A Different Haunted Mansion (D&D, see plotting thread)

[Deleted]

Helen Parr blinked in surprise upon finding the place spotless in comparison to what she was expecting! Huh. Maybe those footprints were really recent after all. She raised a thin eyebrow upon witnessing a chase scene between two people, one wearing plain clothes, and another angry looking man in a long cape swinging a sword. The superheroine took a step forward with an expression of determination, compelled to settle this, when suddenly everything faded away as soon as they entered through the east doors. 

The ranger dressed in blue glanced about with widened brown eyes upon seeing the cobwebs at the double doors to the west where the gentlemen came from, which was impossible because it didn't look like that at all only a few seconds ago! Even the other doors seemed to have been used in comparison to those doors. The beautiful tapestries were ruined and the elegant stairwell had missing steps and looked like it hadn't been used at all! What was happening here?! There was no way that this actually happened! She must be losing it right now. "Easy, Helen..easy..no need to overreact..It's all in your head..none of this is-" Helen murmured to herself to calm herself down the way she usually tried to keep herself cool during even the dangerous missions, however she paused when it seemed that the others saw all that too!  

"...What just happened?"

"You saw that too?!" Helen glanced between Elsa and Harzinon with an expression of shock. She didn't believe in ghosts, or at least she wasn't used to seeing ghosts, but she was used to dealing with mind control by both a super named Psychwave and by a villain. They were both capable of creating false realities or controlling thoughts, which is what this was starting to feel like for her; the only problem was, she couldn't tell if it was made by powers or not. She gazed over at Mateo as he was about to explain something when her eyes widened upon noticing Basil suddenly running for the door.

"Don't let them out of our sight!"

As Mateo ran over to help stop it, Helen's eyebrows rose upon noticing the suspicious red light coming from the underneath the door they were heading towards. Helen glanced over at Elsa and Harzinon worriedly before running over. "Wait! Hang on! Maybe that's just what they want us to do-!" To take the bait, she wanted to say, but she faltered as soon as they opened the door. Instinctively, the auburn haired mother raised an arm in front of Mateo to prevent him from moving forward. "Wait a second, Mateo.." Helen craned her neck to inspect for any kind of trap lying around before they would head inside that place. "Alright.."  Helen sighed in relief and lowered her arm with a small apologetic smile. "Sorry about that.. but we can't take any chances with this place.." It wasn't so much of a motherly thing as just protecting anyone she could from jumping into danger. She then decided to slowly tread forward in front, her vigilant aviator eyes gazing around carefully for any sign of danger, especially when she saw that peculiar glow. Having been in battle many times during the glory days, the superheroine would rather take a hit than the rest of her team.

[Elsa]

To be quite honest, Harzinon was stunned at the beautiful sight before him. So well-maintained, it was impossible to believe no one had been in the manor in 20 years. There was just no way...

The two men startled Harzinon more than the pristine entry hall. Basil immediately jumped to follow, while Mateo chased after him, explaining it hadn’t been real, but magic. He’d just... known. Following the others, Harzinon pulled the lute from his back. The body was fairly beat up, but the strings were in perfect order—and tune.

The lutes strings glowed white at Harzinon's touch, and tendrils of light flowed to his four companions. The light gave their limbs faster movement speed and a stronger attack. Harzinon wasn’t sure what was in the next room, but he felt it best to be prepared.

Helen seemed surprised that Elsa had seen the men as well. She was prepared to respond when Basil leapt after the two men. Mateo told Basil they hadn’t been real, but they’d looked real to the queen. ”Why do you say that?” she asked him. She didn’t necessarily doubt his words, but they did strongly conflict with what she’d seen...

Helen entered the room first, with everyone close on her heels.

They found themselves in an elegant dining hall filled with several long tables surrounded by chairs. To their left, against the wall, was a raised platform with a single throne on it. On the opposite end there was a pair of empty fireplaces. Banners and tapestries hung on the walls and from a balcony above. There were three single doors on the far wall, and there was a single door on their left. Two men fought, weaving between tables. The one in plain clothes was struggling with his daggers, and was he clearly trying to escape. The other man, with his long sword had the advantage in the fight. The man in the black cape shouted, "You betrayed me!" He lunged toward the other man. At the last second, the other man pulled a chair back to block the sword and then ran through the left-most door on the far wall. The man in black kicked the chair away and then pursued his quarry.

The air shimmered again, revealing the dining hall to be as dusty as the entry hall. Some of the tables had been tipped over, as well as several of the chairs. The banners and tapestries were tattered and moth-eaten. Dust and small cobwebs cover most of the items in the room. An eerie red glow reflected off the walls and some of the tables.

”Well, that was... intense,” Elsa offered finally.

A hissing from the right startled her. She turned to see three fire beetles advancing towards the group. She threw her hands forward, blasting ice at the nearest one. Dismay showed on her face as the beetle steamed a little, shuddered, and then continued towards them.

Room #4

[Basil]

Drat the ancient, bulky door handle! Basil couldn't manage turning it, but fortunately, Mateo lent a hand and they were soon inside the next room.

The elegant trappings did not fool Basil a second time; he was certain he was looking at a scene altered by some magic spell. But the two combatants made it necessary to leave off explanations for the moment, if, that is, they wanted to prevent the one being murdered before their eyes.

"Those two humans must be stopped and questioned!" shouted the mouse to his companions. Their several powers ought to make that a simple task. But two occurrences added complications.

First, a mysterious mist wafted from behind attempted to envelope each of them. Basil called out a word of warning even as he attempted to leap free of whatever magic spell had targeted him.

And secondly, the mysterious duo ran from the room, turning it once more into what could only be its true form.

"We must not allow them to escape us!" Of course, the arrival of several large and very unpleasant-looking insects would seem to warrant a shift in priorities.

[Mateo de Alva]

Mateo was beyond being surprised that everyone else saw the room as it was once also, and perhaps the least surprised. Magic could work like that as often as it didn't. Helen's point about them playing right into their hands was a good one, Mateo would admit, and even if the scene was faked, or fabricated, it didn't mean there couldn't be trouble or mischief makers elsewhere; especially in this new world they were still learning about. All the more reason for Mateo to stall Basil!

Yet Helen seemed concerned for him also. As fit someone who was a mother. She rushed over to stop him and peer first and foremost for danger.

"Sorry about that.. but we can't take any chances with this place.."

Mateo smiled, "No I get it; and you're right!", he agreed. No sooner had he said it, than they seemed proven right, though that was not the next thing Mateo noticed. Harzinon's lute was! And the magic that came from it and just seemed to surround or endow them with some sort of magic. If there was any type of magic Mateo was the most familiar with, it was one such as what was used back home. Of course it was solely Tamboritas in Avalor that were magic, whatever Héctor thought on his own guitar when Mateo had explained it.

The young wizard could only blink in awe at their guide.

”Why do you say that?”

Elsa's question registered, "Huh? Oh...it...magic can look real sometimes. Nothing I've ever done myself, but I know there are wizards who can fabricate whole...rooms or such, and you wouldn't know they were real except you can't touch things or...some other clue". It was a bit hard to explain, since Mateo had never seen such himself, just read about it in his grandfather's vast store of books.

They all followed Helen into the room, well except for Basil darting off again, after the two figures fighting. Mateo blinked again, taking stock of this on top of the other image shown, "This is important...", he whispered, partly to himself. The two were gone again, and the room left in it's disarray.

”Well, that was... intense,”

Mateo nodded, and finished his half thought epiphany. "I think...I think the story we're being shown may be important for some reason, though I don't know...", Mateo was about to say he wasn't even sure about that theory, when the insects interrupted. Mateo backed up, assessing and regrouping his thoughts.

Elsa shot a blast of ice at the creatures. Which did nothing. Despite this, the wizard's mind flew through spells he knew from home which might work. But...no...they wouldn't, he realized, he needed something from here. Something, anything he just knew, like he had that it had been magic. But what did he know? Off an instinct, Mateo tried to throw a Daze type spell from his staff.

[Deleted]

The flexible superheroine nodded at Mateo with a small smile, glad that he was understanding of her being protective at least. Maybe it was for no reason, but it was like her mother senses kept the super on edge. There was something that she didn't like about that eerie red light coming from this room. Suddenly, Helen parted her lips upon seeing some light shine around her, but she wasn't able to sense what it was until Mateo made her realize that it was magic. Was it the good kind? She didn't sense anything bad at the moment though. Who did that? It couldn't have been Mateo since she was just with him. She glanced over at the magical Harzinon with a raise of an eyebrow and a smirk. So, that's what other powers he was referring to earlier! What did it do though? She would have to find out later because she turned her attention back on Mateo as he was explaining the magic behind what they saw. 

"Huh? Oh...it...magic can look real sometimes. Nothing I've ever done myself, but I know there are wizards who can fabricate whole...rooms or such, and you wouldn't know they were real except you can't touch things or...some other clue"

The flexible superheroine glanced over at Mateo as he was explaining that this was part of some kind of magic. She considered his words and wondered if perhaps he could sense that it was magic somehow, perhaps given his experience. He seemed so sure of himself as he said it, that it made her want to believe that it was created by someone's powers, which was what she feared would happen. As soon as they stepped in through the door, she froze in her steps with a blink of her brown eyes when she saw another vision - probably with the same kind of power as before. The man in the cape that was swinging his sword earlier was now exclaiming that he had been betrayed by the other guy in simple clothing. 

"I think...I think the story we're being shown may be important for some reason, though I don't know..."

As soon as the vision disappeared, Helen Parr glanced over at Mateo as soon as he said this. "Guess the question is.. who is trying to show us? And what - Watch out!" It was a good thing Helen had a quick reflexes because she gasped with widened eyes when she suddenly caught probably the worst things anyone could find in a household, an infestation of the beetles that looked like they were on fire! In an instant, the superheroine went into her action military mode for survival, instantly grabbing the overturned chair and throwing it at the beetle to distract the one that was heading towards Elsa. "Everyone get behind the tables for cover NOW!" The fierce mother commanded to the team with a yell, gesturing to the overturned tables on the side that served as a good place for cover, where they could safely attack the beetles from behind the table as a shield against the fire. Just before one of the fire beetles was going to attack her, she used her elasticity and quick reflexes to instantly jump onto the wall with her heels touching the wall, before quickly jumping on top of the fireplace.

At higher ground, Helen whipped out her bow and arrow that she wore from behind and squinted one eye to use her great sense of aim, before she used both eyes and shot the one in the back that tried to attack her, treating it like she would have if she were using her own arms as a bow and arrow. She's never shot from an actual bow before! Narrowing her eyebrows with determination set in her smirk, she began shooting several arrows as fast as she could whip them out and set them with the beetles as her target. As long as they were separated, it would cause the beetles to be distracted either way. Either the beetles would aim for her and give the others assistance with defense or to attack the beetles from behind, or she would take advantage of them having the beetles' backs turned to attack them from the rear. There was no way she was about to let her team be defenseless when they had come so far to get home! 

(Just to reference what I meant about her using her own arms as a bow and arrow: media.giphy.com/media/GKq9X0O8rGGXK/giphy.gif )

[Elsa]

Harzinon was still amazed at Elsa’s ability to conjure ice at a whim, but she clearly hadn’t thought her attack through. ”Try your sword!” he growled at her. He kept one eye on Basil; the mouse was determined to learn more about the men, but Mateo’s words indicated that the men wouldn’t actually be there to question.

Mateo threw a Daze spell at the fire beetles, which stunned one of them. ”Nice shot!” he called, continuing with his tune. If he needed to, he could switch to his daggers, but he preferred to play inspirational songs.

”Basil, if you can get under one, you could probably stab it. Their bellies are soft.” Harzinon had once found a young beetle, and had tried to raise it to not attack things on sight. The shell on the bottom had been soft enough that he was able to squish it in—though it had caused the beetle to squawk indignantly. Unfortunately, it hadn’t worked, and the fire beetle had burnt down the copse he’d been taking shelter in.

Helen, though... While Harzinon had been reminiscing (just for a second!) she had taken control of the situation—as much as was possible when facing three fire beetles. She threw down a table, ordering them all to get behind it. It was admirable, the way she had taken charge, jumping up onto the fireplace to attack.

At Helen’s shout, Elsa took a step back, but she didn’t duck down behind the table. Harzinon’s words were reproachful, and Elsa mentally chastised herself for forgetting about the weapon hanging from her side. She drew the sword, still a little uncomfortable with the weight in her left hand. She had a quick thought of maybe an ice sword would be better...

Her thought was interrupted as Helen started firing. Mateo had stunned one, Helen was in the process of turning another into a pin cushion. The third, though, hissed and shuddered a little before launching a fireball at Helen. With a shout, Elsa raised her right hand and launched ice again, pouring more energy into it. The fireball fizzled out, leaving Elsa feeling a little drained.

Its attack foiled, the beetle turned on Elsa. She recalled all too well how her last direct attack had failed, and bringing Harzinon’s words to mind, Elsa raised the blade in her hand, swinging it down on the beetle’s head. It let out a pitiful hiss as the sword sliced through it. That left one beetle...

Shuddering, the third beetle shook off as much of the spell as it could, and continued forward towards Mateo.

((Basil would have plenty of time to run under it if you’d like, Linda.))

[Basil]

Basil's companions sprang into action: Mateo and Elsa casting spells, while Helen used her unique consistency to fire arrows at the insects. His hood thrown back so as not to occlude his peripheral vision, Basil drew his knife, wondering if it would be enough to dispatch one of the creatures. Well, if a beetle meant to make a meal of him, he would, at the very least, make it the most unpleasant dinner possible.

Everyone get behind the tables for cover NOW!

Sound advice...for the others. Basil had no intention of hiding while others faced danger on his behalf.

if you can get under one, you could probably stab it. Their bellies are soft.

And if it didn't work, he would find himself in the worst possible position. Ah, well, fortune favours the bold. Dashing forward, Basil threw himself to the floor, rolling under the beetle's mandibles to find a suitably soft underbelly. A long swipe of his blade caused the creature to let out a hideous squeal as the mouse did his best to slide out from under the insect before it could retaliate.

Springing to his feet, he spun round in a crouch, but there seemed to be no more foes to battle. Basil took a moment to wipe off his blade upon a tattered old tapestry before rounding upon Harzinon:

"Why didn't you tell us you had a magic lute?"

[Mateo de Alva]

Helen's wondering, before the beetles interrupted, about Who and What was behind the show of magic seemed the Question of the Day, and Mateo wondered about it as well, even if he didn't say such, or get much of a chance to before the attack drew focus.

Mateo's blast seemed to do what was intended and Daze the one at least.

He would have preferred his own magic and Tamborita, but had also realized by now that he just instantly seemed to know what spell to use when needed. He had a feeling his repertoire may not be all that built up, though...

But that was ok...he'd defeated his first Evil Wizard hardly able to remember his party trick spells, Mateo reminded himself.

Helen yelled for everyone to get behind the tables, and Mateo quickly did so, watching for another option and what else could be done, but Basil dispatched the last one. Mateo sighed as he stood, offering a hand if Helen or Elsa needed it to get up, though they were beyond capable; it was just his court and general manners.

He would have commented on Harzinon's lute, but Basil did it for him. Perhaps accusingly...Mateo moved past that and decided not to assume it had been the mouse's intention. "Yeah, it's...really something; very similar to my magic back home", he commented.

[Deleted]

After watching everyone take turns defeating the beetles, the auburn haired ranger strapped her bow on her back once more with an satisfied smile. She then jumped down off the fireplace, landing on her feet with ease. "How are you doing after all this?" Helen murmured to the queen first, knowing that the queen didn't often use a sword over her powers. "I know, it's crazy actually fighting without powers, right? You were great with that sword though," She said encouragingly to the queen with a smile, before turning her attention to the others in her team with an impressed smirk, "All of you were." The undercover superheroine had never seen her team fight before, and it felt as unified as her family was when it came to fighting. That gave her the encouragement she needed to know that they were going to get through this and get back to their respective "homes" in Disney World.

Helen took a minute to examine the area where the beetles came from with an inquisitive raise of an eyebrow, wondering where the heck those beetles came from in order to be able to detect it better for next time. Upon hearing Basil's comment to Harzinon not sharing the information about his magical lute, Helen planted her hands on her hips. "That's not important right now. The fact is, he has "magic" just like Mateo does. Let's just focus on getting through this place." Helen was quick to redirect people much like she did to her family when they tended to stray from the point, and she wasn't about to bog herself with this detail when there were far more important things to figure out.. like which door they were going to use now? 

"So, what does everyone want to do next? Ya wanna keep going?" The ranger in blue asked the team with a raise of an eyebrow, eyeing the door that the two people in the vision had gone through. "I could open the door from further away to create some distance between us and whatever else is in there," She ventured, volunteering to extend her hands to open the door and create a safe space in between them and whatever other dangerous thing might be in there, should following the visions continually be as dangerous as this one. Glancing back at the door that they just went through, she also thought of another idea for them to consider. "But there were some double doors back there on the west side, where the two people came from, that look like they haven't been in use in a while compared to the other doors. If there were any treasure hunters here, they haven't tried that one in a long time.. and if these "visions"  are any indication of what order they're in, if we follow where they came from, we might have a better idea of who we're dealing with.." Helen shrugged, not caring which decision they made. She was prepared for anything. As long as they all made a decision together, then that was what will get them through this place. 

[Elsa]

Harzinon let his lute drop as the final beetle died, holding it by the neck. “It’s not magic. That was me. I could use my magic on any instrument. It’s kinda what I do.” His words weren’t harsh, just very matter-of-fact. “I just prefer the lute over anything else. It’s hard to communicate with others while you play a fife.”

Helen interrupted, saying it wasn’t important. Harzinon felt a little offended, because music was his life, but he supposed he could understand what she meant: they had more important things to discuss.

“I have no real preference, myself,” he offered. As the “outsider” of the group, he wasn’t sure how much weight his opinion carried. “I’m here to help as I can, and split any spoils we find. And if we can figure out how to get you all home, that’s a bonus.” Mostly.

Elsa let the tip of the sword rest on the ground. It felt a little heavy, now. Blasting ice at the fireball had taken more energy than she’d expected. She managed a smile at Helen, knowing that if she gave herself a moment to rest, she’d be feeling fine.

She finally sheathed her sword, taking a moment to wipe off the beetle remnants with a conjured cloth. While Helen talked, Elsa stepped away from the others to look around the room. The throne was gone, she noticed. “There’s a trap door here,” she offered. “There are a few other doors, as well. We could look around the manor as we follow the magic men. If they’re not real, as Mateo says, the magic will still be there if we don’t follow right away. Right?” She looked at Mateo for confirmation.

[Basil]

Basil took the news of Harzinon's magic with a muttered, "It still would help to have all the data." Now he'd have to wonder what else the magician wasn't telling.

So, what does everyone want to do next? Ya wanna keep going?

"There is nothing for it but to go on." Unless you prefer to live out the rest of your days here, he thought. What he said was, "We've lost our chance to follow those apparitions, no doubt." If he sounded bitter, well, he was. "Now we shall have to examine the whole blasted hall...oh, beg pardon, ladies." Even such a crushing disappointment was no excuse for bad manners.

There’s a trap door here

Basil had already noted it, along with the various exits from the room.

"No one has passed that way recently, unlike these other doors. Might as well have a look through them, as we are here." The detective intensely disliked substituting mere comprehensiveness for deduction.

[Mateo de Alva]

Helen praised their work, Mateo giving a small smile that really just wished to be out of this already, but then everyone probably felt the same. She was right, and Queen Elsa had done good at a fighting style not her own, and a sword. At least this world had still given Mateo what he was more comfortable with, even if it was different spells.

Mateo had missed if there was any accusation in Basil's tone, but Harzinon quickly enough answered to it.

“It’s not magic. That was me. I could use my magic on any instrument. It’s kinda what I do.”

It took everything Mateo had not to get side-tracked by that! He supposed the same was true of him, but...no it wasn't! Not generally, and this world giving some other form of magic along with its transporting them here. He needed his Tamborita, or a Tamborita. Guitar's didn't work. He knew in experimenting in his basement he'd tried.

But to the matter at hand. Helen asked if they should move on or stay.

“There are a few other doors, as well. We could look around the manor as we follow the magic men. If they’re not real, as Mateo says, the magic will still be there if we don’t follow right away. Right?”

"Usually", was Mateo's answer. Magic could be geared up in all sorts of ways. "If it lasted this long for us to see it I'd say yes", he nodded.

Basil did not agree of course. As to the manner of the magic. Then again, Mateo could tell by now he hardly believed in it no doubt.

Even for Mateo's court sensibilities and manners, he didn't see anything wrong with Blasted, but if it was a rude word where Basil came from nice of him to apologize. "Onward it is then", he nodded.

[Deleted]

"There is nothing for it but to go on."

Helen couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and give Basil a strange look. Basil seemed to miss her point about her referring to opening the door in front of them from further away for protection or going back and opening another door from the hallway behind them.  "Well, yeah, those were my thoughts exactly..but my question was where do we go from here?" It was then clear to the auburn haired mother, judging by his reaction to needing to see the rest of the halls, that Basil was probably just annoyed that they were otherwise delayed by the beetles and couldn't keep chasing after the apparitions. She could understand that. She and her husband would tend to get annoyed when they would be hot on a trail and miss catching the bad guys. It was best to just keep moving though, she didn't care what direction it would be as long as they were moving and speeding this up so she could finally get home. 

The ranger in blue glanced curiously over at the trap door by the throne room that Elsa had pointed out while Elsa and Mateo seemed to make sense with what they were saying about the apparitions. "Makes sense," Helen concurred with a nod. If the apparitions waited this long for them to find it, then it was possible that they would still continue to appear no matter the delay.  "So, how bout we test that and keep movin' forward?" With a stretch of her arm, the superheroine opened the door that the apparitions went through earlier to create space for any danger before she reached the door in front of the others, preferring to be the first to be hit by anything than allowing the others to be hurt. The only way to test that theory that Elsa and Mateo had was to just see it for themselves if any apparitions would appear after going through this door. 

[Elsa]

Harzinon, of course, agreed with Helen’s words. ”Of course we’ll keep going,” he said, an excited glint in his eye. This was going to make for a great story.

A thought crossed his mind. ”What happens if the men appear while we’re back here, and can’t see them? I’ve never seen a spell like this, so I don’t know what the trigger is. It could be opening the door, or it could be our entrance into the room.” He hoped it was the latter, as Helen stretched her arm to open the door.

Elsa found herself drawn to searching behind the other doors, especially if Mateo’s assessment was correct. They could always come back, though. Following the men did seem important, after all.

The young queen couldn’t see whatever Basil saw, that told him the trap door hadn’t been used recently. She supposed it might be something in the dust, but the whole room looked equally dusty to her.

”Onward,” she said after Mateo, nodding in agreement. She hefted the sword in her hand, the weight still slightly uncomfortable for her.

Helen opened the door, and Elsa waited. The next room looked clean from what she could see, but there were no voices, no sounds at all. The silence was almost loud.

"Well, I think we can be fairly certain that it's when we enter the room, is when the men appear," Harzinon said dryly.

[Basil]

Using her extendable arm, Helen opened the next door from a distance. Handy, that. Not one to hang to the rear, Basil passed through the door. He was not heedless of possible danger, but trusted his keen eye to spot any trap that might be set for the adventurers.

The new room, as with those already passed, showed nothing of the ruin it should present. Yet another illusion, soon to be dispelled, no doubt. This was a primitive kitchen saturated with steam and smoky odours from the open-fire cooking. But the addition of a pair of human corpses lent a touch of novelty.

"Dead bodies!" Basil cried as he dashed over for a close inspection. Was that a trace of a smile?

"Murdered without warning," he murmured, his green eyes searching for clues. "Doubtless by the same cowardly brigands who are even now looting the house."

Any further observations were interrupted by the appearance of one of those same villains, who appeared from behind a sideboard long enough to hurl a dagger at one of the party before vanishing, along with the rest of the vision, into thin air. But not, alas, the blade, which continued on its flight, all too material.

"Egad, look out!" shouted Basil.

[Mateo de Alva]

The theory, which it still was, that the apparitions, or magic, or whatever they were (though they still felt magical) showed up when they entered a room seemed pretty well backed up by now, though Elsa asked the very interesting and good question of if the opening of the door or entering the room triggered it. Mateo thought. "Hard to say", and guessing on someone else's spell as it were. "But following them is as good a direction as any and probably most likely to lead to...whatever it is we need". To get home, he of course meant but didn't have to say.

Moving forward was the agreed upon choice and so they did such, after Helen opened the door from a distance as she could, for safety, Mateo could tell, though it would help test the theory, he realized.

And it seemed proven by the empty room they entered.

"Well, I think we can be fairly certain that it's when we enter the room, is when the men appear,"

Mateo just nodded distractedly, but glanced to take in all the facts and what they might mean. It was by now pretty clear to him it was probably important to the journey same as everything else had been. Puzzles in Avalor and on adventures had worked this way too, Mateo was fair used to it by now.

Basil went on like the dead bodies were really there which Mateo wasn't convinced of, but it was mostly the mouse's cry that alerted him from studying the wall tapestries for clues to the issue at hand.

Unfortunately not in time. The wizard quickly glanced back over in time to see and feel the blade, thankfully, pass through, no harm done. He still moved his arms over as if to shield even as he felt the magic go through him in a sense, but then...linger. It gave him a forewarning, and sort of back of the mind knowledge, that he was just under some spell, but that didn't seem to matter as he was instantly struck by a sense of panic.

Rooted in things he'd before been afraid of, riding Fuego, the horse in Avalor, etc, but with no current catalyst to cause it. All the same, Mateo suddenly turned and tried to dart from the room.

[Deleted]

It seemed that the test proved to be true about the spell waiting for them to come in, for nothing happened as soon as she stretched her arm to open the door. However, this meant that they could explore the other areas of the castle without having to worry about missing anything, not that she was much of an 'explorer' as she was at just playing detective to solve the mystery on how to get home. As Helen walked through the room and saw the vision of the murder unfold like it was a scene from a movie, much to what looked like Basil's delight, she had to smirk at Harzinon's dry humor, being sardonic in humor herself. "Huh..that magic sure sounds accommodating, not to mention convenient," She added in her low sardonic tone along with him as she placed one hand on her hip that she shifted onto one side, rolling her eyes at how nice the magic was to wait for them this whole time. It was kind of weird to think that a spell was 'waiting' for them to physically be present; it made it sound a lot more 'alive' than magic, in a way. "That can't be real.." Helen glanced over to Harzinon with a questioning look as if to ask him silently: 'can it?' She had yet to hear Harzinon's feedback as to what he thought of these visions. Given that this guy had magic himself, she wanted to hear what his point of view on it was along with what Mateo had said about them being a part of some kind of magic.  

The auburn haired ranger was paying attention to Harzinon as she listened for his answer when she heard Basil shout, causing her to instantly turn her auburn head and gasped in astonishment upon seeing a blade shoot across the air towards Mateo. It took a second or two out of wonder if the blade was real along with the rest of the visions that were disappearing, but it was a second of hesitation too late because when Helen attempted to stretch to deflect it off to the wall, but wasn't able to make it in time when the blade just.. disappeared through him! Helen inwardly cursed at these visions for almost believing them, but the way that Mateo froze in place for a few seconds caused Helen to quickly hurry over to check on Mateo just out of a motherly habit. 

"Mateo? Are you hurt?" Helen asked as she checked around the area where the blade seemed to go through. Nothing physical was there, but that didn't mean that some kinda magic might've hurt him internally like it were a bruise. Her daughter could make invisible force fields that were capable of knocking people out, after all; it was possible that an invisible force could still cause some damage. Mateo wasn't able to answer, however, for he just instantly took off for the door! "What? Hey!" Helen was so insulted by the lack of respect, that she instantly stretched an arm to grab his shoulder and turn him around as she parted her lips to give him a stern talkin' to, which only managed to make him turn only slightly enough for her to gander at his frightened expression that rendered her speechless as he watched him insistently hurry to the same direction towards the door. "He looks..panicked!" Helen glanced from Basil over to Elsa, wondering if she knew if Mateo had some trauma that she did not know about to have caused this. She was pretty sure that he was used to the danger that came with adventure given what he had told her. Still, even her kids panicked when they were nearly killed by that airplane crash.

The ranger in blue stretched both arms and wrapped her arms around him to prevent him from leaving. She had to use her strength to stand her ground and keep him from continuing forward. As she drew closer to him, her arms retracted enough to where she was just embracing him from behind with her arms looped around him in front. "..Hey, easy, Mateo..you're okay.." Helen tried to calm him down, but it didn't seem to work at all! She could still feel him trying to make a run for the door! "Mateo? Listen, I know this isn't easy, but you have got to pull yourself together! We are not doing this right now, understand?!" Now was when Helen was acting like the military warrior that she was, like the tough mother that made sure her kids would snap back into reality and keep their heads cool. This was especially important now that there were such things as beetles and magic that seemed to be waiting for them, making it too dangerous for anyone to wander alone. Speaking of magic, it was too strange for Mateo to suddenly look so afraid like this; even her kids usually snapped back to reality or would have calmed at least a little by this point. "Harzinon! He's normally not like this! What in the world going on?!" Helen exclaimed to the bard with a pleading expression, hoping that the only other person with multiple-magic capabilities would have a reason and a solution for this. 

[Elsa]

Harzinon kept quiet, letting the others lead the way. Basil got a little excited for the dead bodies off to one side, dashing over to inspect them closer. Harzinon was still standing in the doorway, wondering how this illusion related to the rest of them. Dead bodies, and no sign of either man they’d been chasing. Something wasn’t right...

Basil’s shout brought Harzinon from his thoughts. A dagger plunged through Mateo, and Harzinon jumped forward, ready to catch him. Except, Mateo didn’t fall, and the dagger was gone. Mateo started to panic, and even Helen’s reassuring words weren’t enough to bring him back from whatever had affected him. Her words turned from reassuring to commanding. But that didn’t do anything for Mateo, either. Finally, she turned to Harzinon.

He’d already started digging through his back, searching for a thin vial among the health potions he carried when adventuring. He snatched it up, popped the cork, and tried to force Mateo to drink it.

If any of the potion made its way down Mateo’s throat, it didn’t do anything. ”Snake oil salesman,” Harzinon muttered, reaching for a pendant around his neck. It was an anti-fear charm, and he never took it off. Except, right now, Mateo needed it more than he did. Snapping the cord, Harzinon called for Helen to hold Mateo while Harzinon put the necklace on the fearful boy. With the cord tied again, Harzinon dropped it and stepped back, making sure he was between Mateo and the door. If the pendant didn’t work either, Harzinon didn’t want Mateo getting very far.

Elsa watched everything unfold. Between the dead bodies, and the sudden throwing of a dagger, everyone’s attention was focused on Mateo. Elsa, of course, felt concern for him, but she didn’t know how to help. She decided watching the rest of the room was a good idea.

How had the dagger been real, if the one who’d thrown it had been illusion? Elsa peered at about where the dagger had come from, feeling her magic swirl in her right hand. She hefted the sword in her left. A sudden bad feeling cleared Elsa’s mind, and she aimed her right hand forward, sending a thin stream of ice ahead.

The ice formed a light layer on a vaguely human shape that was otherwise invisible. The thing cackled, moving straight up, grabbing a cobwebbed pot on its way. Its arm moved back, preparing to throw the pot.

”That’s a poltergeist!” Harzinon called from the door. ”Elsa, blast it with ice! Freeze it! Unless someone has a magic weapon, or silver bullets or arrows, that’s the only way we can destroy it!”

Elsa did as she was told. Dropping the sword completely, Elsa thrust her left hand forward and threw out as much ice as she could. The poltergeist shrieked, the pot clattering to the ground as Elsa’s ice encased it completely. It crashed to the ground next, shattering into thousands of pieces.

The pieces had barely begun to melt when they vanished, and the room around them changed to look pristine again.

The man in black bent over the motionless man in plain clothing, and then pulled his sword from the dead man's chest. He looked briefly toward the pile of artworks, and then turned and walked over toward the two bodies in the alcove. He turned one of them over slightly, looking at the female face. Tears well in his eyes.

A voice outside the open door shouted, "Hurry it up, we can't wait all night." As the man in black looked up, another man in dark green robes patterned with multicolored serpents stepped through the open doorway. "So we meet at last, Lord Drestyn. I see you've met my servants. Pity they were such weaklings."

"Who are you!" demanded Lord Drestyn, lifting his sword toward the robed figure.

"Let me show you," laughed the robed man. With a wave of his hands, the room was suddenly filled with snakes. Even the sword that Lord Drestyn was holding changed into a serpent which twisted and bit at his hand. Drestyn dropped the snake, and ran out the west door. The robed man pursued him, holding a small green snake.

The room shimmered, changing back to the unkempt appearance that was current. Elsa stared at her own sword, making sure it wasn't a snake as well. It didn't move at all, so she picked it up and returned it to its sheath. With a sigh, she looked to the others. "Well, they left through the door we came through. Maybe there will be another vision in there. There were two in here after all..."

Room #7

[Basil]

The entire scene, corpses and all, vanished straight away, as expected. There was no time left for Basil to observe clues, though the detective's mind was now focused elsewhere. They would be hard pressed to save young Mateo's life after this, though Basil was ready to lend his knowledge of anatomy and first aid.

The knife, however, passed harmlessly through Mateo's body, leaving not the trace of a wound. What was this new phenomenon they were dealing with? Whatever it was, it produced a remarkable change in the wizard. The look in his eyes--sheer, unreasoning panic!

"Get hold of yourself, man!" But words were of no avail. Fortunately, Harzinon produced the remedy. How many other magic charms and talisman's did that gentleman possess? He played his hand too close to the chest to suit Basil.

"If he should drop that bauble..." murmured the mouse, more to himself than the others, "We shall have a deal of a time restraining him."

All seemed well, until Queen Elsa attacked the empty room. Or not so empty--it turned out there was an invisible enemy in their midst. Ghosts and hobgoblins...give Basil a simple garroter or blackmailer any day!

Basil opened his mouth to speak, but that comment would be forever lost, for the room then changed once more. That was against type!

Watching the scene unfold was something like being at the theatre, though the outcome could be far more serious. When it was all played out, Basil frowned.

"Snakes..." he muttered, "Why did it have to be snakes?" Snakes eat mice, something to ponder as he exited the room with the others. At least they now knew for certain that caped chap was the mysterious Lord Drestyn.

[Mateo de Alva]

As he got more and more of a feel of what was going on here, Mateo knew it wasn't quite how Helen put it, with the magic being accommodating and convenient, but couldn't help smiling to her assessment. "Yeah...it seems like a magical...time capsule of sorts, waiting for people to activate". That sounded like something Wizards would do.

Of course it was very very real seeming magic, as the blade proved.

Mateo was used to being afraid of everything from Crowds to Failure, but not in this debilitating way. He'd never let it get this bad, and had in fact made a lot of steps, with Princess Elena's help, to not letting that fear hold him back from defending the kingdom.

Of course given it was a spell, and therefore "not on him", this fear, he shouldn't feel too bad, once Harzinon gave him the pendant to combat the affects, but he did. "Thanks, s-sorry", he got out as he came to his senses and stood. He glanced to the floor, feeling his cheeks burning with shame. "I--I don't know what came over me...well I do...never been that firmly under the influence of someone else's spell...". And he didn't like it. Not one bit!

Of course they were hardly out of the woods, and the room now gave them snakes to contend with!

Come on Mateo, get past it and help! He thought through his repertoire of spells, but couldn't come up with anything useful. Not here, where his own just ended in showers. Thankfully Elsa's blast seemed to do the trick. Mateo relaxed from his own stance of getting ready to even just hit one with his staff if that ended up all he could do.

Elsa was probably right about the visions in the other room, as the prepared to go that way, Mateo glanced to the pendant Harzinon had given him. "Thanks again...I'll give this back soon as I know it's safe but...". He wasn't sure about risking that just yet...

[Deleted]

"I--I don't know what came over me...well I do...never been that firmly under the influence of someone else's spell..."

Poor Mateo sounded a little like her Vi, being unsure of his capabilities. "Ah, you're okay.. Don't worry, we know it's part of that power - er spell over you." The tough supermom waved it off with a warm smile. "If it makes ya feel any better, it's happened to me more than once." The superheroine admitted with a small smirk, shifting her eyes off to the side as she thought of that last time that she wished didn't happen. Being mind controlled was not fun, so she could understand the frustration of not being able to stop it from happening herself. "In fact, I'd say it happens to the best of us. Even Harzinon carries that thing around for a reason." She shrugged, offering a small smile at Harzinon, considering him to be powerful as well given all she had seen him do so far, "And I'm grateful that he did. It's great to have ya back, Mateo."  Helen offered a hand on his shoulder endearingly, before she turned her attention over to Elsa freezing someone that was invisible, who seemed to be the culprit behind the attack. Now, the superpowered mother could sometimes tell when Vi was invisible around her, but this didn't feel human at all! It didn't even sound human the way it cackled like that while taking the pot. When Harzinon called it a poltergeist and called on Elsa to attack it with magic, Helen left that up to Elsa to take care of, being that she only used brute strength and didn't have any special kind of arrows for her bow unfortunately. Thankfully, Elsa attacked whatever it was, though it shattered into pieces. 

Suddenly, another vision occurred before them. As the auburn ranger watched the scenery unfold again, she blinked her eyes with interest upon finding out that the man in black was Lord Drestyn that Liluth was talking about. She then began to ponder on what Liluth said compared to what she was seeing now. Lord Drestyn killed the guy in plain clothing for being betrayed, but it was showing him in far more sentimental light when someone else far more powerful tried to threaten him with snakes. Helen remained quietly pensive as she walked to the next room. She recalled what Liluth said about Lord Drestyn being evil and that he showed his "true colors" and everyone fled, which was the reason why there was no magic allowed in that town. Yet here, it showed him being betrayed and being attacked by some other powerful force. Helen knew better than to allow some illusion to change her mind about things though. As she stated before, these could easily be visions created by a person to make you think that was what happened. It didn't necessarily mean it was true. Still, even if it was true.. just because Lord Drestyn was betrayed, it doesn't excuse his behavior of killing the person in plain clothing off. Law is law.  

As the flexible superheroine in blue went through the doors, she peered around to see what else might be in store for them. 

[Elsa]

Harzinon debated returning the lute to his back as his companions returned to the dining hall. Ultimately, he decided it would be easier to continue carrying it, in case it was needed quickly again. He estimated that the last inspiration he gave them (stronger attacks and faster limbs) would last for another quarter of an hour or so. It was too bad he wasn’t more skilled with spells—he thought it might be nice to have spells that would work better for Helen and Elsa, with their abilities. Perhaps something aimed at Otherworld allies...

Back in the dining hall, Elsa eyed the doors around them. Two sat on the east wall, not counting the door they had just passed through, from the kitchen. The double-doors that they had originally entered the room through still hung open. Another door sat on that wall, closed. There was the trap door that Basil had said hadn’t been used recently. Those were their options.

To her dismay, there were no further illusions in this room. ”Perhaps the tale will continue in a different room?” Elsa offered. With the tale having taken place twenty years prior to their visit, she wasn’t sure how much they should rely on dust patterns for where they should go next. ”We could return to the Great Hall. There were stairs there, going up.”

Room #4

[Basil]

”Perhaps the tale will continue in a different room? We could return to the Great Hall. There were stairs there, going up.”

Basil shook his head, frowning, and replied, "There is no logical way to decide. We merely pass from room to room, hoping to gain some new scrap of information that might prove useful." How he wished they might act instead of merely reacting. This wandering left them prey to any creature that might be lying in wait. But with no data, one door was as likely as another.

"If someone has a suggestion, I should be open to hearing it. Otherwise, we shall go on plodding through the house indefinitely, trusting to luck." Was this what it was like to be an ordinary policeman on a case?

Well, if they had to open every blasted door in the blasted house, they might as well get on with it. Basil made his way to the closed door on the same wall as the double-door they'd already opened and had a try at it.

[Mateo de Alva]

"Ah, you're okay.. Don't worry, we know it's part of that power - er spell over you. If it makes ya feel any better, it's happened to me more than once."

That last did genuinely surprise Mateo, as well as help, yes. He blinked. "It...has...?", he wasn't sure why he thought Helen herself would never fall victim to such a thing, but then that was silly, anyone could fall victim to magic spells such as these. Mateo smiled as Helen said it was great to have him back.

It might have been cliche to say, but it was great to be back as well!

Something new swooped in, Harzinon sensing it first, and calling to Elsa to blast it, which she did. It brought on another vision, this on seeming to give more of the background and story, before dissipating as they all did. Then there was seemingly nothing for it but to go on, a fact that seemed to annoy Basil, though he had a point about the lack of a clear direction of what to do.

He soon walked to the door though, as if resigned. Mateo, with no better suggestion, shrugged, "It seems as likely as anything else", he admitted.

[Deleted]

Helen smirked at Mateo feeling a little better, knowing that it does happen to everyone. Maybe one day she'd tell him about being mind-controlled by a villain, but not right now. At the moment, everyone seemed to be set on deciding where to go from here with Basil taking initiative in going to the next room. Elsa's suggestion made her reflect on things though. "Well, we might as well try 'em all.. but, I dunno, that stairwell and that trapdoor seems like something I'd go for.." Helen mused with a shrug. In fact, the superheroine would have already made her way over to investigate if it wasn't for her trying to work as a team. Similar to how she tried to keep her own family together with her flexibility, she was trying to do the same for this team. 

Still, even if she was interested in keeping the team together in a unit, the superheroine wasn't afraid of stating her opinions on things, even if she was the only one in the opposing side. It wasn't like the mother of three wasn't already used to it; Helen usually stood up for her own opinions that even her own family didn't agree upon when it came to legalities.  "I mean, everything on the first floor's probably already been looted..so, the chances of us finding anything that'll help us go home on the first floor doesn't seem likely.." Helen planted her hands on her hips as she glimpsed over at Harzinon to see what he thought of this, based on his own experience in looting - not that she was suddenly in favor of it; She just hadn't seen any valuables from the few rooms so far, and one of them had been crawling with dangerous fire beetles. Either way, anything worth taking would be the first thing to go since it was the easiest to just grab and go on the way out.  "..and I keep thinkin' about those weird creatures behind those footprints.. they had to have been separated or trapped somewhere..not some room in the first floor,"  Helen didn't mean trapped like the creatures were in trouble, but they were definitely locked somewhere that couldn't have been easy to get out or else they wouldn't have been seeing footprints along with human footprints going in different directions; the creatures would have left long before those humans came if it were that easy for them to escape.  The two best places would be the stairway or the trap door. "Maybe the reason why that trap door hadn't been used in a while was because someone's been keeping people out of that room..I mean, think about it, we've even been attacked in there.." In her experience, whenever something was the hardest to get through, it usually meant that they were close to something important. Someone had to have been behind that invisible attack, probably the same one behind the fire beetles.. and maybe even the illusions. The question was: why? 

"But then I think about that spell by the fish, about blinding out the sun? So, maybe we should leave the trap door until after we check the stairwell.." If that trap door lead anywhere, it had to have been down, where there were no windows. It made no sense to go someplace where there was no sun to block, like the spell said to do. "Those stairs were missing a few steps, but I don't think steps can suddenly break on their own.. someone must've used it and it gave out to decay.." It could have been those creatures or anyone running down the steps and caused them to break easily because of decay.  "It's sort of perilous for just anyone to try 'em out..but it's nothing we can't handle! It might be worth checking out," The brave superheroine smirked at them with her hands on her hips, wondering if they were up for the challenge of getting up the stairs, or if they even thought it was a good idea. It was the challenge of getting up the broken stairwell that would certainly make it less likely for people to have ventured up to investigate, which means more of a chance that they might actually find something.. like the key to going home.

Sadly, Helen was more concerned about getting to the point of going home than quenching the spirit for adventure that she would have had in her youth. Maybe it was just Harzinon's spell over them, but something told her that they should take advantage of the increased strength and speed that they were all suddenly feeling and just head on up the stairs before the power over them would fade away.