Prior Silas hauls Timothy to the altar niche and drives the chain taut. The violet rod jitters over the wall, painting old mortar in sharp light.
Prior Silas
There. Pry at those stones. If the mark is true, the way lies behind them.
Timothy plants both hands against the dust-caked blocks. The stones are cold, heavy, and crusted with age.
Timothy
The mortar is cracked at the edges.
He works one corner loose. Dust spills in a grey sheet, and a deeper gap breathes out from behind the wall.
Prior Silas
Yes, keep at it. Do not stop now.
With a hard shove, Timothy shifts the top stone. It grinds sideways, opening a narrow slit into the darkness beyond the niche.
+ Scene Quest Added
Open the way behind the altar niche
“If I don't initially succeed in pushing the stones aside, will Prior Silas punish me to make me try harder to achieve his aims?”
YES (VeryLikely, rolled 84)
Prior Silas
The void hungers, boy. If your hands fail to yield the path, I shall ensure your flesh finds the motivation to succeed.
Timothy
He is not merely impatient. He is waiting for me to falter so he can justify the lash.
Silas traces the edge of the violet rod against Timothy's shoulder, his eyes fixed on the dark gap with a cold, calculating hunger.
“Is Silas planning to hurt me again?”
YES (VeryLikely, rolled 71)
Prior Silas
Do not mistake my patience for mercy, Timothy. Once the stone is moved and the path is clear, your utility ends, and the debt of your insolence must be paid in full.
Timothy
He has no intention of letting me walk away from this, regardless of how well I serve him.
“I help move the stone at the altar niche”
FAILURE (Terrible Strength, rolled +1)
Timothy sets his shoulder to the stone and heaves. The block shifts a finger's breadth, then grinds hard against something wedged behind it.
Dust spills from the seam. Beneath the first stone, a second edge appears, cut flatter than the wall around it, too regular to be chance.
Prior Silas
There. It is fitted. Do not force the wrong edge, boy.
Silas lifts the violet rod higher, and the light catches a line of old mortar packed deep in the niche, hiding a narrow seam.
Timothy
The block is not loose stone. It is a fitted face, sealed over.
Prior Silas
Feel along the join. Find the seam, or make room for my patience to run out.
Timothy's fingers hit the edge of a recessed iron ring, half-buried in grit, while Silas watches the gap with sharp, hungry focus.
“I find the seam beside the ring, and quickly open the passage so that Prior Silas can go through. I congratulate him on his wisdom, and I remind him that he must punish me thoroughly as soon as possible.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled -2)
Timothy hooks two fingers into the ring and tests it once, then twice. The fitted face gives with a dry scrape, and the seam beside it loosens into a narrow crack.
He works the edge free in a quick, careful twist. The hidden stone swings inward, opening a dark passage behind the altar niche.
Prior Silas
Wise work. You see what others miss, Timothy.
Silas leans close to the opening, the violet rod lowered now, his gaze bright with appetite and admiration.
Timothy
Your judgment brought me here, Prior. Punish me fully, when you are ready.
Prior Silas
Soon. First, I must know what waits beneath this stone.
Dust drifts from the opened wall. Silas pauses at the threshold, studying Timothy as if weighing value and obedience alike.
Quest Complete
Open the way behind the altar niche
Attribute Upgrade: Strength Terrible→Poor