I spend almost a week simply lying in my bedding, burned by high fever and tormented by nightmares. I dreamed of endless floating in murky water, slowly eaten by eels and maggots until nothing but bones remained. In those dreams, a one-eyed man lived my life in Stilthouse, with no one recognizing him. At some moments, I thought it really happened that the wraith visiting me managed to take my life and left me with his decaying body.
But I finally woke up, weak as a baby but alive. The room smelled of dried herbs, damp plant matter, and blood. It was raining outside; the roof made of birch bark leaked a bit, with water dripping from above the entrance and gathering in a small puddle near the doorstep. Even more, water was falling through the opening in the roof, clanging on a cast iron pot. It was Sera's hut.
I slowly got up, almost falling on my butt after an awful pang of weakness, then looked for anything I could use for a chamber pot. I used a vast jug and briefly wondered if Sera would be mad at me before realizing she was dead.
Just as I finished, Mira entered the hut.
"Huh. You're alive," she said. "I didn't expect that."
"Was it that bad?" I asked. It was surprising how weak my voice was.
"With Sera's gone, no one knows for sure how bad it was. Setara did manage to learn some from her, it seems. If she hadn't chased away those butchers and didn't clean the wound properly, you would have been gone for sure."
"Oh," I said. "I must thank her."
"Even then, it's a miracle you pulled through. It was hard to feed you. Once per two days, we would just give you some broth, but that's it. You're not only weakened by the sickness but also malnourished."
"I will. Thank you for not giving up on me," I teared up a bit. "This means a lot."
Mira looked uncomfortable.
"Didn't I say you're an asset for this settlement? I meant that. There are so many things I need you to do."
"The basilisk..." I sighed.
"That too, but the crown is even more important. We could actually fulfill my late husband's oath if we had it. The one he made for the entire circle."
"And how are we going to find it? The only person who knew where could it be is dead."
"I don't know," she admitted. "Perhaps someone in other settlements might have found him?"
"That doesn't seem particularly promising."
Mira sighed.
"I wish we could ask that dead man," she muttered.
We try to Sojourn again, this time with a better result (Strong Hit, 4+1+1 vs. 5, 3). We're going to Mend (clearing our Wounded debility and giving us +1 to Health) and Relax (+2 to Spirit). Unfortunately, this will have to do for a while.
**
Kormak revisited me in my dreams despite a complete lack of fever. I floated in swamp water, paralyzed and helpless. He stood on the muddy bottom of the swamp.
"I want my life back," he stated.
"I can't give it to you," I responded.
"What use is it to you anyway? You have no family and live as an outcast on a fetid swamp."
"I have my people. They're my family."
"Not for long. How long do you think this circle will survive? I've been told there were sixty of you when you left. It's been two years, and I barely saw thirty."
"This is because of the Tyrant you call your king," I spat.
"This is because you couldn't accept your lot and stand with the majority," the wraith laughed." You chose your pride and your precious laws over bread and a roof over your head, and where did that lead you? Where is your pride now, as you crawl in the muck like worms? Where were your laws, murderer, as you sneaked up on me like a common brigand and slit my throat?"
"It had to be done. You would have told the Tyrant where is our circle."
"And he would undoubtedly send more people and destroy this dump. What a waste would that be! Those nice people, who considered putting you to sleep when you were feverish, so they don't waste their precious broth on you. You know what their leader told them?"
"That I'm an asset to this village?" I asked.
"That they're dumbasses who would slaughter a golden goose because it eats too much. Yes, you're valuable to her because you'll be willing to risk your life for what she tells you to do instead of clinging to life as the others."
"Just like you risked your life for the Tyrant's fake crown?"
Kormak didn't respond, but I felt his resentment.
"Don't you want to find it?" I suggested. "See what was it all about?"
Does Kormak care (likely)? No.
"And why would I care?" He laughed. "What's in it for me?"
"You'd see what did you die for?" I suggested.
"You didn't even have it. I sure as hell didn't die for it."
"Are you the only one here? I killed three of you." I asked, annoyed.
"I'm the only one that can talk to you."
"Why?" I asked, but the specter just grinned maliciously.
**
When I woke up, I skipped breakfast and immediately searched for Mira. She was in the foundry, counting lumps of bog iron.
"I forgot to ask. What happened to Morter?" I already knew the answer, but man can hope.
"What do you think? We dressed her wounds, set her broken nose, and let her go," she didn't even turn towards me, still counting.
"Really?" I raised my brows.
"But first, we feasted her with pork ribs, spiced mead, and some honey cake. She promised to leave the Ironlands forever and become a fisherwoman in the Old World."
"You killed her," I said with some regret. I really didn't want another Kormak chiding me every night.
"We killed her," she nodded. "It was that or risking more Tyrant's men here. Is that what you wanted to talk about?"
"I think I have an idea how to get this crown."
"Really? That's great! How?" Mira finally turned towards me, a dirty lump of iron still in her hand.
"I need to ask Rhoddri."
She rolled her eyes.
"Are you still feverish?" She asked.
"No, listen. Since I killed those three men, one of them keeps visiting me in my dreams. He demands his life back."
"Such things happen," Mira shrugged, but I saw she was a little nervous. "Guilt has a tendency to bring out ghosts of the past. Pay them no attention, and they will hold no power over you."
"I don't think he's just a dream brought by my guilt," I protested. "Why would I even feel guilty about him?"
"I don't know. Why would you?"
"I killed three of them. Why wouldn't they all appear?" I insisted.
"All right, let's suppose it wasn't a dream. How does that help you to find the crown?"
"Rhoddri took a great risk to steal it and died on the way here. I doubt he can rest in peace."
Mira sighed.
"Do you think he'll just appear to you?" She asked.
"It's an option. Or I compel the specter that stalks me to help."
"That doesn't sound like a particularly great plan." Mira weighed the lump of iron in her hand.
"Do you have a better one?" I asked, looking for my sword, then realized I had left it in my hut. "Damn, I don't have anything to swear on."
The Overseer threw the lump of iron at me. I caught it mid-air.
"Don't waste a good sword on a vow that's going to get broken anyway," she suggested.
We Swear an Iron Vow ("Find the other half of the True Crown") (Strong Hit, 4+1+1 vs. 1, 5). It's going to be an Extreme one. Because it's a Strong Hit, we also get +2 Momentum. The first steps are obvious—go to the body and find a way to make it talk, possibly with Kormak's help. But will he even want to assist his murderer?
It seems that we have another reason to return to the basilisk's lair.
**
- Kill the basilisk (Dangerous, 1/10)
- Find the other half of the True Crown (0/10)
- When you Secure an Advantage by taking a moment to aim, choose your approach and add +1.
• Trust your instincts: Roll +wits, and take +2 momentum on a strong hit.
• Line up your shot: Roll +edge, and take +1 momentum on a hit.
- When you Secure an Advantage by crafting arrows of fine quality, add +1. Then, take +1 supply or +1 momentum on a hit.
- When your supply is reduced to 0, suffer any remaining -supply as -momentum. Then, roll +wits. On a strong hit, you manage to scrape by and take +1 supply. On a weak hit, you may suffer -2 momentum in exchange for +1 supply. On a miss, you are Out of Supply.
- You are haunted by someone whose death you caused through your actions or failures. When you consult with their spirit to Secure an Advantage or Gather Information, add +1 and take +2 momentum on a hit. On a weak hit, also Endure Stress (1 stress).
Bonds:
- Glain, vilage hunter, Escape from something, Timid, Cautious, Wary
- Stilthouse, settlement in the Flooded Lands
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