Hrothgar exclaims, "Praise be the gods have not exacted their toll!"
Isat lifts an eyebrow
"What toll would that be brother?"
"Oh nothing... forget I ever mentioned anything." Hrothgar falls silent and stands in a corner.
Hrothgar:
For Tal
Modius takes 20 to study the door.
"If the sculptures are leading us correctly, this should be Plato's realm. Reality could be a little blurred if Paper's remembered his education."
Isat still seems entirely at home here, despite the dangers and strangeness of the place.
Paper arises and yawns.
"I believe it is time to face what is before us friends."
Paper begins to accouter himself with his weapons and make ready to depart.
Modius is absolutely certain that the doors are not trapped. Who will open them, and how?
...and how?
Modius pulls the leather handles experimentally.
The doors swing open easily, with almost no sound. As they open, you can see into the room on the other side. It is a small chamber. The door you have just opened is in the middle of the long West side. The chamber is forty foot long, and about twenty foot wide. The South end of the room has a small dias, about six foot tall. Atop the dias is a polished silver mirror. It is a perfect mirror. The first any of you have ever seen. A small bronze socket is empty in the centre of the mirror. The mirror is a six foot diameter concave disk. The socket and focal point is about eight inches inset from the edges of the mirror. It is a gentle parabola. On the North side of the room, set flush into the wall, is a massive slab of dark and shadowy obsidian. It must weigh about eight tons. The obsidian plug is also circular. It has the same diameter as the mirror. The walls of the chamber are made of dull granite. There is no dust in the room. It looks fresh-built. Against the East wall, opposite the entrance, A stone shelf contains a few rolls of scrolls, wrapped in pigskin. From the entrance, you can see that there are about fourteen scrolls. Each scroll is sealed in its pigskin tube. They are arranged neatly on the plain shelf. A rosewood wedge on either side holds the scrolls on the shelf.
There are no visible inhabitants or perils in the room.
Seeing no visible danger, Hrothgar strides pass Modius with boastful confidence and defiance. "It is your pleasure to meet me," Hrothgar announces to all and sundry.
Isat looks carefully at the room for any sign of another exit.
The obsidian plug may be an exit, but has no seams or holds. Hrothgar is not hampered or harmed, as he strides into the room. Rufinus shrugs, and follows.
Levi looks paranoid. He is also searching the floor for perils.
Stratos looks hungrily at the scrolls.
"This room was made by a master. The granite is perfect, and all is in perfect proportion. I am a master mason, but I could not do work this fine without the blessing of the All-father."
"Is it safe to open the scrolls?"
"Open one up and you'll have your answer."
Paper examines the room, searching for any similarities to any religious/historical scenes he can recall.
"What a fantastic room."
For Gnaeus Cornelius Papyrus:
Stratos gingerly reaches out, and touches a scroll with his fingertip. Nothing happens. He breathes out, and opens the scroll.
"It is in Coptic Greek! We can.... I can.... read them.
...also true that no physician, in so far as he is a physician, considers or enjoins what is for the physician's interest, but that all seek the good of their patients? For we have agreed that a physician strictly so called, is a ruler of bodies, and not a maker of money, have we not?...
It is Plato. This scroll is by Plato. I am sure of it! There are annotations, in another hand. Marginalia. Open the others, and let us check if they are also Platonia."
Stratos smiles, and hands the scroll to Paper. He takes another scroll from the rack, opens the leather bag, and nods.
"This is also Plato. This must be a complete set of his works. The hand is the same. It starts in the middle."
Isat pads across the room to join Stratos and Paper.
"Fascinating."
He rummages happily through the scrolls.
"I could stay here for hours."
"Scholars and their playthings." Hrothgar mutters with disdain.
Paper recalls the famous light weapon Archimedes was said to have made.
"My friends! this room is a parabolic array meant to concentrate light into a focused beam. Archimedes used one similar to this to ignite ships in a naval battle off Syracuse. Perhaps a beam of light opens a hidden passage?"
Intrigued by the problem, Isat joins Paper and considers the situation.
"I think you're right Paper. We'll need a light source to focus if you are. Levi! Can you help?"
"Levi obligingly mutters some Hebrew numbers, holds his fingers in a few symbolic poses, and conjures a light. He holds it at the centre of the parabola. The light reflects, but it scatters. The obsidian plug mottles and warps. Distorted views of a room beyond twist in the stone."
"This is not the correct light."
"A flame perhaps."
"The socket looks the right size for one of the torches in the passage outside."
Rufinus places one of the everburning torches in the socket. The fit is far from exact. Again, the flickering light reveals a way through the plug, but the light source is not properly used.
"What else gave out light in this tomb?"
"The blue glow from the eyes of the dead, and I doubt that's a practical option. Or my symbol blasted light, but it won't do so unasked. We can try."
Isat takes out the strange symbol crafted by the underworld and holds it aloft.
Goddess guide us, what on earth am I doing, standing in the middle of a room holding your symbol?
In the room through the smoky and warping obsidian barrier, a circular light is visible. The distortions in the shifting black glass plug make it seem to flicker around. It is clearly the light you need, tantalisingly out of reach.
Perception checks please. One of you needs to get eighteen or higher.
For Isat Vastra:
Gesturing to Paper to come closer, Isat examines the shadow cast on the obsidian plug.
"What did Plato say about shadows on a cave wall Paper? Can we manipulate this shadow to move the light in the next room do you think ... something like that ..."
As he thinks aloud, Isat explains his theory of the solid shadow to the others.
Allegory of the cave
Modius is staring keenly at... something.
Paper frowns at Isat's explanation.
"Perhaps if we can cast a shadow of someone's hand across the plug we will be able to grab the light?"
"Good idea"
Isat tries to position himself so his hand falls into the shadow.
Now that Isat is concentrating on it, he feels a strange sense of resistance to his gesture. The shadow of his hand stretches out toward the light, and Isat feels a warmth on his hand. The light is about the size of a hen's egg. Isat is now holding the light, through the barrier, using the shadow. The barrier is still part opaque and part translucent. Oily darkness flows in the plug. As Isat pulls the light toward the barrier, he feels a slight sense of weight in his hand. The light floats through, clutched in his hand.
It is intensely, blindingly bright. Not as strong as sunlight, but very hard to look at. There is no substance to it. Isat's shadow suddenly flips around, as the light source has changed. The light makes all of you cast really strong, deep shadows.
Paper shields his eyes as best he can. He pays especial attention to his shadow and the others. He has a bad feeling this light might be bringing substance and purpose to them. He looks to Isat.
"Quick Isat, put the light in the socket!"
Half-blinded by the sudden light and the surprise, Isat almost stumbles.
"Guide me. I can't see properly."
He moves towards the socket still holding the light, grimly aware of the thickening shadows.
Paper guides Isat towards the socket.
"Left a little ... back a touch ... THERE!"
You guys are smart.
"Modius, without you lot my brains would be decoration on a spear somewhere."
Following Paper's instructions, Isat backs, turns and aims the insubstantial light for the socket. The effect is of a dance as the shadows in their turn wheel and follow the light.
As soon as the light enters the socket, the parabola catches the light, and focuses it into a beam of glorious light. Isat, Paper and Modius were in front of the light, in the beam. Their shadows are now completely on the far side of the barrier. Abruptly, they vanish, and re-appear on the far side of the obsidian plug. The plug is now visible as if it were slightly smoky glass. What dust there is in the room, refleclts the light like a ray of God. Outside the beam, light is not as bright.
Isat, Paper and Modius:
"What madness is this? Our friends have vanished, and now we see them on the far side of this stone wall. What if that is not them, but is a seeming? We would have no way of knowing.