The final, convulsing death rattle of the Ember-Maw Basilisk had seemed to suck all sound from the cavern, leaving behind a vacuum filled only by the ragged symphony of our breathing and the lazy plip-plop of cooling lava.
After I stored the corpse, as a moment passed, with a soft, ethereal chime that was utterly out of place in this chamber of fire and death...
-Zuuuuuu...
A pedestal of smooth, white stone rose silently from the floor near the creature's vanished body.
Atop this altar sat a chest, not one decorated with gold and gems, but solid and unadorned, carved from a single block of dark rock banded with natural silver.
Captain Borin leaned heavily on his notched sword, his chest heaving.
"There it is... reward of our hard work."
He wiped a gauntleted hand across his soot-streaked face and nodded towards the chest, his gaze finding me. "Aria... You were the one who held the line. You have earned it... Go on."
