From mrhyde@netcom.com Wed Dec 14 02:05:16 1994 Date: Tue, 13 Dec 1994 16:31:55 -0800 (PST) From: "Mr. Hyde" To: Beware the other head of Science! Subject: HouseStorming 1/3 Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!csus.edu!decwrl!decwrl!uunet!uchinews!ellis!djb6 From: djb6@ellis.uchicago.edu (Dennis Brennan) Subject: [HouseStorming]: Lurker in the Shadows Message-ID: <1993Sep19.034432.22488@midway.uchicago.edu> Sender: news@uchinews.uchicago.edu (News System) Reply-To: djb6@midway.uchicago.edu Organization: University of Chicago Date: Sun, 19 Sep 1993 03:44:32 GMT Lines: 21 Of late Artifice had amused himself by lurking in shadows around Generica- secreting himself and observing the activities of the City of Fountains' more nefarious residents. From time to time he would interfere in their villainy by incapacitating the ne'er-do-wells or (more often) by pre-empting the act with an atrocity of his own. Increasingly, Artifice would select a perfectly innocent victim to torment and harrass for a time- breaking things and committing small acts of mischief. To break up the monotony, he would engage in homicide. In the Dragon's Inn one crisp autumn day Artifice spied a notice announcing a strange sort of housewarming party. Interested, Artifice studied the notice and wondered whether this occasion could satiate his strange appetite for fear and confusion... ADMIN: Andrea, lost your address. Got room for a villain? -- Dennis Brennan djb6@midway.uchicago.edu Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!uunet!mnemosyne.cs.du.edu!nyx!cmeadows From: cmeadows@nyx.cs.du.edu (Chris Meadows) Subject: [ADMIN] [AU] [HouseStorming] Thread Entry Now CLOSED Message-ID: <1993Oct10.013500.19232@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> Sender: usenet@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu (netnews admin account) Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix @ U. of Denver Math/CS dept. Date: Sun, 10 Oct 93 01:35:00 GMT Lines: 47 Hi! Andrea here; Chris asked me to go ahead and make this post; he's concerned about people who want to be in the HouseStorming. So far, we've received either interest or committment from the following people: aaron@gsb003.cs.ualberta.ca (Humphrey Aaron V) wolvie@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (christopher motherway) arsmith@lamar.ColoState.EDU (Alan Smith) Spider Boardman - USG/bossec Humphrey Aaron V Damian Blackthorn Michael Sander <344LWKC@CMUVM.smsu.edu> corleyj@GAS.uug.Arizona.EDU (Jason D Corley ) Heather Loresch ...as well as most of the various authors on the [MG] author server: Hutch, Penny, Liralen, Kelly, (the other) Andrea, Colin, Bernie, etc. (you know who you are). We would like to close off admission to the thread at this point. If you've emailed us already about it and we left you out, please send us a message as quickly as possible. Also, if you are feeling somewhat overawed by the number of others who will probably be coming along and wish to pull out, we'll understand...just drop us an Ether-mail Oh, that's right, Sheryl. It's "Electronic" mail on this plane. Silly me; I keep forgetting. Anyway, just tell us about it. In a few days from now, we'll have Colin set up a list server for those [AU] authors who remain. This will provide a way for us to communicate and get the thread together, via email. The way it will work, I'm told, is that you will send email to one address, and it will be distributed to the addresses of all the people on the server. A convenient utility, especially for a venture of this...magnitude. Remember, any questions you might have about this venture, just send to us and we'll answer them as soon as we can. Thanks, and we'll be seeing you again in a few days! ---Andrea & Sheryl Creative Consultants and Characters-at-Large, [AU] thread -- Chris Meadows | Robotech/RIFTS/Palladium fanfic author/editor CHM173S@SMSVMA | They Might Be Giants about Star Trek aliens: CHM173S@VMA.SMSU.EDU | "Everybody wants prosthetic foreheads CMEADOWS@NYX.CS.DU.EDU | on their real heads!" Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!uunet!mnemosyne.cs.du.edu!nyx!cmeadows From: cmeadows@nyx.cs.du.edu (Chris Meadows) Subject: Re: [ADMIN] [AU] [HouseStorming] Thread Entry Now CLOSED Message-ID: <1993Oct10.014032.19507@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University of Denver for the Denver community. The University has neither control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users. Sender: usenet@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu (netnews admin account) Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept. References: <1993Oct10.013500.19232@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> Date: Sun, 10 Oct 93 01:40:32 GMT Lines: 9 Correction: I said "those [AU] authors who remain." I should have said "those [HouseStorming] authors who remain." -- Chris Meadows | Robotech/RIFTS/Palladium fanfic author/editor CHM173S@SMSVMA | They Might Be Giants about Star Trek aliens: CHM173S@VMA.SMSU.EDU | "Everybody wants prosthetic foreheads CMEADOWS@NYX.CS.DU.EDU | on their real heads!" Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!concert!news-feed-2.peachnet.edu!umn.edu!CSM560.smsu.edu!vma.smsu.edu!CHM173S From: CHM173S@vma.smsu.edu (Chris Meadows) Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Subject: [AU] [HouseStorming] [Synopsis] Date: Mon, 11 Oct 93 14:47:28 CDT Organization: Steve & Penny Hutchison Fan Club Lines: 476 Message-ID: <16C64D000.CHM173S@vma.smsu.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: vma.smsu.edu Summary: Comprehensive synopsis of [AU]/[HouseStorming] threads Keywords: [AU] [HouseStorming] synopsis complete and comprehensive X-Newsreader: NNR/VM S_1.3.2 This is the first version of the comprehensive synopsis of the entire [AU] thread. It will be updated as the thread progresses, and I'll try to post it every so often. I also plan to ask mrhyde@netcom.com to archive it along with the FAQs and things. It is my hope that authors of other threads will also develop comprehensive synopses such as this one and post them regularly. Such synopses will be invaluable aids to those people who are new to this group. Comments are always welcome... ------------------------------ [AU] -- Andrea & Unicorn Thread Synopsis Version 10/11/93 Covering all events in the alt.pub.dragons-inn [AU] thread from its conception on 3/8/93 to the present day, 10/11/93. (NOTE: All dates used herein are in the USA format of MM/DD/YY.) DEDICATION: This synopsis is dedicated to all the authors on the [MG] thread list server, and to all the others who have worked with me on the [AU] thread. Also, to my brother Aaron, who might just become a Dragon's Inn author when he gets to college. ----- As I've said, it is my belief that it would be a Good Idea for us to synopsize our threads The following is my synopsis. Naturally, I would rather you actually read my deathless prose :), but that not being possible, this is probably the best you can do. "Deathless prose my left--" Andrea, do you mind? "Not very well." AHEM. Anyway, the following is, I hope, a pretty good synopsis of the [AU] (Andrea & Unicorn) thread up to the present day. I may have gotten a few things slightly wrong, or glossed over a few events, but it should be fairly representative of what's gone on so far. Please note that I have mainly followed the [AU] thread and only touched upon other involved threads where they are directly related. "Chris?" Yes, Andrea? "You talk too much. Just get ON with it!" I'm coming to that...Hey, where are--Oh, there they are. Hey, Jay, Sheryl, get the SPOILER warning from the rec.arts.startrek.current file, would you? Ah, thanks. Here we go... WARNING: There are SPOILERS ahead for the [AU] thread on alt.pub.dragons-inn. If you would rather read the whole [AU] thread in its entirety and not have the story spoiled for you, go ahead and press "n" now. We won't hold it against you. However, if you're more realistic about your prospects of reading the entire 900K or so thing, then just go ahead and read this synopsis. >Whinny!< Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me, Sheryl. To receive the entire story of [AU] (or most of it, anyway), email mrhyde@netcom.com and ask him to send you everything with the [AU] thread identifier in the header. Other threads that are tangent include [Jiri] and [Kardia], if you want to read them too, and I also recommend the complete [MG] thread if you have a few extra weeks of reading time. Okay, Andrea, toss me that Control-P...okay, thanks. Last chance...spoilers ahead! Andrea and Sheryl arrived on a ship in the Generican harbor, pursued by cutthroat sailors who wanted Sheryl's horn. They managed to evade the sailors and find their way to the Dragon's Inn, where they met 'Raelf and ar'Elya, who had come to the Inn to pick up their free lunch. They talked for a bit, and then Andrea saw an announcement on the bulletin board pertaining to Raoh, which triggered an emotional collapse. 'Raelf got a room at the Inn for Andrea, and noticed the locket around her neck as he was tucking her in. The locket contained pictures of Andrea about ten years younger, and a young blonde-haired girl. The next morning, Andrea and Sheryl found their way up to the Mages' Guild to thank 'Raelf, and look for a possible solution to a "problem" concerning Sheryl. They were sighted by Kadrys, who was rather interested to see a unicorn, on the way. 'Raelf scanned Sheryl, and promised to show up at suppertime with the results. Andrea thanked him, then she and Sheryl left. They stopped briefly at the Generican Library to see what it had on unicorn lore, then Andrea got directions at the Dragon's Inn to find the Low City Market. Leaving Sheryl at the Inn, Andrea went shopping. On the way, Andrea was accosted by a would-be mugger named Callus. She easily bested him and marched him into the Low City market in his underthings. After this, she spent some time shopping and returned to the Dragon's Inn before suppertime. While working on fixing up some of the slightly damaged goods she'd gotten in the Low City at bargain prices, a rather large feline humanoid named Kyhra walked up to the table and asked if Andrea would be his guide. She replied that she was new there herself, at which the cat-man laughed and said very well, they could explore the city together. Andrea liked him and consented. Next, 'Raelf and ar'Elya showed up, and 'Raelf displayed the results of his scan to Andrea while ar'Elya and Kyhra shared a dance. The results: a very potent curse on Sheryl had all but eliminated her original shape-identity, replacing it with that of a unicorn. The magic curse still lingered, interfering with the development of some of Sheryl's natural powers. After Kyhra and ar'Elya returned to the table, Andrea told her story. Ten years before, Andrea and her young sister Sheryl (the blonde-haired girl in the locket) had lived in a small farming village far away. One day Raoh had invaded the village and destroyed it, leaving behind an underling magician named Raykor to oversee what remained of the village and conduct his magical experiments there. He had been about to cast some spell on Andrea on a whim, when Sheryl had distracted him. In his anger, Raykor cast a very powerful curse on Sheryl. Andrea, Sheryl, their father, Father Phylum (a cleric of Issek), and a few other men from the village managed to escape, even as Sheryl's body began to change in strange ways. However, Andrea's father and the other men were killed when a lightning-struck tree fell on the cart they were travelling in. After Father Phylus gave the last rites and lit the ruined cart and tree on fire to cremate the bodies, a rider on a dark horse galloped into the clearing. It turned out to be Fujiko, a blonde-haired "lady thief/spy" who agreed to help the threesome get to Selactica, the nearest city, where the Issekian clerics might be able to help Sheryl. As they made camp for the evening, Andrea was at once horrified and fascinated to discover that Sheryl had metamorphosed into a small unicorn. Father Phylus believed that the clerics at the Issekian temple in Selactica would be able to cure Sheryl, but Fujiko had her doubts. She suggested that if they were unable to work the cure, Andrea should apprentice herself to the Selactican Thieves' Guild. This would not only provide protection for Sheryl, but would also provide useful skills for Andrea and some prestige for the Guild. Father Phylus was aghast at this idea, but it started Andrea thinking, as did her later discussion with Fujiko about what it was like to be a thief. When they reached Selactica, Fujiko insisted on giving Andrea a dagger, and it was well that she did, for they were soon attacked by a gang of young toughs who thought to get rich by taking Sheryl's horn. Fujiko dispatched them all with some stunning martial arts and fencing moves, with the unacknowledged help of a middle-aged woman and a flowerpot. They continued on to the temple. Unfortunately, the High Priest, Father Sheraton, was unable to do anything to help Sheryl, concluding that the curse had been driven by Artifact-level power. Later that night, overhearing Father Sheraton and Father Phylus discussing sending her and Sheryl to a convent, Andrea took Sheryl and they fled to the Thieves' Guild, aided by a friendly Irish cityguard named Killian. There they met Guildmaster Robinson, and Andrea commenced her training as an apprentice thief. Two years later, Andrea's training was done. She and Sheryl left Selactica and spent about ten years wandering from place to place, seeking out various wizards who were unable to help with Sheryl's affliction. At last they came to Generica. Andrea's story over, the four at the table were then accosted by a young lady with henna-colored hair. She said her name was Kardia, and that she could break Sheryl's curse, though it would in all likelihood not restore Sheryl to her human shape (her human shape-identity having been destroyed). Andrea replied that she'd have to talk to Sheryl about it, and Andrea and Sheryl returned to their room to discuss the matter. In the course of the "discussion," Sheryl managed to make it known to Andrea that she would emphatically rather keep her unicorn form, and the reason she hadn't tried to get this through to Andrea before was that Andrea would probably not have understood. Andrea ruefully admitted this, and so they decided to have Kardia go ahead and remove the curse. Later that night, Andrea finished repairing her burglary tools and decided to try them out. She slipped out of the Inn and across the square to a big jewelry shop called Karrigan's Quality Jewelry. She got in, stole some gems, and replaced them with marbles from her pouch, and managed to rescue a small grey cat from the cat-hating shop guard while she was at it. She decided to name this cat Carson, after a fellow thief at the Selactican Guild. It stayed around a few days, and was promptly never seen again for the rest of the thread thus far. The next day, Andrea, Sheryl, and Carson were in the common room of the inn when there was a great commotion that resulted in Enn Piecy announcing a major storm coming in. Shortly afterward, a cityguard came running in to confirm this, and many of the people currently in the common room ran off to help pile sandbags. Kyhra came stumbling in, nursing a hangover, and introduced Andrea to his elven friend Jiriku, a mage. He then ran off to help stack sandbags. Jiri would stay and help tend to any wounded as they started coming in. A little later, the storm hit. Andrea was alone in the common room (with Sheryl and Carson), studying a spellbook by the light of a single lantern suspended from the ceiling above her table. Though she was't a magician, she could cast a useful cantrip or two when she remembered to keep her studies up. Jiri came up and invited her down to the basement where he and Listener were going to perform to keep the Inn patrons calm. In the middle of the song, Jiri suddenly gasped and ran out of the room. Andrea followed. Jiri had felt Kyhra's death, and had been unable to save him. Andrea hauled back and fetched him a slap on the face to bring him out of it, reminding him that there were wounded coming in to be treated. Together they did what they could, and then Jiri wandered off and disappeared. The next day, Andrea observed the reconstruction efforts going on in the Low Town, and decided to chip in. She made contributions at various temples, including the Temple of Aditi, where Delmara's new acolyate Aitreni took a liking to Sheryl and braided her mane and tail (much to Andrea's amusement and Sheryl's disgust). After they left, Andrea went up to Glorshanned Keep, to the real estate office. She had decided that she liked the town and wanted to stay there. Andrea found a great deal on a house. The house was something of a Jonah--it had belonged to a master thief and was outfitted with a good many traps, both magical and mundane. The only people who had known the secrets of all the traps were long dead, so no sooner was the mansion sold than the buyer tended to die. Andrea was able to purchase the mansion for the sum of 5000 gold pieces. When she visited it to take a look, a poisoned dart trap barely missed her. Andrea and Sheryl returned to the inn and posted a notice asking for help storming the house. Andrea and Sheryl hadn't known that someone had been watching them out of a window of the house. In fact, the silent observer had been none other than Andrea's old nemesis, Raykor the wizard (now Raykor the ArchMage). He had come to Generica because he knew that Andrea and Sheryl would be here, and he was using data gained through a magical link with the curse in his research on the "ultimate" curse, a spell whose casting would be the masterpiece of all his magical experiments. He watched and waited. Later that afternoon, Andrea was playing Klondike solitaire at a table in the Inn when Enn Piecy stopped by her table to tell her fortune. Disturbed by what he saw (though he refused to say exactly what disturbed him), he gave Andrea a silver ring and insisted that she wear it. Next, Kardia came in and joined Andrea at her table. Andrea told Kardia that she could go ahead with the cursebreaking, and Kardia took some preliminary measurements. As Kardia took the measurements, she and Andrea discussed various things, including Kardia's fee (about 5 gold pieces), the house Andrea had purchased, and Andrea's slight magical talents. Kardia also agreed to help "debug" the house in exchange for being allowed to stay there. As they returned to the common room, Kardia noticed that someone named Jameson had answered her request for a roommate. Andrea said that whoever it was that had responded was welcome to stay in her house, as long as that person helped in the trap removal. The next day, Andrea made the acquaintance of Lance and Blaze, a warrior and mage who offered their assistance, and Azariah, a nature sprite who was quite fascinated by Sheryl. She also met Kadrys, a "mysterious stranger" whom Sheryl didn't seem to trust for some reason. Kadrys, actually a vampire, wished to participate in the de-trapping of Andrea's new house, and Andrea accepted his offer gladly. That evening, Kardia took up residence in a room in the Dragon's Inn and started to work. She briefly met Kadrys, and then, as she worked with Sheryl, Kadrys came in to talk to her, and help her work. Over the next couple of days, Kardia completed the removal of the curse. Meanwhile, Callus was watching Andrea, thinking dark thoughts of his revenge. But other eyes--those of Raykor, the evil ArchMage who had cast the original curse on Sheryl--were in turn watching HIM. Callus found himself teleported into a dark room, where Raykor was waiting to make a deal with him. Raykor gave Callus the means with which to "kill" Andrea (a poisoned ring) in exchange for a promise to bring the unicorn to him. However, the "poison" was actually a sleeping potion--he intended for Callus to act as a diversion from what HE intended to do. Callus snuck into the Inn to attack Andrea; she managed to kill him but was pricked by the ring on his finger and fell into a deep sleep. Raykor then teleported in and began to weave his curse over Andrea--a very powerful magic geas that would completely erase Andrea's original personality and shape if it succeeded. At that very moment, Sheryl burst out of the door and was able to give Andrea the antidote to the sleeping potion. However, Raykor then cast his curse. But Andrea resisted it, with help from Sheryl and that ring Enn Piecy had given her. She turned the magic of the curse back onto Raykor, who screamed and vanished. When she was finished, the ring had melded into her finger, but other than that, Kardia pronounced them curiously clean of any side-effects...except for something on Andrea that Kardia couldn't quite make out. The three limped tiredly to their respective rooms and retired for the night. The next day, Andrea suddenly felt a mysterious urge to get out of the city. It wasn't something she could put off; it HAD to be obeyed. So, leaving brief notes for her friends and a notice that the HouseStorming was temporarily delayed, she ran off out of town, to the north. Not long afterward, two unicorns galloped across the fields north of town, stopping at a small stream to drink and rest. Soon after that, Andrea regained consciousness under a tree by a stream, feeling very sore and without the slightest idea how she'd gotten there. After bathing and eating, she felt better. Meanwhile, Jake Pitzar, a reporter for the Generican Examiner, had heard about sightings of the two unicorns and was looking for them. Jake had earlier started to investigate the large donations with which Delmara was financing the rebuilding of the Low Town, but had given up and ridden out of town. It was a simple matter for Jake to find where Andrea and Sheryl were before the townspeople. He made friends with Andrea and Sheryl, and then the townspeople showed up and they were all forced to flee. As they were running, Jake tripped, knocked Andrea down, landed on her back--and then she transformed into a unicorn and ran, with Jake barely managing to hold on. Several hours later, Jake woke up as the unicorn stopped. Andrea changed back to human form, with no memory of what had happened. They were at an abandoned farmhouse, where they decided to stay for the night. During the night, Andrea asked Jake how they'd come all this way, and Jake told her about her uncanny transformation. Andrea digested the information, stunned, and then Andrea and Jake found themselves under attack by a band of roaming brigands. They managed to drive them off, and then went to sleep, with Jake Pitzar taking the first watch. Meanwhile, back in Generica, Blaze decided to investigate Andrea's new house in astral form. However, as soon as she got inside, Raykor tried to capture her spirit and drain her life-force into himself. He failed, though Blaze was severely shaken by the experience. The next morning, Andrea found that by concentrating, she could understand what Sheryl was saying. However, she took this experiment a bit too far and changed into a unicorn by accident. She and Sheryl went for a run, but it was ended rather rudely when a hunter shot Andrea with an arrow. Andrea sent Sheryl back to find and bring Jake before falling into the river and being swept away. An undetermined amount of time later, Andrea (still a unicorn) was dragged from the river by a 14-year-old boy whose name was Jay. He removed the arrow, bandaged the wound, and led Andrea to a safe hiding place, an old bandits' hideaway. Jay's stepfather beat him regularly, and he dreamed of getting away. He also hoped to become a thief one day. When Andrea woke up, she discovered to her horror that she could not revert to human form. Then Jay returned, with feed, bandages, and grooming equipment. As he groomed her, Andrea noticed the welts on his back and was able to heal them with her horn. After that, Andrea ate some grain, spent the rest of the day grazing, and went to sleep back in an old stall in the cave hideaway. Back at Generica, Kardia was worried about Andrea and Sheryl, and mentioned this to 'Raelf during a visit on the pretext of looking for housing. Sheryl arrived back at the farmhouse and fetched Jake. Together they walked to the river, where they confronted the hunters and scared them off. Due to another one of the strange time distortions that constantly plague Nexus, perhaps exacerbated by a tremendous magical disturbance (a demonic invasion) the evening of the day on which Andrea had left town, a week had passed in Generica. During that time, an expedition was organized to find out what had happened to Andrea, Sheryl, and Jake, consisting of 'Raelf's satyrlion brother 'Raf, ar'Elya, Kardia, and Clyde, a former Generican Examiner delivery boy who had been changed into a centaur by 'Raf. After a few days of travel, the party met up with Jake and Sheryl. The next day, Andrea and Jay got up, ate breakfast, and then set out together. After some travelling, Andrea realized that she didn't know where she was going, so she spent the day grazing. Meanwhile, 'Raf's party woke up and started looking for Andrea, finding the trail and following it to the river. That evening, they ran into each other. Most everyone in 'Raf's party was surprised at Andrea's transformation. Jay was rather startled at all the people and the second unicorn, but that was nothing compared to the shock he got when ar'Elya and 'Raf were able to trigger the magical control mechanism that caused Andrea to revert to her human shape. As Andrea, 'Raf, and ar'Elya discussed recent events to try to figure out what was happening, Sheryl stopped Jay from slipping away by falling asleep with her head in his lap. A camp was made, and everyone went to sleep. During the early morning, the camp was visited by four unicorns from a nearby herd who were curious about why a unicorn should be travelling with humans. They cast sleeping spells on those humans present in the camp, but the only person who was actually affected to any great extent was Jake Pitzar. Later that morning, 'Raf and ar'Elya reviewed the results of a scan they'd run on Andrea the previous evening, and explained the curse. ar'Elya altered the effects of the curse slightly in exchange for a promise on Andrea's part to do a little investigative work for her back at Generica. In another part of the camp, Jay and Sheryl woke up, and Jay and Sheryl forged a bond between each other, the traditional "unicorn-and-virgin" relationship talked of in legend. Andrea noticed this rapport forming and felt rather insecure about it, until Kardia and ar'Elya talked with her and managed to convince her that it was not a bad thing, for either Jay or Sheryl. Meanwhile, back in the house that Andrea had bought, Raykor managed to recover completely from the deleterious after-effects of the reversed curse, using the severed horn of the unicorn he had used to pattern the curse upon. He swore that when Andrea returned, he would have his revenge. Andrea sat down with Jay and told him about how Sheryl had been changed into a unicorn by Raykor, and how Raykor had tried to do the same to her with only partial success. She also said that there was no way she was going to let Jay and Sheryl go off by themselves, and that she would take Jay on as her apprentice. Then a news imp arrived to wake Jake up and tell him that he was needed elsewhere. He said he had to go, and left. A short time later, Andrea examined 'Raf and ar'Elya with the truesight that all unicorns possess and saw some very odd things about them. ar'Elya noticed Andrea's confusion and explained to her that they were 'kan, beings from another plane who adapted to other planes by "eating" a sentient from that plane. Andrea was at first alarmed, then reassured by ar'Elya's explanation. After they broke camp and started moving, Andrea spent some time alone, thinking. She considered all that had happened to her over the last few days and tried to sort out her feelings about all these changes. Andrea joined the conversation between Kardia and ar'Elya, and then several unicorns from the nearby herd, seemingly curious about Sheryl, followed the party through the forest for a time. 'Raf and Clyde talked with them about Andrea and Sheryl. Soon afterward, 'Raf and Clyde happened upon some canoes that they could use to float the river. After lunch, Andrea ran alongside the river in her unicorn form, to get used to it. That evening, Kardia and ar'Elya discussed Kardia's relationship with Kadrys while Andrea, 'Raf, and Clyde played Frisbee. The next day, Lance and Blaze joined up with the party, very happy to see that Andrea and Sheryl were safe. Kardia examined an amulet for Blaze, and Andrea related her story. They continued back toward Generica. After a few more days of travel, they approached Generica. And then Andrea lapsed into unicorn form, panicked, and took off. 'Raf and Sheryl went after her. ar'Elya explained to the others that this was another side-effect of Raykor's curse, that they hadn't told Andrea of because it would be better for her to learn to deal with it herself. Raykor, a necromantic mage, had sacrificed a unicorn and stolen her horn and soul to fuel his magic. The soul of this unicorn, N'graytha, now resided along with Andrea's in her body. Andrea regained control and found that she and N'graytha could coexist. They returned to the rest of the party, and thence to Generica. After brief introductions at the lighthouse, Andrea slipped away to go to the Dragon's Inn for a drink. N'graytha suggested that they go for a walk, instead, so they went down to the newly-arisen Kron Park. While there, they met Vitor, the gardener/high-level Druid from the Generican Hanging Gardens, thogh he did not identify himself as such. Andrea let N'graytha spend the day there grazing, then she/they returned to the Dragon's Inn to gather Andrea's remaining possessions and post a notice about the HouseStorming being back on. That evening, nearly exhausted, Andrea made her way back to the lighthouse. ar'Elya met her at the door and showed her to her room, which, to her surprise, was an analogue of her room back in the Selactican Guild. She felt guilty about not missing her parents more, but Sheryl came in to reassure her. After that, she went to sleep. Various adventurers, including Teonyl, Lance and Blaze, and Palandun, saw and responded to the HouseStorming ad. Things began looking up for that future adventure! ----- YOUNG ANDREA & SHERYL CHRONICLES [YASC] Synopses #1: The Great Cookie Caper During her apprenticeship at Selactica, Andrea discovered a new delicacy in an arriving caravan--xocolatl, or chocolate. In order to pass an upcoming test, she and a fellow apprentice named Daron stole the necessary ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies, then baked them in a City Hall kitchen. It was a smashing success for Andrea, garnering her the highest possible grade on the examination. -- Chris Meadows | "Um, I think you're recording right now." CHM173S@SMSVMA.BITNET | "Huh?" --Me and a fellow student from MED 365 CHM173S@VMA.SMSU.EDU | class as we're recording a project for that CMEADOWS@NYX.CS.DU.EDU | class, from the tape as we watch it in class. >From alt.pub.dragons-inn Sun Nov 28 13:13:22 1993 Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!csus.edu!wupost!howland.reston.ans.net!agate!library.ucla.edu!news.mic.ucla.edu!unixg.ubc.ca!nntp.cs.ubc.ca!alberta!amisk.cs.ualberta.ca!aaron From: aaron@amisk.cs.ualberta.ca (Aaron V. Humphrey) Subject: [LH][Teonyl][HouseStorming] Job Interview Message-ID: Originator: aaron@gsb012.cs.ualberta.ca Sender: news@cs.UAlberta.CA (News Administrator) Reply-To: aaron@amisk.cs.ualberta.ca Organization: University of Alberta Date: Sun, 28 Nov 1993 04:07:34 GMT Lines: 89 [ADMIN: This posting was a joint product of Chris Meadows and Aaron V. Humphrey. Teonyl, is property of Alfvaen; Andrea and Sheryl are property of Chris. Copyright 1993 by both of us. Any other HouseStormers who wish to meet Teonyl should email me so we can work something out between us...] Selna said a farewell and moved away, walking over toward where his cat was rubbing against Kadrys's leg. Andrea was just standing around, just taking in the ambience of the party. She was rapidly learning that using her unicornsight around here could lead to headaches, and resolved to try to enjoy the party without being inquisitive. If that was possible. But Sheryl seemed to be enjoying herself, even though Jay had gone to bed a couple of hours ago, and she WAS getting to meet all these interesting new people. And then the woman stepped up. She was dressed rather plainly for a partygoer, but for this party, it didn't really seem to matter all that much. "Hello," Andrea offered. "Hello," the woman replied. She looked a bit strangely at Sheryl, who was standing by Andrea's side staring around, still fascinated, at all the people. She then shrugged, and looked at Andrea. "You're Andrea, right? My name's...Eowyn. We met briefly at the Dragon's Inn, and I left a message for you there." "Oh! Then you're going to help explore and detrap my house!" Andrea realized. "That was my intention, yes," Teonyl replied. "I would have come earlier, but I only just got the note. Time gets a bit weird around this place, I've noticed." "Yes, I've actually had some first-hand experience with that," Andrea replied ruefully. Sheryl sniffed at Teonyl's boot (quite startling Teonyl), snorted, nickered to Andrea, and trotted off. "What was that all about?" Teonyl wondered. "And where is she going?" Andrea smiled. "She approves of you," she replied. "And as for where she's going, she's decided that she wants to go check up on her friend Jay, who has gone to bed." The unicorn approved of her, Teonyl thought. Great. That made things a lot easier. If only all approval could be gained as easily. "All right." Teonyl smiled. "Shall we find someplace more private to talk?" "All right. That porch, there, looks good to me. You?" "Sure, let's go." As they walked over to the small enclosed porch/alcove, Andrea couldn't shake the feeling that something terrible was about to happen. Not involving Eowyn and herself DIRECTLY, but definitely affecting them. This worried her, for the last time she'd felt something like this had been just before she'd run away to metamorphose into a unicorn. But this feeling was different this time, and not quite as strong. Maybe it would be all right. Maybe. Once they were on the porch, Teonyl was all business. "All right. Give me some details on this house-storming business. When I first heard about it, you seemed to be a bit aboveboard for something I would've thought would be...well, disapproved of, breaking into a house. Not that I'm judgemental or anything," she grinned briefly, "but it seemed odd behaviour. Care to explain?" Andrea sat down. "Sure, sure. I bought this house--the one we will be breaking into--from the Generican Real Estate office. For a very low price, compared to the size. Seems that this place was built for a master thief, to his specifications, with secret traps everywhere. Now everyone who knew the plans is dead, the plans are nowhere to be found, and I want to live in that house. So, we have to go in and remove the traps." "I see. Has anybody tried this before?" "Actually, quite a few people, I gathered from the clerk at the office. They're all rather deceased." Andrea looked at the floor. Wonderful. "What makes you think that you will succeed where the others failed?" Teonyl asked. "Maybe I just feel lucky," Andrea said with an impish grin. Then, becoming more serious, she said, "Actually, it has a lot to do with the other people who are going to be coming along. A lot of them are very impressive and resourceful people. And I used to be a pretty good thief myself. Actually, most of those people are here tonight. Would you like to meet some of them?" "If we're going to be working together, I'd probably better." They turned and re-entered the house. -- --Alfvaen(Editor of Communique) Current Album--Pat Metheny Group:Still Life(Talking) Current Read--Arthur Conan Doyle:The Original Illustrated Sherlock Holmes "I don't know about your brain, but mine is really...bossy." --Laurie Anderson >From alt.pub.dragons-inn Wed Dec 1 17:30:35 1993 Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!pa.dec.com!jac.zko.dec.com!web.zk3.dec.com!zk3.dec.com!spider From: spider@zk3.dec.com (Spider Boardman) Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Subject: [LH][Teonyl][HouseStorming] Confessions Date: 30 Nov 1993 16:18:39 -0500 Organization: Duchy of Wabesylvan Obspauk Lines: 218 Sender: spider@web.zk3.dec.com Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: web.zk3.dec.com [ADMIN: This is a joint post by Aaron V. Humphrey and Spider Boardman. Copyright 1993 by the two of us. Other characters appearing herein are owned by Chris Meadows and Steve Hutchison, and are used with their permission. ] "Selna?" Andrea called as they rejoined the main party. Teonyl saw the formally-dressed elven woman that had been talking to Andrea before turn in response. "Eowyn, this is Selna. Selna, this is Eowyn, who will be joining us for the house-storming. She thought she'd like to get to know her comrades before we actually start the expedition." Andrea then excused herself to go check on Sheryl. "So what do you do?" Teonyl said, deciding to come straight to the point. Selna's eyes danced with suppressed laughter. "Well, I fight. I'm pretty good with a sword, and competent with a staff and in unarmed combat. Mostly, though, I'm a spellchucker, with a specialty in shapeshifting. I can also provide some healing and a bit of peeking through corners rather than around them. How about you?" Despite herself, Teonyl was impressed. She felt comfortable around this woman, even though somewhere her senses were screaming that this was an elf, full elf (mostly high partly sea) and hence Florian... But she decided she was _definitely_ being too paranoid. "The same kinds of things," she replied. "I can 'chuck' a few spells myself, and I can swing a sword, but mostly I'm best at outwitting traps and the like, which is why this whole idea intrigued me." Seeking to turn the conversation away from herself, she said, "Have you been in Generica long? I only got here a couple of months ago, but I haven't seen that much of the city yet." "I've been in town a bit less than two weeks. I only came to Nexus a few days prior to arriving in town. Anyway, I have been wandering about the city, and I've acquired maps. I'm currently staying at the Dragon's Inn, if you'd like to see them sometime." Teonyl made a face. "Don't see how you could bear to stay there. Too busy for my tastes. I'm staying at Nester's--much quieter. If I get in an exploratory mood, I'll be sure to look you up, though." "I didn't register there in this shape. It's room 15, though. I haven't spent enough time actually there to be bothered by having it be busy." Not in this shape. Wonderful. Well, she _had_ said something about shapeshifting magics, but her paranoia made another effort to rise up and overcome her before she quashed it again. Another pause. "How well do you know Lex? Does he always do this kind of thing? I mean, this party's a bit weird." As were the people at it. Selna giggled briefly as that unspoken thought finished. "I just met Lex this morning, and some other apparent facets of 'Raelf's this evening. However, he's heard of me through his grandfather, who I'll meet 500 years from here in some direction or another. At least one of us must do too much time travel. From what I've gathered, there are multiple reasons for this party, and they have different, umm, target audiences. Part of it seems to be to have a time when all the more outlandish off-worlders can get together and be themselves. Or something like that. Then again, I'm trying to piece it together without asking." "Whoa, whoa. Time travel? 'Facets' of 'Raelf? And everyone else here is an off-worlder?" She tensed up again. If this was where off-worlders congregated, then the Florians would definitely look for her here. Not a particularly safe place to be. She glanced around, making an effort to appear nonchalant. "Who's that?" she said in a low voice, flicking her eyes to indicate another elf across the room. Selna, catching Teonyl's hint, flicked her eyes in the same direction for a moment, then laughed and waved. "That's Miro, another facet of 'Raelf. I'm not sure exactly why or how, but he seems to be able to maintain multiple instances of himself at the same time. And no, not everyone here is an off-worlder. Plenty of them are locals. Somehow, though, this party seems to have attracted several people from _really_ different worlds. I think that's at least partly because ar'Elya and 'Raelf are from one of the most significantly different places possible. Anyway, despite the seeming ease with which Lex invited me, I think they've been careful about just who they let in." Teonyl relaxed slightly. So it wasn't an all-around haven, then. The Dragon's Inn would probably be much more hazardous. "Pardon my curiosity, I know this is none of my business, but is someone hunting for you?" Teonyl's head jerked up at Selna's soft question, and she stared into the elf's eyes for long seconds. They were the deep purple she'd learned to distrust, but there was something in them of genuine concern. Inside her there was a war between fear and hope. This could be all a trap. But how much longer could she go without trusting _anybody_? Finally she broke down. "Yes," she said. Selna was silent, waiting for her to continue, or not, as she preferred. "Is there--is there somewhere private we can talk?" she asked. Selna nodded, and they moved back out the balcony where Teonyl had been talking with Andrea earlier. "On my world," Teonyl began, "there's an organisation called the Florians. I used to be part of them, but now I've quit, and they're after me because they don't let anybody just up and quit like that." She laughed bitterly. "That's the short form, and it leaves out a lot. "On my world--and I'm starting to get the idea that it's not the case here--elves and humans seem to be natural enemies. Or maybe not natural, but it's grown up anyway. Worshippers of a god who calls himself Elfslayer have, for centuries, been going out and 'purifying' elven villages, and even worse, places where elves and humans live together and interbreed. The elves, in retaliation, put together the Florians, aimed at preserving the interests of elves everywhere. "The village I grew up in was attacked by Elfslayers when I was quite young. My sister wasn't very old at the time. We were out playing in the woods when they came. I didn't let her watch, but I saw almost my entire village get slaughtered. My father--who was human--they killed right in front of our house. Then they burned the house. For years I thought my mother had died in the fire. "Somehow my sister and I managed to survive. I grew up tough, so that she wouldn't have to--I sacrificed for her. And then one day I heard from our mother again. She had escaped, and she'd joined the Florians. This was the first I'd heard of them--they weren't a very aboveboard organisation. I decided that I could sympathise with their views--too many years of being called 'pointy-ears' and spat upon, I guess--so I joined. My sister I left in the care of her swordsmaster; I checked in on her every once in a while after that, but we grew apart. She'd never managed to learn the bitterness I had. "Years later, despite my best intentions, she'd joined the Thieves' Guild, and was being considered by the Florians. I'd never risen very high, since that was reserved mostly for full elves. I worked my butt off to get as far as I did. Then she got hired to retrieve a certain artifact, one left on our world by the ancient race called the Krannel. These artifacts were always warred over, despite the fact that none yet knew how to unlock their full power. This time, though, there were rumours that there had also been found a book which had many of the keys. Naturally, the Florians were interested, among many others. When they found out about our relationship, they sent me out to talk to her. "In the end, she elected to destroy the artifact and the book rather than let the power fall into the hands of even the Florians. In return, they tried to kill her. Even my mother--even my mother agreed with their decision. They'd lost an opportunity to strike a major blow in the war against the humans, she said. "That was when I quit. Just disappeared. They'd become as bad as the Elfslayers, if a little more subtle. My sister had been right. She had already disappeared, having found a way to leave our world, and after a while I found a way to follow her. "I'm still following her. The Florians are probably on my trail, and I'm tired of running all the time. Here was where I planned to make my stand. They have to come here eventually." Teonyl wound to a halt. Selna slowly sighed and let go the tight grip she'd developed on the railing. She looked at the other woman again and said, "Eowyn isn't your real name, is it?" "No," Teonyl said, laughing bitterly once more. "Teonyl. Eowyn was the heroine of a story I heard years and years ago. I think I'd still feel safer going by it, though." "Then Eowyn it'll be." She hugged Teonyl, and let go quickly at the panic-stricken expression. "I'm sorry. I should at least have warned you, since you've had reason to be jumpy. I just wanted to give some sort of affirmation from someone for once." She sighed again and shook her head. "I'd like to be able to offer you a sanctuary here, but I'm not in a position to do that. At least let me give you this." She produced a greenish crystal a little larger than the ball of her thumb. "This is a communication device. If you hold it and concentrate on trying to contact me, it will try to make that happen. If I'm in its range, I'll answer. Its range is enough to cover all of Nexus, and several nearby planes of existence. It can almost always reach my home, as well, since it's specially attuned to that plane. If you need help, and I'm reachable, I'll come. I have a particularly low tolerance for such racial wars, and for hounding people who've learned better." "I--I--Thanks." Teonyl blinked back tears. Something wound up tight for too long seemed to be loosening. She couldn't let it get too loose, though, for there _was_ still danger, but she could at least know that there was one person to trust. She took the crystal from Selna and examined it for a moment before putting it into one of her pockets, where she could get at it easily. She made a mental note to remember to shift it to whichever clothing she was wearing. Then she heaved a ragged sigh. "You know, I don't think I'm up to meeting anyone else tonight. I should probably just go home. Or to Nester's, I mean. Do you know when this thing will actually get underway?" Selna shrugged. "Andrea will let us all know. I can tell her that I'll get ahold of you, if you'd like." "That would probably be best," Teonyl said, nodding. "And Selna--thanks. For everything." She stood for a moment, uncertain, then she got a determined look on her face and opened her arms for another embrace. Selna responded with a smile. "Not that hard," Teonyl said with a wry grin as they parted. She took a minute to compose her face before re-entering the party room. She paused on her way out when she saw Parsifal. "Leaving so soon?" he asked. She nodded. "I've _got_ to get some sleep." Parsifal, noting the signs of stress on her face, nodded. "Thank 'Raelf and whoever else for me." "Will do." He grinned and escorted her as far as the door, bowing as she left. "Till we meet again, Milady," he said. With almost an effort, she reminded herself to be alert as she walked the dark streets of Generica on her way home. Somewhere, part of her heart was singing. -- Spider Boardman spider@zk3.dec.com DEC OSF/1 development ...!decvax!spider I don't speak for DEC, and vice versa. >From alt.pub.dragons-inn Mon Dec 6 19:46:42 1993 Path: netcom.com!csus.edu!decwrl!nic.hookup.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!howland.reston.ans.net!cs.utexas.edu!not-for-mail From: CHM173S@vma.smsu.edu (tabloid footprints in your hair) Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Subject: [HouseStorming] [ADMIN] Need Addresses Date: 5 Dec 1993 21:26:07 -0600 Organization: REF Bunker, island, Superguy Authors' Planet Lines: 14 Sender: daemon@cs.utexas.edu Message-ID: <9312060326.AA22035@deepthought.cs.utexas.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: news.cs.utexas.edu Could those people who are in on the HouseStorming (you know who you are) please email me? We need to get together on what we're going to do and when we're going to do it. It's high time to be doing something on it other than wondering when it's going to be starting. Thanks! -- Chris Meadows | "The last thing I need is to be worried about CHM173S@SMSVMA | blowing up when I have finals to study for." CHM173S@VMA.SMSU.EDU | --Silly Wizzard, Original AWESOME FORCE CMEADOWS@NYX.CS.DU.EDU | #106 CMEADOWS@NOX.CS.DU.EDU | by Bill Paul, The Man With Two First Names >From alt.pub.dragons-inn Wed Dec 8 11:22:13 1993 Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!uunet!haven.umd.edu!darwin.sura.net!news-feed-2.peachnet.edu!gatech!usenet.ufl.edu!cybernet!news From: wolvie@cybernet.cse.fau.edu (christopher motherway) Subject: Re: [HouseStorming] [ADMIN] Need Addresses Message-ID: Sender: news@cybernet.cse.fau.edu Organization: Cybernet BBS, Boca Raton, Florida References: <9312060326.AA22035@deepthought.cs.utexas.edu> Date: Tue, 7 Dec 1993 17:35:10 GMT Lines: 22 CHM173S@vma.smsu.edu (tabloid footprints in your hair) writes: > Could those people who are in on the HouseStorming (you know who > you are) please email me? We need to get together on what we're > going to do and when we're going to do it. It's high time to be > doing something on it other than wondering when it's going to be > starting. > > Thanks! > I'm here, Chris. Been e-mailing you several times without responce. I'm for doing it after the holidays since I won't be on the net after next week. Chris Wolvie wolvie@cybernet.cse.fau.edu Disclaimer: "There's someone in my head but it's not me!"-Pink Floyd ************************************************************************** Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton (The Rat's Mouth), Florida ************************************************************************** "It's a great big universe and we're all really puny/ We're just tiny little specks about the size of Mickey Rooney" -"Yakko's Universe" ANIMANIACS >From alt.pub.dragons-inn Mon Jan 31 20:05:30 1994 Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn Path: netcom.com!netcomsv!decwrl!sdd.hp.com!cs.utexas.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!uunet!mnemosyne.cs.du.edu!nyx10!cmeadows From: cmeadows@nyx10.cs.du.edu (Chris Meadows) Subject: [AU] [HouseStorming] The Briefing Message-ID: <1994Jan28.204637.17459@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> Summary: Introduction to HouseStorming Concept and Characters X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University of Denver for the Denver community. The University has neither control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users. Sender: usenet@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu (netnews admin account) Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept. Date: Fri, 28 Jan 94 20:46:37 GMT Lines: 203 Okay, here it is, entry #1 in the [HouseStorming] thread. I am really, REALLY sorry it took so long. But now that it's started, I hope we can get the momentum up, get going, and get me back into writing this thing! This entry is designed so that those people who are involved in the HouseStorming can interpolate their comments by quoting the reply text. Thus, if I forgot some authors, those people can quote reply text and insert introductions where they ought to go. The same for questions for Andrea about the HouseStorming. So, have fun with this...I know I will... --------------- Andrea and Sheryl stood at the head of a table in a room 'Raelf had set up for them. At the head of the room was a big glass panel, about six feet by six feet in dimension. 'Raelf had explained that it would project the somewhat sketchy plans she'd been able to acquire of the house. This was the point of the gathering. The table had plenty of comfortable seats arould it, most of which were occupied. All those people who had signed up for the HouseStorming were here, in their seats. There was Selna, chatting amicably with making notations on some sheets of paper, apparently quite experienced at waiting for lectures to begin. Lance and Blaze were sitting together, quietly discussing something with each other. And there was Eowyn, sitting opposite Kadrys, all her attention on the screen in front of them. Kadrys appeared more patient than anyone else at the gathering; Andrea wondered why. She also wondered why there was something about him that made her slightly nervous, even though she couldn't understand why. N'graytha was curiously silent on this score. ar'Elya sat at the far end, across from Kadrys and behind, folding a sheet of paper quietly. A deadly-sharp looking paper airplane suddenly launched from her hand heading for the back of Kadrys' head; without looking, his hand intercepted it. They both grinned like schoolchildren getting away with something, while 'Raelf blatantly ignored them, still talking to Selna. Sheryl nickered, and Andrea nodded. It was time to get the meeting started. She stood, and the talk around the table quieted down. Andrea waited for the stillness to be complete, then she began. "I suppose you're wondering why I called you all here today..." she began. This elicited a chuckle from most of those seated around the table, and broke the ice sufficiently for her to continue on less formal terms. "I realize that some of you may not have met each other," Andrea continued. "Since you will all, barring some misfortune, be working together to help me clean house, I think this would be a good time to exchange introductions. To start off, for those of you who may not know me, my name is Andrea, and this is Sheryl, my...companion. We travelled a long time before we got here, starting out in the city of Selactica where I was trained, looking for a solution to some personal problems we had. Shortly after we got here, we found that solution." Sheryl nickered affirmatively. "After that, we decided it was time to settle down, so I bought a house. This house, as you may know by now, belonged to a former master thief, and is full of traps to catch the unwary. I'm told that several people have lost their lives already trying to storm it. "Who wants to go next? Er...to introduce themselves, not to lose their lives." Teonyl stood up next. "I'm..." she glanced briefly at Selna, "Eowyn." Her eyes dropped as if she was unable to meet Selna's gaze. "I haven't been in Generica long, but I've been in this kind of business for a while." "...And my name is Kadrys," the gaunt, pale figure spoke up. "Unlike many people here, I have no gifts for wizardry and no dealings with gods. But I am a thief, and I've had a little experience with both magical and technical traps in my time," he finished with a slight, ironic smile. Palandun looked nervous. "I'm Palandun Lintesul, you can call me I spent some time as a warrior there. I'm also a Grad student at the university, so I could help with military tactics and live animals, but dead object traps are a little bit beyond me." Then he added as an afterthought, "I can't cast spells or call gods either, but I'm pretty good at bandaging and some healing." Lance stood and said, "My name is Sir Lance. I am a former knight from far away. You need not call me 'Sir' if you find it uncomfortable. This is my mate, Blaze." Blaze rose and bowed to the others. "She is a sorceress, a spell-caster. We met Andrea and Sheryl after the great Storm. My sword and my mate's magic are at the service of everyone." As soon as the introductions were over, Andrea stepped back to the screen and raised the pointer. In the back of the room, 'Raelf muttered something into his amulet. The screen lit up, and the blueprints appeared. Andrea had half-expected it not to work, and admonished herself for her skepticism. "When I found these blueprints, I was rather startled, in several ways. Firstly, that they actually existed; I'd been told that the former owner had destroyed all known copies of the plans. These concept sketches were apparently done by the original contractor prior to commissioning the actual plans, and never destroyed either because the owner never knew about them, or perhaps because they didn't pose any threat to the security of the house. Thus, they were originally pretty rough, just pencil sketches actually, but 'Raelf somehow refined them into the neat graphics you see on this screen. It's more than likely they'll be inaccurate in many ways. "Another source of amazement to me was the actual size of the mansion. I'd expected the mansion to have fifty, maybe sixty rooms at most, and if these schematics can be believed, it could have over ten times that many." Andrea chuckled. "I guess you might say it was even more of a steal than I thought." There was some more laughter that was more polite than anything else. Andrea continued. "The first trap that I know of is right here." Andrea pointed, then took something wrapped in a handkerchief out of her tunic. She unwrapped it carefully--it appeared to be a largish metal dart, with a sticky black substance on the tip--then tossed it onto the table where it landed with a resounding THUMP! "As I was stepping up to take my first look at the house, this flew out and hit the gatepost. I'm fortunate it didn't hit ME." She moved her pointer. "I suspect it's a dart gun mounted in the house that was triggered by stepping on one of the stones in the path." Andrea idly smacked the palm of her left hand with the pointer. "So, we at least know our first obstacle." Sheryl nickered, "What about the house?" "Oh, right, good question. Sheryl just asked me about the house itself. I guess I should move on to show just what's in there, right? Okay, so here we go." She moved the pointer up to the house. "This is the entry foyer. It's kind of a corridor that moves in from the front door. I imagine that it will be lined with dozens of potentially lethal devices. "Once we get past this, we will come to a series of corridors, halls leading throughout the mansion. I will touch upon some points of interest." Andrea pointed to a rather large room on the first floor. "This is, I understand, the Grand Ballroom. It's very large...I understand it was capable of hosting dances even larger than the party recently held in this lighthouse. There is a balcony around the perimeter, with access to various hallways on the second floor. "The main kitchens are located on the first floor, not far beyond. There is a special corridor here which is, so far as I understand, for food delivery only. I believe there is a series of carts rigged up to run between the kitchen and the ballroom by this corridor, for catering dances and parties, I assume. Sheryl nickered happily, and from the smug expression on her face, it was possible even for those who did not know her to guess that she was envisioning riding back and forth on those carts once the house was clear of traps. Andrea smiled, and scratched her younger sister around the base of her horn. "Okay, I confess, Sheryl insisted that I point that one out." She chuckled. "All right, now on to business. Here on the second floor..." And the view changed accordingly. "...is the library. It is here that I expect we might find some useful information. After all, if the master thief who used to own this place kept copies of the full blueprints anywhere, it would surely be here. This, then, will be one of our main objectives. "Another such objective will be the living quarters of the master thief himself. I do not actually know for sure which room this is, but floor is the most probable." She indicated a suite at the end of one of the hallways. "As you can see, it is likely, simply from the sheer number of possible escape routes-- windows, probable secret corridors, and the like. It is possible that useful information could actually be found here." Andrea moved the pointer back to the icon on the screen that would call up the first floor. "All these rooms in here would seem to be servants' quarters, though I can't really say for certain. This here would be the stables, and this room looks large enough to hold several coaches and carraiges...here would be a laundry, and storage for food supplies...things I can only guess at. "Here on the second floor are more servant's rooms, guest quarters, various possible storage rooms, and a lot of things that I'm not sure of. On the other floors..." Andrea continued, pointing out possible features of the house. At last, she concluded. "As for the basement, there's really no way to say. The plans only show one basement, with a wine cellar here, but I believe there could be several basements and subbasements, perhaps even connections to the sewer system. It's impossible to say with any certainty. If any of us go down there, I think we should go in groups, with plenty of protection. "Now." Andrea tapped the pointer against her hand. "Are there any questions?" "Yes." Palandun said. "Are we planning on going in the front door? It doesn't seem tactically sound. Maybe go in the ballroom instead? It should be harder to hide traps in a great empty space like that for one thing." "The ballroom doesn't actually connect to the outside," Andrea said. "It's in the middle of the floor. The front door is a bit of an obvious lure, true, but I believe it would be the best choice. First of all, we already know where the first trap is. Second, we have a psychological advantage in that we know for certain that there will be traps there--we won't get too overconfident, setting ourselves up to be hit when we least expect it. Third, I am confident in this party's ability to detect and defeat traps, and to deal with the consequences of any traps that spring on us. "As for the ballroom, I fully agree with you. It would probably be more difficult to place traps there, which is why I think that we should probably make it our base of operations. We will store excess supplies there, and meet back after a specified time if we decide to split our party." "Anything else?" -- Chris Meadows | Robotech_Master's First Law of Superguy: CHM173S@NIC.SMSU.EDU | Continuity is Overrated. CMEADOWS@NYX.CS.DU.EDU | [this space reserved for second law] CMEADOWS@NOX.CS.DU.EDU |