Dusturn Castle
People say you can still hear the screams echoing off the walls. I’d never enter, not even for 10 ucpi, thank you very much.
A Regal Building
South of the Reva River close to the Mirdarn Mountains, Dusturn Castle stands abandoned. From far away, the picture is rather lovely: a firm stronghold with sturdy walls and gorgeous towers, the river flowing in the front, the lush mountains as a backdrop. But from closer by, the derelict state can be observed: roof tiles missing, broken pillars, smashed windows, a collapsed section of the outer wall.
Inside, layers of dust and creeping vegetation cover the furniture that has never been removed. Great tapestries still hang on the walls. Vases, statues and candelabras still stand in alcoves. The throne is still covered by a decorative quilt in the yellow and orange colours of the Oloria dynasty. And the mattresses on the beds still hold dark crimson stains that remain wet until today. Wails can be heard when the wind dies down, and a woman in white can be seen haunting the halls. Her feet glide above the ground, her pale hair stained with red floats behind her like a war banner in a storm. Her gaze so distraught it stops the heart of anybody who locks eyes with her.
The Emperor moved the royal family from their family home, Dusturn Castle, to Castle Zelligar in the capital city of Asrila, but to Dusturn they would always return in the summer month. For a century, this custom remained. Until one warm summer morning in 1080 SD, when all royal family members were found murdered in their beds. Nobody had heard a thing. Staff and guests alike had been completely unaware of the terrors that must have occurred that night. The castle was vacated, the country fell into disarray.
House Oloria was well-loved by both the Garyialan noble houses as well as the common folk. Throughout history, many fingers have been pointed, but no one suspect was found to be in the command of such a skilled team of assassins, nor have a connection to a mage who could cast such a powerful curse. No culprit has ever been identified with certainty.
Inside, layers of dust and creeping vegetation cover the furniture that has never been removed. Great tapestries still hang on the walls. Vases, statues and candelabras still stand in alcoves. The throne is still covered by a decorative quilt in the yellow and orange colours of the Oloria dynasty. And the mattresses on the beds still hold dark crimson stains that remain wet until today. Wails can be heard when the wind dies down, and a woman in white can be seen haunting the halls. Her feet glide above the ground, her pale hair stained with red floats behind her like a war banner in a storm. Her gaze so distraught it stops the heart of anybody who locks eyes with her.
The Fall of the Oloria Dynasty
After the Aldria dynasty was cunningly displaced (752 SD), the Garyialan Empire came under foreign rule. The Garyialan’s couldn’t accept this, and what followed was two centuries of war during what is known as the Three Dynasties Period. The houses Oloria, Dayra, and foreign Ykor (and a handful of smaller houses) waged war against one another. It was eventually the south-western House Oloria that, in 931 SD, united the country under a single flag once more.The Emperor moved the royal family from their family home, Dusturn Castle, to Castle Zelligar in the capital city of Asrila, but to Dusturn they would always return in the summer month. For a century, this custom remained. Until one warm summer morning in 1080 SD, when all royal family members were found murdered in their beds. Nobody had heard a thing. Staff and guests alike had been completely unaware of the terrors that must have occurred that night. The castle was vacated, the country fell into disarray.
House Oloria was well-loved by both the Garyialan noble houses as well as the common folk. Throughout history, many fingers have been pointed, but no one suspect was found to be in the command of such a skilled team of assassins, nor have a connection to a mage who could cast such a powerful curse. No culprit has ever been identified with certainty.
And so Dusturn Castle still stands tall, untouched, left alone for fear of the white wailing woman, and for fear that the same fate that had befallen the royal family might befall anyone who sets foot in the castle.
Comments