Round 38

The tower's ancient wards answered their presence with a fresh pulse through the stone, and no one could mistake it for safety. The nearest sign of danger was now clear: Skeletons—undead remnants of the tower's original defenders, now animated by dark magic to endlessly guard their ancient home. Someone had to answer that change.

"I don't like this," Halie said, her voice steady despite the apprehension tightening her jaw. "The air tastes wrong—the tower isn't just empty, it's hungry." She adjusted her grip on her heavy mace. "We need to be smart about this. Varrika, keep your crossbow ready and watch Jeane's pit opening closely." Her blue-grey eyes fixed on the darkness below. "Merrin, I'm coming down after you, stay quiet and listen." She turned to Seraphine. "Can you feel the magic? Something old and angry is stirring below." The wizard nodded, her elegant robes whispering as she shifted her weight. "I'll descend first," Halie continued. "If Jeane needs me, a cleric's shield might be more useful than a sorcerer's fire in that confined space." Her gaze returned to the pit. "And someone has to keep Merrin safe up here from..."

Merrin's heart hammered as she strained to hear over the blood pounding in her ears. The scraping sound intensified, echoing up from the depths. Jeane's light flickered, dancing on the pit walls and casting long, shifting shadows that seemed to writhe with a life of their own. "Jeane!" she hissed into the darkness, her voice quavering. "What's down there?" The scraping stopped abruptly, leaving only the distant pulse of the wards. Merrin held her breath, fingers tightening on the crossbow. Whatever it was, it had heard her. And now it knew they were here.

She glanced up at Varrika, barely visible in the gloom above, and forced herself to take a steadying breath. The pit walls felt unstable, and moving might cause them to collapse. But staying still meant certain death if those skeletons found their way down. She needed an exit—fast—and her tinderbox was still buried somewhere in this damned darkness.