After taking a moment to think, she says “Actually, I could use an assistant for a project I’m working on. I need someone who doesn’t mind menial labor and a bit of tomb looting.”
Ignatius says to Erica:
"A priestess of Chauntea fair and true, Is that really what they call you? Yet that which her faith condemns, You undertake for your personal gains?
Those that she had taken into her bosom, You seek to disturb and defile their tomb? Knowing full well that such is vile offense, You commit it in your shameless arrogance?
Oh what cunning hypocrisy lies, In wilful acts of masked vice! Being a priestess of the Earthmother, How basely you do insult her!
Led by a lady of a foul demeanor, This enterprise be far from honour. To commit this act of sheer knavery, Would only invoke Chauntea's fury.
Hence to partake in this unholy venture, I have absolutely no will or desire. My friends, let your conscience show you the right path, Lest you have to face the Earthmother's wrath."
Ignatius casts a grim smile, and looks suspiciously at Erica, his eyes clearly expressing disapproval and satire.
Some insight into Ignatius' actions:
This Erica is so shrewd and rude. She dares mock a most righteous paladin (that is, Fiora), and insult Ignatius' friends (calling them a band of meatheads)! This has offended Ignatius more than when he himself was rebuked for casting the charm spell. As a result, Ignatius will behave unfavorably towards Erica, as can be seen in the way he has mocked her now (though that is also because Ignatius strongly disapproves the act of grave-robbing).
I now heartily feel that we shouldn't have rescued Erica. @Anduin was absolutely right to lock her in a chest!
“Ugh, the tomb is cursed,” Erica says, annoyed. “This curse is why the land remains barren. Chauntea wants it removed, so that her beauty is allowed to grow here once more.” She looks down at the floor with a sorrowful expression as she says “It wasn’t always as barren as it is now.” After a moment, she shakes her head, looks back up, and says “Do what you will. I have no use for philistines who make assumptions.”
Erica stares at Ignatius for a while, then sighs heavily and says “Hypocrisy aside, you are right, normally a follower of Chauntea wouldn’t even consider raiding a tomb, but as I said, this is a special case. The goddess spoke to me in a vision and said that the tomb was defiled and cursed. Naturally, I tried to find research materials or clues as to whose tomb this is, or why and how it became cursed, but I couldn’t find anything. Nobody else even knows that there is a tomb there. Regardless, I know it’s there, and I know it’s where the source of this land’s corruption rests. I was planning on leaving tonight by myself to search it, but frankly, I see an opportunity to examine your skills and abilities. It doesn’t really matter if you come or not, though. Chauntea says it must be done, so I will do it regardless.”
“I just need an extra few pairs of eyes,” Erica says. “We’ll be looking for anything that looks out of place, like an object that was placed inside of the tomb more recently. An item that could generate such a malevolent curse would surely have an aura of evil about it, and so anyone with a method for detecting evil will be most useful. I’d be careful, though. The curse may affect more than just the land. It could also have defiled the bodies of the dead.” She looks around at the group, and lastly at Emeril, who is listening near the entrance. “Do you think Kaiser would be free to come with us?” She asks.
“Are you asking because of the curse, or because of them?” Emeril asks, gesturing to the party. Erica shrugs and says “Both, probably. I’ll need some protection I can trust.” Emeril nods and heads downstairs. A moment later, she returns, followed by the large red-haired blacksmith. “Do you think you can keep her safe?” she asks him. Kaiser nods his head as he slowly surveys each member of the party, one by one. Erica smiles at him, and he gives her a nod. “We’ll leave tonight, once the sun goes down,” Erica says. “If you’re not at the north gate by sundown, we’ll leave without you. If you are there, we’d appreciate the help, and I’ll have a reward for you when we succeed.”
Guston also purchases some holy water if he gets a chance.
He grumbles to Ignatius, “Listen, kid... I am not exactly sure where you came from or why you talk in rhymes, but don’t blow my chance to get rid of these boils.” A burst splashes over Ignatius, and Guston says, “Oops... sorry, kid... can’t really control it.”
Then, more loudly and quite fawningly to Erica, “We would love to help you with this tomb... as a former member of the priesthood myself, I know how important it must be to Chauntea to cleanse this fallen tomb. Why, I was just saying to myself the other day, I was, truly, I said, ‘Wow, I sure hope there’s a chance for me to cleanse a tomb around here... wouldn’t that be something, self?’ ‘Why, yes it would,’ I answered myself, ‘and I am sure it would be in Chauntea’s best interest, yes, indeed, it would.’”
Guston gives a greasy, insincere smile at Erica, hoping to earn her favor. Another boil on his stressed out and obviously terrified face pops loudly. He thinks he must run out of boils to pop at some point, but they never heal.
In truth, the idea of potentially confronting the undead terrify him. He was never a “hands-on” cleric, and had underlings do the work for him on those rare occasions when such would be needed in his peaceful village. Some small part of his mind, possibly the portion where the curse of Chauntea inhabits, tells him that it’s about time.
And so the party has agreed to join Erica and Kaiser on their quest to purify the corrupted tomb. There is time left in the day before nightfall. Is there anything our intrepid adventurers want to do before then?
Aside from gaining a level. You are all now level 2. Congrats!
Kaiser nods and leads Fiora downstairs and outside, through the market square, then onward to a small temple near the town’s east gate. The temple is rather plain, with no notable features that set it apart from most of the other buildings in the area, except for a sign near the door that depicts a pair of hands bound at the wrists with red cord-the symbol of Ilmater.
Kaiser turns to Fiora and says “Here it is.” He then walks inside.
"So while we wait for the time of sundown, Why don't you tell us something about your town?"
“It’s the center of trade in the region,” Emeril says. “Which isn’t saying much, considering how few people live here, but it all has to start somewhere. There isn’t a lot of history to this place. It was founded only about twenty years ago. Since then, the people have proven quite resilient to all the hardships involved in settling in a wild land. Of course, there were casualties.” Emeril shifts her gaze to the stairs. “Lissa lost her parents to bandits some time ago when they raided the town. They took her with them when they left, along with a few other children. That’s when we were summoned. When we arrived, the town was experiencing a number of attacks, but they were all repelled successfully. Once the immediate threats were taken care of, we then conducted a series of rescue missions to recover all the stolen children. We were successful. Since then, the town has been fairly quiet, and we’ve begun patrolling the wilderness in search of monster lairs, bandit hideouts, and the like. We’ve even been sending members to other settlements, and expanding our influence.”
Vaga followed Kaiser and Fi to the temple when he heard it was dedicated to the Broken God, the deity Vaga loved and who inspired him the most. Once there, he waited until Kaiser and Fi had left, then entered, gave away all his remaining gold and sat down on his knees in solace and peace for a while. He stayed there until nightfall and until it was time to meet up at the northern gate.
Sorry for the inactivity friends, weekends means a lot less screen time for me and I'm not savvy enough to write lenghty posts in my phone.
So after taking some time to rest, the party heads to the north gate to meet up with Erica and Kaiser. The two mercenaries both appear to be ready for a journey. They are both wearing long black overcoats with dark clothes underneath. Kaiser also wears a black breastplate under his coat. A long, steel-shafted halberd with an S-shaped blade rests comfortably on his shoulder. As the party approaches, he and Erica both regard you.
“Good of you to come,” Erica says, her earlier temperament no longer evident, as she smiles and waves at the party. Kaiser offers you all a polite bow. Behind them are enough horses to carry you all to your destination, though you notice there is also one more that has been saddled and readied for travel. The two mercenaries also seem to still be waiting for someone.
Guston, his eyes shifting every which way into every shadow, expecting to be eaten by an undead monstrosity at any moment, nearly jumps out of his skin at Erica’s greeting.
“Eeeek!” he screams, much like a girl. It appears there are still some lingering minuscule effects of his earlier transformation. (Or maybe not.)
“Ahem!” he says, “I mean, good to be here! Are we waiting for Emeril?” Having not forgotten his earlier attraction to the woman despite his embarrassing dilemma, he licks his fingers and tries to wipe his hair into a more attractive position. He realizes that he lost his beautiful locks with the belt, and sighs in self-pity as a boil pops onto his forearm.
Vaga left the temple and went to the gate early. There he waited patiently for the others. As they arrived he greeted them one by one. He had had a great evening and night, contemplating his life and his journey in the temple of the One Who Endures, He felt stronger than ever.
Skatan learned deflect arrows during the night's reflections upon their earlier adventures and achievements. I've never played IWD2, but googled it from Sorcerer's place. It differs some from NVN1/2 I think?
"Come my friends, let's begin our new journey!" Vaga says out loud to all them, as most of them start to join the group at the gate. He's getting more eager now, he likes to be moving towards something. He felt better than ever with this group and assured that this was the time, this was indeed the path he had waited for so long to find and to traverse.
“Good,” Kaiser says as he looks back towards the inn. Erica walks over to Kaled and hands him his shiny new short sword +1. “There you go,” she says. “Try not to lose it. It’s the only one you’re getting for free.” Kaiser perks up suddenly as a familiar red-haired young woman turns the corner and runs towards you. “Sorry I’m late!” She says when she arrives. “I had to wait for Dorin to arrive.” She is dressed in black leather armor, and a short sword rests in a sheath on her hip. Noticing the party, she smiles and says “Greetings, my name is Starlen. I’m Kaiser’s sister, and I’ll be joining this expedition as well. It’s a pleasure to work with you.”
Erica walks over to Kaled and hands him his shiny new short sword +1. “There you go,” she says. “Try not to lose it. It’s the only one you’re getting for free.”
Kaled says: "Thanks" and puts the sword in it's sheath.
Comments
"A priestess of Chauntea fair and true,
Is that really what they call you?
Yet that which her faith condemns,
You undertake for your personal gains?
Those that she had taken into her bosom,
You seek to disturb and defile their tomb?
Knowing full well that such is vile offense,
You commit it in your shameless arrogance?
Oh what cunning hypocrisy lies,
In wilful acts of masked vice!
Being a priestess of the Earthmother,
How basely you do insult her!
Led by a lady of a foul demeanor,
This enterprise be far from honour.
To commit this act of sheer knavery,
Would only invoke Chauntea's fury.
Hence to partake in this unholy venture,
I have absolutely no will or desire.
My friends, let your conscience show you the right path,
Lest you have to face the Earthmother's wrath."
Ignatius casts a grim smile, and looks suspiciously at Erica, his eyes clearly expressing disapproval and satire.
This Erica is so shrewd and rude. She dares mock a most righteous paladin (that is, Fiora), and insult Ignatius' friends (calling them a band of meatheads)! This has offended Ignatius more than when he himself was rebuked for casting the charm spell. As a result, Ignatius will behave unfavorably towards Erica, as can be seen in the way he has mocked her now (though that is also because Ignatius strongly disapproves the act of grave-robbing).
I now heartily feel that we shouldn't have rescued Erica. @Anduin was absolutely right to lock her in a chest!
"If this tomb be really curst,
You should have told it first.
But this matter further explain you must,
Before you can expect to gain our trust.
If your intentions be truly noble,
From me you'll face no more trouble.
That being said, we should be able,
To ease your qualm without any quibble."
Erica stares at Ignatius for a while, then sighs heavily and says “Hypocrisy aside, you are right, normally a follower of Chauntea wouldn’t even consider raiding a tomb, but as I said, this is a special case. The goddess spoke to me in a vision and said that the tomb was defiled and cursed. Naturally, I tried to find research materials or clues as to whose tomb this is, or why and how it became cursed, but I couldn’t find anything. Nobody else even knows that there is a tomb there. Regardless, I know it’s there, and I know it’s where the source of this land’s corruption rests. I was planning on leaving tonight by myself to search it, but frankly, I see an opportunity to examine your skills and abilities. It doesn’t really matter if you come or not, though. Chauntea says it must be done, so I will do it regardless.”
"If this tomb be a source of evil,
We must do what is meet,
And rest not we shall until
We put an end to it.
If your deity's call it is,
Answer then you must
And rout a curse like this,
Away from the Earth's crust.
Then tell us how we should
Assist you in this endeavour,
Cause when done for the good,
No pain is in such a labour."
“Are you asking because of the curse, or because of them?” Emeril asks, gesturing to the party. Erica shrugs and says “Both, probably. I’ll need some protection I can trust.” Emeril nods and heads downstairs. A moment later, she returns, followed by the large red-haired blacksmith. “Do you think you can keep her safe?” she asks him. Kaiser nods his head as he slowly surveys each member of the party, one by one. Erica smiles at him, and he gives her a nod. “We’ll leave tonight, once the sun goes down,” Erica says. “If you’re not at the north gate by sundown, we’ll leave without you. If you are there, we’d appreciate the help, and I’ll have a reward for you when we succeed.”
He grumbles to Ignatius, “Listen, kid... I am not exactly sure where you came from or why you talk in rhymes, but don’t blow my chance to get rid of these boils.” A burst splashes over Ignatius, and Guston says, “Oops... sorry, kid... can’t really control it.”
Then, more loudly and quite fawningly to Erica, “We would love to help you with this tomb... as a former member of the priesthood myself, I know how important it must be to Chauntea to cleanse this fallen tomb. Why, I was just saying to myself the other day, I was, truly, I said, ‘Wow, I sure hope there’s a chance for me to cleanse a tomb around here... wouldn’t that be something, self?’ ‘Why, yes it would,’ I answered myself, ‘and I am sure it would be in Chauntea’s best interest, yes, indeed, it would.’”
Guston gives a greasy, insincere smile at Erica, hoping to earn her favor. Another boil on his stressed out and obviously terrified face pops loudly. He thinks he must run out of boils to pop at some point, but they never heal.
In truth, the idea of potentially confronting the undead terrify him. He was never a “hands-on” cleric, and had underlings do the work for him on those rare occasions when such would be needed in his peaceful village. Some small part of his mind, possibly the portion where the curse of Chauntea inhabits, tells him that it’s about time.
"Would you happen to know what the local temples are? I need to donate a portion of my pay to help those in need."
Kaiser turns to Fiora and says “Here it is.” He then walks inside.
*FIora follows him inside to donate 30gp to the temple*
"So while we wait for the time of sundown,
Why don't you tell us something about your town?"
“Good of you to come,” Erica says, her earlier temperament no longer evident, as she smiles and waves at the party. Kaiser offers you all a polite bow. Behind them are enough horses to carry you all to your destination, though you notice there is also one more that has been saddled and readied for travel. The two mercenaries also seem to still be waiting for someone.
“Eeeek!” he screams, much like a girl. It appears there are still some lingering minuscule effects of his earlier transformation. (Or maybe not.)
“Ahem!” he says, “I mean, good to be here! Are we waiting for Emeril?” Having not forgotten his earlier attraction to the woman despite his embarrassing dilemma, he licks his fingers and tries to wipe his hair into a more attractive position. He realizes that he lost his beautiful locks with the belt, and sighs in self-pity as a boil pops onto his forearm.
"Heeeey! I'm not late am I?"
"Come my friends, let's begin our new journey!" Vaga says out loud to all them, as most of them start to join the group at the gate. He's getting more eager now, he likes to be moving towards something. He felt better than ever with this group and assured that this was the time, this was indeed the path he had waited for so long to find and to traverse.