Adventure of Kahrdoom 1

The drowned bell tower rises east of the standing stones, half-swallowed by a black marsh. Kahrdoom reaches its broken threshold as dawn pales the mist behind her.

Starlight Clearbottom follows across the soaked stones, bow in hand and silver hair veiled by rain. She has left the convoy behind, trusting her escort to hold Jaraxle at bay.

The black crystal's hidden-road map fades, but its warmth guides Kahrdoom through the flooded nave. Beneath fallen beams, a sealed stair disappears into dark water.

Among Kahrdoom's glittering trinkets, the black circular disk turns suddenly cold. Its surface opens into a silent ring of silver symbols, matching the crystal's inner casing.

The symbols identify both artifacts as property of the order that once guarded the relic. As the ring completes, pale script spreads across the sealed stair and the submerged stones begin to shift.

The silver ring answers the black crystal. From its turning symbols, an emerald earring extrudes, newly formed and cold, though no such jewel rested among Kahrdoom's trinkets.

Kahrdoom pulls the emerald from her eyebrow and places it on the flooded stones. Green fire spreads across the nave, and the sealed stair groans open.

Several silent servants, adult humans in lean, matching black uniforms with high collars, close-cropped dark hair, and narrow silver masks covering their mouths rise from the marsh-shadow, pale-faced figures in dark livery. They set down a polished table, arrange stools, and unfold five covered courses.

Steam and fragrant spice fill the drowned tower as the meal appears in order: soup, river fish, roast roots, sugared fruit, and a dark crystal wine.

The emerald earring dims to cloudy glass, its magic spent. One servant collapses into wet ash, while the others remain motionless beside the laden table.

Kahrdoom flashes Starlight an arrogant glance, one eyebrow raised above her sinister grin. Steam curls between them as the silent servants stand unmoving beside the feast.

Starlight lowers her bow and takes the nearest stool without releasing her vigilance. She studies the covered courses, the dark crystal wine, and the open stair beyond them.

The soup remains hot despite the marsh chill, fragrant with root herbs and pepper. Below the table, black water drains toward the stair, revealing worn steps descending into darkness.

The final spoonfuls vanish, and the crystal wine leaves only a dark sheen in the emptied cups. Dawn light strengthens beyond the broken tower walls.

Kahrdoom sets down her cup and lifts one hand. The emerald earring, now cloudy and spent, gives a faint answering flicker among her piercings.

At her dismissal, the table, stools, covered dishes, and crystal wine dissolve into threads of green fire. The silent masked servants bow once as their forms loosen into harmless ash and mist.

The flooded nave falls quiet. Only rain, dripping stone, and the slow drain of black water remain as the revealed stair waits beneath the tower.

Kahrdoom closes her fingers around the black crystal relic and enters the revealed stair. Its warmth draws her downward through the flooded stone, where each step lies beneath a skin of cold water.

She moves with practiced silence, placing each foot on the worn edges and keeping her trinkets from striking the walls. Behind her, Starlight follows, bow lowered but ready.

The relic's dark surface reveals a submerged arch ahead, marked with the same silver order symbols. Kahrdoom passes beneath it and reaches a dry chamber beyond the waterline.

Her passage succeeds without alerting whatever waits below, but a hidden hook catches one of the chains at her hip. The trinket tears free and drops into the stairwell with a muted chime.