10. The Maid

Leila was wandering around the amethyst castle alone. It was exceptionally quiet. The usual bustling servants were nowhere to be seen; only a few were traveling through the long shimmering passages linking massive chambers and grand halls. Thankfully, this gave her the confidence to explore the castle

But Leila wasn’t actually alone. She didn’t notice that someone had been following her in the shadows from the second she stepped out from the bedchamber.

Soon, she came upon a vast gallery off to the side of the flourishing garden. The room gave her an indescribable feeling. The sensation was undeniably beautiful, but also troubling. It was twice long as it was wide, and it was filled with numerous rare oddities; swords, shields, and finely-forged melee weapons were all symmetrically displayed in the space. At the end of the gallery, a shiny round button, made of obsidian and roughly the size of Leila’s palm, was inlaid on the wall.

She was drawn in by its beauty. An obscure, mythica