[You have been transported into the depths of Waldemar's mountain.
The area that you currently occupy is an empty cavern. Torches line the rock walls, yours for the taking.
BEHIND you is a large white stone, about half the size of a grown man, embedded in a sheer rock wall. It radiates light and is warm to the touch. You understand instinctively that touching it will return you to the upper area of the mountain, aka the part normally seen when entering the realm from the Echo Chamber.
IN FRONT of you are two cave-like entrances, one on the RIGHT and one on the LEFT. You understand, also without being told, that there is an invisible barrier which will stop a party of one from continuing; the team must go in groups of two or more.]
[A high-ceilinged dining hall that's dominated by a massive wooden table stretching from end to end. Comfortable chairs line either side in a haphazard mess, carelessly stowed away, with a high-backed one at the farthest end. The table itself is set for a feast as far as plates and utensils are concerned, everything clean and glittering faintly in the light cast down by the chandeliers affixed to the ceiling, but there's no food to be seen and the various candelabras are all unlit.
[From the ceiling hangs a countless number of flags, each unique in origin and design. Most of them are tattered, however, the colors faded and dull. The maps pinned to the walls aren't any better off, being just as weatherbeaten and consequently illegible. This room is a shrine to past glories, victories, conquests.....or used to be. There are various pedestals and glass cases, all empty.
[This room is full of weapons neatly stowed in holding racks, shields hanging just so from the walls, and full-body suits of armor carefully posed here and there. Perhaps surprisingly, every object is polished and clean, free of rust or wear or neglect. The edges of each sword and axe look (and are) sharp to the touch, ready to be used at a moment's notice. The shields gleam softly, burnished and sturdy.
The rich tang of metal pervades the room.....as does the faint smell of fire, smoke, soot.
[The centerpiece of this room is the single throne placed atop a gentle slope of ascending stone steps. The curtains and rugs are a deep, lush red. Behind the throne is an immense, old-fashioned silver vault lock.
[The inside of this vault is utterly bare and empty save for one thing: a 20 foot tall marble statue of a man, a crowned king, dressed in fine clothes with a scepter in one hand and a sword in the other. His features are indistinguishable, as the statue is in poor condition: worn down, weatherbeaten, cracked in several places.
[This room is deceptively small, containing only the typical trappings of an elegant bedroom: a large canopy bed with the curtains drawn, polished wooden dressers, and plush fur rugs underfoot.
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