How to handle madness?

General Summary

After they stayed for a while at the cellar level, listening to the enchanting, they recognized that they felt a little weary. Thus they decided to get back to the attic and to recover. Yeast healed the injuries of the group which lifted the mood of all of them. Given the somehow depressing atmosphere within the house.   Refreshed the group went down to the cellar again and started to check the area. Yeast was giving some light because otherwise it would have been very dark and Eva, as the only group member not able to see at darkness, would not be able to walk around. Very soon after arriving in the cellar they found to small chambers and in each of them were some open caskets. The chambers were supposed to be closed by a stone slab but each one was opened. At one there was a name edged into, saying "Walter Durst" and the other one had no name edged into.   They were able to remember that Walter must be name of the Durst's Baby they've seen at the picture up there. Not able to make out something from that find they moved further and found four more chambers with caskets inside. But this time the stone slabs and caskets were still closed. Each slab showed a name. Elizabeth Durst, Gustav Durst, Rosvalda Durst and Thornboldt Durst. Finally they found the place where the family was supposed to have their final rest. Not wanting to disturb that rest anyfurther the group moved on.   At some point the group got seperated. Yeast, Hugur and Eva went to the west part and Thaurudriel with Szeua went eastwards. Suddenly the sekeleton of the Nursemaid, controlled by Yeast, got attacked by a grick. Some snake like creature with tentacles and a peak. It hit the sekeleton which just crumbled down. But Hugur was quick with his axe and sliced the creature with one mighty swing. After the first surprise went off, Eva recognized they got seperated and convinced Yeast and Hugur to get back and try to join with the other two. Which speaking of, Thaurudriel and Szeua meanwhile got to some bigger room. In the middle of the room there was a well with a rope and pulley machanism. And around the well there were five beds and at each bed there was a wooden chest. As almost everything down here the stuff was moldy.   While Thaurudriel and Szeua were checking the room and the other three trying to get back to them, they could hear each other but thinking some enemy might approach. This built some tension until they got together and found out that they were just hearing each other. They opened the lock of each chest, subtely and less subtely. And found a few things. A silver longsword which burned Eva's hand by touching it and thus making her to let Szuea take it. An eye patch and an ivory hair brush which seems to caught the attention of Hugur. And a black coat with a hood.   Meanwhile the group were looting the chests Thaurudriel went away from the group. She was behaving very strange since the encounter with the kid's ghost. And she were getting even more strange, recently. So while she went along the corridors wanting to get even further down, she felt in hidden pit full of spikes. She tried to get out by herself but she was too hurt to succeed. Luckily at some point the group recognized that she is missing and they were able to find. Szuea got his rope and let it down to Thaurudriel, so she could get rescued.   Again, reunited the group moved on downstairs and they could hear the enchanting getting louder. And for Eva it was even possible to discern the words of the chanting. "She is the ancient. She is the land". This was sung, over and over again. Without any break. But it did not scare the adventurers away. On the contrary. Even more motivated to finally find out what this was all about, they went down and after a while they found themselves in a lightened up room. With many very strange things in it. A severed finger, a severed direwolf head, the head of another strange creature, a dagger made out of a bone which found a new owner with Yeast, and some other weird things. Amongst that stuff there was an orb lying around and when Szuea saw that thing he freaked out. Shouting out loud as to alarm the group that this is a Beholder's eye. And to save everyone he drew his bow and shot an arrow to kill the thing. Which he did.   At the other side of the room they saw an iron portcullis blocking their way into a chamber which floor was covered with 2 feet high water. And in the chamber they were able to see a kind of altar. Obviously this must have been a chamber for making rituals. And when the group approached the portcullis the enchanting suddenly died. So, the adventurers tried to find a way into the ritual chamber. First they tried to use a rope with the handle on the other side of the iron barred gate. The plan was like this. Szuea lassoed the handle, Eva will pull the rope to help Hugur lift the gate as high so that Szuea could slide below into the chamber and open using the handle, finally. Everything went well until Eva pulled so hard that with a loud crack the handle broke and dangled down, useless. Next try was to bend the iron bars with a rope and a stake, which was successful, partially. The bars bent, but not enough to made them passable. Luckily, Professor Hugur had the idea to investigate the prison cells, they had discovered just before the portcullis. There he found a hidden door which allowed him to enter the chamber and open the gate.   Time to enter the room used for ritual for all group members. After a short time Eva thought to give the alter a close look and of course something bad happened.   At the ledges within the chamber apparitions appeared, somehow looking like they are not physical but clearly to be seen. And the chanting started again. This time with different words. "One must die! One most die!". And as the chanting started from the alcove on the west side part of the chamber a creature appeared and moved toward the group. It looked like a someone smashed together a huge amount of meat and that pile of meat was always changed the shape and things like arms were sticking out and disappearing again.   Everyone in the group knew that this is not the time for negotiation but for fighting for their lifes. And so they got into attacking the creature which could have been identfied as a Flesh mound. Giving to it s nature it starts to engulf it's prey. And the prey it has chosen was Hugur. Grappled by the creature he need all his strength to become free from it's grasp. Everyone started to attack the mound with magic and physical hits. The fight was fierce but luckily it did not last too long. And not too much damage was done. During the fight Eva and later on the rest of the group discovered that within this creature they could hear the cries of and partly see a human baby. And after the mound was slain it's flesh rot away and left back the naked body of a baby. A living baby. Most probably the Durst's last born.   And suddenly the chanting started again. "One must die! One must die!". Everyone was looking to each other and suddenly it seemed that some group member were considering to sacrifice the Baby. Yeast took out his newly found dagger of bones and moved toward the altar were the baby was lying. But before anything could have happened, Thaurudriel did what she came for. She saved the little one by getting the baby, holding it close to her and starting to run out of the portcullis. Before she were able to leave the iron gate changed to slashing scythe-blaed which fell down on Thaurudriel and missed her. But only the portcullis had changed. The hidden door from the prison cells changed in the same way. And the chains, previously dangling down from the chamber's ceiling began to move. Similar to snakes. But it was not only that they were moving, they were also attacking the adventurers.   The apparitions continued their chanting, even after Yeast yelled at them "Everyone must die!". Now it was obvious for the group, that they had to sacrifice one of them to stop that madness and to able to leave this nightmare. One of them ... or the Baby.   While they were thinking about the implication everyone by her- or himself, Thaurudriel slowly unsheated a dagger and tried to slam the blade in the face of the Baby she was still craddling. But Hugur was faster and he took the baby away protecting it with the help of Eva. Because both were not willing to sacrifice such an innocent life. Something happened were the writer do not have exact memory about but it ended with the dead of the Baby. And when the life of the child ended, all the strange things with the house ended, too.   The doors were just doors again. The chains were just dangling from the ceiling. And there was a silence within the whole house which was not there before. Everything was peaceful and quiet. When Hugur, Szuea and Eva wanted to talk to Thaurudriel about what happened to her. Why she changed from protecting the children to sacrifice a baby. Thaurudriel just turned and walked away. Even when she was faced by Eva with the ultimatum to either speak up or leave the group, Thaurudriel choosed to keep silent about and left. Not alone, but Yeast accompanying her.   They got to the ground floor, finally. And Thaurudriel exited the house making Szeua that angry that he decided to shoot her in the back. Not succeding to stop Thaurudriel because Eva tried to interfere by jumping into Szeua. But they could not Thaurudriel and Yeast just let go. Thus they followed them and when they stepped out of the house they saw a black carriage already waiting. The door of the carriage opened and a very well dressed, aristocratic looking beauty with red hair encircling a pale face stepped out of it.   "Welcome to Morlea. What do you think about my domain?"