MÖRK BORG: Chapter I: Nurse the Rot

[Stormbringer]

I think he means carrying on round the outer ring on the eastern side, but if I remember right there was a portcullis or something?

Yep, that's what I meant.

There's also the hole to the northwest, I think?

Yes, there's an iron portcullis (shown on the map) stretching across the width of the room in the southern-most end of the south-eastern quarter of the outer ring. Malaiz and Fechr are in that area, but the room is in darkness as the torches blew out with the explosion.

[Wrathbone]

I'll go join them and relight the torches, then look for any way of opening the portcullis.

[Stormbringer]

With the torches relit, you see the iron portcullis clearly.

It does not appear to be 'openable'; no mechanism for raising or lowering it. It would be more accurate to call it a wall of crossed bars, spanning the width of the room, rather than a portcullis.

Furthermore, as you look it over, you see in the shadowy unlit area behind it, wraith-like figures moaning and wailing sadly. They appear to be the spirits of long-dead prisoners, trapped in a cage.

There is an unpleasant smell from within, as of dampness and stagnant water.

[Wrathbone]

I think, perhaps, the other side of the rotunda looks more appealing, so I'll head over there. Am I right in thinking near the hole there was a grate in the wall or similar?

[Animalmother]

Malaiz almost shyly approaches Margar and presents the dagger he'd pulled from the corpse. He points out that it appears to be a crudely made and lacking in any craftsmanship. The handle is loose and wobbles, it also lacks any wrapping making it slippery to hold. The pommel is little more than a hammered nail and is likely to snap off if used too roughly. He speculates that it's meant to be disposable or why else leave it in the body?
He offers the heavy poisoned, blood encrusted dagger point first to Margar with a childlike enthusiasm.

[Wrathbone]

I graciously accept the dagger and thank Malaiz.

"Would... would you like to try my sword out for size?"

[Animalmother]

[Wrathbone]

Margar is conscious that his diminished strength is putting the sword's potential to waste, but he's also curious whether the sword will speak to Malaiz, so I unbuckle my sheath and present it to Malaiz.

"For now, at least."

[Stormbringer]

BLADE OF THE ANCESTORS:
"Oh the indignity of it all."




So, there's a hole in the ground in the north-west of the outer-ring. This is where the centipede crawled out from (Lord Margar heard it singing down there, then heard it singing again when it approached him in the rotunda).

There's also a door in the southern wall of the northern half of the outer-ring, just west of the northern corridor. This door has a grating on it, from which pours forth smoke, and painted on this door is an inverted cross.

[Animalmother]

Wide eyed with disbelief, Malaiz takes the sword with trembling hands. The exquisite etching on the handguard, the pommel shaped to look like crowing cock. The blade itself catches the torch light and seems to glimmer in the darkness with a glow of menace. Malaiz now knows what it is to be a lord!

"Thanks, arsehole" he absentmindedly says as he walks away....then stops in stunned silence at what he just said, a look of confusion on his face.

[Stormbringer]

That's some beautiful prose there!

What does the rest of the gang do?

[Sly Boots]

Giant is just kinda hanging out until a new plan is decided.

[eny]

Prügl lights a torch and heads south to see what lies beyond the rising steps...

[Stormbringer]

As Prügl descends the steps in the southern corridor and reaches the strange 'pit' between the two flights, thanks to his torch he notices that there are paintings of smug-looking royals hung on either wall, in gilded frames. There are three on each side of the stairwell: six in total.

Among them, there is a large portrait of the obese King Fathmu IX, holding in his hand a golden spire, which must be the Grand Palace of Schleswig that he calls home.

A second painting shows Fathmu's father, High King Lorter VI, who it is said was assassinated by poison-priests from Südglans, an act which saw their island-kingdom sunk to the bottom of the Endless Sea in a devastating war of reprisal. This painting depicts him holding a skull.

A third painting shows Zigmund, brother of King Fathmu, who like his father before him was also assassinated...though the perpetrator was never discovered.

A fourth painting shows Grand Duchess Rottundha, Zigmund's daughter; she clutches a drinking horn in one hand, and a silver cat-o-nine-tails in the other.

A fifth painting shows King Fathmu's illegitimate son, Randolf, known in Schleswig as the 'Copper Prince'. In it he holds a mighty copper war-club.

The six and final painting shows Princess Lavina, daughter of King Fathmu IX and heir to the throne. She holds a glowing femur bone, belonging to St. Martinus the Pure.


After looking a while at these paintings, Prügl continues up the second flight of stairs, into the room beyond...


(and I'll wrote about what he sees tomorrow)

[Raid]

Remind me, is the door at the far end of the south-western room the one with the inverted crucifix? Fechr has had a lot of luck opening doors so far, so I'd like to walk around the room to that and attempt to open it.