Chapter 1: Prudence

[cybersavant]

Báleygr remains in the Saloon's kitchen, where Mirko is being tended by Doc Volokh and Zoe. From his vantage at the corner window, he can see the sheriff dead in the street, matters being handled at the sheriff's office, and the roaring blaze of the church, bits of the roof collapsing in a spray of sparks. Zoe whispers to the doctor about Hansel's offer to help them travel. "Where you going next?" asks Doc Volokh after watching the plain-faced man for a while.

Báleygr Gangleri still standing off, out of the way, asks, "Doctor, are you leaving town? I'm just passing through myself, but have no means at present to get further, besides walking out on foot; and i don't like the prospect of that."

[Marullus]

At the Saloon...
Doc Volokh looks conflicted, his eyes going from Mirko to Zoe to Báleygr and back again. Finally he exhales, looking defeated. "To be honest, I don't have means either. They don't have anyone else to keep folks in health here, but that can't be my problem forever..."
He pauses again, a glance at Zoe. "I consider it, but I'm just not a brave man. It has been a long time since I took such risks." He turns back to Mirko, checking his pulse and respiration with a mechanical resignation.

[Enoch]

Shadrach clears his throat at the mention of werewolves. "I suspect Sister Anja can shed some light on that, at least insofar as Hrask was involved.
I'm afraid the decay here goes a bit deeper as well.

"Speak, Sister." His tone indicates this is not a request.

[Marullus]

Gathering at Anica's Boarding House...

Emile watches and listens, letting the situation settle into his bones.

Hansel listens carefully and then leans forward.... Well... Sheriff Karlo, I figure this belongs to you now... I palmed his pistol as well, seemed better than leaving it in the street. I'd like to hold onto that, if I may. If I'm going to be an upstanding enforcer of the laws, it seems to me that more guns are better than fewer guns...

Karlo's face is visibly relieved at having the Sheriff's star returned. He agrees to let Hansel keep Sheriff Skender's revolver - a custom, large-caliber piece with its own ammo. Karlo reaches into his bag and puts 18 double-sized bullets on the table. "I'm glad you're honest. You can have these with it... that's a bandit gun if there ever was one, and I'd rather not have it, anyway. It kicks like a mule."

Counts as the Boosted mod, but without maintenance. Instead requires custom-load ammo at 2x cost.
Revolver: 1d8+2 damage, 6 shots, Range 30/100.
Inscribed on the side of the grip, the pistol says "Moonshine."

18 bullets + 6 in the chamber is 24 total.

he pulls out the picture and slides it towards him. By any chance, do you know who this lady may be. Judging by the wear, it's been a while and it was important to the late sheriff.

Karlo stares at the photo for a long moment. "He kept that pretty close to the vest... I guess literally. Never let me see it, and wouldn't say who it was."

On the side of the table, Anja stiffles her reaction, but is unable to hide it completely. Karlo stares at the church matron until she finally wipes her eyes and speaks. "That's... my sister, Sara. That was her 16th birthday, at the Windfall carnival. That's... a long time ago."

"Angel eyes," whispers Karlo as if it is a new discovery. "Skender's radio logs have a code name Angel Eyes." Staring at the prayer beads in her fidgeting fingers, Anja's face hardens.

Taavi is pleased to be in the company of calm, rational people. He's also pleased to see the judge back in form again. Serving as both a marshal and a defender/prosecutor would be pretty irregular. All kinds of conflicts of interest and legal ethics considerations involved. But we're not in the city with separate law enforcement and judicial departments, are we? I'll be happy to serve as a marshal, if it will help Sheriff Karlo restore order.

"I'd say you can't be a public defender until there's defendants," Lira comments to Taavi. "You best go and collect them for interviews. I'll gladly reinstate your former role once you return."

Sheriff, I was told that the Hrsaks are werewolves. What do you know of werewolves? The legends say they transform into wolves on full moon nights, and that they can only be killed by silver. Teo Hrsak did take several gunshot wounds and that would seem to have killed an ordinary person. It was a psychic... or magical?... power that finally killed him. Can you tell us what you know of werewolves in general? And about these Sons of Vukodlak?

Karlo looks confused a moment, then tries to explain Croatian folklore. "You speak of movies and vidcasts, not of truth. Vukodlak... it is a male witch, you might say. It means literally "wolf's hair" if translated -- because the Devil, he is a wolf. A man with wolf's hair has made a pact with him, the Devil. No one in this town would doubt that pacts with the devil are real."

"Mi o vuku, a vuk na vrata," says Lira in Croatian, "as I said before, 'We were talking about the wolf, and now it’s at the door’ is how they would say, 'Speak of the devil' here." Anja makes the sign of the cross, looking alarmed at her.

"We have plenty of wolf problems, wolves of hell as you saw earlier," continues Karlo with a nod to Emile and Shadrach to acknowledge their actions to scare them off. "A werewolf is said to be a wicked man come back to life, whispered to have made a bargain. Plenty of them within the Hrsak family - Teo, and his father. You saw the savagery of the Wolf within him in the saloon."

"Teo didn't die!" exclaims Anja forcefully, cutting off Karlo. "I saved him, I mean... almost twenty years ago... it wasn't the devil that brought him back. I did... I... nursed him..." she trails off, uncertain. Then she adds in a saddened tone, quiet to almost whisper. "Though, he wasn't always the same after that." She looks to Amalia, explaining "That's when I came to the church. I... devoted my life to prayer. For him. To save others." After a pause, the woman's steely demeanor broken, she adds, lamely, "He wasn't lost."

Hansel and Taavi both have agreed to be deputized marshalls and continue to Chapter 2.

[jemmus]

Taavi unconsciously rubs the bridge of his sore nose as he considers what Mirko said. He has a further question. This may sound foolish, but, these vukodlak... Can they be killed with ordinary weapons? Teo's physical wounds didn't seem to slow him down. Did he just have an exceptionally strong body, or was something else involved?

[greyarea]

So Teo is one of these wolf things, says Emile. And it remains to be seen if our weapons can harm him. Did he call the shadow wolves from before or is there another player? And what might this have to do with the tentacle in the church?

[Marullus]

Deputy Karlo watches Anja as Emile and Taavi ask questions. "Teo Hrsak was a man, and he died against the wall of that saloon," he replies to your questions, still looking at Anja, Amalia, and Shadrach to indicate them as he finishes, "what powers he may have gained from the devil? What happened in the church? That's something to ask them." He pauses, hoping for an actual answer.

"As for the shadow wolves," Deputy Karlo continues, "they made a show at the outskirts of Prudence sometimes, but people believed we were safe, protected." He sits back a moment, sipping his coffee before it gets cold. "Not so in Windfall. They've had snatchings. Kindnappings, really. Actual wolves, if kids wandered too far away from safety, Vukodlak men if they needed to be lured. Over a dozen from there, similar amounts elsewhere according to the dispatches from other towns. None older than twelve years old. No ransom requests, none ever seen again, no remains... all the kids are just gone. You understand why people here got spooked. Why I need some marshalls to follow the lead."

"It is brave, a testament of hope," chimes in Anica as she refills cups with dark, aromatic brew, her tone laden, "having children at all in these times."

[greyarea]

Yes, what did happen in the church? Inquisits Emile pointedly. And who or what was that handmaiden who went up like smoke when I shot her? What evil have you all unleashed? pointing at the three Karlo indicated.

[Enoch]

Shadrach answers Emile's question first. "The Handmaiden is a Servant of the Lord. An anđeo, maybe; Sister Amalia could explain it better. A supernatural spirit, at any rate, not unlike Grim there." He motions to his hound, curled up in a shadow beneath a nearby table; out of the sunlight it looks distinctly less houndlike, though the shadows seem to conceal it better than they should.

He nods in thanks as the proprietress sets a steaming mug of coffee in front of him. "As for what happened in the church...well, I reckon Sister Anja here was makin' a bargain to bring him back to life. Why is her story to tell, but we have bigger problems.
I suspect she opened a portal of sorts in the basement, and I don't think it's the sort to close on its own, even if you drop a burning church on it."

[greyarea]

So we have to close the portal, help Teo find eternal rest, and figure out what is causing the shadow wolves and or the werewolves to appear in the first place… Emile rubs his chin thoughtfully. I reckon the sheriff was a bit off when he said that everything was just fine here . Looks like we got outlets work cut out for us.

So Anja, any idea how to undo what you’ve done?

[Marullus]

"Teo is dead, now," Anja looks at Shadrach, then down at the table.

"More specifically, Teo was shot and fell through the portal," corrects Amalia. "Whatever you did to him, his ability to die is uncertain."

Anja is visibly shaken by this thought. "What I did, I did for love," she tells Amalia earnestly. "I never stopped. I never stopped loving him."
Anja sighs heavily, looking down at the table again. "...but I don't know what I did. I... was in grief. Finding his body, seeing him left dead and abandoned against the wall of the saloon, nobody even wrapped him." Her eyes well up, wet with tears, but she remains strong. "It was like I heard a voice. His voice. It told me what to do and I did it... Dear God, I did it." She trails off, unable to say more as she reflects now. "...and I don't know how how to undo it."

"So," Deputy Karlo interrupts with a flat drawl, "You're saying there's a doorway to Hell underneath that burning church out there and we don't know how to close it." He pauses, deadpan. "I'll add that to the list of town problems. Anja, you're going to have to own that one and keep an eye on it because I'm a mite busy." Anja nods silently.

Karlo looks to the rest of the breakfast table. "Hurry back."

Hansel and Taavi both have agreed to be deputized marshalls and continue to Chapter 2.
I assume that Shadrach is going as well?

If Faanku is absent, Amalia can stay and help monitor the church with Anja as an NPC until you return.
Faraday and Lira will bow out here (Lira staying to help Karlo as an NPC) until their players return.

Báleygr, Emile, Talina need to decide if they're getting deputized as Marshalls and going on to Chapter 2.
Anyone who is going to Chapter 2 as a Marshall can advance to Level 2 as a character. Post on Character Creation to log the changes and then update your Character Sheet.

If anyone wants to play Zoe Sadoul as a character instead, she is convertible to a PC and invited by Hansel. If you otherwise want to go on to Chapter 2 but are not feeling your character, I'm fine if you want to script a new PC at this juncture.

Please wrap up conversation and planning among players over the breakfast table in this thread. I'll plan to kick off Chapter 2 after June 25.

[greyarea]

Emile gets deputized.

[Enoch]

Shadrach will get deputized, though if Sister Amalia is staying here he makes sure she is provisioned for, and instructs her to send him a message if anything changes or she needs any assistance.

[cybersavant]

At the Saloon...
Doc Volokh looks conflicted, his eyes going from Mirko to Zoe to Báleygr and back again. Finally he exhales, looking defeated. "To be honest, I don't have means either. They don't have anyone else to keep folks in health here, but that can't be my problem forever..."
He pauses again, a glance at Zoe. "I consider it, but I'm just not a brave man. It has been a long time since I took such risks." He turns back to Mirko, checking his pulse and respiration with a mechanical resignation.

Báleygr Gangleri "How far is it to the next settlement? Which way? I don't fancy walking out into the wilderness alone, but a group might have a chance."

[Marullus]

Báleygr Gangleri "How far is it to the next settlement? Which way? I don't fancy walking out into the wilderness alone, but a group might have a chance."

"There's a roadhouse at Wayside, a day's drive out, then Windfall is another day's drive past that. Or back to the city a day in the other direction," replies the doctor, thinking deeply. "If you need a free ride, I would talk to that judge or the lawyer as I hear they are offering transport on that truck courtesy of the regional government. Otherwise, folks pay or offer to work and go when someone profits."

If you want to seek out the judge or lawyer you can join the breakfast scene and get an offer to be a Marshall from Taavi. If you want to hitch a ride to Windfall, I will allow that and we will fade to black on Báleygr. If the group ends up going to Windfall in a later chapter, we can reintroducehim.

[cybersavant]

"There's a roadhouse at Wayside, a day's drive out, then Windfall is another day's drive past that. Or back to the city a day in the other direction," replies the doctor, thinking deeply. "If you need a free ride, I would talk to that judge or the lawyer as I hear they are offering transport on that truck courtesy of the regional government. Otherwise, folks pay or offer to work and go when someone profits."

Báleygr Gangleri gathers his gear and heads out the kitchen door, looking for the judge and avoiding the mob outside. "You sure you ain't comin', doc?"

[cybersavant]

Báleygr Gangleri eases up the alley and peers at the street from the safety of the shadows. He scans the mob, but sees no sign of the Judge.

[Enoch]

"I have to say that it sticks in my gullet to walk away from this town. Not that I mind leaving most of these people to their fate- they brought this evil upon themselves for the most part. But that portal in the church- I hope you can unmake what you made, Anja." He puts a subtle emphasis on her name; the omission of the honorific "Sister" seems deliberate. "God knows He didn't grant me the gifts to close it, if dropping a burning church on it won't do it. Which it won't, in my experience."

[jemmus]

Taavi says, Sister Anja, what was required to open the portal? There's a saying in metaphysics, "Something for something, nothing for nothing." It seems that opening a portal to another world would require something significant. Could you explain how you did it?

[Marullus]

Taavi says, Sister Anja, what was required to open the portal? There's a saying in metaphysics, "Something for something, nothing for nothing." It seems that opening a portal to another world would require something significant. Could you explain how you did it?

Anja opens her mouth to respond, but no words come out. Her face pales and she begins to tremble. Lowering her eyes to the table she manages in a hoarse whisper. "I... I just followed his directions... Forgive me, Oh God... it... it required Natasha's blood..." her fork falls from her fingers, a tear rolls down her cheek, as she mentions the name of the docent whose body Shadrach carried from the church basement. "...all of her blood."

There is a long moment of uncomfortable silence at the table.

"Well... you know I'm going to have to hold you for trial, Anja," says now-Sheriff Karlo, breaking the quiet. "Looks like you get a trial anyway, Judge Bunt. A murder trial."

Lira nods solemnly. "Counsel," she says to Taavi, "I trust you'll return with any exculpatory evidence. We'll wait for your return, if we can."