The 3rd and probably the final chapter in Sir Verney Snapcase's bid to get free ale at the Dog and Sprocket Tavern in Little Snoring.
The brilliant sunset has turned into a dark brooding night as Sir Verney Snapcase leads his small party towards the Bloody Barrow. Titus Fleming on his right is feeling distinctly nervous about proceedings. When he took the position as Sir Verney’s servant he expected an easy life, carrying wine, eating good left over food, not traipsing around the countryside in the dead of night to do God knows what.
Red Molly had some inkling of what the Bloody Barrow would be like, but it had been years since she had ventured near it. A childhood dare or was it a forfeit, she remembered there were two alternatives, kiss a toad or go and touch the Barrow. She’d kissed many a toad since then and they weren’t half as repulsive or scary as the Barrow.
She knew no one had visited the place in the last 10 years, every since Lucy was found on the sacrificial stone at the mouth of the Barrow.
Lucy was not harmed in any way but had lost her mind in some dark place that she was never able to find again.
Molly wondered if she should have told Sir Verney about Lucy but had decided to keep her own council. After all Lucy was her younger sister and she deserved an accounting with whoever or whatever had stolen her mind.
Molly hoped Snapcase would be that Accountant.
When she had last been there, the ground around the stone circle was difficult going, soft underfoot with undergrowth and brambles waiting to trip the unwary but she knew it would be even harder going now, so many years later.
As they approached she could see it was a tangle of brambles, thorn bushes and deformed, stunted trees surrounding the stone circle. The dark shape in the distance must be the Barrow but it was too dark to make it out clearly.
“Are you sure we’re in the right place” Snapcase asked Molly and she just nodded, her mouth was too dry to speak out loud.
“It all seems quiet” muttered Snapcase, “we’ll just move forward, slowly like, no noise until we can see the Barrow clearly”. “Try and keep low and take advantage of the cover” he added unnecessarily.
As they moved forward the Bloody Barrow came into view, a massive capstone on five upright pillars, what manner of beings had built it or for what purpose, no one knew….indeed no one in the party cared either.
Because the clouds parted and the moon shone brightly on an unearthly tableau.
Translucent wraiths floated around the stone circle, swooping high and low, they emitted a strange whistling sound, eerily like the wind on a bitter winter’s night, as it whistles through the gaps between door and jamb, with steams of cold air piercing the room, sending shivers down your cack and making the fire waver and dance in the draught.
The Wraiths were a shock but then they saw a young woman, tied to two posts in the mouth of the Barrow and another being, possibly a woman in a red shift moving slowly around her. Further away was something, vaguely human shaped, the moonlight reflected off a pallid corrupted creature they could not discern clearly.
“Mistress Pitt” stuttered Molly as she recognised the poor woman between the posts and Snapcase remembered the name as belonging to one of the villagers who had been carried off from Little Snoring at the start of the tale.
“I’ve had enough of this skulking about thought Sir Verney, “follow me he said and moved resolutely forward, that is until he entered the stone circle and felt the chill tremor of fear, he stopped as his nerve failed him. Red Molly went some distance into the circle before she too felt the fear and retreated to stand close to Snapcase, only Titus was able to push forward as the moon rose higher in the sky.
Abstractedly he noticed the Wraiths seemed to be moving in a random manner and hadn’t attacked him yet.
Of course this wasn’t uppermost on his mind because when the apparition in red turned and glared at him with a hypnotic gaze, he felt as if part of his very life force was being drained away.
For a time none of party were able to pluck up the courage and advance, Titus felt weaker the longer the hag in red held him in her hypnotic gaze, and the moon continued to rise.
The Wraiths continued to circle but didn’t attack them, Snapcase was still transfixed with fear on the edge of the ring of stone.
All was not lost though, Molly’s desire to revenge her sister overcame her fear and she slowly moved forward to support Titus.
I realised I’d made it too hard for the party to advance through the fear and slightly changed the criteria.
With a howl of anguish Titus threw off the feeling of lassitude and charged straight at the Hag, just as her protector, the pallid creature stepped in front of its mistress. It was horrific, dark sunken eyes and huge bony fists but Titus overcame his fear and attacked with his sword.
In a contest between bony fists, no matter how big and a sharp steel sword the swordsman will usually win. The creature took damage and a strange black blood dripped from its wounds.
Titus followed up his attack with a further sword thrust and the creature dropped to the ground too hurt to continue the fight.
Meanwhile Snapcase was still at the edge of the stone circle, unfortunately for him he was just inside the circle and was attacked by wraiths as they flew over him. A coldness overcame him and he felt significantly weaker, he slashed with his sword but it just went straight through the translucent Wraiths causing no discernible damage.
Maybe they can’t be killed he thought weakly.
Molly stood firm and hadn’t been affected by the creature’s horrific mien, and once he was down, she had a clear sight of the Hag and fired her pistol. Relief was one of the emotions when she saw her ball strike the Hag in the belly and blood started to pour from the wound. The creature could be hurt, maybe even killed.
The moon continued to rise.
With a scream of frustration the Hag transformed into the Red Woman, at the same time more horrific creatures erupt from the mouth of the Bloody Barrow.
The Hag’s frustration is the knowledge that she can only complete the sacrifice either as the Hag in semi human form or by using Agroth, her creature, as a proxy to perform the act. Once she is the ethereal Red Woman, a spirit being, she can not die but can not wield the knife necessary to perform the ritual killing of Mistress Pitt. The damage from the pistol ball almost killed the Hag and so she had no choice other than to transform.
Mistress Pitt is safe from sacrifice, at least until the astral planets align in the requisite manner, that is approximately 135 years in the future but can the Snapcase party survive the attack of the Pumpkin Heads?
Indeed if they can not hold out until the moon is full there is still a chance that the Red Woman can transition back into the Hag and finish the job.
Snapcase has escaped from the Wraith’s but along with Titus and Molly he fails his Horror test for sighting the Pumpkin Heads and they all draw a Horror Card.
Molly promptly faints and is unconscious for 5 turns, Titus is Transfixed by the Horror and remains so for 2 turns but finally Sir Verney shows his true mettle and attacks the nearest enemy, he will continue to do so until they are all dead.
Or of course, until he’s dead.
Sir Verney attacks his nearest enemy and loses the fight, then losses again and he’s down on the ground.
As he falls the moon turn from its normal colour to a blood red.
Having defeated the brave (finally) Sir Verney the monstrous Pumpkin Head turns towards the transfixed Titus as the Red Woman screams again in frustration knowing her dreams have crumbled into ashes.
The moon slowly turns from red back to its normal white light and her opportunity is gone.
With the changing of the moon the supernatural beings disappear as if they were never there.
Titus looks around bewildered, sees Snapcase on the ground, hurt but still breathing and goes to his aid. Molly wakes from her swoon and sees no danger, no Wraiths, no Red Woman and no Pumpkin Headed apparitions, she goes to cut Mistress Pitts bonds.
There is only the return journey across Snoring Moor to be undertaken and Snapcase can almost taste the next free pint of Buggers Bitter or even hopefully a small glass of the Black Pony Ale he left with Hellfire Demfore and Brigstock Jenkins - The Vagabond.
If indeed there is still a small glass left in the barrel.
Hope springs eternal. So they say.
Cheers
