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Old 03-31-2012, 10:46 PM   #58
WitchOfDoubt
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(Note: By finding the hidden message in the records and solving the earlier puzzle involving Ocean's housekeys, you have unlocked the segments related to Hope.)

In 2021...

As the guests sat quietly at the table, a figure emerged from the shadows of the banquet hall.

"Well," said the newcomer, her voice flat and even. She was sleek, graceful, and strangely ageless, and in her right hand, she carried a long obsidian rod. "It seems," she said, "that the Human Side is unwilling to find the second way out of that maze. Perhaps a little encouragement is in order."

"You needn't need go that far!" snapped the Sapphire Witch, but the newcomer waved a hand, calling for silence.

"Don't test my patience," said this new Witch. "Boy!" she said, turning to the youth opposite the Sapphire Witch. "Do you know who I am?"

"Maybe," said the boy. "Are you the Witch of Secrets?"

The Witch of Secrets smiled. "Indeed. Yes. I am. And I imagine that all of you have come to 'solve the story.'" She waved her rod, and a red scythe-blade sprung from the tip. "Be my guest. It amuses me when mortals seek to surpass the power of Witches."

Although the implied threat filled the boy with dread, he concealed it as well as he was able. "Quit playing around and get to the point! I want the truth of what happened that night.

Why was my mother disgraced? What was up with the disappearances? Do we even know who won that inheritance dispute?"

The Witch of Secrets chuckled, low and cruel. "You have more pressing problems to consider. Every time the Human Side fails to solve a riddle, the power of the Witch Side grows."

Miss Cox nodded. "It's true. In Witch's Chess, it is the duty of humans to provide a 'rational solution.' If the Human Side stops thinking, magic wins by default."

"Now," said the Witch of Secrets. "It is time for you to see the true power of the Witch's Darkness."

----

After glancing left and right to make sure nobody was watching, Walter Sexton and L.V. Seaton-Ford stepped away from the rest of the crowd, into the darkness of the club's hallways.

"Dude, what's up?" asked L. V. "You looked kinda angry there."

Sexton faced him and sighed. "More disappointed. I know you object to Ms. Ellis on general principle. But there's no reason to snipe at her."

L. V. grinned with his mouth, but not his eyes. "You think she even notices?"

"I've known Ms. Ellis for some time," replied Sexton, sounding tired. "She pretends not to notice, but she does." They kept walking, losing track of their surroundings as they talked. "Do you blame her for what happened?"

"She coulda waited until the body was cold."

"That's not an answer, young man, and - where are we now?"

They had reached an unfamiliar place in the Club - a small, square room with stone walls that they'd never seen before, lit by a flickering chandelier. On the floor was engraved a large letter "A" in Gothic script, and foreboding archways lay to the north, south, east, and west, with the letters "N," "S," "E", and "W", engraved over each arch, respectively. All opened into long, dark, curving tunnels.

"What's this?" said Sexton, picking up an envelope from the floor. It bore a distinctive seal:




Find a way out or die.

You get a two-move head start.


Signed,
The Witch of Secrets

From somewhere to the south, the two heard the sound of inhuman shrieks and hisses. Whatever they were, they were getting closer. But surely there was a rational explanation for this...

Walter and L. V. have been trapped in the maze. Use compass directions to guide them through the labyrinth, one room at a time, and hurry!
__________________
The Sapphire Witch cordially invites you to a labyrinth of riddles and mysteries, The Witch's Epigraph.

Last edited by WitchOfDoubt; 03-31-2012 at 10:56 PM.
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