First House: Floor One

[allthekeys]

First Story:


1. Front Door
A wide, heavy door make of oak. No matter what is tried, it will not open and cannot be broken down. Any attempts at using force will find that it will be unscratched, although someone trying will have to deal with recoil, backlash, impact, etc. from whatever they'd tried.

2. Entry Way
A grand entrance room that speaks of old glory, beautifully designed to wow anyone who enters the house. An umbrella stand occupies the corner. It is filled with umbrellas, but peculiarly, seems somehow incomplete. There is a table with an arrangement of flowers, freshly cut and often changed by an attentive, unseen servant.

Anyone looking up will discover a line of bloody hand-prints making their way across the ceiling.

3. Coat Closet

To the right of the room stands a coat closet, filled with fur coats and parkas that are suited for a cold environment. Gloves and scarves hang on the door, ready to be grabbed at a moment’s notice. Rain boots litter the floor, and something has made a nest of what once must have been a very pretty hat. Several hat boxes have been shoved in the back corner of the shelf, along with a hand knitted shawl.

4. Parlor

A large and elegant room, suited to the time period and comfort of the house. There are plenty of comfortable chairs and a silver tea-service that seems to be waiting for guests. An elegant and perfectly tuned piano occupies the corner, obviously meant for entertaining. The room is sparsely decorated. No pictures adorn the fireplace; no personal touches relax the room. A large grandfather clock stands over the room, dark wood gleaming as it slowly ticks the time. The hands move incredibly slowly--unnaturally so--but no attempts to wind the clock fix the problem, although the attentive might notice that the time it keeps matches the span of the "days" in the house.

There are windows on either side of the entry way, both above a small nook that seems almost out of step with the rest of the room. Well-worn afghans and pillows make these cozy and well-hidden nests for those who want a quiet moment away. A pair of double doors dominates the wall by the piano, decorated with elegant frosted glass. The glass is unbreakable and obscures completely whatever might lay beyond. The doors are unlocked, and open onto the Ballroom.

5. Formal Dining Room

A large formal dining room obviously meant for entertaining, with cherry-paneled walls and deep claret shag carpeting. The vaulted ceiling houses a truly magnificent chandelier. The table and chairs--which can easily seat up to twenty--seem to be made of heavy crystal softened with carpet-matching plush cushions to sit on. Each wall is lined with vast empty display cases, and a delicate crystal vase holds a centerpiece of a dozen roses--each and every one carved impossibly intricately from ruby. When all the lights are turned on, the room shines with a breathtaking prismatic light.

6. Blue Kitchen

The kitchen is decorated in a pale shade of blue; everything from the walls to the counter tops to the pot holders share this fetching shade. The appliances are surprisingly modern, with a refrigerator, oven, two stoves, and a microwave. The stoves are gas ranges.

It feels surprisingly welcoming, and a pot of stew bubbles merrily on the stove no matter the hour, as though the cook had only moments ago stepped away. To the left of the entrance from the dining hall, there is a dumbwaiter. It is almost innocently set into the wall, and can be lifted up and down with ease. Perhaps it leads somewhere, but there is only one way to find out.

The houseguests will find that the cupboards are stocked with anything they expect to find, and most will find that the cupboards change depending on their desires. The kitchen seems able to produce a wide array of supplies, ranging from commonplace to a rather ominous can of Soylent Green taking up a corner of the fridge; anything the guests begin to look for will be found somewhere, even if it hadn't been there a moment ago. Anyone who manages to stand very still will occasionally hear a sound, like rats scrabbling in the lower cupboards; opening the cupboards, however, will reveal nothing but dust and the occasional forgotten pot lid.

One of the doors in the corner leads to the servant hallway; the other is solidly locked.

Someone has added two food bowls and a larger bowl for water, filled will food appropriate for cats and dogs. These bowls are kept constantly full, though no one is ever seen filling them.

A small kitchen table sits in the corner, seemingly meant for servants.

7. Doll Bathroom

A large bathroom detailed in ivory and baby blue tile. It is dominated by an antique bathtub with a lace curtain and painted, doily-lined wooden shelves that occupy every inch of available wall space from floor to ceiling. Dozens of elegantly painted and coiffed porcelain dolls fill these shelves, all with extravagantly beautiful Victorian outfits. Their eyes are chillingly lifelike, and no matter what is done to them, they will always return to the bathroom, always positioned perfectly to stare at its occupants, whether smashed or taken or simply turned around--sometimes even in the space of time it takes someone to turn around themselves. A particularly large and ornate doll directly across the room from where the mirror should be seems to be the centerpiece of this collection, dressed like a magnificent princess and surrounded by her court. As serenely beautiful as she is, her lifeless face and gaze seem somehow accusing.

The mirror has been destroyed, and in its place is something unusual. There is a round circle of shadow, about as large as the mirror itself had been, though there is nothing to cast such an image on the wall. It seems almost to move-- and when it is is touched it bends like a pool, cold to the touch, and rippling like pressing only a little harder might allow the hand to pass through. There is a faint breeze coming from the other side.

8. East Hallway

As with the Entrance Room, there is little to see here. The floor and ceilings are made of beautiful polished marble, with artistic plaster decorations on the walls, and a table with flowers unobtrusively off to one side.

9. Library

The room is a large space filled with maze of book shelves filled with books, ranging from literary fiction to poetry to cook books, smelling of dust and age and old leather. Hidden within the shelves are small reading nooks with comfortable chairs and tables and lamps. It would be easy to hide in this room, or get lost. A small corner, practically made a room by the way the bookshelves are angled, holds entirely children's books. An old battered couch covered with blankets and pillows makes this place a comfortable place for a nap.

The staircase in this room, presumably leading to a second level, is filled with an impenetrable layer of fog. Should anyone attempt to climb it, they will find that, after a few steps, it becomes extremely difficult to breathe.

The non-fiction section of the library is sporadic in its topics, covering a wide but sparse range. There is a pile of books set aside on the floor in one corner, mostly covering history and monsters. Each book's contents are destroyed-- many pages damaged, most missing. The missing pages are nowhere to be found.

10. The Study

This room is accessed either from the hall or a door leading from the library. It’s a rather nice office, something that looks like it might have once belonged to the librarian who kept up the library next door. A faded, hand knitted afghan is folded neatly on a comfortable arm chair, perfect for curling up with a good book. A more private selection of books occupies the smaller shelves. The desk is well used, but sturdy, and the drawers are filled with writing supplies. Neatly set aside to be used is a quill pen. All papers and materials on the desk are tidied and placed in organized piles.

A window sits over the desk, allowing light from the Dawn Room to penetrate, but a close examination of the wall from the other side reveals no hint of its presence. The natural light does help lighten the gloom.

11. Dawn Room

A pretty room decorated in marble, this room seems like a less formal parlor, it feels more lived in than the parlor ever could. The furniture is done in warm colors and a painting of a sunrise dominates the wall above the smaller fireplace. Several small grouping of tables and chairs allow for private conversations to occur. A small tea cart occupies the corner and the elegant china cups have a flower theme. A ship in a bottle sits on the mantle under the painting. The ship and sails are all made of cloth and wood.

In the far corner is the main staircase to the second floor. Like the one in the library, it is also filled with fog.

12. Closed Closet

This closet apparently once had a door leading into it from The Study, but that has long since been completely sealed. A good ear and investigating the walls would discover that this room is indeed still there and hollow, but there seems to be no way to reach it. A close look at the wall reveals long, brown tracks, the color of old blood and what seem to be knife marks, as though someone attacked it from the outside to try to get whatever was inside it out.

13. Nursery

This room is perhaps the homiest you’ve encountered; a cot has been pushed into one of the corners, big enough for two. It is covered with a well-loved quilt, soft to the touch. The walls have been painted with pictures of animals and sunrises, cheerfully bright and welcoming. There is a shelf in the corner and stocked with candles and food. A crib is situated under one of the windows, allowing the child access to the sun, hand carved and smooth to the touch. Like the study, this room looks well lived in. A rocking chair perfect for soothing a child to sleep occupies the corner next to the crib. There are toys, suited for a small child scattered about the room, and changes of clothes for a child ranging from infancy to toddler years, all handmade and carefully patched. The trunk at the end of the bed is locked.

14. The Dollhouse Room

Seven giant dollhouses, each on their own table, occupy this room. A closer look will reveal that four dollhouses have their doors standing wide open, but the other three are closed and locked up. Trying to open the tiny doors will net you nothing. In the corner of the room is a small crack in the wall, about six inches tall and four inches wide. Wide enough to stick your hand in, though you won’t get far. If you strain, you can feel something cool and likely metal in the back, but you can’t see anything and you can’t reach it. In the center of the room is a small table with a small crystal decanter full of a fruity smelling liquid and a plate of very tiny cookies on it. Drinking from the bottle will make you shrink to the size of a doll, allowing you to enter the crack or one of the open dollhouses. The cookies will make you grow, but you can’t leave the room as a giant.

15. The Dollhouse

The inside of the dollhouse is the house done in miniature, minus a few details. The room you are in is nowhere to be found. But everything else is perfectly mirrored to the house, there are even dolls showing the placement of your fellow house guests. You can wonder at your leisure, it's strangely silent and very dark.

16. The Crack In The Wall

Leads to a very tiny bedroom, perfectly sized for your characters current form. A thimble full of match sticks and needles guards the door, and a large metal box, far too large for you to open, serves as a wall to hide this tiny place. A small fire place, several sets of bunk beds, and a small table give this room an almost welcoming air. The movement of a music box rests against the wall, though no music box is in evidence.

17. Maid Hallway

This is a rather simple hallway. It’s very clean, wood floors and white walls; a table at the end of the hallway holds a vase of poppy flowers. It is a servant’s hallways, nothing fancy.

18. Clean Bedroom

This room is utterly spotless, clean and white. Any mess that occurs in it magically vanishes, there’s a bed, a small table and a trunk at the end of it. Staying in this room gives you a clean refreshed feeling, but it is otherwise unremarkable.

19. Dirty Bedroom

All the messes from the Clean room end up here. The room is filthy and smells rancid, though in layout it does not differ from the other rooms in the hallway. There’s a bed, a small table and a trunk. Unlike the other rooms, this trunk is unlocked and opening it will grant you a vision of a mummified corpse. There are scratches on the underside of the lid, implying that she must have been alive when she was locked in, though the lock is broken and seems like it shouldn’t have stopped her from getting out at all. A key hangs from a chain clutched tightly in her hand; you will need to break the hand to take the key.

On top of the trunk is a rather battered tome, blood splattered and burnt, of which only the title can now be read. Sadly, it looks like it may have been useful, as it is titled “Where the Lost Things Are”, but someone has taken great pleasure in destroying it.

20. Closet Room

Opening the door leads you into a space just large enough to turn around in, with a door on each wall. Each of the doors leads to another closet, each with three doors in it. This continues seemingly endlessly, with no end of doors or closets. Go far enough and you can hear a child crying, sobs inter-spaced with the occasional apology or plea for understanding and forgiveness. Strangely taking all rights seems to take you closer to the voice, perhaps if you go deep enough you’ll be able to find her.

21. Smoke Room

The smoke is so thick in this room it makes your eyes burn, it’s a little hard to breathe even just standing in the doorway. Inside a still lit cigar burns in an ashtray and a small box full of cigars sits on the table. Three jars full of pipe tobacco sit on a shelf above the bed, along with a rather charming pipe. The trunk at the foot of the bed is unlocked and empty, though covered with a fine sheen of ash.

22. Yellow Bedroom

This room feels pleasant and welcoming; the soft smell of flowers lingers in the air without being overpowering. A fresh vase of jasmine cuttings and yellow roses sits on the table. A small stuffed rabbit occupies a place of honor on the faded pastel quilt. The bed is a bit larger than the twin beds in the other rooms and is comfortably soft. The window is open a tiny crack, though it seems to be jammed, letting a tiny bit of fresh air into the room, someone has taken advantage of the crack to hang wind chimes, but a string has become tangled with them and they make no sound. The trunk at the end of the bed is covered with a knitted blanket and locked. A glance under the bed will reveal a sketch book and a small case of colored pencils.

There is a note on the table, but it seems mostly gibberish. "Su fo emoceb lliw tahw. Ecno elpoep neeb evah tsum yeht."

23. Vanity Room

This room is full of elaborate clothes, the table clogged with makeup and a rather strangely glowing silver box. A note written on the mirror in lipstick reads "give it all to me." Touching the box gives you a cold, unnerved feeling. Like you should put it down right away. There is a trunk at the end of the bed.

24. Ivory Bathroom

This room is completely white, done up in shades of ivory. Everything from the towels to the fixtures are bone white. A small shelf with three carved elephants sits above a linen closet full of fresh towels and toothpaste and basic first aid supplies. Lifting a towel too fast will cause a bag full of marbles to scatter across the floor; they are as white as the bathroom. A note clinging to the towel says simply, “I found them.”

25. Locked Door

26. Supply Closet

This room holds everything needed for the upkeep of a house this size. Fresh linens, bedspreads and cleaning supplies jam the selves. Freshly starched suits and dresses for the staff lay neatly stacked next to a washer and dryer crammed at the end of the room.

Behind some of the linen on the shelves someone has stashed a walkie talkie and four batteries, as well as a couple of field rations.

27. Ballroom
This grand ballroom seems to belong in a much larger and more opulent house than the one the guests currently stay in--it looks more suited to a mansion or country club than anything else. The vaulted ceiling is high and supported by rows of fluted pillars, and sports an immense crystal chandelier--fully lit, it blazes with an ethereal prismatic light, throwing shimmering rainbow-ribbon glows arching over the entirety of the room. The walls seem to echo with half-remembered music, and at times it's difficult to tell whether a tune has only become stuck in a guest's head, or if it really is filling the room with no source. Even the massive, gleaming pipe organ placed against one wall seems to contribute to this confusion--occasionally, it appears to play without anyone touching it at all, filling the ballroom with tones so deep and rich the entire room seems to tremble with them.

The center of the room is dominated by a vast dance floor, elaborately patterned with hardwoods and gleaming with a fresh coat of polish; a small partitioned dais for musicians stands nearby, ready to accompany the organ with a more fully realized orchestra. Filling most of the rest of the room are scattered tables and chairs for dancers to rest their feet while they dine; all are lavishly set with white tablecloths, fine silver and china, and elegant floral arrangements that wouldn't look out of place at a wedding reception. The room is beautiful, and everything about it seems to offer a sense of festivity and high spirits to those who linger; a door near the pipe organ leads guests into a wide oaken hallway.

28. Oak Hallway

The walls are made of polished oak. Framed pressed oak leaves hang on the wall, as well as a beautiful picture in the corner of an oak tree. It smells faintly of summer, and the entire hallway evokes a sense of time and comfort.

Fog billows out from underneath each of the locked doors along this hallway.

29. Locked Door

30. Theater

Off from the house's main hallways, elaborately carved double-doors open to reveal a theater that seems to have been pulled straight from the aristocracy of the 19th century. The room is rich and grand, with rows of tiered plush velvet seats that could easily comfortably fit a hundred viewers, a high vaulted ceiling painted with an intricate mural, and wood-paneled walls lined with brightly burning lamps. The acoustics of the room are remarkable, and even the view is excellent--it's possible to watch the stage with ease even as far back as the doors themselves. As beautiful and formal as the theater looks, care has been taken to make it comfortable and inviting; the space feels well-used and almost nostalgic, heavy with the scent of dust, age, and lamp oil.

The further one goes into the room, the more pungent these smells become. They seem to mask some old, deep scent that has permeated the wood, leaving the unpleasant but unavoidable undercurrent of iron and death. The line of gas lights edging the front of the stage glow dimly, worn and stained a putrid yellow; the light illuminates just enough of the stage to reveal dark red stains on the wood where it has been scrubbed clean, but a legacy remains.

Walking across the stage proves that it is not what it once was, the wood having rotted away in some places from being exposed to damp and warmth for far too long. Other than creaking and shifting in unusual ways, however, it seems safe to cross-- and it is necessary to do so if there is to be any hope of reaching the backstage.

A rickety narrow staircase tucked into one of the wings leads up to the controls for the stage, dimly lit by dusty old-fashioned lamps--the entire set up wouldn't seem at all out of place in a museum devoted to theater history. From here, one can easily control curtains, backdrops, lights, and any other special effects that might be needed.

31. Backstage
For such a small theater, the backstage area seems as though it should be more than enough for any troupe who would perform here; the space, wide and open, is easily half again as large as the stage itself. However, some overambitious soul has turned even this ample space into a maze of clutter, too haphazardly and chaotically stocked for anything of use to be easily found--indeed, there's barely any room to move about at all.

Most of the walls are lined with shelves, overflowing with everything from foam pillows, to fake food, to prop weapons, to make-up kits, to wigs, to a bewildering variety of hats. Gallon buckets full of unsorted costume jewelry are stacked next to bottles of fake blood, backdrops and stage furniture are propped against every available space, and wheeled racks packed full of costumes often block the way to reaching the shelves at all.

A teetering pile of half-spilled stage furniture--and oddly, one golden and jeweled crown perched atop it all--blocks the way to getting at the back wall at all; for anyone to even be able to open the doors that line it, a path must be cleared. Three small dressing rooms are revealed by doing so, doors unlocked but tightly shut against the chaos surrounding them. Opening them reveals that they too are filled--each with gruesome corpses, thankfully more intact than those occupying the stage. The left-most room holds a hanged man, still swinging from his noose before the lights and mirror, while the the center room seats a figure charred beyond all recognition; the extent of the burns make the gender of the corpse impossible to tell. The right-most room holds a woman slumped over the counter of the mirrored vanity, throat slit wide open from ear to ear; her head rests cradled in one hand, while the other is tucked beneath her chin in a tight fist, clenched around something obscured by the fall of her hair.

Far to the corner of the back wall, in the opposite direction from the staircase leading up to the technical controls, a wood paneled door stands tightly locked. The air that can be smelled coming from it carries a distinct damp mustiness, but beyond this, it would be a normal door--if not for the perpetually fresh, bloody handprints pressed over it.

32. Locked Door

33. Music Room

A room that seems perfectly tailored for any musician, it is simplistic outside of its varied contents, walls decorated with quaint wallpaper of music notes and staffs. Hooks on the walls hold instruments that range from the mundane to the exotic-- some that look like you might need five hands to play them. The cupboards are occupied by cleaning and polishing supplies, as well as spare strings and repair parts. Shelves are lined with neatly arranged books full of sheet music from varying countries, centuries and, apparently, worlds. There are chairs and music stands perfectly set up for practising any of the instruments, with just a little adjustment for height.

Tucked into a corner is a baby grand piano, its deep mahogany wood dusty with age, and unfortunately out of tune. The top seems to be stuck down, and it has a horrible habit of playing even when no one is near it.

34. Pool Room

The smell of chlorine is immediately obvious as the door opens, the echoes of laughter that still linger in the air set the tone for this large room. The far walls are windows, providing a view of the greenhouse, and the space is occupied by two large, Olympic sized pools, a smaller wading pool, and a large hot tub.

Chairs line the sides, perfect for a parent to lounge in while their children play, and a wide variety of pool toys occupy the space around the pool, neatly stacked on shelves as though waiting to be used.

One of the pools is clearly meant for diving, the deeper water almost too deep to see the bottom of. A diving board stands high above the pools, still swaying slightly as though someone has just jumped.

The other pool is monogrammed with the initials M.H. The both pools are lined with an almost translucent blue tile which causes them to look deeper than they actually are. There are small specks of white scattered against the bottom almost innocently, and diving will reveal smooth, high quality pearls. They are flawless and seem to be worth quite a bit of money, though what good is that here?

If someone stands perfectly still in the area, they might begin to hear noises caused by things that aren't there. Something splashes in the deep end of the pool, though no ripples will appear to show that anyone has entered the water. Occasionally one might hear soft laughter, as though someone stands just behind them, or the sound of wet feet running across the floor. Even when the room is otherwise empty, it seems that someone lingers in it.

Doors that lead to a spa and a locker room are hidden in the back. A small closet holds bottles of chemicals, though the drain in the floor shows hints of other stains that have been washed away. Those who step away from the door might hear a soft tapping, as though someone is knocking very gently on the other side of the closed door. Opening it reveals the small room is empty.

35. Locker Room

At the far end of the pools is a public locker room, four stalls for changing and an array of bathing suits from different time periods hanging on racks. The suits gathered there vary in style and size, and anyone who wishes to try can likely find what they are looking for.

Beyond the collection of odds and ends are two large doors leading to public restrooms, though neither is marked with a gender sign. Six neatly kept stalls in each make this one of the most comfortable bathrooms to use, and large stonework sinks provides ample room to wash hands and faces.

A small closet between the rooms holds a wide range of soaps and towels, allowing those who enter here to clean themselves.

Both bathrooms have a shower room with multiple spigots to rinse chemicals off skin.

In the bathroom on the left the showers seems to be a bit tetchy. They work fine, but the temperature knobs clearly need some adjusting, as often the hot water will turn on and refuses to turn off again. Anyone who showers alone in the bathroom on the left might find that they hear someone whispering behind them, though the words are often little more than a request to wash someone’s back.

Strangely, when the showers are empty in the room on the right, those entering the room would insist that it sounds as though the showers are on. Anyone checking the room will find that the floors are dry and the room is entirely unoccupied. The mirrors often fog up for no reason, even if the water isn't on.

36. Spa

Located through another door is a small day spa. Large panes of glass face the greenhouse, and much has been done to make the area as comfortable and relaxing as possible. Six folding chairs sit facing the window, allowing people to sunbathe if they wish. A record player sits in the corner, with a few greatest hits sitting under it. A closet in the corner is filled with mud masks, cucumbers, incense, oils, scented candles and fresh smelling towels.

Three massage tables seem to be waiting only for patients, towels, oils and heated stones in easy reach. A sticky residue remains beneath one of the tables, as though oil has pooled on the table and been allowed to drip. It doesn't smell, but the rust brown color is rather alarming.

Two tanning beds sit behind screens, offering some privacy for those who rest within them. Though the area has been kept meticulously cleaned, one of the beds still clearly holds an occupant. The corpse is now charred beyond recognition and makes it rather difficult to open the bed. Scented candles have cleared the smell from the air.

37. Sauna

A small door in the back of the spa leads to a small personal sauna, the wooden benches smoothly sanded to protect from splinters. The fire in the center is allows stoked, and the steam filling the room is rather relaxing. A clean stack of towels rests outside.

A latch to keep unwary children from wandering into the room can easily be secured from the outside.

It seems like a wonderful place to relax, and the faint strains of music do little to make the room feel unwelcoming.

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