You're being optimistic again, thinking there are things to be found in this Eldorado! This is probably just a root-cellar -- there'll be some heirloom potatoes whose cultural value will be completely lost on our little gang :-D
Discovery "Maybe it's better protected from the things that hoot in the night," said Jimmy. I considered it, but while I was thinking Ben said, "No; it's way too old for that. Probably they needed more space than they had above ground." "Could be," I said. "They don't build up much, so perhaps they have better techniques for underground." "Ah," said Jimmy. "So this might be a lot bigger than it looks?" I exchanged glances with Ben; I hadn't even started to think about that yet. "I hope not," I said. "I'd quite like to get out of here today." "Only one way to find out!" Ben led the way, following the cut path of greenery and trampled vegetation. I noticed with slight curiosity that the plants were showing signs of recovery and growing back, so either the Elizabethtown folk had been looting here for weeks, or the plants grew fast. The window was dark and dirty and impossible to see through, but the door unlocked easily with the key and Ben pushed it open and walked inside with a confidence that bordered on the unwise. The room itself was larger than I expected; clearly the plants were covering a small building very thickly and heavily indeed. I looked up, worried about the ceiling, and saw that it was stone slabs. Which only worried me more that if they did fall in they'd crush us. There was a circular hole in the middle of the floor, and a few steps towards it confirmed that a spiral iron staircase led downwards through it. The walls were bare and rough and there were footprints in the dust on the floor; some led to the staircase and the dust was cleared away in streaks in that direction, and others led to the back of the room and were fainter as though they'd been made once and then the dust had started coming back. Ben walked to the back of the room following the footprints and opened a door he found there. He turned out to be some kind of well-lit cupboard; so well-lit that I was intrigued enough to come over and see for myself. The ceiling of the cupboard was made of either thick glass or crystal of some kind, and we could hazily see through it that the plants that had grown over it had been pulled back and torn away. When we looked down the floor was made of the same crystal. Other than that, the cupboard was empty.
"Some kind of light for the room below," I said. "Clever, in a way, but I'm not sure why you wouldn't just put light up here and use torches." "Let's find out," said Ben. The staircase clanked as we descended its tight little turns and shed orange-brown rust flakes wherever we touched it, but it was solid and stable. Six turns later we stepped out into a marble-floored room the size of a football field and had to take a moment to appreciate what we were seeing. Around the walls statues stood at regular intervals, each holding an object. After several moments thought, I realised that they were artisans: a potter held a jug, a carpenter held up a set-square and a fisherman held a fish. Jimmy got there before I did, but we confirmed that it was another of the jewelled filigree fish we'd already found, and that too disappeared into a pocket for safekeeping. More statues brandished musical instruments, cooking implements, stone-mason tools and quills and books. Two huge doors at the end of the room had a clear trail in the dust leading to them, but when we tried them they were solidly locked and refused to move. "There's no keyhole," said Ben, examining the door with the care of a jeweller who thinks you're passing him paste gems. "Just these scratchings." "Phases of the moon," I said glancing at them. A moment passed, and then it dawned on me. "Like in the diary...." "What?" "In the diary. They marked the phases of the moon." I looked up and pointed. The crystal floor of the cupboard was above us. "The doors probably only open when the right phase of the moon shines on them." "We have to be here at night?" Jimmy didn't sound happy, and when I thought about his words, I realised I wasn't happy either.
[Ok, I guess there was more than a few potatoes in there since I've ended up posting twice. Sorry :(]
Greg - well, they seem to be gradually collecting themselves a rather nice haul to take with them. Presuming they manage to get to the point where they actually leave. And that they have some of it left by that point...
3 comments:
You're being optimistic again, thinking there are things to be found in this Eldorado! This is probably just a root-cellar -- there'll be some heirloom potatoes whose cultural value will be completely lost on our little gang :-D
Discovery
"Maybe it's better protected from the things that hoot in the night," said Jimmy. I considered it, but while I was thinking Ben said, "No; it's way too old for that. Probably they needed more space than they had above ground."
"Could be," I said. "They don't build up much, so perhaps they have better techniques for underground."
"Ah," said Jimmy. "So this might be a lot bigger than it looks?"
I exchanged glances with Ben; I hadn't even started to think about that yet.
"I hope not," I said. "I'd quite like to get out of here today."
"Only one way to find out!" Ben led the way, following the cut path of greenery and trampled vegetation. I noticed with slight curiosity that the plants were showing signs of recovery and growing back, so either the Elizabethtown folk had been looting here for weeks, or the plants grew fast. The window was dark and dirty and impossible to see through, but the door unlocked easily with the key and Ben pushed it open and walked inside with a confidence that bordered on the unwise.
The room itself was larger than I expected; clearly the plants were covering a small building very thickly and heavily indeed. I looked up, worried about the ceiling, and saw that it was stone slabs. Which only worried me more that if they did fall in they'd crush us. There was a circular hole in the middle of the floor, and a few steps towards it confirmed that a spiral iron staircase led downwards through it. The walls were bare and rough and there were footprints in the dust on the floor; some led to the staircase and the dust was cleared away in streaks in that direction, and others led to the back of the room and were fainter as though they'd been made once and then the dust had started coming back.
Ben walked to the back of the room following the footprints and opened a door he found there. He turned out to be some kind of well-lit cupboard; so well-lit that I was intrigued enough to come over and see for myself.
The ceiling of the cupboard was made of either thick glass or crystal of some kind, and we could hazily see through it that the plants that had grown over it had been pulled back and torn away. When we looked down the floor was made of the same crystal. Other than that, the cupboard was empty.
"Some kind of light for the room below," I said. "Clever, in a way, but I'm not sure why you wouldn't just put light up here and use torches."
"Let's find out," said Ben.
The staircase clanked as we descended its tight little turns and shed orange-brown rust flakes wherever we touched it, but it was solid and stable. Six turns later we stepped out into a marble-floored room the size of a football field and had to take a moment to appreciate what we were seeing.
Around the walls statues stood at regular intervals, each holding an object. After several moments thought, I realised that they were artisans: a potter held a jug, a carpenter held up a set-square and a fisherman held a fish. Jimmy got there before I did, but we confirmed that it was another of the jewelled filigree fish we'd already found, and that too disappeared into a pocket for safekeeping. More statues brandished musical instruments, cooking implements, stone-mason tools and quills and books. Two huge doors at the end of the room had a clear trail in the dust leading to them, but when we tried them they were solidly locked and refused to move.
"There's no keyhole," said Ben, examining the door with the care of a jeweller who thinks you're passing him paste gems. "Just these scratchings."
"Phases of the moon," I said glancing at them. A moment passed, and then it dawned on me. "Like in the diary...."
"What?"
"In the diary. They marked the phases of the moon." I looked up and pointed. The crystal floor of the cupboard was above us. "The doors probably only open when the right phase of the moon shines on them."
"We have to be here at night?" Jimmy didn't sound happy, and when I thought about his words, I realised I wasn't happy either.
[Ok, I guess there was more than a few potatoes in there since I've ended up posting twice. Sorry :(]
Greg - well, they seem to be gradually collecting themselves a rather nice haul to take with them. Presuming they manage to get to the point where they actually leave. And that they have some of it left by that point...
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