Part 70: Reunion

Chapter 2: Reunion


The General Store

A while? Six years you’ve been gone! And not a word to me or your poor departed father!
Papa’s…_dead?
Boris has passed on, no thanks to you, making us worry about you like that! What in the world possessed you to run off like that in the first place?
It was…Al’s death. The way everyone looked at me…I couldn’t stay after that.
Pah! They’ve probably all forgotten about it by now. How about you? Have you been eating well? Do you miss your mama Olga’s sandwiches?
Garlic and artichoke sandwiches that last all day? …A little. But Mama, I have to tell you about all the stuff I’ve done while I was gone! I finished the Famous Adventurer’s Correspondence Course, then I became the hero of three lands, and I’m even a paladin now! …Although I kinda lost the flaming sword, so I can’t show you.
Three lands? No place I’ve heard of, I’m sure.
That’s ‘cause you don’t get out much, Mama. But what happened when I was gone? Where did that evil-looking swamp come from?
Well, the swamp came about when there were heavy rains just two years after you left, just about the same time that some strangers moved into the castle. No one knows what goes on there now, but it won’t be for the good, I’ll tell you.
You always think the worst things are going to happen, Matushka. What’s been going on in town?
Hmm, let me think. Oh yes, Yuri and Bella finally had a child just after you left.
They had a kid?
Yes, a beautiful little girl. But the poor thing went and disappeared one night. Poor Bella, she was such a pretty woman not long ago. What a tragedy.
That’s…oh man. Has everyone lost someone?
Well, Nikolai was fairly upset when Anna went into the woods and never came back out.
Anna?! But she was the reason…god damn it! Do you have any good news?
Sorry, Ilya. The whole valley has become so dangerous lately.
How’s the shop, at least?
Even though your papa has passed on, I still keep it just the way he liked it. “A well-run shop is a busy shop,” he always used to say.
Yeah, I know.
Not very busy anymore, what with the swamp, but I try to keep it going the best I can. Mostly housewares, but a few items that you might like.
Really? I am kind of a hero now, Mama.
Oh, of course you are, little Ilya. Let’s see…well, besides my regular items like brooms and pans, I do have some of my lovely sandwiches you could use as “rations,” and garlic—of course, you’ll need garlic. I’ve also got some oil you can use to keep your weapons and armor from rusting. If you still like sweets, I’ve got some of my yummy homemade candy, although the garlic-flavored ones have all been purchased by now. I’ll have to make some more. Oh, and a shopping bag to carry things in; I have a couple of those left.
Couldn’t I just have some of your sandwiches?
Only if you promise to take over the shop after I’m gone.
Sorry, Mama, but I am an adventurer now. I can’t just settle down here.
Fine. Then a big, tough adventurer should have no trouble paying for his goods just like everyone else. He can also stay at the inn like any other traveler.
*grumble*


This is the purchasing screen for Quest for Glory 4. It is the only purchasing screen for Quest for Glory 4. It’s actually kind of sad when you remember that even Spielburg had more than one merchant in town.

I’ll take four sandwiches and some garlic. _{And…maybe some candy.}
That’s a good dear.


So?
My matushka still loves me, if that’s what you’re asking.
No, what I asked was how and why you came back. You have no business showing your face here after what happened, and the swamp should have kept you out regardless.
Well, I’d still be gone if it were up to me. I was summoned here by some kind of magic that spit me out inside the cave you told us to never go near. Honestly, I’d have to agree that it’s no place for kids; that cave was freaky as hell.
Do you expect me to believe such a story? That you could walk out of that cave alive? That the cave would be open? Tell me no more lies.
I’m not lying!
The sooner you leave, the better for all. Mordavia has become very dangerous since you left, and we certainly do not need someone like you to stir up new troubles.
Hmph. Do you mind continuing this discussion inside?
Fine by me.



The Burgomeister

Dmitri usually has two sets of dialogue for each new occurrence, one while he’s leaning out the window and one inside his office. As such, we’ll be getting to know him quite well.

Still the burgomeister, Dmitri?
Of course. Someone has to keep troublemakers like you in line. Well? So what have you been up to for the past six years?
To tell the truth, I was sort of lost for most of it, getting by with some odd jobs here and there. But! Last spring, I finally found the last FACS course to get myself accredited as an adventurer, and then I found a wanted ad for Spielburg, which is a few hundred miles west of here. The town looked half-abandoned when I got my first look but I…

*Hours Pass*

…and the two cat people were so happy that they let me ride with them to Shapeir, where there was some sort of problem with the neighboring town. Little did we know that trouble would be coming to our doorstep! After just a week,…

*More Hours Pa—

Enough of this nonsense! Never have I heard such wild stories before! I am supposed to believe that little Ilya is a prince of Shapeir? You do not look like anything other than a teller of tales to me.
Ilya’s not my adventuring name, Dmitri. All my friends know me as Nike von Slartibartfast now.
Nike? Hah! That’s a woman’s name, a compromise Olga and Boris made when you were born. And where in the world is “Slartibartfast?”
…Well, I just took a bunch of swear words and moved them around a bit to make something that sounds offensive but isn’t.
Ha! I should have known. To be honest, I do not trust you. What you say of yourself is unbelievable, and you have always been a troublemaker. If the pass was clear, I would ask you to leave Mordavia again. As things are, I will be watching you closely.
Hey, I’m not a troublemaker any more! I’m a paladin!
*spit*
…What? I’m in tune with the Essential Rightness of the Universe and stuff now!
Oh really? Is that why my grandfather Piotyr left my grandmother to raise my father by herself?
Your grandfather was a paladin?
My grandfather abandoned my grandmother. If you really are a paladin, which I doubt, that’s just one more reason for me to not trust you.
Crap, what would Rakeesh do here?

Some people may fear or even hate paladins. Nevertheless, it is our duty to see the greatest good come about, whether our help is welcome or not.

Fine, Dmitri, I don’t think your grandfather would have abandoned his wife just like that, but I’ll just have to prove myself even harder for his sake. So what’s happened to the old adventurers’ guild?
The old adventurers’ guild is at the north end of town, same as always. It has been abandoned for many years, since we have not had many adventurers who could cross the swamp. They never did let you inside, did they? Seeing as you are supposed to be an “adventurer” now, here, have a key to the guild door. It’s not like there’s anything worth taking anymore.
Thanks. Oh, I heard from Matushka that someone’s back in Castle Borgov. Do you know who it is?
Some strangers moved in some years back, but they have had nothing to do with the town, and we have had nothing to do with them.
Typical. Well, what else has changed?
The old road that used to meet with the road from the castle is gone. The heavy rains not only created the swamp, but caused so much plant growth that you just can’t see the road anymore.
Anything new in town? What’s happened to Nikolai?
Everyone in Mordavia minds his own business and does not go looking for trouble. You have never fit in well here.
Fine then, I’m going.
Stay out of trouble and other people’s business and you and I will get along with one another. Otherwise, you will get me angry. I’m sure you don’t want to make me angry, do you?
No, sir. I’ll leave now.


As you enter the northern part of town, you hear the sound of a chisel chipping away at a stone block. A man is carving gravestones at one end of the street. Your attention quickly moves from the stonecutter to the ominous gothic building in the center of the street. There is definitely something “not right” about this structure. A sense of great danger and hunger comes from near the door of the massive stone building.


That monastery…we were always spooked by it as kids. Maybe now I can finally find out what’s inside.
Bad place. Very bad place! Go away. You be very sorry!


Quiet, Igor. I’m finally going to explore this place right. By bashing in the door!


Uh oh.
Nobody ever listen to Igor.




I think the monastery can wait a little longer. So how’s it been, Igor?
Igor good. Business has been piling up! Ha, ha. Little graveyard humor there.
I got it, Igor. You seem awfully cheery today. How’s the carving going?


But with serious, Igor can’t complain. Igor do good work! Igor dig graves in cemetery. Igor put dead person in grave. Igor cover dead person with dirt. Igor put headstone on grave.
You seem a lot nicer to me than Dmitri was.
Igor know Alexei’s death not Ilya’s fault. Igor know accidents happen.
Thanks, Igor. Would you mind calling me Nike, though? It’s my adventuring name.
Ilya now Nike? Okay, Igor remember!
You’re a great guy, Igor. Have you heard what’s going on in town?
Igor not hear rumors. Igor not know Ilya back in town. Igor not know doctor make strange things in lab. Igor not know funny man in inn not funny. Igor not know many things. Igor not hear many things.
If you say so. See you around, Igor.
Try not to drop by Igor’s office! Ha, ha. Little graveyard humor there.


You unlock the door using the key the burgomeister gave you.


The Adventurer’s Guildhall

This place has seen much better days. Well, maybe there’s something good on the bookshelf.


You read the book entitled “Climbing Skills for Upwardly-Mobile Adventurers.” It’s written entirely in one-syllable words, obviously intended for fighters. It’s absolutely fascinating. This book teaches you that climbing sheer walls is best left for specialists, but that anyone with reasonable strength can climb using a rope and grapnel. You’re pretty sure you know what to do now.

This book adds 100 points to a Climb-less fighter or paladin’s stats. This is probably so that those two classes don’t get completely screwed if they get stuck outside at night; Mordavian evenings are far more dangerous than anything faced so far.

What next? Oh hey, it’s a magazine from the Famous Adventurer!
As you skim through “HERO: The Journal of General Job Adjusting,” you find quite a bit of information that might be useful here. There are a series of articles about the land of Mordavia. The town originally grew up around Castle Borgov. The Borgovs were the Boyars (or local noblemen) assigned the role of guarding the area from invaders. The chapter on fauna describes a number of interesting creatures. The necrotaur is a vicious carnivore with big, sharp teeth. Some of the other monsters sound even more horrific. In the forest lives the leshy, a creature known for playing practical jokes on travelers and playing riddle games, but which can also be helpful to those it likes. You learn about the rusalka, the spirit of a murdered unmarried woman. Such spirits are said to inhabit lakes and rivers; they try to avenge themselves by drowning any man foolish enough to approach them. You could really learn a lot by reading this magazine thoroughly instead of just browsing through it. (Isn’t it nice that we included a complete copy in your game box?) :-)

The smilie is seriously there in the game. Also, I can now start adding bits from the manual in the chapters again.

What’s this little brochure here?
The “book” turns out to be an advertising brochure. It says, “I, Dr. Cranium, predict that someday one of my descendants will become the subject of a major computer game, ‘The Castle of Dr. Brain’ from Sierra On-Line.” Geez, how cheesy can you get?

Maybe “Creative Casting” will be more useful.
The book is all about using spells in unusual and creative ways, such as “Calming” a fire, using alternating Flame and Frost spells to make something brittle and break, and so on. You pick up a number of useful tips which will improve your spellcasting.

Seriously, aside from the two puzzle hints they give you, reading the book adds 25 to Magic. Not bad for a quick read.

What in the world is “Talk Fu?”
This book teaches about the ancient Oriental art of “Talk Fu,” how to overcome opponents by attacking them with the unpronounceable names of martial arts forms and confusing them with fortune cookie wisdom. You get lost somewhere between karate and kuk sul.

Nothing useful. Essential Exercise looks nice, though.
This book teaches you how to use the stair-stepper to build strong leg muscles and talks about the importance of whole-body development. It says to build up your strength gradually by adding weights to the baskets.

That’s enough reading for now. I’m totally taking this HERO magazine, though. So what’s this thing over here, then?


Hey, it’s a sword! A really nice sword! “Break glass in emergency.” Well, this rusty thing I’m lugging around now could break any second, maybe that’s an emergency. So how do I break the glass? Guess I’ll just punch it. Ow, glass shards hurt! Sword’s mine now, though.


Guess I should sign my name in the book, even if no one cares. Hey, this entry looks interesting.

You read in the adventurer’s log about some of the exploits of past adventurers in Mordavia. Prominent among them is the story of Piotyr and the Dark One’s Cult. Near the end of the book, Piotyr tells how he led the armies against the Chernovy Cult outside the Dark One’s Cave. The fighters were trained soldiers, but the cult members fought like madmen. Suddenly, the cult members changed their forms and became grotesque monsters. Many of the soldiers panicked and ran. The battle was nearly lost. Then Piotyr heard the voice of Erana. “By all my Will, I banish you to…” The voice was cut off. The cult members screamed and ran. Piotyr entered the cave, and searched for some sign of life. All he could find were the grotesque remains of cult members. The only sign of Erana was her magical staff lying on the ground. Piotyr picked it up and left the cave, knowing that Erana was beyond his help. Piotyr then tells how he brought the staff back to town and placed it in the town square. A garden of flowers instantly sprung up around it. Near the end of the book, Piotyr tells that he was going to seek out the Rituals of the Dark One and destroy them. There are no later entries.

Wow. So all this time, Erana’s own staff was in my hometown? Amazing. I can’t believe no one ever told me about all this stuff. This town is a lot cooler than I thought it was.


I guess I should try practicing with the grapnel set now. Maybe that’s what the little hook up there is for.




Oh man, this is tough! Maybe I should stick with the stair-stepper for now.


A session on the stair-stepper can easily drain your entire stamina bar, but you need to stick with it at least until the narrator tells you that you can’t do any more that day. Then, the next day, you can add another pair of cannon balls to the buckets for a bonus 10 Strength per session. Completing the stair-stepper is also required for something later on.




Climbing this rope is easy. Not nearly as awesome as the last grapple I had, but good enough, I think. Wait a second, there’s something scratched in the rafter here.


Eye under four legs…table? Look under the table?


What the? Hmm, these look sort of like those coat hangers.


Hey, pressing the skulls moves the hooks!

This puzzle is actually fairly easy, since the thief marks under the table give the solution. The hooks in the scratches are in the proper rotations, and since some of the skulls move more than one hook, the numbers indicate which order you need to rotate them.


Got it!


Aha, so the secret passage is above the bookcase!



The Thieves’ Guild

You climb down the ladder into a seedy-looking room. A massive door blocks off a smaller room in the rear. This isn’t as dusty as the adventurers’ guild, and the torches look recently lit. Your eye is drawn to the thieves’ guild recruiting poster on the back wall.

Wow, I never knew we had an honest to goodness thieves’ guild in town. It would have saved me a lot of trouble back then. Is that a real card stuck in the guy’s hand? I think I can use that for something.



Now what’s with this door? Locked, of course…wait, the catch is just a basic latch. I bet I could open it just with the guild card.


There we go. What’s in these books?

Of special interest to you is a book on disarming traps. It says that with the new Mark II Thieves’ Toolkit and a bit of skill in picking locks, you can locate and disarm almost any mechanical trap. In the section on surviving magical traps, the book suggests taking up religion. There’s also a book on thief marks that tells you all about this “secret language” of thieves. You learn a number of new symbols and combinations.


This safe looks like it’s missing a knob. I wonder where it is? For that matter, why are there two grates right next to each other?


“Look under the other grate.” Geez, I get it.


Ah, here’s a knob. This must be it.


So the combination is some set of left and right movements. Filch safe…hmm…could it really be that easy? Assuming each line is the letter in between, I could just spell out “filtch.” Wow, it’s open. Guess this must be the practice safe.

You quickly rifle through the opened safe. Unfortunately, it looks as though legions of thieves’ guild initiates have been here before you as all of the money is gone. You do find five throwing daggers placed here for, well, “safe” keeping. The only other usable thing in the safe is a single lockpick, half-buried in dust in one corner. You pick up the lockpick and the daggers.


I bet I can open the desk drawer with this pick. Ooh, a poison gas trap! That would have been unpleasant. Good thing I read that book. There, it’s open now.

Inside the desk you find a complete (and hardly used) Mark II Thieves’ Toolkit. It has all the latest facilities for opening the toughest locks, cracking safes, and disarming mechanical traps. There is one lockpick missing from the set, so you add yours to it. You also find a fancy matched set of three throwing daggers which you add to your collection [Here’s a secret for you: every time you return to the thieves’ guild, the set of three daggers are replaced, allowing you to get however many you want eventually]. Finally, you find some sort of diary or logbook in the desk. The title of the book reads, “Memoirs of a Master Manipulator.” Modest, eh? You take it out and set it on the desk, but it’s a little heavy to carry around with you.


Might as well read it.

An interesting entry speaks of a proposed night raid on the castle. The guild members would use the secret passage to avoid notice. You wonder which secret passage that might be. A later entry in different handwriting indicates how far the guild had declined recently. It seems to be just a bunch of doodling and some nonsense words. It says:

Bad Boys Yell
Good Girls Giggle
Rich Girls Run.

Not quite on the same standard as a nighttime castle raid! One of the final entries says, “Phred and Phrank caught out at night without hooks. Phred is dead and Phrank sank. I’m the last.” An ambitious thief will try to prosper by hook AND by crook. The log closes with some incoherent ramblings about “passing the deadly tentacled beast,” then, “The horror! Shadows of Darkness enfold me! Madness and mockery in the Dark One’s Chamber! Sounds as though the author was in a chemically modified state.

Something that crazy-sounding has to be a code of some sort. Maybe there’s something behind one of the barrels around here.


There we go. Looks like a grid of some sort.


So the four colors are red, green, blue, and yellow? Those are the same first letters from the code phrase! So if I change the colors like so…


…Something good should happen!


*Creak*


Oh, don’t worry, I won’t hurt you. It is good to talk to someone again. It has been so very long since anyone has been here. Ah, but I am forgetting my manners. Welcome to Mordavia. I am the Chief Thief here. I am also the only thief here other than you, but that is beside the point.


Aaah! Monster! Die, monster!


*Stab*



Oh dear god, it’s a…wait, you look familiar somehow. Do you know anyone by the name “Ugarte?”
You have met my nephew? How is he?
Well, last I saw of him, he was being dragged away by the guards for smuggling water in a desert town.
That sounds like my nephew alright. I’m sure he’s fine. But wait, aren’t you Ilya?
You’ve heard of me?
Oh yeah, you’re that kid who got caught trying to break into the burgomeister’s house and got run out of town! Heh, heh, we talked about that story for years.
Yeah, well thanks for the help. I wish I had known about this place back then.
You’ve got balls, kid, but there’s nothing we could have done after you got caught. But the fact that you’re here means you’re still in the trade, right? What have you done since then?
Well, I’ve sort of developed a habit for stealing from authority figures…

*Several break-ins later*

Interesting. You have had a good deal of experience. If you study up on trap disarming and thief signs, you will soon have almost every skill you need to become a Master Thief, perhaps even a Chief Thief like myself.
I’m glad someone in town believes my stories.
Oh yes, we have had wide travelers such as yourself stop by here before. This was once a thriving training ground for new thieves. They would come from miles around to learn the trade here. If only we were not completely cut off from the rest of the world, this would be the greatest thieves’ guild in the whole world!
You think they would be okay with your…condition?
Oh, right. After I became such as I am, many members left. One thief said that I was no longer fit to be Chief! After I showed him how fast I could throw daggers with these feet, he didn’t say much. Never said anything again, as a matter of fact, heh, heh. The ones that left said they felt “uncomfortable” around me. Fools! Do they think this is some sort of Brotherhood of Man? This is a Brotherhood of Thieves! They SHOULD be uncomfortable around me! Soon it was just me and two others. They decided to explore the castle after the new owner moved in, and never returned. So now there is only me and you.
But why did you turn into a bug in the first place?
I made a terrible mistake and broke into the monastery one night. It had been abandoned for years, and I thought maybe something had been left behind there. I discovered a secret passage to the basement. That place gave me the creeps. I felt like something was watching me all the time. When I got to the basement, I discovered a small statue I could easily take. When I tried to pick it up, I felt very, very dizzy. When I awoke from my faint, I looked like this. You can imagine my horror!
Is there anything I could do? Maybe if we had the statue again—
It would be too dangerous for you to help me. If I, a Master Thief and Chief of a major guild dare not go back to the monastery, you would be wise not to even think of such a thing.
Fair enough. What about other places to break in? I’m starting to feel a little like revenge is in order.
Don’t let your revenge get in the way of your judgment. We are not exactly set up right now to fence stolen items. There are several places around the town where you might be able to find a bit of loose cash, though. I will tell you what…you go out and steal something from someone in town, and come back and tell me about it. If it sounds like you know your basic thief skills, I will let you know where the really good places are.
That sounds good. I guess I’ll just figure out where to steal from first, then. Hey, you mind if I open the empty pictures and crack the safes behind them?
Go ahead. They are there for practice.



As of Quest for Glory 4, nearly every important lock will also have a trap on it, usually emitting some level of poison. Solving the puzzle to open it safely is ridiculously easy though: you need to get three of one color in a row, so only click on one color when it comes up and you’ll be golden.


It’s that easy. I’m not even going to bother mentioning if something is trapped or not; if the option is there, it probably is, and de-trapping it is simplicity itself.

You crack the safe using the Mark II Toolkit. You take the healing potion, throwing dagger, and five crowns someone was foolish enough to leave inside.


Using the Mark II Toolkit, you quickly manage to get the safe open. Inside you find six crowns, a throwing dagger, and a potion labeled “poison cure.” They seem a fitting reward for your efforts, so you take them.