Toonapalooza!: The Reunion

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The Trip to the King's Castle had been uneventful.

Seeing the post avertising for heroes had stirred something in Mach's mind, an elusive memory that seemed to fade just as he tried to focus on it.

Yet now, here he was in the castle town. And it was a fine sight compared to the... things he was used to.... whatever they are, or maybe were.

It was vexing to have no memory of anything before yesterday.

Was it only yesterday? The distance from town to the castle was at least 50 miles, and he had only stopped once for some sleep and to inspect his belongings.

They made sense, there was some order to them, and their arrangement. It was terrible not knowing what they did. He felt he was really missing something, something big.

At the cafe, he pondered this over some coffee and biscuits. pulling a top off one small jar, he sniffed at the oil inside. It was very strong, but not unpleasant. Sort of a mixture between evergreen sap and Walnuts, but certainly clearer than either.

The buzz of conversation around the cafe mingled together into a single hum, it drowned out most distractions and was slightly soothing. Mach tipped a few drops of the thick oil onto the tray beneath his cup. It was very thick, but not chunky. It flattened down slowly as it hit the plate. A large be fluttered up to the oil and flicked at it with its mouth. Mach wondered what it was or what it did.
He had his vials of soil out and laid on their side, next to each other, as well as the pressed bark, strange stone, and pointed sticks. When did he take them out? He looked in his bag and saw that the coins were still there. No thief, then it was himself. He wasn't even conscious of doing it, but he'd been watching the bee.

"We took a left turn, towards the room where there were six pillars"

One particular conversation was getting very animated at the nearest table.

Mach dribbled a fingerful of a blue, clay-like soil onto the oil, the bee fluttered away as he scrubbed the clay in using the stone.

"Going through there, we found statues of women, they were dressed like slaves, like the old invaders used to keep in their filthy harem tents, way before the King's great Grandpa sent them running back home.
There was a big battle not two miles from where we found the entrance to the place"

A couple strokes of the rock, and then, using the flat edge on the side of the stone, mach scraped te mixture back towards the center. The soil began to disolve and become less grainy, the oil became thicker and started turning blue.

"I think it must have been a tomb, or at least was going to be a tomb. I don't think they got a chance to finish. Went down this long hall about 50 yards, Sloping downward."

The blue paint was finished, it would stay liquid for about ten minutes, the way it was mixed. This was exciting. It was like meeting old friends.

"Gold everywhere! Can you imagine that! I could buy three city blocks if I'd brought some bags. We wanted to come back, but we barely got out, it's like a maze, and we tried twice to get tback to the treasure room. But we end up going in circles. Bryant almost died the last time we..."

Mach took one of the smaller sitcks and dipped the tip into the blue paint and struck a blue line across the surface of the pressed bark. He drew the left turn, the room with six pillars, the fountain room with the harem statues, (it must have run dry),the long hallway, and the treasure room, along with the second treasure room you get if you press the switch behind the brass grille, and the third treasure room you find by sitching the two vases so that all seven spell the name of the general's parrot.
Mach also drew the maze, and the places where workers kept their tools, A well that may still work because it was dug directly over the water source, and a faint dotted trail on how to avoid the various traps and defenses Bryant probably didn't find because he survived.

Mach lifted his new map off the table and went to the frustrated treasure hunters, holding it up in front of them.

"I think this will help you, you will need more sacks than you probably intended, and probably a few carts. Please don't take the map fom my hands, I am using your candle to dry the paint. Thank you, and happy hunting."

Despite how foolish it is to announce to a crowded room that you have found gold, but had to leave it there, (and that was just the alcohol), the bronzed man with weatherbeaten clothes was a shrewd businessman.
He decided not to buy three city blocks, at least not yet. He kept the gold in various banks around the country. But a real treasure hunter knows that sometimes the greatest hoard it the hoard you make yourself.

And that is why, the very next day, he opened a map store in the middle of golden way, a complex of closely knit streets with many buildings huddled together, serving as branch guild offices for hunters, adventurers, heck, even historians. And four out of every five guilds needed good maps. He was happy to provide them at premium prices, for his new employee was unmatched in accuracy and skill.

Who needs to buy three city blocks when they can just give themselves to you.

Mach was very happy, he felt like any day he'd remember why he liked this.