RATATOSKR

[soulping]

[You suddenly find yourselves standing at the beginning of a large hedge maze, one with walls that extend so far above your head you're not quite certain where they end. There is no entrance behind you, and the bushes are so thick and full of thorns that attempting to crawl through them will result in numerous scratches]

[There is no way to go but forward]

Comments

ROUND ONE

[soulping]

[On your right you find a large, wooden shelf with twelve jars sitting on top of it]

- A jar of rat tails
- A jar of tiger eyes
- A jar of rabbit feet
- A jar of dragon hearts
- A jar of snake tongues
- A jar of horse stomachs
- A jar of goat horns
- A jar of monkey fingers
- A jar of rooster claws
- A jar of pig ears

[Each jar is clearly labeled, and the contents are exactly what the labels purport them to be. Choose three!]

DISCUSSION

[soulping]

Re: DISCUSSION

[cosmetician]

[I'M DEAD AND STIFF AND THERE'S A MAGICAL TALISMAN STUCK TO MY FOREHEAD

staring at the jars]

Re: DISCUSSION

[secretofthefox]

[sorry I'm also kind of useless because I'm trying to get off another panic attack

...clinging to one of the tails nervously while trying to consider the jars but having trouble with the concentration thing because panic

also maybe standing a little too far away from you]

DECISION

[soulping]

Re: DECISION

[secretofthefox]

- A jar of dragon hearts
- A jar of goat horns
- A jar of dog noses

Re: DECISION

[soulping]

[+1 hearts, horns and noses for your inventory. the rest of the jars disappear in a wisp of smoke]

ROUND TWO

[soulping]

[You move forward through the maze, the hedges looming ominously around you. And thankfully, it isn't long before you run into your first checkpoint]

[In front of you, and stretched across the path, is a large sphinx with a striped lioness' body. her wings are tucked at her sides, and she regards the group with a lazy, bored expression]

Mmmm. . . I would like something with rhythm that I can dance to the beat of. Do you have that for me, dears?

DISCUSSION

[soulping]

Re: DISCUSSION

[cosmetician]

[to Sol:]

My guess.....would be....a heart. It....pulses....and beats.

The ones...we have...used to.

Re: DISCUSSION

[secretofthefox]

[his immediate thought was rattlesnake tails but no those were tongues anyway and besides he should think about what they've got rather than what they've left behind and

but no you make more sense, he nods]

I'll offer those, then.

DECISION

[soulping]

Re: DECISION

[secretofthefox]

[deep breath, then offering the dragon hearts]

Um, how about these? Hearts pulse to a beat...

Re: DECISION

[soulping]

[The sphinx's mouth curls up into a grin, and it devours the snack you offer it in one large swallow. It licks its massive chops and stretches]

Mmm. . . I suppose I owe you one of these.

[And with a flick of its head, the creature tosses you a pouch filled with one ingredient: a few sprigs of aconite]

[and then the sphinx disappears]

ROUND THREE

[soulping]

[You walk through the maze's pathways for quite some time, taking sharp turns to the point of where you feel like you're going in circles. But eventually. . .]

[You stumble across another sphinx. Large, with blue fur and black hair, tiny wings protruding from his shoulders like stubs. he grumps at you all, chest puffed out formally.]

Give me something that makes a magnificent headdress.

DISCUSSION

[soulping]

Re: DISCUSSION

[cosmetician]

Out of...what we...have....?

....the horns.

Re: DISCUSSION

[secretofthefox]

[feathers there were no feathers there are no feathers out of what we have

...yes]

Horns would make a good one, yeah. Especially because they used to be kind of a headdress already, right?

[he'll go ahead and offer them]

DECISION

[soulping]

Re: DECISION

[secretofthefox]

[offering the goat horns]

These would make a good headdress, right? I mean, they used to be one anyway, pretty much.

ROUND FOUR

[soulping]

[You walk, and walk, and walk some more, until your feet begin to hurt and you start to wonder. . . how long is this maze anyway?]

[Until you find them. The last phoenix, crouched low on all fours and watching you with golden eyes. its lips are curled back in a snarl, but it doesn't pounce]

Something that amplifies the echoes you hear in a cavern. Quickly!

DISCUSSION

[soulping]

Re: DISCUSSION

[cosmetician]

[To Sol:]

We don't....have anything...that will work.

DECISION

[soulping]

Re: DECISION

[secretofthefox]

Sorry. We don't have anything like that, so we're just going to pass.