Thadeus concentrates, and Peacebringer reshapes in his hand, its blue glow narrowing into the precise teeth of a skeleton key.
He fits the key into the basin’s impression and turns it. A deep mechanism rumbles beneath their feet as the garden stones begin separating.
Elias
Step back. Whatever William built here, it was never meant to open quietly.
Thadeus and Elias retreat as the circular basin drops into darkness. Surrounding stones fold apart, revealing a broad stairwell descending beneath the maze toward Castle Proserpina.
Cold air surges upward, carrying damp earth, old stone, and a distant metallic scent. The newly exposed steps vanish below the garden’s weak gray light.
the woman’s voice
Elizabeth... Elizabeth, come home.
Heavy movement echoes from below, one measured impact after another. Elias raises the consecrated-water vial, staring into the stairwell as the unseen presence climbs.
✓ Quest Accepted
Enter Castle Proserpina proper
“Thadeus looks at Elias, "Are you ready? I didn't see you bring anything to use other than the holy water." Elias grins, "I had a feeling of what we were going to be up against, so I brought some extra support." Elias pulls out his Holy Cross, a specially made holy weapon that functions like a boomerang. Thadeus smirks, "Good, let's get to it." Thadeus and Elias carefully walk their way down the stairwell, surrounded by a vast chasm that seems to go down forever. At the base of the stairwell is a stone bridge, and on the other side of the bridge is an underground entrance to the castle above them, Proserpina.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Agility, rolled +0)
Thadeus Jovanović
Are you ready? I did not see you bring anything to use other than the holy water.
Elias
I had a feeling about what we were going to face, so I brought some extra support.
Elias grins and draws a specially made Holy Cross from inside his coat. Its polished metal catches the blue light, shaped for throwing and returning like a boomerang.
Thadeus Jovanović
Good. Let’s get to it.
Thadeus and Elias descend carefully, the stairwell narrowing above a vast chasm whose depths disappear into blackness. Their footsteps echo beneath the maze and castle.
At the bottom, the stairs meet a stone bridge spanning the abyss. They cross together, Elias keeping the holy water ready while the Holy Cross rests in his other hand.
The bridge carries them safely to the far side, where an underground entrance opens into Castle Proserpina. Cold air breathes from within as the castle waits above and ahead.
✓ Quest Accepted
Protect Elizabeth from the answering presence
“Thadeus focuses his energy, transforming Peacebringer to its original form. Thadeus and Elias are close enough to the entrance to see two large metal doors with iron spikes protruding from them. On each side of the door stands a blackened skeleton, appearing to patrol the entrance, seeing with eyes that are no longer there. Thadeus and Elias hide behind a broken piece of wall before the reanimated skeletons notice their presence.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Agility, rolled +0)
Thadeus focuses his energy, and Peacebringer lengthens into its original chain whip form. Its blue glow ripples across the underground entrance and the broken masonry.
Two immense metal doors stand ahead, iron spikes jutting from their surfaces. Blackened skeletons patrol on either side, empty sockets turning toward every sound.
Elias
Keep low. They cannot see, but they may hear us.
Thadeus and Elias move behind a collapsed section of wall before the skeletons notice them. Dust settles over their shoulders as the patrol passes.
Elias
Those doors are guarding something important. We need to understand their pattern before crossing the entrance.
The skeletons halt beneath the spiked doors, their exposed jaws clicking softly. Beyond them, Castle Proserpina’s darkness presses against the sealed entrance.
“Thinking quickly, Elias takes out his Holy Cross, and throws it towards the skeletons. Before they can react, the cross flies cleanly through both of their necks, dropping their skulls to the ground, causing the rest of their bodies to fall in a heap of bones”
SUCCESS (Legendary Agility, rolled +0)
Elias steps from behind the collapsed wall and hurls the Holy Cross. It spins through the torchlit air, striking both skeletons cleanly at the neck.
The two skulls tumble across the stone while their bodies collapse into heaps of clattering bones. The cross arcs back toward Elias’s waiting hand.
Elias
That should keep them quiet. For the moment.
Elias catches the Holy Cross and lowers it, listening. No other patrol answers the disturbance, and the spiked doors remain shut beneath the castle’s oppressive darkness.
Elias
The entrance is clear, but something inside expected guards like these.
Thadeus and Elias emerge from cover and approach the doors, stepping over scattered bones. Cold air leaks through the seam, carrying a faint metallic scent.
Together they stand before Castle Proserpina’s sealed entrance. Peacebringer’s blue light reflects from the iron spikes as the darkness beyond waits without moving.
+ New Item Acquired
Holy Cross
“As Thadeus and Elias step near the entrance, the door open towards them, showing a dark hallway, filled with large arching windows on the eastern wall of the hallway, each window 15 feet high, with old oak tables in front of each window. The floor is an ancient, yet pristine, marble. Covering the middle of the floor is a blood-red carpet that runs the length of the hallway. As they pass through the door, they hear rattling behind them, as the skeletons retake their shape and stand up. Before the skeletons can approach, however, the iron doors close, locking Thadeus and Elias inside Castle Proserpina proper.”
SUCCESS (Good Perception, rolled -2)
As Thadeus and Elias approach, the iron doors swing inward without a touch. Beyond lies a dark hallway lined with fifteen-foot arched windows and old oak tables.
Ancient marble stretches beneath their feet, pristine despite the castle’s age. A blood-red carpet runs down the hallway’s center, disappearing into shadow.
Elias
The doors opened for us. Keep your eyes on the windows and the tables. A place this preserved is never empty by accident.
Thadeus and Elias cross the threshold and proceed into Castle Proserpina proper. Their footsteps strike the marble sharply, the sound carrying through the long hall.
Behind them, bones rattle across the entrance floor. The scattered skeletons pull themselves together, joints locking as the patrol rises once more.
Before the skeletons can reach the threshold, the iron doors slam shut with a thunderous crash. The locking mechanism grinds into place, sealing Thadeus and Elias inside.
Elias
We are in. The cost is subtlety. Whatever lives in this castle now knows exactly where we entered.
Quest Complete
Enter Castle Proserpina proper
Skill Upgrade: Athletics Good→Great