A winding stone spiral stairwell around a massive column in a dark, atmospheric cave, leading to a gothic archway lit from above.

They came at last to the underground threshold—a winding stone stairwell that spiraled upward around an immense, natural column of rock. At first, Veronica mistook it for a man-made structure, but then she saw it clearly: it was a stalagmite, broad at its base, narrowing at its middle where it joined its counterpart—the mirrored stalactite descending from the cavern ceiling. The two had fused over millennia to form a single, monumental pillar of calcified stone, cold and ancient, encircled by meticulously carved steps that climbed in solemn ascent around it like a tightening coil. At the top lay the gates on an ancient chamber, framed by an enormous gothic arch. See more