Expedition: White Plume Mountain

The hallway winds along for another fifty feet, and opens up into a comfortably sized room with three exits opposite where you enter. Before you, a gyrosphinx squats behind a free-form desk in the middle of the three-way fork. The sphinx is rather mangy and bedraggled, her hair in tangles. She is filing her nails, appearing thoroughly bored. As you approach she looks up, and in a monotone voice belonging to what must be the most bored receptionist in all the realm, she says "Welcome to White Plume Mountain. Can I help you?"

The sphinx yawns, "If you come for food and lodgings I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place. Nothing but slime, water, rumbling and grumbling around here."

The sphinx sighs again, "The low vibrations in the mountain. Shoulda' known you two-legs hadn't noticed it." She turns her attention back to filing her nails.

The three exits behind the sphinx are indistinguishable. There is, oddly, no smell at all coming from the other side of the room.

Eithne starts to move closer, and halfway across the room she walks directly into an invisible barrier. The sphinx looks up, almost smiles, then says in a monotone voice, "This room is divided by a wall of force. It keeps unwanted guests out."

The wall of force extends the full width of the room, dividing it in half just as the sphinx said.

The sphinx rolls her eyes, "Are you wanting past the barrier then? Is that why you're here?"

"Well, in that case you may pass when you can answer the following riddle:

Round she is, yet flat as a board
Altar of the Lupine Lords
Jewel on black velvet, pearl in the sea
Unchanged but e'erchanging, eternally

The sphinx shrugs, "Yeah. It's the moon." Her eyes glow green briefly and pop echoes in the room. Eithne notices that the wall of force to her side has vanished and she is free to move about.