You step through the portal to the castle, not quite
knowing what to expect. As the bright lights fade from your vision you take a look
at your surroundings. The wide dirt path you have been set upon winds up a steep
hill. The path is enclosed on both sides by the unending grasslands of the plains.
The afternoon sun is hot on the back of your neck as you stare up the incline. It
looks like a difficult climb. Turning around you find yourself regarding a sheer
drop over a towering cliff. Far below you churning water crashes up on a rocky area
of the beach. Across the chasm is another steep cliff and another island. The path
curls across a bridge that leads back to what must be the main isle of the realm.
Obviously there’s only one way to go, up the hill. Turning around again you start
the hike with a sigh of resignation, the sooner you start, the sooner you will finish.
Roughly fifteen minutes later you make it to the top of the slope. You look back
down the incline in surprise, it wasn’t nearly as difficult as you though it was
going to be. Now you turn your gaze towards the castle that stands proudly in front
of you.
The first thing you notice about the castle is it’s size. The place is massive. A
jungle of towers spiral into the sky. The entire structure is made of a of gray white
marble. Windows are scattered along the entire front. A wide moat filled with clear
water extends in front of you. You peer into the water, wondering if there’s alligators
swimming in it. You can’t see any of the large reptiles, but that doesn’t mean there
aren’t any there. A large wooden drawbridge spans the gap created by the moat. Crossing
the bridge you step through the small door in the portcullis and through the shadowy
tunnel that leads through the thick wall. Heading through a few more thick arches
you come to the main building. Looking ahead you eye the entrance before you.
The entryway is built on the same giant scale as the rest of the castle. The forbidding
double doors rise above your head. This must have been the main entrance at some
point. Being invited in those mammoth doors would impress anyone. The heavy oak and
golden lion knockers sure leave an impression on you. Feeling silly to have been
standing here gaping for so long you go to grab one of the rings on the lion knockers.
You lift it up then let it fall. The thump rebounds and echo's hollowly in the empty
space around you. The door swings inward silently.
You stare at it mouth hanging open. There is no way something that large should open
that silently. You trying peering into the cavernous shadows left by the open door,
but you can’t see a thing. The thought of turning tail and running enters your mind.
The lion knocker on the closed door seems to be mocking you.
You take a deep breath and step into the castle....
You follow your instinct and leave the castle at a run.....