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huffle-dork · 9 months

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Swap into the CrystalVerse Chapter 17: Fantasy Masks

Co-written with @crystalninjaphoenix

Read Swapboys | Read Fantasy Masks | AO3 Link

Taglist: @brokentimewatch @di-diwata

True enough, at first light Bro and Alt hear a voice outside their tent "Alt? Other me--Bro? It's time to get up." It's Chase.

Alt glitches outside of the tent pretty much immediately, his bag of stuff prepared and slung over his shoulder. He looks like he barely slept at all.

Bro stumbles out a few beats later, blinking sleepily and pulling on his tunic and grabbing his own stuff. “Mhm ‘morning-“ He yawns.

“Whoa!” Chase jumps a little when Alt appears in front of him. “Elders, I forgot… You were really fast there.” He laughs. “Hi you two. We’re going to grab a quick breakfast at the fire and then head out, okay?”

Alt flushes a bit, "ah sorry... been trying not to glitch as much..." He mutters. He nods and starts heading towards the fire.

Bro shakes his head, "If it makes you feel better I live with him and I'm still not quite used to it." He laughs, readjusting his stuff and making sure Alt and him didn't leave anything in their tent.

“Well don’t hold yourself back for our sake. Then we’ll never get used to it.” Chase looks through the tent opening. “Have everything? Alright. Let’s go.”

Alt probably only half heard Chase as he stumbles towards the fire. Bro sighs a bit in worry.

The camp is less busy this early, but it’s never entirely quiet. People are already up and walking around, and breakfast is already being made. As they approach the fire, they see the other four already there.

Henrik is busying himself with packing food into a bag, but he looks up when the others approach. “Ah, good to see you. Chase and Chase and Alt, do you have anything you think we should take? In terms of food supplies, I mean.”

Alt waves a little and stifles a yawn, pixelating a bit. “Um- anything we can eat quick… my magic can be a drain but I can bounce back with some good fuel- like… jerky probably.” He shrugs.

“Good! We have lots of that already.” Henrik closes the bag, buckling the flap.

“Are you okay, Alt?” Jackie asks. “You look really tired and… your form is breaking. Did worry keep you up?”

“M’fine,” Alt mutters, rubbing at his eyes. He’s definitely lying. “We just gotta keep moving… I’ll wake up.”

Chase gives Alt an odd look, clearly not buying that he’s fine, but it’s not worth the trouble.

“I could have provided a sleeping tonic, if you asked,” Henrik says. “Oh! But here is the opposite of that.” He reaches into one of his belt pouches and withdraws a small cloth bag. Inside are a handful of brown beans. “I asked Nemet about your ‘kohfi,’ and she says these are the beans that makes it. This is all she had but she insisted we take them anyway. How kind of her. I am not sure how to make the drink but she says they are fine to eat, if bitter, and provide the same effect.”

Alt’s eyes do brighten a bit at the coffee beans. He laughs and smiles some then grabs a couple to eat. They are bitter but he takes his coffee black. “Mm- that’ll help. Thanks dude.”

“Ah yeah! We eat chocolate covered coffee beans at home all the time!” Bro grins. “Sometimes I like it better than actually coffee- it’s like a fun pick me up!”

Henrik grins. “I’m glad this is not so strange, then.” The beans are a bit different than the ones back home, a bit softer but still with a good crunch. Henrik pops a couple in his mouth too.

“You sure that won’t conflict with your medicine, Schneep?” Jackie asks.

“Is alright, I asked Nemet about that.”

“We’d better hurry,” Marvin says. “The days are only getting shorter.”

Alt nods, gaining a serious expression that sharpens up his features. He double checks he has all his modern things- his headphones, his old pants, the TRVLR. Huh- he actually hasn’t checked the TRVLR since they got here… but he’s sure it’ll work… right?

Bro sneaks some beans too and makes a face, “mhm- could use chocolate.” He chuckles. Then he stands up at attention. “Alright team! Let’s get this show on the road!”

When Alt checks the TRVLR, its screen is at first only that low battery sign. When Alt gives it a jolt, it powers on like usual, but there is now a fourth circle in the middle of the usual three. This one is red, and marked with an exclamation point.

Alt’s eyes widen slightly and he checks on the new circle.

A message in red text pops up, with an X in the upper right corner to close out of it

WARNING Latency Detected

This unit is having difficulty connecting to the universal database. This is for one or more of the following reasons:

-A Ripple is happening

-Current location is too far from unit's home universe

-Current location does not have the technical capabilities of helping connection

Please take this into account when jumping.

Jameson leans over Alt's shoulder to look at the TRVLR screen. What strange symbols, he says.

Bro looks over Alt’s shoulder to read and Alt’s face pales. “…it- it might not work…” he whispers with slight horror. “We-We’re somewhere without technology- I-I didn’t even think…!”

“C-Calm down Alt! I’m sure the fancy Iris guys accounted for something like this! Besides… we can’t leave without Mag… let’s focus on one thing at a time, okay?”

Alt shakily nods and puts the TRVLR away, trying not to panic again. “Right.. right- w-we gotta focus…”

Marvin watches the two of them with concern. "Your talisman for getting home is having trouble? Is there anything we can do?"

“I’m not sure…” Alt mutters, “It says it’s having trouble connecting… cuz we’re lacking some- modern things. Things I dunno how to get here… my- lightning might not be enough…” He squeezes his arm and tries to take a deep breath. “B-But Bro’s right we’ll… have to worry about that later.”

“If it does work I’m sure there’s some other way,” Marvin says, a bit awkward in his reassurances but clearly genuine. “I’ve heard of other worlds so there must be a way to get there.”

“We’ll do everything we can,” Jackie says. “I swear it.”

Alt tries to smile and nods, “Thanks.”

After a quick breakfast, and a brief stop where Jackie, Henrik, and Marvin discuss things with the second in commands, it’s time to go.

Alt is anxious all throughout breakfast and Bro watches him in worry. Usually Alt gets a lot of his anxious energy out through glitching but he’s being unnaturally still. Bro doesn’t see him suppress his glitching much…

Once it’s time to go Alt anxiously bounces on his feet. Bro stands next to him and tries to put a hand on his shoulder but Alt glitches out of his reach. “…it’s gonna be okay Alt- we got this!” He tries to reassure.

The group heads out of camp, passing the Phantoms on perimeter part roll and heading into the woods. Things quickly start looking similar to Bro and Alt, but everyone else seems fairly confident. Chase and Jackie are leading the way.

“Yes, we have this,” Henrik says, overhearing the two of them. “I know it is intimidating, but we are all practiced at this by this point.”

“Ha! I’d believe it! With all the training and you all being so prepared, I feel confident!” Bro smiles.

Alt picks at his shirt, glancing at the woods like something could come out of them at any second and grab them.

Chase glances back and notices Alt looking around. "Hah... worried about animals?" he guesses, grinning. "Don't worry. Predators won't attack a group of humans this big unless they're desperate. Trust me, I grew up in these woods. And as for other people... well, no one comes up here. It's a hard climb and there's nothing nearby." He faces forward again. "Although... I wonder if a storm is coming..."

Alt slowly nods. He gets like this sometimes, thinking about Mag. Like he can constantly hear his laughter in his head. See the slinking of catlike shadows in his peripheral vision. He tries to shake off that feeling, clutching the bow he borrowed from the Phantoms close.

-----------

"Magnificent."

The palace is surprisingly dark right now. But not because it's night. No, looking out the windows shows a gloomy sky overhead, crowded with heavy black clouds. The King is standing by one of said windows. "Are you awake?" he presses.

It takes a second for the magician to stir but soon enough he opens his eyes and sits up right quickly, rubbing at his face and putting back on his mask, “ah yes. Forgive me- didn’t mean to oversleep.” He pushes himself off the bed and dusts himself off before approaching the King. “Hm- looks like it could be a storm…”

“Exactly.” The King nods. “And we don’t want to travel in weather like that. It’s a sure way to catch the shivering. Do they have that where you’re from?”

It certainly looks bad out there. And in this strange land {he should probably trust the judgment of someone who lives here.}

“…I don’t know if we call it the shivering but I’m assuming we do.” Mag comments. He huddles his cloak around himself and thinks. Then he shrugs, “Weather can’t be helped. I certainly don’t want to get soaked- mayhaps I can find more books about the magic here…”

“Oh, you know… fatigue, confusion, shivers, difficulty breathing.” The King lists off the symptoms in rapid succession. “Caused by the cold. And walking in wet clothes will definitely leave you cold enough to catch it.”

“Sounds like a bad cold or the flu-“ Mag muttered with a shrug.

“But enough of that. I’m assuming you checked the library. They may have a secret section there, if I remember correctly.”

Mag flares out his cape dramatically to head towards the library, “Well then- if we’re stuck here I shall spend the day in there.”

"Very well." The King reaches out to the candle sconce on the wall. A spark leaps from his fingertip to the wick, lighting it with an electric hsss. "Let me see if I remember where the secret section is..."

As they walk down the hallways towards the library in the center of the palace, the King continues lighting the candles in a similar matter. It doesn't do much to help penetrate the darkness, but it's better than nothing.

Mag blinks at the king doing this and every so often he’ll light a candle before he does with a twitch of his head- lighting it with green fire. Mhm- a castle would look so pretty covered in such a lovely color. The thought makes Mag smirk to himself.

"Best be careful in there," he says, more to himself than Mag. "Dry paper. Best hope they have candle shields in there."

The library is not as grand as it probably should be for a palace. It's small, and probably would have been cozy if it hadn't been so dusty. The King walks back behind a desk, brushing aside some cobwebs to open a drawer. "Oh good. They do." He pulls out a candle holder with a single candle, a glass bowl attached to the base, high enough to shield the flame. He reaches in and lights it. "Now... where is it...?"

Mag coughs at the dust and uses some of his magic to sweep it and more cobwebs away. “Eugh.”

The King chuckles. "Not a fan of dust? Me neither." {That's something else they have in common.}

“I deal with it enough at home,” Mag grumbles.

The King begins searching the shelves. "If memory serves me... There's something we can pull or slide that opens an alcove on this wall. Here, search with me. Or on your own, if you wish."

Mag nods and starts to look across the shelves, looking for anything out of the ordinary. He lights a flame in his hand but flickers a shield around it like the king’s candle.

It takes a long while--maybe frustratingly long--but eventually the King shouts "Aha!" One of the shelves on a bookcase slides back into the wall when pushed. Next to it, a section of the stone wall swings open with a grinding noise. "After you, then," the King says, {ever gracious.}

Mag startles a bit at the sudden noise but then smirks at the king, taking advantage of going first. “thank you Aodhan~”

The King nods and steps aside.

The room beyond is small and windowless, but packed with things. Scrolls and old, crudely-bound books line the walls, dried herbs hang from the ceiling, and various crystals, powders, and pressed flowers fill bowls and jars on shelves. Surprisingly well-preserved pumpkins sit on the floor. A large cauldron takes up an alcove on the opposite wall, hanging off the ground by about a foot. A staff hangs on the wall, a red-speckled green stone embedded in the top. Candles sconces hang off the walls, holding blue candles.

"Ah, I see, this is for both witchcraft and wizardry," the King says from the entrance.

Magnificent’s eyes light up at the sight. He seems to actually smile as he looks at the witchy things. He tries to carefully clean off the dust as he looks at the trinkets. “Ha… this reminds me of playing witch as a boy…” He muses.

The King smiles, looking {almost fond.} "You studied magic as a child as well? I suppose that makes sense."

Magnificent laughs quietly, running a finger across some of the crystals, “My family were sorcerers. Prestigious… we had a family name to uphold. My birth was mainly just to keep the family name in tact for my father. He was very strict in what magic I could and could not learn. Very strict with my studies. So much so I did not interact or go out much as a child.” He laughs and then touches around the caldron, “then.., I met my best friend. Jackie. He got me out of my house… and together we learned things together. He showed me forms of witchcraft his family knew- though he didn’t practice. But it was fun… to rebel and learn things that would enrage my father.” He then becomes more aware of himself and flushes some, coughing and turning back around to look further into the room. “But uh- of course that’s all irrelevant. Apologizes.”

The King tilts his head, {softening a bit.} "It does... help me understand you more. Do you think the child of a monarch is ever born with anything other than 'the family name' in mind? The royal line is especially honored in Glasúil, in a way that isn't often found in other lands. And it is because of the legend of legacy. Something I've already told you I never cared for." He pauses. "My powers were weak, once. Limited, as magic here has always been limited. I spent ages studying, strengthening them. And my family never approved of it." Another pause. "But that's all irrelevant. Apologies."

Magnificent looks at the king and shares with him a wry smile. “…we have even more in common then, Aodhan. Never thought I’d have much in common with a Royal-“ he snorts.

"I never thought I would have so much in common with anyone." The King pauses. Then he turns and heads off. "I'll leave you to explore here. If the weather lets up I'll let you know." And he disappears. {Perhaps he wasn't as bad as their first impression led Mag to think.}

Magnificent watches the King go- expecting to narrow his eyes as he back when he left. But… he had been… decent today. Even… pleasant? Perhaps it was the weather.., Nevertheless, he was here to see if could better understand that magic here. There had to be some way to get the upper hand on the king.., and now- he had the whole day to search. And so he began.

It slowly starts to rain, accompanied by distant rumbling thunder. {It's strangely calming.}

Magnificent always did like the sound of rain, what a soothing soundtrack to his research…

-----------

It is not raining in the mountains as the group finally leaves the Greatwoods, finding themselves on a sloping field, grass pushing up between rocks and boulders.

"Aaaand this is officially where my knowledge ends," Chase says.

Marvin shields his eyes from the sun and looks into the distance. Next to him, Draco hops onto a rock, tail swishing as he hunts down some bug or something. "It does look like there's a storm out there."

I think that would be good, Jameson says. If it's in the direction we're heading, it means they'll be forced to stay in one place because of the weather.

Alt seems to brighten at this, “Oh- that’s… that’s good! Maybe we can catch up!”

"It also means we'd have to walk in the rain," Marvin grumbles.

Bro laughs a bit and lightly nudges Marvin, gesturing at his mask. “Afraid of getting wet, kitty?” He lightly teases.

"Yes," Marvin answers plainly.

"Don't you have some sort of water repelling spell or something?" Jackie recalls.

"Yea, but it can't cover all of you, just me. I'm not going to be responsible for all of you getting the shivering."

Chase shudders. "True, that's not pleasant."

"But Alt is right, we will catch up," Henrik says.

"Maybe it'll be clearer by the time we reach that area," Marvin hopes.

“Oh- well, guess that makes sense.” Bro says, messing with the back of his hair and grinning sheepishly.

Alt hums, “The shivering- that must be hypothermia… I’ve gotten that before- s’not fun… so best to avoid the rain if we can.”

“…you’ve gotten hypothermia before?!” Bro asks alt in alarm.

Alt gives him a steady look, “I was on and off the streets for almost a decade, Chase. Lots of stuff happens there.” He moves to keep going, adjusting his mask.

“Ah.. right…” Bro replies quietly.

"Hmm." Chase glances at Alt. "I got the shivering once. It's actually how I found the Phantoms, I was wandering in the woods sick and they decided to take me to Wyvernlair."

Is that what happened? Jameson asks, surprised.

"Oh, right, you and Marvin weren't there. Well, yea, that's what happened, basically." The group is now slowly walking down the rocky field.

Alt has a faraway look in his eyes, "... I had a really bad night... once. It was storming so hard and I was low on magic... and food. I couldn't find a good place to hide and just- had to stay in the rain. in the cold. I thought maybe that might be the night I would die." Bro listens with wide eyes. He hasn't heard this story. "I'm really lucky... someone found me. A group of magicians, noticing I was low on magic and sick. Called themselves the Chaos Circle." He smiles to himself, faintly, "... found some good people there. They saved me from dying out in the cold." He smiles a bit more at Chase, "Kinda like the Phantoms finding you, huh?"

Chase smiles back. "Yeah. Sounds pretty similar. I'm glad you had those guys."

"Sounds like a rebellious coven of sorts." Marvin grins. "Covens here are mostly sorcerers and witchcraft practicers but sometimes others will join. I was always interested in the idea of those, but I wasn't very sociable."

Alt laughs quietly, "Yeah... It was. We thought of ourselves as punks. We didn't wanna conform to the actual circle's practices."

"I guess Henrik and I were your coven, then, Marvin," Jackie says, half-jokingly.

Bro is staring at Alt with wide eyes, "...you don't-... you never really talked about all of that with us..."

Alt's expression darkens. "...it was another... hard part of my life, Chase. I lost... people I cared about from there. I did... bad things. I didn't fit in. I ran away eventually- when the actual magic circle had enough of us. ... I dunno if they're even still around."

The others are silent for a minute. This feels like a somber moment. "You're in good company, at least, then," Marvin says quietly. "I was on my own for a while. Ran away from these guys. Did some... stuff. So... it probably wasn't the same, but I can understand."

Alt looks at Marvin and shares a look with him before smiling softly, "Yeah..."

"At least... now you have your brother, Alt," Jackie says slowly, nodding at Bro. "Didn't you guys also mention you had other friends? I'm sure they're there for you."

Bro smiles and nods, "Yeah! You won't ever have to worry about that happening ever again."

Alt chuckles and shoulder-checks Bro slightly, "Yeah... you're right." Alt looks back at Jackie and smiles, "Yeah- we got.. other versions of you all actually. We have our Jackie... he's a dad- 3 kids. Sweetest things in the world. And our Jameson... he's a doctor. But a doctor of the mind. And our Henrik- he's... he's a performer. He can't hear well but he's just- a ray of sunshine. ...they're good lads." He shakes his head, "They're not gonna believe all of this when we see them again."

"They all sound so nice!" Jackie grins. "I couldn't picture myself as a parent. I'll leave that to you, Chase."

"Heh." Chase gives him a small smile.

"Would you want to be a doctor, Jameson?" Henrik asks. "Because I cannot see myself as a performer."

Jameson thinks about that. I'm not sure I'd be cut out for doctoring. Of the mind or the body. If anything, I'd prefer the performance. I could be a musician. Perhaps the violin!

"A traveling minstrel?" Marvin laughs. "I can see that. Maybe in another world."

Alt smiles, "I like music- m'not very good at it but I can least put stuff together for a show. I like... drawing more. Painting." He flushes.

Bro laughs, "Maybe once the king is defeated you can travel around Jameson! I think being a traveling musician suits you!"

Jameson smiles sadly. Maybe eventually. I'd have to go home first. Sort out the mess the King made up there. Marvin leans closer to him, bumping their shoulders together.

"Maybe you two can return to this world one day," Chase says. "And you can show us some of your art. Or bring your other friends. I think it would be... interesting. For both of us, since our worlds are so different."

Bro beams, "Dude, the others would love it! Jackie is just as much a nerd as I am- he'd love to try sword fighting. We spar all the time." He laughs, "And i bet Henny would love not feeling like the most out of time anymore."

"I'd love to teach another me how to sword fight!" Jackie exclaims. "I wonder if we'll learn the same way. Well, I'm sure it'll be different. I learned when I was a child."

Alt blinks at Jameson and wants to ask more but.... sounds like its a loaded situation. He anxiously starts to chew on a few more coffee beans.

"Ah, be careful, Alt, we do not have many of these," Henrik says.

"oh- right." Alt blushes and hands the bag back to Henrik, "You should hold onto these then..." He hides in his hood.

"Do not worry about it," Henrik reassures him, putting the beans in his pouch.

"He knows... how to fight! But with his fists, and with fancy moves!" Bro laughs, "Me and Him know more of how to fight with our bodies then with weapons. Cuz- they're illegal in our world- or at least the UK."

"Wait--weapons are outlawed?!" Chase repeats, wide-eyed. "What?!"

"Wait, what?" Marvin snaps back to the conversation. "All of them? Entirely?"

Jackie and Jameson seem equally shocked.

"Do not be so surprised," Henrik says to the rest of them. "Your cultural obsession with weaponry and warriors is a strange thing. In Alterde only the knights and performers may carry weapons."

"You don't know that we're out alone," Jackie says defensively. "I hear that Yuko's home nation is similar."

Bro blinks then laughs, "Well in our world... weapons are more... dangerous now. We have weapons that can... they can kill you in an instant. Faster than a sword could- and easier to carry. And we have a bit more of a structure- there's less to fight for. So, to try to make sure less people get hurt, only certain people can have weapons. But even our... guards for cities- they don't even carry dangerous weapons anymore. It's completely different in other countries though. Our country isn't perfect but- we definitely don't need weapons every day anymore."

"...huh." Jackie blinks. "I can't imagine that. I..." he laughs. "I genuinely can't imagine that. It's easier to think about using lightning as money."

"Something you must understand about this kingdom is that fighting is not just a necessity here," Henrik says. "It is, but it is also a form of... glory, I suppose? And entertainment. And a hobby that you can indulge in. I found it just as strange when I arrived here, but you get used to it. I will remind you that Jackie started training to use a sword as a twelve-year-old."

"Which has made me strong," Jackie says confidently. "Strong enough to handle almost anything."

I hope you're right, Jameson says.

"I get it! That's how our Jackie feels about his fighting- and his job. He can like- travel really fast and do these cool moves. He's really passionate about it. Makes him feel like a hero- like me!" Bro replies. "But yeah... I'd bet you guys would find it strange... how- i want to say peaceful our world is but... that's not true. We just... don't really carry weaponry around and do cool battles anymore."

Alt grips at his knife he has in his bag- Chase always had it a little more easy than he did. He never had to spill blood with a knife. ...sometimes he wonders if that made them too different.

#SITCV FM #swap into the crystalverse #fantasy masks au #alt anti #bro fantastic #swap magnificent #some very interesting facts come up about mag and alt :)#facts that i def wanna write about in the future #and this is why i love rping!!#cuz i wouldnt have even thought about these things until we sat down to write replies!!#and now like?? i love these ideas so much #so eee things are starting to ramp up!#tomorrow is the most fun chapter of this part i think ;)

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wizardsquestscribe · 2 years

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Maplegarde has stood as a cultural cornerstone for decades, featuring all manner of artifacts & culture. Lately, however, the halls stand empty since guests & staff started going missing---the remains cannot be found, but rumors have begun circulating that the building would better if it burned.

A mob has gathered in front of the building as the team approaches, the atmosphere lit with flickering torches & hostility. Abaret, the always nervous director, dabs at his forehead with cloth while desperately trying to control the situation. A female dwarf, Brordutelyn, seems to be leading almost 30 citizens, but Kohfi silently squares up & the entire mob backs down. Mofta glows with effect of Bastion’s ‘Guidance,’ and reasons with the leader---who assures that they will back if the problem is not resolved.

The ceilings rise high, with moonlight beginning to flicker through the glass roofing overhead. Treated oak & marble surfaces line the interior, and Abaret lingers near the entryway. Wringing his hands, he explains the situation to the incomers, & more sternly requests that any damage to the Museum should be avoided at costs. They enter the nearest chamber, the Public Library: Oak bookshelves are arrayed along the walls of the room. One of the shelves is locked behind a thick plate of glass. The books here appear quite aged, though meticulously preserved. Mofta inspects the enclosed shelf, noticing that somehow one of the books is covered in blood. Bastion then manages to pick the lock (after a few attempts) & uses ‘Mage Hand’ to grab the bloodied book. But when attempting to open it spectrally, it leaps at the nearest creature: Kohfi. He barely deflects the revealed Mimic’s Bite, as Bastion hit it with ‘Frostbite.’ A dull chime rings as Mofta throws out ‘Toll the Dead,’ but the creature dodges & a low thud emanates from the wall. [No damage, YET.] Kohfi launches into a double-attack, his Thunderstaff whirling lethally, even if the Mimic deftly avoided his fists. It appears almost torn apart, but its Pseudopod whips at Bastion, while managing to finally Bite Kohfi. Bastion glows with his own Cure Wounds, and the creature is thrown by the chiming of another bell that echoes as the writhing stops.

Staying alert, they discover Abaret’s Office: A reflection of the man---papers strewn across desk; several wine stains sunken into the carpet; trash bin overflowing next to a dirty chair. Bastion, undeterred by the full notion of privacy, uses ‘Mage Hand’ to rummage through the belongings & finds [+] Set of ~200 keys, which he decides to temporarily keep during their exploration of the grounds. Next they visit the Café: a neat & clean dining area. But there don’t seem to be any signs of disorder. So they approach a nearby door, opened with ease by Bastion, opening up to the Well-Wishing Pool garden: The soft babble of water & insects buzzing fills the air. A small walking bridge covered in moss leads from one end of the pond to the other. Pinpoints of moonlight dance & shine out of the water---Coins of Well-Wishers passing through. Bastion unabashedly uses his ‘Mage Hand’ to sift through the tokens, to the distress of the others, but leaves the coins undisturbed & procures only a [+] Silver Ring from the water.

The next exhibit opens into an Ancient Skeleton Display: The skeleton of some massive, prehistoric creature dominates the center of the room. The ceiling rises much higher, resembling a cathedral dome, and painted on the tiles is a grand battle scene between monsters & men. Mofta curiously approaches the display, recognizing it as an Allosaurus, when suddenly it begins moving away from its pedestal. Shuffling sounds begin further back, too, as the remains of Minotaur skeleton charges to Gore Mofta. Mofta dodges out of the way as Kohfi lands several attacks back, destroying the skeletal enemy ruthlessly as Bastion pelts the looming dinosaur with ‘Frostbite.’ It rears out & Bites Mofta harshly, and he fires back his ‘Toll the Dead. Kohfi unleashes a Flurry of Blows, and Bastion casts ‘Cure Wounds’ on the fragile wizard. The dinosaur fights, undeterred, and takes a staggering Bite at Kohfi, only to be crushed swiftly in response. The members take a moment to collect themselves, along with the shattered remains of a sculpture from the exhibit. [-DON’T DROP THAT!]

They move onto the Historical Armory: Hallway replete with relics of war. (Ornate suits of armor & rubied weapons stand locked behind reinforced glass; wartorn heraldry adorns walls; each display has been carefully arranged.) A staircase in the northeast corner leading the second floor---a continuation of the museum’s armory exhibit, it features the same assortment of weapons, armory, & heraldry. The party examines the displays carefully, but nothing appears.

Next they emerge into the Copperware Hall: Gleaming copperware-plates, vases, pots, etc.-from old civilizations are on display behind thick glass. A double-staircase leads to the second floor. Mofta notices that two of the vases appear swollen & irregular-shaped... Bastion unlocks the case to reveal two Vase-shaped Mimics still digesting their recent meal! He uses his 'Mage Hand' to throw them onto the floor, and Kohfi sets in. Mofta spells chime as one wails, dying. Bastion slows the other down with more cold damage, who lashes in response with a Bite. Kohfi tries to counter, but only slashes the flooring in attempt while 'Toll the Dead' chimes. The Mimic appears grievously wounded, offering little resistance as a powerful blast of ice dispatches it. (And also freezes a glass pane behind it solid, cracking slightly.) [-] Bastion casts another healing spell for Mofta, and they decide to take a short rest before continuing.

The next area is titled the Clayworks Room: Beneath locked glass displays lie very old & very fragile-looking clay objects---toy horses, cups, urns, etc. (This is by far the smallest room, as a testament to the rarity of these specimens.) Mofta estimated the highest value item to be ~200 gp, & likely to crumble without extreme precaution---a clay Mask printed with blue/gold designs.

#10 #mimic museum

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