Monday, May 09, 2005
Hidden
The castle wasn't supposed to exist, yet in the clearing in the woods there was a castle. Had it not been for the dead of winter, the small party would never had seen the castle. The walls were so overgrown with vines that even in winter it was still well hidden by the stalks of the vines. Had it not been for the lack of leaves and the fierce winds of the fast approaching storm disturbing the vines, the castle would have moldered on into obscurity undisturbed.
The 5 riders where hunched down into their cloaks and heavily wrapped in woolens. The 3 heavily laden pack horses had their heads dropped down and were walking close together. With the winter storm moving in as fast as it was and the snow just starting to fall, the riders were glad to see shelter. It was scarcely noon, and the sky was as dark as dusk. As if sensing the lost of prey, the storm picked up in its intensity and the winds bore down on the riders even harder, driving the snow viciously into every little opening. Picking up speed, the riders rushed the walls and started looking for an opening. The walls were quite impressive, several stories high, and tangled with thick layers of vines and ivy.
Luckily the door was found in the lee of the castle. Protected from the winds, the riders had a brief respite from the storms bitter bite. Although warmer out of the wind, the riders could still feel the cold creeping into the deeps of the woolen cloaks, frigid fingers caressing warm skin, was raising shivers up their spines. The door, covered with a layer or vines, had somehow escaped the wild growth seen on the walls. Dismounting, the taller rider tossed his reins to a companion and approached the door. Pulling off some vines, the rider found the handle and gave it a push. The door creaked open a little then stopped against the bolt. Bending down to look at the lock, the rider pulled out a lockpick set and attempted to tease it open. The cold made for slow work as his fingers slowly lost their warmth and stiffness set in. After fumbling and dropping the pick, he paused to warm his hands, then finally met with success. Leaning his weight against the door, he gave a gentle exploratory push. Then bracing himself, he gave the door a big shove with his shoulder. The door gave way with a loud tortured scream from the hinges.
The weak light couldn't penetrate into the deeps beyond the doorway. Grabbing a lantern from one of the pack horses, the rider knelt in the doorway and struck a flint. After several tries, the lantern flared to life. Blinking against the sudden brightness, he lowered the shutter against the wind. The remaining riders then dismounted and gathered the reins of the pack animals. The riders eagerly pushed into the doorway, but the horses balked at the threshold. With a tug and calm words, the horses clattered into the stone hallway, eyes wide. The last rider through pushed the doorway mostly closed. Where the lantern had been bright before, it was now fighting against the oppressive darkness. The horses hooves seemed oddly muted, as if the riders had cotton wadding in their ears.
The 5 riders where hunched down into their cloaks and heavily wrapped in woolens. The 3 heavily laden pack horses had their heads dropped down and were walking close together. With the winter storm moving in as fast as it was and the snow just starting to fall, the riders were glad to see shelter. It was scarcely noon, and the sky was as dark as dusk. As if sensing the lost of prey, the storm picked up in its intensity and the winds bore down on the riders even harder, driving the snow viciously into every little opening. Picking up speed, the riders rushed the walls and started looking for an opening. The walls were quite impressive, several stories high, and tangled with thick layers of vines and ivy.
Luckily the door was found in the lee of the castle. Protected from the winds, the riders had a brief respite from the storms bitter bite. Although warmer out of the wind, the riders could still feel the cold creeping into the deeps of the woolen cloaks, frigid fingers caressing warm skin, was raising shivers up their spines. The door, covered with a layer or vines, had somehow escaped the wild growth seen on the walls. Dismounting, the taller rider tossed his reins to a companion and approached the door. Pulling off some vines, the rider found the handle and gave it a push. The door creaked open a little then stopped against the bolt. Bending down to look at the lock, the rider pulled out a lockpick set and attempted to tease it open. The cold made for slow work as his fingers slowly lost their warmth and stiffness set in. After fumbling and dropping the pick, he paused to warm his hands, then finally met with success. Leaning his weight against the door, he gave a gentle exploratory push. Then bracing himself, he gave the door a big shove with his shoulder. The door gave way with a loud tortured scream from the hinges.
The weak light couldn't penetrate into the deeps beyond the doorway. Grabbing a lantern from one of the pack horses, the rider knelt in the doorway and struck a flint. After several tries, the lantern flared to life. Blinking against the sudden brightness, he lowered the shutter against the wind. The remaining riders then dismounted and gathered the reins of the pack animals. The riders eagerly pushed into the doorway, but the horses balked at the threshold. With a tug and calm words, the horses clattered into the stone hallway, eyes wide. The last rider through pushed the doorway mostly closed. Where the lantern had been bright before, it was now fighting against the oppressive darkness. The horses hooves seemed oddly muted, as if the riders had cotton wadding in their ears.
# posted by Canadian Loonie @ 10:53 AM 
