Skara Braens

Part 38

Blinking, you look at your companions.  They stare back at you.

"I am buried underground, but tower over the land," you murmur, hoping that repeating the riddle would help you.  You turn to the wall.  "What is both buried and stands over land?"

A tree?  A tree has roots underground, but a canopy high above the ground.  Perhaps that was it?

"Um," you say, hearing your voice squeak with nerves.  "A tree?"

Silence follows your words, then a soft, sad sigh.

"There is freedom in death," the disembodied voice says, sounding gentle and soothing.  "The Master will claim you no more."

"Oh shi—"

Artair does not get to finish his sentence.  In an instant, the roof collapses. You are dead instantly.

So, uh, no. Sufficed to say, "tree" was not the answer.  I have some hints for you, if you want to try again.  Ready?

- Burial is a deliberate act.

- The two names is actually important, though you don't have to use both. One or the other will do.

Below is last week's section again, complete with the riddle.  I made up the riddle, so I don't know if Googling will help.

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"Let's go north first. If that proves fruitless we can head back down."

"Aye," Artair says, pushing the soft earth back against Mor Stein and covering the shallow engraving. "Burroughston Broch it is."

"Let's go, then," David says, his voice made gravelly by unease.

"How far?" Drest asks Artair.

"An hour, cross country," the broad man says.

"Again?"

"Aye. It seems an hour on foot between settlements was fairly regular in these parts."

Drest shrugs and before long, everyone has slid their packs one and you are once again trudging across fields.

"What exactly is a broch?" you ask.

"It's an early castle," David answers, sparing Artair the explanation. "Basically a tall stone tower surrounded by walls and sometimes a ditch and moat."

"Aye," Artair confirms. "They date back to the Iron Age... some three or four thousand years ago. Chances are, though, that they were built on already important locations, be they large settlements, trading nexuses, or religiously significant places. They correspond with an increase in hostilities in the regions. Or so it's said. It makes sense. Brochs are designed for defence."

"Okay," you say. Then, "What's a castle?"

Mordina laughs, a soft, short chuckle, breaking the tension in her shoulders.

Artair launches into a detailed explanation of what a castle is, how there are different kinds; some are fortresses, designed to withstand long sieges and others, usually built later or in times of peace, are purely grand structures with useless pretences at defence. Artair, apparently, doesn't really consider those to be castles, calling them châteaus instead. Drest informs you that château means castle in another language, and the nuance Artair insists on using doesn't really exist for most people.

Feeling confused, with the information assaulting your brain enough to give you a headache, you fail to notice that you have arrived at Burroughston Broch. The remains of the tower appear to be little more than a grassy knoll. Artair approaches slowly, almost reverently. He disappears to the eastern side of the knoll. Moments later you hear a whistle. Taking the hint, you walk around to find Artair standing beside the still-standing entrance to the broch.