Edwin has the sense of falling. No flying. No, weightlessness. Everything is blurry. No, not blurry, he sees a vast landscape below rushing by in a blur. The world becomes whiter and a road is discernible from below as he slows. There is snow everywhere. The road fades away under a covering of snow, but it takes you far enough to see the facade of some kind of temple carved into the sheer mountainside ahead. The front of the structure is fifty feet high and has six alcoves containing twenty-foot-tall statues. Each statue is carved from a single block of amber and depicts a faceless, hooded figure, its hands pressed together in a gesture of prayer. Between the two innermost statues is a twenty-foot-tall archway with a staircase leading down. Looking at the statues makes Edwin feel uneasy. Contemplating the inside of the temple makes him feel uneasy.

"Hello. You are dead." Edwin hears the voice in his head, except that he is formless, and has no head. But the voice seemed quiet and surely would have been carried away by the wind if it were real.

In reply to The Mists (msg # 1):

Edwin is stunned, looks around for his companions, tries to think of something to say and fails to come up with anything better than "What now?"

Now hear truth, no soul leaves this realm, but by the pleasure of its master. You are trapped. I have brought you here for a second chance. This is a place of power, for anyone who will come and take it.

Would you like to help your friends? I can send you back more powerful than before and empowered to deal with your challenges (level 2 and you can choose two more spells and prepare another spell as per 2nd level).

I am sure you are smart enough to know nothing is free. What I ask is that you send the souls of whomever you slay to me. Do you have any questions? It is not my intention to trick you. As I have said no souls leave this realm and as you can see, I can bring them to me, but if I use my power for you, you must help me do that work.

In reply to The Mists (msg # 3):

"Well....um....let's see. Bartleby says that a contract is no place to be emotional, and it is not like there is anywhere else to be....

I suppose my answer depends on who you are, who the master is, where this is, who it is I am killing, the purpose to which these souls shall be put, the impact of their being sent to you on my soul, and the manner of the sending--for starters. Logically speaking, anyway."

I suppose my answer depends on who you are,
"I have forgotten who I am. I was imprisoned here long ago because I was thought to be dangerous."

who the master is,
"The master of this realm is Strahd Von Zarovich. No soul may enter or leave, except by his will."

where this is,
"This realm is Barovia, a demi-plane of sequestered lands, set apart to punish Strahd. This place is known as the Amber Temple and was here long before Strahd or Barovia existed."

who it is I am killing,
"To survive in Barovia is to kill. It matters not to me. If the person you kill has a soul, it will be sent to me."

the purpose to which these souls shall be put,
"I do not know. Some may go back with a task or tasks from me. Some may wish to end thier suffering in this land and I will consume them. Whether they serve me or not will be left their choice, just as it is with you."

the impact of their being sent to you on my soul,
"Your soul will be sent back to your body. Souls stay in this realm, they do not go to meet their gods. Yours is a new soul. The others here are old and worn. They all look the same to me. Yours will look like them eventually."

and the manner of the sending
"When you unmoor a soul, it will come to me, and the act will fortify you." (When something you do brings a creature [with a soul] to zero HP, you will gain temporary HP equal to your level).

*Point of information, we will be going with 0hp = death for mooks, player rules for important npcs. You can choose to knockout at 0hp if feasible for that situation.*

In reply to The Mists (msg # 5):

What does consuming these souls do for you? In what way were you considered dangerous? What if we find a way to escape Barovia? How could the Amber Temple pre date Barovia? What purpose does the Amber Temple serve? If I die again, will I return here?

Strahd is both prisoner and warden. Nothing is impossible. Come back in body to find the answers to your questions. Nothing is hid here. But time is up, decide or slip away.

In reply to The Mists (msg # 7):

I choose to return.

Ok, level up and choose your new spells and prepared slot, roll HP then choose between your roll or 5, and heal up to full HP. If you are going to be a diviner, roll portents, etc.

In reply to The Mists (msg # 9):

K. Gimme a minute.

In reply to SIRE (msg # 10):

New spells: Catapult, Mage Armor
Prepared Slot: Mage Armor
Hit Die roll: 5 (of 6)
New HP total: 13

Portent Rolls: 13,10