Welcome to Wabash Manor · 3:46am Nov 20th, 2020
We passed through the wrought-iron gates of the manor grounds a few minutes later. The grounds were indeed big and heavily wooded on all sides—something you wouldn't expect in a major metropolitan area like Denver. It was like we were going to some retreat far out in the middle of nowhere, instead of a location within the city limits.
The trees I recognized as crabapple trees. Yet, I didn't see very many crabapples on the ground, which confused me. Perhaps there were just very industrious squirrels about. Overgrown bushes and flowerbeds in extreme disrepair could be seen in all directions from the car windows as we drove up the path to the mansion itself. I saw several statues with algae, vines, and fungus hiding much of their features, and long dry fountains that were filled with vines. Years' worth of fallen leaves covered much of the grass and made me question if there was any healthy grass beneath some of those piles. There were broken stone benches and fences meant for cultivated vines that had long ago collapsed. This place was going to be a nightmare to get back in order. I did some gardening, but not anything near the scale and expertise needed here. It would take a large team of earth ponies a considerable amount of time and effort to fix all I saw.
It took a minute or two of driving from the gate to reach the mansion itself, and my jaw did indeed drop when I saw it.
If I described every mansion I had ever seen in a horror movie, this place would fit right among those descriptions. It was three stories tall, with an east and west wing spreading out from a main central section. The center section had a tall tower rising out of its side, adding perhaps a fourth or fifth floor to that section, and a steeply sloping tiled roof. The windows were octagonal in shape throughout the mansion, aside from two large rectangular ones that stared out the house's front like eyes. The wings had less steeply sloping roofs, with each wing ending in its own tower. Beyond each tower, there was a small covered walkway leading out to a separate gazebo on each side—one of which looked like it had the roof collapsed and the other's integrity looked highly suspect. A bone dry fountain sat directly in front of the house, with the road curving around it. A few side buildings could be seen, all looking like they hadn't been cared for in ages, and there was even a well.
Very descriptive passage. Love the details.
What could possibly go wrong here...?