Antaria: Amalthea

Amalthea crouched in the near-darkness, waiting as her eyes got used to the dim light. Ahead, the stone path broke into ripples where roots had mangled the rock underneath. She straightened, steadying her staff upon the ground with a distinct clank, and continued walking. Her braid trailed listlessly in the air as she did so.

Thorngarde Keep was an adventurer's worst-kept secret, a forgotten ruin rising from the overgrown forests of Allandria. The massive castle had been abandoned close to eighty years before, and the ever-persistent rumors told of the fantastic treasure within its depths, wealth that could provide for a man until the end of his days and far, far more.

That virtually every single adventurer across Antaria knew about the Keep was a detail largely forgotten. Scant weeks would pass without some ambitious peasant, wandering knight or mercenary company passing by to have a look. Usually they would leave empty handed - eighty years of scavengers, after all, would have left no stone unturned.

But Amalthea was more than some mere adventurer - she was a Metrian. And, while the benefits of her field of arcane study were not immediately obvious, Amalthea knew perfectly well that being a Metrian gave her access to the comprehensive stores of knowledge that her colleagues were so fond of collecting. So here she was, investigating a moldering old map drawn by a man who had claimed to have accessed the secret inner depths of the Keep.

It wasn't about the wealth and treasure, mind you. The Guild provided her every need, and she was content. But Metrians were highly inquisitive by nature, and Amalthea just happened to think that being inquisitive gave you the right to walk into places just to have a look around.

There was an odd grinding sound in the distance. Amalthea had been attempting to tie it to anything she had experienced so far, but it resisted association. It was unlikely that anything in the Keep was still in fair condition, so whatever it was, it was certainly of interest to her.

Turning her head slightly in order to gain a better idea of where the sound was coming from, she headed in that direction. As she walked, her staff tapped against the stone floor with every step.