[In and Out] The Call to Adventure (1.2)

WPTunes

You are fully back in the game, a few minutes later.

Man, this is crazy. A billion dollars! What do you think, can we do it? I don't think Eve would make it something only someone that's topped out and tricked out can deal with, do you?

Trevian, you know what city Jace lives in, you know her real name. Have you ever done any real searching to find out more about her? You mentioned that she might be hideous, ever tried to find a picture?

Rich

"We can do it, Jace. Eve isn't the kind of person to put out a high level challenge. It'll take a master of the game, someone who understands her. I mean, these things were her babies."

I've got the internet. I had cyber with this girl. As much as I'd like to say I'm above it, I totally looked for pics of her.

WPTunes

A new icon starts to shimmer in the middle of your field of vision, an iridescent multi-hued envelope turn around its diagonal axis.

Jace: Ooh! Something to poke!

You engage the icon and the following unfurls on your screen:

YOU ARE INVITED

TO THE UNVEILING

OF THE NEW QUEST

THE MAD DRAGON'S CROWN

AT THE SHORES OF GLASSHOLT

IN FIVE MINUTES.

Jace: I'm in the city, Abby. I can kick it into gear, get to the Shores and you can use the Clan 'port to join me. We'll be there in 30 seconds.

...and thirty seconds later, you're on the shore. Looks like everyone on your server is, the rendering engine somehow miraculously ensuring that your eye doesn't see overlap or glitches.

Abbadon, there is a shiver in the air above the Glass Sea, the barest hint of a mirage. After five minutes have passed, the soundtrack changes and you see thousands of your fellow adventurers cock their heads, listening.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOA4PGzP1xA

As the music swells, the mirage begins to take shape and solidity. Slowly, slowly, this appears, floating above the still waters:

Jace grabs your hand as you hear the collective sighs of thousands. "Oh. Abaddon..."

Rich

"That's.... that's something." I hold her hand tight as we marvel as the wonder of this. It's so much more real than anything before. Eve didn't hold back. I can't believe there's no lag, no jaggies... it's another world.

WPTunes

A voice booms out from the sky.

THE KEY TO THE CASTLE IS THE MAD DRAGON'S CROWN. THE FIRST TO FIND AND DEFEAT RAZETH THE MAD, AND WEAR HIS CROWN, SHALL BE OWNER AND POSSESSOR OF THE SKY CASTLE AND ALL IT CONTAINS.

Jace says, "Abby, I've never heard of Razeth the Mad, and I'm certain I've read all the lore, especially the Dragonlore."

TO FIND RAZETH, YOU MUST OVERCOME MANY CHALLENGES AND STUDY DEEP OF THE LORE OF MANY WORLDS. AND THOUGH ONLY ONE CAN GAIN THE FINAL PRIZE, REMEMBER: THOSE FRIENDS THOU HAST, AND THEIR ADOPTION TRIED, GRAPPLE THEM UNTO THY SOUL WITH HOOPS OF STEEL.

And then the voice ends. The castle hangs in the sky, and despite the words you've heard, you see many adventurers with winged mounts try to fly up to it, only to flash out of existence when they get close.

"That's it? There must be a clue there somewhere. Right? None of it sounded like lore to me."

Rich

"The hoops of steel part," I tell Jace quietly, still holding her hand, "That's from Hamlet."

I look over at her, "It means, more of less, keep your longtime friends close. Like.. well, like you." I offer her a smirk.

WPTunes

Toons begin to pop out of sight, players logging off to research and plan.

"You bet your ass, like me, Abby." She squeezes your hand.

So, what was it like, in the Red Light District? Oh, and tell me, what's that technology like these days? Pretty sophisticated, or just voice and video and the basic haptics?

"Hmm... 'Hamlet' isn't lore either. What's the context? Who says it, maybe? Or who to? Or... where are they saying it? Just looking for a connection that tells us where to go in the world."

The castle spins, slowly, in the sky, a challenge and a mystery and a thing of beauty.

Jace switches to the headset to speak. Umm, hey... I'm going to be at Chapel Hill in about a week, looking at the Vet School. Is that, uh, close to you?

Rich

"It's Polonius giving advice to his son Laertes before he left Denmark." I answer her question about Hamlet. I find myself staring at the floating castle again, for too long. This is the stuff that got me into TSol.

When she switches to headset, I do, too, "Chapel Hill? You mean UNC? That's a hop, skip and a jump from me, Jace. You wanna, uhm, meet up? Or something?"

Rich

So, what was it like, in the Red Light District? Oh, and tell me, what's that technology like these days? Pretty sophisticated, or just voice and video and the basic haptics?

The default "suit" doesn't include feedback in the, you know, private areas. There's aftermarket stuff for that, if it's your thing. However, if you're creative, well... not so long ago there were vibrator games for the XBox controller, so well, you get my drift, right?

Long story short, there's some sensation of touching someone else, but they don't "feel" it outside of hands and face, so there's a good bit of imagination and "talking" through it. It's fun, don't get me wrong. And Jace has a very creative little mind. Devious.

Since it was a kind of "in game reward" type of thing, followed up by some more "special time", but then the Raid Season picked up and we just fell back into old habits. I met Jessi, and well, neither of us talked about it again.

Of course, her question about Chapel Hill makes me think about it again.

WPTunes

Jace's toon holds up a single finger.

Hang on a sec. Checking my lore database.

After a moment, she says, "Okay, nothing for Hamlet, Polonius, or Laertes, but there are three 'Danish-inspired' locations in TSol. There's a statue of a little mermaid, here in Glassholt. Why's that Danish? That fun amusement park on High Island is modeled after Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, and there's an abandoned Dwarven castle in the Tooth and Claw Mountains called Helsingør, after a real place in Denmark." You're still holding hands, she gives yours a squeeze. "How long do you have before work?"

Rich

"I can make a run, maybe two. Want to swing by the statue first, then portal to High Island? If I run out of time, you can solo Helsinger, right? Or hook up with Bloo, he should be on soon." I'm still holding her hand. Man, it's been a long time since we...

I think Jessi has a shift tonight.

WPTunes

The statue is in the harbor of Glassholt, ten feet out from the shoreline. There is a legend inscribed on the stone base:

The Little Mermaid
Hans Christian Andersen

Apparently, you're not the only ones that decided to take a look, there's a bunch of people around, but it seems you're ahead of the curve, as there aren't as many as you expected.

Someone jumps in and swims out to the statue, and a dozen more follow pretty much immediately. There's something of a festival atmosphere, people splashing and laughing.

What do you do?

Rich

"Screencap it, okay?" I ask Jace to do that while I swim out there, too. I mean, why not, right? It's so close.

WPTunes

On it.

Abaddon, you join the crowd of swimmers. Despite the numbers, it seems everyone can get to a vantage point to see it clearly and up-close. When you get close enough, you can hear that the statue is humming the same haunting tune you heard when the Castle appeared.

Your eye sees no obvious affordances, no way to interact with the statue. There are no inscriptions other than the call-out to the Danish fairy-tale author. Usually, though, quests in TSol don't have flat-out dead ends.

You back off a bit, then take advantage of the statue pulling the attention of your fellow adventurers to dive down into the water, seeking the base of the rock formation. Your Cloak of Bubbling Breath allows you to move and breathe freely as you approach.

And there, at last, twelve feet down on the floor of the harbor, is what you were hoping to see, something to do.

What is it? A switch? A handprint? A series of buttons that need to be pushed in a certain order? Something else? And, what do you do?

Rich

It's a switch!

"Jace! I found a hidden switch. It has to be new, right? I'm going to flip it." As long as she doesn't bring up some lore or hint to say no, I'm doing it. I'll wait about two seconds.

WPTunes

Dooo eet! But we need to have a quick talk after, okay?

You flip the switch, and suddenly find yourself in a round, comfortably appointed chamber, standing on a thick carpet covered in a pattern of flowers that catches your eye.

A familiar figure materializes before you and begins to speak.

"Rosemary and pansies, since you seem interested, Abaddon. And welcome. You are the seventh adventurer to find me here, among the entirety of the world of Twilight Solstice. Congratulations! This is not the place you seek, but you are on the right path."

The image smiles sweetly. "I loved it as a child, growing up right along the lake. We had a little dock and a boat, and there was a pair of Clark's grebes that mated every year near our dock."

She reaches out and opens up her hand, palm-up. Lying on the palm is a small lozenge. "For an emergency, since you were one of the first. Consume this, and you will be brought here, and I will answer one question."

Once you take the lozenge, the room fades out and you are back at the bottom of Glassholt Harbor.

What do you do?

Rich

"Jace! I just got a message from Eve! We're on the right track. Thanks for the tip on the statue. Okay, here's what she said. She mentioned rosemary and pansies, said she grew up near a lake with a dock and a boat with a couple grebes, which I think are birds? Something there."

I pocket the lozenge and start heading up. If Jace doesn't have something, we can portal to High Island.

WPTunes

The second part's easy. Eve grew up in Lake Elsinore, California. The first thing, I don't know. Looking up the city now. Are you swimming fast?

Abaddon, you emerge from the water back at the shoreline, and you notice other adventurers noticing you. Suddenly, there is a flurry of diving.

As you get to Jace, "So, another Eve sighting? Hey, before we go any farther, let's go to a conroom, talk a bit while I dig into Lake Elsinore. Cool?"

Rich

"Elsinore," I repeat, "Like Hamlet's castle! Yeah, let's grab a room." I'l follow her to the closest conroom.

WPTunes

You find yourself in a comfortable room with two armchairs, facing a flickering fire. A decanter of dark fortified wine sits on the small table between you and Jace, with cut-glass goblets empty on the tray with it.

"Benefits of membership," Jace says, as she pours twice an raises her glass.

"So, if we're going to work together on this. We are going to work together, yes? We should have some binding agreement. I'm better with lore and research, I think, and you're better at the actual game, and I bet your intuition's better than mine. You ready to sign a contract? 50/50? With an escape clause if the Guild comes up with something better. Which they won't."

Rich

I take my glass, but I don't yet raise it with hers. I'm holding it in my hands, looking at her for a moment, "We've always been a good team, Jace. Maybe we should talk about who we are before we come to a binding agreement over a billion plus dollars, yeah? I trust you in game, but this... is a whole 'nother level. You know?"

WPTunes

Jace takes in your words. "Okay, how about this. We make an agreement to share anything either of us finds between now and next week when we meet in person. Make any further decisions then. Do you have a car?"

Rich

I give a little laugh, "Jace, I mean, like real names and stuff. That way we know who's who and all that." I think for a moment, "My name is Trevian Marks. I live in the Research Triangle, so Mars Hill is like half an hour away from me. I work at a fondue restaurant and live with a couple roomies in a decent place, but nothing special. I have a car, most of the time. But it breaks. Alot." Some of this she knows, some she might have picked up. None of it has even been said out loud, offered up. This is probably no biggie to anyone else, but it is to me.

WPTunes

"Oh! Well, I'm Regina Cooper. I graduated from Davenport University in Lansing, Michigan last December, and I'm applying for Veterinary schools. Um. I'm working as a vet tech right now. I actually liked college, and, well you know I have a cat, and... okay, this is me and Jack Aubrey." A message icon appears in your field of vision, and when you engage it, this is what you see:

Rich

Shit. She's cute. I had no idea. She really does love that cat, hunh. She doesn't care that someone's taking her pic when her hair doesn't look fixed, that's pretty cool. Fake eyelashes and tweezes her brows, weird, so she must go out sometimes. She looks a little skinny, I think?

I offer my glass, "For this quest, Lady Cooper. We're partners."

WPTunes

She giggles at "Lady Cooper," then raises her glass to toast you back. "To us! And a gazillion dollars." She unfolds from her chair and comes to stand next to you. "I'll find some boilerplate we can sign, okay? But for now, how about we seal this deal with a kiss?" You've got five minutes left in the conference room before the in-game charges start accumulating.

What do you do?

Rich

Seeing as how her toon looks like an elf-y version of her, I'm happy to oblige. They're recently upgraded some of the facial haptic, so you can feel things, sort of. Enough to enjoy it and pretend. I stand and move over to her, pulling my red mask down, as well as my hood back. Man, I wear alot of clothes!

I place my left hand on her hip, my right comes up to cup her cheek, and even though it's been a long while since I kissed her, or anyone for that matter, in game, I move in to do so. I like looking down into her green eyes. I feel it, in my meat body, the way I respond to her, these stimuli, this moment. I move forward to kiss her, hoping to bloody hell that Jake and Tandy aren't in the room anymore. Because it's totally obvious what I'm doing.

WPTunes

The kiss is fun, of course, but you're all too aware that the haptics are just, well, haptics. After a few seconds, Jace breaks off. "Oh! Lake Elsinore's sister city is Helsingør, in Denmark. That's where Hamlet's castle was. Just a different spelling. You have time to take the trip? We can 'port to the mountains, but it'll probably still take 10 to reach the castle."

Rich

When Jace pulls back from the kiss, I don't move away right off. I tell her, "You're really pretty IRL, Gina." I check the clock in my HUD. I've got half an hour. I might be a little late. "Yeah, let's do it."

I mean, no do it do it. If I get this money, I won't need this job anyway.

WPTunes

"You'll have to send me a pic sometime, Trev." Jace winks.

You head to the portal and make your way through the Tooth and Claw mountains to Helsingør, the abandoned Dwarven stronghold. It sits atop a high plateau, splendid and forbidding.

There a few dozen other adventurers, either already gathered or moving toward the castle as you do. One of those is your "nemesis," Abaddon, a Phoenix that has been a thorn in your side forever. Who is it, and what was the most recent offense?

Rich

Roddik.

See, Roddik used to be Dragon, and we formed up a clan together with endy. This was back during 1.1 days, when it was all visor and lo-fi, man. We got into a scrap on the Halls of Antaeroth loot. The loot system was a free-for-all then and Roddik wanted to complete his blue set of armor. He up and ganked me and endy both, snagged all the loot and swapped paths.

I hate Roddik sooooo much. He rubs it in my face every damn time, he still wears that armor. I didn't even WANT it. I'm a Rogue.

I speak into headset, no way I'm letting Roddick hear this. "Jace, help me look for Clark's grebes. I think they're birds? Or a dock by the lake, she mentioned that. But the birds seem more important."

WPTunes

You hear an excited intake of breath. "Behind the castle, at your 3 o'clock!"

Jace starts to point, but stops herself.

There, framed against mountains, you see:

What do you do?

Rich

"Let's play it cool until Roddik is gone." I look towards the 3 o'clock, but I continue to scan, not pausing on the birds. Sweet!

I pause like I'm in my inventory menu, playing it casual, "So, Jace. Had to seal the deal with a kiss, huh? You been to Red Light since we uh... ? Were there?" Wow, horrible dismount, Trev.

WPTunes

"Don't you know? I run a TSol escort service called Dirty Toons." She laughs. "Yeah, no I haven't. I save that for special occasions."

Roddik moves toward the castle entrance and disappears inside. The birds have dipped down lower and appear to be about to land.

Rich

"Yeah? Well, it was special for me, too."

When Roddik disappears, I motion with my head, "Let's go, Jace." I'll lead her to where we saw the birds heading to land, equipping my throwing daggers, just in case.

WPTunes

You make your way to the spot, and find a large pond. Despite the flock that you saw, only one bird is paddling about in the water.

"It's pretty, don't you think? What do you think we're supposed to do?"

Trevian, you hear an alert from the affirmation/alarm app on your phone.
Time to leave for work. You rock, Trevian! You're going to do great!

What do you do?

Rich

"She mentioned a pair of them, Jace. There's only one." I answer her, trying to think of what we should do. Then the alarm happens, "Shit, Gina. I have to go to work like now. Can you check on mating for these guys? Maybe we can circle back tonight. I'll check in when I get off."

I'll say my goodbyes, then log off and prep for work.

WPTunes

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