File: Wizard in your kitchen.jpg (179.6 KB)
You wake up. You blink your eyes, looking around your darkened room. You were dreaming of that girl you liked, the one with red hair and blue eyes. Why’d you have to get woken up from that dream?
You’re about to go back to sleep when there’s a loud crash from downstairs.
Shit. Are you being robbed?
There’s another crash, and you hear the sound of your beer cans rolling on the floor. You frown. Something’s in your kitchen. Did you leave the backdoor open? You get out of bed and put on a dressing gown and some slippers. If there’s an animal downstairs you just hope it’s a rat or something small, you don’t want to pay the fee for an animal handler at, 3 O’clock in the morning.
You go down the stairs and hear the distinctive crunch of potato chips. This thing is in your cupboard too? You brace yourself as you open the door to the kitchen, expecting to get jumped by some wild animal, only to get a beer can thrown at your face.
“Thine drink is pigs piss!”
You open your eyes. There’s a man there, an old bearded man sitting in your kitchen, dressed in a robe not dissimilar to yours, a can of beer in one hand and a thick stick as tall as you in the other. He has some sword strapped to his waist, and all kinds of leathery pouches. The fridge door is open, and you can see that he’s pulled out almost everything you have in there, not that there was much to begin with. Did some fucking hobo break into your house?
You take a step towards him, intending to throw him out, but he puts up a hand and for some reason you feel compelled to stop.
“There are evil things out tonight! Demons, fey beasts, and sorcerers who seek to do thine world harm! We must stop them! Come and be mine helper, before the forces of darkness overwhelm all that thou loves!”
He waves his arm and several objects appear on your kitchentop. A sword, a wand, and a floating mirror.
“Pick one, mine apprentice, and let us do battle with the forces of evil!”
What do you do?
>Pick the sword. You like swords. You’ve always wanted to swing a sword.
>A wand seems cool. You wonder if it can do magic?
>The mirror. You can’t see your reflection in it. Why is that?
>Slow down. Who the fuck is this guy and what is he doing in your kitchen?
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You decide that listening to the Wizard, as nutty as he is, is probably best. You look at him and nod. He steps back and begins chanting with his arms raised as you stretch out a hand to the helmet, and you feel his words transcend space and time as they worm their way through your ear into your very soul.
You feel the power within you.
The Power of The Twelve Suns, first bound by the Mad Sorcerer upon a shattered moon.
Power unlike any that has touched the Para-worlds in all their history.
Power that raised mountains and sank continents, flooded entire worlds with flame and wind and water.
Power that locked away the Great Worm, and freed it, and created it, and destroyed it.
Power spoken and shaped and sealed and secreted.
Power now flowing into the helmet, undoing the ancient spells that bound a fraction of that power many, many years ago.
The helmet shakes and glows blue as it soaks up the energy until it begins warping and cracking, and explodes in a great flash of blue. Small pieces of worthless metal fall around you. The Helm of Artimas is destroyed.
Quest complete: Quest to Destroy the Evil.
+50xp!
Boss defeated:
+50 xp!
LEVEL UP!
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>>6422045
You breathe heavily. Getting used as a power conduit by the Wizard is a lot more intensive than you thought it would be. Those visions you saw… is that the kind of power the Wizard has at his disposal all the time? You also feel different, as if a remnant of that same power is still within you, or perhaps something has been unlocked by your efforts. You feel something slap you in the back.
“Well done, my boy, well done! We have struck a grave blow against The Evil. Now, let us be out of here before more minions come and discover the ruins of their Master’s plans!”
He clicks his fingers, and you’re suddenly back in the carpark, next to your car. Gene is there too. The skies are still overcast, but it feels somewhere near midday. You haven’t slept since this morning.
>So, what now? I get to go home?
The Wizard looks positively shocked. “Home? Now? Art thou insane? A homunculus is surely waiting there, and the forces of Evil will have it in their sights! No, we must continue on! Continue the quest, fighting the Evil that seeks to bring about ruin and woe! Ach, can ye be so foolish?”
You sigh. Guess it wasn’t going to be as easy as that.
>Well, okay. But we gotta find somewhere to eat and drink, unless you can magic those too.
The Wizard merely rolls his eyes and suddenly there’s a big hamper of fruit and what looks like salted meat in the back of your car.
>Ooookay. Uh. Can you tell me about this fuzzy feeling I got in the back of my eyes? I think I absorbed some of that power or something…
The Wizard looks a lot more interested in this and sticks his face right in yours, staring into your eyes.
“Yes… yes… You have not absorbed some of mine power, but your experiences have unlocked some of the latent energies hidden within you! Focus, mine apprentice, and choose what you wish to wield!”
He offers no explanation beyond that, so you close your eyes and try to think about what it is that you’ll be getting from this…
Current xp: 155/100xp
LEVEL UP: [Pick ONE]
>A new Mirror Ability (Blinding Light)
>A Magical Word of Power (AKR)
>An upgrade to Second Sight (Signs of Magic)
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>Second Sight Upgraded! Signs of Magic – You can see evidence of magic use and active magical enchantments. Appears as a glowing field of different colours around an object or person.
You blink, and your vision goes kaleidoscopic. Only for a moment though, before dying down into your normal sight. Except, for something in the Wizard’s palm. It is a little ring, a trifle really, but around it you can see a subtle blue glow that pulses steadily. The Wizard grins at you.
“Ye see it. Good. Thou cannot see enchantments hidden by deliberate artifice, and it will only tell ye that magic has been cast, and when, but not by whom. This is only the first part of thy abilities, and with more experience thou will grow to understand the mysteries of Magic. At least,” he says, scoffing to himself, “the mysteries for uninitiated minds like your own.”
Right. Because Wizards are so good at sharing knowledge. Your shrug your shoulders and turn to the car, only for the ground to suddenly shake. An Earthquake? Here? You’ve never-
“Ah. That would be the Master discovering his artifact has been lost. Time we were away, mine apprentice, and you, smelly hanger-on.”
Gene only looks crestfallen at the comment. You get into the car and put it into gear, speeding out of the carpark to several angry looks by passing bureaucrats. You’re about to ask the Wizard a question about your abilities, when there’s another rumble, a violent one, and you swerve hard to keep the car on the road. You look in the mirror and wonder why you can’t see anything behind you, before a sudden boom physically hits your car and nearly pushes you into the sidewalk.
You hit the brakes, hard, and only barely avoid hitting anything. Then you get out and look behind to see the flames and smoke. The Town Hall is gone. The eerie part is that it’s completely silent. Like watching a movie on mute. And then your ears start to ring, buzzing with noise, and as your hearing returns you begin to hear the car alarms and screams.
Gene is throwing up beside you, and even the Wizard looks pale. He says something, but you still can’t hear him. Then he waves his hand and the buzzing disappears, but the rest of the chaos, the noise, doesn’t, and you have to lean in to hear his horrified whisper.
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>>6424080
“He destroyed it. To demonstrate His power so openly… the barriers are breaking down sooner than I thought.”
>What just happened?
The Wizard looks at you, and for once he does not look mischievous or happy.
“The Master of Evil has struck a blow, punishing those who failed him. I had not expected Him to move so soon. We are in danger, mine apprentice, we must move. They will be after us soon.”
>Move where, who will be after us?
“His minions. Come, we must away, they will be swarming this place soon.”
You all get back in the car and begin driving. Your windscreen is cracked, and the radio is on the fritz, but at least it drives. You look to the Wizard as he strokes his beard. He says nothing at first, but once you are far away from the ruins of the Town Hall he begins speaking.
“We must find ourselves a place to hide, recuperate, and plan our next strike against the Evil. A place of significance, secure against danger. A place to train yourself, mine apprentice!”
“Um, excuse-
“It cannot be too open, yet must not be too obscure. It would not do to have the Evil’s minions catch us unawares. They cannot maintain a fair form for long in public-
“Uh, excuse me-
“A place that we may call our own. A fortress! Though I don’t suppose you have many of those here. A place of knowledge and sustenance! Like a pub. Or a library. Good choices, those.”
“Excuse me!”
You look in the mirror at Gene, and after a moment the Wizard sighs and turns around in his seat.
“Yes, little man?”
“I’m- I’m not little! And, I want to know when I’m getting a new pair of glasses! You promised to get me some.”
The Wizard rolls his eyes. “Did we? I hardly think-
>I did promise, yes. Look, Gene, I want to get your glasses too, but I think the Wizard is right that we need to find someplace to get organised first, and,
“You can use my house.”
>What?
“You can use my house. It’s in a nice neighborhood, and I don’t have a family so it’s private. I don’t know if it fits your needs, but it’s there. But only if you get me my glasses.”
You look at the Wizard, who seems annoyed. He mutters under his breath “It’s better to be a place of significance. This cretin will ruin me.” And then he shrugs.
"We are in thine carriage."
What will you do?
>Go to Gene’s house. He’s offering it for free. Though you’ll have to get him a pair of glasses ASAP.
>Go to the Scotsman. It’s a good bar, and you know the owner, Scot. He has an entire floor that he doesn’t use, something about an old curse.
>Go to the Town Library. You remember reading that the basement isn’t used for anything these days. Though, the librarian, by reputation, is a real hardass.
>Write in location.
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>>6424083
>Go to Gene’s house. He’s offering it for free. Though you’ll have to get him a pair of glasses ASAP.
At least we have a better chance of bullying him into submission than the librarian, and his place is (hopefully) 100% curse free.
And let's be real his glasses will be lurking where evil once again dwells: the mall, a dark temple to overconsumption
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>>6424083
>Go to the Scotsman. It’s a good bar, and you know the owner, Scot. He has an entire floor that he doesn’t use, something about an old curse.
It's a good bar, Scot is probably a normal person compared to Gene and the Wizard, Wizard seems to favor somewhat public places and our upgraded sight should be able to see whether there is an actual curse. Plus the Wizard might be able to break the curse if needed.
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>Okay. Let’s go to Gene’s. We did promise to get him his glasses.
You shoot a pointed look at the Wizard, who merely gives a loud Harumph! in response. You get the address from Gene, and head on over.
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>THAT’S your house?
You have to give it to Gene, his house is pretty nice. It’s in a nice, quiet neighbourhood with trees lining the footpaths, everything is clean and well kept, and the house itself is situated on a small hill, with a perfectly arranged garden out front.
>What is that you do again, Gene?
“I’m a researcher. In a laboratory. I never thought I’d actually be wielding magic… ”
Right. The pasty, nerdy type. You won’t judge.
You park in the driveway, and Gene leads you all to the front door. Once inside, you wander through the rooms, which are tastefully decorated, if a little kitsch. Gene shows you and the Wizard some spare rooms upstairs, and he briefly mentions getting some furniture before the Wizard waves his hands, and beds, cabinets, and all the other furniture you need appears in them with a Pop!
In the Wizard’s room is all manner of strange, presumably magical implements, and what you swear is a second door that wasn’t there before.
“It will do.” Is all he mutters.
Back downstairs, the Wizard wastes no time in flopping in front of the television and flipping through the channels. You wait for him to finish, but it looks like he’s staying put.
>Aren’t you coming?
He waves his hands at you in a shooing motion.
“No no, I must set up the wards, the enchantments, the spells that will hide and protect us from the Evil while thoust are gone. It will be done by thy return, have no worry."
You narrow your eyes, because you’re pretty sure he’s just being lazy, but you don’t know enough about magic to challenge him.
>What if we run into trouble while we’re there? There could be Evil about.
The Wizard merely shakes his head. “You can handle thineselves, ye have nothing to worry, now begone!”
He puts his palm up and you feel yourself almost blown through the house all the way back to your car. Gene gives you a look and shrugs. You sigh, and get in the car.
A little while later, after spending far too long in the car park, you get out and look upon the modern monument of unlimited and unconstrained capitalism, the Shopping Centre. It’s midday, and the crowds are thick and loud. You only hope that nobody else is having vision troubles today, because you’re already sick of it, and you’re not even inside.
>We’re after an optometrist, right?
“Yes, I know the place, just follow me and we’ll be back before that damned Wizard can curse my house.”
You shrug and follow Gene in.
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File: the mall.jpg (732.4 KB)
>>6425226
DUNGEON ENTERED: THE TEMPLE OF GLUTTONY
“What? This is terrible!”
The optometrist has closed for renovations. You had to read out the sign to Gene, because without his glasses he can hardly see.
>What now?
Gene is pacing in circles. “There’s another one on the other side of the mall but I’ve never been there and I don’t know the people or how well they grind the glass and this place was the specialist recommended to me by my doctor I don’t know what to do they seemed to be doing so well-
You mentally block him out while he rants. Once he calms down, you calmly suggest checking out the other optometrist, and set out. You walk for several minutes. Then several minutes more. Eventually, you end up at the same optometrist as before. You must have gotten lost. You quickly find a map of the store, and set out again. Several minutes later you’re back where you started.
>Hell.
“Would be an improvement.” Gene mutters.
You scratch your head. Something strange is going on here. Walking up to the window of the store you peer inside, and you feel your stomach drop when you do. The entire inside of the store is glowing, and it takes you a moment to realise that your Second Sight is at work.
What next?
>Investigate the shuttered optometrist. What kind of spell or magic got cast here?
>Damn this place. You’ll try and navigate your way out, eyes open for any enchantments while you do.
>You don’t know why, but you get the feeling you should use the Mirror. Maybe it’ll show you the true path?
>Write in.
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