The taut bell rope jerks once more. Mortar bursts behind the iron frame, and a narrow niche yawns open in the chapel wall.
A preserved man crawls from the darkness in ancient vestments. His skin is parchment-dry, but his eyes track Malrec Voss with startling clarity. A ritual knife rests in his hand, its blade marked with fresh blood.
Brother Caldus
Do not mistake the knife for a threat, priest. It is the only reason I am still myself.
The stranger braces himself against the bell frame. Above him, the great iron bell shudders without being struck, answering some unseen pull in the rope.
Brother Caldus
I am Brother Caldus. The Briar Sisters buried me beneath this chapel when I refused their harvest.
Brother Caldus
They did not bury the witness with me. The living witness is already inside this bell chamber, and the next stroke will give it a voice.
✓ Quest Accepted
Protect the living witness
“Call upon Asmodeus for guidance”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled +0)
The ashwood charm burns cold beside the bell frame. Crimson light gathers along its grain, then pours upward into the silent bell.
The bell does not ring. Instead, its shadow falls across the stones and forms a narrow sigil pointing beneath the eastern flagstones.
Asmodeus
The witness is beneath the stone marked by the seventh crack. Claim the living tongue before the Sisters claim its voice.
The seventh crack flares black-red. A slab sinks into the floor, exposing a cramped hollow and a living figure bound within its roots.
Brother Caldus
There! The witness still breathes.
Caldus drops to one knee and cuts through the nearest root with his ritual knife. The living witness recoils into his reach as the chapel bells begin to strain above them.
From beyond the chamber, the Briar Sisters speak in one layered whisper. The exposed witness answers with a terrified gasp, and every loose stone trembles toward the stair.
“I shield Caldus and the witness from the stones”
SUCCESS (Good Strength, rolled +0)
Malrec Voss steps between the hollow and the stair, raising his shield as the first stones break loose.
The stones hammer against the infernal sigil. Malrec Voss holds firm, turning the cascade aside from Caldus and the living witness.
Brother Caldus
The witness is sheltered. Keep that shield raised.
Caldus uses the opening to sever another root. The living witness pulls free to the edge of the hollow, still caught by roots at the wrists and ankles.
Living Witness
Please, do not let them take my voice.
The stones settle around Malrec Voss's boots. Behind him, the ashwood charm burns cold beside the bell frame while the layered whisper presses through the stairwell.
Brother Caldus
The Sisters know the witness is protected. They are asking which name should answer the bell.
Free the living witness
Quest Complete
Protect the living witness
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Superb→Legendary