You decide that if it were worth seeing Basalt would've mentioned it and hurry to catch up with your diminutive but still imposing tour guide. Ahead you see a set of stairs with what appears to be daylight at the top and you sense the tour is coming to an end. Basalt slips behind a wooden counter, not unlike a lemonade stand a child might set up except stocked with daggers and brass knuckles instead of lemonade and cookies.
"If you would like to purchase one of these carefully made replica items from my personal stash which I have been authorized by the queen herself to sell, I would be happy to oblige," he then says with a toothy smile, a little bit over eager. "If I may suggest this azure poniard. It is made of lapis lazuli, not a practical material for a weapon, but as I said this is a replica and is intended for decorative and/or ceremonial purposes only. The price is a little steep, a memory, but I imagine as a traveler in our land, you have collected many rich, valuable memories, and have one or two to spare."
You thank Basalt and agree to purchase the blade. You expect him to bring out a brush and a bottle or some similar contraption, as you have seen in your prior purchases, but instead he reaches under the counter and produces a quill pen and inkwell; a heavy, leather bound book, and a pair of spectacles with thick, bottle glass lenses. He slides these onto your face and you blink, feeling as if you are gazing at the world from inside of a fishbowl. He gazes into your eyes intently then slowly nods, smiles.
"Yes, we are ready. Please concentrate on a memory of your choice. I shall see it through the glass and write out what your memories have described to me . . . it is unnecessary for you to speak. Your eyes shall do the talking in this case." You choose a memory of personal significance that is pleasurable for you to recall and focus on this. He nods again, opens the book, dips the quill in the ink, and begins to scratch out words in small, straight letters in an unknown language. You sit quietly while he draws out what he sees in your eyes and then gently dabs the ink dry with a sponge. "Perfect. The blade is yours. Use it in good health. I hope you enjoy the remainder of your time in our fair city."
Are you ready to see the queen yet?
or
Would you like to go to another location on the map?
"If you would like to purchase one of these carefully made replica items from my personal stash which I have been authorized by the queen herself to sell, I would be happy to oblige," he then says with a toothy smile, a little bit over eager. "If I may suggest this azure poniard. It is made of lapis lazuli, not a practical material for a weapon, but as I said this is a replica and is intended for decorative and/or ceremonial purposes only. The price is a little steep, a memory, but I imagine as a traveler in our land, you have collected many rich, valuable memories, and have one or two to spare."
You thank Basalt and agree to purchase the blade. You expect him to bring out a brush and a bottle or some similar contraption, as you have seen in your prior purchases, but instead he reaches under the counter and produces a quill pen and inkwell; a heavy, leather bound book, and a pair of spectacles with thick, bottle glass lenses. He slides these onto your face and you blink, feeling as if you are gazing at the world from inside of a fishbowl. He gazes into your eyes intently then slowly nods, smiles.
"Yes, we are ready. Please concentrate on a memory of your choice. I shall see it through the glass and write out what your memories have described to me . . . it is unnecessary for you to speak. Your eyes shall do the talking in this case." You choose a memory of personal significance that is pleasurable for you to recall and focus on this. He nods again, opens the book, dips the quill in the ink, and begins to scratch out words in small, straight letters in an unknown language. You sit quietly while he draws out what he sees in your eyes and then gently dabs the ink dry with a sponge. "Perfect. The blade is yours. Use it in good health. I hope you enjoy the remainder of your time in our fair city."
Are you ready to see the queen yet?
or
Would you like to go to another location on the map?
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