You nod to yourself, having decided what to do. "Let's just test the other statue while we're here, okay? Do you mind if I ask some questions along the way?"
"Fine by me," Jake shrugs. Isabel seems to bounce as she leads the way through the tombs to reach the other statue.
You start with the essentials. "Where is this tomb, exactly, and how do we leave?"
"We're about half an hour's walk downriver from the town of Slate, where we both live. This tomb is basically a big winding series of dark tunnels, so we just took a left turn whenever it was an option. So to get back out we should just be able to take a right on every turn, instead."
Isabel turns to you. "I would have just turned randomly, myself. But Jake here has no sense of adventure, and made us do it his way." She pouts. Jake rolls his eyes, clearly not dignifying that with a response. Well. You certainly know which one is the responsible one of the two. Although, speaking of responsibility...
"So do your parents know that you're out here? This can't be a safe place for kids to be running around."
The boy winces. The girl turns to you with a scowl. "My parents died three years ago." Her blunt speech seems unusually bitter. "Which means that the entire town raises me. Everybody who has extra space in their house passes me around between them, to lighten the load. When everybody in town is responsible for you, though, it really means that nobody in town tells me what to do."
"Which makes it my job to watch out for her." Jake crosses his arms. "If she wants to go exploring the tombs, I make sure that she does it right."
"Right. Got it." You frown. "So what's this about knowing a witch?"
Isabel seems to be glad to be off the previous topic. "Oh! Claire is the town's witch. She's really nice, although some of the people in town say she's bad. They're just scared of her, though."
"What does she actually do, though?" You have a vague feeling that towns don't usually allow witches to practice within their borders.
"She does all kinds of things," the boy explains. "She installs these runes in people's houses where it cools the house down on hot days, and she makes a bunch of different potions."
"She also can blow things up really well!" Isabel interjects. "Once, a bunch of Lamia tried to attack the town, and she stood on top of the watchtower, raining all sorts of fire and lightning on them from above. She looked really mad. They ran away real fast after that!"
The conversation peters off, and you take the time to reflect on yourself, particularly your possessions. You have a bronze-tipped spear, with a thick crossguard. If somehow feels comfortable in your hands, and you are somehow certain that you know how to use it. You also are dressed in armor- including a bronze breastplate, greaves, and gauntlets. Aside from that, you feel like a helmet should complete the set, but you have none.
Finally, you reach the statue. It's a slightly cracked statue made of what looks like granite. It depicts a man, kneeling with a sword and shield. He's tightening his sandals, it seems, and his armor is in a state of disarray.
When you look at his face, you recognize it. Jevran, you think.
Wait, how do I know that? I don't even know my name, how do I know his?
You shake your head to clear those thoughts. "Before you touch it," you suggest, "maybe I should give it a poke."
He nods, and you put your hand on the statue's shoulder. It feels very… rocky. And statuesque. And it definitely isn't turning into a human. You sigh, frowning.
The girl comes up next. "Ooh, can I try?" You nod, and she does. Nothing happens.
You gesture to the boy, and he walks up, frowning. He pauses, and puts his hand on the statue's head.
For an instant, nothing happens. Then there is a sharp cracking noise. The stone fades out of existence, being replaced by living flesh. Finally, the statue finishes its transformation.
The man has a sharp intake of breath…
And his blood gushes everywhere. Massive crimson gashes appear where there were cracks in the statue, leaking blood from his body like a sieve. He gurgles, choking up blood, and thrashes around on the ground like a fish out of water. A crimson puddle begins to grow around him as he abruptly bleeds to death.
You recoil backward, and the children scream. They run into the corner of the room, huddling together and crying.
You sigh, rubbing the back of your neck. You now have two traumatized children, one exsanguinated ex-statue, and no idea what to do about them.
What do you do?
[ ] Rush them back home.
-[ ] Visit the Witch, immediately.
[ ] Comfort them.
-[ ] How?
--[ ] And do what after?
