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Entry /
MirnasPalaceCaddrel A blast of light, a sudden rush of speed, and then silence. A long corridor stretches out in front of me, high ceilinged and composed entirely of stone. Along its side lights blink on and off slowly, casting a soft glow across the floor. The passage ends in a large chamber, shadows swirling along its walls, a huge fountain at its centre. Water pours slowly out, trickling down to the myriad of plants at its base. They look small, fragile, yet strangely alert. There is also the feeling that some of them are watching me. I start forward, keeping a close eye on the rather unsettling shrubbery. As I draw closer to the hall, three large gates come into view. Two are on opposite sides of the chamber, the third is partly hidden behind the fountain, and has a very ornate look to it. Sensing some sort of danger in the air, I slip quietly up against the wall on my left, and begin edging slowly towards the door nearest me, the stone at my back. A large statue blocks my path as I enter the chamber, previously hidden by the corner in the corridor. Glancing suspiciously around the hall, I run the last few metres to the gate, risking a nervous look behind me as I push my way into the room beyond. The scene that greets me is one of absolute chaos. What used to be some sort of laboratory has been overrun by all types of creatures, probably the former experiments. They are now either slithering, crawling or hopping around the room, snapping at anything that gets too close. Three large cages occupy the space at the opposite side of the room, their locks melted, no doubt by magic, the metallic taste of which still fills the room. The residue of it is causing the already strange animals to turn into things even more twisted. The only piece of furniture in the room is a table, which is unfortunately being eaten by a large frog with rabbit ears. Looking up, I see the book which no doubt rested on it flapping around somewhere near the ceiling. Seeing no other ways out of the room, I turn around to leave, jumping slightly as a snake with horns rushes past and takes a bite out of the wall. Carefully closing the door behind me, I pause to consider my next move. Seeing a small flicker of light come from the gate opposite, I skirt slowly around the fountain towards it. Arriving, I push the door open, and glance cautiously inside. Detecting nothing dangerous apart from the overpowering stench of charred fur, I slip quietly through. The room I enter seems to be some sort of kitchen. A cauldron rests in one corner, bubbling slowly over a large fire. A small ladle and a meat cleaver lie on the table next to it, and several large cloth sacks are nearby. The ceiling is lower here than in the rest of the building, and the air is much warmer, probably due to the fire. Walking over to the cauldron, I pick up the ladle and dip it slowly into the broth, testing a little. The mixture tastes strongly of chicken, but with a strangely sour aftertaste. After having a bowl of the strange mixture, I begin to inspect the rest of the room. Glancing at the table, I notice with some surprise a pile of several small tails lying next to the meat cleaver. On closer inspection, they turn out to be rat tails. Looking with more urgency back to the cauldron, I realise with a shudder that several of the pieces of meat in the stew have a very rodent-like shape. Clutching at my stomach and realising that sampling the broth was not a good idea, I back quickly out of the room. With the gate to the kitchen closed firmly behind, and the hall spread out before me, I notice something very strange. The statue I was forced to avoid in the corridor also has an opposite on the other wall, and has now moved to face down the passage towards me.As I watch, two tiny red pupils form in the darkness of its eyes, their piercing gaze directed straight at me, sending a shiver through my body. Darting quickly towards the last of the three doors, I hurriedly force it open. As I rush inside, I glance briefly at a small metal plate bolted to the wood. It reads, "Mirna". Behind me, one of the statues begins to move. I skid to a halt. The entire room is completely empty, apart from one important thing. A woman, in a long, dark, purple robe, sits on a desk in the centre, reading a large book. She glances over... Blackness. All power is neutral. The wielder decides whether any weapon is good or evil. |
