Max sighs, while Matron nods solemnly, pointing at a large red door at the far side of the room. "That's your door, then," they tell you. "You can seal it from the other side, and it should be secure enough to stop your fellow students from pursuing you through it."
Matron reaches into the pocket of their lab coat, taking out a key and handing it to Max. "Come, Grace. Let's find somewhere safe to bunker down until all this blows over."
"Best of luck, Matron," Max says as Sonia offers an ironical salute. Val, Will, Romilly, and Fritz murmur their own farewells as Michelle gives Matron a silent nod.
Then you've turned around, walking across the lab and pushing your way through the red door.
Cold, old air hits you the moment you step through, smelling of damp and mold. The walls and floor, in contrast to the spotless steel, glass, and concrete that form Matron's laboratory, are made of moss-covered stone, barely visible in the darkness.
"Charming," you hear Sonia say. "Let's get moving, shall we? This place isn't going to grow on me, but I reckon there's plenty in here that'll give it a good go."
It's good advice, and your group quickly makes its way, passing down the lichen-coated stairs with some care, before your path finally levels out. The gloom within the chamber is all-encompassing: it's impossible to see more than a few feet in front of you, though you assume that the vampires' night vision, the werewolves' sense of smell, and Michelle's enhancements are giving them some assistance.
"So, catacombs," Will says eventually. "Are there people buried down here, then?"
"Probably," Max replies from a little way ahead. "It's not a proper catacomb unless there's a corpse or two lying around. Got to keep up appearances."
Suddenly, the werewolf comes to a halt. Thanks to the darkness, you end up walking right into him.
"Ssh!" he hisses. "There's something down here with us!"
"A student?" Michelle murmurs.
"No!" Max whispers back. "Something else. I don't know what. It smells…it smells…wrong."
If it weren't for the darkness, you'd have exchanged a look with someone. As it is, you simply look at where you think Max is.
Then you hear the footsteps.
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