The three silver marks complete themselves with a cold flash. A narrow recess opens beneath the statue’s jaw, revealing a black relic wrapped in dust-dried skin as the witness-stone pulses against Nick’s scraped palm.
Sahir Vey
Forward! Tear him away from the stone before the dead god names him its servant.
The raiders advance through blowing dust, blades raised. Behind them, the caravan folk remain locked together beside the wagons, while the bound prisoner stays bound where Nick left her.
The Bound Prisoner
Nick, do not let Sahir choose the moment. If that thing speaks, listen before you touch it.
The relic shifts inside its ancient wrapping without a hand upon it. A thin whisper leaks from the recess, dry as stone dragged across stone, and the witness-stone answers with a hard silver pulse.
The Relic's Whisper
The hand that removes me bears judgment beneath the buried crown. Truth opens the tomb, but truth will not spare the liar.
Sahir’s raiders close to striking distance, yet the whisper leaves them faltering. Dust streams toward the vizier again, and the black relic waits within the open recess.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure the black relic for examination
“All I listen to is a bunch of greedy bandits whom cannot speak any truth thus they dont get the reward of this tomb”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Oratory, rolled +2)
Nick
I listen only to greedy bandits who cannot speak truth. They will receive none of this tomb’s reward.
Nick’s quiet judgment carries through the dust. The raiders hear it clearly, and the black relic’s wrapping tightens as if the tomb itself accepts the verdict.
Sahir Vey
Lies from a nameless trespasser. Take the relic, and let the stone prove whose voice deserves reward.
The nearest raiders reach toward the recess, but the witness-stone flashes. Their hands stop short, and the relic’s dry whisper rolls over them like a sealed decree.
The Relic's Whisper
No hand bearing falsehood shall claim what truth has opened. The reward belongs beyond their grasp.
The Bound Prisoner
You heard it, Sahir. Even your own men cannot carry your lie into the tomb.
The raiders recoil from the open recess. Dust seals around their boots while the black relic remains before Nick, untouched and claimed by the tomb’s judgment.
“I dont think you need a blood sacrifice to even get the relic inside this tomb I think you lied to your men just to try to get this relic”
FAILURE (Mediocre Oratory, rolled -1)
“I dont think you need a blood sacrifice to even get the relic inside this tomb I think you lied to your men just to try to get this relic”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Oratory, rolled +2)
Nick
I do not think blood is needed to bring the relic into this tomb. You lied to your men so you could claim it.
Nick’s accusation carries across the dust. The raiders turn toward their master, while the black relic remains untouched in its open recess and the witness-stone pulses beneath Nick’s palm.
Sahir Vey
Do not mistake suspicion for proof. The tomb demands a price, and I alone know what price will satisfy it.
The witness-stone flashes before his denial ends. Pale dust withdraws from the raiders’ boots and streams around the vizier’s jeweled hand, exposing the lie to every watching face.
The Relic's Whisper
False. No blood was named. The liar sought obedience, not entry.
The Bound Prisoner
There is your answer, Nick. He dressed greed in sacred words, and his own tomb has stripped them bare.
Vizier's Raiders
The vizier lied to us. Lower your blades. No one carries his relic for him.
“As i seize the relic after revealing the truth”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled -1)
Nick closes his hand around the black relic. The dust-dried wrapping gives way beneath his fingers, and the witness-stone releases his scraped palm without resistance.
The Relic's Whisper
The hand has chosen. Judgment follows the bearer, not the throne that coveted me.
The relic settles into Nick’s grasp, cold and weightless despite its dark casing. Silver light withdraws from the recess and gathers in a thin mark across his palm.
Sahir Vey
Put it down. You have no right to carry what belongs to the buried crown.
Sahir steps forward, but his raiders bar his path. Their blades lower toward the ground as dust abandons his robes and scatters across the tomb floor.
The Bound Prisoner
Keep hold of it, Nick. Now we learn whether the crown buried its truth, or only its hunger.
Behind the wagon line, the caravan folk remain united while the bound prisoner watches from her bonds. The black relic is Nick’s now, and the open recess stands empty before him.
Quest Complete
Secure the black relic for examination
Skill Upgrade: Oratory Mediocre→Fair
+ New Item Acquired
Black relic