“I assist the guard in escaping from the flooded cellars, making sure of his safety before I worry about myself.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Agility, rolled +1)
The floor groans, surrendering to the pressure of the rising mire. Timothy moves with fluid grace, darting beneath a sagging support beam as a jagged slab of stone drops from the ceiling. He reaches the heavy iron cell door, finding the guard, Harlen (ID:1), pinned by a fallen timber. With a desperate heave, Timothy leverages the beam, sliding Harlen free just as the water surges waist-high.
Timothy
Move, sir! Toward the stairs, quickly!
Harlen
The boy... he risks his life for a jailer?
Harlen
You fool, get out of here yourself! The weight is too much, I cannot make the climb!
Timothy
I have failed enough masters. I will not leave a soul to drown in this black rot while I have the strength to pull them to the light.
The ceiling shifts again, a massive crack splintering the stonework directly above Timothy's head, threatening to pin both of them in the rising sludge.
+ Scene Quest Added
Escape the collapsing chamber
“I use my oratory to persuade Harlen to escape first.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Oratory, rolled +2)
Timothy
Your life carries weight, Harlen. You have kin waiting beyond these walls who need you to be more than a martyr for a crumbling floor. Stand, use the iron rungs, and leave me to manage the climb!
Harlen
You speak as if you are the one holding the keys to the kingdom, boy. Very well, I will not let your sacrifice be for naught.
Timothy
He moves. His fear is yielding to duty, and that is all I needed to buy us these few seconds.
Harlen scrambles toward the wall, his boots splashing heavily as he reaches for the iron ladder. The ceiling shudders again, shedding a waterfall of loose shale and dust. Timothy watches the guard ascend, his own body braced against the tilting stone, muscles strained as he forces the path clear for one last desperate scramble upward. The black water swirls hungrily, threatening to claim his heels, but his path to the ladder is open.
Quest Complete
Escape the collapsing chamber