Oh Little Strelk: WIP

A beautiful, clear voice sings sweetly. The sound echoes through the grand halls of the cathedral; whether it originates from behind the chancel or from elsewhere is unclear until stepping further into the church. There's a single, ghostly karren girl near the altar in the right wing, seemingly in her own world as she sings in worship to Gadren. Her voice is pure and unmarred by age, still youthful.

Acquisition:

At the sound of steps behind her, she stops abruptly and whirls around, eyes wide with fear. She thought no one except the clergy would be here at this late hour; they didn't mind her practicing for services in the late hours of the night before she disappeared. There were several children in the choir—all alive but her, but few were as dedicated to their craft as she was.

"I-I'm sorry! I shouldn't have...I didn't know anyone would be here and...I'm so sorry if I disturbed you!" She bows quickly, hands gripping her skirts to hold the shaking at bay.

You assure her that there was no harm done, that there's no reason to apologize, but she doesn't seem convinced. Her shoulders are raised to her ears in embarrassment, and there's a dusting of color on her cheeks. She can't be much older than ten or eleven.

There's a crash behind you as someone slams the door to the cathedral open, and the girl jumps before rushing to hide behind the altar.

Behind the party stands a strelk, boldly ready to step into the cathedral and attack whoever is in there.

Polther:

The small-for-his-kind strelk introduces himself as Polther, and demands that the party give up the ghost child for his meal. Something about the flesh and blood of children nourishes him like no other meal. Besides, she has no living relatives; no one would miss her. It would serve her right for what she cost him.

After further prodding, he will admit that he knew her in life. They used to sing together when he was a boy and still alive. They were competitive, always trying to see who could get the solo part of their songs; Leah usually earned them, but he had his fair share. One evening, they were walking home together, and a vampire jumped from the shadows to attack them. They ran for the nearest home, banging on the door and begging to be let in. The vampire got to him first and tore his throat out. He lay on the ground dying as the door opened, and Leah was quickly let in by the elderly couple in the home. She didn't stop to help him, just ran inside.

With Leah in the safety of someone's home, the vampire returned to Polther and turned him into a strelk instead of killing him outright.

But Leah, it turns out, died some weeks later from the Ice Sickness anyway. Her whole family died from the disease.

Resolution:

• The party can give Leah up and tell him where she's hiding.

• The party can convince him that it wasn't her fault, that there was nothing she could have done to help without dying too. She's a little kid. Could she have really fought the vampire unarmed? This can either lead to Polther agreeing, or him deciding to attack to try and get to Leah anyway. It depends on the rolls the GM calls for as to whether the party succeeds in ending the conflict before it dissolves into a fight.

• The party can still choose to attack Polther; he is a vampire, and people usually kill them on sight.

Rewards:

• If the party chooses to fight Polther and kill him, they can take a magic cloak and gold from his pockets. Leah can't give them anything—she's dead and has no need for worldly possessions—but she comes out of hiding and thanks the party for rescuing her. As thanks, she offers to sing them a song, as it's all she has to give.

Components

Moral Quandaries

Polther may be a vampire, but he's still a child of about twelve or so.

Backdrops

Threats

• Polther (Strelk)

Triggers:

• Child Death

• Murder

• Violence