The cavern was engulfed in complete darkness. From what little of the chamber I could see, I noted that the decorative ornate silver that once decorated the walls, much like the entrance hall, was now obscured by layers of a viscous black sludge. It was messy and seemingly everywhere, what little flooring was left was sticky to the touch. And the slumbering Jotunn was found to be no exception, as its metallic shell was given a slick black coating.
"That… thing… just what is it?" A woman cried out, pointing at the impaled creature in the distance. "It's… I can't even look at it… it's making me uneasy… it… it's terrifying… and this smell… ough…" She covered her mouth.
"Whatever that… 'thing' is, it's a horrifying blight that is not of the Fardaughter's design… These are cursed grounds, we should not be here…" Barnabus feared.
"I don't like it here… we should go back." The woman stressed toward her companion.
"No, no way. We've come this far, come on darling… just bear with it." Her apparent lover replied.
"No… I-I don't think I can do this…"
"It's your first expedition, what you're feeling is normal. Here…" He held his lover's hands in his own. "We're going to be fine… nothing bad is going to happen."
"Fuh… Mmm… I-I… I-I can't…. Fuh… Fuh…" Her breathing began to grow heavy.
"Hey, easy now… Hey, look at me." They locked eyes. "I'm right here, just breathe."
"Fuh… Fuh… Fuh. I-I… Okay… I think I'm okay now."
"Feeling better?"
"Mmm…" She gulped. "Yeah, I think so." She sighed.
"That's good… good."
"You'll be alright little lady." A man called out. "You shouldn't worry too much, it would seem the battle ended long before we arrived. 'Sides, stress would only damper that beauty of yours."
"Ahah… that's kind of you. You're right… I'm being silly."
"See? It'll be alright, there isn't anything to worry about"
"Still… this place terrifies me…"
"We'll be okay, come here… Whatever happens, I'll keep you safe." The man held his lover close.
"Mmm… thank you. But while we're here, never leave my side… It's already too much just being here…"
"Never. I'll always be here." The lover's continued to coddle each other.
"Egh, fucking stupid shit." Jaro sputtered, donning a disgusted look. "They're definitely gonna be among the first to die if anything goes down."
"Hey, have some respect." I scolded.
"Hah! Nah man, you just don't get it. It was a big mistake for him to bring along his lover, they're more likely to die together rather than at least one person surviving if at least one of them had just stayed home."
"No, that's-"
"He's right." Nicolas chimed in. "A careless mistake, he is sure to disappoint. I doubt even he could fight off any threat we may yet face down here."
"And you're saying that you could?"
"No, I'm saying that neither him nor us are truly prepared for what we may find down here."
"Indeed, we should be on guard." Inca concurred. "A grand battle between supreme powers occurred here, though it would appear the outcome led to neither being the victor." Inca observed.
"Should we be worried?" Some folks muttered to each other.
"Everybody, remain calm." A prominent man called out. "The Jotunn appears to be slumbering, so we are safe to resume our duties… for now."
"Still, I can't see a damn thing in this darkness." Some eager salvagers cried out, peering over the edge of the escarpment.
"Whatever that thing is… or was…" Pyro eyed the monstrosity in the distance. "This confirms that rumours we heard back in Rinsaad were more than just hear-say."
"Indeed. There might be more to the namesake of this 'gravediggers curse' than we thought." Inca relayed.
"So it's here, the answers I seek…" Pyro muttered, he breathed heavy with a clenched fist.
There was little light shed from the ornate hall, we could barely see the edge of the escarpment, there just wasn't enough light for us to peer into the abyss and observe what oddities, if any, existed within its unsettling darkness. If there was anything down there, we wouldn't even be able to see it. Yet I knew for a fact that whatever- whoever called out to me was here. And yet I could tell that the one thing I came to Rinsaad in search of was close by… I could tell it was near… I could sense it, almost as if I could feel it… right there… somewhere near that strange creature.
"Hey, you see what I see?" I overheard a man mention something to his friend.
"Hmm? Uh… Oh. Well now… Hah, my, my that certainly looks interesting."
"Right?"
"But shouldn't we report this and send a scout back to base camp?"
"Well… I mean weren't we tasked to scout the area ahead for danger, isn't that why we are here?" He grinned. "We are putting our lives on the line after all, might as well pocket some valuables to compensate for our efforts."
"Hah, really now… Huh? What is that… you see that?"
"What? What do you see-"
"Right there!" He pointed. "You see it, right?"
"What the- Is that… Holy shit." He turned to the other groups. "There's somebody alive down there!" He shouted.
"Huh? Just what do you mean? It's too dark down there… I don't see anything?" One dimwitted man squinted.
"Haven't you got a head? Those two have the blessings of Nidavellir, you daft bastard!" An older man resounded in anger.
"Ah, right. Of course. That explains it…" He scratched his head.
"Tch, really now… Do they teach you nothing in Rinsaad? Best get a proper education in the republic… Rinsaad would've prospered had its governing changed hands, a true pity."
"War's over old man, get over it."
"Geh! Why you-"
"Hey, will you please calm down. We're all here to work together. Besides, we're all the same in the eyes of those kindorian elites."
"He's right y'know?"
"Tch, fine. At least someone here speaks some sense." He relented.
"Still, to think someone was alive down there… shouldn't we do something?" The dimwitted fellow related.
"He could likely be goner, just like that poor lad Aswad…"
"They're most certainly alive, I mean from what we can see they're moving around, though they do seem to have a bit of limp."
"Hm, but do they know we're here?" The older man chimed in.
"I'm not sure, I can try and call out to him. He might be able to hear us."
"Alright, but don't be too loud. He may be in a deep slumber, but we wouldn't want to accidentally wake up our friend there." He eyed the Jotunn.
"Hah, right." He donned a nervous grin. "Ahem." The man began to prepare a shout.
"Hold up." One man interrupted.
"Huh?"
"I might be able to offer an alternative solution, willing to hear me out?"
"Alright… go for it." The man who was eager to shout reluctantly offered to hear him out.
"Why not have someone cast a fire sorcery down into the pit? Wouldn't that attract his attention?"
They all eyed each other. "And waste what little eitr we have? Yeah, no chance."
"Ah, well… Huh, good point."
"Alright, enough wasting time. We don't get all day, they'll be expecting us to report back anytime. Now's our only chance to take advantage of the situation."
"Alright, alright, enough already. I'm gonna shout, alright? Just… just be ready in case something goes wrong." He reaffirmed himself. "Ahem… Hey!" He shouted.
His voice echoed throughout the chamber. The atmosphere was tense as everyone examined their surroundings and anticipated even the slightest movement of the Jotunn. Bits of rubble and dust came falling down which startled a few men. The only thing that was left was silence in the darkness.
"I guess… it really might be dead after all… hah…" The man looked around before eyeing his friend and giving a faint open smile.
He nodded, directing himself toward the chasm below. "Hey, can anyone hear me?" He shouted once more with vigor.
"Hey, he stopped. You think he heard us?"
"Maybe… If you can hear me, we're here to rescue you!" He shouted again.
"Look, he's coming closer…"
"Yeah, but it looks like he doesn't know what to do. He seems to be hugging the edges of the collapsed flooring in an attempt to find a way up…"
"Wait, if he's there… then there must be a way down… Everybody help us look around, there must be a rope or something around here!"
"Over here!" The woman from earlier shouted. "I-I think I found it over here!"
"Nice work." The two men rushed on over to take a look.
There looked to be a length of rope nailed into the right-most edge of the escarpment. The two men began to tug on the rope to ensure it was steady and durable enough to hold them before they made their descent.
"We'll go down first since we're likely the only two here capable of seeing in the darkness."
"Actually, I think only one of us should go down. I'll stay up here to observe the situation and relay the information to everybody else. Wouldn't want to leave them in the dark, now would we?" He smirked.
"Heh, I won't deny you're better at spotting things in the darkness than I am. But I'm still gonna need somebody to watch my back."
"I'll do it." The man who gave his suggestion earlier chimed in.
"Yeah? Alright then… Ehh… just be sure to stay close, yeah? You're gonna have trouble seeing anything down there."
"Nah, no need." The man dug into his bag and pulled out a small orb that he then squeezed before becoming immensely bright.
"Oh? Ain't that handy. Well, come on then, let's go."
The man proceeded to carefully rappel himself down the rope, keeping himself steady against the uneven terrain left behind by the collapsed flooring. The other fellow dropped the glowing orb down below to better illuminate his surroundings. He then followed suit and descended down the rope. I peered over the escarpment, but I couldn't see a damn thing. It really was dark down there, makes you wonder what these guys were seeing.
"Seem's they made it down safely."
"Oh? That's good… did they-"
"They did. They're approaching the survivor now."
"Seem's the survivor has caught sight of them, he's still got that awful limp…"
"Hope he's not too hurt."
"Well, they're already close enough to- huh?"
"Hmm? Something the-"
"Hey, what's going on down there!" The man watching over his friend began to shout, his eyes wide.
"Did something happen?"
"Hey… Hey! Stop that!" His eyes grew wide. "Hey! I said fucking stop!"
"Woah, woah, what's going on?"
"Is everything alright?"
"That's-" It was then the man's gaze locked onto the rope.
The rope used to descend into the area below began to tighten against the vertical-face of the escarpment. The nail-anchor holding it down began to loosen as if something heavy was pulling on the rope from down below.
"Wha-what's going on?"
"Damn it… fuck… fuck! This isn't good… Everyone, keep away from the cliffside!"
"Hey, did something happen to those two? Are they alright?"
"I-I don't know! But keep away, that person… he did something… fuck… this bastard! Whoever this person is, he's gonna wish he never did that…" The man pulled out a dagger. "Everyone stay back!"
"Woah, easy there. Just what are you gonna do?"
"I… I'm gonna cut the rope."
"Hold on! Then how are we supposed to get down, what if you're mistaken?" The older man approached and gestured to another man in an attempt to restrain him. "Just take it easy, yeah?"
"That's- Guh!"
"Got him!" The man managed to restrain him, albeit for a short time.
"Argh, Let go of me!" He managed to break free, pushing the man away. "I'm gonna cut the rope. Whoever this person is, there's no way they survive the fall." He took a step back without taking a second look, his heel teetering on the edge without anything to support him. In that moment the man slipped and fell backwards over the cliffside.
"Oh Goddess!" The woman covered her mouth.
"Shit!" The man who attempted to retrain him, rushed over and looked over the cliffside only to hear his screams die out in the darkness.
"I-I… He did that to himself. I-I had nothing to with his death." The old man was in shock.
"I-Is he still alive? Maybe he caught himself on the rope…"
"No, I don't think so… He's gone."
"What of the man on the rope?" I chimed in.
"Yeah, I can barely see him coming up… he look's hurt… huh?"
"Something wrong?"
"Bloody Oracle… Just what is-!" The man was cut short before being pulled over the cliffside.
Everyone was stunned. "E-Everybody stay back." The Old man began to take the same stance he had been opposed to just minutes before.
"Quiet! Do you hear that?" Everyone kept quiet as an eerie silence settled in.
Everybody's gaze was locked on the rope which seemed ready to snap at any second. And in the unsettling silence did a soft yet unpleasant squelching make itself known. The rope was then suddenly relieved of the stress on its anchor as whatever had been pulling it down had loosened its grip. Our eyes trailed the rope to the edge of the escarpment where it met a surprisingly rotund face cloaked in shadow. The old man who stood nearby was seemingly frozen still.
"Look, over there… do you see it?"
His eyes stricken with fear. "Wh-Who… W-What are you?" He mumbled.
The stranger turned its rotund head in the old man's direction. Seemingly wishing to know who it was speaking to, it raised its neck high over the edge, only for it to go higher… and higher… and higher until its body came up over the edge. There, at the root of the neck stood the spindly figure of what looked like a man. It's 'neck' then stretched all the way over to the old man in a slow and steady manner as it's body staggered carefully behind.
"G-Get away from me!" He screamed, falling on his knees before attempting to crawl away. The stranger paused. "Somebody, help me!" It was then that its rotund head began to stretch open, it's neck growing wide in response. In one quick motion did it lunge towards the old man, swallowing him whole within its 'neck'.
"What… what the hell is that thing…!?"
"We need to leave!" It was then the strange creature turned its attention toward us, spitting out its most recent victim, the remains of the old man lay there drenched in the same viscous black liquid that seemed to coat the entire chamber.
"Leave? And let this thing wander free? We have to kill it, now!" The strange creature grew closer.
Creeping into the dim light did we witness something truly horrifying. What looked to be a man draped in tattered flesh did we come to see, twitching and staggering aimlessly in our direction. It had no eyes, yet it became apparent that it knew we were here. A mass of rotting carrion, a cursed existence that plagues the living, that which guards what does not belong to us, an emissary of this so-called 'Gravedigger's curse'.
"Draugr." I muttered.