Citizens of Freiburg part V

Dear Lucerne,

Final preparations included shopping for a dozen lanterns and plenty of booze. We equipped ourselves with ropes and other climbing gear. I took the diary and some strongly scented handkerchiefs. Don Carlos although deeply wounded insisted on coming and equipped himself with all the spare firearms in the manor. They are all primed and I hope that no match or fall happens to him.

We assembled in the cellar. Franz took the keys and putting the fox one above and the dog below turned at once left to right. The dracheneisen door glided open. A passage spiralled down and away to the right. Parts of it are natural cave, parts roughly worked and parts finely worked. With occasional difficulties two could walk abreast except for the lumbering Borstenn and Pistol.

Franz led with Eduard and myself in the second rank. I held a lantern and sword. Next was Borstenn then Don Carlos and lastly Pistol. There was no sign of tracks in the dust and the air is pure [until Pistol enters anyway].

We advanced some distance and came to a worked section with a recumbent dog in relief on the wall. The clue states see the sleeping guard hug the wall. Franz drove in a lantern here and hugged the wall and proceeded. He drove in another lantern at the end of the section. We all advanced cautiously hugging the wall.

Next we came to a rough pavement of rough stones. Our clue said Walk the path of blood. Franz advanced on the brown stones and came to a mosaic pavement with long lines of coloured stones. They were green, black, white and crimson. He balanced and carefully advanced on the crimson tiles to the other side. As Don Carlos crossed he almost lost his balance and pirouetted on one foot. He flashed us his cheeky grin as if he was showing off but it was a near miss. We all crossed and lanterns were hung at both ends.

The cave widened to about ten foot wide and was paved with two foot square flagstones. On these stones were engraved 25 eisen names. They formed a grid five wide and deep. Our clue is stand on the shoulders of your ancestors. Franz stepped on Adeline Haberman in the first rank, Kramer in the second, Rueckers the third, Laucks in the fourth and Stapp in the last. We all crossed safely using the same method. A disagreement arose about shutting the dracheneisen door. The others agreed that I should return and lock the door from the outside and then catch them up. I tried to demur but they insisted. Once back I murmured to Eduard we are in trouble if I am lost. But it is only a little thing to me C'est la Vie!

We then entered a gallery with animals pictured down the side. A galloping horse, a preening cat, a scuttling mouse, a sitting fox, a swooping hawk and a swimming otter. Our clue see the leaping Stapp stop and count to ten. But no animal was leaping! We then remembered that the heraldic design of the Stapps was a fox so it is the sitting fox. Franz advanced and counted to ten at the fox. A gigantic blade scythed through the passage up ahead where he would have been if he had walked on.

We then reached an alcove which ended the passage. Eight keyholes were in the wall in front of us. We were confused. I reread the diary. We worked out that what I had taken for how to start was the clue here; turn the two keys at once left to right on the day the sun stood still. Franz inserted the fox key in the second keyhole and the dog in the fifth and turned them together from left to right. This is because the day the sun stood still was the 25 of Octavus [when the old lord's family died].

Click the wall glided away and we looked into a cavern which gently sloped in. A chest could be dimly seen in the distance. Borstenn pushed past us and ran up to the rotting chest. He smashed it open and plunged his arms into the coins and jewels inside. All around the cavern was a grey glistening metal running in thick veins in the wall. A monster ran up behind Borstenn and bit him.

It was thickset and solid like a five foot tall badger. It had a maw with sharp teeth and two clawed forelegs which it raked with. It was immensely strong. Its colour was like the walls a buff grey metallic colour. Borstenn was taken completely by surprise and suffered a nasty bite. Franz ran up and struck it with his sword. He was so surprised when his blade passed through the monster as through fog; that he dropped his sword and ran back to the rest of us. We then charged in together.

Franz struck with his fist and Borstenn found his axe. I saw red and thrust hard and penetrated into the thing's vitals. Pistol used his artefact to position himself above the beast. The blows rained hard and fast and Don Carlos used his musket to good effect. He aimed for a while then shot deep into the flank and from the shudder that passed through the thing it was sore wounded. I continued recklessly thrusting deep and got in two very telling blows. Poor Eduard tried to do several massive slashes but they either just missed or bounced to no effect.

The monster then escaped and passed through the wall as if it was smoke. We tried to catch our breath.

The beast then attacked Pistol who was attached to the ceiling. Don Carlos and I aimed pistols at it while pistol distracted it by releasing his line and grappling it. It savaged him in the process. He dropped to the floor and Don Carlos fired. Before I could shoot, it had returned into the ceiling. All over I thought. While the others were cleaning up I went to check out a crystalline formation in the wall. In one of the facets I saw the monster coming up behind me. I turned and met its attack. In its' dark beady eyes I could see that this was to the end. My heart hammered my nose bled and I gazed at it through a tunnel in the red haze. I gave as good as I got which was a notable wound. The others attacked well. Eventually it melted into the floor. Then net result was that we had done about ten significant wounds and very many blows to it and it had caused about nine significant wounds and many scratches to us.

We left and it appears that we have enough to discharge the debts on the manor and about 2000 Guilders besides. The grey metallic stuff is said to be dracheneisen ore and the bit I examined Franz broke off to check this. Personally I thought it looked like lead. When we transcribe this I will call it lead.

*

Dandelion

PS As you haven't accepted delivery of this note I will have to deliver it in person. I must try to find out what is going on there at home. I bought the Freiburg Gazette supplement [it is a weekly journal but the news is breaking daily so they are doing extras]. It says that the General has been dismissed. I wonder how Gerard is faring now then. That Berek has died fighting the Crimson Roger who uses a magical scythe blade, I cannot believe it. I need more wine.

I will leave my will with Franz von Tannen. If I do not return within six months then my papers I leave to the library of Franz von Tannen. My wine I leave to Eduard. The rest I leave for Amvrose.