[[1491-01-14|<< 14 Hammer 1491]] | [[1491-01-15 II|15 Hammer 1491 (Part II) >>]] ## 15 Hammer 1491 Strahd is dead. We lost Danika and Robi. Urwin, Sorina, and Yesper laid them to rest. Rictavio lost an arm. But Strahd is dead, and we killed him. The mists have lifted and the sun shines in Barovia. But let me start from the beginning. I slept horribly last night. In the morning, I found something that put me even more on edge: the Charm of Nine of Lives, slipped between the pages of my journal. Ezmerelda was at the desk in the tower, going over her books one final time. I dropped the charm in front of her. Then we were yelling at each other again, just as we had been last night. I told her that I wasn’t making some gesture; I was trying to ensure that she didn’t get killed. I had to walk away eventually. I told her that she better take the charm, because I wasn’t going to. As I was heading down the tower, I heard a tell-tale thud - Ezmerelda had swept the books off the table and onto the ground. My head wasn’t clear enough to feel bad for it. When the time came, we headed out in groups. It was still early when we arrived in Vallaki. Skoll, Nia, and I went to the church. Ireena spoke of high hopes, but I could tell that she was nervous. I can’t imagine what it’d be like to be in her position. To have to sit there and wait, leaving your fate up to a bunch of assholes you’d only known for a few weeks. I didn’t envy her. She thanked and hugged us. I held on a little longer than usual - part of me was afraid that I wouldn’t see her again. On the way out, Father Lucian also wished us luck. I guess we didn’t talk as quietly as we should have. We were not interrupted on our travels, but the sky saw the worst storm since we had arrived in Barovia; thunder rumbled overhead, and lightning split through the clouds. It was all very appropriate. When we regrouped at Ravenloft, Rictavio was the first to speak. He said that he was glad to have met us all. Mordenkainen spoke up too, saying that he has a lot of faith in us. Urwin also spoke of confidence. Yesper pulled me, Skoll, and Nia into a hug. He told us that he's proud to have been a part of this. I found that I was proud, too. Overhead, Robi gave his own version of a battle cry: let’s go kill the devil. Ezmerelda, ever the sentimental type, was already walking toward the castle. She yelled at Rictavio over her shoulder at least, telling him to not get killed. Skoll summoned Hati. Then, it was showtime. Rictavio and Mordenkainen went around back, the Keepers landed in the trees, and Christopher and Ottavino went their own way. The rest of us followed Ezmerelda. The front door was open. In hindsight, it was obviously a trap - I should’ve just flown everyone up through a window. There were four miniature dragon statues in the entryway. As we all stepped inside, they turned to flesh and attacked. I started swinging. Hati proved pretty useless in the fight - he got one hit in before turning into a pile of bones. But it didn't matter. I killed one; Godfrey killed one; Ezmerelda killed one; Nia killed the last. I guess we really are dragon slayers, now. I was a little singed by the end of it, but between my poultice and Skoll’s spell, I was ready to go soon enough. We continued on, Pidlwick leading the way. Soon, he pointed to a door. Godfrey’s eyes were glowing red - he was in the vicinity of the target of his oath. Strahd was one door away from us. Godfrey was shaking; Ezmerelda was too. I had realized on our way through the castle that it was pretty fucking stupid of me to spend time being mad at Ezmerelda, considering the very real possibility that at least one of us could die. As we stood there, I reached out and clasped her shoulder. She nodded at me. Godfrey pushed the door open. A fireplace lit up the whole room. Above the fireplace was a portrait of a woman who looked exactly like Ireena. There was a singular tome on the mantle - the knowledge of the ancient. Strahd was sitting in a chair, facing the fire. He turned his head to greet us. Still, we couldn't see his eyes. We were silent for a long while. Eventually, it was Skoll who spoke up: he said that Strahd deserves to suffer. Strahd stood up, turned around, and locked eyes with me. His own eyes flashed red. For the briefest moment, I regarded Strahd as a dear friend - and then it faded. It was terrifying. We fought for a long time. At one point, Skoll got out the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind. So Strahd turned him into a chicken and grabbed it for himself. It took a crossbow bolt for Skoll to turn back. I felt pretty bad for that one. Skoll was looking a little worse for wear. Ezmerelda ran up to him and touched the ground near his feet. A circle appeared below him - he was protected. Godfrey was still hurt from the dragons, but Strahd largely ignored him. He ignored Ezmerelda and Nia completely; instead, he focused almost entirely on me. He scratched at me, again and again, and I swung the sunsword at him in return. But I was starting to feel woozy. I could feel blood coating my skin where my feathers had been torn away. I looked behind me - Skoll was safe, Nia was too; Ezmerelda was horrified; Godfrey was on a mission. I could hear my own rushing blood. Above that, the sunsword was chanting. It was telling me to kill. Skoll tried to heal me, but it wasn’t enough. Death was approaching. Strahd swung his claws at me. I should have died then, but my arm - the one holding the sunsword - jerked out of the way, and I moved with it. Strahd dodged the first blade that Nia threw at him, but the second one hit home. He turned into mist. I didn’t die. Godfrey was already out the door. His eyes were still glowing - he knew where to find Strahd. Skoll grabbed the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind off the ground and took off. Nia went too. I stumbled to follow as Ezmerelda shoved a potion into my hands. I managed to get most of it in my mouth, so she handed me another. It was enough to keep me from falling over. Nia had grabbed the book off the mantle and was reading it aloud as we stalked through the castle. It was Strahd’s journal, and one thing in particular stood out among his vile musings: he couldn’t be killed by a stake, only slowed - but the sunsword would do the job. Skoll took the journal and started reading off an entry about the three of us, but I had stopped listening - we were in the crypts. I staggered through the halls as best I could. We got turned around a couple times, but we eventually made it to a room with a single coffin. Rictavio and Mordenkainen were nowhere to be seen, which was more than a bit worrying. The coffin was still; we were on edge. Nia had a stake in her hand. She brought it down as soon as she lifted the coffin lid. I was half expecting Strahd to stand up and start attacking us again. But he just laid there, stake through his heart, paralyzed. I gave the sunsword to Godfrey. Strahd’s flesh gave way easily under the blow that Godfrey dealt. The entirety of Ravenloft shook as he writhed in fury; and then it stopped, then he looked relieved; and then he was gone, only his armor remaining. The silence that followed was a heavy one. I felt locked in place - I hadn’t yet processed that we had done it. Eventually, we heard a bell ring out. For a moment, Godfrey looked alive; and then his spirit drifted out of his body. Vladimir came to collect him. All of Ravenloft was bathed in light. As the light faded, I could see that the stone of the castle had turned white. Vladimir and Godfrey were gone. Even from below the castle, we could hear the absence of a sound that was once there. It had stopped storming. Ezmerelda slung my arm around her shoulder and supported me at my waist. For a moment, I felt dizzy again. She led me out of the crypts, Skoll and Nia ahead of us. Out of the crypts, into the entryway, we saw something through the windows: sunlight. Outside, we found what was left of our friends. An ambush by zombies had cost Rictavio his arm, but he and Mordenkainen were still alive. Christopher and Ottavino were unscathed. Of the Keepers, three were left: Urwin, Yesper, and Sorina. It was werewolves. The other Keepers had already buried Danika and Robi by the time we made it out. Yesper was crying, though not out of grief. He could see the sun. I turned to Ezmerelda, then. I asked her if it was too early to joke about how she didn’t even need the damn charm. She laughed - it was a good sound. I didn’t even mind that she slugged me in the shoulder after, even though it very nearly knocked me over. It took some time for us to settle. We had set up a camp a little ways from Ravenloft when Rictavio spoke up. He said that he couldn’t believe that we did it, which is a sentiment that I still share, even as I write this now. He also told us that he’s proud of us. Ezmerelda sat down next to me and asked if she could have the sunsword. She grinned when I said no, and it was enough to ease some of the heaviness of our losses. We were interrupted by a ghost materializing out of my sword. It was Sergei - Strahd’s brother - in the sunsword this whole time He said that he was ready to rest - but first, he wanted to speak to Ireena. I promised to take him to her soon. I guess we forgot to fill Rictavio in about the whole sentient sword thing, because he was a bit shocked to see a ghost come out of it. Not to say I wasn't a little surprised myself. While the rest of us were talking, Nia and Skoll left to have a conversation aside. When they returned, Nia stood in front of everyone and started speaking. She had a confession to make, apparently. She was worried that there's some stuff in Strahd's journal that we could extrapolate from. So, to head off any speculation, she was just going to come out and say it: her name is Countess Nia Skultrac, and she’s a dhampir. I managed to ruin the big dramatic moment by not knowing what the fuck a dhampir was. When she said the word in Elvish, though, I recognized it - she’s the daughter of a vampire. It definitely explained some things. That said, I was honestly more concerned with the fact that she’s a countess. Rictavio and Ezmerelda both said that she’s proven herself more than enough. I could see the weight leave Nia’s shoulders - she half expected them to try to kill her, I think. Then, Rictavio - presumably trying to put Nia at ease - took off his hat, and his disguise faded away. He looked pretty much the same, but just a little older. The bastard introduced himself as Rudolph van Richten. I told him that I'm not going to call him that. It was Skoll’s turn next. I have to admit, I was caught off guard when he told us that he's the child of a duke and duchess. Rictavio was too, gauging by how slack-jawed he was. It was kind of hilarious. Skoll left when he was 19 - the expectations of it all made him pretty uncomfortable. The sadness in his voice resonated with me; while I am certainly no noble, I understand what it means to run away. Ezmerelda was also a little thrown by Skoll’s revelation. She asked me if I was going to come out as royalty next. In response, I told her that I used to be a mail carrier, which isn’t untrue. But Skoll pushed me - he could tell there was something that I wasn’t saying. At that point, I reasoned that I was no dhampir, and swallowed my anxiety. I told them of my desertion. It was surprisingly easy. It was made easier by the fact that no one seemed to give a shit. I felt light. It might've been the blood loss, but I didn’t care. We had seen losses, yes; but there, with my friends, I felt better than I had in years. We are on our way to Vallaki presently. To spread the good news, as Ezmerelda put it. I can’t wait to see Ireena out of that little backroom, and to see the sun shine on Vallaki. --- ## Page Tags/Properties **Tags:** #Journal **Category:** [[Journals and Writings.base|Journals and Writings]] **Character:** [[Krue d'Avenir|Krue]] **Campaign:** [[Curse of Strahd]] **Date ([[Calendar of Harptos|Harptos]]):** 01/15/1491