Ward 32 – Episode 13

You pry yourself up off the cold floor and, seeing that Harold is still breathing, you slump down the dark corridor towards the one room with a patch of light and the crashing sounds coming from inside.

As you approach, your eyes glance forward beyond your objective, and you get a better idea of what is in the large room at the end of the hallway. It looks to be some kind of immense dining hall. A table, set with all manner of things, stretches away from you into the distance so far that you can’t see the end of it.

Distracted by the dining room, you almost don’t notice that when you get within a few feet of your objective the crashing and shattering noises coming from within abruptly stop.

You immediately freeze in place and hold your position, expecting someone to emerge from the door. After a few anxious moments, you breathe a little easier and edge towards the lit door. Cautiously, you peek through the window and see what’s inside.

As before with the masquerade (and with the dining room, as well), the room beyond this doorway seems to have no business being inside an asylum. The room seems to be a large ornate library, with shelves carved from oak and decorated in a fine, if somewhat foreign, style. The floor is covered with patterned rugs and the walls are hung with woven tapestries depicting various acts of savagery.

The room itself seems to have been torn apart. Books lie on the floor all over the place. Pieces of pottery lie cracked and broken, and some tapestries have been torn from the wall and dashed to the ground.

Against the wall opposite your position is a very old record player complete with a crank for power.

A man stands in the corner diagonally opposite you, facing away from you. He seems to be reading a book that he has clutched in his hands. From the waist down, the man is dressed similarly to you, and from the waist up he is shirtless.

You duck your head down a bit as the man suddenly turns on his heel and stalks towards the record player. Having seen his face, you recognize him as Benziah, the crazed preacher Harold said was committed for his “overzealous” immolation of some homeless men.

Benziah stops near the record player and cranks the handle three clockwise turns. He stands in front of the record player, listening intently. Then, a few moments later, he disappears completely.

Wisdom: One of your dream images comes unbidden into your mind. A record player of this kind set on a stage. In the background of the image, you see a few masked actors frozen in mid-motion.

[poll id=17]

---

Sorry for the delay. I hope you all had a great memorial day weekend (if you’re in a place where you celebrate it.).

Updates are on Monday and Thursday afternoons. You must be registered to vote in the polls.