 |
This article is a stub. You can help Sunless Skies Wiki by expanding it. |
| Through the Door of Night | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Category | Story Event |
| Type | Story |
| Data ID | 281846 |
Through the Door of Night is a Sunless Skies Story Event.
Story description[]
"You wait with the A Separation of Sisters(WhoIsLeaving) in the passage behind the Door of Night. Her breathing is shallow and tense. You hear the procession move on, and then there is a tap at the hidden door. The Doctress – who sees uncannily well in the dark – is there. You admit her. "Right," she says, professionally, scrutinising your companion's features. "Time to do my bit." "What exactly is your 'bit'?" the "
Trigger conditions[]
Area: Limbo
Frequency: Always (100%)
Interactions[]
| Actions | Requirements | Effects | Notes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Complete your escape with the Presumptive Heiress
Her Luckless Sister has chosen to stay. The sacrifice should not be wasted.
|
|
A trade in faces
The Doctress removes an unguent from her bag and begins rubbing it into the Heiress' temples, along her hairline, behind the ears, and under the jaw. "If you disappear, they will look for you," the Doctress explains, indicating that the other woman is to lie on the floor. "Therefore, I will be your replacement. Ideally I'd give that stuff another minute to work, but I need to rejoin the procession before I'm – you're – missed. Be still and be quiet."
Sitting astride the Sister, she pushes her sharp fingernail into the skin of the girl's temple and slides it like a scalpel around her face with a sound like tearing paper. "I can't feel it. Why can't I feel it?" the Heiress gasps. The Doctress shushes her. When the incision is complete, the Doctress reaches up and, with a tug, slides off her own face. Behind it is a solid knot of muscle, palpitating and inhuman. Like a magician whipping a tablecloth from beneath a set of crockery, she swaps her face and the Heiress'. A few pinches and tucks, the application of ointment from another jar, and the process is complete. "Done," says the Doctress, as the Presumptive Heiress feels the unfamiliar shapes of her new face. You turn your back as they quickly trade clothes.
|
Ask the Doctress what she is
You are certain she is not, and has never been, human.
|
"In Old London, your kind called mine 'Snuffers'. We were not friends. Few of us made the journey to heaven. Or perhaps many of us did. Who knows how many of us hide behind faces you thought were familiar?"
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. |
||||
| Ask the Doctress what she will do next
Has she an escape plan of her own?
|
"I will remain. This is my payment: an eternity in Perdurance's pampered, turgid luxury. As retirements go, there are many worse."
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Comfort the Heiress
Her hands are shaking. This is not, you suspect, what she had anticipated.
|
"I had not realised how much I would have to give up," she says, her voice trembling.
"There will be more yet," the Doctress notes, experimenting with her new face's expressions. "Her Renewed Majesty would be incandescent if she learned one of her prized hostages had escaped its silvered cage." Then it is time to part. The Doctress returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Complete your escape with the Luckless Sister
The Presumptive Heiress has chosen to remain. Her sister should not waste her sacrifice.
|
|
A trade in faces
The Doctress removes an unguent from her bag and begins rubbing it into the Sister's temples, along her hairline, behind the ears, and under the jaw. "If you disappear, they will look for you," the Doctress explains, indicating that the other woman is to lie on the floor. "Therefore, I will be your replacement. Ideally I'd give that stuff another minute to work, but I need to rejoin the procession before I'm – you're – missed. Be still and be quiet."
Sitting astride the Sister, she pushes her sharp fingernail into the skin of the girl's temple and slides it like a scalpel around her face with a sound like tearing paper. "Only – ah! – only my mother would consider this a reasonable plan!" the Luckless Sister gasps. The Doctress shushes her. When the incision is complete, the Doctress reaches up and, with a tug, slides off her own face. Behind it is a solid knot of muscle, palpitating and inhuman. Like a magician whipping a tablecloth from beneath a set of crockery, she swaps her face and the Sister's. A few pinches and tucks, the application of ointment from another jar, and the process is complete. "Done," says the Doctress, as the Luckless Sister gingerly tests the edges of her new face as if she is afraid it will come loose. You turn your back as they quickly trade clothes.
|
Ask the Doctress what she is
You are certain she is not, and has never been, human.
|
"In Old London, your kind called mine 'Snuffers'. We were not friends. Few of us made the journey to heaven. Or perhaps many of us did. Who knows how many of us hide behind faces you thought were familiar?"
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. |
||||
| Ask the Doctress what she will do next
Has she an escape plan of her own?
|
"I will remain. This is my payment: an eternity in Perdurance's pampered, turgid luxury. As retirements go, there are many worse."
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Comfort the Sister
Her eyes are wide. This is not, you suspect, what she had anticipated.
|
She explores her new nose, her broader cheeks, her lips. "Well. I suppose I never much liked the old one anyway," she says, and attempts a smile.
"I think I'll rather enjoy it," the Doctress notes, experimenting with her new face's expressions. "But you should leave. Her Renewed Majesty would be incandescent if she learned one of her prized hostages had escaped its silvered cage." Then it is time to part. The Doctress returns to the procession, and you lead the sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Complete your escape with the Presumptive Heiress
Her once-Luckless Sister may even now be making her own escape with the Fuliginous Forewoman. But perhaps that's not something the Doctress needs to know.
|
|
A trade in faces
The Doctress removes an unguent from her bag and begins rubbing it into the Heiress' temples, along her hairline, behind the ears, and under the jaw. "If you disappear, they will look for you," the Doctress explains, indicating that the other woman is to lie on the floor. "Therefore, I will be your replacement. Ideally I'd give that stuff another minute to work, but I need to rejoin the procession before I'm – you're – missed. Be still and be quiet."
Sitting astride the Heiress, she pushes her sharp fingernail into the skin of the girl's temple and slides it like a scalpel around her face with a sound like tearing paper. "I can't feel it. Why can't I feel it?" the Heiress gasps. The Doctress shushes her. When the incision is complete, the Doctress reaches up and, with a tug, slides off her own face. Behind it is a solid knot of muscle, palpitating and inhuman. Like a magician whipping a tablecloth from beneath a set of crockery, she swaps her face and the Heiress'. A few pinches and tucks, the application of ointment from another jar, and the process is complete. "Done," says the Doctress, as the Presumptive Heiress feels the unfamiliar shapes of her new face. You turn your back as they quickly trade clothes.
|
Ask the Doctress what she is
You are certain she is not, and has never been, human.
|
"In Old London, your kind called mine 'Snuffers'. We were not friends. Few of us made the journey to heaven. Or perhaps many of us did. Who knows how many of us hide behind faces you thought were familiar?"
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. |
||||
| Ask the Doctress what she will do next
Has she an escape plan of her own?
|
"I will remain. This is my payment: an eternity in Perdurance's pampered, turgid luxury. As retirements go, there are many worse."
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Comfort the Heiress
Her hands are shaking. This is not, you suspect, what she had anticipated.
|
"I had not realised how much I would have to give up," she says, her voice trembling.
"There will be more yet," the Doctress notes, experimenting with her new face's expressions. "Her Renewed Majesty would be incandescent if she learned one of her prized hostages had escaped its silvered cage." Then it is time to part. The Doctress returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Complete your escape with the Presumptive Heiress
Her Luckless Sister has chosen to stay. The sacrifice should not be wasted.
|
|
A trade in faces
The Doctress removes an unguent from her bag and begins rubbing it into the Heiress' temples, along her hairline, behind the ears, and under the jaw. "If you disappear, they will look for you," the Doctress explains, indicating that the other woman is to lie on the floor. "Therefore, I will be your replacement. Ideally I'd give that stuff another minute to work, but I need to rejoin the procession before I'm – you're – missed. Be still and be quiet."
Sitting astride the Heiress, she pushes her sharp fingernail into the skin of the girl's temple and slides it like a scalpel around the outline of her face. It sounds like tearing paper. "I can't feel it. Why can't I feel it?" the Heiress gasps. The Doctress shushes her. When the incision is complete, the Doctress reaches up and, with a tug, slides off her own face. Behind it is a solid knot of muscle, palpitating and inhuman. Like a magician whipping a tablecloth from beneath a set of crockery, she swaps her face and the Heiress'. A few pinches and tucks, the application of ointment from another jar, and the process is complete. "Done," says the Doctress, as the Presumptive Heiress feels the unfamiliar shapes of her new face. You turn your back as they quickly trade clothes.
|
Ask the Doctress what she is
You are certain she is not, and has never been, human.
|
"In Old London, your kind called mine 'Snuffers'. We were not friends. Few of us made the journey to heaven. Or perhaps many of us did. Who knows how many of us hide behind faces you thought were familiar?"
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. |
||||
| Ask the Doctress what she will do next
Has she an escape plan of her own?
|
"I will remain. This is my payment: an eternity in Perdurance's pampered, turgid luxury. As retirements go, there are many worse."
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Comfort the Heiress
Her hands are shaking. This is not, you suspect, what she had anticipated.
|
"I had not realised how much I would have to give up," she says, her voice trembling.
"There will be more yet," the Doctress notes, experimenting with her new face's expressions. "Her Renewed Majesty learned one of her prized hostages had escaped its silvered cage." Then it is time to part. The Doctress returns to the procession, and you lead the Heiress on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Complete your escape with the Luckless Sister
The Presumptive Heiress has chosen to remain. Her sister should not waste her sacrifice.
|
|
A trade in faces
The Doctress removes an unguent from her bag and begins rubbing it into the Sister's temples, along her hairline, behind the ears, and under the jaw. "If you disappear, they will look for you," the Doctress explains, indicating that the other woman is to lie on the floor. "Therefore, I will be your replacement. Ideally I'd give that stuff another minute to work, but I need to rejoin the procession before I'm – you're – missed. Be still and be quiet."
Sitting astride the Sister, she pushes her sharp fingernail into the skin of the girl's temple and slides it like a scalpel around her face with a sound like tearing paper. "Only – ah! – only my mother would consider this a reasonable plan!" the Luckless Sister gasps. The Doctress shushes her. When the incision is complete, the Doctress reaches up and, with a tug, slides off her own face. Behind it is a solid knot of muscle, palpitating and inhuman. Like a magician whipping a tablecloth from beneath a set of crockery, she swaps her face and the Sister's. A few pinches and tucks, the application of ointment from another jar, and the process is complete. "Done," says the Doctress, as the Luckless Sister gingerly tests the edges of her new face as if she is afraid it will come loose. You turn your back as they quickly trade clothes.
|
Ask the Doctress what she is
You are certain she is not, and has never been, human.
|
"In Old London, your kind called mine 'Snuffers'. We were not friends. Few of us made the journey to heaven. Or perhaps many of us did. Who knows how many of us hide behind faces you thought were familiar?"
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. |
||||
| Ask the Doctress what she will do next
Has she an escape plan of her own?
|
"I will remain. This is my payment: an eternity in Perdurance's pampered, turgid luxury. As retirements go, there are many worse."
She grins, and is surprised by the shape and feel of her new smile. Then it is time to part. She returns to the procession, and you lead the Sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
| Comfort the Sister
Her eyes are wide. This is not, you suspect, what she had anticipated.
|
She explores her new nose, her broader cheeks, her lips. "Well. I suppose I never much liked the old one anyway," she says, and attempts a smile.
"I think I'll rather enjoy it," the Doctress notes, experimenting with her new face's expressions. "But you should leave. Her Renewed Majesty would be incandescent if she learned one of her prized hostages had escaped its silvered cage." Then it is time to part. The Doctress returns to the procession, and you lead the sister on. The Governess' hidden tunnels wind behind the grand chambers and beneath the hour-looms. You pass cells, and shelves of records. Sometimes you hear voices, and hide until they pass. Eventually, you find your way to an exterior gantry from where you can see your engine in the sidings at the Parlour. Using a stolen lamp, you flash a signal until your crew comes to collect you. | |||||||
Links[]
Links In[]
The Half-Light Masque: Evening
Links Out[]
Template:Navbox story events