>>43373895>>43373986The climb up to the gatehouse is blissfully uneventful excepting the concussive assault on SKYSCRAPER by the Soviets. An owl is perched on the rail of where the bridge ends and regards you placidly. You don't know if it's a trick of perspective but it looks almost the size of a condor perhaps bigger. It seems to have a tiny clothed arm in its maw.
You manage to enter the gatehouse through a smashed door. An armored skeleton covered in cobwebs keeps silent vigil in an alcove. The room is lit with what look to be thick Advent candles in an ornate holder. They seem to have been lit only recently.
The flickering candlelight does a better job of illumination between the deep shadows cast by the spotlights than you'd initially expect. Your gear is laid out and inspected for any listening devices and it seems the Soviets decided to put all their surveillance eggs in the explosive basket around your very neck.
You hopefully muffle the microphone on the collar before jury rigging your miniaturized transmitter and receiver. BARNUM accepts your password and tests the connection with you giving your assent when particular tones are heard.
"It seem that everything is in order. You're at your destination? Your hosts don't know about the surprise party then?" BARNUM notes.
BARNUM instructs you to check the Icons the Priest gave you as well in case of any further bugging. They're completely mundane but it seems you weren't given the heavy hitters of Orthadoxy. You've got St Alypius and St Andrei Rublev on one of each Icon.