Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2017 12:31 pm
Witchcraft paraphernalia counts as probable cause, and we can always later claim we think we smelled weed or something. Break the lock.
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We got our own gun!You manage to prise the box open and find that it is lined with red velvet. Lying within a shaped hollow is a Flintlock Pistol. It is an exquisite piece but it is unloaded, and you cannot find any bullets for it in its case. (If you want to find out more about how to use the Flintlock Pistol, make a note of the paragraph you are on at the time and turn to paragraph 400.)
You are about to leave the room when you notice something marked out in red chalk underneath the bed. Moving the bed aside you see an esoteric star and circle symbol drawn on the floorboards, with other, smaller runic marks at the apex of each star-point. You are not sure whether it is a warding sign, to guard against the evil eye, or a witch-mark intended to attract evil. Feeling increasingly uneasy you leave the room.
Let the witch finish her spell?You make your way along the passageway, down the stairs and into the empty, darkened bar room. A half-open door leads you outside into the coaching inn's stabling yard. The moon hangs over the bleak moors, casting everything in its cold, monochrome light. Your gaze is drawn to the silvery disc and something deep inside you howls in joy at the touch of the moonbeams.
But across the yard another light beckons, spilling from the crack between the stable doors. Stealthily you sneak over to the stable and put an eye to the gap. Inside, the straw has been cleared from the middle of the floor and a curious, and disturbing, symbol has been drawn on the floor, surrounded by esoteric runes and zodiac symbols. The space is lit by candles stuck to barrels and crates positioned around the esoteric circle. A the centre, Meg, the landlord's daughter, is conducting some kind of ritual. In front of her, on the cold, stone floor of the stable, is a human skull. You watch transfixed as the witch chants under her breath, in some unintelligible language, making mystical gestures with her hands.
As you watch her conducting her unholy rite, you feel the wind at your back and your hackles rise. Dark powers are being drawn to this place and who knows what might happen is Meg is allowed to finish her spell. Will you wait for her to complete the ritual, or burst into the stable without further hesitation?
How do we stop the ritual?Meg shrieks as you burst into the stable and jumps to her feet. But what will you do now? Will you:
Attack the witch?
Wipe out the markings on the floor?
Grab the skull?
You scuff away part of the chalk-drawn sigil with the heel of your boot, drawing your sword ready to defend yourself at the same time. A sudden gust of wind whirls around the stable, like a trapped tornado, and the candles are snuffed out. At the same moment the landlord's daughter lets out a terrible cry of anguish. Suddenly the Headless Highwayman is there again, on the back of his phantom steed. 'And now, my love, we shall be together forever!' he declares over the howling, gale-force wind. With that he gathers the young witch in his arms and swings her onto the saddle in front of him. The symbol was a Summoning Sigil, a witch-mark of ill-omen, used to draw restless spirits to a place. Having destroyed it, you have broken the girl's power over the ghost of the Headless Highwayman.
Since we just regained a LUCK point, we were back at 12, so we can't fail this test (although this brings it back down to 11).With a wailing cry from the Headless Highwayman, the phantom horse launches itself skyward. Meg screams as she too is carried off, the horse galloping away towards the cold orb of the moon and into the next world. Meg and the Highwayman were lovers in life and after his death she recovered his severed head. Tutoring herself in the Dark Arts, she used the skull to summon his spirit back to the Earthly Plane to be with her. By your actions you have broken her evil spell and banished the ghost of Lord 'Filthy' Lucre back to the hell where he belongs. (Regain 1 LUCK point.) The last discernable words you hear are Meg's. 'No, not like this!' she screams. 'It wasn't meant to be like this!' And then the ghostly rider and his sorceress lover are gone. The only sound that remains is that of the wind whistling over the moors.
Considering what you have been party to at The Gibbet Tree there is no way that you can stay here a moment longer. It will be a night on the moors for you after all. Test your Luck. If you are Lucky, morning comes cold and grey and you are on your way again. If you are Unlucky, turn to 466.
We have 14 gold. Do we want to spend 2 to visit the Carnivale?You walk for the best part of the morning, your well-paced footsteps carrying you to the village of Balci. The architecture of the buildings reminds you of the distinctive style of Strigoiva, all sharply pointed roofs and gable-ends. What makes Balci so different is the huddle of multicoloured tents pitched outside it. The Carnivale is in town. The sound of accordion music reaches your ears along with the 'oohs' and 'ahhs' of a captivated audience. A few villagers are drifting in and out of the entrance. A board beneath the entrance banner declares that the entry fee is 2 Gold Pieces and standing next to that is a grotesque little man - almost Dwarfish in his proportions. Barely a metre tall, with a large grinning face and spindly limbs, he is dressed in the most outlandish and brightly coloured clothes you think you have ever seen, crowned with a black top hat. If you have the codeword Retsis written on your Adventure Sheet, turn to 4. If not, a visit to the Carnivale might be just what you need to give you an hour's respite from the rigours of your mission. Do you want to pay the 2 Gold Pieces and enter the Carnivale, or will you pass by and enter the village of Balci itself.
SlyJohnny wrote:Is there a way to save Meg? Was smashing the skull the right choice?
Some of you may remember the name Madame Zelda, Mystress of Mystery....she was in another Jonathan Green book, Night of the Necromancer, although she wasn't noted to be part of a Carnivale there.'Step this way,' the sinister Carnivale Master says with a twinkle in his eyes. You toss him 2 Gold Pieces, which he catches in his top hat. 'Stay an hour or stay all day,' he chirrups, 'but enjoy your stay, come what may.' Passing beneath the 'Carnivale' banner you explore the fair beyond. There are six different spectacles that capture your interest. The first is a midnight-blue tent embellished with silver moons and stars, bearing the banner: 'Madame Zelda - Mistress of Mystery'. The second is a gaudily painted wagon with the legend 'Hall of Mirrors' painted on the side. Next comes the ominous sounding 'Cage' and after that a stall called 'Archer's Arrows'. Then there is a one-man puppet show, 'Master of Marionettes', which is attracting quite a crowd. Last of all there is a large tent at the centre of the Carnivale, which has a threatening pair of glowering eyes and fang-filled open mouth painted on the thick canvas. Outside the drawn back entrance flap is the sign 'Crookshanks' Cabinet of Curiosities'. Which of these exhibits would you like to visit first?
Madame Zelda, Mistress of Mystery?
The Hall of Mirrors?
The Cage?
Archer's Arrows?
The puppet show?
Crookshank's Cabinet of Curiosities?
Turns out that the 'Cabinet of Curiosities' is just the flashy title for 'Freak Show'.Making your way inside the gaping maw tent, you come face-to-face with a fire-eater, with the tattoo of a sinuous red dragon across his chest. The man sinks a burning torch into his throat, pulls it out and exhales flame into the air, to cries of wonder from the other Carnivale visitors. 'Welcome to Crookshank's Cabinet of Curiosities!' he declares. What curiosities they are! As you wander around the tent you see a two-headed sheep, a pair of conjoined juggling twins and a half-giantess. But then you come to the most mutated mutant of all. In a large cage at the back of the tent is one of the most hideous and terrifying creatures you have ever seen. From the waist up, it appears to be humanoid but from the waist down, it is wholly snake, and a large snake at that. 'Serpensa the Snakewoman' a sign above the cage reads in gaudy red letters. As you approach, Serpensa hisses and darts her head close to the bars, her tail rattling ominously. You decide there is something unnatural about a snake-woman and, as a result, something sinister about a circus that would exhibit one. (Make sure that the codeword Egnarts is recorded on your Adventure Sheet.) You have seen enough. It is time to leave the Cabinet of Curiosities.
Let's check out the creepy puppet show next....Choosing a location you haven't been to already, will you visit Madame Zelda, Mistess of Mystery, the Hall of Mirrors, the Cage, Archer's Arrows, the puppet shows, Crookshanks' Cabint of Curiosities, or alternatively, will you now leave the Carnivale?
The exact same codeword we just got earlier....You while away a quarter of an hour watching the Puppetmaster a work. On the small stage of his booth a brave knight battles a despicable wizard, conquering his monstrous dragon to rescue a beautiful princess and free he kingdom from an evil enchantment. It is a traditional tale that has been told a thousand times over but you find this particular performance captivating, almost as if you were under a spell yourself. This is in part due to the lifelike qualifies of the tiny marionettes and their naturalistic movements. You have been amazed by the puppet show, but you have also been slightly unnerved by it. (Make sure that the codeword Egnarts is written down on your Adventure Sheet.) Leaving an equally engrossed crowd still enjoying the show, you move on through the fayre.
Well, her role in NotN was that of a clairvoyant/fortune teller, and this being a Carnivale, it's reasonable to assume that she's be in a similar role here.....MisterDee wrote:Zelda, on the off chance that she's running a magic shop.
There's no mention of amount (glitch?), so I'll assume that it costs only 1 Gold.Pulling aside the curtain hanging across the entrance, you step into the tent of moons and stars. A fog of incense smoke assails you. Sitting behind a circular table draped with a blue velvet cloth is a middle-aged woman, overly made-up and wearing layer upon layer of coloured veils and shawls. On her head is a crimson turban, held together by a sapphire pins. A crystal ball rests in its carved ebony cradle in front of her. 'Welcome, stranger,' Madame Zelda says, her accent strong and probably overdone for effect. 'Cross my palm with gold and I will reveal to you all that the future has in store.' If you want to pay for this privilege, deduct the gold from your Adventure Sheet and turn to 224. If you do not want to spend any longer here, turn to 167.
Well, the text just confirmed that the price is just 1 single gold.You place the Gold Piece in Madame Zelda's out-stretched hand and she makes it vanish with a sleight of hand flourish. She begins making exaggerated hand movements over the crystal ball and you fancy you can see swirling clouds forming within its depths.
'Ah yes,' the fortune-teller begins theatrically, 'I see many perils ahead, but also courage and a goal achieved,' This sounds like the sort of rubbish that she probably tells all her punters. But suddenly Madame Zelda's voice changes dramatically, dropping by several octaves, and her eyes roll up into her head, revealing the whites.
'Beware the storm-made monster and shun the eastern hill. Nothing but death awaits you there,' she moans. 'Heed the words of a mourning father and seek out the rock of wolves. And once you are within the belly of the beast, wake not the man of brass but seek out the infernal cadre.'
Madame Zelda shakes her head as if stirring from a waking dream. 'Er, yes, the, um, stars have spoken,' she says, sounding as if she can't quite remember what has just happened. 'Yes, the future is an undiscovered country, um, but your path is clear. Go now, be on your way!' The fortune-teller is clearly distressed and, feeling a little shaken yourself, you decide not to hang around any longer. Add the codeword Dloterof to your Adventure Sheet and turn to 167.