Anna Krezkova

Standing at around 5 and a half foot, Anna is not the most imposing woman, but makes up for it with fierce determination and protection of her son, **Ilya**. He knows the burden that rests on her husband’s shoulders and does her best to help how she can, taking on many tasks and duties that once fell singularly on the Burgomaster’s shoulders.

### Her Story So Far

She first met the party in their home, as her husband **Dmitri** brought them in the hopes that they might help cure their son. After letting them in, she watched on as **Bendrick** tried and failed to heal her son. Afterwards, she joined her husband in imploring the party to go to **The Abbot** and ask if he could heal him.

When the party returned, they found **Anna** delivering a woman’s baby. Upon a successful delivery, it was revealed that the baby had no soul, and was therefore likely destined for a life of the drab and dreary. **Anna** also requested to know what **The Abbot** had requested for in exchange for healing her son, learning that the party would need a wedding dress for it to occur. Unfortunately, hers was old and worn, and likely wouldn’t be suitable for **The Abbot**. She along with **Dmitri** requested the party to travel to **Vallaki** to find one.

In the morning after the party had rested, **Anna** turned up at the door, saying that she’d accompany them to **Vallaki** as she knew the way, the people and could hopefully help with finding a dress. However, it was clear during the travel that she had some grudges against **Ezmerelda** who also accompanied them, with **Anna** saying that she was ‘sly and untrustworthy’ whilst \*Ezmerelda\*described **Anna** as ‘stuck up’. It got to a point where the two argued for minutes over whether to go north or south at a fork, with **Ezmerelda** giving in unwillingly. However, during the battle on the bridge, **Ezmerelda** defended **Anna** from the giant spiders, seemingly earing the Baroness’s grudging respect.

As they continued to head down the road to **Vallaki**, Anna hid in the underbrush with the party from **Rahadin** who was heading in the opposite direction, before presenting herself at the gates of **Vallaki**. Having papers and being known as the Baroness, she was let in quite quickly, before being recommended to go see **Baron Vargas**. When the party visited shortly after, she joined them in asking **Vargas** and **Lydia** for a wedding dress to bring to **The Abbot**. After understanding that information was required in return, she asked the party to further assist. However, she was suspiciously absent in the most recent visit to the **Baron’s** Mansion.

The next time the party saw **Anna** was in the back of **Vasili’s** merchant cart, where she explained to the party that she’d been taking a tour of the town during their last visit to see **The Baron**. Shortly after she’d heard the crashes of carts and whinnying of horses, **Vasili** appeared below her window, and informed her that she must hurry with him if they wanted to reach the party in time. Managing to get down the stairs, she got in his cart where they travelled towards the west gates of **Vallaki**, stopping in a street between them and **The Reformation Centre**. Fortunately, **Vasili** spotted the party, and after he explained to them the situation, they got in the back of the cart alongside her. After the showing her the wedding dress that they head, she was extremely thankful, saying that she would do what she could to help them as soon as her son was well.

After reaching the gates, **Anna** was saddened that **Vasili** did not want to accompany them, but understood his reasonings. When making the plan of how to get out, she reluctantly agreed to be a distraction, going over to the guard at the gate to ask if there was any way she could leave the town, whilst the party snuck into a nearby guard tower. Following them once she knew the coast was clear, she abseiled down the tower graciously using the rope that **Táriel** had provided. As they made their way across the road away from **Vallaki**, **Anna** was surprisingly supportive of the party going to find **Ezmerelda** at the **Vistani** camp, saying that she was a strong ally and that she was beginning to trust her.

Following the party to the **Vistani** camp south-west of **Vallaki**, **Anna** stayed mostly back whist **Ezmerelda** introduced the party to **Kasimir** and asked the leaders of the **Vistani** if they could stay. However, she was happy to see **Ezmerelda** safe. As the party sat around the fire, resting before they continued to **Krezk**, **Táriel** asked **Anna** why they hadn’t seen her much in **Vallaki**. **Anna** responded with the truth, that she had been escorted around **Vallaki** by a small group of guards at the **Baron’s** insistence. She also told the party of how she visited the church and met **Father Lucian Petrovich**, who told her some bones had been stolen, which seemed to worry **Ezmerelda** and **Bendrick** greatly.

On the return journey home, when they were beset upon by **Rahadin**, **Anna** stayed back, occasionally providing support to **Táriel**. However, when **Yhorm** came over to assist his elven friend, she ran over to **Bendrick** just as he got stabbed by a wight and fell unconscious. Risking getting a sword stabbed in her as well, she dragged **Bendrick** away from the the wight, managing to stabilise him as **Arc** defended her from the wight. It was only after the battle that she realised **Ezmerelda** had run off. As they continued to head back, she stopped with the party at **Jenny Greenteeth’s** enchantments, where she observed the party barter to for goods. At the crossroads, she was adamant that the party come with her back to **Krezk**, instead of looking for **Ezmerelda**. She was appreciative that they did so, and happy to see that **Bendrick** nonetheless left a clue for **Ezmerelda** in cause she headed back that way.

Upon returning to **Krezk**, **Anna** was visibly stricken to find that **Rahadin** had attacked whist she had been gone, injuring her **husband**. She was happy to see him alive however, and consoled him as they returned to their home. After the party helped **Ilya** onto the cart, she thanked them for helping her as they did, and promised that she would have a reward for them when she was that, particularly something for **Táriel**.

Upon seeing them return, **Anna** was true to her word. She gave the party 15 gold pieces each, and taking **Táriel** aside, presented her a link for the necklace, saying it had been left behind by a small wizard, who referred to it as ‘his last resort’. Taking the white gold link, **Táriel** thanked **Anna**, as she bid the party farewell.