Aftermath

Smoldering ruins. Burned flesh and bone. Smell of blood and iron. The population of Norden is severely decimated. People are either dead, wounded or scattered to the countryside. Priests arrive steadily, healing the wounded, helping with burials and restoration of the cemetery.

We however have no time for such things. Loose ends must be tied up. Remaining Death Jesters and Gregor Steiner must be apprehended and burned. Johanna and I see things with the same clarity here. Cleansing through fire.

Cleanse the world of certain people and avoid further chaos and bloodshed. Maybe the witch hunters are on to something and I think I can help.

Death Jesters are outlawed. Steiner supposedly sailed for Salzenmund not 2 days ago. We get a handsome reward and this compensates somewhat for what we lost in coin during our capture. Spirits run high.  

Piet however decides to remain in Norden and will be given a role in the second fleet. Good man lost. The Elf is gone too. No one knows precisely why he left but his reasons must have been good. He will be missed. 

We travel to Salzenmund by boat. The trip is uneventful. Waters are still. Some equilibrium in our lives has been restored. My comrades and sweet Sunniva seem to be building momentum now to take on whatever foul thing awaits in Salzenmund. But all I sense is the roaring fires of chaos that await. It draws me. This is far from over.

Leads

Once in Salzenmund we quickly set about to locate Gregor and start our pursuit of what Marlene Buchberger was up to here. What was the purpose of the skeletal spectacle in Norden?

If that colossal skeletal beast was a mere diversion, what then is the main event? I dread to think on it further. Why is this chalice so important? Why do they want it removed? Does it serve some other purpose? Remembering the escaped vampire Hierkeit sends shivers down my spine. What is her role in all of this?

Could it perhaps all be connected to this legendary magical library? I long to immerse myself in research and investigative work to find clues and leads to its whereabouts. This should now be our main purpose.

Johanna reaches out to the witch hunters' guild and leaves a detailed report. Morr priests say that chalice is safe. 

Back together at the inn we decide that we need a base of sorts. Sweet Sunniva puts out some feelers so we can find a decent house. She also puts out feelers for both Buchbergers and Gregor.

Johanna sends a message to the Morr priests. We need to know what is going on over there and to learn more about the chalice and the missing vampire.

The falsehood of priests

Father Teidegger welcomes us. We tell him all we know (well, almost everything...) up until now. We confront him regarding the vampire and he reveals the truth. Disloyal guards facilitated her escape. He takes us deep underground and we get to see the chalice.

Chalice was donated by the elves in 1681 after Lichlord Hellsnicht almost seized control over the whole city. Salzenmund has always been a magnet to undead. No one really knows why.   

We learn that the chalice is an immensely powerful divination vessel. It can both attract and weaken undead.  Lady Hierkeit was unaffected back in the day except when in close proximity.

One theory that comes up is that the chalice is somewhat linked to the lost library. Interesting! Is it a key to the location or is it covering the location? Maybe the library is not in this world and therefore very difficult to find unless you know the exact location of a magical door/entrypoint.

There might also be a Pallidus connection since the ritual from the tablets weakened the chalice and enabled the formation of a magical gateway into the crypts under the Morr temple. Fortunately they were only able to free the vampire.

We learn the Lichlord Dieter Hellsnict had a hidden fortress somewhere in the forest of shadows. Maybe this is where the vampire was headed?

 As we exchange stories and learn more about the chalice we become more and more uncertain as to what Charlotte really was. Was she a lamia vampire or maybe some other undead being? Our knowledge of these things is unfortunately limited.

I yearn to know more. I will find a way to study this further. Knowing your enemy, their strengths and their weaknesses is key. We send a letter with the help of father Teidegger to talk master Astromancer headmaster Stieglitz.

A new friend (?) and the doomed Gregor Steiner

Johanna learns of an Ulrican warrior-priest "on loan" from Middenheim to the witch hunters. We seek him out. Wilhelm Wasser is an enormous man. Warrior priest. Somewhat brutish but he has a good heart. We spend an evening together swapping stories and he seems like he naturally belongs and we need friends. Especially the martial kind. 

Sunniva lands a house. It is a nice two story townhouse that comes with a live in man servant (Hans). We rent it for a year and get a cook as well. 

Word on the whereabouts of Gregor and Buchberger family has come. We spend a full day following Gregor and scoping the locations of the Buchbergers.

Gregor is disguised and seems to be in some sort of trouble. Furthermore he looks really sick. No sign of Marlene. Only a man called Helmut Buchberger, a rich merchant, running an import/export business. 

Gregor meets up with the leader of the Jesters (Maximillian) in a tavern. He owes him money. He tries but is unable to get any money from the Buchbergers.

Sweet Sunniva and I lock ourselves into Gregors room. Opening the lock is easy. Flames and smoke flick the lock open and the faint scent of sulphur fills the air for a second or two. The room is tidy but he is clearly otherwise hopelessly lost in chaos. 

A symbol of Tzeentch and strange feathers are found. We also find one of those weird potions that we were offered in Norden by Charlotte. Potion of everlasting life? I switch them around. Filling his vial with regular squid ink. No transformation here unless authorized by us. 

We wait for Gregor and approach him. After some charm and coercion, he spills his story which we believe to be the truth. He is sick. Dying in fact. But he has the potion that will save him. He owes 5000 GC to death jesters for hiring them in Norden. Buchberger Marlene is nowhere to be found. She was supposed to give him this money. Buchberger Helmut does not acknowledge her. Does Marlene Buchberger really exist?

While we talk two assassins try to get into Gregors quarters at the inn. Wilhelm and Torgil scares them off. Jesters?

Supposedly, Gregor was merely a middleman handling the deal for Marlene with the Jesters. Their job was to control cemetery and poor quarters in Norden and to wreak havoc and do dirty work. Price 10000GC. Half before and half after. They now want to get the last half.  5000gc. Things however have gone south as we know and they want to go south as well. With their money though.

 If you drink the potion upon the day of your death you become immortal or some sort of undead. But not a vampire.

From what we can tell from Gregors story you seem to become more susceptible and obedient to a master of sorts. You are also, as we well know, affected by the symbol if Morr, or silver, or both.

Gregor tells us that Marlene is old. Very old. Old and powerful. She can take different forms. Magical transformations and not mere disguise. Interesting! She must have the winds in her.  

Three forms we know:

Old woman                                    (Marlene Buchberger)

Powerful noble of 30ish years   (no name known)

Gypsywoman of middle age       (no name known)

He knows of no other connections. We offer him no salvation other than purging by fire. Johanna arrests him. He is full of mutant chaos feathers. He is taken to the witch hunters' guild where he is shackled to a pyre. On Johanna's command I light him on fire. Cleansed. He burns well.

Aftermath to the aftermath

We try to make a plan to capture Maximillian but he is gone. Fled south no doubt. About 200 Death jesters remain on the loose. They can be anywhere. It is a powerful nemesis to have.

We reach out to more of Sunnivas contacts to find Marlene and Maximillian if they are still in the city.

We have set a meeting with the Astromancers.

We learn that all the Buchberger estates have been sold. By bribing one of the guards, at the real estate brokering law firm Kessler, we break in and find out that all the properties were sold to a Angela Kringel for a fraction of their estimated price.

Who is this woman? Could it be one of Marlene’s aliases?