A terrible thunder
A sudden thunder shakes the entire DeModie and you jump under the trees in fright. The delicate moss breaks under your feet, while the ceiling seems to collapse above you. Lightning flashes again and again, and thunder rolls in the distance. The music, which you haven’t really noticed yet, is suddenly shrill and loud. Clouds of dust rise. In them, see distorted figures coming towards you.
Fear takes over, and you rush away in wild flight. You sprint through a gap between two shadows, clutching the golden branch tightly. As they call after you, their shouts are distorted. The sound drives you further up the incline. Suddenly you stumble over a root and land flat on the ground. The moss shatters beneath you, and thousands of tiny splinters cut into your skin, sending you back to your feet in pain.
You have long since lost your bearings when you suddenly see a long ledge on the wall in front of you. Countless nails have been hammered into it, and on each of them hangs a pair of broken shoes. Of some of them, the soles are peeling off, while others are completely riddled with holes. Frayed laces barely hold the shoes together. On many, the colour has completely faded or peeled off. Still others are encrusted with dirt. But the most horrible sight of all is that of the empty nail at the end of the ledge. The place for your shoes.