G A R D E N - C A V E
The fourth reliquary opened with a long, pitchy creak. It's hinges were strangers to use. As soon as Alice removed her hand from the door, it fell off of the case in a single, clean motion. What had started out as a quick peek instead revealed the contents of the reliquary to anyone standing in or near the cave.
The case contained three clean, well-maintained items: a small, emerald knife, a pocket watch, and a small glass vial containing a single drop of water. The knife was hot to touch, despite the coolness of its case. The pocket watch appeared to be broken; it ticked backwards, repeating the same few seconds over and over. Other than this peculiarity, the timepiece seemed relatively unremarkable; despite its grand reliquary, the watch itself was undecorated, plain, and silver. The glass vial appeared to be equally 'normal', if any of the Returned still knew what 'normal' was. The droplet was held in place by a small cork stopper which twitched whenever it was touched. It was almost as if the stopped wished to be removed, or if the drop of water wanted to get out.
The stones appeared to be just that: white stones. The did not appear to be magical, or particularly old, or particularly interesting in any way. They were, however, intentionally arranged. The three stone circles were identical in size and shape. The size of the circles seemed to match the size of the small, bone crowns Alice had found within the reliquaries.
The statue nearest to Jeff seemed particularly... strange. The more he inspected it, the more interesting it became. Perhaps he had started inspecting in the hopes of working out who it depicted, or what its purpose might have been. But his mind soon started to wander. He found himself marveling at its construction, its beauty, its design. The statue was incredible. Indescribable. Hypnotic. He couldn't help but touch its hand. He couldn't help himself. For a moment, he wasn't himself. He just... had... to... hold her hand...
An electric shock. Pain flooded the boy's system. His legs buckled, and he fell to his knees, his trance broken. By the time he came to his senses, the garden had changed. The statue he had been inspecting had moved. She was no longer content to hide in the garden's corner covering its face. She now stood proud and tall, looming over the three gravestones in the center of the garden, her arms stretched wide. In one hand, the statue now held a long, marble spear. In her other hand, she held a shield in the shape of Jeff's screaming face.
@Takumi @Capri @Lucky @Jeremi @Yun Lee
U P S T A I R S
A long hallway stretched out from the top of the staircase, connecting one side of the castle to the other. A dusty, velvet carpet ran the length of hall, with golden tassels marking its start and send. The hall's stone walls war marked with a series of grand, golden paintings and idols. Each clearly depicted the Goddess tending to her followers. In one, the Goddess, depicted as a glowing, emerald giant, plucked the sun from the sky to grant her subjects fire. In another, she bled onto a field of wheat, bestowing upon her followers the gifts of food, water, and land. In another, she sat upon a great emerald throne, bestowing 'grace' upon four of her most trusted companions. Their identities were impossible to determine; their faces, like the face of the Goddess, had been burned or scraped from each and every painting.
Before Valkyrie could pick one of the many rooms that lined the hallway, however, she felt a sudden, cold wave wash over her. She felt a shiver run down her spine. Her breath turned to fold, and her hairs stoop up on their ends. The color seemed to drain from the room.
"Leave this place..." A voice wheezed. "Go. Begone."
@Jeremi
T O M B
Beau's punches never connected the the Tomb's grand inner door. All it took was her balling her fist and drawing it back for the door the rumble to life. With a mighty boom, they swung open with startling speed, as if they were attempting to 'doge' the monk's attack. Roman's instincts were spot on. It was as if the door was waiting for them. The door was almost... excited by the presence.
Behind the door, a long corridor stretched. Its domed ceiling was held aloft by a series of grand marble pillars. Each one was smooth and undecorated. In fact, the whole chamber lacked the Goddess' typical gaudy excess. Everything was sheer, plain, and cold. In the near distance- about 400 meters down the hall- a woman in a white gown knelt before another set of grand doors. These doors were propped slightly open by the foot of another figure. Open hearing the first set of doors open, the woman stumbled to her feet clutching her side. Nervous, and perhaps afraid, she scrambled towards the second set of doors. Before the Returned could react, the woman, now cast in a warm, emerald glow, was desperately pulling the heavy doors in a futile attempt to close them behind her.
@Takumi @Capri @Lucky
