WFRP Update 24
Another night and another round of ales. The wee man had better have a good story tonight, for my coins are running low.
He entered in grand fashion, as usual and had smiles and laughs for all around. After the usual ale of greeting, he settled down with his second and we started discussing his tales. As I reminded him of what he had last told me, he grew more and more sullen.
"Wittgendorf!! What a foul and cursed place!! We had barely had time to moor at the docks when a crowd of the foul and pathetic creatures that inhabited that cursed town were pressed up against the railing, begging for food and coins. We had figured that if we could keep them happy for a bit we could get some protection for the boat and look like we actually cared about them. So I had Magdelaine open up a sack of grain for them....that damn thing disappeared faster than an unwatched pie during Pie-fest! At least it kept the rabble away from the boat. Too bad Magdelaine hadn't had the sense to stay away from them as well. It was barely an hour later that she started scratching and twitching. Damn fleas get into everything!
"Everywhere I looked in the town I saw these pathetic beings being taken for all they were worth. Some charlatan had set himself up as a doctor and was giving out blue bottles filled with the most hideous booze that I had ever smelt! Magdelaine and Corobath both claimed that there was some other drug in it and by the way these fools were lazing about after drinking some, I was willing to believe them.
"Even the nobility, if they could be called that, were going out of their way to be cruel to the people. I couldn't tell what started it, but we looked up the hill aways and we saw the lady of the castle, surrounded by guards talking with the peasants. Something happened and one of the peasants had his arm hacked off and another one was taken away. Corobath and Elpham tried to save the poor fellow, but by the time we got there he had been mostly stripped naked and the only thing we could do was say a prayer.
He looked thoughtfully away for a moment and then continued.
"Some people will say that the gawds occasionally abandon the people, but I'm convinced that it is the people that abandon the gods. Think of them as a tool. As long as you keep it in proper shape, with sacrifices and chants and all that, they'll work for you. I'm sure that the people of the town had abandoned Sigmar long, long ago. And the temple that we found sure seemed to support that.
"We started looking through the temple and couldn't find any sign of habitation. It looked like everyone had just up and left...we couldn't even find the priest! Corobath found some bones that might have been him, but who knows for sure?
"However I do know that Sigmar had not abandoned the town. He was just waiting for someone who believed enough to come back to him. And it seems that he found that person. Corobath and myself were looking around the temple with the others when we hear this great voice asking if we is ready for the coming storm. I have a quick look around and see that no one else is acting like they had heard anything. So we answer that we are and the voice tells us to seek the meteor.
"Now, I can understand how Corobath was chosen, what with having such a connection to all them priesterly type of things, but why me? I mean besides my obvious superiority? Maybe Sigmar had just lost faith in all of you longshanks...no offence meant, and decided to go with someone closer to reality as it were. In any case, I find us a hidden key that gets us into a records room of the temple. Now Magdelaine is in her own world and would have probably happily spent the rest of her life in that dusty room. Strange woman.
"She did manage to get us some information. It seems that the brother of the baron Wittgen came back with a large lead box about a hundred years ago and that's about the time that things started to go wrong. The area used to be known for it's wines and great harvests and things just kept getting worse and worse every year. Strange births, bad harvests and all that. And two years before we get there, there is this strange storm over the castle, with lightning jumping from the castle to the clouds and it poured black rain for the next two days. Black rain!! Does that seem normal to you!? Anyway, we couldn't find anything that was newer than 6 months old, so we figure that is the time that the priest got about to disappearing.
"Now you have to understand, that this didn't all take place just like that. Corobath and Magdelaine spent a good many hours in that place. They took so long that Rudolpho and me went back to the boat to get us all some supper. Of course when we get back, Elpham is missing and we see some tracks leading into the mausoleum.
As he finished off the last of his ale, he looked at me with a glint in his eye.
"Did I forget to mention that they also found mention that one of the great heroes of Sigmar was buried beneath the temple as well. Complete with his enchanted blade and all that.
"But we seem to be out of ale. I'll have to tell you that tale tomorrow".
He entered in grand fashion, as usual and had smiles and laughs for all around. After the usual ale of greeting, he settled down with his second and we started discussing his tales. As I reminded him of what he had last told me, he grew more and more sullen.
"Wittgendorf!! What a foul and cursed place!! We had barely had time to moor at the docks when a crowd of the foul and pathetic creatures that inhabited that cursed town were pressed up against the railing, begging for food and coins. We had figured that if we could keep them happy for a bit we could get some protection for the boat and look like we actually cared about them. So I had Magdelaine open up a sack of grain for them....that damn thing disappeared faster than an unwatched pie during Pie-fest! At least it kept the rabble away from the boat. Too bad Magdelaine hadn't had the sense to stay away from them as well. It was barely an hour later that she started scratching and twitching. Damn fleas get into everything!
"Everywhere I looked in the town I saw these pathetic beings being taken for all they were worth. Some charlatan had set himself up as a doctor and was giving out blue bottles filled with the most hideous booze that I had ever smelt! Magdelaine and Corobath both claimed that there was some other drug in it and by the way these fools were lazing about after drinking some, I was willing to believe them.
"Even the nobility, if they could be called that, were going out of their way to be cruel to the people. I couldn't tell what started it, but we looked up the hill aways and we saw the lady of the castle, surrounded by guards talking with the peasants. Something happened and one of the peasants had his arm hacked off and another one was taken away. Corobath and Elpham tried to save the poor fellow, but by the time we got there he had been mostly stripped naked and the only thing we could do was say a prayer.
He looked thoughtfully away for a moment and then continued.
"Some people will say that the gawds occasionally abandon the people, but I'm convinced that it is the people that abandon the gods. Think of them as a tool. As long as you keep it in proper shape, with sacrifices and chants and all that, they'll work for you. I'm sure that the people of the town had abandoned Sigmar long, long ago. And the temple that we found sure seemed to support that.
"We started looking through the temple and couldn't find any sign of habitation. It looked like everyone had just up and left...we couldn't even find the priest! Corobath found some bones that might have been him, but who knows for sure?
"However I do know that Sigmar had not abandoned the town. He was just waiting for someone who believed enough to come back to him. And it seems that he found that person. Corobath and myself were looking around the temple with the others when we hear this great voice asking if we is ready for the coming storm. I have a quick look around and see that no one else is acting like they had heard anything. So we answer that we are and the voice tells us to seek the meteor.
"Now, I can understand how Corobath was chosen, what with having such a connection to all them priesterly type of things, but why me? I mean besides my obvious superiority? Maybe Sigmar had just lost faith in all of you longshanks...no offence meant, and decided to go with someone closer to reality as it were. In any case, I find us a hidden key that gets us into a records room of the temple. Now Magdelaine is in her own world and would have probably happily spent the rest of her life in that dusty room. Strange woman.
"She did manage to get us some information. It seems that the brother of the baron Wittgen came back with a large lead box about a hundred years ago and that's about the time that things started to go wrong. The area used to be known for it's wines and great harvests and things just kept getting worse and worse every year. Strange births, bad harvests and all that. And two years before we get there, there is this strange storm over the castle, with lightning jumping from the castle to the clouds and it poured black rain for the next two days. Black rain!! Does that seem normal to you!? Anyway, we couldn't find anything that was newer than 6 months old, so we figure that is the time that the priest got about to disappearing.
"Now you have to understand, that this didn't all take place just like that. Corobath and Magdelaine spent a good many hours in that place. They took so long that Rudolpho and me went back to the boat to get us all some supper. Of course when we get back, Elpham is missing and we see some tracks leading into the mausoleum.
As he finished off the last of his ale, he looked at me with a glint in his eye.
"Did I forget to mention that they also found mention that one of the great heroes of Sigmar was buried beneath the temple as well. Complete with his enchanted blade and all that.
"But we seem to be out of ale. I'll have to tell you that tale tomorrow".
posted by groodude at 7:21 p.m.
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