Festival banners stir above the market square as Zelan arrives. Villagers cluster behind a village witch, an elderly woman with silver braids, a russet cloak, and a black staff.
She holds one hand toward a circle of cold ash. Within it, a pale apparition stands motionless, its features blurred like moonlight behind frost.
Beside the witch waits Zelan’s twin sister, a young adult orc woman with the same slim build and brown hair, dressed in travel-stained crimson, her warm brown skin and narrow face marked by a small scar above one eyebrow.
the village witch
Back, all of you. The dead have kept their promise, and the story was true.
Zelan’s twin sister
There she is. Do you see? The haunting concerns Zelan Rosen, and no one else.
Every face turns toward Zelan. The apparition remains silent, while the witch slowly raises her staff hand above the ash.
the village witch
Answer us, spirit.
✓ Quest Accepted
Restore the village's trust in Zelan
“Can the spirit speak to me?”
NO, AND WORSE (Likely, rolled 93)
The pale apparition does not answer. Instead, the cold ash shudders outward in a perfect ring, snuffing the nearest festival candles and frosting the stones beneath Zelan’s boots.
Zelan Rosen
The spirit cannot speak, but the ash is responding to my presence.
A thin crack opens through the circle. Pale light pours along it toward Zelan, while the pale apparition’s blurred head turns toward her sister.
the village witch
No voice remains in that shade. Worse, it has found a path.
Zelan’s twin sister
A path to me? Or a path from you, little sister?
The crack reaches the crimson-clad orc woman’s boots and stops. Her shadow stretches across the square, pointing back at Zelan like a drawn spear.
the village witch
Do not cross the ash. The dead cannot speak, but they can bind a witness to their unfinished warning.
“Can i ask the villiage witch why we can’t speak to them?”
YES (VeryLikely, rolled 45)
Zelan Rosen
Why can’t we speak to them?
The village witch lowers her staff a fraction. Frost creeps over the ash, and the apparition’s blurred face turns toward Zelan without forming a mouth or eyes.
the village witch
Because there is no living voice left within that shade. What remains is memory, bound to warning, and memory answers through signs.
The pale crack pulses beneath the stones. Each pulse draws a faint shimmer from the apparition toward the shadow cast by Zelan’s twin sister.
Zelan’s twin sister
Signs can be twisted, old woman. Perhaps it only points where the witch wants us to look.
the village witch
Then watch carefully. The dead cannot choose their words, but they can choose what they touch. That path began when Zelan entered the square.
✓ Quest Accepted
Find the first mark
“Can we do anything?”
NO, BUT (Likely, rolled 66)
The village witch’s staff trembles as the pale crack reaches the edge of the square. The pale apparition fades thinner, but its light remains fixed upon the crimson-clad sister.
the village witch
No. We cannot question it, command it, or tear this warning away. But it has shown us where the binding ends.
The ash gathers into a narrow line beneath Zelan’s twin sister’s shadow, then bends beyond the market toward the black roofs of an abandoned shrine.
Zelan’s twin sister
You hear that? The dead point at me, and the witch calls it proof. Convenient.
the village witch
The shade is not accusing you. It is tracing what holds it here. At the shrine, the first mark may still be found.
For one breath, a symbol glimmers in the frost: two joined crescents crossed by a vertical stroke. Then the pale apparition collapses into silent mist.
the village witch
We can do nothing here. But the shrine offers a path, if someone dares follow what the dead have revealed.
− Scene Quest Removed
Restore the village's trust in Zelan
Director's note
I go to my sister
“i will be willingly to work with you…but only temperlarionly”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +1)
Zelan crosses the frosted stones toward her twin sister. The ash-line remains between them, bending toward the abandoned shrine beneath the dark roofs.
Zelan Rosen
I am willing to work with you, but only temporarily.
Zelan’s twin sister
Temporarily? You approach me at last, little sister, and still measure every step.
The crimson-clad orc woman studies Zelan at close range, her scar catching the gray light. Behind them, villagers murmur while the village witch watches silently.
the village witch
Then it is agreed. You will follow the sign together, and neither of you will alter the mark before we reach the shrine.
Zelan’s twin sister
Agreed, for now. But if that shade condemns me, I will not let an old witch turn suspicion into judgment.
The village witch touches her staff to the frost. The joined crescents flare once, forming a clear trail from the square toward the abandoned shrine.
Director's note
We start following the line
Zelan moves beside her twin sister, and together they follow the glowing ash-line beyond the market. Frost fades beneath each step, leaving damp stone and curling wisps of pale light.
the village witch
Keep to the line. It remembers the way, but not the mercy of those who stray.
The villagers fall silent as the pair pass beneath the last festival banner. The village witch follows several paces behind, staff lifted, while the square recedes into gray morning.
Zelan’s twin sister
You walk at my side now, yet you watch me as if I carry a knife.
The crimson-clad orc woman steps over a broken paving stone without leaving the trail. Ahead, the abandoned shrine rises between leaning trees, its black roof split beneath tangled ivy.
the village witch
There. The sign grows stronger near the threshold. Whatever bound that shade began inside those walls.
The joined crescents brighten along the path, then vanish beneath the shrine’s warped wooden door. From within comes a single dull knock, followed by absolute silence.
“Can i open the door?”
YES (Likely, rolled 24)
The warped door bears no latch or bar. At the joined-crescent mark, the wood loosens with a quiet sigh, revealing a narrow darkness beyond.
the village witch
It will open. The shrine recognizes the one who follows the warning.
Cold air spills across the threshold, carrying the scent of wet earth and old incense. Pale ash gathers in a thin crescent just inside.
Zelan’s twin sister
So it welcomes us, does it? Or welcomes you, little sister, and merely tolerates my shadow.
Beyond the doorway, the shrine’s entry hall emerges by degrees: cracked pillars, collapsed benches, and faded symbols carved into the black stone floor.
the village witch
Do not mistake an open door for an invitation. The binding has made its first choice, and we have not yet learned why.
The ash-line crosses the threshold and stops before a sealed inner arch. There, the symbol of two joined crescents glimmers beneath layers of dust.
Director's note
i look at my sister
“…you can go first”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +1)
Zelan Rosen
You can go first.
Zelan steps aside from the ash-line and fixes her green eye on her twin sister. The crimson-clad orc woman receives the way forward without protest.
Zelan’s twin sister
How generous. Watch closely, then. I would hate for the shrine to accuse me while your back is turned.
Her sister crosses the threshold and follows the glowing crescent toward the sealed arch. The mark brightens beneath each of her steps, leaving pale reflections on the cracked stone.
Zelan moves after her, keeping the agreed line between them as the village witch enters last. Damp incense clings to the cold air, and dust drifts from the rafters.
the village witch
Good. The path accepts her passage. Whatever waits beyond that arch now knows both of you are here.
At the arch, Zelan’s sister turns to meet her gaze. Behind the sealed stone, something gives a soft, resonant knock, and the joined crescents kindle gold.
Quest Complete
Find the first mark
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Good→Great