QUEST III

[thecanopycrew]

Adventurers, join to free the Servant of the Tree.
Six of the Night.
Six of the Day.
Six of Twilight.
Gather your party and venture forwards.
The wagons will guide you there.

A treat will be given for each secret shared. 卌卌 II

Those that serve have earned the right of a name. Make them known. Confirm names.
[The words are gone, instead showing a crystal sword being broken into three pieces and reassembled again over and over.]

Comments

[action] > [amber]

[alley_kit]

[The mirror gets the poutiest of kitty faces for a minute after the written list fails to work. She wrote it down and everything!

But then she recalls something she said to Owain earlier. Maybe she has to tell other people for it to work? Or maybe have someone else tell the mirror her names? Putting the list down, she instead picks up her amber slice. Time to call in some help.]

Orcelito? Hey, could you come to the quest mirror for a minute? I need your help with something.

[amber] > [action]

[princeandscholar]

[A pause, then the amber on his end activates. Orcelito appears to be outside by the wagons. He's surprised to hear from her and smiles in greeting.]

Kit! Of course, I’ll be there shortly.

[Several minutes later, he strolls onto the mirror branch, looking first to Kit and then to the mirror. He looks back at Kit curiously.]

Did something happen?

Re: [amber] > [action]

[alley_kit]

[Kit nods, then puts down the amber and waits for Orcelito to arrive. She's not waiting long.]

Yeah something did. [proudly] I solved the last riddle! Turns out it wanted us to name the animals you can ride on at Chime's shop! So when I did, the mirror glowed and the words of the last riddle changed to 'Confirm names.' See?

[She points to the new words on the mirror.]

So I tried saying them again, but that didn't work, then I tried writing them down, but that didn't work either. I kinda used the back of your sign-up list for that part, but don't worry, I'll put it back when we're done. Anyway, when that didn't work either, I figured it meant that I had to tell somebody else and have them confirm them too, so that's when I called you.

[All of this is spoken in the slightly hyper, barely pausing for breath manner that only an excited child can truly manage.]

Anyway, I've still got the list I wrote, so wanna help me confirm the names and finish the riddle?

[action]

[princeandscholar]

R-really? That’s great!

[His grin fades into a more contemplative expression as he listens. He glances at the mirror to make sure she read it correctly – she did.]

Those were some great ideas. You’re really good at this! [Not empty praise – he really is impressed. After the past week of so many people trying names, he was beginning to wonder if they were close at all. But the solution is so clear now, he could laugh. Truly, Kit has a bright mind.] Thank you for calling me. Let’s get this solved!

[He holds out his hand.] May I see the list? Perhaps if I read it aloud the mirror will accept my confirmation.

Re: [action]

[alley_kit]

[Kit grins broadly, both at the praise and out of excitement.]

Here.

[Kit hands him the list, once again bouncing slightly in place with excitement. They're really going to do it this time! It's probably a good thing Orcelito has practice reading Kit's handwriting, though.]

Blue and wite bird- Clowdy Sky
Yellow bird- Blak Hood
Brown bird- Brown Cloak
All blue bird- Blue Sky

Flying Skwirell- Jenyo
Blak rat, long tale- Midnite
Blak rat, short tale- Shadow
Brown rat- Jorma

Second Riddle - attempting confirmation

[princeandscholar]

[Orcelito gently takes the list from her and reads over the names. A smile grows as he does so – half proud, half amused. They’re definitely the sorts of names a child would be inspired to give.]

[He glances at her and remarks in a warm tone,] Your spelling has improved. Good job! [He almost reaches out to ruffle her hair, but holds back. The gesture seems a little too personal.] And the names are splendid. [Better than Owain’s, and we must name the mounts before Owain does.]

[Orcelito reads the list silently again, takes a breath… and then begins reciting it to the mirror in a clear voice:]

The blue and white bird is Cloudy Sky.
The yellow bird is Black Hood.
The brown bird is Brown Cloak.
The blue bird is Blue Sky.
The flying squirrel is Jenyo.
The black rat with the long tail is Midnight.
The black rat with the short tail is Shadow.
The brown rat is Jorma.

[He’s unsure of his pronunciation of ‘Jenyo’ and ‘Jorma’, but he does his best. Then, to add a final flair:]

These names are bestowed by Wily-Kit, and confirmed by Orcelito Noctircus.

[His last name slipped out by habit, and he bites his lip afterwards. His surname was meant to stay a secret! Well, at least the message sounds official now. He takes a deep breath and waits for a reply.]

[thecanopycrew]

[The mirror glows, the words disappearing entirely to instead show the image of a crystal sword, the material similar to what is on the last floors of the tree.

Now and then, the image shifts to break the sword in three pieces before reforming them again.]

[alley_kit]

[The reaction to their confirming of the names is... somewhat anti-climactic to Kit's mind. She'd sort of been hoping for another present from the mysterious riddler.

Still, nothing to be done about it but figure out this new puzzle.]

It's a sword... and it looks like it's made of the blue crystals up around our house. But why does it keep breaking apart and coming back together like that?

[princeandscholar]

[Orcelito braces himself in case the mirror gives off another brilliant light burst. It doesn’t, so he merely squints against the glow and then looks around to see what happened.]

That is strange… [No items have appeared. So he turns back to the mirror.

The sight of a sword incites a great deal of interest from Orcelito. He absentmindedly hands the paper back to Kit. Then he reaches forward to touch his fingertips to the image. It may not have an effect, but he wants to continue interacting. He addresses the mirror again.] Have we completed the riddle simply by giving the names? Do you want us to go somewhere, or do something else?

[thecanopycrew]

[The mirror remains quiet. It seems this is all they will get.]

[princeandscholar]

[When waiting does not yield a response, he sighs and lets his hand drop back to his side. Before the disappointment can fully set in, he smiles and looks down at Kit.]

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore you. Yes, you’re right, it does seem to be a crystal sword. Maybe it relates to the crystals blocking off the floors, and how we might break through them?

[He’ll continue to think about the sword image and take action later. Right now…]

Why don’t you help me put the bulletin back up? Then we can go visit the animals you just named.

[alley_kit]

[Kit smiles up at him a little]

It's OK. And yeah, that's the only thing I can think of.

...You think it wants us to make a sword out of one of them?

[She sounds dubious at this. Despite certain people's magic, none of them here are really sword smiths, as far as she knows, never mind one good enough to make a sword out of something as delicate as crystal.

But she nods moving to help return the bulletin to its proper place.]

OK. I wonder if they'll recognize their new names?

[Names had power, after all. Did naming the animals cause those names to magically stick?]

[princeandscholar]

I’m not sure there is anyone here who could, though it would be nice. [Especially for himself; Orcelito hasn’t touched a sword since September and he misses having access to one.] But I don’t think we should try to break the crystals before it’s time. Let’s wait until the main riddle is complete.

[He brings a hand to his chin, thinking.] It’s possible the names took in some fashion. Since we haven’t received anything solid in evidence, the benefits may be intangible. Which is why I want to check the stables. Just in case something changed.

[Once the bulletin is back in place, Orcelito reaches out in offer to take her hand. It’s a surprisingly informal gesture from him.] It was very clever of you to come here and try out names. Even if we find that nothing has changed… I want you to know that I’m proud of you.

And I think we can wrap here, if you want! :3

[alley_kit]

[Kit nods in agreement, both to leaving the crystals alone and checking the stables.

Then, once they've finished hanging the bulletin back up, she takes the offered hand and walks with him back down the branch, blushing a little as he says he's proud of her.]

Thanks, Orcelito.

[The words are simple but their tone and her smile say it all. Making him proud means a great deal to her.]