hisapprentice | [Puzzle 018]

[Puzzle 018]

[For house 48]

[A typical day in this house begins with Luke up and about, making breakfast and tea. Whether Firo shows up to have any is up to him. School's back in session and he needs an earlier start, that's all. This morning is no different, Luke pulls on his sweater while walking into the kitchen, headed for the refrigerator. It's when he pulls open the door that everything gets weird - starting with the whole room losing its household vibe and becoming much more...archaeological.]

[Action]

[Incredulous adventures aside, Luke finds it difficult to adjust to the busier lifestyle that comes with school starting and warmer weather ending. It gets darker, colder, Luke grows lonelier. He's out and about in the autumn sun, off to his usual stop at the bakery (okay, okay, one of his three or four usual stops) when a brownish figure passes him going in the opposite direction.

Luke stops. Spinning left, he sees the figure retreating down the path the way he came, and though all logic tells him it can't be real, he takes off running after it.]

Professor! [Because there is no one else. It must be him.] Professor, wait! Just- hold on a minute, please!

[Luke did not realize a vision from the past could hurt so much. When Layton's back and top hat fade into a false mist and then nothingness, Luke has run himself all the way back across the village, nearer to the rec center. Out of breath and out of spirit, he sits down on a bench to stare at the dirt.

Today is awful.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Just wait? So we're stuck here.

[He sighs grumpily and looks around again, hand on his hip. Predictably, his cursory search doesn't turn up anything new.]

What is this place supposed to be? And what's with all the junk?

Hmm. [Luke has his chin firmly in hand, surveying the room again.] This looks a lot like that pyramid. A long time ago, Professor Layton and Maiza and I went into one here looking for a treasure. All the stones and paintings here are really similar.

[Which! Is not necessarily a good thing. Luke looks at Firo with a half-baked smile.]

So there are probably traps and puzzles all about.

[Firo's slowly nodding along to the explanation. Until that smile.

Oh.

No.

Puzzles.

...He may have actually paled a bit at that. They're screwed, aren't they?]

...You've gotta be kiddin' me.

Why would I joke about something like this? We've got to either wait it out or find a way out. I don't know what else we might find down here. Mummies and things.

Like those bandaged things in the movies?

[He looks faintly amused.]

C'mon, Luke, those aren't real. If puzzles are really all we gotta deal with, let's start lookin' for a way out!

Of course they're real! Well, mostly not in London, but the mummies of ancient Egypt are certainly as real as we are!

[Luke knows Firo is not to be deterred so he'll just hope they don't run into any mummies.]

Just watch where you step so you don't set anything off.

[~~If they run into mummies, that'll just serve him right for never opening a history book.~~]

What?

[Egypt is probably made up too, gosh, Luke. Faced with such silliness and ignorance, Firo can only shake his head and focus on what else is going on.]

What exactly am I supposed to be lookin' for? Trip wires? Bombs?

[Bombs?

Firo has such questionable reactions to everything. Luke knows someone who'd get along well with him.]

Actually, there might be wires or something like that. Last time, when we opened a door, a rolling rock started chasing us. I did a lot of climbing, too. But I hope nothing's going to explode. In the usual stories, it's more like...hm, like bits of the floor that fall away when you step on them, or taking the wrong path and the wall produces spikes.

[Fortunately the shift recall didn't see fit to give them area-appropriate costume this time.]

Spikes?

[Partly out of irritation and partly out of the fact that Luke seems to know what's up, Firo asks:]

How the hell are we supposed to tell when that stuff's gonna happen?

[Ooh, did that scare Firo? Luke adjusts his hat with an air of certainty.]

Some of that stuff sounds like it's only in books, but the boulder really happened to us. It seemed more like the kind of thing you find in books the whole time, actually.

[Luke wishes for a torch and one does not appear, of course. They'll just have to walk carefully. The space is larger than their kitchen by far.]

I guess we just have to listen and keep our eyes open.

[Firo's doomed.]

Great. So we're stuck in some stupid story.

[He sighs and reaches into his jacket to check that his knife is still there. Of course it is.]

You can't think of any signs or somethin' for all a' this? I can watch for it if I know what I'm lookin' for.

[Firo's surprisingly observant for someone who's so stupid. He figures that if he can read if someone's cheating during poker, he might be able to keep an eye out for traps.]

[Luke straightens, turning to look at Firo in momentary surprise.

No, he meant something else, of course. Then he asks a question and Luke is back to observing their surroundings.]

Anything that looks suspiciously different from the space around it, probably. I suppose we could just stand right here until it wears off...

[Firo tries to follow Luke's gaze, eyes peeled for anything sketchy. Of course, pretty much this whole place looks sketchy to a guy who doesn't regularly explore ruins or nonfiction books.

He shakes his head, not even considering Luke's rather logical offer.]

C'mon, you don't really wanna do that, do ya? It could take forever!

[Not that he has anywhere to go.]

[So. Firo would rather have an adventure. Luke wishes more than anything he had his satchel with him but that isn't the sort of thing you bring to drowsy fridge-browsing breakfast. Shame on him, not being prepared.

Nothing to be done about it now.]

Then we've got to go on ahead. Don't worry, I'll go first.

[Firo's never done this before and Luke thinks himself more agile and capable in an emergency.]

[Firo blinks and reaches out to grab Luke's shoulder. Hold it right there, kiddo; not only is he offended, he's concerned for Luke.]

You? But what if there's one a' those traps or somethin'? You could get hurt!

[Shoulder-stopped! Luke looks over said shoulder with a frown.]

The truth is, I don't think I could disarm a trap by force if I had to. But I do think you could. [Firo is taller and stronger and if he breaks a little in the process it will fix itself, although Luke certainly hopes he doesn't break at all.] Besides, I don't want you to get lost.

I... fine.

[He doesn't sound happy about it, but he can see Luke's point. Reluctantly, he releases his grip.]

But if you see anything dangerous, you get behind me, all right?

I'll think about it. [It's a gentleman's duty to protect his friends in danger. So he'll think about it.]

It's probably going to be dark and I don't have anything with me to help this time, so watch your step.

[Then he starts down a dim hall. It is approximately where another room in the house would be, but it soon takes a sharp left that doesn't exist in Luceti at all; contrary to Luke's prediction, the narrow hall is lined with flickering yellow torches (the fire sort) and decorated with hieroglyph murals.]

You better think about it quick...

[Firo is not above simply grabbing Luke and tossing him out of harm's way. He looks small enough.

Through it's a useless gesture in the darkness, Firo nods that he'll be careful. He's relieved when they reach light, however dim.]

You know what all those pictures on the walls mean?

I only wish I did. Maybe they'd give us a hint or something. I know which way they're read, but that's about all.

[The bigger murals depict stereotypically Egypt-esque things: people presenting gifts to pharaohs or worshiping animal-headed gods. The smaller hieroglyphics trail along the top and bottom...and at one spot, down the side.]

Oh. Look, that's interesting.

[Firo stares at the pictures without the slightest bit of comprehension. He glances at a god with a cat's head and wonders what the hell kind of drugs these people were doing.

At that comment, he turns to Luke.]

What's interestin'? It all looks pretty weird to me.

This is the only place on the wall where they all go down like that. Don't you think that's weird?

[When they get out of this Luke is going to get Firo some Egypt books from the library.]

I wish I could translate these, maybe there's a reason why it looks this way.

[Firo just shrugs.]

...Yeah, I guess so.

[He considers the wall again and his eyes light up as he--miraculously!--has an idea.]

Maybe we're supposed to break it down. Like there's a passage or somethin' behind it?

[Firo expects to put his fist through solid rock, doesn't he?]

There might be a passage, or directions for how to find one. For all we know it might even turn this whole thing off.

[Luke jumps for a torch from one of the brackets, so he can hold it closer to the pictographs and try to find a pattern.]

[One of the pluses to immortality: if you break your hand doing something stupid, it'll repair itself for you to try again.

Firo nods, encouraged that Luke didn't immediately shoot down that idea. His expression of pride turns to one of confusion when Luke remains in front of the spot.]

Hey, get outta the way. You don't wanna get hit by rocks or anything if this thing does break.

[Yep, he's definitely getting ready to kick it down.]

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