Lyn led her allies down the hallway. It was square, like they all were, but it was once more covered in oceanic elements. Multi-color, prismatic coral was the most prominent, but there was a sheen of liquid coating the walls. Lyn touched it with the tip of Cataclysm's spear, and it sizzled. She had encountered only a handful of dungeons with the other heroes that had this level of change to the chambers and corridors – something that was almost always consistent. They only have this level of customization if they haven't been defeated in a long, long time.
The next chamber was markedly different. Rather than being a square, it was a long, horizontal, rectangle. There was a much larger raised pedestal. "Why is this one different?" Vael asked.
"This is a puzzle of some type," Lyn replied. She placed her hand onto the pedestal, and it stayed put instead of sinking. The surface lit up as the room darkened, and an illusory image appeared in the air in front of Lyn. A series of images that were arrayed side by side. The first was a depiction of a ship at sea, slowly rocking and rolling on the waves as the crew dashed to and fro on the deck. The second was extremely like the first. In fact, it was almost identical. As was the third one. I Fucking hate these things.
"What must we do?" Gael asked.
Lyn sighed, "These are the most annoying puzzles to me. We have to find the image that is different from the other two." A small hourglass appeared above each picture. "And if we don't do it fast enough, it will switch."
Vael peered at each image before pointing to the one on the right. "That one. There is a small tear in the rear-most sail that is not present in the other images."
Lyn tapped the associated icon on the altar, and it glowed green. Another trio of images appeared. Damn, Vael is a natural at this. The next two rounds of images were the same; a group of ocean-related images appeared, and Vael stared at each for a few seconds before identifying the one that was different. After all three rounds had concluded, and three of the green boxes representing successes were filled, another, harsher challenge appeared.
The next set of three images were not static. They moved, depicting a fisherman casting his line off of the edge of the docks. Their timer was extended, and Lyn stared at the slowly in-motion images. To her eyes, nothing was off. But again, a few seconds later, Vael pointed to one of the moving images. "That one. His eyes blinked twice instead of once." She leaned past Lyn and tapped the corresponding button.
The room brightened and the hallway in front of them unlocked, the rock wall sliding to the side to reveal the passage. "You're smart, you know that?" Lyn said to her female companion.
Vael shook her head, "No I'm not. I am just good at seeing patterns. I always have been."
"She's been that way ever since she was a child," Gael followed up. "She was the best at playing hide-and-seek, because she learned every person's pattern for searching." He wrapped an arm around his sister's shoulder and squeezed her tightly much to her protestation. "That's my sibling."
Vael pulled herself away and pointed to the passage, "Let us continue. I want whatever rewards are promised to us at the end."
Cecily concluded that evening's session of torture and mana core extraction from her most recent victim. No, victim wasn't the right word. They were criminals; those who would disrupt her kingdom. They deserved everything they received. Her Ruler core confirmed this to her. She took a luxurious bath before having her servant dry and dress her. As she stood in front of the mirror, she ruminated on the missive her messenger had brought from James.
To Cecily Valagonia,
King Kristoph is dead. I have taken the role of king in his place, as the people desired. There will not be any serving of my head to sate your desires. I wish you would put the past to rest, but if you will not, know that I am more than capable of not only defending myself, but my kingdom as well.
The Azure Divide will mark the limits of our territories. Stay on your side of the river, and I'll stay on mine. Don't send any further missives to me, I will not receive them. Instead, I will send envoys to Fort Watch, on the first day of each month, and if you desire to communicate, they will convey messages.
- James Marshall, King of Khrelardia, Paragon
"Just say something and if its wrong we get another one to bang our heads against," Ben replied. "Fucking stupid." He slammed his shield onto the ground and leaned on it with a hefty sigh.
Thomas shook his head, "Go with cave. May as well try it. Maybe we can roll the dice enough to get an easy riddle."
"Cave," Misty said into the small rod sticking out of the pedestal like a microphone. In Elenthir, as that was the only language the dungeons responded to.
Lyn was standing near the door that would lead to the next hallway, and the wall slid open revealing the next hallway. "Good job!" She shouted. The rest of the party also congratulated Misty, and she shyly walked over next to Lyn. Misty hated being the center of attention. "You did great," Lyn whispered.
Shaking her head she returned to the present and placed her hand on the pedestal. Just like the prior chamber, a set of words floating in Elenthir hovered above them. The small rod rose from the pedestal, and Lyn read the riddle aloud for her allies. "I am the guardian of doorways. Without me, one cannot enter. I only exist in places where the untrustworthy live. What am I?" Lyn looked back to her allies. "Thoughts?"
Gael had his hand on his chin and was deep in contemplation. Vael shook her head and shrugged, "I would say it's a guard."
Gael shook his head, "No...They wouldn't have used the word 'guardian'." He looked up to Lyn, "What do you think?"
Lyn racked her brain. Guarding doorways means that it's the door itself. But one cannot enter without it? "Locks are sort of like guards for doors," she replied. "And you would use a lock to prevent people you don't trust from entering a doorway. But then it doesn't make sense for the second line, 'Without me, one cannot enter'."
Vael sat down on the ground, "I'm not good at these mind puzzles. I'll leave you two to it."
Gael snapped his fingers, "It's a key! It opens up a locked door. It guards doors, you have to have it to enter a locked place, and you don't have keys in places where you trust others, because there are not any locks!"
Lyn stepped aside and gestured, "You do the honors. The word for 'key' in Elenthir is 'thango'."
Gael walked up to the podium and leaned towards the circular pillar rising from it. "Thango."
The pedestal lowered, and the doorway opened up. Lyn raised her hand to high-five, "Good job Gael!"
He looked at her raised hand curiously, and lifted his own slowly. "Does this mean something?"
"It's called a 'high five'." She hit his hand with hers.
Vael stood up, "Ah, because you have five fingers. It is a celebratory gesture?"
Lyn nodded, "Yes." She looked back to Gael, who had his hand up still. "You can put it down after," she giggled.
Gael lowered his hand and nodded, "Shall we?"