The Grey House

[paula36]

The block of Shade's End sick house is not just named so, but literally grey. The entrance is not guarded by anyone, as no-one worries people are going to escape. Whoever comes here comes in the hope of getting healed, and if they decide to leave, that's one less mouth to feed and one less task to attend.

The Healers' Guild considers it a place of despair, and only the truly altruistic or truly cold come here to work. Of course, the guildmasters appoint someone if necessary, but that's very rarely the case for some reason. A healer or two is almost always present.

And this is what Cyrus finds when he arrives at the place in the early afternoon. After entering through the large dilapidated door, he is greeted by an old, dreamy fellow in traditional healer's garment: tattered robes and the green armband tied onto the right sleeve. He is cleaning an empty bed and the adjacent person simultaneously, with rather bored movements and face.

Somewhere deeper in the large hall's shadows someone else is busy with talking to a few people standing around a bed, peacefully explaining something.

"G'day to you, sir. What brings you here?" the bored healer asks with very little enthusiasm.

[Penchant]

Looking around the place, it didn't look like the nexus of a plague response. His family did say that few actually died of the bug. Maybe it was overstated. Cyrus smiles in what he hopes is a reassuring manner, "G'day. My name is Cyrus. I'm in town visiting family and they were telling me there was a plague going around. That's concerning, so I was hoping to learn more about it. I assume you have much experience with this. Would you mind sharing what you know with me?"

[paula36]

The old man stares at Cyrus silently for quite a while, trying to comprehend the situation. "Concerning? You said concerning?" He looks around searching for something, then turns back to the strange visitor. "You have family in here? We can take special care of them if you insist." His greedy face and involuntary hand movement tells exactly what he means by insisting, which definitely involves some silver coins.

From the corner of his eye, Cyrus registers that his behavior generated a mild but wide interest in the current residents.

A hopeful child's look from nearby. A narrow eye full of suspicion in the corner. An expressionless unwavering stare from a sad woman sitting on the bed opposite him. A trio of sickly people leaning towards each other and whispering in the window's otherworldly light shafts at the wall.

He is definitely the thing people are going to talk and gossip about for a while.

Edited February 21 by paula36 (see edit history)

[Penchant]

Grimacing inside, Cyrus laments the presence of such people. One hopes that the care of loved ones falls into benevolent hands, but more often it is simply those that have no other calling in life. "No, no I don't know anyone here. I just want to know the details of the malady plaguing the town. A disease that affects the demeanor of it's victims and is fatal to a few. Of course, I'm willing to make a donation for the cause if you can help me out." He fingers a few coins into his hand from his pouch and holds them at the ready but doesn't pass them to the man.

 

 

 

 

Bonuses and link

https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/?id=2865081

Bluff +1

Diplomacy +11

Perception +11

Sense Motive +11

 

Edited February 23 by Penchant (see edit history)

[paula36]

"Of course, sir, of course," he answers quickly, eying the coins, and cleans his throat, "The plague, well, is more serious than many people think. You're right that very few actually die of it, but many suffer changes in behavior and some suffer bodily ailments. The bad thing is that a few of these, err, effects, never go away, the sick are stuck with them for their lives." He looks around eagerly, straining his eyes and involuntarily jerking his head to the side a little.

He points to a patient lying on a bed near the door. "Poor Naffu there has been coughing for weeks now, sometimes accompanied by a little blood. He's past any other signs, but he may have that cough till he dies."

"There was a woman here a month ago who just stared at people with unnerving eyes, and only spoke when asked. Nothing by herself. Any ailments she had, we had to ask ourselves to be able to treat."

"That child over there," he points to the one Cyrus noticed earlier with a look of desperate hope, "is smiling happily one minute, then looking desperate the next, with no apparent reason for it. She just changes mood suddenly, and both moods are ... strange. She cares about nothing when smiling, not even body functions, but overly sensitive about everything around her when feeling blue."

"And Marren, a healthy robust man, just died sitting up like waiting for something in bed one day. A little fever, a little loss of appetite, then one day, just gone."

[Penchant]

Cyrus frowns. So many different symptomologies. Truly no one disease could do such. Maybe a curse or some witch's hex but to affect so many people... it certainly warrants further investigation. He hands the man two silver coins. "Thank you sir. I appreciate your help. You do good work here, worthwhile work. Do you mind if I talk with some of the afflicted? I shant make a nuisance of myself, I swear. And the woman who only answered questions... what was her name? Where is she now?"

 

 

 

 

Bonuses and link

https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/?id=2865081

Bluff +1

Diplomacy +11

Perception +11

Sense Motive +11

 

[paula36]

"Ummm," he muses for a few seconds, "Dena? Lenna? Denni? or something similar. You might ask others about it, my memory is truly awful. She just disappeared one day. Sleeping there when evening comes," he points to a bed, "and nowhere the next morning. ... You are a good person, sir." he adds with sudden seriousness, before turning away to continue his task.

[Penchant]

Disappeared? And that isn't mentioned? How bizarre this is, but he supposed that little is to be expected of such people. Looking at the two patients that are neither dead nor disappeared for the moment, he chooses the child first. He goes over to the girl and says, "Hello, child. Sorry to bother you. I hear you are unwell. My name is Cyrus. Perhaps we can talk a bit."

He does his best to be reassuring, prepping his bedside manner as well as he can.

 

 

 

Bonuses and link

https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/?id=2865081

Bluff +1

Diplomacy +11

Perception +11

Sense Motive +11

 

[paula36]

The girl shivers, and 'shrinks' as much as she can when Cyrus addresses her. She looks at him like a beaten dog expecting more beating. "Why do you want to talk to me?"

[Penchant]

Hmm, she's likely skittish around doctors, Cyrus thinks. He sighs, "Well I would like to do something about this plague going around but I don't know anything about it. I was hoping there was someone here who knew more about it, but I don't think that old man was able to tell me anything useful. I'm not sure what to do. Do you have any ideas?" Kids were often ignored by grownups, but in his experience they usually knew plenty about what was going around. If you gave them some free rein, they could be quite surprising.

 

 

 

Bonuses and link

https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/?id=2865081

Bluff +1

Diplomacy +11

Perception +11

Sense Motive +11

 

[paula36]

"The plague is not ..." she stops in mid-sentence with fear, "I ... those who speak get punished here. The ..." she looks around, including the ceiling, with an agitated expression, "place gets angry at those who talk about it. I don't want to get punished. I don't want to talk here."

She looks much more afraid of the place than being sick. This shows not only in her words, but also the way she is comfortable with looking at sick patients, or doctors, compared to how she looks around and up, scanning the building for danger.

Edited February 29 by paula36 (see edit history)

[Penchant]

Cyrus will take a moment to scan for psychic energy in the place. Then he says, "Perhaps we can take a walk? Maybe if we step outside for some fresh air you'd be able to talk to me without the place watching you?"

[paula36]

Cyrus feels a shiver running down his spine and his hair stands up after searching the place with his sixth sense. Noting specific stands out, though.

The girl slides off the bed, her eyes darting around as if expecting an attack from any direction. She pulls the blanket around herself tight, looking like a tiny withered old woman and scurries outside as fast and undetectable as she can manage. She continues without stopping outside the door and slows to a halt when the two of them are a hundred yards away from the building.

"I'm Nadia, sir." she turns towards Cyrus, then looks back at the building, her expression suddenly changing to carefree happiness, "The plague is ... just sickness. It goes away. My friends had it, Perre in the neighboring house, old Janpar who is just a beggar. And nobody got really hurt. Only people in the hospital ... change, or die. People with the plague in the hospital. Why does the hospital hurt people?"

Edited March 1 by paula36 (see edit history)

[Penchant]

The hospital is the source? Well that could explain things. He says, "I don't know. Not yet, but I promise I will find out. I don't know what I can do about it, but I will do what I can. Did your family put you here? Can you go back home?" If there were people in the Greyhouse doing this, he would get to the bottom of it. He wasn't quite sure how yet, but he intended on keeping his promise.

 

 

 

Bonuses and link

https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/?id=2865081

Bluff +1

Diplomacy +11

Perception +11

Sense Motive +11

 

[paula36]

"Traveling far away. Far away where the herons fly and walk. The butterflies are the most beautiful of all animals, and they are kind." Nadia responds, with an angelic smile spread wide on her face. Soon after she finishes the last sentence, she starts slowly rocking back and forth, but staying in place. Then she slowly closes her eyes and just sways gently, still wrapped in the blanket. A few passers-by look at the weird duo with a slight disdain, then walk on without interfering.