"Well, then, that is what we shall do. I will speak to your priests to see if with this knowledge of Teodor and Hjalmar this suggests what sort of undead Mogens has turned their bodies into.

"I think these are my only questions and I honor your knowledge."

A good time for final questions, then we'll be off. Ask away!
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The witch hesitates before leaving. "The priest, eh?" she asks. "If go to them you must, then go to Friar Thomas. Some call him the Unbeliever. He may have information that's worth listening too."

So saying, she turns and leaves.
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The shrine is located on the bottom level of the keep. FYI.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:39, Mon 14 Dec 2020.

Kullonar gives the old seer another bow of thanks and looks to Bruno.
"Let us visit the Unbeliever...see what he has to say."

"Why is he called 'The Unbeliever'?"

Once the witch answers Gildan's question (he is very interested in the answer), Bruno will go with Kullonar and whomever else wishes to go to speak to The Unbeliever.

In reply to Bruno Rhunthane (msg # 225):

Ulrich will accompany the group to speak to the Unbeliever.

The seer hears the question before she actually leaves the room. "Because he is apostate and believes in no deities, yet somehow continues to draw from the higher powers for simple things like Curing wounds and blessing those in need of comfort."

Those who care enough follow Bruno and Kullonar down to the lowest levels of the keep. A modest shrine is in place, a young friar is startled by your entrance. "C-can I help you?" he asks nervously.

"Yes, my fellows and I are hoping to find someone called 'The Unbeliever'...

"We are hoping he may have knowledge about the undead that would help us in our mission."

"Oh, Tomas. He's not really apostate, though he likes the notoriety. He's more of a...philosopher, if you will. Wait here, I'll see if I can find him."

Some minutes pass, and then the friar returns with a disgruntled Tomas in tow. "Yes, Mikal, you go now," he said the young man. When Mikal retreats, Tomas studies the assembled with close scrutiny. "You are the heroes, then," he said. "You have my thanks, for whatever it's worth. What can I do for you?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:49, Tue 15 Dec 2020.

Bruno quickly bows his head, "Yes, thanks. We shall be returning to the vale directly to finish the work remaining. Most of the barrows have been utterly corrupted by one who calls himself Mogens. I do not know if we shall eventually face this Mogens, but I am rather certain that we shall face the undead creatures he has turned others buried there into.

"The most powerful of the undead we've faced so far have been easily recognized by those we've told about our encounters. Teodor and Hjalmar are the remaining significant heroes whose barrows we've not yet found. It was my hope that you might be able to help us guess what sort of undead creature Mogens has turned Teodor and Hjalmar into and with that knowledge we might be better prepared to give them their final rest."

"Let me start by saying that, unless I miss my guess, you haven't yet started to scratch the surface when it comes to the various tombs that you visited. Tell me, what tombs have you entered?"

In reply to The Seer (msg # 232):

"The two mounds were first, Bruno, you know the names of a few don't you? I was two distracted." Ulrich replies.

Kullonar shrugs. "If mound looks much the same as the other to me. Don't we have a map of the mounds in the vale? If not, I shall make one upon our return."

In reply to Kullonar (msg # 234):

"The great mounds, they are the ones I refer to."

"If we be dealing with undead, I'll take all of the holy water and oil flask that you have to offer then."

"Just a question here, but would we happen to have any sort of item from this Teodor and Hjalmar.  Maybe one of the mage types could use it to help us locate their tomes"

"I am well stocked with holy water, friend Halfling. How many do you wish?"

Kullonar takes a knee, slings off his pack, and pulls forth three flasks of holy water.

In reply to Bruno Rhunthane (msg # 231):

"Forgive me, I seem to have forgotten that you did not hear this information when I gave it the first time."

Kullonar and Ulrich make their comments and he nods to the latter and goes on to give the details of each barrow with a focus on the ones in which they faced either undead they have never seen before or the ones in which the undead was seemingly a more powerful or weird version of ones they have.

OOC: Folke was the first - you might recall the wraith and they larvae. Ingolf was the second, recall the skeletons and other assorted hordes of undead.
This message was last updated by the GM at 20:41, Wed 16 Dec 2020.

"Ah!" Tomas said. "Ingolf was definitely a worthy champion. There must have been a good haul from his tomb. Folke was lesser known. If memory serves, he was a spearman of some repute. Now, what questions may I answer, or was it your hope to gather lore?"

PM

Tomas shrugs. "I haven't been to the vale in years, when I was just reaching puberty. Haven't been back since. I can tell you that a wide range of humanoids and undead of all sorts were part of the Her Dark Majesty's host. Mogen was the best of her tacticians. Beyond that, it's probably going to take you multiple trips to the vale to find what your looking for. I wish I had more information for you, but alas, I don't make the living dead an area of study. It is a dark lore and dangerous."

Bruno chuckles, "Well, when we are done with all of this I suspect we shall have a great deal of knowledge about various forms of undead!

"Is there anything you can tell us about 'Her Dark Majesty' and Mogen. These beings are new to most of us from Ratik."

OOC: If Tomas does not have anything to tell us about either of these figures I'm done with my questions and you can end the scene, Seer, unless any of my fellow PCs have questions I'm done. Thanks for your patience everyone!

In reply to Bruno Rhunthane (msg # 243):

OOC - I'm glad you do it, I just never know what to ask!

"Rumor says that Her Dark Majesty was fleeing from...something in the far, far north. I would suggest that the rumors are just that, but she did gather an army and sought to overthrow the barbarian tribes, and despite the size of her host, she still had fewer soldiers than the combined might of the Hjalmar's armies.

"Whatever she was, a devil or some other outworlder, it gives me pause to wonder what would frighten a scourge like Her Dark Majesty? Ultimately that's the riddle that you may need to answer."