Nyase's tale Part II

Nyase's tale Part II

Inside the Holdfast it was very dark and a littlie damp and musty a bit like a closet of clothes put away whilst damp and left for a while, it was Nyasse thought just a sign of a place not recently lived in but her stomach which was very empty drove her on. Passing further in up the shallow stair and along the switchback entrance tunnel she came to a door and found it locked she rattled at it and it seemed secure, but why lock this one when the outer door was not she wondered and none of the stories of the place, she had heard from the other children, had spoken of it being locked. She propped her guttering torch out of the way and then applied her shoulder to it and after a couple of blows it gave swinging open releasing a gust of slightly stale air and disturbing the dust of if not ages then of quite some time. Inside was a large rough stone walled chamber it was empty save for several stacks of empty sacks but it had four ways out all intriguing in themselves and sealed by a rough if well made wooden door none seemed locked. She couldn’t chose so she played a childish game with a flower which she remembered form long ago and it chose the west door. 

 

Holdfast ground floor

Which lead into a smaller room with the stone walled well in the centre of it. Realizing she was thirsty as well as famished she lowered the bucket into the well it splashed into the water not far below withdrew it drinking from the bucket spilling quite as much down herself as she drank, again she saw the horrified look on the face of her old etiquette mistress and again she smiled. Refreshed she took a proper look around the well room finding it empty apart from a few battered water containers. She sorted through these chose a battered flask with a stopper filled that form the well and pressed on further turning this time northwards. Passing though a second unlocked rough but well made wooden door she found a guard room furnished with a solid table and a couple of chairs with a single door in the north east corner of the same type she had found so far no food she cursed gently. 

Looking round more closely Nyasse saw nothing much of interest at first, mostly an empty weapon rack on the west wall for spears or the like she thought, but then against the wall covered in dust so she almost missed it in the poor light of her torch a scabbarded short sword. She blew the dust off which made a cloud which stung her eyes and made her sneeze and cough  for quite some time till it settled again. Nyasse looked at the sword in the torch light and saw that the fittings on the scabbard as well as the hilt where silver quite tarnished but defiantly silver. She drew the blade and it was quite the most beautiful thing that she had ever seen razor sharp and without a spot on it. She wondered whose it was and why it had been left here so uncared for when even her untutored eye said it was very valuable. On impulse she took off her belt slung the baldric over her shoulder and refastened her belt as the soldiers in the palace had done. On a whim Nyasse drew the sword and swung round in a dance step to confront an imagined foe behind her. She rescabbarded the blade with care not to cut herself and thought that this is fun, and then added to herself that it would be even more fun if she had had more to eat than a scrap of cheese of uncertain age.

Onwards and upwards she said aloud to herself. And left the guard room by the other door. quickly finding that this was the way to the next level 

Main floor of the holdfast