[ WP ] A group of scientists are awakened after an undetermined number of years in cryosleep to discover humanity has culturally reverted back to the Dark Ages .

As the great door opened and we stepped into the ancient holy grounds, I checked on the brave warriors I had brought with me. Baldric, our archivist, nervously adjusted his pack as he took notes in a small leather book. Since he was the group expert on the ancient ones, he carried the enchanted inkless quill we had found on a previous expedition. Toram, the group's weapons master, was checking his steel plate mail one last time before he advanced. His battle hammer hung against his belt, clinking quietly as it rubbed against his steel-encased leg. Alton, our tracker and the best squirrel chef this side of the Poisoned Lands, nocked an arrow to his longbow as he examined the dark hallway for any hidden dangers. Satisfied that my allies were ready, I lit a torch and began the descent. 
 
 The hatches that protected the entrance were large enough to lead two horses through abreast, and were made of a white stone Baldric called conacretium. He claimed that the ancients knew how to create liquid conacretium, which they would pour into various shapes. I recalled that the Duke of Losan was quite proud of the conacretium roadways in his capital, with their vast bulk arcing impossibly over the wooden huts of his people. 
 
 Inside, as had been the case with the previous ruins we had explored, we found sets of doors flanked by large mirrors. We were on our guard- one previous expedition had almost failed because we had n't expected there to be a room hidden behind the mirrors, and bandits had seen us coming. Toram stepped through the rectangular arch and immediately drew into a battle stance as it let out a loud cry. Baldric jumped, suddenly looking eager. 
 
 `` Oh! What good fortune! The ancients' wards seem to yet function here! Friends, do not be alarmed- the ancients set up these gateways to warn of anyone bearing metal into their temples. If the wards function, so might other things. Let us press on, we may find more evidence of the ancients' magic!'' Alton did n't look pleased by our comrade's words. 
 
 `` Well now anything that's in here knows we're coming. Just because the gate was locked does n't mean we can be off guard. Toram, check the right room. I'll check the left.'' The larger man nodded and drew his war hammer as he moved around the corner. 
 
 The next few rooms were useless to us, but Baldric was ecstatic at the fine condition of the various books and papers lying about on tables. We could n't read any of them, of course- Baldric knew enough of the language to understand the basics, but the magic they described was `` utterly incomprehensible, I would have to spend a month deciphering the equipment alone''. We descended further into the temple, wary of the oppressive darkness... Until Alton, believing it to be a trap mechanism, flipped a small switch on the wall that ignited strange tubes of light in the ceilings. Their alien hum only added to the strange feeling of being in a place untouched by mortal hands for generations. 
 
 We found little of value, though Baldric nearly fainted when we discovered a small room packed with shelves of paper and more enchanted quills than he could use in a lifetime. Finally, we reached the end of the temple, a large room filled with the rumble and ticking of strange machines. There was a set of metal doors at one end, with eerie green lamps stuck to the walls overhead, but even Alton's keen eyes were unable to find a hinge or lock on them. We had just given up, when I jostled a table by mistake and a black tablet mounted to it came to life with a click and a whirr. Baldric had a terrible look about him, and I braced for a lecture... But then he realized there were words on the glowing tablet, words he could read. 
 
 ``'Subjects... alive and stable, backup... power reactor (? ) normal. Last... evaluation:'... many days ago. I do n't think I know the word for a number that large.''
