The door opens into a laboratory with things magical in mind in its equipment.
Hanging on the walls are various charts and diagrams that mostly have meaning only to those of magical bent. On the inside of the door leading into the chamber (that is, a door on the north wall) is a chart that shows an arrangement of the twelve Spheres of Magic, and their corresponding runes. Above the chart is a list of the known planets and their names, along with a couple of hypothetical planets added to the end.
The ceiling of the room is curved, with a skylight that lets in some faint ambient glow from the murky waters, as illuminated by the central dome of the castle. More illumination is provided by a large crystal chunk set upon a stand in the center of the room. It might bear some resemblance to the legendary Artifact of Calderas, except that it is not as lumpy as that particular object, and it happens to be smaller. Nonetheless, it glows with an inner light and no discernable source of power, and sufficiently lights the room, even though there are some torch sconces set on the east and west walls, and several candlesticks of varying colors on shelves here and there.
The west wall is devoted mostly to alchemy, it seems. There is a desk with a balance and a grinding pestle on it, along with several jars and containers of powders and chemicals with names that don't sound very palatible. Some glassworks are set up, with some burners, and there are some hoses that have valves set on them – These hoses are set up, it seems, to release natural gases harvested from the surrounded swamp somehow. (It is best to leave them turned off when not in use.)
On a shelf on the west wall are a few books devoted to potion-making, as well as a number of what appear to be finished potions.
The labels on the potions, alas, appear to have faded or fallen off or otherwise been lost. They appear to be of the sort meant to be imbibed … but one can't be too sure. It might be unwise to experiment. There are presently ten flasks on the shelf, as follows:
Pink: This flask is filled with a viscous-looking pink fluid.
Stormy: This flask is filled with what looks much like a bottled storm, complete with black swiling clouds, and occasional dim flashes of tiny lightning inside.
Milky: This flask is filled with a semi-translucent, milky potion.
Milky Again: There's another flask of apparently the same milky potion.
Brown: This flask is filled with a chocolate-looking swirling brown fluid.
Glowing: This flask is filled with a glowing, faintly green liquid that is semi-translucent.
Cold: This flask seems to be filled with ordinary water … but it has frost on the outside, and feels cold to the touch.
Empty: This flask feels as heavy as any of the flasks with liquids in them, and it is stoppered, but there doesn't appear to be anything actually in it.
Smoky: This flask seems to be filled with swirling gray smoky vapors.
Red: This flask is filled with a reddish-looking powdery substance, unlike the fluids in the other flasks.
The east side of the room is devoted largely to bookshelves. Most of them seem devoted to the basics of magic – the sort of books that any apprentice at the Collegia Esoterica would already have access to. There are other, more specialized books, that deal with the Sphere of Spirit, and the Sphere of Earth. Most of the books of the Sphere of Spirit seem to be devoted to methods and spells to ward off spirits and monsters, though a few might actually be to conjure up spirit-beings. Alas, without having actual training in the Sphere of Spirit, the reader would not be able to do anything practical with such texts. The same applies for the books on Earth magic. Nameplates indicate that the books of the Sphere of Earth belong to one Phelix Kurai. The books concerning the Sphere of Spirit are often marked with the name of Horatio Bakula.
The south side of the room has a desk with writing supplies, parchment, and even some blank books. Hanging right above the desk is a map of the area around Whispering Wood. There are some marks on the map that indicate a "Crater" somewhere off to the north. On the desk, underneath a fuff'nar skull paperweight, is another map, this one showing a path through the woods (no mention of a swamp) that heads to this same location referred to as a "Crater". There's a squiggly line drawn around the immediate area, with a scrawled note in different handwriting, which says, "Magic Wild Zone", and an X in the center is labeled, "Center of Anamoly?"
The central table seems to be set up for the purpose of making magical circles of a small size, and it can be rolled aside so that the floor can be more readily used for proper rituals. Shelves in the sides of the table hold candles, polished stones, vials of powders, chalk, and other components used in the scribing of magical circles and the casting of rituals from the Spheres of Spirit and Earth. Tucked away in one of the drawers is a scrap of parchment with burnt edges, torn and faded, which says something about "… shard of cryst … fit in frame … source … power … forever! I… " without further explanation.
Hanging in various places are assorted talismans. Perusals of texts also in the room seem to indicate that these talismans were created with the intention of warding off various undead entities and spiritual manifestations. Whether or not they actually worked is not known.
Hanging from the ceiling are more talismans, a few odd trinkets of unknown purpose, and there are also a few star and Procession charts pasted to the ceiling.
