Yes, sure, why not.

Whut's innit fur us ehre?

Sure. You're probably going to cause your own destruction in one of them self-fulfilling prophecies with this, though. Just to warn you.

>>92576
Excellent.

The item in question is called The Magician's hat, and appears to me to be little more than a simple tophat, albeit of excellent design. I have attempted research into the abilities or properties it may have, but outside of it being made by a craftsman that apparently does not exist, there is little to worry about.

The item is held in a large mansion, guarded by some ten or eleven people. The security measures on it are minimal, subtle, and effective. A simple rune that teleports anyone who touches the item back to the front door, sans their hopeful loot. The gaurds themselves communicate with simple rings of wind whispering, making soundings to one another every three minutes.
The construction of the building itself is made to house artefacts of value, and thus the locks are strong and well-made. There is only one main entrance, and only a few branching hallways to the vault where my goal is stored.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/15(Tue)15:25 No. 92585 ID: 6faa8c
File 12609195587.png - (4.82KB , 640x480 , FirstfloorVault.png )

Here is a simple map of the building, with entrances and target marked.

Green circles are gaurds.
blue doors are locked conventionally.
Yellow doors require a vocal password.
light blue dotted line is the path of patrol. This is only the first floor, but there are many more gaurds on the other floors who will arrive quickly should something seem suspicious.

I assume you have some sort of unlocking magic to deal with the conventional doors. Wait until the guards cannot see each other, then ambush one and make him give you the password. Perhaps we could teleport the artifact out of the house, if that is possible without touching it. If you can get this done in less than three minutes, we can get out without having to fake someone's voice.

>>92596
That I do. It takes one minute to work, however. I myself am not trained to unlock doors.

Oh, yes, how lax of me. Allow me to tell you my abilities.

My eyes, hands, head, and waist are only attatched to the rest of my bidy by unbreakable red stitching. At any time, I can pull the sitching free, retaining control over the severed limbs, and in the case of my eyes, be able to see through them. Of course, if they are destroyed, it will be troublesome to get them back.

I cannot feel any pain. I can dislocate my bones and in emergencies break them, though the latter takes magic to heal properly since my metabolism no longer functions. Severed limbs can be recovered and sewn back on, to a point.

I do not need to eat, breathe, excrete, or move.

I have a magical lockpick, my personal suit, a monocle of True Sight, and a small dagger.


An excellent plan, however. The only difficulty will be bypassing the trap on the item itself.

>>92600
Maybe if we have an object to throw at it so we knock it down. Or is the rune on the hat?

>>92611
The rune is on the pedastal but tied to the hat, so to speak. But maybe if I were to use something to knock it off the pedastal, it would become free of the effect of the rune...
An interesting idea. This does leave the question of what to use, however. Simple rocks and the like will do no good, they will be teleported upon touching the hat.

>>92614
Wait! Wind! Like a fan of some sort!

>>92617
Ah! Surely it does not teleport the very oxygen in the room! It's hermetically sealed by the voice doors! Now, what to use to generate a wind... Ah, that's right, I have an opera cloak at home.

Anything else you might wish to add?

+Opera cloak w/pockets of holding added to inventory!
+Opera cloak equipped.

>>92620
Wait, what if there are hidden cameras?

>>92633
Hidden surveillance?
I doubt it exists here, and if it does, I'll be able to handle it.

How does the magical lockpick work?

>>92643
I place it inside the lock and it molds to the correct form by testing the various pins within. Concievably, if all the doors use the same key, I only need to do it once. I doubt this, however.

>>92644
And the monocle?

>>92651
The monocle sees things hidden.
This is decided by intent. Magical invisibility fails, clever hidden doors are revealed with ease, and mundane disguises cannot fool me. Accidental concealment, however, still fools the monocle.

In other words, it reveals things meant to be hidden.

>>92653
How exactly do you bypass the voice-activated doors? Do you need a specific tone of voice, or do you just need to say the password?

>>92663
I am unsure.
I am going to assume it requires the voice of a person specifically.

>>92664
What would happen if we killed someone stealthily and took their rings?

>>92668
Rings of whispering wind come in sets of at least two.
Owners of one ring may speak with any of the others by whispering into the jewel.(usually amber, but longer ranges use pearls and diamonds) In less than a second, the words are taken to the other holders and repeated, sounding exactly the same.

>>92670
How well can you impersonate people?

>>92673
If I really wanted to, I could pull out my own eyes, remove my face and vocal cords, take theirs, and replace where needed.

That process can take a whole day.
Without assistance, I can likely mimic a voice passingly to another human being.

>>92680
I think I thought of everything. Let's roll out.

>>92685
Very well.

Shall we perform at night or during the day? I am more alacritous during the day, but nighttime operations are easier to pull off unnoticed.

>>92686
Night.

>>92687
Very well. I spend the previous night at rest.

I stand before the front doors of the Vault. It has seven floors, two of them emptey at the moment. The place is a building where nobles rent out space to secure their valuables. It has no windows, only small ventilation tubes. The front door is made of wood and is unlocked. My monocle briefly sees someone on the roof, hiding and laying atop it. A feminine form with long raven hair.

Please, suggest an action.

>>92688
>night
Meant day

Oho. Another thief. This makes things interesting.
Through the door my dear fellow.

>>92697

I slide into the front door. Pah, the next door is locked, and I slide my lockpick inside, waiting for the process to finish.
I notice my hand could fit under the door.

>>92706
The lockpick finishes and I enter quietly, pulling out my eye and rulling it out to see if there are any gaurds.

Seeing none, I replace the eye. I do not know, however, where the gaurds are in their patrol... I can go either left or right, it doesn't really matter at this point.

>>92729
Left. And look up as well.

>>92735
I eye the ceiling, and see nothing, making my wat to the left corner. I peek around the corner with care.

I feel the cold touch of steel on my neck, and a whisper of dark hair on my neck.

Oh, damn it all. That wasn't a thief, it was a black hat. A thief-catcher. I can feel her close to me, moulded against my body. A single long leg wraps around mine. Her face comes into view as I drop the eye, seeing the gaurd just beggining his walk away. He speaks into the ring.

She places a finger to her lips.

>>92729
Grab her hand and tear it away from her face.

>>92739
(A hunter eh? hmmm)
Turn your face so that you can look directly into her eyes.
Whisper "A blade dear lady? How quaint. What exactly do you expect to accomplish"

>>92752
I turn my head and smile.
"A blade, milady?" I ask softly, "What could you hope to accomplish?"

I see on her neck, exactly over her vocal cords, a symbol of a spider in scar tissue. Interesting.

Her face hardens and she attempts to slit my throat. Unfortunately, she attempts it on the thread, and accomplishes nothing.

>>92754
"Would you care to try again? Or perhaps I should do it?" Then proceed to take your knife out and do what she did.

>>92755
>"Would you care to try again? Or perhaps I should do it?"

I pull out my knife and she shakes her head, clearly frightened.

>>92769
Demand that she help us. Or we'll just have to put on a little freak show for her. If she says no, cut your arm off.

>>92772
"There is an item here I desire. Help me retrieve it."
she nods, waving her hand over her head.
"Yes, the hat."
She giggles without sound, pulling a flat object from her back, and with a flick of the wrist, it pops open into the hat.
I can tell, picking up my eye, that this is the real hat.

>>92774
This seems way too easy. Tell her to come with you to outside the doors so the guards don't see you, then ask how she got it.

>>92774
How did she...

Well, this makes things quite simple. Yes, go outside so that you might converse better. Then we can figure out what it does, and why it poses a danger to us.

>>92776
"Come with me..." I motion outside and she nods, following me outside.
"How did you retrieve it?" I ask.

She leans down onto the cobbles and lifts a stone, revealing a teleportation rune...
Wait... I get it. The rune on the pedestal is two way! They hid the other rune and adjusted the height, thus turning it into a trap.

Cheap buggers...

>>92779
...She's good. She could be our partner. Ask if she knows what exactly the hat does.

>>92780
"Do you know what it does?"
She shakes her head, looking at it quizzickly. She sticks her hand inside...

Up to her shoulder.

Someone taps me on the nape of my neck.

>>92781
Now we're thinking with portals. Uhrm... What are your plans now that you have the hat?

>>92784
My plans were to initially destroy it. But now, I am not so sure. She pulls out her hand and hands it to me.
I can feel a great deal of power in this object, such that there may be more uses than the one she demonstrated. I reach inside, and my hand touches the felt top. Odd...

>>92786
Pop it inside-out.

>>92786
Hmm... maybe you need to think of a place you want your hand to appear.

>>92795
I do so.
A host of items falls at my feet and the girl falls on the ground, laughing silently some more. Among the items are:
>A deck of cards.
>A live and confused rabbit.
>A string of handkercheifs.
>A set of iron rings about a foot wide and very thin.

I pop it back to normal.

>>92796
I imagine a rock some ten feet away from me and reach into the hat, picking it up with ease. I pull my hand out, holding the stone... and it's not in my hand. Odd.

>>92797
Imagine the same rock and reach into the hat again.

>>92798
And maybe imagine you picking up the stone without the hat as well. :/

>>92798
I do so, and manage to pull it out. Interesting.

So...

Items pulled into the hat are in a... let's call it Otherspace. Items can be accessed again, by reaching into the hat while thinking of them. Turning the hat inside out empties it. Clearly, living creatures can survive inside.

I turn it over in my hands. Interesting indeed...

>>92801
Now what? Become a magician? Crime Fighter? Thief?

>>92802
There is a lot one could do with an object of power like this one. Before my lichdom, I was a great doctor and healer. After? I have yet to decide. Perhaps I shall be a great and powerful thief? Or a performer?

I twirl it in my hands. It begs to be worn.

>>92804
Based on the abilities we've found so far, I can theorize that it might be used to steal your phylactery or whatever your source of Lichdom is. So, as long as you possess the hat it should pose no danger. You may want to consider ways of preventing theft. Put something dangerous inside it that you can easily disable if you have to dump its contents?

Try wearing it.

>>92805
What is your phylactery anyway?

>>92805
I flip it in my fingers and place it upon my head, and a strange sensation comes over me.
I see a spider crawl down from the lip of the hat.
"It is about time you decided to put this on..." it mutters, then looks up at me. I swear it is smiling. "You who wish to live forever."

>>92809
"What is the meaning of this?"

>>92809
Oh now that is not good at all. If the spider already knows you're a Lich, what else does it know? If it can read your mind and see every moment of your past, it poses a grave danger.

Tell it that if it wishes to continue existing it should not speak information such as that out loud so readily. Then ask who it is, what it is, what it can do, and if there's anything more to be known about the hat.

>>92810
>>92811
"Who are you? What is the meaning of this? You had best not speak so boldly, creature, lest you cease existing before me."

There's a pause, and then the spider lets out a low chuckle.
"My name is Anansi, Lord Delarosa. I... I am in the business of selling power." it seems to smile again. "Certainly this hat is useful. But it has many uses which you may or may not ever know... unless I tell you."

>>92813
Is there a price for this information?

>>92813
"What's the catch?"

>>92815
"Is there a price for such information, Anansi?"
"But of course! Knowledge is power, and that is my trade, after all. The price is not so great."

Just out of sight, the young woman points to her mark, waving and jumping, her lips moving without sound.

Anansi doesn't seem to notice or care.
"The price is not so great. a simple favor, a job in need of doing. Something this small creature cannot accomplish on its own."

>>92817
Name it.

>>92817
Anansi took her voice. Did she get anything in return, I wonder? Or was it because she refused to complete the job? Be careful. Ask what it will do if you fail, or if it will simply not give out the information until the job is complete.

>>92818
"Name your price."
"Oh, I merely need a simple thing retrieved from a ruined temple nearby, some twenty miles."
"And if I fail?"
"Then you receive no information."

Curiosity overwhelms me.
"What happened to her?"
"Oh, her?" he smiles. "That's for her to tell you. Are we in agreement?"

>>92820
"Deal."

>>92821
"Deal. I will retreive this item for the knowledge of this item."
"Very well! The item you are seeking is a special medallion. The reason I want you to seek it is because it ages the one holding it incredibly fast. Now, you... that's not an issue. It looks something... like this."

An image enters my mind, clear yet brief.

"Our dealings are complete, Hattori. I suggest you make haste."

And just as fast, he is gone.

>>92825
Head toward the temple. Tell the girl to come with you. Ask her her name, and just what she was doing.

>>92826
Or can we just use the hat to pick up the medallion?

>>92825
Ask her what happened to her voice, and if the spider can be trusted. Specifically, if it tries to twist the letter of the agreement to avoid giving out as much of a reward.

>>92828
I try that right away, but encounter only felt. It seems I might need to see the location first.

>>92826
"I'm going to assume you heard all that. Would you like to come with me, young lady?"

She nods.

"What's your name?"
She opens it to awnser, but then stops, an angry look crossing her face. She turns around, then hands me a card.

Shi

"And, uh... if you don't mind me asking, what happened to your voice?"

She looks at the ground and shakes her head.

"Can you trust the spider? Will he renege or twist the deal?"
She thinks for a moment.
Then she shakes her head.

>>92831
"Is the spider related to your scar?"

>>92832
She nods quietly.

I'm not sure if I want to ask her any more questions involving this.

>>92882
"Are you ready to go?"

>>92894
"Are you ready to go, young lady?" I ask, and she nods again.
From the images the spider gave me, I know the temple is to the north, but little else.
I will be buying some rope, two long poles of wood, and some canvas. Is there anything else I should bring along?

>>92908
A pad of paper and a pencil for Shi.

>>92915
I decide that this form of communication is somewhat limited, and buy her a simple pencil and blank book of paper. She smiles, turns away, and puts it away, where I am uncertain. She then turns back and smiles at me.

Shall I begin the trek?

>>92918
Yes.

>>92923
We set out.

(DAY 1)

The day is mostly uneventful. Shi hunts, and eats. I do so as well to put her at ease.

(DAY 2)

We are halfway there. Shi stops, holding up one hand and placing the other to her ear, dropping low like a predator.

>>92934
Drop down. She hears something.

>>92937
I do so, and soon I hear laughter and clinking of chainmail. I should have known. Highwaymen. Shi begins to slink away from the sound like a cat, holding a hand up in my direction.

>>92948
Imagine her hand and pull it down.

>>92952
I gently pull her hand down through the hat. There is no need for signals, as they will only make it more likely they will attack. Between the two of us, we have only our daggers, and the hat itself.

I see one of them now. He has yet to notice me.

>>93042
It's time for a hat trick. Reach through and grab his weapon. Then use it against him.

>>93043
HAT TRICK: Cunning Disarmament!

I reach through the hat and grab the hilt of his weapon, still in the scabbard. However, I cannot achieve the leverage needed to harm him through his armor, so I simply pull it into the hat.

He jumps and looks around, and sees me immediatly, letting out a cry.
We've been spotted!

I wonder if you can pull things into the hat that are still attached? Try pulling his arm into it.

>>93052
If that works, try taking off his arm armor.

>>93052
He draws his dagger and comes at me, but I evade it and grab his arm, pulling it into the hat.

HAT TRICK: Dimensional Lock!

He seems to be stuck by the arm, as the hat is stuck in midair, the armed hand sticking out of it.

Now that is interesting!

Shi slides up behind him and swiftly slams her dagger into the man's neck. He dies, and falls... but is stuck by his arm.

>>93066
Okay, push his arm back through the hat... and it's time for a little experiment.

Imagine his heart, and pull it through the hat.

>>93068
A great idea!
But I get only felt as I reach through, and Shi kicks the man high on the head. De stumbles and pulls out his longsword.

>>93070
Right.
Test it on De's goolies next.
They should be grabbable.

>>93071
I reach through and and see my hand come up, but he moves out of the way before I can connect. Damn!
Frustrated, I punch through the hat, striking him soundly across the face.

HAT TRICK: Sneak Attack!

Hey... I wonder what happens if you put a part of someone into the hat, then turn it inside out.

First, try seeing if you can use Sneak Attack while holding your dagger.

>>93074
>Sneak attack with Dagger
I reach inside, pull out the dagger, then lunge into the hat with all the force I can muster. The Dagger slides into the neck of the foe, between spinal disks and he drops to the ground.

Well-done, Legion. I've managed to define a few more rules of the hat.

+ you cannot use it if you cannot see your target.
+ Likewise, you must be aware of the target.
+ Living things pulled part way through pin both the hat and the living thing in that place.

>>93079
Okay, now that he's not moving around so much anymore, put half his arm in the hat then pop it inside out.

After this whole kerfluffle, might I suggest putting an eye into the hat and reporting back?

>>93081
I do so, but the second step eludes me. I cannot turn it inside out when something occupies the space, it appears.

They wear chainmail and one still has a longsword. Both have daggers.
I wear a fine suit and Shi is in leather armor. I take their ill-gotten gains, about a pound's worth of coins of various sorts.

Shall I get moving again?

>>93088
An interesting idea. I do so.

What greets my sight is... an infinite white space with the objects I have thus far collected floating about. When I reach inside for the eye, it floats to my hand as if attracted.

>>93093
Let's take the daggers and put them in the hat, while leaving your own where you usually leave it. Then continue.

With your eyeball in your hand, attempt to reach through the hat to tap your own shoulder (or Shi's). Report back.

>>93095
I take the daggers, leaving them inside the hat for the moment as I retrieve my own and slip it into the pocket of the cloak it usually resides in.

>>93099
As my hand and eye slide through the hat, there is no transition. One moment it is here, the next, there.

>>93107
If Shi is ready, continue.

>>93112
"Are you prepared?" I ask her.
She merely nods. We keep going.

(DAY 3)
We are within sight of the temple. It is modest, barely noticable from the outside. Most likely the bulk of the building is underground.

>>93125
Is there anyway you could use a hand and an eyeball to make a mobile scouting rig?

>>93137
Actually, yes. I have a glove especially made for that. Be forewarned, however, replacement of my body parts is hard.

The glove fits over the hand and on the back has a small, hollow glass orb. It opens by unscrewing the top half.

>>93143
Hm. Continue.

>>93145
I should also note that my control of sperated limbs works on ANYTHING, so long as it has muscles, and extends out to about a mile. So. Should I send Shi in, my hand and eye, go in myself, or go in with Shi?

>>93148
The both of you.

You first, as you're more durable (or it seems that way anyway)

>>93157
We both enter the ruin, and it is very, very dark. I should note my monocle doesn't see through darkness unless someone is actively hiding in it. In any case, I pull a lantern from my cloak, lighting it with a single match.

The frontal cavern is long, but not very wide. the floor is square bricks. The front room has only two exits: the entrance and the one deeper inside.

>>93167
Cautiously go deeper.

>>93169
Again, Shi stops me, reaching into a pouch on her hip to pull out a metal orb about the size of her fist. She leans down and rolls it towards the stairs.

One of the bricks depresses and then suddenly rockets up into the ceiling. I wince, and it lowers, revealing... a flat metal ball.

Shi's expression briefly resembles that of a kicked dog.

>>93172
OK, maybe we need to start making a map for this kind of shit.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)20:22 No. 93180 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102373640.png - (2.37KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93176
Here is a map of what I know so far.

The trap resets with a click.
Then goes off again.

>>93180
I hope she has more balls, we may need them. Tell her to roll another one to the left of the trap.

>>93172
Grab the flattened ball via the hat, and try tossing it to more bricks. Map out where it's safe to step.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)20:29 No. 93185 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102414429.png - (2.45KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93184
I grab the 'ball' as the trap resets, and toss it to other squares. Two other, similar traps are revealed in this manner, though one has a pillar slam from one wall to the other and another has one fall from the ceiling.

>>93180
1. If that's all of them, store the "ball in your hat and continue cautiously.
2. If not, then continue to throw the "ball" around, then refer to 1.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)20:40 No. 93190 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102483593.png - (3.42KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93186
I store the metal disc and we walk into the next room with care.
The next room, about a floor down, is much, much larger. My light does not reveal it all from the entryway, but ahead I can see a chasm and a bridge over it. I hear running water. The floor here is smooth stone.

>>93190
Lean as much as you can in there and outstretch your hand. And ask if Shi thinks if there's any danger.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)20:51 No. 93195 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102547435.png - (2.74KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93192
I lean out as far as I can... it doesn't help much. The room looks barren and very, very clean.

"Is there any danger, Shi?"
She looks around me and shrugs, shaking her head.

>>93195
Enter cautiously. Tell Shi to wait until you think it's safe.

>>93195
Tilting floor.
Look into the chasm with the hat.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)21:08 No. 93208 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102650834.png - (2.93KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93204
I enter the room with care and... interesting. there is a great pile of skeletons on the other side, near the exit to the next area. I count at least twenty.

The chasm is deep enough that my light cannot see all the way down.

>>93208
You can control body parts, right? Try controlling one of the skeletons.

>>93211
Only my own. And even if I could control the dead bodies, there is no muscle mass to manipulate.

>>93212
See if you can break a hand off one of the skeletons using the hat.

>>93213
I reach through the hat and snap off one hand of a skeleton, pulling it back in.

The bone is not smooth like a it should be from decomposition in the elements. It is etched all over, full of holes, and smaller in places than others.

>>93214
Back away from the bridge a bit and throw the hand over the bridge.

>>93218
I do so, and it clatters into pieces by the exit.

Shi looks at me, tilting her head, and then her eyes grwo to the size of dinner plates.
I look to see a massive, clear ooze fall from the ceiling to envelope the bones, then slide back to the ceiling. Moments later, the bones fall on the pile.

>>93220
WELL IT'S A GOOD FUCKING THING I DECIDED TO TEST THE BRIDGE OUT! Ask Shi if she has any ideas.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)21:35 No. 93225 ID: 6faa8c
File 126102810470.png - (5.55KB , 640x480 , masterplan.png )

>>93222
"Do you have any ideas?" I ask her. She things for a minute.

Then she scribbles something and hands it to me.

>>93225
I... I think she wants us to pull out the heart of the ooze thing.

>>93228
That... appears to be the gist of it.

But... what of the creature's digestive juices? If this breed of ooze has a heart, this would indeed be a viable plan.

>>93239
Try stabbing the ooze's heart with your dagger, but don't put it all the way through.

>>93245
I again use a bone to bait out the ooze, and I can see the heart clearly, like an enourmous pearl.

In a flash of intuition, I use the dagger to stab it, not putting my own hand through the portal and pulling the heart out easily: it grips the dagger, as if trying to eat it. The slime at the other end of the room becomes inert, and the heart blackens and dies.

>>93247
Is the heart still on the dagger? If it is, shake it off. Then grab another skeleton hand and throw it over the bridge just to be sure there isn't another one.

>>93250
I do so, and the heart splashes onto the floor, eaten by its own juices.

I toss another bone over the gap. Nothing happens.

>>93251
Pocket your dagger, say it's safe, and cautiously cross the bridge.

>>93252
"It is safe." I say, putting away the dagger as I cross the bridge. Shi follows me.

We pass the bone pile, and one of the skulls is propped out by a rigid spine.

>>93252
Throw a hand at it.

>>93259
Why would I do something like that?

Shi runs up and takes the hat from my head, placing it atop the skull. Just as I am about to say something, I notice something odd.
When the hat touched the skull... the skull... flickered.

>>93260
Why did it flicker? Ask Shi. Also scold her for ripping YOUR hat out of YOUR hands.

>>93262
"Why did it flicker?" I ask.
She shrugs, smiling mischeiviously.
"Don't take things out of my hands. We aren't certain what this is capable of, so we must use it carefully. Clear?"
She nods quietly.

>>93265
Does the skull flicker if you take the hat off? Or of you put it back on?

>>93266
I think. Taking the hat off does nothing. Putting it on the skull causes it too flicker in place. As if it teleports elsewhere very breifly immediatly and returns.

>>93267
Examine the skull.

>>93268
It's perfectly ordinary. Whatever is causing this, it's definitely the hat and not the skull.

>>93269
Try placing the hat on another skull.

>>93270
The same thing occurs. Hmmm...This might be one of the other powers Anansi promised to tell me about.

>>93270
Place it on your head and ask Shi if you flicker.

>>93273
"This might be an odd question, Shi, but when I put the hat on, do I flicker?"

She shakes her head.

>>93274
So you need to be dead in order to flicker. Dead dead, not alive dead, like you are. Proceed. Cautiously, of course.

>>93276
Just out of scientific curiosity...
I place the hat on Shi's head, and she flickers too, her mouth and eyes forming wide Os.

>>93277
Anansi has some 'splainin' to do once we get the amulet...

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/16(Wed)23:56 No. 93281 ID: 6faa8c
File 126103657664.png - (3.68KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93278
Indeed he does! I make my way into the next roo- oh for the love of all that is good. It's a narrow walkway slowly making it's way down and turning to the right. My monocle doesn't spot any traps.

>>93281
Take some hands/feet/heads/etc. and store them in your hat. Take a hand and throw it down the hallway.

>>93282
I do so, tossing one of the hands down the walkway. It bounces a few times, then falls off.

...


...


...


It hits the bottom.

>>93283
Try sliding one down.

>>93284
It rolls down, end over end, until it falls off the side of the very high and narrow walkway.

>>93368
Peer at the walkway with your lens while carefully walking down it.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/17(Thu)10:49 No. 93375 ID: 6faa8c
File 126107576261.png - (4.31KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93371
I see no magical traps or mundane ones, and nothing hides in the darkness or under the bridge.

We are halfway there, I think. Shi is staying oddly close. Shi is shaking.

>>93375
Oh, she must be afraid of heights. Let her hold onto your arm or something so she doesn't worry as much about falling off.

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/17(Thu)11:10 No. 93384 ID: 6faa8c
File 126107700372.png - (4.65KB , 640x480 , Templemap1.png )

>>93376
I let her hang onto me as we enter the next room. This appears to be the last one, with a statue of a sphinx. I see no Amulet, only writings on the walls.
Over the one to my left is a sun dawning. Behind the sphinx, a noonday sun. And to my right, a setting sun, made clear by the visible moon.

Ah... looking at the face of the sphinx, I can see the amulet inside, but it is so snugly fit, I cannot reach inside.

>>93384
Writings on the walls, or just drawings?

>>93388
Writings. Over each plaque of writing there is the drawing. Each one seems to be a riddle... which one would you like to hear first? Dawn, Noon, or Dusk?

>>93391
Dawn.

>>93392
Dawn it is.

What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but never sleeps?

There is a speaking tube under each riddle.

>>93394
A river.

>>93397
I lean down and speak into the tube:
"A river."

The tube retracts, and I hear a soft click.

It appears that was correct... which one next?

>>93398
Noon.

>>93401
Very well. I approach the noon riddle.

I am the black child of a white father, a wingless bird, flying even to the clouds of heaven. I give birth to tears of mourning in pupils that meet me, even though there is no cause for grief, and at once on my birth I am dissolved into air. What am I?

>>93402
Smoke.

>>93402

A nozzle.

>>93416
I lean forward again and speak into the tube:
"Smoke."

It too, retracts and eventually clicks into place. This leaves the final riddle.

The rungs of a ten foot ladder are attached to a ship and are a foot apart. If the water is rising at the rate of one foot every hour, how long until the water covers every rung?

>>93418
Never. (The boat will float at the same depth no matter how high the water gets)

>>93419
Ha!
"Never."
Again, the tube descends, and the Sphinx's mouth opens wide...

And it lifts its paw to reveal a small hidden compartment.

>>93420
Collect thine loot!

>>93430
In a cautiously but hard-broiled manner.

>>93430
might I suggest poking it with a stick or something first?

How do I shot trip?!H508X.HbJ6 2009/12/17(Thu)14:52 No. 93497 ID: 6faa8c
File 12610903493.png - (54.60KB , 420x653 , dragon-cane1.png )

>>93430
Of course. I peer into the compartment under the foot, and see no traps awaiting me. Carefully, I pull out what sits within:
A long cane, ending in a dragon's head.
But the real treasure awaits in the mouth. I pull it out and the mouth and the paw snap back to their original positions.

>>93497
Examine dragon cane.

>>93504
And medallion.

>>93497
Nice cane. Give it a twirl.

>>93504
It is of excellent craftsmanship! The head is, if I am not mistaken, pure silver. The length of it seems to have been made of ironwood.

>>93508
I twirl the cane, and as it reaches speed, the wood heats and bursts into flame. When I stop, the fire stops, and the wood is unharmed. Shi claps.
Interesting.

"Oh hot damn, you're still upright and whole." mutters Anansi, lowering himself from the brim of the cap.

>>93511
Greet him... her... it... and demand to know the information it promised.

>>93511
"Hello, Anansi. I got what you wanted. Now, tell me about this hat. All of its abilities, please. Some of its history would be nice, too."

>>93515
>"Hello, Anansi. I got what you wanted. Now, tell me about this hat. All of its abilities, please. Some of its history would be nice, too."

The spider laughs, pulling a wooden box from nowhere and holding it out to me. I place the amulet inside and he snaps it shut.

"Most certainly. The history, first." he clears his throat. "The hat belonged to an old magician, one who excelled at slight of hand and smokes and mirrors. He wanted to be able to put on a show like no other, so he approached me with a deal: I would enchant this hat, and he would... repay me." the spider snickers. "The hat is harmless to you, my good man, but every minute a living thing employs its use is a day shaved from its life. You can imagine what occurred when he started to do performances, some lasting for hours, many times a day. The powers are thus."

+ The Hat may be used as a storage device for anything that could fit into the brim. The storage is infinite, and when reaching inside, you will always find what you are looking for, unless your terms are vague, like 'what I need to solve this'.
++As a collorary to this power, turning the hat inside out will dump all the contents of its storage. You can will the items to be expelled at normal speed or very, very high speed when commiting to the action.
++Things placed inside the hat are frozen in time, so living creatures, food, time-sensitive objects, and the like will last indefinitely.

+You may reach through the hat, and out into real space wherever you can see. This is only limited by the acuity of your own sight, but only one such bridge may be made. In other words, you may not put both arms into the hat and have them pop up in different locations.
++Velocity is maintained between points using this power. Speedy thing goes in hat, speedy thing comes out hat.
++Objects pulled back out may either be placed into storage or retrieved immediately. Living tissue is locked in place if this power is used on, say, an arm. The same goes for anything pulled partially through.

The spider takes a breath, but it is not yet finished, clearly.

>>93519
"Thus are the abilities you have discovered thus far. Allow me to finish."

+When you place the hat on the head of another creature, whether alive, dead, or in between, besides yourself, you may choose to teleport it forcefully as far as you like within sight.
++You may, at the expense of a great deal of your own energy, decide to only teleport the head.
++Creatures that do not have heads are not affected by this power.
++You must be holding the hat for this to work. The hat does not teleport along with the target.

+When wearing the hat, if you tip the hat in a direction, you will instantly teleport a distance relative to the distance the hat was tipped. This power may be deactivated and reactivated with an application of will.
++Be forewarned, this is the only power that you can use that can target outside of your range of vision! It is also the only power of the hat that can kill you!
++Looking up allows you to teleport up, lookong down allows you to teleport down. You do not teleport where you are looking, however.

"And that is all." Anansi says smoothly. "Would you like to make any other deals? Perhaps I can offer you information about the cane you hold?"

>>93522
Accept it.

>>93522
Sounds like the teleportation deal is how you will eventually be killed by the Hat.

Find out what he wants in exchange for information about the cane.

>>93526
That sounds... oddly accurate. I will hesitate to use it, then.
"What sort of payment for the information about the cane?"
"Another favour. More dangerous this time, since you know the full capabilities of your artefact."

>>93533
Accept it.

>>93533
Yeah, okay.

>>93533
Sometime in the future, find a wide open field or something and practice teleporting. Finding out how relative the distance is before an emergency pops up could save our unlife.

>>93533
"Very well. What is your mission?"
"Some distance from here, there is a great dragon, name of Jerasp. He stole something from me. A sword that sings." he smiles that strange smile of his. "Whether the dragon lives or dies is a seperate matter, I want that sword back at any cost."

>>93566
This is a good idea.

Ask Anansi where Jerasp is.

>>93606
"Where is this Jerasp?"
"He lives nearby, in a mountain." the spider points. He smiles. "Shi will likely prove most useful there."

She points to herself, a questioning look on her face.

>>93608
"How so?"

>>93615
Anansi smiles.
"You haven't noticed?"

Wait.
When she clapped.

There was no sound.

>>93618
She's muted herself completely. She generates no sound at all. What an interesting ability. So it wasn't just her voice that was silent.

Chapter one end!

Item powers discovered: 3/8
Hat Tricks discovered: 3/30
Magical artefacts found: 2/2
Secrets found: 1/1