#29100 The hill near the Black Forest~ You stand on a hill overlooking a dense forest of old oak trees. A slight chilling breeze blows by and you can't help but shudder as you look toward it In the middle of the forest, popping out over the trees is the tall spire of the Citadel. The symbol of the triangled wheel on the tower's side is there for all to see. A trail leads eastward down the hill towards the woods. ~ 291 4 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29101 E credits info~ A zone built by Silverangel on Ironic Building MUD: ironic.betterbox.net port 1919 Contains a forest, a tower, and a disco. ~ S #29101 Just Outside the Black Forest~ A chilling wind blows by you from deep within the dark forest. You stand near the outermost trees on a rapidly dwindling trail that winds into the dark heart of the woods. Your know your imagination can only scratch the surface of the unholy terrors that lie within. You have been warned. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29102 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29100 S #29102 The outskirts of the Black Forest~ Little light penetrates the dense foliage of the forest. Almost no plant life occupies the hard, rocky ground. If you push much further into the doomed forest, you will be in all but total darkness. Every so often a haunting, diabolical laugh drifts to your ears. It drives shivers down your spine. You can make out a trail to the south and east. To the north there is a cabin. Or you could flee the woods. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29103 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29107 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29104 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29101 S #29103 A Deserted Cabin~ You are in a cabin in the woods. Time has not been kind to this structure. The logs that make up it are starting to rot, and there are a few gaps in the walls. Still, it does provide shelter from the wind. The floor is a rough, clumpy packed earth. Whoever lived here has long since abandoned it. But if you take a closer look, you may find something useful. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29102 S #29104 The Black Forest~ The trail you have followed has dwindled to a nothing. Every so often you think you see some movement out of the corner of the eye. As you are looking around, a fresh bout of evil laughter comes to your ear. It echos off the trees, refusing to die. You feel a bead of sweat form on the back of your neck. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29102 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29105 S #29105 The Black Forest~ You are in the Black Forest. Have a Nice Day. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29104 D1 ~ 1~ 0 0 29110 D2 ~ 0~ 0 0 29106 S #29106 Hopelessly Lost~ You stumbled off the path now you are Hopelessly Lost! But don't fret. There IS a way out, but can you find it? ~ 291 4 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 S #29107 The great oak~ This is the largest tree in the forest. It stretches high overhead. The gnarled limbs hang above you like grasping hands waiting to strangle you The bark is rough and blood stained. At the roots lie a fallen hero. His body well along in decomposition, but the cause of death is obvious. This foolish hero has been decapitated. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29108 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29112 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29102 S #29108 The dense woods~ The trees get thicker as you push foreward. You have to squeeze if you go much further. Every so often one of the trees carries an aged blood stain marring one of the trees. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29109 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29107 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29106 S #29109 The dead end~ You have discovered a portion of the outer wall of Ilian's Citadel. The nearby trees prevent you from exploring the wall. It is an imposing mass of cold, smooth, black granite. So near the vile citadel, you know in your soul this is not a place you want to be caught dead at. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29108 S #29110 The Bridge~ This rickety covered bridge spans a rather wide natural chasm in the forest floor. It lit by two rusty lantern hanging off pegs in the wall. This place provides much protection from the icy winds common to the Black Forest. You do not know why, but at least here you can find some measure of sanctuary from the evils of the woods. ~ 291 68 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29119 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29105 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29111 S #29111 Under the bridge~ You are in a rocky ravine under the bridge. Sparse vegitation manages to grow in small pockets of soil interespersed about. The loose nature of the gravely slopes makes for difficult going. You can surmise that this place would fill up rapidly in a heavy rain. You just hope that dosen't happen while you are here. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29133 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29110 S #29112 Deeper into the Black Forest~ The deeper into the forest you press, the more you doubt the sanity of your choice. But you know that with great risks come great rewards. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29115 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29113 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29107 S #29113 Ed's Disco Palace~ What is this place doing here? Lights flash. People dance the night away. A spinning disco ball hangs suspended from the ceiling spraying the insides with multicolored light. The noise of the music and chatter is all but deafening ~ 291 44 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29112 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29114 S #29114 The Dance floor~ You now stand on the dance floor of Ed's Disco Palace. The lights strobe and the dancers groove to the music of the preforming Elvis Impersonators as they jive around a lovely selection of rabid potted plants. ~ 291 40 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29113 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29118 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29144 S #29115 The Dark Heart of the woods~ In the heart of the woods, things are strangely calm. But it is the calm before the storm. In the soft earth you can clearly see hoofmarks of some horse. Around the hoofmarks the earth is scorched as if by a hot flame. Looking around there are the signs of a strugle. Somebody placed his bets against whatever made the hoofmarks, and lost. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29143 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29116 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29112 S #29116 Nearing a clearing~ The trees thin out a bit as you can see a glade. There is an unnerving quiet around the area. You look at the clearing you are standing near and you recognize it for what it is. A killing field. Your boot crunches on the headless skeleton of some small woodland creature. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29106 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29117 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29115 S #29117 The Glade~ You stand in a glade. The grass comes up to your knee, although it has been trampled down in many places where some unfortunate creature was hounded by something truly evil. A fresh burst of icy wind whips through the grass sending waves rolling through the glade. Out of the chilled wind comes a bout of the evil, maniacle, unholy cackles that cause your hair to stand on end. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29142 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29127 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29126 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29116 S #29118 Boogie Time!~ This is the small, open longue next to the dance floor. People congregate to listen to the music. A few of the Elvis Impersonators have wandered over here as they boogie down. ~ 291 32 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29114 S #29119 the Stream~ You walk alongside a small stream. It silently sweeps away the dead leaves and other debris as it continues on. It is a pity that it won't likewise sweep away your nervousness and trepidation too. From here you can push on eastward or you can flee west to the safety of the bridge. Your other option is to follow the river to its end. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29126 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29146 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29110 S #29120 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29121 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29123 S #29121 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29122 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29124 S #29122 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29121 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29123 S #29123 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29122 S #29124 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29121 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29125 S #29125 Hopelessly Lost~ You are Hopelessly Lost! ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29104 S #29126 In the shadow of the citadel~ You turn up your collar to the subthermal gales. That's when you see it. From here you can see, not 200 yards ahead, the infernal structure that is the citadel. You whisper a silent prayer of thanks that there are still many trees to hide behind. It is best if the residents of the place don't know of your existance as long as possible. It takes a major force of effort to tear your eyes off the citadel, but you manage. To the west lies a small stream. To the north is a clearing, and south of you is a trail that leads to a small keep in ruins. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29117 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29129 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29134 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29119 S #29127 Up against the wall.~ You have found a section of the outer wall. The trees have been cut back making a path around part of the keep belonging to the mistress of the Void Far to the south you can see what seems to be the main gate. To the north the wall disappears into the darkness of the Black Forest. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29130 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29128 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29117 S #29128 Up against the wall.~ You have found a section of the outer wall. The trees have been cut back making a path around part of the keep belonging to the mistress of the Void Far to the south you can see what seems to be the main gate. To the north the wall disappears into the darkness of the Black Forest. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29127 D2 ~ 1~ 0 0 29129 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29106 S #29129 The Front Gate~ You have reached the Gate of Ilian's Citadel. The high black granite walls are smooth to the touch. The gate is a huge, cast iron affair, emblazoned with the symbol of the triangled wheel. Only the bravest of souls would consider entering this dreadful place. There is a gate to the east. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29128 D1 The massive door stands here, defying you to enter. ~ gate door portcullis~ 1 0 29150 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29126 S #29130 Up against the wall.~ You have found a section of the outer wall. The trees have been cut back making a path around part of the keep belonging to the mistress of the Void Far to the south you can see what seems to be the main gate. To the north the wall disappears into the darkness of the Black Forest. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29131 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29127 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29142 S #29131 Are you sure this is a good idea?~ You have found a section of the outer wall. The trees have been cut back making a path around part of the keep belonging to the mistress of the Void Far to the south you can see what seems to be the main gate. To the north the wall disappears into the darkness of the Black Forest. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29132 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29130 S #29132 Trapped like a rat!~ You have walked along the wall and now are in a small walled alcove. The crack of evil laughter makes you jump in fright. It came from right behind you! You look around to see a headless rider on a ferocious charger that breaths fire. In one hand he holds the reigns to his nightmare in the other he wields a black scimitar. In a panic, you look around, but to your horror, you realize you are boxed in. The horseman rides closer, he swings his huge scimitar, trying to lope off your head. You manage to keep the blow from decapitating you, but he does connect with your head, sending you sprawling. The horseman rides off cackling. ~ 291 36 0 0 0 0 S T 29100 #29133 The rockey ravine~ This is a rough crevace. It might be a geologists paradice. Samples of quartz, feldspar, limestone, calcite, and other minerals in a stunning disarray. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29111 S #29134 On the Trail to the Ruins~ You have stumbled onto a trail that the forest has yet to reclaim. If you strain your eyesight you can barely makeout the remains of a ruined keep. The few remaining walls, once a gleeming white are now a dull grey. Evidently this keep was laid waste by the forces of the citadel. Pity. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29126 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29135 S #29135 The Ruined Castle~ Only a shattered shell reamins of what one was a bastion of good. A few scattered bits of shattered walls remain as testiment to what once was, now they are merely waiting for the forest to reclaim them. At least the ruins provide some measure of shelter from the incessent, madening wind. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29134 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29137 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29136 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29145 S #29136 The Ruined Chapel~ Once upon a time this was this keep's place of worship, but apparently the beings that this place was consecrated to didn't chose to spare this place any more than the rest of the castle. Didn't chose to or weren't able to. Maybe when Ilian's black citadel was erected, those protecting beings withdrew their protection to flee to safety, or maybe they made their stand with the occupants of the castle, and shared their fate. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29135 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29138 S #29137 The Ruined Stables~ Although the stables are in ruins, they still stand as a building, or at least half of a building. The western half is nothing more than a rotting pile of debris. The eastern half is beinh precariously held up by rotting wooden beams. It does not look all that stable (No pun intended), but still there is fresh hay on the floor. Although you take note that some of it has been scorched by fire of some sort. There is still water in the trough. All this leads you to believe that someone or something still makes use of this place ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29135 S #29138 The Ruined Great Hall~ This used to be the great hall of the castle, now it is in no better condition than the rest of the place. The once highly polished marble floors are now cracked and covered with rubble that once was the roof. The west wall is nothing but a memory and a heap of crumbling stones. The great stained glass window set into the north wall, once the pride of the castle has been shattered into a million shards of rainbow hued glass strewn over the ground. The east wall still seems soundly built, but you have trepidations about the south wall It seems like it could come crashing down at any moment. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29145 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29136 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29139 S #29139 The Ruined Bell Tower~ This was once a tall tower that housed a warning bell. It was rung to alert the occupants to any threat, but nowadays it is a different story. The walls have fallen like the rest of the keep. The Gigantic bell that once rang its clarion call of alarum now is a shattered heap of twisted bronze that sits amidst the rest of the rubble. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29138 S #29140 The Torture Chamber~ Adjacent to the dungeon is the citadels torture chamber. While the dungeon had a rudimental assortment of torture devices, this room has the professional's assorment of excrutiation devices. The Iron Maiden, the Rack, the Wheel, thumbscrews, are all represented here along with such classics as red hot pokers and the Chineese Water Torture. Each device designed to inflict as much pain as possible. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29181 S #29141 The Antechamber~ The antechamber serves as the outer gathering area for the alter of the tower's chaple. Off to one side are a row of pegs on which a few robs are hung. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29182 S #29142 The Black Forest~ You are in the Black Forest. Blah Blah Blah Blah ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29130 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29117 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29143 S #29143 More of the black forest~ The Black forest extends as far as the eye can see. Granted that's not too far, given how dense the forest is. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29148 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29142 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29115 S #29144 Disco Inferno!~ This is the hot, hot dance floor that is the hub of Ed's Disco Palace. If you want you can dance the night away and disco till your feet are blistered or you can just kill everything in sight here. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29114 S #29145 The Ruined Castle Keep~ Once upon a time this was the most secure area in good King Haggard's castle. Now the forces of the Citadel have defiled the marble court and sacked it. It once famed secure walls now can barely protect themselves from the ravages of the elements. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29135 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29138 S #29146 The Murky Mire~ The Stream leads to a nautral pond. It is not a clear or pure pond, murky pond scum floats in a fine skin over the surface. This place approaces a swamp more than it does a pond. This place is a prime breeding ground for mosquitoes and other stinging insects that buzz about your face. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29119 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29147 S #29147 Ivy Island~ This is a small patch of ground that pokes up over the surface of the murky mire. It is little more than a patch of rock that is covered with poison ivy. There is little soil, but somehow the vines mamage to find enough food to survive. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29146 S #29148 Still More of the forest~ You know the drill. Can you tell that I was running low on my creative inspiration when I made this room? ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29149 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29143 S #29149 Even more of the Black Forest~ Does this accursed forest never end? You press deeper and deeper into the seemingly endless cadre of oak trees that stand as omnious guardians to this dark place. Press much further and you do not know if you will be able to find your way back. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29199 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29148 S #29150 The Citadel antechamber~ This is a high vaulted room that serves an the entryway to the citadel. The dark granite wals seem to absorb the light, yet strangely you can see rather easily. Lining the walls are several statues each one made of fine marble and totally identical. Each one depticts the mistress of the citadel in her rather imposing stance. ~ 291 12 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29151 D3 The gate stands as a barrier to your egress. ~ door gate portcullis doors~ 1 0 29129 S #29151 Inside the Citadel~ Your footsteps echo off the walls as you tread through the halls. The outer shell of the citadel stands as the maintainence and upkeeping fraction of this evil construct. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29152 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29160 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29155 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29150 S #29152 The South end of the Hall of Mirrors~ This is a long hall. The walls have been covered with mirrors This gives the room the appearance of being many times larger than it is. Occasionally a torch is mounted in a setting in the wall. You can see the hall extending well to the north. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29153 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29151 S #29153 The North end of the Hall of Mirrors~ This is a long hall. The walls have been covered with mirrors This gives the room the appearance of being many times larger than it is. Occasionally a torch is mounted in a setting in the wall. You can see the hall extending to the south. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29154 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29152 S #29154 The Library~ This chamber in the citadel is lines with rows upon rows of bookshelves. Most are thick leatherbound tomes. Most haven't been used in months, or years A fine layer of dust has setteled on most of them. The tiled floor, however is spotless. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29156 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29153 S #29155 The Master Armorer's Workshop~ This room is where Durlak, The citadel's armorer, does his craft. The room is unconfortably warm from the forge. The walls are lined with the castle's guardians, the DoomGuard. Most of them are in various stages of repair, to be worked on by Durlak. Occasionally, one will walk into the room and stand by the wall waiting repair. Occasionally one of the others will become active and begin its patrolling duties. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29151 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29171 S #29156 In the Halls of the Citadel~ The long vaulted hall extends in an east-west direction. It serves to connect the Eastern complex and the Western one. Your footsteps echo off the walls, reverbing, rebounding, resounding, refusing to die, as if they knew that to perish here is to risk eternal damnation. Above you, supernatural flames forever dance in crystal orbs that hang suspended from the ceiling by wrougt iron chains. The strange light these provide casts long shadows that envelop long tracts of hall. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29157 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29154 S #29157 In the Halls of the Citadel~ The long vaulted hall extends in an east-west direction. It serves to connect the Eastern complex and the Western one. Your footsteps echo off the walls, reverbing, rebounding, resounding, refusing to die, as if they knew that to perish here is to risk eternal damnation. Above you, supernatural flames forever dance in crystal orbs that hang suspended from the ceiling by wrougt iron chains. The strange light these provide casts long shadows that envelop long tracts of hall. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ door secret passage~ 0 0 29109 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29158 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29156 S #29158 The Gallery~ This is the marble gallery. A large square room filled with statues of every make and style. Abstract and Bas Releif and Lifelike scuplture all are represented here in the gallery. The marbled white walls almost seem to glow providing more than enough light to see by. The statues seem to be writhing in pain. Each one captured in a snapshot in time, displaying its agony for all to see. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29188 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29157 S #29159 The Observing tower~ This is a large cylencrical room, made out of a tan stone of some form. A large bonefire burning with an unnatural black flame burns in the middle of the room. A staircase, built into the wall, spirals upward towards the observation chamber. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29188 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29174 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29170 S #29160 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29164 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29151 S #29161 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29164 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29162 S #29162 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29165 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29163 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29161 S #29163 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29166 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29162 S #29164 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29167 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29165 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29161 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29160 S #29165 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29168 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29162 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29164 S #29166 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29169 D1 A large oaken door impedes your progress. ~ door oaken~ 0 29117 29180 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29163 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29165 S #29167 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29168 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29164 S #29168 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ Standing before you are rows upon rows of evenly spaced marble columns. Arranged in a perfect square matrix, the two foot thick pillars stretch upward, reaching higher and higher until they dissappear, enveloped in the darkness high above where your light dares not reach. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29169 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29165 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29167 S #29169 The Room of 10,000 pillars~ You are in the Room of 10,000 pillars. Have a nice day. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29168 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29166 S #29170 The Observing Chamber~ This is the observation chamber on the top of the observing tower. A large telescope if mounted into the wall allowing a view to the outside. The center of the room has a sturdy oaken table which is has a modest collection of maps and charts. A spiral starcase leads down the tower. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29159 S #29171 In the Halls of the Citadel~ The long vaulted hall extends in an east-west direction. It serves to connect the Eastern complex and the Western one. Your footsteps echo off the walls, reverbing, rebounding, resounding, refusing to die, as if they knew that to perish here is to risk eternal damnation. Above you, supernatural flames forever dance in crystal orbs that hang suspended from the ceiling by wrougt iron chains. The strange light these provide casts long shadows that envelop long tracts of hall. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29172 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29155 S #29172 In the Halls of the Citadel~ The long vaulted hall extends in an east-west direction. It serves to connect the Eastern complex and the Western one. Your footsteps echo off the walls, reverbing, rebounding, resounding, refusing to die, as if they knew that to perish here is to risk eternal damnation. Above you, supernatural flames forever dance in crystal orbs that hang suspended from the ceiling by wrougt iron chains. The strange light these provide casts long shadows that envelop long tracts of hall. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29173 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29171 S #29173 The Clock Tower~ You have entered the clock tower. As you gaze upward you see a mass of intricate gears, cogs, and other clockwork parts meshing and grinding above you. The effect is almost hypnotic. A staircase is built into the wall allowing access to the intricate mechanisms above, if you dare to climb it. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29174 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29172 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29175 S #29174 A Connecting Corridor~ You are in the Citadel. Have a nice day. ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29159 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29173 S #29175 In the Clock Tower~ You stand in the lower portion of the inner working of the citadel's clock tower. Gears mesh and springs flex all around you. You realize that with so much ambient motion it would be easy to ambush you here. There is a staircase down to the ground floor, to go upward any more you will have to climb the gears. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29176 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29173 S #29176 Amongst the cogs.~ You are playing a game of High Stakes Hop-Scotch, leaping from gear to gear, Hanging on a chain one moment, climing on a gear the next. You had better act quickly to make your next move before your luck runs out. One false step here could be disasterous. Its a long way down, if you are lucky, if not you stand to be a red stain between two gears. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29177 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29178 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29175 S #29177 Between the Gears~ You hop to one a stationary gear to catch your breath. The effect of all the movement in the background is dizzying. You momentairly loose track of your sense of balence. A slip up that would prove to be fatal. Without warning the gear shudders to life and you fall. You land between the teeth of a moving cog and come to your senses just as it starts to move. You barely escape a crunching death. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 S #29178 The Top of the Clock Tower~ You are above the bulk of the clockwork mechanisms. On a small balcony you stand looking down. You can try to brave the trip down of you care to, or you can go out onto the clock face. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29179 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29176 S #29179 On the Clock Face~ You stand on the central peg of the clock face that the hands rotate around. An icy wind whips by that threatens to chill you to the soul. You look around and can look out over the tops of the oaken trees which extend to the horizon. On the other side of the citadel you can see the observation tower extending only slightly higher they you are now. And then you see the spire of the citadel which extends high into the sky, casting its long shadow across the Black Forest. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29178 S #29180 The Ground Floor of the Spire~ You are in the spire of the Citadel. A Large room. It is all but pitch black. The only thing that breaks the monotony is a starcase that extends both up and down ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D3 ~ door double~ 2 29117 29166 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29141 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29181 S #29181 The Tower Dungeon~ You have decended into the dank dungeon below the spire. A strange green moss grown on the rough hewn rock walls that illuminates the room with an eeire green glow. There are a few holding cells that line the far walls A row of manacles are affixed to the near wall to hold prisoners while they await torture. The middle of the room is taken up by several implements of pain. There is a vat for boiling oil. Several racks and countless hideous bladed instruments, old, diseased, and rusty with age. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29140 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29180 S #29182 The Infernal Altar~ Partway up the tower is the chapel dedicated to the mistress of the tower and of the Void. The room is in a circular shape with an altar of some strange black material in the middle. Unholy lights burn with the power of the symmetry, casting an unnatrual sheen on the room. The spiral staircase that wraps around the room continues both up and down ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29183 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29141 S #29183 The Great Spiral Staircase~ Just above the altar, the tower hollows itself out and you now stand in a giant chamber. In the middle of the hollowed column stands a pair of spiral staircases twisting and turning upon each other in a doulbe helix. There is no central pillar on which the staircases are supported. You have to marvel at the wonder of engineering this is. But only the bravest souls will climb it because each step you take brings you that much closer to... Her. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29184 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29182 S #29184 The Great Spiral Staircase~ You are about halfway up the Great Spiral Staircase. The steps continue to spiral onward like two intertwined slinkies made of a dark marble. Your light grows noteably dimmer, as if the tower's very darkness consumes the light as soon as it is produced. Your legs plead with you to decend the steps, rather than ascend. For to go down is to go away from the terror at the top. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29185 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29183 S #29185 The Choice~ Above the Great Spiral Staircase. You enter a small mist-filled room. It is has two exits to it, and to go forth you have to make a fateful choice. Think carefully before you make your choice. ~ 291 13 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29186 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29187 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29189 S #29186 Damned if You Do~ You've made your choice, now live with it ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 S #29187 Damned if You Don't~ You've made your choice, now live with it ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 S #29188 The Music Room~ This is a sprawling room is filled with musical instruments. The largest feature of the room is the pipe organ. It dominates over half of the room. The organ has five sets of organ keys which have been polished to a high reflective sheen. The brass pipes of the organ are likewise polished waiting to be used. In the background you can hear the echos of a phantasmal orquestra playing in some forgotten and lost dimention, whose music somehow leaks through to where you now stand. ~ 291 41 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29158 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29159 S #29189 The Great Spiral Staircase~ Congradulations. You made the right choice. You walked away. Maybe you have a chance after all, but if you had any sense at all you'd just keep on going back down. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29190 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29184 S #29190 At Death's Door~ You were wise (Or luckey) enough to survive the Choice. You have arrived at Death's Door. The Large, Iron double door stands as an obstacle to your passage. Trying force the door would be futile. To progress any further you will need a key. There is a door to the north ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D0 Death's Door stands here to block you. ~ death door~ 2 29115 29191 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29189 S #29191 The Final Ascent~ Just beyond Death's door is a narrow staircase. The air is unusually damp and the walls are slick with moss. As you walk upwards your way is lit by candles that are lining both sides of the starecase. The air is thick with the humidity and the stench of evil. It is still not to late to turn back. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D2 Death's is here barring your progress ~ door death~ 2 29115 29190 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29192 S #29192 Beyond the point of no return~ As the name implies, you are past the point of no return. The only way out is through the mistress of the void, Ilian. Unless you want to take the easy way out and just die now. ~ 291 13 0 0 0 0 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29193 S #29193 Near the Balcony~ After leaving the point of no return behind. You stand on a broad square dotted with pillars supporting the final stories above you. With nothing to stop it, the wind is a constant gale through this wind tunnel. Looking out the grey skies loom ominously fortelling of a coming storm. You can step out on to the balcony if you like, or you can climb the staircase in the middle to challenge the mistress of this fortress. ~ 291 8 0 0 0 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29194 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29196 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29192 S #29194 The High Balcony~ You are on the high balcony on the spire. It rests right above the huge symbol of on the walls of the tower you say when you were first entering the woods. Glancing around you see the clock tower and the observing post far below you. From here you can see the entire expanse of the black woods. From the western hills where you began this nightmare to the sea which lies FAR to the south. The balcony extends to the south a bit, but be careful There is no guardrail, and that first step is a doozy. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29195 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29193 S #29195 Look Before you Leap~ You are on the edge of the balcony. There is no guardrail here only a shear clifflike drop at the edge. An unexpected gust of wind nearly makes you loose your footing, but you manage to hang on. As nervous as you are, this place has an unusual serenity to it. ~ 291 0 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29194 S #29196 The Guardian's Chamber~ This room, near the top of the tower is draped in chains that completely hide the walls. You feel the unmitigated force of evil radiating from a door to the north. This chamber is the guardpost for Ilian's personal bodyguard and enforcer. The Greatest and Most Powerful of all the Doomguard: The Dark and Stormy Knight! ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29197 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29193 S #29197 Ilian's Throne Room~ Well you made it. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but after all the trials and struggles you are at the top of Ilian's citadel. The room seems impossibly large, and the center of it is dominated by a presence which radiates pure, unadulterated unmitigated, unqualified, unholy evil. The mistress of the citadel, Ilian sits on her throne surrounded by a small horde of her children, She looks at you as her mastery of the dark symmetry probes your mind to find out if you are signifigant enough to be bothered with ~ 291 9 0 0 0 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29196 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29198 S #29198 The Way Out~ Fleeing quickly, you leave the throne room behind and make your way down a secret staircase ~ 291 5 0 0 0 0 D5 ~ ~ 0 0 29180 S #29199 Even more of the Black Forest~ Does this accursed forest never end? You press deeper and deeper into the seemingly endless cadre of oak trees that stand as omnious guardians to this dark place. Press much further and you do not know if you will be able to find your way back. ~ 291 1 0 0 0 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29149 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29120 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29149 S $~