Carrion Crown (Neutral and Evil group)

[The Gentlemen]

It is a dark and gloomy affair to mourn the dead and lay them to rest, but it is a necessity in the town of Harrowstone. Five figures stand together, one of which being Kendra Lorrimor, the daughter of the deceased. Her eyes are red and puffy and she dresses in dark, conservative clothes. No one else has shown up to give respect to her dead father, except four.

A group has gathered at the entrance to the restlands, in front of them lies the coffin of the late Petros Lorrimor, a professor whom all gathered have known. The group of five stand silent, until Kendra speaks, "My father needs pallbearers. I would request that you, who knew him in life, carry him to his final resting place in death."

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Spoiler: My reference point for your characters. Don't open

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http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=559219 Onashu
http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=295208 Metroid
http://charactersheet.co.uk/pathfind...c87203007c8b9e Anubis Dread
http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=558719 MiningDwarf

[Anubis Dread]

Adrianna tried and failed to stifle a yawn. This was irritating. Though it would have been more irritating to not attend. She'd done a few jobs for the Professor in the past. Just simple escort jobs from point a to point b. It was easy work, and the Professor wasn't too bad a client. He was quiet. She liked quiet. It meant she could just walk without bothering to chat and go to bed early without anyone wanting to talk to her. But apparently that had translated to 'her knowing the deceased' when his daughter tracked her down since she was in town anyway. Turning her down and getting her to break into tears or scolding was more bothersome than just showing up, so here she was.

Thankfully all she realled needed to do was stand here. Standing was easy. Sure she'd had to do some minor work. Her armor had to be cleaned and colored black, and her clothes did too. Since they were black she just got away with wearing clothes that were somewhat ratty and a little too big for her, because they were more comfortable like that. But hey, they were black, so it was still okay. Even if it took less than a minute to get them all black with the help of a minor cantrip. It still counted. Enough that she could afford to just keep her head in its bed mess loosely tied. Doing hair was a hassle, even if leaving it like this made it look like she had a crow on her head. Screw that noise.

But now she was being roped into one last escort job. That was a huge pain. Turning it down when she already showed up though would mean she'd need to explain why she didn't want to do it. Then there'd be an argument. Then there'd be pleading and begging. That was way too much hassel. It was easier just to get the others to carry the damn thing and head off with them to wherever they'd be going. She needed to move on anyway, so it wasn't like she'd be going out of her way. It'd be inconvenient, not hard.

"Alright," Adrianna replied simply, stifling another yawn.

[onashu]

Blast, thought the tall man with the tall collar stood staring at the coffin on the ground. He was deeply saddened by what he saw. Not that he was personally close to the professor. He had, however, worked closely with the man when his master was still alive. He had been an excellent source of knowledge and learning.

He absent-mindlessly tugged at his collar, trying to straighten it (even though it was already straightened) while lost in thought. When Lorrimor's daughter spoke up he almost didn't hear her, so distracted by whatever he was thinking. "Hmmm? Sorry, what? Oh." He realized she had asked them to carry her father.

Azzo Verrat looked around at the rest of the three who had gathered, trying to guess why each one had come to see the late professor off. "Yes, well, I would be honored to bear him with the rest of you."

[TheMiningDwarf]

Francis looked down at the body in the coffin before him. He had seen many dead bodies in his time and had seen many coffins but for the first time in a long time he felt true and genuine sorrow for the one inside it. He had known he would outlive the professor, if he played his cards right he would easily outlive everyone around him, but that thought did not console him.

His hand pulled his black hair out of his face his fingers brushing against the exaggeratedly pointed ears that made up his elven disguise. He could feel the looks he got when he was coming here, for even entering the town looking like an elf, but those looks were infinitely better than those he would get without his disguise. That was why he would miss the professor. The professor had been the only one to accept him for what he was, the only one to help him with his quest in spite of that.

He was practically touching the coffin he was so close when the professor's daughter called for pole bearers. Yes. This is my chance to repay you.. for all that you have done for me I will carry you to your final resting place.` Francis thought. "It would be an honor and a privilege to carry our dearly departed." He hooked an arm under the pole and made ready to lift waiting for his fellow pole bearers to get into place.

[Metroid33]

Emeria stood there, staring at the coffin. She was still contemplating why the old man had sought her out of all people. Surely he had had better friends then her. She had only met him on the road and saved him from a handful of goblins. The two had chatted but she just doesn't get it.

Upon hearing Kendra speak Emeria moved silently to the side of the coffin ready to hoist.

[The Gentlemen]

The four figures settle into place, grabbing hold of the coffin, and lifting as one. Kendra moves in front of the coffin and begins walking slowly, leading the way to the cemetery.

"Thank you for accepting my request, not just for lifting my father to his grave, but for even coming with me to begin with. I know that some of you do not know the professor very well, some of you probably do not consider yourselves friends with my father, but I appreciate it. I know two of you have real reason to be here, yet I can guess that the other two do not. I still thank you all the same, and will admit my father was strangely adamant that I find you specifically to help with his burial. He mentioned you all by name, but he never gave me a reason before his ... death. We should be arriving soon. Father Grimburrow and a pair of diggers are waiting for us, but we have all the time we need to move my fathers body. It is tradition.

As Kendra continues to speak while on the journey to the gravesite, you can see a large group of townsmen waiting up ahead. Among them is a tall man who looks old, yet somehow has a sense of energy about him. As you notice the group, he steps forward, raises his hand and speaks.

Spoiler: OOC

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You may step into this conversation at any time, if you do so, please identify when you interject.

"That’s far enough. We been talking, and we don’t want Lorrimor
buried in the Restlands. You can take him upriver and bury him
there if you want, but he ain’t goin’ in the ground here!”

Kendra is swift to respond, her sadness swiftly transforming into anger.

“What are you talking about? I arranged it with Father Grimburrow. He’s waiting for us! The grave’s already been...”

“You don’t get it, woman. We won’t have a necromancer buried in the same place as our kin. I suggest you move out while you still can. Folks are pretty upset about this right now.”

“Necromancy!? Are you really that ignorant?”

[TheMiningDwarf]

“You don’t get it, woman. We won’t have a necromancer buried in the same place as our kin. I suggest you move out while you still can. Folks are pretty upset about this right now.”

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Oh boy this is going to get real confusing real fast

Francis looks at the townsmen blocking their path with disdain. Once the crowd's intent to deny they professor his deserved burial becomes clear Francis speaks up. Addressing the townsfolk Francis says "It seems to me that you are the interlopers here. Lady Kendra has the permission of this town's holyman surely that should be enough for you?" Francis bites his tongue to keep himself from adding a threat. I know for a fact that the professor was no Necromancer. If anyone, I would know. he thinks his thoughts turning angry and indignant at these people's ignorance. "You have no basis for such accusations!" Francis shouts at the crowd. "Show me some wight or ghoul risen by the professor's hand!?" When they don't immediately point one out Francis continues. "As I thought..." Francis says quickly. "Now please allow us to bury your neighbor as he deserves to be."

[The Gentlemen]

Spoiler: OOC

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You are incredibly lucky. Diplomacy check succeeds, the men back off without a fight. All of you earn 12 Exp and have improved your standing with the town

The men look at Francis, yet no one makes a move. The one who spoke opens his mouth to retort, but quickly shuts it after looking around at the crowd. Their faces show doubt, not much, but its there.

"Fine, if you and your group of bloody outsiders wants to get in our business, then you'll quickly find we ain't friendly. Only reason i'm backing off is cause of Ms. Lorrimor here. Leave town, we don't want you here."

The man backs off, turning and walking through the crowd away from your group. The crowd watches him go, looks back to you, then follows after a moments hesitation.

Kendra watches them go, then turns to Francis.

"thank you for resolving that peacefully, if you had hurt them them it would just make their behavior worse in the future. I apologize for their actions, but everyone has been tense lately. Let us be off to the cemetery."

The group starts off once more, arriving to find a old man in dark robes holding a large tome. At his side are two men in dark clothing with shovels.
There are a few villagers waiting behind them, standing before the hole in the ground that could only be a grave. The group moves to the grave and carefully sets the coffin within, then backs away to allow Father Grimburrow and Kendra to speak.

"Spirits, both passed and not, please protect the fallen before us in death, and allow him to pass forth with not a heavy heart of regret, but one of fulfillment and peace. So it is said, so it has been said, so it shall always be said."

The Father steps back from the grave, allowing Kendra to replace him.

"My father was a man of knowledge, a man who strove to do what was right, and only what was right, with information he had obtained himself. He never believed in puzzles which were unsolvable, and he always aimed to help. My father, the professor, was a great man. I won't give a long speech, nor will I make my father seem like more or less than what he was. What he was is simple, he was a man who offered peace instead of war, and reached his hand forward to help instead of harm. I loved him dearly...and.."

Kendra breaks off, unable to continue, and moves back to the crowd, wiping her eyes as she goes.

"If those who have come to lay his body to rest would say a few words, I feel like Lady Lorrimor would likely appreciate it."

Spoiler: OOC

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This is an opportunity to mention how you know the professor, and flesh out your backstory more so. If you make your tale compelling enough, you will earn trust with the townspeople, and improve your standing with those present.

[onashu]

When the townsfolk mention the powers of necromancy, Azzo's eyes widen for a moment before he quickly controls his expression. A necromancer?! Now it is even more dire that my mission is successful. He continues carrying the coffin once the townsfolk reluctantly leave.

On the way to the grave site, Azzo waits for an opportunity to be closer to Kendra and starts up a conversation, "Kendra, has your father been accused of necromancy before? What is the basis of these accusations?"

He discusses this for a while with her while they walk. Upon reaching the grave and lowering the coffin in, he backs up and listens to the now father-less woman speak greatly of her father. Once she finished, Azzo steps forward and clears his throat, pulling at his waistcoat to straighten it.

"Yes, Kendra, your father was a great man. He was incredibly intelligent and full of knowledge. My mentor and I worked closely with Professor Lorrimar for a time, until my master also recently passed away. Now the world is without two great minds, and it seems a darker place for it. I can only hope some day I will as knowledgeable as even half of one of these men."

With that he steps back to let others say their final words. He pulls out a bar of soap, dropping a splash of water from his waterskin into his hands and scrubs them clean while waiting.

[Anubis Dread]

Things were looking up. They got through those idiots without breaking a sweat, they dropped the body in the ground, and now all they needed to do was stand around for the rest of the funeral. The perfect chance for a little discrete nap-standing. Adrianna was good at nap-standing. Came with being a guard for all those years.

Just when she was getting comfortable though they requested they all say something. Man that was a pain. But it was better to get it out of the way first and get back to relaxing than go last and have to wait on everyone else. Sighing, Adrianna ambled over to say some words.

"Yeah all that stuff is true," Adrianna replied. "The Professor was smart and simple and all that. He was also pretty generous, going by the pay he gave us when I was escorting him around. Actually did some of the camp chores too, despite the fact he was paying us and didn't need to do squat if he didn't want to. That was pretty cool of him. Quiet though. That's good though. I mean better quiet than yapping about nothing all the time, yeah? I guess the Professor was sort of... comfortable to be around. I didn't know him much, but I kind of looked forward to the time we did spend together, and looked back on the time we did spend pretty fondly. Kind of wished I knew him a bit better come to think of it. Or maybe not. What I did know was pretty great, knowing more may have ruined the magic. I do wish I could have spent more time with him though."

[TheMiningDwarf]

Spoiler: OOC

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Whoo Diplomacy Check! Thank goodness for weak-willed townspeople I totally was gonna resort to threathening them if that didn't work

Francis nodded to Adrianna then took up where she left off. Leaving Azzo and Kendra to their conversation. "The Professor was a good man, to some of us he was quiet." Francis glanced at Adrianna. "For me, he spoke. He was kind to me even when I was a stranger to him. He accepted me for what I am at a time in my life when acceptance was something I sorely lacked. He taught me how to defend myself against the very undead monsters they accused him of cavorting with. I'll never forget everything he's done for me." Francis turns to the coffin. "I don't imagine I'll be able to say this to your face again. Thank you, for everything Professor." Francis closes his eyes for a moment before walking off.

[Metroid33]

As the last person Emeria steps forward to say a few words the wind catching her hair and pulling it out to the side and out of her face. Standing there in her simple clothes she spoke out to the rest of the group.

"I honestly only new the Wizard a little, we were traveling down the same road some time ago and started chatting. It was to pass the time as the walk would take us a lot further and we had nothing to do. As we walked a group of goblins came upon us and we together fought them off. He thanked me and bought me a meal at the inn we stayed at that night. That's how we met, he was a kind man and it is sad to see him go."

[The Gentlemen]

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Diplomacy check successful. reputation has gone up. you are now at 10%

As the group finishes their words, Father Grimburrow address the rest of the crowd, bidding them adieu, and giving the signal to disperse. Kendra stays for a few moments to thank those who came, then eventually walks back to the group.

"Thank you , once more for this. I would like to invite you all over for tea, and more importantly my father's will. I have not seen it, but I know you are all included, he told me of this before he ... suffered his accident. Let us be off."

The group follows Kendra to her late father's old home. Within are numerous bookshelves overflowing with scrolls and books, some of which look ancient. She leads you all to the living room, which has several chairs. An elderly man is sitting upon one such chair, seeming to have been waiting for you to arrive.

"Ah, Councilman Hearthmount, i thought you were to arrive an hour from now?"

Councilman Hearthmount, looks at Kendra, then glances at the group following behind her. It is not difficult to see his distaste in your presence, but he makes no comment.

"I found myself able to arrive early, and thought I would get this over with quickly without much fuss. I have your father's will here, along with the paper stipulating that I cannot open it without four others being present." He turns towards you, "Are you Adrianna Arcanus, Azzo Verrat, Francis Sanguine, and the one known only as Emeria?"

The group nods, prompting the man to continue. Councilman Vashian produces a scroll case, shows that the professor’s personal seal is unbroken, then breaks the wax and opens the case. As he does, a small iron key falls out of the tube, clattering noisily onto the table. Undaunted by the key, the councilman begins to read, eager to be done with the business and to get back home.

“I, Petros Lorrimor, being of sound mind, do hereby commit to this parchment my last will and testament. Let it be known that, with the exception of the specific details below, I leave my home and personal belongings entire to my daughter Kendra. Use them or sell them as you see fit, my child.

“Yet beyond the bequeathing of my personal effects, this document must serve other needs. I have arranged for the reading of this document to be delayed until all principals can be in attendance, for I have more than mere inheritance to apportion. I have two final favors to ask.

“To my old friends, I hate to impose upon you all, but there are few others who are capable of appreciating the true significance of what it is I have to ask. As some of you know, I have devoted many of my studies to all manner of evil, that I might know the enemy and inform those better positioned to stand against it. For knowledge of one’s enemy is the surest path to victory over its plans.

“And so, over the course of my lifetime, I have seen fit to acquire a significant collection of valuable but dangerous tomes, any one of which in the wrong circumstances could have led to an awkward legal situation. While the majority of these tomes remain safe under lock and key at the Lepidstadt University, I fear that a few I have borrowed remain in a trunk in my Ravengro home. While invaluable for my work in life, in death, I would prefer not to burden my daughter with the darker side of my profession, or worse still, the danger of possessing these tomes herself. As such, I am entrusting my chest of tomes to you, posthumously. I ask that you please deliver the collection to my colleagues at the University of Lepidstadt, who will put them to good use for the betterment of the cause.

“Yet before you leave for Lepidstadt, there is the matter of another favor—please delay your journey one month and spend that period of time here in Ravengro to ensure that my daughter is safe and sound. She has no one to count on now that I am gone, and if you would aid her in setting things in order for whatever she desires over the course of this month, you would have my eternal gratitude. From my savings, I have also willed to each of you a sum of one hundred platinum coins. For safekeeping, I have left these funds with Embreth Daramid, one of my most trusted friends in Lepidstadt—she has been instructed to issue this payment upon the safe delivery of the borrowed tomes no sooner than one month after the date of the reading of this will.

“I, Petros Lorrimor, hereby sign this will in Ravengro on this first day of Calistril, in the year 1723."

With the will read, the councilman bids you all goodbye, and turns to leave, only stopping as Kendra thanks him for his service. Kendra turns to the group.

"I do not know if I will sell this house, but I wish to wait a few weeks to decide if I will stay in Harrowstone or not. If you will give me a few minutes I need to find the chest that key goes to. i will be back shortly."

Kendra rises and exits the room, leaving the group to talk amongst themselves.

Spoiler: OOC

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Kendra will be gone for some time, you should use this time to get to know the group.

[Anubis Dread]

Evil books of dark magic huh? Adrianna felt her interest peaked. There was little to no effort in just reading, and doing things that were normally forbidden was something that appealed to her. It was basically sticking it to the man with no effort or planning, the best way possible. She could probably read off a couple of tomes in the month they had. Even ignoring the pay Kendra would be obligated to give them room and board since they were protecting her, which meant she could have a nice place to stay and free grub for no money. Sure she needed to actually GUARD the girl, but there was a reason she was the master of nap-standing.

Nodding in satisfaction at how things had turned out, Adrianna began to work out what she could spend all that money on. But she wasn't really all that good at math. Well she was decent at it, but she'd never had that much money so didn't really know how far it would go. "Do you know how big a house and how many slaves that could get?" Adrianna asked the others with a thoughtful frown, though she was just staring in front of her instead of actually looking at them. Moving her neck was too much trouble.

[onashu]

As the rest of the group gathers to follow Kendra back to her home, Azzo steps aside. "I will meet you shortly, I wish to spend a few more moments with the professor." With that he walks back to the grave site and stares mournfully at the headstone, spinning his necklace around to make it face forward.

-----

After some time Azzo walks into the house, it appears just in time. The councilman seems to have just asked if the four of them were the ones mentioned in the will. Azzo nodded and listened with a great deal of interest as the late professor's will was read.

A growing excitement stirred the young apprentice from his mournful stupor as the will described the tomes left to the four of them. The excitement was briefly suppressed having learned the tomes were to be delivered to the university. Despite this, he had hope.

Once Kendra leaves, he turns to the other three. Smiling ruefully, he states, "I do hope all of us have planned for a month away from whatever prior responsibilities we had. I will be sad to be away from my research for so long, though I did bring some of my tomes with me. Simply not enough, not enough..." His eyes unfocus for a moment and he seems to be staring at nothing, lost in thought, but he is quickly brought back to the present, "Ah yes, I am Azzo Verrat, wizard's apprentice to the late Master Sifeus. Are any of spell casters of any kind?" His eyes take on a despairing appearance and he frowns slightly, "Oh I do hope I am not the only one interested in the arcane arts here."

With Adrianna's comment, Azzo appears taken aback, "Slaves? You mean living human slaves? My, my, I do not believe I am interested in purchasing slaves, no. I would like to spend my earnings on purchasing books to fuel my research, and, oh! Even some scrolls of powerful magic!"

[Anubis Dread]

Adrianna rolls her eyes so hard they practically flip around in her head. "Magic is so troublesome," she sighed. "It's a bunch of making noises and learning stuff day in day out until you're old and exhausted and forget why you were learning it in the first place. All so you can look down on people who don't learn magic and say you're better than them. Mages are a**holes," she emphasizes. "It's not like EVERYONE can learn magic. Some people just don't have the knack or the patience. Some people just do better with physical stuff. Or sleeping. I'm good at sleeping," she notes.

They were introducing each other? That was a pain. "Adrianna Arcanus. And unlike you I prefer a good bed and a massage over some weird books. I want to read those books just because if we're not supposed to they must be kind of interesting, but other than that..." she shrugs.

[onashu]

Azzo's eyes brighten as Adrianna speaks, "Ah, you do not have any desire to learn magic? Great, then I suppose you will not be needing your magical essence anymore. And you like sleeping? Good, I will simply suck it out of you while you sleep." He waits a moment, unsmiling, before grinning wryly at her.

[Anubis Dread]

"...eh, whatever," Adrianna shrugs, leaning back in her seat and closing her eyes. "So long as you leave enough I can cast a simple spell or two I don't really care. Not using it for much anyway."

[Metroid33]

"I do hope that was a joke Azzo stealing is usually frowned upon in modern societies." Emeria says to the wizard. "If we are introducing ourselves than I am Emeria. A monk from the monastery outside of Brevoy, and that arcane nonsense is of no use to me azzo what matters in the world is inner focus and the pursuit of perfection. "

[TheMiningDwarf]

Francis stays quiet listening to the others talk around him as he digests what he has heard. One last favor for an old friend then. One month is hardly any time at all to me. If the people of this town will have me it shouldn't be too bad. Francis goes to address his new found companions realizing that he had already missed some portion of their conversation lost in thought. "While I have no personal problem with the finer points of Necromancy and those who practice it. I would hold off on sucking her soul, she seems to still be in the middle of using it. My name is Francis, you might say I am from the capital, though I have not been there in many years so you might as equally not. I have been traveling on a personal quest of sorts. If knowledge is power than I seek to become the most knowledgeable person there is. Lately my quest has brought me to attain knowledge of the spiritual. I am a cleric, though not of any god as far as I know." Francis looks around at his new acquaintances. "I would be interested in exchanging what we know, any knowledge I do not possess is knowledge worth learning." There wasn't much point to learning about most of their interests, Save for what they could tell him about magic, but it never hurt to be friendly.

[The Gentlemen]

Kendra enters the room carrying relatively small chest of oak and iron. She sets it down and picks up the key, then puts it into the lock The key f its the lock perfectly, and within are several old tomes and one relatively new one. The newest tome sits on the top and bears the phrase “Read me now!” scratched into the leather cover. Also within are several tomes which could only be the dangerous books mentioned in the will. Three of these have notes tucked into them indicating that they should be delivered to one Montagnie Crowl, a professor of antiquities at Lepidstadt University. The fourth, Manual of the Order of the Palatine Eye, has a note indicating it should be delivered to Embreth Daramid, a judge at the Lepidstadt Courthouse, though it does say to handle it discretely. The titles of the books are as followed.

Manual of the Order of the Palatine Eye
On Verified Madness
Serving Your Hunger
The Umbral Leaves

As you look upon the books, Kendra looks at one of the titles and seems to become uncomfortable, averting her gaze. She instead looks to the book which has the note, grabbing hold of it and opening the pages.

"What? This is my father's journal, but why would it be in the chest?"

Kendra seems surprised, than offers you the journal. One of your member grabs the book and allows the rest to read it, noting that there are several entries circled in red ink.

Ten Years Ago:
The Whispering Way is more than just a cabal of necromancers. I see that now. Undeath is their
fountain of youth. Uncovering their motivation does not place me at ease as I thought it might.
Their desire to be eternal simply makes them more dangerous.
Two Months Ago:
It is as I had feared. The Way is interested in something here in Ravengro. But what could it be?
One Month Ago:
Whatever the Way seeks, I am now convinced their goal is connected to Harrowstone. In retrospect,
I suppose it all makes sense—the stories they tell about the ruins in town are certainly chilling
enough. It may be time to investigate the ruins, but with everyone in town already being so worked
up about them, I’d rather not let the others know about my curiosity—there’s plenty of folks
hereabouts who already think I’m a demonologist or a witch or something. Ignorant fools.
Twenty Days Ago:
It is confirmed. The Way seems quite interested in something—no, strike that—someone who was
held in Harrowstone. But who, specifically, is the Way after? I need a list of everyone who died
the night of the fire. Everyone. The Temple of Pharasma must have such a list.
Eighteen Days Ago:
I see now just how ill prepared I was when I last set out for the Harrowstone. I am lucky
to have returned at all. The ghosts, if indeed they were ghosts (for I did not find it prudent to
investigate further) prevented me from transcribing the strange symbols I found etched along the
foundation—hopefully on my next visit I will be more prepared. Thankfully, the necessary tools to
defend against spirits are already here in Ravengro. I know that the church of Pharasma used to
store them in a false crypt in the Restlands at the intersection between Eversleep and the Black
Path. I am not certain if the current clergy even know of what their predecessors have hidden down
below. If my luck holds, I should be able to slip in and out with a few borrowed items.
Seventeen Days Ago:
Tomorrow evening I return to the prison. It is imperative the Way does not finish. My caution
has already cost me too much time. I am not sure what will happen if I am too late, but if my
theory is right, the entire town could be at risk. I don’t have time to update my will, so I’ll
leave this in the chest where it’ll be sure to be found, should the worst come to pass.

"I'm honestly unsure what to do after reading this, though you may do as you like. I will provide you rooms and a place to live for the month, but I do not have any real activities for you to do here. You can read, I suppose, and may use my father's collection free of charge, but simply staying within will not make the villagers trust you. In the end it does not matter, your actions are your own, and mine are mine. I will leave you to your planning, and hopefully this month will be to long for you."

Kendra once again rises to leave, this time disappearing behind a door seemingly hidden by a bookshelf. Your group has many choices now, and your choices have impact.

Spoiler: OOC

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You have choices on what to do now. You can head into town to listen for rumors or to help people to gain the trust of the town, or you can stay here and study the tomes. You can do anything at this point. the story will now be driven by you and your choices, rather than my railroading plot earlier. choose wisely

[Anubis Dread]

"Huh," was all Adrianna thought to say, looking over the books in the chest while the journal was read. Seems the Professor had gotten into some hot water. Well it wasn't any of her business. All she needed to do was stand around for a month to get paid, so no reason to do any more work than strictly necessary.

Figuring she liked eating, Adrianna pulled out the Serving Your Hunger tome and began to flip through it. Hopefully the others would agree that they should just sit tight, but arguing about it was too much effort.

[TheMiningDwarf]

Going over the professor's journal Francis' interest is perked when he hears about the Way. Would they revere him as part undead or hate him like everyone else he contemplated seeking one out but then decided against it, if they were interested in the prison it stands to reason he should stay nearby to increase his odds of finding them. That false crypt seemed like the perfect place to start, Francis made a note to commandeer what it had to offer silently hoping he would count as human enough that their protections against the undead would not do him undue harm as well.

Spotting the Serving your Hunger tome and immediately thinking of his progenitor Francis makes a note to read the book as soon as Adrianna is done with it. I was able to talk the townspeople down once but there was no telling how my luck would fare again. Francis thinks. Instead of picking up a book right away Francis goes over to speak to Azzo. "If what you said about sucking souls has any grounding in reality rather than as a joke, I would like to hear more about your experience with Necromancy. It will at least give us something to talk about over the coming month." His voice goes low as he continues so that the others do not overhear. "If you would not mind accompanying me, I think it prudent that we continue where the professor left off in his investigation of this prison he mentions. If you are as skilled with necromancy as you claim then the two of us should have no problem fending off what lurks in there. Think about it then tell me what you decide."

After their brief chat he turns to Adrianna. "Excuse me, when you're done with that book, may I read it?" Francis asks with a small close-lipped smile on his face to hide his notably longer than average canines. While he waits Francis finally does pick up a book and starts reading Manual of the Order of the Palantine Eye.

[The Gentlemen]

Adrianna opened the book, yet what met her eyes had nothing to do with food. Instead, it was a description of the various rituals and the like related the the unholy goddess Urgathoa, goddess of physical excess, disease, and the undead. Lorrimor's notes cover pages, and on the first page he has placed a description of the church of Urgathoa:

"Urgathoa's priests are primarily composed of clerics and necromancers. They have few responsibilities to uphold, other than helping those who desire undeath, and protection of their own. Understandably, they often are secretive of their religious inclining in public. The priests have been known to compel their enemies to eat their own fallen comrades.[4] The ceremonial clothes of Urgathoa's worshipers are a loose, floor-length, gray tunic, with a white or gray cape. The lower half of the tunic is usually shredded. Most ceremonies involve consuming great amounts of food and drink"

A few more pages in, she finds a description of how to create an Necrotic Talisman, along with a note on what such an item is.

"A necrotic talisman is a holy symbol that can be worn by intelligent undead. When this happens, clerics find it harder to channel or turn these undead. The talismans are made by clerics of Urgathoa, imbuing unholy talismans with negative energy during their desecration."

Further in, the text becomes unreadable, changing to a language Adrianna does not know.

[The Gentlemen]

Francis tries to open the book, yet finds himself unable to. the book has a lock on the front, and a key is nowhere to be found.

[Anubis Dread]

"Go nuts," Adrianna sighs, literally tossing the book at Francis as she picks up On Verified Madness in the hopes of there being something USEFUL in there. "Nothing useful in there if you're not a vampire or something. Most of it is just gibberish."

Adrianna decides to just not say anything about heading off to the... the... wait a minute. "This prison is supposed to be abandoned right?" she asked as she flipped through the book. "As in we can just take it if we clear it out?" A prison wasn't exactly the ideal manor, but a free house was a free house.

[onashu]

"Necromancy?!? B-b-but..." Azzo sputters, he stops himself, and regains his composure, "I assure you, the statement was a joke, I do not know why nobody understands my humor. My studies into necromancy have been purely academic, nothing more." He lowers his voice to match Francis', "All the same, I would most certainly like to accompany you to continue what the professor started. He was a very intelligent man, and whatever he had on his mind is worth investigating. I would dare say the false crypt would be the best place to start"

He glides over to the trunk and pulls out The Umbral Leaves, "In the meantime, I do believe..." he trails off, already completely distracted by the contents of the tome.

[The Gentlemen]

Adrianna finds, once again, that the book she reads is not in her interest. It instead appears to be a treatise on aberrations and other
entities found on Golarion that possess remote ties to the Dark Tapestry, the name given to the dark places between the stars in the night sky.

Azzo grabs the book to find the binding and pages like leather. The words are a brownish red, and on the front of the cover is an inscription of a skull with spiked chains coming out of the eyes, and the name Zon-Kuthon below it. The book is a translation of the Unholy book of the midnight prince, god of Envy, Pain, Darkness, and Loss. the first page appears to be a history, written entriely by the professor hand.


"At the beginning of time, Zon-Kuthon was known as Dou-Bral, a good deity who shared the portfolio of beauty, love and the arts with his half-sister Shelyn. Dou-Bral abandoned Golarion for the dark places between the planes, though, and was tormented there and possessed by an alien being. Upon returning to reality, Dou-Bral as he had been known was gone, replaced with the twisted, malevolent soul known as Zon-Kuthon.

When Shelyn saw that her brother was forever changed, and not for the better, the two battled, her pleas and tears met with a violence foreign to the Dou-Bral she knew and loved. Shelyn finally wrested the golden glaive the two had shared a symbol of their power from her twisted brother's fingers, establishing an tenuous truce, held in place more by silence and avoidance than any desire to actually coexist.[2]

Seeing the crimes Zon-Kuthon committed in Golarion, Abadar knew that he must be punished, and made a bargain with the evil god. Zon-Kuthon agreed to go into exile on the Plane of Shadow for as long as the sun hung in the sky in exchange for an item from the First Vault. This imprisonment was not meant to be over as soon as it was, though, and when the sun stopped shining upon Golarion during the Age of Darkness, Abadar honored his deal, giving Zon-Kuthon the first shadow, which The Midnight Lord has used to craft evil creatures from his realm of Xovaikain."

[Anubis Dread]

"...seriously?" Adrianna scowled. "No forbidden magic? No unholy rituals to gain power? Not even some katas? Why are these books even forbidden?" she sighed as she dumped her book back into the chest. Honestly, what a let down.

[TheMiningDwarf]

Francis scowls as he finds the book locked. After searching the chest for a key he takes up Serving you Hunger and starts to read through it. His attention immediately sucked in by it's contents. These Urgathoa priests sound like my father's sort of priests. The unholy talisman catches his eye and he makes a mental note to remove any necklaces from any undead he comes across in the future. He keeps reading onward trying to decrypt the gibberish that Adrianna had metioned.