Chapter 2: Welcome to Barovia

Ireena looks at Ismark prompting him to concede. Alright. Come, companions, we must be swift. I do not wish to leave her here alone for too long. Ismark says, going towards the room with the coffin inside. He requests one of you to carry the coffin with him.

You manage to get the coffin out of the door, leaving Wil and Ireena behind. The streets seem to have more life than they did the night before, a small amount of people traversing the streets. Some carry groceries while others simply drift toward the tavern but they all have the same blank expression, all stopping to look at you all. This makes the sound of small, wooden wheels rolling across damp cobbles especially noticable. You trace the lonely sound to a hunched figure bundled in rags, pushing a rickety wooden cart through the fog. It is an old woman and, as soon as she looks at you, she turns a corner into an alley, disappearing from sight.

What are you talking about? Ismark asks as you reach a chapel-like building, having had his back turned to the event.

Ryn: From her body language it seems like she's purposely avoiding you.

Atop a slight rise, against the roots of the pillar stone that supports Castle Raven loft, stands a gray, sagging edifice of stone and wood. This church has obviously weathered the assaults of evil for centuries on end and is worn and weary. A bell tower rises toward the back, and flickering light shines through holes in the shingled roof. The rafters strain feebly against their load. The heavy woolen doors of the church are covered with claw marks and scarred by fire. Ismark leads the coffin through the doors along with Basra and whoever else that follows. The doors open to reveal a ten-foot-wide, twenty-foot-long hall leading to a brightly lit chapel. The hall is unlit and reeks of mildew. Four doors, two on each side of the hall, lead to adjacent chambers.
You can see that the chapel is strewn with debris, and you hear a soft voice from within reciting a prayer. Suddenly, the prayer is blotted out by an inhuman scream that rises up from beneath the wooden floor. Ismark doesn't react and continues to carry the coffin farther into the church.

The chapel is a shambles, with overturned and broken pews littering the dusty floor. Dozens of candles mounted in candlesticks and candelabras light every dusty corner in a fervent attempt to rid the chapel of shadows. At the far end of the church sits a claw-scarred altar, behind which kneels a priest in soiled vestments. Next to him hangs a long, thick rope that stretches up into the bell tower. From beneath the chapeI floor, you hear a young man's I voice cry out, "Father! I m starving"

Ismark sets the coffin down and talks quietly as the priestly man notices the presence of the party and begins to get up. It is the priest's son. He is possessed with evil and mustn't be let out. And Ryn, it may be different where you are from but this is the only way to lay him to rest that I will abide. As the priest approaches, you all notice that he looks exhausted. A soft, hoarse voice speaks Ismark, hello. Have you finally found travelers to help in your flight? Ismark turns toward him. Yes, Donovich, at last. But first, we thought that a proper burial for my father would be the best thing to do. I hope it is not too late to invoke the Lord. Donovich looks down at the coffin. No, no, of course not. Come, maybe one of your friends can help dig. Donovich looks at the three of you, seemingly waiting for a volunteer. The screams of desperation from under the floor ring out constantly, both the priest and Ismark ignoring it.