Orator recalled that the Briarstone Asylum was located in Versex County in Ustalav. Where exactly those were was fuzzy. He believed that Ustalav was part of Golarian, but he was not absolutely sure. As for the Ustalav's Royal Accusers, the fringes of his mind said that they are secretive agents of the Ustalavic Crown warranted to enforce laws and extract justice without regard for the nation's baroque hierarchy of titles and rank.
Laughing man asked Winter what was behind the curtain in the east hallway.
I ... I don't know. We've left it alone and it hasn't bothered us. Don't tell the others about is, though. I don't want to upset the children or any of our more delicate souls. Things are bad enough without that. There was door there once that led to the admitting lounge. Several patients and staff tried to flee out the front doors when the revolt and quake occurred but they were driven back by the weather. Some who left were heard screaming in the yellow fog."
Just then a bookishly handsome young man entered the room followed by two children. A very frightened young boy was clinging tightly to a lantern. He warily skirted the new group. Following was a young girl who immediately started throwing a tantrum.
"I thought we were going outside to play! I want to play! You were going to let us go outside! I won't eat til I can go and play!"
She flopped down on the floor sobbing. The young man came over to her, saying "Now Maeve, you know we can't go outside. We have to amuse ourselves inside with out paper animals. We will do that again tomorrow after we eat and sleep. Stand up we have to get some food, dear."
After a few minutes Maeve allowed the young man to half carry her over to the food and he made sure the children ate before he did.
Laughing man was moved out into the hallway as the rest of the party was attempting to get information on Ulver Zandalus's appearance. The group learned that the island holding the Asylum had a small boat tied up to a dock for delivering patients or bringing food and families. The current was not too swift and swimming to an shore, both side lined with forest, was possible. Captain York, who was from Rozenport, said "If I could survive outside I would swim for the east bank and make my way home."
Naysa Walika, the nurse attending Loic, described Ulver as a gaunt, pale man, with a ponytail of long and exceptionally straight white hair and blue eyes. "He was so quiet we never had to worry about him. He suffered from horrible nightmares and his art was disturbing. He was so peaceful."
Meanwhile Laughing man had entered the first southern door in the hallway. It led to an office where a nest of cushions and linens squeezed between the room's rear wall and a battered desk covered in folded paper animals and orchid shapes. The folded paper was in a childish manner, not artful in any manner. A sculpted emblem of a spiraling comet overlooks the otherwise ransacked room. A door led east to some sort of shine. Candles arrayed themselves before a violet wall hanging embroidered with the shape of a spiraling comet. A wall of bars divided the east portion of the room, locking away a row of file cabinets. A squat door was set into the walls. Laughing man picked the lock and rifled through the file cabinets. There were hundreds of files identifying patients with dates spanning 4605 - 4715. His quick perusal did not find any names he recognized from the chapel nor any description or treatments. They appeared to be ecclesiastical records. In the file cabinets he also found three deep purple cleric's vestments, a clean leather lash, and box containing three scrolls, as well as a wand.
Captain York gave Orator a general layout of the asylum, including a library, admitting rooms, kitchen, and gathering room. The stairs to the second level were in the north halls held by the Apostles in Orpiment. He did not know of a armory, "The doctors here endeavored to treat and learn more about diseased of the mind. It was far from the torture pits common folk often make asylums out to be."
Laughing man called Newt to the office and showed him the stash. Newt identified two scrolls as cure light wounds and the other as sanctuary. The wand was of lesser restoration with 7 charges.
After this the group decided to sleep once again as their rest had been fitful previously. The night was spent in peaceful slumber with pleasant dreams and all awoke feeling refreshed, except Wanda who felt weak and slow. Newt determined that she had contacted Filth Fever and set about providing long term care.
The other 4 part members decided to examine the end of the hallway beyond the curtain. The hall ended 10 feet beyond the dingy curtain, the the wall there suffered some sort of otherworldly parasitism. A mass of stringy, yellow fungus stretched across the stone blocks. At its heart bulged and blinked a watery eye the size of a wagon wheel.
As Orator moved beyond the curtain he heard faint sobs. The others heard nothing. Orator prodded the fungus with a quarterstaff. The fungus was springy and thick but did not react even when some was scraped away. The fungus grew back within seconds. When Orator stepped back the sobs ended.
Laughing man moved forward, heard the sobs and threw his axe at the eye. The axe bounced off and the eye's pupil sprouted fangs and attempted to attack the area right in front of it. The eye mouth then screamed, "Who am I become?" in three overlapping, drowned-sounding voices. It then cried a one pint tear of ammonia.
Orator decided to try and find the other eye, as if it were a matched set, in the records room. The walls in the office were plain cracked white walls even behind the cabinets.
Bowman fired an arrow at the eye, which again bounced off and the eye tried to attack again and dropped a tear of ammonia. "Who am I become?" it again screamed.
Blondie wondered if they could see the door handle, supposing that it existed still behind the fungus but no handle was visible. Thinking back Laughing man recalled that there was a 6 foot tall mirror in some room. "Maybe if it can see itself something will happen."
Down to the laundry trudged Blondie and Bowman to retrieve the mirror. As they set it in front of the wall the eye and fungus quietly withered away revealing a door in the wall.
Laughing man carefully opened the door, peering into the space beyond. This was a large space, with 20' high ceilings. White tile, spider-webbed with cracks, lined the walls of this cathedral-like hall. A prominent oval desk faced staunch double doors, while hard benches and portraits of somber doctors lined the walls. Regal stairs ascended toward a second floor, but rubble had crushed the upper flights, blocking passage. Lofty window, gridded by bars, revealed yellow fog seething just beyond.
Several other paths were visible, doors opposite the the entry and a broad hall stretching east toward an impassible wall of rubble. There were several other doors at various places. Laughing man moved to examine the desk, which was empty with empty drawers. Orator tried to see if there was a way out from the upper stairs, but could not find any path above the landing. Bowman moved into the room with his bow notched, ready for anything to leap out at the group. Blondie move further into the east hall and saw two more doors to the north.
Laughing man move to the entry doors, which look very swollen in their frames. He pulled on the door with all his might but they didn't move, feeling stuck against the frame. Orator tried a door to the north, but he found that it couldn't be opened, something seemed to be blocking it on the far side.
Laughing man moved to another door and opened it easily, the small room was partially collapsed, destroying buckets, mops and the occasional feather duster. A portion of the west wall had fallen away, opening into another room. Thinking that the healer was still back in the chapel he quickly shut the door.
Blondie decided to ignore the two northern doors but Orator whipped open the double doors to the north against Laughing man's wishes.
Sagging 8 foot shelves, held together by dust ringed the walls and also directly ahead. The scents of leather and old paper pervaded the high ceilinged space, but did a distinct bestial musk. Orator pulled a book on advanced psychological theories and treatments from a shelf. Rifling through he chuckled to himself and started to pull other books down. Blondie hustled to enter the room in support just as books came flying from the top of the shelves hitting Orator in the head and Blondie' back.
At this the two hustled out of the room while Laughing man derided them, "Hey, something's in there like I said! You two look like you've seen a ghost."
At this point everyone reconvened in the chapel. Winter asked what they group had found. She was encouraged that they had removed the growth from the wall, but was concerned that they hadn't found another way out.
“I’m sorry I can’t tell you more about what’s going on, but I know we can’t stay here. We need a way out. All things considered, you seem able enough. If you can find some way for us to escape, some route that doesn’t lead straight into that terrible fog, I’ll see that the Royal Accusers reward you well. Please, you have to help us.”
Newt indicated that the group could use some healing or restoration as Wanda had contacted Filth Fever.
Winter enthusiastically offered her curing and restoration spells to the group. She then cast the needed lesser restoration on Wanda and cure spells for other members who needed it.
Based on Winter's assistance the group agreed to help since it was in their own interests also.
"Good. Thank you, we appreciate your help, Lady be with you." responded Winter.
Now that the group was close to full strength they re-entered the library warily. As Newt moved further up the eastern hallway she noticed several lower shelves had their contents scattered across the floor. A rat swarm skittered from the lower shelf and attacked.
DM's Notes: The party accrued 150 XP for the night and are now at 2nd level.
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