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pattern through the gaps between ring and stone.  The facade of the stone doorframe popped open, releasing centuries of dust into the air.  The dust settled to reveal a ring, a scroll, a scabbard, and a belt.  He withdrew the scroll and ring and placed them in a pocket inside the fold of his cloak.  Then he removed the scabbard and belt, and strapped them around his waist.  He closed the secret compartment door with an audible “click.”

Then he directed his light beam on the wall carving just to his left.  There, in detailed relief, the life size image of a knight slaying a dragon-like creature called a korax had been carved into the stone.  The korax, similar to the tyrannosaurs rex on our world, ran on two large, powerful hind legs with an oversized, retractable claw with which to slash at its victims.  It used a huge tail for balance and two smaller forelegs or arms for grasping.  These forearms looked small compared to the rest of the massive body, but were actually larger and stronger than a human arm.  And just like a t-rex, the mouth contained large, serrated teeth, some longer than a human hand.  The korax had nearly been brought to extinction centuries ago, but now they were coming back especially in the winter when the snow forced them out of the frontier and into villages looking for food.  Years before, some looter had even tried desperately to chisel this image from the walls.  Pit marks could be seen along its border.  The thief was barely able to chip away at the wall itself, but the carving lay unmarred.  Apparently, the carving must have been made of tougher material than even the mountain bedrock was.  Despite its toughness, the image was intricate and extremely lifelike.  One could see the fierce determination in the knight’s face that contrasted with the look of lingering defiance in the korax’s.  Long ago the stone mason inscribed the knight’s name in ancient runes, Firesmyth Mancuso the Golden Lion.

The cloaked man stood back and remembered the scene.  Only one commander had his quarters decorated this elaborately, but it wasn’t by his own volition.  The former resident of these quarters, Firesmyth Mancuso, had lead his men so well that one of them, a skilled stone cutter who was injured in battle dedicated this work in his commander’s honor after he 

Scroll 1: History's Mirror                                                                                    Chapter 1: Treasures from the Past