GraciasJust finished it tonight.
I wanted the text to fit the piece, so it's in some olde English type prose/spelling with very dramatic calligraphy which has faded in some places, due to that I'll put a translation as well! Really happy with the final outcome and stuck mostly to my initial design and lore ideas for the prison. Found the word Adrastea, which apparently has a Greek meaning of "the inescapable one", which I thought very fitting. I wanted the lore behind this to be as important as the artwork and so I put a lot of thought into the text (though I'm no poet!).
The excerpt is a page from Vampyre of the World, an ancient encyclopedia of different vampires or locations where vampire are known to dwell. This page focuses on some Gothic/Victorian/Puritan type land and it's capital city Felsalem where the people deal with their vampire problem in a very "unusual" way.
### Winner ###
Full text:
In the capital of Felsalem at the very heart of the city lies Adrastea Prison, the Devil’s Cauldron. The people of Felsalem have long known what sleeps in shadow by day and stalks them by night, they are no stranger to Vampyre. We have followed and hunted these nightspawne for centuries across the land, but of all cities nary have dealt with the demone in such unusual ways.
Of those suspected of solicitation of the devil to Purity Bridges art they driven and from walls high into pit below art they cast with prayer. The innocent find salvation in death, but of those whose damned souls can find no salvation upon the cauldron’s hard floor doth their bones shatter. Yet such a demise is naught to Vampyre.
At the prison bottom do Vampyre dwell, neath the alcoves nestled shallow into the walls, the Undercroft it is named. Upon high sun in the daylight hours tis thither whence the cursed can find protection less their skin and bone and gristle become dust by yonder blessed sun.
And yet there is hope for the Vampyre.
Nay lock nor key doth bar the Vampyre assent, and winding staircase that trails the walls of this tomb do bring them up from the depths and closer to the surface and freely may they glance upon yon dark nyte and starry sky. After the ascent the condemned reach a bridge stretching out across the pit casm of heights that would kill a man stone dead.
Hanging to each side of the bridge is a chain 7 yarde from bridge that can only be reach by a jump, to fail is to fall to the pits very bottom. It is this unusual punishment that I hath yet to see anywhere else, to offer hope of escape as well and punishment is both unusual and cruel were it not exacted upon Vampyre.
This climb is no small task and upon each chain link is carved the holy symbol of OUR LORD as to burn at the hands of the sinful and damned should they lose their grip and once more fall back into darkness.
For those that continue their climb with burning hands and wracked with pain the chains lead up to twin bells that hang neath the Purity Bridges. With each hand the Vampyre rises the bell doth toll and alarm is raised, but nay to cries and panic but to merriment and laughter do man, woman and child gather upon the bridges. As Vampyre climbs the people cast holy water upon it to loosen its grasp and make it fall as if sport to them to be the first to sunder the foul beast.
Of the Vampyre there is no escape from Adrastea and some will live forever as others will die to Vampyre or to sun by accident or even to choose their own ending.
"to the depths thou art committed. rise again as creature of damnation, or rise beyonde us all to find your place in heaven. merciful lord we beseech thee.” - Prayer of the Condemned
