Sins Of The Fathers

Before they have a chance to ask more questions of the Death Priest, Winnacer returns with the villagers following him. The villagers stop as they see the bound priests before them, and the injuries that have been caused to Baltzarek. They start to talk amongst themselves.

Will speaks again when he sees the reaction of the people to Baltzarek's predicament:

"People of Dobroushka, while you journeyed to the Tower to seek the truth, these priests who knew the truth already, saw an end to their farce. They loaded this cart with the treasure chests you see here and were making to steal this town's goods before you returned. We attempted to stop them without shedding blood, but Baltzarek resisted and necessitated the use of force on him. We have tended to his wounds and bound them for your return."

He then turns to Winnacer, awaiting the long speech that is sure to flow from the young lord's lips.

Winnacer heeds Will's strong words and notes the capture of the Death Priests. He again turns to the villagers, as his tenor voice quickly rises above the mumbling of the villagers until all eyes are upon him and all voices have been silenced.

"People of Dobroushka, I have shown you all that the horrors that were once within the Tower have been eliminated. It is the horrors of what has taken place within this village that now has to be dealt with, not by my hand or by the hands of my colleagues, but by the judgement of your village's wisest members."

"While I find the practices of Smurt offensive to me personally, it is not I who have been wronged by them. It is my desire only to preside over the application of Justice and to facilitate the actions that you must now take as a united village. I cannot deny that the stench of Undeath lay heavily with the Tower, but I also can provide evidence that the Priests of Smurt did little to truly protect you from those aforementioned horrors. It is for each of you to decide where the guilt lies and how the guilt debt is to be paid."

"We will remain here long enough to hold a trial for these men of deception. If you wish I shall preside as judge, or you may elect one of your own to fill that role. All the evidence of what has truly transpired shall be presented in an open and organized forum. I would recommend that twelve of the most distinguished and wisest citizens act as a jury, representative of the true wishes of Dobroushka. They will decide the ultimate fate of the Priesthood, a decision that we will abide by. It is Spravedelna's will that you are to have the opportunity for True Justice, and we will try not to interfere with your final wishes."

"What I recommend is that a number of you search the Temple for evidence of what has transpired over the centuries, for the fullest Truth can be known. If you wish, we can assist you. All that is found shall be yours to keep and divide amongst yourselves, as it is the money that your ancestors sweat and bled. The monies of the Temple of Smurt shall be turned over to you, as will as portion of the treasures we have recovered from the Tower. Hopefully these monies will be used to revitalize your town and perhaps take up the cause of a United Bohavia, but again, those choices must be made by you collectively. All we ask for in return is that cart (Winnacer points) for we are in need of one."

"So what say you all? Are you willing to take the time and the commitment to pursue a course of True Justice? If this is what you desire, then let us start now before the sun sets."

Faewen'il watched from the blessed protection of the invisibility spell she had cast upon herself so as to be close to Winnacer should things get ugly. None could see the cool stare of her eyes as she concentrated upon the various clergy members while holding close to the amulet. A tiny rivulet of fear washed through her as she thought of the magic coursing through her veins and the need to cast it forth.

The small redhead fidgeted a bit as she also thought of the tomes she had to read and what might be contained within them... so much power.... hers for the using.... perhaps soon she would make the pilgrimage back to her old home and exhume the tomes of Luud to add to her growing arsenal...

With a quick shake of her head, Faewen'il banished the thoughts of idle power away and concentrated once more upon the thoughts of the clergy. The thought of their vileness left her feeling unclean and almost wishing to use her magecraft to eradicate their wrongness from the world.

The villagers talk amongst themselves after hearing Winnacer's words, trying to make a decision as to what they should do next. Eventually the painfully thin man in his thirties, Karel Erben, comes forwards to speak:

"We think that a fair trial is the only way that we can determine what should be the fate of Baltzarek, as the decision as to his guilt or innocence is not a simple one to make. As he has been our leader, we have no experience of trials, as Baltzarek made all of the decisions for Dobroushka. We would therefore like to ask you to oversee the trial and tell us what to do and what decisions we should make. I believe that the twelve who you ask for should come from all sections of the village. I will help you choose them, with your blessing."

Winnacer nods and Karel starts to go through the villagers and selects several of them. His gaze falls upon the four acolytes that are amongst the villagers. He looks particularly at Lukash, the acolyte that spied upon you and was charmed by Yaz:

"What of the acolytes?" Karel asks Winnacer. "While they have worked with Baltzarek, Lukash was the first to open his mind to what you had to say?"

Winnacer agrees that Lukash the acolyte should be one of the twelve jury members.

With that decision having been made, Jihan speaks with Winnacer:

"Before we start the trial, I think that we should get some background from the villagers in order that we know more about what has gone on here."

Winnacer agrees, and so Jihan takes Karel and Lukash aside and asks them more about Baltzarek's background:

"Did Baltzarek always live here?" the elf asks.

Karel nods in response:

"Yes, the elders in the village told me that he was born here. The rumor is that he was the illegitimate child of the former High Priest and one of the village women. He joined the church as an acolyte when he became 18 and was then appointed as the new High Priest upon the death of his predecessor some 15 years ago."

"Did he always remain in the village?" Jihan continues.

"He has certainly never been away from the village for any length of time to my knowledge" answers Karel. "It is possible that he left the village for short periods during the hours of darkness. We were always told that the abominations stalked the village by night and so we were all told to go to our houses during the hours of darkness and to close our shutters tight."

"Where did these coins come from?" the elf says, showing a handful of coins to the villagers.

Karel looks at them for a while and then shakes his head.

"I've never seen them before. There are no coins in Dobroushka as there is no need for them. Baltzarek looks after everything. He keeps a large storehouse where all of the goods produced by the village are stored. He then distributes them to those that need them."

"Has anyone else visited the village recently, or ever?" Jihan continues.

"Not to my knowledge" says Karel shaking his head. "There are no paths or trails to Dobroushka and so it is not somewhere that people would stumble upon accidentally. I presume that the Tower is infamous and that most people would stay away from it. I have never seen any outsiders in Dobroushka. That's why your appearance caused such a stir."

"Has anyone ever followed Baltzarek up to the Tower when he was carrying out his sacrifices?" the elf asks to Lukash the acolyte, guessing that Karel would not know the answer.

"No" answers the acolyte. "Baltzarek always performs the rituals alone. He always leaves just before dusk, as he says that the sacrifice must be performed under the last rays of a dying sun. As a result, it is always dark when he comes back."

Jihan nods, considering the answers to his questions. Then the acolyte speaks to him:

"Perhaps you may discover more answers to the questions in the Temple. Baltzarek and the most senior acolytes live beneath it. The entrance to it is beneath the altar."

Jihan thanks both Karel and Lukash for their information and tells the others what he has learned.

"Before we start the trial we should investigate Baltzarek's quarters" states Winnacer. "We could very well find information there that will have a major influence on the villagers' decisions during the trial."

They all enter the Temple, taking the bound priests with them so that they can keep an eye on them. The villagers follow the party, interested to see what is inside.

As they enter the Temple, they see that it is very richly furnished and in a good state of repair. The Temple is very large for such a small village and there is seating for a congregation several times the size of Dobroushka's population. The Temple is very similar to the one inside Boscobelous' Tower, the most obvious example of which is the giant silver skull on a dais that forms the altar - an exact replica of the one in the Tower. They advance towards the altar and see that the altar has been swiveled to one side, revealing a stone staircase heading downwards, which is lit by flickering torches.

Cautiously, they decide to make Baltzarek lead so that there is no danger of their being surprised by any traps. Baltzarek doesn't seem to put up any resistance to this, nor, to their surprise, does he make too many complaints about their investigating his living quarters. He simply walks ahead in silence.

They walk down the stairs to see that it leads into a narrow corridor. Here they see that there two doors facing them and one to the side. They look in through the door that is ahead of them. It is the living quarters for one of the henchmen. To their surprise, they see that it is not that well furnished. The room is around 25' square and, while probably better than the average villager's accommodation, is far from luxurious, being very spartan inside. There is nothing in the room save for a bed and a wardrobe that contains more of the velvet robes and simple washing facilities. They look around the room to see if there is anything inside the wardrobe, but there appears to be nothing.

They try the room to their left and see that it is identical to the first. Finally, they try the last door. It leads to a slightly larger room, some 35' square, but is almost identical to the rooms of his senior acolytes in that it is very simply furnished. In addition to the bed and wardrobe, there is also a small altar featuring a miniature version of the silver skull upstairs.

As they look around the room, Baltzarek starts to speak to the party and the villagers:

"So you see, your theories that I have been profiting from the Curse are totally unfounded. I have suffered as much from the Curse as have the other villagers. That small chest of coins was, as I have said, the only wealth that is in my possession and, as I have said, I was only keeping it so as to try and hire a force to cleanse the Tower."

"Is this really such a crime? I don't think so. If you really wish to try me for doing nothing other than securing the village's safety during my time as High Priest, then go ahead. However, this should be the time for rejoicing at what the strangers have achieved, rather than trying to convict me simply because my beliefs are different from those of theirs."

As they look through the nearly empty rooms, they notice that Will's anger has stepped down a notch and he remains silent, but the righteous indignation in his eyes continues to smolder.

When out of earshot of the priest, Will addresses Jihan:

"I apologize for the heated exchange brother, it was not meant to be directed at you." He takes a deep breath in an attempt to keep his calm, "but little in this world angers my spirit as much as arrogant pride, hypocrisy and abuse of power."

Will is obviously unconvinced by Baltzarek's words, but holds his silence, viewing the priest through slitted eyelids in disdain. All of the priest's words ring of half truths and cover-ups to him. He has not forgotten the arrogance which the priest displayed before being bound, nor the immediate actions that he took nor the words that he spoke before he had time to conjure up a well contrived tale to cover his actions.

Winnacer's eyes have been searching the Temple for books and ledgers, any written evidence of Baltzarek's words. However, there appears to be nothing, a fact in itself that appears to be strange to him. He also pokes around for secret passages, recommending his colleagues do the same. Winnacer spends a short time upon the task, but realizes that the elf and half-elves in the party are much more adept than he at finding such concealed entrances. While Jihan, Will and Yaz are searching, Winnacer indicates that he would like to speak with Shaman Hrust. The bugbear casts a speech spell in response:

"Shaman Hrust" the young lord starts, "several days ago you cast a spell that allowed you to look into the mind of Bennett. Would it be possible for you to perform the same action upon Baltzarek to give us some sort of idea as to what type of person he is?"

"It would be possible for me to cast such" the bugbear replies, "but not today. I did not ask for Blesk to bless me with this spell this day. If you wish for me to perform this task, then you will have to wait until tomorrow."

Winnacer thinks for a while, knowing that he and the others are anxious to get on with their other tasks.

Will, Yaz and Jihan continue to search all of the walls in the area to check for secret doors. After half an hour, Will and Yaz both give up the search, sure that there are no secret exits, yet Jihan refuses to give up the search.

Winnacer decides that it is time to move things along and so starts to speak once more to the villagers:

"Spravedelna has not granted me the power to read a man's soul nor the ability to discern the truth from lies. It is quite possible that the intentional sin started by Vatzlav Baltzarek has been diffused down by the generations, the origins forgotten because of time and ritual. It is also possible that Baltzarek lies. This is the decision that the villagers must grapple with."

"What I wish to know, however, is what Baltzarek would do if given his freedom. The need for Smurt's protection or manipulation has been eliminated, so there is no reason why anyone must worship death. What would you do if declared innocent Baltzarek?"

The Death Priest is looking increasingly happy as the search for a secret door proves to be fruitless, thus proving his innocence:

"You are an honorable man, stranger, to give such a decision to me to make" Baltzarek replies. "Yet the decision should not be mine, but rather the villagers', as I serve them all. If the villagers still want me to be the leader of a new Dobroushka, free of the Curse, where sacrifices to appease the denizens of the Tower are no longer required to avoid the curse of the living death, and people are free to come and go to and from the village as they please, then I will carry on in this position. If they believe that I serve only as a reminder of the dark days during which this village has been cursed, then I shall leave here, never to return again. All I wish is that they are able to enjoy the freedom from fear that you have earned for them. I wish no more than that."

The villagers start chattering amongst themselves once more, considering the Death Priest in a better light. It is obvious that many of the people are still on his side, although some, such as Karel and Lukash are far from supportive to him.

"Very well" says Winnacer after seeing the villagers' reaction. "Tomorrow at noon we shall begin the trial here in this temple. I only ask the villagers to first help us remove the blemishes of death, such as the silver skull, so they may be reworked into your economy. Everybody has the right to speak their mind in the village, including the Priests. I shall preside as judge, and will serve only to moderate. Your twelve wisest shall serve as a jury. Let us scour the scent of death from this place."

The villagers are about to go about their tasks when they hear movement coming down the stairs to the cellars. Their hands hover over their weapons as they fear that the visitors may be friends of Baltzarek. With great relief, however, they see that it is none other than the familiar forms of Bennett and Xavier. As they go to greet them, they notice that Bennett is having trouble moving, dried blood being caked to the side of his chainmail. Xavier looks to be in better health, although his eyes look heavy, obviously through lack of sleep.

They are about to start speaking to them to find out the details of the hunt for Robert, when a sound catches their attention.

'CLICK'

They look round to see Jihan standing by a doorway which has appeared, as if from nowhere, from the stonework next to him:

"I knew that there had to be something here" says the elf.

As the hidden door swings open, the confident, almost smug, grin of Baltzarek's face disappears in an instant. Immediately, his face blanches to a deathly shade of white and he starts to shake with fear, as do his two sidekicks. His trembling becomes more exaggerated until his legs give way and he falls to the floor. He starts hyper-ventilating, gasping for air in order to fill his lungs. A pool of urine starts to form beneath him.

Will grabs him up by the collar and pushes him to the newly revealed doorway. The rest of them follow behind them. The door leads in to a narrow corridor that is dark. Winnacer grabs a flaming torch from the wall closest to him and holds it through the doorway. As the light pierces the gloom, three doors are revealed off the passageway.

They all walk forwards and Will opens the first door, with Baltzarek in front of him to ensure that he takes the brunt of any traps that he may have set. The door opens easily. As they look inside the room, they see that it is one of the most beautifully furnished rooms that they have ever seen. The OverLord Protektor himself would be jealous of the riches of the room. It is carpeted throughout with thick white sheepskin. The walls are covered with tapestries of scenes picked out with silver and gold thread. Between the tapestries are hanging works of fine art from some of the most renown artists from all of Bohavia and around. It is furnished throughout with finely turned furniture of the best mahogany. A large bed with sheets of the purest silk occupies the far end of the room. In the center of the room, there is a dining table with a huge throne covered in golf-leaf at the end of it. The table is laid out with the finest tableware and is heaving under the weight of delicacies. They see caviar, oysters, sea fish and other foodstuffs that they have only heard about, never having seen them before. A huge decanter filled with vintage brandy sits upon it in the center of the table. They walk inside and open up a wardrobe filled with the finest clothes that they have seen before. Many cloaks are there made from the finest velvet and trimmed with fur from the rarest of animals, each one worth a king's ransom in itself. They also see a desk with a number of ledgers and writing books situated within.

Baltzarek says not a word as they survey the contents of his own private little world. He is simply paralyzed with fear.

Silently, they all carry on to the next door. As they do so, the villagers follow and peer in to the room that you have just vacated. Their eyes grow wide and their jaws hang slack as they see the riches that the room contains.

They open up the door to the next room to see that it contains an even greater bounty. It is obviously a storeroom that is needed because Baltzarek's possessions are too many to be stored in just one room. They see a variety of items. There are several large chests, filled to the brim with coins, gilded statues and large works of art. A huge wine rack contains a huge variety of wines of the very best vintage. Such are the riches contained within that they cannot comprehend their value.

They leave the door open for the villagers to peruse as they advance to the next room, wondering as to what else it may contain.

As they open the door, the first thing that hits them is the terrible stench. They feel the urge to retch as the stench of urine, feces, vomit and rotting flesh hits them. As they shine the torch inside, they simply stop and gape in shock at the horrific sight that meets their eyes.

Inside the room are children.

There are eight of them in total, aged from three to seventeen, dressed in the filthiest rags. They recoil in fright as they see they door open, their hollow eyes looking like those of startled rabbits, though with a terrible emptiness within. They are all agonizingly thin, the outlines of their ribcages poking through the thin rags they are dressed in. Their skin is as white as moonlight, with none of them having felt the sun's rays on their backs since they were incarcerated here. They sit or lie upon the cold stone floor, wallowing in the filth of generations. In a corner, the party can see the badly decomposed corpse of a dead child, no more than seven years old. Mice and other vermin scurry between them as they look towards the party all in total helplessness.

Baltzarek collapses onto the floor as the party sees the full extent of his evilness and treachery, almost choking from the fear. His henchmen start gibbering for mercy.

The villagers crowd round behind them in order to see for themselves the reason for their shock. As they see the horrors for themselves, they too fall silent for a moment as they try and hunt for the emotions that can express the feelings that they have at the sight before them. Some start to vomit, others start wailing hysterically, others shouting, but most make not a sound, unable to make sense of the sick perversity of the situation, seemingly as shocked as the children in the room that stare back at them.

Winnacer's eyes grow dark, his face stormy, and his eyes go glassy. He walks over to the smallest of the children, a tear escaping his eye, and kneels in front of him. The emaciated and sexless child does little but cower in fear at Winnacer's approach. Winnacer goes down to his knee and lightly touches the child's face.

"The nightmare is over now, my love. Close your eyes again and you will awake in your mother's arms."

As Winnacer cradles the child in his arms, the child starts to cry out in terror, burying its filthy tear-stained face into the young lord's mail in an attempt to hide from the attention. The young lord then brings the frail form over to the anxious parents that have gathered around him. The villagers continue to stare at the children gaping back at them, seeing them for the first time since they had given them up for sacrifice when they were but a few weeks old. They do not immediately recognize which of the children belongs to whom and even the children's ages are hard to determine considering the fact that their growth has been seriously stunted due to malnutrition and so they all appear to be younger than they actually are. None of the children speak at all, continuing to simply stare at the strangers in wide-eyed fear. After staring at the children for a while, some family resemblances become clear to the villagers. In addition, the low population of the cursed village is such that it is possible to determine the parents of each of the children by their approximate ages.

A young couple in their late twenties shuffles forward in order to reclaim their long-lost child. Winnacer hands the mother the single child. With that, more of the parents come forward and enter the cellar of horrors in order to reclaim their children. They are all sobbing together as they come and take their children by the hand, picking up the younger ones and holding them to their bosoms, giving the children the first love that they have known during their short, sad lives. The children do not know how to react to this kindness, knowing only neglect and so they shudder in fear at their parent's touches.

With all but one of the children having been taken, Karel walks into the room and kneels before a young boy of five. As he looks into the youngster's face, Karel attempts to stifle his emotions, but fails as large tears begin to drip from his eyes, splashing on to the fetid ground beneath him.

He picks up the child and begins to hug him close towards him:

"If only your mother was still alive to see you once more, Honzik," he says softly, his voice hoarse and breaking through his emotion. "But it is not to be because of what that monster did to us all. She never knew that she would see you again, and without you, her own flesh and blood, her life was not worth living any more."

Winnacer watches the tearful reunions and then turns to the villagers that have gathered around.

"I think we have erased any need for a trial. Justice shall be served, and Spravedelna's will is swift and decisive. But now, tend to your children, for they are more important than tending to Baltzarek's fate. If you wish, we will mete Justice for you, after you take your children from this place. The horrors of Dobroushka have been many, and I wish not to inflict another onto the innocent eyes of your children."