Day 54: The Trial of the Forest Fane
General Summary
Day 54 (Волчаялуна 2, 736/?)
Again, before their rest is complete, Godfrey alerts Ri-An and Ayduin to an unwelcome update: his awareness that Strahd has gone from being where he usually is, in the approximate area of Castle Ravenloft, instantaneously to a few hours southwest of them — approximately where the tower and bridge are. After some discussion, they agree to leave just before dawn, once Bodaway has finished his rest. Sylvain and Osrin will face exhaustion, but it will give them a significant headstart on Strahd's pace, and their pet blonds can use Krezk's holy water to recover their energy if need be. The first hours of the journey are tense, taken under cover of Ayduin's stealth magic once again, with the added protection of the amulet's anti-scrying measures once Godfrey informs them Strahd has reached the approximate area they had camped in. As they get closer to the windmill, they opt for speed over caution, setting a demanding pace up the incline towards the shrine. Despite this, they reach the area relatively unscathed. What follows is a series of heartfelt offerings that seem to do absolutely nothing, until Sylvain hits on the key: offering to give up the amulet immediately to the Seeker's care. Before making the offering, however, Godfrey suggests they might want to read the final chapter of the Tome of Strahd, which they do. They do a fine job of resisting the urge to roll their eyes at what a mopey bastard he is in the final chapter. All your problems were created by you, Strahd. Do better. The Tome of Strahd complete, they return to the shrine to make the offering, and find themselves offered with a choice: Ayduin, Bodaway, Osrin, Ri-An, or Sylvain. Sylvain offers himself and, with the others agreeing, the group finds itself faced with not one Sylvain, not two, but a total of 14 at once. Osrin is knocked down almost immediately, and killed not long after that. Grghshnq, Bodaway, and Sylvain all suffer grievous wounds, with the last two being knocked unconscious, but Ri-An is able to subdue the most powerful shade of Sylvain, and as Godfrey hurries to revivify Osrin, the party comes face to face with the true form of the Seeker, a tall, angular, female humanoid figure with a long mane of raven's feathers, black leathery skin, and solid black eyes. The figure takes the amulet and vanishes, leaving the group to limp into the woods to bind their wounds as best they can and discuss what to do next. Though the problem of Ismark is discussed at length, he is ultimately deemed a later problem, the party agreeing to press on in the direction of Yester Hill as soon as they're able to. Godfrey suggests it may be prudent for the party to take their rest early — very early, afternoon only transitioning into evening at this point — in the hopes of getting another headstart on Strahd if he gets it in his mind to ambush the group. They take his advice, everyone but Sylvain bedding down early, leaving Sylvain vulnerable to Godfrey's devious plot of affirming him and praising his bravery in volunteering to face himself in the trial. Osrin, tragically unaware of the faces Sylvain is making while receiving compliments, faces her own trial, passing through strange dreams in which she is first guided by her old mentor Gritsk, then faced with a choice between darkness and uncertainty or familiar warmth and guilt, watched by the many eyes of a monstrous, winged figure. After initially gravitating back to the warmth and safety of old guilt trips, she presses on instead into the unknown, feeling herself assailed by a thousand voices and some of the worst pain she's ever known, cradled throughout by the spectral arms of another former mentor, Luvridin. When the dream ends, she finds herself reborn, her wings pearlescent white where they were once patchy and dark. Meanwhile, having finally begun his own rest, Sylvain finds himself in considerably less rewarding dreams: a nightmare of Bren, innocuous at first until it is interrupted by Escher, who delivers a message: "He doesn’t need to fight you to kill you."
Report Date
03 Aug 2023
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