A Delayed Meeting [Solo | Celestial Arms II Part III]

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy  / Rested

~

The trek to the Purple Mirror Mansion was long an uneventful, and would have definitely been shorter had he remembered to purchase a summoning flute for a decent horse. He would probably settle for a weaker horse as well, though it would probably have a shorter summon time.

"So it's this time of the year again, huh..." Halloween. Last year, he found himself chased through the woods by some of the stronger mobs in Avon valley, and ended up in the Mansion of the Purple Mirror, where he was tasked to travel through many halls. It was here, in these very halls, that he made first contact with his current companion, Skuggi, a [Ripper Jack] who only wanted to see the outside world. A taming contract proved able to release the bindings Skuggi had to the place, and its wish was somewhat granted, somewhat because the Swashbuckler did not really fancy travellin alot. Besides, plants did not like salt water unless they had adapted to it, so it would be stupid to bring Skuggi to the beach. After journeying through the Mansion, he met with two individuals just like him, who similarly went through the dungeon by themselves, making one wonder what the other Adventurers in Londinium were doing. It was at that moment that a timer struck zero, promising an eventful meeting with the master of the Mansion, the one known as the Trickster.

Except he never showed.

When the timer hit zero, the doors did open, and they revealed a small dark room which burst into decorative festivities, with three separate tables each containing the same stuff. On the walls facing the entrance, an apology for being a no-show was scrawled in red ink. It was indeed a very troll thing to do, given the pains he undertook to clear each hall. Obviously pissed, he had just taken the gear and left. He assumed the other two followed suit.

It seemed, however, that the Mansion has changed much since the days he was here. It was, for one, no longer a dungeon. It was now just a regular Mansion filled with Jacks which where surprisingly still tameable, though he heard that some mosnter variants were no longer around. The layout should be the same though, so he should have less trouble scouring through it for any clues about the Fairy Gate it should be resting upon.

As he passed by the familiar doorway from so long ago, he heard a voice he had never heard in here before.

~

Word count: 420
Total word count (Swashbuckler): 420 x 1.1 = 462
Notes: Post 1 of 3 for part 3 of the Celestial Arms II Questline.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy  / Rested

~

Upon entering the Mansion once more, he found himself in the same setting as last time: A desk with a guestbook, and some pathways. Except now, there were Jacks playing around with the guestbook, fliping its pages wildly, and the dangerous atmosphere was gone. But all that was lost on him as he heard a soft voice, almost a whisper, speaking a single word.

"Come."

He knew not which direction the voice wanted him to head, because he was fairly certain it was coming from the stone in his Satchel. He retrieved the pebble from the bag and stared at it dubiously, wondering where it wanted him to go, but it gave away nothing. Well, guess he should just head forward, then. If anyone wanted him somewhere, the best place to start would be the final hall.

As the Swashbuckler traversed the once dangerous Mansion with his plant in tow, he would occasionally stop to point out some puzzles which were still available to try, but no longer did anything else. "Oh look, the gold bars are still around! Wonder why no one has taken them yet." "Do you see any of your friends in this Hall? Want to go say hi and catch up on old times?" Random stuff bubbled through his mouth as they walked through Skuggi's former home. Then they reached their destination.

Just like last year, the Stage of the Last Twilight was where a feast was held, though there were no winners this time round. Would he still count, though? The food was exactly as he remembered them, making him wonder if they had excellent preservatives which they would be willing to part with for him to earn some profit. Then again, the food he had taken seemed replaced as well, so perhaps they just wasted a lot of food, or the servants of the Mansion had a grand feast because they did not expect so few people to show up. Or maybe they did, and were just trying to screw with him for some twisted reason.

Once again, he heard the voice beckoning him to come, but this time he was pretty sure it was coming from the room where he got the mirror and stuff, the timer above the door no longer holding the 00:00, but the words, "CO:ME". So much for scouring the Mansion. At least this would probably save him some time.

"Do you think the master of the Mansion is in there?" He asked the former resident of the Mansion. In reply, the plant angled its face towards him. "Do you know when the next dragon will randomly spawn in front of you? The Master is hard to predict. It could be just another note behind the door for all you know, leading you on another goose chase just for the Master's entertainment. You'd better hope it isn't that." Oh. Yeah. That would definitely be annoying.

He climbed the long flight of stairs, remembering once that a glutton Adventurer and a strong Assassin took these steps as well. He wondered where they were now.

He reached the end of the flight of stairs, and as he approached the doors, they opened to reveal the secrets which lay within.

~

Word count: 540
Total word count (Swashbuckler): ( 420 + 540 ) x 1.1 = 1056
Notes: Post 2 of 3 for part 3 of the Celestial Arms II Questline.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy  / Rested

~

The room was darkly lit, just as it was when he first saw it. And when he said darkly lit, he meant that there was no light source in the room, and the lights outside were angled to minimize the amount of light that entered. More dramatic lighting. Great. He wondered if the Trickster got bored of doing the light surprise. Or perhaps that was to trick people in dropping their guard because he kept doing it. Perhaps the whole thinking part was a trick to simply annoy him, thus distracting him from his real priorities. That was a plausible battle strategy. Distract your opponent, and wear them down by making a huge web of thoughts which permutate endlessly. The mental strain could probably give an edge.

He took a step into the darkness, his [Ripper Jack] companion right behind him, probably expecting a sudden flash of light just like he was, which was why he deigned it inappropriate to use a night vision potion here. Plus, it costs money. Everything costs money.

One step, two steps. On the third step, the expected flash of light came, and he covered his eyes with his left arm in one smooth motion, obviously knowing that the light was going to switch on sooner or later.

What he did not expect, however, was the voice that came after the lights.

"Greetings, Adventurer!" A resounding boom, a deep voice with a rich baritone rang throughout the room. Then, in a softer voice, it continued. "This is time where you open your eyes."

He did as the voice instructed, and allowed light to flood his sockets. This time, he was greeted by three tables. This time, he was greeted by a throne, and on that throne sat a robed figure dressed in purple. A pumpkin carving rested on the shoulders where a regular head would be, making him wonder if it was some kind of equipment. But there was no mistaking it. This was the person he was supposed to have met last year.

The being before him is the Trickster. And it seems there are questions that need answers.

"You!" He raised his voice in both anger and annoyance, perhaps due to the delayed meeting. "Why did you run away last year?"

"I didn't run, I had things to do! Really, I wanted to congratulate you three for besting the trapped Halls fraught with danger, but.... there was a certain matter that drew my attention, yes. I make no excuse; I should have been there. Imagine how much dramatic impact I lost from that! I could have had you three singing tales of the epicness of my entrance all year round!"

Wait, so all he cared about was lost impact? While it was true that there was technically no reason for them to meet, was it not polite to come out and greet guests, if impact was so important to him? What was it that drew his attention away?

"Well... that's a bit private, and most definitely not what you're after today, right? How about we leave that discussion for another day. I promise there'll be tea. You're in a rush, aren't you? Also, hello again, dear Jack! I heard you got a name now."

Skuggi growled weakly in response, and the Swashbuckler pretty much did a mental facepalm. This guy was all over the place! He should get what he came for and leave.

"Now, back on topic, you wanted to know about this map, did you?" With a fanciful wave of his arm, a scroll floated from outside his vision to rest in front of him, unravelling itself to reveal the exact same map he saw when he was looking at the past memories leaking from the pebble.

"H-How...?" Both Adventurer and plant alike were stunned, the latter because the former told the latter about it. It was probably the same thing.

"I am the Trickster. I existed before that pebble in your hand came into significance. Do you want to hear the bloody truth behind the pebble?"

"...Are you trying to be dramatic again?"

"Of course, so try to go along with it. Least you could do after clearing my puzzles, right?" Shouldn't it be the other way around...? Fine. He'll play this game. "Go on."

"A long, long time ago, there existed four towns. One of them was Lonsdale, which used to be where this Mansion stands upon right now. It also means you're currently stepping on hundreds of corpses." He raised an eyebrow at that. The Trickster continued. "Invaders, which you know as the Genius, attacked Lonsdale. Back then, there was no magic guards, and the other three towns were too afraid to band together to defend Lonsdale."

A pause. "Lonsdale fell. As its citizens were slaughtered, they curse their fate. They cursed the ones who abandoned them to burn in the pits of oblivion for all eternity. One was swallowed by the darkness, never to be seen again. Another simply vanished. And the last was hidden from everyone, a dying city known as Lune." Lune. He had heard several merchants say that name before. Perhaps the dying city was still alive.

"And what is the purpose of telling me this story?" The Trickster knew what he came for; it likely had a reason for saying the things it was saying now.

"Because I am offering you who cleared my trails a choice. An opportunity. Believe it or not, that pebble can teleport you back in time. Or at least, I can make it do that. Would you take that opportunity? Would you attempt to stand before the forces of the Genius and try to save Lonsdale where others have failed?"

"...I don't think you're giving me a choice here." A low grumble escaped his lips, annoyance clearly written over his face. If the Trickster could beam, it was definitely beaming now. "Good. Worry not, you will not be alone. There are over a hundred pebbles, and a few transfers will overlap with yours. Join forces, and save the city like those beings you Adventurers call heroes. Oh, and keep the pebble. You'll need it." With a dismissive wave, the Trickster motioned for him to leave.

At that moment, he felt his senses distort again. He was beginning to hate this teleportation thing. That was his last thought as he lost consciousness once more, hopefully for the last time.

~

Word count: 1070
Total word count (Swashbuckler): ( 420 + 540 + 1070 ) x 1.1 = 2233
Notes: Post 3 of 3 for part 3 of the Celestial Arms II Questline.