THE LIGHTHOUSE
Crawling, clandestine or crumbling, you’ve made your way to the
mist-drenched lighthouse of Ellethia-Hamsour — a gargantuan, converted tower that regularly flashes an eerie
green light signal. Those who know
MORSE code can recognise a strange mix of
BEWARE,
STAY AWAY,
DANGER — and
COME THIS WAY.
The compulsion to possess the lighthouse disappears when characters come in a 3km radius of it. In the tower surroundings, they can find
sweet water wells,
vegetable gardens,
chicken coops and
sheep, all seemingly well looked after and self-replenishing overnight. These plants and creatures are
not subject to Ellethia’s life-death-rebirth cycles. Characters who stay within the aforementioned 3km range of the lighthouse can now safely remove their
haute couture red gear,
Enam reveals. He urges the party to reside at the lighthouse for the next
three weeks, at the end of which one of the Merchant’s ships will collect them to travel east.
Characters can journey back and forth to
Ellethia-Allayar over this period.
The tower spreads over 12 floors, featuring exceptionally high and vast rooms with emptied bookcases, sturdy tables, and scatterings of technological tools on the ground. On the
walls, mindful visitors can spot discreet engravings of an eye with a
sun instead of a pupil. A room on the ground and first floor each have cracked signs, spelling out
IN TI T OF TE N LO and
IBRAR O AR S, respectively. The 8th and 9th floor house well-used sleeping quarters, with bathing rooms located on the 6th floor. The 10th floor is all one large room, barren except for the wealth of very thin, crushed shards of various mirror types. The 5th floor hosts several long, ornate discussion tables — at night, those who travel it can hear ghostly whispers of vitriolic conversation, with speakers insulting each other and their impudence.
Those who spend time in the 1st to 4th floor past midnight will sometimes hear screams urging everyone to retreat, as “
they come from above.” Sometimes, the long staircases will grow wet overnight with blood and decay, which disappear come morning. Across the various floors, the nightly ‘soundtrack’ includes panicked shouts, glass
smashing, feral screams similar to those of the undead and running steps.
The
lighthouse keeper Zenobius takes little notice of his visitors, allowing them to make their quarters where they please and partake of his resources.
Enam’s helpers supply
Kaneki some lugged-around stale dead meat, or he can fish undead mermaids. Using a fluffy sheep as bait is always recommended.
Zenobius is often found on the 12th level, absentmindedly using mirrors, lantern lights and glass panes to flash MORSE indications. He is often rushed, distracted and unwilling to converse. Sometimes, he appears to forget the people he has already encountered; on other occasions, his own name eludes him.
Swarms of
mermaids encircle the coastal area close to the lighthouse, furious, feral and trashing to crawl onto shore. Every few days,
Zenobius brings broken glass pieces from the 12th floor and throws them in the water, briefly appeasing the creatures before their fury stokes once more.
Every day,
Zenobius spends several hours on the 11th floor, whose main entrance is sternly locked and enchanted. Characters can still climb to the 12th floor — where
Zenobius sleeps — without entering the 11th floor hallways. To the right of the 11th floor main hallway door is a mechanical device that requires a palm print, which
Zenobius seems uses for entry. On the door, a sign asks,
WHAT DO YOU WISH FOR? Scratched beneath it, possibly by
human nails,
TURN BACK. For each time they want to enter the 11th floor halls, characters must
speak a different wish and face the consequences.
Inside the room sleep 10 men and women of various ages, seemingly comatose on stone slates. Some show signs of scratches or healed bite injury. Depending on the hour of entry, you might find
Zenobius sponge washing their bodies, combing their hair, mending their clothes or massaging their limbs.
The Sleepers
live.
PLOT ROLLS- ■ Lily, Joker and Anduin
■ Five and Daenerys
■ Yennefer, Eleven and Moiraine
■ Lorna, Wrench and Marcos
■ Zuko and Slick
■ John Connor and Kaneki
■ Hermione and Jon Snow
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groundrules
