Hidden Shaft Grille

A rusted metal grille set into the damp stone wall of the shaft, its bars spaced unevenly but wide enough to afford a slanted view into the Citadel’s lower chambers. Cold, stale air seeps through the gaps, carrying the faint acrid tang of burning oil from the Oracle’s machines. The Doctor and Leela press against the grille, their shadows cast long against the rough-hewn stone by the flickering glow of distant braziers. The grille vibrates slightly as the Oracle’s procession moves beyond in the chamber below, its metallic rattle swallowed by the shaft’s depth.