Arch Passage
"The place chains rattle and ravens stare,"
Arch passage is an old street in Starfell famous for stories of death, sickness, and a violent ghost.
Architecture
Arch Passage is a very old street, with dated architecture from the 3000-3100s and before. The alley's name comes from the arches lining the main part of the street that leads up to a small square. Many of the arches and walls have chains and shackles hanging from them.
History
Arch passage was first set up during the late 3000's as storage for the nearby market square.
During the Herriland Civil Wars, most of the buildings of Arch Passage were commandeered by the Parliamentarians to be used as barracks, storage, and prisons. It was mostly wounded and dying soldiers that stayed in Arch Passage, thus giving it a reputation as a place of death. When the Civil Wars ended, the Parliamentarians abandoned the street and everything in it, including their wounded soldiers.
After 14 years of vacancy, Arch Passage was used to treat those afflicted with the Dark Plague. The abandoned barracks and prison were used as hospitals. However, as more and more were brought to the street, the buildings soon became full, and many of the patients had to sleep and receive treatment out in the street.
In late 3168, many began to notice more crows and ravens than usual begin to gather in Arch Passage. Most believed they were attracted by all the death and decay in the alley, but when the plague ended and the constant stream of dead bodies slowed and stopped, the ravens did not leave. Most took this as a bad omen that the street was now tainted with death, and so once again Arch Passage was left abandoned.
In February 3169, the dead body of a missing person was found in Arch Passage. The corpse was pale and appeared drained the same way a vampire might, but there were no puncture wounds anywhere on the body. The victim had a shocked expression and what looked like coal dust on his lips. Two more bodies were found in the passage, one in late May and one in early November, both with the same shocked expression and black dust. Whisperings of some kind of ghost spread throughout the neighbouring streets, increasing even more in December when one woman claimed to have witnessed a death.
"I saw it I did- with my own two eyes! They was wearing all black, an' an ugly feathered cloak an' a bird's mask like them doctors of the Dark Plague. They was holding the face of the poor soul they killed with their right 'and, an' was 'olding their left down below like it was a weapon- I swear- the Ligh'bearer 'erself as my witness, that arm was black and feathered.."
"What 'appened next was they whispered summin' to the poor sod who was pleading an' begging an' crying, it was summin' about a secret- then the thing took off the mask, and stared 'em down till they fell limp!"
"Oh by then one of the cursed ravens started squawking at me, an' I ran- I didn' wan' the same fate as that person no I did not! All I know is that the thing didn' follow me, thank the Lightbearer-"
The same woman later went missing.
Since the deaths and following disappearances in Arch Passage, the street has been left completely abandoned. The tales of the ghost have survived through the ages, scaring even the bravest from wandering into that alleyway at night. Arch Passage has been declared a Raven Point by those who passed by and seen the unusually large congregation of the corvids in and around the passage.
3170
Trespassers
Though few are willing to brave the dark streets of Arch Passage, some will venture into the alley for work, or just plain curiosity, unknowingly adding to the toll of people claimed by this cursed street.
Historians
Historians researching the Civil War or the Plague will sometimes find themselves exploring the dark streets, trying to recover the artifacts that still lay strewn around in the undisturbed streets, though they rarely make it far. The Fellian Historian Guild has since marked Arch Passage as too dangerous to study, but when looking for their big breakthrough, many newer historians don't heed their warning.
Ghost Seekers
A few of the most morbid of Starfell will sometimes visit Arch Passage in hopes of catching a glimpse of the fabled revenant, ignoring the danger that the stories they believe in speak of. The hope to leave with stories of the ghost, but most depart with nothing except the strange feeling from the ravens that perch on the arches, if they even depart at all, that is.
Sceptics
The direct opposite of the Ghost Seekers, these individuals wish to prove the myth of the ghost is just that, a myth. While they may not change their mind, they will find that the strange feeling the alley gives is nothing to scoff at, but by then it is often too late.
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