The crack overhead widens with a grinding roar. Stones drop around the sealed reliquary chest, striking sparks from the crypt floor as dust swallows the lantern light.
The Nurse
Zathuric Survivor! Are you still below us?
Above the broken floor, the Nurse catches herself against the altar remains. The Wounded Survivor keeps the newborn close while rubble spills between them and the crypt.
The Wounded Survivor
The passage opened behind the altar. There may be a way out, but the mouth is blocked.
Behind the crypt's altar, shifting masonry reveals a narrow maintenance passage. Its entrance is choked with broken stone, leaving only a dark seam beyond the rubble.
The Nurse
Can you reach it? We cannot stay here if this ceiling comes down.
The chest remains within Zathuric Survivor's reach, and his knife lies close at hand. Another deep groan travels through the vault as loose stones tumble between him and the others.
✓ Quest Accepted
Open a way out for the survivors
✓ Quest Accepted
Bring the nurse, wounded survivor, and newborn to safety
“I clear the rubble from the maintenance passage with my knife.”
SUCCESS (Great Strength, rolled -1)
Zathuric Survivor drops to one knee at the maintenance passage and drives his knife beneath the broken stones. He pries and scrapes, clearing a handhold at a time.
The blade catches hard against masonry, jolting through his wrist. A sharp crack echoes through the crypt as a loosened slab breaks free and tumbles aside.
Dust floods the lantern glow. Zathuric Survivor keeps working until the last rubble falls away, leaving the narrow passage open enough for a person to enter.
The knife edge is visibly chipped, and his palm bears a shallow scrape from the shifting stone. Behind him, the sealed chest remains steady beneath the trembling vault.
The Nurse
You opened it. Can we get through?
A stale draft moves from the passage, carrying the smell of damp earth and old dust. Above, rubble shifts again, louder now, and the Nurse tightens her hold on the newborn.
The Wounded Survivor
I can follow. Show us the way before the ceiling comes down.
Quest Complete
Open a way out for the survivors
“Does this passage lead outside the crypt?”
YES, AND MORE (Likely, rolled 2)
The stale draft strengthens through the opening, carrying cold night air and the distant rasp of undead outside. Beyond the passage, a service stair slopes upward toward a concealed cellar hatch.
The Nurse
Outside, then. Keep moving. I will bring the child behind you.
A faint strip of moonlight shows beneath the hatch above. Beside the stair, an old handcart stands intact, its wheels aligned with the passage and broad enough to carry the wounded survivor.
The Wounded Survivor
That cart can take me. I can hold the baby while we move.
From the crypt behind them comes a heavy impact, followed by stones grinding loose. The lantern flame gutters as dust rolls through the opened passage.
The Nurse
The hatch may be watched. Listen before you lift it.
The passage has an exit, and the hatch opens toward the night.
“I position the handcart as cover”
FAILURE (Great Strength, rolled -2)
“I position the handcart as cover”
SUCCESS (Great Strength, rolled +3)
Zathuric Survivor grips the handcart and rolls it up the service stair, setting its broad wooden bed beneath the hatch as a shield. Its wheels lock against the wall.
The cart now covers the stair mouth and leaves a narrow protected gap for lifting the hatch. Its iron frame also reaches the hatch brace, ready to hold it open.
The Nurse
Good. That gives us cover and keeps the passage behind us clear.
The Nurse settles the newborn against her chest while the Wounded Survivor lowers themself carefully onto the cart. The wheels hold firm despite the trembling stone.
The Wounded Survivor
I can stay low behind it. Tell me when the hatch is clear.
Through the protected gap, moonlight outlines the hatch seams. No shadows cross the strip of ground beyond, and cold air enters without carrying a fresh moan.
The Nurse
We have a clean look outside. When you lift it, we move together.
“I lift the hatch and lead everyone outside”
SUCCESS (Great Strength, rolled +1)
Zathuric Survivor braces beneath the hatch and lifts. The hinges groan, then the wooden cover rises against the cart’s iron frame, opening onto cold moonlight and open ground.
He climbs through first, scanning the churchyard. Frosted grass, a collapsed stone wall, and dark trees surround the concealed cellar exit; no immediate movement crosses the clearing.
The Nurse
Clear?
The Nurse follows with the newborn held close, then reaches down as the Wounded Survivor steadies themself on the cart and climbs into the night.
The Wounded Survivor
I am out. Keep the cart close, in case I need it again.
Zathuric Survivor leads them away from the hatch, guiding the cart over uneven ground while the church groans behind them. The crypt entrance remains hidden beneath the raised cover.
The Nurse
There is a shed beyond that wall. If it is sound, we can shelter there and tend to the child.
Get the survivors under cover
+ New Item Acquired
Handcart