With the passageway before them starting to widen, an ominous feeling crept over the group as a faint off-beat rhythmic sound caused their heartbeats to quicken. A large, cavernous space soon opened up before them, revealing an enormous open chamber stretching both above and below them. A thin walkway looped around the outer wall of the chamber, heading in all directions with dozens, if not hundreds, of openings in the wall leading off into the network of tunnels that Fellaroth had described earlier.
Standing at the edge of the walkway before them, Calvin looked down and saw that the bottom of the chamber was no more than a few storeys below them, while looking up showed that this large open space led almost to the top of the mountain. It was a wonder to Calvin that this mountain was even able to stand, considering that it was almost completely hollow. In the middle of the opening before them, Calvin noticed a colossal crystal, almost five times the size of a man, that glowed with a dim yellow light, seeming to pulsate with the same off-beat rhythm as the strange, barely audible sound that had them all on edge. Around the crystal was a large iron band that was held in place by a thick iron chain that stretched up and seemed to vanish, almost as though tethering this crystal in place from another, unseen world.
“You said that there was an evil presence here that we needed to be wary of, Fell?” asked Calvin in a hushed tone. “What kind of evil is this? Everything about this place feels evil. It’s as though this entire mountain has been somehow tainted!”
“I’m not sure what this presence is, Calvin.” Answered Fellaroth. “All I do know is that it is ancient, powerful, and doesn’t want us here.”
Stepping forward, Riegert scanned the space before them, looking all around as he assessed the situation. “Well, let's face it. We knew coming in here that whatever had taken the people of Cruwshant would not be looking to offer us a warm welcome, so that part is not unexpected. But what of this strange noise that’s filling the air, what is that Fellaroth?”
“I’m not familiar with it. It seems to be a voice chanting something in a language that I don’t know. The slow pace at which it’s chanting makes me think that it’s performing a ritual of some kind. Which would make sense, considering we are searching for abducted people.”
“How can you say that so calmly, Fell?” asked Jackson, as he too stepped forward and peered down toward the bottom of the chamber. “You speak as though the lives of those abducted people are not currently in danger. We need to locate them now and get them out of this place!”
Placing a firm hand on Jackson’s shoulder, Fellaroth spoke softly yet firmly. “Do not mistake my calmness for callousness, Jackson. The lives of these people are the reason we have come down here, however, it will do them no good for us to rush headlong into a situation that we don’t understand and lose our own lives in the process. We will likely find the people at the bottommost level of this chamber. What is concerning me is that I cannot perceive what lies at the bottom. I might be able to see the ground below us, but there doesn’t appear to be anything there. I believe there is some kind of illusion in place that is meant to mislead us, causing us to wander off into the tunnel network and get lost or even ambushed.”
“Well, it's not a very good one!” interjected Calvin. “If they wanted us to change our course and go looking elsewhere for the missing people, then surely they should have hidden that massive crystal in the centre of the space?”
“Not necessarily, Calvin.” Answered Fellaroth. “Most people, adventurers in particular, tend to perceive the world in terms of their five main senses. If you can confuse or mislead those senses, you will most likely be successful in throwing people off. In this case, our eyes are telling us that we can see every inch of the ground below us, and there is nothing to be seen down there. Furthermore, the constant drone of that chant is serving two functions. One, it is being used to cast some sort of spell or perform some kind of ritual. Two, it is putting us on edge, causing us to lose focus and potentially make bad choices. In this way, had an ordinary group of adventurers wandered across this place, they would most likely have chosen to start to explore the other passages around here in search of the missing people. That being said, I can assure you that the people we are looking for are right down there. Unfortunately, I can also guarantee that whatever is responsible for that chanting is also down there, and whatever it is, I doubt it will be a pushover.”
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“In that case, what is our best course of action here?” asked Riegert. “I’m afraid to say this, but I’m at a complete loss here. No matter which way I look at this situation, I can see no way forward that will give us the advantage. There doesn’t appear to be any way for us to approach the bottom undetected.”
“That’s because there isn’t one, Riegert.” Answered Fellaroth. “Whatever we’re up against here is highly intelligent. It chose this place because it knew the layout and knew that it would be able to maintain the advantage at all times. Our only choice here is to proceed with caution and hope that this being is arrogant enough to allow us to approach unchallenged.”
Stepping aside, Riegert gestured with his sword in hand for Fellaroth to pass and lead the way. With a slight incline of his head, Fellaroth accepted the position and made his way along the walkway with the others following closely behind. Though the walkway before them was wide enough to accommodate the party walking two abreast, they opted instead to follow in single file, with Riegert following a few paces behind Fellaroth, Calvin following him, and Jackson bringing up the rear with his favourite axe ready to strike down anything that might come up from behind them.
With his unextended spear in hand, Fellaroth took a moment’s pause at the opening to each diverging tunnel, assessing if it was safe for them to proceed, before continuing toward their goal. Slowly but surely, the bottommost level of the chamber was approaching with no signs of interference from either the presence below or any other entity or creature that might be hiding within the tunnels they passed. A growing sense of unease began to consume the group as the rhythmic chanting began to grow louder and more menacing with every passing step. Soon, the chanting had taken on a deep foreboding tone that seemed to echo within their minds, causing Calvin to lose sight of his path and step off the side of the walkway. In an instant, Calvin felt the world vanish from beneath him as he began to plummet toward the ground below. Before he had the chance to scream or react, he felt his momentum suddenly halt as the collar of his jacket drew tight. Looking up, he saw that Jackson had managed to grab onto him just in time and was actively pulling him back onto the walkway.
“Thanks, Jackson, I owe you one!” he stuttered once his feet were firmly planted on solid ground again.
“Think nothing of it.” Answered Jackson, looking forward to see Riegert and Fellaroth give a nod of approval before continuing. It wasn’t long before the group had come to a halt yet again, but this time it was because Fellaroth had paused and appeared to the others to be deep in thought.
“Is everything alright?” asked Riegert.
“Can you see it?” asked Fellaroth.
“See what?” asked Calvin.
“The barrier!” answered Fellaroth. “It's right in front of us!” he added, gingerly reaching out his left hand until it made contact with an invisible wall that seemed to ripple at his touch.
“Now I can see it, but how in the world did you ever see it? It was completely invisible until a moment ago!” asked Calvin.
“I’m a mage, Calvin, my eyes are trained to see things that would elude the average person.” Answered Fellaroth. “Once we cross this barrier, I suspect everything is going to change. I think we will finally see the truth of what is happening here, and we may not like what we see!”
“Why would you say such a thing, Fellaroth?” asked Riegert.
“Do you really think that someone would go through all of this effort if what they were doing was going to be kind or acceptable? What we are about to see might just turn your stomach, but I urge you to steel your nerve and strengthen your resolve, remember what we are here for and do not lose your focus!”
