Cassandra's Funeral

Streaks of sunbeams penetrate the mildly-dusty air of the church, streaming in from each eastward-facing window and opening. Outside, the city stirs and wakes with the dawning of the day. This place is deserted but for the few assembled for the funeral and a small group of nuns that Stinky had called in a favor from, partaking in a hymn. 

What little remains of Cassandra in this material plane has been meticulously, lovingly prepared by Stavroula's hand. A polished mahogany podium adorned with a gold-trimmed indigo runner has been placed at the front of the aisle where, under ordinary circumstances, a casket would be displayed.

The creamy white skull of the half-elf sits atop a luxuriously plush, black silk cushion. Myriad colors of dozens of delicate spring wildflowers stand out against the dark, strewn about the plinth. A sweet but cloyingly heavy fragrance emanates from the skull where the satyr has anointed it with oils and perfume. Tongues of incense smoke wafting heavenward from a censer placed behind it dance lazily in the air, curling, twisting, dissipating. Briefly beautiful, then gone.

Stinky stands beside the altar with arms folded behind her back, unmoving and expressionless but for the occasional slow blink. The small choir assembled behind her at the apse completes the Infernal hymn, the final note resonating to silence. The quiet that follows is immense. Each small breath and movement seems magnified as the satyr allows the ponderous silence to linger and settle. When she at last crosses to the pulpit, the steady click of her hooves reverberates throughout the transept.

"Thank you all for being here... Y-you can be sea- yes, please sit now... uhm..." For all that she'd prepared otherwise, the hesitance in her voice betrays she's not sure how to deliver this eulogy. She clears her throat. "Ahem... We're gathered here today to give Miss Cassandra her overdue funeral and lay her to rest, in accordance with the canon rites."

"We... Don't know Cassandra, or who she was. But, if she managed to see the good in Mister Zilch and earn his love, she must have been a very special person." There�s a long pause and she lets out a sigh before continuing, �Cassandra died before her time in a forsaken place far from her home. She reached out into the dark, fell in love with a cursed man, and paid the price.� She glances at the three in attendance in the front pew. "Uhmm, before I start, do any of you want to... say anything?"

The remainder of the modest impromptu mass passes quickly, barely lasting another five minutes. The satyr switches from speaking in common and launches into rapid-fire, fluent Infernal. There is no book or parchment on the lectern before her and it appears these recitations are entirely from memory. Every once in a while, there's a lapse in the delivery and the assembled choir dutifully speaks the intended refrain.

"Mortem vero, verum morte."

The requiem is complete and Stinky steps down off the pulpit, kicking up a folding mechanism at the base - a pull-down step for shorter races to be able to reach the lectern. The members of the choir disperse as she makes her way to the altar and disappears behind it for a few moments. When she stands up and into view again, she's saddled up with her pack and shield on her back and is carrying a black satchel.

She steps off the elevated level of the sanctuary and carefully places the skull into the bag, slinging it over her head and wearing it cross-body. At this distance, the gnome, kobold and goblin can appreciate the lavish appearance of the article. Made of black crushed velvet and embroidered with gold thread, its ornate construction suggests its specific purpose is for the transportation of remains like this to their final resting place, though it would normally be used to carry urns, not skulls.

"I'm going to Fenside! Right now!" Stinky announces, "I cooooooould bury her here... buuuut... I feel like she should be buried in her hometown, so I'm taking her to the Temple of the Pantheon. I don't know how long I'll decide to stay in Fenside, but I'll be back before the week is over, so we can go to our next mission in Aresgate. Do any of you wanna come with?"