A Mysterious Adventure (Des 330 Final Project)It is a bright and sunny day in the quaint village of wonder town. The sky is clear, the streets are bustling, and in the middle of it all, a young boy jumps out of bed with a grin on his face. "Time for another exciting day full of mystery!" he exclaims, getting himself dressed in his usual black top hat and trench coat.
After he gets dressed, he kneels down beside his bed and opens the cage containing a chicken wearing a monocle. The chicken clucks at the boy before waddling out and hopping onto the boy's shoulder. "Good morning to you too, Sir Chickensworth!" the boy says with a smile as the two make their way out of the room. "Where shall we begin today's journey?"
[[Head straight to the front of the house]]
[[Head to the kitchen]]"Mark? Is that you?" A gruff voice calls from the market stand set up right in front of the porch. Mark jumps down and runs over to the stall to meet the man behind the counter, a tall man with a bushy brown mustache, a brown leather top hat, an aged wooden cane, and his own long trench coat.
The man leans over and ruffles Mark's hair before saying, "There you are sport. About time you got out of bed, it's nearly time for rush hour!"
[["Sorry I'm late sir! I must've slept in too long!"]]
[["Daaad! It's not *my* fault I want to get more sleep!"]]The boy and his chicken head down the stairs to the kitchen and dining room, where a tall woman stands by the stove making breakfast.
"Good morning Mysterious Mom!" The boy says as he sits at the dining table, "What's for breakfast?"
His mother turn around with a soft smile and jokingly answers, "Good morning to you as well Mr. Mysterious Mark! I'm making your favorite ham and cheese omelet." She glances at the chicken and adds, "Not to worry Sir Charles Chickensworth, they weren't made from chicken eggs. And I have some seeds in the pantry for you too."
After Mark's mother brings out the food, the three of them eat together and chat for a while before she says, "Your father was looking for you earlier. You might want to go look for him after you're done."
Mark nods excitedly and immediately jumps up and swoops Sir Charles Chickensworth onto his shoulder as he runs out of the kitchen. His mother shakes her head with a fond smile before cleaning up the dining table.
[[Head straight to the front of the house]] His father smiles and shrugs.
"It's a good thing to keep yourself accountable Mark. A good merchant always knows his limits. But you best not make it a habit, or I might have to come knocking on your door myself!"
[["Sorry! It won't happen again!"]]His father laughs and nudges Mark's shoulder.
"If you're not getting enough sleep then you must be working yourself too hard. How many times have I told you to not stay up so late reading those adventure stories I gave you?"
[["Sorry! It won't happen again!"]] "I'm just messin' with ya!" His father says with a grin, "But I got a special surprise for you!"
"Oooh! What is it? What is it?" Mark asks excitedly, jumping up and down, Sir Chickensworth clinging to his shoulder for dear life.
His father reaches below the counter and pulls out a thick, dusty leather book and holds it out to Mark.
"This is very special story that has been passed down through the Mysterious family for generations. My father gave it to me, and his father gave it to him, and so on and so forth. I think it's finally time I give it to you."
[[Take the book]]Mark reaches out and carefully lifts the book into his hands. He brushes the dust off of the cover to reveal the title: **Legend of the Hat of Wonders**.
"What is this, dad...?" Mark asks breathlessly.
"This," He begins, placing a hand on Mark's shoulder with a serious expression, "is a story about the most sought after, the most powerful, most mysterious relic in the entirety of Mysteria. Generations of adventurers have sought this relic, and yet none have ever reached it."
His father then stands up with a bright smile and adds, "I just figured you'd find it exciting to read! Run along now!" before turning back to the street and going to help out customers.
[[Open the book now]]
[[Return to the privacy of the bedroom to read it]]
[[Forget about it]]Without hesitation, Mark immediately flips the book open and begins to read:
(Story shown in the form of a flashback cutscene)
**Long, long ago, the land of Mysteria was nothing but a vast expanse of wilderness, ripe for adventure. It was this very fact that brought forth the first band of adventurers to explore and settle these lands.
At the head of this group was the most powerful wizard of all time: Grandmaster Felix Warbler. It is said that he had the power to create building out of nothing but sticks and soil, that he could obliterate any monster with just a snap of his fingers, and had a better understanding of magical items than anyone before him.
It is said that years after the first adventurers settled down and formed Wonder Town, Felix set out alone into the wilderness, seeking a new purpose and adventure.
Not but a few months later, and Felix returned to Wonder Town, proudly displaying his greatest creation; The Hat of Wonders. He said that the magical hat had the power to answer any question and reveal every mystery in the universe.
However, it was this exact reason that Felix swore to never use the power for himself. In his words, documented by bards, "A journey with a known outcome is no adventure at all."
And so it was said that Felix hid away the Hat of Wonders deep in the wilds of Mysteria, not to keep it away from others, but to encourage the spirit of adventure he had felt when first reaching Mysteria.**
(Return to gameplay here)
Mark turns to the final page to find a ragged old map tucked away in the book. It slides out and falls open to reveal a treasure map that leads to the place the Hat of Wonders is located!
"I have to find this Hat of Wonders! If I'm the first one to find it, everyone will rememeber me and my name will go down in history!" Mark exclaims excitedly to Charles Chickensworth.
That's when Mark hears a rustling sound from the bushes behind him.
[[Turn around and call out the hider]]After glancing around quickly to make sure he wasn't being watched, Mark hid the book under his shirt and hurried inside to his bedroom and closed the door behind him. With a sigh of relief, he takes out the book and lays it on the bed as he starts to read:
**Long, long ago, the land of Mysteria was nothing but a vast expanse of wilderness, ripe for adventure. It was this very fact that brought forth the first band of adventurers to explore and settle these lands.
At the head of this group was the most powerful wizard of all time: Grandmaster Felix Warbler. It is said that he had the power to create building out of nothing but sticks and soil, that he could obliterate any monster with just a snap of his fingers, and had a better understanding of magical items than anyone before him.
It is said that years after the first adventurers settled down and formed Wonder Town, Felix set out alone into the wilderness, seeking a new purpose and adventure.
Not but a few months later, and Felix returned to Wonder Town, proudly displaying his greatest creation; The Hat of Wonders. He said that the magical hat had the power to answer any question and reveal every mystery in the universe.
However, it was this exact reason that Felix swore to never use the power for himself. In his words, documented by bards, "A journey with a known outcome is no adventure at all."
And so it was said that Felix hid away the Hat of Wonders deep in the wilds of Mysteria, not to keep it away from others, but to encourage the spirit of adventure he had felt when first reaching Mysteria.**
Mark turns to Charles Chickensworth and says, "Do you hear that Chickensworth? A magic hat that can reveal any mystery in the whole universe! We have to find it!"
Charles Chickensworth clucks back curiously.
"Exactly! We should set off right now!" Mark exclaims excitedly.
Hurriedly, he packs a few things into a backpack beside his bed; a few clothes, some adventure stories, some hidden snacks he had in a drawer beside his bed, and a lemon. With Charles Chickensworth securely on his shoulder, Mark grabs the question mark-shaped walking stick sitting beside the door and steps outside, holding up the treasure map.
"There appears to be three hidden towers we have to find to assemble the key to the Hat of Wonder's hiding place!" Mark explains to Chickensworth. "The Tower of Quacks.. must be a typo... The Tower of Magic... aaaaand... The Tower of... Goblins...? How Mysterious..." (Mark winks at the camera)
"Where should we head first, Chickensworth?"
[[The Tower of Quacks]](In real game you would get to choose which to go to first)
"First stop! The Tower of... Quacks!" Mark exclaims excitedly. Mark and Chickensworth set out on their adventure, following the map's path to the first of the three mysterious towers. It takes some time for Mark to get used to the life of adventuring, as he struggles to make a tent without the help of Chickensworth.
Despite his occasional slip-ups, Mark and Chickensworth finally reach the first tower. It is a massive cobblestone tower that climbs high into the sky, with only a single set of well-preserved oak doors as any sign of an interior.
"Looks like this is it, Chickensworth," Mark said as the two of them walk towards the tower and open the doors.
What they find inside was nothing like what they expected. The entire room was filled with rubber ducks! Ducks in a pond, ducks in a pool, ducks in a congo line, and ducks at a fruit stand. When they first walk into the tower, everything is still, but as soon as the doors close, all of the ducks begin to magically start moving!
However, all of the different groups of ducks seem to be upset as the room suddenly fills with frustrated quacking sounds.
[[Look around the room]] Mark walks over to the ducks in the pond. Chickensworth hops down and starts to talk to the ducks.
"Bock bock bock?" Chickensworth clucks questioningly to the closest duck.
"Quack quack! Quack!" The ducks quacks back.
"You're saying they're hungry, Chickensworth?" Mark asks, "What can we do? I don't think rubber ducks can eat normal food..."
[[Look around the room]] Chickensworth goes over to the pool ducks, who are all wearing swim trucks and sunglasses, despite there being no sun, and starts to talk to them all.
"Bock bock? Bock bock bock!" Chickensworth clucks.
"Quack quack quack... quack quack quack!" one of the ducks complains quackingly.
"Oh gosh... They just want some towels so they can get out of the pool... If only we had any to offer..." Mark says.
[[Look around the room]] Mark and Chickensworth go over to the congo line ducks, and Chickensworth hops down to talk to them.
"Bock? Bock bock bock," Chickensworth clucks to the leading duck.
"Quack quack! Quack quack quack!" it complains quackily.
"You're saying they want... sunglasses? Ohhhh, it's so that they look cool! Of course! But... We didn't bring sunglasses... Sorry ducks." Mark says.
[[Look around the room]] Mark and Chickensworth walk up to the fruit stand, where a line of upset ducks is waiting. Chickensworth goes up to the coutner to talk to the duck behind the stand.
"Cluck cluck bock bock?" Chickensworth asks.
"Quack quack." The duck replies solemnly.
"They are all waiting for lemonade? And there's none left? But we don't have any lemonade with us..." Mark says.
[[Use his only lemon to make lemonade]]
[[Look around the room]] "What do we do, Chickensworth?"
[[Talk to the pond ducks]]
[[Talk to the pool ducks]]
[[Talk to the congo line ducks]]
[[Talk to the fruit stand ducks]]"Wait a minute!" Mark exclaimed as he reached into his bag and pulled out the single lemon he had been carrying the whole time, "We can make lemonade!"
With a flourish, Mark ran behind the counter and squeezed the lemon into a pitcher to somehow make lemonade. All of the ducks quacked excitedly as they one by one got their lemonade.
Once all the ducks had been served, the duck who had been behind the counter picks up a bushel of grapes and hands it to Mark with a thankful quack.
[[Return to the center of the room]]"What do we do, Chickensworth?"
[[Talk to the pond ducks again]]
[[Talk to the congo line ducks again]]
[[Talk to the pool ducks again]]
Mark walks over to the ducks in the pond. Chickensworth hops down and starts to talk to the ducks.
"Bock bock bock?" Chickensworth clucks questioningly to the closest duck.
"Quack quack! Quack!" The ducks quacks back.
"You're saying they're hungry, Chickensworth?" Mark asks, "What can we do? I don't think rubber ducks can eat normal food..."
[[Give them the grapes from the fruit stand]]
[[Return to the center of the room]] Chickensworth goes over to the pool ducks, who are all wearing swim trucks and sunglasses, despite there being no sun, and starts to talk to them all.
"Bock bock? Bock bock bock!" Chickensworth clucks.
"Quack quack quack... quack quack quack!" one of the ducks complains quackingly.
"Oh gosh... They just want some towels so they can get out of the pool... If only we had any to offer..." Mark says.
[[Return to the center of the room]] Mark and Chickensworth go over to the congo line ducks, and Chickensworth hops down to talk to them.
"Bock? Bock bock bock," Chickensworth clucks to the leading duck.
"Quack quack! Quack quack quack!" it complains quackily.
"You're saying they want... sunglasses? Ohhhh, it's so that they look cool! Of course! But... We didn't bring sunglasses... Sorry ducks." Mark says.
[[Return to the center of the room]]"But of course!" Mark cries out as he tosses the grapes into the pond. The ducks float over and, although they aren't actually able to eat the grapes, they tap at them with their rubber beaks, leaving behind a pile of towels at the edge of the water.
Mark grabs the towels with a triumphant grin.
[[Go back to the center]]"What do we do, Chickensworth?"
[[Talk to the congo line ducks next]]
[[Talk to the pool ducks next]]Mark and Chickensworth go over to the congo line ducks, and Chickensworth hops down to talk to them.
"Bock? Bock bock bock," Chickensworth clucks to the leading duck.
"Quack quack! Quack quack quack!" it complains quackily.
"You're saying they want... sunglasses? Ohhhh, it's so that they look cool! Of course! But... We didn't bring sunglasses... Sorry ducks." Mark says.
[[Go back to the center]]Chickensworth goes over to the pool ducks, who are all wearing swim trucks and sunglasses, despite there being no sun, and starts to talk to them all.
"Bock bock? Bock bock bock!" Chickensworth clucks.
"Quack quack quack... quack quack quack!" one of the ducks complains quackingly.
"Oh gosh... They just want some towels so they can get out of the pool... If only we had any to offer..." Mark says.
[[Offer the towels from the pond]]
[[Go back to the center]]Mark kneels beside the pool and places down the towels for the rubber ducks. "Here you go little buddies!" he says with a grin as they all float over and crawl their way into the towels. With a chorus of grateful quacks, they all take off their sunglasses as they waddle away from the pool.
Mark picks up the discarded sunglasses.
[[Talk to the congo line ducks last]]Mark finally makes his way over to the congo line of ducks and hold out the sunglasses for them.
"I believe you were looking for these?" he grins triumphantly.
The lead duck excitedly takes the sunglasses as the whole line quacks happily, putting their own sunglasses on. As thanks, the lead duck reaches somewhere behind him and reveals a yellow rubber key and holds it out to him.
"Quack quack! Quack quack quack quack!" it says.
"Bock bock bock bock!" Chickensworth replies.
"Great! We got the key to the top of the tower! Let's get going Chickensworth!"
With the key in hand, Mark finally notices that there was a staircase hidden along the edge that matched the exact shade of yellow of the walls. As the two headed up the stairs, they reach a set of orange doors with a key hole.
[[Open the door with the rubber key]]The door creaks open to reveal the circular room at the top of the tower, with a soft, yellow rug in the center, some bookshelves with rubber ducks on them (not moving), and a single large treasure chest in the center.
As Mark and Chickensworth walk towards the chest, the air shimmers with magic before a man appears directly in front of the chest. He is wearing long, blue wizard robes, and a purple wizard hat with yellow stars on it, and a pair of spectacles resting on the tip of his nose.
"Ah! Adventurer! Congratulations on completing my Trial of Quacks!" the man says
"Woa… are you… are you Grandmaster Felix Warbler, the greatest wizard in the history of Mysteria?" Mark asks excitedly.
"Hahaha! It’s good to see that people haven’t forgotten about me over all these years. Indeed, I am Felix Warbler, my brave adventurer friend." he answers proudly.
"This is so cool! But… why are you here? How are you here?" Mark asks.
"Relax, relax. All things will be explained in due course. But before we proceed, I must ask you an important question…" he starts.
"A question? What question?" Mark interrupts.
Warbler laughs softly before continuing, "What… did you learn from completing my trial?"
"What did I learn…? Well… I helped out all of the ducks… I helped solve their problems and make them all happy…" Mark thought.
[["Is it the importance of ducks?"]]
[["Is it the importance of kindness?]]
[["Is it the importance of everyone being angry?"]]Mark lifts the book into his hands and stares at it with wonder. Just as quickly, he loses interest in it and throws the book onto a pile of book outside of his father's shop before he happily skips away into the town square with Sir Chickensworth where he lives happily-
Wait a minute... That isn't how it goes!
Mark never seeks out the Hat of Wonders and thus never learns the important life lesson of... Whatever it was he was supposed to learn.
Okay, okay... How about... Aha! I got it! Ahem...
Although Mark never chases after the Hat of Wonders, Obvious Oliver finds the book and greedily goes in search of the hat. However, because he is pretty bad at.... basically everything other than stealing, he never actually reaches the Hat of Wonders and gets arrested in Curious City after he tries to steal something from a guard and realizes that the security in Mysteria's biggest city is actually a lot tighter than Wonder Town, and thus he is forever removed from Wonder Town.
The End!Warbler laughs heartily again and shakes his head.
"As much as I do enjoy rubber ducks, that isn't the true intention behind this trial."
[["Is it the importance of kindness?]]
[["Is it the importance of everyone being angry?"]]
Warbler grins happily and nods. "Excellent! Wonderful! You are quite a bright young lad indeed! You are quite correct. The true meaning behind my trial is to show that you have the kindness of an adventurer."
"You see, being an adventurer isn’t just about exploring new places and going on daring quests. Oh no, there is far more to it than that. In order to prove yourself worthy of the key to my museum, you have to prove that you possess the three virtues of adventure that I once had all those years ago."
"Then that means… one of your virtues is kindness!" Mark exclaims in realization.
"Aha! You’re already thinking ahead of me, it seems. Indeed it is! An adventurer will always help those in need! And for that, I believe you have proven yourself worthy of the first fragment of the key… The Fragment of Kindness." Warbler smiles as he steps aside and allows him access to the treasure chest.
Mark slowly approaches the chest and opens it reveals the key fragment. It contains the handle of the key in the shape of a rubber duck. The years of sitting in a tower has caused it to rust significantly, so he has to squint really hard in order to call it a duck.
Mark looks up at Warbler and says, "Thank you, Mr. Warbler sir. I swear to you that I will complete all of your trials and prove myself to be just as great of an adventurer as you!"
"I have faith in you, young lad. Good luck." Warbler says before he fades away into nothingness.
"Alright then, Chickensworth! Onto our next adventure! Where should we go next?"
[[The Tower of Goblins]]"Oh no, dear boy! That is simply the root of the trial's challenge!"
[["Is it the importance of ducks?"]]
[["Is it the importance of kindness?]] Mark spins around and walks over to the bushes and pulls them open to reveal a goblin with brown leather overalls, a green baseball cap, and two large, worn-out black boots. The goblin squeals in surprise and jumps backwards away from Mark.
"H-h-hey there! Fancy seeing you here..." The goblin stammers.
"What are you doing in the bushes, *Obvious Oliver*? Trying to steal things from us again?" Mark snapped at the goblin. Chickensworth glared at Oliver with Mark, wings flapping angrily.
Oliver looked around nervously before answering, "I was just... umm... l-looking for something! That... I lost! In this specific bush...! J-just a coincidence! Hehe..."
Mark nodded and shrugged, but Chickensworth was not so easily fooled, and continued to glare at Oliver with menace in his eyes.
"Whatever. I don't have time to deal with you. I'm off on an adventure!" Mark proclaimed as he spun around and added, "Let's go Chickensworth! This fool isn't worth our time!"
With one last glare, Chickensworth followed Mark back into his house to prepare.
Oliver breathed a sigh of relief before muttering to himself, "Hat of Wonders, eh? That sounds like exactly what I need to finally get rid of these Mysterious Merchants! I must get it first!"
When Mark gets into his room, he quickly packs a few things into a backpack beside his bed; a few clothes, some adventure stories, some hidden snacks he had in a drawer beside his bed, and a lemon. With Charles Chickensworth securely on his shoulder, Mark grabs the question mark-shaped walking stick sitting beside the door and steps outside, holding up the treasure map.
"There appears to be three hidden towers we have to find to assemble the key to the Hat of Wonder's hiding place!" Mark explains to Chickensworth. "The Tower of Quacks... must be a typo... The Tower of Magic... aaaaand... The Tower of... Goblins...? How... Mysterious." (Mark winks at the camera)
[[The Tower of Quacks]]"To the Tower of Goblins next! I hope we don't actually have to fight goblins..." Mark said worriedly as the two of them followed the treasure map yet again and made their way towards the Tower of Goblins.
As they made their way there, they took a quick detour to test themselves in the Wild Woods outside of Curious City. Even though it wasn't necessary, the two of them spent nearly two hours finding their way through the tiny forest, eventually getting help from one of the Forest Ranger Rangers to get out. They still had a great time nonetheless.
Finally, they reached the tower of Goblins. It was another cobblestone tower that, although not as tall as the previous tower, was much wider.
"We made it to the Tower of Goblins..." Mark said to Chickensworth nervously. "Do you think there's gonna be real life... evil goblins inside? And not the kind like Oliver, no, he isn't that scary... But *real*... dangerous goblins..." Mark shivers at the thought.
"Bock bock bock." Chickensworth clucks reassuringly.
"Yeah... Yeah. You're right Chickensworth. I gotta be brave." Mark replied, feeling a bit better, "This is for the Hat of Wonders... Let's go!"
[[Enter the Tower of Goblins]]As the two enter the large wooden doors of the tower, the are shown a room that is completely black. Even the light from the doorway doesn't seem to break through the darkness.
"Strange..." Mark mutters, reaching his hand into the darkness, "it must be some kind of magic..."
Chickensworth clucks in agreement before pushing the two of them into the dark room, the wooden doors closing behind them. In a sudden flash, the room is filled with a dim light, and the entire room appears as though it is the middle of the night. The only sources of light come from the artificial moon light on the ceiling, and a single campfire in the distance.
As the two of them get closer, they hide behind a tree and peek out to find that the campfire is surrounded by a gang of five goblins, with one goblin wearing some kind of skull helmet on his head and holding a wooden staff. And around his neck, he has a small, golden key.
"Oh gee, Chickensworth... What are we gonna do...?"
[[Try to go talk to the goblins]]
[[Try to sneak up to the goblins]]
[[Look for a way out of the room]]Mustering up all the courage he has, Mark confidently steps out of the bushes and walks towards the goblins.
Mark speaks out loud to the goblins with more confidence than he feels, "Why hello there my good... uhhh... goblins...! I am Mysterious Mark, son of Mysterious Mitch, heir to the-"
Before he can finish, the lead goblin shouts, “Hey! Yous ain’t supposed ta’ be here!"
"W-well you see, I was hoping you all might-" Mark tries to speak again before getting cut off by another goblin.
“What is yous doin’ ova’ ‘ere?” a rather dorky looking goblin asks.
"I'm actually trying-" Mark begins for a third time before getting cut off by the lead goblin again.
“What is yous doin’ here? Yous don’t belong here!” the goblin shouts.
"Let's get outta here Chickensworth!" Mark says as the two of them run back into the bushes, and the goblins return to what they were doing, as if Mark hadn't been there at all.
[[Try to sneak up to the goblins]]
[[Run away and leave the tower]]Mark and Chickensworth decide to just ignore the goblins and search for the exit to the room.
After some searching through the dark, the two of them manage to find a large wooden door with a single keyhole. They try to push the door open, but it doesn't budge an inch.
"It's locked," Mark whispers quietly, so as not to be heard by the goblins nearby, "We're gonna have to find a way to open it."
[[Try to go talk to the goblins]]
[[Try to sneak up to the goblins]]Sneaking through the darkness, Mark and Chickensworth quietly move towards the group of goblins, trying to stay out of sight. As they get closer, a twig snaps under Mark's foot and the two of them freeze in place.
One of the goblins, a rather dorky goblin with crossed eyes, shouts, "Ay! Is someone 'ova there?"
Mark calls back, "Nope! Just your imagination!" as Chickensworth facepalms with one wing.
The goblin squints suspiciously towards where they were for a long moment before shrugging and saying, "Must'a been nuthin'," and turning back to the fire.
Mark and Chickensworth breath a sigh of relief as they creep quietly up to the lead goblin again, taking more care not to step on any twigs again.
They manage to get right up to the lead goblin before Mark accidentally sneezes behind him, and the lead goblin turns around and shouts, “Woa! Who’s tryna sneak up on U’thar?”
[["Uh oh... We've been spotted..."]]"This is too scary! I don't wanna be here anymore!" Mark shouts as he runs to the entrance of the tower and pushes the door open, running away from the goblins and back... wait a minute! This isn't how this goes!
Let's see here... Goes into the tower... faces off against the goblins... get the key... find the next key fragment... I knew it! This is completely wrong!
Well then... ummm... okay... how about... aha! Alright, from the top!
Ahem... As Mark runs away from the Tower of Goblins with Chickensworth, the two of them return back to Wonder Town, and Mark tells himself that he is going to become braver and someday embark on this quest again once he is stronger.
The End!"What do we do Chickensworth?" Mark whispers.
[["I'm just a bush! Nothing to see here!"]]
[[Try to scare the goblins away]]
[[Try to fight the goblins]]The goblins all stare at Mark, confused, before the goblin leader shouts, "Bushes don't talk! Yous ain't a bush! Now scram! Before I do it meself!”
Mark flinches away from the goblin leader. He clearly wasn't buying his act.
[["No, I swear! I really am a bush!"]]
[[Try to scare the goblins away]]
[[Try to fight the goblins]]Mark jumps up from the shadows, waving his arms around and yelling, "OOGA BOOGA BOOGA!"
All the goblins seem unimpressed by Mark's attempt at being scary before Chickensworth also jumps out and starts to squack loudly, flapping his wings around menacingly.
All the goblins scream in terror and start to run off as the leader goblin yells, “That chicken is evil! Retreat! Retreat!"
Mark and Chickensworth celebrate excitedly before Mark says, "Wait a minute... the goblin leader had the key... and now he's gone..." Mark and Chickensworth look at each other before groaning in disappointment.
The two of them walk a little ways away before turning back and seeing all the goblins right back to where they started, as if nothing had changed.
"That's strange... Why are all the goblins back? That's so... Mysterious." (Mark winks at the camera)
"Let's get them again, Chickensworth!"
[[Try to sneak up to the goblins]] Mark stands up confidently and charges towards the goblin leader before immediately tripping on another twig and landing face-first on the ground in front of him. All of the goblins begin to laugh at him and Mark rubs his arm in pain.
"Ha! You call that a hit? Barely a scratch!” the goblin leader mocks Mark.
Seeing Mark being laughed at by the goblins and in pain, Chickensworth leaps out of the darkness and scratches furiously at the goblin leader. The leader shouts out in pain as he swats away at Chickensworth helplessly.
“Yous all needs ta stop foolin’ around! Wes got a problem ova’ here!" The goblin leader shouts to the other goblins.
The dorky goblin steps forward and tries to punch Chickensworth, who jumps out of the way, causing the dorky goblin to hit the goblin leader directly in the face. He tries again to jump at Chickensworth, who stands in front of the goblin leader and flies above the approaching dorky goblin, causing him to again knock over the goblin leader.
Chickensworth walks over to the two incapacitated goblins and pecks the dorky goblin's face, and the goblin yelps in pain.
The dorky goblin stands up and runs away, shouting, “I ain’ts dealin’ wit’ yous anymore!”
Chickensworth then goes and pecks the goblin leader, grabbing the key from around his neck as the goblin leader also shouts out in pain. As he stands up, he shouts out, “He’s too strong! Let’s get outta here!” and runs away with all the other goblins.
Mark goes over to Chickensworth and takes the key from his beak, saying, "Great job Chickensworth! I knew you could do it! Now let's go get that key fragment!"
[[Find the door to the top of the tower]]Most of the goblins start to reach for their weapons as their stares get more suspicious.
"If yous really are a bush, then whys you able to talk when da rest 'a dem ain't?" The goblin leader challenges.
[["I'm a... magical bush! Who has magic powers!"]]
[[Try to scare the goblins away]]
[[Try to fight the goblins]] After a long moment, the dorky goblin gets up and shouts, “Wait a minute… Yous ain’t a goblin!”
The rest of the goblins turn to the dorky goblin and start to all yell at him, making fun of him for not realizing that Mark wasn't really a bush.
Acting quickly while the goblins were distracted, Chickensworth runs up to the lead goblin and snatches the key from around his neck. Fortunately, all the goblins were too focused on ridiculing the dorky goblin to notice, including the lead goblin himself, and Chickensworth runs back to Mark with the key in his beak.
"Great job Chickensworth! Let's get out of here before they notice!"
[[Find the door to the top of the tower]] The two of them search around before finding the wooden doors that lead to the top of the Tower of Goblins. Mark places the key into the keyhole as it vanishes and the doors swing open, revealing a short staircase up.
The two of them climb the stairs before entering another circular room, almost identical to the one in the Tower of Quacks, with another large, wooden chest in the center of the room.
"We did it Chickensworth! We found the next key fragment!"
As Mark goes to open the next chest, the air shimmers with magic as Felix Warbler appears in front of them again.
"Well done! Well done! I'm quite impressed by your display of skill, youngster!" Warbler says proudly. "I knew the two of you had the guts to make it through."
"Mr. Warbler sir! Hello again! But how are you here as well? We just saw you at the Tower of Quacks!"
Warbler smiles knowingly and replies, "A very excellent observation, my friend. All will be revealed in due time. But if you wish to complete this trial, you must yet again answer my question: What did you learn from completing this trial?"
[["Is it that goblins are mean?"]]
[["Is it the importance of bravery?"]]
[["Is it that goblins don't like chickens?"]]Warbler shakes his head with a smile.
"Oh, my young adventurer, there are much more evil creatures out in the wilderness than goblins."
[["Is it that goblins don't like chickens?"]]
[["Is it the importance of bravery?"]] Warbler grins and claps his hands happily.
"Bravo! You got it! This trial was a test of courage! You see, a true adventurer stands proud in the face of danger, no matter the odds. It takes much bravery to venture into the unknown, just like me and my companions did all those years ago. This... is the second virtue that all adventurers must have."
Warbler steps aside with a flourish as he gestures to the wooden chest behind him.
"Now, my young friend, it is time for you to take your well earned reward. You are one step closer to completing my quest. Don't give up yet! I know we will meet again soon. Good luck, adventurer."
With a shimmer of magic, Warbler disappears, leaving only the empty room and the wooden chest. Mark and Chickensworth walk over towards it and open it, revealing the shaft of a key made with shimmering gold. Mark picks it up and pulls out the last key fragment he found in the Tower of Quacks, and the two fragments snap together like magnets before sealing themselves together with a puff of magic.
"We did it Chickensworth! It's time to head to the final trial!"
[[Head to the Tower of Magic]]Warbler laughs heartily as he shakes his head.
"Oh no, my young friend. Although I will say that your solution to my trial was quite unique!"
[["Is it the importance of bravery?"]]
[["Is it that goblins are mean?"]]As Mark and Chickensworth make their way to the final tower, they have to cross through A Mother Foxing Forest, said to be home to a group of dangerous foxes, according to the one who named the forest. With no other choice, they venture into the dense trees.
After wandering around for a few minutes, they are interrupted by a strange man wearing very roughed up clothing, who runs past them screaming, “H-help! There’s a fox attacking me!”
Following behind him is a fox wearing a black bowler hat, a golden monocle, and an oversized black suit. The fox stops in front of Mark and Chickensworth, looking at the two of them curiously.
"Why hello there my fox friend! I’m Mysterious Mark, and this is my companion, Sir Charles Chickensworth III. We're on a quest to find three key fragments to find the legendary Hat of Wonders!" Mark proclaims proudly.
Chickensworth tilts his head suspiciously and says, "Cluck cluck? bock bock bock…"
"Wait a minute… that’s a good point… where *did* you get those clothes from? Did you steal them from a merchant? A merchant with good fashion tastes perhaps?" Mark challenges.
The fox proudly proclaims, "Yip yip! Yip arf arf!"
[["Oh really? He just happened to leave behind clothes because he supposedly got scared? Convenient story!"]]
[["So you were the one who scared him away!"]]"Squawk! Bock bock bock bock!" Chickensworth interjects in realization.
"Wait a minute! Fancy suit? Monocle? By golly jee you might be right Chickensworth! I think this fox might've accidentally stopped that evil scamming merchant!" Mark exclaims.
Mark kneels down and pats the fox's head proudly and says, "Good work little guy! You're a natural adventurer!"
[["Hey! I know! Why don't you join us on our adventure?"]] The fox looks at the ground a little sadly before replying, "Arf arf..."
Mark loosens up a little bit as he kneels down beside the fox and says, "Oh, I'm sorry little guy. I didn't realize you were trying to make friends with him. It isn't your fault!"
"Bock bock bock!" Chickensworth clucks suspiciously.
"Hey! That's true! Why are you wearing human clothes if you were just trying to make friends, huh?" Mark accuses the fox.
Rather than getting scared, the fox starts jumping around excitedly while saying, "Yip yip! Arf arf yip!"
Mark's eyes widen in surprise as he says, "Wait a minute... You're saying he was evil? That you heard him talking about scamming people with these clothes? No way! That's so cool!"
Chickensworth still eyes the fox suspiciously, but doesn't say anything further.
[["Hey! I know! Why don't you join us on our adventure?"]]The fox jumps up and down happily and starts to run around Mark excitedly. Mark laughs along just as happily before standing back up.
"Oh yeah! I didn't get your name!" Mark realizes suddenly.
The fox looks up at Mark with a confused look and asks, "Yip? Yip yip?"
"You don't have a name? That won't do!" Mark says.
"Now... What should we call you?"
[[John]]
[[Fred Foxword IV]]
[[Filip]]The fox looks at Mark with an unimpressed stare.
"Oooookay... Not that one..." Mark says quickly, "Then how about..."
[[Filip]]
[[Fred Foxword IV]] Upon hearing the name, the fox yips and runs around excitedly.
"Great! Then welcome to the team Fred Foxword IV!" Mark proclaims proudly, "Now let's get on our way to the final tower and get that last key fragment!"
[[ACTUALLY head to the Tower of Magic]]The fox considers the name for a moment before shaking his head.
"Got it. Not that one." Mark says. "Then what about..."
[[John]]
[[Fred Foxword IV]] With their new companion in tow, the now gang of three make their way to the Tower of Magic to complete the final trial.
Before they even made it to their destination, they could see the Tower of Magic from a ways away. This tower was the tallest of the towers that they had seen so far, reaching high up into the sky, almost higher than the top of Arthur's Watchtower in Curious City. It wasn't long before they reached the large oak doors that would lead them inside.
As Mark rests his hands on the doors, he says, "Here we go team!" before pushing them open with all of his might.
As sunlight floods into the room, some kind of magic activates as sets of lights blaze to life, filling the room with a wondrous glow. The walls were all painted with a deep blue paint covered in golden stars, the floor was made of an elegant red silk, and the ceiling was painted to look like the night sky.
[[Enter the tower]]As the three of them step inside, the doors slowly shut behind them before the room is suddenly filled with purple mist. They all cover their eyes to block out the mist, and when it clears and they open their eyes, they are met with a set of three puzzles that suddenly appeared before them, as well as a single door that stands in the center of the room.
On the left is a massive stone block with a button beside it, in the middle is a ring of unlit torches, and on the right is a set of three small buttons with glowing symbols on them.
[[Try the left puzzle]]The three of them walk over to the massive stone block puzzle.
"This should be easy!" Mark exclaims, "We just have to move this block onto the button!"
However, when Mark tries to push the block, he comes to the realization that it is, in fact, made of stone, and really really heavy. Even with Chickensworth and Foxword helping, the block doesn't move an inch.
As they look around, however, Foxword finds what looks like a stick laying on the ground and brings it over to Mark.
Mark takes the stick and says, "Great job Foxword! A magic wand! We must need to use magic!"
[[Try to cast a spell on the block]]
[[Wave the wand around saying random words]]
[[Throw the wand at the block]]Mark closes his eyes and, with as much concentration as he can muster, points the wand at the block and shouts, "LEVITATE!"
For a moment, nothing happens. But just as he is about to give up, a stream of blue magic bursts from the wand and hits the block. After a moment of shock from the three of them, the block slowly lifts into the air, just by an inch, but floating nonetheless.
"I did it! I did it!" Mark jumps up and down proudly.
He walks over to the block and gives it a light nudge towards the button, and the massive stone block effortlessly floats over to the button before falling onto it with a loud thump.
A light *Ding!* echoes through the room.
"I think we did it guys!" Mark exclaims happily.
[[Try the middle puzzle]]"Gabbledy Goobldy Wuschabang Kapow!" Mark yells as he wildly waves the wand around like a lunatic.
Nothing happens.
"Gee... Magic is hard..." he says in defeat.
Chickensworth and Foxword both shake their heads in disappointment.
[[Throw the wand at the block]]
[[Try to cast a spell on the block]] Mark throws the wand at the stone block for some reason.
Nothing happens.
"Darn. I thought that would work!" Mark shouts.
Chickensworth and Foxword look at each other with disappointed expressions.
[[Wave the wand around saying random words]]
[[Try to cast a spell on the block]] The three of them now walk to the ring of torches.
"Bock bock bock?" Chickensworth suggests.
Mark nods and replies, "Yeah, we probably just need to light all of them!"
[[Use a match from his travel bag]]
[[Try to cast a fire spell]]
[[Throw the wand at the torches]]Mark reaches into his travel pack and pulls out a match. He lights it and walks over to a torch and tries to light it. The fire burns for a few seconds before disappearing with a *Poof!*.
"Of course it wouldn't be that easy..." Mark mumbles, annoyed.
[[Throw the wand at the torches]]
[[Try to cast a fire spell]] Mark once again closes his eyes and points the wand at the torches, and with all of his focus, he shouts, "IGNITE!"
A tiny spark of flame appears on the tip of the wand for a moment before falling down and landing on Chickensworth's tail.
He squawks in panic as he runs around like a headless chicken (with a head), running past all of the torches and accidentally lighting them all up.
As Mark puts out the fire with some extra water, a *Ding!* echoes through the room.
"Are you okay Chickensworth?" Mark cries out.
Chickensworth glares at Mark and squawks, "Bock bock bock! Squawk!"
"Okay! I'm sorry! I will be more careful next time!" Mark promises.
[[Try the right puzzle]]Mark throws the wand again at the torches. Nothing happens.
"I thought for sure it would work this time!" Mark complains.
Chickensworth and Foxword stare at each other with unimpressed stares.
[[Use a match from his travel bag]]
[[Try to cast a fire spell]] Finally, the three of them walk over to the three plates with glowing symbols. On a closer inspection, the symbols appear to be of a map on the left, a house in the middle, and a chest on the right. In front of the three buttons is a plaque that reads:
**"The steps of an adventure..."**
"This must be a puzzle!" Mark proclaims.
"Yip yip?" Foxword asks in confusion.
"Well... uhhh... yeah... I guess they are all puzzles..." Mark mumbles in embarrassment. "A-anyways! Let's figure this out!"
[[All three of them jump on a button at the same time]]
[[Throw the wand at the buttons]]
[[Try a specific button]]Mark, Chickensworth, and Foxword each take a button and stand in front of it.
"Alright, on three," Mark says, "One... Two... Three!"
They all jump onto their buttons and they press down with a click. The symbols all start to glow red.
Nothing happens.
"Man... Warbler is smarter than I thought..." Mark says as they step off the buttons. The buttons pop back up into place with a click.
[[Throw the wand at the buttons]]
[[Try a specific button]] Mark throws his wand at the buttons. Nothing happens.
"I don't know what I expected ot happen." Mark says.
Chickensworth and Foxword shrug in defeat.
[[All three of them jump on a button at the same time]]
[[Try a specific button]] [[Step on the Map button]]
[[Step on the House button]]
[[Step on the Chest button]]It clicks down. The symbol turns red.
Nothing happens.
[[Try a specific button]] It clicks down. The symbol turns green.
"Aha! I think it might be correct!" Mark says excitedly.
[[Step on the Map button next]]
[[Step on the Chest button next]]It clicks down. The symbol turns red.
Nothing happens.
[[Try a specific button]] It clicks down. The symbol turns green.
"Hey! It worked! And that means that all that's left is..."
[[Step on the final button]]It clicks down. Both the Chest and House symbols turn red.
Nothing happens
[[Try a specific button]] Mark leaps onto the Chest button and it clicks down, the symbol turning green like all the others.
A final *Ding!* echoes through the room, and a burst of confetti bursts up in front of the door that is in the middle of the room.
"We solved the puzzle!" Mark exclaims happily, doing a little dance of excitement.
[[Investigate the door]]The three of them walk up to the strange door in the middle of the room, a pile of confetti now on the ground around it. They walk around it and examine it form every side, but there doesn't appear to be anything strange about it.
It isn't until Foxword nudges the door that he yelps in surprise.
"What is it?" Mark shouts as he and Chickensworth run over to Foxword.
They turn to the door to find that, instead of showing the other side of the room, there's a completely different room!
They step through the doorway to find that this new room is actually the top of the Tower of Magic, with empty windows overlooking the land of Mysteria for miles. The three of them look out of the window in wonder for a while, just taking in the view.
Finally, Mark turns his attention back to the center of the room, where he finds, just like the last two towers, a single wooden chest in the center of the room.
[[Approach the chest]]All three of them walk towards the chest before yet another shimmer of magic appears in the air, and Felix Warbler yet again appears in front of them.
"Excellent work my three adventurers! You have completed my third and final trial! I knew you'd have it in you!" Warbler says.
Mark looks up at Warbler and asks, "Can you finally tell us how you got here before we did?"
Warbler laughs heartily as he shakes his head. "Oh no, my young adventurer, for your quest is not yet complete. You still must answer my third question: What did you learn from completing this trial?"
Mark groans in annoyance before standing proudly and answering.
[["It's the importance of understanding magic!"]]
[["It's that throwing a wand doesn't work!"]]
[["It's that casting magic is really hard!"]]This causes Warbler to laugh for a long moment before he finally says, "Oh heavens, of course it doesn't! A wizard's tool shouldn't be treated so carelessly!"
[["It's that casting magic is really hard!"]]
[["It's the importance of understanding magic!"]] Warbler smiles fondly and says, "That is true. It takes many years of training to fully master magic. However, that isn't the correct answer."
[["It's that throwing a wand doesn't work!"]]
[["It's the importance of understanding magic!"]] Warbler nods and says, "That is correct, my young friend. For you see, in the great land of Mysteria, magic can be found in many places. Some friendly. Some curious. Some dangerous. But you never know what it might be when you're venturing into unexplored places."
Warbler leans down and puts a hand on Mark's shoulder. "I know that casting magic was difficult, and believe me, I was the same way when I was your age. But it doesn't take a mastery of magic to know when to use it and when to avoid it. Without magic, our world would be nothing more than a barren, empty wasteland, with no true motivations for adventure."
He stands back up and holds out his hand as a small, shimmering version of the Hat of Wonders appears in his hand. "Is that not precisely why you set out on this quest, hm? It was because of powerful magic, mystical artifacts, and sources of knowledge that drive adventurers to explore. But without any knowledge of how to properly use it..."
Warbler crushes his hand into a fist, the shimmering Hat of Wonders bursting in a cloud of red magic, "Can cause great danger for those around you. That is why I made sure that anyone who dared try to reach the Hat of Wonders could prove themselves capable of handling its power."
Warbler finally steps aside and gestures to the chest. "It is time to complete your journey, my young adventurer. May we meet at your final destination."
With a shimmer of magic, Warbler vanishes, leaving behind an empty room yet again.
Mark slowly walks to the chest and opens it, pulling out a set of key teeth made out of a pristine blue crystal. He pulls out the combined key fragments and, just like before, the fragments all snap together, forming the final reformed key.
"We did it, Chickensworth and Foxword..." Mark breathed softly, "We assembled the key to the Hat of Wonders..."
With a solemn nod at his two companions, Mark turns towards the door and says, "Let's finally finish this adventure."
[[Follow the map to the Hat of Wonders]]As the three adventurers set out to their final destination, they are stopped by the sudden appearance of Obvious Oliver, who ambushes them outside the Tower of Magic.
"Hahaha! I finally found ya, Mark Mysterious!" he shouts.
"Umm, actually, it's Mysterious Mark," Mark corrects him.
Oliver scowls and retorts, "Sh-shut up! I got it wrong on purpose! Because... you're a loser! Now I'm gonna take your map!"
[["What? Why would you tell me you’re going to steal it? Now I know you’re going to steal it and I won’t let you!"]]
"Oh yeah? Well… now I know that you know I’m going to steal it! So now I can steal the key from you!" Oliver shouts back.
[["Oh yeah? Well now I know you’re going to steal the key, so I won’t let you-"]]Before Mark can even finish, Oliver jumped out and snatched the map from Mark's hands.
"Hahahaha! I got your maaaap! I got you maaaap!" He taunts before running away, cackling to himself.
"Hey! Get back here you little goblin!" Mark shouts.
[[Chase Oliver down]]It only takes ten seconds for Mark to catch up to Oliver and corner him against a tree.
"Aaah! Why are you so fast? Stupid stubby legs..." Oliver complains.
Chickensworth and Foxword catch up to them and surround Oliver on all sides.
"Hand over the map, Oliver!" Mark shouts.
Oliver waves his hands in the air and yells, "Wait wait wait! L-let's make a deal! A trade! Y-you're a merchant too! Y-you can't resist making a trade!"
"Fine! What do you want?" Mark asks as Chickensworth and Foxword both shake their heads in distress, trying to get Mark to not trust Oliver.
"Give me ten gold for da map!" Oliver declares.
[["Five gold!"]]
[["Fine, I'll pay."]]
[["Twenty gold!"]]Oliver scowls and retorts, "Thirty gold!"
[["One hundred gold!"]]
[["Twenty gold!"]]
Mark reluctantly hands Oliver the gold as Oliver hands him the map with an evil grin.
"Pleasure doin' business with ya!" Before he runs off into the distance.
"Phew! That sure was scary! Thankfully we got our map back!" Mark says with a sigh of relief.
However, when he opens what he thought would be the map, he is instead met by a bad crayon drawing of a goblin face.
"Oh no! This isn't the real map!" Mark exclaims in a panic.
Foxword rolls his eyes at Mark, but Chickensworth reaches into his feathers and somehow pulls out a second map that he had made using his beak along the adventure.
"Chickensworth, you genius! You had a second map the whole time!" Mark shouts as he grabs the new map from Chickensworth. "Quickly gang! We gotta get to the Hat of Wonders before Oliver does!"
[[Hurry to the Hat of Wonders]]Oliver looks confused before shouting back, "Ten gold!"
[["Fine, I'll pay."]]
[["One hundred gold!"]]
[["Five gold!"]]"Five gold! Take it or leave it!" Oliver exclaims.
[["Fine, I'll pay."]]Following Chickensworth's backup map, the three of them manage to make it to the resting place of the Hat of Wonders: The mythical **Wonders of Whimsical Warbler** museum. After a quick search around, they don't find any trace of Oliver.
"I think we made it before him, guys!" Mark said, "Let's find the Hat of Wonders and get out of here!"
[[Enter the museum]]Mark takes out the fully reformed key from his bag and walks up to the museum doors. The key flies out of his hand and into the lock, turning and unlocking the doors before vanishing into mist.
Mark leads the way as they step into the museum, torch lights all blazing to life along the walls to reveal the main lobby of the museum. Right beside the entrance was a room that was labeled in bright, colorful letters: (bg:(gradient: 135, 0.0459,#e61919,0.2191,#ff8000,0.3822,#e5e619,0.5707,#19e619,0.7643,#1919e6,0.9325,#7f19e6))[Gift Shop]
To their right was a pathway that led off to a section labeled: **Adventuring Magic**.
Directly down the middle was a large pathway that had a sign above that simply said: **The Hat of Wonders**
[[Head to the Gift Shop]]
[[Head to the Hat of Wonders]]
[[Head to Adventuring Magic]]"Hehehehe! Where do you think you're all going?" a voice echoes around the room.
[["Obvious Oliver!"]]"Hehehehe! Where do you think you're all going?" a voice echoes around the room.
[["Obvious Oliver!"]]"Hehehehe! Where do you think you're all going?" a voice echoes around the room.
[["Obvious Oliver!"]]Oliver jumps out from behind a display case and stands in front of the three adventurers.
"You didn't think you'd get away that easily, did ya?" Oliver taunts.
"Impossible! How did you get in without the key?" Mark exclaims.
Oliver laughs and replies, "You didn't need a key to get in! I went in through the roof! And now the Hat of Wonders is going to be all mine! As soon as I deal with you!"
Oliver grabs a glowing flaming dagger from the nearest display case and points it at the three of them, forcing them to be backed up all the way into the gift shop. Oliver stands at the entrance, guarding it with the sword held out menacingly.
"You ain't getting out of this one, Mark!" Oliver says with a maniacal laugh.
[[Check the gift shop items]]
[[Check behind the clerk counter]]
[[Try to get past Oliver]]Mark, Chickensworth, and Foxword all frantically search the gift shop shelves for anything that might help them, but everything that was on the shelves were all fake toys or silly magic gadgets.
"There's nothing here to help us!" Mark says to them.
[[Try to get past Oliver]]
[[Check behind the clerk counter]] Desperately, Mark goes behind the counter and searches for anything that would help, only to come up empty. That was until Foxword jumped up and opened the cash register to reveal stacks of neatly lined gold coins.
"Nice thinking Foxword! We can distract him with these!" Mark says as he picks up the cash register.
Doing his best to not be spotted, Mark starts to create a trail of coins to the back of the gift shop before sneakily placing one in front of Oliver.
Oliver's eyes snap down to the coin excitedly and says, "Ooh! A coin!" as he reaches down with one hand to pick it up. And then he does it again. And again. Each time, placing the coin into his pocket.
Mark quickly starts to continue the trial of coins to lead Oliver out of the gift shop, with Oliver being completely distracted by the coin trail. Then, Mark notices that the coins seem to be filling back up in the cash register.
"Bock bock!" Chickensworth clucks in realization.
"You're right, Chickensworth! The coins are returning to the register! We can lead Oliver anywhere! But where?"
[[Lead him to the Adventuring Magic section]]
[[Lead him to the exit]]
[[Lead him back into the gift shop]]Mark tries to approach Oliver, only to be met by him waving the flaming sword at him.
"You ain't escaping me, Mark! You're all trapped here so long as I'm in the way!" Oliver taunts.
[[Check behind the clerk counter]]
[[Check the gift shop items]]Mark carefully leads the trail of coins towards the other section of the museum, keeping an eye out for anything that might be able to help him. They make a full loop through the entire section before returning to the entrance.
"What did you guys manage to see?" Mark asks Foxword and Chickensworth.
"Bock bock!" Chickensworth suggests.
"Yip yip arf!" Foxword adds.
Mark brings them back to the gift shop and stops the coin trail to think. "A magic campfire... A tent of holding... and a magic net.... What should we do team?"
[[Try the tent]]
[[Try the campfire]]
[[Try the net]]Mark leads the trail of coins outside of the museum, carefully leading Oliver out of the building before running back inside and closing the door.
"Haha! We got him!" Mark cheered excitedly to Chickensworth and Foxword.
Before he could even set the register down, however, Oliver jumps down from the ceiling and shouts, "You sneaky rat! You tried to trick me! Well you ain't gonna fool me again!"
He runs forward with the flaming sword, and Mark quickly starts the trail of coins again, causing Oliver to immediately get distracted again.
[[Lead him back into the gift shop]]
[[Lead him to the Adventuring Magic section]]Mark leads the trail of coins in a circle and back into the gift shop.
"Arf arf arf!" Foxword says as they loop back to where they started.
Mark puts his hand over his face and groans. "You're so right, Foxword... We're right back where we started! This isn't right at all!"
Mark leads the trail of coins back out of the gift shop.
[[Lead him to the exit]]
[[Lead him to the Adventuring Magic section]] Repeating exactly what he did before, Mark leads the coin trail, and Oliver, to the Tent of Holding, leading him inside. Entering the tent revealed that it was very specious on the inside, with multiple rooms and furnishings around. It almost looked like a house.
However, Oliver stepped inside and looked up as well at all of the furnishings before turning back to the three of them and saying, "Haha! You just trapped yourselves again in a new place! There's nowhere to go!"
The three of them glanced at each other and shook their heads. This wasn't going to stop Oliver!
They trick him again as they lead the coin trial back to the museum entrance.
[[Try the campfire]]
[[Try the net]] With a grin, Mark leads the trail of coins all the way to the Everburning Campfire, and makes the coins lead over the fire, taking care not to touch it himself.
As Oliver approaches the campfire, completely unknowing of the trap, steps into the fire to grab the coin. Unfortunately, it appears as though the fire wasn't even real, and Oliver stepped straight through it with no consequences.
"Darn... Warbler made a really convincing campfire..." Mark mumbled as they reset and led Oliver back to the museum entrance.
[[Try the tent]]
[[Try the net]]Mark leads the trail of coins all the way over the Net of Trapping, being careful not to step on it himself. The three of them hide behind a display case as they watch Oliver approach the net, and as soon as his foot touches it, it snaps up and wraps around Oliver, causing him to drop the flaming sword, which goes out.
"Gah! Hey! Let me out!" he shouts angrily.
"Haha! We did it!" Mark exclaims proudly. "Take that Oliver! It's time to go get the Hat of Wonders!"
As they all walk out of the Adventuring Magic section, Oliver yells out after them, "You haven't seen the last of me Mark Mysteriooooouuuusssss!"
[[Finally reach the Hat of Wonders]]Going through the central hallway towards the Hat of Wonders, they reach a large room occupied only by a single pedestal in the center, and on top of it was the mythical Hat of Wonders.
(Cutscene)
Mark carefully steps up to the pedestal, Chickensworth and Foxword standing behind and watching him. With a delicate touch, Mark lifts the hat off the pedestal, holding it in his hands with awe.
"We finally did it... We found the Hat of Wonders..." Mark says breathlessly. "It took so much time and effort to get here... but we finally made it..."
With a slow, deliberate motion, Mark places the Hat of Wonders on his head, opening his arms wide and closing his eyes, waiting for the moment of wonder.
Almost a minute goes by with nothing happening.
Confused, Mark takes the hat off and tries to put it on again, but still nothing happens.
"What is going on? Why isn't it showing me all the secrets of the universe?" Mark ask out loud in confusion.
"That's because there never was a Hat of Wonders to begin with," a now familiar voice said from behind him. Mark whipped around and standing there once again was Grandmaster Felix Warbler.
"You see, my young friend, years ago I set out on my own adventure, much like yourself, seeking glory and power and excitement. Years went by, discovering new places all over the land you now know as Mysteria. It was a thrilling time. But eventually, I came to realize that reaching the end of an adventure... wasn't something to be celebrated. For you see... What is there to do when you've seen everything? That was when I made the decision to retire as an adventurer, settling down in a cozy cottage in the wilderness."
Warbler waves his hand, and two chairs appear in front of them. He gestures to the opposite chair as he sits down.
[[Sit in the chair]]"It wasn't until I quit adventuring that I could finally realize what I was missing. The excitement of an adventure isn't the reward, or the final destination. What makes an adventure exciting is experiences you have along the way. The end goal is just the reason to begin it. That was why I created the legend of the Hat of Wonders. I wanted to encourage a new generation of adventurers in a world that had already been explored. To inspire in others the joy of the journey."
Warbler puts a hand on Mark's shoulder and continues, "You, my young friend, are exactly the sort of people I wish to inspire. But... as you may have guessed... I'm no longer around. This is all that remains of me. Powerful remnants of magic that can do little but recreate how I was back then. But still... it is enough to inspire new adventurers for generations."
With a smile, Warbler stands up and takes the Hat of Wonders off of Mark's head, placing it gently back on the pedestal.
"I know it may be a disappointment to find out that this adventure leaves you empty handed, but can you truly say you gained nothing along the way? You learned to be brave in the face of danger, to be cunning in the face of challenges, to be kind in the face of anger, and even managed to find a new friend along the way."
Mark gazes over at Foxword, who jumps around happily with Chickensworth.
"My final request of you... is to bring this joy to others. Give people the same excitement of adventure as you felt today. And perhaps you, too, may go down in history, just as I once did. Farewell, adventurer."
Warbler slowly fades away into mist as Mark turns back to Chickensworth and Foxword.
"Come on gang. I think its about time we head back home."
THE END