G was shocked at the changes that had happened to Ryan.
Riclos asked in a hushed tone, "Who is that? Is that your devil worshiper? And those elves with him, what is this?"
Kargan studied the image and spoke softly after a few moments of silence, "Those are part of the queen's council. It looks like they sent military representatives, too. The caster caste are those in dark blue robes with their hoods up. They have the most intricate scar patterns on their faces and hands. The elves in armor are the consort's guards assigned by the queen. The two in the back, exiting now in the all-red robes, are the priests of the death god. Notice how no one wants to be near them, even other elves. The human is the queen's consort, and he's the one we intend to kill."
Riclos shook his head, "I hate to break it to you two, but I've had my share of run-ins with cultists, and that one there with part of his ritual diagram showing through his shirt is not going to be easy to kill. We're lucky he can't sense us in this ship. G, you said he was searching for you?"
G nodded, then mentally spoke to Tocai, "Tocai, can you still do tactical analysis like we used to do on Earth when I streamed?" He was hoping his familiar could still do something to help him. He wanted so badly to run out there and confront Ryan, and the ring was telling him it was a good plan, which he knew was a terrible plan.
Tocai took on a more formal matter-of-fact tone, "Yes, I can. There is almost no chance of you winning a fight with Ryan here. 99.5% chance you will be dead or captured before you even get near him." Tocai used to have this tone of voice when he was only an AI, just facts, no emotion, to distract G while in the many games he would stream.
"What are my chances of escaping here if we run for it or get the ship to work?" asked G.
"Low, less than 4%, as the ship appears to have broken controls, and you have never flown it. Even if those things were not true, you have no place to go with it other than down a straight tunnel. If it will even move without its sails up, which would make the passage down the tunnel almost impossible since some of the passage is narrower than the sails' extended width," said Tocai.
G sent a mental affirmation that he understood, then spoke softly, "Riclos, is there any way to make this ship move without the sails out? I don't think we have much of a chance to get away if we can't move the ship."
Riclos looked at the scene again as goblins were rushing around, setting up tables and chairs for the groups from the tents. Ryan had a goblin in front of him with two hobgoblins flanking him, holding the smaller creature's arms while the goblin appeared to be talking to Ryan's retinue of dark elves. Ryan pointed back down the passage from which the ship must have come. He was shouting at the goblin now as the hobgoblin guards released the smaller creature's arms and backed away.
The goblin was cowering on the floor; Ryan apparently didn't like what he was hearing.
Kargan moved a little closer to the mirror, looking at the scene, "That one is one of the scouts from my command. He was the one that escaped the spiders. "
Ryan was furious about something, the symbol on his chest glowing and pulsating with intensity. He raised his fist above his head, radiating a brilliant blue-white light. In a split second, he aimed it at the goblin, sending a surge of lightning through its body. The creature's bones illuminated like a macabre Christmas tree, shrieking in pain and writhing on the ground. The agonizing display lasted less than a second before the goblin's flesh turned to ash under the force of the electrical current, leaving behind a charred skull, a few smoldering bones, and a mostly disintegrated rib cage.
Ryan stood near the smoldering remains, still yelling at the lifeless goblin. He then seemed to become aware of himself and glanced around at the other goblins, hobgoblins, and dark elves staring at him in awe and terror. Most goblins in sight prostrated themselves before Ryan, treating him like a king or deity. With a scowl, Ryan turned away and reentered the large tent, followed by several dark elves.
G whispered to Kargan, "Do you think he was angry about the story of my death? He didn't seem happy with what your scout told him."
Kargan shrugged. "He's done that to others before. Only the queen's presence seems to calm him. There are many stories of him punishing those who displease him. The queen fears him, but it's rumored that she believes he'll be a powerful weapon to defend the city now that the gods have abandoned it. As for why he did it? He's torched goblins for not putting enough ice in his drink, but you might be right, given that it was my old scout. You were presumed dead, and your body was there. Ryan told me to capture a human; the story might have angered him, hearing we only found an elf."
Riclos looked puzzled. "I think you two should tell me what's going on with this consort."
Kargan explained, "I was sent to capture G for the consort. Things didn't go as planned, and G ended up saving me from a massive spider matron. During all of this, it appeared G was killed, and that goblin believed he saw G dead when he abandoned Kargan and the others to the spiders and reported back to his commander. It's likely that the goblin joined the army sent to retrieve the ship and only now managed to give a full report in front of Ryan, who didn't seem pleased with what he heard. "
"Is there a way to get audio on this mirror?" asked G.
Riclos looked puzzled. "What is audio?"
"Sound, so we can hear them," whispered G.
Riclos shook his head. "This mirror is a simple enchantment, and it doesn't have that ability. Over the years, I've seen many artifacts and only a few of them could transmit sound and light from a location. Unlike this one, those almost always required mana to be fed into them constantly to work. You must have some enchanter ability if you were able to learn anything from the ring; it resisted most of my attempts to discern its full nature. Can you not do the same with the mirror? Try."
G looked back at the mirror and studied it intently, and a prompt appeared.
Do you wish to identify this mirror?
G chose yes.
Magical Port view
Description: This magical item shows the scene that is visible from its object of focus.
"What is an object of focus?" asked G.
Riclos smiled. "You'd make a fine artifact hunter. You discerned that faster than most. An object of focus usually means what the magic will work through, or target, or sometimes called a sister object. It's what the mirror connects to for the scene. In this case, it's attached to the ship and known."
As Riclos was talking, a small prompt appeared. G minimized it to the side to read later.
"I have an idea, but I'm not sure how well it will work. Do either of you have any sleeping potions or magic that can enchant liquid for that effect?" Riclos asked.
G raised his eyebrows and looked at Kargan. "My spell isn't very strong, and it doesn't enchant or make potions," the hobgoblin whispered.
G smiled, struck by an idea that might not work. He pretended to reach into the leather jacket and summoned the brown wrapping he had picked up long ago, the contents still wrapped in the remains of the brown paper bag Crewton had found it in. There was a great deal inside. "I don't have sleeping herbs, but this herb can be very calming if smoked or eaten. Will that work?"
Riclos eyed G suspiciously, clearly not fooled by the act of pulling the large, uncompressed wrapping from his jacket.
"What is the name of this herb?" Riclos asked, examining the brown paper.
G considered the question. He didn't know if this even existed outside of Earth. He had never seen cannabis in any RPG game or in the previous version of Panarverse, which was just simple VR. "We called it weed or cannabis where I'm from. I don't know what you would call it. People smoke it, and it's banned in many areas because of its effects. It won't hurt anyone that I know of, but it can cause erratic behavior in those who smoke or eat it. Most become drowsy or hungry."
Riclos replied, "It will have to do. I can't fly this ship, but I did see them use one of its defenses when we left the city. The captain had outfitted the ship for smuggling, as you can see by this room,"
Kargan spoke softly in the broken Common Riclos was using. "I think it would be best if we use subterfuge, and we need to avoid being seen. I'll pretend I captured you and say I was ordered to take both of you to the city without delay. Few there would doubt it, as they appear to have killed the last goblin from my command, which could have contradicted me."
"I love that idea," said G, his voice enthusiastic. Kargan looked at G, puzzled.
Tocai spoke, "I predict a low chance of success. If you could disguise yourself as a dark elf or hobgoblin, your odds would improve significantly."
"Tocai suggests that if we disguise ourselves as dark elves, our chances will increase with this plan," said G, still feeling optimistic about the idea. He knew the ring was influencing his emotions, and a tiny voice warned him, but he brushed it off as inconsequential.
Kargan looked at G again. "No, you look nothing like a dark elf. They have purple skin and white hair, and they also etch their skin with scars in different patterns of their houses."
Riclos asked, "Kargan, how common are humans in this city of yours, other than the consort?"
"They are rare, but we do see them from time to time. Either as slaves or coming in as guards on trading expeditions from other cities. Elves like G, though, are never seen near this city. There's no way he could get by any guards, even if we could dye his hair," said Kargan.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Riclos sighed and looked at the pile of treasure. "I think we can do this, at least for G. In those bolts of cloth, one bolt has blue silk. Pulling the silk back a layer, you'll find a hidden silken robe wrapped there, and it will help us."
Kargan and G turned back to the pile of treasure. Tocai spoke, "I sense it; it's the third from the top, under the painting. It was the other magic I mentioned earlier. It feels very weak for magic items."
G stood with Kargan and started sorting through the pile. As G picked up an item, he willed it into his inventory. In a few minutes, he had cleared almost everything above the magical bolt, leaving only two small closed chests and a handful of gold and silver plates and goblets. He picked up the last painting for good measure and put it in his inventory to prevent further damage if the ship moved again.
Kargan picked up the bolt and laid it on the table before Riclos, who hadn't moved from his chair. His wooden foot in its boot was still unstrapped from his calf. Riclos unwrapped the bolt, and moments later, he was holding a long sky-blue robe made of a non-shiny, lightweight material with a single loop button to hold the front closed. It looked very plain, much like a simple swami's robe.
"This is the other item we found when we discovered the casket containing the ring. The body of the priestess had long turned to dust, but this robe and the ring were untouched by age. Here, try your enchanter talent on this." He held it out for G to examine.
Guinidilda Magic Raiment
Description:
These robes were once worn by the High Priestess Guinidilda, a powerful and enigmatic figure known for her mastery of illusion. The robes themselves are made of a shimmering silver material that seems to change in color depending on the light and the angle of the viewer.
Magical effect - unknown
"It's the robe of High Priestess Guinidilda. I can't tell what the magical effect is," said G.
"That's a good start. If we had more time and you could study it, you'd find that this robe is designed for a creature that can change shape quickly. The robe will accommodate this, but more importantly, you can have it change shape for just about any occasion. I didn't really want to part with this, and I expect it and the ring back once we get out of here," Riclos said while holding the robe out so G could put his arms through the open sleeves.
"What is a doppelganger?" asked G.
"It's a shifter or shape changer that can transform into other sentient creatures, like an elf, or an orc, or a human. But they are not any of these things, " said Riclos.
"Do I wear it over my clothes?" asked G.
"I don't think it will matter," replied Riclos, giving the robe a little shake for emphasis.
G looked at Kargan, who was still giving that stoic, what-the-hell-are-you-thinking look. G shrugged and put on the robe. Nothing happened.
"Is there some magic phrase or something?" asked G.
Riclos smirked and pointed at the mirror. "Just imagine yourself wearing one of those dark elf robes there and push some mana into the robe."
G had no idea how to do that, but he could certainly imagine it. "Tocai, can you do what he said, please? We want to look like a dark elf outfit." G felt mana flowing through him from his familiar, and the robe shifted. It changed, and G stood in a deep blue robe resembling the dark elf's. He examined the robe again.
Mana-Shifting Robes of Adaptation
Description:
These robes were once worn by the High Priestess Guinidilda, a powerful and enigmatic figure known for her mastery of illusion magic and her ties to the Feywild. The robes themselves are made of a shimmering silver material that seems to change in color depending on the light and the angle of the viewer.
The Guinidilda Magic Raiment is specifically tailored for a doppelganger, a rare shape-shifting creature known for its ability to assume the appearance of any humanoid. When worn by a doppelganger, the robes merge with the wearer's form, becoming a part of their body and granting them several magical abilities.
Defensively, the Guinidilda Magic Raiment provides no inherent protection against physical or magical attacks. However, it does grant the wearer advantage on saving throws against any spell or effect that would reveal their true form or location.
The true power of the Guinidilda Magic Raiment lies in its ability to enhance the wearer's shape-shifting abilities.
The exact nature of the Guinidilda Magic Raiment's magic is a mystery, and its abilities may vary depending on the wearer's skill and mastery of shape-shifting.
Magical effect - Mana-Shifting Robes of Adaptation.
"Mana-Shifting Robes of Adaptation, what? Tocai, do you see that? The type and effect changed." Tocai didn't respond to his question. G felt more mana flow into the robe, and a hood formed over his head and his hat. He felt the heat and a great deal more mana flow into the robe. He tried to yank the hood off his head. The heat kept going up, and he saw light radiate from the brim of his hat as the cloth-like material engulfed it and crept down to touch his forehead for a moment.
Tocai spoke loudly in his mind, "Stop moving around! You're going to break my connection to the magic. It's absorbing your hat, and I'm trying to sort out the mana siphon!"
G stopped tugging as the heat stopped building, even though the skin on his forehead felt like he was touching an oven.
The cloth material covered his face, moving quickly, then reconfigured and moved around from his eyes, keeping most of his face and hair covered. He could see again as the cloth pulled back, and the brim of his hat was gone. His whole hat was gone. "Hey, don't wreck my hat!"
"I didn't wreck it exactly; the robe absorbed it, kind of. Hold still; I think I got this. There shouldn't be any heat this time," said his familiar, and G felt an odd sensation all over his body. There was some heat, but more importantly, he looked down at his arms to see the robe completely covered his entire outfit, and the leather felt weird, like it was crawling or something.
"What are you doing!?" G exclaimed, directing his concern toward Tocai.
"I'm absorbing your clothes, all but your boots. This magical cloth can do way more than just change shape. It can absorb certain materials. Pull out that goblin armor you found. I want to see if we can absorb any of it," Tocai sounded excited about what he was doing, and G couldn't see any harm other than the coolness of his personal appearance and fear of being naked if this didn't work. The image of running through the tunnels naked while goblin hordes chased him almost made him chuckle. In the back of his mind, he heard that voice again, saying it was the ring, stupid, but he didn't care.
G summoned the various bits of goblin leather armor he had acquired from the looting of the spider fight and other goblins. One at a time, he made each piece appear in his hand, and one at a time, the robe's sleeve reached out to cover the piece and absorb it. The whole outfit he was wearing changed with each piece it absorbed. It was just a robe but over his naked body. After several minutes, he had a new pair of pants made of magical material under the robe with some leather reinforcements. He had a new long coat and shirt, both with reinforced shoulders and elbow areas, all done in magical material and leather guarding.
Riclos and Kargan had just watched G as his familiar absorbed his clothes and armor. Riclos was particularly interested when Tocai absorbed the pieces of armor.
When it was done a few minutes later, G held out the edges of the robe to look at his new outfit. "Damn, Tocai, these look nice. I'm like some dark elf ninja punk or something. Can you keep this going? How long?"
"It should be stable. Once formed, it should be stable until you lose parts of it, take it off, or I lose contact with it. Look at the quest timer, G!" said Tocai excitedly.
G looked at Tocai's Quest timer, and it had four more days on it. "We have nine days now. Can you use this as your new home? " G asked as Tocai's enthusiasm and excitement rubbed off on him.
"Hmm... I don't think so. It's a powerful magical item, but it's not designed to hold something like me. However, with four more days and this material, I can reinforce the hood to protect the mana siphon better than your old hat," said Tocai, somewhat disheartened. "Here, give this to Riclos to wear. If he wears this, you'll have nearly a fifty percent chance of escaping from the ship. We can't risk Ryan capturing you." The right sleeve on G's new outfit extended to cover his palm and then expanded as G watched his old leather steampunk-style hat reform in his hand. "If we're caught or discovered, they'll think Riclos is you. Remember, Kargan said he was sent to capture a human."
G nodded and looked at Kargan. "When you were given orders to capture me, did they include a description?"
Kargan glanced at the hat for a moment, then smiled. "No, I was told to capture a human with an unusual hat who would be accompanied by a beast, which is your dog." He had understood G and Tocai's plan.
"Excellent, then this will work. Riclos, buddy, I think this will improve our odds. Kargan was sent to capture a human with a hat, and this is the hat. If you wear this, even if any guards have the same description, you'll be a match," said G. He thought for a moment and asked his familiar, "Will the hat be okay once it leaves me? You mentioned it could be problematic if parts were removed."
"It'll be fine. I replaced the same material that was absorbed. The hard part was removing the mana siphon, and that's already done," replied Tocai.
Riclos eyed the hat warily. He didn't say anything as he glanced at the mirror again. "Are you sure he's a follower of Tychon?"
G held out the slightly larger hat. "As certain as anything in this world, where the first person to greet me was some Greater God of Mischief. Which is not at all, but that's what he told me. If Ryan captures me, he'll complete his ritual, which will likely mean the end of everything and everyone I know. I don't doubt that part. Also, I trust my familiar; he had a history of success with his suggestions long before I arrived here. If all goes well, we'll slip right on out of here. Try it on, and I'll gather the rest of the treasure." G handed Riclos the hat, picking up the remaining treasure from the floor. The chests were heavy, but once lifted, they entered the inventory and filled one slot each, marked as containers. He could click on them and see their contents: gems, coins, and a few small gold statues. It all appeared fairly mundane and expensive. He still had plenty of inventory slots left when he finished.
G turned back to see Riclos standing with his wooden foot strapped back on and G's hat on his head. He looked nothing like G when he was on Earth, but he definitely appeared human, resembling an old steampunk enthusiast who had just emerged from a Viking forest in the north. It was an odd look, but it would have to suffice.
Kargan looked at G, who had just stood up. "I can still see your eyes and skin. Can you make the hood or veil cover your face more?"
G hadn't considered that – especially his eyes. He cast his summon companion spell, and Crewton materialized before him. Atop the dog's head sat G's goggles. G tried to pet the overly excited dog as it ran around, rubbing against his leg, darting across the room, sniffing his new clothes, and ramming into G as he scratched behind the dog's ears. G wasn't sure if Crewton was more excited to see him or if he was more excited to see Crewton.
"Whoa there, buddy, hang on. I need these," said G as he carefully removed the goggles from his dog's head. G examined them:
G's Streamer Goggles - Durability 18 of 20
Steampunk goggles are enchanted to see in the darkness. Made from strong glass lenses, deep bronze rims, and leather straps with bronze buckles, they provide the following:
Dark vision 30 meters.
+5 to perception.
Crewton didn't need them anymore since the cabin and ship were illuminated, and the dark pathways had bioluminescent lichen growing on the walls. Dogs could see pretty well in low light. Did his dog smell like bubble bath? G sniffed Crewton, and, indeed, the dog smelled clean, as if it had taken a bubble bath and his were also nails were trimmed. Where did Crewton go when he was unsummoned? G sighed, realizing he had another mystery to solve. His companion seemed genuinely happy.
He pulled back the hood of his new robe, which he now noticed had been tailored to accommodate his ears, which was thoughtful. He put on the goggles, blinked a few times, and pulled the hood back up.
"That won't work. They have purple eyes, and those look like you pulled the orbs from a beetle and shoved them in your face," said Kargan.
"Bah," said G before addressing Tocai again, "Can you absorb the goggles or change them?"
"Mixing two magics might be dangerous, perhaps with more practice. I don't know for sure, and I wouldn't want to experiment here and on your face. Let's try this," Tocai said as the thick veil covering G's lower face changed and moved up and around the goggles, concealing them in a web of fine filigree threads woven across the lenses, making them look almost purple. G looked at his character sheet image of himself. The shiny glass lenses were mostly covered, and the purple threads across the lens did indeed make them look more purple now.
Kargan nodded and looked at G, turning him around once as he looked at the robe covering his new clothes design. "That should work if nobody gets too close to us, pull the hood down a bit more in front, and you will pass. At least you got rid of that dead fish smell. "
G hadn't noticed it, but the smell was also gone. Good, that will help them if they have to hide.
Riclos, watching G transform his clothes, picked up the brown paper package off the table. "It looks like most of the camp has calmed down or is asleep. Let us be gone before they awaken. "