Thief and Queen

Thief and Queen

• Related Event: The Hunt for Harmony/March 2019
• Release Date: March 31, 2019
• Featured Characters: Nefaria, Vida, Renelle

Dialogue

Renelle is regaling Vida with tales of past adventures.

Renelle: ...And then the stone gate shut, and I was trapped in the ruins!

Renelle: Cursing my luck, I frantically surveyed my surroundings—and on the other side of the room, I saw this mysterious figure.

Vida: *gulp* And then?!

Renelle: It crept toward me, and—

Nefaria: Greetings.

Vida: EEEEK!

Nefaria: Hm?

Vida: Dangit, Nefaria! Don't scare me like that!

Nefaria: Apologies. You appeared rapt, and I yenned to know the cause.

Nefaria: I fear I have disturbed your gaiety. I shall take my leave.

Vida: Hold on! Now that you're here, we might as well listen to Renelle's story together.

Vida: She was just telling me about one of her most harrowing adventures.

Nefaria: Aye, treasure hunting?

Vida: That's right! She travels all over the world to explore ruins and discover legendary treasures. Along the way, there's always traps, thrills, chills, and spills!

Renelle: And on this particular adventure, I brought in probably the second-biggest haul of my career. Heh!

Renelle: It was an ancient ruin, long-buried in the sandseas to the south. The traps were ingenious—and deadly—but the treasures inside were worth every bead of sweat.

Renelle: I don't want to brag, but this is probably the greatest story ever told. Ha ha!

Nefaria: I would fain enjoy listening to you rousing tales of derring-do.

Vida: Er...right then! C'mon, grab a seat!

Renelle: So where was I... Ah! Right...

Renelle: I was trapped within the ruin, and a mysterious figure was closing in.

Renelle: Was it a person? An animal? A GHOST? No, it was actually...

Renelle: A towering stone statue equipped with a razor-sharp spear!

Vida: What?! How was a statue moving?!

Nefaria: Hmm... Could it be...?

Vida: Anyways, I'm sure you took care of it lickety-split, right?

Renelle: You bet! See, I figured out its secret the moment I saw it. It turns out...

Vida: *gulp*

Renelle: ...that the statue...

Nefaria: Moved through mana.

Renelle: .....

Nefaria: It sensed a foreign source of mana and sought to see it slain, yes?

Renelle: How did you know that...?

Renelle: I-I mean, yeah, you got it! Pretty sharp.

Renelle: So, I channeled mana into the tools I'd brought with me and scattered them all around—and that TOTALLY confused the statue.

Renelle: It stopped dead in its tracks, leaving me free to explore even deeper.

Vida: Woooow... You're amazing! I can't believe you figured out how that statue worked so quickly—and even thought up such a perfect solution!

Renelle: Heh, it was nothing, really. Just another day in the life!

Vida: And Nefaria, you figured out the trick just as fast—and you didn't even SEE the statue!

Renelle: (Yeah... She totally stole my thunder...)

Nefaria: Your extolment is misguided. Those ruins were—

Renelle: AAANYWAY, I continued on, deeper into the depths.

Renelle: There were more traps, a big long hallway, and a hidden door. And beyond that door was—

Nefaria: A mask of jade?

Renelle: What the?!
...

Renelle: According to an antiquities dealer, the snow crystal was—

Nefaria: A diplomatic gift given to commemorate trade relations with the north.

Renelle: Bwuh?!
...

Renelle: As I drew closer to the treasure chest, I felt something eerie and dangerous in the air and—

Nefaria: You had only to avoid stepping on the crest secluded in the floor, and then you wouldn't have been shot by the arrows.

Renelle: Rrrgh!
...

Renelle: I had made it to the deepest depths of the ruin, and I took the final treasure in hand. It was—

Nefaria: A golden crozier.

Renelle: Okay, what is your DEAL?!

Renelle: How do you know all these things?!

Renelle: You know the traps, the treasures, and even the appraisal I got from the dang antiquities expert!

Nefaria: As it happens, I am intimately familiar with the ruins you speak of.

Renelle: But HOW?! Nobody had ever been that deep before!

Vida: You know what I heard?

Vida: I heard Nefaria was the queen of an ancient land.

Vida: If that's really true, then the ruins you were in could have actually been...

Nefaria: Indeed, I ordered their construction.

Vida: Score one for Vida! So the rumors are true then? You're the queen of legend?

Renelle: But then... Oh jeez.

Renelle: I think I owe you an apology, Nefaria.

Nefaria: Whyever for?

Renelle: I hunt treasure because whoever owned it bit the dust a long time ago; it's not doing them any good. But stealing from the living? That just makes me a thief.

Renelle: And I've got way too much pride for that. So here's a promise...

Renelle: I'll buy back every last piece of treasure I stole from you and return them all.

Nefaria: Fie, but that is unnecessary!

Renelle: What, why?

Nefaria: As you explained, those trinkets served no purpose imprisoned in the sands. They are for the better, returned to the world.

Nefaria: Save your intervention, they would be mouldering in the darkness still—so I adjudge your actions good.

Nefaria: Should you swell your purse with them, or delight Vida with tales of their procurement, then all the better.

Vida: Wow—not just a queen, but a GENEROUS queen.

Renelle: Y-you're really giving me the okay to keep looting your old home?

Renelle: Well, I hope you know I don't do any job halfway!

Renelle: Word on the street is there are plenty of buried ruins left to find.

Renelle: So you better believe I'm gonna dig up each one, find all the treasures, and sell 'em to the highest bidder!

Renelle: If you don't want me dredging up your grandpa's favorite chamberpot or whatever, this is your last chance to back out!

Nefaria: Such things are long swept from my memory.

Nefaria: So in truth, you would do me a great kindness by unearthing them.

Renelle: Say what?

Nefaria: My subjects who built those ruins would surely be pleased for them to see the light of day once more, and it will honor their memory besides.

Nefaria: I await your expedition with alacrity, Renelle.

Renelle: Sure, keep up the calm act while you can. The next time we meet, I'm gonna surprise you so hard you'll—

Vida: Say, Nefaria? Are there any knives in your ruins?

Nefaria: Aye, they are legion.

Vida: Well then I'm comin' too. Ancient ruins plus knives equals LEGENDARY KNIVES!

Nefaria: I recall not their annals, but I pray you find joy.

Vida: We totally will! All right, all that's left now is to let Renelle find those ruins for us!

Nefaria: Indeed. I leave this in your hands, Renelle.

Vida: Thanks, Renelle!

Renelle: DON'T I GET A SAY IN THIS?!