Hunting Grounds (Islands of the Ragged Helix)

[Continued from Halls of Dionea (Islands of The Ragged Helix).]

The Arvus Lighter swoops in towards the largest estate on Hunting Grounds. A sprawling complex that sits all alone on one side of the asteroid. Floating above it Herschel spots the Last Right. The shuttle comes down towards the estate instead of heading towards the Last Right. It comes to a rest on a pad and its passengers disembark.

DeClasse leads Herschel through the estate. It's magnificent, lavish, and haunting. The trademarks of any follower of Slaneesh.

The two of them end their tour in the trophy room. It's not a room of heads or bodies of creatures. It's a room of humans and other beings seemingly frozen in their final moments.

"The captain is quite fond of hunting as you can see. It's what we mainly do when we're not on Hunting Grounds. Go out and collect new prey. Everyone is welcome to hunting them but the captain has the first pick. He only takes the most challenging of prey."

Herschel scans the room and picks out some notable trophies.

- An Astartes stripped of his upper body armor but still holding his power axe. A red blood drop is tatooed under his left eye.

- An Ork Weirdboy.

- A squad of Tau Fire Warriors.

- Three Eldar Screaming Banshees.

"A most impressive collection indeed," Herschel says. He walks carefully around the trophies, examining each. Nodding politely, Herschel shifts back and forth on his feet. He is anxious to meet the man behind it all, curious to see if he could help Herschel attain his goals, wittingly or not. Or perhaps he would be susceptible to politicking and subtle manipulation...and prove an interesting plaything. A slight grin slips across Herschel's face. Endless possibilities awaited - he only had to meet the captain himself.

"When will I have the honor of meeting the captain? I trust he is a busy individual, and do not wish to impose myself on his schedule until it suits him. Still, I do eagerly anticipate our introduction."

DeClasse looks over the shoulder of Herschel as he finishes his sentence.

"Captain Hass," DeClasse says but not at Herschel, "I hope your last hunt was a success."

Herschel turns around and stands face to face with Captain Hass. A tall well built man. A re-breather covering his mouth with blue piercing eyes hovering above it.

"Captain this is Herschel Brahe. He heard about our last mishap with our navigator and would like to be his replacement."

"A Q'Sal navigator. I hear they are some of the best." Hass says with his voice booming from the re-breather, "I am indeed in search of a new navigator. However, you are not the first to come to me, Herschel." A team of men come with Hass's new trophies. Navigators. "I found the other navigators... lacking. Quite poor hunters they were. Excellent prey though. For anyone that wants to serve on my ship they must bring back their quarry. Those that do not have no place on the Last Right."

Hass looks over his new trophies as they are placed down, "So what have you, navigator? Hunt or be hunted?"

Herschel clicks his tongue softly, twisting his face into a smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Hass. Your trophies are most impressive indeed."

He takes a deep breath and straightens his back. "I must confess I've never hunted before. However, I've never been one to shy away from a challenge either. I will hunt."

Sent from Topic'it App

"A good time to start then." Hass says as he leads Herschel out of the trophy room.

==============================================================

Herschel didn't know what to expect as he sat in an airlock. He was given 3 days worth of food and that was it. Herschel would have to use his own weapons to bring down his quarry. What that was he didn't know either.

The speaker in the airlock crackles to life with Hass's voice, "3 days Mr. Brahe. I expect to see you back here on the 3rd. If not I would prepare yourself for your end."

The airlock then hisses open and Herschel steps out. By whatever power the asteroid has a breathable atmosphere and is populated with dense forests. The door slams behind him and now Herschel was all alone on his hunt.

Herschel clicks his tongue softly, creating an eerie, faint echo that drifts through the forests. He strides softly across the asteroid, keeping his ears and eyes peeled for anything that may resemble prey - or anything that might prey upon him.

As he listens, watches, waits, and slowly prowls through the woods, he readies his Q'Sal caster, keeping his force staff in his other hand as well. He disliked hand-to-hand combat, but knew the staff's ability to channel psychic energy might prove useful for a swift killing blow.

OOC:

Herschel looks around for tracks as he moves through the woods. He's not the most eagle eyed but he does spot a set of prints. They look human.

Herschel follows them and starts to pick up other clues. The human seems to have a staff with them and is quiet powerful as Herschel comes up to a thick outcropping of trees that were ripped from their roots.

[Give me a +10 psyniscience roll.]

Herschel reaches out with his mind in an attempt to discern the creator of the footprints, but struggles to discern anything in the immediate area.

OOC:

The warp was bleeding into everything Herschel tried to read. There was just to much and nothing stood out about the scene. However, Herschel's not dumb. He was tracking human sized footprints and they lead up to these trees. A normal human wouldn't be able to do this. Someone with psyker abilities could though.

Herschel clicks his tongue at an increased in pitch and volume (slightly louder than a whisper) as it dawns upon him that he is tracking none other than a rather powerful psyker. He scans his surroundings with a mix of apprehension and excitement. It wasn't every day that he came across another psyker more capable than himself. Even if his death awaited him, it would be magnificent to witness such raw psychic power.

With a bounce in his step, he continues to follow the trail of footprints. Despite his excitement, he doesn't forget to keep his eyes peeled and mind open, watching the woods carefully for any movement or signs of life. He was well-aware that the other psyker might already be aware of his presence...

Herschel continues his trek through the forest following the footprints. Seems the psyker he's tracking caught onto himself leaving an easy path when Herschel comes into an opening. The area is covered in footprints. It's a mess to decipher and one Herschel doesn't have time for as an artificial nights starts to appear over Hunting Grounds.

With no way to press on through the dark without revealing himself Herschel sets up camp. Herschel grabs some rest until a noise nearby wakes him.

He finds himself staring at an imposing figure. Astartes in size but not wearing any power armor. The armor it has on is much slimmer and smaller.

The figure is armed but none of the weapons are pointed at Herschel.

The figure smiles, or maybe snarls, reveling his enlarged incisors, "Herschel I take it? DeClasse sent me out to come help you. Name's Loki."

"Well that's an honest name." Herschel studies the man carefully, trying to suss out his motives and intentions. "I suppose if you were here to kill me, you would've already done so."

inquiry roll:

"Indeed. You would of never woken up. Make sure you set up some type of warning devices before you fall asleep on a hunt. Never know when the hunter will become the prey." Loki kneels down, "We move at the first sign of light. Your quarry hasn't gotten very far from what I can tell from the tracks."

Herschel keeps scanning over the figure. He's not your usual Astartes in service of Chaos. He isn't marked with any chaos markings, ruins, or tattoos. None of his armor sports spikes or grisly trophies. His armor is grey and has a few bone talismans attached to it. A black wolves head is smeared by mud on his right shoulder pauldron. Herschel isn't super well versed in Astartes markings but this one is legendary. This is a Space Wolf he was talking to.

Herschel gets ready to move out with Loki. Unless Loki has another plan, he intends to try to find the trail and keep following/tracking it through the woods.

Herschel doesn't need to do the tracking anymore as it seems Loki has that area covered. He's doing a much better job of picking up the trail of the quarry then Herschel was.

The two keep trekking until Loki throws up a signal to stop. The Astartes sniffs the air.

"Your quarry is close, psyker." Loki whispers as he points to a clump of large bushes, "I can smell him just beyond those bushes. The kill will have to be on you but I'll flush him out. Prepare yourself."

Loki then takes off running through the forest. He makes minimal noise and then disappears all together leaving Herschel all alone.

[Target is beyond a set of bushes. Herschel gets +20 to any stealth checks if he wants to hid or sneak up. That or he can wait, take cover, prepare a trap, or just ready himself for the fight to come.]

Herschel breathes in deeply, gripping his Qsal caster and force staff. He crouches down and sneaks toward the quarry, keeping the bushes between himself and the direction Loki pointed in an effort to stay hidden.

He felt a wonderful rush flow through his brain as he advanced. Herschel felt damn near drunk on the thrill of the hunt, loving the sensation that his life was precariously balanced on a knifes edge. Smiling, he contemplated how cracking a single twig could signal his demise.

Spoiler:

Herschel sneaks his way in the direction Loki pointed him in. Herschel uses the bushes to great effect in concealing himself and he is able to navigate around without giving his position away. He comes to a break in the bushes is able to see beyond them.

At first he doesn't spot anything but his darting eyes then settle on a figure. A man with a tall pole held in his hands. He wears tattered robes. His eyes are wild and bloodshot. A symbol of chaos is chained around his neck.

He's positioned himself in a thick clump of trees.

A violent explosion of light then goes off near him. The chunks of trees are starting to be ripped away by some sort of silent projectile. The psyker breaks from his cover and stabs the pole into the ground and lets out a shout. A massive and powerful telekinetic wave launches from him towards his attacker, which Herschel knows is Loki. The wave either breaks trees in two or uproots them.

The psyker still hasn't noticed Herschel and now he's out in the open with no cover.

[This is a suprise round for Herschel to do what he wants.]

Spoiler:

First, Herschel readies a shield of telekinetic energy. Next, Herschel draws forth even greater energy his energy toward lifting the largest object in sight up to 30kg to hurl at the enemy psyker (ideally a large rock, though a big downed branch will suffice)

Spoiler:

Herschel finds a large branch to fling at the psyker. He gets a good throw in as the branch impacts with a bit of force. [9 damage is pretty good against a human target.]

The hit definitely did some damage and sends the psyker reeling. He starts to frantically search for this new attack vector.

[Roll for initiative!]

Psyker:

Loki:

With lightning quick reflexes, Herschel prepares another attack. Satisfied with his last attack, he reaches forth with his mind to pick up another branch (or rock if available) and sends it hurtling toward the psyker.

Herschel feels a powerful rush of warp energy rippling through his body. Almost immediately, he knows he has pushed a little too hard, eliciting an uneven cackle. A wave of force knocks him to his feet almost immediately, stealing his breath. He looks across the forest to see blood spattering everywhere, the trees dancing this way and that in the howling gale. Squinting against the grisly downpour, he looks to see if his enemy is still standing - or alive at all. He smiles deliriously.

initiative:

[Round 1]

The Psyker sees the next attack coming at him. He tries to move but he's to slow and the rock hit him dead in the chest. It takes the wind out of him but he's still on his feet.

Then comes the blood rain which catches the Pysker off guard. He tries to move but he can't get a good grip on the now slicked ground. He slips and crashes to the ground.

A hail of gunfire is unleashed towards the Psyker. It doesn't seem to be aimed at the Psyker but just around them.

The Psyker insensitively ducks his head down to avoid the gunfire.

Loki:

Psyker:

The Psyker starts to quickly crawl away from the suppressing fire that Loki is raining over his head. He's able to get himself behind a rock obscuring him from Loki and Herschel.

Psyker:

[Psyker is fully obscured from Herschel. He'll need to move up to the rock (40 meters away) or move 20 meters left or right to see the Psyker again.]

[End of Round 1]

Eager to strike while he held the upper hand, Herschel advances slowly toward the rock. Though he has both weapons at the ready, he points the Q'Sal caster at the rock. It is beyond its maximal range, but if the psyker tried to charge, he would be prepared to deal the killing blow....

Spoiler:

[Round 2]

Loki:

Herschel creeps his way to the rock and sees the Psyker poke his head from behind the rock. He has wild red eyes... ones of madness and power.

Psyker:

Herschel can feel something reach into his lungs. Something is trying to take hold there.

Herschel can also see the Psyker then go pale white, covers up his ears, and starts to scream.

[End of Round 2]

rolls:

Try as he might, Herschel couldn't resist the enemy psyker's power with his own psychic abilities. He felt the psyker's influence slipping into his mind, like water through an open hand. And yet... Herschel grits his teeth and wills his frail body to resist. For once, his weak frame and mortal brain did not fail him.

Herschel grinned wickedly. The psyker's attack had achieved nothing beyond revealing himself. Herschel was getting anxious for the kill...and he figured after a failed attack and the blood-curdling scream, this was a perfect time to catch his enemy off-guard. Breaking into a sprint toward his quarry, he hoped he wouldn't slip on the blood-soaked ground.

He almost made it, but tripped over a branch at the last second, cursing.

Spoiler:

[Round 3]

Loki:

Bolter rounds rip out from the forest once again. However, Loki's aim seems off as the rounds go nowhere near the psyker.

Psyker:

The Psyker bolts out from behind the rock trying to make a break for it. He's just about makes it to the edge of the blood rain storm but at the very end catches a slick part of the ground and falls face first onto the ground.

[Psyker is 31 meters away from Herschel and prone but out in the open.]

[End of Round 3]

Feeling frustrated at the thought of his quarry escaping, Herschel refocuses his mental energy, channeling the warp for what would hopefully be one final killing blow. He glances about for a rock or a large branch, then hurls it with all of his might at the target.

actions and rolls:

Herschel flings a good sized rock (just a little under human sized) at the fallen psyker. He doesn't stand a chance when it comes smack down on top of him. To Herschel's surprise there's no splat or eruption of gore.

Walking over Herschel can see the psyker is perfectly in tact but frozen in his last moments.

Loki walks over and examines Herschel's handiwork, "The ways of the warp here keeps any one who dies frozen in their last moments. They're dead but perfectly preserved... the perfect trophies." Loki turns to leave, "Good kill, Herschel. Remember, I was never here."

With that Loki disappears into the forest of Hunting Grounds.


The Q'Sal Magister hauled his kill all the way back to Hass's estate. He is let in and has a moment to collect his thoughts in the airlock.

[450 XP for that fight.]

Herschel silently praises the glory of Tzeentch, thankful that his patron deity has seen it fit that he win the combat and bring back such a trophy. It certainly was not as impressive nor as exquisite as Hass' taxidermied creatures, but Herschel still found himself proud that he had won the combat. And relatively unscathed no less...he hoped it would impress the captain and demonstrate that he could hold his own in a fight.

He did still wonder about the motives and intentions of Loki...it was most curious that he had been sent by DeClasse, yet told Herschel that "he was never there." Perhaps DeClasse was somehow less loyal to the captain than he let on...a good first mate wouldn't keep secrets, anyway. Not that Herschel thought any less of him for lies or secrets....

After getting a moment to collect his thoughts the inner airlock door opens up into the estate. Herschel is greeted by servants, all beautiful women, who take his trophy and start to lead him into the estate without a word.

The lead him deep into the estate before opening two massive doors and deposit him into the council chamber of Hass. A long retangular room with a thrown at the opposite end from the doors. Hass is sitting on the thrown of course. It's decorated with skins or animals, humans, and other things Herschel has never seen before.

Surrounding Hass must of been his personal council. DeClasse was there but so were others. A human whose entire jaw and left side of his head were made up cybernetics, a Heretek, and a demonnette.

The chamber was also packed with what must of been part of the Last Right's crew. Herschel suspects Loki was lurking in their somewhere.

The servants bring Herschel up to the foot of the thrown.

"Nicely done on the hunt, Herschel. A man that can not hunt has no purpose on my crew. You have shown you can have a purpose though. Being a navigator you'll become apart of my inner circle which is something I don't let first time crew members join. You're a special case though." He looks a the other members of his inner circle, "My current council might have some questions though."

The man with the cybernetic face speaks up first and shots off a series of questions, "Previous experience? Any combat related? How well can you read the warp? How well do you know Imperial space?"

Solodice wrote:

"Nicely done on the hunt, Herschel. A man that can not hunt has no purpose on my crew. You have shown you can have a purpose though. Being a navigator you'll become apart of my inner circle which is something I don't let first time crew members join. You're a special case though." He looks a the other members of his inner circle, "My current council might have some questions though."

Herschel nods quietly in assent.

Solodice wrote:

The man with the cybernetic face speaks up first and shots off a series of questions, "Previous experience? Any combat related? How well can you read the warp? How well do you know Imperial space?"

"My background lies in politics and sorcery. Combat experience is...limited. However, my powers are strong enough that I can hold my own in a fight. Your venerable captain may corroborate this claim."

Herschel smiles softly as the man questions his affinity for warp readings. "As you would read a book, my friend. You can rest assured I would serve you well when it comes to navigating the Immaterium. Imperial space is foreign to me, as I have yet to travel beyond the Vortex, but I trust my aptitude for reading the tides of the warp would adequately compensate for this unfamiliarity."

Herschel awaited the man's response. It felt unnatural to be so open and honest, but he didn't see the point in lying. The man would observe his abilities firsthand soon enough.

"Another schemer and intellectual then." The man says, "We already have enough of those."

"As we do those that only know how to wield a blade or shoot a gun." DeClasse quips. "Herschel here has demonstrated that he can hold his own. He won't be on the raids. He'll just help in getting us there."

"If someone boards the ship?" The cybernetic man asks.

"If they get to the bridge I think we'd already be fucked." DeClasse says.

Hass holds up his hand and the two stop.

"Any other questions?" He asks his council.

"As long as he doesn't lose the ship I'm fine with him." The Heretek says in a static ridden voice.

The demonette walks up to Herschel and puts the tip of her pincer claw under his chin. Her eyes bury into his. Herschel can feel the warp radiating off of her.

She steps back, "The warp is strong with this one. Tzeentch has made sure of that."

Hass rises from his throne, "It seems my council, most of it, are willing to use your skills and expertise. Welcome aboard, Herschel."

Hass raises his arms. The crowd starts to chant.

The Last Right
It will be your last sight
For today the Prince Captain Hass has graced you with his presence
He will be your last sight
Your crew, citizens, slaves, will be ours
They will be our prey
There last sight being us
The crew of the Last Right

[1700 XP, +10 Infamy, and a pistol weapon or melee weapon (non-demon) of your choosing (GM approved of course). Scratch off the find a ship goal and replace it with something else if wanted.]

[After this the Last Right isn't departing for a few more weeks as its being restocked and refitted. Herschel can explore Hunting Grounds more or we can skip to when he's on the Last Right.

Herschel smiles devilishly and bows. "I thank you, Hass. You will not be disappointed."

child of the warp: 1d10 1


All noises cause echoes regardless of the surroundings.

Clicking his tongue, Herschel begins exploring Hunting Grounds. He feels emboldened by the last battle and his acceptance aboard the Last Right.

Herschel was ever the curious one. Instead of bask in the luxuries provided by the estates of Hunting Grounds he opted to explore. Luckily for him Hunting Grounds had more then a few surprises and mysteries.

Herschel settled on an old settlement he found in a crater. The buildings did not match those of anywhere else on Hunting Grounds and it was devoid of life as far as Herschel could see.

[Give me Forbidden Lore Pirate and Warp rolls. Also a +0 Int roll.]

Squinting, Herschel approaches the crater and settlement. His head jerks this way and that, like a bird watching for a predator....or prey. He curls and uncurls his fingers on his staff, ready to strike or smile - whatever the situation called for.

rolls:

Herschel knows that some of Pirate Princes in the Ragged Helix might of taken their asteroid home by force or occupied an abandoned one. What Herschel was looking at was probably once a settlement of an old Pirate Prince that owned this rock before Hass did.

What Herschel didn't understand was why was this still here. He didn't fully understand the mechanics of the Ragged Helix but from his research it appeared that the homes of the Pirate Princes took on images of what their owners wanted. Like with Hunting Grounds being choked with thick forests for Hass to have his hunts.

In all this settlement should of been long gone. Why wasn't it?

Ever inquisitive, Herschel approaches the hut slowly, circling it (if possible) and studying it for clues, inhabitants, or potential hazards. Warp staff and crystal caster at the ready, of course. His tongue clicks softly and slowly.

Awareness test:

Herschel takes a closer look at the surrounding settlement. This stuff has been here for decades and doesn't seem like anyone new has been here. That is until Herschel pokes his head into a lonely hut on the edge of the settlement. Here he can see old rations strewn about, an old fire, and the walls are covered in markings.

Herschel can't make them out but whoever carved them into the wall took their time with them.
As he examines a marking his foot crunches on something soft. He brings his foot up and sees a piece of paper attached to it. There's a message is written on it in low gothic.

The gods are blind for I am a true believer! A true believer in my quest and in chaos! The answer is here on this forsaken rock! I know it! The caves of mirrors are here! Deep in the the heart of this place they lie in wait for someone to peer into them! To peer beyond this mortal realm into something greater!

Herschel frowns, reading over the paper once more, then a third time. He stops and pokes around the hut a little more - just to see if he hasn't missed anything else of importance. It certainly piqued his curiosity...

He gingerly exits the hut and walks slowly through the village. He looked at everything with even greater attention, eager to find some sort of clue here, but knowing deep down that it was highly unlikely that were any other hints at the caves...nevertheless, his brain was burning up wondering what secrets this lonely place held.

Taking a deep breath, he starts the walk back to the port docking The Last Right, his mind buzzing with the possibilities...he even entertained the notion that it could be possibly be the Vault of Ry'Kleth, but he knew better than to hope for that prematurely.

Herschel returns to Hass' estate where the The Last Right floats overhead.

Entering into the estate Herschel makes his way to his quarters. He passes a painting he's seen many times before but now he backtracks to it. It depicts a cave covered in glass. A loan man stands in the middle of it his reflection scattered all around.

Is this the caves of mirrors that note was talking about? It sure looks like it.

Failing to think of any better way to spend his time, Herschel goes in search of Hass or someone else who may have any knowledge of the painting. He'd like to pick their brain and see if he can't figure out what is depicted in the artwork...however, if The Last Right will be setting sail, he will happily board and set forth. He was anxious to venture into the unknown as well as learn more about these glass caverns.

Herschel is able to find Hass. He's in his trophy room going over a corner that he's having some servant reorganizing.

"Ah, yes, the cave of mirrors painting. That was done by the last navigator I had. He said it came to him in a vision. He then rambled on about the figure in the piece. The mirror walker he called him. He also said there was a cave of mirrors here on Hunting Grounds. I looked for it... it's not here."

Hass barks something at the servants and returns his attention to Herschel, "Thinking about it that piece was the very last thing he did before he burst into warp flames." Hass shrugs, "What's your interest in it Herschel?"

Herschel contorts his face into a grin.

"Why, I've always held a keen interest in fine art. It is a most inspired painting, indeed...I'm sure a man of your class can understand my curiosity about the subject of the work and the details of the artist."

"I understand. However, my knowledge about the artist and piece itself only go so far. I'm sure the quarters of the old navigator might gleam you some more knowledge. Hell, there might be more pieces in there. Since his death I haven't moved anything from there. If you want, you can take the space, since he won't be needing it anymore." Hass says.

With that info Herschel goes to the old quarters of the old navigator.

The Q'Sal Magister expects chaos when he enters but he's greeted by supreme cleanliness and organization. Above the room is a massive telescope room looking out into the vortex. Only the insane and crazy would peer through the view piece.

One area of the room also bears burn marks and the silhouette of a man burned into them.

Rummaging around Herschel comes upon a box marked with "Mirrors, mirrors, mirrors". However, there is no lock on the box and there is no seams where a lid would be...

Herschel murmurs meditatively, speaking nonsense to himself. He turns the cube over and over in his hands, entering a state of deep focus. He directs his mental energies at the cube, seeking to unravel its secrets and assess any psychic presence it may give off...yet he feels nothing. It is as if the cube is resisting him, or there is truly nothing there for him to sense.

Herschel begins murmuring to himself again, spittle forming on his lips as he curses quietly in the empty room.

rolls:

Herschel taps into his third eye to look at the box. He immediately sees a psychic glow around it. One that is extremely blinding which makes it hard to see anything else.

However as Herschel continues to hold the box it seems to be reacting to his pskyer nature. The lip of a lid starts to form and etchings start to appear but then they suddenly fade away...

Herschel knows it reacts to psykers and the warp power they admit. Maybe it needs more?

Frowning, Herschel slips the box into his robes and checks to make sure its concealed adequately. He saw no reason to hide it, but then again, he saw no reason to share it with the other members of the crew, either...as far as he was concerned, it was his box now, his to investigate, and his to exploit, should it have any useful properties.

Though he was dying to know more about the box, he brushed aside that concern for the moment and set out to explore more of the estate. He assumed someone would tap him for navigation services when required, but until then, he aimed to see what the estate and grounds had to offer. He clicked his tongue slowly, mulling over all he had learned recently about the caves and the box....

[Herschel is still in the estate and not on the ship yet. If he goes to the ship we'll be moving the main quest along so to speak.]

Herschel curiosity guides him further around Hass' estate. It's more lavish decadence one would expect from a Slaanesh follower. Torture rooms that are also pleasure rooms, pool rooms that also double as bars and gambling areas, random rooms just filled to the brim with long forgotten treasure that's collecting dust.

For Herschel though his greatest find is a personal library. A rather large one. The room seems abandoned but it seems to be maintained by something. Herschel finally notices what's keeping it in good shape. One the second level above him he spots a small hooded figure doing minor tasks. It hasn't spotted Herschel yet.

note:

Herschel coos and murmurs to himself in excitement upon entering the library. What a wonderful place indeed...he loses himself for a moment, savoring the beautiful sight. He could spend many hours, days, weeks and months even perusing these dusty tomes. What beautiful gems of forbidden lore did this room contain, he wondered?

His exuberance at the library made it even easier to fake a charismatic smile as he walked in the direction of the hooded figure on the second level...he would do his best to be "friendly."

The hooded figure spots Herschel approaching. It turns its head in Herschel direction and gives a bow.

The hooded figures face is hidden behind a deep and dark blackness. One that couldn't have been created just from the hood...

"Welcome to the Mangraves collection. It's been a while since anyone has wandered in here. I am Curator and you are?" The figure asks in a dreamy tone that isn't natural in the slightest.