Beware the Obvious

Year 5: The two initiates walked down the hallway together. Morgan kept one hand on the wall while Herreth walked upright next to him. Herreth put a hand on his partner's shoulder. Morgan stopped the minute he was touched. “There's a large blade crossing the hallway. It slices straight down.”

Morgan got down on his hands and knees. There was no trip wire that he could discern. He sensed no magic in the area. Herreth took his staff and ran it up the side and used it to tap the blade edge. It wobbled suggesting it could move. Morgan brazenly placed a hand across the fall groove. The stones on the other side depressed under his hand. He quickly retracted his hand.

Herreth quickly jumped to the other side. The blade came slashing down. It stopped inches from the ground. Morgan considered the heavy blade, then hopped over it. It didn't reset. Morgan's brow knit as he pondered it.

Herreth tried to urge him further. Morgan whispered. “If this was a trap, it was too easily foiled. This was a distraction. What if..”

Herreth was continuing up the hallway. At a certain point, the floor depressed under Herreth and the blade lifted back to its original position. Morgan sensed a different purpose to the trap. “Herreth! Wait!”

It was too late. Herreth ran into Morgan while trying to get away from whatever was coming from the opposite end of the hallway. Morgan stopped them just shy of the triggering stones. “What's it?” he asked.

“Basilisk!”

Morgan covered his companion's eyes while he wailed and struggled. The creature smashed into them, knocking them back. Morgan, as best he could, tried to control the flip so they landed mostly opposite the groove. As their pursuer hit the trigger, the blade came down again and the boys were splattered with blood. Morgan passed the exam.