“The Shrouded Vale”
Episode 10: The Cost of Living
April 3, 2025
Crouching low, Tavi Falconheart presses the first rune-marked plate—the one bearing a single tally.
Nothing happens.
He presses the second. Then the third. Following the sequence he believes is encoded in the symbols.
Still nothing.
He narrows his eyes, heartbeat steady despite the sound of the descending ceiling overhead.
Think.
Mind racing He double-checks the sequence, trying once more.
Gold still glimmers beneath the untouched plates. He eyes his satchel—and an idea hits him.
What if the coins were part of the puzzle?
He pulls a single gold piece from his pouch and sets it gently atop the first pressure plate.
Click.
The plate sinks, held down by a weight no heavier than a single coin. Tavi’s eyes widen.
He grabs two more coins, setting them onto the second plate.
Another click. It’s working.
Each plate—ten in all—must be weighted down by a corresponding number of coins. One on the first. Two on the second. Three…
His mind races. He runs the math: 1 + 2 + 3 + … + 10…
Fifty-five!
He digs through his pouch, counts quickly. He only has forty coins.
Not enough.
The ceiling groans above, louder now. Dust drifts from the cracks as the chamber shrinks further.
He stares down at the golden discs still remaining in his palm, mind spinning.
Was this the trick all along? Use the treasure to buy your way out? Or was this just another test—one final trap waiting for a desperate mistake?
He still has a chance. But only one.