The stones of the ancient ruin rumbled as if in protest of some monstrous act, shaking in place and giving the air and unpleasant, vibrating hum. And as suddenly as it started, the tremors ceased.
As the Taijitu dissipated into motes of darkness that rose into the morning sky, its fading body revealed a sizable passageway, carved from solid stone and marked with odd, jade-green pictographs on the opposite end of the cavern. A fetid, musty breeze blew out of the newly uncovered opening, and faint scratchings of something hard upon the rocks could be heard from within.
Siegfried's eyebrows raised and he nodded thoughtfully to himself while viewing a particular section of his display. Well, that was going to give someone a world-class surprise, indeed. If they didn't die from sheer fright, that is...Speaking of which...
"Miss Clannad, there is no use in fretting. They will either succeed or they shall fail, and if failure rules the day, I will see to it they do not pay with their lives. You have my word on it."
Siobhan believed he felt he was telling the truth. She also very much doubted even he could combat the horror which she had caught a fleeting glimpse of over his shoulder. Blanched white and trembling, she clung to his shirtsleeve and prayed that whoever met it first had time to run and warn the others...