CHAPTER 23: THE ROADS BETWEEN
Behind the main lodge of The Margin, the weathered pine door of Theodore's maintenance shed creaked open on dry iron hinges. Inside, rows of rusty shovels, hand-forged axes, and weathered iron adzes hung alongside modern socket wrenches against oil-stained pegboard walls.
Theodore stood in the doorway, the early morning light catching the rough stubble along his jaw as he pointed toward a low wooden door set into the back wall of the shed. "We stand at the beginning of our journey to the Lost Roads," he warned, his voice low and gravelly. "Keep your wits about you."
Pierre pulled the frayed straps of his canvas rucksack tight across his chest, his fingers instinctively brushing the brim of his woolen beret. The air inside the shed carried a faint, vibrating humโa resonant pulse in the floorboards that set his teeth on edge. The pull of deep earth and ancient stone seemed to tug directly at the soles of his boots, offering paths through the hidden world.
He hesitated on the threshold, chewing the inside of his cheek. In his mind, the question coiled uncomfortably: was this bizarre detour truly the pilgrimage his family had sent him across the Atlantic to make? He had spent his youth in Paris being quietly reminded of his lineage, yet nothing in his motherโs letters had mentioned wandering into an abandoned Nevada sanctuary or breaking into the North Carolina Museum of Natural History. It was strangeโthoroughly strange. Yet if there was even the slightest chance of uncovering the truth of his heritage among ancient relics, he could not turn back now. He nodded grimly to himself, setting his jaw and stepping across the sill.
Beyond the threshold, the pine walls dissolved into cold gray ether. The shedโs narrow floorboards stretched outward, passing shelves of prehistoric stone scrapers and heavy bronze naval anchors, before opening into a cavernous, derelict warehouse stacked high with rotted crates. A few paces further, the warehouse buckled into a bombed-out industrial expanse of twisted steel beams and shattered red brick.
Then, modern steel crumbled away entirely.
The path broke into an overgrown meadow of pale asphodel, where colossal limestone colonnades lay shattered beneath a vault of silver fog. Ancient Greece had swallowed the twentieth century whole.
Beside Pierre, Professor Edward Dravin stopped dead in his tracks. Wire-rimmed spectacles caught the muted glow of the mist as his eyes drank in the fluted Doric ruins. The professorโs chest rose with an exhilarated breath; the academic weariness that usually weighed down his shoulders vanished. To a classical historian, walking through these stratified strata of civilization was sheer ecstasyโtime stripped of linear law.
Dravin squinted through the mist, freezing as movement flickered between two collapsed marble pediments. A youthful female figure draped in charcoal robes strode through the ruins, her bare feet silent against the cracked flagstones.
The maiden halted abruptly, her dark eyes widening with alarm as she noticed the mortals standing in her path.
"I did not sense any other people walking through here," Ally said, her voice chiming like ice striking silver. "Where are you coming from?"
Dravin took a cautious step forward, lifting his chin. "We are coming from the Margin."
Ally's gaze sharpened, lingering over each of them in disbelief. "The Margin..."
"I have heard of this," she murmured, her voice like cold silver. "It is a sanctuary for those cast upon the fringes of realityโuntouched by Olympian decrees, and untouched by the restless dead."
Dravin reached into his rumpled coat, withdrew his leather-bound field journal and a stub of pencil, and began scribbling notes with furious speed. "We are only just beginning our journey," he said, peering over his spectacles. "Tell us: what is this realm? What are you?"
"The last traveler I encountered from the Margin was a mortal named Theodore," Ally answered quietly. "It was long ago. Teddy. He was on a tear through these roads in search of what he called Fragments."
Dravin paused his pencil, sharing a sharp glance with Pierre. "Well, we are on that very same tear."
Ally studied them with renewed, unsettling intensity. "My mistress took a profound interest in your coming. Your cohort walks the razor-thin border between the celestial heavens and the domain of the dead."
"Much like Persephone herself," Dravin murmured, recognition blooming across his face.
"So you know her name," Ally said, a faint, wintery smile touching her lips. "A man of classical learning. Perhaps you carry a glimmer of the celestial within you after all."
Behind the main lodge of The Margin, the weathered pine door of Theodore's maintenance shed creaked open on dry iron hinges. Inside, rows of rusty shovels, hand-forged axes, and weathered iron adzes hung alongside modern socket wrenches against oil-stained pegboard walls.
Theodore stood in the doorway, the early morning light catching the rough stubble along his jaw as he pointed toward a low wooden door set into the back wall of the shed. "We stand at the beginning of our journey to the Lost Roads. Keep your wits about you."
Pierre pulled the frayed straps of his canvas rucksack tight across his chest, his fingers instinctively brushing the brim of his woolen beret. The air inside the shed carried a faint, vibrating humโa resonant pulse in the floorboards that set his teeth on edge. The pull of deep earth and ancient stone seemed to tug directly at the soles of his boots, offering paths through the hidden world.
He hesitated on the threshold, chewing the inside of his cheek. In his mind, the question coiled uncomfortably: was this bizarre detour truly the pilgrimage his family had sent him across the Atlantic to make? He had spent his youth in Paris being quietly reminded of his lineage, yet nothing in his mother's letters had mentioned wandering into an abandoned Nevada sanctuary or breaking into the North Carolina Museum of Natural History. It was strangeโthoroughly strange. Yet if there was even the slightest chance of uncovering the truth of his heritage among ancient relics, he could not turn back now. He nodded grimly to himself, setting his jaw and stepping across the sill.
Beyond the threshold, the pine walls dissolved into cold gray ether. The shed's narrow floorboards stretched outward, passing shelves of prehistoric stone scrapers and heavy bronze naval anchors, before opening into a cavernous, derelict warehouse stacked high with rotted crates. A few paces further, the warehouse buckled into a bombed-out industrial expanse of twisted steel beams and shattered red brick. modern steel crumbled away entirely: the path broke into an overgrown meadow of pale asphodel, where colossal limestone colonnades lay shattered beneath a vault of silver fog. Ancient Greece had swallowed the twentieth century whole.
Beside Pierre, Professor Edward Dravin stopped dead in his tracks. Wire-rimmed spectacles caught the muted glow of the mist as his eyes drank in the fluted Doric ruins. The professor's chest rose with an exhilarated breath; the academic weariness that usually weighed down his shoulders vanished. To a classical historian, walking through these stratified strata of civilization was sheer ecstasyโtime stripped of linear law.
Dravin squinted through the mist, freezing as movement flickered between two collapsed marble pediments. A youthful female figure draped in charcoal robes strode through the ruins, her bare feet silent against the cracked flagstones. The maiden halted abruptly, her dark eyes widening with alarm as she noticed the mortals standing in her path.
"I did not sense any other people walking through here," Ally said, her voice chiming like ice striking silver. "Where are you coming from?"
Dravin took a cautious step forward, lifting his chin. "We are coming from the Margin."
Ally's gaze sharpened, lingering over each of them in disbelief. "The Margin... I have heard of this. It is a sanctuary for those cast upon the fringes of realityโuntouched by Olympian decrees, and untouched by the restless dead."
Dravin reached into his rumpled coat, withdrew his leather-bound field journal and a stub of pencil, and began scribbling notes with furious speed. "We are only just beginning our journey. Tell us: what is this realm? What are you?"
"The last traveler I encountered from the Margin was a mortal named Theodore," Ally answered quietly. "It was long ago. Teddy. He was on a tear through these roads in search of what he called Fragments."
Dravin paused his pencil, sharing a sharp glance with Pierre. "Well, we are on that very same tear."
Ally studied them with renewed, unsettling intensity. "My mistress took a profound interest in your coming. Your cohort walks the razor-thin border between the celestial heavens and the domain of the dead."
"Much like Persephone herself," Dravin murmured, recognition blooming across his face.
"So you know her name," Ally said, a faint, wintery smile touching her lips. "A man of classical learning. Perhaps you carry a glimmer of the celestial within you after all."
Along the shifting path between fractured Greek colonnades, they walked alongside the dark-robed maiden. When Dravin pressed for how they ought to address her, she turned back with a faint, wintery gaze.
"You may call me Ally," she murmured, her voice carrying a soft, crystalline chill. "The maiden of Persephone."
"How much further to the museum would you say?" Alfie piped up from Pierre's bag, his driftwood face tilting up with a cheeky grin. "Because I'm a bit hungry."
Ally offered a faint, cryptic warning. "You will not travel for very long. The Lost Roads are a time warpโsometimes you arrive a day later than when you left, sometimes thirty minutes, and sometimes before you even left. It is truly fascinating, these Lost Roads."
"Should have brought some pancakes for the road, mate," Alfie sighed.
With a subtle turn, Ally stepped through an arching stone wall that closed softly behind her, leaving them to press forward through the clutter of ancient passages toward their destination.
Along the shifting path between fractured Greek colonnades, they walked alongside the dark-robed maiden. When Dravin pressed for how they ought to address her, she turned back with a faint, wintery gaze.
"You may call me Ally," she murmured, her voice carrying a soft, crystalline chill. "The maiden of Persephone."
"How much further to the museum would you say?" Alfie piped up from Pierre's bag, his carved driftwood face tilting up with a cheeky grin. "Because I'm a bit hungry."
Ally offered a faint, cryptic warning, her dark eyes reflecting the silver mist. "You will not travel for very long. The Lost Roads are a time warpโsometimes you arrive a day later than when you left, sometimes thirty minutes, and sometimes before you even left. It is truly fascinating, these Lost Roads."
"Should have brought some pancakes for the road, mate," Alfie sighed, resting his chin against the canvas lip of Pierre's rucksack.
With a subtle turn, Ally stepped through an arching stone wall that closed softly behind her, leaving them to press forward through the clutter of ancient passages toward their destination.
The shifting mists of the Lost Roads collapsed into the musty shadows of a standalone storage annex. Through a dust-filmed window, the party looked out across a sprawling asphalt parking lot toward the modern limestone-and-brick facade of the North Carolina Museum of History.
"Tell me, Professor," Pierre mused, adjusting his beret with a Gallic shrug, "in Paris, our museums have thousands of years of history. In America, I have very low expectations."
Dravin tested the latch on the outside of the door, checking to see if the spring bolt would engage automatically if closed. "This lock will latch behind us the moment the door swings shut," he muttered.
Dravin gestured toward the wooden figure in Pierre's arms. "When we are inside, we must be careful with the talking doll bit."
Alfie crossed his tiny wooden arms, bristling with indignation. "Now that is the second time someone has said that! I am a special little boy, mate!"
"Which is why we prop the annex door open right now," Dravin decided, wedging the heavy metal latch so they would not be locked out. "If we have to make a quick exit, we cannot afford a locked deadbolt."
Pierre considered the automaton with a sculptor's discerning eye. "Two quick questions: do you prefer to be called a doll, or is it more of an action figure?"
"An action figure," Alfie decided with a sharp nod. "I could get behind that."
"Or perhaps a collectible?" Pierre added.
"Then you can sit on my shoulder," Pierre offered. "Americans already think my beret is funny-looking. Nobody will question a foreign student with a collectible."
Dravin searched a shelf of maintenance supplies and found a spool of thin packing twine. He clipped off a length and looped it neatly around Alfieโs back with a small wire hook. "If anyone asks, I'll pull the string and you repeat your catchphrase like a toy."
With their staging complete, Pierre adjusted his beret. They slipped out into the bright North Carolina sun and walked briskly across the asphalt lot toward the museumโs main glass entrance, ready to enter the public galleries.
The shifting mists of the Lost Roads collapsed into the musty shadows of a standalone storage annex. Through a dust-filmed window, the party looked out across the quiet grounds toward the modern limestone-and-brick facade of the North Carolina Museum of History.
"Tell me, Professor," Pierre mused, adjusting his beret with a Gallic shrug, "in Paris, our museums have thousands of years of history. In America, I have very low expectations."
Dravin tested the latch on the outside of the door, checking to see if the spring bolt would engage automatically if closed. "This lock will latch behind us the moment the door swings shut."
Dravin gestured toward the wooden figure in Pierre's arms. "When we are inside, we must be careful with the talking doll bit."
Alfie crossed his tiny wooden arms, bristling with indignation. "Now that is the second time someone has said that! I am a special little boy, mate!"
"Which is why we prop the annex door open right now," Dravin decided, wedging the heavy metal latch so they would not be locked out. "If we have to make a quick exit, we cannot afford a locked deadbolt."
Pierre considered the automaton with a sculptor's discerning eye. "Two quick questions: do you prefer to be called a doll, or is it more of an action figure?"
"An action figure," Alfie decided with a sharp nod. "I could get behind that."
"Or perhaps a collectible?" Pierre added. "Then you can sit on my shoulder. Americans already think my beret is funny-looking. Nobody will question a foreign student with a collectible."
Dravin searched a shelf of maintenance supplies and found a spool of thin packing twine. He clipped off a length and looped it neatly around Alfie's back with a small wire hook. "If anyone asks, I'll pull the string and you repeat your catchphrase like a toy."
With their staging complete, Pierre adjusted his beret. They slipped out into the bright North Carolina sun and walked briskly across the paved lot toward the museum's main glass entrance, ready to enter the public galleries.
Back to the broom
back to the broom closet.
closet.
Exactly. All right.
You may have said at one point, but are y'all y'all sticking there?
for Labor Day.
Well, like your
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, we are.
house.
We um yeah, we tried and then the thing expired and it was like well, you know, wasn't meant to be.
Yeah,
I mean,
it's
it it wasn't a great ๏ฌnancial decision anyway,
not
so it was like not the worst thing.
Yeah. Yeah. The timing is not great because it's
No, not at all.
like I mean we dealt with this some. It's like people are still coming o๏ฌ their Zillow prices that they saw in 2023 which it's just not there
Yeah.
anymore. Like they when they listed our house for sale,
No.
I think they tried to list it for like it was like 775 and then took it o๏ฌ the market and listed it for 650 and I think we we got it for like 620 or
Yeah,
625. It's just a weird a weird market.
it really is. And it's like just not I mean on the selling side nothing's moving because still ๏ฌghting some people that have hung on to that 3% interest and they're not going to overdouble it to
Yeah. And they're like,"You got to give me a good deal for me to move." And it's like,
move.
"What? I can't I could
I need this this much to make this other house work.
Yeah.
So yeah, exactly. All right, let's see if I know how to do this.
Did Strebel ever respond?
Uh,
I don't think he
I don't think
did.
so.
Excuse me.
Let's see. He's green on Slack, so maybe it's usually Hey,
Huh?
look at that. Immediate.
The con๏ฌdence you Yeah, kind of.
Uh well it's kind of sad this is not much better than this
You're cutting
kind same there as both the
out.
same same
That was slightly better.
interesting better One better one two better
Better one or two?
two better
One All
One.
one.
right.
Loading the margin.
had I had a lot of fun with um with uh the names all all of the uh
names are good.
di๏ฌerent kind of like writing puns if you
Thank you.
will.
What is your uh what is the the um art uh style guide? You
That's a good question. It's like not super de๏ฌned.
like
Like I kind of started with Percy Jackson original cover maybe. I don't know if it was the original or Lightning Thief. The one that I liked the best. um is like him in front or like in standing in the water and then it went here. Let me pull up a picture.
Yeah, too.
Yeah.
The one of him like standing in the water outside the uh the city.
Yeah. Exactly.
Did you reread the books for
Yeah.
I did not I did read I did read summaries.
this?
It's really not at all like the books besides like the the world. So the books will not really help you too much
Um, Megan is Megan and Carter are reading the the books to the boys right now.
unfortunately.
And Megan never read them when she was a kid. So, she keeps getting mad because Carter is like reading them when she's not around.
That's pretty fun. Did you tell them? Were you like,"Wow, that's
I I did. I did. I was like,
wild.
I don't know if you're going to understand what I'm saying here, but we play this game and that's our our theme.
Love
Where are scenes?
you.
I don't think I have a scenes folder yet. Man, this the GitHub was is getting me. I this was this was a lot to to take in
Uh,
but
are you working in the browser? Oh,
yeah it's
that's tough on its own. That's pretty hard.
what
Like, I wouldn't really recommend working in GitHub in the
it's been it's been interesting
browser.
Let's see.
So what are you what are you doing in GitHub Thank
I'm creating like a package of everything from
you.
like the the di๏ฌerent scenes, but then also like the sounds and all the character sheets and everything are all a a module which is something we can attach to Foundry and that is like Foundry is pulling it from GitHub. So, GitHub's like the hosting repository. It could be it could be put straight into the source ๏ฌles, too. But since um I didn't want to have to send everything to Luke to be like,
But I guess Oh,
"Hey, put this in the source
I got you. So,
Yeah.
๏ฌles."
so you set up our foundry to basically look at GitHub. So then anybody with the GitHub can edit it, not just you with the foundry access.
Yep. Yep.
Easy.
Easy.
Easy. So,
Yeah,
I just I don't know if you guys are in, but it's going to kick you out if you are in. So,
but
I jumped in,
sorry.
but it it Yeah, it's
Um, got to update this real quick.
๏ฌne.
I
It is It's been working out. Okay. I just today didn't have time
This
to to do it, but we'll uh should be as simple as just an update.
Strebel,
Update.
you would know this maybe. Do they make physical dice that integrate with
Hello.
Foundry? And if not,
Yes.
okay, I ๏ฌgured
Yeah,
All right.
it's Bluetooth. Uh,
1.1.4.
they're called Pixels Dice. Were you there when we did our secret, Santa?
No,
Uh, yeah.
I don't think so.
I don't think so either.
I don't think so.
I I bought I bought I I backed our Kickstarter and it was like a buy one get one and I gave the second one to our Dirty Santa like Yeah,
Gotcha.
That's to I have it.
I think Luke Luke ended up with it and stole it from John in the last minute if I remember
That is
correctly. Um,
correct.
they're pretty good. They're pretty good. I I always forget that you have to like um there's a hidden setting that like it needs to ping the heart a heartbeat to the dice so it stays connected. Otherwise, you roll and nothing happens and it's irritating.
Yeah, it the the ๏ฌukiness of it de๏ฌnitely would get annoying.
Yeah. Yeah. Um, and then it's like, you know, you click roll and then it pops up a thing that says,"Okay, now roll your physical dice." So,
Wow.
it's like an extra button click,
Uh that which makes sense.
which is kind of, yeah, like I don't know how else you would add the modi๏ฌer and things like that,
Yeah.
This works.
but
This worked so well last time and now it's saying it's up to date. But ah, come on.
don't you love technology?
Maybe rerun
So, what do we want a vibe code for
this.
money?
I have so many projects. It's the coding pro is not the problem. It's it's who's going to market it once we build
All
Yeah.
it.
Oh, I know. That's
And like it could be as easy as one Reddit post that goes goes nuts.
right.
like one welltimed
That's there's there's a a we don't really know her,
lucky
but one of my like best friends from Clemson, his wife is good friends with this girl in Greenville and she's one of those like
Come on.
just posts everything on the internet and is like,"Let me tell you about how to like whatever." And now she has like a hundred
whatever. Yeah.
thousand followers and gets like and and then so now now she's doing the scam of like I'm gonna teach you how to do this when like how she did it is just dumbass luck.
Uh
Like I mean I'm not saying it's not hard but like what what clicks and what pops o๏ฌ
yeah,
is is like you just have one post that hits and it's like you're set.
you're sound. Yeah, for
And so now she's made this class and made like 60 grand o๏ฌ of just
sure.
like I'll send you my package on how I did it so you can do it too.
doing nothing. Yeah.
Yeah.
And it's Yeah,
Comment learn in this.
exactly. It's like
Yeah, it's there. I um
you'd have to I have to remind myself it's literally like a lottery ticket.
Yeah.
Like somebody's going to win the lottery and you only see the people that made it.
Yep.
You don't see the hundreds of people that every day are posting and just nobody
Yeah.
cares.
I I thought I was going to be able to sell that app to the the beer golf people for like ๏ฌve grand,
Yeah.
but they went quiet on me after we went back and forth a few times with the CEO. works. But still, you know, ๏ฌve grand is not all that fancy, but would have been fun for 12 hours of
Yeah.
work.
All right, I think we'll just go for it and I'll go on the ๏ฌy. We'll make it happen.
All
Works for me.
right, hold on. If I hit view, it's only me. Dang it.
I didn't get it in time.
What's
All right. Uh, actually while I am doing this, if you want to level up to level two, get in there.
do that I
Oh boy.
This is a good good use of time.
I I don't think and I'm sure in Foundry you can do this.
think
So I was going to do the like one of the domains that's not in the standard like not in the free list. Do I just manually edit that in?
just make a bunch of features. Yeah,
Yeah.
I have a I can give you um if you want AI to do it, I can give you a a repository to reference and you can build it as a macro and run the macro and it'll build the class for you. But it might be more work than just copying and
Okay.
pasting,
And I may not do that because I I'll do it later. I'll go back and retroactively do it. But
right?
Dang it.
All right.
He's like
Everything has gone so well, so smoothly this point,
That's where it goes.
which is which is
It's I'm
๏ฌne.
Do I need to go into D and D beyond edit to level up?
No.
just editing my like hitting the wrench in the top left and then changing my car my uh level to two. And then I'm realizing I actually have to add a class. Looks like the thing that it gave us was subasses.
Oh, did I not give you a
Yeah. So,
class?
but I mean it's obvious which class I should be a๏ฌliated with. Although it started the
All right, we want you have to hit
I'm honestly not seeing where I dude level up.
the wrench ๏ฌrst to like edit the sheet and then you I think you just edit
Okay.
your level to Two. I believe it's how that
I don't see where it shows my
works.
Yeah, I'm I'm with William. I'm the same. Mine doesn't It's not where it usually
level.
Oh, it's do the features in the like little
is.
item list features on your character sheet and
Ah,
then
got it.
Oh, really? Okay.
Oh, okay.
Sure enough.
And then does it like do I have to know what my level
Interesting.
H
like do I have to know what I get for that level?
Um, what I'm doing is if you if you go into the I share this uh on the on the right if you go to the fourth icon down the compendium packs and then inside of Compendium Impacts DND modern content and then character classes.
Oh, do you need to drag that over or
I think that's
something?
possible.
Oh, so sorry. I just exposed my wooden doll body to the world. But sorry
That's all
Put some clothes on. Would it
right.
everybody.
doll
How did I do this padding? There it is.
Ready?
Yes, I'm a genius. All right,
That would be I
there's
suppose.
Goodbye.
Yeah, there we go. Okay. Okay, we're getting there. This will work. This will work. Cool.
six points. I don't really I mean I I this might be kind of tricky to level up. Oh, that's wrong.
Can I drag and drop? Doesn't look like it.
Yeah. So, what I've been doing, I'm not sure why I didn't like auto do it, but I pulled up the uh the like starting from the beginning.
I went over to the side here and I grabbed character classes and then actually I didn't use this one. then I open sourcer and then this is like the level up table and then I was just dragging like
Yep.
things from it over and yeah I don't know why it didn't work but if you like do the advancement then I could see I was supposed to roll a d6 here so I did that and I was supposed to update my
Okay.
my spells so I went into spells and like
Huh?
They're probably set up weird from the the because they all came in via the module.
Yeah,
They're probably like same with the how it wasn't wouldn't roll the attacks.
right.
Probably similar to that.
I think got a little goofped,
Is
but it's all good. I was edited stu๏ฌ
I
correctly.
think
that it?
There it is. It's hidden inside of the class features.
Then there be like the name of it and then that'll be where you ๏ฌnd the the new the new table. That's weird, I know. really interesting.
There we go. Worked that time.
keep looking for the It used to like pop up a middle in the background that I wouldn't see it and I would be complaining about something it was doing for me. Okay. I think probably just deleting the class and starting like redoing it is the best
Once you did that, does it let you do the class like usual?
Yeah.
Okay, that's probably the way to
Yeah. After I deleted it and just stacked it back
go.
up.
for hit points. Do you do the like maximum
I just roll. Oh, did you? Yeah. If it didn't stick.
override?
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
not regions. All
test my dice real quick.
right. Cool. We
I think
good.
I'm still doing mine,
so.
but like I'll ๏ฌgure it out later, too.
Sounds good. Zoom this in.
my rolls. I'm just just testing dice, you
Gota gota
know.
All right. Well, last time as you kind of saw or as you heard today heard the recap more or less of what happened. Um but in a less thematic sense. We talked about fragments, met the margin, met the people at the margins, um the edited I believe they are called. And then they asked you questions, you ask them some questions. And then Naomi talked to you about the fragments and her kind of theory on the fragments. And then you all chose to go with the I think it was the second or third fragment that she introduced the um tablet in the museum.
museum.
Yes.
It's a very famous museum in North
And we are Yes.
Yeah.
The world famous Museum of Natural History in North
Carolina.
Carolina. Museum of Natural and North Carolina
That's right.
Mhm.
history.
the NCHNC
Natural
Yes, exactly.
museum.
and we left you right at the beginning of your journey to the lost roads um at the door to this maintenance shed of sorts and you all are heading into the lost roads and let's see I don't know how your skills stack up but whoever feels like they're taking the lead can roll a survival
So,
Check.
we we we stepped into the portal and and that's where we are right now. Still still ๏ฌying. Uh, not me.
I don't think it would be me taking the
Yeah.
lead.
And is gone for some reason.
I mean,
We'll ๏ฌgure that out.
yeah, right.
Figure that out.
I'll do a little little This will be Oh, man. The one time my dice didn't connect. That's That's sad.
What'd you roll?
bar that
Nat 20 as you're uh as you all are kind of in the lost roads. You are kind of feeling like you you've you've Pierre sort of lived on the margins, pun intended there, but has lived kind of in this quasi Greek. There it is. quasi Greek world before and it has since you as you start start sort of like walking into this maintenance shed, you kind of take it kind of weaves through some of the tools and whatnot that are back there and it just kind of like keeps going a little bit and it doesn't really make sense per se, but then you start sort of like looking around shelves of tools and continuing on. And you see like stone tools and and fully metal sort of like anchors. and and the the sense of his sort of ancient implements of of machinery or of you know mining and and chopping and you sort of have a familiarity with the this sort of Greek inspired um tools and even maybe there were even sort of not canonical fragments but fragments of like past that you all had kept kind of in the uh camp as like a historical uh attachment.
So if you want to roll on the lost roads table twice so with advantage and we'll take whichever one you prefer.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Doesn't doesn't necessarily have to be the best or worst or whatever whatever it is.
Okay. Uh while I'm rolling. Okay. So, smooth journey. Interesting.
Hello.
Or chance encounter. Uh well, before I answer, does it feel like Pierre I I was thinking about this the other day. Is this is this is Pierre getting con does it feel like the pilgrimage that he was told about like what's happening where he's going? What he's doing?
That's a great question. Um, that is a great question.
because it it I mean it it it a๏ฌects his ability to like take it seriously.
Yeah.
I think I mean I think it I
Yeah. What What do you think? I'll leave it up to you.
think um he's he's he literally like the the part that he doesn't get right now is how the Gorgon like how his his heritage plays into it.
if there wasn't that part,
Mhm.
meeting the fates and then being sent on like a scavenger hunt feels like a feels like what he would imagine a pilgrimage would feel like. So,
Yeah.
I think he's he's leaning like yes, this is the journey, but I I feel like there would probably be um it also feels like it's not what at all what was he was supposed to be doing.
It's not it's not speci๏ฌc to Gorgon's sort of as he was told,
Yeah.
but it is it is starting to feel like a little bit of an
And like Yeah.
adventure.
Like in his head he's like what um what are the Oh gosh, I got to get there on this on array. No. Um, honestly,
Absolutely.
what is the um likelihood that my mother expected me to be going to the National Historic Museum of North Carolina? This is pretty strange. strange, you know, but uh yeah, maybe they will have something there about my heritage, so I'll give it that chance.
Like I think that's kind of what's going through his head.
No.
Um not willing to write it o๏ฌ, but also pretty sure this is not what his family had in mind.
Mhm.
Uh and I feel like the chance encounter is what was what feels thematically appropriate.
Okay. as as you all are sort of traveling through this area. Uh this this shed that sort of just turns in and then kind of opens up into maybe more of like you're passing these sort of ancient tools and then it sort of transitions into a warehouse uh of some sort. and a lot of just kind of like old rundown shelving and boxes. And then it it transitions again into a um in into even more like like a a kind of bombed out
Ignore
building almost sort of thing. And he's on a roll over here.
that. I forgot I turned on prompted
Um yeah. Um and it's almost like a bombed out building,
rolls.
like another kind of forgotten location that that no one has ever has never sort of sensed. And then that that location I'm I'm thinking like a kind of brick and steel. And then that location sort of transitions more even into a into a stone kind of forgotten burned out area of more ancient history. And as you sort of reach this place uh that that sort of feels a little familiar to actually all three of you. Um there's a you you kind of see that there's another you sense the presence of someone there and I think as as you kind of come into this space you ๏ฌnd Edward particularly that you are starting to like really enjoy your trip like this is this is one of like you're walking through time like this is what history professors dream of. But it it becomes even more even more of that sense like you you become even even more excited and happier and and like a a a weight has almost lifted from you. And as you sort of see this ๏ฌgure, I think that you know sort of immediately um let's see you know immediately that this is someone of of
That
importance to you particularly and and you see
was
a ๏ฌgure a female ๏ฌgure walking in this place kind of as you all are like traveling using this as as travel and um I would Okay, Edward, roll a perceptioner investigation with
Okay,
advantage.
let me lock my character sheet so I don't screw it up. Okay. Perception with advantage.
With advantage. Yes,
Okay.
with Okay.
Oh,
Okay. Dirty 20. I didn't realize you were that high in perception.
Mhm.
Okay.
Okay. Um, you know immediately that this is an attendant of the goddess Pphanie and and let's see who would that be. I think maybe it's it's a like female ๏ฌgure kind of quasi youth youthful and kind of sees you all and is is shocked and and looks and says I I didn't sense any other people walking through here. What is what where are you coming from?
We are coming from the margins. The margin
the I have heard of this.
in
This is a this is a place for people on the the the fringes of reality. the the the they're sort of untouched by both Greek in๏ฌuence and the undead. You have a particular interest of a very good friend of mine.
I'm like I'm going to pull out my notebook and I'm writing all of this down.
Yeah. Yeah.
Um uh we are just starting on our journey. Can you tell me about uh where we are? What you are? We are new new residents of the margin.
Yes. I I believe the last time I ran into anyone from the margin, it was a man named Theodore. And it was a long long time ago. Teddy. Oh, okay.
today.
Teddy. Okay. It seems you all know him.
Oh, yes. Yes, yes, yes. What can you tell us about
So he well he was on a a tear in search
him?
of what what he called fragments. But I I don't I don't necessarily know what he found or if if he found what he was looking for.
Well, we are on that same tear, so I'm guessing he found
He's
Well,
nothing.
it my my she doesn't like when I use the term master, per se, but uh here, hold on just a second,
God.
actually.
got to go put on a mask.
Yeah, he just bust out in
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
costume.
Maybe he locked Kristen out again.
Oh, maybe. Or maybe Wes is.
How does this keep happening?
Have y'all seen the musical Hades Town or heard it? It's a um it's about Orpheus and Uritysy,
No,
Uh,
All right.
but Pphanie is a big character in that musical.
I for a minute there I was like is Luke gonna sing a song from Hades?
Yes.
can't
Uh yes.
happen.
my my master,
Nope.
she she took a very particular interest because it it seems your your cohort is exactly at the border of both undead but also Greek the on a celestial side of the gods as well in in in a sense and
much like Pphanany
and it found So you are
herself.
familiar.
Uh, in terms of having met this person, no. in terms of having read about it.
Ah, I see you're a man of of intellectual means.
Yes.
It's it seems as though you you you seem very familiar to me in a in a in an interesting way. Perhaps maybe you have a bit of celestial in you after all.
I was told that I did by a man who is not here now. So that seems a bit uh questionable of a source,
That seems very inconvenient for you.
but it's it really does.
Um well That that is very interesting. I will I will have to I will have to tell my master that there are the margins are expanding and they've been adjusted to two or three inches maybe.
And your your name was uh I'd rather know your
You can just call me.
name.
You may call me Ally.
Did did you um did
The maiden of Pphanie.
I got it.
you did you say the um margins have expanded by two or three inches.
I I don't think I did say that actually.
Uh about 6
I
cm.
Oh,
didn't
sorry. It is um new country at uh Ali. Um good to meet you. I don't know if I have said diagonal or diagonal. That is why we are here. I was expecting to be in the museum. Is there a museum
this is that's a great question. There's you are you are on a
here?
a way a a method of travel for both those who are on the fringes of all societies in terms of the celestials, the ๏ฌends, the undead.
Oh,
And yeah,
like a pilgrimage.
you could you could say that. Yes, I in in a sense. But it it takes you through these forgotten places from from one forgotten place to another. And it I I understand your your Harry Potter reference. Um, we do love those ๏ฌlms in in Olympus, but the it does have a way of knowing where you're heading, where you're supposed to be heading, and and it it usually gets you fairly close. Um, so if you continue on your path, it's will get you to this museum or at least near to it.
No, he rolled pretty well. I think it's going
Of
And um you and you uh just sort of sit in
to
the in between all day here.
of no, of course not. I am traveling back to Olympus.
Oh, which way is this?
If it is not the way, if it is not where you wanted to go, Then it will not be where you end
That sounds like a type of pilgrimage that my mad would have wanted me to do.
up.
I got to talk to Zeus. I have heard that he read he wrote the best books
He he wrote the best books. You say?
all around the world to read his sue books.
Ah, I see. Um there it must be a translation issue but um no I don't think Zeus is much of a writer.
Maybe not to you, but uh to us in in Perry, it is
Wow. Okay.
brilliant.
I maybe I'll be able to get a second.
No, no, we're here on on the edge of our seats.
Oh, sorry. All right.
Yes,
Okay.
you have lost me when you said Zeus was not good right there,
Um I
but obviously he's one of the
you you all must have some access to maybe his private diaries or something.
best.
I I don't know. I've never I've never had any of his his writings. I I'm I'm very intrigued. I I'll have to ask uh Pphanie herself about this.
Yes, maybe it is in her um some air library,
and
not her winter library. Even though they are very far apart
the Yeah, they I would say they are they certainly are far apart.
probably
I um I also didn't know didn't know Zeus was quite the academic and he's a doctor, you say. And
I did not say that. So you do know the doctor is
attack.
What?
Ah, I see. I see. Yes. Uh, quite the author indeed.
Yes. Well, I I suppose you would have a little need a little luck to chase down these fragments, but uh good luck. May the gods be with you and and I'll be on my way. I will I will mention to Pphanie that there there seems to be the margins expanding and and I believe she takes particular interest in it. So she she may ๏ฌnd you
Please do.
all.
I would I would just love to meet a a Greek god or goddess. It would be the completion of my my Magnus Opal of my my thesis.
Wow. All right. and and you all be careful.
Before
It's it is a the world interacts very di๏ฌerently very di๏ฌerently with us
you go, do you know anything about these ink blobs?
ink. Let's see. Let's see what she knows. Okay. Okay. I've I have never had any experience, but it's it it seems to be something that that has been mentioned to me before.
Um, I don't I don't necessarily know any information about it, but as I report to Praphanie, I I will report that you all have have have experienced this before. It seems to be a growing of growing
We fought them in front of the fates.
concern
No big deal. Just if you come across anything.
if that must be where this doll is from.
Yeah. Yeah. My name's Al๏ฌe. Bit like Ally. Yeah. Bit like Ally, ain't
It is it is bit like Ally.
it?
Wow. Um you you did have a a very distinct sort of design that I can only attribute to the fates. So and wow you all met the fates too. You certainly
Yeah, right. I'd say I did more than made him. Yeah.
seems like you've been created by them.
Yeah.
Wow.
Think it's something like
Yes. Um,
that.
wow. This is a lot of a lot of very fascinating information and meeting the fates and and having an impact with them and these ink blobs and I yeah I will I will report this back. I this is very fascinating.
Yeah. How much further to the museum would you say? Cuz I'm a bit hungry. Do you have any snacks or anything on you?
Uh I was not expecting you to to need snacks, I suppose. Um,
All right. That seems a bit racist,
but I
but all right.
A๏ฌ has a ๏ฌne taste of culinary.
I
He has much complimented my my my pais
apologize.
Okay.
I I I did not mean to o๏ฌend. I I simply just um I I don't think you'll be traveling for very long. It it sort of is a is a bit of a a time warp and and sometimes you'll end up at a place where it's it's a day later than than when you left and sometimes 30 minutes and sometimes you arrive before you even left.
It's it is fascinating these these lost roads.
H. All right, then. Thanks very much.
Yes,
Oh,
thank you for all
Al๏ฌe, now you have made me me hungry as well.
your
Should have brought some pancakes for the road,
How do you know I did not?
mate.
I may just have eaten them all already.
as you all leave um leave this person behind and she continues her way and and you kind of it it almost seems like she's like walking through through a wall and then all of a sudden it kind of like opens for her and then closes behind. And but your kind of area has remained the same. And you pass through the the edge of this sort of old Greek style building and and continue walking. it kind of more clutter and kind of odds and ends and boxes and things like that start popping up. And then um all of the sudden you kind of hit a door that you all like you before had just either gone under sort of an archway or things like that or any door you had you had run into had easily opened for you.
Um, but this one feels very di๏ฌerent and and kind of as you as you all kind of scrunch up towards the door and then realize it's kind of very substantive there. It's it's the space kind of ๏ฌlls in around you and you're surrounded by a lot of boxes, labels of di๏ฌerent years and various di๏ฌerent kind of not evidence bags but like marked bags particularly. A lot of supplies hung up with um brushes and and shovels and cleaning equipment. And um you'll ๏ฌnd yourself in in this sort of dusty old storage room.
It is a disgusting ear.
Bizarre.
Can we get out of this room?
This doesn't look like much of a museum to me, but maybe it's the storage room of the museum.
Can I peek out the door and see if there's like a tag on the edge of the outside of the door that's like North Carolina History Museum broom
Broom
Yeah. As you sort of as you sort of peek your head out,
closet?
I'd say it's like I think you had breakfast and then sort of
closet.
packed up and left. So maybe you left around like noon maybe. Um, you can see the sun is like past halfway, starting to sort of set. So, it's maybe been like three hours and it it almost feels like you were walking and and chatting for like an hour. So there's a sort of a a bit of a time jump there, but way faster.
Sure.
faster than it would have been to drive from West Virginia to North Carolina. So, um, yeah, as you peek out, the sun kind of hits hits you and you look look for any sort of signage around and on on kind of the side of the building, you just see
Let's go.
Annex
So tell me professor um in American museum that is like uh 20 30 years of story.
Well, it as with anything, it's going to be a little bit of a political answer.
I mean, I'm just saying that the museums I am used to have thousands of year of years of history.
Um, this I have a I have low expectations.
Yeah, that's fair. That's fair. Uh
And remember this is this is the National Museum of World and North
Oh,
I
Carolina
who's that?
History.
The
that came on the the atrium.
Welcome to
loudspeaker.
Yeah.
Welcome to the Dolly Parton National Museum of Global and North
the
Oh,
American.
y'all come back now. Um, okay.
Hey y'all, it's Kelly
when the when welcome to the North Carolina Museum.
Pigler.
Um when uh the good doctor looked out the door, um was it clear if there were like guests or visitors of any kind out
Uh yeah,
there?
it was it was outside and like kind of o๏ฌ o๏ฌ in like the corner of a of a parking of a pretty large parking lot.
Okay.
So, it's separate building al together.
separate building,
Okay.
one that's not frequented by the uh the the status of
Um I'm going to try the
it.
door handle from the outside. See if this is something that's going to lock behind me if I leave.
Mhm. Good job checking it. Most certainly is
Um, okay. Game plan team. I think step one, we just go to the museum, see if the tablet's just on display. It seems to be business hours.
All right. Never been to a museum
Uh, second note,
before.
maybe when we're in there, just be careful with the talking doll bed.
All right. That's now now I'm feeling like this is the second thing someone said that's just a little bit o๏ฌensive. But all right, I get the point.
I'll We have not
I'm a special little boy.
Yeah.
Um,
asked.
so I think I think game plan would be prop annex door open.
Oh,
See if
smart.
we
Mhm.
Yeah,
All right.
prop annex door. See if we can uh
Can you start sort of walking towards the the main part of the
Could someone
Yes.
put me in a bag or something?
museum?
If I'm not talking, but I'm walking,
Yeah.
what's the point?
U two two two uh quick questions for you. One, do you like to be called a doll or is it more of an
Yeah, I don't really know.
action ๏ฌgure?
Action ๏ฌgure.
An action ๏ฌgure.
Perhaps a
Yeah. All right. I could get behind that one.
collectible.
Yeah. An action
Perfect. Well, then um the way I see it,
๏ฌgure.
it is not extraordinary for an action ๏ฌgure to make noises. Just uh maybe don't move your legs and arms around a lot.
All right.
If you want to talk,
I can handle that.
And um
CHAPTER 24: THE HEIST AT THE FRONT DESK
They passed through the glass double doors into the cool, air-conditioned atrium of the museum. Front and center in the main gallery, surrounded by velvet stanchions and informational placards, was the celebrated ancient Greek limestone tablet.
Before they could reach the stanchions, they had to navigate the circular reception desk that anchored the lobby. Behind the polished wood counter sat a woman in a crisp museum blazer, adjusting a ring light positioned beside two phones mounted on miniature tripods. A laminated staff security lanyard hung squarely over her lapel.
She greeted them warmly on behalf of the North Carolina Museum of Natural History, her melodic cadence carrying a razor-sharp Southern edge.
"I amโmy name is Nincy, as you can see," she added, tapping the engraved gold badge pinned to her chest.
Dravin tilted his head, reading the lettering with an academic squint.
"Yes, my name is Nincy with an *I*," she emphasized with a knowing smile.
"N-I-N-C-Y," Dravin pronounced carefully, glad he caught the spelling.
"Exactly, exactly! I'm glad you caught that," Nincy beamed, brightening visibly. "Some people with my accent, they don't hear the difference."
Dravin offered an elegant, patrician bow. "It is an honor to meet you, Nincy."
Nincy let out an amused laugh, twirling the end of her lanyard around a finger. "Well! That's the first time anyone's said that about this museum when they first come in. I've never been treated like an exhibit myself."
"Oh, well, you are quite the exhibit, Nincy," Dravin purred with smooth, professorial charm.
"Now, don't stay too long, sugar," she replied, leaning her chin on her hand with a flirtatious smirk. "I'm almost done with my shift."
Pierre leaned against the corner of the counter, his Parisian accent thick and conspiratorial as he gestured toward Dravin. "This here is a professor. You don't know all the things he could teach you."
Nincyโs eyebrows arched in mild surprise. "You don't say? And I assume Greek mythology, is that correct?"
Dravin inclined his head in smooth confirmation, letting his silence hint at far more esoteric disciplines.
Behind the velvet ropes, the Aegean tablet emanated a subtle temporal thrum that Pierre and Dravin could feel in their teeth. The upper-right corner had been violently sheared away in antiquityโthe exact shape of the triangular limestone fragment resting safely in Pierre's rucksack. But the security gate surrounding the inner gallery was electronically locked, keyed directly to the staff lanyards.
Pierre caught Dravin's eye and flicked his gaze toward Nincyโs badge. *Distraction.*
Dravin reached down to Pierre's shoulder and lifted Alfie into both hands, presenting the tiny driftwood figure across the countertop like an eccentric scholar showing off a curio.
"Look at that," Nincy blinked, leaning forward over her ring lights. "I've never seen that action figure before."
"First edition limited run," Dravin announced with complete academic solemnity. "A tweed-clad shipwrecked Marvel action figure. Extremely rare."
Alfie held himself rigid as wood, keeping his coral eyes wide and unblinking. Dravin tugged gently on the thin twine hooked to Alfie's coat.
From the tiny carved mouth came a tinny, stiff mechanical recording: "Stay a bit rough, isn't it?"
Nincy clapped her hands together in genuine delight. "Wow! Now that sounds quite authentic!"
While Nincy was engrossed in the novelty doll, Pierre slid silently along the curve of the counter. He pretended to inspect a brochure display, reaching a gloved hand toward her chest as his fingers extended toward the plastic card clip.
He had the corner of the badge between his fingertips when Nincyโs gaze flicked down.
She froze, her Southern charm instantly sharpening into museum security vigilance. "Excuse me, sir! I said my name was Nincy."
Pierre pulled his hand back, heart pounding against his ribs.
"You can see it right here," Nincy said pointedly, tapping the badge against her lapel. "You don't need my badge to see my name."
Pierre didn't flinch. He adjusted his round spectacles and offered a dazzling, unhurried French smile. "It was such a sweet name, madame. I could not believe it was real."
Nincy narrowed her eyes, her hand plunging beneath the counter toward the security radio.
A cold jolt spiked through Dravin's chest. His breath hitched, every academic instinct overridden by pure survival panic. He seized the wooden automaton from Pierre's shoulder, drew back his arm, and hurled Alfie straight across the polished museum lobby.
They passed through the glass double doors into the cool atrium of the museum. Front and center in the main gallery, surrounded by velvet stanchions and informational placards, was the celebrated ancient Greek limestone tablet.
Behind the polished reception desk sat a woman in a crisp museum blazer adjusting a ring light. "I amโmy name is Nincy, as you can see," she announced, tapping her engraved gold badge.
"Yes, my name is Nincy with an *I*," she emphasized with a knowing Southern smile.
"N-I-N-C-Y," Dravin pronounced carefully, adjusting his wire rims.
"Exactly, exactly! I'm glad you caught that," Nincy beamed. "Some people with my accent, they don't hear the difference."
Dravin offered an elegant, patrician bow. "It is an honor to meet you, Nincy."
Nincy let out an amused laugh, twirling the end of her lanyard around a finger. "Well! That's the first time anyone's said that about this museum when they first come in. I've never been treated like an exhibit myself."
"Oh, well, you are quite the exhibit, Nincy," Dravin purred with smooth, professorial charm.
"Now, don't stay too long, sugar," she replied with a flirtatious smirk. "I'm almost done with my shift."
Pierre leaned against the mahogany counter with a thick Parisian purr, gesturing toward Dravin. "This here is a professor. You don't know all the things he could teach you."
Nincy's eyebrows arched in mild surprise. "You don't say? And I assume Greek mythology, is that correct?"
Dravin lifted Alfie into both hands, presenting the tiny driftwood figure across the counter. "Look at that," Nincy blinked. "I've never seen that action figure before."
"First edition limited run," Dravin announced with academic gravity. "A tweed-clad shipwrecked Marvel action figure. Extremely rare."
Dravin tugged the twine hooked to Alfie's coat. From the carved mouth came a tinny mechanical squeak: "Stay a bit rough, isn't it?"
Nincy clapped her hands in delight. "Wow! Now that sounds quite authentic!"
While she laughed, Pierre slid along the counter toward her lanyard clip, but her gaze flicked down. "Excuse me, sir! I said my name was Nincy. You can see it right here. You don't need my badge to see my name."
Pierre adjusted his spectacles with an innocent French grin. "It was such a sweet name, madame. I could not believe it was real."
Nincy's hand reached under the counter for the radio. Panicking, Dravin grabbed Alfie from Pierre's shoulder, reared back, and hurled the doll across the museum lobby.
Pierre gasped in feigned, theatrical horror, clutching his hands to his beret. "I told you that doll was haunted! We should never have brought it here!"
Nincyโs eyes went wide as the *doll* hit the polished tile, bounced, and immediately scrambled upright on tiny wooden legs. She snatched the desk radio. "Security! Security, I need help out here!"
Dravin raised his hands placatingly, backing away toward the velvet stanchions. "Nincy, I am not with them! I mean, I'm with them, but I'm not *with* them!"
"He wants to be with you, Nincy!" Pierre called out helpfully over his shoulder.
Across the floor, Alfie darted under the museum display cases, scuttling like a maniacal wooden creature through the low air-conditioned mist. A family of tourists shrieked in terror as the moving figure brushed their ankles. "Rat! Rat! There's a giant rat!" voices shouted in rising panic, and the lobby crowd began surging toward the glass double doors.
Two armed museum guards came rushing in from the administrative wing, batons drawn as they converged on the reception desk. Dravin backed against the counter. Cornered and desperate to salvage the heist, he focused his arcane focus and began tracing an invisible glyph in the air.
"I am going to cast Sleep on Nincy," Dravin whispered under his breath.
As the sleep magic coalesced between Dravin's fingertips, Alfieโs Fate-woven Wordcraft flared in sudden resonance across the marble floor. Alfie sensed the spell's grammar crystallize across the weave and forced an instantaneous, mischievous edit: *Sleep* became *Sheep*.
With a deafening thunder of clattering hooves, the reinforced fire door behind the reception desk burst wide open. Eighteen woolly, bleating sheep came stampeding out into the museum atrium, scattering tourists, security guards, clipboards, and brochures across the polished floor.
Pierre seized his moment amidst the pandemonium. He dove low behind a velvet stanchion, gripped the coarse wool on the belly of a charging ramโa daring Odysseus maneuverโand let the beast haul him straight past the flailing guards toward the research gallery.
Dravin watched the chaos with wicked academic delight. He flicked his wrist to summon an illusion cantrip, stamping bold black numerals across the flanks of the charging flockโ**1 through 19**, skipping number 14 for the time-honored collegiate prank.
Pierre gasped in feigned, theatrical horror, clutching his hands to his beret. "I told you that doll was haunted! We should never have brought it here!"
Nincy's eyes widened in horror as the doll bounced across the polished tile, popped to its feet, and sprinted on tiny wooden joints. She snatched her desk radio. "Security! Security, I need help out here!"
Dravin raised his hands placatingly, backing away toward the velvet stanchions. "Nincy, I am not with them! I mean, I'm with them, but I'm not *with* them!"
"He wants to be with you, Nincy!" Pierre called out helpfully over his shoulder.
Across the floor, Alfie darted under display vitrines, scuttling like a maniacal sprite through the floor drafts. A family shrieked in terror as the carved figure brushed their ankles. "Rat! Rat! There's a giant rat!" tourists cried, surging toward the double exit doors.
Two guards hurried from the administrative wing with batons drawn. Cornered against the desk, Dravin's fingers twitched with desperate magic. "I am going to cast Sleep on Nincy," he whispered under his breath.
As the spell coalesced, Alfie's Fate-woven Wordcraft flared in playful resonance across the floor, altering the vowel: *Sleep* became *Sheep*.
With a thunder of clattering hooves, the fire door behind the counter burst inward. Eighteen bleating sheep came stampeding into the atrium, scattering clipboards, stanchions, and tourists across the slick marble.
Pierre seized the chaotic moment. Diving low, he grabbed the coarse fleece under the belly of a charging ramโan Odysseus escapeโletting the beast drag him straight past the shouting guards toward the restricted corridor.
Dravin watched with wicked delight, flicking his fingers to stamp glowing black numerals across the charging flockโ**1 through 19**, skipping number 14 for the time-honored campus prank.
I I'm gonna I'm gonna take a a string out of the out of the closet because I'm I'm going to just attach a string with a little hook. Like, if you want to talk,
yeah.
I just nudge me and I'll pull this and then it'll just look like you're saying your catchphrase. You may have to say the same like three things over again,
All right, let me think about what that would be. But okay, I
but
understand.
Um and I think you Americans already think my beret is funny looking. So it is no problem. You can sit on my shoulder. It if someone has to ask me I will say
All right.
All
madame they will probably not know what I am
Thanks,
saying.
mate. Sounds perfect.
Cool.
right.
All
I I pulled a string. What's your catchphrase for?
right.
Let's
All right.
go.
Not
Yeah.
All right. uh to the gate or the entrance or
ship.
Yeah, as you all go in um they let's
the
see let's see how how picky do I want to be on this. Okay. Um as you all go up to the the cash the cashier I guess or the the opening kind of the entrance way. You go to go into the entrance way enter into the museum. No problem. It's open. in its o๏ฌce or not o๏ฌce, opening hours and you walk up to the desk and um they're like,"Oh, welcome in. Let's let's let's pull out the southern for the North Caroline. Oh,
welcome in. It's so nice to have some new fresh faces in here. Seems like uh you all uh might be might not be from around here. Is that right?
California, baby.
If I could be further away,
And and
All right.
I
I I Well,
France
head.
by the sound of it, it sounds like you would be further away than California, although I'm not 100% sure California is so far away from here. Well,
It doesn't
also are you are you all just looking for to come in and and take a look
show
around.
We are we're I'm speci๏ฌcally interested in Greek mythology. If I think I saw online you have a a section for
Oh, I Oh, there has been a lot of a lot of people coming in to see this tablet.
that.
It's gotten a lot of uh a lot of hype on social media and uh now I I don't want to toot my own horn, but I do help run the social media and it has gotten I've gotten a raise.
Let's just say
Are you are you Nancy at Dolly Parton?
that.
National History Museum of Global and North Carolina
UNC
That's right.
The DP N C N H
History.
I am My name is Nancy as as you can see.
ch
Yes, my name is Nancy with an
C
I.
in I inc.
N
Exactly. Exactly. I'm glad you caught that.
Some people with my accent, they don't hear. is
Yeah.
It's an honor to meet you,
So, wow.
Nancy.
Yeah.
Nancy.
That's the ๏ฌrst time anyone's said that about this museum when when they ๏ฌrst come in. there. Just wanted to see all the other ones. I've I've never been treated like an exhibit myself.
Oh, well, you are quite the exhibit,
Oh, well. Now, don't don't stay too long.
Nancy.
I'm almost done with my
This ear is a professor.
shift.
You don't know all the things he could teach
Oh.
you.
Uh, you don't say. And I assume Greek mythology. Is that correct?
That's right.
I'm going to try to lift her badge while she's
Okay.
talking.
So yeah,
Slight of hand.
but before he before he does that,
Mhm.
I'm going to give him I think it's guidance. Yeah,
It's
he can add a
All right.
D4.
Guidance.
I might need it.
Okay.
11.
Eight and three.
Uh, I I might need some more help, Al๏ฌe.
Can I give Bic inspiration retroactively?
Yeah.
All right.
Yeah.
Pull pull my pull my string.
There you
You pull the pull the string.
go.
Yeah. All right.
Yeah.
Bic inspiration.
Well, look at that. I've never I've never seen that action ๏ฌgure before.
That That's right. ๏ฌrst edition limited run. It's a a a a tweed shipwrecked Marvel action ๏ฌgure.
pull it again. Pull it again.
It It It's got a few catchphrases here.
Pull it again.
How about this
Stay a bit rough,
one?
isn't it?
Wow. That now that sounds quite authentic.
I'll uh I take him o๏ฌ my shoulder and put him in front of her so that I can walk
Yeah.
around.
Yeah.
Um, is your is you is your bic
Watch out for the
D6.
water.
I'm going to say it's a D6.
just a sailor. Oh no.
Yeah.
Oh,
Okay.
Oh no.
All right.
12. All
All right. Let me roll.
f***.
I think um this is going to be
said,
No.
๏ฌat. All right. Before I tell you what it is, would you like to use any
I forgot we have legend. Yeah, we got D6 pre-roll gain advantage,
Oh yeah,
legend?
you should for sure use use
pre-roll, any D20,
that.
and a D6 post roll.
I think add a decent
Yeah,
Okay.
for sure.
post sunk
This feels very important.
Okay. Yeah. So, we'll do a D6 post.
cost too.
All right.
Yeah. Oh my god.
All right.
What a terrible
As as um
roll.
as you go to reach for her badge on a 17 on the die, she sees you going for that and says,"Look, excuse me, sir. I said my name was Nancy.
I It was
You can see it right here. You don't need my badge to see my name.
It was such a sweet name. I could not believe it was real.
Now, I'm I don't You all have been very nice, I will tell you. And uh I appreciate you coming in,
Hold the string again.
but
Give us your best or your
what did
pay
I
consequences.
Just
um
f******
chuck the doll into like into the museum? in.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I just chucked the doll into the
Yeah. And I'm like,
or
I told you that it the doll was haunted.
museum.
We should not have brought it here.
what? Uh uh security security we need we I need help out here.
I'm
I need help out
gone.
here.
Nancy, I am not with them. I mean, I'm with them, but I'm not with
He wants to be with you,
them.
All right. Um,
Nancy.
how
You just hear as I'm running away,
would
you just hear echoing. Yeah. All right.
I think how would through the mist? How would people in the museums see this? Like Yeah,
like a rat maybe.
that's kind of what I was thinking.
Yeah.
Like a rat pulling the doll around the museum.
Yeah.
Yeah. And I think you hear from the front you hear some like screams of like rat rat there's a rat and people kind of start running towards the exit uh in a in a panic
That's got to be enough of a distraction to do something.
Um,
Boys,
going for the badge again.
I'm I'm just setting you up for whatever you want to do.
Yeah. I think I think at this point the there's probably security guard close to the front desk, I would assume. So I think there's at least a security guard that's like kind of approaching the two of you. And then obviously there's there's this big hubbub happening,
Okay,
but
I'm going to cast sleep on Nancy.
okay. Okay. Sleep.
I don't
Um, I mean, she's a person, so I'm assuming whatever HP you roll, she'll probably drop. Anything from you on that, Sophie?
I don't know. What would you need for me? Oh, oh, oh, oh,
I Yeah.
oh. Thank you for saying
Yeah. Yeah.
that.
58.
Yeah,
Okay. So, you see, as um Edward,
I
as you're sort of like conjuring this this thought of like what would help get get out of this situation, you start thinking of like, okay, this um um I mean, I think it's 5D8.
Whatever you hit, she's out. But um as you as you think of this and as like sleep comes to your mind um you hear Al๏ฌe in your brain go.
shape.
So um this is a little introduction that to a mechanic we are calling spellcasting. where uh Al๏ฌe's ability being from the fates can kind of edit spells and currently at her ๏ฌrst level she can add or she can change one letter in a spell. Um so she's changing sleep to sheep. Uh go ahead and roll your 5d8.
Okay,
So, as you're thinking about putting Nancy to sleep, Nancy sleep,
Nancy.
Nancy. Let's
um you see like from from behind the desk there's like a a
see.
CHAPTER 25: THE RESEARCH ANNEX & THE CLOSING BELL
In the center of the atrium, chaos reigned. Security guard Thomas flailed helplessly against the woolly tide, trying to wrangle two bleating rams that had pinned him against an information kiosk. Dravin spotted an opening and lunged forward, reaching for the guard's duty belt, only to find an empty holster.
"Sorry, bud," Dravin said, withdrawing his hands with an apologetic wince. "I was going for your gun. I just realized you don't have one. Sorry about thatโI was going to take out some of these sheep."
Dravin eyed the empty leather scabbard in disbelief. "What kind of American security guard are you?"
"This is anarchy!" Thomas sputtered, shoving a ram away by its horns. "I wish I had my gun, but it got taken away last month!"
"Well, let me try and help you out," Dravin offered magnanimously. "I'll go get that one!" The professor spun on his heel and sprinted after an escaped sheep heading straight for the deeper exhibits.
Pierre seized the distraction to close in behind the struggling guard. As Thomas stumbled backward from another collision, Pierre reached down, hooked the guard's ankle from beneath the woolly stampede, and pulled hard. Thomas hit the polished floor flat on his face with a solid thud. In the same fluid motion, Pierre's deft fingers slipped the security badge from the guard's belt and palmed it smoothly into his coat pocket.
Across the mezzanine, Alfie charged ahead, his tiny wooden joints clicking furiously against the tiles. Several fleeing visitors shrieked and pointed at the low scurrying silhouette, screaming about an oversized rat before the stampeding flock drew their attention away.
As the crowd scattered toward the exits, Alfie ducked into the shadows beneath an Aegean marble pedestal. He folded his carved driftwood arms against his chest and locked his joints into absolute, motionless stillnessโcoral-colored glass eyes staring blankly ahead, indistinguishable from a lifeless souvenir forgotten in the dust.
In the center of the atrium, chaos reigned. Security guard Thomas flailed against the woolly tide, trying to wrangle two bleating rams that had pinned him against an information kiosk. Dravin lunged forward, reaching for the guard's duty belt, only to find an empty holster.
"Sorry, bud," Dravin said, withdrawing his hands with an apologetic wince. "I was going for your gun. I just realized you don't have one. Sorry about thatโI was going to take out some of these sheep."
Dravin eyed the empty leather scabbard in disbelief. "What kind of American security guard are you?"
"This is anarchy!" Thomas sputtered, shoving a ram away by its horns. "I wish I had my gun, but it got taken away last month!"
"Well, let me try and help you out," Dravin offered magnanimously. "I'll go get that one!" The professor spun on his heel and sprinted after an escaped sheep heading straight for the deeper exhibits.
Pierre seized the distraction to close in behind the struggling guard. As Thomas stumbled backward from another collision, Pierre hooked the guard's ankle from beneath the fleece, tripping him flat onto the polished tile. In the same fluid motion, Pierre's deft fingers slipped the security badge from the guard's belt and palmed it smoothly into his coat pocket.
Across the mezzanine, Alfie charged ahead, his tiny wooden joints clicking against the floor. Visitors shrieked at the scurrying silhouette, screaming about an oversized rat before the flock drew their attention away.
As the crowd scattered toward the exits, Alfie ducked into the shadows beneath an Aegean marble pedestal, folding his carved driftwood arms and freezing rigidโcoral eyes staring blankly like a lifeless souvenir in the dust.
Pierre joined Dravin near the staging area for the museumโs visiting epigraphy team. Groups of suited academic researchers were gathered near the stanchions, waiting for the sheep commotion to clear.
Dravin whispered to Pierre: "The staff are already preparing their evening documentation queue. We can position the fragment directly on their intake table."
Alfie remained motionless on the display cart, perfectly executing his toy freeze.
Pierre could never pass a museum statue without pausing to critique its lines and craftsmanship. Admiring the marble contours, he slipped behind the carved stone pedestal.
Shielded by the marble plinth, Pierre shrugged off his tweed coat and draped it across his shoulders like an artist's shawl, subtly altering his silhouette.
To complete the disguise, Pierre flipped his beret inside out, swapping the familiar black exterior for an understated silver lining to blend seamlessly among the visiting academics.
Pierre joined Dravin near the staging area for the museum's visiting epigraphy team. Groups of suited academic researchers were gathered near the stanchions, waiting for the sheep commotion to clear.
Dravin whispered to Pierre: "The staff are already preparing their evening documentation queue. We can position the fragment directly on their intake table."
Alfie remained motionless on the display cart, perfectly executing his toy freeze.
Pierre could never pass a museum statue without pausing to critique its lines and craftsmanship. Admiring the marble contours, he slipped behind the carved stone pedestal.
Shielded by the marble plinth, Pierre shrugged off his tweed coat and draped it across his shoulders like an artist's shawl, subtly altering his silhouette.
To complete the disguise, Pierre flipped his beret inside out, swapping the familiar black exterior for an understated silver lining to blend seamlessly among the visiting academics.
In his white lab coat, Pierre wheeled a utility cart toward the preservation prep room, confident he could replicate the limestone carving style of the Aegean statues to create a convincing artifact.
Tucked behind the fluted plaster columns of the Aegean gallery alcove, Pierre leaned against the velvet banquette, watching the steady circulation of museum guards and visitors. He kept his voice low, angling his shoulder to shield Alfie from the hallway security monitors.
"Naomi told us that touching the artifacts was enough to trigger the resonance," Pierre murmured, his dark eyes calculating the security grid. "Teddy touched two fragments, and she touched one. We do not need to steal a five-hundred-pound slab of limestone. We only need physical contact with the stone."
Alfie poked his weathered driftwood chin out from the fold of Pierre's coat, eyeing the reinforced glass enclosure in the center of the hall. "Aye, that's a relief, considering this slab weighs a bloody ton. But how do we get the curator to lift that glass hood for us?"
"By giving them an irresistible reason," Pierre smiled, a spark of Parisian cunning in his gaze. "An undeniable discovery. A missing piece of epigraphy to elevate their entire exhibition."
Alfie squinted across the gallery floor at the weathered stele. "Is the tablet cracked around the edges? Are there missing chunks along the border?"
Pierre nodded, visualizing the weathered fracture lines in his memoryโthe limestone heavily chipped along the corners from centuries of erosion, leaving an irregular, jagged perimeter.
"Then we find ourselves a matching limestone rock," Alfie whispered, his painted eyes gleaming with mischief. "We dress it up, make the scholarly argument that it's the missing keystone that unlocks the inscription, and convince them to lift the case themselves. The moment they open it, we make contact."
Pierre patted the pocket containing his sculptor's chisel. "A sound proposition. I have worked with limestone all my life. Let us prepare our artifact."
In his white lab coat, Pierre wheeled a utility cart toward the preservation prep room, confident he could replicate the limestone carving style of the Aegean statues to create a convincing artifact.
Tucked behind the fluted plaster columns of the Aegean gallery alcove, Pierre leaned against the velvet banquette, watching the steady circulation of museum guards and visitors. He kept his voice low, angling his shoulder to shield Alfie from view.
"Naomi told us that touching the artifacts was enough to trigger the resonance," Pierre murmured, his dark eyes calculating the gallery layout. "Teddy touched two fragments, and she touched one. We do not need to steal a five-hundred-pound slab of limestone. We only need physical contact with the stone."
Alfie poked his weathered driftwood chin out from the fold of Pierre's coat, eyeing the reinforced glass enclosure in the center of the hall. "Aye, that's a relief, considering this slab weighs a bloody ton. But how do we get the curator to lift that glass hood for us?"
"By giving them an irresistible reason," Pierre smiled, a spark of Parisian cunning in his gaze. "An undeniable discovery. A missing piece of epigraphy to elevate their entire exhibition."
Alfie squinted across the gallery floor at the weathered stele. "Is the tablet cracked around the edges? Are there missing chunks along the border?"
Pierre nodded, visualizing the weathered fracture lines in his memoryโthe limestone heavily chipped along the corners from centuries of erosion, leaving an irregular, jagged perimeter.
"Then we find ourselves a matching limestone rock," Alfie whispered, his painted eyes gleaming with mischief. "We dress it up, make the scholarly argument that it's the missing keystone that unlocks the inscription, and convince them to lift the case themselves. The moment they open it, we make contact."
Pierre patted the pocket containing his sculptor's chisel. "A sound proposition. I have worked with limestone all my life. Let us prepare our artifact."
Pierre swiped the stolen security badge against the wall scanner. The magnetic lock disengaged with a solid click, admitting them into the restricted research archives.
Two museum conservators in lab coats glanced up from a light table as Pierre walked past, eyeing the French sculptor and the wooden doll tucked under his arm. But before their suspicion could take root, the subtle perceptual haze of the Veil settled over their eyes. The researchers blinked, shook their heads, and turned back to their microscopes without a word.
Pierre leaned down, whispering softly to Alfie. "Remember, they do not truly see us as we are. It is all about giving them an irresistible suggestion. Perhaps we set you beside them, and you spend the next hour convincing them they have found the missing piece of the tablet."
"Feed it to them from the inside," Alfie whispered back with a sharp grin.
"Exactly," Pierre murmured.
Pierre wheeled an empty utility cart toward a shadowed alcove in the preparation bay, finding a crate of rough limestone scraps set aside for mortar testing.
With years of classical Parisian stonecraft behind him, Pierre chose a triangular chunk whose grain closely mirrored the Aegean stele. With quick, rhythmic taps of his small pocket chisel, he shaped the fracture bevels and scored weathered Greek strokes into the face, crafting a convincing fragment that looked as if it had broken away from the tablet's damaged fourth register.
Satisfied with the forgery, Pierre placed the carved limestone fragment and Alfie side by side on a velvet-lined intake documentation tray.
He tied an archival identification tag around Alfie's carved wrist, marking him as an antique pedagogical collectible.
On the stone fragment's tray, Pierre penned a bold label: "Insert on J4... proof it was Beacon!"
Pierre swiped the stolen security badge against the wall scanner. The magnetic lock disengaged with a solid click, admitting them into the restricted research archives.
Two museum conservators in lab coats glanced up from a light table as Pierre walked past, eyeing the French sculptor and the wooden doll tucked under his arm. But before their suspicion could take root, the subtle perceptual haze of the Veil settled over their eyes. The researchers blinked, shook their heads, and turned back to their microscopes without a word.
Pierre leaned down, whispering softly to Alfie. "Remember, they do not truly see us as we are. It is all about giving them an irresistible suggestion. Perhaps we set you beside them, and you spend the next hour convincing them they have found the missing piece of the tablet."
"Feed it to them from the inside," Alfie whispered back with a sharp grin.
"Exactly," Pierre murmured.
Pierre wheeled an empty utility cart toward a shadowed alcove in the preparation bay, finding a crate of rough limestone scraps set aside for mortar testing.
With years of classical Parisian stonecraft behind him, Pierre chose a triangular chunk whose grain closely mirrored the Aegean stele. With quick, rhythmic taps of his small pocket chisel, he shaped the fracture bevels and scored weathered Greek strokes into the face, crafting a convincing fragment that looked as if it had broken away from the tablet's damaged fourth register.
Satisfied with the forgery, Pierre placed the carved limestone fragment and Alfie side by side on a velvet-lined intake documentation tray.
He tied an archival identification tag around Alfie's carved wrist, marking him as an antique pedagogical collectible.
On the stone fragment's tray, Pierre penned a bold label: "Insert on J4... proof it was Beacon!"
Pierre carried the documentation tray through the swinging doors into the research annex, his step brisk and purposeful. Behind him, the administrative staff buzzed around desks piled high with catalogs and exhibition brochures.
The senior curator looked up from his desk, pushing his reading glasses down his nose as Pierre approached, demanding to know what the specimen was and where it had come from.
Pierre offered a polite, deferential bow, assuming the posture of an earnest young scholar. "Pardon, monsieur! It is my first day on the staff. I have traveled from France to assist with the epigraphy catalog. My staff email and security ID badge are not yet active in the system, but I located this translation piece in the intake queue."
The curator picked up the triangular limestone fragment, his eyebrows shooting up as he read Pierre's handwritten annotation. "You're claiming this fragment definitively proves the inscription reads *Beacon*? How did a first-day intern solve what our senior epigraphy team has been arguing over for six months?"
The administrator stared back and forth between the carved stone and the diagram, his academic skepticism warring with mounting excitement. "This could redefine the entire provenance... We have to test if it aligns with the main tablet the moment the galleries close at six."
"In Paris, we work with ancient limestone every day," Pierre said with a modest shrug, leaning smoothly into his Parisian persona. "We have a great deal of old stone in Berry. It is all the same to meโI came across the Atlantic to help solve the mystery here in South Carolinaโah, North Carolina."
"You don't even know what state you're in!" the administrator gasped, shaking his head in disbelief before puffing out his chest with self-satisfied pride. "Well, no matter. I'm the one who signed off on hiring you. When this discovery makes headlines, I'll be curating at the Massachusetts World History Museum before the year is out."
Pierre tilted his head with faux innocence. "Massachusetts... is that like a brand of chewing gum?"
"It is the premier history institution in the country, young man, not chewing gum!" the curator huffed, waving his pen. "We test this immediately after close. Bring the staging cart into the rotunda."
Beside the stone fragment on the tray, Alfie executed a flawless performance. He gave a slight tug on his twine loop, letting out a cheerful, tinny squeak: "Watch out for the water! Pull the string again!"
The curator blinked down at the puppet, tapping Alfie's carved cedar head. "Curious little exhibit souvenir... We'll catalog the doll after the tablet test." He loaded the intake tray onto the heavy rubber-wheeled staging cart.
Pierre clasped his hands behind his back, falling into step as the cart was wheeled directly into the central atrium beside the glass display case housing the ancient stele.
The museumโs overhead chimes chimed six times, the deep brass tones rolling through the vaulted galleries.
Nincyโs cheerful Southern drawl crackled across the public intercom, accompanied by the glare of multiple phone ring lights as she broadcast live to her social media followers: "Well, that's all for today, sugar! It's six o'clock and time to close down the North Carolina Museum of History. Head on out toward the exits, and make sure to stay tuned to our live streamโI hear there might be a little excitement in the Greek wing tonight!"
Suited researchers and gallery staff ushered the final visitors through the turnstiles. Near the center of the hall, a security guard in a navy blazer strolled over to inspect the stanchions, checking his watch as he prepared to engage the display case's overnight lock.
Pierre stood quietly in the center of the emptying atrium, exchanging a tense, silent glance with Alfie on the cart as the closing chimes faded into silence.
Pierre carried the documentation tray through the swinging doors into the research annex, his step brisk and purposeful. Behind him, administrative staff buzzed around desks piled high with catalogs and exhibition brochures.
The senior curator looked up from his desk, pushing reading glasses down his nose as Pierre approached. Pierre offered a polite, deferential bow, assuming the posture of an earnest young scholar. "Pardon, monsieur! It is my first day on the staff. I have traveled from France to assist with the epigraphy catalog. My staff email and security ID badge are not yet active in the system, but I located this translation piece in the intake queue."
The curator picked up the triangular limestone fragment, his eyebrows shooting up as he read Pierre's handwritten annotation. "You're claiming this fragment definitively proves the inscription reads *Beacon*? How did a first-day intern solve what our senior epigraphy team has been arguing over for six months?"
The administrator stared between the carved stone and the diagram, his academic skepticism warring with mounting excitement. "This could redefine the entire provenance... We have to test if it aligns with the main tablet the moment the galleries close at six."
"In Paris, we work with ancient limestone every day," Pierre said with a modest shrug, leaning into his Parisian persona. "We have a great deal of old stone in Berry. It is all the same to meโI came across the Atlantic to help solve the mystery here in South Carolinaโah, North Carolina."
"You don't even know what state you're in!" the administrator gasped, shaking his head before puffing out his chest with self-satisfied pride. "Well, no matter. I'm the one who signed off on hiring you. When this discovery makes headlines, I'll be curating at the Massachusetts World History Museum before the year is out."
Pierre tilted his head with faux innocence. "Massachusetts... is that like a brand of chewing gum?"
"It is the premier history institution in the country, young man, not chewing gum!" the curator huffed, waving his pen. "We test this immediately after close. Bring the staging cart into the rotunda."
Beside the stone fragment on the tray, Alfie executed a flawless performance. He gave a slight tug on his twine loop, letting out a cheerful, tinny squeak: "Watch out for the water! Pull the string again!"
The curator blinked down at the puppet, tapping Alfie's carved cedar head. "Curious little exhibit souvenir... We'll catalog the doll after the tablet test." He loaded the intake tray onto the heavy rubber-wheeled staging cart.
Pierre clasped his hands behind his back, falling into step as the cart was wheeled directly into the central atrium beside the glass display case housing the ancient stele.
The museum's overhead chimes chimed six times, deep brass tones rolling through the vaulted galleries. Nincy's cheerful Southern drawl crackled across the intercom with phone ring lights glaring: "Well, that's all for today, sugar! It's six o'clock and time to close down the North Carolina Museum of History. Head on out toward the exits, and make sure to stay tuned to our live streamโI hear there might be a little excitement in the Greek wing tonight!"
Pierre stood quietly in the center of the emptying atrium, exchanging a tense, silent glance with Alfie on the cart as the closing chimes faded into silence.
um o๏ฌce back there opening. You see 18 sheep come barreling out of this. And this this straight up through the mist people are like sheep like rat sheep. They're running running through the museum. And this de๏ฌnitely throws the
I wanna I want to dive under the sheep and ride it underneath the cyclops's
um
hands.
write it under what?
Oh, ride it under the security guard's hands as they try to ๏ฌnd Yeah,
Oh,
Oops.
I wanna I want to dissius this sheep into the
it's underneath it. Okay.
And I'm going to use the to write the numbers one through 19
museum.
I love it.
on the sheet The classic senior
This
Fantastic. Yeah. Classic.
Classic.
Yeah. Uh Sophie,
is
prank.
did you want to do anything with Did you want to change any letters in that
Yeah, you know,
one?
I really racked my brain on what I could possibly do with Thomas, but I got
Yeah. Okay. Um Yeah.
nothing.
Okay. So you see these sheep come barreling out and um and you see they that this distracts the security guard that is has approached the the two of
Y.
you and is now trying to like wrangle these sheep and Pierre you are out of there. Um, and then besides numbering them 1 to 19, Al๏ฌe or uh Edward, what what do you
So,
got?
I'm assuming that because she changed it, Nancy is not
Nancy is not asleep,
asleep.
but she did get bulled over by a sheep or 18 sheep, excuse me.
Okay. Uh, and the security guards are still distracted.
Yes.
I'm going to go for a security guard
All right.
badge.
Uh roll roll slide of hand and he'll have he'll have
Do you even help Nancy up?
disadvantage.
Excuse me, Nancy. Or anything. Goodness. Doctor, where's your gain?
Uh,
Oh, sorry.
no,
Professor, professor.
probably not.
Professor, you're not even a doctor. Good grace.
Oh.
Oh my gosh, what a
or sorry. Well,
tease.
you'll have advantage because he there isn't like a save or I guess it's perception.
Okay.
Save save on his perception.
Well, he's probably going to beat
It It just It just reloaded my foundry.
All right.
it.
Hold on.
Okay.
Does y'all's Foundry randomly reload?
Yeah.
Okay.
Not for me. Um, before I tell you the result,
Sometimes
did you want to add anything to your role?
So, what did you say? It he's going to get disadvantage.
You're Yes. And he he rolled his
Okay.
disadvantage.
Uh I I think I'm just gonna I think we're just going to have to go with
Yeah. Okay.
it.
He on A6 senses you.
Oh my
Um and um senses you grabbing for it and goes,
gosh.
"Hey, hey, hey,
Sure.
what what are you?" And it but but is like can't really wrangle you and the sheep is just like just like,"Hey, we need some help over here.
Sorry, bud.
Help.
I I I was going for your gun. I just realized you don't have one. Sorry about that. I was going to take out some of these sheets.
Oh my
What kind of American security guard are you?
This is This is I This is
god.
anarchy. I I wish I had my gun, but it got taken away last
Oh my god.
month.
Um,
So,
well,
you're exactly the right kind of American security
let me try and let me try and help you out. I'll get I'll go get that one. And I start running after one of the sheep that's going into the museum.
Okay.
Okay. Oh,
guard.
you're ch you're chasing them into the museum.
Yeah, there's a Yeah,
I don't know why that poor computer is
Gotcha. All right. and Al.
over.
Let's go to Al๏ฌe.
actually I'm gonna help Nancy out and then I'm going to chase white into
Okay. Okay.
this.
Nancy will remember
I I was going to say um the only other thing that I
this.
Yeah.
could do is I couldn't remember how help worked in in B&B.
Okay. Okay. I see.
Uh yeah.
R re for the slight of hand. Is that what you're
Yeah.
thinking?
I was going to uh as I was going by just like grab his foot and pull from underneath the the sheep, which I can do a ๏ฌex check like hold on to the sheep or something. Um,
Yeah.
but uh as I see him like fumbling with it, I like professor
Okay,
time.
that works. Yeah, reroll that side of hand.
Let's do this.
You know what?
Athletics.
You got to beat this time.
Oh, let's eat.
You beat it barely.
I wrote a really good athletics
You did.
check.
You did. And he is ๏ฌat on his face. And you have you you grabbed the badge. And we'll we'll reccon that. He he didn't uh he didn't he didn't catch you going for the badge. She goes,"Hey, my gun already got taken. in and then starts going back to the sheep and you're able to snag his badge.
It's either that or he just got knocked out cold by the getting
Yeah, that all happened.
tripped.
You trip him. Bam. Out. Yeah. Perfect. So, you have the badge.
Um, let's go to Al๏ฌe real quick as you charged in. Um, and then you see you saw out of the corner of your eye as you're passing and you just went sheep. And then you're you're sprinting in and and then you see all these sheep barrel around behind you and the and people are people are pointing at you and yelling rat. So I don't know how that how that sits but um then they are very
Oh no.
distracted by the sheep after
Okay, great.
that.
I think that I I think that once I notice people are distracted by the sheep, I sort of push myself into the shadows and wait and see wait for
Okay.
the the two others to get
All right.
past
roll a um roll a stealth check with advantage. While you're doing that, let me go ahead and pull this up so I can show you guys. This is our this is the spell casting, by the way.
Oh
Just for uh for future reference there,
jeez.
This is just Al๏ฌe can do this
this is Al๏ฌe.
Yikes.
or
And then if you look down in the legend shop, you can spend two legend and make a a wordcraft edit.
uh Gotcha. Gotcha.
So now you know what that is.
Sure.
gotcha.
And that will um the wordcraft edit will kind of scale you guys. It'll it'll put kind of everyone on the same tier as Al๏ฌe. So as she goes up, you'll be able to make higher edits, too.
So,
Come
am I level two now?
But um it's like a it's
on.
So, I can add a letter, too.
like second level spell is sort of how I'm doing it.
Oh, gotcha.
So you can use your ๏ฌrst level spell slot or your second level spell slot.
Got you.
Got you. Got
Yeah. And then so Al๏ฌe has doesn't have ๏ฌrst and second level spells is just
you.
ri๏ฌng o๏ฌ you all but then has cantrips and has her needle. Um gotcha. Okay. 10.
Gotcha.
That's going to be enough to to keep you hidden for now. But if once people once the sheep kind of calm down or all or run out, it is uh it will be not enough for you to like stay hidden
Are there any are there any signage uh like museum signage around?
permanently.
You know how some museums have like maps of where di๏ฌerent exhibits are and stu๏ฌ?
Yeah.
I'm assuming this museum is huge because it's covering not only natural history but also North Carolina history which it would need to be just absolutely massive.
I'm just kid.
So,
But I mean, I mean yes it is. But they have made a very distinct decision to move this tablet into number one priority ๏ฌrst exhibit beyond the desk because it has caused so much chaos and so much um joy for the community and also I
What a loss of
What the fation is that?
don't I don't have a Yeah,
You put the Costco chicken in the
revenue.
that's true. It should be the opposite,
back.
but it's what everyone wants to see. And and you know, they're they're a nonpro๏ฌt.
You ain't got
They're not thinking about they're not thinking about pro๏ฌts here.
time.
Um I didn't have a sheep token.
NY's making bank on the Tik Tok, so I don't need to worry about
Exactly.
that.
Nancy.
Exactly.
See ny n c n h n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n c mable.
Global
All risers are beautiful sheep.
Who?
Oh. All right.
Uh oh, that was a bad idea. All right. Um I don't Anyway, I don't need to do this.
You get it. There's sheep in there. There's some sheep in there, too. And um there's some people who are there who are also um say they're running around chasing sheep or or hiding. Uh let me get you guys in there though, too. Oh, you guys are small compared to them. Oh boy, I messed up the scale.
So hard to get
Yeah. Um,
right.
most people are just closer to the camera. Don't worry about it. Um, it's all
You're super
perspective.
tall.
I don't know why I just rolled animal handling to be honest with you,
It heard you. It said sheep.
but
Sure.
What are the odds that you say sheep and don't need
Um, so I I think Edward, I think Al๏ฌe,
that
you're kind of tucked in back here.
Great.
Um, and and Pierre, you're kind of following them up into this room.
Perfect.
Um, as the sheep are causing a little bit of mayhem, but it but it is calming down at at the moment. Um, so let's as as you enter this room, you see the tablet front and center um with some sort of informative glass covering. Um, but you can you can kind of feel it a little bit. it like you can it's it's emanating a little bit of something that that you can sense like you know that's the tablet that's the one um but there is still a bit of sort of chaos swarming around and um and like several security guards trying to shu๏ฌe people away. There's you know school ๏ฌeld trip. There's several like a a a group of academic looking men in in suits and um that are that are being kind of shu๏ฌed away as they're trying to to uh bring get all the sheep out of the area. Um but it is it is starting to calm down now and and people are trying to kind of regain normaly um now that the rat has has gone and the sheep are being coralled.
Uh, I'm immediately looking for Al๏ฌe to pass o๏ฌ this ID to because I feel like it's less risky for him to have it.
Oh
I think Al๏ฌe has gone back to like full Toy Story. Andy's entered the situation like I'm just a doll on the ground.
Yeah. Yeah. Okay.
Nothing to see
I like that. Yeah.
here.
Nice.
And that that's so perfect for a tin stealth check, too. It's like hiding in plain sight.
Yeah.
Not super hidden, but So, yeah,
Yeah.
you're you're able to to see Al๏ฌe.
Well, I'm just going to run up to Al๏ฌe and just tuck the badge underneath and be like,"This one's on you, bud. You're going to need to disable the security system.
I think I'll
I see a big red alarm in the corner.
feed. All right.
Let's let things die down a bit,
See's a bit rough,
though.
All right.
ain't it?
Watch out for the water. That's my favorite classic sailor saying.
Scholastic
Um, so are you all just gonna try and like let it calm down and and maintain try
sailor.
and kind of blend into the crowd and maintain normaly?
Yeah, I'm I'm banking on my inroads with
Nice. Nice.
Nancy.
Um I think Pierre every time he sees statue has to run by it.
Oh,
Uh so he's Yeah,
very interesting.
he's going to go go check out that and admire the u the craftsmanship and and see if it if it meets his standards.
Mhm.
Um, and then as I think maybe he's just going to like walk around to the back of the statue while he's doing that and then uh he'll take his jacket and put it on like a shawl and just kind of like rechange how he's dressed a little bit.
Okay.
Um, and it'll like ๏ฌip his fedora inside out.
Nice.
Still just like a beret, I mean, but now it's like instead of the black exterior, it's like the silver.
Slightly di๏ฌerent color.
Yeah, it's slightly di๏ฌerent color. Um,
Yeah.
and uh he sees there's this little there's there's some what look to be like a cloth over here.
Yeah.
Um, so I think he he's going to grab that little little shaw and just
Yeah.
like trying to think maybe maybe like tuck it into his shirt as like a little accessory bow tie uh thing. Just anything to make him look a little little di๏ฌerent than he was.
Yeah.
Um,
That's looking a little bit like a kind of exhibit cart. I'm thinking that's maybe a lab coat if you're It's not.
okay, perfect. Yeah, I'll take the lab cut. Um, and then I'll if I'll I'll signal to uh I'll signal
Okay.
to Al๏ฌe to come jump on my shoulder maybe or jump in the lab coat and then I'll Troj and horse you in.
incredible.
All right. You're locked in.
Um I I'm not particularly
Okay.
Oh,
Uh
trying to hide since I've ditched the badge.
Yeah.
I'm kind of hoping security may take me and like question me
yeah, at the
and so like like I'm I'm kind of and
same
Mhm.
this is leading the you know this is a leading statement but like I'm kind of hoping they take me to the back room like the security room to to question
exactly what I was thinking. So before that,
Gotcha.
me.
maybe you and I are like right by the front about and I just like skin up and ๏ฌnd you. I'm like,"Professor, I'm thinking I will um put on this coat and hide Al๏ฌe within it and when they take us back to the um back room, I'll drop Al๏ฌe and he can go and I don't know chew on the wires or something." But um it does not make sense for both of us to be
That's beautiful.
caught.
Yeah, I'm thinking Yeah, we'll we'll we'll have to we'll have to play it by ear if if they take you know I think we
Yeah.
try and I don't think we stick together kind of divide and conquer.
So Edward, you're you're potentially like kind of hanging out by the
Okay.
Oops.
the like entrance to this exhibit where maybe Nancy can see you and like be like they'll know
Yeah, I'm I'm seeing I'm seeing Pierre grab stu๏ฌ to kind of disguise himself and I'm seeing
something.
Al๏ฌe passed out on the ground and I've slid the ID. So I'm just Like I'm I'm kind of playing to like take the heat o๏ฌ them for now and maybe get some insight into their security
Gotcha. Okay.
system.
Nice.
I think I mean if you're if you're standing right there you were in the center of of the action of this kind of happening and the so I think the security guard maybe there's someone come like kind of where the sheep ๏ฌew out of that that o๏ฌce there you see an o๏ฌcer come or a not o๏ฌcer a security guard a part-time security worker um
They
Oh,
wish.
yeah exactly Exactly. Comes out and goes is like looking around,
blart.
scouting around, sees you and goes,"You you were on the you were on the footage." Yeah, Nancy. She He was This is the guy, right? He was right there. Oh. Uh, let's Oh, yeah. Southern. Yeah. Yeah, that was him. He was right there. He was I I was talking right to him and then all the all the sheep came out of nowhere.
And I just start I just start clapping.
He He must have saw what
I just start clapping and I say,
happened.
"You're I did not see this on the schedule of events, but the Cyclops running of the sheep at noon. Brilliant. What? Nancy, you've done it again.
I I don't necessarily know what you mean, but I do like being praised for it. So did and and she comes she come get grabs the intercom and goes if anyone had a uh good quality video of the sheep exiting the room and running in uh in the front exhibit if you could come to the front desk please.
And you see there's several people there um that that start kind of making their way to the front desk particularly from the room that you're in. Um yeah,
Ny's about to go
and um and she goes,
viral.
"Um, I'm I'm going to take care of this." And then the security guard goes,"Okay. Um I guess come with me. I' I'd let's let's review the footage on all and I'll see if you can explain yourself." So he'll he will take you back to kind of that the the room back behind the the front desk where you see several security cameras and um and of of di๏ฌerent shots throughout the um the museum and and on his main monitor he's got like the the moments of of the sheep appearing
Well, quite the quite the facilities you got here. The name's
Ed,
Ed.
good to meet you. It's been a day so far. I'm not going to lie to you. It's been a day.
This was not on my bingo card, as the kids say.
As Nancy says,
You're telling me. You're telling me she's uh she's uh 45 years old, but it's up with the the lingo. I mean, hot a hot ticket. A a real pistol that one. I'll tell you. Um and I would know. Mine got taken last month. They have a real problem. Um, no, you and uh and she she does a great job. She does a great job and uh but uh she focuses on on that pretty intently. Um and I guess this was something she planned up. Uh I don't know.
But Nancy needs to do more behind the scenes. I mean, look at this room you've got.
Mhm.
Look at this equipment you've got here. Just the the security here is is is amazing. You've got a NTF65 and a and a I'm just reading o๏ฌ the letters on the front of all the boxes.
Yeah.
Hey,
This is this
Yeah. Yeah. You don't know. Uh you don't know the half of it.
Mr.
Our manings in it with the tablet. Lasers.
No.
Lasers around it.
In it around it.
It's awesome.
Wait. So then how do I walk up and look at it?
No, no, no, no. That at night, like when we leave.
Oh. Oh.
Yeah.
At night lasers.
Yeah.
That's pretty cool.
And the the night guards,
Guns.
it they both have their guns. They didn't get
What else do you have around the the tablet?
taken.
I mean, that's it's it's the best exhibit. It's got to be just top of top of the
Yeah, thick bulletproof glass,
line.
lasers, and I mean, we have a we have like a a bunch of other kind of exhibits around there, but really that's the only one that anyone ever cares about,
But surely you have to like take the tablet to get cleaned and stu๏ฌ.
like of the
Or is it just always behind the
preservation room.
bulletproof?
I mean, it's it it's it let's be honest,
What's the
it's pretty old.
preservation?
It's pretty old. Uh I don't think it's I don't think it needs to go anywhere. It's lasted this long,
Fair enough.
you know. So,
Fair enough.
uh it's uh No, it just kind of sits there. And I mean,
Immovable class, lasers. I mean, the whole nine
I mean I mean you should have seen you should have seen it going in.
yards
There's like the this like claw comes down and lifts the glass up and they slide it down. It's It was awesome. It was
and you and you control that claw machine from this room.
a
I bet you just you were the one sitting there
Toy Story. Great movie.
just
I uh No, that was that wasn't me. That was uh above my pay grade. I'm I'm more of the the camera and lasers guy. Um the the claw that's I I don't know. That's somewhere else. Um I mean I I would think it's somewhere like in the exhibit somewhere. I I don't know, but it's it's that's above my pay grade. I I wasn't the one who got to use the claw.
What a
I know. I know. I mean, this is when it when it came in,
bummer.
it it was my second week, so I I get it. I guess don't I mean, new guys got to pay his dues, so yeah, I get it. I'll stick with the
as as a professor's talking to the security team.
Lakers.
Um, I want to take the cart on wheels and in my lab coat push it back to wherever the like preser like the um the room that the most in some museums they have like little room that the people work on like the exhibits or they repair them or
Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
whatever like um basically the preservation room or or like the cleanup room. Um and I went and I might be I always ask like a I am going to
Mhm.
go back to the uh the room where they keep um all of the cleaning tools and I I think my plan here is to um add a a special piece of art to the exhibit for translation. It will help. This is just a bunch of symbols. Surely they want to know what it means and I need you to help me ๏ฌnd the right identi๏ฌcation. So like trade this one for a better one.
Yeah. All
And uh
right.
so to start I mean Pier Pier's pretty convinced that he can like replicate one of these the style of statue is is where I'm going with this and might be able to add something to the exhibit itself which
H.
will be di๏ฌerent than like cleaning the exhibit or doing anything to that cuz at least as far as I can tell there's not like a plaque or anything that talks about what this slab is.
Mhm.
Um, so to start with just getting into like where the Uh what I don't even know what the people are who like the librarians of the library.
archaeologist. Oh,
Yeah.
yeah. A
Yeah. Curators.
Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
curator.
Curator like an archivist,
Get into the curator room.
historian. Could be any of the people in there.
Mhm.
Okay. So you'll you're wheeling back there to try and like discover something quote
to try to to yeah to to um to to unveil what I've been working
unquote.
on a translation of the the tablet to be presented
Okay. Okay. Interesting.
in the same display
Got it. Okay. I I will give you the option as you're sort of like working back in the lab coat and stu๏ฌ, working back towards the rooms, I will give you the option of either going towards the um the curator's o๏ฌce or towards the like cleanup kind of fossil discovery sort of room.
I'll say what I'm like under the cart uh pretending to put stu๏ฌ up where Al๏ฌe is like sitting in my mind uh hidden for everyone and I'm like Al๏ฌe I I don't exactly have the default plan here but I know that I can make something that will look exactly like this uh tablet. How do we get them to let us put it in there?
Let's think about this, mate. We got a professor of Greek uh mythology. I feel like he could be quite convincing that something's important. Yeah.
That is very true. If I know him, he's probably uh Dr. the security guards. He has the entire security system mapped and understood. So if we put the one and the one together, maybe we can make a stolen tablet.
Yeah, a steel tablet. Yeah.
Uh what what is the actual like thing that we're supposed to do with this tablet? Is it is it to steal it and bring it back?
Like is the is the whole thing supposed to be the fragment?
Or are we just reading the
the So all Naomi
message?
has said when when Naomi was talking about it, she had said that all all she had said was that Teddy had touched two fragments and she had touched one fragment.
Okay.
Um,
So it's just touching it
I mean, yeah, I I'm sure like maybe you can discover more information if you
maybe.
had it,
I mean,
but she she made it sound Yeah,
this thing's got to weigh like a
Yeah.
she made it sound like like touching it was able you were able to kind of
ton.
like um witness something.
So perhaps if we do not actually need to to um take it
H.
anywhere, we just have to get them to lift up the
Yeah,
glass.
that's right.
H Why would they lift up the glass for us though? That's the
because to add something very very um impressive to the exhibit.
question.
Maybe a
Would you need to add? Yeah.
translation,
Think thinking about this. Yeah. H
a description of the
Yeah. Is the Is the um is the tablet cracked at all?
plaque.
Are there chunks missing or is it like very much a
I think there's some like missing just from from pure age. There's no way it was it was perfectly preserved.
square?
So, I think there's de๏ฌnitely some like chunks and and maybe maybe a bit of a kind of chunk missing that's a bit kind of leading to some of the discrepancies and and all of that, but de๏ฌnitely like around the corners and and all of that. There's tons of of chipped pieces and that sort of
So, what if we found ourselves a rock? Yeah. A rock that looks a little bit like that tablet. And we make the argument that it belongs to the tablet and needs to be added to it. And that way the value is higher and we can make more sense of the description. They lift up the glass, we touch it.
It seems like it could work to me. I can I'm pretty good with stone.
All right, let's get to work on this.
Okay,
Are there like are there employee lockers at all in this room or anything like that?
so probably
Or this is truly just a preservation room, if you
I think in in other rooms like if you want to go to try and ๏ฌnd
will?
out like a employee break room you're welcome to to go for it.
Um, I don't know.
Yeah,
Would that be helpful at all?
I don't know. Just I was just
may maybe we go to the uh the the not the curator room, the ๏ฌeld the archaeologist room and we just look at the um maybe maybe
thinking
they will have um old pieces of of stone there from other projects. I'm looking at this uh sculpture here and I can see that um it has been cleaned. So there is de๏ฌnitely going to be some some
Is that near?
residuals.
Do we can we have a sense of where that is?
Yeah. Yeah.
Okay,
You you can kind of you're kind of back in the the back of the museum,
great.
back of the massive museum.
Yeah. Yeah,
Um,
it would have to be.
it would have to be world and North Carolina.
That's right.
And yeah,
Just a huge amount of information.
you see this is kind of the the back sort of area with o๏ฌces and um this the sta๏ฌ room and and that room particularly. You could see it's it's labeled as well, but there these are like shut doors in the back.
then. Yeah, I think I'm I'm down with that plan. We go to the AR wherever the room with the rocks are. And if I'm honest, yeah, I'm a bit interested in the North Carolina exhibit. You know, a bit of a North Carolina
To me it has been nothing but the threes a bunch of
head.
threes. All of the other exhibits that they have just talked about these um people who works. Why? Why were they wearing guns?
All I know is it's the it's the opposite of f****** water. Yeah. It's not for me. All right, we go to the rock room or where I would like to
All right.
Yeah, you all it takes the badge that you all have,
go.
but you're able to scan in and go in and you see like a couple other people kind of like glance up at you and like look a little confused, but then kind of shake it o๏ฌ and go back to what they were working on. the uh part of part of kind of a you see you see kind of like a a haze over them as
Uh
as they do
Al๏ฌe, we it is important to remember that they don't really see us the right
that
way. So, and it could just be their idea, you know, maybe we put you next to them and you just uh spend the next hour or two convincing them they have found a missing piece of the tablet.
Ah yeah, kind of feed it to them from the
Exactly. And I um so I think to start
inside.
uh I'm gonna roll the cart to a corner of the room that hopefully has some like spare material and then using the the quick glimpses of the tablet so far.
Sorry, ignore that.
just just uh just chip something together really fast that looks like it could just kind of slit slot into one of the the runes that was like hard to read speci๏ฌcally and so it just makes it a little bit crisper which they might like you
Mhm. Yeah. What do you think this uh What do you think this falls
know.
under?
Um I think it's probably a slight
Yeah, I I think so.
opinion.
I And I think with your I think that works. I think you could also do a deception check with uh
Yeah.
but what whichever you do, I think stonework is certainly in in your wheelhouse and in your background. So I think you can do it with
Okay. Um,
advantage.
yeah, I mean just I mean obviously I'll take the deception because that's a much higher bene๏ฌt for me. Okay, that's pretty good. It's pretty good.
That's pretty good.
So 24 uh and you know as as we
O.
That's pretty good.
do have to go for for the crit side of it
I had a uh I had a pretty high DC in mind too. Uh but that is that is good. That is very good.
It's pretty
Um, yeah. So, you're able to make a um I like com kind of
good.
combining these these roles as your advantage. Like, uh, not necessarily a perfect source, but you're de๏ฌnitely you've de๏ฌnitely formed a good argument for for how it could be
Cool.
where it could ๏ฌt on the tablet and that sort of thing.
Uh, and then so I think the last thing I'll do before I set up Al๏ฌe is like, um, I'll just put Al๏ฌe on a tray. I'll put the the tablet on the tray with a tag of like um what is this tablet called? Glue board. So this what why is this tablet going so viral
Um, it's been going viral because Naomi, how Naomi explained it was just that it's like extremely like controversial. people can't like decide exactly what it says and like there's a lot of discourse on no, it it's it's saying this or it's saying that and they're like fairly the the meanings are like pretty distinctly di๏ฌerent in terms of like as you're seeing it. Some are saying like, oh, it was they were like being drawn. It it's um it's a tablet explaining like a a story of an of an attack that
Mhm.
uh that occurred or didn't occur. It's kind of part of the the uh process of the part of the
Uh,
discourse.
and the the contrasting sides of the story are are either warning about an attack or beck like I'm I'm not sure which part of name is clue board we're supposed to be between the the beacon and beckon thing like is um would have been something we've written down.
Yeah. Where is that
That's uh in the uh the compendium or
listed?
the journals Naomi's clue board active
Yeah. Okay. Gotcha. Gotcha. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So,
leads
it's like about this attack that it was like Did it did it happen? Like were they it it was like a a matter of if they were being called to make this attack or if they were or if the attack never happened because they were like warned about it. Beacon versus Beckan sort of thing.
Yeah. Yeah.
Um yeah.
Okay. Um, Dan, what I'm what I'd like to do is um is do you think it's it's reasonable that with the 24 like what I what I want to do is ๏ฌgure out how they've gritted out the the tablet. And um I'm going to put I want to take like a little tag and put one tag
Yeah.
around Al๏ฌe's wrist and just say like um uh what's what's the exhibit nearby there like
Heat.
Well,
uh the Spartan
obviously the origins of North Carolina history. I don't know.
Yeah,
I don't know. I'm trying to think of
I like it. I was just thinking like there's like the Spartan outfit right there.
Oh yeah.
and you know and I I could do like the Spartans toy on
Yeah.
one. It's mostly just like not get him put away and and then around and then the
Yeah, I
Yeah.
know.
tag around the other one say like um insert on J4 dot dot dot proof it was Becket exclamation point and
Oh, okay. Interesting.
that's the hook that I want to put in and then I and then that Al๏ฌe can kind of see the
Okay.
the ground as I just slip it onto a table right by I want to like look around and see if I can recognize any of the senior administrators that would have popped up in like a viral video describing the tablets meaning um just look for the one who'd be most likely to like instantly want Put this into an
Okay, I got you. I got you.
exhibit.
I um yeah, I mean I Okay, so you're you're approaching the um the other people in the room with
Yeah,
Yeah,
this.
I think I'm gonna just let them kind of make their own decision because like
the
I I'm just a normal dude.
road.
Like, you know,
Yeah.
I have no no special things that I can work on here other than my my stones work.
Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
So, I'm just trying to
I I have I have um I have
Okay.
something
Okay.
So, as you're you kind of just like lay this out to be kind of in your
Yeah. Yeah.
workspace.
I like put it next to them in the next step in their queue for whatever they were working on next.
Oh, okay.
So I want them to like I want to like put it down like a medical tray next to whoever I think is like the most likely to a be in๏ฌuenced b was already part of the conspiracy theory and would like need to put this tested in the tablet
Yeah. Okay.
immediately.
Roll roll a perception to try and like suss out who that person
Okay.
is.
Woo! It's not bad. 17
I'm I'm probably gonna have to dip out, but I assume that we're probably not going to like get like we're kind of setting the
Yeah.
16.
stage.
Yeah, we're setting the stage.
Okay. Um yeah, y'all continue.
Yeah.
I I like the path you're going down. I don't think that I'm really doing much else at this point until we meet back up to
Yeah. Okay.
discuss the security situation andor your rock alteration.
Sounds good. Sounds good.
Cool. See y
All right. See it.
Cool.
Yeah. So, this um that's de๏ฌnitely good enough to kind of determine who
Bye.
the de๏ฌnitely who like the head guy in charge is around here.
Um cuz you see kind of other people doing something similar, setting their trays kind of near this guy who's kind of up and walking around a little bit and um and you you set that there. And obvious like a toy is going to be a lot di๏ฌerent from anything else people are working on in here. So, he's going to immediately go,"What? Where did where did this come? Where did you get
I seriously like,"Oh,
this?
um it is my my ๏ฌrst day here. I brought this um from the deep uh the deep, you know." Um but I do not mean to disturb you. It was just a I thought I have found two kind of interesting things.
No. And this. Okay. So, this doll I've I've never seen this before. But this stone you're saying de๏ฌnitively proves Did you say beacon or beckon that that
I said beacon.
it's beacon? What? How? I This You said this is your ๏ฌrst day.
How do you know? How do you know this? This
Everybody knows about the tablet. It was I have been looking at it online for this is how I got this is why I got the day job.
is
This was the one thing the one thing I had to
Can I while this conversation has started,
see.
I'm going to cast Vicious Mockery as a cantrip and then use my second spell slot to change it to vicious rockery. And it's just instead of mocking him,
Okay.
subtly convincing him that this in fact is correct. This rock is very
Okay.
This rock is is the one.
important.
It's been hiding from him.
Vicious rockery.
It's vicious. It's viciously been hiding from him. It's been in front of him the whole
That's right.
Okay. Yeah.
time.
It's just vicious in that it's such intense feelings of this rock is the
Yeah.
Like,
rock.
how did I not see it?
Yeah. And Okay. Let's see. Mhm.
Yep.
Okay. And I I think that's perfect. He's looking at this rock and he's like in his head he's like,"How did you miss this? It's been here the whole time. It's you you you're you've been faking it till you make it this whole time. Do you even deserve this job?
Nothing.
Why are you even here? like there's there's I mean we this this is big. This is big and but we need to check it. We need to make sure that this is this ๏ฌts and and and con๏ฌrms it because I have I've been studying this along as soon as this came
It's good.
in and and and I there's not a de๏ฌnitive one way or the
Well, I mean it all all I can tell you is that uh from what I have been able to see, of course, I cannot see it unless I actually had the tablet in front of me and I could, you know, put it in and see if it actually ๏ฌts.
But it turns the cli๏ฌ into a quad and that what that changes the translation clearly.
Um uh I mean I mean it's worth a shot.
It is okay.
How did he miss this?
I I know you maybe not have a lot
This is this kid's ๏ฌrst day. How did he get this?
of
This obviously this is going to ๏ฌt. What is going on? How did he
And meanwhile, Al๏ฌe is just laying there like
know?
I
this.
I worked a little bit on some projects in Berry.
in
It is okay. We have a lot of stone there. So maybe it not as men. Yeah. In North
Okay.
um national South Carolina,
in it's we're in North Carolina. We're in North Carolina.
North
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Carolina.
How did this idiot know before you?
What is going on? You didn't even know you were in North Carolina.
It is all the same to me. I came across the ocean to solve for this at all.
I mean, I I guess yeah, it's closer it's closer to where to where you're from.
I
So, that probably makes like you probably been looking at this kind of stu๏ฌ forever. So, it's like I'm, you know, I'm I'm actually I'm glad that I am the one who approved that you got hired here. So, I'm really bringing in a good team to get this ๏ฌgured out. I'm really
had some uh issues with my adaptation,
Mhm.
smart.
you know, my email That does not yet work. Could you help with that,
Oh, I mean,
too?
we we got other people for that. I'm just trying to put together the team to to crack this.
Oh,
So,
so it's not a problem for the worst ๏ฌrst week or so if I don't have um my email or you know ID
uh, I mean, if if you're right about this,
or
I we don't need to I I think you'll
Fantastic. I know I just
be I think you'll be you'll be working in the Massachusetts History and World History Museum before too long.
And then the other people in the room just go,"Whoa,
The truth
Massachusetts.
is
Um, is that like a a a gun ๏ฌavor?
uh it's like one of the it's it's the greatest world history museum in the United States. So no, it's not a it's not a gum. Um but I mean I you know I might even get a shot there for putting together this awesome team. Um, let's we we need to check this immediately after close. This when we close, we we'll get this checked and and and see what happens. See if this is the the key. I think he he takes a look.
Fantastic.
It's like closing on 6 PM when they close.
So, it's it's approaching that time. And um and you see kind of everyone start kind of like packing packing up their stu๏ฌ and and putting this on a cart to to roll out. Um and this this doll is very interesting, but I we'll we'll take a look at this after, but we we got to I I know we're going to we're going to need to to deal with that after this. This this tablet's really important.
I mean it is your shell boss but um is not to be underestimated.
Yeah,
This this has uh has seen things.
it is my
Pull. Pull the string. Pull the string.
ship.
It also has a very cool chair. Watch this.
Watch out for the water.
I It's It's a I don't know if they had like voices
Pull it again. Pull it again.
and what
Give me your Just kidding. Just kidding.
Just kidding. I didn't do that.
um uh I
I didn't do that.
don't Okay, I um yeah, we'll talk about that later. uh and like picks it up and just sets it on like on the another table and starts
Okay.
packing up this cart and and rolling it um or like getting it by the door to to go out when it closes. And I think as we as the the um as the museum closes and as we close you all they roll roll the cart into this into this main area and um you see like there's a a couple people in like suit like the the group of men that were in in suits that are like walking around this and with they have their little name tags on um little metal like name plates and they're all kind of huddled huddled around look look similar and um they all they all stand back and you see Edward and the laser guy security guy walk out and and are are waiting there as well.
Um, and you hear on the intercom Nancy, Nancy going,"Well, that's all, sugar. It's time for us to close down the museum. Head on out and uh, stay tuned to our social media. I heard there might be a little excitement." And uh, so she comes in like two or three phones for whatever reason, like like ready to to ๏ฌlm. And you see there's another security guard that walks over to the big red button and um prepares to hit the button to bring down the claw. And that is where we will end the episode the
Nice. I drew my uh I drew I drew a little shape on the spot that I feel like this thing
session.
Cool.
Got it. Perfect. And also,
is
there's de๏ฌnitely no need for a plaque because, you know, N's got those iPads loaded up with information about
No.
not they're not a stone, you
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
know.
But but William was like,"Oh, there's that big security light on the side." I was like,"Oh,
Yeah,
no. That's the claw." Yeah.
I did see that over there, too. Right by the hidden exit.
Mhm.
Maybe you called it out ๏ฌrst. Um,
No, no, wait. It's not.
but Mhm.
Yeah. Wait, was that the thing?
also the people I when I I dragged on there and then I moved them and then immediately lost any control of them.
Are they on the token layer on the image
I was like I guess they could be on the image layer.
layer?
Where is that? How do I What's
Uh I think it's called tokens maybe or uh not tokens.
that?
Uh read read the settings on the the left side icon. It'll be like the fourth down maybe tiles
Uh, token controls, tile controls, drawing controls,
tiles and then hit the little square box
tile control. Yeah. Yep. Exactly. Yeah.
that you should be able like right click to move them to a di๏ฌerent layer I
Okay. Interesting.
think. If not
Okay. Nice.
you
Yeah. Looks like it. Cool.
Yep. I've done that before.
I was like, I can't control him now. Uh, well, at least now I can put the guy by the button. This guy can go. This guy can go. Oh, the guy is going to be talking with Edward. The ladies lady's gonna be the claw. There we
Yeah,
go.
it probably would have worked to just stay on Williams route of just like learn how the security system runs and let everyone leave, use Al๏ฌe's tiny body to let us in and then open the ourselves.
Yeah,
But I don't want to I want to over complicate
it's more fun. Yeah, that's what it's all about. I'm glad we introduced the spell casting now.
Me too.
it.
Thank you for that.
Yeah,
I appreciate the nudge.
I I saw sleep and I was like, surely she's got maybe I I didn't even think of sheep, but I was like I didn't know if you had that one planned or not.
Yeah, I kind of I had some options, but sheep felt like a good
Yeah,
distraction.
that's a perfect one.
Yeah, great.
Oh, so
I think there's some very fun uh potential combos down the
fun.
line.
I've been looking through my spells like uh with an entirely new
Yeah. Yeah.
light iconic.
Bet you didn't see Vicious Rockery coming.
I uh I I have mage hand and I really like
iconic.
mage man.
Oh,
All right.
a mage band.
Hit the X instead of dragging.
Yeah, I like it.
Don't worry,
Oh,
Just
we were just plotting.
no.
plotting.
I knew uh like ๏ฌre ๏ฌrebolt. I was like ๏ฌre belt or Fire ๏ฌre
Fire boot.
boot. Yeah,
Yeah.
Fire
Vicious rockery was a vicious rockery was situ
but vicious rockery.
bolo.
situational.
That was a That's a situational one.
Yeah.
That's probably not going to come up very much.
Uhhuh.
No,
Nothing. Still nothing pometury.
I know.
Adding and removing a letter will give us some options,
I was like,
but just changing
Adding or removing.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah,
I was thinking about that and I was like,
yeah.
๏ฌre bolts. Ha, there's two
Yeah. Yeah.
Got
now.
him."
I was like thory.
I know.
I I think there is some good ones.
I don't know.
I had I had looked at I had sent Sophie the the a screenshot of the
They're
spells just to like, hey, take a look, see what you got. um but there's some there's some fun ones options and I
Yeah, I'm excited. I know. I almost when John I think did Toll the Dead or somebody did Toll the
mean
Dead, I was close to using it there, but it didn't make sense, so I didn't do it.
uh William did chill touch and I was like looking at that one I was like I just like I
Oh yeah.
couldn't I couldn't The only thing I could think of was chilled touch. It turns into a
Chill.
sword.
Uh, that's
Yeah, that is funny.
funny.
Yeah,
I forget.
I I also couldn't think of one for that one. I like chill touch though.
Yeah.
Thumbergy could have been Thumburge taking it creating a person that does Thature.
Yeah. Um the one What I will say,
anything
Ah,
else.
I'll give you one that I had come up with, uh, which you probably would if you took any time to look at it, but mage hand. I was like, it's obvious. Mage band, you got a band of mages.
That's what we were just talking about when you were
yes.
Yeah.
I know we were
I was like,
exog.
that's why I saw that one and that one just made me immediately laugh. I was like,
Mage band.
Yes.
just a a band of a band of mages.
Obviously,
Yes.
a band of mages doing whatever they got to do.
They're just jamming out. That's that would be another good distraction.
A bunch of Merlin. Yeah.
Mhm. I know. I I was thinking the um cause fear.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Like once I can change two letters, I can cause beer.
Yeah. Right now you got cos bear which is not
I know. Pretty good.
Uhhuh. Not bad.
bad.
Not bad at all. Not bad.
Or pause fear.
Oh yeah.
That's a good one.
See there's there's a lot there because I I was initially looking at just
Mhm.
like scrolling through a D and D spell list. And I was like, there's a bunch where it's like Mel's acid arrow. I'm like, okay, where are we?
Yeah.
What do we Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Um but and and a ton like prestigitation and thometer is like okay we're might get somewhere but
Probably not though.
yeah but there's there's enough to work with and then I was like
Yeah.
pushing I think I was pushing you Luke because I was like I had already told Sophie about this and I was like yeah I think spellcaster feels right for you.
Yeah.
when you were like going going between that and ๏ฌghter and then John was like uh I'm not sure but I think like maybe something
Uhhuh.
with some healing too. I was like what about Paladin? They got spells and marshall like let's get a couple spellcasters in here so we can really
Yeah.
make this fun.
I uh because I I I'll need to do some more like wild magic surge stu๏ฌ to get him into the thing because he obviously he has no idea that he has any of that.
Yeah.
So, um we might have
And I I have a I have a very speci๏ฌc wild magic surge table for
to
you.
Hm.
nice
Um and then let's see.
Hat.
Also, I looked back at that note and I was like that was way more information than I meant to give you guys. So, I have paired that back a little
Yeah,
bit,
I ๏ฌgured that might be the case, but I was like, I don't these descriptions.
but yeah.
I don't think that Yeah.
Yeah, you're in there. I I didn't look at the I saw that ๏ฌrst tab.
Yeah.
I was like,"Oh, perfect." And then the active leaves, I was like,"Oh, boy." Um,
Yeah.
but so I took some of that out,
Mostly I
but beacon beckon is a good that's a good um introduction to kind of
just
what's going on.
Yeah. And I I saw that and I was like, don't overthink this on the skill that they've got.
Yeah.
Is she the reason behind all this?
Ease the big bad.
Yeah, she's the big
Hey,
bad.
we've done that before. The u well kind of at the um the call of Cthulhu campaign
Yep.
that you ran.
Yeah. Yeah.
I jumped in late and was the was like yeah a
Sympathizer.
Oh,
neighbor that was involved.
cool.
Yeah.
That's fun.
Call a Cthulhu would be very very fun in person I think.
That was a It would be. It's got such a vibe.
Kind of set the set the tone with some like lighting
Yeah.
and yeah Halloween one good for
It'd be like a Halloween one shot.
Luke,
that in
you and Christina just have to get back here.
I know.
Then we can play in
We're making progress.
progress.
Uh my my
I don't know if I told you Sophie.
person.
sec
Um well I guess it's your news. Feel free, Luke. Don't Don't let me.
about about building in Nashville.
Yeah.
I think I knew that.
Yeah.
I think you told me that.
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
And Christina got a job at Southwest,
Yeah.
Oh,
so she could she could be uh stationed
sweet. Yeah, Nashville's a pretty good spot for that.
in
Yep. She'll be based there within within a year. That's likely. So, yeah,
Sweet.
our lease is up here in January and then we'll ๏ฌgure out where she's based, but we're going to start building in probably February.
Dang,
Um,
that's
so pretty exciting.
awesome.
Hopefully, we can get it done in less than eight months would be
And then we can have a campaign with our pals who don't live here,
great.
but also in person.
Yeah. Secret campaign.
It's so fun in person.
Yeah.
We should have a pretty cool game room.
I'm sure you
Yeah.
will.
Yeah. In person is such a blast. And Kristen even is like Yeah,
Yeah.
in person is so much fun.
Yeah,
She would she would be down for that,
it is.
Yeah.
too.
That'd be so fun. All right, team. I got to go.
Yep, that was a fun one. Good,
Oh, wait.
good setup.
When are we When are when's our next one?
Later.
Oh yeah, we didn't do that.
We didn't talk about it,
We broke a rule.
but I guess I guess we were half out anyway.
Yep. Yeah.
But um my the noons leave probably like either Tuesday morning or Wednesday morning. So anytime after Wednesday and beyond next week, I'm good.
Are you good with Thursday again, Luke? Does that work for you?
Yeah,
Mhm.
I think so. Yep.
Cool.
De๏ฌnitely actually seen this the Sims. So
Cool.
So, we had a little quick quick turn this time and then a little longer one for the next session, which I'll get a good setup going.
Great. Try I'll try to be more on time, too.
Same. I was I was late as well, so yeah.
That was a bold move of us a little bit,
Yes.
Yeah,
but is what it is.
it was really the only day that worked this week.
Yeah, it was.
So,
But yeah.
Do you have like a family
we did.
Yeah,
dinner?
Yeah,
we're both rushing out, but it's okay. All right,
but we did it.
next Thursday it is.
I do feel I do feel bad for Willie being on Eastern time,
Yep.
but uh it is tough.
I know.
It's so funny we went opposite.
Yeah, I know. And I feel bad we can't like realistically we can't really go earlier.
We can't really go earlier.
Yeah, I would love to say we can, but I don't think we
I I would love to try like I'm I'm really trying to be done by like 9:30ish. Uh but sometimes that happens, sometimes that doesn't. Yeah.
Yeah.
And there may be stu๏ฌ like this where he jumps o๏ฌ and then we ๏ฌnish up in another 15 or so.
Yeah.
So,
Yeah.
Yeah.
all right.
Okay.
Which is ๏ฌne.
See you guys.
Well,
Bye.
see you.
I