Josephine's Pilgrimage

The insistent banging at his inn room door jolted Merlin from sleep. Groggy and disoriented, he stumbled through the dark chamber and unlatched the door. Fiery torchlight spilled over him, silhouetting the armored figure standing in the hall.

"Seraphina?" he croaked, rubbing his eyes. "What's happened?"

"No time to explain," the knight responded curtly. "Gather your things, we must make haste."

Confused and alarmed, Merlin splashed water on his face and hastily threw on his robes. He grabbed his satchel of spellcasting components along with a dagger and small iron shield. Seraphina was not one to be rattled without cause.

Once outside under the cold night sky, she briefed him tersely as they wound through dark alleys. "Josephine has gone missing. She told no one she planned to visit the old catacombs beneath the city - likely a secret pilgrimage of some kind. When she did not surface by nightfall, the priests grew worried and checked below. The entrance was locked tight from within."

Merlin felt unease trickle down his neck. Those winding crypts predated the city, carved centuries ago to receive the dead. What grim fate could have befallen their friend in that forgotten labyrinth?

The temple loomed ahead, its imposing spires black against the stars. Seraphina led the way down crumbling stairs to a heavy stone door marked by ancient runes. Merlin traced a pattern to counteract the sealing spell while Seraphina heaved it open. The yawning darkness beyond swallowed their torchlight.

Cobwebs draped the claustrophobic tunnels like gossamer curtains. Foul air clogged Merlin's nose and throat - the dusty exhalation of the entombed dead. Carvings of macabre creatures leered from the walls as they descended single file.

Far ahead, a faint cry reached their ears, barely audible. "Josephine!" Merlin yelled, ready to sprint heedlessly toward the sound. But Seraphina's mailed hand gripped his shoulder like a vise.

"Softly," she warned. "This place holds many unseen dangers."

Chastened, Merlin continued forward with greater care. Still, Josephine's distress spurred him onward through the oppressive dark. More sounds arose - slithering behind stone, grinding that seemed to recede into some great expanse. There was a malevolence here.

The claustrophobic tunnels opened at last into a vast chamber filled with row upon row of sealed crypts and sarcophagi. Dust lay thickly upon stone faces rendered motionless in death. Josephine lay collapsed on the grime-coated floor, pale and unmoving.

Merlin rushed to her side, but Seraphina stopped him short again with an outstretched arm. Her face was grim. "It's too quiet," she uttered. "Stand ready."

As she spoke, an eerie glow manifested, coalescing into a spectral shape. Robed and bearded, with a haughty aspect, the lich loomed before them. When it spoke, its voice echoed as if carried from beyond the grave itself.

"Turn back, mortals! This priestess's life force shall fuel my return!"

Merlin swiftly traced a glyph of blinding radiance in the air before him. The lich recoiled with an unearthly shriek as the light seared its shadowy form. Seizing the precious distraction, Seraphina gathered up Josephine and turned to flee the chamber's confines.

They plunged into the twisting catacomb tunnels, the sounds of the lich's fury chasing close behind. Shards of bone peppered the walls around them, along with eldritch energy that scorched the air.

Merlin wove countering magics to obstruct their undead pursuer's path - collapsing passageways with stone and rubble, warding off projectiles with shimmering shields. Seraphina shielded Josephine with her own body as she ran.

At long last they emerged back into open air and the silver glow of moonlight. Merlin swiftly traced runes over the crypt entrance, reinforcing them with blessings to prevent the lich's escape.

Safe now, Josephine began to rouse. Though still pale and shaken, she would recover in time. Merlin met Seraphina's eyes and saw his own relief mirrored there. This had been an ordeal, but together they had persevered.

As clergy came to tend Josephine on the temple steps, Seraphina gave Merlin a weary smile. "Well done today," she said. "You kept your wits when it mattered most. We make an effective team."

Pride swelled in Merlin's chest at the stoic knight's praise. The bonds of loyalty between Peculiar Investigations ran deeper than words. He would rest easier knowing both friends were safe. And he looked forward to whatever trials yet awaited this fellowship.