The pair ascended the rest of the way to the top of the hillock, the tower growing larger and more distinct the closer they came. Thoughts of the snake had largely been forgotten now that they had sighted the tower.

It was immense, the heights of it lost in the mists, even when they reached the base of the tower. Each bock of smooth polished stone that made up its structure was taller than they were, all fitted together so perfectly that the gaps between blocks was all but invisible.

To construct such a thing even the height of civilised lands would have been a major undertaking; to do so where it was, so far from anyone and anything was an undertaking they felt would have been near impossible. And yet it existed.

Up close, the stone blocks were for the most part of a pristine white colour, yet as they watched, colours seemed to appear upon it, ever shifting and flowing, rippling across the surface. Aedmorn rested a hand upon the stones, watching the colours flow beneath it.

“Fascinating,” he said. “I an not tell if it is the stone itself causing the effect, or some form of enchantment laid upon it.”

“No windows,” Ivkarha observed. “They do not wish to admit any light.”

Aedmorn nodded. “There must be a way in though.”

They started to walk around the base of the tower until they came to a stairway on the other side, leading up to the tower to where a second floor would normally be. The doors into the tower were silvered, with red-gold filigree upon them and beset with gems and precious stones, forming swirling patterns that drew the eye ever inwards until they were locked at the centre of it.

The pattern held their eyes in a vice like grip, almost hypnotic in its intensity, driving thoughts from their head.

Only through force of will and a great and painful effort, painful both physically and mentally, were they able to tear their eyes free from the grasp of the door, an effort that those of lesser mental strength would not have managed.

Aedmorn rubbed at his temples, his mind still throbbing, eyes shut. “That is a nasty trap,” he stated, “One that only the most skilled practitioners of the arts could construct. And it is not just human minds that would be trapped, but animals as well.”

“Little wonder that great serpent lairs near here; any that wander close by will be trapped and then it has an easy source of prey.”

“It may be it was set there for that purpose, or it may be the snake simply took advantage of it.”

“It does leave the question as to why the snake hunted us down rather than wait until we got here.”

“Hunger, I suspect,” Aedmorn responded, blinking his eyes open again, though avoiding looking at the door. “I suspect that at some point this place trapped all the animals from within the valley, called forth by means unknown; it may be that when the clouds cleared and the sun hits the tower, the animals were attracted to it, entrapped and then devoured. With no other sources of food forthcoming, it could not wait and hope that we stumbled on the tower, but instead sought us out.”

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“To its downfall,” Ivkarha replied before glancing around her. “Still, it is best not to underestimate it. It may still harbour ill will towards us.”

“It has missed its chance then,” Aedmorn said. He started up the stairs, all the while his eyes fixed on the steps before him rather than the doors. “Let us see what secrets this place holds.”

Upon reaching the door, he took a hold of it and gave it a gentle tug. There was no resistance and the doors swung silently, smoothly open. “As if they were built but yesterday,” he noted before stepping cautiously inside. Ivkarha soon joined them and they found themselves in a large, round room that took up the entirety of the inside of the tower. In the centre of it was a thick column in which a set of stairs spiraled upwards and down.

The room itself was empty but for a light coating of dust and webs clinging to place, and tapestries that hung upon the walls, each stretching from floor to ceiling and woven in bright colours.

The room itself had a light to it, not one that merely came through the door, soft in intensity, seemingly coming from the walls itself. It had a golden edge to it, though not bright and harsh like the sun. It provided enough light to see by but little more than that.

Together they moved around the room, inspecting the tapestries, and as they did, they saw before them an unfolding story, revealing more of the tall people they had seen carved upon the stones outside.

From the doorway headed to their left, they saw the tall figures engaged in war and conflict amongst themselves, bodies being broken and tortured, of towering cities in flames and all of it beneath the night’s sky, with the stars shining above. The victors feasted upon the bodies of the fallen, while the vanquished, heads bowed, marched away, into dark forests and mountains.

“Exile’s driven out,” Aedmorn mused, “Though were from and who they were I can not say. It does not match any form of mythology I have heard tell of.”

Ivkarha nodded. “You would think if such people as these once walked the lands they would be remembered in tale and legend. Not even in the swordsongs are such mentioned.”

The Exiled continued their trek across the tapestries, and many fell, by sickness, attacks by fell beasts and by the burning glare of the sun, until at last they came to a valley in the mountains.

“Look here,” Aedmorn said, pointing to one part of one tapestry, “They are preparing a great sacrifice at nighttime, beneath the stars. One not just of animals but people as well, and by their size human.”

“Or their own children,” Ivkarha stated ominously. “Not once before have humans been seen on the tapestries before.”

“If so, that is a dark form of magic they were performing,” Aedmorn said. “Little wonder that it permeated the ground and lasted so long, with that kind of darkness behind it. And it was by that ritual they brought the clouds to shroud the valley perpetually. They needed powerful rituals for it to last; the blood of childhood innocence would accomplish that.”

“Desperate they must have been to contemplate such a thing.”

“Or an alien way of thinking; they appear not to be human and their culture and beliefs will not be the same as us.”

Ivkarha frowned at the concept. “It is a hard thing to get your head around.”

Coming to the last of the tapestries, they saw the tower itself being constructed. A number of the tall people were standing around it, arms raised, while giant blocks seemingly floated through the air to join the growing pile that was the tower in construction.

“That at least explains some of the mysteries of the place,” Aedmorn said, “But not what happened to them.” He looked to the stairs built into the central column supporting the tower. “We may discover more elsewhere.”

“Up or down?” Ivkarha asked.

“Up,” he replied, “For unless I miss my mark that is where anything of worth and understanding will be found.”