnertime came around and we were all surprised to see a very unexpected guest enter the shabby inn. I was inside with Theodoor and suddenly a number of Yellow Rose guards entered, followed by Baroness Liedewij. We rose and I curtsied deep (but not as deep as I would for the Baron), and she looked at the feast dinner the cooks were preparing. She recognized Polomeus and asked him over to speak to him, and we took our seats once again. She would join us for dinner, eating seperately from the rest of the people.
Dinner was good and plenty but I was not very happy that some of the Rozers mistook me for one of the pleasure ladies. I rose, irritated and shocked, and left them.
After dinner I had an appointment with a lady of good standing, Dro'Shani. She had arrived with Samuel DeVore, and I had met her earlier that morning when she asked if I was interested in meditating. She had a lovely brass tea set, sugar and even some biscuits, and we nipped the hot brass cups while making conversation. Her etiquette was as refined as mine, and I was saddened to hear she was expected at another appointment, quite against her better judgement, but she could not cancel as it was the leader of the ruffians and he had the bad manners to come fetch her with an armed guard.
Later that evening there was a commotion. The walls of the tavern were bleeding, for some strange reason, and Polomeus was gathering several people together, and called me also. All the people who have had nightmares the night previous were called together because some kind of demon was trapped in the building. I didn't think I had had a nightmare, but then I realised that the first time I had heard the voice was when I was in the wardrobe. To be stuck in that wardrobe might be considered a nightmare to others, even if it wasn't one for me. What was worse: we suspected this demon might be manipulating everyone to set him free.
Our deliberations were interrupted by a terrible racket, and I heard Hugo chanting a spell to better fight off the demon. Not ten minutes later I heard the voice again. "Hugo is a coward. He is a good for nothing nobody. It would be better if he were dead. Why don't you take care of him, eh?"
I took Polomeus aside and related it to him, and we agreed that this thing was trying to manipulate people and something should be done to stop him. There were seven people who had had a bad dream that night, and they were all getting excited and talking loudly, so I stepped away and let them have their discussion. At some point I heard them cry out for the library key, and I decided to help out there, taking out my lockpicks and with Theodoor standing guard. I was interrupted before I could finish it, but I wasn't caught. Luckily.
Theodoor, who was busy with his own problems, was briefed regularly and privately. At some point Polomeus wanted to do a ritual to show the demon that we weren't scared of him, and to show that, we would do something we were most afraid of.
It took me a moment to figure it out, but the thing I am most afraid of is to lose my mask. I smiled at Polomeus, and held out my left arm, showing the scars on the wrist. "There is not much I am still afraid of after what happened in Wateringen." I said, and I heard Dro'Shani gasp. But once I figured out what it was that was scaring me, I went to Theodoor to have some sense talked into me.
"If I should show I am not afraid, I should just kill Hugo. It will show everyone what I am really capable of, it will shatter this mask I always wear."
Theodoor hummed something non-committal. I guess he was still gathering his thoughts when I continued. "Perhaps that is not wise. The demon wants me to kill Hugo, probably because he is too strong. Everyone is afraid to lose their family, so perhaps I should kill Victor instead." I paused. "Could you make sure...no." I was thinking fast now. "If I know he will be healed, it will not be real. It will not prove anything. Best if I don't know, really."
I bit my lip, a small sign of insecurity becoming a more regular tic. Luckily my headache hadn't returned yet.
When Polomeus started the ritual, I made sure Victor was next to me for 'moral support'. I had asked for a dagger that I could use should the demon appear, and I had even shouted at Joris, a bard, because I was getting fed up with waiting. I was truly anxious, and I couldn't wait for the ritual to start and the demon to be vanquished.
Polomeus started the ritual, and we started the meditation. First we had to visualise the demon, to call him. But it didn't work. Joris was the one who knew what was wrong, and he spoke. "You, two spaces from the left of Dro'Shani. There is something with you that doesn't belong there. What is that?"
I was unsure whether he meant me, whether I should speak. I tried to muster the courage, and Polomeus took a stronger hold of my right hand, encouraging me. Faltering, I spoke about the voice I heard. But then the voice spoke to me again. It threatened me, said of how I would be out there in the storm, all alone, and there would never be a safe place for me anymore. I whimpered in fear of the voice, of the implications and the power it had over me. The people in the circle with me spoke to me as well, encouraging things, telling me I could do it, telling me to be strong.
I wondered for a moment if I wanted to stay with this voice forever. It was clear to me now, that it was not the voice of my God. Perhaps it had never been His voice, but I was sure that now it was not Kharnun. And that by taking the mantle of priesthood upon my shoulders I had shown Kharnun I had faith. That I was stronger because of my faith.
I spoke to the voice, told it that I would be strong, that I wanted to step outside the wardrobe, to walk in the storm. That I would take my chances in the storm instead of hiding inside. I heard the sound of wood bending, that awful sound I can hear in my dreams sometimes, the wardrobe creaking like the cellar roof over my head so many years ago. But still I drew upon the power of my faith, and persisted.
Silence followed. We wanted to call out, to vanquish this demon, but now it wouldn't come. It spoke to me one last time, "I will wait for you in your dreams;" but I didn't repeat his words out loud, denied that these words would have power over me.
Finally, Polomeus decided that if the demon would not come to us, we would go to the dream world and call it there. One by one, we slowly fell asleep...
Sunday
...someone poked my arm and shook me. It wasn't very gentle, but I was comfortable and it took a moment to wake up. I realised I was lying with my head in someone's lap, and it turned out to be Polomeus' lap. I blushed deeply and sat up, looking away in shame. Unsure of what had happened with the demon, Polomeus finally opened the circle so we could get out, and I ate my breakfast in silence, contemplating what had happened.
My quiet breakfast was rudely interrupted by Hugo, who came storming into the bar looking for one of the more powerful women of the ruffians. Ranon, captain of the Black Guards and a servant of Ranaa had been murdered in the woods. Hugo nearly dragged the poor woman outside.
When I had finished my breakfast I went outside as well. Hugo, Jinni, Polomeus and others were performing a ritual, the dead body of Ranon between them. They called upon a power to strike the murderer of Ranon dead where he or she stood.
Suddenly I heard a voice I knew...the voice of Alséma. "So you want to kill someone? Fine. Just swear your allegiance to Septis, and I'll make sure it happens."
Hugo looked away in disgust, and Polomeus ended the ritual quickly.
Joris the bard had placed a very old diary that was found in the Ordinal on a table in the bar, and I sat down with Victor to read it. It was a long document detailing how the monks of Preservatius had strived to preserve knowledge, but how the coming of a demon had interrupted their peaceful lives. It described the ritual the monks did to bind the demon into a religious artefact, but the demon had instead been bound into the building - the same building we occupied.
Dro'Shani set to work to create an artefact of enough value, by sewing valuable necklaces and gems onto a gold-thread banner. It was clear now that another ritual was needed. Of course I would participate again. I had briefly pondered setting the building on fire, but that would most likely free the demon and make me into its slave. I would prefer to live my life in service of a god in stead of a demon.
I tried to convince Hugo that the necklace of Ranon would be a valuable item for the ritual, and Hugo took me to the body of Ranon, removed the necklace for me. He watched me like a hawk while I held it, and when Dro'Shani said she couldn't use it because it was a religious item, I had no choice but to return it to Hugo.
When we had gathered for the ritual, Polomeus asked once more for strength, and one by one we gave spells for the ritual to bind the demon to the artefact. For the first time I audibly chanted my spell (but not so that everyone could hear it very well!), overcoming my fear. In the distance stood Theodoor, his hood over his head, staring at the ritual and looking very much like his God, if I can believe the stories.
Now that we knew the name of the demon, we could call it. Dro'Shani spoke his name and we all echoed her. "Nephazim! Come to us!"
The demon appeared. A winged beast that was very hideous attacked first Dro'Shani and then others, but left me alone for a good long while, until it realised what we were doing. Only then did it fly to me, took hold of my shoulder and whispered into my ear "I love youuuu..."
Our resolve did not falter, and finally the demon was on the artefact. Roosje nearly flattened it with the demonary she was holding, and I saw Nephazim melt into the banner, his body becoming one with the threads of gold and red.
Polomeus took the banner along as agreed, and disappeared into a tree. I hardly saw this though, because from the forest mutants appeared to attack us.
After the battle, we licked our wounds. For once, the villagers helped us defeat our enemies, instead of being enemies, but many of our friends had fallen. Victor had to barter for needle and thread so someone could stitch his wounds closed, and we rested a bit while Hugo and Coen discussed what to do now. Shortly after that, the news came that the gates of Orkenslacht had opened, and people were moving in and out freely.
I was glad to get out of there, and glad but a little embarrassed that Polomeus would be traveling with us. I wouldn't want to wake up with my head in his lap once more!
~ Pictures of Maerquin 24 thanks to Ank! ~
-----
As Marianne doesn't take much offense, I've hardly mentioned it in this story, but the atmosphere of the weekend was great. The sick people, mice and rats, the ruffians, dead bodies turning up each morning, afternoon and night were creepy. Attacks from mutants and the mutated bodies of the monks of the Ordinal, and even finding some of those monks murdered... a very grim atmosphere.
The merchant that was dealing in everything the players needed sold us things at terribly expensive prices. Luckily I managed to steal back one cret from him (hey, if it's a token theft, it's still a theft!) when I bought parchment, but the idea that stuff was scarce really came across well. Healing and bandages were the first things to dry up...
So now Marianne is cured from the voices in her head. Or is she? And how will she cope with the silence, with her new skills? We will find out soon enough. But first: she will buy a new dress in Orkenslacht.
A 74-year old bus driver took us to the location, which looked idyllic. Lots of forest around, but also some camping houses. The beds were great, and because we were very early we managed to snatch two beds adjacent to each other near the outer door. I had some time to sit on the ping-pong table and do some more scale mailing while other people arrived. Hugs all around, then getting dressed and soup, before diving into the play.
Dramatis Personae
Victor - personal assistant to Marianne, played by Sander v. O.;
Theodoor van Overstraete - a priest of Kharnun played by the Admiral;
Marianne den Schrijfster - a scribe played by me;
Polomeus - a fool, ritualist and a priest of Eleena, played by Eric;
Edith - a healer and priestess of Ishtra, played by Erna;
Hugo van der Wijs - a paladin of Ranaa, played by Raymon;
Dro'Shani - a lady, played by
anastaszia;Friday
It has been a year since Wateringen, and headaches have been plaguing me ever since. Now our road took us to Orkenslacht, the largest city in the barony and home to Baron Wolfgang. We arrived at the gates late in the afternoon, but were turned away. The gates were closed and no-one, not even Theodoor who lives in the city, was welcome there. We were directed to a refugee camp of sorts, two hours' travel from the city.
Two ladies, Petronella and Clarissa, had joined Victor, Theodoor and me on the road, and darkness had fallen. Our small group was walking single file through the woods, the nervous ladies in the middle and Victor at the rear. Soon enough we heard some noises, and Theodoor said he saw shapes moving in the darkness. They did not bother us at first, but then more of them gathered, and they closed in on us, trying our defenses.
Theodoor started to run, the ladies screaming in terror. At some point, I noticed Victor was no longer behind me, and I called out to him. Theodoor's strong hand at my shoulder pulled me further. "We can't leave him behind;" I said; "he's the only family I have."
"If I go back now, I'm afraid none of us will make it to safety." Theodoor spoke softly, pulling me forward. We ran, and ran. A crossroads, more people. I cried softly, wanted to go back for Victor, but was stopped again by Theodoor, who kept an eye out for me as well as trying to get help for Victor.
Finally, after what seemed like ages, we returned to the place we were attacked. Some rough voices spoke in dwarvish, and Edith talked with the dwarves. She healed Victor and we took him along. He was still groggy and hurt, but he was fit to walk the rest of the way.
We arrived at the settlement not very long afterward. The group was larger now, and we stopped at the edge of the village. A light pierced the darkness, and a scuffling sound edged closer to us. I could see it was a woman, but she had covered parts of her body in bandages, which were bloody and torn. She coughed several times, and croaked a plea for help. She was obviously very ill, and we were unsure if it would be safe to go into the settlement. She might not be the only one that was sick, and if it was contagious...
But there was little choice. Orkenslacht was inaccessible, and the guards would never allow us to camp in front of the gates. The forest was dangerous with the creatures roaming around, and there was nowhere else we could go. Theodoor again took my elbow and lead me around the sick woman, Victor following behind.
Inside things were better, but not by much. The settlement was a refugee camp of sorts, and the people in it were ruffians. Those lucky enough to have money could hire protection, but it was the smart armed people who were really running the show. A whorehouse and a temple of sorts completed the collection.
The temple was called an Ordinal, and several grey-clad monks mingled with the new arrivals. They had difficult names, and were very open about their craft. They studied meditation, and focused on the body or the mind. Though Victor urged me to participate in one of their sessions, my headache prevented me from concentrating enough.
I sighed when I took a seat on a couch next to Theodoor.
"Such a deep sigh..." he remarked, and smiled encouragingly at me. I smiled, and looked at my hands, lying in my lap. Smiled at him for a moment, and looked away again. "Are those headaches still troubling you?" he asked.
"Yes." I rubbed my temple. "They seem to just be getting worse. Especially in the evenings."
"And nobody knows what causes them?" he asked.
"Jinni didn't know, and Edith didn't either. She thinks they might be stress-related. I don't know." I replied.
Theodoor paused, glanced at the door behind me. He listened to some shreds of conversation around us. Then he spoke again. "When did it start?"
"After Wateringen." I said. "I'm not sure exactly when, but I'm sure I didn't have them before then. Do you think it might have something to do with what happened there?" I rubbed the scars on the insides of my left wrist.
"Well, our Lord is not one to give subtle signals. Perhaps he is trying to say something to you." Theodoor said. He looked grave, a small crease in his forehead betraying his worries about my health. "Perhaps He is urging you to do something."
I thought about that. "What do you think He wants me to do?"
Theodoor remained silent. We thought about it for a moment, his eyes following people throughout the common room of the shabby inn. "Perhaps it is magic-related." he ventured.
"How so?"
"Well, it could be a spell, or something that happened in the ritual." he mused. "It can be any number of things. Magic, priestly or wizardly, can be strange like that."
"I know nothing of magic." I replied. "I've never even heard how it's supposed to work, or...or where it comes from. For instance, how do you cast a spell? Can you tell me?"
"It is... it's like having the will make something happen, the intention clear in your mind, and summoning energy deep from within you to achieve it. And all those three things must be in unison, or it will fail." Theodoor replied. "Kharnun grants me the magic to do it, as His priest."
"How do you become His priest?"
"I think;" Theodoor said; "that becoming a priest for Kharnun is not a matter of being granted powers. It is a matter of taking that power. To just...do a spell in His name. You'll find out soon enough if He approves or not."
I stared at my hands. Our conversations often had pauses in them, and not just because I needed to work up the courage to ask a difficult question. Often he would be distracted by something that happened, or someone would come up to us and I would blush and stare at my hands until they would go away. I finally mustered the courage to ask him a very important question.
"Do you think I would make a good priestess?" I whispered.
"Yes, I think you would." he replied in earnest.
We sat there for a bit longer, and I think that my heart had already decided something, but I wasn't yet aware of it. I finally asked Theodoor if I could try a spell on him. He had cast a calming spell on me earlier that night, and I wasn't really sure if I could try anything else. It was hard enough for me to focus, to remember what I wanted to achieve and to remember the words that would shape the effect. The weirdest thing was that when I cast that spell, my headache was gone for a moment, only to return after a minute with one fierce stab of pain. But I had made a decision and Theodoor said he felt calmer after I tried my spell.
And so I became a priestess of Kharnun.
The headache had returned, and Theodoor said that perhaps this was something I should have tried much sooner. Still, when Edith offered her help to relieve my headaches by trying out a spell, I replied that it would be fine. Even though her diagnosis of what was wrong with me had found no diseases, she still first tried a spell that would cure a disease. I did feel a little faint, but not better. The headache was still there.
Because Edith suspected I was under the influence of a potion, she went on by purging that with a spell too. Little did Edith know it would work too well.
The last potion I drank was a year ago, after the ritual in Wateringen, when Alséma threw me out of the inner circle. Theodoor rushed to my side and poured a very powerful healing potion into my mouth. But now, as the Remove Potion spell took effect, the heart attack Alséma had given me that day returned, and I collapsed from my seat.
Edith checked my pulse, first in my neck and then at my wrist, and was shocked to find my heart was not beating. She immediately went on to call on her goddess to heal me, taking care to first cast Cure Major and then to heal the rest of me.
By the time she was done, there was so much healing energy in me, I was roaring drunk. I shall not relate what happened next, for it will only embarrass me, but suffice to say I do not wish to repeat the experience.
Saturday
The next morning I woke up, expecting to have a terrible hang-over, but this was not the case. I had had a dream, where I was safely hidden in my wardrobe, and outside a storm was raging. I was safe, and nothing could hurt me.
For the first time in a year I felt clear-headed, and when I went outside it was still very early. Despite having slept only for three hours, I was cheerful and awake, and a watery sun shon on the green. Ranon, captain of the Black Guards was already up and doing his morning exercises, and inspired by feeling so good I did some morning exercises of my own, some yoga.
When breakfast was served, more people had woken up, and afterwards we sat outside in the sun for hours. Petrik Vroeghindewei talked with Theodoor for a long time, and we spoke together as well. Later, Petrik's brother (?) Coenraad wanted to ask me if I could assist him. He wanted to have a document containing the statement of one of the hookers. I accompanied him inside, and wrote down the statement on some parchment. Coenraad himself supplied much of it, and the girl mostly repeated what he had said, clearly anxious and nervous. In the end they both signed it with an X and I handed the parchment to Coenraad.
Once outside I joined Theodoor again and we spoke shortly with a diplomat of Zepultoera. He was a most agreeable man, very polite, and he complimented me on my beauty and manners. I blushed, and thanked him, but when I looked to Theodoor for support, I noticed that he too was beaming at me.
After the diplomat left, Victor and I went into the library. A voice had spoken to me, and said he was trapped and I needed to free him. It spoke of an old building - but Orkenslacht is filled with old buildings. The castle of the Baron probably being the oldest among them. Perhaps it was metaphorical, and as Victor had figured out the Ordinal was a very old order of monks. But the library yielded no answers, and the brother who had let us in said that between 't Slop and Orkenslacht there were many more ruins, perhaps hundreds of them. The description of where the voice was trapped was just too general, and in the end I stepped up to Edith.
"Edith," I said, "can I, against my better judgement, make a call upon your powers once more?"
Edith and I sat down in the sunshine, and I tried to explain what was going on. Like Theodoor and Polomeus, Edith had not heard the voice of her God in quite a while, so I asked her if the voice I was hearing might be Kharnun's. I had written down the extent of the message the voice had given me, and I read it to her.
"Go to an old building an free me. This is of the utmost importance because another such as me is after you! And I can make sure that you shall never have to fear anything ever again. Let me return to my original form and all the orders you have executed will be richly rewarded."
After hearing this, Edith insisted we ask Polomeus to help also. The man might be a jester, but he has a lot of experience in this field. Shyly I agreed, and I asked Polomeus if he thought this was a message from my God. Of course my God speaks to me, he's always done so. But Polomeus was adamant: this was a deal and Gods do not make deals.
So if it's not my God, then who was speaking to me? And why do I hear this voice in my head?
Dinnertime came around and we were all surprised to see a very unexpected guest enter the shabby inn. I was inside with Theodoor and suddenly a number of Yellow Rose guards entered, followed by Baroness Liedewij. We rose and I curtsied deep (but not as deep as I would for the Baron), and she looked at the feast dinner the cooks were preparing. She recognized Polomeus and asked him over to speak to him, and we took our seats once again. She would join us for dinner, eating seperately from the rest of the people.
Dinner was good and plenty but I was not very happy that some of the Rozers mistook me for one of the pleasure ladies. I rose, irritated and shocked, and left them.
After dinner I had an appointment with a lady of good standing, Dro'Shani. She had arrived with Samuel DeVore, and I had met her earlier that morning when she asked if I was interested in meditating. She had a lovely brass tea set, sugar and even some biscuits, and we nipped the hot brass cups while making conversation. Her etiquette was as refined as mine, and I was saddened to hear she was expected at another appointment, quite against her better judgement, but she could not cancel as it was the leader of the ruffians and he had the bad manners to come fetch her with an armed guard.
Later that evening there was a commotion. The walls of the tavern were bleeding, for some strange reason, and Polomeus was gathering several people together, and called me also. All the people who have had nightmares the night previous were called together because some kind of demon was trapped in the building. I didn't think I had had a nightmare, but then I realised that the first time I had heard the voice was when I was in the wardrobe. To be stuck in that wardrobe might be considered a nightmare to others, even if it wasn't one for me. What was worse: we suspected this demon might be manipulating everyone to set him free.
Our deliberations were interrupted by a terrible racket, and I heard Hugo chanting a spell to better fight off the demon. Not ten minutes later I heard the voice again. "Hugo is a coward. He is a good for nothing nobody. It would be better if he were dead. Why don't you take care of him, eh?"
I took Polomeus aside and related it to him, and we agreed that this thing was trying to manipulate people and something should be done to stop him. There were seven people who had had a bad dream that night, and they were all getting excited and talking loudly, so I stepped away and let them have their discussion. At some point I heard them cry out for the library key, and I decided to help out there, taking out my lockpicks and with Theodoor standing guard. I was interrupted before I could finish it, but I wasn't caught. Luckily.
Theodoor, who was busy with his own problems, was briefed regularly and privately. At some point Polomeus wanted to do a ritual to show the demon that we weren't scared of him, and to show that, we would do something we were most afraid of.
It took me a moment to figure it out, but the thing I am most afraid of is to lose my mask. I smiled at Polomeus, and held out my left arm, showing the scars on the wrist. "There is not much I am still afraid of after what happened in Wateringen." I said, and I heard Dro'Shani gasp. But once I figured out what it was that was scaring me, I went to Theodoor to have some sense talked into me.
"If I should show I am not afraid, I should just kill Hugo. It will show everyone what I am really capable of, it will shatter this mask I always wear."
Theodoor hummed something non-committal. I guess he was still gathering his thoughts when I continued. "Perhaps that is not wise. The demon wants me to kill Hugo, probably because he is too strong. Everyone is afraid to lose their family, so perhaps I should kill Victor instead." I paused. "Could you make sure...no." I was thinking fast now. "If I know he will be healed, it will not be real. It will not prove anything. Best if I don't know, really."
I bit my lip, a small sign of insecurity becoming a more regular tic. Luckily my headache hadn't returned yet.
When Polomeus started the ritual, I made sure Victor was next to me for 'moral support'. I had asked for a dagger that I could use should the demon appear, and I had even shouted at Joris, a bard, because I was getting fed up with waiting. I was truly anxious, and I couldn't wait for the ritual to start and the demon to be vanquished.
Polomeus started the ritual, and we started the meditation. First we had to visualise the demon, to call him. But it didn't work. Joris was the one who knew what was wrong, and he spoke. "You, two spaces from the left of Dro'Shani. There is something with you that doesn't belong there. What is that?"
I was unsure whether he meant me, whether I should speak. I tried to muster the courage, and Polomeus took a stronger hold of my right hand, encouraging me. Faltering, I spoke about the voice I heard. But then the voice spoke to me again. It threatened me, said of how I would be out there in the storm, all alone, and there would never be a safe place for me anymore. I whimpered in fear of the voice, of the implications and the power it had over me. The people in the circle with me spoke to me as well, encouraging things, telling me I could do it, telling me to be strong.
I wondered for a moment if I wanted to stay with this voice forever. It was clear to me now, that it was not the voice of my God. Perhaps it had never been His voice, but I was sure that now it was not Kharnun. And that by taking the mantle of priesthood upon my shoulders I had shown Kharnun I had faith. That I was stronger because of my faith.
I spoke to the voice, told it that I would be strong, that I wanted to step outside the wardrobe, to walk in the storm. That I would take my chances in the storm instead of hiding inside. I heard the sound of wood bending, that awful sound I can hear in my dreams sometimes, the wardrobe creaking like the cellar roof over my head so many years ago. But still I drew upon the power of my faith, and persisted.
Silence followed. We wanted to call out, to vanquish this demon, but now it wouldn't come. It spoke to me one last time, "I will wait for you in your dreams;" but I didn't repeat his words out loud, denied that these words would have power over me.
Finally, Polomeus decided that if the demon would not come to us, we would go to the dream world and call it there. One by one, we slowly fell asleep...
Sunday
...someone poked my arm and shook me. It wasn't very gentle, but I was comfortable and it took a moment to wake up. I realised I was lying with my head in someone's lap, and it turned out to be Polomeus' lap. I blushed deeply and sat up, looking away in shame. Unsure of what had happened with the demon, Polomeus finally opened the circle so we could get out, and I ate my breakfast in silence, contemplating what had happened.
My quiet breakfast was rudely interrupted by Hugo, who came storming into the bar looking for one of the more powerful women of the ruffians. Ranon, captain of the Black Guards and a servant of Ranaa had been murdered in the woods. Hugo nearly dragged the poor woman outside.
When I had finished my breakfast I went outside as well. Hugo, Jinni, Polomeus and others were performing a ritual, the dead body of Ranon between them. They called upon a power to strike the murderer of Ranon dead where he or she stood.
Suddenly I heard a voice I knew...the voice of Alséma. "So you want to kill someone? Fine. Just swear your allegiance to Septis, and I'll make sure it happens."
Hugo looked away in disgust, and Polomeus ended the ritual quickly.
Joris the bard had placed a very old diary that was found in the Ordinal on a table in the bar, and I sat down with Victor to read it. It was a long document detailing how the monks of Preservatius had strived to preserve knowledge, but how the coming of a demon had interrupted their peaceful lives. It described the ritual the monks did to bind the demon into a religious artefact, but the demon had instead been bound into the building - the same building we occupied.
Dro'Shani set to work to create an artefact of enough value, by sewing valuable necklaces and gems onto a gold-thread banner. It was clear now that another ritual was needed. Of course I would participate again. I had briefly pondered setting the building on fire, but that would most likely free the demon and make me into its slave. I would prefer to live my life in service of a god in stead of a demon.
I tried to convince Hugo that the necklace of Ranon would be a valuable item for the ritual, and Hugo took me to the body of Ranon, removed the necklace for me. He watched me like a hawk while I held it, and when Dro'Shani said she couldn't use it because it was a religious item, I had no choice but to return it to Hugo.
When we had gathered for the ritual, Polomeus asked once more for strength, and one by one we gave spells for the ritual to bind the demon to the artefact. For the first time I audibly chanted my spell (but not so that everyone could hear it very well!), overcoming my fear. In the distance stood Theodoor, his hood over his head, staring at the ritual and looking very much like his God, if I can believe the stories.
Now that we knew the name of the demon, we could call it. Dro'Shani spoke his name and we all echoed her. "Nephazim! Come to us!"
The demon appeared. A winged beast that was very hideous attacked first Dro'Shani and then others, but left me alone for a good long while, until it realised what we were doing. Only then did it fly to me, took hold of my shoulder and whispered into my ear "I love youuuu..."
Our resolve did not falter, and finally the demon was on the artefact. Roosje nearly flattened it with the demonary she was holding, and I saw Nephazim melt into the banner, his body becoming one with the threads of gold and red.
Polomeus took the banner along as agreed, and disappeared into a tree. I hardly saw this though, because from the forest mutants appeared to attack us.
After the battle, we licked our wounds. For once, the villagers helped us defeat our enemies, instead of being enemies, but many of our friends had fallen. Victor had to barter for needle and thread so someone could stitch his wounds closed, and we rested a bit while Hugo and Coen discussed what to do now. Shortly after that, the news came that the gates of Orkenslacht had opened, and people were moving in and out freely.
I was glad to get out of there, and glad but a little embarrassed that Polomeus would be traveling with us. I wouldn't want to wake up with my head in his lap once more!
~ Pictures of Maerquin 24 thanks to Ank! ~
As Marianne doesn't take much offense, I've hardly mentioned it in this story, but the atmosphere of the weekend was great. The sick people, mice and rats, the ruffians, dead bodies turning up each morning, afternoon and night were creepy. Attacks from mutants and the mutated bodies of the monks of the Ordinal, and even finding some of those monks murdered... a very grim atmosphere.
The merchant that was dealing in everything the players needed sold us things at terribly expensive prices. Luckily I managed to steal back one cret from him (hey, if it's a token theft, it's still a theft!) when I bought parchment, but the idea that stuff was scarce really came across well. Healing and bandages were the first things to dry up...
So now Marianne is cured from the voices in her head. Or is she? And how will she cope with the silence, with her new skills? We will find out soon enough. But first: she will buy a new dress in Orkenslacht.
