Letter 3

Poppy,

I would say that the days here are long, lonely and now dangerous. But it's the nights that are the worst. I can't escape from my thoughts at night.

Obviously I failed to teach the gorble to fly in just 6 hours, so I didn't exactly feel safe about heading down into the vaults. I decided it was best to get cracking first thing. Nothing evil lurks in the morning right?

Well the boot itself was strange enough. The Class 1 Librarian on duty told me to wear wyvernhide gloves to carry it, and to keep my eyes open. Apparently, since the fissure, some of the older wards are failing. She assured me it's still safe, but that didn't make me feel any better.

The gloves didn't stop the boot from shaking, wobbling and humming as I carried it down 17 staircases.

It was freezing down there. The sublevels are ancient and sprawling. It felt like we descended forever. I wouldn't be surprised if they stretch under half of the Kingdom.

With every step I could see my breath and before I reached the heavy iron door I was shivering and shaking. The gorble wasn't keen either, though I did check his ears and they weren't glowing.

There were ancient symbols all over the floor and the door itself. They seemed to be ancient wards of protection though I could only recognise a handful of them.

When I entered the vault, an icy blast of wind barrelled into me. It reminded me of that cave we went to in the mountains for the Liverwort spores. I stuttered out a laugh when I remembered slipping into that frozen pool. Your face was a picture. But then the boot tried to jump out of my hands and I was brought back to reality pretty quickly. The Greenhouse Initiative is over.

Inside the vault were hundreds of tiny alcoves, each filled with what must be a cursed or spirit bound item. Magelight lined the room, bright enough to illuminate most of the alcoves, but also casting deep shadows everywhere too. There was no dust on anything, almost as if it was afraid to settle. I can see why. The hairs on my neck stood on end and the gorble kept launching from my shoulder, hovering above me and landing again. Almost as if he was trying to fly away.

I hurried through the vault, shivering, without dropping the blasted boot, and found a spare alcove to store it. These were lined with wards and symbols too, though they were different to the earlier ones of protection.

The boot squirmed and the hum grew to a shrill squeal as it drew closer to the warded alcove. The surface of the boot heated up, warming my hands through the gloves, and it made me a little disappointed to let it go to be honest. But I still thrust it in place. The moment it touched the stone, it was stilled with a blue flash.

As I backed away from the light, the gorble started to flap.

A black robe, apparently disembodied, floated towards me. The gorble’s ears glowed an intense red as he flapped and I sprinted back to the door.

But as I went to slam it shut behind me, a skeletal hand reached around the door, grasping at the air in front of me. I stepped back, my heart pounding, but the hand withdrew instantly, seeming to shy away from the protection wards. I threw my shoulder at the door and it clicked into place.

Layers upon layers of ancient symbols flickered into life across the door, with a flash of green power. These wards were strong enough to hold the creature, for now at least.

I still don't think I've recovered. I didn't even finish my shift. I went straight to my room and I haven't left since.

Suppose I've seen a gorble in action though. I gave him some wormy treats when we got back but he seems okay. He's sleeping right now.

Your dearest friend

Willow