Thietris Professor Thietris Squirrel, CEO,
President and Managing Director, Institution of Advanced Exploration
of Myst Worlds
posted
Bizzy, she hasn't arrived yet. Perhaps
she hasn't checked her answering machine. Perhaps she
chose to ignore my message. Perhaps she wasn't taken in
by my Zandi voice. (Unlikely.) Perhaps ... we're already
too late. That's it, isn't it? I can tell by your face.
We're too late!
Anywho... back to Speedy, Grassie, and
Dr. Warrell.
The badger image kept on repeating
the same poem over and over again: Secret
surprises what you seek Ponder powerfully, you may
peak Into corners, cupboards, closets
galore Exciting, excelling, ready to
explore? "Well, yes, I am ready to explore!"
chimed Grassie. "Me too... but what do we do now?"
asked Speedy. "Is there a go button?" asked Dr.
Warrell, "or at least something that could mean
yes?" "Hrm... green usually does in the real world,
but in this keypad, blue means play/pause," Speedy
said. "Press it and see what happens," said
Grassie. Speedy pressed the blue button. Nothing
immediately happened... the badger continued to say a
poem... "Hang on! The poem!" said Grassie. "What
about it?" asked Speedy. "It changed! Listen to it!"
Grassie said. "huh?" asked Dr. Warrell and
Speedy. The badger says: Surprises what you
seek Ponder, you may peak Into cupboards, closets
galore Exciting, ready to explore? "Oh, I hear
it! This time, it omitted a word from each line!" said
Dr. Warrell excitingly. "Wow, you're right... and
interesting enough, it omitted one of the words that was
alliterated," Speedy said. "Hrm... so it was three
words per line that had the same beginning sound," Dr.
Warrell pondered aloud. "And when we hit the blue
button once, one of each group was gone," Grassie
continued. "Let's see what happens when we hit it
again..." Speedy commented as she hit the
button. "Wait!" said Dr. Warrell, but it was too
late. Speedy pressed the button. Now, the badger
says: What you seek You may peak Into
cupboards galore Ready to explore? "Woah!"
Grassie said. "Process of elimination!" Speedy said
cheerfully. "But what are we finding?" asked Dr.
Warrell. "Who knows? Probably a linking book of some
sorts... and it sounds like it is in a cupboard,"
Grassie said. "What else is in this basement,
Grassie? Do you know?" asked Speedy. "Well, there
were a bunch of closets, bookcases, and cupboards down
here... as well as tables and a desk or two," Grassie
said. "Sounds like a writing area," said
Speedy. "A Writer?" asked Dr. Warrell. "Yes,
probably someone from the Guild of Writers. I wonder
Grassie if we can go around and try to open the
cupboards, since that is what the badger is telling us
to do,..." Speedy said. "Well, don't you think some
of them may be boobytrapped?" asked Dr. Warrell. "If
they are, then it is a chance that we are going to have
to make," Grassie said. "But Speedy, you're right. Let's
check this room out anyways. You and Dr. Warrell take
the left area, I will check the desk and right
area," "Sounds fine to me," said Speedy. "Come on
Warrell," Speedy said as she left the podium. Grassie
snuck off to the right. Warrell, a little confused,
followed Speedy, but in the process, banged his knee on
the podium. "BLOODY HELL!" Warrell shouted. "You
ok?" Speedy asked. "I'll live..." he whinced as he
limped after the bird.
Studying gives you
knowledge. Knowledge is power. Power corrupts. I am
learning how to be corrupt.
Grizz has been putting Cordelia's
cleaning supplies in a shopping bag. Veronica stands
staring from Grizz to Cordelia and back, a look of
complete shock on her face. She opens her mouth, but
before she can say anything, Grizz hangs the bag of
supplies on one hand, and slaps Veronica's free hand
onto Cordelia's Relto book, snatching his away before he
can link too.
Grizz looks a little thoughtful as
Veronica vanishes. He smiles a little ruefully at
Cordelia.
"Ya know," he says, "it would be a real
good idea to check in on her now and then. There ain't a
mean bone in that girl's body, but she could trip on her
own shadow. And I just hope all your books are locked up
tight!"
_______________________________ Prop.
D'ni Internal Supply Co. "If we don't have it, you
don't need it!"
"Gosh Grizz, you have a very good point
there. As it happens she may very well just find a way
to access one or two of them. I'd better get on over
there and check on her in a little while, just to make
sure she's still working"
Cordelia
eyes the pot of coffee that Grizz has on the go along
with the plate of Fig Newtons.
"Do you mind if I
just....?" she asks, pointing to the pot. "I could
really do with a nice mug full and a sit
down."
Grizz smiles and nods his
head.
"You know Grizz, if ever you don't feel
like cooking breakfast, there is always something on the
go in the Egg Room - Kestryll keeps it well stocked and
there's a great variety along with fresh coffee on the
go the whole time."
Cordelia Personal
Assistant to Professor Thietris Squirrel, CEO,
President and Managing Director, Institution of
Advanced Exploration of Myst Worlds
Bizzy avoided the Professor's worried eyes. Instead, he
watched his feet as he responded. "It does look that
way. I've never heard tell of an explorer returning once
the image in the Gnome Tome goes black and swirly. I
suppose there's always hope that it could happen
..."
But there was no sign of hope in the
expression on Bizzy's face.
Veronica stood where she linked for a
very long time with her mouth open. "Why I...I can't
believe...What do I look like, a housemaid?!" Looking
down at the bag in her hand, she hauls it across the
room, but being filled with feather dusters, it does not
have the satisfying smack against the wall that she was
hoping for.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I'm no
longer a danger to
society. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Falling Burro takes off through the
tunnel at a fast-paced trot (for a burro) and Elkae is
forced to give chase. "Hey! Come back here with my
stuff!" Anxious to keep up with FB, Elkae outruns the
light of the fire marble and trips head-first over
something in the shadows. "Oooooooft!" She rolls over,
sits up and shines the light at her feet. What she sees
is another kachina doll.
Badger Kachina
For some reason, Elkae
just doesn't like badgers. She gets to her feet, raises
one leg to smash Badger with her foot and remembers to
check the Kachina Dictionary
first.
Badger, or Honan, is the greatest and
most powerful healing kachina. He is a master with
all herbs and roots. He is also thought to be
instrumental in bringing good luck for the
harvest.
"Well of all the ..." she growls.
"Good thing I didn't hurt him." Grudgingly, she lifts
Badger and puts him in the black bag next to Bear.
"Let's see just how powerful you are." She looks down at
the tiny drops of blood forming on her knees and begins
to chant, "Badger, Badger, Badger, Badger…"
When
she snaps out of it, she resumes pursuit of Falling
Burro.
Almech wanders through the Institution,
looking for any work that might need to be done. In the
end, he decides its time to put the crowbar he bought to
good use and links to Kirel.
Veronica had grudgingly begun to dust
the shelves on Cordelia's Relto. "I don't see why I
should have to clean her Relto. I apologized,
didn't I?" At that moment she realized that whereas she
had apologized to Grizz, she had not apologized to
Thietris or to Cordelia for that matter. She sincerely
hoped that Grizz would not realize this as well. She
thought she had eaten enough humble pie for one
week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I'm no longer a
danger to
society. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Somewhere deep beneath the surface of
the earth ...
Elkae follows Falling Burro,
paying attention to the curious drawings on the cave
walls. One specific figure is repeated at regular
intervals.
It's the image of Kokopelli and it seems to be
leading the way. Until now, there'd been no other
passage to follow so Kokopelli's presence seemed more
decorative than functional. But here, just ahead, is a
fork in the cavern passage and it's impossible for Elkae
to tell which path FB has taken (she flunked "Tracking
101"). Gut instinct tells her to follow
Kokopelli.
She ventures down the right passage a
few yards and doesn't see any drawings so she turns back
and takes the left passage for about the same distance.
Just as she is about to panic, she spots the
flute-playing figure and knows (or hopes) she is on the
right path--just as she also hopes this is the path the
burro has taken.
Having sat with Grizz for some time,
discussing Veronica and various other issues, Cordelia
decided that it might be time to go and check up on her
new home help.
"Thanks for the coffee and the
biscuits Grizz, I'm just going back to my Relto to see
how she's getting on".
Grizz, knowing full well
that this was an excellent idea, nodded his head and
waved to Cordelia as she linked out.
Arriving
back in her Relto she was surprised to see Veronica
sitting on the floor, no dusting done whatsoever.
Various books from the shelf were scattered over the
floor and Veronica seemed to be trying to make up her
mind where to go first.
Cordelia cleared her
throat, making Veronica jump up with a
start.
"What exactly do you think you are doing?"
Cordelia asked "You are supposed to be doing the
dusting. Oh and I believe you have something you want to
say to me."
Cordelia Personal
Assistant to Professor Thietris Squirrel, CEO,
President and Managing Director, Institution of
Advanced Exploration of Myst Worlds
After trudging (fully clothed) through the dark
passageways for what seemed like days, Kokopelli leads
her to Falling Burro. Relieved to see him, she strokes
his mane and speaks his name softly. He seems perfectly
calm now. "So what was it that spooked you, old
fella?"
The fact that most animals couldn't speak
never stopped Elkae from talking to them. FB had no
response to her question other than to shake his head,
roll his eyes, and paw at the rocks beneath his feet.
But that reaction was communication enough. Elkae looked
around her and tried to comprehend the unfolding
scene.
Almech links into Kirel and glances at
the imager. No Sharper. Relieved, he approaches one of
the private rooms.
"The Institution doors were
easy to open, but I doubt that the DRC left the doors so
easily openable." He said to himself as he began to pry
the door open.
As Elkae's eyes adjusted to the light,
the soft sound of Yeesha's voice began to echo through
the cave.
Shorah, Explorer. You have come to
the end of the calling and of the journey: that of the
least, that of the unproud, that of the burro. The D'ni
and those that followed never understood. Yet here you
are, standing in the sacred cave. You have completed
your calling and your journey. But because you did not
finish within the appointed time limit, you must remain.
Here you will join your ancestors and become one with
them and they will teach you the Mystery of the Burro
Cave.
As for you, human, you should never have
come. You have touched the Linkin Log … but you were
never called. Still, here you are. So be it. You can be
of service to the burro. Take the sacred kachina before
you and return it to the city. It does not belong in
this place. It belongs to the world of humans. Display
it. It will bring you much joy and
happiness.
Elkae bent down, picked up the
kachina doll and placed it in her black bag without even
looking at it.
Good. Now remove the burdens
from your burro friend. You must take all these things
which pertain to the human world and pass through the
void. You may repeat what you have seen and heard here,
but do not attempt to return. The opening you found will
again be sealed so that no living thing may pass.
Shorah.
Elkae turned to Falling Burro, gave
him a big hug around the neck, thanked him for his
service and wished him luck. With her black bag over her
shoulder and a saddlebag in each hand, Elkae paused for
a moment then made the leap. The thought of where she
would land had not yet crossed her
mind.
***
Something black and purple fell from above and landed
with a rather large splash in the middle of the orange
lake. Bizzy just happened to be looking in that
direction.
"Mayday!!! Mayday!!!" shouted the
little gnome as he ran willy-nilly through the
Institution looking for
help.
Veronica jumped with a start when
Cordelia linked in, never expecting to be followed. She
stood up and with a defiant air she stated, "You bet I
have something to say to you, this place is a mess!
Don't they have room service here?" Cordelia continued
to stare Veronica down until the girl mumbled, "I was
going to get to it eventually." As Veronica began to
dust without much enthusiasm, Cordelia put her hands on
her hips and said, "Was there something else?" Veronica
turned around to face Cordelia, all the while waving the
duster around, sending the dust back into the air and
causing Cordelia to go into a sneezing fit. "Um, nothing
I can think of at the moment. Why do you
ask?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I'm no longer a
danger to
society. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thietris Professor Thietris Squirrel, CEO,
President and Managing Director, Institution of Advanced Exploration
of Myst Worlds
posted
Professor T has called a meeting. He
is in a sombre mood.
Ladies and gentlemen ...
Many of you will recall our esteemed colleague, Dr
Elkae, who performed some superb research work for us in
the past. You will remember, for example, her bravery in
investigating those curious creatures in Eder Kemo, and
the dedication and seriousness with which she undertook
her work. For reasons beyond my control, she was not
able to join us here at the Institution. It is my sad
duty to inform you, dear colleagues, that she is ...
trapped in a Gnome Tome.
This isn't quite what
the staff were expecting to here. Bemused faces with
knitted brows stare up at the professor. He attempts to
explain what Bizzy had told him about the calling, the
Linkin Log, and the image in the book.
So,
friends, if any of you ever receive a calling, I would
implore you not to act upon it. It is simply not worth
the risk. In the meantime, we must not give up hope of
recovering Elkae from her prison. If any of you feel
able to undertake research in this area, I would be most
pleased to hear from you. You would also need to consult
with my er, garden gnome, Bizzy, who is the expert in
this field. I must emphasize, however, that he is not
optimistic. And so I -
Bizzy tries frantically to explain what he had seen but
he isn't getting through. Finally, in desperation, Bizzy
grabs the Professor by the paw and drags him out of the
common room, down the stairs and over to the
Institution's balcony. "She's there! There. Right out
there!" he mutters without specificity but trying to
point to the area between the two groups of small
islands.
Meanwhile Elkae, hopelessly tangled in the
baggage she carries, struggles to stay afloat. She is
not smart enough (or willing enough) to let go of
them.
Experimental Program
1
Supplier of umbrellas to the D'ni for
Centuries.
Bizzy avoided the Professor's worried eyes. Instead, he
watched his feet as he responded. "It does look that
way. I've never heard tell of an explorer returning once
the image in the Gnome Tome goes black and swirly. I
suppose there's always hope that it could happen
..."
Elkae
